Izuku laid in his bed, his mind reminiscing over the events from yesterday. To think that he'd ever go up against the Hero Killer before he'd ever graduate from UA, let alone meet the #5 Hero, Miruko! It was with great luck that he was able to get an autograph from her during the trip to the hospital before she left to go elsewhere, probably to give a PR statement or report to the HPSC about Stain's arrest. Suffice to say, yesterday would be considered to be very exciting.
And yet, such a day ended in a mysterious way, with a visit from a strange man. Genya Arikado. For some reason, his instincts were on edge when he heard that name, as if he should be wary of the man. That could've been explained by what the man mentioned about his family. Apparently, he was supposed to inherit something from his ancestors, but what Arikado said when he left…
Yesterday
"I came to see if you were ready to inherit what your ancestors created, what they trained each generation of their bloodline for." The pale man said from the door, looking back at Midoriya's confused face. "But as you are now, you are still a child that can't see past what society says is true."
"What do you mean by that?" Izuku asked, his brows furrowing as he leaned forward in his bed.
"You still see things as black-and-white, yet ignore the gray area in between." Arikado continued. "Not to mention, you, along with everyone else in the world, are obsessed with quirks. I'll leave you with some advice: Not every evil in this world can be explained with quirks or science. Sometimes, the answer lies in something more supernatural. Your ancestors knew this, and it's time you learn that, too."
Today
The words rang in Izuku's head, yet he still can't make much sense of them. What did that man mean by the "supernatural?" Ever since quirks existed, the supernatural became the norm, yet this man seemed to believe that there was more to the world than quirks, but his demeanor was far too composed to be delusional. Was there truly something that couldn't be explained via quirks and technology? If so, what could it be? What was that man hiding from the world?
As he mulled over his thoughts about the strange man, Izuku didn't notice the sound of the door opening until he was tackled by a familiar green-haired woman. "Oh, Izuku, my baby boy!" Inko Midoriya cried out as she trapped her son in a bear hug. "I was so worried about you! I thought you were going to die!"
Wincing a bit in pain from his sore muscles, Izuku gave his mother a reassuring smile to try and ease her worries. "Hey, it's alright, mom, I'm fine." He told her. "I just got some scratches and bruises, but other than that, the doctors said that I should be good to go later today."
The answer worked like a charm. "Oh, thank goodness, that's a relief!" The plump woman sighed in relief. "When I saw on the news that you were in the hospital, I figured that something terrible had happened again, especially since the last report showed you going off to the fight here in Hosu."
Sheepishly rubbing the back of his head, Izuku could only let out a dry chuckle. "I guess it was pretty reckless in hindsight." He admitted. "But my friend, Iida was there, and I just couldn't let him deal with the fight alone."
"That's right." Inko realized. "You and your friends ran into that Hero Killer and Miruko, didn't you? Goodness, that must've been terrifying, but at least she took him down, right?"
He saw the look in her eyes. He knew that she suspected that there was more to the story than what was reported to the media and that he had something to do with it. Not that he couldn't blame her, though. Ever since he received One for All from All Might, it was as if he became a magnet for the universe's troubles and mysteries.
Speaking of mysteries…
"By the way, it almost slipped my mind." Izuku began. "Mom, have you ever met someone named Genya Arikado?"
"Genya… Arikado?" Inko inquired as she closed her eyes, trying to remember if she ever heard of such a name before she looked at Izuku. "No, I can't say that I have. Why do you ask?"
"Well, last night, I…" Izuku began to speak, but the sound of the door opening to let a visitor inside interrupted him.
"Ah, there you are, Midoriya! It's good to see that you're-" Lenore began to greet her green-haired acquaintance before she realized that there was another person in the room. A woman that looked so much like Izuku, that it was very obvious to identify who it was. "I'm sorry, am I interrupting anything? I can leave if you wish."
"No, it's alright, Lenore!" Izuku exclaimed as a small smile formed on his face. "It's good to see you, too!"
"Izuku, who is this? A friend of yours?" Inko asked her son, a wary look in her eyes as she laid her gaze upon Lenore. She didn't expect her son to be acquainted with an older woman, and yet, the pair seemed to know each other, something that worried the mother somewhat.
"Ah, well, we are acquainted with each other after he helped me out of a slump recently." Lenore began to explain before taking a small bow. "I am Lenore. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mrs. Midoriya."
The polite response from the redhead allowed Inko to relax a bit, yet she remained somewhat wary of the woman. "I see. He helped you out with a matter? Well, that does sound like Izuku." Inko admitted. "He always was the type to try and help others, even as a child."
"My," Lenore said in surprise before she turned to Izuku with a smile. "It seems that you truly are a wonderful person, Midoriya, even before I met you."
"Well, I just did what any person would do to help." Izuku replied as he gave a sheepish smile. "It wasn't that hard to question, really."
"Well, it did help me quite a bit." Lenore replied. "Your advice did… relieve me of my issues a bit. I thank you for your words of are quite wise for your age"
Izuku could only blush as he scratched the back of his head, feeling somewhat good about himself from the compliment for some reason. He didn't know why, but hearing something like that coming from Lenore felt different, somehow, like he wanted to collapse into a complete disaster heap of embarrassment from how fast his heart was beginning to beat, but he also wanted to be more confident in front of her.
