Chapter 5
"What are you reading, Mo?" Izuku questioned as he sat down on her bed beside her. "It better not be 'The Mortal Instruments'. We're supposed to be reading those together."
"Of course not, Izu." Momo responded, looking over towards him and showing him the cover of the book. "You know I enjoy our talks about those books."
Izuku nodded. "But I also know we left it on a cliffhanger, and I've been itching to pick it back up ever since."
"Maybe you shouldn't have convinced me to read until the early morning." Momo smiled back.
Izuku looked taken aback, leaning away from Momo with a hurt look on his face. "Excuse me, Missy, youconvinced me to read one more chapter."
"But it was you, Mister, that kept reading after that one chapter." Momo glared back at him.
They both looked at each other for a second, seeing who would crack first, before they both started laughing. "Oh my gosh, Izu, you looked so offended that I blamed you!"
"What can I say? I learned it from the best!" Izuku exclaimed, puffing his chest out, hitting his hand against it. Momo giggled again, bringing a smile to Izuku's face. "So what's the book about?"
"It's about this female hero that was constantly looked down on just because she was female." Momo saw Izuku frown, knowing that a lot of those books with a female main character had similar stories. "Her best friend was the only one to encourage her to keep going. He was always by her side, through the ups and downs. When he was taken by the main villain, she realized that she couldn't live without him, and promised to do everything within her power to save him."
"And let me guess, they lived happily ever after?" Izuku questioned with a smile.
Momo let out a sigh. "I don't know, I haven't reached that part yet. I only had the opportunity to get to the first part of the confrontation." She picked up her bookmark, marking her page, before putting the book aside. "What's yours about?"
Izuku smiled, showing Momo the cover of the book he was reading. "It's about a Thief that would constantly steal from royalty throughout the lands." Momo raised her eyebrow at him in question. "No, it's not Robin Hood." Izuku grumbled out, causing Momo to giggle, bringing a smile to his face. "This Thief was hired to steal from royalty in return for protection of his family."
"His family was in danger?" Momo questioned, interested in the book.
"It's mentioned how his family could never bring in enough customers, and would often go to bed hungry. It talked a bit about how they were constantly getting robbed, and when the son went to confront the thieves, his family was threatened unless he worked for them. He had no option but to agree."
"What ended up happening?" Momo was lost in how Izuku talked about the books he read. She knew that she wasn't as good at talking about the books she read, but Izuku always told her he enjoyed listening to her regardless.
"You see, the Thief was robbing from this one castle, and ended up running into the Princess." Izuku looked down to see Momo's eyes locked on him, lost in his explanation, causing his smile to grow wider. "She knew who he was, considering he was famous for the jobs he pulled off. Instead of calling for the guards, she made him a deal."
"What did she offer him?" Momo questioned.
"You see, she was a very lonely Princess, her parents didn't allow her to leave the castle unless accompanied by some guards. So she offered him anything he could want from her family, in exchange for getting her away from the castle."
"She just wanted to leave her parents? Just like that?"
"Something like that. She was engaged to be married, against her will." When Momo gasped, Izuku nodded in agreement. "The Thief agreed, and successfully snuck her out of the castle."
"What happened next?"
"Well, the Princess spent some time with the Thief, more to conceal herself than to deal with the Thief, but there was one thing neither the Thief nor the Princess realized when traveling together." Izuku paused, seeing Momo nodding along excitedly, causing him to chuckle. "They had stolen each other's hearts."
Momo let out a content sigh, leaning back against her headboard beside Izuku, with a smile on her face. "Of course they did."
"I finished reading it, if you'd like to start it." Izuku offered, holding the book towards her.
Momo looked at the book in Izuku's hand, before biting her lip a bit in thought. "I mean, I really want to know what happened to the hero I was reading about, but yours sounds so much more interesting."
"Well, you'll just have to hurry up and finish that one before you start on this one." Izuku smiled, getting up and moving towards Momo's massive bookcase that bordered her walls, putting it in a missing slot. "I'll leave it here until you finish yours."
"You're the best, Izu." Momo commented.
"I know." Izuku smirked back towards Momo, causing her to blow her signature hair strand out of the way and smile towards him. "Ready to continue 'The Mortal Instruments'?"
"Am I ever!" Momo exclaimed, pulling out her copy as Izuku sat back down on the bed beside her. "I can't wait to see what Clary and Jace will do now!" Izuku chuckled, pushing himself beside Momo, allowing their shoulders to touch.
Once they had started reading, the only sound that either of them could hear was the rain that was hitting Momo's window, and the soft sounds of their breathing. They enjoyed the days they didn't have training, often indulging in reading together. With the rain hitting the windows and casting that perfect reading atmosphere, both of them got lost in their shared book, the sounds of turning pages happening every so often.
"I would love to go on a date on a flying motorcycle…" Momo said quietly, before turning another page.
"I don't have a flying motorcycle…" Izuku responded quietly. "Where would we even go?"
They were silent as they read another page, until Momo put her book down and slowly turned towards Izuku. "Izu?!" Momo questioned in surprise.
Izuku looked up from his book, to find Momo just staring at him in shock. "What?" He questioned in return.
"Did you just ask me where'd we go on a date, if you had a flying motorcycle?" Momo questioned a bit loudly, her cheeks dusted red with a blush.
Izuku paused, thinking back to what they had talked about, until it clicked in what he had said. A blush that matched Momo's appeared on his face, as he brought the book up to his face to hide himself. "Well- You see- I meant- Uhhh-" Izuku stuttered out, something he hadn't done in years, before he groaned in embarrassment. "Maybe?" He whispered out, with his face still hidden.
Silence fell over them both, until Izuku decided to lower the book he was covering his face with, to find Momo still looking at him in shock. When Momo finally met his eyes again, she seemed to have found her voice again. "What if you didn't have a flying motorcycle?"
"Anywhere you want?" Izuku questioned quietly.
