Chapter 14: Inheritors
[Chapter 14]
It was the third time Izuku found himself in Recovery Girl's infirmary. Or was it the fourth? He kind of lost track in all the chaos that was going on. Sterile white walls reflected the bright fluorescent lights from above, making him feel nervous despite the size of the room.
Or it could be that All Might was sitting next to his bed again, a hand cupped to his chin while his tired eyes narrowed suspiciously. The older man huffed for a moment until he broke into a wide smile, his thin, skeletal face a pale shadow of his hero form's dashing good looks.
"First of all; congratulations, my boy!" Toshinori began, almost patting Izuku on the back until he remembered that his student was still healing. "A truly spectacular battle for all to see. Great work, young Midoriya. I just have one question… what was that?"
"U-um, to be honest, I have no idea." Izuku grimaced.
It wasn't a complete lie. He really didn't know how he and Kiri had managed that, combining their powers into one. Speaking of his sister she was currently hiding in his fluffy hair whilst in her miniature form, carefully observing All Might from her vantage point since she was wary if he could see her through her cloaking. Dark Shadow certainly could.
"Hmmm. I've never seen anything like this happen before." Toshinori said. "One For All was always expressed as colored lighting and super-strength, but never were there any other visual effects. Nine orbs above your head. Signifying that you're the ninth torchbearer? How fitting."
"Maybe it's One For All being expressed in a different way." Izuku suggested nervously. "I don't see any gold lightning coming out of you, sensei."
"That's because I am in complete control of the Quirk so there's no excess energy leaking out, my boy! Either way, it's wonderful to see you become so proficient at using it. Frankly, you're much better than I expected! I'm impressed."
"T-thanks."
"Then there's the question of young Todoroki." Toshinori leaned in closer. "Everyone saw how you egged him on to use his left side. Were you… trying to save him?"
Izuku's head dipped and he stared at his hands again before clenching them into fists. He almost told All Might of Todoroki's home situation before quickly holding his tongue, knowing that the other boy wouldn't appreciate him airing out those dirty little secrets.
"Yes, sensei. I-I wanted to make him realize that by holding back, he's only chaining himself down. I could tell he was… sad, inside. I wanted to help him, so…" Izuku met his mentor's eyes. "I did. I know I made the match harder for myself by butting my nose in, and I'm so sorry for that—"
"Why are you apologizing?" Toshinori asked. "You did help him, in a way. Now young Todoroki can finally find the courage to move forward by himself. You were willing to risk losing the match in order to help… that's the spirit of self-sacrifice! Don't think of it as something negative; in fact, 'butting your nose in' is one of the principal qualities of being a hero!"
"It… it is?" Izuku said, unsure.
"Of course! A hero will always leap into action to save someone, even if they don't want to be saved!"
Before Izuku could reply the door burst open and four students entered. Everyone started talking all at once.
"Deku-kun, are you alright? That was some final clash you and Todoroki-kun had out there!"
"Bravo, Midoriya-kun, bravo! An amazing show, I must say! Absolutely marvelous!"
"I agree. To witness an angel acquire their halo… truly magnificent. Congratulations on achieving such a feat; you are now one step closer to divinity."
"Don't worry about Todoroki-kun, kero. He woke up shortly after the match ended."
"Quiet, dearies, quiet!" Recovery Girl huffed, shooing away Ochaco, Iida, Tokoyami, and Tsuyu. "The boy needs a break, the whole lot of you can return later when he's well-rested!"
The group objected but eventually left, Izuku feeling his heart clench at their concern. Friends… he had friends! He could hardly believe it was possible.
"Whew. Thanks for that, Shuzenji-san—"
"That goes for you as well! Shoo, Toshinori! Let the boy rest!"
"E-eh? Me too?"
"Of course! You'll find that I won't give any special treatment, number one or not. Feh!" The old woman glanced back at Izuku while she chased the Symbol of Peace out the room. "Stay here young Midoriya, I need to go to the primary Infirmary to check on young Monoma. My personal assistant bot; Archimedes, will be back to monitor you shortly. Now, where did that dumb little ball go…"
Izuku was left alone in the room once more after they left, or so they thought. He waited for nearly a minute before exhaling, eyes flicking upward.
"Kiri? You can come out now."
The little fairy hidden within his hair popped out like a bunny out of the tall grass, tumbling down his chest and into his hands.
"Ah, oh dear." Izuku stoked her tiny head gently, brushing her short hair with his fingertip. "Are you feeling alright?"
"Mmfine." Kiri answered, shifting into her normal-sized child form.
She seemed a little tired and sluggish but floated up into the air to wrap her arms around him in a hug, careful to avoid his healing chest and side. The girl giggled mischievously, basking in her victory.
"Ehehe. We won, nii-chan." Kiri cheered, floating atop him. "We won, we won!"
"I guess we did." he smiled. "I hope I didn't shock you when I, um, 'summoned' you?"
"Nn." She shook her head. "It was really fast. Like I was there watching the TV with gramma, and whoosh, I was there with you and we had a doughnut on our head."
"Oh, right!" Izuku blinked, reaching for his phone at the bedside table. "I should probably text mom to let her know that you're here. Mimi probably figured it out and told her, but it couldn't hurt to be safe."
After taking a selfie with her and sending it to his mother he found Kiri gazing at him again, her eyes shining and expectant. She gently floated down to rest herself just above his chest and he instinctively knew what she wanted.
Praise me. Hold me. Love me.
He did. Well, he could afford to spoil her for a tiny bit since he did owe her ten years of love. The boy rubbed her head and tickled her, sending her childish laughter tinkling through the room. She puffed out in pride, reveling in their shared victory over a mighty opponent. This was a bond they shared that would never break, and she was a future he could look forward to.
"You did a wonderful job out there, Kiri-chan." Izuku cooed, knowing that she was enjoying the praise. "You're so brave, so strong!"
"Ehehe. Hehehe." Kiri giggled, twisting about in the air delightfully. "Daddy~"
"Hm? So am I 'daddy' or 'onii-chan'?" Izuku teased.
"You're both! You're…" Kiri thought for a moment. 'Dad-nii-san. Hehehehe~"
"Is that so?" he tickled her again, causing her to let out another squeal of bright laughter. "Then I guess you're my little angel~"
He could feel her delight, brilliant and sparkling like stars in the night sky. She laughed and laughed, reminding him of the innocent lad he once was. Moments like these would become precious memories he would cherish.
