Tenya had never felt so useless before, strapped down to a bed with his arms wrapped up and hanging out to the sides and a needle dripping blood into both of his arms — trapped in a hospital. He couldn't get up; he couldn't put his hero suit on; he couldn't go back out into the city and hunt down the man that had nearly killed his brother. He had failed to apprehend the man responsible for knocking down the Ingenium name even momentarily. He failed to stop the man trying to control Midoriya; the man who tried to hurt him onto his side. Just like he had failed to be there for his class at the USJ, and as he had failed to stop Bakugou from hurting his friend.
He took the Ingenium name to bring it strength in vain, but all he had delivered was disappointment. Again.
Tenya trained for Yuei to be a hero in the light of his family; a lineage of proud civil servants in shining armor helping the people of Japan at break-neck speeds. He was born with the quirk he had to be a hero for others as his brother and father and mother and ancestors before him had done for nearly a century. Yet what else could he do but lick his wounds and wallow at his next fuck up when he was stuck in the same hospital as his bother, stationed floors away from seeing the young man again, and unable to reach out to his friends and apologize? He was blessed with a quirk that could help people, enrolled into the school that would fast-track him on the road to his family's profession and tutored under a close friend extending an offer to bring in a notorious criminal, and he soiled it; again and again, at every chance the world told him to step up and do something right.
It was the squeaking of springs that reminded Tenya he wasn't alone in the room. After his surgery overnight he wasn't given a single-bed room like his brother was but relocated to a multi-bed bay still fitted to the accommodation his body needed; the villains who attacked Hosu hurt far more people than the facility seemed to have the capacity to treat in a timely manner. But not enough victims that the blue-haired teen shared his room with anyone other than his tailed friend situated in the bed across from him. Propped up by the trio of pillows under his head, he watched Ojiro rise from his own, shuffling around until he was seated comfortably; neither of them could say the past hour of being awake in silence was anything good.
The blond boy looked over to Tenya, frowning as he asked, "You doing okay?"
The blue-haired teen kept his own mouth in a straight line, nose scrunching in the absence of his glasses. "No," he answered honestly.
"Is it your arms?"
"No."
Ojiro's fingers rolled over themselves. "Is it Izuku?"
Tenya took longer to respond, the breath he took serving as an affirmative answer. "Did he tell you anything?"
The other teen grunted. "A good chunk, though I got most of it from him trying to goad Silverfang into an argument in the street last night. He only told me a bit about Stain and Garou, and I am miffed about what you did, but we can talk about that later. Other than that, he and Eri were brought here in their own car; I haven't heard from him since."
That was at least one less person to catch up on the matter, Tenya jotted in the back of his mind before his brows furrowed in confusion. "Eri?"
"Oh right." Ojiro's tail came to wrap around his waist, the tuff of its end resting in his lap. "A little kid ran into the fight, I think just after Stain attacked you. Little girl; remember the kid he and Yaoyorozu told us about from the mall?" Tenya could recall that, both from his friends' countenance and the footage he had seen from the news. "Izuku stopped Stain from hurting her too before we stopped him."
The speedster couldn't remember much of the night after the Hero Killer had ripped his sword out of Tenya's arms; he wasn't fully confident the image of Midoriya and Ojiro standing over him really happened or was just a dream. He definitely did not remember seeing the tailed boy with a wound across his chest, as he took notice of the bandage that peeked out from the collar of the teen's gown. "What happened to you?"
The question brought Ojiro's attention downwards, tugging on his collar to reveal the thin material wrapped beneath his neck. "Got into my own fight, with the people who attacked us at school," the tailed teen recounted sourly, "the ones in charge of it and those bigger villains." Tenya felt equally frustrated hearing that those men were in Hosu the same night. "One of them touched me for only a second but his quirk killed the skin on my chest where he touched almost instantly. Still kinda hurts to stretch, but it's manageable. We didn't capture them, but the heroes did bring in one of the purple villains and stopped most of the rest. And at least we caught Stain, too."
'We' being an operative word, Tenya marked internally as his eyes rolled to stare up at the ceiling. He had done nothing but be a liability the whole fight, taking hits and standing around doing nothing but let the night's revelations distract him. He didn't deserve the credit for anything.
"I wouldn't be celebrating so soon, woof."
The door to their room creaked open, and in walked a trio of men. Leading the charge was a beagle mutant in a navy blue suit, his ears flapping against his cheeks with each step. Behind him was Manual, still in his hero costume, catching Tenya's eye quickly with an expression of worry that morphed into relief. Lastly entered a plain looking man Tenya didn't recognize, casually dressed and smiling under his ray-bans. The door snapped closed behind the last of them, the unknown man standing close to it, and the blue-haired teen knew something was amiss.
"My name is Tsuragamae Kenji, chief of the Hosu police force," the mutant man introduced himself, standing in between the beds just beside Tenya and Ojiro's. Manual squeezed past him to stand by the blue-haired teen, quietly asking how he felt and receiving a muted, "Fine," in response. "My apologies for the interruption this morning, but it is better we get our story straight sooner than later about last night, woof."
"What about it?" Ojiro asked in Tenya's stead.
The chief's muzzle bounced as he huffed. "The press cannot print that you pups fought a wanted criminal all on your own. Neither of you were cleared with permission to fight or use your quirks, both a legal matter that would put the city in trouble and your educational experience. So I have spoken with both of your instructors" — that shed some light on the other man's presence for Tenya — "and your school's principal on the story we will be publishing about last night's events. With Native and Kick Back present on the scene, it's made this easier to write."
"Ingenium," the identified Kick Back began, pointing a finger Tenya's way, "was given an order to protect civilians and prioritize their safety by the heroes on scene. You were the first responder to a call for help by Native and his recovery beacon, set off by Stain as bait for another victim. You managed to hold on as long as you could until I and Tailman responded to the call. Your friend got you and Native out of the way to safety while I managed to subdue the Hero Killer until reinforcements arrived to apprehend him and treat you boys with medical attention." The auburn-haired man offered a sorry smile to the blond teen. "Sorry to steal your credit, kid, but you've got too much potential to put on the line because of your heart. You understand."
"Native has already agreed to the story," Manual continued for the other men. "He was one of our underground heroes working on Stain's case, following a lead that night just to find any more information we could gather on the man for a proper hunt. He thanks you for stepping up to save his life, and if the story means you can stay out of trouble for that, then he has no problem repeating it for us." He sighed deeply as he looked over Tenya's arms, frowning when he looked back to his face. "What you did was stupid and reckless, but if you hadn't been there first then Native wouldn't be here today. We can't thank both of you boys publicly for what you did last night, but please understand the intentions and actions you took last night did save lives and we do thank you for it."
Tenya watched as he, the chief and the other hero all bowed their heads in gratitude to match their words, yet he waited silently for more.
And he waited.
And it never came.
"What about Midoriya?" he asked suddenly, eyes swapping from the hero beside him to the chief of police. "I didn't save Native; Midoriya saved us. I'd be dead if he wasn't there. What about him? And Garou?"
Tsuragamae barked gruffly under his breath. "We believe it's best to keep the quirkless mutt's name out of the fight with Stain," he explained, and the blue-haired teen felt his arms burn beneath their casts, wounds itching. "Including him in the conflict would do our story more harm than help, woof. He did his part in protecting civilians and rescuing a child displaced in the chaos, as you are both aware; the story will mention as much. Same as you boys, we can't admit to him fighting Stain. As for this 'Garou,' Native had little to say about the other man. Excluding him from the story will appease public perception and safety, not to worry about some vigilante picking fights with the Hero Killer. He and Midoriya's involvement would put a bad name on heroes such as yourselves."
