I don't think the basic central point of this chapter is going to be a surprise to anyone here, but hopefully you enjoy the added depth and feelings.

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Proofread by 3DPhantom

Chapter 53: Ingenium 2

The car turned into the hospital parking lot. The look on Tenya's face turned darker as soon as he saw the building and Izuku started regretting not bringing Hitoshi. He was better with emotional stuff. Izuku and Tenya got out. Izuku leaned in closer to the driver.

"After you take Todoroki to the other hospital, stay to wait for him and call me if anyone as much as thinks about him leaving the place any other way than in this car. If Endeavour, or anyone that might be connected to him shows up, don't even wait for that."

"I understand," the driver whispered back and closed the door. Izuku turned to face this hospital with Tenya, to focus on one issue at a time. He took a step forward, but Tenya didn't. Izuku stopped and half-turned to wait as his taller friend collected himself. He waited for as long as it took without a word until Tenya started walking.

Izuku followed as Tenya led them through the hospital. A nurse stopped them but escorted them to the room once Tenya explained why they were there. Tenya stopped at the door for a few seconds, then rushed in.

Tensei Ida, also known as the pro hero Ingenium, was laying on the bed, his stomach covered in some kind of band-aid and multiple cables connected to different parts of his body and running into devices all around the bed. His head turned, but he didn't raise it as Tenya and Izuku entered. The stare was tired, but he at least seemed to be in his full senses.

"How are you feeling?" Tenya whispered, like simply being too loud could have further hurt his brother.

"Couldn't sleep well, even with all the drugs."

"Have the doctors made any progress," Tenya asked, "so you can fully recover?"

Tensei slowly turned his head back and forth.

"They have investigated every option they can, even asked several quirk-based healers. Stain cut a piece off. Human body cannot heal something that is completely missing. I won't walk again."

Tenya collapsed by the bed, tears in his eyes. Only Izuku's training let him move fast enough to catch and support Tenya before he hurt his knees on the floor. Tensei moved his hand to Tenya's shoulder as Izuku settled him on the floor softly. Tensei's eyes rose to look at Izuku.

"So, you are Midoriya. I've meant to meet you for a long time. I should have made time before so we could meet under better circumstances."

"It is understandable. Your work isn't the most forgiving," Izuku responded.

"Wasn't. It's looking like my time as a hero has come to an end."

"So, no more Ingenium?" Izuku said. He still wasn't sure how to feel about that.

Tenya gasped next to them. Izuku knew exactly how he was feeling about that.

"No," Tensei said, "just no Tensei, right little T?"

"Don't say that," Tenya pleaded.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot do that. I spent hours with the doctors seeking solutions, but seems I will not walk again, let alone run. It's going to be a desk job for me from now on."

"What, what do you mean, just not you?" Izuku asked.

"Ingenium isn't merely a man inside the costume. Tenya can continue to carry the name." Tenya sniffed against the bed. "Once he is ready. It is not quite what he means when he says he wants to carry on the family name."

Izuku looked at his friend for a quiet moment.

"I should probably take this opportunity to thank you," Tensei said.

"Me, for what?"

"For being Tenya's friend. He's never been lonely exactly, but he can be a bit… stiff, for an average teen. He used to only talk about his studies and training and such when I asked how he was doing, until last year that is. At first, he mentioned this new classmate who didn't seem to care enough about the school, not the first such observation I might add. Then suddenly he was busy all weekends, refusing to schedule anything else at those times and even cancelled some things he had scheduled. He never does that you know. He talked more about things you did besides training and studying. Now that I think about it, I should have asked him to bring both of you. The last day has been a haze."

"Understandable."

"Well, I'm going to have more free time now so we can set something up."

He tried to chuckle but started gasping for air.

"There was an actual reason I asked for you. You should know Tenya has been a very reliable friend to you. He usually keeps no secrets within family, but only let us know about your quirk, the real one, just before you entered UA."

Izuku tensed as the topic he was worried about came up.

"I hate to admit, but that was probably the right choice. Mom and dad can be a bit… conservative sometimes. They tried telling Tenya he shouldn't spend time with you."

