14

Aftershocks: Heals Pt. 1

Do you truly understand what it means to exceed yourself? To, with the unwilling (or willing, Kiryu-chan) help of an enemy, do your very damndest to kill yourself?

…and Survive?

To push past your limits and survive…that is one of the keys to Serration. There is no obstacle that cannot be destroyed, even if you must destroy yourself to achieve it. That's preferable, in fact. What better way to make a sharper knife than shattering the old and reforging it anew?

It hurts now, but pain is weakness leaving the body. When the agony fades and healing ends, you will feel…more than whole. Exist just a little more than before.

Take a look at those around you, those dull lumps of ore who've never touched a crucible, never tried to sharpen and shatter and reforge themselves like you.

Don't you feel…just a little more real than they do?

Chapter 22: Break and Remake, Shatter and Reforge

…

"Ow!" Izuku awoke in pain, and still in the USJ. He didn't remember going to sleep, but now he was strapped to a gurney with a brace around his neck. And also still in pain.

A lot of pain, in fact.

"Sorry, sorry!" A man near his side apologized, "I knew you were injured, but that little jostle was enough to wake you up…hm, here." Even the light swabbing of his arm was enough to send jolts of pain through his body to the point that he barely felt the needle. "There you go! I just gave you enough painkillers to floor a pack of angry corgis."

"That doesn't sound like much," Izuku noted, already blinking sluggishly.

The medic, his face almost completely concealed by a medical mask and cap, with the exception of his brown eyes and a mole dead-center on the bridge of his nose, grinned. "Take it from someone who has five corgis, it's enough to put you down for a while."

The earthbender grunted in assent, though something about what the man had said stuck with him. "…Five corgis…" It might've been a coincidence, but it couldn't hurt to ask. "Do you know a woman named Atsuko?"

The medic stilled and glanced at him. "…I have a wife named 'Atsuko,'" he replied slowly, "How do you know that name?"

"Is your wife a librarian?"

"Yyyyeah…" The man perked up, much like a corgi, and gained a look of realization, "Wait a minute…fluffy…ish, green hair, eyes like polished emeralds, and the cutest freckles on the most pinchable cheeks you've ever seen?! That would make you…adorable little Midori-chan!" The man declared as if he'd just made an earth-shattering breakthrough. "Not so little anymore, I see. Man, Atsuko-chan is never gonna believe I ran into you!"

"That's craaaaa-" Izuku gave off a jaw-cracking yawn that made him wince, "-zy. You're 'Bunbun?' I thought you were a cop, though?"

'Bunbun' winced. "Please don't call me that, the name's Bunshin. Hissatsu Bunshin, also known as Duplicop! Or, when I'm an EMT," he tugged at his shirt, "Duplicare!...It's just what I call myself, though, I'm not a hero. Also, you should really call Atsuko-chan more, Midori-chan! She misses you!"

The earthbender was finding it hard to keep his eyes open. "Yeah…is that really your name?"

Bunshin shrugged. "What can I say? My parents were villains. Didn't have time to change it between holding down three different jobs and going to two different schools at the same time!" Another medic who looked exactly the same, except that his mole was on his left cheek, tapped on his arm. "What?"

"There's this blonde girl with a needle glove asking if she can take blood from the prisoners," another Bunshin reported, rubbing his neck awkwardly, "Should we let her?"

"Why are you asking me? I don't know!" The first mutters, tapping his chin in thought, "It seems unethical, but they are assholes…"

"The blonde…girl," Izuku managed to say around his darkening vision, "Her quirk…she drinks blood and…changes into them…has coagulant and…anesthetics on the needles."

Bunshin hummed thoughtfully, "Interesting…well, as long as she's not causing undue harm, I suppose it's alright." He glanced over and noticed that Izuku was finally fading out of consciousness. "Oh, about time. Hey, help me lift him into the ambulance!"

Even though he was jostled as the gurney rocked, Izuku barely felt it as he was secured in the back of an ambulance.

"Drinking blood and changing form, huh…" It could've been the stress his body had gone through, or the painkillers flowing through his veins, but he could've sworn that Bunshin's pupils were white before he finally fell asleep.

…

"-surgery, and it's possible his Quirk is damaged…"

He woke up again, though this time with much less pain involved. He still hurt, but at least it didn't feel like his blood had been replaced with acid. Slowly flexing his muscles to feel himself out, he let out a grunt as his entire body cramped, spine nearly arcing off of the bed he was on. Two pairs of hands reached over to push him down, and he found himself looking at Recovery Girl through hazy eyes. "Surgery?" He asked, trying not to let the possible answer make him panic.

"Not on you, though it's a close thing you foolish boy," the older woman sighed, tapping his forehead, "On him."

Izuku turned his head, almost hearing the grinding of his spine like rusted gears, and saw Aizawa resting uncomfortably in the bed beside his with a swath of bandages around his head, covering his right eye. "I thought…I fixed his bones…?" He grunted out, fighting his body's reflexive urge to tense with every jolt of pain, as that only set off more and made his muscles cramp.

"Oh, so that was you who reconstructed Aizawa-kun's shoulders?" Recovery Girl hummed thoughtfully, "Fixing the torn muscles afterwards was a snap, but an orbital socket is a bit more complex than the arms." She eyed his twitching form with a sour twist to her mouth. "And I'd be surprised if you could even lift your arms, you poor boy."

The earthbender restrained a grunt as his spine twitched. "I don't…need to touch him," he said through grit teeth, "Just need to be…within two inches from my skin…in my field."

A young woman, the second set of hands, raised an arm in the air. "Sensei? I could heal Midoriya-kun's shoulder enough to reposition his arm without pain." She gave him a kind, sympathetic smile, "Well, in your arm at least."

Recovery Girl sucked her teeth, giving Izuku a searching look. "…Alright," she relented grudgingly, nodding at the other woman before jabbing a finger at Izuku's nose, "But if you even think of trying to downplay your injuries, I'll keep you in here for a month."

"Okay," he replied in lieu of nodding, watching as the other woman, a pretty one with long orange hair, kind brown eyes and a large bust straining the front of her shirt, held her hands out above his arms, the ringed gloves on her hands flickering. A glowing orange screen appeared between her hands and while he couldn't see what it showed her, Izuku figured it must've been some sort of x-ray by the way she grimaced.

