'I'm not sure I like the idea of this.' Gaze tracking Hizashi's rapid signing that betrayed his nerves, Shouta tried to think of something reassuring he could say.
"If you want to stay out of jail for all your previous charges, you need someone in high power on your side." Shouta had half a thought that Hizashi might not find this as encouraging as Shouta wanted him to. "It's logical, isn't it? Now that you're a public figure, the Hero Commissions is going to be out for blood to protect the image of heroes."
The disgusted expression Hizashi made spoke volumes, Shouta mused. Them talking to Nedzu, however, really was the best option for them. Hizashi had been released from the hospital only two days ago and since then it had been a whirlwind of getting parole custody of Hizashi, dodging the police and heroes who thought he deserved to be behind bars, and hiding from any and all attempts at someone recognizing the former villain.
It was the reason that, despite all his pouting and protests, Hizashi was hiding under a baseball cap, a worn out U.A. hoodie from Shouta's third year with the hood pulled over his hair, a pair of normal looking sunglasses, and a pair of distressed jeans that fit his figure better than should be possible.
'Are you absolutely sure this is the only way out of this? Maybe I can do some community service or something!' Hizashi looked dramatically desperate, but Shouta could see the tension coiled in his shoulders, fingers twitching as if they wanted to rub at the bandages that were still wrapped around his throat.
"Just trust me," Shouta said quietly. Since they were alone and patiently waiting outside of Nedzu's office in the school hallways where everyone was in class, Shouta didn't hesitate to cup Hizashi's cheek and rub at the skin, smiling when the man leaned into the touch with a soft, voiceless sigh. "We wouldn't be here if I thought it wouldn't help."
'That's cheating, Shouta,' Hizashi signed, features softer than before, anyways, as he relaxed. The only other time he had relaxed the past few days was when he and Shouta had went on their 'date.'
Considering Hizashi was impatient and had self-worth issues and Shouta was just as impatient after months of teasing and dance around the feeling between them, their date had been watching dumb movies while eating takeout on Shouta's couch. Shouta had fallen asleep surrounded by half-empty containers of rice and noodles and Hizashi sleeping soundly on his chest. It had been, in Shouta's opinion, the perfect date.
"It's either this or we deal with the Hero Commission on our own." The returning expression was answer enough, Shouta snorting as he dropped his hand.
'You know, it's the Commission that leads people to become villains like I did. I mean, they're just so awful! All they do is make things difficult and make it harder and harder to help people!' It was both fascinating and rather sweet how Hizashi managed to ramble while signing. 'Hey, hey, Shouta, are you listening to me? Shouta! I know you can see my hands moving! Stop ignoring me, Shouta!'
Shouta kept 'accidentally' looking away, hiding a smile behind his binding cloth as Hizashi pouted and ranted. It was fun to wind Hizashi up. The man was always so loud, expressive, and over-the-top; even without his voice.
The door opened before Shouta could figure out how to tease Hizashi even more, Nedzu waving them in with a cheery greeting, "Come on in, you two!"
The office was the same as it had been for the last few years, Shouta taking a seat in one of the armchairs in front of Nedzu's desk and motioning for Hizashi to do the same. It was an effort not to worry when he saw how nervous Hizashi was, cautiously sitting down and scanning the room for what was no doubt potential dangers and a quick way of getting out if something went wrong.
"Well, well, it's so nice to finally meet you, Yamada-san! I've heard quite a bit about you from my teachers on your work and the good you've been doing for our community. I've even heard that you helped to save one of our students, at one point, something I'm remarkably grateful for!"
'Shouta, did you just lead me into a trap? He's way too cheerful for this to not be a trap.' Hizashi's signs were sharper and less pronounced, hands kept close to his body as if he was trying to quiet himself even as he signed.
'He's odd, but you would know if Nedzu meant you any harm. He doesn't much believe in playing kind when there's no need for it,' Shouta signed back, waiting until Hizashi relaxed to look back to Nedzu. "He says it's nice to meet you."
Nedzu smiled and there was a glint that reminded Shouta of the days when he was his homeroom teacher. It was a look that, all things considered, inspired a large amount of fear within him. He was proven right when Nedzu said, "There's no need to play translator for him, Eraser, I can understand Japanese Sign Language quite proficiently!"
Shouta blinked, grateful that they at least hadn't said anything too embarrassing before Nedzu revealed that piece of information. It was a kindness Shouta didn't expect, honestly. "I'll keep that in mind, Principal," Shouta finally said, glancing at where Hizashi was flushed red and looking embarrassed.
"I'll just be speaking for today," Nedzu continued, looking at Hizashi. "I'm afraid that while I understand it, I'm not able to use it as well as I would like. Sadly, paws aren't very useful when it comes to the more intricate signs."
'Oh, of course, that's no problem at all! I can hear you perfectly well right now, Principal Nedzu!' Hizashi signed out quickly, tension looking as if it flowed back into him at full force. He was going to end up dying younger than Shouta if he kept letting himself stress out so much.
