Knowing Izuku didn't want to see her was hard enough on Inko. After the disastrous conversation in which he made it plain that he didn't want her to visit him in the hospital, going to work like it was any other day was torture. She was friendly with a few of her coworkers, but there was little time to socialize, and she kept her pain to herself. What kind of mother was she that her son didn't even look to her for comfort after being attacked by a villain? How useless did that make her, when a mother was all she was?
She'd gotten home after dark and fallen into bed without making any dinner. Sleep was the only thing she could think of to dull the ache in her heart. Her phone was still on silent from work, but she doubted Izuku would need her in the middle of the night. All she could do was tell herself that she'd see him tomorrow. Once he was home she would do whatever she had to to make him feel better. She fell asleep mentally going over what she would need for katsudon, and trying not to cry.
She woke in the early hours of the morning to the sound of her phone buzzing insistently on the nightstand.
"Izuku?" she answered without looking at the caller ID. "Is that you?"
"No ma'am," said an unfamiliar voice. "This is Principal Nezu from UA. I've been trying to reach you for a few hours. I assume you haven't seen the news, but either way I think you'd better come down to the hospital for the full explanation."
"But Izuku's getting out today," Inko protested groggily. "He'll be coming home-" "Not that hospital," Principal Nezu corrected gently. "The hospital in Kamino Ward." "Has he been transferred?" Inko asked, sitting up a little. "Why? Is something wrong?"
"He hasn't been transferred," Principal Nezu told her. "He left the hospital without being discharged last night and was readmitted at the hospital in Kamino after being involved in an incident in that area."
"What?!" Inko demanded, nearly falling out of bed in her haste to get up. She fumbled to get her phone off the charger while keeping it to her ear, then ran to her dresser. "How did that happen?! What are you saying?!"
"I assure you Izuku is in perfect health," Principal Nezu said calmly. " Perfect health, as far as we can tell. However the full extent of what happened is complicated, and there are some gaps in the story I believe only you can fill. You'd better get to the hospital."
Inko promised to be there as soon as she could and hung up, then dressed hurriedly and ran out the door, hardly remembering to lock it behind her. The train ride was agonizing, and every stop seemed an inexcusable delay. She didn't usually take taxis when she could walk, but she didn't
want to waste another minute, and she burst into the hospital only a little over an hour from when she'd left the house.
"Emergency services are at another entrance ma'am," said the woman at the front desk.
"My son," Inko shook her head, nearly colliding with her desk in her haste, "he was admitted here last night! I need to see him, his name's Izuku Midoriya!"
"Oh you're his mother," said the receptionist in sudden understanding. "He's on the top floor, the hero ward."
Inko feared to speculate what the woman meant with the emphasis on his, as though Izuku were some bizarre case that everyone was talking about. Principal Nezu said he was in perfect health, right? How could that be a bad thing? The receptionist gave her a pass and she rode the elevator up to the top floor nearly vibrating with nerves. Why was he in the hero ward? Just because he was a hero student? Or for some other reason?
A nurse who also reacted to Izuku's name with wide-eyed recognition gave her directions, and she made briskly for the hallway where Izuku's room should be. As she approached the intersection of two hallways she heard voices speaking in urgent whispers, not raised too loud for a hospital but unmistakably having an argument. She had almost reached the turn of the hall when she heard her family name.
"Midoriya is not a child!" insisted a voice she didn't recognize, making her pause just out of sight. What did he mean by that?
"Young Midoriya is not an adult either!" came the reply, and Inko squeaked and hurried to hide behind the wall. She would know that voice anywhere. What was All Might doing here?
Carefully Inko peeked around the corner, to see two men standing in the middle of the hall, huddled close together so they could have their disagreement without disturbing anyone. The taller one was definitely All Might, unmistakable even in a yellow suit rather than his hero costume. The other was dressed like an office worker, a man with green and yellow hair and a tall, spindly frame. All Might had his back to Inko, but she could see the other man clearly. His eyes were wide and pleading behind his glasses, and he gestured with both hands as he spoke.
"He's old enough to make his own choices!" the spindly man argued. "He made the decision to go through with the plan himself!"
"Because you put the idea in his head!" All Might retorted. "If you had supported young Toogata and I, if you had told him he should ignore the message, there never would have been any question of his replying! He would never have gone against all of us!"
"You don't know that!" the spindly man protested. "He's stubborn, and willful! He wanted to do it!"
"And what about when you found out he'd done it?" All Might demanded. "Why didn't you tell me? Or Nezu? We could have prevented this!"
"There was no time to reverse the decision!" the spindly man insisted. "I didn't want to tell you because I knew it would just upset you! And if people found out you knew, think of the damage to your reputation!"
"If you knew that condoning the use of a first year hero student as bait for the most dangerous criminal in the world would ruin my reputation, you should have thought what it would do to
yours!" All Might hissed. "What you've done to young Midoriya is unforgivable!"
Inko froze. Had she heard that right? Had All Might just said Izuku had been used as . . . bait?
"I never thought it would come to this!" the spindly man shook his head in denial. "He was never meant to come face to face with All for One!"
"You knew it was a risk though!" All Might countered. "You knew that it might happen! You knew that if it did, young Midoriya would have no defense!"
"He seems to have done alright, even if I didn't have a plan for the eventuality," the spindly man hedged. "Surely you can't be dissatisfied with the outcome!"
"The outcome was no doing of yours!" All Might snapped. "You fed young Midoriya to the wolves! If he returned leading the pack that does not make your actions-"
"Excuse me," said Inko, stepping out from behind the corner.
Immediately both men turned to her, identical looks of shock on their faces. As soon as All Might laid eyes on her his expression went from surprise to distress, but the spindly man just seemed confused.
"I know you, All Might, from your public appearances," Inko said, walking calmly, carefully up to the two men. "I don't think I know your friend though."
"I'm Sir Nighteye, ma'am," said the spindly man, straightening his glasses. "Can I-"
"Well, Sir Nighteye," said Inko, coming to a stop standing right in front of him, between him and All Might. "I'm Inko Midoriya."
She didn't give him time to react. Instead she pulled back her fist and punched straight forward, as hard as she possibly could. He was too tall for her to hit him in the face, so she aimed for the stomach, and the hit landed with satisfying force. Sir Nighteye wheezed and curled around the hit, his knees bending slightly, and this put his groin at a reasonable height for Inko to grab both his arms and knee him in the balls.
"Izuku Midoriya's mother," she said savagely.
There was a cough from behind her which sounded oddly familiar. Leaving Sir Nighteye to stumble away clutching his family jewels Inko turned, only to shriek and step back. All Might was gone. Standing just where he had been standing, wearing the clothes that he had been wearing, was her friend Toshinori.
