Chapter 3: Puppy Love and Blood Sugar
Recovery Girl's office at UA High was generally busy, a revolving door of the minor injuries that were indicative of heroes in training. Usually it took a couple of weeks for the constant flow to start, but this time thanks to one Izuku Midoriya, it had started on the second day. Recovery Girl sighed, she really should have expected this from Toshinori's successor. They really were two peas in a pod.
That was probably why Toshinori had chosen the boy, because he had the heart of a hero. The stubbornness too.
But of course, while there were ways that Izuku and Toshinori were the same, there were also ways that they were radically different. One of those ways was the scene playing out right before Recovery Girl's eyes. Momo Yaoyorozu had come to visit Midoriya. He was clearly crushing on her, Recovery Girl had worked with teenagers for over twenty years, she knew the signs.
"See? Recovery Girl healed me already! I'm as right as rain!" Midoriya gave his classmate a thumbs up, hoping that what was clearly a false veneer of self-confidence would soothe her concerns.
"Midoriya, this is the second time in a week that you've broken a bone. First it was your finger, now it's your arm!"
Midoriya waved her off, "I mean, that's why I'm coming over to your house this weekend, right? To figure out to avoid this."
Recovery Girl tensed up and eyed Yaoyorozu. Don't tell me...
She placed a hand on her forehead, "I know. It is. I just..." Midoriya cocked his head to the side but remained silent as Yaoyorozu puzzled out what she was going to say. "I just don't like seeing you get hurt."
Recovery Girl had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from swearing. They both had it bad, but Yaoyorozu was either forcing the feelings down or hadn't come to terms with them yet. Not surprising, considering that they'd barely known each other a week. To be honest, she wasn't quite sure what to do. This was a scenario that she had seen play out... how many times now? Normally, she would do what she could to discreetly lend a helping hand, but with One For All in play... Had Toshinori already told Midoriya to not get involved with anyone? If he had, then the boy was flagrantly disobeying his teacher, because Midoriya was practically a poster boy for wearing your heart on the sleeve.
"Anyways, I brought you a copy of the syllabus and other handouts." Yaoyorozu said, placing said handouts on the table next to the bed Midoriya was laying in, "Do you need help getting home? I could call a car for you if you want." Yaoyorozu's primary love language seems to be acts of service. Recovery Girl noted, If I'm going to be doing the usual, I'll need to find a way to sneakily tell Midoriya that without telling him overtly.
"Oh no, you don't have to go that far for me! I can take the train, it's no big deal." Midoriya blabbered, a slight blush coming to his cheeks.
"Midoriya, you're free to go." Recovery Girl interjected, "Yaoyorozu, please stay behind for a moment."
Recovery Girl allowed herself a mental chuckle at the look of confusion on Yaoyorozu's face as Midoriya scampered out the door. "What's this about?"
"If you're going to be helping him with his Quirk, then there's something you need to know. It's early days yet, but his joints are already showing signs of degradation. Particularly his arms."
"What can we do?" Yaoyorozu wondered, "Midoriya lives and breathes heroism, if he has that dream taken from him in such a cruel way..."
"I'll give you some exercises that help promote joint healing. Also, if you can convince him to start wearing compression sleeves, that should help soften future damage."
Yaoyorozu took the sheet of exercises from the old doctor, then began to leave before turning back. "Wait, why aren't you telling him all of this?"
Recovery Girl chuckled, "From me it would be all doom and gloom, from you... ah don't worry about it."
After she left, Recovery Girl took a hard candy from her jar, and popped it into her mouth, and chewed thoughtfully before ruminating to an empty room.
"Ah, to be young and in love..."
Tohru Yaoyorozu was many things. A caring husband and doting father. A captain of industry, who used his position and wealth not for himself, but for the betterment of others. Yes, he and his family were quite well-off, but the majority of his wealth went to charity. He was proud of the reputation of the Sapato Corporation, both for the support they gave to heroes, but also how they enabled people who didn't win the Quirk lottery to live normal, fulfilling lives.
