You kneel on the wooden floor, picking at the miniature bookshelf in your room as you try to choose which story you want to read. Your chubby fingers run across the spines of the many books, a small smile appearing on your face as you hear footsteps approaching your door.
It creaks open after a soft knock, your father appearing in the doorway. He looks tired as ever, but his eyes brighten and he smiles as he sees you near the bookshelf in your All Might nightgown. "Did you pick which story you want me to read?" He asks, taking a step into your childish room full of toys.
Your lips form a pout, you standing and handing two different books to your father. "I can't pick..." You mumble, your father taking the two children's books from you. He hums, reading the titles before putting one away and smiling at his choice.
The black-haired man picks you up easily with one arm, taking you over to your bed and setting you down. You dive under the covers, hugging your toy penguin close to your chest in excitement for your daily bedtime story with your father. You don't get to spend much time with him cause he's always busy with work, but he always makes time for you at the end of the day to read you a story.
Your wide (e/c) eyes brighten as the cover is flipped open and your father begins to read. His voice is deep and comforting, lulling your tired mind to sleep as he continues the story, using funny voices and smiling at you between each page. Your small form falls asleep quickly, tangled in your sheets before the story is even over. But, your dad finishes the book even after you fall asleep and your tiny snores are evident, just enjoying the little time he gets to spend with you.
Once he finishes, the dragon saving the princess from a life with the prince she didn't want to marry and giving her a happily ever after, he softly closes the book, staring at his sleeping princess. Your (h/c) hair is messy and has a couple tangles from when you played in the yard earlier. Your father reaches out, gently running his fingers through the locks as your breathing gets deeper and you fall farther into your dreams.
He just hopes you don't have another nightmare like the night before, you've been getting a lot of them since your quirk manifested. It came early for you, you having your quirk at the age of four. It is powerful and diverse, a mixture of your mother's quirk and his.
With one final smile, your father leans down, placing a small kiss on your head.
"Good night Muffin."
•••••
Careful.
Careful.
Using your tippytoes you manage to grab the twig, hauling yourself up the tree in your backyard. You got bored waiting for lunch to be ready, deciding to see how far up you can climb. Now, already 10 feet up, you're enjoying the view of the yards and the houses around you.
Suddenly, you hear the back door creak open and shut with a slam, the fake glass vibrating from the force. "(Y/n) it's time for lunch!" Your father calls out. He scans the yard, noticing that you are no longer here.
"(Y/n)?!" He shouts, about to head back inside in hopes he just missed you when he hears a tiny grunt.
"I'm in the tree!" You tell him, swinging a little so the leaves are no longer hiding you from view. You giggle, waving at your dad as he rushes over with wide eyes. He moves directly under where you are in the tree, arms out and ready as he watches you swing back and forth like you aren't ten feet up and could fall. "How did you get up there?"
"I climbed," You reply with a proud smile, not understanding what exactly your dad meant.
"And what if you fell? I wasn't out here to help you if you did," He says sternly, you looking down at him with sad eyes and large tears start to well in your tear ducts from him raising his voice. Now he didn't mean to do that.
A small sniffle comes from you, you wiping your eyes as you apologize, "I'm sorry...I didn't know you'd be mad and- Woah!"
Suddenly, you can't feel the stick under you anymore as you fall through all of the branches. You let out a tiny 'oof', landing directly in your dad's arms. He sighs out in relief when you stop, even with your quirk activated you can't phase when he holds you.
It's something your father is thankful for, considering that at random times your quirk activates on its own. As long as he is holding you, your quirk can do what it wants and it won't have any effect since he's able to stop you. Your similar quirks allow him to touch you even if you phase or can stop you from teleporting. But, it does nothing when you or your toys start to levitate, he just has to hold onto you and wait it out kind of like a balloon child.
"You okay?" He asks, wiping the stray teardrops from your eyes. The same eyes as your mother, "I didn't mean to yell."
You nod up at him shyly, embarrassed that you lost control of your quirk again and fell, but nonetheless, you're glad he was there.
"I'm okay."
•••••
"It's okay sweetheart, we're your new family. We know you had a rough past but you're safe now," The man in front of you says.
But he isn't your father.
He has well-combed brown hair, green eyes, and a pitiful smile full of sadness for you. He is nothing like your father who had messy black hair that can never be tamed, red eyes that always brighten in your presence, and his genuine smiles.
