(1)

Aizawa Shouta had had a crush on his best friend for the last two years. He had never really grown flowers before he started attending UA and had never really thought about it much in the past. But it was different now. He was staring at the bathroom mirror at a loss. His head was nearly covered in lilies, big white lilies that were impossible to hide. He had had the odd flower grow here and there during school, but nothing like this. Unfortunately, he knew why.

He spent the whole weekend with Yamada Hizashi, only returning to his own home to sleep before going back over. The growing teen had felt truly comfortable for the first time in his life. Like he was home sitting in Hizashi's room, listening to the blond's voice as he talked about his new special interest. Shouta couldn't follow him half the time, but as energetic as his friend was, he was patient and never made Shouta feel dumb about asking questions. It really hadn't been any different than most of the weekends they shared together. There was only one thing that stood out.

Shouta realized that he had a massive crush on Hizashi. He likely had one on his friend for a long while, but it wasn't strong enough to warrant a bloom until now. And now that the flowers were in full force, they just weren't falling out. Flowers fall out on their own when the emotion that spawned them faded. If they were plucked, they simply grew back if the emotions remained. In Shouta's case, it was as if a dam had broken and he was allowing himself to feel emotions he had kept at bay for two years. Trying to stop it now was just as ridiculous as trying to stop a dam break with a band aid.

The teen looked at his watch. He had to leave soon to get to school and he hadn't made any progress on this flower problem. Normally, he'd turn to Hizashi for something like this. The guy grew flowers all the time and really took care of his hair. If anybody would have advice on this, it'd be him. But unfortunately, he was kind of the source of the problem so that was out. Nemuri would spend more time trying to get the details about why he's blooming to be of much help and Tensei would likely just ask why it was a problem in the first place. The speedster was too casual to care much about that kind of thing.

Missing school was out of the question. Not only would it mean he'd miss classes for no actual good reason, but it would mean he'd have to stay home instead. He definitely didn't want to do that. Maybe he could shave his hair off? Can't grow flowers from his hair if there wasn't any hair. No. That was also a no-go. Coming to school bald would lead to more questions and odd stares than a full bloom would.

Then there was no other option. He had to go to school and hope for the best.

School wasn't as bad as he had thought it'd be. Shouta waited as long as he dared so he arrived in homeroom just before the bell. This meant that even if anyone was curious (and many were if their wide eyes were anything to go by), they didn't have time to interrogate him about it. Even the teachers were on top of it and there wasn't much time between classes for much conversation, but even then, he made it clear that he didn't want to talk to anyone about it.

Of course, Hizashi was trying to pass him notes all day that he promptly ignored. The blond was literally the last person he wanted to talk to about this. He didn't want their friendship to change. Even though it would be naturally different since he was actively crushing on his best friend, Shouta was determined to keep it as much the same as possible. It wasn't normal today, obviously, but he wanted the flowers to die down before resuming things as they were.

If Hizashi forced his hand, Shouta wasn't sure he could ever recover.

Therefore it shouldn't have been a surprise when, after Shouta made an effort to have lunch by himself, the loud teen was already at his planned hiding place.

"Shoutaaaa!" Hizashi exclaimed when he was discovered. "You know, if you really wanted to avoid me, you need to get new hideouts." He grinned like he'd just beat someone at shogi again, but it dropped when his friend turned silently to leave.

"Wait," the blond quickly grabbed Shouta's arm before he got too far. "If this is about your flowers… we don't have to talk about it if you really don't want to. I'm the last person to judge you for that kind of thing!" As if to emphasize his point, a daisy fell out of his hair.

Shouta hesitated. If he backed out now, then it ran the chance of actually hurting his best friend's feelings. The very idea pained him so he had no choice but to suffer through it. There wasn't much room in the supply closet so it took some maneuvering for both of them to fit. It was definitely more difficult than it had been in the past since the dark-haired teen had been going through a growth spurt. If this continued, he wouldn't be able to use this space anymore.

