The least Yagi Toshinori could've done for leaving the class under-protected at the USJ facility was send fucking flowers.
Aizawa was increasingly unimpressed by the Number 1 Hero the longer he was at UA. Knowing that Yagi was losing his ability to use his quirk, and that he had a time limit on how long he could maintain his All Might form did nothing to soothe Aizawa's ire — only inflame it. It was irresponsible for him to be touting around the way he did, under the pretense of maintaining the public's faith. Yagi spread himself paper thin, thoughtlessly, until he wasn't of any fucking use to anyone.
Someone needed to look out for the good of Class 1-A, and Aizawa did not entirely appreciate that the responsibility had fallen to him. His head, his heart, die not rest with the next generation of Heroes. He would rise to the occasion when the need was thrust upon him, but he did not prefer to extend himself in such a way.
"Yaoyorozu, what is one of the Articles regarding support companies?" he asked absently as he walked between the rows of desks.
He waited for her response, and when none came he turned to look at her seat. The girl was sitting there, eyes on her textbook, but the expression on her face was devoid of her usual intensive interest. Aizawa frowned as a low chuckle ripples through the class at her continued silence. He headed to where she sat, taking a pencil from behind his ear and tapping it loudly on the desk in front of her.
He heard the breath she sucked in, blinking fast as she sat up straight then turned to look up at him. A couple students laughed quietly at her expense.
"Yaoyorozu," he repeated, now that her full attention was back where it belonged. "What is one of the Articles regarding support companies?"
She hesitated, chewing on her lower lip before answering, "Support companies must be licensed by the government to create and maintain Hero support equipment."
She'd been zoned out further than he'd thought.
"Iida already said that, so I guess that confirms you weren't paying attention. What's another?"
He waited, looking down at her, and there was a moment as she stared back at him that a flicker of concern lit in the peripheral of his mind. It was a whisper of fear, and seeing it presented toward him left him confused.
The first thing that came to mind was the USJ incident, where the League of Villains had made their first move against Heroes. He wondered whether she was experiencing PTSD symptoms from the encounter, even though all reports of her actions at USJ showed she had demonstrated exemplary Hero behaviors when facing real villains for the first time.
Then he remembered it wasn't her first time.
She'd come face-to-face with his own men not too long ago. It'd been several weeks since her close encounter — long enough that it was no longer at the front of his mind, and he had returned to that comfortable space knowing his students had not recognized his presence. If they had, something would have come of it by now. But, to her, it must have been life altering, and for a moment he felt callous for having moved his life on past it when it might still be controlling her every move.
Her gaze had gone distant again as she looked up at him. His eyebrows slanted with concern, and he flicked the pencil in his hands, bouncing it off her desk again.
The girl flinched.
"Yaoyorozu, are you with us?"
"Hero gear can only be altered by the support companies," she offered at last, but his obligation of concern had already settled here.
"Good. Stay after the bell so I can talk to you."
He stayed at her desk as he asked the next question, tapping the pencil rhythmlessly as the other students offered their answers as he called on them, until Aizawa felt confident that Yaoyorozu's attention was staying within the limitations of the classroom and he walked away at last.
As the final minutes of class expired, as he announced the homework assignment, his gaze returned to Yaoyorozu — and he saw he'd lost her again. The other students were leaving, several glancing back at her and he heard a few muffled laughs as they made their way out the door. Todoroki seemed to linger, and Aizawa could see on his face that he was considering staying. That wouldn't do — if this was about what had happened several weeks ago, she would be less forthcoming about it with Todoroki present. Aizawa waved a hand at the boy, signaling for him to go, and Todoroki obliged — only to lean against the wall outside to wait as the door closed behind him.
Good enough.
He went back to Yaoyorozu and leaned against a desk; "Yaoyorozu." She still didn't look at him. He cleared his throat, to no response. Then, loudly, "Earth to Yaoyorozu."
She gasped loudly, jerking violently in her seat as she snapped back to it and slammed her textbook shut. Her eyes found him next — he left the pause rest as she looked around them and saw they were alone.
"I'm sorry."
At least she was sincere. He could read the mortified embarrassment plainly on her face.
"As your teacher I'm obligated to ask if something is wrong."
"I'm sorry," she said repeated. Then, less sincere, "I'm fine."
"I seldom hear that statement told honestly. You can tell me, or I can make contact with your parents."
