FAMILY - THE GATHERING
Izuku had dreaded the idea that he would be the one to sit to his father's right, but it appeared he didn't need to worry: Maguma sat in that seat without any hesitation. Isana sat next to him, while David Shield – and holy shit, that was David Shield – sat next to Nene Midoriya, the elderly woman barely acknowledging him.
The five guards they had brought stood behind them, back to the walls, all relaxing in some way, though even Izuku's admittedly limited knowledge on criminal behavior could tell him they were all keeping an eye on each other, ready to jump in if something happened. Izuku had no idea of what their Quirks were – well except for Pankration and Cow Lady – but he bet they were all dangerous in a fight.
On the other hand, his own seating was now a matter of hesitation. Mostly because he was now sitting in the opposite seat to his father, a sort of place of honor for the group of teenagers that formed the clan's next generation. That made sense, but it still felt weird how they were looking at him.
Of course, that in turn made Himiko's seat an issue. She was her fiancée, that put her above the other members of the Clan, right?
Right?
In the end, Himiko solved the issue by herself, by choosing the chair to his left and sitting down. Shindo, Melissa and Konako sat next, ending up mirroring their father's seats around Hisashi, and finally the last were Yuyu and Hana, that chose to seat in front of each other, Yuyu next to her sister and Hana next to Melissa.
The adults' side of the table, so to speak – weird to say, given that Konako was right there – was quite busy. Their chatter was rapid and his father let slip quite a few English sentences mixed in with the Japanese.
"I'm just saying that we needed to teach them a lesson." Maguma grumbled.
"You didn't do something wrong but you should have told me! I just had a meeting with Overhaul this morning."
"The Japanese branch is under us." Isana pointed out, still not removing his helmet, "We are supposed to decide how to handle other gangs here."
"Yes, but with my approval, at least when I'm on Japanese soil."
Izuku sighed. There went any last hope that his dad's office was purely honorific. Not that he had any to begin with, but there it went. Nope, son of a carrier criminal through and through.
The first serving arrived a few moments later, carried by a few waiters that Izuku had to assume all worked for the Green Valley Clan.
That part of the dinner was silent. Oh the bliss, to pretend he wasn't at an awkward family dinner.
Shindo coughed, "Soooo, Midoriya…"
'Dammit.'
"I think we should really introduce each other, right?" He said, looking at the others at the table, "We are relatives, after all."
Izuku nodded stiffly. "Well, I'm Izuku Midoriya. It's…" 'Horrible. Terrifying. Making me sick.' "Nice meeting all of you."
"Same here." Konako interjected, "So, I'm Konako Haizono, your eldest second cousin and future right hand woman." She winked, "Treat me well boss."
Izuku coughed, since he had the bad idea of eating a piece of his meal just then, "B-But I…" He begun, before he noticed a look from his father. Next to him, Nene Midoriya also sent him a look that said 'don't try to say you won't be the boss or so help me' so clearly it might have been spelled on a giant billboard. "Uhm, of course."
"Excellent! So yeah, grumpy over here meanwhile is Yuyu. Don't mind her, she is always like this at the family dinners. I think she doesn't really like them, and she isn't the only one. And I say that looking at You, Shindo."
"Dammit Konako!" He shouted, while Himiko snorted again. Izuku looked briefly at her, before Shindo spoke up.
"Well, anyway, I'm Yo Shindo, as you figured out. I study at Ketsubutsu High."
"Oh my gosh is true, you are studying to be a Pro." Izuku said, then he blinked, "But uh, isn't it a bit of a contradiction to be a Yakuza and a Pro?"
Cow Lady coughed in her fist.
Pankration stared at him.
"I guess not." Izuku simply said, sighing. You know, he had always heard about wake up calls about any industry that was seen as too good to be true. He guessed this was his Hero Industry wake up call.
"Well, here in Japan it used to be really rare." Shindo casually explained, "What was it dad? Some sort of HPSC Assassin?"
Izuku blinked, "I'm sorry what?"
"Yes." Isana said casually, and Izuku noticed he had not removed the helmet, merely using the hole on the front to put the food in his mouth, "She was thrown into Tartarus after her previous boss died. My bet is that she offed him."
"First useful thing cous did." Maguma muttered, and everyone nodded. Everyone except Nene, that was glaring daggers at everyone.
-x-
In her cell in Tartarus, Kaina Tsutsumi, once known as Lady Nagant, sneezed loudly. She had learned long ago to distinguish the sneezes she made when people talked about her. This was clearly a 'my cousins are talking shit about me' sneeze.
