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"Fuck, that hurts like a bitch" Izuku grimaced, nose scrunching and thoroughly regretting not paying attention to his surroundings enough. He had gotten a bat to the back of the head and bruised ribs as a result, as well as getting slammed into a wall by some thug who got lucky.. This was clearly not his day.
"Good. Maybe it'll teach you some damn self preservation"
Izuku rolled his eyes at the voice coming from behind him, hissing as the bandages around his head were tightened painfully.
"Like he'd ever get that simple concept through his thick skull" Another voice came from his left, this one smoother and calmer, though with a teasing lilt.
Dark green eyes glared into hetechromatic ones as Shoto sniggered at him from his place on a small wooden stool, bringing a cigarette to his pink lips and inhaling, before exhaling smoke out and straight into Izuku's glaring face.
Izuku sputtered and coughed smoke out of his lungs, turning his head away and waving a hand infront of his face as Shoto bit his lip in amusement.
"Hey, i said no smoking in the house" Kacchan huffed, yanking again at the bandages around Izuku's head causing him to yelp in pain "And for the love of god stop squirming nerd."
He heard Kacchan repositioning himself from where he was perching at the edge of the bathtub Izuku was currently sitting in, in their tiny, freezing cold bathroom, and continuing to bandange his head.
"Okay okay, just please stop pulling!" He grimaced as his hair was yanked back, Kacchan pulling at the dried blood and brushing it off.
"Besides you're one to talk, you both look just as bad as i do" Izuku scoffed, guesturing to the fact that all three of them were currently shirtless and covered head to toe in bloody bandages.
He eyed the gauze patch taped to Shoto's cheek and the ratty bandages around his shoulder and chest, noting how his ribs stuck out, finally bringing his eyes back up to Shoto's face and seeing him raise an eyebrow at him, taking another puff of the cigarette.
"Thats because you were a moron and rushed in without thinking, like you always do" Kacchan grumbled from above him, bandaged thighs nudging his cheeks gently as he finished bandaging his head and hopped off the edge of the tub, grabbing what was left of the old bandages and packing it back into the small first aid kit.
Izuku watched as he then marched over to Shoto and snatched the cigarette from his hand as he tried to bring it to his lips once again.
"Hey!" Shoto protested as he stood up hurredly, trying to snatch it back while also being mindful of Kacchans own injuries, namely the bandages around his neck, abdomen and thighs.
Eventually he gave up as Kacchan managed to dodge him and headed out into the hallway, glaring at Izuku as he snickered and hurrying after him, but not before sticking his tongue out childishly.
Izuku rolled his eyes again and heaved himself up from the now bloody bathtub, grimacing as he glanced at the mess they had left. Blood spattered the tiles, walls, even the damn ceiling had specks of blood.
He was definitely not excited to clean that up, deciding to ignore the mess for now and following Shoto and Kacchan, grabbing an old shirt along the way.
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Izuku watched as Shoto sighed, slumping down onto the faded blue couch, dual colored hair falling into his eyes as he leaned back.
He passed by and ran a hand through Shoto's hair as he cracked an eye open watching him, pausing briefly against his left side for warmth as the freezing cold bathroom did nothing to help the autumn chill
It was tradition though, after a particularly difficult fight or when one of them was injured, they would all convene in the small, usually bloody bathroom and patch eachother up, though this particular fight had been the result of his own stupidity and impatience.
Izuku sighed against Shoto's uninjured cheek as a wave of guilt washed over him, You're an idiot Izuku, this is all your fault
Straightening up and mourning the loss of heat, Shoto glanced at him silently from the corner of his eye as he continued padding towards where Kacchan, the angel, had started to prepare dinner in the small kitchen.
Wetting the edge of the old shirt he had grabbed previously under the sink, he started dabbing at the spots of blood all over Kacchans' body from patching all three of them up, though he knew his own body was covered in dried blood as well. Leaning his head against the nape of his neck, Izuku slung his arms around Kacchan's slim waist in a silent apology.
He had been impatient and rushed in without thinking, getting all three of them beat up as a result.
Kacchan had just spent hours bandaging them, and they were low on medical supplies. He'd have to go buy some, but that meant they might not have enough money for food for a couple of days. That was bad. Kacchan and Shoto were already skinny enough, all jutting hips and bones.
