"quotes" = talking

"italics" = thinking

Author's note at the end

(Deku's quirk not in this chapter sorry)

Izuku waved goodbye to his uncle as he stepped out the door of the apartment. The only sign his uncle was even aware of Izuku leaving was a barely heard mumble that almost sounded like goodbye. Locking the door, Izuku readjusted the straps on his backpack, put it on, then grabbed the handle of the green suitcase at his feet. Lugging his bag down several flights of old stairs, Izuku politely greeted any other tenants he encountered. Most of them simply ignored the green-haired boy, but a few of the kinder souls had responded with cheerful greetings of their own. Stepping out the front door of the apartment building, Izuku walked over to the nearby street curb and put his duffel bag on the ground. Clad in a long sleeve grey shirt, navy blue sweatpants, and a pair of well-worn sneakers, Izuku waited. Pulling out his phone, Izuku rechecked his messages for what felt like the tenth time that morning. Cassie had told him she would pick him up in the morning and that her dad would drive the two to the airport. Gulping nervously, Izuku waited patiently as he made sure he had everything he needed for the trip. A few minutes later a sleek black sedan that looked like it was freshly out of the factory came to a stop in front of Izuku.

One of the rear windows rolled down and Cassie poked her head out with a happy smile on her face. "Heya Izu! Just put your stuff in the trunk and hop in!"

At first Cassie had simply called Izuku by his first name like everyone else, but as time went on she began shortening it into affectionate nicknames. Izu, Izzy, and Zuku were just a few of the most common ones. Izuku could almost feel the menacing aura of the Colonel in the driver's seat, but the young man decided to focus on the positives and enjoy his trip with his best friend. Stowing his luggage in the trunk, Izuku hopped into the back of the sedan and sat down next to the almost glowing Cassie. For a moment, Izuku locked eyes with the Colonel through the rear-view mirror, and the familiar chill of apprehension ran down his spine.

However Izuku felt the now familiar pull of Cassie's hand on his arm as she pulled him close while holding up her phone. "Alright Izu lets get a selfie for everyone!"

Izuku smiled shyly as Cassie took several pictures, simply happy that he now had a friend who accepted him for who he was. While Cassie uploaded the pictures to her social media, the Colonel put the car in gear and began driving to the airport. For the entire ride Cassie's father only spoke in short gruff sentences, mostly making sure his daughter had everything and would be safe on the trip. Unknown to Cassie, Izuku had received a much more intense grilling the last time he trained with the Colonel. The tall man had been training Izuku to use various types of melee weapons when he suddenly revealed that he had hired a bodyguard to escort Cassie in Japan. At first Izuku felt a little hurt that the Colonel did not trust him to keep Cassie safe, but it turned out that was just how the man showed he cared about his daughter. The Colonel had been very vague about the bodyguard, all he revealed was that the man was competent and would act as a chaperone and driver.

"Hey Izzy! Hey! C'mon stop spacing out, we are almost there." Cassie spoke with the excited energy of a sugar-fueled child as she gently shook Izuku's shoulder.

"Huh? Oh, right. Sorry Cassie. I was just..uhh..trying to remember if I packed my toothbrush." Izuku spoke quickly so as to escape any questions about what he had been thinking about.

The rest of the car ride Izuku and Cassie idly chatted about different things until they got to the airport. As the Colonel pulled up to the drop-off area, Cassie was almost vibrating with excitement. Jumping out as soon as the car came to a stop, Cassie ran to the trunk of the sedan and grabbed her suitcase.

"C'mon Zuku lets go!" Cassie called out as she hefted her pink carry-on bag.

"Go check in Cassie, I need to have a word with Izuku. Have fun, I love you." The Colonel rolled down the front window and spoke gruffly with a tinge of affection at the very end.

"Okay dad! I love you too! Bye! Oh, and don't be mean to Izuku!" Cassie spoke with a tone that implied she was obviously aware of how intimidating her father was before rushing off to the check-in desk.

