Izuku sat in the vet's office again. He recognized it from after the USJ since not a lot of people knew how to heal rabbits as fantastic as him.
The vet lady was very nice and gave good head scratches.
She also gave him a bunch of blankets so he could curl up in them while he healed up.
These blankets were very fluffy and good!
Since he got extra hurt by the big bird claws he had to stay wrapped up in bandages. He also had bandages on his ear since the scary man hurt his ear like a meanie!
Luckily he could still hear super duper well and it would all heal.
Then a person with a dog head and human body walked in with Nezu.
He made sure to be polite and introduce himself with his phone.
"Hi! My name is Izuku Midoriya! Are you a dog with a human quirk or a human with a dog quirk?"
"My name is Kenji Tsuragamae and I am a human. Woof."
That was less exciting.
Nezu spoke up, "Tsuragamae here is the chief of police and needs to talk to you about what happened in Hosu."
Oh, like with the detective man after the USJ. It makes sense he needs to tell police people what happens after he fights villains.
"Ok! I was on the train, then the train had villains in it and the city was on fire. I jumped out of the train because helping people is important and people in the train didn't need help after Gran Torino kicked the train villain. Then I heard my friend needing help so I helped them and kicked the scary man. Then my confusing friend Todoroki showed up after I asked for help. Then we worked together to stop the scary man. Then the big bird grabbed me and the scary man killed the bird."
Nezu smiled at him "Thank you for the explanation, though that's not actually why we're here." He paused for a moment, "Why do you call Todoroki your confusing friend?"
"Oh, because he says confusing things. Like how he said his dad bought his mom, but that doesn't make sense because he said his dad is a hero and that's against the rules. So I'm pretty sure he's confused about his dad being a hero."
Everyone in the room had gone quiet, so he thought they might need more examples.
"He also wouldn't use his fire because he got confused and thought the fire was his father's. I get confused sometimes too though, so I yelled at him that the fire was his until he figured it out. See, he's very confusing but still a fantastic friend."
Nezu put a hand on his head and pet him a little, which was very nice.
"I can see how that would be confusing for you. Can you tell us exactly what Todoroki said so I can help explain it?"
That sounded like a great idea!
He explained everything that Todoroki said at the festival, which was when he was the most confusing.
The police chief sighed "This makes things much more complicated. Because it's illegal to use your quirk without a license we planned on giving credit to Endeavor. Woof."
Izuku did not like that. "But that's lying? And lying is bad so heroes shouldn't lie."
Nezu sat down next to his little blanket nest. "You're right, they shouldn't, but sometimes they need to in order to stop bad things from happening. And some heroes do things they aren't supposed to."
He scrunched his nose as he thought really hard before responding in rabbit to Nezu. "Then I'll be a hero that never lies!"
Nezu turned the police officer. "I believe you should keep in mind that, as we have just seen with the reveal of Todoroki's home situation, Midoriya is not well versed in keeping secrets. If we have him keep anything a secret it will likely not stay that way for long."
The dog man growled a little, "Well he'd better learn how to, woof, heroes can't be going around spewing secrets to whoever asks."
"Of course, but keep in mind that deception comes much less naturally to the rest of the animal kingdom than it does to humans. My suggestion would be to tell the truth, which was that he acted in self defense and that his quirk cannot be turned off, making him blameless in using his increased strength and intelligence to survive."
The police man seemed to think about things before nodding and leaving, but he definitely smelled upset.
Nezu turned to Izuku. "I know that humans can be very confusing at first, so I want to make sure something is very clear."
Izuku gave Nezu his full attention and pointed his ears towards him.
"Parents should never, ever, hurt their children. If they do then heroes need to go and arrest that person. And if that person is a hero, then they won't get to be a hero anymore, because hurting your family is bad and against the rules."
He was confused again. "But Kachan said it wasn't my business?"
"What isn't your business, Midoriya?"
"When I asked Kachan about why Mitsuki hits him he said it wasn't my business and that I shouldn't get involved with things like that."
