I am a "Yoichi and Kudou are Izuku and Katsuki's past lives" truther.

Also of note- Yoichi's name is technically spelled as "first gift" not "giving" but it can be interpreted or pronounced as "(first) giving." And I think it suits him more to spell his name as "Giving" instead as "Gift" once he's no longer under AFO's thumb, because it symbolizes his want to give the world everything he has, instead of being an object to be gifted to someone. That is the source of OFA, I think. The desire to give, not to take.

Also, tenses are kinda weird in Japanese, especially when you try to translate them into a first name that is then translated to English. And it doesn't help that everyone's name in BNHA is like "Winning ExplosionGuy" or "IronIron IronIron." But cooler sounding. Or at least its cooler sounding to English ears, IDK if it's cheesy in Japanese. It probably is.

(Also, the "numbers" in all the holders names aren't spelled with the kanji or katakana for numbers, its just the sound that its pronounced in. Izuku's name is 出久, the katakana is "long" and "out". With his last name being literally "Green Valley" you can interpret his name as "departing green valley," which is kinda funny. "Ku" is just the sound for "9.")

The bunker that housed this particular cell of the resistance was small, carefully tucked away in the cisterns under Tokyo. Everything had a constant slight dampness to it- the stone walls, the guns, the people. Even the beds had a coolness pressed into its sheets that made them just uncomfortable enough to sleep under. But to Yoichi, it was the warmest place he'd ever been.

Maybe it was because he was raised on the streets by his big brother who was always smarter and stronger than him despite their shared age.

Maybe it was because he spent months in the dark and quiet, refusing food and fighting for his life whenever the chance came to him.

Maybe it's because it occurred to him recently that he never truly had friends on an equal footing as himself.

Either way, despite the persistent dampness and the chronic dim lighting that no candle could ever quite brighten, Yoichi was actually pretty happy with his current living arrangement. Considering his status as a transient growing up, a roof over his head and clean bedding to lie on was already the height of luxury for Yoichi. Clean clothing and a place to wash made it even more so.

It had almost been two months since Kudou and Bruce had freed him from his brother's control, and he had given them every shred of information he could think of. When he couldn't think of any more, Bruce gently asked if he would consent to his mind being searched for anything else. Bruce and Kudou made it very clear that their hospitality will not end if he refuses, nor will they judge him for denying it.

Yoichi agreed instantly, wanting to thank the organization that helped him by giving them all he had.

It was his name, after all. Giving.

The mentalist was a quiet woman who gently probed his mind and held each memory that came across to his mind with a practiced mix of non-judgment and acknowledgement. Each memory, the good and the bad, the useless and the useful, the happy and the anger, were all held with equal regard with her quirk. She skimmed over them all with equal amounts of interest and boredom.

What a kind woman, who could see his innermost thoughts and yet made him feel so safe at the same time. He imagined that this is what the afterlife felt like, that samsera felt exactly like slipping under the influence of her quirk. To be held in the nonjudgmental truth of prajna before the transfer of vinnana from one life to the next.

Death would behold him with kind hands, and have no judgment on the circumstance of his birth. The woman here has beheld him with the same hands and with kindness, cast no judgment. He'd never before felt so seen and understood but also so at peace.

Kudou held his hand the whole time. Yoichi didn't ask him to, but he did it anyway. In between the flashes of memory that the woman recalled to the front of his mind Yoichi could feel him, warm and dry and soft hand in a world where warm and dry and soft things were in short supply.

The mentalist eventually pulled away and Yoichi came back to control his thoughts, not quite opening his eyes just yet but tightening his grip around Kudou's hand all the same.

The woman left the room as quietly as she had searched Yoichi's mind. Suddenly, despite the hand in his own, Yoichi felt very lonely.

"You didn't have to do that, Yoichi." Kudou said after a long moment.

"You told me that many times. I wanted to." Yoichi whispered. His lips were dry from the lack of use for the past few hours. "Any scrap of information is useful."