Ojiro sputtered in surprise. "He was there longer than I was," he joined in with Tenya. "He should at least get the credit for getting Tenya and Native to safety too."
"Don't give up your rep, kid," Kick Back quickly interjected, smiling too proudly. "He wasn't supposed to be in Hosu to begin with; Silverfang was given instruction to stay out of town while these men were hunting the Hero Killer. Being seen in a different part of town from his instructor and anywhere near the fight with Stain would be a blow to the old man's reputation. He doesn't want to do that to him. He'll understand."
"I don't." Tenya pushed himself up as much as he could, body screaming against him and Manual pushing him back down. "I don't want your thanks. I didn't save anyone. Midoriya saved Native. He saved me. Midoriya's name should be in the report in my place. I don't want it."
"He doesn't deserve it, kid," the martial arts hero snapped back. "As far as Native's told us, he wasn't the one who showed up first to save either of you. Take the credit, dude. You're carrying the Ingenium name now, give your brother's title some honor until we get him back on his feet."
Before Tenya could throw himself at the man for mentioning Tensei — before the Normal Hero who was holding him back could bark his own choice words at the other hero — a gravely old voice joined in; "There should be no problem in publishing Midoriya's name in the paper."
All attention turned to the old man standing in the open doorway, walking in slowly and gently closing the door again. Kick Back in particular acted like he jumped out of his skin, leaning on a bed frame and huffing out a sigh of relief. "Here to give me a heart attack, Silverfang?"
"Apologies for my tardiness," the old hero offered with a bow of his head as he walked deeper into the room, facing down the chief of police. "Your people contacted me last night about getting our stories straight about Hosu, so I thought I should provide my own side to the story. Sounds as though you men have hit a writer's block."
The police hound snarled under his breath, his expression still passive. "As you understand, Silverfang, my department gave you clear instructions to stay out of Hosu city during our investigation into the Hero Killer, given you were next on his list of targeted heroes. Placing the child under your supervision on the scene of Stain's fight would not benefit your reputation—"
"Yes, last night was a mess, wasn't it?" The old hero talked dismissively of the other man's warning, turning his sight onto Tenya still in his bed. "Those monstrous villains took quite the effort to defeat. And you were calling many heroes onto the scene to help with public perception in the first place. Given your investigation into the Hero Killer was turning up short, and manpower was in quite the demand, it makes sense that I was in town on request, no?" Silverfang turned back to the chief in front of him with his suggestion. "And as Metal Bat's guardian and instructor, permission to engage with any criminals in defensive measures must be and was given by me. His actions avoid the same legal conundrum these boys' efforts do, so no trouble there.
"And you and Tailman were spotted uptown close to the main chaos in the city," Silverfang continued, turning around to point at Kick Back, to the other hero's scoff. "The young Ingenium's response to Native's 'distress signal' happened much earlier than that; it would help cover your tracks to place the boy on the scene before you arrived to apprehend him yourself, as Midoriya can move his and Ingenium's efforts in holding the Hero Killer in a standstill to assisting your student in moving Native away from the action. Along with picking up the lost child, of course. That should tie up all loose ends to your story, without conflicting with the accounts of others."
The chief of police nodded, ears folding thoughtfully. "The less questions the better, woof," he huffed in agreement, though through the flaps of his muzzle Tenya could see a frown. "We are lucky no civilians were around to see the conflict for themselves. But it still does us no good to publish that a quirkless child had fought a wanted criminal like Stain. Approval of his supervising hero or not, knowledge a mutt like him was in the fight would put the public in a panic. You know how they've been since he was given the win at the school's Sports Festival."
"So long as you do not credit him for winning the fight, his self-defense alongside another hero student should stir little, no?" The old man's placid stare spun back to the chief, eyes leveled with the other man's almost challengingly. "At least no more than he already has."
Tenya could see the mutant wasn't happy with the suggestion, Kick Back equally displeased and Manual hesitant to jump in with his own words. The stalemate broke when the chief begrudgingly accepted the idea, citing it as the best-case scenario they had when a statement was demanded so soon. He left with a brief farewell and wished for their wellbeing, Kick Back behind him giving an unsatisfied frown Tenya and Silverfang's way as he left. Manual followed not too long later, promising to bring a nurse back with refreshments as soon as he could.
Silverfang remained, looking over him and Ojiro briefly. "I heard you boys were recovering well; that's good to hear." He gazed at Tenya's arms. "Your recovery will take time but that it will happen should be celebrated. The same for your brother; I pray he awakens soon. That both of you walked away from your fights still alive should be valued." He turned back to Ojiro again. "And you must be the fan Midoriya told me about. Young Yo likes to scoop up martial-arts focused students as quickly as possible. I will inform you that my school has since closed its doors in recent years after the loss of my last class, but I will be keeping an eye open for the internships later this autumn. Do show your best from here on."
Tenya recalled how excited Ojiro was to see Silverfang's name on Midoriya's letter of recommendation; of his best friend getting the opportunity to meet one of the tailed-boy's favorite heroes; of how he gently yet consistently pestered their green-haired friend to put in a good word with the hero; of how jealous he was that he didn't the chance at the work study himself.
For that same boy to now look at an idol with hesitation and a muttered thanks was a stark reminder of what the night prior had brought them.
"You weren't supposed to be in Hosu," Tenya spoke up.
"I had business," the old hero defended himself flatly. "Hosu could use all the help it could get, while the Hero Killer was on the loose. Midoriya and I were proud to be of assistance to the local heroes. I hope Stain's arrest has offered you some relief over your brother's condition."
"Garou nearly killed my brother," the blue-haired teen clarified.
Silverfang's mustache bounced as he hummed. "I see. Have either of you heard from Midoriya and how he is recovering? I was surprised to hear he was warded in a separate room from you both" — he took a look at Tenya's arms — "and that you were here in his place instead. I thought the police's revised report could use my attention first."
When Tenya didn't answer him, Ojiro spoke up, "We haven't heard from him yet. I texted him but he hasn't answered me."
"I will learn when I see him in person, then. Thank you for your time. I hope both of your recoveries are swift." With that said, Silverfang spun on his heel and made way to leave.
But Tenya did not let him. "Did you use Midoriya?"
The martial artist stopped just short of the door, hand hovering over handle. He twisted his neck only an inch, not really looking over his shoulder to the teen. "Did he tell you that?"
"Garou did. You lied to Midoriya to bring him to Hosu looking for him. You'll lie to the people about who tried to kill Ingenium, too?"
Silverfang's hand dropped back to his side as he sighed. "This report isn't about the man who actually tried to take down heroes, but the man who sought to profit off the chaos. Stain is a criminal, and his arrest and imprisonment is a matter that requires the commission's fullest attention." He finally turned his body, azure eyes gleaming in the darkest section of the room. "Garou is not a criminal reveling in his work, profiting off the chaos he has cultivated and that other heroes must bother themselves with. He is a wounded animal needing to be put down. Midoriya will understand, as will you." He didn't bother another word, swinging the door open and swiftly closing it behind him, leaving the two boys alone once more.
Tenya hated this powerlessness, stuck to a bed with both arms incapacitated, stuck listening to adults attempt to bury the hard work of his friend simply because he insisted to be known as quirkless. Yet had Midoriya ever stamped a quirk to his name, the blue-haired teen wasn't sure he'd ever see this side of the men he was supposed to work with; men who put just as much effort undermining a kid as they did catching criminals.
Failures be damned, mistakes be shoved aside, Tenya knew his next opponent that these adults encapsulated.
