Chapter Text
“Good evening, gentlemen,” a voice coos, presumably from my own mouth. Dreams are cool that way- I feel like I’m there… but I’m also aware I’m not. Although this awareness doesn't usually happen I’m not sure how to feel about it. “I’m going to need you all to break up this meeting here tonight. So long as you act quickly and calmly, we can get this done with minor injuries.” Ah, so I’m playing the hero in this one! Excellent.
“What are you playing at? You think a single man like yourself has any power over me? I’m the leader of the Shie Hassaikai! Get out of here before you get in over your head, I don’t feel like touching grime tonight,” the man in a rather pompous coat responds. There’s a young girl in the doorway to my left, peering in with a mix of fear and hope in her eyes. She has piercing red eyes and long hair the color of the moon in the sky. I beckon her towards me, ignoring the man who is desperately trying to hide his fear. It’s like he knows what I’m capable of, despite the fact he is obviously a muggle.
“Hello, you must be Eri. I'm here to rescue you. You can trust me - I'm just like you. This man has made you believe the things you are capable of are bad, but they're not. You just have magic in your blood. You’re a witch! And I am a wizard. You may not believe me just yet, but just look inside yourself right now and ask yourself if I'm lying to you right now.” I extend my hand to her as she walks forward, apprehensive. But she nods her head and reaches for me as she steps into the light.
“No!” The muggle shouts, reaching for something at his hip. It must be one of those puny muggle guns they so love to play with. A flick of my wand twists his wrist back, forcing the object to fly backwards out of his hand. He stares in shock at his defenseless hand, and then back at me. “What are you?”
Eri allows me to scoop her up, and she clings to my shirt with her head buried to my chest. If she had any doubts about our similarities, it's clear she doesn’t anymore. “I’m the man you will never remember.” I raise my wand with the hand not supporting Eri and whisper, “Obliviate.”
Suddenly darkness surrounds me and my dream is no more. I expect to wake up, but I start to hear voices. My own? I guess my dream continues.
“You let him take the girl? What are we supposed to do? She was gonna get us through the doors of Mahoutokoro!” A panicked voice shrills.
“Quiet, Twice. Don’t you trust your master by now?” This new voice is calm, but I don't like it. He sounds… gruff. Ancient. Like he knows far too much and enjoys holding that fact above everyone's head.
“Right, sorry!” Well, his opinion sure changed fast.
“She wouldn’t have been of proper use to us anyway. That Yakuza muggle may have been able to locate a magical child, but she was too young. We need a student old enough to participate in the tournament! Someone who can get me close… close to him. I need to get into that school, and it’s clear now we will need to get our own hands dirty to do it.”
Something is poking me awake and I don’t like it. “Ugh, hrmm… five more minutes, mom”. I mumble unintelligently through my drool.
“Yeah, Izuku, I’m not your mom. Please get up, we’re gonna be late.” A pillow slaps me in the face and I finally open my eyes. I stare indignantly at the boy across from me, his perfectly split white and red hair framing his stoic eyes. At some point in the last hundred years the average human hair color, skin color, and natural body modifications expanded to include quirky colors and combinations. But the thousand yard stare and perfectly centered part on Shoto Todoroki is still a shock to most people. Luckily, I’m not most people.
“Shoto, I think we can spare five minutes for my mind to catch up with my senses,” I state as I rub the tiredness from my eyes. Green tea with sugar would be great right now.
“We already let you sleep in, and I’ll tell you now if you don’t get out of this bed and get dressed immediately I think Tenya is going to have an aneurysm.”
That wakes me up. “What time is it?”
Shoto sighs. “Late enough that you only have 10 minutes before we need to be at the portkey. Your breakfast is waiting for you in the kitchen already.”
“Shoto! Why would you do that? I know I don’t have the most extensive morning routine but- ow!” I cut myself off as I trip over my own sock, my shirt for the day hanging around my neck and with only one of two arms through their respective holes. Rubbing the spot on my head that is surely an angry red after bumping it on the bed frame, I glare at Shoto. He has a barely-there smile on his face. One I am trained in perceiving from the past four years we've known each other.
“Okay, I lied. Per orders of both Hitoshi and Ochaco, I was instructed to rush you so you’d get out of bed in a reasonable timeframe. You’ve actually got 30 minutes. Please do something with that bedhead- you were tossing and turning all night.” Shoto gets up from his freshly made bed and walks to the door.