"You sound unsure." Momo said a little sadly, slumping her shoulders and looking away.
Seeing Momo sad, Izuku started to panic. "That's not what I meant!" Izuku said a little louder, causing Momo to look back towards him. "I meant I would love to take you on a date, anywhere you like!" Izuku raised the book to hide his face again. "Gods, you probably hate me now." He whispered out quietly.
"Izu?" Momo questioned, and when she didn't get a response, reached out to pull the book down from his face, causing him to look away. "Izu, look at me, please?" She asked. Izuku let out a sigh, before looking towards her. "Why would I hate you?"
"Well… I'm just me." Izuku responded quietly. Momo could see the sadness in his eyes, and she didn't understand why.
"And you think I'd hate you… for being you?" Momo questioned.
"That's not-" Izuku let out a huff of annoyance, looking away. "How is that when we talk about the characters in the books we read, it's so easy, but when I want to tell you how I am feeling, it's difficult?" Izuku looked back towards Momo. "What I mean is that I don't compare to how amazing you are, Mo." Momo was taken aback at the honesty that was behind Izuku's eyes. "You have an amazing quirk, and with your training, there's no question you'll go pro. You're a master with multiple weapons, especially the staff. I've seen how hard you've worked and studied, and I know how smart you are."
Izuku looked away again, closing his eyes and letting out a sigh. "I'm just a quirkless nobody. I can barely keep up with you with any weapon other than the staff. I wouldn't be the person I am today if it wasn't for you and your family giving me this opportunity. That's what I mean when I say, I'm just me."
"Izu…" Momo said quietly, reaching forward and placing her hand on his cheek, guiding him to look at her again. "Do you remember when we first met, back when we were kids?" Momo questioned quietly. "How broken you believed you were? How you really believed you were worthless and useless?" Izuku nodded, letting a tear escape. "Do you remember what I told you that day?"
"I don't think I could ever forget it, Mo." Izuku answered honestly, closing his eyes again. "You told me that I wasn't diseased, or broken, and you believed I wasn't worthless, nor useless. You honestly believed I could become a hero." Izuku opened his eyes, allowing another tear to escape. "I repeated those words to myself for years, and seeing you actually wanting to be my friend convinced me that I should try."
"I know you're going to be a great hero, Izu." Momo said quietly. "With or without a quirk, you'll be the best hero, better than All Might."
Izuku wetly chuckled, bringing up his hand to place over Momo's that was against his cheek, leaning a bit into it. "Nobody is better than All Might."
Momo slowly shook her head. "You are, Izu." Momo smiled, as Izuku mirrored her. "I don't think you realize how amazing you are. When Father and Mother offered you a chance to succeed, you jumped at it without a moment's hesitation. You improved your grades from where they were, to rival mine in a few short months. You went from barely being able to hold a kid's staff with absolutely no training, to being able to go toe to toe with one of the best weapons teachers this side of Japan."
Momo looked away as a blush appeared on her cheeks again. "You never cared that I was a Yaoyorozu unlike those other boys, and sometimes girls, at our parties. When I left that one party, you were the one to come find me, and make sure I was okay. Every party that we went to after that, you made sure people left me alone, because you knew how much it upset me." Momo looked back towards Izuku. "You saw me as a friend, instead of using me to get to my parents. You bought me books that you knew I would enjoy, never asking for me to pay for them. You went out of your way to figure out my favorite tea, and showed me my new favorite cafe. How could I even imagine comparing myself to you?" Momo questioned finally, watching as Izuku's eyes went wider and wider.
They both closed their eyes, leaning forward so their foreheads were touching. Momo still had her hand on Izuku's face, while his hand was covering hers. She could feel the rough calluses on Izuku's hand brushing up against hers, and in turn, she could feel how Izuku was slowly moving his face against her calloused hand.
"Gods, I love you, Mo." Izuku whispered out. "I don't know when it happened, but I can't deny that I do."
"I love you too, Izu." Momo responded just as quietly. "I think I've known for a long time, but I kept telling myself that I was imagining it."
Momo opened her eyes, seeing that Izuku still had his eyes closed, before she closed the distance and kissed him. She saw his eyes open up in surprise, but slowly close again as he started to return the kiss. She closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling of their lips together, something she realized she wanted for a long time, the pressure and the sensation thrilling her. Momo was the first one to pull back, resting her forehead against Izuku's as they both tried to catch their breath.
When she opened her eyes, she found Izuku watching her carefully, but noticed the smile on his face. When she giggled, Izuku responded with his own giggles before they were both laughing so hard, they fell towards the bed. When they had finally stopped laughing, they both found each other's eyes once again, lying side by side on the bed. "I still want my date."
Izuku chuckled, closing his eyes, and wearing the most genuine smile she had ever seen him with. "I may not have a flying vampire motorcycle, but I think I have an idea on where I can take you."
"As long as it's with you, I would love anywhere we went." Momo responded, leaning forward and catching his lips again quickly, before pulling back.
"Where are we going, Izu?" Momo questioned. She and Izuku had opted not to take her family limousine today, instead walking hand in hand towards the train station. She had surprised Izuku when she grabbed his hand, but as they walked for a few minutes, he eventually got more comfortable and intertwined their arms and fingers.
"It's a secret!" Izuku responded back, looking over towards Momo and smiling.
"Do I at least get a hint?" Momo questioned in return, tilting her head slightly.
Izuku hummed in thought for a moment, trying to figure out what he could give away without straight up telling her. "It's something that neither of us have done before." Izuku responded.
"Do you have even the slightest idea on how little that narrows it down?" Momo questioned with a glare.
"That's the point, Mo." Izuku responded, smirking back at her. She huffed out, blowing her hair strand away, causing Izuku to chuckle at her antics. He had noticed that she started blowing her hair strand away more often, either knowing that he enjoyed watching her do so, or she was just frustrated and didn't realize what she was doing. "You're so cute when you're frustrated."
