Domestic Heroes: The Early Moments

2nd Moment: Occupational Hazards

It hurts to be a hero. That was a lesson Izuku knew very well as he grew and trained to be the world's greatest hero. In fact, it was a lesson that was constantly drilled into his head back when he first obtained One for All. He had since gotten much better control over his powers, but he would still get teased every now and again from his former classmates about his constant visits with Recovery Girl. Those visits still happen every now and then, especially since he was a graduate and working in an agency and as Gran Torino's new sidekick, but it was to be expected. To help means to be hurt, after all. It's an occupational hazard that he, and his peers, had come to expect when becoming heroes. His best friend and significant other knew this lesson very well with how hard she worked herself, especially in their youth. She overcame her own hurdles in order to get to where she was now, and while it did hurt him to see her strain herself so much, it did ease him a little to know that everything she'd done has paid off in the end.

...Though there were some moments where seeing her battered up was more amusing than anything, especially if it was for a silly reason.

"Ah! Easy there, Deku! That stings!"

"Haha. Sorry, but this has to be done. I know you don't like this stuff, but it's the best way to heal those bruises without going to see Recovery Girl. You know she's still peeved at you the last time you did this."

"I'd rather go face her wrath than have you constantly stinging my cheeks with rubbing alcohol at this point…"

"Hehehe."

"And will you stop laughing at me? I know your sense of humor is a bit weird, but does seeing me in pain really amuse you that much?"

"I'm just amazed you took so much abuse and walked away with only a few bruises! That's really impressive, if you think about it."

"...I can't tell whether to be flattered or not by what you just said."

Izuku could only laugh again as he gently dabbed Ochako's face with a medicinal cotton ball, smiling apologetically when she hissed in pain. The two were currently in one of Gunhead's dojos that Ochako worked at, with her doing her job as an instructor while Izuku was visiting for his patrol break. The two were having a nice chat during their breaks, quietly enjoying each other's company, when a rather large and rude group of individuals barged into the dojo demanding to fight the head, who was out to visit Gunhead at the time. Izuku, Ochako and a few other teachers and older students tried to calm the men down, but they simply got rowdier in response. Izuku himself was about to step in as a hero when Ochako raised her voice and demanded them to leave lest she took care of them herself. That caused the intruders to laugh, claiming that she was no match for them and they would easily beat down a weak little girl like her, and Izuku couldn't help but wince when he heard that. There were few things that would set her normally happy and cheerful girlfriend off, most of them involving his own recklessness, but few things made her blood boil than calling her a weak little girl. He could practically see her rage swirling around her like a miasma as she slowly walked over to the biggest brute of the group, grabbed him by the shirt, and tossed him so hard to the nearest wall that it caused an indent.

All without using her Quirk.

The others proceeded to attack her in response, but she had dealt with them with such skill and precision that Izuku couldn't help but feel starstruck. Seeing her look so confident even in the face of danger always made his heart race even after all these years. He didn't even notice that she had managed to beat the ruffians to the ground until the sounds of cheering martial artists reached his ears, and was rewarded by a tired, beaten, and immensely proud young woman standing before a pile of battered and bruised troublemakers. Izuku wasted no time after that to cuff and arrest them for trespassing and causing a disturbance, and allowed himself to chuckle when he told the group that the 'weak-looking girl' that just beat them to the ground was a sidekick to one of the top ten heroes and direct disciple of one of the country's best martial artists. It didn't take the police long to arrive, and once the group was gone, Izuku set his mind to focus on the next important issue…

Fixing up his hero of a girlfriend while both praising and chastising her for her bold, but reckless performance.

"You know, as amazing as it was to see you beat a bunch of brutes to submission by yourself, you really should've had the other instructors help you. You'd be much less hurt as a result," Izuku said in an amused tone as he knelt before his tattered gi-clad girlfriend he wrapped some gauze around her hand.

"It was a matter of pride, Deku. They put me down because I was a girl, so I had no choice but to put them down as a result. I don't regret what I did...though I will admit that I probably shouldn't have been so quick to anger by their words," Ochako pouted from her spot in one of the dojo's benches.

"At least you're aware of that. It's just something we have to work on, is all. Even I'm prone to outbursts like yours every so often," Izuku admitted as he pulled her sleeve down and went to work on her other arm.

"Yeah, but your outbursts usually happen when someone you care about is hurt in some way, not for a stupid reason like pride," She said with a wince as Izuku dabbed some ointment onto her bruises once more.

"Oh I have those moments, too. Usually around Kacchan. Things always seem to blow up in a lot of ways whenever he's involved," He joked, getting a snicker out of her in response before adopting a more wistful smile as he proceeded to bandage her arm. "Ironic that I'm the one patching you up when it's usually me that get's hurt to the point of broken bones."

"Oh this doesn't even come close to the number of times I had to patch you up, Deku. You're looking scruffed up yourself," Ochako countered as she used her free hand to touch his face and run her thumb on some of the fresh scratches that he got during some of the rougher moments of his patrol, an unexpected act that caused Izuku to blush madly.

"P-Please don't do that when I'm giving you first aid. It...feels too good and I'll get distracted," He muttered, a soft whine when Ochako started to giggle at his expense.

"Consider it payback for stinging me with a cotton ball just now," She said in a cheeky manner as she let go of his face to point at the large bandage on her face.

"That was unavoidable and you know it…" He grumbled as he tightened the bandage slightly and pulled the sleeve of her gi down. "There, that should be most of them. There's definitely more than what I got, but my break is almost done, so one of the others will have to finish the rest. Also, you're going to have to sit out the practical lessons until you get home."