"Although…" Izuku gently righted her while she still floated to look her in the eyes. "Are you really alright with fighting alongside me? I don't want to make you do things you don't like. You're free to live your own life."
"Then I want to be by your side, nii-chan." she said.
"I… I see. Thank you, Kiri." He rubbed her head lightly. "How are things with One For All?"
"It's great. Everyone's really nice and gave me hoodies. So now I have eight of them in different colors." Kiri said happily, her oversized sleeves flopping about while she spoke. "It's so fun. I get to play with Koko, and Misha knitted a tiny hat for me, and Mr Yagi gives me cookies, and Mimi lets me sleep in her room when I get lonely, and, and—"
Her enthusiasm was starting to affect Izuku, the boy finding himself smiling more and more as she enthralled him with tales of her adventures.
"I have a big family now, and you're in it." Kiri finished with a small smile. "So I'm really, really happy."
"That's good to know." Izuku nodded and relaxed, leaning back into his pillow. "Love you."
"Love you." she grinned, nuzzling against his neck. "Love you lots."
"I'll treat you to something nice after all this is over." Izuku smiled, brushing her hair while she pressed her back to his chest. "Ice cream? Pancakes?"
"Pancakes." Kiri nodded eagerly.
"Pancakes it is. I'll even make them for you!"
"Chocolate pancakes! With…" Her gaze flicked up to him shyly. "With strawberries on top."
"Anything for you, sweetheart." Izuku said, noticing her half-lidded eyes. "You're a little tired, huh?"
"Kinda hungry." she admitted. "Feed me, please."
Izuku handed her a bowl of fruit that had been lying by his bedside table, giving her something to eat before they headed out back into the crowd so she could have a proper meal. Most of her energy had been used up during the match and she needed to consume emotions again; that combined form of theirs took up loads of power and Izuku made a mental note to only use it only when needed since he didn't want to tire her out. That, and he didn't want to rely on her too much even if she was his power… he needed to do some self-reflection. Kiri was periodically looking around the room while he shared some blueberries with her. Was she scanning for nearby emotions?
A white medical Haro rolled into the room and the little girl instantly got interested when it attempted to diagnose Izuku's current state. This must be 'Archimedes', then. Kiri floated over to hug the spherical basketball-sized robot, curiously observing how it scanned Izuku's body with a ray of blue light.
"Patient Midoriya-Izuku. Scan complete. No broken bones detected. Minimal scarring detected." Archimedes reported tersely. "Warning, warning. This unit is unsuitable for entertainment purposes! We do not have the child-entertainment package installed."
"It's soft." Kiri said in surprise, patting the robot happily. She started trying to bounce it, only managing to smack its rubbery surface with the futile effort. "This one's much bigger than the one that pink girl had. Is there a smaller one inside it, and then a smaller one inside that?"
"We contain a trauma kit and defibrillator inside this shell. We do not contain any additional Haro sub-units. We are not a matryoshka doll." the robot answered. "Patient Midoriya Izuku. Status: All green, all green."
"Mm-hmm. Send my regards to Recovery Girl." Izuku rolled his shoulders and examined his arms. Only a thin faded line remained on his right arm even after all the wounds he received, a testament to the wondrous effects of Kinoko's soup and Recovery Girl's Quirk. "So, uh, can I leave?"
"Affirmative. You are welcome to return should you feel unwell." Archimedes said, his 'ears' flapping. "We declare you as 'healthy'. Diagnostic complete. You are clear to proceed, proceed."
"Thank you. Come on, Kiri. Let's get you something to eat."
"Okay. Bye-bye, robot."
Izuku's sister nodded and unlatched herself from the little machine, floating upwards to cling onto his back instead. She wrapped her arms around his neck and he adjusted his position for a piggyback carry. He noted how light she was; had he gotten stronger or was she still floating back there? Those thoughts were put aside when Kiri suddenly craned her neck downward to whisper into his ear.
"There's someone outside the door, onii-chan."
Izuku nodded and slid the door open quickly before whoever was on the other side could get away only to have a small fist gently tap on his chest. Kodai Yui blinked, retracting her hand in surprise and coming face to face with Izuku.
"Oh. U-um, hello, Kodai-san." Izuku said. "Recovery Girl's not here right now, so maybe you could come back in a few minutes."
The girl gave him an awkward little wave before she shook her head and stared into his eyes, knowing that he could interpret her intention. Izuku understood nearly instantly that she wasn't here to see the nurse at all. She… wanted to speak to him?
Yui took her gaze off him once she noticed the child on his back, her expression turning into one of quiet bewilderment. Izuku flinched internally. The last time Kiri and Yui met his sister had been a teenager. How was he supposed to explain why she looked like a kid?
"Size." Yui pointed at herself, then at Kiri. "Shape?"
Kiri nodded, waving politely to her older counterpart. She actually seemed rather interested in her. Izuku exhaled a quiet breath of relief and edged his way around the stoic girl, about to make his way to the cafeteria.
"Well, it was nice, um, talking to you, Kodai-san. If you'll excuse me I'll be on my way, Kiri needs to eat."
"W-wait!"
Her voice was soft when it reached his ears. The sibling pair turned back to see Yui's fingers tugging on Izuku's sleeve lightly, her head bowed in embarrassment. The boy waited for her to speak again, knowing that it must have taken a lot of courage to approach him in the first place. He would not rebuff her efforts even though he felt nervous after their vicious battle.
"C-can…" Yui began timidly, her eyes flicking upwards to meet his. "Can we… still be… f-friends?"
"O-of course, Kodai-san!" Izuku stammered. "I, um, well, it's fine, even after you beat me up I still think you're awesome, I um, wait, that sounds kind of wrong…"
She held out her phone nervously, pushing it towards him with her eyes squeezed shut. He soon got the implication and exchanged numbers with her, blushing all the while. He got a girl's number! Then he realized what she was trying to do when she sent him a text.
**Thank you for accepting. I am not good at talking to people.**
"Um, no problem, really. I'm not good at speaking either. It was a great battle, I'm really impressed by your strength…" Izuku mumbled. Yui tapped on her phone eagerly in response, showing him the screen.
