Hey everyone, Happy New Year! Hope you had a good Christmas, and hope you have a great year ahead of you!

Now, without preamble, here is the next chapter! (and yes, I've given up on numbering them at this point, -_- lol)

Enjoy!

Oh, oops, here is some preamble. just as a fair warning, this chapter has some descriptions of vomiting, so if that turns you off, just be careful, please! it's not terrible, but I also don't get grossed out very easily, so I don't know how well of a judge I am. Srry!

Shouta started digging.

He dug into all of Midoriya's records, from the moment he was born, to now. Even some of the documents that needed ID to access, he was able to see because of his pro hero status.

After an hour of combing through every document he could find on the kid, from birth certificate, to school reports, to quirk status, he leaned back in his seat, buried his face in his hands, and groaned.

He wasn't even sure how many times he had groaned like that today, but he doubted this would be the last. Grief was never far away when it came to his Problem Child.

From all the information he had gathered, he had come to the conclusion that Midoriya had been medically diagnosed as quirkless at the age of four, there was even an x-ray image of his foot, which had the extra joint in his pinky toe, to prove it. And then, the day of the UA entrance exam, he had updated his quirk status on official documents to say that he had a quirk. And Shouta knew he did have one, so there was no question about him forging more documents so people would think he had a quirk when he didn't, but the question was, how did he have one? It should have been impossible for him to have one, and Shouta had more than just a feeling that All Might had something to do with it.

The former number one hero was too close to the problem child to not have anything to do with it, and, their quirks were rather similar. He had realized that before, and so had others, if Todoroki's theory about Midoriya being All Might's son were anything to go by, but he had chocked it up to just being a coincidence. It had also helped to explain why All Might and Midoriya were so close. It would make sense for the pro to offer to train a student who had a similar quirk to his.

However, now that Shouta was looking further, he knew there was something else up. He considered calling All Might to get answers, but he knew he most likely wouldn't get them. As much of a bumbling oaf All Might could be, he could be secretive when he wanted to, and he was stubborn. No, if Shouta wanted answers, he would have to get them from Midoriya himself. When the kid woke up, that is.

Shouta was only looking into Midoriya for a couple of hours; after he was done that, he started doing his own work, which included both grading papers and making new quizzes for his school, and doing some work on a case he was working for in his hero work.

Midoriya slept deeply for around five hours, except for one point about an hour in, when he started shivering in his sleep. Shouta looked up, a frown on his face. No matter how much he didn't know about taking care of sick children, he knew what the shivering meant: Midoriya's fever was rising.

Shouta had stood up and walked over to the boy, testing his hand against his cheek to check his fever. It was still high, but it didn't seem like it was high enough to be too concerning. He took the cloth off Midoriya's forehead, which was now warm and dry, and refreshed it in the kitchen, running it under cool water, wringing it out, and putting it back over the boy's forehead. He had done that already several times.

He had debated getting a blanket to cover the boy with, since he was shivering, but he wanted to keep the kid cool so his fever didn't rise any more than it already was. However, Recovery Girl had said to keep him comfortable. After a minute of debating with himself, Shouta finally made up his mind, and went over to his linen closet and grabbed a light blanket, and draped it over his student. Midoriya had immediately curled up more under it, his hand reaching to grab the edges of the blanket.

That's adorable Shouta had thought. Wait, what? Where had that thought come from? Not that it wasn't true.

Other than that, he just did his work the whole time, stopping only to check on Midoriya, refresh the damp cloth, and once when he got himself a juice packet when he started getting hungry. Midoriya had also kicked his blanket off a few times, and Shouta had had to get up a couple times to put it back over him when he started shivering. The hero didn't like that his fever was still rising at all, but it wasn't high enough yet to warrant worrying overly much.

Now it was around three in the afternoon, Midoriya was starting to stir again. Shouta glanced up from the file he had been reading, and put it down on the coffee table, which was getting full very quickly. He stood up, hearing his knees pop as they straightened out of the position they had been in for a while. Midoriya was opening his eyes as Shouta made his way over to the couch.

"Hey, Kiddo, how you feeling?" Shouta asked softly, moving and speaking slowly and gently, as he would when dealing with scared civilians on patrol, and when he approached stray cats.

