Izuku stared out the window glumly, watching the clouds far below the private plane zip past. The send off from the airport had been short and sweet. A rare hug from Shoto, a fistbump from Katsuki, Mei and Shoko quickly hugging him before Ochako kissed him goodbye. Izuku's lips still tingled a bit from the long, heartfelt kiss, her intoxicating smell still lingering. Izuku's gaze unfocused as he thought about her.
"You know, Izuku, it's only for two years," his father said from the large chair next to his, leaning over and patting his knee in a would-be fatherly manner. Izuku was bumped from his thoughts, and glanced over at the large hand on his knee, and then up at his father's sunken face, the piercing blue eyes meeting his bright green.
"I think, in time, you'll come to understand why we did this."
Izuku's face grew a scowl and he opened his mouth to retort, but he caught his mother's look of warning out of the corner of his eye, and closed his mouth angrily, his teeth clacking together sharply. He set a forced smile on his face.
"Sure, dad," he said almost robotically, before turning back to watch the clouds. "What's two years, anyway? Not like I'm going to miss anything important," he muttered sarcastically, his chin on his palm, wishing he was anywhere but there.
The tape measure retracted with a sharp snap as Mei turned to jot down another measurement.
"Okay, next your biceps!" she ordered excitedly, turning back to look up at Ochako, standing on a rotating platform in front her.
"Mei, I didn't ask for a full suit, just gauntlets" she said, her normal blush pushing even redder from all of the contact that Mei had used as she measured her.
"Oh shush, the customer is never sure of what they need!" Mei exclaimed, her manic smile in full force. She waved the measuring tape menacingly.
Ochako sighed and held her arms out from her sides in a T pose, with Mei latching on exuberantly, her fingers feeling the toned and strong muscles tense at the contact.
"Oooh, you're all muscle-y!" Mei cooed, stretching out her tape measure again, with her manic grin wide and yellow eyes full of glee.
Melissa Shield was normally very patient and reserved during her day to day schooling and research. She had perfect grades, had already created some impressive inventions, and was slated to take over her father someday, if the rumors were to be believed. She even had special grants given to her by the Director of I-Island himself for her help with several problems across the Island.
So it was very unusual to see the normally composed young woman bouncing and waving excitedly next to her reserved father, Dave, smiling broadly as the sleek silver plane finished taxiing into the terminal.
He placed a hand on her shoulder, hoping to calm her down a bit. "Remember what we talked about, Melissa. Things are different now," he said solemnly, catching her eye as she looked up at him. "Toshinori isn't the same, and Izuku will be needing help adjusting."
She nodded, "I understand, Papa. I'm just excited to see them again, is all."
Dave chuckled lightly, "So am I."
The door to the plane opened, and Melissa couldn't help the look of shock on her face as a tall, lanky man with blonde hair walked out.
"Dave! Melissa! So good to see you again!" he called out, smiling brightly in the sunshine, waving to them from the entrance.
It had to be a joke, a trick. Something. It wasn't right. This man couldn't be her uncle. Melissa watched him some more as they unloaded their bags, and Izuku picked up a couple of boxes. While Izuku's enormous growth spurt was expected, Uncle Toshinori's withered appearance was jarring and unsettling. His eyes were right; kind, yet fierce. Still piercing blue. The hair was more or less right; long and blonde, but not straight and gravity defying.
She reverted to an old nervous habit of chewing her finger nail as she reconciled this new 'Uncle' with the one that had been All Might. It wasn't until Izuku gently bumped into her that she shook herself from her thoughts.
"'Lissa, you okay?" Izuku asked in English, a slight rounding on the 'l' giving way to his native Japanese.
She blinked and looked up at him, smiling brightly and nodding. "Yup, no problem! Just lost in thought. Are you ready?" she asked excitedly, using perfect Japanese, focusing on making Izuku feel at home.
He looked to his parents, who nodded and waved. "We'll see you in a couple of hours, sweety," Inko said, leaning up to kiss his cheek. "Melissa will show you the island, and then we'll meet up for dinner."
