Aizawa knew that the conversation wouldn't end when they went separate ways that night. Toshinori didn't push the issue after Izuku's declaration, although it looked as though he definitely wanted to. Toshinori, for all his fumbling awkwardness, wasn't an idiot. He knew that he had approached the situation far too heavy handed. Pushing his opinion in that moment wouldn't have gotten him anywhere. They parted outside in a silence that Aizawa refused to acknowledge as awkward.

Dinner at the Midoriya home that night was a little tenser than usual. Midoriya didn't seem to regret his decision to reject the hero's offer, but he had been lost in his own world as Aizawa explained to Inko why they were late. Aizawa would be having a much longer conversation with Midoriya later about everything that Toshinori had said, but for now he would let his student process. He knew how much All Might had meant to his young student. That exchange was probably more of a test to Midoriya''s resolve than facing down Endeavor had been. He was bound to be in shock. Aizawa would have to talk to him in the morning.

When Aizawa finally got back to his apartment for the night he eased the door open, careful to avoid a waiting Leo. He leveled the cat with a flat look, but the oversized fluff ball simply rolled over, stretching out to block Aizawa's way. With a sigh he reached down to pick him up, hefting him over his shoulder as he stepped far enough into his kitchen to close the door behind him. "You're ridiculous. Did you know that?" Leo, of course, did not respond. "Typical."

The moment he collapsed on his couch he was instantly surrounded. Marlo curled up with his head tucked under Aizawa's chin. Leo hurled himself from the floor to drape himself over Aizawa's feet. Maruand Mochi both stared at him for a moment before settling on his stomach and the back of the couch, respectively.

He really should go lie down in his bed. Maybe make sure the cats hadn't dragged their food around half the house, but that all seemed like too much effort. He could worry about that in the morning as well. For now all he wanted to do was close his eyes and rest.

Aizawa didn't know what time his phone started ringing, but he didn't need to know the exact time to recognize that it was too damn early for that nonsense. The sound currently ruining the beautiful silence of his apartment wasn't the ringtone Hizashi had recorded for himself. It wasn't Midoriya's blaring alarm or Inko's soft chime either, and for a full three rings Aizawa considered how much extra trouble he might cause for himself by not answering the phone.

In the end he pushed himself off his sofa with a groan, dislodging the cats that had swapped positions during the night. Every time he fell asleep on his couch he swore he wouldn't do it again, but each time the promise of immediate sleep spoke louder than the reminder that he would regret that choice in the morning. Promising himself that that really had been the last time, Aizawa fumbled for this phone. "Aizawa," he answered, and if the person on the other end of the line had a problem with the gruff tone in his voice they shouldn't have called so early in the morning.

"Aizawa-san!" The voice on the other end boomed. And that. That had not been what Aizawa had expected, even if he had known that the conversation from the night before wasn't really over. "I'm sorry. Did I wake you?"

"I sleep in on the weekends," Aizawa replied, heading into his kitchen. If he was going to have to be awake right now he might as well make coffee, and feed the house monsters before they became too demanding.

"Aizawa-san, it's two in the afternoon?"

He glanced at his stove clock. "Ah. It is. Was there a reason you were calling, Yagi-san?" Let no one claim that Aizawa couldn't be polite in the morning.

"You know I remember you," Toshinori started, "back in your internship days. You and Yamada-san were inseparable even then, weren't you? I had been out of Yuuei for a long while by that point, and it's easy to forget what it's like as a student. How quickly time seems to pass."

This was not the conversation Aizawa had been expecting to get from Toshinori. "I wasn't your intern, Yagi-san."

Toshinori laughed. "No. You weren't. I'm afraid I wouldn't have been the best mentor for you if I had been. That's part of the reason why I'm calling, actually. I wanted to apologize for how I handled everything last night."

"I mean no offense, Yagi-san, but I'm not the one that needs the apology." Aizawa switched the phone to his other hand as he leaned back against the counter. "I've worked with Midoriya for almost two years. I don't know what exactly Nedzu said to you or showed you, but I don't think you have a very clear picture of the situation. If I believed for even a second that Midoriya would be in an unnecessary level of danger I would have ended our training then and there. He's gone above and beyond to prove that he's capable of hero work without a quirk. Will he be able to fight the type of villains you tend to get caught up with? Of course not. He knows that. That's not his goal here."

