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The wheels of the cart rumbled out a solemn dirge as the undertaker dragged his load across the cobblestones. People lined the streets, keeping a respectful distance while simultaneously leaning in to get a look as if the white sheet were a novelty. Anatevka had seen too much death, but still people couldn’t resist the urge to stop and stare. Shouta wondered if any of them really thought that they could tell who it was just from the shape.
Eventually the whisper made its way through the crowd and the wondering ceased.
“Midoriya.”
The apothecary. Well… the apothecary’s wife technically, but her husband had up and disappeared to another town one day leaving her to adapt to the trade he’d left behind. She’d done a decent job. Midoriya Inko had been well-respected.
Shouta knew that she’d been sick. She’d never been more than an acquaintance to him, but she and Toshinori had been good friends. It was pointless to wonder if he had ever wanted her to be anything more.
“Shame.” Shouta glanced at Bakugou Mitsuki standing next to him. Her face was a mask of indifference, but there was something in her eyes that betrayed her. She was more upset by this than she was willing to admit. “Guess we’re without an apothecary now. Nobody better get sick.”
“That’s not something anyone can help.”
Bakugou grunted. “You going to the claiming? Bet they’ll expect you to be there.”
Shouta considered for a moment, but shook his head. “There’s nothing that my family needs.”
“Yeah,” she let out a harsh laugh. “You don’t need another kid, that’s for sure.”
Shouta jolted and looked at her. He dimly registered that the crowd around them had dispersed, many heading north to Midoriya’s house. His horse was tugging on the lead rope, apparently getting antsy by the people moving about.
“Midoriya had a kid?”
“Yeah. Izuku. He’s my boy’s age.” Bakugou practically read his mind. “Yagi, you’ve got three already. No one’s going to blame you if you skip this one.”
Shouta hesitated. Bakugou could be right. There were plenty of other people who could take the boy in. Couples who couldn’t reproduce naturally assumed responsibility for orphans and while same-sex couples were a minority, they weren’t rare. If Shouta weren’t to make an appearance, surely no one would notice.
Of course, this all had to happen on the day that Shouta came into town in Toshinori’s stead. He’d already dropped Mirio, Ochako, and Hitoshi off at the schoolhouse and was making his rounds with deliveries. If Toshinori were the one here, Shouta was positive that they would have another child by the end of the day. That was how they’d gotten the first three. Toshinori just couldn’t say no. Shouta would though. They didn’t need another mouth to feed.
On the other hand, the news would get back somehow and he would be upset to find out that Shouta didn’t attend a claiming, especially Midoriya’s. That would be a headache. But if Shouta went and it was decided that Midoriya Izuku would be better off somewhere else…
Sensing an opportunity, Shouta made his decision. “I’ll make an appearance.” He had no intention of claiming the child. Hopefully, it would send a message to Toshinori. No more children.
Bakugou agreed to watch his horse for him while he made his way across town. She wished him good luck.
“And if you want to grab her copper kettle for me while you’re there, I wouldn’t mind,” she said with a wave. Shouta had no intention of doing that either.
He wasn’t sure exactly which house was Midoriya’s, but it was made clear by the crowd spilling out the doorway as he approached. Shouta frowned when he saw the people. Almost every one of them was holding some odd or end. Candlesticks, a tablecloth, pillows. Had the child already found a new home then?
There was enough room for Shouta to elbow his way inside. He was immediately greeted by a high-pitched laugh and unwelcome arms thrown around his torso.
“Shouta! Long time no see!”
“That was on purpose.” Shouta didn’t bother keeping the bite out of his voice. Unfortunately, it did nothing to dissuade Fukukado.
“You’re so funny!”
Of course, it was just his luck that today happened to be the day her wife had control of the classroom. There wasn’t room to disentangle himself, so Shouta settled for ignoring her and looking around. Every cupboard was open. Every surface was bare. The few items that were left were being snatched up quickly. The only thing untouched was a table with a white tablecloth smeared over it.
