I don't own BNHA or Marvel

Himiko POV

Watching Wade leave was harder than she thought it would be, they had spent a little over a year together, slowly driving each other up the wall. And sure, he was absolutely nuts, but he was like the parent she had never had, and she would miss him while he traveled the world, met interesting people, and probably killed them. The bad ones at least. She hoped she had made that much of an impact to his moral compass in their time together.

It had been a week since the dynamic duo had finished off the yakuza gang, and Himiko had spent most of her time since then recovering from her ordeal as Izuku. And hearing angry growling echoing in the back of her head. It was a concern to be sure, but at the same time, the normal bloodlust she felt after using her quirk was toned down, by a large margin. Sure she still wanted to find some blood, but the sharp forced focus that normally came with the dark urges was dulled considerably. It was a refreshing and welcome change, one she was glad for since her usual coping method for her more intense blood lust moments was currently empty.

So after Wade and Himiko had their exaggerated tearful goodbye, complete with threats that weren't really meant and hand gestures that would give the elderly a stroke if they saw them, Himiko set out on her quest, to see her Izu again, and re-up on her insurance. Against killing people that were innocent that is. She didn't have the other kind of insurance. Because she was pretty sure no insurance company would insure an 12 year old girl dead set on becoming a vigilante. Crazy people just didn't do boring desk jobs like that.

Her first stop was the quirk hospital where she and Izu met, but a quick tour through the head doctor's office while he was 'out for lunch' showed her Izu had been released half a year prior, another half year after her own 'release'. And that was great, it meant Izu finally got Skaar under control, was finally able to work with his big angry muscle buddy instead of against him. It meant he was well on his way to becoming the hero she knew he would be.

And that deserved celebration! And with her Izu's home address in his file, Himiko knew right where to go to celebrate with her fluffy green ball of heroism. But first, came the preparation! It had been a little over a year since they had last seen each other after all, and it would be her first time meeting her probable future mother-in-law. First impressions were everything! So there would be cake! And other assorted similar foods!

A quick visit to a bakery, funded by the yaks of Japan's donation to developing heroes who don't care about labels, and Himiko was armed with her weapons of choice. Devil's food cake and a large tub of double chocolate ice cream. The most rich and evil of deserts. And no Wade, carrot cake was not more evil, vegetables are not aliens trying to conquer the world and disguising themselves as cake, thank you very much.

It was a quick trip from the warehouse of fun things Wade couldn't bring through a TSA check to the Midoriya apartment. Just a quick subway ride from Hosu to Musutafu, and a short walk after that, with the shining UA building sitting on the horizon to her left as she made her way through the city. Musutafu was nicer than Hosu. Not that Hosu was a hive of scum and villainy, but with UA basing itself in the city, more heroes set up shop near the great school, which made the crime rate one of the lowest in Japan, the only place with similarly low numbers being the Minato ward, where All Might had his main office. Not that that stopped the number one hero from traversing the country almost every month for his heroics.

It was the kind of city that she wouldn't do much work in, given her slightly illegal line of self-employment. Which was sad, as she wouldn't get to see her Izu as often as she'd like too, but then again, those were the sacrifices heroes made. Even ones not sponsored by the government.

Pushing those thoughts aside for the time being, Himiko made her way up the fire escape of Izuku's building with a slight skip in her step, making her way to his front door and knocking out a random fast pattern.

It didn't take long for the door to be opened by a short green haired woman, who was slightly on the heavier side of the spectrum, though not by much, nor very noticeable at a passing glance to those who hadn't trained to identify probable occupation by body type alone. With her large eyes and cheekbones wide like Izu's, this was obviously Inko.

"He-llo Mommadoriya, I'm Himiko Toga, Izu's friend from the quirk hospital, and I brought a cake." she introduced herself with a wide smile, holding up the cake proudly, the ice cream still safe in her backpack, along with her water bottle of 'fruit punch'. And some knives. And her suit of not being naked under her transformations. But no guns or explosives, that would be rude after all.

