I have so many stories to edit. This only has one chapter left of one of my stories, so I'd like to start posting a new one.
1. Zombie apocalypse au with Luffy, Ace and Law being the ones behind it (not a secret lol)
2. Baby Luffy who turned into a vampire, Katakuri is his adoptive dad and takes good care of him. Fluffy story.
3. Ace develops some sort of unknown disease that causes his life to spiral into deep depression and having most people abandon him for it. Basically all angst/hurt/comfort.
4. Demon slayer au where Ace dies and is transported to DS world.
5. Luffy son of Katakuri in big mom pirates. Eventual Zolu and Luffy turning into a vampire. You can imagine how the BM pirates react to that.
6. Jujutsu Kaisen au with young Luffy having a power to get rid of curses/demons. Fluffy and mc is Luffy and our lovely Gojo Satoru.
7. Bleach au with Ace and Ichigo as mcs. Another story where Ace comes from Marineford into another world.
Please vote, I'm drowning in which one to post!
Warning, some graphic imagery in this one (not much, only a few paragraphs.) Enjoy.
Ace planked on the ground, balancing his weight on both arms. On accident, he leaned more on his left hand, which wasn't good. He had to learn how to balance. How much to have his left arm supporting him while he tried to figure out how much he was being supported by his right arm. He got a text after he started doing slow and careful pushups.
Regardless of his injury, he wasn't going to get out of shape. After doing 100 push ups, both arms shaking by the end, he took a big swig of water. Sabo was in the backyard practicing his exercises he got from Gunhead, and working on the density of his clouds and how quickly he could affect the interior of them and create storms.
He had finally figured out how to make it rain. It was a lot of concentration, and unlike Ace's quirk his had to do with thinking and science. Ace wasn't improving on his quirk, like trying to somehow let his body use gills properly. He also wanted to be able to use venom as a snake. But those plans were dashed for awhile as he just was aiming for getting back to where he was.
Mostly focusing on trying to regain his balance and swiftness on four legs. He looked at his phone and saw it was from Roger. He sent Ace the money, which he deposited in his own bank and paid for his rent. Thank you very much.
Of course. Ace smiled. He couldn't wait to work with him again. Ace looked at his arm and flexed it. Getting down because of this injury was useless. Unlike his narcolepsy, this couldn't be treated. With the right medication, his narcolepsy could get better. But it was useless to think about this injury and wish it was right again.
He saved people and lost feeling in his arm. He was just thankful it wasn't parlyzed or had to be amputated. Though it sort of felt like it had been amputated. He knew there were heroes missing limb and they got by. There was no excuse for him to not do the same. He went back to his push ups before he did his best at darts.
Missing every time, but doing his best for a long time. He did plenty of fine motor exercises to try and get used to it as best as he could. This was his most important training at the moment.
-x-
"Wow, this house is huge," Ace muttered when he and the rest of the study group arrived at Yaoyorozu's mansion. And Sabo was pretty well off, but this place was a whole nother level of rich. Ace hadn't done the best at the midterm test, which was easier that the final test. Maybe it was just stress then.
He felt more determined now to do better, fully dedicated in his life to become a useful and successful hero. He was sure he'd do better on the final just through determination. They went inside and had tea. Ace felt out of place. Well, they all did. Yaoyorozu didn't seem to realize that this place was completely out of budget for everyone else at the table, and nobody wanted to burst her bubble. She was too happy to help them out.
Ace needed help on math the most. The most complicated math equations, like Jiro did. They went over the english, too. They did a lot, but not too much. Yaoyorozu cut the study group when it got late. "It's not good to binge and do all nighters the nights before tests, or you'll forget everything."
That had never been the case for Ace until recently. He used to be able to get by on four or five hours of sleep. Now he needed at least 8. They did have dinner there from Yaoyorozu's chef that worked there. It was delicious, and Ace kind of felt like he should be paying for it. They all went home, Ace offering to fly them to their places. So they got onto his back, and he made it an enclosed space like he had for Sabo in the sports festival.
