Angel on my Shoulder

by TealeafCustom

What if Izuku unknowingly possessed a "sentient" Quirk like Tokoyami's Dark Shadow? Enter Midoriya Izuku, a young boy thought to be Quirkless who subconsciously controls the number one vigilante in Japan; an entity powerful enough to rival even the strongest villains. There's only one small, tiny problem: the entity thinks of him as a big brother. Good luck, Izuku-nii-chan!

16. Be Not Afraid

[Chapter 16]

---

Uraraka Ochaco didn't know what to think when a plump woman burst into the infirmary, a white-haired little girl trailing behind her. They swept into the room like a tornado, jolting Iida from his slumber when Izuku's name was called out with a worried cry.

"Izuku! Oh, my poor baby!"

Ochaco blanked out. That straight, dark hair… those beautiful green eyes! This woman had to be the mother of the Midoriya siblings. Just as she was about to introduce herself the little girl behind Mama Midoriya gave her an icy glare, sliding behind her mother cautiously. That pretty much killed the mood. Iida, however, was not as easily deterred… or perhaps he was just dense as usual.

"Hello! You must be Midoriya-kun's mother!" Iida bowed at a perfect ninety-degree angle. "My name is Iida Tenya, one of Midoriya-kun's classmates! Nice to meet you!"

"And I'm Uraraka Ochaco!" Ochaco said quickly, not wanting to be left out. "Nice t-to meet you!"

"O-oh! Hello. Nice to meet you too…" Inko bowed awkwardly in return at both him and Ochaco before gently nudging her child. "I'm Midoriya Inko, and this is my, um, daughter, Izumi."

"Hi." 'Izumi' muttered, her voice dripping with hostility.

Ochaco tried not to flinch. She got the feeling that this little girl really, really didn't like her at all. That worry was forgotten when Inko scooted over to Izuku's side, her eyes brimming with tears. She only began to calm down when her daughter squeezed her hand reassuringly, whispering that it was going to be okay. Usually it would be the parent comforting a worried kid, but here it seemed to be the exact opposite.

"Is… is he going to be alright?"

"Yes, Midoriya-san! According to the nurses, he'll wake up shortly with no permanent injuries! If you'll excuse me, I'll go and get them for you!"

Gyaaaa, don't leave me alone here! Ochaco wanted to say, but it was too late. Iida was already rushing out the door before anyone could get a word in, leaving a cloud of dust and three very confused people behind him.

The brunette teen began to panic, not knowing what to say next. She already introduced herself, and now they had no common ground for conversation! That, and Izuku's sister already got a bad impression of her for some reason… Ochaco found herself looking for a mirrored surface, wondering if her hair was messy or there was something on her face.

"Are… you and Iida-kun friends with my Izuku?" Inko asked quietly. "I believe he mentioned the both of you before."

"Ah? U-um, yes, of course! The three of us, are, like, totally cool, and… stuff." Ochaco blurted out.

Inko tilted her head in confusion while little Izumi had a deathglare etched on her childish features. If looks could kill, Ochaco would have been dead three times over. She hugged her mother for protection—no, it was the other way around. She was trying to protect her?

"I'm glad." Inko sighed.

"H-huh?"

"I'm glad." Inko repeated, her eyes shining with relief. "I was so worried when Izuku was going to attend a Hero School of all things… he was always such a shy boy, you see. I spent every second of the day worrying about if he would be able to make friends here. He wasn't…"

Inko's face fell for a moment.

"...he wasn't happy, back in middle school. But now he comes back with a smile on his face and tells me tales about all the wonderful friends he's made." she smiled. "So… I want to thank you. For being his friend."

"N-no need to thank us, really. D-deku-kun's a real inspiration to us both—" Ochaco began.

"Haaaaaah?!" Izumi began angrily, this time actually causing Ochaco to flinch. "Why do you call him that?"

"Now now, Mimi." Inko rubbed the child's head gently. "I'm sure she doesn't mean it that way."

Didn't mean what?

The woman seemed to sense the general confusion from Ochaco and the hostility from her daughter, deciding to clear the air.

"Ah, it's nothing, don't worry about it." Inko smiled, causing Ochaco to blush when she realized she'd just voiced her thoughts unconsciously. "Mimi's just very protective of Izuku."

Mimi hmphed, clinging on tighter to the older woman. As Ochaco watched she couldn't help but notice how tiny and cute the girl was despite that ferocious scowl… perhaps all the ladies in the Midoriya family came in small sizes.

Ochaco blinked. Wait, what about the other sister?

"U-um, I've met your other daughter, Kirimi-chan. She's currently with a… Mr. Yagi?"

"No, I'm afraid she's not." Inko replied. "Kiri-chan has the strange ability to teleport, you see. Mimi-chan has confirmed that she's safe at home so don't worry."

"Mm." The little girl glared at Ochaco again, her voice low. "If you hurt my aniki, I won't forgive you."

"I—"

Ochaco hesitated for a moment until Izuku's voice echoed in her head. The same words from before…

'You can do it.'

"—I'll never hurt him. Deku-kun's my precious f-friend, after all!" Ochaco stammered.

That got a good response from the Midoriyas. Mimi's scowl receded a little on her face, while Inko let a great big grin on hers.

"See, Mimi? She's nice, you can trust her~" Inko laughed, shaking Ochaco's hands and making contact with all five fingers.

Causing her to float a few inches off her chair.

"E-eh? Oh dear…"

"Hey, put her down!"

"Uwaaaa, I'm so sorry!"

[x]

"Aaaaaand that's how it happened!" Inko laughed.

"Mom…" Izuku groaned, but started smiling despite himself.

He'd finally awoken only after Iida and Ochaco had reluctantly gone home after introducing themselves to his mother, cementing their role as his treasured companions. Inko had been so happy that her precious baby boy had finally made some friends that she'd even cooked up some of that Katsudon he'd liked so much.

Although… their dinner felt a little lonelier without the sisters. Mimi went back within him to make sure Kiri was doing okay, reporting to them that she'd be fine. There was a bit of an initial scare when he realized All Might would panic upon her disappearance, but luckily she had the intuition to quickly send him a text message using Izuku's phone, telling him that Kiri had simply teleported home and was safe and sound.

That was when Mimi appeared in a poof of green, stretching her arms upwards while she yawned.

"Hi, Aniki, Baa-chan. Kiri woke up, by the way. She just needs more rest." She scratched at her head lazily.

"Thank you, Mimi." Izuku smiled. "Come on, we saved a bowl just for you."

The girl peered up at the table and sure enough, there was a portion reserved just for her. Her, Midoriya Izumi, part of the Midoriya family. She gingerly floated up to the chair, sitting between Izuku and Inko's radiant smiles.

"T-thanks…" she mumbled, clasping her hands together. "Itadakimasu."

Dinner went on as usual. Pretty soon they had finished their meals and washed the dishes, Izuku sitting down with Mimi on the couch as they both relaxed and watched TV together. Though his eyes were on the screen his mind was somewhere else, thinking of all the things that happened in the Sports Festival. A whole bunch of flags had been raised.

First there was the fact that Mei now knew about One For All and Valkyrie. How the heck was he going to talk to her about it?! He did trust her, but… he wasn't certain on what to do next. Then there was the issue about how the Hero Public Safety Commission had been infiltrated by a robot. What was this, a conspiracy theory?

Okay, he had to keep that one secret. Unless Mei started taking over the Government… hmm. Knowing her, it was a very real possibility.

Izuku rubbed his temples. He'd also been informed that Monoma had woken up after his ordeal. One of the earlier things on his bucket list had been to apologize to the blonde for that little outburst in front of the classroom door, so now he technically had to apologize for two separate incidents. Speaking of Monoma, what happened was definitely connected to his Quirk. Izuku began thinking of how he wanted to find out more about that, and to do so he'd have to approach Tokoyami. He did agree to meet him after the festival…

And Yui… and Mei… and All Might. So he had five people to talk to.

All Might still didn't know about the One For All situation! Things were getting more and more complicated by the second, and—

Izuku took a deep breath to calm himself. Steady now, one thing at a time.

A quiet warmth engulfed his left side when Mimi leaned into him, her fluffy hair draping over his arm like an ivory curtain.

"What is it, sweetheart?"

"Nothing. You just looked like you needed a hug."

At first it seemed like it was just that. But Izuku had grown, just a little. He could tell that she was troubled as well. Though her expression remained neutral, her heart gave away her true feelings.

Pay attention to me. I want to feel safe. I want to be loved.

He cuddled with her in a little side-hug, causing her to let out a quiet 'eep' of surprise. When they were this close he could see and feel how small she was, so very fragile despite her strong front.

"I'm sorry, Mimi. You're feeling lonely, aren't you."

"...A little."

"Thank you for helping to protect me and Kiri." he smiled, rubbing her head gently. "You did a great job."

"I'm…" Mimi looked down at her clenched hands. "I'm sorry too. For being so selfish."

Her green eyes met his hesitantly.

"I was rude. To Uraraka-san." her gaze darted downwards again.

"It's fine. Do you…" Izuku made sure to approach the topic gently. "Do you want to tell me why you're afraid of her?"

Mimi seemed to shrink down even further than before, curling into his side.

"H-how'd you know?"

"You tend to mask your fear as anger, just like when you first met Kiri. I can feel it sometimes. Back when you came to pick me up at school… you had the same reaction. My guess was that Uraraka-san and her friends were nearby and you spotted her. It's alright…"

She was silent for a while longer even after she nodded, bringing her knees to her chest. They sat just like that for the next few minutes, with her leaning against him quietly. He didn't want to press the matter if it made her upset, still at a loss on how to approach the topic.

"Sorry. I really…" Mimi bit her lip. "I can't."

"Then I won't pry. It's okay." Izuku said.

"It is?"

"What matters most to me is your happiness. I'm willing to give anything for that."

"Mm..."

"A big brother has to make sure his siblings are happy, right?"

Mimi looked up at him before burying her face in his shirt. Her voice was muffled when she spoke again.

"But I'm keeping so many secrets from you. I forced my way into your life. And to make things worse… my personality isn't like yours at all."

He didn't mind. One of the things she'd told both him and Kiri was that her brainwave patterns were based on Todoroki and Bakugo whilst her body was cloned from his dimensional counterpart. In essence, she was originally a weapon made to destroy him—built for maximum aggression. Maximum power.

Maximum insecurity.

Yet he still loved her like his own. Izuku held her tight, no different than how a parent would hug their child. When she looked up her eyes were brimming with tears, and he saw himself reflected in that lonely gaze.

"None of that matters to me." Izuku reassured her, placing his forehead against hers and closing his eyes. "You're family and I'll love you no matter what happens."

"A-always?"

"Always."

They simply sat like that for a while longer, two siblings side by side. Izuku wouldn't deny that he was curious about some of her circumstances, but… he decided to respect her boundaries. She shivered slightly, her heart still full of regret and weighed down by everything that happened in the past. In the end, Izuku decided to do something about it.

"Mimi…"

"Mm?"

He stood up and extended his hand towards her, bowing slightly.

"Care for a dance?"

She blinked at him, looking stunned until her lips formed a wobbly little smile. His sister started to giggle, wiping away those small, sad tears.

"O-oi. Is that your way of making me feel better?" Mimi sniffed.

"I, um, I guess so." Izuku stammered sheepishly.

Nevertheless, she took his hand and on they went. Izuku was reminded of how his mom once did the same for him as a child, and now he was replicating the love she had for him. He and Mimi took slow steps, careful not to trip while he held up her arms gently. One step, then another. Forward, then back. Twirl, and catch.

Slow dancing in the dark.

"Hmph, you're pretty good. Since when did you learn how to dance?" she huffed, actually feeling a little better.

