Chapter 3
A couple of years later…
"Momo? Do you even know where we are?" Izuku questioned as he followed Momo through the dense woods behind their home. They had finished their schooling for the day and training was cut short after the teacher was called out for an emergency. Momo had suggested going for an adventure through the woods behind their home; having done it so many times in the past, Momo could remember her favorite paths like the back of her hand.
"Of course I do, Izuku." Momo slowed down to walk beside Izuku as he looked at the map. She giggled as she realized Izuku's mistake. "You're holding the map upside down again."
"Again?" Izuku exclaimed a little frustratedly. He grumbled to himself quietly, turning the map rightside up again, before slumping his shoulders. "I don't know how I keep flipping it upside down."
"Reading a map isn't as easy as it looks." Momo explained before pointing to a section on the map, showing a hidden path through the woods. "We're right about here." They were close enough to brush shoulders, but neither minded, enjoying the closeness.
"You weren't even looking at the map!" Izuku exclaimed, holding the map out in front of him before looking up towards where the hidden path apparently lay ahead of them. "How do you even know where we are?"
"See this tree here?" Momo pointed to the map, indicating a tree that had a symbol on it. At Izuku's nod, she turned around and pointed towards the tree behind them. "That's the same tree that's on the map."
Izuku turned around and looked towards the tree. He was about to ask Momo how she knew which trees were which before he noticed the red ribbon that was tied to the branches above their heads. "So the trees are marked, similarly to the trees on the map." Izuku looked down at the map to find that the tree Momo had pointed at showed red ribbons wrapped around the trunk.
Looking towards the next tree on the map, he found that it should have blue ribbons. Looking back towards where they were walking, Izuku looked at all the taller trees along the path, spotting a larger tree in the distance with blue ribbons. "That should be where we head next, right?"
Momo followed where he was pointing, seeing that the tree with blue ribbons was in front of them. She smiled and nodded. "That's the next landmark on the path."
"Landmark? But it's in a tree?" Izuku questioned, looking towards his friend.
Momo giggled. "Sayuri explained that landmarks are meant to stand out from each other, helping with finding our way." Momo looked ahead of them, seemingly searching for something before she spotted it. "See that bridge up there?" Momo questioned as she pointed towards the custom bridge that Father had built for them to cross the stream that ran through their property.
Izuku stood on the tips of his toes, moving his head back and forth, looking for the bridge that Momo was pointing towards. Momo giggled beside him, causing him to look over and see her watching him, resulting in him glaring back at her. "It's not funny! You're taller than me!" Momo continued to giggle as Izuku stopped looking for the bridge. "I can't wait until we get older and I'm taller than you!"
"If you get taller than me." Momo responded, still smiling towards Izuku, causing him to let out a frustrated sigh. "Come on, once we move closer to the next landmark, we should be able to see the bridge!" Momo reached out and grabbed Izuku's hand, pulling him along behind her.
"Whoa!" Izuku exclaimed, as he tried to keep up with Momo. "You're too fast, Momo! I'm going to fall!"
"Well hurry up, slowpoke!" Momo responded, letting go of Izuku's hand and slowing down a bit to dance in front of him. "I can't wait to show you my bridge!"
"Be careful, Momo! You're getting too close to the stream!" Izuku exclaimed, a worried look on his face as he continued to watch Momo dance in front of him gracefully.
"You worry too much, Izuku!" Momo responded with a smile still dancing on her lips. "I know these paths like the back of my-" Momo cut off suddenly as she stepped too close to the stream, the ground beginning to let go below her foot.
"MOMO!" Izuku called out, rushing forward to grab her hand.
Momo reached out to grab Izuku's hand before her foot fell further into the mud, causing her to lose her balance and fall over. She tumbled down the short bank, landing in the shallow water below, rubbing her head and wincing.
"MOMO!" Izuku called out as he slid down the stream bank, coming to a stop right in front of her. "Are you alright?" He questioned, holding out his hand before freezing in place.
"Whoa!" The boy called out in front of him, losing his balance on the log and slipping over the edge. Izuku watched his best friend fall and splash in the water, and he reacted without even thinking about it, worried about his friend.
"Kacchan fell in." The red-winged boy said, looking into the water below.
"Hey. You okay?" The one that could extend their fingers questioned next from the top of the log, not moving from their spot.
"I bet he's fine. Kacchan's so strong." The first one continued, kneeling down on the log to get a better look.
"Get back up here, man!" The second one called out, seeing Katsuki's head pop up from the water.
"Oh. Yeah, I'm okay…" Katsuki started as he looked up and found Izuku standing in front of him, holding out his hand, offering his help.
"Need help? Can you stand?" He remembered himself asking, hand still outstretched in front of him. "Hope you didn't hit your head!"
"Izuku?!" Momo called out as she grabbed Izuku's hand. "Izuku, can you hear me?"
"Momo?" Izuku questioned, looking down at their joined hands. "Where are we?" He questioned quietly, looking at Momo who was still sitting in the water in front of him.
"We're at home, in the woods." Momo explained, pulling herself up with Izuku's help. "What happened? You held out your hand and then you froze."
"I…" Izuku started as he tried to think about what actually happened. He remembered his friend falling, and he remembered jumping down the stream bank to help them. He remembered holding out his hand, but it was knocked away before his vision was full of an Explosion. "I don't know. All I remember is trying to help a friend and he got really mad at me." Izuku said quietly, looking up to Momo to see concern in her eyes.
"Oh, Izuku." Momo said, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him into a hug. "Was this one of those people that used to bully you?"
"I think so." Izuku responded, hugging Momo back tighter as the memory floated around his head. "I don't remember…" He felt Momo hug him tighter until he felt something along his arm, causing him to pull back from the hug. Izuku gasped as he saw the blood on Momo's elbow. "Momo! You're bleeding!"
"Am I?" Momo questioned, moving her arms around and seeing the blood that was dripping down her elbow. "Oh, I guess I am."