Midoriya groaned, turning his head on the pillow and closing his eyes again. After a second, however, he opened them, and tried to sit up suddenly on the couch. Shouta was immediately there, trying to push him back down, before he saw the panicked look in Midoriya's eyes, as well as the stubborn set of his lips, and the greenish tint to his skin.

Looking frantically about the room, Shouta's eyes fell upon the fruit bowl sitting in the middle of his coffee table, surrounded by papers and the things he had gotten for Midoriya. Hizashi had given it to him for his birthday the year before, claiming that Shouta "needed something colorful to brighten up his dull space".

Shouta grabbed the bowl, tipped the fake apples and pears out onto the floor, and quickly shoved the bowl in front of Midoriya, who had managed to prop himself up enough to hang over the edge of the couch. The cloth had once again fallen off his forehead to end up in a pile on the floor.

Shouta had just enough time to think that it was the best use for the colorful bowl, before Midoriya's body jerked, and he started heaving into it. One of the boy's hands, the one that wasn't used for propping himself up on the couch, came up to try and grip the bowl, but he ended up just grabbing onto Shouta's hand with a weak grip.

The hero could only hold the bowl as his student tried to make his insides his outsides. After a few moments of watching Midoriya's whole form shake with his heaves, he carefully maneuvered the bowl so he was holding it with one hand, and brought the other one up to rest on the boy's trembling back, where he started rubbing slow, large circles with his hand.

Midoriya's arm that was holding himself up was shaking with the strain, even harder than the rest of him was. When Midoriya paused for a little bit in throwing up, Shouta took back the hand that had been rubbing circles on Midoriya's back, switched the bowl so he was holding it with that hand, and started to maneuver his student around. When he was finished, Midoriya was sitting back against the arm rest of the couch, pillows behind his back, and the bowl was resting in his lap, being cradled by his hands.

The boy whimpered, causing pain to shoot through Shouta's heart at how much pain he must have been in. He didn't like seeing his kid hurting. His kid? Get a grip Shouta, he's not your kid yet.

Shaking off those thoughts, the hero shifted his own position on the floor so he was kneeling by Midoriya's head and shoulders, and once again started rubbing circles on the boy's back. Midoriya had started retching again, and tears were running down his face.

While Shouta was used to the boy crying, since it was something he seemed to do on a regular basis, no matter if they were happy tears or sad tears, this seemed different. These were pain filled tears, and they were slow, not like the usual waterfall that poured out of the boy's eyes when he was happy or sad. Seeing him crying tears of pain, he knew Midoriya must have been feeling pretty sick, considering how high his pain tolerance was-which was more concerning now that he knew he had been quirkless, and an orphan, since there was the possibility of bullying, and didn't that thought just hurt and make Shouta mad.

Midoriya's shoulders were shaking with sobs, and his whole body was still trembling, but he seemed to have gotten rid of everything that had been in his stomach. Now he was just dry heaving into the bowl, his knuckles turned white from how hard he was gripping it. His eyes were closed tight, tears leaking out from under his eyelids, and sweat was building up on his face.

A whine escaped Midoriya's throat as his body once more lurched forward, and he gagged into the bowl. Shouta knew that dry heaving hurt more than actually throwing up, and he found himself empathizing with his student.

Shouta's hand which wasn't rubbing the boy's back reached up, without any conscious thought on his part, and started stroking through his students' hair, gently easing out the knots in it, and smoothing it down from where it had been messed up as he slept. Not that it really changed much, since Midoriya's hair seemed to always be messy and wild.

"It's okay Midoriya, I'm right here, it's gonna be okay," he murmured quietly, hands still moving to comfort his child. It was hard to do both actions at the same time, so the hand on Midoriya's back was now just moving up and down occasionally, while the hand in his hair moved steadily, running through the sweaty hair and massaging his head.

Another sob escaped Midoriya, but he had stopped heaving, and it didn't seem like it would start again. Shouta switched hands again, so the one that was on Midoriya's back was now in his hair, and his now free hand reached out to grab the bowl from Midoriya's shaking fingers.

