Chapter Text
Surrounded by a maze of backpacks, suitcases, and boxes, Izuku sat on the floor of the Midoriya apartment living room and sorted through his belongings. After raising a t-shirt with the word “pants” written on it and holding a serious expression, Izuku lowered it and proceeded to examine another shirt that said “shoes”. Moving his scrutinising gaze between the two of them, he finally nodded and put “pants” in his bag.
“I think that’s everything.” He announced with satisfaction. Today was the first day of Izuku’s internship with Sir Nighteye, and he was making his final preparations before what would be a week of hard work and, hopefully, fun.
Inko had done her best not to interfere too stringently with Izuku’s routine, he always had a ‘system’ of some kind. But she also knew how bad her son was at packing. She refused to let him live down their trip to the water park, where he forgot to bring a change of clothes but remembered to bring a 64ft ethernet cable. “Are you completely sure you’ve got what you need?”
Izuku opened up a suitcase and lifted a pair of jeans, inspecting the seemingly random assortment of metal underneath. “Uhh, I think so?”
“I don’t want an ‘I think so’, Izuku. Do you have your phone charger?” She pressed on, her hands on her hips.
“Yes, Mom, two of them,” Izuku said, holding up his fingers. “A spare battery as well.”
Inko crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at him. “And do you have your phone?”
For a very sheepish moment, Izuku rummaged through his bag, stone-faced. “…I’ll be right back.” He said, before heading into his bedroom to retrieve the forgotten item.
While he packed away the piles of paper that had been covering his phone, his mom spoke to him from the hallway, a hint of concern in her voice. “Are you certain you’re going to be alright on this trip?” She asked, “It’s the first time you’ve been away from home for this long,”
For a split second, Izuku opened his mouth to say something, but his mom stopped him before he got very far.
“Before you say anything, no, being in a coma doesn’t count.”
“Mom, really, I’m going to be fine.” He reassured, beginning to drag his luggage to the front door. “Sir Nighteye has a whole team of heroes working with him, and I’ll be spending most of my time with the techs in their lab. I won’t be able to get into any danger!”
“Yeah, I know you’ll be okay, honey. Heaven knows I’ve seen how well you can handle things. But I’m a mother, it’s my prerogative to unnecessarily worry!”
Izuku shrugged a little, “Honestly, I’m more worried about you… Are you sure you can trust the other people in that team? They seemed, I don’t know, from the way you described them…”
“Who, Gentle?” Inko asked with a faux-shocked expression, “He’s no worry, he’s just a little eccentric. His girlfriend would probably kill me if I made a move though-,” she looked over her shoulder, coyly.
“Mom!”
Inko waved a hand at her worrywart son. “I’m just teasing you. Now hurry up and get going! Mei is probably already waiting for you at the station.”
“She’s been there since four this morning, she’s been sending me five-minute updates.” It was the reason he had left his phone in his room and attempted to muffle the constant notification sounds with piles of paper. He had no idea what Mei had done to it, but when he tried to mute the phone, it just made her text messages louder. Fishing the phone out of his pocket, he held it up to his mom, flicking his finger to show her the reams and reams of messages and images from that morning.
“Oh, that is… A lot of pictures.”
“Mmhm,” He agreed with a small smile, before grinning excitedly at his mom. “So, guess I’ll see you in a week?”
“In one week, and with plenty of new names in your contact list, right, honey?”
“You know it, mom.” With his bags piled high (mechanize secretly working beneath his jacket to help him carry it all by himself) Izuku stood at the open door ready for the next step in his journey.
When Izuku got to the train station, it didn't take long to find Mei. There usually weren't many people around working on three laptops at once. Excessive? Perhaps, but it was certainly efficient. She sat on the floor, effortlessly toggling between screens, simultaneously coding two different programs. Perched on her knee was an external hard drive with three cables protruding from it.
Izuku made a deliberate noise as he dropped his luggage, hoping to draw her attention. He then crouched down and greeted her with a wave. “Hi, Mei.”
“Arm,” Mei said briskly, extending her hand and snapping her fingers impatiently.
“What, no hello?”
“Arm,” she repeated, rising to her feet. Izuku complied with a smile, rolling up his sleeve.
Mei inspected his ordinary flesh-and-blood limb with a frown. “Transformed, Izuku. I need to know for sure that you can make the right ports.”
“Right, right, sorry,” Izuku apologised, allowing his Dragon Form's claw to envelop his hand. As the scales transformed his arm up to the elbow, he clenched his fist, causing various ports to materialise on the back of his hand. “Do you think this will work?”
