Ch. 18: What Am I?
Yaoyarozu sighed as she exited her room with a tired look on her face. The day just didn't seem to end and felt even longer after having to reassure her parents that yes, she's fine and that there was nothing to worry about. The heroes took care of them and the villains were stopped. Though, she didn't like hiding it from her parents, she kept all of the important bits to herself. She looked at the time on her phone.
'That took forty minutes? Did I miss anything?'
"Come on, Jirou, we want to talk with you!" Yaoyarozu looked to her neighbor Jirou's room to see Mina and Toru outside her door.
"Yeah, we just want to help." Silence was all that they got in response.
"I think it would be best to leave her be for now," Yaoyarozu said as she walked up to the two, "If we have to, I'll go get the Hound Dog and see if he can help."
"But seeing Jirou like this is just-"
"Hey, girls!" The three turned to see Kaminari walking up to them with an exhausted smile.
"Ah, are you all done?"
"Well, I went and talked with the guys like you asked me too and they seemed... mostly cool with it."
"Hmm, not as bad as I thought."
"Um, hey, care to fill in the two other people in the room?" Mina said with a wave of her hand between the two.
"Ah, of course," Yaoyarozu cleared her throat before continuing, "I had Kaminari here talk to all of the boys in the class to gauge what the vote will look like."
"So, what side are you two on?"
"We're all in for Midoriya staying," Kaminari said with a nod, "I mean, Bakugou literally tried blowing him up and he's still here. Midoriya only protected us. I think he deserves a chance at least."
"I'm with you, though I can't help but feel a bit on edge after seeing that quirk of his," Mina scratched her cheek as she spoke, "Or how quick he was to kill those things."
"Yeah, it was nothing like the Midori I've seen…" Toru rubbed her arm nervously while Yaoyarozu started to think about what Toru said, "Almost like he was replaced by someone else."
'Someone else? Hmm… his quirks were stolen from others so... No, that's silly,' Yaoyarozu shook her head before turning back to Kaminari, "Did anything the others say stick out?"
"Well…"
"Sero, Sato, Tokoyami, and Shoji were totally on board, "Kaminari found the four sitting in Shoji's nearly empty room. The guy had no decorations: just a bed, a desk, a computer and a small table.
"I don't know the guy that well but if the principal and All Might think he's a good guy, I'm not gonna argue with 'em," Sero said with a shrug.
"I've got respect for the strength he's got so it's best he's on our side. Wouldn't want to have to fight that if I didn't have to. I'll vote for him." Sato crossed his arms as he answered.
"His power is indeed great but he used it to stop the villains and protect our classmates," Tokoyami stated, "He may be dangerous but we all are, more or less. He should get a chance."
"I've never been one to focus on someone's past. His past is the past and it's what he does now that matters."
"Ojiro was behind him too."
"He helped Kirishima figure out a way to beat his rival in 1-B without asking for anything in return. He just did it because he was asked for help. I don't think it's him that's the problem. It's that power of his. I'll trust the teachers to help him and I'll do what I can to help too, if I can."
"Koda was… awkward…"
"Koda, do you think Midoriya should stay?" Kaminari asked, as Koda hid behind his door, only watching his classmate through a small crack between door and frame.
"..."
"Hey, it's okay, buddy. I'm not gonna judge you. I think he should stay, what about you?"
"..."
"You want me to come back later?" The door shut in Kaminari's face, leaving him empty-handed. He waited for about a minute before he sighed as he scratched his head and almost moved on to the next room before the door opened and he was handed a note.
"Midoriya scares me but I also feel bad for him. He never asked to be what he is and yet, we're all judging him on his record, his quirks, his relation with those villains. I want to believe in him so I'll give him a chance… If he doesn't use that power again with me around, thanks." Kaminari smiled at the note and gave his classmate a thumbs up.
"I'll be sure to let Midoriya know how you feel," Koda nodded as he shut the door again.
"Then… came Kirishima and Bakugou…"
"That bad?"
"No, actually."
