Owed Explanations

"I believe now is as good a time as any to have that discussion you promised me."

Izuku paused for a moment before looking down. He laid the notebook down in his lap before sighing.

"Yeah, that's true. I promised to explain everything to you, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did."

Izuku slowly brought his gaze back up to his friend before running a hand through his hair. Where was he supposed to start? There was so much, way too much to explain. The Worlds, the Heartless, Keyblades...he cringed at the thought of having to tell him he was Master Aqua's student. Iida would definitely get on him for that.

Sora looked between them nervously, he could sense the tension in the air. Everyone could. He looked over to see Goofy watching them, and even Donald kept glancing at them.

"Well, oh man, where would you want me to start?" Izuku asked. "Because there's...it's a lot."

"Preferably the beginning." Iida raised an eyebrow.

Izuku opened his mouth before shutting it again. He took a deep breath and looked at his notebook. There was no getting out of it, he had to tell his friend. He had a feeling he owed it to him anyway. What better place to start than the monsters that started everything?

"Okay so, you know those monsters?" Izuku asked, only continuing when he saw Iida nod. "Those things are called Heartless, and they've been around for a long time. Since before they started showing up in our world. Those things are made out of the darkness of people's hearts, their souls. And you can't get rid of them through conventional ways, a bunch of heroes have tried."

"Yes, I know that. I believe we all know that. But similarly, they can only be defeated by certain people, and you and Sora happen to be those people. Akin to someone else we know."

Izuku nods. "I'll get there, just give me a second. So, the Heartless, they go after people with light in their hearts, they feed off of it, but that isn't the only thing they want. You see, sometimes when there are too many Heartless, they can destroy your home, your world. Which is what happened to us." He looked up.

"Excuse me?"

"N-Now hear me out!" Izuku held his hands up. "Worlds are...divided. There are different ones, and each one is typically supposed to be confined to that one alone. They're not supposed to know about other worlds but with everything going on, it's kind of inevitable. Our world was destroyed by the Heartless, which is how you ended up in Wonderland."

"But, wait. Other worlds, Midoriya are you hearing yourself? That sounds ridiculous. And hearts? Souls?"

"The truth often does." Donald cut in. "Believe me."

"Try to think of different worlds as...I dunno different realms? Different planes of existence?"

"Different realms is a better way of thinkin' about it." Goody came over with a tray of steaming mugs and small plates. He handed a mug of hot chocolate and a small plate of cookies to everyone, Izuku and Iida didn't take theirs so he put them aside for later.

"Anyway, each world has its own rules and its own way o' workin'. There ain't two worlds that are exactly the same." Goofy continued. "Each one is different, like that Wonderland world, that place was wacky. Nothin' like your world I'd guess."

"No, nothing like our...world." Iida sighed. "So, what those mons- Heartless go to every world and what, cause chaos?"

"Essentially yeah, and they destroy worlds. Which is what they did to ours." Izuku looked down.

I was too weak to do anything about it, I'm sorry.

"And what exactly happens when a world disappears?" Iida asked.

"Well, that's...uh…"

"When your world disappears, the people there disappear too." Donald sighed. "But sometimes, there are people who manage to make it out."

"Yeah, like you." Sora bit into his cookie. "Leon said most people end up in Traverse Town, but sometimes people can be scattered to other worlds. Which is what I think happened to my friends."

"But to those who didn't make it to other worlds, what they're just...dead?"

Izuku wilted under that question, his mother came to mind. "...Yeah. They just disappear with the world too."

Iida's heart sank at the confirmation. That meant his mother and father, his classmates, Tensei- they were…

"I see. So, escaping to another world is just by chance, yes?"

"Yes." Izuku nodded. "I'm...I'm sorry. But I found you, and Eri, she's safe. There's a good chance that maybe we can find Todoroki and Uraraka too. Since we had all fallen together."

Iida sighed. "I do hope they made it out, and if they did then they're alright."

"Me too." Izuku nodded.

"Right then, let's continue." Iida cleared his throat and pushed his glasses up his face. He was still struggling to process this, and Izuku couldn't blame him. Granted he had the chance to do it with Master Aqua who cleared up any confusion, meanwhile, Iida didn't have the reassurance of a Keyblade Master who knew what they were doing.

"Yeah, so, what else is there?" Izuku scratch at his face.

"We've gone over what you call worlds, I still...that doesn't sound real, and those Heartless, oh. Right. There is something else that I'd like to discuss regarding those things."

Izuku gulped as his friend fixed him with a hard stare.

"Those monsters, the Heartless, in the past heroes haven't been able to take out the Heartless not permanently. Even if they did, they didn't stay gone for long, just would just reappear. But we both know about the one person who can keep them away."

"Guardian." Izuku nodded.

"Yes."

"Guardian?" Sora looked between them.

Iida nodded and glanced at Sora. "You also have the same abilities as her, now that I think about it."

