Authors Note:

So, a section of this chapter is missing - because of guidelines etc. etc.
It does kind of ruin the narrative point I was trying to make in this chapter - that in stressful situations, sometimes, you do things you normally wouldn't do to avoid thinking about 'the thing' - but then - I actually don't know if I executed the concept I was trying to layout anyway...so...blaah...whatever...it was an interesting experiment in writing.

Anyway -

As always,

Thank you for reading. ^_^

Chapter Seventeen: Avoidance

Flying with Hawks had very quickly become one of Izuku's favourite things about his weeks. He looked forward to the time, after all the intensity of their training, when the world dropped away from under him and despite all the chaos in his mind—

There was peace.

Nothing mattered while he was up in the air, snuggled up in the man's heavy aviator jacket. Neither of them really talked all that much, even though Hawks had brought him his own headset and visor. It was just nice to spend the twilight calmly circling the city from so very—very high—and letting his mind drift.

Sometimes Izuku was sure he even fell asleep. But Hawks never mentioned it, so he wasn't bothered by it.

"So, Dad mentioned you've been popping out more often in the evenings. I hope you're not overdoing the training. I warned you about that." The radio crackled, stirring Izuku. He lifted his head, staring out over the horizon.

"Oh, no, I'm not. I…um…I think…I think I might have made a friend." Izuku smiled, plucking at the fluff on the jacket he wore over his gym clothes. "His name is Eijiro Kirishima. He has a hardening quirk, it's a bit like your wings, but, all over his body. He loves Crimson Riot, almost as much I like All-Might."

"Don't think anyone can match your All-Might obsession, baby birdie."

Izuku puffed out his cheeks. All-Might was awesome—All-Might was also kind of living with them, half-on-and-half-off, but he was trying so hard to compartmentalize that fact and then just ignore the whole thing.

All-Might The Hero, was awesome.

Yagi his—definitely—future—stepdad was just—

Er—

Currently incomprehensible.

Gahhhh—

But Yagi was also All-Might—

So—

It didn't work—

His brain—

It hurt—so much—

"Oh, that's right…" Hawks looked down at him. "Rilo picked something up for you in Tokyo the other week. Don't let me forget to give it to you. I am not lugging it around anymore."

"All-Might merch, from Tokyo?" Izuku gasped, grabbing Hawks' armour, shaking him, and they twirled in the air as Hawks laughed.

Izuku was dropped. He was used to it—or well—more used to it now—the sudden feeling of freefall. The fear was also gone, mostly because he knew Hawks wouldn't let him hit the ground, and he was up so high it'd practically take a villain head-shotting Hawks from a million miles away for them both to end up in trouble.

He came to a gradual halt as several feathers fitted easily under him. Hawks held out a hand and Izuku took it, breathing in deeply to attempt the action they'd been trying—without much success—for their last few sessions. He had to get this right, otherwise Hawks wouldn't move forward in his training. He had to learn balance in the air.

He stepped out into the air, his sneaker landing on a single feather. He wobbled, and he clenched his muscles, picturing a string connecting straight from the centre of his head all the way up into the sky. That had been advice from his mum when he'd complained about his lack of balance. She'd started putting books on his head and making him walk up and down the hall in their apartment, which had given rise to much laughter from All-Might.

Hawks smiled, releasing the hand he held and Izuku stood awkwardly in the air, balancing on the two single feathers beneath his sneakers.

"Well, guess Mum's books on your head idea has been working." Hawks offered. "Not something I'd have thought off, but, if it works, it works."

"Am I doing it?" Izuku asked. "Am I balancing?"

"You haven't fallen off yet. Now you just need to relax and stop clenching your butt cheeks." Hawks playfully gave his own a pat. "You're making me feel sore just looking at you."

"I'm worried if I relax I'll topple off—"

Hawks suddenly had a calcified feather blade poised at his throat. Izuku reacted, snapping up his leg, collecting Hawks' jaw with his knee. He plummeted several feet before he managed to regain his balance and get the feathers stuck to his shoes to halt his momentum.

Hawks stared down at him in amusement. "That was a good counter. Well done. We'll make a sky-dancer out of you yet."

He still didn't know what a sky-dancer was, but the praise felt nice, even if he wasn't sure what it meant. Hawks dipped under him, taking his weight and he relaxed as the pro hero began their slow decent, heading in the direction of his apartment. Mum and Rilo were probably finishing up making dinner by now. This was the first time Hawks had brought Rilo with him during a midweek trip, and the look Mum had given them both when they'd rocked up at their apartment balcony had been full of concern and fretting.

Something was going on that he wasn't being entirely privy too, and he suspected it had to do with Rilo's less than savoury living arrangements. All-Might had been working on a lot of stuff to do with it, and sometimes he caught glimpses of all the paperwork he brought in and scattered over the living room table, and it made Mum so upset. Not the sort of crying, depressed upset, but more the angry crying upset. He had a sinking suspicion All-Might liked that about his Mum, that she had that justice streak behind all her soft, squishiness.

Which had to be why she'd made that face at Hawks when he'd rocked up with Rilo.

Obviously Mum knew that by Rilo being there midweek, something had happened—something big—big enough to risk their little make-believe family bubble.

Mum had an inability to keep her emotions tucked away inside, she kind of wore them out in the open—a trait he, apparently, had inherited. He was still stuck on if this was a good thing or not.