"Wait, you're actually voting for him to stay?!" Kirishima shouted in surprise with a wide grin, "You almost blew him up in training!"
"Before, I thought he was a plant from the villains who gave him his quirks. Him being a total nerd and trying to learn everything about us only made it worse. But, in this case, I'll admit that I had it wrong. Not only is he not a mole, he wants that asshole and the rest of them dead. I can respect that much," Bakugou was going over his homework, barely looking at the two in the room. His voice was straining to keep calm as if his rage was bubbling over and he didn't want to risk making a scene, "However, this doesn't change the fact that he's a lying bastard who held himself back because he wanted to embarrass me. He used that quirk on me during training and then had the balls to lie to the whole class that he couldn't get near me when he could've ended that fight at any time."
"Wait, he used it then, too?"
"After the blast," Bakugou turned in his chair to look at Kaminari, "Tell Miss Honor Student I've got unfinished business with him and I'm not letting him leave this class until I've proven that I can beat him, all out, both sides, no. holding. back." Bakugou turned back to his homework, writing feverishly.
"Midoriya helped me with my training so I owe him one. I feel this'll make us even," Kirishima gave a nod, one that Kaminari returned.
"That leaves Todoroki and Iida,"
"Iida's downstairs with Minoru and the girls. I think he's trying to learn more about how they became friends with Midoriya. As for Todoroki…"
*Knock* *Knock* *Knock*
Kaminari knocked on the door and waited patiently for Todoroki to open up after five seconds.
"What? Did you need something," Todoroki's voice was a low monotone, though even Kaminari could tell he wasn't in a good mood by his eyes.
"Yaoyarozu asked me to check on everyone and see how they're feeling about Midoriya and what happened," Todoroki's eyebrow raised slightly for only a moment, so much so that Kaminari thought it was just a twitch.
"I've got nothing I really want to say to you on the matter."
"It's between you and Midoriya in your mind, then? Even though this affects all of us?"
"What I'm going to say to him is between me and him. Nothing more. You're free to vote however you like. I don't care. But, as a matter of principle, I can't trust someone who's willing to lie just to protect an image that isn't who he really is," Before Kaminari could respond, the door was quickly shut in his face, leaving him with more questions than answers.
"If what you're saying is true then Midoriya has all the votes he needs to stay," Yaoyarozu put a hand to her chin as she spoke as she realized how heavily favored Midoriya was.
"Right now, he does," Kaminari ruffled his hair a little as he thought about Todoroki's words, "I'm just worried about what Todoroki's gonna say, if he says anything in front of us."
"He's not wrong in a way," Mina argued, "We weren't told how dangerous he can be," she rubbed her arm anxiously, "But, maybe I'm just scared like everyone else."
"His past isn't our business but I think him having a quirk that turns him into a psychotic madman does count as our business," Toru added.
"They probably didn't want us to panic. Still, it doesn't change the fact that he saved our lives first and tried his best to protect us. That, at least, is worth something." Yaoyarozu countered. As the group was discussing, Jirou's door opened swiftly, much to their surprise.
"Can you guys keep it down. I'm trying to work here," Jirou, looking very annoyed, demanded.
"Jirou!" Mina and Toru immediately tried to hug the girl before she dodged them both, causing them to crash into each other and fall to the floor.
"Don't hug me. Though I guess I was worrying you guys for a while there."
"Are you alright?"
"I'm fine, Momo, thanks. I just… never felt that sure I was going to die before. It… It was something." She handed the deputy a drawing. It was of a red-haired boy screaming to the heavens in rage in the rain with the only light being the glow of the boy and the lightning that cracked the sky. Kaminari and the two fallen girls all gathered around to look at it.
"Is that supposed to be Midoriya?"
"That's… badass looking for sure…"
"He looks like he's about to declare war on nature itself." Jirou snickered a little at the observations.
"I'll admit, seeing him in action was metal as hell," Her smile faded as her face became more serious, "It was scary, no doubt about that but after thinking about it, Midoriya was nothing but gentle and made sure not to hurt us."