Sora raised an eyebrow in confusion before Izuku spoke up.

"Guardian is a vigilante from our world." Izuku began to fidget and mess with the end of his shirt. "She's taken care of the Heartless for years. And would help out civilians and heroes when they needed it."

"It was still unrelegated Quirk use, it's illegal."

"Yeah, but even so, it's not like she broke the laws with malicious intent." Izuku looked to the side. "She was doing the best she could with what she had. She didn't know all the rules, she just wanted to help."

"Ignorance of the law is not an excuse Midoriya. Besides how-"

"Okay there, now how about ya two take a minute to breathe. You're both gettin' riled up. It's been a pretty long day, and I don't think either of ya have eaten much." Goofy came by with the tray again. "Let's calm down before ya start arguing."

Izuku hesitantly took the mug and the plate. The mug was still warm, still at an acceptable temperature that wasn't considered too cold. He took a sip and kept his eyes averted from his friend. He glanced at Sora who gave a thumbs up.

He nodded, he was fine. This was fine. No one said explaining all this was going to be easy.

While Izuku idly sipped at his hot chocolate, Iida tapped his finger against the mug. His mind was racing. He looked back to Izuku's attacks, how he fought, then thought of the videos he had seen of the vigilante. They both had the ability to harness the elements, and at first, it was only Guardian who had been able to summon a key-shaped sword. But now Izuku could.

His friend who had told him his Quirk was Energy Conversion, he was starting to wonder how true that was. Did his Quirk have a different name, and that was just the description he gave to keep it under wraps? But then he summoned that key-shaped sword back at the battle simulation.

Iida wasn't sure, but he doubted 'Energy Conversion' had the ability to create weapons.

Did that mean..?

Iida sighed, having not yet touched his beverage.

"You gonna drink that?" Izuku asked,

"I'm not sure." Iida stared at the mug. "At the moment, I'm more concerned about...everything else."

Donald turned to look at him. "Everything else meaning?"

"You want to know about Guardian." Izuku scratched at his face.

"Yes."

Izuku looked up at him before looking down again. Iida was still staring at him. He couldn't imagine his friend's anger or disappointment when he found that out.

"Okay, yeah. Guardian and I do have the same powers." Izuku nervously sipped at his cup again, only to find it empty. "So, here's the thing. M-My Quirk isn't called Energy Conversion. I was only calling it that because at the time I could only use spells. Then this appeared."

He held out his hand and Indomitable Spirit appeared with a flash of light.

"This is called a Keyblade." Izuku lightly tapped the thin blade. "This thing is...it's...oh man how do I say this? Uh, it's sort of the source of my powers. It's how I can use my spells."

"Midoriya, a giant key is the source of your power? And did you say spells, as in magic?"

Izuku took a deep breath. "Yes."

He swore he saw a new crack appear in Iida's glasses.

"Midoriya, magic isn't-"

"We had this argument in the forest, magic is real." Donald cut him off. "You saw all of us use it."

"But Midoriya has a Quirk. And magic isn't real."

"In your world maybe." Sora pointed out, he was sitting upside down now. "But everywhere else, magic sorta seemed to be a thing...not that I've been to many worlds. But still. I'm still learning how to use it. I can use fire, Donald taught me, also ice! Still kind of out of practice with that one, Izuku can use way more than I can."

Iida stared at him for a moment. "Right, so, fine, this magic is a thing. As hard to believe as it is."

"It's real!" Donald shouted. "I'm a magician. The Royal Magician to be exact."

"Easy now Donald." Goofy put his hands up in a placating way. "This is probably a lot for 'im. Give 'im a sec."

"Yeah, granted when Master Aqua told me about magic, I didn't really believe her either." Izuku looked at Iida. "But it's real. I promise. It's true."

Iida looked up at that. "Master?"

Izuku sucked in a breath. "Y-Yeah. My Master." He shot a quick glance at Iida. "Uh...promise you'll try to not be mad at me?"

Iida raised an eyebrow. "Why exactly would I be mad?" He had to ask, even if he had a feeling why.

Izuku nodded. "Well, you see, almost a year ago my powers manifested and I couldn't control them. But then she approached me, and she offered to teach me how to properly use my magic. Iida, Guardian was- is my Master. She's the one who taught me, and helped me get ready for the UA Entrance Exams."

Iida stared at him blankly, his eye twitched for a moment before he stood up.

"What?"

Yup, there it is.

"Midoriya, you've been in contact with a vigilante this entire time and you hadn't thought about contacting the authorities? A vigilante that law enforcement has been trying to catch for over a decade now?"

"Yes, I have. And of course, I wouldn't turn her in Iida, she offered to train me. To help me." Izuku argued back.

"Midoriya, don't you understand? You were withholding information that could have benefitted the heroes that have been trying to capture her. She is a criminal, she's broken the law countless times. Not to mention assaulting a pro hero once."

"That was just once." Izuku stood up as well.

