Izuku had grown accustomed to spending his birthdays alone with just his mother. She would buy him a green tea cake and they would eat it together while cycling through all the All Might movies Izuku owned. He didn't expect much of a change in this world, which is why he was so surprised when Inko told him they were heading over to the Bakugou's to celebrate.

"We do it every year, remember?" she said with a smile, while Izuku slipped on his socks, being extra careful not to bump his arm. "Of course we don't have to go if you don't feel good, honey. That was quite a tumble you took on Friday."

Izuku smiled back and shook his head. "Ah, no. It's okay. I'm feeling good, mom. We can go."

A part of him was curious about this said 'tradition', while the other part was freaking out because he had yet to tell Bakugou about his arm. But his mother seemed excited to see her friend and Izuku figured she needed a break from work. Even if he wasn't all that excited to celebrate his birthday in the first place since it had become such a mundane event, he wanted her to have a good time at least.

"Great! Let me grab my purse and we'll be on our way, then."

And so there they were, standing outside of the Bakugou household. Other than a pot of orange hydrangeas on either side of the entrance, the modern-style home remained unchanged with its two story floors that overlooked Musutafu shining under the setting sun.

Inko didn't even have to ring the doorbell. Mitsuki must have sensed that they had arrived because she swung open the door and her face lit up.

"Happy birth—" but then she stopped and her eyes widened when she noticed the greenette's cast, "Oh my god, Izuku! Are you okay?!"

Izuku opened his mouth to speak when he caught Bakugou glaring at him from behind his mother's shoulder. His own eyes were focused on the cast too and when he looked at him, Izuku quickly looked away.

"The poor thing broke his arm and bruised his cheek on Friday," Inko explained with a small sigh.

"How the hell did that happen?" Mitsuki shook her head.

"I, uh, fell in the shower," Izuku answered, feeling his cheeks go pink.

He snuck a glance at Bakugou again and found that the blonde was still very much watching him. Except now he had his arms crossed over his chest.

"Did you, now?" the blonde asked while slowly making his way outside. Izuku's experience with the previous Bakugou told him he was about to be chased across the lawn so he gulped slightly and gave a little wave.

"H-hi, Kacchan."

And then Izuku took off in the direction he and his mother had come from, Bakugou hot on his trail.

"ARGHHHH, DEKU! GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE AND EXPLAIN!"

Izuku held onto his arm and glanced back every now and then only to see that Bakugou was speeding up. "THERE'S NOTHING TO EXPLAIN!" he shouted back, before running back towards his mother. "I ALREADY TOLD YOU WHAT HAPPENED."

"Oh, no. Boys!" Inko said disapprovingly as Izuku rushed to hide behind her, panting heavily and wiping the sweat off his forehead with his good arm. He could already feel his broken one throbbing under his cast from all the movement. But at least Bakugou was stopped before he could reach him again.

"KATSUKI!"

Izuku watched as Mitsuki stomped over to her son and yanked at his ear until she had dragged him back inside the house. "Stop chasing Izuku around. Can't you see he's hurt? Tsk, it's his birthday for fuck's sake. He should be resting, not having to deal with you." Then she shoved him to the side and told him to go cool down in his room. Bakugou stomped off without another word.

"Sorry about that, Inko," she gave her an apologetic smile. "Why don't you and your son come on in? Masaru's outside with the barbecue. I'll go call him."

Inko nodded and walked after her, but not before shooting Izuku a stern glance. He gave her an innocent smile and followed, only to stop when he saw the banner hanging from the staircase.

'HAPPY BIRTHDAY IZUKU' was written in colorful letters while balloons of all shapes and sizes were attached to every corner of the room.

This is all for me? Izuku wondered with wide eyes as he took everything in. The last time he had had an official birthday party was the year before his father left.