"Gentle? He picked me up by my collar."
"And set you back down instead of throwing you over the horizon for trying to electrocute him," said Yaoyarozu, causing Kaminari to concede the point.
"I think we can at least try to have faith in him, massive power be damned. After all, our teacher is Aizawa. The guy who straight up admitted he was judging who to throw out before school even started. And yet, Midoriya, with a criminal record and uncontrolled power, is still here. If that isn't a sign of faith, I don't know what is."
"Sounds like Midoriya's staying then?"
"Unless something bad happens, then it looks that way."
"Yaomomo, why'd you have to jinx it like that?"
"What do you mean it had no pulse?" Naomasa asked as he drove down to the hospital where Midoriya was being monitored.
"It's the damnedest thing too," The caller on the other line, a special physician for only the most dangerous of criminals, replied, "When it's just standing still, waiting for orders, the heart just… stops. Either that, or it becomes so subtle that even modern technology can't detect it. No breathing too. It's like it goes into shutdown. Then it receives orders and it kicks back on again, almost as if blood and air aren't really a requirement for these things. In essence, they are an affront to everything we know about physiology. I'm almost positive it's the result of a quirk of some kind." Tsukauchi stared at the red light he was waiting on as he internalized the info.
'What kind of quirk allows something like that? To live without a pulse…Just how did All For One make these things?' "But apparently, it still needs its brain."
"Well, of course. Muscles need electric signals from the brain to move and if you don't have it connected, they're not going to move on their own. Not unless they have a way to have the brain transmit powerful signals remotely. That, or a second source."
'If he can make what is ostensibly a zombie, why not a headless one?' Naomasa snarked in his head, wondering what other projects the League of Villains may have in store for them, "Well, thanks, Doc. Keep working as much as you can. We need as much info as we can on these guys."
"Well, we're still waiting on the blood results so it might be awhile before we have anything new. Especially in regards to the extra five fingers you sent." Naomasa remembered how important those fingers were. It was their only link to Shigaraki. Apparently, Kurogiri was too damaged take them with him but Tsukauchi will take it.
"Keep me posted," Naomasa hung up as he pulled into the hospital parking lot. Musutafu General Hospital. He quickly parked the car and briskly walked through the front doors to find Inko Midoriya at the front desk.
"I'm his mother and I'm not allowed to see him?" She inquired, voice carrying a hint of danger as her worry and anger boiled over.
"I'm sorry ma'am, but no civilians are allowed in the quirk wing," Naomasa walked up and presented his badge to the receptionist.
"Detective Tsukauchi, I'm here to visit Izuku Midoriya," He turned to Inko, "And it's alright, she's with me." The receptionist nodded and handed him a keycard.
"Understood, Detective. Midoriya is in Room S04."
"Thank you," Naomasa tipped his hat before motioning for Inko to follow as he walked through the lobby.
"Thank you, detective," The stout mother said with an appreciative smile as she hurried to catch up with him.
"Sorry about that. They're just following orders," he said with a chuckle.
"It's fine. As long as I get to see my son, it's not a problem." As Inko followed Naomasa, she began to notice the hallway they were walking down had no rooms at all and a lone door at the end. "What is the 'quirk wing'?"
"It's a wing of the hospital designed to treat individuals with issues caused by their quirks. Some quirks are too dangerous to take care of near the normal patients like if they had a gas quirk of some kind like Midnight's." As he spoke, the two reached the end of the hallway. He pulled out the keycard as swiped it, getting a green light and a loud *thunk* from the door unlocking, "Usually only pro heroes, police and specially trained doctors are allowed beyond this point for safety reasons but we can ignore that for now."
"They don't keep criminals here, do they?" Inko asked as they walked in and immediately saw Vlad King standing down the hall talking to Tamakawa outside of what looked like a sealed bunker.
'As if that would hold what was inside,' Naomasa thought as he looked at the room, "No, we have a separate hospital for them. Can't have them anywhere near civilians after all." Naomasa answered as the two walked up to the officer and pro.
