Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Before Shouta even begins his patrol, there seems to already be a ruckus in the city tonight.

He's been listening out to reports, catching fragments of a confusing story. There'd been an attack on the bank during the after-hours, but it seems to already have been dealt with. Shouta can't find out what or who dealt with it, and eye-witness reports seem to be scattered and muddled with too many different details to make much sense of anything.

There’s one detail that does come out in unanimous agreement, though. There had been people in trouble, and someone had saved them.

He knows it can’t have been Hizashi or Oboro, because both of them had been tied up with another job during that time frame. And very few other heroes work around this area, and most would have given them a heads-up that they'd be passing through.

So Shouta starts his patrol warily, a headache already feeling like it's pressing against the back of his eyes. It's been a while since they've had any kind of incidents like this, and he's hoping that all of it does not unravel to reveal an even bigger mess.

He heads down a path that he knows will give him the advantage of getting up to the rooftops without being seen, and is surprised to find that there is someone already in the alley he goes to walk down.

They're tucked away, almost covered by the shadows entirely. This alley is too deep for the street lights to reach, and there are no lights in the buildings either side of this alley — it's why Shouta picks it, because he knows that there are usually no lingering people around this area.

It's not the first time Shouta has encountered someone in one of his usual alleys before, as sometimes people that are homeless make it their place to stay for a night. It's usually alright, as Shouta is a well-known whisper amongst those on the street, and they stay quiet about his presence because they know they are given protection in turn.

But this figure is staying purposely in the shadows, almost perfectly concealed — a type of skill that Shouta can easily recognise, as it is hardly ever mastered. Shouta quietly heads in further, and he's starting to get a better idea of the figure in this alley now.

It's a boy, curled in on himself, one of his knees drawn up, and one of his hands is tightly pressed against the opposite upper arm.

The boy is staring right back at Shouta, which is surprising, because Shouta made sure that his approach had been stealthy. He knows that most people wouldn't have detected him, though perhaps he should have expected it, already aware that the boy clearly knows too much about hiding. It's his own mistake, and he won't make it again.

They stare at each other, both trying to assess if it is a threat in front of them.

He's too young, Shouta thinks. Even if he's meant to be a threat, Shouta is not sure he would be able to make him one.

Then the boy's eyes widen, his posture relaxing ever so slightly — too much, potentially, if he's pressing his hands to himself to try and put pressure on a wound. Shouta doesn't get the chance to figure it out, or ask about it, as the boy speaks first.

"You're Eraserhead," he says, and though he's attempting to whisper, his voice still comes across with easily detectable excitement. Shouta pauses in surprise, because he's a figure known around the streets, but they usually do not know his hero name. They usually do not want to find out, because many of them fear they'd become a target for mixing in with any kind of dangerous crowd — even if Shouta is on the heroes side, he is still dangerous, and it is a risk no one is usually willing to take.

The boy goes to move, like he's about to scramble up and ask Shouta for his autograph or something rather than away, but Shouta catches the sharp inhale of pain that quietly escapes.

Shouta has plenty of questions, but he needs to take priority.

"Are you injured?" Shouta asks, cautiously walking closer. The boy watches him with the same wide-eyes. Shouta knows the look well of when people gaze upon a hero in wonder, impressed with the person before them.

But then the boy blinks, and he glances down at his own body, and his hand hesitantly drops a little lower down his arm. Now it looks like the boy wants to leave.

"Um. No?" is the response, and Shouta raises his eyebrows. It's not an expression the boy will be able to see because of the goggles, but he's sure that the boy can pick up his exasperation from his aura alone.

It's strange. The boy clearly recognises Shouta as a hero, even if that information is very limited. But the boy does not want Shouta's help.

"No?" Shouta repeats, and he crouches down so that he's now eye level with the boy.

He's wearing a dark green hoodie, and it's dark enough that Shouta almost misses the way it's been ripped near the hood that's fallen back from the boy's head. He's got a scarf wrapped around his neck, but overall it's not the greatest disguise Shouta has seen.

"So you won't mind if I take a look?" Shouta asks, gesturing to the boy's arm.

The boy anxiously tugs at the fabric of his jacket, and Shouta also manages to catch the way the it's been ripped on his arm as well. It looks jagged, like whatever cut through him got stuck in the material, and Shouta can see the way that the edges of the rips have been further darkened. Shouta is impressed that the sleeve of the hoodie is even on anymore.

"I— Really, there's nothing to look at!" The boy insists, and one of his arms reaches out and he waves his hands frantically, like he's able to keep Shouta away with that alone.

"Isn't there?" Shouta questions, and he sits back on his heels and waits.

The boy looks flustered, hands slowly dropping as he realises that Shouta isn't going to push for him to reveal anything. But as Shouta expects, he starts to become anxious as Shouta makes no attempt to move away either.

"You— you're going on patrol, right? Don't let me get in your way," the boy insists, and Shouta huffs.

"You're not in the way," Shouta says plainly, and the boy shifts nervously. His eyes dart down the alley, clearly looking for an attempt to escape.

Shouta is at a disadvantage in terms of knowledge between them, because the boy clearly knows who he is and likely knows his Quirks, meanwhile Shouta knows nothing. Shouta's advantage in this situation is that if his Quirk allows him to move quickly, even with an injury, then at least Shouta will be able to disable that with his own.

"I'm really okay, Eraserhead," the boy says, even though his hand has returned to press against his arm.

"So I assume you won't be seeking medical attention by a professional?" Shouta questions. The boy immediately hunches in on himself, guilt clear on his face, and Shouta sighs.

"Are you in some kind of trouble?" Shouta asks, purposely softening his voice. Shouta does his best to watch the local gangs, does his best to make sure that they don't recruit or prey on those young and vulnerable to their dirty tricks, but he knows that things still manage to slip through.

The boy shakes his head immediately. "No, no. I'm not— I'm not in trouble or anything. I just... I really wasn't meant to be there, but I'm not meant to be here either, and I'm fine, really! I'm not in trouble! I'm sorry if I'm causing you any!"

He sounds panicked, words tumbling over each other. Shouta takes a careful moment to pick apart the infliction of his tone, trying to be certain that he's not panicking because he's trying to desperately lie.

Shouta doesn't think he's lying, he finally decides. But it's definitely strange that he would refuse professional medical attention.

"Alright," Shouta says, and he pulls off his goggles and lets them fall around his neck. The boy watches the movements, and he meets Shouta's eyes with obvious surprise. Shouta gives him a small shrug, because the boy already knows what his hero name is. It's likely that he'll be able to figure out who Shouta is anyway, if he hasn't already, and it's not like Shouta's appearance matters much when he's hardly seen.

His identity doesn't matter as much as it might have before, as he's slowly making his way out of underground hero work anyway.

Shouta reaches down towards his belt, making his movements obvious so that he doesn't startle the boy. He breaks eye-contact as he looks down, fingers running over different objects until he manages to pull out a roll of gauze from his pocket, as well as a small bottle of disinfectant.

He's not happy about the fact that the boy seems like he won't be seeking proper attention for his wounds, but this is the best he can do for the moment. Hopefully enough to help make sure the wound is clean and properly bandaged.

"Well," Shouta says, placing the items down between them as an offering. "Even if you're not injured," Shouta pauses there, just to make sure his disbelief and exasperation are very clear, "I'm going to just leave these here anyway."

The boy is staring at the items like he can't quite believe they're in front of him. His fingers clench a little tighter into his own skin, and Shouta is glad that the bleeding doesn't seem to be too bad at least. Shouta has definitely patched up similar wounds with just these items before, even if it's not ideal, but it should be enough.

It's really not ideal, and he'd like to look over the wound properly himself, but he has a feeling that even if this boy recognises that Shouta is a hero, he still won't accept his help anyway. Not tonight, not here.

If it were any worse of a wound, Shouta would be insisting upon proper medical attention. But a wound against his upper arm should be okay, the boy should be okay on his own, and Shouta has to decide between gaining trust with him or pushing past limits to make sure that he's gotten medical attention.

"Here," Shouta says, reaching into his pockets to retrieve something else. He only has a pen that's already low on ink, and he curses it as he struggles to scribble his phone number onto the small pad of paper. "Take this, just in case you ever need it."

He rips the pad of paper and puts it down amongst his medical items, his messy scribble hopefully legible enough. He hopes that it's not needed, but he hopes that it's enough for the boy to reach out if he ever wants or needs to.

Right now, medical attention isn’t the difference between life and death, so Shouta thinks that his best chance is gaining trust — just in case this boy comes across a worse scenario, Shouta wants to make sure that he's come across as a reliable contact.

Shouta stays crouched for another couple of moments, but he figures that this is the most he can do right now. He just has to trust that this boy will be alright, and that he's truly not lying when he says that he's not in any trouble. If nothing else, Shouta is at least sure that this boy knows how to hide himself from it.

"And if you ever need it," Shouta finds himself saying before he can really even think it through, just hoping to create a safe enough space for the boy to actually respond positively, “there's always places you can stay, no matter how long you might require it."

It's a clear offer for tonight as well, but the boy remains quiet, his lips pressed together. It's clear that he's thinking about how to turn down Shouta. It's clear that he won't take up the offer tonight.

Shouta pushes down his disappointment and goes to get up, fingers coming up to secure his goggles back properly on his face. He's not quite sure what to say, because what he wants to say is that this boy should really go get his injuries looked at, that there's safe places Shouta can guarantee for him, and that Shouta can help. But those words likely won't do much, and Shouta doesn't want to push the boy. So he doesn't say anything, even though his mind is racing.

But he knows he's said everything he can tonight to this boy — that anything else he says will only make this boy feel more cornered, more anxious. And Shouta feels confident that the wound will be okay, and will likely be so even without Shouta's medical equipment. So he makes a silent promise to himself that he'll come back to this alleyway later in the night, keeping an eye out from the distance.

The boy is quiet as well, but Shouta is relieved to see him reach out for the medical items in front of him. When his fingers circle around the gauze, Shouta turns his head away, because he doesn't want the boy to feel anxious about Shouta watching him too closely. Just as he’s about to start heading up for the rooftops, the boy speaks.

"Thank you, Eraserhead," he says, his gratitude so thick that it sounds like it's almost choking him.

Shouta nods, and swallows down any further words of concern.

He heads up to the rooftops, and by the time he doubles back near the middle of his patrol, the alleyway is empty.

The next day, after he crashes out for a few hours of sleep, he heads over to the agency.

Hizashi is in, but he's already halfway out the door by the time Shouta enters the building. It's a relatively small space, as it's an office just dedicated for the three of them to work, plus a couple of other rooms. They have a couple of staff members — just people to help them organise their files and job assignments and other assortments, and occasionally have a work experience student or two come in as well, but the space doesn't allow for much else.

They'll probably upgrade soon. They have the capacity to now, and have for a while. Hizashi is thankfully organising it all along with some of their staff, and Shouta isn't too interested in all of that. As long as he can continue to work his odd-hours and do his usual underground work, then he doesn't mind what happens.

"You're up! L.C just went on break, so I'm going to go meet up with him for a late lunch. Do you want to come?" Hizashi asks, words loud and booming as he almost skids to a stop when he sees Shouta.

"Hm? No thanks," Shouta replies around a yawn, waving him off.

"You stayed out late for your patrol, didn't you? Was everything alright?" Hizashi questions, his mouth twisted down in a slight frown. "There weren't any reports..."

"Nothing to that extent," Shouta responds, and Hizashi narrows his eyes.

"But there was something," Hizashi deduces, and Shouta sighs. He gestures with his head to the doors.

"Don't you have somewhere to be? You know that Oboro will get distracted if you don't go meet up with him on time," Shouta says, and Hizashi leans forward into Shouta's space.

"You'll tell me about this later!" Hizashi threatens, and Shouta just rolls his eyes and pushes Hizashi out the door. Hizashi thankfully goes, though Shouta is sure that Hizashi will be onto him about this as soon as he gets back.

Still, Shouta has some time to work on his own and without Hizashi pestering him for information, so he gets to work.

Well, after he makes himself a coffee from the overused and desperately struggling coffee machine. Maybe he is looking forward to their agency upgrading if it means they can update the coffee machine.

He sits down at his usual desk, and he starts looking up information about the attack last night. Things are starting to become clearer now, more information coming to light as a local, generally reliable journalist has followed up on witness accounts. Some facts are indisputable — the bank was attacked, there are only very minor injuries, and they are working quickly to secure the scene. It will likely take a few days to investigate, but business will likely return to normal soon enough. The suspect has been apprehended, but there's a lack of information about that.

The details get murkier. Who becomes a question mixed in with how, and very few seem to know the answer. Shouta scrolls through local boards and comments, slowly piecing together a puzzle.

The suspect is not someone from the area, they think. A male, and likely distinct enough to be noticed in a crowd. Strong enough to break into a bank without tools, meaning it's likely been achieved by a Quirk.

And then Shouta catches a glimpse of a comment, and the description of claws makes him pause.

Familiarity strikes in the back of his mind, and he quickly clicks through until he pulls up the hero boards. He goes back through cases, looking through records, and finally comes across what he's been looking for.

An attack on another bank, in another city, just a few months ago. He'd only taken notice of it because a fellow alumni of his year had been the one on the scene, and they'd managed to stop the attack but they hadn't managed to apprehend the person behind it. The hero has a description, and it matches up with the pieces of information that Shouta has about last night's attack.

The description is a little more detailed, and Shouta figures that if the person behind last night's attack is apprehended, then he's sure it will be easy for authorities to also link the cases together. He's sure that the suspect's identity will be released soon enough once he's charged, so it's only a matter of time.

He reads back on the fledgling of an article about last night's attack from the journalist, and he starts to look a little further into the choice of words. Authorities have the suspect in custody, but it is not reported that they had been the ones to apprehend the suspect. Just to make sure, he goes back through the journalist's other published articles, and notices that they tend to mention if the authorities were the one to be on scene and apprehend.

It's likely that there's still a lack of details, that Shouta is possibly looking into this too much. But there's a thought in the back of his mind, the memory of the boy in the alley, and Shouta can only hope that he's overthinking this.

But the jagged cuts into the boy's hoodie were distinct. Claws. It matches all too well.

He is truly hoping that he's wrong — that a boy, who had taken to hiding in an alley and seemed unable to access medical care as basic as getting gauze and disinfectant, had gone up against the suspect last night. That he'd been the one who managed to apprehend him, rather than the trained authorities.

And by the reports of his fellow alumni, this suspect had been difficult to try and stop, and even harder to catch. Shouta knows their abilities quite well, and if someone managed to get past them, then he has very little faith that many others would be able to handle it either.

It's possible the boy could have just been mixed up in the attack. But Shouta doubts that any responding hero would've let a hurt witness leave the scene — and the responding heroes are usually from Shouta's very own agency.

He's sure that someone in the agency will have some more details about it, considering that it happened under their area. But all Shouta can do is wait, as it will take time for reports to come back to them. He sets up to be notified about any new developments in the story, but there's not much else he can do. In the meantime, he makes himself another cup of coffee, and gets to work on some of his own reports that have been piling up over the week.

He finds himself glancing at his phone more than usual, though no new notifications appear. He's waiting — he's waiting for a text, for any kind of message or notification. From the story, but also from the boy.

He'd been certain that he caught a glimpse of an outline of a phone in the boy's pocket, but it's always a possibility that it had been caught up in the attack as well. It might not work, and the boy might not have any way to contact Shouta now.

Calm down, he tells himself. It's illogical to work himself up like this. There's always public phone booths, and if the boy needed to enough, Shouta is sure that he'd be able to find a way to contact Shouta. It's potentially a good sign that the boy doesn't reach out to him — it can mean that he has his own place to stay, or someone else is looking out for him.

The injury was far from anything extremely worrying, and though it's usually not a good sign that a boy so young knows how to hide himself like that, it means he knows how to survive. Shouta can only hold onto the belief that the boy will be just fine.

Except when Hizashi comes back to the office, Shouta is scrolling through boards of missing children. Their agency has more access to details than most, and he uses it to his advantage as he filters through the search. Hizashi comes over to him, places a hand on the back of his chair and leans over Shouta's shoulder.

"How was lunch?" Shouta asks, which is a type of small-talk he usually tries to avoid. Hizashi laughs, because he knows it too.

"We had sushi, you should've joined us," Hizashi replies, voice devolving into a hum as he looks over Shouta's monitor. Even Shouta's attempt to distract Hizashi isn't enough, so Shouta remains quiet and lets Hizashi make his own conclusions. "Is this that something you were late for?"

Shouta sighs, closing out of the tab. He's had no luck, and he's gone back so many years that he's pretty sure the boy wouldn't have been born at that time.

"Maybe," Shouta answers, shaking his head. "I don't know."

"Mhm?" Hizashi prompts, spinning Shouta's chair around. His voice is quieter than usual, likely already knowing that Shouta has a headache. "You're looking like you've been staring at that monitor for too long already. Want to talk about it?"

Shouta picks up his coffee and takes the last sip of it. He might be overthinking everything, this boy could be just fine, and Shouta is making a whole thing out of nothing.

Hizashi waits, patient, and Shouta supposes that if anyone would be able to help him see this logically, then it would be Hizashi.

"I found a boy in an alleyway when I started my patrol last night," Shouta explains, staring down at his empty coffee mug. "He had an injury on his arm, and I think he might've been caught up in that attack at the bank last night."

Hizashi raises an eyebrow. "The bank?"

Shouta nods. "Yeah, it looked like a claw had ripped through his hoodie, and I think it was caused by the guy that hit the bank. He recognised me as Eraserhead, but he didn't want me to take a look at his arm. But he took the medical stuff I offered him."

"You think he was caught up in the attack?" Hizashi asks, but then makes a surprised noise as he follows Shouta’s train of thought. "Do you think he stopped it?"

Shouta gives a small shrug. "I don't know. The situation just seems strange. He didn't seem like he was in dire trouble, but..."

"It's weird," Hizashi agrees. "I assume you went back to look for him?"

"Yeah. That's the reason I finished up late. But he wasn't anywhere I could find," Shouta answers, and Hizashi gives a small nod, impressed. It's rare for anyone to be able to hide from Shouta when he's scouting.

"I'm sure we could talk to the police department," Hizashi suggests, and Shouta grumbles under his breath.

Their police are thankfully decent at the jobs in this district, and co-operative with their agency, but sometimes they're a little too eager, too excited. Shouta's not ready for that kind of energy with the kind of day he's currently having. He'd rather avoid interacting with them when he can — but Hizashi's suggestion is reasonable, likely their best attempt to find out exactly what happened last night with the attack on the bank.

"How old would you say the lil’ listener was?" Hizashi asks as they start gathering their bags. Shouta hadn't even bothered unpacking his own bag when he arrived at the agency today, but he decides he deserves a to-go coffee if he's going to be dealing with the police department today.

Shouta hums, thinking. “A teenager, probably between 13-16."

Hizashi presses his lips together, likely thinking what Shouta has been — that’s just too young to be out on the streets. It’s too young to be caught up in an incident like last night's.

"I'll let L.C know we're heading out," Hizashi says, already on his phone as they head out of the building. "He's wrapping up patrol soon anyway."

It's a walkable distance to the station, and Shouta finds himself checking down every alley they pass, trying to catch a glimpse of green. He has very little luck — but it's not like he expected to have any. If the boy did not wait around for the police, or did not wait around for Shouta to make his way back on the patrol, then he'd likely be staying out of the paths between the agency and the station.

The receptionist at the station blinks in surprise when her eyes land on them, though she lights up in a warm smile and gestures for them to come in. Hizashi thankfully takes the lead, asking the questions even though he doesn't have as much information about the incident. Shouta glances over to read her name-tag — Miya — just as she manages to get the attention of an officer coming in, waving her inside.

"Sakura, you were part of the team on last night's bank attack, right?" Miya asks, and Sakura looks over both Hizashi and Shouta critically before she smiles, nodding.

Shouta recognises her, faintly pulling up memories that she's usually one of the officers he doesn't mind dealing with. She's young but impressive — eager at her job, but professional enough that it doesn't feel overwhelming to Shouta. Oboro and Hizashi usually handle the communication side of things, but Shouta has had to do so a few times.

Sakura waves them into a room to talk. "Come in, we can talk inside. We were going to reach out anyway, just in case you had any information."

Hizashi shakes his head. "We got the alert, but we were dealing with that pile-up car crash a couple of blocks away at the time. Loud Cloud was about to head over, but it had been dealt with already."

"Yeah," Sakura nods. "By the time we got there, the suspect had already been restrained with a mismatch of materials."

"Materials?" Hizashi questions, and Sakura hums.

"Yep. Like wires and cables, and it seems like they came from the construction zone a couple of buildings down," Sakura replies. "But any cameras in the area haven't picked up on anyone visiting those areas."

"And the cameras in the bank?"

Sakura shakes her head. "The guy we apprehended was the one to cut them, as well as any surrounding cameras pointed at the bank. We don't have any footage of the incident, so we’re going off his word. And that's not a lot to go on."

"What has he said?" Shouta asks, and Sakura looks over to him, seemingly surprised that he's asked a question. But she moves on quickly enough, thankfully not addressing the fact it's strange for him to be so involved.

"He said he doesn't know who it was, but that he'll kill the ‘small kid.’ It seems like it was a young boy, likely with a Quirk that enhances his physical strength. It took special materials to cut through the cables that he used to tie up our guy, but they looked like they bent like noodles for him. So we're currently going through Quirk records to try and locate him. We haven't been successful with anyone that has a hero licence, even provisional, so we expect that this was an act done outside of the law."

Shouta resists the urge to press his fingers into his eyes and sigh. Hizashi looks over at him, and they share a mutual look.

It's almost without a doubt the boy from the alley — who is far too young to be acting with a hero licence, and he would've likely already been traced if he was enrolled in any kind of hero course. The boy in the alley is the one tangled up in all of this, and Shouta has lost any trace of him.

"So you guys don't know anything about this?" Sakura asks, a little dejected. Hizashi reaches over to pat her shoulder.

"I'm sure it won't take long to find out what's going on! Let's just keep each other updated about any developments," Hizashi says, and Sakura nods in agreement.

She's looking a little more like her usual upbeat self again by the time Hizashi and Shouta leave the station. Hizashi sticks close to him, speaking the moment they're out of hearing range by anyone on the street.

"So the lil’ listener was likely the one at the scene..." Hizashi figures. "We should probably look into any other previous cases involving an unsolved apprehender."

Shouta nods, troubled. He doesn't think there's really any — most of the crime in the town ends up in their laps, and there's very little that gets through Present Mic's and Loud Cloud's active vigilance in public.

"So we've got ourselves a young..." Shouta trails off, hand gesturing a little helplessly. He's not quite sure what to call him, but the closest term comes out anyway: "vigilante".

He just seemed so young. And his demeanour — that didn't seem usual of a vigilante. Usually vigilantes are more assured of their cause, more self-confident in what they're doing. More critical of heroes and the justice system. Rather, the boy had been panicking, even worried about causing trouble to Shouta.

Hizashi remains quiet, picking up on Shouta's turbulent thoughts about the description. Shouta sighs.

"Well, it's best we find him anyway," Shouta says. "If he's wrapped up in that attack, then he'll need to come in for questioning."

"Hm," is all Hizashi responds with, like he doesn't quite believe that's the only reason Shouta wants him found.

"Let's head back to the agency," Hizashi says, voice a little louder now. "I'm sure we'll find something."

Two weeks later, they still haven't found anything.

Shouta slouches down at his desk, thinking about taking a nap. He's patrolling more often, out later than he usually is, but his efforts have brought nothing except less hours of sleep and somehow even more paperwork.

Oboro comes by his desk, and he places down a fresh coffee from the local cafe that Shouta likes to order from.

"Still no luck?" Oboro asks sympathetically, hand coming up to ruffle through Shouta's hair. Shouta doesn't even bother slapping his hand away, all too used to Oboro's affection now and all too tired to bother resisting.

"I'm sure he'll turn up somewhere," Oboro says, hand slipping from Shouta's hair. He leans against Shouta's desk, blocking half of Shouta's view of the screen. "A kid like that will surely appear again, it just might take some time, is all. We're not exactly inundated with crime at the moment."

Shouta just reaches out for the coffee, gratefully wrapping his hands around the warmth of it. "Mhm."

Activity has been quiet lately, but it's almost like crimes work in waves. Right now they're at a low-tide, but Shouta is sure that those waves will build and the tide will rise again.

Just because Shouta hasn't heard much underground doesn't mean there's no activity. It just means that they're biding time, waiting, building up to something.

It's an anxious game of waiting, and Shouta's patience is beginning to wear thinner as he gets older.

"So!" Oboro claps his hands together, and Shouta would've jumped in his seat if he had been any further in his head. Instead he just groans, giving Oboro a glare.

"What?" Shouta demands, looking at Oboro's all-too excited open eyes.

"How's Shinsou settling in? Is his second year going better for him?" Oboro asks, leaning forward, overly eager to hear anything new.

"You just went out with him two nights ago for dinner," Shouta points out, and Oboro gives a shrug.

"Yeah, but I want to hear from you! I want to hear your thoughts about it," Oboro prompts, tilting his head. Shouta sighs.

"He's got a lot of work to catch up on," Shouta admits, looking up at the ceiling. "He's already a year behind his classmates in the hero course, even if he has experience with us. But he's working hard."

"Of course he is," Oboro nods, grinning. He looks as outwardly proud as Shouta feels — it's been a long few months of adjustment for them all, of Shouta working with Shinsou until Shouta felt he would be able to at least hold his own relatively decently. "He seems happier, at least."

"He does," Shouta agrees, tilting his head back down to look at Oboro. Oboro's still grinning proudly, though Shouta knows that Oboro isn't just proud of Shinsou right now.

"Don't start," Shouta grumbles in warning, but it does little to actually stop Oboro.

"I just think it's good that you have him around! I think you're both doing really well with the situation," Oboro tells him, and Shouta flutters his eyes shut.

The situation.

After Shouta, Oboro, and Hizashi watched the U.A Festival together some months back, they were all drawn to the sight of a student placed in general studies because of an illogical entrance exam into the hero course. A quirk that was useful, incredibly powerful, but terribly underutilised. Still, despite everything seemingly stacked against him, Hitoshi Shinsou was determined to be a hero.

Maybe it's because Shouta saw parts and pieces of himself in that student, but soon enough, Oboro had been the one to reach out to Nedzu personally, requesting that they take Shinsou as part of the internship program with special permission. Nedzu had complied all too happily, and maybe Shouta should have known from that alone that it wouldn't be as easy as just a single week of an internship.

Nedzu has been trying to request all three of them as teachers for quite some time now. Shouta should have known things wouldn't be so easy when it comes to him.

What should have been a week-long internship ended up with Shouta declaring emergency guardianship, using his hero privileges to the greatest extent. It ended up with Shouta's spare room becoming Shinsou's room — and all these months later, from Shinsou’s first year of school and now into his second, Shinsou is still living with him. That's the situation.

Shouta still can't quite believe it's all happened himself. Oboro's usually the one with the tendency to take in strays, though Hizashi has told them both on numerous occasions that they're both as bad as each other.

Oboro has one stray cat and one stray dog now living with him. Even Hizashi has a cat, given to him by Oboro. Shouta, by that account, is the one with the most — he's got two stray cats and a whole teenage boy now living with him. He can't really argue with Hizashi anymore about his tendencies with strays.

"He's adjusting well," Shouta admits, and Oboro smiles in triumph.

"See! Both of you are. It's great to see," Oboro cheers, and Shouta just attempts to shoo Oboro away from his desk.

"Go do some work, Shirakumo," Shouta huffs.

Oboro laughs, but he obliges, walking away. Over his shoulder, he calls out: "Just remember you're off earlier today!"

Shouta's eyes flicker down to the clock in the corner of his screen. Oboro's right — Shouta had started earlier today just so that he could finish earlier, hopefully getting some training time in with Shinsou before his patrol.

He's been thinking about bringing Shinsou out with him on patrol, though he'll wait until the next round of internships where Shinsou can formally apply to the agency, or when Shinsou is on a break from his semesters. Though Shinsou's sleep patterns are also severely lacking, Shouta doesn't want to encourage him to lose any more sleep than he does.

And Shouta would rather wait until he's actually out of the underground work himself before he starts to properly bring Shinsou into it all. He knows Shinsou wants to work underground — and he would excel at it, but Shouta thinks that Shinsou has had enough trauma for the past year. Shinsou is strong, and he can handle it — everything he's been through will make him an even better hero, but for now, Shouta wants to try and hold off Shinsou being thrown into the deep-end before he's truly ready for it.

Time passes slowly, but finally Shouta can clock off. He closes his tabs — too many, Hizashi would probably stress to him. But Shouta is browsing through every article, every board, trying to find any more reports of crime apprehended by an unknown teenage boy with no hero licence.

He still doesn't have any answers. Even the attack at the bank has brought forth no new information, and Shouta's starting to get irritated.

The boy had that same look in his eyes. The one Shouta has seen in so many heroes. The look he still sees in people like Oboro and Hizashi, both only getting more genuine as the days go by. The look he sees in Shinsou — determined to save as many people as he can. To use his power for good.

It's something that lingers in his mind throughout the day and long into the evening.

It stays, even as Shouta and Shinsou head into a small corner restaurant together after training. Usually Shouta tends to avoid being seen out in public with Shinsou, as Shinsou's face has been sprawled all over national television with the U.A Festival broadcast, and soon will be again, but he knows that this area is safe enough from anyone prying.

"What're you thinking so much about?" Shinsou asks casually, though there's a glint in his eyes that gives away that he's very intrigued by the answer.

"How well you managed to tangle your capture weapon," Shouta tells him around a sip of water. Shinsou just rolls his eyes — it's a bold action, and it's a welcome one. Shinsou had first come to them bright and determined, but he'd been subdued and nervous to talk to anyone of authority. He'd been quiet around Shouta, both of them just silently observing each other.

Hizashi, from the very first meeting, likes to point out how well Shinsou mirrors him. Shouta supposes he sees it in these moments, when Shinsou is more like himself, when he's comfortable with Shouta enough to banter with him. It's certainly welcoming, and Shouta can't discourage it even if Hizashi teases him for it.

"It's better than last week though," Shouta says, because he can't let Shinsou's progress go underappreciated. Shinsou is learning how to handle the capture weapon fast, at a speed that easily beats Shouta's own. Even with help, Shouta isn't so sure he would've learned it any faster than Shinsou has.

Shinsou's lips tilt up ever so slightly, proud from Shouta's compliment. Shouta lets the moment pause, wondering if it'll be enough to distract Shinsou.

Shinsou truly is too much like him, because then he narrows his eyes and he tilts his head, suspicious. "Something's really gotten you wound up, hasn't it?"

Shouta has made a silent promise to himself not to lie to Shinsou unless it's truly better for his sake and safety. Shouta thinks that maybe, maybe, this time, it's almost worth breaking that promise.

But this is something that Shouta will need to think about more carefully before he brings up, for Shinsou’s sake, in case he draws up any memories.

"I met someone out on a patrol a couple weeks ago," Shouta tells him quietly — it's not a lie if he just omits all the detailed information. A boy. Your age, possibly. Alone on the street with the very same look in his eyes that you have. "They've disappeared though."

Shinsou's eyebrows raise. "You haven't been able to find them?"

"No," Shouta admits, a little more annoyance slipping through in his tone than he'd like. He lets out a deep breath, pushing his irritation down.

"Huh," Shinsou states, surprised. "Well, I'm sure you will."

Shouta just nods. They fall into a comfortable silence, until Shinsou eventually picks up conversation by talking about some of his studies.

The night goes well, and Shouta is almost regretful when he sends Shinsou back to the apartment so that he can go on patrol.

For another week, there is nothing.

There are no reports. No developments. The man behind the bank attack is apprehended and charged, and even though there's a lacking key witness, he's committed with other evidence.

Shouta does not get any notifications.

Shinsou manages to catch him one day, looking at that original article published the night of the attack at the bank. Shinsou sits down on the opposite side of the table in the apartment, Riceball brushing between his legs.

"They still haven't found the person that stopped the guy, huh?" Shinsou asks pointedly, and Shouta just places his phone down and presses his fingers to his eyelids.

"No," Shouta responds, because there's definitely no point bothering to deny it.

"The person you're looking for?" Shinsou prods, and Shouta just lets out a deeper exhale.

"Possibly has something to do with it," Shouta admits, and Shinsou clicks his tongue.

"Damn," Shinsou says, then pulls his homework out of his bag and slaps it down on the table. His tone shifts into something a little more blank, not as interested now that Shouta has no more information to spare him. "That sucks. I'm sure you'll get 'em eventually."

"Thanks," Shouta drawls out, matching Shinsou's borderline sarcasm. Shinsou hides his smile by ducking his head down and focusing on his notes, and that's the last of their conversation about it for the night.

Two nights later, when Shouta is not on patrol, the tide rises.

He's fallen asleep on the couch, halfway through watching something, when he's woken up by a loud crashing sound. He immediately jumps to his feet, peering out the window — there's no sign of anything, but the sound seemed like it was a couple of blocks away, so he doesn't bother trying to look any further. He just gets his phone, already heading to his bedroom to get changed into his hero suit.

Shinsou shuffles out, half-asleep and bleary, looking out the window just as Shouta had done.

"Aizawa?" He asks, turning back away from it. Shouta walks out of his bedroom already changed, and Shinsou blinks before he suddenly wakes up all at once. "You've been called in?"

"I'm likely about to be," Shouta replies, holding up his phone in demonstration. Just as he does so, an alert for a hero request comes through, sent from the police to the area's agency. "I'll see you later. Do not wait up."

Shinsou just waves him out the door.

Shouta heads quickly to the location he's been sent, and just as he's about to turn down a street to reach it, he receives another message.

It's from a new contact.

Shouta has only given his number to one person that isn't already in his contacts list.

The message is just the name of a street — a couple of streets away from Shouta's current location. He only has a moment to think, so he heads to the end of the street to see how the scene looks. The police have already swarmed in, and Oboro is in the midst of it too. There's someone in cuffs, and Shouta only judges it all for a second before he turns back, heading to the new location he's been sent.

A new message comes through.

Alone.

Shouta's concerned more than anything, and he hurries to get to the street before the boy can change his mind. He quickly surveys over every alley, instinctually moving to the darkest and furthest one.

He's right — there, in the middle of it, stands the boy.

He's about Shinsou's height, Shouta mentally compares. Maybe a little shorter. This alley isn't as dark, and Shouta can catch a better glimpse of his silhouette against the faint light. He's toned, clearly physically fit, but he's slumped against the wall like he doesn't have the strength anymore to stand.

The boy is looking directly at him again, unsurprised by Shouta's presence appearing before him. This time, though, both of them know who they'll be encountering.

The boy regards Shouta for a moment, then pockets his phone. Shouta takes that as his signal to move forward, approaching warily. He's not too sure what's happened tonight, but there's a road semi-destroyed and a man in cuffs, all within minutes of Shouta leaving the apartment after hearing a loud commotion. Only minutes after receiving an alert for a hero presence.

Minutes, and this boy has moved away from the scene, has managed to escape from anyone stopping him.

But he's reached out for Shouta.

Shouta understands why, suddenly. The boy is hunched against the wall because it truly is the only thing keeping him upright. He's got a hand braced against his stomach, pressing to it tightly.

And this — this is why Shouta walked away that first time. This is why he let him out of his sights. Because now the boy is in a worse condition, he needs help, and he's reached out to Shouta for it.

Shouta steps forward, and the boy watches him, analysing. He'd been the one to reach out for Shouta, but he seems apprehensive now that Shouta is actually here, stepping closer to him.

"They got him, right?" The boy asks, and Shouta makes sure no flickers of surprise show on his face. It's certainly not what he'd been expecting the boy to be concerned about.

"The guy? Yeah, they've got him in cuffs," Shouta responds, and the boy shakes his head.

"No. The— there was a man there too. I got him out the way as best as I could, but he was definitely injured," the boy stresses, and Shouta blinks and thinks back to the scene. He'd seen the police, Oboro, the man in cuffs. He'd seen the lights of an ambulance.

"Yeah," Shouta responds. "They did."

The boy sags forward with relief.

"Good, good," he mutters. "I'm glad. I'm really sorry, I was rushed and— I didn't mean to cause that damage, but I know there's someone with a paving reconstruction quirk, right? Around here? I'm not relying on it of course! But I just— I had to do something, and—"

Shouta holds up a hand. "Hey. Hey. We can talk about the damage after. Right now, I think there's a more pressing matter."

The boy blinks in confusion, and then he looks down at his body like he's only just remembered it even exists. "Oh."

He seems apprehensive again, nervous to let Shouta come any closer. Shouta halts his steps, keeping his hand up to try and signal as a pacifying move. "It's alright. I'm alone. You reached out to me for a reason, right?"

The boy hesitantly nods. "I… yeah. I— I'm sorry. But I can't—"

He's looking paler by the second, words halting and stammering like he can barely speak past his tongue, and Shouta has a second of deliberation before he lurches forward and makes sure to steady the way the boy has been beginning to tilt forward.

"Oh," the boy says again. "Thank you."

Shouta gets a closer look at the wound. The boy has a different jumper from last time, slightly brighter in its green colour, but it's also now been ruined. There's a tear in it, and there's blood seeping through.

"You're really proving to be a problem child, huh?" Shouta mutters, mostly to himself. It's something he's called Shinsou here and there, usually when Shinsou is up to mischief with Oboro — but now this is taking on a whole other meaning.

The boy doesn't seem to hear him, more concerned with the injury on his stomach. His hands are covered in red, and Shouta knows well that it's always an unsettling sight to see your own blood covering your hands.

"Come on, I'll have a look," Shouta says as gently as he can, trying to get the boy to sink down to the ground and sit properly. But the boy struggles, looking up and further down the alley.

"No, no— I can't— we have to move. I really can't get caught," the boy says in panic, almost trembling in his fear.

Shouta's brows furrow together. So the boy is running from the police, or at least doesn't want to be found by them, and yet he's still called Shouta.

He knows this is something that he'll have to deal with. Nothing good comes from avoiding the law, or the police, and Shouta isn't about to start trying to encourage it.

But there's damage done to the city which was taken in with consideration, even if ultimately foolish. There's a man in handcuffs, a danger neutralised, and a boy that stumbles over his words bleeding in Shouta's arms.

A boy that trusted Shouta to help him.

"It's okay," Shouta soothes. "They won't come through here, not yet. We have time to look at it and try and help some of the bleeding right now, alright?"

The boy is still hesitant, but they both know that they're just running down a timer the longer he waits to make a decision. So the boy nods, and lets Shouta guide him down until he's sitting upright with his back to the alley wall.

Shouta is careful as he lifts up the boy's shirt, inwardly grimacing as he looks at the wound. It's certainly not the worst Shouta has ever seen, but it's always unsightly to see such an injury on a young teenager.

It looks like a knife or some kind of similar weapon has gone through his stomach, and Shouta gets him to keep his hands pressed against it, making sure that there's enough pressure being put down on the wound to try and slow the bleeding.

The boy is looking down at the wound as well, and Shouta wants to distract him as he starts to go through his medical items. He can't properly treat this, not here, but he doubts the boy will go to the hospital.

"Kid," he says, unwrapping the new roll of gauze that he's since replaced since their last meeting.

"Midoriya," the boy responds, and it takes Shouta's brain a second to catch onto why he's said that. "Midoriya Izuku."

"Not your hero name, I take it?" Shouta asks, glad that this is a topic that will at least distract Midoriya from his wounds.

"Not much of a hero yet, am I?" Midoriya responds, and his voice is a little bit strained with pain now.

Yet, Shouta turns the word over in his mind.

"I think you're a hero to that man," Shouta responds, and Midoriya huffs out a breath of laughter that's full of pain now.

"What'd you get stabbed with, huh?" Shouta mutters, looking over the wound again. The best he can do is try and stop some of the bleeding, and just patch it up enough to move Midoriya before they're found.

"Ah," Midoriya seems sheepish. "He could control metal. It was like, a torn off piece of a light pole or something. I managed to destroy most of it, but a stray piece managed to... well."

Shouta looks at the wound a little closer — too jagged, too large for just a knife.

"Please tell me you didn't pull out the metal?" Shouta sighs, and Midoriya shakes his head immediately, quick to deny.

"No, no! Of course not. He— uh. He did, before I managed to subdue him," Midoriya admits, and Shouta's sure that this time, he grimaces outwardly. He gets Midoriya to keep his shirt up and to lean forward slightly, and Shouta gets to wrapping the gauze around him.

"This is not adequate medical care," Shouta sternly tells him, securing the bandage. It's already bleeding through, and Shouta gets him to lean back and drop his shirt again. "I'm just doing enough so that we can move away from here, but you do need someone to look at this. Keep pressure on that."

Midoriya listens, immediately pressing his hands back down to press against his injury.

"No hospitals," Midoriya immediately says, and Shouta nods, sitting back. His hands are red now too, and he pats them down on his pants to try and get rid of some of it. His costume has seen much worse anyway.

"I didn't think so," Shouta responds, and Midoriya settles a little with that at least. "I have a private medical doctor I can call out, but it's not safe here to do that."

Midoriya presses his lips together, and Shouta sighs.

"Look. My apartment is close, and it's secure. The doc will probably be there by the time we are." They're running low on time, and soon enough Shouta is sure Oboro or someone from the police will stumble across them. They're running out of options, and this is the best that Shouta can do for now.

It's certainly not the safest option, bringing back someone to his apartment, but Shouta is well-versed in security and recon. Midoriya is good at hiding, but he's not better than Shouta. Even if Midoriya has his address, there's not much he can do with it.

And anyway, it's not like he's going to leave Midoriya alone, not again.

Midoriya, despite the offer — despite the opportunity for leverage that Shouta has given him — still doesn't look convinced.

"I'm an underground hero, Midoriya. This doc is all about discretion, and I've had to use them a couple of times for that reason. There'll be no questions, and there'll be no prying from the doc. At the moment, the main concern here is just making sure that your wound is okay," Shouta explains, and Midoriya takes just a couple of seconds, mostly because he can't really take much more time than that, before he nods.

Shouta pulls out his phone and sends a quick text, and then holds out his hand. Getting Midoriya to stand up is a shaky, slow process, but Midoriya doesn't make a sound even as he's undoubtedly in pain. It's a worrying sign that Midoriya has learned all too well how to do things like that, but it's not a question Shouta is going to ask tonight.

"Along with my two cats, there's someone else in my apartment, just so you know," Shouta tells him, as they finally start walking, leaving the sounds of the police and the ambulance behind them. "Your age, I think."

Midoriya tilts his head and looks at Shouta calculatingly, and Shouta realises what Midoriya is thinking. He sighs, shaking his head.

"He's not my biological son, no," Shouta responds, which only seems to spark even more interest and questions that seem to sit on Midoriya's tongue. But then Midoriya almost trips over his feet, and Shouta has to grit his teeth and do everything to keep him upright, and the questions no longer become a concern.

They manage to get back to Shouta's apartment, and though Shouta is carrying a lot of Midoriya's weight, Midoriya stays upright and thankfully lucid even when Shouta has to let go of him to open up his apartment.

Shinsou has left the hallway light on for Shouta, as he usually does whenever Shouta is on patrol. Now, it's just making Shouta wince, because the blood is even more noticeable on his hands now. And when Shouta turns back to help Midoriya through the door, the brightness only highlights just how pale Midoriya is.

Shouta shuts the door behind him as quietly as he can, helping Midoriya through to the bathroom — because though it's not impossible, it's a bitch to clean blood out once it's stained, and it's just easier to deal with in the bathroom. Just as he's gotten Midoriya to sit down on the closed toilet seat lid, he hears Shinsou's door open.

He closes his eyes, cursing to himself, and then meets Midoriya's eyes. Midoriya tilts his head, listening out as well, but thankfully doesn't seem surprised when Shinsou appears in the doorway of the bathroom.

Shinsou is definitely caught off-guard, though, eyes immediately falling to Midoriya and sizing him up.

"I thought I told you not to wait up," Shouta tells him, and Shinsou's eyes don't even move away from Midoriya as he gives a shrug.

"You weren't gone very long," Shinsou replies. Shouta looks between the two of them, both locked in a staring contest. Shinsou looks like he's assessing Midoriya, like he's trying to figure out everything about him. But Midoriya looks at Shinsou the same way he'd first looked at Shouta — he's looking at Shinsou with recognition.

"The doctor is coming over," Shouta directs towards Shinsou. It manages to snap Shinsou out of staring at Midoriya, and Shinsou's eyes flicker over Shouta, assessing if he's injured as well. His gaze lingers on the blood on Shouta's hands, but he seems to realise it's not his own, so he doesn't seem to panic too much.

"Right. I'll keep an ear out for him," Shinsou replies, turning around and leaving the bathroom, but only after levelling a glare at Midoriya.

It's a strange sight to see, but Shouta supposes that Shinsou is just worried about what's happening, though he thankfully trusts Shouta to be able to handle it.

"He's from U.A, isn't he?" Midoriya asks him quietly, head gesturing out the door to where Shinsou had been standing.

There's not much Shouta can do to protect Shinsou's identity — not after it's been broadcasted across the nation anyway. So he nods, and Midoriya seems to light up in interest.

"Brainwashing Quirk, right? Super cool, it looked like it only activated after someone responded to a question of his, if I remember correctly? I wonder how far that extends. Like does it need to be a verbal answer, or can it be something like a hum? Does he need to hear it for it to activate?" Midoriya mutters more to himself than anything, like he's just speaking his thoughts aloud without even realising it.

It's a good thing that Midoriya seems impressed with Shinsou's quirk rather than the typical apprehension Shinsou usually faces. It is, however, interesting that Midoriya is so analytical, and that he’s currently speaking like he's somewhat of a fanboy.

"Well," Shouta says, which gets Midoriya's attention back on him. He seems to draw in a little to himself, like he's embarrassed that he was caught being so interested in Shinsou's quirk. "He'd probably answer your questions, if you asked."

But Shouta thinks back to how Shinsou had looked at Midoriya, and he's actually not sure if he will. Shinsou is headstrong and determined to reach his goals, which can sometimes make him appear cold and disinterested with people. He's getting better, now that he's finally and rightfully in the hero course, but Shouta's never quite seen Shinsou appear so hostile with someone before.

Still, Shouta's words seem to reassure Midoriya, as his excitement sparks back to life. "Really?"

"Uh, maybe," Shouta responds. "Let's deal with that after we deal with you, alright?"

"Oh, right," Midoriya says, like he'd completely forgotten the reason as to why he's in Shouta's apartment in the first place.