"Cute?" Momo squeaked out, bringing up her free hand to cover her eyes. "When did you become such a romantic?"
"When we agreed to start dating." Izuku shrugged, even though Momo couldn't see it. "You were the one who got me started on romance novels."
"Not on purpose!" Momo dropped her hand down, and glared at Izuku as her cheeks burned hotter with a blush. "I thought I had put that book away."
"You know you couldn't hide something like that from me forever, right?" Izuku teased, before he got serious. "I really do enjoy reading the books with you. I'm happy I found that book, because it allowed us to start our own private book club."
Momo let out a sigh, nodding along. "I'm happy you found it too. I was always embarrassed about reading them, but when you started enjoying them, I didn't feel like I had to hide myself anymore." Momo moved a step closer to Izuku, leaning her head on his shoulder.
They walked in silence like that until the train station, only splitting up when they found their seats. Momo didn't recognize the stop Izuku had gotten tickets for, but she was excited to just spend time with him. During the train ride, they were quiet to be respectful for other riders, which meant that Momo's mind wandered. She thought about all the times they had hung out together throughout the years, from doing school work, to training together, to spending an afternoon drinking tea and reading.
The more she thought about it, the more she realized the small things that Izuku would do for her, and the small things she found herself doing for him. It shocked her to think about how much they were acting like a couple already, but never realizing it.
"Izu?" Momo questioned as they exited the train. Izuku hummed in acknowledgement, letting her know he was listening. "Did you ever think about how much we looked like a couple, even before we started dating?"
Izuku tilted his head a bit to take a better look at Momo. "No, I don't think I have. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I was just thinking about our trip to Leblanc." Momo responded, bringing up her free hand to her cheek. "Two teenagers, hanging out in a small cafe, having tea and curry together while talking about books they purchased for each other."
"Huh." Izuku said, looking forward again. "I never looked at it that way." Izuku hummed, seemingly lost in thought for a few moments, as Momo could almost see the gears turning in his head. "I guess it would have looked like we were a couple. I could see how that would be a nice date spot." Momo hummed in agreement, before they both fell silent, thinking about all the times they did hang out.
"Hold on a second." Momo said, causing Izuku to stop, while Momo faced him. "Do you think our parents know?"
"I don't know…" Izuku responded honestly, before something seemed to click. "Dammit." Izuku whispered out, causing Momo to raise her eyebrow in question. "I was wondering why Mom was talking about date spots, when she hasn't seen anybody since he left." Momo knew exactly who Izuku was talking about, and knew he didn't like bringing him up in conversation. He had compared Hisashi to a sperm donor before, and Momo had never questioned him about it again. "She kept saying she was asking hypothetically when asking about date spots, or recommending some." Izuku groaned, bringing up his hand to his eyes, wiping them aggressively. "It's almost certain our parents know."
"Would that be such a bad thing?" Momo questioned, tilting her head slightly.
"Not that it would be a bad thing." Izuku confirmed, dropping his hand. "It ruins the surprise of telling them." He leaned down and gave Momo a quick kiss, and when he pulled back she had tried to follow, causing him to chuckle. "Not yet, Mo. We're almost there." Izuku smiled, while Momo pouted in return.
"You still haven't told me where we were going." Momo said, looking around trying to find a hint, and not seeing anything. "And I told you to let me pay for our date."
"It would have ruined the surprise, Mo." Izuku said quietly, moving to start walking again. "If I had given you a chance to research where we're going, I have no doubt in my mind that you would have figured it out." Momo followed along, never allowing their hands to leave each other.
As they approached a cafe, Momo looked towards Izuku. "A cafe? All the way out here?"
Izuku chuckled. "That'll be the last spot we hit." He looked towards Momo, seeing that she was still looking at him curiously. "Yes, they have Golden Tips Imperial. It's one of the reasons I chose this."
"Oh! Can we stop before we continue?" Momo asked, her excitement levels already increasing. "I haven't had any since the last time we went to Leblanc!"
Izuku chuckled. "No, because if we stop, we'll be there the rest of the day."
Momo pouted. "No we wouldn't."
"Mo, the last time we stopped for tea, we went through multiple cups each, and almost finished a book." Izuku looked towards Momo. "I thought our first official date could be something more, you know, special."
Momo glared at Izuku for a second, pout still on her face, before she let out a sigh. "Okay, you're right. Plus, I didn't bring a book with me."
"That was on purpose. I couldn't imagine ruining one of our books." Izuku responded, before coming up to a sign in the path. "This way."
Momo looked up at the sign, giving it a quick read, and becoming even more confused. "I don't think I've ever heard of this place."
Izuku nodded, as they started to ascend on the trail in front of them. "I didn't think you would have. It was discovered by a local tourist not long ago."
"Really?" Momo questioned. She was glad Izuku told her to wear something comfortable for walking, otherwise her feet would have been killing her already. "How did they find it?"
"I'm not exactly sure." Izuku shrugged. "From what I found out, it was known by the locals, but they kept quiet to preserve it."
"So how did you find out about it?"
"By accident." Izuku shrugged and smiled. "I wanted something that neither of us had done before, while also having the option to get some tea after. Once I found that little cafe, a little more digging and I found out about this place." Izuku looked up the path again, before squeezing Momo's hand. "Not far now."
Momo was getting excited, and started pulling Izuku along with her, causing Izuku to laugh as they both hurried up the path. As they reached the top of the path, it opened up into a lake, spanning across the top of the mountain. There were no trees that circled around the lake, allowing them to look over the forest for kilometers. At one end of the lake stood a small hut, with a few boats parked at the dock.
She felt Izuku walk up behind her and circle his arms around her, resting his hands on her midsection, while his chin rested on her shoulder. "What do you think?"
"It's beautiful…" Momo said quietly, worried that if she spoke any louder that the scene would disappear. "How is this even possible?"