“Please, who do you think you’re talking to?!” Mei said indignantly, perusing the connections on his hand. “The first time the new program boots up, it’s going to take time to fully integrate. So keep that in mind.” She cautioned, raising a very serious-looking finger. “You checked that Dragon Form has the storage, right?”
“Yep, tested it last night.” Izuku confirmed with a nod. “Storage shouldn’t be an issue anymore, but I stopped at 200TB. It was wild; I even made a TV screen inside the visor and-,”
Mei halted him. “Izuku, you know I’d love to hear more, but your train is five minutes away and I really have to explain this! If anything goes wrong, I’m not going to be around to help you out this time.”
“Don't worry, Mei. This won't be like last time, I promise,” Izuku said reassuringly, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder and inadvertently feeling how tense she was. “I'm the one who's supposed to get nervous, remember? You're messing with our whole dynamic right now.”
Putting her hand on his, she nodded and took a breath to slow down a little. After a second, she held up the hard drive she had been tinkering with. “When you’re ready to test it out, plug this baby in and wait at least, at least, thirty seconds.”
“And then?”
“Then you see what you can do.” She shrugged.
“Fingers crossed?”
“Fingers crossed implies something could go wrong, and there’s no chance of that happening. Miki ran all the numbers with me after our date yesterday.” Mei answered offhandedly, shoving the drive into Izuku’s pocket.
Izuku scratched his chin thoughtfully. “Oh, that's good to know. It's always smart to get an extra pair of eyes on- Wait, your date?!” he exclaimed in surprise.
“Yeah, we’re dating now.” Mei nonchalantly confirmed. “Oh hey, your train’s here! You gotta get going!”
“But Mei! Hold on a second!” Izuku sputtered, trying to stop her from pushing him towards the train.
“No rest for the wicked Izuku! No rest for the wicked!!”
As the doors closed between them, Izuku threw up his hands in confusion, looking at Mei with bewilderment, while she simply grinned and waved.
“Sir, you wanted to see me?” Aizawa's voice carried a measured tone as he addressed the principal, who stood on his office windowsill, hands on hips, taking in the view of the training zones below.
“Quite the scenic view, wouldn't you say, Shota?” Nezu remarked cheerfully, still focused on the landscape.
The grumpy teacher glanced briefly out the window, his interest only mildly piqued. “Hmm, I suppose.”
“Well, maybe it's not as breathtaking as one might hope,” the principal mused, his furry head tilting in thought. “I'll speak with the contractors tomorrow and arrange for a new city to be built!”
With a gleeful clap of his hands, Nezu casually moved to the opposite end of the windowsill, hopped into a small basket, and descended to the floor. As he traversed the room, he casually tossed a tiny grappling hook and scaled to the top of his desk, maintaining the conversation. “You aren't considering any internships this year, are you? I can't help but wonder if there's been a significant decision recently influencing that choice...”
Nezu's line of questioning left little room for subtlety, prompting Aizawa to cut to the chase. “Yagi told you, didn’t he?”
“Come now, Shota! Surely you don't think so little of me that I couldn't deduce it myself? But yes, Yagi sang like a gigantic canary!” Nezu laughed.
Aizawa let out a weary sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “For a man with the biggest secret in the world, he’s terrible at keeping them. Oh you, do know about..?”
“His ‘condition’? Yes, yes, do not worry yourself. I’m fully up to speed on that particular situation!” Nezu said cheerfully. “But the question remains, what is next for you?”
“A lot of hard work,” Aizawa replied, determined. “There's a building on the city’s outskirts that has been on the market for a while. It'll require extensive renovation, but it comes with enough space for specialised classrooms, training areas, and perhaps even a workshop. It's not on the same scale as UA, but..”
Nezu leaned forward, his whiskers twitching in acknowledgement of Aizawa's words. “Perhaps that is precisely the point. I value your concerns regarding the student body we tend to attract; high standards often lead to narrow perspectives. Consequently, I've decided to support you in securing funds and refurbishing your new academy.”
His tone growing firm, Aizawa held up a hand and shook his head in protest. “Sir, I would rather you didn’t. A connection to UA might result in the exact thing I’m trying to avoid. I’d prefer to avoid the comparison between our schools.”
“Oh, don't worry. UA won't be involved in any capacity, except for, naturally, your salary.”
