"So, how did your test go?"
Midoriya found himself sitting in a familiar office with Kai sitting across from him. His demeanor showed he was hoping for good news.
"I'd say it was a success, for the most part."
Kai's eyes widened momentarily before narrowing on Midoriya again. "What makes you say 'for the most part'?"
"Well, I was only able to get information with two bullets."
Kai's eyes narrowed more as he leaned forward. "What exactly are you telling me, Phoenix?"
"You gave me four shots and only two of them landed?"
"You idiot! How do you miss two shots? We spent time training you for this and when the time comes, you choke!"
Midori narrowed his eyes on Kai as his flames grew in size ever so slightly. "I didn't choke, I miscalculated. The last person was able to create things with their quirk faster than I anticipated, and they blocked the shots."
"You better not have left any evidence, Phoenix."
"Of course not, I incinerated all the rounds- leaving nothing but a pile of ash."
Kai let out a sigh, before relaxing into the couch a little. "Alright, well what did you find out then?"
"Well, I shot two people within a few seconds of each other to get the closest data possible. The first person was a girl, she had a transformation type quirk, the effects lasted roughly thirty minutes. When she was shot, her black wings that she can manifest disappeared. The other was a boy- he had a mutation type quirk. He has a tail and it went completely limp when shot and that lasted for about an hour."
"I see, that's very interesting. But it's still a shame you couldn't get an emitter-type quirk."
"I'm sure you and Kurono could easily find someone to run tests on."
"I suppose you're right, we could keep him at one of our other strongholds. Sadly, a missing person would raise suspicion, especially after that move you all pulled at UA."
Midoriya nodded. "Yeah, I guess just use one of the guys that's been pissing you off lately, I'm sure there's plenty of them."
"Now that I can get behind, it's clean and leaves no traces. Did you have anything else to report?"
Midoriya looked towards the door that would lead to Kai's lab. The glance didn't go unnoticed by Kai.
"Actually, I wanted to know more about what you plan to do and how this drug will work."
Kai sighed before standing up. "Follow me and don't touch anything."
Midoriya silently followed Kai into his lab, it was the first time he'd physically been inside the room. Seeing all the equipment and notes he had made caused Midoriya to realize how much work actually went into this, and that was just a fraction of it. Kai eventually came to a stop in front of a centrifuge. He pulled out a small vile that had blood separated into separate parts.
"Simply, we're using the DNA in Eri's blood to create a drug that rewinds some back to a time before quirks existed."
"So devolving them."
Kai carefully put the vile back as he stared at a giant whiteboard that was full of formulas. "That depends on what theory you believe in. Some believe that quirks are the next step in human evolution. I can see how that makes sense, but the rate at which they're evolving is causing worry, their bodies are weaker than the quirk, causing extreme backlash. In time, they won't be able to control their quirks and the human race will die out or exponentially shrink and all that will be left is the quirkless to rebuild."
"Quirk Singularity Doomsday Theory."
"Exactly."
"I'm guessing you don't believe that quirks are the next step in evolution then."
Kia nodded as he made a few changes to some of the formulas on the board. "Quirk sickness."
Midoriya looked at Kai confused. "A disease?"
"It's another theory, but I feel it holds more credibility."
"Are you sure it's not because you're a germaphobe?"
"I'd be lying if it didn't have some sway over it, but that's not the main reason. Think about how quirks are passed on, it's hereditary, if both parents have a quirk the likelihood is extremely high unless a mutation happens. If one parent has a quirk and the other is quirkless, then it's roughly a coin flip if the child gets it. If both are quirkless then the chances are low, but not impossible. It's just how people are predisposed to diseases based on their family history, it all comes from the genes."
"So, you think a few people got infected and passed these genes on and with time it turned society to what it is now."
"More or less, the issue is what started it. Some say it's a mutated form of the Bubonic Plague from medieval Europe, some think it could be a new form of brain cancer causing our hormones to go haywire, others believe that it was created to cull the population."