"You don't have to respond, but if it's any consolation, Sho," Hizashi began between bites of food. "I don't think I've seen lilies in bloom like that. They look nice."

It was a good thing that the light in the closet was pretty dim or it would be painfully obvious that he was blushing. Unfortunately, the flowers reacted by growing in size. Maybe Hizashi didn't notice?

Hizashi noticed. He hesitated like he was trying to decide if he should say something or not. To Shouta's dismay, he spoke. "Sho… you didn't grow new flowers. The ones you already had got more intense. Are… are they growing because of me?"

Welp, this is it. His life was over. The lilies betrayed him once more and were blooming harder, somehow. He put his face in his hands, his hair draping over as if hiding would somehow make it better. Shouta knew that as much as he wanted to deny it, he couldn't just lie to Hizashi's face like that. He didn't speak, but he nodded instead.

The blond, who always had something to say, was silent. It felt like it dragged on for an eternity. Shouta at this point wanted some sort of reaction. Anything. Even if it was bad, then he could at least get it over with. The anxiety was eating at him to the point where he could feel his flowers wilting.

Just when he was about to just get up and leave, he felt fingers drawing back his hair-and-flower curtain. Shouta looked up to see his crush kneeling close in front of him, his own hair full of flowers, daisies. Smiling.

"Wait, 'Zashi. You…?"

"Yeah. Ever since you kicked my ass at that first Sports Festival, I couldn't help it. Why do you think I always had flowers in my hair around you?"

The usually-tired teen's heart fluttered at the surprisingly positive turn of events. His lilies revived, but he barely even noticed. This was so unexpected that he had very little clue what to do now except pull Hizashi to him in a deep hug, burying his face into the mess of flowers he found. Daisies. He never knew how much he liked the smell of daisies.

After a moment, they pulled away, but remained holding each other. "Hey Sho... I want to give something to you." The blond plucked a particularly large daisy from his hair and carefully tucked it behind his companion's ear. He then took one of the lilies and stuck it behind his own ear to match.

Shouta's fingers danced upon the daisy behind his ear. He was so used to his large lilies that the smaller petals stood out even more. "I like it and I have something for you too." Before Hizashi could respond, Shouta pressed their lips together. It wasn't particularly romantic or polished. It was his first kiss after all and of course it wasn't going to be great, but it got the message across.

Neither was aware of how long they stayed like that, talking softly in each other's arms, but they were interrupted by the bell that signified the end of lunch. Surprised, they scrambled to their feet, knocking over Shouta's bento box that he hadn't even opened.

"Hizashi, we forgot all about lunch."

"Then I guess that just means we'll have to get something to eat after school."

"I guess it does."

(2)

Aizawa found that he liked the night. He was always a bit of a night owl anyway, but there was something about the city that was special at night. Sure, there were the party-goers or people celebrating one thing or another after work, but the crowds were far smaller and there were not nearly as many cars zipping around. Naturally, the criminal realm also much preferred the night so there weren't many nights that Eraserhead had to himself.

So it was only a matter of time before he had a call come in over his radio.

"Eraserhead, do you copy?"

"Loud and clear. Where do you need me to go?"

"We've got a fire in an apartment building that's gotten out of control. There are already firefighters and other heroes on the scene, but we need more out there to help rescue and evacuation. I'm sending you the address."

"On my way. Eraserhead, out." The underground hero checked his phone for the location. He actually knew the area pretty well as it was a poorer part of town and fairly close by. It was likely that he only didn't notice the fire's smoke before because of dark night sky. As a hero, he wasn't exactly specialized in search and rescue so if they're calling him in, they must be desperate for someone who can get there quickly over any particular skill set. All he brought to the table was that he was agile enough to reach places faster than other heroes. At least if they didn't have quirks for that.