While Nezu stood with his eyes closed, wearing a gentle smile, Aizawa's eyebrow slowly raised in silent curiosity. How Nezu managed to respond with his eyes closed remained a mystery, but he seemed to have an uncanny sense of timing.
“Mm, indeed! Did you know that for the seven years you worked here, we never once paid you the correct amount for holiday and sick leave?” Nezu remarked, a hint of amusement in his voice.
“That’s because I never took any-,”
“I know. You never took any of the time to alert us to that egregious error. It's truly unfortunate that our computer systems experienced a glitch and erased any evidence to the contrary! Therefore, it's only fair that we rectify that oversight.” Nezu produced an absurdly large cheque from his jacket pocket and scribbled on it with an equally absurdly large fountain pen before handing it over. “I believe this should cover what we owe you?”
“Sir, I can’t accept this, it’s not-,” Aizawa started, only to be rendered speechless by the staggering number of zeroes he was looking at.
“Not even a fraction of what we owe you, yes. But for the time being, I’m afraid it will simply have to suffice!”
Aizawa knew better than to argue with Nezu at this stage of his schemes. No amount of protest would sway him once he had set his mind to something. “I understand. Thank you, sir.”
“Don't thank anyone just yet, Shota. There's still one crucial task I need you to handle.”
“Sure, what is it?” Aizawa asked.
Nezu clapped his hands in celebration, as though he was waiting to drop this on him. “I need you to choose a replacement homeroom teacher!”
“Can’t you do that?”
“I could, but I've decided against it. I'm entrusting this responsibility to you. Once you find a suitable replacement, you're free to pursue new opportunities. Deal?” Nezu proposed, extending a paw.
After a brief moment of consideration, Aizawa smiled slightly and shook Nezu's paw firmly. “Deal.”
Akari: Oh!! Yeah!! Miki finally asked Mei out yesterday after school!
Izuku: Oh, wow. Good for them!!
Akari: It took her sooooo long to finally ask.
Akari: Mei said yes right away. I guess Miki knew the right words to say LOL
~~~
How it actually went down
“Listen, Mei, I know you’re asexual and all, and I totally respect everything about that, and you probably have no interest in dating-”
“That’s aromantic, not asexual.”
“I- Huh?”
“That’s aromantic. Not being interested in dating, or romance and stuff like that. I’m cool with romance. It’s all the other stuff I’m not into! So if you’re okay with that, then yeah, I’ll go out with you.”
“Cool.”
~~~
Akari: They hung out at the junkyard together until they got chased out for reckless endangerment.
Izuku: Wow, they’re perfect for each other.
Akari: IKR??
Akari: Omg you must nearly be at the agency right??
Akari: Good luck!!!!! Less than three!!!
Izuku: Thanks!! good luck to you too! Promise to let me know what Best Jeanist is like
Akari: I’ll get you his autograph obvs
Izuku: Whaaaaat you’re so nice
Akari: But you gotta take me out somewhere more fun than a junkyard ok
Izuku: Ok it’s a date
Izuku: If you want it to be
Izuku: It’s ok If we say it’s a date isnt it?
Akari: It’s a date <3
Izuku: Because I can call it something else if you want
Izuku: Ok it’s a date haha
Akari: Hiro is staring at me. I gotta put my phone away before his uncle gets mad.
Akari: Byebye talk soon
Izuku: His uncle?
Izuku: Akari who is his uncle??
Izuku: Is Best Jeanist Hiro’s uncle?????
Izuku could hardly believe he was actually standing in the office of the great Sir Nighteye! The only man ever able to call himself All Might’s sidekick, the man who solved the mystery of The Coconut Killings, five-time winner of the bi-annual HeroCon trivia contest. To fans of heroes everywhere, Sir Nighteye was nothing short of a living legend.
Despite the serious energy that seemed to surround Sir Nighteye, he haphazardly decorated his office with bright, garish ornaments. It was a veritable museum of All Might memorabilia. Everywhere Izuku looked, he could spot a different rare collectable, including some items that were never officially released for sale! Being a sidekick had some perks, it seemed.
Taking in the scenery, he momentarily locked eyes with the group of people in full hero costume standing to the side. They seemed nice, around his age, maybe? Particularly the boy with the number one million across his chest. But they also seemed tense. Like they were waiting for something to happen… Nighteye wasn’t going to fight him, was he?
Trembling with nervous energy in the centre of the room, Izuku bowed deeply and practically yelled at his own feet. “I’m really excited about this opportunity, Sir! I truly appreciate you giving me this chance!”