"We need to get back to the house so you can get looked at!" Izuku exclaimed, grabbing Momo's other hand and pulling her back up the stream bank. Momo allowed Izuku to help her up the slippery sides before he threw Momo's arm over his smaller shoulders, half carrying her back towards the house.
"Thank you, Izuku." Momo said fondly as they walked back towards the house. They took longer to get back, Momo feeling the pain of her fall after the adrenaline wore off, and starting to lean on Izuku for more support.
"You're welcome, Momo." Izuku responded, feeling Momo's weight shift and noticing her starting to limp. Not willing to let his friend down, he hoisted more of her weight on him and pushed forward, allowing Momo to guide them back out of the forest. It took them much longer to get out of the woods, not realizing how far they had actually got.
When they finally reached the treeline, Izuku called out for the servants, causing them to come running. One of them picked up Momo and carried her the rest of the way to the house, while another guided Izuku back, questioning him if they were okay. He watched her go as long as he could. He sighed in relief when she turned to wave just before going inside, then finally went with the servant that was helping him.
After getting up early, putting on a fresh change of clothes and getting something in their stomachs, the group of four set out at the crack of dawn towards Tokyo. Izuku had come up to their parents the week before, telling them about a convention coming up. He'd seen on the forums that it was rumored All Might would be making an appearance. Knowing how hard Izuku and Momo had worked on their studies and training, they splurged and bought tickets for the family. What the kids didn't know was that they would be able to meet several top heroes if they appeared, their Gold-level tickets granting them VIP access.
Inko and Miyuki could only smile at how excited their two children were to go to the hero convention. Miyuki had mentioned that Momo wasn't too interested in heroes in the past, but ever since Izuku had come into her life, it was as if Momo had completely changed her outlook. Inko had smiled and said that Izuku was infectious like that, having done the same thing to her when he was younger; she proudly proclaimed that she could list off facts about All Might almost as well as Izuku could.
Once the limousine had hit the highway towards Tokyo, Izuku and Momo quickly found themselves falling asleep while leaning into each other. Inko and Miyuki were squealing with joy on the inside, both of them taking out their phones and taking pictures, sending them in the group chat that included Yuukichi. Both mothers talked about how Izuku and Momo had changed over the past few years. Their little ones were ten years old now, and everyone could see how much they'd started sprouting up in size, with Momo still towering over Izuku (much to his chagrin).
After reaching their destination, Inko was tasked with waking up their children while Miyuki went to verify their tickets. When Miyuki shut the car door, it caused Izuku and Momo to stir in their sleep, curling up into each other even more. Inko just couldn't resist taking out her phone again and taking a picture, sending it off into the group chat quickly, before waking up both children.
Once they had entered the convention itself, Izuku had grabbed Momo's hand and pulled her along with him, causing her to giggle at his excitement as the parents followed closely behind. They stopped at every booth possible, with Izuku pointing out everything he knew about the hero, while Momo listened intently. When they had come across the biggest booth at the convention, Izuku pulled Momo along into the booth, stopping in the middle and admiring how big the All Might display was.
"Momo! Momo! Look!" Izuku pulled on Momo's hand again, getting her attention and pointing at the object currently winning the battle for his attention. "They have a life sized version of All Might! Let's go look at it!"
"Okay, okay! Just don't pull my arm out of my socket!" Momo exclaimed, causing Izuku to stop instantly and let go of her hand.
"Are you okay? I didn't hurt you did I?" Izuku questioned, looking at Momo in concern. "I know I get a little excited when it comes to heroes, I didn't even think about how I was dragging you along."
"A little?" Momo questioned, handing her smile behind her hand, her eyes giving away her playfulness.
"Okay! I get carried away a lot!" Izuku exclaimed, as he gestured with his hands. He took a step closer to Momo, looking between her shoulder and her face, concern back in his eyes. "But did I hurt you? Please tell me I didn't."
"I'm okay, Izuku." Momo dropped her hand that was hiding her smile, allowing Izuku to finally see it. "You didn't hurt me."
"Oh, thank the Gods." Izuku sighed in relief as he closed his eyes. After relaxing a bit, he opened his eyes to find Momo watching him still with a smile, causing him to smile back. He reached down, and much lighter than before, grabbed Momo's hand again. "I still want to see how big All Might really is."
"Lead the way, Izuku." Momo responded, allowing herself to be dragged along behind Izuku again.
Unbeknownst to the kids, Inko and Miyuki were constantly taking photos of them, making sure to keep Yuukichi updated on what was happening. They both commented about how their two children looked to be dating already, with Izuku and Momo holding hands all the time. After getting their pictures taken with the lifesize All Might figure that stood tall and proud inside the All Might booth, the parents asked the kids if they were hungry.
"After getting dragged around by Izuku all day, I would like to have something to eat before we return home." Momo said, sitting beside Izuku on a bench while their parents stood in front of them. They were still in the hero convention, having just finished the marathon of all the different hero booths that Izuku had dragged them to, and were planning on heading home soon.
"I said I was sorry!" Izuku exclaimed, covering his face with his hands in embarrassment.
Momo poked him in the side, causing him to squeal a bit. "I told you it was fine, Izuku. I had fun today." Momo smiled at her friend, allowing his blush to slowly disappear, as he smiled back towards her. "I knew All Might was huge, but goodness, I didn't expect him to be that big!"
"He stands at two hundred and twenty centimeters! He's one of the tallest heroes without a mutant quirk!" Izuku replied, excited to be talking about his favorite hero again. "Did you know-"
Izuku was about to continue when he was cut off from a grumble from Momo's stomach, causing her eyes to go wide before she brought her hands up to her face. "Oh, my goodness. That is so embarrassing." She said quietly, her face flushed with chagrin.
"Why?" Izuku questioned, titling his head slightly as Momo looked back up towards him. "You told me before that your quirk uses body fat to create stuff, which would only mean that your diet is going to be higher than normal." Izuku brought up his finger to his chin, thinking back throughout the day. "If I remember correctly, we haven't had anything to eat since before we left the house early this morning. Which means you're probably starving right about now." As if on cue, Momo's stomach grumbled again.
