This document beta'd by kylekatarn77
19: Last Days of Childhood
I've never been the kind of man who laughs in the face of danger, much preferring to snigger behind its back and make vulgar hand gestures while it isn't looking.
-Commissar Ciaphas Cain, Hero of the Imperium
To Izuku's surprise, for the first time in his life his exam results placed him at the top of his class. His scores in the traditional academic areas had been good, enough to place him near the top of the class, but his stellar practical exam results had so far outstripped everyone else's but Mei's. What did surprise him was to learn that his exam score actually averaged higher than Mei's. Her scores in Science and Math were near perfect, but her scores in language arts, history, and of course English were only decent. That resulted in Mei being ranked 3rd in the class, behind the ever smug Koja.
"I can't believe I was ranked first in the class!" Izuku repeated for about the dozenth time as they walked to the train station.
"Yep. I knew you could," Mei agreed. "So believe it."
"I just… I have a hard time believing I'm actually good at something," Izuku admitted. "I always thought, well, that everyone was better than me."
"Well, you won the sports festival," Mei pointed out.
"Yeah, but only because you helped me," Izuku said, blushing slightly.
Mei shrugged. "Well, of course I did. But you still did it. You help me too, but I don't think I can't do something. If I thought about all the reasons I couldn't do something I'd never make another super cute baby again!"
"That's what I love the most about you, Mei," Izuku sighed. "You're always so confident. In yourself, and in me."
"Thanks! I love how you listen and give me hugs," Mei said happily.
Izuku suddenly stopped, feeling himself go slightly numb. He'd actually said it. After a moment, Mei stopped too, turning around and frowning. "Izuku, we have to get home so we can finish working on the list of supplies we need for summer camp! Mr. Aizawa said we have to give it to him by Monday!"
"You...you said you love me," Izuku said, blushing and looking down. "And… I said I love you."
Mei came right up to Izuku, looking into his eyes with a concerned expression. "Do you?"
"Yes...I...I think I do love you, Mei. Because...because you believed in me, and because you're pretty and-"
"Good!" Mei turned around and started walking again. "Then let's get that list finished. I think we'll need extra tungsten so we can make some reinforced gear, and-"
Izuku walked on, for a moment, feeling dejected that Mei hadn't said she loved him back again. But then, he thought about it a little more. Mei rarely, if ever, talked much about her feelings or the feelings of others. That, Izuku had come to learn, was just sort of who she was. There were a lot of other ways that Mei told Izuku she loved him though. Her constant desire to be close to him, and share physical affection. Her willingness to share her dreams with him, and the fact that she always believed in his dreams. Maybe, he'd just have to live with-
"Oh, and Izuku, I love you too. Hari told me I should say that back to you when you say it to me because it's important to people. But you knew that already, right?"
A smile crept over Izuku's face. "Yeah, I guess I did. But it's good to hear it too. Oh, and don't forget, we're going to need more propellent for the rockets, and materials to make new ones. I want to try out different formulations for the capture foam as well. It really tastes bad and if we rescue someone we don't want them gagging."
"Who cares how it tastes if they're safe?" Mei complained. She glanced at Izuku and shrugged. "Fine, fine. We can make it taste like cherries. But not grapes. I hate grape flavor."
The time leading up to the summer camp was spent mostly in the lab, save for the days Shinso decided to drag Mei and Izuku out to do something.
"You two really need a hobby," Shinso informed them one day, showing up to Mei's house dressed casually in jeans and a t-shirt. "Ever play any video games?"
"Um, yeah, but I haven't really had time for them since I met Mei," Izuku admitted.
"Were they all games about being a hero?" Shinso demanded, glancing at the gene sequencer. He clearly didn't know what it was, and walked over to examine the other projects scattered on the tables.
"Um, they were mostly All Might games. I was, um, a bit of a fanboy."
"Glad you got over it, that would have been insufferable," Shinso remarked. "What about you, Hatsume? Ever play any video games?"
"We had to play games during social groups in Mr. Onizuku's class but I never liked them," Mei declared. "They wouldn't let me make my own. Here, test this out! It's a voice modulator with a built in radio! See if you can mind control me!"
"Um, OK." Shinso put on the voice modulator, then said in a voice that was pitched much higher. "Hatsume, can I mind control you?"
