Notes:

Trigger Warnings:

-Flashbacks of torture

-Mentions of attempted suicide

Finding a doctor to help Izuku wasn't difficult. Actually, Nedzu had already paged a doctor (who gave him a pager?) when Izuku had agreed to the checkup. Nedzu was also the only reason why a swarm of nurses hadn't stormed the room after their patient had disconnected himself from his heart monitor.

The actual checkup with the doctor… Well, all things considered, the checkup went fairly well.

Izuku had been picked up from the floor and placed gently on the bed, courtesy of Hizashi. Aizawa, begrudgingly and only at Yamada's insistence, took up residence in one of the nearby visitor chairs with his husband by his side.

It didn't take very long after Izuku's meltdown for the doctor to show up. The doctor was an older woman, with short brassy hair and striking blue eyes. Her face was wrinkled and kind looking. Both Izuku and Aizawa relaxed slightly; the woman's stout and plump figure was a startling contrast to Overhaul's Doctor, making the entire process much easier.

That didn't stop Izuku from flinching whenever she would touch him or got too close, nor did it quell his panic upon seeing the familiar white lab coat, but he managed. The pain that arose whenever she poked or prodded his injuries was barely even noticeable, and the examination ended fairly quickly.

Straightening from her slightly slouched position, the doctor's gaze swept from Izuku to Aizawa; her eyes dark and her brows furrowed.

"As of right now, Izuku is in relatively stable condition physically. Our team of doctors included a man with an organ restoration quirk, so the wounds to his abdomen are healing nicely. The severity of his burns was lessened with the help of a tissue de-aging quirk, but some are still expected to scar. Unfortunately, there are two major issues that we weren't able to fix with any quirks."

Aizawa's gaze sharpened, his eye flashing with worry. Izuku stiffened in his bed, clutching the thin white sheets tightly.

The doctor paused, taking a deep breath before continuing.

"The first is his right foot. We weren't able to salvage enough of it to restore the limb completely. With your permission, we'll amputate what's still remaining of it. We can connect you with some engineers that specialize in prosthetics, if you so choose."

The knot in Izuku's gut tightened. He felt sick. His face had turned even paler, if at all possible, and he was biting the inside of his cheek so hard he could taste blood.

"...What else?" Izuku managed to croak out, avoiding eye contact with the physician by his bedside. He didn't want to look at her.

Aizawa seemed comfortable doing the same, his gaze boring a hole into a crack in the tile floor.

"Well, under your… unique-" the woman paused at this, cringing slightly, "-circumstances, we have been informed that your quirk was… how should I say… transferred to you in both a mentally and physically traumatic exchange-"

Izuku clenched his teeth at the phrasing. The phrase "your quirk" rang in his head as the woman continued, her words blurring in Izuku's mind.

It wasn't his quirk. It was 'Zawa's. He didn't ask for this. He never wanted this.

The Doctor's hands were on his face and his fingers, God, his fingers, were digging, reaching into his skull and Izuku screamed and thrashed and sobbed but he didn't stop, he kept digging and Izuku was covered in his own blood and could only see out of his right eye and he wished, not for the last time, that he was completely blind so that he didn't have to look at that sickening grin twisted on the man's face, the shimmer in his eyes as he looked upon the writhing child-

"-We can transfer the eye back to you, Mr. Aizawa, but doing so is… risky, to say the least."

Izuku snapped out of his memories, trying to ignore the fear and despair creeping up into his throat. It was Aizawa who spoke next.

"What do you mean, risky?" The man's voice was hoarse, but otherwise a detached monotone. His gaze never left the crack in the tile.

The woman pursed her lips, looking between Izuku and Aizawa with an air of apprehension before continuing.

"For one, Izuku would be left completely blind in his left eye. Simply put, his optic nerve is already fragile. If we were to perform this procedure, it would become too damaged to transmit visual information to the brain, even with another donor eye or the help of any technology."