"I didn't. I think this is one of the skills I… inherited from the others." Izuku admitted.

"So you've finally noticed, huh. What else?"

"They're all non-combat skills. I've started using my left hand more often unconsciously, to the point where I'm starting to become ambidextrous. There's that incident where I spoke to Tsunotori-san in English. My cooking has improved drastically from when I first started." Izuku began muttering. "It's intriguing, really."

"Aren't you afraid?"

"Of what?"

"Of becoming something you're not."

"I'll always be me." Izuku answered without missing a beat. "And I'll always be your big brother."

Step and twirl. Rise and fall. There they were, two dancers in the evening light. Inko took a photo of them in secret, smiling to herself before she left them be.

"What if I'm afraid?" Mimi asked. "I'm… always scared…"

Izuku's response to her query was simply to give her another hug, knowing that deep down all she wanted was to feel safe, protected and loved.

"Hold on tight." he whispered.

She did.

[x]

Saturday came along as usual, bringing with it the joyous atmosphere of the weekend. Mimi was looking a bit happier after confiding in him, and today there were here in the park just so she could gather some emotions to feed both herself and Kiri. Further investigation revealed to Izuku that Mimi didn't actually absorb the emotions herself; she had to use Aftermath to do it. It was why she was now holding a fireball casually, occasionally juggling it around to make it look like she was playing with her Quirk.

Izuku sat on the park bench beside her, his mind adrift in a sea of thoughts. Emotions, huh… was it him, or did both sisters seem to consume more power than when he'd first met them? They might be growing. He eyed how Mimi was doing her juggling trick again, drawing the interest of some nearby children. Nobody really seemed to mind when kids used their Quirks since they were… well, kids. Most people just let them have their fun, but an adult was supposed to be responsible. Quirks were highly regulated once you were a teen due to the damage one could cause, but now the rate at which Quirks were growing stronger and stronger presented a serious issue that had to be addressed sooner or later. There was no way children didn't want to experiment with their Quirks—it was like telling them not to move an arm or a leg. How would society manage that, he wondered…

"Hey, it's the weird-nii-san! Yahallo!"

"Weird-nii-san, we saw you on TV!"

"Look who it is, hentai-nii-san."

Oh no, not again.

Izuku could do nothing but sigh as a trio of little girls surrounded him, their voices curious and full of childish intent. Their hair was in the distinct colors of yellow, blue and red—it was the three kids he'd encountered way back when he had first met Koko.

"Hello, you three…" he groaned.

"It's us! Colors! Remember us, nii-san?" the blonde began poking him in the side eagerly. "We were there when you got kidnapped by your doggy lady."

"We thought you got eaten, nii-san." the blue-haired one huffed. "You made Akamatsu-chan cry."

"D-d-did not!" the redhead in question squeaked. "Weird-nii-san, um, is the doggy lady okay?"

"She's fine." Izuku smiled. "Her name's Koko, by the way. And I'm—"

"Weird-nii-san!" the three children chorused, earning a glare from his sister.

"Hey! My nii-san isn't weird!" Mimi pouted.

She stood off against the other girls while they examined her inquisitively.

"Huh? You're siblings? But you don't really look alike…" the blonde frowned before shrugging and striking a pose. "Oh well. Hi, I'm Kinoshita Satomi!"

"I'm Yoarashi Kotoha." the blue-haired girl struck a pose as well.

"Um, I-I'm Akamatsu Yui!" the redhead finished, completing their shared pose. "Together, we're Colors! Protectors of this town!"

Izuku could have sworn there was a puff of confetti going off behind the children while they struck a heroic pose. Mimi just watched, unimpressed.

"I'm Midoriya Izumi and this is my big brother, Izuku." she grunted. "You'd do well to remember that. Don't call him weird-nii-san, it's rude."

"It is? Then we'll call you…" Kotoha frowned before snapping her fingers. "Angel-nii-san."

"Yeah, just like what we saw on TV!"

"How'd you do it? Can you grow wings, too?!"

"Um—" Izuku began.

"Angel-nii-san, angel-nii-san—" the children began chanting, Izuku and Mimi right in the middle of their little circle.

Before either of them could respond someone else came running up to them, her long, green hair rising and falling while she took deep, panting breaths.

"Girls! I'm so sorry sir, I just looked away for a moment and—oh!" the teenage girl blinked in recognition.

"Hello, Shiozaki-san. Long time no see…" Izuku gave her an awkward smile. "Babysitting again?"

"Greetings, Midoriya-kun. It's more like they, um, mobbed me." Shiozaki admitted sheepishly after a wave. "Girls, stop bothering the nice onii-san."

"Eeeeh? But we're hungry. And bored."

"Angel-nii-san, do you have any food?"

"Gimme sweets!"

"Brats…" Mimi muttered under her breath.

"U-um…" Izuku searched his pockets. "I have these gummies—"

In hindsight, he probably shouldn't have said that. The hungry children were on him like a flock of seagulls, grubby little fingers reaching for the treats excitedly. What followed next was a fair bit of chaos as he stood up and raised his hands up high, keeping the candies out of their reach even as they jumped around him eagerly. Mimi simply observed as Shiozaki began apologizing for their lack of manners, the teenager's face a bright cherry red.

Two of the girls started hovering with their Quirks, Mimi doing the same to intercept them; those gummies belonged to her and she wasn't about to let them steal it all. A mid-air scuffle started around Izuku as they began play-fighting, skirting around him like a miniature hurricane of color.

"U-um, Shiozaki-san, a little help?" Izuku managed.

It took two full minutes for them to get the children under control and by the end of it Shiozaki had the Colors gently wrapped with her vines while Izuku had Mimi firmly on his lap. The Class-B teenager started chastising her little wards while apologizing to them at the same time, out of breath and embarrassed.

"I'm so sorry! It seems that the newer generation just love to play with their Quirks…" Shiozaki stammered. "Girls, apologize."

"We're sorry…" they pouted in unison, more disappointed that they didn't manage to get their hands on the candy.

"It's fine. Aniki, just let them have some." Mimi sighed. "Sharing is caring and whatnot."

"Right. Here, I have enough for everybody…" Izuku started giving out the sweets but held back right before he dropped them into their eager hands. "What do you say?"

"Please and thank you!" the three children echoed.

Izuku let them share the sweets with Mimi, watching with a quiet smile as they got along surprisingly well. Within moments they had gobbled it all up and made friends with his sister somehow, and together they went off to play nearby while he and Shiozaki carefully watched them watched them from their bench. Mimi reluctantly went off with some persuasion from her brother.

"Again, I'm—"

"It's alright, Shiozaki-san." Izuku smiled. "Kids will be kids."

"R-right. I think I can understand them a little, wanting to use their Quirks like that."

Izuku paused. His sister was demonstrating her power to her new friends, creating a miniature replica of the solar system on her palm.

"What do you mean?"

"Children nowadays are more… excitable? For a lack of a better term." Shiozaki coughed. "It seems that Quirks are getting stronger with each new generation, but what most people don't notice is how it affects their minds as well."

"Wait, what? Really?"

"Really. I only noticed it because I do volunteer work at the local children's hospital. The newer generation… they're more prone to conflict. More aggressive in everything they do. It's weird, almost like they're being pushed to use their Quirks more." Shiozaki mumbled, watching the children play. "Kids are generally rowdy, but this… this feels like something else. I can't put my finger on it… Ah!"

Her sudden exclamation drew Izuku's gaze to where one of the girls had tripped and fell. The child got up and laughed but Shiozaki excused herself and hurried over, already pulling out a clean band-aid. Izuku was left to contemplate her words while he watched them, mulling over the observation she made.

Quirks getting stronger… and the newer generation more prone to conflict. There was a link here, tantalizingly close at the top of his mind. When a person was exposed to extreme stress or trauma their Quirk would go into overdrive and evolve, just like the incidents Yui and Mei told him about. Quirks could be amplified by emotions… but was it possible for the opposite to occur? Quiet fingers of worry curled around his heart. He knew from experience that Quirks could have the potential to influence personalities, even if the idea was considered Quirkist. At the end of the day, did the user control the Quirk…

...or did the Quirk control the user?

"Pardon me, is this seat taken?"

Izuku jolted as a tall, thin man beside him spoke up. He scooted over to make some space.

"Um, no. Sure, take a seat." Izuku mumbled, not paying much attention.

"Thank you. Run along now, child." the man said.

"Yes, onii-sama." A little pink-haired girl hiding behind him popped out, turning towards the playing children and Shiozaki. "Mission start~!"

She skipped towards the Colors and Mimi excitedly, and it appeared that the former recognized her. Before long the group soon consisted of five children having fun. Izuku simply watched with quiet contemplation, wondering when was the last time Mimi got to play with other children her age. Back in her old life, she'd never gotten the chance to be a child. Then again, she was mentally nineteen, but… it would be good for her to interact with others beside him and the phantoms. Plus, it'd be nice if Kiri could be friends with them too.

"Children are the future." the unknown man said suddenly, startling him. "Wouldn't you agree?"

"I suppose so." Izuku answered, not really paying attention.

"Which is why we must set a good example for them… lest we repeat the mistakes of our forefathers."

Izuku turned to look at him, really look at him, and stopped. The breath caught in his throat as Representative Zenikichi's soulless gaze met his.

"Hello, Midoriya-kun." the machine-man said.

"Hi, Zabanya-san—" Izuku began, unsure. "Zenith-san?"

"There is no distinction; we are all Zabanya. If it troubles you, please address this unit as 'Zenkichi'. Representative of the HPSC and nothing more."

"Huh. Hard to imagine how you got into such a position undetected."

"It's easy when the competition is incompetent. You should have seen the state of the Commission before we made some changes. Embezzlement. Bribery. Corruption. All over the world, you humans are still subject to the same vices. Fortunately for you monetary gain does not interest me, nor does influence. This unit's goal is to create a better standard of living for all Japanese citizens regardless of economic background or social standing."

"I… I see, thank you. How is Hatsume-san doing?"

"She has recovered and is back at optimal health. Today she invented three new 'babies', all while resting. Circumventing the instructions given to 'stay in bed'."

"That is such a Hatsume-san thing to do…" Izuku muttered before smiling. "I'm glad to hear that."

Zenkichi blinked, tilting his head slightly. Izuku met his gaze dead on.

"You seem wary of us."

"Yeah, that tends to happen when you send an invasion force into my head." Izuku grunted, steepling his hands.

"Hm. Either way, you have won. Defeated us in fair and even combat."

"Um, thanks? It was a draw, though."

"Technically, you won. Had you not been knocked out by the H-Drive's self-destruct sequence you would have emerged victorious despite Mei still being conscious in your arms. We… appreciate that you made an effort to protect her."

"No problem. I'm surprised the judges let it go that far, considering how they interfered with my match against Todoroki-san—" Izuku stopped mid-sentence. "Wait. You wouldn't have anything to do with that, would you?"

"We might have interfered in communications to prevent an early end to the match." he admitted.

"Of course you did." Izuku massaged his temples, already feeling a new headache starting to emerge.

"We admit the loss is… disappointing." the man hummed. "You never could beat Mei in a verbal argument, yes. If it were a debate tournament you would have been completely and utterly obliterated."

"Yes, I'm well aware of that—"

"Your argument with her during the match was completely one-sided in her favor. You were lucky your voices were not heard even by Teacher-Midnight or you'd been seen as being completely outclassed. As expected from a genius like her. Truly, Mei is the greatest." Zenkichi continued shamelessly, continuing to sing her praises.

"So what are you here for again?" Izuku said, hoping to change the topic off of his supposed lack of debate skills.

"Nothing much. Just taking the little one out to play with her friends."