"Well don't just stand there, kiddo," Mitsuki said from the kitchen. She wore an apron now and was stirring something that looked like chocolate in a pot. "Go outside and have something to eat! The sooner you finish, the sooner we can have some cake and you can open up your presents."

Izuku gave her a smile and nodded, but he ended up venturing deeper into the house instead. It was no secret that the Bakugou's specialized in fashion, both interior design and clothing, creating a home that looked like it had come straight out of a catalogue. Almond colored furniture paired nicely with the terracotta walls, occasional blotches of green sticking out from the faux plants that hung from the ceiling in hexagonal pots.

The greenette ended up wandering into the hallway when he saw a photo he was familiar with. It was a picture of him and Bakugou when they were little. Bakugou was in the middle of the frame behind a birthday cake, red eyes wide with excitement while he blew at the candles and Izuku cheered him on from behind. The other one Izuku didn't recognize, but he enjoyed seeing it nonetheless. They had probably taken it on Halloween as both boys were dressed like All Might.

Izuku chuckled quietly when he realized he was the one chasing after Bakugou in the picture, not the other way around. The blonde seemed to have taken his candy basket, some kind of jack-o-lantern with All Might's face on the front.

But Izuku was so busy looking at all the other photos that he didn't realize Bakugou was watching him until the blonde cleared his throat.

"Ahem."

Izuku froze and felt his face go red. "Ah, Kacchan. I was just looking for the, er, bathroom," his eyes travelled to the nearest door but Bakugou quickly stood in front of it to block him.

"What?" he asked, narrowing his gaze at Izuku. "So you can mysteriously fall and break your other arm?"

"Kacchan," Izuku huffed.

"Deku," Bakugou sneered.

Izuku sighed. "Is it really that hard to believe that I just fell?" he asked quietly, staring down at his red shoes. "I mean you call me useless all the time and stuff."

"What? You mean, 'Deku'?" Bakugou raised a blonde brow.

Izuku only nodded, peeking up at him from the fringe of his curly bangs.

He heard Bakugou sigh. "Don't tell me you forgot about that shit, too?"

"I—"

"God, you really are an idiot," the blonde shook his head. "How much do you remember about what happened after your dad died?"

"N-nothing." And Izuku was honestly glad he didn't. Everyone kept bringing it up all the time, it was getting a little annoying.

"Well, basically, you were a fucking mess. Wouldn't come out of your room for days, wouldn't eat, wouldn't even watch All Might's shitty ass. Your mom tried everything. You didn't even want to hang out with me. Fucking brat."

"That makes sense," Izuku began to nod before Bakugou smacked at his arm. "Ow! What the heck was that for?! My arm's still broken y'know," the greenette mumbled, holding his cast protectively.

Bakugou rolled his eyes. "You're not supposed to agree with me, idiot. You were wasting your life away. I had to talk some sense into you cuz Hisashi wouldn't have wanted to have such a worthless son."

Izuku snorted thinking about the man he had grown up with. "Tell me about it."

Bakugou paused.

"I started calling you Deku after that."

"Because I became so useless?" Izuku asked with a bitter smile. He stared at his shoes again.

"No. Because you got through that shit at four fucking years old. Like the word 'dekiru'. But every time I typed that on my phone, it would autocorrect to damn 'deku' instead. We kind of turned into an inside joke after that. Didn't know it'd been bothering you though. Guess I should've asked if you were still okay with it," Bakugou shrugged and leaned against the wall with his hands in his pockets.

Izuku's eyes went wide and he quickly looked up.

"Wait, what?"

Bakugou's ears turned red. "Fuck, stop looking at me like that," he mumbled, turning away from him. "Damn nerd. It's gross."

"You're messing with me," Izuku shook his head. "Dekiru? Really?" The greenette couldn't help the grin that started forming on his face.

"Yes! And don't make me explain myself again or I'll break your other arm," Bakugou growled.

Izuku laughed quietly and rubbed the back of his neck. "I–I don't know what to say."