**I am very sorry for beating up your girlfriend.** Yui paused and added another text. **And you.**
"G-g-girlfriend? W-wait, Uraraka-san is just a friend, like you! I mean, um, not as close, you know, um." Izuku stammered but steeled himself and took a deep breath, feeling Kiri giggle on his back. "H-how about we get something to eat?"
Yui nodded quietly and off they went.
[x]
It was times like this where Tsuyu appreciated what she had, a group of precious friends who cared for each other. They were currently chatting amongst themselves incessantly, still discussing what happened earlier.
"There, there, Ochaco-chan. Are you still salty about your loss to Hatsume-san?" a pink girl comforted her brunette friend.
"I am not 'salty'." Ochaco pouted. "Just… disappointed, I guess. I felt like I could have done better."
"Don't worry about it, you did great out there." Jiro nodded, sipping at her cola. "Did you see the size of that gun she was carrying? Sheesh, it scared me by just looking at it."
The girls of class 1-A continued their chatter, walking along the long trail of food vendors and looking for things to sample. According to the schedule it was currently break-time, a one hour period that allowed both the participants and audience to mill about and enjoy whatever the various vendors around the stadium had to offer. It was called a festival for a reason. There was food, games, and all sorts of entertainment for everyone to enjoy, even an allocated seating area for those who want to sit down for a meal or take a break. Hagakure and Momo were currently leading the pack, with the invisible girl looking around hungrily at the different snacks that were on sale. Tsuyu smiled to herself, taking in all the sights and sounds.
"Isn't that a little unfair? I mean, are support items really allowed?" Mina asked.
"They're allowed for students from the Support Department, desuwa." Momo informed them. "But according to the rules they have to make whatever items they want to bring onto the field by themselves and there's a limited number of gadgets they can bring."
"Doesn't that mean she made all those thingamajigs by herself?" the pink girl said.
"I guess it does, kero. Shows that Quirks aren't the only way one can fight back." Tsuyu answered.
"That's just how the cookie crumbles." Mina sighed and patted Ochaco on the back. "Don't feel too bad, you did a wonderful job out there."
"I guess…" Ochaco sulked.
"Y'know, I've been thinking." Jiro said casually, attempting to change the topic. "The name '1-A Investigation Squad' is quite a mouthful. Can we call it something else?"
"What?! How dare you disagree with the awesome name I came up with!" Mina flared in mock anger, no heat in her voice.
"Oooh, I've got one. We can call ourselves… 'The Coordinators'." Hagakure suggested.
"That sounds like some Illuminati conspiracy group. How 'bout; 'The Outsiders'?"
"Kyoka-chan, isn't that just the name of that old band? Also, why does every name have the start with a 'the', desuwa?"
"Um, I've got one!" Ochaco perked up. "The Secret Six!"
"That's pretty good!" Mina said cheerfully, then pouted. "But it's taken! Gah, at this rate we'll have to stick to the old name whenever we want to play with Midoriya-kun!"
"I thought you were opposed to the name change in the first place, kero."
"Speaking of Midoriya-kun, there he is! Let's go say hi!" Hagakure pointed.
Ochaco perked up at that, looking up to see her green-haired friend… carrying a little girl on his back.
"Eh?" the brunette began, the other girls beside her freezing where they stood once they saw what she was looking at.
"What." Mina squeezed herself closer to Ochaco, practically cheek-to-cheek as her eyes bulged alongside her. "EHHHHH?! WHO'S THAT KID HE'S CARRYING?!"
'Here we go again.' Tsuyu thought, moving forward to see what was going on. Her shy friend was giving a smaller girl a piggyback ride, his passenger clinging on tightly while she looked around at the various food vendors. Her jet-black hair and cold blue eyes were all too familiar.
"Hmm. Isn't that Kodai-san, kero?"
"N-no, it's not. At least, I don't think it is. Look at how small she is." Momo said, squinting. "Wait, did she use her Quirk?"
"To make herself younger? Wha—can she even do that? Even when she's lost, she's won." Jiro asked, barely containing the disbelief in her voice. "Crap, don't tell me he likes younger girls and they're into that sort of thing."
"W-w-what?!" Hagakure cried out in dismay. "Say it ain't so! The cinnamon roll is a… a… a degenerate lolicon?!"
"O-of course not!" Ochaco leapt to the defense of her precious friend, face scarlet. "D-deku-kun isn't that sort of guy!"
"Ochaco-chan's right. Calm down, everyone. There has to be some sort of explanation, kero." Tsuyu said quickly.
"Only one way to find out. 1-A investigation squad, transform and roll out!" Mina declared.
The girls bunched together, tactically bounding from cover-to-cover as a group while trailing their green-haired classmate. They made sure not to get too close but still attempted to eavesdrop on what Izuku was saying to the child on his back, their curiosity overflowing at the strange situation they'd come across.
"Dango, dango, dango, dango~" the little girl sang stoically, waving the aforementioned sticks of sweets in her hand. "Dango, dango, the dango family~"
"Are they good?" the girls heard Izuku ask.
"Nn. Nice and sweet." She took another bite.
Ochaco's chest fluttered. Her friend Deku looked so… different. The smile that he directed towards that girl was so warm and loving that she could feel her heart melt. What was his relationship with her?
The group continued to tail Izuku, peeking out from time to time and earning a few strange looks from passer-bys. They watched while he made his way to the seating area and set the child on his back onto her own chair, simply content to watch her enjoy her food. There was a moment where they collectively froze when the little girl looked their way, only relaxing when she refocused on her meal and reasoning that they weren't noticed.
"Here, onii-chan." she offered some of her dango to Izuku, who smiled and took a bite.
"Onii-chan?" Jiro whispered. "Oi, oi. This is looking worse and worse with every passing second."
"Uwahh, I don't think I could call my future boyfriend 'onii-chan'." Hagakure squealed. "Too kinky!"
Ochaco clearly didn't know what to say, too stunned to even form any words. Just as she was about to make a statement Tsuyu raised a hand, pointing at someone heading right towards Izuku.
"Wait. Look, kero."
