Three weeks past the end of the fated battle against Bloodsoaked, and things for the rest of the world were returning to some sense of familiarity. Nothing was close to the previous sense of blissful ignorance once felt before the start of the whole mess that overtook society. A thick atmosphere of apprehension and nervousness blanketed not only Japan, but the world at large after knowing that the deadliest killer known to mankind to date still remained at large wasn't information that left people at ease.
It was a strange existence for society. Nothing as stifling as fear, yet peaceful wasn't the right way to describe how everyone felt going about their daily lives.
Some were affected more by the passed events than others. Those who were just trying to live their lives as ordinary people were doing what they could to return to their previous way of living. Not a lot of people had it in them to pay attention to the failure of the heroes to bring the last true threat down when they had so much more to worry about. At the end of the day, people needed to work to pay their bills and feed themselves as well as those they cared for. People just wanted to have some semblance of their lives back before they started worrying about some other issue second to their need to pay their living expenses.
Nobody could spare the effort to be scared when not working and letting their leases go overdue was a much more tangible threat to them.
This attitude was still heavy wherever one went throughout the streets of Japan after the recent passing of events.
Passing through the streets on foot after getting off of the train, Mina Ashido couldn't help but feel a bit conflicted over what she saw in the people who looked both relieved and exhausted as she passed them by. She couldn't even fault them for looking so relaxed after the hell they were recently freed from for months on end.
Even she could sympathize with them after finally being able to walk the streets without having to equip her hero costume for personal protection. Just being able to walk out on the sidewalks of the local shopping centers in her denim shorts and t-shirt without worrying about a sneak attack from a gung ho looter out for an easy score was a blessing in itself. Her high top canvases were not moving as one would expect from a usually cheery girl like Mina. Each stride had purpose as the pinkette somberly approached her destination with practiced ease.
U.A Academy had been more lenient with the weekends for their students to help morale amongst the young heroes-to-be after the hell they all had to endure for so long. Giving the academy a break felt like the least that needed to be given back for all the sacrifice that was given for the good of society by those who were not obligated to serve their due diligence so early in their careers.
As appreciated as the gesture was, many UA students were still feeling extremely blue at the fact that the most recognized face amongst its staff suddenly announced their early departure from the academy.
Even more than the teachers or any other instructor; the most recognized staff member of UA Academy had left a letter for each individual dorm out of the blue for all the students at the school. His handwritten messages had all the personalization and care expected from the dorm mother who gave every student who crossed him regarding their living habits shit over the smallest things. Not one student could claim to feel unaffected by the departure of the one person in the school who cared for them on such a personal level. Nobody felt neglected or ignored by this one person while he worked tirelessly to provide for their needs day and night, regardless of how minor or serious their needs were in comparison to his.
Those letters left many of the students heartbroken at the departure of their dorm mother. What he left behind to care for those he looked over after his leave still reflected his desire to care for his precious students. It still didn't lighten the pain of his absence after doing so.
Mina needed a reprieve from the gloomy atmosphere back at the dorms. For some mysterious reason, the one she wanted to be with desperately after the ordeal of the failed operation to arrest Bloodsoaked went missing. The man she so desperately loved with so much of her heart couldn't be found for the life of her.
All the others back at the academy shared the sentiment, but they asked her to be the one to go and see where Izuku was after his sudden hiatus from their lives. Only a few phone calls to those involved with him on a more personal matter gave them reason to give him space until he was ready to return to them. His uncharacteristically short tone told them enough about his need to be left to his own devices until he was ready to return.
But three weeks felt long enough for those who lacked patience to at least check up on the young man. On the first available weekend for personal leave, Mina left for the home of her longest time lover.
Leaving the dorms, not even Mineta gave the attractive pink girl a once over with his usual casually lecherous looks out of the corner of his eye. He knew better than to look at the woman who belonged to the man he respected so much as she went out of her way to check up on him after his recent sabbatical.
The streets that she remembered so fondly after years of being with Midoriya all only served to reinforce her mission to check up on her man. Their memories of sharing each other's time without a care in the world served to fuel Mina's love over the one she knew to be her soul mate. They loved each other, and nothing would change that for them.