"What?!" she screamed.
"Inko please," said Toshinori, the corners of his mouth tilted up, lip quivering as he tried not to laugh. "We're in a hospital. You can't make so much noise."
"Who . . . what . . . how . . ." Inko couldn't settle on the question.
It was definitely Toshinori, her friend of the last few months, standing in front of her. He was definitely the one who had coughed: there was blood on his mouth and on the hand he'd used to cover it. Those were also definitely the clothes that All Might had just been wearing: Toshinori was swimming in them. His sunken eyes held all their usual pleasure at seeing her, mingled with the amusement from what she had just done. Inko couldn't begin to understand what was going on.
"Toshinori?" she asked uncertainly.
His expression turned somber. "Inko, please let me explain-" he began, but Sir Nighteye interrupted him.
"Toshinori!" he growled, and when Inko turned to look he was still hunched over a little. "We need to discuss-"
"You need to get out of this hospital," Toshinori cut him off, and though he didn't sound like All Might anymore the air of authority about him was undeniable. "If you want to plead your case do it to Nezu, and pray he has more sympathy than I do."
"But-" Sir Nighteye began. "Out!" Toshinori roared.
Sir Nighteye looked at him pleadingly for another few seconds, but finding no sympathy he straightened and walked awkwardly back the way Inko had come.
Inko turned to her friend.
"What's going on Toshinori?" she asked helplessly. "How are you here? Where's All Might? What happened to Izuku?"
"There's a lot to explain there," Toshinori said sheepishly. "I promise young Izuku is alright, despite how poorly he's been handled. I'll let him explain what happened in just a moment. As for All Might . . . well, you see . . ."
Toshinori looked pained, cringing from Inko as though he were afraid she might strike him as well. She wanted to comfort him, but she wanted answers more. Toshinori looked at the ground, then back at her, somehow seeming to look up at her from below, though he was a good two feet taller.
"I am All Might," he admitted softly.
"What?" Inko squeaked.
Suddenly Toshinori swelled, his body expanding like rising bread dough until All Might stood before her in all his glory. Inko shrieked again, and All Might collapsed back down in a puff of smoke, until Toshinori stood before her once more.
Inko put a hand over her heart. "You lied to me?"
"No!" Toshinori said, lunging forward to take Inko by the shoulders. "I never wanted to deceive you, I promise! It's just, well, people can't know about this. About me. My weakened body is a national secret, and I couldn't tell just anyone."
"So you just let me think you were some school official?" Inko realized. "You let me invite you into my home over and over, with no idea who you were? You let me ramble about my petty problems and told me it would be alright, knowing all the time that you were-"
"Inko please!" Toshinori said imploringly, his eyes wide and distressed. "I never intended for it to go so far! I was only meant to explain school proceedings to you, and then things escalated and I kept coming back and I didn't intend for you to-"
Inko threw herself at Toshinori, wrapping her arms around his middle and burying her face in his
chest. He released his grip on her arms, but then stood there frozen, neither reciprocating nor pushing her away.
"I'm not angry at you," she said, her voice muffled in his suit jacket. "You're not?" Toshinori croaked, without moving.
"No," Inko shook her head, rubbing her face on him. She thought this might have been all that was stopping her from crying. "Well, a little. I know it must have been difficult for you though."
"Unbelievably," Toshinori agreed, and now she felt his arms go around her in turn. "I wanted to tell you so many times, but it never seemed right. At first the risk was too great, and then I didn't want to frighten you, and then we had known each other too long and I didn't want to make things awkward."
"I just can't believe I spent the last few months pouring my heart out to my son's favorite hero over tea," Inko admitted.
"I don't know if I'm his favorite hero anymore," Toshinori said dryly. "He knows a lot more of them now, and I've failed him greatly."
Inko drew back to look Toshinori in the eye. "What happened?" she asked meaningfully.
"Young Izuku . . . made himself a target for a very powerful villain," Toshinori explained carefully. "He was encouraged in this action by a hero who he ought to have been able to trust, but was actually just using him. Then, when young Todoroki was abducted, that villain used him as bait to lure young Izuku out into the open. They fought and, by some miracle, young Izuku emerged the victor."
"How?" Inko asked incredulously.
"He stole the villain's quirk," Toshinori told her.
"But how? " she pressed. "Izuku doesn't have a quirk! How can he take a quirk from someone else?"
Toshinori hesitated. "I don't properly understand it myself," he admitted. "I think we should go see young Izuku. He's tried to explain a few times, but there are pieces he himself doesn't have. I believe you can fill in some of those blanks."
Inko nodded, and Toshinori took her hand and led her down the hall to a closed door. *
Izuku was pretty out of it for most of the night.
At first all he had was the facts: what needed to be done, who needed to be checked on, what information needed to be given to whom. He felt oddly separated from his body in that time, like he was controlling a character in a video game. He came back to himself by slow degrees, aided by a lot of hugs and also Mic rubbing at his arms like he knew perfectly well how cold Izuku felt. As always his teacher knew exactly what he needed. He was going to have to offer a better apology for their falling out later.
After explaining to the best of his abilities for his teachers, then the police, then Principal Nezu, Izuku was left to rest. He couldn't rest though, and he ended up just meditating on what had
happened. Most of it still felt like a dream. If he hadn't been able to feel all the quirks inside of him he might have thought it had been a dream.
The quirks were . . . weird.
He had often wondered what it would feel like to have a quirk: if it felt like a limb that could be moved like any other, or like the knowledge of a talent that yearned to be expressed, or like a sense that couldn't be experienced or explained for anyone but himself. As it happened it was a combination of all of them. More broadly though, it felt like a question. Each quirk inside him -- and there were many quirks inside him -- were constantly asking him what he wanted. Did he want to use them? How long would it be before he tried? How much could he use them? How far could he press them? What could they do for him? Each one clamored over the others, fighting for his attention, making his skin prickle and itch.
Pick me, pick me, pick me! they said, over and over again.
He flexed his fingers, looking down at his palms. As vividly as anything he felt their destructive potential, felt fire and wind and spear-like bones pressing at the inside of his skin. Hours ticked by as he stared, unable to sleep, feeling the power writhing just beneath his control. He knew he could control it, that wasn't the issue. The issue was how he was ever going to focus on anything else when all his attention as taken by what was going on inside him.
Use me, the quirks whispered to him. Pick me, use me, let me loose- The door to his hospital room came open.
"Izuku!" his mother cried, standing in the doorway with All Might in his skinny form, tears glistening at the corners of her eyes.
