Chapter 15: Breathing in the Smoke
"Hey, kiddo. It's been a while."
Izuku wanted to throw up. He wasn't sure he was breathing.
His father stood there, hands in his pockets, smiling, like Izuku had just come home from school.
Like the last words he'd said to Izuku almost three years ago weren't a death sentence, hadn't given him recurring nightmares and paranoia.
"You son of a bitch," Katsuki growled, straining against all his restraints. "I'll kill you for what you did to him and Auntie, do you hear me?"
"It's nice to see you, too, Katsuki." Hisashi waved. "You've really grown into that angry look of yours."
"Shut the hell up!"
Shigaraki giggled. "See? You make a much better villain than a hero with an attitude like that."
"You can shut up, too!" Katsuki snapped.
"Give my regards to your family, but Izuku and I really need to be going. A lot to talk about, you know."
Izuku doubted there would be a lot of talking in this conversation.
Katsuki did, too, apparently. He snorted. "Yeah, right. We all know that's not true."
"Really, Katsuki. My son and I have a lot to catch up on. I'm very interested to know what he's been doing for the last few years."
Oh. He was going to interrogate Izuku about all the weak points Izuku had exploited and then kill him.
"So, if you all don't mind releasing him to me?" Hisashi gestured to the chair.
For a second, no one moved. It was Dabi who broke the stillness and stepped forward to partially undo the restraints. His wrists stayed bound behind his back, and his legs ached at the chance to finally stand.
Dabi held him up for a second, pulling him back against his chest. His hand pressed against Izuku's out of sight from everyone. "Be smart, brat."
Heat bloomed between their hands.
Fire.
Izuku could have cried. He didn't know why Dabi was offering this to him, but he wasn't going to waste this. He took the fire in his palm and closed his fingers around it. It was uncomfortably warm, like a tea kettle straight from the stove.
Dabi pushed him forward, towards his father.
Hisashi still had a pleasant smile on his face, contrasting the death grip he grabbed Izuku's collar with. "Thank you all very much. I'll pass on the contact information tomorrow morning."
Contact information? That was what he'd offered to pay for Izuku?
"Leave him the fuck alone!" Katsuki yelled. He thrashed in his chair. "Hisashi! If you hurt him I swear I'll kill you!"
Hisashi sighed. "One really does wonder if you're truly cut out to be a hero."
"That's why he's here with us, now," Toga said cheerfully, bouncing back to Katsuki.
"Yes, have fun with that," Hisashi said. "I'll be in touch." He stepped towards the door, dragging Izuku with him.
Izuku cast one last desperate look at Katsuki.
Katsuki was furious, but there was a similar desperation in his eyes. He struggled so hard he tipped the chair over and crashed to the ground. "Izucchan!"
Izuku tried to reach him. It felt like he'd never see him again if his father managed to separate them now. "Kacchan!"
"Come on, Izuku," Hisashi said, yanking him through the doorway.
"No!" Katsuki yelled. "Izu!"
"Kacchan!"
The door shut.
"Take him," Hisashi said, pushing Izuku off to someone else.
Izuku stumbled into a broad chest before being promptly lifted off his feet and tossed over someone's shoulder. He grunted as his broken arm jostled in the impact, and he almost lost the little ball of fire Dabi had given him.
It was too early to use it. He needed to be sure he could take down his father and this henchman, and get away and find help. As much as he wanted to rush in and free Katsuki, he knew he couldn't handle the League by himself. Especially not with Kurogiri's warp gates.
"Be smart, brat." He wished he knew more about Dabi. It didn't make sense for anyone in the League to help him.
But Dabi had been the most…sympathetic wasn't the right word, but he'd been the only one to do anything about Izuku's arm. And he'd been the one to purposefully open the protein shakes in front of them, like he understood they wouldn't trust anything one of them prepared.
Which was common sense, but a lot of the League seemed to lack that.
While they walked, Izuku kept his head up to watch their progress, doing his best to memorize the path they took. The bar had let out into a dingy alley, and they had to walk up some steps to get to street level. Then it was a few turns until they reached the main road, and then Izuku was loaded into a waiting car.
Hiroki sat in the driver's seat, and he offered something between a grimace and a smile when Izuku made eye contact.
