Izuku sat down with a few sheets of paper and a pen. The former had been provided by the butler, while the latter came from Itsumi's world. He still found it somewhat hard to think that he, a man from one universe, was writing with a pen from another universe on some paper from a third different universe.

The paper didn't feel that different from the one from his world, although he could definitely tell this wasn't quite the same, a bit rougher than the one he was used to. Still, for writing it would work fine.

He started to put down his notes. Now that the meeting with Atura Mei was supposedly – hopefully – imminent, he needed to know what to ask. 'Teleport', he wrote on top of the first sheet. The following lines were bullet points of questions and his own answers. The first one was simple.

'Can I control the direction on my own?'

Katsumi had been told by Isaac that he met someone with the ability to control Teleport. So the answer to that seemed to be yes. And if that was the case, the problem him and Itsumi faced became completely unimportant. 'Will?' He wrote tentatively.

That led to the second question, which was a lot more complicated.

'What causes the jump?'

Izuku tapped his chin with the rear end of the pen, trying to find some clues. 'Distance?' He scribbled hesitantly. The first time, after all, he had teleported after trying his longest jump. The second, however, he had tried for a shorter length, and still ended up jumping universe. 'People?' He tried. After all, the only difference seemed to be that the second time he was carrying both Todoroki and Ojiro. It was possible, he had never tried to carry someone else in his own universe. He had only done some weight test and a test with some living fishes in a bowl to make sure it didn't damage living things.

Third question.

'Why did combining it with Guide fail?'

'Concentration?' He wrote, this time a lot more certainly. They were under attack, so it was possible something had gone wrong because of it. Itsumi was defending herself while thinking about her parents, he was looking at her attack and worrying about the others… That was probably it, right? Either Itsumi's focus on two different things, his focus on different objectives, or both, might be the simple explanation. He nodded.

He kept writing for a bit, making a list on minor questions derived from those, like if there was a way to determine the distance that activated the Quirk if distance was involved, or what kind of focus was required to use Guide properly.

He had been writing for well over an hour, when someone knocked at the door. He opened to find another butler behind it, light grey hair and beard around a face with two blue eyes. It probably said something about the weird situation Deku was finding himself into that being face to face with a slightly older looking Gentle Criminal didn't faze him.

The man bowed respectfully, before looking at him with a neutral expression. "Dinner is ready, sir. The rest of your companions have been similarly informed. I am here to escort you."

"I see. Thank you." He said, with a quick nod. He put the pen down on the desk and prepared to leave the room, before the man raised a hand.

"Pardon me, sir, but I will have to politely require a change of clothes on your part. While the fact you took a bath is appreciated, such clothes would be unbecoming of a Duchess' table."

Izuku looked down. He had put away his hero costume in favor of an old black t-shirt and a pair of army green trousers he had borrowed from Itsumi's father, but he had to admit they were worn out, probably because they were about twenty years old.

"Uh… I don't have that many clothes." He replied. He had his hero costume, two t-shirts and that pair of trousers, plus some change of underwear not worth bringing up. He didn't even have other shoes, besides the ones he was wearing, part of his hero costume.

"I suppose you haven't checked your wardrobe, sir." The man calmly replied. There was some hidden scoff in there, Izuku was fairly sure, but pretended to ignore it and walked up to the wardrobe. He hadn't really opened it, expecting it to either be empty or only contain clothes he wouldn't get to wear.

Instead, inside were two simple yet elegant white shirts with long sleeves, a pair of leather boots and a black tunic. They were surprisingly close to his size, he realized.

"I will give you some time to change properly. We could not find trousers or leggings quite fitting of your size, so those will be…" The man struggled with the word "Acceptable." He left the room with another bow, and Izuku stared at the clothes.

'What?'

-x-

Itsumi liked a specific kind of fashion. That fashion was casual for everyday life, and her Hero Costume for hero work. Top hats, coats, and trousers, not… this.

The azure dress she was wearing had a large skirt. Large, as in she was fairly sure she was going to get stuck in a doorframe if she wasn't careful. The short red-haired maid that had helped her dress had been nothing but polite, but at the same time had been quite clear that she had specific orders. 'At least I drew a line at the corset.' She thought with a grunt. No way she was letting herself be forced inside that clothing cage. The woman had given up after a few attempts at convincing her and had just helped her with the rest of her dress. The shoes were another point of contention, but at least she got to wear something with a very small heel. She would have preferred none at all, but one can't have everything. 'If Shiro was here he would be laughing his ass out.' She thought.

She took the stairs down following the maid and was led to a rather large dining room, where she found the others waiting. The general theme of their clothes seemed to be the same kind of tunics she had seen in some medieval movies and tv shows. Not the ones that covered the entire bodies like an archetypical wizard, but the ones that were more like long sleeved shirts.