"Mom!" Izuku cried, realizing in horror that he hadn't even thought of calling her. "I'm so sorry, I-"
"My baby!" she sobbed, throwing herself across the room to lean over the bed and pull Izuku into her arms. "You're OK!"
"I'm fine," Izuku assured her, raising his arms to hug her back, then stopped.
He paused with his hands poised over her back, not sure he wanted to touch her. He felt five point contact quirks in his arsenal, itching at the pads of his fingertips. He didn't think they would activate if he touched her. It didn't feel like they would. But could he be sure?
"Izuku?" his mother asked anxiously, beginning to pull away. "Are you-"
"I'm fine!" Izuku repeated, grabbing onto her shirt and pulling her back down to him. No quirks activated, and she did not disappear. "I'm sorry. I'm fine."
They held each other for a few moments, his mother crying quietly, Izuku rubbing her back and making soothing noises. Then All Might cleared his throat, and the two of them pulled apart. His mother stood straight, wiping her eyes.
"Izuku, honey, what happened?" she asked as All Might came up to the bed, dragging a chair that had been near the door. She sank gratefully into it, and he stood beside her. "They said you snuck out of the hospital and fought a villain!"
"I did," Izuku admitted, looking away sheepishly. "That wasn't the plan, but that's what ended up
happening."
"What you did was very dangerous!" she said, grabbing his arm and shaking it. "It was completely unacceptable! You know that right?"
"I do know that," Izuku nodded. "I know it was risky and reckless and stupid, but I couldn't just not save Shouto. I'm sorry."
He peeked up at his mother, to find her looking at him in something like exasperation. He blinked, not sure where that had come from.
"It was Shouto, huh?" she asked pointedly.
"Hitoshi came with me!" Izuku defended.
His mother sighed, then reached out with both hands and cupped his face. "Allowances for youth and good friends," she said resignedly. "Don't ever do that again, you hear me?"
"Yes ma'am," Izuku nodded hurriedly.
"Tell me what happened then," she instructed, releasing him and folding her hands in her lap. "All Might said you stole the villain's quirk? How is that possible?"
Izuku bit his lip. He had told the people he'd given his explanation to about everything that had happened in the fight. Everything except All for One's dramatic reveal. He looked down at his hands, now resting on the bedclothes, and wondered how he was meant to ask the questions he needed to ask.
"Mom, I need you to answer a question for me," Izuku began carefully. "I need you to be honest. I know that there are some things you don't think I need to know, and some things you need to not talk about to spare my feelings. But I need to know this."
"What?" his mother asked. He had a feelings she had already guessed.
"Mom," he took a breath, trying to figure out how to say it. "Are you really married to my father?"
For a moment she just looked startled, staring at Izuku like he'd just asked her something crazy. Then her lower lip began to tremble. She glanced up at All Might, who placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. She sniffled, then looked down at her lap.
"No," she admitted. "I'm not." "What happened?" Izuku prompted.
Immediately she shook her head. "You don't need to know that," she said determinedly. "It's not important."
"Mom the villain said he was my father!" Izuku said earnestly.
His mother stared at him, horrified. "What?"
Izuku looked down. Now he was the one who couldn't face the conversation.
"He said I had siblings," he recounted, the memory burning like tears behind his eyes. "He said we were part of an experiment to evolve his quirk. That he picked women with simple quirks and he . . ."
Izuku trailed off. He couldn't remember the word that All for One had used, and the only words he could think of were disgusting.
"Inko," All Might said. His voice was hoarse. "What happened?"
When she sniffed Izuku looked up. She was crying quietly, tears falling from her eyes down onto her hands, where they were clenched in her lap. All Might still had one big hand on her shoulder, squeezing gently. She took one deep breath, then another, and then a third.
"I was in college," she began quietly. "I put it off for a few years to take care of my mother when she was sick, so I was a little older than everyone else. It was my last year, and I hardly had any friends. Then, one day after an exam, some girls from my class asked me to go out with them. I figured they were just being nice."
She sobbed, and All Might's grip tightened on her shoulder. Izuku wanted to take her hand, but he had a feeling that would only make this harder.
"I ended up on my own, talking to this man," she continued. "I don't remember anything about what he looked like. All I remember was that his breath smelled like smoke. It's so vivid in my mind, that smell. I thought he must be a smoker, but he wasn't smoking right there, and I remember that smell like he was breathing it right in my face."
She stopped. Her head was bent over her knees, her hair falling around her neck, and her arms were pulled in tight. It was like she was trying to make herself small. Like she could hide, somehow, from what had happened.
"I don't remember anything else," she said after a moment. "I blacked out and woke up at home. It was weeks before I found out I was pregnant, so there was no question of going to the police. My mother threw me out when I decided to keep the baby and I had to drop out of college. I knew life would be hell for me and Izuku if people knew the truth so I pretended my husband was overseas. I lied, because I didn't want anyone to know what had happened and judge you for it."
Now Izuku reached out, taking both of his mother's hands in his. She clutched back at him, gripping him tight, breathing deeply through her nose.
"Mom," Izuku choked. "I'm so sorry-"
"No!" his mother's head snapped up, eyes wide and frantic. "This has nothing to do with you! What happened to me has nothing to do with who you are! This is not on you!"
"I know," Izuku said, blinking as his own eyes began to water, "but this ruined your life!"
"He ruined my life," she said firmly. "Not you. You are my son and I love you more than anything. It doesn't matter how I got you. I raised you and I love you and you are the best part of my life."
Izuku sobbed, tears spilling from his eyes. His mother leaned forward and pulled him into her arms, and for a few moments the two of them held each other again. Izuku stroked his mother's hair and she rubbed soothing circles on his back. They both cried quietly, unable to do anything else.
When finally they pulled apart, All Might cleared his throat again.
"Young Izuku," he said, then stopped. He seemed to be struggling for words. Finally he took a deep breath and continued. "I need to know . . . did All for One tell you any more about the . . . experiments? Do you know how many other-"
"He said there were over a hundred children," Izuku told him.
All Might closed his eyes. He looked like he was in terrible pain, and trying not to show it. He breathed in, held it, then released, and finally opened his eyes to look at Izuku again.
"What else?" he asked hoarsely.
"He said the experiments went on for twenty-five years," Izuku said. "He . . . farmed, the quirks of the ones who had useful powers, and they were put down as quirkless. There were a lot of them with quirks he didn't need though, so he left them alone. Some of them really were quirkless, like me. He said most of those were dead."
All Might looked down. "I need to start finding these women and children," he said gravely. "I need to make amends somehow."
