Chapter Text
Shinsou felt absolutely bone tired, but his mind remained stubbornly awake. Insomnia, he concluded, is not only exhausting but also really freaking inconvenient.
Yesterday’s failure stood out in his mind, fresh and painful. If he hadn’t gotten cocky, maybe he could have beaten that broccoli haired kid.
He should have just commanded the kid to punch himself in the face, or heck, run out of the ring instead of walk out of it. No one had broken out of his command before.
If he had a time traveling quirk he would go back and smack some sense into his past self.
He fisted the sheets as his stomach dropped a little. The overconfidence probably cost him the only chance to transfer to class 1A.
Well, there’s still a small chance. That perverted grape themed kid could still get kicked out and save everyone the headache. Probably wishful thinking though.
Shinsou stared at the ceiling and listened to his foster siblings’ gentle breathing. He preferred the white noise a fan provided to the sound of other people breathing, but at least it reminded him he wasn’t alone.
The soft orange glow of the alarm clock illuminated the nearly barren room. 5:48 AM. He had to be up at six. With a small huff, he rolled towards the edge of the bed and pushed the blankets aside.
So much for getting more than 5 hours of sleep, Shinsou thought, scratching the back of his neck ruefully. Gingerly, he raised a hand to the cool metal tightly hugging his face and grasped the front of the muzzle. The metal pressed tighter than usual.
He gave it a little tug absentmindedly in hopes of releasing some of the pressure. It was useless. Ms. Yoon has been pissed about something last night, and Shinsou always seemed to be the convenient target. Better him than those kids though.
Shinsou flinched when he registered the soft beeping of the alarm clock. Heartbeat rabbiting, he shut it off and made his way across the rug to wake up the kids.
***
With all of the kids up, dressed, and relaxing on the television in the living room, Shinsou mentally checked off his To-Do-List
6:00 am Wake up, dress, get kids ready
6:30 am bedroom door unlocks
- 7:00 am breakfast and Yoons wake up
He pulled open the fridge doors and looked inside. The milk was probably expired by now, but Shinsou unscrewed the cap and gave it a sniff anyway. Yep. Way past expired.
He made a mental note to pick up more on his way home. A small tug on his pant leg shifted his attention. Ren was looking at him with large, pleading eyes.
“Toshi, can we have scrambled eggs?” Shinsou nodded and ruffled the boy’s mousy brown hair with one hand and grabbed the eggs and butter with the other.
Ren was one of the only kids in Shinsou's entire foster care experience who willingly interacted with him outside of necessity. Maybe it was because Shinsou actually treated the kid like a kid and not some sort of walking disaster waiting to happen.
Shinsou set the eggs and butter down on the counter and slid the pan and bowl out from the cupboard. Swiftly, the eggs were all cracked and in the bowl.
To his satisfaction, Shinsou didn’t spot any shells hiding among the whites. Hah, that was a very rare occurrence for his sleep deprived ass. Shinsou 1, eggshells 0.
The slightly uncomfortable yet familiar sensation of eyes on him grew as he moved silently to retrieve a whisk. He glanced over at Ren, who was twisting the hem of his All Might shirt while looking at Shinsou. He nodded for the kid to speak. “C-can I help? Please Toshi?”
After a moment's hesitation, Shinsou thrust the whisk into the six and a half year old’s hands and ignored the quirk risk.
Ren’s quirk caused objects to disappear into a void of some kind. He doesn’t know how to control his quirk and objects occasionally disappear when he comes into contact with them.
So far it seems like once an object gets transported into the void it doesn’t come back. The Yoons made it extremely clear that Ren was(in no way, shape, or form) to touch any of their possessions.
A glance at the clock told him he had around fifteen minutes before Mr. and Ms.Yoon got up. What they didn’t know couldn’t hurt them.
He scooped Ren up and deposited him on the bar stool. The kid twisted to face Shinsou with a wide smile, hugging the whisk like it was a stuffed toy.
Hold the whisk like this, he wanted to say. The taste of metal grew sharper in his mouth, a reminder that he couldn’t talk even if he wanted to.
Shoving the thought aside, Shinsou adjusted Ren’s grip gently and took the kid’s arm in his hands.
Break the yolk, Shinsou guided Ren’s arm holding the whisk and squished the yolks.
Next, beat the eggs so that bubbles form. This way the eggs will turn out fluffy. “Like this?” The kid let out a few quiet giggles as the eggs began to foam a bit. Shinsou didn’t get to hear that sound as often as he would like.
POP!
His heart skipped a beat and Shinsou felt himself flinching in unison with Ren. The giggling cut off abruptly.
Something was wrong. What was wrong?
There was no longer friction against the bottom of the bowl and the whisk--. Aw shit…
“T-toshhi?” The kid’s body was wracked with shivers, and his wobbly voice held tell tale signs of tears. “Toshi I d-did’t m-mean–” Ren hiccuped, and slid off of the stool. Hitoshi whipped his head around. Where is it where– ahah! Gotcha.
Pen and paper in hand, he scratched out a few hasty words.
Don’t worry bud. I’m not mad at you. Everything's OK. It was an accident. I’ll take care of it. Shinsou spun the note pad around so Ren could read it.
After a moment, Ren stuttered “B-but I–” Shinsou dropped to one knee and cut him off with a tight hug. Small, warm hands fisted the sides of Shinsou’s shirt and he squeezed the boy back a little tighter.
Hesitantly, Shinosu pulled away first with a wince even though he knew the kid could use a longer hug.
He didn’t miss the tears that slid out of Ren’s shiny eyes and used the sleeve of his UA uniform to gently wipe them away. Shinsou paused until Ren’s eyes met his, then pinched his forefinger and thumb together in the universal symbol for ‘okay’.
Ren nodded and rubbed his eyes. Shinsou ruffled Ren's hair. Hopefully it comforted the kid a little bit and conveyed his message again. It’s all good, it was just an accident.
Shinsou scratched a few more words onto the notepad. Go sit with the other kids while I finish breakfast. The Yoons are gonna be up soon. Even a kid as young as Ren knew that the Yoons waking up automatically means trouble.
With a small sniffle, Ren’s head bobbled and he gave Shinsou’s leg a quick hug before disappearing into the living room. Shinsou ignored the pang in his chest and moved to finish the eggs.
The muzzle feels even tighter now, and nothing Shinsou does can loosen it. With the eggs cooking on the stove, he checks the time. According to the clock, T-five minutes before all hell breaks loose.