Hisashi slipped into the back seat with Izuku while the other henchman took the front seat. "Alright, Hiroki."
Nodding, Hiroki started the car and pulled out into traffic.
Izuku tightened his grip on the ball of fire, his only comfort in this situation. Three against one were terrible odds. He didn't know the henchman in the passenger seat, had no idea what his quirk could be or how dangerous he was. Hiroki was a wild card; he'd stuck his neck out for Izuku before, but he'd promised they'd be enemies when they met again. It was up in the air how he would do in a fight.
And then his father. If Hisashi used fire, Izuku was relatively sure he could beat him now. If Hisashi pulled a gun again, Izuku was going to have to pray his aim had never improved.
"Where are we going?" Izuku asked.
"Somewhere nice and quiet," Hisashi said. "We do have a lot to talk about. I wasn't lying about that."
"You want to kill me, I don't think there's a lot to discuss there," Izuku stated.
Hisashi ran a hand through his hair, sighing. "Izuku, you're my son. I don't want to kill you. I didn't
fake loving and caring for you through your childhood."
"Really? Because you started shooting at me real fast that night."
"I was angry," Hisashi explained. "And rightfully so. Your actions could have destroyed everything I've spent my life building. And everything you did since then." He shook his head. "It's like you want your old man in jail."
Izuku stared at him. "What you do hurts people. Of course I want you in jail!"
Hiroki shot him a warning look from the driver's seat.
Hisashi took several controlled breaths. "I was hoping we could come to an agreement about that. I want to show what I really do, and maybe then you'll understand. I'm willing to forget your little rebellion and welcome you with open arms."
"I know what you do," Izuku said. "You sell weapons and drugs, you steal things from honest people for yourself, you threaten others to get what you want. You're a villain."
"That's enough," Hisashi snapped. Smoke curled out of his mouth, the first warning sign he was losing control of his temper.
Izuku carefully controlled his fire to cut through his bindings. He didn't know what city they were in, but it looked like they were heading towards a highway. He'd lose his chance to get out once they hit highway speeds. He needed to get out of this car before then.
"I'm a business man. It's not my fault if what I sell isn't considered legal."
"That's entirely your fault," Izuku stated. "You could sell something else!"
"And lose my clientele?" He shook his head. "You really don't understand. I did what I had to so I could provide for my family, and I built an empire. I'm the big fish in the ocean. If you say my name in the right circles, you can get anything you want."
"But you lost your family," Izuku said softly.
"I'm trying to get them back," Hisashi said. "Once you disappeared, I knew Inko wouldn't want to speak to me, so I've given her space these last three years. But if we reconcile, there's no reason we can't all be together again, take family trips to the aquarium or something."
"We can't reconcile as long as you're a villain," Izuku stated.
"Think about this carefully, Izuku."
Hiroki gave him another glance. A highway entrance ramp was coming up.
This wasn't the ideal spot for him to make a getaway, but it would have to do.
"I'm sorry, Dad. But I'm going to be a hero." He grabbed the door handle and threw himself out, a little ball of blue fire following him.
The landing was painful. Asphalt tore his arms and legs up, and his broken arm was extremely unhappy with him. So were the other cars desperately swerving around him. He rolled onto his feet and sprinted across the road, narrowly dodging an SUV, until he reached the sidewalk.
Hiroki hastily pulled the car to the side of the road, and Hisashi and the other henchman jumped out.
Izuku ran. There was a decent crowd despite the hour, but not enough for him to disappear in. He couldn't just duck into a store, either, because Hisashi would see him. He took the first side street he saw, and then another, but the corners weren't fast enough to lose his pursuers.
If he wasn't so exhausted they might have been. He was at a severe disadvantage now that he'd been awake for over forty hours.
Was he really only kidnapped twenty-four hours ago? It felt like so much longer. Time was so weird, sometimes.
He held his broken arm close and rounded another corner back onto a main road. He couldn't run forever, his energy was already waning. He needed help, and for once in his life he was actually looking for the police.
A paper star embedded itself in his calf. He cried out as his leg gave out beneath him, and he crashed to the ground on his broken arm. Pain darkened his vision for a minute, long enough for the three men to catch up to him.
A few pedestrians looked at them warily. One man had a cell phone in his hand, and another was clearly filming them.