Shouta hears Shinsou open up his apartment door, and Shouta shares a look with Midoriya. Midoriya seems nervous again, a little more on edge, and Shouta takes a deep breath like that'll help settle both of them.

"Full discretion," Shouta reminds Midoriya, which thankfully seems to help settle the flightiness that Midoriya is starting to display.

Shinsou appears in the doorway, glaring at Midoriya again, though Midoriya is just staring with that same type of excitement he'd expressed earlier when talking about Shinsou's Quirk. It seems to unsettle Shinsou enough that he keeps quiet, seemingly turning around and walking away, letting the doctor through.

"Doctor, thanks for coming," Shouta says in greeting, and Kagiyama nods at him. They don't say names aloud, not with each other, never in this type of work. They know them, but it's a type of respect to make sure they're not mentioned. Here, everything is done with a level of secrecy and mutual trust.

Kagiyama’s manner is a little grumpier than usual, likely thanks to the odd hour, but he doesn't verbally complain. Instead, he just looks over to Midoriya, assessing him.

"Shirt off," Kagiyama orders, though Shouta notices that the usual level of gruffness he treats Shouta with has seemed to have softened ever so slightly.

Midoriya flails to comply, wincing as he tugs all too quickly at his injury. Shouta gives an inward sigh, then steps towards him. "Slowly, kid. Here, I'll help."

Midoriya must be in more pain than he's actually displaying, as he listens to Shouta without complaint. He lets Shouta move him, raising his arms compliantly as Shouta gently tugs off his shirt and hoodie. The bandages have been dyed red, which is not a promising sign.

Kagiyama crouches down once Shouta steps away and puts the clothes down on the floor, placing his briefcase beside him. He opens it up, an array of medical tools secured in place, and takes out the scissors. He snips silently away at the bandages, letting them fall to the floor. The wound is sluggishly bleeding, and Midoriya still seems too pale, but Kagiyama’s calm composure doesn't falter, and that's reassuring enough.

Kagiyama prods at the wound, and Midoriya sucks in a sharp breath through his teeth. Kagiyama hm's as he inspects it, then sits back and nods to himself.

"It'll need stitching, but it should be alright," Kagiyama says, already looking into his briefcase to pull out the required tools. Shouta looks to Midoriya, who seems to somehow pale even further, but he's determinedly not showing a flicker of worry in his expression.

There's not much for Midoriya to grab onto, so he grips at the fabric of his pants, knuckles turning white as he clutches it. Kagiyama gets to disinfecting the wound and then begins stitching, and not once does Midoriya make a sound.

Time seems to pass slowly, but finally Kagiyama cuts the thread and secures his stitching. He checks over the wound again one last time, cleaning it up and bandaging it over again, and then nods to himself to signify that the work is done.

He packs away his tools, muttering about the fact he'll have to stay up even later now to clean them.

"Just charge me for the overtime," Shouta tells him, and Kagiyama just closes his briefcase.

"Yeah yeah, I'll charge it to your account," Kagiyama grunts, then gestures his head to Midoriya's figure. "You know the deal."

Shouta has had stitches plenty of times before. He knows how to take care of them. He nods, and Kagiyama picks up his briefcase and stands. "Good."

Shouta follows Kagiyama to the door, and nothing further between them is said as the door shuts behind Kagiyama. Shouta tilts back his head for a moment, letting tonight's events wash over him. Fuck, it’s meant to be his night off.

He walks back to the bathroom, where Shinsou has taken to leaning against the doorframe. He's staring at Midoriya again, with that same kind of hostility, and Shouta will definitely be asking about that later. For now, he figures he's got enough to handle with Midoriya still in his bathroom.

Shouta steps through the doorway, breaking Shinsou and Midoriya's line of sight to each other. Midoriya looks over at him, and then his gaze flickers over to the clothes that Shouta has left in the corner.

"I'll give you a shirt," Shouta says — it'll probably be too large, but he doesn't want to ask anything further from Shinsou.

"Oh! Oh no, please don't worry about that! You've done more than enough, really. Please don't let me inconvenience you further!" Midoriya hurries to say, and Shouta's eyebrows furrow.

"It would be more of an inconvenience for me if you left my apartment in bloody clothes," Shouta replies, and Midoriya laughs nervously.

"Um. I can leave out the window or something! Really, you've already done too much. Please let me know how much the doctor cost you, and I'll make sure to pay you back! Um, it might take a while, but I definitely will!"

Shouta sighs, because Midoriya is definitely moving around too much with a wound that's been very recently stitched. "Calm down, firstly. The cost isn't a concern to me, and so it shouldn't be for you."

Midoriya looks like he's about to protest, so Shouta just holds up a hand and glares at him in a threat to be quiet. Midoriya's mouth snaps shut, and he hunches in a little again, and something about that response has something sour churning in Shouta's stomach.

"Look, I gave you my number in the first place because I wanted to help. I'm just glad that you messaged," Shouta says, and Midoriya just nods stiffly.

"Thank you, Eraserhead," Midoriya says, and then inclines his head to Shinsou and nods at him as well. "Thank you."

Shinsou just folds his arms, unimpressed.

"You're the one they're looking for, right? The one with a type of strength-enhancing Quirk?" Shinsou asks, his voice dripping with a type of contempt that's surprising to Shouta. "The one trying to play vigilante?"

Midoriya shrinks. "I... I really didn't mean to cause any trouble for anyone! But I just..."

"Couldn't let those people get hurt," Shouta attempts to finish off where Midoriya has trailed off, but Midoriya exhales. It's the truth as far as Shouta knows, but it's also apparently not what Midoriya had been thinking about.

"I can't get found out," Midoriya answers instead, sounding ashamed. It's important to him — perhaps the most important thing, but Midoriya had still risked being found out just to save people.

"You saved someone?" Shinsou questions, surprised.

Midoriya meekly nods. "Yeah."

Shinsou huffs. "You can't get caught, but you'll risk playing vigilante anyway? Why not just get your hero licence?"

Midoriya is a little more hesitant to answer, biting down on his bottom lip anxiously.

"I can't," Midoriya finally answers, his voice soft and sad. He looks between Shouta and Shinsou, and his fingers tighten their hold on his clothes, and he suddenly looks a lot more determined. "I will! I will, I promise. But I just... I can't. Not yet."

"The hell does that mean?" Shinsou asks, baffled. "With a Quirk like yours, you'd be able to enrol easily. If you want to be a hero so badly, and you have the Quirk to do that, why the hell wouldn't you?"

Ah, Shouta thinks. That's what this is about.

"I can't," Midoriya repeats, shaking his head now, and it's clearly the most that he'll tell them. Shouta is even more curious — and, like Shinsou, he wants to ask questions and wants to know why. But the trust he's managed to develop with Midoriya tonight is fickle and close to fleeting, and Shouta isn't going to ruin things because he's curious.

"Okay," Shouta says, signalling to Shinsou that they're done with the conversation now. He'll talk about it later with him, and likely apologise for cutting Shinsou off, but right now he also can't let Shinsou damage any of the trust built tonight with Midoriya either.

Shinsou's unhappy about it but he listens, leaning back against the wall and closing his eyes.

"Do you have somewhere you can stay?" Shouta asks Midoriya, and Midoriya's grip tightens again on his clothes nervously.

He nods, though. "I do."

"Do you... want to go there? Is it safe?" Shouta asks hesitantly. He knows well that just because someone has somewhere they can go doesn't mean they should.

Midoriya's nod is a little more insistent this time, eyes wide with surprise like he hasn't ever considered it not to be a safe place. It's reassuring, meaning that he's at least been somewhere he wants to be over these weeks that Shouta hasn't seen him — but it might also be worrying, a sign that Midoriya hasn't ever considered a way out.

"It's safe," Midoriya says honestly, and Shouta is relieved. "I'll be okay to get there."

It's a clear sign that Shouta's presence is not being requested, that it's a location Midoriya does not want him to go to. Shouta is disappointed, if still rather worried, but he reminds himself that it's a good thing that Midoriya is being precautious with his safety.

"Alright," Shouta replies. "I'll go get you a shirt then."

He beckons for Shinsou to walk out of the bathroom with him, giving Midoriya a moment alone. It's not like Midoriya will be able to manage to sneak anywhere without Shouta knowing, so he's not too worried about Midoriya trying to do so.

"You're just going to let him go? Weren't you looking for him? Aren't the police looking for him?" Shinsou whispers harshly to him, following along as Shouta walks into his bedroom and goes through his drawers. His shirts are definitely going to be too big, and Shouta also should probably get him a jacket because it is cold tonight, and Midoriya's is just a tattered, bloody mess now.

"He saved someone tonight, Shinsou," Shouta quietly replies. "He's injured, and he's clearly got something going on, and I doubt it'll do anyone any good right now if he's with the police. We'll tread carefully, and we'll get answers eventually."

Shinsou sighs heavily.

"He's a kid, Shinsou," Shouta says, just as he pulls out a shirt. He's well aware that Shinsou is likely right around the same age, and that he really doesn't like being called a kid, but Shinsou is still in school, still learning, still young. No one his age should be out on the street, bleeding alone in an alley, trying to do the work of a hero.

"That's going to be too big," Shinsou points out, and Shouta hmph's as he puts it over his arm.

"I know," Shouta replies, heading over to his closet to get a jacket out.

"I'll get him something," Shinsou says, taking the shirt from Shouta's arm and putting it back. He leaves Shouta standing in his own bedroom, slightly confused about what has just transpired, but mostly just proud.

Shinsou is clearly wary of Midoriya, doesn't like that he hasn't used the opportunity to become a hero the legal way when he has the type of Quirk powerful enough to easily do so, but at the end of the day Shinsou is still very much, at his heart, a hero. He will always still help anyone that he can.

Shouta heads into the bathroom again, and Midoriya is still sitting on the toilet seat, looking awkward with his clothes still on his lap. He looks over Shouta's figure, blinking in confusion when he sees that Shouta has returned empty-handed. Shouta jerks a thumb over his shoulder.

"Shinsou's getting something that'll fit," Shouta tells him.

"Oh," Midoriya blinks again. "Thank you."

Midoriya shuffles a little on the seat, and a little twitch between his eyebrows gives away that it's a motion he regrets.

"He was in general studies, wasn't he?" Midoriya asks.

"He was," Shouta answers, and wonders if Midoriya knows yet that Shinsou has since made his way into the hero course. Midoriya doesn't seem to acknowledge Shouta's chosen tense however, already set on whatever it is that he wants to say.

"Because the hero entrance exam wasn't suitable for his Quirk," Midoriya says, and Shouta nods.

"It wasn't," Shouta agrees.

"And that's why he's angry, right?" Midoriya asks. Shouta tilts his head, and Midoriya gives a small, self-deprecating smile as he elaborates. "Because I had a Quirk that would've done well in the entrance exam. He's angry that I had the opportunity, and I didn't use it."

"Perhaps," Shouta replies, because he doesn't want to speak on Shinsou's behalf. "He's made it to the hero course, however."

Midoriya blinks, and then his smile shifts into something that seems relieved. "He did? That's good. It must've been hard, though."

"Yeah," Shinsou says from the doorway, walking in with a shirt and jacket folded up in his arms, as well as a bag. His presence startles Midoriya, which is interesting, as Midoriya has always seemed to be acutely aware of even Shouta's presence. "But I had help, so it wasn't so bad."

He holds out the clothes for Midoriya, and it seems like something of an olive branch. Midoriya takes the clothes gently, giving Shinsou a warm smile. "Thank you, really. I'll make sure to repay you!"

"If you're going to bleed on them, I don't want them back," Shinsou tells him, and Midoriya's smile turns a little nervous.

"Um. Okay, no problem! I'll replace them," Midoriya responds, and Shouta knows that Shinsou is currently rolling his eyes.

"Don't replace them, don't repay me. Just try and... I don't know, do things legally?" Shinsou responds. "It'll make Aizawa's life a little easier, that's all."

Midoriya looks over to Shouta sheepishly. "Right! Right. I'll... try."

"Cool. Here, put your clothes in this bag," Shinsou says, holding the bag out for him. Midoriya takes it, stumbling over words of gratitude, and Shinsou just gives him a nod and then steps away, standing next to Shouta.

Shinsou looks away as Midoriya carefully pulls the shirt on, though Shouta watches just to make sure Midoriya doesn't over-exert anything. Shinsou's wardrobe usually consists of hoodies — he only has a couple of jackets, but Midoriya's injuries have clearly been a reason for Shinsou's choice. The jacket is easier for Midoriya to pull on, and Midoriya zips it up with something like relief.

"You sure you're alright to go alone?" Shouta asks Midoriya as he slowly starts to stand, being careful of his injury.

Midoriya gives him a determined nod. "I'll be alright. Really, I can't thank you enough, Eraserhead."

Shouta waves him off, because Midoriya has given him enough gratitude to last him a life-time. "Just get home safely. Please do not destroy any more roads tonight."

Midoriya gives him an embarrassed smile. "Right. I'll do my best!"

Shouta makes sure he doesn't crowd Midoriya as he starts to walk, but he makes sure he stands close enough to move just in case Midoriya goes down. Thankfully, it seems like colour has returned to Midoriya's cheeks, and he's definitely looking a lot better than when Shouta first found him in the alley tonight.

Midoriya lingers a little near the front door as he puts his shoes back on, seeming to hesitate before he reaches for the door. Shouta stands, waiting for something.

Then, Midoriya holds his stomach carefully and bows as deeply as he can.

One last time for the night, Midoriya thanks him, and then he walks out the door.

"Well, that was interesting," Shinsou says, and Shouta grunts.

He then looks over at the time, and suddenly he feels so much more tired than before.

"Go to bed already," he tells Shinsou.

"You first," Shinsou responds with, but thankfully seems to listen as he waves Shouta goodnight and then goes into his room.

So much for a night off.

Shouta makes sure that both Oboro and Hizashi are out of the agency building before he pulls up the search engine.

Midoriya Izuku, he types in.

He's been wondering about what he'll find, what kinds of stories will appear. If any do, because Midoriya seems to live like he's all too used to being a ghost.

His suspicions are right — no articles appear about Midoriya Izuku. There are no missing children reports, no articles about a run-away child, nothing about a boy all too young to be on his own.

The regular search engine pulls up nothing, so Shouta switches over to the hero network that gives them more access to private files and information.

There's a couple of Midoriya Izuku's in the country over the years, and Shouta narrows down his search until he's certain he's got the right one. He has a middle school folder, but there are no records of any high school enrollments or folders. When he opens it up, there's a student ID photo — he's younger, but it's definitely Midoriya.

He clicks through the middle school folder, and his stomach sinks with a heavy kind of suspicion as he reads through it. Not long after his enrollment date, there are multiple incident reports.

Behavioural incidents and strikes pile up on top of each other. The type of sheer amount that Shouta only ever sees in troubled kids, in the outcasts, in the villains. Written transcriptions of history, where they feel like society turned their back on them first. Easily the type of building blocks, the kind of explanations and indicators, that Shouta has only ever seen in con-men and villains.

It's a kind of prejudice Shouta sees more often than he'd like. It's something he'd seen with some of Shinsou's files, where teachers had been scared of his Quirk rather than encouraging. Shinsou's files are bad, but not to this extent. This extent is for someone that's been given up on entirely, who's been deemed a villain before they themselves could ever decide.

It's not the kind of file Shouta ever expected to see with someone like Midoriya. Someone with a powerful Quirk, someone who wants to be a hero, and someone that will risk everything just to save someone.

Shouta looks further into the incident reports, because Midoriya's file feels like deceit.

But perhaps the file is the truth. Perhaps Midoriya has managed to deceive him — has gotten Shouta to show him his home, show him a weakness in his care for Shinsou.

But the thought of that doesn't sit right. Shouta is good at knowing when he's being played, and he's never felt like that with Midoriya.

The file feels like deceit, but only towards Midoriya.

The incidents aren't detailed in their reports. The information seems half-assed at best, like the person reporting couldn't be bothered properly detailing like they should be.

Lazy. Unmotivated. Rude. Disobedient. Troublesome.

Fought. Pushed. Attacked.

Expelled.

It's the strangest escalation Shouta has seen. From what he's seen of Midoriya, he'd been absolutely none of that — troublesome, maybe, but only for reasons that showed his desire to help was above all else.

Expelled before the high-school submissions usually began. A mark like that would mean that Midoriya's file would never even make it through the system — and if he'd been trying for any school with a hero course, he'd have been rejected immediately.

"I can't," Shouta remembers Midoriya telling them, and he understands now. With a school record like this, he'd never be able to apply — not unless someone from the institution knew him personally, and he could go through on recommendation. And Shouta doubts that anyone that is well-tied to a hero would have a school file like this, even if he truly did act in such a way.

He clicks out of the file, unease sitting heavily in his chest. There's medical files too, and Shouta only clicks on them so that he can try and see if he can get any details about Midoriya's parents and home life. Something doesn't add up from his school file, and he doubts Midoriya is going to tell him what it is.

It feels invasive, but Shouta is wondering how a child like Midoriya managed to end up expelled.

He clicks on Midoriya's medical file, and before he can even look for any parental names, something else catches his eye first.

There, where the listed Quirks usually go.

Quirkless.

"What the fuck," he whispers to himself, staring blankly at the screen in confusion. That's definitely not right.

He hasn't seen Midoriya's quirk in action, but there's almost undeniable evidence of Midoriya's strength. Being able to destroy a road, being able to save people from villains, being able to stop those villains. Midoriya has a Quirk — strength enhancement of some kind, as Shinsou had said, and Midoriya never denied it.

Midoriya has a couple of other medical reports, but they all state the same thing. Over and over again, every single report. Quirkless.

It's possible that he's a late bloomer, but his most recent medical report was from just a little over a year ago. A little too late to be a late bloomer.

He tries to look for tampering with the file, but it all seems to be untouched. According to all medical reports, including an X-Ray of the extra joint in his pinky toe, Midoriya should be Quirkless.

He's already getting a headache, he knows. Between Midoriya's school files and now his medical reports, it seems like Midoriya is a giant, tangled net of secrets. In all his years of underground hero work, and all his years in the agency, he's never seen anything like it. He'd never expect anything not like it — not for a sixteen year old boy.

"What the fuck," he says again, this time a little bit more intensely. Nothing about Midoriya Izuku makes sense right now.

If Midoriya's files aren't making sense, then he hopes he can find a sliver of understanding elsewhere. He goes back to his original plan, looking up Midoriya's parents.

It's hardly any better, though it seems like more of a standard mystery than an Midoriya Izuku level mystery. Married, but not together, as far as Shouta can figure out. Hisashi Midoriya's name has not appeared on the lease papers for over ten years. He closed his bank accounts around that time, and Shouta can't find much else. He's not listed missing or deceased, but it seems like he's simply just stopped existing all of a sudden.

Inko gives him more information, at least. Her accounts are active, and her medical history is recent. He doesn't pry very far — he just looks at her quirk information, and figures that neither Hisashi or Inko's Quirk has led into Izuku's.

Shouta goes back in the family tree, trying to find if there's any kind of strength-enhancing Quirk from the family, but nothing seems to appear. It's definitely strange, though not unheard of. Still, it just makes everything feel that much more confusing.

It has him stumped, and he feels even more lost than before he had any of the information he has now. It just doesn't make sense.

He's still thinking it over by the time Oboro returns to the agency, a triumphant grin on his face which means he's either saved a kitten or he's managed to have a kid ask him for a hug. Really, it happens more often than not.

When Oboro spots Shouta, his expression immediately falters. Fuck, Shouta must look as troubled as he feels.

"What's up?" Oboro asks, drifting his way over to Shouta, already frowning in empathy.

"I need a fucking nap. Like, right now. For the rest of eternity, actually."

Oboro's frown turns into something like a pout. "That bad?"

"I always want a nap," Shouta says, and Oboro hums.

"True. But usually you're not this dramatic about it," Oboro replies, and Shouta just groans and puts his head in his hands.

With all his thoughts revolving around Midoriya's files, he hasn't even considered how to tell Oboro and Hizashi about what's going on. It's already such a mess, and Shouta is dreading having to figure it out enough to tell them about it.

"I'll tell you when Hizashi can hear it," Shouta mutters. "It's so... I don't even know."

"Huh," Oboro says, sounding impressed. "I haven't heard you get like this in a while. Like, the last time was when you were figuring out what to name Meatball."

"Yeah, well," Shouta takes a deep breath, then drops his head down to his table.

Oboro's laugh is caused by his bafflement, though there's a mixture of concern in there as well. His fingers thread through Shouta's hair, patting his head in sympathy.

"Alright, Hizashi will be in soon. Do you want a coffee?" Oboro asks, and Shouta grunts in reply. Oboro, thankfully, understands him well, and hums with affirmation as he goes off to make some coffee for them.

They've finished it by the time Hizashi comes back to the agency. When Hizashi does walk in, it's to see Oboro sitting on Shouta's desk, and Shouta lying down on the ground looking very much like he's missing his sleeping bag.

Shouta looks up when Hizashi enters, blinking lazily at him. Hizashi claps his hands together, and a bit too loudly, says: "well alright, let's get this party started!"

Shouta notes that their staff look around in panic, thinking that they're about to be dragged in for some overtime when it's almost time to head home. They've been mindful of Shouta throughout the day, considerate of how he seems to look just as frazzled as he feels, but he can tell they're eager to escape Shouta's strange mood.

"You can all leave," he tells them. "Thanks for your work today."

They're grateful as they leave, thanking Shouta in a way that reminds him all too much of Midoriya. Fuck, he thinks again.

Hizashi takes the chair now that Shouta's no longer using it, and the three of them huddle together.

"Should I order some food?" Oboro asks, and Shouta lets his head fall back and look up at the ceiling.

"Yeah," Shouta responds, because he has a feeling they won't be leaving here until well past dinner-time. "Can you text Shinsou and tell him to come here too?"

He's likely heading back from U.A, and though Shinsou is used to being independent, Shouta also doesn't like leaving him alone at times when he doesn't have to. And after bringing Midoriya back to the apartment, he figures that Shinsou deserves to be part of this too. It's a lot, but if he wasn't sure that Shinsou couldn't handle it, then he'd never think to do it.

And perhaps Shinsou will be able to offer him some perspective about Midoriya's files.

"Yep," Oboro complies, already tapping away at his phone.

"So," Hizashi prods, after Oboro has ordered the food and they're all just waiting in relative quiet. "What's got you all grumpy?"

"I'm not grumpy," Shouta immediately defends, and Oboro makes a sound like ehh.

"It's okay to be grumpy! It's just, you know, been a while!" Hizashi says, voice rising again. Shouta sighs, desperately wishing he had his sleeping bag with him.

He tries to think about how to relay his information. He'd caught Oboro up with the information from the time when they'd gone to the police station, so he's not starting from scratch at least. But a lot has happened in the last twenty-four hours, and Shouta hardly knows where to start.

"I got a message last night. From that kid, the one I found in the alley," Shouta starts by saying, and Hizashi sucks in a surprised gasp.

"How'd he get your— oh. Nevermind," Hizashi immediately says, already figuring it out. "You gave it to him, didn't you?"

"Mhm," Shouta says, because he knows that the two of them get it — they won't be scolding him for doing such a thing, not when they'd likely do it themselves.

He loses steam though, and he's not quite sure how to pick up the conversation again. Everything just feels — ridiculous. Overwhelming. Shouta doesn't know how to pick it back up now that he's lost the momentum.

Thankfully, Oboro prompts him with a question. "So, why did he message you?"

It gets Shouta focused again, and he blinks up at the ceiling though he's hardly actually seeing it.

"He was involved in that incident last night," Shouta says — he hasn't actually really looked up the reports on it, because he already knows enough, but he knows there's been a couple of them about the road closure.

"With that metal-wielding Quirk user?" Hizashi asks, and Shouta hums. Hizashi whistles, impressed. "They're keeping quiet about who dealt with him, but it seems like it was a good thing he was subdued."

"He saved someone," Shouta says — because that's, arguably, the most important part of everything that's happened. If Hizashi and Oboro need to know anything about Midoriya, it's this.

"Just like last time, right?" Oboro mutters thoughtfully.

“As far as I know, yes. He only acted to save people,” Shouta answers.

"And he's not part of a hero course?" Hizashi asks, more rhetorical than anything. Shouta sighs.

"That's... I'll get back to that," Shouta says. "He messaged me last night because he ended up injured, and he needed some help."

"Is he okay?" Oboro and Hizashi ask at the same time, and the corner of Shouta's lips twitch up in a fond smile.

"Well, he got impaled by a pole or something," Shouta explains, and Oboro hisses in a sharp breath. Quickly, Shouta continues. "So I took him back to my apartment and got the doc to fix him up. He should be fine, he just needed some stitches. But he was walking and seemed to be doing considerably better than most would be."

"Well, that's..." Hizashi trails off.

"Grim," Oboro finishes for him. Shouta can't blame them — it definitely does seem grim. Pain like that isn't something a teenager should be used to.

"Oh," Hizashi says suddenly, voice rising. "That means he met Shinsou then? How'd they get along?"

Shouta waves a hand vaguely in the air. "It was interesting, that's for sure. Shinsou was annoyed that someone with a Quirk, who'd do well in the hero placement exam, wasn't taking the legal route whilst doing heroics."

"It is strange," Hizashi agrees, and Shouta sighs.

Everything about Midoriya is strange.

"Yeah, well. Turns out the kid wouldn't even be able to apply for a school with a hero course, as his middle school records are so damning," Shouta explains, and he's met with stunned silence from both Hizashi and Oboro. Unbelieving of it himself, he lists off: "Behavioural problems, fights, you name it. Everything they could've possibly pinned on a kid, they pinned on him, until they had enough to expel him. More than that, actually."

It could be explained that perhaps the school tried their hardest — tried to hang onto a student, tried to get them to change their ways, tried to do everything they possibly could have before ultimately resulting in expulsion. But Shouta has gone through the records, and the school has certainly expelled other students for much, much less.

It's almost like they just dragged out the punishment for Midoriya.

Oboro and Hizashi are still silent. Shouta sits up now, trying to gauge their reactions. They're just looking carefully back at Shouta, like they're trying to figure out how to respond.

"You don't believe the records are right," Hizashi realises, and Shouta lets out a deep breath, hand coming up to press against the back of his neck as he rolls it out.

"It's worse than some of Shinsou's records," Shouta says. "And the kid could be acting, but..."

"You'd see through it," Oboro replies confidently.

"It just doesn't fit. But... there might be a reason," Shouta's tone is clipped, anger swiftly rising. It infuriates him to think about it, to know that he's not being unreasonable in his assumptions. "On his medical files, he's listed as Quirkless."

Again, Hizashi and Oboro are stunned into silence.

"What?" Hizashi breaks it, his voice startlingly loud. Shouta winces, his headache spiking suddenly.

Oboro leans so far forward on the desk that he falls off it. He manages to scramble to his feet, though it's the least graceful Shouta has seen him.

"He's not, right?" Oboro asks in disbelief, and Shouta rolls out his neck again.

"No, he's not," Shouta replies, because he believes that if nothing else. He's been in contact with the police station over the day, and they have definitely confirmed a Quirk was used to subdue the metal-wielding Quirk user last night.

"A late bloomer?" Hizashi asks, and Shouta shakes his head.

"No one gets their Quirk that late. His last medical report was from when he was fourteen," Shouta replies, and Hizashi seems to deflate a little on the chair, looking just as stumped as Shouta has been feeling.

"It... it would make sense with the school reports," Oboro hesitantly says. It's not something anyone likes admitting, but it's something they have to acknowledge.

Shouta nods in agreement. It's the only conclusion he's been able to come to with the school reports, but nothing about it makes sense. Because Midoriya Izuku has a Quirk — a powerful one, and he's seemingly determined to become a hero. He's analytical, clever, good at hiding.

Midoriya is too good at hiding. It's become a necessity for survival, an instinct that's been ingrained into him.

Those aren't traits of someone with a flashy Quirk. Those aren't the traits of someone who's arrogant or rude. The ability to hide is never needed for someone like that, who has the sheer physical power to change the world right at their fingertips.

"It does, which is why none of this makes any logical sense," Shouta says, slumping over.

"Well," Oboro drawls out. "This kid sure is interesting!"

There's a knock at the door of the agency, and Oboro looks at his phone.

"Food's here," he declares, already walking over to the door to retrieve it. It breaks some of the tension in the room, and for the first time today, Shouta feels like everything isn't as muddled.

"I swear," Hizashi laughs, reaching out to grab one of the bags from Oboro. "Between the two of you, you've found some real interesting strays."

Oboro grins, passing a container over to Shouta. He keeps one container in the bag, undoubtedly Shinsou's. "You've looked into his file? Anything with his family?"

Shouta gives a small, half-hearted shrug. "Just more mysteries. No Quirk lineage that ties into his own, and a very strange absent father."

"What a strange case," Oboro says, though he sounds more upbeat than Shouta can possibly imagine feeling right now. But it's a good thing, his friends taking a more optimistic approach — it reminds Shouta that he isn't dealing with this alone.

"I'm sure we'll be able to figure it out," Hizashi says in encouragement, lifting up his container in something like a cheer. "And if the lil' listener needs help, we'll make sure we can give it."

"Exactly!" Oboro cries out in agreement with a big smile. "The kid seems to be wrapped up in something weird, but it seems like he has a good head on his shoulders. We'll get to the bottom of it."

The door opens up, and all of them turn to see Shinsou standing in the doorway of the agency. Oboro immediately gets up, wrapping his arm around Shinsou's shoulder and bringing him over to Shouta's desk which they've all huddled around. Hizashi gets up and brings over his own chair, giving Shinsou an opening to sit down.

"My little man, good to see you! How was school?" Oboro asks, and Shinsou doesn't even blink as he's pushed down onto the chair and a container is placed into his hands.

"It was good," Shinsou responds, tugging the lid off the container. "I managed to win in our hand-to-hand combat class today. I have some things to work on, but I think I'm definitely improving."

Shouta ducks his head down as he feels a proud smile start to rise on his lips. Hizashi and Oboro immediately pour on the affection, Oboro ruffling his hair in pride and Hizashi cheering perhaps a little too loudly.

Shinsou looks embarrassed with the attention, his own head ducking down in an action that mirrors similarly to Shouta's own habit. Perhaps in an attempt to divert their attention, Shinsou clears his throat. "So, what're you all doing here?"

Shinsou meets Shouta's eyes, and Shouta knows he already suspects exactly why they're all here.

"We found out some interesting things about Midoriya," Shouta confirms, and Hizashi claps his hands together.

"Ah, so we do have a name!" Hizashi declares, and Shouta blinks.

"Obviously?"

"No, you had the name," Hizashi points out, then gestures between Oboro and himself. "We didn't."

Shouta quickly recalls the conversation, and realises that not once has he mentioned Midoriya's name. He's not sure if it was a subconscious attempt to still try and protect Midoriya's identity, but he knows that he can trust Oboro and Hizashi entirely. He doesn't want them doubting it, so he frowns with his realisation. "Sorry, I wasn't trying to hide it from you or anything. It's Midoriya Izuku."

Hizashi waves his hand, already dismissing Shouta's apology in a way that represents he never needed it. If anyone understands him, Shouta reminds himself, it's them. They know it's not Shouta lacking trust, but rather just a subconscious precaution.

"Not a familiar name," Oboro hums, and Shouta gestures with his head to the computer.

"His files are still up, if you want to have a look," Shouta says, but Oboro shakes his head.

"I believe you've told us all the important parts," Oboro responds, and Shinsou raises his eyebrows questioningly.

"Well I haven't been told," Shinsou points out.

"To summarise, Midoriya couldn't apply to any hero course because he was expelled from middle school," Shouta explains, and he's never seen Shinsou look so surprised before.

"Expelled?" Shinsou repeats — and even though he'd been critical of Midoriya, it's clearly something he never imagined Midoriya would have reason for it to happen.

"Behavioural problems, mostly. I think it's due to his Quirk status, as just a little over a year ago, he was listed as Quirkless."

"What the fuck," Shinsou says, and Shouta can't even pretend to reprimand him for it when he understands that reaction perfectly well. Oboro laughs, ruffling Shinsou's hair.

"Yeah, no kidding!" Oboro says sympathetically, but is also clearly amused by Shinsou's disbelief.

Shouta stands up from the floor, stretching before he walks over to the computer and clicks open Midoriya's incident reports from his middle school, then leans back to let Shinsou have a look.

Shinsou scans over them, and there's an uneasy frown on his lips.

"Some of that language..." Shinsou says, looking up at Shouta like he's looking for confirmation.

Shouta knows why, so he nods. Shinsou clearly sees some of the similarities with his own files, and they both know that those reports are absolutely not reflective of the truth.

Shinsou looks over the document for another moment, and then his eye seems to catch something. He zooms in, and then leans back on the chair, tapping his chin thoughtfully.

"Aldera Junior High? That sounds familiar," Shinsou says, tilting his head. His eyes widen, rocking the chair as he leans forward again. "I think Bakugo went there. They would've been in the same grade, right?"

"Bakugo?" Hizashi repeats. "You mean the fiery one that won the sports festival?"

"Yep," Shinsou responds, nodding his head, now confident of his deduction. "A piece of work, but he's very skilled and very clever. He seems like he should be easy to rile up, but I can never get him to respond in Quirk battles no matter what I say. Anyway, yeah, I'm pretty certain he went there."

"But you're not friends with him?" Oboro asks, and Shinsou shakes his head.

"Not really. We don't really interact," Shinsou replies.

"We can't go around asking about him, it'd just bring up suspicion," Shouta says, though it does feel good to know that they at least have some connections they can follow through with if they really need to.

"Well, perhaps not asking about him directly." Hizashi sounds like he's already thinking and plotting something, tapping the rim of his glasses as he seems to parse through his thoughts. "But we can likely try and get some leeway if we look into the treatment of Quirkless students..."

"Or," Shinsou pipes up, his gaze lingering on the screen. "We can just, you know, ask Midoriya ourselves."

Shouta isn't too sure how he feels about the idea. Midoriya had only repeated that he couldn't apply for a hero course, and he hadn't seemed willing to explain why. But Midoriya surely would have known that by giving Shouta his full, real name, Shouta had the opportunity to look him up. And that Shouta would have, concerned for his safety and with his secrecy.

Midoriya has given Shouta the information he needed to find out everything, but still, Midoriya did not tell him about why he couldn't apply for a hero course.

"He might not tell us," Shouta warns.

"But he still messaged you when he needed help. He let you help," Oboro says in rebuttal. "He's told you enough to find this out. You've gotten him to trust you to this extent, I think it's just a matter of showing him that his trust isn't misplaced."

"Mhm," Hizashi hums. "If the lil' listener has a record like that, I'm sure he's not used to people in authority actually listening to the truth."

Shouta groans, because he knows that Hizashi is right. It's something of a miracle for Midoriya to even come to Shouta when he needed help, considering that it seems like Midoriya hasn't had the best run with adults in his life. It's nothing short of a miracle that he'd even want to be a hero after everything.

Shouta wonders if that dream came before or after he got his Quirk — but he thinks about Midoriya's determination, his absolute belief that he'd be able to make it as a hero, and he thinks that it's the kind of dream that's been life-long for Midoriya.

"We'll need to handle this carefully," Shouta says, eyes flickering to the file on his screen. This is a complex situation, a type of mess that Shouta has never had to untangle before, and he knows it's something they have to do so delicately.

"Of course," Oboro replies, slurping up the last of his meal. Shouta's has sat untouched since he moved to the computer, and Shinsou nudges it in his direction to remind him to eat as well.

"You just keep us updated about the lil' listener, and we'll try and keep the cases around him quiet," Hizashi says, giving Shouta a thumbs-up. Shouta would be apprehensive if anyone else was to handle such a task, as trying to suppress a case usually just makes those involved in it suspicious, but Shouta knows that this is something Hizashi can manage to do without raising any kind of alarm.

They'll get their answers soon, and the cases will be able to be put aside without trouble. It's just a matter of being patient.

And Shouta is very, very good at being patient.

"You're impatient," Shinsou says to him, just over a week later.

Shouta grumbles, sliding his phone underneath his sleeping bag. He's been checking it over perhaps a little too frequently, waiting, deciding to let Midoriya make the move to approach. He doesn't want to push boundaries — he doesn't want to scare Midoriya off because he's got more solid ground between them.

There's no doubt Midoriya will be feeling on edge after their last encounter, likely feeling like he's revealed too much, and has let Shouta and Shinsou see too much. So Shouta just wants to let Midoriya come to him when he's ready to, and not a moment sooner.

But the moments are starting to feel very, very long.

Shinsou is stretched out on the couch, with Riceball and a bowl of popcorn on his lap. Meatball is sitting on the table, watching them as they watch a movie together, something Shouta has taken to doing with Shinsou when he's not on patrol and it's a weekend. He's found that he's taken more time off his weekends than ever before, but he thinks it's worth it.

Shouta himself is curled up on the single armchair, sleeping bag zipped around him. Usually he tends to fall asleep during the movies, but he feels like he's full of nervous energy, just waiting for something to happen. It's like how he feels before heading into a fight — like his mind and body are preparing to meet something head-on.

"He'll message you eventually," Shinsou tells him, arcing up a piece of popcorn and managing to make it land in his mouth. "Probably not soon, but he will. Give him time."

Shouta logically knows that Shinsou is right. Midoriya has shown that he has the tendency to forsake his own safety and identity just to save someone, and that's a trait that will find him soon in need of some support eventually — and it seems like he's tending to find it in Shouta, which is promising, but also perhaps worrying.

If an underground hero is the first person Midoriya can turn to, he wonders what everyone else in his life has done to forsake that position to give it to Shouta.

And perhaps Shinsou is someone that understands Midoriya best, in this situation. It's not quite the same, but there's certainly some similarities with their lives and their connection to Shouta. So if Shinsou is convinced that Midoriya will reach out again, then Shouta believes it.

"You know," Shinsou says, both of them not bothering to pretend like they have any idea what's going on with the movie. "Sometimes, I used to think that it'd be better to be Quirkless than to have mine."

Shouta looks over to Shinsou, carefully measuring his reaction. But Shinsou seems comfortable — this isn't a deep, hurtful secret to him. This is just a simple, casual fact.

"We didn't have any in our school at the time I was there. But there were stories of one, a few years before I even entered Nabu. They say she was crazy, and she dropped out within a year," Shinsou continues, and Shouta presses his lips together.

It's not unlikely — he's read the statistics. All kinds of reports and evidence.

Quirkless children have a lower percentage of graduating high school. Quirkless children have a higher percentage of developing some kind of mental illness, or having one forced upon them.

Quirkless children have a lower percentage of even making it to adulthood.

There's studies and research, but there hardly ever seems to be a change. Support and resources seem to dwindle as each generation appears, as it becomes rarer to be Quirkless in the current society.

"They say she killed a classmate," Shinsou says, and his voice is softer now, a little more delicate — there's emotion there, now. It's no longer just a casual fact to him, but this is something he's reflecting upon now, this is something he's starting to realise might just be false.

Or, perhaps, true.

It's easier to compare that kind of story now after seeing Midoriya's files, easier to realise that the rumour has some weight now after seeing the ridiculous amount of behavioural problems listed. The blatant discrimination, right there in front of them — enough to ruin, enough to completely destroy, a child's hope of ever entering a hero course.

After seeing the treatment, Shouta can understand why a child would snap.

In fact, it's harder to understand why Midoriya hasn't.

He must have a figure in his life, Shouta thinks, a little despondently. There must be someone who's kept Midoriya's dream of being a hero alive. There must've been someone that reached out a hand to help — someone before Shouta. He can't imagine a Quirkless child being able to keep that flame alive, and he can't imagine anyone doing it after seeing Midoriya's files.

Shouta hopes that Midoriya has someone, but Shinsou didn't have that. Not in his home life, not in his peers, not in his teachers — not in any of the adults in his personal life. Shinsou is just inherently good, determined to become a hero despite every single person in his life treating him like a villain from the moment his Quirk manifested.

It's a lot for a child to bear alone.

Maybe Shouta is impatient. Maybe he's tired of seeing children bear these kinds of heavy weights by themselves.

"I guess I had it easier, in the end," Shinsou says, with a huff of laughter.

"Hm?"

"For the hero entrance exam. At least I had the opportunity to take it in the first place," Shinsou says.

He then throws another kernel of popcorn into his mouth, and turns his attention back to the movie, finished up with the conversation.

Shouta used to think Shinsou was at a disadvantage, when he first transferred to the hero course. A semester behind, lacking in his specific hero skills and knowledge.

Shinsou stands in that class now not because he was placed there, not gifted a position like so many others. He has struggled and clawed and fought his way to be where he stands now, and he'll do everything to prove that he's worthy of being there. He has climbed close to the top of his class, fuelled by a type of determination that very few people will ever understand.

Shinsou's disadvantage has stricken a fire underneath him, and it has now become his advantage. Shinsou started behind everyone, but now he is standing with them, standing ahead of them.

Midoriya might not have the opportunity to stand with them just yet, but Shouta sees that same determination in Midoriya as he sees in Shinsou. He is sure that, if given the chance, Midoriya will be able to stand ahead of them too.

It's just a matter of helping him get there in the first place.

A couple of weeks later, Midoriya texts him a location just as Shouta starts his patrol.

It's not an alleyway, surprisingly. It's one of the small parks in the area, and Shouta quickly makes his way there, surveying the area. It's quiet tonight — too cold, even for people wanting to start trouble.

Midoriya is sitting at a bench, distracted by his phone. Shouta's approach is quiet, and this time it seems he actually manages to surprise Midoriya with his presence.

"Hey kid," Shouta says, looking around the park once more before deeming it safe to sit on the opposite side of the bench that Midoriya is currently sitting at.

"Hello, Eraserhead," Midoriya says politely — a little stiffly, more like. Awkward, likely overthinking their last encounter.

"How're your stitches?" Shouta asks, because it's something he's been thinking about texting, but ultimately left for Midoriya to talk to him first. He'd just hoped that Midoriya would reach out if he came across any problems.

"Oh, aha, they're going okay! Dissolved for the most part," Midoriya says hurriedly in reassurance, patting his stomach like he's showing that it's properly sewn back together. "Thank you again!"

Shouta nods, relieved. The doctor does good work, and though Shouta didn't doubt his ability, he did ever so slightly doubt Midoriya's ability to actually take care of himself properly.

Midoriya flips his phone over nervously in his hands, and Shouta remains quiet as he waits for Midoriya to speak. He definitely needs to approach the topic about viewing Midoriya's files, because he feels guilty for not telling him he's gone through them, but he also doesn't want to make Midoriya panic.

"Um, I wanted to meet up, just because I had some... information? And I know it's probably harder for everyone if I deal with it, so I thought it'd be best if I gave it to, you know, the actual heroes," Midoriya says, eventually placing his phone face-down on the table like he's forcing himself to focus.

"Makes sense," Shouta says, leaning back a little on his seat. "What is it?"

"One of the— I think one of the local gangs? They'd spoken too loudly. Didn't think a teenager would be much of a threat," Midoriya starts to explain, words hurriedly whispered. "So I followed them for a bit, and it turns out they have this whole group of them. I think they're trying to recruit some of the high schoolers around here too."

Shouta nods along, because he's been noticing some strange activity as well. The tide, he thinks. It's starting to rise now.

Midoriya begins to explain further, relaying all the information he's managed to find out on his own. Shouta's been looking at their movement as well, but he hadn't realised they'd been moving so fast, clearly gearing up for something. What Midoriya provides him is enough to easily put a halt to most of it.

"This is really useful, thank you Midoriya," Shouta says, once Midoriya has run out of every possible avenue he could possibly speak or theorise about. Most of his theories are similar to Shouta's own train of thoughts, so Shouta lets him continue without interruption.

"Oh," Midoriya says, surprised. "You actually... It is?"

"It is," Shouta confirms. Midoriya's shoulders drop with relief.

"I'm glad then," Midoriya mutters.

He seems surprised that Shouta has actually believed him. Surprised that Shouta has even thanked him for his information.

"I'll try not to get involved," Midoriya says, fingers resuming their anxious tapping against his phone. "I don't want to make things any more difficult for you, after all."

"You didn't make things that difficult," Shouta immediately denies, shaking his head. Midoriya raises his head, clearly questioning Shouta, and Shouta does his best to remedy it. He doesn't want to lose Midoriya's trust in his words. "Well, not difficult. Just... confusing."

Shouta's tried to make his tone more uplifted in amusement, but Midoriya's head still ducks down in shame anyway. Shouta sighs.

"I need to mention that I looked up your file," Shouta says.

"Yeah," Midoriya breathes out softly, giving a meek nod, clearly having expected Shouta to tell him this.

"You couldn't go for the hero entrance exam because of your middle school records, right?" Shouta asks, leaning forward on the bench.

Midoriya just nods again. "Right," he confirms, voice low and defeated.

He's not even bothering to defend his records, Shouta notes. It's either true, or Midoriya just doesn't believe in advocating for himself even though he's been done wrong.

"Those records are worrisome," Shouta says, and Midoriya's head just seems to lower further. Shouta sighs. "From where I'm sitting, they don't seem like an accurate representation of the actual events that transpired. Your records are worrisome, because it looks like adults and students alike participated and facilitated in targeted discrimination against you."

Midoriya's head whips up at that, staring at Shouta with large, wide eyes.

"W-what?" Midoriya asks, like he can't believe Shouta's words.

"Kid, I've seen reports like that. Usually those types of reports come up with students that teachers deem the Quirks of to be dangerous, or villain-like in nature. And they believed you were Quirkless, didn't they? And the way they treated you because of it was unjust. That's discrimination, Midoriya," Shouta says, and Midoriya's head starts to shake rapidly.

"No, no! It wasn't— it wasn't. I was in fights a lot! I caused a lot of trouble," Midoriya argues, though his voice is trembling.

Shouta tilts his head, analysing. "But you weren't the cause of those fights, were you? You weren't the one to blame for the trouble."

"I was," Midoriya says, still shaking his head. "If I had a Quirk then, I wouldn't have caused trouble. It's just... it's just how things go. I was weak, and I couldn't keep up, and all I did was cause trouble."

Shouta is almost frozen with disbelief.

Midoriya has saved people, taken down villains, and has been stitched up without a single noise of pain or complaint. Midoriya is strong, determined, and clever.

But something is broken here. Something is very, very broken if Midoriya is saying these things — if he's actually trying to defend other people's discrimination because he'd been at the root of their attacks.

"That's not how things go," Shouta says sternly, rubbing a hand down his face. Fuck, he needs some caffeine. "That's just— I'm sorry, but that's bullshit."

