Izuku tapped his pen against the notebook impatiently as he watched the news footage from the fire for the umpteenth time. He'd covered pages in diagrams of the floor plan, trying to map out his steps and figure out where he was missing pieces. Written countless notes on what he remembered, what was collaborated by Mirko, Bakugo, the other heroes on the scene, and what he remembered about Dabi.
He stared at the photos and footage of himself coming out of the building for hours, hoping to trigger a memory.
But they alluded him, even as his hair stood on end when the shadows in the peripheral of his vision twisted.
He felt like he was always running, trying to burn off the anxiety his racing heart created. For long hours, he'd take old paths and new ones, wandering through the city, not caring about the distance.
They never seemed long enough.
Izuku scowled down at the notes as the clip came to an end.
It didn't seem to matter how many different news stations he watched or articles he read; no new information presented itself.
Frustrated, he closed out of the window and shoved the notebook away.
He leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes, and breathed deep, till his body lifted up and he felt lighter.
His phone buzzed on his desk forcing him to sit up.
"Hello?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Hey, Izuku."
Mina. He smiled and stood from the desk. "What's up?"
"Just checking in on you," she said. "Kiri and I should be there around noon tomorrow." Izuku left his room, pulling the door shut behind him. "It'll be nice to see you guys." "You all right? You sound tired."
Izuku glanced around the living room and kitchen finding it empty. "I didn't sleep very well last night," he said, coming to a stop in the kitchen as he tried to remember what he wanted.
Mina was quiet for a moment. "Is everything ok?"
He thought of the way shadows shifted at times and how he couldn't remember anything about Dabi besides the one phrase and the heat of his flames and answered, "Yeah, it's fine." He settled on a ramen bowl. "Getting back into training has been. . .tiring."
It wasn't a complete lie. The month off had made him go soft in some areas. Areas that Bakugo loved to point out and prod. He'd shifted from calling Izuku scrawny to pudgy thanks to his downtime. Even if it was true, Izuku didn't like hearing it. He grumbled to himself as he filled the bowl with water and shoved it in the microwave.
"Huh?" Mina asked through a giggle. "He what?"
"Kacchan!" Izuku said, glowering at the seconds ticking by. "He pisses me off sometimes."
Mina hummed. "Oh really?"
"Yes," Izuku bit out, not at all liking her unconvinced tone. "He's taken training to a whole new level now that I don't have to take it slow anymore."
There was muffled movement through the speaker like she was shifting on her bed. "He's bad at showing it, but he's just worried about you."
Izuku's sour mood fizzled out and he heaved a sigh, knowing she was right. "I'm just happy that I can train like normal."
"So, we'll get to see you at full power?" she asked, and he could hear the smile in her voice. "Kiri's gonna love that."
"Almost. I'm still building my strength back up to what it was," Izuku said, pinning the phone between his ear and shoulder as he took the ramen out. "I've been practicing with the blindfold too, so this will be great practice for me."
"Looking forward to it! See you tomorrow, Izuku."
He bid her goodbye and hung up, happy to focus on his lunch. Halfway through, Eri came into the living room and b-lined for the chair across from his, oddly serious.
"Zuzu," she said, hands folded on the table, "we've fallen behind on our movie watching list."
Izuku's brow furrowed as he slurped noodles. "How do we fix it?"
She nodded as if that was the correct response. "If we watch three today, we'll be back on track."
"Three, huh?" Izuku hummed in thought, opening his phone to check his schedule. "I think I can do that."
She slapped her hands against the table as she stood. "Wonderful. I'm glad we had this talk."
He quirked a brow as she walked off to the TV but settled on almost eight-year old's just being a little odd.
Izuku walked to UA slowly, taking his time and watching each car that drove past, wondering about their destinations. He stopped outside of the gates, staring up at the gilded lettering as he swiped his card.
He spun around as a chill shot up his spine at the feeling of being watched. But the courtyard was empty, except for the security bots patrolling the empty campus. Izuku shook off the feeling and started towards the sparring gym.
