Logically, Izuku knew that he didn't have enough villain points to pass the practical. He knew, but that didn't stop him from growing excited at the sight of a letter in their mailbox. Pulling the letter out, he made sure to grab anything else left inside before he made his way upstairs to his apartment. He opened the door quietly as to not gain the attention of his mother lying on the couch, snoring. He placed the rest of the mail on the counter before he took his letter into his room and tore it open. A small disk fell out and a hologram popped up, startling the boy when the voice began to ring out in his silent room.
Listening to the thing with it stuck under his pillow was difficult, for the voice of All Might was muffled, but he didn't want to wake his mother so he had to make due. The sound of his childhood idol stating that he didn't have enough villain points to pass made his heart sink, but he had expected this from the beginning. The "but" in the statement however gave him a small sliver of hope.
"It would be unfair of us to ignore such acts of heroism in its finest! Young Midoriya, for the points you lack in taking down villains, you make up for in excess in rescue points! For saving countless testers in a safe and timely manner, you obtained 80 rescue points, well over enough for you to enroll as a hero in training! Congratulations Young Midoriya, welcome to your hero academia!" With that, the hologram stopped playing.
Tears sprung into his eyes, quickly spilling over his cheeks and dripping down his chin. Gripping the acceptance letter in his hands, he pulled it close to his chest and cried. Being as silent as possible, Izuku pulled himself together and snuck back out into the living room. Thankful that he was quiet enough, he crept over to the coffee table and grabbed his mother's phone, sneaking into the kitchen and calling the bar. With a few soft words to Kurogiri, a portal was opened in the alley behind his apartment and his mother's phone was placed back, all traces of the call deleted from its memory.
The familiar smell of the bar filled his nose and brought a fresh set of tears falling. The sight of the crying boy standing in the middle of the bar made all of the occupants stand on edge. The few customers who were actually drinking were mostly confused at the sudden appearance of the obvious minor, but the sudden rage that wafted off of the resident physco at the counter made everyone's hair stand on end. The bartender was also at a loss for words. When he answered the call, Izuku sounded calm and collected, the exact opposite from what he was displaying here. With a worried glance back at his charge, he stepped forward, allowing the small boy to throw himself at him in a hug.
The strange feeling of Kurogiri's arms wrapping around his shoulders was a small comfort, but a comfort nevertheless. He buried his face into the crisp dress shirt, sniffling pitifully. The sight of a small piece of paper caught the mist man's attention.
"Did your results come in Midoriya-san?" Kurogiri asked, giving the boy a final squeeze before he pulled him away to look the still crying child in the eyes.
Izuku nodded, too afraid that his voice would crack if he spoke aloud. He held the paper out to the man and watched as he read the first few lines before he turned back to the boy.
"It says you passed, why are you crying about that?" Kurogiri was confused, isn't that what the boy wanted?
"I-I'm just happy I got in. I was just afraid that I would let you all down." Izuku's voice cracked, wiping his cheeks off on his long sleeve shirt.
He was suddenly pressed against another chest. Lips made themselves present on the top of his head. A four fingered touch on the back of his neck and lower back confirmed what he already knew. He wrapped his arms around the waist of his friend tightly, his cries growing in volume once more. His body shook with sobs as he clutched onto the back of Shigaraki's shirt.
"Why are you crying Izuku?" The soft voice made him hiccup.
"I'm happy. I really am." Izuku mumbled into the shirt, voice shaky.
"You've done well Squirt, now is not the time for tears. Kurogiri made you a cake for this, why don't we celebrate?" The hand that was resting on the back of his neck made its way to play with the strands of hair at the nape of his neck before burying itself into the curls.
Izuku hummed, pulling away from the hug as he let the man lead him over to the counter. Kurogiri disappeared into the kitchen before he came back with a small cake. It wasn't decorated with anything special, only covered in a white frosting. Izuku smiled at the mist man kindly, thanking him as he cut him a piece. Lifting a bite to his lips, he moaned softly. Izuku couldn't remember a time when he last had cake. Smiling brightly up at Kurogiri, Izuku gushed about how good it was. The mist man brought a hand up to rub at his neck guard awkwardly, thanking the young boy for the compliment.
Shigaraki watched as Izuku finished his slice of cake with a happy grin on his face. The boy's cheer was infectious and Shigaraki found himself grinning along with him. A few of the extras in the bar had finally calmed down, the crisis had been averted. It was odd to see that villain hanging out with a teenager of all people. Many of them kept casting glances back at the bunch, watching in on the small and tender scene. The peace was cut short when the front door to the bar swung open loudly. Izuku paused in his storytelling of the practical exam to glance back at the entrance. Shigaraki found himself annoyed at the sudden interruption to his time with the new hero in training.
