AN: I don't own My hero academia
Stranger danger
A few days ago…
"Izuku. Big brother is here." Touya called out as he entered the lobby of his father's agency. The boy was proudly wearing a smile on his face with a one backpack strap hanging from his shoulder.
Izuku was waiting by the reception desk with a couple of sidekicks. Excitedly, the little boy rushed up to his brother hugging his waist. "Touya," he cheered while rubbing his cheeks at his shirt. "How was the exam?"
"I aced it," he announced confidently. Although he truly wouldn't know until another week or so. But he's sure he did fine. The written exam wasn't that hard and the practical one…his body was only burning a little. It could have been worst. He then fished out his phone to double-check something, "dad texted me saying something came up. so, I'll be taking you home," he explained while rubbing down his brother's curls.
Sadly, Izuku looked up at his brother. "Is it something to do with Arata sensei? He didn't show up for lessons today. Should I be worried?" he asked with a whimper.
"Nah I'm sure it's nothing." Touya half lied. He wasn't so sure what happened, but he knew something did with the nature of the message. His father was vague. Saying that Arata wasn't feeling well, and he'd be with him for a while. The man assured them he would be back for dinner. Something about teaching their teacher not to be a slob that relies on instant noodles. Whatever that meant. "Come on let's go home." He said while tucking on Izuku's arm. They hurriedly headed from the exit.
"We'll escort you two. Boss's orders." One of the sidekicks called out but it was pointless.
"We'll be fine," Touya snapped quickening his pace. So much Izuku could barely keep up. his little legs being dragged behind his brother. "Besides I'm going to be a hero too. I can use the escort practice," he yelled back. The sidekicks tried to run after the two, but Touya swiped out an arch of fire forcing them back. He smiled almost too innocently despite what he has done. "It will be fine. Dad doesn't need to know and I'm perfectly strong enough to protect my little brother and get home. So, bye." He then raced out the doors with his brother with little resistance.
Now the further away from the agency, Touya harshly dragged Izuku along with him by the sidewalk. His little brother wore a disappointed pouty face. "That wasn't very nice, Touya," he whined while attempting to catch up to his brother's pace. It was easier for his little legs now that his brother slowed down.
Touya frowned and tighten his grip on his little brother's hand. "What don't you believe your big brother can protect you?" he snapped back with a mild hiss in his tone.
"No. but dad said,"
"Dad overthinking things. What could possibly go wrong with me taking you home by myself." He complained. It was rather annoying really. Their home was just a 30-minute bus ride away and the station was only a mild walk. He could handle that. he wasn't a kid like Izuku and was a hero in training. He could take Izuku home all by himself without any babysitters. Dad was just worrying too much. "I'm perfectly capable of walking my little brother home without incident," he said almost bitterly. Then the thought of a brilliant idea that would get his little brother to keep his little talkative mouth shut. He bends down to Izuku's level with an almost conniving smile. "Tell you what. If you don't say anything today, I can get you that limited-edition ice cream you really wanted."
It did the tick. Izuku's eyes shined hopeful at the prospect. "The strawberry Endeavour one?"
"The strawberry Endeavour one."
"With popping candy?"
"With the popping candy."
"Ok," Izuku happily agreed to the bribe.
"I knew you see things my way," Touya grinned in victory while patting on his brother's curls. Reaffirming he did a good job.
So, the two brothers headed off on a mild detour to get Izuku's limited-edition ice cream. What's the harm, right? It was kind of on the way where they originally had to go. It was mid-day and there were a lot of people around. The likelihood that they would get into any trouble was slim. If they did Touya could protect his little brother with no problem. Bonus the Endeavour agency was nearby. This was Endeavour territory and dad wouldn't be happy if his sidekicks slacked off while he was away. Not like they would. They were all competent heroes handpicked by their father. Anything less would be a stain on their name.
While in the store the boys decided to get a couple of other things. The odd snack or two and some water bottles to wash it all down. Izuku got even more excited when he spotted a fancy rubber Endeavour pen in the clearance box. It was cheap so Touya happily brought for him as a bonus bribe not to tell dad of their little adventure. He knew the sidekicks would keep quiet because if their dad found out they allowed this to happen well. Heads will roll and their pay checks will take a hit. It's all best their dad will never know, and he won't. all they had to do was bet their day home. It grew more likely that they would after Touya go new messages from him. They were long and angry. Something about Arata couldn't figure out the differences between a tablespoon and a ladle. Then there was a long rant about scratching pans. Touya chose to ignore these and tell do whatever he was doing to their teacher.