A tense silence filled the air, broken only by the faint sound of a drawer being opened by the slender figure seated at the desk before him. After what felt like an eternity, Izuku finally dared to look up, his eyes brimming with anticipation.
But before Izuku could utter a word, Sir Nighteye raised a finger, halting him in his tracks. “I'll stop you right there, Midoriya,” he said firmly. “Before you can intern at my agency, I have to stamp. This. Document.” He punctuated his final words by loudly tapping the page in front of him.
“Oh, r-right, of course.”
With deliberate precision, Sir Nighteye lifted the rubber stamp, removing the cap beneath it. Izuku's heart raced as he watched the slow, almost agonising movement of Nighteye's hand as it ascended into the air—much higher than expected. Beads of sweat formed on Izuku's forehead as he held his breath, while Sir Nighteye's staff leaned forward, caught up in the tension radiating through the room. Then, in a sudden burst of movement, Nighteye brought the stamp down with lightning speed, slamming it onto the table.
Several inches away from the paper.
After a moment of not knowing what to make of it, Izuku ventured. “Sir, I think you… might have missed?”
“Did I miss, Midoriya?” Sir Nighteye's voice remained steady, his expression unwavering and serious. “The truth of the matter is, I have no intention of stamping this particular sheet of paper.”
Izuku panicked, he knew that Nighteye could be a tough boss, but had he already done something to upset him?! Did he spend too long looking at the All Might posters?! “You don’t?!” he blurted out.
“No, Midoriya,” Nighteye replied calmly, his demeanour unchanged. “Because this...” He lifted the paper from the desk and held it up, “...is the wrong document. I realised moments ago and felt that I had unnecessarily dramatised the situation. It made me feel rather foolish.”
“Oh, no!” Izuku shouted inwardly as his eyes went wide and his jaw dropped. “He’s even more awkward than I am!!!”
Desperately seeking reassurance from the other agency members, Izuku found none. With a sense of helplessness washing over him, he struggled to find the right words. “I... I uh...”
“This here,” With practised ease, Nighteye produced another sheet of paper from his desk and casually stamped it as if nothing had happened. “Is the form I was supposed to use.”
For the first time since Izuku had entered the office, one of the other people in the room spoke up - the boy Izuku recognised as being around his age, with the one million on his suit. “Hahaha! Good one, Sir!” The boy laughed, wiping a tear away. “The old ‘wrong form’ trick! A classic!”
Sir Nighteye responded with a terse acknowledgement. “Mm. Yes, another of my practical japes. Completely intentional. Now, your internship has begun.” With that, Nighteye leaned forward, resting his elbows on the desk and intertwining his fingers.
After an excruciating few seconds, Izuku had to say something. “Is there somewhere I should go, or..?”
But Nighteye interrupted him with a raised finger. “We're still waiting on someone else,” he stated matter-of-factly. Then, with a swift motion, he produced a pocket watch, inspected it with a critical eye, and pointed towards the door.
Right on cue, the door swung open to reveal a rather timid-looking boy clad in a UA sports uniform, complete with a sturdy vest and reinforced shoulders. The boy had shiny black eyes, a small mouth, and oh yeah! His head looked like a chestnut. “Hello? You said I should open the door at 9:37 am?”
“You are 16 seconds early, but you were very diligent in following my commands. Excellent work, Mr Kuri.” acknowledged Sir Nighteye with a firm expression.
Izuku beamed upon recognising his classmate entering the room, very surprised by his presence. “Kuri! You're interning here too?”
“Yes, it was Mr Kan's idea,” Kuri replied with a smile, moving to stand beside Izuku. “He said I have a good enough grasp on combat and quirk usage to keep up with his students, but I haven't had the same experience in analytics yet. And, well, Sir Nighteye is the best analyst around.”
“Now that everyone is here,” Nighteye interjected. “We may proceed. Kuri, you will be working primarily with Bubble Girl and Centipeder, in our information-gathering team”
“Hi!” A (surprise surprise) bubbly young woman waved excitedly at them. “We can’t wait to work with you!”
Centipeder chittered and bowed his head respectfully.
Nighteye continued. “Midoriya, I’m partnering you with Lemillion on a special project. I will leave it to him to explain.”
The boy with the one million on his shirt gave a hearty thumbs up. No indication of what his quirk could be, Izuku noticed. Maybe he had some kind of lemming mutation…
“Right!” “Yes sir!” The two new interns said enthusiastically, saluting their new boss. They held the military-like pose for what seemed like an eternity, their backs ramrod straight, but eventually, fatigue crept in and their arms dropped. Nighteye observed in silence.