Aizawa's hands tightened into fists in his lap, his nails digging little crescents into the flesh of his palms.

"That's on Izuku's end. If we were to transfer the eye back to Mr. Aizawa, it is possible that your quirk factor could become strained due to the stress of the operation. However, if you do decide to transfer, the chances of regaining full vision are promising."

The room fell into a tense silence. Several moments passed before the doctor spoke again.

"That is all. If you have any questions or concerns, I am more than welcome to answer them. This is, of course, your choice. I'll prepare the necessary paperwork and drop it off as soon as I can. Until then, I wish you two the best."

She bowed politely before gathering her equipment and leaving the room. Even after the door clicked shut behind her, no one spoke. After a few minutes of quiet, Hizashi stood from his chair, gently removing his hand from his husband's shoulder.

"I think you two have some things to talk about. I'll be outside if either of you need anything."

Hizashi's voice was lower than usual, lacking the usual dramatic emphasis that he used often as Present Mic. He spared one last worried look at Shouta and Izuku before excusing himself from the room quietly.

Izuku and Aizawa were left alone in the hospital room. Aizawa stared at the crack in the tile. Izuku tried not to lose himself in the past. It was a long while of silence.

"You should take-"

"I'm not going to-"

The two spoke at the same time, stopping abruptly upon hearing the other's voice. Surprised, their gazes met. Aizawa nodded encouragingly at Izuku, prompting him to continue.

Izuku swallowed thickly, trying to steady his breathing.

"You should take your eye back. I can't- It's not-" His voice cracked, and he grit his teeth tightly, trying to keep his emotions under control.

Aizawa's previously empty gaze was now softening into a sad look, his face drooping slightly. He looked tired, like he had aged twenty years over the course of this one conversation.

"...Kid, it's better than you being blind in one eye. It's the logical thing to do. Your quirk-"

Izuku turned to Aizawa, eyes blazing.

"It's not my quirk" he spat out, "It's yours and you need to take it back. You're a hero, 'Zawa. You're Eraserhead, for fuck's sake."

Aizawa furrowed his eyebrows, confusion and irritation evident in his features.

"I can still use my quirk just fine. I can still fight just as well. Sure, it's going to take more time to get used to, but that's nothing compared to the alternative."

"It's your eye, 'Zawa! I'm not keeping it-"

"Kid, what is so horrible about having my eye that you would rather be blind for? I know that the quirk is weird and different, and I know it's a lot to handle right now, but-"

"You don't know anything, Aizawa."

Aizawa stopped, staring at Izuku in a mixture of disbelief and hurt. Izuku stared right back, tears now streaming steadily down his face, his chest heaving. He ignored the twinge of guilt in his gut.

"If I keep your eye, I'll be reminded every day that I'm the reason why they took your eye. I'm the reason why they tortured you, why you're covered in scars, why you were separated from your family. I don't need a reminder for something I already know. Hell, the look on Hizashi's face when he realized that I'm the reason why his husband is half-blind was more than enough for me." He let out an almost hysterical laugh, devoid of any actual humor. "And to top it all off, I have your. fucking. quirk. The one I absolutely idolized growing up. The one that every time I use it, makes me think of Overhaul's hand at your throat, ready to rip you apart -"

"Enough."

Izuku snapped his mouth shut, tears still pouring down his cheeks. His face burned with guilt and shame, and he refused to meet Aizawa's gaze.

Aizawa stood up from the uncomfortable visitor's chair, making his way over to Izuku's hospital bed. He stopped when he reached the bed's side, close enough that he could see the tremor in Izuku's hand and feel the warmth radiating from his body.

"Kid. Look at me." His voice was low and firm, but not angry. No, it was more… sad.

Izuku scrunched up his face, not looking away from where his eyes were fixed on the white sheet covering his lap.

Aizawa sighed.

"Kid." His voice was almost pleading now.

