Reassure

The day of the Quirk Apprehension Test, Aizawa had noticed the lingering figure of Yagi and had confronted him about playing favourites with the student who was proving himself to be a difficult case since the start of the semester. There was definitely something going on between the two of them. Most of his colleagues didn't know much and didn't hold them in suspicion to an extent that the Erasure Hero did, but even they agreed that they were closer than a normal teacher and a student.

This was complicated by the fact that whatever the two of them were hiding, the principal and Recovery Girl were in on it. If he tried to stick his nose in this, there would be a good chance that Nedzu would swiftly deal with him and try to keep the matters even more clandestine, effectively ruining any chances of getting a proper explanation. No, he would have to figure this out by himself, without letting anyone get a whiff. 𝘓𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘩𝘰𝘭𝘥, he thought to himself as a tall All Might led a green haired student, his student, into the former's office. He had picked lunch break to try and talk to Midoriya and settle the matter with him, regarding his actions in the USJ as he had told Hizashi and Nemuri, but it looked like they would have to wait. He sucked on his juice packet as he looked over the final draft of the sports festival agenda and raised his eyebrows in curiosity as he found a small change in schedule.

He had been relegated to the commentator's box for the entirety of the sports festival from his usual role as the match referee for the combat round of the festival. This was probably a result of his injuries and was the rational thing to do, because even if his eyes weren't affected, he wouldn't be at his full strength with a broken arm and ribs to quickly halt a match if needed. He flipped the page over to see who had replaced him and hummed as he saw Midnight written under the referee section. She was a good replacement and her quirk, Somnambulist, was perfect for quelling a battle relatively quickly.

Flipping back to the original page, he grunted as he saw who was also in-charge of commentating with him. "Hizashi..." he said with gritted teeth, knowing that he would be in for a loud and bombastic voice over in a confined space and that it would be best to bring ear plugs with him. However, before he could ride further down that train of thought, the door to Yagi's office opened again and the student-mentor pair stepped out. He stood behind the corner in the corridor, hoping to eavesdrop on their conversation.

"I definitely won't let you down, All Might!"

"Young Midoriya, don't be too hard on yourself. It's not something that you absolutely need to accomplish in the school festival. Looking back, it might have just been for my satisfaction."

"No All Might, either way I must do my best."

A laugh, "Very well my boy, now hurry and join your friends lest you miss out on lunch!"

"Y-yes sir!"

And with that, the boy left. Aizawa rounded the corner walking back towards the staff room as he pondered what he had just seen. All Might, the No. 1 hero, had just encouraged one of his students to 'accomplish' something in the UA Sports Festival. Seeing as how the sports festival was where students from all grades were given an opportunity to showcase their abilities in order to be scouted by Pro Heroes and by support agencies. And a lesser known fact by the public was that depending on their performances, students from the other departments could transfer into the Hero course. A system which he himself had relied on, the system that had made it possible becoming the hero he was today.

However Midoriya clearly belonged to the former, so being scouted could have been the main objective and making a lasting impression or even winning the sports festival could be what Yagi has asked Midoriya to accomplish. Whatever may it be, these two were not your average teacher and student. And now he had undeniable proof of that fact. Yagi hadn't been in his muscle form when they had exited his office. The boy knew.

𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘩𝘦 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸?

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As Izuku walked back from the school with Uraraka and Iida he felt content. The company of his new friends had made him forget the anxiety he felt when Mr. Aizawa had called him to his office once again after school hours. The teacher had scolded him for leaping into the battle against an opponent that was clearly out of the pro hero's league and therefore out of question for himself, who was only a student. At the least he was only being reprimanded and not expelled, as he remembered how he had panicked a few minutes ago for being called to Mr. Aizawa's office for the second time.

And then Mr. Aizawa had thanked him for saving his life, which Izuku found ridiculous because 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘔𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘸𝘰 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮. 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘳. But he hadn't said that to him, because he feared that if he admitted that he had entered the fray without a proper plan, Mr. Aizawa wouldn't hesitate to expel him, disregarding his earlier assurance of not expelling him without a cause, because in his eyes, this seemed more than enough of one. Instead he had just accepted what he was told and told Mr. Aizawa that he wouldn't make any more reckless decisions in the future.