Izuku looked from Momo's protesting stomach up towards Momo again to see that her cheeks were still glowing scarlet. "Mom?" Izuku questioned as he looked towards Inko. "Do they have the famous Might Burger here?"
"I believe we passed the restaurant on the way in, which means it's on the way back to the limousine." Inko questioned with a smile on her face. "Is that where you wanted to stop?"
Izuku turned back to Momo, seeing her looking between Inko and Izuku. "Have you ever had a cheeseburger? I know the chefs usually only cook healthier foods."
Momo thought about it for a moment, looking towards Miyuki. "I don't think I have?"
"What?!" Miyuki exclaimed. "We've never had cheeseburgers at home?!"
"Not since we moved in." Inko commented, causing Miyuki to look at her in shock.
"We gotta change that instantly! Come on, kids! Let's go get ourselves a Might Burger!" Miyuki exclaimed, grabbing the kids' hands and dragging them up, pulling them along back to the entrance. "Come on, Inko! I haven't had a Might Burger in years!" Inko giggled behind the three of them, following along closely behind.
Miyuki had enthusiastically dragged the four of them over towards the Might Restaurant, commenting about how All Might didn't know how to name any of his businesses or other merchandise. She even listed the few things she knew off the top of her head just by listening to Izuku talk about his favorite hero. "'Might Tower', 'Might Restaurant', 'Might Energy', even 'Might Clothing'! Does everything have to be related to 'Might something'?"
"Actually, it's been proven an effective marketing strategy setup by All Might's promotional department. By having 'Might' in all of his brands and businesses, people from around the world would be able to recognize it." Izuku responded cheerfully.
Miyuki deadpanned at him. "He could have changed a few things. Look at this!" Miyuki gestured towards the food that was being dropped in front of them. "'Might Burger', 'Might Fries', 'Might Drink'. I think it would sound better if he called them the 'Mighty Burger', or 'Mighty Fries', or 'Mighty Drink'..."
"You realized after you said those, they didn't sound as good." Inko smiled towards her friend, nodded and looked away.
"This is the 'Might Burger'?" Momo questioned as she picked up the massive burger that was on the plate. It was covered in cheese, but also piled high with other toppings like tomato, onions, lettuce, and various condiments which threatened to escape containment. "This is huge!"
Izuku chuckled from beside her, also grabbing the massive burger and holding it up. "It's as big as my head!" Izuku looked over at Momo seeing that she was still eyeing the size of the burger in her hands. "I bet you can't eat it all, Momo."
Momo closed her mouth, turning her head to look at Izuku with a raised eyebrow. "Is that a challenge, Mini Might?"
He pulled back in surprise before setting his shoulders. "Do you accept, or are you chicken?" Izuku smirked back.
"Oh, you're on, Izuku!" Momo exclaimed.
Izuku and Momo both dived in head first, trying to eat around the rim of the massive burger before working their way to the center. Miyuki and Inko looked on in amazement as both kids started devouring the burger like it was nothing, constantly taking pictures just so they can remember how messy they were getting in the process. By the time that Momo was done and licking her fingers, Izuku had forfeited the challenge, claiming Momo as the winner.
"You only won because of your quirk." Izuku groaned, forehead resting on the cool table below, as the waiter came back with to-go boxes for the rest of their food.
"Is that complaining I hear?" Momo held up her hand to her ear, leaning towards Izuku with a smile on her face. "It sounds like you bite off more than you could chew."
"I want a rematch!" Izuku said, lifting his head off the table, instantly regretting his actions. "But maybe some other day…" He groaned out again, placing his head back on the table. "It feels like I've eaten three times my stomach size."
Momo reached over and started rubbing his back, causing him to sigh in content with how good it felt. "You shouldn't have challenged me. You knew what happened last time."
"I thought I could beat you this time." Izuku admitted, closing his eyes. "I've been doing the same training as you for years now."
"Are you kids ready to go?" Miyuki questioned after she came back from paying the bill.
"We might have to carry Izuku out." Inko commented with a smile as she stood beside Miyuki.
"I'll be fine…" Izuku groaned, pushing himself to his feet, stumbling a few steps.
"I got you, Izuku." Momo said, throwing her arm around him to keep him steady. "Nice and easy now."
"Thanks, Momo." Izuku responded, putting more weight onto Momo and leaning his head against her shoulder.
The walk back to the car wasn't very long, but the plethora of pictures that Miyuki and Inko had taken of the two could easily go on for kilometers. When the two kids had gotten into the limousine, Izuku stayed leaning up against Momo, instantly falling asleep against her shoulder. Momo didn't mind, sinking back into the seat of the car a bit, leaning her head against Izuku and following him into dreamland not long after.
"Come on, Izuku!" Momo called out as they ran through the house in search of the massive entertainment room that was located within the Yaoyorozu Estate. They'd only been there a few times in the last few months, usually watching a movie together when they had some free time off school work or when training was canceled. They were given the day off today when their teacher had been granted leave to see their son off on a trip to London, and Momo had wanted to take full advantage of the situation.
"I'm coming, Momo!" Izuku called out from behind, chasing her through the hallways and slipping by servants. When he was searching for movies for one of their scheduled movie nights, he had found multiple sets of movies from the pre-quirk days that sounded like they both would enjoy.
When they entered the entertainment room, they were greeted with a massive repository of pillows and blankets spread throughout the room. Knowing they had the day off, Momo had requested the servants to bring all the pillows and blankets they could spare because she had wanted to build a pillow fort, having read about it in one of her books. Izuku had wholeheartedly agreed (having read the same book), and was looking forward to spending time with his best friend outside of classes and training.
