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#mirio comfort
frickingnerd · 3 months
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mirio's s/o getting kidnapped
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pairing: mirio togata x gn!reader
tags: angst, angry mirio, established relationship
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mirio always has a smile on his lips, leading to others, especially villains, often underestimating him
but he's not all smiles and sunshine. no, mirio can get quite serious as well, if it's something he truly cares about – like you!
his usual bright smile drops as he learns about your kidnapping and is replaced with a rather grim and uncharacteristic look on his face
any smile on his face would only be forced as long as you were gone. he knew he'd only be able to genuinely smile at you again once he found you
and mirio was determined he would find you and return you home unharmed!
he had to believe that you were still alright and that your kidnappers hadn't hurt you yet
but if they did dare touch you, he'd make them regret it…
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cheetospuff · 3 months
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They're all coming back from a shit road trip. (Comic Ver.)
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herofics · 1 year
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Okay I have one. How about mirio, izuku, and bakugou (separately) finding out their s/o had been going back to therapy again and didn't tell them. Like they used to be in therapy years ago but seemed to have "gotten better" but still ended up back in therapy. That's kinda how it's goin'.
I miss therapy tbh, sure it was very draining mentally, but it helped me so much. I still have counseling once a month but it’s not really intensive therapy like I used to have almost five years ago. I could use some more frequent therapy again tbh. This is again on the more hopeful and comfort rather than angsty side. In their twenties and living together I guess. I decided to put Deku and Mirio under the cut, so check there if you want to read them
~Bakugou Katsuki~
“Why the fuck wouldn’t you just tell me!? I feel like I’m entitled to know when my partner isn’t doing well, so how about you don’t keep things like this from me?!” Bakugou growled in a very annoyed tone.
“It’s just therapy, Katsuki, it’s no big deal” you tried to argue back, but he wasn’t having it.
“It’s just therapy” my ass, there’s a fucking reason you’re going there. No one goes to therapy without a reason, especially not someone with your mental health history” he ranted.
Bakugou was incredibly pissed, mostly at himself. He had noticed you’d been a bit more shut off recently, and he hated himself for not having noticed how bad you were truly feeling.
“You could use some damn therapy yourself” you muttered under your breath.
For a moment Bakugou looked like he was about to start raging at you, but he just exhaled deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose with two fingers.
“Fine, fine… You’re probably right about me needing therapy but we’re not talking about me right now. Could you just please tell me what made you go back to therapy, so I can maybe fucking help?” he said more calmly.
“I… I just wasn’t feeling like myself, at least no like my good self. The intrusive thoughts, anxiety and depression were getting bad again, so I figured I’d nip it in the bud before it got really bad” you shrugged.
“So why wouldn’t you just tell me?”
“I guess I just didn’t want you to think I’m weak. I’ve been doing well for such a long time and I didn’t want you to be disappointed in me” you said, trying to sound unbothered.
“Babe, you’re one of the strongest people I know. You’ve gotten through so much shit on your own, but you’re not alone anymore, so don’t act like you are”
That got you to go quiet. He was right, you weren’t alone anymore, you hadn’t been for a while now.
“And if I’ve got any say in it, you’re never gonna be alone again” Bakugou added, stepping towards you and pulling you into a hug.
You were so darn close to tearing up but you fought the feeling to the best of your ability. You wrapped your arms around him tightly, grasping the back of his shirt and burying your face to his shoulder.
“Just fucking talk to me too, okay? I’m always here for you and I want to know first hand if you’re not doing well” he said, hugging you tighter.
“Thank you” you mumbled into the shoulder of his shirt, trying to hold back tears.
~Mirio Togata~
You’d decided to go back to therapy, without telling Mirio. You had been doing well for such a long time before this, but since things had started to go downhill, you had decided to get some help.
You weren’t really sure why you hadn’t told Mirio, maybe you wanted him to keep believing you were doing well and that he didn’t have to worry about you. Maybe you just felt like if you got better quick, he would never need to know about your little slump.
You didn’t want to burden him with your problems, since he had so many other things going on. He had just taken over the former Nighteye hero agency and was busy with all the new applications and the new recruits. Mirio was going to work early and coming home later and later every day.
Mirio felt bad about working so much, so he had arranged himself a free afternoon, so he could surprise you with a nice dinner. He really wanted to make up for basically only being home to sleep for the past month or so.
He came home at around two in the afternoon. You weren’t home, as he expected, you still had an hour before your work ended after all. You were usually home at about half past three, so he had time to make a shopping list and hit the grocery store for the dinner ingredients.
Half past three came and went though and you were nowhere to be seen. When the clock hit four, he decided to call you. You didn’t answer and his text had also gone unread.
“Damn” he muttered.
Mirio wasn’t exactly worried yet, but he was getting there. He decided to start the dinner preparations to keep his mind off of the whole thing. You were just running late, that was surely it.
You’d gone to therapy straight after work. It started at half past three and would end at five, since it was a double session.
When the session ended, you checked your phone. There was a missed call from Mirio and a message as well. The message was asking if you were okay, and if you were running late coming home.
You didn’t realize why he would ask those things since you assumed he would be late at work again. But while you were walking home, you realized he must have been at home.
“Why did he have to do this today?” you sighed and shook your head.
You decided not to answer his text since you were close to home anyway and it wouldn’t take you long to get there.
You hesitated for a moment when you got to the front door. You would have to tell Mirio where you’d been, or to come up with an exceptionally good excuse. You sighed and put the key in the clock, twisting it open.
The moment you got the door open, you were hit with an amazing scent of food. Of course he’d cook for you, he usually did on his days off.
“Hey” you greeted as you shut the door behind you.
“Hey babe” Mirio said, peeking his head out through the wall of the kitchen. “Where have you been?”
“Therapy” you said nonchalantly as you hung your jacket on the hanger.
“Oh?” you could hear the surprise in his voice as his face disappeared back through the kitchen wall, and he soon walked around the corner.
“Yeah…”
“How long have you been going?” he asked.
“About a month now” you said.
“Is there a reason you didn’t want to tell me?”
“I… don’t really know” you sighed. “The food smells amazing, could we maybe just eat?” trying to worm your way out of the conversation.
“Sure, but I would like to know why you didn’t tell me?”
“I’ll tell you as soon as I figure it out myself” you joked dryly.
You tried to walk past Mirio, but he grabbed your hand to stop you.
“I’m sorry I’ve been working so much, I know it can’t be easy on you since you have to be alone so much” he said, with a sad look in his eyes.
“Don’t you dare think this is in any way your fault. I hadn’t been feeling the best for a while before I decided to go back to therapy” you said sternly, placing your hands gently on his cheeks.
It broke your heart to see him like that. He always took everything upon himself, even when he definitely didn’t need to. You didn’t want him to blame himself for this. It wasn’t his fault, it wasn’t anyone’s fault, sometimes things just happened and there wasn’t anything anyone could do to stop those things from occurring.
“Just… promise me to keep me updated on how you’re feeling? Even if I’m not here all the time, I want to know if you feel even a little bit down” Mirio said tenderly, grabbing your hand from his cheek and placing a kiss on your palm.
“I promise, as long as you promise me you won’t burn yourself out with all the work stuff you have going on”
“I’ll try not to” he said with a jokey tone.
You smacked him on the shoulder lightly with a roll of your eyes, earning a chuckle and an over dramatic “ow” from him, before he wrapped his arms around you and lifted you off the floor.
“I love you and I hope you get the help you need from therapy, and I want you to know I’m here whenever you need me” he smiled that stunning smile of his.
“I love you too” you smiled.
“Shall we go eat?” Mirio smirked.
“Oh yeah, I’m starving”
“Alright” Mirio said excitedly, and lifted you so you were fully in his arms in a bridal style carry.
“You don’t need to carry me, I can walk” you giggled.
“You can’t stop me” he grinned.
You just rolled your eyes with a smile and snuggled your face to his chest.
“I don’t even want to” you muttered happily into his shirt.
~Midoriya Izuku~
Midoriya was running around the city on patrol, when he noticed a familiar figure on the street next to the building he was on top of.
He was about to float down and call out to you, but you went into the building. Midoriya wasn’t sure what you were doing in that part of town, but as he jumped down to look at the building, he realized it looked familiar.
He was pretty sure it was where your therapist had had their office a few years back.
“Why would they be here?” he wondered out loud as he landed on the street.
“Omg! It’s Deku!” some passerby shouted excitedly.
Before he knew it, he was swarmed by people wanting autographs and pictures, and the situation with you slipped his mind.
When Midoriya came home that evening, you were sitting on the couch, munching on some chips and watching some TV show.
“Hey” you greeted, without taking your eyes off the screen.
“Hey, were you around the main library today? I thought I saw you there” he asked, trying to sound nonchalant but failing miserably.
Midoriya couldn’t think of anything else that was near the therapist's office so he just went with the library.
“Yeah, I… went to see my therapist” you said quietly, turning off the TV.
“Oh? Can I ask why?”
“I’ve just not been feeling that good lately, that’s all, nothing major” you shrugged.
Midoriya sat down next to you on the couch and took your hand.
“Are you sure? I’m proud of you for getting help, but I also know it’s hard for you to ask for it, so something must be wrong for you to get back to therapy”
“I didn’t want you to worry so I tried to hide it, but I’ve been pretty depressed again lately, and the anxiety has been getting bad also”
“Oh love” he sighed with a sad look in his eyes.
Midoriya felt bad for not noticing how bad things had gotten for you. He had known you weren’t having the easiest time with your mental health, but he didn’t know it was this bad.
“It’s not like things are super bad, I just decided to do something about it before it got really bad” you said, squeezing his hand.
“I should’ve noticed, I’m sorry I haven’t been there for you lately, I don’t have any excuses” he said.
“It’s not your fault, these things just happen sometime” you said.
“I want to help you going forward, please tell me if there’s anything I can do for you or anything you need” he said, looking at you with such conviction in his eyes it made your heart melt.
“And I love you so much for that, but I don’t want you to drive yourself crazy with how I’m doing. I’m going to talk to you more from now on, as long as you promise to also talk to me” you said, putting your hand on the side of his face and brushing his cheek with your thumb.
Midoriya leaned his head into your hand and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. You chuckled because him doing that reminded you of a very cute bunny. He put his hand on top of yours to keep it on his cheek.
“I love you Izuku” you said and kissed him on the forehead
“I love you too” he said and opened his eyes, looking at you with an adoring expression.
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pocketramblr · 4 months
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5 ask game: au where Aizawa gets shot with a quirk erasing bullet during the Overhaul arc
Ok so the main obstacle here of course is I don't want Izuku to die, like, five minutes later. Perhaps my special little guy can stop this.
1- Lets say when Chisaki grabbed Nemoto to pull a fusion, Nemoto's gun was caught up in all this too. This doesn't matter until after he's been beaten and thrown to the side, and watches Eri and Izuku struggle in the middle of the crater. Asui brings Aizawa up, and Chisaki knows that if Eraser stops them, they're all taken for good. So he shoots at Eraser- and its a hit.
2- A moment later, a swordfish pierces his shoulder, but the damage is done. Asui shouts. Izuku screams. Eri wails. Amajiki "Do i have to do everything around here myself" Tamaki "the only big three who actually takes out a third of the expendables and the top brass on his own" Suneater picks up the gun to crush it. Then he looks at the sobbing Eri, and thinks about how Mirio wanted her to smile. "I'm sorry," he whispers to no one, and fires- the first one's a miss, he's not as good a mark as Chisaki. But he is one of Snipe's students, and the second one hits.
3- Since the bullets are made from her own quirk, Eri reacts.... differently to them. It doesn't rewind her as much as it gives her a reset. her horn shrinks but doesn't vanish, and the effort catches up to her as she passes out on top of Izuku.
4- Suneater crushes the gun, then starts trying to find the cure bullets in Chisaki's jacket, but frankly his second wind cast by Mirio's distress is running out so he ends up dragged to an ambulance while the police bag evidence. In a true stroke of genius, they do not transport Chisaki with all of his weapons and bullets, so Tomura doesn't grab them when he takes the man's arms.