There was a long pause, and Yoichi was almost ready to open his eyes before Kudou spoke again. "I know. I wish you didn't have to."

"It's alright. It didn't hurt a bit, and you stayed with me the entire time. Even though I didn't ask, but I really wanted you to. You stayed."

He finally opened his eyes, and Kudou was softly smiling at him. It was a rare look on his face that Yoichi thought suited him much more. He wanted to burn this smile into his memory, so it was the first thing that he remembered every morning and the last thing he thought of before sleeping.

"Of course I stayed."

"Why is that?"

Kudou broke eye contact and looked away, fidgeting with the hem of his shirt. "When this is all over, can I take you somewhere?"

Taken aback by the sudden change in subject, Yoichi made a confused noise. "Why not take me now?"

"I don't think it's the type of thing that's around right now. But sometime, in the near future, can I take you to a carnival?"

"A carnival?"

"The type that has overpriced crepes that are loaded with caramel that makes your hands sticky. And a ferris wheel where you can see the whole world from atop. And we'll play the games and win silly prizes and those giant overstuffed plushies that aren't nearly as soft as they look. And I'll probably use my quirk to cheat at the ring-toss games, but it'll be a future where quirks can be used in public anyway."

"I like the sound of all of that. And then what will happen?" Yoichi shifted so he faced Kudou on the bed they both sat on, taking his other hand in his own. It felt somewhat like holding a butterfly in his hands. The fluttery feeling in his chest didn't help at all. "After we eat those crepes and ride the ferris wheel and win those stuffies, what will we do next?"

"There'll be one of those dark rides that are supposed to be scary but really aren't. And we'll ride it over and over and in the dark I'll lean in-"

Yoichi lowered his face until he was nose to nose with Kudou. His eyes sparkled. Kudou was beautiful. "Like this?" he breathed.

"Yeah," Kudou whispers. "Just like this."

"And then what will you do?" Yoichi could feel Kudou's breath against his upper lip.

Instead of answering, Kudou finally closed the gap between them in a chaste kiss, lips soft against his own. His hand reached up to rest in Yoichi's hair, burying his fingers into his curls. Yoichi made a noise in the back of his throat when he did that, lips parting enough to let Kudou in, licking him gently and delicately. A contrast to his rough personality that Yoichi's heart squeezed for.

The calloused hands that have killed several men and reached out for him to hold. A bit of kindness for that anger. A dash of sweetness to that sense of duty. Yoichi can appreciate the beauty in that.

"Everything okay, Izuku?" Kacchan shook him out of his thoughts.

Carmel dripped from his crepe onto his fingers. The other hand Kacchan held like he was holding a butterfly. Tucked under Kacchan's arm was a normal sized plushie that Izuku had won for him by cheating at the ringtoss with One for All.

"Yeah. I just remembered something." Izuku closed his eyes, feeling the sun on his face and the gentle breeze in his hair. Tears well up in his eyes. "Do you think they have one of those dark rides that are supposed to be scary but they really aren't?"

"Maybe. We can go on the ferris wheel and see if we can see one." Kacchan starts to pull in the direction of the ride, before stopping.

"Izuku!" Kacchan whisper-shouts. "You're crying. What's wrong?"

"Nothing!" Izuku doesn't want to stop holding Kacchan's hand so he uses his shoulder to wipe away the tears on one side of his face. "I'm just so happy I'm finally here with you, Kacchan. I'll always treasure this."

Kacchan's hand comes up to his own face and gently wipes away his tears with his thumb. A few years ago, Izuku wasn't sure if Kacchan could do anything gentle. Precise, yes. With the perfect amount of pressure and control, absolutely. But gentle and Kacchan from a few years ago did not go together.

Now, it was the first description that Izuku would use for Kacchan. Especially when he tucked his hand behind Izuku's head, burying his fingers in his curls and leaned in, pressing his lips to the corner of Izuku's mouth.

"Me too." Kacchan said without looking in his eyes. His hand tightened around Izuku's own. "I'll always treasure this too."