Keep in mind that this is in the POV of an 8 year old. All "misspelled" words in here is just how Keigo would say it. Yes he's an intelligent 8 year old but he's still 8 and is bound to pronounce words wrong and get a bit scatter brained. My 9 year old god daughter parroted the words I intentionally misspelled. How she said it is how I wrote it lol so I'll leave a little key at the end for all the words intentionally misspelled ^.^
Keigo was so confused.
So, so confused.
There was so much going on. All going so fast.
First of all, there's this really nice man that he's been almost glued too all day.
A nice adult man that he's been almost glued to all day. Those words haven't been in the same sentence in his entire life.
Not only has the man not hit him or yelled at him but he adopted him? He adopted him and told him that he'd never have to see those mean people at the commission again which was all he'd ever dreamed about.
Well that and his best friend Touya.
He misses his snowy haired friend. It's been so long since he'd seen him, and the last time he saw him he was shoving him out of the door they found telling him, "I'll be okay! Run!" and that was three years ago.
He thinks.
With the way everyone was looking at him at the commission he's not sure how long ago that memory actually was. If anything the the nice man had been saying quietly when they left, which was so cool! he seems so smart and nice and he really hopes this isn't just a really mean way the commission is trying to hurt him again like last time, then it seems he was hit with someone's quirk and something weird happened to him.
Maybe he was thrown into the future? Things do look a bit more advanced than they did last night when he went to sleep. The doctor's office he was in was way more hi tech than when he broke his arm two days ago. Plus the doc himself had more grey hair and lines in his face. The cars, televisions, phones - everything he's seem today looked so wildly different than they did yesterday and it was all throwing him for a loop.
Or maybe into the past? Which didn't actually make much sense since, like he said, everything he's seen looks more advanced. If he were thrown into the past but in a different timeline then maybe that would make more sense?
He's been reading old pre-quirk comic books and manga lately since he'd been dubbed to be on "good behavior" and he remembers "Dr. Strange" being able to travel the multiverse, which was so cool. Dr. Strange was able to go through millions of timelines all slightly different and wildly different from each other. Maybe he was hit with someone's quirk that did something like Dr. Strange? Or maybe Cable who was able to do something similar but mostly did it for revenge and fixing certain aspects of his own timeline? Was he sent back in time to fix something and the first thing he did was run to the really nice man and change something in his timeline?
Was he going to be sent back to the future now that he's changed something in the timeline?
Was he going to have to leave the really nice man? He really didn't want to leave the really nice man. There were so few people in his life that were nice to him that he didn't care if he was being set up. He just wanted to reveal in the warm arms and kind eyes and soft voice the man had.
They were passing by a little place were kids were running around and screaming. At first he thought maybe something was wrong and he'd looked over to see if he could help, both his training and instincts kicking in. A few kids had ran by a little closer than the others and that's when he saw that they were smiling.
'They were screaming but. . . smiling? Like. . .No, because they're happy? You can do that?' He thought to himself confused. He'd only ever screamed in pain or terror and that was only before he figured out that the mean people stopped faster when he was quiet.
He lived a quiet life so the prospect of being allowed to be loud sounded fun. He hopes he used that word right. It was in one of his comic books and all he had was context clues to figure out what it meant. His tutor always told him he only needed to "learn the basics, Hawks. It'll be all you need really," but he loved learning.
When he had Touya with him, they would try to teach each other everything they could remember from their day or private lessons. It was fun.
"Would you like to play for a few minutes?" The man, Mr. Midoriya he remembers being told, asks him and he stills.
Did he hear him correctly?
Mr. Midoriya had caught his eye and keep eye contact like he was waiting for an answer. The only thing he could focus on though was the thought that maybe this was a test.
Like if he says yes, or anything at all, he'll stop being nice and lock him up in the dark room like the mean people at the commission did when he was bad.
Or if he doesn't say anything at all Mr. Midoriya will get mad and the same thing would happen.
All in all he couldn't think of a good way out of this so he took a slight alternate route and asked, "Can I?" He tried hard to not show it but he knows he sounded excited. He just hopes that it won't come back to hurt him.
Mr. Midoriya's expression softened a bit and he spoke less nonfalaunt with words. It made him relax a bit.
