Chapter 37: Open Mouth, Insert Foot

Summary:

Kota and Endeavor both regret their actions

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Kota grumbled as night fell. He wanted to head to his secret base. This entire day sucked.

The rest of the week probably wouldn't be any better, but at least now he was done with the job Aunt Shino had for him. Wasn't much of a job to be honest. He was put on guard to make absolutely sure the boys from that class didn't try to spy on the girls. And none of them did. They just relaxed and bathed. Some of them talked about the girls, but he was trying not to listen in on those stupid Hero students.

And Kota wondered why they weren't concerned about the girls doing the same thing. He sort of shrugged to himself. He supposed girls just never acted that way…

"Y'know, I could just float my head on over and take a quick peek," Setsuna offered. "We've got a bunch of hunks on the other side, it'd be real easy…"

Itsuka enlarged her hand and gripped Setsuna's head in it, and firmly said, "No."

"Aww, you're no fun, Kendo-chan!" Setsuna whined. She then popped an eye out of her head, "Not even a little eyeful?"

"I could always just walk in and catch 'em unawares…" Toru said, clearly grinning despite being invisible.

"You realize that none of our peers succumbed to those same temptations," Ibara said harshly.

"Even Jamming-yay showed a bit of self-restraint," Kyoka responded. She pointed her jacks at Toru, "And I'd be able to hear you breathing heavily."

"Phooey," Toru jokingly pouted.

"Ugh," Setsuna said, returning her eye to its socket. "My one weakness. Being seen as less moral than our class' resident goofball."

"I thought Kiri and Tetsu were the goofballs?" Mina asked.

"Nah, they're our class himbos," Setsuna corrected, and the discussion moved on.

Kota kicked a rock in frustration as he walked off, until he heard noise behind him. For half a second, he readied his Water Gun Quirk, but dropped it as he turned and saw the source.

Eri was standing there, looking uncomfortable, but determined.

Not looking the girl in the eyes, Kota softly asked, "What do you want?" He was trying to be polite, but it still came off as sullen.

"Why did you try to hurt my Papa?" Eri asked, sounding hurt by that fact.

Kota frowned, "He's not really your Dad, right? Like, people in high school can't be fathers, can they?"

"He takes care of me, so he's my Papa," Eri said with conviction. "I have three Papas and eight Mamas."

That angered Kota. He lost his parents, and now she had so many more than he ever did? He practically spat out, "Good for you. Enjoy them while they last!"

Eri flinched as if he struck her. Maybe if Kota were a little less angry, he'd have realized that, but right now, he was a ball of hurt and the hurt was all that he could see.

"They want to be Heroes, but all Heroes do is die and when they do, people are happy about it!" Kota said. "Trying to improve your Quirks just to kill yourself quicker is just stupid! That green-haired guy would be better off if he wasn't trying to be a Hero! If none of these people were doing that, everyone would be better off!"

Kota tried not to cry as he shouted that. He was thinking of all the people who said his Mom and Dad died in a good way, the way Heroes should go out, the words that made it sound like it was a good thing that they never came home and uprooted his entire life. To him, a world without Heroes was a world where his parents would still be alive.

Eri, however, didn't hear that. Because to her, a world without Heroes was a world where she was still trapped under Overhaul, tortured constantly, torn apart and taken back together. So, in her mind, Kota was saying that it was a good thing that she was hurt, and that she should still be there, being hurt. That all the people she loved would be better off without her. That Overhaul was right to call her cursed.

And despite the fact that everyone who loved her said otherwise, there was still a part of her that wondered if that was true.

The turmoil caused her such panic and fear that her horn started to glow, and Eri clutched her head in pain as her Quirk activated.

Kota stopped short as he saw that horn glow, remembering that Aunt Shino said that this was dangerous and that he should get help.

But she looked hurt. She looked scared. And Kota stepped forward, instinctually wanting to comfort her, but she took a shaky step back, and he realized that she was scared of him. And he froze, realizing he should yell for help, but not finding his voice.

That didn't matter, as a green lightning bolt and a golden streak hurled across the sky, flying in front of the two children. Izuku was there, wreathed in green lightning over a body that was covered in black energy. Two of his whips slinked out to grab her and he brought her into a hug. "It's okay Eri, I'm here now. You'll be safe."

