Izuku had not intended to take actual classes with Tomura but when the principal had offered, he said yes. It wasn't fair to him that no one wanted anything to do with him. The teen looked tired, grumpy and he was anti-social but that was alright. It's no different than being friends with Hitoshi Shinsou.

Things felt weird though. Perhaps the presents were just for sucking up after all. They had ignored that interaction for sometime now and Izuku wasn't sure if he wanted to talk about it.

It didn't mean they couldn't be friends though!

Izuku had to admit…. The older teen was practically a genius in his opinion. He kept his gloves on and even got into a debate with Present Mic over some English book Izuku hadn't even read or heard of. The pro hero didn't even mind having to teach two different school lessons. He looked rather ecstatic about it.

When it came to Mei… Well that was more interesting.

"HOLY SHIT! I WOULD'VE NEVER THOUGHT OF THE HAIR THING!"

Tomura had covered his ears while the teen girl screamed. Izuku flinched while still smiling.

"Alright since Deku is the brilliant mastermind- what's next?!"

Tomura gave the freckled teen a look, waiting for him to answer. He suddenly looked bashful, shifting his feet.

"His hero costume and name."

Mei's yellow eyes widened in shock before grinning like a maniac. She had been trying to talk him into that for months.

"LET'S GET TO IT!"

Izuku and Mei jumped together in a huddle, papers flying everywhere, pens scratching away.

What the fuck just happened?

"What do I do?" Tomura asked, scratching his neck.

Mei turned and threw a pen at his forehead, "QUIT SCRATCHING! Sit there and look pretty, right Izuku?!"

"Y-yea…." Izuku muttered looking embarrassed as he glanced back at Tomura.

Tomura picked up a nearby book, nearly slamming himself in the face by accident to hide his flustered shame.

Fucking Mei-

He forced himself to go to the other side of the support room and start on homework. He couldn't help but look over at his potential love interest and the pink haired gremlin that knew about said interest. He snapped his Algebra book shut with a loud groan. He couldn't concentrate when Mei was running on two hundred Redbulls and a motor mouth that said anything that came to her brain.

"Are you having a moment there?"

Tomura glared at Mei who was grinning.

"What the fuck are you smiling about?"

"We already came up with your costume and name already."

He jumped up, knocking his chair back onto the floor. His head snapped upward towards the clock to see it was twenty minutes from lunchtime.

Had time really flown by that fast? Fuck, I barely did anything!

"You ready to see it? We're too excited! I don't think we can hold it in!"

"I guess. You never give me a choice anyways," he grumbled.

"Are you sure? I don't want to upset you," Izuku asked, holding the notebook, "But I do like it."

Tomura's angry expression softened, "Alright."

Izuku flipped over the notebook. It was a rather detailed drawing of Tomura in a black armored suit, blue glow in the dark patches. At the top said the name "Decayer". It was impressive but it made Tomura's stomach turn, making him want to puke.

"I… I also have an idea. I would need some help from a couple of my friends…. Would that be ok?"

"I think I need some time to myself…. Actually."

He left his things and bolted.

Izuku suddenly felt so terrible, it made his eyes water up.

What did I do?

X

X

It had been a long day after that because Tomura didn't show up for the rest of the classes. Nezu had been nice enough to write down where the older teen went on a normal day and also his hiding spots throughout the school if he was in a bad mood. It was an odd thing to include but the principal was always ten steps ahead and there had to be a reason….

But Izuku wasn't worried about that right now. He had an idea but it was something he had to ask his friends for first.

The first was Neito.

"So, Tomura Shigaraki? I don't think I heard of him before."

The blonde tapped his chin, humming.

"Nope. So what do you need from me anyways?"

"He can't control his quirk. I thought maybe you could ya know…."

Neito arched an eyebrow.

"I could what?"

"Maybe you could copy it and work with him. I think he has more of a mental block than anything else and I want to see if it's a quirk issue or you issue."