"No need to worry, everyone," Hisashi said. "He's in the middle of a psychotic breakdown. We're trying to get him some help."
"No he's not, he's a villain!" Izuku yelled.
Hisashi sighed and shook his head. "Amazing what lies the mind can tell itself, isn't it?"
The pedestrians still looked unsure. A woman narrowed her eyes at Izuku. "Wait, isn't that one of the missing UA kids?"
Izuku seized the moment. "Yes! I am!"
Hisashi hissed and turned back to him.
Izuku threw the blue fire into his face and scrambled backwards. He left a smear of blood from his leg, and his back hit the wall much sooner than he wanted.
The henchman tried to grab him. Izuku swiped the fire across his face, and he fell back with a scream.
"Someone call 119!" a pedestrian yelled, tackling Hiroki before the man had a chance to throw any paper stars. In Izuku's opinion, Hiroki hadn't put up much of a fight.
Hisashi breathed fire at anyone that dared to get too close. Izuku stole it before it could hurt anyone, wrapping it around his father. Hisashi looked back at him in surprise. Then his eyes narrowed in anger and he stalked forward.
Izuku pushed back with the flames, keeping him at bay.
Hisashi's instinct was to breathe more fire, which Izuku used to strengthen his cocoon and wrap Hisashi's legs. Someone was on the phone with the police, he could hold this prison long enough for them to get here.
The henchman stood up. There was a nasty burn sliding across his cheek and over the bridge of his nose, angry blisters popping and leaking.
Izuku wanted to be sick. He'd tried so hard for so long to not hurt people with his fire, to avoid causing this kind of damage, and now he'd just horrifically scarred the second person in only two days.
Henchman's throat convulsed, like he was going to be sick, and he spit a thick white blob at Izuku. Izuku blocked it as well as he could with his broken arm, but the glob stuck to him and pinned his arm to his chest. It was sticky, like glue, and it dried like cement.
Not good. Izuku relied on physical movement to control his fire. He didn't need as much movement as he used to as a kid, but he hadn't reached a point of strictly using his mind yet.
He scrambled back. Henchman shot more globs at him, pinning his leg to the ground, and eventually his good arm. He was stuck on his side, twisted on the ground.
The flames around Hisashi broke apart. He patted out the minor fires that ignited over his clothes. Henchman turned to the crowd, roaring at them to leave immediately if they knew what was good for them.
Izuku yanked at his pinned limbs. It was a fascinating quirk, and it would have had so much potential for a hero. How much easier would his life have been as Alley Cat if he could have caught petty criminals with this? It was wasted as a villain's quirk.
The crowd wasn't eager to leave. A few brave souls were standing their ground. Hisashi opened his mouth.
Izuku jerked his chin, diverting the flames up into air. Jerking his chin down, he brought the flames to the weird globs pinning him down, hoping they could melt.
They could not, and he was very disappointed. He left the fires spinning over him, lacking the dexterity to do anything more complicated but not willing to give them up.
At least if he was stuck to the ground, Hisashi couldn't make off with him. He'd have to take the whole sidewalk.
Hisashi seemed to be realizing the predicament, as well. He grimaced at Izuku. "This wasn't the way I'd planned for our reunion to go."
"You have to stop what you're doing," Izuku said. "Please. You can turn yourself in, share everything you know about the black market, they'll go easy on you!"
"And lose everything I've built?" Hisashi laughed. "I gave you everything, growing up. You don't understand what it's like to have nothing."
"That doesn't mean you get to hurt others so you can succeed," Izuku stated.
Sirens wailed in the distance.
Hisashi growled. "This is your only chance to come and see things my way, Izuku. I won't be so generous a second time."
"I told you," Izuku said, straining against the cement trapping him. "I'm going to be a hero. I'll eclipse your reputation and be something Mom can be proud of."
Thin tendrils of flame dripped out of Hisashi's mouth.
The sirens grew louder.
"Boss, we need to go," the henchman said.
Hisashi was still focused on Izuku. "We could have been a family again, Izuku."
Izuku shook his head. "No, we couldn't."
Hisashi inhaled and held himself straighter. "Gladius, grab Hiroki. We're leaving."
The henchman glanced from Hisashi to Izuku before nodding. He darted between them.