"Hey, um, Hawks?"

"Hm?"

"Are you and Rilo staying the night."

"Ah, yeah, probably." Hawks sighed heavily. "Don't think Mum will let me fly back with Rilo when it's late…and I suppose…she has a point."

"Is that okay, I mean…is Rilo allowed out."

Even just saying that—felt so wrong—

How could someone not be allowed out.

Izuku swallowed. He felt so sick.

"No, she's not, but, we're kind of doing this thing where we're not giving a fuck. That's what pissed Mum off, by the way."

"Oh."

"She's not happy we're putting ourselves in danger, that's all." Hawks shifted from side to side in a gradual descent. "And I get it, I do, but I can't leave Rilo alone where we are staying, it's both to dangerous, and…I…well…it's not appropriate…however don't I want to drag my sidekicks into this just yet. I want to keep the circle as tight as possible, so…we're…doing what we can."

"I'm…I'm glad you still came. Thank you."

"What, and miss seeing your adorable face? Nah. Rilo is way too excited to give you that All-Might thing she found."

"Oh yeah!" Izuku clutched his hands to his chest. If Rilo found it, it was going to be great! She was an All-Might fan as well. He was so excited to see her collection in person, it had to be amazing, since she'd been collecting over years and years—heaps longer than he'd been collecting.

"You two are weird, I have no idea how Dad puts up with it—"

Izuku squeaked at Hawks' sudden, sharp dip in altitude. Hawks was dropping, rather rapidly, his wings pinned back in such a way that he almost became an arrow.

"Hawks? What's wrong?"

"Code twenty-two, indigo."

Oh—

Any code in the twenties meant a traffic accident of some kind, if it was a two, that meant it didn't involve anything above two cars, or any trucks, or surrounding infrastructure, but the added indigo meant it might have had casualties.

Wait, had Hawks seen all that from this high up? Or had he sensed it? Either way, it was so amazing!

"You're responding?"

"Kind of obligated too, baby birdie."

"But you're not on duty, and this isn't even your jurisdiction."

"Yeah, those things are just bureaucratic bullshite. Don't ever let that stop you from doing your job."

And suddenly, they were on the ground. Hawks skidded across the asphalt of the road. Izuku bounded out of his arms, quickly assessing the scene. One car was bulldozed into a utility pole, the other was smashed upside down, its roof partly caved in and its front end horrifically squished.

"Hawks!"

Izuku heard the shout and snapped around, watching in amazement as Death Arms emerged through a gathered crowd.

"Yo!" Hawks raised a hand. "I was in the area, don't mind the kid, he is my apprentice."

Death Arms gave him a once over, and then seemed to dismiss him entirely. That was a completely different reaction to the last time he'd met the hero. Did Death Arms even remember him?

Maybe he didn't.

That was possible.

Hawks was removing one of his larger feathers. He crouched down, peering into the up-turned car. Death Arms had moved to the second car, wrapped around the utility pole.

"Izuku. Get down here." Hawks called out.

Izuku dashed to his side, dropping to his knees.

Oh gosh—

Two kids hung upside down in their seat belts, wide eyed, stunned, and struggling to breathe.

"Get in there, get them out. Try to make sure they don't see the front." Hawks ordered.

Right. The front. Because—because the woman in the front was pinned. Hawks moved to speak to her, his voice so calm, so assuring.

Izuku quickly snatched a feather from Hawks' wing, tucking it into his mouth. He scrambled through a window, ignoring the shards of glass that sliced his knees. He was grateful he still wore Hawks' jacket, otherwise his back would have ended up really scratched up.

"Hey…hi…" he smiled at the first kid, shifting up to take the weight straining against the taunt seatbelt. "You're okay now, I've got you."

Carefully he activated the calcification on the feather, somewhat annoyed he still didn't have permission to carry his knives. The boy dropped into his arms, clutching at him tightly.

"Okay. It's okay." Izuku crawled his way back out. A paramedic met him and he managed to peal the kid's arms away from his neck. "I need to get your brother. Then I'll be back."

The boy protested.

"I promise." Izuku assured. "I'll be right back."

He slipped back into the car. The second boy was barely conscious. A paramedic was crouching down, trying to reach him.

"Here, can you put this neck brace on him." The item was handed to him and Izuku squeezed back against the roof of the car, wincing at the shattered glass digging in through Hawks' jacket. Right—so—he was really glad Hawks had been making him run through mountains of workbooks on fieldwork now, he'd not even have known how to work a neck brace if one of the workbooks hadn't covered it.

"Alright. It's on." Izuku activated the feather again. "I'm coming out, can you make room."

It took effort, but he eventually managed to slide both himself and the boy free without any jarring. The paramedics quickly bundled both the kids up into the ambulances.

Hawks was deconstructing the front of the car, piece by piece, slicing it apart in fragments to reach the woman pinned by the crushed section and steering wheel. He wasn't even looking at his feathers as they worked, his entire focus was on her, talking to her, through the shattered window. The way he talked, he honestly could have been discussing the weather, or a television show, or a sporting event—he just so calmly asked her about her life, her husband, made her laugh about getting time off work and something about heroes insurance for the car.

"My…my boys…are they…okay?" she asked—again—for the fifth time.

