A/N: Hello everybody! This is... erm... day 8? 9? Of consecutive updates! I've finally caught up to Viridian, and this is the last pre-written chapter of Swan Dive. Oof. I'll get to work (already working on, actually) on writing the new chapters for everyone to keep these consecutive updates going~!

I am LOVING all the fanart, people! This is amazing! I squee in joy every time I see it, I swear to Time.

Now, I've had people ask me about Izuku's pairing. To put it simply, there is none. I don't typically focus on romance and the like, and I want everyone to be able to enjoy reading my stories without worrying about pairings and OTP vs NOTP.

I wonder how many of my now 300+ Tiktok followers are you guys? Cuz, I've had this app for 6 days, and I'm already at 300. wtf? I'm also now thinking of trying my hand at a Villain!Deku cosplay. Lemme know what you think?

I'll put a link at the end with all the fanart you guys have sent me. :) If you've got more, please send it to aizawa along with whatever username you'd like me to credit it to. ^^ [watch me be so excited that I totally forget to link the stuff and have to go back and edit it in].

We finally have the long-awaited Trauma Meeting! Whooo! The plot is finally moving! All RIGHT! :D

Also, who here loves Hetalia? Hetalia is my first love (check out my fics on it). Just thought I'd put that out there.

How's everyone holding up? I know I ask every chapter, but I really do care about all of you guys—you're my friends. And I care about you. Seriously, you readers are my social circle. I really hope to meet as many of you irl as I can. :3 and then we can all cosplay together and stuff, too~ Even a closet cosplay! (what my Present Mic cosplay is rn. Oof. Just glad I'm naturally blonde, so I already kinda look like him).

Love you all~! See you tomorrow (on some story, idk which one yet).

Izuku paced around the kitchen, looking for something to do. He was so freaking nervous. Once the exam had ended, he was fairly confident in his own performance. He'd kept a half-assed tally of his points going, and he figured he got at least 40. Surely, that was enough to get in… right? But what if it wasn't? What if being Quirkless knocked off points?! What if—

"You're muttering again." Shouta said as he entered the room. "Relax, Cub. Nobody's knocked off your points. The rest of the staff don't even know you're Quirkless, yet. I won't tell them without your permission."

"Well, you're gonna have to tell them if I get in." Izuku sighed.

"Going to. Not 'gonna'." Hizashi corrected with a smirk.

"Don't be a hypocrite." Izuku shot back with an eye roll for good measure. "You say it, too."

"Yes, but I'm also a teacher. And if I catch that kind of language in my classroom, I'm gonna lecture you." He warned with a playful grin.

"If I end up in your classroom." Izuku sighed, suddenly feeling his anxiety coming back full force. He absently rubbed his wrist to remind himself that things could be a lot worse.

"Mail's here~" Mama Nem sang as she came inside with Nana Chiyo. Izuku perked up.

"And look! One is from U.A.! I wonder what this could be? Maybe it's a letter for your parents?" Nana teased, a knowing smirk on her face.

"NANA!" Izuku complained as he reached for the letter. Nana chuckled as she handed it over. Izuku made a beeline for the couch. He wanted to open it with his family.

Everyone eagerly gathered around, Yuki taking his customary spot on his shoulders. Pa even had his phone out, and was recording. Great.

He hesitated as he went to open the letter.

"What's wrong, Little Listener?"

"I… What if I didn't get in?" All the doubts that'd been swirling in the back of his mind over the last few weeks suddenly made themselves known again.

"Trust me, Cub, you did fine." Shouta ruffled his hair. He looked up into the faces of his family. Yuki curled his tail around Izuku's neck in a reminder that he was there, too.

"Thanks, guys." He smiled before opening the letter.

A heavy disk fell out, and he carefully placed it on the table. A moment later, a projection appeared. "I AM HERE AS A PROJECTION!" All Might's grinning face made Izuku blink in shock. He double-checked the envelope.

"This is from U.A., right?" Shouta sighed and Hizashi chuckled.

He listened as All Might explained about the points and how he passed. But then he also explained about the Rescue Points, which shot Izuku up to First Place, tied with Kacchan.

"Welcome! To your Hero Academia!" All Might grinned before the projection cut off. Izuku blinked as this realization sank in.

