TACO Run

Chapter 10

"Izuku, it's time to get up!"

Izuku jerked awake at his mother's call, sitting up and sleepily rubbing his eyes. "M'up, Mom!" he called back, stifling a yawn. Stumbling out of bed, he headed for the door only to trip over something heavy and fall with a crashing yelp.

Whatever he'd tripped over made an 'oof' noise, and a hand shoved at his right knee, pushing him off with a yawn and a mumbled "Nina…?"

The Hero! Izuku hastily scrambled the rest of the way off of him, babbling apologies as mister Alfin sat up sleepily. And then restrained a giggle, because mister Alfin's hair had come undone in his sleep, and it was messy and tangled and funny-looking.

Mister Alfin blinked at him, half-awake, and scratched at his long sandy hair confusedly for a second. Then he blinked again, shook himself, and grinned, reaching forward to grab Izuku's head and scuffle both hands through his hair until he yelped and ducked out of his grip, giggling some more.

"Izuku?" His mom opened the door curiously. "Oh! I'm sorry to have woken you, mister Alfin." She fiddled embarrassedly with the dishcloth she was holding. "I forgot you were here—well, no, I didn't forget, I suppose I just didn't think about it." She pressed one hand to her cheek, flushing faintly and looking away as Izuku and mister Alfin looked at her.

Then mister Alfin pushed himself to his feet, scrubbing at his hair again with one hand and his chin with the other, and smiled at her sunshine-bright, saying something that Izuku was pretty sure meant 'don't worry about it'.

"It's okay, Mom!" Izuku assured her quickly, scrambling to his own feet. "You didn't wake mister Alfin up—that was my fault, tripping over him. We're both okay, though!" he added hastily. "Um… huh?"

Mister Alfin had grabbed his left wrist from behind and lifted his arm up, frowning and muttering something under his breath.

"Oh, Izuku!" His mom frowned, reaching forward to tug at his pajama sleeve herself. "You're bleeding!"

"I-I am?" Izuku couldn't get a good look at his own elbow, but it did hurt a little. "Oh! I guess I hit it when I fell?" Mister Alfin had taken such good care of his scrape yesterday that he'd almost forgotten about it. The scab must have broken and started bleeding again.

His mom fussed for a second. "I'll go get a bandage…"

A few minutes later, Izuku's elbow was patched up again and he sat at the kitchen table with mister Alfin as his mom made them breakfast. Mister Alfin seemed really interested in the adhesive bandage his mom had put over the scrape, and was examining another one his mom had let him borrow to look at.

"Here you go, Izuku, mister Alfin." His mom set a plate in front of each of them, with toast and scrambled eggs on it, and then served them each a bowl of rice. She'd remembered to give mister Alfin a spoon and fork instead of chopsticks, and he beamed up at her before digging in and making happy mumbling noises around the food.

"Thanks, Mom." Izuku smiled up at her too, trying for sunshine-bright like mister Alfin. "Itadakimasu!"

Izuku was about halfway done with his rice when he realized that mister Alfin was staring at him. He hadn't stopped eating, but he was watching Izuku with the same kind of frank curiosity he had the night before, when Izuku had been doing his math homework. "Did you… need something, mister Alfin?" Izuku asked hesitantly, confused.

Alfin swallowed and wiped his mouth on the back of his sleeve, and then leaned over to tap the back ends of Izuku's chopsticks, asking something.

Oh! "Do you want to learn how to use chopsticks?" Izuku asked, holding them out for the Hero to take.

Mister Alfin grinned at him and took them, frowning in concentration as he tried to figure out how to hold them the way Izuku had.

"Oh, not like that, mister Alfin," Izuku's mom said kindly, rising from her own seat to move around the table. "Hold the top one like a pencil…" She corrected his grip with gentle hands, showing him how to keep the top chopstick steady, and just move the bottom one with his ring and pinky fingers.

Mister Alfin didn't exactly figure it out right away, but he managed to get one bite of rice to his mouth after several attempts, even if he did drop half of it on the way. He picked up the fallen rice with his fingers, chuckling to himself as he popped them into his mouth, not wasting a single grain. Then he handed Izuku his chopsticks back, grinning apologetically and picking up his fork again to stab his remaining eggs.

"It's okay; you did pretty good!" Izuku assured him.

"Pretty well, Izuku," his mom corrected gently, though she was smiling at them both. "And yes, he did, especially for his first time. Finish your breakfast dear; you still have to get ready for school."

"Okay, Mom." Izuku hastened to do as she said, and gulped down the rest of his rice quickly. "Thanks for the food!" he said once he'd cleaned his plate, and stacked his dishes to carry them to the sink. Then he hurried into the bathroom to clean up and get ready for the day.