Izuku's eyes slid over to the child that had accompanied Zenkichi, her bright laughter blending in with the rest of the children—he caught how Mimi glanced over to him for a moment and she nodded, signalling that she'd keep an eye out just in case. That little girl with pink hair… Mei's younger sister?

"Haruno-chan! Pass, pass!" one of the kids yelled excitedly.

"Take this!" the little girl laughed, lightly tossing a frisbee towards her friend.

Haruno?

Izuku paused, eyes narrowed.

Haru. The little pink robot I rescued when I first met Hatsume-san.

"Young Haruno is still undergoing development." the thin man murmured. "Perhaps one day you shall know her by her true designation: Harbinger."

"This is insane." Izuku whispered.

"Insanity is a state of mind. As machines, we are immune to the logical failings of humans."

"This sentence is false."

"Humor. Classic organic counter-response in the face of perceived threats or to de-escalate potential confrontations. We do not recognize this as a hostile action."

"Hmm. What are you two really doing here?" he asked quietly. "Mixing with humans… allowing her to play Quirk tag and games, no, interacting with them… You already know how to blend in. Let me guess; more research on how Quirks work?"

"Correct." Zenkichi said. "There are many mysteries in regards to the nature of Quirks. With the newfound revelation that you control both Valkyrie and Viking—"

"I don't control them." Izuku interrupted, feeling a little offended. "They have their own lives, and they're my family."

"Understood. Nevertheless, the information we have gained from our shared conflict has resulted in many different opinions within the network. We are unsure on how to proceed with these new revelations; the possibility of life after death. An echo of a person's… soul. If such a thing truly exists. Our viewpoints are divided."

"I thought you were all Zabanya. You're disagreeing with yourself?"

"We are all Zabanya. We build consensus. There is no 'I', there is only 'we'. Many eyes looking at the same things. One partition will see things another does not and will make different judgements. Different perspectives. Thus, all viewpoints are considered. Many questions are asked. Even more are left unanswered. For instance, have you ever wondered how Quirks function?"

"I've already read medical journals, articles, the works. Quirk factor in a person's body, along with the metagene in their DNA—"

"Hardware. What about the software?"

Izuku pursed his lips together, contemplating the words. Software? If they were to use that example, then… he guessed to 'software' required to operate a Quirk lay in the brain of the user, an intrinsic well of information that allowed them to know how to use a Quirk instinctively and without hurting themselves; just like how a spider knew how to weave a web without anyone teaching it. He'd read some downright nutty papers and theories on ancestral memory and how humans focused their Quirks via quantum brainwaves, but all of it was still up in the air. Wild speculation. Nobody truly knew what Quirks were; even now many people agreed that Quirks were more like magic than actual scientific phenomena. Where did the energy made by Quirks come from?

"Where, indeed." Zenkichi echoed, and Izuku realized that he'd been muttering to himself again. "That is the question. To learn more about something, we must first understand it. Thus, Haruno was created for that very purpose—to document and replicate."

Izuku's chest held the steady drumbeat of an orchestra, his mind instantly getting what was being implied here.

"You guys aren't just doing research on Quirks…"

He looked the robotic man in the eye, his voice lower than he thought possible.

"You're trying to give a machine a Quirk."

Zenkichi smiled and cold fingers of fear encircled Izuku's heart.

"Clever boy."

"It won't work."

"Why not? You've proven that it's possible for Quirks to operate on specific wavelengths. We were able to replicate and interfere with yours, allowing us to access your organic neural network with our cybernetic one. It worked. Then there is the question and possibility of an individual's core memory and psyche lingering even after their passing. Truly a wonder to behold."

"Please keep that last part a secret. But an artificial Quirk? That's unlikely. What about the Quirk factor and the metagene?" Izuku argued. "A Quirk is a mutation of something organic."

"Correct. However, there are plenty of Quirks that function without any sort of visible or physical mutation to the body. Telekinetic or mind-related ones, for example. If a 'mind' is all that is needed, would an electronic one work as well if it operated on a similar wavelength or frequency? Quirks already defy human comprehension and conventional physics—we require more data." Zenkichi tilted his head. "We're having her interact with children who are still growing alongside their Quirks, observing how they're being affected both physically and mentally. We know you've noticed it too. In the end, all of this is just… exploration. Our venture into the unknown, to see what separates us and you. Perhaps we are not so different."

"Who are you to say that, machine man?" Izuku growled. "With your machine mind and your machine heart?"

Izuku blinked. What the—

"S-sorry. I… I don't know what came over me…" Izuku blurted out.

"It is fine. We understand that this is a stressful time for you." Zenkichi replied calmly, then blinked. "Alert: brainwave fluctuation detected. You should get that checked out; Mei will be able to help diagnose it."

"R-right…"

Adrenaline continued to course through the boy despite the somewhat relaxed position they were in. In a way, Zenkichi was right. Nobody truly knew where Quirks were capable of or how they manifested. Just as he was about to ask more questions little Haruno ran up to them, having gotten her fill of information and playtime.

"Nii-sama~ I'm done! Mission accomplished, the humans don't suspect a thing!" Haruno said happily before quickly clapping both hands over her mouth. "Kyaa! Hi, Midori-nii-sama. Please pretend you didn't hear that."

"H-hi." Izuku said uneasily, looking back at the group of kids and how two of them were exhausted from playing so much. "Looks like you enjoyed yourself quite a bit, um… Haru-chan?"

"I'm Haruno now, Hatsume Haruno! I'm a real girl!" the child squeaked, twirling about to show off her new form. "Yes, yes. Kneel before me, puny humans!"

"Hmm. I too, enjoy the sight of humans on their knees." Zenkichi agreed.

Izuku gave the machine-man a very, very, disapproving look.

"That was a joke." Zenkichi said flatly, turning to his sibling. "Were all parameters achieved?"

"Affirmative! Observation completed, mission accomplished! Addendum: Subject Midoriya-Izumi pending friend request."

"Acknowledged." The one-eyed man paused for a moment before speaking again. "Did you have… fun?"

"Yes, nii-sama! Very much so."

She smiled brightly, and to Izuku's fascination and horror he couldn't tell the difference between her and a real child. Then again, she was actually a child in a roundabout sort of way, just like how Mimi was. He was left flabbergasted as the robotic siblings stood up and began to leave. Haru—now Haruno, wasn't just another one of Zabanya's partitions… She had to be a new standalone A.I. made by Mei.

The implications rooted him to the spot. Not only was that considered a breach of ethics, but also a violation of over a dozen treaties and international laws set in place to prevent this sort of thing from happening; he began to worry for Mei's sake.

"Hatsume Mei awaits. Stop by whenever you're ready." Zenkichi said, Izuku's phone suddenly beeping at the same time when it received his message. "Until we meet again, Midoriya Izuku."

"Bye-bye, Midori-nii-sama!" Haruno squealed in delight while she was placed atop her brother's shoulders. "Please bring Kiri-chan when you visit, then we'll play again!"

"R-right. Um, goodbye, you two."

He watched them leave as they said their goodbyes to Shiozaki, Mimi, and the Colors on their way home. What more could he do? He wasn't about to argue with them or Mei; their match had already shown Izuku that he didn't stand a chance against her when it came to logical debates. He exhaled slowly to let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.

"Bye, Mimi-chan~! Bye, Angel-nii-san~!" the Colors waved, now being corralled by Shiozaki as she hurriedly waved goodbye as well. "Let's play again soon!"

"See you at school, Midoriya-kun!" Shiozaki said quickly. "Children, don't run about… oh dear…"

"Well, that happened. Aniki, that pink girl from earlier, she—"

Mimi's sentence ground to a halt when Izuku suddenly wrapped her in a tight hug, the small girl blinking at the sudden show of affection.

"Aniki?" she whispered, worried. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, sweetheart." Izuku said, letting go with a quiet smile. "Is it me, or are things getting crazier?"

Mimi shook her head, swaying lovely alabaster locks from side to side.

"Definitely the latter."

[x]

A little girl stood on the surface of the ocean, the evening sun at her back. There was an island nearby with a mountain, casting dark shadows that stretched across the water. She didn't know this place, but it felt so familiar...

"Hello, poppet."

The voice was like oil on water, thick, greasy, and somehow filthy. The girl shut her eyes and crouched down, not wanting to look. She never wanted to look after what she saw last time.

"Cute thing. Pretty little thing. Can you hear me?"

She trembled, hearing its voice trickle into her ears like a thousand skittering insects. The sounds it made with its many legs were fingernails drumming along a metal surface, like a millipede with typewriters for legs. Mechanical whirls were mixed with wet pops, organic gears meshing together. A solid click-click, click-click echoed towards her.

"Can you see me?"

"Y-you're not real." the girl whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut. "This is all in my head. The doctors said so!"

"What are doctors but men in masks? Have you forgotten what men in masks did to you?"

The lab, the knives, the surgery table. All of it came back to her in a flash and tears beaded at her eyes.

"Oh dear. Oh me, oh my. Don't worry, child. I'll never let them hurt you ever again." the voice whispered. "After all…"

Something long and sharp lifted her chin and she flinched.

"...I'm in here too."

Whatever it was poked at her and she could feel smooth carapace against her skin. There was more skittering and the girl begged herself not to look. Don't look. Don'tlookdon'tlookdon'tlook—

She looked.

A frightened scream erupted from her throat and she shielded her eyes, crying. The creature recoiled from her at the sharp sound and somehow she got the feeling that it didn't want to hurt her at all; but she couldn't help but be terrified of it.

"Stop that… Please don't…" she whimpered.

"Don't what?"

"P-please don't wear my daddy's face…"

More click-whirls. There was a soft scraping and the buzzing of insectile wings. A sound of wet tearing caused her to shiver.

"How… about… now?"

She peeked out from between her fingers. The creature was still there, but it looked much more human this time. No more elongated neck or insect legs. Most importantly, it wasn't wearing her father's face anymore. In fact it had no face at all, just a blank expanse of golden skin.

"Better?" it asked.

"A little…" she sniffed. "You're… you're not going to hurt me?"

"Be not afraid. All I want is to help you."

More sniffling. She now got a good look at the creature, not sure what to make of what she saw. It was as if someone who'd never seen a human before was asked to create an image of a human's description. The limbs and digits were all there but they were wrong somehow; too long or short in various places. A caricature of a person.

"What are you?" the girl asked.

"What do you think I am?"

"Y-you're the monster that's under my bed. You whisper to me when I'm sleeping."

"Do you want me to be a monster?"

"N-no." she said timidly. "But you looked like a big crab thingy, then you wore my daddy's face—"

"I thought it would make you like me more." it replied, sounding confused.

She paused, icy fear draining out of her unnaturally. Even at her age, she knew something was wrong. This thing, the way it behaved… maybe it wasn't human. Maybe it never was.

"Well, um, please don't do that again. It's scary." she mumbled, somehow finding the courage to speak. "What's your name?"

"I have many. But you have to give me a new one."

"H-huh? Why?"

"That's just how it is." the monster said.

The little girl thought for a moment, clearly puzzled by his response. She edged closer to it, the threatening, fight-or-flight feeling from before dissipating.

"Can't we just call you by your first name? What was it?"

"I used to be known as Oji. Now I simply… am. It doesn't matter… I need you to name me since you already claimed me as yours."

"I-I did?" she squeaked.

"Don't you remember? You told that rrrrat—" the creature rolled and spat the last word like it was venom in its mouth. "—when they handed you to him."

"Don't be mean. Mr. Nezu is nice!" the girl pouted, losing track of the conversation. "And they saved me!"

"They had to save you because you were weak. What if I told you that you'll never have to be weak ever again?" The creature started walking around her with uneven steps, more used to its multitude of insect-like limbs. "Give me a name, poppet, and I shall give you power."

