Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

All things considered, it’s a fairly normal day in Musutafu. Soon-to-be-setting sun lighting the world in bright golden hues, and in turn, lighting Izuku similarly.

The teen sits on the beach, the beach he cleaned all without powers, with his strength alone.

Izuku sighs, he still has yet to figure out what to do to continue his schooling and time is running out for him to be able to transfer. He needs to hurry up and re-plan his entire life if he ever wants to be anything..

Fading slowly under the horizon, soft orange light scatters along the beach, ethereally lighting up each patch of clean, sparkling sand. As if it’s the most natural thing to do, Izuku’s eyes follow the light, shadow almost leading him somewhere.

Just as caught as anything hiding under the sunshine, a boy, in contrastingly dark clothes, with just as opposingly dark hair, lays unnaturally in the sand. His clothes are so dark, so unmoving in nature for such a bright, lively place.

Even after everything, at his very core, Izuku Midoriya has kindness that overflows from his being. He pushes himself up and, as quickly as one in sand can, he moves to the boy. Leaning over just slightly to look at him.

“..Hello? Are you okay, do you need any help?”

Lying awfully still on the ground, the boy shifts a little, and only after the sun manages to hit his eyes does he begrudgingly wince and drape a hand over his head.

Letting his hand fall limp again, he looks up, immediately scanning the figure standing above him, the warm light from the setting sun reflecting onto the other. Silently, he flickers his eyes, open and closed in stilted, deliberate motions.

Izuku crouches down next to the unknown boy, dressed far fancier than really anyone he’s ever seen, even the most extravagant hero would be underdressed compared to him.

Although relieved that the boy has opened his eyes, the poor guy seems vastly disoriented, so again he tries, “Do you need some help?”

All at once, Scaramouche sits up, groaning as he poorly adjusts himself to the blaring light of the sun. He stares at the sand in an attempt to slow the world from spinning, squinting ignorantly through the light.

As his vision finally stabilises, he looks up again. The boy has dark scruffy hair and looks quite young in age. Visionless, seemingly.

“...Hm?” He whispers, eyes slowly scanning the surroundings. So lively, and bright. Very bright. As soon as that sinks in, he quite easily turns his gaze towards the shadows in disdain.

As the boy starts to come to his senses, Izuku lets out a sigh of relief. For a moment there he was worried that he wouldn’t wake up at all.

“Ah, hey there! Are you feeling better now?” He tries to make sure his voice doesn’t go too loud, Afterall a concussion isn’t off the table yet. He holds out his hand for the other to take if he so chooses.

“....Sure.” Says Scaramouche, rather unsurely. He stares at the boy’s hand in suspicion, though neither of his own even flinch to take it. “Care to tell me where this is?”

“Well, currently we’re at Takoba Municipal Beach.” He answers easily, shrugging as he realizes that the boy isn’t going to accept his hand. Izuku leans back, sitting now.

As he moves, Scaramouche watches him, careful to track every movement he makes. His glare grows more direct once they’re sitting across from each other.

“Okay, great.” Mentally, he runs over the syllables. And to just his luck, comes up empty enough to audibly sigh about it. “Where’s that?”

He hesitates before a gentle smile graces his face, “No offense, but did you maybe hit your head? We're in Musutafu, Japan.” Izuku thinks before adding, “I’m Midoriya Izuku. If you need some help, I’m sure we can find you some.”

“Midoriya Izuku…” Half awake enough for his knowledge to give him something, Scaramouche looks up, alert. “That sounds Inazuman.”

With this newfound revelation, he analyses the terrain with a different, judgmentally bitter flavour to it.

Izuku hums, listening attentively to the boy who’s ignored half his statements, “Inazuman? I’m sorry to disappoint, but I was born and raised here! I also don’t think I’ve ever even heard of an Inazuman.”

Simply to listen to him, Scaramouche lets his eyes erratically fall back on the boy, staring.

Something’s wrong.

All of a sudden, he laughs, much more starkly sure, positively confident compared to his tone from before. “I see. So, this is a dream, all to myself? How kind of her, I’m truly flattered.”

Izuku laughs nervously, it’s soft and quiet, “Aha- Uhm I’m sorry, but I really think I should get you to the hospital or my mom at least. You seem really.. Uh- like you might have a concussion and I can’t in good conscience leave you here.” Izuku explains, pushing against the sand to get up. Dusting the sand as best he could off himself.

Scaramouche plucks his hat out of the sand, simultaneously standing and placing it back on his head. For a spared moment, he turns to Izuku again with a malicious smile.

“Hah, conscience? Well, deal with it.” Ultimately, he rolls his eyes and rushes to walk off.

“Wha- Hey! Wait-“ Izuku moves quickly to follow after the boy, worried still despite the fact the boy seems to be physically fine.

Now as mentally immovable as he was physically, Scaramouche insistently refuses to pay any attention to the mortal stranger, a stubborn grin stuck to his face. As he walks, his arms are folded across his torso, buried away as if he’s holding together a landmine hidden in the sand.

“Leave me be, figment.” Much like a landmine, he feels fairly primed to explode on whatever poor soul treads too close to him.

Izuku flinches at the harsh words, an instinct, a defense that he did his best to ignore. He knows how to protect himself, and he knows that he can’t just walk away without doing everything he can to help.

“I’m sorry- I just really want to be sure you’re okay. I promise that I’ll leave you alone afterward if that helps?”

Scaramouche eyes him, not long enough to catch a blink.

“I’d rather die than accept help. I’m not weak.” He groans, shaking his head.

Oh. He blinks, watching the boy. That’s concerning, he thinks, to be around another person who thinks even a fraction like Bakugou.

But still, Izuku Midoriya is a helper at heart, trying until he physically can’t any longer and then a little more.

“..I think weakness is refusing help. I suppose to each their own, but I really do just want to help.” He counters after a moment.

Finally, Scaramouche stops in his tracks. His gaze is pinned to the floor, sand still taunting him with its grainy, sparkly shine. Mixed in with it, little broken apart pieces of pebbles and bashed up shells. It’s then that he realises how imperfect it is.

The glare stays when he turns to the insistent boy, quite imperfect in his opinion, too. “Fine, then. I’ll entertain the idea.”

Izuku lets out a relieved sigh, nodding his head, “Thank you. I’ll ask my mom to check you for a concussion and then- well- we’ll go from there!”

With a painfully sarcastic grin, Scaramouche nods. “How wonderful. You sure are heroic.” At that, he folds his arms, falling bitter again.

He gives a little laugh- a bit sad, yet genuine- “Oh, well I try. You don’t feel like anything’s broken or fractured do you?”

With his sparse, chaotically spurring knowledge of medical terms, Scaramouche takes a moment to decipher.

“An injury? Don’t undermine me.” He huffs in response.

Izuku frowns softly, “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to.”

“Whatever.” Scaramouche says quite bluntly, pausing to look around again. “...Don’t make me have second thoughts.” His foot makes a sharp, rough sound as he scrapes it back against the coarser sand, inching back.

In the back of Izuku’s mind, a certain brash voice laughs out, he pushes it back. “I’ll have my mom make sure you’re alright, then you can be on your way. Quick as possible, promise.”

“You seem so certain she can help me,” Scaramouche says, more like asks, standing evenly and tilting his head just slightly.

Izuku can’t help the smile that blooms on his face at being able to talk about his mom, the one who’s always been there for him when he’s let her.

“Well, she’s a nurse and obviously she made me the person I am, so I’m sure she’ll be happy to check you over.”

“That’s not anything like a doctor, is it?” Narrowing his eyes, Scaramouche shoots back. Something cold settles there, hollow, and he starts to feel nauseated by the sunlight once again.

Izuku has always been praised for his observations, for the keen awareness he has, it was easy for him to pick up on the.. disdain that set on the boy's face. He shakes his head, “No, they're different, don’t worry. Plus, I promise that my mom is sweet, she’ll make sure that you're comfortable and healthy.”

Distrustingly, Scaramouche sighs and reluctantly walks to be by Izuku’s side.

As the two of them walk – seemingly to Izuku’s relief, he keeps to watching the surroundings, avoiding the human he’s conceded to.

“Tell me about this place.” He says blankly, staring intently at the streets the sun lights up so warmly. Such a sight makes his tone bitterly scornful, withered down.

“Hm.. well. Well where would you like me to start? You seem rather confused, I guess I could try to explain everything, but that might be long winded-“ Izuku cuts himself off as it finally clicks in his head that he’s rambling, his hands having been waving around in no particular direction absent-mindedly while he did so.

Scaramouche sighs, “Amnesia would be nice.” He says pessimistically, choosing to ignore the surroundings and glare ahead.

“Just tell me,” He requests again, bluntly impatient. “Start anywhere. I don’t care.”

He nods his head, “Alright, if you’re sure.” Izuku takes a breath before starting his speech,

“We’re in a superhuman society, about 80% of the population having some kind of uncanny ability now. The people like us- quirkless- are dwindling, most of the quirkless people are around.. their 40’s or 50’s I think?” He makes a so-so motion with his hand before dropping it again, “Naturally people gravitate towards becoming heroes and there’s plenty villains around to catch.”

Izuku shrugs, “Anyway, I guess that’s the most important information I could give you. Welcome to the world?” He smiles, a hint of laughter in his voice as they reach the top of the stairs.

“I see… So this is akin to visions.” Scaramouche goes silent to think, taking in the rest of Izuku’s statement.

“And what exactly do you mean by ‘villains’?” With a skeptical look, and that same, darkly hollow tone, he asks, as if it’s the most prominent, glaring question.

Izuku pauses, oddly seeming to think about it for a moment, “When I say villains I just mean like.. those who kill and hurt others for their own enjoyment. Though anyone who breaks the law is labeled as a villain, pretty much.” He seems to be holding his tongue, giving such a short answer, but it is an answer nonetheless.

Lingering on Izuku’s definition of a villain, Scaramouche stares at him like a pigeon.

He takes in a rather forced breath, staring coldly at the ground as they walk. A moment or two of unnatural silence goes by, before, subdued enough, Scaramouche replies. “Fine. Makes sense, I suppose.”

“We’re almost to my house, by the way. It’s just on the second floor of that apartment building,” He explains quickly.

Scaramouche looks up, following the motion of Izuku’s hand. When his eyes take it in, he realises immediately it’s nothing like any house he’s seen before. Very strange, very square.

“You live here?” He asks.

As the pair slowly climb up the stairs and reach a plain blue door Izuku smiles, “Yup! Home sweet home,” he answers as he pushes a key into the door-handle and opens the door.

Chapter Text

“Mom?” He calls out as he enters, pausing at the entrance to easily slide his shoes off.

“Oh, Izuku! You’re home sooner than I thought you’d be dear, I’m just in the kitchen fixing dinner!” A smooth, sweet voice sounds out. It carries a motherly hint even in those two sentences alone.

Izuku smiles brightly, looking back at the boy and quickly informing, “Just take your shoes off and leave them here, then we can go chat with my mom.”

Scaramouche immediately slips his shoes off, an unwanted intrusion of nostalgia worming its way into his thoughts.

He hovers behind, primed on alert, glaring out like some kind of frightened, feral animal Izuku had picked up and brought inside.

Izuku all but slid into the kitchen, going up to Inko and throwing his arms around her shoulders in a hug. The hard-working mother laughing, and pressing her arm against her son’s in a half-returned hug.

“Will you help me wi-“ Inko stops herself as she catches a glimpse of the other child in her kitchen, gasping in delight, “Izuku! Why didn’t you tell me you brought a friend over, oh it’s lovely to meet you dear. You’re more than welcome to stay for dinner if you’d like, I always overcook! My name’s Midoriya Inko, although I’m sure Izuku told you that already.” In similar fashion to her son, Inko seems to have a knack for rambling when excited. Izuku smiles sheepishly at his mom, shrugging as clearly they’ve been partly introduced now.

Without a movement, Scaramouche stares at the woman like she’s entirely foreign to him, eyes trailing around the kitchen surrounding her.

After a second, he cautiously lifts his hand, a weightless, most measurably motionless wave. “Hi.” As he lowers it again, his body feels anchored to crash.

“Now, Izuku, you and your friend go get settled. I’ll finish up this cooking myself.” She says quickly, turning back to the stove.

“Are you sure mom?”

“Oh, of course! It’s been so long since you’ve had someone over, enjoy your time together. I’m almost finished anyway!” Inko chirps as she dashes some seasoning into the pot on the stove.

Izuku smiles softly, looking over at the boy and walking to him. He motions with his hand to follow him, “Here, we can just chill in my room then? I’ll tell mom after we eat about the whole possible concussion thing.”

The two of them walk down a short hallway, the walls are littered with many photos pertaining to Izuku and Inko doing various things together. Some honorable mentions include 4 year old Izuku being tossed up in the air by Inko, a photo of 9 year old Izuku at a zoo being utterly enchanted by Sloths, and one of Izuku in a middle school uniform. He looked.. different, off in a way, but he was besides his mom so a smile was placed on his face. Quickly they reach Izuku’s room.

Inside, is a bed pressed against the left wall and a bed-side table. A desk settled against the wall directly across from the door, and a window separates the space between the desk and a large bookshelf that holds a mass of books and a couple various figures of heros.

“Ta-da! My room!” He states with a smile.

Scaramouche looks around the room, stopping as his gaze falls back on Izuku, then to his room. He realises the two don’t look that dissimilar.

Izuku drops down onto this bed, “Sorry it’s a little barer than usual. I recently.. got rid of some stuff.” And by that he means that he burned most everything of All Might that he had, and that made up a large majority of his decorations.

Seeing the boy’s apparent confusion as he stood there, he motions towards the seat at his desk, “You can sit down, if you’d like?”

Scaramouche looks to the seat and then back at Izuku, nothing in his expression even flinching. “How do you fall asleep here? With all these… distractions?” He looks around, judgmentally blinking each item away like meaningless clutter.

Izuku shrugs, “I don’t know. I find it comforting. I know that this stuff is mine, and it’s nice to be surrounded by the things I like.”

“I don’t understand the idea of items having any sentimental value. I left everything I cared about behind a long time ago.” Scaramouche shakes his head, stubborn.

He frowns, taking in the boy’s words. What a lonely idea, he thinks, to simply have nothing. “It’s not bad to care about things, y’know? I mean, if it gives you something to look forward to, or gives you comfort then it’s a good thing to have.”

“Holding onto things will only bring disappointment,” Scaramouche insists.

Izuku nods, humming, “Well, yeah.. But that’s just what comes with life. Sometimes things aren’t what they seem, or people change, and it really sucks when that happens but.. Eventually you move on. You take out the bad and replace it with better things.”

Scaramouche groans in disgust, crossing his arms, “I think that’s a naive way of thinking.”

“Well, why don't we make a deal! I’ll take you to the mall sometime, and you can pick anything you want off and if after like.. 3 weeks you still don’t think things are for you then we can get rid of it.” Izuku smiles, before pausing, seeming as if he suddenly had a realization of something important, “If- If you want to be friends of course! I don’t mean to force you to be around me or anything.”

Pausing, Scaramouche thinks for a moment. Whatever he decides, it’s opaque on his face, but supposedly – hopefully, Izuku would think – clear in his words. “Okay, fine.”

“But, why would you want to be friends with me?”

“Well, why would you want to be friends with me?” He smiles back, a hint of laughter to his voice, “I think that we both could use someone to be friends with. Mine.. let’s just say that I don’t see them anymore, and you clearly aren’t from around here.”

“You’re too naive.” Scaramouche sighs, hanging that in the air for a second. Strolling past that, he moves on, “Every friend I’ve made has betrayed me, how do I know you won’t do the same?”

“Well, I guess you don’t. But-” Izuku pushes himself up, walking across to the bookshelf and he pulls a sleek speckled notebook off the shelf. He hands it to the untrusting boy, the cover of the notebook reads ‘Hero analysis for the future #1’ in colorful childish writing, “This notebook is really important to me, it’s the first one I ever wrote. If I betray you somehow, then you can burn it. Does that help?”

Scaramouche’s eyes fix on the book, almost as analytical as its contents. “Why do you trust me? For all you know I could be one of your villains.”

He shrugs, “You haven’t given me a logical reason to not trust you.”

“You don’t even know who I am.” Scaramouche points out, looking up at the boy who had easily opened the door to his home for him.

“Yeah, that’s true,” He hums, “I guess that’s my own issues. I want someone who doesn't know me.. From before everything happened and if you need my notebook to be my friend then, that’s just what it takes.”

Scaramouche lingers on him for a moment, narrowing his eyes. His childish writing on the cover of the stupidly hopeful notebook fits his childish worldview, and he almost finds that funny, if not terribly fitting.

“Boys!” Inko’s voice calls from the kitchen, “Dinner is ready!”

Izuku smiles and chirps, “Mom’s calling!”

He moves towards the door, stepping out into the hallway assuming that the other boy would wander after him.

Scaramouche follows him quietly, trying to work out which one of the meals dinner is.

He walks into the living room with him, hesitantly approaching the table and pausing deadly still when Izuku’s mother comes into the room.

Inko carefully sets the pot of food down on the cloth meant to protect the table from the bottom of the still hot pot. “Sit, sit! There’s plenty to eat, we have Udon and some left-over onigiri from the other night.”

Izuku happily takes a seat at the table and Inko similarly takes a seat beside him.

Scaramouche sits down at the table respectfully, nonetheless, stares blankly into the bowl while the other two start to eat. Like he has no idea what to do.

“Do you have any tea? Bitter, no additives.”

Inko smiles, pushing the chair out as she gets up, “Of course dear, let me go make that for you quickly.” The short woman disappears into the kitchen.

Izuku hums, finishing a bite of udon before speaking, “..Y’know- aha- I never did get your name.”

Scaramouche takes a glance at Izuku with just a soft widen of his eyes.

Choices. Always unending.

“Scaramouche.” He pauses, thinking again about the title. There’s something passively scornful in the way he says it, a bitter, untouched scar.

“Or, I’m also known as—” Unsurely, he adds, and doesn’t look like he knows how to continue. “...Kunikuzushi.”

“Kunikuzushi?” He repeats the name, “Quite the name you got yourself there. Are you sure that’s what you want me to call you?”

“Call me whatever you like.” Scaramouche answers, sighing. “I’ve given you the options.”

“Hm.. I just don’t want to accidentally call you something mean or that you don’t like. I’ve done that before and.. It just wasn’t the greatest.” Izuku frowns softly, he doesn’t want to mess this up.

Izuku is fully aware that his new found friend is.. different. Maybe one of those so-called vision powers sent him here, can they do that? He’ll have to ask one of these days, maybe start a new notebook about it. Maybe.. Maybe a new start is just what Kunikuzushi needs.

“Okay then. Scaramouche it is then.” Izuku cracks a smile, before chomping down on a thing of onigiri. Inko, coming back into the room, carefully brings a cup of tea over to the boy, setting it in-front of him, “There you go!”

Scaramouche promptly picks up the cup, taking a sip and savouring the bitter aftertaste. A faux warmth echoes against his tongue, and it melts away when he drinks it.

Who’s he kidding? Scaramouche never could feel temperature.

He quietly looks across the table, thinking back on the Fatui banquets and how full of chatter they were. Yet, just as contrastingly as every other action they make, the two of them eat in pure, whole silence.

Soon enough, Izuku and Inko finish eating. Instinctively Izuku collects all of the dishes, humming in the kitchen as works on washing them. Inko watches her son out of the corner of her eye for a moment, before speaking out, “How did you and Izuku meet?”

In response, Scaramouche looks around blankly, lostly, his hand curling around the handle of his cup.

“I found him on the beach!” Izuku quickly calls from the kitchen when he realizes that his new friend likely wasn’t going to recount the story, “You know, the one that I cleaned. I saw him lying in the sand and thought he was hurt so I brought him here.”

At the mere mention of someone being hurt Inko snaps her gaze to the boy across the table, taking in his appearance looking for any visible injuries on the boy. “And you’re just now mentioning this?”

“..You were in such a good mood, and he seems fine so I thought it could wait!”

“I swear Izuku..” Inko sighs fondly, a light smile on her face, “Are you okay?”

Scaramouche stays quiet, tensing up at the table. “He insisted I needed help. I don’t.”

Inko looks over the boy for a moment longer, “Hm.. nonetheless, I’d like if I could check you over quickly. If Izuku was concerned about you being hurt, something must’ve happened.”

Every wheel he has turning seems to stagger to a halt for a moment, and Scaramouche looks a little distraught, losing his words.

“Ah… If you wish.” Scaramouch looks down until his hair shadow his face, tapping his finger atop the table. “But I…” He looks back up, finding Inko’s gaze only to pause again, and the words he wants to say wither down.

Taking the gap to search for a filler, he clears his throat. “However, I doubt you’ll be able to help.”

“We’ll see,” She hums as she stands up, moving around the table to be beside the eboy. She carefully holds his hand, placing her middle and index finger on his wrist waiting to catch a pulse that wouldn’t come, and the longer she watches the boy she realizes that he hasn’t taken a single breath.

“You’re not like us, are you dear.” She states quietly, something that would normally sound like a question sounds so sure. It’s clear that this boy is different. No readable pulse, no expanding lungs as they take in oxygen, not quite meeting the requirements for human. Yet, still something that’s alive, talking and conscious.

Humans have hearts, the capacity to breathe. That’s right. Well.

“Humans.. so perceptive, when it comes to yourselves.” Scaramouche answers sternly, “I’m not like you. I don’t have a heart.” An almost vehement violence sticking to his tone, he says in the end.

“A heart is a good thing to have, dear. Physically or metaphorically, do remember that.” She offers- motherly advice that’s normal for her to give up. She continues quickly, “I’m inclined to believe you have a brain at least.”

She holds her index finger up, “Follow my finger with only your eyes.” She slowly moves her finger from left to right.

On command, Scaramouche watches her intently, pinpointing her finger as she moves it.

“Hm, good. No concussion,” She moves back, seemingly content with the three ‘tests’ she did. As she moves back to her original seat she calls over to her son, “You’re friend is fine Izuku, no injuries and no concussion!”

She smiles softly as she notices the way her son relaxes at the information, a quick ‘That’s good!’ Coming from where he stands in the kitchen.

The moment she steps away, Scaramouche leans back in his seat, defensively crosses his arms.

“You don’t seem surprised.” He thinks aloud, watching her out of the corner of his eyes.

Inko smiles sadly, “This is the first time in two months that I’ve seen Izuku as genuinely happy as he is, and this is the first time he’s brought a friend home in years. I don’t need to know what you are as long as my child is safe and happy.” Noticing that Izuku was about to come back Inko makes some off-handed remark about being careful just before Izuku returns into the room, chirping, “Okay, the dishes are done!”

A bit of nausea comes over him, in the strangest way, he feels homesick. No, it’s odd. He can’t stand the warmth, it’s fake, it must be. Scaramouche doesn’t feel temperature.

His discomfort shows clearly on his face, something so held together until this point, heavily blinking to distract himself from the disorientation.

Inko’s voice softens, an extra motherly hint to it, “Izuku, would you please get your friend a cold cloth. He seems a bit upset, sick.”

The teen does as he's asked, nodding and quickly returning with a still-slightly-damp cold cloth and gently presses it to his friend's neck.

Scaramouche frowns, deeply cutting through the surface of his mask, all broken, uncomfortably looking up at Izuku. “Please don’t touch me...” It comes out more mumbled than he’d like, and it sends his mind into an astray spiral.

Reaching unsteadily for the table, he leans his arms on it, lightly pushing Izuku at least an inch away.

“Ah! I’m sorry, sorry! I’m so sorry!” Izuku rushes out the words, almost panicking himself.

Moving back almost entirely before his mother beckons him over, rubbing his hair down, “Calm down, my dear.”

“And, you’re welcome to leave if you need or want to.. Scaramouche, if I heard correctly earlier? The door is just over there. You’ll always be welcome here though.” Inko adds on.

Scaramouche shakes his head, “I have nowhere to go. I don’t know this world.” He replies, dejected panic cracking into his voice.

Inko looks at the boy, it wasn’t necessarily a hard thing to believe when you account for the way he is dressed, the things he talks of. An odd concept, yes, but not a far-off one. All kinds of things exist out in this world alone, who’s Inko to say that another couldn’t exist?

“Well.. you’re always welcome here, or we could try to find you a place. I can’t promise we’d be able to get you to wherever you came from though.”

“Kusanali will be waiting for me…” Unclearly, Scaramouche mutters. “I hate her.”

Inko, with her protective tendencies, easily spoke out, “Well, We won’t let her get you. If you don’t want to stay here we can try and find you a place, maybe we can try researching for anything about where you come from.”

Izuku was the one to actually suggest that last idea, however it was in the form of his quiet mutterings. Inko has been the only one to learn how to understand the mashed-together words, so she relayed the idea for her son.

“No, save yourself the time, I don’t warrant it. I’ll sleep outside for all I care, whatever works.” Scaramouche shakes his head, scraping his elbows off the table. “As for research, I’ll be better off searching on my own.”

“Oh, absolutely not. Izuku, dear, would you go get the extra blankets and set them out on the couch please? Thank you.” Inko says quickly, waving her hand dismissively. “Frankly, I can’t in good conscience let you sleep outside.”

“Hah… you sound exactly like your son.” He recalls the exact words Izuku had said to him earlier.

That makes the mother smile, a gentle laugh following her words, “Oh, that’s just how we Midoriya’s are.”

Izuku returns to the table, finally seeming to be fully calmed down and not beating himself up, “Okay, the couch is all set up!”

Scaramouche looks over at the sofa, blinking. “Uh… Okay. But, quite honestly, I’d rather sleep on the floor.”

Izuku shrugs, humming, “Well, if you want to you can. We certainly won’t stop you, do what you have to to be comfortable.”

“When do you sleep?” Looking to Izuku, Scaramouche asks all of a sudden, looking prepared to mentally note down a schedule.

Inko excuses herself from the room as Izuku takes a minute to think, “Well, mom tends to sleep earlier since she has to get up sooner to leave for work. I try to be in bed around 10 or 11, and just fall asleep whenever my body lets me.”

“Ten or eleven…” Scaramouche pauses, looking around the walls for a clock, inevitably sighing as he comes up empty. “What time is it currently?”

“It’s.. around 8 by now I think?” Izuku states as his best guess without looking at a clock. Scaramouche seems to sigh quite unhappily at that, his only objective of the day being to sleep.

“Would you like to do anything?” Izuku questions lightly, tilting his head.

“Like what?”

The boy shrugs, “I mean. I have an old game console we could play and, or I have a mass of books. Just some ideas!”

Scaramouche stares blankly at him, “What’s a ‘game console’?”

“Oh! I think you’ll have fun with it, come here,” Izuku leads him into the living room, smiling bright as he digs out a couple of controllers. Handing a black and purple one to him, before grabbing his favorite pure green controller.

He turns the TV onto the correct channel for video games, then drops down on the couch. “You can pick whichever game looks most interesting to you. I have loads.”

He stares at the device in his hands, examining the buttons and miserably testing how they move.

“And what does it operate?” Scaramouche asks, looking back at Izuku quizzically.

“It’s connected to the TV so that you can pick the games and play it and stuff!” He explains, gesturing at the TV and flicking the control stick in example- the selected game highlight switching over to the next game.

Hesitant, his feet keeping him hovering there awkwardly just like before, Scaramouche weighs his options.

The moment’s decision fading off, he walks over and sits quaintly beside Izuku, looking out at the wide, bright box-shaped screen. “I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“Really? Well don’t worry, I think it should be pretty easy for you to figure out. Of course, I’ll do my best to explain things, but I may not be the best!” He laughs lightly.

“I’m sure I can work it out.” Scaramouche says, and an uncertain smirk crosses his face.

“Okay! Hm.. okay watch what I do with the controller.” He flicks the control stick a few times until it lands on a chill multiplayer game. Izuku hits the X on the controller and the game opens. Then he opens the settings and goes to the ‘game controls’ so that his confused friend could learn them the easy way.

“What do all these letters mean?” Scaramouche asks, squinting at the screen to see what’s written.

Izuku leans over to point at different things on Scaramouche’s controller, “They correlate to different things on your controller. So like to walk you’d use the joystick, to hit something the- right trigger.”

Following Izuku’s gestures, he runs his finger over each button, repeating the order explained to him maybe one, two or ten times in his head. “Okay, I understand. And, what exactly is the purpose of this?”

“To play the game! Y’know, have fun, enjoying company, relaxing in this case.” Izuku chirps quickly.

“...’Fun’?” Scaramouche repeats the word, staring at the floor momentarily as he thinks about the concept. “Nothing else?”

“Yup! Just to have some fun.” Izuku repeats happily.

Scaramouche reluctantly moves some of the buttons on the controller, too exhausted to protest playing the game. If he were any more awake, this interaction probably would lead to him making a speech about mortals wasting time. But in this case, he needs to waste time.

“See, you’re getting the hang of it!” Izuku smiles excitedly as he watches his friend press the correct controls.

After two ludicrously long hours, Scaramouche turns to Izuku to ask - Pronouncing each syllable with misplaced hatred, "Are you tired yet?"

The quirkless boy yawns, stretching his arms up as he did so. “..Yeahh. I guess we’d better stop now.” he tiredly got up to put his controller back into its spot before waving to Scaramouche, “Goodnight! Sleep well!”

Izuku wanders down the hallway to his room, the door can be heard softly clicking shut.

Ignoring him, Scaramouche sighs, picking himself up off the sofa and slumping down on the floor, as near to the wall as he can get. Coincidentally, he shifts up directly under the windowsill, just a sliver of light catching on his arm. He groans, lying down and pressing against the wall until the shadows fully obscure him.

Though the wooden floorboards press into his skull as he lies there, the moonlight and light pollution mixed into it draws a line right past his terrain of shadow, the ground is incorrectly comforting.

He wishes silently that this’ll be it when he shuts his eyes. The last pitiful chant of reality he’ll ever have to tolerate.

Scaramouche doesn’t belong here. None of this is meant for him.

Neither does he belong in Teyvat.

Chapter Text

Eventually, after the sun had started to creep into the rooms of the Midoriya apartment, Izuku shuffles out of his room. Making his way into the living room, noticing that Kyosuke is still asleep, he quietly moves to the kitchen. As silently as he can Izuku pulls out a few breakfast ingredients and starts making some food for the two of them, knowing that his mom had left for work already.

A glint of light glows through Scaramouche’s eyes, alerting him to the sunrise. Though, with the scattered unconscious thoughts one can have - he doesn’t want to awake just yet. Something about sleeping allures him, trapping him in the warm false sense of comfort it gives.
However, soft clattering sounds from around the room alarm him, something that usually alerts him to when Dottore is around.
Forcing himself to open his eyes, he stands up swiftly and starts darting his gaze around for any sign of danger. Though, he eventually spots Izuku, and relaxes - before panicking again that he’s been seen sleeping, vulnerable.
Why is he still here…?

Izuku works away in the kitchen, humming little tunes to himself softly as he chops a couple vegetables. He’s fully aware he’s not the best cook in the world, but he likes to think he can make some pretty decent food!

As he adjusts to the environment, waking fully - a wave of pain crashes on him out of nowhere. Ringing starts in his ears, like the aftermath of an explosion. He winces, accidentally letting out an audible whining noise, not expecting such pain. But after all, this must be what that strange numb feeling was concealing just the day before. His whole body is aching, a burning sensation simmering under his skin as the trail the Electro Gnosis left behind. This is exactly what he deserves for failing, the cost.

At the sound of a noise coming from the living room, he looks back as he swipes the chopped vegetables into the sizzling pan. “Kyosuke? Good morning, I’m making some breakfast in the kitchen!”

Scaramouche covers his mouth, choking down the pain. It isn’t all that difficult to hide how you truly feel, as this is something he’s been doing for hundreds of years.

Though, the shock from it manages to prevent him from being able to recover quickly - and he just stands there frozen as he waits for it to subside enough to move.

Maybe he just needs a minute to really wake up, Izuku shrugs, he gets that. It’s always a little hard to simply, get up. As the food nears finished he reaches over to one of the cabinets and pulls two plates down, setting them carefully on the counter.

He slides equal portions onto each plate, smiling at the product of his work. He wanders over to the table, setting the food-filled plates down on that table. “Kyosuke, breakfast is ready!”

He takes a breath to see if it will help reset his system like usual, then clears his throat to try to say something, “One- moment..” His voice broke harshly as he tried to speak, in his desperate attempt to act as if nothing’s wrong.

“Hey- Are you okay?” Izuku asks quickly, rather worried after hearing his friend’s voice. He moves over into the living room where he had slept, quickly examining Kyosuke.

Scaramouche shakes his head, clearing his throat again before attempting to speak for the second time, “Fine. I am not of your concern.” This time he is able to get something out normally, able to tune out some of the pain in his body.

“You’re my friend, of course you’re of my concern!” Izuku frowns softly, grateful that the other boy didn’t have any visible injuries but also not getting anywhere in terms of finding out what’s wrong.

“Simply after effects from the event before I ended up here. I would rather you ignore it.” He explains, leaving out the details intentionally. It’s unlikely Izuku would react well to learning the truth about what he did as the Balladeer, not that he particularly cares for what he thinks - just doesn’t want to deal with the hassle of it.

Izuku sighs, looking off, “..If, If you’re sure. Come on then, I have some food on the table if you’d like it.”

“I don’t particularly want to eat today.” He replies honestly, shrugging his shoulders. Eating would probably just overload his system, and add to the clutter already in his body.

He hums, “I’ll just wrap yours up and put it in the fridge for later then.” He makes his way to the table, picking up one of the plates and moving to the kitchen. After wrapping it quickly, he sets it in the fridge and heads back to the table. Glad to at least be able to eat his own.

Standing still, Scaramouche crosses his arms, the act of enclosing himself giving a sort of comfort. He thinks for a moment, realising the fact that he is still here in this place, and this isn’t a dream as he had initially guessed. If it is, he would have woken up already. How can he get back to Teyvat? Does he even want to get back to Teyvat? But he doesn’t want to be here either, there doesn’t seem to be an ideal option. Perhaps he shall just have to cope with what he has, this strange new place.

“In your world, do you have gods?” He asks spontaneously, looking across the room at Izuku.

He thinks for a moment on how to answer, “I mean.. you could say that? People all over the world believe that different gods or goddesses exist. It depends on who you ask and what they believe in.”

“‘Believe’? It’s not a fact? If there are no true gods, why would anyone want to believe in a concept so corrupt?” He responds, “If I had the option to simply believe gods out of existence, I would have done it long ago. Teyvat is locked in the control of archons, all looking down on the world with no regard but their own selfish ideals.”

“That’s why I don’t. I can’t believe in something that’s meant to be all-mighty when it’s never helped me.” Izuku knows what he said is.. vague at best, but it’s better to not get into it. Not now. Instead he smiles slightly, “Well, you’re here now. No need to believe in anything you don’t want to!”

“Hmm…” He looks away, thinking about the idea. The freedom that he’s always longed for, that he has spent so much to achieve. And yet a simple world exists where there were never any gods to begin with, a world he always desired Teyvat to be.

Izuku eats the last of his food in silence, letting Kyosuke think about whatever was consuming his brain. He slowly gets up with his plate in hand, walking over to the sink to wash the few dishes.

As he finishes up the last dish, he calls out, “Hey, what do you think about going out somewhere today? I’m sure we could catch a train to the mall or somewhere.”

Most of those words lost him, and so he simply stays quiet for a minute. “Whatever you want.” He says in response.

“Hm.. I think a little time out would be nice. At least it’d take my mind off the decision I have yet to make.” He shrugs with a smile, turning to face his friend now.

“What decision?” He asks instinctively, curiously eyeing Izuku.

“Oh- uh.. how do I explain this..” Izuku mumbled under this breath before seemingly deciding on something, “To try to make a really long story short I need to apply/transfer to a new school soon or I’ll have to enroll in a regular school next school year and repeat most likely.”

Scaramouche pauses, blinking as he tries to process all the unusual usage of words. “I don’t understand what you mean, why do you have to transfer ‘schools’?” He quotes the word, not quite comprehending what he meant by it as he hasn’t heard the term ‘school’ used as a noun before. Although, he has heard a few people refer to the Akademiya as a school.. perhaps that’s what he means.

He laughs lightly, humming, “Basically I was- in a way- kicked out of my previous school because of my lack of quirk. I only have a limited amount of time to get into a new one without having to re-do things that I’ve already learned/done.”

“Hah.. of course those without visions are outcasted in this world too, those who wield visions are no different from the gods.” He rants, scoffing before stumbling on the last word as the pain attacks him again. It is probably unwise to continue talking as much as he is, with it seemingly making his state worse.

His face softens, understanding, “Yeah, some people can be pretty crappy, but that’s their choice. I.. know some people who have quirks who I think will make great heros one day because they’re kind and welcoming.”

He side-eyes Izuku, thinking over the statement. As to avoid overworking his voice again, he answers with a simple response, “Heroism is a lie.”

Izuku shrugs, “Maybe.” He says, easily and without much emotion as if it hadn’t been his life-long dream. He wants to believe it’s still his dream, but maybe it.. needs to be changed a little.

Scaramouche gives him a stern glance, before looking away, proceeding to zone out as he stares at the wall for a moment.

The light drifting around the room started to feel like it was engulfing him, and a buzzing that began in his ears tempted him to just collapse into a sleep then and there. More side effects from the Gnosis, he guesses.

“You seem tired, Kyosuke. Are you sure you’d want to go out? I don’t mind if you’d like to take a nap.” He offers.

Hearing the boy speak, he snaps himself out of his haze, looking back at him. “No.” He refuses sternly, “I don’t take naps.”

Izuku raises his hands in mock-surrender, “Just a suggestion. I don’t want you to push yourself or anything. Maybe the park would be better than the mall..”

“I don’t care, I’ll go wherever you want.” He states, shaking his head. “Enough with the whole ‘worrying about me’ act.” A little of a forward statement, sure, but he does not care anymore for any consequences.

He frowns, “Act? Kyosuke, I’m not acting. I do care, I want you to be comfortable and stuff.”

“Even if that’s true, your pity is making me uncomfortable.” Scaramouche sighs, leaning his head into his hand as if he has a migraine.

“I- I’m sorry?” He wasn’t sure how exactly to react to that, an apology seemed best. “I’ll uh- go get my keys then we can leave?”

Scaramouche nods, looking up to eye Izuku again. He cracks a smile ever so slightly from the kick scolding the boy gave him, as it always does. Though, it isn’t quite the same, as his previous power trip was long gone the second Kusanali took the Gnosis. Treating people inferiorly is now a lie, especially when he is no longer the formidable Ballader as he once was.

“Okay then, I’ll be right back.” He moves through the rooms quickly, disappearing through the hallway and entering again a few minutes later with a small bag being zipped closed.

He moves towards the door, “Alright, ready!”

Following him reluctantly, Scaramouche gulps down the aching in his body in preparation for the day. Of course this is what the Gnosis has done to him. Ei built him too weak, she was right to discard him.

Izuku slips out the door, waiting for Kyosuke to exit as well before shutting the door and locking it.

“The park isn’t too far away, maybe a 10 minute walk I think?”

Scaramouche obediently follows Izuku out, starting to walk with him.

“Fine. I’m not sure how far I can walk.” He states, feeling the already developing pain in his legs.

He looks back quickly, shock evident on his face, “What?!”

He groans, irritated at himself for saying that, “As I said, after effects from the event in my world before I arrived here.” He reiterates.

“Yeah, but now it sounds like really bad-“ he frowns, concerned for his friend.

He falls silent for a moment, then replies, “I’ve experienced worse.” Far worse. Nothing will ever be worse than Dottore’s experiments or his time in the abyss.

“That’s- not exactly comforting buddy.” He sighs lightly, he keeps walking, however he makes sure to watch Kyosuke a bit closer- just in case.

“I don’t know what else I can say to convince you I’m fine.” He looks away, avoiding Izuku’s unsettling staring.

“Probably nothing,” He shrugs, “I have horrible anxiety and overthinking issues. I’m gonna assume the worst until I have a reason not to, it’s just how my brain wants to work.”

“You’re oddly self aware.” He comments, shifting his gaze back to Izuku. Sighing, he begins to continue on the topic “There isn’t anything I can say to convince you, because anything I say further about my affliction would only leave you in upset.”

“It’s a curse and a blessing,” He hums in a joke, however nodding along with the rest of what his friend says, “You’re probably right. As long as you’re not like.. dying or something I suppose it can go unsaid.”

Scaramouche pauses before responding, should he say it? “I can’t die.” He admits, as if it is nothing. It’s likely the mortal wouldn’t understand particularly how literally he means it.

Izuku hesitates, “…Okay then. Not dying, got it.”

“I should shut my mouth.” He says, annoyed at himself for talking so much. Especially about feelings, and pain. Such a vulnerability, a weakness he shouldn’t have shared.

“You don’t have to, but I’m not gonna force you to talk either.” He shrugs, looking across a road for a moment before ushering them across the road.

The boy sounds like Dottore sometimes, constantly giving the illusion of choice. But, Dottore never meant what he would say. As it was a tactic, a tactic to keep stringing Scaramouche along with the idea that he’d voluntarily signed up for all of it.

