#shota aizawa x you
gif by @kilruas
Title: The Arrangement (Parts 1 and 2)
Pairings: Shota Aizawa x Fem!Reader, Hawks x Fem!Reader, Dabi x Fem!Reader (All to different degrees, and some are only one sided.)
Summary: You were a relatively unknown pro hero and Eraserhead’s girlfriend. Some rare alone time with him was all you’d wanted. But in an instant, everything is changed. A violent nomu attack and a fateful confrontation with Dabi put you headfirst into the darker side of hero work and the complications that Hawks already knew far too well.
Notes: *spoilers through season 5 of the anime*
Warnings: Cursing, blood, violence, serious injuries, angst.
——————————
Hoshi City - Friday, late afternoon
The air was crisp, with a little bit of breeze moving between the buildings. It was supposed to be the coldest temperature of the winter season thus far tonight.
But you were smiling as a small child passing by bundled up in their stroller waved out to the two of you on your patrol. Your partner Quake waved cheerfully to the child and their mother as well before he looked back to you.
“So you finally got Eraser to say yes, huh?” The tall, muscular hero asked with a little surprise.
“Well I’ve been wanting to go to that restaurant with him since they opened. I love Italian food, but it’s kind of hard to find the real thing around here you know?” You’d been bugging Aizawa for a very long while about it, yes. But he was always so busy with his work at UA. You understood of course, but sometimes it was just nice to have a chance to play at being a normal couple for once.
“He’s coming in tonight to stay for the whole weekend this time.” You added a bit proudly. It really had been ages since you could last say that. “So we’ll go there to that Italian place for dinner later. And I’m going to try and get him to keep his laptop closed Saturday as well to go out on patrol with me.” Honestly you were almost more excited about that idea than the actual dinner too. Because working together in the field just brought out a whole other level of trust and intimacy. One you missed experiencing with him ever since he left full time hero work to become a teacher really.
You were so thankful that your normal teammates were this flexible too. Yet you still asked one more time regardless. “And you’re sure that you’re okay going solo for tonight’s patrol though?” There were only three of you normally at your small hero agency. Yourself, Quake, and Sunstar. But Sunstar had had her sister’s wedding to go to out of the country this week. She still wouldn’t be back until tomorrow morning.
Quake just scoffed however. “I’ll be fine. Just as long as I can get some sleep once Sunny’s back in. Remember, Maya’s birthday party is Sunday afternoon too. And my wife’s still wanting me to help with the party setup.”
Maya was Quake’s oldest daughter, and you still couldn’t believe she was already going to be six years old. You remembered when she was just a babbling little rolly-polly ball of a baby. It was amazing how time flew.
“You should bring Eraser by the party if he’s still in town by then. He likes kids on cupcake and fruit punch sugar highs right?” Quake added with a chuckle, of course already knowing that statement was actually somewhat based in truth. Despite the harsh exterior, Eraser definitely had a soft spot for children.
And your smirk in response made it obvious that you knew all too well what topic was then coming next.
“You really need about four or five of your own you know? You two have been dating long enough to know if it’s for real by now. I mean, come on.” Quake teased a little.
You didn’t mind the bit of ribbing. Quake’s heart was always in the right place. He just didn’t want to see anyone waste their time was all. But you and Eraser’s careers still always seemed to get in the way in the end. “You realize how long I had to work on him just to convince him he was ready to get his own cat, right?” You asked somewhat seriously.
But Quake only laughed. “Or maybe you two just adopt Eri for real one day, instead of passing her around the UA staff like you have been. You adore her don’t you? She needs a set of loving, permanent parents. And Shinso is already in as the big brother role right? Might as well keep him too.”
“We can’t just kidnap a teenager! Hitoshi does have his own family you know.” You laughed a little at that. “And yeah, of course Eri deserves the world after all she’s been through,” You agreed. “But…” Were you really good enough for her? “How do you even know when you’re capable of being a good parent?”
“Oh, that answer’s easy.” Quake replied immediately. “You’re never ready. You’re never good enough. Never. But you keep improving. You get through it together one day at a time. You love them and you do the best you can. Just like hero work. You’ll win some days, and fall short on others. But you just keep moving forward. You’re their protector and biggest cheerleader for the rest of your life. That’s the important part.”
You sighed a little. “And who made you so damn inspirational today anyway?”
“It was the street tacos we had for lunch. Well, your lunch and my breakfast since I slept in to cover for you tonight of course. But I swear cilantro makes me more thoughtful!” He joked.
“Okay, there’s the weird Quake I know. He’s back now.” You were smirking again, the two of you just stepping off the curb and onto a crosswalk then when you saw that first blur in your peripheral vision.
Coming down the street like a missile, it was locked onto the both of you as your muscles started to tense. In fractions of a second, almost involuntarily, you had made a large shield of light as protection. While Quake had lifted up the pavement just with his mind to do the same. Dirt, concrete, and asphalt rose simultaneously to shoot up into a defensive wall alongside your light.
But the monster only slammed into both those barriers with no hesitation, creating a shockwave that blew out all windows in a three block radius.
——————————
UA High School
The chalk squeaked as it cut across the blackboard. It was the last minutes of the last lecture of the afternoon, and Aizawa knew without even looking back that too many in his class were already mentally elsewhere. Teenagers now thinking of their Friday night soon ahead, daydreaming pitifully as if they hadn’t cumulatively turned in the worst excuses for mission debriefing paperwork he’d ever seen earlier.
The paper pushing side of things might not be as flashy a part of the job. But if you couldn’t outline proper mission reports, and the Hero Commission ever had to question or kick back your agency’s filings one too many times, you could quickly find yourself without any income at all.
He was writing out the key points of this yet again on the board, this time with references for mandatory readings over the weekend on how the Hero Commission processed and divvied up hero salaries based on multiple factors of your submissions when the most obnoxious pop song erupted as a ringtone from one corner of the class.
The embarrassed squeal of Mina Ashido and the terrified rummaging through her backpack that followed was finally enough to have Eraser then glaring back over his shoulder.
“Idiot,” Bakugo grumbled under his breath, yet with a smirk that announced his clear anticipation of whatever punishment may befall her. This class was finally getting a little more interesting in his opinion.
“I forgot to turn it back off after break! I’m so sorry!” The pink skinned girl apologized loudly to both Aizawa and her equally disappointed looking class president Tenya Iida, even as she shot a glare in return to the smug Bakugo before looking back to the front of the class. “It was an accident, Mr. Aizawa, I swear, I-”
But before Eraserhead had even decided the suitable punishment, he saw her expression completely change as her eyes really met the phone’s screen.
“Mina?” Her friend Uraraka asked a little more worriedly, quickly picking up on that expression as well.
“It’s a news alert.” Mina blurted, standing up suddenly as she continued to read the message, scrolling quickly. “Another nomu attack! Two nomus! It’s happening right now!”
And it was like a wave of invisible energy ignited through the room at those words, palpable as the other students tensed and many left their own seats to start crowding her to be able to read the alert as well.
“We’ll kill them all this time! Dumb bastards! Where are they!?” Bakugo nearly took her phone from her as he rushed up, but she twisted her body quickly away from him.
“It’s-” She paused again when another awful realization struck her as she continued to read. But her anxious eyes rose back to Aizawa soon enough as she had to tell him. “It’s Hoshi City.”
The room fell briefly silent as he just stared back at her.
“That’s where Ms. (Y/N)’s agency is.” Midoriya mumbled nervously though, unable to help himself. But he kept going even though they could all still hear him. “It’s a smaller city, surrounded by rural areas. Her agency is the only one within a very wide range, there would be no backup immediately available. They don’t even have any sidekicks as the crime rate there doesn’t warrant more than three pro heroes normally. But she said Sunstar was going to be on vacation this week, so that only leaves Ms. (Y/N) and Quake, they-”
The hit was audible as Bakugo slapped the back of the muttering teen’s head hard enough to interrupt him. “Shutup, you weirdo! You think we don’t know that!?”
But instead of being angry at the cheap shot, Midoriya only looked ashamed for a moment as he realized how insensitive it might have been to reiterate all that aloud.
Yet the tension simply grew as Aizawa’s neutral expression and continued silence betrayed very little. Only if the students were truly observant would they have noticed the new tension in him. His body wanted to fight, he actually wanted to move immediately.
“Class is dismissed.” He announced coldly. “I will notify another teacher to escort you to your dorms. This attack may only be a distraction, or the first of multiple. I’m sure the principal will decide to put UA on lockdown momentarily.”
“But we can’t just do nothing!” Kirishima cried out, no longer able to contain himself as they all watched Aizawa moving towards the door.
“Iida, you’re responsible until another teacher arrives.” Was all Aizawa answered though, his focus now singular and far away from this room as his pace quickened.
Iida only hesitated briefly before responding forcefully though, “Yes…yes, sir!” and then Aizawa was gone.
——————————
Eraserhead was already in a full run as soon as the door to his classroom had closed behind him. His mind was calculating every possible option of how he could get to you. But each was only a dead end.
Even by bullet train it was still a forty minute trip. And the next train didn’t leave for over an hour. He was supposed to have been on that train tonight actually.
You shared his faculty apartment here with him on campus occasionally, even doing guest lectures and trainings with the students at times. But you also had your own apartment near your agency. You’d wanted him to come stay there with you this weekend, having worn him down about finally having a little personal time together again.
As he rounded the blind corner in the hallway, he had to quickly slide, dodging Present Mic in an instant as the two nearly collided. The other pro hero had been in full run as well. And by the expressions that the two old friends traded in that single moment, they both knew the other was already fully aware of the situation.
“We can take my car!” Mic said quickly, grabbing Aizawa briefly by the forearm.
“We’ll only get stuck on the highway.” Eraser rejected the idea immediately. It was late Friday afternoon. Businesses and schools would all be closing now, everyone getting on the road at the same time to commute home. Not all the roads from here to there even had emergency lanes. There’d be no way quickly through.
But his face was finally starting to betray more emotion as he could see that fear also mirrored behind Mic’s yellow tinted glasses. “Mic, we can only try to call in help for them. It’s all we can do.” It had to be someone who could fly, someone who could cross large distances in a short time.
He started to move again, continuing to his original destination of the teachers’ group office. Where their computers and hardline phones were. But he kept talking to Mic even as they now ran together. “Is it on television yet?”
“No idea, I was in class too. Midnight called my cell, asked me where you were. She was with some kids down at the gym. She’s coming back. I don’t know if-”
Principal Nezu’s calm voice interrupted over the intercom. “Attention staff and students, due to a confirmed and ongoing nomu attack in Hoshi precinct, UA is now on lockdown. Staff, please assist in escorting all students back to their dorms for the evening. We will report any further news as needed. Thank you.”
“I’ll text Midnight back, let her know to get our classes too for us,” Mic spoke quickly, already typing on his phone even in mid run.
As they did finally reach the group office and flung the door open, the mouse like Principal was there standing on a table as he lowered the microphone he’d just been speaking through.
All Might was there as well, his thin, drawn face looking immediately to Aizawa with concern even as the other passed right by him.
“Has someone already called Endeavor? Dragoon?” Aizawa asked as he went quickly to his own computer to start pulling up the direct hero agency hotlines that only the Hero Commission, schools like UA, and the police had access to for the most critical emergencies. Those numbers rang straight through and were always answered no matter what, unlike the public lines that may wait indefinitely in queue depending on current call volume.
