Haruto was having a perfectly fine morning until Bakugo Katsuki decided to make it everyone's problem.
It started at the park. Haruto had been peacefully sitting under a tree (which was, admittedly, telling him about its problems with woodpeckers), when Bakugo marched over with the energy of a small angry storm.
"HARU!" Bakugo shouted, despite being three feet away. "Fight me!"
It's 9 AM, Haruto thought. Who wants to fight at 9 AM? On a Saturday?
"No," Haruto said.
"What?! Why not?!"
"Don't want to."
Bakugo's face turned red. "Are you SCARED?!"
I'm not scared. I'm tired. There's a difference.
"Just don't want to," Haruto repeated, turning his attention back to the tree.
The woodpeckers are very persistent, the tree was saying. They don't listen when I tell them to stop.
Have you tried being less delicious? Haruto thought at it.
How does one become less delicious?
I don't know. I'm not a tree.
"ARE YOU IGNORING ME?!" Bakugo's voice went up an octave.
"Kacchan, maybe leave him alone," Izuku said, appearing from the playground. "He's just sitting."
"SITTING IS BORING! We should be TRAINING! Like HEROES!"
We're two and three years old, Haruto thought. The only thing we should be training for is naptime.
"Don't wanna train," Haruto said.
Bakugo looked like he was about to explode—literally, given his quirk. Small sparks were popping from his palms.
"You're USELESS!" Bakugo declared. "Your plant quirk is WEAK and you're WEAK and—"
He was cut off by a tree root suddenly rising from the ground and tripping him.
Bakugo went down hard, face-planting into the grass.
There was a moment of stunned silence.
Did I do that? Haruto thought, looking at his hands. I didn't mean to do that.
Actually, yes you did, his quirk seemed to respond. You were annoyed and I helped.
We talked about this. No unauthorized quirk usage.
He was being rude.
Still no.
Bakugo pushed himself up, grass-stained and furious. "DID YOU JUST—DID YOUR QUIRK JUST TRIP ME?!"
"Accident," Haruto said quickly.
"ACCIDENT?! THAT WAS ON PURPOSE!"
"Wasn't."
"WAS TOO!"
"Kacchan, it was probably an accident," Izuku tried to mediate. "Haru-kun's been having trouble with control—"
"I DON'T CARE!" Bakugo stomped toward Haruto, hands crackling. "Nobody makes me look stupid!"
You're doing that yourself, Haruto thought, but wisely didn't say out loud.
Before the situation could escalate further, their mothers appeared.
"KATSUKI BAKUGO!" Mitsuki's voice cut through the air like a whip. "What did I tell you about using your quirk on other children?!"
"But MOM! He TRIPPED me!"
"With his quirk?"
"YES!"
Mitsuki turned to Haruto. "Did you trip him on purpose, Haruto-kun?"
Technically no, Haruto thought. My quirk acted on its own because it decided Bakugo was annoying. Which is true, but not helpful.
"Accident," Haruto said. "Sorry."
Mitsuki looked skeptical, but his own mother was already apologizing profusely.
"I'm so sorry, Mitsuki-san! Haruto's been having control issues lately. The doctor said—"
"It's fine, Yuki," Mitsuki waved her off. "Katsuki needs to learn not to provoke other kids anyway." She grabbed her son by the collar. "Come on, brat. We're going home."
"BUT—"
"NOW!"
They left in a storm of explosions and yelling, which seemed to be the Bakugo family's standard mode of transportation.
Haruto's mother sat down next to him under the tree.
"Haru," she said carefully. "Did you really trip him by accident?"
Technically yes. I didn't consciously do it. My quirk just... reacted.
"Yeah," Haruto said.
His mother studied his face for a long moment. "You know, when I was your age, I once froze a boy's shoes to the floor because he was being mean to my friend."
Haruto looked up at her, surprised.
"I told my parents it was an accident too," she continued, a small smile on her face. "And technically, it was. My quirk reacted to my emotions before I could control it."
So she knows, Haruto realized. She knows I'm lying. But she's not mad.
"The point is," his mother said gently, "I understand that quirks can react to our feelings. Especially when we're young and still learning control. But you need to try harder to keep your emotions in check, okay? Because if your quirk hurts someone..."
She didn't finish the sentence, but Haruto understood.