As he got closer, voices filtered out of the open door. Mina and Kiri were already there, chatting on
the benches. They looked up when he entered and smiled. Mina jumped to her feet and hugged him.
"I've missed you so much!" she cried, hanging on him.
"It's only been a couple weeks," Izuku mumbled, smiling against her hair.
She pushed back; hands wrapped firmly around his shoulders. "Exactly! That's almost forever."
"It's good to know you're all healed up!" Kiri said, shoving Mina off and wrapping an arm around Izuku.
Izuku blinked at the arm sung around him and slowly glared up at Kiri. He grinned innocently, arm tightening on Izuku. He tried to jump out of Kiri's grip, but Kiri held strong, dipping as he hooked an arm under Izuku's legs and hauled him up.
"Put me down!" Izuku screeched, fighting Kiri, cursing when he hardened his skin.
Kiri shift Izuku in his arms. "You've gotten heavy, dude!"
"What the hell are you idiots doing?"
Kiri dropped Izuku when he saw Bakugo. Izuku glared at him from the ground and stood back up, brushing himself off.
Bakugo zeroed in on Izuku as he tossed his bag against the wall. "Deku, did you do those extra crunches like I told you to?"
Izuku froze because he had not. "Well, you see—" "You didn't, did you?"
Izuku took a step back as Bakugo stormed towards him, hands gripping the hem of his shirt. "I was tired, ok?" he whined, twisting out of Bakugo's reach.
"I'll fucking tell Mirko if you start getting lazy, Deku!"
Izuku stumbled out of another attempted grab. "When did you become such as tattletale?" He couldn't help but grin as he dodged Bakugo's advances. Figuring that the spar had begun, Izuku started throwing counter punches.
"You little shit," Bakugo cursed, taking a few steps back.
"Is this normal for you two?" Mina asked when Izuku caught both of Bakugo's wrists.
Izuku smiled at her. "He's just grumpy today."
"The fuck I am, nerd!"
Izuku yelped as he fell backward, narrowly avoiding being immobilized. Smoke curled around Bakugo as he twisted around to look at where Izuku had rolled.
He inclined his head slightly, eyes locked on Izuku. "Kiri, switch with me."
"Hell yeah," Kiri said, cracking his knuckles. "How much of my quirk can I use?"
Bakugo looked between him and Izuku, crossing his arms in consideration. "Enough to make him whine about it."
Izuku glared at him over his fists. He decided to focus on avoiding Kiri's hits and practice his deflecting. He grinned as Kiri scoffed, another punch hitting air. Izuku shot forward, driving his elbow into Kiri's side.
"Kick his butt, Izuku!" Mina cheered, jumping next to Bakugo.
Kiri gritted his teeth making a grab for Izuku that he knocked away. He gave Izuku a toothy grin as they moved around the mat, "Are you still mad?"
Izuku scowled, lip curling back as he threw a couple fast hits at Kiri. He shifted away, stumbling when Izuku landed a kick to his stomach.
Leaned over and clutching his abdomen, Kiri smirked. "I'll take that as a yes." "Shut up, Kiri," Izuku ground out, driving him back again.
Kiri grinned as he leaned out of the way of Izuku's punches. "What kind of friend would I be if I left you to freeze outside?"
"A good one," Izuku hissed, low enough that only Kiri heard.
Kiri shrugged, wincing as Izuku's kick nicked his hip. "I don't know what you're so upset about, I would love to be carried to bed." Then he crossed his arms in thought. "Well, I guess sleeping under the stars would be nice, but it was seriously too cold, dude, we were worried!"
Izuku glared at him headily over his fists.
"You should be thanking me," Kiri pouted. "Bakugo was gonna leave you."
"We tried to wake you up," Mina defended from the sidelines. "Turns out, you're dead to the world when you overuse your quirk."
"Seriously, Mina, too soon."
"Let me use my humor to cope!"
"Shut the hell up!" Bakugo yelled, jabbing a finger towards Izuku. "I carried your ass twice now, deal with it, Deku. Put the damn blindfold on." He shifted the hand to Kirishima. "Keep working with Deku."
