It started when Shouta walked in and saw his child bite and loudly snap down on the carrot between his sharpened teeth, chewing and crunching it with more force than usual—almost deliberate.
There was nothing wrong with that, and Izuku's done far stranger things. So, Shouta only paused long enough to say, "Izuku, no food in front of the computer." It was a rule, after all.
Izuku pauses, his hand holding the carrot stopping inches from his mouth as his eyes meet Shouta's.
Then he nods in confirmation, a bit sheepish.
Shouta continues on, a hum leaving his throat.
Next time it happened, Izuku was hunched over the laptop—a ridiculous sight when the size of a full grown bear.
He was making soft—but deep—growling noises that rumbled throughout the room. Shouta was worried if the kid had seen something that was making him upset, but then Izuku's bright emerald eyes glanced up and shined as cheerful as ever, his growling quietening minutely. And when Shouta turned away, he could hear it picking back up in volume, but still nothing that suggested distress.
Another time, he caught Izuku lightly scraping his long—paw shifted hands—along the floor. Not hard enough to scratch or damage the wood, but just lightly enough for the sound.
Shouta thought he might've been bored or felt restless, so he offered for the boy to go outside. But Izuku had turned it down, paused in his scraping, and turned back to his laptop that was next to him on the floor, a fierce tapping of keys against hard nails.
Honestly, Shouta wasn't sure if Izuku was actually typing something or simply liked the sound it produced.
Then he recalled that the boy was extremely slow with the keyboard and assumed it was the latter.
It was a few days later that curiosity finally got the better of him.
Izuku and White were communicating back and forth—nothing all that unusual.
If it wasn't for the fact that their conversation all had the exact same pitch that changed every fifteen seconds on the dot, and the fleeting glances Izuku would shoot at his laptop that was still right next to him .
"Problem child, what on earth are you up to?" He asked.
Izuku's teeth clicked shut as he turned wide green eyes upon his father.
"Asmr," he told him, his wrist flicking to his computer once.
Shouta blinked, unsure what exactly that was, but Izuku seemed eager to return back to it and resume his repeated conversation with the white cat.
So, Shouta let him and backed out of the room. Once on the couch, he pulled out his phone and tapped on the search engine.
'What is asmr' was quickly typed in and a multitude of results came up.
'Asmr', were apparently sound-based videos that usually focused on noises that allowed people to relax and calm themselves—usually to help them sleep or provide background noise to whatever tasks they were working on.
There was also a section that focused on plain weird or uncanny. Shouta wasn't really sure of the purpose of those.
Still, he made sure to search that it wasn't something inappropriate—as he doesn't trust the internet and its strangeness. His fingers tapped on Izuku's herotube channel that now had a lot more videos than the last time he checked it (which was when he had made the thing for Izuku, honestly he wasn't even sure if the kid could figure out how to make videos)
Said videos all had poor quality thumbnails along with titles such as: SCRATCHING CLICKING NAILS ASMR, CRUNCH CARROT ASMR, TAPPING AND THUMPING ASMR, the list goes on for what Shouta can count for, about forty different videos.
Selecting one, he was met more or less with what the title would suggest. Like the thumbnails, it was all in horrid quality and each and every pixel could probably be counted with both of his hands. Maybe even his toes if he were generous. Honestly, the only way Shouta could even tell it was Izuku was because that was his kid. And also, the bright green hair. But, details.
…is that one of himself?
Shouta squinted down at the phone. At some point, the kid had snuck right up against the man and recorded… him snoring.
Shouta wasn't even aware he did snore. He was pretty sure he didn't, he tried to convince himself right at the moment a particularly loud one ripped through the shitty audio.
Wait, fuck, that's Nemuri. He sees a glint of the woman's glasses. With both of them having long, dark hair, it was kind of hard to discern. Thinking about it, if Shouta did snore, he was fairly sure he would know about it instantly in the form of both of his friends never leaving him the fuck alone about it.
Shouta snorted shortly, then exited out of the app. There didn't seem to be anything inherently sinister or inappropriate with what Izuku was doing, so he didn't need to worry. From the few glances he had gotten from the comments, Shinsou seemed to be aware of them and prompting the other boy for more. It must be a joke or challenge between the two friends, harmless fun between the two twelve year olds.
Izuku's fingers hit the keys as loudly as he could. The sound and sensation were amusing to the boy, even if it was terribly slow. That was fine, though. With a bit more practice, he was determined to be as fast as Hitoshi, who could type up word after word with nimble fingers and not constantly misspell something! Or look like complete gibberish!
That was what Hitoshi called his own typing, anyway. But he just didn't understand how good a document looked with random letters and numbers and symbols all mashed together, in varying sizes, and in several different 'fonts'. But Izuku knew, so he kept continuing to do it.
