Chapter Text
Tenko trudged down the street, his blood covered hands scratching at his arms. Several people had already rushed past him, or promised him that a hero would come help him, before leaving him alone. He stumbled and fell, careful to keep his hands from touching the ground. As he started to stand, he heard a small voice, “Hey, are you okay?”
Tenko looked up to see a boy his age with fluffy green hair and bright green eyes offering his hand. Tenko desperately wanted to take it, but he didn’t want to hurt the one person who’d offered to help him in the day and a half since his accident. Tenko tried to speak, but once more the words died in his mouth. The boy just smiled at him, “It’s okay, don’t worry, I’ll go get Mommy, and she can come help. Stay here; I’ll be right back.”
As the boy turned to leave, Tenko desperately reached out, attempting to keep him there. The boy turned back, “It’s okay; I’ll be right back with Mommy. Here,” he said, offering his hand with only his pinky extended, “Pinky promise, I’ll be back.”
Tenko still didn’t want to touch him, but he nodded, acknowledging the boy’s words. The boy nodded back, and turned to run off. Five minutes passed, and Tenko started to worry the boy wouldn’t be back, then he heard, “Mommy, Mommy, over here.”
The boy had returned with his mother, a woman who shared the boy’s green hair and eyes. Tenko looked at the two of them, desperate for any sort of help. The woman frowned, “You poor thing, come here.”
Tenko moved hesitantly towards the woman, still keeping his hands wrapped around his arms. The woman bent down and grabbed a wipe out of her bag, “Let’s wipe some of this blood off; then let’s take you to a hospital, okay?”
Tenko nodded, and let the woman wipe the blood off his arms, but when she went to grab his hands, he yanked them away for fear of hurting her. The woman tilted her head to the side, “Alright, we won’t touch your hands, but let’s go get you checked on; that cut on your lip looks like it could get infected.”
Before Tenko could put up any sort of protest, the woman picked him up in her arms, and carried him. She called back to her son, “Izuku, let’s go get him checked on, okay?”
The boy, who Tenko now knew to call Izuku, nodded and followed behind, “Right, Mommy.”
At the hospital the doctors were able to treat Tenko’s lip; they said it’d leave a scar, but it would fade with time. When the doctors tried to touch his hands, Tenko once again ripped them away. The doctors tried again, but Tenko kept resisting. Before anything else could happen, Izuku spoke up, “Hey, do you use your quirk through your hands?”
Tenko was taken aback by the boy, but nodded. The doctors all looked at Izuku with a mixture of shock and awe on their faces. Izuku seemed to be thinking, his hands gripping a notebook, he looked up, “Does… does something bad happen when you use your quirk?”
Tenko acceded by nodding. One of the doctors left the room, and came back with a bunch of cards. Offering one to Tenko, he said, “Can we check a few things? I need you to grab this card with your hand, so we can see what’s happening.”
Tenko hesitantly touched the card, and once all his fingers connected, the card turned to dust.
“
Just like what you did to everyone else.
”
Tenko looked frightfully at the card, turning to the ashes at the end of a cigarette butt. He started shivering violently as he remembered that night. Izuku’s mom came over, and patted his head as she said, “It’s okay, Little One, you’ll be alright.”
Her voice had a sort of soothing effect on him, because he suddenly felt himself in a state of tranquility. The doctor placed another card in his open palm, which only started to turn to dust after it touched all five of his fingers. The doctor apologized for not asking. but noted how Tenko’s quirk required him to touch something with all five fingers to work. The doctor then promised they’d be careful, and Tenko let them examine his hands. When they were done, they wrapped a couple of his fingers up with bandages, so he couldn’t use his quirk.
Several hours passed, and having been fed, Tenko was at the point where he finally felt his voice return. Izuku took this as his opportunity to ask, “Hey, I just realized, we never got your name.”
“Izuku, don’t be rude,” his mother chastised him.
“Sorry, Mommy.” Izuku said remorsefully. Tenko smiled, his voice was still a little raspy, but he answered, “I’m… T-tenko Shimura.”
The woman smiled, “Hello, Tenko, I’m Inko Midoriya; this is my son, Izuku.”
