Three days after Izuku's diagnosis, Haruto learned that word traveled fast in their neighborhood.
Specifically, word traveled to Bakugo Katsuki, who showed up at the park with the energy of a small nuclear explosion and the tact of a sledgehammer.
"DEKU!" Bakugo's voice carried across the entire playground. "I heard you're QUIRKLESS!"
*Oh good,* Haruto thought from his spot on the grass where he'd been peacefully watching ants. *Subtlety. My favorite.*
Izuku, who'd been sitting on a swing and staring at the ground for the past twenty minutes, flinched. "Hi, Kacchan."
"Don't 'hi Kacchan' me!" Bakugo stomped over, hands crackling with small explosions. He'd been practicing. "Is it true? You don't have a quirk?"
Izuku looked down. "Yeah. It's true."
"HA!" Bakugo's laugh was too loud, too sharp. "I KNEW IT! I knew you'd be a dud! You're too wimpy to have a quirk!"
*And here we go,* Haruto thought, carefully standing up. *The beginning of the Bakugo Bullying Arc. Right on schedule.*
"Kacchan, please—"
"Don't 'please' me either! You know what this means, right?" Bakugo leaned in, grinning in a way that was definitely not friendly. "It means I'm gonna be a hero and you're gonna be NOTHING!"
Haruto had heard enough.
He walked over—well, toddled over, because despite being over a year old now, his gait still resembled a drunk penguin—and positioned himself between Bakugo and Izuku.
"Stop," Haruto said.
Bakugo blinked, apparently having forgotten Haruto existed. "What?"
"Stop. Being mean."
"I'm not being mean! I'm telling the truth! Deku's quirkless! He can't be a hero!"
"Can try," Haruto said firmly.
"That's stupid! You can't be a hero without a quirk! Everyone knows that!"
*All Might would disagree,* Haruto thought, *but he's not here, and I can't exactly explain how I know the future, so...*
"Still can try," Haruto repeated.
Bakugo's face was turning red. "Are you calling me stupid?"
"No. Calling you mean."
"MEAN?!"
The explosion that erupted from Bakugo's hands was bigger than usual—fueled by anger and lack of control. The blast went wide, missing both boys but leaving a small scorch mark on the ground.
Their mothers, who'd been chatting on a bench, immediately rushed over.
"Katsuki!" Mitsuki grabbed her son by the collar. "What did I tell you about using your quirk when you're angry?!"
"But MOM! Haru called me MEAN!"
"Because you were being mean, you little brat!"
"I was NOT!"
While the Bakugos argued—their primary form of communication—Inko knelt next to Izuku and Haruto.
"Are you boys okay?" Her eyes were still red-rimmed. She'd been crying a lot lately.
"Fine," Izuku mumbled.
Haruto nodded.
Inko looked at Haruto for a long moment. "Thank you," she said quietly. "For standing up for Izuku."
*I'm not doing it to be nice,* Haruto thought. *I'm doing it because someone needs to check Bakugo before he becomes even more of a nightmare.*
But he just nodded again, because explaining his actual motivations would require more words than his toddler vocabulary allowed.
Mitsuki finished yelling at Bakugo and dragged him over. "Apologize."
"For what?!"
"For being a brat! Apologize to Izuku!"
"But—"
"NOW!"
Bakugo crossed his arms, glaring at the ground. "Sorry," he muttered.
It was the least sincere apology Haruto had ever heard, and he'd worked in customer service in his previous life.
"And to Haruto," Mitsuki added.
"WHAT?! I didn't even do anything to him!"
"You tried to blast him with your quirk!"
"That was an accident!"
"APOLOGIZE!"
"Fine! Sorry, Haru!" Bakugo turned his glare on Haruto. "Happy?"
*Thrilled,* Haruto thought. *This is exactly how I wanted to spend my afternoon. Mediating toddler drama.*
"We're going home," Mitsuki announced, still gripping Bakugo's collar. "And you're going to think about why we don't use our quirks on other people!"
"I didn't use it ON them! I used it NEAR them!"
"That's the same thing!"
They left in a storm of arguing, and Haruto was struck by how much of Bakugo's personality was just... his mom's personality. They even argued the same way.
*No wonder the kid has issues,* Haruto thought. *His role model is just as explosive as his quirk.*
"I'm sorry," Izuku said quietly once they were gone.
Haruto looked at him. "Why?"
"Because Kacchan got in trouble because of me. Because I'm quirkless."
*Oh no. No, no, no. We're not doing this.*
"Not your fault," Haruto said firmly. "Bakugo's fault. He was mean."
"But he was just telling the truth—"
"Mean truth still mean."
Izuku blinked. "That... that's actually really smart, Haru-kun."
*It's really not. It's basic human decency. But sure, let's call it smart.*
"Kacchan's just upset because..." Izuku trailed off, looking confused. "Actually, I don't know why he's upset. I'm the one without a quirk."
*Because Bakugo's ego is the size of a small planet and he needs someone to feel superior to,* Haruto thought. *But I can't explain toxic personality dynamics to a four-year-old.*
"Doesn't matter why," Haruto said instead. "Still wrong."
"You're a really good friend, Haru-kun," Izuku said, smiling for the first time in three days. It was small, fragile, but real.
*I'm really not,* Haruto thought. *I'm just trying to keep you alive long enough to meet All Might and save the world. But you can think I'm a good friend if it makes you feel better.*
"Come on," Haruto's mother called. "Let's go get ice cream! I think we all need ice cream after that."