Looking at the two of his friends, he remembered their words. Uraraka had been working hard to become a hero and eventually be able to support her parents and Iida looked up to his brother and wanted to be a hero like him. Both of them and probably the rest of his classmates also had their motivations to give their all. 𝘐 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘥𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭. 𝘈𝘭𝘭 𝘔𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘪𝘯 𝘮𝘦, 𝘴𝘰 𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘰 𝘪𝘵. 𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥, 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘈 𝘚𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘍𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭! He made a silent vow to himself as the three of them walked to the station to catch their trains.

"Deku," Uraraka began at the terminal where they usually split apart to go to their respective trains. "Yeah, Uraraka?" he smiled as he turned to face her. Iida also stopped midway and looked back to see what their brown-haired classmate had to say. "You know that you can tell us anything, right?" she spoke with a hint of worry in her voice and Izuku tilted his head in confusion at the sudden statement and she quickly added, "It's just that you seemed a bit distracted when we walked to the station," and Iida nodded as well, "Yes Midoriya, I concur with Uraraka. You did seem preoccupied with other thoughts during our transit."

"Oh, no! I'm just a bit nervous with the sports festival, that's all," he said as he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "Oh I see. That's completely acceptable Midoriya. Feeling anxious over a big opportunity to exhibit our hard work in front of an audience is something that everyone experiences," Iida spoke before adding his usual arm chop, but Uraraka had a slightly worried and unsatisfied expression over her face which quickly morphed into a half-hearted smile as she spoke about her determination to do well in the sports festival as well.

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As the sun set, painting the skies a pleasant orange, the picturesque main building of UA was bathed in the final rays of sunlight of that day. Recovery Girl had locked her office since classes were over for the day, and was currently relaxing in the comfortable couch of the staff room. She relaxed from an exhausting day of treating teenagers who were too reckless for their own good, holding a warm blend of tea that soothed 'these old bones' as the youthful heroine had said once.

The pleasant atmosphere was broken when the doors were flung open by one Aizawa Shouta, who sighed as he sat down at his desk and massaged the bridge of his nose. "Did you talk to the little listener?" a familiar loud blonde called out from a nearby cubicle as he made his way towards him. "Yes, right after classes," the black haired man replied as he adjusted his sling. "And?" Another voice made its presence known as Midnight joined the two of them in their conversation.

Aizawa gave a tired look and Kayama immediately said, "That bad, huh?" before frowning and crossing her arms. "The kid just began apologizing and not to expel him before I even said anything," he recounted as he told the two of his colleagues about the talk he had just had with his new Problem Child.

"To be fair," Present Mic began as he sat down on an empty chair beside him, "You, the teacher who expelled his entire class last year, did threaten his class on their first day with expulsion," and was immediately met with a sigh from the underground hero. "The expulsion was just to motivate them to give their best," he defended himself and before his blonde friend could argue he added, "And I have now made it clear to him, that he won't be expelled unless he really gets into some really big trouble," which seemed to placate him.

"So? USJ?" Kayama gestured with one hand, bringing them back to the root of their discussion. "I scolded him for his reckless actions and he looked worried again, but he also bounced back a bit when I thanked him for saving me," Aizawa told the two of them, already expecting the next question.

"Does it seem like Midoriya will try to be more cautious now?" she voiced it and Yamada looked to him, expecting an answer as well. "He…" Aizawa began and paused as he remembered the expression on the boy's face. Determined, wanting to accomplish something, probably an aftereffect of the conversation he had with Yagi that afternoon. "He swore that he would never make reckless decisions like that again," Aizawa said, finishing his sentence.

"Well, he better. Because if he continues to get those kinds of wounds, I am going to have words with Toshinori!" an older voice suddenly joined in. All three of them turned their heads to see a displeased Recovery Girl putting her tea down on the table and leaving the staff room as her cane tapped loudly with each step.

"Well it's true that the little listener has been hurting himself a lot, but that was...odd," Present Mic broke the silence and the three of them returned to their discussion. "Yeah…" Aizawa said as he stared at the closed doors of the room which the old doctor had just exited through, before his attention was directed towards Yamada's comment,

"Well," he said as he smirked, "Even if he isn't cautious right away, we'll be there for him as his teachers, right?" he said as struck a hand Aizawa's back to reassure him and even Kayama smiled and nodded as he put a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks," Aizawa quietly voiced his appreciation as he realized what the two of them were trying to do.