His student's hands clenched around the bowl for a moment when he tried to take it, and he was about to let go, but then Midoriya's hands uncurled slowly, still shaking, and allowed it to be taken away. Shouta put it down on the floor on the other side of the couch, so the smell wouldn't bother Midoriya.

Midoriya's whole body seemed to sag forward, his arms tentatively coming up to hug himself, and his upper body bending over until he was almost bent in half over his legs. "'m sorry," he whimpered, his face scrunched up, and his arms hugging his middle as he rocked forward and backward slightly.

"You don't need to apologize, Midoriya, it's not your fault. You're sick, you can't help it. It's illogical to be sorry for something you can't help," Shouta assured him. Midoriya whimpered, tears once more forming by his eyelids.

Shouta wanted to reach forward and comfort him, but he didn't know how much contact the boy would want. Yes, Midoriya had hugged him himself when they were in his dorm room, and had allowed himself to be carried, but he was barely conscious then. And yes, he had allowed Shouta to touch his back and head while he had been throwing up, but it wasn't like he had been able to protest anyway. So Shouta's hand hovered, not touching the boy, but not drawing away either.

When Midoriya leaned sideways, away from Shouta, and further into the couch, he finally drew his hands back. It would do no good to make the sick boy even more uncomfortable by touching him, and Shouta still wasn't even sure why he hadn't flinched around him yet, like he did around others. He would have to ask him later.

For now, Shouta reached over to the coffee table and grabbed the glass, which he had refilled with water at some point, and held it in front of Midoriya.

"Izuku," he said softly, choosing impulsively to use the boy's first name again, "rinse your mouth out, and drink a bit, alright? I don't want you to get too dehydrated."

Midoriya cracked his eyes open, glancing sluggishly over to where Shouta was holding the glass up in front of him. He tried to grab it himself, but his hands were shaking, along with his whole body, from both throwing up and his sobs, and his grip was weak. Right when it looked like he was about to spill, Shouta's hand shot out and steadied the glass, gripping it around Midoriya's clammy hand.

One of Shouta's hands supported and guided the glass full of water up to Midoriya's mouth, and the other reached for the bowl that he had set aside before, bringing it up onto the boy's lap. Midoriya took a sip of the water, then, after thinking about it for a moment as his brain tried to catch up with what he was doing, he swished it around his mouth and spat it back out into the bowl, grimacing as he did so.

He took another sip, and swallowed that one after a moment, then another. After that, he pushed the glass away with his still trembling hand, and Shouta took it and the bowl back. He wished Midoriya would have drunk more, but it was understandable that he didn't want to drink too much with an upset stomach.

Shouta put the glass, which was still over half full of water, back on the coffee table, and picked up the bowl from the floor, then stood up in one motion. He was about to turn away, when he saw Midoriya's hand reaching for him. The boy's head was turned fully towards him, eyes open wide, as he stretched out his trembling arm.

"Don' go, don' l-leave me al-alone!" He called out brokenly, his voice hoarse again from crying and throwing up, as well as just from sleeping for a few hours.

Shouta reached out with his own free hand, and gently clasped his student's hand in his. "I'm not leaving, Izuku, I'll be right back. I'll only be a minute, alright?"

Midoriya hesitated for a second, then nodded jerkily, and took back his hand, hunching over himself even more, and pressing himself further into the back of the couch, if that was even possible.

Shouta turned and walked quickly into the bathroom, wanting to get back to his student as soon as possible. Only a couple minutes later, he was coming back out, bowl emptied out and cleaned. He brought it out with him, and set it down by the couch in case Midoriya needed it again.

His student was sitting up on the couch, pressing his side into the back of it, and curled around himself as much as he could. As Shouta walked back over to him, and picked up the cloth that had dropped to the floor earlier, Midoriya glanced over at him from the side of his eyes, then averted his gaze when Shouta noticed.

The hero decided to let Midoriya work through whatever he was thinking about himself for a moment, and went over to the kitchen to refill the glass of water, and re-wet the cloth. When he came back, he set the glass on the table, and draped the cloth over the back of Midoriya's neck, which was more convenient since he was sitting up.

Midoriya shivered as the cool cloth made contact with his skin, and glanced over at Shouta again. Sighing, Shouta crouched down next to the couch again, closer to the middle so it would be easier for Midoriya to see him.