You frown, glaring at him with as much disgust as you can. Only you can decide who your family is, not this random guy who has known you for only an hour. This is the third foster home you've been sent to and you hate it just as much as the others. Adults claiming they're your new parents without any regard for what you want. And you don't want a new family.
You want your dad. And your little house on the southern side of the city. Even if you're nine you want a story read to you every night before you go to bed. These people can't understand how your brain works, putting your bad manners off as childish stubbornness.
You walk directly past the man and his wife, not bothering to apologize as you bump into her legs. You walk into the dining room, crawling under the table and pulling a blanket out of your tiny backpack full of all of the personal belongings you have left. Along with it, you pull out the book with the dragon and the princess, your favorite story, and the last one your dad ever read to you before going out that night.
The man and his wife share a look, the woman walking over to the table and kneeling next to you. "Hey sweetie, we got you your own room, you don't have to sleep under there," She tells you, smiling at you with kind eyes.
You look at her, closing your book with a slam. You don't want anyone else seeing it, it is your book and your book only and you aren't willing to share. You scowl at her, "I'm staying here and you can't make me move."
She reels back a little in shock from your attitude but just gives you another pitying smile as she leaves you to go to the kitchen to prepare supper.
You hate it here.
•••••
You walk down the dark, empty streets. It is late. Very late. But you have nowhere to go for shelter at these late hours. So, you walk around to find an okayish alley that at least doesn't have glass all over the floor. It might be miserable out here, but at least you aren't surrounded by those annoying fake smiles and wannabe parents. None of those people were bad, you just didn't want a new family.
So now you don't have one.
Leaving you all alone to wander through the crime-ridden streets.
You shiver, pulling the sleeves of the light sweatshirt you're wearing tighter against your shivering form as you peek down a new alley. But, your eyes meet someone else's in the darkness. You take a couple of steps back in shock, tripping over the end of the sidewalk and falling onto the street. The figure moves from the shadow of the alley to under a street lamp, a line of blood slashed across his forehead and a small pocket knife in hand.
You crawl back a little bit, the figure of the man closing in on you with the knife.
"Now don't be afraid girly, come here!" He shouts, suddenly lunging at you. You let out a scream, scrambling to your feet and taking off down the street as fast as your legs can carry you. You don't know where you're going as you slide around the corner, barely managing to avoid him grabbing the hood of your sweatshirt.
But, your frantic hurrying causes you to trip, falling to the ground and the man finally catches up to you. He pulls you up by the hood of your sweatshirt, choking you as you hang. You squirm, kicking around as you try to locate the man so you can make him drop you.
Suddenly there is a rush of air and then a voice, "Hey! Drop that child!"
You attempt to see who it is trying to help you, but the off lighting of the street and your frantic squirming only reveals a large silhouette. At the same time, you manage to twist your hood, facing the man who grabbed you and kicking him in the face as hard as you can. An audible crunch comes from his nose as he howls in pain, dropping you to the ground.
You immediately run off, knowing the best way to avoid trouble is by not sticking around long enough for it to start. You hear the stranger call out for you and then a couple of grunts and a bang. You turn the corner without looking back, taking off to avoid any more encounters tonight. You just need to find somewhere to stay then you'll be good.
But, you hear loud footsteps behind you, taking a glance back and seeing the large silhouette from earlier chasing after you. You scream once again, sliding into an alleyway and expertly climbing up the nearest fire escape. You make it halfway up before the whole thing shakes, a new shadow appearing in front of you.
You step back, tripping over your feet and falling on your butt in feat. You have nowhere else to go. Instinctively, you curl in on yourself, hiding your head between your legs and whimpering as the stranger takes a couple of steps closer to you. But, instead of the harsh treatment, you're expecting, a large but gentle hand is placed against your head, ruffling the hair back and forth like your father used to.
But this is not your father. You cry out, slapping the hand away and backing up until your back is flat against the guard rail. You carefully take a peek with your tear-stained eyes at the man in front of you, seeing what looks like a cape.
"It's alright, I'm not going to hurt you," The voice soothes, the hand slowly inching toward you again. You shy away a little but let the stranger pet your head again, nonetheless comforted by the action.
A small chuckle comes from the man as he strokes your head and plays with the tangles and dirty locks. You've obviously been out here for a while, most likely an orphan. You stay quiet, letting him play with your hair as he tries to calm you down.
