Hello readers and welcome to my new chapter. Here, we're gonna continue with Izuku's rescuing of Eri, as well as his adoption of her. I hope you enjoy.

P.S. What are you guys' thoughts on One for All's strengths and weaknesses (And maybe it's history as well)? Thinking of making a few changes with the quirk, but before that, I want to hear a few thoughts/opinions on the quirk and its history. Let me know in the review/comment section, alongside your review of this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia.

Chapter 2: His First Rescue

Despite the situation, Izuku didn't go into an all out sprint. Not only are there too many people around, but it would make himself noticeable in the crowd. So he had to take it slow, weaving through the crowd as he put as much distance from the plague masked wearers as possible.

While he was doing this, he kept the girl close to himself, shielding her as best he could from anyone seeing her from behind him. He's not sure if the two men saw him picking the girl up, but if they were unaware, then it's best not to let them become aware of this. That thought process also got him to pull up his hoodie, so they won't be able to identify him by his green hair.

As he weaved through the crowd, he did best not to turn into a panicked mess. 'Don't panic, don't panic, don't panic! Just keep putting more distance from them, and head to the police station.' He told himself. 'Don't run, just walk for now. Don't put attention on yourself, just blend in with the crowd. This is like evading Kaachan and his friends, just don't get yourself cornered and you're fine.'

He repeated those thoughts in his head, as well as different backup strategies in case they manage to catch up to him. This helped him keep calm, and not do anything drastic.

His thoughts momentarily stopped when he heard the sound of bodies pushing one another, with startled yelps and cries accompanying it. That convinced Izuku to pick up the pace, resisting the desire to look behind and see what's going on.

'There should be an abandoned warehouse just around the corner!' As soon as he was at that aforementioned corner, he turned, entering into a less crowded sidewalk. His eyes immediately were set on the second building of this section.

This time, he ran, not worried about the two men seeing them at the moment and taking advantage of the thin crowd. As soon as he reached the front door, he twisted around and burst through the warehouse; then he quickly closed the door behind him.

'I need somewhere to hide us!' Was what he immediately thought, his heart pounding. Unfortunately, there weren't that many places to hide in the warehouse, being empty as it is.

Fortunately, he has on a camo suit that makes up for it.

"Alright, I'm gonna place it under my hoodie." Izuku whispered to the girl, causing her to look up. "It'll cause us to turn invisible, so if the bad guys come here, they won't see us. I need you to stay quiet the whole time, not make any sound. Can you do that for me?"

The little girl nodded her head rapidly. In response, the green-haired smiled down on her. "That's good." He told her, pulling her away slightly in order to move his hoodie. "I promise, everything will be okay. You won't be taken by the bad guys."

Heading to one of the corners at the front part of the building, he lifted up his hoodie for the girl to crawl into. She didn't hesitate to cling on to his body once more. Once he covered her with his hoodie, he sat down and began fiddling with the mini-screen across his forearm. A second later, his clothes blended with the surface around him. He then zipped up the front of his hood, effectively making himself invisible to the naked eye.

Then they waited. Waited in silence for the two men to possibly come in. All the while, Izuku felt his heart pounding rapidly, and sweat building up across his face.

This could go wrong in so many ways. If one of them has a quirk that could see through camouflage, it's over. If they look around for some reason, and bump into him, they'll be caught. If his camo suit decides to malfunction on him, today of all days, they'll be caught.

If they're caught, he's likely dead; and the little girl will be taken for who knows what.

But the chances for any of those things are miniscule. His camo suit has been working great, with no signs of error, and it's extremely doubtful that they would look around thoroughly enough in here to bump into him. There's a bigger chance for one of them to have a quirk that would detect him, but it's not big enough for it to give him too much thought.

In other words, everything would have to go completely and utterly wrong in order for the both of them to be caught.

And if worst comes to worst, he'll aim for the window and run for it. It's why he placed himself close to the windows.

Finally, the period of waiting was over. Once again, the door burst open, and in came the two plague-mask wearing men. Both of them looked around the warehouse, and Izuku had to force himself not to move an inch when one of those masks faced his direction.