"They are fine." Hawks assured, patiently giving the same reply. "The paramedics have them."

"Oh…okay…that's good, thank you."

Izuku stepped to one side as Hawks' feathers lifted the bottom of the upturned car off, depositing it on the road nearby. The woman hung upside down in her seat. Hawks climbed in beside her.

"Okay, pretty pumpkin, I need you to close your eyes."

"I…I can't."

"Yes, you can." Hawks held her hand. "I've got you, but I need you to close your eyes. On the count of three, I'm going to flip you, so, it'll go much smoother if you close your eyes."

She clenched his hand. "Don…don't let me go."

"I won't. I'm right here."

It was like a magic trick. One moment, the woman was still upside down in the seat, the next Hawks had twirled her around with several feathers and swept her up into his arms. Izuku sucked in a sharp breath as blood immediately began pooling around the woman's waist, seeping into Hawks' hoodie. The man didn't react, he simply walked calmly towards a waiting gurney and smoothly set her down. He held her cheeks, keeping her wholly focused on him as the paramedics worked around them.

"You're fine."

"My kids."

"They're safe. You're all going to be okay."

"Tha…thank you…"

She was wheeled away into a waiting ambulance. Hawks' eyes flicked around the scene, reassessing the situation. Izuku sided up to him. "How do you keep so calm?" he asked. "She was bleeding out."

Hawks glanced down at his soaked hoodie. "If we panic, they panic, and then it's a shite show. You need to have the iron resolve to not show what you're feeling inside, on the outside. You can be like All-Might, and wear a smile, or you can be a cynical arsehole like me and be dismissive and nihilistic, either way, find a way to protect your inner self, if that…makes sense."

"What were you actually feeling?"

"Sad, baby birdie." Hawks looked skyward. "I hate seeing lives torn up this way." A hand was placed on his shoulder. "You did good, not panicking yourself. Well done on handling the kids. That's not easy."

"I feel more like panicking now." Izuku murmured.

"It can kick in afterwards, weird that way."

"Oh, I took a feather." Izuku held it out. "Sorry for not asking."

"It's fine. Thank you for offering an apology." The feather flicked into the air and fluttered back into a wing.

"Hawks!"

Izuku almost jumped at the bellow from Death Arms.

Hawks just turned lazily, raising a hand in response. "Yo."

"We need you to sign some paperwork."

"Aw, shite." Hawks sagged. "Story of my life."

Izuku sniggered. He was clapped over the back of the head for it.

0000

Rilo had her mouth covered in an overly dramatic manner as Inko stood beside her, hands planted on her hips, glaring at them both on the Midoriya apartment balcony. They didn't look that bad, did they? Keigo pulled at his gym hoodie, smudged with car grease, a lot of blood and suspicious yellow stains. Izuku had torn up his track pants crawling through the car's interior, and someone was going to need to check his knees for glass shards. Both of them probably should have gone to the hospital—

However—

Neither of them where really that way inclined.

Which was possibly going to prove a problem in the future.

"Well?" Inko tapped a foot on the floor. "Explain to me why you're both two hours late for dinner, and why your clothes are filthy and you're bleeding—everywhere."

Now that was a bit of an over exaggeration. They weren't bleeding everywhere. Just, a little bit, on the balcony. Dripping here and there.

"Um." Izuku shuffled. He ducked under Keigo's wing. "You can tell her, nii-san."

Keigo pointed to himself. "You're abandoning me during my darkest hour. How cruel of you."

"Hawks." Inko nursed her head.

"Mum." Keigo arched an eyebrow. "We got a little caught up in traffic. It was nothing major."

From Rilo's expression, she thought it was rather major.

"Babe, this blood isn't mine," he assured.

She relaxed a little.

"You could have at least messaged." Inko sighed.

"We were a bit busy." Keigo waved Izuku inside. "You'd be proud of Izuku, he performed very well, helped me get some kids out of a car, and hand them to the paramedics."

"Paramedics? Kids?" Inko sucked in a sharp breath.

Yagi appeared at the kitchen doorway, leaning on it wearily. "They were attending a scene of a traffic accident, Inko."

Keigo noted Rilo's stiffening reaction to the gaunt man that was her idol. There had been no easy way to tell her—no easy way to ease her into it—especially not after everything Floral had dumped on them both the other night. He'd had no choice but to present her with the raw truth behind why he'd contacted All-Might in the first place—what secret he'd known—that All-Might's flame was flickering out.

She'd just cried herself hoarse in Yagi's arms, and he'd left them, trusting the man to handle her fragile emotional state. He wondered if it had been the first time that Yagi had really been forced to comfort a life-long fan about his condition.

What would he do, if he permanently lost his wings?

That was kind of the same, right?

"Listening to the police scanner?" Keigo asked the elder hero.

Yagi nodded. "I almost went out, then I heard you were there."

Keigo dumped his boots by the doors. "It was fine. Izuku and I managed to down-grade it from an indigo to violet. It was more just trying to the cut the driver out, and Izuku had to figure out how to get the kids free."

Izuku rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"Which is why he's a bit cut up, Mum." Keigo offered. "There was a lot of glass, and he's still not got a proper costume. Sorry about that."

The kid still didn't have an apprenticeship licence yet either, that hadn't made Death Arms happy in the slightest. Sometimes, Keigo was really glad he had been trained in negotiation tactics, it just came in handy everywhere.