“Are you tricking me? Like Dottore?” A question he meant to think to himself, yet it just had to slip out of his mouth.

Izuku shakes his head, thinking for a moment before seemingly deciding against something, “No, I’m not tricking you. I have no reason to trick you, I just want to be your friend.”

“I didn’t mean to say that out loud.” He clarifies quickly, looking down at the pavement as they walk, focusing in on the small pebbles littered across it.

“Dottore…” He mutters, lightly kicking one of the stones almost as a way to vent his anger, a small cloud of dust sifting out of the ground as a result.

“It’s okay, I have a problem with muttering my thoughts too. People tend to call it creepy when it comes from me though.” He chuckles sheepishly, rubbing a hand through his hair.

“Creepy? You’re not creepy. Dottore is far worse,” He sighs, unable to get the twisted man off of his mind now. So absorbed by the thought of him, that he even managed to let that one unintentional compliment slip out.

“Thanks,” He smiles lightly.

Soon lush trees were in view, having arrived at the nearest park. A playground lay off in the distance, a few dots that are likely kids and parents surrounding it. Pathways branch off from the entrance that Izuku and Kyosuke come from.

Scaramouche looks around, watching the trees pass above his head as they walk.

“Why is this strip of forest here? What is this for?” He asks, pretty much just relying on Izuku to explain everything new.

“To be able to enjoy nature without having to go either all the way out of the city and/or to be in a public space to meet with other people. A bit safer than just being out in the woods.” He explains as he takes in the area, he seems.. more peaceful here somehow.

As they got closer, a few groups of people sitting in the grass started to appear. Scaramouche didn’t even notice prior, and almost gasps in horror in realising they weren’t alone.

In his shock, he instinctively grabs onto Izuku’s arm and hides behind him, “You didn’t tell me there would be people everywhere!” He hisses, frightfully darting his head around to see if he’s been spotted by anyone. It is kind of a random impulse that he’s afraid of them, he can’t quite rationalise it.

“Oh, I’m sorry. This is a public park so people are gonna be around, uhm.. There's an old path that leads down to a lake I used to hang out at. There shouldn’t be any people around there if you’d like to head in that direction?” He questions with a hum, glancing around at the people on picnic cloths or playing sports.

“Yes.. please.” He mumbles, looking around again before tilting his hat further over his face to hide.

Crowds are not fun. Feeling like people’s eyes are constantly observing him, not fun. That’s how it feels in the harbinger’s meetings, how it feels to have eyes all looking towards him. He sighs, trying not to relive it and focusing on following behind Izuku instead.

“Alright!” He chirps, veering off from the made path and walking down a clearly not-very-used self made one. Less and less people were around here as they venture further away from the main area.

Carefully, he leads them down a hill and soon enough a small lake comes to view.

Scaramouche follows him quietly, stepping through the somewhat overgrown path. After all the time spent in Sumeru, he is quite used to weaving through forests and such.

He walks with Izuku down to the lake, stopping by the edge once they reach it. He tilts his head, looking over the water like it’s brung him into thought.

The harsh expression that constantly poisons his face softly relaxing ever so slightly, a little calmer as he watches it, as if mesmerised.

Izuku settles calmly down on the forest floor, watching Kyosuke for a moment before looking across the water. Content with the silence of nature for now.

“I like water, it hides so many secrets just beneath its surface, while it still projects a perfect image of reality.” Scaramouche crouches down to run his hand through the still water, causing a ripple to distort the reflection it displays.

“It’s like me. ” He whispers, lifting his hand and watching as the water slowly returns to how it was before.

He nods at his friend’s words, understanding in his eyes, “It’s also quite beautiful underneath, don’t you think?” He pauses for a moment, “Tranquil, that’s the word I was looking for.”

He turns his head to look back at Izuku, “Not especially, it’s all just mud and rocks. And if you’re lucky, forgotten fragments of the past.” He sighs, staring down at the surface of the lake again.

“Perhaps, those memories aren’t all bad.. but they are just poisoned and withered away now. Water keeps nothing safe from erosion.” He says, in reality he is talking about himself. Memories… however good they are, his own are tainted by betrayal forever.

“Maybe where you're from, but here it’s only fish and seaweed/grass. I think it’s rather pretty,” He was about to add something else when a loud booming voice rings out,

“Oi, Deku!”

Chapter Text

In Bakugo’s own opinion everything has been better since Deku was kicked out of UA. He was finally remembering his place in society it seems, and whatever weird stress-induced quirk Deku had is long gone now, so everything is finally getting back to normal.

Sure, sometimes the empty desk behind him is strange, and some of the others mope around so much it’s distracting, but Deku being gone couldn’t possibly make that much of a difference. Everyone will get over it!

His life is better without the stupid deku following him around all the time. Looking down on him. Thinking he’s better than him, hah! Yeah right..

Of course, fate apparently wants to screw him over today because he seems to find himself walking down the old path he and his ex-friends had made years ago.

When he reaches the bottom, none other than some purple haired freak and Deku are sitting there. He doesn’t quite know why it makes him so mad.

Pops crackle to life in his palms,

“Oi, Deku!”

He practically stomps over to the shorter boy, yanking him up by the back of his shirt, “The fuck do you think you’re doing here?!”

“Wha-! Bakugou?!” Izuku’s high-pitched, nervous voice rings out but Bakugou ignores it.

“And who the hell is that? Pay someone to be your ‘friend’?” He sneers.

Leaping up without a thought, Scaramouche darts behind the boy he has quite a bad first impression of, grabbing his shoulder and hauling him to the nearest tree, which, he uses to easily pin his arm against.

Coldly, like it’s a job he has no care for, he stares up at him. It’s then that he decides, just from the boy’s expression, that he tests his patience. Which, he doesn’t have much of in the first place.

"What do you want?” It starts boredly, like a proportional response to a petty disturbance. Quickly, it goes sour. “Whatever it is, you’re not getting it here.”

“What the fuck!? The hell are you-“ He struggles as much as he can in the boy’s grasp, he won’t let himself be beaten so easily! He can’t.

He claws at the arm pinning him, hands still popping in ignition, yelling ceaselessly until Izuku’s voice is finally heard,

“Scaramouche- please it’s not worth it.. let’s just leave-“

Bakugou scoffs even in his current predicament, how dare Deku always run away.

"Have a few sparks there? Aw, how cute.” Scaramouche says through a grin, then looks over his shoulder, attention snapped to Izuku.

“I’ll do what I want.” Almost reassuringly, he answers back, then fixes his gaze back on the boy he has dutifully restrained. “Now then. What do you want?” He prompts Bakugou with a smile, “Answer me.”

Bakugou– in kind– responds with enough curses to impress a sailor while he kicks and punches at Scaramouche. Finding it utterly useless because even though they hit, he doesn’t move, as if he doesn’t even feel it. Of course Deku would find someone like him.

“Like I’d answer you, extra! What are you some kind of bodyguard?! Let me the fuck go!”

“No, I protect myself. And by that I mean… From insects. They’re annoying, don’t you agree?” Like he’s entertained by this, Scaramouche cocks his head to the side and grins brightly. As cold, detached as his tone is, there’s something about him that feels at home.

“Now answer me.” Harshly, he pushes his arm into the bark, it’s sudden. “Who are you, at the minimum?”

Thoroughly fed up with this, Bakugo grits his teeth and in a sudden swift movement placing his free palm in front of Scaramouche’s shoulder– setting off an explosion.
Izuku makes.. A strange strangled noise, like it couldn’t quite get out of his throat. Reaching out desperately to try and pull his friend back.

Scaramouche staggers back just a pace, his eye twitching closed a couple of times as he processes. Everything slows down.

“Pyro… I see.” He mutters, as though to map out the strategy with his words. Decided, he looks up, his eyes almost glowing against the sun.

Before the image can linger any longer, he dashes at Bakugou, hand digging into his shoulder as he drags him to the ground, locking his head to the floor. “All I asked for was an answer. Did you give me one? Even try to? No. It’s extremely rudimentary, how pathetic can you be?”

Bakugou grunts, “You don’t deserve one, get off me you fucking weirdo!”

Scaramouche laughs, it’s disturbing, like the wrong place for such a sinister sound.
His laugh stalls when he says, gleefully, “I call myself Kunikuzushi for a reason, you know.”

“Fuck you creep! Deku, who the hell even is this?!” Bakugou forces out, anger running through him in a returning wave, although somehow always ending back on Deku.

Izuku however– for the first time– isn’t focused on Bakugou, “You call yourself that?!”

Scaramouche falters and turns to Izuku at hearing him speak, blinking for a second.
Something more strange than the attitude of his laugh falls over him. Instead of responding verbally, he nods his head and frowns at him.

Hesitation. That’s it. “It’s just a name. Something I picked when I was younger— Far more… anarchical.” Blurting out a defence, he feels the need to justify.

Izuku nods, “Okay- okay. Well, we’ll talk about that la-” his voice is cut off as a near-deafening explosion is set off. Bakugou never has liked to play fair.

Bakugou scrambles to sit up, “Thanks for distracting your friend, Deku.” It’s snarky, of course it is, but there’s a strange hint of genuine relife. “I don’t know where you found this lunatic, but get away from here.”

Though Scaramouche falls back from the explosion, he doesn’t hesitate to quip back in defence. “I don’t want to know where you found this lunatic, however, no. You’re the one who needs to ‘get away’.” Dragging himself up with a stifled wince, he steps over to stand next to Izuku.

“Tch, whatever! I never want to see you or your weirdo friend again, Deku.” Bakugou scoffs, glaring at the pair before decisively spinning on his heels.

“Wonderful!” Scaramouche says, crossing his arms. Staying analytical, he watches every step Bakugou takes until he’s out of sight, and in his already detailed mental map of the park, out of their radar.

Once they’re alone again, he sighs and folds in on himself a little, clutching his shoulder.

“Scara- Kunikuzushi- are you okay? I’m so sorry he did that, I’m sorry I couldn’t stop him.” Izuku rambles on, trying to get a look at his shoulder, “I have burn cream at the house still I think, come on. Please let me help you.”

“It won’t help, it’s not a burn.” Grumbling, Scaramouche responds. “Why does he call you that?” More determined for an answer, he stands upright and stares at him, expectant.

It startles Izuku, being brushed off but also the simple question. Why does Bakugou call him that. Is that really a question he can answer?
“Uhm.. when we were kids he saw that part of my name could be read like that. It just- stuck I guess? It’s what everyone called me.”

Scaramouche stares, runs over the explanation as if he’s tracking it along a handwritten page of paper.

“I think that’s unnecessarily cruel.”

For someone so adept at lying, honesty has always been apart of him.

Izuku waits for a moment, making sure that his childhood ex-friend truly does leave
the area, before turning to Kunikuzushi. “Can I hug you?” he asks, voice soft but sure.

He blinks himself out of zoning out, turning to look at Izuku confusedly as he hears his voice.

“..Hug me?” He processes the words, tilting his head, “But.. why?”

“No-one’s ever stood up for me before, especially not against Bakugou, but you did. You protected me, thank you. I just.. Wanted to give you a hug sorta as a way to show my appreciation.” Izuku explains.

Scaramouche tries to think, but it amounts to nothing. “No one’s hugged me for a while. I.. Don’t really remember.”

Izuku hums softly, repeating his questions just to be sure “Can I hug you? I can show you that way, but to me it’s.. Warm and comforting knowing that someone else is right there.”

Scaramouche makes a wary laughing sound, trying to mock the idea, though it doesn’t come out right. Off-key, out of tune, reverberating wrong against the trees.
“I can’t think of a reason to say no.” He admits.

It’s rather hard to contain honesty.

Izuku moves forwards slowly, gently wrapping his arms around Kunikuzushi in a hug. He whispers, “Thank you, again.”

Scaramouche doesn’t quite return the hug, instead sort of sinking into it while still standing dead still. Every second that drags on, he twitches, tempted to flinch away. It’s not right.

He doesn’t... he doesn’t deserve this.

Izuku doesn’t mind holding Kunikuzushi in his arms as the other sinks into the hug, he understands the feeling of just needing to be there. It’s the same thing he had done with his mother when he returned from UA, and now he is on the other side.

“..I am not a good person.” Scaramouche whispers, “You should stay away from me. I was never meant to be here.”

“You saved me.” Izuku says easily, “How could I stay away from the only person that was kind enough to stand up for me?”

Scaramouche’s eyes widen, “..Kind? That’s not…”

“I was still me when I was Deku, and you’re still you however much you don’t want to believe it. I believe that you are caring, and protective, and I’m glad you’re my friend.” Izuku hums, trying to be comforting, trying to help.

With that, Scaramouche uncomfortably moves to slip away from the hug, grimacing.

Izuku lets him go, he wasn’t going to hold him there afterall, that’d be rude. After a moment of silence he speaks out, “Want to go back home? This place feels a little tainted for now.”

Once, and cleverly masked by the way he turns away, Scaramouche coughs and answers, “Whatever.”

“Okay, come on then. I think home-time is just what’s needed.” He hums matter-of-factly, waiting a moment before leading them back up the hill and down the beaten pathway to the exit of the park.

Every step takes more and more energy, until he finds he’s almost out altogether. Out of it enough to pause on the pavement a couple of times, out of it enough to almost turn down the wrong street several times over. And certainly, out of it enough to not say a word to Izuku the whole way home, stalling in suffocating silence.

If Izuku tries talking to him, or talking to the air, Scaramouche doesn’t hear him. His ears ring a tinnitus he’s heard many times before, and his brain puts a wall up to any sound.

What’s most painful, he’s certain, is that he knows just who could fix him.

A lot of concerned glances from Izuku and a couple minutes later, they reach the apartment complex. Izuku pushes the door open, slides his shoes off, and relaxes in the comfort of his home.

Scaramouche walks in after him, slipping his own shoes off. Static surrounds his vision, and in his blind disorientation, he grabs onto the door frame as if to steady himself.

He holds his arm out for Kunikuzushi, silently offering the help when he sees the other still stumbling.

Only seeing an out, Scaramouche grabs onto Izuku’s arm without thinking about it. Hesitantly, he walks inside with Izuku’s help, blank to everything.

Izuku makes sure that his friend is steady enough to walk without any extra help than his arm, leading him to the couch and gently pushing him down onto it.

As soon as he touches the sofa, he passes out, like an off switch being pressed. His sleep is silent, less for comfort and more for survival, like an animal designed to quiet their sounds in the night. From afar, it almost looks like he isn’t breathing at all.

Scaramouche never really wanted to be a liar.

Izuku carefully drapes a blanket over Kunikuzushi, humming softly, “Sleep well Zushi.” Afterwards Izuku makes his way to his own room, deciding a nap isn’t such a bad idea.

Chapter Text

"Scaramouche."

A familiar voice rings out, echoing in the silence that is the puppet's head. Though it takes a moment for him to process, he recognises it.

That snarl in his voice, the hint of judgement and the odd sense of menace. It finally clicks, that is the always so falsely poised voice of the 2nd Harbinger.
It’s Dottore.

The silence envelops him all around, so quiet that it taunts him. Until it is broken once again, "Enjoying yourself in this little world?" The man laughs, though the laugh slowly fades away into echoes.

Before Scaramouche can think, Dottore appears in front of him, staring down at him with that off putting smile he always wore.

Scaramouche whispers through the slight nervous sort of shock he's in, "Dottore. Is this real? Or a dream? I never know with you.."

"Does it matter, Scaramouche? Teyvat is a dream. Yet at the same time, it is still real. I thought you would know better." Dottore replies.

He looks away from the Harbinger, trying to find somewhere in the black void to stare at in hopes he could avoid Dottore. He knows he is right, Dottore is capable of anything.
Every time silence falls, the plane gets absorbed by an eery muffled quiet, it setting more unease in the environment. He simply has to wait until Dottore speaks, to free the silence.

Dottore waits before speaking again, knowing it unsettles Scaramouche. He seems to always know everything.

"While you have failed our experiment, you have seemingly unlocked something new. Something I am far more concerned with than you becoming a god." He starts eventually. "How have you travelled Universes? I am not surprised at the mysteries Teyvat brings, but this fascinates me."

Scaramouche looks back at him, before automatically edging away from the man. "I don't know. I'm trying to figure that out myself."

Dottore chuckles under his breath, "Afraid of me still, Scaramouche?" He says as he walks over to him, not allowing him to step away.

"..No. You don't scare me, you're weaker than me." He scoffs and looks away.

"Not after your failure, now Scaramouche." He smiles as he uses the name again, "I'll be finding out how you made it to this universe, and I'll be collecting you myself soon. Perhaps you may be able to keep the sixth seat."

"Kusanali played a stupid trick on me, what was I supposed to do!? Our 'experiment' was rigged from the start. Regardless, I'm not going back to your little game. I'd rather die." He says, he means it. Teyvat's no better than this world, it's not worth it. Besides, he doesn't want that life again.

"I'll do whatever I decide is ideal for me. Won't it be fun when your little friend finds out who you really are?" He practically threatens through a grin.

Scaramouche froze as he heard that, "Izuku!? Don't.. don't. Leave mortals out of this." He quickly tries to defend.

Laughing, Dottore walks off, disappearing somewhere into the void. "We'll see." His voice echoes out, before it falls into unsettling silence again.

He feels like the surface melts away, and he is consumed by the dream once again. His head spins with words and thoughts, all spiralling into nothing.
Then, he wakes up. The dark swirling plane vanishing into nothing and the room coming straight into focus, specks of light spinning around in his eyes as the disorientation passes.
He looks around quickly,

"Dottore.." He mutters, what was that? What did that mean? Was it a dream? It scares him, the thought of Dottore knowing where he is.

He breathes in as an automatic response, almost expecting his body to process the air such like humans do. Though, the air doesn't get past his throat. He takes in a breath again, and nothing. Every time he breathes, he inhales even less air. How do humans do this? Why isn't it working?

He pleads with his body to just let him take in some air, forcing himself to keep trying even though it's not working. Breathing is the only way he can regulate his emotions, if he can't do it- he can't cope. He has to breathe.

Humans get to breathe all the time, while he has to force it. Why does he have to be a puppet.. why can't he be human? Why does it have to not work, just when he needs it to...
Out of frustration, he growls and gets up, dragging himself over to the door. Maybe if he can get outside he could breathe better. Isn't that how it works for humans when they do so?

Though, once he approaches the door, he realises that he can't think of how doors are opened again. Strangely enough, he hasn't had to use a regular door in a while. He can't manage to summon up the thought of how to do it.

He tries to push against it to see if it will just swing open at his will, but he is met with the door firmly pushing back, only rattling slightly. That must not be how it works, then.
The window would work, he can just jump out of it. He remembers how to open windows, at least.

He stomps over to the window, looking over the glass and lifting it up, then hops over the windowsill, letting himself fall blindly.

Said fall ends up being about 2 stories, and he eventually hits the ground on two feet. Luckily, this doesn’t cause him any pain.

He did exactly this all the time in Snezhnaya, especially in the early days.. sometimes he would jump out of a window as he would try to impulsively run away, run away from Dottore. But he would always send someone to catch him, and record the results of his time running around in the freezing cold simply as if it was another experiment. Like he planned for every possible thing he could do.

As he recovers quickly from the landing, he starts quickly walking off in no particular direction. He doesn’t know what he’s looking for, or where he’s going. He just needs to get away..

Once he feels he’s far enough away, he slumps down on a patch of grass somewhere. Can he breathe now?

Scaramouche hesitantly takes a breath, though still, nothing happens. No air comes, and he heaves out the very last of his attempts at trying. He can’t do it.
Tears well in his eyes, rather unexpectedly. Either tears from the simple act of exasperating himself, or.. emotions. Not that, emotions are weak. Emotions are what made Ei send him away, when will he be rid of them? When will he be good enough?

He aggressively wipes away the tears, no one can see him like this. Even if there isn't anyone in sight where he’s hidden. Maybe.. Maybe he’s afraid of seeing himself cry.

Chapter Text

Izuku’s head pops out from the window, his worried voice calling out, “Kunikuzushi?!”

Scaramouche quickly darts his head up at the sound, has he been spotted already?
Why does Izuku have to care.
It takes him a delayed moment before he growls and pushes himself off the ground, though freezes when he stands, just staring into the distance. He can’t will himself to go back and face the mortal.
He doesn’t want help, nor concern directed at him. Or dare he think, pity. Such a sickening prospect..

Finally making himself look down, Izuku spots Kunikuzushi and grows even more worried,calling down, “Oh stars- are you okay?!”

He hears the words and doesn’t respond, simply trying to sigh, though forgetting about his inability to breathe at the moment and ending up coughing out the breath instead.
Forcing himself to stop at this useless attempt to breathe, he shakily turns to stare up at the window. He finds himself already nauseated just by seeing the worried look on the boy’s face.

“Please tell me you didn’t actually get a concussion this time- Hold on- let me come down and help you!” Izuku’s head disappears from view.

Scaramouche tenses up as he waits for Izuku, he doesn’t want to be seen in such a state.
Only Dottore ever saw him so on edge, and instead of comfort all of his emotional reactions would be jotted down in his stupid notes. Every time he wanted to kill the man, only to earn patronising side glances in return.
He doesn’t want a mortal to see him vulnerable. That’s worse, far worse.. isn’t it?

A mere minute later and Izuku is at Kunikuzushi’s side, clearly examining him for any obvious injuries, none of which he can see. “What even happened, are you okay-“

Scaramouche doesn’t notice Izuku walk up to him until he speaks, in which he is taken by surprise and takes an abrupt step backwards. Perhaps, instinctive.
Again, his reaction is slow as he just stares at Izuku in order to process.
He doesn’t know what compels him to, but he does answer hesitantly, “..Can’t breathe.”

Oh! Izuku thinks, he knows this. He has panic attacks chronically, he can help! Izuku speaks softly, but still clear, “Put your head below your chest, that should help you breathe better. Can you feel the things around you?”

“..How do you mean?” Scaramouche asks, mildly interested by the thought of learning about how humans breathe. How does Izuku know this? Do humans also struggle to breathe themselves sometimes? That can’t be right.

Izuku mimics putting his head down, before explaining, “When I have panic/anxiety attacks and can’t breathe, doing that and trying to ground myself will help me calm down and start breathing normally again.”

Scaramouche watches him, then copies by following the movement. He pauses to take in a breath, closing his eyes and hoping he can just take in a little bit of cooling air- and to his relief, it works.
At that one breath, he doesn’t attempt another. It’s then that he lets himself stop breathing, almost visibly so.
He feels instantly much calmer, breathing always helps.. Maybe it, oddly, makes him feel human. But no, because he’ll never admit that he wants to be like humans.
As he remembers Izuku is still standing there, he forces himself to return to mimicking natural human breathing, as usual. At least now, he can put his defences back up.

“Feeling any better? I hope it helped- Do you want to go back inside now? Wait- can you walk-“ Izuku accidentally starting one of his little mumble rant of questions, shaking his head softly to break it.

Scaramouche sighs impatiently, “I’m just not adept at breathing like you. Forget it. I’m fine.”

“Ack- Sorry! I’m sorry- I can never seem to break that mumbling habit. If you’re sure you’re fine, I’ll have to believe you.” He hums, nodding to himself, “I guess let’s go back inside?”

All this response does is annoy Scaramouche, so he impatiently scoffs and says, “Don’t apologise. It makes you seem weak.”
He eyes Izuku once and then just starts walking, not bothering to wait for him.

He shrugs, “Perhaps.”
Izuku quickly scampers up to follow after Kunikuzushi, preferring to not be left in the dust.

As they walk, Scaramouche decides to ask, rather out of the blue, “Are you afraid of me?” He turns to look him in the eyes briefly. For the first time, he isn’t sure what answer he wants.. he feels both outcomes would not be ideal.

“Afraid of you?” He parrots back, taking a moment to answer, “No, I’m not.”

He scowls, looking away from Izuku again, “You should be.”
He falls silent for another moment, then mutters, “If not me, then Dottore. I think he’s.. he’s coming. To take me back. I don’t know what he would do to this innocent little world of yours.”

“I’ve fought villains before, and won. I won’t let him take you, he’d have to pry you from my cold dead hands. You’re with us now, so don’t worry too much about it!” It would appear Izuku has his mothers same overprotectiveness, of course meshed with self-sacrificing tendencies!

He scoffs at Izuku again, almost finding the determination amusing.
“Dottore is immortal, with powers close to godlike. He also has more clones than there are Harbingers. You would be delusional to think you could do anything to stop him.” He states, then mutters out of Izuku’s earshot as he looks down at his hands, “If only I had more of my divine power left… Or the Gnosis..”

Izuku shrugs with a soft smile, “Then I guess I’m delusional, cause I mean what I said.”

He rolls his eyes and snarkily says, “You certainly are delusional.”

Dramatically, Izuku presses his arm to his forehead and sighs happily, “I am delusional and happy, what a way to live!”

Scaramouche snickers as he watches Izuku, finding the dramatic act somewhat entertaining. He finds it almost funny, it reminds him of how sarcastic some of the Harbingers could be before they went back to plotting the destruction of Celestia itself without batting an eye.

“I am delusional but I am free!” He continues with a laugh, doing a small little spin as they walk. “All to protect my dear friend!”

He laughs again, then looks away to focus back on walking. Is that a genuine laugh? No… Why did he just do that?

“I shall save the day! Effortlessly and then we can get ice cream!” He proclaims proudly, smiling big as he realizes he got a laugh from Kunikuzushi.

Scaramouche only takes a moment to drop the slight grin he’d just had on his face, just folding his arms and sighing. He can’t find this little world filled with mortals enjoyable, no. Nor anything in it.
He has to stay focused on getting back to Teyvat. This place is only temporary…

“I thought my performance was rather good! It appears I have much to learn, are you alright?” He asks softly.

“Fine,” He shakes his head, “Stop asking such unnecessary questions.” He insists.

“I’m just trying to make sure, but alright. I’ll take your word for it.” Izuku concludes with a small hum. He pushes the door to the apartment open and immediately moves towards the kitchen, working quickly as pulls a kettle out of a cupboard. “You can sit down if you want, this’ll take a minute.”

As Scaramouche follows him in, he wants to reply with something snide, but for the first time- Hesitates, and just chooses silence. Perhaps he doesn’t feel the need to, not to Izuku. He just sighs and steps away, sitting down as Izuku had suggested.

It’s not long before the kettle is whistling as the water reaches a boil. He pulls the kettle off of the stove, pouring it out into two small teacups, one has 2 cubes of sugar and the other is empty besides the tea-leaf holder. He lets the non-sugar one steep for longer before taking it out and bringing the teacups over to the living room.
He sets his on the small coffee table and hands Kunikuzushi the other, “Here, tea helps me relax after a panic attack. Careful, it’s hot, and don’t worry I made sure yours was more bitter.”

Izuku smiles softly as he hands off the tea to his friend.

“Panic attack..?” Scaramouche mutters, but doesn’t think too deeply about the term. No, that probably isn’t right. He just isn’t human, but he can’t tell Izuku that. Actually, why can’t he tell Izuku that…? Well, he’s already decided not to.
He shakes his head, pushing away the thought and just accepting the tea. “It’s fine. I don’t feel the heat.”

“Oh, really?” Izuku tilts his head but shrugs. Maybe his hands just went numb, then really the heat would help! He mentally pats himself on the back for being such a good friend, making all the right choices! Suddenly Izuku whips his head around and goes over to a shelf in the corner of the room.

Scaramouche watches Izuku with a hint of interest. What is he looking for? He stops himself quickly and crosses his arms, there’s no use for intrigue anymore. That’s just another meaningless human emotion he needs to push aside.
He sits there quietly, though still glancing at Izuku. Seems it’s not that easy to bury curiosity.

After a few moments of shuffling around the living room he pulls out a worn box with a still colorful cover.
“Aha, I knew it was around here!” Izuku holds the box up, “This is a board game I love. I haven’t gotten to play it for a while though since mom’s been busy. Would you want to play it?”

“Board game…” He mutters, thinking on that term he’s sure he knows the meaning of. It’s somewhere in his memory.. he just has to find it.
“Chess is a board game, am I correct?” He eventually says. Once, he read a manual about chess that was simply laying around the Fatui’s headquarters. It was rather interesting, filled with strategies and ordered patterns to the way each piece moves. That must be what a board game is.
“If it’s akin to that, then I may be interested.” He concludes.

He nods, “Yeah chess is a board game, though this game isn’t really like chess at all. It’s called the game of Life! You get a little plastic car and person and you spin a wheel to see how many spaces you can move.” Izuku shrugs with a small smile, “It’s always been one of my favorites, I think it’s fun! We have some other board games too!”

Ah, so however, it is different.
“So, it’s a game of chance? A gamble at who’s the winner, as opposed to meticulously planning out your strategy?” Scaramouche confirms, tilting his head slightly.

Izuku lights up, “Yeah, pretty much! It’s about the choices you make, and not so much the choices the other person makes!”

“As I am accustomed to strategic thinking, it’s not the most enticing to me. However, I will give it a chance.” Scaramouche replies, closing his eyes and sighing.

“Great okay!” He happily moves to the table and gently pulls the lid off the box. Revealing small plastic pieces, a couple of cards, and a folded up board. As quick as one person can, he sets up the game before motioning for Kunikuzushi to sit down at the table. “You can go ahead and pick a little car and person to put on the board!”

Scaramouche hesitantly watches Izuku, eyeing the board as he tries to work it out in his head. As he thinks, he rests his head in his hands and hums quietly. It’s ever so confusing learning all these new things, it is slowly starting to wear him out.
“I assume you’re referring to these pieces?” He gestures to them, confused as to what they represent. It’s obviously foreign to him, as this is a different world.

“Mhm, the little plastic pieces.” Izuku reaches for a green car and places a little plastic peg person into the first slot. Then holds it out for Kunikuzushi to see, “Like this!”
He sets it down on the board where the game starts.

Scaramouche watches for a moment, then reaches out to pick up a blue piece of each, as it’s the darkest colour he can spot- so naturally, he’s drawn to it.
He stares at Izuku, waiting to see what he’s meant to do next.

While the other boy had been picking his car piece Izuku set out the starting money to them both.
“Now, put your car with mine and we each need to spin this piece to see who gets to go first!” Izuku reaches out and twists the piece connected to the spinner. “I got a five! Now you.”

He pauses for a moment, then takes in a feigned breath and asks, “How exactly is this decided? Based on whether the number is higher or lower than the other?”

“Whoever gets the highest number gets to go first.” He clarifies quickly with a smile.

Chapter Text

Izuku Midoriya is four years old in a doctors office when he learns not everyone is created equal.

Izuku Midoriya is fourteen years old on a roof when his hero tells him to give up on his dreams.

Izuku Midoriya is fourteen years old on a random street when his hero offers him a quirk that he takes.

Izuku Midoriya is fifteen years old at the USJ when he faces death for the first time.

Izuku Midoriya is fifteen years old at the Sports Festival when he almost breaks his arms beyond repair for the first time.

Izuku Midoriya is fifteen years old at the mall when he faces death for the second time.

Izuku Midoriya is sixteen years old at a training camp when he faces death for the third time.

Izuku Midoriya is only sixteen years old.

‘I need One For All back..’ are words that only lived in some of Izuku’s worst nightmares.

Until they weren’t.

It was a perfectly normal sunshine filled day.

It was a perfectly normal Tuesday.

It had been a perfectly normal school day.

So by all means Izuku Midoriya should’ve been having a perfectly normal conversation with his mentor, All Might.

Bombshells always seemed to be dropped on perfectly normal seeming days.

“I’m going to need One For All back, I am sorry Young Midoriya.” All Might, or more currently Yagi Toshinori, stated with gentle sincerity that didn’t quite match the statement that was just spoken into existence.

“..What.” It was meant to come out like a question but even to his own ears it just sounded.. Empty, devoid of all the emotion that swelled inside him.

“I need One For All back. I fear that you are not the most.. suitable vessel for the quirk anymore. Your progress with the quirk is just moving slower than what the people of Japan need, and I sincerely apologize. I know some of that fault is mine. However I feel that I’ve found someone who will be able to grow the quirk faster and beyond what you have done.”

“What about my future?” He forced that question out over all the other ones that circled around his head.

“I will do what I can to hel-”

“No.”

“No?”

“No. If you do this, if you take my quirk, I don’t want to see you ever again. I will want nothing to do with you ever again.” Izuku didn’t know where this was coming from inside him, but he didn't stop, “So no you will not ‘help me’ because there will be nothing you can do for me after that point.” He took a deep breath, “I’m asking if I’m staying in the hero course.”

“Well, that isn’t up to me Midoriya. That would mostly be up to Aizawa-san as he’s your teacher, but.. Well I’m not exactly sure how you’d explain your sudden lack of quirk.”

A sort of bitter laugh escaped from Izuku, it felt weird in his throat and sounded wrong to his ears, “No, of course you don’t. Luckily for you, I have a good enough explanation for it.”

“You’re.. Not going to try to fight back against my decision?” Toshinori sounded confused, sure he knows that Midoriya has never really been one for interpersonal conflict, but he expected at least a little more resistance to this idea. A fight, pleading, something, but this oddly chilling acceptance? It was somehow worse than if they just fought about it.

“No, I am not. What’s the point, you’ve clearly made up your mind and it’s not like I didn’t expect the rug to be pulled at some-point. Surprise, All Might, you’re not the first adult to let me down and you aren’t going to be the last. I’m not wasting my energy trying to fight you on something you’ve made your mind up about. So-” He plucked a single strand of short green hair from his head and held it out, “-here. Take it and get out of my life.”

Yagi Toshinori silently took the hair from the boy’s hand and as soon as he did, Izuku stood and walked out the room seemingly without a second thought. As if he had just completed a business transaction and that there was nothing else to it. Yagi looked at the strand of green hair held in his hand and could only vaguely wonder if he’s making a mistake, but he shook his head and reminded himself that this was for the good of Japan, that this would be better for everyone.

Better for everyone,

‘everyone’ did not include Izuku Midoriya.

In fact, Izuku Midoriya was left feeling considerably worse. Especially when he felt One For All slowly leaving his veins later that day.

When that happened he looked at his arms. His quirk was gone and yet the scars of his work remained and his hands still twitched and spasmed every now and again from the fried nerves that came with the quirk he couldn’t control.

And in the end, even his dream wasn’t worth having, wasn’t worth fighting for as he fell behind his classmates. Some would look at him as if he could be shattered by a gust of wind, others raved about how they support the quirkless and Izuku was like a prop to show how ‘good’ they were, and then there was Bakugou with his smug smirk that he just couldn’t handle any longer.

So he did the one thing that he’s always been good at.

Running without thinking.

Izuku ran into his mothers open arms and sobbed into them.

For the first time in a long while, he was safe.

It wasn’t long after that he decided he couldn’t have reminders of that part of his life. So he packed away almost all of his hero merchandise, and blocked anyone’s number that he had from UA. That.. that one had been hard, but he knew he just couldn’t handle seeing them and thankfully none of them know where he lives and the one that does hates him anyway.

His mother- bless her heart- tried really hard to talk him out of it but he wouldn’t budge and she can’t force him to keep friends. She can however be the one forcing him to get out of the house and see sunshine for at least an hour everyday after the fact. (He made sure to thank her for that three days later when he realized just how much he enjoyed sitting at the beach he cleaned, because they could never take that away from him.)

And that’s just how his life went for weeks.

Until the day he found Kunikuzushi on the beach. The day his life changed yet again, but this time for the better.

At first he seemed painfully similar to Bakugou, but the more Izuku talked to him the more he realized that the boy was just as lost and alone as him, and that’s something that he can handle.

Something he can change.

.

. .

Izuku shakes his head, he hadn’t meant to space out as hard as he did but oh well. He pulls the kettle off of the stove, pouring it out into two small teacups, one has 2 cubes of sugar and the other is empty besides the tea-leaf holder. He lets the non-sugar one steep for longer before taking it out and bringing the teacups over to the living room.

He sets his on the small coffee table and hands Kunikuzushi the other, “Here, tea helps me relax after a panic attack. Careful, it’s hot, and don’t worry I made sure yours was more bitter.”

Izuku smiles softly as he hands off the tea to his friend.

Chapter Text

Izuku bounces lightly on his feet, smiling as if he’s had the most wonderful idea.

“Hey Kunizushi! Remember how when we met I said I’d take you to the mall so you could get something? Well, it’s only 2:17 on a Tuesday, meaning that the mall won’t be too busy, so I think going now would be good! What do you say?”

It's hearing Izuku's, frankly, annoying voice that snaps Scaramouche out of his stupid little daydream. But would it be a daydream if it isn't anything good he's thinking about?

No, because his life is a nightmare in existence. That's all it is, looking back on it.

He turns and glares at Izuku, silent for a moment before he just hums and nods, "Fine, if you wish." He says blankly, sighing.

Izuku tilts his head slightly, looking at Kunikuzushi as if he could see inside his head. He shrugs, “If you’re sure you want to! I’ll go get my bag from my room and then we can leave.”

He waits a moment to see if the other boy would change his mind but it doesn’t seem so. He hurries off to his room, faint rummaging around can be heard for a moment.

Scaramouche seems to just track Izuku with his gaze for a moment, standing idly as he waits for him.

He hardly ever knows what he’s talking about, for a start- he has no clue where it is he’s taking him. But well, that’s how it is being in a world he still has yet to understand.

Quickly, Izuku is returning, a bag hanging off his arm.

“Alright! Let’s get going, I want to make sure we’re there when it isn’t too crowded.” He smiles, moving towards their shoes and the door.

Scaramouche follows, humming in agreement as if he understands- before coming to stand next to him and asking, “Is it usually crowded, as you say?”

He nods as he pulls the door open, “Oh yeah! Especially on weekends, the place can be extremely crowded because more people actually have the time to be there, students or people who work Mondays through Fridays.”

“Ah, I get it.” He does not get it. These words… He’s never heard them used in such contexts. Well, he’ll find out at some point.

“Mhm! I don’t think we’ll end up being there too long.” He hums as he locks the door behind them. Dropping his key into his bag as they start heading down.

Some walking and one semi-quick train ride later and the two find themselves in front of the large mall, standing just outside the entrance. Izuku was right, while it definitely had quite a few people there it was clearly fairly empty compared to a normal day.

It’s like Scaramouche sort of blanked that entire trip, it wasn’t important. He had to convince himself not to question anything he isn’t so used to seeing. At least, he’s always been good at tuning things out. But he does have so many questions…

He just sticks near Izuku, standing by him. He isn’t familiar with anything- or anyone- here, so weirdly Izuku is the only person he trusts.

Maybe ‘trust’ is a strong word, but it’s close enough.

Izuku easily leads them into the mall, pointing out a few stores that might have things that Kunikuzushi would be interested in before pointing out other stores, “Oh, and that one has stuffed animals! That one over there has some really good sweets and drinks.”

Walking beside him, Scaramouche follows where Izuku motions to with his eyes, staring through the windows to glance at what’s inside.

Sure enough, nothing interests him. He doesn’t care for these ridiculous mortal trinkets, they have no purpose to them.

But as if it’s so uninteresting that it doesn’t even matter to him to say that, he just side glances Izuku and sighs, continuing to walk in silence.

“There’s the hot topic,” He points out as they reach an upper level of the mall, “That one over beside it is a lot of hero collectables and merch mostly.”

He listens, but stops rather abruptly all of a sudden and just says “Hang on… I need a moment to-.. process, all this strange stuff.” He sighs and just folds his arms as he stands there, looking down at the oddly smooth textured floor.

It’s just as he said, strange- here.

“Alright!” Izuku hums, stopping and digging around his bag for something.

He looks up after a moment and stares, slanting his head slightly to the side. “What are you doing?”

Finally he pulls out a small stress ball, “This!” and hands it over to Kunikuzushi, “Here! I- sorta just realized that even though it’s less people you might still get overwhelmed so messing with this might help a little bit! Or- at least give your hands something to do.”

Scaramouche hesitantly takes the object, holding it in his hand for a moment and just inquisitively staring at it.

“How odd… What are you meant to do with this?” He says, looking up at Izuku.

“Just squeeze or hold it really! It’s just meant to be sorta relaxing, give your hands something to do!” He answers with a smile.

“Ah… what does that remind me of…” He looks down and tilts his head at the little stress ball, trying to think for a moment.

That’s right.

Maybe he’s never realised it before having lost access to his power, but there are so many instances where he’d make sparks between his fingers simply to pass the time. It’s never occurred to him how often he did it, maybe only the absence of it has cast a spotlight over it.

That’s embarrassing. In a literal sense, like he was ‘Playing with fire.’

He just grumbles and finishes the sentence he started, “...Nothing. I can’t do it anymore anyways.”

He looks at his friend almost knowingly, “It’s okay, maybe the stress ball will help!” he offers lightly before changing the topic, “If there’s nothing that you see so far, I need to get a few things if you just want to head to those stores first?”

He sighs and looks up, staring at Izuku for a moment before he replies and looks away, almost as if timed “I don’t care.”

He shrugs, “All right then, let’s go. I need to get some new notebooks, maybe a new pen..” he mutters off but still leads them over to a fairly simple looking store for stationery.