Someone moved and he was able to shove Fukukado off of him and put several people in between them, which led to him bumping into Kan, a butcher. The man had several knives in his fist and was looking over the rest of the silverware drawer.
“Yagi! It’s been a while.”
“Not long enough,” Shouta said under his breath. He found the man unpleasant to be around given that some way or another he managed to turn everything into a competition. This was becoming more painful by the minute. Outwardly, he gave a polite nod and a pinched smile.
“Better grab whatever you want before someone else does,” Kan said.
“Who did Midoriya end up going to?” Shouta asked out of mere curiosity.
“Huh?”
Shouta leveled a flat look at him. “The child?”
“Oh!” Kan shrugged. “Don’t know. No one’s claimed him yet.”
Shouta froze. He stared at Kan as if he’d just spoken in a foreign language. The other man was completely oblivious to it, picking up a fork, examining it and stuffing it into his pocket.
“No one’s claimed the child yet?” Shouta said through gritted teeth. It took Kan a moment to realize Shouta was still speaking to him.
“Huh? Oh, yeah. I’m sure someone will soon.”
Shouta rotated slowly on the spot, taking in his swarm of neighbors. He knew that if there was a child, they were supposed to be claimed first before anyone took any possessions. And yet, as soon as Midoriya Inko was gone, they’d each swooped in to greedily stuff their pockets before even considering the one living thing she’d left behind. The one thing that needed a new home. Were claimings always like this? He felt sick.
He finally turned back to Kan. “Where’s the boy?”
Kan pointed carelessly to the covered table. Shouta elbowed people out of the way, probably with more force than was necessary, but damn, did it feel good. He crouched and lifted the sheet.
Emerald green eyes—the most vivid Shouta had ever seen—probed his own as soon as he did. The boy was huddled against the wall, pressed against it as flat as he could be. It made his unruly green hair splay out against the wall, reminding Shouta of an animal raising its hackles when faced with an attacker. But the boy’s face betrayed any intention of fighting. His eyes were as wide as the moon and tears slid in waves down his face. His lip was quivering. It took Shouta a minute to realize that he was actually saying something, mumbling it out.
“I can’t hear you.”
“is… is Mo-mommy…”
Shouta took a moment to recall what Bakugou had said his given name was. “Izuku, I’m afraid I can’t take you to see your mommy right now.”
“I-is sh-she… uh… is she…”
Through the stammering, stumbling, and whispering, Shouta finally managed to decipher the question.
Is she awake yet?
Realization hit him like a boulder crashing against his ribs. The child was probably the one to find his mother this morning. No one had told him the reality.
Shouta didn’t believe in hiding the truth, only in breaking the fall. The boy wouldn’t be better off believing he would see his mother again someday.
“No,” Shouta said making his voice as gentle as possible. “She’s not going to wake up.”
Shouta’s heart clenched as fresh tears sprang to the boy’s eyes. He buried his head into his arms as his little shoulders shook with sobs.
Shouta shifted, trying to get a little more comfortable without getting too close. His head brushed against the low table and his shoulders were hunched. He probably looked ridiculous from the outside, but he couldn’t give it too much thought.
Eventually, Midoriya lifted his head again. He didn’t quite look Shouta in the eye, but his mouth was moving, forming another question. Shouta waited patiently for the words to stumble out.
“Is she gone like Daddy?”
Shouta vaguely remembered the storm of gossip that followed the abrupt disappearance of the apothecary’s husband. With the hurricane of negativity directed at his back, it was probably safe to assume that he wasn’t returning.
“She’s not in the same place as him, but yes. They’re both gone.”
“W-why?”
Shouta sighed. “I think your mother would come back if she could. But she can’t. She’s gone to a place that no one can come back from.”
“B-but I want her to w-want her to come back,” the boy said. “Why can’t she?”
Shouta didn’t know if even he could explain death to a four-year-old. He shifted so that he could cross his legs as he thought about his answer.
“Did your mom teach you about One For All?” Midoriya nodded. “He and the wielders need her now. They’ve taken her to a place far away from here and they’re going to take care of her.”