"It's how things go," Midoriya insists, and there's a small, bitter smile on his lips. "It's just how it is for Quirkless people. They didn't really do anything wrong, really. I wouldn't have made it into the hero course anyway, at that time, so they were right in the end."

"Why are you defending that?" Shouta asks, feeling frustrated. "You could have made it into the hero course, because you don't need the entrance exam. You could have applied for general studies, or business studies, and then transferred. There's options, as long as you just make it to the gate. Except they falsified reports, made you to blame for being the victim, and an expulsion is a black mark that means you couldn't even apply. They cost you that, so why are you defending them?"

Midoriya turns his head away at that.

"Because nothing changes anyway," Midoriya says, his words carrying gently through the park with a small gust of wind.

"They're false reports, Midoriya. It's wrongful expulsion. It's literally discrimination. If you-"

Midoriya shakes his head, and it's the first sign of frustration that Shouta has seen from him. "It wouldn't have mattered what I did, because no one would've listened to me anyway. I had paper trails. I could have had photos, I could have had all the evidence in the world, and nothing would have changed. No one listens."

"I'm listening right now."

Midoriya immediately hunches over, deflating like a popped balloon. He takes in a shuddering breath, and it seems like for a dangerous moment, he's about to start crying.

Shouta is a little unsure of what to do with that, because he's never been that good at dealing with emotional outbursts. It's definitely more of Oboro's area — he's good at talking to people, good at supporting them. Shouta has always kind of taken a step back, but that's not something he can do in this situation.

He sits awkwardly, unsure of what to say or do. Midoriya seems to rein himself in, taking in a deep breath and calming himself down. He turns to look at Shouta, his eyes shimmering and still close to trembling, and he gives Shouta a shaky smile.

"You're one of the first," Midoriya says quietly. "Thank you."

Shouta's heart aches. He's done the bare minimum of what any adult should do, but Midoriya is surprised and grateful for this much alone.

"I know you're curious about my Quirk coming in so late, right?" Midoriya asks, and he looks a little stronger now as he looks back at Shouta. He's still hunched over though, apologetic. Shouta knows that this isn't something he's willing to disclose to Shouta yet — something he feels like he can't.

"Did you get it illegally?" Shouta asks.

Midoriya blanches. "What? No, no of course not!"

"Not through a villain? Some type of serum?" Shouta presses, and Midoriya fervently shakes his head in denial.

"No, no, nothing like that!"

Shouta nods, and leans back from the table, satisfied for now. "Alright then."

Midoriya freezes, looking at Shouta with visible surprise. "Do... Do you believe me?"

"Should I not?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya blinks.

"I... I guess people usually don't," Midoriya replies, and Shouta feels his shoulders hunch. Problem child indeed.

"Alright kid, until you give me a reason not to believe you, then I'm going to assume that you're telling me the truth. In turn, I'll listen, and I'll tell you the truth as well," Shouta says. "Deal?"

Midoriya nods, but he still seems surprised with the offer Shouta is giving him. Surprised, but not distrusting, and Shouta is glad.

"Deal," Midoriya hesitantly answers, and Shouta nods.

"Right. Can I ask some questions about it, though?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya begins to nervously fiddle with his phone again.

"Like..."

"Like what it is, for example," Shouta answers, and Midoriya taps at his phone again before he places it down.

"It's a strength stockpiling Quirk. I can enhance my physical abilities," Midoriya explains. "Like super-strength, I guess you'd call it."

Shouta thinks back to the road that Midoriya managed to destroy, and he thinks fuck, that's some strength alright.

"You've had it for a year?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya nods.

"Just a little bit over that, I guess now," Midoriya answers, and he flexes his fingers out like they're stiff.

"So you're still learning how to wield it," Shouta guesses, and Midoriya's expression shifts. He looks like he's going through a mix of emotions — shame, firstly, but it quickly shifts into something more determined.

"I am," Midoriya confirms. "Currently, I can use it to about... 40% capacity."

"How do you know the limit?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya gives him a small shrug.

"When I first got it, I could only use it at 100% or nothing. My body can't withstand it at 100%, as I usually end up breaking something when I do that. So I know what 100% feels like," Midoriya answers, flexing out his fingers again. After Midoriya's explanation, Shouta figures that there's likely a type of chronic pain there — too young for someone his age, a drawback with his Quirk that seems a little too extreme.

But Midoriya is certainly not typical of anyone else, so Shouta supposes he should get used to Midoriya only acting in extremes.

"So right now, you're capable of handling it at 40%?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya hums in confirmation.

40%, and Midoriya had managed to upend a street. Shouta hasn't seen the extent of Midoriya's abilities yet with his Quirk, but he has a feeling that it's a power that'll be easily comparable to some of the strongest heroes.

"You don't have any kind of Quirk permit, do you?" Shouta asks, though he already knows damn well from Midoriya's lacking documents.

"No," Midoriya replies quietly.

"You know, you could get in serious trouble using your Quirk to fight," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya looks chastised. "Even if you're saving someone, even if you're doing what you think is the right thing, it's still illegal. Our society has laws in place for a reason when it comes to using Quirks."

"I know," Midoriya replies softly, head ducking down again.

Shouta sighs.

"So, how do you plan on becoming a hero then?" Shouta asks, just as Midoriya starts to nervously fiddle with his fingers again.

Midoriya's head snaps up, looking at Shouta and trying to assess Shouta's opinion on it. But Shouta remains carefully blank, not giving away any of his emotions about this topic.

"Oh, um," Midoriya says, nervous now. "Well, I'd obviously need to get my hero licence permit. And to do that, I'd of course have to get my provisional hero licence. I know that it's easier to get when you're in high school and enrolled in a hero course, but there's other catch-up courses and exams I can take!"

"To do those, you'd need a high school diploma," Shouta cuts in, and Midoriya's nervous rambling cuts off. He gives a small nod, looking too small again.

"I know," Midoriya says. "I know, I'm... I'm keeping up in coursework as best as I can, and I'll be able to take exams to get it. It might take me a bit longer, but I'll get there!"

"It's harder to gain government benefits and backing when you don't have connections that schools offer," Shouta warns.

And he's glad to see Midoriya's shoulders beginning to straighten now, properly. His determination is rising again, his confidence rebuilding right in front of Shouta. It's a good sign — it means that Midoriya is well aware of the challenges ahead of him, and he's assured that he'll be able to overcome them.

Midoriya is being realistic about his goal, and that’s a very good thing.

"I know," Midoriya repeats again, but this time his voice is louder, more confident now. "But I'll rise to become the number one hero, no matter what!"

Shouta finds himself grinning, amused by Midoriya's heartfelt declaration.

"Will you now?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya nods.

"I will," Midoriya declares, his hands now clenched into fists.

"It'll be a long journey," Shouta says.

"I'll get there as soon as possible," Midoriya responds, and Shouta is impressed — gone, apparently, is the boy that'd been nervous to talk to him on this bench. Now, Midoriya is confident, unwavering in his belief, entirely assured that he won't waver.

"You have a lot of work ahead of you then," Shouta says, and he stands up from the bench. He's still got a patrol to get back to, and the conversation tonight with Midoriya has been more than enough to currently satisfy his questions. "You're behind peers your age, so you better get to it. And you better stop getting into trouble, hm?"

Midoriya nods, awkwardly making his way to his feet as he realises that Shouta has. "Right! Right, I'll get to it! Thank you, Eraserhead! Sorry again!"

"Kid, one piece of advice," Shouta says, readjusting the capture scarf around his neck. "Don't apologise when you don't need to."

"Right, sor- right! Okay! Thank you!"

Shouta sighs into his scarf, and bids Midoriya Izuku goodnight.

"He definitely could've texted you that information," Oboro says, after Shouta manages to get Hizashi and Oboro together to debrief them about his meeting with Midoriya. He's just explained the information Midoriya passed onto him about the activity he's surveilled.

He's already dreading the paperwork he'll have to fill out, but it'll be good to get the drop on the gang before they really uprise with trouble. Besides, as far as the police will know, this is information that Shouta has managed to scourge for himself — they won't question his integrity, or his methods.

"He was probably thinking about being confidential," Shouta responds, though it's a weak argument and they all know it.

"Yeah, and that's why he decided on a public park and why he didn't complain when you showed up in your hero costume," Hizashi snorts, and Shouta just rolls his eyes in response.

"Well, it's a good thing he got it," Oboro says, putting his arms behind his head. "That definitely helps us to manage those guys. And we can work on cutting off any new recruitment strategies they're trying."

"We might be able to advocate again for more funding in the troubled youth areas," Hizashi mentions, and Shouta nods in agreement. The gangs wouldn't bother trying to recruit unless they felt like they had a way in with the younger crowd. They're easier to manipulate, though they're ultimately harder to control as they usually don't have the same sense of loyalty that ties these kinds of groups together — but still, these groups are now willing to gamble on that.

"That'll be good," Oboro says — it's an area they're all dedicated towards for their own personal reasons, after all.

There's a moment of pause in their conversation, and Shouta takes the moment to brace himself before he starts to talk again.

He explains to Oboro and Hizashi about the way Midoriya had initially defended the wrongful records, and his instinctual lack of trust, lack of faith, that someone will listen to or believe him. Oboro and Hizashi look troubled, and there's even a darkened flicker of anger across Oboro's face which is rare to see.

He then goes on to explain Midoriya's Quirk, and does his best to subdue his smile as he repeats Midoriya's declaration that he'd become the number one hero.

"Impressive," Hizashi whistles. "That sure is a big goal for a kid like that."

Oboro tilts his head, studying Shouta. "You think he can get there, don't you?"

Shouta is a little miffed that Oboro can read him so easily. He'd been tossing over his emotions and thoughts for a couple of days, trying to figure out how he felt about Midoriya's declaration to him.

He thought he'd been just amused at first — entertained, mostly, at hearing something he hears so often. Most of the time he's entertained but dismissive, because he knows what it takes for someone to get to a spot like that, and he can tell most of them just don't have it.

But Shouta realises he's not dismissive of Midoriya. He's more just impressed that Midoriya has a dream like that after everything. It's amusing, because here's Midoriya; determined to become a shining beacon of hope for a society that has done very little to ever deserve it from him.

"It'll be difficult," Shouta says, and Oboro gives a small shrug.

"He knows that," Oboro retorts. "And it's something he's been shouldering alone. So what are we going to do to help him?"

Shouta tilts his head back. Of course. Oboro and Hizashi have always been on the same train as him — at the core of who they are, they just want to help people.

"I wonder how he's getting access to coursework," Hizashi says, rubbing his chin in thought. "These years are important for studying, we need to make sure he's at a similar level to his peers."

"We could always try and do something about his record," Oboro says, gesturing to Shouta's computer. "It's clearly a case of discrimination, we can probably easily get that fixed up."

"I doubt it," Shouta sighs. "His Quirk is an anomaly, I don't think it'll be as easy as we think."

"Nezu is also an anomaly," Oboro says easily, and Shouta stares for a moment before he realises.

"You want to try and get Midoriya enrolled at U.A?" Shouta asks, and Oboro gives him a lazy shrug.

"I mean, why not? We're alumni, we have some leverage. I'm sure that Nezu will be able to weigh the risks himself, and he'll make the logical conclusion," Oboro replies, and Shouta just presses his fingers into the bridge of his nose.

"It might not be the logical choice for Midoriya, though," Shouta reminds him, and Oboro immediately stifles his energy.

They're unsure of what, exactly, Aldera Junior High was like for Midoriya. There's only false reports that signify the truth of their discrimination, but the fact is the school could have been hiding much, much worse. Midoriya could have faced much worse, and putting him back in a school environment might not be the best solution.

"He'll be in classes with students of a similar mindset, though," Hizashi says. "It'll be different."

Shouta nods, because he does agree. They all know the standards of U.A, they know what the student body is like. And it'll be different for Midoriya anyway, now with a powerful Quirk. It'll be different, it'll likely be better, but—

"It's not our choice to make," Shouta sighs.

"I guess..." Oboro replies, though he doesn't seem as convinced.

"I doubt the lil' listener has even thought that it could even be a possibility," Hizashi says. "So we just gotta make sure he knows all the options, and help him make a decision that's best for him."

"Yeah!" Oboro cheers, swinging his arms out from behind his head and pumping his fists. "And even if he doesn't want to go to U.A, then that's okay! We can help him with his original plan!"

"This won't be as easy as you're making it sound," Shouta says, and Oboro just grins at him.

"Sho, when have things ever been easy with us? Come on, let's do our best!"

Shouta deliberates for a couple days.

Eventually, he sends his first text to Midoriya.

Patrolling tonight, if you'd like to join.

He watches as the typing speech bubble appears, disappears, then reappears, numerous times. Eventually he locks his phone, privately giving Midoriya the space to figure out how he feels.

Ten minutes later, he gets a text.

Okay! Thank you!

"Shinsou, I'm heading out," Shouta calls out to the apartment, because Shinsou's door is cracked open and he usually hears him.

"Alright!" Shinsou calls back, and Shouta feels a little guilty for leaving him behind when he's going to meet up with Midoriya.

He'll let Shinsou come patrol with him soon, once he’s gotten his provisional hero licence. And so far Midoriya has only wanted to meet privately, so he's not sure how Shinsou's presence would be received just yet.

He sends a location to Midoriya, and then begins to head over. It's a good sign that Midoriya is willing to meet up with Shouta on his terms this time — he'd been worried that Midoriya would reject his offer, that Midoriya wouldn't be open to further contact unless he's the one dictating it.

It's a risky thing, as it's an element out of Midoriya's control. It means he'll have to trust Shouta to an extent, and fuck knows it seems like the adults in Midoriya's life have done all they can to destroy it.

Midoriya arrives just a little after Shouta. He makes his presence known, but he keeps a bit more of a distance than one normally would. Shouta can work with that.

"Is it really okay if I patrol with you? I mean, there's not really any legalities around it, but that's because no Pro Hero would actually let someone patrol with them," Midoriya rambles, nervous.

Shouta just puts his goggles over his eyes. "Kid, it's fine. We're just going to do some scouting, and if I have to engage, then all I need you to do is make sure you don't get involved. Alright?"

He's essentially benchmarking Midoriya from any action, which most students would tend to find boring, but Midoriya just clenches his fists with determination and nods.

"Alright," Midoriya confirms, looking all too eager to be patrolling with Shouta.

Perhaps not the reaction he'd expected for Midoriya to have, but he remembers that Midoriya must do a lot of research into heroes. He'd known who Eraserhead was, after all, and kept a close eye on the U.A Sports Festival. Midoriya clearly has a strong admiration for heroes, he's striving so hard to be one, and this glimpse into the life of one is likely new to him.

Shouta starts to go through one of his usual routes, Midoriya following silently. He's good at masking his footsteps, clever with where he steps, and Shouta is half-focused on Midoriya's movements rather than what's going on around him.

But now that they have a plan in mind for the gang looking to stir up trouble, and are soon about to implement it, Shouta isn't too worried about the patrol right now. More than anything, this is just for him to figure out how Midoriya moves, and an opportunity to talk to him.

Just after an hour or so in, he decides he may as well bring it up. He doesn't want to keep Midoriya out too late, after all — even if he doesn't technically have school in the morning, he doesn't really want Midoriya getting home this late on his own.

Sure, Midoriya can probably handle it on his own if anything happens, but Shouta fears that something will happen. It seems Midoriya is like a magnet for trouble, after all — or rather like trouble is a magnet for him.

"You know I'm part of the hero agency around here, right?" Shouta asks him, his voice sounding a little gruff — partially from the late hour, mostly from the cold.

Midoriya stiffens, and it's only then that Shouta realises just how relaxed Midoriya has become over the hour in his presence. It's a shame to startle him and break it, but it's something he has to do.

"Hm? Oh, yes! With Present Mic and Loud Cloud, your alumni from U.A," Midoriya answers, and Shouta nods. The mention of U.A feels like a delicate topic right now, but Shouta makes sure that he doesn't react to it.

"I should tell you that they know about you," Shouta says, watching Midoriya's reaction. Midoriya's eyes flicker over to Shouta, like he's trying to assess Shouta in turn.

"Present Mic came with me to talk to the police after that first attack. They've been helping to keep your incidents quiet amongst the station," Shouta further explains, and Midoriya's gaze moves away to the skyline.

"They are?" Midoriya asks, and that surprised lilt in his tone has reappeared. Like he can't believe there's people helping him.

"Heroes, through and through, the two of them," Shouta responds, bemused by his own friends.

"So they're like you," Midoriya mutters, though it's more to himself than anything. Shouta tilts his head, but otherwise does not respond.

Shouta looks out down the street, down near an alley that reminds Shouta of the first time he'd met Midoriya.

"Loud Cloud brought this up actually," Shouta says, turning back to look at Midoriya. "But if you wanted, we could help fix up your school records. We could help you apply to U.A, if that's what you wanted to do."

"U.A?" Midoriya repeats, and by the way his eyes go wide, Shouta knows Midoriya is in awe.

U.A, after all, is one of the dream schools for heroes — where top heroes come from. Where All Might, the number one, came from.

"If that's what you wanted," Shouta says, because it seems like Midoriya has frozen, like he's in need of a system reboot. "We can only promise to do our best, though it's not a guarantee is all. But we can definitely try and help you get there."

"U.A," Midoriya repeats to himself again. And then he quickly devolves into a series of quiet ramblings, only the ending trails of which Shouta is able to capture in the gentle wind.

Shouta stands and waits for Midoriya to work through his thoughts, giving him as much privacy as he can up on this rooftop by looking away. Midoriya's mutterings go on for a while until they eventually trail off, and Shouta hears him take a deep breath. Shouta turns back around, and Midoriya's looking at him with his fists clenched again — determined, his shoulders back.

"I'll have to think about it. It's— I've always wanted to go there," Midoriya says, and his voice is starting to trail off a little near the end of his admission. He takes another deep breath, pulling back his confidence, unwilling to really let Shouta glimpse at the storm of emotions he's clearly feeling. "But I'm not sure if that's best for me, right now."

"Understandable," Shouta says, because he gets it — after the experience Midoriya had in middle school, he doesn't blame him. He's glad that Midoriya seems to recognise that it might not be best for him at the moment, because it shows that Midoriya is aware of his own traumas and knows his limits with them.

Midoriya seems surprised again that Shouta has taken his response at face-value, that he hasn't pushed or tried to persuade Midoriya otherwise. But he seems to be getting used to it, because that surprise drops from his features a lot sooner than it has before.

He doesn't even seem guarded, like he's worried Shouta is just baiting him into a trap. Now, he just seems to trust that Shouta is telling him the truth. Midoriya is trusting that Shouta is upholding his end of the deal.

"Come on, problem child," Shouta says, leading Midoriya off the current rooftop, continuing on with the patrol.

Midoriya follows him, and he stays a little closer to Shouta than he previously did before.

When he requests for Midoriya to join him again a few nights later, it almost feels like a lie.

He's careful not to use the word 'patrol', but he knows that's the assumption Midoriya meets up with him for.

"I hope you don't mind," Shouta says. "But I was hoping to have a look at your abilities."

"My Quirk?" Midoriya asks, and there's a cautious edge to his voice.

Shouta shoves his hands in his pockets and shrugs. "I want to look more at your fighting skills, actually. If that's reliant on your Quirk, then sure."

That's his assumption, at least. People with strength-based Quirks base all of their fighting skills around it, and that's what he expects Midoriya is like as well. Likely not through fault of his own, if he hasn't had access to any teachers or hobbies that can help him in combat. It's something students learn in hero courses, after all, and currently that's out of Midoriya's reach.

"My... fighting skills?" Midoriya repeats, uncertain, which only further cements Shouta's assumption.

Shouta nods. "If you want to be a hero, then you need to know how to fight. And though you shouldn't be getting into fights with your Quirk without the proper accreditation, you can always practise your skills in combat."

"Um," Midoriya says, stumped. "Sure? Okay, then."

Shouta waves his hand, gesturing for Midoriya to follow him into the building. It's the agency, though Shouta only needs one particular room.

"Wait, wait," Midoriya says in a hurry, and Shouta doesn't even look back as he hears Midoriya scramble after him. "Wait, is this— is this the agency? Your agency?"

"It is," Shouta confirms, leading Midoriya through the security passes they have. He knows it's an empty building tonight, and so he doesn't need to worry as he heads through the building.

He unlocks one of the rooms and steps inside, Midoriya thankfully following right on his heels.

"Oh wow," Midoriya says as the lights flicker on, illuminating a training room. It's not the largest, but it's enough for heroes to practice their hand-to-hand combat and other exercises in.

"How much training do you have?" Shouta asks, watching as Midoriya shakes out his hands again. He's still looking around the room in awe, taking in all the equipment, hardly noticing as Shouta heads over to another door. It's a smaller room — reinforced, letting anyone with a strong Quirk use it without worrying about damaging anything.

It's usually used by Hizashi, if he's in the mood to really yell. It's rare, but sometimes Hizashi needs the outlet, and this room is the solution.

He also doesn't want Midoriya to worry about breaking equipment, because he's already keeping a carefully wide berth away from all the objects like he's afraid to even breathe near them. He gets Midoriya's attention, ushering him into the room and shutting the door behind them.

"Uh, in fighting? Not... Not a lot," Midoriya admits sheepishly. "I try and practice, but..."

"No teacher?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya hums.

"No one to fight against," Midoriya corrects.

Interesting. So perhaps Midoriya does have someone that's teaching him something, but he's being carefully secretive of them.

"Well, now you do," Shouta says, and he holds his arms open. "Let's see how you go in close quarters. I won't erase your Quirk, as I want to see how you rely on it."

Midoriya gives him a slow nod, his eyes scanning around the room, analysing his surroundings. It's something Shouta has noticed he does the moment he's in a new space — he finds all the entrances and exits in a room, and anywhere that he can use as an escape. Instinctual. "Alright."

"Just try and subdue me," Shouta says, already settling into a more defensive stance.

He notices Midoriya doing the same, his attention now entirely focused on Shouta.

Midoriya seems to still be weighing up his plan of attack, still taking a moment to assess the situation. He looks over Shouta critically, like he's mentally reciting the strength and weaknesses Shouta might have.

Midoriya takes a deep breath, and it's all the warning Shouta gets.

Lightning sparks up Midoriya's skin. Tinted green, Shouta distantly notes, the air basically crackling with a sudden rise of power. And then Midoriya leaps.

Fucking hell, he thinks, barely managing to step out of Midoriya's path. He's reaching for Shouta with an outstretched hand, so fast that Shouta is barely able to even think. He reacts on instinct, already thinking ahead about Midoriya's next possible move.

It's only Shoutas’s experience that keeps him out of Midoriya's reach. Midoriya basically bounces off the wall from behind Shouta, his speed seemingly picking up as he kicks off the wall and goes for Shouta again.

Midoriya is so fast that Shouta is barely able to assess how he's actually fighting. He's relying on his Quirk — which is certainly a lot more than just the enhanced strength Shouta had been expecting. Midoriya is moving as fast as speed-based heroes, his movements almost too fast for even Shouta's eye.

Almost.

He manages to catch Midoriya's arm after sidestepping him, and he uses his momentum to flip him down to the ground. Midoriya goes down with a heavy thud, but it hardly keeps him down for long. He's basically bouncing back up, but Shouta doesn't let him get far away enough to build up momentum again.

Midoriya relies on his Quirk — for good reason, but Shouta can see that his actual form is lacking, and he wants to exploit that further. He doesn't give Midoriya a moment to breathe, pushing him back. Midoriya's defence is sloppy, barely holding up against the punches that Shouta is pulling back considerably.

Midoriya stays standing though. Shouta gets a couple of hits in to begin with, while Midoriya is focused on trying to just get some more distance.

But then he sees something beginning to shift — Midoriya begins to adapt. He's starting to take notice of Shouta's attacking pattern, and he's changing up his defence to match it. And then, surprisingly quickly, to counter it.

Good on his feet, Shouta notes to himself. Tactical and analytical.

Midoriya makes a move to try and get some distance, but Shouta sends out his capture scarf to wrap around Midoriya's wrist to pull him back in. Midoriya stumbles for a moment, caught by surprise with Shouta's sudden move.

But lacking in actual combat skills and experience.

Midoriya manages to surprise him again though, as he brings his arm forward, creating a bit of slack in the capture scarf. With Shouta's hold no longer as secure, he takes the chance to build up his momentum. But instead of springing back and away, he springs forward.

Shouta expects him to go high, but ends up being surprised as Midoriya suddenly switches his weight to keep it low, going for Shouta's waist. It's a good move, but Shouta hasn't been beaten in hand-to-hand combat in years for a reason.

He adjusts, letting his capture scarf unravel from Midoriya's wrist. He avoids Midoriya's move, leaping to the side, turning just in time to get his hand on Midoriya's back. He grabs him, taking control of Midoriya's momentum, forcing him down to the ground.

From there, Midoriya struggles to get any hits in return. He almost manages to get out of Shouta's grip though, and it's clear that he's got some defensive skills — which isn't the usual when it comes to strong, powerful Quirks that give such an edge on the offensive. Usually, the users are too arrogant to bother learning the ways of defensive moves.

But Midoriya hasn't had this Quirk for very long, Shouta reminds himself. Midoriya's likely grown up learning defensive measures, because he's never been able to take the offence before.

Shouta manages to pin down Midoriya to the mat beneath them, and Midoriya struggles and fights back for so long that Shouta has to lean down and tell him: "you're done, yield. We'll reset."

Midoriya almost seems like he won't listen, but he sags down in defeat. He goes limp, and Shouta is careful as he stands back up, holding out a hand for Midoriya to take.

Midoriya eyes his hand for a moment, but ultimately takes it. He brushes off his knees, already looking like he's ready to go again, eyes glinting with determination.

"Settle, problem child," Shouta tells him, fixing up his capture scarf. Midoriya seems like he's still bursting with energy, but he thankfully listens and forcefully calms himself down.

Shouta just needs a moment to collect his thoughts, categorising the fight in his mind. Midoriya's only operating with 40% of his power, and Shouta thinks that if he had any more control, Shouta might have struggled a lot more to win that fight.

If he's honest with himself, he might not have won it at all — not without Erasure.

But if Midoriya didn't have his Quirk, he'd hardly stand a chance.

Midoriya is catching his breath, and Shouta takes the chance to tie his hair back.

"Alright. You move fast, and you adapt well, but I was holding back. It was smart to try and keep distance, especially as your close-combat skills are lacking, but some people aren't going to give you that option. You need to work on your actual combat skills without relying on your Quirk," Shouta relays.

Midoriya nods, already knowing this. Good, Shouta thinks, he's aware of his weaknesses.

"So let's try again, but without your Quirk," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya immediately looks a lot more nervous.

But that determination hasn't faltered. Midoriya likely knows he's got no chance of succeeding in taking down Shouta, but he's certainly going to try.

Shouta grins as he gets back into position. "Bring it."

He's like Shinsou in some ways, Shouta reflects. Shouta's been in this room plenty with Shinsou lately, teaching him combat, and so this situation feels familiar to him. It's interesting to face someone with a whole new loadout, almost exciting to be able to build them up and teach them and watch their potential grow.

Shinsou's quickly on his way to becoming a sparring partner for Shouta, rather than just someone he's teaching all the moves to. He's got a very long way to go, but Shouta's remembering Shinsou's first time in this training room too — standing there, much like Midoriya, unsure of how to even throw a punch. It makes Shouta realise just how far Shinsou has come, and how far Midoriya can go.

Midoriya, though, does know how to punch. It’s the one type of attack it looks like he’s had proper training in.

Shouta starts telling him instructions as Midoriya keeps attempting to attack, and it's with impressive speed that Midoriya picks it all up. Midoriya's breathing heavily, exhausted by the constant barrage of attacks that he's trying to land on Shouta and failing, but still, he doesn't give up.

Even though he's exhausted, he's still keeping his form, still keeping Shouta's advice in mind. When Shouta eventually calls it, because he thinks it's getting to a point Midoriya's going to stop being able to retain the information because he's so exhausted, Midoriya sways on his feet as he steps back.

"I'll be back in a moment," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya just nods as he bends over and places his hands on his knees. Shouta heads out of the room, going over to the small fridge in the corner and pulling out two bottles of water. He uncaps his own as he enters the reinforced room, and then passes Midoriya the other bottle.

"Thank you," Midoriya rasps out, standing up straight and seeming like he's getting his breath back already. He lasted longer than Shouta thought, and he seems physically fit — so Midoriya is definitely doing some kind of training, even if it's not combative.

Shouta wonders about the teacher Midoriya might have, one who apparently can't spar with him. But Midoriya's still clearly very guarded about that, the same kind of secrecy around how he got his Quirk, so Shouta knows there's no point in asking about it.

"Well, you have some potential," Shouta tells him flatly, the same kind of tone he uses for Shinsou. It's an attempt not to get their hopes up needlessly high, but it's also not dismissing the fact that they can get to their goal.

Midoriya's drinking his water moderately, which is another sign that he knows how to handle himself when it comes to physical activity and recovery. He looks like he's trying to judge how to react to Shouta's comment, though eventually it seems he gives up trying to figure it out.

Instead, he just clenches the fist that isn't holding the water, and he widens his eyes with eagerness.

"Eraserhead, I— I understand if you can't, but— but if you have the time, I'd be really honoured to learn from you!" Midoriya cries out, voice terribly pitchy as it's so raspy but also so high-pitched and eager.

"Were you not learning for the past half hour?" Shouta asks, voice carefully void of emotion.

Midoriya blanches, caught off-guard again. "Oh! Um, no— I mean yes, I learnt a lot! It was really helpful, that's why I want to learn more! If you, you know, have time in the future!"

"I made time for you tonight, didn't I?" Shouta asks him.

Midoriya still isn't getting it, because he still looks like he's on the back-foot. "You did! I really, really appreciate it."

"Problem child," Shouta sighs. "I'm trying to tell you that I'll teach you."

"Oh," Midoriya says, and then immediately lights up in excitement. "Wait, really? You will?"

"I just told you I would, don't make me repeat myself," Shouta grumbles, rolling his neck out. Fuck, he's feeling stiff — he probably should've warmed up properly before bringing Midoriya here.

Midoriya basically snaps with how fast he folds over into a bow. "Thank you so much, Eraserhead!"

"I train with Shinsou as well," Shouta says, gauging Midoriya's reaction to it. Midoriya still seems eager, hasn't tensed up with the mention of Shinsou's name, so Shouta makes a reasonable gamble. "If you want, I'm sure you can join some of our sessions."

It'll be good for both of them, Shouta thinks. Shinsou will be able to gain confidence this way, and he'll have a partner that's closer to his level. Shouta's sure that the two of them will only further each other's drive to become better.

"Just let me know what time!" Midoriya says, still folded over in a bow. But then he straightens, like he's suddenly remembered something. "Oh, um. I might not be able to do it some days! But I'm sure I can work around it, so don't worry about that!"

Shouta nods. "Alright, I'll message you with the times we usually train. You can come by the agency as long as someone is in the building, and you'll be let in. But you might want to message me just in case, because you might get Present Mic or Loud Cloud."

"O-Okay! Thank you!"

"Alright," Shouta says, putting his water bottle in the corner of the room. "Now, let's work on your form."

Shinsou passes the Provisional Hero Licence Exam.

At Hizashi's request, they all take Shinsou out for a celebratory dinner the night of. Shinsou tells them all about how the exam went, about the disaster scene created by heroes pretending to play villains.

And though everyone knows Shinsou's Quirk, Shinsou managed to work well enough to impersonate the 'villain's' voices, upsetting their teamwork at the very least, and getting 'villains' to halt their attacks entirely at the most. He'd walked out with some of the highest points of the day, succeeding in both his handling of victims and the villains, and Shouta is beyond proud.

Sometimes, he thinks about going back to Shinsou's middle school. He thinks about showing all those teachers that labelled Shinsou a villain, just because of his Quirk, and saying see? See? This hero is what you tried to deprive the world of. This hero is going to be one of the best of us all.

Shinsou seems embarrassed to have all their attention and the celebrations focused on him, but Shouta can tell he's really happy too. They've — mostly Shouta — been strict with him, rarely allowing the chance for any celebrations, but Shouta knows damn well that this is deserved.

"We're so proud of you kiddo!" Oboro says, with his arm wrapped around Shinsou's shoulders and ruffling his hair affectionately. "It sounds like you handled it all really well!"

An understatement. It seems like Shinsou kept calm throughout the entire thing, remaining rational and sensible.

"Guess I had good training," Shinsou says with a smile, and Shouta catches the way Shinsou looks over at him for a moment.

"Yeah!" Hizashi cheers. "Let's get ice-cream, come on!"

It's not like any of them really has a choice — once Hizashi wants to do something, he's as bad as a villain in control of a hostage situation. There's no chance of escape, and so Shouta resigns himself to standing in line at an all-too-bright ice cream shop at this late hour, having lost the game of rock-paper-scissors to get up and order for them all.

He can hear Hizashi and Oboro talking excitedly, with Shinsou's dry comments cutting through them on occasion. Just before he gets up to the counter, he checks his phone and sees an email waiting for him from U.A's very own Principal Nezu.

For a moment he worries, wondering if Shinsou's gotten up to anything, and because it's been a while since Nezu has contacted him. He looks over his shoulder briefly, looking back at the table of his friends and Shinsou, and opens up the email.

He's worried over nothing. Nezu is just congratulating him on Shinsou's result, stating that Shouta must have a knack for this teaching after all. Shouta scoffs and closes the email, leaving it without a response.

It's a good sign that Nezu is noticing Shinsou though. It's good, because it means Nezu is likely thinking about the fact Shinsou almost never made it to the hero course in the first place. Shouta can only hope this inspires Nezu to actually look at changing up the entrance exam, though he knows there's a bunch of old, stiff people on the board that Nezu will have to try and convince.

He orders the ice-creams, and Shinsou comes up to help him carry them all back. Hizashi and Oboro are quiet, clearly gearing up for a particular topic as Shouta and Shinsou sit back down at the table.

"So, are you excited for the new semester, Shinsou?" Oboro asks with a bright glint in his eyes, propping his chin up with his hand.

Shinsou just nods in response, but Shouta catches a glimpse of the tug at the corner of his lips, giving away his excitement.

Oboro tilts his head, taking a lick of his ice-cream before he speaks again. "So you guys will be starting up on hero work studies soon, right?"

"Jeez, Loud Cloud, let's not act like we don't all know the plan," Hizashi says, slapping Oboro gently over the head. Oboro just laughs.

"But of course, it's up to you where you want to apply," Shouta reminds Shinsou. Shinsou just rolls his eyes, and Shouta supposes that's fair enough — they both know how much Shinsou has wanted his provisional licence so that he can properly work alongside the three heroes currently sitting at the table with him.

This round will be good for Shinsou, but Shouta might try and gently push him to another agency for his second round. Now that Shinsou has his provisional licence, they can always take him out on patrol whenever they'd actually like, and Shinsou will always have connections here. He'll likely ultimately come back here once he's finished school anyway, will likely work with Shouta or start his own agency — working underground, likely, as Shouta knows he's interested in that aspect.

Regardless, they'll always be connected. So it'll be good for Shinsou to expand his network and connections, and it'll be good for him to learn from other heroes as well. But that's a topic Shouta will bring up to him later. Eventually, it's late enough, and Shinsou still has to go back to school tomorrow, so they wrap it up.

Shinsou has smiled more than Shouta has ever seen in one day, and it's a very, very good night.

He brings up Midoriya a couple of nights later.

They've basically already guaranteed Shinsou will be working at their agency for the first round of hero work studies, and he'll be joining them next week. Shinsou's been telling him about where the other students in his class seem to be heading for their own, and his mouth twists unhappily as he mentions that it seems like Todoroki will be working with Endeavour.

Shouta quietly files away the information. He already has a long folder for the Todoroki kid — Shinsou's closest friend, as far as Shouta can tell; both of them apparently stick together because they don’t quite fit in elsewhere.

But Shinsou's tone is getting warmer when he talks about his classmates now, no longer as steadfast to declare them just competition. Now, he treats them more like friends, and Hizashi likes to tease Shouta when he notices this, saying something like: it's just like looking at you, all those years ago!

Shinsou's getting better at working with people — and not just as comrades, means to an end for his own goals, but because he's actually viewing them as friends. So at least this progress means the topic of Midoriya will be a little easier than it would've been a few months ago.

"We'll keep up your usual training," Shouta starts with, and Shinsou nods, unsurprised. "If it gets to be too much, let me know. Hero work studies can be a lot, and you're still a student. It's alright if we need to adjust your schedule."

Honestly, he had more work to do when he was a student doing his hero work studies. Even the paperwork involved in underground heroism barely holds a candle to all the hours he had to stay awake studying and catching up on schoolwork.

And he's worked hard to make sure that when he makes offers like this, Shinsou doesn't think that Shouta is looking down on him in any regards. It's taken a long time for Shinsou to actually request help when he needs it, and to listen to Shouta when he's offering it.

"I'm sure it'll be alright," Shinsou waves his hand dismissively. "But thanks. I'll let you know if anything needs to change."

Shouta nods, relieved. Shinsou knows what his priorities should be anyway, without Shouta having to lay them out for him.

"If you're alright with it, I'd like to change up your training a little," Shouta says, and Shinsou's eyebrows raise.

"Oh?"

"I sparred with Midoriya, a few nights ago," Shouta admits, still feeling slightly guilty about doing so without telling Shinsou. But Shinsou doesn't seem surprised at least, so Shouta continues. "His combat skills are basically non-existent. I'd like to teach him, and I think it'd be beneficial for both of you if you shared some sessions. But that's only if you're willing to do it."

You're my priority, he's saying to Shinsou, and he knows Shinsou hears it.

"Man," Shinsou says, amused. "I see why Nezu has taken an interest in getting you to teach."

Shouta sighs, rubbing his eyes. "Teaching two problem children is enough for me, thank you."

"Hm," Shinsou hums, still amused. Like he doesn't believe Shouta.

Shouta grumbles, swatting a hand at Shinsou. "Let's do a session before you properly start up with your hero work studies then."

Shinsou just gives him a lazy thumbs-up, and that's all the approval Shouta needs to text Midoriya.

It's interesting, watching them meet again.

Midoriya's knowledge of Shinsou hasn't changed much since their first meeting. But Shinsou's new knowledge of Midoriya has shifted his view of Midoriya entirely.

He doesn't treat Midoriya with the same hostility, but he's still cautiously on edge when Midoriya walks into the training room behind Shouta. Shinsou's already waiting for them, wrapping up his knuckles.

Midoriya glances between them, and he seems to realise that things have changed with Shinsou too. By the way his posture shifts, he's likely figured out that Shinsou knows as much as Shouta now.

Midoriya and Shinsou are both cautious of each other, but there's something like a silent, mutual understanding suddenly filling the air between them.

Midoriya watches Shinsou wrap his knuckles, and his weight shifts awkwardly between his feet. He looks at Shouta questioningly, but looks away just as quickly, unsure of how to ask whatever it is that he clearly wants to.

"You can wrap your hands, if you want," Shouta says, gesturing to the corner where they keep the tape.

"Oh, um, thanks!" Midoriya replies, a little too stiffly.

Shinsou walks over to the tape, even though his hands look finished. He crouches down to pick it up, then holds it out in Midoriya's direction. "Here," Shinsou says. "I'll show you how to."

Midoriya looks embarrassed that he seemingly doesn't know how, and it almost seems like he's going to turn down Shinsou's offer just because he's been called out on not knowing.

"I didn't know how to either at first," Shinsou says, shaking the roll of tape. "Come on, I have a test to study for after this, hurry up."

"Right!" Midoriya says, hurrying over quickly with Shinsou's words.

Shinsou sighs, likely coming to understand Midoriya's personality a little better. It's one Shinsou tends to avoid, if he can help it, having his fill enough with Hizashi and Oboro when it comes to loud, excitable people.

But he shows Midoriya how to wrap his hands with a gentle type of patience, and Shouta thinks they'll work better together than even he originally thought.

As Midoriya's hands are taped up, Shouta pulls out the sparring mats, thinking how he'll go over the session. Shinsou will likely take down Midoriya easily, but Midoriya is a very fast learner — able to read his opponent's movements and adjust, and it'll still be beneficial to him even if he's being taken down constantly.

It'll be more fair to both of them to just let them fight each other, first, rather than either of them taking Shouta first. They can start on even ground, not knowing anything about how their opponent fights other than the amount of time Shouta has spent training them.

"No Quirks," Shouta tells them. "Stay on the mats. Just try and immobilise your opponent."

Opponent, Midoriya mouths, like he's testing the word out.

Shouta stands to the side, gesturing for both of them to get on with it once they're on the mats. Midoriya still seems uneasy, nervous as he shifts his weight with uncertainty. He's lacking confidence here, but Shouta can still see the determination thrumming through him.

Shinsou looks more at ease, sizing up Midoriya. Shouta can see his gaze lingering over Midoriya's form, the way he's formed his fists, likely picking out all the weaknesses. Midoriya is doing the same, but he's at a disadvantage — he doesn't know yet what he's looking for, not in a hand-to-hand fight like this.

Midoriya sticks to trying to keep some distance, not willing to go on the offence first. Shinsou tends to do the same, especially with Shouta, but he's got the advantage to strike here against Midoriya.

And he takes it. He rushes forward, and Midoriya's reflexes are impressively fast as he blocks Shinsou's swing. Midoriya doesn't have the chance now to go on the offensive — he can't turn this tide, now that Shinsou has taken the lead to do so.

Midoriya is on the defensive. This is where he's used to being, at least.

But it's the same for Shinsou.

Shinsou knows how to break through Midoriya's defence, because it's the position where he usually is. It's his experience that allows him to get through Midoriya's form, managing to finally get an advantage to get Midoriya down onto the mat.

Midoriya shows that desperate, same struggle to escape, like he'd first shown when Shouta had pinned him for the first time.

This, too, is something Shinsou knows.

It's something they all know. The desperate struggle for survival.

Shouta had known it at their age, too. It's something no one so young should ever have to.

"Midoriya," Shinsou grunts out, doing his utmost best to keep Midoriya down. "Tap out, we'll go again."

Still, Midoriya does not yield. Shouta sighs, folding his arms.

Problem children indeed.

"Midoriya," he calls out, and this time Midoriya does still. "Reset."

Midoriya jerkily nods his head, and Shinsou eases up the pressure immediately. Midoriya sheepishly stumbles to his feet, rubbing the back of his neck like he's embarrassed.

"Don't apologise. Just watch your left side," Shouta says, and Midoriya's lips press together before he nods, shaking out his hands.

He looks a little more settled now. A little more at ease as they reset their positions.

This time, Midoriya moves first. Shouta is surprised, and so is Shinsou.

He can already see Midoriya mirroring Shinsou's movements — or rather, he thinks, his own.

Shinsou knows Shouta's moves too well though, and he easily sees through what Midoriya is doing. But then Midoriya shifts, changing up his style suddenly, and it puts Shinsou on the back-foot for a moment.

A month ago, Shinsou would've been flailing, going back to old habits. But now he can push through that threat of panic — now, he remains calm, and readjusts, and gets his advantage back again.

When Midoriya goes down again, this time he yields straight away. Just as quickly, he's bouncing back up on his feet.

Shinsou prepares himself for another fight, but Midoriya is basically rocking back and forth on his heels, firing off questions about Shinsou's movements. Shinsou's eyes look questioningly over to Shouta, and Shouta just tilts his head and lets Shinsou deal with it however he sees fit.

Shinsou makes the decision to try and answer Midoriya's questions as best as he can, walking Midoriya through the movements. His eyes flicker uncertainly to Shouta at first, like he's unsure about teaching Midoriya these things, but Shouta just gives him a small nod. Slowly, Shinsou gains confidence, able to get Midoriya to learn the movements.

Midoriya is muttering under his breath the whole time, a series of ramblings that seem to have no end. Shinsou seems confused and mildly concerned, unsure of if he should interrupt Midoriya — Shouta gets it, because he's currently feeling the same.

"Midoriya," he eventually says, and Midoriya snaps his mouth shut so fast that Shouta winces upon hearing his teeth clink. Midoriya immediately looks embarrassed — no, ashamed, an apology very obviously working his way to his tongue. Shouta cuts him off, because he's not quite sure how to address the fact Midoriya has clearly been scolded before over his mutterings. "Try another round."

Midoriya is picking up fast, and there's a grin at the corner of Shinsou's lips — he's having fun, even though he's working hard to make sure Midoriya doesn't best him. Shouta lets them continue until he's sure they're both done getting what they can for the night with each other, and then he steps into the ring.

"Two on one," Shouta says, rolling out his neck. Shinsou huffs, taking a moment to get his breath.

Midoriya looks between the two of them, like he's trying to figure out where he fits in the equation.

Shouta sighs, realising he has to elaborate. "Both of you against me. Same rules."

This, he thinks, will be interesting. Shinsou's gotten some experience working with people from U.A, but Midoriya has likely never really teamed up with someone before in a fight.

"God, we're fucked," Shinsou mutters, more in bemusement than anything.

Midoriya laughs, pushing his hair back from his face. "Yeah," he agrees, sounding just the same.

Shinsou holds up a hand to Shouta, and then he tugs Midoriya a couple of steps back, both of them whispering low to each other. Planning — working together.

Very interesting, Shouta thinks to himself, fixing up one of the sleeves of his uniform, waiting for both of them to finish their scheming. He already has an idea of how they'll work together, preparing himself the second they both turn back around.

Midoriya leaps for Shouta first, while Shouta tries to go around the back. Shouta would've pulled out his capture weapon already, would've tangled it around Shinsou and sent him down to the ground, but he decides to hold off on using his capture weapon for the moment. He'll let them figure their way out through this fight together, just here to facilitate and watch how they work together.

They're covering for each other's weaknesses, Shouta realises, once he's spun Shinsou away and dodged Midoriya. Midoriya reacts quickly, his reflexes and judgement skills nothing to laugh at, but he's still lacking in technical skills. It means Shouta gets plenty of openings, but Shinsou is always there, making him readjust whenever he tries to strike for Midoriya.

But Shinsou is tired out already from fighting with Midoriya, and he slips up. Shouta manages to send Midoriya down, and then leaps to take down Shinsou within the same minute.

It was a decent fight, Shouta thinks, as he watches both Shinsou and Midoriya pick themselves up with groans. It showed him a lot, and he's already thinking of the ways he can get them to improve. Their teamwork was the biggest surprise though, to him — that'll require less work than he initially thought.