He wasn't mad or disappointed that he didn't answer him? That he asked a question instead?
"Of course, eyass." He couldn't help but preen at the reference and nickname once again. He thought maybe the first time was a mistake in his hearing but Mr. Midoriya really did know what young hawks were called. It made him feel seen and understood. He knows, he knows, 'he's not just his quirk and it doesn't determine your worth', Touya taught him as much, but his quirk changed most of his biology.
He really was part bird. From his wings and eye sight, to what he ate sometimes and how he liked shiny things and wanted to nest and how he malted and likes to be really high up and-
So the name really made him feel warm and fuzzy on the inside.
"I'll be standing at that tree," He pointed out a tree near where all the kids were playing. He probably wanted to watch him and make sure he didn't try to run away. He hadn't thought about doing that at all since he first ran to the man but it was expectited since they don't know each other very well and the people at the commission probably told him about all the times he tried to run away in the past. "We can't stay very long right now but we can always come back." Mr. Midoriya told him and he couldn't help but feel a little upset at that, but just being allowed to stay here for the small amount of time to begin with amazing.
He wouldn't mess any of this up or be bad by asking for more than what was be given to him. This may be a one time thing so he wanted to enjoy it while it lasted, for however long that was.
The second he was set down onto the bright green grass he took off, not wanting to give the man a second to second guess letting him run around like all the other kids.
He ran towards what he saw a few other kids were using when they were first passing by.
Imitating what he saw the other kids doing, he sat down on the flexible plastic seat and took hold of the chains that let it dangle. He let himself get a feel for his balance and started to sway himself back and forth lightly.
The wind that passed through his hair and across his cheek gently almost made his gasp. He wonders what it would feel like if he were to push and sway himself higher?
Would it feel like when he was flying in training?
He wanted to know.
Pushing himself backwards a bit more forcefully and kicking his legs out in front of him to propel himself forward, he was gaining height.
He was gaining height and the wind on his face, ruffing his hair and gliding under his wings that puffed out slightly was getting more rough and chilly.
It made him want to cry.
This was so much better than his training. It felt so much better without the looning threat of being grounded with an electric shock. There was so much fresh air to breathe in instead of stuffy and dusty basement air. No leather strap on the base of his wings to keep him from opening his wings as wide as he wanted.
For a small second while he was at the highest point of when he went forward, he felt weightless. Like he really was flying, before he was coming back down and swinging backwards just to be launched back into the air a few seconds later.
There was nothing that would keep him from taking flight right then, when he got to the top. He could fly away and there wouldn't be anyone that would be able to stop him.
Fly away and go find his best friend and go find the pretty hideaway Touya had told him about the night before they'd try to run away and finally be happy like they always talked about.
But it didn't feel right.
It didn't feel right to fly away right now.
It felt wrong to think about flying away right now.
Even with all this open, clear air and freedom he has, it feel like he would be making a huge mistake. Like his tummy was telling him 'No. Don't do it.'. He thinks he remembers Touya saying it was a "gut feeling" and that if he has any to follow it. Touya said he'd gotten them almost all the time when he was with his family and it was why he ended up at the commission. Touya said he always followed his "gut feeling" and it always helped him keeping himself and his mom safe.
He wanted to go find Touya but his "gut feeling" was telling him 'no'.
That also made him want too cry.
He felt like he was abandoning his best friend. The one person that was always nice to him and called him by his real name instead of the one that the commission gave him. He didn't want to be like everyone else and abandon Touya, but then he also didn't want to disappoint Touya by not listening to his tummy like Touya taught him. His "gut feeling" Touya would correct him. "Yeah it's your tummy, but the feeling is in your gut. My mom said so and she was always right."
He slowed himself down till he was just sitting on the chair with the feet dangling just above the ground.
The last thing he wanted to do was cry, or show that he was actually weak like everyone had always told him, out in the open like he was. So he focused on his breathing and calmed himself down like Touya showed him.
If Mr. Midoriya found out he was weak then he might bring him back to the commission and he did not want that to happen.
"Can I use the swing?" Some one to his right asked him with an excited voice and it took him off guard. He didn't even hear her come up to him.
