apathy

the dreaded repeat

Izuku is just a bit disgruntled by the grounding Inko serves him once he gets back home. With enough planning, he can get around it easily, but for now he stays in bed like he's asked. For multiple reasons. One being that Inko has gotten a few days off and is home all day for until he goes back to school—he wouldn't dare break the grounding right in front of her. The second reason is just that he is so sore. He can get up if push comes to shove, but it hurts just enough to not be worth it.

He spends the first few days of his week off in a certifiable cocoon of blankets, being fretted over by Inko. Eventually she stops coming in every five minutes and leaves him to his own devices for most of the day. Maybe she decides that he's well enough to be left unsupervised, or maybe she picks up on his deep-seated uncomfortableness with being alone with her after so long of them barely seeing each other. He wants to feel bad for not wanting to be around her, but he can't find in himself to do anything but despise the glances. They're the same ones he has gotten since the doctor's appointment when he was four—checking on him like he's a glass sculpture that's prone to shattering.

In those first three days, when he's not being mother-henned, he either sleeps or thinks. By the time his mom gets him a new phone on the fourth day of his forced bed rest, Izuku has come to some conclusions. Most of them aren't incredibly important, but one is.

Tomura is a villain. Even in his memories, there's no mistaking the reedy voice of the friend he plays with on a regular basis. No mistaking the contempt for All Might, either. Tomura is one hundred percent a villian who can disintegrate things with a touch. The slowly forming scars in the vague shape of choking finger prints on Izuku's neck attest to that quirk.

Tomura is a villian who... has called him forty-seven times in the last week. Izuku considers, for a moment, ghosting him. But he has already put a bit of effort into not making it obvious that the person Tomura plays minecraft with is the same person that Shigaraki choked out, and he doesn't really fancy Tomura putting it together so quickly. So instead, he turns on his console and joins their world.

His phone rings with a discord call immediately. Izuku hits answer just as he spawns on top of a cliff that they'd been exploring the last time.

"Where are you." Tomura demands. He silently sends his coordinates. "Stay there."

"Are you okay, Izuku? Where have you been, Izuku? Sorry I called you 47 times, Izuku." Izuku says in a poor imitation of Tomura's voice. The 100% villain just scoffs, and when Izuku turns his avatar, he sees Tomura building up the cliffside to him. He gets almost all the way up when Izuku says something that makes him freeze. "Took you long enough, Shigaraki."

"What did you call me." Tomura asks after a split second pause, voice low and threatening. Izuku's lips press into a line for just a moment. Well, that's definite proof that his Tomura is Shigaraki. There's only one thing for him to do then.

"I called you a shit monkey. I know you're old, Tomura, but if you're having this much trouble hearing, you might have one foot in the grave already." Izuku turns and smacks Tomura's unmoving avatar off the tower of blocks into a small pond below. The move has the desired effect, drawing an offended yelp from Tomura as he falls and distracting him from the fact that Shigaraki doesn't really sound like 'shit monkey' at all.

"Motherfucker!" Tomura curses, trying to get out of the pool when Izuku moves to look at him. "You little shit!"

"Help, I've fallen and I can't get up." Izuku monotones back, already sprinting down the hill. Tomura curses up a storm and vows to destroy him, but Izuku's half health avatar is long gone. When Tomura finds him mining in a random mineshaft later, he declares them even after blocking him into a spawn room with obsidian.

"This is just like Cask of Amontillado." Izuku laments as he slays the zombies coming at him.

"Bring me a name tag." Is all Tomura says in response.

"Fuck you."

Izuku has enough time to destroy and loot the zombie spawn before Inko is rapping softly on his door. He tells Tomura goodbye and ends the call, then calls for her to come in. Inko opens the door with a small, nervous little smile on her face, and with someone standing behind her.

"One of your classmates brought over your school work, Izuku!" She announces, stepping out of the way to let Shinsou come in. He and Izuku just stare at each other for a silent moment, which Inko takes as her cue to leave.

"You look like shit." Shinsou bluntly observes after a moment, walking over. Izuku rolls his eyes.

"Like you can talk." He shoots back, holding his hand out for the stack of papers in Shinsou's hand. The purple bastard puts then on Izuku's desk instead, eyeing the notebooks on the shelf above it. Izuku should be annoyed by the breach of privacy, but he's never minded Shinsou. The dude has a single-minded need to get into the hero class, but he also still has enough hair volume and big enough bags under his eyes to rival Izuku. He's a kindred spirit. "Surprised you're the one bringing me those."

"Yeah, like you'd prefer someone else to bring them." Shinsou snorts. He pauses on one of the notebook, clenching his fists at his sides. To Izuku, it's obvious he has something he wants to say. But he's not one to try and make people spill their troubles. If Shinsou wants to talk, he will. "...I came because I have a favor to ask."

Izuku shifts in his cocoon and gives Shinsou an expectant look. Shinsou takes a deep breath.

"Can you help me train for the Sports Festival?"