“And she can’t come back? Why can’t they bring her back?”
Shouta winced slightly. That was the trouble with believing in a higher power. It was easy to criticize them when things went wrong.
“There are things we can’t change.”
The boy didn’t really respond to that. If possible, he scrunched up even more, but as he stared at the floor, Shouta got the impression he was thinking it over. He leaned toward the boy and took it as a good sign when he didn’t try to scoot away.
“It’s scary. I know it is. You’re not going to be alone for long, I promise.”
“I want Mommy,” the boy sniffled.
“I’m sorry,” Shouta said. “I can’t make that happen.”
He waited for a tantrum or more tears, but instead the boy rubbed his eyes and clambered to his feet. He wasn’t tall enough for his head to brush the underside of the table. He tottered forward and collapsed to his knees right next to Shouta, reaching out with pudgy hands to grasp his sleeve.
“You’re nice.”
It wasn’t the word usually used to describe Shouta, but he wasn’t about to argue. “You caught me on a good day.”
Izuku scrunched up his nose as if he were trying to figure that one out. After a moment, he gave up and leaned against Shouta more. “Can you stay with me?”
The question held a heavier implication than it appeared on the surface. Shouta stalled, pretending to mull it over, but if he was honest with himself, he’d made his decision the moment he lifted the tablecloth.
“No, but you can come with me.”
“Where?”
“You can come live with me. Only if you want to though.”
Izuku didn’t even hesitate to nod. He crawled into Shouta’s lap and clung to the front of his shirt. Shouta wrapped his arms securely around him, but as he made a move to stand, Izuku let out a whimper.
“I don’t wanna… scary…”
He’s afraid of all the people, Shouta realized. He hugged him tighter. “I’ll keep you safe. I promise.”
Heads turned as Shouta emerged, but he ignored the questioning looks. He only made a quick stop in the bedroom to gather Izuku’s things which amounted to a few spare clothes and a threadbare stuffed bunny. Whether that was really all he had or everything else had “mysteriously” disappeared, Shouta didn’t know, but if he stopped to ponder it he might combust with rage. He stuffed the items under his arm and swiftly headed out. The crowd parted for him as he went.
If there were any objections, he didn’t hear them.
Bakugou raised an eyebrow when she saw the little bundle of green in his arms. “Thought you weren’t claiming anything.”
Shouta untied his horse from the tethering pole outside her shop and nestled Izuku into the cart. Deliveries could be cut short today, he decided.
“If I die, burn everything,” he said to Bakugou. “Don’t let them have any of it.”
She threw her head back and cackled. “Saw how those things go, huh? Even after you die you’ll survive on spite.”
“It’s gotten me this far.”
“Hey, you didn’t nab that kettle for me?”
“Someone else had already taken it.” He hadn’t paid enough attention to know whether or not that was true, but for some reason he knew Bakugou would get a kick out of him defying her. She was crazy that way. Still, he gave her a nod of thanks and led the horse toward the school, looking over his shoulder every once in a while to check on Izuku. The boy was quiet, gazing around at everything with wide eyes. Shouta let him be. He would have a lot to adjust to.
Ochako and Hitoshi were more than happy to be taken out of school early, but Mirio lingered, trying to spend a few more minutes with Amajiki before Shouta’s pointed glare got him moving. Soon though, all three of them were chattering excitedly in the back of the cart telling Izuku all about the farm. Ochako loudly proclaimed that she was going to make Izuku a flower crown as a welcome gift, but Shouta couldn’t tell him because it was a surprise. He solemnly swore himself to secrecy.
The farm was in sight when Mirio leaned over the edge of the cart, resting his chin on his elbows and looked meaningfully up at Shouta.
“Whaddya suppose Papa will say?”
Shouta smiled to himself. Toshinori certainly hadn’t asked his opinion in adopting three orphans before. Really, it was only fair that he receive the same treatment.
“Frankly, it doesn’t matter what he says. Izuku’s part of the family now and there’s nothing he can do about it.”