Recovery Girl watched Shoko and Izuku leave her office with a fond smile.

With any other couple, she might have worried if they were prepared to take on a massive responsibility.

These two would be just fine.

Recovery Girl thought about Shouta's response to finding out that his two top students were expecting a child, and she couldn't help but chuckle.

The nurse walked over to the direct intercom link she had with the principal, and pressed the call button.

A moment later, Nezu's voice rang out from the system, "Why, hello, Chiyo! How are you?"

"I'm quite well, Nezu. In fact, I have some news for you," she replied.

"Oh?" the principal asked, "what is it?"

She said, "I would like to inform you that you have won the bet."

There was a moment's pause, then Nezu said in the smug voice Recovery Girl was very familiar with, "Is this the bet I think it is?"

She grinned. "I believe so. Are you thinking of the bet about when All Might's successor would impregnate Endeavor's?"

Nezu replied, "I was. Although, please never refer to Miss Todoroki as anything of her father's. That man deserves no such respect from us."

"Of course," Recovery Girl agreed.

Then, Nezu asked, "So, you're saying that my bet was correct, right? Are you sure?"

"Of course I am. I had her in my office just a minute ago, complaining of morning sickness. The poor girl was blaming that 1-B student and her fondness for toxic fungi, but she's pregnant for sure," the old woman responded.

Nezu was quiet for a long second. Then, he began cackling. "Oh, how wonderful! I knew that changing Midoriya's keycard to allow them to sleep together was the best decision I've made all year!" he laughed.

Recovery Girl asked, "So, you were the one who did that? Hasn't Shouta been complaining about his problem children having sex for six months now?"

"He has, but deep down he's rooting harder for them than any of us," Nezu responded, "and speaking of Shouta, who wants to be the one to confirm his worst nightmares?"

Recovery Girl informed him, "Why, you, of course. Otherwise, I'll tell him who was responsible for allowing two students to share a dorm room. Perhaps you can make some follow-up bets."

Nezu sighed, "Fine, I'll do it. And what kind of follow-up bets would you suggest?"

"Perhaps the baby's sex, or quirk? Maybe if it will be twins, just to really put the fear of God into the man?" the nurse offered.

"Perfect, Chiyo. We really are going to have to get him something nice for all the trouble we put him through, aren't we? Perhaps a nice bottle of wine?" Nezu mused.

"That sounds like an excellent idea. I'll make sure to remind him that my quirk doesn't work on hangovers, too," Recovery Girl said.

Nezu asked, "Who else should we tell immediately? Perhaps Toshinori?"

"No," the healer answered, "let's allow him to find out from his son. That's going to be the most entertaining thing I've seen in a long time."

"You are an evil genius, my dear Chiyo!" Nezu said through his cackling laughter.

Recovery Girl simply smiled and replied, "Oh, please, Nezu, my evil could never compare to yours. Now, go tell Shouta the good news!"

"He won't see it that way, but very well," Nezu replied, hanging up the call.

He left his office, a pleasant grin on his face while he laughed endlessly in his mind.

He loved ruining Shouta's day.

For once, Aizawa was actually being productive. He and Nemuri were grading a stack of final exam papers, moving quickly as they managed to ignore outside distractions.

Then, of course, the distractions came inside, in the form of Nezu opening the door to the office.

"Hello, you two! I have some wonderful news!" he announced, making Nemuri and Aizawa put their pens down to stare at their boss.

"What is it?" Aizawa groaned.

"Yeah, we're kind of busy here, if you didn't notice," Nemuri added.

"Why, that's a poor way to talk to the bearer of important information!" Nezu replied cheerily, "after all, it seems your labors this year have finally borne fruit!"

Nemuri perked up instantly, her mind racing, while Aizawa looked confused.

"What are you talking about now?" he asked.

"Well, I just got told something by Recovery Girl that I think you'll want to know about, since it concerns your favorite students," Nezu told him.

Aizawa frowned. "Did Midoriya break himself again?" he asked.

Nezu said, "Nope!"

"Did Todoroki catch on fire or give somebody frostbite?" Aizawa asked again.

"No!" Nezu answered excitedly.

"Then what is it?" Aizawa snapped.

"Allow me to just say this," Nezu began.

As he opened his mouth, Nemuri finally started to put the pieces together. Her eyes went wide, and she began to jump out of her chair in glee.

Then, Nezu gave a terrifying, malicious grin, and said, "I win, bitches."

