A/N: Before people yell at me, I know I'm introducing these villains late, but I thought this would be a more fun way of introducing them to the story, and coming up is one BNHA scene that always gives me goosebumps to watch.
"Dinners up!" Jiro announced as Izuku, and Mandalay wheeled out two small trolleys of the potato salad they'd made for the class. The response was a hubbub of cheers and sighs of relief, which were oddly reassuring to the greenette, even though he wasn't sure if they'd even like it yet.
Izuku had taken the chance to change again whilst Jiro and Mandalay dished up the food, and was now dressed in a dark, navy-blue polo shirt and black shorts, which were much more pleasant feeling out in the humid night air.
Jiro managed quite well with cooking, in the end, considering she said she'd, "never done it before." Now, all that was left was to see what the class thought of it.
"So, Midoriya, you said you had something you wanted to ask me?" Mandalay spoke up, passing two bowls of the salad down to Kaminari and Ojiro.
"Oh, right!" He exclaimed, quickly turning to the Telepath Quirk user. "I-I was wondering if you knew the boy in the cap. I saw him earlier whilst cooking, but I've never seen him before." He explained, looking past her and back to the dorm building.
"Boy in the cap..." Mandalay muttered, before quickly slapping her forehead. "God - that's Kota, my nephew." She laughed, shaking her head, and smiling.
"Kota?" Izuku murmured to himself. "Oh... He seemed really... angry at me and Jiro. He said something about how he hated heroes, I think. I was just worried is all." He explained, passing two more bowls of food to Momo and Iida.
"Yeah, life's not been the best to him, even though he's so young. It's really unfortunate." She said, letting out a quiet sigh.
"I see... Well, when he came to the kitchen, he only took an apple then left. Do you know where he might be? There's some spare potato salad I could take to him." Izuku suggested, grabbing an empty bowl from the second shelf of the trolly.
"Well, I'm not sure exactly where he is, but I know he's got some secret spot he goes too sometimes. I've not followed him because it's a secret for a reason, but you're not family, so I doubt it'll bother him as much." She explained, shrugging. Izuku nodded and dished some of the salad into the bowl.
"I understand. I'm sure I'll find him, don't worry." He reassured the pro hero, before taking a pair of chopsticks and walking off towards where he'd last seen Kota. He'd noticed small boot prints in the mud a little earlier, so there was no doubting they were his.
Izuku couldn't help but want to pry in a little on what had happened to this boy. He knew it was none of his business, but the fact he was so young, yet so angry, worried him a little. Izuku couldn't even think of anything that might've caused Kota to hate heroes so much.
Izuku carried on walking for what felt like quite some time, simply following the boot prints deeper into the forest, until he finally found the hiding spot of this young boy. The rocky side of a steep hill was the place he'd finally found Kota, sitting by the edge of the large cut out with his knees up to his chest.
"Kota..." Izuku started softly, starting to make his way up the slope towards the boy.
"What? How did you find me!" He yelled, almost as soon as he set eyes on the greenette.
"Sorry, I followed your boot prints. I brought you some food." Izuku muttered, before smiling warmly at the boy. Kota glared back at him, as he slowly made his way over. Izuku actually felt a little uneasy under his hateful gaze.
"I don't want it. Get out of here." He spat, looking back off over the forest and resting his head on his knees. Izuku sighed before continuing closer, stopping beside the boy and crouching down.
"Why are you out here on your own?" Izuku asked softly, cocking his head a little.
"What's it to you?" Kota growled. "I don't want anything to do with you, trainee idiots." He added quietly. Izuku paused for a moment, trying to think of something to say to the dark-haired boy, but there was no point. He wanted to be alone, and the best thing to do was to respect that and leave him be.
"I see... W-Well, I'll leave this with you inca-." Izuku started, before Kota swung up his hand and swatted the bowl away, throwing the food all over Izuku shirt, and face.
"I said I don't want it, damn it!" He yelled. Losing his balance Izuku fell backwards and landed on his rear, the bowl laying empty and grubby at his side as he stared at the boy in shock.
"Just go away." Kota muttered, seeming to calm down a little before turning to face the opposite direction. Izuku didn't bother saying anything else. There was no point trying to talk to him when he clearly just wanted time to himself. So, gathering the bowl and chopsticks from the floor, Izuku started making his way back towards the dorm building.