Sora and Goofy watched the two argue like they were watching a tennis match. They wanted to jump in but weren't sure how to help, or even if they could. Meanwhile, Donald was glaring at the controls, with the two arguing there wasn't exactly a lot of smiling going on. The Gummi Ship was moving painfully slow as if prolonging this argument.

"But still, Midoriya, she is a criminal. She could have hurt you."

"She would never hurt me! Iida, why would you think that? She trained me, she taught me, she took care of me! She's a vigilante sure, but only because she didn't know the rules. How was she supposed to know Quirks had to be registered and you needed a license? How was she supposed to know that? Iida, she's not from our world!"

Iida froze at that.

Izuku sighed. "She didn't know about any of that when she ended up there. She just saw the Heartless and jumped in to help. And shouldn't helping out people outweigh the need to do it, you know, 'by the books'?"

Izuku and Iida stared at each other.

"Personally, I think helping people is more important, even if you're necessarily doing it the way you're supposed to." Izuku crossed his arms. "She had the ability to help, and instead of waiting around for permission to do it, she saw an issue she could help with and she jumped in to do it."

Iida frowned and looked away.

"Yeah, we're going down the right way, going to school, learning how to be a hero and getting licenses and all that. But, you know what it's because we have the chance to." Izuku looked down. "We have the chance to do things legally, while she didn't. She ended up in this world with no knowledge of what was allowed and what wasn't!"

"Even so, after the first time, she still could have registered her Quirk. If she had the ability to help then…" Iida huffed, it felt like a weak argument. But it was the right way to go through things. There was a hero code, one his brother respected, one he respected. "Surely, there could have been some way for her to do it correctly."

"If you want my opinion, she did do it correctly." Donald turned to look at him. "She made the best out of a situation she had no idea she was getting into. And she's saved your sorry butts, and all you're doing is complaining."

Donald understood the need to follow rules. Follow the law. He raised his nephews like that, to follow the rules and instructions. But even he had moments where he agreed that sometimes there needed to be a bend in the rules. Unfortunately, his nephews, most of them, like to bend rules all the time.

He blames his sister.

Iida sputtered for a moment before going quiet and glancing back at Izuku. He looked somewhat ashamed, presumably for hiding all this.

They could argue about this, again and again, going in circles, but they'd probably end up in the same conclusion every time. Midoriya insisting her innocence and how necessary her actions were, while he would argue that the law had to be followed.

Izuku sat down with a sigh and leaned back, Iida did the same.

"I know you're...upset."

"That's one way to put it."

"But, try to think of what would have happened if she turned herself in or was arrested, even a long time ago."

Iida looked up to the ceiling. "The destruction would have been catastrophic. Admittedly, her presence seemed to keep those mons- Heartless at bay. As they only appeared at night when she showed up."

"And a lot more people would have been hurt, or worse killed," Izuku muttered before looking up. "She's saved a lot of people. Master Aqua is the reason I'm here today. And Eri."

Everyone shot Izuku a look of alarm.

"She saved me as a kid, and again from a horde of Heartless almost a year ago. The same night she asked me if I'd become her student." He tugged at his hair, phantom scratches running down his arms and back, they had dug their claws into whatever they could. At the same time, he couldn't help but think of the sludge villain. He swallowed back the bile in his throat

"Then Eri, she saved years ago. From a villain. If I'm gonna be honest, it scares me to even think of where she could be if Master hadn't stepped in to save her. Yeah, she didn't follow the law, but what she did was important. In this case, I think saving people overrules the law."

The whole Gummi Ship was silent. Izuku could feel the eyes of everyone on him.

After a moment Iida sighed and sat back down, finally conceding. He didn't necessarily agree with the methods but in the end, saving people was important. In the back of his mind, he could hear his brother rambling on about her, slaying Heartless yet dodging authorities with ease. Even him and he was one of the fastest to chase after her.

But there was no changing Midoriya's mind, and in a way, he was frustratingly right.

"Alright, fine." Iida looked up at him. "So, you were her student?"

"Yeah, I am." He nodded. "She's taught me a lot. And I'm forever grateful to her for giving me...for being willing to teach me." Izuku gripped the Wayfinder around his neck. They would find their way back to each other, they had to.

Sora looked between them awkwardly, figuring the conversation was pretty much over. It was time for a subject change.

"Hey." He spoke, grabbing everyone's attention. "So, Izuku told me that you guys have Quirks in your world which are pretty much like powers. So, what is your Quirk supposed to be?" He pointed at him, still hanging upside down.

"Sit correctly Sora."

Sora stuck his tongue out at Donald as he sat up.

"I thought I saw tubes in your legs. If that's your power, doesn't that hurt?" He leaned over and pointed at his legs.

"Ah, my engines." Iida looked down at his calves. "No, they do not hurt. It's simply a natural part of my body. Whenever I want or need to use my Quirk, the mufflers pop out of my leg. Due to the nature of my Quirk, I am able to run at high speeds."

