It's a bit disconcerting arriving in England while the sun is at its highest. It bears down on them as the briars unweave and disperse, leaving them standing on the yard in front of a homey tan-bricked house. There's ivy covering a good portion of the walls, and Izuku can't help but feel at peace. His mom's white-knuckled grip on him loosens enough for Izuku to take a step-forward in awe. He spins on the balls of his feet, giggling in delight as his Neighbors fly and hover around him, sharing his glee. He could feel a flow of energy so unlike the one of Musutafu, like a low hum of a song he's always known but never fully heard.

Vaguely, Izuku hears Hatori-san say, "welcome home," and Ainsworth-san's quick, "excuse me," but, to begin with, he's not paying much attention. Sara the Salamander slinks off into the house when he's not paying attention; Bo and Peep, the Cotton Flies, shake themselves free from his bags and fly off towards the shade of the trees, but not before giving him a nuzzle, each, beneath his neck. Izuku giggles.

His mom is teary when he turns to her, and his face falls in worry. "Mom?"

"I—" she sniffs, wiping away her tears. "I haven't seen you this happy in a while, Izuku!"

"She's relieved," Iris whispers into his ear. "Go on, hug her."

So Izuku hugs his mom, trying to convey his gratitude and overflowing love he has for her. His mom's arms tighten around him, and she sniffs again before pulling free, a shaky smile stretching her lips. "You're my world, Izuku, never forget that."

Izuku can only hiccup in response, too choked up to respond.

Hatori-san gently guides them into the house. Izuku wipes his remaining tears away, furiously scrubbing at his face. The feeling of maternal love from his mom just a minute or two back made his resolve to live to strengthen. He didn't want to die prematurely on her, nor did he want her to wallow in grief about the death of her only son.

Especially since his father—

Izuku locks those thoughts away for now.

The foyer of the house is nice and spacious, and there are various pictures hanging on the walls. Hatori-san gestures for them to follow her up the stairs, and they do so after briefly shrugging off their respective shoes. Izuku and his mom are guided towards the end of the hall, Hatori-san pointing out her and her husband's room, and the upstairs bathroom.

"This is where Midoriya-kun will be staying," Hatori-san says, twisting the knob on the door furthest from the stairs. "I figured I'd show you where he'd be staying before we showed you where you'll sleep, Midoriya-san."

"Thank you, dear," his mom says, "and please, call me Inko."

Hatori-san bows her head. "If only you call me Chise," she then turns to Izuku, "that goes to you, as well."

Izuku flusters, sputtering before the calming weight of his Ariel Neighbors settle in his hair and shoulders.

"He's too socially inept," Iris teases from his shoulder, patting his cheek.

"Uh—"

"That's Izuku speech for, 'I accept, please call me by my given name, as well.'" Wisteria says mischievously from Izuku's hair.

"Hey —!"

"Please take care of us!" Chrys imitates Izuku's voice, before falling into a fit of giggles.

"I can talk, you know?" he grouches, earning a weird look from his mom, but he then smiles. "But, they're right. Call me Izuku, Hatori-san, I mean, Chise-san."

The woman smiles and tilts her head towards the bedroom. Izuku nods and enters, his mom hovering behind him as he takes it all in. It's a cozy room, with a single-sized bed pushed against the right wall by the window. The bed itself has fluffy comforters and pillows that make Izuku want to jump and throw himself onto, but he holds himself back. Instead, he throws his traveling bag on it. There's a desk, as well, alongside some shelves set up, and the overall atmosphere of the room makes Izuku buzz with excitement. It's cozy and homey, and it makes Izuku feel every bit alive and not as if he's experiencing life by its' bare, spindly threads.

He can't wait to slowly decorate this room into his own. Because, this—

— this is his new home. His Neighbors quietly echo his thoughts, tittering cheerfully as they open the window and fly outside, sparkles following them out.

Chrys comes back in, quickly, and kisses his cheek. "We'll be back by dusk," he promises, "just gotta straighten things out with the other Neighbors in this area, alright, Midori-chan?"

"See you around, then." Izuku ignores the nickname and watches as he flies off, catching up to the others, before Izuku falls back onto the bed with a happy sigh. His mom peers out the window, perhaps trying to piece together the one-sided conversation she heard alongside the sudden strange gust of wind inside, but then the inquisitive look on her face vanishes as she simply sighs and shakes her head with a wry quirk of her lips.

"This used to be my old room, back when I first moved here," says Chise-san, leaning against the doorframe. There's a nostalgic look in her eyes as she takes in her surroundings with a soft expression. "And now it's yours."

