The response for this story is really unexpected, thank you so much. This is one of those stories that I don't even care if it got a review or not since it's something I want to write for myself, but I'm glad to see that there are people who enjoyed this story.

Inko called Mitsuki Micchan because it's cute and I want to make it like Izuku get his nickname for Katsuki from his mother.

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Love, Through All Eternity

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(One)

"I heard that Katsuki-kun is being rough with you again," Inko began hesitantly during dinner one day.

Izuku glanced at her behind his frankly too long bangs and shook his head slightly. "It doesn't bother me," he said. "I like Kacchan."

That made Inko's eyebrows shoot to her hairline.

"You do?" She asked with curiosity. All she heard from their teachers was how much the two didn't get along and how Micchan's son sometimes played rough with Izuku because he was the only one in their class whose Quirk hadn't manifested yet.

Izuku nodded as he chewed on his meal.

"His reaction is interesting," he told her, smiling slightly.

"Really now…" Inko was doubtful, but Izuku didn't look like he was lying or forcing himself to say it, so Inko decided to let it go and moved on to different topic.

She knew Izuku really loved to make friends.

Sometimes Inko saw him spending time with the old man who liked to feed the birds in the park, listening to him talk about his younger days attentively. Other times she saw him with the young man who worked at the flower shop down the street.

There were several other people that Izuku loved to talk to, like the grade school girl whose parents always late to get her and the nurse at the nearby vet whose husband just died in a Villain attack a few months ago.

Inko wondered if she should be worried about him making older friends like that, but Izuku always act so mature and sure about his decision and all of his friends were kind people who always listened attentively to his words even though her son was way younger than them.

It was mystifying how her son managed to draw so many people around him.

Izuku's taste in friends was strange, but Inko felt like she could trust his judgment somehow. Maybe her son saw something in Micchan's son too, she sighed inwardly.

Well, as long as he didn't get hurt too much maybe she'll leave his strange relationship with him alone for now. It might be good for Micchan's son to have someone steadfast and calm like her Izuku as his friend too.

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(Two)

"Say, Izuku. What do you want to be when you grow up?" Inko asked him one day as they walked home from his school. She smiled at her son cheerfully and suggested something. "A researcher like your dad, maybe?"

Izuku frowned a bit and tilted his head. "He's a researcher?"

Oh dear. Did she never tell him why his father was never home? Inko thought with a hint of concern.

"He's the head researcher at the Hero Support Department of Kirijo Group. Did I never tell you?" Inko answered, putting a hand on her cheek as she tried to recall her memory. She was fairly sure she mentioned it somewhere before.

Izuku looked startled by her words, which was a rare sight since it wasn't an easy task to catch him off guard, but he quickly relaxed his posture again. Inko watched him hum softly as he closed his eyes.

"I see… so Kirijo Group still exist even now…" Izuku murmured quietly, sounding glad somehow.

"'Even now'? You talk funny sometimes don't you, Izuku?" Inko giggled lightly, not understanding what he meant by his words.

Izuku just hummed again, a faint smile on his lips. He opened his eyes and craned his neck to stare at the sky as they continued to walk. There was an airplane passing by, leaving a trail of white cloud on its track.

Inko didn't know why, but he looked really sad even with the smile on his face.

"I still don't know what I want to be," Izuku told her after a long while. "But... I do have something that I want to do."

"Oh? What is it?" Inko asked, smiling down at him and swinging their connected hands as they walked. Izuku was silent for a while as he tried to gather his thoughts, but Inko was patient as she waited for him to be ready.

"…I…" Izuku faltered for a second, before light suddenly filled his eyes and he stared ahead with determination in his eyes. "I wish to protect this world that my friends dedicated their lives to protect."

Inko was taken aback.

She had expected him to blurt out things like helping people or beating up Villains like a Hero—just something that he said because it sounded cool and all his friends at school were talking about it.

She didn't expect him to tell her his life's purpose, especially since she could sense that he completely meant what he said.

To protect the world that his friends dedicated their lives to protect…

Those words came from his heart.

Inko fell silent at his answer.

She didn't know who these friends he was talking about, but…

"…I see," she said finally, a small smile on her lips. "You should go for it if you want to do it."

Izuku looked surprised again at her words. Maybe he wasn't expecting her to agree with him.

"You think so?" he murmured again and Inko nodded encouragingly.

"Of course! If it's Izuku, then I believe you could do it," she said with a big grin. "No matter what, Mum will be by your side, supporting you. So don't you worry, okay?"

Izuku said nothing, but a small smile was tugging at the corner of his lips.

Inko squeezed his hands tightly in return.

Sometimes, when talking to Izuku she get the feeling like she was talking to someone much older, and not a seven year old boy. It was a mysterious feeling.

When they got home, Inko spent a lot of time telling him about Heroes and showing him videos of All Might since she thought it would help him realize his wish. Izuku listened to her attentively, indulging her. He didn't speak much, as usual, but Inko could feel his gratefulness in his kind gesture.

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(Three)

Izuku was a curious child.

It wasn't like he was acting abnormally strange, but there was just something about him that wasn't like any other kids that she knew. He was very different than her friend Micchan's son Katsuki, that was for sure.