Izuku nodded and smiled softly, giving his goodbye to his father and uncle, and turned to Melissa. "Ready," he said, a slightly hollow dejection in his voice, "Where to first?"
Melissa's smile grew slightly. This was going to be fun.
"...and this is Papa's research lab!" Melissa said excitedly, gesturing to a huge door set into an even bigger building. "This is the best part of the tour, personally."
Izuku stood shocked and mouth agape, glanced over the huge structure before turning back to his cousin, "This is his lab? It's enormous!"
"You can fit an entire city block inside," Melissa said proudly. "Papa works on a lot of different ideas, so the Council gave him a lot of space," Melissa explained, her eyes sparkling with anticipation. "Come on! He said I could show you where you are gonna be working! And don't worry, we'll go back for the other stuff we missed later."
She pulled on his arm, over to a keypad set into the door, and keyed in the code, waiting for a moment before a small panel set into the massive door hissed open, sliding to the side for them to enter. She glanced back and laughed at Izuku's look of disappointment.
"We only open the big door when we are moving equipment in or receiving a delivery!" she explained, giggling at Izuku's expense.
"Still would have been cool to see…" Izuku mumbled, glancing back at the door wistfully as she pulled him further into the darkened building.
"We'll show you later. We have to finish the tour, and then get you set up in your apartment! Over here!" Melissa said hurriedly, pulling harder on his arm as they approached a double sliding door, which opened as they approached. The scene inside was something out of a movie to Izuku; equipment of all kinds, fabrication units, entire racks of tools and measuring devices, heavy loading equipment, and more pieces that Izuku didn't recognize.
"So…," Melissa said tentatively, "this is your space." She looked around, almost nervously as Izuku walked around slowly, mouth agape as he took it all in, glancing from piece to piece before looking back at his childhood friend.
"It should have everything you need. I hope—"
Izuku pulled her into a bear hug, lifting her into the air and squeezing her tightly, a broad smile on his face.
"Thank you," he said softly, eyes shut as he tried to contain his glee.
Melissa's smile broke out just as wide, and she returned the hug, patting him on the back.
"You're welcome," she said thickly, her happiness making her voice quake a bit.
"Ah, good, you're here!" David Sheild's voice echoed out from the door. Izuku looked up, seeing the scientist with his parents. He gave Melissa one more squeeze and set her down before walking up to his uncle and going in for a hug as well. Toshinori chortled as Izuku squeezed his age-long friend, the skinnier man wincing at the crushing hug from his son.
"Definitely your son, Toshi," David wheezed, patting Izuku on the back, requesting some air. Everyone shared a laugh as the excited teen set him back down, grinning brightly.
"Well, everything should be in order," the elder Shield said, glancing around the room, softly punching his own chest to get air in his lungs again. "Let me show you some things I think you will enjoy, Izuku," he offered, grabbing onto the young man's shoulder and leading him further into the room.
"Don't forget, Papa, we still need to show him the apartment! Don't start working yet!" Melissa called out to the two men, David waving back to her over his shoulder.
"It's been awhile since I have seen him that happy," Inko said softly, watching Izuku and David as they talked, the scientist pulling the covers off a tall piece of machinery.
"Was it really that bad?" Melissa asked, turning back to Inko and Toshinori, giving the shrunken man another once over. It still hadn't settled with her that he was that small now.
The parents both nodded solemnly. "He's been down ever since we told him the plan to move him out here. He misses his friends," Toshinori said, looking down at Melissa with a grimace. "He… wasn't happy with me. He still isn't."
Inko nodded, "But it's for the better. He'll be able to learn and train some more before going to UA, and… well, it'll be better."
Melissa noted the pause, but didn't react. She knew there was something they weren't telling her. She decided to ask Izuku about it later. A shout from the other side of the room drew their attention. Izuku was holding up what looked like a bright blue cape and the look of glee and awe on his face made Melissa giggle.
"That's one of yours, isn't it, dear?" Inko said, grinning as her son proceeded to nerd out over the material.
"Ah, yeah. My Silver Age cape. I was wondering where that was…" Toshinori said, rubbing the back of his neck with embarrassment as his number one fan freaked out, rapidly mumbling about the cape and All Might's battles with it.
