A/N: Hi everyone! Guess who's back and didn't wimp out on writing my first true multi-chapter fic?

Seriously though, thank you guys for your support! I honestly didn't expect to get much of a response when I first decided to share this story, but you guys sure proved me wrong! It really makes me happy to see that there are those interested to see where this goes, so I hope that you all will also enjoy this installment as well!

For brevity's sake, I will be replying to your review in the end note, so I look forward to seeing you there!

Onward!

Rated T: for violence and language (a la Bakugou)

Pairings: None, but plenty of fluff.

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own My Hero Academia, just my own words.

All in all, it had taken Izuku two hours, by his approximation, to make it to the next village over. The sun had risen to its peak height in the sky, sending its golden rays down to saturate the forested landscape with its light.

Upon emerging from the well-worn trail that connected the Midoriya's isolated cottage to the rural village of Lytton, Izuku quickly found himself dangling in the air. He flailed his legs and cried out in surprise, feeling suddenly like one of the baby rabbits he had freed from rope traps in the past. He was all for fair game, people needed to eat after all, but to leave a baby animal to that fate just seemed too…cruel for him to leave alone.

Either way, he quickly realized the source of his predicament when a bell-like laugh echoed ahead of him and he suddenly floated forward a few feet to lock eyes with the chocolate irises of one Ochako Uraraka.

"Oh my god Uraraka, really?" Izuku blurted, his freckled nose crinkled in displeasure.

To his chagrin, she only continued to giggle, her staff clutched in one hand and the ruby red orb implanted in its center swirled with energy. The pink hood covering her chestnut locks protected her face and eyes from the unrelenting brightness of the midday sun, as well as matched the natural rosy hue of her cheeks.

Unlike Izuku, who boasted a healthy tan from his many days spent foraging in the woods and travelling the area, Uraraka's skin was more akin to a porcelain doll. This was due mainly to her more stationary lifestyle and work in her family's shop, which required her to spend most of the time indoors, creating magical brews or enchanting various objects. Her love for sweets also played a big role, being that she also liked to spend much of her free time either baking on her own, or volunteering to help out the baker's son, Satou.

At that, Izuku noticed that the girl had a paper bag of cookies clutched in her unoccupied hand, leaving her to look even more mischievous, if not a bit awkward.

"Why of course Deku-kun! How else would I greet one my absolute best friends?" Uraraka teases, reaching up to poke at his cheek with her staff and getting a scowl for her efforts.

"By greeting me normally and letting me down?" Izuku wheedled, half-hopeful and half-resigned to his fate, intimately familiar with her relentless good-natured teasing.

"Pfft- and how long have you known me for?" Uraraka laughed. "Besides, you're absolutely adorable when you're angry!"

"W-what? No, no I'm not-" Izuku protested, his voice cracking. The teen feels his cheeks flush with mortification.

"Aww—don't be like that Deku-kun! Look at you, with your fluffy green hair and cute widdle freckled cheeks!" Uraraka coos, her smile growing devious at his indignant squeak and deepening blush, face beginning to resemble a strawberry.

Izuku could feel the heat rising in his cheeks and did his best to cool it down, picturing the snow at winter time and frigid rivers and Uraraka knows that he's easily flustered by compliments damnit she's known him since they were kids—

Izuku is saved from imploding with embarrassment by the intervention of the final member of their trio cutting in in a flash of silver and a commanding voice.

"Uraraka! Put Midoriya down immediately! You know that it's improper to make a spectacle in the entrance of town!" Tenya Iida proclaims, each sentence punctuated with a myriad of hand gestures, most of which are directed up at the floating Izuku.

From the green-haired teen's vantage point, hovering slightly above the two, he could make out that the young knight-in-training hadn't worn his full uniform today, instead wearing the protective metal armor for his arms, legs, and torso.

Guess that means he's off-duty today…

"Aw—Iida! But it's tradition! And he hasn't visited us recently!" She looks over at Izuku pointedly with that statement, prompting a sheepish smile from the green-haired teen. "And why are you still calling me Uraraka? I've told you a million times, Ochako is fine! We're friends, you don't have to be formal." She finishes, her cheeks puffed out.