He flew them each home and then went back himself. Sabo hadn't needed to do the study group, he was too smart and superb at memorizing things even if he didn't understand them. Since Ace already had dinner, he just retired to his room to relax and mindlessly trail his fingers over his skin, so part of his body reacted to the presence of his arm. The written test was tomorrow, the practical one the next day. They had no idea what the final practical exam would be. The upperclassmen had told them they would probably be fighting robots.
Ace thought that it would be weird for that to be it since they fought them twice already, but he had no idea what it would be if it wasn't the robots. In the morning, he picked up Midoriya and Marco, bringing Sabo. He could fly safely. That was proven time and time again. When they landed at school, they hurriedly went to class to get in some crammed studying.
Everyone were at their desks, reading or doing flashcards for the test. Ace was taking the test in another room so he could work on his laptop, unable to write anything that would help him out with a test. He would be supervised so they didn't think he cheated. Once the directions were given, Ace was moved to the extra testing room, where he was alone.
It was one of the office assistants that was supervising him. He wished he had scratch paper for the math. So, he was on his laptop with someone sitting a bit behind him. He didn't cheat, of course. It was slow going with typing one hand, as he didn't really type much before, but it was way better than it would be by writing with his left hand.
Ace was calm and composed the whole time. Having a sleep attack then would be a problem, he might go over time. He finished with the two hour time limit, and printed it out as well as emailing it to Katakuri. He was nervous about his grade, hoping he passed and didn't need to do remedial classes at camp.
When he turned off his laptop, he put it in his case and than backpack, and headed back to class. Most were finished but a handful. He sat down quietly at his desk and did hand exercises as if he was holding a pencil, writing his name. When the test time was over, many sighed and rested their heads on their desks.
The practical exam was the next day. Ace spent his time working on running, and on any sort of strategy to defeat the robots. Because that's all they had to go on. Katakuri didn't tell them what the test was this time, even though he was always upfront. Sabo was in the backyard working on seeing how long he could go and how many clouds he could make before he was too dehydrated to function. He did clouds for twenty minutes before he needed water. It was a lot better than it had used to be! Ace went outside to see how he was doing, walking as a large tiger on all fours carefully, watching where he stepped.
"How're you doing?" Ace wondered, sitting down on the deck. Sabo chugged more water, and said he could produce more clouds than he thought. He just had to get water after a certain amount of time. He asked about Ace.
"Well, I can't really tell physically if I've improved with my arm, and it's still hard to use. But I'll be fine," he said confidently. "I'll work it out if there's a problem. I wish we knew what it was going to be." Sabo nodded, but said he would assume it was battling or escaping something. Maybe the robots, maybe something else.
"I wish it could be something strategic or a brain teaser instead of just brawling." Ace nodded. He had been good at solving mysteries. "Sometimes I think all we're here for it just to train our quirks. I wish we could do more smarts stuff. I really wish I could have done what Roger did with you."
Ace replied, "Maybe next semester we'll work more on that kind of stuff." Sabo nodded, saying he hoped so. They got a good meal the night before and a good night of sleep. Ace had no hallucinations, which was a great start to the day. They ate a meal with protein shakes and scrambled eggs. Then they both went to meet the other two at the train station. It had become the normal and preferred way to get to school. Even though they were sure Ace could fly safely, they just did this, now.
Talking was nice. "Did you guys do any training yesterday?" Midoriya asked. "I did my best to hold 5%." He told them about how his new skills worked, but hadn't shown them yet. While it was uncharacteristic for him, he wanted them to see when he was really using it, so during the final most likely.
Ace said he trained more with his arm, and thought up any creative things he could do with his body. Sabo said he tested the limits of his dehydration. Marco did regular exercise. Running and lifting weights he'd bought for school. Ace had his arm in his sling when he didn't use it and didn't mind people seeing it. Nobody recognized him without the mask and costume on, and missing the ears.
"I worked with my arm a lot. I can't really tell if I improved, though." Marco grinned said he'd do fine even with the handicap. "Yeah. I hope I don't get let off easy or get any pity."
"I doubt they'd baby you for this. Especially since you requested they don't," Midoriya assured him. When they got to their station, and started to walk to UA, they all had butterflies in their chest. They would get to go even if they failed, but failing in the hero events was always a heavy blow. And they had no idea what to expect, either.