"I GOT IN!" He grinned, and the rest of his family shared his enthusiasm.

"I think this calls for a PAR-TAY!" Hizashi grinned, not even minding that Shouta had to cancel out his Quirk… again.

"Yeah. I think it does." Shouta grinned back, pulling Izuku into a hug. "You have no idea how hard it was not to tell you."

"I have to call Kacchan!" Izuku bounced in his seat.

"Hold on, you haven't even read the official letter yet!" Nemuri laughed as she handed over the folded paper.

"Oh. Right." He opened it and skimmed through the official stuff about his uniform and books and the like. He found a small hand-written note tucked into the folds of the official letter.

'Congratulations, Yamazawa-kun! I knew you could do it! I wanted to be the first person outside of your family to congratulate your monumentous achievement! This is no small feat, especially for someone without a Quirk. Rest assured, that played no part in your enrollment. Though this does make you U.A.'s FIRST Quirkless Hero Course Student. Actually, I believe this makes you U.A.'s first Quirkless student regardless. Good Job! This is a fantastic first step, and I hope you enjoy our private lessons together. Your altered schedule will be given to you by your father after your first day. Of course, I look forward to seeing Yuki-kun as well. All the paperwork has gone through, and he is officially your Hero Partner. So please do bring him to school, too. His specialized collar will arrive in the mail with your uniform within the next few days.

Have a wonderful day! Welcome to U.A.'s Hero Class 1–A.

–Principal Nezu'

Izuku blinked and stared before silently handing it over to Hizashi. "I'm U.A.'s first Quirkless student?" He breathed. He'd expected others to have at least made it into the General Education course or something. Maybe Support… He wondered if they were too intimidated or bullied too fiercely to try.

"YEAH!" Hizashi cried out with boundless energy, making them glare at him. "Sorry." He apologized meekly. "But Yuki can come along with you, too! PLUS, you're in Shouta's class!"

"Wait, he is?" Shouta took the letter with raised eyebrows. "Not that I'm not happy with that, but usually he doesn't put family together."

"Maybe it's because of the whole kidnapping thing?" Izuku guessed, and a few of the others shifted uncomfortably at the reminder.

"More than likely." Shouta nodded, not at all bothered by the topic. "After all, I can recognize when something's wrong a lot faster than anyone else."

"I think your placement had a lot to do with it, too." Nemuri chimed in. "You got FIRST PLACE in the Entrance Exam!"

"So did Kacchan."

"But you both broke the record." Nana pointed out.

"Okay, I guess that's fair." Izuku relented.

"Oh! I'm so proud of you, Izuku!" Nemuri grinned as she scooped Izuku up into a hug.

"Thanks, Ma." He grinned back at her.

"Go call Katsuki while I call Mitsuki and set up a party." Hizashi shared a conspiratorial grin with Nemuri as she put him back down. His Pa got along with Mitsuki strikingly well, though in a different way than he had with Izuku's mom. Izuku assumed it was because Hizashi was just the kind of guy that could get along with anyone.

Izuku didn't need to be told twice as he dashed off to his room and dialed Kacchan's number.

"Did you get in?" Was how Kacchan answered the phone.

"YES! We tied for points in First Place! Class 1–A. You?"

"Psh! Like there was ever any question! Class 1–A, bitch!" He could hear his brother's grin.

"Apparently, I'm the first Quirkless student U.A. has ever had."

"Really?" He could hear the surprise in Kacchan's voice.

"Yep! Principal Nezu himself wrote me a little note."

"Damn, Zukkun, you just keep getting all the fucking luck. It's like your hard work is being rewarded by the universe or some bullshit like that."

"Maybe it is?" Izuku smiled softly. "Either way, we need to celebrate."

"We're going to show all of U.A. just what we're made of!" Kacchan laughed.

"No, Kacchan." He paused before smirking. "We're going to show the world what we're made of. And I'm going to prove to the world that Quirkless isn't worthless! I'll give hope to every Quirkless kid that wants to be a hero, too!"

"Yeah! PLUS ULTRA!" Kacchan cheered.

"PLUS ULTRA!" Izuku cried back.