"Engines do not sound natural." Donald raised an eyebrow.

"Perhaps, but where I'm from they are. At least in my family."

"Oh yeah, that's right, Izuku said Quirks are based on genetics. Ain't that right?" Goofy took the now empty mug from the nodding Izuku.

"Yes, they are," Iida confirmed. "I take it Midoriya has already told you about the different classification branches?"

"The huh?" Sora tilted his head.

"I uh, didn't exactly get that far." Izuku shrugged.

"Ah, well in Japan we have a three tree classification system for Quirks. Mutation, Emitter, and Transformation. Due to my Quirk, I technically fall under the Mutation branch, as it has permanently changed my body. I'm sure Emitter and Transformation are self-explanatory."

"Your world is really technical ain't it?" Goofy asked.

"Quirks have been around a long time," Izuku mumbled. "People needed a way to sort how the different types, granted some regions have different methods. But in Japan, we stick to the three tree system."

Sora hummed and leaned back in his chair. Yeah, the three types were self-explanatory, but that still begged the question- how did someone end up with engines in their legs? It sounded painful, even if it was natural.

"So technically, would that mean that the Keyblade would be counted as an Emitter?" Sora asked. "Since it uh, emits...Keyblade stuff? Magic?"

Iida watched Sora for a moment before nodding. "Technically yes, it would."

"But a Keyblade isn't a Quirk." Donald huffed. "It's magic. Unlike your Quirk, it's not something you're born with."

"Donald's right, a Keyblade has gotta choose ya." Goofy put a hand on Sora and Izuku's shoulders. "And it chose these two."

"A Keyblade chooses its wielder?" Iida raised an eyebrow. A giant key choosing who would wield it...that sounded ridiculous yet somehow within the range of possibility. WIth worlds and apparently magic into the mix now. He was sure his brother would laugh at him if he even tried to explain this stuff to him.

He wouldn't blame him.

"Actually we were talkin' about that just before we got to Wonderland." Goofy nodded. "Something about, if you can have a Quirk and magic at the same time."

Izuku stiffened up.

Iida opened his mouth before pausing and shutting it, looking down in thought.

"That's actually a rather interesting question. Since Quirks are based on one's genes and magic is…"

"Harnessing magic is about one's will and how willing the magic itself is to respond to someone," Donald filled in. "It's about discipline, and focus, and keeping a cool head."

Sora almost snorted at the last bit but covered it up with a cough.

"Right." Iida looked away from the duck. "Actually that may be a question better asked for Midoriya. Since he's from our world and all. Since apparently 'Energy Conversion' isn't a Quirk, but magic instead. From your Keyblade. Which is magic."

"S-Still trying to process that bit?"

"Yes."

Izuku hummed and looked down, once again all eyes were on him. If he could just sink into the ground and never come out, that would be great.

"So, can someone have a Quirk and magic at the same time?" Sora asked. "And if that's the case, then what's your Quirk supposed to be?"

"Oh. Uh. Well…" Izuku felt his face go red. "That's uh, t-that's a pretty good question."

Goofy took notice of Izuku's fidgeting, how flustered he was getting, and how he was sweating bullets now. He was acting the same way he was before from the first time that question was asked. He looked around at the others, even Donald was noticing all this. Then there was Iida, who was looking increasingly suspicious.

"You see, I mean, I don't really think it should matter. Uh, er, hey Donald h-how long until we get to Traverse Town?"

"We're still a few ways away, and we aren't going anywhere seeing as hardly anybody's smiling."

"A-Ah, I see." Izuku coughed. He tried to will himself to do as much, put a smile on his face so they could just go. Get to Traverse Town, and hopefully drop the subject.

He glances at the look on Iida's face and quickly looks away. He probably suspects it, and he's already judging him. Belittling him in his mind, weak, Quirkless Midoriya.

He could always lie, couldn't he? Just make something up so hopefully, this would just go away. And they would never have to talk about it again, but then it would come back on him wouldn't it? A lie like that would eventually catch up to him.

"You do have a Quirk, right Midoriya?" Iida cut through his thoughts.

Izuku froze up and looked at his friend, probably soon to be ex-friend.

"What do you mean?" Sora asked. "I thought everyone in your world had Quirks."

"No, not everyone does. A majority of the world population has a Quirk, but some don't." He shook his head, "They're Quirkless."

"Quirkless?" Sora tilted his head.

Izuku avoided any eye contact once that word came up, he could feel how red his face was. He just wanted this conversation to be over and done with, but it seemed now the others wouldn't let it go.

"Yeah, t-that's what you call someone who doesn't...have a Quirk…" Izuku trailed off. "It's...uncommon to see that nowadays."

Izuku kept his eyes on the notebook in his lap, he couldn't bring himself to look at any of them. He knew the big question on their minds, and he knew they were figuring it out. Why else would he be so nervous to answer a simple question like 'what is your quirk'?

