Greetings! I have come with a little something to add to the ever-increasing Dadzawa content in this fandom. This contains spoilers for the Shie-Hassaikai arc, so be forewarned if you're not caught up with the anime or haven't read the manga. I hope you all enjoy this fic!
I do not own My Hero Academia.
"Watch out!"
He shoved his student with all the strength he could muster and braced himself for the arrow to pierce his arm.
A gurgling cough resounded in his ears instead.
He tore his gaze away from Overhaul in time to see the arrow retract back through Izuku's neck. The kid's eyes glazed over and he fell to the side. His heart dropped into this stomach.
"Deku!" he screamed and reached for his student.
Jagged spikes burst up from the ground and knocked him further away from Izuku. He managed to land on his feet and spring right back in the air, narrowly avoiding getting impaled. He launched his capture weapon toward the tallest spike he could find and catapulted himself to the top. His cold, sweaty hands barely allowed him to hang on as he scanned the area.
Miraculously, it didn't take him long to spot the green of Izuku's hero costume.
He jumped from spike to spike until he reached the kid. Sliding to his knees through the growing crimson puddle, he instantly turned Izuku over on his back. Blood dribbled from his mouth and down his chin and poured at an alarming rate from the slices in his neck. Unblinking eyes stared at nothing.
"Midoriya, you have to stay with me!"
He bunched up his capture weapon and pressed it against his student's neck. His blurry vision didn't stop him from seeing the puddle growing underneath his lifeless student with each passing second.
"Please…Midoriya…."
The vacant eyes never moved. Slowly, he released the pressure on the kid's neck. His breathing picked up, but he couldn't get enough air. Wriggling underneath his binding cloth, he searched for a pulse, blood running cold when he couldn't find one. He laid his head on Izuku's chest.
There was no heartbeat.
"Izuku…." he whispered.
"Easy, Chrono, I want him alive."
He almost didn't register the words until a pair of strong arms yanked him away from Izuku.
"No!"
He wrenched himself free of the man's grip and threw himself back toward his fallen student. He grunted when something stabbed him in the back and he flopped uselessly on the ground, outreached arm splashing in the blood. Trying to lift his head, his body wouldn't cooperate.
"Your movements are as slow as a snail, Eraserhead. I'd recommend saving your energy. You're going to need it, after all."
A shadow loomed over him. His goggles were removed and his vision went black. He could feel something wrapping around his head. Chronostasis easily hauled him up and threw him over his shoulder.
"Get him out of here," Overhaul ordered. "I'll get Eri back."
Shouta gasped and sat up, chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath. He closed his eyes and tightly clutched the sheets under his hands. Once he got his breathing under control, he stumbled to his feet and headed toward the door. He crept out into the hallway, trying not to wince when he turned on the light. He silently walked down the hall and stopped at the formerly unoccupied spare bedroom.
He carefully turned the doorknob and pushed the door open, flinching when it creaked. He peeked inside. The light from the hallway flooded in through the crack and illuminated the small bed. He released the breath he didn't even realize he'd been holding when he saw Eri curled up under the blankets. He quietly shut the door, grateful that he hadn't disturbed the young girl, and made his way back to his room.
Once inside, he leaned back against the door and slid to the ground. He ran a hand through his hair only to find that some of it was damp and sticking to his face. He pulled at his shirt and it clung to him. It made sense considering it was drenched in sweat.
It was just a dream. Eri's here. Problem child's still here.
I'm still here.
He shook his head and got to his feet. Fumbling for the light switch, he could finally see the state of his room. One of his pillows was on the floor and his blankets were hanging off the bed. His phone and alarm clock had been knocked off the night stand. He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head again.
It was just a dream….
He rubbed a hand down his face and walked over to his dresser.
…but it's been awhile since one felt so real.
He stripped himself of his shirt and threw it at his hamper. He pulled out a black t-shirt and headed into the bathroom. Maneuvering his arms into the sleeves, he stopped when he caught a glimpse of the line of raised skin on his right arm. He took a deep breath and put the shirt on. He turned on the faucet and splashed some water on his face. The cold water droplets streaming down his cheeks slowly brought him further and further back into reality.
Get ahold of yourself. It was just a dream.
He made the mistake of looking in the mirror. Hizashi hadn't been kidding when he said the circles under his eyes were growing darker by the day, or that could be due to the fact he was paler than a ghost. He dried his face off and ran the towel over his hair. He ran his fingers through the previously sweat-drenched locks and worked out the tangles.