"You didn't do this," Izuku's mother protested.
"But it was my business to stop it," All Might insisted, then turned to Izuku. "Did he give you any names?"
"Himiko Toga and Jin Bubaigawara," Izuku recited. "They're members of the League of Villains."
"The former League of Villains," All Might corrected, a small smile tugged at one corner of his mouth. "Thanks to your extremely irresponsible rescue mission, all the League's leaders are captured or dead. The remnants will likely scatter to the winds, and be more easily found and brought in."
Suddenly Toga's hungry yellow eyes came to the front of Izuku's mind. He hadn't thought he could ever understand a person who had a look like that. Now he knew she was his sister, and he didn't know what to do with that information. Did he want her to be caught and spend the rest of her life in jail?
"But, I still don't understand," his mother piped up. "What does this all mean? How were you able to defeat the villain?"
Izuku and All Might looked at each other. Judging by All Might's expression they were both thinking the same thing: how much should they tell her? Finally Izuku decided to repay honesty with honesty.
"His quirk was to give and take quirks," Izuku explained cautiously, "but it's not a safe process. If he tried to put too many quirks into one person, it could make them a vegetable. He tried to jam a bunch of quirks into me, to make me braindead after I outsmarted him. I kinda . . . reached back into him? And took his quirk instead."
His mother blinked. "How?"
"I think it's because I was his son," Izuku told her. "It's just a theory, but I don't think anyone who wasn't a blood relative of his could do what I did. It's probably just a compatibility thing."
"I don't think so," said All Might suddenly, and Izuku and his mother looked up at him in surprise.
"But that's the only explanation," Izuku protested, but All Might shook his head.
"Young man, I have seen you in trial after trial," All Might told him. "Always I find myself in awe of the force of your mind, the strength of your will, and the power of your conviction. You told me
once that you were able to break out of young Shinsou's brainwashing on your own. I believe it. And I also believe that mental fortitude is what allowed you to turn the tables on All for One. It is not your parentage that made you a great hero. It is your strong heart, and your stronger mind."
All Might bowed his head.
"I owe you a great deal, young Midoriya," he said solemnly. "I only hope, after achieving the goal that was my life's work at your age, you can still learn something from me as your teacher when you return to UA."
"I think you've got a few more tricks to show me," Izuku assured him.
"And a few lessons in self-preservation I hope," his mother said sternly. "And risk assessment!" Izuku and All Might both nodded hurriedly. "Yes ma'am!"
To Hitoshi's surprise, Aizawa insisted he and Shouto be checked out and admitted to the hospital for observation hours after they had arrived to see Izuku. It seemed a little ridiculous to him, but he wasn't about to argue with his teacher just then, not when Aizawa was more in a mood to give hugs than to scold. Apparently All Might had somehow gotten Endeavor barred from the hospital, and if Shouto wasn't admitted he would eventually have to go home.
Hitoshi held out hope that this meant the Endeavor Adventure was drawing to a close and submitted with grace to being hospitalized.
The rooms in the hero ward had only one bed each, so Hitoshi and Shouto were given rooms next to each other beside Izuku's. They weren't immediately allowed to visit though, and instead a teacher went to every room to keep them company. Mic stayed with Izuku, and after a hushed conversation between All Might and Mic that got rather heated at one point All Might went to sit with Shouto, leaving Aizawa to monitor Hitoshi. He got a bit of lecturing in before the night was over, and he called Hitoshi's mother on speaker phone to give her an explanation, but otherwise Hitoshi and his teacher shared a companionable silence. That silence lay over him like a blanket, and eventually lulled him to sleep.
The next day there were visits first thing in the morning: Izuku and Hitoshi's mothers, and Shouto's brother and sister. Endeavor was dealing with a press fiasco and wasn't able to pester them, so they only had visitors they actually wanted to see. Hitoshi's mother was extremely stern with Aizawa, but he endured her scrutiny admirably and then looked tactfully out the window when she gave her son a tight, almost crushing hug. Hitoshi promised them both he understood why he'd been wrong to go around the adults to rescue Shouto, and both of them accepted his apology with only minimal disbelieving looks.
It was only around noon, when all the visitors had gone to get lunch downstairs, that the three boys were able to collect in Izuku's room and close the door.
"How long do you think we have?" Izuku wondered once they were alone.
"I may have suggested to Mom that they should eat downstairs," Hitoshi admitted, coming to sit on the bed. "And that longer would be better."
"Natsuo suggested the same thing," Shouto added, climbing up to sit opposite Hitoshi, on the other side of Izuk's legs. "I didn't disagree."
Izuku took a deep breath. "Then I think it's time to come clean to you guys. A lot's been going on with me that I haven't told you, but I don't want to hold back any more. You should know what really happened."
Hitoshi and Shouto looked at each other questioningly. Neither of them wanted to pry, but they both wanted answers. If Izuku was offering though . . .
"Go for it," Hitoshi said at last.
Quickly and in hushed tones Izuku told them everything he'd been keeping secret. All Might's time limit, the fact that his quirk could be given to a successor like a family heirloom, when he'd
offered it to Izuku and his eventual decision to give it to Toogata when Izuku had refused. He told them about All for One, the villain who could give and take quirks like toys, who was apparently Izuku's father by a bizarre set of circumstances straight out of a horror movie. Both Shouto and Hitoshi tensed up when he explained about Sir Nighteye, and the secret op they had been running to deceive All for One into thinking Izuku had accepted All Might's quirk when he hadn't.
"I'm going to kill that guy," Hitoshi announced when Izuku was finished explaining. "All for One's already dead," Izuku reminded him.
"Not him," Shouto corrected. "Sir Nighteye. I'm going to help."
"You can't kill him, he's a pro," Izuku argued, but he sounded more tired than worried. "Aizawa will cover for me," Hitoshi said with a straight face.
"All Might will cover for both of us," Shouto agreed. "Nezu too, probably."
"You're both ridiculous," Izuku said, hiding his face in his hands, but his shoulders were shaking as he tried not to laugh.
"For real," Hitoshi insisted. "He did a bad thing, Izuku. A terrible thing. He should never have used you as bait like that."
"I wasn't bait!" Izuku said, coming out from behind his hands with a smile on his face. "I was a distraction! That's a whole different strategy."
"I'm serious Izuku!" Hitoshi spoke a little more forcefully, and Izuku's smile faltered. "You know he used you, right? You know that was wrong of him?"
Izuku looked down. "I realized the plan was stupid a while ago," he admitted. "I tried to tell Nezu, but by then it was too late. I just would have made things worse by telling."
"And who told you that?" Shouto wanted to know.