Izuku soured but complied, pulling the cloth tight around his eyes. There was an adjustment period where Izuku let Kiri move him around the mat while he sorted through the thoughts rolling off Kiri. As he zeroed in on the area directing his moves, Izuku started fighting back. Kiri was a lot bigger than Bakugo but he seemed more focused on having some fun rather than winning the fight.
"This is so weird," Kiri groaned, a punch from Izuku grazing his cheek.
Izuku blocked a punch from the right, twisting Kirishima's arm back in a hold. "Imagine how it feels for me."
"I think I'd rather not," Kiri winced.
Izuku felt a shift. Something coming from behind. He threw his hand back, blocking a punch from
Bakugo with his forearm.
"Let's see how you do with two, nerd."
Izuku bit back his annoyance and gave a nod, backing up from the two. Kirishima and Bakugo moved around him, sometimes stumbling into each other as Izuku invaded them or purposely drew them in. He felt himself beginning to strain as he reacted to the two sets of thoughts, struggling to use his instincts and senses to counter.
The heat of Bakugo's palm passed over his shoulder, missing completely as Izuku leaned out of the way. Izuku twisted hard, throwing his body around to drive his elbow into Bakugo's side. He smiled as he heard a grunt and rolled away, jumping up to counter Kiri.
"I guess you're quirk training paid off," Bakugo wheezed from somewhere to Izuku's left.
"You think so?" Izuku asked, looking over to where Bakugo stood as he dipped under a punch from Kirishima. "I practiced with Shinsou a lot on my accuracy." He caught Kirishima's wrist and twisted it behind his back. "You can tell a difference, Kacchan?"
Kiri sniffed. "I'm so proud. Just like I taught you."
Izuku pushed up the blindfold, blinking against the sudden light as his eyes adjusted. Bakugo stood a few feet away shaking his head making Izuku's excitement shifted to a pout. "What?"
"You're such an idiot sometimes," Bakugo said, stepping closer. "You held your own against me and Kiri."
Izuku looked between the two supposing he had.
"That was awesome!" Mina said from the edge of the mat. "But I came here to see you and Bakugo fight."
Kiri perked up, pulling away from Izuku. "That's right!" He ran over to Mina and they both plopped down, waiting patiently.
Izuku pulled the blindfold off completely and tossed it aside, squaring up to Bakugo. "Ready?" he asked and opened his quirk, pressing in around Bakugo.
He only smirked before charging at Izuku, palms crackling and hot. Izuku twisted out of his hits knowing how much Bakugo hated when he kept close. A blast went right and Bakugo gritted his teeth, shifting to punch with his left but Izuku had already leaned out of reach.
"Damn it—Deku!"
Izuku squinted as smoke stung his eyes, forced to back up. He jumped out of the way as Bakugo came from above, rolling out of the fall. Izuku got up, breathing hard as he watched Bakugo stand from where he'd landed.
A flicker.
Of blue.
"Deku?"
Izuku blinked, sucking in a sharp breath as he realized he wasn't breathing. "Huh?"
Bakugo dropped the fist still hanging in mid-air where he'd stopped it. "You zoned out," he said, brow furrowing.
"Oh," Izuku muttered, relaxing his stance, glancing to his left but it was just a plain cement wall. "Hey, what's wrong with you?"
Izuku looked back to Bakugo, rubbing his arms to brush away the hair standing on end, and fought off a shiver. "Nothing," he said, swallowing hard. "I just need a break, I think."
Mina tossed him his water and he drank it slow, replaying the flicker in his head. It must've been his imagination, he decided.
For most of his life, Izuku felt like he was running from something. His father's death. His quirk. The people who turned away from him in disgust. Secrets and lies that shielded the truth. Always facing forward and burying the past. Living life under falsehood.
He'd lost count of how many late afternoons and nights he'd spent getting lost in the streets of Musutafu. The noise. The people. The bright lights. How it blended together.
Izuku turned down a busy side street, relaxing into that old habit of letting the world drown out his quirk. He sighed, shoulders and body sagging as he walked. The familiarity of the old block brought back a sense of peace despite the memories twisted up in it.