He dragged his feet back into his bedroom and glanced at the messy bed.
There's no way in hell I'm going back to sleep anytime soon.
He sighed and left his bedroom. He walked down the hallway, stopping only to press his ear against Eri's door. Satisfied when he didn't hear the girl stirring, he determined he wouldn't further risk waking her. He exited his apartment and headed to the common area kitchen. He rummaged through the cabinets until he found the chamomile tea bags.
Bless you, Yaoyorozu Momo.
He grabbed one of the many tea kettles the young heroine had graciously made for the class under the guise of practicing her quirk; of course, not that she had noticed the two they had didn't seem to be enough with how often she and her classmates woke up in the middle of the night. He filled one up and set it down on the stove. He leaned against the counter and gripped the edge.
"Aizawa-sensei?"
His knuckles turned stark white at the voice. Bloodshot eyes widened as he dared to look over his shoulder. He blinked and his usual deadpan expression fell into place.
"Why are you awake, problem child?"
Izuku shifted his weight and crossed his arms. The corners of his lips gave the slightest twitch at the nickname.
"I h-had a ni—I mean I couldn't sleep."
Shouta hummed at the answer and moved the tea kettle back to the sink to add some more water, the remaining tension in his body completely dissipating.
"I couldn't either," he said as he put the kettle back on the stove.
He rubbed his shoulder while he waited for the water to boil. He could feel his student's eyes on him and he couldn't get himself to mind in the slightest.
He's here. He made it out of the raid.
He looked back over his shoulder to find Izuku already seated at the closest table, gaze now set down at his hands. He opened the cabinet next to the stove, pulled out two mugs, and put the teabags in them.
"Something on your mind?" he asked the kid, who visibly jumped at his voice.
That would mean yes.
Izuku scratched the back of his neck.
"It's nothing serious." Shouta crossed his arms and raised his eyebrows, causing his student to cringe. "Okay…it's just…when do the nightmares end, sensei?"
The erasure hero blinked. He wasn't surprised by the question necessarily. What unnerved him was the desperation in Izuku's tone.
"Have you been having them often?"
"Every night for the past two weeks," Izuku replied without even a second of silence, and Shouta couldn't stop the relief flooding through him at his student's honesty.
At least he wouldn't have to be pulling teeth to get answers from him. He sighed and turned back to the steaming kettle, pouring the boiling water in the mugs. He walked over to the table and placed one right in front of his student. Izuku's eyes widened at the gesture.
"This should help you sleep."
"Thank you, sensei."
The two sipped their tea, and Shouta could see Izuku's shoulders start to relax. After downing nearly half of his tea, he finally spoke again.
"I'm not going to tell you the nightmares ever go away," he started, "because they don't."
"I know I shouldn't be upset because it's just a dream—" Izuku tried to interject, but stopped when his teacher put a hand up.
"It's not stupid. Your class has already seen more than heroes-in-training ever should in their first year. You just participated in your first official raid a few weeks ago, and this is just the beginning of your career. You'll probably have nightmares that are quite realistic, to the point you'll wonder if they actually happened. It's perfectly natural not to be okay afterward, and you shouldn't be hard on yourself for that."
"So you have them, too?"
If only you knew….
Shouta nodded without any hesitation. Izuku bit his lip and set his mug down. He opened his mouth, but quickly shut it and buried his face in his hands.
Whatever he dreamt about must really be bothering him.
"I've found that talking to someone about it helps. You can always make an appointment with Hound Dog, or I can make it for you if you're not comfortable. I understand that you might want to talk to someone that knows a bit more about your situation, so I know that any teacher here would be more than willing to listen. If you think getting away from Yuuei and going home for a weekend would help, I can make the arrangements for you to do so."
His student still didn't say anything. For a moment, he wondered if the kid even heard a word he said. That thought would be dashed only a minute later.
"You're gone."
Shouta's brow furrowed at the words.
"What—"
"Chronostasis separates you from us, but nobody can find you. That's what I keep dreaming. Last night, we didn't rescue Eri and Sir Nighteye died for nothing, but in every dream I've had for the last two weeks, you're gone." Izuku runs a hand through his hair. "Sometimes Chronostasis paralyzes me, and I can't do anything but watch while you try to take both him and Overhaul on. I see you get paralyzed and them taking you away. I'll wake up in the hospital only to be told Sir Nighteye's dead and you're still missing."
Shouta leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table.
"I'm still here, problem child, and I'm not going anywhere."