He had been targeted by villains before, of course. Usually they were stopped by the police or the heroes he kept on retainer under the Sapoto Hero Agency.
But this time...
Despite the vast expanse of cyberspace between them, Tohru swore he could feel a cold hand on his neck, its owner the man shrouded in shadow on the screen in front of him. "Don't be difficult, Tohru. Our friendship has just begun, and I think you'll find that in the coming days that I can be a fine friend."
Tohru clenched his fist, when... whoever the hell this was had first broken through the generous amount of cybersecurity that he had in place and asked him for any information he had on UA students this year, he had sent a copy of the recordings of the entrance exams that the school had furnished to Momo. He had thought that would be the end of it, but... "No, I gave you what you wanted, but I'm done with this now."
The man shook his head and clicked his tongue, "Yes, you did get me what I wanted, and I'm thankful for that. But now I want something else. I'm rather interested in one of the students, and would like information on him, or on his class's schedule."
"And if I refuse?" Tohru said
"Then I will be unable to guarantee your daughter's safety when my friends pay All Might a visit to discuss some grievances they have."
Tohru paled. There was nothing in the world, not what wealth he had kept, not his company, not his reputation, that was more important to him than his family. "Fine. I'll do it. I'll get you the information."
The man clapped his hands together in victory. "Excellent. By the way, the student I am interested in is Izuku Midoriya."
Tohru sighed, "Alright, alright. Just... I'd like to know who has me by the throat."
The man laughed. "Very well, Tohru. But do keep it a secret."
"My name is All For One."
Trips to Inspector Tsukauchi's office were par for the course for Toshinori at the end of a week. His old friend and contact on the police force handled the paperwork generated by his exploits, with the rationale that the less paperwork that the Symbol of Peace had to do, the more people he could save. These visits usually ended with them catching up.
"You're going on a date? You?"
Toshinori rolled his eyes at his old friend, "Don't be so surprised, Tsukauchi. I am quite the catch, I wasn't rated number one on the Hero Billboard's ranking of most eligible bachelors for nothing."
What went unsaid spoke volumes. An only child, his parents had died shortly after he had graduated from UA. He had turned his grief into even more fuel for the campaign against All For One's empire. He had quickly learned that anyone that All For One perceived as being close to him was a target, so he had eschewed any sort of relationship.
It truly was lonely at the top.
But now, he had a chance to change that. The main barrier to Toshinori having any sort of romantic relationship was knowledge of One For All and his injury. However, Inko already knew about both, due to young Midoriya being his successor. It was hard to say when the remaining embers of One For All would finally leave him, but once they did he could finally have a normal life. And he didn't want to be alone for that.
"Does she know about All For One? The danger she'll be in?"
Toshinori flinched at Tsukauchi's pointed question. "She'll know when I tell young Midoriya."
"And when's that going to be, Toshi?" Tsukauchi burst out of his chair and slammed his hands on his desk, "After All For One's minions put her in the hospital? Or worse?"
"Tsukauchi-"
"You know that he's still out there, Toshi! Planning. Scheming. You can't afford to fall victim to sentimentality just because you've chosen a successor!"
Toshinori raised a finger at his old friend, "I am not falling victim to anything, you hear me? Maybe I just want-"
"Toshi, your hand is shaking."
"Shit."
Toshinori threw his satchel on the desk and retrieved his blood sugar monitor. He hated this. Hated it, but as long as he intended to function as the Symbol of Peace, an insulin pump was out of the question due to the change between his normal form and muscle form. He raised the blood sugar monitor to his finger and let out a decidedly unheroic whimper as it sampled his blood. When All For One had ripped open his guts, the doctors had been able to get his stomach and intestines back into something resembling working order, but his pancreas hadn't been so lucky. Ever since his last encounter with All For One, he had been living with the equivalent of Type 1 Diabetes.
The results of the check flashed at the screen. Sixty-five. Damn it, I miscalculated.