When he emerged again, mister Alfin was helping his mom put the dishes away, having already washed and dried them with her, apparently. Izuku felt a little guilty for letting a guest help out like that, but mister Alfin seemed really happy about it, so he guessed it was okay. "Mom, what should I do about my uniform jacket?" The sleeve had gotten torn when he fell yesterday.

"I dug out your old one last night," his mom assured him. "It might be a little small, but it should still fit well enough for now. I'll fix your damaged sleeve today."

Izuku brightened at that. "Thanks, Mom! Um…" He ducked his head a little, looking up shyly through his unruly bangs. "Is, is mister Alfin still going to be here when I get home? We only have a half-day today!" The last few days of the school year were optional attendance, mostly for clubs and stuff, and he wasn't in any of those. After tomorrow, he'd be free until the new term started.

"Oh, I don't know, Izuku," his mom frowned worriedly. "I don't mind if he stays a little longer, but he probably has plans."

"Oh, okay…" Izuku slumped a little, feeling guilty for being selfish like that. A hand on his shoulder caused him to jump, and he looked up to see that mister Alfin had crouched down in front of him, smiling soft and warm enough that Izuku started tearing up against his will.

A short laugh, and mister Alfin ruffled Izuku's hair vigorously until he yelped and ducked out from under his hand. Then he stood back up and grinned broadly at him, shoving his right sleeve up to flex his arm in a kind of 'can do!' gesture, the faint tracery of old scars pale against his sun-warmed skin.

Izuku hastily scrubbed his tears away, and gave the Hero a big, bright grin in return. "Okay!" he said firmly. "I'm going to school now, mister Alfin, and, and I hope I can see you when I get home!" Turning, he plopped down on the step to tug his red sneakers on, glancing aside at where mister Alfin's big, stompy boots took up the spot next to his mom's slip-ons. They were Hero's boots, and Izuku had to wonder if they made boots like that in red for kids. Probably not. Maybe high-tops would be close enough, though!

Standing up again, he shrugged into his old uniform jacket and backpack, and then turned to wave over his shoulder as he opened the front door. "Bye, Mom! Bye, mister Alfin!"

"Come home safe, Izuku!" his mom called after him.

"Safe!" mister Alfin called too, the first real word he'd spoken in Japanese, and he must have picked it up right then from Izuku's mom, but it made something huge and warm and fizzy fill Izuku's chest, and an enormous, wobbly smile almost split his face in two.

"Yeah!" he called back, waving again. "I'll come home safe!"

Inko sighed once Izuku was gone, one hand rising to her cheek. He'd bonded so quickly with Alfin that she just knew he'd be devastated when the foreigner left.

A tap on the shoulder made her turn, to see Alfin looking down at her with a concerned expression.

"Oh! I'm sorry, mister Alfin, I didn't mean to worry you," Inko flapped a hand, smiling up at him reassuringly. "Thank you so much for taking care of my Izuku yesterday, and for being so kind to him this morning. I know he's been having trouble at school ever since…" She bit her lip and sighed, letting the words die unspoken.

Inko wasn't entirely ignorant of Izuku's troubles. She knew he got picked on regularly for being Quirkless, and that the very way society pushed children to hone their Quirks and aspire to do great, wonderous things with them was crushing to a boy like hers. She'd already spoken to his teachers about it, but she knew they weren't going to change their entire method of teaching based on the needs of a single child. And as for the bullying… well, unless the teachers saw it happening, or someone left a serious mark on Izuku, there wasn't much they could—or would—do about it.

If only he had friends his own age to help him… Izuku had never had trouble like this when he'd been close with Katsuki. The bright, courageous boy had been a bit arrogant and rude, but he'd taken care of his friends. Since their friendship had fallen apart, though, Izuku had been left to take care of himself, and her sweet, slightly timid boy had so much difficulty standing up for himself. For others, yes, she'd seen how brave he was when someone else was in trouble. But her son hated conflict and could never throw himself into it for his own sake.

Not that she wanted him to! Inko never wanted to see her Izuku hurt, but she knew that there were more kinds of hurt than the purely physical.

A pat on her shoulder jolted Inko out of her melancholy reverie, and she hastily apologized to Alfin again.

He just smiled at her and patted her shoulder again, jerking his head to indicate they should probably go back into the apartment.

"Oh, that's right!" Inko remembered. "Mister Alfin, I took the liberty of washing your clothes last night. I hope you don't mind; they were terribly dusty, and there were a few grass-stains…"

Thankfully, his clothes were dry, and Inko left Alfin to dress in the bathroom while she puttered around the house, cleaning and making a grocery list for later. Hisashi sent her enough every month that she never had to worry about money, but she did miss her husband and wished he had been more of a presence in their son's life. If he'd been here back then, when we first found out about Izuku… maybe he would have known what to say. How to support him.