Elsewhere, a purple haired boy stared in disappointment at his Hero Course rejection letter. He'd been one point away from the Hero Course. His hard work… everything was for nothing… Stop it. He swiped the tears. There's still the Sports Festival. Not for the first time, the green-haired boy's smile came to mind. I'll prove them wrong. I will become a hero. I promise.

Izuku was really lost. Where the hell was his classroom? He wished Kacchan was here, but they'd decided to arrive separately on their first day. Izuku hadn't really minded—he was just excited to be there in the first place.

But now he couldn't find his classroom, and he was sure he'd passed down this hallway before. "Any idea where we are, Yuki?" He asked his companion as he lazed on Izuku's shoulder, nestled happily in his Capture Weapon. The cat gave a meow that Izuku took to mean no.

"Hey, are you lost?" Izuku whirled around, seeing a very plain looking blond kid in a U.A. uniform. He looked older; maybe he was a second or third year?

"Yeah. I'm trying to find Class 1–A…"

"Oh! I know where that is!" He grinned. "I'm Togata Mirio! Third year, Class 3–A!"

"Nice to meet you! I'm Yamazawa Izuku, First Year, Class 1–A, and this is my Hero Partner, Yuki!" Said cat lifted his head from Izuku's shoulder.

"Hi, Yuki!" He grinned. Yuki meowed a greeting back.

They chatted a little as Togata-senpai—who seemed really nice—showed him to his classroom.

"I'd suggest getting to your seat as quickly as possible. The teacher of 1–A is very strict." Izuku bit back a chuckle as he reached up to pet Yuki—his new U.A. collar proudly marked him as a Hero Partner-in-training.

"Thank you, Togata-senpai."

"Call me Mirio!" He grinned back with a wave as he dashed off to his class.

Izuku smiled as he opened the door to his new homeroom. He instantly zeroed in on Kacchan, who was being lectured by that blue-haired kid from the auditorium.

Kacchan was apparently being disrespectful or something (though Izuku couldn't see how, because he was seated at his desk properly), and the blue-haired kid was throwing a small fit over it.

Izuku went to go to his own desk, when the kid—whose name was apparently Iida (why was that name familiar?)—decided that Kacchan was a lost cause and focused his attention on Izuku.

"I'm terribly sorry for misjudging you!" He gave a perfect ninety-degree bow. Izuku raised an eyebrow. "You saw the true purpose of that test, and I acknowledge you as my better!" He eyed Izuku's Capture Weapon and Yuki. "I don't believe that animals are allowed in school, and that scarf is not part of the uniform." He gave Izuku a disapproving look.

"I've got permission to wear this scarf at school." He answered simply as he scratched under Yuki's chin. "And Yuki is my registered Hero Partner. Please treat him with respect."

"I see. Then I'm terribly sorry for assuming!"

"Look, sensei will be here any minute, and I want to be seated when he arrives." Izuku spoke up, fully aware of his dad peeking in through the door from… the… floor? He risked a quick glance at his dad with a raised eyebrow. Yep. He was on the floor in that yellow sleeping bag his mom had gotten for him.

"You're completely right!" Iida realized with a glance at the clock.

Izuku didn't get the chance to take his seat after all, as his dad scooted into the room, slowly drawing the attention of his classmates.

"Eight seconds." He stated as the class finally quieted down. "It took you eight seconds to quiet down. If you're here to socialize, then get out. This is the Hero Course. Time is precious, do not waste it." Aizawa-sensei—as Izuku had to call him at school—leveled the room with a glare as he unzipped his sleeping bag and stepped out. "My name is Aizawa Shouta, and I'm your homeroom teacher. Now put these on and meet me out on the field." He dumped a bunch of gym uniforms on his desk before shoving his hands in his pockets and exiting the room. Izuku barely stopped his fond chuckle. Kacchan snickered quietly as they went up and grabbed the gym uniforms that'd fit them best before running out to the changing rooms.

The two of them were the first out on the field—when Aizawa said 'time is precious', he really meant, 'don't waste any time'. So they changed as fast as possible, running out of the changing rooms just as the others made their way to them. Aizawa-sensei gave them a subtle nod of approval.