Iida pauses at her statement, one hand still raised in a chopping motion and the sheen of his glasses dazzling. Izuku couldn't help but think that in that moment, Iida looked vaguely like a statue—a very shiny statue, but a statue nonetheless. He could practically hear the gears spinning in his friends head, calculating and computing the best response to Uraraka's blatant indignation over his innate and unwavering propriety and politeness.

Iida jolted out of his inert state rather quickly, hands returning to his sides and back bending in a nearly 90 degree bow.

"I apologize Uraraka-san. It seems to be a habit I am unable to break." Iida declares humbly, looking absolutely repentant for his "blunder."

"Aaaaaa- Iida, Iida no! It's fine! You don't have to apologize!" Uraraka began panicking, her angry act immediately dropping away in favor of reassuring the ever-earnest Iida.

Izuku found himself laughing at the two's antics, hand flying to cover his mouth in an attempt to stifle his chuckles. He couldn't help but feel his chest grow warm, glad for the consistency and stability he could always find in his friends. Uraraka, ever-teasing, bubbly and determined. And Iida—forever earnest, polite, and blunt. Both of them were always reliable, ready to lend a hand at a moment's notice and always happy to see Izuku, even with his visits becoming fewer and more far between as the years went on due to his travelling.

Even with his attempts to quiet himself, Izuku quickly became the center of attention anew, both of his friends turning from their good-natured banter to look up at the teen floating above them.

"Oh my gosh- I'm so sorry Deku-kun! I totally forgot you were still up there!" Uraraka exclaims, cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

Completing forgoing her earlier stubbornness on the issue, Uraraka carefully lowered the freckled boy to the ground and disengaged her spell, the swirling light in her staff's orb fading and turning the stone back to its natural garnet shade.

Upon feeling his feet touch down onto the dirt path, Izuku stretched and took a few test steps to reorient himself. While floating in and of itself wasn't uncomfortable, it did leave him with the slightest feeling of dizziness and wobbliness in his limbs if prolonged. He supposed it had to do with the fact that he was one of the few who hadn't been born with even a shred of magic, which left him especially sensitive to it. Since most people had at least trace amounts of magic, that bit of magic could counteract other magic with varying degrees of success. It was something like oil and water, where the different powers touched there's a resistance—and the flip side was also possible, with extremely similar types of magic being drawn to others of the same type. In fact, if one's magic was identical to another's, then, theoretically, the connection between the two individuals should be especially strong.

Of course, Izuku amended, that wasn't something that had happened before.

Either way, his lack of magic was something that got him into trouble more often than not, since it left him virtually powerless and vulnerable.

Izuku found himself glancing to his left, Iida's familiar frame filling his vision and towering over the smaller teen.

Ironically, it was this vulnerability that led to his friendship with Iida in the first place.

Izuku had been fourteen at the time, just old enough to be allowed to make his first trip alone to the neighboring village to trade. The Uraraka's had requested that the Midoriya's craft a specific potion made primarily of rosemary, which not only alleviated muscle pain, but also boosted an individual's overall immune system. Their idea was to try enchanting the potion to boost its effects, making a sort of "super medicine" that could accelerate healing for use in dire situations.

Izuku and his mother had agreed, deciding that should the idea be a success, the two families would split any and all proceeds. Izuku, however, had only really been interested in the potential applications of the "super" potion, rattling off various scenarios where such a medicine would be beneficial and how they could potentially make more specific versions to treat assorted ailments. His mother had patiently listened with half an ear as he rambled, smiling appeasingly while brewing the potion and gently snapping him out of his idea-induced haze when it was finished.

The young teen had then been sent off with a satchel filled with vials and a chunk of bread and an apple with instructions to return by nightfall.

The exchange itself with the Uraraka household was very pleasant, with Ochako's friendly chatter and her mother's good-natured coddling filling the time while the head of the household, her father, had poured over the contents of the vials and theorized over the most effective enchantments for the medicine. Izuku weighed in when he could, but kept a respectful distance considering his youth and respect for the man.