"We'll finish up there," Shouta says, already stepping off the mats. He can't let it run too late, not with Shinsou still needing to finish up his schoolwork for the night.

"It's alright," he hears Shinsou saying quietly to Midoriya. "We'll get him next time."

Next time, Shinsou is in the midst of his hero work studies.

The day before, Shouta tells him he'll be with Midoriya to train, and that it's up to him if he wants to come. It's an offer, not a demand, because he trusts that Shinsou will be able to make the rational choice.

He usually does, to be fair. But Shouta has forgotten that Shinsou is also very stubborn and feels like he has everything to prove, even still to Shouta. He's pushing himself hard, doing everything he possibly can to improve whilst doing the hero work studies. He's made lots of progress overall, but he's still young, and Shouta forgets that it hasn't even been that long since Shinsou first came to them last year.

And he's also very, very curious about Midoriya.

So Shinsou shows up, even though the circles around his eyes are darker than normal, even though his fingers are twitching like he's subconsciously writing out the answers to a quiz. Shouta hasn't seen him all day — Shouta had been caught up in some underground business, and Oboro and Hizashi had taken Shinsou for the day.

Shouta sighs when he sees Shinsou. Right, he'll need to remind Shinsou that it's just as important to take rests as it is to work. He's not exactly the shining beacon of that advice though, and he knows that it's probably not going to get through to Shinsou the way he wants it to — he'll have to get Oboro in on this, probably.

Tomorrow, though. For now, this is Shouta's problem to deal with.

Midoriya is already in the training room, having gotten some time privately for Shouta to teach him things. Midoriya gives Shinsou a wide smile and a wave when Shinsou walks in, and Shinsou just stares blankly at him for a moment before tentatively waving back.

It won't do Shinsou much good to let him spar a large amount right now. He's overtired, mind clearly elsewhere — likely all the schoolwork he has to stay on top of. It's unusual for Shinsou to be in this kind of state, but Shouta knows he's dealing with a whole lot of new things. It might do him some good to go for a round or two, but not much else.

He can't cut Shinsou off early though, as Shinsou will know that Shouta is trying to accommodate for him. And Shinsou won't deal well with that, so this is something Shouta needs to tread carefully with.

"Shinsou," he addresses, then nods to Midoriya. "I think it'll be good if both of you can understand each other's abilities."

Midoriya settles back on his heels. "You mean—"

Shouta nods. "You're sparring with me, with your Quirk. I won't use mine. Shinsou, I want you to watch how he fights, and where his advantages are, as well as any weaknesses."

Shinsou looks over Midoriya. "Super-strength, huh?"

"Something like that," Midoriya says back, and Shouta knows Shinsou's likely going to be taken by surprise when he sees Midoriya's speed. He's already talked to Shouta after picking up on Midoriya's judgement and reflexes, mostly impressed and slightly envious, and Shouta wonders how he'll feel about seeing Midoriya's Quirk in action.

Shouta loosens up his capture scarf, giving Midoriya the hint that he'll be using it in this fight. It means that he can make sure Midoriya won't hold back.

Shouta doesn't get the chance to look over at Shinsou's reaction when Midoriya's figure starts to flicker with that green lightning — his attention is entirely taken by watching Midoriya's movements, making sure he doesn't lose sight of him for even a split second. Midoriya leaps for him, immediately trying to take the first offensive move.

He moves the same as the last time he'd attempted it, and Shouta moves before he can even think about it. But then Midoriya shifts too, twisting his body, weight shifting lower to try and grab Shouta's leg.

"Shit," he curses out, when he's left almost stumbling to right his balance again. He just barely gets away from Midoriya's attack, not even able to send out his capture scarf. Midoriya bounces off the wall, and this time he purposely avoids Shouta.

He's trying to make it look like he's aiming for Shouta, but Shouta can spot that he's purposely diverting his trajectory, just doing enough to hardly graze against him.

He's building up for something, Shouta thinks. He's gaining speed, bouncing off the walls so quickly that Shouta can hardly follow.

He moves on instinct. Instinct, built on years of experience and training and going up against all kinds of Quirks. It's the only thing that saves him.

He's picked up on Midoriya's pattern, and he sends out his capture weapon. It just manages to wrap around Midoriya's leg, and Shouta tugs the second he realises he's made contact. It sends Midoriya tumbling to the ground, his momentum lost, but it doesn't keep him down.

He starts to build it back up again, and Shouta takes notice of the fact he's careful to make sure he avoids Shinsou getting caught up in the fight. Shinsou's hair is barely moving, undisturbed by the speed and power that Midoriya is moving with, because Midoriya refuses to get close.

It's Shouta's biggest opening, and he takes it. Midoriya's movements are more limited than he thought, and he uses that advantage. The next time Midoriya grazes by him, he makes sure to grab him, and sends him down.

"Your consideration of Shinsou was nice," Shouta tells him. "But Shinsou can handle himself, and you created an unnecessary opening for me."

Midoriya just huffs out something like a laugh, slumping down on the ground. He doesn't look embarrassed about his defeat — in fact, when he stands back up, he looks excited.

"I lasted a lot longer that time, right? I think I got up to 45%, actually!" Midoriya says hurriedly, basically bouncing on his feet again already. "I tried not to be predictable, but you still saw right through me! That's so impressive, you're truly..."

Midoriya starts to ramble again, words so fast that Shouta can't make sense of them anymore.

"Well then," Shinsou drawls out eventually, looking like he's coming back to his senses for the first time tonight. "That was... unexpected."

Midoriya whirls around to Shinsou, and Shouta realises that Midoriya is looking at Shinsou like he's desperately hoping for his approval.

Jeez, Shouta thinks. These two.

"Only 45% of your power, you said?" Shinsou asks, and Midoriya nods his head so fast that he looks a little ridiculous. Shinsou whistles low and impressed. "Fuck, you're already rivaling Iida's speed."

"Iida..." Midoriya repeats, thinking the name over. "Oh! Ingenium?"

Shouta grimaces a little at the reminder of what happened to Tensei. Tenya seems like he's doing his best to fill in his older brother's shoes, but Shouta knows it's a big mantle to try and step up to.

"That's the one," Shinsou says, along with giving Midoriya finger-guns. "I'm talking about Tenya, though. I don't know his brother, but I'm sure it's the same deal."

Midoriya's mouth is open with surprise, like he isn't aware of his own speed. He swallows, and then launches into a rapid-fire response: "I had to watch how Ingenium moved around, actually, when handling that type of speed. They were both super helpful with figuring out some of that stuff! I mean, Iida doesn't have many videos, but it was easy to see his improvement at this year's Sports Festival!"

"Right," Shouta says slowly. Thinking back to Midoriya's movements, he can see it — Midoriya mimics a lot of Ingenium's style and manoeuvres, adapting it slightly for his own Quirk. He wonders what other heroes Midoriya has adapted to — All Might is clearly his main inspiration, but if Midoriya is picking up on the skills of heroes like Ingenium, Shouta wonders how else Midoriya thinks to use his Quirk.

"Wait," Midoriya suddenly says, and his expression no longer looks as enthusiastic. He looks at Shinsou, blinking like he's suddenly seeing someone else. "I— I forgot. You're class 2-A, aren't you?"

Shinsou nods, head tilting as he also recognises that something is up here.

"Ah," Midoriya says, a little more withdrawn. His expression shutters and then closes over entirely, head ducking away from both Shouta and Shinsou. He seems like he won't say anything else, and Shinsou and Shouta share a look with each other.

Shinsou looks away and claps his hands together, which seems to snap Midoriya back to them with surprise.

"Alright, so I've seen how your Quirk works. And I mean, I know you've seen it at the Festival, but got to make it even, right? Would you prefer I show you how it works on Eraserhead?" Shinsou asks, and Midoriya looks between both of them, thinking over the question.

Shouta knows that Shinsou is trying to gauge if Midoriya is comfortable with actually being brainwashed — he won't take such considerations in real battles, but in all other scenarios, Shinsou tends to like having verbal confirmation and consent that he can brainwash someone.

"Actually," Midoriya says, tongue darting out to lick his lips. "I think I'd prefer to have you do it to me first, just so I can see how it feels, and understand for myself before seeing it in use."

Surprising, Shouta thinks. Midoriya's interest in understanding Shinsou's Quirk is outweighing any doubts or mistrust he might have in them.

"You're sure?" Shinsou asks. "I won't ask you to do anything. I'll just let you fall under my control, and then I'll snap you out of it."

Midoriya nods, looking a little more relieved with that — giving away that he had been, at least a little, nervous about Shinsou taking control of him.

Shouta doesn't think Midoriya is fearful of Shinsou's Quirk. He hadn't been, after all, when he'd first met Shinsou — he'd known how Shinsou's Quirk used from the Festival, and yet hadn't hesitated to respond to Shinsou. He's just nervous to give up control right now.

"I'm sure," Midoriya nods, and that's all Shinsou needs.

Midoriya's eyes go blank, his body suddenly standing straight.

"Oh," Shinsou says, and Shouta looks over to see him tilting his head. "That's... weird."

"What's weird?" Shouta asks immediately, worried, even though Shinsou had sounded more intrigued than alarmed.

Shinsou lets his control drop, and Midoriya blinks back to himself.

"Oh wow," Midoriya immediately gushes. "Wow, that was so strange! I was still aware of everything, but I couldn't move my body at all! That's so fascinating, that's such a useful Quirk for so many situations. It's definitely disconcerting, but it didn't feel invasive or anything!"

"Midoriya," Shinsou says, walking closer to him. "Have you, by any chance, dealt with any psychic Quirks before?"

"Huh?" Midoriya asks, his thoughts very clearly interrupted. "Um, no? I don't think so?"

"Well," Shinsou says, whistling as he rocks back on his heels. "That's interesting. You weren't as... docile, as people usually are. You're still controllable, but there's definitely some kind of push-back there."

Midoriya seems interested in the news, but not surprised.

He tries to act it, though. "That's so weird! Have you ever had that before, Shinsou?"

"No," Shinsou says, narrowing his eyes because he's seen right through Midoriya's act as well.

Midoriya does his best to get some space between himself and Shinsou as casually as he can. "Huh, I wonder why! I really don't know why I'd be different. There could be any number of causes, I suppose. Like perhaps something to do with how long someone has had a Quirk, or-"

"I've brainwashed Quirkless people before," Shinsou says, cutting through Midoriya's theory. "Midoriya-"

"Do you think you could show me it with Eraserhead now? I'm really interested to see what it actually looks like," Midoriya continues, like he never heard Shinsou at all. Which is very strange behaviour, as Shouta has noticed that Midoriya takes notice of everyone, of all his surroundings — very few things slip through his notice.

So he's purposely trying to talk over, or distract, Shinsou. There's a question here that Midoriya knows the answer to, but he refuses to share it with them.

Shouta shakes his head just a little, enough to try and dislodge his curiousity. It won't do him any good right now — it doesn't matter how curious he is, Midoriya isn't going to give them any answers, and if Shouta or Shinsou push then they might just end up pushing Midoriya away.

"Nothing ridiculous, Shinsou," Shouta warns Shinsou. It's more of a teasing reassurance than anything, letting Shinsou know that he can do what he wants — he knows that Shinsou would do no such thing anyway. The trust between them is carefully built, but strong now, and Shouta knows that neither of them will do anything to threaten that.

"Got it, pops," Shinsou says, and that's the most surprised Shouta has felt in a very, very long time.

"Pops?" Shouta finds himself repeating, and then slipping.

Oh, sly kid, he thinks, though he can't even pretend to be annoyed right now. His heart feels warm, a glowing type of happiness that he rarely lets himself ever show.

Maybe it's a good thing Shinsou took control — Shouta would hate whatever his face would likely be doing right now, surprised by emotions of fondness for Shinsou.

The word is ringing around in his head — pops. Pops. He called me that. Clever, clever, problematic kid.

And then,

That's my kid.

He's glad that he doesn't have to worry about that thought ever being displayed with his expressions.

He's barely even paying attention to what his body is doing, which isn't a lot. Midoriya is staring at him with wide eyes, impressed by Shouta's motionless figure. He can hear Shinsou explaining his Quirk to him, and then displaying it by making Shouta walk across the room.

"I can't really ask anything complex," Shinsou is saying. "So if I asked him to tell me how many steps that had just taken him, I wouldn't get an answer. They used to be able to break out of it if I did something like that, but I've trained it up so that doesn't happen as much."

"Oh wow," Midoriya says in awe, having followed Shouta across the room. "That makes sense, I guess, because you're probably making them think about their sense of self. Can you brainwash more than one person?"

"Yeah," Shinsou responds. "I can control up to three at the moment. I'm working on it."

"You could only control one last year, right?" Midoriya asks, and Shinsou is quiet for a second, like he's stumped by the question.

"Um," Shinsou stumbles, regaining his words. "Um, yeah, that's right."

Midoriya is still peering up at Shouta like he's waiting for him to snap back to it at any moment. He looks back to Shinsou. "Can your control be interrupted any other way?"

"A physical jolt will do it," Shinsou responds, a little too easily. Shouta should probably reprimand him for revealing a weakness like that, but he supposes that it's redundant anyway when a student goes to U.A, where both their strengths and weaknesses are displayed nation-wide. The point of training is to strengthen those weaknesses and make sure they can't be exploited.

Even ground, Shouta thinks suddenly. Midoriya showed Shinsou trust by letting him brainwash him, trusting that Shinsou wouldn't do anything unjust to him, even though he hadn't known the information that Shinsou is now telling him. So Shinsou is revealing something in turn, showing that he trusts Midoriya with that information.

Shinsou demonstrates by going up to Shouta and slapping his arm, even though Shinsou could've just dropped his Quirk without it.

"See?" Shinsou turns, whirling on his heels and facing Midoriya, like he's trying to hide away from the glare that Shouta is currently giving him. Midoriya swallows, looking nervous at Shouta's expression, and Shouta only holds it for a second longer before he lets out a deep exhale.

Pops, he thinks, over and over.

"Alright, now that you both know about each other's Quirks for the most part," Shouta says, trying to take control of the room — and his thoughts — again. "I imagine we'll soon be sparring with them. Shinsou, it'll be good for you to spar with someone that has that speed. Midoriya-"

"I look forward to it! It'd be good to practice my skills!" Midoriya nods, cutting in with his excitement. He immediately looks bashful, apologising for interrupting, and Shouta just waves it off.

Shinsou is looking at Midoriya like he's a puzzle again, likely intrigued by Midoriya's reaction to his Quirk. And though Shinsou looks more awake and energetic than before, Shouta knows it's likely only a matter of time before he crashes tonight.

"For now, we'll just go over some basics for Midoriya," Shouta orders, and thankfully Shinsou takes it well. Even if he suspects that Shouta is taking tonight's session easier because of him, he's not going to argue it when Midoriya does actually need to work on his basics.

Midoriya and Shinsou stand side-by-side, facing Shouta and mirroring his movements. Next to each other, it's like Shouta can see it now — the future. Two formidable heroes, standing next to each other, standing at the very top.

Shouta will do everything he can to make sure that future happens.

Shouta should've realised.

He should've known when he saw Shinsou walk into the training room that night, obviously distracted. Shinsou doesn't let it show, not when he's at the agency, but Shouta can see the tiredness and the knots that seem to be digging down into his shoulders and hunching him over when he's at home.

It's with a startling, sinking realisation that he figures it out when he sees the date. He's lost track of time, so he didn't even realise.

Stupid, he curses himself. Fuck.

It's coming up to the anniversary that Shinsou had been thrown into the foster care system — violently, traumatically. It's been a few years, but he remembers Shinsou struggling with the days last year. He'd told them, after the worst had passed, but Shouta had struggled trying to figure out why Shinsou suddenly stopped verbally talking entirely, why he didn't like anyone trying to talk to him either.

It's good, at least, that Shinsou is surrounded by people that know sign-language. Hizashi is the one that needs it, deferring to it when he's not bothered to put in his hearing aids. Oboro and Shouta had learned it in high school because of him.

Shinsou hadn't known it at the time, so over the past year they've been teaching him. Shinsou slips into it, sometimes, usually when he wakes up from a bad nightmare. But he's been getting better, lately, hardly needing any days with it. His voice has been getting louder, his confidence growing, showing no hesitation to converse with people.

Shinsou's been hesitating to talk today, and that's what finally clued Shouta in as to why Shinsou seemed to be so out of it. It's not just all his studies and workload, but it's the looming date of the anniversary as well.

Shouta brings it up as carefully as he can, right before Shinsou heads over to the agency with him.

And Shinsou just ribs him in the side. "Really, it's okay. Honestly, I'm glad the hero work studies are now, it gives me motivation to get through it. Oh, and if you could schedule another sparring session with Midoriya, I'd like that."

So Shouta organises it for two nights later, except Shinsou isn't feeling talkative at all. He's also not reacting too well when Shouta responds either to him, so Shouta switches over to sign-language with him before Midoriya even arrives.

He does his best to keep Midoriya's attention off Shinsou, but that's something that Midoriya notices. Thankfully, he's mindful of what might be the reason for it, rather than demanding answers about it.

Shouta's almost nervous when Midoriya does speak to Shinsou, but he finds there's no need. Shinsou just clears his throat, and he speaks in a low voice with Midoriya.

His fingers are still subconsciously signing along as he speaks, though, and that's something Midoriya definitely takes notice of too. It takes a couple of moments to realise what Shinsou's movements actually are though, which means Midoriya isn't familiar with sign-language.

That's alright — he's talked with Shinsou about how to deal with that, though it hardly seems necessary right now anyway as Shinsou is actually talking again. Still, he seems wary whenever Shouta responds to him, so Shouta takes to just signing now that Midoriya knows.

Despite everything, the night goes quite smoothly. Midoriya seems regretful that he doesn't know sign-language, but Shinsou reassures him that it's alright — he can't expect Midoriya to learn sign-language on top of everything he's currently dealing with.

But Midoriya just has that glint in his eyes, and Shouta figures it's only a matter of time before Midoriya will be able to sign anyway.

Shouta's never really been good at keeping up with time, but it seems to pass quicker than even he's used to.

He's settled into something of a routine. Now that Shinsou has his provisional hero licence, he sometimes comes out with Shouta during the first half of his patrols, but only when he's finished all his schoolwork. His hero work studies are over, but he's still gaining experience everywhere that he can.

Even though he does seem to be aiming for an underground position, Shinsou is still making sure to take in as much as he can about every other aspect. Hizashi and Oboro take him out here and there still, bringing him along when they're on patrol and Shinsou doesn't have school.

Every few nights, he trains with Midoriya.

Midoriya and Shinsou progress, and things seem to be consistent, their routine the same.

And then Midoriya interrupts it when he asks to have a session with Shouta. It's in the afternoon, the sun still out, and Shouta stares in confusion at his phone for a moment.

He's kidnapped, he thinks dramatically. But the behaviour is definitely strange, the request upsetting their usual routine. Just in case though, he keeps Oboro and Hizashi's hero names to their first letter.

You know P and L will be at work?

The response is immediate.

I know.

Shouta's fingers hover over the keyboard, unsure. Hizashi and Oboro do know that Midoriya comes here to train with Shouta, and they've been practically begging him to meet Midoriya, but Shouta didn't think Midoriya was willing to.

Alright, he sends back, and then sighs as he locks his phone. The sooner he warns Hizashi and Oboro, hopefully the more time they can have to settle down and treat this calmly.

"Midoriya's going to come here to train," Shouta tells them quietly, looking over the office and making sure none of the staff are listening in.

Hizashi blinks, confused. "Uh, doesn't he alre- Oh! Yah! Do you mean he's coming here now?"

"Voice down, Hizashi," Shouta warns, though Hizashi pays him no mind.

Oboro's grinning, clearly excited. "I'm excited to meet the kiddo! He seems to have really gotten your attention, I'm so intrigued. We can meet him, right?"

"He doesn't seem to mind," Shouta confirms, but there's a frown on his lips. "He seemed a bit strange though, so I'm not sure if something is up. Just be mindful of that."

Oboro's grin shifts into a smile that's still big, but a little bit softer now too. "Of course. We'll follow your lead."

Midoriya texts him a little bit later, and Shouta goes outside the building to meet him. Immediately, he can spot that Midoriya is bursting with pent-up, relentless energy, something clearly on his mind and possibly on his nerves.

"You good, kid?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya whirls around.

Midoriya immediately takes a deep breath, and he already looks more settled than a moment ago. "Yeah. Yeah, sorry, I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Don't apologise. You aren't," Shouta tells him, voice a little more stern.

"Ah, right, okay. Um, so…"

"Loud Cloud and Present Mic are in there, and they want to meet you. They might be excited, but just let me know if you need an out," Shouta explains, and Midoriya nods along, looking like he's eager to head inside.

Shouta can only delay it for so long. He takes in a breath, and leads Midoriya inside.

It feels different in the daytime. Usually the building is empty when Midoriya comes in, both of them turning on the lights as they go and turning them off as they leave. But now the hallways are fully lit, there's people, voices that carry through the rooms.

Hizashi and Oboro basically meet them at the door, pushing each other to see Midoriya first. They startle to a stop, both of them looking over Midoriya.

A quick glance over at Midoriya shows that he's got a starstruck expression on his face — the same typical kind that civilians have when they're meeting a role-model of theirs. His anxious energy seems to have been replaced entirely by excitement, because he's just as eager to meet the heroes as they are to meet him.

"Man, you really are a little lil' listener!" Hizashi says, voice booming. Midoriya doesn't even flinch from the volume.

Oboro floats over to him, and Midoriya's hands are reaching out to touch the clouds around him without even thinking about it. Oboro just laughs, flicking one over to him. "Hey kid, I'm Loud Cloud."

"I know!" Midoriya says excitedly, and then clears his throat and attempts to settle, fingers swishing through the cloud with sheepish interest. "Um, I know."

"Eraser's told us plenty about you," Oboro says with a friendly smile, glancing up to Shouta, judging the situation. "But you probably came here to beat him up a bit, hey? Don't let us stop you."

Hizashi groans in protest, because he's definitely interested in talking more to Midoriya, but Oboro gives him a quick glance that quietens him down.

"Oh— um!" Midoriya nervously laughs. "I definitely haven't won against him yet."

Oboro just gives him a sympathetically dramatic sigh. "Yeah kid, me either. So work hard to beat him for both of us!"

Midoriya still looks like a mixture of starstruck and sheepish, so Shouta decides to herd him through the hallway before Midoriya can fumble through any further words.

"Like I said, you can come by whenever," Shouta says to him, leading him down their usual path. "Which means you can come back and talk to them at any point. But you came here for something in particular, right?"

"Y-yeah, I did," Midoriya says, seeming to settle properly now that he's actually in the training room.

"Do you want to talk about it, or do you just want to hit it out?" Shouta asks him, and Midoriya takes a deep breath, weighing up his options.

"Hit it out, for now, if that's alright," Midoriya replies, and Shouta gestures for him to get warmed up. He does the same, because it's taking a lot more of his energy now to keep up with Midoriya and counter him.

He's gaining more control over his Quirk — 55%, he'd last told Shouta. And fuck, can Shouta feel it.

Midoriya shakes out his hands, his usual habit, and then heads to the corner where he knows the tape is. He's getting faster at wrapping them, and it seems to do wonders with calming his nerves.

"Quirks?" Midoriya asks, and usually Shouta would prefer for him to start with some more basic combat moves, some hand-to-hand focused combat, but he can tell that the energy under Midoriya's skin is itching for a release.

"Alright," Shouta says, tying his hair back, giving himself a moment to prepare. Midoriya's energy means he could be reckless, not thinking as sharply as he usually does, just eager to shake that itch that's under his skin.

When they start, Shouta realises he's wrong. Midoriya is startlingly calm, clearly focused on the fight.

Midoriya leaps, and Shouta sends out his capture weapon immediately, trying to catch him off-guard. Usually he waits for Midoriya to make some more moves, and figure out his pattern, but something feels different. Shouta doesn't want to give him the edge to begin with.

It breaks Midoriya's intensity for just a second, and nothing more. Midoriya dodges it, and Shouta curses to himself as he whirls around, trying to track Midoriya's movements. He's moving too fast for even his capture weapon, which means Shouta is going to throw it based on prediction, or he's going to have to get Midoriya to engage with him in hand-to-hand.

Midoriya won't give him the chance. Midoriya keeps his distance, mindful of Shouta trying to get him in close contact. Even when Shouta makes moves to try and corner him, Midoriya skillfully makes sure he's out of the area before Shouta can restrain his field of operation even further.

Shouta's able to dodge Midoriya's attacks — and they're too frantic, now. This is where Midoriya's control is starting to slip, that feeling under his skin overtaking his logical thought.

Or so Shouta thinks.

He gets too confident, thinking he knows his opponent, and it's what allows Midoriya the chance to get the drop on him. Midoriya manages to bounce off the wall and aim for Shouta's waist, sending both of them tumbling to the ground. Shouta's breath feels like it's knocked out of him from the initial impact.

He manages to get Midoriya's grip to loosen, flipping them over, not letting Midoriya take the chance to land on top of him. But Midoriya slips out too, already moving again. Shouta's still down on his knees, and Midoriya isn't letting him get up.

If it comes down to endurance, Shouta isn't too sure who will win. Shouta usually takes down his opponents fast, not giving them the chance to retaliate. Even if he's ever stuck in a fight with someone that he can't take the Quirk of, he can usually rely on the fact they haven't bothered learning how to properly go up against someone in close-combat, and he can take them down.

In a real fight, at least he'd be able to take Midoriya's Quirk. But it's just a sparring match, and Shouta is now the one at a disadvantage, because Midoriya is starting to progress with both his Quirk and his combat skills. Together, Shouta is on the path to losing.

Frustratingly — but impressively — Midoriya doesn't become over-confident now that he's actually landed his first hit on Shouta.

As a teacher, he thinks good.

As an opponent, he thinks fuck.

He wins through the skin of his teeth. He thinks it's luck, this time, more than anything. He just manages to send out his capture weapon at the right time, and it manages to trip up Midoriya just enough for Shouta to strike at an opening.

Both of them are breathing heavily as Midoriya taps. They're both on the ground, Midoriya on his stomach, and Shouta doesn't even get up. He just falls back on his ass and puts his arms over his legs, taking deep breaths.

"Fuck, kid, something's really got you wound up," Shouta manages to say.

Midoriya breathlessly laughs. "Yeah. Sorry."

Shouta's leg kicks at Midoriya's side, a scolding for apologising when it's not needed, and Midoriya just groans.

"Yet you still managed to keep your head on straight, your movements logical," Shouta praises, and Midoriya's head snaps up with surprise. "You're going to be many villains' worst nightmare."

Midoriya's smile doesn't seem as bright as usual. "Hah... you think?"

"I know, or I wouldn't bother teaching you how to be a hero," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya's head drops back down onto the mat. Neither of them bother getting up just yet.

Eventually, Midoriya starts to move, sitting himself up. He stands up first, and he holds his hand out to Shouta. Shouta takes it, getting to his feet.

"Anything you want to do? Or are you done for today?" Shouta asks, making sure his voice is blank, giving Midoriya no judgement of his own and letting him decide.

Midoriya bites down on his lip, looking around the room. He doesn't seem willing to leave.

"Can we... do some basics, maybe? Or just, going through, or learning something new, whatever you think," Midoriya asks, and Shouta nods.

"Alright," he says, and that's how they pass the next couple of hours.

When Midoriya finally calls it as enough, Shouta's glad for it. It's good to see Midoriya working hard, but even he's starting to feel his muscles ache now. Midoriya's head thankfully seems to be clearer, his muscles no longer full of tension and anxiety.

Whatever it was that was bothering Midoriya, it seems he's worked through it. Or he's too exhausted to think about it any further.

"I'll walk you out," Shouta says, tossing Midoriya his water bottle. When Shouta opens the door, he comes across Oboro in the hallway.

"Oh! You two are finally done, hey?" Oboro asks cheerfully, and then leans forward to take a dramatic look at Shouta. He whistles, then grins over at Midoriya. "Man, I haven't seen him that messed up in a while!"

"Loud Cloud," Shouta sighs, though he knows his warning is going to be ignored.

"It's impressive!" Oboro responds, clapping his hands together like he's suddenly remembered something. "Oh, that's right! I was actually coming by to give you two these. Because you, Eraser, need more than one of those jelly pouches."

"They do me just fine," Shouta complains, and Oboro just tuts at him.

He reaches into the cloud above his head, and then passes over two containers from the local mart, both of them remaining warm. Shouta's long since stopped trying to figure out how that works with his clouds, but he's sure that Midoriya will have some theories.

Midoriya is uncertain, only taking it because Oboro's insisting it upon him.

"Is— is this for me?" Midoriya asks, even though it very clearly is.

"Yep! We had to stay late to finish up some paperwork, so I popped into the mart. I figured if you two were fighting that whole time, you'd probably be feeling hungry, right?" Oboro responds, and Midoriya blinks down at his food.

Shouta swears he can catch a glimmer of shine across his eyes, and he looks over at Oboro to share a look with him. That kind of appreciation over a meal — one from the mart, no less, means that Midoriya has not been shown enough kindness.

Shouta has been noticing that despite his power and strength, Midoriya isn't bulking up quite like he might expect. He'd imagine the food intake would be high, especially with the amount that Midoriya trains. But Midoriya is keeping the container close to his chest, and Shouta knows that Midoriya knows well what it's like to be hungry.

Shit, something is clawing at him in urgency. He'd been too optimistic, maybe. Hoping that Midoriya had support, family — that teacher, that he refuses to mention anymore about. He shows up in decent enough clothes, but Shouta realises that when he destroys any of them, he doesn't get any new ones.

Fuck, fuck, he should've been looking into this more. He knows Midoriya doesn't want him to, and isn't willing to open up to him, but Shouta — Shouta still should've been looking out for this, more than he has been. He shouldn't have just assumed Midoriya had a stable home-life, just because he told Shouta he had a safe place to stay that one time.

"Thank you, Loud Cloud," Midoriya says, his voice quiet like he's trying to keep the shakiness from being noticed.

Oboro is definitely thinking along the same lines as Shouta, as they're both sharing a look that Midoriya can't see. He has a second of hesitance — unnoticeable to most others, but Shouta knows him too well.

"Of course! Really, I would've gotten you some more treats if I'd known you'd be able to take on Eraser like that!" Oboro says, voice forcibly jovial. "Say, I still can, if you want to stick around and eat that here."

"Oh," Midoriya says, looking up at them now. His eyes aren't shimmering any more, but Midoriya's lacking the usual expressive emotion that Shouta sees him with. "I wouldn't want to, um, impose."

"You're not! You're welcome here anytime, really! We'd love to see you around more, in fact," Oboro insists, and Midoriya looks down to stare at the container in his hands again.

Shouta almost thinks he'll reject the offer, but Midoriya takes a deep breath and settles back his shoulders, looking at Oboro with a wobbly smile. "I'd really like that."

Oboro is absolutely beaming. "Brilliant! Oh, Sho, if you're staying around, should I pick up something for Shinsou too and let him know to come through?"

Instead of answering straight away, he looks to Midoriya. Midoriya takes a few moments to realise why Shouta is looking at him, waiting for his approval.

"Oh, I don't mind! Really, don't let me keep any of you from coming or going," Midoriya says in a rush, and Oboro looks for a second like he's about to ruffle his hair before he manages to stifle the urge.

"I'll let him know! Come on, I'll show you the better place to eat, don't let Eraser fool you into the corner or something," Oboro says, gesturing for Midoriya to follow. Shouta stays behind them, vaguely listening out as Midoriya and Oboro talk to each other, Oboro asking him about his favourite foods and keeping the conversation purposely light.

Hizashi is out of the agency, apparently called out to attend a scene. Oboro leaves them after he's certain Midoriya is settled into what he deems the best location to eat in the building, and then heads out to go get some more food.

Shouta remains quiet as they eat, Midoriya slowly picking at his food like he can't quite believe it's still his.

"Don't like it?" Shouta eventually asks him, and Midoriya almost jumps.

"What? Oh, no, no! It's just..." Midoriya trails off, unsure of how to explain himself.

Shouta gets it.

"It's yours, please eat it before you upset Loud Cloud," Shouta says, which seems to startle him. He almost feels bad for using the guilting technique, but it works, as Midoriya hastily starts to eat his food, mostly finished by the time Oboro comes back and excitedly throws down too many packets of lollies and sweets into the middle of their huddle.

Shouta stares at Oboro, and Oboro just grins at him.

"What? I think it's cause for a celebration that we got to meet the kid that almost managed to beat your ass!" Oboro says cheekily, and Midoriya looks sheepish.

"Um, I don't think it's a fair fight if Eraserhead didn't use his Quirk," Midoriya mutters, and Oboro just laughs and throws a candy into his mouth.

"Yeah, well, Mic and I can't seem to win no matter how the battle goes, so you certainly did alright!"

Midoriya just stays quiet and shoves his mouth full of food. Oboro laughs but leaves him be, and it's a comfortable kind of quiet as they all eat.

Shinou must've already been on his way to the agency, as he makes his way into the building shortly after Oboro returns.

"Hey," Shinsou greets them all with, hand coming up in a wave. He doesn't seem to be surprised to see Midoriya and Oboro in the same space, likely having gotten a heads up from Oboro.

Oboro sends over a cloud, and Shinsou reaches into it to take a container of his own food before Oboro makes the cloud dissipate, and sits down to join them. He looks between Shouta and Midoriya, and taps at the table. "You two look rough."

Midoriya coughs. Shouta doesn't even bother with a reply, because Oboro is jumping in anyway, explaining the state Shouta had been in when they'd first walked out of the training room together.

"Jeez, Midoriya, you're one scary guy," Shinsou huffs with amusement, shaking his head.

Midoriya doesn't seem like he knows whether to take it as a compliment or not. Shinsou just nudges him in the side with his elbow, and Midoriya seems to realise Shinsou is being friendly, because he smiles.

"Mic's gonna be so upset he's missing this," Oboro sighs wistfully, gesturing around the room. "He's gonna be bitchin' my ear off for days about it."

"Not like he's here most of the time and works here or anything," Shouta mumbles, though Midoriya seems to pick up on it because he tilts his head to acknowledge it.

Midoriya takes some sweets, but only after Shinsou takes some out first and then offers them to Midoriya. Midoriya doesn't reach for them directly, and Oboro and Shouta share another look over that, because Midoriya is definitely polite to a fault, but they know better than to dismiss it as just that now.

Eventually, Shinsou gets up, and says he needs to head home and finish up his homework. Midoriya startles to his feet as well, that nervous energy that managed to dissipate over the night starting to return.

"Um, I should- I should get going too! Thanks so much for the meal, Loud Cloud," Midoriya says in a rush, bowing politely.

"Make sure you come back, alright kid? Seriously, Mic will never shut up if you don't," Oboro says, and Midoriya keeps his head bowed down sheepishly.

"Uh, okay! Thank you again!" Midoriya says, and basically tumbles out the door with Shinsou.

Oboro whistles. "Shit, that kid really is something."

Shouta rubs his fingers into his temples. "You're telling me."

"He tell you what was up?" Oboro asks, and Shouta shakes his head.

"No. There's a couple of topics he just refuses to go near, and I could tell that was going to be one," Shouta sighs. "He's getting... better, but whatever happened today definitely got to him."

"He definitely got to you," Oboro laughs, reaching out to ruffle Shouta's hair. "Jeez, look at you. I can't believe he's managed to scrap you up this much."

"He's only at 55% power," Shouta mutters, and as soon as he says it the realisation is a sinking, heavy thing.

"Hm?" Oboro asks, waiting for Shouta to elaborate.

Shouta breathes out something closer to a hiss. "Fuck, he's literally only got 55% of his power, and he almost took me down. He's only at 55%, what the fuck is his 100% going to be?"

Oboro hums. "Well, I haven't seen it yet, but considering your reaction... I can hardly imagine. All Might level, you think?"

Shouta turns over the idea of it, looking at it from all angles. The speed, the power — there's no doubt that it's quickly shaping up to be something on All Might's level. Depending on his 100%, it might even be more.

"Possibly," Shouta replies, and his fingers come down to press into his eyes, suddenly feeling a bone-deep exhaustion settling down on him. "Fuck, an All Might level of power in this kid. And he could've— easily, he could've fallen to the other side. After everything he's gone through, it's a fucking miracle he wants to become a hero. If he was a villain... fuck."

Oboro pats at his shoulders, because there's not much else to be said. There's both a heavy weight over them now, and that's how Hizashi walks in to find them.

"Alright, what the hell kind of party happened here?"

Chapter Text

Midoriya starts to come by the agency during the day. His visits are becoming more frequent, and Shouta's worry for him is only continuing to grow.

Hizashi and Oboro coo over him every time, flocking to him immediately. Midoriya's level of tension hasn't returned since that first night that he met them, but he also seems overall a lot more on edge than he used to be.

His training is intense, constantly pushing the boundaries of what he can do. It's like there's a sense of urgency suddenly lit under his feet, and he can't bear to keep still.

Hizashi and Oboro ask Midoriya one time, unable to hold their tongues or their curiousity anymore, if they can watch. Midoriya seems timid about it, but he decidedly lets them observe the session.

And Shouta can't help but feel his lips tug up in amusement, a low, simmering feeling of excitement beginning to build. Oh, how Oboro and Hizashi will lose their minds over this. Even though Shouta is factual about Midoriya's training, he doubts that they're truly comprehending Midoriya's power and tactical skill.

"Let's show them what you got, problem child," Shouta says with a barely-concealed grin. "They can watch by the doorway, they won't get in the way."

It'll give Midoriya more freedom to move around, and more chance to showcase just what he can do. Midoriya seems a little distracted by their presence, but his attention snaps to focus the moment Shouta settles into his usual stance.

"Yo, what the shit," he hears Hizashi say just two seconds later in English. Oboro has just started laughing in disbelief.

Midoriya is determined to show his skills to the two heroes observing, but Shouta is also all the more determined to not go down in front of his friends. They probably would understand at least, considering Shouta isn't using his Quirk, but he's not giving either of them any material to tease him with.

It's a close fight. Midoriya is still sitting around 55% it seems, and it means Shouta knows how to brace himself for that speed and power. Still, Shouta wins just barely.

Hizashi starts clapping once they're both down on the mats, Shouta once again just decides to take a rest by sitting down. Oboro comes by and hoists him up, while Hizashi helps up Midoriya.

"I think Shinsou might've been right," Oboro says, looking at Midoriya appraisingly. "You don't look it, but you really are a scary guy."

Midoriya decides to take it as a compliment, because he just smiles sheepishly as he rubs the back of his neck. "Being scary isn't good for a hero, though."

"Listen, all the top heroes are scary as shit," Oboro points out. "Pro Hero levels of power are just straight up terrifying, when you think about it. It's just that they're heroes."

"I guess so," Midoriya responds, thinking over Oboro's words.

"Hey, now that you're training here more often, could we have a turn as well some time?" Oboro asks, and Midoriya looks uncertainly over at Shouta.

"Oh, um," Midoriya stammers, and Shouta gently shoos his two friends away.

"If he wants to, he'll ask you," Shouta tells them, and Oboro just tuts.

Hizashi just laughs. "God, between you and Cloud..."

He trails off, unwilling to say it aloud. Shouta narrows his eyes, and Hizashi laughs, trying to brush away his comment.

"Go on you two, get out, you're done observing," Shouta tells them, kicking them out of the training room. Midoriya looks like he's been caught up in a tornado, and he's not quite sure how he's still standing.

"Come on, focus. I want to go over some exercises," Shouta says, and Midoriya gets back to it.

Later, Hizashi finally gives in and tells Shouta what he'd thought better of in the training room.

"I was just gonna say," Hizashi says, amused. "The amount of strays the two of you adopt is truly something."

"You literally have a stray cat," Shouta replies, and Hizashi gives him a shrug.

"Yeah, but Oboro got that for me. He's already got two. And you. You have two cats, and now two teenagers!"

"I haven't adopted Midoriya," Shouta slips out, and Hizashi slams his hands down on the table.

"What? What? Have you finally properly adopted Shinsou?"

"He's started to call me 'pops'," Shouta tells him, because it's amusing seeing Hizashi this riled up.

Hizashi's jaw drops, and for the first ever time, he's speechless.

Midoriya surprises Shinsou and Shouta one day by coming into the training room and signing 'hello'.

They've been spending more time together, as it's summer break and Shinsou has more time now to dedicate just to training with them. Midoriya basically has his own roll of tape and a corner of the room dedicated just for him. He's been invited to use the room even when none of them are available, but Midoriya had looked so uncomfortable with that prospect that they haven’t pushed it.

Shouta figures it's just a matter of reassuring Midoriya that he's welcome to these things, that they trust him to handle himself alone responsibly. But Midoriya sometimes still doesn't understand why they trust him, and it's hard to get some things through to him.

"Oh, don't tell me," Shinsou says, though there's a hint of a smile on his lips. Midoriya basically bounds over to them, signing away as he starts up a conversation with Shinsou.

He's still figuring it out, stumbling over some words and needing a moment to remember the signs for things, but he's got a solid grasp of it. Shouta supposes it's likely Hizashi's doing, as he's seeing movements typical of Hizashi reflected in Midoriya's signing.

Shinsou wraps his arm around Midoriya's shoulders and gets him in a headlock. This is starting to become a familiar sight, both of them comfortable with each other — likely after so much time sparring together, they're just used to having that kind of skinship now.

There's a point during the training where Shouta flips Midoriya over, and Midoriya just lays up at stares at the ceiling before he signs with complete, defeated sincerity: 'fuck'.

Shinsou doubles over and laughs so hard he almost cries.

There's something going on with the underground.

Shouta keeps an eye on it, keeping his eye on the usual suspects. The police have been in contact with him, mentioning that it looks like they might be dealing with drug and weapon supplies.

Shouta's been slowly figuring out their contacts, their locations, beginning to dismantle and topple the network.

It's a new type of drug, he finds out. Something to do with Quirks, along the lines of enhancing or disrupting them. It's not the first time Shouta has dealt with things like this, but they're moving fast, and the network is growing quickly.

By the time the police and federal agents finally come in to shut it all down in the city, there's already been reports of it in use. The supply doesn't seem refined, and it feels like more of an experiment than anything. It makes Shouta uneasy, and so the agency focuses on putting in resources to track it down.

Shouta deals with one of them, a seemingly random attack in the early morning. He's able to subdue the suspect and use Erasure on the victim, taking them to emergency to get them sorted. There, he learns a little about the effects from the doctors: it influences the person's Quirk, randomly triggering their abilities with very little control.

It seems to fluctuate in waves — the person using the full extent of their Quirk for a couple of minutes, before they seem to lose it entirely. It goes like that, round and round in circles, for around twelve hours.

So far, all victims have recovered their full use and ability of their Quirk. It's just those few hours, impacted by the drug, that they can't control it at all.

It still lingers on his mind, sitting like a dark cloud as he trains Shinsou. Just as they're wrapping up, Shouta gets a call.

Midoriya's contact number flashes across the screen, and Shouta's heart is thudding as he swipes to answer it.

Midoriya has never called him before.

"Kid?" He asks into the phone, and he's met with heavy breathing. It sounds like Midoriya, which is a relief, but Shouta's mind is running wild with all kinds of worrying scenarios. Shinsou immediately walks closer to him, trying to overhear the conversation.

"Sorry for calling so late," Midoriya says, and he sounds — he sounds okay, just a little out of breath, but Shouta is still uneasy. "But, um. Could you— I'm at the back of the mart."

"Coming," Shouta says, already turning and hurrying out the door. Shinsou is following him, and Shouta isn't going to waste the time to tell him to stay back at the agency. "Are you alright?"

"Um," Midoriya laughs nervously, and Shouta's stomach twists because that is very solidly a no.

"How injured are you?" Shouta hurriedly asks, and Midoriya's laugh peters off.

"I'm— not really? But uh, I might have gotten hit by that drug, the one they're saying is affecting Quirks," Midoriya rushes to say, and Shouta swears under his breath.

His mind is reeling through all the information he knows. Midoriya will be okay, it'll just be a few hours of dealing with a fluctuating Quirk.

A fluctuation that uses the full extent of one's Quirk. Midoriya has built up to use 60% — not the full extent of his power. And Midoriya has told him before that he can't do it, not without causing injury to himself.

He swears again, breaking out into a run now.

Shinsou is right behind him, keeping pace.

"What happened?" Shinsou asks through panted breaths.

"Midoriya's been hit by that drug," Shouta replies, just as the mart comes into sight. He hangs up as he catches sight of Midoriya, just at the edge of the alley behind it.

He almost stumbles over the man lying on the ground, entirely focused on Midoriya. Midoriya seems physically unharmed, but he's trembling like he's exerted all of his energy.

"You okay?" Shouta asks him, and Midoriya slumps against the wall, no longer bothering trying to stand upright. Midoriya gestures with his head to the man lying on the ground.

"That's— that's the guy that shot me with it," Midoriya manages to say. Shouta gives Shinsou a glance, and Shinsou moves over to Midoriya to help him sit down on the ground. Shouta goes over to check the man's breathing — and it’s fine, the man is just unconscious. "I swear I didn't like, intercept him on purpose! Or like, not really! I was just going to the mart, and he tried to rob a lady, and he panicked when I came onto the scene and he tried to shoot her."

That's not good, for multiple reasons. If someone like this managed to get their hands on a weaponised version of the drug, then that means it's been distributed further than they thought. It also means that though Midoriya has the speed to, he likely only thought about saving the lady, and not so much himself.

Right, so he'll need to work on Midoriya's self-sacrificial tendencies.

One thing at a time though.

"I'll ask again: are you okay?" Shouta asks.

"Um, my Quirk is— it's definitely going haywire," Midoriya laughs mirthlessly. "I suppressed it down the first time, but I don't think I'll be able to do that again."

"Alright," Shouta says, and dials the police so that they can investigate the man Shouta is currently putting cuffs on. He's succinct on his call, not bothering with much else other than an address — they're used to it, when it comes to dealing with Eraserhead's calls. "If anything happens, I can use Erasure."

Midoriya nods with visible relief. "You've dealt with it before?"

"Once, yes," Shouta responds, making sure the man is not going anywhere before he moves over to crouch in front of Midoriya. "It's going to last a few hours. They're prepared to deal with it at the hospital."

Shouta remembers it a second too late: Midoriya's last reaction to Shouta suggesting a hospital.

Midoriya's flinch is so drastic that he almost throws himself back against the wall. Shouta raises his hands without thinking, trying to placate Midoriya — he hasn't seen a reaction like that from him before, but one thing is very clear: Midoriya does not want to go to the hospital.

