Misstep

Mrs Shuyona fought the urge to shiver at the figure that sat facing her across her desk. He gave every evidence of being pleasant but she just couldn't shake the feeling that he could snap her without even leaving his chair on the other side of her desk. He was dressed in a plain black suit but he wore it in such a way that it seemed natural. She'd seen many men in suits, and even for those who wore them every day, there was often an air of discomfort. This man didn't show that. And she could tell that the suit was tailored. Specifically tailored to him.

That meant money. He had white hair, and a friendly grin and had been polite to her staff. The school's secretary had been practically drooling.

But none of that changed the feeling she had.

She did not want to be here.

"I'm afraid I find your proposed punishment manifestly inadequate," he said smoothly.

What punishment? Shuyona wanted to ask. She hadn't assigned any yet. And the incident was… Well, what did you do when a quirkless boy deliberately riles up others? It was hardly their fault and while they had been a bit exuberant in their discussion, the boy should really know that it was best for him to keep silent.

They were just teaching him that, since it appeared detention with Rika had not done that. Nor had the detentions with Semai.

"I expect them to be representative of the crime," the man before her was saying.

"I think we can be reasonable here," Mrs Shuyona said. Given the nature of the incident, she had to speak with the parents of all those involved. Mr Hisashi Riji had gotten the first appointment. He'd actually made the arrangements with her secretary. Kenta Abe, Zakuro Kitagawa and Atsushi Ueno's parents had yet to confirm their appointments.

The sentence earned her a half smile from him. It was not reassuring. "Oh, I think you will find I am a very reasonable man."

"Your son has been a troublemaker at this school since he arrived," Mrs Shuyona responded. She knew Mr Riji was the head of JBQC but that didn't mean anything here. "He has several marks on his permanent record, and simply does not behave as he should."

It was amazing how much information could be given by the simple shifting of facial features. Shuyona could see mocking amusement on his face and for a moment she felt utter fear before she calmed herself. There was nothing to fear.

"And how should my son behave?" The question didn't even carry a note of challenge. It was asked as if he was seeking idle information.

"He is quirkless," Principal Shuyona said mildly. "It would be best for him to be…" she paused, considering her words. She wanted to say 'seen but not heard' except that wasn't right. No one wanted to see him either! "Quiet," Shuyona finished.

"Ah." It was rather incongruous to see him sit back, as if this was his office. "You may rest assured, he will be quiet next year as I will be enrolling my son in a different institution."

That was a shock. He'd only been enrolled this year. "We would be happy to facilitate that," Shuyona indicated.

"I'm glad to hear that, as his enrollment will be at your expense."

"No, it will not!" She didn't even have to think about that response.

"Yes, it will," he said. "Because that is my price for not taking legal action."

At that, she had to resist an urge to laugh. The unease she had been feeling earlier evaporated. "Mr Riji," Shuyona said, "I realise you are a reasonably wealthy man, but bringing legal action for this would simply be a waste of your time and money. There would be no conviction." While her school had never suffered legal action, others had for similar incidents and the punishments were very reasonable.

"And I assure you, that any charges I chose to press, will stick. To you, to the school, to those involved." Mr Riji told her with a smile. There was not a trace of doubt in his voice.

Shuyona snorted as she wondered why she'd been afraid. "They are seven. You won't be able to press charges against the children."

"I think you underestimate what I can do," he replied, still completely self assured.

Before she could answer, Shuyona was interrupted by her phone. It wasn't the one on her desk, that was used for school business. It was her personal phone.

"You'll want to answer that," Hisashi Riji commented. His amusement was back.

She glared at him but picked up the phone, ignoring how rude it was. She didn't recognise the number but stabbed accept on the vid call anyway.

"Hello?" Shuyona said before the image cleared.

"Principal Shuyona?" came the immediate question.

She almost couldn't answer. On screen was the Minister of Education Koichi Hagiuda.

The fear Shuyona had managed to control came back in full. Hisashi Riji gave her one of those smiles that told her wordlessly that he held all the cards. She managed to nod.

"What the hell are you thinking allowing an assault on a student!" The Minister yelled.

Any thought Shuyona might have had about keeping the conversation private went out the window but Mr Riji had definitely implied he knew who was going to call.

"With respect sir, the student in question has several marks on his record," she tried to defend herself, though she knew it wouldn't work.