“We did.” The Principal answered easily. “Endeavor’s personal vendetta against the nomus had him already on the way even before our call. But with the large distance he has to cover from his home city, his agency still estimated his flight time as over twenty minutes.”
“And Dragoon?” Eraser asked even as his eyes didn’t leave his computer screen, scrolling through the database for more flighted heroes that might be close enough to matter.
“She said she’d do her best. She was off the mainland, on an island mission when I called her.” All Might answered as well. “But she had a lot of open ocean to cross.”
“What about Hawks?” Mic butted in, even though he was now across the room turning on the massive flat screen television on the wall and starting to flip through the news channels.
Nezu frowned slightly. “His agency left him a voicemail for us on his cell phone. They didn’t know where he was currently. He didn’t pick up.”
“Typical, lazy ass flyboy!” Mic complained, even as he finally found a channel with a breaking news alert scrolling across the bottom and stopped on it.
“Here at channel 9 evening news, we have our helicopter en route to the remote scene! But as you can see from our local affiliate already on the ground, the damage is widespread for this normally quiet city!” A female news anchor called out excitedly as a shaky camera shot cut to a live street view of the small downtown area.
There was a haze of concrete dust still in the air, the exteriors of the buildings clearly cracked and windows shattered. Water shot out from broken water mains and pipes, while cars were strewn about up and down the street like used up toys.
Aizawa, Mic, All Might, and Nezu were all staring at the screen now, immediately analyzing the sight from so many combined years of experience. They could all envision the kind of quirks that could carve such a violent path.
But imagination became reality as the news anchor kept on while the camera view abruptly changed again.
“What you’re seeing now was sent in to us only moments ago, recorded earlier from a citizen’s phone not long after the initial attack! We apologize for any language or upsetting images. This is unedited footage!”
But any apology was just a mockery of course, as if these vultures didn’t live and die by the blood that spattered their camera lenses at times. Being the first to show something was often far more important than it being right or even decent to show to the general public.
Yet it was also undeniable that no one could have looked away either. Aizawa felt a tightening in his chest as he first heard your voice screaming from that TV screen for the people to get back.
The cellphone view was bouncing violently around as if its user was running as told, a metallic sound screeching in the distance before a car almost crushed him. The gnarled up vehicle flew past to crash right in front of him on the pavement as he cursed and slid.
But even through that shaky footage, Aizawa saw the distortion of one of your force fields. It was no off chance that the car had missed the man. You had protected him as it’d bounced off your field before meeting the pavement in front of him.
Yet now the man was somewhat trapped, his main path to escape blocked as he turned the camera skyward. “Holy shit!” The man cried as the blur of you and a crimson red nomu went over head to crash down into the storefront beside him, more glass and debris exploded outward with the force before the fight spilled back out into the street.
It was obvious that this wasn’t actually the beginning of the fight.
Aizawa stood now, taking in every additional detail as the camera got its first full shot of you then. Your costume was already badly torn and dirtied, your mask half missing and blood running readily down your face. But both your eyes were open, that unfaltering focus glowing in them as you dodged the monster’s next strike, then landing hit after hit of your own on it before you took to the sky once more.
You wanted it to follow you. Aizawa knew that immediately. You couldn’t fight as hard as you needed to with so many people and buildings still around.
But then there was the second nomu, solid black as it entered the frame as well. They were hunting you in tandem, like wolves encircling prey as they chased your already injured form into the sky and out of the shot again.
“Where’s her partner?” All Might asked aloud, but like all of them was surely already afraid of that answer.
“I know him. His hero mame is Quake,” Eraser answered, his scowl deepening as this anger grew. “If he was still able to move at all, he wouldn’t let her face this alone.”
“Goddammit,” Mic hissed, “He’s got a wife and kids too doesn’t he?”
“Three daughters.” Aizawa replied as the dread in the room deepened.
“But he’s alive!” Midoriya’s sudden voice intruded as all the teachers looked to the doorway in surprise.
“We were asked to wait for a teacher to escort us back to our dorms!” Iida yelled, hands physically on Midoriya as he tried to pull him back out of the room.
Yet the other students seemed to be ignoring Iida entirely as Bakugo stepped in next, forcing his way past the both of them. “Round face found another video on her phone. The nomus broke that earth quirk guy’s back, so (Y/N) had to leave him.”
Uraraka ignored Bakugo’s rude nickname for her as she entered the room too, but at least a little more meekly. “Quake has a rock dome up protecting the other side of town where they evacuated most of the people to. (Y/N) helped him to that safer spot and then led the nomus away.”
“You really do have the most insubordinate class, Aizawa.” Nezu commented in his odd, light tone.
Iida and Momo Yaoyoruzu were the only ones that looked properly ashamed at the principal’s comment however as the rest of class 1-A just filtered into the room.
“Well you can’t expect us just to stand around like a bunch of extras when shit is hitting the fan!” Bakugo growled.
Mic rolled his eyes even as All Might tried to hurry over to help control the situation. “Young Midoriya and young Bakugo, we must really insist that you go back to the dorms for your own safety in case another attack occurs. I’ll escort you!”
“But can she hold two of them off on her own or not?” Bakugo only asked instead as cold and serious as anything as he ignored the skinny All Might’s pleas. Bakugo’s eyes were focused on Aizawa only.
“Kacchan!” Midoriya admonished in shock and dismay at the harsh question.
Eraser’s glare moved onto Bakugo briefly, but not because of the impertinent question. The boy was right to be so disatisfied. Aizawa also hated that he could do nothing more for you than be here right now. And he hadn’t seen any flighted hero in the registry that could possibly get there any faster than Endeavor or Hawks now. Though why wouldn’t Hawks answer his agency’s calls? But that’s when he did have at least one other idea.
Weak, like grasping at straws, but he would do or try anything if it meant saving more lives, including your own. “Tokoyami!” Aizawa called out suddenly, disregarding Bakugo fully as Tokoyami only looked up in surprise at his name.
Aizawa’s voice was now fully commanding, leaving no question that this was an order as he continued. “Get your phone out and you tell Hawks to go to Hoshi city. Now.”
Nezu, All Might, and Mic all looked at Aizawa curiously. But it was only Nezu who smiled a little as Tokoyami frantically began texting as told.
Aizawa was very clever in guessing others’ weaknesses after all. And sometimes in emergencies even heroes could find their own manipulative sides.
———————————
Unknown location
Hawks groaned a little, feet dangling off from the ledge of the cell phone tower he now sat upon. The cold wind was cutting across his face as he read through Tokoyami’s increasingly pleading messages. Putting his phone on do not disturb after his agency’s first calls to him didn’t seem to be quite enough.
-You’re the only one fast enough to help now. Endeavor is coming from farther away, he likely won’t be there in time. Please answer.
-I know you always have your phone on you.
-Hawks, please. We all know her at UA. She doesn’t deserve this. No backup is close. She’s fighting them all alone.
Okay, so yes, his little bird of the night tag along had become slightly more than just a tool for getting information on UA as of late.
They’d spent just enough time together that Hawks might say he did care a bit about what happened to the kid by now.
But how could he explain to his teenage work study protege that they had no idea the political minefield they were now asking him to dive headfirst into? After Endeavor’s previous fight with the nomu that Hawks had secretly instigated and thereby had a front row seat for, the Hero Commission had explicitly asked him to keep his wings out of any further nomu instances for a while.
They didn’t want him to draw too much suspicion and risk his double agent status with the former League of Villains, now the Paranormal Liberation Front. There was too much to lose with him being the commission’s only informant and possible way to stop the coming war before it started.
Dabi and the others were only just starting to let him further into their organization. Everything was up to him in not taking a severe misstep now.
The phone only vibrated yet again though.
-Hawks. I probably shouldn’t even tell you this, but you’re always asking about my class. She’s also the romantic partner of my teacher Mr. Aizawa. Her loss would devastate him. I know it would even if he isn’t open about it. If there’s anything you can do at all. Please do!
“Romantic…partner?” Hawks’ gloved hand covered his face briefly in secondhand embarrassment as he spoke aloud to himself. “God…Tokoyami. Just say girlfriend, fuckbuddy…whatever.They shack up, they sleep together.” It happened in the hero community probably far more than anyone cared to admit.
But Eraserhead, seriously? There was a girl out there who had decided that out of all the heroes, that was the bed she wanted to hang around in? Really? Hawks’ curiosity was actually almost peaked now as to what kind of woman that could possibly be. Because he couldn’t imagine such a creature in his mind’s eye.
He almost started to type back reflexively before he stopped himself.
Wait…no. Oh, no this was bad. Was he really considering-
But how many people would have died the day Endeavor was attacked by the high end nomu if Hawks hadn’t been there to pull everyone out of the collapsing buildings?
Was this really okay?
A hero all by herself. A distress signal sent multiple times, and him here pretending that he couldn’t even hear it.
Ah…
……
….
Fuck it. He was still a hero wasn’t he? Even if things were complicated, if he could save someone, he had to try. He’d just have to weasel his way out of getting into real trouble with the Hero Commission later.
Hawks finally texted Tokoyami back as he stood then, wings spreading into the lowering sun.
-Eraser has a GF??? That I’ve got to see. I was patrolling in a cell service dead zone. And I try not to text and fly. I’ll do what I can. I’m sure I can beat old man Todoroki in a race to get there at least.
———————————
Hoshi City Outskirts
You were panting, forcing yourself back to standing through the incredible pain. You’d carried the fight to these fields outside of the city. The surroundings were gently rolling hills that flowered in the spring, but were still covered with soft winter grasses now as both nomus dove for you yet again with unreal speed.
They never seemed to tire, even as you steadily did.
The sun was getting lower and lower, the sky darkening in increments under an already overcast sky as you took yet another brutal hit that you couldn’t dodge quickly enough. You could hear cracking each time the blows connected.
Your bones were fracturing, the taste of blood strong in your mouth as you spit out some more of that red liquid as a mist in midair.
Your light energy wasn’t endless. Even with some sunlight still left for you to reabsorb, you couldn’t replenish the energy as fast as you were having to use it. And despite taking the beating that you now were, you still tried to hold some power in reserve instead of using it all for shielding.
If you used it all up now and still failed to stop the nomus, they’d only return to the city to finish what they’d started there.
You could still remember the furious look in Quake’s eyes as you’d had to leave him behind with his broken body. He hadn’t wanted you to go and take the enemy on alone. He’d begged you not to take such a risk.
But you’d only yelled back at him that there was no other option. Too many would have died in the city had you not drawn the nomus away. Maybe Quake’s own family among them if you hadn’t left when you did. The local hospital that his wife worked at and the elementary school that his children attended had been so near the original attack scene.
Yes, with every fiber of your being you were only trying to stall for time. Not for you, but for everyone else. There was no other way.
Yet you hadn’t considered that anyone save another pro hero would be foolish enough to follow you out here now.
Your eyes widened in surprise as you first heard that beat of helicopter blades.
Both nomus turned their heads at the sound, and you knew instantly that your plan had just changed entirely as your heart sank.
———————————
UA High School
“Hawks is on his way now.” Tokoyami affirmed, though still looking as uneasy as everyone else.
Mic huffed, still frustrated it’d take that long for any pro hero to respond regardless. “What kind of idiot ignores direct emergency line calls from his own agency to begin with?”
“Hawks is young, but he’s still the number two hero for a reason.” All Might offered, trying to keep the atmosphere from turning any more negative than it already was.
“Yeah, and that reason is just because you retired!” Mic grumbled. “That and people dig his stupid flyboy look for whatever reason.”