"It's perfect," he breathes out, relishing on the bed with the soft spring breeze coming in. He closes his eyes, inhaling deeply, before pushing himself upright and opening his eyes to meet Chise-san's own green set. "Thank you." He bows from his position on the bed. "For taking care of us."

His mom ruffles his hair, and he squawks, causing both women to laugh.

"Inko," his mom snaps her attention towards Chise-san. "Let's get you settled in your own room, we'll be serving dinner a little earlier tonight, at five, so that you may rest."

His mom nods in understanding and follows Chise-san out, but not before pressing a quick kiss to his temple.

Izuku falls back onto the bed, relishing in the feeling of the soft comforters and spring breeze wafting into his bedroom. His eyes trail the shapes of clouds passing by, and then he sits upright and leans out the window, holding back his hysterical giggle.

Because whizzing by window back and forth are Bo and Peep, with Sara clinging onto Bo. They appear to be having fun, if Sara's loud coos are anything to go by. Bo and Peep bleat excitedly, and Izuku watches them for some time with his chin propped up by his hand, allowing himself to breathe in deeply and enjoy the peacefulness of (what he'd been told is) the English countryside. His eyes slide closed, and he flops back down on the bed, exhaling softly.

This is his life now, and he can't begin to feel bothered by the turn of events. Not when it'll help him in the long run, and neither will he feel bad for trusting Chise-san and her husband, not when they have already gone out of their way to help him and his mom. He's not sure what Chise-san told his mom back in the hospital, nor why his mom took the word of a complete (but genuine) stranger to heart, but he has his suspicions that his mom already suspected something otherworldly happening around Izuku, because, well, he wasn't exactly subtle about his friendly Neighbors, nor did he ever lie to her about it. He only allowed it for her to interpret it as she seemed fit, and didn't mention his Neighbors as often as he grew older.

Especially after he had been told he had no quirk. With proof, no matter how much he had vehemently denied it, that stated on legal and official papers that he'd be classified as quirkless.

How could you explain the unnatural (but fantastical) occurrences without the excuse of a quirk underhand?

Suddenly, something heavy flops on his chest, and Izuku wheezes in a breath, startled from his brief blip of sleep. The thing has stubby little legs that Izuku immediately recognizes as Sara's, and they're digging into his stomach and ribs. He peeks his eyes open to see her wide pink face and her mouth opening in a gummy smile. This is her cutesy, mischievous smile that sets Izuku on edge. He knows what she's about to do, he knows she'll lick his face and slobber his face up, as she tends to do when he's lying down.

"Sara, don't you dare!"

She does it anyways.

He gently bats her away, but he's always rebuffed by more and more licking until she stops and yawns. She curls into herself and slides off his chest, onto the soft comforter.

"Un-be-lievable." He pokes her back, "You, missy, are an absolute riot."

She merely yawns again and curls further into herself.

He stands and heads towards where he believes the bathroom is, knocking on the door just to be sure. He's quite proud when he opens the door and the site of a bathroom greets him. He sets about his business and washes his face, using a spare towel (after some contemplation) to dry off.

He's smiling into the mirror when he sees his own face as it contorts into something unpleasant, and he hacks and hacks until blood splatters the sink. It's not one of his worst episodes, he decides after he's no longer choking up his own blood. It is a rather mild one, and how sad is that to think of?

There's a soft knock on the door, and his mom's worried face peers in after he croaks out a "come in!"

He allows her to wipe the dribbling blood from his lips with the used towel when she kneels beside him. She bites at her lips, and her lips twists as if she's swallowed something particularly sour. He doesn't blame her. He looks like a mess. Feels like one, too. His stomach feels thick with abdominal tension, and his lungs are screaming at him.

"Oh, honey," his mom dumps the bloodied towel in an equally bloodied sink. "Let's get you to bed."

Izuku stubbornly shakes his head.

She purses his lips.

"I'm hungry," he insists, "I'll go to bed afterwards, I swear."

"Dinner won't be ready for another half an hour," she tells him.

Izuku nods, "That's fine."

After about a minute or two of silent contemplation, his mom helps him to his feet, and he does his best to avoid the mess that is the sink as they walk past it. She guides him to his bed, and sits him down.

"I'm going to let someone know about the bathroom sink," she tells him, and his face twists in a grimace. "I know, I know sweetheart."

She's back before he knows it, letting him know everything would be taken care of.

"Tell me about our Neighbors," she requests after they both settle down on his bed, with her leaning her back against the wall and him laying his head on her thigh. She threads her fingers through his hair, humming a tune. "What are they like?"

Izuku smiles brightly when she says 'our' instead of 'your' Neighbors, and so, he tells her.