He felt much colder now after having the cool potato salad thrown over him, but that was probably the only plus side to that entire exchange. He had to talk to Mandalay and find out just what it was that'd happened to Kota. It wasn't normal for any six-year-old to be that pent up and aggressive.
The walk back to the dorm building felt much longer than the walk to see Kota, and it made Izuku realise just how far Kota was away from the main building. Maybe he did know his way around really well by now, but it made him uneasy know he was so far away from anyone who could help him if something went wrong.
Then, through the clearing, he noticed the dorm building coming back into view, with Mandalay, and now the other Pussycats, all sat on a bench with Aizawa and Vlad, watching over the students as they ate. Ragdoll noticed Izuku before he'd even gotten close out of the woods, and she quickly brought it to the attention of the other pros.
"Midoriya? What happened?" Pixie-bob asked with a curious frown once Izuku was close enough. He laughed awkwardly and showed them the empty, chipped bowl.
"He didn't want any." He chuckled, looking at the floor with an embarrassed blush. Mandalay tutted and sighed irritably before getting up and taking the bowl from Izuku.
"I'm sorry he was so difficult. Come on, I need to talk to you." She sighed, before speaking quietly and nodding for Izuku to follow her. "I'll wash your clothes for you too." She added, smiling over her shoulder.
Izuku slowly nodded before following her, firing a glance over to Aizawa, who let out a breathy chuckle and smiled slightly. He could probably guess what Izuku had tried to do before he'd even said anything.
"His parents were heroes." Mandalay started once they were inside, and out of earshot of the others. Izuku looked at her sideways, before remembering what it was she was talking about.
"You've probably heard of the hero team Water hose, right?" She asked, leading Izuku off towards the launderette room of the building. The One For All Quirk users insides fluttered a little when he heard this name, but he also felt a little disheartened. Their death wasn't new news, but it was still somewhat recent.
"I have." He responded simply.
"They were Kota's parents." Mandalay muttered. Izuku stumbled over himself, managing to stay up and steady himself. He had no idea they'd ever had a son. That made everything about Kota so much clearer to him.
Izuku still remembered the feeling of hearing about when his father died, and even though he hated Izuku, it still hurt the greenette so much hearing he'd died. But he could never imagine the pain of loose both his parents, especially at Kota's age.
"That's why he's so angry. He hates heroes and villains because, to him, it's just giving each other titles and killing one another based upon that. They left him behind just to follow that ideal. That's how he sees it." She explained. Izuku couldn't only stare and listen. He didn't know what to say, and even if he did, he couldn't. He didn't have any words, and there wasn't really a fitting response to what she was telling him.
"I have tried to convince him that's not the case, but he's stubborn." She added. "I know you will but go easy on him." She smiled over her shoulder and holding out her hand.
"Come on, let's have them here." She said, glancing down at her hand. Izuku stared blankly for a moment, before realising she was asking for his dirty clothes. She turned the other way as Izuku slowly began pulling off his shirt, doing his best to avoid getting the food in his hair.
"There's a bath gown over there, pop that on before you head to your room." She said, still looking away from his as he took off his shorts and handed them to her, before quickly taking one of the gowns and wrapping himself in it.
"Alright?" She asked.
"Yeah." Izuku responded, pushing his hands into the robe pockets.
"Good. I'm sorry he acted that way. I'll talk to him when he comes back later." She sighed, smiling at Izuku with a guilty look in her eyes. The greenette shook his head.
"Y-You don't have to do that. I know what it's like to lose a parent. It must be a lot worse since he lost both." He replied calmly. Mandalay looked at him with a curious expression but didn't bother pressing the matter any further.
"Alright. Thank you, Midoriya." She sighed again, smiling warmly. Izuku nodded in response before turning away from her and making his way up to his room to change. Every fibre of his being wanted to help Kota, but everything else made him feel like it was wrong to get involved. But then again, melding where you aren't meant to was all part of being a hero.
Once he got up to his room, he strolled into the surprisingly warm space and let out a sigh, untying and pulling off the robe. From his window, he could just about see the outside eating area. He could see Mina and Jiro sat opposite each other with Kirishima, Tsuyu, Iida, Kaminari, Kirishima, and surprisingly Bakugo too, and all seemed to be having quite a fun conversation.