“Says the other guy with yellow glasses and in your face blonde hair…seriously Mic?” Midnight chastised as she entered the room. She understood all too well the stress here, but this kind of bickering wasn’t going to help anyone.
But she wasn’t alone. After having left the other students (except class 1-A obviously) at the dorms with Vlad King, Cementoss, and other faculty to protect them, she’d had one student that had insisted in coming back to be here with Aizawa instead.
Her heart couldn’t say no either to that request as Hitoshi Shinso moved from her side to rush to his mentor Eraserhead.
Neither of those two knew what to say to one another however as they exchanged looks.
“Eri is safe with Mirio, Nejire, and Tamaki in the third year dorms,” Midnight added.
But before anything else could be said, the news anchor’s voice grew excited and louder once more. “And our helicopter has now reached the active battleground! The remaining hero is standing her ground against the two nomus! After All Might’s final battle in Kamino and Endeavor’s brutal fight in Hosu, we have upgraded our former traffic helicopters with the latest in HD cameras and long distance specialty microphones than can filter out even the unwanted sounds of the helicopter!”
It was sickening. Even now they were still advertising their equipment for their own ratings sake.
But this fight wasn’t the same as in Kamino or Hosu. In both those instances All Might and Endeavor, the strongest heroes of the modern age, had been the villains’ only targets.
By contrast, you were not famous. You were not a symbol. You were only another hero in their way as the monsters’ attention had instantly shifted to the noisy helicopter at its arrival.
And that was the first moment that Aizawa’s anger and adrenaline had faltered to fall into real fear. The notion of losing you had been lurking underneath all along of course. He knew all too well that nomus fought to kill. He knew what was at stake for you.
But when you’d been fighting alone, you still could have chosen to escape with some breath left in your body at the last moment, it still could have been an option in the end.
Now that door had been closed. You would have to defend those in the helicopter as well. It was no different than if Eri had been standing suddenly in that field, or Shinso, or anyone else that you cared about. Even if that news crew were strangers to you, you would not value your life as worth more than their own. Because he knew you.
You would sacrifice yourself.
Aizawa heard one of the female students gasp as you’d struck the red nomu out of the sky with a sudden, brilliant white blast of energy just before the monster had reached the helicopter.
“Fucking media assholes!” Bakugo yelled, clenching his fists as the helicopter still didn’t move any farther away after the near miss.
And no teacher in the room thought to correct his language, only watching that HD live feed together as they all came to silent similar conclusions as Aizawa.
———————————
Hoshi City Outskirts
When you struck one nomu after the other back down with those energy blasts, you felt the ache all the way through your burning muscles. And it was well enough to get their attention again as they launched back at you full force, the sharper claws of the red one nearly meeting your throat.
The energy you used for your attacks was the same that you used to fly with and create your force fields. There was so little left then, even as your body glowed bright white with that energy output in the now setting sun.
You were a guiding light in that moment, a true target for the enemy as you took hit after hit again in order to draw focus away from the helicopter. You only raised thin force fields brief enough to slow what could have otherwise been fatal blows.
But that was still its own damage as well. Few understood the way your force fields really worked. Every hit against them you still felt. That recoil force went through your bones and tissue even as the monsters struck your shields. It reduced the direct damage but only by so much.
Yet you refused to scream or cry. You just had to dig deeper. Before you lost consciousness, before the setting sun left you in darkness with no other real light to take back.
Yes, you were losing strength faster and faster. So everything had to be now. All you had, it had to be now.
They both slammed you down next, into the ground like a meteor coming to earth. You heard and felt your right arm break fully that time.
You could no longer use it as you stared up into the monsters’ dead eyes and open maws of fangs.
You were no All Might. You were no Endeavor. And you would never pretend to be. But everyone needed to remember that outside of those few godlike figures, there were countless more nobodies just like yourself. Heroes that no one worshipped, that no one may ever remember. But in the end, ones who would still give every last bit of their own bodies to defend those who could not defend themselves.
You had no choice. Every time you let the nomus get any distance on you again, if only so you could take a breath, they just went straight for the helicopter to try and kill all those on board.
There was no other way you realized. Two final attacks to try and finish them both. Even if it was gruesome, even if it could cost you everything.
Just this quickly was how fast a life could change.
As your glow grew ever brighter and brighter, you thought more of your family, and all of your friends. You prayed that they could forgive you. If it ended up that this really was the end, you hoped that they would understand that if there had been any other way you would have taken it.
But there was no other way now as your one good arm seared in pain while the last real remnants of your energy overloaded through it.
You forced your bloodied palm upward to splay out against the abdomen of the red nomu, the strongest of the two. And he seemed to realize that something had changed in your intent then.
But it was too late. You did what you had to do, reaching farther into yourself than you ever had before.
The blast of light from your hand was the biggest you could ever remember making. It actually blew through him, viscera and bone vaporizing as the hole was big enough to actually see through before his body crumpled down into the crater that had been made when your own body had last hit the ground.
The black nomu tried to take to the air again then, whether in a surprise burst of self preservation on its own part or just another attempt to go back after the helicopter, it didn’t matter.
You could no longer fly then. And as you staggered forward, raising your barely working arm to him as well, you already knew that you couldn’t make that previous kind of blast twice. But for him you did something equally desperate and horrible in your own mind as you made just enough of a force field with all you had left to enclose around his throat instead as he tried to evade you.
Even if the Hero Commission had approved the destruction of nomus based on the fact that they were more a homunculus of former living body parts than a real human any longer, you still felt sickened as you saw him begin to struggle in midair.
You’d used your fields to capture enemies countless times before, but always alive. Never like this as you clenched your fist as tight as you could with the last of your will, tears edging at the corner of your eyes from the horrific act rather than the pain.
And he only gave one last inhuman cry before his throat collapsed, followed by the audible snapping of his neck vertebrae. His body hit the grass with an anticlimactic thud as you just stood with the cold wind biting across the bloodied scene.
You could have sworn you heard distant cheering from the helicopter then. But in that surreal and terrible moment, you never felt for one moment that you’d actually won.
Somehow your instincts still knew better. Yet there was truly nothing left for you to fight or defend with. You didn’t even know how you were still standing before a razor sharp tendril from the red nomu abruptly pierced through your back and out through the front of your abdomen like a spear.
Your remaining breath left your body at the force of the hit. The pain and shock felt numb and distant however as you saw the monster out the corner of your eye. He was crawling steadily out from the crater behind you even with his entrails still dragging the ground behind him.
So many quirks forced into one undying body…they really were abominations.
He ripped that tendril back out of you just as quickly though as you saw your own blood and tissue splatter to the ground.
Your vision was fading even as you tried to lock your knees to keep from collapsing. The will to live and the adrenaline alone was all that was keeping you here now.
You had failed.
————————————————
UA High School
Aizawa was sitting down, as if he wasn’t in this room at all. He looked even paler than usual.
Present Mic was one one side of him, Hitoshi Shinso on the other.
But what could anyone possibly say to him? They’d seen everything. You’d been forced to use your quirk in brutal ways that they knew would still have haunted you even if nothing else had happened after. Yet even in that momentary flirt with victory, it still had been too little, too late.
A shot to the back, through the back that you’d had nothing left to stop.
This could be the last time that anyone would ever see you alive and they all knew it.
All Might couldn’t help but be reminded of his master Nana Shimura’s death as he gritted his teeth, and of his friend Sir Nighteye’s death so much more recently.
Mic and Midnight were thinking of Oboro now. Those same painful feelings resurfacing as well.
It was never right or fair when these things happened.
“Endeavor or Hawks should be close now,” Shinso tried more desperately however, even with his own voice wavering. The silence was just too unbearable otherwise. “They could take her to a hospital, there’s a Level 1 trauma center one town over. It’s the best in the area.”
Mic only gripped Eraser’s shoulder as Aizawa said nothing in return.
Midoriya was looking to All Might now, the beginnings of those tears in the boy’s eyes that the former number one hero had chided him about letting flow too easily so many times before.
But this was not one of those times to hold back emotion. All Might put an arm around Midoriya even while inwardly still praying for some sort of miracle.
But they wouldn’t be called miracles if they happened every day. Hope was almost non existent now.
“The nomu has stopped moving! The crimson nomu that was approaching the badly wounded hero has suddenly stopped!” The reporters broke their own shocked silence to take notice of this.
“And…there’s a fire! There’s a fire in the grass!”
Shoto Todoroki looked back up immediately at that as did all of the room, expecting the orange and red flames of Endeavor and maybe the chance of that last minute rescue after all.
But it was only like another punch to the gut as Bakugo all but snarled in realization. The flames were blue. “That patchwork piece of shit! He just waltzes in at the end again! Fucking coward!”
Aizawa’s quirk activated involuntarily at that, some kind of final emotional reserve breaking within him. His glowing red eyes bored through that screen in such utter internal hatred as his hair lifted up off his shoulders at the sight of Dabi now casually walking towards you.
————————————————
Hoshi City Outskirts
Dabi had seen well enough. The sun had set at last, and he knew your time was over.
The nomus were at his command of course. And it was his job to signal when to bring them back or what was left of them anyway. The red one would regenerate fine. The black one whose neck you had snapped might take a little more work. He wasn’t sure if you’d actually killed that one or not. But it didn’t matter. As long as they weren’t completely vaporized like with the Endeavor fight, the parts could all be reused.
The point of all this had actually been to collect more nomu donor pieces. They’d specifically targeted an area that the top ten heroes would have more trouble reaching. If they could defeat some lesser heroes here and there, those heroes’ corpses were like bargain grocery shopping for the doctor.
But then you came along. And things actually got a little interesting.
It’d been a rather good fight really. Not that one sided boring shit like watching All Might in his prime or Endeavor with lesser villains just steamrolling through the opposition.
You’d fought your heart out. And you weren’t even afraid to play dirtier in the end. It still hadn’t worked out for you of course, but Dabi felt compelled to appreciate this a little more up close and personal before the very end.
And he was pleasantly surprised as you lifted your head at his approach. So you could still see and hear even with that amount of blood loss?
“Are you just too stubborn to die or something?” Dabi taunted. One hand in his pocket, but the other still ready to unleash more flames in an instant if needed. For now only a protective ring of fire circled you both to keep that helicopter at a distance.
And he’d seen a lot of faces at the edge of death. Heroes, villains, and nobodies alike who he’d all burned down at one time or another. But there was still something refreshing in that stare of yours even as you didn’t immediately respond to him. You didn’t look hateful, or angry, or even afraid in that moment. There was a calmness. As if you were just what you were and he was what he was. Like any two fated people meeting in this cold, starlit field tonight.
But he still tried again regardless, wanting more reaction. “So was it all worth it, hero? Does throwing your life away really serve that greater good you’ve all been brainwashed to believe in?” He asked cynically even as he knew he really needed to be exiting soon before others finally came.
———————————
You were still standing as he approached. You could hear Dabi’s words, but it was like listening to something far away. Like a television someone had left on in another room. Maybe it was sheer willpower, or maybe your body was on some kind of autopilot now. But you were doing something you’d never done before.
He didn’t seem to notice, because he was watching your face. But even that dark blue light from his flames was giving you something to use. You were taking that light energy and making shields again, but inside yourself. You were holding your own body together, slowing the blood loss with internal pressures applied.
You did choose to try and talk then, to keep his eyes on your lips rather than the faint glow that had to be coming from that hole in your stomach. You covered the wound as much you could with the hand from your unbroken arm.
“I don’t think I’m special…if you’re wanting some kind of valiant speech…forget it.” You breathed.