"Can you explain the dynamic of his quirk before I do anything? Besides, you know how people are…. They don't take too kindly to someone using their quirk better than them," the blonde said with an arrogant smirk.

Izuku rolled his eyes and grinned, "It would all be with consent of course. I was going to ask Shouto for help with his ice too. Do you think you can cool it on the insults for a while?"

"I can because Todoroki is unshakeable. He actually laughs at some of the stuff I say and he's an intolerable dick."

Izuku gave the other teen a sympathetic smile, "Thanks. I owe you."

"It's whatever. Text me and let me know alright?"

Neito waved and disappeared into the crowd of students.

X

"You want me to help you?"

The green haired boy nodded.

Shouto looked thoughtful.

"Explain everything then. I know how detailed you are and this is going to take twenty minutes before you get to the point."

Izuku blushed deep red before laughing loudly.

"Th-thanks!"

So it did take twenty minutes for him to explain it fully.

"If you're taking in strays, want to take me in too? I hate my fire side for the lack of control."

Izuku's face turned so bright that he could light a room.

"It's not like that!"

Shouto smirked, "I was kidding. I'd love to help you. Just give me a call. It's not like I have much of a social life anyways."

"Thanks, I mean it."

Shouto gave him a nod and walked away.

Izuku took off for Nezu's office. Luckily his door was wide open and he seemed to be sitting alone.

"I'm sorry to bother you but can we talk?"

"Ah! Midoriya, come in come in! Don't worry, Mei let me know Tomura was at and he's in the broom closet on the top floor!"

"O-oh…. That's good to know. Actually, I wanted to show you something. Did he talk to you by any chance?"

His smile fell and shook his head.

"He has a hard time with some things. I suppose you're afraid you upset him in some way."

"Y-yea."

"He's had a hard life. Anything you do nice for him, his mind can twist it. It's not you, it most definitely is him. He probably didn't tell you and you won't know unless you drag it out of him. It's not going to be easy."

"I have a plan."

Nezu clapped his paws with a gleeful grin on his face.

"Do go on."

X

X

Tomura sat in the recliner chair at home. He ordered in with Rat Dad's permission and ate alone, making sure to leave some for the principal. The devastated look on Izuku's face killed him a little bit. This guy was making an effort and he just turned him away from him like it was ok.

Tomura left his Chinese take out boxes on the coffee table. He ate a couple spring rolls and half of his beef broccoli. He knew the rat would be proud anyways.

I did this to myself.

He nearly jumped out of skin when the front door swung open. He gave Nezu a dirty look that could kill and the animal laughed.

"Now now! You mustn't be that surprised I showed up when you took off. How are you going to make up your classes? Do you want to do Saturday school again?"

The teen groaned, "Do you know how to not be a pain in the ass?"

"I do know how but you seem to enjoy that I am. I do need to know why you wanted to hurt Izuku and Mei. Even Mei was a little upset. Izuku seemed rather proud of himself."

"Because…. I just didn't like it alright?"

"You didn't like it because it was a bad idea or you didn't like it because it reminded you of your past?"

"Shut up."

"I won't this time."

Tomura pulled his knees to his chest and hid his face. He didn't like to cry and he had done it so many times in front of Nezu.

"You aren't a monster. You aren't a creature that kills. What happened to you was an accident and I can tell you…. You aren't alone."

The animal patted his leg.

"I like the name and the costume. Midoriya designed it for you to be an underground hero. You can turn the blue light on and off. He thinks you're so much more than your quirk. He thinks you need to overcome it. Talk to him about it. Aizawa has agreed to allow a few of his students to go to Enigma with you. So…"

The animal placed the notebook on the table and walked away.

X

X
The next day, Izuku stood there with Neito and Shouto. Mei was running a little late- she had warned him ahead of time. Aizawa came in at the same time as Tomura. The teen looked tired like he hadn't slept. Both of them were carrying coffee cups that were big enough to give someone a heart attack if they weren't used to that much caffeine at once.