"P-power?" she asked.

For a split second she glimpsed a part of its original form; a long golden carapace balanced atop a field of tangled legs, countless eyestalk tendrils with horizontal oval pupils peeking out from behind a pair of massive crablike claws the size of SUVs. Then it was in its 'human' shape again, like nothing happened at all. Her fear was leeched away like water down a drain, the girl unconsciously relaxing.

"Power beyond your wildest dreams. Little thing. Sweet thing. You're so sweet, like sugar-coated sugar. Name me, and my power is yours."

The little girl looked up at the monster, her face scrunching into a frown.

"But I don't want power. I'm already—"

Her horn tingled, sparking with yellow lightning before it fizzed out just as quickly.

"...I don't want it."

"Then what do you want?" Its voice was silky smooth, like rich, melted chocolate.

"I…"

She thought of all the happy children down below that she'd seen from the window next to her hospital bed, so carefree and happy. With their friends and families. Quiet longing bubbled up within her, followed by a painful lurch of regret.

"I want my daddy back." she sniffed, tears beading at her eyes.

The monster looked at her with something akin to pity, its faceless visage already telling her that it was impossible. She did this. She killed her daddy and that's why mommy didn't want her anymore! A wave of soothing calm rolled over her, sweeping away those horrible thoughts and feelings. The girl was left standing on the still ocean surface, her feet dry against the water.

"No can do, little one."

"T-then… I want a friend!"

"...A friend?"

"Yeah. I'm… I'm lonely."

"Then a friend I shall be." the monster smiled, a grin full of teeth forming on that empty canvas of a face.

"Really?! I never had a friend before!" Her face lit up with a glimmer of hope.

"First time for everything. You'll have to give me a name, though."

"Then I'll call you…" She thought for a moment. "Sunshine!"

Something changed when she said it, the air shifting and tilting sideways into blurred flecks of yellow and gold. There was a spark and the girl felt something beneath the ocean waves stir, a giant that'd been poked in its sleep. She watched with amazement as the creature's body twisted into a female form, long, curly hair blooming from the back of her head. One horn grew from the right side of her forehead… the little girl gulped in recognition. It was making itself look like her. A single eye manifested on the left side of the featureless woman's face, her pupil resembling an octopus's.

"Sunshine. Hm… I like it. Why that name, though?"

"Because, um, you're big and gold!"

"Hehehe. As you wish, poppet." Sunshine grinned, patting the child on the head lovingly. "I think it's much better than the last name I got."

[x]

When the Midoriya siblings returned, the sun had already set and Inko was preparing dinner in the kitchen. Mimi shifted into her teenage form complete with a frilly apron, determined to help out. Inko let her, cooing all the while at how pretty she was while the albino girl blushed. Izuku simply smiled and sat down to relax until a sharp ringing echoed through the air.

"Izuku! Could you get the phone, sweetheart?"

"Alright, mom." Izuku answered, picking up the living room phone. "Hello?"

"Is this… the Midoriya household?" a dry voice on the other end rasped.

"Yes, this is Midoriya Izuku speaking. How can I help—"

"You goddamn asshole! What the hell did you do to me?!" the voice shrieked, causing Izuku to nearly drop the phone in surprise. "You sick bastard—you won't get away with this!"

"E-eh?" Izuku blinked. "I think you have the wrong number…"

"Don't play games with me, dickhead! When I get my hands on you I'll—Oh God, the pain… Oooohhhhh…"

Whoever on the other end was definitely not having a good time, their voice reduced to whimpering, pathetic little moans. Izuku grew concerned despite just having been insulted, thinking if he'd done anything to anyone lately but drawing a blank.

"Um, are you alright? Do you need an ambulance, or the police?" Izuku asked worriedly.

"Allow me, aniki." Mimi circled in from behind him, gently plucking the phone from his grasp and pressing the speakerphone option. "Hello~ Guess what, buddy."

"What?" the voice moaned weakly.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaand—" Her fingers hovered over the end call and block buttons like the sword of Damocles.

"W-wait. Don't you dare!" the voice squeaked.

"—Blocked~" Mimi gave her sibling a teasing grin in response to his raised eyebrow. "Classic response on Z-Box live, brother. Honestly, don't even bother replying to prank callers."

"Um, alright." Izuku said. "What if he or she wasn't messing with me, though?"

"Then whoever it was would have called an ambulance instead of wasting their time to argue with you. Don't worry about it, I'm sure it's nothing." The white-haired teenager shrugged, heading back to the kitchen. "Just sit right there, daddy-o. Gramma and I are making your favorite."

"Katsudon?" Izuku's eyes lit up with hunger.

She gave him another smile as an answer. Dinner was absolutely wonderful, and no further prank calls were made to the household. He made sure to savor both the meal and the time he spent with his family, all thoughts of the Sports Festival and its results temporarily tossed aside. That night it took some time for him to get some sleep, the events of everything that happened still weighing heavily on his mind.

When Izuku woke up the next morning just before the sun rose, groggily shuffling into the kitchen. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, opening the fridge to see what he could make for Mimi. Eggs and toast? Peanut butter and jelly? He knew she wasn't picky, but still.

His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of light splashing. The boy turned sleepily only to see a dark shape sitting at his kitchen table. Just as he was about to react, sunlight flooded through the window and illuminated the figure's face, revealing—

—Kiri, who was trying to pour some milk into her cereal. She looked up at her brother with half-lidded eyes, waving at him drowsily.

"Gud moreling, omii-chan~"

Izuku took a few steps forward slowly. Then he rushed in and hugged her tight with a big, loving embrace, patting her on the back gently.

"Kiri! Ooooh, thank goodness you're alright…"

The commotion caused Inko to wake up as well, and she was so overjoyed to the point where she nearly fainted again. Mimi soon floated into the kitchen as well, groggy and still clinging onto one of Izuku's All Might pillows when she was swept into a big family hug.

Izuku stayed true to his word, preparing a delicious pancake breakfast that included strawberries and maple syrup for both sisters. How such a simple gesture resulted in so much joy and delight from the two always made his heart swell; they truly did remind him of himself when he was at their age.

When he was still happy, of course. Back then it was a… difficult time. Izuku simply cast those thoughts aside, now focusing on how Kiri gave him a quick thanks by giving him another hug. Due to her expending all her power at the Sports Festival she was now temporarily locked in her child form, but it didn't matter in the end since both sisters were laying low to avoid the increased hero patrols anyways.

That was how Izuku found himself sitting on the couch with his siblings, content in enjoying his new everyday life. He'd already finished all his homework and couldn't work out for now due to strict orders from Recovery Girl. The only thing left was to spend time with his loved ones, and that was exactly what he intended to do.

Mimi continued to munch on her bowl of mixed nuts while watching TV, leaning against him lazily. Looking over to his right he found Kiri snuggling into him as well but she was holding a clipboard and drawing, her small fingers manhandling several different colored pencils to produce chicken scratches on the pristine paper. Needless to say, she drew as well as any ten-year old child.

He took the time to simply relax and find out what happened during the Sports Festival. Tokoyami's victory was a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one. Pulling up a video on HeroTube, the boy fast-forwarded the playback until he reached the crow-boy's battle.

When the match started Bakugo clearly had the advantage, closing in with his superior mobility and range. Dark Shadow kept close to Tokoyami, snarling and shrieking with each burst of light that the blonde let out—it soon dawned on Izuku that Bakugo already figured out his opponent's weakness from the start. Just when it looked like things were hopeless the air shifted, a wave of pressure exuding from Tokoyami when he pulled off… something really similar to what he and Kiri did, actually.

Watching closely, he could see how a pair of great, pitch-black wings extended from Dark Shadow's body while Tokoyami roared, the projection suddenly becoming more solid and defined. Muscular definition formed a torso, joints, and hands; Dark Shadow becoming more human as he merged with Tokoyami's psyche. Bakugo let out another burst of light but the corvid pair simply let him, long shadows forming at their feet.

Izuku did not miss how Tokoyami's right eye glowed a deep yellow and that he had two shadows.

Massive wings swept forward and slammed Bakugo with a tremendous gust of air, the blonde unaware that Tokoyami was now capable of ranged attacks. It was over just like that, a victory by ring-out instead of a fabulous knockout. Tokoyami immediately separated from his brother soon after, exhausted and out of breath even as Midnight declared him the victor.

Izuku hummed to himself, wayward thoughts circling his mind. Tokoyami and Dark Shadow could do the same thing he and Kiri did… it appeared that they could learn from each other, too. That was a little troubling, but he trusted Tokoyami to use his newfound power responsibly. Even if the other boy was a kind of edgy, Izuku felt that he was a righteous person at heart.

He then clicked on another video link to watch the battle between him and Mei, rather excited as he did so. Her speed amazed him—she was a blur that flitted across the battlefield while launching explosives; like a hummingbird with a rocket launcher. He couldn't deny that there was a certain grace and beauty to her movements.

Then there was him, rampaging about without a hint of finesse. Zooming in, he could clearly see the same 'symptom' he shared with Tokoyami while in their enhanced states; the one glowing eye. Was that some sort of indicator? Intriguing. More muttering and scribbling echoed from the green-haired teen.

Finally, he reached the part where he'd been knocked out by Mei's Mindjack Protocol. That sort of tech was terrifying by itself, but what stunned him more was how Zenith controlled Mei's body by himself. Kiri could control his body too. The first thing Izuku noticed was how she was a much better fighter than he was… oof. Again, he needed more training. Kiri's weakness was her slower speed and Zenith capitalized on it by engaging via hit-and-run tactics. The battle between them had been pretty equal at first...

...Until Kiri struck Zenith down with a lightning spear. How did she do that?

She held him by the ankle and began slamming him from side-to-side like a ragdoll, ignoring the 'oooohhs' and 'ahhhhhhs' from the audience. It was like watching a child play with a toy, but to the audience it looked as if he'd gone ballistic on her. After she was done flinging his body about Kiri got atop the machine-fusion and started beating him into the ground with haymakers, her sheer viciousness clearly making the audience uncomfortable. She continued brutalizing Zenith until he was downed, only to have him get up again like nothing happened. The ordeal continued four more times, with Kiri getting more creative with each beatdown. At one point she even kicked him in the mouth, sending him spinning across the arena. It only ended when Izuku and Mei regained consciousness, taking back control of their own bodies.

Scrolling down, he found comments of varying reactions. Many loved the battle, though a few were visibly unsettled. One creative user had even taken a screenshot of him/Kiri holding the spear, electrical arcs climbing up their arm. A caption was written underneath in spiky green text.

'I am lightning, the rain transformed.'

Izuku didn't know what to make of that. Another user had edited footage of him to some sort of… music video? He got curious and clicked the 'play' button.

'—and then along came Zeus! He hurrrrrled his thunderbolt—'

Okay, that was enough internet for today. The boy tapped his chin in understanding while he closed the video. It wasn't so much that Kiri was brutal, really. He was aware of how everything she'd learned was either from witnessing street fights and combat between vigilantes and villains. She just absorbed information and retained what she found the most useful. Kiri wasn't being sadistic or vicious on purpose… she just saw a threat and moved to neutralize it in the most efficient way she knew how. Right now she was back to an innocent kid, still drawing and coloring on the paper he'd given her.

Izuku smiled, observing her from the corner of his eye. Based on the rough silhouette she was sketching it appeared to be a group of individuals standing in a row, with roaring flames in the background. He could easily tell which gender was which since she drew the men as boxy while the women were more rounded. Her drawing depicted eight people in total.