Approaching the familiar apartment complex, the building looked so much more intimidating when she finally arrived. It felt as though the large concrete complex was suddenly the size of Tartarus when Ashido finally arrived at her destination. What used to be a second home away from hers felt far more intimidating than it had been in the past. Those few short steps towards the building were some of the longest strides she ever felt in her entire life.
Going up the elevator that she knew to be the smoothest ride didn't help the anxiety she felt while approaching the home of her dear Izuku. Only her concern for the one she knew needing her help kept her feet moving towards her destination.
Even the hallway stretched endlessly in front of her as Mina approached the home of her lover.
After a lifetime of struggling, Mina finally arrived at the door she knew like the back of her hand. Every imperfection in the paint to the scuffed lower edge of the heavy metal panel presented itself to her as she tentatively steeled herself before reaching for the doorbell. Pressing her finger into the button to let whoever was home know she arrived left the young woman exhausted on a deeply emotional level.
"... Mina. Oh my- wait one second, dear."
Not several moments after she made her presence known, the familiar voice of the woman who already considered Mina her own daughter unlocked the door and opened the door to greet the pinkette with all the warmth she could manage.
"Mina. Please, come in. I didn't know you were coming."
"N-no, don't worry. I'm sorry I didn't call ahead. I was just in the neighborhood."
Entering the home, all the smells of the home of her dearly beloved hit the young woman like a tidal wave. This place held so many dear memories for her. Just being able to find comfort in this apartment by being inside of it eliminated all her previous anxiety up until now.
"Mina-oneechan!"
"Hello, Eri-chan! Oh my goodness, you're so big now!"
As a good future sister-in-law, Mina greeted the white haired child with open arms and a hug that both she and Eri needed after recent events.
Lifting the small child into her arms and walking into the apartment took little to no effort on Mina's part. The same home she had been inside of countless times in the past suddenly felt foreign to her when she entered the living room. Everything still looked the same; same couch, same floor, same walls. What she felt missing was the warmth of entering this place. That same sensation of being welcomed into this place that was a second home from hers; she couldn't feel it like she did in the past.
"Would you like some tea? I will just be a moment."
Even Inko seemed to have lost that usually youthful glow which made her so motherly towards those she interacted with. It was as if the older Midoriya put herself on autopilot.
Inko only managed to pull out the tea set and set it on the counter where she planned to make tea before Mina placed a comforting hand on the back of the older woman's. That single gesture of kindness placed the first cracks in the shell that the single mother had put up over the past few weeks.
"... Eri-chan, you wanna go to the park with mommy? I think you two could use the air."
For her age, Eri was quick to pick up on certain situations when she needed to. The dutiful child only nodded and followed her older sister and mother to the front door where Inko was assisted by Mina in getting the family ready for their temporary outing.
Both Mina and Inko knew the real reason why the pinkette had come to visit the Midoriya family home that day. Her concern for the one she knew to be her soulmate grew too great for her to simply sit aside and wait for him to return to her. He needed her now more than ever.
The mother and daughter duo left the apartment home for their trip through the park while Mina leaned back onto the front door after she was left to her own devices. A shaky breath escaped her lips as her mind raced to come up with a greeting for when she saw her beloved. Mina didn't know whether to throw up or scream as she forced her legs to move and approach the room of the man she loved so dearly.
It was as if gravity became several times more potent with every step she took towards Izuku's room. Only the knowledge that he was indeed in there by himself with whatever issues that planted him in there in the first place kept the young woman going.
Not even the fact that she possessed an above average sense of balance as a dancer; nor her physical training to become a deadly force on the field of battle, mitigated the thunderous sounds of the floorboards as she crept closer and closer to the room in question.
Eventually, Mina stood face to face with the wooden door that was the only barrier between herself and Izuku. All she needed to do now was to force her raised fist to rap softly on the surface of the wood to let Izuku know that he had a visitor waiting to see him.
"Come in, Mimi."
An almost clairvoyant voice recognizing its owner's visitor without prompt had Mina a bit startled for a moment.
"I heard you and mom talking. Come in, if you want."