They looked, and a collective gasp of surprise escaped from the girls. It was Kodai herself, carrying a plate of food. Tsuyu frowned, raising an inquisitive eyebrow. Ochaco looked back and forth between the two girls, one a teenager, the other a child. What was going on?!
"Hi, Kodai-san." Izuku said to the older girl. "Um, you really didn't have to treat us."
"For… last time." Yui said softly, sitting down so she faced her smaller doppelganger. She handed over the plate to the younger girl who replied with a muffled thanks.
The two teenagers started chatting while the child beside them ate. Tsuyu glanced among her friends and found a wild discussion already taking place.
"Holy shit, he's going for the oyakodon route. The absolute madman." Jiro whispered.
"What's oyakodon?" Momo asked. "Isn't that the egg and rice dish?"
"Not what she meant and no, and you don't wanna know. I don't think it's like that, Kyoka-chan. If anything, it looks like the little girl is Kodai-san's younger sister, kero." Tsuyu began in an attempt to calm everyone down.
"No no, there's clearly something bigger going on here!" Mina exclaimed, eyes gleaming with conspiracy. "Can't you see?! Didn't you notice the way he smiled at her? It was the kind of smile a parent would give to their child. That's clearly their daughter! It seems that our favorite cinnamon roll is actually a stud muffin."
"D-d-d-d-d-d—" Ochaco stammered, turning paler than snow. "Daughter?!"
"I thought I said this before back in our first meeting." Jiro shrugged. "Y'know, a boy and a girl love each other very much, bada-bing, bada-boom. Nine months later a babby pops out and bingo bango bongo, a family is formed."
Tsuyu resisted the urge to send the other girl a deadpan look flatter than her chest. The ages of all three people involved in their crazy speculation obviously didn't match. There's no way anyone would actually believe—
"W-w-what?!" Hagakure stammered. "It can't be… while we're still living out the first stage of our lives, Midoriya-kun is already at his third?!"
"Let's not jump to conclusions, kero—"
"It's obvious what's happening." Mina declared, unintentionally interrupting Tsuyu. "Midoriya-kun and Kodai-san had a relationship and that child was the result. A messy breakup, perhaps. From the way they fought, they're clearly vying for custody over that kid using the tournament and had intended to fight each other until Kodai-san lost! It all makes sense! It explains his interactions with those three during lunch since they probably wanted to interrogate him… he was probably also asking Kendo-san and Shiozaki-san for advice on how to raise a child. Turns out he's not actually trying to form a harem, but trying to look out for his kid!"
"W-what a sad story, desuwa!" Momo sniffed and cupped her mouth, tears beading at her eyes. "Poor Midoriya-kun…"
"Mina-chan, you're making this sound like a weekend soap opera." Jiro said.
"H-huh? Fighting for custody? B-but Kodai-san lost to… me." Ochaco looked horrified, a hand coming to her mouth. "Did I cause her to lose custody over her daughter since her original plan was to fight Deku-kun in the finals? Oh… oh no!"
Tsuyu facepalmed, wondering why she was the only sane person in the group.
[x]
Izuku watched while Kiri gulped down another spoonful of the vanilla pudding that Yui had given her, enjoying herself immensely with the feast before her. Not only was it sweet and delicious, there was a whole plethora of emotions everywhere she looked. Warm, sharp excitement. Salty trepidation and nervousness. Bittersweet nostalgia. She devoured those emotions, taking just a tiny bit from every person in the crowd around them.
The boy smiled and took a bite out of his own food, some yakitori that Yui had offered him in return for the ice-cream treat he gave her last time. He hadn't expected that she'd repay him but he wasn't about to turn away free food.
"U-um, thank you, Kodai-san." Izuku said softly. "I'm sorry I was so rough on you during our fight."
Yui tapped on her phone and flipped it over for him to see, using it as a sort of notepad.
**It's okay. I'm sorry for being so rough, too. I didn't mean to target you specifically, I just felt drawn to you—** she paused, hastily typing a few more words while blushing. **—not in that way. I don't know how to explain it. It's like this weird feeling of familiarity. The ten million points helped.**
Izuku processed the words quietly. An unnatural feeling of familiarity… where had he heard that before? Yui tapped on it again, adding a new sentence and drawing his attention away.
**It was a good fight. I wanted to win.**
"Yeah, me too." Izuku admitted, suddenly remembering something he wanted to say to her.
The soft green grass of the riverbank. Deep blue water soaking into his sneakers. Crimson eyes filled with hatred, slapping his hand away. Izuku took a deep breath and said the words from his heart.
"U-um, Kodai-san. I want you to know… I wasn't looking down on you when we fought. It was the opposite—I thought you were amazing out there."
A tint of bright pink colored the stoic girl's cheeks, fading while she tapped away at her phone before raising it at him again.
**You were amazing too. I didn't want to get upset but my Quirk made me.**
Izuku paused. "Your Quirk?"
**I don't like it when people make me feel small. It makes me wanna get big and crush them. Then it feels good when I do.** she typed.
Izuku responded with a nervous smile. The random array of thoughts within his mind organized themselves into a coherent network. Her Quirk. Small and big. Wait… Was her Quirk affecting her mental state? He heard rumors of such ideas and concepts before but they were often considered Quirkist. Society drilled in the idea that one wasn't supposed to judge people by their Quirks, but it still happened all the time.
**How did you know? I'm curious.**
"Excuse me?" Izuku asked, puzzled.
**You knew what I was going to do. The kick to the temple.** Yui flicked her index finger for emphasis. **The one I used against Uraraka-san.**
"Oh, that? I might have, um, seen someone who fought that way before. Your match with her was fantastic, by the way." Izuku slid his eyes over to Kiri, who was beginning to inhale a small pile of mochi now. "Did someone teach that to you?"
Yui shook her head, the only sound she made being the light taps of her fingers.
**When I was young, I was caught in a villain attack. I was weak. An angel saved my life.**
Izuku's eyes widened with realization.
**I never wanted to be weak ever again, so I copied how she fought.** Yui wrote. **I think something changed in my Quirk the day she saved me.**
He was starting to understand what happened. Kiri, or rather, Valkyrie had saved Yui when she was a child and forgot about the incident but Yui had been inspired by her. So that was why their fighting styles were similar. But what was this about how her Quirk changed?
"What do you mean?"