"ICE CREAM!" Izuku's mood did a complete 180. "Can we, Mama? Please?"
Inko smiled, still sad but trying. "Of course, sweetie."
---
The ice cream shop was having what Haruto could only describe as an All Might-themed everything.
All Might flavors. All Might cups. All Might napkins. An All Might statue in the corner that was frankly terrifying up close.
*I'm in hell,* Haruto thought. *This is hell. I died and went to All Might hell.*
"Can I get the Plus Ultra Parfait?" Izuku asked, pressing his face against the display case.
"That's got five scoops, sweetie," Inko said weakly.
"Please? It's got the little All Might gummy on top!"
*Of course it does.*
Haruto ended up with vanilla in a regular cup because his mother was a reasonable human being who didn't think toddlers needed five scoops of ice cream. Izuku got his parfait and looked happier than he'd been in days.
They sat outside at a small table, and Haruto watched Izuku systematically demolish his ice cream while talking about All Might.
"—and did you see the video where he saved those people from the burning building? It was so cool! He didn't even hesitate! Just ran right in!"
*Kid's got it bad,* Haruto thought, licking his vanilla ice cream. *The hero worship is strong with this one.*
"Even without a quirk," Izuku continued, his enthusiasm dimming slightly, "I still wanna help people. Maybe I can't be a hero, but I can still... I don't know. Do something."
Inko's smile was pained. "Of course you can, sweetie. There are lots of ways to help people."
*Yeah,* Haruto thought. *Like inheriting the most powerful quirk in existence from the Symbol of Peace himself. That's definitely a way to help people.*
"Haru-kun," Izuku turned to him suddenly. "When you get your quirk, you're gonna be a hero, right?"
"Maybe," Haruto said, because committing to anything at this age seemed premature.
"You should! You'd be a great hero! You're nice and you stand up to bullies and you're really smart!"
*I'm planning to eliminate villains permanently, which is definitely not what heroes do,* Haruto thought. *But sure, let's go with 'nice.'*
"If you become a hero," Izuku continued, ice cream forgotten, "I can help you! I can be your sidekick! Or—or—or your support person! I can analyze quirks and come up with strategies! I'm really good at that!"
He was. Haruto had seen Izuku's notebooks. The kid had a tactical mind that would put military strategists to shame.
"Okay," Haruto agreed, because what else was he going to say?
Izuku's entire face lit up. "Really? You mean it?"
"Mean it."
"YES!" Izuku pumped his fist in the air, nearly knocking over his parfait in the process. "We're gonna be the best team ever! You'll be the hero and I'll be the guy in the chair! Like in the movies!"
*Pretty sure 'the guy in the chair' doesn't usually involve fighting god-tier villains, but okay.*
Their mothers were smiling at them, clearly finding this adorable. Haruto felt like he'd just signed a contract he didn't fully understand.
*This is fine,* he told himself. *Izuku can be support until he meets All Might. Then he'll become a hero proper. This doesn't change anything.*
But looking at Izuku's excited face, at the hope that had been missing for three days, Haruto felt something uncomfortable in his chest.
*Don't get attached,* he warned himself. *You can't afford to get attached.*
Too late. He was definitely already attached.
*Damn it.*
---
That night, Haruto was getting ready for bed when his father came in with a serious expression.
"Haru, can we talk for a minute?"
*Uh oh. 'Can we talk' is never good. That's parent code for 'you did something and we need to discuss it.'*
His father sat on the floor next to where Haruto was playing with blocks. "Your mother told me what happened at the park today. With Bakugo."
*Here it comes. The lecture about not getting involved in other kids' arguments.*
"I'm proud of you," his father said.
*Wait, what?*
"Standing up for Izuku like that took courage. Especially against someone like Bakugo, who's bigger and has a quirk already."
*I mean, he's not that much bigger. And his quirk control is terrible. I could probably take him if I really wanted to.*
"But," his father continued, and there it was, "you need to be careful. Bakugo's quirk is dangerous. If he'd hit you with that explosion..."
He didn't finish the sentence, but the worry in his eyes was clear.
"I know," Haruto said. And he did. He remembered from the anime how destructive Bakugo's quirk could be. Right now, the kid had no control, which made him even more dangerous.
"I'm not telling you not to stand up for your friends," his father clarified. "Just... be smart about it. Don't put yourself in danger unnecessarily."
*Too late for that. My entire existence is danger. I'm planning to take on the League of Villains eventually. Bakugo Katsuki is small potatoes.*
"Promise me you'll be careful," his father said.
"Promise."
His father hugged him tight. "That's my boy. Kind and brave, just like your mother and I hoped."
*If only you knew,* Haruto thought, hugging back. *I'm not kind. I'm just playing a role. And the brave part is debatable.*
But he didn't say any of that. Just let his father tuck him into bed and turn on the star projector.
"Sweet dreams, hero," his father whispered.
*Hero,* Haruto thought as the door closed. *Everyone keeps calling me that.*
He stared at the fake stars spinning overhead and wondered if he'd still be called a hero once people found out what he was really planning.
Probably not.
Heroes didn't eliminate their enemies. Heroes captured them, rehabilitated them, gave them chances.
Haruto was planning to do none of those things.
Which made him... what? A villain with good PR?
*No,* he thought firmly. *I'm doing this to save people. To prevent the deaths I know are coming. That makes me... something. Not a hero, not a villain. Something in between.*
A necessary evil.
That's what he'd be.