Fencer29 - Kind of like canon Kurogiri for Tomura, ngl xD

Jpx0999 - Not really. The assumption that religion would need to explain superpowers in its own context is imo wrong and only something that fringe groups would do. I'd say that most of the religions would go 'oh no, anyway' route. Also we have source-confirmed case of Romans practicing execution by public bestiality (no, I won't elaborate) so I'd be really cool about saying how much more advanced they were as a society.

(***)

Contrary to popular opinions, Tsuyu's personality wasn't composed entirely of desire for friendship, deep-seated drive to see everyone she liked happy, absolutely extraordinary level of empathy, crippling autophobia and a complete lack of brain-to-mouth filter. There was more to the frog girl, although that was something that only Midoriya and - to a degree - Uraraka and Kayama-sensei realized.

For example, there were moments when Tsuyu was seriously distraught. Not just confused. Simple confusion, typically about not being able to figure out something due to her issues with interpersonal skills and language, resulted in prolonged stares. If it was really bad, she put the finger on her lips.

But there was more than that. When she was actually distraught, her reactions were much more subdued. It wasn't the same thing as what she went through that memorable night right before she and Izuku ended up sharing a bed in more ways than one for the first time. That was sadness and trauma, not that.

No, when she was truly distraught, a state born from a combination of confusion and her past traumas being aggravated, she was… kind of shutting down. It wasn't a very common thing.

Izuku received a rather confusing message from Tsuyu telling him to come. The whole meeting with the student council happened after the school hours, but to Izuku's surprise, the frog girl was still in school.

He found her sitting on a couch, on the corridor right next to their classroom. She was staring blankly into space, almost unmoving. She was ribbiting to herself. Quietly, but quite frequently. Her equivalent of fidgeting or mumbling to yourself.

"Tsu, what happ…" He tried to speak. She didn't let him finish. Instead she immediately leaped at him for a hug. Considering her incredible ability on the field of jumping - and his surprise - it was probably to be expected that it ended with him landing on his back, with Tsuyu on top of him.

Ouch.

"Uhm, Tsu?" He decides against standing up. She is still clinging to him, ribbiting to herself nervously every few seconds. He wraps his arms around her, but he isn't sure if she noticed. "What happened?"

It had to be something really serious. The fact that she seems to use less words the closer she is to you (it might be due to the fact that those close to her can understand what her ribbiting and scarce facial expressions mean) doesn't help in getting her point across.

She ribbits loudly (it's the confusion and worry, mixed into one) while staring at him up close with her big eyes (that he really likes making eye contact with, sure the way they are a bit too big freaks a lot of people but he likes them).

A step in the right direction from being so distraught that she just leaped at him when she heard his voice.

She actually wakes up from that state enough to stand up. This is accompanied by some additional worried and confused ribbits.

Alright, Midoriya. You have not one but TWO girlfriends now. Sure, relationships are still a bit of an alien field to you. Sure, you're still not fully sure how to deal with girls (he's getting better, but slowly). But you can do this. She clearly needs you to do this.

He guides her back to the couch. He sits right next to her. He gives her a moment to calm down.

She doesn't take it. Instead she grabs a small stack of documents that was lying next to her and pushes them into his hands. He skims through it, deciding that it probably contains the answer to the question of why did Tsuyu freak out so m…

Oh. OH.

Those were adoption papers. HER adoption papers. All it really required to go in effect was her signature in one or two places.

Kayama-sensei clearly wasn't one to go for half-measures.

It also explained why Tsuyu had this degree of a meltdown.

Izuku put the papers away. He was about to invite her to do that, but she didn't give him the time to do so - she relocated onto his lap (thankfully, wearing the school uniform, it WAS a public place either way) and hugged him closely.

"Do you want it?" He whispers into her ear. She doesn't face him, only ribbits quietly. It's her equivalent (if he is reading her correctly) of confused whimper, but… "You want it… but you are also scared of it?"

This time the ribbit is clearly the one of agreement. Well, she didn't have a lot of good memories associated with the concept of family. But after interacting with him and Ochaco for a moment, she was probably tempted to give it a try.