"Detective," Vlad greeted, "Mrs. Midoriya."
"Hello again." Inko greeted him with the best smile she could.
"How is he?" Tamakawa scratched the back of his head nervously.
"Well… he's awake again…" Naomasa raised an eyebrow at his subordinate's hesitation and the stoic look on Vlad's face as he looked anywhere else didn't help matters.
"I'm sensing a 'but'."
"But… well, maybe you should just go in and see for yourself," Inko nodded and opened the door slowly.
"Izuku?" She peered her head in to see her son sitting on the edge of his bed facing a window, only to hear muffled crying. Motherly instincts kicking in, she quickly opened the door to check on her son, causing him to quickly turn around in surprise. Eyes red, with tears running down his cheeks, Izuku quickly rubbed his eyes with the ruined remains of his hero costume.
"Mom…" Before Izuku could continue, arms quickly pulled him into an embrace as his mother seemed to speed across the room to get to him faster.
"Oh, honey, are you okay?"
"Um… No… No, not really," Izuku admitted, not returning the hug but just going limp in her arms. "I… I lost control again and… I killed someone…"
"Oh, but it wasn't your fault that they attacked the school!" Inko reminded him but he just shook his head as he gently pushed out of the hug, "It was self-defense, right?" she looked to Naomasa who nodded.
"Legally speaking, yes, though it's debatable if they can even be considered alive before that," Midoriya turned to look at Naomasa in confusion as he filled them in on what the physician had told him on the way in.
"Layman's terms, they were dead before they even arrived at U.A., is that right?" Vlad scratched his chin.
"That's not all that bothers me," Izuku interrupted, drawing attention to himself, "He called them 'nomus'." Naomasa took a deep breath as he immediately realized what Izuku meant, "Was that what I was supposed to be? A mindless half-dead beast of destruction and murder, created to do nothing but follow the orders of a madman?" Naomasa shook his head as he started to talk,
"Midoriya-"
"Stop," Izuku snapped, voice dripping with anger, "I don't want to hear more 'reassurances' that I'm 'not a monster'," Izuku turned to face Naomasa, frustration and rage in his eyes, "But I saw my classmates look at me like I was one. They attacked me because I frightened them. They attacked me because they thought they were next after seeing me destroy an entire crowd of thugs. I remember every impact: the bones shattering beneath my fists, the blood they spat out afterwards, the feeling of their throats between my fingers. They thought I was going to do to them what I did to the League. Then, I cut Shigaraki's hand off and it didn't stop there," Tears began to run down his cheeks as he gripped the bedsheets, "I took that sword I stole from Jirou and drove it into that Nomu's head. I felt the blood splatter onto my hands, I heard the cries of pain from that thing, I still see flashes of watching my body murder that thing and being unable to do anything to stop it. When I killed it, it wasn't enough and I went for Shigaraki. He got away, but I only got angrier. If Mr. Aizawa hadn't stopped me, what would have happened if I ran out of Nomus? Would what happened at Hosu happen again?" The room went silent, unable to answer, "Would I try and attack my classmates, my teachers, anyone who was around, until I ran out of things to kill? If that's not a monster, what is?"
The room sat in still silence, no one moving an inch as Izuku's question hung in the air. Naomasa looked at everyone's faces, trying to decide the best course of action to dissuade Izuku's doubts and help him. Inko was struggling to think of anything to say, Tamakawa seemed lost, and Vlad had his eyes closed, deep in thought.
"Midoriya, would you like to see something?" Everyone turned to look as Vlad 's quirk produced blood out of his gauntlets and surrounded his hand. It quickly solidified into a crimson blade around it, leaving him with a sword attached to his arm, "Most kids are overjoyed to get their quirk for the first time. I wasn't. The first time I ever activated my quirk, I stabbed myself in the leg." Izuku eyebrows shot up in surprise, "I believe Thirteen told you this already but a lot of quirks can be used to kill."