That wasn't going to stop him from learning to be better so he could look at the expression on Hitoshi's face though.
A little yellow bird fluttered across Izuku's screen. It was one of the many little creatures he and Hitoshi had downloaded. He forgot what they were called, but they didn't do much other than walk around the screen, lay around, and also multiply if he didn't keep an eye on them. (It tended to crash the computer when there were an overwhelming amount)
The yellow bird grabbed the internet box and flung it out of sight.
Oh right, they also did that.
Izuku had no idea how to get the box back when they did that, so he forced it to close and opened a new window, fingers slowly typing the page he was last looking over.
Recently, Izuku has been curious about quirks.
More specially, quirks that may be similar to his own.
While the people at the fur-cut building were similar in being animalistic, they weren't quite… like him. Not really.
So, he typed in 'bunny quirks' into the search engine and was instantly met with dozens of pictures of people with bunny ears that were similar to himself in his human form. Scrolling around a bit though, he couldn't really find anything that was like his other form, just all cutesy eared humans.
His fingers tap against the keyboard in thought. He probably didn't look it up correctly. Hitoshi told him that it can be tricky and sometimes you have to type exactly what you mean. But what did that mean in his situation?
'Full bunny quirks'?
No that wasn't it, either.
'All bunny quirks', was a failure as well.
'Entire body bunny quirks' just got him weird results. What was a furry? He'll never know.
Izuku stiffened. Perhaps if he tried-?
'Giant bunny quirks'
He looks at the term for a few moments before deciding to add, 'with fangs and claws' onto the end as well before hitting enter.
Aha! There!
The term 'Monster Rabbits' stuck out to him like a glaring neon sign. He backtracked his own search and replaced it with what he had discovered.
A flood of results popped on his screen and Izuku knew he found what he was looking for. And while they weren't entirely like himself, the images were a lot closer than the small bunnies from before.
These looked fierce and proud with their sharp teeth pulled back in a snarl and their claws brandishing like serrated knives. They looked threatening. They looked cool .
Eyes lighting up in delight, Izuku deleted the bunny part altogether, wanting to see what other kinds of monsters there were. He wasn't entirely sure if all of these were quirked humans, but they must be—right?
Images of storybook monsters he read about flash in his mind. Those weren't quirks, he was pretty sure. Monsters were usually written as mindless beasts that caused trouble and the main character had to come up with a solution of some kind. Were creatures like that real? Hitoshi said most animal based quirks were based off of something that exists. Most of the time anyway. Which would mean large snake-like sea creatures were real. And 'demons' that breathed blue fire from its lungs and had huge, bat-like wings—those were real, right? He wasn't exactly sure what a demon was, but the picture book looked really amazing. Oh! And speaking of books, that meant the dragons in his favorite book were real!
Though he hasn't seen a quirk like that yet.
That doesn't mean one doesn't exist though, he reasoned, his fingers itching to type it up and find out for himself.
Before he did however, a sentence caught his eye.
MONSTER SPOTTED IN MUSUTAFU FOREST
… isn't that the name of where he lives?
Then, does that mean it's talking about my forest?
Curiosity getting the better of him, Izuku clicked on the link.
It led to a forum, or at least he thinks so.
MONSTER SPOTTED IN MUSUTAFU FOREST · Posted by Curious Cryptid four years ago
[Photos of large footprints sunk into dried mud; a human hand next to it for size comparison that is easily dwarfed by the size of the print. A photo of gashes in trees, some stripped bare of their bark. Another photo of a blood soaked area, the blood streaking off as though something large had been dragged away. The last photo is an extremely blurry, dark shape that is mostly blocked off by leaves and other obstructs.]
Curious Cryptid
me and my friend went into the nearby forest in musutafu and found some weird stuff? we weren't sure if it was a prank someone left off, but it was spooky and interesting either way. we poked around and took some pics to give the rest of our friends a good scare when we heard something BIG running towards us
we ran away like hell but my friend did manage to snap this picture over her shoulder
what do you guys think?
Kennith Linguine
this is either fake or that city straight up has a whole ass tiger
ghost child
didnt some kid die in there some years back
kazehana23
Someone went missing about, idk, 4 or 5 years ago I think? It was all over the news for a while, they never did find a body though.
TimidGlitch
Right! That! I remember that! It was a highschooler and a group of friends went in, claimed to encounter a monster that killed their friend, then ran away.
If I recall, one was in there for a few more days before he made it out. The guy looked half dead from dehydration and shit like that, hysterical too.
deuynn
are u really trying to say theres a monster and no one has done fuck all about it
What Even Is Sleep
Because it's not real. The heroes would have dealt with it if there was something killing people off. I still say those "friends" that kid was with killed him off and ditched his body in the river. Having a 'monster' be the culprit is just a bs half baked excuse that only little kids would believe. They should be thrown in jail for murder, but since the body was never found, no one can do shit about it.