Izuku tuned out his little speech on the test—he'd heard him practicing it once or twice before. He smirked as Kacchan chucked the ball with his Quirk, getting an impressive distance of over 700 meters. Izuku was a little excited, himself, ready to test himself against his Quirked classmates.

Yuki watched with interest as he sat by Shouta's feet. "This is going to be fun!" One girl said with a grin, but Izuku internally winced. His dad wouldn't like that.

"Fun?" Ooooh, yeah… that was the 'not happy' look all right. "You think this is about fun? Fine. How about we raise the stakes, then? The person with the lowest score across the board will be expelled."

Yep. There's good ol' dad. Same guy who expelled his entire class last year. Izuku grinned, ignoring the shiver that ran down Kacchan's spine. He was excited to prove himself. To test himself and grow stronger.

"That's not fair!" Some girl cried out, and Izuku felt himself stiffen.

"Fair?" Shouta's eyes narrowed. "You think earthquakes and natural disasters are fair? That Villains are fair? They won't go easy on you because you just got off a thirteen-hour long patrol. They aren't going to wait to blow up an office building until tomorrow because you've exhausted yourself rescuing a school full of children." Shouta glared. "Life isn't fair. It's the job of a hero to level the playing field as much as possible. You will have to deal with unfairness every day."

Izuku fully agreed, his mind flashing to Hisashi for a brief moment. Villains don't fight fair. His mind also flickered to another thought. So why should we?

Izuku waited until they were about to start and locked eyes with his dad, tapping his Capture Weapon with a raised eyebrow.

They were lining up to race. "On these tests, do whatever you want, as long as you physically stay within bounds."

'Do you want me to test them?' Izuku discreetly signed to his dad, using Hero Sign, like they did on patrol. Shouta looked contemplative for a moment before minutely shaking his head. Izuku half-pouted. 'Fine. I'll play fair.'

Izuku pulled out all the stops for the assessment. He wasn't first by a long shot, but he wasn't last, either. He used his scarf whenever he could (which was hilarious when his classmates saw it move for the first time, because someone called it cheating before his dad quickly shut them up by reminding him that he said anything goes), and it helped (especially with things like the ball toss), but he couldn't help but feel like he was still too far behind the rest of his class.

(Illogical, he told himself. He was behind in this aspect because he lacked a Quirk, but in an actual fight, he could still match or surpass them, depending on the circumstances).

By the time the results were shown, Izuku was in the top 15, and that was good enough for him—at least he wasn't at the very bottom. Last place was the kid with purple hair who gave off a lecherous vibe that Izuku had felt from several villains during many of his dad's patrols. Izuku found himself wondering how the kid even managed to get into U.A. in the first place. Didn't the #1 Hero school hold itself to a higher standard than this?

The kids quieted down as they found their spots on the list.

"Now, Mineta." Shouta spoke. "You have zero potential as a hero. Go collect your things and go home. You're expelled."

"Y-you mean you were serious?!" Yaoyorozu gasped.

"Why wouldn't he be?" Kacchan asked, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't you know? Aizawa-sensei is notorious in U.A. for expelling students that he doesn't see potential in. Last year, he expelled the entire 1–A Heroics class."

"H-he what?" The guy with the electric Quirk, Kaminari, gasped.

"Is that even allowed?!" Ashido, the girl with the Acid Quirk, reeled back in surprise.

"You can collect your syllabus from the classroom. Keep up the good work, and you'll become heroes one day. Slack off, and I won't hesitate to cut you from the Hero Program, if not from U.A. altogether." Aizawa paused as he turned around. He looked over his shoulder, a devilish smirk on his lips. "Welcome to Class 1–A."

That probably shouldn't have sounded as intimidating as it did.

"Oh. Yamazawa." He said, and Izuku paused to look at his dad. "Take this slip and run the extra syllabus to class 1–C. We'll be filling our class gap immediately."

"Hai!" Izuku shot him a grin over his shoulder as he ran off to find 1–C. It took him a bit before he found his Pa's class. The students had only just gotten back from orientation. He carefully opened the door.

"Iz–Yamazawa-kun! What can I do for you today?" Yamada-sensei asked, catching his slip up. Izuku hid his fond smile in his Capture Weapon.

