It was Friday.
Izuku knew it was Friday, yet he didn't want to get up. Today was going to be hard, and not just for him. Both Ochako and Shinso had expressed their trepidation the night before about seeing Kyuyu Iida in person, even though they'd communicated with her to confirm their presence at the funeral, and he'd had to reassure them that they would be just fine. Tsu had offered to hold Shinso's hand if he was scared, which had made him go offline for an hour and a half to cool off. Izuku was going to have lots of fun with those two once school was back on.
But, for today, he had to be ready to face Kyuyu again. He needed to apologize for the way in which he'd spoken to her, and for making her husband deal with Aizawa by surprise. Izuku never did get to talk with Tensei, even though that had been his original mission. He guessed that was for the best, as that 'mission' had fallen through when he'd been convinced to get help instead of just bottling up his feelings.
Speaking of feelings, his anxiety was through the roof as he laid in bed and stared at the ceiling. He was half-tempted to just blame it on Danger Sense and ignore it, but he needed to admit when he was feeling these things, otherwise he'd just keep going on that same path to self-destruction. Izuku breathed through the churning of his stomach and the beating of his heart, until he felt both the groaning of his guts and the pulses in his brain subside into something manageable. He then chose to stay in bed for another ten minutes before a small, yet powerful knock on the front door forced him up.
Izuku made himself presentable in record time and quietly, but quickly, walked over to the door. He opened it to see All Might, in his true form, in a suit. There was a car parked on the road that Cementoss had paved for occasions like this. The suit looked good on All Might's skinny frame, which meant to Izuku that he wasn't going to be appearing as All Might, but as Toshinori Yagi. This kind of disappointed Izuku, as he knew how much it meant that they'd gotten everyone on their list to attend, but it was what it was. All Might had less time in his heroic form nowadays, so it was probably for the best.
"Izuku, how are you feeling?" All Might asked, his expression softening when he noticed the bedhead of his successor.
"I'm alright. Not great, not terrible. I was just about to start getting ready myself," Izuku said, getting an odd look from All Might. He looked at the clock; 7:30 AM. "I know we're starting at noon, but I wanted to get a jump on things. I just … I don't want any part of today to go bad, y'know?" he elaborated.
"I understand that, my boy. When I lost Nana, I was a perfectionist about her funeral. I needed everything to be as perfect as she was. Gran helped me through the process, and I'll gladly be here if you need it," All Might said, putting a warm, strong hand on Izuku's shoulder.
"Gran? Wait, Gran Torino?" Izuku asked.
"Yes, have I spoken about him before?" All Might asked.
"Just once, I think. One of the times you told me about Nana, you said that they were friends. 'Partners' is the word you used, actually," Izuku answered.
"Right. Well, you'll have to meet him some day. He's a veteran Hero, a trusted ally and a good friend. He fought with me against All for One when I thought I'd put him down," All Might explained.
"Whoa. I really do have to meet the only other person who's beaten All for One if I want to do the same," Izuku muttered, unaware he was thinking out loud.
"Well, let's hope it doesn't come to that. I've still got some gas left in the tank!" All Might said, flexing his bone-thin arm. Somehow, it didn't instill the confidence in Izuku that it was meant to. All Might must have seen this and sighed. "I guess I'll leave you to prepare. We're leaving at eleven, so you've got plenty of time to get ready and to the front gate," he said.
"I'll be there. See you later, All Might," Izuku said, waving his mentor goodbye as he shut the front to his small home.
As Izuku got ready in the privacy of his own home, he thought about the conversation he'd had between Ochako, Tsu and Shinso in their own group chat. They'd decided to meet up at the location the funeral was being held at when Izuku had offered to meet up at another, less … emotional spot. They could prepare together, then, but that idea was shot down. It would've taken time away from the focus of the day, Tenya. He deserved their full attention, and they were glad to give it. Izuku agreed, and so they decided that they'd just meet there. That meant that he got to go in the UA staff car, since they were technically his guardians. That was sure to be a ton of fun.