There was silence on the other end of the line for a moment. "I didn't mean to imply that the work he has been doing wasn't worth anything. It's incredibly impressive that he's been able to come so far in just a short period of time. I just-" A heavy sigh filtered through the line. "I know that I didn't explain my position very well last night, but do you understand what I was trying to say? Midoriya is on a track now to make history, but there's only so much he's going to be able to do without a quirk. There's only so many people that he's going to be able to help. I'm not trying to downplay his accomplishments, but that's the reality of our lives as heroes. I'm in the situation that I'm in now because even with a quirk like One for All it almost wasn't enough."

Toshinori paused, waiting to see of Aizawa would interrupt, but continued when no interjections came. "I'm not claiming to know Midoriya as well as you, but I know what he did at the mall. That tells me a lot about the kind of person he is. At the first sign of danger, he threw himself into the struggle without thinking. One day he's going to do that and the villain isn't going to be someone as easily beaten as the Terror Twins. I should have come to you first, I will admit that, but don't you see how this is an opportunity for him? I can see no better successor to this power than a person who wholeheartedly wants to do good simply because it's the right thing to do. If it ends up saving his life one day, won't that all be worth it?"

Aizawa couldn't help but wonder what the outcome would have been if Toshinori had approached their conversation the previous night in this manner. He had valid points. While Aizawa believed without a hint of doubt that Midoriya was capable of everything he dreamed of accomplishing as a hero and more, he couldn't ignore the benefits that would come with having a quirk. Or the implications of such an ability. When he agreed to train Midoriya he never expected this to be the kind of decision he would have to help his student navigate. Not for the first time since they started working together Aizawa hoped that he wasn't leading his student astray.

"There's also the added danger that comes with it as well. Secrets like that can't stay secret forever, build and build, and in the end someone is going to get hurt. How old were you when that legacy became your responsibility? You had to have been a child too. Did you know then what you were signing up for? The target that you would become? It's Midoriya's decision whether he accepts your offer or not, but in my opinion he made the right choice. His path might not be the same as every other Yuuei student, and he's going to have a lot of obstacles to overcome, but it's his."

"I really did just call to apologize, Aizawa-san. I won't push the subject with Midoriya. He has made his decision, and I respect that. I will start my search for a successor when the new school year begins. Which brings me back to my apology. Not only did I not handle the importance of this issue appropriate, I'm afraid I might have have offended you unintentionally. As I said before, I seem to forget the time that has passed. I might still remember you as that quiet intern, but you aren't a student anymore, Aizawa-san. I wanted to ensure you that that slip up will not happen again. We are going to be colleagues this school year, but I am the one that will have much to learn. I hope that you'll forgive an old man his are a few I'm still working on breaking, unfortunately."

Aizawa sighed, closing his eyes. There really were too many similarities between the number one hero and his student. Both so earnest, so wrapped up in their own heads sometimes that they didn't see what was right in front of them. Aizawa could still feel his anger from the earlier night bubbling under the surface. As well intended as Toshinori's actions had been Aizawa had always been slow to anger and slow to forgive. Understanding the hero didn't mean that that anger had vanished. He could push it aside for now though. For Izuku.

"Like I said," Aizawa answered, keeping his eyes closed. Maybe he could go back to sleep and this whole mess would have simply been a dream. "I'm not the one you owe the apology too."

Izuku had been expecting a visit from Aizawa, but when the hero had called to tell him that he wouldn't be by until later that night he couldn't help but be relieved. He wanted to see Aizawa. Of course he did. But he knew what his mentor would want to talk about, and Izuku wasn't sure if he wanted that discussion brought up so soon. They would have to talk about it, he knew they would, but what was he supposed to say?

Aizawa had to have filled his mother in on the basics of why they were late, but Izuku couldn't recall a single word that he had said. All throughout dinner he had sat silently, pushing his food around his plate as he went over what had happened again and again. All Might had offered him a quirk. His quirk. And Izuku had turned him down.