Technically speaking, Tsuyu was an adult. Young adult. But adoption of adults in Japan was a thing, just… well, in a way with Tsuyu being a bit 'underdeveloped' in many fields, it was more like a normal adoption.

"Kayama-sensei really likes you." Izuku says. "She won't harm you. She didn't feel hurt when you said that you needed to think about it and stormed off, right? Wait, you did tell her that before vanishing?"

Izuku didn't consider trying to discourage Tsuyu from it even for a second. Tsuyu deserved a family. A big, loving family. Boyfriend was fine, but… she deserved more. And he knew well enough how close she and Nemuri Kayama got recently.

Izuku was often clueless about things. Uraraka was… well, rather isolated (at least emotionally) for weeks now, which made him increasingly worried. But Kayama-sensei was always there when Tsuyu was confused about something and needed someone to explain things to her. Help her understand something that for Izuku was hard to define 'common sense' with the patience of a saint.

Nemuri Kayama was pretty much acting like Tsuyu's mom already. Now she simply decided to make it official.

The ribbit he gets in an answer sounds almost… offended. Yeah. She probably only freaked out once she was here, alone, waiting for him to show up. Sure she might have 'problems', but in the end, she is clearly making a lot of progress with fixing them nowadays. No need to treat her as if she was entirely helpless.

"So…" He is trying to push towards actually speaking. All that he manages to achieve is to make her pull her head back a bit. She is watching him with her (adorably) big eyes, clearly trying to figure herself out. And put it into words.

He has a moment or two to act. So his hands naturally find their way to her cheeks. She likes when he holds her like that. She responds similarly. They are pretty much stroking each other's cheeks lightly while looking into each other's eyes (from a VERY close distance) and it's…

Well, nice. There is something in Tsuyu that - in moments like this - makes Izuku temporarily forget about everything else. For as long as she is there, he doesn't think about all those scary fights with villains that were behind him (and those in front of him). He doesn't think about Overhaul, or anything else. It's…

… well, it helps him in staying sane. That's for sure. Thinking too much about bad things isn't healthy. Sure, he has to think about them when 'at work'. But not when he is supposed to be resting.

Tsuyu helps with that. Tsuyu makes that possible. Trying his utmost to help her in return is the only right course of action, right?

"Tsu." He tries again. "Try saying it with words. Take your time." She is supposed to learn how to communicate like other humans do. This is important. Losing your tongue when things get serious isn't good for her.

She spends a moment mulling it over. Eventually she looks down a bit.

"I'm scared. Ribbit." She finally starts vocalizing. It's progress. She needs to learn how to speak about serious issues.

"Of?" He says once the silence grows longer and it becomes obvious that she needs a little push.

She spends almost ten seconds thinking it over. Eventually she reaches a conclusion.

"I don't know." She says. It's not a very informative conclusion. In fact, it's not even helpful. She'll need some help. Except… he isn't sure if he is the right person to do so, because he has no clue how to proceed with all of that.

Alright. Here goes nothing.

"You didn't really have any experience with having a mother." Izuku says. Tsuyu is observing him with some rather intense… intensity in her stare. "It's normal to be afraid of things unknown to you. Especially when it's about something as important as that."

She ribbits lightly. It's… he isn't sure if it meant anything. She is still busy stroking his cheeks.

Her lack of follow-up makes him eventually boop her nose just to wake her up a bit.

"Ribbit." She complains about that, but half-heartedly. "Do you think that I should say yes?"

She is really trying to persuade her own little fear demon that he should back the fuck down. Izuku is in the position to help with that. Just…

"... look, it's something that you should decide upon on your own." He says. She immediately retaliates with a nose boop of her own. Ugh. "Alright. I think that it's a good idea."

"Why? Ribbit." She replies with a question. Now he is the one who is speaking, and… well, it wasn't exactly his plan.

"Tsu, you deserve that." He says and she tilts her head a bit, thinking about something. "You deserve having a family. Not just a boyfriend, but parent or parents. You spent the time most people live with their parents catching raw fishes for food. It's just not right for someone like you to never get to experience all of that."