Tearing his gaze away from his Izuku, he turned to look at the new annoyance in his life. The sight of Giran made his already poor mood worse. The older villain strolled inside without a care in the world, cigarette lit and held between his lips.
"Ah Giran-san, how nice of you to stop by." Kurogiri welcomed the villain inside, pouring the man a whiskey as he sat down a few stools down from Shigaraki.
"Pleasure as always Kurogiri. What's with the kid?" Giran motions towards Izuku as he peered around Shigaraki's shoulder.
"This young man is one of Shigaraki's acquaintances, you will treat him as such." Kurogiri warns before he turns back to cleaning a few glasses.
Giran eyes the green haired boy for a moment before taking a swig from his drink. He casts a glance back at Shigaraki, taking notice of his tense posture and twitching eyebrows.
"Came by today to let you know a few people have reached out to me about your whereabouts, might be new prospects." Giran spoke, gaining Shigaraki's attention.
"And you couldn't just call because…?" Shigaraki led off, raising a brow in question at the sudden embarrassed look that overcame their informant.
"They kinda wanted to scope the place out and I figured that you wouldn't be doin' anything." Giran cast a glance back at the boy by his side.
Shigaraki groaned, hand coming up to scratch at his neck in agitation. The boy at his side clicked his tongue, hand coming up to grasp his wrist. Green eyes met with his, frown on his face as he eyed the damage he had done.
"Tomu, you really need to stop doing that." Izuku dug around in his bag for a napkin, dabbing at his neck before he sat back in his chair.
Shigaraki looked away, a flush on his face. Giran couldn't believe what he was seeing. The Shigaraki Tomura appeared bashful, he of course couldn't see the flush on his cheeks, but the sudden softness he hadn't seen in the man's eyes before was like night and day.
"Yeah yeah, I get it." Shigaraki grumbled, grabbing the napkin from the kid's hand before setting it down and pulling the boy closer.
Giran's eyes couldn't have gotten any bigger in that moment. This green haired boy was doing something that he otherwise found impossible. Shigaraki hated any kind of contact with anyone, cursed them and threatened death by his quirk alone at the slightest brush of contact with someone else, whether it be accidental or not. The sound of arguing outside, reminded him just why he was here. Getting up to hold the door open for his entourage, two people made their way inside. Izuku looked up at the sound of bickering, seeing a blonde and a black haired male yelling at one another over something he didn't care about.
Shigaraki frowned at the ruckus they were causing, fingers twitching against the green haired boy's hand as he held the appendage in his lap. Izuku cast the two a glance before turning around in his chair, going back to speaking with Kurogiri who pulled his attention away from the newcomers to humor the boy. Izuku smiled, breaking into a conversation about quirk theory, something that a boy his age shouldn't begin to understand, yet held his own and even offered a few ideas on the topic himself. Kurogiri wouldn't allow himself to be surprised, he had long gotten used to being surprised by Izuku's intellect.
The two newcomers paused in their argument once they realized that eyes were on them. Toga appeared bashful at the amount of attention on her, but Dabi seemed to flourish under the stares of others. Izuku cast a glance back in their direction, a small frown on his face.
"So nice of you two to finally stop your incessant bickering, it was beginning to irritate me." Izuku turned in his chair, watching as their eyes landed on him, both looking confused at the boy.
Shigaraki cast a glance over in his Izuku's direction, mildly surprised by the reaction from the boy. He hadn't seen this kind of reaction from the boy since he had met him. Watching as Izuku reclined on the stool, his eyes taking in their appearances lazily before he huffed and turned back around. Shigaraki took notice of the man bristle at being blown off and he prepared himself to react if he tried anything. Before the male could step forward, Izuku cast a final glance in their direction, taking notice of the tense form of the black haired man.
A grin spread across the boy's face, his curiosity peaked as he gazed at the man covered in scars. Izuku's fingers twitched, aching to pull out his journal and scribble away in the pages. With a tilt of his head and another well placed grin, Izuku had the man just where he wanted him. Casting Shigaraki a burning glance, he made sure to keep the man in his chair as Scars came rushing at him. A hand wrapped itself around his neck, blue eyes glaring right into his own as a snarl pulled itself from the man's throat. A bark of laughter erupted from the boy, his eyes tearing up against the pressure on his throat.
"I don't like being ignored, or played a fool. What is a kid doing in a place like this?" Dabi glared, hand gripping tighter against the pale throat of the boy.