Izuku didn't have the range of motion to pin him with fire, and even if he did, Gladius had enough raw strength to break free.
This wouldn't be the last time they met. He'd see his father again, without a doubt.
That didn't make it easy to watch his father escape. His flames kept civilians away, and Gladius's approach made the people pinning Hiroki jump out of the way. Hiroki spared Izuku another glance, mouthed "Water," and then followed Hisashi and Gladius around a corner. The pedestrians who'd pinned Hiroki tried to follow, but a paper star flew between and dissuaded further pursuit.
Then everyone was fussing over him. A woman sacrificed her scarf to wrap around his bleeding leg, and someone else offered their water bottle to him. They had to hold it for him since his hands were still trapped, and he drank half of it before he realized what Hiroki must have meant.
"Try pouring water over this cement stuff," he said. The man holding the water gave him a look, but he tried it. The glob melted away, freeing one of his hands.
"Good thinking," the man said. "Hey, anyone else have water?"
People fumbled in their bags, and one man shouted he'd make a quick run to the corner store.
Police finally showed up before that man did, a little bewildered at the situation. (Of course they were too late for the fight, why had Izuku expected anything different?) Izuku explained about the League of Villains and that he was a UA student, and he tried to get them to go after Katsuki rather than fuss over him.
"Look, I'm fine, it's Katsuki Bakugou you need to save," Izuku insisted. "There's an abandoned bar somewhere, the League of Villains is using it as their base." Between the car ride and his mad dash through the back alleys, he wasn't entirely sure where it was anymore.
The police didn't seem to care, either. "We need to get you to a hospital, this arm looks bad."
"Yeah, it's broken, old news. Can we focus on my friend who is still being held captive?"
"People are working on that, and I'm sure they'll want to talk to you as soon as possible," an officer said. "But you need medical attention first."
This interaction was not doing wonders for his trust in police officers. It was making him glad he'd decided not to run to them three years ago.
When the man came back from the convenience store, Izuku was quickly drenched in the splashing water. It was probably an improvement considering everything that happened since he last bathed. Then he was quickly loaded into the back of an ambulance and whisked off to the nearest hospital.
It took too long. The ambulance ride, getting checked in, being treated. All of it. The entire ordeal lasted forever. Logically, the doctors were probably going as fast as they could. Izuku was just impatient. Considering the circumstances, he felt he had a right to be. It wasn't like somebody else's life was on the line or anything. But no, sure, let's stitch a little cut and set a broken arm. There was definitely enough time for all of that. Not to mention nearly wrapping Izuku's entire body in bandages to cover the road rash from jumping out of a moving car.
The urge to run off and hunt Katsuki down himself was strong. If he hadn't known he didn't stand a chance against Kurogiri's stupid warp quirk, he would have done it.
The worst part of it all was that the longer Izuku sat there, the more the exhaustion set in. He hadn't even talked to these magical people looking for his best friend, and he was ready to sleep for a week.
Fear was a hell of an energy booster. At this point, only fear and spite were kept him awake.
It was almost two in the morning before his hospital door opened and Aizawa and Hizashi rushed in.
"Problem Child," Aizawa breathed out, crossing the room in two strides and wrapping his arms around Izuku. Hizashi rounded the other side of his bed and hugged him from behind.
Izuku melted into it. "They still have Katsuki, I couldn't get him out."
"That's alright, we'll save him," Hizashi promised.
"There's a bar, I don't know where it is, it looks shut down from the outside-"
"We know about it," Aizawa interrupted. "There's already a team investigating the League, they had the bar pinned before."
Izuku relaxed more into him. "Are they getting Katsuki now?"
"Ah, not yet." Hizashi pulled back from the hug, sitting on the edge of the bed facing Izuku. "We've got to be careful how we do it."
Aizawa mirrored his husband on the bed. "Because of Kurogiri's warp quirk, we can't just go in with a frontal assault. There's also a secondary location we want to strike at the same time."
"Hey now, careful with that classified info," a newcomer in the doorway said. He was a plain looking man, somewhat familiar but Izuku couldn't place where. He shut the door behind him. "I'm Detective Tsukauchi, it's nice to meet you."
"You sure took your time," Aizawa rolled his eyes.