She ribbits quietly. Once again, probably to herself.

"Besides, there is also a more practical reason." Izuku mentions and immediately curses himself for it. Because of course she'll want to know more. "Look, at some point in the future, we'll probably end up having children together, right?"

He has no idea how it would work, really. Children are… well. Children, in THIS economy? With people out there wanting to murder him and anyone he holds dear? That's rather… terrifying prospect. But eventually, most couples do end up having children, right?

He is really too afraid of the issue to give it more thought. That's for the future Izuku to think about.

"Ribbit." Tsuyu urges him to get to the point.

"Well, getting to experience what having a mother means would be beneficial to you in that, right?" He asks. She somehow gets even deeper into her own thoughts. "I mean, you'd know what it means to be a mother, at least to a degree. After, you know, getting to see it. Right?"

Is he saying the right words? He has absolutely no idea if he is saying the right words. But it does make sense. It's the practical reason to the 'actual' reason that he mentioned earlier. It was going to make Tsuyu happy (he was certain of that, he did see how Kayama was acting around her), and that was a reason in itself to do it.

"What about you and being a father then, ribbit?" Tsuyu eventually replies and Izuku realizes that he led himself into that trap. Yeah, that's a very good question indeed. And Tsuyu tends to ask very good questions.

Why? Nobody knows. Partially it's her lack of filter, but how does she somehow manages to regularly hit the nail despite having so little experience with people? Beginner's luck? Minor empathy quirk? Riddle for the ages, really.

"I…" He struggles to find an answer to it. "... I don't know. I'll ask Commissioner Aizawa or Principal Sasaki for tips when it happens, maybe?" The two of them did act a bit… father-like with him around.

He just couldn't get used to it. Two people with authority and influence over his life that actually WANTED him to succeed? Alien concept to him. He's still struggling with trying to process that.

Tsuyu doesn't let him know what her opinion on that dodge is. At least she seems to be significantly less freaked out. That's progress, yeah.

"Why do you think she wants that?" She eventually asks. Inquiring about motives? Is she suspecting some foul play? Izuku fails to imagine any being the case here, and Tsuyu doesn't feel like someone to suspect it right off the bat, just…

"I think…" He replies. "... that 's a question that you should ask Kayama-sensei." Izuku himself has no idea what led to this offer being on the table. He has some suspicions, but… he really isn't the one to be consulted on issues like that.

Her hands travel upward, reaching the (not so) forbidden land of his hair. She loves playing with it, for some reason.

"What about Ochako, ribbit?" She then asks, taking him completely off-guard.

"What about her?" He asks back. Uraraka… Uraraka was clearly focusing on her work. She was friendly with everyone and worked hard, but… honestly, a part of him was still worried about her. She was friendly, but… it didn't feel like she was putting her heart into it.

It wasn't the Uraraka he knew at the beginning. Those heartfelt smiles (like the one after they got the hydrogenerator running, or the one when she returned from her first mission as rescue hero - after saving someone from a house fire) that he associated with her were gone.

"I'm no longer alone. And I'm happy." Tsuyu looks down, her equivalent of nervous fidgeting. "She isn't. I don't want it that way. Ribbit."

Izuku is once again reminded that Tsuyu has enough empathy for ten people. How exactly it all fits in her not-so-big body is another mystery. It only made her past look more painful - how does a person with so much kindness for others had to feel while being completely alone for so many years?

"I… I don't know." Izuku replies honestly. "I want her to be happy too, but… I hoped that she would get out of her shell at some point, but she just doesn't. How am I supposed to help someone who doesn't want to get helped?"

He hates to admit it, but… part of him was relieved when she turned her back on him. It was the part that realized that he had enough on his emotional platter, and wanted nothing more on it. He… well, he wasn't proud of it. Add him being overworked and troubled and… he let the issue fester for way too long.

"Are you sure…" Tsuyu tilts her head a bit. "... that she doesn't want to get helped? Ribbit."

Well. Is he? The world would be much simpler if people stated certain things openly instead of forcing others into a guesswork. Or, worse, waiting for them to make the first move. For who knows how long.