That last one caught Midoriya's attention. "I think you forgot your tinfoil hat."
"I'll admit it sounds crazy at first, but it has solid evidence. Before quirks, the population was rising faster than it fell, it was hypothesized that in a hundred years there would be too many people for the earth to sustain life. The governments across the world feared that the struggle for land and food could cause nuclear war, so they came together and created a disease to thin the population slowly. There were documented cases of quirks appearing in every country in densely populated cities at the same time and all this happened five years after the United Nations had an emergency meeting about the growing population."
Midoriya looked at Kai in complete shock. What he said actually made sense, sure he'd have to do his own research to confirm this but it sounded plausible.
"Huh, I guess I could see that happening, but how does all that figure into your plan?"
"I'm making a cure for this diseased world."
Midoriya's shock turned to annoyance, any confidence he had in the plan was gone. "You're crazy. What makes you think people will accept this? I'm not sure if you've noticed, but we're not important enough to make that kind of change."
"Not yet, but in time we will be." Kai turned and opened what looked to be a temperature regulated cabinet. Inside he grabbed a single bullet. "When this reaches a certain threshold, we'll distribute it loosely, to let the masses get a taste. Once word gets out about a quirk erasing drug, people will be swarming us and we can charge whatever we want. Things will be chaotic, but that's when we distribute a cure, through a non affiliated partnership of course so it doesn't get tracked back to us. We play both sides and reap all the rewards, it's as simple as that."
"I still fail to see how this cures the world."
Kai let out a sigh as he put the bullet away. "Phoenix, look at the big picture. The world will take notice of this and see the state of chaos Japan is in. The fear of this spreading world wide will force them to take action and make the drug a vaccine given to children just like a flu shot. It will take some time, but by the end of the century quirks will be a thing of the past and this disease will be gone and you know who the hero's will be? Us, the Shie Hassaikai."
"Alright, let's assume all this goes as planned. How do you keep it going for that long? Eri isn't immortal, so how do you keep getting her blood to make the quirk? Or do you not care what happens after you die?"
"I have two plans that I'll put all my time into once I've perfected both the cure and drug. The first would be to duplicate her quirk, having a permanent source to pull from. The second would be to transform the cure to something that prevents quirks rather than destroys them, but that seems less likely than the first."
"So you want to eradicate all quirks except for the quirk that can eradicate the quirks. I don't see any hypocrisy there."
Kai shook his head. "Science is full of hypocrisy, Phoenix, you just need to know where to look. Also this isn't any different than any other vaccine. Humans have been keeping and breeding deadly diseases for centuries to be able to make vaccines in case an outbreak occurs, use the disease to fight a disease."
"Alright, then how do you choose this person to carry the quirk after Eri's gone? I doubt people will be lining up to be a science experiment."
"We won't have to choose and even if we did, people would be begging to be chosen. Whoever is chosen won't have to do anything, they'll be set for life. Food, sex, money, all they have to do is snap and it will be provided and all we ask for in return is some of their blood. Then when the time comes, they produce an offspring to take their place."
Midoriya felt a pit in his stomach as he realized what Kai had planned for Eri in the future.
"You plan to sell Eri off to the highest bidder."
Kai turned to Midoriya with disgust. "I'm not the monster you think I am, I'd never sell her when she's the cornerstone of all this. I'll let her pick, but it will be from people I trust."
"One of the Eight Bullets then."
Kai nodded as he went back to the white board. "As of now it's more than likely you or Kurono, but I'd be willing to bet she chooses you because of your bond."
"I'm already spoken for, at the moment."
"Then break it off. Your duty as one of the Eight Bullets comes first."
"I've told you plenty of times that once I find my parents killer I'm out."
Kai stopped what he was doing and turned to Midoriya. "Phoenix, I don't think you understand the position you're in. You can't just leave and even if you could, why would you? We're about to have everything we could ever want and you want to throw it away. Honestly, you should give up on the silly dream and move here. We'll get you a nicer place, Eri can live there with you, and when the time comes you can start a family of your own. I'm sure you hate the idea of having a child with a child you raised, but would you rather think about how your selfish actions made her be with someone she's terrified by? If you ask me, the choice is pretty obvious."