"No hospital, my bad," Shouta mutters, rubbing his forehead. Midoriya seems to shrink down, like he's preparing to hear a reprimand.

But it's a piece of the puzzle that makes sense to Shouta — he's heard the stories, after all. He's seen the treatment Shinsou had gotten when he'd first taken him in, and he's lived through it himself. There's a prejudice, even amongst medical professionals, and clearly Midoriya has had something happen there to have a reaction like that.

"Well," Shinsou says, looking over at Shouta. "Good thing a hospital isn't the only option to deal with something like this."

Shouta sighs. "Good thing indeed."

Midoriya hasn't quite caught on yet, as he's looking between them with visible confusion. "Um, is there... somewhere else?"

"Yeah," Shouta says. "I mean, you've been back to our place before. You don't have to if you don't want to, but if your Quirk is out of control, then I'm going to have to insist that you go somewhere tonight where you won't be a danger to anyone — especially yourself."

"Oh!' Midoriya realises. "Oh, you don't— no, no, I don't want to disturb you. Um, I can go to the hospital, that's okay."

"It's clearly not," Shouta replies with a frown, because Midoriya looks like he's on the verge of hyperventilating at this rate.

Midoriya's working himself up though, torn between not wanting to feel like a disturbance to them and also not wanting to go to the hospital.

"Christ, problem child, breathe," Shouta coaxes, hands fisting up in his lap. Midoriya's past a certain point of coherency, and Shouta doesn't want to accidentally upset him further by surprising him with physical touch, especially when he's not sure how Midoriya will receive it.

Shit, Shouta thinks. He thought they'd be out of this alley by now, at no risk of crossing the police. Considering Midoriya's previous aversion to them, their presence will likely only freak him out more, so it's a matter of getting Midoriya to move before then.

And then there's another problem. A green tint starts to glow on Midoriya's skin, and Shouta uses Erasure the second he sees it. It startles Midoriya, making him flinch again, fingers curling so tightly into his palms that Shouta fears he's going to draw blood.

They need to calm him down first and fast, before the police arrive, but Shouta worries they're not going to be able to do that. No attempts of getting Midoriya to match his breathing are working, nothing is working to ground him. Shouta's hesitant to touch him, but he just might have to pick up Midoriya and move him anyway, and deal with the consequences of that. Surely, he thinks, it'll be the slightly worse option to go with.

And Shouta's eyes are starting to get very dry. He's going to have to blink soon, and he knows well that even a second is not something they can spare — not with Midoriya's speed.

"Midoriya," Shinsou says sharply. "Midoriya, we really need you to breathe."

Midoriya's breaths are more like gasps, unable to focus properly on them in the midst of his panic attack. But he manages to look at Shinsou, and something like recognition sparks there.

Shinsou grabs it like a lifeline. "Midoriya, I'm going to do something, just to help you breathe, alright? Do you trust me?"

Midoriya nods, thankfully understanding him, and Shinsou's mouth twists.

"Midoriya, I need you to say it. Just one word, yeah? Come on."

"Y-yeah," Midoriya rasps out, and then he goes still, his panicked gasps cutting off immediately. Shouta blinks, Erasure no longer in effect, and he lets out a deep breath of relief as Midoriya’s Quirk shows no sign of reappearing.

"Just need you to take some deep breaths, alright Midoriya?" Shinsou says gently, like he's still trying to coax Midoriya rather than commanding him. Midoriya's body follows Shinsou's instruction, taking in a few deep breaths. Shinsou then works him down to breathe evenly, calmly. "You're alright, you're alright."

Shinsou looks back at Shouta. "I might be able to get him to stop using his Quirk, but... it's a long time to be under my control," Shinsou says softly. "I'm... I don't think I'm really comfortable with that. Not for the whole night."

"Alright," Shouta responds, patting Shinsou on the shoulder. "That's okay. We can think this over all together, once we're out of here."

Shinsou nods, and then drops his handle over Midoriya. Midoriya's breath stutters the second he gets control over his body again, but he takes in a deep breath and manages to hold onto the rhythm that Shinsou's given him over his breathing.

"Midoriya," Shouta gets his attention, because they don't have much more time. "We need to start moving now. We'd prefer you to come back with us, rather than go somewhere you're uncomfortable. Do you trust that?"

Midoriya bites down on his bottom lip, a nervous habit that Shouta's picked up on. Eventually, he nods.

Shouta looks over at the man still cuffed on the floor, and he thinks it over.

"Shinsou," he says quietly, and Shinsou leans closer to hear him better. Midoriya can still hear them, but this is something he needs to get Shinsou's permission to do before he gets Midoriya in on the plan. "I'm not asking you to do it the whole night, but will you be able to stop him from using his Quirk if it fires up again? Just until I can deal with the police?"

Shinsou nods. "Yeah, I got it. You deal with this."

"Alright. Midoriya, Shinsou's going to take you back. He can deal with your Quirk if it flares up, and I'll only be here long enough to just give a statement to the police about this, and make sure they don't try and track you down," Shouta tells him. Midoriya gulps, but thankfully nods his head and starts to stand.

He's able to walk fine, but Shinsou still hovers close just in case. Shouta gestures for them to get moving, and Shinsou picks up the pace, talking calmly to Midoriya the entire time.

It's strange, as usually Midoriya is the one taking charge of the conversation, prompting Shinsou and Shouta with questions and topics. Even though Midoriya doesn't reveal a whole lot about his personal life, and he's careful to avoid topics like U.A, it reveals a lot about his nature.

Shinsou is usually content to let Midoriya fill in the silence whenever it falls upon them — he's not as naturally talkative, but he still always engages with Midoriya's conversations, following his lead. But now Shinsou is the one prompting Midoriya to answer, keeping him talking. It's a good plan, as Shinsou might need to take control at any moment, but Shouta expects it's more than that.

Midoriya has seemed infallible in training lately. His Quirk is incredibly powerful, and Midoriya is very good at thinking tactically with or without it. Shinsou told him, not too many nights ago, that he'd think Midoriya would easily be within the top 3 in his U.A class.

I'd like to see him up against Bakugou, Shinsou had said, amused. Now that would be an interesting fight.

Right now, though, Midoriya seems very, very different from the boy in the training room with them. Now, Midoriya still seems like he's on the edge of another panic attack, and his Quirk is out of his own control — something he's very carefully mastered over the year.

Thankfully, the police arrive with enough time for Shinsou and Midoriya to likely be closer back to Shouta's apartment, but still soon enough that Shouta doesn't feel too anxious. He's worried, certainly, but he’s sure they’ll be able to handle it together.

Shouta's just thankful that the drug doesn't seem to impact the mental cognition of the person, because Shouta knows that Midoriya will never let himself hurt Shinsou outside of training.

The problem is, of course, Midoriya's tendency to disregard his own safety. But he'll deal with that once he deals with this entire night.

Sakura is part of the responding team, and Shouta is glad for it. It means he won't be stuck here any longer than he needs to be, and he immediately seeks her out to tell her the story.

He avoids mentioning Midoriya as much as he can, taking the fall for subduing the suspect. Thankfully, it seems to work, and the police seem to be a lot more stressed about dealing with the fact that such a lowly criminal managed to get a hand on the drug to begin with.

Sakura eventually lets out a bone-deep sigh, but she straightens quickly and gives Shouta a smile, clearly not one to let a moment get her down. "Man, this is quite a mess. We'll take it from here, thanks for your work Eraserhead."

He nods, and tries to make sure it doesn't look like he's leaving with too much of a hurry. Once he's far enough from the presence of any officers, he picks up his pace and heads back to his apartment. It has barely been half an hour, but it's seemed to have dragged on endlessly anyway.

Their shoes are by the door, and Shinsou has left the hallway light on for Shouta again. Shouta takes off his shoes and changes into slippers, quickly heading to the main area where he can hear them engaged in a quiet conversation.

"Any flare-ups?" Shouta asks them, and Shinsou shakes his head. Midoriya's got his head ducked down, looking slightly uncomfortable as he sits on Shouta's couch — back ram-rod straight, fingers nervously twitching in his lap.

"Alright," Shouta says, heading to the kitchen. It'll happen soon, then. In a period of twelve hours, it tends to activate once every hour, but sometimes it happens much sooner than that, and he relays that information to them. Midoriya seems to shrink down on the couch.

It's going to be a long night, and Shouta pulls out a can of espresso from his fridge. Shinsou turns to him with interest, but Shouta narrows his eyes. "No, it's way too late for you to have caffeine. I'm used to pulling all-nights. You need to sleep."

Shinsou grumbles under his breath, folding his arms grumpily as he sinks down on the chair.

Midoriya's eyes have at least lifted up, looking at the can in Shouta's hands. "That counts for you as well, Midoriya. It might be difficult, but it's worth trying."

Midoriya still hasn't spoken a word — he just nods resolutely, and his gaze dips again.

Shouta sighs. "Have you eaten? You said you were going to the mart, were you able to get something?"

"Um," Midoriya says, and Shouta immediately has his answer.

Someone on Midoriya's type of training schedule should definitely be making sure to compensate their energy with meals.

Shinsou stands up from the couch, brushing off his knees. "I can cook something. I'm hungry anyway. Any requests?"

"Oh, uh-" Midoriya immediately stumbles over his words. Shinsou narrows his eyes.

"No, you aren't being a bother. You're getting fed, shut up and accept it."

Midoriya blinks at Shinsou, surprised by the outburst.

"So what do you want?" Shinsou asks, and Midoriya's fingers are flexing anxiously.

"Um, anything is fine," Midoriya says softly, and Shinsou sighs but accepts it, turning to head for the kitchen and pushing Shouta out of it. Shouta goes, because he knows it'll be more of a hazard anyway for him to try and cook anything.

Midoriya's Quirk flares up once, while Shinsou is cooking, and Shouta immediately uses Erasure on it. Midoriya's hands clench into fists with frustration, and once the flare-up passes, he tucks himself down into the couch like he's trying to melt through it.

"I'm going to go get my eye-drops," Shouta says, standing up from his seat. Riceball comes with him, weaving between his legs as he walks.

"I'm going to trip on you," he warns Riceball, who takes no notice of his threat.

He can feel Midoriya watching him as he walks out of the room. Shinsou says something to Midoriya once Shouta goes into his bedroom, but it's between the two of them and Shouta turns his focus elsewhere. He gets out of his hero costume, switching into something more comfortable for the night, and comes back out of the room with his eye-drops in hand.

Shinsou's still cooking, but he's keeping a close eye on Midoriya. Eleven hours to go, Shouta counts down, going back over to his seat.

Shouta switches on the television, purposely flicking away from any news channels. He pauses on a documentary, about to flick it over, but he notices Midoriya actually sitting up in interest.

It's an All Might documentary, and Shouta huffs in amusement.

"Fan, are you?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya cheeks flush an embarrassed red. He looks like he's about to try and get Shouta to turn it over, so Shouta sets down his remote and leans back, content with anything if it keeps Midoriya distracted.

He looks exhausted — likely from the come-down of a panic attack, as well as his Quirk acting up. He no longer looks like he's on the verge of another attack at least, slowly letting his back hunch over and settle down into the couch properly. He's still flexing his fingers, but he's no longer eyeing the doors or windows like he's trying to come up with an escape route, so Shouta lets it be.

He reminds Shouta so much of when they first met; guarded, nervous, not entirely trusting.

Over these weeks, he's really opened up — has shown Shouta so much more than just that careful defence he's managed to build himself. But now it's like Shouta's been thrown back in time, Midoriya so anxious that it's basically radiating off him in waves.

Shinsou sets down their two bowls on the table in front of them, almost managing to startle Midoriya. He doesn't take note of it, tucking his own close to his chest and making himself comfortable at the other end of the couch that Midoriya is on.

"Thank you," Midoriya says earnestly, distracted from the screen to stare at the bowl in front of him. It's still steaming, and Shouta reaches out for his in an attempt to get Midoriya to take his too while it's still warm.

Thankfully, Midoriya's hesitance seems to lower enough to take the bowl. He takes his first bite, and he basically whirls around to face Shinsou.

"This is so nice," Midoriya praises, and he can see the way Shinsou immediately becomes shy over it. Shouta hides his snort of amusement, focused on eating his own meal. "Can you teach me how to cook it sometime?"

"Um," Shinsou says. "I guess? Yeah?"

Midoriya smiles, so much more like his usual self now. They eat in peace, Midoriya entirely invested in the documentary, while Shinsou and Shouta both have their half-hearted attention on it, their attention is mostly on Midoriya.

A true fan indeed, Shouta thinks. He figured it out from the way Midoriya's movements sometimes reflect All Might's — more when they'd first started training, at least. Now, Midoriya is settling into his own style, but he definitely cries out some things that are very All Might-like when he attacks.

Midoriya finishes his meal first, though he waits on the couch until both Shouta and Shinsou are done. He takes their bowls and heads to the kitchen, running the sink.

"Uh, problem child, you don't have to do that," Shouta tells him, already moving to stand up and take over. Midoriya flaps him away though, shaking his head.

"Let me, please," Midoriya insists, his voice just a touch too fragile.

Shouta takes the tea-towel and leans against the counter. "Alright. I'll dry, then."

Midoriya seems like he's going to try and shoo Shouta away, so Shouta adds: "It'll take less time this way. It's just logical."

Midoriya doesn't argue it any further, putting the dripping dishes on the rack and letting Shouta take them to dry. They work quietly together, Midoriya overlooking the counter and keeping his attention still on the documentary. Shinsou's attention seems to be distracted by petting Meatball, but Shouta knows he's paying careful attention as well.

They finish washing the dishes without any incidents at least, and Midoriya makes his way back over to the couch. The documentary ends, switching over to some type of drama. Shinsou goes into his room to change and wash up, coming back out with a handheld game console in hand.

"You play?" Shinsou asks Midoriya, holding up the device in demonstration. Midoriya's eyes widen a little, looking interested in it.

"I don't, but I— I used to. One of the old ones, when I was a kid," Midoriya replies, and Shinsou sits down on the couch, closer than before. He leans over and fires it up, letting Midoriya look over his screen as he goes through his game collection.

Shouta sips at his coffee, closing his eyes. He's not sleeping — he doesn't think he'd be able to even if he tried to tonight, but he's just resting his eyes. They're already feeling strained, like the knowledge of the upcoming all-nighter is making it worse. Still, he knows he'll be able to rely on his Quirk when it comes down to it.

Shinsou and Midoriya talk animatedly about Shinsou's games, and it sounds like Shinsou has passed the controller over completely to Midoriya to play.

He knows he told Shinsou to sleep tonight, but there's a type of comradery between Shinsou and Midoriya which is making Shouta think maybe he should've just let them both have the coffee. It'll be difficult getting both of them to sleep, both of them too worried and wired up.

They don't complain about being tired though — not even Shinsou, who's usually as bad as Shouta when it comes down to it.

Time passes like that, until Shouta sees a flicker behind his eyelids. He immediately opens his eyes, shutting down Midoriya's Quirk before it can fire up any further. Midoriya tries to pass the device back to Shinsou after that, saying that it's too dangerous for him to hold, but Shinsou just scoffs and pushes it back over to Midoriya.

"You're fine, the device is fine. Your game, however, is not. You're about to lose," Shinsou points out, and that thankfully seems to snap Midoriya back to it. He frantically mashes buttons, and Shouta lets himself settle.

His heart is hammering, and he calms it down. It's fine. Midoriya is fine — it's just another ten or so hours of this now. They'll get through it.

And they do.

Shinsou stays awake, despite Shouta's best attempts to send him off to sleep. Midoriya's too wound up — even though exhaustion seems to weigh him down so heavily, his Quirk clearly taking it out of him, everytime he closes his eyes he jolts back awake within a second.

Some time in, Shinsou goes to get his school textbooks — citing that he may as well use the time to get ahead. Midoriya's still playing the game, but soon enough ends up beside Shinsou, looking over the work as Shinsou starts to groan with frustration. Shinsou eventually pushes it over to him, letting Midoriya look over the content.

"You got any ideas on the answers for this?" Shinsou asks, and Midoriya hums as he looks it over. Hesitantly, he nods.

"I think so? Here," Midoriya picks up a pencil, scribbling down his answer on a blank page of Shinsou's paperwork. Shinsou reads it, and he slaps his hands down on the table.

"Holy shit, how'd you get that?" Shinsou asks, impressed, copying Midoriya's answer onto his own page. Midoriya just shrinks down though, picking up the game again, and it's clear that the topic of his education is one to be avoided.

Maybe Shinsou had been right, that one time. Maybe Shouta really is impatient — because he can feel it like a burning question, wondering how Midoriya is teaching himself, and he wants to know. But there's no point in asking, so Shouta swallows down his question and focuses on the time.

Over the night, Shouta counts down, marking every single time he has to use Erasure.

He misses once — just once, because he's in the kitchen grabbing himself another can of espresso, and he thought it was safe to do so twenty minutes after the last fluctuation. But this one comes on too soon, and Shinsou has to use his Quirk to get Midoriya's Quirk to taper off.

"Jeez," Shinsou says, sometime after that. They're all quiet after that one — Shouta is regretful, and Shinsou is a little shaken too. "I can just... control someone's breathing like that, huh?"

Midoriya lets out a deep breath, like he's reminding himself that he's able to do so on his own. It’s clear that they’re both thinking about Midoriya’s earlier panic attack.

Shouta's watching Shinsou though, trying to gauge his reaction. It's like it's hitting him now, at this early hour — the amount of power that he has over someone.

"It helped a lot," Midoriya says quietly, and that's thankfully enough to calm Shinsou down.

Two to go, Shouta thinks, and is determined not to move away from Midoriya until it's over.

Even after Shouta counts zero, they still all wait in the room together for another hour. And then a little longer than that.

Eventually, with the sun rising and the room lightening, Shouta says: "That should be it."

Both Shinsou and Midoriya deflate with relief. Shinsou collapses face-down on the couch, groaning. Midoriya is in a similar state, looking between Shouta and his hands like he's waiting for his Quirk to spike up his skin again.

Shouta waits for as long as Midoriya needs.

It's not too long after, likely the exhaustion just too much now, that Midoriya also collapses down on the couch. "Thank god."

Midoriya, at least, is past his apologetic and thankfulness stage. Now, they're all just relieved it seems to be over.

"Alright. We're all going to sleep," Shouta says, thankful that it's a Sunday at least. He's already messaged Oboro and Hizashi with what's happened, and he's not expected to come into the agency for the day.

They've offered to come by, but Shouta knows that it'll likely only set Midoriya on edge all over again. So he tells them he'll meet up with them on Monday, and that he's knocking the fuck out.

He's already pulled out the futon set for Midoriya to rest on in the lounge room, and he gestures for Midoriya to take it. He's taken the time over the night to show Midoriya where all the rooms are located, so Midoriya already knows his way around.

"Stay as long as you need. Help yourself to anything, and wake me up if you need anything," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya is so exhausted that he doesn't even try to argue. He just settles himself amongst the futon, pulling it up.

Shinsou follows him to his room, shutting the door behind him quietly.

He's clearly wanting to tell Shouta something privately, so Shouta sits down at the edge of his bed and raises an eyebrow. "What is it?"

"Midoriya didn't text anyone," Shinsou tells him lowly. "Like, not a single person to say he was staying here tonight."

Shouta feels himself frown, too tired to bother masking his expressions.

He sighs, fingers pressing into his eyelids. "Alright. I'll... try and look into it."

It's going to be difficult. Midoriya is like a vault when he wants to be, especially regarding his personal life. If Shouta digs around too much without Midoriya knowing about it, and he finds out, then Shouta's going to lose his trust.

But Midoriya is still a child, and there's now an implication that no one in his life minded his presence missing tonight. It could be a usual thing for Midoriya, perhaps, to stay out all night — but he always seemed to get anxious when he was out for a little too long with Shouta, like he had someone waiting for him to come home.

And Midoriya, despite his tendency to get into trouble, seems like a responsible kid. Shouta doubts that he'd ever try and make someone worry about him, and he doesn't seem like the kind to just be expected to go missing for a whole night.

This might be something he needs to talk about with Hizashi and Oboro, just to get their perspectives on it. But Shouta's worried now, concerned for the boy currently sleeping in his living room.

"Go get some sleep," Shouta says, brushing his hair back from his face as he looks at Shinsou. Shinsou nods, giving him a lazy salute as he turns on his heels.

"Goodnight pops," Shinsou says easily, giving Shouta a flick of a wave as he walks out.

"Yeah," Shouta breathes out quietly, even though Shinsou's already walked away. "Goodnight kid."

Midoriya leaves before Shouta or Shinsou wake up.

Shouta isn't surprised by it. He's just glad that Midoriya responds at all when Shouta texts him to make sure he's not feeling any after-effects of the drug.

Thankfully, he seems to be alright, and he joins Shouta and Shinsou for a training session a couple of days later. When he spars with his Quirk, he seems comfortable with it, abiding any of Shouta's worries that he might be a little unsettled with it after the drugging incident.

So he seems to be okay, for the most part. But then Shouta starts to notice that over the week, Midoriya is coming over to the agency a lot more than he usually does. Even when Shouta's not in, Hizashi and Oboro report back to him and say that Midoriya's spending hours on end in the training room.

They've tried to bring it up to him, but Midoriya brushes their concerns off so easily with a bright, convincing smile. They're all getting concerned, and Shouta finds himself pulling up Midoriya's file, looking over all the reports once more, wondering if he's missing something. If something's changed, somehow. And then he starts to look into Inko Midoriya's records, too. But there's nothing he can find there either.

Shouta also needs to figure out how to actually talk to Midoriya without scaring him off from the topic. Shouta's concerned that if he brings it up, Midoriya will just clam up even tighter than before.

But as Midoriya joins him for a patrol one night, he hears Midoriya's stomach rumble. Midoriya tries to brush it off, but Shouta detours them to a mart anyway.

Midoriya is flustered, trying to reassure him that he's not hungry, but Shouta's not having it.

"I'm hungry," Shouta says, because he knows Midoriya won't argue with it.

Midoriya lingers back, not reaching for any of the food. Shouta sighs, reaching out to take a couple of origini.

"It's on me, if you want to pick something," Shouta says to him, gesturing to it. Midoriya shakes his head, and Shouta just reaches out to take a couple more, gambling on the fillings, and takes them all up to the counter to pay. He's swung by this mart before in costume — most of the clerks barely blink an eye at him now. He's hardly one to be noticed when there's heroes like Present Mic and Loud Cloud in the town, after all.

"I can't eat all these," Shouta tells Midoriya, passing off two to him.

"Why did you buy them then," Midoriya mutters, seemingly before he can stop himself. His cheeks redden quickly when he realises he's spoken aloud.

"I bought them because it's illogical for a teenage boy to be lacking energy when he has such an intense training regimen," Shouta replies anyway, voice quietly stern and not allowing room for any disagreement, which works to quieten any of Midoriya's refusals.

"Thank you," Midoriya says quietly, unwrapping one of them and quietly eating. Shouta eats his own, delaying his next words.

Come on Aizawa, he tells himself sternly. You can't put this off.

"If you, for any reason, need a place to stay, you know that there is one with me, right? Or with Mic, or Cloud. We won't ask questions if you don't want us to, other than what we need to know," Shouta explains. "You know that as Pro Heroes, we can enact emergency guardian roles for a certain period of time. It's how Shinsou came to live with me — granted, his time has been extended as I'm working on adopting him officially."

"Oh," Midoriya says, and Shouta looks over at him to see him staring down at the sidewalk. He's stopped walking, frozen suddenly, and Shouta stops walking as well. He gives Midoriya space, but he does not leave him to feel alone.

Midoriya's been caught off-guard by Shouta's offer, and Shouta can see him trying to process it. Shouta thinks, realises, that his intuition is right — that Midoriya isn't panicking, trying to defend the parent or adult he lives with.

Midoriya clears his throat, and gives Shouta a smile. But it's shakier than usual, not nearly as convincing as it can be.

"I'm okay, really," Midoriya tells him softly. "I... I have a home. And I'm not in trouble there, or anything."

"Kid, I'm going to be honest," Shouta says, and Midoriya's smile falters ever so slightly. "Those aren't things that people say when they're okay at home."

"Yeah," Midoriya laughs mirthlessly, smile dropping entirely. "But it's okay."

It's clearly not, if Midoriya is clearly so exhausted from the situation that he's letting Shouta even see this much of a reaction.

"I'm going to reiterate. You can come by literally any time. However long you need. The offer is always, always, going to be there for you," Shouta says, and Midoriya nods, but he lowers his head and does not look at Shouta.

Shouta sighs to himself.

"Alright, just as long as you know that. Come on, eat up, I've got a patrol to officially go on, and you've got to unofficially follow me and not get involved in any trouble," Shouta says, and is glad to see Midoriya's lips curl up ever so slightly.

When he gets home, the hour late and the sun close to rising, he opens up the room to his study and stares at it. Shinsou has the second bedroom, but Shouta thinks he can make this room work as another bedroom if he just rearranges some things.

Midoriya didn't accept his offer tonight, but Shouta still gets to work on clearing out the room anyway.

Before Shouta can talk to Shinsou about it, Shinsou comes home with a shopping bag full of toiletries and long-lasting snacks that he puts in the room, and it turns out nothing really needs to be said.

It's been a while since there's really been any trouble in the city.

Oboro had said as much today, idly sitting at his desk, and Hizashi had gasped and immediately told him to take it back.

You'll jinx it! Hizashi had cried out dramatically.

And now Hizashi's going to say that he was absolutely right, because now, a mere few hours later, Shouta is running towards a scene after hearing screams, the sounds of cars crashing, glass smashing, and alarms blaring. It's only an hour or so into his patrol, and he curses the fact that now he's going to have to hear Hizashi gripe about the fact he'd been right, and that jinxes do truly exist.

Oboro definitely should've known better than to say things like that anyway — it's an unspoken rule. Never, ever, mention that it's quiet, unless you want to be hearing sirens within the hour.

People are running away, and Shouta secures his goggles over his eyes as he seems to get close to the trouble. Cars have been flipped over on the street, sprawled about like they're been blown away by a huge gust of wind. As he gets closer, there's less cars — like they've all been blown back from the impact zone, and windows in buildings have been smashed in.

The cause of it is quite clear to see. It's a large man, covered in a ridiculous get-up, and he's currently dancing around as he steps through store windows. He's got a large duffel bag with him, and he's swinging it around as he starts to inspect items to steal.

"Loud Cloud, I'm going to kick your ass," Shouta mutters, carefully looking over the rest of the street. There doesn't seem to be anyone trapped in the cars, and everyone has cleared out from the area. The police will be here soon, but he wants to try and subdue the man before anyone else comes on the scene.

If he has a kind of Quirk that can let him flip over cars and shatter glass so easily, then Shouta wants to keep him in this area and take him down fast. He just has to get in there, nullify his Quirk, and pin him down.

The man spots him as he's spinning around, and he claps his hands together. Shouta erases his Quirk before that happens, and the man just laughs.

"Oh dear! I see, that's a little annoying," he says, all too chipper. Shouta goes to use his capture weapon, but the man grabs something from his belt and drops it on the ground after pulling the pin.

Fuck. He jumps back out of instinct, but he already knows what kind of grenade the man has dropped. A smoke bomb — which means he's likely aware of how Shouta's Quirk works. He throws out his capture weapon, but he's a second too late, and he doesn't manage to entangle anything.

He tries to keep his eyes open, because he's still got the man's Quirk under his control, but the smoke is making his eyes sting. He doesn't want to be cornered in the store, so he heads towards the exit, hoping to get to fresh air. He manages it, but his eyes become so irritated that he has to blink.

He loses control of the man's Quirk. The man hasn't used it yet, likely not risking making a sound like clapping when it gives away his presence. But he'll likely use it soon, and if the smoke doesn't clear in time, then Shouta won't be able to nullify it.

Unfortunately, the smoke lingers.

And the man realises Shouta has let go of his Erasure.

He claps his hands, and there's a resulting shockwave that sends Shouta flying. He goes to throw his capture weapon and catch himself, because if he doesn't it's going to hurt, but something wraps around his stomach and suddenly he's no longer falling.

He's suspended in mid-air, and he looks down to see some kind of tangible black smoke wrapped around him. It has a tint of green lightning sparking around it.

He knows the look of that lightning well, but that doesn't — it doesn't make sense. Because Midoriya's Quirk is strength-enhancement. It's not whatever this is.

Still, when he looks down to the ground, he sees Midoriya's familiar figure standing on the street. And the black tendrils are coming from his hands. He's got one outstretched towards Shouta, like he's reaching out for him, and his other hand is stretched out towards the store where the man is.

Shouta is lowered down to the ground, and he gets his feet under him. The tendrils disappear once Shouta is standing upright, and Midoriya looks him over with concern before his expression shifts into something painfully guilty.

"Problem child," he rasps out. "What the hell?"

Midoriya swallows down something heavy, and he turns his head away from Shouta, nodding at the store, purposely diverting Shouta's attention back to the biggest problem at hand.

Shouta takes a deep breath, and he strides towards the store. The smoke is clearing out now, and Shouta can see the man. He uses Erasure, even though it doesn't seem to be needed — Midoriya's black tendrils are wrapped around the man's arms, not letting him clap his hands together to use his Quirk.

The man looks nervous now, eyes flickering between Midoriya and Shouta. Shouta moves to break his eye-line from Midoriya, not letting him get a further look at the person that managed to stop him.

Fuck, fuck, what the fuck, he thinks, staring at the black tendrils wrapped around the man. How long has Midoriya been able to do this for?

He pushes down his questions and concerns, because he's now got to deal with this man. He locks some cuffs on the man's wrists, and the black tendrils recede.

The man huffs, about to say something, but Shouta just glares at him. "Shut up. Just shut up. Fuck, what a mess."

The man swallows down his words, no longer as full of bravado now that he's been halted in his tracks and is facing Eraserhead’s frustration.

"Eraser!"

Shouta turns around, and Oboro's sitting on a cloud and floating into the store with a big grin. Too big — there's a sign of tension in his shoulders that's giving him away, a type of stress he rarely ever carries on his frame.

"Fancy seeing you here!" Oboro says, like he didn't know that Shouta is on patrol tonight. "Look at what you've got here. Well! That's alright, I'm just here to relieve you of duty for tonight. I'll take it from here."

Shouta narrows his eyes suspiciously. Oboro, out of sight of the man currently in cuffs, gestures with his head to outside the store. You're needed somewhere else, Oboro is telling him. I've got this.

"Don't let him clap," Shouta says, and Oboro gives him a thumbs-up.

"You got it!" Oboro replies brightly, floating over to the man and leaning into his space, whistling. "Man, you've really caused a mess!"

Shouta steps out of the store, glass crunching under his shoes. Midoriya is still standing in the middle of the street, watching Shouta anxiously.

Shouta sighs, dropping his goggles down from his face. "Come on, problem child."

He gestures for Midoriya to follow, taking him away from the scene, making sure they don't run into police on the way. Midoriya follows him silently, but Shouta can basically feel his anxious thoughts and energy like a looming monster behind him. He starts to head to a rooftop, not wanting this conversation to be heard, but Midoriya lingers.

"Um," he says, shifting anxiously on his feet. "Would you... mind if we went somewhere private? Inside? I just..."

"Alright," Shouta says after a moment, realising Midoriya isn't going to try and explain. "There might be some staff still at the agency. Are you alright if we go back to my apartment?"

Midoriya nods.

"Shinsou will be there," Shouta reminds him, and Midoriya nods again.

"I know. He should... I should tell him this, too," Midoriya says, almost muttering. He looks so nervous that Shouta is slightly worried he's going to be sick with it.

"Okay," Shouta says, feeling a little uneasy. There's a faint impression of the tendrils wrapping around his stomach, like the feeling of them has lingered, the memory of being suspended in mid-air still at the front of his mind.

But Shouta — Shouta knows Midoriya.

Midoriya saved him.

Everytime Midoriya has acted, it is only ever to save someone.

"Come on then," Shouta says, though he heads to the mart first. He gets a ready-made meal for Midoriya, one of Shinsou's favourite snacks, and a bottle of alcohol for himself — he's not one to drink, but he feels that tonight's events warrant it.

Midoriya follows him silently around the mart, still not saying anything. It's unnerving, but a silent Midoriya is better than a Midoriya that's attempting to run away, so Shouta will take it.

He walks back to the apartment with the bag in his hand, Midoriya trailing behind.

"You're back early," Shinsou says in interest, leaning out from his doorway. Shouta steps inside of the apartment, giving Shinsou the chance to see Midoriya lingering behind him. "Oh. Did something happen?"

Shouta huffs, taking off his shoes. "Yeah, you could say that."

"Are you alright?" Shinsou asks, now properly stepping out into the hallway, looking over both Shouta and Midoriya with visible concern.

"We're alright. Just... stick around, we're going to be having a conversation," Shouta says, heading into the kitchen and sticking Midoriya's meal in the microwave. He tosses the snacks over to Shinsou once he walks into the living room, sticking close to Midoriya.

Shinsou almost misses it, fumbling. He's clearly worried about Midoriya, picking up on the strange energy that he's currently exhibiting.

Shouta cracks open his drink, taking a sip. Shinsou spots him, eyebrows furrowing and his head tilting.

"What the hell kind of conversation are we having?" Shinsou asks, and he does not get a response.

"Just sit down," Shouta tells them, unwrapping his capture weapon and letting it fall onto the counter, slowly taking off the accessories of his hero costume as he waits for the microwave to finish.

When it finally beeps, Shouta takes it out and walks over to the living room, putting the steaming meal in front of Midoriya along with chopsticks.

"Eat, problem child," Shouta says. "Please just give me one less thing to worry about tonight."

He will play the guilt card if it means getting Midoriya to actually get some sustenance in him. It works, because Midoriya just reaches out for the food and doesn't argue, looking terribly guilty as he takes small mouthfuls.

Shinsou's looking back and forth between both of them. "What the hell happened?"

Midoriya hesitates on his next mouthful. Shouta sighs.

"Finish that first," Shouta tells him, sitting down on his seat. Riceball wanders over to him, brushing against his legs, and he reaches down to give her a scratch behind the ears. She loses interest in him soon enough though, going over to jump up on the couch and sit between Shinsou and Midoriya.

When Midoriya gets halfway through his meal, Shouta takes another sip of his beer before he speaks again. "I'll tell him about the guy."

Midoriya nods, and so Shouta recounts tonight's event patrols to Shinsou. He tells him about the man's Quirk, how he'd managed to blast everything in the area away from him, how he'd known that Shouta's ability wouldn't work if he couldn't see him.

"It's all because Oboro said it was getting quiet around here," Shouta grumbles at the end of it, not yet telling Shinsou about the way he'd been blown back and how Midoriya had caught him. He's not sure how Midoriya wants to explain it to them, but he'll let him have full control over the reveal of it to Shinsou.

"Yikes," Shinsou says, the packet in his hands crinkling as he reaches around for some more of the snack. "He was setting you up there."

"Yeah," Shouta huffs. "But he came by to deal with it in the end at least."

Shinsou nods, but it's clear that he's still waiting for the explanation about how Shouta and Midoriya returned back in this state.

Eventually, Midoriya places down the empty container on the table, and he clears his throat.

"Um, I was— I was going to tell you guys about this soon enough anyway," Midoriya starts with, his words so rushed that he's hardly pausing between each one. "I just, I had to make sure that I could tell you first. Because it's— I didn't think it was really my secret to share, but I talked to him and he told me that if I trust you guys, if you've done this much for me, and if— if I think you should know, then it's up to me to tell you all."

Him, Shouta repeats the word over in his mind. Who? His dad? The adult in his life?

Where is he? Where has he been while Midoriya has clearly been struggling? Is Midoriya struggling because of him?

But he doesn't want to interrupt Midoriya while he's speaking, so he presses his lips together and stays silent.

"My Quirk is... I was given it. It's a type of Quirk that can be transferred between users, and so it's been passed down over time between people. It's called One for All," Midoriya explains, falling quiet for a moment.

"One for All? Like..."

"All for One? Yes."

Shouta lets out a long, heavy breath, and takes another sip of his drink. And then another.

Shouta's heard about him. Only through the deepest hero connection networks — the man responsible for All Might's slowly diminishing strength, if the deepest rumours are to be believed. Trusted heroes have been told about him, told to keep an eye out for any extreme followers of his.

"All for One?" Shinsou asks, curious.

Shouta looks up at the ceiling, in disbelief that he's currently thinking about that information — that he now has a connection to it. "A man that can steal Quirks, I've been told."

"Yes," Midoriya confirms softly. "He can pass them onto other people. He had a brother, long ago, and he forced him to take a strength stockpiling Quirk. But his brother already had a Quirk, which was the ability to transfer power to another. They both merged together, creating One for All, which got passed down between users."

"How many users?" Shouta asks.

"I'm currently the ninth holder," Midoriya answers.

"The ninth," Shouta repeats, looking away from the ceiling. "Fuck, how old is All for One?"

"Uh. He's old," Midoriya replies. "Like, centuries old."

"What the fuck," Shinsou whispers harshly, leaning forward on the couch and rubbing his head with his fingers. "I'm sorry, what the fuck?"

Midoriya flexes out his fingers, staring down at them. Shouta's staring too, thinking over all the new information that he's receiving. Like the fact that Midoriya had been Quirkless, and he'd managed to receive a centuries-old Quirk that's passed down between users.

But surely, he thinks — there would've been reports about this Quirk. There would have been something about these powers that Midoriya is displaying.

"For every previous user, they could only access their own Quirk, as well as One for All's strength stockpiling ability. Over time, over all the users', their Quirks have cultivated and grown in power as well," Midoriya says, and Shouta blinks.

"You didn't have a Quirk though," Shouta points out, feeling like he's not properly keeping up with the conversation because that doesn't make sense.

"No, I didn't," Midoriya says, and he lays his hands flat on his thighs, looking up at Shouta seriously. "I'm the first one who's been able to use the users' previous Quirks as well."

"Are... are you saying that you have more than one?" Shinsou asks in disbelief, hand falling away from his head as he snaps his neck around to look at Midoriya. "Like— more than enhanced strength?"

"Eight users before you," Shouta realises, and Midoriya swallows heavily.

"Yes. Every user from the second to the seventh had a Quirk stockpiled inside of One for All," Midoriya answers.

Shinsou reaches out and takes a drink from Shouta's can. Shouta immediately snatches it back, hitting Shinsou up over the head. He doesn't scold him though, because Shinsou is already gagging from the taste with disgust, so Shouta figures that's his lesson learned.

Besides, he thinks, taking a swig of his own. He gets it.

"The eighth user?" Shouta inquires, thinking over Midoriya's words.

Midoriya shakes his head, and that's the only answer Shouta receives.

If Midoriya only got One for All a year ago, then he must've received it from someone. The user had no Quirks of their own, so they did not have any kind of dual-power. A year ago.

A strength stockpiling Quirk.

At Midoriya's capacity, at not even 70%, he is almost on par with All Might's ability.

All Might.

Fuck.

"All Might was the eighth holder, wasn't he?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya startles, surprised.

That's his answer right there.

Midoriya's hands clench at his pants. He takes a deep breath, preparing himself.

"I'm the ninth user of One for All. I'm All Might's successor."

Midoriya says it all in one breath, his shoulders squared and his spine straight.

And then Midoriya lets go of that breath, and he falls forward, like the weight upon his shoulders is trying to drag him below the earth at his feet.

Shouta's so stunned by the admission that he freezes for a moment. Two, then three.

"Fucking hell, problem child," he rasps out, dropping his weight forward and his hands reaching out for Midoriya before he can even think about it. Midoriya has fallen forward too, and Shinsou has gone with him, hands already on Midoriya's back and looking like he's going to do his best to keep Midoriya together with his own two hands.

Midoriya laughs, but it's a brittle, fragile thing. Like he can't believe it himself.

Are you sure? He wants to ask.

But that's a stupid question, anyway.

Because Shouta thinks about it. Thinks about All Might — Japan's number one hero. Their Symbol of Peace.

Of course it's Midoriya. Shouta has seen Midoriya's power, after all.

But it's more than that.

It's Midoriya, always jumping in to save someone. It's Midoriya, with his conviction and his tactical thinking and his perseverance.

Midoriya is well on his way to becoming a hero. He already is. He already embodies everything that a true hero should be.

There is simply no one else who could carve that kind of path after All Might.

Are you sure, he repeats with a laugh to himself. Of course he's sure. This is the scenario that makes the most logical sense.

And Midoriya's shoulders are too heavy, the burden too great. Midoriya is telling him because this is a weight he can't carry by himself anymore.

Midoriya is telling him the truth.

Midoriya is All Might's successor.

"What the fuck happened tonight?" Shinsou asks them, voice tight with emotions and sounding entirely stressed out.

Shouta is definitely also very stressed out. Christ, fuck, his kids are going to send him into an early grave.

His ridiculous, reckless, brilliant kids.

"I used Blackwhip to catch Eraserhead," Midoriya explains, and holds out his hands. Black tendrils slink out of his hand, but they just hover close to him tentatively, not extending or shooting out in the same type of way that he'd saved Shouta with. Shinsou peers closer at it, but Midoriya lets the Quirk drop soon enough. "It grabs onto things, basically."

"How long have you had that?" Shinsou asks, beating Shouta to the punch. It's a good thing — Shinsou sounds more curious about it, while Shouta knows he would've just sounded stressed out if he’d been the one to speak.

"Like, three months maybe? We didn't know I'd be able to use all the previous users' Quirks, so when it first manifested it was... out of control," Midoriya sighs, flipping his hands over like he's inspecting them. "I try not to use it, because controlling all these Quirks is going to be easier when I can actually use One for All at 100%, but... sometimes Blackwhip just happens, when I'm really desperate to catch someone."

We.

Him.

All Might.

Shouta has plenty of questions he'd love to ask. An endless amount, really, fueled by concern and curiousity and plenty of stress. What are the other Quirks? Why is Midoriya able to use them, but All Might wasn't? If All Might has passed his Quirk down, then how is he still operating as a hero? Has he kept the Quirk? Are there now two overly self-sacrificial powerful heroes running around with this Quirk?

That's not Shouta's biggest concern at the moment though. Because he's staring down at the empty container in front of Midoriya, thinking back to all the moments that Midoriya stayed out with him, all the times he lingered around recently like he felt unsettled about going back home.

And home — Midoriya says he's okay, but there's clearly something very wrong. And he knows it.

"Does All Might train you?" Shouta asks, and Shinsou looks at him in surprise, because he's very likely thinking that there's plenty of other questions Shouta should be asking instead.

Shouta doesn't explain, and Shinsou is smart enough to realise there's a reason that Shouta has chosen to ask this question above all others, so his expression smooths out.

Midoriya nods. "He trains what he can. He helped me build up my physical strength to receive the Quirk. But from the start, he could always use it at 100%, so it's different for both of us. He helps me figure out how to control it now, as well as the different Quirks."

It makes sense — it's why Midoriya knew how to punch, but very little else about fighting. All Might didn't have to worry about hand-to-hand combat and actual fighting skills, not when his speed and strength simply destroyed everyone else on the playing field. Even if Shouta erased his Quirk, he'd probably still have enough brute strength to be a challenge.

Midoriya's voice has taken on an interesting tone, however. The same kind of excitement is there like when he speaks about heroes or Quirks. The same kind of awe-inspired wonder like when he talks to Shinsou about his Quirk, or to Hizashi or Oboro or Shouta about hero duties.

Midoriya admires All Might. There is no taint of bitterness there, no hint of resentment. It's just a heavy, heavy weight upon Midoriya's shoulders.

It's enough to reassure him that All Might is not the reason, or at least the cause, of Midoriya's unsettlement with what should be his home. Midoriya looks up to All Might, that much is clear. Too much, perhaps.

"How often?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya tilts his head as he thinks it over.

"Um, a couple of times a week. He doesn't live around here, and he also doesn't want anyone figuring out that he's training me. It's too dangerous with All for One starting to become active again, and while I still can't work at 100%," Midoriya explains, refusing to make eye-contact with Shouta. "But he does what he can for me."

He sounds remorseful, like he's disappointed in himself.

"So I assume you haven't told him about your situation at home, then," Shouta guesses, and Midoriya's head snaps up with that, eyes wide with panic.

"I— I mean! It's not— it's nothing for him to be concerned about. As long as I can stick to my training, as long as I'm improving with One for All, and— and as long as I get my hero licence, then it'll be alright! Once I become the Number One hero, it'll— it'll be fine," Midoriya rushes to reassure, and Shouta's mouth twists down.

He admires All Might too much. Even though he trusts All Might, he's put him on too high of a pedestal. He trusts All Might, but he will not accept or even ask for his help, not when he clearly thinks that All Might has given him the chance of a lifetime and a legacy to uphold.

"Midoriya," Shouta says tiredly, leaning forward on his chair. "Kid. How would All Might react if you told him?"

Midoriya's mouth opens, but he can't seem to get any words out. He ducks his head away, eyes lowering again, shoulders hunching further over.

Shouta has never held that same, deep admiration that so many people have for All Might. But he respects him, and he knows that All Might is, at his core, a hero. There is no doubt about it — especially not now, with Midoriya speaking this way.

Midoriya does not want to let him down. Midoriya has not spoken of this to him because he's too worried about disappointing him, or making him worry.

"He'd get you out of that situation, right? He'd help you, if you told him," Shouta guesses, and is proven right as Midoriya takes in a shuddering breath. "He'd help you, because it's not alright."

"It's not... it's not that bad," Midoriya mutters.

Shouta sighs. "'Not that bad' still implies that it's bad, Midoriya."

Midoriya freezes up, fingers anxiously clenching. He's starting to take deeper, shuddering breaths, like he's trying to starve off a wave of panic. Shinsou's hand rubs up and down his back, quietly reassuring him with kind, gentle words.

He manages to calm himself down, and Shouta hates to feel like he's treading like this, but this is a topic he's already held off talking about for too long. All Might's presence is a reassurance in Midoriya's life, but it is also a daunting shadow that he's yet to step out from.

"You said you talked about telling us with him," Shouta says carefully, gauging Midoriya's reaction to the continuation of the conversation. Midoriya thankfully seems to be okay, as he nods, peering back up to look at Shouta.

"He knows I've been training with you," Midoriya replies. There's an uplift to the corner of his lips, a private kind of smile. "He told me that he admires your accomplishments and your training, but that he is also slightly terrified of you."

Shinsou snickers. "The hero afraid of no villains, who has never lost a fight, is scared of Eraserhead."