"You're quite damaged, Midoriya-kun," she said sadly, closing her eyes, "This might tingle a bit." Suddenly, he felt something being pushed through his skin, sinking through his flesh to meld within. It wasn't quite the absence of pain, more of a lessening. As she trailed her hands down his arm, Izuku could see sweat beading on her forehead and while it probably wasn't the most pertinent detail, it seemed as if she'd lost half a cup size from the way her shirt was sagging. "Phew!" She breathed, taking her hands away and rocking back on her heels, "Try moving your arm, Midoriya-kun."

Carefully, Izuku clenched his fingers into a fist then curled his arm, noting the change in the levels of discomfort; it felt much like he'd spent too much time training his strikes with his left arm, sore and about to cramp. "It feels alright, mostly sore," he noted, twisting his wrist experimentally, "I can help."

Recovery Girl grumbled something under her breath before nodding. "Come on, Inoue-kun, help me push his bed closer," she ordered, and the two carefully shoved Izuku's bed closer to Aizawa's. "Alright, Midoriya-kun, do your best. If you think you can't help, then just leave it alone instead of possibly doing more damage, alright?"

"Right," he muttered, lifting his arm and hovering his hand over the Underground Hero's face. Closing his eyes, he focused on his field, reaching out to probe the bones in and around Aizawa's eye sockets. He found the issue quickly; part of the orbital socket had cracked into pieces and parts had shifted to press down on the ocular nerve. If Izuku couldn't fix it, they would have to dive in with very careful micro-surgery to shift the pieces around, but even then it wasn't a guarantee that it would wholly fix the issue.

He tried to shift the pieces of bone away from the eye, but paused as Aizawa unconsciously shuffled. Wait, better idea. Carefully grabbing the most dangerous pieces, he turned them into liquid and directed them back and away; using the shape of the other undamaged socket, he molded the bone back into shape then released it from his field. "There…I think," the earthbender breathed, letting his hand drop by his side.

Recovery Girl pushed his bed away as the other woman, Inoue, checked his work with her device. "Oh wow, it's perfect!" She marveled, focusing for a second, "And…there! His eye will heal normally without any kind of impact on his vision or Quirk."

The older woman went over to check his work, humming under her breath. "That's very good, Midoriya-kun, I might need to tap you for some accidents every now and again." She approached his bed with a small grimace on her face, "Now, I'm going to give you some more painkillers, but these will be the last for a while. Try to sleep, Midoriya-kun, Inoue-kun and I will do our best to make sure the worst is healed, but don't expect to be leaving here tomorrow."

"I understand," he nodded and regretted doing so immediately. Thankfully, relief came swiftly and he faded once more out of consciousness. Before he entirely fell asleep, he could hear Recovery Girl directing Inoue.

"...Now, focus on the base of the skull and the neck, Inoue-kun, and pace yourself…"

…

When Izuku awoke, it was to daylight streaming in through the windows, illuminating the empty beds around him. He felt much better that time, more like a massive cramping bruise than a side of beef tenderized into paste by All Might. Even with the correct positioning, drilling yourself headfirst into the ground is still dangerous, he noted, carefully flexing and releasing his muscles from his toes to his face. Yup, I'm still in pain. Hopefully I can get some food to hurry this along, I'd hate to be stuck in this bed for more than a week. Or more than a couple of days. Or two days.

His movements hadn't gone unnoticed, as the door to the office slid open and the young woman from before greeted him with a smile. He had passively taken in her looks when she had healed him, but in the light of day he could confirm that she was outright beautiful; long orange hair, brown doe eyes with a cute button nose and plump lips. And her curvaceous figure would be an even match for Yu's. "Good afternoon, Midoriya-kun!" She greeted him with a sweet voice, hands clasped in front of her, making her chest even more pronounced. "How do you feel?"

"Better, comparatively," he nodded, pausing in thought, "Did you say it's afternoon?"

"Oh yes, you've been asleep for nearly twelve hours, Midoriya-kun," she replied, standing next to him and summoning that orange holographic screen again, quickly and efficiently scanning his chest, "And you appear to be healing nicely, too. You did quite a number on yourself: hairline fractures from your skull down to your pelvis, torn muscles all over your body, bruising on your back and chest…and the strain on your neck! You're very lucky it didn't break."

Izuku grunted as he shifted to try and get more comfortable, "Well, I can't claim credit for all of that. I did get smacked around quite a bit by a monster apparently designed to kill All Might."

Inoue gasped, hand flying up to her mouth. "What?! Really?! Who would do such a thing?!"

"They called themselves the League of Villains, I think," he replied, noting the IV drip going into his arm and declaring it an entirely poor substitute for food, given how his stomach decided to growl thunderously at that moment. "Er, Inoue-san…"

"Call me Orihime, Midoriya-kun!" she interjected brightly, "I have a question for you real quick. Why are your bones three times as dense as they should be? I mean, realistically speaking, your bones are covered in hairline fractures but if they weren't as dense they would've been splinters."

He licked his lips, noting how dry his mouth felt. "Well, Inoue-er, Orihime-san, my Quirk-"

"-Your Quirk involves controlling rocks, right? Assuming that means more than just 'rocks' and more specifically 'earthen materials' including minerals, then by stressing the structure of your bones and manually reinforcing them with calcium repeatedly would lead to an increase in density over time," she cut him off with a storm of mumbling, "And by cross-referencing the amount of calcium in a standard supplement and recommended daily dosage with the density of your bones, I would say you've stressed and reinforced your skeleton everyday for past two to three years."

Izuku paused, mouth still open. So this is what that's like on the other side, he realized, clearing his throat, "Well, Orihime-san, that's mostly correct, except that it isn't everyday, we use Sunday to rest." His stomach gurgled audibly, and he felt his face heat up as she giggled, "I was wondering-"

"Is he awake yet?!" A familiar voice shouted as the door to the Recovery Room was nearly kicked open. It took less than a second for a pair of honey eyes to lock onto his bedridden form. "IZUKU!"

Himiko lunged for him like a cat, only to run headfirst into Orihime's chest and bounce off. "Oof!" The orange-haired nurse stumbled back a step but recovered impressively quick, "Toga-chan, you can't just jump on injured people! And what did I say about shouting?"

"Yeah I won't whatever just lemme see him!" She tried reaching around the nurse, only for the older woman to seize her by the shoulders and shove her face into her cleavage. "Icamtbreaf!"