Kota's doubt was gone. The green guy really was her Dad. When Kota saw that, it reminded him painfully of when his parents would take care of him (sure, his aunts and Uncle Yawara would do that too, but it wasn't the same).

The girl with the long blue hair who was kind of a teacher but kind of wasn't bent down to see Kota. She was crackling with her golden energy, and did it look similar to the green lightning? Some of those hero kids had different colors of lightning. She asked, "Are you hurt? Is everything okay? Why are you crying?"

Kota absently realized that he was crying. Crying just like Eri was, until her episode ended and she fell asleep, her horn no longer glowing.

Kota was only vaguely aware as Izuku talked to the blue haired woman (Nejire-chan, he called her), Kota let her pick him up as the two of them flew them back to the camp. Only one thing was going through Kota's head, the one thing he managed to say coherently.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it."

Izuku and Nejire had been laying on the grass looking up at the stars. It was a gorgeous night, and Izuku had never been out of the city to see the stars this clearly. The older girl had joined him, and the two began to talk about the events of that day. The training they did, the ideas for improving his and their classmates Quirks, similar Quirks belonging to Heroes, their super moves, their rescues, ideas springing from there.

If anyone had walked close to the two of them, they would have heard a rapidfire deluge of speech that they would scarcely have been able to decipher. If they could understand what they were saying at that breakneck pace, they would have gotten dizzy from trying to follow the darting pace of the conversation.

The bond almost made it worse, because they were able to see the connections the other was making in real time, and the audible conversation was skipping steps.

Everyone else in the mental space had placed an impenetrable wall around the two of them to preserve their own sanity.

Even Mei.

The conversation was interrupted as Danger Sense blared in Izuku's head. Eri was having an episode with Kota nearby. Nejire heard the alarm through their bond and the two of them shot into the air.

When they got there, they were almost too concerned about Eri to notice the trademark sound of VWORP!

Still, awesome as it was, the growth of their Bond had to come second to their adopted daughter. Hence, bringing her and the sobbing Kota to the camp's infirmary.

Both of them were well practiced with this, and got Eri into a bed and made her comfortable. They tried to return Kota to Mandalay, but he wouldn't budge. Izuku sat on a chair next to the bed as Nejire kissed him on the cheek and said she'd report to Eraserhead. Leaving Izuku alone with this distraught boy who tried to hit him in the groin.

"Is she going to be okay?" Kota asked, scared.

"She should be," Izuku said. "I'll probably sleep in here tonight, though, so she'll know she's safe when she wakes up."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!" Kota said again, looking like he was trying not to cry again.

Izuku took a deep breath. Kota was a sad, clearly remorseful little kid. He'd also clearly caused Eri distress, and that was getting Izuku's Hero instincts up in arms. Izuku didn't yell, but he firmly stated, "Kota, I need to know what happened."

"I- She…" Kota trailed off, before everything started spilling out, "She asked me why I tried to hit you and I asked if you were really her dad and she said yes and that she had three dads and eight moms and I got mad cause I only had one dad and mom and now I don't have any so I said that you all were stupid and trying to get yourselves killed and that you'd all be better off not trying to be Heroes and then she got scared and her horn started glowing and Aunt Shino said I had to get help but I froze up and she was hurting and I know I scared her but I don't know why and I'm sorry ."

Kota began crying anew. Izuku took in the information the boy provided, and started to parse it with the information he'd received from Mandalay. When he first saw the boy, he thought he might make a good playmate for Eri. That soured a bit with the whole punching bit, but Izuku wanted to know why the boy seemed so angry at them.

The day Water Hose died was a sad one. They were a fantastic pair of Heroes who saved so many people. And Muscular was such a horrendous villain. Izuku cried when he heard the news. Not that that was a hard bar to clear, but he was despondent for a while.

"Kid's anger is valid," Isamu had said.

"Come on man, stopping a piece of shit like Muscular and preventing him from killing civvies is basically the best possible reason to die on the field," Ryouji countered.

"Yeah, but it's still fucked up that a kid was told that to the point that he thinks that people wanted his parents to die," Isamu countered.