Izuku sighed, trying to keep from looking too angry or disappointed in front of the brothers. Then a thought hit.

"He went against his parents?"

"Yes, if you can believe it. It took a while before they quit trying to stop him. I had to talk them out of coming after you a couple of times."

"I have never heard of that."

"You already have to deal with too many people hating your quirk," Tenya said quietly, "and it is shameful. They are my family and… After how Hitoshi's parents reacted, I hoped it would go well. I haven't felt that ashamed in my life."

"Don't," Izuku said. "You should only feel shame for your own actions if there were any, not for someone else's."

Izuku wanted to say he should only feel shame for keeping this a secret, but that was a little too hypocritical even for him considering all he hid about his family and himself. He squeezed Tenya's shoulder.

"I don't care what your parents think, only what you do."

Tenya nodded quietly. Izuku moved his attention to Tensei.

"Now, can I ask why you brought this up? If it was only to show Tenya is reliable this was a waste of time. I already knew."

Tensei smiled. "No, that's not it. Tenya told me what happened with your other friend, and his father."

'Ah. So that's what's up…'

Tenya's head popped up.

"No. No, no, no…"

"Tenya, I won't be able to use it anymore either way. I want my quirk to help you, to continue being used by Ingenium, to save people."

"No," Tenya got up and backed several steps away from arm's reach, "I… I can't."

He turned around and left the room. Izuku looked after him, but did not try to stop him or chase after him. Tensei sighed.

"Maybe it was too soon."

"Probably," Izuku responded, still looking at the door. "It seems he is taking this worse than you, and that talk about your parents wouldn't have helped."

"Don't let appearances trick you. In my job, job so far, it is important to control my emotions, especially when making decisions. It doesn't mean I wouldn't spend a long time depressed for this, but it has to wait while there are things I need to do. I know Tenya has what it takes to be a great hero and… If I keep my quirk it isn't going to help anyone from a wheelchair, least of all me, but it might help him. Does that make sense?"

"Yes," Izuku said, "and I'm sure he knows that too, but that doesn't mean it is going to be easy for him. I'm no expert, but I think he feels accepting your quirk would mean accepting your… condition, or at least that it is permanent."

"Unfortunately, it seems it is, though aren't you able to also reverse the transfer if…"

"Yes. That doesn't mean he wouldn't still feel differently."

"Can you talk to him?"

"Any time he needs me to, but I won't tell him what he should do, not in a situation like this. If you want to convince him, you have to do it yourself."

"Thank you," Tensei paused. "How about you? I didn't yet ask if…"

"I'll do it," Izuku said, "if Tenya chooses to go through with it. That was never in doubt. I have wanted to find him a second quirk since T… Hitoshi got one from his father."

Izuku looked at the open door for a moment.

"I should go find him. He shouldn't sulk in the darkness of this shadow too long."

"What?"

"Nothing. I'll go find him."

It could be a challenge in such a large hospital. As he walked through the corridor he had to walk past a few patients. Some stared at him from the beginning, most only glanced at him, then took a double take.

"Is that… the kid from the sports festival?" Someone whispered.

"He looks like him, the one they called the Quirk Stealer."

"I wonder what he did to Endeavour's son. Is it safe to have him here? He looks dangerous."

Izuku stopped and looked over his shoulder. He wasn't really in the mood for this.

"I have ears you know." The patient and nurse tensed, staring at him with wide eyes. "Did you see a guy taller than me with blue hair come through here in the past few minutes?"

"Blue hair," the nurse said, "oh you mean Ingenium's brother."

"His name is Tenya. Did you see where he went?"

"Yeah," the patient said. "Not sure if we should tell though. What do you want with him?"

Izuku stared at the patient and his eyes narrowed.

"To talk to him, not that it is any of your business, and in case you are wondering we came here in the same car, and yes he still has his quirk."

"He went to the balcony at the end of the corridor," the nurse said. She spoke so quickly Izuku wasn't sure if she tried to de-escalate what the stupid patient was doing or was just terrified of Izuku.