Mei frowned and leaned forward to tap on the modulator, making Shinso lean back awkwardly. "Hmm, not working, maybe you need to-"
Her eyes suddenly glazed over. Shinso nodded. "Take a big step back, Hatsume. You're in my personal space."
Mei took a step back, then stood, her eyes glassy and dull, a bit of drool leaking from her mouth. Izuku put his hand over his mouth, feeling the urge to vomit.
"Tell Midoriya we should go to the arcade and have some fun," Shinso said, pointing to Izuku.
Mei made motions towards the door, her mouth opening and closing, but no sound came out.
"S-stop, Shinso, that's creepy," Izuku protested.
Shinso glanced at Izuku with a bored expression, but he shrugged and Mei suddenly began to speak again. "-have your voice in the normal tone and pitch. Amplification didn't work, your quirk is limited to your actual voice, can't be electronic. I thought for sure if my baby just modulated your tone-"
"It worked, Mei," Shinso said, taking the modulator off. "That was a good idea. I thought I sounded weird. Someone wouldn't be able to tell it was me. Think you could make it so I could control the voice so it sounded deeper or higher?"
"It does! There's a dial here, just twist it up for higher, down for lower!" Mei said excitedly, apparently totally nonplussed about having been mind controlled. "I knew my super cute baby would work!"
"Right. Anyway, you two actually want to go out and do something fun?" Shinso asked. "You've literally been here every time I've texted you."
"They would love to go out!" Hari stuck her head in from outside, grinning. "You must be Shinso! Good to finally meet you. Glad there's someone aside from Izuku who wants to hang out with my sis!"
"That would be me. I promise not to brainwash you. Much," Shinso said, bowing a bit stiffly.
"Pfff, that explains how Mei got you to hang out with her. Or wait, you meant the other way around! I always thought she'd have to kidnap or brainwash someone to be her friend. That's what she did to Izuku, you know."
"Really?" Shinso said, a gleam of interest showing in his eyes. "I always figured they met at the junkyard looking for scrap."
"Close! It was a dumpster. Izuku pulled me out of it when I was trying to look for parts to make more super cute babies," Mei said. "He was very helpful. And he fell in love with the Power Suit at first sight!"
"I think it was you, Mei, not the Power Suit. It never told me I could be a hero," Izuku said, coming over to take Mei's hand and give it a squeeze.
"I'm going to puke," Shinso said dully. "Look, do you want to go to the arcade or not? It could be fun. Maybe they have a broken machine or something you can fix."
"I already said they do! Go on you two, go socialize. It will be good for you," Hari ordered.
"Yeah, I think it would be," Izuku agreed. "Come on Mei."
"Ok, let me change," Mei said, and started pulling off her shirt.
Shinso, it seemed, had pressing business elsewhere and bolted out the door, much to Hari's amusement. Izuku just took off his own shirt and changed into the clean clothes he'd brought, keeping his back to Mei. He was sort of used to seeing her like this now, and while it was certainly titillating, he was no longer quite as embarrassed as he'd once been. Besides, they were dating after all.
"Warn me next time," Shinso said as they started off for the mall.
"Sorry, I guess you're just not used to us yet," Izuku said, winking at Mei.
Mei winked back, having left her goggles behind at Hari's insistence. "What are we sorry about? Oh, is it because Shinso almost saw me naked? Are you mad about that, Izuku? Hari's boyfriends used to get mad about people seeing her naked."
"Not that I don't think you're pretty and all Mei, but I think Midoriya would kill me if he thought I was trying to steal you," Shinso grumbled, putting his hands in his pockets.
Mei nodded thoughtfully. "That's OK! We'll find you a girlfriend too, Shinso. Hari says people need someone. Do you like her? She doesn't have a boyfriend right now."
That made Shinso turn bright red, and he slouched over even further. "I...have romantic issues of my own. And besides, I don't think Hari would be interested in someone so much younger than her."
"She likes Togata! Well, she never met him, but when we talked about him she said he was cute on TV," Mei said.
"Mei, what sort of games do you think we should try?" Izuku asked, redirecting the conversation. Mei would continue to talk about the subject that clearly flustered Shinso until Shinso died of embarrassment, and Izuku didn't want either of them to feel uncomfortable on what was supposed to be a fun trip.