Overall, the potion was modified and enchanted courtesy of (arguably the strongest witch of the family) Ochako herself and was deemed a success. The Uraraka's handed over the payment for the potion, as well as a vial of the concoction for Izuku to take home to his mother and sent the boy on his way, with a reminder to "come visit again soon!"

The entire experience had given Izuku a small skip in his step. His first trading venture had been successful and he had helped contribute to something that could potentially help a lot of people!

He couldn't have wiped the small smile off his face if he wanted to.

But, as all good things do, that too quickly came to an end.

In retrospect, Izuku really should've known that the sudden crack of a branch breaking had signaled trouble. But his youth and inexperience dulled his instincts and before he knew it, the freckle-faced boy found himself in a chokehold with a dagger level to his chest.

"Scream boy, I dare you. I've killed for less." A rough voiced hissed in Izuku's ear, putrid breath billowing over his face and causing the fourteen-year-old to wrinkle his nose in disgust.

Izuku attempted to grab at the arms constricting his throat, legs kicking uselessly in the air. He could feel more so than see that his assailant was much bigger than him, easily at least two heads taller than the scrawny teen if his distance from the ground was any indication. The beefy arms pinning him in place gave the boy the impression that one, this man was well-built and two, the wicked looking dagger in his peripherals would not miss if push came to shove.

A garbled whimper escaped the teen's throat against his wishes, but Izuku wouldn't lie to himself and say he wasn't scared in this situation.

He was utterly terrified.

"I see we understand each other then," the brute continued, his grip around the green-haired teen's throat tightening. "Now, how's about you let me take that satchel of yours and we call it square. No need to make this a hassle now, right?"

Frustrated tears had already began to well up in Izuku's eyes, his sense of self-preservation screaming at him to give up the bag without a fight, but his other half, the much bigger one roaring like hell he was giving up the hard-earned money and medicine his mother was counting on!

Mind made up and quickly becoming desperate as spots edged at his vision, Izuku put all he had into the kick to his captor's kneecap.

Izuku swore he heard a crack when the hit connected, the thief's grip becoming lax as he roared in agony and giving the teen the opportunity to slip free of the chokehold and snatch up the dropped dagger.

Izuku clutched the stolen dagger in a white-knuckled grip, normally tan skin pale in fright, but standing firm a few yards away from the man cursing colorfully while grabbing at his smarting knee.

"You little shit—" The thief started, quickly rising to his full height and glaring down at the trembling form of the boy before him.

Izuku scanned the man, taking in the black mask covering the bottom half of his face, as well as the dark attire and thick cloak. The teen swallowed past the lump in his throat and pointed the dagger at the bandit warily.

"Y-you're in a protected province, you shouldn't be here. The l-longer you stay here, t-the more l-likely that you'll be caught. I-I-I'm not afraid of you a-and," Izuku sucked in a quick breath through his teeth when his eyes met the fiery coals glaring out at him from a shadow-darkened face. "You're not getting anything from me."

"Huh, is that so kid?" The bandit cocked a brow and then eyed the shaking dagger aimed at him. "And who says you've got the guts stop me?"

Izuku opened his mouth to answer, but before he could a flash of silver and a booming voice interrupted him.

"HE DOESN'T NEED TO, VILE VILLAIN! FOR I, TENYA IIDA, WILL STRIKE YOU DOWN!"

That was all the warning either got before the blur leapt at the bandit and a sword came down like a sledgehammer.

Izuku heard the thief let out an expletive as he messily dodged the ambush, the sword managing to score a shallow cut across the chest as the man stumbled back in surprise.

The dust kicked up from the sudden attack settled and allowed Izuku a good look at the imposing figure poised protectively in front of the teen. His armor gleamed gold in the last few rays of sunlight peeking over the tree tops, as evening rushed to take the place of day. The knight's face was obscured by his helmet, the visor down and only allowing a pair of flinty eyes to glare out from behind the cover of glasses.

"A knight, huh?" The bandit scoffed. "And what are you doing so far away from the capitol?"

Izuku watched the armored form straighten, the sheen of his glasses shielding his eyes from sight.