He knew he was too, but he didn't care as much. Not for the first time he wondered how they were going to survive the winter, but he was determined to make it work.
Izuku whispered a quiet "sorry" blinking back tears as his eyelashes brushed the strong back he was leaning against. Kacchan was quiet as he stirred the pot of soup simmering on the stove.
To Izuku's relief after a moment he sighed, shoulders slumping as he turned around to cup his cheeks and just looked at him, searching his face with crimson eyes. Izuku stared back, dark green meeting red before Kacchan relented, winding his arms around his neck for one of his rare, soft hugs.
"I assume i'm forgiven then?" Izuku mumbled into Kacchans' shoulder.
Kacchan scoffed " Just sit down and wait for the food nerd"
"Yessir"
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Izuku was an idiot. He was such a goddamn idiot. He could practically hear Kacchan raging about how he told him so, how he shouldn't have gone out to fight crime while injured, because of course he would would get himself into trouble.
His injuries from the night before had made him sloppy, and the thug he was fighting had gotten a lucky hit on his bruised ribs, but that wasn't the part that concerned him.
He didn't even have time to react- just froze as he saw the glint of metal and the shout of "PROBLEM CHILD!" Before a BANG went off and Eraserhead grunted in pain, scraping against the floor roughly and stopping just shy of Izuku's feet.
Izuku was still for half a second before coming back to his senses and immediately dodging as another BANG sounded, a bullet wizzing past his cheek.
He ducked and ran furiously toward the thug he had been fighting, who had apparently gotten fed up of having the shit beat out of him and had pulled the gun out. Probably thought he could take Izuku because of his size, he scoffed, though he could admit that sometimes underestimating him came in handy.
Lighning quick he sharply kicked the gun out of the guy's hand and punched him hard in the jaw, making him stagger back and falter for a second, which was all Izuku needed to slam his head hard with his bat, knocking him out instantly.
Izuku stood there in the dimly lit alley for a second, panting as he felt the adrenalin begin to leave him. He immediately spun around as he heard Eraserhead groan in pain, skidding to a stop and kneeling down on his knees. He hovered above him, unsure of what to do.
Oh god, oh god he's hurt, he was shot, what do i do I should-
"Problem child. Calm down. Focus."
Did he say that out loud?
"You're telling me to focus?!" Izuku felt half hysterical as he started ripping his hoodie with shaking hands to have something to stem the blood flow. Okay, calm down Izuku, this is fine, you're fine, everyone is fine. Just calm down and stop the bleeding.
Eraserhead sqeezed his eyes shut and grimaced as he applied pressure. Izuku scanned his face, searching for any sign that he was gonna pass out. He probably had a concussion too from the way he fell and hit his head on the concrete.
This was all so disconcerting, he wasn't used to seeing Eraser like this, hell he didn't even know if he'd ever seen Eraserhead injured. He always seemed so untouchable, even when he managed to evade him.
But now he was panting on the dirty ground, blood soaking his clothes as his face twisted in pain, and Izuku was panicking, his ears were ringing and his mind was fuzzy. He couldn't think.
"Y-you need to take me to the hospital- or the police. Somewhere i can get medical attention." Eraserhead grunted out as Izuku pressed down on his abdomen.
No-no i can't, what if they try to stop me from leaving, or arrest me? Izuku knew he wasn't thinking straight, knew he should take Eraserhead to the hospital before he actually dies of blood loss or a concussion, but all he could think about was Kacchan. Amazing, sweet Kacchan who always knows what to do and always patches him and Shoto up.
Izuku looked up, dark bangs were covering his eyes as his hands weren't free to brush them out of the way but as he scanned the street he found he recognized it, they weren't far from their apartment.
I can make it there
It was the hysteria and panic, Izuku was sure. He had never even considered letting Eraserhead meet Shoto or Kacchan.
As nice as Eraserhead was, he still wanted to catch him, either to arrest him or force him to become a hero like he always insisted he could be Izuku didn't know, but he wouldn't dream of letting anyone he didn't absolutely trust near either of them.
Which is why he had no idea what he was thinking when he started dragging Eraser onto his back, grunting at his weight as he staggered for a second before regaining his balance, and began plodding hurredly in the direction of the apartment.