God knew there were days when she hoped she had started her murder spree with her mom's family.
-x-
Hisashi coughed, "Let's avoid this argument before Aunt Nene uses her Quirk on you all, right?"
"Her Quirk is a flamethrower in her right arm, I'm a literal volcano." Maguma argued with a very not subtle grin.
"Ahem, a-anyway," Izuku butted in, turning in desperation to change a topic he didn't want to hear more about to Hana, who until now had stayed quite, "You are Hana Shindo, right?"
The girl yelped and hid behind Melissa, "Y-Yes, I-I a-am Ha-Hana Shin-Shindo."
"Eh, Shinshindo." Konako quipped.
"What is fun about that?!" Shindo asked.
"It's the name of a few restaurants. You didn't know that?"
"I- Yes I knew that!"
"Then why did you ask?" She teased, and Shindo stared at her. Izuku had mostly figured out by now that Konako pretended to be making jokes just to make the Ketsubutsu student annoyed. He was fairly sure everyone else at the table knew that too.
Except Yo, that was.
Either that or her sense of humor was something entirely unique.
"Well, anyway, it's nice to meet you Hana." He added, turning back to the white haired girl, and she went bright red.
"I-It's n-n-n-nice to mee-meet you too!" She shouted, before she probably exhausted her daily dose of non-stuttered sentences and went back into hiding behind Melissa, who awkwardly patted her on the head.
"So that leaves…"
"Hi, I'm Melissa Shield." She replied with a smile. The girl wore glasses and had long, blonde hair. Izuku had to admit she looked rather cute. "It's nice to meet you too, Midoriya."
"Ah, uhm, just call me De- nevermind, just call me Izuku." He replied, before realizing what that sounded like, "Oh, a-and I mean that for everyone."
"Sure you do cous." Konako teased, and he stuttered, turning to Himiko, whose eyes were slits. He was fairly sure that if she had X-less' Quirk he would have been dead right then and there.
"Yes Izuku, I'm sure you meant that for everyone." She hissed.
'Oh fuck.' He thought. He really did mean that for everyone, he had planned to say that from the start! "Uhm, guys, this is my g-girlfriend, Himiko Shigaraki." He explained, pointing to her and swallowing back the awkwardness, "I- I hope you will all accept her as part of the Clan."
His dad had told him to say that, and explained the situation. Hisana and Maguma didn't know that this was arranged, they believed it to be something spontaneous. It was important to keep it like that, because the two were in charge of Japan when his dad was away, and they both really didn't like All for One. If they found out about the fact this was arranged, they were going to break the deal the moment Hisashi stepped out of Japan and had an excuse.
He wasn't sure if David Shield knew, since his dad hadn't mentioned him, and he knew for a fact Nene was aware of the deal. Maybe he did, since it didn't matter to him either way when he was in America all the time.
Himiko meanwhile had blushed a bit under everyone's stare, moving a bit closer to Izuku. He knew this must have been hard for her, since he wasn't really sure what she thought of him. He wanted to think she saw him as a friend, but also doubted it was anything more than that.
As the people around the table gave some nods and some remarks on Himiko totally being the right choice – which sounded pretty rich from Maguma and Isana, considering they were at the same time looking at their own daughters – he sighed and hoped the rest of the dinner would go better.
-x-
As it turned out, the rest of the dinner did, in fact, go worse. It started when Maguma decided it was a good idea to make another off remark about his aunt's daughter – not the one in Tartarus, the one that apparently had married a Pro Hero in America and left the family for good – and continued with Isana elbowing him in the side to make him stop.
Maguma apparently took this as a challenge and started to hold his cousin in the same hold his dad had been into, much to his chagrin. The fact the two guards didn't step in even then must have meant this wasn't dangerous enough to warrant their action, but still made Izuku sweat for a solid minute.
On his side, on the other hand, things were hardly going better. Konako and Yo were arguing with each other a lot, Himiko was glaring daggers at Melissa – alright, admittedly that had been his fault – while Melissa seemed too innocent to even realize what she was doing.
Hana, on the other hand, was doing her best to blend with the chair, and Yuyu was continuing to look stubbornly at her phone. Izuku wasn't even sure what a person could do on a phone for so long and with such intensity.
What was she doing, writing a book?
-x-
In her large mansion in Nagoya, Momo Yaoyorozu closed carefully her door and opened her tablet, blushing wildly and continuing to update her tab.