Izuku let out a low whistle as his head swiveled around, taking in the spacious entryway and living room of his new apartment.
"This… is all mine?"
He looked back at Melissa and his father in the doorway, the pair of them nodding, smiling broadly. He turned back and took in the empty room, a large and bright studio apartment, complete with kitchen, en suite bathroom, and huge floor to ceiling windows showing a stunning view of I-Island below them. Straight ahead from the entrance were large French glass doors leading out to a balcony with even better views of the Island and ocean beyond.
"I-I…" he stammered, still reeling from the luxuriousness of his new home-away-from-home. He walked over to the windows and stared down in awe.
"Well, what do you think?" Toshinori asked, a tentative hitch to his voice.
Izuku looked back and smiled. "I think it's more than enough for me. Are you sure?"
Toshinori smiled and nodded again. "It's all yours, Izuku. I want you to enjoy yourself and have your own space. And…"
He shifted on his feet, rubbing the back of his neck and sighing before continuing, "I know it won't make up for yanking you away from your friends, but I want you to be comfortable while I settle things back home."
Izuku swallowed thickly and nodded, hanging his head slightly. He knew his dad was just looking out for him, but it still hurt. There was a brief silence between the two men, with Melissa glancing between them, unsure of what to say, when there was a soft chime at the door. Grateful for the interruption, she strode over and opened the door.
"Oh good! The bots are here with your furniture!"
She stood aside to let the troop of small rolling bots, carrying various boxes and crates, into the apartment, before following them as they trundled into the large room. Izuku and Toshinori watched in fascination as the small robots started unloading the boxes, before more robots, flying ones this time, zoomed into the room and started opening the boxes and crates with deft arms and claws.
"We better let them get to it!" Melissa called out from the doorway, raising her voice over the din of the robots unpacking and assembling the furniture. "Let's get dinner!"
After reconvening at a restaurant down the street from the apartment building, and spending a couple of hours eating and socializing with his family, Izuku and Melissa bid everyone good night and they walked back to his new apartment. Upon opening the door, he was quite surprised to see the room fully furnished, complete with couch, large bed, and dining table, and a large TV mounted on the wall.
"Pretty cool, right? They're prototypes Papa's team have been working on for a commission from the Island Council. Should really help people around the Island!" Melissa explained, nodding her approval at the robots' work. Izuku had to agree with her, the work was top rate, and incredibly clean. There wasn't even a speck of dust to be seen.
"Well, I'm gonna call it a night. I'll see you tomorrow!" She said as she left the apartment, the door closing behind her softly.
And, quite suddenly, Izuku was alone. He glanced around the new and strange apartment, before sighing deeply, and walking over to the three boxes that were still left, the ones containing his personal effects.
He wasn't fully tired yet, the combination of excitement from the day and jet lag from the timezone difference stayed his drowsiness. He started unpacking his things, setting up a couple of posters along one of the walls, and organizing some of his hero merch on some shelfs near the bed. After placing his All Might alarm clock on the bedside table and adjusting the time, he sat down on the bed and glanced around again, still not quite believing it was his, and still not quite used to the new space.
A light buzz from his Interface pulled him from spacing out, and as the screen flipped up in front of his eyes, he felt his heart do a bit of a flip. Ochako was calling. Smiling broadly, he established the connection.
"Hey, 'Chako," Izuku said softly, glancing at the clock and noting the time, "it's late. You should be asleep."
"Mmmpf, can't sleep…" her voice coming through quietly, and very drowsily, Izuku noted. "Didn't hear from you all day."
"Ah, yeah, sorry about that. I meant to call earlier, but it's been a crazy busy day," he explained. "Been going nonstop since we landed."
"Oh yeah? Hmmmmm… I wanna hear all about it."
He chuckled softly, "Well, the plane ride was uneventful, though Dad was driving me up the wall with his, 'It's better this way, blah, blah, blah,' spiel. I just about jumped out of the airplane and flew here myself."