Midoriya clenched his fists as he held back the urge to burn those eyes that he hates so much. He hated everything about what he had said so much, but he hated that he was right most.
Midoriya had become attached to Eri and he wanted what was best for her. He wanted her to be happy and healthy. He wanted her smile to light up every room she went in. Midoriya knew that if things went exactly how Kai planned, then Eri would without a doubt pick Midoriya, because she trusted him the most. He didn't want that for her or himself, but he didn't know what to do.
"Alright."
Kai's eyes lit up at this. "So you're going to give up your side hobby and move here."
"No."
Kai scowled at Midoriya. "And why not exactly?"
"First, avenging my parents isn't a side hobby, it's a promise. Second, I'm connected with the League of Villains now. If I move here they are coming and going just as often as me and that brings risk to me as well as you."
Kai narrowed his eyes before sighing and turning back to the board. "You can be quite stubborn Phoenix, you know that?"
"I learned from watching you."
"If you say so. Now if that's all I have work to do."
Midoriya stood up and made his way to the door, but stopped before opening the door. "Actually, I have a few questions."
Kai grumbled to himself, but refused to turn around. "Make them quick."
"How exactly will the drug affect those who's quirks change their physical body? I know this was a trial run, but his tail just went limp, it didn't disappear. If the modifications don't change will it still run a risk of those modifications being passed down through the generations?"
"Ideally it would, but just like any other disease there's a chance it leaves its host changed for life. As for future generations they shouldn't be affected. Remember I said this destroys quirk genes and prevents them from being passed on."
Midoriya nodded in understanding. "Alright, also how will it affect people with multiple quirks?"
Kai came to a stop and turned to Midoriya. "What do you mean by someone with multiple quirks? Are you talking about someone with combined parental quirks or a second quirk that was gifted to them?"
"A quirk gifted to them. Studies have shown that certain medicines can be ineffective or even lethal if a person has multiple diseases. Wouldn't the same apply here?"
"In theory yes, but at the moment that's not possible."
"As far as you know, it isn't. There's no telling what government research is being kept secret. That's not even mentioning the groups that oppose your plan fighting back. Once word gets out that you can copy quirks and pass it on, all hell will break loose. People will spend crazy amounts of money to have two quirks to compliment the other."
Kai started to tap the dry erase marker in his hand on the table as he pondered what Midoriya had said. It was an angle that he had failed to see and it intrigued him since it could compromise everything.
"If having multiple quirks was possible, we'd need someone to test it on. We'd also need a supply of spare quirks to test combinations and see how it interacts with each cure… The mastermind behind the League, do you think he'd be willing to lend us some test subjects?"
"For the right price, but he'd want to know the plan in detail. Are you alright with letting people know?"
"Well you did run a test with their group and they have a spy in the same class you attacked, so I'm guessing he already has an idea of what we're doing. If it's just him you tell and no one else it should be fine, but I'll leave that up to your best judgment, Phoenix."
Midoriya nodded. "Alright, I'll feel it out and see what I can do."
"Good, now if that's all, I have a lot of work to do now."
"Alright."
"Also I need more of her blood, bring me some tonight."
Midoriya flinched as he started to close the door. "Fine."
"Are you sure you should be doing this, Itsuka? Won't your parents get mad?"
"My moms fine with it and dad… well he doesn't know, but it's not like I'm staying the night or anything."
"Still, doesn't the school want you close to keep you safe?"
"If the school wanted us close they would have put us in dorms."
"But, still isn't this sudden?"
"Izuku, you're the one that suggested I come to Osaka to meet Eri, so why is it an issue now? It's not like you have anything to hide right?"
Midoriya laughed nervously as he tried to gather up any and all documents that were related to his connection with the League of Villains as well as the Shie Hassaikai.
"I would never do that."
"Uh-huh and why don't I believe you right now?"