The group home wasn't far away. Maybe it had changed. Maybe the same hateful man still ran it. He considered walking by it. Just to see.
Considered it. But didn't.
Izuku slowed to a stop and stared at his reflection in a store window, hoping that he might be able to discern what he was searching for.
He hadn't been back to his old neighborhood since moving into the UA dorms. It was his big break. Finally free.
And yet he was back. Grasping at things he knew. Remembered.
The shops where he'd take small jobs in return for a meal. The buildings he'd spent countless days on top of. Vaguely familiar faces, a little older than the last time he'd seen them. Graffiti that he remembered freshly painted, now dull and covered by new. The window that was still broken and boarded up, a blinking OPEN sign hanging askew on it. The potholes he and other kids would splash around in during the summer, bigger and gaping.
Time. . .it had changed so much.
Yet, his mouth still watered as a familiar smell drifted on the breeze.
Daishi's Ramen shop. Izuku's stomach growled just reading the worn sign. He pushed the door open happy to see that not much had changed and pulled off his hood. He'd spent many days as a kid doing homework in the back booth after working for a meal. Usually sweeping the floor. Something easy and quick so Izuku would take the meal Daishi wanted to give him.
He stepped up to the counter, a girl a few years older squinting at him.
"No shit," she said, a grin growing as she leaned forward on the counter. "Midoriya?" Izuku couldn't help but smile. "Hey, Morina. You're dad here?"
"Dad!" she yelled over her shoulder to the back room. "You're not gonna believe who's here!" She turned back to Izuku. "Who would've thought little ole Midoriya would've turned out to be a hero," she gushed. "You were always so shy I didn't believe Dad at first."
He stared at her only half registering what she was saying as he remembered her helping him with his homework and how her hair used to be longer. "You guys have seen me on the news?"
"Of course!" she scoffed. "You're basically famous now." "Famous," Izuku muttered as she yelled again for her father.
"Hey, are you hungry?" She gasped. "You have to tell me about UA! I was off at university when you started, so I never got to hear."
Izuku looked behind her as he heard footsteps, finding the old man who'd given him a meal most of his childhood. "Hey, Daishi." Izuku swallowed, trying to soothe the way his throat tightened. "It's been a while."
"Midoriya," Daishi breathed, clutching the rag in his hands tight. He looked Izuku up and down, tears welling in his eyes. "You've grown so much," he sniffed, blinking back the tears and looked at his daughter. "Mori, let's close for an hour."
"You don't have to do that," Izuku tried to say, but Morina just patted his shoulder and went to the window to flip the faded open sign over.
"Nonsense!" Daishi called as he walked back to the kitchen. "We have so much to catch up on!"
Izuku sat in a booth across from Morina, listening intently as she filled him in on what had happened with them over the last few years.
"So why didn't you come to visit sooner?" she asked, leaning towards him on the table.
"UA is pretty strict about when they let us off-campus and this side of town is pretty far away," he explained, feeling withdrawn from the half-truth. "I also just. . .wanted to avoid this place."
Morina's face softened as she understood. "Well, it's really good to see you, Midoriya. I still can't believe you're a Hero. We didn't even know you had a quirk!"
"It's good to see you, too," he said, meaning it. "I hid it up until recently."
She hummed in thought and sat up when Daishi set down bowls in front of them. Izuku sighed happily at his old order. It tasted the exact same, too. He could almost see himself as a kid again, stopping in after school for a meal.
"It's just like I remember," Izuku said. "Thank you."
"You don't change something that has worked for centuries," Daishi laughed. "Now, tell us about this hero business."
"What do you want to know?"
Morina rolled her eyes. "Let's start with how you've been?"
"Good," Izuku said, shoving noodles into his mouth. "Well, better now. Recently."
"Specifics, Midoriya, come on," she pushed, earning a scowl from her father. She ignored him.