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When Izuku reached home and pulled out his keys from his pocket to open the door, his phone fell out of the pocket as well. As he opened the door and picked up the phone and looked at its lifeless screen, he cursed mentally. 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦. 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘦, he repeated to himself as he hurriedly closed the door behind him and plugged the phone into its charger and switched the button on.

The device had been out of juice since the evening he got back from Recovery Girl's office. He had been tired that day to do anything except fix himself some dinner and sleep, and had forgotten to charge it. It was not like he had the contact numbers of any of his friends, so he hadn't been too worried about leaving the phone uncharged for a while. It was not like his school work or his part time job would be affected by it.

However, just then he had remembered Koharu, the kind older girl who had checked on him whenever she had time off her job as a police officer since the day his mother had died. And true to her compassionate nature, she had called him. Several times in fact as Izuku looked at the list of missed calls, the majority of them from Koharu while a few from the other officers at the station were interspersed in between. His face contorted in fear of retribution that his self-proclaimed sister was sure to bring down upon him. As soon as the phone had enough charge in it for a quick call, he disconnected the charger and called her.

"So, this young man had finally decided to call his older sister huh?" She was angry. Her voice masked her tranquil fury on call as Izuku swallowed the lump in his throat and began, "I'm sorry Koharu, but I can explain—" but was cut off.

"Did you know how worried I was, Izuku? Villains attacking a school, a hero school no less, is unheard of!" Her anger was still present but it was slowly mellowing as worry bubbled up once again. Izuku stayed silent and listened to her, "I was almost on my way over there, but the Chief informed me that Mr. Tsukauchi was already on the case," and Izuku silently breathed a sigh of relief, thinking how with her absence, he had probably dodged a bullet and a reprimand.

As if reading his thoughts, she chided him, "Oh don't think I didn't hear what happened there young man. I heard you dove in head first into danger and fought a villain! Are you relapsing into—" and now it was her turn to be interrupted as Izuku almost screamed in reply, "No! No! Absolutely no! I am not suicidal. I thought Mr. Aizawa was going to die and I just jumped in. He's the first teacher who's ever helped me," he trailed off silently. After his mother's death, Izuku had told her how he had been diagnosed as quirkless and how his school had treated him, and Koharu had been furious with his treatment and had only calmed down after Izuku had told her that he wasn't looking for revenge.

"These few months, when you were preparing for UA and when you suddenly manifested your quirk, you have been getting more and more reckless Izuku and I'm worried," she spoke softly, her anger now having subsided. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," he said. 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦, 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘐, he thought to himself before Koharu spoke again, "I know. I know you want to be a hero, but tone down the hot bloodedness, will you?" she said with a worry-filled chuckle. He smiled and replied, "Can't do that, we have the UA Sports Festival coming up. Uraraka, Iida and everyone in my class is fired up," he said dodging the topic.

"Fine, just be careful. Oh and speaking of Uraraka—" she began but an indiscernible background voice on her end halted her. Izuku patiently waited for her, knowing that she was probably busy with work. "Sorry, I gotta go. Urgent stuff. I will talk to you later though," she said in an authoritative tone. "Yes ma'am," he replied cheekily before the call ended.

𝙄 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙, 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚!

He remembered All Might's words, the goal that had been given to him. Even if his mentor wasn't pressuring him, it was a chance for Izuku. A chance to prove himself.

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"𝘋𝘪𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘈𝘬𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘵𝘰?" a police officer looked around to find the source of the faint 'thud' he had just heard, and asked his colleague. "𝘕𝘢𝘬𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘸𝘢, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴-" his colleague began, annoyed at being interrupted during overtime paperwork, but was cut off by the sound of a baby crying.

Nakagawa immediately got up from his seat and began making his way to the front doors of the precinct. His steps had a certain urgency in them, the previous 'thud' followed by the wails of the baby had made him nervous. His colleague, Akimoto followed behind him, with an equally worried and curious look on her face, but when the doors opened and they saw what was in front of them, the colour drained from their faces.

A man holding a baby had collapsed at the entrance of the precinct. This was not how they imagined their shift would end that night.