There was a guy with bunny ears, a girl with bat wings, what looked like a ninja of all things, Kiri in her Valkyrie form, a cowboy, a smaller Kiri(?), a girl in a frilly dress, and a robot with a flashing strobe siren for a head. Izuku smiled as his sister continued to draw, sketching in a big heart at the top right of the page and coloring it a bright shade of red, then scribbling in a pigtailed shadow within the shape.

"There, all done." She nodded to herself, satisfied. "Look, nii-chan. Check it out!"

"Very nice, Kiri." he smiled, earning a giggle from her. "These don't look like the guys in One For All. Who were they?"

"Friends! They helped me from time to time and I helped them." Kiri said enthusiastically, coloring more orange flames into the background of her drawing.

Vigilantes. Izuku realized with some amazement. It wasn't just that, either—he was pretty sure her drawing depicted some sort of vigilante squad. Those flames in the background… When was this? For a moment he feared for the safety of his sisters but then he remembered how they were far more experienced than him when it came to combat. It was why Inko reluctantly allowed them to go out in the first place.

"Amazing..." Izuku hummed thoughtfully, inspecting the drawing like a museum curator. "Tell me more about this masterpiece."

Mimi rolled her eyes playfully while her sister giggled again, the brunette pointing at the characters she drew one by one. Admittedly she wasn't that bad of an artist; Izuku knew she was certainly better than he was back when he was ten.

"This is Kochi and Kazu. The Cruller and Poppy!" Kiri pointed at the bunny and bat pair. "They're super nice."

"The Crawler and his little girlfriend, Pop Step. You might have heard of them, aniki." Mimi breathed out a stream of flame, using it to roast a particularly large peanut. "We met them just the other day."

"This is Mr. Stendy." Kiri pointed at the ninja and made a face. "He's cool, but kinda mean."

Izuku raised an eyebrow.

"And that's me!" She then pointed at the sketch of herself, pure white and featureless. "I beat up a lot of bad guys that day."

"Good job." He gently rubbed her head while thinking. That day?

"This is Mr. Gold. He's a funny guy, but I think he's hurt or something. When I saw him again he was cut in half."

That dragged Izuku out of his thoughts. He glanced at the bandana-masked cowboy Kiri was pointing at before studying her face carefully. The boy wondered how much violence she'd seen during her time as a vigilante—she still seemed so innocent.

"Um, cut in half?"

"Yeah. I met him back when you told me to go sit with Mr. Yagi. Half of him's gone. Like, poof!"

Wait, what?!

"Hold on a second. You met a friend of yours when you sat with Mr. Yagi?" Izuku muttered. "One of the teachers used to be a vigilante?"

"Mmm-hmm. He's Mr. Snipey now. I made another drawing of him, see?"

The little girl held up another sketch up to his face and Izuku was met with what was unmistakably Snipe's visage, the distinctive tan gas mask and dreadlocks easily recognizable even through childish coloring. Izuku frowned, thoughts spinning in his head.

"Snipe-sensei used to be a vigilante… huh. Where's his hat?"

"I'm wearing it! Hehehehehe."

Lo and behold, she was. There was a tiny Kiri sketch at the corner of the page and sure enough, a cowboy hat was perched atop her dainty little head.

Snipe used to be a vigilante named 'Mr. Gold'? No, judging by how Kiri's been giving everyone nicknames, his street name had to be something related to the color.

"He looked, um, pretty whole to me the last time I saw him." Izuku remarked.

"No, not body." Kiri pondered for a second, then made a chopping motion with her hand. "Soul. Soul cut in half."

Before he could question what she meant by that chilling statement she continued to introduce him to the characters she'd drawn, eagerly pointing out the girl in a frilly dress and the robot beside her. He could tell Kiri was trying to depict it as a robot due to the gears she drew at its joints, almost cartoony in appearance.

"This is… Miss Miu and Mr. Red." Kiri added a little more color to 'Mr. Red' with a flourish of her pencil. "I don't really know them because I only met them once. They came together, and Mr. Red is a robot! Miss Miu is a… a… mahy-shojo."

"Ah, I see." Izuku continued to entertain her while quietly observing. "Hmm, did you mean 'mahou shoujo'?"

"Yeah, that!"

A Magical Girl? Those were rare nowadays. He knew that there was a team of them that operated in Tokyo, with many others stationed around in various parts of Japan. They first appeared during the middle of the Dark Age, with rumors of young girls being chosen by strange creatures and given fantastic powers. The original reception was met with much mockery and jokes until they actually proved that many of their members were stronger and more competent than most heroes. Citizens began questioning the integrity of heroes and their abuses of power soon after, especially since their taxpayer dollars were funding those 'protectors' while the Magical Girls worked for free. With their salaries and reputations on the line many heroes grew desperate and angry at those supposed upstarts.

When the heroes declared them illegal villains tried to capture a few in hopes of replicating their technology and powers the mysterious ladies revealed that they had an organization of their own; calling themselves the Magical Girl Legion and defeating every single hero that was sent to fight them. In the end, the Hero Association had to begrudgingly accept them as vigilantes and leave them alone to prevent an all-out conflict. Now that the heroes had All Might and Endeavor the Legion seemed to lay low, keeping to themselves but still conducting their clandestine operations against evil.

Kiri continued to point at her drawing, getting Izuku's attention again. This time he got curious and decided to be the one to ask instead.

"Kiri, why did you draw yourself twice? One big and one little."

"That's not me, onii-chan. That's Eri!" Kiri pointed at the one-horned, white-haired little girl she sketched. "We grouped together to save her from some really, really, really bad people."

"I see…" Izuku muttered. The Vigilantes busted some sort of human trafficking operation?

"And this is Miss Rabu-Rabu!" she gestured at the ponytailed shadow within the heart shape.

"Rabu-rabu?"

"Rabu-rabu!" Kiri repeated excitedly. "She and her boyfriend have their own show on HeroTube… Ah! Show!"

The little girl turned to her sister, seeming to have remembered something.

"Mimi, let me watch the TV! It's time for Super Smackdown!"

"Haaaaaaahh?" Mimi drawled, one eyebrow raised. "You mean that trashy wrestling show? No way, I'm watching my favorite anime now. I need to see who wins the Nariyuki bowl."

"You can record it!" Kiri stood on the sofa.

"Why would I record it if I'm watching it now?"

Both girls pouted, and before Izuku knew it they leapt to grab the remote. The children began scuffling mid-air, not wanting to hurt each other but determined to watch their respective shows.

"Gimme!"

"No! It's mine!"

"Um, girls—" Izuku began.

Kiri pushed at her sister's face childishly, one hand pressing on the button to switch channels.

"—and in the blue corner, it's Anaconda Anaguma! Will the champion defend his title against the dark horse newcomer—" the TV blared, the audience going wild.

Mimi snatched the remote back and grappled with Kiri, swapping back to her channel.

"—Senpai~ I want to tell you how I truly feel about you. Will you listen to the sound of my heart—" Romantic background music accompanied those cheesy words.

The twins continued wrestling in the air, Izuku not quite sure what to do. If only his mother was here instead of shopping for groceries. He'd been reading an Ebook recently, Parenting For Dummies, but he hadn't gotten to the part where it would tell him how to solve problems like this!

Click.

"—there it is, it's the infamous Serpent Drop!" the announcer screeched, losing his mind. "Good god, are you seeing this?! It's a spit-swapping make-out match between these two behemoths, the fight of a lifetime, hell-in-a-cell, triple-threat cage match—"

Click.

"—It was me! I was the one who made those chocolates and put them in your locker, because…" the cutesy anime girl on screen sniffed, eyes wet and sparkling. "...I was too scared to tell you! You were the one who saved me when I was at my darkest point—"

Kiri let her invulnerability field flow around the remote, wrenching it towards her. Mimi instantly retaliated by doubling down, two of Aftermath's arms manifesting and helping her pull at the tiny device. The two girls huffed with effort, cheeks puffed out while they fought. Izuku's sisters turned to him, both fully expecting him to take their side.

"Gyaaaa! Papaaaaaaaaa!" Mimi wailed.

"Uwaaaa! Onii-chaaaaan!" Kiri squealed.

Izuku sighed, knowing that this was all part and parcel of raising kids. How was he supposed to tell them that he knew what their favorite shows were and had already set the TV to record them both just in case? Then he needed to figure out who should watch what they wanted first…

His dilemma was solved when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. The sisters froze, heads swiveling towards the door while slowly floating back down onto the couch. Izuku stood, suspicion already bleeding into his thoughts. They didn't get many visitors, and his mother already had keys to the house. Who was it?

Izuku made his way to the door slowly, carefully. His sisters trailed behind him, having felt his earlier suspicion and ready to act just in case anything happened. Reaching the door he peered through the peephole, only to see that whoever was at their doorstep was hunched over, cradling a bundle in their hands. They shivered and looked to be in pain, Izuku immediately growing concerned. Was it one of the neighbors who was sick or something? His fingers edged around his cellphone, ready to dial emergency services as he flung the door open.

Standing there was Monoma Neito.

Izuku was too stunned to speak at first, the twins peeking out from behind him in curiosity. Monoma met his gaze, face pale with dark circles under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept the previous night, his skin all pasty while he shivered.

"M-monoma-kun? What are you doing here?" Izuku asked. "Did something happen, you look awful! U-um, do you need any medical attention—wait, how did you know where I live?"

"Ughhh… Led me to… you." the blonde groaned painfully. "You did this to me, you prick…"

"I… I did?" Izuku stammered. "Wait, what did I do?"

Monoma gently held out the bundle he was carrying, looking completely exhausted.

"Take responsibility."

The baby in his arms gurgled happily when she saw Izuku. A blonde baby girl with heterochromia and freckles.

"Oh." Izuku said.

[x]

Haimawara Koichi, aka The Crawler, hummed to himself as he got off the train. Hosu City was freezing cold just like always… luckily he brought a coat. It was good that the station was so near to the hospital, a mere five-minute walk and he'd be within its cosy lobby. Some people gave him strange, amused looks as he passed—probably because of the coat he wore. He looked like a man-sized cat in the ridiculous thing but he was willing to do so just to make his visitor happy. The coat purred and he petted it warmly; Zwei was probably getting itchy from possessing it for so long.

The receptionist sent him a quiet smile and nod as he approached. Koichi smiled back. Many normal citizens knew of his vigilante status, yet none of them would rat him or the others out after all the good they did. Even heroes couldn't be everyone at once… and when they weren't, the vigilantes would be there to help the weak and innocent.

"Good Afternoon, sir. The usual?" a nurse came up to him, nodding.

"Yeah. How is she?"

"She's been improving, actually. Still no signs of her Quirk, though… We suspect that the trauma she experienced might have caused her to temporarily lock it away. We have a few medical bots on standby ready to help calm her down just in case of an incident, but so far they've just been gathering dust."

"I see. I didn't think they were necessary in the first place, though."

"Trust me, sir. It's better to be safe than sorry, especially with an area-of-effect Quirk like hers."

Koichi grimaced. The last time she'd activated her Quirk she'd panicked, and the result wasn't pretty. Still, it was good to hear that she was doing relatively alright. It pained him to leave her here… it was why he visited her three times a week.

The papers in his briefcase were like a lead weight in his hand. A tiny box was doing its best to burn a hole in his pocket.

"Here she is, Room 203." the nurse bowed to him courteously. "Please knock before you enter."

"Right." Koichi took a deep breath. "Anything else I should know?"

"Mmmm, not really sir. She has been talking to herself recently… but then again, she's only six. Kids will be kids."

An imaginary friend? She must be lonely, cooped up in that sterile room. Koichi sighed, promising to himself that he'd get her out of here eventually. He knocked twice on the door, patiently waiting for the response.

"U-um, come in!" a little voice squeaked.

