Izuku was a bundle of nerves. Shouto, the miracle he is, somehow managed to convince Endeavor to let Izuku go to school at UA! It had been one of the happiest days of Izuku's reserved life.

But of course, going to UA came with a multitude of strict rules. Rules that came with the threat of harsh punishment if broken. Endeavor had made it perfectly clear that while at UA, Izuku is to be Shouto's cousin. He is not to talk about anything Endeavor was doing to anyone. That was a given though. Izuku was to help Shouto whenever possible, but especially during the sports festival. Izuku was only allowed to be in General Education, not anything else. That meant no Hero Course. Izuku was disappointed but not surprised. He knew his luck wasn't that good.

But the real kicker; Izuku was to say he was quirkless. Endeavor wanted no one to know about his amplifying quirk.

And hadn't that just been just a cold bucket of ice? Quirkless again. It had been a shock to himself that Izuku almost preferred it that way. He had suffered so much because of his quirk, he was almost excited to not have to tell anyone. Almost being the key word . In an ideal world, Izuku would have made up some subtle mental quirk, but he supposed anything was better than the nothing he had been living.

Izuku was outside! Everywhere he looked there were buildings and signs and people!

He'd nearly cried when Endeavor had dragged him to the car waiting patiently outside of the house and thrown him into the back seat. Izuku managed to hold back in the presence of the man who had tortured Izuku for eight years, but from the knowing look Shouto gave him when he opened the door adjacent to the one Izuku had been tossed through, he only just barely succeeded. Shouto had silently reached over and grasped Izuku's hand, as much a comfort for him as it was for Izuku.

Endeavor had driven them to his hero agency where a man with greasy slicked back hair and a dark colored jacket had been waiting in a private area. Endeavor made quick use of Iuku's fingerprints, photo and drop of blood. Suddenly, he was registered as Todoroki Izuku; cousin to Todoroki Shouto on his father's side. A new ID was printed and placed in the large pocket of Endeavor before he was turning around and eying up both boys with a fierce integrity.

"We'll need to make you look more… presentable," was what the man said. Izuku cast his eyes to Shouto who seemed just as confused as Izuku was. "Shouto," Endeavor barked, handing Shouto a folded piece of paper, "do exactly this with the boy and be back here in precisely three hours. Do not disappoint me."

"Yes, father."

And now Izuku was outside in the city, Shouto walking next to him. Izuku couldn't believe his luck. Endeavor must have thought Shouto hated Izuku as much as he did if he was trusting him to escort Izuku to different places. People rushed past the teens, and Izuku could only stare. There were so many.

"I can't believe he did that!" Izuku practically screamed.

Shouto frowned softly. "Neither can I. I understand him not wanting to escort us himself, but why would he allow just me to do this? Is it a test of some sort?"

"Who cares!? We have three hours to get that list done. I think we could do it in two and then spend the other looking around! It's my first time out of that house, Shouto. Let me enjoy it." At that Shouto's eyes crinkled.

"I'd forgotten what it's like to not constantly be watched. I'm glad to get to show it to you, Izuku. I'll make sure we have time to explore, I have something in mind that I'd like to show you."

"Well then let's go," Izuku said, then hesitating slightly, "...what is it he wants me to do...?" Shouto unfolded the piece of paper.

"It's a list," Izuku blinked.

"What does it say?"

"Haircut and dye. Contacts. School supplies that are cheap, no sharp objects. Two sets of clothes. Quirk suppressants," Shouto did a double take, "quirk suppressants?"

Izuku understood perfectly. Endeavor would take no chances with Izuku's identity and quirk. Shouto looked up from the paper.

"I'm sorry," He said, voice cracking slightly.

"It's okay, really. It's really no surprise."

" He's a bastard, and this whole situation: you, me, all of it is terrible! ' Shouto was ranting now, steps increasing in speed with his anger.

"I know," Izuku cried, "But it's better than it was. I'll get to go to UA and I'll see you everyday, won't I?

"Absolutely," The ice and fire user said with perfect conviction, anger still evident in his posture, "I'll make sure of it."

"Good," Izuku smiled, "Then lets start on that list. I want to see what you have to show me." Shouto's returning smile set Izuku's chest on fire. The good kind that felt nothing like Endeavors.

