Izuku gets back to being a vigilante with a side job of being one of those people who play instruments on the streets.
Doing both of his jobs he meets nice humans.
TW: Brief mentions of sexual assault, violence
Izuku leaped across the rooftops keeping on high alert for anything. It had been a pretty busy night so far. It was almost dawn and he had already taken care of 27 muggings and 9 would-be murders without more than a bruise to show for it. Not bad for his first day back in the swing.
As Izuku landed on a lower level building a distant voice caught his attention, one that set off all his alarms.
"Aww, come on sweetheart, don't be like that" a man's voice purred causing Izuku's blood to run cold.
"No get off of me" someone growled, female Izuku presumed
"Come on sweety, I won't hurt you" the man said
"S-stop" the girl said her breathing picking up
'Oh hell no' Izuku thought, his face contorting into a vicious scowl. He hated people like that, like him .
Silently Izuku dropped into the shadows and observed the scene. A girl was being pinned against the wall by a man who had her arm in a death grip.
Izuku snarled before launching into action, he could come up with a plan as he went but now his main priority was getting that man away from the girl. He kicked the back of the man's knee causing him to fall backwards and release his hold on the girl allowing Izuku to place as much space between them as possible.
Although he'd gotten quite good at running away and dodging just doing that wouldn't cut it. He needed to make sure that this- this thing would never be able to hurt anyone ever again.
Izuku sent a couple of well aimed punches towards the man and dodged when he struck back vaguely registered something scraping along his arm. Izuku landed a punch on the man's stomach causing him to double over in pain and drop an object which clattered to the floor.
A glint caught Izuku eye and he realized that had heʻd been about 2 inches away from having to deal with a nasty wound. For the past 8 years heʻd been slacking off on the physical training, heʻd probably have to double his training regimes from his past lives if he wanted a chance at heroics.
The man at his feet stirred with a pained groan and Izuku moved to grab the knife but froze at the realization that the girl from earlier hadnʻt moved. The poor girl had faced enough trauma tonight, she didnʻt need to see someone getting murdered in front of her. What she didnʻt know couldnʻt hurt her.
As soon as the man got up from his position on the floor Izuku sweeped his legs out from underneath him sending him crashing into the ground and after assuring that he wouldnʻt move from his position kicked the man's head effectively snapping his neck.
After calmly brushing himself off and assessing the damage on his arm, Izuku approached the girl cautiously, attempting to make himself look as non-threatening as possible.
She looked like she was going into shock, makes sense, it happened to Izuku the first couple of times as well and was something he knew all too well about.
"Did he hurt you?" Izuku asked gently snapping the girl out of her thoughts
"N-no" she said hesitantly looking at Izuku with mild distrust. It took him a couple of seconds to realize that he still had his makeshift mask on.
"My shift's basically over" Izuku said nonchalantly "I can walk you home if you want"
"A-are you sure?" the girl asked timidly "I wouldn't want to bother you"
"You're not a bother at all" Izuku reassured her "I just gotta take this supid mask off"
The girl looked at Izuku in shock once his mask was off "Woah" she said
"What?" Izuku asked
"You're a lot younger than I thought you were, what are you? Like 5?" She asked
Izuku crossed his arms and puffed his cheeks out "I'm 8 and ½ actually" he said in mock anger successfully lightening the atmosphere
The girls eyes sparkled mischievously "Same difference"
Izuku gasped dramatically, "How dare you!"
"I mean it's only like 3-"
"And a half!" Izuku injected
"-Years of difference" the girl finished looking amused
"That's a big difference!" Izuku protested
"If you say so" the girl said "My names Gwan Blaire by the way, just call me Blaire" she added
"I'm Izuku" Izuku said
They walked past some run down buildings in a companionable silence, Izuku took the time to commit each of the buildings to memory and remember the route Blaire was taking him.
"Whats your quirk by the way?" Blaire asked "You took that dude down pretty quickly back there"
Izuku cringed, it's not like he wasn't prepared for people to walk away from him but it still hurt "I'm… quirkless" Izuku said awkwardly
Blaires jaw dropped open "Wait really?" she asked more in fascination than disgust
"Uh yeah" Izuku said waiting for her reaction
"You're badass" Blaire said "I mean, like most quirkless people are kinda helpless you know?"