Izuku swallowed and wiped his mouth. "I was in the Support Course, but I transferred to the Hero Course at the beginning of the new school year," he explained, mulling over the last seven months. "I started training with my quirk and got an internship with Mirko." He shrugged, supposing the rest was self-explanatory.
Daishi nodded; heavy brow furrowed. "You always wanted to be a hero," he mused with a sad sort of smile, torn between pride and fear. "But it is so dangerous. You were hurt."
"I was," Izuku agreed, gripping the spoon in his hand tighter. "But I'm ok now."
"Are you happy?" he asked, looking at Izuku with wide questioning eyes verging on hope.
Izuku nodded, smiling as he thought of the family he never believed he'd get. "I am, even if it took time to accept."
"You were always stubborn," Morina said with a lopsided grin. "You refused to eat until you swept the entire store."
"Very stubborn," Daishi agreed with a shake of his head. "I'm glad to see you've finally started eating. You were so skinny," he said, nose wrinkling up in disgust at the word. "Now you're a proper young man."
Izuku thought of the way Bakugo used to constantly berated him for not eating all his meals and laughed. "Turns out, training makes you hungry." He looked down as his phone buzzed with a message from Hatsume. "I promised a friend to hang out tonight. Thank you for the food." When he reached for his pocket to get the money Aizawa had forced him to take, Daishi waved him off.
"Nonsense. A meal with an old friend is not one you pay for," he said, cutting off Izuku's further protests with another wave. "I only ask that you come again."
"I will," Izuku promised, finishing off the last of his bowl before standing.
Morina followed him out, grabbing Izuku's sleeve as he pulled up his hood. He looked back at her in question as the door to the shop closed. She went to say something, but no words came and her grip on him loosened. "He tried," she started, eyes shifting to the ground, "to take you in, but they wouldn't let a single father who worked full-time have custody. He thought if he told you, it'd make you upset."
Izuku turned to her fully, shoving his hands into his pockets. "Probably," Izuku agreed, thinking about how much he hated that group home. "I'm sorry I haven't visited."
"Don't be ridiculous," she said lowly, glancing around the busy street. "You got out. I don't blame you for not coming back. Dad doesn't either." Morina breathed deep, arms wrapping around herself. "I did too, I guess, but I couldn't leave him." She shrugged towards the shop behind her. "It might be a dump, but it's home."
Izuku smiled, knowing for the first time how she felt.
"I know we weren't close growing up—being so much older than you—but Dad always told me to
have your order ready after school." She drew herself up straight, shaking off the emotions. "It was nice having you around, I didn't have to sweep."
"I probably wouldn't have passed algebra without you, so thanks for all those afternoons." She grinned wide, jabbing a finger into his chest. "So, you're still trash at math?"
Izuku brushed her hand off. "I. . .manage."
"You got into UA, so I must've done something right," Morina said smugly, flicking the hair off her shoulder. "I should put that on my resume." She flared her hands wide as she said, "Tutored hopeless math student turned Pro-Hero, Deku." She nodded, proud of herself. "Gotta nice ring to it, don't you think?"
"I'm not a Pro yet," Izuku pointed out. "So, you went with teaching?"
"I did, I did." She gave him a knowing smile. "The kids around here need someone that cares about them."
"They do," Izuku agreed. "I didn't realize it at the time, but you guys really took care of me." He felt bad about it. There were a lot of bad memories, sure, but there were a lot of good ones, too.
Morina reached over and gave his shoulder a half-hearted shove. "You kept your distance, even with us. No different than the other kids before you that came out of that home." She huffed, shaking her head at the memory. "But I can tell you're happy now, so wherever you ended up, I'm glad we were a part of that journey."
Izuku hugged her, drawing her in tight. "I'll visit again, I promise."
"I know you will," she laughed, patting his back. "See you later, Midoriya."
As he started walking away, Izuku felt his phone buzz. Another message from Hatsume asking where he was at. He shot back a quick reply that he was on his way.
The streets were getting busy as the afternoon wound down to evening. Crowds of people bustling through the street, their chatter filling the air. Izuku took his time navigating the streets, taking shortcuts to avoid the congested areas.