Why they liked to talk so much sometimes, you’d never understand. But you could oblige if it was buying you even seconds more of time. It seemed futile still, but you owed it to everyone you loved to just keep trying to stay alive until the true end.
“Thenwhy,” he pressed, clearly not satisfied with that. “Why die for nothing?”
“I thought you guys were all about choice…” You met his cold eyes again then. It took so much just to keep forming those words, but you had to do it. “I choose to suffer so that others don’t have to…I can help people. So I do. It’s nothing deeper than that. Life would only feel wasted if I stood aside and did nothing….this is the only thing that does make it right.”
—————————
Dabi didn’t know if these answers made him more frustrated with you or not. It seemed like ages ago now when hero killer Stain’s ideals had first lured him into joining the former League of Villains.
But oddly, he wondered then if Stain himself would have believed your words.
He smirked cruelly even as he felt himself still hesitating. “A hero that doesn’t think they’re special, and wants to suffer just to alleviate burden from others? Sounds a little masochistic don’t you think?”
Actions always spoke louder than words, but he’s the one that had pressed you to talk. It’s not like he could really mock you too much for the simple answers.
He should have already killed you though. He needed to go. Was he really just in this good of a mood after watching your fight? Or did he believe you deep down, and was it that nostalgia for Stain coloring his judgement now?
But hell, even Shigaraki had often spoken about being free to kill the things he didn’t like. Which still implied leaving the far fewer things he did likealive.
Dabi didn’t know you. Not your real name, not anything. But he knew something with potential when he saw it. Something that would still be wasted and wouldn’t exist again if your corpse just went to the doctor’s chop shop to end up as spare parts for the nomus still in progress.
No…he was about to do something impulsive here. Something he might live to regret.
He spoke up again, knowing he could be heard all the while with the communicator they’d given him hidden in his ear. “Ujiko, go ahead and pull us back. She’s not what you were looking for. Leave her here.”
And at that, thick, black substance ran from both nomus’ mouths immediately, the sludge expanding to cover them until they disappeared through those portals.
Dabi could feel the black goop rising in his own throat as well even as the two of you made eye contact once more.
He grinned at you, even as he first heard the flap of large wings in the distance. He really had almost waited too long. But how interesting. Would even Hawks be able to get you help in time? Or was it already too late?
“Good luck.” Dabi growled through the black liquid, a final taunt to you even as he shot a parting burst of flames to incinerate Hawks feathers that tried to reach him as if to stop his escape.
Was it all for show on Hawks’ part? Maybe, maybe not. But if you lived, Dabi already knew what he was going to ask of the winged hero next. An all new test of loyalty with you involved would be something further entertaining at least.
This wasn’t over.
————————————
You could only be left staring as Dabi disappeared just like the nomus through the portal. He could have easily incinerated you as well before leaving for as close as he’d been standing to you. You wouldn’t have been able to make a shield strong or fast enough right now for that level of heat.
But the flames had completely circumvented you as they’d gone for Hawks’ feathers alone.
Why?
“Hey, let’s go.”
You didn’t even realize you were trembling until you felt a heavy jacket suddenly fall around your shoulders. You looked to the source of the new voice, the jacket’s owner actually, just as you were unceremoniously picked up into Hawks’ arms.
Emergencies didn’t really leave time for consent. But it still startled you a little, even as you could tell he was trying not to aggravate the broken parts of you anymore than necessary.
Yet before he could even take off, the news helicopter came nearer than ever before. No doubt wanting this dramatic final shot as your fingers clenched reflexively against his chest.
You’d never even met Hawks before, but you could see the brief annoyance in his eyes as the wind of the helicopter blades forced him to fold his wings around his front to protect you.
Yet that wasn’t the only thing incoming. It looked like a red hot comet streaking in, blinding for a moment in the dark. The number one hero landed only feet away, and even from here you could see the disgust on his own face and feel the heat emanating from his body.
“You let them get away!?” He barked at Hawks.
Despite Endeavor’s harsh reputation, even then you still saw that anger for what it was in the moment. He was furious at himself for clearly being too late.
You thought Hawks understood this too as he didn’t even argue back. Though he was still yelling over the sound of the watching helicopter. “They’re gone! I’m taking her to Tsuki Hospital! Head back into the city, number one! I’m sure others are hurt or worse!”
And with that Hawks took off instantly, but you could tell he still tried to shield you from the cold as he held you close against him.
As you saw Endeavor’s trail of flame launch skyward as well, but in the direction of your city, you could only hope that your sacrifice hadn’t all been in vain. But you couldn’t fall apart any further now with those emotions. You were still concentrating to hold off the blood loss with your quirk as much as you could.
Endeavor’s brief light had even given you a small boost, but it wouldn’t have been possible for him to carry you instead. For as hot as he had to burn to reach his full speed, the heat probably would have killed you outright.
As it was, Hawk was still even faster. That sense of speed of moving with him now was far greater than when you flew on your own. But it was as if the noise of the wind was going in and out after a bit. You realized then that it was actually your sense of hearing that was coming and going. Maybe he sensed your brief losses of consciousness as well as your body shifted against him.
It was a race to get you onto an operating table now before your body completely shutdown.
“Hey! You have to stay awake you know. They’re going to want to interview you tomorrow after some of the pain meds have worn off. You’ll be the new hot item for sure after all this.” He only half joked.
But maybe he saw that bit of odd look you gave him. Not ungrateful for the transport of course, but the last thing you wanted to care about was the media’s future interpretations of your actions today.
Yet Hawks just smiled, it looked cheesy even in the darkness. “Oh, that’s right. You’re Eraserhead’s girlfriend, yeah? I almost forgot. What a weird combination. No offense. So you hate the spotlight too then?”
And that was a comment that actually surprised you. Besides your oldest friends and some of those at UA who couldn’t help but see it, you didn’t broadcast your relationship to the public. It was a choice Aizawa had made from the very beginning. He thought that was the most rational decision to not have that closeness used against you.
“So…is Tokoyami really that much of a gossip then?” You forced yourself to ask, quickly assuming the likely source of the leak. Hawks wasn’t wrong to try and keep you talking though. You would have done the same with a trauma victim like this.
“Oh come on. That kid has grown on me, but you can’t tell me he doesn’t read gothic romance novels or something in his spare time. He thought it’d give me more incentive to rescue you. In the name of love and all.” Hawks taunted back a little. “But really…Eraser, huh? He’s kind of scary, right? You’re into Dracula look alikes or something?”
You half smiled. Yes, it was too surreal to be having this absurd kind of banter even as you might really be dying. “He was supposed…to take me out for Italian food tonight.”
Hawks glanced down at you again. You could tell he was a little surprised at the personal admission. But he stayed with his whole upbeat act regardless as he smirked. “Italian, huh? With wine and candlelight maybe? Well, a lot of people would swoon over the idea of a moonlit flight with me too you know.”
“Yeah? ….Lucky me.” You mumbled, just burying your face more against him. It didn’t matter if he was a stranger. It could be anyone holding you right now. You were just trying to find any additional warmth. Which only reminded you that you must be going further into shock. You couldn’t maintain your body heat any longer.
You did feel him tuck his head down though, trying to block the wind from your own as his chin rested against the top of your head.
“Please stay awake.” He reiterated, his upbeat tone falling away a little. “Don’t let them make you just another martyr.” And somehow you thought you almost heard a trace of guilt in those more serious words. “I know it’s hard. But we’re almost there.”
————————————
Tsuki Memorial Hospital
He’d made a show of telling Endeavor the hospital he was taking you to in front of the news team. It was a calculated risk. He needed the information broadcasted primarily for them to have an operating room already prepared by the time he got you there.
It was the closest Level 1 Trauma center in the region, specializing in treating the very worst of anything. Any hero worth their salt should already know that’s where he would be going, but maybe you had regular civilian family too. Maybe they’d have no idea where to find their daughter or sister otherwise until it might be too late.
It was hard for him to imagine what it’d be like to have those kind of normal relationships though. But he tried not to lose focus in that negative direction as he first caught sight of the lighted medical helipad on the hospital’s roof in the distance.
Good, they were smart enough to realize he’d rather land from the top, as he saw a gurney and supplies waiting at the ready with a small task force of hospital staff.
The first problem with declaring his destination beforehand however was of course the continued media presence.
From the corners of his vision, he could see the camera flashes going off from rooftops all around as he came in to land. The hospital wouldn’t allow the reporters past the front lobby, but the extreme zoom of the telescoping lenses of these hungry story hunters couldn’t be denied.
He could barely feel you still breathing, your eyes closed by the time his boots contacted with the roof. The dim light he’d noticed in your abdomen had now gone out. He’d known the whole time what you were trying to do with your quirk even as you’d lost so much more blood in just the time he’d been carrying you.
As he was then helping the medical team unwrap his blood stained jacket from you to get you carefully onto the gurney, your hand caught on one of his feathers. He let that quill release immediately so as not to pull anymore at your broken body. But he still saw your fingers close around the feather reflexively, holding it to you as your eyes opened just barely.
He could see that hint of life still in those eyes, though maybe he was just imagining that you’d really looked at him with something like regret before they rolled you quickly through the open doorway.
If you died, it’d be a failure he was truly complicit in. Because how many long minutes had he sat there debating on that cell phone tower before Tokoyami had finally nagged him to his senses? He could have gotten to you sooner if he’d only chosen to.
It wasn’t like him to second guess or doubt himself this fully though. But this was an even larger guilt starting to form, greater than just those flickers he still felt every time he looked at the scars on Endeavor’s face.
How many more times was the Hero Commission going to keep asking him to put others in harm’s way for the greater good?
Goddammit. His mouth was already moving before he could stop himself, “Has any family or friends come here yet to wait for her?” He asked one of the staff members that had stayed behind to pickup the rest of the carts they’d left on the rooftop.
They told him no one had. They also relayed to him the new information that many train lines and roads had been shutdown for the rest of the night in an abundance of caution in case another attack was still forthcoming.
“Unbelievable.” Hawks sighed. Something like this never would have happened during All Might’s time. A whole region now sheltering in place just because of a single incident. This was how little control or sense of safety the heroes could provide anymore.
But sadly, he had to somewhat agree as well. There was no telling if Dabi and the others were truly done for the night. Hawks couldn’t risk calling Dabi so soon to find out. But still feeling that weight of responsibility in all of this, he couldn’t leave you alone either.
“Can you show me to the waiting room please then?” He asked abruptly with his usual smile returning.
He wasn’t much of anything. But he did know how to play guard dog…or guard bird in this case anyway. Even if he hadn’t helped you in the beginning, he wouldn’t leave you so defenseless now.
—————————————
Highway 201
All Might had called in a favor for them with Naomasa Tsukauchi of the police force, getting the roads opened back up just for them. But it was still a slow go. The trains had been shut down for the night. And while the rail lines cut an almost direct path between the cities, these roads that had been built years before winded and rose and fell with the countryside.
Even with Mic’s speeding, the trip had still felt agonizingly long.
Aizawa was silent for miles, looking out the passenger window of Mic’s car and seeing little but darkness and the occasional yellowish glow of the street lights as they cut through a small town here or there.
He’d tried to call the hospital earlier, but they’d refused to give out any patient information over the phone even when he finally did get through. Their only published phone number had just rang busy for the first several attempts. Yet he could only imagine the amount of reporters likely calling in to flood the lines right now.