Bakugou shrugged again. "Just smile already and stop moping around. It's your shitty nerd birthday or whatever. You should be celebrating."

The pair didn't speak for a while after that but eventually, Izuku broke the silence.

"You're right," Izuku smiled. "So thank you. For, um, for being my friend. And… and for not giving up on me."

Bakugou didn't say anything and started moving towards the kitchen.

"Not friends," he said while passing him, glancing back slightly.

"What?" Izuku blinked.

"Family. We're fucking family, Izuku. And we always will be so don't you forget it. Now get back inside and tell auntie you love her damn cooking."

Izuku's grin returned and he nodded quickly.

"Race you there," he laughed when he passed Bakugou.

"HAH?!" the blonde's eyes widened. "LIKE I'D EVER LET YOU WIN!"

Later that night, Izuku might've gotten a cool new watch from Bakugou to track his progress at the gym, but he preferred the moment they had shared together over anything the blonde could have given him as a gift.

—

"I'm here, I'm here," the young vigilante said as he rushed into the clearing.

Aizawa didn't bother getting up from where he was sitting. "You're late," he grumbled quietly before taking a long sip of his coffee and leaning his head back to stare at the star-dotted sky. At least there were no rain clouds out tonight.

"S-sorry," the boy panted, "my mo–"

Aizawa glanced back over at him and raised an eyebrow.

"Sorry," he said again, bowing slightly and making his way over to Aizawa.

The kid wore his usual vigilante getup; dark hoodie, mask that obscured most of his face, red contacts, and pants with lots of pockets in them. Aizawa also noticed he had a backpack with him this time. He must have hidden it away before he got kidnapped last time.

"It's fine," the officer shrugged before getting up from the stack of steel beams he was sitting on. They were currently in one of the many abandoned construction sites in Musutafu. Aizawa had picked this place because they barely got any crime reports in the area. Plus, not many cars passed by so they would be able to train in peace. "Just sit down already."

"But aren't we going to be training?" the kid asked as he slipped off his pack and bent down to retie his shoes.

"Problem child," Aizawa felt his eyebrow twitch.

"What?"

"You just broke your arm last week." The officer set his coffee down and pinched the bridge of his nose while he took a few deep breaths.

In through your nose, and out through your mouth. In through your nose, and out through your mouth. In through your nose, and out through your mouth.

"I know but—"

Aizawa held his hand up to silence him. "But nothing. Don't tell me you've been going out like this?"

When the boy didn't answer, Aizawa let out an exasperated groan and walked over to him. "What did I write on rule #1?"

The boy seemed to shrink a little and stepped back. "Um, go see a doctor? Which I did and he said no heavy lifting or pushing but I can still run around and stuff—"

"Don't. Be. Stupid."

The kid's face fell and Aizawa automatically felt bad. "Look, you don't have to worry about us, okay?" he said, tone much gentler than before, yet still serious. "We can manage just fine for a couple of weeks until you recover."

"Alright," the young vigilante said. He hesitantly met his gaze before nodding.

"Good," Aizawa nodded back. He gestured to the dusty floor before walking back over to his own seat. "Now sit, we have a lot to cover today."

—

"Being a vigilante is not just about fighting," Aizawa began. Every now and then he would turn and look at Izuku to make sure the greenette was paying attention. And every time he did, Izuku would nod his head and give him a thumbs up. "There's a foundation. I'll admit, when I started out, I was just like you, probably even worse. I wanted to jump right in. But you can't do that and expect to win every battle. It doesn't work that way. No one told me that at the time and I got hurt a lot because of it. You have to be prepared for anything. Both in your mind and body."

Both in my mind and body, Izuku wrote quickly as Aizawa proceeded to speak. I have to be prepared for anything.

"Sometimes, preparation means knowing how to start a fire or building up a decent shelter for the night if you can't make it home. Other times, it means healing that nasty injury yourself if going to the doctor isn't an option. Tell me, have you ever gotten stitches before?"