5- In the hospital, they don't exactly want to just take Chisaki's word for the cure bullets and jab who-knows-what into Aizawa and Mirio, so they very carefully start studying one first. Unfortunately, Ujiko hears about this and nabs the other cure bullets. (much easier than trying to nab Eri.) Tomura and AfO won't be able to use the eraser bullets in any plans (no baby-afo fight) but they will try to ransom the cure at least. Tamaki attempts to give back his hero license and withdraw from the school, but Nedzu stalls him then guilts him into staying because for reasons beyond the teen's comprehension, Eri actually really likes him and with no erasure to stop her quirk if it goes out of control, they need anything they can get to help. Aizawa continues teaching because if being in full body cast didn't stop him, losing his quirk won't either, and Mirio is like 'well hold on a minute. if he's not stopping, why should i?' and continues training at school while quirkless, even if his actual work outside of school isn't happening anymore.
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alesyira · 4 months
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the blessing (the curse)
today i posted the angsty prequel oneshot where Mirio gets OfA and things kind of suck for everyone.
It was initially part of the oneshot Mirio's Terrible Horrible V Bad Day Week Month Year, but then I realized it would fit into both series if I posted it separately.
This is not a very nice story.
Summary: A few months after Izuku’s pushed fall from the window, Sir Nighteye convinces All Might who his successor should be.
Mirio takes the news with a lot of good grace and a quietly healthy measure of concern, which ends up being quite a lot of concern as things get progressively worse.
Maybe One for All isn’t quite as amazing as All Might makes it out to be…
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iwasthewind · 9 months
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I hc that Monoma really doesn't like most children, but kids tend to end up liking 𝘩𝘪𝘮. Monoma can be an asshole to people, sure, and sometimes the intensity is irrational but what he says is rarely 𝘶𝘯𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦.
And what excuse could you possibly give to be mean to a kid?
Children are impressionable and he understands that. So where someone else may try to wave off a child's question by telling them a vague lie, Monoma tries to explain it as well as he can. Where someone may get tired and pull out an ultimatum to stop a child from misbehaving, Monoma tries to explain why to not do that.
He's patient with children and humours their shenanigans and questions- Monoma gets tired of kids really fast, but kids never get tired of him.
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duckymcdoorknob · 2 years
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As an ace request... maybe ace!reader having to nervously come out to to their boyfriend Mirio who ends up being super understanding about it??
WOOOO
YES IM SO DOWN FOR THIS REQUEST HAPPY PRIDE MONTH.
CW BELOW THE CUT: None! Enjoy!
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𝑀𝑖𝑟𝑖𝑜 𝑇𝑜𝑔𝑎𝑡𝑎
When you had gotten with your lovely boyfriend, Mirio, your first thought wasn’t happiness; it was fear.
You were worried how he would react upon hearing that you were asexual.
You pondered on the decision for a while, wondering if, and how, to tell him.
Finally, you came to the decision to tell him. You had to prepare yourself for weeks, but you managed to find the right time.
Mirio had just gotten back from a fantastic day at school, or so he expressed happily.
“It was amazing! First we got to train the first years, and then we did quirk studies! It was awesome!” He beamed, hugging you as you greeted him at the door.
“That does sound fun!” You chimed in response. “I do have to talk to you about something pretty important though, can we go to the couch?”
Suddenly your lover’s face dropped. “(Y/N) are you okay? Are you sick? Am I sick? What’s going on?” You could hear the frown in his voice as you led him to the couch.
‘I think I’m the only sick one around here…’ your inner thoughts screamed. You shook your head to brush the thoughts away. “No, no! I just need you to listen.”
Mirio sat attentively across from you on the couch. He watched as you breathed in and out to prepare yourself. As he did usually, he interwound your hands when you got nervous. Rubbing the base of his thumb along your own, Togata waited patiently.
“So… I’m…” you sighed in exasperation. “God why can’t I just-“
“It’s okay! I’m sure whatever you tell me won’t be the end of the world.” Your boyfriend replied with a squeeze to your hand, “Just rip it off like a bandage.”
You squeezed your eyes shut, sucked in a breath, and stated: “I’m asexual.”
As you breathed out and opened your eyes, you noticed your boyfriend was smiling at you, but with heavy confusion in his eyes.
“Cool!” He gushed, “What does that mean?” He asked in the same tone.
You giggled as you nervously stuttered out a definition. “I-it um… it means th-that I’m n-not interested in h-having sex…”
“Oh. That’s it?” He asked with a cocked head, “That doesn’t matter! If we we’re going to do anything, I would want to wait until we were married anyways. But, now that I know this, I feel more relieved.”
You furrowed your brows, why would he be relieved?
“I just didn’t want you to think I was a prude or anything. But, it’s important to me that I wait until I’m married for stuff like that, given that it’s such a special thing. But now I’m not worried about you feeling left out or anything.” Mirio said with an awkward smile.
You beamed at him and tackled him into a hug, “Thank you for being so understanding. I love you so much.”
Your boyfriend laughed, jumping to his feet and spinning you in a circle. When both of your giggles subsided, he gently connected your foreheads. “And thank you for trusting me enough to be yourself.”
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—————♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎✞♡︎—————
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butterfly-writer · 1 year
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You’re safe, little one.
Eri x GN!Reader [Platonic]
Summary: Whenever Mr. Aizawa, Mirio, and Deku are all busy, Eri is left alone with her nightmares and she’s forever grateful that Mx. Y/N is there to help her with her terrors.
★☽A/N: This idea just popped up in my head, so I’m sorry if it’s crappy. 
Contents: Fluff, a bit of angst.
Disclaimer - You will be referred to as Mx/teacher [Name]. Age: 20-28
Your quirk is called “Calm” which allows you to calm others (like calm someone down when their angry, sad, way too excited) and it’s useful to use for your defense, you can calm down villains (who are pumped with excitement and vengeance) and with them without their adrenaline, you are able to knock them down! It only works whenever you make eye contact or physical contact. Overuse of quirk would lead to mood swings and possibly outbursts! Your hero name: The calming hero: Starling.
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Eri was such a sweet girl. You were one of the lucky people in UA to meet her while she was accompanying Aizawa, and she took a liking to you immediately because of your calm appearance and how you were gentle with her when you first met.
You’re probably the very few people that she feels comfortable with. She would come to you whenever she accidently activated her quirk a bit, worried and scared to hurt someone with it. With your quirk, she was able to calm down and stop her quirk usage.
She often visits you at night, crying about her nightmares. Since you are staying at the teachers’ dorm most nights (NO RENT!! WOOO!!) and she was staying there as well, it was easier for her to seek help.
One of these nights was the worst.
────── ꔫ ──────
“Y-Y/N…?” Eri softly whispered, worried if you were already sleeping and that she was bothering you. She walked in your room slowly, the floorboards creaking each step as she walked up to your bed. Grumbles and mumbles came from your mouth before opening your eyes and turning your head to the side.
“Mmm… Eri..? Why are you awake right now?” You asked with a soft, hoarse voice. Eri mumbled something and you could only make out the word “nightmare” and “can’t sleep.”
You turned your body with your back on the bed before sitting up right and turning your tired body towards Eri’s direction. “C’mere..” You softly gestured, she gladly obligated and took a few steps towards your bed before sitting herself on the bed with a bounce.
Eri turned her body towards you and crossed her legs, her hands shivering with fear. You turned your body around, crossing your legs as well and scooted a bit closer towards her. “Can you tell me what happened in that nightmare of yours?” you asked with a soft hushed voice which put Eri at ease a bit.
“I-I saw M-Mr. Deku on the ground..bleeding a l-lot- and Mr. Lemillion- He- He was stabbed by- some spike.. A-And M-Mr. Aizawa! He- He was so pale-'' Eri stopped as sobs started to form, you grabbed her and put her on your lap, hugging her softly. “I’m right here dear, it’s ok..let it out,” you rest assured her, she started pouring her tears and sobbed on your shoulder, harder than usual. “M-Mr. Aizawa- Mr. Deku- Mr. Lemillion, they looked so pale, it was so gory...and I hated it! W-What if I did that? W-Would it be my fault…?” She hiccuped. She never wanted to hurt them! They saved her and she was forever grateful for that, what if she listened to Overhaul? Maybe he won’t go and break out and kill them? (She doesn’t know that Overhaul can’t use his quirk again)
“It is never your fault, they never died. Mr. Aizawa is probably sleeping in his yellow caterpillar sleeping bag or on patrol, Mr. Deku and Mr. Lemillion are probably training or sleeping, they are just fine Eri,” you rest assured so softly and calmly, using your quirk to calm her down. “Overhaul will never hurt you, Mr. Deku, Mr. Lemillion, Mr. Aizawa, ever again,” you finished as you heard her soft snores of slumber. You grabbed her with a light grip and placed her softly beside you, tucking her in your bed’s blanket before snuggling up beside her.
“I will always protect you…All of us will..” you said calmingly as you brushed her hair softly before closing your eyes and finally falling asleep.
Eri and the hero Starling slept through the night with each other’s company, Eri’s forever grateful to Starling for helping her through her nightmares when no one could.
────── ꔫ ──────
~ Aizawa was so worried when he didn’t find Eri in her bed, he looked everywhere! And ended up finding her snuggled up, with her head on your chest.
~ Aizawa for once smiles, he got a soft spot for Eri and his students.
~ By the time you both wake up, Aizawa would thank you for taking care of Eri when he was away. With you nodding in “your welcome”, and he smiled slightly.
~ Deku would be so happy to see Eri in a very good mood during the morning. When he asked what made her so happy, she said you helped her with her nightmares and he would just smile and hug her softly, which she returned the gesture as well! (I think he would have a few tears of joy in his eyes, he’s a soft boy when he’s not fighting :D)
~ Just as Deku, Mirio would be so happy to see Eri in a very good mood during the morning and he decided to create a little playdate with him, you, Deku, and Eri! It was just a small hangout at the mall, but Eri enjoyed it so much!
~ Mirio knows you very well, he would call you to calm down Tamaki whenever he has his panic attacks. He would instantly know that you helped Eri with her nightmares. During the hangout, he whispered to your ear while Eri and Deku were talking happily, “thank you L/N Sensei, for helping Eri and Tamaki.” Which made your heart ache with such joy that someone admired your kind heart. <33
————•°•✿•°•————
★☽A/N: I absolutely love Eri, she’s so sweet! I would protect her with all I got if I was in the anime (even if I won’t get a quirk!). I really hope you guys loved it!! <33
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Pez Dispenser Debris
pez dispenser debris by thepolysyndetonaddictsupportgroup
Young Izuku nods. He's still pale, with a careful blankness to his face, and his shoulders tremble slightly when he moves. In a small, sure voice, he says, “I've thought about what you told me, and what I've seen. And there's only one explanation: I'm dead.”
“Ah,” says Mirio.
Izuku rubs his forehead with the heel of his hand. “We should probably just call Mr. Aizawa.” --- There are versions of himself that Izuku wishes he could bury.
Words: 12138, Chapters: 1/?, Language: English
Fandoms: 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia (Anime & Manga)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Categories: Gen
Characters: Midoriya Izuku, Toogata Mirio, Todoroki Shouto, Iida Tenya, Uraraka Ochako, Shinsou Hitoshi, Yagi Toshinori | All Might, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead, Midoriya Inko, Class 1-A, Bakugou Katsuki, Eri
Relationships: Midoriya Izuku & Toogata Mirio, Midoriya Izuku & Todoroki Shouto, Iida Tenya & Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Izuku & Uraraka Ochako, Midoriya Izuku & Shinsou Hitoshi, Midoriya Izuku & Yagi Toshinori | All Might, Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead & Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Inko & Midoriya Izuku
Additional Tags: De-Aging Quirk, Sort Of, that awkward moment when a quirk accident spits out an entirely distinct younger version of yourself, who absolutely refuses to believe that you're the same person, Izuku meets himself and both versions experience the cain instinct, Quirkless Discrimination, Quirkless Toogata Mirio, Toogata Mirio becomes the first quirkless hero and both versions of Izuku are his biggest fan, Quirk Accident, Future Fic, Not canon compliant past the Shie Hassaikai arc, Bullying, Midoriya Izuku Needs A Hug, Feral Midoriya Izuku, Midoriya Izuku is a Little Shit, Parental Yagi Toshinori | All Might, Parental Aizawa Shouta | Eraserhead | Dadzawa, Shinsou Hitoshi Replaces Mineta Minoru, Hurt/Comfort
Read Here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/48316705
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concussed-to-pieces · 2 years
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Verbena: Vibrant Once More!