**Before I could only grow and shrink inorganic objects. Now I can do it to myself, too. I think it was because I wanted to be strong like my hero. Or perhaps that angel blessed me.**
An awakening, Izuku realized. Quirk evolution. Although rare, there were recorded cases of Quirks having the potential to awaken and evolve, growing past their original limits when the user was placed under tremendous amounts of stress and emotional pressure. Emotions… Kiri fed on emotions. There was some sort of link here.
Were Quirks affected by the emotions of their users, which led to a feedback loop of the Quirk affecting the user?
Before Izuku could think any further Yui tilted her head, this time looking at Kiri. The little girl was glancing at her counterpart's bowl of cherry tomatoes, having finished all the food on her own plate already.
"Do you… want some?" Yui asked.
Kiri nodded hungrily.
Yui gently picked up a few of those miniature tomatoes and fed them to Kiri one by one, the smaller girl's face scrunching up in delight as she accepted them. Izuku smiled to himself, holding back from taking a picture of them. They looked like mother and child…
The world flashed in colors that should not exist.
"There's a weird hole in my hand, pipsqueak." his brother complained. "It's not healing right…"
"Look, look!" His great-grandson covered in soot ran at him happily, something small and shiny held in his grip. "I did it, I did it!"
He was a kid again, pretending to be asleep. His alabaster hair covered one of his eyes, allowing him to peek through the gaps. A woman was stroking his head.
Yuu Takeyama bent down, planting a gentle kiss on his forehead.
'Goodnight, Mimi. Sweet dreams.' Yuu whispered. 'I love you.'
She brushed a lock of jet-black hair to the side when she got up, making her way to the doorway. 'Izuku' felt his heart clench in regret, thoughts that were his and yet not his thundering in his head.
'I never hated you, Yuu. I was just too afraid to say that I love you.'
The short memory ended as quickly as it started, and Izuku found himself staring at Yui feeding Kiri again. Mimi's lingering regret stabbed at him like a broken dagger, wrenching at his heart and causing a pang of sorrow to manifest.
'Yuu Takeyama. Earth-1's Mt. Lady. She… loved Izuku.'
Yui noticed him staring and tilted her head in curiosity.
'Now their relationship will never be.'
**Is something wrong?** Yui wrote.
"No. It's nothing, Kodai-san." Izuku forced himself to smile, hiding the poignant heartache he felt. "Nothing at all."
Yui nodded and continued to feed Kiri for a little more until her phone buzzed, the brunette typing a quick reply to whoever messaged her before turning to Izuku.
**Have to go. Itsuka is looking for me.**
"O-oh! Um, sure, Kodai-san. It was nice chatting with you." Izuku said. "Thanks for the food."
"Nn." Kiri nodded gratefully. "Thank you."
"Nn." Yui responded with her voice this time, turning to Izuku with a nervous look in her eyes. "Can we… h-hang out sometime?"
Izuku blinked. She wasn't Yuu. The woman Mimi once loved like a mother was long gone. This girl was a completely different person and he… he had to accept that. Though he could learn from them, only the dead belonged in the past. People had to look towards the future.
So he did.
"I'd love to." Izuku smiled.
Yui smiled back bashfully and waved a quick goodbye to him, then at Kiri. He watched her leave, an odd, almost indescribable bittersweet feeling coursing through him. The green-haired teen exhaled, calming himself down and feeling Kiri's hand slip onto his.
"Hm. You felt it too, didn't you?"
"Nn." Kiri nodded. "She's nice."
"Would you like to see her again someday?"
"Sure. You've got a date with her, nii-chan!" Kiri remarked.
"I-It's not a date!" Izuku said quickly, his cheeks burning red. "B-besides, she looks like you! Don't you find that weird?"
"But I think it's cool that she looks like me." she replied innocently.
"Of course you do." Izuku deadpanned before rubbing the top of her head. "Felt like you were the one kicking my butt when I was fighting her."
"That just means you need to get stronger for your rematch, onii-chan!"
"Pfft." Izuku held back a chuckle. "I guess I do. Wait, rematch?"
"I got the feeling that she wants to fight you again." Kiri said cheerfully, watching her brother's face become bone-white.
"Oh." the boy muttered, trying to hide the slight pang of disappointment he felt. "R-right, so that's what she meant by 'hang out'."
The siblings melted into the crowd, hand-in-hand. Unbeknownst to them they had lost the trail of their pursuers, the girls of class 1-A looking around in frustration once they realized their target had slipped away.
Izuku soon found himself in a side path free of passer-bys, sitting down on a bench beside Kiri. She was munching on one last piece of mochi when she suddenly perked up, glancing behind her.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"I feel something familiar… There. Birdy."
He followed where she pointed and looked up, finding none other than Tokoyami resting upon a tree branch. The bird-boy's eyes were closed while he rested his back against the bark, but Dark Shadow had snaked down the massive tree and was currently… gathering flowers? Izuku looked on curiously until the shadow creature noticed them.
"Little prince!" Dark Shadow called tiredly, waving a clawed hand at him. "Salutations."
"Ah." Tokoyami's eyes snapped open at the same time, glancing down at Izuku. "Hello, Midoriya-kun."
"Hello, you two." Izuku greeted them back.
Dark Shadow continued gathering flowers, Kiri getting up from the bench and edging towards him carefully. He noticed her watching and slithered forward, Izuku watching the scene nervously and preparing to intervene in case anything happened. Fortunately for them Kiri just started patting the menacing-looking projection's head happily, turning to look back at Izuku.
"Look, nii-chan. A shadow birdy."
Izuku breathed a sigh of relief while Tokoyami leapt down from his tree branch. The other boy landed expertly, slowly making his way over to sit down beside Izuku.
"I was just thinking of your match with the copycat. Did he…?" Tokoyami inquired.
"Y-yeah." Izuku replied nervously.
"I see." Tokoyami said. He glanced at Kiri, who was now gathering flowers with Dark Shadow. "Your little sister?"
"Yes." Izuku nodded, waiting for the inevitable follow-up. To his surprise Tokoyami did not pry further. He supposed the other boy had already experienced such difficult questions.
Dark Shadow rumbled again while Kiri handed over the collected flowers to him, his claws expertly weaving the stalks together to form a garland. He was teaching her how to do it, repeating the action several times and letting her try. A satisfied croon escaped the shade's beak when she managed it after a few attempts.