"Is there a game where you get to make super cute babies? I would like one of those! Maybe we could make a flamethrower! I keep wanting to try one for the Power Suit but Izuku keeps telling me the fuel mix is unstable and then it explodes."
"Gee. I wonder why Izuku thinks it's unstable then," Shinso chuckled.
"Oh, it is. He's usually right about that but a flamethrower would be extra cute!" Mei said.
"Well, maybe I have something almost as good," Shinso said with a grin.
As it turned out, what Shinso had was Super Robot Wars: Ultra Arcade. It was at an eclectic little arcade at the back of the Kiyashi Ward Mall, full of old model arcade games.
"See, you just pick your favorite fighter and then go at it," Shinso explained. "Here, you like flame throwers, so you should pick the GoLion. Flamethrower spam is a decent enough tactic."
"Really? But it's not real," Mei complained.
"Just think of it as picking up ideas for your babies or whatever," Shinso told her. "Try it. Hey, Izuku, play me at Disney vs Capcom?"
"Um, sure," Izuku agreed. He glanced behind him as Mei swiped the arcade pass card Shinso had given her, and began playing the game as the suggested GoLion. See seemed interested enough, and Izuku smiled.
"I call Zero and Hulk, they're busted in this game," Shinso chuckled as he swiped his own card on the machine. "You can pick whoever. Spiderman and Luke Skywalker are good choices for beginners."
"Hey, they have Iron Man!" Izuku said excitedly, quickly choosing that character. "Do they have Batman?"
"I don't know," Shinso admitted. "These games are really old, I don't know who most of the characters are really."
"Hmm, well, Tronn Bonne looks like she has her own power suit. I'll try that one," Izuku said.
"Pick one more, I'm just doing random, I like to try everyone," Shinso advised.
Izuku ended up going with Spiderman, as he'd appeared in a few issues of Iron Man and he liked the character. The game was a fast paced fighter, and Izuku was mostly smashing buttons for the first game, which he lost handily to Shinso. However, for the next game Izuku paid more attention to his combos, and managed to score a narrow victory after Shinso randomly selected his entire team. Their last match though Shinso revealed he'd only been using a fraction of his power, and utterly dominated Izuku.
"That was fun," Izuku laughed. "Any other good games? Mei, you having fun?"
He glanced over to see Mei with one of the store employees. "No no no! Look, you've got this wired all wrong! Ugh, Izkuku could explain it to you but I'll fix it myself. What, did you make this yourself?"
"Yes, actually," the irritated man said, glaring at Mei. "Look, I don't come into your house and tell you how to wire your electronics."
"Good thing too, you're bad at it," Mei told him. "Just let me take it apart and fix it! It will take me like five minutes!"
"Hey, is there a problem?" Shinso said as he and Izuku hurried over.
The store owner glanced at Shinso. "Yeah, your girlfriend here is trying to take apart my machine!"
"I'm not his girlfriend, I'm Izuku's girlfriend!" Mei lectured.
The man did a double take at Izuku, his jaw dropping. "Holy crap! You're that quirkless kid who won the 1st Year UA sports festival!"
"Um, yeah, that's me," Izuku admitted. It had been a long time since anyone had recognized him, mostly because he had kept his helmet on the entire time, save for the medal ceremony.
"Wait, does that mean she's the chick who helped you make that awesome mecha?" the owner demanded.
Shinso grinned. "Yeah, Abe. That's Mei Hatsume, and this is Izuku Midoriya. You know I go to UA too, right?"
"Of course, that's why you get a discount," Abe said. He looked at Mei again rubbing his chin. "Ok, tell you what. I'll get my tools and let you try your hand. This machine's always giving me problems and I suppose you can't make it much worse."
He disappeared, and Mei happily took out a screwdriver from her cargo pants and began opening panels. "Um, Mei, are you still having fun?" Izuku asked nervously.
"I am now! He said I could play for free if I fixed this! There was a glitch on the screen I bet I can fix," Mei said, then started happily humming to herself.
"You don't mind if we play, right?" Shinso asked, sounding a bit worried.
"No, no, you go play the games. I'll play with you after I fix this, it's bothering me," Mei stated.
