Chapter Text
Shota Aizawa was a calm man. Sure he got irritated easily, but it was always logical. One of his students did something really stupid, a villain messed with his day, the list went on. But there were things that made his very blood boil with rage. One such thing was blatant child abuse.
When he arrived at Loud Radio, his husband’s studio and technical agency, he was taken to see Hizashi. What he found was Hizashi hunched over a bunch of papers, deep dark eye bags weighing down on his skin. His office, covered in records and albums of his greatest hits as well as newspaper clippings from his various cases, hung silently in the dim office, only the lamp and computer screen lights illuminating the room in any meaningful way. It wasn’t unusual to see him or his office like this, but this still made Shota worry. Not that he’d show it, of course.
“Hizashi. I’m here.” He said quietly, poking his shoulder. Hizashi jolted slightly but turned to Shota with a soft but Present Mic-Edition smile.
“Hey hey, Sho! Glad you’re here… It’s been a loooong day heh…” Hizashi made a gesture to all the papers on his desk. Shota had to raise an eyebrow at that. It was indeed a lot. Granted, it had been three hours since he got Hizashi’s call (and the kitchen was an absolute mess), so depending on how well Hizashi searched he could have easily gotten all the statistics he needed for… well…
“I can tell, ‘Zashi, but I need to know WHY I am here. We both know it’s a kid, but what’s the kid’s deal?” Shota walked over and sat in a spare chair Hizashi always had on hand. Hizashi sighed, pushing a few papers away as he rubbed his nose.
“Okay, so to make this as brief as possible, kid’s name is Izumi Midoriya, they live in the area in an apartment with their mother. The problems begin there. Remember that one case with those villains who kidnapped that guy with the temporary gender switching quirk?” Hizashi pointed to his screen, showcasing an older casefile detailing that exact thing. Not that Shota needed that to remember.
“Yeah, that was one of our first cases together as a couple. The guy got drugged up on Trigger by the villains, and there were at least twenty individuals who had their genders switched. Some of them got it reversed while others couldn’t or didn’t want to.” Shota eyed Hizashi, the pieces clicking together but he wanted Hizashi to say it. The look Hizashi gave him confirmed it further.
“Well one of the kids that got caught in it was Izumi, back then known as Izuku. She was the ONE kid that couldn’t get her gender change back. Here’s the thing though, I was looking through her files, her legal files, and they all come back with the same stuff. Her name is stuck as Izuku, despite her clearly being more comfortable as Izumi.” Shota nodded, a firm frown slowly forming behind his scarf. Hizashi continued, a grim look over taking him.
“Her mother, Inko Midoriya, demanded her “son” to be treated as such, despite a note from the doctor saying Izumi was clearly uncomfortable around her mother after that. I’m going to visit that doctor tomorrow. Anyways, there are small reports here and there about Izumi wearing a boys outfit for Aldera Junior and now High school, as well as noise complaints around their apartment. Nothing super clear, but I can tell you this, Izumi wants to be Izumi, and is more comfortable being here than being escorted home…” Hizashi sighed, pinching his nose.
“And don’t get me started on Aldera. So many reports of blatant and illegal quirk abuse on school grounds, but all the reports are buried deep by some outside force. Which already throws up flares. Now imagine a reserved kid who doesn’t show off their quirk and being surrounded by self absorbed children for over ten years? Well, you got a very anxious child. She’s shown to have some sass, but I believe it’s more of a self defense thing than a personality thing… at least to a degree.” Hizashi sadly looked over to one of the other screens, showcasing the security camera feeds. Shota could see a young woman (around sixteen to seventeen if he had to guess) lying on one of the spare room couches, a staff member near the door in case something happened. The woman looked pretty rough, and even from the screen Shota could see the damaged school uniform. It didn’t take him long to come up with his decision (even if no question had been asked).