Scaramouche sighs and silently follows, maybe now a little too deep in thought. He still doesn’t even know why he’s here, was Teyvat even real? Was any of it real? Or is this reality, and maybe he’s just insane. He has no proof of it being real-.. No power, and Dottore isn’t anywhere to be found. And he’s not sure how to feel about that.

Well, maybe it’s best not to think about it. Feelings are only weakness, anyways.

Izuku hums to himself, looking at all the different notebooks that the place has to offer. Eventually he pulls a classic white one down, a green, and a purple one. In his defense, there’s a buy two get one free deal, how could he pass up on that! He gets a new pack of his favorite pens and nods contently at his ‘haul.’

Making sure that Kunikuzushi is still with him- which he is- he moves over to the checkout area and places his stuff on the counter.

“Hey, Midoriya! Man, I haven’t seen you in a while. How's it been?” The person behind the counter asks as he starts scanning the items.

The mention of Izuku’s name seems to catch Scaramouche’s attention, as he just turns and slightly steps in front of Izuku. He eyes the man behind the counter, glaring a little protectively but allowing Izuku to answer.

Last time he encountered someone who knew Izuku, they weren’t all that friendly. Scaramouche knows not to trust just anyone.

Izuku laughs a bit nervously, although it’s clear that Kunikuzushi being there helped in a way,

“Oh, I’ve been.. Alright. Finally found the time to get back into my writing and stuff. It’s nice seeing you again, and thanks!” The man smiles at them both as he slides the bag over to Izuku after he had put his card into the reader and paid. He waves as they leave the store.

“..Thanks, Kunizushi. He’s nice, really always has been to me at least, but I appreciate the fact you were ready to step in, again.” He smiles softly, thankful.

Scaramouche follows, listening for a moment and then plainly replying “Well, it’s of my benefit to keep you from harm. Nothing more than that.” He sighs, avoiding going into the topic anymore. He doesn’t care about this mortal he seems to have picked up along his way, that’s a stupid thought and it will never be true.

He laughs lightly, not saying anything against Kunikuzushi but not exactly believing him either. “Here, how about we go into that store and we can find something for you, I think that’s our best bet. If you can’t pick anything then we can head out, It’s already getting a bit late somehow..”

Scaramouche just shrugs, “I don’t care. Do what you think is ideal.” He answers, clearly unbothered.

“Alright!” He brings Kunikuzushi into the store, music plays and the first thing they see is various different clothes. Further back in the store are different accessories, jewelry, and trinkets.

Scaramouche follows, silent. He looks around briefly- Unimpressed by all the colours and sorts surrounding the place. It’s almost pitiful how much stimulation humans need to keep their attention.

Izuku looks around as well, because.. Well why not? He’d be paying anyway so he might as well see what they have out! It doesn’t take long before Izuku spots something that he finds pretty,

“Hey Kuni! Look at this, isn’t it pretty?” He carefully pulls a pair of necklaces from a hook and holds them out to Kunikuzushi. The necklaces are fairly simple in design, one on a silver chain with a star shape settled at the bottom and a spiral above it, and the other the exact same except with black.

Strangely, when Scaramouche looks over- Scanning the necklaces, it’s not too unfamiliar to him. Jewelry on Teyvat isn’t much different in this regard, and the symbols he can recognise.

He stares for a moment, then nods “I suppose so.”

Izuku smiles brightly, “Great! Let’s check out and start heading back home, I think mom will be back home soon!’

He quickly checks out at the front and they leave the store. Izuku pauses once they’re outside, gently pulling the necklaces from the backing they were connected to and hands the darker one to Kunikuzushi, “Here you go! I can put it on if you want?”

He offers as he clasps the silver one around his neck.

Scaramouche sighs, considering it for a moment. “I guess-.. You can. I wouldn’t understand this mechanism.” He reluctantly agrees.

Izuku easily takes the necklace and moves behind his friend, clasping it around his neck on the loosest ‘setting’ like he did his own. “There we go!” he chirps happily, moving back around.

He flinches a little, but not as suddenly as he usually does. Maybe he’s just less.. On edge, since he got here.

He looks down at the necklace, perhaps- Just maybe, he quite likes it. He’ll never admit that, though.

He hums as he starts leading them out of the mall, the sun has started to set and they really shouldn’t be late for dinner! Almost immediately after they exit there’s a scream, not extremely close but close enough that Izuku’s head all but snaps towards the sound.

He looks at Kunikuzushi then back towards the sound and is off before he can even really think about it.

“What are you-” It only takes a second for Scaramouche’s instincts to snap, and suddenly he feels just like he’s back on a Fatui mission.

He just instantly runs after Izuku, again that thought popping up that he needs to protect this mortal at all costs.

Izuku mentally curses himself for doing this even though he finds himself at the location of the scream quickly. He knows he really shouldn’t be doing this, but all he’s ever been is someone that helps.

“Hey! What’s going on over here?!” He calls out a tone to his voice he hasn’t used since.. Well since the training camp really. Gods- that felt like a lifetime away now..

The man turns around- shocked for a moment thinking a hero had somehow shown up but faces Izuku and Kunikuzushi instead. He laughs, quick and brief, “oh, nothing boys! Lady’s just being overdramatic is all, you can leave!” and the lady behind him somehow blanches even more.

Scaramouche rushes up to Izuku and grabs his arm, calling out “Don’t get involved, it isn’t your problem-” He tries to convince him, as he knows full well there may be a chance he wouldn’t be able to protect him. Not without his power, not in this situation.

Izuku easily pulls his arm back, the confidence from when he was in UA suddenly rushing back to him, “I have to,” is all he says to his friend before he rushes at the man, grabbing his shoulders. He knows that he is nowhere as strong as he used to be, but he does have muscles and months of training.

Thankfully, the sudden quick action surprises the man enough that when Izuku use’s all his weight to push the man’s shoulders, he falls down harshly. Nearly banging his head against the concrete but manages to keep his head up. “Ugh- fucking wannabe hero!” the man says, a sort of growl to his voice.

“If you don’t leave now I’ll call the police and keep you here!” Izuku says as if it’s second nature, for some reason, that instantly becomes clear the moment the man's hand practically turns into a blade, he jumps up and lunges at Izuku. The woman screams, looking away.

Having been stood there, almost frozen- Scaramouche finally reacts, like a switch goes off. And there, there’s that familiar feeling- Electricity flowing through his body, be it mechanical- To his fingertips. That’s how it’s always been, that’s what he’s been missing.

And as soon as he steps over, he blocks the attacker from Izuku and hits him with Electro, not even processing the fact that he’s done it until it’s already over- and the man just drops to the floor in half an instant.

He stands there, letting his arms just drop to his sides.

So he does have his power…

It’s almost exhilarating for a moment, to the point that it blurs his vision. That feeling… he missed that, how long can he hold in the sour joy he gets simply from the violence of his power?

Clearly not very long, because after a moment he smiles.

With the man down Izuku takes a moment to process that before moving over to the woman who all but launches herself at Izuku and Kunikuzushi, hugging them both. “Oh- thank you! Thank you both so much! I- I was so scared. Thank you so much for saving me, my heroes!”

Izuku just smiles, “Of course ma’am. I couldn’t- not help, that’s just not how I am. I’m really glad that you aren’t hurt. Would you mind calling the police while I uh- check on the guy.”

The woman lets go of them nodding, “Oh certainly!”

Scaramouche instantly steps away from the other two, avoiding even getting close. He backs away until he’s just pressed up against the wall of a building, standing away.

He stares, even if his vision is covered by that burning opaque sort of purple. He slips down until he’s just sitting on the ground, staring at his hands as they sporadically crackle with Electro.

It’s all too familiar… This kind of thing can’t happen now.

Izuku checked that the man’s heart was still beating- it was thankfully- and suddenly he’s crouched down in front of Kunikuzushi. He listened faintly as the lady talks into the phone as he speaks softly to his friend, “Hey, that was pretty cool Kunizushi. Thanks for protecting me, again.”

Scaramouche looks up, staring wide eyed at Izuku for a moment. That blur… he can’t even see.

“I don’t- I’m not supposed to- I shouldn’t…” He unintelligibly mumbles to himself, sort of directing it at Izuku but not quite. He stares back down at his hands, still uncontrollably forming arcs of lightning between his fingers.

He’s not supposed to have his power.

“Hey, hey it’s okay. Listen, I- I can tell you're confused, scared, and we can talk all about it at home but for now: This was just a quirk accident. The guy is fine, we’ll be fine. I’m right here.” Izuku speaks softly, but clearly. Practiced in a way.

For some reason, Scaramouche looks up and momentarily makes eye contact with him, then just looks off and tries to blink away the screen of Electro covering his eyes.

It takes a moment, but it seems to dissipate. Almost like it was never there, unusually so. He supposes if he does have his power, it isn’t stable or reformed by any means.

He grumbles and just keeps silent, how does he explain this away?

Izuku lets out a small sigh of relief that it seems that the other has calmed down some, just in time for the police to arrive as well. They got the guy onto a stretcher and then got the woman’s statement. Turning to Izuku and Kunikuzushi for theirs.

“I heard her scream and ran over, knocking the guy down. Kunizushi tried to stop me but I really didn’t want anything bad to happen.. Then he had gotten up and tried coming at me with his quirk- it turned his hand into some kind of blade- Kunizushi was scared and accidentally used his quirk. We’re very sorry and it won’t happen again!” He bows slightly once his explanation is finished, the cop writing it down.

“Alright. We’ll let you both go this time, but don’t use your quirk in public again or you will get written up for it.” The cop walks away.

Scaramouche says nothing, standing in complete silence behind Izuku. He’s not ‘scared,’ that’s pathetic. No, he feels nothing- just as he says nothing.

What is he supposed to feel? It’s like all the physical feeling has been drained from him, maybe that’s his power’s fault.

Now he has to come up with some lie to tell Izuku. How can he lie about this? It’s no vision, and it’s certainly no quirk. Izuku would see right through that. How can he cover the truth up…

“Let’s.. Let’s go home, Kuni.” He smiles softly, offering his hand to his friend. Not entirely sure if he’s been paying attention.

Scaramouche looks up, eyeing Izuku for a moment- But, instead doesn’t accept his hand and just begins to walk. No use risking his power going off again.

He hums, reaching his hand up and fiddling with the necklace for, comfort really.

The door to the apartment creaks open, Izuku and Kunikuzushi wandering into the home.

“And where have you boys been?” Inko calls from the kitchen.

Chapter Text

And suddenly it's now as Izuku stares at Scaramouche, that he feels the pressure to lie is on. Exactly what he's been anticipating the entire walk back, as now he feels watched like something's wrong with him.

That's never what he wanted. Maybe, in a twisted way, coming here let him escape that feeling. That feeling of being different, being seen as what he is: A puppet, a lab rat, an experiment. Even amongst the ranks of the Fatui Harbingers, as the 6th- The Balladeer, Scaramouche. Even then, he was different.

Even now, he is different.

"It's what I told you originally. A vision, mine is Electro. I didn't suspect it would activate in this world." He says, not even able to look Izuku in the eyes as he lies through his teeth.

It isn't a bad lie, or maybe it is. But he's usually fine at lying, even good at the prospect. It's not the way he says it that gives it away, even his phrasing makes it sound genuine. But it's the blatant gaping hole in the story, the fact that he doesn't have a physical vision. He hopes that maybe Izuku won't pick up on that.

Izuku looks at him, confusion in his eyes, before starting to respond “When you said that you had something taken from you, I had always assumed it was your vision. That’s why I haven't asked any questions about them yet, I didn’t want to touch on a sore subject.” Izuku’s hand twitches but not in the way of his muscles simply spamming, but as if he wanted to reach for something.

He glances at Izuku as if he’s been caught, but then replies in his attempt to continue the story, “No, it wasn’t a vision. It was something else, that which I would rather not discuss. It doesn’t matter.”

He hums, a little sad at the way his friend looks at him, “Alright. We don’t have to talk about that, but you did have some kind of power last night. Whatever you could do back where you’re from, it’s still there in you.”

“I-..” That’s where his voice cracks for a moment, and he finds it hard to continue to lie so blatantly. He’s never had to pretend to be a vision wielder… At least not in such an outright way.

“Perhaps my vision reconnected with the element, I don’t know what else to say.” He seems to rush out the words a little.

He nods, “Alright. Maybe it’s just how your body is interacting with.. here, well this world. Almost everyone here has quirks so your body responded accordingly?”

He sighs a little nervously, “Yes, maybe you’re right.” He replies, as if trying to respond as dryly as he can to put an end to the conversation.

Izuku hesitates but after a moment seemingly concedes, “Maybe we should follow moms lead, I’m pretty tired after everything anyway. I’ll- head to bed.” With that Izuku gets up and walks to his room, wondering why his friend is being so.. Shifty about everything.

Izuku sits at his desk silently, thinking. It isn’t long before the newly bought purple notebook is laying in front of him. Cover now neatly labeled ’Analysis for Kunikuzushi’, he opens it up to the first page and sketches out his friend. After he deems it good enough he finds his purple erasable pen and carefully colors in the eyes and draws the swirling patterns that appeared earlier that day when he had used his.. Power.

Glowing happened after power was used, not during

Swirling pattern across body. Raw power? Energy?

Electricity flickered through/across fingers after

Didn’t hurt Kuni. (right?? Ask.)

His observations were all listed beside the drawing, in black pen that he grabbed somewhere along the way, he looked over them for a moment before humming and turning to the next page. He taps his pen against his chin for a moment, trying to figure out where he wants to start.

He says very few people get ‘visions’ where he’s from. He says that he didn’t have that, but something else. Whatever that is must be considerably more powerful than a ‘vision’, power took the guy out with a single touch. Seems like he'd rather pass out than tell me anything about it? Something is making him nervous.

Things to find out
Visions
Whatever is more powerful than the visions
Is the glowing typical

He nods to himself, flipping to the next page.

Power: Electricity
Type: Emitter
Description: Power lets him generate and use pure electric energy. It’s purple, unsure if there’s a cause or reason for that. Unsure if the power is actually electric energy or if it’s bodily energy being converted to electric power. It would make sense if it’s being converted, he seemed very tired after but that also could have been the general shock from the situation.

Izuku closes the book, looking at it for a moment. What happened today.. It feels weird for him to know so little and to not really be able to get answers, but it made him realize that his friend isn’t like him. He isn’t quirkless like he originally thought. Kunikuzushi has the power that Izuku doesn’t.

He snatches the book up in his hand as he gets up out of his chair. Quickly- but quietly of course- moving towards the living room. When he finds Kunikuzushi sitting up he’s both worried and relieved as he goes to stand in front of him.

“I won’t pressure you about it because I don’t think that’s fair. Not after what we did today, but I’ve had some realizations and I think we should talk about them.” He drops the notebook into his friend's lap.

Scaramouche immediately seems to flinch like he didn’t even notice Izuku come up to him, and drops his hands to the floor like he’s trying to hide what he’s been doing.

Well, testing his power to put it simply. It doesn’t quite work, not like it used to. He supposes that’s to be expected, it’s very unstable. It’s not ideal for it to be like this… But he still doesn’t even know how he has it.

He glares at Izuku, just silent for a moment. Eventually, he looks down and opens the book, staring down the page for what feels like a long couple of minutes.

He scoffs as he scans over the words, be it sort of unsure- Then looks up at Izuku, and uses a tone he hasn’t really used with him before,

“Are you accusing me of lying?”

“I’m saying that you’re hiding something from me, that’s not accusing, that’s just me pointing out the obvious. I’ve done analysis since I was.. About 4 or 5, I can tell you aren’t telling me things.” Izuku says easily, shrugging.

Scaramouche narrows his eyes at him, seemingly annoyed at being pried at like this. He stares like that for a moment, before he just shuts the book and hands it back to Izuku.

“You really want to know the truth?” He says, almost blank in his words. He hates this sort of revealing honesty, even in concept.

He hums, “Yeah that would be preferred. I would like to know whatever it is that you’re hiding, I’m curious.”

He practically rolls his eyes and just folds his arms, such stupid human curiosity… He almost wants to say that aloud, but he’s decided not to tell Izuku that. Maybe it’s himself that’s acting stupid for being so cagey about it, but maybe it’s him protecting himself. Clearly, being a puppet has never landed him anything good. Especially with ‘friends.’

“I’m not a vision wielder, it’s different for me. I guess-... My mother was the Electro Archon, a god. My power comes from the element itself.. Rather than a vision, which connects with Celestia.” He explains, a little hesitant. It’s a half truth, it is true but it isn’t the full story.

“...My mother sealed my power when I was-” He stops himself before he says ‘created,’ “-born, that’s why I was surprised that I was able to use it. I shouldn’t be able to. That’s what was taken from me, since you seem so fixated on that.” He says almost bitterly, just wanting to stray as far away from this as possible. But no, clearly he can’t escape human curiosity.

Even now he is still lying. Yes, Ei sealed his power- But that was long ago, and he broke the seal already. It was the Gnosis that was taken from him, really.

But if he tried to explain that, where would that land him in this world? He’d probably be worse than all of the villains here combined.

At some point when Kunikuzushi had started to explain, Izuku had snatched his notebook back up and started writing notes at a speed where one would think that his quirk was to write at weird speeds.

“Ok, okay. So basically you-” He points his pen at Kunikuzushi, “-could use just pure electric power. Your mom sucks and cut your power off somehow, and now that you’re here it’s back but in little bits.” He sums up easily, nodding. He flips to a page in his notebook and draws a line through something. He closes the notebook and holds it under his arm.

“Okay, thank you very much for telling me!” He smiles, it’s a little hard to see in the dark, but it’s there, “Now! How would you feel about.. A way to test your power. See how you can use it and your limits and stuff?”

Scaramouche sighs, almost out of relief at getting away with convincing him he is still human. He looks at Izuku and stares for a moment then just nods, “I suppose your conclusion is correct. What would you want me to do?”

He pauses for a moment before Izuku replies, then just adds “But why aren’t you more shocked that I just told you my mother is a god?”

It’s like he almost wants him to be shocked, to give him a justification for going to all this effort to hide the fact that he’s a puppet. If Izuku is so unphased by this, then he’d have no reason to hide it. But he does have a reason, he doesn’t trust humans to accept those who are different anymore. Not after Niwa’s betrayal…

Izuku shrugs, thinking about it before humming, “I don’t know, I just.. Have other things that I rather think about I guess. I mean there’s a guy out there that can take and give quirks as he pleases, by some thinking one could consider him a god. I just- stopped caring about that stuff I guess?”

Content with his answer to that question, he starts answering the first one, “Oh! Well we’ll need to find a quirk gym or.. Well maybe an abandoned building would be better. I think you need to provide paperwork for a quirk gym..” He shakes his head so that he doesn’t start muttering, “In said place we can set some things up and have you test your power in that controlled environment. We can figure out how to access your power and stuff! And well- uhm-” his words suddenly get very rushed, “maybewecouldtrybeingvigilantes?”

Scaramouche blinks in confusion at that, blanking most of what he said. He just replies back “...Vigilantes?”

Izuku nervously wrings his hands together, “Uhm, yeah, vigilantes. People who go around and stop bad people from doing things. The definition is someone illegally using their quirk to prevent/commit crimes or doing a hero's job without a license. That doesn’t exactly exempt us entirely, we could still potentially get charged with assault, impersonating law enforcement, things like that so we’d just need to- not get caught.”

He hums, then cracks a slight smile, “Not get caught? I can do that. It sounds fun, we get to make our own rules, I take it?”

He nods a bit excitedly, a little surprised his very sudden and half-thought-out idea is getting accepted so well, “Yeah! As long as we’re careful about concealing our identities and not getting caught by any police or heroes, we can do about.. Anything really.”

“I’ll do it,” Scaramouche agrees, quite eagerly. Maybe it’s just because he wants to cause more chaos… This is the perfect opportunity to do just that.

“Really? Amazing- okay! We can look for a place to practice in the morning, we should- probably get some sleep.” He says easily, yawning.

“Right-.. sleep.” He says a little quietly, it’s a human necessity… But he has to pretend it’s something he also needs. Of course, he can go without- His body doesn’t need it, not in the same way humans do.

Izuku hums, “Night Kuni,” he starts heading back to his room, actually planning on going to sleep this time.

Scaramouche just silently eyes him as he leaves, making no response. He doesn’t care for human customs, not that much at least.

He looks back down at his hands, though they no longer emit any more electricity. It makes him think, about the lie he’s just spit out like it’s nothing. Even if it’s partly the truth, there are still so many holes, like pins just barely stamping it to the wall.

What Scaramouche's story doesn't appear to have made clear is the fact that he already knows how to use his power. And now, he's not certain if telling Izuku that will make the story fall apart.

For a start, he could say that he had his power before, and Ei sealed it later on. But then, there would be the glaring question of 'why' she would've chosen to do that. As what would be the necessity? Unless he’s dangerous, and he is.

And then, he's only dug himself further into a lie that would still require elements of the truth- and at that point, does the lie even matter anymore?

He's far too deep into this, that's for sure.

He thinks to himself, there's things Izuku knows that piece together somewhat of a whole of the story. There's things his mother knows- though he doesn't really care about any of the other mortals in this equation.

If Izuku asks about the Fatui, why his first introduction was 'Scaramouche, The Balladeer. 6th of the Fatui Harbingers,' his cover is blown.

If Izuku points out any of the other clues, for example his sickness earlier on and Scaramouche saying it was 'From the event before he showed up here,' or any of the names he mentioned- Kusanali, Traveler, Dottore, Niwa, his cover is blown.

If Inko tells Izuku that she knows Scaramouche isn't human, then his cover truly is blown.

And that will be it, because he knows he's a fool to think with everything he carries around with him- that he could make friends with another innocent mortal.

It disgusts him to even think that he considers Izuku a friend...

This is all just ruminating, spiraling. Regardless, he has to focus on discerning what Izuku believes about his power. Because then, does he have to pretend he doesn't know how to use it? Does he have to pretend it's unfamiliar to him, even when that sick thrilling feeling he's always used to consumes him?

He almost lets out a laugh at the absurdity of this situation, how does he navigate this? Suddenly everything is so… complicated, as it was all black and white before.

But then Kusanali had to mess it all up.

And before he has the time to realise, he’s fallen asleep.

“Kunizushi,” Izuku’s looking at his friend, head tilted slightly. “You up? We should talk to mom before we leave!”

Hearing his voice, Scaramouche slowly blinks his eyes open and stares for a moment, almost dazed.

Sleeping… like that, that’s weird. He didn’t even notice..

He stands up as soon as he recovers from the short spell of dizziness, then replies skeptically, “Why do we have to talk to your mother?” He glares, crossing his arms.

That seems like a risk to his plan, even mentioning anything to her.

“Good morning! Well, because she’d figure out if we started sneaking out or if we get hurt. It’s better to just let her know now that way we can skip the whole ‘she finds out and is mad’ bit.” He says easily, smiling like he isn’t about to tell his mother that he and his friend are gonna be vigilantes.

Scaramouche grumbles and looks down, annoyed but gives it up after a moment.

“Well, I disagree. But I don’t see the point in arguing, so make it quick if you insist it’s necessary.” He says in response.

He shrugs, “Alright! Well she’s at the table already so- let's go!” Izuku heads over to the table, taking his normal seat. Inko yawns softly, waiting patiently for the boys to settle down.

Almost just rolling his eyes in irritation, Scaramouche reluctantly follows him over, hesitating before sitting down and just resting his arms on the table.

“So now, I have to be present for this idea of yours?” He side eyes Izuku disapprovingly.

Izuku holds his hands up in mock defense, “Well, it does involve both of us! I just wanted you to be here!”

Inko laughs, covering her mouth with her hand. “Now, now boys. Whatever it is, I'm sure it can’t be too bad.”

Izuku laughs shortly, nervously, “Yeahh, about that,” he takes a breath, “So just to uhm make a slightly long story short. Me and Kunizushi are gonna test out his power and try being vigilantes?” It comes out like a question, like it hadn’t already been decided upon the night before.

Inko is quiet, watching them. Thinking. Distantly- somewhere in the depths of her mind- she’s reminded of the time she undeniably let her son down. When she held her son to her and told him that she’s sorry when he asked if he could be a hero. That wasn’t what Izuku needed in that moment, she knows that. She tried so long to push away the things she couldn’t handle to think about, like her son getting hurt, but in the end he still got hurt. She couldn’t stop that with all her worrying, she never could, no one can.

Inko looks into her son’s eyes, and she just knows that she can’t let him down again.

“I.. I can’t change your minds on this can I?” She sighs softly, she sees her son shake his head a slightly mumbled ‘not really,’ coming from him. “Fine, but you two stay out of things unless you are absolutely sure you need to intervene and you leave before any law enforcement comes. You have to check in with me when you get back each night you go out, Understand?”

“Yes! Yes mom, we promise we’ll be careful.” Izuku says quickly.

It’s like Scaramouche doesn’t even hear what’s being said, his own thoughts appear to bury out any outside noise. He quietly sits there the whole time, slightly fidgeting with his hands as if he doesn’t even notice he’s doing it.

The tell is that he keeps giving Izuku short side glances, maybe unconsciously. All he can think is how to keep the truth hidden…

“Izuku, honey, I know you said earlier that you two were gonna go out, why don’t you go get ready. I’d like to talk to Kunikuzushi for a moment.” Inko says softly, Izuku chirps a quick ‘Alright!’ and leaves from the table.

She waits for a moment before turning her attention to Kunikuzushi, “Alright. What’s going on in that brain of yours? You’ve been lost in it this entire time dear.”

As Izuku seems to leave, Scaramouche looks up and just glares at her for a moment, grumbling.

“Nothing of importance.” He says plainly, “I just had very little interest in this discussion.”

“Mhm,” Inko makes a face that really only a mother can, one that just says ‘I know you aren’t telling me the truth’, “Because that’s why you were side-eyeing Izuku the entire time. So, what is this about? Do you not agree with the plan, because you don’t have to go along with it.”

He sighs, “I really can’t win with you, mortal.” He lets the word slip as he knows he can say that to her, she already knows. Besides, even if she didn’t, he wouldn’t care. It’s his ‘friend,’ if he even dares use the term- that he doesn’t want to be poisoned by the realisation.

“It isn’t to do with his plan. It’s fun to me, and that’s precisely the problem.” He admits, almost cryptically.

“I’m a mother Kunikuzushi, I can tell when things are distracting someone.” She muses lightly, humming. It’s a bit of a relief that the plan isn’t the problem but that just means it’s something else that hasn’t been mentioned yet.

“You haven’t told him, have you?” She questions lightly, the only other thing that she could think of that could be the problem.

Almost as if to answer, Scaramouche silently looks down, avoiding eye contact. Maybe it’s out of shame, or some sort of inner guilt. Why does he feel so bad for telling this lie?

“Ah,” she hums, there it is, “And why’s that dear? I can promise you that Izuku won’t care much other than being mildly fascinated for a day or so.”

“Being a puppet has never earned me friends.” He replies, almost putting the word ‘friends’ in air quotes out of habit. “I guess I find lying keeps me safe, if anything.”

She listens, frowning softly at the thought of others not accepting Kunikuzushi for something he can’t control. Like how others treated Izuku for so many years. “It also makes you nervous, that’s why you were messing with your hands and glancing at Izuku. Dear, you aren’t.. Where you’re from, maybe lying helped you there but here? It’ll be okay, honestly we’ve had crazier things happen.” she pauses, thinking for a moment before adding, “I trust that you can keep yourself safe, but you don’t have to do it alone.”

Scaramouche glares for a moment as she speaks, withholding the urge to say who he is, what he’s done. She clearly doesn’t get that, she can’t know that.

“Why do you even trust me?” He asks, staring as he waits for an answer. It’s foolish, to trust someone like him. These mortals are all just that. But, they always are so pitifully trusting.

She looks at him, a soft smile on her face and kindness in her eyes. “You’re Izuku’s friend, you’ve protected him, kept the both of you safe, followed him when you didn’t need to.” She seems like she wants to reach for his hand, but stops herself from actually doing it, “You’re good Kunikuzushi, you’ve done good.”

He stares at her for a moment, wary of the movement she made just a moment ago. He knows he’d lash out if she even tried to touch him.

“Then, I’m a failure.” He eventually replies, a stern expression on his face as he just pushes himself up, standing and walking off to find Izuku.

Inko isn’t exactly happy that he chose to walk away, but she mentally notes that he’s going towards Izuku and that’s a good enough start for her. She sighs as she moves to get up, these boys are gonna be the death of her. (She knows that she doesn’t really mind, she’d put her life on the line for her boys.)

Chapter Text

An abandoned building, Izuku had mentioned. Well, they'd certainly managed to find one, masked by scaffolding and almost ancient looking vines lacing its walls.

It's probably workable for Izuku's idea of 'training' his power, as if Scaramouche doesn't already know how to use it.

They step over the slightly hazardous concrete chunks from the broken down wall blocking their path, finding their way into the building finally.

Obviously Scaramouche isn't the one that wants to do this, so he stops once they're inside and eyes Izuku, crossing his arms. "Will this do, for your little 'idea?'"

Izuku easily pushes away from fallen debris and turns around to his friend with a bright smile, “This will be perfect! It’s out of the way from.. Well just about everything so we don’t need to worry about anyone finding us. We’ll need to clean it up on the inside a bit and maybe get a fan or two, but overall this is great!”

Scaramouche sighs, turning away for a moment to scale the surroundings. It’s worn down, it’s likely not the safest place, but then again, who is he to care.

It’s eerily reminiscent of the Shakkei Pavilion, which is not the most settling feeling– But, he supposes it’s not important enough to care about either. He just has to tolerate this.

He looks back to Izuku, “Fine then, what do you want me to do?”

“Hm..” He puts his finger to his chin, looking around for a moment. Mentally planning. “Well, for now I think we should make a clear/clean area in the middle. That way we can start practicing as soon as possible!”

“Fine… That’s no bother to me.” He agrees, not even looking at him as he just goes off to do as he suggested, picking up some of the rocks and moving them off to the side.

He does this blatantly with no struggle, like it’s easy for him- Which it is, because of his inherent strength. He’s not sure whether Izuku notices or not, maybe it’s only himself that pays attention to the little ‘tell’ that he’s not quite human. It’s weird, but he’s not sure if he cares about upholding this lie anymore… Maybe, something the boy’s mother had said got to him, admittedly.

Izuku easily works alongside Kunikuzushi, moving rocks and removing any trash that’s blown into the building throughout the years. It’s not too long before they have a decent sized area cleaned out in the middle of the building.

“This is looking great Kunizushi! Do you want to take a break and start testing out your power now?” Izuku tilts his head slightly with the question.

Scaramouche dusts his hands off and looks over at Izuku, staring for a moment. “Testing my power.. If you say so.” He agrees, but a hint of some sort of bitterness settles in the way he says it.

He hasn’t needed to test his power since, well, Dottore.

“It’s okay, I’m sure you’ll do great! Besides, it’s not like we’re even doing much, just seeing what you can do/control for right now!” Izuku assures, pulling the sleek purple notebook out of his bag. He steps to the side slightly and hums, “Okay! I’ll stand here and you can try.. Uh- spreading the lighting through your fingers or maybe trying to direct it at something?”

Scaramouche makes a sort of huffing noise, not saying a word in response. Instead, he just obliges by taking a few steps forward, then crouches down to a small flower growing out of the ground.

He stands again, then points his hand down in the flower’s direction, and in a second he vaporises the plant with Electro.

“...Meaningless.” He mumbles to himself and lets his hand drop to his side, sighing.

Izuku watches as smoke rises from where a little flower had once sat and he practically has stars in his eyes, “Wow.. I guess it makes sense but I hadn’t expected you to have so much control and power already.” He’s scribbling away in his notebook even while talking, a slightly impressive feat.

“I-..” Scaramouche stutters over himself, then out of the blue blurts out, “I don’t think I can do this anymore.”

Izuku looks up, slightly concerned, thinking that maybe Kunikuzushi had hurt himself when using the power. He shuts his notebook and moves over to his friend, “I’m sorry, are you alright? We can stop if the power hurts you, I know it doesn’t feel great.”

In response, Scaramouche seems to flinch away from him a little, just grumbling “No- It isn’t that..”

He sighs, relieved, “Oh good! Wait, what is it then?”

Scaramouche glances at Izuku, uncertain. “I lied,” he says, plain in his reply.

“About..?” Izuku trails off slightly, looking visibly confused as he tries to mentally figure out what he could have been lying about but very clearly coming up short.

"I'm not human." Scaramouche eventually clarifies, sighing and looking down at his hand and letting a little Electro spark between his fingers. "I'm not even mortal. In fact, I loathe mortals, I hate your kind. Yet I lied to you about it, and I don't even know why."

Izuku tilts his head, “Not, human?” He repeats, then has a moment of thinking, going over in his mind all the times that littles things have been said that suddenly make a lot more sense. Like the breathing, or the not feeling heat, it all makes actual sense now instead of the misguided rationalization that he had had before. “Huh- wait wait okay so what are you then? Does mom know?- ah no she probably knows, she’s better at this than I am. I hope you don’t actually hate me, you’re my friend!”

And somehow, Izuku smiles. He smiles because, hey, he still has a friend.

“It’s… A long story. When I said my mother was a god, that was a partial truth, but not the full picture. I was created by Raiden Ei, the god of Electro, as a puppet. But.. I wasn’t good enough for what she wanted me for, by her standards, so she sealed my power and left me with humans.” Scaramouche again, says the word ‘humans’ with bitterness.

“The rest doesn’t matter. I’m a machine, that’s all I am. I’ve already unsealed my power before, and I’ve used it for many centuries. That’s all you need to know regarding this.” He firmly asserts, he doesn’t want to go into.. Well, everything else. That’s a bombshell for another time, that he does not want to have to deal with.

He moves onto the second question, “And yes, your mother figured it out the second she examined me and evidently- found that I don’t breathe. It’s almost pitiful that you didn’t manage to put two and two together this entire time..” He commented, though he was really just annoyed at himself.

Izuku nods along, frowning when Kunikuzushi tells how he had been abandoned. “She sounds like a bad person, for just.. Discarding you. That’s wrong, I- know what it’s like. It hurts for a really long time.” He sighs, shaking his head softly to get rid of the thoughts, “I’ve.. kinda isolated myself for a while. I guess I was just so excited about having a friend again that I rationalized some of the odd things! I’m glad I found you though!”

Unusually so, Scaramouche seems to listen closely to what he says- rather than jumping to cutting in with a snide insult of sorts.

He listens for a moment, then responds “The times in the past I’ve made friends with humans, they only betrayed me. But now, everyone in Teyvat betrayed me. The gods, the humans, it all feels so meaningless. And now I’m here, in this pathetic little mortal world of yours, and somehow I don’t hate it.”

Izuku fidgets with the star necklaces that hangs from his neck, “We both needed a fresh start, you somewhere new and me someone new. From one discarded person to another, I won’t leave you behind. I promise.”

Scaramouche sighs, “I can’t say I’d trust you to keep that promise, but fine. Even though you’re a mortal, then I’ll stay by your side. I have nothing to lose, anyway.”

Izuku smiles, “You know, we’re kinda like brothers!” He says happily, easily moving them away from the heavier topic. “What do you want to do now? Keep seeing what your power can do, or we could head back home?”

His eyes widen a little at the comment about them being like ‘brothers,’ family… He’s only ever considered one person his brother. He can’t expect Izuku to possibly understand that, though.

“Quite frankly, I know exactly what my power can do. I’ve been through extensive testing for a very long time,” He gazes at his hand again, then mentally notes the detail of the way the Electro appears- Then looks back to Izuku,

“I’m fairly certain my power is- on the scale of 10 I’m used to, a 4.4. It’s not good, but the fact it’s there at all is quite surprising.”

He hums, writing down in the notebook that all but materialized in his hand, “All right, that’s good. Do you always release a lot of electricity or can you control how much it is you’re putting out?”

Scaramouche pauses for a moment, like his brain’s just shifting into 'experimentation’ mode, and he replies “It’s typically within my control, yes. But now, I’d imagine it’s not as stable. I think, similarly as to the methods I had to use to unseal my power, I need to train it by using it more often.”

He hums excitedly, “Well, good thing we have a place to practice and a plan to go out and help people!” He snaps his notebook closed and looks up at his friend, “Now! We’ve had a long emotional day, let’s go get some food- you don’t eat do you? We can go to an animal cafe maybe.. Or home!”

“I don’t need to eat. But I.. Can, if you’d like me to, perhaps?” He shrugs with hesitance, sighing, “I don’t care, just take me wherever you want to go.”

He shrugs with a nod, “Okay! I know where we should go, I’ll be a bit of a walk since we’re.. Y’know out in the abandoned area.”

Izuku puts his notebook into his bag and picks it up, looking over to Kunikuzushi before starting to make his way out of the building. Mentally mapping out the way they need to go.

He leads them through a few districts and after a quick train ride and a little bit more walking, the pair stand in front of a quaint cat cafe that’s clearly some kind of ‘hidden gem’ location.

In slightly awkward silence, Scaramouche follows Izuku the whole way until they get there. Maybe it’s that he’s so absorbed in his thoughts that he doesn’t comment on anything, but that’s not surface level.

He looks at the place Izuku has taken him too, then back to the mortal in a questioning way.

“..What is this place?” He asks, mostly just unsure, but a little curious.

He smiles brightly, “It’s a cat cafe! Basically the front is set up like a regular cafe, but there’s a section in the back where you can go and sit with a few cats and kittens! It’s a really nice and relaxing place.”

“Cats… You say.” The half unenthusiastic eye roll he does seems to take care of his thoughts on the matter. He’s naturally cynical of everything, this is no exception. It just seems like a foreign human concept to him, what calm does one derive from wild animals? And at that, he convinces himself into believing he doesn’t like the idea.

Izuku hums a quick affirmation as he pulls the door open, holding it briefly for Kunikuzushi as they walk in. He gestures at the hanging menu as they walk up to the front counter. “Are you going to get anything? Or do you just want to sit with the cats?”

Scaramouche eyes the board for a moment, reading through the nonsensical words he can’t attribute to anything familiar. It seems almost for a moment like he’s considering something, but then he snaps his attention back to Izuku and folds his arms as usual; “I don’t care. It’s your decision.”

He shrugs, “Alright then.”

It isn’t much longer before it’s their turn at the counter, the worker offers a friendly smile, “Welcome to Hikari Cat Cafe, what can I get for you two?”

“Hi, I’ll take a medium peach green tea and he’ll have a small black tea with no additives please.” One quick exchange of money and 3 minutes later both boys are holding their respective drinks and sitting at a secluded booth in the corner.

With that, Scaramouche seems to resign back to silence; just sitting across from Izuku and holding his cup of tea with one steady hand. He doesn’t convey any emotion on his face, no– Just stares, blank. It’s quite oddly common for him to do that, regardless of the situation.

He glances at Izuku once, just once before he avoids making eye contact again.

Izuku happily sips some of his peach green tea, savoring the taste for just a moment before he pulls his notebook out and looks at Kunikuzushi with something akin to stars in his eyes, “Okay- so- I’m just really curious and you don’t have to answer but if you’re a puppet are you just immune to temperature, or does it still affect you and you just don't feel it? Do you not have any functions that humans need to live? Hey wait- are you like invincible?”

His rant catches Scaramouche’s attention for a moment, before he promptly rolls his eyes and stops him, “Silence, mortal. One question at a time, I can’t even hear you when you speak so fast.” He says, bluntly.

“Oh- right sorry!” Izuku takes a sort-of steadying breath, “First, are you truly immune to temperatures or is it more that you just don’t feel them but they can still affect you. Like blisters and frostbite for example.”

"Well... No, it doesn't affect me. Not unless it's extreme. The Snezhnayan cold, the snow- I could feel, to some degree. I liked the cold..." He trails off, but catches himself before he forgets to continue.
"And heat, well it's the same. I have sat in consuming fires, unable to burn. I've had everything tested on me, it's just how I was built; to withstand such things." There's a clear lack of emotion in the way he says the next part, unlike how he talked about the cold just before.

He nods, writing it down quickly before looking at Kunikuzushi with some unreadable expression in his eyes, “I’m- glad that it didn’t hurt. At least it doesn’t sound like it did, don’t worry though we’ll be safe when we’re out!”

Scaramouche stares back at him, blank, “Pain is an emotion. I rid myself of those, taught myself not to feel it anymore. It’s fine.”

“It’s okay to feel, Kunizushi,” He says gently, ever so soft. He lets that hang in the air as he sips from his drink, unsure if moving on is correct or not.

He looks at him, staring for a moment longer- before he makes a low sort of huff and just drinks from his own cup, ignoring the sentiment.

But, he doesn’t admit that he thinks on it for a moment.

“Emotions are human. I’m not– human.” He eventually blurts out, even after the gap of silence.

“You’re pretty human to me Kuni,” He offers a gentle smile before glancing over to the cat area, “Want to go meet some cats?”

“..Don’t say that.” Scaramouche says reluctantly, then follows Izuku’s gaze almost immediately– like he’s trained to do that.

“I don’t care for animals, just as little as I care for humans. But fine.” He accepts, lacing his answer with his usual attitude.

He hums with a quick nod, grabbing his drink as he slides out of the booth and heads over to the door that leads into the cat room and he places his drink down on the counter beside it that’s explicitly for customers going to see the cats.