"What is it, Problem Child?" He asked, his voice his usual monotone, yet holding more affection than it normally would have. Honestly, he was finding it kind of difficult to act indifferently, like he normally would have, around Midoriya. He didn't know whether it was because the kid was sick, because he now knew he was an orphan, or whether it was something else, but he wasn't really trying to fight it. He knew that this kid needed more love and support in his life, and if Shouta was able to give it to him, then he would.

Midoriya ducked his head even further, so his face was out of Shouta's view, but a moment later, his quiet, rough, voice said, "W-Why are you d-doing this?"

"What?" Shouta blinked, not having expected that question in this situation. "Why am I doing what, Midoriya?"

"Helping me? T-Taking c-care of...of me?" Midoriya's voice was just above a whisper, and he still wasn't looking at Shouta.

"Because you're my student, Midoriya," he answered.

"Exactly!" Midoriya exclaimed, his eyes alight with something, other than the fever. "You're a teacher, so why...?" He straightened up more, seeming to be more energetic. Shouta would have been happy at how much better he seemed, if he wasn't talking as if teachers shouldn't care at all.

He was about to answer in confusion again, when he remembered that Midoriya used to be quirkless. He paused with his mouth open, as Midoriya looked away and hunched up again, seeming to be ashamed. Images and impressions flashed through Shouta's mind, thoughts of a young, presumed quirkless, Midoriya, being bullied in school, even by teachers. And as hard as that image was to grasp, Shouta knew that it was most likely true.

Shouta sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Izuku," he said, waiting until his student looked shyly up at him before continuing, "just because I'm only your teacher, doesn't mean I don't care. I don't know what kind of teachers you had in the past, but if they made you believe that you didn't matter to them, that your wellbeing didn't matter to them, then they weren't proper teachers. Do you understand?"

Midoriya blinked at him lethargically a couple times, then shook his head slowly, seeming to already be falling back asleep. Normally Shouta would have been all for that, both to get past the awkwardness, and so that he could get better. However, he knew that this conversation had to happen sometime, and since it was already started, they may as well finish it.

Suppressing another sigh, Shouta asked, "What do you think a teacher's job is, Midoriya?" He was aware that he kept alternating between using the boy's first and last names, but he honestly couldn't help it."Izuku" just slipped out sometimes.

"T-To...to make sure their students learn the lesson?" Midoriya asked hesitantly, glancing up at Shouta from between his green bangs. "To w-watch the students at-at school so their p-parents don't have to?"

"No, Midoriya," Shouta said gently, reaching forward to lay his hand on Midoriya's head. "A teacher is supposed to support their student, and take care of them. To guide them in the right direction, and to pull them back when they go off course."

"But, but, Mr. Aizawa, that still doesn't explain why you are doing so much." Midoriya said. "I'm just..." His voice trailed off, and he looked down at his lap, picking at his scarred hands.

"What are you just, Midoriya?"

"I'm just...the orphan problem student who can't even control their own quirk." His body jerked forward as he sobbed, tears rolling freely down his cheeks.

Shouta could feel tears pricking at his own eyes now. "Izuku, that's not true!" He said, his voice almost breaking at one point. "You're not just anything. You're a kind, caring person, a good friend, and you're going to be a great hero. Being an orphan isn't... it's not a good thing, but it's not something for you to be ashamed of. And it's not your fault you can't control your quirk, either. Besides, you've gotten so much better since you first got it!"

Midoriya looked up at him, his neck tilting to the side as he stared at Shouta with tears pooling in his eyes. "It is my f-fault, thought!" He cried, more salt water coursing down his face as he blinked. "I k-illed her!"

Shouta's heart skipped a beat at that, then resumed beating at a faster pace than before. He wasn't quite sure what the kid was trying to say, but he was almost positive that Midoriya hadn't killed his mother. She had died naturally. He said as much to his student.

"Izuku, you didn't kill her," he said softly, scooting forward more until he was able to comfortably reach a hand out and wipe the tears from his kid's cheeks.

He was trying, so, so hard, to be the stoic, calm, level headed teacher and underground hero that he normally was, the kind of person that would never wipe someone's tears away, but his hand was moving automatically, and he couldn't control himself when it came to this kid.