“Alright, I’m going to confront her mother, see if I can get something from it all. You handle the school. Until then, I don’t want her leaving this building under any circumstance unless you or a trusted friend of ours is with her. You called Nezu right?” Hizashi nodded. “Good, we’re going to need him. In the meantime, let's run through everything you have again. Then call the rest of the necessary individuals we’ll need. This is going to be a long night.” Hizashi chuckled and nodded, scooting over to allow Shota to do the same so they sat over the papers equally.
It was going to be a long night indeed, but the couple had done long nights before. This was nothing new.
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Nezu hummed as he walked down the street towards Yamada’s radio station, the silent morning streets giving him the peace and quiet needed to think. It wasn’t often that Yamada called him for potential cases. All UA University staff were given express permission to ask for his aid, after all. Just some often didn’t. Actually… most didn’t. He couldn’t blame them.
The cold morning air brushed against his fur, making him smile softly, his black beady eyes analyzing everything around him, noticing the couples who looked at him confused but not overly caring, the children who whispered about how to avoid getting in trouble, it all was heard and seen by him. It made Nezu chuckle silently to himself. His observation skills never seemed to turn off, and while he did admit it was daunting from time to time, it did allow him to survive in this wild world.
Of course, those observation skills also were useful as a hero and investigator. Skills that were needed at this very moment. The call from Yamada was concerning to a certain degree. A young woman whose history was already up for question due to spotty medical records as well as concerned therapists who couldn’t track her down. Obviously the answer lay in the woman’s home life. Then came the clear abuse she suffered at school. Why would she hide her quirk? Perhaps it was perceived as villainous. Or perhaps there was a level of complication to her quirk that made others see it as useless. The mere thought of all this combined made Nezu’s hair bristle on edge. But he smoothed it down mere seconds later. He had arrived.
Loud Radio was a lovely establishment. It was a beautiful mix of casual and over the top. Neon signs mixed with simple street lights made the basic structure stand out while the simple glass doors and windows allowed all who walked to peer in and see all the exciting activity. It almost made Nezu reconsider his own office decorum. Almost. Regardless, as he entered the building, he was immediately greeted by Yamada’s secretary.
“Ah, Principal Nezu! It’s good to see you! Come, come! Right this way!” The secretary almost giggled as he motioned Nezu to follow him. Nezu just smiled and nodded. The two quickly made their way to Yamada’s office. Nezu could have, if he wanted to, made his way here himself. He had secretly studied the building’s layout one night on whim, after all! Regardless, it did not matter. The two walked silently in the halls, the records, vinyl, and various rooms filling the silence. Eventually they came across a simple door, though the over extravagant sign saying ‘PRESENT MIC’ was a key indicator of what, and more importantly, who was behind the door.
“No Sho, I have checked every link connected to Aldera. Nothing screams the Meta Liberation Army. I’m pretty sure they were really open with their… opinions, per say, on quirks.”
“Yeah yeah, but the signs are all there. Of course they’d hide them well, who knows what kind of quirks they’d have under their bloody hands. What could they be hiding?”
“Sho, you’ve read way too many crime shorts.” Nezu just smiled at the couple as they bickered. It made him smile, seeing two of his three personal students be so close. Espically after the shitshow that was their second year Sports Festival. A piece of history that still bugged the mammal hero. But that was neither here nor there. With a simple huff of his lungs, he caught the attention of the two pros. Yamada smiled brightly while Aizawa simply nodded at Nezu.
“NEZU! It’s good to see ya, boss rat! Hope the walk over wasn’t too bad for ya…” Yamada stood up from his desk to greet his boss. Nezu nodded in response, walking over to give the loud human a friendly yet firm handshake.
“It was quite the relaxing walk, Yamada! I must say the streets were quite relaxed today, which is a nice change of pace.” Nezu chuckled. “Granted, it is usually quiet and relaxing at five in the morning, but I digress.” The two other pros awkwardly chuckled as well, glancing at the clock on the wall. Nezu could guess why, but that wasn’t important. With a clap of his paws, he took command of the situation.