"Are you a hero?" You suddenly ask, words quiet and shaky but there's a spark of confidence with you for someone so young.
"Why yes, I am! Are you familiar with All Might?" He asks brightly, flashing you a smile that you can barely make out in the dark. You glare at him in disbelief, not believing for a second the man in front of you is the All Might.
You pout, smacking the hand away again as you stand up and point a finger into the man's chest. "There is no way you're All Might! He wouldn't have let me stay on the streets this long or chase me down like you did!" You shout, pointing your finger accusingly at the man.
You feel the mood shift as the man seems sadder all of the sudden. You tilt your head at the sudden change, poking his face which is barely in your reach even if you stand. Carefully, the man grabs your tiny hand, smiling at you as he stands up, pulling you into his arms.
"I may be late, but I am here! And my first step to earning your forgiveness will be a meal," 'All Might' says, jumping off the fire escape and dashing into the city.
You shout as you glide through the air, higher than you've ever been before and you love it. Your eyes sparkle as the wind rushes past you and the night sky becomes more visible. And, from the light of a passing building, you see the face of the hero you look up to staring down at you with a smile. You smile back, cheering as he takes you even higher into the air and you're jumping across the rooftops.
•••••
You run around, trying to avoid the young male currently chasing you. Some stupid kid had seen you on the side of the street and offered to buy you something to eat. Naturally, you said yes but what good is a meal compared to the kid's wallet? That can get you at least several meals with what he has in there.
So, here you are weaving around the city streets like an expert, easily managing to avoid the bigger kid who can't slip through people's legs like you. He shouts as he starts to lose you in the bustling crowd and you disappear with his wallet. You laugh in triumph as you arrive in an alley, the kid out of sight, and climb up the fire escape to the roof.
You sit down on the cement top, opening the black leather pouch, and dump out the contents. But it isn't much. You only count up a total of ten dollars after the kid already bought you that takoyaki.
Now you feel kinda bad.
You huff as you stare at the small amount of cash, your moral compass taking over as you push all of the coins back into the wallet, deciding to just give it back to the poor high schooler.
But, just as you're about to jump onto the fire escape, the teenager suddenly appears in front of you, vermillion wings spread out as he glides above the ground on his own. You gap at the boy, admiring the red feathers as he forces you back with the wind. You forcibly step back, the boy landing on the edge of the roof and sticking his hand out for the wallet, still holding the takoyaki he got you in his other hand.
"Here, I didn't realize you were poor," You grumble, throwing the pouch at him, "I was just hungry and was hoping to get more than one meal out of meeting you. Sorry, Birdman."
You bow your head, moving to the other side of the roof and plopping down on the edge. Your stomach growls as you curl yourself into a ball and hold your tummy. You know Toshinori will buy you ramen once he gets off of work, but you're hungry now.
You hear the flap of wings, assuming the boy left but suddenly, he lands right next to you. He smiles at you as he sits down, handing the small container of takoyaki to you.
"I'm Keigo and don't worry about it. I know what it's like to be desperate and hungry," He tells you, extending his wing to wrap around you as a breeze blows by, "How about from now on I'll buy you something to eat after I get out of school every day."
The genuine, understanding smile on his face forces your own lips to curve upward but then you get an idea. "But I thought you were poor. How can you afford to feed me with ten dollars?" You tease, laughing as Keigo's feathers dramatically puff up in defense.
"I'm not poor! I just don't keep much cash on me, I have to watch out for tricksters like you," He says, reaching over to pinch your cheek as you groan and try to smack his hand away.
"Stop!"
"What are you going to do if I don't?"
"I'll hit you!"
"I doubt it! You're too cute for that!"
Crack!
"I think you broke my nose!"
"I told you!"
•••••
You sit silently next to the wooden door with a couple of strangers. You got word from a newspaper that All Might is in the hospital for a severe injury. And naturally, you hunted him down and came to check on him. He might be a big man-baby to you, but he's been taking care of you for the last year of your life.
He didn't push you after you told him you didn't want to live with him, only making sure you found somewhere safe to stay every night. You also told him about the foster homes you've been to, stating that if he ever put you in one you'd just run away again, and then you wouldn't trust him. So, he found other ways to see to it that you sleep somewhere safe, like a hotel or setting you up a bed on a rooftop in the summer.