Toshinori retrieved a syringe containing a medicine designed to rapidly treat low blood sugar and plunged it into his arm. "Maybe I just want someone that can help me forget about all of the blood and filth that I've had to trudge through."
Tsukauchi slumped back in his chair, "Toshi, I'm not going to tell you what to do or not do, but if you're going to be dating the mother of your successor, that puts her doubly at risk."
"I know, alright?" Toshinori shouted, "Haven't I earned the right to be a little selfish? After everything I've done, can't I just do something for me? God, I don't even smile to put people at ease anymore! Now it's just to hide the pressure I'm under!"
Tsukauchi had seen this countless times from officers that had burnt out, that had seen one too many horrors, taken one too many glimpses at the dark side of superhuman society. The issue here was that Toshinori couldn't burn out. The country needed him, and he knew it. "Who guards the guardians?" He muttered.
Toshinori laughed, his normal self back, with no sign of his earlier distress. "Something like that. It's been good talking with you, but I have some shopping to do. I don't have a thing to wear!"
Tsukauchi sighed, "Don't forget to eat something, Toshi."
In response, Toshinori brandished a stamp card from a local smoothie shop on his way out. After he had boarded the elevator, Tsukauchi pressed a button on his desk and got an immediate answer. "What is it, sir?"
"Double the surveillance on the Midoriya household." Tsukauchi said, "If a villain so much as looks at that building funny, I want to know about it."
Izuku was trying very hard to not freak out. While he knew that Yaoyorozu was the heiress to the Sapoto Corporation, there was knowing... then there was knowing.
He was facing a metal gate bracketed by intricate stone pillars, one of which had an intercom set into it. In addition, there was a rather impressive iron fence going in both directions as far as the eye could see. It had taken a half a hour to walk here from the nearest train station, not that Midoriya minded much, he had bought the ankle and wrist weights for a reason. Okay, Izuku. You can do this. You're going over to a girl's house for the first time, but it's okay! You're here to get help with your Quirk. That's it. It's basically more training.
He was distracted from his private pep talk by a text on his phone. "Huh? Wait... from All Might?"
"Young Midoriya, I will be unavailable for the next three hours or so. Inko told me about how you're going over to Yaoyorozu's to get help finding a way to regulate Superpower. I think that's s wonderful idea, she's a smart cookie and should be able to help you find a way forward. One without an excessive number of broken bones."
Midoriya narrowed his eyes briefly in confusion until he remembered that Superpower was what the Quirk Registry thought his Quirk was. "Huh." He muttered to himself, "Wait, why's All Might unavailable now? Didn't he already use up his three hours of time this morning? I could've sworn I saw something about him catching some bank robbers on the news on the way over here. And why call attention to the bones issue? All Might is perfectly fine with me figuring things out, injuries or no injuries. It's Mom that's..."
It took approximately twelve seconds for Izuku Midoriya to come up with a passable conspiracy theory. All Might was dating his mother. He then immediately dismissed it. "No, that's crazy. She knows that I had that whole I wish All Might was my dad phase after Dad died, but... she did say that she was going to start dating again after she interrogated me about... Oh, God."
Later. He could deal with that later. Figuring his Quirk out was more important at the moment. Mustering his courage, he keyed the intercom, only to hear... giggling. A vaguely familiar giggle. "Uh, Yaoyorozu?"
"I'm sorry! I've been watching you talk to yourself for a good five minutes, and it's... endearing. Please come in, we've got some legwork and theory to get done before we try a practical application, and we need to get through it all so you're ready for our rescue training this week."
The gate opened, permitting Midoriya access to a gravel driveway that cut through a forested area, making it seem like he was walked through a tree tunnel of sorts. As he walked, his mind strayed to the events of the train ride here. Reading Hero news on train rides was common place for him, but one article had particularly affected him. It had broken the news that Quirkless Anonymous was actually a front for recruitment for Humarize.
