Following an uneventful week at school, Akatani found himself helping his family prepare for the weekend cookout.
The whole week Akatani's sisters had been pestering their parents about who else was going to be coming to the cookout. Besides Red Riot and Pinky, the triplets and Akatani had no idea who else was coming. Of course they could speculate as to who was going to show up, but their parents had been keeping their mouths shut in terms of revealing the guest list.
Taking a stack of paper plates from the kitchen out to the backyard, Akatani looked around the spacious backyard that had been prepared for a gathering. Tables, chairs, and benches had been set up, food was being cooked, and the grass had been freshly mowed earlier that day. Akatani's dad stood in front of a large stainless-steel grill, the green-haired man dressed casually in blue jeans, black polo shirt, and well-used loafers. Akatani's mom was in the process of stocking a large cooler with various drinks, she wore a simple blue sundress and sandals while her silver-white hair was tied back in a simple ponytail. Kaede, Haru, and Chiyo ran around energetically, seemingly too excited to stay still for more than a handful of seconds. Each sister was dressed in roughly the same style, but with different color variations. Their outfits consisting of jean shorts, simple t-shirts, and running sneakers. Unsure of what exactly he should wear, Akatani had simply decided to copy his dad. The young teen wore blue jeans, sneakers, and a white polo-shirt. A few minutes earlier Akatani had tried to force his hair into a more presentable state, but no matter what he did his silver-white hair always seemed to revert to its usual curly and unruly state.
Sighing softly, Akatani walked over and placed the stack of plates in his hands on a nearby folding table that was full of other eating utensils and cups.
"Thanks honey." Akatani's mom said cheerily. "Can you-"
She was cut off as the sound of the doorbell chiming rang from inside the house.
Akatani looked over to see his dad check his watch.
"Right on time." Izuku said with a grin. "I bet I know who it is." He then turned to look over at Rumi. "Rumi, could you get the door?"
Nodding, Akatani's mom smoothed out a wrinkle in her dress and stepped away from the cooler. "Sure thing." Before she walked away, Rumi fixed a stern stare on her unruly daughters. "You three, stop running around like lunatics. Please behave yourself in front of our guests."
The triplets immediately lined up next to Akatani and nodded, but it was clear the girls were barely containing themselves.
As their mom disappeared into the house, the triplets whispered to each other and their little brother excitedly.
"I wonder who it is?" Chiyo said first.
"Dad said to invite friends from UA, so they are probably another pro-hero." Kaede responded.
"If so, I wonder what their rank is?" Haru added.
Akatani simply shrugged. He didn't mind that his sisters did most of the talking in their group conversations. They all thought the same way, it was just that the triplets had an easier time expressing themselves than he did.
However, their assumptions still did not prepare them for who walked into the backyard.
The first guest stood as tall as Izuku and had a head of dark blue hair. He wore glasses with rectangular lenses, white pants, a blue striped shirt, and a white blazer. Even in casual clothes it was obvious who the man was.
The pro-hero known as Ingenium.
"Nice to see you again Mr. Midoriya!" Ingenium said with a wide smile.
As the kids watched in shock, Izuku walked over with an equally wide smile and exchanged a firm handshake with one of the top-rated pro-heroes in the country.
"Same to you Iida." Izuku said warmly. "Glad you could make it. Make yourself at home, the food is almost done and the others should be arriving soon."
"DAD YOU KNOW INGENIUM AS WELL?!" Kaede yelled in exasperation.
Izuku shrugged as Ingenium laughed warmly.
Walking over, Ingenium gave the kids a polite bow. "Nice to meet you all. What are your names?"
The triplets all blurted out their names at the same time, making Ingenium chuckle.
"Well I can see that you three definitely take after your mother." Ingenium said with a smile before turning his gaze to Akatani. "And what is your name?"
After a moment of awkward silence Akatani finally managed to muster up the courage to speak.
"Akatani…" He mumbled.
"Nice to meet you Akatani, Kaede, Chiyo, and Haru." Ingenium said politely.
Turning around, Ingenium gestured to the expensive-looking bottle of wine that Rumi was holding. "My contribution to the gathering. Feel free to save it for a later date if you want."
Taking the bottle and examining it, Izuku let out an appreciative whistle. "Thanks Iida. How did you get your hands on this vintage?"
Ingenium's calm and composed expression broke as he blushed slightly and shrugged awkwardly. "To be honest…I just got what was recommended by the seller. I just wanted to impress you and made sure to get the highest quality wine I could find…sorry…"
Rumi laughed warmly and slapped Ingenium heartily on the back, much to the shock of her kids.