Izuku had already stepped out of the car, but leaned down so he could look through the rolled down window.

"You already should know what I am going to say, so I will just repeat one thing. Anything happens to my little girl...you just make sure nothing happens to her...Now get going." Izuku gulped nervously but gave the stern man a quick nod before grabbing his luggage out of the trunk. Closing the doors of the car, Izuku got one last glimpse of the Colonel's demonic red eyes as he drove away.

Taking a deep breath, Izuku collected his thoughts and went to join Cassie at the check-in desk. It took awhile to reach their departure gate because of long lines and security checks, but thankfully the two teens had still arrived half an hour before the plane started boarding.

Dropping her bags unceremoniously on a nearby chair, Cassie sighed and stretched her arms. She wore her usual fashionable clothes, a simple white blouse, black jeans and neon orange sneakers.

"So whatcha wanna do while we wait Izu? I would say we go get a snack but everything here is so overpriced." Cassie glanced at Izuku as she looked around the terminal.

Izuku shrugged and sat down on a bench as he watched various travelers walk by. "I dunno...what about music? Have you heard anything good lately?"

Shortly after they started hanging out Cassie had introduced Izuku to all sorts of new music. Izuku had never been that interested in the music industry before (mostly just hearing popular songs on the radio), but Cassie had opened up a whole new world to the Japanese boy. Rap, trance, lo-fi, country, the music genres were so many that Izuku often had a hard time remembering them all. Out of everything Izuku found that he liked American rap and hip-hop songs with clever wordplay. Hearing a well written verse was surprisingly satisfying to Izuku, and occasionally he found himself trying to rhyme words when he was bored. When he asked what Cassie's favorite music genre was, she had sworn him to secrecy before telling him. Contrary to what most people would think when they see her, Cassie loved heavy metal music. Many of her favorite songs involved guttural shouting and blazing fast guitar solos. Izuku had learned to appreciate the metal genre and did not hate it by any means, he just tended to gravitate towards songs with more lyrical substance.

"Ohmygod you just reminded me! I found a song I know you would like!" Cassie immediately plopped down next to Izuku and leaned against him as she whipped out her phone.

In the beginning, Izuku had a hard time adjusting to Cassie's american concepts of personal space. She was just a naturally touchy-feely person, whether that be hugs, high-fives, or casual touches. Eventually Cassie realized that Izuku always started to act strange when she was physically close with him and she had to metaphorically pry the answer from the shy boy. Of course after Izuku explained his awkwardness Cassie immediately almost had a panic attack trying to apologize and distance herself. But as time passed and the two got closer, Izuku began to get accustomed to Cassie's forms of affection. Now he did not mind at all when Cassie did things like lean against him, if anything Izuku was happy that someone felt comfortable enough with him to show public affection.

Seconds later, Cassie handed Izuku one of her earbuds and played a song on her phone for both of them to listen to. At first the song started with heavy metal screaming and instruments, but halfway through someone began rapping along to the beat. Realizing that the rapper singing was one of his favorites, Izuku smiled and bobbed his head to the beat. The song ended with a surprisingly well balanced mix of metal and rap, leaving Izuku smiling and gently nudging Cassie with his shoulder.

"That was pretty good!" Izuku chuckled as he praised Cassie.

Blushing slightly, Cassie smiled back and playfully returned the shoulder bump. "Pretty good? I would say it was amazing! I knew that you liked that rapper, so when I found out he did a collab with a metal band I knew you needed to hear it."

Izuku nodded in agreement and was about to say something when he saw Cassie's face take on a somewhat serious expression.

"Hey Izuku...I...I know you probably had a rough time before moving to America. Like...after we first met I could not forget how sad you looked. I know this is probably a very sensitive subject for you...but...could you tell me why you moved here? I am just worried because you are going back to where things might have been really bad. I don't care what happened in the past, I just want you to know I will always be there for you no matter what." Cassie spoke softly as she reached out and placed a warm hand on Izuku's and gripped it reassuringly.