I freeze as I pull my shirt the rest of the way on. “Oh yeah, that’s right! I was having a crazy dream! I was fighting it out with the Yakuza and-”
“Izuku. Please. I would love to hear all about it while we’re walking to the portkey, but I really do not want to suffer through another ‘Tenya Iida’ lecture on punctuality if you can’t be ready to leave in time,” Shoto says.
I smile sheepishly at him. “You got it. Make sure my tea is warm!” I raise my voice as he shuts the door behind him. He probably heard me. Through the glass of his enclosure on the far side of the room, I can see my Enchanted Ball Python stick his tongue out at me as if taunting me. I stick out my tongue in response. I don't need his judgement this morning.
Taming my hair takes some effort, if I've even fixed it at all. Running a brush through these unruly curls only seems to make the hair on my head bushier. I can’t say I hate it though. My mop of hair balances out the size of my eyes, and I think it's nice that they're the same shade of forest green. Green goes with everything! My freckles leave might something to be desired, but I'm not so shallow as to take Japanese beauty standards to heart. Lots of people like freckles even if the media doesn't. I enjoy the sun warming my face on the quidditch pitch too much to care.
I finish getting ready and sprint down the hall of the apartment I've lived in my whole life. My mom was gracious enough to let all my friends stay over last night in preparation for the Quidditch World Cup today. We're really lucky this year- a portkey directly to the games in Tokyo is just a few blocks from where I live! Fate is really on my side this year, I can feel it.
Quidditch is my life right now. It’s where I find I can breathe. It’s where Kacchan and I can still find reason to speak. I’m sure it doesn’t pain him the same way it pains me, but I miss being his friend. His real friend, not this odd sibling rivalry we’ve developed through quidditch. We used to be childhood friends but for some reason, when we were seven, he decided I wasn’t worth his time anymore. Before that we hung out all the time! Learning basic magic together and pretending like we were aurors catching bad guys at the park in our neighborhood. I asked him why he hated me so much during our first year at Hogwarts. All he gave me was some flimsy excuse about me being pathetic and his house being better than mine. Which is extremely petty, even for him. Gryffindor is not inherently better than Slytherin! All that drama about Slytherin being for dark wizards comes from our parent campus on the other side of the world! But I suppose he doesn’t see it that way.
So, the most we ever talk about is quidditch. And if it’s not quidditch, he’s hurling insults at me (and his fists if the teachers aren’t looking). It’s not fair, but I’ll take his sharp words any day so long as it means he’s still speaking to me.
“There you are!" Ochaco shrieks as I slip into the kitchen. She hugs me, bouncing on her toes. “Can you believe it? Today’s the day! It’s finally here!” Her voice deepens into something demonic as she says, “Team Toyohashi Tengu forever!” Her chest is heaving with excitement. She is the resident Slytherin team beater and her passion for the game rivals most, obviously.
“Ochaco… you are crushing me. And I think you’re scaring my mom,” I say. I make eye contact with my mother for the first time that day. She’s leaning against the counter next to Hitoshi Shinso, our resident insomniac and secondary Slytherin beater. Both of them are holding steaming cups of something that smells caffeinated and wonderful. Hitoshi may be a year younger than the rest of us, but I think my mother was beyond excited when we introduced him to our little friend group. Kids from his year don't get along with him so much, but we love him and his sleepless tendencies.
But my mother especially has a soft spot for the insomniac. I think it has something to do with the eye bags. Hitoshi rocks them, but Inko Midoriya sees them as a challenge to love him so hard he might finally relax and collapse from exhaustion to get a good night's sleep. Obviously it hasn't worked yet. But it seems she discovered his gossip side and is exploiting it for all it’s worth. The smirk she’s giving the pair of us is a little too loud for my liking.
“Ooh, my bad,” Ochaco says with a faint blush as she pulls away. “I’m just so excited- and you're finally up at a reasonable hour! We might be on time for once in our lives to something!”
“Ha ha. Very funny. You,” I point at her, “and you,” I point at Tenya, “are getting on my nerves.” I put my hand down and walk to where I see my cup of caffeine waiting for me. “We can either spend the morning talking about my tendency to be late, or we can get a move on with the day and get to the portkey!” I raise my mug and down it in one go. I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand and move to hug my mom.