"I did!" Midoriya cried again, closing his eyes and leaning his face into Shouta's hand, which stayed cupping his cheek. "She died because of me!"

"She died of natural causes," Shouta soothed.

"She died of stress, and overwork, because she had to deal with me!" Midoriya almost spat out the last word, his face scrunching up in disgust, which made Shouta's own heart clench in pain and sympathy for this boy.

It had been five years since his mother's death, and he obviously still believed what he was saying. That meant that, as an eleven year old, he believed himself responsible for the death of his own mother, and continued to believe that until this day, since obviously no one bothered to tell him otherwise.

"Izuku, she died, and yes, stress and overworking herself helped it along, but it wasn't because of you. No one was to blame, except maybe your father for leaving her alone. And if I know anything from my years as an underground hero, it's that when mothers who love their kids are having a rough time, their kids are the ones that get them through it. She would have died sad, and alone, if it wasn't for you, Izuku. She loved you."

Midoriya shook his head back and forth, his hair shaking with the motion, his eyes shut tight. Shouta drew his hand back at the motion, letting it fall to his side again. "You don't understand," he croaked out, his voice almost breaking, "it's because of me that dad left, cause he didn't w-want me, it's my fault she had to work so much, that she had no friends, and that she was worried all the time! Its because I'm so useless, cause I'm... I'm..." He broke off, sobs wracking his body and making him unable to finish.

"Because you're quirkless, Izuku?" Shouta asked quietly. Midoriya's head shot up, panicked eyes meeting Shouta's own, before he nodded quickly and curled in on himself even more, so much so that Shouta couldn't even see his face anymore.

Shouta sighed, not sure how to deal with this. He had known that this conversation was coming, and he was really curious about how Midoriya now had a quirk, although he still suspected All Might had something to do with it, but he didn't want to force Midoriya to explain while he was sick, and upset. For now, he would settle with assuring him that he wasn't responsible for his mother's death.

"Izuku, I'm sure your mother didn't blame you for being quirkless. And your father left before you were diagnosed anyway. He left because he wasn't a good person, and he wasn't worthy to be your father. And your mother would have died even if you hadn't been quirkless. You can't blame yourself for it. No one thinks it's your fault." He reached out a hand and placed it on his student's lowered head to comfort him.

Midoriya jerked at the contact, and Shouta tried to pull his hand away, but was stopped when he felt resistance. Surprised, he looked to see that Midoriya had grabbed his sleeve, and was holding on tight, while still not looking up.

"Midoriya...?" Shouta said, confused. He was never sure whether the boy liked him touching him, or whether he was still scared of him.

"C-can you..." Midoriya started, then broke off, "c-can..." His grip started to loosen, and slipped off Shouta's sleeve, falling back to his lap.

"What is it, Problem Child?" Shouta asked gently. "Tell me what you want."

Midoriya shook his head quickly, then whimpered. He seemed to press himself even more into the couch, and Shouta frowned. He needed the kid to talk to him.

"Izuku, I can't help you if you don't tell me what you need. Or want. So tell me; I want to help."

Midoriya's shoulders hunched up to his cheek, but he did glance at Shouta from behind his bangs. "I w-want..." He didn't continue, instead lifting up his arms, reaching out towards Shouta.

It took a second before Shouta understood it, but it was hard to mistake the universal sign of wanting a hug. "Sure think, Kiddo," he said, opening his own arms and leaning forward, wrapping them securely around his student.

Midoriya immediately hugged him back, leaning into him from where he was sitting on the couch, and pressing his face to Shouta's shirt, sniffing a few times as he tried to hold back his tears.

The hero could feel his shirt getting wet with the boy's tears, but he only hugged his student harder. "Shh, Izuku, it's alright. I'm right here," he murmured in the boy's ear.

"I'm... I'm sorry!" Midoriya cried. "Sorry, 'm sorry." His words were slurred together, and muffled by the shirt, but Shouta wished that he didn't have to hear them at all.

"Don't apologize, Problem Child," he said, "none of this is your fault."