"Thank you," Izuku said as politely as he could muster, scowled at the patient one more time, and kept walking. He saw Tenya outside through the window, leaning on the railing, head down. Izuku pushed open the door and stopped for a few seconds to make sure Tenya had noticed him before moving closer.

Izuku stood against the railing next to him without a word. Sometimes people just needed a friendly presence to feel much better. Izuku of all people knew that from experience. He looked forward at the hospital parking lot and focused on listening to the sound of Tenya's breathing. They stood there for a long time. Only the slowing of Tenya's breathing warned Izuku the time was approaching.

"I can't do it," Tenya whispered. "You can't convince me otherwise."

"I'm not going to try," Izuku responded.

"Really?" Tenya shifted next to Izuku.

"Really. If it happens it has to be your choice, or at least something the two of you agree on. Otherwise the quirk will only be a burden on you."

"If I accept the quirk, it will be the end of Tensei being a hero."

"No," Izuku said. He turned and pulled on Tenya's arm until they were standing face to face. "The injury might end his ability to do the work of a pro hero, but that doesn't make him less of a hero. Whether he has his quirk or not doesn't change that. It would only change how many people you can help as a hero, which would be more than he can now whether he has the quirk or not. That seems to be what your brother really wants."

There were still tears glinting in Tenya's eyes as his legs struggled to keep him up. Izuku let him lean against himself. It wasn't quite ideal with their height difference, but they both preferred Tenya leaning on Izuku rather than on the cold railing. Izuku reached a hand around to put it on Tenya's back.

There was another long moment of silence. Despite the tears falling on him Izuku felt strangely warm inside. He didn't even want to disrupt the moment to chase away the nurses and patients staring from the inside.

Eventually he decided Tenya was calm enough again. "You should really go back to your brother. He's worried."

Tenya leaned away from Izuku, standing more steady again. "Yes, I am sorry."

"Don't be. If I was in your position, you would need to tie me down. Compared to that, needing a moment to calm down is nothing."

Tenya looked at Izuku for a long moment. He wasn't fully crying anymore, and his gaze was mostly just thoughtful, if also a little cold. Izuku gestured towards the door. As Tenya moved back inside Izuku followed, basically glued to his shoulder. The nurses and patients that had been staring scrambled to pretend they hadn't. A couple tried to hide their phones, but Izuku couldn't do anything about those without causing a scene that was more trouble than it was worth. At least no one dared to comment anything as they walked back. Izuku stopped before Tensei's door.

"I think you need a moment alone with him."

"You think he is going to convince me to… to..."

Izuku sighed.

"He will probably try. Just remember, I will do whatever you choose and only what you choose. He can't change that. No one is going to force you into this."

"Thank you," Tenya said and reached for the doorhandle.

"What you choose," Izuku repeated, "you should also remember it doesn't have to be permanent. If you accept his quirk and he makes a miracle recovery tomorrow I can always transfer it back and buy you another quirk."

That achieved the impossible. Despite their overall situation, Tenya's lips twitched up in a brief smile as he shook his head.

"So, one quirk was never an option," he sighed.

"Not if you are planning on a dangerous career like being a hero," Izuku said in a voice that indicated it was one thing Tenya would not get to choose. "Go talk to him. If anyone tries to interrupt, I'll scare them away. I seem to be good at that."

Izuku glanced down the corridor with people still looking at them. Shaking the boat at the sports festival did have its price.

After Tenya entered Izuku leaned his back against the wall next to the door. He appeared to look at the floor, ignoring what happened around, but there was an invisible line around him and the door none should cross and people who walked past seemed to sense it, stepping consistently to the opposite side of the corridor if they came too close.

If Izuku hadn't met Tenya and Hitoshi, he could have had a very successful career as a bouncer.

He could hear some words and even louder shouts from the inside, but blocked them out of his consciousness. No one else dared to stay close enough for long enough to listen, not for a good while anyway.

Someone came down the hallway and something about her direction was different. She walked straight towards him, towards Tensei's room. Izuku slid in front of the door, blocking the old woman in a white coat from entering.

"Excuse me. I am going to see my patient here."

"He's talking with his brother."

"And I, his doctor, need to talk with him."