How many would just be pretending to know you? Claiming to be relatives or worried friends when in reality they were only strangers sitting at computers, typing up news breaks they hoped to send soon enough. Everyone would want to be the first to know if you would live at all, or if you would be disabled or permanently scarred even if you did. If you would ever fight as a hero again after this.
As it was, he and Mic had had the foresight to let the police follow them as well, even as Mic raced ahead of them. It’d likely be the only way they’d be getting in themselves. With the police physically there to verify their identities and let the hospital staff know that they were legitimately part of your inner circle and deserving of being here tonight for you.
There would be days and many hours ahead to try and understand the implications of all this. Why Dabi had acted so unexpectedly in letting you go, and why your city was ever targeted at all.
But for now though Aizawa didn’t even know if you were alive or dead. Midnight was watching the news back at UA and texting anything relevant to his and Mic’s phones. But nothing more had been released since Hawks had first reached the hospital with you.
———————————
Tsuki Memorial Hospital - Private Waiting Room
Hawk’s legs were stretched out in front of him, his wings aching a little as they pressed uncomfortably against the chair back, each wing hanging wide over the armrests and down to the floor. If he was ever in one place for this long, it’d usually only be to lay down to sleep.
Sitting this way after a while was just awkward, even as he stared at his phone once more. The Hero Commission was already on him of course as the messages had begun coming across not long after he’d arrived here, and he only tried to deflect them for now.
-I’m still at the hospital, can’t talk freely.
-We expect you here tomorrow to discuss these developments.
-I’ll be there.
It wasn’t going to be good. He locked his phone again, leaning his head back against the wall with his goggles pushed up into his blonde hair.
Some Friday night this was.
There’d been silence for a good while, only a curious nurse or two coming by every now and then to check on him. He hadn’t missed the looks they gave him.
They might be sneaking cellphone photos or video of him for all he knew. But the only thing he felt improper about was your blood still drying on his sleeveless top. His jacket and gloves were in no better condition, but he’d shoved them under his chair for now.
He didn’t want them to just end up for sale in some morbid online auction if he let them out of his sight tonight.
But when the door finally opened again, he saw it was no hospital uniform walking in this time as he sat back up with renewed at
Title: First Night Back Home
Pairing: Shota Aizawa x Fem!Reader
Summary: You were a pro hero in your own right and longtime girlfriend of UA teacher Shota Aizawa. After a few weeks abroad on your own, you return to your shared apartment late at night. You’ve missed each other, and are looking for some catch up intimacy to make up for that time away.
Notes: This is set in the same AU as my other Shota x Reader fic. Check out the masterlist for more.
Warnings: *contains smut* Nothing over the top, just vaginal intercourse with fluff following after. Mention of reader getting a little excited though thinking about others wanting her as part of that hero fame.
——————————
The new school year at UA had already started. But you’d been out of the country the last few weeks, visiting the United States again from Japan as you did several times a year. It was a ton of work, leading this double life so to speak as a pro hero with dual registration in both countries.
But if you weren’t active a certain amount of weeks a year in the U.S., your hero license there would expire. To be honest, the U.S. was the country you had far more name recognition in currently. Yet, it was also where all your blood family still was. And the thought of letting your license lapse there, and then not even being able to legally lift a finger should a villain attack while you were visiting your siblings or parents one day was something you wouldn’t have been able to live with.
But you’d likely never have a permanent home in the states again either for obvious reasons. Well, one obvious reason at least. As you took this long commercial flight over a darkening Pacific Ocean yet again on your way back to Japan, you only had that man, Shota Aizawa in your mind once more.
He’d have his hands full with his brand new class now of course. You tried to limit your calls and texts to him every year during this time if you happened to be away. He put so much focus into his first year students whenever a new class enrolled. Hopefully he wouldn’t feel compelled to expel/reenroll as many this year though.
Really it was Present Mic you had messaged with back and forth the most these past few days, your coconspirator so to speak when you’d realized you were getting to come home a couple nights earlier than expected this trip.
You and Mic had chatted often, and he was all for keeping this a surprise. Though you’d asked several times as to Shota’s current mood to judge if you’d need to be coming in prepared for an overly grumpy Eraser or not.
All Might himself was also joining the faculty this year as well, and that was all any of the media could talk about. So it’d be hard to quantify the added pressure and distraction that his addition may cause for all the other UA staff. Surely it could rub Shota the wrong way, regardless of your shared respect for All Might’s reputation, if the school became more a circus because of the flashy number one hero.
————————————
By the time your flight had landed and you’d claimed your bags, then caught a taxi from the airport all the way to UA, it was well into the night and far past school hours.
In the morning you’d have to call and see what assignments the Japanese hero agency you were registered with had for you this month. But you split your time between that agency and part time work for the school. So sometimes you’d be on campus and other times not.
When you did reach the faculty apartments at last, you tried to be quiet. Not really sure who was already asleep and who wasn’t as you reached Shota’s door and swiped your keycard.
You weren’t surprised to find the lights already off inside. And of course Pixie, your shared little tuxedo cat with his stubby tail, already purring and trying to weave himself in and out of your ankles as soon as you opened the door.
Of course the cat had heard you coming, but had Shota? That all depended on if he’d already fallen asleep or not. Sneaking up on pro hero Eraser Head on the battlefield may be near impossible. But with the high security at UA naturally providing some sense of safety, and how tired he likely was after a long day admonishing over zealous first years, sometimes you had a chance here.
Just leaving your bags and shoes by the door as you locked it back behind you, you didn’t turn on any lights. You knew the apartment layout by heart of course, and it was actually a little fun to pretend just for a moment that this was only another stealth mission with a very desirable target for you.
As you moved down the hallway barefoot, you were still listening intently. But when you did near the doorway to your bedroom, you heard that tell tale deep breathing in an instant.
Oh yes. He was most definitely out, sleeping like a rock.
And maybe if you hadn’t already been away for weeks, you would have gladly let that poor man get his rest. But some things couldn’t be helped. You’d missed him as always. And if you waited all the way until morning to show him just how much you’d missed him, you likely wouldn’t get the chance at all. He’d be solely focused on his lesson plans for the day by then, and wanting to get to the teacher’s lounge almost as soon as the sun came up no doubt.
And hell, if what you were planning to do really did rob him of any needed sleep, he could always nap a little longer in his sleeping bag tomorrow. Everyone just expected that from him by now anyway.
For Pixie the cat’s part, satisfied that everyone was now home and safe, and realizing you weren’t going to feed him a second dinner this late, he’d sauntered off to go lay on his multilevel fuzzy cat tower.
So that did leave just you and your target as you moved closer to the minimalist bed frame that wasn’t much step above just having a mattress on the floor really. But that’s how Aizawa was. If you hadn’t moved in too, then Pixie’s combination cat bed and tower likely would have remained the only bed in this apartment.
Shota was certainly someone who required very little, or at least rarely considered why added creature comforts would even be necessary.
The plain curtains were almost fully pulled closed over the bedroom windows as well. But the slightest rips in them (Pixie’s handiwork of course) did let in just enough moonlight for you to see Aizawa’s messy black hair splayed out across his pillow. Even loosely tied, it still spread easily.
He was sleeping on top the blankets as well you noticed, too unbothered to have even gotten beneath them apparently. And his chest was still rising and falling steadily as you now removed your clothes to pile them around your ankles on the floor.
On the yearly list of most popular female heroes, you were fairly sure you’d never made anything close to the front page. But with as aggressively as agencies marketed you all these days, you were still certain at least somebody, somewhere had to have a full body poster of you up on their wall right now.
Something in full costume of course, in whatever pose you’d been coached to stand in at the time. Those sessions would never be your favorite part of this job by any means. But on the other hand, you were human too. You were imperfect. And somewhere deep down it’d be a lie to say that that rare thought of being physically desired by strangers didn’t arouse you too sometimes.
That marketing was a double edged sword of course, a pendulum that could easily turn from empowerment to exploitation, regardless of a hero’s gender. But for you, there could be that need to feel wanted, a confidence in your own body validated in those times.
As you kneeled gently onto the mattress, it helped to have that bit of pride here as well. To think to yourself that even after having had you so many times before, that Shota would still want you too. And that you, climbing onto his bed nearly nude in the middle of the night was something others might actually dream of.
You were only in your underwear then as you touched his clothed chest gently, running your hand down to his waistband as you spoke his codename quietly.
“Eraser…” You said, though even now ready to move if he would be startled awake too abruptly. Yet somehow he never had in the past. He always still seemed to know when it was you.
And he did shift slightly, but his eyes didn’t open. He was only missing his boots, scarf, and goggles as you looked him over. “You fell asleep in your clothes again,” You continued gently as you unfastened his belt. Yourself quite well practiced by now actually as you loosened the buckle with one hand.
But when there was no further reaction, you only moved the bottom of his black shirt up just as softly. The lean muscle of his abdomen then exposed as you edged your palm out across his skin and some of the older scars there.
You raised an eyebrow not long after though, yourself finally starting to smirk when you began to massage lower and lower towards his belt line again. There could be no way he was really still this asleep after so much touching. “You’re just going to let me do this all by myself, huh?” You asked tauntingly.
But you waited. And you waited in the silence of the bedroom. So maybe that really was the game he wanted to play then? To see how far you’d get all on your own tonight? Well, you were very adaptable after all. You could accept that challenge, now using both your hands as you unbuttoned and unzipped his pants next.
Yet you were the one to find yourself quite surprised then. Because there was no feel of boxers underneath this time. Just his nudity waiting for you beneath those black pants as you’d pulled the fabric back to expose him.
“I thought this might be more efficient for you,” his low voice spoke up from the dark at last with your realization, just that tiniest trace of dry humor in his tone as your hand had accidentally grazed his member in your surprise. “I knew you wouldn’t want to waste time. But your error was that you forgot about the banking app. It buzzed my phone all afternoon when you were buying things at the airport.”
“Dammit,” You cursed lightly with a defeated smile. He was right, you had completely forgotten that you’d linked your accounts just recently. “Well, I was hungry at the food court. I hadn’t eaten all day.” You countered quietly. “There was a police chase this morning with a guy who could summon insects. It was a mess. And then I had to file all this paperwork after capturing him, oh and I bought you a Nyan cat keychain too at this little kiosk since your old maneki-neko one got broken. And a book for the plane ride for me…”
“Uh huh,” He answered sleepily, already closing his eyes again before he wrapped his arms around you to pull you easily down into laying on top of him.
“Long day for you as well?” You asked almost rhetorically then. You thought mention of the new keychain would at least get a little reaction from him. Though you had no doubt that he’d still end up using it. “Mic told me your new class was something else. Is it really so rough?”
Shota grunted slightly at the question, the stubble of his unshaven face then burying roughly against your neck before he responded. “They’re extremely ill prepared. One student breaks his own bones, ending up in the infirmary every time he overuses his quirk. And another just keeps screaming at him to an obsessive level, trying only to outdo him each training session instead of focusing on the tasks assigned.”
“Wow…sounds like quite the duo.” You answered sympathetically. But there’d be plenty of nights in the coming weeks to talk about the ongoing trials and tribulations of the new class 1-A you were sure. For now, you just wanted to reconnect with yourhero.
And you left nothing up for interpretation there, showing that need as your hand moved back between his legs. “I missed you,” You spoke, just as you started to stroke him gently.
With the way he spread his legs a little to make more room for you though, he clearly wasn’t adverse to this idea. But you felt him relax his head back into his pillow just the same afterward, apparently all too content to let you take the lead.