"You barely let me park the car before you rushed up here," the detective said. "Anyway, Midoriya, if you're up for it, it'd be helpful to have your statement about what happened. Any information you've got will be useful."
Izuku nodded. Tsukauchi had him start with the attack on the camp, detailing everything that happened right up until Izuku was brought in to the hospital.
All three of them were relieved when Izuku revealed the League really hadn't done anything to them. It had been nothing but waiting around.
Of course, he didn't know what they were doing to Katsuki now that he wasn't there. But since they wanted to recruit Katsuki, it probably wasn't torture.
"They've got another thing coming if they think Bakugou will change allegiance that fast." Aizawa shook his head.
"That's what he's been telling them," Izuku said.
"This is all really useful, thank you, Midoriya," Tsukauchi said. He flipped through his notebook, rereading his notes.
"How soon can you go after Kacchan?" Izuku asked.
"We're hoping for later tonight," Tsukauchi admitted. "The timing needs to be perfect so they're not suspicious."
Izuku clenched his good hand on the sheets. He understood the need for a good strategy, especially against the League. That didn't stop the desire to go kick the door down anyway, grab Katsuki and run.
"Alright, that's everything I need for now," Tsukauchi said. He stood up and grabbed his coat. "Glad you're okay. It's really impressive you managed to keep your head and escape."
It didn't feel impressive. It had felt like desperation, like a last ditch effort to save himself. 'Impressive' would have been saving Katsuki, too.
Aizawa put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed before turning to Tsukauchi. "I'll see you in a few hours."
Tsukauchi nodded and took his leave.
"You should get some sleep," Hizashi suggested.
"I know." They'd been talking for over an hour. Izuku had been awake for almost forty-eight hours, and he'd been bouncing on and off adrenaline highs. He definitely needed sleep.
"You did good, kid," Aizawa said. His hand still rested on Izuku's shoulder, and his thumb rubbed small circles.
Izuku shook his head. "Kacchan's still there." If anything happened to him, Izuku would never forgive himself.
"Bakugou's pretty tough," Hizashi said. "Don't worry so much. These guys want him alive, so we've got time to save him. He's smart, too. He'll make sure he stays alive."
Facts were supposed to be comforting, but Izuku wasn't finding any comfort in them right now.
Aizawa and Hizashi shared a look, and then they simultaneously moved to sit beside Izuku, squeezing themselves onto the edge of the bed on either side of him. They both put arms behind him, and Hizashi held Izuku's good hand in his. Aizawa rested his head on Izuku's, and Izuku used Aizawa's bony shoulder as a pillow.
"It's going to work out," Aizawa promised. "We're going to make sure of that."
If it came from anyone else, Izuku wouldn't have believed them. The words would have been empty platitudes. But Aizawa didn't make false promises. He didn't claim to do the impossible.
So Izuku allowed himself to relax ever so slightly. He allowed himself to soak in the warmth of his guardians. He allowed himself to drift off to sleep, wrapped in their arms, shielding him from the inner demons circling his mind like sharks.
Xx
Shouto wasn't used to feeling like this.
He was used to his calm apathy, or his simmering rage. The occasional burst of fear was normal, too.
But this aching? This jittery, restless energy he didn't know what to do with? He didn't even know what it was. It existed in the realm of fear. Worry for his classmates? Guilt at not saving them?
(He'd been right there, he could have touched them they were so close, but he wasn't enough)
He didn't like this feeling. He didn't like that he couldn't do anything about it either. Bakugou and Sasaki were gone, and he and the rest of his uninjured classmates were sent home to wait like some kind of lonely wife whose husband went off to war.
He hated not being able to do anything. They were training to be heroes, weren't they? They should be allowed to help. He was the son of the number two, damn it, and while he never played that card to get what he wanted, it should be enough to get him in the door.
It wasn't. When Endeavor was called in to help, and Shouto begged to go with him, Endeavor brushed him off with a curt "No" and slammed the door.
Fuyumi hugged him. "It's alright, Sho, he'll save your friends. It'll be okay."
Her words weren't enough to ease the aching in his chest. He wanted to do something, but all he was allowed to do was visit his classmates in the hospital.
It didn't feel like enough, not when his classmates had been kidnapped. Not when Sasaki's villainous father had him right where he wanted him. He'd be lucky if he ever saw Sasaki alive again.