"Calm down before I knock you out, Toga-chan," Orihime warned, nodding as she saw Himiko's struggles slow, "And remember, if you don't treat him gently he'll be stuck in here for longer, alright?"

The blonde blooddrinker calmly nodded into the nurse's breasts and was finally released, her face red from oxygen deprivation.

Izuku expected a comment about getting smothered by pillows but Himiko said nothing as she approached his bedside, her eyes scanning up and down his bare chest and blanket covered legs, taking in the streaks of red and hues of purple rippling across his skin. "Izuku…" she said gently, tenderly laying her hand on his, "How do you feel?"

"Like one big bone bruise," he answered honestly, carefully rolling his neck and shoulders with a bit of a grimace, "Though, better than yesterday. I hope I won't be here long."

Her honey gaze bored deeply into his eyes, searching for even the slightest hint of a hidden pain or unfortunate truth. When she was assured he was being entirely truthful about his condition, Himiko sighed so deeply her whole body sagged and she slumped onto his shoulder where she quietly began to cry.

Izuku blinked and did his best to wrap Himiko in his embrace, stifled by the bed as he was. Orihime gave him an understanding smile as she pulled a set of dividers around them to give a bit of privacy. "Himiko," he murmured, stroking her head from her crown to her neck, "It's alright. I'm alright, and I'm not going anywhere, okay?"

She only shook her head, face still pressed to his skin. Somehow she managed to squirrel her way into his bed, hugging him with her whole body as he tried to comfort her.

Eventually, her tears dried up and Himiko pulled back, wiping her puffy eyes on her sleeves before reaching out to grasp his face in her palms and pull him into a deep, gentle kiss. They stayed that way, lips pressed together, breathing through the nose for a long few minutes. "...I thought you died, Izuku," she finally said, breaking away though her fingers still stroked his cheek, "When I saw your armor and thought it was your body…something broke in me. I…that skinny prick with the hands on him, I tried to drain him of all his blood, I was this close to stabbing him in the neck…"

Izuku swallowed dryly, wanting to interrupt and comfort his lover but knowing that derailing her train of thought now would be catastrophic. Instead, he gently rubbed her back.

"…And then, seeing you alive again, it made me realize something," she murmured, reaching out to lay her palm flat against his chest, directly over his heart, "There is no me without you. If you go, then so do I."

He felt his breath catch in his throat. "H-Himiko…what are you saying?"

"You are my Sun," Himiko stated, her eyes fixed on his, "Basking in your presence, just knowing that you're looking at me, fills me with warmth after a lifetime of cold. You are my Stars, those dots of light so far away that I will always reach for…and Izuku? You don't have my heart." She took his hand and guided it to her sternum; his palm pressed down on soft skin, met the solid bone and cartilage underneath, her heartbeat drumming steadily against his palm. "You are my Heart. If you die…my heart dies with you."

"Himiko, don't say that," Izuku whispered, a pit in his stomach, "This career that we've chosen, this life we lead, it's dangerous-"

She silenced him with a finger on his lips. "Don't say it," she warned, resignation and relief on her features, "Don't have me make a promise I can't keep. I won't…I'm glad you're okay, Zuku. As soon as you get out of here, we aren't leaving bed for a weekend."

He thought of trying to bring the situation up again, but a look at her surprisingly stern visage put an end to that…for now. "Me too, Himiko. I know Momo and Aizawa were hurt, but was anyone else seriously injured?" Izuku gave her a quick scan and found her whole and hale.

"Besides a few cuts and bruises, most of the worst injuries were from overusing their Quirk; besides Thirteen, Yaomomo and Aizawa, the worst off was the Sparkling Frenchie, but Recovery Girl had that handled quickly." A vicious, satisfied grin curled Himiko's lips and she stretched in her seat like a cat, "The most injured, by far, were the villains. Those fuckin' Villains should be embarrassed. A class of 'Baby Heroes' wrecked their shit, most of whom had never even been in a real fight before. I bet their cred is tanked, now. Plus they went to jail, so there's that…also, I got a lot of blood from them, and some of the lady villains were pretty hot, you know?"

The Earthbender blinked, slightly nonplussed. "…Sure, I guess?" He'd been running on instinct and adrenaline, so most of what he remembered was a blur of violence, racing thoughts, hitting things and trying not to get hit by other things. "…Why are you bringing that up, exactly?"

His lover crossed her legs and gave him a sharp, sultry smile. "You scared the shit outta me, you know? So, now you owe me, and it's time for our deal. You vetoed our classmates and our friends, and the forms I just got are neither of those. It's time to pay up, big boy." The way she licked her lips sent something scary down his spine.

"I…guess, yeah," Izuku acquiesced with a sigh, "Are you sure, though-?"

"Izuku!" A familiar voice called, the compact form of his mother punching through the curtain wall and only barely stopping short of hurling herself at him. "My Baby!" Inko gasped, emerald green eyes sweeping up and down his injured form, tears already pooling beneath, "Oh, Izuku!"

The strength of his mom's arms as she hugged him made his body wince in protest, but the sheer warmth and relief her presence brought was more than enough to make up for it. "Hi mom," he said lamely, ignoring a pained grimace to return her embrace. "How are you?"

His mother drew back, giving him an incredulously confused look. "…How am I? Izuku…I've been experiencing any parent's third-worst nightmare. How do you think I am?!" She hugged him again. "Oh, Izuku, when I got the call that you were in the hospital because of a Villain attack…I just about felt my heart stop. I'm half-tempted to drag you home, wrap you in bubble wrap and lock the apartment down…"

"Oh, sorry…"

"Don't be sorry, Izuku," Inko muttered, wiping her eyes on her sleeve before kissing his forehead, "It's your teachers and the Principal who are gonna be sorry. Why the hell did a bunch of teenagers have to fight a crowd of Villains? Where were the teachers?! Where-?!" Something rattled nearby as her eyes blazed with righteous parental fury before she released a harsh sigh and slumped against her son. "Sorry, Izuku, I'm just really mad you and the rest of your class ended up in this situation."

Himiko hugged the older woman from behind. "We know, Inko-mama," she said softly, "I don't think it's really the school's fault, the leader of the Villains was talking about killing All Might. I think they might've been the ones responsible for the break-in last week."

Inko separated from the two teens, running a hand through her hair with a heavy exhale. "I'm going to check in with the nurse and see how long they expect you to be in here." She gave them both a kiss on the cheek and another squeeze before leaving through the curtain wall.