"Excellent work, Tiny Queen! This one greets you, glad to be of service." Dark Shadow announced with a respectful bow. "It is an honor to meet you. We have learnt much from your victory, yes."
Kiri giggled and curtseyed in response, both Izuku and Tokoyami watching the exchange with mild curiosity.
"U-um, what are you guys doing here?" Izuku said.
"I was resting. Dark Shadow, however…"
"I am grieving! For the loss of our kin." Dark Shadow chittered, his ethereal voice tinged with sorrow. "To lose one so young… it is a great blow. There are so few of us. So very few."
Izuku's heart leapt in his chest. Newborn. Of course Dark Shadow could see her. He watched while Dark Shadow made another garland of flowers, carefully handing them over to Kiri.
"U-um, I know what you are talking about. She's not dead." Izuku began.
"She might as well be." Dark Shadow growled, pointing at him accusingly. "She is locked in the forever-sleep because of you!"
Kiri's attitude immediately changed when she darted between her brother and the projection, her fingers curling into hooks. Tokoyami gently pulled back on Dark Shadow, the shadow-person's eyes creasing in sadness.
"Forgive me, little prince and queen. That was… improper." Dark Shadow said. "To see one so young be hurt is painful. I know you were trying to save the boy. Monoma."
"I-it's alright. The way you're talking about what happened… and how you mentioned that 'there are so few of us'." Izuku paled. "Has this happened before?"
"Years and years ago, Midoriya-kun." Tokoyami answered. "My family keeps records of such instances; people like us, and even those are excruciatingly rare. I shall show them to you after the festival."
"I… I see. But there's a catch, isn't there?" Izuku said grimly. "Knowledge for knowledge."
"Not much of a catch. We just want to know more about you, the same way you want to know more about us."
Izuku gathered his thoughts, watching while Dark Shadow calmed down from Kiri patting his ethereal head again. The tension was dissolved when Dark Shadow grunted in satisfaction after finishing his construction, looking towards his brother.
"It is done, Fumikage. Now I wish to see my kin."
"Very well. Midoriya-kun, would you be so kind as to join us?"
Izuku looked at Kiri, who waved the garland of flowers at him and nodded.
"Sure."
What followed was a short trip back to the infirmary. Luckily for them only Archimedes was there and this time he allowed visitors to come in. The two boys watched while Dark Shadow slithered through the air, hovering over Monoma's unconscious body and eying him carefully. A sharp sting of guilt jabbed Izuku even while Kiri consumed it quickly.
"Observe." Dark Shadow pointed a ghostly claw at the sleeping blonde. "Withdrawal of the 'I'. The accursed forever-sleep, sealing away the id, ego, and superego."
"Forever-sleep?" Izuku asked in trepidation, fearing for the worst. "A coma?"
"For our kin. Worry not for the boy, he shall awaken in time." Dark Shadow replied. "Come, Tiny Queen! Let us proceed."
He placed the garland of flowers around Monoma's neck and motioned for Kiri to do the same. She did so and Izuku observed it all, mentally jotting down notes. He was half fascinated, half confused. This almost seemed like some sort of religious ritual.
Dark Shadow clasped his claws together in a sort of prayer, Kiri mimicking what the older projection did with her small fingers. After a short moment of silence the construct sighed, letting his shoulders fall. Tokoyami and Izuku simply watched, the latter not knowing what was going on.
"It is done. Thank you, Fumikage. Tiny Queen. Prince of Fae."
"Umm… what's done?" Izuku asked.
"Funeral rites. I shall take my leave." Dark Shadow bowed and retreated into Tokoyami.
The crow boy simply gave Izuku a quiet nod as he prepared to leave.
"Was all of that really necessary?"
"He's my brother. I want him to be happy." Tokoyami answered, his eyes flicking to Kiri for a second. "I'm sure you understand. See you in the finals. Good Luck."
"Um, right. See you. Good luck." Izuku said weakly. Tokoyami simply left the room after his goodbye.
Izuku glanced at Kiri, raising an eyebrow.
"I don't suppose you know what that was all about?"
"Dunno." Kiri admitted, shrugging. "I was just copying the shadow birdy."
"Another mystery, huh." Izuku sighed. "Let's leave Monoma-kun to rest."
He turned and started making his way to the door, but the little girl stayed behind for a moment longer. Kiri blinked at the unconscious boy before her, expanding her senses. There was something slumbering within him. She could feel it, a fading ember with a weak golden glow, like a candle in the wind. It felt… cold. Hungry. The poor thing didn't have enough strength to feed itself.
The child thought for a moment, then reached up to her temple and pressed her index finger to it. She pulled her hand back and held a wisp of green light between her fingers, a fragment of guilt she'd consumed from her brother earlier. Kiri pressed the wisp against Monoma's forehead and watched it sink into him. She nodded, satisfied. Back then she had shared what she had with her sister. To her, this was no different.
Her brother always helped others, no matter what. That was something she inherited from him.
"Kiri? Come on, dear. Let's go."
"Okay, onii-chan."
The girl trotted back innocently, tiny fingers that could slip through steel resting onto her brother's palm.
Monoma stirred in his sleep.
[x]
Izuku walked down the hallway, hand-in-hand with his sibling. Kiri seemed to have recovered, now looking around at everything around her with the curiosity of a child.
The boy glanced at a clock hanging on the wall. There was still quite a bit of time before the finals… he wondered what they should do next. Truth be told, he felt like going back to the secondary infirmary for a bit of rest but that would leave Kiri bored. He wanted her to enjoy herself. Then there was the issue of where she'd go during his match… He suspected that the overwhelmingly powerful combined form of theirs could only be used one more time before she ran out of power and reverted to her chibi form. He was thinking that he should save it for the finals, or even hold back from using it since it tired her out. Relying on her too much was a big no-no; she had the right to live her own life without his input.
A new distraction came in the form of several loud thumps along with something floating down the hallway, Kiri tugging at his hand as she pointed at it. It was a small pink Haro robot, one that belonged to Mei. The very same one he saved the other day! If he remembered correctly, its name was 'Haru'. The siblings edged closer, trying to see what it was doing.