"Point…" Ryouji relented.

Now, Izuku let a small string of Blackwhip out, and he patted Kota on the shoulder with it. Kota looked up, not expecting that. Izuku said, "When Eri's upset, she likes it when I use Blackwhip to hug her. I just thought you needed some comfort. I can stop if you want."

"I don't need anything from you," Kota said, though his anger seemed conflicted and the words didn't have a lot of the heat they'd had before.

Izuku returned the strand of Blackwhip, which caused Kota to flinch, wanting the contact and hating its source at the same time. Izuku said, "You told her that I would be better off if I wasn't a Hero student."

Kota nodded.

"You were right, I'm not Eri's 'real' dad. She doesn't know the people who gave birth to her. She lived most of her life captured by a Villain who kept her locked away and hurt her constantly," Izuku said. Kota looked shocked as Izuku continued, "Either her 'real' parents died or the Villain killed them, or maybe they were terrible people who gave her to the Villain, but she had no one who loved her. The Villain had a weird plan and he needed her Quirk to do it. Because her blood carries some of her Quirk, he would make her bleed until there was almost nothing left, then use his Quirk to fix her. His Quirk hurt her, but he didn't care. He told her she was cursed, and that she deserved that being done to her."

Kota was shocked by that. This wasn't something he ever considered possible. What if, after his parents died, he didn't have Aunt Shino? What if some Villain took him, too? What if he was the one being hurt? "What happened?" he said softly.

"She ran away from him one day. I was on my first patrol, learning how to be a Hero, and she found me. The Villain tried to take her back, but I used my Quirk to stop him," he demonstrated by holding up Blackwhip, wrapping it around his own hand. "His Quirk could fix people with a touch, but it could also break them. Only a Quirk like mine could have stopped him. If I wasn't there, the Villain would probably still have her locked up…"

Izuku looked at Kota, not wanting to hurt him, but needing to make sure he understood, "When you said I'd be better off not being a Hero, she thought you meant that it'd be better if she was still being hurt by that Villain everyday."

Kota looked broken, "That's not what I meant! I didn't know! I'm sorry!"

"I know you are," Izuku said, tired but trying to be helpful.

Kota paused, "Is she gonna wake up soon? I want to say I'm sorry so she hears it."

"Probably not until morning," Izuku replied. "And I think she'll accept your apology more easily after some time. If you're here, she might get scared."

Kota flinched, but he got up off the chair and walked off, before he asked, "The Villain's plan? What was it?"

"The Villain wanted things to be like they were before Quirks. So he was trying to find a way to make Quirks disappear, so there'd be no more Heroes and Villains," Izuku said.

Kota walked away in a daze after hearing that. It was hard enough to hear that a Villain was hurting a kid like yourself. It was quite another to hear that the Villain wanted the same thing you did.

Seeing Endeavor wearing a suit rather than his Hero costume and without the flames that covered his body and lit his beard was always odd. The man had an image and he liked to maintain it. But, despite his pride, the man was here for a humble reason, and he would act accordingly.

The door to Nezu's office opened before he could knock on it. "Ah, Todoroki-san! Come in!"

"Thank you for agreeing to meet with me, Nezu-san," Endeavor said.

"I was surprised that you sought out my advice. My curiosity needed to be sated," the mammal said, as he began to pour tea into two cups, taking one and passing the other over to his guest.

Endeavor took it and sipped politely. He wouldn't have chosen it himself, but he'd had worse blends, "I will not waste your time. Ever since the Sports Festival, I have been reevaluating a number of my decisions and am finding myself regretting them. I need to change somehow, but I have yet to find a satisfactory direction. Thus, I have chosen to consult the smartest being I know."

"I see," Nezu said enigmatically. "I have some idea as to which decisions you might be regretting…"

The tone and a glint in the white-furred mammal's eyes, and Endeavor began to connect dots. "Am I about to be the subject of an 'unpleasantness'?" he asked warily.

Nezu laughed, "Oh, Todoroki-san. If that was the course of action I had concluded necessary, you would have already succumbed to a paralytic compound placed in your tea!"