“Be safe. Be smart. Don’t be ancient and forget you have muggle technology in your pocket along with your magic. A text is all I need to be there in a flash." She holds me tight, her hands rubbing on my back. She sighs. “Don’t go looking for trouble, Izuku. You’re there to have fun today."
“I know that! Trouble finds me, remember? Not the other way around!” I say to reassure her, but she meets my eyes with a cold stare.
“I’m serious. You five need to be extra vigilant today, okay? This isn’t like venturing out into town or going to Kouri Island. You’re minors representing an established and revered school at one of the biggest sporting events in the wizarding world. Not everyone is there to have fun in a safe way and, if you’re not careful, you may get sucked in too."
“Miss Midoriya? I can promise you I will keep Izuku out of trouble. He really doesn’t go looking for it, and I’ve had four years of practice keeping him in my sights,” Shoto says as his head pops into the kitchen. “That being said, if we don’t leave now we’re gonna miss the portkey window.” Shoto disappears from view and I can hear him slipping his shoes on in the genkan.
“All right everyone, grab what you need for the day and let’s be off!” Tenya states with his signature knife hand. I grab my yellow backpack that I had pre-packed with snacks and such the night before. Sometimes, I could pat myself on the back for having such great foresight. Hitoshi and I bring up the rear of our group, slipping on our shoes last.
“Have fun, be safe. I love you!” My mother cries as the front door swings shut.
“We love you too,” the five of us call back.
She really is the mom of our friend group. It's hard to remember the time before Hogwarts when I didn't have friends coming and going every summer at our apartment. It was pretty lonely in the house with just me and my mom. My father left when I was a baby to work at Ilvermorny and never looked back. I don't even know if he's still sending my mom money to raise me. We're both thriving without him though, and we don't need him or his money to be happy. Maybe there was a time we would have welcomed him home, but that time is long gone. At this point, I’m glad he hasn't come back.
An elbow poking my side brings me back to my surroundings. “Hello, Earth to Deku. Care to share with the class what’s going on in that head of yours?” Ochaco asks candidly.
“Hmm. You mentioned a dream this morning. You still thinking about it?” Shoto tacks on. I almost forgot about that, actually. But that's probably a better story to share than my disdain for my absent father. I can save the rant for another night when Shoto wants to bitch about his daddy issues too. Being the son of the Japanese Minister of Magic is, apparently, its own kind of hell.
“Oh! Actually, yeah! That dream… It was so vivid. I love dreams where I get to be the hero. In this one, there was a little girl being held captive by some weird Yakuza guy in a plague mask- you know, those birdlike ones?- and a furry coat. He looked ridiculous. That was honestly my only clue that the whole thing was a dream because I swear I could feel the emotions of everyone in the room. My own, the bad guys, and the little girl, and some fourth or fifth person but it was really weak and I figured it was someone far away. It was like I was using magic to sense everyone in the room so I could predict what they might do! So, I rescued her, right? She was so impossibly cute, she had to be based on some character from a TV show I watched as a kid because no real child could ever have a face that cute. She could ask me to kill someone for her and I would probably do it. Anyway, me being the genius auror I am destined to be, I wiped the Yakuza guy's memory because he was a muggle and I had to use magic in front of him. But then everything went black and there were different voices speaking. And let me tell you, one of those voices was just… terrifying. That's probably why I was tossing in my sleep, Shoto. It sounded so suave, yet brutal. He spoke like he knew everything in the universe and held that fact above everyone's head,” the words tumble out of my mouth as we walk, “Oh look, we’re here!”
I spot a wizard atop the hill near the trees. My group makes its way over to the World Cup representative with a little more pep in our steps. “Hello there!” he says with a wave, “Can I have your names, please?” He whips out a parchment scroll of decent length. Looks like we aren't the only ones in town heading to the game!
“My name is Izuku Midoriya. With me is Tenya Iida, Ochaco Uraraka, Shoto Todoroki, and Hitoshi Shinso.”
He checks off our names with flourish. “Wonderful,” he says, “the portkey will be off in about 10 minutes. I’m still waiting on another group to get here, but you can go ahead and gather around the portkey. It’s that baseball bat just over there.” He points a little ways away where a wooden bat can just barely be seen through the overgrown grass.
“Alright everyone, let's claim our spots before the rest of the group crowds it!” Tenya says pointedly as he ushers us towards the portkey.
“Thank you, sir,” I add before I get too far for the man to hear.