"W-what the hell are you doing problem child?" Eraser demanded behind him, though he could tell he could tell he was on the verge of passing out.
Izuku ignored him and focused on not buckling under the weight of a grown man, god his legs felt shakey.
It was only when he actually saw the apartment door that his mimd suddenly cleared, maybe i should have called an ambulance...
But it was too late for that, and besides they would have started asking him questions he did NOT want to answer.
So Izuku took a deep breath, shifting Eraser on his back a little when he realized he had gone silent.
Shit, he must have passed out, not good. Izuku kicked the peeling brown door as hard as he could, waiting for the shuffling inside
"It's me Kacchan, please let me in" he called desperately.
Hearing the click of the lock, he looked up into crimson eyes as Kacchan took in the scene on his front door.
Izuku in his vigilante gear, carrying a bloody pro hero on his back.
"What the actual fuck." He deadpanned.
"Look i know what you're thinking-"
"Do you? Because right now i'm thinking a lot of things and not one of them is good" Kacchan snarled at the same time Shoto popped his head up behind him.
"What's going on?" He asked quietly as Izuku pushed past him hurredly and made a beeline for the bathroom, yelling at them to get the first aid kit.
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Shota was going to kill that kid.
He didn't remember much, just the beginning of the fight, watching the problem child have a gun pulled on him and the resulting bang.
Then it was just flashes of pain, he remembered the feeling of plodding up and down like someone was carrying him, and at some point he must have passed out from the pain. Waking up briefly, red eyes and blonde hair- wait that wasn't right, problem child had green eyes-
His eyes flew open as he sat up quickly, wincing at the sharp twinge of pain in his abdomen as his head spun, looking down and seeing bandages stained red.
Immediately he glanced around at his unfamiliar surroundings, taking in the faded blue couch he was lying on, the small kitchen behind him and the hallway past that.
Where the hell am I?
But he had a feeling he knew when he heard arguing coming from the end of the narrow hallway, carefully standing up as to not aggrivate his injuries too much.
Creeping quietly towards the voices which were growing louder with every step, he recognized problem child's voice arguing with a deeper more gravely one who sounded furious.
"-I don't give a flying fuck what you were thinking, i cannot believe you! You're the one always talking about never letting anyone in, and yet you bring a goddamn hero back to our home!"
"I know Kacchan, i know, it was stupid and all i could think about was that i couldn't just take him to the hospital, so i panicked okay?" Problem child sounded apologetic and anxious.
Shota then decided to make his presence known by pushing open the door and leaning against the door frame, startling the three children inside.
Because that was what they were- children, all three of them shirtless and covered in boody bandages that looked old, covering way too skinny cheeks and chests and thighs.
Problem child stared at him with wide green eyes from his place inside the bloody tub, a blonde boy perched behind him on the edge, tending to a head wound he didn't even realize the problem child had.
"So, wanna tell me why the hell you brought me to your house instead of the hospital?" He asked calmly, though he was anything but.
He chose to leave the conversation of 'what are three clearly injured and underweight teenagers doing living alone in a barely habitable apartment? As well as the fact that all three of them look like they were attacked by a wild bear' for later, even as he scanned the small bathroom, briefly locking eyes with the third occupant of the room- a boy with dual colored hair and eyes who seemed amused as he watched them from his place on a small wooden stool, cigarette in hand.
Turning his attention back to the problem child as he sighed and got up, to the annoyance of the angry blonde who he payed no mind as he walked up to Shota and looked him in the eyes, taking a deep breath.
There was something in them he had never seen before, a sort of fire that he was sure was in his own eyes when he thought about Hizashi, Eri and Shinsou.
"I brought you here so you wouldn't die. You've been kind to me Eraser, so lets call a truce." Problem child tried to say it firmly, positioning himself so he was shielding the injured blonde from his line of sight, but his voice wobbled as he spoke.
"Stay here for the rest of the day, just to heal for a bit, then we'll take you back. But please, dont try to find out where we are or call anyone." Problem child practically begged, even as he was clearly trying not to.
Shota hesitated, looking at the two injured teens, then back down to problem child's own injured body, that had most likely happened before tonight and had gone out like that.