Ochako snorted softly, "Mhhhhmmmm, right, cuz Mister Mama's Boy would scare Auntie Inko like that," she retorted.
Izuku smirked, "Yeah, Mom would have had a heart attack. But it is really cool here. Got to see Uncle David again, and even found one of Dad's old capes, the blue one from his Silver Age."
Ochako giggled, "I can only imagine the mumblestorm and nerd out that happened. That's been missing for years."
He sighed exasperatedly, but smiled all the same, "Not you too. Melissa wouldn't stop teasing me at dinner about it…"
Ochako's tired and loopy laughter graced his ears at that.
And for a moment, everything was perfect again. "I wish I could've seen that!"
It took a second for his brain to catch up, noticing the comfortable silence between the two.
"Annnnnyways, Dad also got me my own apartment, which is way beyond what I was expecting," Izuku said, "It's… big."
He glanced around the room again, "But I'll get used to it, eventually."
"That's awfully nice of your dad. He really does care."
"I know he does. Just… I didn't want to leave. I'm already missing you," he said softly.
There was a large yawn on the other end of the line, whatever energy she had pulled together slipping through her again. "I miss you too, Zuku. But don't you worry. It'll be over soon enough, and then we all can go to UA together." There was a pause, and a shuffling sound.
"Sorry, just getting comfy. Keep telling me about the Island."
Izuku smiled and picked back up the tale of the tour, excitedly telling Ochako about his new home, before all he heard on the other end was Ochako's steady deep breathing. Realizing she fell asleep, he whispered a fond good night to her, and closed the call, before stretching, stripping down, and climbing into bed himself, falling asleep quickly.
Izuku's internship began earnestly the day after his arrival, with Dave immediately putting him through his paces, testing all manner of technology against Izuku's strength, quirks, and power output. A month into Izuku's stay on I-Island, Izuku was getting fitted with what he could only describe as a full body harness, similar to what mountain climbers or parachutists would use. Thick woven straps wrapped around his arms, chest, stomach, waist, rear, down his thighs and calves.
He winced as one of the lab assistants yanked down on the straps around his legs, the constricting straps uncomfortably tight, and making his underpants ride rather high. It didn't help that he was still growing muscle across his entire body, no small thanks to One for All and his father's genetics. The constant growth made clothes shopping annoying at best. But this harness was another pain all together.
"So, what's this for again?" he asked over his shoulder to Melissa. He grunted as the assistant yanked on straps across his stomach. "It's really tight."
She sighed and rolled her eyes in exasperation, "Izuku, I already told you, this is the test for your cooling suit."
"Right, I got that," Izuku said, holding his arms out as he looked them over, "but does it need to be so tight?"
Melissa blinked at him, "I know you are smarter than that. Think about it."
Izuku looked up at her, smirking, "Uh, better thermal efficiency? By making it skin tight, the suit can transfer heat better."
Melissa smiled, "I know that you are still new here, but you don't have to act like one of the other average heroes. You're allowed to be smart."
Izuku smiled, "Yeah, okay." He nodded, and started stretching, feeling the limits of the straps.
"Oh! You mind if I show Mei? I bet she'll want to see this," Izuku asked, glancing back at Melissa, who smirked. She and Mei had been chatting for the last month, after Izuku introduced them online, the two inventors hit it off immediately.
"I dunno about that, Izuku. She might, uh…" Melissa glanced over Izuku's strapped body, "She might get distracted."
"What, Mei? Distracted? Never, " Izuku said, chuckling as he cued up the Interface, starting a call with Mei.
"Oh! Try the remote camera drone! It'll be a good test!" Melissa called out as she walked over to a desk.
"Ah, right!" Izuku looked over to a small case on another desk, and the Interface immediately highlighted the small folded drone on its charging port. The Interface synced with it seamlessly, a function that Melissa and Mei had worked on a couple of days previously, and the drone woke, rising into the air with a quiet whirr before zipping to hover in front of him. The video call connected, and Izuku was greeted with a grubby looking Mei on his Interface.
"Hi Zuku!" Mei called out as she wiped her brow with her arm, a huge wrench in hand and a massive smile on her face. "How's my favorite customer?"