Diggles
Do you think the monster is still there
Asking for a friend
Curious Cryptid
Diggles can you not
Diggles
Damn, ruin my dreams why don't you 😔
What Even Is Sleep
Diggles If you bothered to read my post, you would already know it would not be there, because it doesn't exist.
Diggles
That was a whole lotta words, you think I know how to read?
Curious Cryptid
guys, can we stay on topic please
carbonated choccy milk
idk what to tell you man
besides those 3 people, no ones really stepped up and claimed that the thing was real
Diggles
So a cryptid as well as a monster
I for one, welcome it
Curious Cryptid
I see.
well, I'll leave this forum open to any future sightings then
ghost child
people usually avoid the murder forest, but you do you man
The back of Izuku's mind itched as he read on. Something familiar hanging just out of reach. He tried to reach for it, but the memories were hazy, and they slipped through his fingers like morning mist. Izuku shook it off. If he couldn't remember it, then it wasn't important.
No, what was important is this forum in front of him.
A monster in the forest… His head tilted in consideration. A glance back to the forum showed that it had been posted four years ago, which was…
Numbers counted down in his head. How old was he again? Not that he cared about his age that much, seeing as he didn't understand the point of it. But Shouta told him that it was important to know and hold onto.
Izuku huffed. It changed… twice, I think? Then—twelve. I'm twelve. I've lived with Shouta for two years. That meant he still lived in the forest four years ago!
But that was strange.
Even if this was his new home, he still had lived in that forest for his entire life—and never once had he seen a 'monster'.
Didn't Koda say something about that too? He did, didn't he? But he had said that it hadn't been there in a while. Was it gone now?
I want to see it.
How had it eluded him for so long? They could have become friends! Or a decent snack. Oh-or maybe it had cool things he could have plucked from its body, as he liked to do with birds and deer and some strange small animal with spikes on its back. (the foxes called them thorn rats)
Izuku frowns as the memory fades. Come to think of it, he's been spending a lot of time near his forest again. Sneaking out in the dead of night or teetering over the edge of the fence despite Shouta's urges to stay within the yard.
Izuku shifted his weight from one leg to another. Maybe the problem is because he was going out during the night. Perhaps this 'monster' Koda and the forum were talking about only came out during the day?
Falling backwards until his back touched the floor, Izuku stared up at the weird white bits had been scraped off long ago when the boy first discovered just how easily they crumbled under his touch, reminding him of popcorn that he and Shouta would eat some nights as they watched a movie. (though they tasted nothing even similar) He scratched a single claw lightly against his neck, his fur almost tickling the skin under the touch. His mind returns back to the monster.
Going out during the day probably wouldn't help in finding it either, now that he thought about it. Koda told him that it hadn't been there for a while—or rather, the woodland animals did.
Maybe it moved elsewhere? There were still sections of the forest he had never set foot in. Or perhaps it was closer to one of the edges where Izuku tended to avoid in favor of staying in the depths? Which section of the forest did this person even see it at?
Tongue poking from his lips, Izuku went to type out the question until he realized he had to make an account to do so. It took him ten minutes to find where to make one, then another nine to decide on a 'username' and a password that he was more likely to forget the next day than not.
USERNAMEHEREIZUKU
WHERE WAS THIS
He waited for fifteen minutes, clicking refresh as he did, but he wasn't awarded with an answer. After waiting for another five, he was growing impatient.
I can probably find it on my own, he huffed to himself, closing the tab. He'd have to sneak out to do it, but it wasn't anything he hadn't done before.
But if I want to try during the daytime, how would I do that? The adults were awake during those times and usually kept him within sight, as opposed to the night when they left him be. Izuku's ears pricked. Of course! It wasn't unusual for him to take several naps throughout the day, perhaps taking one in his room instead of the middle of the living room would work out? Shouta did say my room was for privacy… that should do it.
With his plan set, Izuku shut his laptop and called over his shoulder to notify Shouta that he was taking a nap before slinking into his room, the door clicking behind him.
Now in his bedroom, Izuku leapt onto his bed, dropping his computer as his hands reached out for the window latch. His claws extend themselves outwards and he expertly picks the lock, sliding open with ease.
I should check around the edges of the forest, first. Then make my way farther in some other day if I can't find the forest monster, Izuku planned, his feet hitting grass, wet from the rain earlier that morning.
It would take too long to travel around the tree's edges on his two short legs, so Izuku decided to search in his rabbit form, which was much bigger and had more stride for each leap. Izuku entered the forest just enough for passing humans to not notice him from a passing glance. Once he was situated—Izuku ran.
Tree passed by in a blur as he sprinted along the forest floor, leaping over unruly bushes and branches that would surely hinder his process. He kept his sense open wide, scanning for even a hint of anything unusual. Izuku was not sure what a 'monster' smelled like, but it must be different from the normal forest scents—right?