The new chapter of MyHeartisaFurnaceWinkWink's greatest work, a romcom/smut fic currently 42 chapters long titled "My Triangle Love Academia' about a girl named Nemire falling in love with both a boy, Tamaji, and another girl, Yuya, at the same time. It was her favorite piece of fanfiction, and always came out on the same day. Why was it taking so long to update that day though?
-x-
Izuku sighed. No way he could know, right? It wasn't like he could just ask 'Oh, what are you writing, complete stranger I just met?'
He shook his head as the next serving of food, this one a juicy steak, arrived, and watched instead Himiko pause his staring at Melissa to turn to the meet and start pressing the fork on it. Her face lit up when blood and juices started to come out of the meat, perfectly cooked, and Izuku smiled. "I-Is the food good Himiko?" He asked.
"Yeah, yeah." She said, still staring at the meat and starting to cut it with her knife with… a lot of emphasis. He sighed, wondering how Mustard's night was going. He had sent him a message earlier about being out with some of the other people from Himiko's side, and hoped for him it was all going well.
-x-
"For the last time, you cannot destroy someone else's property! That's what a villain would do!"
"I am!" He shouted back, and Mustard quickly put a hand over his mouth.
"He is joking!" He shouted around, "He is just a normal neet!"
"I'mgh nghoth agh ngheeghth!" The muffled voice of his boss' son screeched through his finger, inundating them with spit at the same time. For a moment after that Mustard considering severing it off and adding it to Tomura's collection. Or dunking it in bleach. Or have Dabi burn it.
He sighed and started to drag Tomura outside, ignoring his calls to let him go. The one good thing about answering All for One was that he could ignore Tomura's order and just focus on All for One's. Specifically, 'keep Tomura in check. The crowd troubles him.' He finally managed to pull him outside, and forced him to seat on the stairs that led up to the arcade.
"I'll go looking for Dabi, you just wait here and for the love of everything don't do anything dumb."
"Don't talk to me like that."
"The boss said I can." He replied, grinning. It was true enough. The boss did say he was supposed to keep his son in line. This still counted for it, right?
With that in mind he walked back in.
Shigaraki, meanwhile, fumed. He was supposed to be the heir of All for One, the one that would one day inherit his Master's place. And here he was, dragged outside an arcade by a teenager half his height, all because he had tried to show those little assholes who was the real boss.
He frowned. Why was he doing this? He should have been scheming in his room.
Yeah, scheming.
Definitely what he did in his room. Anyone that suggested otherwise was delusional. Especially what Dabi's smirk suggested he did.
Of course.
Anyway, back on topic, why was he like this? The answer was only one.
The girl.
Since Himiko had arrived and usurped his rightful place as the heir, she had been nothing but an annoyance. He had to step out of his room all the time, either to watch her stupid boyfriend get beaten to a pulp by Stain – admittedly fun, especially the part where he kept asking for help and Shigaraki could refuse – and do odd jobs like this one.
All because of Himiko.
And that was when it clicked.
Of course.
This was a test from his father. He had setup everything perfectly. He had created him two rivals, Himiko and the Green Valley Clan, to see how Shigaraki would handle an enemy that he couldn't attack head on.
Oh, of course! Of course his master wouldn't just put him aside! Of course there would be tests. It was a quest like in any game worth its salt, and an hard one too.
He grinned. Now he knew what he was supposed to do.
-x-
All for One suddenly stiffened, and Garaki looked at him while replacing the respirator with a new, slimmer model. "What is it, sir?"
"I don't know Garaki. I just had the feeling someone thought something incredibly dumb that will have repercussions on my plans."
"That's an odd feeling to have sir."
"Really? I have it all the time. Like when you said you needed to buy Johnny shoes and decided to bring him to the shop to try them on."
"He needed them to be of the right size or they were going to be uncomfortable!"
"He is a goddamn Noumu, he is always uncomfortable!"
"Please sir, don't talk about Johnny like that, he is very sensible about it."
All for One sighed. Indeed, he had that feeling far too often.
-x-
Finally, dinner was over. Izuku sighed in relief. He had managed to not make an ass of himself, had made it past all the servings, was now happy and really, really hoped they could go after the cake.
Except they couldn't, because his father and the rest of the family just stood back up and headed almost as one to a different room, and Izuku realized that now was the time for the other thing they were planning.
The socializing post-dinner.