"Uh," Izuku frowned, "Nighteye, actually."
"Oh, now I'm really going to kill him!" Hitoshi said angrily. "Please don't," Izuku moaned.
"You can hold him still," Shouto countered. "I'm going to kill him." "Deal," said Hitoshi immediately.
"Can we change the subject?" Izuku pleaded. "There's something I've been thinking about and I want to know what you guys think!"
Hitoshi looked between Izuku and Shouto a minute, considering. He wanted to impress upon Izuku how wrong Nighteye had been. He wanted there to be no doubt in anyone's mind that Izuku was worth more than a means of distracting a villain from his main target. Still, Izuku looked uncomfortable, and surely the fall from grace Nighteye was in for now that Nezu was aware of his actions would be enough to convince him.
"What's on your mind?" Hitoshi asked after a weary sigh. Izuku squirmed. "I have a quirk now," he said, in a small voice.
Immediately Hitoshi and Shouto looked at each other again, eyes wide. Hitoshi hadn't even thought of that, but of course it would be weighing on Izuku. He'd built his whole identity on being a quirkless hero, the first of his kind. How was he supposed to react to suddenly having a quirk?
"How do you feel about that?" Shouto asked carefully.
"I don't know," Izuku said with a shrug, looking down at his bedclothes. "It feels weird. I don't just have All for One, I have every quirk that was stored inside it. There's . . . a lot of them."
"Do you want to use them?" Hitoshi wondered.
"They want me to use them," Izuku told him.
"But what do you want?" Shouto pressed. "You don't have to do anything you don't want to."
"I don't know," Izuku admitted in a small voice. "I used to dream about something like this happening. Of finally having a quirk. When I turned down All Might I thought I was over dreaming. I thought I had finally accepted myself, the way I was. The way I was meant to be."
"And . . . now?" Hitoshi prompted nervously.
"Well what would you do?" Izuku exploded, throwing himself back against the upright back of his bed. "If you suddenly had a totally different quirk than the one you thought you'd have to make do with, how would you feel about it? If you had the chance to totally reinvent yourself with a brand new quirk and fighting style, would you?"
For a moment no one spoke. Izuku kept his eyes on the ceiling, and Shouto stared down at the bed. Hitoshi didn't know where to look. He didn't know what to think. Was Izuku . . .
"I could do it you know," Izuku said, not looking at them. "I could take both your quirks and give you new ones. There's a bunch stored in here, you could have your pick."
Hitoshi and Shouto looked at each other for a reaction, but all Hitoshi saw was the same uncertainty he felt reflected back at him. He had no idea what to say to that.
"There are good ones in here," Izuku went on. "Heroic quirks, that have nothing to do with ice or fire. There's quirks for strength, and mobility, and durability. There's one that lets you basically fly. The Nomu are like that because they have a bunch of quirks forced into them, but I think if we were careful and you worked with me, I could give you two at a time without damage."
Izuku look back at them, first at Hitoshi, then at Shouto.
"I would do it, if you asked," he said.
Hitoshi looked down. Should he ask? Would he? Was that what he wanted? He'd spent his whole life hating his quirk, wishing he had a different one. It had made his childhood hell just because he had it. People were more accepting of it now, but that didn't mean that everyone accepted it. It would still make his career hard, in the future. There would always be people who were afraid.
If there was one thing he'd learned from his friends though, it was that no quirk was inherently
bad. His quirk was good enough to bring the light to Izuku's eyes, to make him want to analyze and do experiments. His quirk was good enough to help Shouto overcome the pain that held him back from using his fire. Would he have been able to help Shouto, with a different quirk? What about Kaminari? What about the battle with the hero killer, and how he'd gotten Mic back into the fight? Would he have been able to help then?
"No," he said, looking back up at Izuku. "I don't want that."
"Me either," Shouto agreed. "I don't need a different quirk."
Izuku looked back and forth between the two of them uncertainly. "Really?"
"I've accepted my quirk," Shouto said. "It's part of me. It represents the various parts of where I came from. I can't reject it now. It would be like rejecting all my progress."
"Yeah," Hitoshi nodded slightly. "I feel the same. My quirk is part of who I am. Besides, how will I be an inspiration to all those kids with villain quirks if I take some heroic quirk now?"
Izuku closed his eyes, smiling sadly. "What am I supposed to do then?" "You're smart," Hitoshi assured him. "You'll think of something."
"Speaking of Izuku's good judgement," Shouto said suddenly, "there's something I'd like to ask the two of you."
Hitoshi tensed, staring at Shouto sidelong. His mind went back to the League of Villains' hideout, when they'd been pressed for time and desperate to escape, but Shouto had stopped them to try and say something. Was he honestly going to say it now?
"Sure," said Izuku, looking at Shouto with innocent curiosity. "Hold on-" Hitoshi began, but Shouto cut him off.
"Touya contacted me," he blurted out.
Oh, thought Hitoshi. That's different then.
"How?" Izuku blinked rapidly, eyes wide.
"By phone," Shouto told them. "The police took my phone off Shigaraki and I got it back last night. This morning I woke up to a text from an unknown number. It just said 'hey pipsqueak' and nothing else."
Hitoshi recalled the scene from the previous night, how Touya had kissed Shouto's forehead and promised I'll see you again pipsqueak.
"Did you reply?" Hitoshi wondered.
"I said I would call when I was alone," Shouto admitted. "I'm not sure what I should say."
Izuku tugged on his lip for a moment, face pensive. Hitoshi and Shouto waited patiently for him to gather his thoughts. Finally he looked up.
"Do you mind if I tell Nezu about it?" he asked. Shouto frowned. "Why?"
"Because Touya's testimony could really help the Endeavor case," Izuku told him. "This could be the last piece that Nezu needs."
"He's a criminal though," Hitoshi reminded him. "Will he be willing to come forward with his story? If it means exposing himself and going to jail?"
"No one knows he was involved in the attack," Izuku pointed out. "The news doesn't have any details about the actual villains yet. The police know, but I bet Nezu could pull some strings, spin it so that Touya gets off lightly. Nobody died, after all."
"Do you really think Nezu can do that?" Shouto asked hopefully.
Izuku shrugged. "He's had our backs so far. I don't see why this should be any different."
"Alright then," Shouto nodded decisively. "If you think it's a good idea, tell Nezu."
Izuku smiled and nodded, then suddenly his brows knit together in a frown.
"Hey Shouto," he said curiously, making Hitoshi tense up again, "wasn't there something you wanted to say before we-"
Before he could finish his sentence -- and before Hitoshi could interrupt -- the door slid open.