"Oh, it's nice to finally meet you then Toga, Izuku talked a lot about you, although, why a cake?" Mommadoriya's words were warm, but there was an edge of caution to them, something Himiko easily picked up on. It was enough to make her drop a bit of her enthusiasm and replace it with some serious face.

"To celebrate Izuku getting released, and I got ice cream in my bag." Himiko gestured with her head to the bag over her shoulder, keeping her smile bright on her face, even as her mind quickly shifted through reasons why Mommadoriya might be nervous. She knew Izu talked about her and Fumi with his mother when she came and visited him in the hospital, and she had heard just as much about the woman in front of her when Izu got going about her katsudon. This level of nerves just didn't fit, and the instincts that Wade had quite literally kicked into her were pinging like crazy.

And for good reason. Mommadoriya let her in and stored the ice cream and cake in the freezer and fridge respectively, before telling her about the conditions of Izu's release. Every horrible detail.

Fear. It all came back to fear, and quite possibly jealousy over Izuku having a bigger metaphorical dick than the US government. She knew Izu was at the point where he could control Skaar enough not to hurt anyone if he got out. And he was mentally strong enough to not let Skaar out every single time his heart beat started kicking up a little bit. While Skaar got physically stronger as time passed, Izu got mentally stronger, becoming more and more able to harness his quirk. Sure All Might not being able to help him any more was a roadblock, but with the progress Izu had been making, this was a massive overreaction. From both the head doctor trying to force him to the more secure Americans, and the Japanese government not looking too closely into the case and seeing how close Izu was to controlling his quirk.

And at the end of the day, all that happened was that Izu was put further from his dream than he was before, and from the way she talked about it, Inko had to watch as one of the most vibrant people in the world was reduced to the habits of a stoner.

"Can I see him?" Himiko asked once Inko finished explaining, her tone now completely lacking the over the top exuberance and pep it had when she first arrived. She may not wear it very often, but she knew when to put on her serious face. Just like when she was surronded and out gunned by the yakuza, this was one of those times. Except instead of fearing for her one life, she was fearing for the one person she cared about most in the world.

"Of course, he's in his room right now, trying to meditate I think, although he usually just ends up falling asleep." Inko said, standing from her seat and leading Himiko deeper into the apartment and to a closed door with an All Might themed name plate that read 'Izuku' in bold letters.

Before Inko could knock on the door, Himiko gently placed her hand on the woman's shoulder in a reassuring matter, stopping her motion as she turned to look at the young blonde.

"It'll be okay Mrs. Midoriya, you gave Izuke a chance to be a hero like he always wanted, there's no reason to blame yourself. And while it might be hard now, just imagine how happy he'll be when he finally becomes a hero."

Being a hero meant more than cutting up the bad guys and being a super ninja spy. It also meant making people smile, and feeling better about a bad situation. It was the part Himiko knew she would likely never be very good at, but that didn't mean she couldn't do her best to help when she could.

"Thank you." Inko's voice was soft, but Himiko could hear how much her words meant to the woman. With soft smiles on both of their faces, Inko knocked on Izu's door.

"Izuku, you have a friend here to visit." She called to her son and when she was done knocking. It took almost a minute, but the door finally opened and a bleary eyed Izuku opened the door.

The time it took Izu to recognize her, Himiko had more than enough time to give the boy a once over. His hair was a half flattened mess instead of its usual fluffiness and seemed to be a shade darker than its usual green. His cheeks were thinner, but not in the healthy baby fat dissolving way, but in a slightly gaunt fashion, like he wasn't eating enough. His skin was a full shade paler than was healthy, making his freckles stand out starkly against his skin. Even back when he was confined to the indoors of the hospital he wasn't this pale.

But it was his eyes that had changed the most. Even ignoring the red in the whites of his eyes that denoted both drug use and lack of proper sleep, the shine that never seemed to leave her Izu's eyes was almost completely dead, a remnant of their former self. It suddenly made much more sense why Inko was reacting so badly to the situation. To have to live with eyes that were so deadened from their former life-like state would have taken a toll even on her and her perpetual giddiness.

"Himikoooooooo!" Izu finally said as he backed away from the door frame, fully opening the door to his room, showing off the mess within.