Izuku wished he could smile with Bakugo like they seemed to be, but then, they were rivals, and not friendly ones in the blonde boy's mind. It wasn't like Izuku hadn't tried to be peaceful with his old friend, but he always knew it wouldn't be easy.
That could wait for another time though. All he wanted now, was to get changed into something comfortable, go downstairs, and eat with the rest of his classmates. Any more important jobs he had for himself could wait until tomorrow when he was refreshed and ready for such tasks.
"Kurogiri, get this guy's outta here." Tomura snarled, wafting his hands at the two strangers standing in his bar lair. "Everything I hate came together in one set." He added coldly, turning his eyes to the first of the figures. A teenage girl in a typical anime looking school uniform, with scruffy hair, unnerving eyes and abnormally sharp canines, beside a moody looking, stitched up, dark-haired male.
"A brat, and a rude guy." Shigaraki hissed, heavily resting his elbow on the bar table.
"Now, now. They've come all this way to visit, let's at least hear them out, Tomura Shigaraki. Besides, that big shot broker brought them." Kurogiri explained calmly to his boss, turning and looking in the direction of a quite 'rough-around-the-edges' gentleman dressed in black trousers, a white button shirt, dark purple jacket and pale scarf. Glasses perched upon his crooked nose as he smoked a cigarette through chapped looking lips.
"I don't care what you do with them, but make sure I get my commission, Kurogiri." The villain, Giran spoke up, blowing out smoke as he got up from the doorframe.
"At least let me introduce them..." He added coolly, walking up to the two strangers he'd brought into the Decay Quirk user.
"First, this cute high school girl..." He smirked, turning his cigarette in the direction of the blondie. "Her name and face were kept tightly under wraps by the media, but she's on the run as the suspect in a series of deaths by blood loss." He explained, before almost getting cut off by the girl in question.
"I'm Toga! Himiko Toga!" She almost yelled. Shigaraki almost instantly let out a heavy sigh and rested his head in his hand.
"It's hard to live. I want the world to become an easier place to live in! I wanna become Mr Stainy! I wanna KILL Mr Stainy! So, let me join the league of Villains, Tomura." She explained. It was long-winded and boring, typical of some insane girl like her.
"I don't get her. Is she crazy? First off, Stain's already dead, so there goes your ideal." Shigaraki said harshly, looking up to Giran.
"She can hold a conversation for the most part. I'm sure she'll be of use to you."Giran said calmly, pushing his left hand into his pocket and taking another puff of his cigarette.
"Anyway, next is this guy." He quickly changed the subject, not giving Shigaraki a moment to respond. "He's not committed any flashy crimes, but he holds fast to the Hero Killer's ideology." Giran explained.
"I don't like this uneasy feeling. Does this organisation really have a 'just cause'?" He asked with half-closed eyes. "And, don't tell me you're going to let in this crazy chick." He growled, glaring over at Toga with dismissal.
"Hey, you. You can't even do what that 'crazy chick' has been able to do. Give me your name, you're an adult, right?" Shigaraki spoke up in a mildly mocking tone.
"I currently go by Dabi." The black-haired villain muttered, not giving into the organisation heads light mocking.
"That's not what I want to know. What's your real name?" Shigaraki pressed, his voice becoming sterner.
"I'll tell you when it's time." Dabi sighed, which clearly irritated the Decay Quirk user. "I'm more concerned with carrying out the will of the Hero Killer than something like my name." He added, rolling his eyes and looking off into space.
"Tch, always talking about what you're not asked. Why's everyone so hung up on Stain anyway? Stain, Stain..." Shigaraki grumbled, slowly picking himself up from the barstool. His eyes, hidden behind one of his many hands, glaring daggers at the two intruders.
"You mustn't, Shigaraki...!" Kurogiri warned.
"I don't feel good." The white-haired male growled. "Ya, all no good!" He yelled, throwing his hands towards the two with killing intent. Dabi and Toga reacted suite to this action, one drawing a knife and the other raising his and, a faint blue glow burning up within it.