Haru had three long tentacles extend from her shell, each one carrying a heavy box many times her size. Those weren't a function of the original models, Izuku noted. He realized that she had accidentally dropped what she was carrying earlier, resulting in that commotion. Just as the automaton was about to pick up the fourth and fifth boxes Izuku called out, wanting to help.
"Um, hi. Do you need any help getting those to Hatsume-san?"
"Midoriya-Izuku. Greetings! Savior, savior!" Haru rotated to face him and beeped, eyes flashing with every word she spoke. "We would appreciate the assistance. Creator Hatsume-Mei requires these supplies in preparation for the next match."
That was how Izuku found himself carrying two heavy boxes and following a floating pink robot. It was almost comical, really. At least Kiri was having fun, currently bombarding the small machine with questions while floating alongside it.
"Are you a robot?"
"Yes, yes. We are a robot."
"How can you fly?"
"We are a custom experimental unit equipped with a H-particle condenser that allows us to store and release said particles that act as a propellant. Normal Haro units utilize a 'float dial' propulsion system as per standard factory setting, settings."
"Why are you pink?"
"Our creator let us choose the paintjob. We like this color, color!"
Izuku smiled to himself, seeing how entertained Kiri was. The trio of boy, projection, and robot soon reached a room deep in the stadium with a set of large shutter doors. There was the sound of people talking alongside the low hum of whatever miraculous technology Mei had built. Izuku gulped and prepared himself before he knocked twice.
"Um, Hatsume-san? It's me, Midoriya Izuku." Izuku said nervously. "I saw your robot carrying some stuff so I helped her. Can we come in?"
There was a loud thumping and crashing from within the room, Izuku wincing while it got closer and closer. Clattering shutters rolled open and there stood Hatsume Mei in all her grease-covered glory, a messy trail of fallen tools and spare parts littered behind her. She was smiling from ear-to-ear, delighted to see him before her.
"Midoriya-kun! Come in, come in!" Mei said happily. "Thanks for the help. Hey, who's this?"
"This is my younger sister, Kirimi." Izuku introduced her. "Say hello, Kiri."
"Hello." Kiri waved.
"Hello to you too, Midoriya-chan!" Mei smiled, taking one of the heavy boxes from Izuku. "Alright, alright, alright. Let's see what we've got…"
Izuku found himself impressed at her physical strength, but the feeling was soon forgotten once he noticed the other person in the room. It was a thin man dressed in a suit, one side of his face marked with a faded Z-shaped scar. The man had androgynous features, and Izuku realized he had been staring for a bit too long when those cold, glassy eyes locked onto his. There was something… unnatural about this person. A feeling in his gut told Izuku that something wasn't right. The way he moved felt predatory, almost too precise.
"We shall be taking our leave now, Mei." the thin man said slowly. "Good luck for the next match."
"Mm-hmm, uh huh." Mei nodded absentmindedly, digging through the boxes Izuku had brought over. "Thanks, Uncle Zen. See ya later."
The man stalked his way across the room but right when he reached the door he paused. His head swiveled towards Izuku mechanically, fixing an empty gaze onto his nervous form. Izuku gulped but held his ground. So did Kiri. He didn't miss how one of her tiny hands balled into a fist, instinctively preparing to defend her brother. She had noticed something was wrong as well.
"Uncle Zen, what are you doing?" Mei sighed.
"As of this moment, we are attempting to intimidate one of your potential suitors as per standard protocol—"
"Oh no you don't! Don't go scaring off my favorite and only test subject—I mean, lab partner! Shoo, shoo!" Mei said quickly, chasing the man out the door and shutting it behind him. "Sorry about that, he's weird, I know."
"Don't worry about it." Izuku blushed at the earlier implication. "A relative of yours?"
"From my mother's side." She grabbed a tool off a wall rack and motioned for him to follow. "Half-sokovian."
"Sokovia…" The country's name was an old memory at the top of Izuku's head. "Is that the country with the 100% literacy rate? The one ruled by a villain turned hero?"
"That's Latveria, my dude." Mei laughed. "Sokovia's part of the Russian Federation."
Izuku blinked when they entered the next room. It was a storeroom, but Mei had converted it into a makeshift garage. Tools rested upon mobile tables, glistening with oil and worn from use. What really caught his eye was the mechanical behemoth that stood in the center of the room, held up by twin pylons of painted yellow steel. It was a canvas of gleaming metal and circuitry in the vague shape of a person, bristling with guns and missiles. A suit of power armor so well-designed that it rivaled a military-grade one. Knowing Mei, it was probably superior in every way. Snaking cables of every color lined the room, connecting the armor to the strange conical device that Kiri recognized as the H-drive Mimi had pointed out in the obstacle race.
"Wow…" Izuku whispered, completely in awe. Kiri shrugged and floated away to play with Haru.
"You like it?" Mei's grin widened at his reaction. "Baby 6012. I call it the Thunderchild."
"I can see why." Izuku eyed the tri-barrelled cannon mounted on its right forearm, like a miniature battleship turret. "Fan of the classics?"
"Hah!" Mei's eyes danced with glee. "You know it, my dude."
"This is an absolute masterpiece, Hatsume-san." Izuku circled around the machine, each new detail he discovered only increasing his respect for the pink-haired girl. "Are you sure you should be letting me see all this? I am your next opponent, you know."
"Eh, might as well." Mei shrugged. "Not much that could stand against that, is there?"
At first he thought Mei was talking about her power armor, but she tilted her chin at a screen that lowered itself from the ceiling. The dark surface flickered to life and displayed a scene recorded barely an hour ago. One eye a milky white, a halo above his head. He was an asymmetrical statue of cut glass, shattered in places, immaculate in others. Wreathed in lightning, blood and torn cloth. No sign of wings on helm nor heel, yet undoubtedly a visage of one of heaven's messengers.
Izuku chuckled nervously as Mei paused the playback of his earlier match with Todoroki, his worried expression reflected in her beautiful golden eyes. She sauntered towards him with a mischievous smile on her glossy lips.
"You show me yours and I'll show you mine." Mei smirked playfully. "Fair trade, don't you think?"
"I-I suppose so." Izuku blushed, feeling his cheeks heat up uncomfortably.