"I don't really think so" Izuku said thoughtfully "I mean society promotes it as though the quirkless can't do anything and are just a waste of space but it's not like people need quirks to get by"
Izuku glanced over at Blaire who was watching him intently so he continued with his speech
"Take me for example, I don't have a quirk but I'm useless, in fact I'm probably better at hand to hand combat than most people. Quirks are more like tools, while it's nice to have them and they can be pretty helpful in certain situations they're still a tool. They still have weaknesses and things that can be improved on and most people don't know how to use them correctly
No quirk is useless, it just depends on how you use it. Minor telekinesis for example, that can be deadly depending on how it's applied. If the user put their mind to it they could rip someone's heart out of their chest, suddenly this thing that seemed ordinary is a deadly force you don't want to mess with" Izuku said
Blaire looked at him realization dawning in her face "I never really thought about it like that"
Izuku shrugged "Most people don't but hey, at least you kept an open mind to this even though it's a bit unorthodox"
"You say it like your a bad speaker, you could probably convince me that the sky is orange" Blaire said
A smirk made its way onto Izuku's face, "You know…"
The bickering pair approached a cared for shop amongst the worn down buildings. A man and woman stood in front of the shop pacing and looking slightly frantic. As they got closer Izuku could make out some words but they were in a language he wasn't familiar with.
Blaire got increasingly nervous as they approached the shop and Izuku turned his full attention to the couple in front of him. Blaire was a splitting image of the man although you could see her resemblance with the woman, her parents perhaps?
"Ummm… hi?" Blaire said nervously. The man and woman turned sharply towards Blaire and their tense expressions melted into one of relief. The woman wrapped Blaire into a tight hug while the man stood off to the side gently reprimanding Blaire in the foreign language.
Izuku watched the scene a sad smile on his lips. He was about to slip away from the family when the man caught sight of him. Eyes narrowed, he moved to stand protectively in front of the girls.
"Who are you?" he asked in an accented voice "I haven't seen you here before, what were you doing with my daughter?"
"Pa" Blaire said shortly though a fond smile graced her lips "Back off, he was… he helped me"
The mans eyes narrowed and Izuku felt as though he were being observed under a microscope. Apparently satisfied with what he found the mans guard lowered slightly as he nodded at Izuku moving off to the side once more.
"Dear why don't you come inside?" the woman said kindly shattering the awkward atmosphere "I can fix you something up"
"Oh no, I wouldn't want to intrude" Izuku said trying to edge away from the family
"I will be having none of that, someone your age shouldn't be wandering around this place unsupervised" the woman said sternly, she laid a gentle hand on Izuku's back as she ushered him inside "Come along now, I can fix you up some breakfast"
"You may as well submit yourself to her fate" Blaire stage whispered "She won't back off until you do"
"Thank you Mrs…" Izuku trailed off unsure of what to say
"Where have my manners gone!" the woman exclaimed "You can call me Auntie Nari, none of that Mrs. business,it makes me feel old. This is my husband, darling you can introduce yourself?" Nari threatened asked nudging him violently in the ribs
"Gwan Chunyuk" Chunyuk said gruffly crossing his arms as he followed the group into the store
"Why don't you tell me about yourself while I get breakfast ready" Nari said navigating Izuku onto a slightly worn down seat
"Er… I'm Midoriya Izuku, b-but you can just call me Izuku!" Izuku stammered as he plopped down into the seat. He wanted to punch himself in the face, nothing like making a complete fool out of himself in front of a potential friend's parent
Nari chuckled warmly and turned her attention towards the skillet "Well it's nice to meet you Izuku" she said "If you don't mind me asking" Nari said cautiously "What are you doing wandering around here, it's not the safest place, I know that, but someone your age… you shouldn't be coming around here by yourself"
Annoyance flared up in Izuku, biting back his initial response Izuku reasoned that she just saw him as an 8 year old, a child. She didn't know that he could gravely injure most people in about a minute and end someone's existence in even less time.
Izuku settled for reassurance instead "You don't need to worry about me Mrs.-" Nari leveled a look at him "I-I mean Auntie Nari. I've had a lot of combat experience for someone my age!"
Nari gave a half hearted hum as she finished up everyone's breakfast "I just want you to know that after what you've done for my daughter you'll always be welcomed here"
Izuku looked up at Nari as she handed him a bowl of ramen "What I did for Blaire..?"