Nezu was unsure whether or not to address his student's inability to lie or keep secrets. On one hand it was an important skill when working with humans, especially in this industry, on the other hand though it just made him aware of two cases of abuse.
However, right now he's trying to figure out how to explain why humans might protect their own abusers. But the little rabbit is already confused enough, so maybe the intricacies of domestic abuse can wait for another day.
"Sometimes people don't realize they need to be saved, and those people usually need to be saved the most."
Izuku was clearly thinking hard on this matter. "So Mitsuki hitting Kachan is bad and we need to stop it because we're heroes."
Nezu understood that this concept was very clear to humans and wouldn't need so much clarification, but he remembered a time when he too found humans perplexing at every turn.
"Yes, that's right. Except you are not a hero yet. So this time I will do the saving and once you are a licensed hero you can save them too."
The bunny seemed to be thinking something over so he simply sat back and let him work through whatever was on his mind.
"Does that mean Mitsuki is a bad person? Because she is nice to me and my mom and gives us lettuce and blankets. But those are nice person things? I'm confused."
"No one's a totally good person or bad person. Someone who did bad things and hurt people can still be nice to other people. I bet you can think of times Mitsuki was both nice and mean to you, and one doesn't cancel out the other."
"Uh huh, sometimes she yells a lot and throws things, but other times she gets lettuce!"
"See, even if she is nice and gets you food, she still needs to get in trouble for the bad things."
There was another pause as the rabbit hopped in a circle and thumped in frustration. "Do nice people who do bad things go to jail for less time than mean people who do bad things?"
"No, they go to jail for the same amount of time. Think of it like this, Endeavor has helped a lot of people by being a hero, but he should still be punished for hurting his family."
Izuku was apparently done with this difficult conversation and burrowed under the blankets he was given. "I'm resting now because the nice lady told me to."
He laughed a little, there weren't very many vets that specialized in quirked animals, so he was quite familiar with Dr Ito. He would have to tell her later that Izuku remembered her as 'the nice lady'.
"Of course Izuku, we can talk later."
Nezu left and knew that the coming days would be difficult but important. One case would be much more impactful on society, but both needed to be taken seriously. Though he imagined getting Bakugou to admit that he was in a bad situation would be very trying. That boy's pride would always be his biggest obstacle.
He was also concerned about how Izuku would be affected by this. Being a major witness in both of the cases would bring him even further into the forefront of the media.
Midoriya wasn't even half way through the first semester and was already on his way to becoming a celebrity. His blatant honesty and acknowledgment by Stain could turn him into an unexpected symbol for reform within the hero industry.
However, in the end all Nezu could do is try and protect his students and trust Midoriya to be himself.
Izuku finally got to go home and was excited to see his mom.
He was gonna give her so many snuggles!
It had been a few days and he had talked to so many people, he was all done talking and wanted snuggles instead!
He knew he was supposed to pay attention, but he was sleepy and bored.
People in uniforms came to ask about his Todoroki friend and Kachan.
A lady with a microphone asked how he beat up the scary man (apparently called Stain). The answer was simple, Izuku was the better jumper and kicker, and the scary man kept getting distracted by his friends, even if they didn't do much fighting. She asked a bunch of other questions too and he did his best to give smart answers.
Nezu also came and talked to him more and that was fun.
Apparently they would be getting to live in dorms instead of houses.
He didn't like the idea at first, but then they said he could share a room with his mom.
He was excited to live with all his friends and his mom!
Well, it wouldn't be everyone yet apparently, just him and Kachan and Todoroki.
The teachers would be living there too, so that meant his friend Yagi would be there.
He was very excited about having a bunch of his friends together.
The whole thing had been something about being wards of UA. There had been a bird at the window while they explained that part, and Izuku found the bird much more interesting, so he only remembered some of what he was told.
Birds were so cool!
Flying was like jumping, but for a really long time.
He wished he could jump for that long.
Maybe if he put wings on his costume he could fly while jumping.
Oh!
Someone was talking to him and he should probably pay attention!