"Whoa!" Momo called out, echoed by Izuku right beside her. She turned towards Izuku with wide eyes and her mouth slightly open. "We can build a mansion with all these!" Momo reached over, grabbing Izuku's hand and jumping into the massive ocean of pillows, sinking almost out of sight. Picking up one pillow each, and simultaneously having the same idea, Momo and Izuku started whacking each other with their pillows. Joyous laughter could be heard from both of them as they started picking up other pillow-shaped ammunition and throwing them towards the other, all while trying to block the incoming fluffy projectiles.
"Time out, time out!" Izuku called, having just thrown his last pillow towards Momo, as he collapsed into the still impressive mass of pillows that surrounded him. Momo walked towards him, finding him panting hard as he looked up towards the ceiling.
Smiling down towards Izuku, Momo turned around and fell into the pillows right beside him. "That was much harder than a training exercise." Momo admitted, also trying to catch her breath.
"No kidding." Izuku responded. "We were supposed to be building a pillow mansion, not having a massive pillow fight." Izuku looked over towards Momo to find her watching him with a smile. "It was fun though."
Momo nodded in agreement. "What movies did you end up finding? You were really excited to show me, but wouldn't even give me a hint as to what they were!" Momo exclaimed, gesturing in the air with her hands, something she picked up from Izuku over the years.
Izuku laughed as Momo finished gesturing, turning her pout towards him. "Okay, okay!" Izuku said, causing Momo's pout to turn back into a smile. "When I was searching for movies, I happened to come across this production studio that looked like it had amazing animation. They were from pre-quirk days, but they were recently found on the HeroNet, having been uploaded years ago but lost in time." Izuku dug out his phone before showing Momo. "They were called Dreamworks Animation, and the movies they produced seemed really interesting!"
Momo was feeding off the energy that Izuku was emitting, getting her excited for the movies that Izuku had found. "What were they about?"
"One of the series was called 'How To Train Your Dragon' while the other one was called 'Kung Fu Panda'." Izuku scrunched up his nose in seemingly disgust, pulling his phone back to change what he was showing. "They also had one called Shrek, but after reading about it and seeing a short clip, it doesn't look like something we'd be interested in."
When Izuku showed Momo his phone again, she could see this big green creature that looked nothing like a human, even with a mutant quirk. "What is it?" Momo questioned, looking at the short video that was playing.
"They called it an ogre, but it appeared to be something of myth back before pre-quirks." Izuku commented as he pulled the phone away. "If you want to watch it, I have them downloaded."
"I don't think I'm interested in watching something like that." Momo said, causing Izuku to nod in agreement. "Let's watch the other two movies you found first, and if we have time, we can try out the first few minutes of Shrek." Momo moved to get up and found she was sucked in by the pillows, watching as Izuku easily pushed himself up to his feet. "A little help, please?" Momo questioned quietly, embarrassment dusting her cheeks.
Izuku turned back around to find Momo trapped within the pillows, causing him to double over laughing at her. "Oh my goodness, Momo! You look like you're being devoured by pillows!" Momo pouted back up towards Izuku, causing him to double down on his laughter as he pulled out his phone. Taking a quick picture before reaching in and pulling Momo out of the pillow.
"It's not funny." Momo said annoyedly, pouting and crossing her arms.
Izuku stopped laughing, looking towards his friend. "I'm sorry, Momo." He responded, taking a step towards her and giving her a hug. Momo continued to pout, but couldn't find a reason to stay mad at her friend, instead throwing her arms back around him and hugging him back.
"It's okay, Izuku." Momo responded, pulling out of the hug in the process. "At least let me see the photo you took."
Izuku nodded, opening up his photo app and handing the phone to Momo. She clicked on the most recent photo that he had taken, showing herself being devoured by pillows. She raised her hand and covered her mouth, hiding the smile behind it. Izuku noticed her telltale sign of her smiling to herself, causing him to pout towards her. "So now that you see the photo, it's funny?"
"I'll admit, it's a bit funny." Momo responded, giving the phone back to Izuku. She watched as Izuku put the phone away before looking behind him and seeing the hole she was just pulled out of. She smirked, a plan already forming in her head. "Izuku?" Momo questioned, causing him to look at her in question. As soon as he noticed her smirk, he knew something was up but before he had time to react Momo had pushed him into the same crevasse she had just been rescued from.
"Whoa!" Izuku called out as he landed in the hole. "Momo!" Izuku called out in surprise, causing Momo to laugh at his dilemma. Izuku tried to pull himself out of the massive mound of pillows that surrounded him, but couldn't get a good enough grab. Momo doubled down in laughter, seeing Izuku in the same predicament she was just in. Izuku looked up towards Momo and grinned, enjoying the sound of her cheerful laughter.
After Momo had recovered and caught her breath, she decided to take a picture similar to his, but Izuku decided to smile in his portrait. Momo looked at the photo for a moment, cherishing her luck in finding a friend like Izuku, before pulling him out of the pillow trap. They both cleaned up the pillows they had thrown around the room before getting started on making a pillow mansion.
"A beautiful castle for a king and queen." Izuku said after they were done, admiring the work they put into it. "Go get comfortable Momo, I'll get the movie started."
Momo nodded, moving into a spot that she had made specifically for herself, located right beside the spot Izuku had made for himself. Looking over her shoulder and seeing that Izuku was distracted, she quickly scooted their spots closer together, knowing they would be more comfortable.
Smiling down at her quick work, she slowly sunk into the pillows and waited for Izuku to join her. Once the movie actually started, Izuku moved over towards where Momo was sitting. He took a quick glance at how close their spots were but shrugged his shoulders and sat down.
It wasn't long until the two of them were leaning against each other, lost in the story of a boy learning how to train a dragon, befriending it and saving his village along the way. Momo had commented how she loved how the boy's love interest was portrayed, someone who was strong and rugged in all the right ways, who also enjoyed the softness and smarts of the main character. By the time they had finished the third movie, both Izuku and Momo were heartbroken, watching the main characters send their dragons off to protect them.
Izuku looked over to see Momo tearing up a little. In an effort to cheer her up he said, "today was really fun. Next time we've got a day off together, you want a rematch?"