"Yeah, but this is different! You have a choice! I didn't!" 'It was either use it or die because of it. It didn't give me a choice… This whole mess is all this stupid quirk's fault…'
"Do you think it's that simple in the heat of the moment with lives on the line, you naive fool?" Izuku gasped at the retort, "You're right, we do have a choice, but life isn't so kind as to allow only perfect escapes. Sometimes, it's 'bad' and 'worse'." Izuku's eyes widened as he thought about it, staring at the bed covers.
"The choice was either die or use it. I was still so angry at Shigaraki and All For One for what they did to me and Tai and what they were going to do to my classmates and teachers," Izuku looked up to face Vlad, "But even so, that only happened because I can't control it."
"So, are you just going to run away and be in fear forever, to be a threat to everyone around you? Or are you going to grapple with that fear, every day if that's what it takes, until you can control it?" Izuku stared at Vlad in contemplation as the man continued, "What happened was regrettable, but, instead of shouting blame at yourself or All For One or whoever, you pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and make sure that it never has to happen again. That you control your actions from now on, not the other way around." Naomasa smiled at the pep talk as Izuku began to relax a little, the words of the pro hero reaching him. An idea suddenly hit him.
"Midoriya, come with me. There's something I want to show you."
The emergency room was busy as nurses and doctors were quickly rushing up and down the hallways, busy tending to the sick and injured of Musutafu.
"I'm surprised how busy it is," Izuku noted as he almost bumped into a nurse. Vlad King and Tamakawa both had to leave to return to work so it was just Izuku, his mother and the detective now.
"Well, it's not like people don't get injured or ill when you're not looking," Naomasa quipped with a smile, "I wouldn't worry about it." He looked around the wall before finding the room he was looking for, "Room E102. This is the one." Naomasa opened the door to reveal Paranormal, arms in casts and bandages around his forehead, looking very anxious.
"Sis, I'm sorry-" Paranormal weakly apologized as Azurite held the phone on speaker.
"You're sorry?" A very cold and emotionless voice came through the other end, one familiar to Izuku but he couldn't place where he heard it, "You should be telling mom that so she'll calm down and stop texting me about how you're going to die and she's afraid the same thing will happen to me."
"Is she still hung up about my career choice?!"
"It's a mother's job to worry," The whole room turned to look at Inko, making her presence known, "The last thing we could ever want is to outlive our children." The three pros immediately took notice of the boy next to her, but to Izuku's surprise, they all flashed him smiles. Not smiles of pity or sympathy but genuine "happy to see you" smiles.
"Oh hey, it's the raging fanboy!" Echobat shouted happily, causing Izuku to blush a little with embarrassment.
"Hey, sis, I've got to call you back. The police are here."
"That's not what Naomi said," Izuku wondered if that was Echobat's real name as he scratched his head.
"The police are with the fanboy!" Azurite let out a loud chuckle at Paranormal's desperation.
"Okay, Reiko, you can grill him later. We really do need to cut this short," the blonde heroine explained.
'Reiko?'
"Fine, but stop making her worry. Just come talk to me when you get back at U.A,"
"I will. Love you,"
"Love you too, bye."
"That name and voice sounded familiar…" Paranormal raised an eyebrow for a second as he hung up but smiled afterwards.
"Your name's Izuku Midoriya, right?" Izuku nodded at Paranormal's question, "Ha, no wonder. Sis called you a very 'hateful' person when your team stomped her's," Suddenly, all the pieces slotted into place in his head.
"Wait, your sister is Yanagi?"
"Yep. Raahil Yanagi, Pro Hero and terrible son and brother, at your service." He looked down at his casts and laughed, "I'd shake your hand but mine are a little full at the moment." Izuku's face fell as he remembered why Paranormal was there in the first place.
"I'm sorry…"
"Stop that," Raahil ordered without dropping his smile, "This is in no way your fault. I got cocky and got my ass kicked for it. It happens."
"Like pretty much every time we have to train with him. He's a total pushover if there's more than one person to fight," Echobat quipped.
"I keep telling you: I'm a rescue hero, not a fighter," Paranormal whined.