When they got to class, all of those there looked nervous, thrumming their fingers on the table, rocking back and forth slightly, biting their lips. Zoro was sleeping at his desk. "You guys ready?" Ace asked those near him.
"I did all the training I could, this'll be a real test of my strength and conviction," Kirishima said. Ace nodded. He felt conviction and determination would get help him more than actually being fit. "Dedication! The ultimate motivator." Ace smiled and agreed with that. "Well, we'll just see how we do."
Katakuri walked in and told them to get changed and then get to the area with all of the different grounds. They would be doing their tests in those grounds. Then he left and the students got changed. They all wore their complete costumes. Midoriya and Todoroki's costumes had had major changes since the beginning, while everyone else's were nearly the same.
Ace's only change were the scaled arms, mask and ears. He looked at his arm, and coated it in thicker, stronger scales for protection. He moved it around, and it moved just fine. They all headed to the grounds, quiet and nervous still. When they got there, they saw all of their teachers were standing in front of them, including the principle on All Might's shoulder.
It was self explanatory, really, just seeing them all gathered there. They would be fighting the teachers. Ace wondered who he'd get. They were put in pairs before they found out who they were against. Ace was shocked with who he was pitted up against. All Might, with his partner being Luffy.
"I got Ace! Yay!" Luffy cheered. Ace wasn't upset with Luffy. Better than someone he didn't get along with, or someone with a completely unhelpful quirk in fighting. They were against All Might. He was surprised that the injured one was chosen to fight the strongest. Sabo was with Hagakure, Marco with Mineta, and Midoriya with Bakugo.
All Might would be doing two rounds, the first with Luffy and Ace and the second with Bakugo and Midoriya. It would be hard for the latter group, both against All Might as well with someone they did not get along with. Ace got lucky he wasn't Marco or Midoriya. "Better not slow me down," Ace said to Luffy, who grinned and nodded, knowing Ace was joking.
The instructions were to either get away safely or handcuff their enemy. All of them would be working as villains, going all out. Ace felt fear of getting hurt, and hardened the scales over his arm up to his shoulder. He wouldn't let it get hurt. Luffy asked, "Can we not fly? I don't want to fly there and cheat."
Ace said he wouldn't fly unless it was dire and they had no chance. Luffy was satisfied with this. The groups went to plan out attacks, with Ace and Luffy's area being in Ground Beta. Lots of places to hide, but also a lot of places to crash into. A lot of potential threats. He had to be careful to be safe with his arm, that he had coated completely. Nothing would happen to it.
Luffy and Ace went to the grassy area behind the building that would show the screens of the other fights. Ace and Luffy were actually first. No doubt out of consideration for Ace's narcolepsy. He was perfectly awake right now and nowhere near his nap time.
Ace explained to Luffy the backup plan he'd come up with. One before resorting to the last option, flying away. "I want to handcuff him really bad!"
"If we can do that, then we will. But we still need to think that running might be the best option. But if we do that plan, then you'll have to be the one to run." Luffy grinned, and said he'd come up with a new move. "What is it?"
Luffy lifted his thumb. "I'm made of rubber, my bones, too. I can inflate my body other than a balloon. I can make my arm really big! But there's a side effect on that one, so I should only do it near the end if I have to." Ace grinned. They would use that as a last ditch effort. "I also have another one, but that one tires me out really bad. I won't use that one." Ace nodded. He grinned, and said they got this. "I don't think you're weak cause you arm, I'm happy you're my partner!" Ace thanked him. He was glad.
"I will have trouble being on all fours, so I might not use that the whole time. I've made two legged forms that are strong, too, so that's a way out," Ace replied. "I'm sure we can do this. Just hope we get off with minor injuries. They must think we're capable if they paired us with All Might." Luffy nodded.
He was excited to go up against the number one hero. Ace asked to keep the handcuffs with him. He clipped it around his wrist. There was no other way to hold it. The only way they'd be close enough to cuff him would be very close, so having his own arm cuffed wasn't a problem. Besides, it wouldn't interfere in his nonhuman forms.