"I know. No need to worry about me, Dr. Deku, I'll take it easy," Ochako joked before adopting a more somber expression. "Sorry you had to spend your break patching me up, though. It was supposed to be just lunch and spending time with each other before going back to work. I still need to head over to the agency for some paperwork, too, so I'm going to be coming home late. It sucks that we've been so busy lately. We barely have time for each other…"

"We knew this was going to happen when we got together in high school, Ochako, and things were just as busy then as they are now. Probably more so with everything that was happening," Izuku said before holding a fist up to her. "Despite it all, though, we pulled through. It was rough, but we survived together, and this is no different. We just have to do what we always do and rely on each other. Nothing will stop the two of us, after all."

"...Yeah. You're right. Nothing has stopped us before, and nothing ever will," Ochako nodded as she bumped her fist with his, both of them smiling at each other before the pair got up and she hugged him gently. "You be safe out there, Deku. I expect to see you home without a cast or a bandage around your head this time, ok?"

"I'll try my best. We're heroes, after all. It's an occupational hazard," Izuku joked as he returned the hug, letting go before giving her a quick peck on the lips out of habit. Smiling as he saw her grinning and bright red face, he gave her a wave before leaving the dojo, body sparkling an electric green as he hopped from roof to roof to return to his post.

She really was amazing today. Dealing with all those thugs on her own with just her martial arts skills. She's come a long way since her short lessons in our first year. The young hero thought, a dreamy smile on his face as he started to pick up speed. Her going back to Gunhead during our second year was the best decision. The fact that she was also given a job as an instructor in his new branch here despite only having a couple years of experience just shows how much talent she has in that style. She truly is an amazing hero, and I hope I can catch up to her someday…

"Hey, Deku! Watch out for that pole!"

"Huh? Was that Ashi-"

*bam!*

"AAAR-"

*crash*

Aaah… Note to self: Don't be lost in thought while roof hoping or else I'll bash my face into a flagpole then fall head first into a sidewalk. My face hurts so much right now...

"Oof… That looked painful. You alright there, Deku? I don't have to call Ocha and tell her you're spending the night in the hospital again, do I?" A concerned, yet energetic voice called out from behind the downed hero, one that he recognized as his agency appointed partner and former classmate, Mina 'Pinky' Ashido.

"Yeh… I'm fim," He responded as he picked himself up from the ground, ignoring the searing pain from his face and quirked an eyebrow when he saw his pink comrade hiss in worry.

"Oh you are not fine at all, mister. You just busted your nose with that wipe out. You got more blood on your face than All Might does when he starts coughing," She explained as she reached into a small pack on her hip and pulled out a compact mirror.

"Huh? Wad do yu mem? I'm pefectly fii… Oh dam," Izuku trailed off with a wince as he stared at the state of his face. Bent nose, debris for freckles, blood covering his mouth, he looked less like a hero and more like a killer clown at the moment.

"Yeah. Oh damn indeed. I'm surprised you're still somewhat able to talk with how bworked your nose is right now. If Bakugo or Kaminari were here right now, they'd probably be laughing their asses off at the sight," Mina said as she put her compact away and fished out a small first aid kit. "How the hell did you not see the pole, anyways? You're usually more attentive than that. What, did something happen during your break with Ocha that put your head in the clouds?"

Izuku turned away at that, not wanting to admit that she was right. His lack of admission, though, only seemed to confirm her suspicion if the large, teasing grin was anything to go by.

"Wow. Must've done something either really hot or really badass to get you worked up during patrol. Knowing you, probably both," She snickered as she set down the kit and took out her phone, causing Izuku to panic as she started taking pictures of him. "What? You know it's protocol to take pictures like this while on patrol for on job injury reports that don't involve villains. That schnoz is an easy fix for me, yeah, but I still got to do it. And before you ask, I won't show this to Ocha...so long as you invite me to dinner tonight. Eiji's not home yet and I'm bored."

"...If yeh wanted ta com fo diner, yeh cod hab as," He managed to mutter out, wincing at the sound of his own voice.

"I know. I was just messing with ya. But I am going to have to show her the photo and explain what happened, though. She's gonna know something's up when she shows up tonight wondering why your face is crooked," Mina said, causing Izuku to blanch at the statement before she reached over to him and grabbed his bent nose. "Alright, I'm gonna set it straight now. You know it's gonna hurt, so I'm going to count to three so you can brace yourself. You ready, hero?"

"Reby az I eva be…" Izuku nodded as he closed his eyes, chastising himself for getting hurt in such a ridiculous manner. It was his fault, though, for losing focus while going at high speeds, and is rightfully paying the price. He just hoped that Ochako doesn't get too upset with him getting injured literally right after he chastised her for being reckless at the dojo…

Being hurt on the job is common for us heroes. An occupational hazard. I doubt whoever first said that ever had this in mind, though.

"Ok, I'm about to start! One…! Two…!

*crack!*

"OW! Ashido!"

"Three!"

Author's Note:

Welcome back, Heroes, to the Domestic Heroes prequel. Hope you all had an enjoyable read. I had a fair bit of fun with this piece, especially towards the end, and if you're up for more humor, then look forward to what I have cooked up for the next chapter. Also, on that note, you lot don't have to worry about my work being left incomplete like the last few IzuOcha week fics. All the entries this time are finished, so expect a consistent updates until the end. As always, thank you all so much for reading my works. Look forward to some hilarity in the next chapter and I wish you all a good day.

Farewell, Heroes. And remember: Go Beyond! Plus Ultra!