Izuku had never talked about his past with anyone before. Sure people had asked about it before, but Izuku had always either lied or avoided the subject. Cassie's heartfelt question had come out of nowhere and Izuku had to take a few seconds to collect his thoughts before replying.

"Oh it is not that bad. I just got bullied a little, Nothing to worry about." Izuku let out an awkward laugh as he tried to avoid remembering. Every time he remembered the past he felt nothing but pain and anger, so he just locked those memories away to never see the light of day again.

Izuku looked around the terminal until he noticed Cassie was strangely quiet. Looking over, he was surprised at what he saw. Cassie looked like she was torn between yelling at him or crying.

"Hey Cassie it's okay it's not a big dea-"

"Stop talking to me like I am stupid Izuku!" Cassie's voice was soft but had a venomous tone eerily similar to her father's. "I thought we were friends! That we trusted each other! If you don't want to talk about it just say it to me straight! I hate it when people talk to me like you just did! I know that everyone who meets me thinks I am some...stupid bimbo that will believe anything! I thought you were different…" Cassie's voice petered out as she sniffed and wiped at her eyes trying to hide frustrated tears.

Hearing Cassie's pain, Izuku realized he was indeed being a bit of a bad friend. Cassie had accepted him for who he was, even though he was quirkless. She stood up for him and was always there when he needed help. Izuku realized that Cassie had been putting up with her stereotype looks all her life, and was happy that she met someone who liked her for who she truly was.

Cassie went to snatch her hand away from Izuku, but the young man reached out and held onto it tightly.

"Sorry Cassie. I...I never thought about how you felt. You are right, friends trust each other. I just...I don't like remembering. It hurts too much." Izuku talked quietly as he stared down at his feet, hoping he had not ruined his friendship with Cassie.

Izuku could hear Cassie sigh loudly, and he flinched when the blonde girl gently leaned against him.

"It's okay Izu...I just got frustrated. If you don't want to talk about it that is fine, just please be honest with me from now on."

Izuku nodded numbly and continued to stare at the floor while Cassie held his hand. Suddenly the green-haired boy spoke.

"When I was little I always wanted to be a hero. Like All-Might. He was my idol and I loved watching videos about him. My friend Kacchan...I mean Bakugo...got an amazing quirk and I wanted to be just like him. Then a doctor told my mom and I that I was quirkless…"

Like a dam bursting, Izuku told Cassie everything about his past. How he was bullied, how nobody believed in him, how his best friend beat him up everyday, how his idol crushed his dreams of being a hero, and how he tried to end it all with a fistful of pills. By the end, Izuku realized he was crying and buried his head in his arms as silent sobs wracked his body. Immediately, Izuku felt Cassie hug him tightly and stroke his hair like his mom always used to do. She obviously knew how tough it was for Izuku to relive the past, and she simply hugged her friend tightly until he stopped crying. All around them, people moved past without so much as a second glance. It was as if the two friends were in their own little bubble of emotion while life went on around them.

Eventually, Izuku's crying stopped. Sniffling and wiping his nose with the sleeve of his shirt, Izuku sat up and looked at Cassie with puffy red eyes. The girl looked like she had just finished crying as well, her nose red and makeup slightly distorted from the tears.

Pulling Izuku closer, Cassie wrapped an arm around him and rested her head against his neck. "It's okay Izuku. I promise that no matter what I will always be…your friend."

Izuku barely noticed the slight pause in Cassie's speech, too wrapped up in the feeling of warm comfort that seemed to radiate from her. Eventually the two were broken out of their reverie by the flight attendants calling out passenger seating sections and people forming lines at the departure gate. Looking at each other in their varying disheveled states, the two friends laughed tiredly and stood up.

"Feel better now Izu?" Cassie grinned as she picked up her bags and playfully bumped her hip against Izuku's.

"Yeah, thanks Cassie." Izuku chuckled as he grabbed his bags and returned the hip bump.

