A/N- Sorry this took so long, but I kinda had to force myself to write this one.
Hope you enjoy.
Inko Midoriya sighed as she walked home from the train station.
Another hard day of work and another day she couldn't pick up Izuku.
Even with her husband working overseas and bringing in the big bucks, she still had to work extra hours to make ends meet and save enough for Izuku's education later in life.
Inko's eyes grew a little dim at the thought of her son.
A son she hadn't touched in years because of his quirk.
A son who seamed determined to go into heroics, in spite of the dangers and his teachers saying his quirk was ill suited to it.
Inko gave a withering sigh. She didn't know what to do. She wanted to support her baby but she didn't want him to get hurt.
And then there was his social life…
Something was definitely wrong in his school life. He kept coming home with burned and dirt covered clothes more and more each week, but not a bruise on his face.
And his eyes…
His eyes that used to be so full of life, were gradually becoming more and more dim, which was especially worrying do to his quirk.
Izuku's quirk made it dreadfully hard to gauge his stress levels or if he was sad, because he recovered near instantly.
Normally that would be a good thing, but stress still built up over time and it made it a nightmare trying the care for him when he was still an infant and they didn't understand how his quirk functioned yet.
They'd go to pick him up and he'd start wailing as if he was in pain, but the moment they set him down, he was all smiles and giggles. He'd get upset and they'd try to comfort him or they'd try to feed him, only to inadvertently cause him pain because they picked him up.
It was also a deeply, physiologically damaging thing, to be a child that could never be touch without getting hurt or hurting others. To never be picked up and comforted by your parents or play properly with friends.
Or to have to constantly worry about being taken advantage of for your quirk…
There were more then a few people who would kill to have Izuku take their pain away, and that was why Inko insisted on living in a city populated with the most heroes.
Of cores one could just as easily say, that would not meant there were more villains in the area.
Yet another decision Inko constantly second guessed herself and on.
And now Izuku seamed to be withdrawing into himself more each day. Not sharing his experiences at school with her and retreating further into his hero fanboying as an escape.
Admittedly, Inko knew she was partly to blame herself. The stress was getting to her and she was starting to gain a little weight from the excessive amount of comfort food.
Because she was so stressed and because Izuku was partly the case, she avoided touching him even more then usual. Not wanting him to suffer pain or feel guilt over her stress and worry.
But that only exacerbated the problem, creating a feedback loop.
Inko feels stressed and guilty and avoids showing her son any physical affection do to his quirk, but that only makes him feel sad and guilty and that makes Inko feel worse, and the cycle continues.
Inko's face fell to the ground and tears prickled at the edge of her eyes, as she walked and gripped the straps of her handbag tightly.
Something had to change but Inko didn't know what to do.
She was broken from her guilt spiral, by a woman kneeling on the ground in front of her, sobbing.
Inko immediately recognized the short woman, with long, leafy green hair, wearing a yellow sundress.
"Hana?" Inko called out with worry but when the woman jumped to her feet, startled by Inko and turned to her, she had a smile on her face instead of the sobbing mess she sounded like.
The woman was the same hight as Inko and had smooth, curved features, and thin eyebrows. Her skin was fair and her eyes a startling green.
"Oh Inko…oh I'm so happy right now!" she cried out and lunged for the other woman, who yelped as her friend hugged her tightly.
Hana and Inko had grow quite close. Both with husbands away at work most of the time, though Hana's husband still lived with them, and they both had similar issues with stress, trying to raise their children.
Both were also prone to crying excessively, though Hana couldn't hope to match Inko and her son.
"Hana!? What's going on!? Why-"
Inko was cut off by the kindly woman, dragging her closer to their apartment block, and grabbed her head on both sides to point it at a grassy area nearby.
Inko's own eyes widened at the sight and her own tears starting flowing a little, until she couldn't hold it back anymore.
She tossed her head up and tears shot out like a geyser while the ground cracked underneath her from the pressure and Hana hugged her while crying too.
Meanwhile, on the grassy patch, Izuku and Sayuri were rolling around, playing with each other and laughing.
The two hugged, played tag, and even wrestled with each other while playing heroes and villains. Their smiles never having been so wide or their laughter so joyous.
Inko felt such a conflicting combination of joy and shame. Her son was the happiest she'd seen him in years but it was no thanks to her actions. All she'd done was prolong his steady decline into depression while Hana's little girl had brought him back in less then a day.
As the two mothers continued to cry together in joy and shame, the kids continued to play with each other.
"SMASH!" Izuku called out with his high pitched, kiddy voice, while punching at the air.
Sayuri laughed as she jumped to the side as if dodging the imaginary shockwave, before charging at Izuku. Tackling the boy to the ground.