"I owe you no explanation, villain. Now, if you would go ahead and surrender, this whole matter can be resolved quickly and cleanly." 'Iida' proclaimed, if Izuku remembered correctly.

"Me? Surrender? You must be out of your goddamned mind!" The bandit growled, reaching behind him to draw a sword from the sheath hidden within the folds of his cloak.

Izuku's mouth went dry.

Even if I had attempted to take him on, he still would've had the upper hand. The teen realized shakily, trembling anew around the dagger clutched between both hands. If not for this Iida character, I could have easily become another dead body in a ditch.

I was stupid for not running away when I had the chance.

Izuku bit his lip, teeth tearing at the tender flesh and bringing him back to the present.

If nothing else, the least he could do what try not to be a deadweight in this situation. He was no damsel in distress! Even without formal training, there had to be something he could do!

"It seems that this matter won't be resolved diplomatically then." Iida observed, shifting his stance and keeping a wary eye on the villain before him. He turned his gaze to Izuku, who jumped at the sudden attention.

"I must ask you to stay behind me civilian. I will protect you from—"

Izuku's eyes widened as the bandit took advantage of the knight's lapse in attention to leap at his back, sword raised.

"SIR IIDA, LOOK OUT!" The teen shouted, dropping the dagger and lunging at the unsuspecting knight to shove him out of the way of the incoming blow.

The impact sent the two skidding across the ground, Izuku letting out a muffled yelp of pain as the bandit scored a lucky hit to his leg. The tumble left the freckled teen sprawled across the knight, his metal breastplate digging painfully into the smaller's stomach.

"O-oh gosh, I'm so sorry!" Izuku stammered red-faced, leaping off the taller male and extending a gloved hand to help him up. "Are you okay?"

Iida pushed himself up on his elbows and grasped the offered hand.

"I am fine. Thank you for your quick reaction, I was foolish to turn my eyes away from the enemy like that." Iida replied, voice stiff but contrite.

"Aah- of course! No need to thank me!" Izuku exclaimed surprised. "But shouldn't we-"

Izuku cut himself off, gazing over the other male's shoulder and finding the bandit nowhere in sight, the only indication of his presence being kicked up dirt from his assault and the dagger left abandoned in the grassy clearing.

Iida turned to see what the teen was looking at as well and let out a curse.

"That coward!" Iida boomed, obviously irritated with himself for letting the villain get away.

"Well, to be fair, we couldn't exactly expect him to stick around and wait to be arrested." Izuku offered hesitantly, trying to make the knight feel better.

"While I appreciate the effort, please do not make excuses for my blunder. Today was not nearly my best showing." Iida sighed, removing his helmet and giving Izuku a small, grateful smile. "I thank you regardless."

Izuku blinked in shock, taking in the young face looking back at him. Dark blue hair, cut neatly framed his face and only highlighted the defined cheekbones. His eyes were dark and intense, but in a way reflecting seriousness rather than any malicious intent.

"You—you're a lot younger than I thought you were!" Izuku blurted, face going red as a tomato when he realized what he said. He looked at the ground longingly, wishing that the earth would suddenly part and swallow him up.

Iida, on his part, only blinked in surprise. Despite his cheeks becoming dusted in a flustered pink, he seemed to take the exclamation in stride.

"Ah, well…I suppose I could give that impression with my helmet on."

Izuku instantly went for damage control.

"W-WAIT NO! It's not a bad thing, honest! It's just really rare for someone to become a knight so young and so I j-just assumed—oh god, I'm not making this better am I?" Izuku groaned, face in his hands and cheeks burning.

Iida coughed.

"Well to be fair, I am just a knight-in-training. I am still studying under my brother and working to live up to the family name." Iida replied, hands raised awkwardly. He seemed torn between trying to comfort the mortified teen and rectifying the situation.

"Wait, wait…Iida…WAIT—DON'T TELL ME YOUR BROTHER IS SIR INGENIUM?!" Izuku shouted, his head jerking up and meeting Iida's startled eyes with his own starry ones.

"He's known as the fastest knight in the kingdom! He's practically a legend!" Izuku gushed, forgetting his previous embarrassment to fanboy over who he saw as one of the nation's heroes.