People lingering in the dark alleys wasn't unusual, so he paid no mind at first. He opened his quirk just enough to catch anyone thinking about him, but none were. Still, he hurried his steps till he saw a person in the corner of his vision.
A twisted smile.
Izuku whipped over to look, heart hammering in his chest as he saw them turn another corner. He sprinted down the alleyway, stumbling around turns, chasing after a shadow just out of reach.
"Stop!" Izuku called, growing frantic as they approached Hatsume's. He skidded to a stop, catching narrowed blue eyes glaring at him. "I said—" Izuku fell short as he turned into the empty dead end. His chest tightened as he recognized Hatsume's building.
"Such a pity," a voice drawled behind him.
Izuku spun around, panic stinging across his skin as he looked at Dabi. He took a step back as Dabi walked towards him.
"They're right, you do just run into danger without thinking," he said, cocking his head to the side as he looked Izuku up and down.
Izuku let out a frustrated breath as he searched with his quirk finding. . .nothing. "You're not real," he hissed, drawing his hands into fists anyway. "You can't be."
Dabi lifted this hand. "These feel real to me."
Izuku stumbled back at the blue flames licking along his fingers, the urge to run gripping him tight. Breath caught in Izuku's throat as Dabi turned his hand, flames growing taller, crawling up his arm.
"What do you want?" Izuku whimpered, feeling helpless as his quirk found nothing in front of him. He couldn't be real. He couldn't—and yet, the air was growing thin and hot as flames filled the alley.
Dabi gave the faintest hint of a smirk as he said, "After what you did to me, you think I'll let you forget so easily?" He shook his head with a bitter laugh. "I want to burn you."
"You're not real!" Izuku shouted, body trembling as the flames filled the alley and heat pressed in.
"Aren't I? Can't you feel the heat? The fear?" Dabi sneered. "You can't remember, but you can't forget either." He leaned towards Izuku; fire engulfed hand raised in warning. "Tell me, Deku, do you remember how much I want to burn you?" He drew his finger along Izuku's cheek, leaving a trail of ash. "You can try, but I won't let you forget."
Izuku shoved at him, throat too narrow to breathe let alone speak, but the hits landed weak.
"Still scared of a little fire, Deku?" Dabi asked as Izuku shut his eyes. "I'm hurt that you forgot about me."
Izuku sucked in a shallow breath as he stepped away, struggling to run like his mind wanted. Body tense and rooted in place.
"Izuku?"
Fear shot through Izuku as he heard Hatsume's voice. He looked up at her window, prepared to tell her to run and call for help, but she leaned on her windowsill casually, face creased in confusion.
"What are you doing?" she asked, raising a brow at him.
Izuku finally got in a full breath and looked back to where Dabi had been, finding the spot empty and the air cool. He blinked at the brick and ground, no evidence of a fire anywhere. Letting out a heavy breath, Izuku relaxed. He drew his hand across his cheek. No ash.
"N-Nothing," he said, jumping to pull the fire escape ladder down. Beads of sweat ran down his back as he climbed. He tried to shake off the lingering feeling of being too hot. "Sorry I'm late," he said with a thrown-on smile.
"Are you sure you're ok?" she asked, stepping back from the window to let him in. "It sounded like you were talking to someone."
Izuku gulped, closing the window behind him and flipping the lock closed. He stared down at the alley, a tremor running along his skin, but reminded himself that it was just his imagination. "Just Shinsou asking when I'd be back. I told him I wouldn't be too late."
"Alright," Hatsume said reluctantly, not believing him.
Izuku chewed lazily on his lunch, blinking blearily, trying and failing to bring the gym into focus. At least Shinsou wasn't much better off beside him. Eri, who had talked them into a movie marathon despite knowing they had training in the morning, was bright-eyed and perky as usual, completely unaffected by the lost sleep.
As Izuku ate with one hand he twisted his shortened staff in the other hand, going over the patterns in his head.
"Bakugo's gonna kill you," Shinsou mumbled, head jerking back up as he nodded off.