Izuku glanced back at the door, but didn't move otherwise. The old doctor kept staring at him. It was like facing Recovery Girl. Did every old doctor lady have an intimidation quirk?

"Are you going to move, or do I need to call security?"

"Doctor," a nurse called from down the corridor, "You might not want to do this. He is…"

"I know who he is. I watch tv," she broke her stare with Izuku for the first time to redirect it at the nurse. "I also meet people with dangerous quirks every day. Most of them aren't stupid enough to use those in a hospital. Though most of them don't try to stop me from doing my job either." She returned her attention to Izuku with a pointed look.

He was now trying to decide if he was annoyed or actually liked this doctor, a little bit of both he concluded, perhaps leaning a bit towards liking her. It wasn't like she didn't have a reason to be angry. She moved forward, trying to squeeze past Izuku, but he shifted to the side to block her.

"Please," he asked, his voice shifting from demanding to pleading, "they need a moment."

The doctor huffed.

"I can understand that," she said in a voice that was suddenly calm and soft, relatively speaking, "but I have another ten patients that need a moment of my time after I'm done here."

Izuku pressed his lips together, then sighed. He raised his hand to knock on the door. It opened before he could. Tenya looked at him, then at the doctor. His eyes had signs of having shed more tears.

"Hi," Izuku broke the silence, "the doctor wants to see your brother."

"About five minutes ago," the doctor added.

Izuku didn't correct her exaggeration.

"Oh, that's good…" Tenya said quietly like his voice was failing him. "We wanted to ask her here, I mean you here doctor-sensei."

Tenya scurried away out of her way, bowing a little as he did. She nodded as she walked past.

"Finally, it is good to see at least some out of the younger generation know how to behave."

Izuku didn't comment, he simply followed her inside, pulling the door shut after them. She went straight to Tensei's bedside.

"So how are we feeling today?"

"Tired, but otherwise not worse than before."

"And what is it that you wanted to ask me here for?"

"Well, there is something I want to do, and it might be better if there was a doctor to monitor it. Maybe it would help my brother feel more at ease with it."

She scowled.

"And what is it that you want to do?"

"Give my quirk to my brother."

She stared at him for a long time, then seemed to have a realization and turned her head to stare at Izuku. Izuku responded in kind, but it wasn't the 'stay away' stare he had used before.

"You said you watched tv?" Izuku asked.

"Yes. I never expected to have a chance to monitor the process up close."

"So you have no issue with it?" Tenya asked. She blinked and turned to him.

"Hold on. I didn't say that. Your brother's body is still weak. Whatever," she glanced at Izuku again, "he does, it most certainly has a strain on both of you. Your quirk is a fundamental part of your body, especially with mutant-type quirks. I can barely conceive the idea that it could be transferred in the first place. There is no way to tell what kind of side effects doing so would have, especially on his already weak systems. There are no previous cases."

"Yes, there are," Tensei said, "two of them are standing next to you. Tenya's quirk is almost the same as mine and they have transferred it before without trouble."

She still seemed sceptical, but Izuku's concern was elsewhere.

"Tenya, is this what you want to do?"

Tenya nodded his head.

"Yes, only as long as he is too injured to work. Tensei wants his quirk to help people."

"Okay." Izuku stepped forward and pulled a nearby chair closer to stand between it and the bed. "Sit."

"What are you doing?" The doctor asked, frowning as Tenya sat.

"Making sure he doesn't fall during the process. It can be a little painful with the physical changes."

"Hold on, I didn't say you could do anything."

"No, but Tenya did."

Izuku put his hands on Tensei's and Tenya's heads.

"If you want to 'monitor the process' feel free to do so. Something will probably spike. You two try to relax and don't resist even if you instinctually want to. Don't pull against it."

Then he started. Tenya already knew to expect what was coming and Tensei was a pro hero already in pain. Both went through it with barely a sound despite being obviously in pain as their bodies started physically morphing. In his mind Izuku could hear Eijiro's voice say 'manly'. Some of the devices attached to Tensei started beeping louder. The doctor didn't say anything, but did rush to Tensei's side to check on him. Mostly she just seemed to stare. She was witnessing something she would have considered impossible not long ago.