Izuku did not want to be alone. The heroes departed after escorting them to the hospital, the doctors shoved him into his own room away from his friends, and Eri was taken from him and placed under some other hero's supervision not too long later. Izuku had fought against that last choice; maybe a little too aggressively that the stress finally got the cut in his chest's center to start pouring, and they were split up while he was taken into treatment. With barely a few hours of sleep on his eyes, he was now stuck in the same room with a dead phone and Garou's voice still echoing through his head.
To start the day off even worse, his first visitor was Silverfang.
Izuku had sat up in his bed long before the man arrived, feet dangling over the side that faced the end of his room, putting only the old hero's reflection in the window in the teen's vision as he entered. Silverfang stayed on that side, meeting the reflection of his own emerald eyes. "It should ease you to know your friends are okay," he informed Izuku. "Tailman is recovering well and Ingenium will be out of commission for a few weeks from performing any official work, but they are both awake and quite energetic. They wondered how you were doing."
"My phone died," the green teen responded. "They didn't charge it overnight."
The old man nodded. "I'll ask the staff for a charging cable, and have them bring it to your room."
Izuku didn't budge, his eyes trained on the martial artist's reflection.
"Is there something you wish to tell me?" Silverfang inquired.
"You didn't send me a letter to train me." Izuku watched the man straighten in the glass at his accusation, his face still emotionless and calm. "You knew I knew Garou."
"Ingenium mentioned he was there last night as well," Silverfang reported. "Apparently he is to thank for saving his life from the Hero Killer's blade, according to Native's recounting of events. You should know ahead of time that the story of your fight last night will not be reported accurately, for the sake of your friend's education and future. The police will ask for your cooperation in upholding the narrative they publish for the public."
Izuku's head twisted slightly, turning his face directly to the man's reflection. "You were using me to get to him," he continued from his own words. "Because I'm quirkless like he is."
The hero's shoulders sagged, his bushy mustache dipping with a small frown. "I could see it in your fight at the festival; how he had trained you in the way he learned my own style; how you bested a boy with iron skin with your bare knuckles, while the rest of the world convinced themselves his quirk let go before your fists made contact. He fed me the same story of his quirklessness when he joined my school, believing it until the day he punched down a tree. The doctors I took him to confirmed his lack of a quirk factor, and yet he proved feat after feat a boy like him should have never accomplished. You fought similarly to how he had in my school, even up to the day he left. He's hunted a handful of heroes over the past few months, and in the meantime he's been training you. You're an accomplice to a criminal who has been on the run for nearly a year."
Izuku bit back a growl, blowing the air from his nose as his throat huffed. "I never knew he was hurting heroes. He never told me once."
"You two met for months and you could never tell?"
He finally turned his head around to stare directly at the hero, leveling a glare at the man. "Apparently people are better at lying to me than I thought." He turned back around without waiting for the man to respond.
Silverfang persisted. "Then why teach you? Why spend these months showing you how to fight? He found a quirkless person like himself and trained him in isolation, told him to use a fake name when talking to others, and for what?"
Izuku eyed his dirty jacket and torn shirt thrown over a chair at the opposite end of the room. Damage, dirt and blood all from his fighting with Stain and the few moments of Iida's speed. Not one scratch from Garou. "So I could hate you as much as he does," he shared his guess with the hero, still keeping his back to the man. "Though I guess your own training did that without his help."
"Does that make you his ally?"
An ally, the green-haired teen repeated in his head with a somber laugh. "I don't think he knew that all it would do is make me want to work harder to prove people like you wrong. I'm not fighting heroes by his side."
When Silverfang took longer to respond to his answer, Izuku gazed back at the man's reflection, finding him to still be staring at the back of his head intently. Any sadness from his expression had been wiped away once more, stoned in neutrality. Not like Izuku believed it to reflect how the man actually felt, anymore.
"I'll let the doctors know you are awake," the old hero stated, turning away to the door. "I will see how long it will take for them to clear you to leave, if you're all healed up and able. We'll return to the dojo—"
"I'm not going back with you." Izuku's interruption cut the man's words short, peering back over his shoulder in his turn to stare at the back of Silverfang's head. "I'm not doing the work study with you anymore. Go home yourself."
The old man stilled at the door, head bowing slightly. Izuku watched how his fingers twitched behind his back, never flexing into fists but clearly struggling to relax. "I will have to call your school and your parental guardians and tell them of your choice, then. You will be returned to their supervision." Silverfang looked back over his own shoulder, one eye boring at Izuku as though threatening him to consider his options.
He didn't respond.
"Very well," the hero accepted his silent answer and slid out the door without another word, leaving Izuku alone once more.
Did Silverfang actually expect Izuku to go back with him? The notion sounded unbelievable in his head; as if the man wasn't going to hound him for more information about Garou as soon as he could. That would likely become the rest of Izuku's days 'learning' under him, being interrogated until he was satisfied. No wonder Charanko left as soon as he could, and no wonder Silverfang made no big deal of his absence; neither of them cared about him as anything more than a lead on someone else. A shame he had nothing more to offer them about Garou.
Thinking about the silver-haired teen didn't make him feel any better, though, as he pushed himself up to stand and drag his feet to the window. Replaying the night prior in his head, rewatching as Garou stood by his side and then opposite him, remembering his long-winded rants and vile hatred of the world around them. Izuku hadn't stopped to think about his words so tentatively in between his continued fight with the Hero Killer and him and his friends being rushed to the hospital, but now that he was awake and left alone to the sound of his own thoughts?
Silverfang wasn't the only person still asking why.
What was Garou's point in training him for Yuei? If he was off chasing heroes to beat between the days they met, why support Izuku's dream to be a hero? Why lead him on false support if he expected Izuku to fall to his side? Because they were both quirkless and then some? Was Izuku the first quirkless person like him Garou ever met? Did the person he spoke of to Izuku in the past exist or was it just himself that Garou talked about? Had Garou ever considered how lying about everything would actually make Izuku feel, or if it would even help to turn the green-haired teen on his side?
He stared at the city of Hosu outside his window with a frown, the rising sun lighting the walls in front of him. The police were leaving Garou's name out of the paper and for what? Wouldn't identifying him and acknowledging him as a threat inform people to stay safe and give other heroes an idea of who they had to stop? Was the choice of not acknowledging another quirkless person in the paper Silverfang's idea or someone else's? If they were changing the story to save Iida the punishment of vigilantism, would his own name even be published?
This was what he worried about, Izuku resigned with a sigh, dropping his forehead against the glass. When everyone else knew he was a quirkless kid trying to be a hero, Silverfang embodied his old fears to a T. He wasn't going to let his words or the words of random people online or, god forbid, Stain's own thoughts get in his way and stop him, but he could feel it; how tiring it was to hear his name in the news or someone else's mouth to dissuade him from his dream on a nation-wide scale. The jeers of his middle school classmates was one thing he learned to tune out, but this?
This was what Garou meant. This was the world as Garou had seen it; the selling point he thought would pull Izuku on his side. People shoving him down, denying his victories and abusing him for their gain; Garou spoke of quirked society as though it should have made Izuku reflect on all he had gone through. Yet all the green-haired boy could wonder was how it had treated the older teen — how it dragged him down to beating up heroes. Was his life at school worse? What of his home life, or the reality of his time as Silverfang's student? Had he ever met another quirkless person before Izuku?
How long had he been alone?
"Thank you for making sure Izuku's safe!" the woman's voice hastily expressed over the phone, held just an inch away from Bang's ear. "I saw the news about Hosu where one of his friends were doing their work study, and he never answered my calls, and then I saw his last location was in the city, so I started to fear the worst calling all the hospitals—oh, but to know it was just a dead battery…!"
"It is no problem, Ms. Midoriya," the old hero reassured her, offering a hand of apology to the nurse who walked past him. He wouldn't have taken the call in the hallway had he expected her reaction; she was nothing like Garou's mother. "I've already asked the staff to bring him a charging cable, so you should be hearing from him soon."