"Nobody knows for sure." Izuku responded. "There's rumors that it drains during the fall, and snows enough through the winter to fill it back up. I suspected there's something else that is forcing the water up here, like a natural geyser underneath the lake. Because of how hidden this place is, nobody has researched it long enough to figure out how it happens."
Momo nodded, before looking towards the hut. Pointing towards it, and looking over her shoulder at Izuku, she questioned. "Can we rent one of those?"
"Actually, they're free to use, as long as we promise to keep this place a secret." Izuku confirmed. "The hut is somewhere we can put our names, something similar to a geocache. They want to preserve this place as long as possible."
"I can see why." Momo responded, enjoying the embrace that Izuku had her in. "Let's go see if we can get a two seater!" Izuku laughed, as Momo grabbed his hand and started dragging him towards the hut.
When Momo and Izuku had returned back to the Yaoyorozu's Estate, they weren't expecting her parents to be home, considering it was already past dinner time. They had both lost track of time in the small cafe, drinking tea and talking about what more they wanted to train before the UA entrance exam. When Momo had mentioned that she wanted to get something to eat before heading to her room, Izuku had agreed.
As Momo and Izuku walked hand in hand through the doors of the dining hall, they were stopped in their tracks when they spotted both of their parents sitting at the table. Inko was the first one to notice them, and smiled as they walked in. When she looked down towards their joined hands, her eyes went wide, before she looked back up towards them with an even wider smile. Miyuki was the next to notice them, after seeing the reaction on Inko's face, she looked to see who had entered. Her reaction was similar, looking at their joined hands, before reaching up and rubbing her eyes and looking at their joined hands again as a smile graced her face.
"What are you two smiling… about?" Yuukichi trailed off as he looked towards the two teenagers in the doorway. Yuukichi looked towards their joined hands, before glaring right at Izuku and humming. "Care to explain yourselves?" He questioned menacingly.
"Stop it, Yuukichi." Miyuki turned towards him, slapped his shoulder, and glared. "Do you want your daughter to be scared of you?"
"No…" Yuukichi said quietly, looking away. "Some of the other Dads said it would be fun if I ever had the chance."
"And you believed them?" Miyuki questioned. "Izuku already knows how much of a teddy bear you are."
"Honey…" Yuukichi looked towards her pleadingly.
Inko got up and rushed towards Izuku. "How did this happen? When did this happen? Have you gone on any dates yet? Did you buy her flowers?" Inko questioned in quick succession, not even giving Izuku a chance to respond.
"Mom, you know I can't keep up when you question me like that!" Izuku exclaimed.
Meanwhile, Miyuki did something similar, rushing up towards Momo. "Did you ask him, or did he ask you? Where did it happen? Have you two kissed yet?" Miyuki smirked and wiggled her eyebrows at Momo.
"Mother!" Momo exclaimed, a light dusting of a blush on her cheeks.
"Ladies, why don't we let them explain themselves?" Yuukichi reasoned, gesturing towards the seats.
The Mothers looked between themselves and nodded, before pulling Momo and Izuku back towards the table, sitting them down, and taking a seat on either side of them. "Well?" Miyuki questioned excitedly, leaning towards Momo.
"Mother, please." Momo pleaded. Izuku could hear how agitated this was making Momo, giving her a hand a squeeze in return.
"It was during one of our nightly reading sessions." Izuku started off, causing everyone to look towards him. "Momo made a comment about one of the characters, about how she would like to be taken on a date on a flying motorcycle." Izuku watched as Miyuki mouthed 'A flying motorcycle?' towards Inko, who just shrugged in return. "I responded that I didn't have one, but asked where we would even go."
"Neither of us realized it until a few minutes later when it clicked exactly what Izu had said." Momo responded, smiling towards Izuku, who returned his own smile. "From there, I asked if he was serious. We talked and agreed to start dating."
"Boring!" Miyuki responded, before smirking. "How was the kiss?"
"Mother!" Momo responded, looking at her in shock.
"I'm not hearing a denial." Miyuki teased as her smirk got wider. "I remember when I wanted to confess to your Father. I went right up to him after work one day and kissed him!" Momo groaned in embarrassment, as Yuukichi coughed and looked away.
Izuku smiled in response. "Mo was the one that kissed me."
"Izu!" Momo looked at him in betrayal, her cheeks dusted in a blush.
"What?" Izuku smirked at her, causing her to cover her face with her hand, while Izuku held the other one. "I really enjoyed that kiss."
"Ha! Just like her Mother!" Miyuki responded triumphally.
"Have you gone on any dates?" Inko questioned after a moment.
Momo leaned around Izuku to look at Inko. "Izu took me to this secret mountain lake, where we enjoyed some time paddling in this small boat." Momo smiled as she leaned back. "Because of how high up we were, you could see for kilometers." Momo looked towards Miyuki to find her wearing a genuine smile. "He also found another cafe with Golden Tips."
"Of course he did." Miyuki responded, looking towards Izuku. "Went all out, didn't you?"
"Anything for Mo. She deserves it." Izuku responded, leaning over and giving her cheek a kiss. Inko and Miyuki both cooed at the action.
"Izu!" Momo exclaimed, attempting to hide her face in her hand, but failing to conceal the smile behind it. When Momo had finally dropped her hand, she looked over towards Izuku. "It was wonderful. I couldn't have asked for a better first date."
"Better than a flying vampire motorcycle date?" Izuku raised his eyebrow in question.
"As long as it's with you, yes." Momo responded, leaning over and kissing him on the cheek. She pulled back when Inko and Miyuki cooed again, causing her blush to come back and Izuku to chuckle at her.
Yuukichi cleared his throat, getting everyone to look at him, while he looked directly at Izuku. "Do I need to have 'the talk' with you, young man?"
Izuku chuckled. "Yuukichi, I give you full permission to do whatever you see fit if I ever hurt Momo."
"Good." Yuukichi responded, before he deflated a bit. "I wasn't sure what to say during 'the talk' regardless, so that makes things simpler." He perked back up. "But you better not hurt Momo, or… or… or else!"