If the Madam kept dragging her feet with the licence though, he'd have to—

He'd have to go and pester her.

That was an awful thought.

Inko shook her head, brushing at Izuku's hair. "No, no. It's fine. Well, it's awful you had to attend an accident scene, but I am glad you were both there to help."

Shrugging out of his torn hoodie, Keigo stumbled as Rilo grabbed his arm.

"You are hurt."

"What?" he glanced at the cut on his arm. "Oh, that…it's fine."

"It's a giant, bloody gash."

"Just spit on it."

"It needs stitches." She shook him. "We need to go to the hospital, like, right now."

Keigo pulled out a strip of Medusa's linin, slapping it over the gash. "There, fixed."

Rilo covered her face, groaning. "Why do I put up with you."

"Because of my handsome face. Now, I'm starving. Please tell me there is still food and Dad didn't eat it all."

Inko pointed to the corridor. "Izuku, go and change. Yagi, try and find clothes for Hawks. We're not having a family meal with the boys covered in oil and…other…things."

Yagi chuckled, heading out after Izuku.

Keigo whistled after him. "Have you moved in, Dad."

Yagi's head poked back through the door, smiling. "No. Just my clothes have."

"No, see, that's how it starts." Rilo countered. "Some giant goose leaves his jacket on your couch, and then, poof, you're married."

Keigo grinned, wrapping his arms around Rilo. "Cause I'm awesome."

Inko waved dismissively. "Yagi is a little more cautious—"

"I don't want to know!" Izuku's shout echoed through the apartment. "Stop talking, everyone."

"Oh, yeah, he's taking this super well." Keigo quipped.

Rilo clapped him over the back of the head.

00000

Missing bit here.

00000

Upon learning from Mum that Rilo was no longer seeing Recovery Girl for treatments, Izuku had immediately panicked—

He'd panicked about the wrong thing.

He'd panicked that Hawks and Rilo would no longer be visiting on the weekends. He'd become so used to their presence in his life, that, the sudden fear of their absence had thrown him.

Talking the whole thing over with Eijiro at the beach, he realised he should have really panicked about why they weren't seeing Recovery Girl anymore, that was the more important thing, and it explained the change in Hawks' recent behaviour.

Eijiro had no idea that the brother he talked about was the Wing Hero, Hawks. Nor did Eijiro know that the 'new man' his Mum was involved with was The Symbol of Peace, and now that All-Might was even working on trying to figure out how to legally make Rilo his daughter, they were stepping closer to being that little fabricated family they were pretending to be.

What confused him was the reality of it all—

Was it real—

Or fake—

It's not like they were actually a family—

It's not like that was real—

It was a cover story—

Wasn't it?

But—

According to his Mum, Hawks didn't know what All-Might was doing—so he was forbidden from talking about it. Which—felt weird—but also kind of awesome, having a secret from Hawks.

All-Might was being extremely guarded about his work, which was why he did most of it over at their apartment, in his gaunt form. Sometimes he'd sit with All-Might and try to understand the complicated government forms, but a lot of them were in several different languages. All-Might had been a world traveller, despite their world being so disjointed after the Upheavals, which, All-Might said, really worked in their favour for the big idea he had.

"Er…no…we're still coming for your training, Baby Birdie." Hawks sounded monumentally confused over the phone. Izuku slumped against an old, rusted out refrigerator, half-buried in the sand. He and Eijiro had been working for a good hour to get it out and Eijiro had finally decided to run off and get them cold drinks. It'd given him a moment to call Hawks and blurt out his worries.

"We're on our way, right now."

"Oh…you are…" Izuku breathed out in relief.

"Yep." Hawks assured.

"Are you staying at my place again."

"Ah, probably not tonight, kiddo. It's a bit hard to be intimate in the living room, if you catch my drift."

Izuku dropped his head to one side, smiling in amusement at Rilo protesting. It was softer over the microphone, but he could just make it out.

"Stop traumatizing him, Hawks. He's innocent, and pure hearted and you're a goose."

"He's not stupid, Rilo. Nor is he as innocent and sweet as you think—Fuck, stop, stop doing that, I'm flying. Stop it. Rilo."

Yeah. So, she was most likely tickling him somewhere really inappropriate right about now, since he could hear the laughter in both their voices. It might be best he wrap-up the conversation before it became so awkward that he couldn't look at Rilo again without blushing crimson.

"Thanks for coming, Hawks."

"Rilo and I need the change of scenery too, Baby Birdie, and besides, can't just drop your training when you're doing so well."

He shuffled uncomfortably in the sand.

"I can just feel your habit of getting all fidgety and nervous from complements."

"I'm working on it." Izuku snapped up.

"I know you are. You're doing good. We'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay, have a safe flight." Izuku lowered his headphones.

Eijiro jogged up to him, carrying a bag. "Who was that?"

"My brother." Izuku tucked his mobile away. "I was just ringing to check if he and my sister were still coming by tomorrow."

"Ohhhh." Eijiro nodded. "Cool. Cool. They coming?"

Izuku nodded, taking the drink Eijiro offered him. He smiled at the branding on it—right—of course Eijiro found him an All-Might branded cola. It probably cost more to buy than just a standard one. Eijiro grinned at him noticing it.