“Well, with all of that out of the way, why don’t you update me on the situation? I must admit, this has gotten this old mammal’s bones shaking with excitement!”
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The excitement in Nezu’s bones quickly died as he was informed of the entire situation. Turns out Yamada and Aizawa pulling an all nighter was quite fruitful in everything they found. Everything turned out to be quite heartbreaking.
Izumi Midoyria. Currently a sophomore at Aldera High School. Legal Name: Izuku Midoyria. Quirk: WarpFire [Green Fire that doesn’t Burn but can be used in Physical Attacks alongside Telekinesis]. Questionable homelife and horrendous school life. Affected by a quirk in the past that couldn’t be reversed. Seemingly more comfortable as they are now. Nezu had to pinch his snout to disguise his disgust with the information. He looked up at Yamada and Aizawa from his seat across the desk, the duo sitting behind it with similar expressions on their own faces.
“I must admit, Miss Midoyria’s case here is delicate. One wrong move and we could be making things worse for the young woman. What we need to do is attack this quickly and effectively while also being as discreet as possible. And what better way than to do as Yamada suggested! Divide and conquer. Keep things moving as fast as possible to keep the enemy from rallying.” Yamada’s face twisted into a sadistic sneer, as Aizawa’s eyes simply narrowed. Ah how Nezu adored these two!
“Sounds like a plan, Boss Rat! I’ll tackle the doctors who took care of Izumi! Aizawa, why don’t you tackle the bastard that calls herself a mother. And I believe we both know where you are going, sir!” Yamada made a dramatic motion towards Nezu, which got the mammal to chuckle. Aizawa just sighed at that, his tired eyes tracking the two’s movements.
“Fine. I can work with that. Though that brings up a question…” He points at the now main monitor, where Izumi Midoriya still slept.
“What are we going to do with her? We can’t just keep her here. Even if no calls were made by her mother regarding her not returning home, I don’t think we in good conscience can keep her here.” Nezu scratched his chin. This was quite the conundrum, one that admittedly he should have thought of beforehand.
“Well, perhaps we can call in a favor. Perhaps a fellow colleague of ours…” This caught the other pros’ attention. Aizawa raised an eyebrow, the dim lighting making it more tired than it probably was. Nezu just smiled and pulled out his phone, dialing a number before placing it on speaker. Yamada leaned over to look at the number as he placed the phone in the middle of the desk for them all to talk. The loud man's eyes widened but so did his smile. Nezu felt a bit more excited. For if this all went well…
“Hello? Nezu?” The soft and kind voice of Anan Kurose, aka Thirteen, rose from the device, a clear note of concern itched into her words.
“Hello, Thirteen! We have need of your assistance! And you won’t even need your Hero gear for this!” Nezu's chipper voice cut through the air, getting a chuckle from Yamada and a giggle from Thirteen. Aizawa just rolled his eyes, but smiled. The UA staff liked to tease Thirteen about how long it took to put on her hero costume, it was a little inside joke.
“Oh, well of course dear principal! What is it that you need?” Thirteen seemed to be surprised, which was valid, Nezu thought. He didn’t call in favors often, only when he needed dirt or things done. But he would never ask any of his members of his staff anything that would put them in harm's way. After all, they were some of the few humans he trusted.
“Well, my dear! It appears Yamada, Aizawa, and myself have caught ourselves a pretty nasty case. A young woman is in need of some aid, aid we are about to give. Unfortunately she needs someone to keep an eye on her so she can relax and rest a bit more. Furthermore, she needs to be kept as far away from her home as possible. Can you and perhaps your partner do that for us?” They could hear a soft ‘hmmmmm’ exit the phone as Thirteen began to think. Nezu could see Aizawa paying close attention while Yamada was crossing his fingers.