"There you are Shouto!" said Shouto's sister Fuyumi, running into the room to wrap her arms around her brother. "I came back to the room and you weren't there, so I got scared!"
"I'm sorry Sis," Shouto said, hugging her back. "I just wanted to talk to Izuku and Hitoshi. We can go back to the room now."
Hitoshi breathed a sigh of relief. Hospitals were not the best place for a confession. *
Shouto was getting a little tired of his confession being delayed.
It had been a snap decision to confess his feelings in a moment of peril, which he had later come to regret. The moment had been all wrong, and even the attempt had cost them time at a critical juncture. His resolve to tell his two friends how he felt he did not regret however, and having made the decision to do it he wanted to do it as soon as possible. After telling Izuku about Touya and receiving his friends' unwavering support, the quiet aftermath of battle seemed the ideal place for a confession, especially with Izuku outright asking him about it. Fuyumi had interrupted however, and when Shouto had glanced at Hitoshi he had actually looked relieved. Perhaps he had misjudged that moment too.
Fate seemed determined not to give him another opportunity. Natsuo and Fuyumi stayed with him in the hospital, and Fuyumi in particular seemed determined not to leave him alone, despite how Natsuo tried to persuade her to give Shouto some space. Hitoshi and Izuku's mothers stayed all
day, and though Izuku's had to go home eventually Hitoshi's wanted to stay the night. The teachers also promised to stay, and any time Shouto had with Hitoshi and Izuku from then on also featured at least one chaperone.
He passed a restless night unable to keep his eyes off his phone. The urge to call Touya was strong, but he knew it wasn't safe yet, and he should probably wait for word from Nezu. He didn't just want to talk to Touya, he wanted to be able to offer him a solution. He wanted to be able to fix things.
The next day was very much the same, but there was talk of Hitoshi and Shouto getting out of the hospital, if not Izuku. They were just spending some time in Izuku's room, debating whether they could get away with Shouto going back to the dorms rather than to Endeavor's house, when Mic entered with a big smile on his face.
"Guess who I met in the lobby!" he said cheerfully, then stood aside to reveal a gaggle of students out in the hallway. "All of Class 1A!"
"Not all of us!" said Iida, at the forefront of the crowd. "Jirou and Hagakure are still in the hospital near the training camp, but everyone else is here!"
"And me!" Hatsume said, squirming her way between Iida and the doorframe. "I came back too!"
"It's great to see you guys," Izuku said as the class filed into the room. "I thought Yaoyorozu was still unconscious with a head injury though."
"I woke up yesterday," Yaoyorozu said, weaving her way to the front and placing a basket with a melon in it on the bedside table. She had a bandage around her head, but seemed otherwise fine. "I was frantic to let the police know I'd placed a tracking device on the Nomu that attacked us at the training camp, but thankfully the situation was already resolved. When the doctors saw me create the receiver though, they decided I only needed a minimal period of observation."
"Yeah," Hitoshi said, rubbing the back of his neck. "We'd kinda already fixed it. Then broken it and fixed it again."
"I can't believe you two went to face the villains without me!" Kirishima called from the back of the group. Kaminari and Tokoyami parted to show him wiping at his eyes with his forearm. "I was right there in the hospital with you all day! When did you even have time to plan this with Toogata?"
"Just after you left," Izuku said apologetically. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to involve anyone else."
"It's OK," Kirishima assured them, looking up with eyes still wet. "Just include me next time! How am I supposed to call myself a man if I'm not someone you want on a rescue mission, huh?"
"There's not going to be a next time!" Uraraka protested loudly, then looked at Izuku with an anxious expression. "Right?"
"Right," Izuku agreed. "No more secret missions. Not while we're still in school anyway." Tokoyami stepped forward, Dark Shadow peering over his shoulder shyly.
"I caused you trouble," he said solemnly. "Todoroki was captured trying to rescue Dark Shadow and I. We should have been more vigilant."
"Sorry," Dark Shadow mumbled.
"Please," Shouto shook his head, "don't blame yourself. I made my own choices and caused my own trouble."
Tokoyami nodded in acceptance, then elbowed Dark Shadow, who also nodded. Shouto felt bad for it. They had no way of knowing that it wasn't their fault at all he'd gone through the portal, and he couldn't tell them. Not yet anyway.
"We hope you know that was a very foolish thing you did!" Iida said, arm chopping through the air in agitation. "I'm sure our teachers have lectured you on the subject-"
"We have," Aizawa interjected dryly from the doorway.
"-so I won't go into detail, but as Class Representative I feel the need to express disapproval for your actions!" Iida concluded, then adjusted his glasses slightly. "Also as Class Representative, I feel the need to express that we're all glad you're OK."
"The news isn't getting onto you or anything," Kaminari assured them brightly. "They just think All Might rescued Todoroki."
"The cops aren't talking," Hatsume chimed in. "Did you know they took my baby as evidence? If they don't give it back I'll make you a new one full of super cool new features!"
"Anyway, no one knows anything about your covert op," Kaminari finished. "Not so covert in the end, was it," said Shouji disapprovingly.
"Hush," Tokoyami said without heat.
Shouji crossed two of his arms over his chest but said nothing further.
"Be that as it may," Yaoyorozu said, stepping up to the bed and reaching into a pocket of her skirt, "we should all be thankful that no one was hurt. As heroes a fight with no casualties is the best possible outcome, and they did manage to capture the leaders of the League of Villains."
She held out a folded piece of paper to Izuku.
"Mandalay asked me to give you this," she said primly. "She said she disapproves of your actions but she's glad you're safe, and thank you for saving Kouta."
Izuku took the piece of paper and unfolded it curiously. His eyes flicked back and forth as he read the message. Before he was even halfway down the page his eyes misted over with tears, and by the time he was at the end they had spilled out.
"What does it say?" Shouto asked, worried that it was some kind of unpleasant notice or reprimand.
"Midoriya-san," he read, smiling even as he cried. "I'm sorry I tried to punch you. Thank you for saving me even though you'd just met me. Please get better soon so I can thank you in person. Kouta."
"Aw, that's so sweet!" Ashido cooed.
"You must have really made an impression on him," Asui chimed in. "He didn't seem to like us at all, but that note was really heartfelt, ribbit."
Izuku hugged the letter to his chest. "Yeah," he said, sniffling.
"Don't cry all over it," Hitoshi said cheekily, reaching out to wipe a tear from Izuku's face. "You wanna keep that. It's your first fanmail!"
Izuku giggled, then wiped his face on the bandages around one arm.