"You didn't have to…" Izuku murmured.

"But I wanted too." Eijiro nudged him.

Maybe that's what Hawks meant too. Maybe he and Rilo just wanted to come—maybe—maybe it just made them happy, like an All-Might branded cola. And maybe being happy was what they needed right now.

0000

They'd made the joint decision to take a week to reset.

Just one week.

One week to ignore the fear invading their lives. A week in which he didn't have to think about trying to do anything about the situation, a week to just—

Live—breathe—pause—

And now that week was ending, and anxiety was balling up tight in his gut.

This was new.

Keigo had not felt this in a long—long time.

The young woman walking beside him, tossing her bare feet through the shallows of the ocean had truly made him feel things he'd thought long holed up inside. It wasn't a bad thing—but—it did hurt, and that, that was taking some getting used to.

Rilo had her veil hooked around her knees, and it was hilarious. She really did look like an alien jellyfish as she bounced around, making the water sparkle, even with her dimming glow. Each day, the shine she emitted was fading, just a little bit. It might not have been obvious to most—it might not have been obvious to her yet—but he was wholly aware of it.

Her light was going out.

She dashed past him, laughing as water flicked everywhere. He smiled. Making her happy was very simple. She tended to find joy in the most mundane of things. There were a few other late-night walkers out, and her actions were drawing attention, and he was very aware that due to the recent articles printed about, interest had been peaked.

Only—how could he use this—

No—

Wait—

He wasn't supposed to be thinking about any of that.

Keigo sighed.

Rilo's gloved hand brushed his arm. "Having trouble turning off?"

"It's constant," he bemoaned.

"How about we cuddle tonight. You always switch off then." Her fingers gently brushed his arm and his wings ruffled at the static charge. The warm backlit glow in her eyes promised so much peace. She was a siren of old, an allure into the quiet depths of the ocean, where nothing—not even pain—could touch him.

And how he wished he could drown.

But they'd immediately stopped sleeping naked together, the day after Floral's little tirade. It was highly possible the added strain of his quirk drawing on hers was degrading the mod at a much faster rate. They simply did not know, and there was no way to know. It wasn't like he had a manual, or a history book, or oral family traditions to rely on in this situation. This was entirely instinctual. It was becoming quite apparent that they were probably the first couple in their quirk categories to meet and pair up. He was going to have to write the book on this one—

If they survived.

"I am very tempted. I feel like I'm back to how I used to be…" he sighed, dragging a hand through his hair. "And my knees hurt."

She giggled.

"Don't be mean."

She brushed his cheeks. "I'm so glad…that…well…we actually had something."

"We'll have it again. This is just a…hm…temporary detour. Of which, I expect there will probably be a few."

"Wait. Are we talking about things?" Rilo paused in their walk.

"Oh, we are." Keigo halted beside her. "Damnit."

Rilo groaned. "Okay, we need to come up with other stuff to talk about."

He laughed. "I'm pretty sure we have discussed everything this week. I now know all about how horrible tea is and why it is a deadly poison, never to be consumed."

"Oh shut up. Tea is a respectable drink, unlike coffee."

"Coffee is refined."

"Tea is refined."

"No, tea is sophisticated."

"Right, and you're basically allergic to anything sophisticated. I keep forgetting." Rilo tackled him around the middle, and he stepped back.

"Oie, oie, no tickling under the wings."

"I can, and I will." She did not pull away. She was trying very hard to squish him, and he almost wanted to commend her for the effort.

"Do you want me to nibble your breasts?"

He couldn't see her features well beneath the veil, but he could see well enough to know she was pouting as her cheeks lit up neon pink.

"Okay, I'll take that as a yes."

Rilo squeaked, dashing away, her bare feet kicking up both water and sand from the shallows. He watched her go with a grin. Ah, teasing was just too much fun. He lazily followed her footprints as the soft waves inked eerie patterns over the sand. He'd never thought that he'd be able to appreciate the simple, slow pleasure of walking barefoot in the shallows.

And now—

Now he wanted to crystalize it, and hold it, so it could remain clear in his mind forever. So that when whatever horrors were fast approaching, he could cling to the happiness tight in his chest right now, and know that it was possible, and it would be possible again.

He knew All-Might was up to something. Secrets weren't secrets around him. People acted differently when they were trying not to say, or show, something—

But he left it hanging.

Whatever it was, if it was important enough to warrant talking about, he trusted the man enough by now, that the information would be shared, and if it wasn't—there would be an important reason why.

Things were going to escalate.

Just how fast, he really couldn't say, but they would, and he really couldn't tell yet if their probability of coming out the other side of that escalation was at all possible.

And so, they'd had a week of tossing caution to the wind.

Maybe they'd taken it a little bit far at the police station—but—

"You're thinking about it all again." Rilo splashed him.

He startled, wings spraying out behind him.

"Fuck."

She laughed. "Oh, did I actually surprise you?"

"No." He abolished. Because of course she hadn't—pff—he was never surprised by anything, especially not her. Ridiculous.

"Ohhhhh. I did. I totally did." She teased, swinging back and forth.

He pointed to himself. "My mouth, your breasts."

"Gah. You are insufferable." She spun about, stomping into the water. "Can't believe Hawks is a boobs guy."

"No, no, I like your arse just as much. I am a man of equality."