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A soft groan exited Izumi’s lips as her heavy eyes opened. The room was dark and quiet, but it didn’t feel like home. Her mother wasn’t banging on her door, telling her to come out and put it on. In fact… Izumi’s eyes opened wide as she shot up. She wasn’t home. The room she was in was covered in vinyl records and CDs. A set of boomboxes were sitting to the side where a table also sat. Yep this was very much not her room. As she slowly stood up, she tried to remember the previous day.
There was school… then Bakugou… what he said… then… Her eyes widened, as she quickly ran to the door of the room, throwing it open, determined to see if it was true. What she didn’t expect was to see the very thing she needed to confirm her suspicions.
“Hey hey hey, listener! Have a good sleep?” Present Mic asked, his cheerful demeanor almost infectious. Izumi just stared at him, eyes wide and confused, until she spoke.
“What the fuck.” Was all she said, not even embarrassed. Present Mic just stared back blankly, eyes wide, before laughing like crazy, bending over and slapping his knee. Izumi was too shocked to even care. Yup this was wild. She just stood there, eyes still wide with shock as Present Mic slowly calmed down. As he whipped his eyes out of the tears, he let loose a light chuckle then straightened up, looking Izumi straight in the eyes.
“Alright kid, I’m glad you’re up! There’s a lot to do, and a surprise waiting for ya! Let’s get a move on!” He quickly turned and hurried off, motioning for Izumi to follow. Izumi just looked at the retreating pro, shrugged, and followed. It wasn’t like her life was a rollercoaster already. She hurried quickly to catch up (Present Mic was surprisingly fast) and soon the two were walking to the lobby. Izumi’s nerves were acting up, which Mic noticed.
“So listener, was last night a good refresh from whatever happened yesterday?” Mic asked the question cautiously. Izumi could guess why. She was pretty broken and, to be brutally honest, terrified with herself and her future. But the previous night? She felt…
Safe.
“Uh… yeah actually. I’m going to be honest, that was probably the best sleep I’ve had in a long… long time.” Izumi didn’t miss the wince Mic made. Why, she had no clue. But it made Izumi worried if she said something wrong. But Mic shook his head, clearly shaking some thought out of his head.
“Well kid, with that in mind… I called your school to tell them you weren’t coming in today. We did call you mother…” A brief wave of panic fell over Izumi until Mic continued. “But she didn’t answer. Which… considering certain circumstances… really doesn’t surprise me.” Izumi paused at this, looking up at the pro. His eyes were distant, but she could SEE the rage building up. Did… did this pro do a background check on her? Or was it something else? Before she could think about it more, the two entered the main lobby, where Izumi was shocked to see three more Pro Heroes (and another woman with short dark blue hair. She didn’t recognize her from anywhere. All of which she recognized. One of which noticed the two of them and smiled a feral grin.
“Ah, the young woman in question! Am I a dog, a bear, or a mouse? It doesn't matter, because I'm the Headmaster of UA University! I hope you are ready for quite the day!” The others present chuckled at the chimera’s antics, all while Izumi had a temporary brain reset. Nezu, the headmaster of UA, was right in front of her! It was like a dream come true! Furthermore…
“WAIT WAS THAT FUCKING ERASERHEAD?!”
The heroes jumped at Izumi’s quick reaction and sudden outburst to seeing the Underground hero, especially Mic. Eraserhead just raised an eyebrow but kept silent. If she recognized him, so be it. It was another day’s problem. Izumi blushed a little, the constant change of attention being a bit embarrassing. As she stammered a little, her mind now a constant stream of ‘oh no what the fuck is wrong with me,’ one of the other pros laughed.
“My my! I don’t think we usually see anyone instantly recognize dear ol’ Eraser! Aren’t you a cutie?” The woman laughed, her dark violet hair swaying as she did. Mic grinned and chuckled, patting Izumi on the back. Izumi’s face went flushed with red as she began also fully registered the fucking MIDNIGHT was here. MIDNIGHT.