Midoriya came out and got them, looking nervous. "Well, you guys are up. Good luck," he said. Ace told him to learn from their fight. "Right." Both partners took deep breaths, Ace's heart hammering. But he had his arm transformed and would not be affected by his narcolepsy, even with strong emotions. He'd tested that countless times.
They stepped into one side of Ground Beta, the gate directly on the other side. "He'll have to be waiting for us somewhere in the middle. Somewhere he can attack with a long distance attack. We should move to more confined areas. Thinner alleyways where he can't fit. But we don't know how hard he's going to attack us."
"But I want to fight."
"We have to gather intel first. Find out where he is and how to do one of our plans." He was talking quietly. They moved to the right and went in between the buildings, in the thin areas. They crept along, trying to hear his breathing, talking, anything. When they reached the middle of the city, they saw him in the busy street.
They crept around. "Plan one is for you to attack first and me sneak up behind. Go." Luffy jumped out, and Ace flew up to the roof. All Might sent Luffy back, punching him. But Luffy was immune to blunt force attacks. It wouldn't shatter his bones. Ace jumped down with huge and clawed feet, just barely missing him, shattering the ground beneath by flexing the strong toes. He changed into his preferred form. As large as All Might, with beefy arms and strong legs, bipedal. He had spikes along his arms, both of them. Luffy grabbed onto one arm he had out to the side and did his rocket move, flying forward at All Might and just barely missing him. Ace shot forward and made to punch him, slice him with scythe fingers.
He dodged, and punched Ace in the gut throwing him back. Only he was covered in scales there, having practiced guarding in an instant. He ran forward while Luffy attempted to wrap his hands around All Might to trip him up. Ace had the cuffs still. Luffy did wrap his arms around All Might's legs, but they didn't move when he pulled. He was grabbed by the wrists and thrown into a nearby building.
Luffy coughed and climbed out of the debris. They attacked more, in sync with each other just over a short amount of time. Ace mostly was support for Luffy, following his attacks and getting in between his own hits, acting as a decoy, both attacking at the same time but avoiding one another.
Ace was always good at teamwork, and it seemed Luffy was as well. Ace hadn't even used his right arm yet. He turned into a dragon and tried to crush All Might in giant hands, but he dodged. When he was about to punch Ace, really hard, he shrunk into a mouse to get out of the way. Luffy took advantage of this sudden shift and punched All Might in the back, sending him a few yards away before he turned around and released a punch at Luffy, only with air pressure, that shot him far from the area.
Ace was panting. Luffy came back angrily, and let out his quick attack that he named a gatling gun. Every hit hit All Might, but he wasn't harmed from it. Ace managed to get in at him by turning into a fly that he couldn't see, before he landed and immediately shifted into a jaguar, clamping his teeth down, breaking the skin before he was chucked into the wall.
They were both getting tired. Ace felt it was time for the last effort. They'd wasted too much time. There was a time limit. "Lu!" was the code name for his plan to run. Ace ran at All Might, purposely letting him throw him hard into a building as Luffy ran toward the exit.
Before All Might could follow, Ace started screaming. He had faked an injury of his leg breaking, the bone breaking through his skin. He whimpered, and it threw All Might off. Ace tried to stand. But held his side. He had created a dribble of blood on his mouth as he wheezed, tears in his eyes.
He made sure to make his breathing ragged, holding his ribs. He started to sway, pretending he'd broken both his leg and punctured a lung before he fell onto his back. "Young Ace!" That's right, come closer. He hurried over, and the moment he knelt beside Ace, he moved and clamped the handcuff over his arm right as Luffy cleared the exit.
Ace changed back into his normal form, getting rid of the fake injuries. All Might was shocked before he stood and helped Ace up. "That was quite the plan. Manipulating your enemy, shocking them."
"That was our last ditch effort. Luffy didn't want to cheat by flying." Luffy came running over and gave Ace a huge high five. He complained he didn't get to use his giant fist. "At training camp you should surprise everyone." He put his arm around the smaller's shoulders. "You sure got passed quick!"
"I used my other move at the end and got there super fast!" Luffy bragged. "We did it! And you cuffed him, too!"