When he was ready, he went over to change into the outfit that had been laid out for him last night by Kayama. She'd said that she had it just laying around, but why would she have a suit fit for a fifteen year old boy? Izuku thought that she'd bought it when the date for the funeral was fixed in place, Wednesday afternoon, and had waited to give it to him. He'd thanked her tearily, of course, since he'd never been in a position where he'd had to wear a suit before. He was secretly kind of bummed that his own mother hadn't been the one to get him his first suit, but this would do. He adored Kayama, like a big sister, so it was more than enough for him.
Once he had it on, Izuku stepped in front of his mirror. He hesitantly looked himself over, and decided that he liked it. It didn't look half bad, especially since it was him wearing it, so he did a few light stretches to see how it held up under stress. Once he'd tested the stretching, he decided that he'd do a little spin for himself, seeing how people did it on TV and movies. When he landed back facing the mirror, Izuku gasped in horror.
White.
Izuku moved up close to the mirror to see it, and confirmed for himself that there was indeed a white streak in his hair. He didn't know how he'd missed it, since it was so obvious now that he did see it. How did All Might not notice? Maybe it was because of his patented bedhead that he couldn't see? Maybe it was just buried? This was crazy! Izuku took it between his fingers and held the collection of colorless hairs in front of his eyes.
"Oh, Shinso's gonna love this," Izuku mumbled to himself, though his tone carried none of the excitement that phrase would normally deliver.
What would Ochako think? What would All Might think? Bakugo for sure would tease him about it. Izuku couldn't keep one thought going for long enough to think of what to do about this, his brain just cycling through what the reactions of his different friends and classmates would be. He normally wasn't one to worry about looks, but this was bad . Izuku couldn't see anything but the little white sliver emerging from his scalp. That, and the pair of scissors that rested on the countertop.
"Nobody has to know. Nobody has to know," Izuku told himself.
That was crazy, though, right? He wasn't about to give himself a haircut hours before he attended Tenya's funeral! That was absurd. But, going white at fifteen was absurd as well. This was a predicament. He needed a second opinion on this. Who would believe he was asking about a random hypothetical, though? Everyone Izuku knew would want to know more, and he wouldn't be able to keep up with it for long enough to evade the truth. This was bad.
Izuku let go of the hairs, but they simply stayed. Oh, and he'd need to cut the rest of his hair, too. Great. As he paced around his bathroom, he eyed the scissors, knowing he shouldn't use them but so tempted to. He considered people outside of 1A and the staff that he could trust with this. Kendo and Hatsume were the only people he really knew outside of 1A, and Kendo was the only one of them he trusted with anything that wasn't building a super cool gadget. Izuku knew what he needed to do.
He pulled up his phone and called Kendo. He'd gotten her number after one of their Class Rep meetings, but he'd never had to use it before. Well, there's a first time for everything.
"Hello?" her voice sounded from the speaker.
"Kendo! Hey, it's Midoriya! I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" Izuku asked.
"I'm getting ready for the funeral. Aren't you?" she said, adding a teasing tone to her returned question.
"Oh, I didn't know you were invited. Yeah, I'm getting ready, but I need to ask for your advice on something," Izuku said, taking a second look at the white streak.
Really, it wasn't huge . It was a centimeter long at most, and it was about as wide as it was long. It was like a solid block of white on his hairline. It started just above his left eye, very close to one of the scars left by Shigaraki's Quirk. It sprouted out from where it looked like Shigaraki's ring finger had landed during his attack on Izuku during the USJ. Had this white streak been growing this whole time and he just hadn't noticed it? Had it been growing and other people had noticed it? That would be mortifying!
"Midoriya?" Kendo called out.
"Uh, sorry?" Izuku said, chastising himself for getting caught up in his head.
"I asked what the problem is," Kendo said, her voice conveying a very small amount of patience for bullshit. Izuku understood that very well, having watched her deal with Monoma a few times during their lunch break.
"Well, a friend came to me recently about growing a white streak in his hair. He has no clue what to do about it. What do you think I should tell him?" Izuku said. It was the best thing he could try at the moment, and he knew that Kendo would see right through it but he had to try.
"Holy shit, Midoriya. Are you going white?" Kendo asked, an excited tone creeping into her voice.
"No, no. I'm not. My friend, however, is. So, what would you say in my place?" Izuku repeated, beginning to let his voice shake as much as his hands were.