"Keep your voice down, he's got like a sixth sense," Izuku hissed, poking the staff into Shinsou's side.
Shinsou patted his shoulder. "It was Eri's fault. He doesn't get mad at her."
"That excuse stopped working a while ago," Izuku pouted, pressing a water bottle to his lips. He nearly choked when he heard Bakugo call his name.
"Don't tell me you stayed up late again, Deku," he said, scowling at Izuku as he crossed the gym.
Izuku shoved rice and chicken into his mouth to avoid answering. Shinsou gave him a look full of pity before getting up to join Aizawa putting away equipment.
Bakugo stopped in front of him, dropping his bag at Izuku's feet.
"I slept fine," Izuku said, pointedly not looking at Bakugo. It was true, the few hours of sleep he did manage had been restful, but they'd been interrupted by a nightmare that left him drenched in sweat and shaking.
His stomach twisted just thinking about Dabi.
Bakugo crouched down so that they were eye level. "Did something happen?"
Izuku stared back at him, getting lost in his eyes narrowed with concern. Izuku felt his heart stutter and forcibly swallowed. "Nothing happened," Izuku said, looking away. "Eri just wanted to watch some movies."
"You spoil her," Bakugo warned, sitting on the floor.
Izuku knew that was probably true, but he thought of the way she cried and clung to him at the hospital and thought it couldn't be the worst thing to indulge. "I made a promise," he muttered, tensing as he thought of the flames in the alleyway.
"Izuku, we'll see you at home," Aizawa said, leaving with Shinsou.
Bakugo snatched the staff from Izuku's hands and stood. Izuku quickly finished his bento and went after him. After fiddling with it for a few seconds, Bakugo found the button that made it extend to full length.
"Give me that," Izuku huffed, trying to snatch it back. "You don't even know how to use it."
Bakugo gave it a few spins, testing out the feel. He held it out to Izuku. "Then why don't you show me."
Izuku took it back, the metal cool against his hand, hating the way Bakugo was smirking. He put his fists up, beckoning Izuku forward with a taunting wave of his hand.
A familiar spark shot through Izuku as he used the staff to block Bakugo's attacks.
"I think the last time I used this against you was the final," he said, stepping in close as Bakugo tried to back away.
His smirk grew to a lopsided grin as he grabbed the staff and yanked Izuku forward. "You were in my head that time."
"I was," Izuku muttered, slowly lowering the staff. "But it's not like I had to work hard to get you to fight me."
Bakugo went to grab him, but Izuku grinned and hooked the staff around his leg, pulling it out from under him. Izuku pressed the staff against his throat, just hard enough to get the idea across.
"I wasn't trying to win back then," he mused thoughtfully, ignoring how Bakugo glowered at him. "I was just trying to distract you from reaching the hostages." Izuku grinned down at Bakugo. "You wanted to fight me so bad, it was easy to manipulate you. You're lucky one of your friends climbed through the window."
"You just showed up out of nowhere!" Bakugo scoffed, trying to shove Izuku off him. "I was pissed off!"
Izuku sat back on Bakugo making a show of thinking about it as Bakugo wheezed and threatened to blast him. "I think pissed off is an understatement." Izuku pushed Bakugo's hand away, sending a blast sputtering right. "But you were more confused than anything."
Bakugo made another move to get Izuku off of him but it was futile. "You really need to psychoanalyze this right now?" he seethed, palms crackling in warning.
If you're pissed off, you're not asking questions.
"Is there a better time to do it?" Izuku asked, fighting off a smile as Bakugo glared at him. "Yeah, maybe when you don't have your fucking staff to my windpipe."
"You're the one you wanted me to use it," Izuku said, pressing the button to shorten it. "Looks like you two are having fun."
Izuku looked over his shoulder at the voice. "Mirko!" He got off Bakugo and hugged her. "What are you doing here?"
She ruffled his hair as she stepped back. "Took a job here in Musutafu." She pulled Izuku and Bakugo into a side hug. "Guess you could say I missed you two idiots."
"I didn't even know you were coming," Izuku said, twisting out of her grasp.