Izuku chuckled, "Well, Mel and I, well, mostly Melissa, but we are working on the cooling suit idea. Want to see?"
Mei nodded fervently, her eyes sparkling, "Oooo, yes!"
Izuku laughed and keyed the drone, activating its camera so it streamed to the Interface, sharing the video with Mei.
"Oh! Wow! Are those kevlar straps for the underlayer?" Mei blurted out, her eyes studying the video as the drone began slowly orbiting Izuku, letting her see each side of him. Izuku nodded as he shifted in the harness.
"Hey Izuku?" Melissa called out behind him, prompting Izuku to turn to face her. There was a series of loud snaps as he turned, however, and Izuku immediately felt relief from the constricting material as it reached its breaking point during his rotation.
The kevlar bands, designed to tie down heavy equipment and restrain large animals, had given away at the force of his muscles.
There was a beat of silence, before Mei let out a sound that Izuku couldn't even recognise, as she got a peek of his musculature no longer hidden by the bands.
"Aw, no!" Izuku said, looking down at the ruined straps in dismay.
"I, uh, gotta go, Zuku! Kthanksbye!"
And with that, Mei closed the video call. Izuku gathered the strips that lay about him, looking apologetically to an exasperated Melissa.
"Sorry, Mel," he said, rubbing the back of his head.
"Uh huh," Melissa said flatly, pulling out another requisition form, the third one that week for kevlar straps.
Ochako glanced over at her phone as it buzzed, opening the message from Mei with mild curiosity.
'Watch ' was the only attachment in the message.
She shrugged and opened the file.
Her face went bright red and her mouth went slack as the video played. She was immediately glad she was home alone. This was exactly what she needed.
Stupid Izuku and his stupid thick thighs. And arms.
And oh god that core.
She flipped over on the bed, laying back and playing the video again. Her eyes had a hard time moving away from his toned abs.
"Alright, let's go over the plan again," Dave said, glancing at the monitor on the stand in front of him before looking back up at Izuku, who was wearing a sleek black wind suit, his muscular frame defined through the entire suit. They were outside on one of the helicopter landing pads that I-Island hosted, on one of the last good weather days in early December before winter truly hit this part of the Pacific Ocean. The wind was already coming in cold and fast, buffeting the bundled up researchers.
"Altitude test first, high as possible, then velocity test, as fast as possible, heading south, before returning to the Island for powered descent," Izuku recalled, repeating the flight plan that they had come up with earlier. The suit, designed for this test of his flight capabilities, was covered with sensors that would help the team figure out the right kind of control setup Izuku would need for sustained flight.
"Good. Ready when you are," Dave said into his headset, after doing a final check of the suit's connection to their equipment. The team moved behind tall safety glass panels setup on the pad, cameras ready to record, instruments already recording statistics and info. Izuku nodded and stepped out to the center of the pad, focusing on the pool of energy inside of him and willing it into shape underneath him, a bright ring of green light appearing on the concrete under each of his boots and in his palms.
Dave keyed the mic and connected to I-Island's main flight control, "Island Tower, this is Shield, preparing for launch of Peregrine test flight."
Izuku listened from the Interface, waiting for the response from the controller. It came a split second later.
"Peregrine Flight, this is Island ATC. Cleared for direct vertical ascent. No cross traffic at this time. Have a safe trip, Peregrine," the cool, calm voice of the flight controller making Izuku smile.
"Launch!" he called out, jumping into the air with Float making him weightless and putting his arms down at his side. The rings of light, spinning up and compressing the air inside of them, ignited with a roar, huge plumes of exhaust jetting downwards, sending the teen rocketing skywards. The solid light hologram of the Interface flipped up with a thought, shielding his eyes from any debris and the rushing wind.
"Remember, Izuku, the minute you run into an issue, return to the pad," Dave's voice said through the radio connection.
"Understood!" Izuku called out against the wind, relishing in the freedom and speed as he rapidly climbed through the atmosphere, passing through a couple of clouds. The altimeter on the screen was flicking through numbers in a blur as he passed through the first thousand of meters in the blink of an eye. There was a brief moment of silence and pressure in his head. He yawned, and relief hit him as his ears popped and equalized.