The two teens got in line and eventually made their way onto the plane and to their seats. While not in first class, the two had seats next to each other in the business class and Cassie pleaded with Izuku to let her have the window seat. After five rounds of rock-paper-scissors, Izuku sighed and took the loser's spot in the aisle seat. Cassie spent the first few minutes of the flight glued to the small window while Izuku yawned and began wondering how he would explain Cassie to his mom. He had told his mom that a friend was coming along, but somehow it ended up with his mother under the impression Izuku's friend was a boy. Knowing that he would have been interrogated over the phone if he had revealed Cassie's gender, Izuku simply decided to keep his mom temporarily in the dark.

The flight was long, Izuku and Cassie mostly spending their time either sleeping or on their phones. After more than twelve hours of flight, the airplane finally landed at the Tokyo airport.

Cassie's usual energetic enthusiasm had been slightly dampened by the long flight and jet lag, but she still took the opportunity to take a few pictures after stepping off the airplane. Walking through the airport along with a crowd of other travelers, Cassie and Izuku descended an escalator into a long hallway lined with people holding signs. Some of the signs were held by children and barely legible while others were displayed on handheld screens wielded by professional chauffeurs.

"My dad told you he hired a driver right?" Cassie spoke to Izuku as they began slowly walking down the hallway. "He is so overprotective, when I was in elementary school I was part of a play. Well when my dad comes to see the play he had like, eight security guys with him! It scared everyone! I keep trying to tell him I can take care of myself, but he never listens. Ugh.."

Izuku laughed awkwardly as he walked, silently cursing the Colonel for not telling Cassie the driver was also a bodyguard. Deciding to simply wait and see how things would play out, Izuku began looking for their driver. At first Izuku was positive one of the men in black suits would be the driver, but none of the signs had Izuku's or Cassie's name on them. They kept walking and eventually at the very end they saw someone holding a piece of cardboard with the words "Brandford/Midoriya" messily scrawled onto it.

As the driver came into view, Izuku at first thought that some random person off the street had been hired. The Caucasian man looked to be about early to mid-twenties, his eyes had orange irises, had a short but scruffy beard, and had messy brown hair. He was a few inches over six feet tall and wore an unbuttoned black long sleeve shirt with a white t-shirt underneath. His legs were covered in military cargo pants that sported a black and grey camouflage pattern, along with a pair of orange and black running sneakers. Overall, he looked more like someone you would see hanging out in front of a convenience store than a competent driver and bodyguard.

Spotting the two teens, the man lazily waved for them to come closer as he stifled a yawn. Both Cassie and Izuku exchanged concerned looks, but dutifully went over to meet their assigned chaperone.

Stepping towards the wall to get out of the way of the crowd of people, the man smiled and dropped the cardboard sign. "Hey there, name is Nils. I was surprised to get a call from the old man, even more so when he offered me a job. So you two are…" He quickly looked at the palm of his hand then resumed talking. "Cassie and Izuku right? To be honest I didn't even know the Major had a family. Well, I knew he had a family, but never found out the specifics. Anyways, looks like I am gonna be driving you two squirts around while you are here. Lets go and grab your bags, you both can talk and walk at the same time right?"

Walking off without so much as checking to see if the two teens were following him, Nils began slowly making his way towards the baggage claims. Cassie and Izuku quickly caught up with the strange man and Cassie was the first to voice her concerns.

"Umm...Nils? Did my dad really hire you? No offense, but I kinda expected you to be a limo driver or something."

Nils snorted in amusement and nodded. "Yup! Old man Brandford right? Never smiles, red eyes, perpetual aura of anger around him?"

Izuku could not help but silently agree that the description fit the Colonel as he asked Nils his own question. "So you worked with the Colonel before?"

Nils nodded as he squeezed past a pair of chubby British tourists talking loudly. "Yup, served under him for a bit. Probably some of the worst years of my life. Stopped counting the number of near death incidents after twenty. Though I see he got a promotion, last time I saw him he was still a Major. Ah how time flies."