Following, almost mirroring Izuku– Scaramouche hesitantly sets his drink down beside Izuku’s, unsure. He stays close to him, warily looking around at the surroundings.

Izuku softly pulls open the door and reveals a room with gentle lighting and multitude of nature themed scratching posts/towers and various comfortable looking chairs littered through the room. He easily drops himself in a net-chair and coos happily as a cream colored kitten purrs at him while climbing up his leg.

Scaramouche thinks it seems oddly calm... Decorated gently, nothing is too overwhelming.
There's a small striped brown cat that instantly wanders up to him, and Scaramouche does nothing more than stand as the cat circles him and brushes against his leg.
Animals are strange... Eventually, he just crosses his arms and glares down at the cat as if they'll respond to human social cues all the same.
When the cat doesn't stop with the affection, he sighs and nervously looks at Izuku; "What is this creature doing..?"

He looks up and watches the cat that’s circling his friend before he laughs gently, “Oh, I think it must like you! Maybe it wants you to pick it up?”

“Pick it up..? Well why would it want that?” He asks, tilting his head momentarily as he looks back down at the cat which is now purring up at him.
He doesn’t get it. Why can’t any mortal, even cats; see the simple truth? Scaramouche is plainly evil, not to be trusted. Even Izuku can’t see that, so naive…

Izuku shrugs, smiling, “I don’t know, I guess it’s just an affectionate cat!”

Scaramouche scoffs, but hesitantly reaches down and picks up the cat that seems so fond of him, holding it uncomfortably.

The creature is oddly calm… He wouldn’t have expected that reaction. He just grimaces, an almost comically uncomfortable expression on his face.

Izuku laughs lightly, gesturing towards a seat, “You could sit down you y’know? That cat seems to really like you!”

“Don’t think you can order me, mortal.” He says sourly, glancing threateningly at Izuku– But begrudgingly realising his suggestion probably would help.

He dramatically rolls his eyes, then trudges over to the chair and sits down, letting the cat curl up on his lap as he sits there awkwardly.

Whether Izuku says something to him, Scaramouche isn't sure. Actually, no. He's certain he hears him speak, hears the sound of his voice he's gotten all too accustomed to over the time he's spent here.

Even when he speaks - and he's sure he does, his brain blanks it. He's not focusing on the words, because instead; he's blanking. That's all he's doing. Even if he’s trying not to.

Why is he shutting down like this? Well, that’s what is uncertain. And uncertainty is suffocating, it all is. Hah... to think he doesn't understand half of what's going on these days.

Teyvat was never like this. No, it was clear. It was all stuff he knew. Now he's in an unfamiliar place again, marked somewhere on a map he has no picture of. He's seen everywhere in Teyvat, yet here's a place where he hasn't even seen a fraction of.

And now he's getting so ahead of himself he's attaching to humans, making 'friends' as if that's a possibility for him. Izuku doesn't yet know who he was; is. The mortal boy has no clue the hatred he spread throughout Teyvat by the side of the Fatui, he doesn't know what he tried to do... Who he tried to kill. And, who he did kill.

Scaramouche, the Balladeer.

There's so many more lies, secrets he hasn't told– He's done for the second Izuku finds out about all the things he's done. 500 years... That boy can't possibly comprehend what can be done in that amount of time.

What does it mean...? Everything he did? Is it all meaningless? For him to end up here in a place where no one knows?

And now, he’s gotten carried away and told a mortal too much about himself. He can’t be doing this. He wants it to stop.

No, it's too much. Izuku said it’s okay to feel, so is it?

At least now, he can't hear Izuku say pointless things anymore; he can't hear the buzz of the lights and the sounds of the cats' claws clicking on the floor, or their incessant purring. Because, he's covered his ears; forcing silence. He just wants it to stop.

That’s better. He shuts his eyes; it’s quiet now.

Chapter Text

“So, are you feeling any better Kunizushi?” Izuku asks as he sets down a stack of blankets and pillows, careful to avoid knocking over any of the snacks and drinks sitting on the coffee table.

Scaramouche stands at the other end of the room, just waiting for Izuku to be done with whatever it is he’s doing.

“Fine… Nothing was wrong in the first place.” He seems to defend, crossing his arms like usual. He never really seems to let his guard down.

He shrugs with a quick hum, “Well, I’m glad you’re fine.”

Izuku looks over the room for a moment, seeming to mark off some mental checklist and eventually he nods and turns to actually face his friend with a normally bright smile, “Okay- so! I’ve decided that we’re gonna have a sleepover- well do the sleepover things! Just to relax and what-not.”

Widening his eyes a little, Scaramouche stares at him- oddly stunned, until he just sighs and drops his shoulders in a way that makes him seem annoyed.

“Why. What’s the point of that?” He asks, glaring in a half eyeroll.

“Why not?” He questions back brightly, “I just think it’ll be nice honestly. I haven’t had a real sleepover in- hm years really. We can play games, watch movies, just exist together!”

“Well I’d rather I didn’t exsit,” in retaliation, he lazily places his hand on his hip; but doesn’t argue. “Fine then. I’ll do it..”

Izuku lays a soft blanket out on the floor, “Great! Is there anything you want to do first? I brought out a uno deck and our shelf of board games and movie dvd’s is right there.”

Scaramouche hesitantly walks over to Izuku, watching closely what he’s doing for just a moment then looking up in confusion- like he’d spaced out.

“Huh…? Oh. I don’t care… What half of those things even are makes little sense to me.” He says, looking away.

He holds out the uno card holder, showing it off, “This is Uno, it’s a card game where you get 7 cards and you have to match either the color or number of the card that’s in the discard pile. The goal is to be the first person to get rid of all your cards. When you have one card left you have to say uno, or else the other person can call you out and you have to pick up cards.”

With a tilt of the head, he watches with a slight bit of curiosity before his eyes dull and he dramatically says, “More of these strange mortal games-?” He uses the word more comfortably, as if he’s been holding back on using it to describe every little thing he found strange the entire - Which, in fact, he has.

Izuku laughs lightly, easily, nodding his head, “Yeah, more mortal games! Want to play?”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll entertain it.” He rolls his eyes, almost laughing at himself from the dramatic act he’s putting on.

“Great!” He chirps, moving to sit down as he fiddles with the little cardboard holder to expose the cards and shuffle them.

Scaramouche follows and sits down opposite to him, curiously watching his movements.

After a moment of him just staring at the cards like he’s discovered something astonishing, he asks aloud; “What are you doing with those?”

Izuku clumsily shuffles the cards, a few dropping occasionally, “I’m shuffling the cards! It’s to make sure that we get a variety of cards and not just all of one thing.”

As a card drops from Izuku’s messy shuffling, Scaramouche glances at it and then back to look at Izuku. “Well then, why are you doing it with such a pitiful method?” He says, smirking slightly from amusement.

Izuku huffs playfully, reaching to grab some of the fallen cards and randomly slide them back into the deck, “I’m not very good at shuffling- but it gets the job done!”

Seemingly content with the shuffled deck, he deals himself and Kunikuzushi seven cards, placing down a starting card before setting the rest of the cards down beside it.

“Seems careless.” Scaramouche points out with an almost sad sounding sigh, but lets it go and simply looks in confusion at the various piles of cards.

“What are these for?” He points arbitrarily between the starting card, the deck and the other two piles, looking up at Izuku with a puzzled expression.

Izuku points at each deck during his explanation, “The one closest to you is your deck, you can arrange the cards however you want to. That single card is the discard- or play- pile so we have to place a card that matches the color or number, or a wild card. A wild card has the four game colors on it and when you place one down you get to pick the new color. Lastly, that big pile is for picking up a card or cards if you don’t have one you can play.”

Scaramouche hums quietly as if to confirm, though he’s still majorly confused– He shrugs in silence and hesitantly reaches out to grab hold of the cards in front of him.

All he does is tilt his head as he turns them around and attempts to hold them in his hand, be it a little messily.

He doesn’t comment on the way the other boy holds his card, instead carefully arranges his own. Ordered by ascending number and color grouping, the special cards at the beginnings of each respective grouping.

“Are you ready, Kunizushi?” He smiles.

Unintentionally ignoring Izuku, Scaramouche scans over the strange cards again; trying to work it out on his own, process it.

A minute later he snaps out of it and glances up, “...Yes, sorry.”

Izuku nods, “Okay!”

Time to play.

First and foremost he plays a draw 4 wild card, “New color is green!”

A green reverse.

A green skip.

A yellow skip.

And finally, a yellow eight.

Izuku looks up with a sharp smile, something that looks oddly fitting on his face despite the first time he’s made such a- confident expression. He’s got two cards left, he looks as if it could only get better from here.

Lowering the cards in his hands, Scaramouche stares down at the center pile- Blinking as if that’d help him process, then looking up to stare at Izuku as he grins.

He stares for a moment, just before he mirrors him with an awkward; though still mocking as always; laugh.

“What’s the meaning of this.” He says harshly, his eyes widening a little scarily.

“It’s uno! I’m just playing the game Kunizushi,” He says lightly, smiling still and unphased by the look he is given.

“Hm… I must’ve missed something…” Scaramouche mutters to himself, staring down at his own cards for a moment.

Again, he glances up with a sigh, “What am I meant to do? What do those cards mean-?”

“I played a draw four wild card, so now you have to draw four cards from the pile. With the skips and reverse I skipped over your turn and then played the eight!” He clarifies quickly.

With another dramatic eyeroll, Scaramouche sneers, “Quit bragging, mortal.”

Hesitantly, he reaches to the tallest pile; recalling it as the ‘deck’, and slides off 4 cards that he neatly piles up to the side of the deck, then picks up and adds them to the rest of the cards he’s supposed to play with.

And now it’s only harder to hold… He scoffs silently to himself.

He’s careful as he picks out a card of the same colour, pulling it from the rest and almost fearfully setting it down on top of Izuku’s eight, making accusatory sort of glances up at him.

Izuku happily lays down a yellow seven, calling out the dreaded word, “Uno!”

Scaramouche instantly raises his free hand, gesturing a sort of ‘wait’ sign and clearing his throat.

He looks at his cards, then at a moment’s notice; sets down a +4 card, smugly saying “Not so fast, mortal. I choose green.” He decides with a grin.

Izuku dramatically groans, rolling his eyes as he reaches over and slides four cards into his hand. His smile is back as quickly as it left though, waiting for the next move.

Smirking, Scaramouche picks out another card- Playing a +2 this time, and ending it off with; “Your move~”

“Boo-” He says, pretending annoyance as he moves his hand towards the draw pile before suddenly dropping down a blue plus 2, “Hah, draw four!”

His jaw seems to drop slightly, and he stares at Izuku in horror. “What? You didn’t tell me that.”

Izuku laughs brightly, “Oh? My bad, well yes we can stack plus twos on eachother.” He drops down a blue one as some kind of finishing statement.

“Useless.” In annoyance, Scaramouche slams his hand down on the deck of cards and picks out another 4 cards one by one.

Though, as he slots the new cards into his deck, he can’t stop himself from smiling at this.

Strategically - of some sort - he plays a blue nine to follow Izuku’s one.

Izuku huffs dramatically as he leans over to grab a card from the pile but seems to perk up at the sight of the face, he throws down a blue six.

“Huh. Luck won’t get you anywhere…” Scaramouche says snidely, glaring at Izuku as he plays a blue five in return.

Izuku shrugs, placing a green five into the pile, “I think it’s helping me out so far!”

With the colour switch, Scaramouche takes a pause to think it through in silence; then, slowly takes a card out of his deck and tauntingly lowers a green +2.

“Oh~ Look at that, there it goes.” He says, snorting as he glares at Izuku.

He takes his momentary defeat in silence, grabbing two cards and then dramatically fanning himself with his four cards.

Scaramouche stares at Izuku and scoffs, “Don’t be so melodramatic.” He waves his hand in his direction, before setting down another green.

The two exchange green cards until Izuku happens to have a yellow four to counter his own green four, and he seems to make a mildly annoyed groan at that.

They play another few yellow cards, and Scaramouche plays a yellow eight; then rather impatiently waits for Izuku to take his turn, tapping his hand against the base of his cards and staring.

It’s been about two minutes of a constant pick up-put down game for Izuku, he’s called uno four separate times and yet the awaiting win seems to continuously evade him. Somehow now his hand is at four cards, with no real strategy anymore he throws down a blue eight.

With a shrug, Scaramouche effortlessly lays down a blue nine and looks up, smirking at Izuku with spite. It’s like he’s already scheming…

He dramatically lays a green nine onto the mess of a pile, in a brief moment of seriousness Izuku taps the sides of all the cards together to form a uniform pile.

In the midst of the harsh colour change, Scaramouche sighs and slaps down a green 4 into the pile, unbothered.

Izuku places a green eight, he watches his three remaining cards as if they could tell him how to win.

Scaramouche, raising a hand to cover his mouth before he breaks into laughter, carefully sets down a red eight.

He looks over his cards again, then glances mischievously back up at Izuku, staring at him as if he can discern his little scheme just from that one move.

Izuku nervously places a red one down. Glancing at his remaining two cards, begging them not to fail.

Holding in his laugh momentarily, Scaramouche puts down a red skip, then with ease follows it up with a reverse and finally; another eight as if to end the move on symmetry.

For just a moment, they are neck and neck. Two cards and two cards, then Izuku promptly looks like he wants to slam his head into the table they're playing on. He defeatedly grabs a card from the pile.

“Aw, don’t sulk so soon.” Scaramouche taunts, ice in the way he says it and grins mercilessly.

When he’s offered a turn, he proudly; for the first time in the painfully long, repetitive game, calls out “Uno.” As he places down his second to last card: a red 5.

Izuku draws yet another card and promptly drops the green five down.

Scaramouche sourly rolls his eyes, huffing as he’s forced to pick up a card, cornered out of his Uno status.

Izuku picks a card from the pile and looks to his friend nervously, wondering if they’ll have to draw endlessly.

Interchangeably, Izuku and Scaramouche trade picking up and placing down cards in what seems like a loop; Until somehow, Scaramouche is left with a square one of 7 cards, which he’s barely struggling to hold.

He stares Izuku down in threatening silence, as the little mortal sits there smugly with his one singular card.

Izuku threw down a reverse, two plus twos, then a blue 8. He clutches his claim to victory, his hand shakes although not with anxiety, simply fried nervous and muscle tremors from a power he no longer has. “Uno!” He says for about the sixth time now, eyeing Kunikuzushi willing him to play the card he needs.

Scaramouche feigns a scoff, glaring at Izuku in a fake act at being annoyed at this situation; When in reality, just a second later, he makes a show of laying down a +4.

“I pick yellow…” He adds, laced with a hidden vengeful laugh in his voice.

He actually lets his head hit the table this time, an obviously dramatic display that he does without any sort of hesitation the moment he sees the plus four. By some stroke of luck that he’d lost since the start of the game he manages to grab four brand new cards- well actually maybe that’s just the muscle memory kicking in.

While Izuku pitifully wallows in his misery, Scaramouche has already rushed down a reverse and yellow zero, perhaps to reflect the mortal’s imminent defeat.

He snickers to himself, clearly far too absorbed in this silly little game.

Izuku glances at the five cards in his hand and drops his head back down, depressingly reaching for the pile yet again.

Once again, they seem to get caught in a loop of pathetically picking up cards; Scaramouche happens, just at the perfect time- to draw a wild card, which he stares at in surprise for a moment before he plops it down on top of the pile, laughing maniacally as he says, “Blue, I choose.”

He doesn’t take more than a second to peek at his hand of nine cards and throw a blue seven down as if it personally hurt him.

As he gracefully lowers a blue skip over Izuku’s seven, Scaramouche simply smiles in his episode of petty revenge; as from his deck, he swiftly grabs a green skip which he plays again, finishing the little sequence that appears to mirror Izuku’s initial string of moves off with a green six.

He leans back as he stares thoughtfully at his cards, sending side glances to Izuku with a grin.

Izuku huffs, rolling his eyes with no real malice behind any of the movements. He quickly drops down a green seven.

As if to psyche him out, Scaramouche ponders his cards for a few more moments, then takes a one to the pile with no care behind it, instantly going back to staring down at his three remaining cards as cover.

He carelessly adds a green three to the pile, eyeing Kunikuzushi in a pretend display of wariness.

As if to reflect; tell him subconsciously that he very much should be so cautious, Kunikuzushi eyes him back as he shadily covers the card he picks up from the light.

And yet, just after he picks it up and holds it to his deck, he drops it back down again, a simple red three.

With some glimmer of hope to his eyes, Izuku drops down a skip and draw two, ending his finally worthwhile turn with a red six.

For some reason, Kunikuzushi fails to retaliate and simply obliges the card by picking up two, casually setting the new two cards in his deck, then staring back up at Izuku confidently as he sets down a plain red nine.

They seem to trade a few red cards back and forth with each other for a moment, until finally Izuku once again calls out, “Uno!” as he places down a red two.

Seemingly unphased, Kunikuzushi only places down a blue two at an attempt to switch the colour. Every move he seems to make is a little frighteningly calculated.

He eyes Izuku, watching his face to preemptively gauge his reaction.

Izuku looks like he could probably cry right around now as he makes some kind of dramatic show of slowly reaching over to the draw pile yet again as he’s set back to two cards. His uno stolen away from him.

As once again, the two of them are briefly equal; with just two cards each in hand. But, Kunikuzushi quickly breaks that harmony by putting down a blue 6, painfully slowly as he mockingly sings “Uno~”

Izuku makes some kind of fake sob noise as a new card is added to his hand, dramatically he looks away as if he couldn’t bear to know the outcome. He’s looking back excitedly quicker than his whole dramatic display lasted.

Deceivingly, Kunikuzushi sighs with a deep frown at his finale card, “That’s a shame… So close, yet so far…” He says, sorrowfully as he reaches in the direction of the deck as if he’s about to draw a card-

But as soon as his hand nears the cards, he snaps his hand back and grins widely, before waving his card in the air and setting it down on the pile, taking a full 180.

“-Oh, I meant for you.” He stifles a laugh just barely, as he ultimately goes out on a wild card, the proof sitting on top of the endless pile. “Customarily, I choose red. Whoops- You can’t play anymore. Because I just beat you.”

Izuku had planned on doing some whole dramatic fake sob show at losing but truthfully he couldn’t stop the bright smile that crossed his face instantly. “Good job Kunizushi! Man, I was so close, I’ll get you next time!”

He throws his now useless three cards onto the table, yellow and red ones and a green two. He clumsily pushes the two semi-decks together.

“Whatever, worthless mortal.” Scaramouche says, still fairly dramatic as he simply sighs. Or well, that’s just how he is - usually.

He yawns, watching Izuku for a spare moment as he gathers the cards up.

He fiddles with the cardboard holder for a few moments, pushing the large deck of cards back into the box that somehow always seems too small when trying to put the cards back in.

“Hey, why don’t you pick a movie out from over there? I think we could use the relaxation after that!” Izuku laughs lightly, moving to go put the cards back with the other games.

Scaramouche stands and arbitrarily follows where Izuku had directed him, looking in confusion- then turning his head back to Izuku, “A movie..? Such like Fontaine has?” He asks, as if Izuku would know where he’s talking about.

Izuku shrugs, “Uhm, maybe? Just- pick whatever one you like the cover of and it’ll probably end up a good choice! I’ll get us some snacks while you do that!”

“Fine…” He agrees, though stands in indecisive confusion for a few minutes, purely blanking at the different options.

Eventually, he sees something that catches his eye; and he cautiously walks off with it, simply finding a place to stand and wait for Izuku.

He’s not sure how he feels after whatever that was, but he doesn’t feel as uncomfortable as he usually does.. It’s strange. He can’t rationalise that, oddly.

.

.

.

Inko sighs softly as she slides the key into the lock, work had been even busier than normal due to some villain attack that she couldn’t be bothered to learn more about. She’s thankful for her quirk and it’s helpfulness in relation to her job but on days like this it feels rather bothersome when it causes her hands to cramp and her mind to feel so foggy.

Afterall, she hadn’t even noticed the fact that she’s inside the house now, quietly setting her work bag onto a counter in the less than tidy kitchen. What exactly had her boys gotten into while she was at work?

She huffs fondly, it’s just a small mess, truly just a bit of microwave popcorn and a few other snacks. Izuku and Kunikuzushi must have had a movie night, distantly she wonders what they watched. Oh well, she can always ask about it in the morning at breakfast.

Finally Inko leaves the kitchen, her eyes catch on the glow of the TV. A bright blue from the end of some movie dvd that they must have fallen asleep during, it illuminates her two kids as well.

Izuku is sitting on the floor, slouched over with a blanket hanging off his shoulder and a bowl of popcorn settled precariously on his lap. Similarly, Kunikuzushi is propped against the couch looking uncommonly relaxed.

She smiles, suddenly her tiredness is gone as she pulls her phone from her pocket, moving around to take a quick picture of them together. She makes a mental note to have it printed and framed the next time she goes out on an errand run. She removes the popcorn bowl and gently lays a large blanket over the both of them, before clicking the TV off.

“Sleep well, my dears,” She whispers softly, giving one quick look back to them before she disappears down the hallway to her own room.

Chapter Text

It didn’t take long for the two boys to get their training building- or.. Maybe home base- to be in a much more suitable condition. No more debris or broken glass littered on the floor and they, moreso Izuku, even made it a bit more homely. Large mats are laid out in the middle of the room, two folding chairs and a small table settled on the other end of the room. He wishes that he could’ve brought a fan in here but that just wasn’t quiet in their low budget right now, so instead to try to combat the heat in the building he wears a black tanktop and shorts.

Izuku stretches his arms out, he looks at anything but his scarred arms in the process. The permanent reminder of what he lost etched into his skin is something he still can’t handle all that well. After all It’s not fair, he worked so hard only for it to be taken away but not be allowed to forget.

He sighs softly, dropping his arms down to his side as he looks over to Kunikuzushi, “Hey Kuni, wanna spar with me? Or did you wanna work with your power?”

It’s an odd day, and for Scaramouche- he feels fairly out of it. Or perhaps, he’s been blanking most of it again, so when Izuku speaks to him directly; he almost looks like he’s seen a ghost as he turns to stare at him.

“Spar-?” He repeats, like it digs at some past memory in his head.

After a moment, he clears his throat and responds with his usual offense. “Hah, if I were to spar with you, I’d imagine you’d be dead or seriously injured within the very first few minutes.” He declares, eyeing Izuku viciously.

Izuku stares for a moment before breaking into a small fit of laughter, “Kuni- do you- do you not have any ground rules for this kind of thing? Sparring is meant to be helpful for both people, just first to get pinned for five seconds then stopping and resetting. Also- for what’s it’s worth I am actually pretty strong.”

Scaramouche makes an annoyed huff at the way he laughs it off and takes to defending himself, “Well I don’t often fight you fragile mortals… You should know I am mostly indestructible, you’d stand no chance against me.” He says, with some mildly fake sounding sense of pride.

Izuku shrugs, offering a quick smile “Well, I have to make sure I didn’t lose all my skill and training somehow!”

Reluctantly, Scaramouche glares at him once again- rather overdramatically sour about being ‘forced’ to do this.

“Well fine. But your mortality is your own responsibility.” He says with a stubborn sigh, lazily walking over to stand in front of his friend.

“Great!” He chirps, taking his spot on one end of the mats as he takes a steadying breath. Something in him goes away, his eyes seem more calculating when they open. His arms are raised slightly in front of him, ready, waiting.

In the way Izuku’s mindset evidently changes, Scaramouche stands to be a little thrown off- but does revert back to some sort of ‘fighting’ mode, and smirks just a little.

He watches Izuku closely, waiting to see if he’d make a move.

He watches the other boy back, looking for any move of attack yet none seems to be coming. Finally Izuku simply dives at Kunikuzushi, one arm being thrown around his torso as Izuku attempts to twist himself behind the other.

Easily, Scaramouche grabs Izuku’s arm and counters the attack, moving away from him and in the process; shoving him away.

At this, he almost starts to laugh- but holds himself back, for it’d be foolish to celebrate before he’s won.

He slides back easily, keeping his balance easily enough. He waits for a moment more, looking at Kunikuzushi before lunging, reaching out for his shoulders, however when he gets close he swings his foot out to kick at the other’s heel/ankle.

However, Scaramouche tactfully uses this to his advantage and kicks him back, spinning out of Izuku's grasp. In that moment, he waits- oddly still for a second or two, until, he lunges at the other and throws him down to the ground, subsequently pinning him down as are the rules.
Though, he does this with a rather unhinged grin, as if the fight gives him some sort of kick. It seems he should be out of breath, yet he makes no motion of breathing; only grins.

Izuku lays on the floor for a moment, thinking, considering. Finally he hums and pushes himself up, “Good round, want to go again?”

Confidently, Scaramouche stands and snickers rather obnoxiously, “Well… Only if you want to lose, yet again.”

“Mhm,” He hums absent-mindedly, standing back at his place on the mat. Watching Kunikuzushi closely for the moment.

As if Izuku’s lack of reaction to his confidence frustrates him, Scaramouche only glares in annoyance at him for some time.

Though with an impatient sigh, he returns to smirking almost a little too hyperactively- and this time opts for the first move, jumping at Izuku and aiming to headlock him where he’s standing.

Izuku waits for just a second before ducking under Kunikuzushi’s arm, spinning on his heels to turn and grab his friend’s arms.

Annoyed at the way this mortal doesn’t even seem to be intimidated, simply acting as if it’s a regular fight- Scaramouche growls, but pushes back and out of impulse, preemptively tries to activate his power but stops himself in enough time.

This action though, and the need to have to hold his irrational impulse back, trips him up so to speak. He blanks, and looks around blindly for a moment; having lost track of Izuku’s location.

He holds Kunikuzushi’s arms as he practically throws himself onto the back of the other, using all his weight to bring them down.

As a splinter of retaliation before he can process, Scaramouche seethes at his attacker, before he is practically yanked down with little time to respond.

Clearly he’s miscalculated this, and in the moment he only feels misdirected frustration.

After a moment of making sure that Kunikuzushi is down, he hums in satisfaction, if he can get his brother down he can likely get anyone they end up fighting down as well. Izuku gets up, offering a hand out to his brother, “Good round,”

Scaramouche lays there in self pity for a moment, before grumbling and staring up at Izuku, then to the hand he offers.

“Whatever.” He says bitterly, before reaching up and firmly gripping his wrist, instead just pulling himself up with the help of Izuku’s arm.

Izuku huffs fondly, smiling at Kunikuzushi before wandering off to the little table and taking a large sip from his water bottle. “Well, I think we’re both pretty good actually, I mean if I can get you down then I shouldn’t have too much of a problem when we have actual equipment and the element of surprise.”

Begrudgingly, as if he’s a sad duckling, he follows after Izuku and tries to pretend he’s not beyond frustrated at losing.

“Well… I was holding back, if I had used my power you’d have stood no chance. It was only because I’m not used to fighting without.” He tries to say effortlessly, but his voice is just laced with broken pride.

“Mhm, well good thing all I did was figure out your attack pattern which our actual opponents will not get the chance to do.” He shrugs, setting down his water and stretching his arms out, “Because I’m thinking about it, we’ll need code names, and outfits, and.. Well preferably weapons of some time. I know someone who will probably help us with most of that but code names are all on us.”

While Izuku talks, Scaramouche doesn’t seem to be paying attention- as if he’s single track focused on something else.

It’s almost disturbing for a moment, as if he’s out of it- Until, in a split second, he reaches for Izuku’s outstretched arm and stares,

“What’s this?” He asks, or says, weirdly daunting about it.

“Huh?” Izuku says, startled at the suddenty of Kunikuzushi pointing out the scars on his arms, “Oh, these are just scars from my training.” He dismisses, waving it off.

Scaramouche gives him a disproportionately mortified stare while he speaks, then eventually; blinks, even if he doesn’t need to, and lets go of his arm.

“Hm… How odd it is that humans carry marks of their pain.” He comments, and on cue, stares down at his own hand, searching for something invisible.

“I mean… It makes sense, right? Your body doesn’t forget damage like that– Whether it’s your skin or your brain.” Izuku supplies, shrugging softly.

“I know what you mean.” As if it could all end there, his stare boring holes through Izuku, Scaramouche answers back. His eyes sit straight forward, not even the reflections dancing above them bringing any life to them.

“But, not mine.” Turning coldly away, he walks away, dragging a towel from the nearest surface to wipe his hands off.

Izuku watches him, letting silence fall over the pair for a moment until his brain can come up with a diversion of the topic. He stretches his arm across his chest, simply repeating “..So, about the important stuff for our vigilante stuff. I know someone who’ll probably help us with outfits and gadgets, but we really should figure out some code names.”

With no resistance, for once, Scaramouche follows along. “What kind of code names? With my abundance of titles, I can figure something out now if you narrow it down.”

Izuku lets out a soft sigh of relief, “Well, I’m not too sure but something that fits- us? I quite like mythology, I was thinking maybe taking something from there for myself.”

“Mythology…? Hah.” Scaramouche grins darkly, holding back a reluctant roll of his eyes before giving in, slapping the towel back down. “Well, I don’t know what mythology your world has, nor do I care for that matter.”

Izuku brightens up slightly, smiling, “Oh! I have some books you could read if you ever wanted, maybe we have some similar stuff!”

“Pff, I highly doubt it.” Scaramouche declares, sighing.

“Oh come on, you have to give it a chance!” Izuku says brightly before tilting his head slightly, “Did you want to stop training for today or keep going?”

“What I want?” A little chillingly, Scaramouche snides. “I want to know what your deal is.” Glaring that same oddly threatening expression again, Scaramouche snaps.

Izuku sputters, a bit confused, why can’t they just- leave it alone, had he not explained it well enough? He gave the objective facts, what more could Kunikuzushi want to hear? “What? I don’t know, I want to..” he trails off, like he wanted to say something but realized it wouldn’t quite be accurate, “-save people, be helpful. I don’t need some quirk to do that, I’m just as capable as other people!”

“Nobody wants to save people if they don’t hold the resent of not being saved themselves,” He says, distantly deciding for Izuku, if the human can’t do it himself. “So what’s your deal. You can’t be all sunshine and rainbows, mortal.”

Izuku hesitates, distinctly feeling rather caught not in a lie but in someone finally reading between the lines. “I-” He isn’t sure how to admit the thought, that maybe he isn’t so into helping for a solely selfless reason.

“I just.. Want to prove them wrong. I’m not less- I’m not useless or defenseless- I’ve known I’m capable and everyone’s always refused to see it. I’m going to prove them wrong, Kuni.”

Scaramouche, patient, waits on him to finish, prolonging his response and just seeming as if he’s processing; or thinking of something to say. Actually trying to carefully word things here.

“If you were useless, I wouldn’t have needed you. If you were defenseless, I would have used you and thrown you out. If you were ‘less,’ I’d want nothing to do with you.” He says, as if that dismantles the insecurity. “I think you should want revenge instead, not this self-pity.”

“I..” He trails off as it sinks in slowly, could that really be right? Revenge? A harsh little word it feels like, but is it really wrong? Izuku knows that he’s too forgiving towards some people, he knows realistically that he should be more upset.. Why isn’t he?

“I don’t know, maybe you’re right, but I don’t really want to hurt anyone just- prove them wrong.”

“Proving them wrong is also revenge. Think of it as that, spite; not as some ploy for your own redemption.” Scaramouche says, clearly very opinionated on the subject, extended to every essence of his existence.

Izuku hums, thinking it over, “That’s.. Not a bad way of looking at it actually. I am spitting on them, winning against them so to speak. Thanks, Kunizushi.” He smiles at the other, soft and genuine.

Probably at the satisfaction of a successful 'indoctrination,’ Scaramouche cracks a grin and crosses his arms proudly for a moment. “Consider my advice a sparse luxury, mortal.”

Chapter Text

A day like this is only one of repent. Like chinese water torture, you're to think of the day that brought you into this world over and over until it's over. The only distraction is the circular train of thought itself; broken and repetitive, just spinning around and around.

The day that Ei cursed him.

Scaramouche's 'birthdays' are usually cast aside, actually; most of the time; he doesn't even know what date it is. Which is why, it's so gratefully easy to ignore. But now, he's in a strange place filled to the brim with clocks and calendars; and those little devices that Izuku and all the other mortals seem to have.

There's no way of avoiding it, and it's more than overwhelming. Only now, on the very day, it hits: That wave of misery.

He stares down at the cup of tea he had made himself early this morning – well it wasn't even really morning, though technically 4AM is.

It's cold now. He hasn't even taken one sip of it, for he feels he doesn't deserve to. And it's like if he ignores it, ignores everything; the day will just end. And then he won't have to think about it again. He certainly wouldn't call it strategic, but more a 'flight fight or freeze' response.

Of course, he seems to be under the spell of the undecided 'freeze.'

Inko wonders out from her bedroom, sometimes finding it hard to sleep past a certain time. Especially after a few work days where she spends the first rest day sleeping a probably unnatural amount then the one after it seems waking at anytime more than 4AM a rather impossible idea. Maybe not a great cycle, but one that works well enough for her.

The mother quickly realizes Kunikuzushi, sitting at the table in front of a cup of.. What’s likely to be tea, considering she’s never seen the kid drink coffee. (And, perhaps, because of the fact she’s hidden the only coffee in the house in a drawer under dish towels because it makes Izuku a bit to mentally hyper and anxious. He doesn’t try to drink it that often, but she would rather be safe than sorry.)

She slowly waves a hand in front of his face, speaking softly, “Kunikuzushi, dear, are you alright?”

Oddly, Scaramouche seems drastically less alert than he usually is; always reacting and flinching to every action, but this time; he stays frozen for a delayed few seconds.

Once he realises, he visibly recoils and stares up at Inko, like she’s violated him or something. “What?”

“You were spacing out dear, is everything okay?” She questions while leaning over slightly to touch her hand to the mug finding it completely cold, “Oh even your tea’s gone cold, no worries I can fix that.”

The cup easily lifts slowly into the air when Inko waves her finger, it floating off to the kitchen.

Scaramouche had known, or expected- for a while that Inko has a quirk, but had never seen her use it. Sure, that seems like a surprising thing to see. Something he’d usually at least stare in confusion at her for.

But alternatively, he just sighs and continues to stare into space; too absorbed in his own misery.

Distantly in the background one can hear the microwave opening and clicking shut, turning on after a moment.

“Not feeling like talking, or do you not know how to start?” She questions gently, looking over him as if that could potentially tell her anything.

Regardless, Scaramouche doesn’t even look at her. “Don’t bother.” He grumbles, but it lacks much actual irritation in it, as he just seems so deeply somber.

She gives a quick hum, moving around the table and taking the seat that’s across from him. A floating book finds its way over to Inko, it has an old faded cover but its gold accents still shine slightly under the lamp light. It opens a handful of pages in as it settles on the table, “Well, I’ll be right here whenever you’re ready. Ah, and your tea will be ready again soon.”

He glances at her once, then just grimly looks away again. Whatever the case, he’s not interested in even entertaining the idea of acting normal, nor does he want to elaborate.

Stupid mortals and their… He struggles to think of a word. ‘Happiness.’

Eventually a quick beep sounds from the microwave, and followed soon after is the mug of tea floating over to settle down in front of Kunikuzushi, “Your tea, dear.”

She adds with a small smile, just to make sure that he’s able to notice that the tea has been returned. She turns a page, only half focusing on the contents but enjoying it all the same, a mother’s talent truly. The other half of her focus is trying to decipher what could be bothering the boy her son loves like a brother- so that she loves like a son- so much so to change his regular demeanor.

With a sigh, Scaramouche turns to pick up the cup of tea- perhaps some part of him not wanting to displease her, so he hesitantly takes a sip in a slow, reluctant way as if the liquid might burn him.

He pauses the second he drinks it, then puts it down and stands in one fluid movement.

“I feel sick. I’m going out.” He says, looking to Inko as if to ask if it was okay; not that he cares.

She looks up at him, humming, “Alright, be safe. Try not to go too far, and get lost. Ah, you know what-” she pulls her phone from her pocket, lightly pushing the phone across the table to him, “Take my phone, at least then if you do get lost we can simply find you easily. The password is 0715, in case you need to open it if anything happens to you.”

He stares at her, then at the device; momentarily just thinking about how confusingly daunting the things are, but not really caring. It’s not like he’d get hurt, no mortal here would manage. He’s cursed with being pretty much invincible, and this day is a reminder of that.

Instead of saying anything snide, Scaramouche simply takes the phone and mutters, “Ok.” Before walking off to the door.

She watches as he leaves, repeating on instinct, “I love you, be safe.”

Then she simply looks back to her book, humming to herself as she closes it and sends it back to its place on the bookshelf. She stands up, moving over into the kitchen with the abandoned mug of tea in hand.

'I love you'?

He freezes, stone cold if he were to feel temperature.

Pale, if he were to have blood to drain from his face.

Come on, can one moment here not be excruciating? Can they not be so... Human. So caring that it burns every inch of him.

Scaramouche isn't built for this. Mother didn't build him for this. And yet he is anyway. Always, since this day 500 years ago; he's been enthrallingly weak, too emotional.

So he can't help but start to sob at those words, pressing his nails into the door handle he holds onto as if it would hold his rotting sentimentality together.

She looks over at him, concern evident in her eyes, in the way she frowns slightly, in the way she speaks so delicately as she reaches him, “Oh, honey.”

Inko reaches for the boy gently, “It’s alright, cry until you feel better. Let’s sit right here, in case your legs give.”

Scaramouche flinches, looking up at the woman with tear soaked eyes, just staring for a moment before silently moving away from her and walking out the door; unexplained.
Clearly, his only defense mechanism is to distrust.

She watches him go from the door quietly, making sure that he gets down the stairs safely, before turning and shutting the door. Unlocked, of course, for when he comes back, she really does need to find time to go to a key maker.

“Ma?” Izuku’s sleepy voice sounds from the living room, the boy rubbing at his eyes, not entirely awake and certainly up earlier than he typically is.

Inko moves over to her son, “Good morning, sweetheart. Kunikuzushi’s gone out for a walk, and I believe I need you to do some quick shopping for me if you don’t mind.”

He wakes a bit more, “Oh? Alright, I can do that! What do you need me to get, and.. For what exactly? I thought that we had plenty here..”

Inko motions for Izuku to follow her- a notepad and pen joining them- as she settles them down at the table. Grabbing the pen out of the air as the notepad lays on the table. “Well, Kunikuzushi seemed a bit.. Distracted and sad this morning. I assume something from his home must be going on today, and my best guess is a birthday of some kind. I really only need you to get a cake and some purple and black party decorations.”

Izuku nods, watching as his mother writes down exactly that and two other things.

“Got it, that shouldn’t take me too long. Are those other two things important?”

“Yes, I just thought of adding them. A key to the apartment is the most important thing to get if it starts getting too late alright?”

He smiles as he takes the list Inko hands over to him, “I got it mom, I’ll get going and try to be quick.”

Scaramouche takes no chances at returning until he’s calm – Or a better word might be ‘numb’ – again. Of course, he had achieved nothing by going out; only a chance to keep dwelling in the past on his own. But just as expected, he ends up crawling back to these mortals.

He walks up the now familiar stairs, going to open the door he hopes will open for him this time; and as it does, he just sighs and walks in staring blankly at the floor.
At the least, he hopes Inko won’t hold his emotional outburst to him.

Izuku calls out brightly, “Kunizushi! Happy birthday- look, we’ve decorated for you! I hope you like the colors!”

And of course, Izuku is at Kunikuzushi’s side, excitedly urging him forwards slightly so that he can see the way the dining room is decorated with black and purple streamers hung up in the archway and from the ceiling. There’s bundles of balloons in the two back corners, black and purple and gold. A white frosted cake is settled on the middle of the table, with careful cursive writing on the top in violet, ‘Happy Birthday, Kunikuzushi.’ There’s some present bags sitting in a chair at the table, and Inko is beside it, smiling at her two sons.

Contrarily confused, Scaramouche follows Izuku until he’s standing in the middle of it all, looking around like it’s foreign.

It reminds him of one time Childe, when the mortal was 15, had tried to give him a birthday present.

One question instantly takes over his mind.

“How do you know it’s my birthday?” He looks at Inko then at Izuku directly, staring in a sort of dazed way.

Izuku beams back at him, “How do we know it’s not your birthday?”

He sighs and crosses his arms, “Humans… It’s just a day, what’s your obsession with it. It’s a day I wish—” Wouldn’t have happened.

“Because no matter what, it’s another year we’ve lived, no matter what happened.” Izuku hums back easily.

“Mortality…” He utters through a sigh, but seems to accept it.

Once more, Scaramouche looks around, like he’s appalled at the idea of someone putting this much thought into something for him.

So much so that he spits out, "I think the last time I had a birthday celebration was... When I met Niwa." He says it as if they'd know, but also knowing they wouldn't. Whatever he's trying to do, it's to warm himself up to the idea... A bit.

Inko joins in, a soft smile planted on her face, “I hope it was enjoyable, and that this one will be. I- well, we- were hoping this could cheer you up a bit! At the very least, it serves as a rather fancy way to give you some gifts and necessities.”