"Not willingly!" The kid winced when he realized how loud he'd gotten. "Sorry. I know you wouldn't abandon us, but Overhaul can't be the only villain to understand and want the benefits of your quirk."
The erasure hero would be lying if he said if those very thoughts hadn't been on his mind since that raid. Overhaul's experiments probably inspired countless others; that is, if those villains didn't outright want him dead. It unnerved him, but he couldn't dwell on it. Before he could get a word in, his student continued.
"I know it's irrational to be so upset about these dreams. I know you're a pro hero that's more than capable of taking care of himself and an entire class, but I…."
His chest tightened when Izuku trailed off. The boy shook his head and rubbed his eyes.
"I'm sorry you've been having these nightmares, and I know telling you not to worry is pointless. Would it make you feel better if I tried texting you before you go to bed when I'm out on patrol?"
That got his student to perk up.
"Would you?" he asked, and Shouta could see the slight gleam in his eyes.
"There may be some nights I can't, but I will do my best to check in with you during patrol if that would put you at ease."
Izuku took a deep breath and finally met his gaze.
"Just until I'm not having nightmares every night?"
"As long as you need, Midoriya."
The kid grinned and picked his mug back up. The erasure hero noted the way his brows suddenly furrowed while he took another sip of tea.
"Sensei, who do you talk to?" Shouta blinked and tilted his head slightly, and Izuku set the mug down. "You said that it helps to talk about your nightmares with someone. You teach, provide us extra training when we need it, go on your usual patrols, and watch over us here in the dorms. Do you have someone you can talk to now? Do you even have the time?"
Shouta stared down at his own mug and fought the urge to shake his head.
How observant of you, problem child.
Before he could begin racking his brain for an answer, Izuku yawned. He'd take the chance while he had it.
"You should probably try to get more sleep. Class doesn't start for another four hours."
He could sense Izuku's gaze lingering on him, but the kid was quiet. He finally looked up when the chair creaked. Izuku stood up with the mug in hand.
"I suppose you're right." The boy headed toward the kitchen, but abruptly stopped. He turned back to his teacher and bit his lip. "Aizawa-sensei, you've done so much for our class this year, both in and out of the classroom. You're always the hero for us…but I hope you know it's okay if there are times when you can't be. I'm sure you had people you could talk to, but if you don't have the time to reach them anymore, I know I speak for everyone in our class when I say we'd be willing to listen. If you need to get away and spend some time alone for a few hours, we'd be more than happy to watch Eri for you."
Shouta did his best to ignore his soaring heart as his student disappeared into the kitchen, returning his gaze back down to his tea.
This kid.
He hadn't moved when Izuku returned and walked by his chair. Without even thinking, he reached out and grabbed the boy's arm.
"Sensei, is everything…."
Izuku trailed off when his teacher shifted around in his chair and put his hands on both of his shoulders, pulling him closer. Shouta leaned forward and turned his head, letting his ear rest against the Izuku's chest. He sighed and closed his eyes.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
Any remaining tension in his body melted at the strong heartbeat emanating from his living, breathing student.
I can't believe I almost lost this kid.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
However long the two stayed like that, Izuku didn't budge. Not even when he finally straightened back up and found his arms now wrapped around the boy's back.
When the hell did that happen?
Not that the boy seemed to mind. He remained in his spot until Shouta stood up and picked up his mug.
"Is everything okay?"
"Yes, sorry," he said as he walked toward the kitchen, knowing Izuku's eyes were following him. He glanced back over his shoulder, pretending not to notice the grin on the kid's face. "I should've let you get on to bed. Your class is in for a long day tomorrow."
There was an initial lack of footsteps, but he continued on to the sink and rinsed his mug out.
"Good night, Aizawa-sensei."
"Good night, Izuku."
He finally heard footsteps echoing out into the common area and could only imagine Izuku's smile. He couldn't get himself to be annoyed, nor stop the slight upward quirk of his own lips.
You're learning what it truly means to be a hero, Midoriya Izuku. You and your classmates still have a long way to go and much to learn, but I suppose we'll all be helping each other along the way.
Well, there it is! I sincerely hope you all enjoyed this little oneshot. I'm a little bitter that we don't get any insight to how Aizawa's handling the events of this year, because there's no way in hell he can just be okay after all of this. Guess we'll have to create that content ourselves.
I've got so much more to write and I'm finding myself with a little more time, so I'm hoping to be updating my current fics and uploading new ones more frequently. I'm definitely looking forward to it!
Until then,
alightintheshadows