I face my friends as we surround the baseball bat. They’re all looking at me with amused looks from hearing my story. “Izuku, you’ve got a wild imagination. The Yakuza? Really?” Ochaco says, not even trying to hold in her laughter.
"What!?" I shout indignantly. "It was cool, don't be a hater," I reply sassily, sticking my tongue out at her for effect.
Hitoshi snorts at our antics. "I can't believe you have literal dreams about your future job. Sleep is supposed to be relaxing. I would never sleep if I had dreams like yours," he says.
"You don't sleep, though," Shoto says.
"Which you should really work on this year," Tenya says, crossing his arms. "Fourth year really packs on the course work! I don't want to see a friend fall behind because they can't get enough sleep to focus during class."
“Ugh, don’t remind me. Last year was hell,” Ochaco rolls her eyes and slumps a bit. Hitoshi may be on the Slytherin quidditch team with myself, Tenya, and Ochaco, but we don't see him during class since he's a year behind us. Shoto is our resident Hufflepuff fan. He also cheers for his oldest sister, Fuyumi, who is a seventh year and chaser on the Hufflepuff team, but I like to think his heart belongs to our team.
Hitoshi gives the group a bored look. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll fix my sleep schedule when Tenya can finally talk to a girl outside of the quidditch pitch.” Ooo, Cold. Tenya is absolutely hopeless at speaking to girls. Ochaco doesn’t count because she's basically one of the guys. I mean, the girls got balls of steel to be a quidditch beater.
Suddenly, a familiar voice growls behind me. “Hah? We’re not ‘almost late,’ old man! We have 7 minutes until the scheduled departure, and I’m sure as hell not letting a glorified mall cop chastise me for managing to get these morons here on time for once in their lives!” the voice punches through the air. Yep, that is definitely Kacchan. Of course it is. Who else lives in Musutafu and cares about quidditch? I should have realized it would be him sooner.
“Katsuki, lower your voice! We don’t want any muggles snooping around here!” a high-pitched voice cuts in, “I’m Mina Ashido, this is Katsuki Bakugo. And behind me is Eijiro Kirishima, Hanta Sero, Denki Kaminari, and Kyoka Jiro.” The wizard quickly checks off the names, rolls up his scroll, and tips his head. He scurries away, seemingly to get away from the wrath that is Kacchans natural demeanor. I can't say I blame him.
“Hey look! It’s the Deku Squad!” Eijiro calls out, waving his hand excitedly at us. Years ago, the mutual friend groups decided we needed to label each group since we were too well mixed to just refer to each other by houses. My friends were dubbed the ‘Deku Squad’ based on the nickname Kacchan gave me after I mangled my arm to catch the snitch during our first official quidditch match against each other. He sent a bludger straight at me as my fingers grasped the snitch. I tried to dodge while maintaining my grip, but I had to chose between getting hit or losing the game. Obviously, I had my priorities straight and took the hit like a champ. A ‘useless Deku’ he had called me while escorting me to the hospital wing. Kacchan meant the word as an insult, but Ochaco overheard it and thought it was cute, so it stuck.
The ‘Baku Squad’ is a play on Kacchans family name and is mostly the Gryffindor quidditch team with some token Ravenclaws in the mix. Although Kyoka openly debates whether or not Denki, her fellow Ravenclaw, was sorted into the right house. I think he's shockingly intelligent on the quidditch pitch. As the resident Ravenclaw keeper he's known for catching quaffles at speeds so fast the resounding boom sounds like thunder after a lightning strike. His performance in the classroom admittedly lacks the same punch. Not that the rest of the group cares, considering we're basically all quidditch jocks. Eijiro is the Gryffindor keeper, and both Hanta and Mina are chasers. Kyoka doesn’t play, but she’s the best quidditch commentator Hogwarts has seen in years. I suppose it helps that she’s also a talented singer and musician.
Ochaco scurries over to the girls and gives them a group hug. “Ooo I’m so excited to see you both! I seriously need some girl talk to make up for the dreadful conversation these boys muster up.”
“Oh honey, don’t lie. You need girl talk because you wanna vent about a certain boy in your life,” Kyoka sasses back. Funny, I don’t remember Ochaco mentioning a boy. It's not like she hangs around many other people outside our friend group. Mina elbows Kyoka in the ribs. “Ow!”