"And I'm so sorry he doesn't want to continue the work study," she continued to rant. "He was looking forward to it all week too, with how his friends gushed about you and all the training he did to get into Yuei! But after hearing about how dangerous it was out there—"
"Your boy is young. Processing such chaos to be in the middle of takes time, and your son has persevered through enough before; removing himself from the equation to catch his breath is his choice to respect. If he has the energy to transfer to another agency and continue his studies, that would be a matter to discuss with his school and teachers. I implore you to bring that up if he expresses such."
The woman let out something of a sigh. "Thank you for understanding and looking after him. I know he feels sorry for cutting this short on you. I'll be over as soon as I can, I just need to speak with my boss first."
Bang kept Midoriya's real words on the matter to himself as he wished her farewell and hung up. There was no need to drag the call along further relaying her son's opinions. If the boy wanted to throw a fit and play dumb, then that was his choice; Bang did not need to stay around and force the words out of him. The farce would fail on its own soon enough and responsibility would fall on the shoulders of his teachers. He did not have the time to babysit a child when an animal was on the loose. If the boy wasn't going to help, then he would not bother wasting his time any longer. He clicked through his old flip phone, choosing the saved contact for Yuei he was given in advance and listening to the dial ring in his ear. Midoriya was the school's problem now.
As his phone rang, so did another down the hall.
Bang slowly turned his head to the side towards the source of the noise, where halfway down the hall approached the Normal Hero: Manual alongside another man with dark hair to match his clothes and a bulky gray scarf around his neck. The latter individual was holding his ringing phone up to point its glowing screen at the martial arts hero. When Bang clicked his phone shut, the other man's phone stopped ringing.
"Good timing," the old hero chimed, looking the dark-haired man up and down. "You are Eraserhead, correct? The homeroom teacher of the boys? A pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"Cut the crap," the underground hero told him flatly. The water bending hero twitched worriedly, apologizing to a passing nurse walking through the hall. "What are you doing here?"
"Attending to the students," the white-haired man answered calmly. "And speaking with the police about the events of last night. Have you already been briefed on the matter?"
"I'm aware," the younger hero responded, his face bent in a subtle anger. "But I don't mean you being in this hospital. Why are you in Hosu?"
Bang's eyes flickered at the other young hero briefly. "I was giving Midoriya practice with standard hero patrol etiquette. Hosu has been under the stress of rearranging its heroes to fill the streets, and I believed it calm enough that it would have been a good learning experience for the boy while providing assistance where needed. The sudden attack on the city was a surprise to us all, unfortunately. But, unable to predict such a catastrophe, you understand my desire to respond to the call for help and teach the boy standard procedure."
Eraserhead nodded. "I do. In fact, I was called in to assist on a case just yesterday. In the mountain range of Saitama." His burning red eyes did their best to intimidate the older hero. "Unfortunately, the agency I arrived at was unoccupied last night, its staff and understudies absent from the premises. Imagine my surprise when I hear the hero ordered to stay in his city was spotted several prefectures away in the midst of a villain attack involving the Hero Killer."
Bang met his glare with an uncaring hum. "Yes, that does sound quite unfortunate. It seems the hero you were looking to meet was fed misinformation and did not expect your arrival for last evening. It sounds like he was where he needed to be."
"Alright," Manual sighed, stepping up and tapping the back of his hand on Eraserhead's chest. "I'm stopping this early. You were directly ordered not to come to Hosu, Silverfang. We found evidence in the Hero Killer's hideout that pointed to you as a next possible target while we knew he was still in the city. You weren't supposed to ignore the plan to set up a trap for Stain and bring a student along in your chase after him. You nearly got the boy killed!"
"Stain wasn't looking for me to begin with," Bang clarified, much to the younger man's shocked expression. "I'm an old man in a different city than his last five victims and who owns a defunct martial arts school. He was in my city before those young fools scared him to a new town. If he wanted me dead before, the isolation of my dojo proved a perfect window of opportunity for him to strike, yet the man never ventured into my side of Saitama. What you found was not his hideout, but someone else who I have been searching for since the Fall. I came to Hosu to see the location for myself to know whether or not it truly was Garou you had found information on."
The underground hero twitched an eyebrow. "Your excuses do not change the fact you brought an unlicensed and barely trained teenager into a city to confront the Hero Killer or someone like him. Did the danger you put him in pass over your head?"
"Midoriya knows Garou." Bang met Eraserhead's eyes with his own steady glare. "This young fool decimated my prior students, has hunted and maimed several heroes including the prior Ingenium, and your student knew him. The two have been meeting in private for months, according to the boy. His familiarity with Garou would have proved useful in narrowing my search for him, much in the same way our friend here" — he gestured at the Normal Hero — "invited the young Ingenium under his wing to patrol in the same city where his brother was nearly killed to hunt the man they assumed responsible for the job. My intention was not to place Midoriya in a fight against the Hero Killer; their crossing paths were by circumstance."
The underground hero slowly turned his eyes from the martial artist to the water bender, his silent question of affirmation turning the latter hero bashful and ashamed at the comparison. "So you enlist children to help you hunt serial killers and hero hunters solely for their information as it is to your benefit. Do you think that helps your defense any?"
"Well, as it turns out, the young boy shared nothing." Bang stepped past the younger man, bumping against his shoulder. "There is no information for me to gain from him. And your student has decided to cut short his work study with my agency, so he is under your care now. His mother is on her way to see him home after the events of last night, where it seems Midoriya did cross paths with Garou once again. Maybe you'll be able to pull something from him."
"I'm not doing shit for you," Eraserhead elected to inform him, though Bang continued to walk away. "Your agency will be blacklisted from our school. You will no longer have an internship contract with Yuei. Your connection to my school is over. I find you put a hand on my student and your license will be revoked. Hope for the sake of your remaining years that this is the last time we see each other."
"The same to you, brat," the old hero waved over his shoulder as he entered the elevator, turning around only at the last second to find the hero still glaring at him before the door closed.
Bang did not need the help of children, nor of a school's staff list. With Garou's name removed from the official report to find itself printed soon, the young man would be no one else's problem to worry over. Native's shallow report of the boy would leave the police with but a minor inconvenience to file away and ignore in favor of larger, more impending cases. Other heroes would focus their attention on celebrating Stain's defeat and finding the next real villain to sink their teeth into.
Garou was Bang's mistake, and he would be alone to clean up the mess.
On one hand the quite crowded waiting lounge of the hospital should have been an annoyance to find himself in; of numerous overlapping conversations compounding on Izuku's ears. On the other, their bustling noise worked in drowning out his own thoughts; as he had hoped.
Not too long after Silverfang had left, a nurse had swung by with a cord to charge his phone and told him bluntly he was free to leave. Instead of taking the cord they left beside his bed, Izuku swapped his gown out for his costume, zipping up his jacket to cover the large hole cut in the center of his shirt by the paramedics on the scene, and left his room to sit in the waiting room instead. Ojiro and Iida were somewhere else in the building, and Eri elsewhere under a hero's protection, and he would rather see them all in person.
According to the receptionist, however, neither his friends nor the little girl were not allowed any visitors; frustrating news for Izuku to hear. But he kept his composure, turning face and plopping down into one of the seats against the nearest wall, keen on waiting for either his mother or his teachers to arrive and check up on them to clear a path for him. At the very least, knowing Iida was still in care meant he didn't have to wait with baited breath to know if his blue-haired friend had made it to the hospital in time. His friends were still kicking, and he would relish in the warmth that brought him.