She sat down in the chair the woman moved for her, next to Izuku and on the opposite said of Ojiro and Todoroki. There was no one else yet. 'The duchess has to be here, right? They wouldn't just play dress up with us for no reason.' She thought, but she wasn't sure. This was a totally different culture from the one she was born into, so she couldn't really guess. And this table could easily host twenty people, so why weren't they sitting closer to the end? There were two rows of seats between them and the closer end of the table.

Their thoughts were interrupted when Izo walked in. He smiled seeing them.

"Hello guys. I see you are going native."

"Not by choice." Todoroki muttered.

Izo just chuckled, before sitting down in the place the butler opened for him, to the left of the closest end of the table. "Hey, at least you got a calm afternoon. I had to deal with a lot of pressure back at the palace."

"It's bad?" Izuku asked, curious.

"Pretty bad. I'll talk about it soon, when…" He stopped and gestured them to stand up. They did so, and, followed by two maids, this universe's Creati walked into the room. She had gone for a red dress similar – but not the same – to the one she had been wearing when they first met, and no gloves. Itsumi had to admit she looked gorgeous. Her motions were elegant, her expression collected but not too cold. She noticed how her eyes locked with Izo and she smiled softly, before sitting at the head of the table. Her hand brushed briefly against Izo's, a motion no one missed. Especially Izuku, who sat down the moment Izo did and tried his best to not turn bright red. Itsumi could not help but chuckle.

"Thank you for joining us for dinner. Izo explained to me beforehand who you are, and since I have already met Isaac, I am inclined to believe him." She looked at them for a moment, seemingly approving. "I hope my choice of clothing is of your taste. My butlers were requested to choose the most comfortable."

"They are. Thank you." Todoroki said. Ojiro nodded as well. Itsumi noticed he had used his time to shorten his beard.

"No reason to thank me. It is as much a favor as it is a chore, if your universes are anything like Isaac's."

"Yes, he didn't take well to tunics either. He showed up some of his suits once, and I believe they are starting to become popular at the castle, but it will probably take time for them to spread." Izo's comment made Itsumi wonder if she could speed it up somehow. Or at least find a way to make trousers and boots acceptable on women.

For a long second, no one spoke, before Ojiro looked at the two. "Uhm… Are we waiting for someone else?"

"In a way. But first we need to have you swear to secrecy about what we are going to talk about, since it's all court politics."

"Done." Todoroki replied without hesitation "This is all important for your universe, but we are just passing through. For all we know, we will be gone by tomorrow, with no idea on how to come back."

"True, but I'd rather prefer if everyone agreed. Mostly to put Yaru at ease." He replied, and the raven-haired woman nodded.

Everyone quickly promised the same, including Itsumi. She didn't see a reason not to. When they were done, Yaru nodded "I thank you for this. But first, if there is anything you wish to discuss with Izo, you probably should."

"Yes, actually." Todoroki nodded "Atura. Where is she?"

"Back at her lab." The knight replied, noting their disappointed expressions. "Please, don't look like that. She was overjoyed earing there were so many people from another universe at once around, but she is currently busy finishing the first functioning parts for her train. I managed to convince her to meet you, but it's hard to guess when that will be if she has to come down here herself." He paused a second, before glancing at Yaru briefly and finally continuing "There is a favor I want to ask back, but I will explain to you later. For now, let's say she is willing to talk with you."

The ice and fire user was about to argue something, but Ojiro put a hand on his shoulder and spoke up "Thank you Izo. If she doesn't come here by tomorrow, could you try and help us go to her?"

"As I said, there is a favor I need of you, but yes, I will take you to her if you prefer. I would suggest Todoroki stay here, but I am sure you will say that is not happening."

"Damn right it's not happening." Todoroki mumbled. Izo chuckled, but Itsumi could tell he was straining. There was clearly much more going on in his mind. As the butlers served the first course, some sort of soup, the duchess took a small, elegant sip before talking.

"So, what news from the palace?" She asked in a careful tone. One that implied she wanted a short answer as on point as possible.

"The Crowns are in disrepair, and the Swords are overjoyed." Izo replied, and Izuku noticed the woman nod. She clearly did not like the news, but she calmly took another sip.

"Typical." She muttered, her tone as cold as Shiro's ice "The King is on his death bed. I trust they show at least some concern for him."

"They do, but more than anything both sides are trying to figure out who did it. I have been accused six times either openly or subtly of being behind the attack, by the way." He casually commented, and Itsumi almost choked on her spoon.