"Look, I haven't told Eri yet so I have no clue how she'll react."
"Well I'm already on the train so you better figure something out."
Midoriya sighed as he put away and locked the last box in a filing cabinet. "You're not giving me a choice."
"Nope, I haven't seen you in a week, it's about time we spend some time together."
"Yeah, I've missed you too."
"Good, now go get Eri, I'll see you soon."
"Alright, see you soon."
With a final sigh, Midoriya grabbed his mask and started on his way to get Eri. It was a beautiful Sunday, sunny with little to no clouds in the sky. It would be hard to ask for better weather, but sadly he wouldn't be able to enjoy it for too long.
It didn't take long for him to reach the compound and it took even less time for him to get Eri. Before they left, Midoriya went ahead and took some blood from Eri, that way he wouldn't have to worry about it later.
Like always, Eri was excited to see Midoriya, but clung to his side the second they left the compound. He knew this would happen and it didn't bother him in the slightest, but after his conversation with Kai he couldn't help but think about his future plans. Eri could see the look and unease on his face and gently pull on his pant leg to get his attention. Feeling the tug, Midoriya quickly broke from his thoughts and looked down at her.
"Is everything alright, Eri?"
She shook her head. "It looked like something was bothering you."
Midoriya nervously laughed. "Sorry, I have a lot on my mind at the moment."
Eri looked down at the ground as they walked. "Is it about me?"
Midoriya's eyes widened momentarily as he watched her. 'Am I that easy to read or does she just think everything's her fault?'
Shaking his head he laughed softly. "Now why would you think that Eri?"
"Because everyone who's watched me has always had that same look before they disappeared."
Midoriya looked down and saw the sad look on her face. "Eri, I'm not going anywhere, alright."
"Really?"
"Really, I plan to be around for a long time."
Eri looked up at him with a slight smile. "I don't want you to go anywhere. I always want to be with you."
Hearing this, Midoriya gently rubbed her head. "I wouldn't want it any other way."
Even though he put on a happy face, internally Midoriya was in turmoil. If everything went as Kai wanted, he wouldn't have much of a choice.
'Well looks like she's already made her choice.'
The rest of the walk back to the apartment was uneventful, but Midoriya couldn't shake the thought that he was being watched.
Once they had made it back, Midoriya continued to prepare and make sure everything was ready for when Kendo came over. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to happen since he received an emergency summons by the League, as much as he wanted to skip it he couldn't because All for One had summoned him alone. With no other choice he left under the pretense of getting groceries.
Inside his usual alley, Midoriya called Kurogiri and shortly after his mist appeared; however, when Midoriya stepped through this time, he wasn't met by the familiar sight and smell of the bar. No, this time he found himself in a dark warehouse that seemed to be abandoned. Being sent to an unfamiliar place caused him to immediately ignite two flames in his hands.
From the darkness a familiar laugh echoed along with a slow clap. "That was quite entertaining Phoenix, it's always fun to see how people react when they're thrown for a loop."
Even though Midoriya knew he wouldn't be able to beat All for One in a fight, he kept the flames ignited as he slowly moved forward.
"You called me here, so what did you need?"
As Midoriya continued on, he was met by a man sitting on a throne hooked up to medical equipment. "I just wanted to talk, Phoenix, nothing more, nothing less. Now please put away those flames, that smoke isn't good for my health."
As quickly as the flames ignited they disappeared. Midoriya still had a gnawing feeling in the back of his head that he was in danger, but he pushed it aside as he continued his approach.
"Alright, but can we try not to let this drag for too long, I have some plans after this."
A smile crept onto All for One's face as he leaned his head on his fist. "Do you have a date with Itsuka Kendo? She is quite lovely."
The flames on Midoriya's mask rose as he glared at All for One. "I told you what would happen if she was targeted, or do you need a reminder?"
"You're more than welcome to try, boy, but you'd just be wasting both of our time. Now calm down so we can have a civil conversation."
Anger still filled his eyes, but the flames on his mask returned to their normal state. "Fine."