Water splashed against his flank as his paws slam down into an unsuspecting puddle, and after a few more strides dirt soon clung along his forelegs, clumping in a way the boy was familiar with. Before, when Izuku had settled down in his den for the day, he would groom the dirt out of his fur and joyfully grab the clumps of dried mud in his fists, where he would squeeze and crush them into fine powder.
He shook the memory from his head as a fallen tree came into view, its thick trunk laying haphazardly in his path. Izuku only paused for a second before his muscles bunched and he leapt the obstacle with magnificent grace. He smirks over his shoulder in triumph that he had managed the jump without so much as his belly scraping along the rough bark.
Then he turned away, his nose up in the air taking scent of the area once more. But still, there was nothing new.
But it's only the first day, he reasoned, if I can't find anything today, then there's always tomorrow. The forest was big, after all. No way would he be able to search every nook by himself!
This is what he told himself as he slunk back through his window two hours later, absolutely nothing to show for his efforts. Despite that, he had to admit.
It felt good to run like that again.
The next six days played out in the same way.
Izuku would announce he was taking a nap, climb out his window, then run through the forest for the next three hours searching for this so-called monster that was last spotted three years ago—and every time he would return home empty handed.
It consumed him, he wanted to find this creature so badly that it made his skin itch and made his heart race that he couldn't . Izuku's nose never failed him! The only times it had was when humans were deliberately messing with it with their weird quirks! So, unless this monster had a quirk that let them be near unfindable, he should have found it by now!
[ "There are other ways to mask your scent, flea-brain, or had you forgotten that?" ] White chided the green-haired boy as he complained in the feline's general direction.
Izuku frowns. [ "How?" ]
Blue-green eyes roll in disbelief. [ "By smothering yourself in dirt and mushrooms? That lets you sneak up on prey that have a sharp sense of smell, or if you're trying to be sneaky and don't want to leave a trail. I had to do that a lot when I snuck off to visit you." ]
[ "You had to sneak around to see me? Why?" ]
White shifted slightly as he looked away. [ "They just didn't really like the idea of me wandering off to you." ]
Hurt settles low in Izuku's chest. [ "Why?" ] He asks again. His mind flashing briefly to that time period where the cats of his previous home visited less and less until altogether, they stopped. [ "They weren't… were they really avoiding me?" ] Izuku had spent a long time convincing himself that wasn't the case, that his new stretch of the forest was just too far for others to visit him often, or that they were simply too busy with the daily struggle of finding food to keep every cat well-fed and out of trouble. It was hard work to keep that kind of group under control—especially when Leader had died.
Discomfort flashed across his friend's face, obviously regretting this conversation. But White wasn't one to lie or skirt around the truth, so when he opened his mouth again it was with a confirmation, that yes, they had been. [ "They said it was dangerous—that you were dangerous and killed two kits during your time with them like it was nothing. You were too big for them to just drive out, so they had to… make it seem like it was for the best. They were afraid of you, I think." ]
[ "I—I didn't know about the kits, I… don't even remember that. I would have never hurt them!" ] He could feel the hair on the back of his neck prickle. If he killed kits, he would have known! He lived there! Cats were always big in their social life, and terrible gossipers. If something like that had happened, there was no way it wouldn't have reached his ears. Disregarding that, he would have known the moment it had happened anyway. Izuku would not have been able to miss that. Not that he wanted to call his friend a liar, but that was ridiculous.
[ "I wasn't even kitted at this point, so it's not like I had a good idea of what happened," ] White sighs with a twitch of his tail, [ "I'm only telling you what I was told. Besides, does it really matter? You were only there for a few seasons. You lived on your own longer than you've known the forest cats. The ones you did know are probably dying of old age by now." ] blue-green eyes narrow as the cat tilted his head in consideration. [ "I'd say you ended up with a way better deal than you would have from living with those furballs." ]
[ "The company would've been nice," ] Izuku grumbled.
White shrugged. [ "I disagree with that. They were a bunch of idiots with their heads up their butts. Maybe you were too young to see it fully, but they were annoying as sparrows during new-leaf. They could not solve their own problems to save their own hides, and they never. shut. up. Besides, by the time I left, there was a massive overpopulation problem. Even if they were right about what you did, that was only two less mouths for them to worry about in the long run." ]
[ "I suppose so," ] Izuku hummed.
The cat gave his stiff muscles a much needed stretch, his bone popping in the quiet. [ "Now, unless I'm mistaken—it's probably time to head back to the fake forest?" ]
Izuku blinked in surprise. Had it really been that long? A huff escaped his nostrils. He was getting so tired of the fake forest! It was frustrating that he could only spend a few spare minutes in between the humans switching out! He wished he didn't need to go back there—what was wrong with this abandoned stretch of woods? He couldn't help but think as large paws worked the ground in front of him, the grass turning flat.