Kendo sighed on the other end of the call, clearly mulling it over. She seemingly came to a conclusion a few moments later, as she began to hum in thought. Izuku was nervously awaiting her response, which seemed to take forever to arrive, but arrived all the same.
"Well, Midoriya, I think your friend is boned," she said in a matter of fact tone.
"What?" Izuku cried.
"Sorry, that's kind of a weird way to say that. If you'd prefer, I could say 'you're screwed', or maybe the best way to put it is that you're just straight up fu—" Kendo suggested.
"No! Thank you, Kendo, 'boned' was plenty. I just—is there nothing I can do?" Izuku asked.
"Nothing you can do but tell him to cut it off or go all white, neither of which he's gonna wanna do if he's in a time crunch, which I suspect he is given your urgency," Kendo explained.
Izuku looked at the white hair again. It really wasn't that much hair. Upon closer inspection, it looked like it wasn't a case of the roots of already existing hairs growing out white, but rather the new hair that had grown in due to Recovery Girl's healing of that part of his face, they were white. It functioned the same way, his hair was going white, but it technically was different. Maybe it was because the hair was generated by a Quirk that it was white. Maybe if he just cut off those hairs, he'd be good to go for the funeral! But, that ran the risk of people being able to tell his hairline was uneven. He didn't know much about hairdressing, but he knew enough from his trips to them that people picked up on that kind of stuff even if they didn't actively notice something was off.
"Do I need to be here for your internal monologue, or can I finish getting ready?" Kendo asked through his phone, which Izuku had accidentally lowered away from his face.
"Uh, you can go. I'll see you in a bit, I guess. Oh, but wait! I really didn't know you were coming today. Were you invited by the Iidas?" Izuku hurriedly asked.
"No, I was invited by the school. As Class Rep most of my job is coordination between our classes. I was asked if I wanted to come and I said yes. I didn't know Iida well, but I do want to pay my respects," Kendo explained.
"Thank you," Izuku sighed. "It'll mean a lot to his family," he elaborated.
"I hope so. They seem like they need a win. Kinda like this friend of yours. I hope you figure out what you're gonna do, Midoriya, because it is not looking good for that guy," Kendo said, letting her tone cheer up before ending the call.
"No, it isn't," Izuku grumbled to himself, meeting his own gaze in the mirror.
He decided that it wasn't worth agonizing over it now, and left it until after the funeral. He had more important things to worry about today than his looks.
Emerging an hour or so later from his Cementoss-approved house, a few minutes' walk from the main entrance to the campus, Izuku contemplated just using Float to fly to the front gate. He could do it legally, because UA had a rule that students could use their Quirks for utility outside of class if the Quirk had no chance of harming anyone, which Float met the condition of. The question going through Izuku's mind, however, was if he could do it practically. Would it be faster to walk? Would he do something wrong and rip the fabric of the suit he was wearing? He'd tested for that, so it shouldn't.
Izuku supposed he wouldn't get anywhere just standing around, so he fired up One for All and crouched down slightly, coiling his leg muscles. He leveled his percentage out at around five percent, though he suspected that he could shoot all the way to eight and not suffer any harm, nine or ten if he was rushing. He rose into the air, feeling the winds blow his suit jacket every which way, and peaked about ten feet in the air, maybe a bit lower. It was a lower effort jump, just meant to test things really, so getting that high pleasantly surprised Izuku.
As he Floated in the air, Izuku aimed and fired off a Blackwhip toward the nearest tree. He watched as the strand he'd fired wrapped around the trunk of the and tugged harshly, but in a small motion so as to not test the limits of the suit's ability to stretch. Izuku had a feeling that he'd be able to use eight percent as his new safe maximum, but wasn't willing to test that out in his new suit, so kept the percentages down. He shouldn't even be using his Quirk at all because he could just walk, but this was more fun. He made his way down the road like that, gliding through the air for a few moments before needing to pull himself along once more, until he made it to the clearing that contained the front entrance to the school.
He landed just around the corner of the front building. Izuku didn't want All Might or Aizawa using his powers for such mundane things, so he hid himself as he dropped down. He checked his suit and, finding it free of any damage he may have done to it in his travel, stepped out into the path that led out the front gate. He saw All Might there, talking to Aizawa, while Kayama and Mic had a separate conversation closer to the car that was parked at the curb of the street outside.