"Expect it to get harder to breathe as you climb, and stop when you start to feel dizzy or winded. No trying to push yourself today, this is just a starter test."
Izuku didn't respond, his attention focused on the altimeter, the numbers passing through two thousand, and not showing any sign of stopping. He could already tell the air was getting thin, but felt fine all the same. Power flow was still strong, prompting Izuku to smirk and push it a bit further, the thrusters widening by a small fraction, his acceleration jumping.
"Crossing four and a half kilometers, expect oxygen to be really thin. Izuku, get ready to throttle down and coast."
"Not yet!" Izuku called out, pushing it even harder, "I can keep going!"
The rings under his feet shrunk for a split second, slowing him down for a second, before merging into a much larger ring, half a meter in diameter. It reignited with a huge blast, and Izuku's acceleration jumped.
"Izuku, pull it back, you are crossing five kilometers already!"
"Gotta… push it!" Izuku grunted, his focus split on the power output and the altimeter.
"Izuku! Throttle back!"
He watched the numbers tick past six thousand, and took a deep breath and held it in, the air growing very thin rapidly. The meter on the display showed a line approaching with a label, fine lettering showing [-TROPOSPHERE-], before he blasted past it, his lungs starting to strain, his heart pounding in his chest. It wasn't until the numbers approached seven thousand that he lost peripheral vision and his lungs screamed in protest, literally begging to breathe, his ears pounding with his heartbeat.
He blacked out at a little over eight thousand meters, his body continuing on an arc thanks to his momentum as the thrusters sputtered out and vanished.
Ochako groaned as she collapsed onto a wooden bench inside the Todoroki training dojo, wiping a towel across her brow and through her hair. Her bout with Shoto had taken more out of her than she would have liked, but was still pleased with the results, having kept the quiet icy-hot teen at bay for a minute longer than their last spar. Overall, she could see the improvements they were each gaining.
She glanced over at Shoko as she entered the training room, the smaller girl looking tired and worn down, her short red and white hair tied up in a small ponytail. The female Todoroki twin had been improving, but slower than Ochako, despite one on one training with her father and Ochako spending extra time with her. She definitely didn't look one hundred percent today, Ochako noted.
"You okay, 'Ko?" Ochako asked, watching her friend closely, as the girl rubbed her stomach absentmindedly.
Before she could respond, however, the door to the dojo was kicked open, and Katsuki stormed in, an angry glower on his face, before vanishing into the boys' changing room, barely giving the girls a glance.
"I'll be fine," Shoko intoned, watching Katsuki go before she turned back to wrapping her arms with boxer's tape. "He seems to be in a mood," she said softly.
Ochako nodded, glancing to the door of the changing room, "He's been really moody lately. Not sure what's going on." She turned back to Shoko. "Remember to watch his left hook and the follow up kick." She rubbed the side of her ribs in memory of the last spar she had with Katsuki, her right side still sore from his brutal attack.
Shoko nodded, and sat down on the mat, cross legged, and began her breathing exercises. Ochako watched her for a bit longer, looking up when Katsuki walked back into the training room, changed into his work out clothes, including his new dark masquera. He tossed his bag towards the bench, and walked onto the mat. Ochako smirked as he started his stretching; the recent addition of his make up was unexpected, but not unpleasant. He had taken to asking the girls for advice on different brands and applicators, much to their enjoyment.
After a couple of minutes, Shoko opened her eyes and Ochako noted a sense of calm had fallen over her, while Katsuki's stretches had just intensified his energy. He moved about on the mat as Shoko gracefully stood up, and both opponents fell into their preferred stances, with Ochako acting as referee.
"Ready?" Ochako asked Shoko, who nodded silently.
"Ready?" She then asked Katsuki, who smirked.
"Gonna blast you off your feet, Ice Princess," he taunted.
Shoko's eyes narrowed, and her fists tightened. Ochako noted a slight flush in her face, which she recognized.
Shoko's calm aura had vanished in an instant and she was pissed.