[ "Izuku?" ] White questions.
[ "I don't want to go back," ] the green-eyed creature growls low in his throat. White's eyes gleam in mischievously.
[ "You know, I've always thought these humans could use something to keep them on their toes. They're way too peaceful." ]
The boy tilts his head. [ "Weren't you just complaining about your old home not being peaceful enough?" ]
[ "That's different," ] White retorts. [ "For one, I can actually understand what they're saying. 'Japanese' though, just sounds like a bunch of gibberish to the point it's hilarious. It's all in good fun. Shouta is too fond of you to actually get upset." ]
[ "But my window—" ]
[ "You closed it well enough. They wouldn't be able to tell you came from it." ]
Leaning onto his haunches, Izuku supposes there really wasn't much harm in it. The fake forest was already far enough from the big building with all of the humans. If he sticks to the tree line, then he shouldn't encounter anyone. It would be kind of like a game of hide-n-seek. Izuku is great at that game.
With that in mind, he slinks off farther into the small woods, White right on his heels.
"Now, now, what are you up to?" Black beady eyes watch the boy-in-beast-form through his tablet. Instead of returning back to gym Beta, like he usually did after a certain amount of time, the rabbit, lizard, creature was moving away . How peculiar.
Of course, Nezu was always aware of the younger Aizawa's outings, but he knew that allowing him a little bit of freedom was essential for the boy to not feel as though he was trapped within the gym walls. It was a proven fact that confiding wild animals indoors would make them antsy, pent up, and at times, aggressive.
That was why when he caught the boy sneaking out that first time, Nezu had planned his leave to be when the school grounds were guaranteed to be clear, risking no chance of a stray student to encounter something they should not.
Risking no chance of…
…
"Oh, dear."
Shouta was lightly drowsing, completely covered up in his bright yellow sleeping bag as the other teachers chatter amongst themselves, squeezing in one last bout of conversation before lunch ended and they would need to disperse and trek back to their designated classrooms, teaching twenty brats who were only on the cusp of paying attention on a good day.
His eye slides open as the intercom in the lounge crackles to life.
"Aizawa- if you are conscious, I would suggest you hurry down to sector E," Nezu's high pitched voice rang.
"Why?" Shouta grumbles, stifling annoyance. What was in sector E? He pauses. Wait… that's near...
"It seems as though Izuku had managed to get loose and is currently prowling that area, furthermore, I spy a few students sneaking around. I do believe they belong to your class. Make haste, if you will." And with that, the line fizzles out.
Shouta leaps up, cursing.
"I'm not sure if we should be over here, Uwasa," Aio voices in concern.
"It's not against the rules that you can explore the grounds during lunch," Uwasa replies.
"Maybe, but considering how far we are from the building, we're not gonna make it in time for our next class," Momoka states, then blows her lips. "Is there any point in this? I would so rather not be here during our break. And I packed a pretty kickass lunch today and I didn't even get to look at it yet! I'm hungry , Uwasa."
The girl rolls her eyes. "You have four perfectly fine hands, just eat as you walk."
"We'll have to at this point," Aio grouses, "or starve."
"There's no point in complaining now, you two already agreed to come with me—" ( "More like forced," Aio complains under her breath. ) "Besides, this has to be it!"
With one arm holding her bag, and another rifling through it, Momoka replies with a tilt of her head. "You've said that before, what makes this time different?"
" Because I saw them!" Uwasa hisses with triumph. "I saw Aizawa-sensei walk towards this direction with a kid—the same kid I saw last time! I wonder if that is the reason gym Beta isn't in use any longer?"
Aio and Momoka share a doubtful look. Opening her bento, Momoka glances back at her rumor-loving friend. "Isn't it more likely that Aizawa-sensei is just watching over someone else's kid?"
"Why would he do that?"
"Because he—" Aio suddenly cuts off with a gasp, stopping dead.
Uwasa was about to ask the girl just what in the world was the matter, when she caught that her friend was staring wide-eyed, her gaze fixating on some point in the distance. Uwasa follows it, her own eyes looking into the tree line that boarded the school grounds.
There, standing several dozen yards away and staring straight at the trio—was some sort of large creature, easily bigger than a full-grown horse. Uwasa could not make out its features fully, but she could see two rabbit-like ears standing to attention as it stood frozen to the spot.
"What the fuc—" she starts to say, but just then, the creature flinches and sprints farther into the woods, out of sight.
"Do you think that was an intruder?" She could hear Momoka ask, and when Uwasa turns around, she can see the other girl staring wide-eyed where the creature had disappeared.
"We have alarms for a reason!" Aio hisses. "UA would've known if someone was on their grounds! It was probably a student."