Izuku braced himself and approached them. He focused on the feeling of stepping along the ground, the slight shift of gravel under his nice new dress shoes. He stepped up to his teachers and waved to them, trying to make it known that he was not a fan of what had happened to his hair. Aizawa was seemingly the first to notice, narrowing his eyes and smirking at Izuku as he pointed to the equivalent spot on his own hairline.
"That's new. What's the story?" Aizawa said, clearly amused.
"I don't know exactly how, or when, but I do know that it is going as soon as possible," Izuku said, gritting his teeth.
"I don't know about that, it'd be a good look if you grew it out," Kayama commented.
"Yeah, it totally makes you look more mature! It could be a statement!" Mic agreed.
"A statement of what?" Izuku asked sarcastically.
"I don't know, but it's cool either way!" Mic shot back, giving Izuku finger guns.
Izuku sighed and closed his eyes. All Might coughed, seemingly into the handkerchief that he carried around for when he coughed up blood. It used to be horrifying, but now it just seemed like one of All Might's eccentricities, like how he wasn't used to compliments that weren't 'I'm your biggest fan' or 'You're so strong', or how he'd sometimes undercut emotional moments with jokes. Izuku guessed those were holdovers from his persona as the Symbol of Peace, never showing vulnerability. He seemed to like it when the two could share those moments, and Izuku did too. It was a shame that All Might hadn't gotten to really live a normal life due to One for All. Was that going to be Izuku? When he grew old, was Izuku going to have nothing but surface level love? No, that wouldn't be him. He had Ochako, Shinso and Tsu, who already loved him more than that. He was going to have a life.
He opened his eyes to see the teachers looking back at him, obviously hesitant. Izuku met each of their gazes and smiled as best he could.
"Let's get going. We better not keep the Iidas waiting," Izuku said, trying to inject as much cheer as possible into his voice. Or, not cheer, just not sadness and anxiety, and the other thousand things he was feeling on a day like today, when he had to say goodbye to a friend forever. When a family had to say goodbye to their youngest son. It wasn't a day for cheer, Izuku decided, and let the fake smile slip off his face as he let himself feel this. This was what his talk with En was for, after all. He needed this.
Everyone needed this.
They moved on from the hair thing pretty quickly, all things considered, though Kayama did want a photo of All Might and Izuku in 'matching outfits', if generic black suits could even be called that, though the picture ended up being just Izuku since All Might shouldn't have photographs of his true form anywhere, even though he trusted Kayama. It was understandable, but Izuku was never photogenic, let alone in a picture by himself. He did his best to smile, or to not frown, but he thought it probably came across as constipated or something.
"That mop's getting unruly, kid. You'll need a trim soon," Mic said, ruffling the curly mess on Izuku's head.
"Yeah, I was thinking that myself," Izuku agreed, sliding into the car between All Might and Kayama.
The car ride there was mostly silent. Izuku spent it thinking about how his friends were doing, if they were handling traveling to a funeral for their friend well, and what he could do for them once they all met up. He was sure Shinso or Tsu would tell him something like 'Don't worry about us; worry about you' but he couldn't help it. It was in his nature to worry, just like his mother. Izuku wondered what she was up to nowadays, without anybody else in the house. Had she taken his farewell to heart and started dating again? He hoped she had, he hoped she was happy. It took all of his power not to go running to her some days, especially lately, but he was managing, and it was all he could do to hope that she was managing as well.
"You okay?" Kayama asked from beside him. He must have been staring at something for too long while caught up in his thoughts and been given away.
"Um, no. Not really. I'm not really sure how to feel. This was unimaginable to me just a week ago, and yet here I am. On the way to a funeral. For Tenya Iida . I guess it's just so bizarre that I'm not really feeling anything just yet. My heart needs some time to catch up to my brain, I think. I'm sure I'll feel sad when we get there, but for now I think I'm just numb from the shock of it all," Izuku was well aware that he was puzzling out his feelings as he spoke, but it was better than the alternative.
"I get that. The first time—hell, the first few times—will always be tough. But, it happens. We all cope in our own ways, so just find a way that works for you," Kayama said, nudging Izuku with her shoulder.
"Yeah, that actually begs the question. How are all of you so neutral through all this?" Izuku asked, meeting the gaze of all the car's occupants.