The Minister didn't look convinced. "I'm aware of that," he told her, holding up a file. "Did you really think you'd get away with these?" He asked. He sounded disgusted. Minister Hagiuda was shaking his head. "Covering up the crimes of your delinquent students by shifting the blame to another will not be tolerated. These will be expunged."

"But he's disruptive in class!" Shuyona objected.

"Ah, yes," the Minister said, and she could tell he was mocking her. "The supposed trigger for this-" the Minister paused. He looked uncomfortable. "-episode," he concluded. "Did you even think about the implications or did you and your teachers just object to being shown up by a seven year old?

"Frankly, if a child is reading the Journal of Experimental Biology when they're seven, then I would be checking for an intelligence quirk! And if they don't have one, then accept that they are smarter than all of us! And nurture that intelligence.

"But no… What did you do?" The Minister snarled. There was real anger in his voice.

Hisashi Riji's expression didn't change, even as Shuyona felt sicker inside with every word from the Minister. He still looked smugly assured.

"Your idiot teacher belittles him, and then puts him in detention. And then to compound the problem, they do not even make sure a seven year old makes it out of the school safely!

"This has led to a broken rib, extensive bruising and who knows what other trauma! I'm also informed that a large amount of Hisashi's son's property has been stolen over the year and nothing has been done! You will give Hisashi Riji whatever he wants to make this go away, and you will consider whatever he wants cheap!"

Shuyona got the impression that the Minister wanted to slam the phone down but he didn't. Instead he was breathing hard after that tirade. "Am I understood?" He asked savagely.

She managed to swallow and nodded shallowly.

He glared a few moments longer before he hung up.

Before Shuyona could say anything to Hisashi Riji who hadn't moved, another ringtone echoed through her office.

"You don't mind, do you?" Hisashi asked, as he pulled out his phone.

Shuyona was still shocked over what had just happened. She shook her head, not trusting herself to speak just yet.

Principal Shuyona watched as Hisashi held the phone out and then tapped accept.

"Koichi, it's good to hear from you," he greeted the caller.

It was then that Shuyona knew how outmaneuvered she was.

"I just wish it was under better circumstances," the Minister said.

Shuyona wanted to interrupt. She wanted to tell them that she understood but the fear was back. It wasn't just doubled, it was almost a tangible thing. She could feel it coiling around her and didn't know what to do.

"Troubling times," Hisashi replied.

She couldn't see the image of the Minister clearly but she thought she saw him nod. "Have your man send me a copy of whatever you want," the Minister said. "I'll make sure it goes through."

"It won't be too onerous," Hisashi said.

"I know. You are far too forgiving," Koichi responded. "Let me know if you want any changes."

"I will. Thank you Koichi."

"You're more than welcome, Hisashi. You know that," the Minister replied.

Hisashi nodded and the conversation ended and the white haired man looked back at her. He was still smiling. "I trust that clears up my credentials?" he asked and Shuyona didn't have to imagine the superior note in his voice.

"What do you want?" She asked, remembering the Minister had asked for a copy. That meant that Hisashi must have discussed the entire case with the Minister, including what he wanted for retribution.

She couldn't say anything when he seemed to savor his victory. "As Koichi indicated, you will erase the marks on Izuku's permanent record and you will allow no others to enter it," he told her. "You will also make sure that no one touches my son again." That sentence was growled at her and Shuyona could tell Hisashi's teeth were clenched. She thought that wasn't what he wanted. She rather thought he wanted to have them in her throat.

Shuyona nodded. That seemed simple enough but it seemed too easy, even if they had to pay tuition.

"I do not expect you to change your teacher's attitudes towards Izuku. In fact, I suspect if they did, it would be confusing to him so do not try that."

She nodded.

"For those children involved in this unfortunate event, I do expect appropriate notes made on their permanent records, the same as I do for others I know you have been covering for."

Again, Shuyona nodded. Hisashi Riji didn't need to say that he would be checking. She knew that would happen. He was silent for a few moments, waiting for her to speak and she realised that the main part had yet to be addressed. "Which school will be enrolling Izuku in?"

His face became thoughtful. "I have not yet decided."

She nodded again and then took a deep breath, bracing herself. "It will not change," Principal Shuyona told him softly.

Hisashi cocked his head slightly, his white hair falling down to half cover his eyes.