He supposed he could argue, but he doubted he could knock all three of them out and drag them to a hospital in the state he was in, especially considering he had no idea where he was.
He also knew problem child would most likely never forgive him, so it simply wasn't a logical option.
"Alright" he said simply. "i'll do what you want problem child, for now."
Problem child blinked. "Wait, really?"
Shota sighed "Frankly i don't think i'm in any condition to demand anything right now." He frowned and shook his head slightly as his vision suddenly blurred while talking.
The green haired boy sagged in relief and smiled slightly up at him, then turned back to climb into the tub as the blonde who had been referred to as Kacchan grumbled.
"Are we done now? Everyone happy? Great, you can all shut the fuck up and let me focus"
Before he knew what he was doing Shota placed a gentle hand on a bandaged wrist as the blonde stilled and raised an eyebrow up at him.
"Let me." He hesitated, glancing at problem child cautiously who nodded back at him. The blonde shrugged, handing him the wad of bandages and hopping off the edge, gesturing to the dual boy.
"Cmere" He said gruffly.
Shota focused on swiftly changing the old bandages rather than acknowledging the bloody bathroom that looked like it came straight out of a horror movie. There was blood on the floor, on the walls, even some on the ceiling. It made him squeamish despite being used to seeimg blood, even more so knowing that whenever the problem child was injured he came back to this room.
So much for hoping he had a decent home with loving parents he thought bitterly, cleaning the rather nasty looking wound and applying new bandages.
He finished quickly and watched as the blonde pushed away the other boys' bangs and dabbed at a cut on his forehead.
Problem child nodded at him in thanks, and to Shota's amusment he seemed rather awkward. The blonde- god he should really ask their names, raised a brow again.
"Aren't you gonna introduce us nerd?" He asked rather bitterly.
"O-oh right um yes, Eraserhead this is Kacchan" he gestured to the blonde "and thats Shot- Shochan."
So no real names, just cutesy nicknames, not much to work with but it was fine.
Problem child climbed out of the tub. "Kacchan, would you be an angel and start dinner for us?"
Kacchan scowled, pretty face twisting up "Call me an angel again and i'll beat your ass De-nerd" Shota raised a brow at the slip up.
Yet the blonde still obediently headed out the door, presumably to the kitchen.
Shota turned as the problem child came up next to him and sighed.
"Don't mind Kacchan, he's not really as angry as he portrays-"
"No, but he's pissed as hell at you." 'Shochan' snorted, taking another puff of the cigarette, problem child ignoring him and plucking it from his fingers, causing him to glare and try to grab it back.
"Sho why don't you go and get Eraser settled on the couch? His bandages shouldn't need changing yet." Problem child suggested with a glare, relenting as Sho managed to snatch the cigarette back.
Sho rolled his eyes but got up without protest, suprising Shota by slipping a warm hand into his own, but not before blowing smoke into problem child's face, making him cough and cover his nose.
"Son of a-"
"Woops" Sho shrugged with a smirk, tugging at his hand and guiding him back into the small living room carefully, mindfull of his bullet wound which was starting to ache.
He could probably use some painkillers, but the pain wasn't terrible. It was his mind he was worried about. His head felt concerningly fuzzy and he could barely walk straight. It was also extremely hard to concentrate on basically anything.
He felt someone tug him down to rest on somthing soft- a couch- and thought he heard a huff of amusement as he fell asleep again almost instantly.
Shota barely remembered waking up a few times.
One was to eat, simple rice and miso soup but he was grateful for something to fill his empty stomach.
He had woken up to the mouth watering smell of food as Shota's stomach rumbled in hunger. He blinked dry eyes open, squinting as Sho helped him sit up gently, groaning a little at the sharp pounding headache he was sporting.
Problem child passed by, ruffling Sho's hair and nodding at Shota as he headed over to talk quietly with Kacchan.
He glanced at Sho and found him watching him curiously with dual colored eyes.
"Kacchan's mad that he brought you here. And that he snuck out while injured." The boy explained.
"I see."
"He's talked about you yknow"
"Oh yeah? What has he said?"
"Not much, he doesn't much talk about his outings, but he's mentioned you a couple of times."