"Uh, Himi-chan? Are you there?" Ochako's voice drifted through the room, followed by her head poking through the curtains. "There ya are! Izuku! Yer awake!" A pair of large, suspiciously light bags came with her, bundling them into Himiko's arms before the gravity girl carefully threw herself at Izuku, snuggling into his bruised chest.

"Hey, Ochako-chan," he replied, gently stroking her hair then cupping her cheek, "How are you doing?"

"Better'n you, that's for sure," she answered, scrubbing her face on her arm before giving him a bright smile, "I'm glad you're alright, Deki-kun. When you passed out, I, well, maybe…panicked. Just a li'l bit, though!"

"Izuku?" The blooddrinker gasped theatrically, grabbing her hair with both hands,"Izuku?! Izuukuuuuuuu!"

"I was try'n ta wake 'im up!" Ochako blustered, rosy cheeks getting more rosy, "Don' make it sound so…dramatic!"

"It was, though," Himiko pointed out with a toothy grin, "You almost jumped on him but All Might caught you. It was adorable!"

"Glad ya find mah embarrassment cute," the gravity girl mumbled, glancing up to find Izuku giving her a warm smile as he stroked her red cheek with his thumb, "Don't say nothin', Deki-kun," she warned before leaning up and kissing him firmly.

"I wasn't going to say anything," he said, eyes twinkling.

"Don't think it, neither," she added, kissing him again, deeper that time. She was content to keep her tongue behind her lips, merely alternating pressure against his, melting into his palms as they cupped her cheeks.

"Oh, that was quick…" Inko commented as she stepped through the curtains and found her son kissing another girl as Himiko watched with a happy smile.

Ochako practically threw herself back with her face now resembling a tomato. "Oh-uh, um, h-hello! I'm U-Uraraka Oc-Ochako, it'sreallynicetomeetyou!" She bowed sharply, nearly hitting her forehead on Izuku's bed.

The older Midoriya blinked bemusedly, a small, confused smile on her lips. "Yes…I, uh, know that, Ochako-chan. I drove you to the ramen shop, remember? Like…less than an hour ago? We had a really nice conversation about your parents' business."

The gravity girl paused, thinking back, and blushed harder. "O-oh, yeah…"

"Did you say…ramen?" Izuku asked, before a deep, rumbling growl issued from his stomach, literally shaking his bed so that the legs rattled against the floor. There was a second of stunned silence, and even Orihime poked her head over the curtains to give him an astonished look. "…Excuse me, I'm a bit peckish."

"No kiddin'," Ochako murmured, shaking herself out of it, "And yeah, we were gonna go on a date to that ramen place you guys love so much today, 'cept you're here instead, so I decided to bring it to you. And it might not be a date, but the food smells really good. That counts, right?"

"Definitely," the earthbender nodded, his nose twitching at the barely-restrained scent of noodles, broth and meat.

As they broke out the ramen in plastic containers, the conversation, when it wasn't interrupted by sounds of delight and enthusiastic chewing, was focused on lighter topics like grades and classes and such. "The nurse expects you to be here for another two days, Izuku," Inko explained after swallowing a mouthful of ramen, "And also expects that you'll have to be restricted to light activity for about a week afterwards."

Outwardly, Izuku nodded. We'll see about that, he thought, sharing a meaningful look with Himiko.

Unfortunately real life intruded on the quiet, comfortable moment and Inko had to leave, shortly followed by Himiko and Ochako. Not that they wanted to leave, it was just that the rules prohibited more than three people visiting a single patient and Mina had been texting up an impatient storm asking when they were going to make space.

With one last kiss, they left Izuku in the nurse's wing, but he wasn't alone for long. Barely two minutes had passed before he had company once more in the forms of Mina and Eiri. "Midori!" The pink-skinned girl greeted with a bright smile that flickered as her yellow eyes swept his bare chest. "Wow…I always appreciate it when you go shirtless, but up close…" Her hand shakily trailed across his abdomen, lingering on the rippling bruises, "Man, you could grind meat on these things."

Izuku grinned wryly. "Feeling a bit more sympathy for ground meat nowadays," he paused, "…Not a sentence I thought I'd say."

Her smile faded as they sat on either side of his bed, taking his hand. "How ya feelin' Midori? Like you hit a beast with the mother of all body slams?" Eiri's visage was uncharacteristically stony even as she ran her thumb over his knuckles.

"Better than yesterday, still pretty beat up, though," he paused, his face twisting into a slight grimace. "…I also really have to go to the bathroom."

"Oh!" Eiri jumped up, "I can help!" She swept his blanket aside and slipped an arm under his knees and around his shoulders, obviously intending to carry him bridal-style to his stuttered protests.

"Wa-wait, Eiri-chan, h-hold on a sec-!" Izuku flailed ungracefully as the red head tried to pick him up, her face turning red and her eyes bulging as she went to heft him into her arms. He barely made it a few inches off of the bed when she collapsed under the strain, a pained hiss escaping his lips when his back met the mattress. "I was gonna say…"

Eiri huffed, sweat dotting her forehead. "You're a lot heavier than you look, Izuku…"

"And you're already pretty beefy," Mina added, glitters of amusement dancing in her eyes, "I'm not gonna say that wasn't hilarious, but maybe handle with care, Eiri-chan?"

"Ah, r-right, sorry…" It went without saying that her face now matched her hair.

With painful slowness, Izuku slipped his legs over the side of his bed and pushed himself up, Eiri hovering worriedly by his side as he did. When a cramp struck his legs and nearly sent him toppling, she was there to grab him, his arm going around her shoulders. "Sorry about this," he muttered, grabbing his IV stand, "Not a fan of needing this much help to go to the bathroom, but I also really don't want to use a bedpan…or a catheter."

"It's okay, I'm just…glad I can help," Eiri mumbled her reply, the two stumping towards the bathroom. "Do you, uh…?"

"No! No, no, I don't need that much help," he denied with red cheeks, leaning more heavily on his IV stand as he entered the room proper, closing the door behind him, "Just give me a minute, alright?"

The redhead grunted in quiet assent, her expression stony and dark. Crossing her arms, she leaned against the wall and sagged, letting her distress at seeing the half-healed bruises and abrasions peppering his back show. She ran a hand through her red locks, eyes catching on the light lines on her skin where she'd caught the sword strike from that one villain, and sighed again. "…You alright in there?" She asked after a few minutes of silence.