Shouto looked unfazed by this as he drank his grape juice through a straw. Neito had his hands on his hips looking smug, eyeing the older teen sizing him up.

Tomura scratched his neck and handed over the notebook to Izuku.

"It's a great design. We can talk about it later."

Izuku gave him a big grin, "Alright!"

"Nezu told me your plan, problem child. I'm here for damage control while Present Mic gets his sanity melted away. Alright let's get this started."

Tomura nodded as he placed his coffee on the ledge.

"Let's get this over with."

"Alright so my sweet freckled friend over here asked me to copy your quirk and give it a go."

Tomura's eyebrow shot up as Neito smirked.

"If you want that," he said pointing at Izuku, "Then you need to flirt better."

Shouto snorted, nearly coughing himself on grape juice before he dissolved into a cackling idiot.

Izuku covered his tomato red face, groaning into his hands, mortified. Tomura blinked a few times processing what was just said.

"I am not here for a teenage soap opera," the pro hero said, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"Alrighty so!" Izuku shouted, face betraying him, "Neito is going to copy your quirk and see what happens. He's going to unleash it. Then he's going to control the spread. You will use yours first so we have a control on how fast you destroy Shouto's ice blocks. How does that sound?"

"Oh, that's really thought out."

"I have a stopwatch," Eraserhead said.

"Alright! Shouto, you first."

The teen nodded and placed his juice down. He held out his right hand and threw his hand upward, creating a giant jagged ice block. Izuku walked over and dragged his foot in the dirt creating a line. He walked back over and grabbed his notebook ready to make notes.

"Go ahead."

Tomura nodded. He had used his UA gym uniform today. He couldn't be naked in front of a bunch of people. He took his place, eyeing Aizawa who gave him a nod. Tomura slipped off his glove and raised his hand. Five seconds flat.

"Holy shit," Neito said.

"Five seconds."

"Alright! Shouto, again please."

He did it again, glancing at the Tomura, seeing the crestfallen look on his face.

"I understand," Shouto said, "I have the same issue with my fire. Even if you hit the target it spreads."

"Ok."

"Can I touch you now?"

Tomura looked amused for a second and nodded. Neito grabbed his bare wrist for almost a minute.

"Alright Izuku. What do you want me to do?" the blonde asked loudly.

"Let it all go. Don't hold back."

"Aye aye captain."
He held up his hand and the decay spread like wildfire, destroying the ice and putting a hole in the ground where the ice stood.

"Fuck!" Neito shouted as he closed his hand.

"Language."

Neito's head snapped to the side to look at the older teen.

"That is a quirk, holy shit."

Aizawa sighed, "Six seconds."

"Ok Neito…. Can you try and slow it down? Cause the decay to slow. Can you try for ten seconds?"

"I can try."

Shouto made another ice block and then used that hand to cool his drink back down. Tomura smirked.

I guess Endeavor's kid isn't that bad.

Neito took a deep breath as he held out his fist.

"Go," Aizawa said.

The moment the blonde opened his fist, the decay came fast. He struggled, trying to slow it- it was just too powerful.

"Seven seconds."

Tomura crossed his arms looking annoyed.

This guy used it twice. Twice. He already did better than Tomura in two tries.

Neito wiped his forehead. He was sweating and very pale.

"Time for a break," Aizawa said, "I'll be back….."

He looked over them then sighed.

"Todoroki, you're in charge. It's the lesser of four evils."

Izuku chuckled and Neito scoffed as he sat down. Shouto plopped down beside the blonde.

"Juice?"

Neito scoffed again but took the bottle anyway. Izuku took a place by Neito and he patted the spot for Tomura to sit down. The older teen nodded and grabbed his coffee. The four of them sat down and chilled out until Aizawa came back with Mei.