"Enough!" Kurogiri boomed, quickly opening several warp gates in the way of their attacks, diverting them to places they would be of no harm to anyone.
"Please, relax. Tomura Shigaraki." Giran muttered, almost sounding amused at the sight before him.
"If what you wish is to come to pass, then this organisation must grow in numbers. Being this pick isn't helping anything." Kurogiri warned, doing his best to be the voice of reason.
"We're in the spotlight now, so this is our chance." He muttered, craning his shaded head around to Shigaraki's.
"Tch, shut up." He hissed in response. "Fine then. If you think they're so useful, then I have a little job for them." Shigaraki said, now turning his attention to Giran.
"I happen to have some recruits I actually asked for on their way, and we plan to make a move on the U.A training camp." The white-haired villain started, sitting back down in his bar stool. Giran's face fell a little, but not with fear. With shock.
"H-How did you find it?" He asked, his cocky demeanour falling for the first time.
"Don't underestimate me, Giran. We move off tomorrow night and catch them unawares. There's a kid there; Katsuki Bakugo. Someone I think will be easily convinced. With his strength on our side, they don't stand a chance." Shigaraki explained.
"U.A! Oooh, I've always wanted to try and kill some of the cute boys there." Toga beamed, bouncing excitedly on the spot. Dabi however, didn't seem amused at all by the idea.
"You're a fool if you think someone from U.A will so easily be convinced." His grumbled, firing Kurogiri a glance before turning back to Shigaraki.
"Call me what you want, no-body. You'll see." Shigaraki chuckled coldly, before getting up again and making his way to the door behind Giran and the recruits he'd brought.
Just as Shigaraki rested his hand on the door handle, leaving only his pinky off it, a knock came. Upon opening the door, the four were met with seven other, presumable villains. Twice, Magne, Muscular, Spinner, Mr Compress, Mustard and Moonfish. All were villains who had been seen or heard of somewhere before, and it showed when Dabi and Toga saw them.
"Ya called?" Spinner asked, a curious, and slightly unnerved frown on his face as his eyes fell on the mix-mash of a group stood before them.
"Right on time." Shigaraki chuckled coldly. "I was just explaining to your new 'friends', about exactly what it is we're planning to do tomorrow night." Shigaraki said, turning from the door and walking back to Kurogiri. Dabi looked horrified at the complete mess of villains now filing into the bar, whereas Toga couldn't seem to contain her excitement.
"This is ridiculous. How can you expect this 'plan' to even work if everyone's just arrived!" Dabi spat. Shigaraki stopped, and looked over his shoulder, one of his narrow crimson eyes finally coming into view.
"Because this is what I've recruited them for. You two are just going to be in the way..." Shigaraki mocked, looking away and sitting in his stool. "Unless you can prove, tonight, that you're worth all he's cracked you up to be." He added, again seeming to try and taunt the black-haired villain.
"Fine." Dabi spat under his breath.
"Ahh! I'm so excited!" Toga yelled, clapping her hands together loudly.
"Whatever, all I want's to see some blood." Muscular shrugged, glancing between the two unintroduced villains standing in front of the group he'd come in with.
"Good. I'll run you guys through the plan one last time, so listen close. Unless of course, you wanna die." Shigaraki warned, stretching his arms above his head and cracking his fingers. No-one responded, sharing only quiet glances. For villains, some of these guys sure seemed out of place.
"Well, I guess I'll leave you to it. Make them feel welcome, Shigaraki Tomura." Giran chuckled, taking another puff of his cigarette before turning, and leaving the group of eleven villains to discuss.
"Ugh, hello?" The tired voice of All Might asked through the phone. Izuku felt a small flutter of nerves at the thought of waking up his idol hero.
"H-Hey, All Might." The greenette started. Mina looked over her shoulder from the game she was playing on her phone, and got up from Izuku's desk chair, making her way over to his bed and sitting at his side.
"Oh, Midoriya. How are you doing kid?" All Might asked, sounding a lot happier knowing it wasn't another telephone salesperson.
"I'm good! Just thought I'd call and ask how thing are going back at school?" Izuku asked, scooting over for Mina, who'd been silently begging his to lay down.
"Things are good. Same ol' same ol' though. What about you? I heard from Mr Aizawa that you had a little trouble during the Quirk Meditation." All Might asked, his tone turning a little more serious.