Shota hummed "And what about you two? What do you while he's out?" He asked curiously
Sho opened his mouth but was cut off by Problem child covering his mouth with his hand. "Nothing that concerns you."
He had apparently finished conversing as Sho batted his hand away, he plopped onto the small armchair opposite them.
Shota scanned him, noting that other than the head injury, he like the other two was completely shirtless, showcasing multiple bloody bandages around his abdomen and thigh, which looked pretty damn concerning.
"I cannot believe you went out like that" He deadpanned, though he felt his face twist in annoyance.
All those lectures about taking care of himself yet he was still so stubborn.
Problem child narrowed his piercing green eyes "That's really none of your business" he hissed, suprisingly hostile.
Shota blinked.That certainly threw him off, he'd never seen the problem child act like that.
He was usually pretty anxious and timid, though could be incredibly sassy and stubborn at times.
But this hostility was new, he'd only ever probably seen it once, back when they'd first met and he had managed to capture him, attempting to bring him to the police station.
His demeanor had changed immediately, and he had slashed wildly at his capture weapon, dissapearing into the darkness within seconds.
Shota hadn't seen the problem child for weeks after that, and had gotten concerned. When he finally did show up, Shota had apologized, if only to be able to know that the problem child was safe.
He didn't want him to disappear after this was all over either, so he took a deep breath, calming himself and thinking rationally.
He didn't have the energy to argue with the problem child right now, especially with how stubborn he was.
"You're right Problem child, i'm sorry, this is no time to argue. I'm thankful you helped me, don't misunderstand that." He said seriously, staring into green eyes with his own black ones.
Problem child pursed his lips but nodded, looking apologetic but still tense.
The brief silence was broken by Kacchan arriving, holding plates and bowls of steaming rice and soup.
"Food's ready morons, eat up." He glared directly at Shota who raised a brow but dug in nonethless, though he felt bad eating their food when they clearly had so little.
Dinner was spent in relative silence, Sho and problem child helping clean up when they were done.
Shota wanted to help but was sternly told by Kacchan to lie back down and not agrrivate his bullet wound, which he reluctantly agreed to when he tried to get up only to feel a painful twinge and soreness in his abdomen, but a full stomach had lulled him back to sleep in minutes.
The second time he woke up was briefly, to the sound of loud voices.
"We have to take him back!" "
He's too injured and i can't carry him all by myself-"
"Then let me help you!"
"Absolutely not-"
And the third was by the blonde- Kacchan, shaking his shoulder and helping him up, guiding him as he stumbled along groggily down the dark hallway and into the bathroom.
Shota tried not to wrinkle his nose at the strong, coppery smell of blood as he was pushed down to sit in the tub while the blonde changed his bandages.
Thankfully the freezing tiles and cold ceramic of the bath cleared his head a little, and he felt a small bit of coherancy creeping back.
Kacchan was silent behind him.
He got the feeling the blonde didn't like him much, but still felt his heart squeeze at how skilled he was, efficiently unwrapping, applying balm and wrapping the wound back up with fresh bangages within 10 minutes. They were quiet during most of it, but towards the end the blonde spoke up.
"Promise me something." He spoke quietly.
Shota hummed, suprised.
"Promise me you'll take care of him while he's out being a vigilante."
Shota glanced back at him from the corner of his eye.
"I promise." He said firmly.
He was being sincere, he would do anything in his power to protect his problem child, and now he had two more kids to protect.
That was when Problem child decided to grace them with his presence, his dark hair ruffled and messy with sleep.
He watched closely as Kacchan finished up neatly, leaning much as he had done against the doorframe. When they were done he came up to Kacchan.
"Let me do yours" he offered, gently unwrapping the bloody bandages around his thigh.
Shota decided to leave them to their business and headed back to the couch where Sho was awake on the armchair, smoking another cigarette.
He pursed his lips at his bare chest covered in bandages and bruises, ribs clearly sticking out. He apparently didn't bother to put on a shirt, probably not to unnecessarily aggrivate his injuries.
"Smoking is bad for you"
Sho hummed and blew out smoke into the air.
"Like i give a shit"
Shota sighed as he slumped down onto the couch, not deeming the statement with a response, god he already had a headache from these damn kids.