"Simply Nedzu is fine," Nedzu smiled. "The signs for my name would be rat, bear, and dog, actually, so feel free to use them as needed!"
Shouta decided that the quicker they moved on from that conversation, the better. "You wanted to talk with us about the situation involving him, Principal?"
"Ah, yes." While Nedzu had called them there to help Hizashi, Shouta knew it was going to be more than just to help. Nedzu always had reasons for his actions and kindness. "As of right now the public is largely in favor of Present Mic. The government and other pro heroes, however, are a different story."
That was an understatement. While 'Present Mic' was already ranked like a pro hero would be, it was largely public opinion that was behind that. The Hero Commission was still adamant that Hizashi be put on trial for all his 'crimes.' It was ridiculous considering the worst thing that Hizashi had ever done was take a bar hostage for karaoke.
"It is true that the police seem to believe that Yamada-san here has broken the law quite a number of times in regards to using his quirk. He also has been a public menace, obstructed justice, and been a danger to society." At each new word Nedzu spoke, Hizashi was curling up more and more.
The only reason Shouta wasn't interrupting was because he knew Nedzu was going somewhere with this. That didn't mean he couldn't reach out and take Hizashi's hand, though, squeezing it lightly. Hizashi stole a glance at him for just a moment, but Shouta saw at least some of the weight on his shoulders seep out of him.
"After hearing other accounts, however, it sounds to me as if the police have managed to gather quite the misunderstanding! Yamada-san, did you ever use your quirk when you felt as if you weren't in some sort of physical harm?"
It took a moment, but Hizashi finally freed his hand from Shouta's before signing carefully, expression neutral, 'No. Since my debut, for lack of a better word, every use of my quirk has been in some form of defense or when I deemed the situation had no other means of resolution.'
That… was true. Shouta couldn't recall a time where Present Mic had used his quirk in harm of others. It had always been to defend himself just enough to leave a situation or it had been in the defense of others; not including the time he demolished a whole city block, but that was never on record since Nemuri hadn't taken him in that night.
"I see." Nedzu looked to Shouta, the gleam in his eyes brighter. "Pro Hero Eraserhead. Would you label Yamada Hizashi, also known as Present Mic, a public menace?"
Thinking about it, Shouta finally gave a truthful shake of his head. "No, I wouldn't." A nuisance, maybe, but he had never been a menace. The worst he had ever done, barring the karaoke stunt that people could have walked away from if they weren't so drunk, was cleaning out a bartender of some top shelf whiskey.
"Would you say Present Mic has ever obstructed justice in any capacity?" Nedzu was still politely smiling, but Hizashi was starting to grin. That, if nothing else, made this entire meeting worth it.
"No, I wouldn't." The only pro hero Hizashi had ever run up against in a fight beside him was Nemuri, after all, and every other pro after that had been ones that Hizashi had helped.
"And would you say that he's a danger to society?" That, Shouta decided, was the easiest question, yet.
"No more so than one of my students." Because while Hizashi had been a 'villain,' he had done good more than he had ever done harm.
Nedzu have Shouta the same look he always gave when Shouta played along with his schemes, smiling as he looked back to Hizashi. "There we have it, then. I'd be quite willing to testify in court as needed that you, self-proclaimed villain or not, have never broken any government laws that would label you negatively."
Nedzu hopped off his chair and began moving around the room to look for something, ruffling through cabinets and folders. Shouta was assuming he was giving Hizashi time to pull himself together considering Shouta already saw tears forming.
"If you're going to piss the Commission off, at least wait until we get our funding in for the year," Shouta drawled, pulling at Hizashi's chair and moving it closer until they were near pressed together, Hizashi giving him a soft smile. Shouta knew, without a doubt, that there were a lot of stupid things he would do for that smile.
"I'm afraid that might not be possible as I'm about to make them much angrier!" Oh. That was… Hm. Nedzu usually was fond of making people guess what he was, or wasn't, going to do, so to hear him come out and say something so straightforward was… interesting. "Now, Yamada-san. I understand that you're looking for work seeing as your last job ended your position with them due to villainous tendencies, correct?"
"He what." Shouta snapped his gaze to Hizashi, who was suddenly much more interested in looking around Nedzu's office. "I thought you said you were given time off!"
'Well, if we're being technical, I was given time off. It was just… a very long amount of time,' Hizashi signed, smiling weakly and fidgeting with his hat and glasses as if trying to look away from Shouta's expression without looking away. 'It's really not that bad.'
"Well, regardless of the circumstances, I might have a solution for that, as well." Wait. Was Nedzu about to hire Hizashi to work for U.A.? "I knew your name was familiar when I heard it and it turns out I was right! I went through some old records and it turns out you applied for U.A. when you were younger, correct?"
'I did.' The signs were hesitant and slow, Hizashi looking as surprised as Shouta felt. 'I never attended, though. I don't even think I was accepted.'
"Well, we did try to contact you, but I'm afraid we never quite managed." A student folder was set down on Nedzu's desk before he returned to his seat, but Shouta was caught up on the fact that it was Hizashi's student folder.