He felt the need to bash his head against the wall, but instead just sighed and walked with them to a room that was decorated richly – like the rest of the house – and contained a series of armchairs and a large sofa. Izuku sat on the closest one, and then looked to his right to find, to his surprise, David Shield on the closest armchair on his side.
"Oh, uhm, if it's taken…"
"No, no. Sit down Izuku. I figure we should talk a bit."
Izuku looked around. Himiko was trying to look behind Yuyu's shoulder to her phone, something that was failing rather spectacularly since the redhead was pushing her away gently but firmly, and his dad was busy discussing Yakuza stuff with his aunt and Japanese cousins. "I guess?" He asked, unsure.
"Mh. So, tell me, what's your impression on the family?"
"It's very… chaotic."
David chuckled, "It is. You know, at times I have considered dropping out of it."
"Why didn't you?"
"Well, there are a lot of advantages. Namely, I can use their funds for I-Island, if I can explain why that favors us too. It still has to pass through donations from other sources, and I don't really get to choose how the money is used, but eh, still better than nothing. You know, All Might would probably cry about it, but most of his gear is made with laundered Yakuza money." He sighed, "Though his reaction really would be…"
"Bulking up and shouting 'Yakuza?! Where?!" Izuku finished, then covered his mouth.
"That's… True, but only a few people know about it. How did you?"
"Uhm… I know someone close with All Might, and he told me that happened." Izuku bullshitted while kicking himself in the back. The biggest secret he knew and he went and let it slip. Very promising for his future as a One for All holder.
"I see." David nodded, "Makes sense. Must be a close friend of his. Anyway, yes, All Might is quite scared of the Yakuza."
"Why?"
"No idea. Back when I worked with him in Cali he wasn't, but then a few years after he travelled back to Japan he called me and told me, and I quote, that he had just had the hardest fight of his life and was not touching the Yakuza with a ten feet pole ever again if there was the slightest change that person was around."
"Who-Who did he fight?!"
"I have no idea, but they must have been quite the fierce opponent. I wonder too sometimes."
-x-
"Don't stop! Believing!" Inko shouted, more than sang, into the microphone of the karaoke machine, while her best friend and her old teammate cheered her one.
"All! Might! Crusher! All! Might! Crusher!" The two shouted, and she grinned at her old nickname.
How silly of them, it had been only one fight, and All Might wasn't prepared. He probably didn't even remember it.
-x-
"Wow, they must have been a monster." Izuku blurted out. Nene snorted from her chair, but when Izuku looked at her she just winked at him. Weird.
"Yeah, they must have been really strong. I tried to fish for details but they either don't know or won't tell me. Anyway, this isn't what I wanted to talk about, no offense." He raised his eyes and locked them with Izuku, lowering his voice, "I would like for you to marry Melissa."
Izuku went bright red, "I-I can't, I mean, I-I have Himiko already…"
"I know the truth about your relationship." He stated bluntly, still whispering, "Only Maguma and Isana don't within the inner circle."
Izuku, in a panic looked around, but between Shindo and Konako having an argument, Yuyu struggling with Himiko's attempts to spy her phone out of – he assumed – sheer curiosity, and Maguma and Isana talking with Hisashi without holding back, no one else could listen to their conversation. "Wh-What?"
"The deal with All for One, I know all about it. It was smart. Isana and Maguma would have probably already started a turf war without it, and if they didn't now they would in a few months."
"B-But then why…"
"Because I care more about Melissa." He replied calmly, "I want you to marry her because she is a good girl that deserves the best in life. This life is hard, but it's full of advantages. She wants to build Support Items for Heroes, and do so on I-Island. And to do that, strong backing would help a long way. She would have mine, but with the head of the Clan as her husband? It would be a done deal. It would guarantee her she can do whatever she wants with her life. And you don't seem a bad kid, to be honest."
"I…" Izuku didn't know how to say he didn't want to be head of the Clan. It was the obvious answer, but he couldn't say it because the moment he did, it would be as good as destroying the alliance that had started it all. He would never see again Himiko and Masutaro probably, and his whole family would be in danger. "I can't. I made a promise."
David Shield looked at him for a moment, then nodded, "Very well. I won't insist."
"Does that mean you don't want her to marry me anymore?"
"Ah!" He barked, "Oh no, I'm still going to try. I just thought being honest about it would work better." He winked, "I guess we will have to see how your relation with Himiko goes."
Izuku didn't know what to say.
He really wished Masutaro was here. He would know what to do, thanks to his apparent expertise in relations.
-x-
Masutaro had no idea what to do.