"…Yeah, just had my legs cramp while I was getting up," came the exasperated, muffled reply. It was followed by the sound of water flowing, then the door opened as Izuku exited, looking both relieved and annoyed. "Well that was irritating."

She offered her shoulder again but when he made to hobble back to his bed, she found that her feet refused to move even as something hot and unpleasant bubbled in her chest. "...m'sorry," she mumbled, hair curtaining her face as she looked at the ground.

"What? Eiri-chan?"

"I shoulda been there," Eiri said shakily, "You got hurt and I…all I could do was stand there and watch. It's-I mean, my 'Hero Code' or whatever it's called…I might not be the fastest or the strongest, I can't fly or shoot lasers out of my eyes or whatever…all I can do is take a hit. So I'll stand in front, and I'll take the hits and I'll protect whoever's behind me…b-but, yesterday, you…and I couldn't…"

Her shoulders shook as twin streams of tears dripped down her face, the sound of them hitting the floor an echoing damnation of her weakness.

Izuku's scarred, calloused hand grasped her chin and gently tilted it up so that their eyes met. "Eiri," he said softly, "You shouldn't feel guilty for-"

"It's not the first time," she confessed, "Back before we came to Yuuei, there was this villain, huge with a stone jaw…he was threatening a bunch of students from my school, including Mina…I froze. I couldn't do a thing, and in the end Mina talked him down and he walked away. But I…I just stood there. And then yesterday…"

"Eiri," he repeated firmly, "Don't feel guilty, alright? I chose to fight that thing, and personally…I wouldn't want you to take those hits for me. I would rather not take those hits. It hurt. But more importantly, if you feel too slow or too weak, those things can be changed with time and determination, both of which you have." He gave her a soft smile and wiped her tears away with his thumb. "You're worth more than your Quirk, you know? You've got a strong heart and a pure desire, and not everyone has both. You'll be an amazing Hero, Eiri."

She stared at him for a few silent seconds, then stepped against his chest and hugged him firmly, burying her face in his shoulder. "…Will you help me?" She asked softly, closing her eyes as he ran a hand through her hair, "Help me be faster, stronger?"

"Of course," Izuku murmured, resting his cheek on her crown. Her muscles are so defined, but she's still soft to hold… "Give me a bit to think of something, and we can start training as soon as I'm out."

"Okay…" Eiri whispered, squeezing him slightly. Mmm…why does he smell good? Her cheeks ened darkened and she pulled away quickly, nearly making him stumble before she supported him again. "Let's get you back to bed."

He hummed in agreement, face showing irritation. "Can't wait to be healed and done with this…"

Mina gave them an oddly subdued smile as Izuku laid back down. "Must've been quite an interesting trip, eh?" She laid a hand on his wrist, not quite taking his hand but holding him all the same.

"Let's not talk about how interesting or not my trip to the bathroom may or may not have been," Izuku said with a sheepish look, "How have you two been?"

With that question, Mina launched into a long ramble about how the whole class sans him were expected to be in class the next day. The whole 'our class was attacked by Villains' thing was no excuse to miss out on their education, apparently.

And then they just talked, about frequently inane things or the troubles they were having with certain classes, like how Mina, despite being cheery, over the top and a bit much most days couldn't act for shit during their Tabletop Roleplaying Tactical Hero Assessments, or how Eiri was struggling with English and its strange, sometimes long-running sentence structure.

But all too soon they were called away, leaving him with a gentle squeeze and a peck on the cheek, before they were replaced by Kyouka and Toru. The punk-rock chick seemed as though she was there on sufferance, arms crossed, legs crossed, shoulders hunched and heel bouncing, the picture of stress. The invisible girl, by contrast, was hugging his arm and holding his hand; and while he couldn't see her face, he could feel her breath on his cheek as she babbled.

"-and I know you didn't do it on purpose but thinking you were dead made me really sad and then seeing you alive and then slamming that thing into the ground made me really happy and I wanted to give you a biiiiig hug but you looked like you were going to die again and I didn't wanna make it worse and now you're in the hospital and looking a lot better and I also like that you're not wearing a shirt you should do that more often and I still wanna give you a big hug but I can't so when you get better and come back home don't be surprised if I give you a big hug, okay?" She finished, somehow having not needed to take a breath.

"Okay," Izuku nodded sagely, "I like hugs."

"Me too! I like cuddles even better because they're super long hugs!" Toru agreed, enthusiastically hugging his arm, "Ooh, once you get back, do you wanna watch a movie? A horror movie so that when the really scary stuff happens I'll jump on your lap and pretend to be scared, but just so I have an excuse to cuddle, is that okay? I don't get scared that easily."

"Sure, just as long as you don't spill the popcorn," he replied, and Kyouka couldn't take anymore inane conversation.

"Midoriya," she cut across whatever Toru was going to say, her jacks twiddling, "Do you know anything about staff fighting?"

The earthbender thought for a second. "I know a bit, yeah," he admitted with a nod, "I know more about knife-fighting than staff fighting, but I would say I'm pretty good with a staff."

Kyouka looked down, color seeping into her cheeks even as her jacks continued to fidget in front of her. "Could you…teach me?" She asked softly, eyes peeking at him through the veil of her thick lashes.

"…Yeah, of course," Izuku nodded with a smile, before his eyes took in her form, "Though now that I think about it, a quarter staff wouldn't fit your form and even a bo might be too long, perhaps a jo would be more fitting?"

The punk-rock girl frowned, crossing her arms over her modest chest, "What do you mean, 'my form'?" She questioned sharply, her jacks making an X in front of her as she glared at him.

He blinked, unconcerned, "You aren't very tall, nor are your shoulders broad. You have a more petite, slender figure, so giving you a weapon that's too long for you would be a detriment, not an advantage," he explained matter-of-factly, "Given what I've seen of your reaction time, I'd say speed would most suited for you, hence escrima sticks being the best bet. And, as a plus, it would be child's play to have the ends made to connect, so that you could bring them together to make a short staff…or since you can channel vibrations through your jacks, the sticks could be designed to amplify the power or even-" Izuku's head whipped around, emerald eyes shining with a wild glint, "Where are my notebooks?! I need to write this down!"

Kyouka leaned back in her chair, slightly disturbed by the sudden twitches the earthbender had developed along with the manic grimace on his face, "Um…I think they're back in your room…? Maybe your backpack?" She winced as Izuku went still and the heartbeat monitor hooked up to his arm began to chirp an alarm.