Technically not in this universe, Izuku wanted to say, but instead, he just shook his head and briefly lifted his pencil from the paper. He could already feel a blister forming on the side of his finger from writing so fast.

"Well, I'm going to teach you how to do them yourself," Aizawa said as he continued to pace. "What about any hiding spots? Do you have any places you go in between patrols? Those are important too."

Izuku chewed on his bottom lip. Officer Aizawa wanted to know about his hiding spots? Should he give him a fake one instead?

Aizawa seemed to sense his discomfort so he quickly spoke up again before Izuku had a chance to make a decision. "Listen, kid, I can tolerate one secret, but you have to trust me in order to make this work."

Izuku sighed and slowly nodded his head. He could always find somewhere new to hide if their lessons ended up falling through. Although he had given Aizawa the contract he wrote earlier.

"Let's see," the greenette tapped at his chin with the pencil, "there's the abandoned building by the convenience shop, honestly anywhere behind a large dumpster, and… and sometimes that tree."

Aizawa blinked. "What tree?"

"You know, the really big one in the park."

"So, you can climb?" Aizawa asked, arching his brow.

"Somewhat," Izuku said. It was a skill he had learned back in his world whenever he tried getting away from Bakugou and his bullies. But he wasn't about to say all of that so he just shrugged.

Aizawa nodded. "Okay. What about parkour? Any specialties? Preference in fighting with your arms versus your legs? How long can you hold your breath underwater? Do you know what a tourniquet is?"

"Ummm, could you slow down, please?" Izuku asked, as he frantically flipped to another page. "I'm trying to write all of this down."

Aizawa stopped pacing and peered over his shoulder.

"What's that?"

"Oh, nothing much," Izuku mumbled without looking up. Maybe he could get lucky and Aizawa would drop the subject. The last thing he wanted him to see was all the information he had about the police in his notebook.

"Problem child."

So much for that, Izuku thought with a sigh.

"It's my Vigilante Analysis notebook where I take notes about everything I do or the important things I should look out for around me," Izuku confessed.

To his surprise though, Aizawa didn't seem upset. He even sounded curious when he asked to see it.

Izuku handed him the notebook hesitantly. "Uh, just don't go to page fourteen. Please."

"Why? Am I in it?" Aizawa asked, a ghost of a smile present on his pale face.

"M-maybe," Izuku said while trying not to panic when he remembered he had labeled the page with his vigilante name instead of his real one.

Oh no.

Watching Aizawa read his work was an agonizing mix of fear and anxiety. Izuku found himself shaking his legs and playing with the pencil in his hands until it rolled under one of the steel beams and disappeared.

Luckily, the officer seemed to have respected his wishes and didn't go to that page.

"Hm, wow," Aizawa said after a while.

"Wow?" Izuku blinked.

"This is impressive."

"R-really?" Izuku couldn't help the excitement in his voice as Aizawa started to hand the notebook back.

"There are things I didn't even know about my patrol squad in here. It tells me you're observant. Wait," the officer said before pulling the notebook back. His tired eyes narrowed at something on the page and he shook his head. The greenette gulped a little.

"'Officer Takeyama can run faster in heels'? What is this? And why did you label her as, 'Mt. Lady'?"

Izuku immediately snatched the notebook from Aizawa's hands and started laughing nervously while he tried to think of an excuse. "It's just that, well, um, she's really tall and stuff like a mountain, and when I saw her in those heels the nickname kind of clicked."

Aizawa simply stared.

Izuku let out another tiny laugh to fill the uncomfortable silence. "B-but she really can run faster in heels though! You should see her go, Mr. Aizawa. I was ready to step in and help when I saw her getting out of the car, but she just took off after the guy harassing that woman like it was nothing. I don't even know why she was wearing them in the first place, but it was really cool." Takeyama was already taller than most people on the force, but those heels had made her seem like a giant as she towered over criminals in the dead of night.