Sayuri played rough but Izuku could more then take it and laughed as he even managed to stay standing for a moment, before Sayuri put more effort into it.
The two laugh together as they landed on the grass. There clothes stained green with specs of brown. Izuku's shorts even had a few burn marks on them from the acid, though not as much as Sayuri would have expected, if she were paying attention.
"Sai! Honey!" Hana called out, as she was the first to recover and pull Inko to her feet.
"Momma"
Both kids called back as they stood up and ran to their mothers.
Both women wanted so badly to scoop up their kids and hug them, but Hana couldn't take the acid burns. Her skin was especially vulnerable to burning do to her quirk and Inko had gone too long without touching her son to do so now without him feeling all of her built up guilt.
The kids weren't at all bothered though, as they hopped in place with excitement.
"Mom! I made a friend!"
They both spoke in unison, before looking at each other and blushing before looking in opposite directions in tandem.
Inko muffled a squeal with her hands. They were just too precious together.
They all heard a clicking sound though and looked over to see Hana with her phone out. Taking dozens of pictures per-second.
"Mom!" Sayuri screamed in mortification while reaching for the device, which Hana lifted out of reach.
"Oh, you are both just so adorable! I should have invited the Midoriyas over years ago!" Hana squealed and Inko made a mental note to ask Hana for copies of the pictures later.
Inko turned her attention back to her son though and gave the most genuine smile she had in a long time.
"Why don't we invite your new friend over Izuku?" she suggested to her son while casting a glance at Hana, who nodded approvingly.
Izuku's eyes shot wide and sparkled with excitement.
"Can we!? Hay Sayuri! Wanna come over to my house!?" he asked innocently and with excitement.
Sayuri blinked with surprise. Not used to social interaction at all yet, and nearly fell back into her aloof mask.
The stars and sunbeams shining off Izuku's smiling face, were too overpowering though, and Sayuri gave a bashful nod while a small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
Izuku's smile grew even brighter in response if it was possible, and he laughed as he grabbed Sayuri's hand and ran up to his apartment floor.
Inko slowly walked up next to Hana and the two watched them go for a moment.
They both then sighed heavily and walked on jelly legs. Years of stress suddenly bleeding out of them as they slowly made their way forwards.
The Midoriya apartment had long been absent the sound of childish laughter and innocent joy.
Far too long…
But now, as the door flew open, Izuku's joyful laughter seamed to make the dreary atmosphere that had accumulated over the years, evaporate as he dragged Sayuri inside.
The poor girl didn't quit know how to respond to such overwhelming positivity.
Her eyes shot wide and she skidded to a hailt, forcing Izuku to stop as he was taking off his shoes and look back in confusion.
"What's wrong?" he asked with an innocent tilt of his head. Sayuri seamed to close herself off again though, as old insecurities took hold.
"I-I…I can't taking my shoes off…" she muttered quietly.
Izuku just blinked at her before his face lit up in realization.
"Oh, are you afraid of your quirk burning up the floor?" he asked with genuine curiosity, which threw Sayuri for a loop, even after playing with Izuku for so long.
Sayuri nodded while averting her eyes. She had to suppress the urge to sigh in relief though, as she shifted from foot to foot.
"Don't worry honey, I have your spare house shoes with me" Hana said as she appeared behind her daughter like a phantom from a horror movie, with a pair of yellow, open toed slippers hanging from her fingers.
Sayuri screamed in horror, from both her mother's sudden appearance, and her now having no excuse to keep her shoes on.
"Come on honey. Everything will be alright" Hana spoke with a supportive tone while Izuku's face grew concerned. He could literally feel the nervousness flowing off Sayuri thanks to his quirk, as she looked to the floor. Never meeting his gaze, even as she took the slippers, which Izuku noticed were shinny, like they had some kind of acid resistant coating on them.
Sayuri then hesitantly and agonizingly slowly, began slipping her shoes off, allowing Izuku to see her yellow tube socks.
Izuku blinked as he noticed the texture of them though.
"Wait, those aren't socks" he muttered as he pondered this and Sayuri froze up.
Izuku's face then lit up again as he realized yet another aspect of her quirk and smacked the bottom of his fist into his palm.
"Oh! They're like plant stems. Your quirk is plant based!" Izuku said excitedly while Sayuri stumbled back. Thankfully having put on her slipper so she wouldn't ruin the floor with her acid.
"That's so cool! What kind of plant are you based on!? It must be a citrus type, given the acid. That would mean- mutter mutter mutter…" Izuku trailed off in full analysis mode.
Sayuri's head spun as Izuku's words went in one ear, bounced around a little, and then out the other. His brain and mouth working too fast for her to keep up.