After an awkward pause, Izuku cleared his throat, feeling a blush creep up his cheeks. “Um, should we...?”
Nighteye finally broke his silence. “Yes, you're dismissed.”
Meanwhile, across town, Mei and Miki felt the gravel crunch beneath their feet as they ascended the creaking wooden steps leading to an old-fashioned western saloon. While it would have been genuinely fantastic if this were the actual headquarters of Snipe’s agency, the pair of them had been invited to what amounted to a themed amusement park. The entire area was designed like a wild west town, complete with a saloon, bank, general store, and stables, all meticulously crafted to evoke the atmosphere of the Old West.
The lively tune of a piano filled the air as they swung open the batwing doors, stepping into a scene straight out of a cowboy movie. Everywhere they looked, people were decked out in full cowboy attire, engaged in games of poker, lounging against walls, or simply enjoying their drinks while observing the scene from the balcony. Behind the bar, Snipe himself was busy fixing a drink, his Southern drawl as unmistakable as ever as he greeted the newcomers.
“Ah! Howdy Folks, come on in, sitcha selves down.” he said warmly, before turning his attention to the other patrons. “Fellas, we've got a couple of city slickers joining us for a spell!” Turning his attention to the students, he asked them, “Why don't y'all introduce yourselves?”
With practised ease, Mei immediately dropped into a sales pitch. “Hi! Mei Hatsume at your service! Tech genius, polyglot, talented businesswoman, the list goes on! Owner and CEO of Hatsume Industries, a subsidary of Hatsutech! I’m sure we’ll be making some beautiful babies together!”
Miki stepped forward to clarify, markedly less enthusiastic. “She doesn’t mean it like that. I’m Miki Yamashita.”
“…Aw c’mon now, don’t sell y’self short, missy!” Snipe said in a disappointed tone, urging her on. “Ya can do better’n that, surely!”
“Uh…Okay, fine…” Miki sighed to collect her thoughts, and then her expression changed abruptly, adopting exaggerated hand gestures and a lively attitude. “Miki Yamashita, at your service! Expert gadgeteer and cybersecurity specialist! Solved Fermat’s last theorem at just nine years old! Owner and CEO of The Yamashita Corporation, and uh…” She trailed off, running out of steam. “I’m nearsighted? And… allergic to felt.”
“She also smells like blueberries and one time I saw her eat an entire hamburger in six seconds flat!” Mei said gleefully.
Though she appreciated the strange compliment, Miki felt a blush of embarrassment creeping onto her face. “Mei, please...”
“Hang on a tick…” Snipe said, hopping over the bar and pointing a finger between the two girls. “Are you two ladies..?”
“Yep!” Mei replied toothily.
With a hand on his hip, Snipe responded, “Aw well shucks, ain’t that nice? Certainly gonna make things interestin’”
Curious and slightly concerned, Miki furrowed her brow as she examined the hero before her. “Interestin’, uh, interesting how?” The term 'interesting' didn't often carry positive connotations,, especially the way Snipe was using it.
“Y’see, bein’ in a pro hero agency ain’t all sunshine and kittens.” he began, sauntering around the bar while inspecting his firearm. “It don’t matter none what department ya’ll find y’selves workin’ in, villains can strike at any time…” He glanced over at his employees on the upper floor, tipping his hat to signal them. “So we like to make sure the good men an’ women working at this here facility can handle whatever nasties come through our doors.”
More and more members of his team started to emerge from the back of the bar, guns at their hips, some of them started cracking their knuckles and stretching their limbs ready for whatever was coming next.
“I don’t like the look of this, Mei!” Miki exclaimed, looking around at the increasingly tense atmosphere of the saloon.
However, Mei's expression was far from worried; instead, she sported a manic grin as she pulled down her goggles. "Oh, I love it!"
“Around this here town y’all will find the means and supplies to construct y’selves WEAPONRY!” Snipe announced, his voice carrying over the commotion. “Everythin’ ya find can be used in whatever way ya’ll see fit! Tear the whole dang town apart if ya need to, jus’ show us whatcha can cook up! Tag or incapacitate my team an’ I’ll know ya got what it takes!”
Snipe raised his hand into the air and began a countdown with his fingers. "Alright, partners! Internship begins in three! Two! One!"
“Oh HELL yeah! This is gonna be FUN!” Mei yelled.
“LET ‘EM HAVE IT!”