But even if this type of lazy sex was something others may not have always enjoyed, wanting their partner to come alive and really show their passion for them in the bedroom, you knew there was a time and a place for everything.
He was tired, and even so he’d still somewhat planned this for you. He didn’t leave things in complete silence either as you felt him hardening beneath your hand. “You always say that…and I still wonder why.” He breathed, shifting slightly under your continued stroking.
“Well you shouldn’t wonder any longer. And if you tell me that I can do better than you one more time…” You threatened somewhat tauntingly. If you’d heard it once, you’d heard it countless times. He’d accepted your and his relationship years ago, but it didn’t mean he’d yet ever fully accepted himself or learned to agree with your high value of him.
He thought you were just some sort of anomaly really. This odd girl, who’d become an odd woman who was still wholly loyal to him and desired him for reasons he would never grasp.
But you could list off so many justifications without even trying. You loved his analytical mind, his intelligence and quick wittedness. And his personality, rough around the edges surely, but truly honorable and self sacrificing when it came down to it. He didn’t seek fame or glory, but he’d never hesitated to defend the innocent, even if it could cost him everything.
Yes, his dry humor and intimidating exterior hid much of what was beneath. But he loved his work, he loved his friends, and he loved…you.
You weren’t too surprised either as you felt him raise his head slightly again, even though his eyes were still closed as he kissed you softly. And you did let your lips part, letting him taste you as his hips began to move languidly in tandem with your continued stroking beneath his waist.
He was already ready you knew. And there was no reason for purposefully extended foreplay when he had class in the morning and you were still this jet lagged.
You only broke the kiss to shift around so you could pull his pants the rest of the way off before slipping your underwear off too. Your bra and bikini briefs joined the pile on the floor with the rest of your clothes as you saw his eyes open in a half lidded look to observe you.
You had his attention. Even his expectation too as you felt his fingertips meet your now equally bare hips. He didn’t have to guide you though. You took him in one hand again, positioning his tip against your entrance and rubbing the flesh lightly together there. It was not to tease him, but only to finish getting yourself wet enough before you could settle down around him.
It didn’t take much though. Just a little more play, followed by a little tightness and discomfort before you could fully press yourself onto him. That sense of fullness was rewarding on its own though before you finally began to move against him.
He made an involuntary sound somewhere between a grunt and a sigh as you felt his grip on your hips only tighten.
You liked when he made those noises of course. Gradually working this normally stoic man into a clearly aroused state was something extremely intimate. A side of him just for you as you pumped your hips at variable rhythms now, letting him slide almost fully out at times before burying him in your heat all over again.
And he gave you full control. Yet still watching you as your naked body moved above him, riding him really as his own breathing started to increase.
The heavy look in his eyes wasn’t just from fatigue now. It was a daze of pleasure. He growled your name then, yet almost too quiet to hear over the creaking of the mattress and that tell tale sound that could only come from your bodies hitting harder and harder together.
Maybe there was still something a little improper to it all. You weren’t married, but that was a whole other story. The fear of going public and making either of you just too much of a target for the other’s enemies was one concern. As it was now, besides your own family, only the other UA faculty and just a few of your most trusted coworkers at your Japanese hero agency knew of your relationship and this shared apartment.
Yet the funny thing was, you’d still been together more years than some other heroes’ marriages had even lasted. Maybe one day you’d change your minds to make things official that way on paper, but everything worked so well just as it was now.
His grip on you was growing even harsher after a while though, and you knew he had to be close. You kept thrusting, even as you leaned back down to kiss his neck before speaking lewdly in his ear. “Do you want me to stay on you, baby?”
You’d leave it up to him if he wanted to pull out or not. You were fairly confident in your birth control, but sometimes he still worried, over thinker that he was. Simply adopting the cat had been like an act of congress. As much as he’d always wanted several of the little furballs, he didn’t want to be responsible for any other living thing unless he thought he could do it 100%.
So practical, this man.
“Well?” You breathed, hearing another slight moan from him instead of real answer.
“Stay,” he huffed, hands on your ass now as he held you tight, keeping himself buried in you as his other muscles tightened.
You smirked in pleasure against his neck as you felt that slight jerking, the abrupt pulsing then inside you as he came and his breath hitched harshly.
His seed filled you, only a few remnants escaping to drip back down onto his thighs before he finally relaxed again. But you felt his lips on the side of your face next, then meeting your own lips again as you turned your head to reciprocate.
Yet he still didn’t pull out of you, kissing you fully as he bid you to lay back down onto him. He turned you both then with little effort, now on your sides and him still holding you with one arm, before he reached out and folded the bed’s comforter over you both with his other.
Well, obviously this was then how you would be sleeping tonight, as he broke the kiss and nuzzled his face back into your neck. His hair tie had come out somewhere in the movements and you now reached up enough to smooth your fingers through the thick black strands of his hair.
There was nothing else that really needed to be said. Not that he’d answer anyway as within only a few minutes of stroking his hair, you felt his breathing deepen again.
Eraser was asleep once more. And in within not too much longer, you gladly joined him.
————————————
The next morning
The next thing you knew, something fuzzy and hot was half covering your face as you moved your hand to try and shoo the creature away enough to at least be able to breathe properly. “Pixie, you better have at least wiped your feet this time.” You mumbled to the over affectionate cat as he fully ignored your pleas. The last thing you needed was dirty litter pieces on the pillows again.
But his ears only perked up then at the specific sound of dry food being poured into his metal bowl in the kitchen. And at that he all too happily used your head as a launching pad, the gluttonous little traitor abandoning you in an instant at the promise of breakfast.
Which of course meant that Shota was already well into his own morning routine as you tried to squint at the digital clock near the bedside.
6:14 a.m.
“Guh. Already?” You sighed. You’d have to call your agency shortly. They didn’t even know you were back in town yet.
You tried to pull the comforter back up over your head, if only for a little while longer. But it was wholly futile as you felt a larger weight suddenly press down on the edge of the mattress beside you instead.
“Being lazy?” Came the dry question, even as Shota pulled the comforter back down just as easily. Yourself still fully nude from last night and only looking up at him tiredly then as you lost the protection of the bedspread.
“Not all of us get to pull out a sleeping bag later in the day you know,” You taunted back a little, not missing the brief glance he gave your breasts before he looked back to your eyes.
He was already fully dressed again, scarf and all as he seemed to manifest a full folder of paperwork from thin air abruptly. “When you call your agency this morning, let them know you’re already booked for today.”
“Oh?” You raised an eyebrow, sitting up as he then handed you the folder. You pulled the comforter back up over your chest in the cool apartment, then opening the documents curiously.
It was all reports on individuals and their quirks, their observed strengths and weaknesses to this point. Each file had a name and a photo, just a bunch of kids’ faces staring back at you. “So are these your new goslings, mother goose?” You questioned after a moment, of course enjoying the instant eye twitch you received from Aizawa in return.
“I want you to meet us at the Ground Beta training site at 15:00.” He answered stiffly. “I was going to put this off another week, but as you’re back in town already, I’d like to get this done before you get a full schedule again from your agency.”
“And yet you still haven’t told me the assignment, love.” You answered back. Knowing the UA and their above and beyond methods, there really was no telling of what he’d want from you.
“Hostage and deescalation training.” He answered simply. “Their last exercise was two on two, one villain and one hero team in a scenario where the villains had a bomb. The results were extremely mixed.” He was watching you again as he continued. “And you’re one of the best in the active hero registry with hostage negotiations. I thought you could bring more realism to the exercise given past experience.”
Even when giving you compliments, sometimes he still made it all sound so factual that it wasn’t even flattering. But yes, negotiations when lives were on the line was a specialty of yours, so you couldn’t argue the logic there.
“And am I to be the hostage or the hostage taker?” You asked, though already thinking you knew the answer to that for the fact he’d given you all these kids’ files to analyze.
“Hostage taker. Mic volunteered to be your hostage.”
“I only get one?” You smirked, imagining already oh so many ways this could spin out of control. “You know it’s normally at least three.”
“Everyone else had prior commitments. I checked with other falculty yesterday once I knew you were already at the airport.” Shota contended.
“I see. Well I guess I better study up in between doing laundry today then.”
“I’d recommend it. They’re inexperienced and unorganized, but they get a lucky shot in now and again.”
“Listen to that proud papa.” You teased, but glancing at the clock again. You knew he’d be wanting to leave momentarily. “Maybe you’ll stop back in to see me for lunch? If you’re not taking a nap in the teacher’s lounge anyway.”
He smirked a little at the invitation. “We’ll see.” But he leaned in then to give you a quick kiss goodbye before he stood back up again.
As he walked away, you could see him twirling that Nyan cat keychain you’d bought him on one finger, his other hand in his pocket. He must have had the keychain concealed in his palm this whole time.
“Thank you for the gift.” He said, looking back one more time though before he left the bedroom, that rarer shit-eating grin on his face that you knew meant trouble. “Oh, and All Might will be one of the judges this afternoon as well. So no pressure, fangirl.”
“I am not!” You retorted with all the conviction of an embarrassed teenager. Okay, maybe you secretly were a little…but come on, who hadn’t grown up watching him by this point? He was a big deal.
“Should I tell him about your beach towels with his face on them?” His voice still carried over from the other room.
“My sister gave me those and they’re very tasteful!” You retorted, though trying not to laugh.
“Uh huh. Just be ready this afternoon, kitten.” He taunted, as you heard him unlocking the front door.
“I’ll be there! Bright eyed with bells on, love.” You called back, still amused even as you heard the main apartment door shut back behind him.
After he was gone you then just propped yourself up in the pillows, grabbing the files again as you started to read through them. You’d get up, call your hero agency, start laundry, shower, and make yourself breakfast soon enough.
For now, you had twenty would be heroes to acquaint yourself with. Their quirks were definitely a mixed bag as well: explosion, creation, half-cold/half hot, engine, zero gravity, tail, navel laser, hardening, dark shadow, electrification, acid, anivoice, frog, earphone jack, tape, dupli-arms, sugar rush, invisibility, pop off, and…super power?
Well that last one sounded oddly generic. And that student’s sheet was actually the most sparse of all of them, further catching your attention. Parents typically registered their children’s quirks from very early on. So someone in their teens should have a decent amount of detail already in the national registry for UA to pull into their student record.
“Interesting…” You spoke to yourself, well yourself and Pixie too as he finally rejoined you on the bed. But as you did look further down this student’s otherwise blank page, you were even more intrigued to realize the handwritten note at the very bottom was in Aizawa’s handwriting.
Kitten, this is the one who breaks his own bones. He has no quirk on record before his time at UA. My words of advice, he’s more of an All Might fan than you. And if he starts to name a US city or state as he pulls his fist back, I suggest you move.Good luck this afternoon. -Eraser
There was a little cat version of a sharp toothed smiley face drawn as well as you gave Pixie an odd look. “Your master, Pix. I swear. I think he’s setting me up here. But it should prove to be a memorable evening regardless.”
So much for taking it easy on your first day back. But this was the hero life after all. Never a dull moment.
————————————
More of this pairing to come at some point.Thank you for reading! ❤️
Title: What the Heart Wants
Pairings: Young!Shota Aizawa x GN!Reader
Summary: You were a young hero in training, living in the United States. And when your high school offered an exchange internship to one of the hero agencies in Japan, you were first in line. But the last thing you expected was to fall for another of their young hopefuls.
Notes: Story features the other dumbigos as well. It’s implied that this story is just the reader reminiscing, and that the reader and Aizawa have been in an established relationship ever since.