Unsurprisingly it didn't take long for one of them to piece it together. "So, if you have magic you probably don't have a Quirk right?" Donald asked.

If it was possible, Izuku's face turned another shade of red as he hid his face in his notebook. There was no use in denying it. Even so, their reactions were what Izuku dreaded the most, the aftermath of it all.

"I uh, I-I'm…" He stammered, only feeling even more self-conscious as Goofy gently pat his shoulder. "Yeah."

"You're Quirkless."

Izuku wordlessly nodded, preparing himself for the harsh words and berating.

"Sorry kid it's not gonna happen."

"Deku doesn't have a Quirk."

"Isn't Quirklessness a disease? If you go near him you'll catch it."

"If you really want a Quirk pray for one in your next life, and take a swan dive off the roof."

Izuku sighed and put his head down, still using his notebook as a shield. "Y-Yes…I am."

"Oh, so does that mean you can't have a Quirk or use magic at the same time?" Sora asked.

"I dunno." Donald shrugged. "Maybe."

"Hm…well what if Iida learns magic?" Goofy threw that idea out.

Izuku hesitantly looked up, the others didn't seem to care that much. They weren't giving him the harsh stares or the cruel insults he was expecting. They didn't seem to care at all. The only one still staring at him in surprise was Iida. He looked more shocked than anything.

"You're Quirkless," Iida repeated, still staring at him.

Izuku nodded again. "Yeah…I am." He was still red in the face. He didn't want to look at him, still fearing what he would say. Because Iida knew, he knew what Quirklessness meant. Then the fact he had gotten into UA with none at all, just using magic as a substitute.

Iida watched Izuku for a moment, unsure what to think at first. He knew Quirkless individuals were an uncommon occurrence nowadays. Because they had no Quirk they were a little more fragile than others. That was common knowledge, he was also aware that most Quirkless people weren't treated very kindly. That was a fault in their society, he will admit it.

Even so, his friend was Quirkless and wanted to be a hero. That had probably limited his options in many ways. UA was the only hero school that allowed Quirkless applicants to enroll in the hero course. They had gotten rid of the 'No Quirkless, No Heroics' rule just recently. It had been fought against initially, the thought of a Quirkless student taking the place of someone else with a Quirk who had a better chance of being a hero.

They were fragile and weak, they weren't built to take damage or handle certain tasks. Especially in heroics. That was common knowledge.

Iida could see now that that was wrong. It was a straight-out lie if anything.

Midoriya Izuku, his friend who was Quirkless, was far from fragile and weak. He thought back to that battle against the giant Heartless. How many hits Midoriya had taken, how far he pushed himself to take down the monster.

His friend wasn't fragile or weak, that was an insult if he ever heard one.

If he thought about it, Midoriya taking up Guardian's offer actually made a lot more sense now. He was Quirkless for a majority of his life, and his new powers were most likely untamed and hard to control. It was unlikely anybody else would help to mentor him.

Not to mention, whether he liked it or not, Guardian was the best person to train him. She probably didn't care if Midoriya had been Quirkless.

Iida realized he was staring before looking away. His friend was still hiding behind his notebook. He could only imagine how awkward he felt, and here he is, outing him like that.

"Well, we certainly are learning a lot today aren't we?"

The teenagers paused at the new voice, while Donald and Goofy looked over. There, standing on top of one of the seats was an anthropomorphic cricket with a book in his hands. There was silence in the Gummi shop for a moment, before it all devolved into chaos.

"Who is that?" All three teenagers collectively shouted in surprise. Sora fell out of his seat in surprise and backed up towards Izuku and Iida.

The cricket laughed before shaking his head. "That's right, I never got the chance to formally introduce myself. My name is Jiminy Cricket." He took off his tophat and gave a small bow. "Nice to meet ya!"

"Jiminy Cricket…" Sora repeated as he slowly made his way over to his seat again.

"Yup, Jiminy here is a friend that's helpin' us out," Goofy explained. "He's in charge of keepin' track of all the adventures we go on."

"Indeed it is." The cricket nodded. "Sorry to have startled you, fellas."

"That's okay." Sora smiled and went back to his seat. "So we've got someone keeping track of the stuff we do, that sounds handy."

Izuku nodded and slowly lowered his notebook. That was actually good, Izuku had been planning on doing something similar. He thought it couldn't hurt to keep track of what happened in each world, thankfully Jiminy had that covered. Which meant Izuku could put other stuff in his notebook.

"It sure is." Donald agreed.

"I have to say, your world certainly sounds interesting." Jiminy looked at Izuku and Iida as he wrote down a few things in his journal.

"Uh, y-yeah. It is." Izuku nodded and opened up his own notebook. He just wanted some kind of distraction.

While the conversation started up again, with Jiminy taking the lead in it, Izuku focused on his own notebook. He dug a pen out of his bag and started to draw some of the Heartless they had faced so far.

Anything was better than nothing.