Until the cavalry arrived, he could spend his time letting the voices of every other occupant coming, going and staying in the room pull his thoughts away. He listened to the small conversations people made; talking about the chaos that unfolded while heroes escorted them to safety; talking about a family member already at the hospital they thought lucky to avoid the villains; talking about him.
Izuku let his eyes dart only a second towards the pair of women that muttered his name, going on after to act like he couldn't hear the bits and pieces of their conversation they probably didn't want him to know; of his creepy "quirklessness" and the "unfortunate" favor of seeing him still breathing. No one else even looked his way or heard the women across the room like he had. Subconsciously his hand patted the pocket of his jacket where Hatsume's compact bat was still hiding, but he consciously drew his hand away a second later. He left his room to drown out Garou's war cry of retaliation, not to have it still play in his mind.
A new distraction came from the hall, swinging the entrance to the lobby open violently as the man behind it stormed into the room. He glared at the people he shuffled past over his white medical mask until he made it to the receptionist. Izuku could faintly hear him ask about his niece through the mask, and when the young lady told him to wait, the black-haired man did so in the chair two spots away from Izuku. The man caught his stare, so Izuku nodded and looked away out of respect, letting the soft overhead music and surrounding voices whisk him away.
From the corner of his eye, he knew the other man never looked away.
He pretended as long as he could that he didn't notice, but the seconds alone felt far too uncomfortable under the man's gaze. So he folded and turned his head back to meet the other man's stare, keeping his face as neutral as possible. The man studied him, eyes darting from the scar that dipped to his chin and squinting at his dark hair still styled as the martial artist hero had given him.
"Midoriya, correct?" the man inquired in a raspy voice. "From Yuei's Sports Festival?"
Izuku admitted with a sigh, "Yeah. I am."
The man's posture shifted suddenly, as his back straightened and his eyes sharpened. Even through the mask, Izuku thought he could see glee in the man's expression. "I heard about your victory. Congratulations. You put up a good fight."
The quirkless teen blinked, so surprised that his guess was right that his throat caught itself in a hiccup. "Oh. Thank you."
The man nodded. "I only watched your final fight after it all ended," he went on to elaborate, "but it was impressive, how you stood down your opponent. A shame that victory was not yours from your own blow. But your win was no less deserved."
"Thank you," Izuku repeated. "That means a lot to me, sir."
"Yes, I've seen the penned pieces about your win. I take it you don't hear it often enough." Izuku didn't have to respond for the man to find the answer to that. "Society has become too rigid on its infatuation of quirks. Humanity lived for centuries without obtuse powers, yet today they act like they couldn't live without them. So codependent on their quirks, they forget men like you lived just fine for centuries." His gaze shifted to the room around them, Izuku's own eyes quickly finding the pair of women across the room still present. "I ask that you do not let their voices discourage yours. Continue to fight until they understand."
Though it was a stranger's request, the support it gave Izuku was able to pull a breath of relief from his chest. "I will. I don't let them get to me."
"Good. Keep it that way." There was a moment of comfortable silence between the two before the man gave Izuku another look. "If you are here, then I take it you were in the city last night during the attack."
Izuku nodded, giving a reserved hum. "My friends got hurt in a fight; I'm waiting until I can see them. And Eri as well." He added the last part in a more hushed tone, but his words must have caught the other man's ears as his eyes danced in surprise.
"You saw Eri? Is she hurt?"
The green-haired teen met the man's shock with his own. "You know Eri?"
The adult hesitated a second, head bowing a sigh. "She's my niece, on her mother's side. She was in my care last night when the villains separated us. Were you the boy who found her?"
"She ran into me when my friends and I were in the middle of a fight. She didn't get hurt" — he was quick to add on when the man bristled — "but a hero has been watching over her since last night. I haven't been able to see her since."
"Please." The man shifted into the seat between them, craning his head down to be eye-level with the teenager. "Allow me to reward you. Her safety is my highest priority. Saving her life twice over now is deserving of a reward. It would mean much to me to gift you for your troubles."
Izuku leaned away, hands waving up in defense. "No, no, it's alright," he denied in a stutter. "I was never saving her for any reward, you don't have to do that. I just want to make sure she gets back home to her family, that's all." The man recoiled away slowly, his intense gaze cracking as his eyes shifted away, and the unease that wore on his shoulders troubled Izuku. "Is something wrong back home, sir?"
After another moment of hesitation, the man answered, "You met her father, back at the incident last winter. He passed away a few weeks ago. My sister has not taken his absence well. Eri has been placed in my care for the time being. And her powers have just sprouted too, quite late after her mutation of the horn. It's…changed a lot back home."
Izuku grew quiet listening to the man's explanation, his mind replaying the hazy memory of the horned, white-haired man he had reunited with Eri in December — he recalled how the two hugged the tears out of each other in their embrace. No wonder Eri had broken down in his arms so quickly, how she stared off into the distance the night prior. She was just as young as he was when he got the news of his father. "I'm sorry to hear that. I think I know what she's feeling right now. Is there anything I can do for her?"
The man pondered a moment. "Continue your fight," he decided. "Be a quirkless hero. She would appreciate it."
"You've got a better personality than those morons. One of an actual hero. You're qualified enough. Good luck."
Garou's first words of encouragement — or a front to hide his intentions — replayed in Izuku's head, a haunting reminder of false praise. A taunt that attempted to drag this man's words down to its level. An attempt to paint it as hollow. Izuku wouldn't let it. Even if the man did not truly care about him, what mattered was helping Eri. He could be a hero for her.
The entrance to the lobby slammed open once more, and like a speedy blur that could rival his classmate, Izuku was tackled by his mother.
"Oh thank heavens you're okay!" She smothered him with a hug, arms squishing him tight before her hands slid up to move his head around for her to check. "Mr. Bang told me you healed up quickly but what are you doing up? Didn't they give you a room? Are you sure you're okay? And what happened to your hair?"
Izuku could feel his face flush as he surrendered in her grip. "Mom, not in public. I'm fine, the doctors cleared me this morning."
Through his mother's check-up, the black-haired man beside him had moved back and stood. "You must be Midoriya's mother," he greeted her, taking her attention off the teenager.
She moved to greet him, but hesitated when he took another step back at her approach. "And who might you be, sir? Are you one of the doctors?"
"No, just an admirer of your son's work. Apologies" — he waved a gloved hand at her uncovered skin — "I have mysophobia. But I wanted to give your son my thanks for his actions. He saved my niece's life again last night, and I was hoping to reward him for his heroic deed. It can simply be in money, if that is all right. Money is no problem for me."
The specification of cash sent mother and son on a trip, and Izuku's mom had a similar reaction to his own moments prior. "That's very kind of you, sir," she thanked him in her own stutter. "But I can't ask you for your money. That would be rude of me."
"I insist. You son deserves recognition for his actions, and your modesty does not dissuade me. Please allow me to show thanks in a way I can."
Izuku hadn't noticed the nurse who walked up beside them until she coughed into her fist for attention. "Please keep it down, you are making a ruckus," she warned Izuku and his mother, before turning to the black-haired man. "Sir, if you would follow me, I can take you to her now."
"Of course," the man nodded. He fished a laminated business card from his pocket, placing it on the seat beside Izuku. "If you could reach out to this number when you have the chance, I will see to it a reward is delivered. Thank you for your time, Midoriya Izuku."
Instead of pocketing the card, the green-haired teen shot up to stand. "Can I come with?" he asked.
"We are only permitting the family to see her," the nurse told him off with a small glare.
The black-haired man went along with her, adding, "I should allow you to be on your way. You've done more than enough for us already. Go home and rest now. I will take care of Eri from here."