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Fandom: Boku No Hero Academia/My Hero Academia
Pairing: College!Mirio/AFAB Reader
Rating: Holy shit M.
A/N: Written for @hijackser's Hanakotoba (Flower Language) collaboration event! This is a College AU and contains spoilers for most of season four, so read at your own risk! The flower I picked was Verbena, which represents safety, healing, creativity, and joy. While the flower is not explicitly mentioned, these themes will run through the entirety of this story. Enjoy!
Tag List: @hijackser, @nonstop-haikyuu, @zombiexbody, @buttons-beads-lace, @honey-shippies
[!TRIGGER WARNING!: This installment contains emotional distress, mentions of past abuse and past character death. Stay safe!]
"More flowers for you, Mister Mirio!" You chirped as you lugged yet another overstuffed vase of blooms and greenery into the room. Honestly, this was the third one today! You were starting to realize, much to your chagrin, that the no-doubt valedictorian posted up in the hospital bed in front of you was very, very popular.
The aforementioned Mirio laughed sheepishly, trying to clear space on the already-crowded windowsill for the latest arrival. "Guess this encourages me to get better even quicker, right? If I don't, soon this whole room will look like a jungle."
"You take all the time you need," was your firm reply as you shimmied the vase in between its fellows. You turned to leave but a hand lightly grazed your own, and when you glanced back Mirio was looking at you oddly. "What?" You asked, a little perplexed.
"Thanks for that." His voice was quieter, very unlike the happy-go-lucky mood he usually affected. "It's…it's been hard, you know? Losing Sir," and my Quirk, you could almost hear in his brief pause, "...it's just been difficult to smile. Not hopeless or anything, but…tough." As if to contrast, he offered you a weak grin. "Still gonna', though. Promise!"
You gingerly patted his hand. "Even if you can't for a little while, that's okay. People are so eager to give heroes burdens to bear, but I promise you won't always have to shoulder it alone." You had seen far too many chewed-up collegiates from the local campus come through the triage area for you to truly believe your own words, but Mirio was clearly searching for some reassurance. "Let the normies hang onto their problems for a few days. Take your time to recuperate."
"I-" Mirio hesitated, his fingers worrying at the worn edge of the thin hospital blanket. "Thanks. Again, I mean." 
A soft chime from your work phone alerted you to the fact that someone was at the reception area and you quickly rushed to check them in, waving goodbye to Mirio as you departed. 
Unbeknownst to you, the young man stared at the door for a long time after you had left.
While a medical professional in your own right, you had accepted an entry level position at the prestigious UA campus' medical center instead of heading directly to the grind of regular medicine. Entry level though it was, it offered you invaluable insight into the current generation of heroes being forged, and you felt more sympathetic towards the young men and women you would see a little too regularly. Panic attacks and academic burnout were incredibly common. There were also fights that occurred between members, dormitory living difficult for some of the students to adjust to. 
Though there were no real fraternities or sororities to speak of, the student body was still not a unified group. Rather, it had splintered into bands of different classes and Quirks, the tight cliques ever-evolving as the semester progressed. 
One such group had come to the center early one morning during your first few weeks of work. It consisted of three twenty-somethings; a blue-haired young woman, a dark-haired young man and their towering blond compatriot. The taller of the two men seemed to be gently manhandling the other while the woman spoke to him, but they all quickly fell silent when you approached the counter to check them in.
"Tamaki hasn't slept well for a while." The blond man announced, writing as much down on the intake sheet. You thought you vaguely heard a noise of protest from the shorter, dark-haired man, but he was making a valiant effort to stare a hole in the floor. The blond carried on, "I think it's because living in the dorms is still kinda' new and it can be pretty unsettling. Especially if you start thinking late at night about why we're all in the dorms and stuff." 
Like magic, you watched the shorter man's shoulders relax back down into a slouch. The blue-haired woman bumped her forehead into his, as if to offer silent comfort. 
The taller man eventually handed the filled sheet back and looked at you expectantly. "I just need to scan your school IDs so I can get your friend seen. And I need the name of the professor that cleared you guys to accompany him." You informed him gently.
"Oh sorry! I'm Mirio Togata. That's Nejire Hado, and our friend is Tamaki Amajiki." The blond rushed to say, collecting his companions' IDs and slapping his own on top of the pile. "We were cleared by Professor Aizawa."
"Alright, have a seat and someone will be with you shortly. Would you prefer to meet with the campus psychiatrist? I can check to see whether she's available." As you carried on speaking you could see Tamaki stiffen back up, though he did nod in reply to your question and mumbled something that sounded affirmative.
His large friend clapped a hand on his shoulder, seeming to half-buckle him underneath the weight. "Don't worry Tamaki, Nejire and I are gonna' stay put! Heck, we can even come in with you if you-"
"That…shouldn't, uh, be necessary." Tamaki hastily cut Mirio off, his voice stronger now. "It's…it's like I told you guys. I'm just tired." 
"Another care package for you, Eri!" You announced, knocking on the doorframe. From what little information you had been privy to, you knew that the child had experienced a fair amount of trauma at the hands of adults, so you did your best to not sneak up on her when you stopped by. "You have so many friends already!"
The pale girl looked up at you from her spot on the floor, a few interlocking plastic blocks falling still in her hands as her expression shifted to one of cautious curiosity. "Is it from Midoriya?"
"Yeah, how did you guess?" You were thrilled when the child bounced to her feet, one little hand wrapped around the IV pole to wheel it along with her. While she had yet to smile, she was showing more interest and enthusiasm every day. Not to mention her body was on the mend, as it was becoming harder and harder to get her to rest. 
You knew you weren't the only one excited with her progress. Midoriya and Mirio were in her room nearly every day, checking up on her. Ever since Eri had vocalized her desire to see the two, she had been allowed supervised visits with them. 
It was difficult at first; she had been healing and was easily exhausted so it was all she could do just to keep her eyes open. But Mirio and Midoriya were nothing if not patient, occasionally stopping by to just sit quietly while she slept. 
"We're heroes, and she's a person in trouble," was Midoriya's reasoning for his visits. You had never quizzed Mirio, just assuming that he felt the same about the young girl. 
The way he looked at her sometimes was enough to break your heart though, all professionalism aside. 
You knew that Eri had something to do with why Mirio no longer had his Quirk, but you were uncertain as to the details and the last thing you wanted was to broach such a delicate and upsetting subject with either of them. Better to wait and see. Your curiosity didn't entirely rule you, after all!
"A new coloring book!" Eri's soft exclamation at her present from Midoriya made you smile, the child rapidly leafing through the pages emblazoned with pictures of All Might. "All Might is Deku's favorite." She informed you seriously, little fingers tapping on one such image. 
"Oh?" You thought back to the backpack Midoriya sported, covered with pins and patches of All Might. "I hadn't noticed."
"Eri should be able to experience the campus festival!" 
Mirio felt like he and Midoriya had made a great case, truth be told. If the public at large wasn't allowed to go to the festival, and the security was already ramped up to an insane level…
Aizawa sighed, rubbing his temples. "That's risky, Mirio. We don't know if she's okay to engage with the gen pop yet."
"Aw c'mon teach!" The tall man wheedled, jamming his hands into his varsity jacket. "She's been doing really well!"
"Please sir, at least speak to the dean about it!" Izuku begged earnestly.
"I fail to see why I should whack that particular hornet's nest," was Professor Aizawa's dry retort. "Besides, we would need someone from the medical facility to assist in case of an emergency. All the pros will be otherwise engaged, you both know that."
Midoriya frowned, clearly thinking hard. Mirio however, smiled even wider. "Don't worry, Professor. I know just the person for the job!"
"Togata has recommended you as Eri's medical chaperone." Professor Aizawa's infamous stare had you all but pinned to your seat. Even though you understood he was just kind of like that, it was difficult to maintain your composure.
The news that Mirio had thrown your proverbial hat into the ring was a bit of a surprise as well. You weren't sure whether to be grateful or start panicking. Nonetheless, you kept your expression neutral and folded your hands in your lap. "If that's what you all think is best," was your calm reply.
Aizawa nodded, startling you. "We do, actually. The dean decided that we should have a pro manning the triage area, at least for the day of the festival. That way if there's an MCI, we'll have someone familiarized with our procedures." His expression softened to something that vaguely resembled apologetic. "You weren't supposed to need to know this stuff, so don't take it personal. It's above and beyond the surge planning you're familiar with. We're working on a new program for the center. Pamphlets and slides, that sort of thing, to bring people up to speed, but we haven't gotten the chance to implement it."
"Everything seems to be moving so fast." You remarked, glad when the pro hero nodded in agreement. At least you weren't alone in that sentiment!
"You have a rapport with Eri; she clearly trusts you. According to your resumé, you've kept up with your con-ed." The professor leaned back in his seat, looking more worn than you expected. "The question is whether you'd be okay with being in the thick of the action, should something go wrong." His already-flinty gaze hardened even further. "Mirio will be with her as well. While his Quirk is, in theory, temporarily inactive, he is still a capable hero in training. The choice is yours."
Temporarily? You wondered what that could mean. To be fair, you had heard about Quirks being briefly rendered useless, usually with experimental street drugs. But those cases had been something measured in minutes and hours, not days and weeks! "Again, if you think it's best, I won't object." You then dared to venture, "I'm glad that the college decided to clear her for this, in spite of the risk. She's a sweet little girl and I just…I feel like she's seen too much."
Aizawa cleared his throat after a moment, straightening some papers on his desk. "In order to avoid additional stress, we're letting Eri explore the campus before the festival. Dean Nezu wants you there with her during both outings, to ensure that she feels comfortable and safe." He leveled you with that fierce look, making you cringe in your chair. "If anything goes wrong, anything, you and Mirio are to return immediately with Eri. Do I make myself clear?"
"Good morning!" Mirio's smile never wavered even while his brain was catching up with how casually you were dressed. He had never seen you out of your uniform before, but looking at your outfit now made him wish he had. He could hardly take his eyes off of you!
You looked…comfortable. Prepared for the day, although you were currently rummaging in your bag to make sure you had the fob to your room. The staff housing was situated diagonally across campus from the student and faculty dorms, so Mirio had taken a few roundabout paths to reach your residence. 
Eri had clung to his hand the whole time, wide eyes taking in her surroundings. She hadn't asked many questions, which was odd for her, but Mirio chalked it up to nerves. This was a lot to handle, after all!
"Does she have any sunscreen on? We're going to be out on the grounds for the most part, I think." 
Mirio was jerked out of his reverie by your question, shaking his head with a self-conscious chuckle. "Nope! Uh, sorry about that."
"It's okay! I have some in my bag. Eri, can I put some sunscreen on your face? We'll be outside for a while." You waited for her nod to go ahead with the application. Mirio had noticed that you were always sure to ask permission from the child before you did anything. He figured you were doing your part to try and give her some level of control back. 
Eri patiently put up with your ministrations and Mirio found himself allowing you to talk him into coating his face and neck with sunblock as well. It was only after he was halfway done that he realized it was a glittery children's brand of sunscreen, and he was now covered in sparkles. 
"Finally! Something that matches my personality!" He joked, warmth spreading across his face when you grinned at him. "Alright Eri, let's show you around! You're gonna' love it here, everyone is super nice!" 
Eri, while still holding his hand, shyly slid her free hand into your own. You looked startled at first but quickly covered it up with another smile, swinging her arm gently as the three of you walked towards the main building. 
Maybe I should have asked Nejire and Tamaki to come along, Mirio thought, shoving his other hand into his pocket to keep from fidgeting. They're a lot better at this kind of stuff. I don't even know what to say! I'm so distracted–
"Mirio? Did you hear Eri?" You asked, sounding a little confused.
Mirio stifled a frantic yelp, quickly jerking his head down to where Eri was gazing up at him. "Sorry, I was thinking hard! Can you repeat what you said?"
"Candy apple." Eri's eyes were wide. "You said there would be candy apples."
"Oh yeah! That will be on the day of the actual festival though. Today's just the warm-up period," Mirio explained. "Everyone is still working hard to get things set up so that it looks nice for you. After all, you're a very important guest!"