For starters, Izuku didn't talk much, preferring to stay in the background and observe his surroundings, but he was unexpectedly bold at times and have a strong sense of leadership. Izuku loved to make friends too. He was a surprisingly good listener and he had friends of all ages around their little town of Musutafu.

He could also be surprisingly charming when using his words and body language, and not only was he emotionally mature, in term of academic intelligence one could definitely say that he was at a genius level too.

Maybe that was what was different about him. They did say that genius tend to act a little strangely, didn't they?

But then there's the fact that when Izuku spoke, sometimes he would slip with his speech patterns and started speaking like the actors in those old movies from several centuries ago that Inko secretly loved to watch in her free times, making him sound like an old man.

It was a bit jarring when he did that since his adorable face was just so young and innocent, but Inko had learned to just nod and smile whenever he slipped and never ask unnecessary questions for fear of making him uncomfortable.

Even after 8 years, Inko still couldn't figure out her son at all, but he was a good kid, always helping her with simple housework ever since he was old enough with nary any complaints. He certainly made her job raising him pretty much alone so much easier since he never make any trouble for her.

Even though he had his moments of childishness, more often than not, she felt like Izuku was more like an adult that was trapped inside a child's body.

Whatever it was that was going on with her son, Inko loved him with all her heart.

But... sometimes he would get this look on his face, like he was yearning to be somewhere he couldn't be, and it broke Inko's heart every time she saw him like that, because she didn't know how to make it better.

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(Four)

It was a beautiful and completely busy Sunday when Inko asked Izuku to be her cooking assistant. She wanted to make a feast to celebrate Hisashi finally coming home from his work and need an assistant to prepare the dessert while she cooked the main dish.

They were mixing the batter for the cake they were making when she saw him smiling softly at her. She returned his smile and cheerfully asked him why he was smiling, since he didn't smile that often.

Inko loved it when her son smiled. Izuku might not smile often, but when he did, his eyes would crinkle upwards, full of warmth and kindness. In Inko's completely unbiased opinion, it made him look so beautiful.

Izuku answered her question with a slight shake of his head.

"I was just remembering something. Having a mother is a really nice thing, isn't it?" was what he told her.

Inko didn't understand what he meant by that, but she smiled sweetly at him anyway and bestowed a kiss between his brows to show him how much she loved having him around too. He accepted it with a fake annoyance at being treated like a child and she laughed at his expression.

That night when her husband finally came home, both she and Izuku welcomed him home with warm feast and a big hug. While they were talking and having fun though, Inko's mind went back to the weird conversation she had with her son earlier.

Having a mother is a really nice thing… somehow Inko felt like those words came from someone who knew how it felt like growing up without a mother.

Now, Inko wasn't a genius like her son, but she liked to think that she wasn't stupid.

Even if she decided to keep her silence and not to overthink things, she noticed these things, especially since it concerned her child. So, the day after her husband went back to work, Inko finally decided to talk to Izuku.

She didn't know how to start this particular discussion, so she just decided to be blunt with it and hoped that everything will be alright.

"Do you have another name that you wish to be called with?" Inko asked her son after she braced herself as they were watching the TV that night.

It was a strangely phrased question. She decided if Izuku decided to deflect it or pretend that he didn't understand it, she would let it go and never mentioned it again since she didn't want to drive him away.

Izuku's eyes widened in surprise, but she met his gaze head on. Unflinching, with a warm and accepting smile plastered on her face as she waited for his answer.

When he finally understood the meaning behind her words, his eyes softened and he closed them momentarily as he shook his head.

"...No," he told her, a smile on his lips as he opened his eyes again. "Izuku's a fine name, Mother."

At his words, Inko swallowed and tried to blink her tears away, but he seemed to notice it anyway as he averted his eyes and pretended that he didn't. She laughed wetly and drew his tiny body into her arms, hugging him tightly.

"I'm glad you like it," Inko murmured softly as she pulled away.

The answering smile she got was comforting.

"You're surprisingly perceptive," Izuku told her after her tears stopped.

"Well, I am your mother, you know!" Inko told him, pretending to be offended at his words.

Izuku closed his eyes and smiled faintly.

"I see… it seems I've been underestimating the power of a mother," he finally said after a while. "Aren't you going to ask me about it?" Izuku asked her then. "You are curious."

It wasn't a question. He knew she was curious, but she decided to shake her head.

"I am curious, but I will not pressure you into telling me," Inko said, smiling at him. "But, if you want to tell me, then I am here for you. Always."

Inko kissed his head and pressed their noses together as she squeezed his little hands tightly in hers, hoping that he understood that loved him and she always will.

"No matter what, you're my son, Izuku. Remember that."

Izuku squeezed her hands in return and smiled at her warmly.

"I'm glad that I was born to a kind person like you, Mother," he whispered softly. "Thank you."

That night, they stayed up late as Izuku told her of a tale that began 200 years ago—of a group of children that risked their lives every night to protect humanity from malicious beings that they called Shadows using the manifestation of their soul.

It was tale of continuous struggles, partings, and self-discovery that ended with the sacrifice of one boy to prevent the End from encroaching upon them.

Inko listened to his tale attentively, holding his hands the whole time.

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(Five)

Izuku was a curious child, but he was Inko's child nonetheless. She loved him with every inch of her being, and nothing could change that. Not even crazy stories about past lives and the power of the gods.

Nothing.

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Next chapter will be the last.

Thank you for reading!