"Wh-What?! But you weren't even in the capital!" The young girl asked, eyes wide. Izuku had to agree.

The swordsman chuckled "Ah, but I have friends in the capital and a claim to the throne. I don't need to do it myself, they think."

"A claim?" Ojiro asked.

"More like a superstition some fools cling to." Yaru replied with contempt clear in her tone.

Izo smiled more amicably "My lady, you know some of my friends are Swords."

"Some of your friends are criminals too. It doesn't make them any less criminals, and it doesn't make the Swords any less foolish."

Itsumi looked around. Ojiro was watching the discussion with curiosity, but clearly didn't want to interrupt. Todoroki didn't seem to care at all. Izuku was actively trying to not look at the glances the two were giving at each other in between lines, something she would have found hilarious normally. 'Dammit, I guess I'm biting the bullet?' "I'm sorry Izo, what are the Swords? And where does the claim come from? I thought you said you were born in a small village."

"Ah right, I forgot you would have no idea." He replied "You see, if you remember, the Kingdom of Colfire was founded by the First Wielder of One for All. He brought together the various human domains and many non-humans in a singular force to face the Demon King. When he died, the throne passed to his son, but many whispered that instead the person on the throne should be One for All's wielder."

"Ah, so the Crowns want the bloodline, and the Swords want the wielders." Ojiro commented "Which means, they want you on the throne."

"And possibly married to one of their daughters, with one of them as prime minister and others of their own in chief positions in the Kingdom." Izo commented "I'm glad to say the first will not come to pass." He quickly added, looking at his betrothed.

"Wait, you are going to marry him to prevent him from marrying with those guys?"

"Indeed. One of the traditional ways to prevent the Swords from holding power is for the wielders to marry in a family with ancient ties and loyalties to the Crowns. My family happens to be one of those, and I happened to decide to accept him as a suitor and, eventually, my future husband."

Ojiro and Izuku looked very uncomfortably in Todoroki's direction, though Itsumi didn't understand why. The man noticed after a moment and sighed "It's not the same as me. They have better reasons than my old man did."

Itsumi wanted to ask what it was about, but the two just nodded and Ojiro turned to them "Well, then what's the problem? Izo doesn't want the throne."

"Yes, but the families of the past Heroes aren't of the same opinion. It's not really a matter of what he wants. Especially because some of his friends insist with him that taking the throne is his duty. 'It's not just to guide us against the Demon King, but to prevent the various houses to descend into civil war' is an argument every Hero has heard at least a hundred times whenever a King they live under shows signs of weakness, be it dying or being ill."

"Tenro just believes in his cause…"

"Then he is a fool, as I told you before." She sighed "But we have other matters to deal with. We should discuss further after dinner is done."

Izo nodded, but Itsumi noticed he seemed nervous as he glanced at them.

-x-

The rest of the dinner was lavish, but also very silent. Yaru would sometimes stop to eat to talk with one of the butlers, who would then quickly leave and come back later to tell her something back. She seemed to be having quite the complex conversation, and Izuku wondered what it was about.

Ojiro and Todoroki were talking to each other, and both Itsumi and Izo didn't try much to make conversation, so Izuku spent the time thinking. It was unfortunate Atura couldn't be there that day, but what really made him wonder was the condition Izo had mentioned. It seemed odd to do something like that for a meeting with someone, but maybe he had his reasons.

Once the dinner was over, Izuku made to speak, but Itsumi beat him to it. "So what's the condition?" She asked Izo, who looked at her with slight confusion. "To meet Atura I mean. I've been thinking about it but I can't figure it out."

"Oh, right. I suppose I should explain now." He looked at Yaru, who nodded before giving a sign to the butler she had been talking to back and forth all dinner. The man quickly rushed off. "What we need is a simple thing."

"Oh?" Todoroki looked at him with sudden interest "What favor would that be?"

"I need your help to apprehend the assassins."

Todoroki stared at him, confused, and Izuku couldn't help but share the sentiment. 'The King's assassins?'

"Wouldn't your Knights and guards be enough to do that? Or bring some wizards if you need extra help."

"Normally, you'd be right, but the information I have received about the man's forces is troubling. Some of them are very powerful individuals, and of a variety I can't face quite as easily as I normally would. For this reason, I would need some strong fighters already. However, to add to this, there are also the risk involved. If I involved guards and Knights, and somehow the main enemy escaped, their families would be in danger."

"But ours would not." Ojiro suddenly realized, slamming his fist on his open palm "Our families are… in other universes, so it's not like the enemy could hurt them seeking revenge. That's what you mean, right?"

"Well, that's part of it, but I trust you enough after having travelled with you for days, but yes, I will admit it did cross my mind. With you four, I'm sure we can handle any danger and capture the enemy safely. I just need to find someone to gather information."