"Izu!" Himiko cheered, pushing aside her shock about seeing how much Izuku was affected. Despite how off-put she was by how different the medicine made Izuku, she pushed it aside and smiled brightly at the boy who believed in her when no one else had. She was certain he got more than enough strange looks day-to-day, no need to add to the immense pressure he must feel, even if he wasn't able to completely express it.

Himiko was quick to glomp Izuku, who only barely managed to keep himself from falling over from the flying tackle hug. "It's so good to see you again, it was so boring not having my friends around. I didn't realize how boring things would get without you and Fumi around." Himiko said with a slight pout at the end, taking in Izuku's muted reactions. Despite all the drugs in his system, the smile on Izuku's face was one Himiko rarely saw on him even back at the hospital, usually reserved for after training sessions with All Might that went particularly well, or a new hero debuted and Izuku got to break down their quirk for the first time. That she could bring that same reaction out of Izuku, even when it was so obvious he was struggling to function as a normal human, made her heart soar.

"I miiiiiissed you both toooooooooo." Izuku said, his voice slurring and stumbling slightly as he carefully set her down and tried to rub some of the sleep out of his eyes. Now that she was closer to him, Himiko could see that under the dead look in his eyes, there was a spark still lingering, maybe it had only reignited when he had seen her, but it was there now, and that reassured Himiko that despite this whole mess, Izuku was still the same person he always was, and held the same determination. It didn't occur to either of them that they had been standing still and staring into each other's eyes for almost a full minute.

Inko gave a small laugh at the scene, causing both Himiko and Izuku to jump apart a short ways, each with a faint blush on their cheeks when they realized just how close they had been. It took almost a full minute after Inko had left the room for the slightly awkward silence around the two twelve year olds to disperse and for the two to look each other in the eyes again, both very aware of how close to each other they had been. From there, Izuku and Himiko began to talk about the past year, each taking the time to enjoy the other's company after Himiko had 'checked out' of the quirk hospital.

Himiko told Izuku a little about Wade, shortening her description to 'A man with the skills and moral compass to give me some combat skills, and also not turn me into the authorities'. She shared snippets of her daily life and even told him of the few times she got to help someone legally, like helping that old blind lady that kept a gun in her sock cross the street. Or sewing one of Wade's limbs back on because he was 'too impatient to wait until it regrew on its own, because dammit, lefty is much better than righty'.

Izuku flinched slightly at the graphic bits, and encouraged her with wide smiles when she was reminiscing. After she had finished, Izuku had grabbed a pair of notebooks off his desk, along with the one he had had in his lap when Himiko had first entered the room.

Himiko listened as Izuku shared his notes about both heroes and villains that had appeared in the past year, their quirks meticulously broken down both in broad spectrum application, and down to minute details that Himiko would never have even thought of, much less taken the time to see and catalogue in her mind.

The two differences between this hero and quirk obsessed Izuku, and the one that Himiko grew to befriend and admire at the hospital, were in the speed at which he delivered his well observed knowledge, and mentions of his own quirk.

Compared to the frequent mutter sessions Izuku would fall into when writing in his notebooks, the new Izuku was forced to take the time to enunciate every word completely, and almost always being forced to stretch out his Os by a light yawn. It made his observations much easier to understand, but they missed the life that Izuku brought by being himself, by being genuinely excited whenever a hero broke out a new special move, or their actions confirmed a theory Izuku had about their quirk's potential.

Then there was the elephant in the room, or rather, the green rage beast. For the first time in a conversation about heroes, Izuku didn't bring up his own quirk. Either in reference to the progress he was making, or how Skaar would be able to handle the different challenges of a hero's day.

Himiko could see why Mommadoriya was struggling as much as she was. It wasn't that Izuku had shut down, it was that the medicine reduced him to a shell of himself. Both mentally and physically. And with that level of lessened ability, his mood must have been in a nosedive since he started the meds. Not to mention what little shits his classmates were probably being to him.