After that, Shinso and Izuku tried out several of the games, from Rogue Squadron VI to Wacky Races Reborn. Mei joined them a few times, but on the racing games she ended up getting a bit motion sick.
"We can leave if you want," Izuku suggested.
"I'm fine. I just need an energy drink or something," Mei said.
"Hey, good idea." Shinso fished in his pocket and pulled out a few bills. "Get me something too, and maybe something to eat as well. There's a place that serves American Style food a few doors down. They have decent enough food if you like foreign stuff."
"Sure," Mei agreed, taking the money. "Izuku, should I get food for us too?"
"Yeah, whatever looks good. What do you recommend Shinso?" Izuku asked.
"Go for the hamburgers and fries. Ask for extra pickles, I like those. No cheese though. Get me a soda or something," Shinso said.
"Yeah, that sounds good," Izuku agreed. "I tried hamburgers before and they're pretty good."
"You got the kids meals from that one chain that had All Might toys in them didn't you?" Shinso teased as they went back to the games.
"M-maybe," Izuku admitted.
"Ha! I did the same thing. Relax, you're not the only one who had an All Might obsession," Shinso laughed.
As they sat down at another arcade table, Shinso glanced around. "Speaking of," he said quietly. "Have you thought about...you know. What All Might said? And about his being...well, you know. At the end of his career..."
"It's scary," Izuku agreed. "A world without All Might. That's...that's a frightening one. And he wants us to take up his mantle. I mean, I've alway said I wanted to become the world's greatest hero, but...but I mean, to try to take All Might's place…"
Shinso nodded, his eyes losing focus as he looked into the colorful flashing lights of the game. "I don't think I could do that. I'm just not...well, I'm not much of a people person."
"You'll be a great hero though, Shinso," Izuku assured him. "With your quirk, and all the hard work you've put in this last semester, I know you'll be able to be a great hero, who saves lots of people. You should just, I don't know. Smile more."
Slowly, a wide grin spread across Shinso's face, his large flat teeth and sunken eyes giving him a skeletal expression. Izuku involuntarily flinched, wincing at the rather morbid sight. That made Shinso actually smile, a small, private grin, but one that held actual warmth. "I don't think all of us can smile like All Might. I'm more like Mr. Aizawa. I'll fight from the shadows. If people know my quirk, I won't be as effective. That's your job, Midoriya."
"Maybe," Izuku temporized. "So, Hungry Hungry Hippos? How do you play that?"
"Ugh. It's a kids game. Here, let me show you. You smack this and try to eat the balls and you win tickets. You just get junk with them, but sometimes I want some candy or something."
They played a few rounds, but after a while Izuku looked up. "Hey, Mei's not back. I hope she's OK."
"Maybe there's a long line at the restaurant," Shinso guessed.
"Maybe. Let's just go see. If there is, we can wait together," Izuku said, feeling a bit worried. "Sometimes she gets lost or distracted."
"Yeah, fine. Hey, Abe, we're heading out. Maybe we'll be back later."
"Sure! And thanks for bringing your friends! Hatsume fixed four machines, one of them I thought was a write off!" Abe said enthusiastically. "She can have free games whenever she wants them!"
"That will be basically never," Shinso muttered as they left. He glanced at Izuku. "You spend a lot of time worried about Mei, don't you?"
"Well, she's special to me. I think...I think I love her," Izuku admitted, blushing and looking away. He wouldn't admit that to just anyone, but he knew Shinso pretty well, and felt like the other boy was his closest friend aside from Mei.
"Obviously. But I mean, I don't worry about you wandering off or whatever. But you keep an eye on Mei," Shinso observed.
"I mean, yeah. But I don't mind! She's just, well, she's like me," Izuku tried to explain.
Shinso snorted. "You're both pretty awkward, but Mei's different. She said she had ASD or something, right? That's like a mental disorder or something?"
"Um, a little, but, well, it mostly means Mei thinks differently," Izuku explained. "I feel like it's kinda private, but, well, you know she doesn't really understand a lot of social concepts. And when she gets distracted by something, she can really get into trouble going after it. A year ago, she might have just taken apart that machine without asking Abe."
"No surprise. At least she asked this time. And speak of the devil, there she is. You know that guy?" Shinso asked, pointing.
