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“You know, All Might is a pretty passionate ally for the LGBT+ community.” Izuku pondered. Todoroki lifted their gaze to Izuku, halfway through putting their hair up in a small bun, taking advantage of the slow and steady growth.
“Is that so?” They twisted a black hair tie into the bun, and used their phone camera to inspect the work.
“Yeah. He told me that he’s even been to a few pride parades as a guest of honor.” Izuku said in awe.
“Interesting. If that’s the case, then I might want to consider telling him my pronouns.” Todoroki pondered, Izuku made a noise of affirmation.
“My mom has always been like that too. She’s been pretty open about supporting our community ever since I came out to her.”
“That sounds really nice. To have parents that support you.” Izuku stiffened, realizing what he had said.
“I’m so sorry, Todoroki! I-I didn’t mean to b-bring up any bad memories!” Izuku sputtered frantically.
“No, it’s alright, Midoriya.” Todoroki said, laughing slightly. Izuku calmed down after seeing his friend smile. Suddenly Izuku was struck with an idea.
“This weekend!” Izuku jumped up from his seat on the common room couch and exclaimed. This startled Todoroki, causing them to fumble with their phone to avoid dropping it.
“Yes, it is Saturday tomorrow. Is that really a reason to shout?”
“No, no. I’m going to visit my mother and have dinner with her tomorrow!” Izuku said, his eyes bright.
“I’m… not sure I follow...” Todoroki trailed off.
“You should come join us!” Todoroki stared at their friend.
“I don’t want to intrude-”
“No, really! My mom is always telling me to bring friends over! Plus she always loves cooking for people.” Izuku persuaded. Todoroki thought for a moment while Todoroki pondered the idea. Todoroki scratched the back of their neck.
“Well, if she wouldn’t be opposed to it…” Izuku gave them a grin, and pulled out his phone to text his mother.
-
Izuku gazed at the meal laid out over the freshly-washed table cloth with amused yet loving eyes. “You didn’t have to do all of this for us, mom.”
“Nonsense, Izuku. You know that I love cooking for you. Even more so now that you’re moved into the dorms.” Inko replied with a bright smile. “And you’ve even brought a friend along. How could I not cook for you two?” Inko looked to Izuku’s side at Todoroki, who was staring wide-eyed at the steaming katsudon. Inko laughed.
“We should probably start before Todoroki starts drooling.” Izuku teased, elbowing Todoroki’s side, causing them to look away in embarrassment. Inko and Izuku gave a chuckle, and they sat down to enjoy their meal.
-
The three of them were digging into the delicious meal, and went about ten minutes without saying anything, but simply savoring the home cooking. Inko decided to break the silence first.
“It’s been a long time since Izuku has brought a friend over. It’s a pleasure to meet you, young man.” Izuku stiffened up a little at the use of the masculine term, and gave a subtle glance to Todoroki. Their eyes seemed to widen slightly for a moment, but then settled back into a neutral expression. Inko noticed the change in atmosphere and gave a confused look.
“Actually, Mrs. Midoriya, I don’t conform to a gender.” Todoroki informed with an apologetic look. Inko instantly became frantic.
“Oh! I-I’m so sorry!” Inko sporadically apologized. Todoroki then looked shocked. Izuku noticed and gave a knowing look. They were not used to people apologizing for misgendering them.
“It’s alright, Mrs. Midoriya. You didn’t know.” Todoroki explained, still slightly in shock. Inko stopped panicking, but still looked slightly apologetic.
“What pronouns do you use?” Inko asked, taking on a more serious yet friendly tone. Todoroki stared at her before answering.
“...They and Them.” Inko noticed their response, and her heart broke for the kid in front of her.
“They know about me, too.” Izuku supplied, knowing what his mother wanted to say. Inko nodded.
“Shouto, if you ever need an adult to talk to, I’ll be here. Not to brag, but I’ve got a bit of experience under my belt when it comes to things like this.” Inko said, giving Todoroki a comforting look. Todoroki had an identifiable look in their eyes.
“My father won’t accept who I am. He refuses to see me as anything other than his ‘perfect son’. You have no idea how much it means to me to hear someone tell me that.” Todoroki stated, their voice full of sincerity. Izuku smiled as he watched his mother work her magic. She somehow had a way of always making people feel welcome. It was one of the reasons why he loved her so-
“CUS’ YOU’RE HOT THEN YOU’RE COLD, YOU’RE YES THEN YOU’RE NO, YOU’RE IN THEN Y-” Todoroki frantically pressed the “end call” button on their phone, and then set it to vibrate. They hesitantly looked up and saw a confused expression planted on Inko’s face, while Izuku had turned away, his shoulders shaking trying to stifle laughter. Todoroki adopted a strange expression on their face as they turned to Izuku.
“You changed my ringtone?” Todoroki asked, eerily calm. Izuku finally turned around, tears of laughter in the corners of his eyes, while he tried his best to not cackle.