Instantly, Aizawa realized what Nezu was talking about.

Shaking, he said the only thing he could think of: "No."

"Yes," Nezu told him.

Aizawa stood up, upending a desk full of exam papers. "How? How is it possible?" he demanded.

Nezu's grin only got wider as he said, "You see, Shouta, when two heroics students love each other very, very much…"

Aizawa cut him off, saying, "God, why me?"

He fell to his knees, pounding the floor in helplessness.

"I don't think God can hear you," Nezu told him unhelpfully.

Meanwhile, Nemuri was dancing in the corner. "I knew it, Shouta, I knew it! Their babies are going to be so cute!" she cried.

" Suicidal…students…why…fucking…broken-ass quirks…the problem children...are breeding..." Aizawa groaned, barely coherent.

Nezu just laughed. "I expect both of you to help your students through this new phase in their life, of course," he said.

Nemuri slammed her fist into her palm. "Of course we will, boss!" she yelled eagerly, "I'll happily give the couple some tips to help them keep enjoying themselves!"

Aizawa finally got control of himself. Completely calm again, he stood and declared, "I am going to jump out a window and hope that Satan lets me fucking sleep, because God clearly won't."

"Oh no you won't," Nezu instructed, "because I'm not through with you yet, and neither are Todoroki and Midoriya. After all, without you, who's going to perform the wedding?"

Aizawa looked at him, refusing to process his words. "Wait, they're getting married now, too?" he asked in horror, "how do you know that?"

"I don't!" Nezu said cheerily, "but can you imagine Midoriya not proposing when he finds out that he's going to be a father?"

"I suppose not," Aizawa admitted.

Finally, Nezu said, "Now then, I'm going to go find Snipe, and make him pay up. Betting on a spring birth was a bold strategy, but it doesn't seem to have worked out for him."

With that, he left the room. Aizawa folded his hands on the table, put his head down, and refused to move. Nemuri simply patted him on the back, unable to keep a giant, happy grin from spreading across her face.

The next day

Kyoka Jirou thought that she had gotten pretty good at tuning out certain sounds.

For example, most of the time, she was able to pick out the individual heartbeats of her classmates. At first, that had been really annoying, since she couldn't ignore those sounds in favor of listening to the teacher or whatever else she was supposed to be focusing on. Eventually, though, she'd gotten used enough to them that all of their sounds had faded into background noise that she only noticed if something was off about them.

And there were other sounds she'd gotten good at tuning out, too. For example, her neighbor in the dorms, Mina, snored, and loudly, too.

It had gotten worse when Todoroki and Midoriya got together. The dorm walls were thin, and for Jirou's hearing, that meant that nothing was muffled, at all.

She admired their stamina, but after the first few times when it made her a little intrigued and curious, hearing Todoroki scream constantly as Midoriya did god-knows-what to her got annoying , especially when it didn't fucking stop.

She was glad Todoroki only sometimes moaned actual words; she was scarred enough by knowing exactly where Todoroki wanted Midoriya to finish, every single time; she didn't need to know what other kinks the wholesome couple secretly hid under their precious exteriors.

Jirou already found it hard to look them in the eye most days, she didn't need that to get any worse.

But all of her thoughts kept getting interrupted as she sat in Ectoplasm's math class, because there was a new repeated sound, and she couldn't figure out what it was.

It sounded like another heartbeat, but there shouldn't be one in the classroom, as Jirou knew for a fact that everyone was in the correct place at the moment.

Not just that, but the sound was distorted somehow, as if something else was muffling it just a tiny bit, and Jirou's attempts to figure out where it was coming from had only managed to narrow it down to a quarter of the room, which still had five students it could be coming from, none of whom seemed likely to be making such a regular sound anyway.

And finally, Jirou thought, there was just something else... weird about the not-heartbeat. It fluctuated very slightly, as though it wasn't one constant sound, and Jirou had no idea what was going on there.

She decided to just tune it out; it didn't seem harmful, and besides, she had better things to focus on.

It couldn't actually be a heartbeat, right?

When class finally ended, Mina started to race back to the dorms with a whoop.

Wednesday down, only two more days to go! She'd survived another year at UA!

And she'd had some pretty damn big accomplishments, too. Getting the most oblivious couple in UA to finally realize their feelings for each other, and gaining Shoko Todoroki as a close friend in the process?

Mina felt justified in being proud of that.