She wiped away the moisture and grinned, a spark lighting her eyes from within. "You're on!" All sadness was forgotten as she grabbed a handy nearby pillow and shoved it into his face, muffling the "Hey! Not yet!" Izuku squeaked out.
Chapter 4
"Nervous?" Momo questioned Izuku as she did his tie. The two of them were approaching the middle of their teenage years, a year away from applying to UA together, and Momo had asked if Izuku wanted to come to one of their family parties. Inko was going to be there with her parents, having already agreed well in advance.
"A bit, yeah." Izuku answered honestly. He had learned how to tie his own tie years ago from Yuukichi, but Momo had always insisted on tying it for him, and he would never turn down someone else tying his tie. "It's been a while since I've been to a party like this. I still don't know how to act or anything."
"Just be yourself, Izu." Momo smiled as she finished the tie, raising it up and choking him a bit, before she pulled it back down. Izuku glared at her, while Momo just giggled at his reaction. "You don't have to impress anybody, it's a party that we're meant to enjoy, just like any other."
"But it's a party with all your parents' rich friends! It's not just a normal party, Mo." Izuku responded, smiling up at her. They had shortened each other's names years ago during sparring one day, and it felt so comfortable that they continued to use them throughout the years.
"You worry too much." Momo responded, stepping back from him. "How do you like my dress?"
"Beautiful." Izuku responded honestly. "I don't think a dress could look bad on you, Mo."
"Well, you clean up well yourself, Izu." Momo responded just as honestly. "That tie works really well with your eyes and hair."
"You think so?" Izuku questioned, looking at the floor to ceiling mirror that Momo had in her room. "I still don't like wearing a suit much, no matter how many times people say I look good in it. Just feels so constraining."
"That's because you're used to wearing your workout clothes everyday." Momo responded, moving to stand beside Izuku so they could look at each other in the mirror. "I think it looks really good on you."
"Thanks, Mo." Izuku smiled towards her reflection, causing Momo to smile back.
"You kids ready?" Inko questioned, poking her head into the room. "You two look fabulous!" Inko had pushed the door open a bit more, revealing Yuukichi and Miyuki standing with her.
"They're all grown up!" Miyuki cried out dramatically, throwing herself in her husband's arms, forcing him to catch her. "Just yesterday, they were meeting for the first time!"
"Don't be so dramatic, Mother." Momo giggled at her antics. "Father, is the party starting soon?"
"The party doesn't start until we walk in." Yuukichi said simply, receiving a groan in response from Momo and Izuku, not realizing what he just said. "What'd I say?"
"Just a prequirk song that was recently remastered, Dear." Miyuki stated, standing back up straight again. Yuukichi looked at her in confusion. "Don't worry about it. Anyways!" Miyuki said, turning back around to look at the teenagers. "What your Father meant to say was that the party has started, and the guests are just waiting for our entrance."
"I guess we're ready?" Izuku questioned, looking towards Momo and getting a nod in response. "Lead the way!"
Yuukichi and Miyuki started walking towards the ballroom they normally hosted their parties in, with Inko following right behind them, and Izuku and Momo coming up behind Inko.
Izuku reached over and put his hand on Momo's lower back, causing her to look over at him. "Do you mind if I walk you in?" He questioned with a smile.
Momo knew exactly why Izuku was asking to walk her in, considering how the last party had gone. She had walked in by herself with her parents, while Inko had walked in with Izuku. Before she even reached the main floor of the ballroom, Momo had been surrounded by teenagers their age, looking to get in the Yaoyorozus' good graces through her. Izuku still remembered seeing Momo leave the party in a flash, Izuku had followed not long behind.
She had told him later that all those boys were just trying to get on her parents' good side through her, and she was just fed up with it. When their parents had come looking for them later, they found them leaning against each other, books in hand, sleeping.
"I'd love it if you did." Momo responded, a dusting of a blush on her cheeks as she smiled back towards him.
Izuku and Momo had mingled within the party by themselves, both noticing the looks they were getting from the other kids their age. There were only two kids that looked like they didn't want to be there, and when Izuku had asked if Momo wanted to go see them, she recognized them and dragged him over.
"It's good to see you again, Todoroki, Iida." Momo greeted.
"Likewise, Yaoyorozu!" Tenya greeted in response, chopping a few times in the air, confusing Izuku a bit.
"Hello, Yaoyorozu." Shoto responded simply, not looking towards them. He seemed to have his eyes on something, and when Izuku had followed his line of sight, only saw Endeavor standing by himself.
"I don't think you've met my friend?" Momo questioned, getting a head shake from Tenya, and a look and a shrug from Shoto. "Izu, this is Shoto Todoroki, and Tenya Iida. Todoroki, Iida, this is Izuku Midoriya."
"It's nice to meet you, Midoriya!" Tenya responded by holding out his hand, which Izuku took and shook, giving him a small smile.
Shoto just humphed, not looking away from Endeavor as he walked throughout the ballroom.
"It's nice to meet you as well, Iida." Izuku responded. "I take it you're a relative of Ingenium?"
Tenya nodded. "Yes, Tensei is my older brother." He looked around the ballroom a second, before looking back at Izuku. "He's around here somewhere. The last time I saw him, he was talking with Midnight."
"Midnight's here too?" Izuku questioned, looking around.
"Izu, you just saw her not long ago." Momo smiled at her friend's antics.
"Yeah, but if Iida is saying that Ingenium was spotted with Midnight, she would be much easier to spot in the crowd." Izuku responded, before he stopped looking around.
"Point taken." Momo responded simply. "I know you haven't met Ingenium yet."
"Have you two known each other long?" Iida questioned. "I don't think I've seen you at any of the other parties, Midoriya."
"I've known Mo since we were kids." Izuku responded, Momo nodding along beside him. "I'm not one for parties, and my Mother doesn't have the same friend circles that Yuukichi and Miyuki do. Mo asked if I wanted to come, and I agreed." Izuku stated simply.