Endeavor relaxed, but only by a hair. That wasn't an explicit denial, merely that he was keeping his options open. Nezu was jovial and eccentric most of the time, but he could be brutal whenever he chose. The first "unpleasantness" he ever conducted was against the scientists who experimented on him. They were never found.

Well, that was inaccurate. Parts of them had been found. Spread across several continents.

"Now, while I will gladly offer you what aid I can, I should remind you that raw intelligence is not always useful in every situation, and that a genius in one field can be an idiot in another," Nezu stated. "Furthermore, I am not human, and while I have been able to observe human behavior, sometimes your culture's mores and traditions elude me, and do so for years. Trivial things, like what foods are acceptable for breakfast, what smells are considered pleasant to your palate, or the concept of war crimes."

"Indeed," Endeavor nodded. "Still, I would like a second opinion, and may seek a third or a fourth if you recommend it. If you find yourself out of your depth, you would at least know who to ask."

"True enough," Nezu acquiesced. "Now then, I presume that this involves the video I leaked from the Sports Festival, and the public consensus that the public would not feel safe if you were to fill All Might's current position?"

"Among other things," Endeavor said, unsurprised. He had a suspicion that the rat was responsible for that.

"You aren't the first to mistake the Hero Rankings for a purely meritocratic ranking of which Hero is objectively the best at the job," Nezu said. "You certainly won't be the last."

A scowl flashed across Endeavor's face, but he tamped it down. "The problem is that I cannot simply change my persona overnight. My reputation as a no-nonsense Hero who cares more about getting the job done than about public perception is solidified at this point. If I were to try and change drastically, no one would believe it to be genuine. Worse, those who do look up to me will be upset, and I will lose what appeal I currently have while gaining none."

Nezu nodded, "Not to mention there would be much greater scrutiny on your personal life than there is now. And given your treatment of your family…"

Endeavor flinched, feeling a cold sweat coming on.

Nezu tutted, "Really now, Todoroki-san? You didn't think this was a possibility? Your son is one of my students now. Do you think I wouldn't do whatever it took to protect them? No matter who threatened them?"

Endeavor nodded. He honestly should have seen it coming, "So, that unpleasantness is still an option, then?"

"I've been debating it with two people whose opinion I trust," Nezu stated. "Much of what you have done is, if not outright illegal, certainly distasteful. If revealed, the media would have a field day with it. And with your position, that would have a knock-on effect on Heroes as a whole. If you want, we can discuss this with them."

Endeavor sighed, "Well, if you trust these two, I suppose that I'll take that as an endorsement. Very well, bring them in."

Nezu pressed his intercom, "Sasaki, Yagi, please join us in my office."

Endeavor tried to suppress a frown. He recognized the first name, but not the second. He braced himself, unsure of what would happen next. He wasn't surprised to see Nighteye, but he was very surprised to see All Might enter as well. Partly because he now knew All Might's real name, a secret he guarded carefully. Partly because All Might and Nighteye hadn't worked together in years. Mostly, though, he was surprised because, for the first time he could remember, All Might wasn't smiling.

"Endeavor…" All Might said, his voice rumbling. "Really, all this? All this effort, all this pain to your family, and for what? A title? Just to chase after me?"

Endeavor felt uneasy under All Might's gaze, but he kept his composure, "If the title was all that I cared about, then I would have adopted your dopey grin ages ago. I wanted to be the strongest! And knowing that no matter what I did, I could never catch up to you… could you blame me?"

"Of course I could," All Might said. "You sound a lot like one of your son's former classmates. The one we expelled for aggravated assault and was arrested for a history of villainous actions. Besides, if you were truly unconcerned with your image, you would not be here right now."

Endeavor growled as he rose up to face All Might, "This is different! My concern is that the public sees me as an inadequate Hero! That, for all of my strength, if I held your position, people wouldn't feel safe!" He finally shouted, "You would never understand! You're too far removed from those like us, those who have to strive to attain what comes to you with no effort! You have no idea what it's like to chase after an impossible goal."

All Might looked at Endeavor, utterly bemused. Then, wordlessly, he began to let off steam.

"All Might! You're certain?!" Nighteye cried out. All Might gave a thumbs up as the steam engulfed him.