Izuku saw Mei sitting on a bench, an energy drink in her hand, a boy in a dark hoodie sitting beside her with hair a similar color to Shinso's obscuring his eyes. At first Izuku was just curious, wondering if this was one of Mei's old classmates. Then he saw Mei's face. Her eyes were very wide, a fixed smile on her face. Her hands were trembling, and there were dents in the bottle of energy drink where her fingers were gripping it.
"She's terrified!" Izuku gasped. He started to run forward, shouting, "Mei!"
Her eyes shot to Izuku, and she became suddenly frantic, wiggling. Izuku realized the boy had his hand around her neck, one finger extended. "Izuku! Go away! I don't want to talk to you!" Mei half screamed. A few passers by paused to look, but upon seeing it was a group of teens, moved on, apparently deciding it was some sort of high school drama.
Izuku halted, feeling panicked. Who was this other boy? What was he doing to Mei?
"Listen to her, friend," the boy hissed. "Walk away. Hatsume and I are just old friends catching up. Go play with your little toys for a while."
"Hey man, nice hoodie," Shinso called, continuing forward at a nonchalant pace, his hands in his pockets. "Where'd you get it."
The other boy snarled, looking up, his red eyes glaring. "None of your-"
Suddenly he froze, his eyes glazing over.
"Let her go, and step back!" Shinso barked.
Slowly, the other boy complied. Mei sprang up, tears leaking down her face. She rushed to Izuku, running behind him and pressing her face to his back. She was weeping and trembling, clearly frightened.
"Mei, what happened, what did he do to you?" Izuku asked.
"He said he was going to hurt you and me and all the other heroes and was going to destroy all our babies and he was from the League of Villains and it was all UA's fault for ruining his nomus and that he was going to be like Stain and I was scared and I thought he was going to hurt you and I want to go home!" Mei wailed.
"Izuku, call the police," Shinso grunted. "I've got this bastard."
People were beginning to stop and notice now, clearly confused.
"Hey, I think that kid's using his quirk!" someone called. "He's got the other boy trapped somehow!"
"Hey, what do you think you kids are doing, using your quirks here!" someone growled, shoving Shinso.
"No, don't!" Izuku cried.
It was too late. Shinso was shoved into a potted plant, tripping over it and going sprawling. The other boy immediately unfroze, growling and reaching towards Izuku and Mei.
"Mei, run!" Izuku cried, shoving her away.
"No!" Mei wailed. She put herself between Izuku and the other boy, but then more strangers shoved their way forward.
"Someone call mall security!" one cried as he grabbed the boy in the hoodie. "We've got people using their-"
"You're in my way!" the boy snarled. He put his hand on the stranger, closing his fingers around the man's wrist where he had been grabbed.
The man suddenly screamed in pain, jumping back. His arm turned to dust and fell away. And then blood began to gush from the wound. Immediately, the crowd screamed in panic and began to flee. Izuku was nearly knocked over, and it was all he could do to cling to Mei and hold onto her as they were battered. In a moment they were alone, save for Shinso who stumbled out of the plant, and the boy in the hoodie.
"You," he growled. "You're the one who All Might made the victor at the UA sports festival. You're a quirkless freak! You should be rallying to me, trying to tear down this worthless society! And yet you act like some pathetic lap dog of these fools! I should kill you now!"
"Mei, run," Izuku whispered. "It's time for me to fight. Go get help."
"But Izuku, I-"
"I love you," Izuku said, shoving Mei away. "Now run!"
"You're a fool!" the boy hissed, and dived at Izuku. "I'll kill you both!"
Mei screamed, turning to run. "I love you, Izuku!"
Izuku dodged to the side, but the other boy grabbed at him. His hand came inches away from Izuku's face, but then the other boy let out a grunt.
"Not so tough now!" Shinso snarled, his kick catching the boy in his midsection. "Fight me, you ugly bastard!"
The boy grunted, but he didn't answer, glaring at Shinso, then lunging for him.
Izuku ducked and his own foot struck out, catching the villain in the leg. He stumbled, giving Shinso time to back away. The two of them backed away from the boy, staying a few feet away from each other so as not to interfere with the other, but close enough to support them.
The man from earlier was weeping and crawling away, leaving a trail of dark blood as he cradled his arm. Izuku winced, knowing he should help the man, but also that if he turned his back on this boy he would be dead in seconds.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it!" the boy muttered to himself. "It wasn't supposed to be this way!"