Those flustered feelings soon faded when Kiri latched onto his back, her hair unbelievably fine and soft against his cheek. A mental nudge of gratitude was sent her way with the boy thanking her for saving him from his own embarrassment.
"I don't suppose you can tell me what that was?" the pink-haired girl asked. "Some sort of super-mode, perhaps? I had a real bad case of baby fever when I saw you in action, you got me all hot and bothered! Come on, tell meeeee~"
Mei was bouncing with excitement now, eagerly clutching a notepad and pencil while taking down notes even without a word from him. Izuku tried not to back away, hands raised in surrender.
"I would if I could, Hatsume-san." Izuku said. "It's just, um, I'm not completely sure how my Quirk actually works yet. I think it has something to do with energy and the different forms it takes."
"Energy, hmm? Zenith, write that down and fetch me baby 5251! Haru, run diagnostics for the Thunderchild! We've got big game to hunt."
Her two little assistant robots beeped and went off to their respective tasks, Kiri eying how they zipped through the air like a pair of busy bees. Izuku was more concerned about that last sentence.
"U-um—"
"No need to thank me, I know you're one of those people that love a challenge. Me too!" Mei said happily, digging into a nearby toolbox. "Since you're giving it your all, I'll do the same."
"I… I see." Izuku said weakly, trying not to squeak when Zenith returned with a large cannon and attached it to the power armor's shoulder. "It's an honor match with you?"
Mei's features crinkled in amusement, and Izuku found himself blushing once when she laughed. How did she manage to look so alarmingly pretty even though she was covered in soot, oil, and grease? Girls were weird.
"I'm sure it will be fun to fight against you, Midoriya-kun. It's won't be as entertaining if I have to fight against boomboom boy or shadow edgelord, I mean, Tokoyami-san."
"You mean Bakugo-kun—"
"Yeah, them. I don't remember the names of people I don't care about, sorry not sorry."
"R-right." Izuku stammered at the implication. "May the best contestant win."
"Oh, I really don't care that much about winning or losing either. For me, it's more about making a statement."
That piqued his interest. "Ah?"
Mei tossed her multi-tool from one hand to the other, looking pleased when she heard his questioning remark. Izuku just felt as though he'd dug himself into a deeper pit.
"I'm glad you asked, Midoriya-kun. You see, I have a dream." Mei said. "To achieve that impossible dream I'll need to do well for the sports festival."
Izuku understood, nodding as he listened. Kiri was now busy playing with Haru and Zenith when they returned, the two robots entertaining her with three-dimensional holograms projected from their beady eyes. She 'swam' through the air alongside translucent pink whales and dolphins, giggling all the while.
"A dream…" Izuku looked down at his palm, forming a fist.
"Like I said before." Mei turned back to face him with a brilliant smile. "You show me yours and I'll show you mine!"
"When I was younger I was in a dark place where I thought I was worthless. I don't want anyone to experience that, so… My dream is to show everyone a brighter future. I'm prepared to devote my life to help make the world a better place! I want to save everyone, both physically and spiritually. To do so…" Izuku looked her right in the eyes, hiding nothing. "I have to show them that 'I am here'!"
"That's an admirable goal. A brighter future for everyone, huh. Rather selfless of you, devoting your life to others like that." Pink locks of hair waved back and forth when Mei nodded rapidly. "That's great! We're on a similar path, then. My dream… is to send humanity to space!"
"R-really?" Izuku eyes sparkled with wonder. "That's so cool! Space exploration… that's what everyone was working on before the rise of Quirks, right?"
"Yup! I know my dream's a bit weird though, so thanks for not laughing." she smiled lightly. "But to achieve it, there's something I'll have to do first!"
"Oh? What might that be?" he asked.
Mei took a deep breath, gold meeting green when she locked gazes with Izuku.
"I want to erase the concept of 'heroes' from our society."
[x]
"Uuuu. What do I do…"
Tsuyu couldn't help but feel pity for the poor girl splayed out before her, auburn hair pooling across cheap plastic. Ochaco lay face down on the table, one hand clutching a half-eaten mochi and looking like a depressed alcoholic. Needless to say, it was a sorry state of affairs.
"What should I do, Tsuyu-chan…" Ochaco moaned. "I didn't mean to make Kodai-san lose custody over her daughter. Uwaa…"
Tsuyu sighed, palming her cheeks with both hands.
"Ochaco-chan, don't tell me you really believe everything they said earlier. It was all wild speculation, kero."
"Even so, she and Deku-kun clearly have some sort of relationship. I think they were supposed to meet up in the finals and I… I might have unknowingly ruined their grand showdown." Ochaco mumbled, peeking up at her froggy friend. "Where did the others go?"
"Don't you remember? You fell into a state of shock, so I volunteered to stay and take care of you." Tsuyu said. "You even asked us to go on without you."
"Oh." Ochaco said glumly.
"Look," Tsuyu tried. "Why don't we just ask Midoriya-kun what's going on?"
Ochaco perked up at that, her face turning a deep cherry red. Tsuyu simply watched while she started waving her hands about in denial, desperately trying to come up with some sort of excuse.
"Ask D-deku-kun? No, no, I've already caused too much trouble for him and it'd be best that we don't stress him out before the final round of the tournament…"
"You're just afraid of the answer, aren't you."
Ochaco stopped, her form drooping like a wilting flower.
"A little."
Tsuyu suppressed a sigh. Poor Ochaco was so concerned about her friend but there was definitely more to the green-haired boy than they'd initially thought. Tsuyu would be lying if she said she wasn't curious as well.
"Then let's find out together." Tsuyu said. The brunette girl's gaze shot up nearly instantly.
"E-eh?"
"I'm kind of blunt so forgive me If I offend you, kero. Sitting around and moping isn't going to solve any problems." Tsuyu nodded, leaning back her chair. "There's a time for thought and there's a time for action, and this is one of those times."
"Which?"
"The second one, kero."
"Y-you're right." Ochaco whispered, suddenly standing with a new fire in her eyes. "You're absolutely right! We're just wasting time, aren't we? Come on, Tsuyu-chan! We've got to get to the bottom of this mystery!"
"Wait." Tsuyu paused. "Right now?"
"Of course, there's no time like the present!" Ochaco's determination erupted like a volcano, blinding Tsuyu with the newfound burst of energy. "Let's go!"