He allows himself to get lost in the telling of their shenanigans. How, when he first met Wisteria, Iris, and Chrys, that they sang lullabies to him to help him sleep. Of how they taught him the rule of equal exchange by bringing him flowers to weave into his hair, only asking for honey in exchange.

"So, when you said the honey was for our neighbors, you really meant them?"

"I never lied to you," he confesses, but then he averts his eyes, "only omitted the truth as I grew older."

"Oh, Izuku," she sighs, before she smiles and runs the pads of her fingers across his cheek and the bridge of his nose. "Continue."

Izuku smiles and does so. He goes on about how Sara just latched onto him one day during first grade and how the pink salamander refused to let go, no matter how many times he brought her back to the forest until Izuku resigned himself to her. He talks about Sara's mischievous nature, of how, just earlier that day, she'd been riding on Bo with Peep hovering nearby.

"Bo and Peep?" his mom questions.

"They're Cotton Fly," Izuku yawns, "imagine small sheep with three pairs of dragonfly-esque wings, and they can fly, of course."

"Of course," his mom parrots his same tone of voice.

They keep talking until Chise-san knocks on the doorframe, letting them know that dinner will he served shortly. She hesitates, exchanging a worried glance with his mom, before she says, "After dinner, I have something for you."

Izuku perks up, "Really?"

"Yes," she says, approaching the duo and holds out a hand to Izuku. "Now, up you go, dinner is to be served. Unfortunately, Elias won't attend dinner. He's still resting."

Dinner is a pleasant affair, and he gets to formally meet Ruth-san, Chise-san's familiar and friend, alongside Silver Lady, who Chise-san calls Silky. Ruth-san himself is a tall man with chin-length wavy hair. Silky is a sort of delicate looking beauty, with an old-styled soft pink dress, bonnet and shawl. The blonde takes one look at Izuku and immediately coddles him, serving him first and hugging him whenever she has the chance.

Chise-san laughs softly during dinner when Izuku asked her what he'd done to deserve such attention. "That's Silky to you," she says , before sobering up. "She did the same to me, and now, especially after she heard and saw about your condition, she's going to make sure you're comfortable here."

… saw?

Then, it hits Izuku. The blood. She'd seen the bloodied sink.

He's mortified, but then arms wrap around his shoulders and squeeze him in reassurance.

Silky smiles at him when he looks up at her, and Ruth-san says. "She's assuring you that you shouldn't be ashamed." Silky nods her agreement.

They go back to eating their delicious chicken dinner after that.

He hugs Silky and thanks her for the meal after dinner is done and over with, and she hugs him back before waving him off from the kitchen with a smile.

His mom and he exchange their goodnights, even if it's weird with the sun still up and about, with his mom making him promise to wake her up if he even feels remotely bad while they're resting.

"I'm just down the hall," she says. "I mean it, Izuku, wake me up if you feel bad."

Izuku promises to do so, and she kisses his cheek before he heads upstairs. Ruth-san's trudges up the stairs with him in his Grimm form, side-eyeing him the whole way up.

"I'm not hurt nor am I invalid," Izuku says wryly.

« That would be more convincing if you weren't so similar to Chise, » Ruth-san says. « The both of you, too stubborn for your own good. »

"I'm better than I was centuries ago," rebuffs Chise-san as she walks out of her own room, a large teddy bear in her arms.

« No, you're not, » Ruth-san says immediately.

Chise-san shushes him, before she turns to Izuku and hands him the bear. "This is Ollie, he was a gift from Elias to me, and now I'm giving him to you."

Izuku tenderly takes the bear, holding it to his chest and looks at her inquisitively. "Are you sure I should have him, then?"

Chise-san grins, "Never been more sure in my life. Ollie will serve you well."

The question Izuku doesn't know how to word must be palpable, because she answers it without it having to be vocalized. "Ollie siphons the excess magic in you, and makes something out of it."

What does it make? Izuku wants to ask, but the light in her eyes let's him know she won't divulge that piece of information.

"Thank you," he says instead.

"You're welcome." Chise-san ruffles his hair and heads downstairs, Ruth-san right behind her. Izuku stares at Ollie, shaking the teddy bear some before he turns on his heel and walks down the hallway to his room. Izuku barely has half a mind to change into his pyjamas that he thankfully remembered to pack before he flops on his bed, mindfully of a still snoozing Sara; Bo and Peep come in from flying outside and plop themselves onto his bed. Their arrival reminds him of the open window and he closes it and drags the curtain across. Smiling, he settles down to sleep.

↞ « o » ↠

It's dark out when there's tapping on the window panes. He blearily drags the curtain across and opens the window to allow his Neighbors inside before he shuts it again and settles down.

"Okaeri."

"Tadaima, Midori-chan."