Knowing what she did about Shoko's life now, Mina couldn't help but marvel at the luck that girl had had. Shoko had fallen in love with one of the few people Mina had ever met with enough determination and love to do whatever it took to pull the dual-colored girl to freedom.

All that Mina had done was tell him to reach for her, really.

Speaking of Shoko, Mina felt a tap on her shoulder, and when she spun around, she saw the taller girl standing behind her.

"Heya, Shoko! How's it going?" Mina asked brightly.

"It's going great!" Shoko replied, smiling as wide as Mina had ever seen her, "I was just wondering if you could come talk to me later, there's something I want to talk to you about."

"Of course, Shoko! Looking for some more tips to spice up your sex life?" Mina teased.

Shoko just smirked as she said, "Nope, I think we've got that covered for the foreseeable future."

"That's what I like to hear, girl! So, I'll see you later, then?" the pink girl said.

Shoko nodded. "Until later," she confirmed.

Then, the mismatched girl left, heading towards Midoriya, who seemed as protective and caring as ever, wrapping a hand around Shoko's waist and pulling her close.

Shoko let him, smiling fondly whenever she looked at the boy who had saved her from herself.

Mina watched them walk off like that, nodding approvingly.

Seeing things like that smile on Shoko's face reminded Mina why she wanted to be a hero. If love like that could exist, this world was worth protecting.

Mina vowed that she would make sure Shoko and her boyfriend got a happy ending, even with Endeavor still on the loose.

Those two deserved it more than anyone else she knew.

An hour later, Mina arrived at Shoko's door.

As she knocked, she said, "You guys better not be fucking in there! I'm coming in!"

She waited for thirty seconds, until the door finally swung open.

"There you are, Mina. We were waiting for you," Shoko said nonchalantly, her body not even concealing Izuku hurriedly fixing his shirt in the background.

Mina eyed her friend suspiciously, taking in Shoko's rumpled clothes, messy, braided hair, and red-flushed face.

"Suuuuure," the pink girl said sarcastically, "waiting, that's what you guys were doing."

Shoko replied, "Yes, exactly. We were waiting patiently and innocently for you to arrive."

Shoko had a very good poker face, but Mina knew her too well to be fooled by the perfectly blank look Shoko was giving her.

Stepping inside once she was sure Shoko knew that she'd been found out, Mina asked, "Anyway, what did you want to talk about?"

Shoko closed the door, then went to sit next to Izuku, who put his arms protectively around her. Shoko shot the green-haired man a fondly exasperated look, then turned back to Mina, who'd commandeered a chair.

"Well, I'd love to tell you," Shoko said, "if this idiot would let go of me."

She kept glaring at her boyfriend, but Mina thought that the effect was ruined by Shoko's loving grin.

Izuku had the same look on his face as he hugged Shoko tighter around her belly and said, "Not going to happen, babe. I'm never going to let you go."

Shoko huffed, but her eyes were shining with love, and she made no move to escape his arms.

It was precious, Mina decided, but she really wanted answers, so it was time to embarrass them into talking.

"Dang, Midoriya, why are you being so protective of Shoko? What, is she pregnant or something?" Mina joked.

Shoko and Izuku froze, heads swiveling back to look at the pink girl, but Mina was already laughing at her own joke.

God, the thought of how adorable they'd be when Shoko had her first kid had Mina in stitches.

"I-I'm sorry, I'm just imagining...how sweet you would be, Midoriya. The thought of you trying to carry Shoko places or treating her like a queen is just so... funny! Man, it really is a shame she isn't pregnant yet!" Mina howled, doubling over and holding her stomach as she cackled.

Then, she realized that the couple wasn't laughing. In fact, they were giving her strange looks.

Mina stopped. "What, why the weird faces? It's not like you're actually pregnant or something, right? It's just a joke!" she said.

Shoko and Izuku were still just looking at her.

"There's no way…" Mina thought.

In disbelief, she asked, "Right?"

Finally, Shoko smiled and said, "As a matter of fact, I am, Mina."

Mina felt her jaw drop. She looked at her friend in disbelief.

The pink girl stammered, "W-what? Seriously? Midoriya actually knocked you up?"

The couple nodded sheepishly. The green-haired man's face was bright red, while Shoko had a massive smile tugging at her lips.

Mina jumped out of her chair and grabbed Shoko by the shoulders, shaking her excitedly as the pink girl jumped up and down.