"Then I'll wait." Just as fast as he stood, Izuku dropped into his seat again, hands slapping on his thighs and locking his body in place. He locked eyes with the masked man, staring headstrong. "I don't want to leave her without saying goodbye. I can wait." He ignored his mother's embarrassed pleading and apologies to the nurse, as the older man stared back at him with contemplation.
The man sighed. "We will be right back, then," he exclaimed, and motioned for the nurse to lead him along out the end of the room.
Resigned that he would not move an inch, his mother plopped into the seat beside him, tucking the laminated card away in her purse. "Izuku, have you met this man before?" she asked hesitantly. "Should I remember who 'Eri' is?"
"The little girl from the mall I told you about," he answered her second question, snapping his mother's expression into one of recognition. "They got separated last night, and I found her before she could get hurt. Last time I met her, she was" — his voice caught a moment for him to release a breath that took most of his energy with it — "with her father. He passed away recently."
His mother offered sorrowful words and a hand he squeezed in return. She understood it just as he had processed it the first time, too. How was he supposed to just walk away after that, without seeing her again for who knew how long?
"Mom." He turned his gaze to her slowly, meeting her questioning eyes with his plea, "Can we go see dad before we go home?"
Surprise colored her face only a second before his mother treated him with a sad smile. "Of course, Izuku." He offered a smile back, leaning into her shoulder.
"So." The gruff voice in his ear put the weight of embarrassment back on Izuku's shoulder, looking up and in front of him to the dead stare of his homeroom teacher's eyes above his capture weapon. "You won't be relocating your work study, then."
Everything was scary, and Eri didn't like scary. Home wasn't fun anymore; her parents hadn't come back; her gramps hadn't tucked her in at night for so many days; Chisaki was mean and hurt her; the noseless man was ugly; and the big cat hero the doctors had given her too was creepy.
Eri just wanted her big brother back. He promised to protect her. He could bring back her papa and mama.
A pretty lady in white had entered the room she and the lion man were in, telling them family had come to pick her up. It got her excited for just a moment. Had her mama come back home for her? Was her papa back?
The big man in the room with her purred loudly, his claws snipping at the chair he sat in. "Calm down kid," he barked at her. "Overhaul'll be here to take you home soon. Don't try to run off now."
But Eri didn't want to go back with him. She didn't want to go back to the place he called home. She wanted to go back to her home, with her real family. She gripped her big brother's gift tightly in her lap. Why did she have to go back there?
The door jiggled before it opened, creaking slowly as Chisaki walked into the room, and the pretty lady behind him turned and walked away. The big cat man hopped to his feet, standing taller than her uncle as they greeted each other. "The camera is off," he shared with the black-haired man. "I'm surprised you came to do this personally."
"I'm her legal guardian," Chisaki replied. "They wouldn't hand her over otherwise. Thank you for taking care of this."
The hero growled and shook his fur. "You're lucky I was here getting civilians to safety. If they put her with any other hero in this city, you'd be in for a bunch of paperwork."
"I'll see to it that payment is delivered to your address before the week ends. You may leave."
The cat man scampered out of the room without another word, clicking the door shut behind him and leaving Eri alone with Chisaki. The man looked down at her from across the room, and she shivered in her seat under his gold eyes. He walked towards her slowly, the taps of her shoes causing her to flinch until he stood over her. She tried to look away, but with a hand on her head she was forced to look back up at him, a moment of silence between them.
Then his hand gripped into her hair and pulled her up, while the other clamped on her mouth and squished in her cheek. "What the fuck did you think you were doing?" Chisaki hissed at her, grip holding strong against her struggles. "Did you believe you could run from me? Did you think there was no place I wouldn't find you? You moronic brat; all you've done is waste my time."
Eri whimpered and cried wordlessly, her hands beating helplessly against his arm. Her feet kicked into his thigh, but the man didn't budge from any of her blows.
"Don't forget who saved you, Eri. After what you did to your father, you're lucky your mother didn't gut you on the spot like the monster you are. The Boss didn't even try to stop her from running; she could come back and kill you at any moment. But I saw the purpose behind your powers. I've given you meaning, Eri, you know that. I protect you. This is your place in the world, here by my side. Do you understand?" Eri sobbed as she continued to fight, but the strength in her vanished once Chisaki shook her against the chair, pressing his head closer to hers. "Am. I. Clear."
Eri didn't like this life; her papa told her hate was a strong word and she was sorry that she meant it. She didn't like this life. She didn't like her quirk. She wished she was quirkless like her big brother.
She nodded as best as she could in his grip, and that was all it took for him to let go, stepping back as she tumbled off the chair. "Good." He patted down the wrinkles of his clothes, tempering his voice flatly. "Now, you are going to behave yourself. You're not going to cry. You're not going to talk. You won't draw any attention. We are going back out there, and you are simply going to say goodbye to Midoriya Izuku." His name on Chisaki's tongue put bubbles in her throat; he was out there? "The one right thing you did was bring him to me. I've ensured good relations between us and his family. But he's not coming with us. He is going his way, and we will be going ours. If you do anything other than what I told you, then all the lives out there are on you. His included. Understand? Get up."
Eri squirmed on the ground, whimpering and huffing in air as she struggled to push herself up. He didn't protect her; her big brother did. He saved her because he was strong. But Chisaki was stronger, and she knew that. She had watched the noseless man kick him around; wounded him and his friend; proved her brother wasn't the strongest. She knew Chisaki meant his word — that he would endanger everyone outside if she misbehaved. Her big brother was strong, but Chisaki's power was stronger. Her knuckles turned white gripping the little toy he had given her. Her big brother was in danger and it was her fault. One wrong move and she would lose him like she lost her papa.
So she picked herself up, head bowed and hands tucked to her chest. "Fix your dress," Chisaki ordered, and she followed. "Clean up." A tissue was tossed at her, and she wiped her face. She didn't do good enough, and Chisaki leaned down to wipe her tears and snot roughly before tossing the paper and his glove. Another was plucked from his pocket to take its place on his hand. "Wipe." He grabbed her wrist and dumped smelly sanitizer in her palm, and she held her breath as she rubbed it up and down her arms. "Hand." With one still holding the shrunken bat her brother gave her falling to her side, she offered her other arm up to him, and Chisaki grabbed it slowly yet firmly. "Behave," was his final order, before he opened the door and led her down the hall.
Eri couldn't let her big brother be hurt. She couldn't let Chisaki hurt him. If other heroes couldn't stop him, then Eri would have to stop him. She would have to save her big brother, like her big brother had saved her. When they made it to the door at the end and Chisaki opened it for them, the first person Eri saw was her green-haired brother, quickly turning his head to her and smiling.
She had to be his hero.
Chisaki stepped forward, his voice calm and sturdy. "She's sorry for making you wait so long. Isn't that right, Eri?" He gazed down at her from the corner of his eye, and Eri knew the message behind his words.
She placed her free hand in her lap and bowed her head as her mama had taught her. "I'm sorry," she offered softly, and hoped her big brother would accept it and let them leave.
Instead, he stepped closer, kneeling down to Eri's level as she raised her head. "It's alright," he told her, voice soft and soothing. "I wanted to see you before I left too. I'm sorry I couldn't be there last night. Did you sleep okay?" She looked up to Chisaki, as his face remained calm and eyes continued to focus on her. She nodded a yes. "Good," her big brother said, and his smile turned sad. "I'm sorry I'm not coming with you, Eri. I don't mean to leave you again."
But you have to, she knew in her head. Chisaki would do the same to him as he did to her. "It's okay. Thank you for saving me."
His knuckles bumped against hers, lightly tapping on the bat he handed her. "You saved me first," he reminded her, and spun at the waist to point behind him. In the line of his finger stood a stout woman with hair a slightly brighter green than his. "This is my mom. I told her about you, I hope that's okay. She likes you."