"I see." Tenya responded. Shoto just let out another grunt, not responding but seemingly listening. "There's a few others that I would like to meet with before the night is over. It was nice talking with you, Yaoyorozu, Midoriya."
"Likewise, Iida." Momo responded. Tenya gave them both a curt nod, before he slipped back into the crowd. "It was nice seeing you again, Todoroki."
"Likewise, Yaoyorozu." Shoto responded simply, before pushing off the wall he was against and moving away from them.
"They seem like an interesting bunch." Izuku commented after they were out of hearing range.
Momo let out a sigh. "Iida is a stickler for rules from what his older brother says. He's normally a lot more firm and stuck up than he was tonight. As for Todoroki, I'm not sure why he even comes to these parties."
"Yeah, he kept his eyes on Endeavor through the whole conversation." Izuku responded, shrugging his shoulders.
"You noticed that too?" Momo questioned, getting a nod from Izuku. "It's the same at every party. It's like he's watching for Endeavor to slip up or something. I'm not really sure." Momo pouted a bit as she looked at Izuku. "I didn't like how he barely responded to you."
"No need to worry yourself over it, Mo." Izuku responded, putting his hand on her lower back again and guiding her through the party once more. "It hurts, yes, but I think Todoroki is going through his own things, ones that we shouldn't worry ourselves over."
Momo sighed, shaking her head slightly. "You're probably right."
"No, I'm always right." Izuku teased, looking at Momo.
"Yeah, okay, Mr. Second Place." Momo teased back.
Izuku humphed. "I still think you cheated. We got the same answer, I don't know how you got one point ahead of me."
"Maybe it's because I'm just smarter." Momo teased again, dancing away from him. Izuku watched her for a few steps, before she turned back around. "Would you like to get some dinner?"
"Hungry?" Izuku questioned, smiling towards her. Momo let out a huff, before smiling back towards him. "I could go for some dinner. Training really took a lot out of us."
"Well, come on, Mr. Second Place. Let's see what the chefs cooked up for today." Izuku let out another huff, before following along behind Momo.
"What's on the agenda today, Mo?" Izuku questioned after their schooling was finished for the day. Their teacher had given them homework to do before the next day, but working together they had finished it and handed it in before the teacher had even left for the day, leaving the rest of the afternoon free.
"Well, is there anything you would like to do?" Momo questioned. They were both walking back towards Momo's room to drop their bags off. "We don't have training today, and we finished our recent book last night." Momo looked over at Izuku, seeing him deep in thought. "We could analyze some recent hero fights?"
Izuku looked over at Momo and smiled. "I'd like that." Izuku responded, before looking straight ahead again. "But, what if we do something we haven't done together before?" Izuku questioned.
"What did you have in mind?" Momo responded. It was very rare for them to not have done something together, at least once.
Izuku turned around and started walking backwards, allowing him to look at Momo better. She giggled at his antics, but she also knew he would know exactly where he was going, having walked in these hallways since they were kids. "So here's what I was thinking. There's a new bookstore that opened up in Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall that I would like to check out. Supposedly it's all about reprinting books from prequirk days, and it's been getting more popular recently."
Izuku watched how Momo's eyes lit up at the mentions of more books to read, bringing a smile to his face. "There's also a music store I want to check out. I know you've been learning piano since before I met you, but I was thinking of learning something too. Maybe guitar?"
Momo hummed to herself, imagining Izuku trying to play guitar. "I don't know…" Momo hummed to herself again, trying to think up of an instrument her friend could play. "I think you'd be good at the triangle." Izuku stuttered in his step, before falling backwards and landing on his back, causing Momo to gasp in surprise. "Izuku?!"
"A triangle?" Izuku questioned, looking up at Momo with a glare. "Really?"
Momo giggled, reaching out her hand. Izuku grabbed it and pulled himself up, before they continued to walk side by side. "What about drums?" Momo questioned. "I heard all the girls like drums."
Izuku let out a huff of annoyance. "As if I want all the girls falling for me." Izuku responded, causing Momo to giggle again. "Plus, I don't want to learn drums. Bad memories." Momo nodded, knowing that Izuku was talking about the time before they had met. She had asked him once about it, and he wasn't the same for a few days, so she never brought it up again. "What about bass?"
"Isn't that the same as guitar?" Momo questioned, tilting her head a bit.
"It's similar but not exactly the same. In short, guitar plays higher notes, while bass plays lower notes." Izuku explained.
"Oh, definitely guitar then." Momo stated, nodding a bit. "It sounds like bass doesn't work well without a guitar, but if you learn guitar, you can probably learn bass just as easily."
"Correct." Izuku confirmed.
"Is that all you wanted to do? It doesn't seem like it would take up the afternoon." Momo questioned, looking at Izuku.
"I don't know, you and the bookstore are a few hours by itself." Izuku smiled back at her.
"I'm not that bad." Momo grumbled, looking away from him. When she looked back towards Izuku, she could see he had raised his eyebrow suspiciously. "Okay, it was one time! I got lost in the book I was reading."
"Sure, we'll go with that." Izuku deadpanned, but smiled nonetheless. "Well, there's a cafe close by that I've been told carries Golden Tips Imperial." Momo's eyes went wide as she looked to see if Izuku was joking or not, and just saw honesty behind them. "But if we go there, we can't spend as long as the book store."
"Deal!" Momo answered immediately, causing Izuku to chuckle. "Why don't we go get the tea first?"
"Because I know you, Mo. If you get the tea before getting the books, we'll be drinking tea for the rest of the afternoon. Don't say that we won't, because we've done it before!" Izuku quickly spoke up before Momo could respond. "While I don't mind spending the afternoon drinking tea and reading with you, you asked what I wanted to do."
"Point taken." Momo agreed, nodding a bit.
"Dress in something comfortable, we might be walking a bit." Izuku stated as they reached Momo's room. "I'm going to go get changed into something more comfortable, and I'll come get you?" Izuku questioned as he continued to walk.