"I'll try," he promised.
And he meant it. Mostly.
Note to self, he thought. Work on emotional control. Can't have the quirk activating every time someone annoys me.
That would be... frequently.
Later that afternoon, Izuku came over for a playdate.
"That was so cool how you tripped Kacchan!" Izuku said the moment he was in the door, notebook already out. "Not the tripping part—that wasn't nice—but how your quirk responded without you thinking about it! That means your quirk is connected to your emotional state!"
And here I thought I was being subtle, Haruto thought.
"Wasn't on purpose," Haruto maintained.
"I know! That's what makes it interesting!" Izuku flipped through his notebook. "See, I've been documenting quirk activation patterns, and emotional triggers are really common! Especially in young children whose quirks are still developing!"
He's four years old and using terms like 'activation patterns' and 'emotional triggers,' Haruto thought. This kid is going to be terrifying when he's older.
They went to Haruto's room, where Izuku immediately started asking questions.
"So when Kacchan was yelling at you, what did you feel?"
"Annoyed," Haruto said.
"And your hands? Did they get itchy like usual?"
"Yeah. But I wasn't trying to use my quirk. It just... happened."
"Fascinating!" Izuku scribbled furiously. "So your quirk can activate subconsciously in response to emotional stimuli! That's actually a self-defense mechanism! Like how some people's quirks activate automatically when they're in danger!"
Except I wasn't in danger. I was just irritated.
"Kacchan wasn't dangerous," Haruto pointed out.
"Not physically maybe, but psychologically? Being yelled at and provoked could trigger a stress response, which could activate your quirk!" Izuku looked up, eyes shining. "This is so cool, Haru-kun! You're like... like a nature guardian! Your quirk protects you!"
Or my quirk is just petty and doesn't like being insulted, Haruto thought. But sure, let's go with nature guardian.
"Izuku, honey, don't interrogate Haruto too much," Inko called from the living room where she was having tea with Haruto's mother.
"I'm not interrogating! I'm documenting!"
"It's the same thing!"
Izuku sighed but closed his notebook. "Sorry, Haru-kun. I get excited about quirks sometimes."
"It's okay," Haruto said. And it was. Izuku's enthusiasm was exhausting but genuine.
"Can I ask one more question?" Izuku asked hopefully.
He's going to ask anyway, Haruto thought. Might as well agree.
"Okay."
"Do you think your quirk will get stronger? Like, do you think you'll be able to control really big plants? Or multiple plants at once? Or—oh! Could you make a whole forest?"
Yes to all of that, Haruto thought. That's literally what Mokuton is capable of. But I can't tell you that.
"Maybe," Haruto said. "Don't know yet."
"But you can feel plants, right? Like, sense them?"
"Yeah."
"How far away can you sense them?"
Haruto had been wondering that himself. He focused, extending his awareness outward from his room.
He could feel Gerald on the balcony, of course. The other balcony plants. The houseplants throughout the apartment. Then the trees outside. The grass. The neighbors' plants...
He kept pushing, and the sensation spread like ripples in a pond. The park two blocks away. The community garden. Individual plants in windows, on roofs, in yards...
"Haru-kun? You okay? You look weird."
Haruto blinked, pulling his awareness back. "Far," he said. "Really far."
"How far?"
"Couple blocks maybe? It's hard to tell."
Izuku's jaw dropped. "A couple BLOCKS?! That's amazing! Most quirks with a sensory component only work within a few meters! You're like—like a plant radar!"
Plant radar, Haruto thought. That's actually not a bad description.
"But doesn't that get overwhelming?" Izuku asked, his expression shifting to concern. "Sensing that many plants at once?"
It was overwhelming, actually. Like trying to listen to a hundred conversations simultaneously.
"Sometimes," Haruto admitted. "It's loud."
"Loud? But plants don't make sounds."
"Not sounds. Feelings. But lots of them. All the time."
Izuku's face scrunched up in sympathy. "That sounds hard."
You have no idea, Haruto thought. Last week, a tree three streets over wouldn't shut up about its broken branch. For three days.
"I'm getting used to it," Haruto said.
They played for a while after that—or rather, Izuku played and Haruto participated minimally. Izuku had brought his collection of hero figures and was recreating famous rescue missions with detailed commentary.