A soft chuckle came from All for One. "You're quite easy to read Phoenix, just a name prompted quite the response."
"If she's the only reason you called me here then we have nothing to talk about."
"I wouldn't say that, I'd say we have plenty to talk about."
"If that's the case why bring her up at all?"
"Mere curiosity, I find it intriguing how you ended up with a hero-in-training. It's quite comical, almost as funny as Tomura's story."
The last part caught Midoriya's attention and he raised an eye at it.
"Ah, but that's a story for another day. The reason I called you here, was to ask what exactly the Yakuza is planning to do with this new drug."
Hearing this, Midoriya began to laugh. The outburst caught All for One off guard causing him to give Midoriya a strange look.
"And what exactly is so funny?"
"I just had a conversation about this with the guy who made it about a situation like this."
"Oh and what did he say?"
"I think we should bring the doctor in first since it will involve him."
"Very well."
A few minutes later, the doctor walked out of a portal, he wasn't too happy that he had been pulled away from his experiments. With everyone present, Midoriya proceeded to explain Kai's plan, leaving out the irrelevant parts about what they were planning. When he finished explaining everything, All for One calmly nodded.
"Interesting, very interesting. It seems that our groups have conflicting interests."
"It's more than conflicting, they're trying to destroy my life's work!"
"Actually I don't think it would destroy your life's work, if anything you'd be busier than ever before."
The doctor looked at Midoriya skeptically. "And why do you think that? They are trying to destroy quirks are they not?"
"Exactly, let's just think about it, with people destroying quirks, there will be those doing whatever it takes to get them back. America went through the same thing with prohibition and the people created ways to get alcohol. Doctor, you already have a library of quirks and the means to take, duplicate, and give them at will. If you ask me, you're sitting on a gold mine and all you have to do is price it slightly cheaper than his cure. That's not even mentioning you have the ability to give people a better quirk than they had before."
The doctor stopped to think while All for One smiled. "It seems you just secured us a means of income for the foreseeable future."
"It could be for even longer if you play your cards right. Kai is going to be looking for a way to duplicate Eri's quirk, I'm sure he'd be willing to pay a pretty penny for that research."
"Do you think he'd be willing to negotiate?"
"I'd say so, but that won't be until he perfects the drug."
All for One began to tap the armrest of his seat. "I'm sensing that he will need some assistance to make it go faster."
"He needs to test it on people with multiple quirks."
"I see and what exactly is he hoping to get from us?"
"Test subjects, people with each type of quirk. With that we can confirm the effectiveness of the drug without letting the population know of it."
"That's ridiculous!" The doctor looked at Midoriya enraged. "Do you know how long it takes to replicate quirks? Why would we give you anything!?"
"Consider it done."
All eyes turned to One for All. The doctor looked at him with a slack jaw.
"But Master, think about all the hard work we did."
"I know, but now we can put all that hard work to the test. I'm sure we have a quirk of each type that we don't need anymore."
Midoriya looked at him completely shocked at how willing he was to go along with everything.
"That was surprisingly easy."
All for One laughed maniacally. "Well it won't be that easy. We can give you quirks, under the conditions that we get to talk with the mastermind behind the plan. Only after that will we give them to you, if we come to an agreement."
"So basically, you learn the ins and outs and then decide if it's worth your time."
"It's only natural, we are in position to lose the most. Your group wants to eradicate all quirks, naturally that would include mine and all of the ones we've gathered."
"I'd argue you're in a position to gain the most."
All for One smiled eerily. "Oh, do you now?"
"Yeah, you're in position to negotiate for major stakes. When the world starts to crumble you can play both sides. Supply quirks to those who want them through the League and gain power with us by manipulating figure heads. You worry about us taking your quirks, but we all know those pulling the strings get special privileges."
All for One laughed softly. "You're quite cunning, Phoenix, I like that."
"You have to be when you grow up in this life."
"Well, Phoenix, I'm certain you'll be able to pull this off so do you have any advice on how to handle this man?"