"Are you sure?" Her fingers squeezed his hand in what he had come to recognize as an anxious tic. Anxiety already?! I must not be doing a good enough job at explaining things, maybe this was a–
"Of course!" You replied brightly. "Aren't you excited? I know I can't wait!" Eri nodded, apparently satisfied as she turned her gaze back to the hive of activity the three of you were approaching. 
"Thanks for the save." Mirio whispered to you out of the side of his mouth.
"No worries. It's what heroes do, right?" You answered softly, winking at him.
The hallways were already festooned with pennants and banners, uniformed students roaming around carrying tape or even more construction paper. A few students stopped to chat, his peers expressing their happiness at seeing him up and about after his 'break'.
"Hey, it's Togata!" The faces were familiar, but Mirio couldn't put a name to the two young men who called out to him. They were from the business major if he had to guess, though that was mainly due to the colorful lecture flyer that one of them was pressing into his hand.
The other, a brown-haired young man with a large horn on his forehead, gawked at Eri, who gripped Mirio's school blazer and half-hid behind his arm. "Whoa, who's that? Don't tell me your temporary leave from school is because you have a kid now!" He exclaimed, seeming bewildered.
Mirio's mind went entirely blank at those words, leaving him standing there with a frozen smile on his face. A kid? Like, one of my own? Huh. I guess it might look that way. And with the added entourage…
His brain caught up just then, slamming the brakes on that particular train of thought and leaving Mirio scrambling to come up with a response.
"Dude you gotta' say something, now I feel like it's for real!" The student protested. 
You somehow managed to straighten out the situation while Mirio was still trying to recover from the mental whiplash, explaining that the upperclassman was your chaperone for the day. You quickly steered the conversation off of Eri and onto the topic of the flyers the two young men had handed you. Apparently the business majors were having a lecture (complete with PowerPoint presentations!) to show the fiscal impacts that the college had to deal with due to the dormitory construction and housing changes. 
"Sure, Quirks can be helpful, but no labor is free these days!" The brown-haired young man reasoned, continuing, "with a lot of heroes unionizing, we have to make sure that dues are paid and, more importantly, that the hero agencies are offering proper benefits. Like all-inclusive dental, or something customizable in the event of a hero having specific requirements to function at full strength."
Proper benefits. Dental. Customization options. Mirio grimaced without meaning to, realizing that he was vastly in over his head.
You, on the other hand, seemed entirely at ease, expositing about the insurance options that you had seen in your day to day work. Co-pays were apparently on the rise, nearly in sync with the recent increase of villain encounters. There was a clear connection between the two, and you were willing to allege that private companies no doubt had a hand in the current state of the world.
You were obviously passionate about what you did, Togata had to give you that much. Even if he was a little ignorant on the subject matter!
Problem implied that this was a thing that needed to be fixed, and Mirio wasn't sure if that was the case just yet. He might need a different word. Panic-inducing was two words, but that seemed closer to the truth. Baffling, maybe? Confusing. Dangerously close to something, and he hadn't figured out whether that something was good or bad.
You had been great with Eri, so at least he could rest easy knowing he had made the right choice when he suggested you as her medical chaperone. If Mirio was being honest with himself, you had been great in general. You were just as familiar with the campus as he was, and you effortlessly answered a multitude of Eri's questions regarding the preparations in full swing. 
Heck, you had even brought sunscreen! Mirio felt a little foolish over his lack of preparation. He had kind of just…expected things to work out.
At least the three of you had been able to stop by the beauty pageant area so Eri could see the academy's most vaunted ladies getting their steps in. Plus, both Nejire and Tamaki had been there! It felt like a weight off Mirio's shoulders when you laughed along with Nejire, and the fact that you were able to discreetly enquire after Tamaki's wellbeing…
You were a member of the staff. That didn't technically complicate things even if he did come to terms with the fact that he might be crushing on you; you weren't a professor. I'm in my final semester though! Mirio reasoned later that evening. Augh, why is this such an issue for me? It's not off-limits! I haven't done anything wrong, darn it all. 
"You are about a Lemillion miles away, Mirio!" 
The young man jerked upright as Nejire's spoon retreated from where she had rapped it smartly against his forearm. "Ah! Sorry Nejire." He chuckled, rubbing the area she had smacked. "Was lost in thought, I guess."
"Oo, do tell!" The young woman exclaimed, bouncing in her seat. "What's up, Mirio? What's got those gears turning? Is it that little cutie from the med center? Y'know, the one you got to walk around with like, alllll day?" She grinned at him and Mirio wished his Quirk would return so he could just…sink into the ground and vanish. Probably forever.
Granted, Lunch Rush was deserted at this hour; most of the other students had filtered back to their dorms. Aside from the Big Three, there were only a few stragglers. But still! 
Cutie. Was that it? Did he think you were…cute? He did, the young man admitted to himself, oh God he did. You were so cute. Everything about you was just…
Oh no.
Panic officially set in. Mirio could feel his palms beginning to sweat and Nejire was just looking at him expectantly between bites of her dinner, what the heck was he supposed to say-
"Yeah, Eri seemed super happy when you brought her by," Tamaki added hesitantly. "I know she doesn't smile, so it was more…w-well, her eyes looked happy." 
Oh. Oh.
Nejire had been talking about Eri.
Well now he felt stupid and sweaty. 
You dug the broom into the corner, frowning in concentration. After a long day of checking IDs, setting up temporary pro hero accounts on the medical center's computers and dropping off delivered goods to various rooms, it felt good to perform a portion of your normal evening routine. 
Sweeping the foyer, while not required of you, helped your brain settle down from your workday. You were deep into contemplation about heading off campus to get some laundry detergent (as you were nearly out of it), when a large hand waved in front of your eyes. 
"Hey there! Just leaving for the night, wanted to make sure you checked me out so you don't get in trouble." Mirio smiled, looking a little embarrassed. "I uh, I called your name a few times, but I guess you were pretty into what you were doing."
"Oh, Mirio! Sorry, I was thinking about the errands I have to run." You apologized, leaving the broom propped up against the wall and going to scan his ID. 
"Gosh, you too huh? Adulting is tough stuff." Mirio commiserated, leaning on the counter. "I have to go pick up some laundry soap. Drew the short straw amongst the Big Three, you know how it is." He continued with a shrug. "Might grab a snack or something while I'm there, but that depends on whether I'm hungry once I make it down. Tamaki wants some of those…fancy bead things too, the smelly ones. I can't remember whether he wanted the purple or the orange, though. He said something about a light fragrance? He's really sensitive to smells."
"Oh, you're getting detergent too? I know I could use the campus courier service," you then lowered your voice conspiratorially, "but I feel bad about making those guys lug my heavy junk so late in their day. Definitely not when I can use the exercise, and it's a nice night out too."
"Would you--er, would you want to come with me? It's probably not safe for either of us to leave campus alone anymore." Mirio rubbed the back of his neck after putting his ID away. "I know that makes it sound kinda' grim, and I don't wanna' buy into the whole paranoia…"
"No, I get it. You're probably right. Besides, better safe than sorry!" You agreed rapidly, a shiver going down your spine as your mind supplied you with a myriad of unwanted newsreel images. "Can you wait half an hour so I can finish closing up shop and change out of my uniform?"
"Oh absolutely! Take all the time you need. The place I usually go to is open until midnight." 
He wasn't entirely sure what he had been thinking. He had just been on his way out! He was going to go buy some soap! But now, the two of you were leaving campus.
Together.
Mirio nervously glanced at you, but you didn't seem to be suffering from the same internal conflict that he was. On the contrary, you seemed more relaxed than usual. Did that mean you were comfortable with him, or that you didn't care if other people made assumptions? Because of course there would be assumptions, word spread like wildfire on campus. 
Mirio found himself envious of your ability to ignore the chatter of the student body. Maybe it was because your job required some certain level of impartiality? What he would give for an ounce of your peace of mind!
The sun hadn't fully set yet, golden light still grazing the tops of the taller trees. You tipped your head back, inhaling deeply. "Ah, what a beautiful day it's been!" 
"It really was." Mirio agreed, "Nejire wanted all of us to head down for a walk, but she's been super busy practicing for that pageant. I told her to take the day off instead. It's her last year to compete, so I get her dedication."
"Oh, is she graduating soon?" You asked curiously. 
"Yeah! We all have our provisionals, so for her it's as easy as passing her finals. She's going to have her associate in electrical engineering, but I'm pretty sure she's still planning on working towards her bachelor and master after that." Mirio could feel himself rambling; it was sort of like watching a train wreck in slow motion. "Tamaki and I are in different programs. I'm trying to get my bachelor in mass casualty incident management via the specialized fire science elective, but after what happened, I'm on a bit of a hiatus. Tamaki is almost done with his associate in bioscience, and he's also debating on continuing to the culinary arts program. He hasn't decided yet."
Your smile was genuine and Mirio breathed a sigh of relief that he didn't seem to have annoyed you. "That's great! I'm glad you guys all have a plan going forward. Times are so weird lately. It's good to have a little stability, right?"
Stability.
Stability had been the furthest thing from Mirio's mind since he had lost his Quirk and Sir Nighteye had passed away. It had been days of him just barely clinging to some shell of normalcy, trying to keep his spirits up after the somber affair of the funeral. He only vaguely recalled being next to the grave site with Kaoruko, Juzo and Midoriya once everyone else had paid their respects, wearing the one ill-fitting suit coat that he owned. The shoulders had pinched the entire time but it had hardly registered; a fleeting inconvenience. 
Nejire had returned after giving him the time to say his final goodbyes, the young woman gently steering him back to their dorm where everyone had gathered in the central hall. There amongst his friends and peers, Mirio had done his best to smile. But he was emotionally exhausted, physically still in recovery, and he soon found himself hauled away and tucked into his bed by Tamaki.
"Stop pretending that you're fine," Tamaki had muttered, not unkindly, before shutting the door. 
At least he hadn't called it lying.
"Stability is really important." Mirio murmured to you, hoping you didn't notice that his mind had been elsewhere. After what had happened, he found himself spacing out more and more. There were so many things he had to worry about now! Whether he could still pass his practicals without his Quirk, keeping his grades up so that he could compensate for his now-lackluster fieldwork…the academic hiatus was appreciated, of course, but he didn't know how long he could expect that charity to last before the dean reevaluated his usefulness.
You abruptly changed topics to the support majors exhibition and the young man found himself talking, actually talking, not just making polite conversation at the check-in counter. He could talk to people, of course he could talk to people. What kind of hero would he be if he couldn't handle public relations, after all? But this felt different. It was more natural, organic. Like how he felt talking to Eri or Midoriya, that newer sort of friendship. Were the two of you friends? Was it too soon to be friends? 
The rustling in the trees alongside the road snapped Mirio's attention upwards and he inwardly berated himself for letting his guard down. He was relieved when, instead of some skulking villain, he made out the bulky form of Hound Dog. Professor Ryo was a youth counselor and despite being…rough around the edges, he made excellent progress with certain students.
The large teacher emerged from the brush, shaking himself off and nodding in their direction before trotting across the road and back into the woods.
"For being so big, he sure can be quiet." You commented after a few moments. "He's been following us since we left the gates."
Mirio turned his head so rapidly he was sure he had pulled something. "H-He has?" He managed to ask, his voice pitching funnily.
You nodded, like it was to be expected. "Of course. You didn't notice? He's quiet, not silent."
Well, now Mirio felt dumb all over again.
"Detergent, deterrrrrrgent," you mumbled to yourself, ticking back and forth between two large containers. On the one hand, the pods were lighter. But on the other hand, they were expensive, especially compared to the powdered options. The powder came in a cardboard box, which was easy to break down, but you could also rinse the liquid's plastic bottle and put it out with the recycling–
"Hey, can I ask for a favor?" Mirio's voice interrupted your mental quandary and you turned, finding him next to you with three different containers of scent booster beads. "Gimme' a hand. Which one of these smells the least offensive to you? I think they changed the colors since the last time Tamaki got them, because the purple ones don't smell like I remember."
You screwed up your face and obliged. Two of the scents made you grimace but the last one seemed light enough to suffice, and Mirio thanked you for your assistance. "Alright, now you help me out. Trying to pick between heavier but cheap, or lighter but pricey?" You posed the question, waving a hand back and forth between the boxes, bottles and tubs. 
"Pick heavy! I'll carry it for you, so don't worry about the weight!" Mirio reasoned, his easy smile making an appearance midway through his sentence. "After all, you loaned me your nose. It's the least I could do for your heroic service!"