"I've been told to get a…" He looked at the paper. "Shinso Hitoshi?" He looked up, and spotted that same purple-haired kid from the park bench.

"That's me." He stood up.

"Oh? And why?" Yamada-sensei asked, as Izuku handed him the slip. He grinned. "Well, Shinso-kun. It's been fun, but it looks like you're transferring to the Heroics Course starting today!" He grinned, and the kid nearly fell back into his chair in shock. "I'm sure Yamazawa-kun, here, will explain everything as he takes you to your next class. Have fun~"

Several students sent him disbelieving and jealous glares as he packed his things.

"I'll have the rest of you know that U.A. has a zero tolerance for bullying and discrimination. If I find anyone even attempting to retaliate against Shinso-kun for his transfer, I'll have you expelled. He's being transferred because there is apparently an open spot, and he was the next highest score."

The two boys booked it out of that classroom fairly quickly. "You're from the park." He said, and Izuku grinned.

"Yeah. Yamazawa Izuku! Nice to meet you! Welcome to Class 1–A!"

"Shinso Hitoshi. I… I still can't believe it. I thought I'd have to wait until the Sports Festival."

"Yeah, Aizawa-sensei expelled someone today, so there was an opening." Shinso winced. "Don't worry! He's a lot nicer than he seems. As long as you put your all into something, he'll help you." Izuku reassured.

"You seem to know an awful lot about him."

"Ehehe…" Izuku rubbed the back of his neck. "Eraserhead is my favorite hero. I plan to go into Underground Heroics like him."

"Same here. I want to go Underground. My Quirk is better suited to that field."

Before Izuku had the chance to ask him about his Quirk, they arrived at the classroom. "We'll have to trade numbers later, yeah?" He grinned.

"Y-yeah." Shinso sent him a small smile.

Shouta was actually a little bit more impressed with his class than he'd expected himself to be. Sure, the kids had a long ways to go, but most of them showed some potential. Maybe he'd actually keep more than six students this year?

He sighed as he cracked his lower back. Children were exhausting. His own son was fine, he understood responsibility and professionalism. He'd been amused by his son's antics during the assessment. Underground heroes in particular needed to know how to use underhanded tactics and dirty tricks to get the upper hand, though most limelight heroes would frown upon it, and he knew his son was willing to do such things should he be allowed to. Shouta had made sure to teach his son this early, and make sure that he knew what was okay and what was going too far.

When Izuku had asked him if he wanted him to test his classmates, he was asking Shouta if he wanted him to sabotage them and see how they'd react. He was sorely tempted, but he'd save that for later on in the year. Mostly because he didn't want to form a wedge between Izuku and his classmates before the year had even truly begun. His son deserved friends, after all.

Underground Heroes were often the grey area between Hero and Vigilante. They were pretty much officially recognized and licensed vigilantes, so almost all of them knew how to fight dirty. Even Shouta, himself, would honestly view himself more as a vigilante than a hero some days, if only because his views of heroics and the like were more aligned with theirs.

There was a reason Underground Heroes were called the 'shadows of heroics'.

But that was beside the point. Now he had to head into the first teacher's meeting of the year, informally called the 'Trauma Meeting' because this was where they brought up any initial concerns or knowledge of a student's home life or past.

Shouta had gotten Izuku's permission to tell them everything. From the way they met, to their kidnapping. Hound Dog would be relieved to know that Izuku was already seeing a Hero Counselor.

Speaking of, Izuku was utilizing U.A.'s gym, at the moment, while waiting for him and Zashi to get out of said meeting. He trusted his son not to do anything stupid, and it'd do the kid some good to get the extra training in. He knew about the time the meeting would be over, and he could come and rest in the Staff Room if he wanted to, as well.

With a sigh, he opened the door to the meeting room and took his seat beside Hizashi. Immediately he found a warm hand wrapped around his own. He was grateful; Hizashi knew this was going to be an eventful meeting. Shouta wasn't the kind of man to share personal things, but he didn't really have much of a choice, here.

"All right! Let's get this meeting started!" Nezu spoke up. Shouta listened with one ear as the teachers went around, listing their concerns for students while pointing out ones that may be trouble, or ones who were particularly bright.