That was another armor-piercing question that caught him completely off-guard. Tsuyu really excelled in those.

"I… I guess I'll try to have a talk with her." Izuku caves in. "It's really a high time for that." She nods. It's a progress from only giving a ribbit of agreement. Only two or three people out there can differentiate it from a ribbit of disagreement.

Alright, three or four. Midoriya, Uraraka and Kayama-sensei can more or less read her. Counselor Inui is a suspected fourth case. But even if he can, he probably hides it to slightly push her towards vocalizing her emotions in the proper way.

"It is. Ribbit." Tsuyu agrees with him. "She smells of alcohol. Often. I don't like that."

"Really?" Izuku blinks at her a few times. "Shit, she must have been doing that in secret. Yes, you're right. I'll have a talk with her as soon as possible." She ribbits in agreement, once again.

Then there is silence in the corridor. Silence that's… well, she's still playing with his hair. And he is still petting her face lightly. It's nice, but…

"Uhm…" Izuku wakes up first. "Don't you have to make the decision and deliver the papers to Kayama-sensei?" Besides, they are still at school. While they were supposed to be at home. Mieko is probably royally pissed off and…

"Ribbit!" That wakes Tsuyu up. She grabs the documents, makes a quick goodbye to him in an extremely cute way (this time she boops his nose with her own), and then runs away.

Time to go appease their warper before she sets something on fire.

(***)

Tsuyu being Tsuyu took Izuku's words literally. And she DID ask Kayama-sensei about her reason for doing that.

Nemuri Kayama didn't seem surprised by it. Everyone who spent some time with Tsuyu knew that sometimes she was rather insensitive, just… not intentionally. She was asking out of curiosity (and confusion) rather than suspicion of some nefarious intent.

They were still on the UA grounds. In the Special Course facilities. For security reasons the teachers lived in what was pretty much a boarding house right next to it. Whether it was for the security of the teachers or the Special Course students remained unstated. Tsuyu visited her several times in the past, so she knew where to find her.

"Well…" Kayama clearly settles up on answering the question properly once and for all. "... when I saw your picture for the first time, right before the Special Course started officially, I had a bit of mixed feelings."

"Mixed feelings? Ribbit." Tsuyu tilts her head a bit.

"Yes." Kayama smiles faintly. "I had the same first reaction to the way you look as, well, most of the people. Then, though, I heard about what you went through. And I immediately regretted that reaction. And then… I spent almost two months getting to know you."

Tsuyu's eyes are on her face. The intensity and stillness of her gaze is… it's still a bit unnerving to her. A tiny bit.

"The kindest girl I ever met, who certainly didn't deserve all the bad things that happened to her." Nemuri continues. "But who certainly deserves to have all the good things out there. And since she never got to experience what having a good parent is… well, I decided to step in. Or, at least make the offer of that."

Being a single mother… well, she could manage that. At least in that particular set of circumstances. Tsuyu was basically self-sufficient. Both in terms of living and in terms of income.

It was less a conventional adoption and more solidifying her existence in that girl's life. Which she wanted very, very much. Izuku Midoriya wasn't the only person who was absolutely enamored with Tsuyu, although her love was parental rather than romantic.

She was supposed to get a private student. Instead she got so much more.

But internally, Nemuri Kayama is still nervous. Because Tsuyu still didn't give her the answer. She is standing in front of the teacher, her hands on the documents. Nemuri can't see if they are signed or not.

"You don't have to say yes if you don't want to." She quickly says. Tsuyu gives her a quizzical stare. "I'm not going to be hurt if you decide against it. You are an adult, even if… Well, barely. I know you don't have a lot of good memories when the word 'parents' is involved, and…"

Tsuyu ribbits. Loudly. Nemuri isn't the only person to be freaking out over this.

Then the girl shoves the documents into her hands. She quickly takes a look and…

Well, she manages to notice one of the signatures being in place before Tsuyu closes the distance and hugs her with all her might. Tears streaming down her face.

Nemuri Kayama will have to do her best not to fail Tsuyu Kayama. Although considering what she heard of it thus far, her daughter will be Tsuyu Midoriya soon.