You laughed, waving him off as you slid the box of detergent beneath your arm. "I'll be fine! That's what the backpack is for. This isn't my first trip down the mountain, y'know." 
"Oh sure! I uh, I wasn't trying to imply anything."
"No worries. I appreciate the offer! Any other night I'd probably accept, but I've been dying to get some exercise and this is just what I need."
"Heard you went on a late night walk with someone."
Accusatory wasn't exactly the right word but Mirio still froze up on reflex, nearly dropping his controller. 
Tamaki exhaled through his nose and Mirio caught him sneaking a glance, the dark-haired young man eventually pausing their game to look at him head-on. "You know I don't care." Tamaki finally continued awkwardly, "b-but Hado--er, Nejire, she thinks we talk about…that kind of stuff, and she uh, she wanted me to ask…"
As Amajiki hemmed and hawed, Mirio watched the tips of his ears go a neon shade of red. Finally he decided to have pity on the other man, grinning and explaining, "Tamaki, I went with them when I had to get those things you put in with your laundry. Everyone says it's a bad idea to roam off-campus alone after everything that's happened, right?"
"Still!" Tamaki erupted, cringing a little at his own volume. "I…you should be more careful. Take Nejire or I with you next time, we can at least keep you s–" He paused, shooting Mirio a nervous look. "Uh, n-never mind."
We can at least keep you safe.
Mirio heard his friend's hesitant declaration loud and clear. It was true, he had no Quirk. Neither did you, for that matter! Maybe it had been reckless to go without someone else. Had Tamaki and Nejire been worried about him? "I'm sorry." Mirio apologized sincerely, pressing his hands together in contrition. "I didn't think about it. I'm still not used to needing to be so careful, I guess!"
Tamaki squinted, cautiously asking, "you…you aren't mad? I'm sorry, I-I shouldn't have said it like that." A rare half-smile teased at his mouth. "You're really strong, even without your Quirk. But…yeah, Nejire and I were pretty worried when you didn't come back from visiting Eri." He admitted quietly. 
"How about I make sure to keep the group chat updated if I head off-campus? Will that be a little less stressful for you guys?" Mirio threw his friend a wink. "As for the walk, you can either tell Nejire what I told you, or you can make up something!"
Tamaki then sputtered and stammered, dismissing the notion with a scandalized expression as Mirio laughed.
Tensions were growing as the festival approached. It felt like everywhere you went, there was a blanket of steady pressure. Both the students and the professors seemed hellbent on making sure everything went as smoothly as it could, which led to fatigue, shortened tempers and disagreements. 
You had your hands full trying to make sure the triage consoles wouldn't immediately turn themselves inside out once the pro heroes logged in on the day of the festival. Everything else at the college was state of the art except for the CBMS, which seemed to be a relic of a previous establishment. Multiple days during the week before the festival you ended up staying late. At least I'm getting paid overtime, you thought ruefully on Friday afternoon, wiping down the counter and then leaning on it with a tired sigh. A little extra tomorrow too, for my 'supervisory' shift. 
You chewed your lower lip, thinking about what might transpire at the festival. You were absolutely nervous, of course! But you knew you had to stay calm. If Eri picked up on your unease, it might ruin her whole day. That was the last thing you wanted, so you would have to do your best. 
Really put on a…Plus-Ultra game face.
You snorted, shaking your head at yourself. 
"Aw, visiting hours are over already?" Midoriya complained when the tones chimed overhead, the usual recorded message playing after a moment. Eri nodded, not even looking up from her coloring page on the table. 
Mirio rumpled the other man's hair. "Cheer up! We'll get to spend the whole day together tomorrow, right?" 
"Well yeah, I suppose. At least you guys will. I'll need to stick by the group for the tune ups and stuff." Suddenly Midoriya jerked upright, looking perturbed. "Oh no! The rope!" He exclaimed, looking at his watch and then groaning unhappily. "Ugh, the hardware store is closed by now. That means I'll need to go in the morning instead." Izuku gave Eri an apologetic smile. "I guess I won't be able to walk you to the festival with Mirio and your other friend. I'm sorry."
"I'll still get to see you, right?" Eri asked, "you'll still do your dance?" 
"Of course!" 
The little girl gave him a nod, her expression almost laughably serious. "Okay."
"We'll have to find you a candy apple too! That's half the fun of a festival," Midoriya continued excitedly, "all the cool things to eat!"
"You ready for our big date tomorrow?" Mirio asked Eri as he tugged on his jacket. 
She replied with a slow shake of her head, her brow furrowed. "What's a date?" She finally queried.
"Oh! A date is when you go to hang out with people you like!" Eri still didn't appear to understand and Mirio wracked his brain for an example she would be familiar with. "Like what you and I did the other day with our friend from the front desk, right? We got to walk around and see a bunch of things, have some snacks, enjoy each other's company…that's a date!"
"Oh." Eri looked a bit confused. "Okay. Date. Date tomorrow."
"Yup!" 
Mirio could feel Midoriya staring at him as they walked down the hall, but he figured he would just wait until the younger man posed his question. When Midoriya next spoke, however, it was a statement. "She still hasn't smiled."
"Nope." Mirio agreed softly. "I'm hoping for tomorrow."
"Yeah?" Midoriya cocked his head. "Why?"
"I don't really know." Mirio admitted. "Call it a gut feeling maybe?"
"I guess." 
Izuku still looked a bit dejected as the two of them emerged into the foyer so Mirio nudged his shoulder, giving him a thumbs up. "It'll be fine! Everyone's been working hard. Now go back to your dorm and get some rest, underclassman." He ordered with a grin. "You've got a busy day ahead of you!"
Midoriya returned his smile after a moment, nodding. "Yeah, you're right. Hey, thanks for…" he paused, seeming to be searching for his words. "Well, uh, just for helping, I guess. You did so much during the fight, a-and you've been helping with Eri, too. I wish there was something I could do for you." 
We can at least keep you safe.
"You've already done a lot for me!" Mirio protested, "you and everyone else, you keep people like Eri and I safe. That's a really important job, and it's one that I can't really do at the moment, y'know? So I should be thanking you!"
He had learned early on that Izuku was a bit of an easy crier, so Mirio was prepared for the way the younger man welled up momentarily. "We'll…we'll keep doing our best then." Midoriya managed to say, clearly trying to rein himself in. "Oh! My ID, sorry, I need to-" he floundered at the counter, searching his pockets wildly until he found his student card. 
You took his card while waving off his apologies, scanning him out and handing the card back with a kind smile. "Be careful walking to your dorm tonight. The maintainers were out earlier so the sprinkler schedule may be off by a few hours again." You warned the younger man right before he bolted for the door.
Togata tilted his head, just barely catching the sound of an indignant squawk outside. You snorted, then composed yourself and took his ID. "So what time am I picking you up tomorrow?" Mirio queried, leaning on the counter. "Uh, you and Eri, I mean!" He rushed to amend, mentally kicking himself.
"Well that's…I mean, I figure probably by ten-thirty?" You suggested, seemingly having forgotten that you were supposed to be scanning him out for the evening. Not that Mirio particularly cared! It was just odd. "Are we bringing food, or…?"
"I got some juice packs in town the other day! Went with Nejire. Figured we'll find plenty to snack on during the festival." 
You nodded, appearing satisfied by his logic. Then, you clearly realized that you were still holding his ID. "Oh! Let me get you out of here." You exclaimed, nearly knocking over the counter-mounted scanner in your haste. 
Mirio quickly put a hand on top of the device to steady it but you had been about to do the same, which caused your hand to land on top of his for a moment. You glanced up at him and Mirio found himself staring at you, uncertain of what exactly was going on but not necessarily opposed to it. "Everything okay?" He asked finally.
Like you had just awoken from a trance, you blinked. "Okay? Oh yeah, everything is definitely fine." You insisted, nodding rapidly and then dropping his ID twice before you managed to give it back to him. "Sorry, I'm…it's been a long week. I guess I'm a little jumpy!" You excused yourself with an awkward laugh. 
"Everything will be fine tomorrow!" Mirio assured you. "There will be pros patrolling the grounds and a whole bunch of precautions have been taken. You've got nothing to worry about."
"Ah, yes. It was definitely that that was making me nervous." You said slowly, seeming to pick your words with great care. 
Mirio felt as though he might have missed something, but he wasn't entirely certain. So he simply gave you a thumbs up as he headed out through the sliding doors. He paused once outside the med center, inhaling deeply and then going stiff when he heard a low hiss next to him. 
Mirio abruptly found himself getting drenched by a sprinkler. On reflex he attempted to use Permeation, before remembering with a bit of a gut-wrenching jolt that he no longer had his Quirk. All he could do instead was wipe his face and chuckle ruefully as he stepped out of range of the first sprinkler. 
Directly into the range of the second one. 
"Today's the day." You hummed for the hundredth time, digging into your tiny closet once more. "Today's the dayyyyy." 
You had been trying to put together an outfit for nearly half an hour now. It had never been this difficult before! Why were you so nervous?
You blew out a breath, a bit exasperated, and finally just picked something at random. Pairing the outfit with some comfortable shoes, you gave yourself a once-over in the mirror and smiled at your reflection encouragingly. "It'll be totally fine. There's pro heroes everywhere today. Everything is going to be just fine." You told yourself aloud, checking the time. "It will all be fine."
Everything will be okay.
With every step you took, the words repeated in your head. Down the ramp to the staff foyer, outside to the small courtyard, across the campus to the medical center. One foot in front of the other, pro heroes stationed both subtly and not-so-subtly, students and staff hustling to get the last few things done.
Everything will be okay.
The sidewalks were still a little damp from the sprinklers, small puddles shimmering at the edges of the grass. You recalled Midoriya and Mirio getting caught by the sprinklers the evening before and a smile crept across your face. You had to fight back your laughter, only just managing to keep it under control. 
Eri was waiting in the foyer with a nurse, the little girl already dressed and bouncing in place. "She's had her breakfast this morning," The nurse informed you dryly, "under extreme duress, of course. She wanted to save room for all the food she was promised at the event."
"Candy apple!" Eri proclaimed, grabbing hold of your hand. 
"Let's put on your sunscreen while we wait for Mirio, okay?" You suggested, crouching. "I'm a few minutes early anyhow, so we have the time."
"I wanna' do it!" Eri held out her hands, her expression one of intense concentration. 
"Okay, but I'll get the tips of your ears for you." You bargained, letting her squeeze a liberal amount of sparkly sunblock into her palm before you took it back. The poor child was still so pale from her previous confinement, you knew it wouldn't take much sunlight for her to burn. "Remember to keep your eyes closed, that stuff stings if it gets in your eyes!"
"Well well, looks like I got here just in time!" said a voice from behind you. It was Mirio, the blond waiting to swing Eri up into his arms until she nodded. "Wanna' put some of that on me, Eri?"
The little girl began sliding her hands over Mirio's cheeks, leaving a white snail-trail of sunscreen in her wake. You smiled, stretching over Mirio's arm to get Eri's ears while she was preoccupied. "Don't forget his nose and forehead!" You teased, laughing when Eri dipped her head solemnly and dragged two fingers across Mirio's once-pristine forehead. She even managed to get some of the sunblock in the young man's hairline, but Mirio just grinned and worked it into his gelled strands. 
"There." Eri announced, finally seeming satisfied with her work. "Now we'll be safe."
Mirio tried to ignore his heart thundering in his chest when you rested on his arm to apply sunscreen to Eri's ears. Your face was right next to his, your eyes crinkling at the edges when you laughed and–
And then you pulled back and whatever it was was gone as quickly as it had arrived. The young man felt crushed suddenly, like something important had just passed him by. But there was no time to ruminate on that particular issue, as Eri was clamoring to get moving. So with a few sticky patches on his face and glitter stuck in his hair, Mirio took the little girl's hand and led the way.
Eri squeezed his hand tight, sandwiching herself beside his leg. "Don't be scared! I'm right here with you." The blond man assured her, smiling. She nodded with a determined frown, her free hand seizing yours as if to anchor herself.
The campus was ablaze with color and activity. Mirio wound his way in between the throngs of attendees, his large frame easily clearing a path for Eri while you brought up the rear. He knew he had to be mindful of safety but he also wanted to make sure that Eri got to see whatever she wanted to see, so he did his best to be alert for any tugs on his hand.