All Might praised both of them for their impeccable teamwork. Ace was glad he wasn't pissed at him for his underhanded tactic. "Ace you were a perfect support fighter." Ace said he felt he'd be best that way, since he could adapt to any situation well enough. He turned to All Might with a smile, and thanked him for not going easy, and pairing him with the hardest one. "It was Katakuri-sensei that chose the match ups. You didn't even use your right arm through the whole fight."
Ace looked down at it, and smiled. He had fought against All Might with one arm. He was so proud and relieved. He was perfectly capable. He had only used four legs to bite, not run or jump. They got back to the control room, and those inside cheered for them. Zoro and Sanji praised Luffy, and Ace's friends told him he was awesome even without using his right arm.
"That was a pretty underhanded tactic, though," Ashido said, though not in an insulting way. All Might came in and said that manipulation can be helpful in many scenarios depending on who you're up against.
"I was a villain, but he brought out my hero and teacher side by showing me something terrible. It's always a terrible feeling when you're the cause of an important person's pain. I commend your performance, you two. Full marks on this." Then he left. Recovery Girl came over and healed their superficial wounds. Luffy had a few shallow cuts and Ace had bruises and cuts as well, but not on his right arm.
For the others, they weren't happy that the first group did so well, since they had to follow up on it. It was a high bar to meet. Midoriya and Bakugo would go last for All Might to rest up. Ace and Luffy won through teamwork and planning. It didn't seem like Luffy would be one to plan, but he had.
Bakugo and Midoriya, however, were not a good match. It would be difficult for them to win against anybody, not just All Might. Midoriya knew this and was apprehensive. Sabo and Hakagure were against Snipe, and Sabo pumped the whole room with thick clouds, making them rain on him and soak his gun. He manipulate the clouds inside of his weapon to soak the gunpowder while Hakagure snuck up behind him and cuffed him.
So they passed perfectly. Ace was proud of him, and gave him a high five. Law's was with Jiro, and he just chopped up Present Mic once Jiro was a distraction and Law got close enough to chop him in two and cuff him. If you were against Law, it was almost a 100% chance you would be the loser.
When Marco went, it was against Midnight, and he just blew away her sleeping gas with his wings and threw Mineta to the finish line. He did nothing, but passed regardless. All three of them had passed. Midoriya was the last one, and if he didn't pass, he'd be the only one of the four who couldn't enjoy the camp to the fullest.
The match that was watched most closely was against their homeroom teacher, who they hadn't seen use his quirk yet. He completely overpowered Kirishima and Sero. His quirk was nothing amazing sounding - it was mochi - yet he incapacitated them fully. It was merciless. Maybe even more so than All Might slamming them into buildings. The two were stuck in the ground that was made of sticky mochi as they tried to get to the exit. He had hands of mochi come up behind them. It was like they were walking through a swamp.
Ashido was able to eventually get out with her acid, but Kaminari's electricity did nothing to help him. He was trapped as the mochi sucked him in. "Get to the exit!" he shouted, sinking in further. "Hurry!"
Katakuri was in front of them, looking like a demon as he stared Ashido down. She tried spraying him with acid, but a wall of mochi was brought up. She burnt through a building's wall and ran inside to get away. But she found the exit had been covered in hardened mochi. She didn't have the time to melt it before she was stuck to the floor with her arms strung up.
So, they failed and the time ran out.
Kirishima and Sero were the others that lost. Cementos trapped them, and they both ran out of energy trying to get passed multiple cement walls. Time was up. So, four of them lost. It was two hours later that the final match was had between the two with the worst relationship in class to go up against the number one hero.
Bakugo said, "I'll leave you in the dust." He wanted to do better than Ace and Luffy did. Ace wished Midoriya good luck, and the other freckled teen nodded, giving a wobbly smile. The class sat or stood in front of the monitor, expecting a mess. But hopefully a success in the end.
Ace and Luffy had planned ahead of time, coming up with scenarios, strategies and combinations. Bakugo was ignoring Midoriya trying to talk to him. They couldn't hear what was being said. Everyone watching cringed at their relations. Teamwork was something that had been used by every other team. Even the ones that lost. Well, Marco just threw Mineta to safety.