"It will not change anything," Shuyona repeated. "All you are doing is moving the problem," she explained. "He's still going to be quirkless."

Izuku's father gave her a smile. She wasn't sure if it was condescending or not. It was odd. Shuyona couldn't read it. "Izuku has faith," Hisashi said slowly and she could tell he understood her point. "Izuku has faith in humanity to be better than we are," he explained.

She couldn't help the disbelieving look. It was one thing for someone normal to have such a thought but for a quirkless child? They were far better off learning to be quiet, and to take what they could get. Hisashi Riji might think he was doing right by his child, but he was being cruel. The sooner Izuku learned, the better but he seemed intent on indulging his son.

She sighed, allowing him to see it. "The world will not be kind to Izuku."

At that, Hisashi Riji gave her a distinctly superior smile. "I think you will find it will be kinder than you believe."

For a moment, she didn't understand, and then her mind recalled the Journal entry that had started this. "You believe that research?" There were too many 'ifs' with that research. If you believed that quirks were unstable. If you believed in quirk singularity. If you believed… You had to believe in a lot. Quirk singularity wasn't a new theory and sure, there were quirks that were becoming more and more powerful but there were others which were just barely quirks.

The quirkless were a step below. That research was a dream, probably written by a quirkless sympathiser. She hadn't bothered to make inquiries about the author. The online response to the paper spoke for themselves. No one was taking it seriously.

"While many quirks are coming into their own, with each successive generation, more and more quirks are becoming unstable," Hisashi informed her.

"The research does not-"

He held up one hand. "We will see," he interrupted but offered no further explanation. "I have faith in Izuku's ability to adapt," Hisashi Riji said as he rose.

Shuyona shook her head and then the cold feeling she had gotten from him came back, redoubled. "It is no longer your concern," he told her deliberately and she knew she'd been dismissed. She said nothing as he left and it was only after he was gone did she shiver.

Principal Shuyona didn't want to meet Hisashi Riji ever again.

-ted-

All For One knocked on Izuku's door before he pushed it open. His son was lying face down on his stomach with his head cradled in his hands. He could smell the salt of tears. This should have been a fun day for Izuku, despite the pain from his rib since Hisashi had allowed him to take the day off. But here he was crying, not watching hero fights, which was a win to All For One, but worrying in other ways.

"My Little Dragon," he said softly. Izuku didn't look up but from the movement Hisashi knew he was aware of his presence.

He let himself into the room and moved to sit on the bed. Izuku shifted and Hisashi held him close.

"You will be going to a new school next year, Izuku," he crooned.

For a few moments, he didn't think his son had heard then he stiffened slightly but didn't stop crying. "But why?" Izuku eventually cried to him.

Hisashi didn't answer immediately. Instead he rubbed Izuku's back, making sure his hands were warm. "I knew, when I told you not to use your quirk, that it would be difficult for you, Izuku. I knew there would be some danger. People are cruel, Izuku. Children reflect adults and while I knew there would be some pain, I didn't know it would be this bad." That was mostly true actually. He thought this would have occurred far earlier in the year.

"But why?" Izuku repeated.

"People fear what they do not understand."

"Which is why the Heroes raided us?"

"Yes. That's why the Heroes raided us. Because they were afraid, they tried to hurt me. Your classmates are afraid of you Izuku."

"What are they afraid of?"

"You are different Izuku. Your classmates aren't nice because you are different. And because you are perceived as weak. Heroes are the same Izuku. They do not protect the weak, they protect themselves."

"Heroes are better," Izuku objected.

They were still on that argument.

"No, they aren't Izuku. I wish they were, but they aren't."

"But I wouldn't…"

"I know, my Little Dragon. I know. You are not afraid, but you are different. You are special. You are precious. You are better than them and I will not let them hurt you again," he added fiercely.

"They aren't all bad," Izuku said.

"I know, my Little Dragon. I know, but most are. And I will show you."

Izuku said nothing. All For One thought that he might want to but the reality of his broken rib cut through many arguments. Over the summer, Izuku would learn the truth about heroes, and then next year, any lingering doubt would be removed.

Hisashi crooned softly as Izuku cried himself to sleep. Tomura already saw things his way, but Izuku was stubborn. Yet the work done now would be more than paid off when Izuku stood by his side. He just had to have a little patience.

And after two hundred years, he was good at that.