His face was still but his hands had come together, finger tips tapping against each other as a bead of sweat trailed down his cheek. A low rumbling seemed to emanate from his chest, but the rocker girl could hear what it truly was: mumbling. Mumbling so low and rapid it sounded like an electric engine. "-butthenshecouldcombinethetwointoasingleweaponbutnotlikeastaffmorelikeaprongedstickormoreaccuratelyaforkbutthentheinternalmechanismswouldneedtobeshieldedfromthepowerofthevibrationswhilealsoabletochannelthemintoaneffectiveweapon-"

The curtains were thrown open as Inoue stormed through, orange eyes taking in the situation at a glance. "What did you do?!" She demanded, hands on her hips, "I specifically said 'don't stress the patient!' And what would you call this?" She jabbed a finger damningly at the squawking machine and swept it over the mumbling Izuku, "Because it seems to me you're stressing the patient!"

"It's not my fault!" Toru cried defensively, invisible arms flapping as the nurse turned a glare in her general direction. The invisible girl flung her arms around Izuku's head and pulled it into her chest, "See, I'm helping!"

Kyouka blinked, one of her jacks rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly as her cheeks were suffused with redness. "I, uh…I don't know what's going on," she admitted with a shrug, wincing slightly as Inoue stared at her, "I didn't…mean to?"

Orihime, maintaining her stare, slowly lifted a finger and pointed towards the exit.

"Ow!" Toru squealed, jumping back, the front of her tank top deforming as she rubbed an invisible hand against her chest, "He bit me…"

Izuku stiffened, his hands coming up to touch his temples as his eyes closed, and he went still. The monitor went quiet as his heartbeat started to drop, and the punk-rock girl took the opportunity to slip away. "Sorry, Midoriya, we can talk about this later," she mumbled, twirling one of her jacks with her finger, "I'm glad you're not dead and all that…Later."

The nurse sighed, giving her patient a once-over. Besides the sweat as a result of his elevated heart rate, she determined that he'd be no worse for the wear once he snapped out of whatever it was, besides some cramping. Nodding, Orihime shot a stern look in Toru's general direction, pointed at her eyes then pointed at the girl (actually about four inches to the left of her head) in the classic 'I'm watching you' gesture.

Toru sighed as the nurse left them alone, still rubbing her chest. "Well, not how I pictured it going down, but we're alone now," she muttered, "Now I just-"

Izuku gasped sharply, his eyes snapping open before his body slumped back on the bed. "…Ow," he whispered, rubbing his temples, "Been such a long time…I thought I was over that…"

"Over what?"

He blinked and looked around, noticing the rocker girls' absence, "Where did…oh, uh, well…I've always had this…thing, I guess, where I start thinking about something interesting, usually Quirks and I have an idea. Then, I have another idea. And another, and another and then there's this storm of thoughts just…rattling around in my skull and I have to let it out somehow…when I was younger, I didn't make a lot of friends because of the mumbling I did about their Quirks. It was only after I learned how to write down my thoughts, neatly, that it kinda died down, and even then I still had problems with it. Filling my notebooks, plus meditation, helped me concentrate all that wild energy into something useful, but…I don't have anything to write with."

Toru took a second to absorb the flood of words escaping his mouth before nodding. "Sounds fun," she noted, patting his arm, "Let me see if I can get you a pen and paper, okay?" She handed him a cup of water and padded over to the office, knocking before pushing the door open. "Excuse me, Orange-sensei, can I borrow some paper and something to write with, please?"

Orihime silently passed over a clipboard with a pen and a blank sheet of paper before going back to her lunch, which smelled strongly of curry despite looking like sushi.

The instant the writing materials touched his hands, Izuku began to draw, the pen flying over the paper as a pair of sticks took shape. They looked fairly simple to Toru's eyes, but then details became filled in as characters sprawled over the once-blank sheet, to the point that he had to flip the paper over and cover that, too. Once that part was done, he flipped the paper again and began to shade the rough outline of the sticks, adding details and notes including possible names for the weapons, including 'Feel the Beat,' 'Drumming Sticks' and 'Stick it to 'Em.' The most interesting thing she noted, though, was a quick diagram of the end of the sticks sticking together to make a longer stick and another of the sticks combining to make a bigger, two-pronged stick instead.

"Wow," she murmured, brushing her fingertips over the paper and noting that it felt warm to the touch, "All of this was in your head?"

Izuku blushed, unconsciously scratching his cheek with the tip of the pen, leaving a short squiggle circling a few of his faded freckles. "W-well, this and some other ideas, but those were unrealistic so I had to scrap them."

Toru giggled, licking her thumb and reaching over to clean the ink from his cheek. "It's gotta be pretty loud inside your head, huh?" Her position would've given him a prime view down her shirt if she hadn't been invisible, more's the pity.

"Yeah, sometimes," he admitted, squinting as she rubbed his face, "Ow."

"It doesn't wanna come off!" She grunted, scrubbing her hand against his cheek.

Izuku grabbed her hand to stop her and held up the pen to show the fancy name written along the side. "It's one of those pens made for doctors, with the ink that dries really fast," he told her, with his face red for a different reason. "Um…you…I didn't freak you out, did I?" He asked shyly, "I know all the mumbling can make people a little uncomfortable-"

"Why would it freak me out?" Toru asked, genuinely confused, "I mean, I've never seen you do that before so it was a little scary and you definitely freaked Jiro-chan out but not me! I think it's totally awesome! You know, you're pretty smart, Izuku…and kinda scary…scary smart!"

"I, uh…" The invisible girl resisted the urge to coo as his cheek heated under her palm, "Toru-chan…you're still holding my face."

"Yup," she replied bluntly, "Should I hold somewhere else, instead?"

He blushed and stammered.

"Ooh, that was a dirty thought!" Toru giggled, pointedly not moving her hand even as silence fell and built between them. "Izuku…"

Izuku looked her in the eyes somehow, the polished emerald of his eyes glimmering beneath his thick lashes as he gazed up at her, "Yes, Toru?" He asked softly, his breath shortening into slight gasps as she leaned in, strands of her invisible hair brushing his cheek, his tongue darting out to unconsciously wet his lips.

"…You bit me on the boob."

He blinked at her. "…When?" He asked, before thinking back. "…Oh. Well, I mean, you did kinda shove my face in your chest, and I didn't really bite you so much as…uh, nip."