"Be both, you lazy idiot," Azurite scolded, "I shouldn't have to backpack your ass every time a fight breaks out anymore."
Izuku started to chuckle at the three heroes, "This sounds so much like a conversation I'd have with my friends."
"Well, then they're good friends," Echobat said with a smile before Paranormal cleared his throat.
"Seriously though, I owe you one," Izuku quietly gasped at the words, "All Might told us what that guy could've done to me. I don't care if it was only because you wanted to go after that Shigaraki guy, but if you hadn't jumped in when you did, I wouldn't be joking around with my friends. They'd be picking me up with a broom and dustpan and handing me to my mom in an urn. As much as I miss my dad, I'm almost positive he doesn't want to see me right this minute."
"Of course, as heroes, we technically have to tell you that you shouldn't have gotten involved since you're unlicensed," Azurite admitted as she and Echobat stood up.
"But, as people, we thank you so much for saving our friend," Echobat and Azurite both bowed their heads in gratitude.
"Y-you don't need to thank-"
"Just accept it, kid. We don't take 'no' for an answer," Paranormal explained with a smile. Izuku scratched his check, embarrassed.
"Um… you're welcome," The two finished bowing and returned to their seats, "So, how much do you guys know?"
"Well, we weren't told anything about you but given the rumors and those cuffs they put on your wrists, we've figured out quite a bit," Azurite explained, "One of the most important tenets of being a pro is good detective work, after all."
"Right…"
"Though, again, it's all assumptions," she added.
"If you ask me, I don't care what your past is or why you're here or what kind of nonsense is going on in the background," Paranormal began, "As far as I'm concerned, I think you've got what it takes to be a great hero someday."
"You think so?"
"I know so. After all, you've already got three believers right here."
"Not to mention me, Eri, and all your friends back at school," Inko reassured with a hug, "No matter what you may think of yourself, or what those people had planned for you, you're my son and that will never change." Izuku finally melted into his mother's warm hug and returned it, smiling.
"I hope we're not interrupting anything." Everyone turned to look at the doorway to see Nezu and the skeleton man himself, Yagi.
"We can come back later if you need a moment."
"N-no, it's fine, really," Izuku said quickly, "What are you two doing here?"
"Ah yes, I should explain…" As Yagi shut the door to keep prying ears away, Nezu quickly informed every one of the current situation involving Class 1-A and U.A., including the vote involving Izuku's status as a member of the class and school being canceled the next day.
"Not gonna lie, I thought they'd be angrier to learn their class rep was secretly a criminal and escaped bioweapon. I thought expulsion would be the least of my worries and even that's not happening."
"Though considering you gave a good scare today, their hesitation is at least understandable," Nezu reasoned, to which Izuku could only chuckle, more from surprise then anything.
"Yeah, no doubt. I'm amazed they're not calling for me to be thrown out right now."
"I can only think you have Young Eri and your friends to thank for that. They're trying to get everyone to believe in you as we speak."
"Ha, they really are great friends," Paranormal said with a smile, "Wish these two would go to bat for me like that." Azurite and Echobat smirked at each other.
"We would, but it's hard to justify half the crap you do."
"Like that one time you rigged the toilet with a brown paint bomb." Paranormal just laughed.
"Ah, good memories. That third year had it coming so bad. I didn't even care if I had to clean that bathroom!"
"They sure know how to kill all tension in the room," Yagi noted, earning a chuckle from Nezu.
"That's one of their best qualities," Nezu turned back to Izuku, "So, what do you think?"
"It all makes sense to me but it probably means I won't be staying at 1-A." Izuku's words surprised Nezu, who tilted his head, puzzled.
"What do you mean? By all accounts, I'd say the chances are fairly high for you staying."
"What I mean is this: If a single person votes for me to leave, I'm leaving."
"Wait, you can't be serious!" Paranormal shouted, "You're going to let just one person decide that?!"
"I've already caused the entire class so much trouble already. They'd have to be the toughest people I've ever met to not at least have nightmares about me beheading them in their sleep after what I did," Yagi nodded as he listened.