"You never mentioned you applied for U.A.," Shouta said softly, frowning as he noticed Hizashi was still and silent, all previous motions of fidgeting and constant movement now gone. Nedzu didn't seem to mind, plowing on with the tact of the non-human creature he was.
"He did! He also scored the highest scores in the history of the written exam. Your record has still never been broken. It's quite impressive, really!"
It was obvious that Hizashi was smart considering he built his own support gear and had been playing the system for almost a year, but Shouta had never known the man was that smart. A glance to Hizashi and Shouta realized he was absolutely shocked, which, good. Maybe that information would help improve the man's view of himself.
"Now, I've discussed a few options with some of the other teachers, and we have a few different choices on how to proceed." 'Some' of the other teachers. Apparently one of them wasn't Shouta. "The one I wish to truly discuss, however, is that I would like to formally hire you and bring you on as a teacher at U.A. There would be quite the amount of paperwork to fill out, of course, and you would need to pass exams for a teaching license, but you seem the perfect person to teach our students classes in sign language."
Oh. That was… That was brilliant. Hizashi would be protected from the government by U.A., he could work out a deal to pay off any outstanding warrants or fines by doing community service with the school with volunteer classes until the classes could be made official, and it was something he could do without needing use of his voice.
'It can't be that simple.' Hizashi signed the words, but Shouta had been a second behind in saying them. It really couldn't be that simple, could it? Not after everything that had happened. Then again, maybe it would be that simple because of everything that had happened.
"I don't see why not. You're quite intelligent and would have no problem getting your credentials, and, as I said, there are no outstanding laws that you have broken to prevent you from taking such a post. Hm, we might as well as throw everything together and get you your licenses for hero work and the ability to make support items, as well. Your speaker system was really quite ingenious!"
Hizashi looked to be frozen in time and Shouta couldn't blame him. He had only found out a few days ago that his quirk might be forever gone and yet here he was being offered the chance to get a hero license.
'Nedzu-san, my quirk is gone. My voice is gone. There would be no point in obtaining a license for being a hero, of all things. Not to mention I'm a villain!'
"Oh? The way it was explained to me you were merely an over eager member of the community who often helped when a hero was unable to arrive on the scene in time. Quite the asset, if you ask me! As for your quirk…" Nedzu smiled, an honest and genuine smile, and Shouta was surprised by how large an amount of hope he felt at that action alone. If Nedzu thought there was a chance that Hizashi could get his voice and quirk back…
The door slammed open before anything else could be said, Shouta feeling nothing except fear, "Aizawa Shouta how dare you not tell me that my newest best friend is here!"
Hizashi perked up and spun around in his seat, beaming at seeing Nemuri in the doorway. Shouta regretted the day they ever met, but at least Hizashi was smiling and no longer looking ready to have some sort of breakdown.
"Yamada, Yamada, Yamada, we have so much to catch up on!" Nemuri was like a whirlwind in human form, sweeping up Hizashi out of his seat, checking him over, and cooing at him nonstop about how worried they all were about him.
"Ah, perfect timing, Midnight! Perhaps you would be kind enough to show Yamada-san to the teacher's lounge? He might be seeing quite a bit of it, soon enough."
"He accepted?" Oh, so Nemuri was a traitor who would need to die. Alright. Shouta would need to remember to take care of that before they left the school. "Wonderful! Come on, dear, let's go and tell everyone about our stunning new language teacher!"
Not even a minute later and the room was filled with ringing silence, Shouta taking a moment to wrap his mind over what had just happened. It sounded like Hizashi would not only recover enough to use his quirk again, but he would be hired at the school and have a decent job while being completely safe and protected.
Looking up at Nedzu, Shouta saw the principal already had his attention on him. Shouta didn't bother dancing around the subject, merely asking a blunt, "Do you really think he'll regain the use of his quirk?"
"I do." Nedzu was rarely wrong when it came to things like this. "I've seen the medical files for him myself, after all. While he'll never regain quirk use compared to what it was before this incident, I believe a few sessions with Recovery Girl will get him back to where he needs to be. Thankfully, as a soon-to-be teacher of this school, she'll have plenty of time to look him over and help him heal! A happy ending all around, don't you think?"
This was all too easy. Happy endings like this didn't just happen after this much suffering and turmoil. There was no way they would be lucky enough to be together and not have to worry about the next bad thing around the corner. Real life didn't work like that and it never had.
There were no happy endings in the life of a pro hero, and yet Shouta couldn't help but think that Hizashi made him want to believe in happy endings.
"If you'll excuse me, Eraser, I have some new teacher paperwork to put together. Feel free to stop by for tea later, however, and bring Yamada-san with you!"
"Of course, Principal," Shouta nodded, standing up and burying his smile under the layers of his scarf as he left the office. The halls were still silent, classes either still going on or having switched for new teachers.
Standing in the hall for a moment, Shouta felt his shock leave for a giddy sense of relief and lightness as he allowed himself to chuckle and start his walk towards the staff lounge.
"A happy ending, huh?" It didn't sound like such a bad thing.