"Sure. See you in a bit." Momo responded, opening the door to her room.
Izuku kept the smile on his face, turning around and continuing to walk towards his own room. Ever since Izuku and Inko had moved into the Yaoyorozu Estate, Izuku had slowly improved his room over the years. Hero merchandise exclusively lined one wall, most of it being All Might related or themed, with a small section dedicated to other heroes that Izuku liked. Another wall was lined with books, similar to that of Momo's, just much smaller in size. In one corner of the room held a desk with a computer, used mostly for school work, but Izuku sometimes found himself browsing hero forums late into the night. Pinned on the wall around the computer were sketches that Izuku had done over the years, many of them with heroes in action, while a few were of Inko, Momo, Yuukichi, and Miyuki. He looked at one of his most detailed pictures of Momo and himself when they were younger, one taken by one of their parents and given to them, and smiled at the happy memory.
Not wanting to keep Momo waiting long, he placed his school work in its normal spot on his desk. Throwing the clothes he was wearing into the laundry basket, Izuku quickly changed into something more comfortable and grabbed his wallet, before leaving the room and hurrying back towards Momo's. He couldn't wait to spend time with his best friend, no matter how much time he spent with her, it never felt like enough.
"How did you find this place?" Momo questioned as they walked into the back alley cafe. Hearing the bell ring above them, the cafe owner looked over towards them, before returning to his newspaper. The smell of coffee beans hit them like a truck, and looking behind the counter, they could see why. The wall was covered in any type of coffee bean you could imagine, and on one side of the wall, Momo could see a huge assortment of teas, including her Golden Tips Imperial.
"So I knew that you liked Golden Tips Imperial from when we would celebrate passing another semester or finishing a hard test. You would normally leave it for special occasions or if you're having a bad day." Izuku explained as he guided them to their own booth in the corner.
"You've been keeping track of the tea I drink?" Momo was a bit surprised, she didn't think Izuku did things like that.
"A bit, yeah." Izuku admitted, sheepishly smiling. "It's a good tea." He shrugged as they sat down.
"Why?" Momo questioned.
"Just in case you ever ran out." Izuku stated simply. "I know your chefs can get almost anything you want, whenever you want, but I know how rare that tea is. So I ended up researching to see who carried it around here and found this little hole in the wall that stocks it for their customers."
Momo was shocked at the revelation, not knowing exactly what to say. When the owner had come over to ask for their order, Izuku ordered for them both. She eventually shook herself out of her daze, before wearing a genuine smile. "Thank you, Izu. You don't know how much that means to me."
"It's nothing compared to what you and your parents have done for me, Mo." Izuku smiled back, leaning back when the tea was placed in front of them. Izuku ordered them curry, giving the owner specific instructions on what each of them liked, but requested that he surprise them.
"Curry?" Momo questioned, raising her eyebrow towards Izuku.
"I've been informed that it's the best curry on this side of Japan, but also when you order your drinks, the owner makes it specifically tied into what you are drinking."
"I didn't know that was possible." Momo responded truthfully.
"Me neither, but since it's our first time, why not give it a try?" Izuku smirked towards Momo. "Plus, I know you're hungry."
Momo let out a huff, blowing her signature hair strand away from her face a bit. "Should I be worried that you know when I am hungry?"
"Are you worried?" Izuku questioned in return, the smirk never falling from his face.
"No…" Momo pouted a bit, causing Izuku to chuckle at her, Momo following not long behind him. "What books did you find?" Momo questioned after a moment.
"Oh, I think you'll like this series." Izuku said, bringing out the two sets of books that he bought. Momo huffed, knowing that he paid for them, when she could have put them on her family's card. "This is called 'The Mortal Instrument' series." Izuku slid over a set of six books, allowing Momo to inspect them. "Supposedly the main character is a girl around our age, and she's what they call a 'Shadowhunter' and she takes care of 'Demons' with other 'Shadowhunters'." Izuku explained. "It has a lot of fighting in it, but it also has a bunch of romance parts throughout the main characters and side characters."
"Romance…" Momo said quietly, looking up to catch Izuku looking at her, causing her to blush. She cleared her throat. "It sounds interesting…"
"Just interesting?" Izuku teased.
"Okay!" Momo said, pouting a bit. "It sounds exactly like a series I would love." Momo admitted, looking back towards the books. "And you bought yourself copies?"
"Of course I did!" Izuku responded excitedly. "I figured we could read it together. Plus, I heard it has vampires, werewolves, and warlocks, on top of the demons, so I thought it would be a really good read." Izuku shrugged, looking at his copies. "The reviews seemed like it would be something both of us liked."
"Since when do you like romance novels?" Momo questioned, raising her eyebrow in suspicion.
"Since you got me into them." Izuku deadpanned back, before looking away. "I mean, when I first started to read them, it was so that we had something to talk about." Izuku shrugged and smiled, before looking back towards Momo, finding a surprised look. "But I started to enjoy them as well." Izuku looked over to see the owner still cooking the curry before he looked back towards Momo. "What did you end up getting?"
"There's a few books that seemed interesting, but the reviews said some of them get fairly dark." Momo admitted, bringing up her purchases and putting them on the table. "The Embers in the Ashes series is listed as a romance novel, but with the description, I don't know if it'd be for me." Momo let out a sigh, passing the book over and allowing Izuku to read the description.
"Yeah, this doesn't seem like a book you would like." Izuku stated, passing the book back. "I don't think I'd be interested in reading something like that either. It sounds like it touches on the darkest corners of the past."
Momo nodded, putting the book away. "I agree, so I might try it out, but if it becomes too much to handle, I'll just stop reading."
"Find anything else interesting?" Izuku questioned, looking at the big stack of books that Momo had bought.
"Oh!" Momo stated, before pulling out a set of three books and placing it on the table. "I found something called 'The Night World Series'." Momo slid them over to Izuku for him to read the short summaries. "These sound similar to what you found, the only difference is that it also has shapeshifters, and focuses on a secret society called 'The Night World', while also focusing heavily on the soulmates between them. There's three books in total, with three different romances in each book."