Warnings: Mention of blood and a little battle damage, otherwise just superpowered teenage friends being pretty wholesome honestly.
——————————
The first time you’d ever met the now pro hero Eraser Head, he hadn’t been much more than another teenager in over their head so much like yourself.
Back then you hadn’t known how to say no to anything either. While most of your classmates had been taking the typical internship offers from your state’s local hero agencies, you’d heard about a new exchange program abroad. And of course you’d jumped at the opportunity, anything to set yourself even one hair’s edge above the amazing competition.
Your Japanese had been terrible too honestly, so much so that you’d almost been afraid to speak for fear of ridicule once you reached Japan.
Luckily, the hero you were assigned to, Stunner Man was fluent in several languages. And his quirk was something akin to fireworks from his body at will, like a human flash bang. It greatly complimented your own quirk of consuming light energy to then expel it as energy blasts as well.
For the first few jobs together, you’d likely grown too confident and complacent because of this. It was all too easy to replace your own energy by drawing in that light from his fireworks. Sometimes to the point that all around you went dark, before then expelling the energy again as concentrated blasts from your hands to help incapacitate the small time villains you both ran across.
But then had come that rainy night and reports of a much stronger villain taking out actual teams of heroes somewhere downtown. Multiple agencies had responded to this of course, but your hero had been adamant about you staying behind. This was real danger he said, and it would be unheroic to let your desire for success blind you to your own inexperience. You would be a liability in the main battle, and you could be just as valuable assisting firemen and police in their efforts to evacuate the nearby apartment buildings instead.
Of course you were obedient, and so there you’d been, running up the stairs and through the corridors as fire alarms blared and people cried in panic in these high rise buildings. You’d put on your best act of confidence, directing the scared people to exits, asking them to mind their neighbors. You told them not to push, to please help those that were elderly or disabled, and that it would all be all right. Surely it would be because so many pro heroes were now on the job.
But just as you were almost done clearing the last floor at the top of that building, a terrible crash had sounded from far down the hall. Maybe debris breaking through from the nearby battle? You were cautious enough though to make sure that the police and firemen safely exited this floor entirely with the last civilians before you went to investigate.
You would make sure no one was left behind, that no one was hurt or trapped. But as you’d rounded the corner, in a glitter of broken glass and blood, that was where you’d first seen Shota Aizawa…Eraser Head.
He was only a sidekick you thought immediately though just from his age, so similar to your own. Yet he was already trying to get back to his feet even as you called out to him. The hole he’d come through in the large windows and the cracked wall around it were letting the rain now blow fiercely inside.
“Get back!” He’d yelled right back to you in Japanese however. As if he wasn’t losing blood all over the floor as you did pause brief enough to hear an odd humming sound outside even over the rain.
It was reflex of course. He hadn’t even been facing you, but the way he tensed you’d assumed what was going to happen only that fraction of a second before it did. Before whatever villain had just thrown him through this window attacked again, you’d used your energy reserves to make a shield of light between Shota and the broken windows and wall.
The blast that came through the hole had likely been intended to finish the boy. As it was, it still exploded violently against your force field, the recoil sending pain through your arms as you’d dug your boots into the floor beneath you as much as you could just to keep from being knocked backwards with the force.
You wouldn’t be able to take another direct strike like that without gathering more energy. And in the confusion as the blast did dissipate, you ran forward, grabbing the boy by the wrist. “Come on!”
You only saw the surprise in his reddened eyes for just a moment, the first time he’d really looked at you. His shaggy black hair was dripping on you from the rain before you both ran together.
“It’s going to get dark. Just hold on to me and trust me!” You spoke as you pulled your goggles down from off your head to cover your eyes in mid run. The goggles were a support item developed especially for you. In darkness you could switch between night-vision and thermal imaging to allow you to still see when your opponents and even teammates could not. And when you used your light abilities to discharge energy again, the opacity of the lenses darkened instantly to keep you from being blinded by the brightness of your own quirk as well.
As you both ran, you activated your quirk to draw energy from the artificial lighting in the hallway. True to your word, the whole hall became almost pitch black in short time. Your skin darkening to an inhuman shade as well as you used your power, a color akin to the lightless void now around you as you led him to a stairwell in the center of the building.
“Will the villain follow us in?” You asked as you closed the door, but making sure not to absorb all the light of the stairwell as well as you could still hear people making their way down to evacuate below. You knew you couldn’t stay in this place long. You had to protect these people you had already been trying to rescue as well. But information was always crucial to having a better chance at victory, and you needed anything that the boy could tell you quickly now.
As you lifted your goggles back up in the light of the stairwell, you were already trying to assess his wounds as well. But when you realized he was just staring at you, you finally made eye contact with him again just before he spoke.
“He’s more powerful out in the open.” The boy said. “So I don’t think he’ll follow us inside yet. But you’re assuming I’m a hero?” He sounded somewhat surprised? But the way he was looking you over, he was also trying to discern your quirk even in his own confusion.
“You told me to get back when I found you in the hallway, even though you were hurt.” You saw now that most of the blood was coming from his lower abdomen. A puncture wound maybe? “Who else would worry about others even when being attacked themselves?”
You saw his eyes widen a little at the sort of compliment, but you kept on. “And I’m sorry if I’m hard to understand. My name is (Y/N). I’m from the United States. Part of the intern exchange. I’m working for Stunner Man right now.”
“I can understand you.” He admitted. Though still looking at you in that odd way. “My name is Shota Aizawa.” He paused, seeming a little less confident, before he admitted his nickname. “Codename Eraser Head. I’m interning from the UA with His Purple Highness.”
“Oh,” You said, impressed truthfully, as that school’s hero course was obviously world renowned. But from the quizzical look you couldn’t help but show at his codename, he clearly had already discerned your next question.
He answered before you could ask, but even as he did you could tell he was already steeling himself for your disappointment. “I can erase others’ quirks just by looking at them.”
“You can…what?” You stared helplessly, for a moment almost forgetting your training to always be cool and collected as you tried to fathom what on earth this boy could really mean.
But he just stared back at you, was he that surprised at your reaction?
When he said nothing more, you had to shake away your shock to press further. “I’m sorry. This might be the language barrier again, but I need you to explain that to me please.”
Hero work could lead to unexpected team up situations at any time. And if this was to be one of those times, you both needed to know what you would be dealing with.
He frowned slightly, like he was having to talk more about himself than he was comfortable with. But he did comply. “If I activate my quirk while someone is in my direct line of sight, it inactivates theirs. But I can only do it for so long. Once I blink, or the line of sight is broken, their powers will come back.”
Silence hung between you for one long moment after his admission, and you could sense the tangible unease building in him.
You didn’t mean to make him jump either when you just blurted out. “That’s amazing!”
You still didn’t yell, but it was loud enough to be unexpected. But you couldn’t help it. You’d never heard of such a quirk. How could anyone be so powerful to make someone else quirkless just by looking at them!?
And why the hell did he look so self conscious about this? “You can’t be this modest. How are you not believing me that this is amazing!? I bet you only got thrown in here then because the rain obscured your vision, right!?” Your voice was quickening with your excitement. Your strategies to victory also readily multiplying in your brain. You could make a shield of light to push away the rain and Shota could look at the villain to make them helpless, then you could take them out with a subsequent light blast!
“My quirk has no offensive merit.” He deadpanned.
“Not every quirk has to!” You retorted, but maybe yourself now finally starting to understand a hint to his self conscious nature. “There are always multiple ways to win! Don’t they teach you that at UA?”
“We need to get moving,” He grumbled still in resistance to this subject. “People could be being killed out there.”
He wasn’t wrong you knew, as you nodded. “I’m sorry. I was just trying to gather information.” Which fair was fair as you tried to keep your own explanation as straight forward as you could.
“As you saw, my quirk is that I can absorb visible light energy. It doesn’t matter what kind. I darken everything as I absorb the light around me. I can store it inside myself, then discharge it when I’m ready, to make force fields for defense…or light blasts for offense or distraction to blind opponents.” Like everyone though, there was always still a catch as you continued. “But the weakness is that once I’ve discharged what I have, I’m tapped out until I can absorb more light. Which, at night in a rainstorm like this…there’s not much to be had.”
He was mostly stone faced as he listened to you though. But there was an analytic sharpness to his eyes, like you were inputting information into a human calculator before abruptly he tried to walk back away from you as if to continue up the stairs.
“I have a plan then,” He announced quietly, his back already to you again.
As much as you somehow believed him already though, you grabbed his hand before he could get much farther. “And whatever that plan is, we still won’t be much help to anyone if you faint from blood loss.”
It was obvious he was someone not used to being touched, you could tell that from the instant way he stilled and looked back at you.
But you didn’t weaken at the stare, only offering him a slight smile. “I’ve been trained in emergency first aid as well. There are first aid kits all through this stairway.” You’d passed them on the way up. “I’ll be quick, alright?”
————————————
The logical side of him must have won out that night in that stairwell. He’d known you were right about at least stopping his bleeding. But that was the real beginning you thought. This odd relationship that would keep its hold on you both for so many years to come.
Him, still so skinny then and self conscious, quiet and awkward as he’d sat on one of the stairs, holding his shirt up so you could clean and disinfect the wound just above his belt while you kneeled in front of him. Luckily the injury was not as deep as it could have been. Just too wide to close or clot on its own as you’d wrapped his abdomen with the appropriate bandages after cleaning out the debris.
And you kept your word, you still weren’t negligent of your duty as a hero in training even then. You didn’t waste any time at all, being as quick and efficient as you could while working on him. But even if all your training told you to also keep your mind on the mission at hand, you’d still felt that warmth in you.
The intimacy was practical, professional. But it still had its effect as you’d run your fingers across his abdomen to finish securing the bandage. You felt him tremble just for the slightest moment, and then it was over. His shirt was back down and he was standing again.
He’d only muttered a quick “Thank you,” as you’d both headed for the roof to execute his plan.
And still only being teenagers then, the clumsiness of your yelling and waving to attract the villain’s attention again would be something you’d both have been embarrassed about now. But at the time, you’d really both done rather well considering your low experience levels.
That villain of course hadn’t been the only villain that night. The main heroes had had their hands full with the other, stronger one at the heart of downtown. This one had been more like the sidekick really, just trying to keep on the outskirts to run interference and keep even more heroes from joining the fray for his boss.
He’d picked off Shota earlier he thought, so he was easy to get worked up when he realized Aizawa was now back for more.
But that villain had drawn his power from the difference of electrical charges in the air. Obviously then at an even greater advantage over the two of you with the thunderstorm above. But the trick had only been avoiding his electrical blasts, but drawing the light energy from them enough times to eventually surprise him with a big enough blast in return.
There’d been a few miscues of course, as well as you using your shielding to protect Shota all the while trying not to get hit either before you could finally land that big enough return hit to stun the villain. Then Shota binding him up in his scarf like weapon and removing the enemy’s quirk long enough to deliver a decisive knockout kick to the villain’s head.
It was your first ever victory as a team.
—————————————
And it’d been a bit of a whirlwind afterward. The congratulations and acknowledgement from your respective heroes for the small, but positive role you had both played of course. But more personally for you, you had owed so much to one of Shota’s best friends you had met immediately in the hustle and bustle afterward.
Oboro Shirakumo, otherwise known as Loud Cloud had been there immediately, ecstatic to hear the story of Shota’s and your success. His extroverted and effervescent personality such a direct opposite to Aizawa’s quiet nature. But Oboro had been the one seemingly so excited to learn you were from the United States as well.