At the hospital, he bumped into Kirishima, and they went up to Yaoyorozu's room together. All Might and a detective were already inside.
They hadn't meant to eavesdrop. They'd been politely waiting outside the door, and, well. They eavesdropped. To be fair, if All Might and the detective hadn't wanted to be overheard, they should have closed the door. It wasn't their fault.
With a single glance, Shouto knew Kirishima was thinking the same thing he was. They didn't bring it up with Yaoyorozu right away, and their visit was shortened by a doctor coming in to check on her.
They sat on a bench outside the hospital. "I know it's a bad idea, but I can't stand here doing nothing," Kirishima said.
"Neither can I." Endeavor was no villain, but he felt a kinship with Sasaki on how they'd grown up. He couldn't leave Sasaki to his father's whims.
"Okay, okay, compromise," Kirishima said. "We give it one more day for the pros to get them. I don't want to get in their way, as much as I want to help."
Shouto frowned, but nodded. The last thing they wanted was to interfere with the real rescue effort. "That's fair."
"Man, I hope they're okay," Kirishima said. He ran his hands through his hair, making it stick out in weird places. "I can't believe I just sat there last night when I knew they were being targeted!"
"It's not your fault," Shouto said. He looked down at his hands. "I should have been able to grab them, they were right in front of me."
Kirishima put a hand on his shoulder. "It's not your fault, either. These villains knew what they were doing."
"It doesn't matter whose fault it is," Shouto said. "What matters is getting them back."
Kirishima wholeheartedly agreed with him.
They parted ways for the day, and Shouto researched all the legalities they'd have to be aware of if they wanted to stay out of trouble. He didn't want to repeat what happened in Hosu.
Sleep didn't come easy that night, which wasn't surprising. His phone going off with text alerts was, since hardly anyone ever texted him. Then it went off again, and again. He snatched it while it went off a fourth time, ready to promise bodily harm to whoever this person was.
It wasn't one person, though. It was the class group chat. Ashido had shared a link and was freaking out about it, and as others checked the link they were also freaking out.
Kaminari
Holy crap Sasaki is so badass???
Hagakure
Okay but what the hell happened to him?? He looks like hell spat him back out
Shouto ignored the new incoming messages to click on Ashido's link. It opened the JNN website, to an article with a video attached. The frozen image on the screen showed Sasaki on a sidewalk.
He sat up in bed and hit play.
Hagakure hadn't been kidding, Sasaki did look like hell. He was covered in bloody scrapes and dirt, his shirt torn in several places, and his broken arm had never been tended to. His leg was bleeding pretty badly, too.
It didn't stop him from putting up a fight against the men in suits. One of them breathed fire, and with a jolt Shouto realized this must be Sasaki's father.
Even after getting pinned by some spitting quirk, Sasaki continued to fight. He drew his father's fire away from the crowd, stockpiling it over himself. From the camera angle and the way the flames curled towards the sky, it almost looked like a wing.
The men ran off when they heard sirens, but the video continued playing until police came and Sasaki was freed from the concrete. According to the article, he was then transported to a hospital, but the location was remaining secret to protect him.
Shouto leaned back against the wall. Sasaki was safe. That was a huge relief. They still needed to save Bakugou, but saving just one of their classmates sounded much more reasonable than two.
He checked back in to the group chat, reading through all the relief messages and all the ones worrying about Bakugou.
Kirishima messaged him privately.
Kirishima
That's half the job, I guess. I still want to go after Bakugou
Todoroki
I do, too. I'm more worried about him now
Kirishima
I get what you mean. Seeing Sasaki all beat up like that
Makes you wonder what they're doing to him
Todoroki
We'll meet at the hospital like we planned
Kirishima
Yeah. Hopefully Yaoyorozu agrees to help
Shouto couldn't predict what Yaoyorozu would do one way or the other. He'd known her since childhood, which might mean something to her if he was the one asking. If she said no, he wasn't sure what they'd do.
Xx
Aizawa woke up with a horrible crick in his neck and his entire body aching. Sleeping in the corner of a hospital bed was not comfortable, and his body was making him regret it.
The kid sleeping soundly between him and Hizashi was worth it, though. Izuku was more bandages than skin, because apparently his problem child thought jumping out of a moving car was an acceptable plan. Every time he thought he'd seen the craziest thing this kid could come up with, Izuku had to go and prove him wrong.