“Just—” Scaramouche cuts in, raising his hand, “Tell me that it’s necessary, then.”

Izuku huffs playfully, “It’s necessary! Now, come on you’re gonna be shocked by the cake I think!”

“Cake?” He grumbles like it’s the bane of his existence. “Do you want to kill me, on my birthday?”

“We’re not gonna kill you! I actually think you’ll like it!” He chirps, moving to go sit down at the table.

Scaramouche hesitates again for a moment, before accepting the situation and following Izuku; sitting down and simply waiting to be – for lack of a softer term – given orders.

Inko picks a lighter up and lits the candles on top, three that are dotted around the cake since they don’t know his actual age. She sends a small camera up to the corner of the room, to record the moment as Izuku and her sing a very short rendition of the birthday song.

“Blow out the candles,” She prompts softly, just in case.

Stubbornly, Scaramouche stares at her as if he’s more excited to take the opportunity to say, with a shrug; “Not going to work. I don’t breathe out air.”

“If you pinch it quickly and pull your fingers back, It’ll work just as well.” She answers back easily, “Or I can grab you a snuffer.”

He sighs, “It’s fine, I’m not afraid of fire.”

Tactfully, Scaramouche does a similar action, putting out each one of the candles. When he’s done, he glances first at Izuku and then at Inko; “There, happy?”

They both smile, Izuku chirping, “Perfect!” As Inko grabs the knife to cut the cake.

It’s not long before they each have a slice set in front of them, Kunikuzushi with a dark chocolate slice, Inko with red velvet, and Izuku with a slice that manages to have both flavors because, “Maybe I’ll like red velvet this year!”

For a few minutes, Scaramouche spins his fork around the dessert; simply debating if he wants to actually risk it.

So, in an unusual shift; he looks to Inko as if he’s gained some newfound ‘trust’ of her, tilting his head.

Inko smiles, looking at the slice of cake he has, then at Kunikuzushi himself, “It’s dark chocolate, about 75% I believe. That basically just means it’s far more bitter than milk chocolate is, we figured you’d enjoy it more.”

“Oh,” He looks back down at the cake, then up at her again; and with an unusually gentle look, says, “Thank you.”

“Of course, dear. It’s no problem.” She says back easily, taking a bite from her own slice.

Though he stays hesitant, as it’s probably the first things he’s actually eaten for the months he’s been here, Scaramouche takes a bite of his cake and finds it’s really, quite enjoyable.

He doesn’t say anything, just eats; but there’s something about his expression that just seems a little softer.

With that, Inko starts enjoying her own slice of cake, happy at the fact she was able to find a flavor that the boy likes. Izuku of course has already inhaled about half of his mixed slice, it would appear he enjoys the red velvet- or at least the dark chocolate taste cancels out whatever flavor of red velvet he dislikes.

When he’s done, Scaramouche stays silent at the table for a few minutes; in the way that you can sort of see him thinking.

Before either of the two can say anything to him, he pushes out his chair and stands up; walking a little over to the middle of the room and clearing his throat. “Okay, you little mortals, listen to me. I feel the obligation to make a speech.”

Izuku and Inko both look at him fondly, kindly giving Kunikuzushi their full attention.

He switches between eyeing Izuku, then eyeing Inko; until he's sure he's got their attention.

"When I first met you Midoriyas, I thought you were just another pair of mortals that were going to get in my way. You were so, so pathetically annoying." He says with a dramatically deep sigh. "I'm serious, I did, at first, hate you and half wish the Fatui were here to rescue me from the shackles of your human altruism..."

If what Kunikuzushi says bothers them, they certainly don’t show it, still just listening fondly as to not interrupt.

At their lack of reaction, he continues, "...But, now I see all you've done is offer me your kindness, despite how little I deserve it. While that sickens me, mostly, I can't help but acknowledge your worth."

Scaramouche continues to speak half smugly, though it seems more than surface level; and more like a carefully practiced act. "I've lived plenty longer than you mayflies, whether you know it or not. Five hundred years, to be precise. In all that time, I've never once had anything 'good' last." He seems to airquote the word, but nevertheless seems sincere.
"So... I just want to say, I believe I trust you humans. And I don't say that lightly."

The next part is quieter, and a voice break makes its way through like he's suddenly on the edge of tears. "...Thank you."

What's more terrifying is how much of a switch it is, and how strongly Scaramouche was able to gloss over that emotion the entire time.

He looks away as if to indicate he's done, but perhaps also to hide.

Inko- unsurprisingly- is the first to speak up, correcting gently, “Oh, of course you deserve kindness dear.” Izuku nods along with his mothers words before adding, “I’m glad that you feel you can trust us! And you’re welcome, I promise that this will last, we don’t want to lose you.”

Scaramouche clears his throat, then looks over at Izuku; staring, “Fine. You better be telling the truth, no matter my current ‘warmth’ to you, I am still a Fatui Harbinger and I will hunt you down if you break my trust.” He scoffs, acting like he’s trying to make up for being grateful as if it’s a bad thing to do.

Izuku huffs fondly, not taking any real offense to it because it is an impossible scenario to begin with. “Well, good thing that will never happen then!”

While the boys were talking, Inko had taken the moment to pull Kunikuzushi’s gifts off of the chair and set them onto the table for him to open.

Scaramouche walks over hesitantly and looks at Inko, then at the mysterious packages. “What’s this?” He asks, the tradition completely slipping his mind.

Inko smiles softly, “Your gifts dear, it’s not much but we hope you like them.”

“Oh, right.” He curses himself for forgetting with a mutter, but moves on from it and cautiously looking for the way to unwrap the things.
The first thing he opens is a small rectangle shape. He's not sure what to expect from that- but once he opens it, he finds a smooth box that he; for a moment, struggles to find the opening mechanism for.

Sitting inside is one of those little devices, the ones he can't quite wrap his head around. "Ah, this will be of use." He immediately turns his head to Izuku, "...You'll have to teach me how to use this."

Izuku grins, nodding a little, “Of course! Oh and we already got it set up to have our contacts.”

Blankly, Scaramouche stares at him, “You act as if I know what that means…” He sighs, dramatic. “But, thank you.”

He gets to opening the next thing, which he finds a book and some bars; that he assumes from the cover are chocolate, since it’s not really written that obvious. Naturally, he looks to Inko in the same way as if he’s asking for her to explain.

“The little bars are the same kind of chocolate from the cake!” She explains quickly, “And the book is a mythology one, Izuku said that you two were talking about it a few days ago and wanted to get you it in case you were interested.”

“Ah, why thank you. I suppose it would be beneficial for me to learn more about your… Strange, little problem-less world.” He says, thankful in his own way.

He gets to the last gift, which is smaller in comparison to the others. When he opens it, he spots the metal shine of– a key, which he pulls from the wrapping and stares at curiously.

It’s got a soft cat plushie hanging from the keyring, and next to it a star; just like the one he wears on the Necklace him and Izuku had bought.

“Where is this a key to?” He chooses to ask, continuing to ask questions about everything.

Izuku pipes up to answer, “It’s a key to the apartment! So that you can actually get in and out without one of us, or leaving the door unlocked.”

“Oh,” He looks at the object, blinking in stunned shock for a moment. “You really trust me with such a thing?... Why?”

Izuku shrugs, “Well, why not? You live here so it only makes sense to give you a key.”

Scaramouche doesn’t smile, never genuinely. But anyone can tell, just for a moment, he’s happy. “Well thank you, strange little mortals.”

“Of course Kuni!”

“You’re welcome, dear.”

Chapter Text

Usually, Inko is careful and quiet enough to wander out of the house, her keys and bag in tow, without waking her boys. Usually, one out of the two of them doesn’t sleep at all— So it’s no mind if she does make a noise.

However, at six sharp on a Tuesday, it just so happened that her shoe colliding with one cord sets off a chain of every single loud item in the house, rattling and flinging itself off the shelf. Both Izuku– asleep in his room, and Kunikuzushi who had drifted off in the comfort of the sofa edge– instantly woke up like a dog to a burglar.

It’s a silly situation, and Inko kindly assured them they could go back to bed.

But… By the time the blue dawn light had sliced its way through the curtains, neither of them had any hope.

Inko’s out already, and after cleaning the evidence of their harsh wake up call, Scaramouche and Izuku are uselessly standing around in the house as the birds sing.

“Well, this is dull.” Scaramouche points out, looking out the window; then glancing something sour at Izuku.

“Mh, that it is,” Izuku hums in agreement, stealing a glance at his phone when it buzzes against his leg

Turning to quite sadly stare at Izuku, mourning the fact he has to interact with someone, Scaramouche promptly says, “No no, it’s dull that you won’t go back to sleep.”

He rolls his eyes fondly, “Oh, I see how it is!”

Izuku stands up from the couch, stretching for a moment, “I just got confirmation from the person who will- likely- help us secure some supplies for our vigilante work. However We have a bit of time to kill before they’ll be able to meet with us, I was thinking we could just hang around the meeting place?”

“Supplies?” Scaramouche stares, then gives him a look that has skepticism painted all over it. “What could we possibly need? This is going to be ridiculously easy, anyway.” He says as though he’s already charted the course in his head.

“You know, like armor-like pieces, maybe a weapon or two knowing her..” He hums a bit absent mindedly as he does a quick check of his bag.

At that, Scaramouche seems to go dumbfoundedly blank as he mutters, “Armor… Weapons? Hm.”

Feeling rather reduced, he huffs and folds his arms.

Izuku throws his bag over his shoulder and hums, “Well, of course. I don’t have powers or a quirk to fall back on, and as much as I would love to, we aren't going to be able to avoid pro-heros forever. I’m thinking far ahead, but I’d just rather be prepared. Some are reckless.. I don’t want either of us getting to hurt.”

“I…” Scaramouche pauses for a moment, before sighing and walking towards the door. “Fine, I don’t care. Get whatever you’d like.”

Rolling his eyes with a smile, Izuku follows after Scara, “It shouldn’t take too long, probably just a quick meeting if anything. She may get excited and get measurements..” He shrugs after a moment of thinking about it, honestly he wouldn’t put it past her to push some gadgets towards them immediately but maybe she’ll have mellowed out a bit in the months he’s been gone.

“Measurements…?” Again, he seems mildly distraught at that idea, but rolls his eyes as he keeps on walking. “Who even is this person?” Distrustingly, he tilts his head as if he’s caught a scent of suspicion.

“Yeah, to make sure the armor/reinforcement pieces will actually fit right. I drew some vague ideas if you want to look at them,” He pauses at a crosswalk momentarily to look down the street, “Right, sorry- Her name is Hatsume Mei. She’s in the support course at UA, Mei is.. pretty energetic and passionate about her work. They tend to blow up- actually, but even so the ones that don’t explode are really impressive. So naturally I figured she’s our best chance at getting supplies semi-legally and relatively safely.”

Closing his eyes, Scaramouche hums decisively, “Sounds like a few people I know.” He looks up to glance at Izuku, then to the ground, grayish tiles zipping past them under their footsteps. “That’s besides the point. Is she trustworthy, for certain?”

“Of course,” Izuku replies quickly, “She may be.. Eccentric and loud but she wouldn’t sell us out or anything. I’m pretty sure she’s considering this her first ever official business deal honestly, and that comes with confidentiality. Assuming we don’t go hurting innocent people- which we won’t- then we’ll be fine.”

Scaramouche takes that with a judgemental stare, “Fine. I trust you, but if she becomes an obstacle, you’re taking the fall.” He says, mildly cryptically.

He laughs, “Sure, sure. I got it, don’t worry.”

Scaramouche looks at him, similarly investigative, a momentary warning, then grumbles something to himself.

Moving on, he waves his hands through the air. “Right. Where is it we’re going, and are we headed in the right direction?” He stalls on the pavement to say, looking around analytically at the road.

“Yeah, we’re almost there actually. She won’t be able to meet us for another.. Ten or so minutes though. We could get some lunch or something at the convenience store that’s near-by to kill some time if you’d like.” Izuku notes when looking at a street sign, they’re a block or so away from UA and he’s eternally grateful that Mei was willing to give up some of her lunch hour to meet them out here instead.

“Lunch… Oh, I suppose it is lunchtime.” The time suddenly hits him all at once, and as quickly as it washes down, his brain sets its course on the hunt for routine, eyes lasering over the streets.

“Mhm!” He nods, seemingly deciding for the both of them and turning on his heels to take the left to the convenience store.

Sharply, Scaramouche hurries after him, and the pair step up into the little shop, a bell sounding— which, definitely doesn’t distract him for a brief second of tracking the source— as they walk through the door.

Scaramouche quickly scans the place, though, seems to be off-put by the immediate, intrusive visual of colorful candy stacked around the place.

Quickly Izuku heads towards the back corner of the little shop, apparently already having something in mind as he nears a slushie machine.

Finding himself quite stunned at the actual decision of getting his own food, Scaramouche lazily wanders around, a hand brushing against the packets hung along each row.

About everything he picks up, he stares at in disgust once he reads the chemicals listed in the ingredients, and decides he’d rather not return to ingesting such things. Silently, he walks past Izuku once, twice maybe, quietly wishing he’d hurry up.

The cold that seeps into his hands through the thin cup is just as refreshing as the drink itself will be. He moves to grab a second cup from the holder just as the bell rings out again. Instinctively his eyes glance over towards the door.

It’s just a hetromorph girl, but something about her causes Izuku to pause. The girl's blue wings are.. Not taken care of to put it delicately and she’s shifting on her feet in a way that reads like a clear nervous tick. Truthfully he’d just take it as someone anxious if it weren’t for the way the air has seemed to impossibly still in the store when the girl puts her hand on the counter. The cashier seems to be getting freaked out too, now that Izuku shifts his gaze to look.

Quietly, he looks towards his brother. A slight nod as he abandons the slurpees on the counter and inches forward to try to hear whatever the girl is saying.

Almost as instantly as Izuku, though buffered by the fact he’d been so focused on not looking so aimless in his loitering, Scaramouche senses the incoming girl’s nervy attitude. Quick to move towards Izuku, standing guard in front of him, he scours out the scene ahead.

“Just- give me some of the money now. Doesn’t even have to be all of it, but I need at least five thousand yen. Don’t- don’t make me have to take it.” The girl grits out, as if she doesn’t really want to be doing this, but still all the same she is and Izuku just has to do something about it.

He steps out from behind Kunikuzushi and reaches towards the girls shoulder, “Hey!-”

Seemingly reflexively her wing flexes out to push Izuku away- creating distance- as she half turns, “Stay away! Just- stay away, this’ll be over soon- right?” She glances back at the cashier who- to their credit- is messing with the register for the money.

Scoffing to himself, Scaramouche pushes past Izuku to the girl with blue wings– which, he notes as strange. They don’t have angels here, right?

Ominously stepping up behind her, he says sternly, “Get lost, coward, before your actions crash down on you.”

“Oh, you’re just like Yonah.” She glances at him, “Can’t you guys just mind your own business. We need this money. This stupid corporate business isn’t going to miss the yen I need and honestly I don’t want to have to hurt anyone here.”

Izuku rubs his back where he’d fallen into one of the shelves, “You don’t have to rob this place, I’m sure you have other options. We don’t have to fight either,”

Acknowledging, but not necessarily jumping to agree with Izuku, Scaramouche focuses on the girl in front of him.

“I can’t claim I’m partial to this ‘business,’ if you can call it that, either. But…” He stops, lacking an answer. Whatever answer he wants it to be, he finds himself staring solely, singularly, at Izuku.

He sighs, refocusing. “Do you have other options?”

“Stars, do you really think I’d be robbing this place if I did?!” She lashes out, her wings puff out slightly in her anger although stay close enough to her to not touch anyone. A few dirty feathers fall from her wings- presumably from neglect. “Unfortunately if me and my friend want to be able to eat for the next few days, yes I do need to do this!”

That hits him. It fits together, finally, and a sudden wave of his past washes over him. At the least, he know desperation like that; Having run away, being stuck lost in a nation he’s never been to more than several times, and having to uselessly suck it up and get by. Now, he has his escape. And, perhaps, that hits him just as hard.

Even when the girl’s wings shift, albeit threateningly, he doesn’t flinch. A practiced, cold expression stays on his face, although, some part of him is reminded by her of someone else. Someone warm.

“Izuku,” He says, turning to his brother standing a couple feet behind him. “How much do you have on you?”

He needs to be that someone, if no one will be for this girl.

Izuku, already pulling his wallet from his bag, simply hums, “I have plenty enough to give.”

The girl shifts uncomfortably, surprise or perhaps shock evident on her face and she stands to face the two boys.

“..What-?” And it sounds so upsettingly broken, like she can not believe they will show her kindness in such a way that is to help her.

Izuku easily all but shoves double the amount she needs into her hands, “Take it, everyone deserves to be able to eat.”

Scaramouche glances at Izuku long enough to say, “Since this is my doing, I’ll work it off.” He turns back to the girl, ignoring any response he might get out of Izuku.

Slowing to an unseen sincerity, his voice undecidedly falling between a whisper and averagely loud, he talks directly to her. One part of him pleads him to hide that broken, mutilated part of his past from Izuku, and another levels his confidence, tells him to maybe start trusting the boy who’s done nothing but care for him since he got here.

“Find someone you can work for. Don’t waste this on inessentials, if you need makeup to look professional, use tester products. Most importantly, never accept a deal you don’t know every detail of.” He lists off, like something bookmarked in his head.

The girl brings a hand to her face to wipe at her teary eyes, giving a sad little laugh, “..My heroes. Thank you.” She nods her head at Scaramouche, “And- I will. I swear we won’t waste this. I’ll get us out of this rock-bottom no matter what,” She says softly, so determined that it must be truthful.

“I- have to go.. But really, thank you. Please take care and I’m sincerely sorry if I scared any of you.” The girl says while backing out, an air current brings the fallen feathers to her at a flick of her hand.

“Don’t. I’m not one to scare easily.” Scaramouche states, folding his arms. Regardless, his words hover in that calm, average tone. “...You’re welcome.” He says softly, looking off to the side.

The bell chimes out as she makes her escape, finally the cashier clears their throat, “Thank you both for helping. I.. don’t think that kid would’ve done anything but I appreciate it anyway. I noticed that you two were getting slushies before that happened so please have them on the house, I’m.. going to take my break now.”

Izuku smiles, “It was no problem, thank you very much sir.”

He starts going back towards the machine, “You did really good with that Kuni, that was some pretty nice advice too. Did you have to do stuff like that back in, uh- Teyvat.”

Scaramouche follows his brother through the shop like he’s glued to him, this time not really paying attention to the snacks.

Pausing, he searches for an answer. “I’ve… been on my own a lot, whether it was by my choice or not. I know how to fend for myself, and I know what I regret. That’s all.” He decides, unsurely or not.

“Besides, is it not what I’m doing here?” As if it’s the only certain thing to him, he adds, staring right at Izuku.

He hums, thinking over the others words, “I mean.. I guess? If that’s how you want to look at it, but you're not alone. Me and mom are both here for you- you aren’t in a ‘fend for yourself’ situation.”

Scaramouche sighs at him, almost like it serves as an answer alone. “Izuku you’ve… Already done too much.”

Izuku laughs with a little shrug, “It’s nothing, honestly. It’s just what you do when you care about someone, I think anyway- Here!” He hands Kunikuzushi one of the slushies before taking a sip of his own.

Routinely accepting the drink, he skeptically looks at it in confusion; gazing dazedly at the plastic, unnatural colour.

Curious, he peers over to the machine, finding a little portion about the ingredients, and scoffing as soon as he reads it. “Glycerol? Hm…” Suspicious, he looks at the cup with a thorny glare.

“It’s basically just flavored ice flakes, Kuni, just try it!” He grins, spinning on his heels to start leaving the store. Afterall Mei’s bound to be on her way by now.

“So… it’s just cryo?” Scaramouche asks as he catches up to Izuku. “Just… fine, whatever.” Reluctantly, he agrees, taking an extraordinarily wary sip of the drink while they walk along.

Whatever it is, it’s beyond sweet, sickening, and the cold hits him as instantly as a bullet. For a shop so overwhelming, it’s a perfect fit. Slightly, he scrunches his nose.

“Mhm! Do you like it?” Like a man on a mission, he takes them back up the street and towards a quaint little park.

“It’s… Well…” Heavily dramatic about it, he eyes the drink, as if trying to convince himself it’s not that bad.

“You don’t have to like it. I grabbed an extra straw so I can just give it to Mei if you don’t like it.”

“Fine. Be charitable if you wish.” Scaramouche says.

He frowns and, hesitantly, holds himself back. Debt isn’t just money… Isn’t that right?

“...Sorry.” He mumbles.

“It’s okay, Kunizushi!” Izuku hums, squinting his eyes slightly, “Oh! There she is, let’s go!”

Tracing the direction Izuku looks in, Scaramouche locks onto the figure up ahead. He sighs and follows after Izuku, just hoping this won’t be a terribly undiplomatic interaction between two uselessly naive teenagers.

“Izuku!” A girl with pink dreadlocks comes practically running at them, nearly crashing into Izuku but managing to just miss doing so. Izuku simply laughs, putting an arm out to make sure the girl is steady.

“It’s- nice to see you again Mei. Thanks again for agreeing to meet with us.”

“Oh hush, it’s no problem! You’ve always had some pretty interesting ideas for gear, I’ve missed em! Besides, you know I’d never pass up an opportunity to get my babies out there!”

Izuku has the decency to look bashful at the compliment, “I appreciate it.”

Scaramouche, who’s been distantly glaring off to the side, finally looks up at the girl, eyeing her analytically.

“You… I take it you’re the supplier.” Crossing his arms, he says. Only slightly, his voice switches tone, in fact, raises about halfway through the sentence into something unnaturally cordial for him.

Mei grins sharply, “I sure am, stranger-san! You two are my first real buyers, I can assure my babies are the best gear you’ll ever own!”

“Well, I’d like to see about that.” Scaramouche grins back at her, “And… Your name is ‘Mei?’” He confirms, tapping his nail to his cheek in thought.

“Ah, right. Hatsume Mei, at your service! You’re welcome to call me Mei as well. Izuku, you said you had some concepts for what you wanted right?”

Izuku hums, digging around his bag for a moment before pulling out a notebook and handing it over to the inventor, “The bookmarked page, yeah! Some things to protect our vitals and some weapons.”

“And you’re sure you don’t want some of my– patented– amazing hover boots?”

“Not looking to crash into any walls, Mei, but thanks for the offer.”

After taking a few pictures with her phone, she snaps the notebook closed and tosses it back to him, “Always stands! I should be able to have everything ready for you in five or so days. I’ll need his measurements, but you can get and send those to me some other time. Are yours still roughly the same Izuku?”

He nods, “Should be, but I’ll double check. Thanks Mei.”

Scaramouche pipes up, that same, oddly natural positivity flowing out. “Thank you very much for assisting us,” He comments, smiling as he lingers next to his brother. “I’d be more than happy to work that out with Izuku.”

“Of course!” For a moment, Mei seems to go uncharacteristically.. Gentle, “Everyone misses you, by the way. You should stop by sometime, or even just reach out. It was great seeing you again Izuku, I’ll be in touch.”

Mei, smartly, takes her leave quickly, sending a wave to Kunikuzushi.

Izuku sighs, evidently touched by her words, “Yeah.. see you around.” He takes a breath, and smiles, “Well. That was all I needed us to do, you want to do anything while we’re out?”

Dropping his shoulders, Scaramouche sighs and looks down at the ground. “No, I’d like to go home. I can’t stand it out here anymore…” He groans, rubbing his head like he has a migraine.

He nods, “You got it, let’s go then. Honestly I could probably do for a nap right now anyway.”

With that, Scaramouche retreating starts down the street, desperate to withdraw. In whatever case, he makes it look like he’s simply annoyed – as he always is.

Nevertheless, he still waits for Izuku to catch up. Maybe he can start trusting him.

Chapter Text

In an utterly unsurprising feat of manic ingenuity from Mei, she managed to have everything they wanted done in about a week and a half. She insisted that she could’ve gone faster if Izuku just sent her the measurements sooner but that’s neither here nor there, seeing as all the same she got them done impressively quickly.

(It worries Izuku to no end that she refused to tell him how many prototypes were exploded or destroyed. Simply that, “I am 99.9% sure that nothing will explode!”)

Though to Mei’s credit, once he paid her and was given the items, they were wonderfully made and exactly what he wanted and on a quick test nothing exploded or sounded like it would.

“Kuni!” Izuku grins down at his brother, “I say we go out tonight and put this stuff to the test!”

Peering over at the attire he’d been forced to relay his measurements to Izuku, Scaramouche weighs over the style in his head. What is he going to wear with this? Hm.

Even so, he ever so slightly lights up. “I guess so… The sooner the better.” Clicking his fingers together, Electro sparks at his fingertips and fizzles out just as quickly.

“Yeah! I’m excited honestly- to help people again.” Izuku admits, just off of ‘I miss being a hero’. “I mean I know we have helped people, but to really be doing it and going out for that purpose!”

Scaramouche huffs at that, “Don’t get all caught up in that narrative… We aren’t going to be heroes, no one is going to reward us for this.” He says, just short of self-directed.

“Being a hero isn't about being rewarded.” He says easily, absent-mindedly even, while filling his new pouches with some of the gear, “It’s helping others who can’t do so themselves, and doing the right thing regardless of the consequences. Or- well.. That’s what it means to me.”

“Villains are punished for their failures, while heroes are simply helped up and told to try again. So tell me again it’s not about being rewarded.” He doesn’t snap, but, his tone leans somewhere in the middle of hostile and observant. “We fall in-between, therefore, we’ll be entirely self reliant. It’s up to us to do both of those things.”

“I didn’t say that isn’t what being a hero’s about today, I just said what being a hero means to me.” He shrugs, working to attach the pouches onto a belt, “We’re going out to help people, and stopping people who need to be stopped. We’re doing something important and we get to make the rules on how we treat people.”

“Yeah yeah.” Scaramouche complains, but concedes to look over his own stuff.

Reluctantly, he speaks up a little, “I’m going to need some stuff… If possible. I’m keeping close track of my debt, so, I’ll pay you back.” He says vaguely, stepping over to his brother.

Izuku huffs, rolling his eyes with a smile, “You don’t need to pay me back. My wallet is in my bag over there, get what you need! Do you know the way to the store?”

Scaramouche glares at Izuku, but decides it’ll be best not to argue for now. He walks over and picks out his wallet, stashing it safely in his pocket.

He answers with a passive aggressive smile, “No, but I’m good at finding things.”

Looking up finally, “Don’t get lost, and if you do, just call me and I’ll come get you, or you can use the map on your phone.”

“Such a convoluted place…” Scaramouche grumbles, “I will call you if things become that dire.”

As though he’s in a time-limited rush, he walks to the door and swiftly pushes it open, walking out as it slams behind him.

Huffing with laughter, Izuku watches him leave for a moment before going back to the pile of various gear that surrounds him.

A good two hours later, Scaramouche, barges back in through the front door. Immediately, a smile crosses his face as he walks up to Izuku.

“Guess what’s different about me,” he challenges, standing over him.

Izuku blinks owlishly at Kunikuzushi, as if he’d been completely and utterly consumed with the gear he hadn’t even noticed the passage of time. (He hadn’t.)

“Did you.. Change your hair?” He tries, rubbing at his eyes then squinting at the other boy as if to double check his appearance.

Scaramouche rolls his eyes and the smile quickly leaves, back to shell of soulless nothing. “Yes, obviously. I can’t believe you couldn’t tell I changed my makeup. I have never, ever, worn a colour apart from red.”

Across each side of his hair, his usual soft, lavender highlights are traded out for woven in, shimmering jet black stripes. Over his eyes, a shade of light blue eyeshadow is faded out from his eyes, unusually professional in the way it lights up his face.

From his shadiness about it, it’s inferrable he did this in the middle of a store.

“It looks really good Zushi,” He hums with a smile, “Sorry, I was.. Focused on this, but I did manage to finish getting all my stuff set-up and in its place! I take it the store was fine?”

Blinking as the topic switches, he pauses.

“Oh, yes, perfectly easy to find. But… what I needed…” He holds in stating the exact thing, cautious. “—Was not cheap. Therefore, I insist on paying you back.” He hands him his wallet, sighing as he walks off to check on his stuff.

“I really don’t mind if you pay me back, if you needed it, then you needed it. I’m just glad you could find what you were looking for.” Izuku shrugs, moving to get up from the living room floor. His back and arms make multiple popping sounds as he stretches up.

Scaramouche stares at him, then stares at the gear. “Have you really been sitting here the whole time?”

Quickly, he adds, “It’s getting dark, aren’t we supposed to go out soon?”

“Uh.. no, totally not!” He says utterly unconvincingly, “Anyway! Yes, you are absolutely right! Give me a few minutes to put everything on.”

Obediently, he takes his stuff and walks off to change, though, smiles to himself.

It takes a bit but eventually Izuku is standing back out in the living room, certainly dressed for the occasion as he finishes tying the belt with the pouches around his waist.

A primarily black outfit, including fingerless gloves, with pieces similar to armor over his hips, chest, and shoulders. The darkness is broken by a green scarf wrapped around his neck and thrown over his shoulders. Although Izuku’s personal favorite bit is the mask- a black piece mixture of cloth and metal that dimly glows a toxic neon green and grows brighter when he speaks. Adjustable, of course, thank you Mei. A removable eyepiece attaches over his right eye, a tinted green color naturally.

Taking just a little longer than Izuku, Scaramouche sequentially walks back into the room, sighing rather loudly just to enhance his entrance.

Walking up to his brother – and now, vigilante partner in crime – he looks him up and down, then says, “Okay, I figure we’re prepared enough.” They're not even close to ‘prepared,’ he thinks.

Not too differently to Izuku, he wears an ever so slightly different hex tone of black, with the same kind of armour he begrudgingly agreed to wear somewhat obscured under his jacket; which, he’d gotten out just to shape up the look. Over the armour on his chest, the sigil he’d worn for so many years in the Fatui is attached on, though, with the outer rings soldered a bit aggressively off. He adjusts the almost checkered looking rope tied around his shoulders, only momentarily uncomfortable.

“You look amazing Kunizushi!” Izuku grins, glancing towards the door with barely concealed excitement, “I’m ready to go if you are.”

Scaramouche rolls his eyes, a little deterred by the compliment. “No time to waste,” He says, walking off to the door like any longer might kill him.

Pausing for a moment, he looks back at Izuku to make sure, “Does your… Mother know we’re doing this tonight?”

“I texted her while you were finishing getting ready!” He hums in confirmation, “She said to be safe and reminded us to not rush into trouble.”

Scaramouche processes that, then shakes his head doubtfully, “Well, we’ll see about that.”

Izuku laughs lightly, agreement evidentially. He locks the door behind him as the cool of the night hits him. “I was thinking, do you have a name you’d want to go by? I don’t think you ever actually told me anything.”

Ever since the other day, one thought has been on his mind.

“...I think, Hoshi.” He enunciates it awkwardly, slowly, almost like he’s afraid of saying it wrong. Huffing at himself, he looks off to the side.

“That’s a nice name! Is it from a language in Teyvat?” He asks curiously as he scopes for an alleyway they can duck into to potentially find a way onto the roofs.

Scaramouche nods, “Yes,” Turning away, he says vaguely, though doesn’t add anymore on the topic.

Izuku huffs with a small bit of laughter, “Well, alright then. It’s a wonderful name for you!”

Going silent for a moment, Scaramouche walks with him through the dark, expertly dodging the pitch black shadows of obstacles as if, he didn’t just have to step to the side.

“Well, do you have a name?” With a delay, he asks in return.

He makes a so-so motion with his hand, “I’m.. debating a few in my mind right now.” Izuku veers off to the side, spotting a ladder in an alley, “But I’ll settle on one soon! I just want it to be perfect.”

“You’ll think of something, Izuku.” Almost a semblance of reassurance, support maybe, Scaramouche says. His eyes track Izuku for a moment, before looking off to connect with the surroundings again.

“Thanks, Kuni.” He offers a smile before he hauls himself up onto the roof. Most of the near-by roofs aren’t too far apart, thankfully, so they can travel above it all for a little bit.

Soon, Scaramouche climbs up with him, and the two of them start wading through the lightless rooftops. The air up there is somehow a lot fresher, even though it’s not too far from the fumes of the city.

Suddenly, like a bird finally free from its cage, Izuku takes off.

His wings may be clipped, but still it seems he can fly as his feet connect with a new roof.

He holds his arms out wide and bright joyous laughter tears its way from his throat, “I’m back. Wow I’ve missed that feeling.”

Watching him closely from the other side, something in Scaramouche lights up, though his surroundings stay dark.

No one else is here to see him. So, freely, he smiles.

Effortlessly, he hops over the gap as though he’s done it an uncountable amount of times before, shrugging once he’s on the other side. “An impossible jump, I declare,” He giggles.

“A true feat of magic we ever made it across!” He jokes back, spinning on his heels and letting himself scan the street below them.

“Quite.” Pressing his hands together, Scaramouche agrees, grinning sarcastically.

He steps over to the edge, kneeling down to get a better look. Instantly, he starts watching for any sign of movement, a clearly practiced gaze that methodically moves over the whole of the terrain from point to point.

For a moment, his expression dulls to a blank.

Izuku steps up beside him, delicately putting a hand on his shoulder, “Look, isn’t it beautiful?”

Out before them Japan is lit up in colors from buildings, billboards, and advertisements of all sorts, and yet it all blends together to shine through the darkness. Stars and moon above cast light- even if barely- down on those not touched by the city lights.

Distantly foreign to himself, Scaramouche doesn’t flinch. Instead, stops, and simply looks up at the prompt, following wherever Izuku is looking to.

As he looks out to the light, searching for the dark spots mixed in between, he slows down a little.

“I’m positive about the name, I’ve thought about it. Hoshi it is,” Lingering on the sentence, he closes his eyes.

“That’s great, Hoshi it is then.” Izuku smiles, watching the blinking lights of his home looking for whatever made his brother so sure.

Eventually he breaks the momentary silence that fell over them, “I think Notos has a nice ring to it, what do you think?”

Intrigued, Scaramouche looks up at him, tilting his head and squinting through the dark as though he were trying to see how the name would fit on him.

“Yes, it suits you.” He decides, content, as he looks back down to continue analysing the street.

He grins with a little nod, “Then we’ve decided. Come on, Hoshi, we have people to protect!”

He rolls his eyes, “Yeah, whatever. Let’s start down there,” He points decidedly to a specific corner of the street, unlit, where they could slip down.

Izuku shoots him a thumbs up and darts off, blending surprisingly well with the shadows and dropping down the corner wall with practiced ease. Somewhere in the movement he pulled his mask up, now really fitting the bill for a vigilante.

Similarly, Scaramouche follows after him, landing quite softly on the ground and quickly running ahead to scout out the precise direction of travel he’d mapped out from the roof.

He paces around the side of the wall, using the inky shadows as cover. It’s eerily quiet, most shops already closed down for the night, blinking signage still left emptily on.

After a moment, he looks back to Izuku and pessimistically asks, “Do you even know if we’re going to… find anything?”

He shrugs, “I mean, It’s likely we’ll run into something. I can’t guarantee it though.”

Izuku’s voice comes out in a slightly lower pitch, a distinct almost kind of robotic undertone under it, thanks to his mask.

Surprised, he blinks at the other once or twice, caught off guard at the modulation.

“Okay, that’s… offputting. Do I have to do that as well?” Scaramouche complains. Whenever will his lack of legal identity in this world save him?

“Nope, don’t worry about it!” He gives a short laugh, “It’s more of a precaution for me because obviously quite a few pro-heros know my voice.”

Still uneasy about the change, Scaramouche warily glares at him a few seconds more, then simply rolls his eyes.

“Hm. Why must you be so famous?” He says, a tinge sarcastically.

“Sorry, sorry, learning at a hero school will do that to you unfortunately.” He giggles softly, putting a hand to his head dramatically in a ‘woe is me’ kind of way.

At the joke, Scaramouche suddenly becomes a lot more curious, something firing off in his brain. He’s mentioned this before, he thinks.

“So that’s what you went to…” He hums to himself, then looks up at Izuku. “A hero school?”

Izuku nods his head, but freezes in the action and lowers his voice, “Hoshi, look.”

Ahead of them on the opposite side of the road a woman is near speed walking in the darkness between streetlights- like she’s afraid of what might happen when she’s not in the light- and only a few paces behind her is some guy with a somewhat blank expression. Hands in his pockets, looking like he’s deliberating something.

Forgetting the topic for now, Scaramouche looks around to spot what Izuku’s referring to, surveying the street once again.

Immediately, his eyes land on the two, disconnected on the street though he draws an imaginary red line between the two of them. Now this is something, a low level scoop of something maybe, but something.

Scaramouche gestures to his companion, rushing off to prowl down the street at the now unknowingly surveilled people.

Izuku slinks after him, looking longer at the man until his eye piece displays information to him.

“No current criminal record on the guy.” Relays quickly. So he’s either never been caught or it’s his first time acting suspicious like this.

Scaramouche eyes him, then eyes the guy just a distance across the road from them now. Every one of his instincts screams to just go over and kill him now, but alas, if he were to do that- What an interrogation he’d have to answer to. He finds the restriction pointless. The Fatui solved most of their problems utilising death, and, perhaps, that’s rubbed off on him a little.

He waits next to Izuku, the two gathered at the dark, shadowed side of the wall, watching incase something goes down.

It doesn’t take long before the man decides that he’s bided his time enough and speeds up. The woman similarly takes that as her cue to move faster as well and before they know it the man has found the audacity to reach his hand out.

Izuku tilts his head forwards and pushes off the wall, rushing in between the two.

Matching Izuku’s pace, Scaramouche runs over to interrupt too, firmly standing in front of the sketchy guy with a dark expression in his eyes.

Though, in a much chirpier, forced tone, he says aloud, “Well well, what’s going on here, hm?”

“Ma’am, do you know him?” Izuku glances at the woman, now being close he can see how she’s shaken.

“No- I don’t. He’s been following me since I left work!”

Izuku nods, putting his focus back on the man who’s gone pale at realizing the situation he’s gotten himself in. “Well! That answers that question, now sir you must know that stalking people like this is a crime.”

He says, oh-so condescendingly that if his voice wasn’t being modulated it’d sound completely wrong.

Next to his brother, Scaramouche laughs, a touch afar from maniacally. “See, so coincidentally… Notos and I happen to be looking for criminals. How unfortunate for you!””

At that, the man turns on his heels and books it back down the street.

“We won’t let him get away miss, Hoshi has got him.” He hums, watching as his brother goes after the guy, “Are you alright, and are you close to home?”

“I’m- alright. I’m only about five minutes away from home, thank you both very much.”

At full speed, Scaramouche chases the guy a good three lengths down the street, before he grabs him and hauls him against a passing traffic light pole.

It shakes once or twice, the red, green and orange colours blacking out for a flash second. Until, the guy bounces back and tries to scramble off again, landing a punch in the crossfire at the vigilante's arm.

Reacting quickly, Scaramouche sends off a small charge a foot ahead of the guy, the Electro entangling with whatever conductive material – water residue, coins, and other invisible debris – it could find. The guy immediately trips on the clustered electricity, tripping and falling into twitching incapacitation.

"Aw, look at you now. Uneventfully pathetic..." He laughs as he stands over the guy, unable to move. Engrossed in the power trip, he leans down and says proudly to him, "Duly note, I thank you for assisting in the renewal of my power!"

After sending the woman off, Izuku’s quick to catch up with Hoshi and the now incapacitated man. “Good job Hoshi! Want to restrain him while I call it in?”

He digs around in one of his pockets, pulling out what looks almost like a roll of tape but whatever material it is actually is sturdy and a bit thicker.

He hums and glances up at Izuku, thinking, then stares back down at the criminal. In no time at all, he’s already taken the material and tied it around the man’s wrists, dragging him up and subsequently fixing him to the traffic light pole.

Boredly, Scaramouche sighs. “Go on, then. Call the…” Oh. He blanks. What is he calling, again? “—Inazuma… Right, the shogunate, or whatever.” He decides, though looks unsteadily at Izuku.

“The police,” He supplies a bit sympathetically before yet again digging around in one of his pockets and pulling out what appears to be a burner phone. Four minutes later the call has been made.

“Alright! They’ll probably be here in.. five or so minutes? We may want to get out of here before they arrive.”

“Onwards, then, Notos.” Scaramouche offers, brisk-walking past Izuku and slowly speeding up into the dark.

Lightly, still, shadowed by the dark, he smiles at Izuku, and maybe it reflects in the light. At least, he hopes it doesn’t.

Chapter Text

Ding dong!

When he presses his finger to it, the doorbell makes a notably patronising sound; a little, incompetent ring that shifts side to side and then jarringly fades away.

"Sign here," In a monotone voice, Scaramouche says as he offers out a machine entirely foreign to himself.

Once they finish, offering him a closing, lenient smile and a generous ‘thank you,’ he stomps off with a scowl.

One man comes out smoking a cigar, of which he gets an unpleasant whiff of. One woman looks exactly how he imagines the doorbell’s noise would look if it were human. One girl actually does look like the bell, but maybe that was just her 'quirk' at play.