-.-

"We're finally here." Donald groaned as he docked the Gummi Ship. "Wake up boys!"

Sora startled awake and looked around bleary-eyed until he remembered where he was. He yawned and stretched, slowly sliding out of his seat.

Iida lightly jumped at the shout but rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. He wasn't sure when he fell asleep, but it was a decent nap all the same. He hadn't realized how tired he was.

Izuku looked up at Donald's shout and flinched when he heard a crashing sound somewhere behind him. Goofy was awake now. Izuku hadn't fallen asleep, although in retrospect he probably should have. He ended up getting so caught up in his notebook he completely ignored his exhaustion.

"Are we here already?" Sora asked. "I wanted to sleep some more…"

"You can go back to sleep once you get off the ship." Donald hopped out of his seat and stretched as well. "In an actual bed."

Goofy hummed as he got to his feet and opened the door of the Gummi Ship. He knew very well that as soon as he got a room to himself, Donald was going to make himself a makeshift canopy. There was no other way the duck would sleep.

Sora groaned as he slid out of his chair and onto the floor.

Izuku put his notebook away and got up as well. He slung his bag over his shoulder as he looked down at Sora.

"You want some help?"

"No, I just want to lay here for a bit."

"Get off the floor Sora." Donald walked past them.

"But the floor is comfy."

"No, it's not." Donald rolled his eyes.

"Come on, let's go." Izuku held out a hand. Sora groaned and took it before pulling himself up.

"Sleeping on the floor isn't a good thing Sora," Iida spoke up. "If you do that you'll catch a cold."

"That doesn't sound right." Sora raised an eyebrow.

"Come on boys!" Donald yelled from outside.

All three knew better than to upset Donald and quickly got out of the Gummi Ship. It felt good to be on solid ground again.

"So, what is this place?" Iida asked.

"This is Traverse Town. Don't worry it's not as weird as Wonderland." Sora patted his back. "Man, I wonder how Leon and the others are doing. Maybe Riku or Kairi are here, at least I hope so. Speaking of friends, I bet Eri is gonna be real happy to see you." He looked over at Izuku in the back of the group.

"Yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing her too." He nodded.

As they got closer to the main doors of the town, Izuku found himself walking slower and slower. Until he came to a stop. He watched them walk a bit further before stopping them.

"Hey, guys?" He asked. "Be-Before we go in, can I ask you something?"

Donald froze at the door and turned around. He looked a little agitated. Thankfully Goofy answered him, afraid his friend might lose his temper in his exhausted state.

"Sure Izuku, what is it?"

Izuku stared at them. He knew what he wanted to say but the words felt stuck in his throat. He needed to say it, but he was afraid of the questions that would come after. He didn't think he could explain, it took up so much energy even thinking about it.

"L-Listen about me, my…Quirklessness, can you not say anything about that? Please? Can it just be something that stays between us?"

They all watched him as if waiting for some kind of explanation.

"Uh, sure." Sora shrugged. "Okay, is ev-"

"Please." Izuku insisted, keeping his head down.

"Okidokie," Goofy answered for them. "If that's what you want, don't worry. Our lips are sealed. Now come on, quit mopin' around. I'm pretty sure Eri is gonna be happy to see ya."

Izuku stayed rooted in place until he heard the doors open. Then he walked after them, still keeping his distance. While Donald and Goofy chatted about talking to Leon and getting some rooms for the night, Iida slowed his pace until he was walking alongside Izuku.

"Midoriya."

Izuku looked up. Iida wasn't giving him any of the looks he was expecting. None of that disdain or disgust.

"I'm sorry if my reaction to your Quirklessness was…off putting. It just caught me off guard."

"Ah…"

"I'm sorry if I made you feel nervous or upset. That wasn't my intention."

"It's okay," Izuku said. "You uh, you've had a lot of bombs dropped on you today."

"I suppose I have. Is there anything else you would like to tell me before the day is over?" Iida asked.

"Uh…nothing I can think of." He shrugged. "But I'll let you know if anything comes up."

Iida watched him for a moment before smiling, his friend didn't seem as tense anymore. Some of that nervous energy was gone, if anything now he just looked tired.

As they walked along they heard the chime of a small bell. Everyone looked up to Cid's shop at the top of the stairs. There in front of the open door was Eri, standing behind her was Toshinori.

Eri's face lit up when she saw all of them, even more so when she spotted Izuku.

"You're back!" She darted out of the doorway and past Donald and Goofy.

Izuku grinned and knelt down with open arms to catch her as she barrelled into him. She hugged him tight as he picked her up.

"Hey, it's good to see you too." He smiled.

"You're okay!" She sounded relieved, then paused when she spotted Iida. "And you found…Iido?"

"It's Iida, you were close though. It's a relief to know you're alright as well." Iida answered.

Eri nodded.

"You all made it back." Everyone looked up to see Toshinori stepping out of the shop. "That's a relief. It's good to see you all again."