Izuku smiled, causing Tenko to smile too. The sun was beginning to set, when suddenly, a woman with red glasses and an odd outfit came in. Izuku, recognizing the hero, lit up “Mommy, it’s Midnight!”
The woman, known as Midnight, smiled, “You’ve got quite the eye, young man. I’m here because there’s an investigation that started a couple days ago that I believe involves little Tenko here.”
Tenko began panicking; what would they do to him if he told them what happened? Would they blame him? Would he get thrown in jail? Before anything else could happen, Tenko felt small arms wrap around him, “It’s okay, Tenko, even though something scary happened, Midnight and the others will understand. They’ll help you.”
Tenko took a deep breath, though before he could answer, Mrs. Midoriya asked, “What sort of investigation?”
Midnight frowned, “I’ll tell you, ma’am, but I don’t think the boys should hear.”
The green haired woman nodded, and she followed Midnight into the hall.
Inko stared at the heroine in a… rather revealing costume, and asked, “So what’s going on?”
Midnight straightened her glasses, “Yesterday morning, police were called to the home belonging to one Kotaro Shimura, only to find the house in ruins, as if it had been obliterated, reduced to ash.”
Inko gasped at Midnight’s comment, recalling what she’d just seen of little Tenko’s quirk. Midnight continued, “The police were able to identify the remains of Kotaro, his wife Nao, her parents, their daughter Hana, and their pet corgi. At the time they assumed the remains of Kotaro’s son, Tenko, had been buried. Obviously, that’s not the case, as we now know. I was told by the doctors that Tenko’s quirk turned a few cards they had him touch to dust, meaning it was likely as a result of his quirk. Given Tenko’s age, it seems likely that it was a violent quirk awakening. However, we need the full story; normally the police would ask these questions, but I’m already here, and they’ve cleared me to ask them anyway. The doctors also noted that Tenko only seems comfortable when you and your son are close by; will you be okay with him hearing Tenko’s story?”
Inko paused; she didn’t want Izuku to necessarily hear something like that, but she also wanted to make sure Tenko was comfortable as he told the heroine what happened. Breathing out an exasperated sigh, she answered, “We’ll let Izuku decide, if he wants to leave he can. Knowing him, though, he’ll stay.”
Izuku continued to hug Tenko, even after Midnight and Mommy walked out of the room. He looked over to his new blue haired friend, and said, “It’ll be okay, Tenko. Midnight’s an awesome hero; but Mommy says I can’t watch some of her fights because they’re… sug- suggest- suggestive? But either way, she’ll help make sure everything is okay.”
Tenko looked blankly at him, but nodded. A few moments later the adults came back into the room, and Mommy asked, “Izuku, Midnight needs to ask Tenko some questions that could be scary, do you want to wait outside or stay here?”
Izuku looked at Tenko, who whispered so quietly it could barely be heard, “Don’t leave, please.”
Izuku simply squeezed Tenko a little tighter as his answer. Midnight happened to notice this, and asked, “So, Tenko, is your father’s name Kotaro Shimura.”
Izuku saw Tenko nod, the glint in his eyes conveyed several emotions. Midnight then asked her next question, “Do you know what happened at your house two nights ago?”
Tenko once again nodded, his eyes betraying fear at his potential answer. Midnight then asked her final question, “Would you mind telling me what happened? I know it’s probably very scary, but we want to help you, so we need to know.”
Izuku saw Tenko open his mouth to answer, only to choke on his words. The green boy reached down and grabbed his bandaged hand, giving it a squeeze. Crimson eyes met a green pair, and Tenko took a deep breath, “So… my father, he… he hated heroes. Any time someone would mention heroes, he’d get so mad and force me or my sister, Hana, to stay outside until we apologized.”
Izuku simply squeezed a little tighter, and noticed that Mommy was tearing up a little. Tenko resumed, “The other day, Hana and I, we… we went into his office, and saw a picture of him with his mother before she put him up for ad- adop- adoption. She was a hero just like we wanted to be.
“That afternoon I was playing fetch with Mon-chan, when suddenly my father came out and screamed at me for going into his study and looking at the picture. Hana was in tears, and she… she said it was all my fault. My father grabbed me by the shirt, and said how that wasn’t my grandmother in the picture, but a monster who abandoned him. Then he hit me, and forced me to stay outside until dinner.”