"Oh, I'm sorry, am I interfering with your plans?" Shinso taunted. "Guess you're not half as good as Stain anyway!"
The other boy didn't answer. He lunged forward again at Shinso, who backed away. Izuku moved in to flank, but the boy suddenly turned towards him, swiping his hand through the air. Izuku pivoted away, but it had been a feint. The other boy ran into a nearby shop, causing screams to erupt.
"Damn it!" Shinso cursed. "Stop running you coward!"
They both ran after the fleeing boy, but he was gone out the back.
"He's gone, and he's too dangerous for us to follow," Izuku said, putting his hand out. "Let's help the victim."
"Right," Shinso agreed. "Damn it! I had him!"
Izuku tore off his shirt, using it to make a makeshift bandage for the trembling man as Shinso took off his belt and used it to make a tourniquet. Not more than a minute later, the police and EMS arrived, and took control of the situation. Izuku was given a blanket to wrap about himself, and both he and Shinso were taken to the police station along with Mei. She had run through the mall screaming for help, and was found by the police at the entrance. As soon as she saw Izuku, she scrambled away from the policeman who had been helping her and lept into Izuku's arms, once more weeping. They were thankfully allowed to ride in a police cruiser together, the police understanding their need for one another for comfort.
At the station, they were taken to separate rooms to be interviewed though, much to both Izuku and Mei's reluctance. Inside, the officer who sat down with Izuku had the head of a cat, and studied him with large yellow amber eyes.
"Tell me what happened, Mr. Midoriya," he said seriously.
Izuku told him everything he remembered, including the part where Shinso had freed Mei using his quirk.
The officer sighed and rubbed at his cheek with a paw like hand. "You're sure Shinso used his quirk to get her free? He didn't just distract the perp and let her get away?"
"Um, yeah, that boy went all slack, and obeyed him, like when-"
"It is illegal for a civilian to use their quirk on someone else in a public space," the officer said, as if to no one. "However, if your friend just distracted the suspect with a random comment, and Hatsume got free-"
"I know. But, um, well, Mei won't understand. She won't lie," Izuku explained.
"Let us worry about that," the officer stated. "Now, you're absolutely certain Shinso used his quirk?"
"No. Not really," Izuku admitted.
"Then I'll just put down that Shinso distracted the suspect. As for the fight, well, neither of you used any quirks."
"I'm, um, quirkless," Izuku said quietly.
The officer blinked. "I know. But I'm being thorough. Again, no one used any quirks, aside from the suspect?"
"Um, yes. Do you know who he is?"
"Officially, it's too early to say. Unofficially, you three just had a run in with one of the most dangerous individuals in Japan. That was Tomura Shigaraki. He's the mastermind behind the USJ attack on UA, and possibly a collaborator with the Hero Killer, Stain. He's the head of the so-called League of Villains."
"Oh god," Izuku moaned, putting his head in his hands. "And he could have killed Mei!"
"Yes. Well, let's get you two back together. You think you can help Mei get her story straight?"
Izuku looked up, wincing. "I don't want to have to tell Mei to lie…"
"Look, kid. It's going to be damn hard to prove Shinso used his quirk, because it's a psychological one. There's no visible sign. People jumped to conclusions. Can you really be 100% sure he used his quirk?"
"No, I can't," Izuku admitted.
"Good. Now go get your girlfriend to admit it."
He took Izuku down the hall to another room, where Mei was talking to another officer, this one looked more like a normal human woman. The other officer looked up as they entered, and Mei was talking animatedly.
"-and if we'd had our super cute babies, Izuku would have smashed that villain! That's why I'm never leaving my house without a flamethrower again!" Mei vowed. "Izuku! Tell the police lady that-"
"Good grief, thank God you're here Tamakawa," the other officer groaned. "Can you get her to just shut up and give me her statement? She keeps going on about her babies! Christ, she's like 16! How'd she have so many kids!"
"Um, she means our inventions," Izuku explained. He hurried over and hugged Mei, who sagged into him. "And, well, I guess we both babble when we're scared. Mei, can you tell the officer what happened?"
"Yes," Mei said. Then buried her face in Izuku chest and didn't say anything else.