Looking over, Izuku could tell that Cassie was slightly shaken by the fact that this lackadaisical man admitted to nearly getting killed because of her father. Arriving at the baggage claim, the three waited as a never ending line of suitcases began rolling by on a conveyor belt.

"So what did you do with my dad? He never really talks about his work, I just know he works for the government." Cassie paused hesitantly before talking again. "Well, I know he served in the army...but...was he really that bad?"

Nils shrugged apathetically as he tapped his fingers against his thighs. "I'm gonna do you a favor and not answer that. Let's change the subject before this gets any more awkward. So what are you two here for? I mean your boyfriend speaks good English but he still has a bit of Japanese accent."

Izuku could tell Cassie was not happy with Nil's answer, but her expression changed from frustration to embarrassment by the sudden topic change. "What?! He is not my...we are just friends! Coming back...I mean he is going back but I am going..visiting his mom!" Cassie stumbled over her own words as Izuku blushed in embarrassment as well.

"Yeah I bet it is embarrassing to have people think a dork like me is her boyfriend. I should prepare her for how nosy mom is gonna be." Izuku thought to himself.

As Cassie continued to blush and stammer, Izuku spotted their suitcases and quickly snatched them from the conveyor belt. Nodding in approval, Nils turned on his heel and began heading towards the parking garage.

"Got your gear? Alright let's bounce!" As Nils walked he glanced over his shoulder at Izuku. "You know, at first I thought this gig was either going to be a pain in the ass or a deathtrap, but you two seem okay. I have beer in the car so we can-...Shit wait, you guys can't drink yet right? Aww man, it's no fun getting boozed up by myself. Okay, first stop is to get snacks and shit, then we crash at the hotel."

Izuku could not help but be a little concerned by their chaperone's attitude, but decided that if the Colonel trusted Nils he should at least give him a chance. After walking through the parking garage the three finally ended up at Nils' vehicle. The best word to describe the vehicle would be generic or standard. It was a matte grey SUV that looked like any of the thousands of others on the road. Opening the trunk, Nils put Izuku's and Cassie's luggage in the back as the two teens got into the car. Hopping into the driver's seat, Nils started the car's engine and began slowly driving out of the maze-like parking garage. Finally emerging out into the open air, Izuku was slightly surprised by how dark it was outside. The full moon hung low in the sky and the lights of the nearby city twinkled in the distance. As Nils drove, Izuku could see him reach into a pocket and pull out a pack of cigarettes.

Feeling a little annoyed, Izuku cleared his throat and spoke up. "Umm...I don't mean to sound rude, but could you not smoke while we are in the car with you?"

Nils briefly looked in the rearview mirror as he pulled out a lighter from somewhere up front. "Don't get your shorts in a knot kid. Relax, you both will be fine."

Izuku frowned as Nils lit his cigarette with one hand while the other gripped the steering wheel. Closing his eyes, Izuku leaned his head back and waited for the second-hand smoke to irritate his lungs. Strangely, after a few minutes Izuku did not smell any smoke. Opening his eyes, Izuku watched curiously as Nils took a long pull from his carcinogen stick. However, the expected puff of smoke never arrived, it seemed as if Nils had swallowed the smoke or made it disappear somehow. Realizing how quiet Cassie had been, Izuku looked over to see the blonde girl slumped against her window snoring softly. For a moment, Izuku was struck by how beautiful Cassie looked, the passing streetlights making her hair look almost gold in the dark. Snapping himself out of his daze, Izuku noticed movement out of the corner of his eye. Looking back up front, Izuku saw Nils' shoulders shaking from silent laughter. Catching Izuku's eye in the rearview mirror, Nils simply grinned and gave the green-haired teen a knowing wink. Feeling his face heat up, Izuku sighed and leaned back in his seat. Closing his eyes, Izuku let the rhythmic sound of the car's engine lull him to sleep.