He could just stare dumbfounded as Dabi and a girl he didn't know at all danced – if you could call dancing the shuffling of feet they were using, their hands gripped to the handlebars behind them – moving quickly and steadily to hit on time each of the arrows.
Finally, they both hit the last note, and the girl cheered while Dabi slumped on the handlebar. The difference between the two was just ten points, but ten points in favor of the girl.
"Alright, two on two!" A guy next to Mustard shouted, "It's the final match that will decide the victor!"
"Dabi…"
"Who wants to see who the winner will be?!"
"Dabi."
"Who wants to…"
"DABI!" Mustard shouted loudly, over the crowd. Everyone turned to him and he suddenly felt really, really out of his depths, "Ahem, Tomu- I mean, we should go."
Everyone froze, but it was the pink girl next to him that jumped up first. "What?! Noooo! We were this close to nominating the DDR DDestroyeR!"
"The what now?" Mustard asked.
Dabi coughed, "Nevermind. Here, this is my phone number, if you come around Kamino again, give me a call." He handed her a quickly scribbled piece of paper.
"Sure thing, Dabi." She winked, handing the paper to one of her friends to not ruin it with sweat, "We can settle this anytime."
"Don't get mad when you lose." He replied back, and the two criminals left a very disappointed crowd behind. Dabi waited until they were out of earshot, then leaned toward Mustard, "By the way, if anyone finds out..."
"I'm dead, sure, whatever. I won't shame you for your hobbies." He replied, "Let's just leave before Tomura actually murders someone."
"Sure."
Mustard shook his head. The head of their group was missing half his face, his son was a manchild and his daughter an adopted serial killer. His new dad was a failed magician that wouldn't know how to drive safely if someone bashed him in the head with a book on driving codes, and his other colleague was apparently a DDR fanatic.
He took a long breath. At least he had met Izukun. The guy was a good friend.
-x-
Izuku leaned back. It was getting quite late, to be honest, and he was starting to get tired. Suddenly, Yuyu, that had been silent all night long, grinned and pressed rather fiercely a single button.
"Aaaand, sent!" She sighed in relief, "And it's only 11 PM, I was worried I wouldn't make it in time for a second. So, uh…" She looked around. Everyone in the room was rather surprised, but Izuku and Himiko were stunned, "Uh, hi. Who are you two again?"
Shindo and Konako both slammed their hand on their face at the same time, and Maguma just stared at her like he was rethinking everything about his idea of having a daughter to begin with. Yuyu blinked, then Himiko coughed. "Alright, my name is Himiko Shigaraki, and that's Izuku." She clarified, "We already kind of introduced ourselves."
"Sorry, I wasn't listening. I'm usually a lot more serious, but I tend to space out when I'm… Nevermind that. Nice to meet you, Himiko. And you are Izuku?" She asked, looking at him.
"I- Yes!"
"Nice to meet you too. Uhm…" She looked at him for a moment, then back to Himiko. "You two are in a relation right?"
Izuku and Himiko both looked at each other and then nodded stiffly, which made Yuyu smirk. "Ah, nice."
"I-I-I also th-think it's n-n-nice…" The girl with white hair to her left stammered awkwardly, making Yuyu turn around in surprise.
"How long have you been there?!"
"S-S-Since the be-beginning." She gulped, "I'm Ha-Hana Shindo, nice to m-meet you."
"Oh, my new cousin! Nice to meet you too!" Yuyu grabbed her hand and shook it so fiercely Izuku was surprised Hana still had a hand attached to her arm, before turning to look at everyone else, "I'm sorry for tonight. I was really really busy with something and-" She paused for a moment when her telephone dinged and pulled it out, staring at the screen, "Wops, revi- I mean, a mail, one sec… Oh my god, YaPeachyMoMo, I can't believe she already finished it…" She nodded, and put the phone away, "I'll answer later. Anyway, yeah, sorry for earlier, I really needed to finish a thing. But now I'm here and we can know each other more."
Hisashi coughed, "Actually, the night is over."
"Wh-What?"
"Yes." Nene nodded slowly, "We were just saying that we should all go home, it's rather late and tomorrow is a Monday."
Yuyu stared at her, slowly turned to her father, and then deflated, "Ugh, dammit. I told you to not organize the dinner on a Sunday."
"I did say I wasn't the one deciding." Maguma scoffed, "But don't worry, I hear Izuku is joining UA, so you will have time to know each other."
"Oh my." She smiled to Izuku and showed a thumb up, "Nice choice, cous. Far better than Ketsubutsu." She smirked at Shindo.