Izuku braced himself internally before darting his gaze upwards to meet Aizawa's. He expected to find anger, annoyance, maybe even hatred. Instead, he was faced with deep, pure sorrow.

Feelings of guilt and shame bubbled inside of Izuku. All he could think about was how he did that, he made 'Zawa sad, he was the reason-

His dark thoughts were cut off abruptly when warm arms wrapped tightly around his shoulders. Reflexively, he sunk into the familiar embrace, burying his head into the man's neck and suppressing a sob. Aizawa just cradled his kid as best as he could in the slightly awkward position, one arm wrapped around Izuku while the other stroked his hair comfortingly. A moment passed before Aizawa pulled back, face to face with Izuku.

"Do… do you really think that all of this happened because of you?" Aizawa's voice cracked painfully, betraying emotion that the usually stoic man tried to hide. He sounded so vulnerable, so hurt. Izuku just furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

And oh, did that just shatter Shouta's heart. To think that his kid spent this entire time feeling guilty because he thought it was his own fault that they were being tortured? The mere thought made the man want to curl up in a ball and never speak to anyone ever again.

"Kid, none of that was your fault. None of it. You and I were both hurt because of Overhaul. Because of the Doctor. You had nothing to do with it, got that?"

Izuku's face twisted into a look of annoyance, something dark glimmering in his eyes.

"'Zawa, the only reason why you were even kidnapped was because I was there! Hell, the only reason why any of the experiments even happened in the first place was because I'm quirkless. If I had managed to die before you got kidnapped, you would never have ended up in this mess."

Izuku glared down at his hands, his vision blurred through the tears.

Shouta's world stopped for a horrifying second.

"What do you mean, managed to die?"

Izuku's eyes widened, and he opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out.

"Izuku, what did you mean by that?"

Izuku felt like he was suffocating and drowning and falling and all he wanted was for Aizawa to forget everything he had just said. But deep down a voice in Izuku screamed to tell him, to tell anyone, to stop hiding things. So, that's exactly what he did.

"I...I was alone. F-For a while. Before you came. Everything was too dark. Too quiet. I was tired of being alone." His eyes stung and his hands were starting to hurt because of how hard he was clenching them. "They were doing bad things because of me and I didn't want that to happen anymore so I stopped eating and it almost worked, I was so close! I was so, so close, but the Doctor noticed and he made me eat and he threatened to find and kill my family if I didn't so I did but if I had just kept going for a little bit longer-"

Izuku's frustrated rant was cut off once again by Aizawa pulling him back into a strong embrace. The boy was surprised this time to feel tiny, wet droplets falling onto his hospital gown, the tears not coming from him. He hadn't noticed that Aizawa was trembling, or how quickly the man was breathing, until now.

"I'm so glad you're here, kid. Never, ever forget that. You mean so much to me, Izuku."

The words were muffled by the hug, but it didn't bother Izuku.

Because for the first time in his life, it didn't matter that Izuku was quirkless. It didn't matter if he was strong or weak, didn't matter if he was slow or fast, smart or not.

He didn't need to prove his worth to Aizawa. Didn't need to clean the house or pay the bills to receive such kindness.

Izuku just… was. He existed.

That was more than enough for Aizawa.

"If… If you really don't want your eye back… then I'll keep it."

The words were spoken before he really had a chance to think things through, but it felt… right, somehow. Buried in Aizawa's arms, stuck in a hospital bed, Izuku had never felt so loved. He was still conflicted about the eye, not to mention the baggage he had to work through regarding having a quirk now. But maybe, just maybe, it didn't have to be a sign of his own weakness anymore. He hoped that one day, it could be a reminder of this moment. Of a warm body wrapped around his, of kind words that no one had ever bothered to tell him before.

Maybe one day.