But Bakugo and Midoriya were so out of sync that the former even hit his partner. Ace scowled and Sabo clenched his teeth. "They have no teamwork," Recovery Girl said with a sigh. The two were shouting in the middle of the main road. They should have gone through the smaller spaces. Then All Might would have a harder time getting to them, being so buff and all.
As they argued with each other, a huge gust of wind shot at them, throwing them back. It was All Might. He walked down the street at them, much of it destroyed. It was in a different grounds than the one he was with Luffy and Ace at. Bakugo and Midoriya had no sync. The explosive one wanted to fight, and Midoriya wanted to run.
They both got pummeled, but didn't split his attention in two. Midoriya had one trick, and Bakugo could only hurt someone by explosions, though they varied in intensity and deadliness. Luffy had a bunch of different attacks, not all of them punches, but he kicked and wrapped his limbs around. Ace could turn into anything and then he was able to distract All Might by pulling on heart strings.
Bakugo was the only one attacking and even then, they didn't do much damage. Not that Ace and Luffy beat him up either. The only real good attack that was landed was Ace biting his arm. He watched the disaster through his fingers. Ace finally saw Midoriya's new moves, and it was being fast so far. He hadn't landed a hit.
He fled the scene with Bakugo, who was injured from a bad punch to the stomach, unable to guard with hard scales or being made of rubber, so it did a lot of damage and made him vomit. Gross.
There were no cameras where Bakugo and Midoriya were, so they didn't know what they were doing. All Might was looking around for them, and when they finally did appear, it was messy, but they had a plan that took teamwork. But despite a good move, they were still viciously pummeled, clumsy and messing up on another's chances.
Ace was glad they finished the match before they ended up like Midoriya and Bakugo, who were viciously attacked. Ace hated it, how mindless and reckless his attacks were, hitting them in every area, into buildings. Ace gripped the part of his arm that had been ripped out. Marco pat his shoulder and said, "Your case was really unlucky. They're not likely to be hurt as bad as you were."
He knew Marco was right, and nodded, releasing his arm. The class were tired by now after their own matches and going through all of the others' matches. Once Midoriya finally managed to get away from All Might long enough to drag an unconscious Bakugo to the escape gate, they won. "They did it!" Recovery Girl got up immediately and hurried out. Their wounds did look like they needed immediate treatment. Luffy exclaimed that he was glad he was made of rubber. Ace nodded.
"I would be broken apart if I couldn't harden my skin in time. Jeez, he's brutal."
"You're lucky you ended it when you did. You might have ended up like them," Uraraka said, looking worried for Midoriya. His other three friends were, too, but trusted Recovery Girl to fix him. But this meant all four of them passed the exam, regardless of the points. They passed by completing the task, no matter how graceful or planned out it had been.
The students went back to the classroom, the last day before summer vacation, and got their things. They all had the permission slips that Ace forged the signature to tell them when to come and what to bring. Katakuri told them he'd see them in a week. "Good work today, even those who failed. Enjoy your week of vacation, but prepare to work during the camp."
"Yes, sir," they said. He called Ace over, though. Ace got his things, his backpack and left. They went to the teacher's lounge. Ace sat down across from him. He had a feeling he knew what he wanted to talk about.
"Are there any accommodations you need for the camp?"
Ace expected this. "As long as I keep my arm warm, that's preferable. I also am told to be careful everywhere I go. I don't want to do anything that could hurt it, but I know that's just not realistic with the career path and school I'm going to." He held in a sigh. "I'll tell you if I think of anything else. I need to talk to my doctor about it."
Katakuri nodded, and wished him a nice short vacation. "And you did superb today despite it being your first fight since your injury. I pit you against All Might because I believed you'd be fine. And you did more than fine. Though I do have some questions about your quirk, and your family."
Ace's face went white, and Katakuri sighed and sat back down, inviting Ace to sit. "Ace, do you have a family?" Ace didn't want to have this conversation. What if he got in trouble, or expelled for lying? "I'd really like to know, not to expel you or shame you. I want to know if I can help you. I understand if you're uncomfortable with it, but I'd like you to tell me some day. Whatever situation you're in is working for now."