"Yeah, leave Shigaraki here. We all know he's too immature and rash to handle negotiations."
"Yes, I'd hoped he had matured more by now, but he's growing."
"If that's everything I'm leaving. Can you have Kurogiri drop me by a store?"
"Of course."
All for One snapped and a portal opened up behind Midoriya, as he turned around All for One called out one last time stopping him.
"Also as far as your parents go, Phoenix, you'd be surprised about the amount of people that wanted him dead. His research really did rub people the wrong way."
"Do you have anything concrete yet or not?"
"No, not yet, but we're close. I would, however, recommend you think about groups and people that are interested in quirks."
Midoriya narrowed his eyes at All for One. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing at all Phoenix, nothing at all."
All for One gave Midoriya one last smile before he left. On the other side of the portal, Midoriya pulled off his mask in a fit of rage. The League had already found out who Kendo was and that meant it was only a matter of time before she was put in danger. Everything he didn't want to happen was encroaching on him, and it was suffocating. He needed to get out quickly, but he was stuck waiting for answers.
After taking a minute to calm down Midoriya took out his phone and saw he had missed multiple calls from Kendo. A new sense of panic overtook him as he stared at them. Knowing he was running out of time he ran out of the alley and bumped into the person who caused all the panic.
"Itsuka!"
Kendo rubbed her forehead. "Izuku, what the hell? What's the rush? And why haven't you been answering my calls?"
Midoriya nervously scratched his head. "Well, I realized I forgot to get some things so I was rushing. Also I didn't realize my phone had turned itself off till a few minutes ago."
Kendo raised an eyebrow at him. "And you didn't think it was a good idea to call me back?"
"Honestly, I panicked and didn't know what to do."
Kendo sighed before rubbing her head. "God, Izuku, you can be really dumb sometimes."
He laughed nervously. "Guilty as charged."
Since the two of them had already met up, Kendo decided to just tag along with Midoriya. It wouldn't make much sense for her to go on her own, especially since Eri wouldn't open the door for anyone. The two of them quickly did his shopping and made their way back to the apartment. When they reached the door, Midoriya took a deep breath and looked at Kendo.
"Itsuka, please wait outside until I tell you to come in. I still haven't explained everything to Eri yet."
Kendo nodded silently. With a final deep breath Midoriya made his way inside but left the door slightly cracked. He was met by the surprised face of Eri. The surprise wasn't because he walked in, but because he didn't close the door or lock it.
"Hey Eri, you remember my friend that you've talked to on the phone from time to time?"
Eri nodded silently.
"Well, I didn't get a chance to tell you earlier, but she's coming over."
Eri's eyes widened as she fidgeted in place, but she still nodded.
"Listen, Eri, if you don't want to see her I can send her home. If you don't want to talk you don't have to, alright."
Eri gripped the hem of her shirt and looked at him. "It's… it's ok."
Midoriya smiled and rubbed the top of her head.
"Itsuka, you can come in now."
Slowly, the door opened and orange tufts of hair began to peek through. When Kendo had fully entered, Eri hid behind Midoriya and clung to him. Seeing the scared child, Kendo smiled softly and waved at her.
"Hey, Eri, remember me?"
Eri slowly nodded. "Hello…"
Midoriya smiled and motioned for Kendo to have a seat. "Why don't you make yourself comfy."
Kendo nodded before locking the door behind her. She sat at one end of the couch and Midoriya sat in the middle so Eri could still have a buffer. Conversations were short, but Eri was slowly getting back to the comfortability she had with Kendo over the phone. Watching her open up in real time filled Midoriya with a joy he hadn't expected.
As much Midoriya wanted to spend all day talking, he still needed Eri to study some. When he told her it was time to start studying, she quickly agreed and went to grab all her things to bring back to the coffee table. Kendo smiled brightly as she watched Eri carefully set everything up neatly, when she finally got into a groove, Midoriya stood up to start making lunch.
"Hey, Eri, I'm gonna start cooking, but if you have any questions feel free to ask Big Sis for help ok."