Humarize. The organization that took the Quirk Doomsday Theory as a gospel truth, and preached that those who were Quirkless were the true humanity, while those with Quirks were sick. Corrupted. They had been using an organization that was supposed to help people like... what he had used to be, and tainted it, twisted it into a conveyor belt that was feeding them more people that were vulnerable to Humarize's teachings.
It made Midoriya sick.
The worst part was that some people, even those with Quirks, thought that a group like Humarize was necessary. To advocate against the systemic discrimination that the Quirkless faced. Midoriya may have been running full tilt towards his dream of being a hero, but he wasn't an idiot. If he had tried to become a police officer, as All Might had first advised him, he would've been passed up for anyone with any sort of Search or Detection type Quirk.
Was some sort of advocacy group needed for the Quirkless? Absolutely, Midoriya believed that wholeheartedly. But it needed to be far from the zealotry of Humarize.
Midoriya pulled his phone out, and went to the Notes app. He created a new entry, titled ideas for when I become the Symbol of Peace. He quickly wrote down a brief blurb detailing ideas for a advocacy and support group for Quirkless individuals. He looked up as he put his phone back in his pocket, and he promptly did a double take.
Yeah, that was a mansion. He wasn't sure what else he had been expecting. It stood two stories tall with an overhang over the front door supported by pillars. There was a smaller building off to the right connected to driveway with a cobblestone path. Midoriya squinted, it looked like there was someone waving at him? Oh, it was Yaoyorozu!
Midoriya continued down the cobblestone path with a spring in his step and a dopey grin on his face that was completely unrelated to Yaoyorozu. It was because he was going to hopefully learn how to use his Quirk properly. No other reason at a-
Midoriya's dismissal of reality was rudely interrupted by a jet of water across his face and upper body. After he recovered, he narrowed his eyes. It was his old archenemy.
Automatic sprinklers.
Midoriya's eyes narrowed. "Ah, automatic sprinklers. My old nemesis. We meet again."
Yaoyorozu gasped as the sprinkler system started up and blasted Midoriya in the face. She should've turned them off! Or warned him! Now he was going to think that this was some kind of joke! Or prank! Or she...
Oh, God. What if he thought she was treating him like Bakugo had?
That wasn't it at all! She just wanted to help him with his Quirk! Because they were friends of course. Not because he was adorable when he ran into door frames or because she hated seeing him get hurt. Not that at all.
Wait... was Midoriya... playing chicken with the sprinklers?
That's certainly what it looked like. He was waiting for each sprinkler to come back around and aim at him. Then he would try to dodge it. Some kind of training? No, that wasn't it. It seemed almost like a childhood habit. She giggled as Midoriya ducked under one, only to get blasted in the chest by another and...
Yaoyorozu noticed something that she considered to be crucial to commit to memory. With how wet Midoriya's T-shirt was, it was sticking to him rather well. Which meant that she could see his abs and other musculature. He was no All Might by any means but...
As a result of this new revelation about her friend, there was only one all-consuming thought in Momo Yaoyorozu's head.
Abs.
Luckily for her, she was able to regain control over her mental faculties in time to hear Midoriya mumble something about "you've won this time, sprinklers". There was definitely an embarrassing story there. She would need to ask his mother about it later.
Not that she was planning on meeting his mother any time soon. Why would she? They were just friends after all.
"Um, do you have a towel?" Midoriya asked.
Yaoyorozu raised an eyebrow, then created a towel and handed it to him.
After he had dried himself off -which Yaoyorozu made a point not to watch, seeing him do that might've actually resulted in a bloody nose- Midoriya turned back to her, "Well, we should probably get started."
Yaoyorozu turned and walked towards the garage-like building that they had been standing in front of. "Right this way."
When Yaoyorozu had told him that she had a training complex at her mansion, Midoriya hadn't quite expected the scene laid out before him. It looked like a tinkerer's paradise. The back wall was dominated by a bookshelf packed to the brim with technical manuals and textbooks, to the left there was a workbench with various objects in different states of disassembly, on the right there was a 3D printer. In the middle of the workshop laid a motorized scooter, that if one was charitable, could claim was in pieces.