Shouto and Izuku spent the next two hours following Endeavor's list. Izuku's hair, which was previously down to his shoulder blades because no one had ever cut it during his time in the Todoroki household, was cut short, similar in length to Shouto's (Though because it was so curly, it looked longer). It was then dyed a bright red to match the Todoroki bloodline, but Izuku's green hair couldn't be entirely quelled. The tips of his hair remained a stubborn, but faded, green. Shouto said it looked nice on him. Izuku secretly hated it. His hair was one of the few reminders left of his mother.

Next were the contacts. Shouto gave the choice between a few colors to Izuku, and he settled on brown. Then came the school supplies. Shouto pointedly walked past the cheapest options and to some of the better quality items. When Izuku looked at him questionly, the response was a shrug and: "It's not like he actually knows anything about this." Izuku laughed quietly at that.

Then came the quirk suppressants. Izuku hated what quirk suppressants did to him. He'd had them on a few times when Dr. Mori had been curious about how they affected Izuku. It felt like the warmth that flowed all throughout his body was being doused in cold nothingness. It made his fingers and toes feel numb. It also made him cold. But it did what it was supposed to do, which was make him unable to access his quirk. The list from Endeavor clearly stated that the suppressants were to be hidden and easy to remove. So that meant any liquid injections were out. It also meant that collars and handcuffs were not viable either. That was something that made both of the boys sigh in relief.

Izuku and Shouto settled on an armband. It wrapped around Izuku's wrist securely. Izuku got to pick the pattern and he chose a blue cloth with stars speckled over it. The band fit tightly and looked like a basic cloth bracelet, albeit a very heavy one. Shouto made sure that after the initial test, the band was hidden away in a plastic bag far out of sight and Izuku was stood on Shouto's left side to help bring the warmth back to his body. That earned him a thankful nod from Izuku.

Finally came the clothing, which Izuku actually quite enjoyed. He hadn't ever picked out what he got to wear. He'd been too young when he'd had that kind of freedom with his mother. Izuku picked out a long sleeved shirt that read "Pants", a t-shirt that had an Iceberg with little penguins on it (Izuku thought it reminded him of Shouto, which the ice teen blushed at), a pair of shorts, and jeans.

Then Shouto and Izuku were done with the list with an hour to spare and Shouto was excitedly leading Izuku to what turned out to be a gorgeous park. Izuku wondered at all the greenery and flowers. There was a small pond that glittered in the afternoon sun and a patch of rock that the both of them could comfortably sit on.

"This is my favorite place to come when I need the quiet," Shouto murmured.

"I love it," Izuku replied in awe, turning his attention to Shouto who was staring at the lake with the most relaxed expression he had ever seen on the teen's face. Izuku smiled and gently reached over and took Shouto's hand, following his gaze. They both sat there enjoying the quiet nature and the company of each other until it was time to head back.

Izuku loathed to willingly go back to that cage of a room and the chains and the paint. But he couldn't leave Shouto to face that villain alone, and he knew it was pointless to run. So Izuku let Shouto slowly lead him back, reassured in the thought that neither wished to return but that at least they would have each other.

As the two boys began the trek back, they passed through a small neighborhood of houses and apartments and then under a bridge. As they made their way through the bridge, the ground began to shake, stopping both teens in their tracks. Izuku heard a weird noise that sounded somewhere between rain and mud and then there was a smell. A terrible smell that rank of garbage and rotten things.

Suddenly, there was a whooshing noise and the clanking of meatal. Izuku saw from the corner of his eye a giant green goopy thing emerge from the ground.

"Look at these two perfect skin suits!" The thing gleefully said.

Izuku recognised that this was a villain. Izuku briefly panicked, worried about Shouto. But, why wasn't he that afraid? By all means this was someone who meant them both of them harm. Izuku would have time to worry about that later, right now the green slime was lunging towards Shouto. Izuku didn't think: he just moved. One moment Izuku was watching the slime leap towards his best friend, and the next, Izuku was shoving him out of the way.

Izuku barely had enough time to register the panic in his friends eyes before his breath was being taken away from him and something was shoving its way down his throat. He heard a distant cry from far away, but his breath was already gone. I don't want to die. Not in front of Shouto, was his last thought before the world went dark.