"I've never heard of a student looking like that ," Uwasa rejects the idea. If someone had a quirk similar to that, she would have known . "It wasn't even wearing a uniform."
Momoka shuffles in place as she returns her bento back into her bag, appetite forgotten. "Something tells me that wouldn't really be an issue if they ended up stripping it. Instead of a student, maybe UA has some sort of… monster on its grounds? Like a guard dog?"
Uwasa's eyes flash mischievously. "I'm gonna go catch it," she declares, sprinting into the direction the beast vanished into. From behind, her friends hiss. And because of their hero nature being unable to let their friend be torn to shreds, they give chase.
Or they would have, if not for the white scarf that shot out and tripped them over their own feet.
"To my knowledge, lunch period ended five minutes ago," a gruff voice calls from behind as the bindings around their ankles give a slight tug. "Is there any particular reason you three are skipping out on class?"
All three girls turn their heads slowly, a bead of sweat dripping from their foreheads. As they came face-to-face with a red eyed Aizawa-sensei, Aio and Momoka groans. Aizawa-sensei had a tenacity to dish out punishments in the form of adding extra laps during training. Ignoring her friends' grief, Uwasa points to the tree line.
"Sensei! We saw a monster over there! A huge one! It ran away into the trees; we need to go find it!" She loudly yells with a frenzied look. Aio and Momoka on the other hand, quickly shake their heads.
Aizawa-sensei's eyes seemed to harden at her words. His gaze flits up, staring into the woods. "There's nothing there," he says, looking back down at the trio.
"Because it ran away ," Uwasa hisses, fumbling as she got to her feet, "if we go and—"
Aizawa-sensei interrupts her. " You will be going back to class," he states firmly. "If this is an excuse to miss out on your history test, then it is a poor one. You have eight minutes to go to class, any later than that, and you will join in for detention."
Uwasa opens her mouth, but before she could retort, Aio and Momoka grab both of her arms and drag the girl away hastily.
"We'll be there in five!" Momoka shouts from over her shoulder, drowning out the sounds of Aio hissing under her breath, scolding their struggling, rumor-loving friend.
Watching them leave for a few moments more, Shouta jogs to gym Beta. Just how the hell did Izuku manage to get out? As far as he was aware, that should be nigh impossible, unless the kid broke through a window. But even then—those were heavily reinforced! It would take nothing short of a large semi truck crashing into the building before the windows would give way.
He arrived at the building within minutes. Unlocking the double doors, Shouta calls out for his son.
"Izuku?"
The building is quiet. Shouta is about to call once again, but just then a rustling came from somewhere off to his right. His eyes snap to it as he watches his son slink into the open, blinking owlishly up at him with innocent eyes.
Shouta relaxes. He was still here, then. His relief turns into confusion.
But Nezu had said that it was Izuku who he saw on the grounds, and it wasn't like there were very many things that looked like a massive green rabbit.
Kneeling in front of the young boy, Shouta studies his face. "Izuku, did you leave this building?" He asks directly, because if there was one thing he knew about his son, it was that he could not lie. Misdirect and distract, perhaps, but never outright lie.
Izuku looks away, his scaled foot scuffing into the dirt. He did not answer the man, but guilt painted his face.
Shouta groans. "How?"
Izuku pointedly refused to say.
And frustratedly enough, so did Nezu.
[ "Coward," ] White huffs against Izuku's ear.
A moment later, for some inexplicable reason, the cat was knocked from his perch on the child's shoulder with an undignified squawk.
After that incident, Izuku skipped his evening adventure of searching the forest behind his house, worried that Shouta may find him gone. Instead, he finds himself clicking on questionable links and shifty websites and counts the third time he had to forcibly turn off the laptop as it froze and refused to work with him. If he were any better with technology, he would probably be able to hear the poor thing wheeze and beg for the sweet release of computer-death. But, as it was, he had the same knowledge as that as a five year old, slapping away on keys and being completely oblivious to how much stress Shouta will later go through in wiping the thing clean of all its viruses.
It became a bi-weekly thing.
In his clicking around, he stumbles upon the forum again. He blinks at it, having forgotten about why he was scouring the forest of a so-called monster.
So, with a shrug, he clicks on it.
And to his slight surprise, saw that the forum had a few added comments.
USERNAMEHEREIZUKU
WHERE WAS THIS
Curious Cryptid
USERNAMEHEREIZUKU Oh boy, this is kind of a dead forum, but this was in Musutafu forest
Lasagne
This is strange timing, but I think I saw what you're talking about? I was walking my dog and he suddenly lost it and barked like crazy as something hug ran by. It really scared me skjfsdjf
Curious Cryptid
Lasagne Oh huh that is strange
I tried to find it again once, but didn't have any luck
Honestly I was starting to think I imagined the whole thing—do you remember what it looked like?