"Interesting," Aizawa mumbled. He didn't look pleased.

Izuku's face fell suddenly. "Y-you're not gonna, uh, get her in trouble because of me or anything, right?"

Aizawa sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "No promises. But we're wasting time. Let's start off by going through different survival scenarios and you tell me which one you think is best. Then, we'll go from there."

Izuku sighed but eventually sat back down and pulled out another pencil. At least that was over.

"Okay!"

—

By the end of their session, Aizawa was drained and he was pretty sure the feeling was mutual. They hadn't even done any fighting and spent most of the time sitting around talking, but even that took a toll on their bodies.

Oftentimes, Aizawa had to admit that he moved on too fast from a topic and left the kid in the dust, but other times, the problem child was the one who confused him. His tendency to ramble and go off on tangents was distracting but familiar for some reason.

That didn't make it any less annoying though, and Aizawa had to frequently quiet him down or threaten to take his notebook away.

"You don't have to write down every word I say, kid," Aizawa told him for probably the hundredth time since they started the lesson. He should have been keeping track if he knew this was going to be a problem. And by now, he had run out of coffee too.

"But every word you say is important!" the boy shook his head. "I don't want to miss anything."

Aizawa groaned in frustration. "Then pay attention," he said before walking over and snatching the notebook from his hands.

"I am— hey!"

"You have to learn how to listen first and take notes later," the officer said while holding it above his head.

For a moment, Aizawa got the impression that the problem child was going to somehow snatch it away from him, which was impossible since he shouldn't be able to reach it. But in the end, the kid simply sat back down and wouldn't look at him.

"Mr. Aizawa, people absorb stuff differently though," he mumbled quietly while shaking his head.

"Well then absorb stuff quietly or I'm not giving it back next time," Aizawa said before tossing the notebook back to him. He ignored the way the kid's eyes lit up again and continued on with the lesson.

Now, they simply sat in silence while the young vigilante put his stuff away.

Aizawa watched him from his side of the room.

Every time their eyes met, the kid would quickly look away. Aizawa could tell he wanted to speak to him, but he seemed to be holding back. And while the officer didn't blame him since he wasn't exactly the most patient man in the universe, he also didn't want to intimidate him to the point of not asking any questions.

"Hey," he said softly. "What's the matter? Cats got your tongue?"

The kid laughed a little at that and Aizawa felt him relax. He relaxed too.

"Mmm, no. I was just thinking about stuff," the young vigilante mumbled quietly.

"Like?"

There was a pause as the boy fumbled with the zipper of his bag. Finally, he looked up again. "You seem to know a lot about vigilantism, which is obvious because of your experience, I mean who wouldn't but—"

"Get to the point, kid," Aizawa sighed.

"I guess I was just wondering how someone like you became a cop." As soon as he said that, his eyes widened suddenly and he quickly shook his head. "N-not that there's anything wrong with wanting a career change or anything, I'm only curious and stuff," the problem child finished with a mumble. He peeked over at Aizawa and Aizawa looked back.

"I turned into a different person. Changed my mind. Lost motivation. I don't know. There are lots of reasons. But I guess I just figured I'd have better luck helping people legally as opposed to what I was doing then," Aizawa finished with a shrug. He thought back to when Hisashi Midoriya had found him in the rain and offered him the umbrella.

Aizawa had been in mourning for weeks after Oboro died. He had been going out and vandalizing anything he could to take out his emotions. Needless to say that seeing the officer standing there and hearing his offer about shielding him from the rain had taken him by surprise.

"Come under here, kiddo," he had said with a smile, "there's room for one more."

In all honesty, Aizawa didn't know how he didn't get arrested that night and was later offered a job instead.

Maybe Hisashi had known about him all along.

Maybe that's why he pushed him to accept even though Aizawa was completely against being a cop at first.