Once all of the paperwork was officially filled out, Izuku's right foot (what remained of it) was amputated. The surgery took several hours, but was successful. Izuku remained in the hospital for the following six days for extra monitoring. Aizawa was technically allowed to leave after only three, but he stubbornly refused to do so, only ever leaving Izuku's side unless absolutely necessary. Hizashi had brought him extra clothes, and after a tearful reunion with Nemuri (much to Izuku's surprise and delight at meeting the pro hero Midnight), it was eventually Izuku's last day in the hospital.

During his time in the hospital, when he wasn't in surgery or passed out, Izuku occupied his time by gazing outside the window (he missed seeing the sunset), playing card games with the two pro heroes, and scribbling furiously on any spare pieces of paper the nursing staff would give him. He also spent his time practicing sign language with Aizawa and Hizashi, although Hizashi communicated verbally as well. Izuku had asked about it, after the three had finished a game of go-fish.

"Present Mic, sir?"

"Little listener, you can call me Hizashi. No need for such formality!" The man had said with a smile.

"Oh, uh, right. Sorry. Hizashi… sir." Yamada sighed, watching the child with amusement as he continued. "I was wondering… you said something about your hearing being permanently damaged because of your quirk. But you and I are talking right now, not signing. So… you can still hear?"

"Yup! Growing up, my quirk did a real number on my inner ear. I'm technically Deaf, but was able to get a cochlear implant," at this, the man turned his head, dragging a section of his hair back to reveal a circular device embedded in his head with a cord connecting to what looked like a singular hearing aid on the shell of his ear, "before I lost my hearing completely. Without it, I can't hear a thing. Even with it, some noises are hard to make out; it's not perfect, but I make it work. I still sign a lot with Sho, and I try to stay involved in the community. Does that make sense?"

"Yeah, thank you Mr. Hizashi, sir!"

Hizashi spared an exasperated look to his husband.

"Shouta, where did you find this kid?"

"I think it's the other way around. The kid found me." The corner of Shouta's mouth curled upwards, and his tone was playful.

Izuku's fond remembrance was cut off by Aizawa tapping his forehead lightly, eyebrows furrowed worryingly.

"Sorry, I zoned out. What's going on?"

Aizawa sighed lightly, his face relaxing into the usual stoic expression that Izuku was familiar with.

"I asked if you were excited to finally leave this place, kid."

A dark, creeping feeling enveloped Izuku at the question. He turned his gaze away from the hero's face, focusing instead on a loose thread sticking out of the blanket laying on his lap.

Ever since he had been rescued, he avoided thinking about it. About what would happen after. What would he do? Go back to his mom? The thought was laughable. Most likely, he'd be dropped off at his mom's doorstep. Once no heroes or detectives were there, his mom would curse at him or scream or throw something, and he would be out on the streets. Considering he didn't have a left foot at the moment, it wouldn't be easy. Work would be hard to find and shelter would be impossible. He did remember an abandoned beach filled with trash, though. He could probably make somewhere to sleep out of an old car or something. He didn't even want to think about what school would be like-

"Kid, what's the problem? Talk to me."

Aizawa's tone was soft, barely able to be heard even from his position at Izuku's bedside in one of those awful visitor chairs.

Izuku looked up quickly, not realizing how long he had been lost in thought for. Rushing to cover up his pained silence, he tried to reassure the man.

"Oh, sorry! N-Nothing's wrong, I'm excited. Definitely." Izuku cringed internally at how suspicious that sounded. Based on the look Aizawa was giving him, he didn't buy it either.

"You want to tell me what's actually wrong or am I going to find out when something blows up in a few hours?"

Izuku flushed slightly at having been caught in his lie. Really, he was embarrassed. Normally he could lie so much better, but the pain meds had been making him less guarded than usual.

"I guess I'm upset that I won't get to see you. I mean, I know I shouldn't be, and I'm happy that you get to live with your husband and your cats and I'm sure that I can build myself a phone to text you with sometimes-"

While Izuku rambled, Shouta's brain seemed to short-circuit. He had already told Nedzu that he was adopting Izuku. He had told Hizashi that they would have to clear out the spare room for the kid, which his husband was quick to do in his occasional visits to the apartment. Nemuri nearly talked his ear off when she learned that she would be an aunt. Hell, even Tsukauchi knew. He had been the one to help with all the paperwork, the process having been sped up greatly due to Aizawa and Hizashi's pro hero licenses.