He didn't regret his decision. Izuku may not have had the time to really think through what was happening, but in this instance he trusted his gut instinct. Maybe if he hadn't met Aizawa, if things in his life had gone differently. Now though, he just couldn't picture it. His dream had changed, if only a little, and he would do what he could to see it through. Even if All Might didn't believe in him. All Might didn't know him, not really, and there would be plenty of people who doubted him once he started at Yuuei officially. They were bound to be less polite about it than All Might had been, and probably more vocal as well. Better to get used to it now.

Izuku had just been considering what excuse he could give to Aizawa to postpone their inevitable conversation when the doorbell rang. His mother had gone to the grocery store not long ago for some last minute shopping before dinner, and Hizashi and Aizawa had long since been annoyed into simply letting themselves in when they came to visit. Inko had argued since Izuku had a key to both of their apartments it was only fair they had one to the Midoriya household as well, and did they really want to make her go through the effort of opening the door when they could do it? She didn't think so.

Hesitating for only a second to grab his phone, Izuku crept as silently as he could towards the door. Mei would have made fun of him once again for being paranoid, but he wasn't taking any chances. Nothing in his life could be easy, that much had long been established. Who's to say there wasn't a chance that a random villain had shown up at his apartment? With his track record, Izuku would have believed it.

It wasn't a villain standing at his front door as Izuku glance through the peephole though, and he stepped back quickly to open the door. "All Might?"

"Shhh. Not so loud, my boy." The hero stood in the same form as when he had first approached Izuku the day before-thin, pale, clothes hanging loosely off his emaciated frame. The image wasn't any less shocking than before, and Izuku could only stand in his doorway, eyes wide, as All Might continued. "I don't mean to come here unannounced, but I promise that I spoke to both your mother and Aizawa-san before I decided to come. Would you be okay talking to me for a moment?"

Words and his brain were not in agreement at the sight of All Might standing at his front door, so Izuku stepped out of the way and gestured for the hero to follow him inside. Well. That would explain why his mother had disappeared so suddenly. He almost wanted to be angry that she had left him alone, with no warning, but he understood why she had done it. He wouldn't have been able to talk to All Might if she had been there watching, the pressure of too many eyes pressing down on him. And if he had known it was coming he would have worked himself up before All Might had even arrived.

Izuku headed for the kitchen without thinking and All Might followed. "Would you like a cup of tea?" He asked, busying himself with the kettle. It was easier to talk when he wasn't looking at him. Easier to forget who was currently pulling out a chair to sit at his kitchen table. His mother had always said that a cup of tea would make any conversation better. This was as good of a test for that as any.

"That would be great, Midoriya-kun."

They didn't speak again until they both had a mug cooling in front of them. Izuku twisted the cup by the handle, watching the steam rise. All Might had come to him, so clearly he had something more he wanted to say. Izuku just wished he would get in with it, because every passing second his thought became more and more scattered.

"I wanted to apologize, Midoriya-kun," All Might finally said. Izuku finally looked up to see the hero looking down at the table too, his voice quiet. "It's no excuse, but as your teacher reminded me, I seem to get ahead of myself sometimes. My explanation last night did not...I spoke harshly, and I'm afraid that my words did not come across as I intended. Would you allow me the chance to explain better?"

"I still can't accept your quirk," Izuku answered. "Not after everything I've done."

"That's not why I'm here."

If he wasn't going to ask again...Izuku wasn't sure how long his resolve would last if All Might pushed the issue, but if that really wasn't why he wanted to talk to him… Izuku nodded slowly, picking up his mug so that he could feel the warmth against his skin, grounding him.

"When I was younger, I like to think that I was a lot like you, Midoriya-kun." All Might still stared at the table as he spoke, fingers tightening around his cup. "I didn't have your analytical skills, unfortunately, but I was stubborn. I wanted to be a hero more than anything. I wanted to know that I was making a difference in the world, that I was doing everything I could to help the people who needed it." He looked up finally, blue eyes finding Izuku's. "I was also quirkless."

Izuku choked on his tea, but All Might carried on as if he hadn't noticed.