He chanced a look over to Mr. Midoriya and found that he was already looking over at him, which scared him for a moment before he saw the smile on his face. Either the man didn't see that he wasn't paying attention, saw he wasn't paying attention and is thinking of a punishment for later, or he didn't care. He wasn't really confident in that last one but the first two seemed like it could be true.
He just hopes that if he is in trouble that it won't be too bad.
Turning back to the girl that was still standing next to him he nodded. They swapped places and he watched as the girl, who was shorter than him and maybe a year or two younger than him, struggled for a second in trying to get on to the seat. Just as he was about to ask her if she needed help, she made it on and upright on the seat with a triamphant smile.
Which lead the girl to her next struggle. Actually moving the seat.
"Do you want me to push you?" He quietly asks the girl, not sure if his help is actually wanted. The bright smile and fast nodding of the girl made him relax though.
She wanted his help.
He gives her a small smile and moves behind her. "Is it okay to touch your back?" He knows she said she wanted his help but he didn't ask if he could touch her. He knows that he wants people to ask before they touch him or wait till he goes to touch them first and Touya never wanted to be touched. Maybe she wanted to be asked first also?
"Yeah! It's okay! Thank you for pushing me!" The girl called loudly over her shoulder to him and he nods to himself. He got her permission. He could do this. Not too hard, but hard enough to make her move. He can do this.
Keeping his pushing as gentle as he can he, he moves the girl forward by the top of her back. His hands near her shoulder blades gave him the best position in not hurting or pushing the girl off the seat. He slowly pushed harder with the commands of "Higher! Higher!" coming from the giggling girl he was pushing.
His arms got sore after a while so he stopped pushing and let the girl slow down on her own. He thought after she had slowed down to a stop that she would run off to go play with a few of the other kids she was with before she come up to him but he was surprised when she came to his side once again.
"Do you want to come play with me and my friends?" Sparkling hope shined in her eyes and he got excited, thinking that he could yell in happiness like everyone else was around them.
"Can I?" He doesn't want her friends to be mad that he joined in without their permission.
"Yeah! Come on!" The girl took him by the hand and drug him along across the grounds to two boys that were trying to climb across a set of ladder bars.
'Are they doing this for fun?' It's confusing because he'd only done the same thing for training. He watched as the first boy that was climbing across fell to the ground on his butt. His eyes snapped up to the adults that circled the area they were in to see if one would come storming over and hit the boy for being "weak".
The boy was laughing though.
The adults weren't paying super close attention to exactly what they were doing. Only giving a glance to the boy for a few minutes, like they were making sure nothing was broken or bleeding, before looking back down at a book or phone or turning to the adult right next to them to talk.
There was no yelling or name calling or hitting.
The second boy that was on the bars landing on the ground when he made it to the end. He helped up the other boy that was now laying on the ground watching the clouds. "C'mon Aki! Lets go to the slides! We can watch clouds later!"
"Fine Akeno!" The two came over to where he and the girl were standing and pulled the girl into a hug. Now that he was looking at the boys and not the adults around them, he could tell that they were older than the girl he met. They looked about his age or maybe even older. He was never really around other kids and after Touya, the commission stopped letting him bunk or interact with the other kids they brought in. "Did you have fun on the swings, Sachiko!?" The boy, Aki if he's correct, looks like he worried the girl, Sachiko as he now knew, didn't have fun.
"So much fun! I went so high!" Her eyes were big and the two boys laughed at how excited she was. It didn't seem like they were being mean to her, just found the amount of excited energy around her over the question funny. "I even made a friend!"
He knew his eyes were huge but he was not expecting that.
"Friend?" He whispered quietly. He heard that right, right?
His question was echoed by the two boys that now had their attention on him.
"He's really nice and pushed me on the swing!" Sachiko broke away from the hug she was in and ran over to him to take his hand and drag him over to the two boys. "He has really pretty wings and cool hair and his name is. . . his name is uhhh. . . I forgot to ask." She ranted before trailing off embarrassed. She shakes off the blush that was on her cheeks and turns to him with her hand out. "I'm Lin Sachiko! What's your name?"
This should be an easy question.
Everyone knows their name.