"I'm fine. Actually, I think it still worked for me, I just wasn't concentrating enough and lost control." Izuku explained. "Mr Aizawa told me to take a break for a few days, but hopefully I'll be able to start training again tomorrow." Izuku explained.
"Ah, I see. That's good then. I think you'll head back on Sunday, so make sure you make the most of the last two days." All Might said warmly, although his tone was a little stern sounding.
"I will! I want to make up the ground I lost." Izuku replied. All Might chuckled softly before grunting a few times.
"Sorry, I was adjusting my pillows." He stated, before laughing at himself. "Ahh, so then, how's everyone else doing?" He asked with a relaxed sigh.
"They're all doing well. Everyone's getting pretty worn out now. It makes me feel bad because I haven't been training as much as them, but I feel just as exhausted." Izuku explained, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck.
"Hey." Mina perked up sternly. "I told you, it's because of everything that's happened before this. Give yourself a break now and let people catch up with you. Once you feel better, we'll all be roughly at the same stage again." Mina said, pausing her game to look at him with stern, but loving eyes.
"Oh, Ashido is there?" All Might asked curiously.
"Mmhmm..." Izuku hummed in response. "She's sat with me playing games on her phone before curfew." He added, smiling down at Mina, who stuck her tongue out with a cheeky expression.
"Well, I agree with her. Like I've said, you need to rest your body and let it catch up with all the work you've been doing, otherwise, there won't be any real development." All Might explained, Izuku nodded with agreement.
"I know. I feel right back to normal now though, so hopefully, I can start training again." Izuku said, sliding his legs off the bed and getting up, making his way over to his desk and grabbing his charger from it, plugging it into his phone and lingering there so he could keep talking.
"Anything else interesting happened then? Did you meet the Pussycats? I'll bet you really nerded out on them huh?" All Might questioned, letting out a hearty chuckle at his comments. Izuku felt his cheeks heating up with embarrassment.
"No, I didn't really do any of that this time. They're all so much cooler in person." He admitted.
"Yeah, they're all really nice guys." All Might said with a small laugh. "Anyway, I'd love to talk more but - Oof - I've gotta make myself a snack before I starve here. The school was a bit busier today, so I didn't really have a chance to eat lunch." All Might explained, grunting as he pushed himself up from his bed and started making his way to his kitchen.
"Okay, All Might. I'll see you soon-." Izuku started.
"Bye, All Might!" Mina called, to which the pro responded with a laugh.
"See you guys soon. Take it easy kid." All Might chuckled, before hanging up. Izuku smiled at his phone as he set it down beside his notebook, before stretching his arms above his head and making his way back over to his bed, perching himself on the edge. His head felt so heavy, as did his eyelids. He'd been feeling tired since before he cooked dinner, and after the 'drama' of earlier, he felt like he could sleep just about anywhere.
"You alright, Midori?" Mina asked sweetly. He could hear her shuffling around on his bed before a sudden weight was added to his shoulder. Her warm embrace, hugging his neck and resting her head atop his own.
"Mmhmm..." He yawned.
"Y'know, I always thought you and All Might were close, but it's weird just how friendly the two of you are." She said thoughtfully.
"It's weird?" Izuku asked curiously.
"No, no. Not weird like that. I mean, All Might's the greatest hero out there, and yet you seem to be his best friend..." She said, her voice falling a little. "Ugh, I don't know. I think it's really cool honestly." She sighed, resting her head back on his and letting out a sigh.
"Well, I'm his successor. I'd be a little worried if we didn't get on at all, wouldn't you?" Izuku asked with a smile. Mina suddenly got off him and moved to sit at his side, looking at him with a sideways expression. He shifted a little under her judging gaze.
"You know something Midori, I think you've actually changed since we started dating." She admitted, still staring at him with fondness in your eyes.
"Y-You do? How?" He asked nervously.
"I just think, you seem a bit more jokey than you were when we first met. People say to me that they think I'm rubbin' off on ya." She giggled. Izuku sighed and smiled in response, shaking his head.
"I personally don't see how, but I won't argue." He said, before stretching his arms over his head and again letting out a loud yawn.