"You should go back to sleep" The boy across from him suggested gently, for all his apparent fondness for smoking he had a smooth, soft voice.
Shota shook his head, he already didn't know how to feel about being taken care of by a bunch of kids, but he supposed they were as capable as any adult.
Sho sighed and leaned back, shrugging as they both listened to the voices murmuring down the hall.
Shota tried to string his remaining thoughts together and asked
"Why are you three living here alone? Do you have any family?" Rather straightforward and to the point but there was nothing he could do.
Heterochromatic eyes turned to him as Sho regarded him.
"We all have our reasons. Personally i would rather kill myself than go back to my hellhole of a home. But thats all i can say." he said carefully, mouth shutting immediately as the murmuring stopped and footsteps sounded.
They both turned as problem child walked in, and Shota frowned as he remembered the state they were in, himself included as he had finally noticed halfway through Kacchan patching him up that he was also shirtless.
Which made sense when he thought about it. Maybe his concussion was worse than he thought.
Problem child glanced at him
"Go back to sleep Sho, let me talk to Eraser."
Shota raised an eyebrow as the Problem child slumped into the armchair Sho had previously occupied and covered his face in hands.
"I'm so sorry" he started miserably. "This is all my fault, i didn't realize he had a gun and then you jumped so quickly and you got shot and then i just panickedandbrought youhereeventhoughishouldn'thavebecausenowyouknow-"
"Problem child" Shota interrupted firmly, desperately trying to focus on what he was saying even as his head suddenly swam dangerously.
Problem child looked more like a dark green blob than a person.
"It's fine, i'm ok.." He trailed off as he suddenly felt lightheaded. Problem child frowned
"Are you okay? Eraser?"
He felt gentle hands grabbing him, making him lie down as his eyes slipped closed and darkness enveloped him.
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Shota was really sick of waking up in unknown places. Though looking up he found he actually did recognize this place, or at least he thought the ceiling looked familiar.
"Ta-"
"Sho- a"
"Shota!!"
His vision was uddenly filled with the view of his concerned husband as Hizashi helped him up hurredly, pushing his hair out of his face and cupping it, checking for injuries even as Tsukauchi tried to tell him to give Shota some space.
He realized dazedly he was at the police station, with a few other heroes and officers surrounding him, including recovery girl who he assumed was the reason he was awake.
"You were only missing for 24 hours, but we still need a full report of what happened." Tsukauchi explained apologetically.
Aizwa looked around the room tiredly, Hizashi rubbing his back comfortingly as he began recalling what he could of what happened.
Everyone in the room looked concerned as he explained how he was shot, then apparently the vigilante he had been in contact with for a while had panicked and taken him back to his apartment- no he had no idea where it was he was unconcious for most of it-
Even the seasoned pros looked mildly disturbed as he talked about three underweight teens living in a tiny apartment, all three walking about shirtless with bloody bandages covering most of their body. Patching eachother up in a bloody bathtub.
"Sounds like something out of a horror movie" Nemuri muttered, even as Rock Lock banged a fist against the table.
"We need to find these kids and help them. Eraser, do you have any idea where the apartment would be?"
Shota shook his head frustratedly as he was questioned again about the location.
Hizashi continued rubbing soothingly.
"It's okay, i promise we'll find them"
He sighed "I hope for their sakes you're right."
Because now he had more than just one problem child to deal with.
He thought about that bloody bathtub and wondered if the problem child was in there right now, being bandaged by the blonde also covered in ratty bandages, Sho watching from his stool on the sidelines, smoking his cigarette.
He swore they wouldn't have to do that anymore, that once he found them they would live safely and comfortably, unharmed.
I don't give a damn if the problem child runs, I swear i'll make sure all three of them are safe.
BONUS:
Izuku shuddered as he felt an ominous chill in the air even though the window was closed, turning around only to have his face slapped by a tshirt.
"Thats what you get for being a dumbass and bringing a hero" Kacchan growled, wrestling him into a chokehold even as he yelped and struggled.
Shoto sighed from his place upsidedown on the couch
"Why do i get the feeling we're all screwed?"
He took a drag of his cigarette and exhaled even as both Izuku and Katsuki glared at him
"No smoking in the goddamn house!"