"You believe that if it isn't unanimous, you'll just cause a rift in the class."
"Oh…" Paranormal calmed down as he understood.
"Right. I mean, if that one vote's Bakugou's… I'm not gonna lose sleep over it but everyone else is a different story. They haven't tried to blow me up yet."
"Do we want to know the context of that?" Echobat whispered to her friends.
"Shh."
"So, when am I returning to campus?"
"As soon as possible, preferably. I'd rather get your situation sorted out so we can focus on the League." Izuku nodded as he took a deep breath and readied himself.
"Well, no time like the present, I guess. If I don't do it now, I might lose my nerve and have to be dragged into this." Yagi chuckled a little.
"Well said."
"Good luck, kid," Paranormal spoke as the Midoriyas, Yagi and Nezu all walked over to the door,
"We'll be rooting for ya," Echobat added.
"We expect good news when we come back," Azurite finished.
"Thanks, guys, that means a lot/ I think I'll visit tomorrow since I'll need to talk to Aizawa so I'll stop by then." Izuku waved goodbye as he shut the door.
"Speaking of him, I need to get an update on his condition so I'll be staying behind. Yagi, I'll leave it to you. Let me know how the vote goes."
"I'll take care of it, sir," Yagi said with a thumbs up and a wide grin.
As Nezu watched Yagi escort the Midoriya's to be released, Present Mic walked out of the room next to Paranormal's.
"Oh, Principal Nezu! You hear to check on Aizawa too?" Nezu nodded with a smile.
"Him, Thirteen and Paranormal. They're all deserving of my time after all."
"I hear ya. Too bad Aizawa didn't want to hear me. The second I walked in, he asked the doc to load him up with the strongest drugs they could to knock him out. Can you believe he would say that to his best friend?!"
"Are we talking about the same Aizawa?" Back with Yagi and Midoriya, Yagi slyly handed Izuku a note to him, one the boy quickly hid away from his mother to read later.
Back at the dorms, Iida was busy listening to Minoru's story.
"And that's how I learned to swim." *Pop* All five turned to the door to see Izuku pop in, handcuffs off his wrists but still in his destroyed costume. Yagi and Inko at his side.
"I'm back from the hospital."
"Ah… Midoriya… Um…" Iida struggled to think of what to say but he wouldn't get much time to find his words.
"BIG BRO!" Eri shouted as she ran into Izuku's arms, being lifted up into a hug.
"Hey, sis, sorry I'm late,"
"You're okay! I heard what happened and…" Izuku could see his sister's teary-eyed look and could only hug her tighter.
"Hey, hey, it's okay. I'm fine. They didn't even scratch me."
"But your clothes-"
"Are replaceable. Do I look injured to you?"
"No…"
"No. Don't worry, everything will be fine. Just watch," Izuku turned to his classmates, all of whom were smiling.
"Geez, you two are so sweet together, you could give me diabetes just looking at you," Minoru said jokingly, earning giggles from Tsu and Ochako.
"I'll get started on dinner. You all must be getting hungry," Inko quickly excused herself.
"Who are you, sir?" Iida asked Yagi, who quickly introduced himself and why he was there. "All Might's secretary? I wasn't aware he had one."
"I prefer it that way. It lets me walk around in the daytime without being accosted by his fans every minute," Yagi said with a smile.
"Ah," Iida nodded before returning his gaze to Izuku, "Midoriya, I'm so-"
"Can you hold that thought for a minute, Iida? I think we should get our business over with so we can all move on with our lives."
"Right, we'll go get everyone," Minoru nodded as he, Iida, and the girls all got up to head upstairs.
"You should probably change, Izu," *pop* costume off, *pop* uniform on. "Or you could just do that. That works too," Tsu snarked, watching Ochako's blushing reaction to seeing Izuku in his underwear for a brief moment with mild annoyance. 'It's cute sometimes but it's not right now.' Tsu wiggled her friend's ear to get her attention, causing her to bashfully follow up the rear as the two girls went to get the rest.
