Chapter 6
Developments

(U.A. Academy: Japan)
January 2nd

After checking out the security tapes, All Might and Aizawa contacted Endeavor and Ryukyu to inform them that Izuku and Uraraka had yet to return to school, and they could not reach them on their phones.

"Have you informed the police about this or asked their parents if they knew where ether might be?" Ryukyu questioned over a shared line with the three heroes.

"All Might is contacting Detective Tsukauchi to see if he can help locate Midoriya. And we have not told their parents yet. Did Uraraka say how she was supposed to arrive?" Aizawa answered before asking the Dragon Hero.

"She was supposed to arrive on the train. Nejire was to meet her at the station, but after waiting an hour, she had to leave and later informed me of what happened."

"This is all interesting. But it seems like we're going in circles here!" Endeavor added rudely. "Until the police have something we can go on, there's nothing we can do, and informing either of their parents will only cause them to worry,"

While both Aizawa and Ryukyu didn't like the Flame Hero's tone, he did have a point. They agreed to keep it among themselves for now.

"Keep me informed of anything recent," said Endeavor.

"We will. If Todoroki or Bakugo ask about Midoriya, say he's unwell with a cold," Aizawa told Endeavor.

Ryukyu said she would say the same thing about Uraraka to her friends.

Once the call ended, Aizawa sighed quietly and made some tea to calm down. While waiting for the drink to cool, All Might joined him after he finished his call with the Detective.

"So, what did Tsukauchi say?" Aizawa asked.

"He's going to get in touch with the transportation department first. Until then, we wait," All Might stated as he was given some of Aizawa's tea.

"I think we should inform the other teachers and Principal Nezu once they return," Aizawa suggested.

All Might agreed with him. Then he drank his tea while thinking about his protégé. "Young Midoriya, I hope you are safe wherever you are?"

(October 14-17th)
New York City

Three days had passed since the meeting between the young heroes and the Gargoyles. Since that night, Izuku and Uraraka had gotten to know their friends and vice versa.

The first step occurred during dinner at the castle the night of the meeting, when both teens told the Gargoyles and Elisa about the future. They began by telling them how Quirks first appeared but were careful not to say which day it happened so as not to change the future.

After this, they spoke of the rise of heroes and villains. Some heroes included All Might, Ryukyu, Kamui Woods, Mt. Lady, Gun Head, Fat Gum, etc.

Once they were done, Elisa asked the two teens about their families. She learned that Uraraka's parents owned a construction company. And that she wanted to help them financially by becoming a hero and making money.

'I wonder how heroes make in the future?' Elisa wondered.

When it came to Izuku, he spoke of living with his mother Inko Midoriya. His father, Hisashi worked abroad and wasn't home as much. He would talk to him occasionally but hadn't done so recently.

This surprised Uraraka as this was the first time she heard Midoriya talk about his home life. 'Poor Deku, being unable to see his dad must be hard. I know how that is!' the brunette thought sadly.

Elisa thought the same thing and might need to talk to Izuku about this later. However, she decided to change the subject as they continued to eat and talk for a bit. Afterward, the Gargoyles said goodbye to the teens as they headed out on patrol, while the three humans returned home after an exciting and eventful night.

Since then, Izuku and Uraraka spent their time during the day studying for their citizenship tests. Then, they would hang out with the Gargoyles at night for a few hours when they were allowed to visit the castle.

But both were unaware they were being recorded by cameras hidden throughout the castle. Someone was watching this and making a report about it.

(October 18th)
Manhattan Detention Center.

Owen Burnett waited patiently inside the visitor's room as he heard the guard arrive with his boss, David Xanatos.

"You get thirty minutes," the guard said to the two as he released Xanatos from his handcuffs, then went to stand nearby.

Sitting across from each other at the table, Xanatos saw that Owen had a briefcase with him, which made him wonder if this was about legal matters. "Not that it's not good to see you, Owen, but I thought my sentencing date wasn't due until the end of the month."

"It still is, Mr. Xanatos, but that's not what this visit is about," Owen replied calmly as he opened the briefcase on the table.

"Recently, Detective Maza brought two teenagers to the castle, where they were introduced to your house guests," Owen said as he handed Xanatos photos taken from the cameras, which showed a young man and girl talking with the Gargoyles.

"Hmm, interesting. Do you happen to know who these two are?" asked Xanatos after putting the pictures down.

"The guard in the lobby said the boy is Izuku Midoriya, and the girl is Ochako Uraraka,"

"Do you know how they found out about my house guests?" asked Xanatos.

"No, but they all seem to be getting along. Also, I learned they are staying with Detective Maza," replied Owen.

This intrigued Xanatos. He wondered why two teenagers would be living with Detective Maza. Hopefully, in time, he would find out. But for now, the man would wait.

"Should I tell the guard not to allow them to visit the building anymore?" asked Owen.

"No, let them enjoy their time with my house guests. Besides, judging from these photos, we might be seeing two new players about to enter the game," Xanatos answered as he looked at the photo of two of the Gargoyles with the boy and girl.

(October 19th)
Elisa's Apartment

Since he met the Gargoyles, Izuku had hoped to speak with Nana Shimura again. But this didn't happen for five nights. On the sixth night, he found himself standing before her in his dreams, in which Izuku told Nana what he learned.

Once he was done, Izuku asked Nana how she knew about them. "When I was a child, I visited my grandparents in Ishimura. They told me stories of how Gargoyles lived at a nearby castle long ago and would protect the villagers in the town nearby," Nana told Izuku.

"If they lived there, why don't people know about them in Japan? Or the world, for that matter. This would have been huge news," the young man wondered.