"Wait, wait! You're not freaked out by my feet like all the other kids?" she asked, which stopped his muttering but only so he could look at her in utter bafflement.
"What, of course not. Why would I. It's like I said before, it's just a quirk. And why would someone get so hung up over feet. That feels like someone just looking for something to complain about" Izuku replied simply.
Sayuri was again stumped. She simply wasn't used to someone treating her so…normal… usually she couldn't visit anyone without some kid calling her out for her mutations or her hazardous quirk.
Izuku was so different from everyone else she knew. She still didn't quite know how to respond to him.
A tap on her shoulder from her mom, snapped Sayuri back to reality though and got her moving again. She quickly removed her remaining shoe and put on the other slipper, before following an excited Izuku the rest of the way inside.
Hana and Inko both sighed as they stood in the doorway. Their brains too fatigued from stress to do anything other then go blank as they finally relaxed.
"How about I make some tea?" Inko said with a slight daze to her voice as Izuku showed Sayuri around.
"I would like that dear, thank you" Hana replied as she slipped her own shoes off and padded her way in, where she practically melted into the dining room chair.
"Do ether of you want something to eat?" Inko asked as she started filling the kettle. Hana just waved her off though.
"No thanks, I already ate this morning" she replied but Izuku skidded to a halt and looked at her with concern.
"But it's already passed noon! How are you not starving!?" he asked. Hana and Sayuri just laughed awkwardly though.
"Me and Sayuri can both photosynthesize, so we only need to eat once a day. We can go even longer if we push it, but as long as we have water, sunlight and keep our hair long, we're good. Anything more and we start gaining weight" Hana explained while Sayuri covered her face with embarrassment at the mention of gaining weight.
Izuku's face was inches away from Sayuri's in mere seconds though, causing her to yelp as he pulled a notebook from thin air with an excited grin.
"You can photosynthesize!? Is that why your hair's green!? It acts like leaves, meaning that- mutter mutter mutter-" Izuku stopped abruptly when he realized he was out of paper.
"Oh, I need to grab a new notebook" he said and shot off, down the hall without thinking.
Inko just shook her head with a helpless smile.
"I haven't seen him that excited in a long time" she muttered a little sadly, but was still happy to see her son, so full of energy.
Sayuri just blinked as she stared down the hallway after Izuku and heard him rifling around in his room.
Sayuri bit her lip with a pout, before walking down the hallway after him. Only to then freeze in his doorway and go slack jawed at what she saw.
"Wow…" she mumbled as her eyes scanned the room.
Izuku was hunched over his desk, looking for a blank notebook, when he heard Sayuri and turned to see her.
He arched an eyebrow in confusion at her expression, and fallowed her gaze. His head moving in a slow arch, as he gazed about the room in equal confusion.
There was nothing out of the ordinary as far as Izuku could tell. Just his room, his clothes and belonging, and his All Might memorabilia…
…
Izuku's eyes suddenly shot wide and bloodshot, before he shrieked in terror and embarrassment.
He then ran up to the nearest All Might poster and covered it with his small body. A futile effort with just that one poster alone. Not even accounting for all the other merchandise filling the room.
"T-t-t-this isn't what it looks like! Or well…I-I-I mean, this is just…" Izuku stuttered weakly as Sayuri just stood there with her mouth hanging open.
Sayuri knew she hadn't yet lived long enough to say she was very knowledgeable or experienced with anything. But she could confidently say that she had never and would never, see another collection of All Might merchandise and memorabilia, as large as Izuku's. And she suspected that he had more in his closet. Carefully stored away until he had more room for it.
The two just stood there for a moment. Staring at each other, not knowing what to say.
Sayuri then blushed and looked away as she fidgeted a little, and finally clenched her eyes shut as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a Crimson Riot keychain, which she held out to show Izuku while looking away and tucking her head between her shoulders.
Izuku blinked a few times as he watched the blushing girl, standing there unmoving and embarrassed.
Izuku's face then lit up with a wide smile and Sayuri gave an awkward one in return. Not really sure if she'd made a horrible mistake or not.
From the hallway, Hana and Inko watched with conspiratorial smiles and cameras running, as Sayuri was dragged into Izuku's room, where he proceeded to geek out over heroes with her.
The two mothers giggled as they heard Izuku ramble on excitedly from the open door.
"Why don't you and Izuku come visit next weekend?" Hana suggested with a Cheshire Cat grin, which Inko matched.
"Why that's a wonderful idea. And then maybe you two could come over and visit the weekend after that" Inko replied with a light chuckle.
The two then progressively devolved into deranged giggling and laughter together. The relief they felt after so long, manifesting it's self as madness.
Wether the kids liked it or not. This was the start of a wonderful friendship.