"Holy shit, Shoko! Congratulations! You two are gonna be adorable parents!" Mina cried.

Then, she glanced down at Shoko's hand, and she saw the new ring. Instantly, Mina knew what it meant.

"And you're engaged?" Mina shouted, only to get cut off by Izuku glaring at her and gesturing for her to stop being so loud.

When Mina finally stopped shaking her, Shoko asked, "So...you're not worried? Do you really think we'll be okay?"

Now it was Mina's turn to look at Shoko strangely.

She began, "Shoko, why would I be worried? This kid is going to have two incredible parents who will love them!"

"Do you really think so? I'm not going to lie, I'm still a little worried," Shoko admitted.

"Why?" Mina and Izuku asked at the same time.

Shoko looked down for a second, then slowly met their eyes.

She said, "Izuku, Mina, you both know what my childhood was like. My parents...well, they aren't examples that I want to follow...but they're all I've got as examples. What if I end up like one or both of them? What if I screw this up and hurt our child?"

Mina saw Izuku go to say something, but the pink girl was faster. She answered, "Shoko, that's not going to happen."

Shoko asked in a trembling voice, "But what if it does?"

"It won't." Mina said confidently.

"How do you know?" Shoko responded.

Mina took a second to gather her thoughts, looking at Izuku. He nodded, letting her continue.

Mina sat down next to Shoko, putting a hand on the taller girl's shoulder.

"Shoko, are you marrying All Might, or Izuku?" she asked.

Shoko looked at her, confused. "Um, Mina, what are you talking about? You just saw that I'm marrying Izuku," she said.

"Are they the same person?" Mina asked, ignoring Izuku's confused spluttering behind her.

Shoko shook her head. "No," she answered, "they're not."

Mina followed up relentlessly, saying, "Then why are you worried? Midoriya isn't his father, and you aren't either of your parents. You can choose your own path, Shoko. You are nothing like your father, and your mother will make sure you won't be like her."

Shoko calmed, but she still seemed discontent.

Then, Izuku added, "Shoko, you won't be alone, either. I'll be here for you, and I know you'd never do anything to hurt the people you love. You'll have everyone else, too, or did you forget why we asked Mina to come?"

Now Mina was confused, and Shoko seemed to regain her confidence as Izuku's words struck home.

"Hang on, what are you talking about?" Mina asked.

Shoko clutched Izuku's hand as she smiled faintly. She began, "Mina, you're probably the person I trust most in the world, outside of Izuku. Will...will you be the child's godmother, when they're born?"

Mina was stunned. She'd joked about it before, but now Shoko was actually trusting her with this?

She stared at Shoko and Izuku for a long second, before she finally replied, "I...Shoko, it's an honor. I accept, of course. But...but why me? Why not Uraraka or someone else?"

Shoko answered, "Like I said, I trust you. Beyond that, both of us know how much we owe you. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't be together, and I might be married to...to Geretsuna by now. But that's not why. You know that if you're the godmother, you will probably be the first person in line to take care of the kid if...if something happens to me and Izuku?"

Mina nodded; she tried not to think about the risks inherent in their chosen career, but they were ever-present in any hero's mind. The fear that you might not make it home again, never see loved ones again, was all too real.

Mina had met Kota, and she promised herself that she wouldn't let any child of Izuku and Shoko grow up hating their parents, for any reason.

Shoko continued, "Mina, as much as you joke around, I know that I can trust you when it counts. And if something does happen to me and Izuku, I know you'll be there. I wanted someone who would do anything for my child, and after seeing what you did to that bastard in the coffee shop, I know you're that person."

Mina was deeply touched, but she still had to joke, "You know, I didn't think that burning a man's eyes with acid was a good audition for being a godmother, but here we are."

Izuku and Shoko laughed, and Mina joined them after a second.

When the laughter died away again, Mina said, "Seriously though, Shoko, thank you. I promise, I'll be there for the kid, no matter what."

Shoko smiled as she replied, "Mina, that means a lot. Thank you."

Izuku added, "Man, I hope no villain ever tries anything against this kid, they'd never make it to prison alive between you two!"

Mina just grinned viciously, as did Shoko.

Then, Shoko turned to them again, and said, "Jokes aside, I have something to ask both of you."

Izuku and Mina nodded.

Shoko took a deep breath, not meeting their eyes for a long moment. When she looked back up, her eyes were aflame.