It seemed Power Loader had a very bright troublemaker this year, too. "She blew up the lab four times! We weren't even working on anything!" He cried. "But her inventions are unbelievable… she's brilliant."

"High praise coming from you." Sekijiro grinned.

They worked their way up by class in reverse alphabetical order, so Shouta was the last one to go. He did smirk a bit as Sekijiro lamented the fact that one of his students seemed to be particularly antagonistic.

"Okay, Shouta. Your turn—if you've got any students remaining, this year." Sekijiro laughed.

"Of course he does. His son is in his class, after all." Thirteen teased.

"I've only expelled Mineta Minoru so far. He not only put in zero effort on the test, but he also made several inappropriate comments and continued to harass the girls." Several teachers winced, remembering the incident from last year. Shouta decided to continue. "I've replaced him with Shinso Hitoshi from Class 1–C. He was the next highest score on the Heroics Exam, despite his lack of an offensive Quirk. I've already filed the paperwork."

"There are several Problem Children in my class, it seems. My first concern is Todoroki Shoto." A few eyebrows went up at that. "He's cold and aloof and doesn't seem interested in socializing at all. Normally, I'd credit that to ego, but here I feel it may be abuse."

"You think Endeavor abused his son?" Ectoplasm tilted his head in surprise.

"I'm not sure, yet. But he refused to use his fire on any of the tests. It's a possibility, so please keep an eye out just in case. I could be overanalyzing things, after all." He paused, waiting for that to settle in.

"Bakugo Katsuki. He's got some anger issues, and he's going to counseling for it right now. He's improving, but try to help him curb his nasty language, too."

"He's your son's best friend, right?" Cementoss asked.

"Yes." Shouta took a very deep breath. "Which brings me to my other topic. My own Problem Child—Yamazawa Izuku." The room shifted in confusion. "I have his permission to tell you all this."

"You said that you'd discuss the circumstances that you met him under…" Cementoss remembered.

"I met him two years ago. But first, to understand the situation, you need to know that Izuku is Quirkless."

"Quirkless?" Snipe blinked in surprise. "He's pretty damn talented. I wonder how well he can shoot a gun?"

"A-are you sure your son should be going into heroics? It's very dangerous even with a Quirk." All Might may have spoken out of concern, but it rubbed Shouta the wrong way.

Apparently, it also rubbed Hizashi the wrong way. "I don't want to hear you judge my son for being Quirkless." Hizashi snapped, an angry scowl on his face.

The room flinched back. Hizashi wasn't the kind of man who was easily angered, and he was a fairly non-confrontational person, as a general rule. He was the friendly guy with a smile who always had something positive to say. So seeing him angry at anyone was a shock.

"I-I didn't intend for it to come across that way. My deepest apologies." Yagi quickly bowed before retaking his seat.

Shouta gently put a hand on Hizashi's arm. "Firstly, he's planning to go into Underground Heroics, so keep that in mind as you teach him, All Might. He won't become a limelight hero. Secondly, while your concern is appreciated, it is not wanted. We're both still angry with you."

"Me?" All Might echoed. "Why me?"

"I met Izuku almost two years ago." Shouta continued, once he'd made sure he was as calm as he was going to get. Several of his coworkers sent him concerned glances. "He'd just been attacked by a Slime Villain a few hours prior, and had been rescued by you, All Might."

A look of confusion on Yagi's face told him that he didn't remember. Shouta and Hizashi both felt a flash of anger, but Shouta quickly smoothed his expression out.

"He asked you if a Quirkless child could become a hero, and you told him no. It was the logical answer, true. But the way in which you said it…" Shouta clenched his fists as he recalled that hopeless lost look on his son's face. "I could've forgiven that, if that was all it was. And I understand that I'm letting some personal feelings get in the way, but you left him alone on a goddamned rooftop." He glared as the room stilled. He felt his hair lift off his shoulders as All Might's face finally fell into one of realization.

"I remember, now… I'd told him… that kid saw me deflate, and I told him about my injury. I… It's not like I locked him up there. I just figured the kid needed time to think about everything. Plus, I had to head off to a commotion across town."