While walking along happy licking the remains of his ice cream Izuku suddenly stopped. His eye aimed down a dark alleyway. "what's wrong little bro." Touya asked. When the child didn't respond, he tried to shake him. "Izuku." Before he could grab him, the child bloated down the alley. Panicked, Touya ran after him wondering why his little brother wanted to go down such a creepy looking place. The stench was what hit him first. Looked like a bunch of garbage bags were haphazardly thrown there. left along to rot. Izuku eventually stopped and Touya caught up to him while holding his nose. "what's gotten into you…whoa."
What the brother's found was something they didn't expect in an alley full of garbage. It was a child. a very skinny child. they looked extremely malnourished that you can see the outline of their bones through their skin. most prominently on their hands and collar bone. They looked like they haven't eaten in days with their cheeks half sunken in. their skin looked dry. Lips crackled while their mouth opened as if it didn't hand the strength to close itself. Either that or the child was trying to eat air. Their eyes were in a similar condition with the same cracking dessert landscape running along with their lids. Even their hair looked dry and brittle. It was hard to tell what colour it was with how much dirt clanged to every strand discolouring it much like the clothes he wore. It wasn't much. Just as tattered brown pants with a matching tattered black shirt.
"Is he alive?" Touya wondered aloud while peering closer at the child. Suddenly their deep red eyes followed their moves. The boy jumped at the sight. "I'll take that as a yes."
"Are you ok?" Izuku asked while holding out a hand to the child.
They didn't do anything. Just watched aimlessly with the same hollow gaping expression.
"You look like you need some help kid," Touya stated the obvious while leaning in closer. The stench of rotting instantly punched his face. It was worse than the garbage. "And a bath."
"Touya!"
"What! He stinks." He tried to defend himself.
Izuku huffed and turned back to the child. they didn't say or do anything. only stared at the brothers intensely. "Can you get up?" Izuku asked. The fact they were unresponsive besides the eye movements was worrisome. "You hungry? It's not much but I have a cookie." The boy dug out a wrapped cookie from the grocery bag and handed it to the child. they didn't try to take it. "No? how about some water. Here." They then got out a water bottle and brought it up to the child's lips. They greedily slurped it down as if the cool liquid gave them life. Looking at their face more closely, Izuku couldn't help but tear up. why is a child alone out here in such a state? "Your skin is so dry. I don't think I have anything on me for that right now. you think burn cream could help a bit."
While Izuku dug his pockets in search of the burn cream he always carried around, Touya hanged back. Allowing his little brother to do most of the work. he's the one who found the kind and the one with some mild medical knowledge. He'll just stand back and watch for any funny business. Unfortunately, that came sooner than he expected. Call it pure instincts but the hairs on the back of his neck suddenly stood straight. An ominous tingled tickled his spine. It was almost as if something was clawing at his back. The alleyway suddenly got darker as a shallow blocked their only source of light. He turned in his head to the shadow and saw an outline figure. The ominous feeling only grew the closer the figure came.
Coming clear into view the figure was of a very talk main in a dark tan trench coat with a matching hat. In hid his body in shadows. Piercing from them was a pair of deep red eyes. they stared at the group with curiosity. "Children?" the man question in an icy yet commanding tone. The new voice shocked the other kids and they both turned to face the man. As they did the man's red eyes widened. "You."
Instinctively, Izuku held the other child's head. huddling them close to his chest as if he was trying to protect them. the child responded by curling a finger on Izuku's shirt. They both shivered in place unsure of what to do. those red eyes were locked completely on the frightened pair of children. Completely ignoring the eldest. Touya stared at the man with blind panic while he got closer to the other two children. He did the only thing he could think of at the time.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed at the top of his lugs while losing one of his shoes. The sudden noise shocked everyone but not as much as the next. "STRANGER DANGER!" he yelled repeatedly. He then high kicked his shoe off, letting it launch at the stranger's face. while still screaming he kicked his other shoes off and spooned the other two children in his arms. Then his feet suddenly got hot as flames burst, burning the bottom of his socks. He was about to attempt something he only saw his father did once, but he hoped he could pull in off for the first time. Leaping forward, he dogged the confused man and melted a foot in place on the cement wall. Then he continued the ticking running up the side of the wall until he reached the top disappearing from sight.