Both Ida brothers sighed of relief as Izuku finished. He took his hands off them and looked at the doctor.

"So, how is he?"

"I… I cannot see any signs of anything out of place, nothing a momentary pain wouldn't explain."

"Can you run some checks on Tenya too? One quirk isn't usually too much, especially since they are so similar, but since the quirk changes his physical body..."

"Right away," she said, "I insist on it."

Someone knocked on the door and a nurse poked her head in.

"Is everything okay here? We detected some concerning changes in the monitors."

"Yes, at least I think things are," the old doctor rubbed her forehead. She pointed at Tenya. "I will, try to, explain later, but right now I need some tests taken from this young man.

"Right away."

They poked and prodded Tenya for a while as Izuku waited and chatted with Tensei about their training and Tensei's work. Of course, it was just Tensei's words, not some absolute truth, but after a while Izuku was at the very least giving the man the benefit of the doubt about being a genuine hero worth the title. Why Stain would go against him made no sense, or made sense but only if his ideology on heroes was even more extreme than Izuku thought.

On one hand, Ingenium as a pro hero with a decent quirk still served as a representation of how the society believed that the way a person is born would help them get ahead, but then, if taken too far, that idea was only judging him for how he was born, not what he did.

That extremity Izuku couldn't accept, and it wasn't like killing or crippling the man improved anything. With someone like Endeavour it might be worth it considering all he did behind the image of a hero, and All Might held up the whole rotten system. Attacking Ingenium who still had a clean public , seemingly deserved, as far as Izuku could see so far, only made him, as a pro hero, a martyr to be honoured.

Eventually it was time for Izuku and Tenya to leave. The doctor didn't find anything wrong with him and could do nothing else for now but wait for test results to get back to her. Tenya looked sadly back as they left Tensei's room, but besides that, rather than being hesitant to leave he seemed to be in a hurry as they walked out of the hospital.

"Tenya," Izuku called. "Tenya!"

The taller teen finally stopped.

"What's wrong? Did something happen with Tensei?"

"It's not that," Tenya said, not looking at Izuku. "He got a message. Our parents are coming."

"I see. They wouldn't take-" Izuku gestured at the new engine exhausts poking out of Tenya's arms "-very well, would they?"

"That is putting it lightly. I… I don't know how to…"

"I get it," Izuku said. "Seems Todoroki is just coming back. We can go to that park across the street to wait so you don't have to face your parents yet."

"I feel so ashamed," Tenya muttered.

"What did I say about feeling shame for what others do?"

"No, not that. If I don't meet our parents before they get to Tensei, he's the one who has to explain. He's still injured, he shouldn't…"

"Did he volunteer to do it?"

"Yes, but-"

"Then calm down. They are going to be more distressed that he's missing a quirk rather than you having a second one. If anything that and him still being hurt should make them go easier on him than they would with you. Not to mention he is already an adult."

"You aren't wrong."

"Come on, let's find a quieter place."

They sat at a small outside caffe in the park. Tenya mostly just stared at his untouched hot chocolate without saying a word. He absentmindedly scratched the new exhaust pipes coming out of his elbows.

"How are you feeling?" Izuku asked.

"I still think I should have stayed no matter how our parents would react."

"I meant physically."

"Oh. My arms itch."

"Not feeling ill or a headache?"

"I felt something with my head earlier, but now, no."

"Good, it is basically the same quirk so that shouldn't be surprising, but I'm glad it was so easy on you… I mean easy physically. Everything else, well…"

"I feel I want to do something, should do something," Tenya said. "He's just lying there, and all I have to look up to is another week of school."

"Don't forget the weekend," Izuku said, trying to give a comforting smile.

"That makes it more bearable, but it will just end with having to face my parents."

Izuku almost offered for Tenya to stay at his place longer to avoid that. In fact it was his first instinct at that moment, but the more sensible part of his brain caught his tongue before he could. It would not help Tenya's situation, and people already thought Izuku had kidnapped one so-called hero's son. Adding another one would look bad. He was already on the bad list of Endeavour, and Death Arms, and perhaps their partners, and if he wasn't on All Might's list the man was certainly on his. Adding more pro heroes, even those on the older side, wasn't a good idea.