"Dammit, they aren't here." One of them cursed out. "Where the hell could they have gone to?"

"Beats me…" The other sighed, frustration clear in his tone. "Got a good look at the guy who grabbed her?"

"All I saw was that he's wearing camo clothing. That's it."

"Well, they're just a pair of kids. They shouldn't have gone too far, right?"

"That little girl shouldn't have been able to escape from us in the first place, but here we are!" The first guy retorted, before groaning in fear. "Man, if we don't manage to find that girl, Overhaul is gonna rip us to shred!"

"C-Calm down. He'll probably take out his frustration on the guy that was watching over her." The second one reassured the first, though he also sounded nervous. "Besides, we still have plenty of time to find her. I'm sure she can't have gone too far."

"Let's fucking hope so…!" With that, the two left the warehouse, leaving the door open and unknowingly leaving the hidden duo alone.

Slowly, Izuku stood up from the corner and creeped towards the window. He felt the little girl tense up from inside his hoodie, but didn't make any sound. Looking out, he saw the two plague-wearing villains walk further from the warehouse, likely looking around for any sight of them. Once he felt they were far enough, he made his move.

Unzipping the front hood, he began typing on the mini-screen. That caused his hoodie to turn white, and his pants blue, instead of camo colors. 'I'm now very grateful I could change the color of this suit.' Izuku mused to himself. It wasn't the intended use for the suit, but it's proving to be a useful tool. At least for this occasion.

He pulled up his hoodie, letting the girl out from his clothes. She currently had her face buried into his shirt, likely to stop and muffle any sound from her.

"Alright, the villains are gone now." Izuku told her softly, getting her to look up at him. "Now we're gonna go outside and get farther away from them, okay?"

Again, the girl nodded rapidly. Giving her another smile, he gently pulled her off his shirt in order to pull his hoodie down. He then shifted around so he could visibly shield her from behind once again, before taking one last look out the window. Seeing that the villains were too far to spot them, he headed out the warehouse.

'Now to head to the police station.' Izuku thought to himself, heading to the direction of the station and AWAY from the criminals.

"Hey…" Izuku whispered to the girls in his arms, careful not to lose track of where he's going. "Can you tell me your name?"

The girl was silent for a moment. Then, whispered back, "E-Eri…"

"Nice to meet you Eri. I'm Izuku." The teen introduced himself, smiling. "Just hang tight, alright? We're gonna go find more help for us, and make sure the bad guys don't catch you."

The girl, now named Eri, didn't say anything in response this time. Merely cling onto him as tightly as she could, burying her face into his chest.

XXXX

It didn't take long to get to the police station. Once he told the officers all that he knew, they quickly sat Izuku and Eri down at one of the interview rooms. A few of them tried to take Eri away of course, in order to return her to her parents, but she refused to let go of him. In the end, they had little choice but to leave her with him for now.

Soon enough, a detective named Naomasa Tsukauchi told him about the men chasing Eri. How they were part of the Yakuza, that the man they mentioned, Overhaul, was their leader; and how the police had been trying to catch him for years, with little progress.

That led to them asking Eri herself why she was held by them. And what she told the two… just recalling them made him sick to the stomach.

Thankfully, he and Eri's words, combined with Tsukauchi's lie detection quirk, was enough to grant a search warrant against Overhaul. All they needed to do now was wait for him and his group to be taken down and arrested.

While that was happening, the detective requested that Eri stay with Izuku, something that the boy happily agreed to. After hearing what she went through, he didn't want to leave her; and it's clear that she felt similarly. And since neither of the men saw his face, there was no need to worry about being sought for.

Though he needed to be driven home, so that he doesn't accidentally end up encountering any of Overhaul's men (They also cover Eri in a small hoodie, for extra measures). So the child and teen pair ended up being taken to the Midoriya's new apartment in a police car by the detective.

Something that his mother caught through the window of their home.

"Izuku! What happened?! Why were you in a police car?! Why is there a child in your arms?! What hap-?!"

"Mom! Mom, don't worry! I'm okay!" Izuku assured his frantic mother. Silently, he comforted Eri by rubbing her back, feeling that she's shaking. "I'm not in any trouble or anything. Detective Tsukauchi just drove me home so we wouldn't be spotted by anyone."