"It wasn't quite the same as it is now. The number of quirkless children has dropped pretty significantly from when I was a kid. Some things probably haven't changed though. I was bullied, for lack of a better word, my a lot of my classmates. You might have noticed that I tend to make a scene?" He laughed, but it wasn't the confidant, almost boastful laugh that Izuku had grown used to hearing on TV. "That wasn't something that started when I got One for All. I wasn't the only quirkless kid in my class, but I was the one targeted the most. Maybe because I was still very outspoken about still wanting to be a hero. Maybe because I was the only one that pushed back. I don't know."

He couldn't picture it. A young All Might bullied for being quirkless.

"There was...an incident at the end of middle school and, well, that's not important. The point is, I gave up. After years of pushing, and fighting, and claiming that I was going to be a hero no matter what anyone said, I let them ruin my dream. I didn't even apply to Yuuei for my first year of high school. Not right away. My mentor, the one that passed on One for All, she found me at the start of my first year. I still don't know what she saw in me. What exactly made her decided that I was the one, but she gave me her quirk and I transfered into Yuuei the next year."

All Might pushed his mug away, folding his hands in front of him as he sighed. "I know that I should have been taken more care with how I spoke to you and Aizawa-san yesterday, but it seems I let myself fall into that same rut from so many years ago. After so many years it seems that I've forgotten my own history. I wanted you to be my successor because I saw in you what I wished I had been, and while I still think that you would be an excellent choice for this responsibility, it wasn't right of me to assume that my failures would be your own. The road ahead of you is going to be hard, Midoriya, I won't lie to you about that. Accepting One for All would be the safer choice, but you're choosing the path that I wasn't brave enough to fight for, and there is so much for you to be proud of. So I wanted to apologize. I got caught up in the moment and let the idea of you as my successor get the better of my judgement. I saw your face, heard Aizawa-san's reaction. I realized that I hadn't approached the situation as I should have, and I wanted to make it right. You've got so much potential, Midoriya. I hope that some thoughtless words from me didn't make you doubt that."

Izuku stared at All Might for almost a full minute, barely breathing as he processed what the hero had said, then promptly burst into tears.

"Midoriya? Midoriya, are you okay? I'm sorry! I didn't mean!"

The breakdown had been a long time coming after the surprises of the day before, the frustration of not knowing what was going on, the stress of his rejection keeping him up all night. Izuku would have preferred not sobbing in front of his childhood hero, but the flustered, embarrassed expression on All Might's face as he tried to apologize had him hiccuping a laugh through the tears.

"I'm-I'm okay. You just, you're here? And you were quirkless? And this is all too much," Izuku said after a moment, running his sleeve across his face. "This is too much at once, and I need there to be no more surprises for a little while. I can't process anything else. I really appreciate you coming him, All Might. It means a lot to me. But I-none of this makes sense. How did my life get like this?"

"My boy," All Might said, leaning across the table. "This is just the beginning. Things are going to change once you get to Yuuei, but from what I can tell you won't have to go through it alone. You have your mother, Aizawa-san. Yamada. Your friend. Hatsume? And if you'll have me, I'll do everything I can to help you succeed. Accepting One for All isn't a condition for my support."

When Inko came home half an hour later to All Might and Izuku still sitting at their kitchen table Izuku was just starting to walk him through what had really happened during the mall attack. She smiled as she watched them, setting him bags of groceries on the counter and turned to the two of them, clearing her throat to turn their attention away from Izuku's story.

"Dinner is going to be in half an hour, Yagi-san. I hope you like katsudon. It's Izuku's favorite."

All Might startled at her words, starting to stand. "I couldn't-"

Inko smiled. "I think you'll find, Yagi-san, that it will be easier just to agree. Saves time. Aizawa-san and Hizashi-san have both learned that lesson well. I'm sure you'll catch on soon enough. Now what was this about Mei?"

AN: So this is about half of what was originally supposed to be in this chapter? If I had included everything I had originally planned it would have been over 7k so I decided to split it up. The other half is mostly written and will be posted on Wednesday. I hope this answers some questions people had about All Might's actions last chapter, although I still have a few aspects of their conversation and his actions that will be addressed later. I have also taken some liberties with his back story. All will be explain eventually.

Thanks to everyone who commented on the last chapter!