He's never had too much of an opinion on All Might. He's certainly never bothered considering if All Might was aware of his presence, and what he might think of Shouta.

Now that he's suddenly being told that All Might knows of him, and also that they apparently share a goddamn protégé.

"I think he'd like to meet you," Midoriya says quietly. "All of you."

"Meeting All Might?" Shinsou whispers to himself in disbelief, shaking his head. "Jesus, Izuku, I can't believe pops calls me a problem child when you're around."

They share a breathy, amused laugh, and Shouta is just glad to see some of the tension disappear from Midoriya's shoulders. Some of his worries have been lifted, but he feels like there's still plenty of questions that he needs answers to.

He thinks he'd like to start by asking the number one hero how he's somehow managed to miss that Midoriya needs help. His very own successor.

But Shouta's only picked up on it because Midoriya has cracked enough to let him. He's already cursing that it's taken himself this long to notice, but the fact is it would've taken him a lot longer if Midoriya didn't start showing him the signs of it. Midoriya admires Eraserhead, but he trusts Shouta.

All Might has built up Midoriya. Shouta has very carefully done the same, but he's also made sure that Midoriya is aware that there's still a safe place to land if he falls.

"We can definitely arrange that," Shouta tells him. "But maybe another night, hm?"

"Yeah," Midoriya laughs breathlessly. "Yeah, that sounds good."

Tonight — as is every minute forward — is about making sure that Midoriya is okay.

"Kid," Shouta says, getting his attention with a more serious tone. Midoriya looks at him, and Shouta inwardly sighs as he spots all the exhaustion that seems to be weighing him down. "You said you have somewhere to live. Is it with a parent?"

Midoriya nods, and his gaze seems to turn a little bit sadder as he replies. "Yeah, my mum."

"Is it somewhere you want to go back to?" Shouta asks him.

Midoriya starts to stutter over his words, unable to properly form an actual reply. Eventually, he takes in a deep, steadying breath, like he's trying to fill up all the emptiness inside his chest and keep himself upright.

And then Midoriya breaks, before he can properly try and build himself up enough to hold on.

Shinsou curls over him protectively, still running a soothing hand down his back.

"She wouldn't— she wouldn't even notice if I didn't come home," Midoriya sobs out, with a deep kind of harrowing pain that he's been holding onto for so long.

Jesus, Shouta thinks, closing his eyes and trying to quell the rise of righteous anger that has suddenly washed over him.

It's the type of anger that feels overwhelming, uncontrollable. He's only felt it a few times in his life — the first, when Oboro had been hurt on a mission. The second was when he'd found out some details about Hizashi's past. The third only recently, when they'd first had Shinsou come to them.

It's the type of anger that'll make him spend hours in the training room, going through movements until his legs are shaking so badly that he can't stand anymore. It's destructive and aggressive and sometimes the only release Shouta can get — it's a better alternative than taking it out on the people who have hurt those he cares for.

Because if he did — if he went after them, in these kinds of moments, he's scared that it's something he'll never quite come back from. If he sees Inko Midoriya right now, or anyone in Midoriya's life that has led him to this point, then he is terrified of what he will do to them.

He can't leave to go to the training room right now. He can't go hunt down Inko Midoriya. What he can do is stay here, and make sure that Midoriya Izuku is going to be okay. That he's going to be safe.

Midoriya cries, a constant and heavy torrential storm of tears that reduce him to a blubbering mess. It's easy to forget when he's facing Midoriya down in the training room, or when Midoriya looks at him with a certain type of gaze like he's all-knowing, all too wise to be where he is.

It's easy to forget that Midoriya is just a boy. He is a child, only halfway through his teen years. He's so goddamn young.

Shinsou's better at this kind of thing between the two of them. Admittedly, neither of them are all that great with it — Shinsou is a mirror of Shouta, and sometimes that includes some of Shouta's less-desirable qualities when it comes to things like comfort.

But Shinsou has also been carefully guided and raised by Oboro and Hizashi as well, and he reflects them, too. He holds Midoriya together, in a way that reminds Shouta of Oboro's tendency to do the same for all of them.

"It wasn't always like this," Midoriya rasps out, once his tears begin to subside and he can actually speak again. "But she just... she couldn't take it anymore, I think. It's not— it's not her fault. She just... it was just too much."

Midoriya does not need anger, so Shouta makes sure to swallow down his words before they can spill from his lips.

"She never hit me," Midoriya says in a rush, like it's suddenly come to his mind. "She didn't— she never hurt me, I swear. She— she could be a good mum! Even after I got expelled, she was— she was still good."

This is recent, Shouta realises. Midoriya's life has changed so drastically in just a little over a year.

"But she saw me use Blackwhip one day, because it just... came out, when I dropped a glass. And she realised I had a Quirk," Midoriya says, voice shaking but not breaking. "I should've told her, but I never did. And she— she thought I did it all to spite her, I guess. I made her go through all the hardships, got expelled, when I could've—"

Blackwhip manifested a few months ago, Shouta figures, running through a timeline in his head. Midoriya's behaviour matches up, and he's reminded of the day Midoriya requested to use the training room, angry and upset and desperate.

"It's not your fault, Midoriya," Shouta tells him sternly, but not unkindly.

Midoriya chokes on a laugh. "I should've told her. I tried to, but... by then, she stopped listening."

She stopped caring, Shouta hears.

His heart breaks, and before he knows it he slides down off the seat, crouching in front of Midoriya. He takes Midoriya's cheeks in his hands, thumb sliding over the tear tracks on Midoriya's face.

"Tonight," he says, purposely softening his voice to make sure none of the jagged, broken pieces inside of him can be heard. "You're staying here. You can stay here as long as you want. But Midoriya, I can't let you go back to that house. You can stay here, or with Oboro or Hizashi, but you... if you don't want to go back there, I'll make sure you don't. It's up to you in the end, but if I'm honest, I would much rather have you here."

Midoriya swallows down something like a sob, ducking his head. Shouta lets him, but keeps his face framed, making sure Midoriya knows he's still here with him and willing to wait.

"I can't ask that of you," Midoriya mumbles, shaking his head.

"Good thing you're not asking, I'm telling. Kid, I told you, the offer is always there for you," Shouta insists, and Midoriya just brings an arm up to cover his eyes, trying to stop a new wave of tears.

"Is it okay? For tonight?" Midoriya asks, and Shouta lets out a trembling breath.

"Of course. It's okay for as many nights as you want," Shouta replies, and Midoriya shakily nods. He still won't drop his arm, but Shouta figures that he probably wouldn't even be able to speak if he had to look at anyone right now.

Shouta slowly lets his hands drop, but he runs his fingers through Midoriya's hair in comfort. He settles back on his heels, and he shares a look with Shinsou.

"Do you want to wash up?" Shinsou gently asks, still leaning over Midoriya's frame. Midoriya moves his arm slightly, but now he's just pressing the end of his sleeves up against his eyes.

"Please," Midoriya replies softly, and Shinsou makes an affirmative grunt.

"Alright, come on. I'll get you some spare clothes," Shinsou says, encouraging Midoriya to stand. Shouta stands with them, and he notices Midoriya's knees shake for a moment, threatening to fall under the weight of him standing.

But Midoriya locks his knees and refuses to crumble. He walks to the bathroom, silent as he listens to Shinsou run him through where the towels are. Shouta manages to catch Midoriya's eyes, and Midoriya gives him a minute nod.

He'll be alright.

Shouta nods back, and gives them some space. "Call out if you need anything," he tells them, staying in the living room to clean up.

"I'll leave the clothes outside the door," he hears Shinsou say, and then the bathroom door clicks shut.

Shinsou walks out to the living room first, running a hand through his hair in irritation. It's an expression he's been carefully masking from Midoriya, but now that there's no concern of Midoriya seeing their reactions, Shinsou lets it loose.

"What kind of— what the fuck," Shinsou grumbles irritably, pressing his eyes shut in frustration. Shouta sighs in empathy, because it's a question he doesn't have the answer to.

Shouta has dealt with villains before. A variety of people caught up in bad situations and ending up in trouble for it. Some just down on their luck, some just pure insane and wanting to see the world burn just for fun.

Shouta has dealt with evil. He's fought with it, traded blows with it, and has barely escaped with his life at times because of it.

But evil is not always a villain that wants to destroy the world. Sometimes, evil is just inside an otherwise, entirely ordinary person. Sometimes, evil is just one mother neglecting her son.

"You're going to enact guardianship rights, aren't you?" Shinsou asks him, though it's more of a demand.

"We need to see what Midoriya wants," Shouta says tiredly, walking to the kitchen to throw away the rubbish left over. He tips the rest of his beer down the sink, scowling at it as he washes out the can and squashes it.

He needs — he needs something more than just one beer. Multiple, maybe, but he's not going to be leaving this apartment tonight. He really needs to punch something.

"He's going to reject it," Shinsou replies, following Shouta closely and shaking his head. "He's literally going to tell you not to do it, because he thinks it's going to be a burden."

Shouta rubs at his eyes. "I know."

"So you're going to enact it, right?" Shinsou presses, combative and irritated by Shouta's reply to him, and Shouta huffs.

"Kid. I know, because you were the same. I managed to get through to you eventually, didn't I?" Shouta asks, and some of Shinsou's anger immediately melts away. "I'm going to enact it, but it needs to be on his terms, and you know that."

"Right," Shinsou says, feeling scorned by the reminder of what he'd been like. "Yeah."

"So it's up to us to convince him," Shouta says, reaching over the counter to tap Shinsou's forehead. "You know what it's like, so you're in a position to really understand and get through to him. You got that?"

"I got it," Shinsou mutters, ducking his head, as Shouta rubs the top of his hair, cheeks flaring up with the rare display of Shouta's physical affection.

"Good. We can get him some clothes when he's not feeling so overwhelmed," Shouta says, purposely looking over to the bathroom, reminding Shinsou that he has a mission.

Shinsou nods, taking a deep breath before he walks out of the room and goes into his room. Shouta's going to need to keep an eye on both of them tonight — this has surely brought up memories for Shinsou, and though he's holding up well for Midoriya, he'll need to make sure that they're both alright.

Midoriya's in the bathroom for a while, though the shower only starts up once he's been in there for about fifteen minutes already. Shinsou's left the clothes folded at the door, and he's joined Shouta in the living room again.

Shouta gets a text from Oboro, just as he hears the bathroom door crack open and then shut gently again quickly.

All sorted. You all good on your end?

Shouta lets out a heavy breath. Midoriya's told them tonight, and though Midoriya trusts Oboro and Hizashi, he also needs to make sure that Midoriya can trust him to keep his secret. And fuck, what a secret it is. It's a wonder that Midoriya hasn't collapsed under the weight of it before tonight, especially when he'd only been able to carry it with All Might.

God, Shouta's going to be doing a lot of research in the upcoming days, and a lot of it probably around All Might.

He texts back Oboro what he can.

Probably going to be enacting Hero Guardianship, so we'll have some paperwork tomorrow to do.

Oboro takes it in stride, immediately texting back.

Easy done! Look after the kiddos and yourself, let me know if you need anything.

Like a hug.

Especially a hug :D

Shouta laughs in amusement, and then in despair, because he realises he's actually considering taking up Oboro on the offer.

"No," he groans to himself, locking his phone and setting it down. Shinsou's staring at him in bemusement, but it seems he's hit his tolerance on things he can handle tonight, because he doesn't even ask Shouta about it.

"Oh god," he says then, realising something. "Fuck, you have school tomorrow."

Shinsou also groans. "Oh my god. I do."

But he doesn't sound too despaired. He just sounds conflicted — not wanting to leave Midoriya, but also not wanting to miss any of his classes. Not wanting to miss a sense of normalcy in his routine.

"We'll probably just have him at the agency tomorrow," Shouta says, head gesturing to the bathroom door and to the person inside in question. "We need to do paperwork. And I need to punch something. And he probably does too."

"I can punch something in class," Shinsou replies in offer, and then admits: "I also probably need to go see Hound Dog."

Shouta breathes out a long stream of breath. He's glad that Shinsou can recognise when he needs the help, and that he's managed to find it with other people that aren't just from Shouta's agency. He's proud of Shinsou's improvement, but also still worried.

And it's a reminder of something else Shouta's going to have to organise on his ever-growing list after tonight. He'll need to set Midoriya up with someone — part of his requirement when he enacts guardianship, but also Midoriya definitely needs to just check-in with someone professional about everything in his life.

The bathroom door opens up again, and Midoriya steps out with his hair partially still damp, his curls dropping in front of his eyes. He's got his dirty clothes in his arms, and Shinsou gets up off the couch and gestures for Midoriya to follow him to the bathroom.

"The washer is here," Shinsou is telling him, and Shouta listens out as the washer top opens and the clothes are thrown in. Shinsou starts up the machine, the deep rumbling of it providing some background noise throughout the apartment.

Midoriya follows Shinsou awkwardly back into the room, looking overly-aware of his hands now that he hasn't got anything to hold. He's fidgeting, nervous as he confronts Shouta again after everything. His gaze looks over the room, like he's trying to spot something different about it.

Shouta realises, and he stands up. "We've got you set-up to stay in the spare room," he explains, and Midoriya's eyes linger on the spot he'd last slept when he was here. But he follows Shouta, stopping at the doorway of the reformed study in surprise. "Sorry, it wasn’t set-up last time."

"You did this for me," Midoriya realises, his voice almost unnervingly hollow. When Shouta looks back at him though, he can tell it's just Midoriya's last defence that he's trying not to let fall. His eyes are shimmering, and he has to look up to the ceiling to blink away the tears that are starting to form.

"You've got a bag there with toiletries and some basic stuff," Shouta explains casually, because he knows he needs to be treating this like a normal occurrence so that Midoriya doesn't start to feel overwhelmed again. "Use anything you need. At any time, anywhere in the house."

"Except for weapons," Shinsou adds, and Shouta sighs.

"Yes, except for weapons. Everything rational, you can access, neither of us are going to mind," Shouta elaborates, because that had been a problem with Shinsou. After so many foster homes and different rules in each of them, Shinsou had been nervous to even get a glass of water from the kitchen when Shouta wasn't there to see him do it.

"Thank you," Midoriya says, voice rough and scratchy. He clears his throat, but it sounds shaky, and he does not try to speak again.

"Do you want to be left alone?" Shouta asks him, because Midoriya's clamming himself up and Shouta can't read him right now. Midoriya might need some space to get used to the room and everything after tonight, and Shouta is getting the feeling that Midoriya is feeling overloaded with their presence.

"Um," Midoriya says, like he's unsure of what his options are.

"I got it," Shinsou suddenly leans over to whisper to Shouta, and Shouta blinks and looks at him. Shinsou looks determined though, assured of himself, and so Shouta nods.

"You've got school tomorrow," he reminds him quietly, and then speaks up so that Midoriya can hear him. "I'll be in the living room. Midoriya, if there's anything you need, just let me know."

Midoriya responds by bowing deeply at him, though his arm comes up to cover his eyes again.

"Thank you," he says to Shouta again, and Shouta just reaches out and pats his shoulder before leaving the two of them alone.

God, fuck, maybe he will actually end up taking Oboro's offer. His fingers twitch, either for his capture weapon or for his phone, but he ultimately picks up neither of them. Instead, he heads to his bedroom and gets his laptop, and then sets himself up on the couch.

Sleep sounds nice, in the way that it means he'll be able to knock out for a few hours and not deal with the mess of everything tonight. But this is something he needs to do, for himself and for Midoriya, and he won't get any sleep at all tonight and he knows it.

He listens out for both of them, but there's only the sounds of Shinsou's game device. He trusts Shinsou to handle it, and so he pushes down the desire to check on them and make sure that both of them are doing alright.

And so he begins his research for tonight, occasionally glancing up to make sure that neither of them have wandered out and will catch him going through private files.

It's not very heroic of him, and not really entirely legal, but he's got safety parameters in place. He's a Pro Hero, after all, and that gives him access to most things other people should not have if they're not explicitly given access.

For example, bank records and statements of one Inko Midoriya. He goes through her transactions, and they seem normal enough. But then Shouta starts to properly look at the costs for groceries and take-out, and he starts to realise there is definitely not enough of an allowance there for two people.

Shouta's own records don't look as minimal as this, and Shinsou gets fed mostly at U.A. Inko is definitely only paying enough to feed her own mouth.

And she's drawn out a loan, too. He follows that through, checking through further documents, and starts to figure out what's happening. Inko Midoriya has every intention to move countries by the end of the year, and she's only booked one ticket.

His hands tremble, and he barely resists the urge to slam his laptop lid shut and go stalk the streets and purposely, perhaps, go look for some trouble. Instead, he closes all the tabs, and stares at a blank new search page.

He types in All Might, and he goes from there.

Shinsou's low tones start to taper off eventually until there's only silence, and eventually Shouta can't quite curb his worries. He stands up, groaning as he stretches out his arms and realises he's been sitting down and tense for longer than he thought. He needs to move the clothes into the dryer anyway.

He passes the room that's now hosting Midoriya, and he peeks his head through the open door.

Both of them have crashed out, splayed over each other on the bed. Riceball and Meatball have both joined them, curled up and resting between them comfortably. Meatball’s ear twitches, and he opens his eyes, immediately staring at Shouta.

Shouta gives him a bemused smile, and leaves them be. He deals with the laundry, hoping that the sound of the dryer won't be enough to disturb either of them, and then heads back to the living room.

The problem with looking up All Might is that there's endless articles and headlines and information. He hardly knows where to begin, but he starts to notice something interesting.

All Might has never really talked about his Quirk. He'll deflect the question with natural grace, the reporters all so starstruck by his words that they don't even notice he hasn't actually answered their original question. There's some blog forums dedicated to it, some over-eager fans picking up on this behaviour, but it's easily combated.

It's a dumb question, most of them seem to share the sentiment of. It's obviously a strength-enhancing Quirk. Why bother answering something so obvious?

But now, All Might hardly answers any interviews at all. The reporters all state the same thing: that he's rushed off with no time to spare, already finding his next person to save. That's an attitude that's changed, and it's something that seems to have cropped up in the last year more than ever.

No time to spare, Shouta muses. Or, perhaps more accurately, he's just running out of it.

It's a theory he'll likely get the answer to soon enough anyway, so he pushes those articles aside. Instead, he turns to All Might's time at U.A, and then to all the records before that.

All Might's — Yagi Tashinoro's — files seem completely normal. There, as a Quirk, Super-power is listed.

Shouta wonders if that's the same cover-up that will eventually appear in Midoriya's files.

Interestingly, All Might's files are locked away and guarded very heavily. Shouta can't get much further in his research than that, not unless he wants to raise some serious alarms amongst the people likely designated to protecting hero identities — and Shouta is sure that there's a strong, designated team behind All Might.

Instead, he starts to look at the people noted around All Might. If All Might is mentoring Midoriya now, then Shouta can assume the same thing happened between the users before them.

There's a couple of people to note, and Shouta spends a while clicking through Gran Torino's file, but Gran Torino is only ever noted to have the Quirk Jet. He's someone of importance to All Might, but Shouta isn't confident in assuming that he ever held One for All.

He doesn't end up finding anyone through that method, though he thinks of All Might's attempt to make sure Midoriya's training is in secret, and he supposes that's a habit likely learned and passed down as well.

So he changes his search parameters. There are plenty of results with people who have super-strength related Quirks, but none of them quite seem to match up to All Might's or Midoriya's level.

And then Shouta types in Blackwhip, and he gets a result. Daigoro Banjo.

There is very, very limited information on him, other than the fact he's deceased. He's a listed Pro Hero, but there still seems to be a shocking lack of information about him. There's no ties to his hero name, nothing that ties him to anyone else.

He's likely a previous holder of One for All, but there's not much Shouta can do with just a name and nothing else. So he ends his search there, writing the name down for reference but otherwise there's little else to actually take note of from all his research tonight.

He falls asleep at one point, though it's a light, restless kind of sleep. He jolts awake the second he hears someone else moving around in the apartment, and he rubs his eyes and stretches out. He only rested for just over an hour, and now it's nearly sunrise, so it won't be long until Shinsou has to be up anyway.

But judging by the footsteps he can hear, Shinsou is not the one awake. So Shouta packs up his laptop and notes, walking quietly in the apartment but not silently enough that Midoriya won't be able to hear him.

He's standing at his kitchen counter, drinking a cup of fresh coffee, when Midoriya eventually wanders into the main room. He looks nervous, but he still manages to give Shouta a small smile as he walks into the room.

"Morning," Shouta says around a yawn.

"Morning, Eraserheard," Midoriya says, shuffling into the room.

"Aizawa or Shouta is fine around the house kid," Shouta tells him. "Want a coffee?"

"Uh," Midoriya says, looking at the cup in Shouta's hands. "No, thank you."

Shouta nods, though is admittedly surprised because he doesn't quite know what to do with the fact that Midoriya is not a coffee-drinker. "Don't let Shinsou or I influence you then. Do you want anything else?"

"Water, please?" Midoriya asks, and Shouta gestures to one of the cupboards.

"Glasses are there, there's filtered water in the fridge," he explains, because he needs to let Midoriya figure out these things and realise it's okay for him to grab them himself. Midoriya seems frozen for a moment, but he jolts into movement when he realises Shouta is staring at him, waiting for him to move.

Midoriya gets it quietly, and Shouta catches sight of the way his hands are trembling.

Perhaps Midoriya is a coffee-drinker, he thinks to himself. But maybe he doesn't need any extra type of edge today.

"I was thinking we should head to the agency today," Shouta says quietly, mindful of Shinsou still sleeping.

"Okay," Midoriya says easily, and Shouta is glad this isn't something he's going to have to convince him to come along for. He's likely itching to punch something, after all.

"I haven't told Hizashi or Oboro about One for All," Shouta says, and Midoriya hides his expression by lifting his glass of water and taking a sip. "It's up to you if you want to tell them."

Midoriya puts the glass down and nods, but he does not give Shouta an inclination of his answer. He'll probably take some time to think about it, so Shouta doesn't rush him.

He just gets to making Shinsou a coffee as the time for his alarm approaches, and Shinsou eventually wanders out, rubbing at his eyes. He's a little more awake and alert than he usually is at this time, but he's still half-asleep at best.

Shouta makes up a quick breakfast for both of them — nothing too spectacular, but a recipe Hizashi has forced him to learn on the days he needs actual nutrients, and it isn't too bad tasting at least. It's quiet around the table as they eat, until eventually Shinsou tries to take a sip from his already-empty mug.

"Hey Midoriya," Shinsou says blankly, staring at his mug like it's his newest enemy. "I'm curious, but what are the other Quirks you got?"

Shouta is tempted to bang his head down on the table. This is a topic they need to walk over with tact, mindful of the boundaries and secrets that Midoriya is all too used to having around this topic. Shinsou's usually a little more tactful, but he's clearly a little sleep-deprived and the caffeine hasn't quite kicked in for him.

Surprisingly, though, he doesn't seem as guarded about it as Shouta might have expected.

Maybe this is easier to admit, or talk about, for Midoriya, when he's trying to deal with the current situation.

"I don't really— have as much control over them, but the ones I do know of are: Fa Jin, Smokescreen, Float, Danger Sense," he lists, ticking them off on his fingers. "There's one more, but that holder hasn't exactly let me figure it out just yet."

Shinsou stares at his coffee. Shouta is just staring at Midoriya.

"The holders are present?" Shouta asks carefully, and Midoriya is now the one stuck staring blankly at him in turn.

"It's more like their consciousness’ are tied to One for All," Midoriya explains. "They can manifest themselves to me, but I've only found out about that recently."

"How recently?" Shouta asks, and Midoriya winces.

"When Blackwhip first appeared," Midoriya explains. "But there's been... impressions of them, before that. But that was the first time one of them spoke to me."

"Daigoro Banjo," Shouta muses, and Midoriya's eyes widen with shock.

"You know the previous holders?"

Shouta shakes his head. "Other than All Might, that's the only one I was able to find, and that was only because you told me the name of Blackwhip. Daigoro Banjo was the only person listed with that Quirk."

Midoriya's shoulders slump forward. "Yeah. All Might only recently found out their names and Quirks, right before I was able to meet the holders properly. But I have a long way to go with their Quirks. They still appear though, sometimes, when I don’t mean for them to.”

“Oh?” Shouta prompts, and Midoriya gives him a sheepish smile.

“Danger Sense is kind of one of them, it kind of goes haywire when someone has malicious intent towards me. It's also how I knew you weren't going to hurt me, that first night we met,” Midoriya explains. “It’s never once gone off around you two, even in training.”

This kid, Shouta thinks, because that's really all he's able to process right now.

"Midoriya," Shinsou says, turning to him, something bright sparking in his eyes. "You have to fight all my classmates. God, please, I need Bakugou's smirk wiped off his face for once."

"Bakugou... Katsuki?" Midoriya tentatively asks, and Shouta thinks oh no, I do not like that tone.

"Oh," Shinsou realises, that spark immediately disappearing as guilt washes over him. "You... you went to his middle school, didn't you? Um, sorry."

Midoriya shakes his head. "No, it's okay. He was kind of my friend, I guess. I looked up to him a lot, but... it wasn't a good environment for either of us. He had a powerful Quirk, and I was Quirkless, and... well. We both wanted to be heroes, but I got expelled, and Bakugou went to U.A."

"And you got, you know, personally selected by All Might and now have the most powerful Quirk in existence," Shinsou mutters in response. "But hey, U.A is definitely the only measurement we're going with here."

"Shinsou," Shouta sighs, because they're definitely treading the line of tact now.

"He's gotten better, hasn't he?" Midoriya asks, steamrolling past Shouta's attempt to wrap up the conversation. "He seemed a little more tempered at the last festival."

"I didn't see much of him the first year," Shinsou shrugs. "But I guess?"

Midoriya nods to himself, seemingly a little more settled. "He'll be a really good hero."

"If he learns manners," Shinsou mutters.

"Shinsou," Shouta says, a little more sharply now, and Shinsou throws his hands up in surrender.

"Yep, got it. I gotta go get ready anyway," Shinsou says, and spares a thoughtful look to Midoriya before he leaves the table.

Midoriya takes it as his cue to jump up and get started on the dishes, despite Shouta's insistence that he definitely doesn't need to do them. It's a similar argument, and a similar outcome — Midoriya washes, and Shouta dries and then puts everything away.

He takes note of Midoriya watching him, trying to categorise where Shouta has everything stored.

That's a good sign, he thinks to himself. It means Midoriya is saving it for future reference because he thinks he might need it.

As Shinsou gets ready, Shouta goes to deal with the clothes he left in the dryer. Midoriya follows him after he's done washing up, and he takes his clothes from Shouta's hands and walks to his room to change into them. They'll have to get him some new ones, at least until Shouta can organise something about picking up Midoriya's valuables from his mother's.

If he has anything that he even wants there, that is. Shouta won’t blame him if he doesn’t.

They head out the door together, Shouta and Midoriya walking with Shinsou until they get to the train-station. Shinsou gives them a wave, and Shouta's slightly nervous about having the two of them split up after everything, but Midoriya waves right back and continues to keep himself upright as they walk to the agency.

He seems a little more nervous as he actually steps inside of the building, but he smiles as he spots Hizashi leaning back on a chair and scrolling through his phone. The hour is still early — and Shouta hardly ever comes this early, as there's not really ever much work to actually do at this hour.

Hizashi's a little more regimented with routine, but even he's got little to do right now. He startles up and stands to his feet when he sees Shouta and Midoriya walk in.

"Hey lil' listener!" He croons, coming over to ruffle Midoriya's hair. "Good to see you."

"Hi, Present Mic," Midoriya greets back, and any hesitation has now completely melted from his shoulders.

"Loud Cloud'll be in soon," Hizashi tells them, tapping away at his phone again. "He finished up pretty late, but I think there's something he wants to sort out. Anyway, Midoriya, you here to train?"

Midoriya looks to Shouta at that, and Shouta just gestures for him to go ahead. Midoriya gives him a smile and then heads off to the training room on his own.

"L.C said you're going to implement guardianship," Hizashi questions him the moment Midoriya is out of ear-shot. Shouta goes over to his desk and collapses down on his chair.

"Yeah," Shouta replies, putting his head down on the desk tiredly.

"I assume something happened last night?" Hizashi asks, coming over to put his hands on Shouta's shoulders and work out some of the tension. Shouta goes boneless, letting Hizashi work at the muscles.

It means Oboro hasn't quite told Hizashi what he'd seen. Because he'd undoubtedly seen Midoriya use Blackwhip, but it's something he's keeping to himself. Shouta appreciates his friends so, so much, but now he feels guilty that Hizashi is the one left with the least amount of knowledge about the situation.

"Yeah, I'm leaving it to the kid's discretion to bring up," Shouta mumbles, turning his head so that Hizashi can hear him a little clearer. "Anyway, the place with his mum isn't much of an option anymore."

Hizashi sucks in a breath.

"It doesn't seem like physical abuse," Shouta explains, knowing where Hizashi's thoughts are headed. "But it's a pretty clear case of neglect. Honestly, if I were to go for adoption right now, I don't even think she'll fight for him. It doesn't even sound like she'll care."

Hizashi lets out a sad, despairing noise, and he hunches over Shouta's own back for a moment in a strange kind of hug. His fingers dig a little deeper into Shouta's shoulders, and Shouta recognises the angry tremble running through them.

Fuck, at this rate, there's going to be a waiting line for the training room.

"At least the process will be easier," Hizashi says, trying to lighten the atmosphere but failing as the angry current through his voice is all too clear. He sighs, giving up on his attempt. "The... I can't believe it. Why wouldn't she fight for him? Why..."

Why doesn't she care? Why doesn't she love him? What kind of evil person acts like this to their own child?

There's no answer for that. There's nothing that makes sense.

"It's up to him, what he wants to do," Shouta says. "I've brought up the guardianship, and staying with one of us, but he hasn't agreed to it yet."

"He stayed with you last night?" Hizashi asks, and Shouta does his best to nod with his head on the table.

"Then that's all you need. That's an agreement. You don't need to wait for him to say it. As long as he comes back and he knows he can stay with you, and he does, then that'll be enough, Sho," Hizashi reminds him. "Just take it one night at a time for now. Just focus on getting him to realise that he can stay tonight as well."

Shouta sits up, leaning back on his chair until he's looking at Hizashi upside-down. Hizashi looks down at him, raising his eyebrows, waiting for Shouta to respond.

When he doesn't, Hizashi reaches over and cups his cheeks, in a way that reminds Shouta of the way he'd done the same to Midoriya just last night.

"We'll look after him, Sho. It'll be alright," Hizashi reassures, and Shouta nods.

Oboro comes into the agency a few minutes later, looking more dishevelled than Shouta has seen in a while.

"Get caught in a storm, Cloud?" Shouta asks, and Oboro just grins and throws him some finger-guns. But he's looking around their office, trying to find something. Someone.

"He's in the training room," Shouta tells him, and Oboro looks back at him with a relieved grin.

"Good! Last night's incident has been wrapped up, but I'm a little nervous the guy will be able to identify Midoriya," Oboro says, waving his hands around a little frantically. "I think he’s more upset that his plan was foiled, but it might mean he develops a weird thing about Midoriya stepping in and switching up his game."

"He likely will," Shouta sighs. "But the police have been trying to figure out who Midoriya is for a while, I doubt this will change much."

And worst comes to worst, All Might probably has some kind of pull to keep Midoriya's identity safe, he thinks to himself. All Might probably doesn't know about Midoriya's involvements with the villains, especially the incidents with Midoriya needing to stay with Shouta, so All Might just probably isn't aware this is even a problem right now.

They all wait around in the agency. There's no activity, and though they try to act like they're focused on paperwork, there's a clear tension in the air which means none of them can actually focus.

Eventually, Shouta figures he's given Midoriya enough time to punch things out on his own. If it goes for much longer, Midoriya might just overdo it.

"I'll go check on him," Shouta announces, and he sees Oboro and Hizashi snap their spines straight in attention. "Alone. I'll let you know if you can come down."

He leaves before either of them try to convince him otherwise, heading to the training room. He gives the door a solid knock, and then calls out: "Midoriya? It's just me."

The door opens up, and Midoriya's face stares back at him. He's sweating, breathing heavily, but he looks relatively unharmed and the training room seems orderly. Midoriya then steps back, giving Shouta an invitation.

"How're you going?" Shouta asks, stepping into the room. Midoriya gives him a half-hearted grunt.

"Good. Um, I'm just going through some exercises," Midoriya explains, and Shouta nods. Honestly, he'd rather not spar right now — not when his head feels so messy, his emotions a little more extreme than he's used to.

"Cloud's in," Shouta relays to him, and Midoriya hums as he goes over to the corner of the room and takes a sip of water.

"He saw Blackwhip last night," Midoriya says, and Shouta nods.

"He did. He hasn't brought it up, and hasn't told Mic either," Shouta replies, and Midoriya stares contemplatively at his cup of water.

"So Present Mic doesn't know about it?"

"He only knows about hero guardianship, that's it," Shouta responds.

Midoriya's head snaps up. "You enacted it?"

"Technically I did the moment I did when you came into my care for the night, yes. But officially, no," Shouta answers.

Midoriya's fingers are running over the lip of the cup, contemplative.

"All Might wants to meet them too," Midoriya says, and then looks at Shouta. "It'd be easier if they knew."

"Just because it's easy doesn't mean it's right," Shouta says, and Midoriya's lips tilt up. "You don't have to, just because you feel like you should. You should only do it because you want to, and no less than."

Midoriya is quiet for a few moments. He then walks back over to the corner of the room and places the cup down.

"I want to," he announces.

"Alright then," Shouta responds.

"Like, now, maybe. Before I lose the nerve," Midoriya rushes to say, and Shouta huffs in amusement.

"Yeah yeah, alright. They're just as impatient to check in on you, I'll let them know," Shouta responds, pulling out his phone. Within a minute, Hizashi and Oboro are at the door.

Midoriya's taken to pacing the length of the floor, muttering to himself. He doesn't even stop as he notices Hizashi and Oboro at the door, clearly locked in a discussion with himself about how to approach this.

Eventually he comes to a stop, right in the middle of the room, and he gives them a small shrug.

"Uh, hi, I'm All Might's successor," he starts with, giving them a shaky grin.

"Hi All Might's successor, I'm- what," Oboro's joke cuts off midway, his brain catching up with the instinctual joke.

"Holy shit, Sho, you know how to pick 'em," Hizashi mutters just loud enough for Shouta to hear, and then turns his attention properly onto Midoriya.

Neither of them question it. Oboro is just more stunned about the information, but he doesn't doubt it once it sinks in.

"Jeez, kid, that's a lot to deal with," Hizashi says sympathetically, tilting his head as he looks at Midoriya.

Midoriya nods upon immediate agreement, but then stops once he realises he's doing it. "Oh, uh! I mean, yeah, but— it's okay. Um, I guess I should explain about my Quirk."

And he does, reciting all the same information that he'd told Shouta and Shinsou the night before. By the end of it, they're all sitting on the ground, Oboro and Hizashi both looking at Midoriya with a mixture of awe and worry.

Oboro and Hizashi look just how Shouta must've felt last night — overwhelmed, bursting with questions but unable to even form a single one.

And then, Oboro starts snickering.

"So you're telling me All Might's successor couldn't apply for any hero courses? Oh my god," Oboro laughs. "Oh my god, Nezu is going to flip."

"Good," Shouta grunts. "That's what they get for making that entrance exam so illogical."

"Well," Hizashi says, tapping at his chin, looking straight at Midoriya. "Even without the whole All Might successor thing, it's like we said. We can get your records fixed up because of the discrimination, and you clearly have a Quirk."

"He has like, six," Oboro snickers, and Hizashi flaps his hand around.

"Yeah, well, they don't need to know it. But we could probably get you into a course, if that's what you want to do eventually," Hizashi offers, and Midoriya presses his lips together anxiously.

"All Might wanted me to apply for U.A, but I got expelled, just after he selected me as his successor," Midoriya explains. “And… I wasn’t ready to go to U.A, for lots of reasons. But now… I’m not sure. But it could still be dangerous with the secret of One for All, especially if I appear as All Might’s recommendation.”

"You don't have to apply through him," Hizashi replies easily. "We told you, we can likely get you in. There doesn't need to be a single mention of All Might, not until you're ready. If, of course, this is what you want to do. But don’t feel rushed into this. You don't need U.A to get to where you want to be."

"It would probably help," Midoriya mutters, and Oboro laughs.

"Well, sure. But you're already displaying the skills of a certified Pro Hero, and — well, considering that you have multiple Quirks to deal with, and if you want to hide them, then that's something they can't really help out with," Oboro reasons. He ultimately gives a shrug. "U.A is nice and all, but it's not everything. You don't have to go there."

Midoriya hesitates on replying, and Shouta sighs.

"What we're saying is nothing more than a suggestion. We just want to make sure you know that you don't need to worry about figuring that stuff out, and it's something you especially don't need to worry about right at this moment," Shouta says, stepping in to cut off the conversation before it can spiral further. Midoriya already has enough on his plate, Shouta does not want to overload him with the thought of hero courses and U.A right now.

"Yeah!" Oboro chimes in with agreement. "A kid like you is going to have no trouble getting to the top."

"I feel like there has definitely been some trouble," Shouta mutters, and he hears Midoriya laugh quietly with both amusement and embarrassment after hearing him.

"Oh, both of you," Midoriya says, looking over at Oboro and Hizashi. "Would you be alright meeting with All Might? I'm not sure when, but..."

"The number one hero in our city, hey?" Oboro laughs, interlocking his fingers together and stretching them out. "Yeah, I suppose we could spare a visit."

"Don't act like you're not a huge fanboy," Shouta tells him, which thankfully works to get Midoriya to light up in excitement, realising he's got someone to fawn over All Might with.

It's a type of behaviour that Shouta is certainly hoping Midoriya will grow from — and he's sure he will, once he starts to realise that All Might isn't such an infallible, unreachable figure. Once he realises he can actually stand on even ground with All Might himself, Shouta is hopeful that Midoriya will stop looking up at him so drastically.

For now, though, Shouta will use anything he can to make sure that Midoriya feels reassured about his position to trust them with this information. And if that means throwing Oboro's All Might crush under the wheels, then he will do exactly that.

"There's no rush," Hizashi tells Midoriya, reaching over to pat Midoriya's shoulder. "It'd be nice to meet him and all, but don't stress over it. We'll all meet eventually, I'm sure."

Sooner, rather than later. Especially if Midoriya's living situation has changed — it's something he'll have to tell All Might about soon enough, surely. But Hizashi is reassuring him that they can wait, if that's what Midoriya wants to do.

But if they left it up to Midoriya, then he'd probably never want to tell All Might about what's transpired over the last twenty-four hours. So Shouta gives Midoriya a small nudge, and says in both promise and reassurance: "we'll deal with it later."

Midoriya nods, flexing back his fingers, and doesn't say much else. There's a beeping sound over the speakers suddenly, the alert that there's a hero presence requested in an emergency, and Oboro and Hizashi rush to stand. Shouta does too, on instinct, but Oboro shoots him some finger-guns.

"We got it, Eraser, chill," Oboro says, and then leaves the room without letting Shouta argue.

Not like he would — he's not really willing to leave Midoriya on his own right now, especially as he hasn't managed to secure Midoriya into staying with him for tonight. He's worried that the second he walks away, Midoriya will overthink everything and be out the door before Shouta can stop him.

He'd be able to find him, of course, but that's not the point. He'd really rather not be trekking it across the city to go find Midoriya, who's gone back to a home that he's seemingly not even welcome in anymore.

The urge to punch something returns, and Shouta sighs as he stretches out. "Well. Want to run through some exercises?"

Midoriya stands up, and they get to training. Shouta occasionally checks on his phone for any reports about the incident Oboro and Hizashi have attended, but it seems like it's all been handled relatively smoothly.

When they return, opening up the door to the training room, Midoriya is currently demonstrating his assimilated Quirk Float to Shouta. He's been showing Shouta the Quirks that he can, the ones that are a little easier to manage. Mostly, at least. He's admitted that he has struggles actually coming back down with Float, and so that's what Shouta is now working on him with.

"Oh my god," Oboro whispers in excitement, quickly forming a cloud and sitting on it, rushing to sit at the level Midoriya is currently floating at.

"Well then," is all Shouta says to that, because now Oboro is excitedly and animatedly talking to Midoriya about his Quirk, Shouta's attempt to get Midoriya to come back down has been pushed aside.

"Come on," Hizashi laughs, grabbing Shouta's elbow. "You're due for a coffee break, at the very least."

That's an understatement, because Shouta is probably due for at least three and a god-forsaken nap. Midoriya probably is too, but Midoriya is definitely too wound up — and definitely now too excited, happily talking to Oboro about their Quirks.

"Midoriya," Shouta says, getting his attention. Midoriya flounders in mid-air, and Oboro laughs but makes sure to keep him upright. "What drink do you want?"

"Oh, uh! Tea, please," Midoriya answers, and Shouta gives him a nod and then leaves him to gush with Oboro.

"Jeez," Hizashi laughs in bemusement, making sure there's no one else in the hallway before he speaks. "Who would've guessed the lil' listener had such a story to tell?"

"I don't think it got any less strange hearing it the second time," Shouta admits, and Hizashi laughs and throws an arm around his shoulder.

"Sho, seriously, you and your strays! You're basically going to start your own little mini-U.A at this rate," Hizashi teases, and Shouta groans.

"Fuck no," Shouta replies, shaking his head. "Two problem children are enough, thank you."

Hizashi hums with amusement, and carefully does not mention that Shouta has just technically categorised Midoriya as his own.

It's meant to just be a coffee break, but Hizashi manages to drag him out for food as well. It's a good thing, but also a reminder that Shouta also needs to organise a meal plan or something for Midoriya — he probably had one with All Might, but it's likely fallen through with the problem back at Inko's home.

So Shouta will need to get onto that, and he's already drafting through a list in his head as he stands in the restaurant and stares at the display cabinet. Hizashi just orders for him, tugging him away from the counter once he's done.

"Right. You gotta start writing down what that lil' listener needs, and then prioritising," Hizashi tells him, pulling Shouta out of his own head. "It's going to be different than Shinsou, but you've dealt with this kind of thing before. It'll work out, alright?"

It's a reassurance Shouta wasn't even aware that he needed. He knows he'll do anything now to keep Midoriya safe, and he's just working entirely with that desire to make sure that it happens, but there's still a worry that this won't work. That, at the end of the day, Midoriya will choose to leave.

Hizashi points to Shouta's phone that’s in his pocket. "Start on that list, Sho. If there's anything you can't get to right now, then let Oboro and I handle it."

Shouta nods, and gets to typing all the things he'll need to organise. He starts to rearrange them as he goes, though Hizashi looks over his shoulder at one point and hums as they're walking back to the agency, one hand carrying two bags worth of food.

"What d'ya think of All Might?" Hizashi asks him, likely having caught sight of the meeting with All Might note.

"On a personal level? I don't regard him. On a hero level, I respect his work, but..." Shouta trails off with a small shrug.

"Yeah," Hizashi hums. "It's hard not to respect him, but it's certainly noticeable that he's changed things, for better or worse. But what do you think about him in regards to Midoriya?"

"I don't know," Shouta replies honestly, locking his phone and tucking it away. "I have questions if the man didn't notice his own successor was having issues at home."

"But Midoriya is very good at hiding," Hizashi reasons, and Shouta nods.

"That he is," Shouta admits. "But still, as the number one hero, it's something he probably should have noticed. Especially if Midoriya wasn't eating well on such a high-intensity training routine. I also have questions about that, because he should've organised for Midoriya to have someone teaching him combat skills if he couldn't rely on 100% of his Quirk."

"Reasonable," Hizashi replies, nodding with his own agreement.

"But the man clearly has some logical sense if he's passed down the mantle to Midoriya," Shouta says, and Hizashi almost guffaws with surprise and delight. He almost trips over his own feet, but Shouta doesn't even pause to give him a moment of recovery. The food is fine, so it's alright.

"Well! You're certainly right about that," Hizashi agrees, basically skipping to get back up to pace with Shouta. "Gotta give him credit. He could've picked any aspiring hero, one already with a powerful Quirk or more training, but he picked the lil' listener anyway."

Too little, Shouta thinks. Midoriya is so young to be carrying this burden.

This is a type of responsibility that hero courses try to teach their students, getting them prepared over the years to take on heavy burdens. But very few have ever, and will never, bear the responsibility that Midoriya has.

And he's taken it on without the support that most students receive — Midoriya has had no courses, no qualified teachers, no proper structure with schooling. Midoriya didn't get three years in a hero course to learn how to bear the responsibility. He's taken it on, before even starting high school — before even getting the chance.

"Thinking about that," Hizashi says, obviously latching onto a train of thought. "I heard All Might was rumoured to become a teacher at U.A."

Shouta's lips tug down in thought, trying to remember if he's heard anything similar. But All Might's business and line of work hardly corresponds to Shouta's own underground work, so this is a piece of information he's probably disregarded and forgotten.

"Interesting," Shouta replies, because it is a piece of information he has a little more relevance to take note of now. It doesn't really change much, but Shouta does wonder what kind of student would be able to take on One for All.

When they get back to the agency, Midoriya and Oboro are out of the training room, surprisingly. Midoriya is sitting on one of Oboro's clouds, watching him do some official paperwork at his desk. No one in the agency seems to bat an eye at Midoriya’s presence, so they've probably been out of the training room for a while.

"Oh!" Midoriya says, cheeks flushing as he realises he's been caught on top of the cloud. Shouta isn't surprised to see it — he knows that Midoriya has been holding off trying to ask and know more about Oboro's Quirk, so it was really only a matter of time before this happened.

"You got down alright?" Shouta asks, coming over and passing Midoriya a container while Hizashi goes to hand food out to the rest of their staff members.

"It took a bit of time," Midoriya admits, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "But Loud Cloud helped me with it a lot."

"He picked it up quickly," Oboro chimes in brightly, leaning back on his chair and groaning dramatically, reaching out to take his container from Shouta.

"I've been trying to learn from people with similar Quirks, but it's different on the screen compared to actually being able to see it and work with it," Midoriya says, hand reaching down to swish through the cloud. Some of the density dissipates, but Shouta knows well that it'll take a lot more than that to ever risk the integrity of Oboro's support.

Shouta is intrigued and also ever so slightly terrified about how many skills Midoriya will be able to pick up once he's actually properly out on the field, working with other heroes properly. And with all of his different Quirks, and all their different uses, Shouta figures that if anyone would be able to use One for All to its full potential, it's certainly going to be Midoriya.