The class stayed for a little while longer, offering more well wishes and more reprimands by turns, but eventually Mic and Aizawa shooed them out. It was easier to breathe once the room wasn't so crowded, but Shouto found he still missed his friends when they were gone. Before the teachers came back though, there was one thing he wanted to ask Izuku.
"You didn't tell any of them you have a quirk now," Shouto said, once the three of them were alone again. "Why?"
"I haven't decided what I'm going to do with it," Izuku said with a shrug. "Are you thinking of giving it away?" Hitoshi asked, surprised.
"I don't know," Izuku insisted. "I don't know who I would give it to. It seems like the kind of power no one should have."
"Then you should keep it," Shouto told him. "Keep it and don't use it. Then you'll know that no one can use it for evil."
Izuku looked at him with a shocked expression. "You'd really be OK with that? After I got you to use your fire, when you didn't want to?"
"You did that to help me though," Shouto said. "To make me stop fighting myself. And stop hurting myself using only half my quirk."
"We're here for you whatever you decide to do," Hitoshi promised.
Hitoshi reached out and took one of Izuku's hands, and immediately Shouto took the other. For a moment they were alone, just the three of them together. Now seemed like a good time for telling secrets. Or confessing feelings.
Shouto opened his mouth to speak, and immediately the door slid open to admit three teachers, Izuku's mother, Hitoshi's mother and both Shouto's siblings.
When Nezu got back to Izuku it was to request that Shouto set up a meeting with Touya for him, with a myriad of conditions to make Touya feel as safe as he could feel about it. He also cautioned Shouto not to go back to Endeavor's house right away. Natsuo, thankfully, asked no questions at all when Shouto mentioned not wanting to go home, and immediately offered his little brother his couch in case Endeavor went looking for him at the dorms.
Izuku said goodbye to his friends with a bittersweet feeling in his heart. It was good that neither of them had been injured, but he was going to miss them while he remained in the hospital. The teachers would stay -- All Might in particular seemed reluctant to leave -- but his mother had to go home to rest for work. She couldn't take too many days off in a row.
He had been left alone for a few minutes, and was scrolling through hero news on his phone, when he heard raised voices out in the hall. Wondering who would be arguing like that in a hospital, he got out of bed and went to put his ear to the door.
"-completely unacceptable, Mirai!" came All Might's voice, sounding agitated and upset.
"Can you honestly tell me you aren't curious?" that was Sir Nighteye's voice, more exasperated than anything else. "I can look into his future and find out-"
"You won't lay a finger on that boy!" All Might snapped. "You're going to leave this hospital and never contact him again, or I swear I'll-"
"Think about this Toshinori!" Nighteye interrupted. "The boy has All for One! The most dangerous quirk in existence! Surely if he were going to misuse it we should be forewarned!"
"A quirk has nothing to do with someone's character," All Might countered. "The only person I'm worried about misusing their quirk right now is you!"
"But think of what he could accomplish with it!" Nighteye argued. "If we put him on the right path now, if we handle this carefully, then he could become a force for good to rival even the Symbol of Peace!"
"What young Midoriya does with his new quirk is his own decision!" All Might retorted. "I will not have anyone putting pressure on him, you least of all! After what you've done how can you even think of-"
"This is how I make amends!" Nighteye insisted. "This is how I prove myself to you! By guiding Midoriya, taking care of him, putting him on the right path! It's the least I can-"
"The least you can do is nothing," All Might cut him off. "That's what you should do. Go home Mirai."
"At least let me read your future then," Nighteye wheedled. "Let me see if defeating All for One has circumvented-"
"OUT!" All Might boomed.
There was a bit more sputtering and protesting, but eventually Izuku could hear footsteps walking way. A moment later the door slid open, and Izuku found himself faced with All Might in his muscle form.
"Young Midoriya!" All Might exclaimed, then coughed and collapsed back to his skinny form. "Why are you out of bed?"
"I'm only here for observation," Izuku protested. "I'm not that injured."
"Please lay back down," All Might pleaded as he came in and shut the door. "Have mercy on this poor old man's nerves."
Obediently Izuku went back to the bed and laid down. All Might dragged a chair over to the bed and sat, watching Izuku with eyes clouded over with worry. Izuku squirmed. What was All Might worried about?
"I couldn't help overhearing," he began tactfully.
"Yes I'd imagine," All Might said dryly. "We got a little heated there, didn't we?"
"Why though?" Izuku asked. "Why are you so mad at him? I understand the plan didn't work, but he was just worried about Toogata."
All Might stared at him, eyes wide. "Young Midoriya," he said after a moment, "do you honestly believe the reason we disapprove of Nighteye's plan was that it didn't work?"
"Well, no," Izuku admitted. "I know it wasn't very smart or well thought out. I realized it didn't have many specifics a while ago. I meant to tell Nezu and ask for more help shoring it up, but Nighteye told me it was better if you and Nezu didn't know, so you couldn't get in trouble for not stopping it."
Again All Might stared at him for a long moment. He blinked rapidly, mouth hanging slightly open. Izuku squirmed again. He hadn't thought it was that stupid of a plan.
"Young Midoriya," All Might said after a while. "No. That's not why we're upset." Now it was Izuku's turn to stare. "It's not?"
"No," All Might shook his head, then rubbed his face. "Young Midoriya, we're not upset because the plan was poorly constructed. Quite the opposite. The plan was nearly perfect for what it wanted to achieve."
"What do you mean?" Izuku asked. "It didn't have any specifics, or a time limit, or any additional protection for my Mom, or-"
"Exactly," All Might cut him off gently. "This plan was never meant to protect you, only young Toogata. Those flaws you mentioned, they were features, not bugs. Nighteye wanted to use you to draw All for One's fire, but you were never meant to withstand it. You were only supposed to delay him, not stop him."
"Then, what was supposed to happen when All for One found out the truth?" Izuku wondered. "You were supposed to be dead by then," All Might said.
Oh, Izuku realized.
"Oh," Izuku said.
"Neither young Toogata nor I have any plans to associate with Nighteye ever again," All Might assured him. "Nezu I believe has ideas about what the consequences should be, and I've told him he only needs to ask for me to throw the full weight of the Symbol of Peace behind his judgement. Nighteye's behavior was outrageous and unheroic and it will be punished, but right now I'm more concerned about you."
"Me?" Izuku squeaked.
"Yes," All Might said firmly. "Young Midoriya, Nighteye used you in the worst possible way. He encouraged you to a dangerous course of action and gave you no support. When you tried to reach out he isolated you, and made himself your only confidante. He drove a wedge between you and your other mentors, and . . . he groomed you, for his own use and young Toogata's."
"Toogata wouldn't use me," Izuku shook his head, certain of that point if nothing else.