Iida puffed up like a proud peacock, a broad grin spreading over his face.

"Yes, that's my brother! I've looked up to him ever since I was young, it's an honor to train under him!" The dark-haired teen proclaimed, hands chopping at the air to emphasize his point. "I aim to surpass him one day and take on the Ingenium name!"

"Ah—that's so cool!" Izuku replied, hopping in place with his enthusiasm and immediately wincing in pain, forgetting the shallow wound on his leg in his excitement.

Seeing the smaller teen falter, Iida's eyes zeroed in on the gash, taking in the blood staining the teal fabric a foreboding purple.

"You're injured!" The knight exclaimed, a stern look overtaking his features as he knelt to get a closer look at the cut, large hands delicately moving the torn fabric aside.

"Oh, yeah. That." Izuku said dismissively. "I guess I wasn't careful enough. Hold on, I think I have something for it."

"Have something?" The knight questioned, backing off as Izuku gingerly sat himself down and pulled up his pants leg to get a better look at the wound.

It certainly didn't look nice, the gash jagged from the glancing blow and sluggishly oozing blood, but the trained teen could tell that it wasn't terribly deep.

Opening up his satchel and rummaging through it for a moment, Izuku grabbed a small rag and his water skin, soaking the fabric and then carefully running the rag over the cut. He gritted his teeth at the sensation, but kept at it until the blood had been cleaned from the cut. Setting the rag aside to be thrown away later, he pulled a jar of lavender and rosemary salve from his satchel, alongside a roll of bandages. He ripped off a glove with his teeth and scooped up a small amount from the jar, rubbing it into the gash and then wrapping the bandages around his leg with a deftness that spoke of years of experience.

Flexing a leg experimentally and satisfied with the tightness of the wrapping, Izuku nodded in satisfaction and put away his materials, shoving the soiled rag into an empty side pocket to be disposed of when he returned home.

"So…you're a healer then?"

Izuku jumped when he heard a contemplative voice cut in from behind him, momentarily forgetting the other teen's presence.

"Um, well, of sorts. I've been trained in first aid and have some basic knowledge of herbal medicine, but a full-fledged healer? I don't think so." Izuku chuckled nervously, not used to the scrutiny.

The dark-haired knight stared at him for a moment, weighing his response before opening his mouth.

"Regardless, those are very useful skills to have! You should be proud!" Iida declared, glasses flashing as he rose to his feet.

Izuku flushed at the praise, but nodded with a small smile and stood up as well, facing the young knight.

"Now, it's rather dark and you're injured. Please allow me to escort you home—erm, what was your name?" Iida said, looking abashed.

"O-oh my gosh! I can't believe I forgot to introduce myself!" Izuku screeched, hands flying to cover his face in mortification. "Um, my name is Izuku Midoriya. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Tenya Iida and likewise." Iida extended a hand for a handshake and when Izuku met it, his grip tightened authoritatively and he turned to march down the trail towards the town, dragging the disgruntled teen behind him.

"Now, onward! To your home!"

"B-but Iida! I haven't even told you where I lived!"

It was later that Izuku found out Iida lived in the same town as Uraraka, a chance meeting upon a visit to the market had Izuku and his two friends becoming a trio, Iida fitting himself into the group as the ever-polite, nearly parental authoritative figure to the other two.

While the situation had been less than ideal, Izuku couldn't be happier to have met Iida. He was like a brother figure to him and had also jumped at the chance to teach Izuku hand-to-hand as the years went on, turning the scrawny fourteen-year-old into a toned fifteen-year-old by the time he decided Izuku was capable of defending himself should he not be around. The following year, he taught him the basics of sword-fighting, but there was only so much the younger needed to know since he had no sword, only the dagger he had taken from the bandit encounter and he had made his own, having the blade strengthened and engraved with small runes at the local swordsmith.

From that point on, Izuku kept up his own training regime, working to hone his reflexes through occasional sparring matches with the knight-to-be and keeping active through daily jogs and hauling logs to be chopped for firewood.

"—Deku-kun…de…kun…IZUKU!"