"Want to say that again?"
"Far better than Ketsubutsu." She replied, and Konako snorted, while Shindo stood up.
"Dad, can we go?"
"Sure." Isana followed his son's example, standing up and briefly exchanging a few words with Hisashi, before turning to Izuku. "It was nice to meet you, dear cousin. I hope we can work together well in the future."
Izuku nodded stiffly and shook the man's hand. Shindo grabbed said hand the moment it got free and shook it with a strong grip, "Bye man. If you are joining UA it means we might be rivals eventually, but let's do our best, alright?"
Izuku nodded as well, unsure of what that meant, and turned to Hana, who grabbed his hand with both of hers and started to shake it up and down, "B-Bye and th-th-thank you!" She said, before running off after her father. The man with a mutant bear Quirk that acted as their bodyguard just nodded to the others, bowed to Hisashi and followed them.
The second to leave was Maguma, with Konako giving Izuku a pat on his shoulder, the man himself trying again to choke his father and then Izuku, and finally Yuyu saluting them both.
"So, you are both aiming for UA? Well, I'm rooting for you." She winked to Himiko, "I really hope to see you both pass."
And with that, she followed her family and bodyguard.
David and Melissa Shield, on the other hand, followed Izuku, Hisashi and Himiko in the elevator, bodyguards in tow. Before they left, Nene walked up to Izuku and looked at him in the eyes. "You have a lot of responsibilities ahead, kid. Don't fuck it up."
"I-I won't!"
"And stop stuttering, or I will make you."
Izuku nodded quickly, worried she actually might try, and followed his father and his friend. He noticed Himiko seemed somewhat tired, a sentiment he shared all things considered. It was pretty late and they had eaten a lot, before spending a long time in a strongly heated room with little to talk about. He leaned closer, "I'm sorry about tonight."
"It's… fine. A bit boring maybe, but fine." She replied, and he sighed in relief, before she hissed, "I don't like her though." She pointed at Melissa, who clearly had heard nothing as she waved at them from the other side of the elevator. The one that looked like he had heard was David Shield, judging by the glance he threw at Izuku.
Luckily, the elevator stopped as they reached the hall and they walked out, with Izuku sighing in relief as he could finally breath a somewhat fresher air in the night of July. David just shook Hisashi and his hand. Then Melissa walked up to them.
"I'm sorry we didn't get to talk much tonight. I'm sure we can get to know each other better some other time, maybe at an event that is less… personal." She shrugged, then nodded, "Oh, right! Why don't you come to the I-Island Expo next year!"
David coughed, "I'm not sure it's a good idea…"
"What?! Come on dad, it would be a good chance to know Himiko and Izuku better, right?!"
The man frowned, then sighed, "Fine, I will send them tickets. Is that alright with you Hisashi?"
"I guess. It's a good chance for them to go on a vacation together, I suppose. I will talk about it with Himiko's father."
"Excellent!" Melissa smiled, "Alright then, see you both. Bye!"
"Uh, Mister Shield, actually, can I ask you something in private?"
David looked at Hisashi, who nodded and took a few steps to the side, while Himiko raised an eyebrow but decided to walk next to the man. "What is it?" David asked.
"I wanted to know a thing. So uhm, you never told All Might that you are…"
"Of course not. He would never let it slide. Why? Thinking of telling someone?" He asked.
"Yes."
"Don't." David said with a hard look on his face that made Izuku surprised.
"B-But shouldn't I be honest?"
"Are you going to tell UA?"
Izuku looked down. He wasn't, was he? He had been trying to tell All Might, but even if it somehow went well they would have still kept it under wraps. "No." He admitted.
"And that's because you know your life would be over. You'd be marked as a criminal – even if not a Villain necessarily – and you'd be forever barred from any sort of job that isn't this one." He waved at the building, but it was clear what he meant. "Telling someone is basically the same risk. Even if you trust them, even if you love them ,it just takes one fight to make the best of friends become bitter enemies. So, if you are asking for advice in that sense, no. Unless they are criminals themselves, never try to."
"So I can tell criminals?"
"Well, it will certainly save your skin in some situations. Criminals never rat out each other without a gain, and trust me, they have a lot more to lose than to win from ratting us out." He sighed, "I really wish I could tell All Might, but I care too much about our friendship, so I decided to keep it a secret."
Izuku nodded. "Mister Shield?"
"Yes?"
"Does One for All mean anything to you?"