Yet Shouta had forgotten one, tiny little detail.

"-and I know you work at UA so I can always stop by for a visit, o-or not if you don't want that, which is totally fine-"

"Shit."

Izuku's head whipped up, eyebrows furrowed in confusion at Aizawa's sudden outburst.

"Uhh, everything okay, 'Zawa?"

Aizawa just stared at his kid for a moment, trying to find the right words. Something like "Hey so I kinda maybe adopted you and arrested your mom, sorry I forgot to tell you!" Didn't feel like the right thing to say at the moment.

"...'Zawa?"

He took a deep breath.

"Kid, how would you feel about…" Aizawa paused, uncertainty growing inside of him. He took another deep breath. "About coming home with 'Zashi and I."

Izuku sat, motionless. His face was blank. After a moment, his confused gaze turned back to Aizawa.

"...What?"

"What I meant was that I -both Hizashi and I- want… want to adopt you. As our kid."

Izuku's confused expression turned into one of shock. His mouth dropped open.

"You don't have to agree, I just thought it would… I mean, from what you told me about your mom and how she abused you and… shit, I just assumed you would be coming home with me after all we've been through together and I should have asked earlier, I wasn't thinking-"

Shouta's uncharacteristic ramble was cut short by the sound of Izuku's sobbing.

Aizawa whipped his head up, absolutely mortified to see his kid crying.

"Fuck, kid, I'm sorry, you don't have to say anything, I didn't mean to upset you, shit-"

"You want to adopt me?"

Izuku's broken voice snapped Aizawa out of his panic. His eye widened in realization.

"Izuku, I planned on adopting you practically seven months ago. I'm sorry it took so long to ask."

At that, his kid cried even harder.

"I don't, I don't u-understand," Izuku's voice kept cutting off, his sobs echoing throughout the otherwise quiet room.

Aizawa ignored the hot poker stabbing his heart, focusing instead on pulling Izuku into his arms, wrapping the boy a tight embrace.

"I… I want to help you understand, if you'll let me. Does… does that sound okay?"

After a moment of crying into Aizawa's shoulder, Izuku nodded hesitantly. Aizawa let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding. He focused on Izuku's small fists clenching tightly into the fabric of his shirt. The shaking of his shoulders, the sound of his uneven breathing.

Aizawa was never one to believe in God, or any other higher power. But he'd be lying if he didn't send a little 'thank you' out to the Universe at the chance to finally provide his kid with the one thing Izuku never had: a home.

The trip to Hizashi and Aizawa's apartment was quick and comfortable. After being discharged from the hospital with several packets of aftercare instructions and information on mechanics and prosthetic workers in the area (as well as a hearty supply of pain medication), Izuku, Hizashi, and Aizawa made their way to the car parked in the hospital parking garage. Izuku was still getting used to the whole 'family' thing, and was surprised when Hizashi had offered to push his wheelchair so he didn't overexert himself. Upon reaching the car and struggling fruitlessly to pull himself into the backseat, Izuku was extremely embarrassed when Hizashi had picked him up, his cheeks flushing even darker when the man cooed at the frankly adorable sight, Aizawa grinning in the front seat.

Once that little roadblock was over, and Izuku and Shouta had gawked openly at seeing the outside world for the first time in far too long, the trio had arrived at the apartment. The actual apartment complex was tucked nicely between what looked like an office building and a small, family-owned grocery store. The building itself was plain and unassuming, but the inside was sleek and modern, armed with high-tech security systems and a secretary in the lobby at all times.

One elevator ride later, Hizashi, Shouta, and Izuku all stood (or sat, in Izuku's case) in front of the apartment door.