"I wish I had the answer. But I don't know Midoriya. However, for now, you should enjoy your time with Goliath's clan," she told him.

"I will, Senpai. So, um…given my situation, do you think it would be a good idea to tell Uraraka, Detective Maza, or Goliath about One for All?" Izuku asked next.

Silence followed after he said this. "I know this is a big secret to keep, given the nature of One for All's power. But since All Might is not here to talk about this, it would help if you told one of these three about it," Nana said.

"Hmm…I can see why you want to tell them. It does help to talk about it. I did the same thing with Gran Torino. However, this decision is up to you alone," Nana told Izuku.

"Especially that cute brunette you like!" she added, making Izuku blush.

"I…what, oh no, you got the wrong..." Izuku stammered.

"Oh, don't deny it, Midoriya. You like Uraraka, and it's obvious she likes you," Nana said.

Taking in her words, Izuku remembered his encounters with Uraraka, most of which were good and some awkward for strange reasons he didn't understand then. But now he started to think it was because Uraraka liked him. And he might feel the same for her?

"Take it from me: if you feel something for a special person, you should tell them about this. Otherwise, you may regret it later on," Nana added thoughtfully.

"I…I will think about Senpai," he told her, then talked about some other matters until he woke up.

(October 20th)
Castle Wyvern

As both were far from home. Izuku and Uraraka agreed they had to keep up their training. So, both were permitted to train in the castle gym. Elisa had agreed to this, on the condition that Goliath or the others would observe them and ensure neither teen would hurt themselves.

Wearing some workout shirts, shorts, and fingerless gloves. Uraraka was working with Broadway, in which he was her opponent. Both circled each other as they waited to see who would make the first move.

It ended up being Broadway, who came after her, claws open. Seeing this, Uraraka moved to his left side, turned around quickly, and struck his backside with a hard punch. This sent the big Gargoyle down onto the floor.

"Oh, nice move Uraraka. Very sneaky!" Broadway said to her as he got back up and began striking at her. Seeing this, Uraraka blocked his attacks using her arms. Then, she moved in when there was an opening.

Seeing this from off to the side. Goliath was impressed by Uraraka's fighting style and how she was holding up against Broadway. 'She must have learned to fight like that back home,' Goliath thought, then turned to see how Izuku was doing against Brooklyn.

The red Gargoyle was trying to catch Izuku, who used his power to run and jump around the room at great speed. When Brooklyn came close, Izuku would jump away and then return to score a hit on his opponent.

'Such speed and power, he appears then vanishes like the wind,' Goliath noted as he watched this.

"Man, it's like fighting a large bird!" Brooklyn grunted as he was getting annoyed at this. Then, he decided to try a new tactic as he ducked onto the floor. When he saw Izuku touch down near him and jump up again, Brooklyn extended his wings wide. Seeing this, Izuku avoided the surprise attack by leaning forward. This caused him to

roll onto the ground before hitting the wall. Izuku directed his body so he could extend his legs, which the young man pushed back against the wall's padding. Then he shot off like a cannonball and tackled Brooklyn onto the floor.

"UGH!" the Gargoyle groaned.

"Oh, sorry, Brooklyn. Hope I didn't hurt you too hard," Izuku apologized as he got off Brooklyn, then helped his friend up.

"Nothing's broken, so I'm okay. But it was impressive how you took me down after my surprise attack."

"Indeed, you should be proud of yourself for such quick thinking," Goliath said as he approached the two. "You and Uraraka fight like experienced warriors. I'm sure this is due to your training from your mentors," he added next.

Izuku smiled at Goliath's praise for his thinking. But he was surprised by how he referred to him and Uraraka fighting like warriors. 'I guess Goliath would think of us that way, as there weren't many heroes in his time,' Izuku thought.

"Deku, are you okay?" Uraraka asked him as he went quiet for a bit.

"Hmm, oh, I'm okay. What's up?" he replied.

"We're heading to the kitchen to get something to eat. Are you coming?" Nodding to this, Izuku followed the others as they left the gym.

After eating in the dining hall, both teens set off for home by taking the bus as Elisa had told them which ones take routes that stop near her home. And to make sure they were okay, Goliath and Brooklyn followed from above. Once the two saw them exit the bus, both Gargoyles set off on patrol for the night.

During the bus ride, Izuku had been thinking about what Nana had told him about the other night. He decided to make the first move as he and Uraraka entered the apartment.

"Uraraka, before we get ready for bed. There's…something I wanted to ask you about," he said calmly yet nervously.

Uraraka noticed as she replied. "Sure, Deku, what's up?"

"Well…um, I was wondering if maybe we could do something different tomorrow night, like go see a movie together. If that's okay with you?" he asked, trying to keep calm.

Things went quiet after this as Uraraka realized what Deku was asking her. "Y-You mean l-like a d-date?" she asked as her face started to go red.

"…Yeah, a date, but if that's-" Izuku started to answer.

"YES!" cried Uraraka as she interrupted him. "I-I mean…I would like that Deku. We can check out the times tomorrow and let Detective Maza know about our plans," she said after calming herself down.

"Okay, sounds good," Izuku told her, then went off to change for bed.

Meanwhile, Uraraka's inner voice was going off in her mind as he did. 'DEKU ASKED ME OUT. DEKU ASKED ME OUT. DEKU ASKED ME OUT!' She kept repeating over and over.

'This feels like a dream. Ow! This isn't a dream!' the girl realized after pinching her arm. "Oh man, if Mina were here. She would say I told you so, which is good that she isn't here," Uraraka said quietly, then changed into her pajamas.

Little did she or Izuku know that someone had been observing them from outside. And after learning this, they disappeared into the shadows.