Izuku woke up by the feeling of the car coming to a stop, blearily looking around as his brain struggled to remember where he was. Hearing a car door close, Izuku turned to see Nils standing outside his window. The red-haired man tossed a burned-out cigarette to the ground and ground it into the pavement under the heel of his shoe, before walking towards the back of the SUV.

Opening the back, Nils grabbed Izuku's and Cassie's suitcase as he spoke to the now awake young man. "Go wake your girlfriend up. We are in the three rooms on the bottom floor. I will leave your suitcases by the door. I say we wake up around eight so we can make it to your house on time."

Before Izuku could deny the romantic accusation, Nils had already closed the trunk of the SUV and walked towards the small motel nearby. Sighing heavily, Izuku unbuckled his seatbelt and looked over at the still sleeping Cassie.

"Cassie...hey Cassie…" Speaking softly, Izuku gently shook Cassie's shoulder until the girl opened her eyes. "We are at the motel. C'mon our rooms are on the bottom floor."

Nodding sleepily, Cassie untangled herself from her seatbelt and drowsily got out of the car. After guiding Cassie to her room, Izuku went next door and took his suitcase into his room. Not even bothering to change out of his clothes, Izuku flopped onto the soft bed and almost immediately fell back asleep.

The next morning, Izuku awoke to the sound of Nils banging his fist against his door. "Yo my man, time to wake up! You got thirty minutes to get ready before I leave without you."

Izuku grumbled to himself as he heard Nils bang on Cassie's door and repeat the same message. Sliding out of bed, Izuku went into his room's tiny bathroom and splashed some water on his face to wake up. After brushing his teeth and doing his daily morning ritual, Izuku decided to quickly hop in the shower and freshen up. Finishing his shower quickly, Izuku grabbed his suitcase and began deciding which clothes to wear. Choosing a simple outfit of a short-sleeve black polo shirt, blue jeans, and his nice sneakers, Izuku repacked his suitcase and then exited his room. Spotting Nils leaning against the hood of the SUV with lit cigarette in hand, Izuku dragged his suitcase out to the car, Izuku yawned and nodded politely to Nils.

"Good morning Nils." Izuku said with a slight yawn.

"Mornin champ, go put your stuff in the trunk and then help me make a decision. Should we stop and eat breakfast somewhere, grab some finger food, or drive straight to your place?" Nils talked as he idly looked around the mostly empty parking lot.

Putting his suitcase in the trunk of the SUV, Izuku went back to stand by Nils and shrugged. "Well I was going to call my mom and let her know I was almost there. I am sure she will want to make some food so...you are free to join us if you want."

Nils grinned and gently punched Izuku's arm. "Aww that's real nice of you man. Don't worry about lil old me. I was planning on staying out front in the car while you and your not-girlfriend talked with your mom. I need to actually do my job every once in awhile, you know how the old man gets."

Izuku smiled a little when Nils began talking, but the smile faded as Nils hinted at his true objective.

His smile changing from friendly to almost sinister, Nils took a long drag from his cigarette before speaking again. "She doesn't know you are working with that old bastard huh? The minute I saw you I knew you were his new little project. Let me guess, he made you some kind of amazing offer and picked you up outta the dirt? I will let you in on a little secret." Nils leaned forward conspiratorially as the burning embers of the cigarette seemed to reflect in his hellish orange eyes. "You ain't the first, and you definitely won't be the last."

Izuku felt the unease tingle in his spine as Nils quickly went back to his carefree persona.

"Alright looks like the gang's all here. Let's get this show on the road." Nils spoke loudly to someone nearby, then put out his cigarette and hopped into the SUV.

Turning around to see who Nils was talking to, Izuku was momentarily stunned by what he saw. Cassie wore a flowing white sundress that featured a blue floral design, along with a pair of light pink strap sandals. Cassie's long platinum hair was done up slightly with a classy braid and she wore just enough makeup to make her look like she stepped out of a magazine.