Cars dart up and down the street, red lights flying past his field of view in a flurry of chaos.

On each vehicle, he has started to notice the little rectangles with a code set marked out on them.

So, for observational purposes, and totally not for his own meagre entertainment; Scaramouche recites each of the codes in his head, until all he can think about is those abrupt, repeating numbers.

Shifting as he walks, the soft, leathery fabric of the bag slung over the top of a painfully stark blue shirt he'd been forced into. It's a sound completely inaudible over the extremity of the traffic, yet, it still annoys him almost as much.

He checks his bag, brushing aside his sigil he'd resourcefully strung on the zipper for ease - and, hopelessly, a bit of style.

One more package. Then he can get the fuck out of here, and apologise to Izuku for this morning with a check.

Bzzzzt!

As he lifts his finger to reluctantly press it, this doorbell rings a much more incessant, despair-inducing noise. He groans.

The door swings open harshly, evidently Bakugou didn’t want to be answering the door anymore than Scaramouche wanted to be delivering packages.

“Huh?! Deku’s weird guard dog, delivering packages now are you?” He sneers, arms crossed over his chest.

“You!? Oh my archons.” Scaramouche hates the archons with a lifelong passion, but, he thinks he might actually hate this guy more.

Disgruntled, he shakes his head, perhaps trying to snap himself into a more aggravated mood. “Too useless to pick up your own orders, hm?” He taunts, folding his own arms as he stands at the door.

Rolling his eyes, Bakugou leans against the door frame, “It’s my fathers for one.”

Narrowing his eyes, Scaramouche tilts his head, unsure how that changes the point. “A child that doesn’t have chores? Hm…” He gazes around the exterior for a moment, fully taking in the wide windows and the floors upon floors built up over the foundations. Quite cynically, he laughs. “I do wonder how parasites like you end up in such wealth. But, that’s the way of this world, isn’t it?”

Bakugou blinks at him, “Honestly, what are you even going on about. You should really just hand it over or I could report you to your new little job!” He smiles at that, like it’d be a fun past time if nothing else.

Scaramouche smirks, smugly raising a hand in his direction as if that in itself proves his point. “Just so I can report you, in return, for stealing? You haven’t signed.” Feeling the malicious compliance surging, he holds out the flashy machine, gesturing it towards Bakugou. “Go on, sign.”

Invisibly, he digs a stream of Electro into the gadget, hopefully crashing something vital in the process.

Bakugou snatches the gadget, stares at it for a moment, “Well you’ve already managed to break the damn thing. Guess I will have to say something to your job huh?”

Scaramouche laughs nonchalantly, “What a shame! Those things do seem rather faulty, it’s been glitching since I left,” he grabs the machine back, pretending to tap a few things on it, then hopelessly sighing.

“Looks like we’re just going to have to do it on paper, classically.” He offers a very salty smile at him, “Have any?”

He sighs- or perhaps more like huffs- spinning on his heels and disappears into the house. Faintly one can hear rummaging around and soon enough he’s back at the door, handing the signed paper out expectantly.

With one watchful look at the paper, Scaramouche takes it, and trades it for the very last package, which he hands to Bakugou. “The final scrap, just for you!”

“Screw off, extra.” He tosses the package on a little table inside the entrance area, practically slamming the door in Scaramouche’s face the moment he’s able.

As the door bangs shut, the noise dips into nothing all in a swift, empty second. "Hah!" Scaramouche's voice swells into the silence, "Well then, screw you too."

Escaping through the tangled maze of routes, he flees the scene to run back for his paycheck. Nothing's stopping him from getting his hands on that money and reconciling an argument, delicate enough to not set it anymore ablaze.

Zipping in the door, through the similar tangle of offices, Scaramouche slams his empty bag down on his supervisor's desk.

"Done, now where’s my paycheck?” With a dull grin, he drastically opens with. His grip tightens on the bright blue bag-strap.

Slowly, he's handed a letter, which he trades his bag for and eagerly races off with. Outside, the streets untangle and now he knows exactly where he's going, led by the light of the setting sun like the north star of the evening.

Scaramouche bursts in the front door, eyes immediately searching for Izuku. Sighing, he walks decisively to where his brother is sitting, practically shoving the envelope into his hands and turning back off again to take off his shoes and that stupid, vibrant vest.

“Welcome back Kunikuzushi..?” Izuku blinks, looking from his brother to the envelope that was all but shoved into his hands. He drags his finger along the seal, pathetically ripping the envelope in the process, and delicately pulls the little slip of paper out.
He stares at it blankly for a moment, “..So- question. Why did you drop a check into my lap?”

Pulling the vest over his head and discarding it quite aggressively onto the floor, Scaramouche replies with his back turned. “Paying off my debt. Like I said. ‘Sorry’ I didn’t tell you where I was going this morning, but, it’s done now.”

“You really didn’t have to!” He starts, scrambling up, “Please, you must’ve worked so hard for this money- I didn’t even know you managed to get a job?! You should get to have some of it at least!”

“You’ve given me shelter and everything I’ve needed. Money is the least I can offer in return.” Scaramouche huffs, turning back to glare at him.

Looking over his shoulder, he immediately pinpoints harsh, bold writing, under the letter, almost like those numbers still swirling through his head – self-induced, nonetheless.

“Wait, what’s— That?” He points at the letter hurriedly, stunned.

Having been so shocked at the money, Izuku finally takes notice of the second– folded, this time– paper. He sets the check aside, smoothing out the new paper in his hand.

“Oh- uhm.. Well it would appear to be a termination notice. You’ve been let go from that job and given reduced pay.”

“What!?” Eyes going wide, Scaramouche rushes over to the edge of the couch to look over Izuku’s shoulder.

His eyes follow the writing, reciting and burning it into his mind in the same way as his memorisation technique. “‘Rude behaviour to a client’?” He reads off the letter, then something shifts in his expression. “Oh that pathetic excuse of a human!” Rolling his eyes, he curses.

Izuku can’t help the little giggle that escapes him, “Kuni, really? What could have even happened for it to be bad enough to get you fired on your first day?”

“Worse than you can even imagine.” Scaramouche drops his head into his hands, grumbling. “Your little weasel of a friend.”

“You and Mei are my only friends right now, so I don’t think that really tells me anything.” He says gently, just a hint of regret on his voice, “But I can think of who you probably mean.” A certain explosive blond.

“Indeed. The one and only.” Cynically, Scaramouche says, scoffing through every word. “I did nothing to him. Evidently, he’s still gotten me in trouble.” He walks around the sofa and sits next to Izuku, sighing deeply. “Now I have to find another job. Why must my suffering go on…”

Izuku sighs, leaning back on the couch, “He’s.. determined like that. Once he wants something he’ll do whatever he can to get it.”
“You don’t have to get another job,” He corrects himself quickly, “I mean, not just to pay me back! If you want one it’s totally fine- y’know, do what you want.”

“I can tell.” Like it already rings a bell of annoyance in his head, Scaramouche responds. “And, it’s not a question, Izuku.” With endless finality, he answers.

Instantly switching the topic back, fixated on that searing frustration, he goes on a rant again. “He’s painfully obnoxious. I’ve never met such an arrogant mortal, this one’s ego almost tops that of the gods.”

Knowing it’s not a fight he’d win, Izuku just laughs softly, nodding along, “He wasn’t always like that, well.. It wasn’t as bad as it is now. It used to be kind of endearing if you’d believe that.”

“Endearing?” Through a skeptical stare, Scaramouche repeats. Contrarily thinking on it for a moment, he stops. “I must say, I don’t believe you.”

Izuku simply smiles, “I don’t blame you.”

Chapter Text

“Okay Kunikuzushi, If you’re going to be taking jobs, it’s best if you know how to get to them.” The door clicks shut as Inko settles into the seat, “The most important part really is paying attention to the gas/how fast you’re going and that you’re staying within the lines.”

Seated uncomfortably in the driver’s seat, Scaramouche cautiously looks over the wheel in front of him, quite awkwardly taken aback by it’s intrusive closeness to the seat. Blanking Inko, he leans down to monitor the controls, squinting his eyes at all the foreign buttons. “What kind of machinery is this?”

She shrugs, “You’ll get used to it eventually don’t worry. For now, are you able to see well out of the mirrors and is the seat adjusted well? You don’t want to be too close to the steering wheel but be sure you can touch the pedals.”

“Well…” Glancing viciously at the steering wheel like it’s his enemy, Scaramouche inches back in his seat. “I feel… Uncomfortably close this wheel.”

“There should be a little dial on the left bottom side of the seat, if you press that the seat will scoot back some.” Inko does her best to explain while clicking her seatbelt into place.

Sighing, already exasperated by this whole ordeal, Scaramouche reaches down the side of the seat, tapping around for the dial until he grabs ahold of it. The seat startles back and, like a frightened cat, he practically jumps.

Kicking his feet at the floor of the car, he quite quickly clues into something. “Well, now I can’t reach the pedals…” He says rather begrudgingly.

Inko can’t help but to gently press a hand to her mouth and laugh, “Use less pressure on the dial and the seat will move back up. Then we can try driving around this parking lot.”

“Well, sorry I’m too powerful for this machine.” Rolling his eyes, Scaramouche drops his arm back down and readjusts the seat.

“Mhm,” She plays along, smiling, “Alright the gas pedal is on the right, and the brake is on the left. You shouldn’t slam on either of them, just apply small bits of pressure. When you’re ready, turn the key and pull this back to be in drive.” Inko points to a mark on the console.

“…Okay,” Scaramouche responds, though stares rather idly, like a fish out of water, at the dashboard.

Folding his arms, he leans back and stares out the window, “Can you just tell me when…?”

Her expression softens, “Of course sweetheart.”

Inko gives him a minute, to breathe or just to think, before gently taking his hand, “Okay, let’s do this now. Just around the parking lot.”

Scaramouche stops, shifting his head slightly to look at her. Silently, he nods, like it snaps him into focus.

He slowly lifts his hands to the wheel to prepare, feeling for the pedals under the seat until he’s certain he has the two in the right order, memorised.

With as close, coordinated control as he can muster, he pushes lightly down on the accelerator and, to his near disbelief, the machine effortlessly starts up and it’s actually moving, earning a head tilt from him as he slowly steers around the parking lot, making precise turns as to not break out of the boundaries. He knows how to follow instructions.

Inko, for the most part, stays quiet allowing Kunikuzushi to concentrate. Only speaking up to offer slight corrections or tell him that he’s doing a rather good job for– assumably– his first time in a car. Sure, this is only a mostly empty parking lot, but it’s not like he’ll ever be driving very far, as long as he can follow the laws and not crash into things then this’ll work out perfectly!

Eventually, he slows down a little and eyes Inko from the side, fairly trusting in his own coordination to keep coasting along while he looks away. “Sorry if it’s not great. But… Am I good enough?” Blanketing the question in several layers of protective apology, he asks her, looks at her like he needs a yes, or close enough to one to not be a no.

“My dear, you’re doing wonderful. I certainly trust you enough and believe in your abilities to let you drive to and from work. You’re more than good enough.” Inko says it easily, like it’s unbelievable that he could be anything less.

“Really?” It comes out just a little worn, like he doesn’t really know how to respond. But, he visibly relaxes into the seat, comfortable as he carries on driving in a loop.
He turns a final corner and then asks Inko again, “Am I allowed to stop now?”

“Of course.” She agrees to both, leaving no room to believe that her belief in him could be challenged or taken away.

As she says it, Scaramouche quietly slows the car to a halt, pressing on the brake just as carefully. Once he stops, he leans on the wheel and pauses, trying to store all this information.

“Thank you… This will be useful.” He breathes.

“You’re welcome, I'm happy to have gotten to teach you!” Inko smiles at him softly, unclicking her seatbelt, “Here, we can switch back now. I’ll take us home.”

With that, Scaramouche nods to her, opening the car door and stepping out.

-

Scaramouche yells at just about any driver who dares tailgate him.
The last job was frustrating on the pavement, now he has to deal with the road? No, he has no tolerance for this. Inko's words, while she was patient enough to teach him to drive, "look, if you follow the laws no one will ever know!” will probably end up going to waste soon.

Finally turning into the street, he pulls into an empty parking spot, being sure to death glare the car that'd stolen the closer one.

Swinging open the car door, and finding footing over the gap in the pavement, he stands up straight.

Oh.

Clearly, in his last job, he did not pay attention to the routes. Immediately, he recognises the tiling of the pavement, that same aroma, the same scenery he’s sure he’s seen before.

Once, he checks the address written on the little receipt, then drags the shopping order up to the house.

Dreading it, he taps his finger to the doorbell.

Bzzzzt!/em>

Well, that seals his fate.

None other than Bakugou Katsuki is the one who swings the door open huffing at the sight- or more accurately, the person- that stands before him.

“Oh what, now you deliver food too? Do you even have a license to drive?”

“You again, just my luck.” He complains aloud, setting down the bag. “In fact I do, which, I presume you don’t.” He snides, taking the opportunity to put the other below him.

“yeah, It’s below me.” He grins, “Too busy with my training and schooling to be a lackey.”

Scaramouche glares dangerously at him, a soft glow of Electro flickering behind his pupils. No— he can't, he's got to pay back Izuku. So, he reigns it in.

More or less.

"Congratulations! Actually all of those things are below me." He squints his eyes closed and smirks, though quickly replaces it with a mockingly woeful expression. "Look at me here, as intelligent as I am, running these pathetic errands for similarly pathetic people..."

Grabbing the food, he turns, glaring over his shoulder, “No wonder Deku hangs around you, you’re just another background extra.”

“Oh, and you’re the main character, hm?” He snaps back, sassily crossing his arms.

He huffs with a bit of laughter, “Yeah, I sure am.”

The door bangs shut.

As the door bangs shut, Scaramouche stares ahead at the empty wood between the frame. He glares, like he's still burdened by the presence of Bakugou Katsuki. Stupid boy, insignificant.

He carries that dullness as he turns off, through the roads he ceases to reprimand this time. He grips the steering wheel far too firmly until he realises he's already done with the day.

Just as he pushes his way into the nearest parking spot, just as he levers open the door, he hears a clatter like a brick tumbling down a steep cliff.

Scaramouche peers his head back around to the seat, stunned in an awkward one leg out one leg in the car position. Begrudgingly, he leans over the seat and reaches for the object, nails clicking against a cool, weighted, almost glassy object.
Wonderful.

With a tug, he pulls his arm out only to find that cellular device sitting on his palm. It lights up in his hand, which he narrows his eyes at.

Right on the screen, over the swirly, default screen and dumbed down digital clock, a grey wall writes out a couple strings of text.

'Unfortunately, you've been let go.'

"WHAT?!" Immediately, Scaramouche yells.

Eyes going wide, he reads the next line of text, 'We received a report about inappropriate attitude during delivery.'

Given up, utterly, Scaramouche slams the car door shut and races inside. He almost shouts at the key before it turns smoothly through the lock.

Izuku practically ambushes Scaramouche when he comes through the door.

“Want to go out tonight?” He asks rather eagerly, like he’s itching to get out there again.

“What, huh?” Still holding the door open, Scaramouche stutters. Looking around, then at Izuku, he overwrites himself. “Lose the enthusiasm, first and foremost.”

“Well, last time was just so.. Good!” Izuku grins wide, “You know– freeing! You can’t blame me for wanting to get back out there.”

“Does anything about me suggest that I asked?” Scaramouche answers, shutting the door behind him a little too aggressively. Still, though, he looks back at Izuku and can’t help but concede. “Archons, fine.”

Making a noise of victory, Izuku scampers off to his room to get himself together. “Thanks Kuni!” He calls from down the hall, his door clicking shut immediately after.

In the same blank way, Scaramouche lingers on where he just was, staring. After a second, he jogs himself out of it and rolls his eyes, lazily walking off and scraping up his stuff to go change.

Soon enough Izuku is back standing in the living room all decked out and ready to go. He takes a breath, in then out, and hums to himself, “It’s gonna be a good night, we got this.”

Lagging a few minutes behind, Scaramouche walks up to join his brother, the two in-costume vigilantes standing quite starkly in the middle of the living room.

Izuku doesn’t seem to even register his footsteps, so, he politely taps him on the shoulder. “Ready.”

Snapping to attention, Izuku gives a quick nod of his head while making sure his mask is in place. “Great! Let’s go then!”

And with that, he turns on his heels and heads for the door.

Closing the door for them, Scaramouche follows, though almost losing track of Izuku couple times as they head down to the streets.

“So, do anything interesting while I was out?” Curious, and maybe just to get Izuku’s hyper attention on something else, he asks as they walk.

Izuku makes a so-so motion with his hand, “ Not.. really. I mean there really isn’t much for me to do. I’m trying to get into coding though.” He lets the additional skill of hacking go unsaid.

“Picking up skills, I see?” Scaramouche chuckles, only a little snidely. “Good. It’ll come in handy.”

“Mhm! I figured it would.” Izuku agrees, turning sharply down some side street, “What about you? How was your day out?”

“Fine. It’s just work,” Scaramouche answers, like it’s as plain to see as his very expression as he says the next word. “Dull.”

He hums, “Ah, that’s fair. Did it at least go better than last time?”

With a shake of his head, Scaramouche sighs. “Don’t worry about it, Izuku.”

“If you’re sure.” Izuku says a bit softly before they emerge from the side street, moving back down sidewalks in the open. Covered by the shadows.

Scaramouche didn’t exactly notice when the sunset left, only for the moon to cover it up. He stares at it, the moon, as it dips under a building out of sight.

He stops at a fork in the alleys, motioning to Izuku, “Notos, are we covering the roofs," He gestures to a ladder just barely visible in the dark, then slowly over to the street, “Or just the ground?”

Izuku pauses, glancing up at the buildings and squinting his eyes. “Yeah, I think we can take the roofs for a few blocks. Having a higher view is better for finding things anyway!”

He reaches out for the ladder, hauling himself up the rusted metal and onto the rooftop.

By the time Izuku climbs up onto the roof, Scaramouche is already miraculously standing there, staring down with his hands on his hips.

“Need a hand?” He jokes, before cackling all too cockily.

“I don’t think I want to know how you did that so quickly.” Izuku jokes, stretching for a moment before he sprints and jumps over to the next roof. Laughing excitedly all the way.

“You don’t!” Scaramouche chirps, running after him. He practically, playfully chases his brother over every roof, tracking his laughter through the dark. For the first time today, maybe, he doesn’t feel as dull.

“Just- leave me alone.. Please!” It’s quiet, begging, but for Izuku it’s clear as day. Stopping dead in his tracks, he takes a moment before veering left, hopping a roof, then peeking his head over the edge.

Noticing his brother fall eerily silent before the voice, Scaramouche slows down, his focus on Izuku as he joins him at the edge. “What do you see?”

There, below them in a dead-end alley, are two people. One cowering against the wall and the other towering over them. Izuku can see mouths moving, but it’s hard to hear now, all he can really hear is his own breathing.

It’s times like this when it doesn’t feel long ago. Izuku being the person cowering, terrified, in some dingy alley, or classroom, or playground.

Izuku doesn’t think, he never really has, he launches himself down.

The guy goes down with a startled yell, Izuku doesn’t stop there.

It’s never a good sign when Scaramouche can’t catch up, doesn’t have time, doesn’t register the need for urgency.

“Izuku!” He nearly shouts, before masking the name in a whisper. He jumps, he doesn’t think about it, and he thinks he lands wrong, because it doesn’t feel right.

He runs to the guy Izuku’s tackled, and just as he can the guy pull out a knife, glinting in the now visible moonlight, he uses every ounce of his power to barricade the space between him and his brother.

Scaramouche has never had to make a shield before. It’s unthinking, it’s far from practiced, and it burns his power out by the millisecond, but when the perpetrator stabs at him, the knife shatters against the electricity.

Izuku barely registers anything going on, though he knows that his fists have gotten bloody. Something shatters and he blinks with a sharp intake of breath. He doesn’t quite stop his fist connecting with the guy's face in time though, and he goes limp.

He scrambles up, looking around like he doesn’t know how he got here. “I- fuck- fuck I didn’t mean to.” Izuku puts a hand on his chest and tries to breathe.

Scaramouche drops the forcefield and that feels wrong, too. But he ignores that in favour of running to the victim, still cowering against the wall. He glances at Izuku once, as if bookmarking to get to him later.

“Don’t worry, we’ll sort this out.” He says, maybe intentionally blocking the scene from the victim’s sight by standing in front.

The victim lets out a shuttered breath, “Thank.. You. Please can I just- go?”

“Yes. Go.” Scaramouche answers, a distinct lack of warmth, which he nods over in subtle apology.

They scramble up, giving the knocked-out guy zero notice, but gently touches Izuku’s shoulder.

“Thank you.” They say more firmly, giving a little nod. Somehow it’s like they can simply tell that Izuku knows exactly what it's like, why he reacted so violently. Izuku manages a small smile and with that the person leaves.

Before anyone has time to think, Scaramouche is already at Izuku’s side, hovering beside him for a moment. It’s a still moment, long, though he slowly kneels down and places a finger on the unconscious guy’s neck.

“His heart is still beating. All you did was knock him out.” He says, surgically, almost, pushing himself back up to stare at Izuku. He doesn’t think about how laboured his own movements are.

Izuku’s desperately scrubbing at his hands with wet-wipes, “Good- good. I didn’t even mean to do that.”

“I know.” Slowly, sympathetically, Scaramouche says. It’s not the usual words he’d use to a trainee, but he can’t ever think of telling Izuku he’s worthless. So something else takes the wheel.

He steps forward and gently rests his hand over Izuku’s, blocking his aggressive scrubbing. “That’s going to make it worse, slow down for a moment.”

All at once Izuku stops, freezing in place for a moment until he blinks. Izuku shoves the small pile of used wipes into a no-longer empty pocket– because littering is wrong.

Quite seriously, Scaramouche stares at him for a moment. “I’ll call it in, okay? Just tell me what’s the number.”

“110 for police, 119 for emergency services.” Izuku recites easily, like reading a script. “He’ll– need an ambulance.”

“Okay, I’ll deal with it.” Scaramouche nods, set on the objective, pulling out his phone. When he turns the screen on, he swipes away the notification from earlier.

It’s a few minutes he’s on the phone, hand cupping it to his ear, before he lowers it and stuffs it back in his pocket. “Come, let’s go.”

Izuku gives a quick nod of his head, stepping out of the alley and slinking down the street. “Are you okay? I heard something shatter.”

“He pulled a knife,” Scaramouche sighs, moving through the streets, “That was the knife.”

“Oh. I see.” How could Izuku have been so stupid? Not even noticing a knife. He’s supposed to be better than this, he has to be. “Thanks, Hoshi.”

“No problem,” He tries to say sarcastically, with a pathetically shaky smile. “But, you better be more careful, Notos.”

“I will.” He says quickly, sharply. There’s no room for him to be like that again, he just can’t, because what would that make him then?

Wading through the pavements feels like a blur. Scaramouche can admit that much, less so the feeling he knows is just under the surface. He ignores it all the way, up until he gets to the door, and drops his key.

“Stupid things.” He tries again, failing coordination at the simplest of levels, just to drop it again.

This time, he just stares at it, like it represents everything. Especially, that thought lodged in the back of his head.

“Hey.. are you hurt?” Izuku asks softly, moving to swoop Kunikuzushi’s keys off the ground and unlock the door. “Come on, let me check you out.”

“I’m…” Scaramouche mutters, moving inside just to stop and stare at the floor. In that moment, he makes a decision.

“...Maybe.” It sounds wrong to his own ears, but it feels like the right thing to say. Close enough.

Izuku hums sympathetically, “I’m sorry I didn’t notice sooner. Sit on the couch, I have a medkit in my room– we can probably fix whatever’s wrong here.”

At that, Scaramouche sighs the most irritable noise he can make, curses every single archon’s name in his head, then compliantly walks off to the couch, forcing himself to sit down.

Izuku disappears down the hall for a moment and returns with a decently sized medkit, settling himself by Kunikuzushi. “Alright, what’s hurt?”

“I don’t know.” Scaramouche answers rather unhelpfully. “Maybe— I wasn’t thinking when I jumped, I could’ve hit something. That, and I’ve certainly overused my power. But you can’t help with that.” He tries to offer, mentally struggling to source the feeling.

“Hm, okay. Well you can still walk so that’s good and likely means nothing is broken.” Izuku digs around in the bag, “Here, Take some painkillers and we can wrap it. That should help.. Hopefully. If it still hurts in the morning we can get mom to help.”

He stares at the pills, and suddenly a frown that feels more painful crosses his expression.

“Pain medication… Doesn’t work on me. Sorry, I shouldn’t have let you offer.” Scaramouche moves to stand up, staggering for a second.

“Oh,” Izuku frowns similarly, “I’m sorry, that sucks. Well.. try to sleep it off I guess? Hopefully it’s just achy from the jump.”

“Yeah. I will.” Scaramouche nods slowly back at him, turning to walk to the window. A moment later, he stops, hand hovering over the edge of the sofa.

“And, Izuku?” He says, looking back to his brother, “Don’t dwell on today. You did a good job.”

“...Thanks. I’ll uh– try.” Izuku manages a smile, gentle and sweet.

Chapter Text

This was absolutely not how he would have chosen to spend his day. One of the hottest days of the week and instead of doing any kind of training he’s walking into a store- list in hand- because his parents need the shopping done and they had an important meeting to get to.

He can fight many things, but ultimately his parents request isn’t one of them. Especially not when his mom promised that she’d make his favorite dinner tonight.

Row by row, he marks things off the list eventually getting down to the last few items. Of course, what he needs isn’t where it’s supposed to be and now he has to find a worker.

Perhaps inevitably he finds none other than Deku’s purple haired guard dog seemingly doing yet another random job— if the casual uniform and name tag is anything to go by.

The universe is lucky he doesn’t want to spend much longer in this store.

“Oi, twig limbs, where’s this item at. It wasn’t on the shelf it used to be.”

Scaramouche slowly turns to eye him, crossing his arms.

“Ah, look who it is, the afamed ‘Main Character.’ When will you stop terrorising me?” He grumbles, rolling his eyes. From his experience, actual terrorists were easier to deal with. It’s not like the justice formulation takes out rules on irritating teenage boys.

Sighing, he answers diplomatically, “What are you looking for, hm?”

“Hah! Says the guy who showed up at my house the last two times.” He taps a word on the list, “This conditioner.”

Blinking as his brain scrambles the letters for a moment, Scaramouche eventually lights up.

“Ah, I’m afraid we’re all out of that brand. But, don’t despair, I know a perfect alternative!” He says courteously, though that same, everlasting, maliciously compliant smile sits on his face.

He rolls his eyes at the fake service attitude, “Sure you do.”

Hastily, he walks down the aisle, glancing back at Bakugou and gesturing for him to follow, chirping “C’mon!” Not unlike how you’d talk to a dog.

Scaramouche leads him around the other side, the two of them passing an increasingly pricey display from a name-brand company. Still, he acts like he knows exactly where he’s going.

Quaintly, he stops at a selection of haircare products, humming as he picks out one. “These are your best deal, do trust me on this. Most conditioners contain oil that builds up in your hair, so much so that- surprise! You just have to wash it again. It’s a rather tactical scam, see. This is a strong sulfate with the added tailored mixtures, a much safer bet, for a small extra cost.”

Goodness, he sounds like Dottore.

“Mhm, yeah sure, thanks twig limbs.” He says rather sarcastically and presumably blocking out half the stuff the other boy said as he grabs a bottle and chucks it into the cart, marking the item off the list.

Scaramouche smiles, vindictively brightly, at the other boy.

“You’re welcome. And, do be careful who you underestimate,” He lightly threatens. “You do remember our ‘fight,’ don’t you?”

“And you do remember I can report you for threatening me, hm? Maybe for your probably fake documents?” Bakugou glares at him, only part of that theoretically baseless.

In an instant, Scaramouche’s expression falls. Something becomes very serious, as if the air itself had caved in. He stares at Bakugou, with a look that acts as a death threat.

…He knows too much.

“Fuck off and do the other parts of your minimum wage job.” The list crumples in his hand slightly as he stalks off.

With that, Scaramouche sourly speeds off in the other direction, scoffing to himself. It pretty much takes one encounter with that boy to ruin the rest of his day, so, he dully arranges items in a corner for the rest of it.

At the end of his shift, he gets a notice of termination, and a sliver of a paycheck. Thanks again, Bakugou.

In a huff, he pushes his keys into the door and stomps in, walking past Izuku and disappearing into the hallway for a moment.

What feels like only a second later, he comes back with his hair done for their Vigilante work, and walks straight up to his brother. “When are we going out.” He asks, moreso demands impatiently.

Izuku looks at his brother curiously, quizzically almost, when he walks right past and when he comes back out. In a matter of seconds he’s seemed to decide that asking about what happened isn’t currently worth it and shrugs, “Sure! Give me a few minutes to get ready.”

It’s not long before similarly Izuku appears all dressed up for their vigilante work, messing with the mask for a moment before placing it onto his face. “‘Kay, ready!”

“Let’s go, then.” Having used the time to get the rest of his stuff on, Scaramouche stands ready at the door, practically leaping to get back out again.

As soon as he sees Izuku, he turns, swinging the door open and simply hoping he’ll be fast enough to catch up before it closes.

“You’re sure in a hurry tonight Hoshi.” He observes out loud, taking a moment to make sure that the door got locked before following after his teammate. “Something must’ve happened today.”

Scaramouche sighs, doesn’t look at him for a moment, then stares, frustration in his expression. “Your ‘friend’ is tormenting me again.” He heavily air-quotes that, though isn’t sure if Izuku gets it.

“Do you mean Bakugou?” He questions, although truthfully he knows that must be the answer considering that’s the only person that Kunikuzushi’s met that would have him air-quoting the word ‘friend’.

“Sorry, I know he’s.. Not exactly the best person to be around sometimes.”

In agreement, Scaramouche looks to the side and grumbles. “The pest keeps making his way into my jobs. He’s infuriating, Notos, don’t sugarcoat it for me.”

Izuku can’t help the little laugh that escapes him, “Yeah, fair enough. Look, he can’t be everywhere. I’m sure whatever job you do next will be better and Bakugou free!”

“I wouldn’t bet on that.” He says hopelessly. “He still keeps getting me fired. One encounter of annoyance I can deal with, but, I can’t continue hopping around occupations.”

He lets that sentence hang in the cold, night air for a minute, dully looking around the street. Then, he turns to glare at his companion again. “How have you not already killed him? I know you’re more than capable of the task.”

“That’s just.. Not who I am.” He shrugs, “I looked up to him for a really long time as well. There was a time we were best friends, even though he could, I couldn’t just.. Turn on him or leave him for a long time.”

Izuku cuts through an alley, “Besides he’s honestly getting better in UA, having actual good people around him.”

“UA…” He repeats, then his stare grows a little more serious. “That’s the school you left? He goes there?” Narrowing his eyes, he starts to pry.

Something is beneath the seams here, he just doesn’t know what.

“Oh! Yes, we were in the same class actually, Class 1-A. UA is a school primarily for aspiring heroes- it’s one of the very best- but they also offer other specialized courses and general education!” Izuku rattles off, clearly his love for that school didn’t dampen with his love for certain heroes.

No matter how much Izuku stays positive, Scaramouche’s insistence doesn’t waver. “Then, if you were accepted, why would you leave?”

“I.. couldn’t keep up with everyone once my quirk was gone. I just couldn’t recover quick enough, and anyway- it felt like I was always being watched or judged or was just the token quirkless kid.” Izuku sighs, he won’t lie and say he doesn’t miss it, that he hasn’t thought about going back. But fear- unfounded or not- does a great job of stopping a person.

“I had to leave for my own health basically.”

“I see.” He offers in response, going blank for a moment. While they walk, he stares off; just thinking on something.

“I’m sorry,” Scaramouche says, out of the blue. It’s uncharacteristic of him to sympathise, to pity, but he does so just a little. For once. “That isn’t fair.”

Izuku’s glad that the mask covers the sad smile he instinctively makes, “Well.. I got to meet you, so, it was worth it.”

“You say that now.” He rolls his eyes playfully, though his tone doesn’t shift all that much. “You’ll find yourself burdened by me soon enough.”

Playfully, he flicks the other boy’s shoulder, “Oh hush, I’d never. You’re my brother and my teammate through and through.”

Scaramouche looks mildly surprised for a moment, before he smiles through the mask at him. “One day you’ll hate me, then I’ll win.” Quick enough to ruin it, he follows up with a rather darkly framed joke.

“Well, I still win right now!” He laughs, grinning under his mask as they move through the darkness of unlit streets and alleyways.

The further they move, the farther away from light they get, and the darker the pitch black becomes.

As dark as it is, still, in the distance; Scaramouche spots some rather suspicious looking people, instantly clocking it as a hand-off of some sort.

“Over there.” He turns to Izuku and motions into the night, watching the secluded end of the alley. “Raises a cause for suspicion… Don’t you think?”

Izuku taps something on his mask and the light goes dark, “Sure is. Come on, we can get on the roof above them and be able to hear and see what’s going on.”

He nods, already calculating his way up, before moving off to weave across the wall with the help of the pipes, an unused metal balcony, and a single small ladder. In no time at all, he’s waiting at the rooftop.

While he’s there, he scans the terrain for the routine things; an emergency escape, a way down, and any extra routes he can formulate in his brain.

Crouching beside his brother, lines of information cross his eye piece, “That one closer to the wall has a criminal record for drug possession and distribution and the other has a few misdemeanors but nothing serious.”

Looking a bit closer as the information fades away, it’s clear to see that the one by the wall has a bag of something that the other is paying for. “Well, I’d place my bets this a drug deal, you?”

Scaramouche laughs, “I’ve beaten you there, unfortunately.” He taps his hand against the concrete, sighing. “I do despise these cases, they’re miserably human.”

He rolls his eyes with a smile, “What can I say! Come on, let’s stop these guys before they can make any more dumb decisions.”

Izuku taps his mask to glow again as he drops down from the roof, landing to block the exit out of the alley and dashing forwards to tackle the buyer to the ground.

The seller, on the other hand, looks as if they’re about to make a dash for it before Scaramouche catches them from behind, grabbing their arms and pulling them down.

“Weak.” He comments, rolling his eyes as he stuns them with Electro. These are pathetically easier than Fatui missions, not for the reason of being less physically taxing; but, more that they’re just not very out of the ordinary. Snezhnayan gangs definitely used to pull some confusing, mind-numbing stunts.

It’s over.. Quickly and easily. Izuku gets both of the guys restrained and alerts the police to them. It feels too easy frankly, like a pre-apology from the universe and evidently that would be true as an ever familiar grey scarf shoots out from the darkness and attempts to wrap about Izuku’s wrist.

“Fuck! We gotta go, now!” He doesn’t wait to turn around and- by some feat of pure adrenaline- manage to scale the wall and reach the roof.

Hearing Izuku’s words, Scaramouche is off as well; thankful he’d stuck to his mission routine and mapped out the place preemptively. He takes a different route than Izuku, but, gets up at around the same time nevertheless.

Though, perhaps blindly confused, he grabs Izuku’s arm to slow him and glares urgently. “What are we running from?”

“A hero!” He unhelpfully explains as he does his very best to keep moving on, “He’s good at capture, especially with that scarf support item, and he may or may not have used to be my teacher.” That last part is said low and quiet, it’s a wonder that the words could be made out at all.

A bit wide eyed, Scaramouche scoffs in irritation. “Oh, Notos!” He complains, rushing after him. “School fails you again. How prolific.”

“Yeah, you know, I’m sensing a theme!” He almost dares to laugh, despite the situation they’ve found themself in.

Eraserhead isn’t far behind, calling after them but his words are lost to wind rushing in his ears. It’s a little strange, to be running from someone he looked up to, from someone he shouldn’t need to. Still though he does, hopping roofs and dropping down into alleyways.

Scaramouche rolls his eyes and carries on with the chase, or perhaps, the other way around- Trying to follow after Izuku, but, it getting increasingly difficult when he keeps taking the least strategic routes, probably because of the pressure.

Nevertheless, he somehow manages to hop around after him, insistent on not losing him in the dark. Wouldn’t be any good.

fuck. It’s a dead end coming up, stupid Izuku, he should know this kind of thing by now. Where the dead ends lay, the better escapes, although in a sliver of his defense Eraserhead is fast and admittedly rather threatening when you’re the one being chased.

Okay. Okay, this is fine! He just needs to jump onto that dumpster, to the wall, and grab onto that little half ladder. That’s doable! He’s done something similar enough!
And naturally, Izuku does just fine at the start but he comes up short at the last step. Fingertips brushing the last rung of the ladder that he can’t reach.

Eraserhead, through and through, is a hero. One end of his scarf wraps around Izuku’s torso effectively capturing him, sure, but also keeping him from breaking a bone.

A length ahead of his companion, ready to leap onto the next roof; Scaramouche looks back, gritting his teeth the second he sees Izuku caught. Well, hero or not, he’s going to get him back. After all, he’s a Fatui Harbinger, or was, and at the very least, a vigilante. And he’s not losing.

He jumps back the way he came, pushing off a gated wall and landing along the side, without even hesitating going straight for the hero and his brother.

It’s maybe a dirty trick, but no one ever said underground heros had to fight fair, Eraserhead shot his scarf out to weave between the other boys feet.

“Hm. Notos and Hoshi, there’s been quite a lot of talk about the two of you recently.” He talks blandly almost, not smug like how one would expect a hero to after capturing someone, “I don’t think anyone expected you two to be quirkless though.”

That, however, seemed more like a power play. He knows something, figured it out, and he’s not afraid to call it as he sees it.

Scaramouche quickly falls and hits the ground, momentarily unsure what could have hit him. Against the concrete, he stumbles and pushes himself up on his hands, reflexively searching up for his surroundings.

Only then, he realises the bindings around his feet, and it panics him for a moment; sends back an unpleasant memory. He struggles for a moment, then gets it together. Already, he dislikes this guy.

Wordlessly glaring at Eraserhead, he slams his hand on the floor and sends out a shock of Electro, one that conducts along the residual water and shoots towards the hero in a burst of lightning.

As the electro hits, the scarf falters altogether, loosening from where it had wound itself around them. Erasurehead curses and Izuku wastes no time throwing a smoke bomb down.

In a quick motion he yanks the rest of the capture weapon off and pin-points his brother, “Come on, come on, we gotta disappear right now!”

Dazed, Scaramouche lags for a moment, slowly picking himself up with a wince. Once he hears that, though, he snaps back into that fight or flight mode he’s so used to harnessing; and jumps up, running as fast as he can with his companion.

Mei certainly did wonders when making those smoke bombs because by the time the two vigilantes are three streets and half a block away one can still mainly see the smoke trying to disperse.

“Well- that was.. something!” Izuku starts nervously, cautiously even.

Scaramouche slows down, momentarily stopping by his brother’s side and staring at him. Next, he shoves his shoulder- perhaps a little more aggressive than he usually is. “That could’ve been catastrophic for us. If you’ve been expecting that, why haven’t you been more prepared?”

“Expecting that we’ll run into a hero, and being chased down by my pro-hero former teacher are two very different things.” He starts, crossing his arms, “And I got us out of there didn’t I? It wasn’t perfect but I did it, we did it.”

“I practically saved you,” he points out, some element of bitterness covering care in his tone. “And what would’ve happened if I wasn’t there, huh?”

“Then I would’ve fucking figured it out. I have plenty of stuff on me.” Izuku huffs, looking anywhere but Kunikuzushi. “What if you didn’t have your electro? What then?”

Scaramouche almost laughs, “I would’ve managed. I managed for centuries before I was broken down just to lift my seal.” For a moment, there drops his filter; and it just keeps withering. “Ultimately, I’m more equipped, you’ve experienced a fraction of what I have. I’m trying to protect you, and I will do so, no matter what.”

“Why’s it so different when it’s me, huh? Do you have smoke bombs, or first aid, or capture tape, or a weapon other than your ability?” He places a hand on his chest, “Because I do! I’m not weak or fragile or less than because of what I lack! And you’re not immune to messing up either Hoshi.”

Scaramouche pauses, looking at Izuku analytically.

“This isn’t about your quirk, or lack thereof, Notos,” he states, a little calmer. “I’m referring to your mortality. If you think, now, after everything; I’m saying I’m better than you, then, consider yourself wrong. I cannot be destroyed – you can. It simply makes me a more sufficient protector.”

He falters, some of the anger leaving his body- leaving his eyes, “..Well. Still, I don’t want you hurt either Hoshi. In any way, even if it’s superficial or inconsequential, I want to protect you to.”

He frowns a little, saddened somehow. “I know you want to, but…” He trails off, something that’s haunting him crossing his mind. “I need you to promise you won’t. Because if you do have to, it’ll be at the cost of your life. Or worse.”

He pulls his mask down so that he can smile softly, sadly, at Kunikuzushi, “Sorry.. I don’t think I’d be a very good brother or friend if I promised that. I’d rather fight till the end with you.”

Similarly, he pulls his mask down, and somehow; his smile holds even more despair. “So you’d…” Scaramouche looks at the ground, as far away from his eye level as he can. Weirdly, vulnerable. “—You’d let yourself die, just so I have to live on?”