Ace felt he really cared about him. "Recovery Girl knows about it and helped me, so it's not that bad." Katakuri said he trusted her judgement, and would not ask her to tell him.
"I want you to tell me when you're comfortable." Ace suddenly felt so guilty for lying. He was scared of what would happen when he was found out. Would he be expelled? Reported to the government and lose everything? Maybe he'd be forced to live with Roger in his agency, or live with Sabo. He didn't know to the extent he could get in trouble for all this time of faking. Using his quirk in such a way… was that considered immoral or illegal?
Ace caved. "I don't have a family, I live by myself. But for now, while I deal with my injuries, I live with Sabo."
"I thought so. Who signs all of your permission slips?" Ace hunched his shoulder and murmured that he did. "Then who is the woman on your contact information?" he asked. But he sounded like he knew that already. He mumbled he pretended to be that person. "With your quirk?" Ace nodded. "I assumed that you had that ability. Do you have any sort of adult who could be put on any emergency cards? Someone to contact who could help you? Sabo has his brother as his guardian."
The teen said the only adult he knew that ever showed like he cared about him was Roger. "After the injury, he found out and offered for me to move into the apartments in his agency. He also is helping me pay bills while I can't work anymore."
"You had a job?"
"I drew art for money…" he looked at his arm. "I can't do that right now, or anytime soon."
"When did you begin to live like this?" Katakuri asked. Ace didn't feel like he was in trouble at all. He honestly answered he'd been homeless for most of his life before he decided he wanted to live like a non-homeless person. "I made up Ami when I was eleven and started living on my own then."
"You've been doubling as an adult for four years?" Ace nodded. "I don't want to scare you, but bank fraud and identity fraud are illegal. But with your age when you started and motives, I doubt you'll get into legal trouble for it. For your emergency card, I would like you to put anyone you trust on it. It's important."
Ace nodded. He knew it had to be illegal, but he always convinced himself he was fine as long as he wasn't caught. "I am glad Recovery Girl is helping you with anything regarding medical issues. You need to name a guardian, though. Technically, you got into UA through fraudulent means."
Ace's face crumpled and he bit his bottom lip. "I don't think you'll be expelled for it," he said firmly. "But you cannot forge signatures anymore. Anything regarding the government, you can't pretend anymore."
"I have no other option, I don't have anyone with me," Ace said quickly, freaking out. "I've done all this work to live on my own, I can't lose all of it." Katakuri frowned, the emotion clear through his eyes even though he wore the thick scarf.
"It is still possible to have a bank account at your age, but you must have an adult signed over it. You won't lose income if it's given to you through your own means. I suggest you ask an adult that cares to help you with this. You can still live your way, but you must live legally. As it is now, your actions with your quirk are illegal." Ace nodded. "I'm not going to report it, but you have to change this soon."
Ace looked down. "I'll try." He got up and left, saying he'd see Katakuri in a week.
"I only said all of these things because I care about your future and safety." Ace said he knew that, and then left. He didn't fly his friends home that afternoon, and he didn't go shopping with everybody else. He'd be with them all at camp. Marco offered to go shopping with Ace and skip the group thing, too.
Ace appreciated that, flying to Roger's agency. He found him working, and Ace knocked on the door softly, face showing worry and fear. Roger looked up and saw him, frowning at his expression. "What is it? What's wrong?"
"I… I don't really know what to do. My teacher knows about how I live. He said I've done a lot of illegal things, especially about having a bank account. Um, you're paying money into it right now, right? Do you think… for now, that you could be the joint owner? But my account will still be mine and my money will still go to me."
Roger gave him an encouraging look and said it was just fine. "I'm not your parent, but I'll be a contact for you if you'd like." Ace looked down, balling his fists, even his right hand.
"Why do you wanna be so nice to me?" he asked. "I was just an intern, and I got hurt on the job and cost you a bunch of money."
Roger said he considered him a future sidekick, or at least a future employee. "I see my employees as a sort of informal family. And you did get hurt on the job, with me as a supervisor. I would be expected to pay for your expenses regardless." Ace turned red in the face in embarrassment about being a burden.