"There's someone looking for you?!"

"Not me, specifically!" The boy quickly corrected himself, before his mom could have a heart attack. "They're looking for Eri here. They never saw my face, and they don't know who I am, and the detective just wanted to keep it that way."

That seems to finally calm Inko down some, the mother taking a few deep breaths to slow her beating heart. Once she was relatively calm enough, she turned her attention to the nervous bundle in Izuku's arms. "Does that mean they were chasing the little one in your arms? Eri…?"

Izuku nodded, before turning his attention towards the girl in question. "Eri, this is my mom, Inko…" He said softly to her. "Want to say hello?"

Shyly, the white-haired girl slowly turned towards the mother. "H-Hello…"

In response, Inko smiled softly at her. "Hello dear. It's nice to meet you…" She responded back kindly. She then turned her attention back to her son. "Why don't we talk about this in the dining room?"

Nodding once again, Izuku followed his mother to the dining room. Once they were settled in, he proceeded to explain all that happened. From his encounter with Eri to their evasion of Overhaul's two goons.

"I see…" Was all Inko could say at the moment, as she mulled over what's been told to her. The three were now around the dining table, with Izuku and Eri sitting together while Inko sat on the opposite side of them. "Are you sure you weren't spotted by those men?"

In response, Izuku started keying the mini-screen across his sleeves, changing his clothes into the camo-look from before. "All they saw was someone with camo-clothing." Typing on the screen again, it changed back into the white hoodie and blue jeans pair. "If they turned around, all they would've seen was someone wearing a white hoodie and blue jeans."

"So your little projects helped you out, after all…" Inko sighed in relief. While she's trying her best to be supportive in whatever her son does, the mother knew what Izuku was creating all these gadgets for. It made her worried, seeing her boy so determined to become a hero, that would make stuff like this to do so.

Now though, she had to be thankful that her son did so. Not only did he save a little girl, he also kept himself out of danger with that hoodie.

"Well, Eri…" Inko shifted her attention towards the young girl, giving another smile. "You're welcome to stay here for as long as you want. You'll be safe here while the police capture the people that held you."

At that, Eri found herself tearing up. "Wh-Why?"

"E-Eri…?" Izuku looked down at the girl with slight concern. "Are you okay…?"

"Why are you so nice to me…?" The little girl croaked out, her grip on Izuku becoming tighter. "I'm… I'm cursed! A monster! I hurt people, make them disappear! I don't-!"

"Eri, stop." Izuku cut her off gently, yet firmly. "Don't believe any of what Overhaul said to you. He only says those things to hurt you. You're not cursed. You're not a monster."

That caused the girl to look at him in disbelief. "B-But-"

"Eri, even if you did hurt others, you didn't want to, right?"

"N-No…!" Eri immediately shook her head at that, a few tears slipping from her eyes.

"Then that means you're no monster." Izuku told her softly. "You merely have a gift, one that you need to learn to control. That doesn't make you a monster, or make you cursed; just someone who's in need of help."

Once again, the horned girl looked at him in shock. A gift…? Is it really a gift? No one ever called her powers that before. To everyone who spoke to her, it was a curse….

The boy then gave a soft, yet sad smile. "You deserve to be saved; to have help; to be treated with kindness by the people around her." He assured her. "And Overhaul was the monster for hurting you. Don't ever doubt that."

"I-I…" That was seemingly the last straw for the traumatized little girl. The tears that were being held back slid out in waves, as heartbreaking sobs left Eri's mouth. She buried herself in Izuku's chest as she cried her heart out.

In response, Izuku hugged her back, soothing her as best he could. All the while, his mother was looking at them with teary eyes and a proud smile.

'Izuku…' Her boy really did have that kind and heroic heart. It's something that she can't help but feel pride for… but it also fills her with worry for his future.

*1 Week Later*

The arrest of Overhaul and his group, Chie Hassiki, happened fairly quickly.

Turns out, there was a civil war with the Yakuza group, with many of them rebelling against Overhaul. They apparently liked the previous boss much better, and after years of being ruled by Overhaul with fear, many felt enough was enough. That gave the police the chance to come in the middle of it and catch them by surprise.