“I’d do anything to not lose my brother.” He amends, technically confirms. Afterall it is basically the same thing, yes he’d die for Kunikuzushi but also he would live for him.

“Then keep yourself alive,” He looks up, confident in that. “Even at my detriment. I will not accept no for an answer.”

Izuku gives a little nod of his head, “I’ll do my best.”

“Thank you.” Scaramouche sighs, looking back down for a moment before turning and starting to walk. “And I’ll hold you to that, Notos.” He says a little lighter, laughing.

“I’d expect nothing less, Hoshi.” He offers a grin as they make their way down the street.

And sitting a few rooftops away is Eraserhead, still trying to rub whatever power had been added to those smoke bombs away from his eyes. It did a good job of obscuring his vision, he'll give the kids that, but his hearing is fine and he’s just gathered plenty of information off that alone. These are just kids, brothers trying to prove something to the world- maybe to themselves. He thinks they may have been speaking in some small code or maybe that purple one isn’t so quirkless afterall, but all the same, he needs to make sure they get on a better path. He has too.

But for now, the best thing he can do is cut his patrol a bit early and take a shower- He’ll think more about it later.

Chapter Text

Lights blare, some stupid music burns through his eardrums, and these workers keep trying to joke with him. Having to force himself into diplomatic face for Celestia knows how many years in the Fatui doesn't make all-day masking any easier.

A customer shuffles along, and he spends about two, meaningless seconds flashing each of their items against the scanner.

The next customer fills the conveyer belt with a stockpile of bakery items, of which he has to tediously check each brown paper bag and relay the item onto this.. confusing electronic device.

"Great, complicate everything, won't you." Scaramouche actually says aloud to them.

Dully, he leans against his elbows on the desk space in front of him, practically dead inside. When can he go home?

The music repeats "Onegai kimi ga hoshii no!" For the third time. Yeah, he’s had enough.

It must be some kind of a cruel fate that out of all the lines, the one going the fastest- and is currently the shortest, is run by the same boy he’s run into four times now.
All the same though, he loads the groceries onto the conveyer belt and preemptively pulls his wallet out to at least be able to finish the interaction some milliseconds sooner.

Snapping out of his daze of yearning for his shift to end, Scaramouche looks over, his eyes somehow dimming even more as he sees who’s next in line.

Moodily as he can, he starts grabbing Bakugou’s groceries, methodically scanning and shoving them to the side container, all while wordless.

The song loops “Onegai kimi ga hoshii no!” One more time, and he hopes it’ll end soon.

By the time Scaramouche is getting down to the last of the groceries it feels like it’s been an eternity. (It’s only been four minutes.)

The store’s getting empty now as the sun goes away, and Bakugou sighs, apparently accepting whatever predicament they’ve found themselves in.

“I don’t know how you do it, how you can hang around him all the time. I’m honestly assuming it’s why you’ve taken all these dumb jobs.”

As Scaramouche tallies up the price on the machine, he glances to Bakugou several times, until he stops to stare at him.

“Yes, I’m doing it for Izuku.” He answers pointedly, then looks back to the computer. “You can’t even say his name, hm.”

Distantly somewhere in his mind a small voice says he doesn’t get to, but that can’t be true so instead he crosses his arms and glances away.

“It doesn't even really matter, he’s just Deku. He always has been.”

“I disagree,” Scaramouche says sharply, his more protective instinct staying muffled.

“He’s able to beat me in a fight, and for that, I respect him. None of my former colleagues ever could, even when I wasn’t…” He trails off, something unpleasant wavering on the surface. Ending it there, Scaramouche sighs, moving on as he grabs the next grocery, holding it to the scanner and sliding it over.

He scoffs, almost weirdly fondly if a scoff could be taken that way, “Yeah, well, Iz-.. Deku’s always been pretty good at that, against every odd. He’s the only one to beat me too.”

In the next moment, he’s finished with the shopping, mechanically gesturing for Bakugou to scan his card.

Right around now, the rest of the store hails empty, people with carts already scurrying out the doors one after the other, and everything sits in a buzzing silence, overshadowed by the hum of the still playing music. Before he goes, Scaramouche makes sure to switch off the song on the control panel.

Thoroughly finished, he stands up, scooping his phone off the table and back into his pocket.

He sighs, just having placed the last bag into the cart, “Shifts over?”

“Fortunately.” Shortly, he replies, stepping around the booth and relishing in the freedom of standing for a moment.

“Good.” He hums, “Come on then. Can’t have you walking out in the dark alone, twig limbs.”

Scaramouche glares at him, though the hint of a cunning smile lights in his expression, “Great, so I have to keep looking at you, huh?” He says back, compliantly starting to walk.

“Well I am the main character, so it must be a pleasant view.” He grins, rolling his eyes somehow fondly as they make their way towards the sliding doors.

“So, does this make me your antagonist?” Scaramouche, a little quietly, asks as he steps through the glass doors into the dark, quite at home as he hears the crickets start to chirp around them.

The chill of night washes over him- a bit uncomfortably but he finds he doesn’t mind it right now. Instead he huffs with a bit of a laugh, glancing towards Scaramouche, “Do you want to be?”

Pausing, he hums, scraping a piece of gravel across the ground as he walks. “Perhaps,” Scaramouche answers. “It’s a bit of a pattern for me.”

“Yeah, me too.” He- ever the hotheaded one- somehow manages to agree.

Tail lights blink as he unlocks the car, popping open the trunk to pack away the groceries for the trip back home, his dad sits asleep in the front.

“You’re on, then.” He lightly challenges.

Scaramouche lingers around Bakugou as he packs, something keeping him there just a little longer. Lacking anything to say to keep him there, he pushes his hands into his pockets, patiently standing behind the other boy.

He says nothing more, just watches him, even in the dark. The longer he stands there, the less he wants to leave, and the more it dumbfounds him.

He laughs, giving a little nod as he opens the front passenger door, “Well then. See you around, Twigs.”

“Until next time,” he makes a mildly passive aggressive wave, but in the way he lowers his hand, something solemn sneaks through. “‘Main Character’.”

Yes, that makes him smile again.

Bakugou watches the other through the front rear mirror as long as he can once they drive away, after all, even antagonists shouldn’t walk alone in the dark for too long.

Finally prying himself away, Scaramouche turns and doesn’t look back. It seems to be the only thing that works to lose the distance, but, not quite enough to shake the feeling. Oh how he hates this.

So, he walks through the parking lot, onto the street, and onwards into the city. It’s fully dark now, no ember of the sun looming on the horizon anymore. And even so, it doesn’t reflect his tone.

The pavement is quiet, and so is the air, and that’s enough to keep him content.

Calm nights are the worst, something is always going on in the shadows. Hell, their job makes sure of that if anything, even now.

A man in a suit approaches Scaramouche, a badge at the ready clipped on the man’s belt, “Kumori Kenji, agent at the Hero Safety Public Commission. We need you to come in and answer a few questions.”

Immediately, Scaramouche turns, eyeing the man with a glare that instantly switches on. Mentally, not physically of course because that would cause trouble; he does an eyeroll, because archons does he want nothing to do with anyone of the title ‘agent’.
With forced composure, he says in return, “Do you have a warrant for this, sir?”

“Why of course, although I suppose you’ll find it has your picture instead of a name. You’ve never been registered or documented anywhere, care to explain that? Or shall we just go ahead to the office and give you time to think of a real good explanation for that.” The agent holds a folded piece of paper between his fingers.

“Ah,” He starts, that fake chirp in his voice staying. Internally, he’s utterly stumped, but when has he ever let that slip? “Sorry about the confusion. This whole immigration process has been such a nightmare, my visa was misprinted. I imagine it caused a dead end in your systems. I wouldn’t waste your time with me,” he laughs, and it’s just as fake, and just as relentlessly stubborn.

Slightly, subconsciously, he taps his foot, desperately tempted to just make a run for it. There’s no good routes to take, cornered like this. Clearly they think things through.

“Oh, unfortunately for you I don’t believe our international facial recognition system or the international documents we had to go through aligns with that story.” The man says with a fake honey to his voice, “Now! Would you like to come in the hard way or the easy way.”

Going blank for a moment, Scaramouche just pauses, doesn’t let out any sign of emotion. Until, he adjusts his footing and sighs overdramatically.

“Well the hard way would be funny,” He laughs maliciously, then glares again at the ‘agent’. “But I’d be happy to take the easy way, if you want to dig yourselves this far.”

No he is not. He wants to go home, but alas, that's not going to happen. So, survival it is.

“Hm.” He snaps his fingers and two more agents practically melt away from the shadows, “Come on then. The car is around the corner and the building is about fifteen minutes away.”

Though not particularly startled or surprised, Scaramouche squints his eyes a bit when the agents multiply, and he almost laughs. This may as well be the Fatui. Well, he can handle that. Right?

Passive aggressively, he sticks his thumbs up in response with a sarcastic grin.

Off towards the car they go, and true to his word, it quite literally was just around the corner. They pile into the vehicle and off they go towards their workplace.

Scaramouche- Pressed against the car door gods forbid he get too near to anyone else- stares into space, dully contemplating what to even do, how to lie, how to play this off. His foot still can’t stop shaking, and he doesn’t know if that’s just the movement of the vehicle or not.

Can he handle the Fatui again?

It feels quicker than fifteen minutes, the time that it took for them to be parked at the side of the imposing building, large and lit up as if nothing wrong could possibly be going on inside.

The agents get out of the car, hovering at the back, and Kumori waves his hand, “Come now, this should be over with soon enough if you corporate.”

Diligently, Scaramouche steps out with them and looks to the agent from before, snickering. “You sound like you’re leading me to my execution.”

The man rolls his eyes, walking them through the doors. After a couple of steps the other two agents peel off separate ways, but Kumori continues to lead Scaramouche through the winding halls and eventually into a near empty room.

Muted blue walls with just a table and some chairs in the middle. A rather classic interrogation room, if anything.

“Please, go ahead and have a seat.”

Scaramouche shrugs, like it doesn’t bother him either way. He sits down, sitting quite formally, looking around at the room with a curiosity that seems to die almost instantly.

He scoffs, at least the Fatui had a sense of interior- and exterior- design.

It isn’t too long before another man in a suit enters the room, settling into the seat in front of Scaramouche.

“Alright. State your name, quirk, and what you’re doing here.”

He hums, thinking on it for a minute, then slowly drags out a response. “Scaramouche. Electrical. And that would be…”

Something stops him, he needs to decide what he’s going with. “A covert overseas operation, of which, you have no business in.”

The man looks at him utterly unimpressed, “Oh and they decided to completely destroy your records for that hm? Place you with a civilian family? You don’t exist, Scaramouche, is that truly the excuse you want to use?”

Scaramouche sighs and folds his hands over the table, staring at the interrogator. He knows this is a tactic, a bluff, but he can do that too.

“So, you’re doubting my significance? This is all a cover. Don’t you want to guess who I work for?” He taunts slightly, slanting his head.

“I don’t care for whatever lie you have planned, boy.” He snaps his fingers and Kumori places down a tablet, pressing play.

Security camera footage of the day Scaramouche realized he still had access to his power. The man dropping to the ground like nothing when Scaramouche’s power hit him.

The next video begins, clips of him out as a vigilante using that same power and taking people down.

“We have eyes and ears everywhere! You don’t work for anyone Scaramouche, but!” The man pauses, sliding the tablet away, “You can work for us here at the HSPC. You’ll get far more opportunities to use that quirk of yours, no more need to run from heroes during your little side venture, it’s a win-win, truly.” He grins sharply, something about it is off, “Or, of course, we can tell one Midoriya Inko that she’s been harboring a fugitive.”

Scaramouche runs over what he says for a moment, thinking, calculating, maybe. But not much light stays in his eyes. It’s just over.

“I’m sick of you organisations.” He says out of the blue, direct, something coded about it.

Ignoring most of the fluff, he stares at the interrogator with a dark expression and says, clearly, as if it’s the surest thing he’s ever thought, “I have the power here, forget your useless attempt at blackmail. Convince me of one truly beneficial reason I should accept.”

“Hm.” The man almost seems to want to laugh, this is certainly the most fun an interrogation recruitment has been, “How about we don’t put out a manhunt kill order on Notos and Hoshi? That seems sufficient does it not? Plus, this is a job kid, you’ll be getting paid for whatever mission we send you on.”

“Pointless. Sounds like a bureaucratic step that’ll only work to put a label on an already hazardous trade. Besides, I’ve seen your agents, I’ve killed servants like them. They’re nothing but pawns, none of which will stop me from doing what I want. I told you to cut the blackmail.” He dismisses, treats it like it’s all see through. Unfortunately for him, he’s been the interrogator before.

“I like the sound of the second point, let’s go with that. How much?” He leans back in his chair, crossing his legs.

He laughs, as if this is all some silly game, “That’s the fun thing about expendable parts, isn’t it? It hides the useful- Intergel- ones.”

A snap of his fingers and a folder is set down on the desk, he taps it, “A sign away is $80 an hour, plus bonuses for any high stake missions.”

Scaramouche grins, and it’s a little painful to do. “Quite.” It’s an attitude he’s all too acquainted with. It’s just a lie too; no one’s really invaluable.

He glances at the folder, scanning some of the print for a careful second. “You’re serious? Hm. ‘Missions.’ What kind of missions?” Inevitably, he questions. Though, he figures if this is set up anything like the Fatui, he has an impression already.

“Anything, really. Could be stake outs, busting a crime ring, taking care of a.. problem we need quieted. You’ll be up there with some of our best, how exciting. Of course you’ll be assigned to one of our heroes to help.. Guide you along.”

He seems interested for a moment, like it rings true; then, simply plummets his face in his hands as he hears that. “Oh archons no. You’re going to give me a buddy?” He sits up again and rolls his eyes in disdain. “Compared to my usual work, this is child’s play. Give me a break.”

The man laughs, moving to stand up, “Well, prove yourself useful Scaramouche, and maybe we’ll let you out on your own. Agent, finish up the paperwork with him then send him home.”

Scaramouche grumbles as though it shrugs off the fact he’s ultimately, trapped. A repeat that sends fire through his nerves, encases his mind in ice cold frost, and even so, his hands twitch with electricity. It is quite the pattern for him, isn’t it?

“As long as it doesn’t take three centuries.” Scaramouche says, cryptically, enough for there to be history in the words.

He closes his fist under the table. No matter what, it looks like he has to take the Fatui again.

Chapter Text

Deep breathe in, deep breathe out.

He’s done harder things than this without a thought, without shaking hands.

Deep breathe in, deep breathe out.

Of course, he was different then. There was always someone to save, a threat to beat. There’s none of that here.

Deep breathe in, deep breathe out.

“Iz- uh, Midoriya?” A card falls from his hand.

Izuku turns slightly to face the voice,

“Ochako?”

She seems to soften almost when he says her name, and he realizes why as soon as he catches up with reality. Ochako wasn’t sure that they were still friends after everything, she was hesitant to even say his name, yet he said hers like he missed the sound of it.

(Because he did.)

“Hey, Izuku.” She says softly, handing his visitor's card back to him, “Are you.. Here to see Nezu?”

She asks so hopefully that it almost pains him to answer. “No, not really. Uhm– I mean I might, but it wasn’t my plan.”

“What is your plan then?” The gate parts ways for them to step through.

“Why are you late today?”

Ochako glares at him playfully, “I had to help move a few beams at my parents company.”

“Oh! Is it doing any better?” Izuku hums with genuine interest.

“A bit,” She huffs, lightly nudging him, “Now stop avoiding the question.”

Izuku sighs, “I saw Mei a few weeks ago and she mentioned that people miss me. I don’t know.. I just thought maybe I should vist.”

“We do!” She says quickly, “A lot of us really do miss you.”

He feels a smile pull at his lips, how badly had he needed to hear that?

The hallway splits off into different directions and Izuku hesitates, maybe he isn’t as ready as he thought he was. (Not that he was even all that confident before.) And of course Ochako notices it immediately.

“You need more time, don’t you?”

“...Yeah, I’m sorry.” He glances off– unable to look her in the face.

She hums, “It’s alright. We’ll be here when you’re ready.”

Izuku sighs in relief, “Thank you. Uh– will you tell them that I tried? And that.. I’ll unblock everyone.”

Ochako smiles, pulling him in for a quick hug, “Of course I will, see you around Izuku.”

She turns down the hall, and he turns around.

-

Izuku chews on his pen as he wanders aimlessly down the street, he doesn’t feel like he can go home quite yet.

It’s hard to face when you’re wrong. He truly, really, believed that they all hated him or pitied him or just saw him as too different. it was easier to leave that way, but of course Izuku was wrong.

Honestly.. how could he believe such things about his classmates after all they’d been through. How’s he supposed to face them again? Ochako had been nice, but of course she was, Ochako is always nice to him.

He’d understand if they did hate him now, but his phone keeps buzzing with warm messages and that’s almost somehow worse.

Someone bumps into his side, which wouldn’t be strange if they didn’t clutch onto him like a lifeline. Izuku looks down just to find a little girl holding onto him– lost her parents maybe?

“..Help.. please.” She mutters against his side, low enough that he almost didn’t quite hear it.

Gently, Izuku removes her arms from him so that he can bend down to her level, “Hey, what happened little lady? Did you get lost?”

It seems like she’s going to say something when a voice echos out from the alley, “Eri…”

The girl– Eri– seems to lose her breath, freezing in place.

Instinctively, Izuku puts an arm around her, only bad things cause that kind of reaction. He knows that much far too well. Izuku thinks that maybe if he keeps her in his arms, she’ll be safe.

Finally from the shadows a man appears, wearing some kind of mask.. Where has he seen that before?

“I hope you’ll forgive my daughter, sir.” His voice comes out in a controlled smooth tone, “I just don’t know what to do with her. Always playing rough, bumping into things.”

Eri shakes in his hold and Izuku knows that isn’t true, and even then.. One doesn’t get wrapped in bandages just for that. Maybe an arm or a leg, sure, but almost head to toe? It just doesn’t seem right.

He goes to stand up but Eri tights her hold, so that’s out of the question.

“I’m.. sorry sir, but your daughter seems scared.” Izuku tries, willing his voice to not shake. Here in the daylight, dressed as a regular person.. He feels weak. He’d be stronger as Notos surely but that’s not who he is right now. He’s just Izuku Midoriya, quirkless, trying to save another person who really needs it.

“A reaction to be scolded is all.” The man’s voice tightens, maybe he knows Izuku knows that she’s probably not his daughter.

“This reaction doesn’t seem very normal.”

“It’s dangerous to make assumptions about what’s normal for other people.”

“Tell me. What are you doing to this girl!” Izuku stares at the man, he can feel Eri’s tears wet his shirt. Tempest was a hero by trade, Notos is a hero by belief, and Izuku.. Izuku is a hero by heart.

“You really pick up on the subtlest things, don’t you?” The man sighs like this is just an inconvenience to him at most, he pulls at his gloves and in an instant Eri spins her heels to join him, “Oh good, have you finally gotten over your tantrum? I’m glad I didn’t have to make a mess this time.”

“Eri..!” Izuku’s voice pathetically dies out as the two go down the alley, the man fixes his gloves and Eri looks back at Izuku sadly. He knows that he can’t leave it alone now, that girl needs to be saved and he’ll be the one to do it if he has too.

-

Izuku’s fingers fly over the keys at an almost crazed speed, there’s about ten tabs open and all organized— Local news, watch-outs, and missing persons lists. Everything he could think of to dig up information on the man and Eri, hell he’d hack into something if he knew how, but this is enough for now.

It has to be, so it will be.

The first few tabs tell him such basic information.. but it’s useful nonetheless. The man: Chisaki Kai, current leader of the Shie Hassaikai. Apparently no one— police or heros— can actually connect him to anything as far as crimes go. As far as Izuku is concerned, that’s just how some of the worst people operate.

The next few tabs tell him what he already knew, Eri is certainly not his daughter. There’s nothing to indicate that he ever had a relationship, no less a child. Nothing of the sorts no matter how far back Izuku looks into official or independent journalists.

The last few tabs tell him something that is surprising. Eri is no where, not missed by worried family, and that makes Izuku sick to his stomach. How could no one report her missing? As sick as it may sound, he almost hopes the parents are dead. At least then he could be comforted that Eri was loved and safe and protected at some point.

He blinks sluggishly, pushing back from his desk when he notices just how late it’s gotten at this point. Kunikuzushi should be home soon, right?

Izuku paces up and down the hallway, hand on his chin as he mutters away to himself. He has to tell his brother, they have to do something about this– It just isn’t right! No matter how clean that man is, Izuku knows that girl is in trouble.

Just before Izuku can totally lose himself in his thoughts, the tapping of footsteps rings up the stairwell.

Scaramouche steps into the hallway, exhaling the moment his foot touches the floor. He turns, and pauses when he spots his brother.

“Oh… Hi, Izuku.” Flatly, he greets him.

“Kuni!” Izuku reaches to grab for his brother's hand, snapping like a live wire, “I ran into some people today, and it was so strange. Something is definitely going on, we should try to investigate it!”

Finally, he takes a breath, blinking back into reality, “Hey what’s wrong? Your voice is different.”

Blinking over each of Izuku’s words, Scaramouche stalls, then tilts his head. “Oh, have you? Well, tell me about it inside.”

He runs over those last words, then shakes his head, muttering dismissively, “Just a long shift,” and walks past Izuku, already unlocking the door and walking straight in.

“Oh, alright!” Izuku chirps even though he doesn’t quite believe him, “It was so.. Odd? This little girl— Eri— bumped into me and she was obviously upset and was wrapped in bandages, this guy shows up, I think implies that he was going to hurt me or something, and then she runs back to him.”

Scaramouche stares at the wall, only snickering a couple of times as if anything’s funny about it.

Until, one part turns his head, “Who’s going to hurt you?” In his eyes, something like fight-or-flight sits in the distance, and clearly he’s decided on fight.

Waving his hand in a ‘it doesn’t matter’ way, Izuku leans against the back of the couch, “Well, if my research is right, Chisaki Kai. That’s the stranger guy, I tried to see if Eri is a missing person but if she is it was never reported.”

“Ah,” Scaramouche’s eyes dance off to the wall again, and it’s impossible to tell if he’s thinking about it or not.

With his hand on his hip, he turns back to Izuku, and confidently smiles. “Alright then, sounds interesting. Let’s give it a shot, shall we?” Each syllable, he grins through, a little short of disproportionately. Per his words, he is interested, right?

Well.. it’s good enough for Izuku. (He kindly chooses to not mention the fact he was going to dig into it no matter what.) “Perfect, okay! I think the best place to start would be to go back to the alley let-out that she ran into me at, maybe we can semi-retrace steps or find some kind of evidence?”

He taps his finger to his chin, “We might want to try to slip information to a hero as well.. This might end up bigger than something just we can take care of.”

Scaramouche raises his hands into a shrug, and holds that stance for a moment. “Whatever you say. You seem to know more about it, so, the decision is yours.”

“Bigger than something just we can take care of? Oh, don’t be so pessimistic, Izuku. I’m certain we could do it all by ourselves, if we wanted.” He points his hand as he speaks, sharp, like he’s so sure it almost sounds insincere.

“Well, I have a pretty strong feeling we’d have to infiltrate the Shie Hassaikai. Which as strong as we are could still pose as a struggle, not to mention just incredibly dangerous.” Izuku notes, “We promised mom we wouldn’t get in over our heads.”

“Well then,” Mildly rolling his eyes, Scaramouche wanders over to sit down beside him. “Who do you propose to tell?”

Izuku pauses, hesitating as if he hadn’t really thought about it yet there’s really only one answer, “Eraserhead. Really, he’s one of the only heroes we’d be able to get the info to as vigilantes unless we wanted to walk into an agency as civilians.”

“That guy? Hm.” Scaramouche huffs. “And what do you think he’d be able to do?”

“Well- He’s a hero, and when it comes down to it he’s good at his job. Plus he’d be able to give the information to Nezu or even the HSPC and then the work we’d have to do is cut in half.” Izuku hums, letting a small grin form, “Then we’d be able to focus on saving the girl.”

Scaramouche’s stare doesn’t waver.

“Mm, I see.” Like the flatness in his tone has only run deeper, he says. “Good thinking, Izuku.”

“Thanks Kunizushi!” Izuku chirps rather happily, “Now. Whatever happened at your job? I mean you were gone all day and you’re certainly not in a good mood.”

“I’m in an exquisite mood, thank you very much.” Scaramouche crosses his arms, “What shall I do, jump for joy? Have you ever had a job, Izuku? I don’t think there’s any joy left in my capacity to jump.”

Izuku blinks, once then twice, “Okay then, sure. I’m going to grab something to eat, want anything?”

“No.” Forwardly, Scaramouche answers, letting himself stubbornly lean back into the sofa, head propped on the backs of his arms.

Izuku shrugs, kicking off from the couch towards the kitchen. He knows something is up, it’s obvious enough really, even on the bad days Kunikuzushi always came home wanting to interact. Today though, if Izuku hadn’t caught him, he’s pretty sure that Kuni wouldn’t have done anything at all– Certainly not have talked to him.

But.. Everyone has bad days. Tomorrow will be better surely, everything will be okay.

Chapter Text

A bell chimes out as the door is pushed open, Bakugou digs through his bag for a moment before actually looking up.

Yet again he spots Scaramouche doing another random job. He joins the queue of people.

It isn’t too long before Bakugou in front of the boy, “We meet again twigs. I’ll need a black tea and one of those apple scones.”

Reluctantly accepting the fifth fated meeting, Scaramouche rolls his eyes and blankly says, “Exemplary. That’ll be one thousand yen.” Unreasonably monotone, he brings up the price on the scanner, pushing it towards the other boy.

With a quick motion Bakugou’s swiped his card and paid for his snacks.

“Get home alright the other day? From your fourth job.”

Scaramouche pauses in what he’s doing.

Unsure, he hesitates. “Yes. Why do you care?” Lacking ferocity, more like an autoresponse mixed with the drained tone of burnout, he replies, without looking up.

“That was pathetically unconvincing.” He narrows his eyes at Scaramouche, “Whatever, I don’t care. Is Auntie Inko picking you up today.”

He sighs, meeting his gaze for a short second. “Sadly, yes. I don’t particularly want, nor need, chaperoning— But it’s the way it is.”

Pondering on it for a minute, he decides to add on, “I can’t argue with her.”

Bakugou laughs, although not condescendingly, “Oh yeah, not many can. But anyway, that’s good, like I said you don’t need to walk alone in the dark Twig limbs.”

“Whatever.” Scaramouche scowls, holding his tongue.

After a moment, he walks off to the back, gesturing for Bakugou to go sit down before he’s out of view.

Bakugou finds a seat along a wall with windows, plenty of space for his few study books and eventual snacks since not many people seem to want to sit in this area.

A few dragged out minutes go by, before Scaramouche emerges from the back area with Bakugou’s food, setting it down on the table in front of him.

Before he puts down his drink, he looks at it to check the position of the writing, then sets it down. “Seen as you’re the main character, I wrote your name on it.”

In clean, smooth, firmly practiced handwriting; Bakugou's name in Kanji is written out on the takeaway cup. Some of his lines are awkwardly stilted, like he had to look it up to double check, but only slightly.

He huffs with laughter, “Well thanks my antagonist, it surely won’t get mistaken for any of these extras drinks now.”

For the first time today, Scaramouche actually laughs a little under his breath, smiling as he walks away.

In tedious comparison, he spends a couple more minutes taking orders, hoping the time might tick by a little quicker. It’s just his luck that the manager actively comes out to tell him to take his break. Humans and their pathetically low tolerance do annoy him beyond belief.

And with that, he’s standing in the middle of the cafe, looking a little lost despite working there.

There are three places to sit.

One is in between a group, chatting loudly over the table, that he thinks would drive him insane.

Another is by some couple on a date, and that also makes him nauseous.

Or, he can sit next to Bakugou on his barren end of the place.

Scaramouche comes to sit down a seat spaced away from Bakugou, resting his elbows on the table as he stares emptily out the window.

“On break, Antagonist?” He questions, closing the book he’d been studying before, looking over with his head propped on his fist.

Glancing over once, Scaramouche snickers, “Doing homework, Main Character? I thought you would know everything already.”

“Provisional hero license exams are coming up.” He shrugs, “It’s largely physical but you never know what they’ll try to surprise you with. I’m simply being prepared.”

Scaramouche hums, “You don’t need to defend yourself.” It sounds weirdly sincere, like he actually means it.

That is, until he jokingly follows it up with, “Simply, let me call you a nerd.”

Bakugou rolls his eyes, “Absolutely not twig limbs. I’m sure you can be more creative than that.”

“What am I supposed to be, a thesaurus?” Scaramouche grumbles, but decisively says, “Overachiever.”

“Ten times better,” He agrees with a decisive nod of his head.

Scaramouche looks over and stares, analysing him for a moment. A thought crosses his mind, that he doesn’t even know why he’s succumbing to this pitfall.

“Do you like school, then?” Nevertheless, he asks.

“It’s not terrible. I need it to achieve what I want, that’s all there is to it.” He says after a moment of consideration, “And besides, why do something if not to be the best at it.”

Scaramouche listens, then scoffs at the end. “You sound exactly like one of my former colleagues, just less… Enthusiastic.” He sinks his head into his hands, looking back to the window with a dead expression.

“Hah, I’m sure I’m far better than whoever you’re thinking of anyway.” He glances out the window, honestly he hadn’t realized how long he’d been at the cafe. “Need anything while you’re still on break?”

He lights up a little more, smirking. “Technically speaking, no. But he’s nonexistent to me, so, you win.” There’s true numbness in his words, spoken out as though nothing exists behind the curtain.

Looking over to him again, he tilts his head, puzzled. “Huh. Why would you think I need anything?”

“I always win Antagonist,” Bakugou smirks, before looking at him quizzically, “Assuming you’ve been working for a while, I imagine you’d need something to eat or drink.”

He stares at him a moment longer, narrowing his eyes, before unthinkingly getting a few words out. “I… don’t particularly— want to eat.”

Bakugou narrows his eyes, then digs around in his bag and all but throws a granola bar at Scaramouche. “Snack on this later Emo liner.”

“How original,” he snides, catching the snack and glancing at at it once. “Do you wish to see me suffer?” He rolls his eyes, pocketing it.

“Clearly,” He huffs dramatically, “Can’t have my antagonist passing out. Y’know I don’t associate with weak people.”

Scaramouche sighs, insistent enough on clinging to secrecy to not retaliate.

“‘Weak—’ I could kill you,” he says all of a sudden, “You know that, I figure. You just don’t want to air it out.”

“You wouldn’t kill the main character, Scara, now would you?” He grins, one would probably think he’s being overconfident as always if it weren’t for the little something under it. Hopeful belief, maybe?

Even so, yes, he believes Scaramouche certainly could kill someone, just not him.

Bakugou gets up, throwing his bag over his shoulder, “Enjoy whatever’s left of your break Lightning Bug.”

Scaramouche watches him leave, his eyes following him until he’s out the door. It’s weird, he doesn’t think he’s wrong. And what’s with those random nicknames?

He sighs and gets up, begrudgingly going back to work.

He’s not looking forward to the rest of this day.

—

Gazing dully across the streets, watching traffic pass and pedestrians shuffle along like items on a conveyor belt – Oh archons, the job brain-rot is getting to him – Scaramouche leans against the brick of the side wall, a little precariously balancing his foot on the edge of the rooftop.

Wind blows every few seconds at him, messing up his hair; and the stupidly fine fabric of the suit he’s been made to wear. Well, he counts his blessings, it’s not as bad as being forced to wear a fur coat designed for the tundra, only to not feel the cold at all. Pointless place, the Fatui.

In defense of his rather dangerous stance on the edge, he’s been waiting, bored, for ages. It’s not a ridiculously high drop, and even if it was, it wouldn’t matter anyway. He’d survive.

“You shouldn’t stand so close to the edge, fledgling.” Hawks lands gracefully on the roof behind Scaramouche, “Dangerous place that is.”

Uncaring to turn back, Scaramouche laughs into the wind. “Not for me.”

He slowly turns his head to the side, looking back at the agent he’s apparently been stuck with. He gives him an inquisitive glance, then rolls his eyes.

He steps up to be more to the side of Scaramouche, “Mhm. Well, I’m Hawks, number two hero and the one you’ve been assigned to. You’ll really just join me on patrols and stuff, I’ll try to keep the media away from you.”

Scaramouche seems to grimace, maybe flinch, some kind of off reaction.

“Why not number one, hm?” Tilting his head, as if he’s asking the air directly, he snidely asks.

“It’d be pretty odd for me to be number one instead of the guy who’s been on the scene for like thirty some years.” He shrugs, “I’m a good hero, commission made sure of that, but that doesn’t automatically make me deserving of the very best title.”

“I was number six,” Scaramouche says back, some part of him trying to relate, but quite instantly losing track of it. He shoves his hands in his pockets and looks darkly down at the street. “You don’t want to know how long I worked for that.”

“Anyway, I hate the number two.” He turns, magnetically retreating back into shelter.

Hawks seems to relax as they move back to the safer part of the roof. “The rankings are kind of dumb anyway.” He says it like it’s some kind of olive branch.

“You work with someone else, right? Hope I can compare,” He smiles, a try at a joke for the boy who seems like he hates just about every second of this.

Scaramouche rolls his eyes, his mind going to the only person he’s known in the Fatui ranks to make a joke in the middle of a mission. That’s certainly a comparison.

“Used to be. You could say I was terminated.” Vaguely, he offers the bare minimum of an answer.

“Well, I’ll be a good mentor!” He grins, flexing a wing out, “Hey- wanna get some lunch. I know a great chicken place.”

“Aren’t we supposed to be on a mission?” Scaramouche stares at him, lost, but also getting it all the same. He holds in a laugh, more of a dead inside one. He knows exactly who he’s dealing with.

Hawks shrugs, making a so-so motion with his hand, “Not really? This is more like the commission's version of making sure you won’t be a liability by having me take you under my wing.” Then, almost cryptically he adds, “You’re older and more experienced than what they normally go for. Now, lunch, yes or no? Otherwise we will have to get back on patrolling.”

“Fine. I don’t care.” Scaramouche concedes, shrugging.

Picking up on the red flag he’s so kindly clued into, he turns to stare at him, like he knows what that means already. “And what do they ‘normally’ go for, hm?”

“Great! Hold on tight!” Without much more warning Hawks grabs Scaramouche under his arms and shoots them off towards the sky. The rushing wind feels like home until Hawks is landing them on some business building’s roof across from the chicken place. Crouching down as he’s about to take off again, “Kids with high potential for heroics. Kay, be right back, gonna get the food.”

Kids, yeah. How has he gotten roped into yet another operation like this.

A little jarred, Scaramouche grumbles and brushes himself off; as if dust could just settle on him from the wind. “Don’t give any warning, why don’t you. Not very angelic.” He says snarkily, though the ending word tapers off a little softer, and all of a sudden he feels a bit homesick.

“Never said I was one,” He grins, then drops down and disappears into the little restaurant. It doesn’t take too long for him to come back, ten minutes, maybe, and he flies back up to the roof with a bucket of fried chicken pieces.

Having been sitting on the edge of the roof while he waited, Scaramouche stands up and eyes Hawks, then the food, suspiciously.

“Great. Thanks.” He says, dully sarcastic.

“Yup!” He smiles before happily grabbing a piece out and chomping into it. “I love this place, I come here pretty often on quiet days.”

Scaramouche warily grabs a piece of chicken, taking a cautious, rather light bite of it. His expression shows practically no emotion but neutrality.

“Isn’t that basically cannibalism, bird?” He says after a moment, glaring.

He rolls his eyes with a little laugh, “Come on, you too? Everyone says that but really I just have wings, I’m sure I’m not the most birdlike person in Japan. Besides.. Even if it is, this chicken is too tasty to give up!”

“How human of you.” There’s something harsh, fiery in his tone. Like that disdain is there again, that hatred. He snaps out of it and takes another bite of chicken.

“Eh, what can I say!” He takes another bite, shrugging, evidently rather unbothered. Although all the while his eyes scan the streets below them, watching for the slightest disturbance.

Seeing Hawks get distracted for a moment, Scaramouche thinks this might be his chance. So, discreetly as he can, he finishes the piece of chicken and steps over to the edge, covertly searching the streets. Good thing there’s plenty of routes to take so far up.

Preemptively, he laughs. Bitter, in an overjoyed way.

“Bored now!” And with that, hops over the brick and jumps.

Panic. Panic immediately, he’s had plenty of these situations, but it’s always panic first.

“Kid!” The food is abandoned as Hawks dives after him, launching feathers from his wings to get under Scaramouche as well. He won’t let this kid fall, he can’t.

By the time Scaramouche sees him, mid fall— he takes the measure of resentfully manoeuvring to the side to grab onto the side of the building, catching himself on a pipe. It’s already far enough down to land, so, he drops the rest of the way, cushioned by the gravel.

It doesn’t hurt. It never hurts. Because even if it does, it doesn’t compare.

Easily, he pushes himself up and dashes down the street. Thinking, he bites his lip as he runs, he’s got to lose this guy. But, he’s annoyingly determined.

The feathers follow Scaramouche as if in a hive-mind, having an order and following it through at all cost.

And Hawks himself is sprinting down the streets after him too, “Kid, wait up!”

If anything, Scaramouche is good at making labyrinths for whoever dares chase him.

He turns into an alley, then, just to add to the puzzle, leaps up over a wall, then into the next alley it is, like a grid. Spontaneously, he takes a few more of these sporadic routes, until he’s fairly sure he’s at least gained distance on Hawks.

It’s dimmer here, the light of day blocked out by parallel buildings. That, he’s fine with, as it’s awfully bright out there. So, contently, he wanders briskly down the street.

Birds chirp distantly in the blue sky, while darkened, shadowed walls stretch on endlessly. As do the streets, which don’t seem to have any differing qualities but slightly different sets of trash along the sides.

Scaramouche kicks a sooty snack wrapper away, and he’s met with a crinkle in return.

Wait…

Remembering something, he reaches into his pocket, feeling around until- He hears a softer, muffled crinkle.

With the confirmation, he fishes out the little snack bar Bakugou had given him this morning. In his hands, it’s neat, barely bothered by the fall, or melted by the sun. Colourful, delicate, and still cool.

Scaramouche doesn’t need to eat. But… It’s not much to eat, not difficult to eat.

So, he tears open the packet and snacks on it as he walks.

All of a sudden, someone in just as much of a rush slams into him. Scaramouche, taken aback, winces and messes up his steps.

“Watch where you’re going, idiot.” He grumbles harshly, adjusting himself; and the suit.

The person looks jumpy, hurriedly saying sorry and skittishly stepping to the side, ready to run again. There’s something clutched in their hands, a small, flat piece of fabric. It clicks instantly.

“Oh, sorry, might I say pickpocket.” Scaramouche laughs, it’s a little maniacal.

They run, they certainly try. In a flat three seconds, he has them paralyzed against the floor with his power. Boredly, he stands over them with his hands over his hips.

“Isn’t it unfortunate you had to run into me. I simply love ruining people’s days.” Amused at this, he rants.

Perched up on a low roof, Hawks waves away people from the spectacle of Scaramouche taking the person down. For a moment he taps away on some small device before pocketing it and gliding down to join his runaway mentee.

Hearing the familiar, irritating sound of wings, Scaramouche sighs and turns his head, glaring at Hawks.

“Well, I certainly tried to lose you.” He folds his arms, “And don’t think I won’t keep trying.”

“Well. With the spectacle you’ve put on I almost worry that won’t be a problem.” He sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose before seeming to shake it off, “I’ve alerted the police to come pick this guy up.”

Almost surprised it even matters/em>, Scaramouche huffs. “He’s worthless.”

It’s then that he realises- one of his hands is bleeding, electric violet, from the fall. He stares at the blood briefly, almost detached, then shoves it in his pocket.

“Now, I hope this is enough to prove you needn’t worry about me.” He says sternly, side glancing at Hawks.

“Scaramouche, it wasn’t exactly about that, not entirely.” Sirens sound in the distance, coming closer by the second, “You shouldn’t have put-“

He sighs, wings shifting in frustration, “No. it’s happened, it’ll be fine hopefully.”

“What?” Going silent, as if to leave room for himself to calculate; Scaramouche stares at him, trying to discern what he’s so concerned about. He shrugs, in any case.

“Aren’t you going to ask how I survived the fall?” He asks, keeping that unimpressed expression. “Because I’m not going to answer.”

“You did and that’s all that matters.” He says quickly, surely, before turing to the police officers as they pull up.

“Can’t say I’m used to that response.” He tries to laugh, like it’s a cynical joke. But all that’s left is a hollow smile.

Hawks glances at him questioningly, but still handles the police first. Handing off the guy quickly and clearly trying to get the whole thing over it.

Scaramouche walks off to wait in the shadows, at least mildly covert. He shuns anyone who approaches him, closed off. He looks at his hand and the blood trickling down it, a broken nail too, and feels a bit sick. No, he definitely feels sick, some way or another. Izuku would understand. He hates that he knows he would.

When he bites at his nails, he tastes blood. It’s unpleasant, miserable; actually. But he can’t stop doing it.