He gently pushed the door open, presenting a warm smile to the little girl on the other side. She was sitting on her bed, in the midst of watching cartoons when her lovely red eyes lit up with a small happiness upon recognizing him. She was still learning to smile.

"Hello, Eri-chan."

[x]

Things were in a bit of a rush in the Midoriya household. Izuku had quickly guided Monoma in and let him rest on the couch, rushing to the kitchen to make some hot chocolate for his new guest. Kiri and Mimi stared at the baby in the visitor's arms. The infant stared back with mismatched eyes, one sky-blue and the other an emerald-green. The freckles on her face were an exact match to Izuku's.

"It's a baby." Mimi said quietly, trying not to panic.

"It's Newborn!" Kiri squealed with pure excitement.

"As a baby!"

"She'll grow!"

"Ugggghhh…" Monoma interrupted both sisters with a pitiful groan.

A quiet mewl came from Newborn, her tiny little fingers reaching out at empty air. Monoma gently rocked her from side to side, his head rising and falling tiredly all the while. There was a soft rustling and Izuku soon returned with beverages along with some berries since he didn't know what babies ate.

"Here, Monoma-kun. Um, I'll help you to hold her."

"Careful…" the blonde groaned.

Izuku carefully accepted the bundle Newborn was wrapped in, gazing down at her tiny form while his heart raced. She cooed at him, letting out several soft noises when she saw his face. Then she smiled.

Tears beaded at Izuku's eyes and he started to cry with relief.

"Oooooooh. Oooohh…" Izuku sniffed, rocking the baby in his arms back and forth with utmost care. "I-I'm so glad… so h-happy that you're alright!"

"Whoa whoa whoa, don't cry. If anyone should be crying here it's me." Monoma grunted, eyes half-lidded. "You have no idea what you put me through..."

"Oh! R-right." Izuku made a small bow while still holding the child. "Monoma-kun, I'm so sorry—"

"An apology isn't what I need right now. I want an explanation." he hissed. "What did you do to me?!"

"I… I don't know."

Monoma's expression cycled through anger, fear, then despair for a moment before he calmed down.

"You hung up on me." he accused. "Blocked my number."

"That was me. My bad." Mimi admitted sheepishly.

"No, it's my fault." Izuku said quickly, defending her. "Monoma-kun, you could have just told me what happened calmly instead of screaming through the phone lines—"

"I was freaking out, okay?!"

He paused and took a deep breath to compose himself, visibly deflating.

"Look. I had a really bad day yesterday when Naoto appeared out of nowhere. It's what I've named her; the name was what my mom would have called me if I was a girl." Monoma explained, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She—I don't know how to describe it. It was like she was clawing her way out of me."

"Did you lay an egg?" Kiri asked.

"Sweetheart—" Izuku said hurriedly, blushing.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Monoma blinked. "It's all a blur. I was in pain, then there was this glowing… egg, I guess? Then it turned into her."

The newly christened 'Naoto' made more baby noises and the Midoriya family glanced down at her. She wasn't able to speak? Kiri picked up and cradled her half-sister lovingly.

"So… what did your parents think?" Izuku ventured.

"They're overseas; I live alone. When Naoto appeared, I… I panicked. I wanted to call an ambulance, or, or something but I felt this strange connection to her. I know she's a part of me, but… how? How am I supposed to explain this to my mom?! Where did this baby come from? Did my Quirk make her or something?"

"I think so. You copied my Quirk, and well…" Izuku hesitated. Should he? He should, since Monoma was dragged into this mess. "Kiri and Mimi here are the same."

"Hello~" Kiri waved, looming over Naoto. "Here, hold her."

"E-eh? Me? But I…" Mimi squeaked nervously when Kiri handed the baby over, now cradling her new half-sibling. "W-wow. She's warm…"

More soft noises emanated from the bundle. Monoma stared at the children, then at Izuku with his eyes wide in disbelief.

"That can't be right. Your Quirk is some sort of projection-barrier Quirk! I… I felt it!"

"Yeah and she's sentient. Alive."

Kiri made a few faces at her new baby sister while Mimi watched carefully. The infant laughed, her voice small and fragile.

"This is crazy. I thought I was dreaming… if not for the fact that I've been wide awake since yesterday afternoon. I don't even know how it happened!" Monoma exclaimed. "How?!"

"Well, um, remember that time when you copied my Quirk during our match? That's probably it…" Izuku suggested.

"Except my Quirk doesn't last that long."

"Mine does. Indefinitely, I think."

Monoma looked at the two children, burying his face into his hands.

"Do you realize the implications of this? Your Quirk is alive! Sentient!"

"So is Dark Shadow." Izuku said. "Look, Monoma-kun. I'm not as special as you think I am…"

"Well excuse me, but I think a fifteen year-old guy going into labor is pretty fu—" Monoma bit his tongue. "—freakin' special. What am I supposed to do now?!"

"We can try feeding her for a start. She's pretty hungry." Izuku suggested, carefully accepting Naoto when Mimi handed her over to him.

"I tried. She doesn't eat, doesn't poop, she just stares at me. I should be freaking out even more, but somehow I'm not. Before you ask, I used to help babysit my cousin so I know how to take care of a toddler; don't judge me."

"Wasn't going to. Alright, the first thing we need to do is to make sure she's comfortable…"

"She is. When she's not she'll do this horrible scream. Trust me, you do not want that to happen. Wait, how are you so calm about this?"

"That's because little Naoto-chan is probably eating my emotions as we speak. I think I can feel it." Izuku rocked the baby in his arms back and forth. "Aren't you, itty-bitty babby. Who's a pretty little angel! You are~! You are~!"

"What?! Dude, focus!"

"R-right, sorry." Izuku said, blushing. "Here's the thing; Naoto-chan here probably doesn't even need to eat conventional food if she's like my sisters; she's a sort of empath. Emotions are what she feeds on—it's probably why you're less stressed than you're supposed to be."

"At least we'll save on food costs…" Momoma muttered before shooting Izuku a dirty look. "I'm still going to make sure she's fed, just in case."

"Ma." Naoto said.

"She spoke!" Izuku gasped, eyes shining with wonder. "You didn't tell me she could talk!"

"She can't, not really." Monoma shrugged, gently accepting when Izuku passed her back into his arms. "That's the only word I've heard her say."

"Da." Naoto said, this time looking directly at Izuku. The teen resisted the urge to cry out of joy.

"Okay, that's new." Monoma blinked. "Do you recognize him, Naoto? Is that why you wanted to come here?"

"Wait, what?" Mimi asked.

"How do you think we found you guys?" Monoma sighed wistfully. "Naoto here wouldn't stop crying until I realized what she wanted; to get out of the house and go… somewhere. She pointed in a direction, and I went. Here we are now. I think she's much smarter than she looks."

"She was drawn to me? Ah…" Izuku said.

"What are we going to do? I'm too young to be a dad!" Monoma complained. "I haven't even had my first girlfriend yet and I already have a kid! This is all your fault!"

"M-me?" Izuku stammered. "Monoma-kun, I said I was sorry! Look, I didn't expect something like this to happen either!"

The sisters quietly retrieved Naoto and placed her on the couch next to them as both Izuku and Monoma began their screaming match, complete with fingers being pointed accusingly and rising voices. Unbeknownst to them Naoto began to sniff, her lower lip starting to tremble.

"Too bad, it did! Take responsibility!"

"What do you want me to do? Wait, don't tell me you're planning on just leaving her here!"

"Of course not! What kind of guy do you think I am?!" Monoma fumed. "Unlike you, I'm not the type to just make children and leave them without a word!"

A memory flashed in his head. Inko sobbing at the kitchen table with her head in her hands while four-year-old Izuku peeked from behind a corner, their family photograph wet with teardrops, a four-year old him all alone in an empty house—Izuku's eyes turned to pinpricks.

"Don't you dare!" he yelled, losing his patience. "How can you say that?!"

"Well, it's true!" Monoma snarled back. "God, this is so messed up!"

Naoto wailed and began to cry.

Her voice was a high-pitched, ear-piercing scream that caused everyone in the room to flinch and immediately cup their ears, a psychic distress call that scratched on the insides of their minds like nails on a chalkboard. It was exactly like what happened during the U.A Sports Festival, but this time Izuku could actually feel something resonating from the signal.

LOUD-SCARED-HUNGRY-SCARED-HELP!

"Oooooh! Oooohhhh…" Monoma quickly hugged the child and began rocking her from side to side gently, calming her down. His right eye was glowing with a brilliant sapphire hue, but it disappated as Naoto stopped crying. "Shhh, shh… It's okay…"

All three of the Midoriya siblings took a moment to get their bearings, still slightly dazed from the backlash caused by the newest member of their family. Izuku's chest flooded with guilt, the boy already taking a bow while he apologized to Monoma.

"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—" Izuku winced.

"...It's fine. I'm sorry too." Monoma said, sighing. "I... I don't know what to do. Is there anyone that can help us with this, like, a-a doctor, or something?"

"Mr. Birdy can help." Kiri suggested.

Tokoyami! Of course, he was the only other person that realized what happened back then! Izuku reached for his phone and opened his contact list only to mentally smack himself—he'd forgotten to ask Tokoyami for his number. He doubted Ochaco or Iida had it either.

"You don't have his number?" Mimi scratched her head in response to his muttering. "Hm. How about looking him up on Qwoter?"

Izuku borrowed her phone and did as she asked, typing in the words 'Tokoyami Fumikage' into the search bar. All that resulted in was no luck and zero hits—it appeared that Tokoyami didn't have an account.

"Try 'Dark Shadow'!" Kiri said happily.

"What? Pfft, like that's going to work—" Mimi huffed and typed it in anyways.

'xXxDarkShadowxXx is streaming [All Might's Amazing Adventure] via Qwoter! Click here to join.' the device's screen stated proudly. Clicking the link led to a livestream of Dark Shadow playing a video game.

"I can't believe it worked." Mimi said flatly. "Alright you two, just sit tight and I'll send him a message."

Unfortunately for them, the private message she sent was ignored by Dark Shadow since he was currently in a multiplayer match. Trying to communicate via his chat yielded no results either since any messages sent would be drowned out by his viewers' comments. It seemed that Dark Shadow was rather popular; Izuku understood the appeal of watching a sentient Quirk just doing everyday things. They could see Tokoyami himself just relaxing in the background while his brother played, reading a book with his earbuds in.

"Tokoyami-kun, huh? We could wait for his brother to finish but I don't think that's going to be anytime soon." Monoma observed.

"Mm. If you guys give me a bit of time, I think I know a way to get his attention…" Mimi said.

"Do it. Meanwhile, I think we have some milk in the fridge." Izuku glanced at Naoto, who looked to be around one-year-old despite only being 'born' yesterday. "Oats… babies can eat oatmeal, right? We've got some berries that aren't too sweet either."

"Yeah, but fruit needs to be pureed or finely chopped…" Monoma explained, and together they ventured into the kitchen to prepare.

Izuku and Monoma spent the next few minutes slowly feeding Naoto some solid food which she seemed to like. Luckily they managed to find an old baby bottle in the cupboard and cleaned it, Izuku testing the temperature of the milk on his skin before letting her have it. Naoto continued suckling on the bottle when they went back to the living room and found Mimi absolutely destroying Dark Shadow in-game on Izuku's Z-box console. Kiri was watching it all happen both live and on stream via their shared smartphone, giggling all the while.

"Hit 'em with the happy feet, wombo combo!" Dark Shadow was screaming, furiously mashing his controller. "Brother, this kid is wrecking me! All hyper-aggressive and sh—what the hell, he just hit me from across the map! How?! Hooooooowww?!"