The girl blanched openly at the suggestion, any hint of color draining completely from her face. If this was about USJ, bringing her parents in wouldn't have warranted such a strong reaction. His curiosity rose, certain now that this was about what happened with his men — and, interestingly, that her parents didn't know.
Why wouldn't she have told her parents? Shame? Fear? Aizawa didn't know how much she knew about her father's past in Yakuza. Was she worried about the possibility of her father getting his hands dirty to defend her honor if he knew?
"I really am fine," she insisted, "I've just been dwelling on what happened at USJ."
"Ah."
So she was going to lie to him. He wasn't surprised; he understood if a female student was reluctant to confide to a male teacher that they had nearly become a trafficking victim.
And he was a bad man, regardless of whether she knew it. He'd sat and watched the threat to her and the others unfold, even if he had intervened in the end.
It crossed his mind, briefly, that maybe she hadn't told her parents because she suspected him. For what good way was there to tell them she believed her Pro Hero teacher was a Yakuza Oyabun? None. Perhaps she was deflecting with a lie because she knew it had been him there that night, lauding over what happened — and she knew better than to let slip that she'd seen him. Could she have seen him? He didn't believe so. He didn't think she'd have been able to keep it together if she had recognized him that night.
"Are you reconsidering whether you want to be at UA?" he asked next, watching her intently, letting her lead with her chosen untruth.
"No, I'm not. Just that was my first encounter with real villains, and I feel like my ability was inadequate."
Lies. He wanted to point out that she'd had an experience with villains and had asked permission to leave class to file a police report on the matter. But it was better if he let sleeping dogs keep lying. She didn't want to detail to him what she'd been through. He would let her tell him what she thought he expected to hear.
"Tell me what happened to you in the Mountain Zone that day? I read the reports, but I think I should hear it from you."
She retold what the reports had detailed, and he listened with his ears open. Her eyes repeatedly went to his bandages arms and hands as she spoke — and he had to stifle the urge to tell her to stop. That he would be fine. That this was what he had been conditioned for over the years, and that while his experience against the League had been more than hers, he was always ready for what needed to be done.
"Like I said, I'm fine," she finished at last. "I really am. It was just so unexpected. Nowhere feels safe anymore, even at UA."
That he believed. The USJ incident had even raised doubts for him regarding the safety of the students. And what she said, nowhere felt safe…Being kidnapped off the street certainly would rob a teenage girl of her sense of security. Waking the next day to find her missing belongings back in her own home would exacerbate that, too. UA may have been the only haven she felt she had left after the night she'd faced his men, and the League of Villains had stolen that from her, too.
"Well, you don't need to worry about that," he reassured her. "UA is safe, and every teacher at this school would risk their lives to keep every student here safe, without concession."
"But they hurt you so badly," she whispered.
"I'll be fine. Another visit to Recovery Girl and I'll be as good as new. All you need to do right now is focus on the Sports Festival."
His own personal lie. She should be focusing on facing the trauma of what she'd experienced before it scarred her capabilities as a Hero before she even had the chance to be one. But he wasn't in the position to tell her that in response to the lies she'd told, so he wouldn't. Some things she would need to do for herself.
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Now get out of here before I have to write a note to Present Mic," he dismissed.
Aizawa watched, expressionless, as she gathered her things and headed for the door. Todoroki was still waiting, looking through the window, and he had to keep himself from rolling his eyes at the idea of Todoroki Shoto being young and in love with Yaoyorozu Momo.
On the surface it likely read as an ideal pairing: they both possessed significant quirks, over which they demonstrated aptitude and control. They had both entered UA based on recommendations. They were both reserved and quiet, more likely to think things through than to make rash decisions.
But, knowing what he did of both their families, Aizawa saw only disappointment if they pursued any future. While Yaoyorozu Asao might have left his duplicitous past behind, someone like Todoroki's father, Enji — the Number 2 Pro Hero, Endeavor — would have to have his suspicions, at minimum. Men like Yaoyorozu Asao, minor Heroes, didn't just pull themselves up by their bootstraps to that level of wealth. Furthermore, Todoroki Enji was known in Hero circles for his beliefs in quirk compatibility. For how astounding both Todoroki Shoto and Yaoyorozu Momo's quirks were, they were not a desirable combination. Watching as the door closed, blocking off Aizawa's view of the two chatting teenagers heading down the hall, he knew he was seeing a failure in the making. He only wished the pair would realize it for themselves before it was too late.