(***)

Kugo Sakamata enjoys peace and quiet in his work. Being the head of the Special Security Team was a bit stressful - they had a lot of work nowadays, with smuggling and whatnot being on the rise.

Still, occasionally he gets to unwind a bit. Perks of being part of the special forces is that your identity is kept secret. So he can just go out and drink his worries down a bit (responsibly, of course) with some friends, and everything is alright.

Of course, that's until Selkie shows up, with some really strong alcohol. Selkie or captain Haga Kenji of Oka Mariner, one of the coast guard patrol vessels. The nickname is due to him being an incredible swimmer.

A fish in water, a human on the land. It describes that monster of a man (in terms of size) quite well.

Once they run out of fun things to talk about, everyone starts getting drunk the sad way. Kenji and Sakamata aren't the only people present - Kugo came with some of his friends from work, and so did Kenji. Who also wasn't the only captain of the coast guard ships present.

It was, honestly, a bit of a party. The whole bar was practically filled with coast guard people. Even the barman was a former member. It was a special place for the coast guard.

People complain about politics, about the economy, about their work. Kugo Sakamata has a lot to complain about - but he can't. Because most of it is related to the tablet that he keeps on himself at all times.

Superheroes. Supervillains. He… Well, he didn't exactly enjoy any of that. The world was already way too complicated for his taste even before that discovery. The list of things that could go monumentally wrong when boarding a ship expanded tenfold once he began to read through the list of identified villains.

He could predict and counter guns, knives, explosives even. This? Yeah, no.

He didn't like this new world. But he rather quickly realized that having superheroes in your team is a bit of a necessity for long-term survival. They can't stop new metahumans from being born (they don't even know WHY they are born!) so they have to adapt to their existence somehow.

Kugo Sakamata is ready to adapt to hell and back if it means that his men and women get the job done and survive it.

He is slightly drunk when his brain suddenly makes a connection.

"Could you run this through me again, Kenji?" He says loudly, interrupting the man. "I think I missed something important."

"I feel hurt for you not listening to me, Kugo!" The man laughs. "There is this one damn ship that I'm 99% sure is doing something fishy. I've boarded it like five times already, and it's a whole crew of sleazebags, but I never find anything on it. Hell, it only makes me more certain that they are up to something, because I never find ANYTHING on it. No normal ship would be running the same route five times with empty cargo. The captain's openly laughing in my face each time we meet now, that fucker." Selkie sighs loudly and gulps down a lot of alcohol. Honestly, Kugo's impressed.

"And you said that this ship always stops for some time…" Kugo Sakamata continues. "Right next to Musutafu prefecture?" He remembers Selkie saying something about seeing it on the radar.

The same Musutafu prefecture that had an active teleporting villain of unknown range. Perfect to pick up the illicit cargo while fooling the coast guard completely. But if Kurogiri's range was small enough to force the ship to do so while on Japanese territorial waters… Hosu, thankfully, wasn't anywhere close to the sea.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Selkie's gaze is surprisingly sober, despite the amount of alcohol he chugged down. "You know something." He adds after a second, his eyes narrowing suddenly.

"I think I know how this ship is doing that, yes." Kugo replies. "But it's a talk for when we are all sober."

He'll have to enlighten Selkie and at least the remaining captains present in the room. High time for that, really. Thus far the coast guard had no real run-in with the villains, but this seems to have finally changed.

It also looks like it's the time for the first joint deployment between the Special Security Team and the superheroes.

(***)

This story is pretty much a story of Tsuyu getting friends and family members, and the part before she shows up is a prologue to that. Honestly, it's kinda nice. Even if I get the feeling that this fic got a bit too singleminded in that, with Mei being kinda in the background (then again, she is much less helpful when emotions are involved, and it's rather clear that Izuku... isn't doing awfully well on that point, so overabundance of IzuTsu in that section of the fic feels rather correct).

The next chapter involves another combat operation and hero versus villain battle. Also, you'll get to hear what exactly Bakugou did to Midoriya. Stay tuned for more :P