Hisashi was a good husband. As best he knew how, anyway. He provided for them, at least. And he'd supported her decision to stay in Japan with Izuku while he worked overseas. But he'd always been a bit too dedicated to his work, and he had such difficulty communicating with anyone outside of his job that Inko often went months without hearing from him.

It was… hard, sometimes. Izuku had never resented Hisashi for his absence, but he also seemed to barely recognize that he had a father, and didn't seem to have any desire to meet him. The few times Inko had asked, he'd just shrugged and said he didn't want to bother anyone, and gone back to doing his homework or watching Heroes on the television.

"Inko—"

Inko squealed in surprise at suddenly hearing her name, and dropped the teapot she'd just finished filling at the sink.

Alfin darted forward to catch it with a yelp, and only a little water splashed out to puddle on the kitchen floor.

"Oh my goodness, mister Alfin, I'm so sorry!" Inko apologized, hastily grabbing a dish-towel and kneeling to mop up the mess. "I don't know what came over me."

A chuckle, and the foreigner rubbed the back of his neck, saying something that sounded reassuring and apologetic before setting the teapot down on the counter and crouching to help her with the spill.

He really was a kind young man. A bit scruffy around the edges—his clothes had needed a little mending as well as a good wash—but warm and helpful and so good with Izuku that Inko found herself almost wishing he would stay, just for her son's sake.

She did wonder what Alfin was doing in Japan. His clothes, while a bit frayed at the hems, had been good, sturdy things, the kind that had seen a lot of travel. Izuku seemed sure that he was a Hero on vacation, but Inko wasn't so certain. He might be the type who traveled the world just for the sake of traveling, and didn't worry too much about where he ended up. He hadn't had a great deal of luggage on him; just a heavy leather satchel that Inko hadn't been so rude as to touch. It was barely big enough for a few days' worth of clothes and toiletries, and from the fact that he'd had to borrow Hisashi's old pajamas, likely didn't even hold that.

As Inko put the teapot on the stove to heat, she gave Alfin another looking-over. Tall, brown-eyed and sandy-haired, with a strong but slightly lanky build. Handsome enough now that he'd shaved, in a countryside way. Though he'd missed a few hairs on his chin. It was easy to imagine him backpacking across southern Europe, spreading warmth and smiles in his wake.

He gave her another one of those bright smiles, hands braced on his hips as he waited with her for the teapot to whistle.

Once they'd sat down with a cup of tea each, Alfin watched over her shoulder as Inko finalized the grocery list. She wanted to make Izuku katsudon tonight, to celebrate the end of his first year of middle school.

Let's see, I need pork chops, an onion, some more eggs…

The list for the katsudon itself wasn't too lengthy, since she did have most of the ingredients already, but they were running a bit low on rice and vegetables, as well as a few other household necessities. Izuku probably needs some more socks, and the laundry detergent is running a bit low…

By the time she'd finished her list, it was longer than she'd hoped, and Inko sighed, sipping her tea and wondering how she'd manage to get it all home on her own. She didn't have a car, since the stores were all within walking distance except for the department store they went to occasionally for clothes or appliances. Maru-ket was over in Naruhata Shopping District, but she didn't need to go there today, thankfully.

"Inko."

She jumped again, but managed not to squeak or drop anything this time. "Mister Alfin?"

He pointed at her list, and pantomimed lifting heavy bags, a worried look on his face as he asked her a question—likely how she planned to carry so many things.

"I'll manage somehow," she assured him. "I don't need to get all of these things today, I suppose, but it would be nice to get the shopping out of the way, so I can spend time at the park tomorrow with Izuku…"

Alfin's head tilted a little, and then he grinned and jabbed a thumb at his own chest, straightening his shoulders as he did.

"Oh, no, I couldn't possibly ask that of you," Inko said hastily, eyes wide as she waved her hands in negation. "Mister Alfin, you're a guest!"

He just laughed that off, though of course she couldn't be sure he'd actually understood her. Finishing his tea—he'd seemed rather interested in the blend, actually—he set the mug down firmly and pushed his chair back, rising to his feet with the kind of surety that said he wouldn't be swayed.

You're not asking, ma'am, I'm offering! Inko read in that cheerful certainty, regardless of her inability to know what he'd actually said. "Oh, I suppose it's alright," she agreed at last, after dithering a moment longer. "Just let me rinse the mugs, and I'll lock up."

A/N: Katsudon is basically a fried pork cutlet and eggs over rice, often eaten either as a celebration, or as a pre-competition meal. It's also Izuku's favorite food.

A/N: For time reference, Izuku is 11 years old, and just finishing his first year of middle school.