Well almost everyone.
Point is that it should be an easy question.
He knows his name is Keigo but he's not sure if his last name changed. Is he still Takami or is his name like Mr. Midoriya's? He doesn't remember being told his last name changed but he didn't really want to be a Takami. After his mom and dad sold him, he didn't really want the name anymore. He wasn't going to tell them his name was Hawks either because he hated that name. He knew his wing and most of his biology was closest to a Hawk but the commission said that was going to be his hero name. The only name he was to go by while at the commission.
He was at the commission 24/7.
He didn't want to be called Hawks or Takami. He wouldn't mind being called Midoriya because he seems like a really, really nice man but wasn't sure if he was allowed to call himself Midoriya.
"Keigo." He settles on. The trio in front of him wait for a moment like he was supposed to add more but when they get nothing they shrug.
"Okay, Keigo! Wanna go slide?"
The whole time he was with the three was a partial blur or movement and trying to keep his bearings on all exits and adults that surrounded them. He didn't want to be caught off guard by an unexpected punishment.
Was this what fun was?
Running around with people his age? Laughing? Helping up the people around you so that you can run away from the person that's "it"? Going down slides and running up metal stairs to go down them again and again?
He was just about to be tagged "it" when someone from the pirate scope came running right at him with wide eyes.
"Are you Hawks!?"
The question stopped him dead in his tracks.
Another kid ran up after the first kid yelled his question out.
"Hey his wings look just like Hawks'!"
How do these kids know his hero name? He hasn't debuted yet and wouldn't be forced to debut for at least ten more years.
"He's got hair just like Hawks!" Another kid shouts and then there was a sea of faces he didn't know and voices asking him questions he didn't want to answer.
He was going to cry.
This was it.
They were all going to know how weak he was.
His new friends Aki, Akeno and Sachiko would hate him.
Mr. Midoriya would bring him ba- pick him up and ask, "Hey buddy, what's wrong,"?
What?
Mr. Midoriya carried him over to where he said he would be standing when they first got there and put him down.
Was he mad at him? Angry that he was getting upset over simple questions? Would he be mad to know that he didn't want to be Hawks like the mea- no. Call them what they are. . . his handlers wanted him to be?
"Keigo can you hear me?" He doesn't know when he started to let his tears fall but he nods to let the nice man kneeling in front of him that he could indeed hear him.
He wanted to know, "Do I have too. . ." He stops when he realizes he's talking out loud. He looks up and sees that Mr. Midoriya was waiting patiently for him to ask what he wanted. It was so weird but not seeing an angry face looking back at him while he shed tears was enough to give him confidence. "Do I have to be. . .Hawks. . .still?" Oh saying that name out loud himself and call himself that name was hard and hurt. "Like my. . .handlers want?" His voice cracks when he calls the mean people what he was told to call them but he didn't have the energy to care at the moment.
He just wanted to know if that was why Mr. Midoriya adopted him. If he was going to be just like his Commission handlers and make him be "Pro Hero Hawks" when he grows up. He probably shouldn't have asked in the first place but he had to know. He had to prepare himself for what his future was going to be.
But then warm hands cup his cheeks. Thumbs gently swipe at his tears. Kind eyes capture his own.
"There's is nothing you have to do that you don't want to do, Keigo. Not a single thing. Especially nothing that those people wanted. If you don't want to be a hero, don't want to be Hawks, or any other variation of what they were training you for, then you don't have to. You can be anything you want to be. Do anything you want to do. All I ask is that you stay healthy and do what makes you happy. I know we don't know each other very well right now, but you're my family."
The words hit him like a ton of bricks.
There's so much going through his head.
He doesn't have to be a pro hero. Doesn't have to be Hawks.
Mr. Midoriya wants him to be happy? He's not really sure what it means to be happy but he's ready and eager to try.
Being healthy was always a top prioririty with the commission so doing that for Mr. Midoriya will be pretty easy. He wonders if that means he'll have to keep up with his training and strict diet. He'll have to ask about that later.
Being apart of family? What does that mean? The only "family" he ever really knew was that one that sold him when he was 4. He doesn't consider the commission his family no matter how many times they tried to tell him that, "they were his new family". Touya felt like what he thought a big brother would be like sometimes.