With suitcase in tow, Cassie walked closer and blushed slightly when she saw Izuku's reaction. "Do I look okay? I wanted to make a good impression with your mom…"

Izuku realized he had been staring and blushed as he nodded quickly. "Yep! I mean uh...you look...very nice."

Cassie smiled shyly but seemed to be a little bit happier as she put her suitcase in the trunk of the SUV. As Nils started the car, Izuku and Cassie climbed into their seats.

Izuku nervously picked at his fingernails and mentally berated himself as he tried to act casual next to Cassie.

"Calm down Izuku! Cassie just wanted to look nice for mom. Yeah, it's totally a girl thing. Stop thinking about it! Wait is she wearing perfume?"

Trying to breathe as normally as possible, Izuku realized Cassie was indeed wearing a very nice-smelling floral perfume. The sensory overload took its toll on Izuku's sanity as Nils drove down the road. For some reason Izuku found it almost impossible to talk to Cassie like he normally always had. Every time he tried to say something to her, Izuku's words would catch in his throat and he would choke out something incoherent before going silent again. Izuku was so focused on trying to be normal, that he barely noticed Nils occasionally looking in the rearview mirror and snickering under his breath. For Izuku, the short trip felt agonizingly slow for some reason. Finally, Nils turned the car down a side-street and brought it to a halt in front of a generic apartment building.

"Alright here we are! I'm just gonna snooze here while you two go do your thing. Oh yeah, one thing before I forget. Here is my number, put it in your phones in case you get lost or some shit." Nils spoke as he handed back a wrinkled piece of paper that had a cellphone number scrawled on it.

After dutifully putting Nils' number into their phones, Cassie and Izuku got out of the SUV and slowly began walking towards the apartment building. The two were awkwardly silent, and it was not until they had gotten to Izuku's floor did Cassie say anything.

"So umm...is your mom nice Izu? Like I bet she is totally nice! But I mean do you...do you think she will like me?" Cassie spoke as she nervously twirled a lock of her hair with her finger.

Nodding stiffly, Izuku looked everywhere but at Cassie as they slowly walked down the hall. "Oh she is nice...my dad is always travelling for work so she is a little..overprotective. Especially because of the whole quirkless thing. But don't worry, I am sure she will like you."

Finally the two came to a stop in front of Izuku's apartment door. As Cassie anxiously tried to make sure her dress was acceptable, Izuku knocked on the door.

"Mom? Its me Iz-"

Before Izuku could finish speaking the apartment door had flown open and milliseconds later a short woman with green hair tackled the young man into a back-breaking hug.

"MY BABY IZUKU! OH I M-MISSED YOU SO MUCH! I WAS SO WORRIED A-AND YOU GOT SO BIG AND OHH MY BABY IS HOME!"

Bawling her eyes out in joy, Inko Midoriya hugged Izuku tightly and continued to ramble on as the young man smiled and hugged her back. For almost a full minute, Izuku's mom simply buried her face in her son's chest and cried. After finally composing herself, Inko realized someone else was standing nearby.

Wiping her eyes with her sleeves, Izuku's mom blindly turned to face Cassie. "You must be Izuku's friend, thank you fo-" Finally taking her time to see who she was looking at, Izuku's mom stopped mid-sentence and froze like she had been petrified.

Smiling shyly, Cassie bowed politely and made sure to use her best Japanese language skills. "Hello Mrs. Midoriya, it is very nice to meet you. My name is Cassie Brandford and I am a friend of Izuku's."

With her eyes bulging out in shock, Inko turned to her son and grabbed the collar of his shirt. "Who is this angel?! I thought your friend was a boy! Oh my god she is so pretty! Is she….YOUR GIRLFRIEND?!" Beginning to cry in joy again, Inko turned back to Cassie and bowed politely. "Thank you for being my little Izuku's girlfriend! I was so worried when I sent him to his uncle's that I barely slept for a week, but to see him come back with such a cute girlfriend I now know I made the right choice!"