"Whoa, what's all this for?" Midoriya asked.
"For me to use my Quirk to create an object, I need to know how that object is made and why it works the way it does." Yaoyorozu said, "So Dad made this space for me, since Mother almost had an aneurysm when she saw me disassembling a lawn mower engine in the entrance hall."
"I can't tell if you're joking or not, and that's mildly concerning."
Yaoyorozu continued as if she hadn't heard him, moving towards the workbench and dragging two stools closer together. "Our first objective today is twofold. Figure out how exactly your Quirk works, and then figure out how to make it so that you can use it without injuring yourself."
Midoriya took a seat on one of the stools, and noticed that even in the unremarkable pants and shirt Yaoyorozu was wearing, she was still really pretty. No! Bad Izuku! Not now! "Well, I guess we should start with what I do know. My Quirk is called Superpower, it allows me to drastically increase the strength in part or all of my body. I just... haven't tried my whole body for obvious reasons."
Yaoyorozu nodded absent-mindedly, "That's probably for the best, trying to use it in your entire body as you are now would probably kill you. Let's see, is there any sort of resource that you expend to use your Quirk? Or do you have any cravings?"
Midoriya blinked. "Pardon?"
"Cravings. For example, Iida drinks an unholy amount of orange juice because his calf engines treat it as gasoline."
Midoriya shook his head, "No, nothing like that. Well, except my bones."
Yaoyorozu gave Midoriya a flat look, then continued. "So, you don't expend anything when you use your Quirk," she said pointedly, "What does it feel like when you use your Quirk?"
"The closest thing I can think of... ugh, this is going to sound dumb." Midoriya scratched the back of his neck as he tried to explain, "A few years back, All Might explained in an interview what it feels like when he does a smash. It's exactly the same for me. The hair on the back of my neck stands up, there's this... sensation like an electric current that isn't actually electricity flowing through me, and I can't help but yell Smash as I attack with it, but that's probably just the All Might fanboy in me."
Yaoyorozu nodded. "Okay, I think I'm starting to get a better picture here. While your Quirk is a power up type, it's actually much more mental and possibly emotional than most power up Quirks."
Midoriya cocked his head to the side, "What do you mean?"
Oh, that's cute. Focus, Momo! You can think about that later! "I mean... back at school you told me that you use a visualization of an egg not breaking in the microwave to activate your Qurk. That could be why-"
Midoriya cut her off excitedly, "Why I can only use all of my power or none of it!"
Yaoyorozu nodded, unperturbed by Midoriya's exclamation. "Exactly, we just need to find a visualization that lets you both activate your Quirk and modulate how much power you're using."
Midoriya frowned as he began to mutter, "But what could do that? Any sort of food in the microwave analogy is probably out. Maybe a generator putting out specific wattage... no, that's not quite good enough..."
Yaoyorozu had to hide a smile behind her hand. Midoriya's motormouth muttering was just adorable! The way he was talking himself through the problem, methodically eliminating what wouldn't work, relying on the age old adage introduced to the world by Sherlock Holmes. When you identified all that was impossible, whatever remained -however improbable- must be the truth. Midoriya started looking around excitedly before spying a thermometer on the wall. "I got it! I'm like that thermometer!"
Yaoyorozu raised an eyebrow, "Is that your way of telling me that you're hot?"
There was a beat of silence before Midoriya blushed a bright shade of red. "No, no, no! That's not it at all!" To accompany his vehement denial, he bagsn waving his arms about randomly.
Yaoyorozu laughed, "I'm sorry, Midoriya. I saw the opportunity for the joke, and I had to take it. Ashido might be starting to be an influence on me. You were saying?"
Midoriya took a deep breath to calm himself, "Okay, uh... so with a Celsius thermometer, it's got zero to a hundred. The freezing and boiling points for water, so by visualizing the Quirk activation as the molecules in an ice cube and visualizing the percentage of power I'm using as the temperature of the water..."