Endeavor's jaw dropped as he saw his rival deflate. When the steam subsided, he was leaner, shorter, his hair flopped behind him, rather than sticking up like horns. He wasn't a demigod anymore. He looked human .

All Might noticed Endeavor's flabbergasted expression and chuckled darkly, "If you think that's surprising, you should have seen me a month ago. In fact…" he took out his phone and opened a photo album, "These are photographs I'd sent to I-Island, to prepare me for an experimental treatment…"

Endeavor's surprise grew upon seeing the pictures of the emaciated half-corpse that was clearly the same man standing before him. The pictures of him shirtless, his torso almost entirely composed of scar tissue. The dates, which were just prior to the First Year end-of-term exams.

"You are at least partially correct," All Might said. "I have spent too long removed from the average experience of the typical person, even the typical Hero. But before that, I started from nothing. Literally nothing. My Quirk didn't manifest until I was fifteen. My goal was impossible, but it wasn't to be popular, to be number one, or to be the strongest. It was to make people feel safe, in a time when no one did. That's why I smile, to let everyone know that things are going to be all right as long as I am here…"

Endeavor collapsed back into his chair, "So then, it doesn't matter what I do here, then, does it? The public looks to Midoriya and his classmates as their up-and-coming symbols. The baton will be passed from you to your apprentice, and I will be stuck on this plateau. It will all be for naught."

"On the contrary," Nezu said, pouring another cup of tea. "All Might's still running on borrowed time."

Endeavor looked confused.

"The villain that did this to me," All Might pointed to the pictures of his emaciated form, "also disrupted my Quirk. I was able to reverse the damage to my body, but my Quirk's degeneration will never recover. I don't know how long I have left, but I doubt that my Hero career will last another year. Congratulations, Todoroki-san. Your goal is within your sights."

Endeavor's face twisted like he tasted something foul. To earn the title he'd sought in such a manner felt profane. "So, the scenario the public fears will come to pass." He thought about it for a second, then turned to the other man, "Sir Nighteye. I request that you use your Quirk on me."

Nighteye was taken aback, "Todoroki-san… this seems like an overreaction. My Foresight is immutable. Once I see a future, it comes to pass without fail."

Nezu laughed, "Sasaki-san, tell me, did your original prophecy of All Might's demise show him in his current form, or the emaciated form?"

Nighteye's mouth shut like a bear trap, and he paused before saying, "Let me rephrase that, all but one of the futures I've seen have come to pass."

"If your Quirk locks my fate, then I will accept it, meet it head on, and do what I can to ameliorate the effects," Endeavor said firmly. "Forewarned is forearmed, after all."

Nighteye nodded, and put a hand on Endeavor's shoulder, looking him in the eye, as he saw into Endeavor's future.

All Might was surprised to see him remain in the state for over a minute and a half, longer than the man had ever prophesied before. His eyes began to roll back and he started to sweat. "Mirai-kun, are you all right?" he shook the man's shoulder.

Nighteye reeled back from the touch, his face gaunt, mouth dropped open in shock, "I… I can't believe it… This has never happened before!"

"Mirai-kun!" All Might said in shock, "Are you okay?"

Nighteye began to cry as his mouth began to break into a disbelieving grin, "Better than okay! I saw multiple timelines!"

All Might sputtered, "I thought that was impossible!"

"So did I!" Nighteye cried out, collapsing onto a chair, "The future wasn't locked! This is the first time I've ever seen such a thing! And with your healing causing my previous prophecy to become invalid, I…" He locked eyes with Nezu, "Eri-chan!"

Nezu blinked, then grinned widely, "Oh! Oh, yes, that makes perfect sense!"

Endeavor looked confused, "Would you be willing to tell me what this is about?"

"In brief, U.A. is currently caring for an orphaned child rescued from captivity by Nighteye's agency," Nezu said. "Her Quirk is temporal in nature, and is the reason why All Might's injuries have been healed."

"So, Eri-chan's Quirk interferes with your own," All Might summarized. "Your ability to see the future is muddled by an individual who can manipulate the flow of time."