Uraraka's shout broke Izuku from his contemplative daze. His previously glossed over eyes snapping into focus and looking into his friends faces.

"Huh?" The green-haired boy questioned intelligently, glancing between the pouting Uraraka and the just slightly concerned Iida, a crease in his brow.

"You didn't hear a word we said, did you?" Uraraka inquired.

"Um…no?" Izuku squeaked, pulling at his collar nervously.

"You're a terrible liar." Iida deadpanned, sighing.

"We were asking you what you were doing in town," Uraraka explained, beginning to walk down the street towards her family's shop, the two boys trailing behind her.

She perked up suddenly, stopping mid-step and whirling around to face them again, thrusting the paper bag clutched in one hand towards Izuku.

"Oh yeah! I got these for you! Satou and I made a huge batch of cookies yesterday and there were plenty of extras!" She smiled sweetly at the visibly flustered teen, who reached a hand out to accept the gift.

"Thank you Uraraka!"

Grasping the bag in his fist, he smiled back and placed the sweets in his satchel.

"Well, I'm actually travelling at the moment." Izuku answered, falling into pace with his friends as the group continued deeper into the village, waving occasionally to the locals that called out greetings as he passed.

"It wouldn't happen to have to do with the leather travel bag you're carrying would it?" Iida inquired, catching sight of the large bag hanging off his shoulder, swinging behind his smaller satchel and thumping against his hip.

"Actually, yeah! I'm going to the capitol for the Akarui Festival! Mom and I worked on a bunch of potions and medicines to sell while I'm there. Hopefully I'll be able to sell enough to put us on track for next year!" Izuku replied optimistically, fist raised in the air determinedly.

"But Deku-kun…where's your mom?" Uraraka said, a worried look on her face. "Are you going by yourself? Do you remember the way?"

Before Izuku could reply, Iida cut in as well, arm chopping to punctuate his points.

"Not only that! But there are a lot of dangers in the woods! Crime rates has been increasing lately, not to mention that the wildlife has grown more active in the summer months! Are you equipped to take on this task?"

Izuku waved off his friends' worries, the trio coming to a stop right in front of the Uraraka family store, magical wares floating in the glass windows lining the front of the establishment.

"Ah- no guys, it's fine! Mom finally decided that I was experienced enough to let me go on my own. I have a map to help me get there." Izuku assured the two. "And Iida, I have my dagger with me, as well as a few tricks up my sleeve, courtesy of mom. I'll be fine."

Despite his attempts to put the two at ease, Uraraka only worried at her lip, glancing at Iida nervously. On Iida's part, he looked exceptionally grave, eyes serious.

"But Deku-kun…Iida's right. We've even been hearing reports that the League of Villains is active again. Iida's family even got a letter from the castle about their increase in activity." Uraraka ventured, brown eyes bright with worry.

"It is true." Iida agreed solemnly. "Tensei has been stationed at the capitol."

At that Izuku frowned, an uncomfortable pit forming in his gut. It sat there hot and heavy, like a coal in a dying fireplace. Not hot enough to flare up again, but its potential to do so a threat in and of itself.

For the king to ask that the kingdoms finest be gathered was no small matter. Not only were he and the royal guard already protecting the capitol and the surrounding villages, but he generally allowed the other knights in the kingdom free reign to protect areas around their hometown. It was one of the many reasons that King All Might was so popular—this method not only ensured that all provinces were protected, but it also kept families together. The Royal Guard was rather large, yes, but that was due to the citizenry. Most volunteered to join the guard, glad and proud to defend their homeland.

While Izuku was sure that there would always be bad apples in the bunch—greed and thirst for power still ran rampant—however, on the whole, joining up with the Royal Guard was considered an honorable and noble thing to do. Being a knight, whether a part of the royal echelon or not, was a hard life. It allowed chances for fame and glory, yes, but that came with the heavy burden. Should a knight fail, a civilian be killed, a lawbreaker successfully completing their crime, it all fell upon their shoulders.

Not to mention that there was the constant knowledge that each fight may be one's last.