"Isn't that part of the Three Musketeers theme?" He frowned, "Or did you mean All for One?"
Izuku looked at him, his expression of genuine confusion, and realized he really didn't know. "Sorry, it's nothing important." He answered. David frowned but just waited a moment and, once it was clear there was going to be no further question, extended his hand for Izuku to shook.
Soon after, Izuku waved at the two as Melissa and her father entered the car, with Pankration sitting behind the wheel, and a few moments later Kuroudo arrived with theirs. Hisashi gave a tired sigh as he entered the spacious luxury car, followed by the two teens.
"So, nice family, right?"
Izuku hummed. In truth, he didn't really know what to think of it. Everyone was a bit stilted when talking with him, like they didn't know what to say. And while for some of them it was understandable, like with Hana and her actually beating him at shyness, Izuku couldn't help but think the real reason was that he was supposed to be their future boss.
And yeah, that was the real can of worm of the night, right? He had basically agreed in front of everyone to be the future leader of the Green Valley Clan. There wasn't much of a choice either, but what could he say? 'No I don't plan to, I'm just doing it to avoid a gang conflict?'
"I don't know dad. It was a bit much all at once, and…" He paused when he felt something heavy on his shoulder and slowly turned around to see Himiko had fallen asleep on it. He turned bright red and looked at his father. "Dad." He whispered.
"Awww, that's adorable." The man whispered back.
"Help!"
He grinned and pulled out his phone. "Sure son." There was a click and a flash of light.
-x-
Inko, more than a bit drunk as she entered in her house after saying goodbye to the girls, looked at the phone, where a new message from Hisashi had arrived. She opened the picture and immediately squealed in delight.
They were so cute!
-x-
All for One studied the picture with intent. What was Hisashi saying by sending that image of Himiko sleeping on Izuku's shoulder. That the two had a bond of trust? That was obvious, his plan had guaranteed that they would be at the very least friends by now.
He frowned. 'Or maybe he is bragging that his plan is working too?'
Now, All for One was a smart man, but he never claimed to not be prideful. Tomura had learned from him after all. Hisashi's impromptu request for Himiko to go on a family visit had been the perfect chance for him to organize the first date of her daughter and his future husband, but now he had to make sure it was perfect. He snapped a finger, and when no one arrived frowned and just waved his hand. A moment later, a gagging Dabi fell on the floor in front of him. "Why do you use this Quirk of all things?" He coughed, "Can't you just call."
"I did."
"Did you snap a finger?"
"Yes."
"I was on the other side of this building, how was I supposed to hear that?!"
All for One shrugged. Maybe he had a point, but he quickly dismissed it with a wave of his hand, "I didn't call you for that."
"Then for what?"
"Tomorrow I want you to take Izuku aside and make sure he is going to do a good job in his planned date with Himiko."
"What, like, scare him into being a gentleman?" Dabi asked.
All for One thought. He couldn't say he was a great expert in dating, given that his last experience had been when Quirks were still so rare writing it on a dating app had most people swipe left, but he had some ideas. "For one, make sure he has a condom."
"Sir, it's a first date."
"And?"
"… Nevermind. I'll do my best."
"Make sure to." He nodded. Good, he was going to ensure that the relationship of the two progressed as he had planned.
-x-
"What was it?" Compress asked, his voice more than a little tipsy.
"I'm on date planning duty." Dabi sighed.
"My deepest condolences. Kurogiri, a drink on me for the man." The masked man said, pointing to the shadow Noumu behind the counter.
Said Noumu stared at him, "With all due respect, Mister Compress, you are aware you don't actually pay for the drinks in here as an employee."
"On me I said."
"At once sir." The fog nodded and turned to Dabi.
"Yes, something heavy." He replied, "This is gonna be another headache. What am I supposed to tell the kid?"
"I guess some tips on how to date." Compress replied, "You had dates in the past, right?"
Dabi stared at him, pointing at his face, "Oh yeah, you catch girls all the time with the 'burnt corpse that had sex with a stapler' look."
"Weren't the piercings your idea?"
"Nah, the quack doctor I had to pay to get the job done said it was either adding the piercings to make it look less unnatural or looking like an actual zombie." He grimaced, "You know, it looks like I cry blood sometimes. It comes from the cheek, but you couldn't tell at a glance."
"That's pretty metal."
"I know right? Looks super cool. Wish I knew how to do it on command."
Kurogiri coughed and presented him with a cocktail that was noticeably on fire. The man laughed and waited for it to turn off before downing. "Uh, man, this hits like a truck. Thanks."