"These do sound interesting." Izuku said, sliding the books back over to Momo. "Did you only get one set?"
"Yes." Momo admitted a bit sadly. "I didn't know you'd want to read these books together." Momo looked back up to find an understanding look on his face. "But I can request one of the servants to pick up another set?" Momo asked a bit hopefully, seeing Izuku's face turn from understanding into one of happiness.
"I'd like that, Mo." Izuku responded, right before their curry was placed in front of them.
Clangs rang throughout the room as the two teenagers went back and forth with their staves. Momo would rush forward and attack Izuku, allowing him to block every single attack, and in turn he would return the favor. It was one of their training days, using their weapon of choice: the bo staff.
"Come on, Mo. Is that all you got?" Izuku teased, twirling his staff in front of him before slamming it into the mats they were training on.
"Just warming up, Izu." Momo responded, rushing forward again. She unleashed another fury of blows, continuously pushing Izuku back, before revealing a new move to him. Izuku had successfully fallen for her feint, allowing her to put her staff behind his ankle. She pushed him back softly, causing him to stumble and land on his back. He laid there for a long moment, collecting himself.
"Damn." Izuku said, still looking up towards the ceiling. "I should have seen that coming."
Momo giggled, before making her way over towards him. She held out her hand for him to grab, but instead of pulling himself up, he decided to pull her down, causing her to gasp in surprise. "Izu!"
"Ha! Sneak attack!" Izuku responded after Momo had landed beside him on the mats, both panting and looking towards the ceiling. "Break time?" Izuku questioned, looking over towards her.
She looked back towards Izuku, and nodded, a smile on her face. "Break time."
"Thank the Gods." Izuku let his arms rest beside him, looking back up towards the ceiling. "You are relentless with that staff."
"I have been training with it since before you could even pick one up." Momo responded, teasing him back a little bit.
Izuku let out a huff of annoyance. "I could always pick up the staff!"
"Maybe the kids' one. I've been using the adult one since we started training together." Momo responded.
"Oh come on, I wasn't that bad!" Izuku responded, looking back over towards Momo to find her smiling towards him. "You're teasing me." Izuku let out a sigh, looking back up towards the ceiling. "Of course you're teasing me."
"Oh, come on, Izu." Momo responded, pushing herself up into a sitting position and looking down towards Izuku. "Of course I'm teasing you. You've gotten a lot better with the staff recently, and you're able to go toe to toe with me. I can only win by pulling a cheap move."
"It's not cheap if it works." Izuku responded, smiling up towards her. "I don't think I'll ever become as good as you with the staff."
"Hey!" Momo said, kicking his leg softly. "Don't talk bad about my best friend like that. He's amazing with the staff."
Izuku's smile got wider, causing him to push himself into a sitting position beside her. "Thanks, Mo. You always know how to cheer me up."
"What are friends for?" Momo questioned, bumping her shoulder against Izuku's. "Can you believe that we're only a year away from applying to UA?"
"Time sure does fly." Izuku admitted. "I remember the first time we met. You told me that I could be a hero, even without a quirk."
Momo nodded, before looking away. "I remember the day clearly. You called me pretty for the first time."
"Wait, I did?!" Izuku asked surprised, causing Momo to look back towards him. "I don't remember saying that."
"It was right before you said hello to me." Momo stated, tilting her head a bit. "It was very quiet at the time, but I was sure you said it."
"Damn muttering." Izuku groaned out, flopping back on the mats and covering his eyes with his arm. "How come you never told me?"
"It sounded genuine." Momo said quietly, looking at Izuku covering his eyes. "It was the first time someone other than my parents said something that sounded so genuine. Did you not mean it?"
Izuku pulled his arm down from his eyes. "I might not have meant to say it out loud, but it wasn't anything less than true." Izuku explained. "I thought you were pretty back then, and I think you're beautiful now. Nothing has changed."
Momo's cheeks heated up, hearing Izuku call her beautiful. "You think I'm… Beautiful?" Momo questioned quietly, still looking at Izuku and finding honesty behind his eyes.
"I mean, yeah?" Izuku questioned, pushing himself back up to sit beside her. "I called you beautiful during the last party, and you called me handsome. I thought that's what friends said to each other?"
Momo cleared her throat, looking away awkwardly. "I thought you were talking about the dress, and I was talking about the suit you were wearing."
"Huh?" Izuku questioned, before it clicked. "Oh… I see." Izuku responded, pushing himself up to his feet and walking away. Momo was worried she said something wrong, so she quickly pushed herself up to her feet to follow him, but was stopped dead in her tracks when Izuku held a water bottle in front of her. "We still got a bit more training to do today, so make sure to drink up."
Momo nodded, taking a swing of her water, before looking back at Izuku. "Are you mad at me?" She questioned quietly.
"Why would I be mad at you?" Izuku questioned in return, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, I called your suit handsome, while you called me beautiful." Momo responded.
Izuku shook his head, a smile appearing on his face. "I don't think I could ever be mad at you, Mo." Izuku said honestly. "I thought you'd be more upset with me calling you beautiful."
"Izu…" Momo whined a bit, looking at Izuku to find honesty behind his eyes once more. "How can you say that so casually?"
"Say what?" Izuku questioned, a smirk on his face. "That you're beautiful?" Momo groaned in her hands, causing Izuku to chuckle. "I'm only calling it as I see it, Mo. It's not my fault you're beautiful."
"I hate you." Momo whispered out, looking through her fingers at Izuku.
"No, you don't." Izuku responded back, picking up his staff, looking back towards Momo. "You're just mad that I keep calling you beautiful." Izuku chuckled when Momo groaned again. "Let's get back to training, oh Goddess of Beauty."
"Izu!" Momo called out, a blush still dusting her cheeks as Izuku chuckled and danced away with his staff. "You're gonna pay for that!"