"I wanted to check in on your progress myself." She drove her knuckles into Bakugo's scalp. "Blasty here's been moodier than usual, so I wanted to see just how much better you've gotten to make him so pissed off." She cast a sideways glance where Izuku had Bakugo pinned to the mat. "But I think I've got a pretty good idea already."
Izuku laughed as they argued, but his mood chilled as a blue cast danced in his peripheral. When
he turned to look, there was nothing. It was a constant gamble between nothing and finding Dabi staring back at him.
"Come on, show me what you learned at camp!"
Izuku blinked back, taking air back into his lung. "Yeah, sure." He ignored the way Bakugo's brow creased.
Bakugo threw a weak punch. "What's wrong with you? You keep spacing out." "Nothings wrong," Izuku bit out, shoving him back.
"You're lying." Bakugo's punches grew stronger, carrying firepower with them. Izuku dodged each of them, squinting as smoke stung his eyes.
"If this is about the fire, you need—"
Izuku gritted his teeth as Bakugo talked, panic seizing his chest as he saw Dabi leaning against the wall. He grabbed Bakugo's punch, twisting to throw his weight. Bakugo landed on his back with a wheeze. He rolled out of the way of Izuku's punch, hand heating up for another blast, but he hesitated.
Anger surged through Izuku as he saw it and threw himself at Bakugo. "I told you, you'd regret going easy on me again!"
Bakugo stumbled back, wiping the blood from his lip. "What the hell, Deku?"
Izuku turned his head so that he couldn't see Dabi. He leaned out of the way of a kick from Bakugo, relying on his quirk to fight off Bakugo so he could avoid Dabi lingering by the wall. Izuku fought back, landing punches hard and fast, backing Bakugo up until he twisted for a kick and found Dabi right beside him.
Izuku hesitated as a breath caught in his throat.
A hand grabbed his ankle, yanking him backward. Izuku stared up at the ceiling for a second before Bakugo was above him, saying something he couldn't quite register. He kept looking forward, even as Dabi crouched beside him.
"Isn't this the part where you're supposed to get up?" he asked, raising a bored brow. "You'll lay here and let him beat you?"
Izuku felt his breath quicken, struggling to feel the sensation of Bakugo gripping his wrists. "Shut up," Izuku murmured, squeezing his eyes shut.
"And I thought you were a Hero," Dabi scoffed. "Guess I was wrong."
"Shut up!" Izuku yelled, throwing his weight as hard as he could.
Bakugo fell back, looking at Izuku bewildered. "What's going on, Deku?" he asked, getting to his feet.
Izuku got up, backing away from Bakugo as he searched for Dabi, relaxing slightly when he was gone. "Nothing—I told you, nothing's wrong."
"You're lying," Bakugo hissed through his teeth, grabbing Izuku's arm and pulling him closer. He lowered his voice, worry lacing it, making Izuku squirm as he asked, "If you—Is this about the fire?"
The fire.
Dabi.
Yes.
"No," Izuku breathed steadily. "Let me go, Kacchan."
Bakugo's grip tightened. "No. Not until you tell me the truth."
Izuku clenched his jaw, trying to pull away from Bakugo. He couldn't drag him into the mess with Dabi.
I need to do this on my own.
Izuku yanked his arm free and turned to walk away. "Deku!"
Izuku felt the movement and smacked Bakugo's hand away, surprising himself with the action. Bakugo looked at him with such clear hurt that Izuku took several more steps back, struggling to find enough distance between him and the way his heart was breaking.
But he solidified his resolve as Dabi appeared behind Bakugo.
"There's nothing wrong," Izuku said again, turning away.
"Bullshit," Bakugo bit out, fast steps coming across the mat.
Izuku bent to pick up his things, hands shaking. He dropped his bag twice before he got it over his shoulder.
"Izuku," Mirko said.
Izuku had forgotten she was there. His hand tightened on the door handle. "Sorry, Mirko. I need some air."
He pushed the door open and stepped outside, the soft click of the door closing jarring through him.
It echoed.
He knew that would be a moment he regretted.