"Don't mention it." Compress said.
Dabi stared at him, and when nothing happened he sighed, "You just winked under the mask."
"I just winked under the mask. Sometimes I just forget it's there."
Dabi shook his head. "Well, thanks for everything, but I'll go rest now. I got a fun night and tomorrow have a shit day of giving relationship advice."
"Eh, you'll do fine. Can't be worse then the date she had today."
Dabi frowned, "Was that bad?"
"Well, she said, and I quote 'I really hope I never see his family again'."
"Ouch. That bad?"
"Something about a few girls clearly trying to steal Izuku from her." Compress replied, and Dabi paused.
"So she is already at that stage?"
"With Himiko it's hard to tell, but I don't think so. I think she is simply feeling pressured. The boy is her friend, but she knows that friendship is built on this fake relationship they have to keep up. So my guess is that she isn't lashing out because she sees him in a romantic fashion, but rather because she is afraid she will lose a friend if the relationship sinks."
Dabi blinked, "That was… very good."
"Thank you. I pride myself of being a good cold reader, among many other skills."
"Like what?"
Compress flaunted his hat, and then without hesitation pulled out a rabbit.
A very dead rabbit.
"How long was that in there?"
"… You know, I knew I was forgetting something the last month or so." He commented, quickly recompressing the poor bunny, "Goodbye, Victor, may you jump in heaven. Kurogiri, I will need a new rabbit."
"Of course." The shadow being nodded, and Dabi sighed.
Every day that passed, he was more and more convinced he hadn't joined a Villain gang, but a goddamn circus.
-x-
Izuku fell on his bed, thinking about the night. He had a lot of relatives, didn't he. Distant, sure, but a lot of them.
Glad he didn't have to interact with them too much, though. Yuyu seemed fine, and he wouldn't mind running into her at UA. She was completely uninterested in him either way, so there was likely no pressure on her to get with him besides Maguma just trying for her.
And it wasn't like the other two were at UA, right?
-x-
Powerloader cursed as he was stopped from entering his bed by his phone ringing so late into the night. He grabbed it and without even looking at the number opened it.
"Who the fuck calls at midnight?!"
"Hello to you too, Majima."
He almost dropped the phone, "D-David Shield?"
"In person."
"I'm so sorry sir, I…"
"Don't mention it Majima. I just wanted to make a deal. See, I was thinking that it would be interesting for the UA support course to show off some of their gear at the I-Island Expo, next year, don't you think?"
Powerloader's jaw dropped. The idea was frankly amazing. Nedzu would probably devour a full form of cheese for the surprise. "O-Of course, great! But what did you want to ask in exchange?"
"Well, I was thinking that my daughter could learn a lot from the Support Course…"
Majima nodded. Of course that was it, "Well, we would gladly welcome her here, though she still has to pass the exam…"
"I'm aware, I'm not asking for that." He said, "I was just thinking that Melissa will need a place to stay while she is in Japan. I'd ask All Might, but he is afraid he is too busy to take care of her. So I was wondering if I can count on the school to find her someone that can take care of her while she is here."
Power Loader nodded. That was honestly almost not a favor, but it was true that it still was one. Going through the exchange students program only allowed one or two people per year to join UA, but having a residence in Japan allowed to use the regular process. "I'll make sure to."
"Good. Please call back when you have found an arrangement."
Power Loader saluted him quickly and immediately pulled out his phone again.
"Shota? Yes, it's Majima. Shut the fuck up, I don't care what time it is, listen, do you still live in that apartment with two bedrooms and too many cats?" He listened to the extremely annoyed but positive reply, "Nice. Listen here…"
The deep groan on the other end of the line didn't deter the pro Hero.
He was going to find a house for Melissa Shield or die trying.
-x-
"The Hero course is hopeless, and the Support course requires too much technical knowhow for you to join in the months. So, Hana, answer me." Isana pulled out two documents, "Business or General?"
Hana whimpered, "C-Can't I go to Ketsubutsu with Yo?"
"No. Now choose."
Hana sighed, and with trembling hands she chose one of the documents.
-x-
"Yeah, good thing I won't have to meet them again any time soon." Izuku said, before falling asleep.
Alas, Izuku, this fic is often disappointing. Especially for you.
(xx)
You know, Izuku is really the universe's punching bag in this. Guess that's the curse of the protagonist.
Next week, Izuku and Himiko's first date. Place your bets on the results.