"It's not about locking him out." Shouta felt Hizashi's hand on his arm and made himself calm down. He pinched the bridge of his nose and took several calming breaths. "You left a child on a very tall building alone after crushing his dreams." He looked up at him, before glancing around the room. A horrified realization rippled through the staff as several of his coworkers connected the dots. "I went up there when I saw someone standing up on the roof. I was almost too late. He jumped, and if I hadn't had my Capture Weapon with me, he would be dead."

Yagi Toshinori went pale, as he finally realized what had happened as a direct result of his actions.

Yes, Shouta knew it was rather petty, throwing this in his face like a child. But at that moment he really didn't care. He was pissed. He thought that he'd worked through this anger, but revisiting their first meeting just made him angry all over again. He felt his fangs grow in his mouth, but kept his lips closed.

He only spoke when he was calm enough that his fangs retracted. "Izuku isn't angry with you. He doesn't blame you. But he also doesn't trust you." Hizashi then picked up for him.

"Just don't make the same mistake twice." Hizashi seemed a lot calmer, now. "Oh, and Izuku's going to a Hero Counselor, so there's no need to worry about that."

"I think we all need a few minutes to digest this information and calm down." Nezu spoke suddenly. The tension in the room was fairly thick, and several let out sighs of relief as the meeting was temporarily adjourned. "We'll meet back up in… thirty minutes." With that, the little white fluffball of a principal left the room.

"You holding up okay?" Hizashi asked, placing a hand on Shouta's shoulder.

"Yeah… I just… thought I was better than this." He sighed, as he headed over to the coffee pot in the corner of the room and refilled his thermos. Hizashi leaned against him lightly, reminding him that he was there.

"If you want, I can talk about… you know."

Shouta shook his head. "No, it's… it's okay. I'll let you take over if it gets to be too much, but… I should be okay." Hizashi rubbed Shouta's arm kindly, and the darker haired man leaned into his warmth.

"Um…" Yagi approached the two, looking uncomfortable. Shouta felt his mood sour.

"Oh, sorry, if you wanted coffee, Shou's taken the last of it." Hizashi stated. Shouta was fairly sure he was the only person who could hear the icy undertone in his voice.

"N-no… no, it's not that… Um… I…" He took a deep breath before lowering himself into a kneeling position, and touching his forehead to the floor. "I'm sorry. I know that nothing I say or do will ever take back my actions, but I still owe you both and your son a deep, heartfelt apology."

His first instinct was to kick the man in the nose. He was certainly lined up properly for the hit, but the mental image of Izuku's grin stopped him.

"It's not okay." Hizashi answered, before Shouta could even open his mouth. "And nothing you say or do will make it okay." Yagi seemed to wilt at the words, but he swallowed them with the bitter acceptance of someone who expected nothing less.

"But Izuku's not angry with you." Shouta cut in, and the twig-like man stiffened in surprise. "So I suppose that means we can give you one more chance." The blond almost straightened up in shock. The words felt sour on Shouta's tongue, and it took every ounce of his self-control not to kick the man's face in. But he'd be the better man… for Izuku.

"Stop bowing, already. Doesn't that hurt? You're missing a ton of organs, right?" Hizashi winced as he caught sight of a few droplets of blood leaking from the hero's mouth.

"I… I don't understand?" He did, thankfully, stand up.

"It's called a second chance." Shouta deadpanned. "You can thank Izuku later, he's the only reason you're getting one. Don't think that means I forgive you, though. I don't forgive you, and I don't trust you. I doubt I ever will." He gave the man a glare to make sure he understood. "But I will tolerate you."

"Now go grab yourself some grub, you look like you need it." Hizashi grinned, and Yagi nodded, still looking a little shell-shocked. He wandered off to find something to eat, leaving Shouta and Hizashi to fall into a nearby couch and process what just happened.

Shouta took a deep breath and steeled himself as the staff gathered back into the room half an hour later. Everyone retook their seats, looking a little confused.

Surprisingly, Hound Dog was the first to speak up. "It's been bothering me since we took our break… You said that Yamazawa-kun was seeing a Hero Counselor, but Hero Counselors are expensive for civilians… I can't imagine him going to one just for this. Something else happened, didn't it?"