The figure was left alone in the alley why looking up to where the children disappeared to. he could easily catch up to them, but his mind was racing with an unexpected emotion. Surprise and confusion. It stunned him for a good few second allowing the children to escape. Then voices from the outside alley grew louder. On concern whispers of passer-by's looked in wondering what the noise was all about. it would be too bothersome to deal with that now. So, the man disappeared into the shadows. Unable to get the image of one of the children out of his head. How curious.
Present time…
It's been a few days since the Enji found a little boy in his closet. His name was Tenko and the boys have been hiding him for the last few days. Why if you asked Izuku he'd say he didn't want the child to be thrown back to the streets or be taken to a mean orphanage. If you ask Touya he'd say it wanted to see how long they could keep up the little secret. In short, for fun. It wasn't that hard considering how much their father works and the fact their teacher was a little off lately. They wouldn't notice their little antics with Tenko. Like getting him food, medical care, take a bath. Touya was pretty insisting about that. it was the first thing they had to do. The boy mainly stayed in Touya's room because barely anyone goes in there besides Touya himself and the occasional adult that pop their head in to make sure he was ok. The boys would often share beds at night. Sometimes Tenko would sneak to Izuku room to sleep with him or Izuku would sneak to them, and it would be a little slumber party.
All was fine once they figured out one little problem. Tenko's quirk. designation. The brothers wondered why the boy was so hesitant so much at first to get near them or have anyone of them touch him. It wasn't until Tenko accidentally dusted Touya's shirt of it become crystal clear. The boy hid in the closet after in embarrassed and ashamed. Took the brothers a good hour to get him out of there. He refused claiming he was too dangerous to be near anyone. It was then Izuku cut and tested out various glove designs to help Tenko control their power. It took more than a few trails. Many gloves died that day, but it was all worth it to see Tenko's smiling face knowing he could hold a glass without having it turn to dust. So, the sacrifice of 20 or so gloves was worth it.
Enji did try to get child services involved. It was the right thing to do there's a random child in his home. Where did he come from? Where's his family? It all made sense when he did some research. An incident happened and Tenko's family was no more. It became horrifically clear why Tenko was alone, but Enji didn't have the heart to explain to his children. More so Izuku. Who would surely cry for days.
Since Tenko was young he needed someone to take care of him, so he was supposed to go up for foster care. One small problem the child didn't want to leave. The second child services tried to take the boy, he immediately attached himself to the Todoroki siblings. He refused to go with them. No matter how much they tried to convince the boy it only increased his anxiety It was quickly decided that the Todoroki family would act as a foster family. Until they find someone willing to adopt Tenko and tend to his special needs.
The transaction was easy for the siblings who happily welcomed the boy. Izuku had a friend to play with. Probably his first friend outside of his family. Touya gained a friend as well. Surprisingly someone his age. Despite how small and scrawny Tenko looked, he was closer to Touya age. Perhaps that's why the two seemed naturally closer with the way they interacted. Although mentally the child seemed to be stuck on Izuku's level in terms of educations. At least for an actual normal child that doesn't devour every book he saw.
That lead to a peculiar friendship, at least it was to Enji, of Arata and Tenko. Perhaps it was how overly affectionate the man was, but he would throw himself on to the child every chance he got. From the moment he arrived, to the evenings when he had to leave. At first, the child was apprehensive. Always hiding behind one of the other smaller Todoroki members when the strange man appeared. Eventually, Tenko got used to the fake blonde. Especially after his antics got calmer and the man started teaching him alongside Izuku. More natural in away. With the way he smiled and approached the child with this gentle awareness. He slowly got used to the man's light touches. Their encouragement and praise when he got questions right. Even craved it. Then he started to follow the man around like a little duckling. He would follow them to the Todoroki gate before he had to leave. At times he'd wait by the front door in the mornings just to see him. The man would always greet him and treat him so kindly. It was addicting to a child who was lacking that affection for who knows how long. It just so happened Arata was happy to do that to them.
So where does that leave Enji? Well to put it simply. The child was afraid of him. no matter how much time passed the child always ran from him. hide behind the other members of his household. May it be for his size, his usually stern appearance, or the fact he was the only one voting to get the boy out of his house. The child wasn't his biggest fan. This led to his children actively, choosing this they just met child over him. Telling him to give them space as he was too scary for Tenko. He'd even have to eat his dinners separately because he was too scared to eat with them. This didn't hurt his feelings…that much. It hadn't been a good time for him.