There was a subtle reluctance in his voice that irked Mina a little. He hadn't seen her or anybody else for almost a month and this was all he had to say to her?
Entering the room, the heady smell of Izuku almost knocked out Mina with a deep seated arousal for her man. Being away from Izuku for such a long time had the young heroine desperate for him to come back after his sudden departure. She and the others who were in a relationship with him were understanding enough to not push for him to explain himself when he just suddenly shut off his mobile and fell off the face of the earth. Mina being Mina, she finally lost her patience and eventually did something about it.
The curtains were drawn shut so that only the bleeding edges of light around the drapes were all that were illuminating the extremely dim room. Nothing about the room seemed different; all except for the sad shell of a human being lying on the bed with his sheets haphazardly draped over his body.
Izuku elected to remain in a t-shirt and shorts while remaining bedridden. He hadn't forsaken neither his personal hygiene nor his penchant to keep his room clean, though that barely seemed like a consolation for how miserable Izuku looked while lying on his side away from the door.
For years, Izuku was nothing less than the beacon of light that kept Mina going through the toughest of times. Seeing him so pitifully immobile had Mina feel as though her world became that much darker.
"... I-Ikki?"
All she got as a reply was a beckoning hand from Izuku to come towards him. When she came within reach of Izuku, he did as she expected and pulled the pink girl into the bed with himself.
Enveloping Mina was the smell she missed so dearly for the past month.
Her desire to escape Izuku's sudden pull into his bed didn't exist as he yanked her into the mattress. In her own special Mina way, Izuku realized that his soulmate had somehow stripped out of her clothes in no time at all. She somehow managed to shed all her clothes in a matter of a moment when Izuku intended to only just cuddle with the woman he so dearly loved. Feeling her soft and supple flesh against his own sent Izuku down a very familiar path of debauchery that Mina intended to drag him down.
"... Ikki, talk to me. Right now."
Even as she straddled Izuku in the buff; Mina made time to confront her man regarding his issues up until now. This ability of hers to do so was perhaps exclusive to the one that understood how to trap Izuku into confronting his issues.
His eyes were so lifeless. It was like he was retreating into his own mind to hide from whatever truth he had been confronted with.
Sometimes things needed a heavier hand in dealing with certain issues, others were those that required a deft touch in resolving them. Mina didn't feel all that compelled to try and force the issue out of Izuku with how out of character he was currently acting. She simply bent down and pressed her entire body into his. He could feel her heartbeat through the material of his shirt as Mina dipped her face into the crook of his neck in order to maximize their physical contact.
"... Mina, I-"
"Shhh, it's okay. I'm here."
Nothing else needed to be said.
All Mina wanted was to help Izuku through this difficult time in his life. He didn't need to explain himself right now if he didn't want to. If he needed her to just be here, then she'll do just that for the man she loves.
Izuku felt himself come to life for the first time in weeks. His numb trance finally reached its end with the help of this usually chipper pink girl he so desperately loved unlike anything else. What Izuku felt was a violent shock to his system as he felt all the emotions he blocked out for weeks on end; suddenly threatened to collapse his very psyche in that moment.
None of this could be vocalized. Too much of this overwhelmed the young man and left him helpless in his misery while the one who offered everything to him asked for the opportunity to help him.
Both of Izuku's arms wrapped around Mina's shoulders as he pulled her down to him in a desperate hug. In her own special way, Mina somehow wrestled the shirt off of Izuku as they embraced one another. He didn't argue against the intimate contact between them, considering that an affectionate person such as him was deprived of over a month's worth of physical contact with another human being. Feeling her heartbeat against his bare chest felt so good after the endless pain he had to endure by himself.
Burying his face into the crook of her neck, Izuku felt the agony of the situation he was now trapped in finally crack the stoic shell he had been putting up for so long. The choked back sobs of his were buried into the crook of Mina's neck as she embraced him.
He was lost. Faced with the truth of the matter, Izuku could no longer understand the rationale of the situation. Knowing the truth overloaded every possible lane of rational thinking for the young man.
For the first time in his life, Izuku felt more lost than he ever had been.
All because of the fact that the one he would usually depend on for guidance could no longer provide that service for him anymore.