Yaoyorozu's eyes went wide as she cut him off and finished for him, "You should be able to activate your Quirk and control how much of your power you're using!"
Midoriya clenched his fist as a determined look crossed his face. "I'm going to try it."
"Midoriya, wait-"
But it was too late to intervene. The pointer finger on his right hand was already crackling with some sort of red lightning. "Now, five percent..." Midoriya muttered. The red lightning faded away, and his finger began to glow orange. "I think... I've got it!"
"You're absolutely sure?" Yaoyorozu asked.
Midoriya released the power, causing the glow to fade. "Yes. No. Uh, kind of? When I'm at full power there's this... Uh... vibration? Like my body's trying to shake itself apart? I didn't feel that with only five percent."
Yaoyorozu stood, "In that case, it would appear to be time to try a practical application." She stood and exited the workshop, with Midoriya following in her wake. She walked out onto the lawn then turned around to face Midoriya.
"How are we going to do this?" Midoriya asked.
Yaoyorozu responded by creating a shield.
"Wait, what?" Midoriya said, "What if I hurt you, or something?"
"Don't you worry about that." Yaoyorozu said, "Besides, we need to figure out if your Quirk regulates durability when you aren't using too much power."
Okay, that was a good point. Some power up type Quirks included a durability increase while others didn't. Midoriya drew his arm back, and went through the process again. In moments, his arm was glowing orange. "Alright, here I come!" He began to run at Yaoyorozu, before sending a punch flying at the shield. "DETROIT SMASH!"
Yaoyorozu braced herself but was still forced back, leaving furrows in the lawn. Discarding the shield that now had a dent of comedic proportions, she looked at Midoriya who was still standing there, with a shocked look on his face. "Midoriya? Are you okay?"
His face lit up with the purest smile Yaoyorozu had ever laid eyes on. "I did it! My arm is fine! I can do this, I can fight! I can be a hero!" He clenched his fist and held it to his chest, his voice dropping to a volume that she could barely make out, "I can do it, Dad. Just like we always talked about."
In a flash of memory, Yaoyorozu remembered the conversations she had with her own father when her Quirk first manifested, and she had declared how she had wanted to be a hero. And how the pictures her father had taken showed her with a smile just as pure as Midoriya's...
Momo Yaoyorozu couldn't deny it any longer.
She was falling for Izuku Midoriya.
"Yaoyorozu? Is everything okay?"
She looked up to see Midoriya with a look of concern on his face. She smiled softly, "Yes, Midoriya. Everything's fine."
A/N: Well, it's been a hot minute. Writer's Block is the worst.
Yep, Recovery Girl ships it.
AllFor One is a utter bastard, but he's a smart bastard. Manipulating Mr. Yaoyorozu into leaking him info is but one of the many paths to victory AFO has planned. Fun fact: Mr. Yaoyorozu's first name is a reference to Tohru Adachi from Persona 4. Also, the name of his company literally translates to Support.
Poor Toshinori. The man just needs some cuddles. Okay, serious now. First off,considering most of his digestive system was uh... forcibly evacuated having him be a diabetic just makes sense to me. It's not a take I've seen before though. A running theme of this fic is going to be "Who guards the guardians?" As can be evidenced here with Toshinori's lament. He thinks he's earned the right to be a little selfish, but will that selfishness have deadly consequences?
It was a crime that Humarize wasn't introduced until the third movie. They're going to be around, and will affect more of thegoings-on. Glares at Overhaul
Oh man, Yaoyorozu figured out that Cupid is using her for target practice. The trick will be getting Midoriya to realize that as well.
I chose not to show Toshinori and Inko's date, because there wasn't anythingplot relevant happening there, and I feel like for the purpose of this story, it's best if the reader experience that relationship as Midoriya sees it unfolding. Could be wrong about that. Oh well.
Until next time.