"Miss Hatsume, we do need your statement," Tamakawa said gently. "Please, can you tell us?"
Mei nodded, then shook her head. "I'll tell Izuku," she said, her voice muffled.
The two officers looked at one another. "We can just turn on the recording equipment," Tamakawa said. "That should work."
"She's, um, she has autism," Izuku said quietly, stroking Mei's hair. "Sometimes...sometimes talking to new people can be hard for people with that condition." At least, that was what Izuku had read when he looked up autism on the internet. He'd never known Mei to have that problem before.
"Awesome. This keeps getting better and better," the female officer sighed. She stood. "Ok, we'll leave you two alone. We can hear and see everything, so just have her sit up and tell you what happened and we'll count that as her statement for now."
The two officers left, but Mei stayed silent. Izuku continued to stroke Mei's hair, and she started to rock back and forth gently, humming to herself. At last, Izuku gently lifted Mei so he could see her face. She still had tears in her eyes, which were glassy and unfocused. "Mei, please, tell me, what happened?"
"I went to get food," Mei said, her voice soft. She rested her head on Izuku's shoulder, and began fiddling with his blanket. "The line was long, so I went to a vending machine and got a drink. When I walked back, that boy came up to me. He said he recognized me from the sports festival. He was smiling. But then...then he got scary. He put his hand around my neck, and told me he'd kill me and you if I yelled. I...I almost did. But then...then he took the money out of my hand with his other hand, and...and when he touched it, it turned into dust. And then I believed him."
"He made me sit on a bench. He said lots of words, but...but I couldn't listen. I was too scared. He was talking about all kinds of things, how he hated UA, and me and you, and All Might, and his nomu and Stain and...I don't remember. And then you came, and...and...and I thought he was going to kill you, Izuku. I thought...I thought you wouldn't be there anymore. Because...because that boy hated me."
"He's a villain, Mei. He...he hates everyone," Izuku said, squeezing Mei's shoulder tightly. "That's why...that's why I want to be a hero. To protect people from villains like him. But, especially you. To protect you."
"Ok," Mei agreed quietly. "That's what our babies are for, right?"
"Yeah. Anything else?"
"And then Shinso yelled at him and he let me go," Mei said softly. "And then...and then I don't remember, and there was blood and screaming and…" Mei buried her face in Izuku's chest again. "Make it stop," she pleaded. "Make it all go away. I don't like it."
"I will," Izuku promised. "He'll never touch you again. You'll be safe Mei."
They sat like that for a while, and Mei began humming and rocking herself again. After a few minutes, the officers came in quietly.
"That'll work. Shinso's story matches yours, though he needed some persuading. Be a damn shame if you kids got in trouble. Honestly, you did good. People could have died. A lot of people," Tamakawa said, putting down two mugs of tea.
"Um, Mei likes energy drinks. Or coffee with lots of sugar," Izuku said, looking up. "How's the man who was injured?"
Tamakawa let out a soft hiss. "He lost the arm up to the elbow. Some kind of corruption in the quirk. But he'll live. You kids saved his life with your first aid. I got coffee. Two sugars and cream?"
Izuku looked down at Mei, who nodded. "Please. Tea's fine for me."
"Ok. Hang tight, kid. Your parents are on their way."
Twenty minutes later, Izuku's mother and Mei's parents arrived. Inko was weeping openly, but to Izuku's surprise so was Mr. Hatsume. Mei's mother looked worn and sick with worry, but she was comforting the more distraught parents.
"My baby girl!" Mr. Hatsume wept, sweeping Mei into a tight hug.
"Oh my God Izuku, I was so worried! What happened to you?!" Inko wailed as she too embraced her son.
"Mei...Mei got captured by the leader of the League of Villains," Izuku explained. "But Shinso rescued her."
"-and then Izuku beat up the bad guy!" Mei was telling her parents. "I was really scared and then he made me leave to go get help! I was worried because he didn't have any of our babies with him! Next time, I'm making him bring a flamethrower or at least some grenades!"
"Izuku saved you?" her father demanded, looking up.
"Um, it was really Shinso. We, um, had to lie, but, ah, he used his quirk. Someone knocked him down and Shigaraki got free, but Shinso nearly captured him," Izuku explained. "Then he and I had to fight him off. He got away, but he was too dangerous for us to chase."