"Right, bed, now, let's go." Mina ordered suddenly, jumping up from his bed and clapping her hands.
"I'm going, jeez." Izuku breathed through the end of his yawn, scooting around and pulling covers over him with a sigh.
"Good. I'll see you tomorrow." She smiled, walking over to him and leaning over, pecking his forehead before heading to the door. "Love ya Midori." She sang, opening his door and smiling over her shoulder.
"I love you too." He responded with a weak, but genuine smile. She giggled back, before turning away from him, turning off his light and closing the door behind herself.
It was time like this where Izuku realised how Mina seemed to mother him sometimes. It was nice, but it still felt embarrassing being treated that way by his girlfriend. It was nice, having a relationship. It felt good having that kind of connection with someone, as well as that reassurance that you just can't get from friends.
He was grateful for it, but he'd be lying if he said he still wasn't worried about the entire thing. Was U.A really the time for a relationship? It wasn't like he was doubting or second-guessing anything, but he knew just how demanding things were going to get after this. After all, this was only their first year, and as the class setting all the high standards, they had a lot of expectations from people.
The most important part was that they were all there for each other. The way he and Mina were now was perfect in his eyes, and he didn't feel the need to take anything any further.
He often found himself thinking, especially when alone and trying to fall asleep, about where he'd be right now if he hadn't agreed to walk with Mina. Looking at the bigger picture, things probably wouldn't be very different. All his confrontations would've still happened, and during this training camp he probably would've started talking to her, and they may have ended up good friends.
The things he wondered about; was would he feel any happier? Every time he and Mina spent real time together, just hanging out as a couple like they had just then, he felt butterflies every moment that passed. However, when it was the entire class hanging out together, it felt like he was just talking with another good friend.
Was it bad to feel that way, or was it normal? It had been around a month since they started dating, and he still had these questions on his mind. Would things be any difference between them if they weren't dating? He felt guilty for thinking about these kinds of things. He wanted to be with Mina, and he really loved her, but it was his first relationship.
Some of the things he expected to feel from hearing about relationships, and the feelings he had, weren't exactly what he expected. Then again, he had nothing to compare these feelings too. For all he knew, she was having these same kinds of thoughts. It was a stressful situation to be in if you thought about it too much.
Training to be the next generation of heroes carried a lot of weight in and of itself, and with a relationship, he had something else to worry about. Of course, it was a two-person effort, and he knew he wasn't alone. Mina was probably feeling the exact same way. Occasionally wondering if it was really the best idea to start dating in the first year of hero school.
But they loved each other, that was what was most important. As long as they were honest about how each other were feeling and could understand each other's circumstances, then they would be having nothing to worry about. In reality, the two of them hadn't really gotten any closer than really good friends, excluding the times they were alone, and they let their hormones get the better of them.
They hadn't met each other's parents, they hadn't been on any real dates since the time they were given a small break after the Sports Festival, and with everything happening at the moment, progressing their relationship was something that had just fallen to the bottom of the priority list.
Of course, with the small times the two had touched upon the subject, Mina agreed with him that it was important to focus on studies. With her low grades and difficulty paying attention in class, she wanted nothing more than to really knuckle down and do what was best for her, and Izuku was happy with this.
A relationship, to him, was being there to support the person you're with. To help them through their hard times and support them in ways other people simply can't. As long as that was how they were together, then this relationship was everything he could've ever asked for.
A/N: Hey All, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. With university coming up for me, and some poor experiences in the past, I've been thinking about relationships from a more realistic point of view, and I think it makes it easier for me to understand just how difficult having a relationship whilst training to be a professional hero would be.
I think this will be really helpful for the story because it gives it that feeling of realism, as opposed to being typical, 'get together, smooth sailing, happily ever after' you seem to get in most fanfics nowadays.
If you're all still enjoying this story, then not even a follow or a favourite, but a review alone would be greatly appreciated. At the moment things are really rough for me, and I'm sure they are for everyone, but I second guess this story a lot because of it, and I get worried that people might be getting bored of it.
Obviously, that could just be paranoia, but if you could leave a review after reaching this point, then I would really greatly appreciate it. Thank you for joining me in this chapter, and I hope to see you in the next one. Take care!
-ElliottChap