Izuku felt the tears well up in his eyes, and he felt Tenko grip his hand even tighter, “As I sat hugging Mon-chan, he suddenly vanished from between my fingers. I saw him on the ground in a puddle of blood. At the time I thought it was a villain. I started to suffocate. Hana came out to apologize, but when she saw Mon-chan, she screamed and started running back towards the house. I reached out for her, desperate for some comfort, but when I touched her, she vanished as well. My mom and grandparents had come outside, and when they saw what happened, my mom ran to embrace me, but I couldn’t control it, I touched the ground and it started to rip apart. As the destruction spread it… it…”
Izuku saw Tenko’s tears start to flow. Hugging Tenko once more, Izuku said, “It’s okay Tenko.”
Tenko cried, “No, no it’s not. I… I… killed them all.”
Mommy came over and hugged Tenko too, Midnight smiled at the gesture, “Tenko, you’ve done a great job so far, can you be brave for those two, and finish really fast for me?”
Tenko nodded, “After… that… my father came outside. He- he saw what happened, and when the destruction continued to spread, he… he hit me with his weed whacker, that’s what happened to my lip. Then I… I jumped at him and grabbed him, and he… he vanished too. Soon the house was gone too. When I finally woke up and realized what I’d done, I ran away. I was hoping someone would help me, but nobody did, they all ran, or promised me a hero would come along to help me. I guess eventually one did; his name is Izuku.”
In that moment, Izuku heard words he’d been desperate to hear for almost a year: he was someone’s hero. He resolved then and there that he’d never stop protecting Tenko from anyone who caused him harm.
Tenko was crying, as were Izuku and his mom, and even Midnight had some tears in her eyes. After a few minutes of everyone crying, Midnight cleared her throat, “That’s all I needed; thank you, Tenko. You were very brave for telling us all that. I’ll probably be back tomorrow to tell you if anything else is going to happen, however, given what you said, it’s not likely.”
Before Midnight could leave, the door opened and a doctor walked in, “I’m sorry to interrupt, but visiting hours are going to be ending soon.”
Tenko’s eyes shot open; visiting hours ending would mean that Izuku and his mom would be forced to leave. What if they didn’t come back? What would happen to him? Before he could ask any more questions, Midnight asked, “Is there any way you can look the other way? The kid doesn’t want to let these two out of his sight. Heck, the boys are practically attached at the hip. I don’t know about you, but I think trying to separate them is easier said than done. I’ll take the heat if anybody makes a fuss.”
The doctor thought for a tick, “Hmmm, I think we can make an exception; we simply want to keep the kid here for tonight to make sure his lip is healing properly. I’ll check to see if I can get a futon brought in for you tonight.”
Midnight and Mrs. Midoriya nodded, and Izuku squealed, “That’s great, Tenko, we can stay here tonight!”
Tenko smiled with Izuku as he returned the hug Izuku was giving him. Midnight smiled, “I’ll be back tomorrow with new information. Stay safe everyone.”
With that, she left. The rest of the night was dedicated to making Tenko feel comfortable. When Tenko was ready to go to sleep, Izuku attempted to get out of the bed, but Tenko insisted that he stay. Izuku soon relented, and the boys were snuggled up as they both fell asleep.
Inko got up off the futon she’d been given, and looked over to see Izuku and Tenko both sound asleep. The pair were hugging each other as if their lives depended on it. She snapped a couple quick pictures before going over to one of the chairs in the room and taking a seat. She scrolled through her phone for about 30 minutes before hearing a knock at the door. Opening it, Inko was greeted by Midnight, who noted the finger over Inko’s mouth, and gestured for her to follow. Once they were in the hall, Midnight spoke, “Mrs. Midoriya, how are you this morning?”
Inko smiled, “Inko’s fine, Midnight. I slept well considering it was the floor. But that’s not important, though, do you have news regarding Tenko?”
Midnight nodded, “I gave the police my report; everything lines up with the accident simply being a violent quirk awakening. It’s unfortunate what happened, but given what Tenko said about his home life, the fact he no longer has to deal with it may be a blessing in disguise.”