Izuku chuckled again. "I wouldn't dream of it, Yuukichi."
Miyuki nudged Inko conspiratorially. "Momo, remember last year when you went to the Todoroki Estate for a function and the only thing you said about your evening was that you'd much rather have spent it reading with Izuku? We should have known then."
Inko rose to the occasion, telling her friend, "Of course we knew then! It was obvious! A mother always knows."
Chapter 6
It wasn't often that Izuku found himself walking alone, especially when he was heading towards Leblanc. Over the past few days, Izuku found himself researching small gifts that he could get Momo, ones that money couldn't buy. He knew he was taking a big leap of faith with the gift he had found and created, but once he had finished making it, he knew Momo would love it.
As he turned onto the back alley that was home to Leblanc, he heard a whimper come from beside him. Looking to where he had heard the noise, he noticed three men disappear into a hidden alleyway. He knew the three men didn't make the noise that he heard, but as he was about to brush it off and continue onto Leblanc, he heard something that froze him to his spot.
"Stay away from me!" A female voice called out in fear.
"No, I don't think we will." The first man spoke.
"There's a reward for your arrest." The second one added.
"And we just spent our last dollar." The third one chimed in.
Izuku didn't have a chance to think before his body moved. He approached the alleyway, seeing the three men approach a girl that was curling in on herself, trying to make herself as small as possible. He instantly noticed how dirty and ruined her school uniform looked. Her hair looked to be hastily put into two buns on top of her head, but looked damaged and dirty in certain spots.
"Hey!" Izuku called out, causing the three men to turn towards him. "She said to stay away from her!"
"Buzz off, kid." The third one spoke, turning around. "We saw her first."
"I won't let you touch her!" Izuku responded, holding up his fists. 'Damn, I wish I had my staff.' Izuku knew he wasn't as good at straight up boxing, but Momo and him had practiced a few times just in case they were disarmed.
"I told you to buzz off!" The third spoke again, lunging forward with his right fist.
Izuku quickly dodged under the hit, before punching the guy in the gut, causing him to clutch his stomach. Seeing his opportunity, he kicked the man in the back of his knee, causing him to collapse towards the ground. "Fucking kid!" As he dropped to one knee, he swung his fist around around and tried to punch Izuku, who quickly leaned out of the attack. As the man tried to recollect himself, Izuku swung himself around, bringing his foot up in a wide arch before landing it against the man's jaw. The man's head swiveled around as his body fell forward, landing face-down and unconscious.
"You're gonna pay for that, kid!" Izuku was tackled from behind, the second man using his larger weight against him, as he pulled Izuku's hands together. As Izuku was hauled upwards, he looked towards the first man just in time to notice a fist flying towards his face. Izuku's head was knocked backwards as he saw stars.
"Leave him alone!" The girl said, jumping onto the back of the first guy. Izuku looked up towards her, just in time to see her sink her fangs into his neck.
"Fucking bitch!" The first one yelled, grabbing the girl by her neck and flinging her across the alleyway. Izuku watched as she hit the wall, falling towards the ground and lying still. He really hoped she was alright.
Thinking quickly, Izuku brought up his foot behind him, hitting the man that was holding him in his precious jewels. "Fuck!" The second man yelled out, loosening his grip enough to allow Izuku to slip free.
Moving quickly, Izuku swung his fist around and cracked it across the second man's jaw, knocking him to the ground beside his friend. Izuku could see that the second man was still moving, but with how he wasn't getting back up, Izuku knew that he had successfully dazed him enough to buy him some time.
Izuku turned around to see the first man approaching the girl lying on the ground. He rushed towards the man, bringing up his leg and slamming it on the back of the man's kneecap, causing his leg to buckle out from underneath him and slam into the ground. "I told you to leave her alone!" Izuku yelled out, bringing his leg down in a wide arc and landing it against his face. The first man's head snapped to the side as he fell unconscious against the ground.
Izuku looked back towards the second one to see he was still lying on the ground, but was now not moving. Hearing a groan, he rushed over towards the girl that was thrown against the wall, kneeling down in front of her. "Are you alright?"
"Huh?" She mumbled out. The first thing Izuku noticed when she looked in his direction were her yellow catlike eyes that seemed to be looking right at him, but struggling to see him. She looked to be about the same age as him, and the tattered uniform she wore indicated that she went to a middle school, but it was one he didn't recognize. Her hair looked like it hadn't been washed in a long time, pieces of her hair sticking up in every possible angle. Izuku noticed that she looked malnourished and very frail. "Saito?" She questioned quietly.
"No, I'm not Saito." Izuku responded. "You hit your head hard, so I think you might have a concussion. I need to get you to a hospital."
That seemed to get her attention, as her eyes went wide. "No! No hospital! They'll send me back to them!" She cried out, digging her nails into Izuku's arm, causing him to bleed and grunt in pain. The girl froze once she realized what she had just done. "No. No no no no no no." She said, pushing herself away from Izuku. "Stay away from me! I'm a monster!" Her eyes flickered down to Izuku's arm, seeing the blood trickling down, as she continued to push herself away.
"Hey, it's okay." Izuku spoke softly, moving closer to her. "I'm a friend. I'm trying to help you."
"You don't understand! I'm a monster! I don't deserve help!" The girl backed up until she hit the wall, still looking at Izuku's arm.
Izuku looked down at his arm and saw the bleeding, before he put two and two together. "You have a blood quirk." Izuku said quietly, looking back up at the girl. As her eyes went wide, and her breathing got faster, Izuku was worried she was gonna pass out from hyperventilating. He moved forward and stuck his wrist towards her. "If you're thirsty, take some." He stated simply.
"I'm a monster!" She tried to push his arm away, and Izuku could feel how weak she actually was. Izuku stayed where he was, keeping his arm in front of her, as she continued to try to push it away. "Leave me alone! I'm a monster! I don't deserve help!"