She snorted a laugh. "My gosh, you just have an answer for everything, don't you."

"I do try." He wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close.

She leant into him and he took her weight, feeling the trembling in her limbs. She was pushing herself to run, to dance around in the water—she was probably forcing out the smile—there was a level of bravery in it all, he supposed, but he was also very aware there was a level of denial they were both hitting.

"So, do you actually have a hotel for tonight?" Rilo asked. "We're not camping out on the beach, are we?"

"Oh, that does sound fun." He bounced in the shallows. "We should do that when the weather warms up in summer. You can wear a bikini."

"Beach holiday." Rilo splashed at him. "You've promised it now, we must do it."

He caught her, twirling her about. "I promise."

By summer—

This whole ordeal would be sorted.

By summer—

She'd be free—

By summer—

They'd be able to dance in the shallows, together, without her veil.

Their love wouldn't be half-way, somewhere-stuck-in-between.

"So, hotel? You didn't forget, did you? Oh my gosh, Keigo, you forgot, didn't you."

"No, I didn't." He kicked water at her. "Stop fretting."

"How can I not, you've been in an off mood, all week."

"Hm." He tipped his head back to gaze at the glint of stars against the darkening sky. It was a pity there was so much light pollution from the city, he missed the magnificent emptiness of just flying solo at night across the Pacific, where there was nothing but dark ocean reflecting starry sky in an endless void.

Carefully he folded her veil back, revealing her shimmering glow and she hesitantly glanced around.

"Keigo…"

"It's fine," he murmured. "No one is around right now."

He lifted her free of the water, and her legs encircled his waist. Her hands automatically found themselves tangled up in his hair and he smiled up at her.

"Kiss me," he requested.

She went bright pink, from her cheeks, all the way down her neck and undoubtably to her belly button. Ever so slowly her hand slid down to cup his cheeks. The glow behind her florescent eyes brightened. She took her time with her kisses, always so soft, sometimes melting like cotton candy. Every touch was deliberately tender, making the very tips of his wings twitch.

She giggled against his mouth, pulling away. She tugged out his feather from beneath her shirt. "Always know when you're happy." She gently stroked the feather, and he curled his toes into the wet sand.

She flopped backwards, forcing him to catch her before they both toppled over. "I can't believe I let you talk me into putting a feather down my pants."

"It's not going down your pants. Don't be so dramatic." He heaved her up, spinning them about. "Though, you're most welcome to stuff it down there if you want. I will not complain."

"Maybe I will, and distract you, just to make you suffer."

"What terrible suffering it will be."

They stared at each other for a moment before erupting into laughter. She folded herself around him as their amusement died down, and her soft, fluttering touches once more skimmed beneath his jacket as she drew him into another tantalizingly silken kiss.

"Keigo, I love you," she whispered.

"I know." He pressed their foreheads together. "You are the most wonderful thing that's ever happened to me, and I will never stop telling you that."

She hugged him, once again seemingly attempting to squeeze him for all she was worth. He closed his eyes, focusing on her heartbeat.

"Keigo…what about—"

"No." He pulled away, shaking his head. "Not until Monday."

She struggled against her tears. "Monday." She nodded.

He untangled her legs by slapping them and flipped her around to tuck up tightly against his chest. "Come on. Let's find a bed."

She narrowed her eyes at him.

"What do you mean, find a bed? You did rent a room, right?"

He waved a hand about in a so-so motion.

"Keigo!"

"Oh, please. I'm a hero. We can walk into a hotel and get a room, babe. That is not going to be a problem."

She sucked in a sharp breath. "You are abusing your hero status."

"Yes." He grinned. "Yes, I am, because my lazy arse cannot be bother ringing ahead."

Rilo rolled her eyes. "Right, well, I see I'm going to be the one doing all the organizing of things in the future if I want anything to happen."

"No, no, I did pick out the hotel to crash at."

"Ohhh, oh, that makes all the difference." Her level of sarcasm was peak perfection. It dripped off her tone as she hung in his arms, looking huffed and annoyed and so very—very delectable.

"Well, yes, it does, because it's a beach front hotel." He motioned ahead, to a line of buildings lit up against the night.

Rilo squinted at the distance. "That's why we've been walking along the beach, and here I thought you were being a smudge bit romantic."

Keigo laughed. "There is romantic, and then there is practical romantic."

"You're a goose."

He held her tightly as he braced for launch. "Your endearment will be noted in the flight logs."

0000

Hawks had met him for his ten-kilometre run Saturday morning. Izuku hadn't ever considered the thought that Hawks could run—well—of course he could—it'd be silly to think Hawks couldn't run, but it just seemed sort of weird.

Right?

Why would an aviator run, when they could fly.

But before the crack of dawn, Hawks had met him outside the apartment building, ready and waiting, so, he took Hawks on his usual route to the park and that's where they now were, having an early morning training session.

And he was getting completely pummelled, over and over. Hawks was being relentless, barely giving him a moment to breathe.

Izuku surged up again, scraping through the damp grass to tear towards the man, aiming to kick out his unprotected legs. He barely made it two steps before Hawks grabbed him around the back, twisted his arm up and around and smacked him back into the grass.

Golden eyes stared down at him. "See, the best way to end a fight, is for it to never start."