It also explained how Eri was able to escape and run so far, without Overhaul himself coming to retrieve her. He had his hands full with the rebellion in his organization, and once he found out about her escape, could only send two of his men after her (The rest were forced to focus on said rebellion).

That, along with Eri's testimony, was more than enough to make arrests. Already having a warrant for investigation, the police were more than justified to gather a force of both officers and heroes to take down the group.

It was news that elated Izuku once he heard about it from the detective. They no longer have to worry about Overhaul, or any of his loyal henchmen, coming after Eri. So long as they remain in the cells of Tartarus, she is permanently safe from their hand.

However… that left the question of where Eri was gonna stay after this.

In the week of the investigation and arrest, Izuku had bonded with the white-haired girl. Not a surprising thing, as Eri stuck to him like glue the entire week, only leaving his side whenever one or both of them had to do so. It would've been difficult not to grow close with her, with the knowledge of what she went through and especially with how similar the two were.

However, her quirk was incredibly dangerous, and not something that can be ignored by the authorities. And with such little experience in handling such quirks, the green-haired teen doesn't see his chances of staying with Eri that high.

Not to mention that his mom would have to agree with this as well. And while she adores Eri as much as he does, he doubts that she could afford adopting her and taking care of two children.

Despite those setbacks, however, and despite the knowledge that raising Eri wouldn't be an easy thing…

"I want her to stay with us, mom. I don't want to leave her."

The night of the news that Overhaul was placed in prison, Izuku talked with his mother about the issue. The two Midoriyas were at his room, along with Eri, who was sleeping peacefully behind her savior.

"You've really bonded with Eri, haven't you dear…?" Inko commented, a soft yet sad smile across her face.

Izuku nodded, caressing the horned girl by her arm. "I know it would be difficult raising her, but…" He trailed off, leaving his desire unsaid this time. "And she's been through enough already. I don't want to risk adding to her trauma by separating from her."

Inko nodded in understanding. She knew from Izuku's story that up until Eri bumped into him, no one actually went and helped her, even when she was out of the yakuzas' grasp. Her boy was the first person ever to offer a helping-hand, as well as a source of kindness; something that undoubtedly left a deep impression on the young girl.

And for Izuku, Eri became one of the rare sources of happiness for him. She knew quite well that thanks to his quirklessness, he wasn't treated well by the people around him, something that continues to gnaw at her heart. She even knew that he was bullied, despite his attempts to hide such things; and suspected that the amount was quite heavy at that. It's why she agreed to his request to be home-schooled, as well as find a new apartment.

Because of it all, her son had little in what got him to smile, despite her attempt to have it otherwise. But during the week they had Eri, Izuku had been smiling more than ever. Whenever he spent time with her, played with her, taught her things about the world, his eyes lit up similarly to whenever he's writing in his journal.

Eri had become part of Izuku's world; and Izuku became Eri's world.

And with that in mind…

"Then I'll talk with whoever I need to in order to keep Eri here."

That caused Izuku to shoot his head up with widened eyes, surprised by his mother's statement. "Really? A-Are you sure we'll be able to…?" The boy asked, trying not to get his hope rising.

"I'm certain I'll be able to convince them that she's safe in our care." Inko reassured him. "I understand why you want Eri to stay in our lives. And I can see how happy she makes you. If you think you're able to take care of her from this point on, I'm willing to see about adopting her."

Her words got Izuku to tear up. However, kept himself from openly crying for once, not wanting to wake Eri up and have her panicking. "Th-Thank you, mom… I promise, I'll do my best to help care for her and give her the happy life she deserves. Just like you did for me."

That touched Inko's heart, with the older Midoriya tearing up herself. Sitting quietly beside her son, she wrapped him in a tender hug. "I'm happy to hear that, sweetie…"

And with that, came a new member of the Midoriya family.

And that's the end. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. Did my best not to make it too similar to Kyudon's first chapter, so I hope it shows (Some of the credit goes to Kyudon himself for a portion of this chapter, primarily the yakuza revolt idea). Review, favorite, and follow and I will see you guys later.