It's a relatively peaceful day, which is good, because it means Oboro and Hizashi are at the agency more throughout the day. Midoriya is hardly left alone, but he doesn't seem to mind — even when Oboro does need to attend a scene while he's sitting with Midoriya, Midoriya just wanders over to Shouta's desk and sits with him instead.

Because Shouta started the day so early at the agency, he doesn't need to stay behind. But he can tell there's some energy Midoriya still needs to disperse, so he takes him down to the training room while everyone is getting ready to finish for the day.

Midoriya is quietly thankful, just going through his usual routine before the energy builds up and washes over him.

It'd be good to see him at a proper training facility, like the kinds of simulations and environments that typical hero schools offer. This training room is enough to host a lot — but that mostly just extends to specialising for Shouta, Hizashi, and Oboro, who don't need to study anymore about what to do in crisis situations.

Midoriya needs that kind of training, even if he's got a taste of the real thing already. But there's more to being a hero than just the kinds of situations Midoriya has been involved in so far, and Shouta thinks the world would greatly benefit from Midoriya building up and mastering all kinds of skills.

For now, though, Midoriya can only let out his energy properly here. Shouta takes to leaning against the wall and checking some of his information statuses, but switches over to timing Midoriya when he starts drilling particular exercises.

With a lift of amusement at his lips, he notes that Midoriya has shaved off his timings again. He's likely extended his percentage control of One for All — closer to 70%, now. Shouta's going to have to start thinking about how he can keep track of the progress of his other Quirks, once he properly starts trying to control them.

"C'mon," he eventually says, once Midoriya's energy starts to wane, and Shouta can't quite put off heading back home. "Shinsou'll get impatient if we don't figure out dinner."

"Right," Midoriya says, slightly dazed, blinking in surprise. Shouta doesn't let him think over it too hard.

"And you also need a shower," Shouta says, and Midoriya immediately reddens in embarrassment. They have showers here, but Midoriya doesn't have any spare clothes with him today.

"Um, I can— I can make dinner," Midoriya offers, as they start to head back to the apartment together. Shouta thinks about denying him for a second, because Midoriya's had some hellish twenty-four past hours, but then he realises it means Midoriya is basically guaranteeing that he'll stay around long enough to make it.

"Just don't blow up my kitchen, problem child," Shouta says, though can't help himself from ruffling Midoriya's hair. Oboro's been doing it all day to him, and Midoriya doesn't even react to it anymore, used to it already — likely due to Oboro's saturated attempt at overexposure to affection.

They're back only slightly earlier than Shinsou, who walks into the kitchen and doesn't even show a sign of surprise or relief that Midoriya is back. It's more just like it's what he simply expected, and so there was no need to feel anything overtly over the situation.

Just focus on tonight, he hears Hizashi's voice in his head, and that's what he does.

Midoriya stays the night.

And the next.

On his fourth night, Midoriya tentatively walks out of his room quite late into the night. Shouta hears it, quiet as he listens out for where Midoriya's footsteps will head.

He walked out in the middle of the night last night, getting himself a glass of water, and then paced around the kitchen for a while. Shouta had listened out the entire time, just in case Midoriya's steps ever lead him out of the apartment, but Midoriya had eventually settled and headed back to his room after half an hour of pacing.

His own water bottle, Shouta has now added to the list of things he's going to be buying Midoriya. He has the time tomorrow to go shopping — or rather, Hizashi is forcing him to take the day off to get all the errands done.

"Stop worrying that he's going to freak out after seeing something better than just emergency care stuff," Hizashi had told him firmly. "Just go buy him everything you're writing in that list, seriously. It's getting extensive."

He'd tentatively told Midoriya that he'd be going shopping tomorrow, extending the offer if Midoriya would like to join. And Midoriya had nodded, accepting the invitation. He'd been quiet after that, but he's still here, and that's what matters the most.

Midoriya's footsteps walk up the hallway once, stopping in front of Shouta's door. Shouta waits expectantly, but then he hears Midoriya's footsteps walk away from the door. Just as he's about to get up and open the door anyway, just to make sure Midoriya is truly alright, he hears the footsteps coming back up the hallway.

Shouta's already at the door by the time Midoriya knocks gently at it. It's already ajar, having left it open just to try and make himself seem more accessible for Midoriya in case he needed him. Midoriya doesn't push it open though, clearly waiting, and Shouta pulls it open for him.

"Come in," he says lowly, eyes flickering to Shinsou's door. He doubts that Shinsou is sleeping, but he's not going to risk anything in case he actually is.

Midoriya nods, padding silently into Shouta's room. He keeps his gaze down, carefully not looking around the room, and Shouta huffs in bemusement.

"Riceball is on the bed, if you want to pet her," he offers, and that at least gets Midoriya to look up. He still keeps his line of sight slim, only looking for Riceball and keeping his head down as he crouches down beside the bed and pets her. "You can sit, if you want."

Midoriya doesn't take the offer though, content enough to just be crouched beside the bed. Shouta sits on the other side of it, quietly waiting.

Midoriya has come to him for something, but Shouta is fine to let him take his time to figure out how to ask for it. He hadn't come to the agency today with Shouta, saying he needed to do some things, but he'd texted Shouta throughout the day and brought dinner back with him.

Whatever Midoriya had taken care of today, it's clearly weighing on him. He's clearly thinking over his words, petting Riceball, already having figured out all the spots she likes to have scratched.

Midoriya takes a deep breath. "If you..."

He trails off, already losing the steadiness he tried to muster. He sighs, then tries again. "If you were to enact the Hero Guardianship, what does that... what does that mean, exactly? I tried to find information, but..."

"It's pretty protected," Shouta finishes for him, and Midoriya nods.

"I get why, of course! And I found out a bit, but I want to know what it means entirely," Midoriya says, and his gaze breaks with Riceball to look at Shouta.

Shouta hums. "Basically, it gives certified Pro Heroes the legal right to act in the best interest of a child, taking on temporary guardianship for a certain length of time. Not all Pro Heroes get this licence, but Underground heroes tend to, just in case the need arises for it."

"How long?" Midoriya asks, and Shouta tilts his head.

"Depends on each situation. There's a legal process behind it, but in most cases you have the rights for twenty-four hours to remove them from a situation. That's the time to acquire information and any further evidence, and then present those findings to the legal teams. For that time, the Pro Hero is responsible for the minor, and is expected to carry out a high standard duty of care, and an agent comes by during that twenty-four hours to certify this."

Midoriya nods along.

"It's difficult to get it approved in the first place, as it's such a delicate thing to deal with," Shouta continues. "As it basically means no missing reports can be filed by other guardians, amongst other things."

"And you got it for Shinsou?" Midoriya asks.

"Yeah. It was basically just to guarantee he wouldn't have to go back to his foster family's care for the night," he answers, because he already knows that Shinsou has spoken to Midoriya about going through the foster care system. "We applied for an extension, and it was granted. Basically, I'm expected to find Shinsou a safe alternative."

Usually, that means being able to set up the child under their care until they find a family they can vouch for. In this case, though, it means that Shouta is applying for adoption papers.

"So the... the other guardians are notified?" Midoriya asks, and Shouta's heart sinks as he realises that this is likely what's been working Midoriya up.

"They are," he confirms. "It becomes a legal investigation. They have the right to contest it."

Shit, he realises a second too late. Midoriya's smile is a sad, awful thing, and Shouta feels absolutely horrible for putting it there.

"And if they don't?" Midoriya asks quietly, and Shouta swallows down the thickness in his throat.

"Then it means that extensions will likely be granted in favour of the hero," Shouta replies honestly, because he knows that's how it tends to go. Shinsou's foster family had put up a small fight, just to try and save their reputation, but they'd quickly given it up once they realised it would only welcome further investigations.

"What if it's— what if it's not given?" Midoriya questions, and Shouta gives a small shrug.

"Then I'll fight until it is granted," Shouta replies easily, because he knows he'll raise absolute hell if they try to deny him if Midoriya wants to do this.

"She's... she's not going to like it," Midoriya mutters to himself. "She'd prefer if I just went missing quietly."

"Kid," Shouta sighs tiredly, holding his gaze on Midoriya until Midoriya actually looks back at him. "I want to fight for you. We all do. We're going to do whatever we can to help."

Midoriya takes in a shaky breath, and figures that he's also going to have to approach this with logic as well, making sure Midoriya has more reasons to go through with this.

"And, honestly, it's going to be a lot easier with legalities if one of us has guardianship over you," Shouta says. "Considering you're still kind of a suspect for those fights, in case you ever get caught up in that, it's going to be easier to get you out of it. We can also get you enrolled in courses, if that's what you want. And it's always likely someone will notice your absence."

And in case Inko ever comes back to her senses after realising Midoriya is well on his way to becoming the number one hero, there's little chance he'll be forced to go back to her, he thinks briskly to himself, angry at the potential of it happening. It's not unheard of, after all, for parents to try and reclaim a child just because they're famous.

"No, they won't," Midoriya laughs pitifully, shaking his head.

"Problem child, your presence is hard to miss," Shouta says, reaching over to flick Midoriya on the forehead. "It could be someone from your regular mart, or your favourite cafe. You're not invisible, Midoriya."

"No one cares for a Quirkless kid," Midoriya replies, resigned, and Shouta's shoulders drop forward.

"How everyone in your life treated you isn't fair, Midoriya," Shouta tells him. "But not everyone else is like that. All Might saw you, didn't he? Oboro and Hizashi are willing to go to war for you over your records. I think Shinsou's already found their names, honestly. Kid, we don't care if you're Quirkless or you have goddamn One for All. We care for you."

Midoriya ducks his head down, and Shouta notices that quietly, tears have begun to fall. Midoriya tries to hide it, but it doesn't work for very long — he has to press a hand to his eyes to try and stem the flow of tears that have burst free, and he's starting to make terrible, choked sounds.

"Hey, hey," Shouta says gently, sliding off the bed and coming around to crouch beside Midoriya. He's about to ask if it's okay to reach out for him, but then Midoriya turns and basically falls into Shouta's lap, hands coming up to clutch at Shouta's back. Shouta's hands come up automatically, bracing him and holding him close. "You're alright, Midoriya. It's alright."

"Sorry," Midoriya mutters, wiping at his eyes as he tries to sit back and give Shouta some space. Shouta just stares at him with a firm look.

"What did I say about apologising, problem child? There's no need to," Shouta tells him, and Midoriya's lower lip trembles for a moment but he manages to steel himself, nodding at Shouta seriously.

"Thank you, then," Midoriya says, and Shouta smiles.

He still has a hand on Midoriya's back, and Midoriya doesn't seem so keen to move now that some of his embarrassment has settled. They sit close to each other, Riceball peering at them from the bed with curious eyes. Midoriya's laugh is watery, reaching out to pet her.

"Aizawa?" Midoriya asks him softly, and Shouta responds with a hum.

"Yes, Midoriya?"

"If— if you— if you want to, I'd really appreciate it if you could file for guardianship."

Shouta's hold tightens for just a second on Midoriya, relief destroying all the tension he's been holding in his shoulders for days now.

"Of course, Midoriya."

Shouta does it first thing in the morning, and then takes Midoriya out shopping.

"We had the files ready to go," Shouta admits to him, when Midoriya seems confused waking up to the news that Shouta has already sent off the paperwork. "Come on, let's go get you some clothes."

Shinsou bemoans that he can't come, and Shouta's a little mournful of that too — Shinsou would be good to have, right now, when Midoriya seems stumped that he's being offered so many options. He seems overwhelmed, frankly, and so Shouta sticks to the necessities for today.

Midoriya told him that Inko had only begun to neglect him recently, but Shouta isn't entirely convinced of that anymore. Because Midoriya's acting like he's never been able to spend a single dollar on something he actually likes, and he seems to have very little preferences about what he actually likes and wants.

Shouta takes things off the list, and puts therapy right near the top of it.

At least that will be easier with guardianship.

Shouta's file must be streamlined because of his record with Shinsou, as he gets the approval for Midoriya within three hours of sending it off. They're heading back from shopping, and Shouta hums in surprise.

He passes his phone over to Midoriya, showing him the email directly. Midoriya reads it through carefully, passing it back over to Shouta with a mix of emotions on his face. Shouta lets him work through it, sticking close and occasionally bumping into his shoulder just to remind him that he's right here beside him.

They get back to the apartment, Midoriya carefully packing away his new items. He comes back out just as Shouta is about to make tea, and he takes Shouta up on the offer for one.

He sits at the table, and Shouta carefully studies his reaction. He seems to be okay — perhaps a little more distant than usual, wrapped up in his thoughts, but he seems to be handling it well as he gets used to the idea of living with Shouta.

"By the way," Shouta says, placing Midoriya's tea down in front of him. "I did omit a few details about our meeting in the reports. So we'll need to get the story straight between ourselves, in case they ask."

"Right," Midoriya says with a small laugh, and that's what they talk about and finalise as they finish their tea. Midoriya won't be prodded too much, if he's asked anyway — Shouta's files and stories are solid, his patrols always recorded, and they can easily get away with omitting a few details.

He's right. They hardly press Midoriya for details when they reach out in contact, sending out an agent to their hero agency in the evening.

Hizashi's a little miffed to see him walk into the building, especially after doing his best to convince Shouta to have the day off, but once he realises why, his disappointment swiftly turns on its head.

The agent arrives soon enough after Shouta and Midoriya. The next couple of hours consist of meetings and plenty more paperwork. At one point, the agent takes Midoriya into a private room, and though Midoriya seems nervous and high-strung with energy, he seems to be confident enough as he walks in and out of the room.

When they wrap up, Shouta watches as the agent crouches down on his heels and talks quietly to Midoriya. Shouta likes the agent, he decides, even if the meetings with them felt tedious — they're strict, no-nonsense, and ultimately serving in the best interest of Midoriya.

"How'd it go?" Hizashi asks him, both of them watching the interaction between the agent and Midoriya. Oboro walks up behind him, quietly contemplative as he listens to the conversation.

"Inko Midoriya has been notified, and it seems likely I'll get the extension," Shouta answers, and Hizashi makes a sound of sympathy. Shouta's heart hurts too, because Midoriya deserves a parent that will fight for him. "Overall, the whole process was easier than Shinsou's."

"I bet," Hizashi hums, because that had been a bit of a rushed and desperate mess. This time, at least, Shouta had known what to expect. "How's he holding up?"

"He's still a bit skittish," Shouta says, and Hizashi snorts, muttering like a cat under his breath. "But he's alright, I think. He's strong, he'll get through it."

"Of course he will," Hizashi replies, patting Shouta's shoulder. "Reckon he'll be up for going out for dinner? My treat."

"Ohh, yes please," Oboro suddenly speaks up, a little too excited.

"I'll check in with him," Shouta says, just as the agent stands and walks out of the building. Midoriya stands there, watching them leave, taking another few moments to gather himself. And then he turns around, looking at Shouta, Hizashi and Oboro with a smile.

Yeah, Shouta thinks, he'll be okay.

A couple of weeks later, All Might walks into their hero agency.

They know he's coming, of course.

Midoriya has had a lot to deal with, over the last couple of weeks, like having to go back to Inko's house with Shouta and taking some of his personal items back from his old room. Inko isn't there, barred from the house while Midoriya has legal permission to retrieve his items after the extension has been granted.

It'd been heavy, and it'd been hard to witness. Midoriya's room was small, and all his treasured personal items were tucked cleverly out of view. Otherwise, it looked like the room was just a simple guest room. Even Shouta's study-turned-room, that first night, looked more personal for Midoriya than this one.

Midoriya barely fills up two bags, most of it containing clothes. The rest of it has been topped off with notebooks — a lot of notebooks. Midoriya hadn't really wanted him to glimpse at them though, so Shouta hadn't, and the contents of the notebooks remain a mystery to him.

That day had been a lot to deal with for Midoriya, and perhaps Shouta had gotten up early the next day just to hit the training room for a while — so, honestly, after that, Shouta feels like meeting with All Might is going to be easy enough.

But for Midoriya, despite everything, he's especially anxious about this.

"Problem child," Shouta says, placing his hand down on Midoriya's shoulder to stop him from pacing any further. "Chill."

Midoriya hunches down, giving Shouta a sheepish smile. "Sor- oops. Uh, okay. Chill, I can do that."

Midoriya, evidently, can not actually do that. But he makes an effort to stop pacing himself into a spiral of anxiety at least.

Hizashi and Oboro probably aren't helping with their energy — Oboro is floating around excitedly, loud with chatter. He's never quite gotten over his fanboy phase with All Might, after all. Hizashi is a little more contained, but he always feeds off Oboro's energy, and it becomes an endless cycle at times with them.

When All Might does come into the agency, he walks in with a big smile. Shouta's met a lot of heroes, has worked with plenty of them, but their presence certainly does not have the same effect that All Might's does.

"All Might!" Midoriya basically squeaks out, going over to him with a big grin. It's like some of that tension he's been holding in for so long has disappeared, obviously relieved to be in the presence of All Might.

This is the hero that truly changed Midoriya's life — this is the man that saw Midoriya, beyond just being Quirkless. All Might saw a hero, and he gave Midoriya the most powerful Quirk in existence because he believed in him.

It's a small movement, barely discernible, and would be to anyone other than Shouta: All Might looks over Midoriya, like he's trying to assess how Midoriya is actually going with everything. His smile grows when he sees that Midoriya is beaming up at him though, and All Might's gaze flickers over to Shouta for just a split second.

Shouta stands up from his desk, Oboro and Hizashi following him to greet All Might. All Might's chest is puffed up, his smile as large as ever as he spots them. It's, in Shouta's opinion, rather obnoxiously flashy, but he figures that if anyone has the right to keep their shoulders back like this, it's the number one hero.

All Might recites each of their hero names in addressment, his voice booming so loudly that Shouta thinks he rivals Hizashi's own yelling.

"I understand that it is you three I have to thank for young Midoriya's drastic improvement in his fighting skills," All Might says, holding a hand out. Shouta stares at it, blinking, unsure of what he's going for. Hizashi rushes in, gripping All Might's hand in a handshake.

"Actually, it's pretty much all Eraser," Hizashi explains, head gesturing back to Shouta's figure.

All Might's handshake extends out to him, and Shouta takes it because there's really no other option.

Christ, is all he can think as he feels All Might's strength in his grip.

"Yes, Eraserhead! I've heard plenty about your efforts with your underground hero work. Most commendable," All Might praises, sounding genuinely impressed. Shouta wasn't even aware that his own missions got back to people like All Might, so he's slightly surprised, but he supposes that All Might has probably kept an ear out recently.

All Might talks with them for a while, mentioning missions that they've been a part of and talking about their tactics. Oboro is basically swooning. It helps to alleviate some of the nervous energy they've been carrying in the room, all of them getting used to All Might's presence and no longer feeling the heavy weight of the knowledge of why he's here.

But there's only so long that it can last, and eventually All Might — who has taken to standing with his hand on Midoriya's shoulder — pins down Shouta with his gaze.

"Eraserhead," he says, inclining his head. "I'd like a moment to talk privately, if you'll allow."

He's been waiting for this moment himself, after all. "Follow me."

He turns on his heels, gesturing for All Might to follow. Midoriya goes to follow, and though Shouta doesn't mind if he does, All Might is the one to stop him.

"Young Midoriya," he hears All Might say quietly — which isn't exactly all that quiet, because All Might's voice is still grand. "We can talk all together soon. For now, would you mind if I speak privately just with Eraserhead?"

"O-oh! Of course not," Midoriya rushes out, and he hears Oboro step in and encourage Midoriya to come get a coffee with him.

All Might's footsteps are heavy on the ground, but Shouta suspects that despite his stature, All Might is aware of how to make them fall silent if he wants to. He likely just never needs to use it — Shouta's sure that his footsteps alone would cause troublemakers to tremble.

They walk into their small conference room, All Might shutting the door behind him. Shouta sits down on one of the chairs, gesturing for All Might to take his own.

Here, Shouta sees All Might's smile begin to dim slightly at the edges. He's been holding himself up in front of Midoriya and the other two heroes, but here, All Might is letting Shouta see more of his true expressions.

All Might does not take a seat. Instead, he stands for a moment, and then his head dips. And then the rest of his body follows, and All Might is bowing to Shouta.

Shouta really isn't sure how to handle that, so he says nothing and waits for All Might to speak first. All Might straightens up, both of them looking at each other.

"I must thank you for everything you've done for young Midoriya," All Might says, and Shouta thought his tone was gentle before, but now All Might's voice is even softer.

Shouta can see it now. The deep sorrow and regret that's in All Might's eyes, sitting heavy on his frame.

"I was aware of the training he was taking with you, but— I was not aware of the other matters until recently, and there is no excuse for that on my behalf. I am deeply regretful that I was not there for him, and so I am incredibly thankful that you have been," All Might says, and Shouta tilts his head in consideration.

"He's good at hiding things," Shouta replies. "I was only aware of it due to certain circumstances, and only because he let me pry into it."

Shouta isn't going to make excuses for All Might either, but he understands why this was something All Might was not aware of. It's because Midoriya wanted it that way, and they both know that.

"He idolises me too much," All Might agrees, sighing. "He's gotten better, but I fear he never would have told me about this."

"Probably not," Shouta hums.

All Might takes a seat. "Mhm. And so I must thank you again."

"I do not require gratitude, All Might," Shouta says, because he's really not sure how he feels about All Might thanking him twice now.

"Perhaps not, but I am still thankful all the same. And also, I'd rather Toshinori," he corrects. "If you're comfortable."

Shouta nods, returning the same courtesy. "Aizawa."

It's fitting — they're not here to discuss matters as heroes. They're here to talk about Midoriya, after all.

"Young Midoriya has told you about One for All, correct?" Toshinori asks, and Shouta nods.

"He has," Shouta confirms.

"There is one thing he likely didn't tell you," Toshinori says, and Shouta tilts his head in interest and also mild concern. "I am still able to hold onto embers of One for All, but I have passed down the flame. At this time, I can only uphold my form for about three hours each day. That's, as you know, not a lot of time for hero work."

And then Toshinori starts steaming, trails of smoke coming from his form. Shouta blinks, and then suddenly Toshinori is no longer the big, muscley form in All Might's suit and tie.

Toshinori is smaller, frailer, made up of sharp angles with clothes hanging off his skinny form. Shouta blinks again in surprise, staring at the new figure in front of him.

"I can tell by your reaction that he didn't tell you," Toshinori laughs mirthlessly, and his fingers come up to the edge of his jacket and shirt. "Before I passed down One for All, I was involved in a fight with All for One. I managed to subdue him, but not without sustaining my own injuries."

Toshinori lifts up his shirt, and Shouta feels himself grimace at the sight of Toshinori's chest. It's a ghastly kind of scar, and Toshinori hums.

"Half my respiratory organs, and my entire stomach," Toshinori lists, dropping his shirt down. "Because of this, I am unable to properly operate as the hero I once was."

Toshinori sounds more solemn and reserved now, like it's not only his physical appearance that has changed. Everything about him seems to have shifted, no longer embodying All Might.

Rather than having his shoulders pressed back, now, it looks like Toshinori is truly displaying what it's like to have the weight of the world rest upon him.

No, Shouta thinks a moment later. No, that's not quite right. He might not look entirely like All Might, but Shouta can see the spark in Toshinori's eyes, the determined and passionate glint that has inspired so many around the world. Even in this form, Toshinori is the very definition of what it is to be a hero.

"I am doing my best to train young Midoriya, but as of my state right now, I can only do so much," Toshinori says, leaning forward in his chair. "I was not aware of young Midoriya's situation, but it was neglectful of me to not realise. I understand that you have taken him in under the hero guardianship act."

Am I about to have to fight All Might for custody of Midoriya? He thinks, a little bizarrely. He takes stock of the situation, of the man in front of him.

His regret might make him try and fight in an attempt to try and repent for his mistakes with Midoriya, Shouta acknowledges. But he knows, after a careful moment of deliberation, that's not what Toshinori will do.

"I have," Shouta says.

"It is a temporary measure," Toshinori points out, staring down Shouta with his implication.

Ah, of course, he thinks.

"Unless Midoriya wishes otherwise, I have no intention of finding him another house to live in," Shouta answers.

Toshinori nods, his eyes closing with relief as he leans back in the chair. "I'm glad. I hear you are adopting young Shinsou. I remember seeing him at the U.A Festival. Lots of potential in that young man."

"There is," Shouta agrees.

"He will make a fine hero," Toshinori says with a small nod of approval.

"Indeed," Shouta answers. "As will Midoriya."

"Of course. They are both under your guidance and guardianship, I have no doubts they will be some of the best heroes Japan has ever seen."

Shouta nods his agreement silently, and Toshinori opens his eyes and leans forward again.

"I would like to move closer, and to work more with Midoriya. I am limited by the time I can spend as a hero, and there are still things I must deal with, but I want to dedicate myself to teaching him," Toshinori explains, and Shouta isn't quite sure what to do with the realisation that it's almost sounding like he's trying to ask for permission.

He understands why, after a moment. If Toshinori moves here, he will likely act more as All Might in this district, which is under Shouta's agency. It means that there will be more attention here, more reporters, more attention on the agency. More attention, likely, on Eraserhead.

He's been trying to head out of the underground hero business, he supposes. It's not necessarily a bad thing.

And it will be good for Midoriya to have Toshinori closer to him — it's more people in Midoriya's court, more people helping him to stand up and bear the weight that's now resting on his shoulders. It will be good for Midoriya to have that stability after everything.

Shouta looks over Toshinori, and he sees all the kinds of feelings that he has inside, too. Shouta knows that the man across from him will do everything he can for Midoriya — and he can also see that he'll die for him, if it comes down to it. He sees a little too much of that, like Toshinori is resigned to that fate.

"Of course," Shouta eventually says, giving an easy nod. It's a simple decision. "I'll discuss it with Loud Cloud and Present Mic, but I'm sure they will be just fine with it. We all want what's best for Midoriya."

"Of course," Toshinori says, bowing in his chair to Shouta. "It might take some time to arrange, but I am reassured by the fact you are with him."

Toshinori stands up from his chair. His clothes are still sagging, his pants trailing along the floor, and Shouta is busy noticing that detail when suddenly Toshinori transforms, All Might once again in front of him.

"Just as young Midoriya has entrusted the secret to you, Present Mic, and Loud Cloud, I am also okay with entrusting my secret to all of you," Toshinori says, his voice once again booming.

Shouta isn't sure if there'd even be words decent enough to try and explain to them about Toshinori's true form. He still feels like he's reeling over it, having found out that the unbeatable number one hero All Might has sustained such a grim injury.

And yet he still stands, determined to make the most of his remaining embers of One for All, and determined to help Midoriya grow as a hero as well. And Shouta understands that Toshinori is not trying to make Midoriya stand in his place as his replacement — he wants Midoriya to be able to stand on his own, to stand above where he now is.

"I look forward to working with you," Shouta says as they exit the room, and Toshinori's laugh echoes down the hall, genuinely joyous.

When they walk back to everyone, Midoriya takes Toshinori on a small tour of the agency — mostly the training room, and Shouta leaves them to it. He figures they have things to talk about, and it'd be good for them to do it in the safety of the agency walls.

As Midoriya and Toshinori do that, Shouta talks to Hizashi and Oboro about the potential of Toshinori moving into the neighbourhood. They take it well, only hesitating because of Shouta's underground work. Once that issue is brushed aside, they're all okay with it — it is, after all, for Midoriya's benefit.

Toshinori leaves them with a big, bright smile, and a ruffle through Midoriya's hair. And when he leaves, Midoriya walks over to Shouta's side, and he asks brightly, excitedly: "can we have katsudon for dinner, Aizawa?"

And Shouta is learning all too quickly that there's very few things he'll ever say no to when it comes to Midoriya.

It's getting close to the end of the year.

Just recently, Shinsou and Midoriya surprised him for his birthday. Or, not surprised, because Shinsou had slipped that Midoriya was getting excited to celebrate something. They'd taken him to a cat cafe, and they'd both given him gifts of Eraserhead merch — custom-made, apparently. The first of its kind.

Midoriya had also slipped him a card, with a surprisingly well-drawn image of Shouta, Hizashi, and Oboro on the inside, and a small, personal note on the other side. Shouta has it displayed on his desk, and Oboro coos over it at least once a day.

And as a present from the universe, it seems, he finally got the adoption papers for Shinsou approved. He presented Shinsou with them that night, and now — well, now Shouta has a legal, documented son.

Soon to be two, because the next day he'd asked Midoriya his thoughts on if Shouta were to apply for adoption for him, and Midoriya had just started to cry. It was a mixture of sorrow, but mostly happiness, and now Shouta is once again putting himself willingly through the hell of the adoption system just to fight for Midoriya.

Midoriya had returned the gift by, for the first time, beating Shouta with both of their Quirks in play. Midoriya's Smokescreen is Shouta's goddamn nightmare, but that alone isn't enough to take down Shouta. No, what takes him down is Midoriya's intellect, his surprising new moves, and the brutal combination of his Quirks that he's now learning how to use together.

He's at 80%, now, and it's quite frankly terrifying. There's still 20% for Midoriya to master, and he's already formidable enough that Shouta thinks he'd probably be able to take on the top ten heroes. At once.

And then, another delightful present from the universe, Midoriya had taken down All Might. It'd been one hell of a fight, and All Might had already been approaching his limit by the time they got around to the fight, but Shouta will still happily count it. After all, the finishing move had been one Shouta had taught Midoriya.

With that in mind, they've all been in talks about what to do with Midoriya's hero licence. Shouta has talked about it plenty with Toshinori and Midoriya, but it's come to the point they need to make a decision before the next school year starts. They sit down all together, and Midoriya stares contemplatively at all the paperwork in front of him that they've presented and printed out for him, but Shouta can tell this is material that Midoriya already knows the answer to.

That's another thing — Shouta's learnt, over the months, just how bright Midoriya is. When Shinsou agonises over his homework, he goes to Midoriya's room to get some help. Shouta has set him up with some tutors and some online classwork, giving Midoriya more of a proper education structure, but Midoriya is pretty much above the level of what he should be despite missing a year of school.

So Shouta's learnt when Midoriya already knows the answer in front of him. It's no surprise to him when Midoriya looks up, and says: "I know what I want to do."

And that, apparently, is applying for U.A. Even though he knows Midoriya will excel at the courses and written side of things, hero courses still offer more practical — legal — experience, and it's the easiest path to getting his provisional licence. Midoriya knows it too, and deems it the most logical action.

Even if he has to start from the first year, he's prepared to do that. There's a burning behind his eyes, that dead-set determination he sees in both Toshinori and Midoriya, and Shouta just nods and types out the email to Nezu in front of them both.

He's got videos of Midoriya's training attached — only using the physical strength and speed of One for All, none of the other Quirks, as well as all the paperwork.

Nezu replies before Toshinori is even done gathering all the papers on the table. Shouta reads it over, noting that he'll still need to do an entrance exam, but they can treat it like a student transfer. Depending on how Midoriya ranks, they'll be able to place him in the corresponding year — which means Midoriya might not need to start from the very first year after all.

As he reads the very last line, he stifles an amused huff.

Tell All Might that he should have contacted us sooner about Midoriya Izuku's records.

He carefully never mentioned All Might in his email, but he's not surprised that Nezu has managed to figure it out. Shouta figures he's probably been waiting for Toshinori to contact him about his successor.

He shows the email to Toshinori, who just laughs — but his ears are tinged pink, Shouta catches, embarrassed at being called out. Midoriya is trying to act like he's not overwhelmingly curious about the email that Shouta has on his screen, but he's basically leaning across the table trying to catch a glimpse.

Shouta passes his phone over to Midoriya, and Midoriya's breath hitches dangerously. He reads through the email once, and then scrolls back to the top and reads it again. He reads it one more time before he looks up at Toshinori and Aizawa, and in a voice of excited disbelief, he asks: "I can really go to U.A?"

"As long as you're able to convince them," Shouta replies with a nod, sharing a look with Toshinori. Midoriya will have absolutely no problem doing that, and they know it.

Shouta holds his hand out, and Midoriya passes back his phone. He's taken to muttering in excitement, barely acknowledging Shouta and Toshinori's presences.

They have about three months until the exam, and Shouta figures that by that time, Midoriya will likely be close to using 100% of One for All. Nezu hasn't informed him of what kind of tests Midoriya will go through to determine where he'll be placed, but Shouta supposes they'll likely be specially designed. Probably closer to the kind of exam recommendation students go through, rather than the general entrance exam.

It doesn't matter, in the end. Whatever is thrown Midoriya's way, Shouta has no doubt that Midoriya will be able to pass it with ease.

U.A will probably benefit more from having Midoriya than Midoriya himself will benefit from U.A, but it's a stepping stone that will make it just that much easier for Midoriya to rightfully walk the path of a hero.

And after all the difficulties Midoriya has already faced trying to get onto this path, anything now that will make it easier is a welcome reprieve.

They all stand up from the table, their meeting concluded — Shouta just has to email Nezu back to organise the smaller details, but that's about it now until the actual exam.

"I'm going to U.A," Midoriya mutters in wonder, Shouta catching the trails of it.

He reaches out and ruffles Midoriya's hair. "Yeah, problem child. You sure are."

Midoriya is accepted into class 3-A at U.A.

His results have determined that's where his educational level is at, though he'll have to take the provisional licence exam along with the second years. Internships and work studies will be no worries throughout the year, though, between Shouta's own agency, All Might's and all his acquaintances, Midoriya will be able to easily catch up.

Like Nezu stated, it's treated like more of a student transfer than a new student admission. Midoriya will still need to take some additional courses, just to make the transition as easy as possible, but regardless he'll be able to enter the grade with all the other people his age.

"Oh, thank god," Shinsou says, when he finds out. "I heard Mineta left the course, so I was really hoping Izuku would get the spot."

Somewhere between Midoriya's exam and the first week of school, Shouta gets very surprising news.

His adoption papers for Midoriya Izuku have been accepted.

Shouta suspects that Toshinori has something to do with it, somehow. It goes through too quickly, even though Inko Midoriya has waived all rights as a parent and guardian, even with his records with Shinsou.

And when Shouta tells Toshinori, he just grins, and does not seem surprised in the slightest. So Shouta is definitely suspicious of that.

So when the first day of the term begins, Shouta makes them breakfast, and then takes them to the train-station, sending off his two kids for their first day of the final year. Oboro and Hizashi join him, providing encouraging words and also taking plenty of photos.

Admittedly, Shouta is already eager for the end of the day — when he'll have both of them back home, and they'll all be sitting around the dining table before Shouta goes on patrol, and Shinsou and Midoriya will likely talk endlessly about their day.

Shinsou eventually gets moving, because they'll be late otherwise, and he gives them all a wave as he heads into the station, tugging Midoriya along.

But Midoriya pulls free, and he runs back to Shouta. He throws his arms around him — and fuck, his kid is ridiculously strong even without activating One for All — and gives him a quick hug.

He looks up at Shouta, and quickly, he says the words: "thank you. I'll make you proud."

"You already do," Shouta has just enough time to reply, along with a quick affectionate hair ruffle.

Shinsou starts yelling at Midoriya to get moving, though there's a giant grin on his face that's undercutting his serious tone. Midoriya steps back, flashes Shouta one big smile, and then runs to Shinsou's side. They head into the station, both of them waving cheerfully until they're out of sight.

Hizashi snaps another photo of Shouta, laughing all the while. Shouta grumbles and attempts to snatch the phone back, because he knows what kind of face he was pulling when his kids left.

Hizashi just laughs and sends the photo to the groupchat that they all have with Midoriya and Shinsou, because of course he does. Damn man just wants to see Shouta suffer forever.

"Come on, grumpy cat," Oboro says with a laugh, looping his arm through Shouta's own. "They'll be back before you know it."

"They'll be graduated and heroes before you can blink," Hizashi says wistfully, staring at the station like he can already imagine it.

"The top heroes," Shouta corrects.

"That goes without saying," Oboro reassures. "Now come on, I hear that the hero merch store has some new products in stock."

"It better not be Eraserhead stuff," Shouta grumbles, and Oboro's laughter echoes happily around the street.

"Yep! And I promised I'd get it for Shinsou and Midoriya, so come on!" Oboro replies, and Shouta sighs but eventually lets himself get tugged along.

After all, there's nothing Shouta won't do when it comes to his family.

Chapter Text

Hitoshi has been pushing around his food for the past couple of minutes in contemplative silence, and Izuku knows he has about two more seconds of that before Aizawa tells him to knock it off.

One more second, he mentally counts.

Hitoshi puts down his chopsticks and stares down at the table. Izuku and Aizawa are watching him closely, knowing that he's about to reveal whatever it is that he's been thinking so hard about at the table.

"We had a class today," Hitoshi says. And then he does not elaborate, even though it's clear that this is not all he has to say about what's bothering him.

"Congratulations?" Izuku offers after a couple more moments of silence.

Aizawa snorts. Hitoshi swats at Izuku, and Izuku sticks out his tongue in retaliation.

"Yeah yeah, we get it, Mr-got-kicked-out-of-school," Hitoshi huffs.

Izuku purposely pouts his lips, giving Hitoshi a wide-eyed innocent stare. "It was traumatising, you know?"

Hitoshi does know, and he doesn't minimise Izuku for it — he understands the days when Izuku is struggling with these kinds of things, but today is not one of those days, because he's too excited about the fact he's been accepted into U.A, and he's about to join them in the coming term. So Hitoshi knows it's a safe topic to tease about, and Izuku is glad for it, because it makes everything seem a little bit easier, a little less hard to carry alone.

He expects Hitoshi to retaliate with a response like 'yeah, and then you got given All Might's Quirk, and now you're about to join U.A' or similar, but instead Hitoshi's mouth twists and he hesitates in his reply.

Izuku's expression shifts, and he lets it fall away. "Um... I wasn't being serious."

"I know," Hitoshi sighs. "Sorry. I guess it's just in line with what I was about to talk about."

"Trauma?" Izuku guesses.

Hitoshi raises a shoulder in a half-shrug. Not quite right, not quite wrong. "About those who are Quirkless, actually."

"Ah," Izuku says in reply, somewhat surprised. His gaze flickers over to Aizawa, who's been silently but attentively watching the two of them. Even now, he still doesn't say anything about the conversation — not yet.

"Was it... bad?" Izuku hedges carefully.

Hitoshi almost pales, and his eyes go wide as he shakes his head. "What? No! No, jeez, do you think I'd encourage you to go to a place that was like that?"

"All places are kind of like that," Izuku says, brows furrowing in his confusion. It's not ever something he'd hold against Hitoshi — not when it's just the way things are. He hopes to change it, but he knows it's something that will take a whole lot of time and support.

"Not all of them," Aizawa chimes in for the first time, voice firm.

Izuku blinks at him. "The hero courses have a Quirkless admission, across the country, of 0.3%. I'm not saying it's malicious, but it's just... it's the way the world is now, with fewer people statistically having Quirks with each generation. It's easy to create ignorance when there isn't exposure to those kinds of things."

Shouta leans across the table, intent on keeping Izuku's attention on him. "I'm not dismissing your own experiences, but I'm saying that there's a whole lot more out there. Do not go to U.A with the expectation that you should just... be used to that kind of behaviour. It'll leave you open to normalising it when it's unacceptable. You hear me?"

Izuku, already aware that he does normalise it, shrugs. "Well... I mean, Kacchan is there, right?" How different can things really be?

"Actually," Hitoshi cuts in, "that's what I wanted to talk about. I was watching him really closely, but he was the most demure I've ever seen in my life. He didn't argue with anyone in that debate — though, granted, it wasn't much of one. Actually, the only time he spoke up the whole time was to tell Denki to shut up after he had a foot-in-mouth moment and said something dumb about Quirkless students. Or, I guess he wasn't really saying it, he was just mimicking something in the textbook we had, but Bakugou told him to 'shut the hell up' anyway. It got tense."

Not for the first time, Izuku wonders if Kacchan has ever found out about the fact he is no longer living with his mum. He didn't think Kacchan would care, really — he'd never made a move to try and reach out to them once Izuku had been expelled from school, and he simply figured that Kacchan had probably forgotten all about him. Or tried to, at least. He's not sure if he's surprised by hearing about Kacchan's reaction.

"I see," Izuku says, tapping his fingers down on his thigh as he thinks.

Hitoshi gives him a moment, and then he leans over the table, raising his eyebrows. "That's it? No fifty questions?"

"I don't... I don't know what to think," Izuku admits.

Hitoshi leans back with a nod. "Fair enough."

"It's just that, I mean, we don't really know what he was thinking, right? I can't speculate on what he thinks of me or— or Quirkless people now," Izuku stammers, trying to get some of his own thoughts out into the open so that they know where his head is at. The problem is, Izuku doesn't know where it's at himself.

"Well, I guess you're going to make him confront his thoughts soon enough," Hitoshi says with a small shrug, as well as a pull to the corner of his lips that he usually gets whenever he thinks about something amusing.

"I could be in 3-B," Izuku reminds weakly, though it's an argument none of them really believe in. 3-A has an open spot now, and it's been heavily implied by Nedzu that that's where Izuku shall go.

"Sure," Hitoshi replies, mostly sarcastically. "But even then, you won't be able to hide from him for very long."

"I'm not hiding," Izuku immediately argues. At Hitoshi's disbelieving stare, he sighs and explains. "I'm not, really. I'm not scared of him or anything. I just... I don't know how he's going to react. He sounds different from the Kacchan I used to know, and it's been— it's been at least two years. We've both changed a lot. I don't know what's going to happen."

"Ah," Hitoshi nods, acting like it all makes sense to him now. "You do hate not knowing things."

"Hey," Izuku pouts.

Hitoshi shrugs. "Sorry, but true."

Aizawa nods his head once in a short, sharp concession. Izuku barely resists the urge to stick his tongue out at both of them.

"Alright, let's say he regresses and goes back to middle school tendencies. Your appearance will likely stir some complicated feelings inside of him. He might want to fight you, in that case. How are you going to react?" Aizawa asks, raising his eyebrows at Izuku.

Mentally, Izuku puts down another mark next to his theory that Aizawa would, in fact, make a great teacher.

"By pummelling him into the ground," Hitoshi mutters. Izuku can't help but snort.

"Let's try and avoid getting in trouble on the first day," Aizawa sighs.

Hitoshi looks at Aizawa in bewilderment. "I'm sorry, have you met your other kid? Like, at all?"

The reminder of Izuku's freshly-approved adoption papers sends a rush of warmth through him, and though he kicks out his foot slightly with the feeling, he's able to focus back on the conversation.

"Unfortunately, I've met you both," Aizawa replies, "and I know it's likely a pipe dream between both of you, in fact."

"How am I getting thrown into this?" Hitoshi asks, throwing his hands up. "I'm the definition of good behaviour!"

"God," Aizawa breathes out, running a hand down his face, not even bothering to try and argue. It's a lost cause. Instead, he switches his attention back to Izuku. "Let's try again. Your reaction?"

"I... fight him?" Izuku answers. This time, Hitoshi snorts.

"What did I just say about getting into trouble?" Aizawa asks.

"But if fighting will help him sort out his feelings, then... I think that makes sense? I'm sure my presence is going to cause a lot of confusing feelings, and I'm not sure if he's talked to my mu- to... to Inko, but he probably has a few questions about that? Or if not him, then his own mum, because they were kind of friends I guess, but I guess only through us when we actually got along, you know, before Quirks and all that-"

"Hey," Hitoshi bumps against him gently, pulling him out of his tangent. "I think fighting would be funny, but you don't have to do anything you don't want to. Just because he might want to doesn't mean you have to do it, y'know? Like you said, things are different now."

"Yeah, thanks, but...maybe a fight would be nice, actually," Izuku replies with a small shrug.

"Please just go get a teacher if you decide to do that," Aizawa sighs.

"That is the worst advice to give a traumatised expelled Quirkless kid," Hitoshi argues, cutting in. "That's like... any goddamn bullying campaign that didn't do jack shit. Tell them to stop. Go get a teacher. And where did that get us?"

"Expelled," Izuku mutters, though he's hunching his shoulders, not quite as enthusiastic to argue against Aizawa.

"You didn't let me finish," Aizawa says blankly, though there's a tone of warning in his voice. "You know what teachers are at U.A? Pro Heroes. And people with access to all the gyms fit for emotionally repressed teenagers to have combat in."

"I don't think teachers are allowed to just do that," Hitoshi says.

"They're about to find out that this kid is my kid if they haven't already," Aizawa replies, jerking his thumb at Izuku while talking to Hitoshi. "And I assume they know what this Bakugou kid is like. I'm sure you'll find there's a level of persuasion there."

"Huh," Hitoshi says, eyes widening slightly in thought. "Yeah, that might just be enough."

"Maybe I won't fight Kacchan?" Izuku mutters, though it's mostly to himself now. He knows he should avoid it, especially with the reminder that Pro Heroes will likely be aware of the fact he's been taken under Eraserhead's wing, and he's somehow made his way into 3-A with no prior high school records. He's going to have a lot of eyes on him, and his actions will easily be echoes that come back to people's thoughts about Eraserhead — and Hitoshi, too.

"Do whatever you want," Aizawa says.

Hitoshi and Izuku butt in before he can finish his usual sentence. "-Just make sure you're ready for the consequences."

Aizawa smirks. "Exactly."

Izuku drops his head into his hands. "I don't know what's going to happen."

Hitoshi leans over to ruffle his hair. "Well, we don't know until we get there, right? And you've got another couple of weeks before your transfer actually gets finalised. Do you want me to maybe.... test out the waters with it? About you?"

"If you start, he might not stop asking," Izuku says. "No, it's okay. Let's just... let's just wait. I'll— we'll deal with it then."

"Alright," Hitoshi says. "But if he does anything you're not cool with, I'm making him walk into a tree."

Izuku can't help but laugh. "Please don't."

"Sorry, but I am," Hitoshi insists. "You don't understand, he's so goddamn difficult. If this is what creates an opening, I'm taking it."

"Oh god," Izuku laughs.

The conversation finishes lightly like that, with Hitoshi and Aizawa's support as a reassurance, but soon enough, two weeks go by.

And then Izuku hugs Aizawa goodbye as they head to the train station, waving off Shirakumo and Yamada as well, and then it's just Hitoshi and Izuku heading to U.A.

It still feels so impossibly unreal. Izuku has been a bundle of nerves and excitement, basically jumping around the apartment in the morning, but now he's so nervous that he's swung right into being frozen stiff. Hitoshi pokes at his side on the train, both of them standing and holding the handrails in the morning commute, and Izuku stiffly turns his head to glare.