"There is the awkward nerd I remember!" Rumi chuckled as Ingenium blushed bright red. "I was wondering how long you were going to keep acting all cool and stoic."
"Rumi, stop teasing him." Izuku said with a grin on his face.
Putting the bottle of wine down on a nearby table, Izuku walked over and patted Ingenium on shoulder in a fatherly manner. "Iida you don't have to worry about impressing me. You do that enough every time I see you in the news. Now stop acting all formal and relax. You are here to take a break and have some fun."
Ingenium's expression changed from embarrassed to grateful, and for a moment it looked like there was the hint of a happy tear in his eye.
"T-thanks Mr. Midoriya." Ingenium said surprisingly shyly.
The sweet moment was interrupted by the doorbell ringing, making the three adults straighten up.
"Honey, if you could go get the door please." Izuku said to Rumi. "I need to get back to the food."
Nodding, Rumi walked back into the house as Ingenium followed Izuku over to the grill curiously.
Still shocked speechless over the display they had just witnessed, the kids simply waited to see who else was going to show up.
The next guest to walk into the backyard was the pro-hero known as Uravity. The brown-haired woman was dressed in a red and white polka-dot blouse, blue jeans, and casual sandals.
"Hello again Mr. Midoriya!" Uravity said happily as Rumi placed a plate of delicious looking cookies on the dessert table.
Letting Ingenium take over the grill for a minute, Izuku walked over and gave his former pupil a quick hug.
"Hey Uraraka, doing well?" Izuku said warmly.
Uravity nodded. "I am, thanks! Thanks for inviting me, it has been awhile since I have done something like this."
This time it was Chiyo who spoke up in disbelief. "Wait a second! You know Uravity as well?! How many amazing pro-heroes do you know dad?"
Uravity giggled and walked over to the four kids. "Nice to meet you all. What are your names?"
After introducing themselves in the same manner as the first time, the kids all watched as their mom walked over and affectionately patted Uravity on the back.
"Seeing you now Uraraka, it is hard to believe you used to be such a wallflower back in the day." Rumi said proudly. "You turned into quite the hero, glad to see your training paid off."
"Well I did have two of the best mentors I could ever ask for." Uravity said brightly. "Even if your lessons were a little unusual."
"Wait a sec!" Haru exclaimed. "Uravity was your intern?!"
Akatani's mom nodded. "For a little bit, yeah. It was actually the same time when your dad was my government liaison, so technically she was trained by both of us."
Uravity giggled lightly. "It was definitely an eye-opening experience. I owe a lot of my growth as a pro-hero to both of them."
Before the conversation could continue, the doorbell rang again. As Rumi went back into the house, Uravity gave Ingenium a cheerful wave.
"Heya Iida!" The gravity-controlling heroine said happily.
Letting Izuku take back control of the grill, Ingenium turned around and gave Uravity a polite bow.
"Hello Uraraka. Thanks for covering my patrol route the other week." Ingenium said with a smile. "I was right in letting you take over. You took out that villain quite easily from what I heard."
Uravity's smile faded for a second as she glanced over at Izuku.
"Yeah…thanks…" The brown-haired woman said quietly.
Before the conversation could continue, Akatani's mom emerged from the house with the newest guest.
The guest was a woman with long black hair tied into a spiky ponytail, her outfit consisting of black stockings, a red skirt, casual boots, and a white blouse. It was obvious the woman's entire outfit consisted of high-end designer brands, and she carried herself with an almost regal grace.
Akatani frowned as he tried to remember where he had seen the woman before, but was quickly reminded when Haru squealed loudly in excitement.
"OHMYGOD IS THAT CREATI?!"
Akatani's jaw dropped upon the realization that his dad knew yet another famous pro-hero. Not only that, Creati was also the CEO of a highly successful company that helped design cutting edge and stylish hero outfits. Her face was a common sight on magazine covers and ads online, as well as being a frequent guest on high-profile fashion shows.
"It is a pleasure to see you again Mr. Midoriya." Creati said courteously as she bowed. "You and your wife have a lovely home and family."
Closing the lid of the grill to keep the food inside warm, Izuku walked over and smiled warmly. "Thanks Yaoyorozu, glad you could make it. But there is no need to be so formal, feel free to relax."
Creati grinned wryly. "You may not realize it, but it is hard to treat a legendary person like you as a normal person. Nonetheless, I will try. I appreciate the sentiment."
As Rumi placed a tray of exquisite-looking sushi on the appetizer table, Creati walked over to the starstruck kids and smiled.
"It is easy to see that you are the kids of Mr. and Mrs. Midoriya. It is a pleasure to meet you all, what are your names?"