Keeping to the rooftops, he made it to the scene quickly, and he definitely smelled the smoke long before he got there. It didn't get much better when he arrived. It wasn't just one apartment building, but three next to each other. It was clear that it started with the center building as it was almost completely engulfed. The winds had taken the flames to the building on the left and a tree bridged the gap to the right. Eraserhead dropped down to the ground to coordinate with the other heroes.

The hero team, Water Hose, seemed to be in charge of controlling the fire itself. The underground hero knew he wouldn't be much help and went to find who was coordinating the rescue effort. He almost didn't see Smokescreen as her hero costume was also dark like his, though in her case it was more of a thematic choice than his desire for stealth. She was standing between the buildings, concentrating on keeping the smoke away from as many people as she could. With as large of a blaze as this was, it was taking up nearly all of her concentration to keep track of it all.

Aizawa quickly approached her. "Smokescreen! I'm here and ready to assist. Where do you need me?"

The pro hero didn't look at him but addressed him all the same. "I've already got someone in building four on the left if you can sweep building eight on the right. I think I sense some people trapped in there, but it's hard to tell. Tune your radio to emergency channel two so we can keep contact."

"On it." As he ran towards the building by the tree, he switched his radio to the appropriate channel. "Radio testing, Smokescreen, do you copy?"

"I read you Eraserhead. There's too much debris to be certain, but I think the trapped citizens are on the third floor. Head there to confirm, but check the other floors as well."

"Roger that." It was hot as he shoved his way into burning building, but he had to just manage as best he could. He trained for this though it would have been nice to have a gas mask. Even with Smokescreen working on it, there was still an uncomfortable amount of smoke.

The ground floor lobby was clear as was the first floor. There were no answers to his call and the doors were all open, allowing him to quickly see that they were devoid of life. The second floor was largely the same, though one of the apartments was locked. He didn't feel much heat on the other side and kicked the door in. It seems that the owners weren't in, but a cat was huddled in the corner. Not wasting any time to worry about cat scratches, the hero scooped the frightened animal and brought it to the window. After he shoved the window open, the cat leapt out of his arms before he could lower it more safely. He couldn't spare the time to make sure the poor thing was okay as he needed to get to the third floor.

But as he started up the stairs, he encountered a problem. "Smokescreen! There is an obstruction on the stairwell between the second and third floors. It's too big for me to move."

The smoke hero cursed under her breath before addressing him. "I can take care of it, but I'll have to divert my attention to it. Ironsides, would you be okay for a few minutes?"

Another raspy voice came over the radio. "Just getting the last one out of here. Do what you need to do."

"Roger that. I'll work quickly. Eraserhead, stand back."

Aizawa retreated to the last landing as the smoke around him accumulated around a large piece of equipment that had fallen through a hole in the roof above onto the landing in front of the third floor entrance. The smoke continued to concentrate until it was a solid dark mass that grabbed hold of the unit and pivoted it so there was access once more to the third floor.

"Obstruction is clear, Smokescreen."

"Good. Be quick, the fire is still spreading."

The underground hero pulled open the wedged door and found a group of people already there. "Everyone evacuate calmly but quickly. The way is clear through to the ground floor. Is there anyone trapped?"

"There are a couple of kids in apartment 305. There parents went out on a date night so it's just them. We couldn't get the door open."

"I'll get them. You make sure everyone gets out of here." He didn't even wait to make sure the bystanders were vacated before he charged in. The apartment he was looking for was at the end of the hall on the side closest to the fire. He banged hard enough on the door to be heard and shouted, "This is pro hero, Eraserhead! Is there anybody in there?"

A faint voice called out from inside. "Yes! There's me and my sister is hurt and I can't open the door! Please help us!"

"Stand back, I'm kicking it in." The door had been wedged shut when the fire shifted the door frame slightly. It took a few tries before he got through. Surveying the scene, he saw a boy about 10 years old and a smaller girl who looked to be a few years younger. The girl had a broken leg and was unconscious. It was impossible to tell exactly what happened, but that wasn't important right now. What was important was getting them out of here. The hero picked up the girl to carry her.