Izuku groaned. "I…I know…but…what about villains with quirks that—"

"The world doesn't just consist of mega-villains, baby birdie." Hawks crouched. "I spend a considerable amount of my time dealing with domestic disputes, or quirk abuse, and worse, with the high esteemed members of our society. Villains aren't just all flashy nasties who rob convenience stores, or go wild on the subway, or true monsters like the ManKiller that Mirko is currently hunting."

Izuku made a face at the mention of the current terrifying villain haunting the streets and nightmares of all. ManKiller. Even All-Might had started keeping track of their movements, just encase—he said—just encase.

"Villains can simply be the sleazy arseholes who use their quirks to rape, abuse, stalk, steal, kidnap mundane kids, and some can even get away with running our country while doing all these things."

Izuku struggled as he was driven further into the damp ground.

"What are you going to do, Izuku, when you're confronted with the overwhelming darkness behind the curtain?"

Izuku fought back tears.

"Will you turn your back—"

"No." He choked out. "No!"

"Then what?"

"I'll kill it." He twisted violently, ripping free one of Hawks' feathers and bringing it up to the man's neck. Blood dripped onto his cheeks, mixing with his tears. Hawks slowly smiled, a look of pure pride shining in his warm, gold eyes.

"Well done."

"Oh, no, no, no, I am so, so sorry." Izuku squeaked in horror.

"You know, it's adorable how you apologise." Hawks floated up with a gentle push of his wings. His hand slipped to his neck, cupping the blood leaking onto his collar bone.

"Now that was impressive, kiddo. You know, most folk don't go for my feathers."

"Oh, um…well, I guess most people haven't had the opportunity to touch and interact with them…like…I have." Izuku blurted out. "But I figured out the timing it takes for you to realise when one of them is disconnected from the swarm and for it to reconnect is about two seconds."

Hawks stared at him, golden eyes unblinking and wide.

"It's just enough time to be reckless." Izuku held up his bloodied, sliced hand, and the small feather stuck to the wound.

"Baby Birdie, you are going to make an incredible hero." Hawks crouched in front of him. "But, how about working on not almost slicing off your fingers."

"That's why I went for one of the inside feathers. See, I noticed whenever we play fight, or when I hide under your wings, that the smaller ones are…like…super fluffy. They also don't get as sharp when you activate them. I presume that's because they're still growing feathers."

Hawks' slapped Izuku's cheeks. "Your observation skills are terrifying."

"So…um…did I…did I win?" Izuku stared at his bloodied hand, and the feather stuck in the blood. Hawks was sorting through his emergency medical kit, that he always had on him, no matter where he went. He tugged out a wad of linin and a small tub of cream. Izuku flinched as Hawks carefully pealed the feather away.

"Floral is going to hate me…" Hawks held up the bloodied feather. "Getting her to do another pendant. Ah well. Keeping her skills pro."

Izuku's chest swelled. "Wait, do you…do you mean I get a feather pendant, just like Rilo's!?" He bounced. Hawks grabbed his arm, keeping him stable as he worked on his hand.

"You drew blood, kiddo. In my world, yes, you won."

Izuku blinked, looking back down at Hawks and the blood still leaking from the slice on his neck.

"Oh. Um. Sorry."

"Don't apologise." Hawks ruffled his hair. "You did very well."

"But I could have…couldn't I have really hurt you?"

Hawks arched an eyebrow as he slapped a piece of linin on his neck, sort of awkwardly sealing the cut. "When I was your age, I sliced the arm off my first teacher. This was someone who'd been teaching me since I was about eight. I wouldn't say I liked them, wasn't that type of relationship, but, they were nice to me. They didn't treat me like property."

Izuku swallowed.

Hawks sighed, his eyes shifting to the sky. It was just beginning to grow light.

"The pride and happiness I saw in their face that day was something I will never forget."

"But you cut off their arm."

Hawks just continued. "The next day, Madam President took me down to the training yard, and had me remove my teacher's head." Hawks stood to his feet. "It does not take much force for my feathers to slice through flesh and bone, this was something I had to learn to tamper."

Izuku stared down at his bandaged-up hand. "So, what you're saying is you're tampering your feather's whenever you're in a fight, and even when you're with me."

"Depends on the situation, really. Sometimes these things are instinctual. My quirk would be far less likely to harm you, as I'd have hoped we'd of established some familial bond by now. I like to think that our quirks are our natural, truly evolved state—or some shite like that—revealing itself in a physical manifestation."

Izuku nodded slowly.

"But…I'll be given a quirk…"

"Which makes this whole thing very fascinating." Hawks smiled. "And I'm rather looking forward to seeing how you influence the physical manifestation of the quirk passed on to you."

"My brain hurts." Izuku grumbled.

"My knees hurt." Hawks glanced down at his legs.

"Your knees always hurt." Izuku puffed out his cheeks. "You're like a grouchy old man about them."

Hawks tipped around. "I curse gravity. Fuck gravity."

"You know, I really thought I had you." Izuku piped up.

"You did." Hawks' hand settled on his head. "Izuku, my aim is to teach you, in that split second moment that you're taking a life—to decide if you need to do it or not, because that is the type of power we have, and it is a terrifying power."

Izuku nodded.

Hawks clapped his hands together. "Okay. I need coffee. Let's go jog to a coffee shop. Coffee. Coffee. Coffee." Hawks pulled out his mobile, bouncing happily away as he searched for the nearest coffee shop.