Lasagne
Ah, it was kind of fast tbh? It was big and green and kind of had the body shape of a bear but fucked up
GreenHeron
LMAO i saw smth like that yesterday
Diggles
oh this thread is alive
i am once again asking if the monster is still there. for a friend
Curious Cryptid
Hello again, Diggles
That's a good question, and if I'm being honest I;m tempted to go and check again
Nessie
you want to get mauled to death? because that is a great way to get mauled to death
Diggles
wild
Curious Cryptid whats your thoughts on letting peopel join in
Nessie
diggles, no
Curious Cryptid
Diggles Oh, I guess that's fine? As long as you're aware of the risks
I'm not planning on directly making contact with it, I just want to see what it is—yknow?
Dragonheart4444
if we're forming a party to go monster hunting I wanna come too
Ratoyama
Sounds entertaining, I want in
Curious Cryptid
Ok, ok, let's come up with a day then
Nessie
imagine meeting up with people over a forum
isnt this how kidnappings start
did none of you have the strange danger talk
Diggles
if that is what it takes to see a big buff monster in the forest then so be it 😩
Izuku's claws tap on the keyboard as he thinks.
Humans were going to search for the monster too? He wasn't sure of what kind of luck they would have, when Izuku had been searching for the past week himself.
But I was doing it on my own. Would having extra eyes help? Joining a group to track it down sounded interesting, but he shrank away at the idea of meeting strangers.
I know the forest better than any of them, I bet. If they turn out to be bad, I can just run away, he reasons. And if they tried to fight, well.
Izuku wasn't exactly helpless.
USERNAMEHEREIZUKU
I'M GOING
Curious Cryptid
USERNAMEHEREIZUKU Great!
The meet-up was four days later.
Curious Cryptid wanted it to be as soon as possible, just in case the monster retreated back into hiding, but also give enough time for more people to join in if they wished to come as well.
Izuku was impatient and ended up searching the forest twice more before admitting defeat that he could not find it on his own. He was a little frustrated that a few humans managed to see it, despite not looking for it originally. Was he just unlucky?
When the day for the meet-up came, Izuku waited patiently until the time rolled close before announcing he was taking his daily nap. Shouta gives a small wave, having started to drift off himself.
Shutting himself in his room, Izuku slips on his green hoodie and opens the window with ease. It only takes him ten minutes to reach what he was sure is the meeting spot, but before he goes forward, he climbs up a tree. With his added height, he scouts the humans from afar.
Izuku didn't want to willingly go up to bad humans, and he was especially hesitant to meet strangers without the comforting presence of his dad being there next to him.
They didn't seem bad, at least, his senses didn't say so. They looked awkward more than anything, really. Most of the humans were tall, which made him frown. He was hoping for some that were his own age.
Shrugging it off, Izuku jumps down from his perch and warily makes his way to the group.
Upon closer inspection, the humans look to be in their teens, which made him feel a bit better. They don't seem to really notice him right away, with a few of them being in conversation. One particular girl catches his attention, or rather—her scent does.
Rather than producing one herself, she seems to be drawing in the others around her like moths to a flame. Izuku gets the feeling she is someone who is hard to sneak up on.
As if proving this thought, her pink eyes flit to him for a brief second before looking away and focusing on another pair of newcomers.
Izuku thinks he stands there waiting for about ten minutes before one human claps their hands together, gaining the attention of the others around them.
"That's probably enough time, if anyone else is late then that's on them," they announce. Izuku cocks his head at the human, taking in their bright green eyes and red scarf that matched their eyes. "If I'm being honest, this is still more people than I was expecting to show up."
"We all said we were," one says with a raised eyebrow.
Red scarf chuckles slightly. "Yes, but, I didn't think anyone actually would." Composing themselves, red eyes quickly scan over the group, and hesitate on Izuku. "Is that someone's kid?" They ask, and suddenly about a dozen pairs of eyes rest on the rabbit-eared boy. When no one spoke up, they frowned.
Taking a step forward, the red-eyed human crouches, looking down into Izuku's eyes. "Hey little guy, shouldn't you be at home? Your parents could get worried if you're here all on your own."
Izuku blinks. "I'm coming," he says, nodding to the forest. He could tell by the human's frown that they didn't like that answer. They opened their mouth to reply but was cut off by the girl with the particular scent.
"Just let the kid come, better he's under supervision than going inside and getting lost on his own."
A hum escapes the red-eyed human and they back off, though displeasure was still written on their face. "I suppose. Stay close to us, ok kid?"
They split into three groups. Four to each group, with Izuku being the fifth in his own. He suspects that the red-eyed human feels some sort of obligation to make sure Izuku does in fact, stay safe, because he had ended up in their group. Izuku didn't really mind this, as the human seemed nice enough and produced a scent of fresh dirt and ivy leaves that reminded him of the forest.