"Death is part of the job. Be it a civilian, an ally or an enemy, some people are going to die. It's how you deal with it that matters. I'm willing to bet that every single one of you kids will deal with a death in your careers. Heroes who don't are extremely rare, and increasingly so. It's like Kayama said; you just have to find a way to move on. There's no changing the past, but you can change the future," Aizawa said, not taking his eyes off the road.
Izuku heard All Might cough into his handkerchief. He looked nervous, but kept his eyes firmly aimed away from Izuku. He was staring out the window, but Izuku couldn't tell if he was thinking deeply or just uncomfortable with the subject of death concerning his experience with Nana.
"So, you've all dealt with death?" Izuku asked, aiming his question specifically at Aizawa, Mic and Kayama.
At the question, Izuku saw Aizawa's eyes go wide through the rearview mirror. He gripped the steering wheel tighter, and his eyes seemed to take on a red shine to them. Mic and Kayama looked like they knew what was happening, as their expressions took on a somber quality to them. After a moment, Aizawa calmed down, but he still gripped the wheel harder than was strictly necessary. Mic looked worried, whereas Kayama simply sighed and let her head fall onto the headrest behind her. She closed her eyes and breathed, making Izuku wonder just what was going on with those three.
"Yes. When we were young, in our second year at UA," Mic said, pointing at himself and Aizawa. He took a deep breath in before continuing. "We had a friend. His name was Oboro Shirakumo. He was super laid back and chill, but he died while we were all doing work studies. He sacrificed himself in order to save a bunch of elementary school kids, maybe ten years old. Oboro was a hero, but he was cut down too soon. That was a long time ago, and I don't think anybody really gets over death, but we've moved on. There's ways past this, is the point, kiddo. You've just gotta find yours," Mic explained.
"Oboro Shirakumo. I've heard that name before. Once from Recovery Girl during the battle trials in our first week of school and once from you, during the meeting with my Mom," Izuku said, making eye contact with Aizawa through the mirror.
"Oh, and he'd got an eidetic memory as well. What a prodigy," Aizawa grumbled, and Izuku saw his eyes flick over to All Might briefly.
"Man, Shirakumo would be a top tenner by now, huh?" Mic exclaimed.
"Does it matter?" Aizawa asked, his lazy tone undercut by agitation.
"What rank are you, Sho?" Mic asked.
"I don't have a rank. I'm too underground, and teaching takes up most of my time. What rank are you ?" Aizawa answered, and Izuku had to laugh at how he managed to get pulled into Mic's games every single time.
"A hundred and twenty third! And you, Kayama?" Mic passed his hypothetical namesake to the backseat.
"Sixty eighth," Kayama replied, sounding oddly meek.
"And you, All Mi—stupid question. What rank will you be, little dude?" Mic asked, giving Izuku a wink through the mirror.
"Number one," Izuku said, but he couldn't muster up the energy Mic seemed to generate by just being alive.
"Hell yeah, dude! Shoot for the top!" Mic cheered.
"If anybody could do it, you could," All Might chimed in.
"Yeah, you're top ten material at the least, little buddy," Kayama said, ruffling Izuku hair slightly.
Izuku didn't like the direction this conversation had taken. When had it become about him? This wasn't supposed to be about Izuku, this was Tenya's day. His train of thought was broken when the car pulled into a parking lot. They'd arrived.
The Heroes climbed out of the car, Izuku following them, and assembled in a group outside the location, a place of worship. Izuku didn't know if the Iidas were religious, or if Tenya subscribed to any beliefs in particular, and he didn't exactly recognise the belief this temple was dedicated to, but he wasn't one to judge. He'd never really wondered about religion, or a higher power. The powers possessed by humanity had always interested him far more than anything above or below them.
As the group of UA representatives walked toward the entrance, he spotted Mitsuki Bakugo's car pulling up. He'd recognize that station wagon anywhere. She and Izuku's mother had bought it together, and considered it their car. It was often passed between the two depending on who needed it, but that sentiment, that it belonged to both of them, never changed. They really did have a strong bond, a bond they'd wished Katsuki and Izuku would develop, but apparently they both inherited their worst traits, those being Inko's empathy and Mitsuki's pride respectively. Izuku recognized that now. He was too empathetic in his youth, and that often got him into trouble with bullies, and Katsuki was too proud, which inflated his ego to dangerous levels. The two had leveled out lately, become better people for it, even, but those mistakes had still been made. Izuku wondered where things had taken a turn for the introspective as of late, but snapped himself out of his thoughts when he spotted Shinso walking up with his mother.