Yagi gently pet the top of his head. "Are you ready to leave young Midoriya? I think we've got everything in the car and I think your mother would like to go."
His mom sat in a bag meant for carrying small animals. Technically it was sold to carry pets, but his mom was his mom not a pet.
He was bringing his favorite blankets and toys, his school stuff, and his bag of fantastic shiny things (which included the medal Kachan tried to throw away).
Izuku had wanted to say goodbye to Mitsuki and Masaru, but apparently they weren't supposed to be there while he was packing up to leave.
Kachan wasn't there either, since he was mad at Izuku for some reason and wanted to go at a different time.
Not long after they drove off and went to the school.
There were a lot of people outside the school with signs.
Was it a party or a riot? The windows were closed in the truck so he couldn't smell if they were mad or not.
He asked Yagi who just laughed and coughed.
"It's definitely not a party my boy, but not quite a riot either. They are protesting the school for taking a stance against Endeavor as well as the Hero Commision for hiding the things he's done. And that other group over there is protesting the other protest."
Well that was confusing and didn't make a lot of sense.
Why would they get mad at Nezu?
Nezu's fantastic and great at explaining confusing humans!
They parked and got out and that meant it was time to make the best burrow ever for him and his mom!
It was gonna be so comfy!
He hopped up to the room with Yagi trailing behind with his mom and found that his door was the best door!
His door had a handle near the ground so it was easier for him to reach!
Izuku went inside and was super excited to see that there were lots of blankets and pillows instead of a mattress.
Izuku and Inko immediately got to work pushing the fluffy material into the perfect positions that would probably look arbitrary and random to humans, but made perfect sense with bunny logic.
Wait!
He stopped as he smelled something delicious from outside the door.
It opened up to show Todoroki holding a bag of something that smelled fantastic.
He could tell his mom agreed that it smelled good because he saw the bag getting psychically tugged in her direction in a failed attempt to get it out of Todoroki's hand.
Todoroki crouched down and held him close. "Thank you. I never thought that telling people would help. So thank you for proving me wrong."
If bunnies were able to shed tears he would have. Instead he just binkied in happiness that he was able to help his friend.
His friend wiped his eyes and chuckled under his breath as Inko pawed at the bag.
"Ah, the class wanted to wish you well so they got you gifts. Since they aren't allowed in the dorms yet they asked me to bring them to you"
He set the bag down and revealed that the bag had a mix of cards, a stuffed bear, and a few packages of rabbit treats (the source of the good smell).
His mom joined him in jumping in excitement.
She grabbed a few treats before burrowing herself under the blankets.
Izuku licked his friend's hand and grabbed his little keyboard.
"You are a good friend and you are less confusing now. If anyone else hurts you I will kick them."
He smiled softly as he pet the green rabbit that had saved him, and for once believed that a hero would protect him. Because what was Midoriya if not a hero?
All across the country this small rodent brought out emotion in just about everyone who heard about him and his exploits. The defeat of Stain and the outing of an abusive hero while standing steadfastly behind honesty no matter the consequences.
People read quotes he forgot saying but had inspired hope for many. Because calling for the removal of any hero that was dishonest or not heroic was obvious to him but a controversial point to others.
Some said he couldn't be good because he was endorsed by a villain, others thought he would be the best hero because even villains believed in him.
Many discredited him on the basis of not being human, but others saw it as a step forward in equality.
For a serial killer in a highschooler uniform it was a new obsession to fall in love with. What could be better than a fluffy little bunny that was Stain approved?
For a man named Spinner it was hope for the future. It was a light in the darkness that told him that he wasn't the only person fighting for justice. It was a sign of who to support now that Stain was gone.
For a villain with burnt skin and blue eyes, it was freedom. And it made him want to bring that freedom to everyone else hurt by these false heroes.
For a man wearing the hands of his dead family it was something else to hate. It was someone else taking the spotlight from him and something he needed to destroy.
Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the break from canon. It's really interesting to write from the perspective of a character who doesn't really understand what's going on. Because if anyone else was telling this story the topics of this chapter would have been an entire arc rather than a side note.