"But I want to help you." Izuku said softly. "Please? I can see how malnourished you are." Izuku could see that she was fighting herself away. "Let me help you." He said once more, pushing his wrist a little closer. Within a blink of an eye, she had moved and latched onto his wrist. Izuku had grunted in pain when she finally bit down, but he stayed calm and let her drink as much as she needed. He noticed that she had closed her eyes as she drank, a look of bliss overcoming her.
He moved his hand up to her hair and moved some out of her face so that he could better see her. The action must have shocked her, because she let go of his arm and threw it away from her. "No no no no no no." She said quietly. "I'm a monster, I'm not supposed to drink blood. I don't want to go to jail." Izuku noticed how her eyelids seemed to be getting heavier by the second, as her head drooped lower.
"Are you two alright?" A voice spoke from above them. Izuku looked up to see a skeleton of a man standing above them, with sunken blue eyes and messy blonde hair. "I saw what happened, and I've already called the police."
"No!" The girl yelled out, seemingly a little more awake, dragging her head up. "They'll send me back to them! I don't want to go back to them!"
The tall man crouched down. "Don't worry, young one. Nobody will be sending you back. I'll make sure of it." Izuku looked at the man, feeling like he was familiar, but couldn't place where he had seen him. "My name is Toshinori Yagi, and I work for Might Tower. I saw and heard everything." Izuku's eyes went wide when he said that, causing Toshinori to look towards him. "You handled yourself well, young man."
"Thank you, Sir." Izuku responded. He would have to put it out of his mind for the time being, the injured girl in front of him taking priority. "I need to call an ambulance for her."
"No need to worry, young man. One should be here momentarily." Toshinori responded. He stood back up as he noticed a man at the entrance of the alleyway. "I'll be right back."
"Don't let them take me back, please." The girl pleaded desperately.
"I'll make sure you aren't, I promise." Izuku confirmed.
"Thank you…" She trailed off as her head fully drooped now. Izuku checked her pulse and noticed that it was slowly down, but still steady and strong.
"Is she alright?" Toshinori questioned from above them.
Izuku nodded, pushing himself to his feet. "She's passed out. I don't know if she has a concussion, but I did notice that she was extremely malnourished, and she was also blood starved." Izuku hummed in thought as he looked down at the unconscious girl. "I think by giving her some blood, it caused her to pass out, her body finally giving out on her once that thirst was satisfied."
Toshinori hummed. "What about you, young man? How are you feeling?"
Izuku raised his hand up to where he had been punched. "I feel a bit sore from the punch, but nothing worth worrying about."
Toshinori nodded in understanding. "I think it's best if you get checked out as well. Best to make sure you don't have a concussion, plus you made a promise after all."
"I understand. Thank you for coming to check on us." Izuku bowed a bit.
"You're welcome, young man." Toshinori responded. "I will meet you both at the hospital. There is something that I would like to discuss with you after you've been checked out."
"Of course, Sir."
Izuku was currently sitting in one of the chairs along the wall in the blonde girl's hospital room. He had been checked over and given the all clear. One of the doctors had a healing quirk that worked to take away the pain he was feeling from the punch, but was told that it would be a while before it was actually healed.
He had pulled out his phone right after, noticing a bunch of texts and calls from Momo. The first one was wondering how far out he was from Leblanc, followed by a few frantic texts about the police and ambulance, finished off with texts asking if he was okay. The calls came after the texts, the first few right after the other, and the next couple were spread out every few minutes. Izuku had texted her to let her know that he was okay, but was currently sitting in the hospital, and that he couldn't call her where he was. Her response was only a question asking where he was, and when he had told her, she messaged back about being on her way.
Izuku stayed in the chair after that, watching the girl hooked up with multiple IVs in the bed. The doctors had confirmed that she suffered a concussion, on top of how malnourished she was, letting him know that it could be a while until she woke up. Izuku said that he understood, and opted to stay with her until she did.
The door cracked open, and Momo poked her head in quickly. Izuku smiled towards her, and she quickly entered the room and moved towards him. Izuku stood up at the same time that Momo threw her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "I was so worried about you." Momo said quietly. She buried her face into his shoulder, and Izuku could feel her tremble as he ran his hands along her back. "When you didn't answer your texts, and then all the sirens... They wouldn't let me anywhere close to the scene."
"I'm sorry, Mo." Izuku responded quietly, hugging her tightly. "I was so caught up in saving the girl that I couldn't do anything until I was checked over."
Momo pulled back, hands on his shoulders, while Izuku put his hands on her sides. "Were you injured?" She questioned, looking over him as if to look for some bandages or some other indication he was hurt.
"A bit." Izuku admitted. "One of them got a good hit on my cheek." Momo leaned forward and kissed his cheek, causing him to chuckle and embrace her in a tight hug again. "Thanks, Mo." Izuku said quietly against her shoulder. "I love you, Mo."
"I love you too, Izu." Momo responded. They stood there in each other's embrace, leaning their heads against the other's shoulder. Izuku had started swaying a bit to his own beat, causing Momo to relax in his grip.
"You two are cute together." A female voice said. Izuku and Momo slowly split apart to look towards the girl that had pushed herself up into a sitting position.
Izuku let go of Momo, walking over towards the bed. "How are you feeling? The doctors mentioned you suffered a concussion, and were extremely malnourished."
"Better." She said quietly, and Izuku could see the honesty behind her eyes. "Why did you help me? Why did you let me drink your blood? Everything's a little fuzzy."
"The doctors said that might be a side effect from what happened." Izuku confirmed. "I helped you because you needed help." He held up his arm towards her, showcasing the two scarred over puncture wounds. "When your nails cut into my skin, you were transfixed on the blood. I could see it in your eyes how much you needed it."
"But…" She trailed off as she looked away. "I'm not supposed to need blood. They told me I was a monster for liking blood…"
"They were wrong." Izuku said firmly, causing the girl to look back towards him in shock. "You're not a monster because you like blood. You like blood because your quirk requires it." Izuku watched as her eyes went wide, before she looked down at her open hands. "They ran some tests here at the hospital, and compared it with what they had on record for you. There was nothing on record that says you have a blood quirk."