"I should say so!" Inko exploded. "Izuku! You're not a hero yet!"
"He will be!" Mei stated. "Izuku is the best hero ever already! He saved me! And so did Shinso, but mostly it was Izuku! I was scared, but he came for me and saw I was in trouble!"
Inko hesitated. "You...you really did save her, didn't you, Izuku?"
"Izuku...I can't thank you enough," Mr. Hatsume said, his voice trembling. He suddenly pulled Izuku into a bear hug, nearly crushing the breath for the much smaller boy. "You saved my baby girl. You are a true hero. Thank you. Oh God, thank you so much."
"It was...my...privilege," Izuku gasped.
Mr. Hastume let Izuku go, wiping tears from his eyes. "We've got...we've got to get home. But...Izuku?"
"Yes, Mr. Hatsume?" Izuku managed.
"Call me dad. Or Shu. You've earned that much. Izuku, I want you to understand something. I'm going to trust you with the most precious thing in my life." Slowly, Mr. Hatsume gently pushed Mei toward Izuku. She happily latched onto him, letting out a low hum.
"Take good care of her, son. I think...I think you really will be a great hero. But more importantly, I know you'd do what I'd do: You'd risk your own life for my baby girl. And I don't think there's anything else in the world you could ever do that could make me happier for her. She's found a real man."
"Dear, they are only 16," Mrs. Hatsume said gently. "And arranged marriages aren't terribly in fashion anymore."
"Oh! I wasn't, I mean-" Mr. Hatsume sighed. "I just… I want him to know, Nori. Really know."
"He does, dear. Now let's let Inko get her son home. They need time alone too. Come on, Mei, Hari and your brothers are worried sick about you."
"Ok, mom," Mei agreed, letting her mother wrap her arms around her and steer her away. "But I can see Izuku again tomorrow, right?"
"Yes, dear. And whenever you want to."
"Ok. Can I have a flamethrower?"
"Talk to your father."
"That just means no."
"Talk to your father."
Izuku and his mother watched them go. Inko sighed. "Come on. Let's go home, Izuku."
"Ok."
They headed out the door, to where a policeman was waiting. He offered to drive them back to their apartment, and they gratefully accepted. The ride back was silent, but Inko held Izuku's hand tightly, tears trickling down her cheeks. Izuku worried she would try to forbid him from becoming a hero, but when the officer had walked them up to their apartment and closed the door, Inko stood on her tiptoes. She gently kissed Izuku on his cheek.
"I was wrong, Izuku. You won't be a great hero one day," she whispered.
"Mom?" Izuku asked, feeling a pit open up in her stomach.
Inko gently patted his cheek. "You already are one. I just didn't realize it until now."
"You're not...scared?" Izuku asked.
His mother let out a sound that was half laugh, half sob. "I'm terrified! But...but you saved Mei, today. The police told me you saved a lot of other people too. And...and you didn't even have that robot armor or anything else with you. It was just you."
"Shinso was there. He saved Mei more than I did," Izuku said quietly, feeling slightly guilty.
Inko sighed. "I hope you always have friends like that with you. But you did it, Izuku. I guess it doesn't matter what special stuff you have, or who's with you. You'll be a hero. Because that's what you are. And, Izuku?"
"Yes, mom?"
"I'm so, so proud of you."
Authors Note:
As some of my long time readers may be aware, I suffer recurring bouts of a disease that can make it very difficult for me to write at times. It is not, thankfully, something that is a major risk factor in the current crisis, and most of the time does not totally incapacitate me or result in a hospital stay. However, I am currently suffering another episode of moderate to severe symptoms. As such, posting may be difficult for me in the coming days and weeks. I don't know how long this will last, as it can be anywhere from a few hours to a few months, and the level of disruption can range from minor inconvenience to months of recovery in the hospital.
The good news is, aside from a couple of chapters dealing with epilogues and resolution, the story is largely finished. The later chapters still need editing, revision, and passes from beta readers, but those would not be published for some time regardless. I ask for your patience in this time, as I may miss a few updates instead of posting every five days or so while I recover. If there is a serious interruption to the schedule, I'll try to have one of my friends or relatives update for me.
As always, thanks for reading, and stay safe out there.
Full-Paragon