Izuku couldn't say that he envied the life Iida and his family had. While he had often been scolded for his "hero complex," and never leaving well enough alone, he hadn't ever really considered becoming a knight. He had his mother to look after and he couldn't place yet another burden on her, not with the struggles they already faced just to make it year-to-year.

Just doing what he could to help others along the way and the freedom that came with his work as a travelling merchant was enough for him.

"I'm sorry Iida," Izuku started apologetically. "It must be hard to suddenly have your brother summoned like that."

Iida shook his head, face solemn but absolute.

"No, there is no need for an apology Midoriya-san. It's actually a great honor for our family to be recognized by the king like that! Tensei is a splendid knight with a lot of experience, I'm sure he will be fine." Iida paused in his speech to turn a worried frown Izuku's way. "But what I am worried about is you. You may be trained, but there's only so much that can do for you alone against criminals as powerful as the league. Not only are you a civilian, but you're also my friend. It would be both horribly callous and irresponsible of me to not worry for your well-being on this venture."

Izuku opened his mouth to protest—he seriously doubted a group as notorious as the league would bother with a magicless merchant like himself—but Uraraka interrupts hurriedly, shooting Iida a look for his bluntness.

"What Iida means to say is that it's not that we doubt you, Deku-kun, you're amazing! But we fear for you. I know this festival is important and all…but perhaps this isn't the best time. I'm positive the king will sort this issue out soon, but until then, it might be best if you stick around the areas you know." Uraraka finished, a pleading look on her face.

Izuku couldn't help but feel a familiar weight in his chest, happy to see how much his friends cared, but unable to appease them. It was much the same struggle he faced every time he looked at his mother before walking out the door every day, her smile always hesitant and masking her constant fear for his well-being.

The world was dangerous and sending him out into it was scary, but at the same time, necessary. If he didn't attend the festival, there was no way he'd be able to make up the revenue that would be lost as a result. Not to mention, their medicine wouldn't get out to all those that truly needed it. He couldn't sacrifice that solely to look after his own safety. Not only was that selfish in his mind, but he would never be able to swallow the guilt. The endless "what-ifs" would never leave him be and he just—he just can't bring himself to do that, not to his mother and not to all those counting on their medicine.

Pasting a reassuring smile on his face to bury his own nervousness, Izuku looked them both in the eyes.

"I really appreciate that you guys care enough to warn me, but really, I'll be fine. There's literally nothing about me that should attract anyone's attention anyway—I'm just another civilian! I've lived in this kingdom my entire life and not once has anything extraordinary happened to me." Izuku faltered slightly under Iida's raised eyebrow at that, mind flashing to the out-of-the-blue bandit encounter, not to mention all the little magical hijinks he had just happened to get in the middle of by accident. "Anyway, I studied under the best knight I know and I believe he's well-equipped me for any 'old thief that might try anything."

Izuku's smile grew as he watched Iida try and fail to not puff up at the praise, a pleased flush on his cheeks as Uraraka sighed at the two of them, a small grin pulling at her lips.

"And our medicine is going to help a lot of people! You wouldn't take that away from me, would you Uraraka?" Izuku wheedled, sending the girl a pitiful look, green eyes wide and soulful.

At that, the witch threw up her hands, giving up on holding back her fond smile and shooting the teen an exasperated look.

"Really Izuku? Pulling the guilt trip and puppy-dog eyes on me?" Uraraka groaned.

The freckled teen grinned cheekily at her, not gracing her question with a reply. He rocked on his heels expectantly, watching as his two friends exchanged glances before seeming to give up on convincing the boy to look after his own well-being for once, damn you Izuku—

"Fine, fine. But at least let me get something for you." Uraraka groused, turning to march into her family's store, her staff's orb swirling with energy in tandem with her own frustration.

Izuku looked at Iida questioningly, but the latter just shrugged at him, obviously just as confused.

Their shared confusion was short-lived as the brown-haired girl bounced back out of the shop, a purple glass bottle clenched in her fist.

Upon reaching the duo, Uraraka extends the bottle to Izuku, who carefully accepts it, looking it over critically.

