Izuku: Please Kei... I need you.
Keigo: I'm on my way.
From the moment he received Izuku's message, Takami was moving.
He knew what was going on at the training camp, just like the others, his agency had gotten the call, and had sent a few pros specialised in capture and healing in aid. But now he rose from his chair, leapt on to the sill of the customised circular window in his office, pulled it open, and launched himself out into the night.
He flew at full speed, out across the glowing city, the dim suburbs and further, over farm land, then the mountains, and on over the forest to the distant purple glow. As he got closer he saw it wasn't purple but the blue and red of police patrol cars. His heart stuttered, and he dived downward, crashing into a tent in his panic, before standing and searching the confused and panicked faces for emerald eyes.
"KEI!"
The voice was raw and filled with mixed relief and desperation.
He turned, and was overwhelmed with relief to see Izuku physically unharmed, though he knew well there were far worse things than physical injury. He raced forward, meeting the teen halfway, and pulling him into a hug.
"What do you need?" He murmured softly into the mass of green curls.
"To get away from here..?"
"I can do that." He said softly, and looking over he caught sight of Eraserhead watching him. Well that was a conversation he was fucking dreading.
Perhaps he should compose a will.
He cocked his head, and Eraserhead nodded slightly in permission.
"Then let's go, huh kitten?" He said softly, and at the greenette's nod, muttered, "hold tight!" And launched them both into the air.
Izuku did hold onto him tightly at first, then, as they got further and further away from the camp, his grip eased, and he pushed himself out of the blond's hold.
Takami panicked until he saw those emerald wings so like his own expanding into existence, and he watched, at first, as Izuku flew beside him.
The greenette was still full of tension and anger. His wing beats were forceful and irregular with little of the grace Hawks was accustomed to seeing in Izuku's flying style.
His lips thinned and he resolved to do something about that.
Dipping downward, he curved his wing tips to do a perfect loop the loop, then raised his eyebrows looking up at Izuku, soaring dully now five or so metres above him.
"Come on!"
The greenette shook his head, brows still knitted as his mind refused to let go of whatever held him prisoner.
Takami sighed, and rose upward, spinning around the teen teasingly, before flying beneath him on his back so they were face to face and raising his hands to intertwine their fingers. He increased his speed and pulled Izuku with him, dipping downward and then rising up, before spinning them, and finally earning a giggle from Izuku.
"I thought I'd be the only angel here." He whispered softly.
He gazed into those swirling green eyes, and Izuku sniffled.
"How many people have you used that pick up line on?" He said, voice hoarse and a little shakey, but giving him a wobbly smile.
"None that dared call me on it." The hero grinned and taking his hand from Izuku's own, he gently cupped the other's cheek, wiping away the new tear forming there. "Dance?" He asked softly.
Izuku shook his head a little, took a deep breath of the cool air racing past them, and grinned brightly, "How could I refuse?"
Takami launched them upward, hand moving to support Izuku's waist as they flew up above the clouds, and danced an aerial waltz beneath the moon.
———
"Kei..." Izuku spoke softly.
It was 3:00am and they were sat on the roof of a large theatre, eating takeaway chicken wings.
Keigo looked up from his eighth wing, at the shift in Izuku's tone. Since their silly dance in the clouds, Izuku had been normal, forced normal, but normal. But his voice had shifted lower rougher again.
"They almost kidnapped Kaachan."
Keigo swallowed his mouthful of chicken and put down the bone. So that was why Izuku was a mess. "And you stopped them." There'd be no way in hell you'd be sat with me eating chicken wings otherwise.
"I was too busy being vain and over confident instead of paying attention to and protecting my classmates who I sent out to face villains... to risk their lives, trusting in me. And because of that..." Izuku looked straight into Takami's yellow gold eyes, "I was nearly responsible for his kidnap."
The greenette lowered his head and his hands balled into fists. "I was stupid and I put my classmates lives on the line to protect my own secrets. I'm selfish and... and..." his voice broke at the same time as Takami's patience.
He closed the distance between them in a heart beat and raised his hands to Izuku's tear stained cheeks and turned his head so they looked at each other. "You're telling me, you broke cover, managed to organise your friends to capture and contain villains, as well as rescue other classmates, leading to the permanent containment of four incredibly dangerous criminals... with zero fatalities and minimal injuries... and you think you failed because that Pomeranian didn't pay attention to his surroundings?"
He sighed. "Now that really is vain. Since when were you responsible for their lives?" Despite his words, he kept his voice gentle, brushing a hand through Izuku's wind swept hair. "Since when did you manipulate the league of villains into attacking and attempting to kidnap classmates? Izuku... from where I'm standing, you had no responsibility or duty to do anything other than follow Mandalay's orders just like your peers did. Instead you did what a hero should do and did your best to help, you didn't cause the git to be almost kidnapped... you prevented it. Okay?"
"Thank you Kei..." whispered the greenette softly, "don't know what got into me."
"Me neither." Snorted the hero before realising how close their faces were, eyes darting to those pink lips, before he pulled away decidedly. Now wasn't the moment.
Izuku sighed and lay down. "I couldn't do anything. In that moment I was completely helpless."
"I can relate to that." Said Takami softly, laying beside him on the tiles to look up at the stars. "Though I felt it for the love of my life, not my bully of a decade."
"Keigo!" Whined Izuku.
The blond tilted his head to send his companion a playful smirk. "I'm not wrong."
"No..."
"Who was it?"
"Mr Compress..."
"Shit. That guy's a bitch to deal with."
"Not now I have a copy of his quirk..."
"You kissed him?" Hawks turned to stare at the dude who seemed able to seduce anyone at anytime.