"I know," All Might agreed, "but that was Nighteye's intention. What he did to you was unforgivable, and I need to know you understand that."
For a moment Izuku didn't speak. He was numb with disbelief. Surely Nighteye couldn't have been that bad. Surely he hadn't meant to be that bad. The more he thought about it though, the more
things began to come back to him. The many flaws in the plan that seemed uncharacteristic of a strategist like Nighteye. The intercepted email to Nezu. His falling out with Mic, which had been precipitated by Mic breaking his trust because he thought Izuku needed more protection than he would accept.
Protection, specifically, from Nighteye.
"Did he really mean for me to . . ." he couldn't say it.
"I'm not sure," All Might admitted. "He certainly won't admit it. At least he knew it was a much bigger possibility than he let on."
Izuku looked down. "I'm sorry I didn't see-"
"This is not your fault," All Might cut him off. "You didn't do anything wrong. I just need to know
you understand that Nighteye was wrong."
"I do know," Izuku said, and found that he meant it. There was no doubt or uncertainty or insecurity from his past. He knew this, like he knew that Hitoshi was good and Shouto was strong and he would be a great hero someday. "My life is not a petty sacrifice. I'm worth saving too."
All Might sighed in relief. "That's good to hear."
I should tell Mic that, Izuku thought. He probably needs to hear it too.
"I am sorry for dragging you into this mess young man," All Might went on. "I know how badly you wanted to be a quirkless hero, and I seem to have made that impossible for you. Even if I didn't give you my quirk, I involved you enough that you ended up with my enemy's."
"It's not your fault," Izuku assured him. "Besides, don't underestimate me. I can still be a quirkless hero. Somehow."
"Any ideas as to what you want to do with that quirk?" All Might wondered.
"I guess I could do what I did with Ragdoll," Izuku said, looking down at his hand. "If I return all the quirks to their rightful owners, and just don't use All for One, then it'll be like I don't have a quirk."
"You may not be able to find all the original owners," All Might warned.
"The one with the immortality quirk is probably gone," Izuku agreed, then looked up at All Might. "Would you like it?"
All Might blinked at him, surprised. "What?"
"The immortality quirk," Izuku said. "I can feel how it works, and if I keep it I won't grow. Do you want it instead?"
Izuku held out a hand to All Might in offering, and for a moment All Might just stared at it. He held perfectly still, as though frozen with indecision. Finally he reached out and took hold of Izuku's fingers, curling them back against his outstretched palm, and pushed Izuku's hand down into his lap.
"No," he said simply. "I don't particularly want it. With One for All passed on to Toogata there's no reason for me to have it."
"I think if we were careful I could give you two quirks without hurting you," Izuku told him. "You were quirkless, and you adapted just fine to having One for All, so I think you could handle two or even three quirks. There's plenty of strength quirks in here; they're not as good as One for All, but we could stack them. You'd have to be a little more judicious about who and when you fight, but your reputation will carry you a long way. You could be the Symbol of Peace forever."
Again All Might stared at him, mouth open. Then he sighed and shook his head, a slow smile spreading over his face.
"If you'd offered that to me five years ago, maybe even a year ago, I would have jumped on it," he admitted. "Now, I think I have to decline."
"You don't have to do anything you don't want to do," Izuku said, frowning.
All Might laughed. "I don't want to live forever," he assured Izuku. "I don't want to be the Symbol of Peace forever. I think, for the first time, I actually want to retire."
"Really?" Izuku asked, blinking in surprise.
"Really," All Might nodded, smiling more broadly now. "Not just yet, but soon. I actually have things I want to live for, besides my hero career. Being a teacher, getting to mentor you kids, and . . ."
He trailed off, looking at Izuku warily. Izuku had a feeling he knew what this was about. "And?" he prompted.
All Might winced. "Well, you see . . . young Midoriya . . . your mother and I have become . . . very good friends, and-"
"Are you her new boyfriend?" Izuku interrupted.
All Might paused with a pained expression, then sighed. "The thing is . . . yes, I am . . . that is, we are . . . as long as you're OK with it!"
"It's fine," Izuku assured him.
"Good," All Might released a deep breath and relaxed somewhat.
My five year old self is dying of happiness, Izuku thought. The reality is a lot weirder.
"She deserves to be happy after . . . everything," Izuku told him, then frowned. "I'm not going to call you Dad though."
"Yes I'm well aware that line starts behind Yamada," All Might said dryly.
"Does not!" Izuku protested hurriedly. "Don't tell him that! Don't say anything about this to him!" All Might pressed a hand to his mouth to stifle his laughter.
Hizashi had seen Nighteye enter the hospital by sneaking around the police line guarding the entrance. He hadn't immediately engaged though. Instead he followed Nighteye upstairs, ready to stop him before he reached Izuku's room but hoping he wouldn't have to. As it happened All Might was there to intercept, as he'd promised he would be, and the two men had a brief but heated
argument out in the hall. Watching Nighteye's expression when All Might turned him away was deeply satisfying, and Hizashi decided it was time to make his move.
When Nighteye rounded the corner back to the elevators, Hizashi grabbed him by the front of the shirt and slammed him against the wall.
"What's the matter?" he asked as Nighteye sputtered, staring up at him with teeth bared. "You didn't see that coming?"
"Mic!" Nighteye huffed. "Unhand me! This isn't-"
"You and me are long overdue for a chat," Hizashi informed him firmly. "You've been a bad boy, Nighteye, and the game is up."
"What do you think you're doing?" Nighteye demanded, one hand curling around Hizashi's wrist. "You can't just-"
"I wouldn't use your quirk if I were you," Mic warned. "You see, when Nezu found out about your involvement with what happened to my 'lil listener he immediately pulled some strings and had your license suspended pending an investigation. He's been gathering evidence on you for a while now, so that investigation shouldn't take long."
"He's been investigating me?" Nighteye repeated in alarm. Hizashi grinned savagely up at him. "I helped."
"Mic," Nighteye said slowly, apparently sensing danger for the first time. "Whatever you think, this is-"
"I think this is a hero in good standing encountering a potential traitor accessing an area he doesn't have clearance for," Hizashi explained. "Detective Tsukauchi is already on his way, but it'll take him about fifteen minutes to get here."
Mic stepped back, pulling Nighteye away from the wall.
"In that time, you and I are gonna go out in the parking lot behind the hospital," Hizashi informed him, the excitement in his heart clearly audible in his voice, "and you're going to resist arrest."
With that Hizashi put one hand on the back of Nighteye's neck, kept the other one fisted in his shirt, and dragged him toward the nearest staircase.