"You keep saying I have a blood quirk. What does that mean?" She tilted her head back up towards him. "They told me I only had a slight cat mutation."
"Well, you do have a slight cat mutation." Izuku confirmed. "Your eyes are very catlike, and your fangs resemble those of a cat. You probably feel more comfortable with your hair in buns, because that's where cat's ears normally are, and the weight of the hair buns probably feels more natural. What I mean about you having a blood quirk, is that it requires blood to activate, but you also need blood as part of your dietary needs. The doctors weren't sure on what your quirk did, but they said they found traces of my blood within your system, as well as the man who you attacked."
"How did you…?" She questioned.
"Izu knows quirks. He's been studying them ever since we were kids." Momo spoke up from beside Izuku. "My name is Momo Yaoyorozu, it's nice to meet you."
"Oh! My name is Izuku Midoriya. Sorry for not introducing myself or my girlfriend earlier, she was a bit worried about what happened." Izuku felt Momo reach for his hand and grab it, giving it a squeeze and bringing a small smile to his face.
"Himiko." Himiko responded quietly. "No last name. I want nothing to do with those people."
"I understand." Izuku responded. "It's nice to meet you, Himiko."
"Did you mean what you said?" Himiko asked quietly, twiddling her thumbs together as she looked away from him. "About not letting them send me back?"
"I did." Izuku confirmed.
"How?" Himiko questioned as she looked back towards Izuku, allowing him to notice the hope behind her eyes. "How will you stop them? Nobody has been able to stop them before."
"Do you remember the man that approached us before you passed out?" Izuku questioned, she shook her head no.
"I remember a voice, but I never saw the man." Himiko admitted. "I could only see you."
"I suspected as such." Izuku confirmed. "He talked to you and you responded to him. Toshinori Yagi is his name, he said he works for Might Tower, and he also promised that nobody would be sending you back. If he didn't, I would have figured out something."
"Might Tower?" Momo questioned, looking at Izuku in shock.
Izuku chuckled. "About the same reaction I had, but I had to focus on making sure Himiko was okay so I didn't have a chance to geek out." Izuku hummed, looking away a bit. "He said he would be here, but I haven't seen him since we left the scene."
"Did he give you any way to contact him?" Momo questioned. "Maybe he left something with the nurses?"
"Not that I know of." Izuku responded, looking back towards Momo. "The nurses haven't mentioned anything."
"I'm sure he just got caught up in paperwork or something." Momo responded. "I overheard him at the scene talking to a police officer, but that was after the ambulance had left."
When the door opened a crack, the three teenagers looked towards it, to see the blonde-haired skeleton man peeking his head in. "Oh good, you're awake." Pushing the door open, Toshinori stepped into the room, followed by someone in a trench coat. "I want to introduce you to my detective friend from the police force, Toga."
"Himiko, please." Himiko whispered out, looking at the police detective. "Are you here to take me back?" Himiko slumped her shoulders, already accepting her fate.
"The opposite, actually." Himiko's head snapped up towards the police detective, hope returning to her eyes. "My name is Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi, and I am here because Mr. Yagi has contacted me in regards to your case. I've managed to pull your files in regards to why you were wanted."
Himiko nodded, looking down towards her hands. "So you understand why I was running." She stated simply.
"Himiko, can I ask why your quirk registry says you only have a cat mutation?" Naomasa questioned. "The doctors here have determined that you have a blood quirk, and a dietary requirement to survive."
"That's what they made me believe." Himiko admitted, not seeing the motion that Naomasa did behind his back. "They wanted a normal daughter. Normal girls don't like blood. They called my smile creepy, and said I looked like a deviant." Himiko was crying now, clenching her fingers tightly. "'Why can't you just be normal?' and 'Act like a normal little girl!'were all I ever heard, and I tried so hard to make them happy." Himiko hiccuped as the tears continued to flow. "But the hunger never went away. Whenever someone bled, it was so much worse."
Izuku made his way to the opposite side of the bed to Naomasa, reaching out and grabbing Himiko's hands, causing her to release her death grip and look up towards him. "You don't need to try to make them happy anymore." Izuku said softly. "And now you know why you need blood. Is that hunger still there?"
"Yes." Himiko said softly, looking down towards Izuku's wrist and seeing the puncture marks. "But it's manageable. I couldn't think straight before, but now everything doesn't feel so fuzzy." Himiko reached out towards Izuku's wrist with the puncture marks, running her hand over the rough scars. "Are they permanent?" She questioned quietly.
"The doctors informed me that they would eventually fade, but not disappear." Izuku said, allowing Himiko to continue running her hands over them.
"I'm sorry…" Himiko whispered out.
"Don't be." Izuku responded, causing Himiko to look up towards him smiling. "It'll be a mark that I'll proudly wear, if it means I saved you."
Himiko blinked a few times, looking at Izuku to see if there was any dishonesty behind his words, but kept coming up empty. She moved forward off the bed, wrapping her arms around Izuku, pulling him into a hug. "Thank you, Izuku." Himiko sniffled again as she felt Izuku wrap his arms around her and hugged back. "Thank you so much."
"You're welcome, Himiko." Izuku responded.
"That solves that mystery." Naomasa commented towards Toshinori, causing Izuku and Himiko to pull apart.
"What mystery?" Izuku questioned.
"Himiko was wanted for attacking her fellow classmate." Himiko looked towards her hands again, feeling regret for her actions. "Because of what happened, and because Himiko disappeared afterwards, the Togas disowned her. The doctors informed us that Himiko was blood starved when they were running their tests, and that was after taking blood from Midoriya." Naomasa pointed his pen towards Izuku as he said that. "They suspected Himiko must have been starving herself for years to get to the point of needing to rely on blood as heavily as she does now." Himiko raised her eyes back up to the detective. "They considered that when you attacked Saito, you were likely under the effects of your quirk, not able to think clearly."