"Sweetheart, I know my daughter. I know something happened that she's not telling us" Nari explained patiently, Izuku kept a blank face.
It was Blaire's story to tell, if she didn't want her parents to know that was up to her. Izuku wasn't about to throw away a potential friendship for this.
Nari looked at him sadly before seemingly shaking herself out of it "I mean it Izuku" she said seriously "Youʻll always be welcomed here"
Izuku nodded and smiled, he wondered how long that invitation would last.
-•-
Izuku settled down into an alley as the sun lowered beneath the horizon. He still had about 2 hours before the crime started picking up and he wanted to reserve his energy for tonight's case.
Izuku heard Nari whispering to Chunyuk about the uprise in trafficking and how they needed to make sure that Blaire would stay safe. Heʻd heard enough to know that he needed to step in and get involved since no police forces or heroes seemed to be aware of these cases.
For the time being Izuku sat in the alley fashioning a guitar, it was quite sad looking but was usable nonetheless.
He leaned back against the stone wall and closed his eyes and he strummed the chords, all his worries melting away as the music washed over him. He opened his mouth and began singing softly.
"I hear the wind traveling down the Ko'olau
It touches my skin and makes me think of
How much I miss you, my Hawai'i"
A lone figure traveling through the streets stopped as the melody drifted by him.
"I breath the fragrance of the yellow ginger lei
I look inside myself to find the words to say
How much I miss you, my Hawai'i"
The man turned around and walked quietly into the alleyway leaning against the wall as Izuku played on.
"Everytime I stop to watch the moon
Dance across the early evening sky
Everytime I hear a country tune
I can see the shores of Waianae"
Nostalgia crashed over Izuku as the memories of his past life filtered through his mind
"Everytime I listen to my heart
Telling me it longs to go back home
It makes me want too
Because I miss you, my love"
As the last note faded into silence Izuku was jolted from the quiet when a husky voice rang out "That was pretty good kid"
Izuku dropped the guitar which fell to the ground in an ungraceful clunk . He quickly grabbed his knife and fell into a defensive position, his eyes narrowing as he stared at the man in front of him.
"Who are you and why are you here?" Izuku snapped
The man held up his hands in mock surrender "Geez, you know usually when people get complimented they say something along the lines of "thank you"
Izuku narrowed his eyes further
The man dropped his hands "Your not like most kids" he said
"Well most kids donʻt live on the streets" Izuku snarked
The man smirked "Fair, whatʻs a kid your age doing on the streets anyway?" he asked
"I don't see how that's any of your business" Izuku said coldly
"Let me guess" the man said raising an eyebrow "You had abusive parents and couldn't take it anymore so you ran away"
Izuku smirked "I think your getting our stories mixed up"
The man's nostrils flared as he glared at Izuku "Watch your mouth kid" he spat or
"Or what?" Izuku challenged raising an eyebrow
"I've killed before and I'm not afraid to do it again" the man said menacingly his teal eyes seemingly glowing in the dark
Unintentionally Izuku let a snort slip out which led to full-blown laughter. Izuku peered back up at the man once managed to gather himself up and waved his hands in front of his face.
"Wait, wait, wait" Izuku choked out struggling not to burst into laughter once "I'm so scared Mr." Izuku said mockingly "You've killed someone? That's so shocking, I haven't done that before, wouldn't ever dream of it" he said sarcastically
The man stared at Izuku with a blank face although there was some sadness in his eyes. Izuku ignored that and rolled his eyes settling back against the wall.
"Newsflash, I live in the real world where murder is the dirrence between life and death. Kill me if you want, I really don't care but just remember: threats only work on people who have something to lose. I'm not one of those people"
The man stared at Izuku for a while before sitting down as well
"What other songs can you play?" he asked "That last one wasn't bad"
Izuku hummed thoughtfully as he re-tuned the guitar "Mostly older songs. The ones today are all about heroes, villains, and quirks. It's basically the same thing"
The man nodded along and leaned against a wall "You choose, you seem to be the expert"
Izuku grinned at him and said "I'm Izuku"
The man paused for a moment before saying "I'm Dabi"
A/N: Hi guys! Sorry if the interactions in this chapter feel a bit forced but I haven't had human contact in a little over a year so...
Anyways I hope you liked this. Have a wonderful day or night and see you guys on Tuesday!
(P.S. The song is "I Miss You My Hawai'i" by Nā Leo Pilimehana)