"Do you ever miss it?"

The problem's child voice rang throughout the open space and Aizawa found himself doing a double-take. He had been so lost in thought, that the kid's voice had started sounding like Hisashi himself. Aizawa half-expected to see him standing there with his wild curly hair that wouldn't stay under his cap no matter how hard he tried, waving at him with an umbrella.

He thought of Oboro then too and the way he used to purposefully splash into a puddle whenever they finished a patrol despite Aizawa's complaints.

"Yeah," he answered quietly.

I really, really do.

After that, they didn't speak any more until the problem child had finished packing up his stuff. He looked back at Aizawa unsurely. "Well, I should get going. I have a math test tomorrow that I need to get ready for so—"

"Wait," Aizawa met his gaze. "Don't I get to ask a question now?"

He could feel the boy's nerves skyrocket as soon as the words left his lips.

"Um… sure." He seemed to hold his breath before speaking again. "What is it?"

"Your name," Aizawa said.

"Wh-what? You want to know my name? But that's like… the first thing on the list you signed. My identity stays a secret."

"You didn't let me finish," Aizawa mumbled.

"Ah," the part of the boy's face that was visible flushed red as he looked away.

"Your vigilante name," Aizawa continued. "What is it?"

The boy continued staring at the open road before them. He gave a little shrug, clutching at his backpack straps tightly. "Um, well, people always sort of refer to me as the Ghost so I figured…"

"Is that what you want it to be?" Aizawa asked, watching him carefully.

Another shrug, this one was accompanied by some mumbling the officer couldn't hear. Finally, the kid seemed to decide on an answer and looked over at Aizawa again. "I guess I don't really know to be honest."

"Well, figure it out or else I'll be forced to call you 'problem child' forever," Aizawa winked and even smiled when the boy laughed. "Unless you want me to."

"Ah, no. You're right. I'll think of something. Is there... anything else?"

Their eyes briefly met again and Aizawa felt his pulse quicken. There was no longer any tension in the air. If he asked him now, would he get a response?

No, Aizawa frowned. He could still see the boy fidgeting underneath his sweater while his eyes darted all over the place. It was obvious he was still uncomfortable.

"You can go now," the officer said instead.

As much as Aizawa wanted to know the truth, he had to be patient. It was going to take a while to earn the boy's trust and the last thing he needed was for him to run off and get hurt again.

Baby steps, he told himself.

"Okay! See you on Monday, Mr. Aizawa. Thanks," the boy waved, before taking off.

Aizawa gave a little wave back as he watched the problem child disappear out into the night. Every instinct was screaming at him to follow, but he was bound by the piece of paper in his pocket. Aizawa still couldn't believe the kid actually took him seriously and wrote up a contract for him to follow. He had typed it up and everything.

But at the same time, Aizawa felt like he shouldn't be surprised by now.

After all, the young vigilante was a problem child after all.

Maybe that really should be his name, Aizawa snickered to himself as he watched him walk away.

Yeahhhh, so, this is going to be a learning experience for both of them. Aizawa has never been a teacher before and Izuku's obviously still really, really nervous around him. It will not be smooth sailing at first. But they'll get there, I promise ;)

Hope you enjoyed the chapter! Here are some random fun facts about it:

– I actually wrote the Dekiru scene eight chapters ago. It was killing me not to post it.

– After I included the bit about Takeyama running in heels, I pictured Aizawa doing the same thing and it absolutely took me outtttt XD.

As for my update schedule, it'll still be kind of random going forward. I'm not in school right now so I just try putting out chapters whenever I finish them because things will slow down once August arrives. You can expect the next chapter on either 7/7 or 7/8 though, so look out for it then!

And like always, I appreciate every single one of you who takes the time to leave a follow, favorite, and a review! Thank you :) You can inbox me here if you ever want to talk.

See ya next time 👋 take care of yourselves and stay hydrated! This summer is BRUTAL.