With Love, Comes the Pain

Muscled Out

Midoriya watched Kota walk away from the camp as they started eating.

Shinsou was also looking in the same direction, and Midoriya just shoved whatever he had left on his plate into his mouth, before he scooped up a slightly larger portion for Kota.

He quickly got up, and Shinsou picked up his half-finished plate, before they both walked towards where Kota was last seen, with just an alert from Aizawa for him to get back in fifteen minutes for activities.

The winding trail that they took was quiet, serene. He could see why Kota would come here when he needed to escape the chaos of the Pussycats.

He eyed Kota sitting by the edge of the cliff, looking at the scenery below, until the sound of Shinsou accidentally kicking a rock sent him whirling around in a state of shock, standing up, before he realised who was there and his features settled in a frown.

"You! How did you find this place!?"

"I mean no harm?!" Midoriya blurted out, nearly flinging the curry up into the air when he wanted to raise his arms as a sign of surrender to placate the angry child. "I mean.. I just wanna give you food? I thought you might be hungry."

"I don't need your pity." Kota snapped, but he was dragged over by Shinsou, "Eat with me!"

Shinsou's words from the day before echoed on his mind, and Kota didn't even bother trying to push Shinsou away.

Midoriya just placed the plate of curry down, before he backed off to give the two children space, moving to sit down, leaning against the cliff.

Shinsou was busy saying something about Sero insulting Yaoyorozu and how Jiro and Kendo smacked him, but he was talking way too fast for Kota to make out any details.

He glanced at Midoriya, who was not making a single movement, almost like he was waiting for him to act first. He was glad for that. He wasn't ready to confront Midoriya yet, about how he operated, about his parents demise.

Kota carefully scooped up a spoonful of curry, placing it in his mouth. He actually was kinda hungry, he realised, eagerly taking another mouthful.

"Hey, I gotta go back for the night exercises. You'll be okay staying here?" Midoriya called out, standing up. Shinsou chirped out a reply, and Midoriya disappeared down the path that he came from.

The two children sat there in peace, watching the stars, until the forest burst into flames.

--------------------------

Midoriya was very bored.

1-B was stationed in the forest, and they were supposed to scare the 1-A students who were supposed to go into the forest, grab some tags with their names on it and return.

And there was the problem. Hatsume wasn't here because she was still in the Support Department, and there was an odd number of students. He was currently on his own, waiting for his turn.

Aizawa was with Kan and Tiger, planning something back at the camps.

Tsuchikawa sniffed the air, "What's that burnt smell?"

Everyone turned to look at the sky, the black smoke rising up behind the trees clearly visible against the blue night sky.

"Is there a fire in the mountains?"

The faint blue glow behind the trees lit up, and Midoriya sucked in a breath. He had met a person that used blue fire before, a few months back, while on his search for Shinsou.

A man in his early twenties, getting assaulted for who knew what. Midoriya had fended off the attackers, and had gotten a good look at the scarred man. Bright cyan eyes, black spikey hair, and most notably, the gnarled, wrinkled purple skin that covered his lower face and neck. He had gapped when he noticed how horribly scared he was, and in the darkness, had thought they were bruises. The man who called himself Dabi (an alias, for sure), had reassured him that the scars were caused by his own quirk from overworking, a blue fire flickering to life in his palm to show him.