Izuku stiffened, and gazed steadily at the stars. "I offered my body in exchange for Kacchan's freedom, but when he realised my sincerity, he just kissed me instead, and gave me Kaachan before leaving."
"Oh Izuku.." Takami turned awkwardly on the tiles and pulled the teen closer.
Izuku didn't look at him, but his voice cracked as he spoke. "When it all came down to it.. that was all I had to offer him...all I've ever had value for..."
Takami combed fingers through his hair trying to think of a reply. Asking Izuku out seemed forced and though it was something he was tempted by, doing so now would be doing it for the wrong reasons.
"You have more worth than anyone I've ever met and think I'm ever likely to. And Compress recognised that too."
The greenette was silent for a long while in his arms, before shifting position to look at him. "Have you met him before? Compress?"
He nodded, "interesting character, pain to fight, you just... can't easily."
"Hmm. I might have convinced him to try vigilantism."
"Only you could manage something like that, in a situation like that." Chucked Takami, kissing the greenette's forehead before he could stop himself. To his surprise, Izuku yawned slightly. Then he remembered he was a sixteen year old, who'd just gone through a traumatising experience... and no number of chicken wings would overcome that kind of fatigue.
"Where do you want to go, mine or yours?" He asked gently.
"Mine..." mumbled the teen sleepily, "if you'll be able to survive meeting my dad..."
"Leave that to me." Said the blond, mustering his courage and getting up.
He lifted Izuku into a princess carry, and hopped off the roof, flying over the city to land carefully outside the Aizawas' door. The moment he knocked the door opened and he came face to face with with the man himself.
"H-h-hi Eraserhead..."
The man roughly brushed his bangs out his eyes and looked between the sleeping Izuku, and the nervous Hawks.
"Take him upstairs, first room on the left, then leave. We'll have that conversation but I'm too fucking tired to deal with you right now."
"Alright." Said Takami awkwardly.
He moved into the house, heading up the stairs and pushing his way into a room so filled with books it could only be Izuku's. Laying the sleeping teen gently on the bed, he moved to get up, but a fist clenched his shirt tightly.
He tried to quietly detach the hand, muttering, "come on Izuku... your dad's gonna fry me in batter if I don't get the hell out of here..."
"You can stay." Said a gruff voice from the doorway, and he saw the hero watching him, "just don't fucking be here in the morning, so I can pretend this was a nightmare."
"Y-yes Eraserhead."
"It's Aizawa, Hawks. I've no idea what the fuck you are to my son, but since, after going through what he just went through, the person he wants there is you, you'd best call me Aizawa."
"Okay, Aiz-" was all he managed before the underground hero had closed the door leaving him alone with the sleeping Izuku.
———
"Where is Izuku?" Asked Shouji worriedly. He could imagine the greenette not wanting to worry anyone, curled up in a bathroom having a panic attack alone.
Todoroki, Bakugou and Shinsou glanced at each other before Shinsou answered.
"He went home."
Kirishima spoke up quietly, "Shinsou you know too?"
The purple haired teen nodded reluctantly.
The redhead sighed, "you guys look terrified. What the hell is it, that has you looking at me like that."
It was rhetorical and the trio didn't answer him. That worried him even more, he'd hoped to get at least a rise out of Bakugou.
Ojiro spoke up to the room at large, surprising them, "think the training camp will be cancelled?"
"Certainly." Said Iida, uncharacteristically solemn.
Kaminari sighed, "Bakubro what happened to you? Where did you go?"
That started the room off. It would have been a full out interrogation...
But Todoroki and Shinsou took one look at the groups' expectant faces and lay down on their futons with their backs to the teens.
Bakugou glanced at the pair, glanced at his friends, then followed suit.
———
— Earlier in the evening —
"So, Shouta. Can you explain now?"
Aizawa was alone with Mandalay, though a few pros remained on patrol, most had left with the captured villains: Magne, Spinner, Moonfish and Muscular.
So finally the duo were having a well earned drink, the remaining Pussycats and Kouta already out of it.
"Do you trust my judgement?"
"Yes." Was the firm reply.
Mandalay had no need to hesitate, as far as heroes went, Aizawa was one of the best, and was a rock of sense in all things excepting his own well-being.
"Can I have your word on this that you'll tell no one?"
"...Yes."
"My son's genetic father... is All for One."
Mandalay had resolved to remain silent regardless of what he said, but it took her best efforts to do so. She took a sharp intake of breath but kept quiet.
"Izuku was misdiagnosed as quirkless when he was four, and All for One abandoned him immediately, his abusive mother followed suit two years ago. I found him a year ago, and adopted him two days before his first day at UA. He is the kindest person I've ever met, with not a single bad bone in his body."
"Okay." She knew it wasn't the best response, but it was all she could manage. "My lips are sealed, Shouta."
"Thank you." Sighed the underground hero. He stood to leave, but she spoke again halting him.
"Why can't I reach him with my quirk?"
Aizawa sighed. "When you kissed him as thanks for aiding Kouta... his quirk enables him to copy those of others through that means. With my consent, he copied yours. When he has a copy of a quirk, he becomes immune to it. I'd apologise, but had he not, the nightmare this evening, would have gone far worse."
He left then to head home and wait for his son's return. She hoped he wouldn't kill the number three hero. The apology for such a personal violation was there in his words but half hearted at best. But she knew he was right.
She chuckled a little to herself. Of course only Aizawa could have the luck to adopt a kid that turned out to be the son of the number one villain.
Mandalay downed the last of her wine and left to follow the call of her own futon.
———
Fabulous fanart by Athanastia