When the Midoriya siblings returned, the sun had already set and Inko was preparing dinner in the kitchen. Mimi shifted into her teenage form complete with a frilly apron, determined to help out. Inko let her, cooing all the while at how pretty she was while the albino girl blushed. Izuku simply smiled and sat down to relax until a sharp ringing echoed through the air.
"Izuku! Could you get the phone, sweetheart?"
"Alright, mom." Izuku answered, picking up the living room phone. "Hello?"
"Is this… the Midoriya household?" a dry voice on the other end rasped.
"Yes, this is Midoriya Izuku speaking. How can I help—"
"You goddamn asshole! What the hell did you do to me?!" the voice shrieked, causing Izuku to nearly drop the phone in surprise. "You sick bastard—you won't get away with this!"
"E-eh?" Izuku blinked. "I think you have the wrong number…"
"Don't play games with me, dickhead! When I get my hands on you I'll—Oh God, the pain… Oooohhhhh…"
Whoever on the other end was definitely not having a good time, their voice reduced to whimpering, pathetic little moans. Izuku grew concerned despite just having been insulted, thinking if he'd done anything to anyone lately but drawing a blank.
"Um, are you alright? Do you need an ambulance, or the police?" Izuku asked worriedly.
"Allow me, aniki." Mimi circled in from behind him, gently plucking the phone from his grasp and pressing the speakerphone option. "Hello~ Guess what, buddy."
"What?" the voice moaned weakly.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaand—" Her fingers hovered over the end call and block buttons like the sword of Damocles.
"W-wait. Don't you dare!" the voice squeaked.
"—Blocked~" Mimi gave her sibling a teasing grin in response to his raised eyebrow. "Classic response on Z-Box live, brother. Honestly, don't even bother replying to prank callers."
"Um, alright." Izuku said. "What if he or she wasn't messing with me, though?"
"Then whoever it was would have called an ambulance instead of wasting their time to argue with you. Don't worry about it, I'm sure it's nothing." The white-haired teenager shrugged, heading back to the kitchen. "Just sit right there, daddy-o. Gramma and I are making your favorite."
"Katsudon?" Izuku's eyes lit up with hunger.
She gave him another smile as an answer. Dinner was absolutely wonderful, and no further prank calls were made to the household. He made sure to savor both the meal and the time he spent with his family, all thoughts of the Sports Festival and its results temporarily tossed aside. That night it took some time for him to get some sleep, the events of everything that happened still weighing heavily on his mind.
When Izuku woke up the next morning just before the sun rose, groggily shuffling into the kitchen. He rubbed the sleep out of his eyes, opening the fridge to see what he could make for Mimi. Eggs and toast? Peanut butter and jelly? He knew she wasn't picky, but still.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of light splashing. The boy turned sleepily only to see a dark shape sitting at his kitchen table. Just as he was about to react, sunlight flooded through the window and illuminated the figure's face, revealing—
—Kiri, who was trying to pour some milk into her cereal. She looked up at her brother with half-lidded eyes, waving at him drowsily.
"Gud moreling, omii-chan~"
Izuku took a few steps forward slowly. Then he rushed in and hugged her tight with a big, loving embrace, patting her on the back gently.
"Kiri! Ooooh, thank goodness you're alright…"
The commotion caused Inko to wake up as well, and she was so overjoyed to the point where she nearly fainted again. Mimi soon floated into the kitchen as well, groggy and still clinging onto one of Izuku's All Might pillows when she was swept into a big family hug.
Izuku stayed true to his word, preparing a delicious pancake breakfast that included strawberries and maple syrup for both sisters. How such a simple gesture resulted in so much joy and delight from the two always made his heart swell; they truly did remind him of himself when he was at their age.
When he was still happy, of course. Back then it was a… difficult time. Izuku simply cast those thoughts aside, now focusing on how Kiri gave him a quick thanks by giving him another hug. Due to her expending all her power at the Sports Festival she was now temporarily locked in her child form, but it didn't matter in the end since both sisters were laying low to avoid the increased hero patrols anyways.