Grumpily, Enji marched through the halls wondering what to do about this little nuisance that wiggled his way into his family. He wasn't that scary. He's just as big as All Might and no one considers him scary. Unless you're a villain. But that's beside the point!
Lost in thoughts, he overheard a conversation. From a small door crack, he saw Arata with a book opened. It read short fairy tales. Snuggled up to his lap was little Tenko. He didn't look as scrawny as he did when he first arrived, but he was still on the small side for a boy his age. He had a set of curious eyes as he listened to the tales and looked at the pretty pictures.
"And then they lived happily ever after."
"Do the princesses and princes always have to end up together like that?" Tenko asked sounding a little annoyed. He didn't seem very pleased with the ending. Maybe a little bit bored by it since all fairy tales end that way.
"Not always but it usually does. In fairy tales." Arata explained while fiddling with the pages. "Unless you look at their dark origins. In one telling of the Cinderella tale, one of the stepsisters cut their toe off just to fit their foot in the shoe."
Tenko perked up at the thought. "You have got to tell me that story. That sound so much more interesting." The boy bounced on excitedly in place. "Did the stepmother suffered? Tell me she suffered."
"I'll leave that to your imagination." Arata ended making the child pout displeased. His eyes then travelled to the boy's makeshift gloves. He knew Izuku designed them. perfectly he might add for someone with Tenko's quirk. The thumb and index finger were free from their cloth bindings. Can't disintegrate anything if some of his fingertips were covered. The middle palm had a hole. So even if the boy clenched his fist the glove won't turn to dusk like others before it. the only problem was it was a witter fizzy glove and it was begun to fray. They're lucky if the glove would last a couple of more days. "You know I could get you a glove with a similar design to this."
Shyly, Tenko hid his hands. "You don't have to. I'm fine with these."
Arata of course rejected by hugging the child affectionately. "Nonsense, I don't mind. I can spoil a cute little kid like you. you've been doing well in your studies too. A little reward won't hurt." The closer the man got the redder Tenko's face got. He didn't hate the affection, but he still was getting used to it. "Is there a colour you'd like to have?"
Tenko thought for a while. More so got lost in Arata's eyes while he looked at him waiting for an answer. They were so blue. So clear. Like an untainted ocean. "I like blue."
Arata's face was taken by surprise before softened to a smile. "You know my prince charming was fond of blue as well. What a coincidence that you do too."
"Prince charming? But aren't you a guy?" Tenko asked confused. "Isn't that weird?"
"Only if you think it's weird."
Having seen enough of the conversation, Enji interrupted with an audible cough. The two suddenly turned their attention towards him. "Do you have any idea how late it is?"
Confused, Arata glanced at the clock. His eyes widen tenfold when he realised just how late in the day it was. he should have gone home an hour or so ago. He jumped, settling Tenko off to the side, and bowed apologetically. "Apologies I didn't realise it was so late. I shall take my leave." The second his leg started moving something got caught on the leg of his trousers.
Looking down he spotted Tenko's gloved hand gripping on the grey-blue fabric. He wore a pout on his dry lips and gloss in his eyes. "Do you have to go?"
Guilty, he smiled back at the child and tried to explain. "Well, this isn't my home, and I wouldn't want to overstay my welcome. I'll be back tomorrow I promise." It didn't seem to be enough. It only made the child cling to the man tighter.
Enji had seen enough. "Sit back down, Arata. I'll go find an extra futon."
"Endeavour, you don't have to."
"What did I say about calling me, Endeavour?" he said in warning shutting the other's lips tight. "It's late and dark. We have plenty of room. one night isn't going to hurt you."
Arata body sunk giving in to the man's will. Back on his level, Tenko pounced on top of him anchoring him in place. With an arm around the child, he nodded to the other man. "Thank you, Enji."
Enji then closed the door, leaving the two of them be.
AN: I'm alive! Sorry, this was an unexpectedly busy week for me with work along with some other things. So, I'm a little late. Portably will end up as the new week update day.
Anyway. I just want to confirm something which is Tenko's age for this AU. I know canonly. He's a little younger than Touya but to make some future things simpler I decided to age him up and get the two of them the same age. I'll be doing the same to one other character down the line but for now it's just Tenko.
Now what some of you maybe questioning now is how come AFO was so late to get him/ how Tenko manged to barely survive on his own all this time without anyone picking him up before our boys did. I have my reasonings. They are a bit of a stretch I will admit so when I eventually get to them. Please roll it them.
Anyway, that's all for now. Next time we're heading up to the mountains.