"I'm sor-ry I forged d-dcuments, and didn't tell you I was qui-rkless, and you have to de-eal with me w-when I'm si-ick!" He was repeating his apologies from earlier, Shouta realized. He was either so sick he didn't realize, or he just didn't believe Shouta before when he had assured the boy it was alright. He would have to say it again, and he would do the same for as many times as Midoriya needed.

"Izuku, stop!" Shouta exclaimed, gripping the boy's shoulders and pushing him back. "Stop apologizing. I don't blame you for anything. Yes, you shouldn't have forged documents, and yes, I would have liked to know you used to be quirkless, but I don't blame you. If anything, I blame All Might for me not knowing your quirk status."

Midoriya's head snapped up, his eyes wide and panicked. "How d-did you know it w-was All Might who gave me my quirk?" He asked hurriedly.

Shouta smirked internally, but kept a straight face on the outside. "It's not that hard to guess, Midoriya. You both have similar quirks, and your relationship is different than just the standard teacher and student relationship. And I didn't know until you told me just now."

Midoriya groaned, letting his head sag forward until it was resting against Shouta's chest. Shouta allowed himself to smirk at his student's blunder, but quickly sobered when he felt his student shaking slightly against him.

"Midoriya," he said, reaching his hand up to slide it against the boy's face, which was still too warm. "You're still really sick. You should get some more sleep."

Midoriya's breath hitched, and Shouta thought he wasn't going to move, but then he slowly backed away, keeping his face lowered, although Shouta could still see the dried tears on his face. As if reading his thoughts, Midoriya brought a hand up to his face and wiped away the tears with the back of his hands.

He's just like a little kid, Shouta thought fondly, before shaking himself mentally and abandoning such thoughts. He really wasn't acting like himself today.

Midoriya scooted himself on the couch until he was able to lay down with his head on the pillow again. Shouta moved the still-damp cloth from the boy's neck to the side of his face, still trying to bring down the boy's fever. He grabbed the light blanket from where it had been bunched at his student's feet, and laid it gently up around his waist.

When he glanced back to look at his student, he found bright green eyes—too bright, fever's too high—staring back at him, an unreadable expression on his face. "Go to sleep, Izuku," Shouta said, leaning back on his heels.

Midoriya blinked lazily at him, before his eyes closed again, his face smoothing out. "Night, Dad," he murmured drowsily, before his breathing evened out.

Shouta almost fell over in surprise. He had almost forgotten about Midoriya calling him "Dad" earlier, but now, apparently it wasn't just a one time fluke. He really needed to have a talk with Midoriya about that. But first, he needed to have a talk with a certain former Number One Hero.

Making sure that Midoriya was asleep, Shouta made his way back over to his chair, and pulled his phone out. Searching through his contacts, he stopped when he got to the right one, hesitating for a moment before he pressed the button to call.

The person on the other end picked up after two rings, but Shouta didn't give him a chance to say anything before he spoke.

"Yagi, we need to have a talk about Midoriya's quirk."

Yup, I did that! Now, not to give spoilers for this fic, or anything, but I know some of you may want to go a bit into All Might bashing in this fic, which, normally if I was reading it, I would be all for! I love myself a good ol' Dadzawa finding out about OFA, and All Might bashin, but I honestly wouldn't go super indepth with it, since I really don't think I would be able to write it well. Also, I'm not totally against canon All Might, since I think he is a nice person who actually does care for Izuku, and wants the best for him, but I really just prefer Aizawa, and think that All Might did a lot of things wrong, which could have been detrimental to Izuku. But if you start me on that, I will start going into how unrealistic canon Midoriya is, since there is no way a child who has gone through what he did almost all his life, would still be able to be so unnaffected, and just take his quirk and be a hero, with no consequences mentally. But, like I said, not getting into that, like, at all...oops. I just did, didn't I?

Anyway, back to the original point, if a lot of people really wanted me to, I could have Aizawa yell at All Might, at least in his mind, somewhere in this fic, but I won't necessarily unless you all want me to. So, yah, that's the essence of this long author's note.

I hope you enjoyed, and feel free to comment and tell me what you think, or if there is something you would like to see happen in this fic, that I could try to squeeze in, or even write a separate fic too, if I like the idea and don't think it would match well with where I think this one is going. Bayma out!