"Ah!" Eri exclaimed, halting abruptly. Mirio swung her up into his arms to avoid causing a pause in the flow of people, accidentally pulling you in with the little girl. 
"What's up, Eri?" Mirio queried, doing his level best to play down the knowledge that your body was pressed to his side. Eri mumbled something he couldn't quite hear, pointing towards a brightly-colored food cart. "Wanna' stop for a snack?" The blond man guessed. She nodded vigorously. "Alright! Remember that we need to be careful in this crowd, so don't stop so quickly next time, okay?"
"Even if we walk past what you want to see, we can always double back!" You chimed in, checking your watch. "We can only make this one stop before the show, but after the show we can go wherever you'd like."
"Promise?" Eri asked you, the fragile hope in her voice threatening to break Mirio's heart.
"I promise," was your sincere response. "Now, let's get you your snack!"
Eri munched on a small twist of cinnamon pastry, her eyes roving over the crowd in front of her. You could barely see the stage from your spot next to Mirio, but you waved off his offer of lifting you as well with a laugh. Instead you kept a hand on his elbow, doing your best to maintain your position in the jam-packed area. 
It seemed like the whole college had turned up for this particular show! You were a little concerned. While you didn't exactly need to be alert for threats (that was Mirio's job!), you still found yourself scanning the crowd for unfamiliar faces. 
Everything will be okay.
Your grip on Mirio's elbow tightened without conscious input and he looked down at you, his expression uncharacteristically serious. "You alright?" He asked, seeming to be keeping his tone light so as not to attract Eri's attention.
"Sorry! There's a lot of people here, that's all." You apologized, smiling weakly. 
"Everything will be okay." Mirio assured you, his easy grin making your stomach backflip. "I'm right here with you."
You could feel your face beginning to flush with heat and you quickly ducked, breaking eye contact to rummage through your bag for the set of ear muffs you had brought. "Eri!" You called, getting the little girl's attention so you could hand her the headset. "Can you pop these on? It's going to be pretty loud and we want to keep your ears safe."
Eri donned the hearing protection with zero fuss, Mirio helping to adjust the headband so that the cups fit snugly over her ears. "Man, you think of everything!" The young man praised, the admiration in his words enough to send a frisson of pride down your spine. "Wish I could be that prepared! I'd probably…" he trailed off, his smile fading. "Well, there's no real point to that. I'll do better." He continued quietly.
You opened your mouth to say…something, anything, maybe something comforting? But the lights overhead dimmed suddenly, and the moment was gone. 
You even brought hearing protection. Mirio was downright awed at how prepared you were. But he supposed it made sense. After all, Eri was just a little kid in recovery to you! Little kids needed things like sunscreen, tissues, band aids…
He felt somewhat ashamed of himself for losing sight of the fact that while Eri was incredibly powerful, she was still a child. 
The little girl posted up in his arms had her eyes fixed on the stage as the music began, her hands gripping Mirio's shirt collar. The blond man shifted his weight, giving her a reassuring smile when she glanced down at him uncertainly. "Look!" Mirio exclaimed, pointing back at the stage. "There's Midoriya!"
While the tight frown on Eri's face eased slightly upon seeing Midoriya and the rest of his class dance, it was nowhere near gone. Mirio knew this might not even work, but…
Mirio Togata, pro hero in training, had one goal for the day.
I want to see you smile!
The lights and sounds grew more intense and the crowd around him began to move in time with the music. Mirio found himself rocking back and forth, the rhythm too infectious for him to keep fully still. On his left, your hip gently bumped into his when you began to sway as well. 
Eri's hold on his shirt started to loosen, making Mirio look up at her. Her eyes were bright in the shimmering lights, the little girl clearly enjoying the show. Streamers erupted over the audience, confetti fluttering this way and that in the fitful currents of air. Eri's tiny hands reached to grab fruitlessly for the glittery crêpe paper, her eyebrows furrowed with focus. 
Your mouth brushed Mirio's ear, no doubt so he could hear you through the cacophony around him. "Lift her so she can get a streamer!" You instructed, giving him a thumbs up. 
Mirio made sure that he had enough wiggle room to move safely, then hoisted Eri as high over his head as he could. Her questing fingers finally caught the tail end of a streamer, and he felt her bounce in what he assumed was excitement when she clutched the thin paper to her chest. Mirio lowered her once more, settling her a little higher on his hip so she could still see over the gyrating audience. 
It looked like Ochaco was hard at work, several people closer to the stage beginning to hover above the main crowd. There were lasers sparkling brilliantly through the foggy atmosphere, more pyrotechnics erupting from the stage, were those doves-? It was all so bright, so vibrant, Mirio very nearly missed what happened next.
The music was building to what seemed to be a final crescendo and you tugged on his sleeve, pointing at Eri when he looked down at you. Mirio jerked his eyes back up, feeling Eri's arm slide past his face even as he did.
The small child had her hands over her head, waving the streamer in the air as she smiled broadly in blatant, unrestrained delight. The joy was evident on her face, her eyes alight with what seemed to be a mixture of wonder and glee. 
It was as if Chisaki's shadow had finally released its stranglehold on her, banished in the brilliant glow of that hard-won smile.
Are you seeing this? Midoriya…Sir! Look at her! She's smiling!
Despite his best efforts Mirio felt a sob grip his throat. The young man hurriedly ducked his face into his shoulder to hide his tears, but something soft touched his cheek and he flinched, opening his eyes. It was you, because of course it was you, gently daubing away the moisture with a tissue. You smiled at him, your own eyes suspiciously damp. 
Mirio's heart lurched in his throat. He couldn't help but laugh freely, pulling you into his side and giving you an elated kiss on the cheek without even thinking about it.
"Thank you!" He shouted over the music, trying to enunciate so you would still be able to understand him even if you couldn't hear. "Thank you, thank you so much." 
You simply nodded in reply, wrapping your arm around his waist.
An enormous weight seemed to have been lifted off of Mirio at the sight of Eri's smile. It was a thing of beauty, the large blond man clearly torn between laughing and crying. You found yourself emotional as well, doing your best to rein it in before you went full waterworks. You were only here in an auxiliary role, after all! It wouldn't look very professional if you were caught sobbing hysterically, so you set your jaw and mentally begged your lower lip to quit quivering already!
At least you didn't have to hide your smile, even if it wavered a little.
You definitely didn't mind Mirio hauling you into a one-armed hug, his body warm and solid against your own as he tried to say something over the music. It might have been a thank you but you were unsure, so you settled for a polite nod even as your hand rested gingerly on his waist. After a moment his own hand slid down to your hip, keeping you tucked into his side. 
The show ended with a bang and Eri began clamoring to go see Midoriya once she took off the ear muffs. You weren't sure if you imagined the reluctant way Mirio released you, his hand lingering on your lower back longer than it seemed to need to. 
He had kissed you. 
You froze, the reality of what Mirio had done sinking in. Granted, it was just a little peck on the cheek, but still! Heat flushed your face and you glanced around guiltily, wondering if any of your coworkers had been in the crowd near you. 
Togata's hand grabbed your own, startling you somewhat. "We have to go against the crowd to get to Midoriya!" He explained over the noise. "Stay behind me, okay?" 
Eri waved at you from her new perch on Mirio's shoulders, still smiling even as she smoothed down his spiked hair. You couldn't help but smile back at her, struck once more by how happy she looked.
Mirio trudged through the students and faculty on his way to the stage, occasionally detouring or pausing briefly to let larger groups move past him. At one point the two of you were separated and you called out his name, only to hear Mirio laugh and reply, "Polo!" off to your left. He didn't let go of your hand after that, simply angling his arm so that you were slightly behind him. His other hand rested against Eri's shin, keeping her steady on his shoulders. 
He had shoved the sleeves of his varsity jacket up to his elbows, no doubt in response to the elevated heat inside the gymnasium. In an effort to ignore the fingers intertwined with your own, you studied the scars on his forearm. Some were clearly from whatever tussle he, Midoriya and Eri had been involved in, the healed skin still fresh and nearly purple in hue. Then there were older ones further up his arm, silvered with age and half-covered by his jacket. You wondered at them a bit, but the world had always been a dangerous place whether you had a Quirk or not. 
Your gaze traveled up his shoulder to his face, currently in profile as he glanced around trying to find an opening in the crowd, and you simply watched him. Your mind was suddenly full of the thoughts that you had been trying to avoid, embarrassing you to the point that you forced yourself to look away.
"Hey, good work buddy!" Mirio praised Midoriya as he set Eri down. You hovered a few feet away after he released your hand, which he didn't quite understand. Were you still worried about losing track of him? It was much less crowded backstage!
"That was crazy!" Eri erupted, her grin still in full effect. "At first when there was a loud noise it was scary, but then everyone was jumping with the dance-" she raised her arms over her head and started bouncing in place, "and then there was a flash and Deku, you went away for a little bit, and the guy started flying in the air!"
Mirio had been mimicking Eri's motions while she spoke, his own excitement fueling the childish action. He couldn't help but smile at the sight of Midoriya's expression, the other student looking absolutely overjoyed. 
"-and a bunch of people said 'wow' and you know what I said?" Eri asked Midoriya, her eyes shining with excitement. She didn't bother waiting for an answer, simply exclaiming, "wow' too! It was so fun!"
Deku inhaled raggedly, the younger man using his arm to wipe away the tears that had started welling up in his eyes. "I'm glad you had such a good time, Eri." He said sincerely. 
"All thanks to you!" Mirio clapped the other man on the shoulder. "You and the rest of your class really pulled out all the stops, y'know?"
"Absolutely!" You chimed in, giving Midoriya a thumbs up. "What's next on the Class 1-A agenda for the day?"
"Well, Mineta really wants us all to hurry with the clean up, he's excited to get to see the beauty pageant." Izuku gestured at the smaller young man, who did indeed seem to be working himself into a frenzy. "So I guess we'll head over there once we're done."
"Beauty pageant!" Eri cheered. "Will we see your friend, Mirio?"
"Of course! We should get over there now, we have to get good seats." At those words Togata heard Mineta begin to huff, the younger man scuttling past him lugging a bucket full of ice while muttering curses under his breath. "Watch the language, buddy!" The upperclassman warned him with a smile.
The beauty pageant was…well it was something. Mirio was a little confused by the whole affair, if he was being honest, but Nejire did a fun sort of dance in midair and she seemed like she was enjoying herself. Of course she got his vote. Yours too! You were obviously dazzled by her display. Eri was just thrilled to watch the princess-esque students go through their routines, the show already a clear high moment of her day.
After the pageant Mirio dedicated his time to winning the games at the various booths, the young man determined to send Eri home with a mountain of prizes. His efforts were not exactly fruitful, however. 
Down to his last ball on a milk-bottle game, he surrendered it to you instead. You, to his utter bewilderment, actually managed to knock the bottles over and win! Every time he had tried, the bottles just refused to topple.
"There's a trick to it," was your nonchalant explanation around a stuffed unicorn that was half the size of your own body. "Hang on to this for Eri, would you? I wanna' see if they have a duck pond." You leaned in, the unicorn ending up mashed against Mirio's shoulder. "Eri can win that one easy." You continued in an undertone. 
Mirio nodded rapidly as he draped the pastel unicorn over his shoulder, thrilled that the both of you seemed to be on the same page. 
Luckily, a booth touting the aforementioned game was mere steps away. It was a simple pink plastic kiddie pool, filled with water and a plethora of rubber ducks that looked like they had been scavenged from the student body instead of bought in bulk. No two were alike! There were red ones with devil horns, blue ones with sunglasses, even a few with tiny hats. 
Eri rushed forward, the child seeming elated that a game was actually at her height. She then hesitated mere inches away, fidgeting as the booth vendor patiently explained the rules to her. 
Mirio lingered a few feet back, scanning the crowd a little more fiercely than he meant to. But this was important, and he would be damned if Eri's first carnival game was interrupted by anything less than a world-ending event.
"Okay, here we go." You muttered, and Mirio noticed you crossing your fingers. "She's totally got this."
Eri pulled up a pair of ducks, checking the bottoms for matching symbols. A pink circle and a green star were revealed, however.
Mirio groaned silently, but immediately perked back up when the vendor held up one finger. Okay, okay! She gets more than one try! The young man clenched his fists, leaning forward slightly in an effort to see the ducks a little better. 