"If something ever happens to me," she pleaded, "please, please, don't let Endeavor get his hands on my child. If he tries to get control over me again, prioritize the child's safety over mine. If...if I ever let Endeavor do to my kids what he tried to do to me, I could never live with myself."

Izuku said, "Endeavor won't get control of you again, Shoko, he knows you'd reveal what he did to the world."

Shoko shook her head as she answered, "Izuku, you don't know him like I do. He won't give up that easily, he's just looking for a way to make sure that there's nothing I can do to stop him. I don't know what it will be, but he's been silent for months. The only reason he would do that is if he's planning something, and I have a really bad feeling about it."

Izuku pursed his lips for a second, clearly disagreeing.

"Please, Izuku, promise me," Shoko begged, "promise me that you'll keep our child safe from him."

Izuku relented. Putting his hands on Shoko's shoulders, he said, "Okay, Shoko. I promise that your father will never hurt our family, no matter what."

Mina came up behind him and said, "That goes for me, too, Shoko. I'll make sure that your kid stays safe, okay?"

Shoko sagged in relief, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Thank you," she gasped.

But Izuku said, "Shoko, I'm not finished. I have another promise I want to make."

He leaned in close, and told her, "As long as I'm here, you will never be under his control again."

Mina stepped back as Shoko clung to her fiancé, tears flowing freely.

Mina had said her part, and Shoko knew that she would always be there.

Now, this was between Shoko and Izuku. Mina would be behind them, always.

She eased out the door as her friends started to kiss; she was scarred enough by listening to them, she didn't need to watch them too.

Meanwhile, in a hero agency in Tokyo, Shoko's fears were coming true.

Enji Todoroki opened a folder on his desk, and smiled. The private investigator he'd hired had finally given him results; finally, his plans could move forward.

For months, he had been attempting to solve the issue of Shoko's threat to release his activities into the court of public opinion.

Foolish child, did she really think that she could blackmail him, the most powerful hero in Japan?

Two could play at that game, and Enji planned to show her just why she should have never rebelled against him by throwing herself at that man's son.

Admittedly, it had been harder than he'd first thought to find appropriate leverage over her.

First, he'd tried to get something about how UA had been handling her relationship with this Midoriya boy, and how the school had deliberately shielded them from him.

Perhaps the faculty had failed to hold them to appropriate standards for heroes in training, and Endeavor could revive fears over UA's handling of student education, playing the part of the concerned father wanting the best for his child?

Or maybe he could rail against the kidnapping of his family by the secretive, inhuman principal?

But that hadn't worked; the damn rat had built a bureaucratic and legal fortress around UA, and Enji couldn't get a thing on any of their doings. He couldn't sue without grounds, either, making any threat against Shoko entirely toothless.

Next, Enji had tried investigating All Might's connection to his son. Threatening to publicly reveal a scandalous secret family and shatter All Might's sterling reputation for honesty and truth might serve as an excellent incentive for the man to abandon his support for his son's theft of Enji's heir, which would leave Midoriya little protection to continue his flagrant attempt to hijack a greater man's legacy. Maybe then he would be more susceptible to bribery or intimidation.

This, too, had failed; the weakling had buried all records of his marriage and children so deep that the private investigator swore up and down that they must not exist at all, cutting off another avenue for Enji to break apart the united front of opposition that kept Shoko away from him.

However, this approach hadn't been entirely fruitless.

After all, it had led to the file that was now on Enji's desk. Opening it, he smiled.

At long last, he had his leverage.

On the first page was a picture, a description, and a name: Midoriya Inko.

Certainly, he didn't understand why All Might would choose such a woman to further his legacy. Her quirk seemed pathetic, and she seemingly offered little other benefit as a mother for powerful children.

The key word was seemed. Clearly, All Might was clever enough to manipulate even existing records, as scant as they were, to hide the true power of the woman he had married.

Enji made a mental note to be cautious when making implicit threats against her as he had just instructed Geretsuna to do when retrieving Shoko. If the woman was as powerful as he suspected she truly was, he'd have to make sure his threats would be taken seriously.

But for now…

Enji grinned in self-satisfaction. He would soon have his heir back under his control, and successfully married. Once that was done, he would hold the position of power again, and nothing UA, All Might, or anyone else could do would change that.

Enji knew his progeny had a protective streak.

If she truly had feelings for this boy, she would do anything to keep him happy, if for no other reason than her own safety.

Enji wondered if the safety of her lover's family would win out over her childish hatred of her own.