"Great, the woman who plots my demise on a daily basis is here," Tomura said.

Izuku laughed and bumped into him, making the older teen smile a little bit.

"Eraserhead and I have an idea!" Mei said, tossing her goggles at Izuku.

"Oh, well…. I guess I'm dying faster today than usual. Can't wait."

Shouto snorted softly.

"You ungrateful jerk!" Mei said with a laugh and punched his arm when he stood up beside her.

"Jesus bitch! Break my arm will you?!"

"I don't think you can handle it like Deku can!" Mei joked before placing her hands on her hips, "Now! Down to business!"

"Todoroki, can you create another block of ice?" the teacher asked.

The dual quirk teen nodded and got up. He created another block of ice then sat down near Neito. He held out his hand with a blank expression.

"You wanna cool off?" he asked and didn't even wait for an answer as he placed the hand on the blonde's forehead.

"Alright, so my idea is you don't know what it's like to stop your quirk, correct?" Mei said, slapping his back a few times, "So Aizawa here will use his to help you out. The ice is just a piece to sacrifice since we don't want you destroying the gym- no matter how cool that would be! You will then relay how you felt to Izuku so he can jot it down and Aizawa will as well. Just in case it is any different than when he used it on someone else."

Tomura hummed and nodded, "That's a good idea."

"Izuku wants you to try precision as well but that can be for another day."

"Alright."

Tomura got in position and Aizawa gave him a nod. The decay started to spread but it stopped. Tomura jumped. Aizawa never used his quirk on him before. Tomura looked at his hands then touched his shirt. It stayed together. Tomura reached out and touched the ice with both hands. It felt amazing!

It was cold. It felt so weird under his fingertips. He could feel the water forming and dipping down. He glanced at Aizawa who watched with him such fondness.

"That felt…. Amazing."

He wiped his wet hands on his clothes.

"Again!"

An hour passed by of Aizawa using Erasure before the decay got too bad. His dry eyes were killing him but he continued on. By the time they were finished, Tomura lost his shirt and most of his pants. Izuku had six pages of notes- front and back.

"Alright, I'll take you little trouble makers back. Midoriya?"

Izuku looked up.

"Can I join later? I have something I want to discuss with him."

The teacher nodded, "Alright. I can allow it this one time."

"Thanks."

"Not like I have much choice when it comes to the principal's son."

Shouto walked behind Neito as they left.

"See ya lovebirds!" Mei screeched with an eager wave.

Tomura rubbed his temples wishing for his death to come and be swift.

Izuku covered his face in shame.

"I'm…. um…. Sorry."

The freckled teen raised his head.

"W-what?"

"I'm sorry. Rat Dad said I upset you and that wasn't my intention. I'm not ready to talk about it because it's fuckin' terrible and he said I should but-

"No it's alright. I get it. I do want to explain myself though… You weren't happy about the name or the costume but Nezu indicated that you might be upset by the name."

Tomura dropped his eyes shamefully. His silence was a yes.

"My hero name used to mean useless. Unable to achieve anything."

"Then why the fuck would you want that as a hero name?"

"Because. I want to give it new meaning. That even those who can be seen as useless can do more than the eye can see. I think you're more than a person who decays things. You can change what that name means. You can be Decayer and be an amazing hero. You aren't your quirk."

Tomura chewed the inside of his cheek. He wasn't going to cry.

"I understand you have problems and I get that you have secrets. I do too. If you want, I can listen. I can talk to you about things. I can be there for you because it is hard being around others who know nothing of certain struggles. A lot of us do understand your pain and even if you can't tell me, tell someone else. I can be there for you."

The older teen slipped his other glove back on. Emotions flickered across his face quickly before he stepped forward. He threw his arms around Izuku, squishing his face into his bare chest. For a moment, the both of them were overwhelmed with unspoken feelings.

Nezu watched from the security room footage to see the hug. All he could do was smile.

He's finally letting someone in.