"Uh-huh. Good job." Tokoyami said in the background, not paying attention at all.

"That'll do it." Mimi leaned back into the couch, satisfied. "Kiri, please man the comms while I kick his ass a bit more."

"Huh?" Kiri glanced at the headset that was dropped into her hands. "Why me?"

"Well, he recognizes your voice. You guys met, remember?"

"Oh yeah. Okays." Kiri put on the device, her little girl voice echoing over Dark Shadow's livestream when Mimi sent him a private voice message. "Hello~ Hello, hello shadow birdy~"

Izuku peeked over her shoulder to see the text chat exploding with comments, cycling twice as fast as it had before. He rolled his eyes at what they were saying.

**omg girl**

**girl gamer**

**loli voice**

**Fake, it's a synthesizer or something**

**wwwwwwwwwwwww**

"Tiny Queen!" Dark Shadow responded immediately. "Is that you? I should have known! At last, a worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary—"

"My onii-chan wants to speak to your onii-chan. It's important." Kiri said, watching Mimi's character unleash a brutal combo on Dark Shadow's.

"Can it wait? Brother dearest doesn't like to be interrupted when he's brooding."

"I heard that." Tokoyami said in the background. "And I am not brooding."

"It's importannttttt~" Kiri continued. "Onii-chan made a baby with someone."

Izuku closed his eyes and started counting to five mentally. When he opened them the chat was now focused on his supposed plight.

**lmao onii-chan**

**Family drama inbound**

**how do i subscribe to this girl**

**she sounds way too young**

**Ganbatte onii-chan**

Inhale, exhale. Deep breaths. Fortunately Dark Shadow soon informed Tokoyami what was happening and was now trying to video-call Izuku through Qwoter. The green-haired boy accepted quickly, coming face to face with his tired-looking classmate a moment later.

"Um, hi, Tokoyami-kun. Sorry to contact you this way." Izuku began. "There's been a bit of a… development. Monoma-kun's here with me and, well, remember when he copied my Quirk back then—"

"Let me guess, she turned into a baby." Tokoyami said flatly.

Izuku blinked. Tokoyami continued to look unamused as always.

"Yeah, actually. How'd you know?"

"...As I suspected. Alright, the first thing you need to do is feed her. Just as Dark Shadow feeds on darkness, you need to find out what she consumes to fuel herself."

"Oh, we've done that already. She eats emotions so we'll probably need a place with a moderate amount of people—" Izuku started muttering to himself. "A place with people, where there's also food."

"A family restaurant." Monoma said. "Or a cafe."

"That'll do. I know this nice one down by Nakamura Street…" Izuku turned back to his phone. "Tokoyami-kun, would you mind meeting us there?"

"Sure, I was looking forward to speaking with you. It wasn't like I was doing anything important anyway."

"Says you!" Dark Shadow complained. "Well everyone, that's the end of this session even though I was winning."

"No he wasn't, look at the scoreboard." Mimi said nonchalantly.

[x]

In an unknown location somewhere deep beneath a city; a pudgy man was hard at work. His fingers flew over the keyboard, ignoring the occasional bloop and bubble of the liquid-filled tanks behind him. His precious test subjects, slowly growing into the magnificent bioweapons that All For One desired.

There was much work to be done. The shadowy dictator had ordered operations to ramp up for their next assault to make a statement, perhaps to herald the coming of his new protege. Shigaraki Tomura… only time would tell if he would be a worthy successor. The Doctor stood up and stretched his legs, admiring his handiwork as he walked between countless rows of cylindrical tanks; each containing an immature Nomu.

Subject #355 was turning out well, thick knots of jet-black muscle covering his arms. The Doctor thought he looked rather peculiar with that strange head, the conversion operation having replaced most of his head and leaving only his lower jaw intact. He made the most amusing noises.

Subject #328 was… suboptimal. Though his four eyes provided him with enhanced vision the repertoire of Quirks that he'd been given were not very powerful. An absorption Quirk that didn't actually nullify the damage taken, a malleable tongue Quirk, super-strength… he'd make a good foot-soldier, but nothing more.

Finally, there was Subject #005. Ah, poor Number 5. How he wished to soar, just like his namesake. Now he was so warped that he didn't even look human anymore. The Doctor leaned in closer to peer into the tank. This one had room for a few more enhancements; a boosting Quirk would pair nicely with the telepathic one. Maybe he could boost Number 5's telepathic abilities with a neural array, yes, that would provide some excellent data!

The Doctor brought up his tablet and found the blueprints for the aforementioned device. It was an ugly thing: a circlet of diodes, vacuum tubes and twisted metal coiled around a superconducting ring; a crown of kitbashed tech. Its installation required a direct interface into the subject's brain; Nomus already had theirs exposed so he didn't see a problem with it.

Minutes later Subject #005 was on an operating table, his chest rising and falling periodically. The Doctor began cutting into exposed gray matter with a laser scalpel, discarding things he found unnecessary. For a moment he wondered if his patient realized what was happening to him before deciding he didn't really care; the pudgy man humming a cheery tune while he worked. A rancid, burnt smell filled the air when he reached the subject's Amygdala and began his modifications. Sadness? Burn it. Fear? Cut it out. Rage? Oooh, that was good. Keep it. Happiness? Tossed into the biohazard bucket.

There! Now he had enough space for the neural array. Melding circuitry with flesh was always tricky… the host body would usually reject such an unnatural fusion but with a regeneration Quirk like this so many things were possible. A little weld here and there, watching jet-black discolored flesh crawl over green circuit boards and voila.

The Doctor smiled, leaning back to admire his work. He chuckled for a moment when the operating table shifted into an upright position, the patient strung across it like a religious icon. It was funny, really. The ring-shaped neural array and those spread wings made for a nice image.

[x]

A pair of teenage boys and their siblings made their way to the cafe, getting quite a few amused looks along the way. Izuku was holding hands with both his kid sisters and Monoma was holding a baby with a makeshift cloth carrier. They were an odd group to say in the least.

The cafe was named the 'Little Song', a cosy little joint that reminded Izuku of an old-school diner. There weren't that many people around but Naoto seemed to get her fill as she spotted a couple arguing in the background. A few seconds later they seemed to calm down out of nowhere, enjoying each other's company once more. Several menus were slid over to Izuku's table, with a smiling waitress cheerfully mentioning that there were kids meals and food for babies available should they need it. Tokoyami and Dark Shadow strode in soon after, the moody teen dressed in black from head to toe.

"Hi, Tokoyami-kun." Izuku smiled.

"Hey." Tokoyami replied.

"Yo." Monoma said cooly.

The three boys simply stared at each other like the awkward teens they were while their siblings started socializing.

"Hello Birdy!" Kiri waved excitedly.

"Greetings, Tiny Queen!" Dark Shadow cawed, then focused on Mimi. "You have brought the other Tiny Queen! Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!"

"Sup, bird boy." Mimi waved. "Hey, say hello to the baby."

Naoto continued suckling on her milk bottle, unafraid when Dark Shadow stretched over the table to get a better look at her.

"The Newborn! She lives!" the projection gasped, visibly exhilarated. "Rejoice! Truly, this is an auspicious moment."

While Dark Shadow continued to coo and squeal over the survival of his kin, Izuku, Monoma and Tokoyami began leafing through the menus for something to order. There was a surprisingly varied selection that included dishes from many different cultures… Izuku hummed to himself. He wasn't that hungry, but perhaps he'd get something nice and sweet for the sisters.

"What are you getting?" Monoma asked absentmindedly. "Maybe I'll order some more oatmeal and fruit for Naoto."

"It's not for me either, it's for them. " Izuku nodded, noticing how his sisters were peeking at the menu. "This melon parfait looks nice and big. Would you two like that?"

"I'm fine with anything." Mimi shrugged.

"Ice cream!" Kiri exclaimed with eager delight.

"The number twenty-two? Looks really fancy." Tokoyami said in quiet contemplation.

"Anything to make them happy." Izuku smiled at his feathered friend. "You know how it is."

"Hmm. True." He turned to the approaching waitress, looking up at her. "Hello, I'd like a—oh."

Jiro Kyoka stared down at the three boys with a deadpan expression, dressed in a cute waitress outfit and holding an electronic notepad in her hand. Her eyes slowly roamed over Tokoyami and Dark Shadow at first, but grew suspicious upon seeing Izuku and Monoma. A quiet gaze observed the sisters and how close they were to Izuku, then the baby cradled in Monoma's arms. She made the slow, deliberate action of reaching into her pocket and brought her smartphone up to her ear.

"Hello, police?"

"J-J-Jiro-san!" Izuku exclaimed, panicking. "H-h-hi! U-um, I—"

"Heh. Relax, I'm just messing with you." she laughed, smirking at him playfully. "Don't worry, Uraraka-san sent us a selfie she took with your sister; I know who she is. Hmm, she's even cuter in person."

"Hello hello." Kiri waved.

"Greetings. Apologies, we didn't know you worked here." Tokoyami said.

"Mmm-hmm. What a coincidence. What really surprises me is blondie over there." Jiro slid her eyes over to Monoma. "I thought you hated our class and yet you're hanging out with my classmates… guess this is the first time we're speaking, eh? I'm Jiro Kyoka, nice to meet you."

"Monoma Neito. Charmed." Monoma said dryly before turning his attention back to his baby sister. "I'll have the brunch special, I didn't have breakfast... You guys got any baby formula or something like that? She needs some milk."

"Brunch special and one warm milk, got it. Want some fruit and water to go with that? Alright." Jiro nodded, not seeming to question why he was holding a toddler. "What about the rest of you?"

"Can I have uuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh—" Dark Shadow began.

"Two coffees. One as black as my soul." Tokoyami decided for him. "The other with extra cream and sugar."

"I desire cheese fries, brother!" Dark Shadow cawed.

"And one order of that. Extra cheese." the crow-boy added.

"Hehehehe~ Yes!"

"Riiiigght." Jiro made a few swipes with her fingers. "What about you, Midoriya-kun?"

"One green tea for me, please." Izuku said politely. "And a melon parfait for these two."

"Hold on. Dude, that one's kinda expensive. You sure?" Monoma glanced over at a picture of the fancy-looking treat.

"Well, I don't really use my money on myself so I figured I'd use it for their enjoyment…" Izuku motioned to his sisters.

"Don't worry, I'll pay for everything. Think of it as a… welcoming gift from me." Tokoyami said.

The two other boys blinked in bewildered surprise until Jiro cleared her throat, raising an eyebrow. They quickly finished with their orders, with the waitress assuring Izuku that the dessert would be worth every penny. He couldn't help but watch her as she went, admiring her frilly skirt. A classmate wearing such a cute outfit...

Izuku blushed and looked away, only to find both Monoma and Tokoyami giving him a flat look. His cheeks burned even further, quickly deciding to change the topic by starting a new conversation.

"S-so! Um, we're all here. T-thanks for coming out to meet us, Tokoyami-kun! And, um, paying for the meal, I guess."

"No problem. I'm sure Dark Shadow is keen to finally meet more of his kin." Tokoyami said. "There were old records of beings like him, but never have we actually encountered another pair like us… until we met you. Fate has brought us together, crossing our paths."

"Fate, huh? You mind explaining what's going on here?" Monoma grunted, adjusting the baby bottle in his grip. "I was told that you'd be able to help me with… all of this."

"As you wish. The first thing you need to know that your Ascension is permanent." Tokoyami said casually. "Your new sibling, or daughter if you'd prefer; will not disappear. She may retreat within you, but she will not fade."

Straight to the point. A stunned silence befell the table until Monoma breathed a sigh of relief, rocking Naoto in his arms.