"Yes." Shouta was a lot calmer, now. "After that, I took him in as a student, and started training him."

"Shouta even started taking Izuku out on small patrols—so long as he didn't fight." Nemuri chimed in.

"Patrols?" Snipe asked, surprised. "So the Sharpshooter's got some hero experience already. He's ahead of the class from the start." He grinned.

Did Snipe just give my son a nickname? He hasn't even met him, yet! Shouta stared for a moment as Hizashi spoke.

"Erm… there was an… incident."

"Izuku was kidnapped, along with his single mother." Shouta said. "He'd been kidnapped and tortured by his biological father, Midoriya Hisashi. His mother did not survive, and Hisashi is still at large." Shouta knew it sounded cold, but he was still traumatized by the kidnapping, himself. Several of the staff winced at the new information.

"Yeah, that'd probably need a Hero Counselor." Hound Dog admitted.

Cementoss, Thirteen, and Vlad all shared a look filled with dawning horror as they realized that Shouta had witnessed all of that himself.

"Since this is the Trauma Meeting, let me get something out there." Hizashi spoke up and Shouta wanted to glare at him. He really did. But he knew that the logical decision would be to tell them. "Shouta was kidnapped and tortured alongside them."

The room stilled. "What?" Power Loader breathed.

"We're dealing with it, but sometimes Izuku or Shouta will still hit a trigger, and be thrown into a flashback." Shouta absently rubbed his wrist as Hizashi spoke. "Do not grab Izuku or Shouta's wrists or hair, and if something happens Chiyo or Shouta can calm Izuku down. If they aren't available, then Nemuri and I would be your next best bet."

"Wait… when you were gone for two weeks last year…" Ectoplasm put the pieces together.

"It was actually four weeks." Chiyo cut in. "They were both hurt pretty badly."

"Midoriya Hisashi is a registered villain due to this incident." Nezu spoke up, much to Shouta's relief. He clicked a button on a remote and a picture of that man appeared on the projector.

Izuku struggled as he was restrained to the man's torture chair. Shouta's wrists burned as he thrashed and pulled at his own restraints, chains rattling as he tried to keep that man from pumping his son full of the torture drug. His feet hung uselessly, unable to even kick as the shackles around his ankles kept him in place. He bit down on his lip through the gag as he choked back a half-growl, half-sob and tasted blood, but he didn't care. Izuku was

"Shou." He blinked at Hizashi's voice. A gentle hand on his arm made him flinch and come back to himself. The room had gone quiet, having realized that he'd been pulled into a flashback. He tasted blood on his tongue, and brought up a hand to his lip. His fangs were out and he'd bitten down a little too hard.

He took a few deep, shuddering breaths as he leaned into his husband. "Thanks." He muttered softly. The picture of the man was gone. Obviously, Nezu hadn't realized that it would send Shouta into a flashback. Shouta, himself, hadn't known, either.

Either way, the room was uneasy. It was damn hard to traumatize a pro who'd been in the field for as long as Shouta. "You okay?" Sekijiro asked him quietly.

"Just a flashback. I hadn't expected it, is all." Shouta answered just as quietly. Nobody pressed the issue, or brought it up again. They were all pros; they all had shit that could trigger flashbacks. Flashbacks of failures, of torture, of trauma.

It was like he always told his classes. Heroics wasn't fun and games. It made you jaded and it broke you, somehow. Nobody would look down on Izuku or Shouta for what they went through. If anything, he saw some of their respect go up.

Maybe one day, he'd tell them more about how amazing Izuku had been in that place. Perhaps he'd tell them with pride how his son had fashioned a lock pick out of his own toe to get them out of those horrid cuffs and shackles. He might even tell them about how his son took the torture with silence, and was Shouta's literal hero for doing so.

But right now, it was all too personal. Too fresh. And Shouta knew that it likely would always be so. But that was okay. Izuku was going to be a hero to other people, too. He wouldn't need Shouta to explain why he was his hero, when he was well on his way to showing the world himself.

Swan Dive FANART:

From The_Fluffy_Pit_Bull, we've got Yuki: /a/r0j5a7L

From Ava, we've got Izuku: /c4z0R6n

And from Starluv, we've got Inko/Midnight: /RfaVcPg