Toru sat back on her chair, rubbing her chest. "Yeah, that's true, but at the USJ I got separated from everyone else and landed in the Water Park Zone with Shimo and she froze pretty much everyone, but a couple of them broke out so I had to knock them out and one them elbowed me right in the boob and then you nipped there, so it felt like getting bit." She paused in thought, "It kinda hurt, is my point."

"Well, I'm sorry I caused you pain, Toru-chan, how can I make up for it?" Izuku asked seriously, somehow still looking her directly in the eyes, clasping her hand with all the solemnity of a man asking a doctor how much longer he had to live.

She tapped her chin, audibly pondering the question, before giving a grin and her answer. "Kiss it better?"

As expected, the earthbender went red, from the tips of his ears to most of the way down his chest, but instead of gawping in surprise or stammering cutely, Izuku wore a look of thought. "…Are you saying these things just to fluster me?"

"Yeah!" Toru answered, bouncing happily in her seat with a giggle, "You look like a big, fluffy tomato!"

Exhaling, Izuku slumped back against his pillow, his blush fading. "It's rude to tease someone like that, Toru-chan," he mumbled, blinking blearily, "And it's especially mean when they're injured."

Still laughing, the invisible girl patted his hand consolingly. "I wasn't trying to be mean, Izukun, I like that I can get you all flustered and stammery. It's adorable, especially since it's coming from the guy who gives it to Himi-chan nightly."

Izuku froze, once more turning red but wearing an expression of pure mortification. "…You've heard us?" he whispered, sounding horrified.

Toru tilted her head. "You were trying to be quiet?"

He groaned and buried his burning face in his hands, mumbling apologies into his calloused palms.

"It's alright, sometimes I have a hard time sleeping so I walk around a bit, and there's only so many times you can hear," Toru started slapping her palms together, "'Oh Izuku, right there! There! Right there! Harder!' before you figure it out, you know?" She definitely wasn't going to tell him she'd heard slapping noises and went to see if someone was training late at night or something untoward, that would just make her seem silly.

"OoooooaaaauuuuuugggghhhI'm so sorry," Izuku groaned, peeking at her through his fingers, face still cherry red.

"Don't be; you both sound like you enjoy it, and that's good!" She chirped, blithely ignoring his embarrassment, "But I do have an idea for how you can make it up to me?"

He dropped his hands, the color beginning to fade from his face. "What is it?"

"Dinner." He squinted and opened his mouth, only for the invisible girl to cut him off, "And I don't mean 'dinner' like 'when you make everyone in the class dinner,' I mean, me and you somewhere nice eating food. Just us."

Izuku squinted at her. "So…kinda like a date?"

"No," Toru denied, "Exactly like a date."

He blinked, nonplussed. "O-oh…well, alright then, Toru-chan, I'll take you out on a date…once I can actually leave this place, you know."

Toru jumped to her feet with a whoop, carefully but enthusiastically glomping Izuku in his bed. "Alright, I can't wait! Well, I kinda have to wait, but you know what I mean!" It was a bit strange, having a bunch of invisible hair shoved in his face, but Izuku thought she smelled rather nice. "I'm not sure if I said it yet, but I'm really glad you're not dead, Izukun." Then there was a quiet smack of lips as she kissed his cheek.

"Me too," he replied, giving her a brief squeeze.

"Okay, I'm gonna give you some space, don't want you getting tired of me already," she teased, patting his cheek, "But I'll be back later. Get better soon, alright?"

"I'll try," Izuku demurred, watching her clothes as she slipped through the curtains, "Wow. That was not what I expected to happen today." A deep yawn slipped through his lips and he snuggled back into his pillow, feeling the pull of sleep darkening his eyes.

Orihime pushed through the divider, holding a cup with some sort of thick liquid sloshing around inside. "Hey Midoriya-kun, I was wondering when you'd start getting tired. Being as injured as you are, your body is going to prioritize healing over being conscious. Here, drink this, it's pretty much dinner in a cup. It doesn't taste like much, but it has all the things you need in a meal." She watched him drink the meal down, smiling in sympathy as he grimaced. "As I said, not that good. I'll make sure you're not disturbed, and then when you wake up we'll start your first healing session, okay?"

After that, I can meditate and use my chakra to heal even faster, and then I'll be out of here, he thought, outwardly nodding. "Thank you, Orihime-san," he muttered, tugging his sheet up to cover his chest, realizing that without a distraction the pain that had been pushed into the background came rushing back, his body throbbing in time to his heartbeat. Been less than a day and I'm already tired of this crap.

He had just found a comfortable place to drift off when a series of loud noises echoed through the wing. The door slammed open and though he couldn't see who it was, a feminine voice half-shouted, "Where is he?!"

"Excuse me, you can't just come charging in here!" He heard Orihime rebuke, and saw her shadow throw out her arms to block whoever had come thundering inside.

"Izuku!" A familiar voice called, and he saw another shadow swiftly, gently but firmly shoulder-check the nurse aside a second before they burst through the curtains and he beheld who it was.

Clad in her skin-tight Costume, though her mask and horns had been discarded in favor of her favorite jean jacket, Takeyama Yu gazed at him with wide amethyst eyes that swiftly filled with tears as she clapped her hands over her mouth. And then his vision was covered in blonde locks as she went from standing to giving him a full body embrace in the blink of an eye, arms and legs wrapped around him as she peppered his face with kisses.

"Oh, Izuku!" Yu murmured, her hands brushing across his chest, gently checking his injuries, "Himiko told me about what happened at the USJ, but they wouldn't let anyone see you while you were unconscious. Then she texted me a couple hours ago but I was on patrol so I didn't check my phone until I was done, and when I saw that you were awake I had to come see you because there's something important I need to tell you!"

Her hands had ceased their examination and risen to cup his cheeks, his gaze caught in her eyes as they sparkled with pure emotion. "…What do you need to tell me?" He asked softly, comfortingly stroking her back.

She sniffled, tears streaming down her cheeks, her thumbs stroking his jaw. "After our last outing, I really wanted to kiss you," she admitted, her breath hitching, "And I should've, but then Himiko was there and I felt really embarrassed. I wanted our first kiss to be private, romantic, where it was just us under a starlit sky or with the sakura blossoms dancing in the wind, something like that. But then you got injured and nearly died and Himiko sounded so scared when we talked that I realized…I don't want to wait anymore. I can't. Because…"

Yu smiled even as her tears continued to flow and her eyes were becoming red and splotchy, her eyes gazing deeply into his while she leaned in close so that he could her breath brushing against his lips.