As the triplets nearly fell over themselves to blurt out their names, Akatani stayed silent as he tried to wrap his head around the fact that his dad was friends with such famous pro-heroes.
Laughing softly at the enthusiasm of the triplets, Creati turned to look at Akatani. "And what is your name, young man?"
Akatani felt like he was about to pass out from the pressure, but took a steadying breath and did his best to introduce himself properly. "Akatani. Nice to meet you, Miss Creati."
Nodding appreciatively, Creati gave the kids a friendly smile. "I can tell all of you have bright futures ahead of you. It is nice to see."
Once again the doorbell rang, and the kids could only guess who else was going to show up as their mom went to retrieve the guests.
A minute later, Rumi walked into the backyard with two guests in tow.
The first guest was a man with yellow hair. He wore blue jeans, a white shirt, white sneakers, and a trendy yellow jacket. The second guest was a slender woman with dark purple hair. She wore black boots, black jeans, a teal shirt, and black jacket.
"Yo Mr. Midoriya!" The yellow-haired man said loudly with a friendly wave. "Long time no see!"
Less than a second later, what looked like a long earphone jack emerged from under the slender woman's hair and stabbed the yellow-haired man in the neck causing him to yelp in pain.
"Idiot, be a little more respectful." The purple-haired woman grumbled before giving Izuku a polite bow. "Hello Mr. Midoriya. Thank you for inviting us."
Akatani could not help but grin a little at the exchange as his sisters whispered amongst themselves.
"Chargebolt and Earphone-Jack as well!?" Kaede said incredulously. "Seriously, nobody here is below rank twenty?!"
Akatani watched as his dad laughed and walked over to give Chargebolt a friendly handshake. "Good to see you again Kaminari." Izuku then turned to Earphone-Jack and gave her a warm smile. "It's okay Jirou, we are all equals here. No need to be so stiff. It's good to see you as well."
Earphone-Jack was silent for a moment before shrugging. "If you say so."
Spotting the Midoriya kids, Chargebolt's eyes lit up in excitement and rushed over to inspect the teenagers. "No way! These are your kids? So cool!"
Puffing out his chest proudly, Chargebolt struck a heroic pose as he spoke to the four kids. "Nice to meet ya! My name is Chargebolt, but you can call me Uncle Kaminari!"
As the triplets giggled at Chargebolt's antics, Akatani could only inwardly groan at the man's enthusiasm. However, Akatani did grin a little when Earphone-Jack walked over and stabbed Chargebolt again with one of her plugs.
"Idiot, you just met them. Don't act so familiar with them." The slender woman said in annoyance. Facing the four kids, Earphone-Jack bowed politely. "Nice to meet you all. Sorry about Chargebolt."
As Chargebolt and Earphone-Jack bickered with each other to the amusement of the triplets, the doorbell rang again.
This time there was no need to wait and see who the guest was, as seconds later the sound of Red Riot's loud voice could be heard all the way in the backyard.
"SORRY WE ARE LATE!" The muscular man's voice boomed from inside the house.
Creati laughed softly. "Never was the subtle one."
A few seconds later, Rumi led Red Riot and Pinky out into the backyard. Red Riot wore baggy green shorts and a red t-shirt sporting his gym's logo, while Pinky wore black jean shorts and a trendy white shirt that hung from one shoulder.
As Rumi placed a large case of high-quality beer next to the cooler, Red Riot and Pinky immediately went to greet Akatani's dad.
"Man it smells good out here!" Red Riot said boisterously as he gave Izuku a firm handshake. "You can cook as well Mr. Midoriya? Is there anything you can't do?"
As soon as Izuku finished shaking Red Riot's hand, he was quickly hugged by a giggling Pinky.
"I looove your house Mr. Midoriya!" Pinky said excitedly. "It really gives off that wholesome family vibe!"
Extracting himself from Pinky's hug, Izuku chuckled in amusement. "Thanks you two. Feel free to take a load off and relax. Everyone else is here and the food is almost ready."
Spotting the four kids, Red Riot walked over and gave them all a wide smile. "Nice to see you all again! Who would have thought that I would be hanging out at the legendary Midoriya house with all my old friends."
Akatani was unsure how to respond, but before he could even formulate a reply he found himself in a group hug with his sisters from Pinky.
"Aww you guys are soo cute!" Pinky squealed. "Jeez it is almost criminal how adorable you four are!"
Trying to ignore how nice Pinky smelled, Akatani simply stayed silent as his sisters laughed happily and returned the hug.
"Alright, since everyone is here we can start eating." Rumi said loudly enough for everyone to hear. "Burgers and steaks are on the grill, salad is on the table, appetizers are next to the salad, and drinks are in the coolers. Dig in everyone!"