As his mind began to suffer from a meltdown, he quickly tried to redirect the conversation to something else, his eyes darting around for a bit before he saw a book in Lenore's grasp. He saw a glimpse of the title and quickly remembered what book it was. "Hey, so, is that the new 'Melodies of Moonlight' book? Mistress of Anguish?" He asked the redhead, who seemed surprised at first before she gave him a beaming smile.
"Why, yes, it is, Midoriya!" She said with some glee in her voice. "I am a bit of an avid reader, and the story caught my eye, so I decided to pick it up; it also helps that the author is supposed to hold a book signing soon, so I am looking forward to that."
"Wait, really?" Inko asked out loud in surprise, getting the attention of the pair. "Miranda Styrnor is coming here? To Japan? How did I not hear that sooner?"
"Oh, do you enjoy the story as well, Mrs. Midoriya?" Lenore asked, noticing Inko loosen up her demeanor a bit. If she played her cards right, then she would be able to be seen in a more amiable light to both green-haired people. "I didn't expect another person to enjoy it such as myself."
"Well, I have been following the first four books so far since they've been translated, but I'm excited to read the future installments when they get translated, too!" Inko replied in an excited voice. "Maybe I'll go to the book signing when it starts. Oh, but do I need to buy the new book? Could I have her sign my current collection? Ooh, but opening day would probably be crowded. Should I go afterwards, or maybe on the last day? But then maybe some people would think the same, and then…"
As the Midoriya Matriarch continued mumbling about her schedule, Lenore could only stare as she thought she saw the words flying up in the air as Inko kept mumbling. It was honestly quite strange to see someone mumbling so much so fast without stopping to take a breath. "She's… she's going to be fine, right, Midoriya?" The vampiress asked the younger Midoriya with some concern in her voice.
"Yeah, I think so." Izuku responded dumbfounded. It was quite strange to see someone else displaying a trait like his, let alone his mother, but it certainly explained where he got it from. Now if only she told him about it in the first place. "But it's kind of nice to see you two getting along."
"Well, she does seem like a kind woman." Lenore said before giving Izuku a cheeky smile. "I can certainly see where you get it from."
As Izuku chuckled in a giddy manner, Inko began to calm down from her muttering session before she turned towards the pair. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Lenore. I hope we can meet again soon." The Matriarch told the redhead.
"The pleasure was mine." Lenore said. "It was also a pleasure to see that you are doing alright, Midoriya. Hopefully, you'll learn to avoid ending up here in the future." With that, the redhead walked out of the room, waving a goodbye as she left. "Farewell!"
"Uh, yeah, see ya, Lenore!" Izuku returned the farewell, a smile on his face. As the door closed, Izuku let out a sigh that he didn't know he was holding. Despite the short visit from the redhead, he felt as though he had just spent the past few days with her, and ever since she came into his life, she seemed to take up residency in his head rent-free. He couldn't help but imagine how nice it would be to… just get a bit closer to her. To be able to run his fingers through her hair… cuddle up to her on a cold night…
"Izuku…" He heard his mother get his attention, bringing him out of his thoughts. "Are you alright? You had a weird look on your face."
"Oh, yeah, I'm alright, mom! Just… thinking about things…" He said, his voice growing quieter as he continued.
The mother stared at her son for a few moments before she felt her lips form a teasing smile. "Oh, I get it." She said with some mirth in her voice. "Don't worry, sweetie, I know how you feel." This elicited a noise of confusion from the young man. "When I was your age, I may have had eyes for someone a bit older as well. It's perfectly normal to have feelings for an attractive, older person."
Upon hearing those words, Izuku could only blush as he realized what his mother was implying. "Ah, mom, it's not like- aughck!" He screamed out before he swallowed his saliva down the wrong pipe, choking on his spit before coughing it up, causing his mother to yell out in worry a bit.
As the mother and son continued their antics, a certain vampiress looked back to the door, eavesdropping on the conversation that the Midoriyas were having. It was quite amusing to hear the discussion the pair were having, and yet, the news of Izuku's interest in her caused… something within her to feel… different. Somewhat… warmer. It was a strange, yet pleasant feeling. She wanted to feel this more often. To experience more of this feeling.
But right now, she had more pressing matters to deal with soon. Soon, she'd have to meet with Morgana, or "Miranda" as she seems to call herself now. Soon, she'd see her sister again, and perhaps Striga as well. Soon, the council will be somewhat recompleted once more.
And scene! I am done with this chapter after such a massive delay! I am sorry about not updating sooner, but in my defense, Persona 5 is way too much fun, and I have a new job now! On an unrelated note, if any of my readers like to eat at Pluckers, make sure you tip the servers more than $50, they're not getting paid enough, they fell for the same scam I did. Anyways, once again, I am sorry for the delay, life takes up a lot of space, and also, sorry if this chapter is a bit lackluster compared to the last four. I hope to make it up to you all soon, and to hopefully build up Izuku and Lenore's relationship faster in this story.
Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, please Follow, Favorite, Comment, and Subscribe for more, and I'll see you in the next chapter! Peace out!