Hizashi was already up and scrolling on his phone. "Morning."
Aizawa grunted. Speech required a cup of coffee, but he managed to lean over and kiss Hizashi on the cheek.
Hizashi beamed at him and pecked him on the nose in return. "It's not our usual morning cuddles, but I think this is an acceptable substitute."
Aizawa snorted and glanced down at Izuku. The kid was dead to the world. He needed it after the last two days he'd had.
He agreed with his husband's assessment of their morning cuddles. Somehow, someway, Izuku had slithered in past the final walls he had and made a home in Aizawa's heart. He must have followed the same path Hizashi carved out…
"As much as I'm enjoying it, though, there's something you need to see. Do you want coffee first?"
He always wanted coffee first. Curiosity ate at him though. What else could have happened in the few hours they'd been here? Did Bakugou manage to escape, too?
God, if both of these kids managed to escape the freaking League of Villains by themselves, Aizawa might shove them in front of the hero commission and demand they get their full licenses already.
Either that or the League wasn't all it's cracked up to be.
"What kind of something?"
"The headache causing kind?"
His least favorite kind. "Coffee first."
"Alright. I'll be right back."
"I can go," Aizawa offered.
"You scare people when you haven't had coffee yet," Hizashi said. He leaned over to properly kiss him and cut off any retorts. "Besides, the little listener is using you as a pillow."
That was true. Izuku still had his head on Aizawa's shoulder, and it would be cruel to move him and possibly wake him up. So Hizashi skipped out of the room and returned twenty minutes later with two coffee cups, wordlessly handing one to Aizawa.
He was more or less awake by this point, but he still waited until he'd sipped at the crappy coffee for a few minutes before turning to Hizashi. "What's going on?"
Hizashi had moved a chair next to his side of the bed and was playing with his phone again. He unlocked it and passed it over to Aizawa. "Someone filmed his fight with his dad last night. Media got hold of it and figured out he's one of the missing UA kids. By the time any of us realized it was out, it was too late to take it down."
"Damn," he swore. He watched the video, heart twisting at how beat up Izuku was. His arm was the stuff of nightmares.
He was glad the audio of the video was so bad. If he knew what that man was saying to Izuku, he was sure he'd go hunting after him in a blind rage.
"Reporters have been hounding UA for statements for the last hour, apparently," Hizashi said. "The location of the video is being kept secret for now, but you know it won't take reporters long to sniff it out. They'll be here by the end of the day."
This was why he hated the media. His focus should be entirely on the kid still missing, not on corralling nosy people sticking their faces where it didn't belong.
Against his better judgement, he scrolled down to the comments. There was the expected gratitude that Izuku was okay, and plenty of questions wondering where Bakugou was. There were also people wondering why Izuku hadn't been at the sports festival, and demands for UA to tell them what was happening.
Hizashi was right. This was a giant headache. He passed back the phone and sipped his coffee. "Has Nedzu said anything yet?"
"Not yet. I think he was working on plans with Tsukauchi for tonight," Hizashi said.
Aizawa nodded and leaned his head back. "Okay, so what's our next move?"
"Well, one of us needs to stay with Izuku until he's discharged," Hizashi said. "I also wouldn't be surprised if Inko Midoriya starts spamming our phones."
Aizawa grimaced. He hesitantly pulled out his own phone, and sure enough, he had eight missed calls. Three of them were from Bakugou's parents, the rest were an unknown number. "Too late for that."
Hizashi shared his grimace. "Do you want me to call her back?"
He did. Aizawa wasn't as nice and comforting as Hizashi. But he'd also been taking advantage of husband's kindness the last thirty-six hours, and Hizashi didn't want do to this anymore than he did. "No, I'll call her. It's probably better if she waits until after this mess is over, and if you call she'll cry her way to anything."
Hizashi couldn't even argue. Aizawa loved him, but the man was useless when people cried. He'd promise anything to make them stop.
Reluctantly, Aizawa slipped out from under Izuku. The kid shifted a little to get comfortable again, and he held his breath until Izuku settled.
He took a few more sips of coffee as he stepped into the hall to call Inko. This was not a promising start to his day.