Hitoshi raises his eyebrows, and they have a silent discussion between themselves with facial expressions, and then— oh, god. They're at the stop for U.A.

Hitoshi basically has to pull him off and through the crowd of people. Hitoshi warned him there might be reporters at the front of the school, usually trying to take photos of fresh-faced first-years, but Izuku knows some cameras might just capture him as well. He's noticeably bulkier, older, than the first years that are also pouring out from the train along with them.

Izuku, at least, blends in by the way his knees are almost shaking with nerves. Some of the first years are confident, striding up the path with long steps, but Izuku is currently clutching his chest and trying to remember to breathe. Hitoshi has a hand on his back and is patting him right between the shoulder blades, entirely unphased by this reaction.

He's been completing extra coursework, has been drilling Hitoshi on how every day might go for this term, and still, he feels entirely unprepared. He's nervous enough about heading to U.A, and he's also all too aware of the fact he's going to see Kacchan, and everything just feels like a whole lot. Like a lot.

"Oh god," he says, breathing heavily.

"We're going to be late," Hitoshi reminds him, giving him a firm pat on the back again. "And you do not want to be late."

That, at least, gets Izuku moving. He's heard plenty enough about Tenya Iida. He hauls himself up with a deep breath, straightens his shoulders back, and marches forward on very stiff legs. Hitoshi snickers, but doesn't stray from his side. He keeps a hand on Izuku's back as they start to see the golden arches of the entry, and it remains there as cameras start to flash.

"Smile, dude," Hitoshi turns his head to mutter. Izuku thinks he follows the order, but he can also hear his cheeks basically creak from the tension he's holding in his jaw, so he probably just looks more terrified than anything. Hitoshi disregards the cameras, giving them a lazy wave, and Izuku is so glad to have him by his side, as Hitoshi basically pulls him through the crowd of reporters and cameras and first-years that are crowded near the gates, staring at the school in awe.

He's especially glad to have Hitoshi by his side, because he feels already incredibly lost on the big campus, and he's basically stumbling over his feet as he looks up at the big buildings in disbelief. Hitoshi leads him through it all with familiar ease, pulling Izuku into the main building. Right as they enter, a group of people crowd around them.

Izuku immediately goes to take a step back, but Hitoshi's fingers press into his back to stop him.

"Hey guys," Hitoshi says, signalling to Izuku that he's familiar with the group. Izuku blinks, and he starts to see them beyond just a swarm of people — he starts to place faces, remembering the way he's watched them on the television, some of them battling against and with Hitoshi in battles for the sports festival. And he's heard stories from Hitoshi's own lips, stories about his friends in the class.

"Hey man!" Kaminari Denki says with a bright smile, wrapping his arm around Hitoshi's neck. Izuku goes to step aside to give them some space, but Hitoshi's fingers then grip Izuku's clothing, not letting him slip away unseen.

There are a couple of others that he recognises, such as Monoma Neito, Sero Hanta, and Todoroki Shouto.

It's then that Kaminari seems to realise Izuku is there, as he lifts up his hand from Hitoshi's shoulder. "Oh, hey to you too!"

Izuku feels himself blink. He glances at Hitoshi, and sees that he's relaxed, calm, the edge of a smile on his lips even though he's trying to act like it's reluctant. Izuku feels himself relax as well.

Right, these are Hitoshi's friends. Izuku doesn't need to be worried about them.

"Hi," Izuku replies, though his voice is soft. "I'm Midoriya Izuku."

"Midoriya-Aizawa Izuku," Hitoshi corrects.

"Ohh, right, of course!" Kaminari says, leaning in closer now to look at Izuku. "You're the new brother, huh? That's cool, that's cool! Welcome to U.A!"

With Izuku's permission, Hitoshi has shared with his close friends about the fact that Eraserhead has someone else under his custody, and that he'll be joining the class.

"Unfortunately for you, you're in the less superior class," Monoma says, and he's also regarding Izuku with curiosity, but also something more along the lines of simply sizing Izuku up completely.

Izuku blinks again, staring blankly. "Um."

"Don't mind him," Hitoshi snorts. "He's excited to have fresh meat to tease about being in 3-A."

"Fresh... meat?" Izuku repeats, almost with a squeak.

"Neito, remember what I told you," Hitoshi says, looking at Monoma again. Monoma throws up his hands. Hitoshi shakes his head, and gives Izuku a roll of his eyes. "He's harmless, really. He just likes to play up the class rivalry."

"And for that, I greatly apologise," Monoma says, his voice taking on a strange edge even though he's smiling at Izuku. He does seem harmless, not genuinely malicious, but he still makes Izuku a little uneasy. Monoma reaches out his hand for Izuku to take in greeting, which is strange, but Izuku reaches for his hand.

"Neito, don't—"

"Ah," Monoma says, flexing his fingers. "A blank."

Hitoshi sighs out in relief. It's at this moment that Izuku, suddenly actually coming back to himself, remembers what Monoma's Quirk is.

"You just tried to copy my Quirk," Izuku says.

"I did," Monoma grins. "Sorry. Curiosity killed the cat and all that, it's just that dear Hitoshi here wouldn't tell us anything about you. So... some kind of stockpiling Quirk, then?"

"Um. Yeah," Izuku replies, endlessly relieved that Monoma can't seem to copy those kinds of Quirks. He does not need a student breaking all their limbs upon moments of meeting him.

"What is it?" Todoroki says, his first words in the conversation.

Izuku startles, surprised. He's been told by Hitoshi that Todoroki means well, he's just awkward with people and making friends, and he probably won't know what to do with Izuku's own personality at first. Still, Izuku feels entirely unprepared for this conversation.

Even though they have prepared for this — all of them; Aizawa, Hitoshi, All Might, and Izuku. Figuring out how to explain his Quirks without making it sound like he has seven different ones, while also not sacrificing Izuku's ability to practice with them and gain experience at U.A.

"My Quirk? Oh, um! It lets me enhance my abilities — like, uh, speed, and strength. It kind of evolves in different ways, I guess, like-"

"Let's not spoil it all just yet, hm?" Hitoshi laughs, nudging him in the side. After all, he's been telling Izuku how excited he is for Izuku's first demonstration with his Quirk. Midnight, 3-A's homeroom teacher, knows about his abilities already, as she's friends with Aizawa, Shirakumo, and Yamada. She has also been warned that there's a turbulent history between Izuku and Katsuki, so she is somewhat prepared for whatever this reunion brings.

They all start to move through the hallway, to what Izuku assumes is the homeroom class. Kaminari slides up to his other side while the others talk to Hitoshi.

"So! Getting adopted by a Pro Hero, huh?' He asks.

Immediately, despite being in another conversation, Hitoshi leans over to smack the back of his head. "Don't ask invasive questions, Sparky."

"Yeesh, right, sorry," Kaminari says, throwing up his hands. He gives Izuku an apologetic smile. "Really. Sorry."

"Um— that's okay," Izuku replies. "It's kind of unbelievable, I guess. It doesn't feel real to me."

"I bet!" Kaminari replies, but he doesn't press any further even though he's clearly curious.

Izuku's so distracted by the new group of people that he doesn't think about Kacchan until they're standing before the doorway listed for 3-A. Monoma splits off from them with a lazy wave, declaring he'll kick their asses in training, and then heads off into the other class.

Kaminari and Todoroki head into the class, though Izuku is frozen outside of the door. Hitoshi slips back so he can stand with Izuku.

With the door open, Izuku can hear the various conversations happening. Most of it, he recognises, is about him — questions about the new student, some of them wondering where he's transferred from, some of them throwing out theories of different schools, of coming from another course, or coming up a year early.

"They really don't know anything?" Izuku asks.

"Beyond my close friend circle you just got introduced to? No," Hitoshi replies.

"They kept it a secret?" Izuku asks, surprised.

Hitoshi shrugs. "They're good friends. Really."

"So... so Kacchan won't know," Izuku says. He'd gone in expecting that, but— but he's still trying to come to terms with that realisation.

"He won't," Hitoshi confirms. "You ready?"

"No," Izuku breathes out.

"Well, Tenya's about to come around that corner, so you better step through that door anyway," Hitoshi says.

Izuku doesn't really step. He's kind of just pushed forward by Hitoshi, who follows in right after.

Immediately, everything goes silent. Izuku's eyes quickly scan over the classroom, taking everything in. In the back of his mind, he registers that he's activated Danger Sense. But it's not spiking — it's not going off. Midnight is giving him a smile as she stands behind the teacher's desk, and most of the people in the class are staring at him. He's going over their names — Aoyama Yuga, Ashido Mina, Asui Tsuyu, Ojiro Mashirao — but he's looking for one person in particular.

Bakugou Katsuki is sitting at his desk, his chin on his fist, and he's staring out the window, uncaring as someone with red hair — Eijirou Kirishima — talks to him animatedly. No, not uncaring. He's listening. Izuku can tell by the small incline of his head.

Kacchan hasn't turned to look. He hasn't seen Izuku yet.

It feels like all the breath has left Izuku's lungs. He's been trying to get himself prepared for this feeling, for all the emotions he knows will arise, all the memories and all the reminders of his past, but there's nothing he could have done to prepare for this very moment.

He could walk back out of this classroom right now. He could go home. Maybe he should attend Shiketsu.

"There he is!" Midnight suddenly coos out. "Everybody, say hi to your new number 19 seat! Why don't you introduce yourself?"

"Come on," Hitoshi mutters, pushing him forward again. There's no escape now.

At this very moment, Kacchan turns.

Their eyes meet.

Kacchan's fist drops from his chin and lands on the desk.

Izuku swallows.

"Deku?" Kacchan shouts, startled.

Izuku feels his fingers curl up, nails pressing into his thighs.

"Hi, Kacchan," he replies, though his voice is hardly more than a whisper.

Kacchan stands from his desk, the chair almost falling behind him. "What— what the fuck?"

"Language, Bakugou," Midnight sighs, like she's said it all too much in her life. At the very same time, someone comes through the door shouting the exact same words while hauling in another student behind him. Iida, carrying in a floating uniform — Hagakure Toru, Izuku distantly realises after a few confusing seconds.

Iida lets go of her the moment he realises there's someone new standing at the front of the room, and he immediately stops and bows down in greeting.

"I'm Iida Tenya, a class president of 3-A! You must be our new transfer," he greets.

"You-you're the new— what the fu— what," Kacchan spits out from his desk.

It's surprising to hear how off-guard Kacchan is right now. Izuku is only holding his ground because he's too nervous to move right now.

"Okay, yes, how about you give him a chance to introduce himself?" Midnight cuts in. "Go on, everyone else to your seats."

Kacchan looks like he wants to move from his, but one look from Midnight has him slowly lowering down to sit. He hardly blinks as he stares at Izuku. Hitoshi gives Izuku a pat on the back before he moves to sit down at his own seat, and then suddenly it is Izuku all alone up at the front of the classroom, looking back at people who are looking at him with curiosity, confusion, and challenge.

"Um," Izuku says, bowing in greeting, swallowing down his nerves as best as he can, trying to push past the way he's panicking about everything right now and trying to ignore Kacchan's stare. His words are coming out rushed, so fast he's not sure anyone can understand him. "I'm Midoriya-Aizawa Izuku. I hope— um, I hope we'll look after each other."

"Okay!" Midnight claps her hands together, clearly stopping any further conversation or questions being asked. "Nice to see you, kiddo. Go take a seat on the right-most side, second from the back."

Izuku figured as much, as it's the only seat available. It's also right behind Hitoshi — though Hitoshi is right behind Kacchan. Izuku stiffly nods, though it takes him a second to actually get his feet moving. He keeps his gaze down, walking through the path between the desks to get to his new seat. Kacchan sticks out his foot, catching Izuku's notice, though he withdraws it the second Izuku actually gets close.

Izuku looks to him, because he figures it's just Kacchan trying to get his attention. Kacchan looks like he's about to reach for him, and Izuku's body moves back on instinct. Kacchan sucks in a sharp breath.

"Jesus, fu- Oi. Let's just—"

"Bakugou. I'll let you both have a moment at the end of homeroom if you behave, got it?" Midnight's voice cuts in. Kacchan straightens up, glancing at the front of the room, before he nods and settles back in his chair, folding his arms. Izuku lets out a deep breath and keeps walking, sitting down at his seat with all the strength leaving his legs.

Kacchan actually just listened to a teacher telling him to behave. He doesn't quite know what to do with that information.

Hitoshi turns around to give him a quick thumbs-up, and Izuku just blows out his cheeks in response to signify how he feels. Midnight takes to the centre of the class and welcomes them all to their third year, and starts to summarise how the year will go for them. Izuku's head is spinning, and he can't even think to pull out his notebook and write down anything. Thankfully, it seems like no one else is, so he lets himself try and recover from the fact that he's really in the classroom, he's seen Kacchan, and everything is different now. He never would have dreamed he'd be here just a year ago.

Just as it's approaching the final five minutes of homeroom, Midnight waves her hand around.

"No surprises for this homeroom, as you're all used to them now on the first day anyway," she laughs, and then her gaze turns to Kacchan and Izuku. "You two. You can go outside for these five minutes, but if you think about destroying any school property, I'll make you suffer. Got that?"

Kacchan just gives a curt nod and then immediately stands, turning around to stare at Izuku. The rest of the class is silent again, and Izuku is all too aware of the fact that they're staring at both of them — mostly him — trying to gauge just what the hell is happening here.

Izuku stands somehow, following Kacchan out the door. Hitoshi grabs his wrist in a loose hold as he passes by his desk, giving Izuku a worried look. Silently, he's asking if Izuku wants him to come. Izuku gives his best reassuring smile, though he knows it's shaky, and shakes his head.

"It'll be okay," he says quietly.

Hitoshi nods and lets go of his wrist, trusting Izuku to handle it, though there's still a worried pull to his brows. Izuku is determined for this to go as smoothly as possible because he doesn't want Hitoshi or Aizawa to be concerned about him.

Kacchan leads the way out of the classroom, and it's only once the door shuts behind Izuku that he whirls around and faces Izuku, jabbing a finger into his chest.

"Where the hell have you been?" Kacchan demands.

Izuku's heart is beating wild and fast. So Kacchan did notice his absence, then.

"What... what do you know?" Izuku hesitantly asks, not quite sure how to explain everything about his mother.

"Nothing!" Kacchan replies with barely-contained anger, which rises quickly and explodes. "Fucking nothing! Auntie told the hag she's moving away, and when the hag asked about you, she said you were gone. So you ran away and left her, and just— what, ended up here? What the fuck, Deku?"

Izuku clenches his fists. "I didn't leave her."

Kacchan freezes. Then, after a silent moment of pause, he speaks, voice low and dangerous. "What?"

"She left first," Izuku whispers.

Kacchan jabs him in the chest again. "Fuckin'— try again. Auntie wouldn't do that. Why the fuck are you lyin'?"

Izuku is biting down on the inside of his cheek, trying to keep down his irritation and his anger and his loneliness. He's been better, with Aizawa and Hitoshi and All Might by his side, but he still wonders what the hell is so wrong with him that his own mother couldn't handle him.

"I'm not! Kac— I swear I'm not. She... " He trails off, his voice weak and thready, barely holding together. He raises a hand to swipe at his eyes roughly. He's not crying yet, but he's trying to starve it off. "She thought I'd been— I don't know. I don't know. But she... she kicked me out, and I... I didn't have a home to return. She booked one single one-way ticket. Do you understand? She left me."

"Fucking. No," Kacchan cuts in. "She wouldn't do that. What the fuck, Deku? She loved you."

"No," Izuku whispers. "I don't think she did. Not enough."

"When?" Kacchan demands.

Izuku swallows. "About... a little under a year ago, I guess? A few months."

"What the hell?" Kacchan asks, and it's a genuine question.

Izuku takes in a deep breath, but it does little to stifle his nerves. "I... Kacchan, please, please, you— I swear I didn't— this— oh, god."

"Breathe, fuck," Kacchan swears, his hand flattening on Izuku's chest and pushing into his sternum like he's trying to force a breath. Izuku flinches, which startles both of them, and Kacchan goes to pull away but Izuku reaches for his wrist and holds his hand there, letting him know it's okay as long as it doesn't hurt. Kacchan sucks in a sharp breath, but doesn't try and pull away again.

"I developed a Quirk," Izuku whispers out in a rush.

"What."

"I— it was too much for my body at first, so it never— it never developed until later. Last year. And— and when mum found out, she just... she thought I'd lied to her all that time. And I hadn't, I hadn't, I never meant for it to happen, and I meant to tell her, but-"

"Okay, fuckin' breathe," Kacchan cuts in. "Fuck. Seriously. You— fuck. But you got scans."

"They must've gotten them mixed up," Izuku whispers, almost stumbling over his lie, but he's so shaken up by everything he thinks he actually manages to get away with it. And Izuku's not the only one reeling from all the differences, so he knows Kacchan isn't able to quite pick up on it either like he might have been able to a long time ago.

"They— no. What the fuck. Show me."

Izuku lifts up his palm and lets Blackwhip bounce from his fingertips without thinking about it. Kacchan withdraws like he's been burned, staring at the Quirk that then lowers and tangles around Izuku's fingers. Kacchan's staring at him with complete shock, fingers curling like he's currently contemplating punching Izuku if out of fear.

"I caught a mug that was falling," Izuku explains, letting Blackwhip fade away. "And she just... she just screamed at me. Thought I'd been lying the whole time, hiding it from her just to... I don't know. I don't know. But— it was clear I wasn't welcome there anymore."

"What the fuck, Deku," Kacchan hisses.

Izuku's shoulders hunch over, and he curls his arms over his stomach. "I don't know. She had enough, I guess. It was too much."

It was my fault, he wants to say, but he has a feeling that Hitoshi has a sixth sense developed for when Izuku starts to think like that, so he bites it back for now.

"You— you have a fucking Quirk?" Kacchan is still reeling from the display, still staring at Izuku's fingers like he's waiting for the black tendrils to appear again.

I have a few, Izuku thinks quietly in amusement, because he's trying to hold onto some kind of train of thought that isn't going to make him burst into tears.

"Quirks don't develop like that," Kacchan declares, folding his arms. "That shit just doesn't happen. They don't develop that late."

Izuku shrugs. "Yeah, well, it happened. And I lost my mum for it. So."

He says it mostly to try and stop Kacchan from prying any further about the timeline, and from pressing any further about how Quirks develop. He doesn't want to be questioned about this, because he's always been such a terrible liar, and Kacchan knows that.

Thankfully, Kacchan seems to take the bait, if just to focus on more important things with their dwindling time. He's sure that Kacchan will continue to press about this at a later time, but hopefully Izuku will have some more time to brace himself and be prepared for Kacchan's surprising new attitude.

"Where did you go?" Kacchan asks.

"I had a contact. I, um. Do you know who Hitoshi's guardian is?" Izuku asks.

As he watches the realisation dawn in Kacchan's eyes, he gets his answer. Kacchan would have undoubtedly taken an interest in knowing where Hitoshi picked up his skills from, and he'd be paying attention to his background. Judging by his reaction, he knows that Eraserhead is his guardian. Izuku isn't sure if that means Kacchan knows about him being the adopted father as well, but it's not quite something he's going to ask right now either.

"Yeah," Izuku says. "I got, um, caught up in some kind of villain attack, and I ran into Eraserhead. Before mum kicked me out. And then... yeah. He took me in. So."

Kacchan is silent for a few seconds, taking in all the information. His palms spark with explosions, but they aren't aimed at Izuku, and they don't look like they're going to be either, so Izuku holds down his flinch.

"You could've told the fuckin' hag, you know?" Kacchan grits out, fists curling again. "She was fucking worried. Pissed me off."

"Sorry, Kacchan," Izuku whispers.

"Don't," Kacchan snarls. "Just— fucking don't. Fuck. This is— what the fuck, Deku?"

"Yeah," Izuku laughs, though the sound is hardly bright. "It's a lot. Um. Yeah."

Kacchan's fists uncurl, and he stares down the hallway, refusing to look at Izuku. Izuku doesn't mind that, though he knows he's no less under Kacchan's scrutiny.

"Is it temporary?" Kacchan asks.

"What?"

"With fuckin' Eyebags and shit. Is it temporary?"

"Oh," Izuku realises. "No. No, it's not. I got adopted, so..."

"You said Midoriya-Aizawa," Kacchan realises, narrowing his eyes back at Izuku. "Said it so fast couldn't understand you then, but... that's what you said, right?"

"Yeah," Izuku confirms. "Yeah. It's, um, Midoriya-Aizawa now."

"Ridiculous ass name," Kacchan snorts, shoving his hands in his pockets. And then his head tilts and his eyes narrow. "That's fast for an adoption to go through."

Izuku takes a second to realise Kacchan's not questioning Aizawa's motives, or Izuku's own. He's literally just questioning the actual legal timing of it all.

"Underground Heroes get certain licenses for guardianship," Izuku explains — it's not public knowledge, but he figures these kinds of details are safe enough to share with someone literally aspiring to be a hero. "And Mum didn't... didn't fight it. She rescinded guardianship, so. It wasn't much of a battle."

He half-shrugs, trying to hide just how much it all still hurts.

Kacchan scoffs, and his feet scuff on the ground. Izuku shifts his weight back and forth, thinking that homeroom must be seconds away from being over, and he's kind of an emotional whirlwind and it's — it's better, now, after actually managing to talk with Kacchan, but there's still so much energy brimming under his skin.

Izuku bites down on his lip, because there's another secret he's carrying. The fact that All Might is now the one teaching him, guiding him as well. But he supposes he's said enough, and Kacchan looks like he's still reeling despite the way he's trying to keep an indifferent demeanour — perhaps Izuku hasn't forgotten him as much as he thought. Perhaps Kacchan hasn't changed much — not in the small things, at least.

"Guess we'll find out how well he trained you, then," Kacchan eventually challenges, and doesn't give Izuku a chance to reply as he steps past him and into the classroom, leaving Izuku alone in the hallway. He's still standing there as the bell signals for the end of the period, rushing inside the moment it pierces through his ears, basically stumbling into his seat as the first period begins.

Hitoshi turns around, brows furrowing in the unspoken question of everything good? and Izuku gives a quick nod. Nothing exploded. Kacchan didn't raise a palm to him. And for the first time, he can really start to understand just how much Kacchan is the same in so many ways, but he's grown and changed in so many other important ways too. Their first interaction went decently, and that's a whole lot better than Izuku ever could have expected to happen.

It's almost hard to focus with Kacchan just two seats in front, but eventually, Izuku is swept up in the fact that he's at U.A, currently listening to Pro Heroes speak at the front of the classroom. When the bell for lunch signals out, Hitoshi snickers as he walks over to Izuku's side.

"One would've thought your hero worship would've run out considering, you know, everything, and yet..." Hitoshi laughs, elbowing him good-naturedly in the side. He can feel Kacchan's eyes on him, but then he's suddenly surrounded by Hitoshi's friend group as they drag everyone to the cafeteria.

Izuku's not exactly... great at making friends. Not ones his own age. Hitoshi is pretty much the only one he's been able to make in years. But he trusts Hitoshi, and he trusts that Hitoshi trusts these people, and so Izuku does his best to calm his racing heart as he's urged to join the line and then join the big table that everyone seems to sit around.

Kacchan isn't far either, but he's got his own small group that he's currently surrounded by. Izuku is certain their conversation revolves around them, and he's not going to fault Kacchan for revealing his side of things, even while he remains silent himself. Thankfully, the people around Izuku don't seem to mind, though Hitoshi does give him a couple of worried glances.

"You alright?" Hitoshi eventually asks, once the conversation isn't focused on either of them.

"Hm? Oh. Yeah. Just overwhelmed I think," Izuku laughs. "Sorry. Not in a bad way. It's just... it's a lot."

"I get it," Hitoshi hums. "It's cool. You'll start to settle, but it's fine to be overwhelmed right now."

"I just feel... behind," Izuku admits quietly, looking around at all the confident students around him, all of them seem so settled, so ready for the world, confident in who they are and how they can help. Izuku's been gaining his own level of confidence, and he knows he can more than hold his own when it comes to a villain fight with all his training, but he suddenly just feels so lost sitting among peers with so many established friend groups.

Hitoshi huffs, and throws his arm casually over Izuku's shoulders and then ruffles his hair. "Trust me, you're doing just fine. Just give yourself time, dumbass."

The easy affection has caught the attention of a few people, and they stare in surprise, but they're quick to duck their heads and give them privacy. They share small smiles amongst each other — genuine ones, like they're truly happy about the easy display right in front of them, like they're relieved.

Lunch ends soon enough, too quickly really, and then Izuku is being dragged along by Hitoshi to their next class.

Heroics.

He's got even more energy brimming under his skin now, and he has to shake out his hands multiple times to try and get rid of some of it that's basically burning at his fingertips. Hitoshi seems amused by his energy, but Izuku can tell he's excited too.

Hitoshi grabs a case, and then shoves it into Izuku's chest. "Here."

Izuku's fingers clumsily manage to take hold of the case before it falls to the ground, and it's only once he's made sure that it isn't going to fall that he realises what he's holding. "Wait... wait... is this-"

"Sure is," Hitoshi smirks. "Go on, put it on."

Izuku pulls out his brand new hero costume, the result of all his scribblings that he sent in to U.A after he found out he passed the exam. It's finally in his hands, tangible pieces of fabric and materials and support items. Items that mean he's done it. He's actually made it.

He might be crying as he pulls the suit on, honestly. He's not too sure anymore, as everything feels like an absolute dream. The suit fits perfectly, all the support items made with even more adjustments than Izuku's own ridiculously long list had managed.

"Looks like Mei had some fun," Hitoshi remarks, also looking over Izuku's new suit. He gives Izuku a thumbs-up. "Looks ridiculous."

"Thanks," Izuku laughs, because he knows that Hitoshi likes it.

They're instructed to meet at Ground Beta, and Midnight is grinning at all of them as they approach.

"I say we have some fun this lesson," she declares, clapping her hands together with a smile. And then her gaze flickers to Hitoshi and Izuku, standing side by side, and Izuku feels himself gulp. "Who here knows what Midoriya's Quirk is?"

Hitoshi is the only one to raise his hand. Kacchan folds his arms with a huff and looks away.

"Great," Midnight grins, and then looks over the rest of the class. "Looks like we have our teams."

Izuku's mouth drops. Surely, surely, Midnight does not mean for Izuku and Hitoshi to fight against eighteen other classmates? He doesn't doubt his own abilities, or Hitoshi's, but— but surely there is just. No way.

"I'd rather fight alone," Hitoshi declares loudly.

Izuku whirls on him in shock. "You what?"

Hitoshi resolutely ignores him and stares at Midnight. "Permission?"

Midnight grins at him. "Granted."

"What?" Izuku whispers harshly, wanting to absolutely tackle Hitoshi to the ground. "You won't even team up with me?"

Hitoshi, finally, turns to look at him. And he grins. "Find me when you're done with everyone else. Let's give them a show."

Hitoshi's eyes are alight with a challenge. The same kind of way Aizawa gets when they're all in the training room, fighting with each other, with or without Quirks. It's dirty and ruthless and fun. Izuku, despite the situation he's now found himself in, finds himself grinning back.

"Alright," he agrees. Hitoshi holds out his fist, and Izuku bumps it.

Hitoshi is at an advantage with a bigger team, at least. The more voices he'll be able to mimic, the more confusion he'll be able to cause, and the more breakdowns in communication he'll be able to create. But Izuku has a feeling that Hitoshi is going to let Izuku deal with most of the class.

"Midoriya, seeing as you're undoubtedly the number one target," Midnight says, "you'll get a five-minute head-start. There's a perimeter set-up, so we're not using all of Ground Beta, but it should be enough."

Some ground rules are laid out: they all have to wear a button on themselves that, once hit, signifies the fact that they're out. No serious injuries are allowed, and they all have to be mindful of the destruction of property. Other than that, most things are on the table.

There's a large screen being projected up above all the buildings, like it's curved along an invisible ceiling, with square images of faces of everyone in 3-A. Izuku figures faces will start getting crossed off once people are tapped out. Izuku only gets a quick glance at it before Midnight counts down, and Izuku starts running — only at a standard human pace, with no Quirks in use just yet. The projection flickers a big 05:00 countdown, which is quick to start counting down.

He figures that the projector is more for him than anything, with everyone's faces up on the screen, which he's glad for as he's still trying to learn names. He's muttering things to himself about their Quirks as he runs further into Ground Beta, trying to compile what he knows about them so far. He's seen some of their fighting at the U.A Sports Festival, but considering the difference between their first year to their second, he knows that their abilities and combat senses will have greatly improved since then.

But, at least, he has the advantage here. Hitoshi won't strike as he waits for Izuku to deal with everyone, and Izuku doesn't have a reason to respond to anyone anyway. Everyone else doesn't know Izuku's Quirk ability, and that's going to make them a little more cautious about striking first.

Todoroki might strike first, a powerhouse move to get this over with quickly, perhaps ice most of the ground in an attempt to pin down Izuku, and he decides it's going to be better to get the higher advantage while he has a head start. He heads for a tall building, ducking and weaving just in case he's got eyes on him. The five minutes are almost up once he starts making his way up the stairs, and he fires up some of One for All to make it a little quicker before the timer finishes.

He'll have to watch people like Hagakure, who might be able to sneak up on him. He's managed to develop Danger Sense to a point he can faintly pick up on beyond just harmful intentions, but he's certainly not going to rely on it. Rooftops are out of the question, even though he'd prefer to have a view up top. There are too many people in 3-A with surveillance kind of Quirks, and they'll be able to find him too quickly. So he heads high, but not too far up. He's got a floor with a few openings — parts of the windows and walls destroyed, really, but it'll do the trick if he needs an escape.

They might try and seek out Hitoshi first, Izuku muses to himself, though he has a good feeling that it's not going to be the case for the majority. Hitoshi is damn good at hiding, almost on level with Aizawa now, and he's sure that the class are aware of it. So Izuku is the one to catch today.

But he's good at stealth too, and he's able to hide back in the corner of the shadows and still get a decent angle.

Unfortunately, most of 3-A are moving as two big groups. Definitely Izuku's biggest disadvantage, and he'd been hoping they'd all be working singularly to make them easier to pick off. Kacchan is in the front of both of the groups, and though he's peering around and regarding his surroundings with caution, it's clear that he's relying on someone else to pick up on Izuku.

And that means Kacchan has just become incredibly more dangerous. He's enough of a challenge on his own, and it looks like he's overcome his greatest weakness as a hero.

This is going to be one hell of a fight, he thinks, shaking out his hands, trying to calm down some of his anticipation — and admittedly, his nerves too.

"Well, shit," he mouths out in English, knowing that if he dares to make a sound it might just catch Jirou's attention. And she's the one Izuku would bet that Kacchan is relying on. And then he puts his hand over his mouth and hopes that there aren't cameras capturing his lips — he's been around Hitoshi too much lately, probably. And Toshinori. And Hizashi. Definitely Hizashi, actually.

He remains up high, waiting, watching from the window. He doesn't want to sit up here for long. While Midnight has warned them about not destroying buildings, it's going to be way too easy for many of them to gain the advantage of him this high and enclosed.

Well, that's because he's not really allowed to use Float. Or anything that's going to be visible other than One for All's strength and speed. He flexes his fingers, not used to suppressing Blackwhip which has become his usual Quirk to defer to.

He knows he'll probably win this. He's practised too hard, too long, and he knows exactly what kind of power he wields. Still, it's exciting getting to practice like this.

He keeps Danger Sense as a low thrum, but it's hard to maintain trying to find their presence when they're not actively setting out to actually hurt him.

The groups split up. The second group, a little behind, led by Todoroki and Yaoyorozou, head out down another street. That's good. Much better for Izuku's plan.

And then, right as he thinks it, Jirou looks up. Right at him.

"Oh, shit," he says, unable to quite help himself. That's impressive. He'd been purposely keeping his breaths as silent as possible, his heart as steady as can be. But she'd picked him right out from all the other students anyway.

There's an immediate ruckus as she relays his position. Kacchan looks up. They meet eyes.

Izuku backs away from the window. Nope. Nope. He'll deal with the other group first, actually. He's not as ready for this confrontation as he wished he was.

He turns away from the window and runs down the stairs, out of there before they can even head around and get inside the building. He's sure Jirou will follow his movement, but he's going to have to work faster than she's able to relay back to everyone.

It's just going to have to be quick and fast. Like Aizawa teaches him — don't draw out the fight, he hears, ringing in his head. There's no time for hesitation, no time to let them figure out just how fast and powerful he is. Go brutal and hard as quickly as possible, catch as many of them off guard as possible when there's a large group like this.

Give them no time to strategise. No time to recollect their thoughts and gather together. Give none of them a chance, if he can help it.

One for All buzzes beneath his skin. He sees Todoroki's group, and he charges in on his targets. In one quick, fell swoop, he's able to hit the buttons of Hagakure, Aoyama, Koda, and Sato before they even realise he's there.

And then, suddenly, there's a rush of ice roaring towards him. It's fast and threatening, and it gives Izuku no chance to think. He flicks his finger at it, blasting it into pieces of small, tiny shards of ice that go flying. He quickly bounces back on his feet, then rushes forward again. Hits Ojirou and Shoji.

Jeez, he thinks, bouncing back again when Todoroki sends another incredibly fast wave of ice towards him. This time it's bigger, taking up more space, rushing down the street like the fastest-moving tidal way Izuku has ever seen.

Still, he notices, Todoroki is able to control his ice. It moves around lamp posts and benches, avoiding windows and doors of buildings, not getting them caught up in the blast of ice.

"That kind of speed..." he hears Yaoyorozou say in something akin to awe.

"Mhm," Todoroki replies. His eyes narrow on Izuku, able to keep up with him as he jumps forward again. He's only using about 60% right now — not going too hard, not just yet. Windows tend to shatter when he goes any higher than that.

Tokoyami's Quirk comes flying at him. Dark Shadow, he recalls.

"Hey," he says, and then apologises as he swiftly punches Dark Shadow in the face. Dark Shadow wails, but then he's roaring forward again, eyes narrowed. Oops, Izuku thinks.

Todoroki, he notes, isn't using his flames. Probably because of Dark Shadow. Once Izuku takes down Dark Shadow, he's going to have to deal with flames in the mix of this whole fight.

So he switches targets. Dodges around Dark Shadow — destroying a little too much of the pavement when he springs up on his foot, using more power to get more speed to get around Dark Shadow without interacting with him.

Yaoyorozou becomes his focus. He knows she's strong, a tactical thinker, but even she's been on the backfoot the moment that Izuku first touched Hagakure's button. He swiftly strikes out Yaoyzorou, then pivots on his heels and swings back around to spring towards Todoroki. It's going to be better to strike him out sooner. Izuku's left him standing too long already, and he knows it's a mistake that might just cost him.

He's lucky — Todoroki is too considerate. Doesn't switch to his flames until it's too late. Izuku strikes him out, and is left with the impression of Todoroki's wide, surprised eyes.

Tokoyami isn't hard to strike from that point, either. Dark Shadow is fast, but Izuku is faster, and he gets around him once more to get to Tokoyami.

One group down. He's taken a little too long. The other group is already circling back to him.

A spit of acid hurls towards him. He ducks back just in time.

"What the hell," he hears someone say.

"I'll catch him," someone declares, and Izuku can tell by the commanding tone of voice that it's Iida. He'd love to talk about speed and control to him, and it's definitely interesting seeing it up close now, watching the way Iida kicks himself into gear and speeds up.

He is fast. Definitely the fastest person Izuku has ever encountered, at least.

But Izuku wants to be caught. Iida realises this too late.

"I am really so sorry about this," Izuku says, able to twist his body in a way to spring off the lamppost beside him, and tackles down Iida. They go tumbling, and in the chaos of it, Izuku strikes him out.

Sero arrives next, swinging between buildings, and oh. Izuku really wants to talk to him about that kind of movement. He thinks Sero is a lot smoother than him when it comes to swinging, and he wants to learn that when it comes to Blackwhip, even if he can't demonstrate it to the class. Not now, at least. Maybe they'll come up with some kind of better excuse that can cover him.

He sees Kaminari pointing at him. And he thinks oh, no. In the next blink, mostly moving out of fear because he does not want to be struck with the kind of raw power he knows Kaminari holds, he strikes him out too. Then Ashido. Asui.

Kirishima withholds his stance when Izuku barrels into him, but this kind of fight isn't quite fair to him. He's not able to do much against Izuku striking the button attached to his hero costume.

"Aw, man," he hears Kirishima mutter, sitting down on the ground with Kaminari in defeat.

Uraraka, just as Izuku is about to reach her, suddenly floats up.

Oh, he thinks with absolute delight. He's been so excited to see her Quirk in action. He watches her for a moment, a little awe-struck, kind of forgetting where he is.

And then she presses her fingertips together, and Izuku, very suddenly, has a daunting sensation. He hasn't been watching her. He doesn't know what she's releasing — and it's clearly not going to be herself. In that moment, he quickly leaps forward before she can even blink, using 80% again in an attempt to cover for his mistake, and strikes her out.

But it doesn't stop her Quirk from being in use now that she's activated it.

He looks up. Sees it just a split second before he hears it — Kacchan throwing himself down into a spiral of pure power, surrounded by plenty of debris that's coming down right on top of him.

Oh, god. Aizawa is going to have his head for not paying attention to his surroundings.

He leaps back, but has to blast through some of the debris with One For All so that nothing actually strikes him. His vision is obscured, the debris becomes smokey and hazy, hard to see through properly.

He blasts through it all, but then there's Kacchan, heading right for him.

Nope. Still not ready for this.

But he has no choice now.

He'd love to jump up and meet Kacchan in the air. He's more comfortable there now, after spending so much time working on Float with Oboro, but he's still only allowed to show strength and speed. But he can't. He shouldn't.

Instead, he winds up a kick, foot dragging across the ground as he gains momentum before he strikes it upwards. The blast of air knocks Kacchan back, but he's quick to correct himself in the air, coming down faster now. Izuku leaps back, trying to get some distance, but Kacchan closes it quickly.

His explosions look different. He's moving faster than Izuku has ever seen before.

"This isn't what you fucking showed me," Kacchan grits out when he's close enough, both of them engaging in something more like brutalised hand-to-hand with their Quirks in play.

"Oops," Izuku says, winding a punch back. Kacchan swings at his arm, stopping a lot of the momentum, but it still gives Izuku a bit more distance.

He panicked, when he showed Kacchan. He definitely panicked. Blackwhip is just easier to demonstrate. And easier with the story about his mum, too. But he's an idiot.

God. Aizawa's definitely going to groan when he hears about Izuku's first day. And then, hopefully, he'll decide that Izuku may as well just use Blackwhip at U.A and help him come up with some kind of cover story.

"Where's the other one, then?" Kacchan asks. But it's strange, because it doesn't sound... it doesn't sound mean. It doesn't sound like he's goading Izuku, trying to make him reveal something he doesn't want to. He's just curious — a little demanding, sure, a little gruff, but Kacchan's always been like that. Wanting all the answers to things he doesn't know.

"Uh, not in play?" Izuku meekly tries, landing a kick, finally, on Kacchan. Only to remember he's meant to hit the damn button.

Okay. This is not going as well or as easy as Izuku hoped. He's going to be out of breath by the time he finally gets to Hitoshi.

"The fuck does that even mean?" Kacchan complains. "Fucking— what the hell is this, Deku?"

"Uh. I'll explain later," Izuku says, grimacing when one of Kacchan's explosions gets a little too close.

It's gritty and dirty, but finally, finally, Izuku has a moment to think. Gets a moment to reorientate himself. Finally pries open a hole and a chance and strikes out Kacchan.

"What the fuck," Kacchan says, stunned, taking a seat on his ass in shock.

"Um. Okay. I'm off to find Hitoshi," Izuku says.

Everyone in the class, sitting on the sidelines and out of danger of the fight, suddenly stands up. They're meant to head off the field and back to Midnight, if he remembers the rules correctly, but instead they all announce that they're following him to watch. Even Kacchan puts his hands in his pockets and follows along with a scoff.

They give Izuku a bit of a wide berth, and he hears them whispering, but he has to roll back his shoulders and try and focus. He has to tell himself he knows why they're whispering — it's because he's just demonstrated that level of power, and they're obviously curious about his connection to Hitoshi and Eraserhead. They're not whispering mean things about him. They're just curious.

He clenches his fists and walks forward.

Hitoshi said to come and find him, but Izuku realises that's probably going to be the hardest part of this fight yet. Or, at least, he assumes so, but then he turns a corner and suddenly Hitoshi is right there, standing in the middle of the street.

"Hey," Hitoshi says with a grin. He points up, showing that they're the only two faces on the holographic screen. "Congrats on the, you know, total decimation of our class. I hope it was recorded."

Izuku shrugs. He isn't sure. A few of them groan behind him at the mention of their defeat, but Hitoshi's eyes don't flicker away from Izuku. Hitoshi tilts his head. Considers him.

"Did you get it out of your system?" Hitoshi asks, referring to Kacchan.

Izuku raises his hand in a so-so motion, still refusing to verbally answer. He's probably going to have a lot to talk about with Kacchan, but, admittedly, the fighting had been something like cathartic. It was nice to finally be on Kacchan's level.

And it was fun, too.

Hitoshi grins. "Well, looks like it wasn't too easy for you. Want a minute?"

Izuku glares. Hitoshi's smile remains, and he interlocks his fingers and stretches his arms up lazily.

"No Quirks?" Hitoshi offers. Izuku's energy is still burning, and he doesn't want to quite let go of the excitement of One for All just yet, he finds. Hitoshi lowers his arms, staring at him. Seeing right through him. He then raises his hands and starts to sign.

Let's give them a show, Midoriya. You don't seem too talkative, and it'll be no fun for anyone if you wipe the floor with me as well.

Izuku goes to laugh, but he manages to slap a hand over his mouth to stop the noise before it can escape.

Fine, he signs back. No Quirks.

Hitoshi nods in agreement, shifting his weight back, and then drops his capture scarf on the ground. No Quirks — no items, either. Just a proper hand-to-hand fight. Izuku shakes out his hands, rolls his neck to either side, and then walks forward. The class behind him are silent, and Izuku forgets that they're there now.

Hitoshi and Izuku walk towards each other, and then, when they're a few steps away, begin to circle each other. Watching each other, waiting for a misstep, waiting for an opening.

Neither of them gives it. Hitoshi decides to take the first dive, closing the distance between them.

Izuku would prefer to keep distance, but Hitoshi presses forward and isn't giving him that kind of leverage. They both know how each other fights, all too well, and they're trying to cover their own weakness while exploiting each other's.

Izuku swings, and Hitoshi swiftly ducks and dodges, sending back his own. Izuku blocks it, going lower, but Hitoshi is right there to meet him. Forces his focus higher. They're both breathing heavily in moments, and Izuku's starting to realise that fucking ow, Kacchan has actually managed to get him in a few places.

When Hitoshi finds a weak point, he aims right for it. Sharp, fast, and vicious. Izuku, for just a moment, compares him to a snake.

He's barely able to cover for himself. He still can't get distance — Hitoshi doesn't let him.

It starts to get brutal. Desperate. They're both used to fighting like this. Gritty, even bloody. Their arms and legs aching, sides hurting, bruises already forming from the force they're striking with.

Hitoshi wants the fight to remain high, but Izuku wants it low. He manages to finally sweep out Hitoshi's legs, but Hitoshi is surprisingly quick to grapple on top of him. They wrestle on the ground, both trying to hit each other's buttons to knock each other out of the fight, but neither of them is successful.

"Come on, Midoriya," Hitoshi grunts out, but he's grinning as he grabs Izuku's shirt and goes for a swing. "Not tired yet, are you?"

"You wish," Izuku heaves through breaths. Immediately, he thinks whoops, realising he's just spoken. But Hitoshi sticks to his word, and he doesn't pull him under his control.

Izuku scrambles back, but Hitoshi presses forward, following him. Izuku manages to flip Hitoshi for a moment, but then Hitoshi slips through his grasp.

"Have I ever told you," Izuku pants, "that you remind me of a snake?"

Hitoshi laughs — more of a sharp bark than anything. "No. Should I be offended?"

"No," Izuku laughs as well. He can taste blood on his tongue. He wonders if Midnight is going to end the fight before they're able to. "Snakes are cool."

"They're terrifying, but alright, sure," Hitoshi manages to say. "Hey. Did you at least get a solid punch right into Bakugou's face?"

"Hitoshi!" Izuku says, appalled at the utter delight Hitoshi seems to take from the prospect.

"What! I think he deserves a good punch in the face after, you know, everything!" Hitoshi argues back. "I'm sure he'd probably do the same to his middle school self!"

"Hitoshi, oh my god," Izuku chokes, kind of in a laugh.

And then he trips. Right over his own feet.

Hitoshi wastes no time. He pounces before Izuku can cover himself.

Izuku's button is hit. He's looking up at the sky, and he's able to see the way his face disappears from the dome projected above them. Hitoshi's face moves to the centre, declared as the winner.

"That," Izuku pants out, deciding he can just stay on the ground for a while, "was so embarrassing."

He kind of hopes the ground rises up and swallows him, actually. Hitoshi laughs. Doesn't even hold out a hand to help him up — just collapses right beside Izuku and lets his head fall back, looking up at the ceiling, grinning as he sees his own declared winner status.

"For the class? Yeah, I mean, kind of embarrassing for them to get absolutely wiped," Hitoshi says.

Izuku swats at him. Manages to accidentally hit a tender spot which makes Hitoshi groan in complaint, and then attempt to whack Izuku right back. They tussle like that, lazily and half-hearted and entirely with laughter, until they remember they aren't alone.

Izuku looks around and realises the entire class has gotten closer to them. They've surrounded them in a circle, all of them looking at the two of them on the ground with a mix of emotions.

Kaminari starts clapping. Kirishima starts laughing, too. Iida and Uraraka come over and extend out their hands and help Hitoshi and Izuku to their feet.

"That was crazy," one of their classmates say. Izuku's back is hit — in the same kind of way that Hizashi and Oboro hit him when they're laughing, or when they're trying to congratulate him for something. He's surrounded with that kind of encouragement from the class. They're not whispering about him, talking behind his back. They're talking to him, all of their excited voices tumbling over each other. They're smiling. Friendly.

He sees Kacchan, just a little outside the circle — not far. He, too, has people around him. He dips his head at Izuku in acknowledgment.

They'll talk about it later, Izuku knows.

But for now, Izuku is able to soak up the feeling of his classmates surrounding him with their support and excitement, and he thinks that he's going to be just fine, here at U.A.