He’d insisted that he, Shota, and their fellow UA student and other best friend, Hizashi Yamada (codename Present Mic) show you the real young hero life in Japan before you would leave again in the coming weeks.
Without Oboro’s intervention, there was likely no way otherwise you would have gotten to see the shy Aizawa so many times again after that night.
As a group the four of you had gone to malls, out to eat, and to see the touristy sights you likely never would have gone to alone. They didn’t even make fun of your bad Japanese, well not seriously anyway. Hizashi did a few times, but in a way that had you laughing with him as he teasingly walked you through a few pronunciations you’d butchered yet again.
On your last night in Japan, you’d been feeling a little sad really though as you’d wished you had gotten to speak to Shota a little more one on one. Even though he’d accompanied you all on your excursions together in those few weeks, you still had noticed how little he really talked and how often he seemed to always be looking away from you.
In the end you just had to think you were being silly for the way you’d felt in the stairwell with him briefly that night and how often you’d thought of him ever since. You’d probably never see him again you knew.
That night though you’d all gone to a park together that met the beach and ocean. Oboro was insistent that you needed to see the view of the sea there before you flew back to the United States the next morning.
Oboro had made one of his clouds, taking just the two of you up high into the air. As Shota and Hizashi still on the ground grew smaller and smaller, you did look away to the horizon and the starlit ocean beyond. It was beautiful of course.
But what Oboro said next, made you forget all about that view entirely.
“He likes you you know. He just doesn’t know what to do about it.” The blue haired boy said as if it was as simple a truth as saying the sun would come up tomorrow.
Your head turned immediately, just to see Oboro smiling at you in an almost conspiring way. “And you feel the same don’t you?” He asked you. “You look at him the same way he looks at you.”
“He doesn’t look at me!” You blurted, stupidly protesting as if your stomach wasn’t already trying to tie itself into a knot.
But Oboro just laughed, that genuine, happy one you’d heard from him so many times already. “Well he knows what to do with his eyes doesn’t he? He has practice. Of course he doesn’t let you catch him staring!”
So many emotions ran through you at once then. Embarrassment at your naivety, sadness that you still had to be leaving the country regardless, shock that this could even be true, and….frustration that you would just be being told now!?
“I’m leaving tomorrow, Oboro. Why would you even tell me this now!?” You asked somewhat desperately, but still keeping your voice down in your escalating panic.
He raised his hands innocently, yet unafraid of you either way. “Hizashi and I have been encouraging him as much as we could to speak up, but Shota is like those stories where an unstoppable force meets an immovable object…but in this story both are Shota!”
You stared, the absurdity only mounting at his words.
He chuckled, looking a little embarrassed then. “He’s quite stubborn is what I mean? And he says it’s pointless because you’ll be thousands of miles away. And I said that’s what phones, email, and video calling are for! Of course conversation is not one of his better skills…”
“Oh, man” You sighed, yet trying to think in your nervousness. “Did he send you to tell me all this? Or does he even know we’re having this conversation right now?”
The boy just shook his head. “He didn’t tell me to, and I didn’t ask his permission, no. He would have only told me not to. But sometimes heroes have to do what heroes have to do, right?” A kind look overtook his face again. “I want to see him smile sometime. He actually has a nice smile you know. I think I’ve seen it all of twice,” Oboro joked.
And it was true, it’s not like Shota was cruel or anything. But he didn’t smile, he didn’t laugh. It was like he was always afraid to perhaps. You weren’t really sure yet. You hadn’t known him long enough. But surely Oboro and Hizashi had. You should at least be able to trust that they had made a correct assessment of their friend’s feelings.
“Well…” You hesitated. “If I told him I wanted to stay in contact…do you think he’d actually call or write me?” You looked at Oboro imploringly, unsure if it would hurt more to try this and be rejected later anyway if you still never heard from him again.
“I can only promise you that we’ll try to keep him from screwing up if it’s only his fear that’s holding him back. We all have to overcome fear in one way or another if we’re going to be pros one day.” He smirked then, before looking a little more boastful. “You know, when Shota, Hizashi, and I graduate, we’re going to start our own hero agency. I’m sure by then if you wanted to come and do some more work in Japan, we could make a space for you too. I’d be a bad manager to turn down foreign talent you know.”
He did seem so sincere, you couldn’t help but smile back at him. “I’ll talk to Shota. But, whatever happens, thank you for trying to help either way.”
Oboro gave an exaggerated thumbs up with, what honestly you were guessing was his best imitation of an All Might type grin. “Of course! Plus Ultra! Always!”
———————————
It was something how quickly Oboro and Hizashi got themselves out of sight, now just you and Shota on the beach together. Yet you suspected they may still be in earshot somewhere in the distance. No doubt painfully curious of how this would go and silently cheering their best friend on.
At first you were afraid that Shota was angry actually, the way he’d visibly bristled, shooting his friends’ quite unhappy stares before they’d left as he fully realized what was about to happen.
But he didn’t ignore you, nor did he look away from you this time as you got closer to hopefully speak a little more privately. “I’m sorry if this is…weird.” You started awkwardly. “But I don’t think you should be too hard on your friends either. It’s obvious they really care about you.”
Your foot was kind of shifting in the sand. Nervousness still flowing freely as you just kept on. “But I’d still like to hear it from you…if you’re wanting to keep in touch. If you want to get to know me better, I’d like that…so…um-” Ah, this would be awful at any time, but stumbling over words you’d only recently learned made it all the worse. “So is it true, Shota? Do you want to keep talking after I’m back home…maybe I can come back again though…I’d like to see you again…I really would.”
He was silent at first, but he was clearly listening. Intently, as if analyzing your every movement, your every word.
But it was painful how long you had to wait for a response. Surely it wasn’t really as long as it felt though before he finally responded. His voice surprisingly even, almost emotionless?
“You’ll be a successful hero if you keep to your studies and training. I find it unlikely that you wouldn’t be able to start at any agency of your choosing in the United States once you graduate.”
A huge compliment to be sure, as you stared at him in surprise. But what did that have to do with the subject at hand? Was he trying to avoid your questioning entirely?
Yet his eyebrows lowered before you could interrupt as he kept on. “So I don’t understand why you would ever want to come back to Japan longterm where your reputation would have to be built back up again just to get equivalent job offers to what you could attain already in the US. The one instance with capturing the villain at that apartment complex isn’t enough for top placement at the agencies here in Japan. Especially without UA accreditation on your record. You would be putting yourself at a disadvantage to be here. It would be a mistake for your career.”
You could swear you almost heard a groan from somewhere in the distance. If you’d put your goggles on now, you were sure you’d probably see Oboro and Hizashi hanging on every word, wherever they were hiding to eavesdrop in the dark.
But your brain was also quite busy trying to digest the most words you’d ever heard from Shota at one time. Was this his excuse to reject you more lightly? To say he was only thinking of your career?
Of course he was under no obligation to feel anything for you. You knew there were certainly those with more powerful or interesting quirks than your own, or people more physically attractive. You weren’t anything amazing in your own mind compared to all the potential superstars you interacted with on a daily basis back home.
Yet if he didn’t feel how you did, you wanted to hear it outright instead of buried in a confusing way like this, and you couldn’t help but admit so then. “So you think I shouldn’t ever want to date you because it could make me spend too much time in Japan and not become as famous as I could have been otherwise? Nice that you assume working at a top tier agency is the only thing I would care about for my future….”
Perhaps you did come across a little harsher than you intended, but the way his normally tired looking eyes suddenly widened in shock had you realizing you had definitely brought some sort of emotion out of him at last with those words.
“You…wanted to…date me?” He uttered the words as if he never would have expected that combination of syllables to ever leave his mouth.
Well, you never would have been so forward if you didn’t feel he forced your hand with that strange insinuation of saying your personal choices should all be tied to a need for future fame and fortune.
You put one hand on your hip, trying not to sound as dumb as he was making you feel in this moment. “Well, not like tomorrow or anything. We’d need to get to know each other some more of course. But yes, I thought about it a lot these last few weeks. But if you didn’t like me like that, then friends is fine. I was hoping that was what we were going to talk about here. If you…liked me like that or not.”
Oh Lord, was this high school like it should be or was this elementary playground kind of drama? You didn’t have enough experience to be any more adult about this. But it was a yes or no type of question wasn’t it? Either he felt some sort of interest and attraction like you did, or he didn’t. You just needed to know.
“I…think you’re talented. And capable.” He said, like it was taking so much just to do this.
It was maddening somehow though. Could he not just say he felt nothing if that was the case? Was he so afraid of hurting your feelings? But honestly, he didn’t seem the type to ever mince words either. “Shota…” You tried. “You know you don’t have to worry about sparing my feelings. All you have to say is that you’re not interested. I’m not some delicate flower.”
Yet, you were starting to feel guilty yourself. Maybe this was all wrong, trying to force him out of his comfort zone too much. You should just take a hint right?
When he still said nothing more, your stomach finally sank as you stepped back from him a little again. “I’m sorry. I just wanted to know the truth, so I didn’t have to worry wondering later. If I’m not your type that’s okay. I appreciate you taking the time to try and talk to me like this.”
Oboro must have been wrong. That was all it could be. His friends had seen something that wasn’t there, and then pushed it this far in a sincere, but misguided attempt to help their friend.
But the let down still hurt. In the span of a short time, Oboro had gotten your hopes up and then they’d crashed down again. You’d been able to admit your feelings to Shota, just for it to end up as one sided.
Or so you thought.
You started to walk away, not wanting to be further embarrassed if the disappointment in your face had really started to show.
But you froze as soon as you felt his shockingly quick hand grab around your wrist. The memory of you doing the same to him in the apartment complex flashed through your mind.
“I didn’t say you weren’t my type…not that I’ve had a type before.” He spoke, but not in his usual even tone as you looked back at him.
And that was likely the very first time you’d ever seen a little bit of fear in his expression. He was still holding your wrist tightly, but it was like he didn’t know what else to say. He didn’t know how to express whatever it was that he was really thinking.
“Eraser really is that bad at this! Just run with it, (Y/N)!” Hizashi’s voice boomed in the distance even if he was only partially using his quirk. The vibration startling you both as Shota immediately shot a death glare in that direction, his hair levitating as he activated his quirk as if trying to lock on to Present Mic even in the dark.
And you couldn’t help it then, slipping your wrist out of Shota’s grip at his distraction, but just as quickly clasping your hand warmly around his own instead as you used your quirk to absorb some of the ambient starlight. It created a dark spot on the beach between the two of you and the others, just enough that Oboro and Hizashi would no longer be able to see. Though Shota would still be able to see you as you chose to take a risk, leaning in enough to kiss his pale cheek.
His hair fell back down at that very personal touch, the red glow also leaving his eyes as he looked back to you.
But you couldn’t read him then. You weren’t sure at all what would happen.
Yet he was still human wasn’t he? Even as stoic and calculating of a person as you’d ever met, he was still human, and still young then with that touch of recklessness you all had deep down.
And when you felt his lips touch yours not long afterward, it was as clumsy as could be expected for teenagers. But you didn’t care at all as you easily returned the kiss.
You knew immediately then that you would be coming back to Japan as soon as you could. Your goal was still to be a pro hero, but it didn’t really matter where.
A true hero’s spirit came from the heart. And if your heart ended up in Japan…who were you to tell it no?
———————————
(End for now. ❤️ I will likely write more of this pairing, but not sure of how soon. Thank you for reading!)