Eri gasped lightly, now knowing her big brother's family was present and in danger too, and quickly bowed to the woman. "Hello."
The pretty lady giggled softly, bowing back to the white-haired girl. "It's nice to meet you, Eri. Thank you for looking out for my son."
Chisaki tugged lightly on her hand, and Eri quickly straightened her back, staring her brother in the eyes. "We should get going," the black-haired man reminded her, and with it everyone else in the room around them. Strangers she didn't know, but who were all in danger if she made Chisaki mad. "Apologies for holding you up."
Her big brother turned his unhappy look up at Chisaki, and Eri panicked that would be what set him off. But then he looked at her again, scooted in closer, and wrapped his hand over hers, ensuring her grip on his bat was tight. "Like I said," he whispered, pulling his smile up once more, "I'll be there for you, even if I'm not around. Whenever you need me. I'll see you again, okay?"
She could hold herself no longer, tears breaking out in her eyes that she could not stop. And her big brother embraced her, one hand rubbing her back as the other rested on her head, even as Chisaki kept his grip on her hand. His hug was soft and warm and Eri didn't want to leave it, but one tug on her wrist and Eri knew she was pushing the line. She composed herself as quickly as she could, her big brother helping to wipe her tears for her. His last words before they parted, both against her wishes and his, were, "Be safe."
She didn't promise him that, as Chisaki led her out the door and down the elevator. She couldn't lie to him then, as she was brought into a new car and driven back to Chisaki's place. She knew she wasn't, as she was shoved back into her box of a room with a giant steel door. She was not safe, even with his bat still in her hands.
But as long as she was her, he would be safe from Chisaki. That mattered to her.
Mashirao moved to the bed beside his cast-bound friend not too long after all the heroes and police had left them alone, bringing out his phone to share YouTube videos with Iida while they had nothing better to do. He could see the blue-haired teen festering in frustration across from him as he talked with Silverfang, carried over from their brief argument with the police chief and their own hero supervisors. The tailed boy understood his friend's anger, and decided the best route of action to take was to try and calm him down. He didn't trust himself to talk and not find himself agreeing with his classmate.
He really wanted to be excited about meeting Silverfang — the martial arts hero was in his top three favorite heroes currently active, and the only one who lived in Japan opposite to the two Chinese heroes who ranked above him. Yet with Kick Back's backhanded comments about Midoriya, the police chief's dismissal of crediting him, and the surface-level knowledge that the older hero had requested Midoriya's presence for his own personal benefit, the spark in his eyes was lost. His green-haired friend had said something similar happened to his admiration of All-Might when they first became friends; Mashirao wished he could share his condolences with having to see the hero when they were at school as soon as possible.
As the video about an old Lego subset's short shelf life continued to play for the two boys, the blond teen let his mind turn focus on the center of this problem between them all, Garou. Midoriya kept his story about the man brief for his sake — another quirkless man with superhuman strength akin to the green-haired teen's own, who himself was an old student of Silverfang's, who Midoriya had known for months before he got into Yuei, and who had offered Midoriya the choice to join him in the fight against all of quirked society, both heroes and villains — yet Mashirao found it more than enough to form the picture displayed before him. He was still trying to wrap his head around his best friend's super powers not being a quirk, now to know there was someone in his same position felt like the nail in the coffin; Midoriya wasn't an anomaly, but part of something bigger. Something the heroes and the police were willing to hide from the public and bury it when faced with its existence.
"I am sorry."
It was Iida's voice that brought Mashirao out of his own festering, turning his eyes away from his phone and to his friend. "What for?" he asked.
"For bringing you and Midoriya into my fight with Stain and Garou," the blue-haired teen answered, staring forward yet unfocused. "Neither of you should have been in Hosu that night, nor should you have gotten involved in the mess I made. Garou was my target, and it was my mistake to bring both of you into harm's way. You both did not deserve that."
Mashirao stared at the side of his friend's head before sighing and rapping his scalp lightly with his knuckles. "You didn't do any of that. I got hurt in my own fight with those people in charge of all the monsters on the rooftops above you guys — made my own mistake that got me these." He patted the mat of cloth on his chest hiding the dots of scar tissue across his chest. "And Midoriya followed you on his own accord. It's not like it's his fault for being there last night. He's been worried about you all week; we all are. Apologize to him for that, not for what those bastards did. Everything is their fault anyways."
Iida breathed out his nose, clearly unhappy. "I brought Garou to Stain. He followed me from the other side of town until I found the Hero Killer. If those villains were in Hosu for either of those men, I brought them out into the light that brought them to me too. And if they weren't there, neither would you have been. It is my fault for escalating the danger that ensnared the two of you."
"Yeah, well, the way they were putting it earlier made it sound like you being there at all saved another person's life from the Hero Killer. And Izuku being there saved you, which I know matters to him. And if me being there saved the two of you from the Hero Killer in the end, then I can live with a constellation on my chest. I don't care about how it happened, I care that you guys are still here after the fact." He did his best to put his foot down on the conversation there, but could not stop himself from cringing. "Alright, I care a bit about how it happened. But it's still not your fault."
"Manual offered it to me," the blue-haired boy started to explain, "the chance to help in the investigation chasing after Stain. It was only supposed to be us on the hunt for clues, that which would be passed on to heroes and officers meant to find the man himself, but I couldn't turn it down. I could not let the men responsible for my brother's wounds escape me. I did not want to stress you all, knowing how close I was on the matter of my brother's last fight. I did not want to be talked out of it."
"That's my responsibility, anyways." Both boys' heads snapped to the doorway, as their homeroom teacher entered the room. "I can't expect children to always be the voice of reason."
"Sensei," Mashirao greeted him, but the black-haired man raised a hand to silence him as he approached.
"I've been briefed on what happened to you both; Manual and Kick Back relayed me the truth. Same with Midoriya. I've just spoken with him, and he's recovered just fine. Do either of you need anything?" Both teens answered no. "Alright. Then I can move on with my job."
Aizawa rounded the beds, standing on Iida's other side. Their teacher sighed as he gazed at the teen's arms, and read the board hanging on his bedside. "What you did was incredibly stupid; not just last night, but applying for Manual's agency to start with. Heroes are often removed from personal cases when their emotions impair their thoughts and put the rest of their team in danger because of their actions. We had not contested your choice to study with Manual believing his past relations with your brother would provide you with an adult who would know enough to console you as you persisted — I discussed with him on such. It was only your mistake in letting your emotions make the choice of his agency for you, but it is his in enlisting a student onto an official manhunt targeting a serial killer because his own emotions got in the way. It is also your mistake for going against a direct order from your superiors and running off to fight a criminal on your own. You are lucky you walked away at all."
Iida's face hardened at the scolding, but it softened as Aizawa placed a hand on his shoulder. "But it was also your choice to run that saved Native's life. No one else was anywhere near the area to do that. And I'm relieved you've made it out alive. Once you're better and can use your arms again, you will be welcomed back to class. I'll draft a communication course for your return."
The blue-haired teen sunk into his cushions, exhaling deeply under the weight of their teacher's hand. The genuine praise had wiped off most of the anger from his face, which in turn eased Mashirao as he watched his friend relax.
"You are not off the hook either," Aizawa continued, pointing an accusing finger at the blond boy. "Heroes are public defenders and civil servants. We do not attack criminals until they directly act out in a way that endangers another person, any known criminal is to be apprehended peacefully unless provoked otherwise. And that is official business you leave to the pros until you get your provisional license." The teen winced, understanding. "But you did a good job in determining their position and informing your hero. Your observation skills remain sharp. On-scene paramedical work could use some practice; I'll move the heroics courses around to hasten that lesson. I am grateful you boys made it out of the chaos alive."