“You… You left your phone unlocked in the common room… I just- pffffft!” Izuku broke off into laughter again. Izuku’s laugh made something stir in Todoroki’s chest, making them feel… lighter, somehow. It was a pleasant feeling, and before they knew it, it had grown to the point that Todoroki began laughing along with Izuku. Inko watched the teenagers before her with a pleased expression. She also began to laugh as if she had been infected with the same laughter virus that had corrupted the heroes-in-training before her. She might not have understood what was so funny, but the mood was infectious.
When both Izuku and Todoroki had calmed down, Todoroki turned to Izuku, who had taken to wiping his tears with his napkin.
“Hot N Cold? Seriously?” Todoroki lightly elbowed their friend in the ribs.
“It was the perfect opportunity!” Izuku said, getting his last chuckles out. Once Izuku had cleansed himself of laughter, he turned to see Todoroki suddenly no longer smiling, staring at their phone with a dreadful expression on their face.
“What’s wrong? Who called you?” Izuku questioned, concerned. When he didn’t receive a response, he leaned over to look at Todoroki’s screen to find a list of his recent calls. The most recent reading “Father”. Izuku narrowed his eyes at the contact, and sighed. He couldn’t just let Todoroki enjoy a dinner?
“What’s wrong, Shouto?” Inko asked, not understanding the situation one bit.
Suddenly, Todoroki’s phone began to vibrate in their hand, the screen taken over by Endeavor’s contact.
“It’s my father.” Todoroki said softly, not meeting anyone’s eyes. Inko narrowed her eyes into a determined look.
“Give me the phone, dear.” Inko said gently, yet backed with an indescribable intensity. Todoroki stared at her in shock, and hesitantly handed the still vibrating phone across the table to Inko. Izuku watched in shock. His mother wasn’t usually like this. Once inko had the phone, she accepted the call, and held the phone up to her ear. A rough voice answered.
“Are you keeping up with your training, Shouto? I expect great things from you in the provisional license exam. I will not be happy if you fail. I do not need the press questioning our family’s credibility if my son doesn’t succeed. Am I understood?” Endeavor’s voice sounded sternly through the phone. Inko grimaced at his tone. Who opens a phone call without even a greeting?
“Hello, Endeavor.” Inko greeted, in an almost too sweet voice.
“Who is this?” Endeavor demanded.
“Oh, I’m Izuku’s mother. He’s a friend of Shouto.” She could almost hear the disgust emanating from the other line in the form of a sigh.
“What can I do for you, Mrs. Midoriya?” Endeavor’s voice seemed like it was being weighed down by the very thought of interacting with anyone related to Izuku.
“Well, you can start by being a decent father.” Izuku spit out the water he was drinking, and started coughing. Todoroki, on the other hand, kept their eyes on Inko in awe. Inko gave a friendly smile before her eyebrows lowered once again.
“What did you say? My son is-”
“Child.” Inko cut off, calmly.
“Pardon?”
“Shouto is your child, not your son.” Todoroki was absolutely speechless.
“Has he drawn you into his delusions as well?” Endeavor ground out.
“No, they haven't. In fact, if anyone is delusional, I’d say that it’s you.” Inko waited for him to retort, but heard nothing. It brought a smile to her face to know that Endeavor had to purposely refrain from saying anything that would ruin his image.
“Now, listen and listen good. You have absolutely no say about how Shouto feels. Therefore, if Shouto says that they are not male, then they are not male. Are you keeping up with me so far?”
“...”
“Now, repeat after me. Shouto is a ‘They’.” Inko prodded in a childish voice, as of she were explaining to a toddler. She was met with silence, and a notification signaling that they call had ended. Inko rolled her eyes, and held out the phone over the table. Izuku and Todoroki both had their eyes wide with their eyebrows shot into their hairlines. It was then that Inko realized how much she had done. Her face flushed in embarrassment as she placed the phone on Todoroki’s side of the table.
“I-I’m so sorry if I caused trouble for you, Shouto! I lost my temper!”
“Since when did you have a temper…?” Izuku muttered.
“The Midoriya’s are a family of savages.” Todoroki stated, looking back and forth between Izuku and Inko. “That was amazing.” Izuku and Inko looked at each other still in shock of what just happened.
“No offense, but I’m never letting either of you near my phone again.” Todoroki announced, slipping their phone into their pocket. This caused another bout of laughter from Izuku, and more frantic rambling from Inko.
“Congratulations, Mom! Now we’ve both made Endeavor hate us!” Izuku exclaimed in between deep laughs.
“What?! What did you do?!” Inko shrieked.
“I’ll tell you later!”
Todoroki looked between the two of them, and let a small smile slip onto their face. Their father would probably bring this incident up the next time they spoke, but in that moment, they couldn't muster up the will to care. It was a good decision to come to the Midoriya house.