“Oops!” Mina says flatly. She puts her arms around Kyoka and Ochacos shoulders. “Maybe we should have the girl talk away from the boys,” She whispers pointedly to Kyoka, who rolls her eyes in response. “You boys keep an eye on the time- and don’t let those two kill each other!” She shouts over her shoulder as they walk a little ways away, whispering animatedly.
“And just how did you manage to get tickets to the World Cup, Deku?” Kacchan hisses as he makes his way to the portkey. He flicks up the handle of the bat with his foot and catches it with his right hand, swinging it performatively in a circle by rotating his wrist. He stops and grasps the bat with both hands, settling into a batting stance. He’s looking at my face like I’m the baseball he’s getting ready to hit.
I gulp, and Shoto interjects before I can respond. “My father was offered a box at the game. He has to work, so I took it and invited everyone.”
Kacchan swings the bat with a whoosh, and even though I'm not hit, I still feel the air brush past my face. Eijiro plucks the bat from his hands during the follow through and Kacchan scowls. “Tch. I wasn’t actually gonna hit him. I’m willing to wait for the first match of the season for that,” Kacchan says to Eijiro. He turns to look at Shoto. “So daddy's money got you the best seats, huh? Nice. I guess you’re just too good compared to the rest of us who had to wait for tickets to be available in the lottery draw.”
“How much were the tickets?” Shoto asks.
Kacchan lifts his eyebrows, his arms crossed over his chest. “Why would I tell you, Icy Hot?”
Another loving nickname. Kacchan once asked for tiger balm after a friendly quidditch scrimmage and promptly rejected Shoto when he offered an Icy Hot patch instead. It’s an odd thing to rival over, yet the blood runs deep for them both.
“I stole my fathers wallet. I'll buy you merch of the same value as your tickets if you're all willing to give up your seats and join us in the box. It’s prime viewing, and the more food we order, the bigger the bill the Ministry gets in my fathers name.” Shoto says with a shrug.
“Shoto! I must protest! If I had known-” Tenya is quickly cut off.
“Oh we are so in, bro!” Eijiro exclaims, throwing an arm around Kacchan and leaning his other hand on the confiscated baseball bat. Denki and Hitoshi share a pointed look and a fist bump as Hanta lets out a whoop.
“I don’t need your charity, Icy Hot,” Kacchan retorts.
“Oh come on, bro. It’s not charity! But hey, if you want to keep your basic seat, go right ahead dude! I’m sure as hell not passing up the opportunity, and neither are the rest of your friends,” Eijiro says with finality. Kacchan looks about ready to burst with how red his face is, but he eventually relents with a sigh.
“I’m not sitting next to Deku, and I’m expecting no restrictions on what merch I can get.” Kacchan emphasizes his words by poking Shoto in the chest.
He doesn't look bothered. “Done,” Shoto replies.
Denki suddenly clears his throat. “I’m gonna go get the girls- the portkey is gonna be off in like a minute.” He walks off toward the other group, one hand rubbing the back of his neck. He taps on Kyokas shoulder, and as she turns around the other girls giggle. I can see his ears turn red despite the distance.
“Oh! Right, everyone grab onto the bat!” Eijiro says, holding the bat out straight up and down with the handle towards the sky. Shoto, Hitoshi, Hanta, and Tenya form a circle around the bat, each using their right hand to grasp an open spot. I move to stand to the left of Eijiro and can feel Kacchan glaring at me from his right as I reach for the portkey. Suddenly, I feel a tug on my backpack. Kacchan looks smug.
“Looks like your bags unzipped, nerd,” says Kacchan. I shoot him a glare as I release the bat and shrug off my bag to close it. The girls and Denki return and shuffle into the circle as I sling the yellow backpack back on. I’ve lost my original spot on the bat and end up having to place my hand on the top.
Kacchan releases his grip and pushes my hand off the bat. “I want the top.”
I shove his hand in return. “Why do you want the top? You already have a spot on the portkey!” I shout.
“Because I’m the best, and the top of the bat is for winners. Take my old spot.” Kacchan retorts as he worms his grip under mine.
All I can do is stare at him. It’s childish moments like this that make me-
“Deku, you gotta touch the wood! We’re about to go!” Hanta interjects with a shout. I panic and shove a finger between Kacchans, just barely touching the surface before the feeling of being lifted and spun in a whirlwind of magic takes over. My stomach begins to bubble with excitement.
I’m actually going to the Quidditch World Cup!