It took until the smell of frying pork hung in the air and the fading sun was covered by passing clouds for Izuku to make his way through the three notebooks, although Himiko was sure he had only given her the highlights from each. When he was finished, Izuku had just looked at her with waiting eyes, eyes that held only the faintest spark of his over exuberant self, the one that believed with every fiber of his being that he was going to become a hero, was going to learn to control Skaar.

"You're going to be a hero Izuku." It was just one small sentence, six words, one of which was a contraction, but Himiko knew they meant the world to him. She had the same faith in him that he had always had in her. The belief that the other could overcome the obstacles life had put in front of them. There were no big flowery speeches. Himiko couldn't give them and Izuku was in no condition to do so even if he wanted to. Somehow, even though they hadn't seen each other in just over a year, the two preteens had absolute trust in each other. No matter the circumstances, be they blood-lust or berserker rage, they knew the other could overcome it.

And so the two of them just sat there in comfortable silence, Himiko taking the opportunity to lean up against Izuku's side and rest her head on his shoulder. That was how Inko found them when she came to call them for dinner, making the duo awkwardly jump apart again as their closeness was pointed out to them. Inko let out a rare chuchle as Izuku actually managed to flop over from his seated position and Himiko almost hit the ceiling she jumped so high.

Dinner and the following desert were much less awkward than they could have been, given the circumstances. Inko had taken hold of Himiko's words and was doing her best to keep Izuku from slipping off into a trance. An effort Izuku matched throughout the entire meal, managing to keep the conversation going, granted, it was about heroes, but there still was effort.

When it was finally time for Himiko to head out, Inko gave the two a moment alone at the door, a knowing look in her eye as Izuku walked her out.

"As nice as it was to see you again Izu…" Himiko started, the enthusiasm in her voice dieing down slightly for the first time all night. She just wasn't quite sure how to go from friendly conversation to asking for some blood. Despite her slight insanity and great self confidence, Izuku was the one person who was close enough to her to rip through it. It had been a year after all, what if he didn't feel comfortable giving her blood like he was before?...

Without letting her finish her question, Izuku carefully pulled a small vial from his pocket, its contents the deep red Himiko had always admired and craved.

"I figuuuuuuuuured. I already told youuuuuuuu, I'll always help youuuuuuuuu Himikoooooooooo." Izuku reassured her, putting the vial directly into her hands and closing her fingers around it.

How silly of her, Wade would be laughing and calling her a dumb-dumb for her assumptions, especially after she had basically waxed poetic about Izu to him for hours. Of course Izu would still help her, would still care about her. It was just who he was. All that time apart had affected her more than him she guessed.

"You really are my hero Izu." Himiko said softly, but with an ear to ear smile stretched across her face. "And of course, hard working heroes get rewards from the fair maidens they save." And with that, she pulled Izuku into as deep a kiss as she could. There weren't any fireworks, no cherubs singing on high, just two young people who were doing their absolute best to show the other that they were there.

When the two finally separated, both were wearing matching smiles across their faces, and both with slightly dopey looks on their faces.

"Well, I've got to head out, government discouraged hero work to do, but I'll be back next weekend, can't leave my boyfriend on his own for too long now, can I?" Himiko said with a smirk before she left, enjoying the dumbfounded look on her Izu's face as she left. Sure they might be a little young, having both only recently turning twelve, but it just felt right.

And she would most definitely be back next week. Not just for her Izu time, but to kick start his training. There was only three years until he had to be ready for the UA entrance exam, and while she was sure he could do it on his own, Himiko wasn't going to let him. That was their promise to each other, never alone, and never judged.

Welp, next chapter is canon. Always planned this to be Himizu/Izuko filler, something to build their relationship from more than just the quirk hospital. And honestly, trying to get bits of serious Himiko and playful Himiko was more difficult than I thought it would be.

No clue when the next chapter will be, my own original work has been coming along, but most of my effort is going there, so less creative juices are going towards writing fanfics. I've got everything up through Stain pretty much mapped out, so that will be helpful in writing, but still, each chapter is like, 4 or 5 bullet points off my planning board, so yeah.

Happy Reading -Centurion Africanus