Inko gave the woman a perplexed look, “Please, make no mistake, Inko, I don’t mean to speak ill of the dead, but it’s obvious that Tenko’s father was abusive towards both his children. I’m glad Tenko was able to escape that unhealthy environment, even if it happened in such a gruesome fashion.”
Inko then asked the thought that had been plaguing her all morning, “So what happens to Tenko now?”
Midnight sighed, “Kotaro Shimura’s adoptive parents died a few years back, so he has no relatives; the same is true of Nao Shimura, she was an only child, and her parents were both victims of Tenko’s quirk. It’s likely that he’ll be put into the foster system, but…”
“What?” Inko asked worriedly.
“It’s likely that Tenko’s quirk will make it very difficult for him to be fostered, much less adopted.” Midnight answered remorsefully.
Inko felt her heart drop for a second. Tenko had just gone through something she wouldn’t wish upon anyone. If it were her, she’d want to be surrounded by people who could comfort her. Tenko wouldn’t find that in some orphanage. Then, an idea popped into her head, “Well, I could adopt Tenko.”
Midnight lit up at the idea, “Would you really?”
Inko nodded, “Yes, I’m actually adopted myself. Not a day goes by where I’m not thankful for my mother. I always knew if I never had a child of my own, I’d adopt one so that a child would be able to grow up surrounded by people who loved him.”
“But, what about your husband?” Midnight noted.
“My ‘husband’, if I can even call him that, left us after he learned about Izuku’s-” Inko slapped her hand over her mouth to silence herself.
Midnight raised an eyebrow, and Inko answered, “Izuku, he’s quirkless. My bastard of a husband, Hisashi, left for America less than a month after we learned. Just last week he filed for divorce, perfect timing, I guess.”
The heroine hummed, “I guess so. The hospital wants to discharge Tenko today, and if you want to adopt him, he can go home with you today. I’ll talk to the police about streamlining the adoption process to see what will happen to all of Kotaro’s assets, but there’s a good chance that they’ll end up in your possession. Thank you, Inko, you’re amazing. Please, call me Nemuri.”
Inko smiled, “You’ve been an amazing help, Nemuri, so thank you. Now, I’m going to go see if the boys are awake so I can give them the good news.”
Tenko woke up, surrounded by a warmth he’d never felt before. He opened his eyes to a sea of green, remembering the events of yesterday, how Izuku had found him, how his mom had brought him to the hospital and they stayed the night. His arms were still wrapped around Izuku sensing he was a personal life preserver, an action Izuku had mirrored on him. A few minutes later, green eyes shot open to greet his crimson eyes. It was only now the two separated, each sitting up to stretch their arms and yawn loudly. Neither of the boys could see Izuku’s mom, so the green boy hopped off the bed, and walked around the small room to see if she was there. When she wasn’t in sight, they figured she must have gone to the bathroom, and they sat in comfortable silence. Ten minutes later the door opened, and Izuku’s mom walked in the room with Midnight right behind her. Tenko’s heart started pounding like it was going to beat out of his chest; he was so nervous. Midnight seemed to notice his plight, and calmed him, “It’s okay Tenko; I’m here with news, both good and bad.”
Tenko frowned a little, and Izuku ran over and hopped back on the bed with him. Midnight smiled, “So the good news is that your story yesterday helped close the investigation, and no further action will be taken.”
Tenko breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he wasn’t in trouble for what he did to his family.
“They don’t know what you really did.”
“However, the bad news is that you have no living relatives, so you’ll be put into the foster system.” Midnight said, seemingly begrudgingly, before her frown turned into a smile, “Fortunately for you, however, a lovely family has agreed to adopt you.”
Tenko was immediately ecstatic, but also noticed how Izuku looked like he might cry. Turning his attention back to Midnight, he asked, “Really? When can I meet them?”
Midnight smirked, “You already have.”
Tenko was confused, but before he could ask another question, he was glomped on by Izuku. The green haired boy looked at him with absolute joy, his eyes shimmering in the light, and his smile blindingly bright. Tenko was still confused, but then Izuku cried out, “Isn’t that great, Tenko? We get to be brothers!”
It was only then that Tenko figured out what Midnight meant. His eyes welled up with tears as he returned Izuku’s hug, “Yeah, brothers.”