Eri took a moment to study the pond, her eyes narrowing in concentration. To no avail though, the next pair she picked was an orange square and a red triangle. 
The vendor held up a second finger and Mirio began mentally debating whether he would be bribing this student. On the one hand, it was a dilemma of ethics and morals. But on the other, Eri really, really needed a win to keep the ball rolling–
"Congratulations! You've won a prize!" 
Mirio jerked his head up, blinking in confusion. Eri held two matching ducks, both with green stars on the bottom. The little girl smiled ear to ear once more as she happily accepted her winnings, a purple pencil case with a variety of ducks on it. "Mirio! Look!" She exclaimed, bolting back to the young man. 
"Gosh, I guess you really ducked out!" Mirio heard you groan at his pun and it only served to widen his grin. He took Eri's hand and then extended his other to you. "C'mon, there's still so much to see and do!"
"I had a great time today." You murmured to Mirio, pretending to straighten Eri's hair out in an effort to avoid eye contact. 
"Hey, that's my line." was the young man's equally-soft reply as he shifted Eri's dead weight in his arms. The little girl had finally succumbed to her exhaustion moments before, heavy eyes drooping and sliding closed even in the midst of such intense stimuli. You had no doubt that she would need a few days to recover from all this excitement.
You too, if you were being honest with yourself! Mirio seemed to have boundless energy, the man darting from booth to activity with all the enthusiasm of a person half his age. It was endearing, if nothing else. You couldn't help but feel a bit sad that after today, things would return to how they were. "I don't want this to end." You admitted quietly, still fidgeting with Eri's long locks. 
A hand cupped your chin and you found yourself looking up at Mirio, the blond man's expression oddly serious. "It…I-I mean, it doesn't have to be over. If…er, i-if you don't want it to be, that is." The uncharacteristic stammering caught you off-guard, your brow furrowing as you tried to piece together what he meant.
Suddenly, "there you are!" rang out from behind you, making you jump and nearly drop all the stuffed animals you and Mirio had won for Eri. It was Midoriya, the younger man's face becoming apologetic when Mirio shushed him. "Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to wake you, Eri. I made you something though!" He said excitedly, unwrapping the plastic-swathed object in his hand. 
Eri rubbed her eyes, staring down at the bright red candy apple. "What is…what is that?" She asked quizzically.
"A candy apple! You remember, Mirio told you about them. They're covered in super crackly sugar!" Deku explained, picking the treat up and passing it to her. "Be really careful with your shirt, okay? The red will stain it, trust me." With a touch of amusement, you noticed crimson splotches still lurking in the lines of his palms and knuckles. 
The child immediately bit into the apple, the crunch of the sugar coating meeting your ears. "Oh wow." She mumbled into the fruit, not resisting as you rushed to tie her hair back in a low ponytail. The last thing you wanted any of the staff to have to deal with tonight was trying to get red, sticky residue out of her nearly colorless hair! 
"Where did you even get that?! We looked everywhere!" Mirio queried, obviously dismayed that he had failed. 
"I couldn't find any booths that had them, so I improvised and got some help from Sato." Izuku replied, smiling. 
"Wow, that was really…" you paused for effect, aiming finger guns at the younger man, "sweet of him to give you a hand."
Midoriya groaned while Mirio's delighted peals of laughter rang out. "Guess I should have seen that one coming." The underclassman allowed ruefully, quickly smiling once more when Eri thanked him profusely for the confection that was currently staining her chin. "I'm just glad I caught you guys before you left! You must be pretty tired. It's been a long day!"
"Yeah, but I can say with confidence that this has been one of the best days I've ever had." Togata said sincerely, shaking Midoriya's hand. "And it's all thanks to you guys! Your class, you-"
"Whoa, and what about you?! Everything that you did to make sure that we could even have Eri come…you've done so much to help out!" Deku protested, a little red in the face. 
"Guess we all worked hard for this moment, right?" The blond reasoned, tilting his head to offer you a warm smile. "Us, and Eri too!" 
Eri took her eyes off of her apple for the barest moment, her serious nod making Mirio chuckle.
Professor Aizawa meandered up as Midoriya was about to say his goodbyes, the older man looking more weary than usual. "I trust there were no further issues?" He asked, those piercing eyes oddly trained on Deku, who rushed through a farewell and then bolted.
"'Further issues'?" Mirio repeated, cocking his head to one side. 
Aizawa sighed heavily. "I'll explain later. For now, I'm here to escort you three back to the medical center."
"Mr. Aizawa, I got to see a loud show and there were ducks in a pond!" Eri announced, the copious amounts of sugar in the candy apple no doubt perking her back up. 
You were stunned when Professor Aizawa gave the child a thin smile. "That's great news, kiddo. Anything else happen?"
"Mirio tried to win a bottle game, there was lots of food and I saw two people get to fly today! I had a hot dog for lunch, and all kinds of snacks, and I gave a little bird some fries because he seemed hungry-" As Eri carried on regaling the professor with the tale of her very full day, you watched the older man's harsh glare soften. Evidently he had been just as worried as the rest of you, if not moreso! You got the feeling that there may have been an incident earlier in the day.
"Someone tried to attack this morning?!" Retroactive panic washed over Mirio in a cold sweat, the young man clenching his fists as memories from Eri's rescue flooded his mind. There was an attack and I didn't even notice?!
Aizawa grimaced, rubbing his temples. "It's not exactly so cut and dry, Mirio. Technically yes, but the situation was managed. Improperly managed. Midoriya is lucky Hound Dog didn't shake him to death."
Midoriya. So the underclassman had ended up being their first line of defense? Mirio wasn't exactly sure how to feel about that. Talk about having a full day! Midoriya seemed totally unphased when we saw him. I guess that was just a show to keep Eri's spirits up. "I'm glad we still got to go through with the festival." The blond man remarked after sorting out his thoughts.
"That was Midoriya's reasoning. He wanted the festival to happen no matter what, I guess." Professor Aizawa shook his head. "He didn't want to alert the pros because he thought it would risk the festival's cancellation. Regardless, he should have called for backup. He's on campus cleaning duty until further notice, so you may see him a little less."
"I'm happy he's safe." You said, unconsciously echoing Mirio's own sentiments. "It couldn't have been easy to deal with a threat all on his own."
"He didn't have to deal with it all on his own." Aizawa grumbled, obviously annoyed. "Kid's got guts and he's smart, but damn he's stupid." He straightened up after a moment, adjusting his scarf. "Alright, I trust the two of you can at least manage to return to your housing without further incident?"
"Of course! You can count on me, teach!" Mirio assured the older man, and then turned to you. "Well, we'd better get you back safe and sound!"
You nodded, falling into step alongside the blond. Mirio hadn't anticipated the silence that stretched awkwardly between the two of you, and he wracked his brain for some light topic of conversation. 
Before he could think of something, you spoke up.
"You and Midoriya had a really difficult time when there was the incident with Eri, didn't you?" 
Mirio was caught off-guard by your odd opener, clearing his throat. "Well, uh. Yes." He admitted bluntly. "As you know, I lost my Quirk. Hopefully temporarily! But still, it wasn't…" Mirio trailed off, the thought of Sir Nighteye threatening to choke him up. "It wasn't a simple mission." 
"Did today make everything worth it?" Your voice was soft, uncertain, and you refused to meet his gaze.
There was no way. You had never had a Quirk of your own, but they seemed to be so intertwined with someone's personality and sense of self…there was no way you could imagine the thought of losing such an important piece of your identity.
There was just no way that Mirio's hurt or Midoriya's guilt could be erased with the smile of a little girl.
And yet you hoped so hard, with every fiber of your being, that maybe, just maybe, it could. That maybe the triumph of the day had been enough to, if nothing else, ease the pain, even a little.
But���
"Absolutely." Mirio's reply was instantaneous; he didn't even think before he responded. "I wasn't kidding when I said today was one of the best days of my life." 
You couldn't help the way you were staring at him, you just really hadn't anticipated such a quick and succinct answer! 
"What?" He queried, "Is there something on my face?"
"Well, no, I just…I guess I'm confused is all." You fumbled to explain yourself. "You lost the use of something important, and Midoriya…I mean you both suffered pretty extensive injuries from what I remember, and while I didn't have any of the specifics it just…it doesn't seem like it would even out in the end to me." You reasoned frantically, hoping that he wouldn't think you were rude. 
"To me it does." Mirio's smile was serene. "Life is full of stuff like that though! The things that seem little to other people, but to you…" he hesitated, seeming to search for the right words. "To you, it's the thing that brings you happiness in a day. Like sixteen bouquets of flowers crammed onto a windowsill!" He laughed. "Sure, a smile doesn't seem like that big of a deal, but when you think about it, it's the biggest deal."
You cast your mind back to when you had watched Mirio notice Eri smiling, the progression of emotions that had occurred on his face within the span of bare seconds. The grief, the heartbreak, the joy, and the tears that had come with it. Seeing him so emotional had stirred your own heart, but it was also bewildering. 
All this, for one little girl's smile?
Maybe it wasn't for you to understand. His healing was his own, after all, and it wasn't really your place to question his happiness. You hadn't been involved in Eri's retrieval, you had no idea what may have transpired, you probably shouldn't have said anything–
Clearly you had been silent for too long, because Togata quietly said, "I know it seems silly to you." 
"It's not that! I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry or be insensitive. If it makes you happy, then that makes me happy too." You rushed to say, smiling afterwards. "It doesn't need to be any more complicated than that, right? I'm happy you're happy."
The tall blond stared down at you as the two of you walked, his brow furrowed in thought. "Today made me happy." He finally said, his words chosen with care. "I enjoy spending time with you."
You blinked. What?
"I'd like to…" Mirio paused, beginning to fidget. "I-I'd like to spend more time with you, maybe?" 
"What, like…tonight?" You managed to croak, nervous laughter bubbling out of you when Mirio's shoulders jolted up around his rapidly-reddening ears.
"What?! No, not like--I-I mean, I wasn't suggesting that!" He frantically tried to backtrack, shaking his head. "I-I just meant maybe we could go get lunch! Sometime! When you have time! L-Like a date!" His voice was getting louder and louder, forcing you to tug on the hem of his jacket to bring him down a notch. 
"I would like nothing more than to get lunch with you." You stated plainly, making Mirio slow to a halt. You took a few more steps and then looked back at him, a bit confused. Was that the wrong answer? "Are…are you okay with that?" You asked tentatively.
"I…Yes! Absolutely! I'm super okay with that!" Togata replied frantically, loud all over again. "You make me feel good and I'd like to make you feel g--wait, no, that came out wrong, I promise I'm not--er, I mean, when would you-?"
"As soon as possible." You interrupted his rambling, laughing at his nonplussed expression. "Tomorrow?"
"Tomorrow! Tomorrow works!" A broad grin stretched across Mirio's face, brightening his entire visage. "I'll see you tomorrow, then!" Suddenly, his smile faded. "Oh sorry, I…uh, I promised Eri she and I would have a lunch date tomorrow."
He looked so crestfallen that you nearly started laughing all over again. "Hey, don't worry about it! Tomorrow night, then?" You suggested. "We can get something from Lunch Rush, if you're alright with everyone knowing about this."
"Oh geez, people are going to talk." Mirio groaned, his cheeks pinking up. "Nejire especially."
"We can always order something to campus, if you're worried about that. Or we could go to Lunch Rush at separate times and eat together in my quarters." While placing a reassuring hand on his arm you gently reminded him, "people will always talk."
"No way! If I'm going to be a pro hero someday, I can't get spooked by public relations now!" Mirio reasoned, his hand landing on top of your own. "Tomorrow night."
"Tomorrow night." You agreed, leaning into his side for the last stretch of distance the two of you had to walk to your housing. "Looks like this is where I'll have to leave you."
"Uh." Mirio seemed nervous all over again, his free hand jammed deep into the pocket of his varsity jacket. "I…er, I-I don't suppose I could give you a goodnight kiss?" He managed to stammer out, his tone hopeful.
"Absolutely."
"Awesome!" Mirio exclaimed. You closed your eyes in anticipation, but you were met with him giving you a simple peck on the cheek. 
You tilted your head, certain that your disappointment was a little too obvious. "That's it?"