After everyone gathered in the common room, an uncomfortable silence hung in the air. Everyone was staring at Izuku wondering what he was going to do.
They probably weren't ready for him to get on his knees and bow.
"I'm so sorry for what happened today." Izuku began, "I'm sorry for hiding what I am and having you all find out like this. I'm sorry you guys had to see me lose control of myself and… what happened to the nomus but I'm most sorry about scaring you guys like I did. Kaminari, Yaoyarozu, Jirou, I probably can't apologize enough for what I did to you guys that you felt you had to defend yourselves from me. But I really am sorry for everything." As Izuku finished, the class just looked at each other, unsure of what to say to him.
"If none of you have anything to say or ask, I think it's time to vote." The class turned to look at Todoroki, his face unreadable.
"Didn't you have something to say to him?" Kaminari asked.
"I said that what I needed to say was between me and him. No one else in this room needs to hear what I have to say and it has no bearing on my choice and it shouldn't have any on yours." The class was confused but let it go.
"I do have something to say though," Jirou began, catching the group by surprise. "Midoriya, pick your head up. You look silly down there." Izuku's head rose quickly to look at her as he stopped bending over. Jirou had a small smile as she fiddled with one of her earphone jacks. "You gave us a good scare but, in the end, you saved our butts so I'm willing to call it an even trade. So, apology accepted and thanks."
"While that 'Rage Shroud' of yours is frightening, you were still able to make sure we weren't hurt by your actions." said Yaoyarozu.
"Nezu told us the gist of what happened so I can understand why you became a thief even if I don't agree with it. I'm willing to give you a chance," Kaminari added as he pulled out the note from Kota, "And I'm not the only one." Izuku took the note and read it, smiling at what it said and giving Kota a nod. Izuku looks at the rest of the class to see mostly smiles of encouragement.
"Well, if everyone's got what they wanted to say out, it's time to vote. Should Young Midoriya stay or should he leave." Yagi walked around and handed out pieces of paper to everyone to write on with Yaoyarozu supplying the pens from her arms. Izuku took a seat and waited anxiously. He was going to keep his promise if one person voted against him. Better he leaves than cause more problems. Yagi quickly collected the slips and began to count them. After counting, he turned to face the class, face confused.
"Huh, didn't think I'd see that,"
"What's up, Mr. Yagi," Ochako asked before the secretary placed all the sheets on the table. Izuku's eyes widened as he read them all.
"Yes" written down nineteen times. A unanimous vote in his favor.
"You… you all voted for me?" Izuku looked over at Bakugou, "Even you, Bakugou?"
"Don't get any ideas. I still plan on beating you and proving I'm better. I just want to make sure you aren't getting better training than I am so when I beat you, there'll be no questions left about who's better." Izuku smirked, unable to help himself.
"Aw, you do care…" Bakugou wanted to explode but just barely managed to hold himself back as he glared at Izuku with everything he had.
"I DEAL. WITH YOU. LATER." He growled through gritted teeth as he immediately stomped upstairs, a good chunk of the class chuckling and giggling at Bakugou's antics. It was a noticeable improvement compared to when the week started. The class all started congratulating Izuku on his return to the class. Izuku grinned at his classmates.
"Thanks guys. I promise, I'm done running from my past or what I am. No more lies. If you want to know anything, just ask."
"Well, now that you mention it… What was it like fighting a Yakuza like that guy that was torturing Eri?" As Izuku began, Kaminari walked up to Todoroki as he was turning to leave.
"Todoroki, I thought you said you couldn't trust liars."
"Who said I trust him? However, like I said before, my problem with him has no bearing on my vote."
"Then why let him stay?" Todoroki began walking away, leaving Kaminari behind.
"The vote was meaningless. All it changed is whether he gets special training or not. Frankly, I'd rather not let him get ahead of me because he got better training than me." Kaminari nodded, understanding at least that much. Though he had to wonder, why was he so fixated on Midoriya's lying?