Izuku jogs a bit, reaching the red-eyed human's side, but still maintaining a respectable distance.
"What's your quirk?" He asks, curious.
The human smiles at him, before reaching one arm under their scarf and pulling a thick vine from between their shoulder blades.
"I can only have two of these at a time," they explain, "but they're pretty handy when I need an extra hand or two. Or I suppose vine, in this case." Chuckling at their own joke, the human allows the vine to retreat back under the scarf.
Izuku lets out a chirp and falls back to his place behind the group, his curiosity sated.
They were taking too long, and Izuku was pretty sure he had already explored this area the week before. But the group kept stopping to examine the surroundings, trying to find a hint or clue to where this so-called monster was.
Izuku didn't need to look for footprints or crushed undergrowth or whatever else they were searching for, because he had a nose —a fairly good one at that! —and he could tell that nothing unusual went this way. But when the green-haired boy tried to say nothing was here, he was ultimately ignored and talked over. It was downright annoying.
So, while they were closely examining some dirt, Izuku decided hey, screw this, and slipped away while no one was looking.
Maybe this was a mistake. Izuku doesn't have a whole lot of experience with humans he is unfamiliar with by himself, so why did he think this would be a good idea? It seemed fine at first, but he underestimated how stressed he gets around too many strangers.
I doubt I would have considered it if this was in the city, he muses. His old home gave him confidence, at least.
A twig snaps and Izuku's entire body freezes at the sound. His eyes land on a young buck from afar—who noticed the boy and was properly frozen in place as well.
Izuku stares.
The buck stares back.
Izuku takes a single step forward.
The buck bolts.
And Izuku gives chase, his instinct chanting at him to run, hunt, kill, as his body changes and his leaps increase in stride with his longer limbs.
It wasn't much of a chase, as Izuku overtook the creature rather quickly and delivered a swift bite to its neck, snapping it under his powerful jaws before it could retaliate and cause the boy some real damage. (You can only get impaled by a buck's antlers once before you learn your lesson)
Pulling away, it only takes the brief second of licking the blood from his muzzle to regret his kill. He didn't need the meat. He grimaces. This kill was wasteful.
Giving his paw a lick, he studies the buck. Should he still take a few bites from it? Maybe he could deliver it to some foxes and allow them the meal. Their territories weren't that far off from here, after all. Yes, he'll do that, he decides.
Swiping his tongue over his muzzle one more time, Izuku positions the buck's head, angling its antlers outwards a bit more before slamming a massive paw down to snap them clean off. It's a lot easier to drag the heavy creature when there wasn't a constant threat of poking his eye out.
He sweeps the antlers aside and bends down to pick up the buck by the neck, its head lolling limply to the side, its glossy eyes staring up into the heavens.
He startles and drops the venison when a shriek splits the air, all too close. He whirls around to three humans staring at him with obvious horror and pale faces.
They were one of the groups, he realizes.
When a fourth human rushes up to the group, obviously startled by the sudden scream, his own choked reaction seems to have snapped the others out of the stupor as they nearly trip over themselves to run away in blind panic. But not before something bright flashes from one of them and nearly blinds the boy. He shrinks away from it with a hiss, black spots dotting his vision with every rapid blink.
He paws at his face and by the time the spots fade and he can see clearly once again, the humans were long gone.
What was their deal? He thinks hotly. He was really regretting coming today. An annoyed growl sounds off in his throat.
Swallowing it back, he leans over once again to pick up the buck and starts dragging it off to the edge of fox territory, where he drops it off. He didn't feel in the mood to meet any foxes today.
Slinking away, Izuku makes his way out of the forest.
"Oh my god—kid! Kid!"
Izuku stops short at the call, recognizing the human with red eyes voice. He stands there for a moment, mulling over if he should acknowledge them, or keep walking home.
In the end, the human's panicked scent made him turn around.
"Oh thank god, you're alright! When you suddenly vanished and Shika's group said they saw the monster, I was really worried! Why did you wander off? You could have been seriously hurt, kid!"
Izuku couldn't believe what he was hearing! Someone saw the monster? While Izuku was so nearby? Why did they get to find it when he's been searching for days without luck? It wasn't fair!
Frustrated with today's events, Izuku doesn't even answer the red-eyes back. Instead, he wheels around on his feet and sprints in the direction of his home. He could hear a shout for him to come back, but he ultimately ignored it.
The next day, Izuku complained to Hitoshi about his ordeal.
When he finished, he notices his friend giving him a strange look.
"Izuku," he starts slowly, "when they say there is a monster in Musutafu Forest, I'm pretty sure they meant you. "
Izuku opens his mouth to retort, but then snaps it shut with a click as the words register in his brain.
"Oh," he says after a minute of silence, feeling a bit dumb.