"—and then All Might lifted the ENTIRE BUILDING to save the people trapped underneath!" Izuku made his All Might figure lift a block. "He's so strong! And cool! And—and—"
"And everywhere," Haruto muttered.
"What?"
"Nothing."
Izuku continued his play-by-play of All Might's greatest hits while Haruto's mind wandered.
I need to figure out this emotional control thing, he thought. Can't have my quirk activating every time I'm annoyed. That's a recipe for disaster.
Especially if I'm going to be around Bakugo regularly.
That kid is annoying on a cosmic level.
"Haru-kun?" Izuku's voice broke through his thoughts. "Can I tell you something?"
"Yeah."
Izuku fidgeted with his All Might figure. "Sometimes I get sad about not having a quirk."
Oh, Izuku.
"I know I said I'm okay with it," Izuku continued quietly. "And I am! Mostly! But sometimes I see you and Kacchan using your quirks and I just... I wish I could do that too."
Haruto didn't know what to say. He knew Izuku would get One For All eventually. Knew he'd become an incredible hero. But he couldn't tell him that.
"You'll still be a hero," Haruto said finally. "Quirk or no quirk."
"You really think so?"
I know so. You're going to inherit the most powerful quirk in existence and save the world multiple times. But I can't say that.
"Yeah," Haruto said. "You're smart. And brave. And you don't give up. That's what heroes are."
Izuku's smile was wobbly but genuine. "Thanks, Haru-kun. You're a really good friend."
I'm really not, Haruto thought for the thousandth time. But I'm trying.
That evening, after the Midoriyas left, Haruto sat on the balcony with Gerald.
"I tripped Bakugo today," he said out loud.
I know, Gerald responded. The grass told me. Said it was funny.
"The grass has opinions about social interactions now?"
The grass sees everything, Gerald said sagely. Literally. It's everywhere.
Great. So all the plants in the neighborhood are gossiping about me.
"Am I a bad person for not feeling sorry about it?" Haruto asked.
He was being rude, Gerald pointed out. You defended yourself. That's natural.
"But I'm supposed to be learning control. Not letting my quirk react to my emotions."
Control is important, Gerald agreed. But so is self-respect. Finding the balance is the challenge.
Haruto looked at the fern. "When did you get so wise?"
I've been alive for three months, Gerald said. That's like... a hundred years in fern time.
That's not how time works.
It is if you're a fern.
Haruto smiled despite himself. "Thanks, Gerald."
Anytime, small human.
Inside, his parents were talking in the kitchen. Haruto could hear their voices, low and concerned.
"—worry about him," his mother was saying. "He's so young to have such a powerful quirk."
"He'll be fine," his father assured her. "He's a good kid. Smart. He'll learn control."
"But what if he doesn't? What if something happens and—"
"Yuki. Look at me. Our son is going to be fine. Yes, his quirk is strong. Yes, it's developing faster than expected. But that just means he'll have more time to master it before he's an adult."
There was a pause.
"I just want him to be safe," his mother said softly. "And happy."
"I know. So do I."
Haruto pulled his knees up to his chest, feeling that familiar weight of guilt.
They worry because I'm a problem, he thought. My quirk, my development, my everything. I'm just one big complication in their lives.
But what can I do? I can't not have this quirk. Can't not be who I am.
Even if who I am is a reincarnated adult in a toddler's body with the powers of a literal god and plans to fundamentally alter the course of this world's future.
When I put it like that, I sound insane.
Maybe I am insane.
That would explain a lot, actually.
Gerald rustled sympathetically.
You're not insane, the fern assured him. Just complicated.
Complicated, Haruto repeated. That's one word for it.
He stayed on the balcony until his mother called him for dinner, watching the sun set over the city and thinking about control, about power, about the weight of knowledge and the burden of expectations.
One day at a time, he told himself. That's all I can do. One day at a time.
Learn control. Get stronger. Wait for the right moment.
And try not to trip too many people with my quirk in the meantime.
From inside, his father called: "Haru! Dinner! We made your favorite!"
Rice, Haruto thought. They made rice. My 'favorite.' Which is really just the only food I said when asked.
But it's the thought that counts.
He gave Gerald one last pat and headed inside, where his parents were setting the table and trying not to look worried.