It was, perhaps, the most beautiful she'd ever looked.

"I love you, Izuku."

Her whispered words had only just slipped into his ears before she kissed him, chaste but firm. Her plump lips caged his, her fingers stroking his face, across his cheek and up his jaw, behind his ear to the back of his neck, warmth filling him like liquid sunshine poured directly into his heart.

Yu pulled back slightly, their lips parting with a quiet smack, her forehead pressed against his. "…Can't believe I waited so long to do that," she whispered, and he could feel her smile against his skin.

"Yu…" Izuku began, his mind reaching for something poetic or lyrical to construct his reply, but everything came up blank except for one thing. "I love you, too." He kissed her back, his hand becoming tangled in her thick blonde tresses.

"I know," she sighed, slumping against his shoulder, pressing gentle pecks to his jaw and neck while his fingers slowly scratched and massaged her scalp. "You don't know how long I've wanted to kiss you, Izu. I was afraid my age and my career would be too far a gap for us to cross, but…I don't give a shit anymore. Being with you makes me happy, and I want to be happy. Are you okay with that?"

He looked at her, noting the red tracks from her drying tears and the soft, loving smile she wore as she touched his cheek. "Very," Izuku nodded, hugging her firmly.

"Umm…"

They looked over to find Orihime giving them a conflicted look. "...I don't think this is allowed," she voiced, "And Midoriya-kun needs his sleep, so…I think I should call the principal?"

"I'll keep Izu safe while he sleeps, then," Yu replied, giving the other woman a rather blank, toothy grin, "And if you call the principal to get me kicked out, I'm going to Gigantify inside the building, steal Izu and run for it, okay? So kindly fuck off, thank you."

The nurse gave Izuku a helpless expression, and he only shrugged in return. He was too tired and too comfortable to try and move Yu from her position.

The door opened once again and Orihime turned to peek through the curtains at whoever had entered. "Excuse me, Sensei! Is Izuku awake? I…need to speak with him, please." Even though it was a bit muffled by the dividers, it wasn't hard for Izuku to recognize Tenya's voice.

Orihime gave him a questioning look. He and Yu glanced at each other, then at their intimate position then shook their heads at the nurse. She bit her lip and pushed her head through the curtains. "Sorry, uh, Midoriya-kun is asleep right now. Come back later, please!"

They heard a quiet shuffling. "…Are you sure?" Iida asked, sounding oddly subdued.

Orihime gave them another look and received another denial. "Yes, I'm sure, please come back tomorrow!" She gave Iida a polite if unconvincing smile.

"…Very well, I will return tomorrow." Quiet footsteps echoed before the door closed.

The nurse sighed and turned back to the two still snuggling on the bed and crossed her arms. "Midoriya-kun does need his rest and, heartwarming declarations of love aside, if you get in the way of my patient healing, I will call Nezu down here, threats or not." She nodded firmly and left, satisfied that she'd made her point.

Yu grumbled under her breath but snuggled deeper against his side, tugging his chin to the side so she could kiss him softly. "She's right about that," she murmured, letting her hand rest on his heart, "And it's not like it'll be the first time we've slept together, is it? Don't worry Izu, I'll be here when you wake up."

Izuku sighed and relaxed against her, letting his cheek rest on her crown as his arm circled her hip. "I'll hold you to that," he yawned, letting his eyes flutter closed, "I love you, Yu." His eyes snapped open. "I love Yu."

She snorted and lightly slapped his chest. "Shut up and go to sleep, Izu."

And so he did.

…

…

…

…

A/N: FINALLY! I'm done with this chapter! My god, it's like I finally sneezed after months of holding it back! Oh, the tension's just flowing out of me…

So, first thing, you may notice that this chapter is a good bit shorter than the others, and there's a pretty simple explanation for that:

Writing those long-ass chapters is a good way to make me depressed, I've found. There's nothing that quite sucks the life outta me than writing a thousand words and going, 'alright, that was quite a bit of writing, I'm feeling accomplished indeed!' then checking the word count and realizing I'm not even halfway through the chapter.

So fuck it! Halfway done is all the way done, now! Chapters for all stories are gonna be 8k-9k words, barring some stories where the chapters are shorter or it's some kinda major event, but even, no more 20k monsters. I'm done waiting, and I've always been more torqued to write when I can look forward to comments and reviews every morning.

So in this chap, we got the immediate aftermath of the USJ, plus plenty of character interaction even though it's not even half the people who are gonna make a visit and a few other things that are gonna lead to some things further on in the story.

And just to cut off some questions I can already see coming: No, not that Orihime, and no, she's also not part of the pairing. Just like Naruto and Hinata, they're superficially similar but play no major part in the story, they're just here for fun.

Next chapter: more healing, more character interactions, and the After-Action Reactions from 1-A as they watch their own fights in class.

Chapter after that: Stuff.

Chapter after that: More stuff.

Chapter after that: Sports Festival.

And boy howdy lemme tell ya, I got some ideas for that.

Remember, if you feel like supporting me beyond the reading and the liking and the reviewing, you can always support me on P . Atreon if you want to. It's not necessary, but patrons do get to read my chapters a week before anyone else, as well as vote on what story they want to see updated next, as well as a bunch of other little goodies.

You can also join my discord if you wanna talk to a bunch of chill people or myself.(Add Disc link when publishing)

Big thanks, as always, to NorthSouthGorem for being a sounding board/beta/editor and generally awesome dude. I hear the next chapter of Shadow Monarch is coming soon and it's gonna be a good one!...as usual.

Thank you for reading my chapter, sorry it took so long, I hope you enjoyed it! If you want to, leave a review and let me know how it was, but even if you don't thank you for your time.

Stay Awesome.

~Soleneus

(NMO count: 2)

…

P.S.: Real talk, life has just been kinda slapping me in the face recently. Still working, still on the lookout for a better job, plus all these new ideas I have for new stories rattling around in my brain constantly. A couple starter chapters for different stories are on their way, would've been sooner but I decided to focus on finishing this first. Most likely I'm going to hop on the next chapter of this, or maybe peck away at some older stories that haven't been updated in awhile, like Dare to Wander or The Life With Monster Girls, those chapters have been a long time coming.

Thanks again,

Stay Awesome Some More.