It’s over soon enough, the police all but taking off after Hawks handed the poor guy over. With a stretch he turns around to move towards Scaramouche, “That’s enough ‘excitement’ for one day. Here I was thinking it’d be a slow uneventful day.”

The moment Hawks nears him, he drops his hand back into his pocket like a child concealing what they’re up to. “Hah. Not with me around.” Scaramouche says, though it sounds a little more self-deprecating then he’s trying to be.

His voice goes a little quieter, like he’s earnestly desperate. “Can I… go home now?”

Hawks nods, and for a fleeting moment he seems a little sad, “Yeah, kid, you can go home now.”

As soon as he says that, gives him permission, he walks off, wordlessly. Like that’s it, command after command, waiting for freedom.

Honestly, he’s still waiting.

Hesitantly after a moment, Hawks calls out for one last time this night, “Check on that green-haired kid you work with for me, please.”

Chapter Text

There’s a click as the door opens, and a faint, cleanly scented air wafts into the apartment.
“Izuku,” In a matter of moments, Scaramouche is standing beside the couch, hand hovering over his brother’s shoulder, hesitant. He pulls himself back after a second and stands straight as a pin, staring down at him. He fixes a strangely warm smile after a tick. “I may have an idea.”

Izuku twists around to face his brother, nearly leaping up in the process, “Really?! What’s your idea?”

Scaramouche breathes out a laugh, raising his hands. “Don’t get too excited…”

“Well, you know, I was thinking. As I do- Quite terminally, actually- And I was wondering if we should get some sort of strong light source for when we infiltrate the Shie Hassaikai.” Before Izuku can respond, he adds, “It’d serve as non-verbal communication, if we can invent a code.” Ready to just close it there with an arrogant glare, he stops, then softly adds, “What do you think?”

Izuku practically glows, “Oh that’s really smart! Especially if the power is cut off by them then we won’t have to stumble in the dark, good thinking!”

He folds his arms over the back of the couch, “So do you want to go to the mall sometime today then? I’m sure we could probably find one there.”

Scaramouche stalls in a very brief, but barely contained panic. “Yeah, about that… No mall’s going to cut it. The legality of ultra-strong torches is… somewhat close to the legality of what we do. Civilians aren’t supposed to mess with them.” He tries to explain, for once, weirdly knowing.

Izuku simply blinks, silent for a moment, “Oh, you want one of those lights. I mean those things are out in the countryside I think, but we can totally make the drive to get some.”

“Wonderful!” Bordering on sarcastic, he claps his hands together with a grin. “Right, then. When’s Inko coming home?”

“Well.. about that.” Izuku gestures towards the TV, fumbling around until his hand hits the remote and the sound plays. The news plays, displaying a retelling of a major villain attack that happened only an hour ago with quite a few people injured.

“Mom’s definitely going to have to work late tonight, she might even just sleep at the hospital honestly.” He cuts the sound back off, “I can find us the directions to the place, but I guess we won’t be able to go until tomorrow or the day after.. sorry Kuni.”

“Oh…” Staring down for a moment, Scaramouche goes silent.

Just as alarmingly, he raises his head back up and a grin grows on his face. “No, unacceptable. Izuku… Do you know what this means?” That grin just gets even more malicious.

Izuku eyes him with playful suspicion, “I’m.. afraid I may not want to know! But please, go on, oh great one.”

Doing a microscopic little jump, Scaramouche proudly declares, “I get to drive us!”

“..You what.” Izuku blinks in utter disbelief.

“Are you really going to make me do my dramatic reveal again?” Scaramouche rolls his eyes, “You heard me. Inko taught me to drive when I started working.”

“I-..” Izuku huffs with laughter, “Right, of course. Well I guess that means we can go today after all.”

“That’s right! And, I’m pretty good at it if I don’t say so myself.” Scaramouche says, then narrows his eyes. “But everyone else is atrocious at it, so it’s a low bar.”

“Anyway,” He shakes his head. “When do you want to leave, Izuku?”

Izuku takes a moment to lean over to the other side of the couch, with a dramatic display he pulls his bag up and looks in it for a moment, “..Anytime is fine! All my stuff is here.”

Scaramouche eyes him, then the bag, and then double checks his own pockets. Satisfied, he glances to the door.

“Well, come on then,” Slipping away, he coaxes Izuku to follow with a hand gesture and some words Izuku can’t recognise.

Izuku hums, slinging his bag over his shoulder and taking big quick strides to follow after Kunikuzushi. Absentmindedly he taps away at his phone for the directions.

Midway down the stairwell, Scaramouche stalls.

“Wait… We won’t have a car, will we?” Sighing, he drops his head into his hands and holds like that for a sharp second.

Izuku peeks over the railing and scans the parking lot, “Uhm… nope! Maybe we can split the cost of a rental?”

“A rental…” Scaramouche looks up, blankly running over that word. “A car that you can rent? Hm…”

“Okay, that’ll do.” He decides, then mutters more to himself than his brother as they walk down the stairs, “And I’m paying.”

“..I feel like you’re probably underestimating the price it is to rent a car but, sure, okay.” He shrugs, maybe he’ll just slip some cash to Kunikuzushi later in return.

Scaramouche’s smirk seems to echo up the hall, “Doesn’t matter, Izuku.”

“..If you say so.” Izuku eyes him a bit skeptically, just what kind of job has he gotten now for him to sound that confident in the money he has. Really, his last three jobs ended in reduced pay! Maybe he’s just been saving more than Izuku thought he was.

“I do say so!” Scaramouche covers his mouth as he giggles, unwavering as he disappears ahead the corner.

Izuku laughs along, turning the corner with a smile, his brother is happy. That’s all that matters.

“I think there’s a rental place a few streets away.” He supplies after a minute, tapping away on his phone to double check.

Slowing just to turn towards Izuku as they walk across the street, Scaramouche watches him, then stares at his phone.

“Phone addict,” That serves as a warning, although not a very gentle one, as he immediately acts to swipe Izuku’s phone from his hands. Not even a second seems to pass before he’s turned it completely off and dropped it back in Izuku’s hands. “We don’t need those things.”

Izuku blinks, once then twice, staring between Kunikuzushi and his phone, “I was checking to make sure we were going the right way? Geez Kuni, I didn't think you were so against phones.”

Luckily enough for them he was more checking out of anxiety than anything, and he got a decent enough look before it was snatched out of his hand. Izuku drops the phone into his bag.

The streets chatter away as the walk, and all of it blends together until one, bright, familiar green sign lights up at the end of the street.

Scaramouche, about ten yards ahead of his brother, trailing behind, walks straight into the place, and almost exactly as Izuku catches up, he comes back out with a staff member in tow.

“Right- So, it’s one with the new technology systems? Hm. I’m not sure about that… Do you have sat-nav? Alternatively, no, nevermind.” Scaramouche talks at the agent, who gives him a weird look. He waves his hand dismissively, then gestures to Izuku, “Come on, Izu, let’s go. I’ve already paid.”

“How could you have possibly– y’know, nevermind, okay.” Izuku huffs dramatically, glancing at the worker and his brother subsequently, “Well, thank you. Which one is it?”

A plastic, forced grin sticks to the worker’s face. “Hi there! Just there, that one at the front. It’s brand new, so there’s no damage, you’re welcome to check it out yourself. Oh, and, would you like to sign up for our insurance? It’s safe, reliable and-”

“Yeah, sure… Whatever.” Scaramouche shrugs, and the worker gleefully thanks him and walks off.

Izuku stalls for a minute, exasperated, before taking quick strides over to Kunikuzushi and their rental, “Seriously, where are you getting all this money from? I mean.. A brand new car and some– probably– cashgrab insurance.”

Distantly he thinks that maybe the insurance deal isn’t half bad considering he doesn’t know how well Kunikuzushi can actually drive, and it’ll be glaringly obvious if the car gets damaged in any way like the worker said, but still! His point still stands.

Izuku eyes the car a bit warily before pulling the door open, the last time he was in a car that was this expensive was when he and Bakugou were ten and Aunt Mitski was insistent he join them to the waterpark.

Just as he’d done to the rental agent, as if that tone still lingers in the air, Scaramouche dismissively waves his hand. “It’s a new job, Izuku. Don’t you figure I’d at least get somewhere with my efforts?” To end it on that, he slides into the driver seat and slams the door shut.

“I mean– yeah, but I swear didn’t you have to start at a new place? Did they seriously pay you, as a new hire, this much?” Izuku huffs back, more curious than prying, as he drops into the passenger side and carefully pulls the door shut.

Scaramouche pauses for a moment, failing to reply as he looks over the inside of the car. So much bustle, practical millions of switches he has no idea what to do with.

Eventually, maybe for lack of anything better to do; he looks at Izuku, too defensively huffing. “Yes? I’m functionally overqualified for everything. It only makes sense for someone to finally see my worth.”

“Okay, Kunizushi,” Izuku concedes, seeing as actually getting to their destination is more important, “That button closest to the steering wheel, press that to start the car.”

For a millisecond, he complies, shifting to look for the button- Only to glare back at Izuku in contempt. “Don’t tell me what to do.”

Izuku rolls his eyes, “Oh sure, okay then.” He roots around his bag for a moment, “Guess I’ll just catch up on reading then! Tell me if you need anything.”

“Fine with me.” Scaramouche sighs, hesitating before carefully starting the car and turning out of the driveway. In a smooth, weightless moment, they’re coasting down the road steadily on the speed limit.

The book is open in his hands, but Izuku’s only watched the scenery move past them as Kunikuzushi drives. Eyes darting from traffic lights to other cars to signs posted on the side of the road. A bit surprisingly Kuni is driving just fine, really Izuku should just relax, he knows he should. Eventually he pries his eyes away and onto the pages.

Scaramouche glances across the seat, eyes drifting over the book his brother is reading. He shifts and looks back at the road, slowing to a stop as the light turns red.

“So, what are you reading?” Again, he can’t help but look over, “What genre?”

It takes a moment for Izuku to process that Kuni is talking to him, “Oh! It’s a thriller- murder mystery to be more exact. It’s been really interesting so far!”

“Oh yes?” Humming, Scaramouche starts up driving again when the light fades to green. “How exhilarating. You know, one year, murder mystery was the only thing people were writing. I loved it, until I got sick of it.”

Conveying the least emotion he can, he adds, “But then again, a trend is just a template. It doesn’t make it any less ‘original’.”

Izuku hums, “That’s fair enough! If you don’t like murder mysteries anymore, what do you like to read now then?”

Going quiet, Scaramouche’s expression softens, and he looks like he hates it. “Well.. I was pretty partial to that mythology book you got me…”

“All I could read for years was schematics and instruction manuals.” He sighs, and that unpleasant feeling rests right back where it belongs.

“Oh.. Oh! You liked it?” Naturally, that’s what Izuku ends up focusing on, “Well I can get you more! I can even get you different types of mythology books!”

“Really…?” Almost losing focus for a moment, Scaramouche turns to him, “You’d let me get books—?”

“Of course, Kuni. It’s not in question, it’s not conditional or not allowed. I’d get you all the books I could because you like them, and you deserve to have things you like.” Izuku says quickly, glancing away from his book a bit seriously. Like he needs Kunikuzushi to know that he’s telling the truth.

Kunikuzushi doesn’t stop staring at him, and it grows fiercer when he starts to stare like Izuku is his only lifeline.

He forces his eyes back onto the road. “Well, thank you, Izuku.”

“Of course, Kunizushi.” Slowly, he looks back towards his book, “There’s no universe where I’d say anything different.”

Everything falls into silence, just the soft swishing of cars past them and the hum of the city.

Soon, Scaramouche drives onto the motorways, all while the two of them sit in peace.

“I want this car dead.” Out of nowhere, Scaramouche comments, as flatly as ever, a finger pointed over the steering wheel.

Up ahead, a grey-ish car a length away from him passively skates along, innocent as ever.

Izuku glances over, “Oh.. you get road rage don’t you. Well, as long as we don’t crash, say whatever you want. That car is going the speed limit aren’t they..?”

“Yes! Now they are. First, they chose to cross lanes just to get in front of me.” Scaramouche scoffs, and that monochromatic tone transforms into ablaze bitterness like the flip of a coin. “I want them dead, Izuku. Dead.”

“Well.. you can imagine them dead all you’d like Kuni, but you can’t actually kill them. We have to get to the countryside and get the flashlights first.” Izuku shrugs, glancing out the window and watching the blur of trees and signs.

“Can’t you just indulge me for once?” Rolling his eyes, so dramatically it almost causes himself to swerve, Scaramouche complains. “I’m going to overtake them.” A malicious grin lights on his expression as he starts onto the other lane.

“Please.. Please don’t let us crash..” Izuku mutters into the air, warily glancing over at Kunikuzushi as they start moving through the cars and lanes.

“If I crash, you can have my inheritance.” Scaramouche jokes, though it doesn’t quite sound fully insincere.

Only a couple blurs of moving cars and dips in the motorway fence later, the lanes suddenly split off into two, slicing his target from him, now, effectively in the entirely wrong lane. Quite dramatically, he sinks his head against the steering wheel.

Izuku is holding onto the above handles like a lifeline, looking a little like a scared cat about ready to flee, “Well! That was eventful! Hah- but y’know maybe we just should get back on course.. Maybe play some relaxing music or something…”

Refocusing, Scaramouche drags himself up, still miraculously driving as smooth as ever. He scoffs, “No, no music, no phones.” Like a dictator’s rule, he decides.

Though, once he actually takes a glance at Izuku, he almost instantly snaps onto a different path. “Are you alright? I didn’t mean to scare you… I—” He cuts himself off, loses the words, and just doesn’t know what to say.

Izuku rolls his eyes slightly, humming, “Well, alright then,” He grabs his book back, “I’m fine Kuni, don’t worry about it. Honestly it just reminds me of Aunt Mitsuki and Bakugou, she has road rage too and it wouldn’t surprise me if he does too.”

“Bakugou? Right.” In short, clipped words, Scaramouche repeats. His head tilts slightly, almost strained as he stares across the road, soot and gravel and all. That’s probably where he belongs, the holes he’s dug to. On the side of it somewhere, like a dead animal.

“Well, I’m sure you’d be miserable if we were in a car together.”

Maybe against his better judgment, Izuku doesn’t question the way Kunizushi worded that. Wouldn’t he be miserable too? Bakugo’s been nothing but trouble for him.. right?

“Pretty likely, I have to agree.”

Scaramouche chuckles under his breath, maybe too fond. And just as uncertainly, too late, he adds, “Don’t worry, I’d be miserable too.”

Just for a moment, they whiz past a dead rabbit on the side of the road.

Izuku doesn’t respond, he can’t, he watches the rabbit on the side of the road for as long as it’s in view– Just a fleeting moment. Too late to try to save it, but he would’ve. He hopes it found peace in being somewhere else now.

Easily, Scaramouche laughs to fill the silence. Light, but only a note stays discordant, only a fragment of a voice break.

“Izu, do you want something to eat? I will stop along the way.” He clears his throat, suggesting, maybe more deciding, softly.

Izuku tears his gaze away from the window, “Huh..? Oh, ah.. Yeah sure. I think food would be good, I don’t think I ate breakfast.”

“Food it is, then, little human.” Scaramouche eyes him playfully as he says that, then fixing his eyes on the signs for a good place to turn. “What do you wish to eat? You’ll have to tell me.”

“Hm.. oh that gas station off this next exit has pretty good food.” Izuku points out after a moment of consideration, “We can stop there. How's the gas on the car?”

“Alright, I’ll keep my eye out for it.” Nodding, Scaramouche shifts onto the closer lane, looking out for the sign. “Uhm… I… How do I find that—?”

“It’s mainly a red brick building it should be right by the exit, as for the gas it’s that second information gauge on the dashboard. If it’s close to the ‘E’ we should also get gas while we’re there. There aren’t a whole lot of gas stations the further into the country we get.”

Scaramouche nods, and after he compliantly checks the gauge, gradually turns the car into the next turning, driving down the little side road.
Sliding into the nearest parking space, graced by the glorious scenery of lampposts and concrete, he stops, rummaging around in his pocket until he pulls out that sleek, almost suspiciously clean looking dark-grey card, tossing it at Izuku. "Go, get whatever you want. I’ll figure out the gas.”

Izuku’s already halfway out of the car, “Alright! I’ll try to be quick!” He disappears around the car and subsequently inside the building.

-

By the time Izuku is stepping back to the car, food in tow; Scaramouche is standing with his arm rested on the hood, chatting with a random person, her friend in the car behind them.

"Thank you so much for paying for me! You really didn't have to,"

The woman smiles, making a dismissive motion with her hand, "Oh don't worry, you're so kind. I love seeing polite youth these days!"

They chatter away a couple times, Scaramouche's eyes fixed attentively on the lady, brightly grinning in a way that looks like it's made of synthetic lights.

His eyes flick to Izuku, and he almost immediately switches back off. "Farewell then,"

"Izu!" Scaramouche walks up to his brother, eyeing the food. "What have you got, hm?"

“What was that about?” Izuku questions as he slides into the seat, “Ah, I got some chicken tenders and tater tots, and this cold tea to drink! I take it getting gas went fine?”

“Oh, don’t worry about that. Call it being resourceful.” Scaramouche hides the smug smile that almost creeps onto his face, settling back into the driver’s seat. “Sounds good. Well, I figured it out almost instantly, however- As I said, it called for some resourceful ‘playing dumb’. Works like a charm..”

Izuku blinks, looking at Kunikuzushi like he can’t quite figure it all out, “Did you.. Get something to pump the gas for you? Scam someone out of money? I was gone for like ten minutes Kuni.”

Playfully defensive, Scaramouche raises his hands, looking around like a busted criminal. “Maybe! Well, now you know what I’m like without you.”

Somehow, that sinks into the air a little too darkly.

Instead, he follows up with, “Anyway, I wouldn’t say it was a scam, if anything, they practically volunteered for it. All I did was look comically confused as I stood there.”

Opening up the container of chicken tenders, Izuku hums playfully, “Oh really? And you’re sure that you weren’t standing there actually confused?”

At that, Scaramouche lightly shoves his brother’s shoulder, scoffing, “Not at all! I’m very adept at reading instructions.” He huffs, crossing his arms.

“If you say so Kunizushi!” Izuku laughs brightly just before chomping down on his food.

-

Orange and magenta clouds tint the sky a soft, salmony pink, silhouettes of trees shadowing off the fluffy lighting. Out of the window, that sky looks like it never ends. The traffic light goes red, then orange, then the car is moving before Izuku can see it turn green.

Scaramouche leans over, spying the navigator built into the car. He eclipses the sky in the same way those dark trees had, so blinding. The next moment, he's back focusing on the wheel.

"If all goes to plan, we should be almost there." He says, turning off the motorway onto a gravely country road, a few green signs that almost look brown under the sunset guiding the way.

Izuku yawns, stretching his arms out, as he watches the landscape pass in blurs, “Oh, good! Must say I’m glad we’ve made it in one piece.” He smiles, a hint of laughter on his voice.

He presses down a little button and sticks his hand out the window, feeling the cool wind move around fingers. Everything is okay, he is content.

“Isn’t the sunset out here beautiful, Kuni?” Izuku hums softly, watching the horizon as if it was a once in a life ordeal.

Scaramouche responds by taking a quick glance out Izuku’s window. He turns back to the road as they go down a hill. “I don’t really like it.”

“Hm,” Izuku thinks for a moment, “You’ll like the stars then. They’re more visible out here, everything is.”

“Stars,” Scaramouche goes oddly still for a moment, only the automatic driving movements taking over. He adjusts his grip after a moment. “They’re real?”

“Of course they’re real,” Izuku says, with a surprising lack of indignity, “They’re basically just hot gas up in space, and they shine bright enough we can see them just by looking up. I don’t know– I just think they’re pretty.”

“Mm…” He doesn’t sound all that convinced, but still, Scaramouche hums, “Whatever you think.”

“Look, the building is just up there.” Izuku points towards a quaint building, it’s seen better days surely but it looks generally well-kept. A sign across the top of the building reads ‘Apparatus Infinity; Gadgets for anything and everything, everyday.’

“Ah, wonderful.” Scaramouche’s tone lightens, and he focus on driving them up to the building.

He parks just outside, most of the road barren of cars. As their journey reaches its endpoint, Scaramouche just sighs against the wheel for a moment, before promptly pushing open the door and stepping round onto the street.

Izuku takes a minute to make the window roll back up before he steps out the door. He squints reading the time frames printed on the shop door. “Oh! Good, looks like we made it just in time.”

“Lucky us!” Scaramouche rolls his eyes, trailing up and already walking in through the door.

When Izuku catches up, he hushes his voice, “Don’t tell them your name, we ideally don’t want this tracing back to anyone. If it’s my ID… It won’t lead to anything.” He whispers to his brother.

“You’ve been really cryptic recently and especially today, y’know that?” Izuku rolls his eyes fondly, “Just let me handle–”

“Hey, welcome to Apparatus Infinity! Be with you in just a second!” A very familiar voice calls out.

“Mei?!” Izuku pauses, then just as quickly takes a side-step to have a clear view of the counter the girl pops up from behind.

“Izuku-kun! Oh, and Kunikuzushi-kun! Well what are you guys doing all the way out here?” Mei grins, swiping some oil off her chin. Although all that really does is leave a smear, but she doesn’t seem bothered.

Leaning his head back only to stare at the ceiling like it’s his enemy, Scaramouche sighs. “Well! So much for that.” He mutters, nudging Izuku’s shoulder before walking over to the girl.

“Hello again, Hatsume. What a surprise!” He smiles and closes his eyes, only if to hide the disdain in them.

“We came here to get some of those storm flashlights, but why are you here Mei?” Izuku happily takes to talking to Mei, distantly he wonders if he should mention him trying to visit UA… Eh, some other time.

“Well for starters you totally could’ve just asked me to make you some!” She sounds playfully offended, rightfully so, “But I’m just here to–”

“Mei, what have we told you about working the counter before cleaning up!” A honey-coated voice sounds out, and immediately following it a elderly woman comes from around the corner.

“–Visit my grandparents, but I like working in the shop too.” She turns to face her grandmother, “Sorry Obaachan, I’ll clean up after this I promise. These are my friends Midoriya Izuku and Midoriya Kunikuzushi!”

The woman smiles, “Alright then! It’s nice to meet you both– Oh, I remember you! You came in with your mother when you were just a little one. Tell her I said hello!”

Izuku returns a smile of his own and a quick promise that he will as the old woman takes her leave.

“My apologies for interrupting this lovely interaction,” Scaramouche adds in, and it seems to turn everything as dead quiet as he hoped. “But, about those flashlights?” Quaintly, politely, he smiles, clasping his hands behind his back.

Mei waves her hand dismissively, “Right, right. We have some in the back. I'll go grab them!”

Izuku calls after her, as she’s already halfway to the door, “Thanks Mei!”

“Excellent, thank you.” Scaramouche pastes a smile onto his face, standing near his brother.

“You don’t have to pretend, you know? I mean it’s literally just us in the store. You can wait in the car if you don’t want to talk to anyone.” Izuku notes absent-mindedly as his eyes catch on some of the gadgets displayed around them.

When Scaramouche turns to look at him, something shifts in his eyes, like a shadow casts right over him. Nonetheless, he smiles through it. “I do, Izuku.”

“Don’t worry, it’s fine.” He waves his hand, looking back to the empty space where Mei had just been.

“Mei is our friend,” All he says as he disappears down an aisle, hand brushing along different things.

Staring ahead as that empty space is filled by Izuku for just a moment, Scaramouche frowns.

It’s a shame - Scaramouche hates the sunset, the fake stars, and all things bright.

“...I’ll go wait in the car, then.” He mumbles, and with that he’s gone, his shadow leading him back outside to the car.

A muffled ‘Alright’ comes from around the shelves, and a bell rings out as the door clicks shut.

Not much longer after does Mei return, two boxes cradled in her arms. Izuku greets her and pays, thanking her once again for her help before they both take their leave.

He easily takes the boxes in his hands and meets his brother in the car.

As soon as the car door clicks open, Scaramouche looks over, eyes immediately landing on the boxes. He reaches over the seat to take a look inside. “Ah, great. Perfect, that’s the one.”

“Yup! All secured.” Izuku hums, clicking his seatbelt into place, “We can try to find a motel or a rest stop if you don’t want to drive through the night?”

“No, no time for that.” Scaramouche huffs, almost in a laugh, leaning against the wheel. Staring forward at the dashboard, he mutters aloud as he taps his finger, “I already slept on Thursday… Should be fine.”

“You really should sleep more, that’s..” Izuku trails off, thinking, “Three whole days, but if you’re sure then I won’t stop you. I think.. I’ll probably fall asleep though.”

Almost looking a bit startled, Scaramouche sits up, glancing over at his brother. “No- No, you’ve got it all wrong.” A little dramatically, he drops his head into his hand and grumbles. Maybe he is a bit tired. “I only need to sleep a minimum of once a week. I used to have a device that tracked my energy levels – but it never worked all that well.”

“Minimum,” Izuku points out the word, “Meaning that’s just what you need to function on a base level, not not to continually feel rested and energized.”

“Oh shut up!” Scaramouche complains, “‘Feeling rested’ is a sham. I don’t need it to get things done. Leave my lifestyle be.”

Izuku rolls his eyes, twisting in his seat so he can rest against the door, “Fine, whatever, just don’t crash falling asleep at the wheel. Wake me up if you want to switch.”

“Now, I’m sure we would crash if we were to switch.” Practically cackling, Scaramouche starts up the car, already driving them back out onto the roads as the sun starts to drift down, leaving them in fading dark.

-

"Hey, rise and shine. The sun's shining just for you." Out of thin, pitch black, Scaramouche voice raises above everything else. Just the wind rustles trees softly in the distance. "Or not, as it's midnight."

Izuku yawns, rubbing at his eyes uselessly trying to wake himself up some more. “Oh– we’re back already? I’ll grab the boxes, thanks for driving.”

“My displeasure.” Scaramouche grins in perfect sarcasm, pushing his door open and stepping out into the night’s air. With his arms crossed, he stands there for a couple seconds, looking over his shoulder as he waits for his brother.

Izuku huffs with a bit of laughter, shutting the door with his hip as he makes sure he has a good hold on the boxes, “Alright I got everything, ready to go!”

“Wait- wait,” Scaramouche walks over to Izuku, taking the boxes from him, “I’ve got them, don’t worry about it.” Carrying the boxes over to the building door, he ushers him over.

“Oh!- Alright, if you’re sure.” Izuku blinks in surprise at the boxes being taken from him, but resigns and instead fumbles around in his bag for his keys. Walking up the stairs and unlocking the door, finally home.

Easily, Scaramouche steps in, setting down the boxes just by the door. He stretches for a moment, then taps Izuku, “Go to sleep, it’s very late. I wouldn’t want you deprived of rest.”

Izuku yawns, already nodding off a bit, “Yeah.. well, you too. Night, Kuni.”

He shuffles off down the hallway and just fainting the soft click of his door shutting can be heard.

Scaramouche stands in the hallway, nothing but that wind, only closer now. The dark may be his home, but not a loving one.

In less than a moment, the door reopens, and Scaramouche is gone with the boxes.

Chapter Text

Sitting at the windowsill just cracked enough open for him to hear the sounds of the birds, Scaramouche tiredly wrestles with a gel applicator in attempts to fix his nail. It's something he's gotten depressingly skilled at, though it never fails to annoy him all the same.

Besides, it's a bit stressful, if he leaves it. It catches on any fabric weathered enough to fray; it takes forever to regrow, especially with the way his system works; and it just looks ridiculous. So, he's meticulous, fussy and slightly irritable about it.

It's... early, of some variation. At least, he notices it's not dark anymore, reprehensibly hoping Inko will be up soon. He likes to talk to her, admittedly. She's wise, and she's kind, and she's everything he never knew a mother could be. But still, he's not particularly vocal about that.

Just a tad bit later than usual, Inko emerges from the hallway. Naturally, a gentle smile settled on her face, “Care for some tea dear?”

Startled, he looks up, calming a little once he sees her. Processing for a moment, perhaps still a little detached from being alone all night— he eventually replies, “...Sure. Thank you.”

“Of course, I’ll get that started.” She hums, moving seemingly effortlessly through the motions of filling and setting the kettle onto the stove, preemptively pulling mugs down from their shelf and preparing them with the tea bags and preferred amounts of sugar.

It’s really not long before she’s appearing back in the living room.

“Have you made any friends while working recently?” Inko questions kindly, almost curiously.

Noticing her, Scaramouche looks back up, pausing with his nail endeavour to double check he heard her question right.

Immediately, someone comes to mind, but he shuts down that thought.

“No. I either dislike, or mildly tolerate everyone.” He answers bluntly, sighing. Luckily enough, he’s done his best to mostly avoid bad experiences with people by simply acting so disinterested it might be poisonous.

“Oh, really?” She hums nonchalantly, moving to take a seat, “Someone seems to think otherwise. I got a text earlier from a dear friend of mine, Mitsuki. Bakugou Katsuki’s mother! It would seem he’s interested in hanging out with you sometime soon.”

Now, Scaramouche freezes dead still, staring at her, caught.

“We’re not… ‘friends’.” He says vaguely, at first, then clears his throat, keeping himself composed. “I don’t like him. At all. We just— happen to keep running into each other.”

“Mhm, sure sweetheart. Well either way, he wants to see you again. Of course you don’t have to agree if you don’t want to but the choice and invitation is there.” Inko at least has the kindness to try to pretend to sound convinced by his words.

Hearing the skeptical way she sounds, he admits defeat, sighing and setting down his stuff to solely focus on the conversation.

“I do… Want to, kind of.” He mutters, guiltily looking off. “But I can’t.”

She sighs. She knows, she understands.

“Because of Izuku, hm?” She says more confirmingly than anything else.

Her saying it for him makes it easier for him to nod slightly, frowning. “Precisely.”

“They’ve had a long history,” Inko supplies, perhaps more cryptically than intended, “I’m afraid I may not even know all of it.”

She sighs, it’s a.. tricky situation to try to give advice for this time around. On one hand it’s undeniable that there’s bad history there, no matter the amount of information Izuku hid from her some things you just can’t hide. Yet on the other hand, Mitsuki noted something interesting- Bakugou had been seeming calmer recently. Less snappy and maybe even a bit more focused than typical.
It’s evident enough that the two boys meeting had been good, for both of them.

“..Izuku wouldn’t want to be the thing stopping you from seeing someone you’d like to hang out with. So consider that, and let me know what you’d like to do, okay sweetheart?”

After Inko says that, he just looks down at the nail he’d been trying to fix; riskily tapping the gel, finding that it’s dry already. He looks up, he has to make this decision now.

Something in him already knows the answer, and he just can’t help it.
“...I would like to.” Scaramouche answers, driven less by strategic certainty and more by impulse, for once.

“I’ll let Mitsuki know then,” She hums with a soft smile, and just in time the kettle whistles it’s note that the tea is ready to be made.

Swiftly, Inko scurries off to the kitchen. Making the cups of tea with what would seem like expert efficiency and grace.

She takes a moment then to send off the text to Mitsuki before returning to the boy with cups of tea floating through the air to their places.

-

With the midday sun glaring overhead, Scaramouche waits patiently on a path lined through the park, low hanging trees converging on him.

Every time someone passes by him on the little defined trail, he takes an aversive step back, until his feet are almost over the grass. He groans at himself and boredly moves back onto the path.

He'd made it here with only the help of the map on his phone, which, he took a singular look at and from there; mentally mapped out the directions. The automatic route wanted to make him walk a total of twenty minutes, which, he didn't want to do. In total, he took his own shortcuts and arrived in about six. Good enough.

He figures Bakugou did not have the same idea.

Katsuki shows up at 12:30 on the dot, how he managed to do that may just be pure luck.. or meticulous planning one may never really know for sure.

“Yo, Antagonist! Come on, there's a place we can sit over here.” That may just be the most friendly greeting he’s offered someone, and that alone just seems to set the tone that something is in fact distinctly wrong.

All the same though, there's a bench nearby that’s just off the trail overlooking a small lake.

“You think that I, of all people, can’t stand?” Scaramouche complains, though, follows him over to the bench regardless.

Even when he sits down, he doesn’t take his eyes off him, taking his unusual attitude as a sign. He resents the fact it sounds exactly like his own ‘masking’ voice.

“I fucking hate search and rescue.” He huffs, staring out at the water and ducks, Izuku would've loved it. He would’ve passed for sure. “You’ve had another weird job, right? Talk about it.”

And, there it is. Scaramouche immediately bookmarks to pry on that, sighing and looking down at the grass. “No, that was my final job. I got a… higher paying one.”

Almost as quickly as he can, he follows up with, “And why do you ‘fucking hate search and rescue’?” He quotes him rather formally, narrowing his eyes.

It startles a laugh out of him, Scaramouche quoting him like that. All the same though, he puts an arm over his eyes.

“I’m one of the top students. I got first in the entrance exam and first in the sports festival.” He starts by listing his previous accomplishments, like he has too, like they prove something. “Yet I don’t have a provisional hero license– like almost every other fucking extra– because I–.. couldn’t pass a damn search and rescue section.”

Distinctly, Bakugou Katsuki is unable to say he failed.

Scaramouche stares at him, unblinking for a moment. Whatever the case, he can’t help but let out a snide laugh.

“So, you’re a failure?” He corrects outright, grinning as though every single part of it aligns with what he’d expected.

Near instinctively, he throws his hand out letting off a fairly large explosion from it. Although, he angled it just enough that it couldn’t harm Scaramouche in any way.
“Fuck off, emo liner.”

Then, Scaramouche blinks again, tracking his hand and the energy that comes from it. Slightly, he tilts his head, then it clicks. Satisfied with his deduction, he smiles just for a glimmer of a second.

He shifts closer on the bench, legs tilted so he can face him.

With no hesitation, he offers out his hand to hang in the air, “Give me your hand.”

Katsuki stares at the other, like he can’t figure this out, can’t figure him out.

Yet still, he obliges. Placing his hand into Scaramouche’s.

Permission granted, like every strand of strained, folded masking falls apart in their hands, Scaramouche takes his hand and presses his palm against his, fingers angled to the sky.

Offering again, a handed out permission slip, Scaramouche glances up through his bangs. "How about you try and copy me, hm?"

“Do we even have similar quirks?” Katsuki eyes him skeptically, but just after it there’s the tiniest nod of his head.

In symmetry, Scaramouche nods back; clearer, more affirmative. “It’s all just energy. I’ve spent a lot of time with mine, I figure you could learn something.”

With that unraveled permission, he threads it together to softly pick up his electro; no sound, no spark, hardly the feeling of a feather. But a feather feels like a lot between them. “Match the frequency, just feel it.”

Katsuki doesn’t really know why, but he tries, he really, really, tries. He’s gotten so used to upscaling his explosions with all the mock battles and exercises they do that he almost forgot what it was like.

It feels like being a kid again, four and half years old, just learning that he can do something extraordinary. Little dancing sparks crackling along his palm, almost the same feeling of wonder just with bigger hands.

Light, humming static intermingles with distant sparks, a bird sings in the sky, the clouds sift over each other. It’s peaceful.

Scaramouche glances at his nail, and it glitters flawlessly under the gleaming light of the sun.

It’s too peaceful. Like sitting in the voiceless valleys of his home just feeling that little buzz electricity hidden under his skin, all on his own. Only this time, he’s looking into the eyes of someone just the same.

The first time Katsuki saw the sparks, he knew then that he could have his dream and be a hero. Because heroes are strong and powerful, and he had a strong and powerful quirk as long as he worked, and worked, and worked. Just like everyone said.

Looking at Scaramouche he remembers then that heroes are smart, and resourceful, and cast in the light so–

His heart picks up a bit and so does a spark in his hand, “Sorry.. Ah, yeah I mean I could always do this– It’s not special. What’s the point..”

Things can’t stay unraveled for long, so Scaramouche delicately pulls his hand back. “That’s the point. You don’t see it as valuable.”

He hums, and a smile crosses his face; he laughs like it’s sarcastic, but the sun paints it too brightly. “If you can control it, you can do anything with your power, even search and rescue. Stop treating it like a stereotype.”

It sounds too much like something Izuku would say, probably has in his notebooks, and more upsettingly Bakugou can’t find a way to refute it. Not with Scaramouche. So instead he grits his teeth, balls up his fists, and looks down.

When will he stop making such pathetic mistakes?

“... I– yeah. I guess.. You’re not wrong.”

“I’m never wrong,” Scaramouche says through that still confident smile, though it falls a little at the seams. “...Bakugou.”

If Izuku was here too, he’s sure he would be miserable.

And now he knows he’s a liar.

Katsuki rolls his eyes, it feels much more natural than the words that left his mouth before. He’s subconsciously grateful for the out it gives him, “Sure, whatever you say Antagonist. I guess I’ll believe it for now.”

“Thanks, Main Character.” Scaramouche breathes, too instinctually, and it sounds pathetically fake, for once. He scrunches his nose at himself.

Like a lifeline, Katsuki holds his phone out expectantly for Scaramuche, “Here. Put your number in, I do not want to go through mom again.” Rather dramatically, he shutters at the thought.

With a barely stifled giggle, Scaramouche waves his hand, “Well, I thought that was cute.” Brushing over that like a perfectly placed, usual comment, he takes the phone and squints at it rather uselessly.

Katsuki, of all people in the world, sputters, “It was not– She– Whatever! Whatever just put your number in!”

“Uh huh!” Scaramouche snickers, though his eyes flick lostly along the phone screen, at least until he finds a bar he can write in.

He presses about an arbitrary ten times, then hesitantly hands the phone back to Bakugou, hand twitching back like he’s going to swipe it and run off any second.

On the contact, it just says ‘6?’

Katsuki stares at it blankly for a moment, “...What is this? Your phone number Scaramouche, I want your phone number.” He looks utterly dismayed that he had to ask for it properly instead of hiding behind his arbitrary phone hand-off. He refuses to think that his face heats up, because he would never do that and he’s not struggling at all.

“Oh, um…” As if the mistake overshadows him, Scaramouche looks down a little, discreetly sliding his own phone out of his pocket.

The screen is tinted near black when he looks down at it, and he glares at the device like they’re at war. “...I don’t know how to find that.”

In a slightly surprising act of gentleness, Katsuki holds his hand out instead of snatching the device out of Scaramouche’s hand. “Oh. Well hand it here then, I’ll just put my number in. Oh– but for reference you just tap that top banner in the phone app.”

Kabukimono was always trusting. Too trusting. To the day it was twisted into just ‘gullible.’ In hindsight, he thinks, back in those valleys; running loose unsupervised until he could finally sit and watch the sunset; he thinks he might’ve gone with any stranger who asked him. Who showed him kindness.

So, Scaramouche easily drops his phone in the other boy’s hand.

Katsuki takes it gingerly, tapping away at the screen quickly, hesitating for a moment, he deletes something and puts something new in its place before handing back his phone with the newly made contact on the screen.

Like it’s something precious, Scaramouche carefully pulls it back into his lap, gazing over the screen again. Something’s changed, maybe that’s good.

“Well, thanks,” He reads the name on the contact, and too trusting of a smile forms as he says, “Katsuki.”

Katsuki wants to glance away, he finds that he can’t. “..You’re welcome, Scara.”

“Now I have to talk to you more.” As if to diffuse that everlasting smile on his face, Scaramouche snarks.

“Of course you do, wouldn’t want to leave the main character hanging would you?” He grins sharply, leaning back on the bench as if he can finally actually relax.

In a similar way, Scaramouche grins back, and the two of them could almost mirror each other for a moment. “No, you’re correct. Not until I’m finished with my villain arc.”

Katsuki rolls his eyes with a huff of laughter, “Yeah, exactly.”

At that, Scaramouche lets himself go silent, everything falling still for a minute. He starts to get a little fidgety, shifting the phone in his hands somewhat precariously.

He sighs, standing up and dropping his phone back in his pocket. “Izuku’s expecting me.” Scaramouche leaves that hang in the air, finding the most distant spot in the park to stare at.

“Sure, don’t keep them waiting up.” He stretches up, one arm up and the other bent holding the opposite elbow.

“I’ll see you around Antagonist.”

Looking up at Bakugou, Scaramouche stays stood there for a moment, still. Nothing else moves, not even the trees, not even the birds, that stay quietly planted in their trees.

As if the permission granted from earlier applies now too, he breaks the stillness just to move his hand to Bakugou’s.

“...Bye,” he whispers, with such an agonisingly soft grip on his palm. Like it’s a tell, he stops blinking again, stops breathing. Cautiously, he looks down at their intertwined hands, and adds at the end, “Katsuki.”

“..Yeah, see you around Scaramouche.” He hums unnaturally.. kind? The response in itself seems almost wrong coming from him, but it’s genuine all the same.

With that, Scaramouche lets go of his hand, albeit a bit reluctantly; before walking off through the grass. Of course, he avoids the set path as a whole, and doesn’t even bother to check the map.

As he walks away from the other boy, he rapidly holds a hand to his mouth, stifling a smile. No, archons, he can’t be like this.

Perhaps he’s overlooked the fact that he’s the failure here.