Kendo's eyes widened at Midoriya in annoyance, but quickly returned to normal when she saw Eri start to look her way. She could see the uncertainty in Eri's eyes so she knew she didn't have a choice.
"I don't mind at all, just give me a call and I'll be more than happy to help."
Eri smiled softly, melting Kendo's heart, before nodding. Kendo continued to sit with Eri, watching over her for a few more minutes before going to talk with Midoriya in the kitchen. Not wanting to draw attention, the two of them spoke in hushed tones.
"Seriously Izuku, Big Sis, is that the best you could come up with?"
Midoriya shrugged unapologetically. "Hey it fits and it's easy for Eri to remember."
Kendo crossed her arms as she looked in the living room watching Eri work. "She's come a long way from where she's started hasn't she?"
Midoriya proudly nodded. "Yeah, but we still have a long way to go."
Kendo teasingly nudged his shoulder with her shoulder. "She'll get there, she has a great teacher."
"Thanks for the compliment."
Kendo raised an eye at Midoriya. "I'm talking about me."
The two of them laughed quietly as they just watched her work through the practice problems. She would get stuck from time to time and tap the pencil on her horn until she figured it out.
"Big Sis…"
Having been summoned, Kendo left Midoriya to finish cooking while she played the role of teacher. When the food was finished, the three of them had lunch and took a break from studying. Eri spent most of her time coloring and answering the questions Kendo would ask. With all the extra stimulation, it wasn't surprising when she fell asleep. Not wanting to disturb her, Midoriya gently set her on the couch and covered her with a blanket. With Eri asleep in the living room, Kendo and Midoriya went to his room to not wake her.
The two of them sat side by side on the bed, both were nervous even though this wasn't the first time the two of them had been in a room alone together. This was however the first time they had been alone in a room with no adult supervision or predetermined plans.
"So, have you enjoyed your time with Eri?"
Kendo jumped slightly at the sudden question. "Oh, yeah, she's adorable."
"I'm glad, I'm certain she's enjoying it as well."
Kendo smiled softly as she fidgeted with her hands. "I was nervous at first, but she slowly opened up."
Midoriya nodded. "I'm glad she likes you, or else this would have been awkward."
Kendo laughed softly before sighing. "Hey Izuku, you know the UA Sports Festival is coming up right?"
Midoriya nodded. "Yeah, it's arguably the biggest event of the year."
Kendo nervously twirled the end of her ponytail. "You should come to it and support me."
Midoriya looked over at Kendo to see her face completely red. He found her extremely cute when she got nervous. Taking her hand in his and interlocking their fingers, he gently squeezed it.
"I wouldn't miss it for the world."
Kendo smiled softly before leaning her head on his shoulder. "You know you're going to have to meet all my friends and classmates right."
Midoriya nodded. "Do you want me to set Monama straight?"
"No, I'll handle that. You just worry about keeping Setsuna's hands off of you."
"I'll do my best."
"Also, you're gonna have to meet my friend, Amajiki, that I've told you all about."
"Yeah, I guess I should meet him sooner than later."
"Also we're going out afterwards, so bring your bike."
Midoriya looked at her from the corner of his eye, but all he could see was her grinning ear to ear. "You just want to show off to everyone don't you?"
Kendo laughed before speaking in a wishy-washy voice. "Maybe."
Midoriya sighed before bringing her hand up to kiss it. "It's a good thing I…"
Kendo felt her heart rate pick up at his words, she knew what he was going to say and she was ready.
"… like you."
'Like you.' Those words echoed in Kendo's head and they weren't what she wanted to hear.
'Like you? Why couldn't he say love you? I know I love him, but I want him to say it first.'
Kendo internally sighed as she leaned harder into his shoulder. "I like you too."
It was subtle, but Midoriya could hear the disappointment in her voice. Instinctively, he held her hand tighter and rubbed his thumb along the back of her hand.
'I can't say it yet, I have to tell her before it goes further. What happens after that will be her choice.'