Izuku just giggled, his own hand coming up to grip at the man's arm. Dabi almost flinched back from the sudden warmth that stung his palm, watching as the boy's throat glowed for a moment before a burst of flame poured from his mouth. Izuku watched as the man's eyes widened in fear before he was released and oddly enough, cold blue flames sprung forth from the man's hands, protecting himself. The grin that spread across Izuku's face was anything but friendly. Hopping from his stool, he stepped towards the man, watching as he fell to the floor, fearful eyes flickering up to meet the boy's.
"I don't think it's any of your business why I am here. Let's get this clear, I don't care for attitude or egos, you will earn my respect and attention through action, not through whining and complaining. Now I believe introductions are in order." Izuku made sure the man understood what he wanted before he sat back down and leaned into the arm that immediately wrapped itself around his shoulder.
Shigaraki was incredibly impressed with Izuku. It had taken a long time for him to build up not only his control over his quirk but his confidence also. Patting the green curls, he turned his attention back to the two newcomers, an eyebrow raised when the girl stepped forward, a blush on her cheeks as she gushed about just how cute his Izuku was. A frown formed on his face, this wouldn't do. His hold on the boy tightened, pulling Izuku closer until he rested on his lap, arms coming to wrap themselves around his waist. Shigaraki made sure to make eye contact with the girl as he leaned in and placed his head against the nape of Izuku's neck and shoulder, nuzzling the skin in affection.
Izuku squeaked in surprise, glancing over to Kurogiri as he stood off to the side, his eyes wide in surprise.
"Uhh, Tomu…?" Izuku mumbled, hands coming up to rub at the man's back, afraid that he had gotten upset during his show of dominance.
"Introduce yourselves before I grow tired of this." The cold tone of his friend had him gripping the shirt beneath his hands, pulling the man closer as he buried his face in the blue strands of hair.
"My name is Himiko Toga! It's a pleasure to meet you!" The girl bowed, a bright grin on her face as she skipped over to the bar, taking a seat next to Izuku.
"...Dabi." The man spoke after a moment, frowning over at the boy before he stood and took a seat away from them, reclining in a booth.
"Now that they are here, I believe my work here is done." Giran nodded towards the two at the bar before he stepped outside, glad to be away from that mess.
Shigaraki dragged a hand down the side of his face, udderly fed up with today's events. Nodding his head to Kurogiri, he made Izuku slip off his lap before he grabbed a hold of the boy's wrist and led him upstairs into his room to blow off some steam. Izuku giggled at his friend's face, hand slipping to hold the man's own hand as they walked into the darkened hallway and out of sight of the others in the bar. Dabi watched as they went, curious as to where they were going. The sound of a glass being placed in front of him pulled him away from the door that swung closed. Seeing the shot of whiskey placed in front of him, he slammed it down before thanking the bartender, striking up a conversation about the boy in question.
"That is Midoriya. He often comes by to spend his time with Shigaraki. I believe the two see each other as friends." The answer he got from the barman wasn't necessarily what he wanted, but at least he knew the boy's name.
'Friends my ass.' Dabi hummed, motioning for another shot as he thought to himself.
Upstairs, Izuku relaxed on the bed, a controller in hand as he and Tomura played some fighter game he didn't know the name of. The sound of the game filled the otherwise silent room as they relaxed. After a few minutes, the screen flashed with Izuku's death and he set his controller aside, letting Tomura come up behind him and pull him into a hug. Izuku knew that what they were doing wasn't something friends did with one another, this felt more intimate. Izuku couldn't find it in himself to pull away, craving the attention that the man offered him. The hand that found its way into his hair had him melting into the hug.
"I was really proud of you today. You handled that situation perfectly." Shigaraki's voice sent a shiver down Izuku's spine.
If Tomura noticed his reaction, he didn't say anything, only holding the boy closer, hand playing in the green strands as he listened to the sound of the game's music. It was times like this that Izuku was going to miss while he was at school, the chance to relax with his friend and just be himself. His arms wrapped themselves around Tomura's neck, burying his face into his chest. Shigaraki noticed the shaking of his Izuku but he didn't move to comment on it, only allowing the boy to cuddle closer, his hand rubbing his back and continuing to play with his hair. He smiled down at the boy as he stilled, his breathing slowing as he fell asleep.
"Sleep well Izuku, you have a long few days ahead of you." Shigaraki placed a kiss to the crown of the sleeping boy's head, letting out a breath as he closed his eyes to let sleep claim them both.