Taking a breath to calm himself, Endeavor said, "Sasaki-san, while I can appreciate the impact this revelation has had on you, I would like to know what you saw as soon as you are able. If this has overwhelmed you, we can try again later."

"No need!" Nighteye said, wiping his tears and returning to a serious demeanor. "Before we begin, I should warn you that my visions are typically incomplete, and in this case, I received less per timeline than I usually would," Endeavor nodded, and gestured for Nighteye to continue. "So, the first vision I saw was one where you continued as you were, not revealing the truth. It came out anyway, in the harshest way possible, and the result was your reputation falling, public trust in Heroes eroding, and your death."

Endeavor merely put his hand to his chin in thought, "Certainly not ideal."

"The next involved Nezu pursuing you legally. Despite being willing to cooperate with us, the Hero Public Safety Commission would still attempt to bury it, creating a slander campaign that would drag U.A. down alongside you. You died in this one as well, but Shouto-kun died first, in front of you," Nighteye stated clinically.

Endeavor's eyes flashed with anger, and he said, "I would prefer the prior timeline, to be honest."

"The final two timelines are similar, and both involve you owning up to your behavior and publicly revealing it in a press conference. Both result in turmoil, but one involves you doing so at noon two days from now, the other afterwards. You survive in both timelines, but the one where the press conference takes place sooner seems to result in your family being happier," Nighteye responded.

"I suppose that's the timeline I'll be trying for, then," Endeavor said seriously. "It seems I won't have much time."

"Oddly enough, that timeline first involves you on a video call with a man who looks strikingly similar to Midoriya-kun…" Nighteye said, looking confused.

Endeavor looked nonplussed, "The boy who precipitated this whole rigamarole?"

"Yes," Nighteye said. "He looked much like an older version of Midoriya, except with red hair and blue eyes."

All Might clasped his hands together, "Ah, that must be young Izuku's father, then!"

Endeavor looked at All Might in shock, "Wait… his father?"

Oh hell, All Might realized after a few seconds. He thought young Izuku was my son as well.

Unbidden, he heard the laughter of several of his predecessors. Daigoro said, "Apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

Nezu decided to interrupt, "Hisashi Midoriya, nee Akatani. He chose to take his wife's surname and failed to revert it after divorcing her. Currently working in the U.S. as a forensic accountant for the Yaoyorozu Group."

Endeavor found the name oddly familiar. He began to sift through memories, before stumbling across it, "Wait a minute, Akatani-kun? He's that boy's father?"

"You know him?" All Might stated.

"A distant cousin," Endeavor stated. "He was in the care of my family for half a year or so, while I attended U.A. He was younger than me, and was a bit of a hellion. He had trouble controlling his Fire Breath Quirk and I gave him pointers. Called him my first sidekick. Mother lost patience after I went to our summer training camp and foisted him on another family member eventually. I lost touch with him shortly thereafter."

Now that he knew the connection, Endeavor couldn't believe it eluded him before. Izuku was essentially a younger, palette swapped version of Hisashi. Well, in spite of that, he'd only been acquainted with Hisashi briefly, and Hisashi's Fire Breath was such a part of him that he failed to recognize the son with a different Quirk.

"It almost feels like my Quirk is striving to make this happen…" Nighteye stated.

"Not necessarily," All Might said. "I would have brought this up to Inko-chan once this meeting adjourned. She would have certainly made the connection and convinced me to inform the rest of you."

Nighteye paused, then asked, "Inko- chan ? Toshinori, are you…?"

All Might's eyes narrowed, and his tone was harsh, "Don't be surprised you weren't informed, Sasaki-kun. None of us have fully forgiven your little stunt with young Izuku's internship yet."

Endeavor stood, "As informative as this all is, I've already handled the drama of my own family so poorly that it's led me into this situation. I don't need to hear about another. Do any of you have the means to contact Aka… Hisashi-kun?"

Nezu went to his printer, which spat out a page that he handed to Endeavor, "That contains several means of contact, along with his schedule, adjusted for our time zone."

Endeavor was unsurprised by the detail, and bowed in thanks, "I appreciate you not murdering me today."

"A pleasure, Endeavor!" Nezu said, his eyes gleaming with a predator's instincts. "Try not to make me regret that kindness."