Izuku groaned, flopping his arms around. He should have known that by bringing Hawks, the ten-kilometre run would turn into something a lot longer.

"I thought your knees were hurting." He called out after Hawks.

"Oh, please. I have held up collapsing buildings on these knees. I think I can endure a little run."

000

Rilo stared out at the pouring rain. It was almost going sideways due to the fierceness of the wind that was ripping down the street. The day had been so beautiful. There had been no indication that a storm would sweep in. Keigo had even checked the weather before they left for Musutafu—like he always did—and while a front had been on the horizon, it had been at least a few days out.

Flying in a little bit of rain wasn't so bad. Sometimes it was rather nice, being all rugged up and huddled close to Keigo as he patiently cut through the rain clouds, guided by his senses and instincts. But he'd talked about the few times he'd flown in storms with great trepidation, it wasn't that he couldn't do it, it was more that it was difficult, dangerous and he rather wouldn't put himself in the position where he had to.

This was completely unexpected.

And now she and Inko were stuck at the shopping mall, staring despondently out at the storm through the glass doors. They'd both been having such a good time. She'd even managed to forget about the fact that she'd been going back to—

That place—

She was sure that was why Inko had suggested the trip, and why Keigo had handed her his card, slapped her arse and sent her out the front door. Rilo smiled, glancing down, through her veil, into the bag by her feet. She'd managed to find them. She and Inko had hunted through every merch store in the mall until they found the pair of fluffy Endeavour slippers. Inko had then insisted they all buy new sets of All-Might slippers, just for the hilarity of it. Rilo blinked—

Oh—

Oh no—

She quickly brushed at her eyes. She couldn't cry. Not now. It was okay. She was fine. Everything would be fine. She had to stay strong—

Keigo was dealing with so much, and she couldn't throw anymore more at him.

"Babe?"

She squeaked, and almost murdered Keigo with an elbow as she jerked around in surprise. She heard his warm, amused laughter as he caught her elbow in an easy, swift movement.

"Wow…okay…I am so sorry." Keigo gently pulled her, veil and all, towards him. "I did not mean to scare you."

He was soaking wet, indicating he had been out in the storm. She wanted to say something about his lack of personal care, but nothing came out, just relief as his arms folded around her. She pressed into his shoulder, squeezing in tightly against him and he rocked her gently.

"It's okay," he murmured. "We're going to be fine."

How had he known she was getting worried—

Oh—

His feather—

Of course. He'd have felt her anxiety notching up, all through the day.

His hands cupped her cheeks through the veil. "Tell me the truth, how bad is the pain?"

It was—liquid fire—trying to burn out from the mod's nodules, and every movement she made, only increased her awareness of the mod itself. It was almost to the point that she could feel the device shifting inside. Surely that wasn't happening—but it felt like it was.

How was she supposed to say any of this to him. Saying it out-loud made it real, and all she wanted, was for it all to be a nightmare.

"To be honest, Keigo, I don't actually know how to put it into words."

"That's fine." He gathered her up again. "You don't have too, then. I'll take a look when we get home."

He didn't mean—

That place—

He meant the Midoriya apartment.

Their world had shifted again, the axis turning, just enough that they both were tilted this time, clinging to something—anything—that felt solid, real, and not an illusion.

Rilo crinkled her nose, becoming aware of just how Keigo was holding her.

"Hawks…" she whispered. "We're in public."

"Ah, yeah, I am aware." He sounded amused.

"So, you do know where your hands are?"

"They're appropriately placed for a hero of my reputation greeting his mysteriously veiled lover."

She snickered. "You're enjoying this."

"Oh, so much. Got to have a bit of fun with the media, throw them a bone or two. I really hope someone is around to take a photo, just so my revenge on Bubbles can continue."

"You are never going to let that go, are you?" Rilo giggled.

He pulled away, holding her shoulders. "I had to wait a whole week, a whole week, Rilo, to take your shirt off."

"And now you get to do it all the time. So, don't you think Bubbles—"

"Nope." He took up her shopping bags, slinging them over a shoulder. "I will never forgive." He held out his hand. "Come on…"

"But…" she looked at the storm.

Keigo motioned with a tilt of his head, and she caught sight of Inko standing beside Yagi and Izuku. Izuku waved, bouncing up and down.

"Dad has a shitty van. You get to ride in it. Which, to be honest, is the better choice than what I get." He glanced at the storm outside. "To short a trip to aim above the clouds."

"You can't fit in the van?" Rilo worried.

Keigo shook his head. "It's fine, babe. Come on, let's get you home and warm. Apparently, Dad and I are on dinner duty tonight, so, that's going to be very interesting."

"Oh, no…" she groaned playfully. "We're going to die of food poisoning."

"Hey." He protested. "At least I am willing to work on my lack of culinary skills. I expect a 'best husband' shirt for my birthday, thank you very much."

She smiled, hugging his arm. "You're right. Thank you…"

"Always," he assured.

Authors Note:

For those who might be interested - there is a little one shot called "Just Coffee" over on my A03 page - set in this universe.
It didn't fit into the larger narrative of the story, but it was still a fun little thing to write, so I figured I'd post it.
I have a few little things like that I might keep posting up.