Cassie laughed softly as Izuku tried to get his mom's attention. Unfortunately Inko had gone into full proud mom mode and dragged the two teens inside the apartment.

"Oh where are my manners? Making you wait outside, please come in! Are you hungry? I just made breakfast. I hope it is good enough, do you want some tea? How did you meet my little boy? Oh when did you start dating?!" Izuku's mom spoke non-stop as she guided Cassie to the dinner table and ran into the kitchen to make some tea.

Following his mom inside, Izuku sighed and made sure he was clear enough for his mom to hear him. "Mom...mom! Please stop for a second! Mom! She is not my girlfriend! She is just my friend!"

Turning to look at her son in confusion, Inko silently mouthed some words in confusion unitl she turned to look at Cassie then back at Izuku. "What?! Well why haven't you asked her out yet! I knew you were shy, but come on Izuku! Are you really going to let this chance slip by!?"

Izuku felt his entire head turn bright red as Cassie giggled in amusement.

Scoffing at what her son had just said, Inko brought a plate of food over to Cassie and sat down next to her. "So he really has not asked you on a date? I mean you look like you could be in a movie or a magazine! Also you speak Japanese so well! I swear that boy sometimes…"

Cassie had to take a minute to compose herself and stop giggling before replying to Izuku's mom. "Thank you for the compliments Mrs. Midoriya. But it is true Izzy...I mean Izuku and I are...just friends. I will admit I wanted to make a good impression so I dressed up more than I normally do. I can tell you I am not as amazing as you are making me out to be."

Izuku grabbed a plate of food and sat down at the table as he felt his cheeks burn from embarrassment. Sighing to himself, Izuku knew that there was no way he could get out of this situation. So he simply occupied himself with imprinting the taste of his mom's cooking into his head as she talked to Cassie.

"And you know that he is...quirkless?" Izuku's mom said worriedly.

"Yes I do know, but I don't care. Izuku has been a really good friend to me and is one of the bravest people I know. After all, when we first met he saved me from getting attacked by a bunch of thugs." Cassie said proudly.

Looking at her son in disbelief, Inko tried to keep her voice to a normal level. "What?! You saved her from a whole gang!?"

Izuku sighed and swallowed what he was eating before responding. "Not really, I told her to run then immediately got beaten up. She actually took care of them all by herself. I did not do anything."

Cassie frowned and shook her head while sternly looking at Izuku. "Not true, okay maybe you did not save me directly, but they gave you a chance to run away. However you did a really brave thing and tried to save me no matter how bad your chance was. I think that counts for something."

Izuku's mom sniffled and wiped away a proud tear as she looked at her son and gestured to Cassie. "I still don't understand why you haven't asked her out. She is such a pretty girl and she obviously has a good head on her shoulders."

"Mom stop it!" Izuku said through gritted teeth.

"What? You don't find a girl like her every day you know?" Inko said uncaringly.

"So where are you staying? I thought you were going to be a boy so I prepared an extra bed for you in the spare room...but I doubt you want to stay in a place like this." Inko spoke to Cassie as they cleaned up the dishes from the meal.

"It really is alright Mrs. Midoriya, I would be happy to sleep here. After all I don't know my way around here at all and staying here would make things easier. Plus I want to hear more about Izuku when he was little!" Cassie said as she smiled warmly at Izuku's mom.

Looking over at her son who was cleaning the table, Inko gave him an exasperated look. "You really should ask her out Izuku."

Izuku felt his cheeks burn as Cassie giggled. "Mom just stop it already!" He hissed in embarrassment.

Holding up her hands in surrender, Inko went back to washing plates as she regaled Cassie with embarrassing stories about Izuku's childhood.

- So here is the second chapter. I had originally planned on introducing/hinting at Deku's quirk but I did not realize how much it would take to set everything up.

- Too tired to remember what else I was gonna say

-edit: fixed a few typos

Hope y'all have a good day/night

(Reviews and comments are always appreciated)