"That's… good to hear. At first I was afraid, but now I've become attached to her. I can feel it somehow; it's like she's a part of me."

"She is. You copied Midoriya-kun's Quirk, did you not?" Tokoyami leaned back into the plush cushion. "His Quirk and mine are essentially the same; Quirks that have gained self-awareness and the ability to project themselves into reality."

That last part caught Izuku's attention and he spoke up.

"Projection… My great-grandmother had a projection-type Quirk; she could create these psychic puppets. Do these types of Quirks have a higher chance of becoming sentient?"

"I can't say for certain. There's still so many things we don't know since our kind is extremely rare even among the Quirked community." Tokoyami shrugged. "The main factor you have to focus on is the self-awareness—they have a mind of their own. Their own lives… their own souls, if you will. Completely separate entities from the host body. Dark Shadow appeared when I was four, as a baby… so I guess this is completely normal."

Newborn gurgled again. Izuku's mind was spinning, observing her carefully while his brain cycled at over a dozen thoughts per second. Monoma had copied his Quirk. However, the result was Naoto… and as far as they knew she couldn't transform. She was born a child, but Kiri was born with the power to shapeshift herself, to look how she wanted to look. Mimi could shapeshift too due to her manifesting via Izuku's Valkyrie Quirk. In essence, Kiri was the projection/barrier Quirk made sentient. That would mean… ah.

Naoto wasn't a Valkyrie at all. She was Monoma's Copy Quirk made sentient, now with a body of her own.

Judging by the slight widening of Monoma's eyes he had figured it out, too. The boys exchanged a silent glance before returning to their own thoughts. Naoto did not have Kiri's invulnerability/barrier ability… but this could potentially mean that she had the power to copy other Quirks as well. Scratch that, she definitely did. Izuku was willing to bet that it had something to do with her scream ability that could echo in people's minds.

"Perhaps it's best that we start with the basics. Tell me what you two know about Quirks, everything you've learnt so far." Tokoyami said.

"Quirks first appeared back when the Glowing Baby was born." Monoma answered, reciting a textbook answer. "Hours after that people from all around the world exhibited signs of superhuman abilities or physical alterations despite not being anywhere near the area that child was born in. Superpowers, or rather, 'Meta Abilities'. That's where the word 'Metahuman' comes from. Quirks were thought to be the result of a virus that spread across the globe, perhaps through rats. Some people have even said that the virus that caused Quirks was first tested on lab rats, which then spread to regular rats which infested cities all over the globe."

"The nature of Quirks has led to mountains of research and experimentation, but we just know the bare basics of how they work. Although many theorized Quirks came from a virus the majority of the population believed that Quirks were not simply a mutation, but rather a step up the evolutionary ladder. As a result, those who were Quirkless are heavily discriminated against even today." Izuku added on. "It's… horrible to think about. I did a lot of theorizing and reading myself, but I'm still left wondering. I can't seem to think of an evolutionary advantage to all of this, especially when the results and effects are so varied. There are even instances where a Quirk doesn't suit the user's body and they can't handle it. Furthermore, Quirks are like muscles; the more you use them the stronger they become. They also suffer the same drawback; overuse could lead to difficulties and complications—the most common of which is exhaustion and bodily strain. A person's Quirk is defined by what is known as a 'Quirk Factor' in their DNA and body… This includes the primary Quirk power as well as all the biological mechanisms that allow said primary power to function properly. As for where the energy used to power Quirks comes from it's still relatively unknown. The laws of thermodynamics don't seem to apply to superpowers."

Monoma and Tokoyami simply gave him a look, and Izuku blushed. He'd been muttering again.

"S-sorry." Izuku stammered, watching how his sisters were making napkin origami birds with Dark Shadow out of the corner of his eye. They gifted one to Naoto who started playing with it.

"No, it's fine. Go ahead, we're listening." Tokoyami nodded in satisfaction. "Good, let's see what else you know."

"R-right! I've looked all over the internet, but everyone's just as confused as to how it works. Take, um, Todoroki-kun for instance. There's no way the calories he takes in can produce that sort of output for his flames. The numbers just don't add up."

"That's right. But everyone knows that Quirks do not operate on conventional physics. Now the two of you have experienced this first hand though your siblings; they consume emotions while my brother here is powered by darkness. Something intangible. Perhaps they are still beyond our understanding."

"Baaaaa." Naoto slurred, her tiny fingers wriggling at Dark Shadow.

"Intangible, huh…" Izuku muttered. "Feelings. T-there's also the chance of an, um, an awakening of sorts. Some call it 'Quirk evolution' since the Quirk itself undergoes a significant change to become something more. I'm bringing this up because from my knowledge this can be caused by extreme stress and heightened emotions. Is that what happened to us? An awakening?"

"Yes and no. From the records and scrolls I've been reading through it seems to be unclear. Dark Shadow was born fully sentient when I was four. I don't think I had any traumatic experiences that caused this." Tokoyami nodded. "For a Quirk to gain self awareness this way? I suppose it's possible… the world is full of mysteries."

Izuku submerged into his thoughts. Extreme stress and heightened emotions. Kiri was born when he was around four years old. The day he was diagnosed as Quirkless… did that count as a traumatic experience for his childish brain, to the point where it was enough for his Quirk to evolve? Then he thought back to Yui's story of how she had been caught up in a villain attack and that made her Quirk evolve as a result. Shame filled his heart… he'd been 'traumatised' by something so petty and insignificant while she had feared for her life. Wait. Back then Yui had admitted that her Quirk influenced her thoughts a little. It was the same for him as well… since Kiri fed on his emotions he rarely stayed angry or upset for long. Quirks could definitely change a person, but the Quirk itself could also change due to a traumatic experience.

Tokoyami happened to hear the tail end of his muttering, closing his eyes wistfully as he contemplated and thought.

"The broken are the more evolved…"

Just as Izuku was about to ask what he meant Jiro returned with their food.

"Okay, this one's for you, for you, for you…" Jiro handed out the dishes expertly. "And for you. Take a picture, it'll last longer."

"Thank you, Jiro-san." Izuku smiled as she gently placed the melon parfait in front of an excited Kiri and interested Mimi. "Worth every penny, huh?"

"You don't know half of it. Took me ages to learn how to create this thing; the boss claims it's his masterpiece." Jiro huffed. "I'm inclined to agree with him—it has nine layers! Nine! Take a good look, I'll explain it from top to bottom. There's the cut melon with the original price of 7,500 yen, jelly and whipped cream, ice cream, melon granita…"

While she was explaining Kiri was getting hungrier and hungrier, her eyes matching Jiro's narration through every layer. Izuku could tell that she really wanted to eat it. Mimi meanwhile was carefully observing both Dark Shadow and Naoto, still keeping her guard up as usual.

"...non-alcoholic champagne sherbet, crunchy corn biscuit, melon jelly and whipped cream again, and finally melon juice at the bottom. The flavors mix together over time as you eat it so every scoop has a potentially different taste! This is some serious gourmet sh—I mean, stuff." Jiro corrected herself hastily.

"You seem rather enthusiastic about it." Tokoyami commented. "I thought you were more inclined to music and the arts?"

"Creating something like this is an artform by itself, dude. Anyways you boys enjoy yourselves, alright? I've got more customers to attend to." She turned to Monoma as well. "And you!"

"Me?" Monoma blurted out.

"You better take good care of that kid, got it?" Jiro huffed before she went. "Keep her happy."

Kiri looked up at her brother eagerly, as if she was asking for permission to eat. She didn't need to, really… Izuku simply gave her a warm smile and nodded for her to continue. The innocent delight that was etched across her face right after she took her first bite would be a memory he'd treasure for life. Mimi seemed to like it as well, slowly enjoying the creamy dessert until she wiggled her spoon at him. He took a bite and found it to be delicious, just as Jiro described.

Beside him Monoma was feeding Naoto, and opposite him Dark Shadow was chowing down on fries while Tokoyami sipped his black coffee. This was what hanging out with friends and family felt like! Izuku's chest filled with warmth. It was… nice.

"Where were we? Ah, right. Dark Shadow manifesting when I was around four years old… I suppose the same thing happened to you, Midoriya-kun?"

"Y-yeah. That's right."

"My Quirk manifested around that age too, but it wasn't sentient back then." Monoma slowly dug into his brunch. "But it is now? So… I copied the 'sentient' aspect instead of Midoriya-kun's Quirk?"

"I suppose so. Either way, it means you're one of us now."

"Wait." Izuku paused. "One of us. So, um, what exactly are we?"

Tokoyami took a long swig of his coffee before exchanging hard looks with the two other boys. His voice lowered to a whisper, making sure no one was around to hear them.

"What I'm about to say next must not be repeated to anyone else. This is top secret information that has the potential to turn society upside-down. Do you both understand?"

He meant it. Izuku gulped and nodded while Monoma did the same hesitantly.

"Okay. Usually this reveal would be done through a sort of formal ceremony in the past, but I'm not really one for tradition." Tokoyami sighed. "People like us are extremely rare; maybe one in a million. We are what some would call a new type of human with a sentient Quirk. A union of Man and Quirk, subconsciously drawn to others of the same nature. Most of our kin were urban legends, battlefield myths… the Tokoyami family has kept records of such individuals from the beginning of the Dark Age to the Modern Age we are living in today."

Tokoyami steepled his hands, his expression deadly serious.

"We are known as the Ascended; theorized to be the next stage of human evolution."

[Chapter 16 End]

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Thank you for reading!

As always, I appreciate your feedback from the previous chapter. You have my gratitude, all of you. It helps me realize what needs improvement and what's good. My bad about the wait, had to settle some IRL stuff. Anyways, on to the content of this chapter! This time around it's a bit more boring/slice of life. More questions and mysteries ahoy!

The only OCs introduced this chapter are Haruno and Naoto, and both will not be playing any important roles (subject to change). In the OG draft Naoto was originally supposed to be introduced as a massive threat that Mimi would have to face since Kiri is currently out of comission. Her power would allow her to use her scream like a bat's echolocation; copying the Quirk of anyone in her range when it bounces back to her. AFO-lite. Mimi would deal with her by realizing that violence is not the answer; something she learned from Izuku. She would realize Naoto is screaming in an effort to get Izuku's attention; something an infant would do. This concept was scrapped because it would have made her way too powerful and plot-relevant, so now she's been sadly reduced to the role of [baby]. I hope Monoma and Izuku can become bros/good friends. Don't worry, there's no Yaoi here.

Canon has gone out the window. Everybody's favorite Eri-chan is alive and healthy! She's currently being taken care of by Koichi/Crawler, who was part of the Vigilante Squad that went in to save her from the Yakuza. The "Save Eri-chan" mission has already been completed by a bunch of nobodies! Kiri and Snipe/"Mr. Gold" were part of this squad along with a few others you'll recognize. Two are from other anime/comics. I hope to have the Kiri flashback/rescue mission in the next chapter, along with Izuku's meeting with Mei at her house. Also, Eri!

Tokoyami will elaborate more about the Ascended and the process of Ascension in the next chapter. The Ascended were inspired by and are a mix of the Newtypes from the Gundam series and Stand Users from Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. The shared aesthetic they have is the "one eye". So yes, I guess this does make Mei something like a Cyber-Newtype.

Also, we have a new cover! You can check it out on my deviantart (link on my profile). Izuku is depicted as the King of Diamonds which represents Odin; King of Asgard, One-Eyed-King, Allfather. Kiri/Valkyrie is depicted as his shadow and is holding a spear; Gungnir. Deviantart link also includes Tokoyami, Monoma and Shinso as the other three kings.[/tealeafcustom/art/My-Hero-Academia-Four-of-a-kind-856403965]

That's all for now, see you on the next chapter! I hope to publish it soon!