"Oh! Oh, you wanted--oh." Mirio swallowed hard. "You're sure? I…I mean it might not be any good, haven't had much time to practice." He tried to joke. 
"If you'd rather not, it's-" 
"No! I-I do, I have for a while." Togata admitted, stunning you with the confession. "I really…I really like you." He then inhaled, squaring his shoulders. "Okay. I'm gonna' give it a shot!"
This time was…a bit different. 
His hands came up to cup your face and you could feel him trembling slightly. As Mirio leaned in, you closed your eyes yet again in a desperate bid to cling to your composure. His mouth met yours and, instead of immediately retreating like you had expected, Mirio slid one hand to cradle the back of your neck while he deepened the kiss.
When the two of you finally parted you were both flustered; you were panting and Mirio's face was bright pink. "Was that…okay?" He asked hesitantly, seemingly unaware that you were still trying to catch your breath.
"That was way better than okay." You huffed, making him laugh and punch the air victoriously. "Who the hell taught you how to kiss like that?"
"Huh? Uh, no one. I just kinda'...I mean I've seen a few movies, and they always…you know what, that's not important! We have a date tomorrow night and it's already pretty late, I should let you get some rest!" Togata responded in a rush, one hand on the small of your back ushering you through the entryway of your housing unit. "Have sweet dreams, okay cutie? I'll see you tomorrow."
"Hey, wait-!" You began to protest, a bit more than interested in what exactly he had been watching, only for him to cut you off with another kiss. Then, Mirio bolted back outside before you could recover, the blond man leaving you leaning against the wall next to the elevator in a somewhat-rumpled state. 
All you heard over the sound of your heart pounding was an elated, far-off shout of, "power!" which in turn made you burst out laughing.
What a nerd!
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cascadedkiwi · 5 months
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Candles and Quiet (Comfortember 2023)
Characters: Mirio, Nejire, Tamaki, and Female OC (Lilette) Manga/Anime: Boku no Hero Academia/My Hero Academia Genre: Comfort Summary: Sometimes a stimuli break is better with friends. Word Count: 1,276
Prompts: Alternative 4: Candles (where this started), featuring 15. Plushies and 26. Friends
The bedroom light and bedside lamp were off. The curtains were pinned shut with clothespins. Her laptop was off, her phone turned over and out of sight. The surge protectors were all switched off. The standing fan was unplugged. 
The rattling of the door handle broke the silence. 
“Oh… ok… darkness,” came a familiar cheery male voice as the door opened just a little bit. Lilette stayed still as she recognized Mirio’s voice.
“And silence,” added a light female voice. Nejire was with him, apparently.
“We’ll be right back,” Mirio said, closing the door again.
Minutes went by and Lilette sank back into the empty quiet of her room. She hadn’t shifted her position on the bed, curled in the upper corner with her back to the wall. She flexed her finger, lightly petting the plush squid she held to her stomach. Her bed was flush to the left corner of the room. She was facing the door, not really listening for their return. She wasn’t really listening to anything at all but the silence. She let her mind dance with the sort of high pitched non-sounds floating in her ear canals. 
A light knocking interrupted it this time. “We’re back,” called the female voice again. Nejire had taken care to soften her tone from the concerned one she’d used earlier.
“And we brought light!” The cheerful male announced as the door slowly opened. Mirio was whispering as well, but his happy tone almost canceled out the effort.
Lilette raised her head at the soft, wavering light that pushed against her curated darkness from the doorway. Mirio was leading in their friend group with a candle in his hand, a small flame surrounded by smooth glass. Close behind was Nejire, holding a tiny fire of her own in a prettier container. Hers was wider and flat like a tea saucer and looked like a fancy bar of soap. A third light followed them, shining small and timid from within the confines of two cupped palms. Tamaki. Lilette couldn’t help but smile. Nejire hung back to close the door behind him as he shuffled in with his head down, not saying a word.
Mirio held his candle up to his face, making the lights and shadows dance over his features. He moved the light towards Lilette, studying her curled form for a moment with a smile. “Is it ok for us to be here?”
Lilette nodded, even though he knew she would’ve stopped them the first time if she didn’t feel like having company.
Nejire stepped up, resting her candle on the nightstand. “Is sound ok or no?”
Lilette held up one hand to the light, pinching her fingers together. 
Nejire dipped her head. “We’ll keep it low.”
“Is it a no talking time for you?” Mirio asked, setting his candle further away on her bureau drawer amongst her perfume bottles. The reflections from the shaped glass danced on the ceiling.
Lilette nodded, holding up her squid to show its big puppy dog eyes and smiling face.
He let out an exaggerated breath of relief. “That’s good. We were worried when you disappeared right after dinner. You just wanted to wind down?”
She nodded again.
Nejire motioned to the bed, sitting only after Lilette gave her the go ahead. “Sometimes a stimuli break is nice. I’m guessing your mind’s pretty quiet right now, too?”
Lilette inclined her head before tilting it to look at Tamaki who had parked himself in the middle of her floor, still holding the candle in both his hands. The flame glowed gently from within his lap, softly lighting his face, chest, and shoulders. 
Mirio lowered himself to the floor as well, leaning against the bed which put him between Tamaki and Nejire. Of the four, he was the last anyone would expect to just slip into quiet time, but he had proven perfectly adaptable to Tamaki when they were little, only getting better over the years. He walked his hand over the mattress, poking at one of Lilette’s feet when he confirmed he could reach it. He grinned when she blinked curiously at him, wiggling her toes.
Tamaki rested his candle on the floor and scooted over to the bed, pulling down another of Lilette’s plushies that was laying on the mattress, a small beige moose with little brown antlers. He busied his fingers petting its soft forehead, much like how Lilette was with the squid.
Nejire laid back on the mattress, turning her head to watch the candles lighting up the nightstand next to Mirio and the bureau beyond Mirio’s head. The two flames kindly tamed the darkness, seeming to work with it instead of trying to stave it off. It was something a study lamp could never hope to accomplish. Something about the candles providing just enough light to see, just enough to confirm where they were, just enough to keep the mind from getting unhelpfully creative. 
There was something about Tamaki’s candle on the floor. Nejire couldn’t see it from this new vantage point but she was comforted by the way it lit up their two guys in their entirety. Its light brushed every surface available, all four walls of the dorm room, unobtrusive in its service. 
The three looked up when the mattress dipped and shifted with Lilette’s movements. She’d laid down on her side with her back still to the cool wall, upside down to Nejire and now much closer to Mirio. This put her in direct line of sight with Tamaki, whose gaze flitted about nervously a few times before he offered her a timid smile. She returned it with a happy one, waving both of the squid’s long tentacles at him. He waved one of the moose’s little arms back. Lilette smiled wider.
She was so very appreciative of her friends. Of the way they just seemed to understand her without demanding more. How they had put in the time and effort to get to know her and her needs. The way  they just popped in to check on her wanting nothing more than to genuinely confirm she was doing ok. They didn’t want the mask. In fact, individually and collectively, they fought against it, calling her out every time they recognized it. It had gotten to the point that they saw it when she didn’t even realize she was doing it. It was hard at times, accepting that kind of care even though she knew she’d always wanted it. But, she recognized again with Mirio playing with her open hair and Nejire fooling with the arms of her squid, they deemed her worthy. She saw the relational understanding in Tamaki’s eyes as he played with the moose’s antlers - Mirio had no doubt tugged him through that “you deserve the kind of care you want and need” ringer years ago and was still doing so to this day. Her heart smiled and warmth bloomed in her chest. She pressed one of the squid’s tentacles to her chin and pushed it down and out. 
Thank you. She would voice it when she felt like talking again but for now, she settled in the hushed atmosphere surrounded by her friends. It was a different kind of stillness from when she was alone. Not that it was more or less preferable, just dissimilar. This was like an unspoken hug. It wrapped around her with an unassuming presence, existing in tandem with her as she was. Like the mellow candlelights within the darkness, adding without taking away. It was something she was deeply grateful for that she never thought to ask for. She would have to work on that.
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Headcanons or a one shot where reader comforts Mirio early in the time where he lost his quirk?
If you like it, please be kind and reblog it 🥰
I really like this request. It was really devastating as he lost his quirk 🥺
When you reached the Mirios room in the hospital, you felt the tension and despair in it already. You straightened yourself as you lightly knocked.
"Come in.", came the voice from your boyfriend. Carefully you opened the door, slipped in and closed it again.
"Hey sweetie.", you said as you slowly walked towards him. Mirio looked for a second at you, before he turned towards the window. "Hi.", he murmured. You furrowed your eyebrows at how he acted. He never was like that. Never.
"What happened? Are you okay?", you finally asked as you stood beside his bed, your hand grabbing his. His fingers were lax, not closing around yours. "Mirio, please talk to me.", you added as Mirio did not respond after some minutes.
You could see how his lips began to quiver as he stubbornly stared out if the window. You let him have some time but as nearly ten minutes passed, you finally had enough. You did not understand what had happened that made him so... sad. And because of that, you walked right into his gaze and finally his ryes met yours.
And that was everthing it took apparently because his eyes filled with tears which quickly spilled over. Your heart ached at his obvious despair.
"Oh, sweetie.", you said, your own voice wobbling as you leaned over the edge of the bed to hug your boyfriend. This time, he did not denied the touch and hugged you tightly back.
"I lost my quirk.", he sobbed as he fisted your shirt and buried his face in your chest. "They took it from me with a quirk deleter.", he then added. You felt as you had no air left. His quirk got deleted? For good? Oh, you could understand him. You would feel equally as lost and as all your dreams were gone. And because of that, you hugfed him as tight as you could, stroking gently his hair as he cried into you. His sobs were shaking his whole body. He held so long back and now everything just broke out of him after suppressing it.
"Sweetheart.", you started, but your voice felt weak and your eyes were damp. "It will work out. We will find a solution. And if anyone can work around it, it will be you. I still love you but I know it will be difficult for you, to find your strenght again and be comfortable as who you are."
Mirio did not respond but he did not have to. You could understand that it was difficult for him now. Losing a whole part of yourself. A part which you relayed on was now gone. But time would heal the wound a bit and then you would find a solution. Every poison had a cure.
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shxtodxroki · 5 months
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Spoilers for MHA Season 6!!!!!
Without a doubt the two times I've cried hardest in all of MHA (the anime, not counting anything in the manga) were when Mirio lost his powers and when he got them back
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enterchaos-13 · 2 years
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Thinking about how nice it'd be to be hugged and comforted by my comfortable characters(s) and how much I really need it right now
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kcuf-ad · 1 year
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Bruh my comfort characters vary a lot you have no idea.
Jaden has more issues than me you have no idea, Sasuke is one of the serious characters for someone that Is only a year Younger than me, Shawn from Total Drama has a phobia that doesn't even exist, Mirio is a sunshine, Rengoku is basically an owl, Ben is the biggest Cringefail ever.
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thebnha-auhoard · 1 year
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So what is Cyberbites? {Mirio Fan anon}
HELLO ANON YOU JUST HIT BRAINROT PLACE AKAKAK!
Ahem.
Sorry for the outburst. Anyway! Cyberbites started with the want for the aesthetic and imagery that could be brought to the hero academia world of the punk variety, so for slapping that into our beloved green boy, some drastic things had to be done for him to get away from the Aldera delusion.
A fight with Bakugou is the lead to that, not one of their one sided fight no. Izuku fought and drew blood with his teeth, and so he may have ingested quite a bit of the nitroglycerin like sweat, enough that he was definitely unwell, and Bakugou would know that, he studied what he quirk could do and entail very much, and yet.
Aldera forced both boys to stay, to wait for their parents. When Inko arrived at the school, quicker than any of the fashion entangled of the explosive boy could, all of them could see the moment Izuku passed out, blood pressure too low.
The week past quickly, Izuku is hospitalized and taken out of Aldera Middle school, and with the choice, he chose to conclude his studies via online courses and tests.
Now faced with tremendous freedom of time, Izuku walks, and has time to sink a bit in his rancor and sincerely rage at his society, at the way he was treated.
Did you know, there's a bit of culture in delinquent school gangs fights and the counter it has on the "upright" societal culture?
Did you know that it is Canon that in middle school, Mirio looked a lot like a gang delinquent?
Well, combining all of that, makes Izuku and Mirio meeting very much more spicy and with weight in this au, specially since it is still a fight between the two.
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