"What does that mean?" Himiko questioned, looking towards Izuku, who looked to be deep in thought.
"If she wasn't able to think clearly, and was driven by the needs of her quirk, then she can't be blamed for what happened with her classmate." Momo pondered out loud, causing everyone to look towards her, as she looked towards Himiko without seeing her. "If that was the case, the fault would trace back to the quirk counselor that last updated her quirk in the registry, and the Togas for knowing and still forcing Himiko to suppress her quirk." Momo looked back over to Naomasa and Toshinori. "Which means that Himiko should be free of all charges and free of the Togas completely."
"Which also means, since Himiko is considered to be a minor still, she would need a family to adopt her." Izuku spoke next, looking at Momo. "Throwing her back into the foster care system would be tragic and the same results are likely to happen again. Not only that, nobody would adopt someone so close to being an adult." Izuku looked back towards Naomasa and Toshinori. "Which means that it's highly likely that Himiko wouldn't get the blood she needed."
"You kids know your stuff." Naomasa clicked his pen, before pocketing both his pen and notebook. "You're both correct. Himiko would be surrendered to the foster care system, with no guarantee of ever being adopted, nor having her dietary needs fulfilled."
"What if someone offered to adopt her?" Momo questioned silently, looking down towards the floor in thought.
"Mo?" Izuku questioned. Momo looked towards Izuku, and he could see the conviction behind her eyes. They didn't exchange words, but Izuku knew exactly what Momo was thinking.
"It would have to be before she's surrendered to the foster care system." Naomasa explained.
"Please, allow me to make a quick phone call." Momo spoke, before disappearing out of the room.
"Detective?" Izuku questioned, getting the man to focus on him. "Can I ask you something?" At the detective's nod, Izuku continued. "You were holding your fingers out behind you every time Himiko answered a question, or spoke about something." Naomasa and Toshinori shared a look, before the detective looked back towards Izuku. "Does your quirk work similar to a lie detector?"
"Good catch, Midoriya." Naomasa praised. "I call my quirk Detector. It works similarly to a lie detector where I can feel if someone is genuine or not with their answers."
"So by holding up a single finger, you were letting Mr. Yagi know that Himiko was being honest with her answers." Izuku said. "It must come in handy as a detective. My only other question is, does it hold up in court?"
"It depends on the judge, and if they want to bring quirks into play." Naomasa explained. "Some judges still believe quirks should be kept out of the justice system, while others rely too heavily on quirks similar to mine. They aren't fail-proof by any means, so there are times when I might know the truth, but I would still need to have facts or evidence to back up my reasoning."
"That's interesting." Izuku commented, bringing up a hand to his chin. "That's why you didn't indicate what quirk you had when you walked in, because if the person being questioned knew what your quirk was, it's possible they could trick you." Izuku rubbed his chin in thought. "What if they give you a half-truth?"
"Detector would inform me what would be a truth and what would be a lie."
"So what would 'I have the double jointed pinky toes in my feet, which is the reason why I'm quirkless' tell you?"
Naomasa looked taken aback as he looked towards Toshinori before looking back towards Izuku. "Well, Detector informs me that the first part is true, but the second part is half truth." Naomasa thought for a moment. "Based on what you said, I would suspect that you being quirkless is the truth, but the double jointed pinky toes is not the reason you believe you are."
"Correct!" Izuku responded excitedly. "It was proven that the correlation between the double jointed pinky toes and having a quirk is an old practice that doesn't hold up in today's society of quirks. There are many quirked individuals out there that prove the theory doesn't hold up anymore."
"You're… Quirkless?" Himiko asked quietly, causing Izuku to look back towards her.
"Since the day I was born." Izuku responded, nodding a bit. "Well, since the day the doctor diagnosed me as quirkless, I guess." Izuku chuckled.
"And you still attacked those men without a quirk?" Himiko asked quietly, amazement in her eyes. "That's so cool…"
"Thank you, Himiko." Izuku responded. "You needed help, and I wasn't going to stand by!"
The door opened again, and Momo walked back into the room. She walked towards Izuku, before leaning beside his head and whispering into his ear, causing Izuku's eyes to go wide. "Miyuki said that?" Momo pulled back and nodded, a smile on her face. "Detective? Do you know the paperwork required for Himiko's adoption?"
Himiko's eyes went wide, looking at Izuku and Momo. "Huh?!"
Izuku smiled, grabbing Momo's hand and pulling her towards the bed, standing beside Himiko. "We will leave the final decision up to you, Himiko, but Miyuki, Mo's Mother, has offered to adopt you."
"But why?" Himiko whispered out, looking down towards her hands. "I'm a monster…"
"You're not a monster, Himiko." Momo said firmly, causing Himiko to look towards her. "If anyone is the monster, it's the Togas." Momo reached forward and grabbed Himiko's hand, smiling. "Izu made you a promise that he wouldn't allow you to be sent back, and I am helping him keep that promise."
"I don't understand…" Himiko responded quietly.
"How does Himiko Yaoyorozu sound?" Momo questioned.
Himiko's mouth opened slightly in shock. "You mean…?" Himiko whispered out as Momo nodded. "But…"
"No buts." Momo responded. "This will keep you from going into the foster care system, and possibly ending up in the same situation. Izu helped you by saving you from those men. I want to extend that offer, allowing you to get the help you need, and by allowing you to be yourself instead of what the Togas believed was normal. What do you say?"
Himiko looked at them both as tears trailed down her face. "Yes!" Himiko whispered out excitedly as she moved forward to hug Izuku and Momo around the neck, pulling them into a tight hug.
"I'll get the paperwork sent over." Naomasa told Toshinori, before leaving the room.
"Young Midoriya?" Toshinori questioned, causing the three teenagers to split, and look towards him. "Can I have a word with you? In private?"