“Yup, listener, that’s Eraserhead alright, but you can call him Aizawa! Instant that right, Sho!” Mic gave the other pro the finger guns while Eraser just rolled his eyes, a soft smile etched across his face.
“I really don’t care. Just don’t call me Eraserhead in public please.” He gave Izumi a long stare, but there wasn’t any heat in it. Izumi just nodded, the pace of events being a bit much for her. Midnight seemed to notice and gave her a soft smile.
“Hey kiddo, don’t worry. You’re not in trouble and even better, I think you’ll enjoy today! You see my two friends and boss,” She nodded towards Nezu and Aizawa while giving a kind look to Mic. “Are going to be checking some things out and unfortunately you may or may not be caught in the crossfires, so me and my lovely wife here are going to be taking you out for a girl’s day!” Midnight did a little happy dance at that, her giggles filling the air. Izumi’s eyes brightened at that. But only then did she register one of Midnight’s comments.
“W-wait. Your… YOUR WIFE YOU’RE MARRIED WHAT HUH WHEN!?” Izumi exclaimed, her left eye glowing brightly at that. Could anyone blame her though? One of her favorite heroes was married and it was to another woman?! Her gay heart couldn’t handle it. It was only now that the dark blue haired woman spoke up, a soft laugh emanating from her lips.
“Yes dear, that would be me. Though I’m not surprised you don’t recognize me. My hero costume does quite well in covering all my features.” She walked up to Izumi, bowing in a greeting and a large smile written across her face.
“I’m Anan Kurose, though you may know me as Thirteen.” She smiled warmly at Izumi as the teen took in that information. And once again exploded.
“THIRTEEN!? THE TWILIGHT RESCUE HERO!? Ohmygodohmygodohmygod THIS IS THE BEST DAY EVER!” Izumi was now giggling like a school child, swaying her body in excitement. The pros all had to smile at that. Izumi was in her own little excited fangirl world, and for once no one was shaming her for it. Not Bakugou, not her classmates, not HER. It was just Izumi indulging in her interest without punishment. It took a loud but somehow kind cough to get Izumi’s attention. Midnight gave her a teasing grin.
“Alright, you silly goose. Let’s get you into some more comfortable clothes, then we’re going out!” Midnight grabbed Izumi by the shoulders and began dragging her away, Kurose following her. Izumi just laughed. For once, she wasn’t worried about home. She was happy to just let things slide.
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Inko Midoriya scowled as she banged her fist on Izuku’s door. Of course that brat wasn’t listening. Probably watching that damn All Might video again. No matter how hard she tried to ram it into her son’s head (sometimes literally), it seemed that it didn’t matter. Her son was worthless anyways. His quirk didn’t burn things or lift heavy objects. It was just a nuisance.
Inko was about to just break out a hammer and bash the doorknob open to get into the locked room when a loud pounding was heard at the front door. Snarling, Inko walked away from the door and down the stairs, right to the front door. She slammed open the front door with fury burning in her eyes.
“What now, I am busy!” She shouted at the three figures in front of her. A seemingly homeless man with yellow goggles just stared back at her, his red eyes piercing her own green eyes. The two officers behind him stood at attention, frowns itched across their faces. What did these bastards want?
“Inko Midoriya?” The homeless man asked.
“Yes?”
“You’re under arrest for child abuse, harrasment, and discrimination.” Inko balked at this, her hands clenched into fists.
“How would you even know? I have done nothing wrong.” She stated matter-of-factly. But it seemed that was the wrong answer as the man gave her a cruel smile, his eyes now littered with hate and disgust.
“Your house isn’t free from cameras, and nothing… and I mean NOTHING… escapes the Rat.” Inko paled. There was only one person in all of law that was referred to as the Rat, and if somehow she had brought the ire of such a figure… there was truly nothing she could do. The man smiled larger as the two officers chuckled.
“Now you get it. Hands behind your back. And also…” The man leaned in, his smile gone, his disgust now fully written across his face.
“Her name’s Izumi. Not Izuku.”