That reminded Mashirao. "How is Izuku?" he asked their homeroom teacher. "I've tried calling him but he hasn't answered me. Do you know why they put him in another room?" He had a guess he didn't like, but he decided against piling up on his own frustrations needlessly.
"Whatever for, he had already left before I got here," the underground hero answered, rolling his eyes as he sat in the chair beside Iida. "Problem Child decided to excuse himself to the waiting room after the doctors cleared him to leave, instead of making the rational decision and staying in the provided accommodation until supervision arrived. His mother has already come to take him home for the rest of the week; he will not be continuing his work study." Good, Mashirao thought. "The same choice goes to you, if you feel unable or unwilling to continue for the week. The doctors say you should be cleared for leave this evening, so make your choice before then. Obviously" — the man focused his eyes on Iida — "you won't be returning to the field. You'll be cleared to go home sometime next week, but your arms will require another seven days after to fully heal. You can return to class after those seven days, no time sooner, if you want to keep the function of your arms. I'll speak with your parents about the situation of homework while you're absent from class."
As he and Iida continued to discuss his situation, the buzzing of Mashirao's phone pulled his attention away, greeting him with a sight he had been waiting for all morning.
- Sorry, phone died last night showing videos to Eri on the drive over. They didn't give me a charger until this morning.
It wasn't exactly what he had been waiting for, maybe, but it was a start.
Couldn't come over to see us before you left? -
- Staff told me you couldn't have visitors and wouldn't tell me where you guys were. I didn't want to make a scene running up and down the halls banging on doors.
That's bullshit, Mashirao typed out his internal complaint. Midoriya agreed.
- Is Tenya okay? They didn't tell me much but it sounded like he was recovering.
His arms are wrapped up completely. Can't use them for about two more weeks. -
But he's awake and doing better. Eraserhead and I are keeping him company now. -
Heard you already left? -
- Yeah. sorry. Somewhere I needed to be
- Eri's uncle came to pick her up, and I got to meet him. Congratulated me on winning the Sports Festival
- Would you believe
As he should. -
Kept me on edge with a heart attack the whole time but you deserve it. -
- Thanks
- Mom says hi btw
- So does dad
Mashirao furrowed his brows reading his string of text. He knew Midoriya's mom had come to pick him up, but he thought his dad…ah.
Tell him I say hi. -
- Will do.
A string of dots bounced beneath the text for a few more seconds, before being replaced by another message.
- Thank you for being my friend.
- Any time.
Izuku smiled at the text, leaning against his mother's shoulder and into her one-armed embrace. They sat together in the grass, accompanied by a single headstone in front of them decorated with but a name and a message.
Midoriya Hisashi
A man who tried his best
"I thought it strange when he asked for that to be on his headstone," his mother recounted, and Izuku put his phone away to listen. "We didn't have you yet — you weren't even on the way. But even that early in our relationship, he knew how he wanted to be remembered. Not as a perfect man, but a man who was always trying to be better than he was the day before. He lived by it every day."
He nodded along, placing a hand over hers, the smile on his face maintaining form. "He did," Izuku agreed.
"He loved you so much," she continued. "You know that, right?"
"I do. I know you both did, always." Perseverance through the hard times went unsaid.
She gave his arm a soft squeeze. "Good. And that's never going to change. You'll always be my little hero." A peaceful moment of silence fell over them, carried in with the wind fluttering by. "I'm here whenever you're ready to talk about it, whatever happened yesterday. I won't force it out of you any sooner."
Izuku rubbed the back of his mother's hand, reading his father's headstone once more. "I met someone last October," he began, his mother turning slightly to face him. "He stepped in when I was being bullied after school — not by Katsuki. I've seen him a few times since, maybe just once a month? But he told me I could be a hero the day we met. He taught me how to fight to protect myself; we practiced what he learned so I could be better. He encouraged me to be better." He remembered the day they met, sitting on a bench together just talking. "He's quirkless. Like me."
It was an admission that took his mother by surprise. "Just like you?"
He nodded. "I've seen him bend metal with a punch and break solid rock like it was nothing. He told me so last night. But he's also the man who nearly killed Tenya's brother, and probably a lot more that the press has put under the Hero Killer's name. He was chasing Tenya last night." His mother's grip had tightened around him, his soothing rub on her skin being all that eased her from squeezing him too tight.
Worry etched itself across her face. "Is he okay? What did he do to you?"
"He protected me." Saying it out loud made it no less outrageous to relive in his head. "He fought with me, to keep the Hero Killer away from Tenya. Because he thought I was like him; he thought I hated people with quirks as much as he did. He thought I hated the world for how it treats me as he does." A hand ran through his hair to pull him down, closer to her shoulder. He could feel his chest shudder with frustration. "He didn't tell me he was quirkless until last night. He trained me for months to turn me on his side, waiting for the world to hate me enough like it does now."
"The world doesn't hate you, Izuku," his mother protested. "Don't say that. You know that isn't true."
"I know," he agreed, turning his head away from his father to look at her. "Because I have you. I have Mashi and Tenya and Yaoyorozu and Eri and Hatsume and Uraraka and everyone else at school. I'm happy I have you." His mother shifted them into a full embrace, one he returned as the Midoriya Family's Signature Waterworks welled in his eyes. "But Garou only ever saw people's hate for me. What he said last night — I think it might be all he ever saw. I don't think he's had anyone with him before me."
Izuku knew that was the backbone of Garou's words last night; a bond of shared experiences of mass hate and targeted bigotry and harassment. The silver-haired teen had faced his own life of discrimination for his quirklessness, years that drove him so far that he beat down a school by himself and turned his life towards hunting down heroes in retaliation. Izuku wondered — had he not found the bat that inspired him, had he not met his friends who encouraged him, had he not talked with his mother to clear the air between them — if he would have fallen down the same path.
"That terrible man," his mother cursed softly, "trying to manipulate you. Hurting his brother like that. Do the cops know about him?"
"Silverfang did. He was an old student of his. That's why he sent me the letter. He thought I would help him find Garou."
His mother scoffed against his shirt and grumbled. "And to think I was nice to that man. I'll talk with your school to make sure he never steps foot near you ever again." Izuku patted her back in thanks, sitting another second longer in the hug before he pulled back. "Is this why you wanted to see your father today? For how he reacted when we knew?"
Izuku shook his head, taking a long breath to catch himself. "Eri's dad passed away just recently. I know she's not taking it well. She's as old as I was when dad died. And her uncle had asked me to keep being a hero for her; he said that would help her."
His mother cooed, a hand running down his cheek soothingly. "You're a good boy, Izuku. Don't let these terrible men ever get in your way, or try to stop you from being you. I'm proud of you for standing up for yourself. You shouldn't listen to a word they say."
But he shook his head. "I can't do that," he argued softly. "I can't get their words out of my head. I can't forget what they told me — what they asked of me. I'm not going to forget what Garou asked me." He squeezed her hand again. "I've been struggling, trying to figure out what I want to do as a hero. Trying to understand why I'm doing this when I keep feeling angry with everyone trying to stop me. I thought doing it in spite of them would be enough, but it's not. I used to dream of being like All-Might, but I don't want that anymore." He split his face into a smile he presented to his mother. "I know what I want to do now."
Izuku looked back to his father's stone. "I wanted to say it to both of you. I wanted you to know." He leaned forward in the grass, pressing the knuckles of his fist gently into the headstone. "I am going to be a hero for people who need me. I will protect what I care about, and fight for it." He thought of Eri's smile; of his mother's tears; of his friends' worry; of Garou's plea. "I'll be a hero for you, and I'll be a hero for them. I'm going to be okay. I promise."