"Told ya we'd take care of them." Donald looked up at the tall man.

"Hi, Mr. Yagi!" Sora waved. "Nice to see you."

He smiled and made his way down the stairs. "It's good to see you too."

"Thanks for taking care of Eri." Izuku approached him. "It means a lot."

"Of course Young Midoriya. I can also see that you managed to find one of your friends. Young Iida I believe?"

Iida looked up at that. "Er, yes sir. I'm sorry I don't recognize you, have we met?"

"Ah, not formally. I'm Yagi Toshinori, I'm a faculty member at UA." He held out a hand.

"Oh, I see." Iida shook it. "It's a pleasure."

"You all look exhausted." He looked around at everyone.

"We are exhausted." Donald huffed. "We were about to head over to the hotel to get some rest. Before we take off again."

"So soon?"

"We need to stop the Heartless and find the King!" The magician shouted over his shoulder.

Toshinori watched them walk away before looking at the three teens. "Well, he certainly seems to be good company. Though he does have a point, you all should rest. Especially since it looks like you'll have to leave again soon."

"But they just got back," Eri whined. "Can't they stay for a little while?"

"Maybe." Sora yawned. "But we'd probably have to convince Donald."

Toshinori sighed. "You're half asleep on your feet, come on let's get you to the hotel."

"Only because Donald woke me up." He pouted.

"Because we finally got here."

"Still, that seat was pretty comfy…and the floor."

Toshinori laughed softly as he nudged them all along. As they made their way into the next district, Eri looked between them excitedly. Asking all sorts of questions about the world they visited and what it was like.

When she realized Iida spent the most time there, she turned to him for the most answers. She had been pleased to learn the world was called Wonderland. Iida told her about the strange environments and even stranger people he met.

He made sure to leave out the tragedy while he recounted his tale of ending up there. Eri's eyes lit up as she was told about a strange tea party and a mad Queen with her card soldiers. Izuku and Sora jumped in every once in a while to say something about what they had seen and done.

Unfortunately, they didn't get to go into everything, as the hotel was only a short walk away from Cid's shop.

"I can show you a few pictures I took there," Izuku said as they stepped inside. "A few of them might be blurry since I did take a few while I was running."

Eri beamed at the idea. "Really? Can I see?"

"Yeah." Izuku put her down and dug into his pocket for his phone. While he opened it and looked for the start to the pictures, Sora saw him as a suitable surface and leaned against him.

"Sora, Midoriya is not something for you to lean on."

"Ugh." Sora ignored him and slowly looked over to his phone. Watching Izuku swipe through different photos. He caught a few pictures of what looked like articles and news clippings. Some he saw someone in a costume, he assumed that was a hero. There was another picture that caught his eye, it looked like it was of three people. He didn't get a good look at it before Izuku swiped to a different photo.

As soon as Izuku found what he was looking for he handed the phone to Eri. She looked over the photos in awe, staring at each one with glee.

"Wow, I know you said you turned small but I didn't think you got this small!"

"Yeah, everything was way bigger than us." Sora nodded. "It was pretty cool."

"Oh good, you're all here."

They all looked up to see Goofy standing down the hallway and making his way over to them. "Donald and I got the rooms all set up thanks to Leon. We'll be pairing up, you don't mind sharing a room do ya?" Goofy asked as he gave Izuku a key.

"Uh, no I'm good."

"I'm okay with it."

"Donald also got ya set up Iida." He handed Iida his own key. "It looks like ya have the room to yourself for the time bein'."

"Oh, thank you very much." He read over the label and looked around. "I assume I'm upstairs."

"Yeah, looks like it." Izuku looked at his key. "We're still on the first floor, so I guess if you need anything you know where we'll be."

Toshinori pat Izuku and Iida's shoulders. "Alright then, you all should get some rest."

"Aw…" Eri looked down. "But I wanted to spend some time with you."

"I can still stay with you." Izuku offered. "I'm not that tired."

"You didn't even nap on the Gummi Ship," Sora muttered. "I don't think you did anyway. You were looking at your notebook the last time I saw you."

Izuku gave Sora a look.

"I'm sure you'll have some time to spend with Young Eri later, Young Midoriya. Resting after a mission is critical. You don't want to burn yourself out." Toshinori looked at him.

"He's right Midoriya." Iida agreed. "You did take on a giant Heartless, if you don't rest you might not be able to take on the next one."

Izuku sighed as Eri gave him back his phone.

"You should be getting to bed soon too young lady." Toshinori looked down at Eri.

Eri averted her eyes and chose to hide behind Izuku, making him laugh.

"You need to sleep too, Eri." Izuku looked over at her.

"Yeah, I know…" She mumbled. "But I wanted to stay up in case you came back. And you did, so it was worth it!"

Izuku sighed. "Go get ready for bed and then I'll braid your hair and tuck you in."

Eri frowned before nodding. "Okay…"

Izuku watched her make her way upstairs before looking down at Sora.