You've grown to care about him, which is why it scared you when you heard the news. Scared that someone else you care for will die without you getting to say goodbye. And the strange thing is, you don't know any of the people here, but they all called you by name without you even telling them what it is.
Your train of thought is interrupted when the door to Toshinori's room opens and the other people around you stand up to hear the news from the nurse. You follow suit, not understanding what's happening but mimicking them like a child in any other unfamiliar situation.
"Well? Is he alright?" A man with green and yellow hair asks, adjusting the glasses sliding down his long nose.
"He's on life support for now, but he'll live. He just needs some time to heal. We can take visitors but only one at a time," The nurse tells you, scanning the saddened group of people.
You can't understand why they're upset since she said that Toshinori is going to be okay. Everyone should be happy about that. You frown as the adults around you stay monotone and glum, you being the first to step forward.
"Can I go see him?" You ask, the attention being diverted to you and the nurse smiles softly.
"Of course sweetheart, it might be a little scary though," She warns, taking you by the hand and leading you into the room.
You nod, walking with her. "It's okay, I'm used to being scared."
•••••
"Come on! You can do it! Get back up!" Toshinori shouts, jumping back and forth as you struggle to your feet. You've been training for hours already and you haven't had a single break yet.
You lay on the ground, the cold mat feeling amazing against your sweaty forehead. "No more! I want to take a nap!" You groan, letting your arms go limp as you suffocate yourself in the floor mat.
Toshinori sighs as realizes you aren't getting back up, taking off the boxing gloves he was wearing and grabbing two water bottles off of the nearby bench. He sits on the floor next to you, handing you one of the water bottles. You flip onto your back putting the bottle against your forehead like an icepack before chugging the whole thing in one go.
Toshinori chuckles as he watches your worn-out form struggle around on the floor. Maybe he's going too hard on you, you are only twelve but you did say you want him to train you so that's what he's doing.
The two of you sit in silence, only the low hum of the radio playing as background noise. You lay with your arms crossed over your eyes, blocking out the artificial lights from blinding you.
"Why'd you become a hero?" You ask out of the blue, pulling your arms off your sweaty forehead to reveal your curious (e/c) eyes.
Toshinori hums to your question, folding his legs and leaning forward against his fist. "That's a good question. I always wanted to help others, to be a light that can show people there is hope. That there can be peace if we all work together to achieve it," Toshinori tells you, a smile on his face as his mind wanders to his old mentor. He wishes she was still here, he could use her advice at this moment.
"Well, you're good at that inspiration shit."
"Language!"
"Rumi says it though!" You cry out, pouting at the older male as he shakes his head in defeat. He tried to erase those words from your brain but Rumi tainted your mind with curses.
"What about you?" He questions, stopping his scolding and deciding he'll just talk to Rumi about it later. Your form slumps back to the ground after his small speech, "What was it that made you ask me to train you?"
You're silent for a few minutes, Toshinori being able to sense the conflict going through your head. "I guess..." You start, cutting yourself off to swallow nervously, "I guess I just wanted to stop people from dying, to save them. I don't want any more families being split apart like mine."
Your voice is quiet, insecure, as you reveal the hidden agenda behind why you asked him to train you. You look at him with a questioning look, wanting nothing more than for Toshinori to tell you your dream isn't stupid and that he'll help you.
But instead, he smiles at you, chuckling as he pats your sweaty head. "You have a kind heart, not wanting anyone to suffer as you did. Just remember, you can't always save everyone, and that isn't your fault."
With that, he stands back up grabbing the boxing mitts and staring you down with a determined glint in his eye.
"How about another round?"
•••••
Your eyes blink open, having to close and readjust several times before you can take in anything around you without being blinded by the light streaming in through the windows.
Your mind stays in a blissful state of unawareness as your surroundings are taken in but not noticed. A hospital bed. A breathing mask. A couple of machines.
You can faintly hear beeping and your eyes tiredly scan the room again. A vase of flowers in the window, a get well soon balloon with a dancing bird on it, a plate of sliced apples on the nightstand...
Wait.
Where are you?
Suddenly, the door to your left bursts open, and several people dressed and white barge in.
"She's awake!"
- • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • - • -
Meme:
Here is the next lovely chapter for my favorite Dumplings. 😘 I was just teasing you guys I was going to post it anyway.
I'll probably be back again soon!! ♥️