"Hey kid, can you walk?"

"Yeah."

"Alright. Ahead of me, we need to evacuate." Eraserhead wasted no time leading them to the stairs. They almost reached the second floor when he felt an awful rumbling. He barely had enough time to react, shoving the boy to the second floor landing then tossing his sister at him. Once his hands were free, he used his capture weapon to grab the railing by the door in time to feel the ground crumble beneath his feet. Luckily the railing held his weight and he was able to pull himself up from the empty space. He opened the door and shoved the kids inside the second floor before the stairwell could disintegrate further.

His radio blared in his ears "Eraserhead! What's your status?"

"I have the last two survivors with me on the second floor. The stairwell collapsed. Did the others make it out?"

"Some were caught in the debris cloud, but they made it out. You need to get out of there now. I don't know how much longer the building will last."

Quickly, Aizawa scooped up the girl once more and draped her over his shoulder so he could grab her brother's hand. "Smokescreen, I'm going to exit through a window on the north side." He didn't even wait for a response before he made his way to the room he rescued the cat from earlier.

He addressed the scared boy. "Kid, do you have a quirk?"

"I-I have sticky hands. I can cling to stuff."

"Good." The girl was rousing, but still too weak to do anything. "Help me get your sister on my back and use your quirk to keep both of you in place."

The boy, to his credit, kept it together for his sister's sake. The positioning was awkward, but both children were secured on Aizawa's back. The hero climbed onto the window sill and quickly surveyed the outside, spotting a street light. It would have to do. He used his capture weapon to wrap around the lamp's head and swung out of the building. With the short head and his angle of approach, there was a sharp pull on his shoulders as his capture weapon coiled them around the pole. He slammed into the cold and solid metal, angling himself so that it was his front rather than his back. It winded him, but at least the kids were unharmed. He watched as the south side of the building, the one nearest the fire, collapsed. Now he was just... hanging there. Burdened as he was, getting down was going to suck.

Before he could come up with a plan, he felt a mass forming under his feet. The man looked down to see that Smokescreen was making a platform to help them down. The underground hero only unraveled his capture weapon when he felt confident that the concentrated smoke particles were solid. Once he was on the ground, he knelt down so the boy's feet touched the pavement below them, letting him know that he was safe to let go. Aizawa carefully maneuvered so that he was carrying the injured girl once again and brought her to the nearest paramedics.

The boy was still shaking, but clearly relieved that he and his sister were safe. Aizawa considered staying, but one of the neighbors had already rushed over. The other adult would be more than equipped to handle the children's emotional welfare than he would. The hero didn't see a need to remain. He turned to go back to Smokescreen, but he felt a tug on his sleeve.

"Mr. Eraserhead?" The boy, started. "I… Thank you for saving my sister and me."

The underground hero turned back toward the kid and knelt down to be at eye level. "It's my job." His face softened as he continued gently. "And you did a lot for your sister too. You kept her safe before I got there and helped her hang on so I could use my capture weapon. You were very brave."

He wasn't expecting the boy to rush forward and give him a hug. Aizawa awkwardly returned it before letting go and standing. "I need to give my report."

"Wait! Take this!"

In the dark, Aizawa hadn't seen it before but now that things were dying down, he could afford to pay attention to more details. The boy had small white flowers in his dark hair. White liliac: innocence, humility. The boy plucked one from his head and pressed it in the hero's hand. It wasn't unusual for pro heroes to get flowers from their fans and people they rescued. But for someone as under-the-radar as Eraserhead, it wasn't something he was used to. In fact, it was the first time he'd ever gotten one from a grateful citizen. They weren't usually present in his normal patrols and the villains he took down in raids or undercover operations weren't exactly giving them out as he smashed their teeth in.

But this? This was a nice change. Later that night, it was pressed in his flower book.