He'd heard of Shinso's mother, but he didn't expect the mess of curly blonde hair that greeted him when Shinso pointed Izuku out to her. She ran up, her handbag bouncing behind her, and took his face in her hands. She examined his face, a deadly serious expression on her face. Izuku chuckled nervously, hoping that she'd realize she was making him more than a bit uncomfortable by the strained smile he was giving her. She let him go, but didn't move away.
"Um, hello," Izuku said, waving timidly. He really had to get used to meeting new people.
"You're Izuku Midoriya, correct?" she asked.
"Yes, ma'am," he confirmed.
"Thank you," she said, and simply walked away.
Izuku was about to ask her what she meant by that, when he realized what Shinso had said on Wednesday. He hadn't had friends before UA, just like Izuku himself. He'd changed things, for the better. That gave Izuku some solace, and he smiled as he watched her move toward the entrance. He looked back to where he'd last seen Shinso, and saw the boy standing a few feet away, watching his mother with an embarrassed frown on his face.
"Sorry about her. She … doesn't get out much," Shinso said, scratching his head.
Shinso looked good in a suit, Izuku noticed. He had the height and frame to make it work. He was in all black, except for a purple tie, which made Izuku chuckle under his breath. He certainly knew his color. Izuku couldn't blame him, having everything in shades of red and green, but he still thought it was funny. Shinso looked oddly well rested, and he seemed to pick up on Izuku's delight at the fact in his response.
"I know, I know. The zombie's come back to life! Old news," Shinso said, putting on some kind of cheesy movie star voice for effect. He seemed to finally see the white in Izuku's hair, and stared at it with a wide grin. "My question is, what's up with your hair ?" he asked.
"Ugh. I just woke up with it. It doesn't look too weird, does it?" Izuku asked, offering himself up for metaphorical sacrifice.
"No, actually. It looks good. Counters the baby fat," Shinso said, tapping his own cheeks to elaborate.
"Are you saying I look fat?" Izuku asked in indignation.
"I'm saying you can tell you're only fifteen," Shinso said with a smirk.
" You're fifteen," Izuku narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah, but I'm tall and I come off as older. This is good, it makes you look mature. You were a cutie-pie before, now you're the rugged bad boy with a dark secret," Shinso said, smiling even wider, somehow.
"Oh, stop," Izuku said, unable to shield himself from Shinso's contagious energy. A well rested Hitoshi Shinso was something to be feared, Izuku began to realize, as he cracked a small smile as well. "Oh, I know I said it the other day, but congratulations with Tsu," he tacked on.
"Thanks. I've really liked her for a while, so I'm pretty excited to get close to her like this. It's just … I've never felt this way about anybody, so to have that returned is just something else," Shinso said, beaming brighter than Izuku had ever seen him.
"Yeah. You seem … happy," Izuku hesitated.
"I am. Ah, shit. I didn't mean to bring up returned feelings, man. I know the stuff with you and Uraraka is still fresh, but I just got caught up with it and—" Shinso tried.
"No, you deserve to feel good and to speak your mind about it. It's beautiful, what you have with Tsu. You should enjoy it. Are you two going out any time soon?" Izuku prompted.
"We know that we're about to be swamped, with us needing to catch up with the schoolwork Aizawa's pushed back to give us this week, so we decided that we'd get that out of the way and then talk about it," Shinso said, his smirk dying down into a neutral expression.
"Ah, right. I wish you two the best, though. I've seen you guys, and you're probably the strongest couple I know, both through your bond and straight up being able to kick ass," Izuku said, strangely confident in his language choice.
"Whoa, you sure the swear police won't get you for that one?" Shinso teased.
The two shared a laugh, before deciding that they'd better get inside before they were locked out. Izuku and Shinso made their way inside, hoping that this would all go smoothly and they'd be able to have a beautiful send off for their friend.