Izuku tried to ignore the anxiety burning through his system as Hizashi turned the key and opened the door, revealing a cozy, bigger-than-expected living room. Slowly, Aizawa pushed Izuku's wheelchair into the threshold. Immediately, they were swarmed by a flurry of fluffy beings.

Hizashi and Aizawa both chuckled, before Hizashi picked up one of the cats, showing him to a surprised Izuku. The cat's fur was black and brown, and he had a chunk missing from one ear and a good bit of pudge hanging from his stomach.

"This is Cadaver! Cadaver, meet Izuku. He's going to be living with us now!"

Hizashi moved the cat's arm in a waving motion, eliciting a smile out of the nervous Izuku and a 'meow' from Cadaver, who quickly jumped out of Hizashi's arms to sniff Izuku's wheelchair.

Aizawa pointed to the next cat, this one a fluffy white with bright blue eyes and chubby paws.

"That one's Sprinkles. Don't let her charm deceive you, she can be a real pain in the ass when she wants to be."

Izuku snorted, covering his mouth with his hand, his eyes sparkling. Aizawa fought to hide a grin at the sight.

"And thisssss-" Hizashi picked up the last cat and by far the largest of the three with a wide smile, plopping him down gently in Izuku's lab, "-is Bastard."

The cat immediately made itself comfortable in Izuku's lab, curling up closely against his torso. Izuku hesitantly began petting Bastard's head, looking up in surprise and delight at Hizashi and Shouta when a loud purring could be heard.

Hizashi was quick to take a few photos, while Aizawa just ruffled Izuku's hair fondly.

Moving farther into the house, Hizashi and Aizawa showed Izuku the living room: an open area filled with two comfortable-looking couches, a simple coffee table, a flat screen TV, and shelves lining the walls, full of various knick-knacks, books, and other random collectables. Right off of the living room was the kitchen, a small but neat area armed with plenty of counter space and a little breakfast nook overlooking the city below. The tour continued down to a hallway off of the kitchen, leading to the master bedroom, bathroom, and an office.

All the while, Izuku took everything in like a sponge. Little glimpses at photos and merchandise and cat toys made his heart swell with an unfamiliar feeling. The whole house felt so… cozy. And warm. It was a sharp contrast to the cold and uninviting space that he used to share with his mother.

Izuku shook his head to rid himself of the unpleasant thought. They had reached a new room, a small bedroom with a wide, bright window. The room had a wood-framed twin bed and a matching dresser, as well as a desk and chair pushed up against the far wall. Various hero posters lined the walls, ranging from Midnight to Death Arms, and even including a vintage Present Mic poster (SO COOL!!).

Noticing that Hizashi had fallen quiet, Izuku turned his head to gaze at the man inquisitively.

Hizashi was looking at Izuku with kind eyes, a small, shy smile on his face.

"This is your room. I hope you like it; I didn't really have a lot of time to put everything together. Nem helped a lot, and I know you like hero stuff and I had plenty of posters just sitting around-"

As Hizashi rambled, Izuku turned his eyes back to the room in front of him. His room.

He turned to look at Aizawa, the man greeting him with a sly grin and shining gaze.

Izuku thought back to the cold, dark cell he had spent over a year of his life trapped in.

He remembered all of the lonely nights where, no matter how hard he cried or screamed or begged, no one came to save him.

All of the pain and hurt and fear he had felt.

The Doctor's sick grin, Overhaul's terrifying presence.

He thought of his life before getting kidnapped.

Of his mom, and Bakugou. Of all of the burns and scathing words. The fridge that was always empty, the house that only ever seemed cold.

Now, looking at the room in front of him, Izuku didn't feel cold.

Now, he wasn't alone.

Izuku barely felt the tears rolling down his cheeks, could barely feel Aizawa's hand on his shoulder or Bastard snuggling into his lap.

All Izuku felt right now was warm.

All Izuku felt right now was loved.

"It's perfect."