"And that someone is right here." A voice said from the door. They turned, and Deku saw the version of Kaminari he had seen hours before. Next to him was a Todoroki in his early twenties, mustaches growing under his nose. His face and neck showed signs of a burn in the form of a scar, though this one seemed to come from fire rather than steam. Yaru curtsied towards the prince before scowling toward his blonde bodyguard. Her ice cold expression was something Izuku did not wish on his worst enemy.

"Dekrin, the… gentlemen you see there." She said, pointing to the blond swordsman, who grinned, bowing exaggeratedly and removing his hat in the process, a motion he had clearly practiced "Is a thief that somehow my beloved has decided to make his friend, despite the fact he should have been hanging from the gallows."

"Come now, Yaru, Dekrin is a good man… In his own way." The Hero said, only to meet Yaru's gaze and immediately take a step back.

"I indeed am, my lady. And a loyal friend of the royal family, as I proved by rescuing the Prince when the hooded men tried to take him down." The blonde man winked.

Ojiro's expression was made of a jumble of different feelings, hard to read for Izuku. He did remember Kaminari had died in his home universe, so seeing him here must have been terrifying. Of course, however, while they resembled each other physically, their personality was completely different. At least if he was right and the Kaminari of Ojiro's universe was almost identical to his own's.

"Dekrin speaks the truth." The Prince said, putting a hand on the man's shoulder "No matter his past mistakes, he has proven his loyalty by saving me and taking me here, when he could have easily sold me to my pursuer or brought me back to the castle, where I don't doubt I would have been attacked again. And now will do so again, by finding the information we need in the castle."

"I can't sneak in the King's room, but anywhere else is somewhere I'm confident I can reach. Of course, the Duchess has to ensure no one will be there."

The woman nodded "I have invited tomorrow for breakfast seven members of the Swords and seven members of the Crowns. While they are here, with me pretending to broker some peace in the court and speed up the election of the Regent, you will break in the Swords' rooms and look for anything incriminating." She gritted her teeth "To think the rightful heir needs to lower himself to spying on his own vassals…"

"It's a temporary matter. Once we can deal with the man that organized the attack on me and my father, the Crowns will see me put back on the throne." He smiled softly and looked at Izo "I'm sorry my friend. It seems the throne will be mine after all."

Izo laughed "Not a problem. I prefer it that way."

Izuku looked at them "But if you don't know who is doing it…"

"Oh no, we already have some ideas. Todoroki was attacked by four men and while three escaped, we captured one, so we know the main family involved. Dekirn's investigation tomorrow is intended to figure out how many others are involved. But those aren't the targets I need you for, really."

"Then who…"

It was the prince that replied "There are many of my vassals that use magic, but only a handful could afford to hire magicians as assassins. The fact all four of them were gifted with magic originally made us think the culprit was someone from a rich family, but then one of them used this." He took out a weapon Izuku had not expected to see in this world, as the metallic object slid on the table. The revolver lied there, and all four of them knew what it meant.

"This is not a weapon from my world. Isaac never told us how his weapons work, but we can tell what this is from his descriptions. A 'gun' in my lands, in the hands of an assassin is something we can't ignore."

Todoroki nodded, studying the weapon. "You said you captured one. What happened to him?"

"I interrogated him for a while, and right now is locked in the mansion's basement. He seemed to dislike tight spaces."

"Did he give you a name?"

The prince nodded "Sort of. He went by the name of Mustard."

Izuku gaped. The memory of the interrupted Summer Camp and the picture of the youngest of the three captured villains, a boy that looked younger than Izuku was back then "Wait, but that's…"

"Impossible, if he was from this world." Todoroki concluded before Izuku could, "But extremely possible if he comes from somewhere else. So that's why you want our help. It's not just because the enemy has some powerful underlings, it's specifically because those powerful underlings are from another world."

"You think he travelled from another universe? That seems… extraordinarily unlikely" Itsumi commented.

"I can't think of another explanation." The red-and-white-haired man replied "And I want to know how. We might not even need Atura after all."

Izuku's eyes widened. If those villains came from another world, they had to have a way to get there, or even to go back. If they could find out how, that was a way home. The Knight smiled "Exactly. Helping us is purely beneficial. If they have a way to take you home, you will find out. If they don't, I will take you to meet Mei." He moved his hand forward "So, what do you say?"

Izuku looked around undecidedly. One by one, his friends nodded.

He took the man's hand and shook it.

(xx)

A/N: Hello everyone, and Merry Christmas! As a gift, one extra chapter of Deku - Into the Multiverse. Stay safe!