The bottle was smooth to the touch, no chips or scratches marring the glass. The purple of the container was too dark to get a good look at the concoction inside, but from the random streaks of light slithering through the solution, Izuku could tell that—whatever it was—was obviously enchanted. The bottle wasn't exceptionally hot nor cold to the touch, which left him especially curious because most magical items had a sort of…potency to them that he, as one particularly sensitive to magic due to his lack thereof, could generally determine based on temperature. Hotter objects were especially powerful and destructive, while colder objects were weaker or more defensive in nature. However, this substance was somewhere in the middle.

Izuku looks up at Uraraka, startled to see her looking much older than he would've thought possible with a solemn look on her face. Her sparkling brown eyes were duller, sunken in slightly and bags prominent. Glancing at Iida, he was struck by just how tired he looked as well. The two seemed resigned and Izuku wondered, suddenly uneasy, just what had the two heard to make them so opposed to his trip?

"Deku-kun, it's important that you don't use that potion unless strictly necessary." Uraraka starts, plowing on just as Izuku opens his mouth. "This is a version of the 'super' healing potion we made three years ago, however, it is a lot more potent and has a heavier healing spell placed on it. I don't have the power to make it a miracle potion nor a cure-all, but between the healing herbs you and your mother chose and my magic, I was able to magnify their effects. Hopefully it should help you on your journey."

She smiles tiredly at him, Iida nodding beside her.

Izuku's eyes fill up with tears and he does nothing to stop them from cascading down his face as he lurches forward to pull the two into a hug, touched by their concern.

"You guys are literally the best friends a guy could ask for," Izuku sniffled, giving a watery smile when the two instantly reciprocated the hug. Uraraka's grip was warm and soft, something like a warm cookie while Iida's was just the slightest bit stiff, but protective and strong. The armored teen easily towered over the other two, which meant he had to bend down awkwardly to fit his arms around them, but he seemed happy to do so, a small smile on his face.

Izuku closed his eyes and stood still, allowing their near-familial affection to wash over him, content to bask in the warm feeling of adoration bubbling up in his chest.

The freckled teen was completely oblivious to the concerned looks exchanged between the two over his shoulder, their arms tightening briefly around the boy and wishing for all the world that no harm befalls their reckless and self-sacrificing friend.

After the trio's tearful embrace, Izuku had tucked the potion into his satchel and bade the two farewell, mentioning that he had to continue on as long as possible while it was still day so one) he could read his map and two) he would have the time to set up camp.

Now, thoroughly soaked and shaking with cold, Izuku wondered faintly if daylight should really be his biggest concern as he took in the giant blood-red eye staring down at him.

A/N: And here we go! Uraraka & Iida enter, look to stage left!

Oooooo- Izukuuuuuu, what have you done now?

I was originally planning to introduce another character as well this chapter, but by the time I had reined in the wonder trio, the chapter was already pretty lengthy so I decided it'd be best to end it here. I honestly really enjoyed expanding on the trio's relationship and beginning to plant little hints towards some future…issues that may just crop up later in the story. (*insert mad cackling*)

Now, to the reviews!

Mia: Thank you so much for your thoughtful review! I definitely understood where you were coming from and changed the summary to something that I felt was a lot more fitting. Thank you for catching that so early! I honestly wasn't too satisfied with the original one myself, so thanks for the swift kick-in-the-pants I needed to go ahead and fix it! I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

Hoppy854: Hi! Thank you for your review, I'm super happy to hear that you're looking forward to seeing where the story is going! As for the 1-A thing…we'll just have to see where that goes, won't we? xD

Perceus Jackson Ten: Aw, thank you very much! I definitely plan to continue and eventually finish this story—even if it takes a while to do so. Thanks for your review!

Honestly, I wanted to wait until I had a lot more chapters done before posting this one, but after just finishing up Chapter 3 (spoiler: it's a bit of a doozy length-wise), I really didn't want to keep you all waiting. ; v;

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I will begin work on additional chapters as soon as possible so I can (hopefully) begin to establish a steady update schedule, but we'll just have to see. Life waits for no one.

Please feel free to drop me a review if you have anything you'd like to say! Each one motivates me to keep writing for you lovely people!

Til next time,

~ Strange-Charms