But "family" was a wild concerpt to him.
He hopes that Mr. Midoriya will be able to teach him what being apart of a family really means.
"You're my son Keigo. I'll do everything in my power, and then some, to make sure you are happy, healthy and safe." Mr. Midoriya finishes and he can't help but draw in a quick breath.
Does he really mean that? "Do you promise?" He needs to know. There's so many things he needs to know but this is the most important question to him right now.
The adult in front of him brings his pointer finger up to his chest and makes an "x" over it before offering up his pinky without hesitation. "Cross my heart and pinky promise. You can't break one let alone two. That's against the law." He says it in such a serious voice, he has no choice but to believe him.
The last promise he made was with Touya and that was that they would get out of the commission together. He broke his promise. So he hesitates before lifting his pinky up to lock with Mr. Midoriya's.
He hopes Mr. Midoriya won't break his promise, but having broke his own promise to Touya he knows it's a possibility.
"Okay, now that we've made our promise with each other, I'd love for you to meet one of my favorite heroes. My dad, Eraserhead. Your new grandfather." He tilts his head to the side in concentration. He's heard that name before. Several of his trainers and handlers would grumble about a "frustrating Eraserhead". He'd heard about the man's quirk before and thought it was so cool! He wondered if he used his quirk on him if it would make his wings fall off, which was a scary thought, or if it would just ground him like the leather straps did or if it took away his "Hawk Sight" and left him with regular 20/20 vision or-
His thoughts cut off when he notices an older man, older than Mr. Midoriya at least, crouch down in front of him. He doesn't look like the nicest person but he doesn't look mean either. "Hello there. I'm Shouta Aizawa. Izuku's dad."
He tenses for a moment thinking that Mr. Aizawa would try to go for a handshake or maybe a hug but he's relieved to see he doesn't even attempt it. He remembers that Mr. Midoriya had waited till he was comfortable with the thought of being touched before he offered to carry him out of the commission's building.
His shoulders drop in relief. His boundaries are going to be respected with these two at least.
It takes him a moment but he finally responds to the man. "Hello. I'm Keigo." He's still not sure on his last name, Takami still sounds wrong and he doesn't want to get in trouble for calling himself "Midoriya" if he isn't really but 'Keigo' is a safe answer for now.
"It's very nice to meet you, Keigo. I know a lot has been going on for you today. Would you like to come meet Izuku's other parents? Your other grandparents? I'm pretty sure your grandma was making some cookies before I left the house to come get you guys." The promise of cookies sounds beautiful to him. He'd only had maybe a handful in his life when he was on his best behavior at the commission, but with how Mr. Midoriya talked about his mom and dads he feels in his heart these will be different cookies.
Mr. Aizawa stands up and offers him a hand but he still feels a bit shaky from all the running around and then being interbulated by all the other kids, he doesn't think he would be able to walk however far their house is. So he does what he sees as the only answer.
He raises his arms above his head and towards Mr. Aizawa. Hoping the man understands what he can't quite bring himself to ask out loud. Plus he thinks the man looks real cuddly and probably gives really great, warm hugs like Touya used to give him.
Thankfully Mr. Aizawa seems to understand and picks him up and puts him on his hip.
Just like he thought, the man is warm and hugs him just right into his side. He puts his head down on Mr. Aizawa's shoulder, Mr. Midoriya leans down to pick up his bag and they make their way out of the grass and back to the sidewalk.
"Alright. Let go see the rest of the family, shall we?"
He's not sure who says it, but he feels a spark of excitement run through him. He hopes everyone in their family is like this. He feels so warm and cared for.
'Let's absolutely go see the rest of the family.'
Baby Keigo Word Key -
nonfalaunt - nonchalant
expectited - expected
looning - looming
triamphant - triumphant
prioririty - priority
concerpt - concept
interbulated - interrogated
There's a couple of "big" words in there that I left spelled correctly because I imagine Keigo hearing it too often for him to not have it ingrained in his head. Like "disappointment" and "hesitation"
By the way, it's hella weird to describe how you use a swing from the point of view of an 8 year old that's never been allowed to use a swing before.