Everyone he didn't want to know, knew. But at least he was surrounded by kind adults, even if he saw them as a liability. "But… was I using my quirk in an illegal way?"
"It could definitely be seen that way. And if you were found out, it could affect your hero future, but if you stop that now, then nobody will find out. I'll keep your secret, and your teacher and nurse seem to think so, too. But they no doubt wish for you to not live alone. But you don't right now. And if you really can't live fully dependent on yourself anymore, I still have space in one of the units above. I'll hold one open for you."
Ace nodded. "I will still pretend… when I have to, but I won't lie or anything anymore. Well, no, I don't know. I don't know what I'm supposed to do now," Ace said, feeling lost. Roger closed the door behind him and ushered him to the sofa.
Roger got onto his computer and told Ace they were going to move his bank account under him. "You're too young to get an ID, but you are registered to the government or you wouldn't have gone to any schools. I have no idea how you've managed to live like this, even before you started to pretend, when you had no family and were homeless. I am inspired by the work and dedication you have put into living a quality life."
Ace blushed at the praise, and sat next to him and worked to move his account under Roger's, changing the name of it. "If I ever do something wrong to your bank account, anything, I encourage you to make it public. I won't do that, of course, but it's insurance on this.
"Speaking of insurance, I assume you didn't know there is child only insurance. It's where someone registers insurance only on a child. Maybe a parent can't afford to insure both themselves and their child. If you file for that, then you'll have health insurance. I can be on that, too, but you'll pay into it once you start to get your money back."
Ace said he couldn't pay for all of this if he didn't get his s back. "Then start drawing again. Work up to it. And I know people like success stories. Document your progress with your injury and make that public. I'm sure you'll have plenty of support from your fans." Ace doubted that, but that was something nobody would ever know.
He was embarrassed over what he had made money on. He never told anybody his account name. Ever. But he didn't know he could have insurance on his own. Did the doctor and Recovery Girl not know that? He was confused. But Roger was being sincere, and being a public figure made him accountable for everything he did.
If he did do wrong by Ace, he could ruin him. But Ace wasn't someone who held grudges and acted on them. He wouldn't slander Roger. He was too nice and doing too much for him. They got everything done that day. "I want you to know I'm not your boss or father with any of this. You're still independent in the way you live, but you just have the legal means and support to continue that way."
Ace nodded, and thanked him deeply. "How do I repay you?"
"You can work as a wonderful hero."
Ace nodded, and told him about how he had fought against All Might with only one arm. Roger was amazed, and Ace made a shy smile. "Now, I definitely want you to come to my agency. I told you even injured and sick people can be successful heroes." Ace said he believed it now. "Good. Now, I'm sure your friends are worried about you. I hope there's a huge weight off of your shoulders, now."
"Yeah. I feel better. Nobody is tearing down my life, just… organizing it? Making it legal." Roger nodded, and said he would keep in touch with Ace, and both of them would be notified with anything about his bank account and other things. Ace thanked him again, so sincerely, and went back to Sabo's home, his current residence.
All of his fears of living the way he did were not completely gone, but he felt safer, not doing anything illegal. At least, nothing that mattered enough to be seen by the government in any bad way.
He was glad he found somebody to like him enough to do this for him. He didn't think Roger only liked him for his quirk. He liked Ace and wanted to keep him in his agency. He was happy. Very happy. Hack gladly agreed to be an emergency contact for Ace, and Marco said his dad was willing to be one, too.
Maybe he could trust some adults. And Ace hadn't even met Marco's dad. So much had happened with his arm and narcolepsy and everything that it escaped his mind. So, he had Hack sign the card for school. Ace had lived a lucky life the last few years. Getting by when many full grown adults couldn't.
He could have been lucky by being surrounded by idiot adults. Oh well. His classmates wouldn't know, though. Only his homeroom teacher, the nurse, his friends and Roger. That evening after getting home, Ace had texted Katakuri the news. He said he was proud of Ace for acting so quickly and fixing the wrongs he had been forced to do. He recognized that Ace had felt he had no other option, and had done what he could to live somewhere other than the streets.
Ace felt a surge of trust in adults that day, for the first time in a very long time.