"Hopefully they won't kick me out."

Then again, some sacrifices were worth it.

"Are you serious?" Izuku asked, dumfounded. Tenya nodded slowly as Izuku added more names on his list.

"They are very strict even about small things. We should always do everything right and make a good impression, show respect, but this whole thing with…" Tenya hesitated.

"Me and my quirk," Izuku finished the sentence.

"One thing they have always been concerned with is what kind of people we associate with. It is not unreasonable, to a point, but… At first they had no issue with you, a Soumei student from a wealthy family and with a nice fire quirk, what could go wrong? With Hitoshi, well it would have been even more difficult if we spent weekends at his place rather than yours. Now they are acting like I was meeting drug addicts on an alley or something like that."

"That tells me everything I need to know," Izuku muttered, then forced the anger out of his eyes, leaving mostly sadness. "I don't know what else to say."

"You don't need to say anything. It won't change them."

They stayed quiet for some time after that.

"I shouldn't be complaining about something like that like a kid when Tensei… How could someone do that? Someone has to stop him."

"You are talking about Stain," Izuku concluded, uncertain if that was an improvement on the previous discussion or not.

Tenya squeezed his shaking hands into fists as he stared at the table with increasing signs of anger. It was certainly not an improvement.

Izuku grabbed Tenya's wrist and squeezed hard enough to make Tenya stop. Their eyes met, Tenya's still moist and Izuku's worried but stern.

"Don't do anything stupid," Izuku said and paused. "Whatever you think I would do in your place, don't."

As Tenya kept looking at him his stare changed, became colder. It only lasted a few seconds before he turned his head away, but it was there.

"I… he crippled my brother. I cannot just do nothing."

"I didn't ask you to do nothing. I asked you to not do something stupid. I can see what you are thinking. I know those thoughts, those feelings. It wouldn't be just illegal, but also stupid, and if you ever found yourself against Stain, I fear… just… just, don't."

Izuku kept staring at Tenya whose face showed his words weren't getting through.

"Stain has already killed many pro heroes. You are the first one to talk about how experienced and skilled Tensei is. Could you honestly say you would beat your brother in a fight if he wasn't injured?"

Tenya waited for a long moment before answering.

"No," he sighed. "I have never beaten him unless he let me. How could I? He was already a pro hero when I was a little kid."

"Then you aren't ready for Stain. I'm sorry, but it's undeniably true. Please, I don't want you to end up on that hospital bed, and… I don't want to know what would happen if you did."

By the end Izuku was pleading with genuine fear in his voice, and not just for Tenya's safety. Perhaps he was being selfishly manipulative, but if it kept Tenya safe, he didn't care.

Tenya's shoulders slumped in surrender, at least for now. His hands relaxed, no longer squeezing his fingers like Stain's neck had been between them. Izuku put his own hand on top of Tenya's. If it worked on him, maybe it would work on Tenya.

It did work on Tenya. They stayed like that until Tenya moved one of his hands to take a sip of his drink. Izuku's phone beeped at the same time.

"Time to go," he said, typing on the phone. The car soon stopped on the other side of the park. Todoroki was sitting inside safe and sound, though he seemed to have his emotionless mask back on his face. He didn't say anything as Tenya and Izuku got into the car.

"Do you wish to go anywhere else before returning home?" The driver asked.

"No. Not until we go to the beach after lunch, if we go."

"Understood Midoriya-sama."

The drive was uneventful and quiet. Izuku focused on monitoring his companions' expressions but gained little. Tenya stared into empty air, Todoroki's mask was so fine tuned he could just as well have sat in math class, and Izuku was no Hitoshi with this stuff.

He glanced at the driver. Maybe it wasn't the best time to air their feelings anyway. The man was a loyal employee, but either he was nothing more than that or he was a spy for Izuku's father. Izuku brushed his fingers across his wrist; it felt strange with the familiar feeling of his watch missing.