"I'm not a pillow."

"Yeah, I know…but I don't care."

"Our room is two doors down." Izuku held up the key. "I think you can walk a few feet to get to a bed."

Sora was quiet for a moment.

"Sora."

"I can't hear you, I'm sleeping."

"Sora."

The Keyblade wielder groaned before standing up straight. "Fine."

Izuku sighed and walked alongside him to unlock the door. He stepped aside so Sora could walk in. Sora mumbled his thanks and went inside. Izuku watched him kick off his shoes and flop onto his bed.

"Goodnight Midoriya," Iida said as he made his way upstairs. "Sleep well."

"Night Iida." Izuku waved at him and watched him walk away until he stopped.

"Midoriya."

"Yeah?"

Iida stared at him before sighing. "Thank you for coming to save me. I'm glad to have a friend like you."

Izuku stopped for a moment before nodding. "Y-Yeah, you too. Night."

"Night Izuku. Get some rest." Goofy said before going into his own room.

Once the door closed Izuku was left alone with Toshinori.

"Did you have a good time exploring another world?" He asked.

"Yeah. it was…it was interesting. The residents there were interesting too. Especially the Cheshire Cat."

"The Cheshire Cat?"

"Yeah, he's a cat…obviously. And he just appears and disappears whenever he wants, but whenever he appears it's only his smile and eyes that appear first. Kinda creepy."

"I can imagine."

"I wish I had gotten a picture of him before we left, but I didn't really get the chance to do that, we were so focused on getting Alice home and away from the Queen."

"I can imagine. Well, maybe one day I can meet him. Or you can see him again and get a picture."

Izuku smiled. "Yeah, maybe. That sounds kinda nice…"

Izuku took a minute to lean against the wall and then sunk to the floor.

"Exhaustion finally hitting you?" Toshinori knelt down to his level.

"I think so."

"Sounds about right." He sat against the wall as well. "Was there any sign of your Master? I remember you saying you were going to look for her before leaving."

Izuku kept his eyes to the floor as he shook his head. "No…No there wasn't. I only found Iida, I'm glad I found him, that's one of my friends. That means the others have to be out there, and her too. It's just a matter of finding them. That's the hard part. I know I can do it, I just…"

Toshinori watched him before sighing. "You'll find them. Take it one day at a time, Young Midoriya."

"...Yeah."

Izuku slumped forward for a moment, allowing himself to feel the exhaustion that was setting in. That other bed he saw in the room sounded really good right now, but Eri took priority.

He felt himself start to drift off when he heard Eri rushing back down the stairs.

"Izuku!" She called and ran up to him. "Izuku, are you asleep?"

He straightened up and shook his head. "No, I'm good. Just kinda tired. Come on, I can do your hair now."

Izuku smiled to himself as he started to braid her hair. At least one thing was the same, at least he could offer some kind of consistency for her. Anything to make her feel better. That was his job, he promised he would take care of her. And he refused to break his promise, especially to Master Aqua.

"There we go, all done."

"Thank you!"

"Now let's get you to bed, okay?"

Izuku walked her upstairs and followed her to a room at the end of the hall. Like his own room, he saw two beds in there. He assumed she was sharing a room with Aerith or Yuffie.

It didn't take long to get Eri tucked in and wish her goodnight. Izuku assured her that if she needed anything he was just downstairs. As well as promising up and down that if he woke up before her and had to go, he would wake her up to say goodbye. Even though he assured her he would never just up and leave like that.

Once she was satisfied, Eri finally went to sleep. Izuku checked on her one last time before walking out and quietly shutting the door behind him. There was no one else in the hall, he figured Aerith or Yuffie were off taking care of some responsibilities in the town, as well as Leon.

I can wake up and check on her later just in case.

Izuku let a yawn slip out as he walked down the stairs. He was surprised to see Mr. Yagi was still lounging about. He looked up as soon as he caught sight of Izuku.

"Is she all tucked in?"

"Yeah, she's okay." Izuku nodded.

"Good, now it's your turn."

"Yes sir."

Izuku made his way over to his shared room without complaint. Before going inside he looked at Toshinori.

"Mr. Yagi, thanks again for taking care of Eri."

"It's no problem, Young Midoriya. Truly, I'm happy to help."

"Thank you, and goodnight. You should get some sleep too, Mr. Yagi."

"I will don't worry."

With that Izuku went inside and shut the door. He could hear Sora's light snores on his side of the room. He glanced over to see Sora sprawled out in an awkward position, it vaguely reminded him of a cat sleeping in a weird way.

Once he kicked off his own shoes and hung his jacket on one of the bedposts he fell onto the bed. While he laid there, slowly drifting off to sleep, Izuku thought about the others, his friends who he hadn't found yet.

"Uraraka, Todoroki, and Master." He mumbled into his pillow. "I'll find you soon I promise."

-HoL-

Thank you to keeperofhounds for beta reading this fic!