That was how Izuku found himself sitting on the couch with his siblings, content in enjoying his new everyday life. He'd already finished all his homework and couldn't work out for now due to strict orders from Recovery Girl. The only thing left was to spend time with his loved ones, and that was exactly what he intended to do.
Mimi continued to munch on her bowl of mixed nuts while watching TV, leaning against him lazily. Looking over to his right he found Kiri snuggling into him as well but she was holding a clipboard and drawing, her small fingers manhandling several different colored pencils to produce chicken scratches on the pristine paper. Needless to say, she drew as well as any ten-year old child.
He took the time to simply relax and find out what happened during the Sports Festival. Tokoyami's victory was a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one. Pulling up a video on HeroTube, the boy fast-forwarded the playback until he reached the crow-boy's battle.
When the match started Bakugo clearly had the advantage, closing in with his superior mobility and range. Dark Shadow kept close to Tokoyami, snarling and shrieking with each burst of light that the blonde let out—it soon dawned on Izuku that Bakugo already figured out his opponent's weakness from the start. Just when it looked like things were hopeless the air shifted, a wave of pressure exuding from Tokoyami when he pulled off… something really similar to what he and Kiri did, actually.
Watching closely, he could see how a pair of great, pitch-black wings extended from Dark Shadow's body while Tokoyami roared, the projection suddenly becoming more solid and defined. Muscular definition formed a torso, joints, and hands; Dark Shadow becoming more human as he merged with Tokoyami's psyche. Bakugo let out another burst of light but the corvid pair simply let him, long shadows forming at their feet.
Izuku did not miss how Tokoyami's right eye glowed a deep yellow and that he had two shadows.
Massive wings swept forward and slammed Bakugo with a tremendous gust of air, the blonde unaware that Tokoyami was now capable of ranged attacks. It was over just like that, a victory by ring-out instead of a fabulous knockout. Tokoyami immediately separated from his brother soon after, exhausted and out of breath even as Midnight declared him the victor.
Izuku hummed to himself, wayward thoughts circling his mind. Tokoyami and Dark Shadow could do the same thing he and Kiri did… it appeared that they could learn from each other, too. That was a little troubling, but he trusted Tokoyami to use his newfound power responsibly. Even if the other boy was a kind of edgy, Izuku felt that he was a righteous person at heart.
He then clicked on another video link to watch the battle between him and Mei, rather excited as he did so. Her speed amazed him—she was a blur that flitted across the battlefield while launching explosives; like a hummingbird with a rocket launcher. He couldn't deny that there was a certain grace and beauty to her movements.
Then there was him, rampaging about without a hint of finesse. Zooming in, he could clearly see the same 'symptom' he shared with Tokoyami while in their enhanced states; the one glowing eye. Was that some sort of indicator? Intriguing. More muttering and scribbling echoed from the green-haired teen.
Finally, he reached the part where he'd been knocked out by Mei's Mindjack Protocol. That sort of tech was terrifying by itself, but what stunned him more was how Zenith controlled Mei's body by himself. Kiri could control his body too. The first thing Izuku noticed was how she was a much better fighter than he was… oof. Again, he needed more training. Kiri's weakness was her slower speed and Zenith capitalized on it by engaging via hit-and-run tactics. The battle between them had been pretty equal at first...
...Until Kiri struck Zenith down with a lightning spear. How did she do that?
She held him by the ankle and began slamming him from side-to-side like a ragdoll, ignoring the 'oooohhs' and 'ahhhhhhs' from the audience. It was like watching a child play with a toy, but to the audience it looked as if he'd gone ballistic on her. After she was done flinging his body about Kiri got atop the machine-fusion and started beating him into the ground with haymakers, her sheer viciousness clearly making the audience uncomfortable. She continued brutalizing Zenith until he was downed, only to have him get up again like nothing happened. The ordeal continued four more times, with Kiri getting more creative with each beatdown. At one point she even kicked him in the mouth, sending him spinning across the arena. It only ended when Izuku and Mei regained consciousness, taking back control of their own bodies.
Scrolling down, he found comments of varying reactions. Many loved the battle, though a few were visibly unsettled. One creative user had even taken a screenshot of him/Kiri holding the spear, electrical arcs climbing up their arm. A caption was written underneath in spiky green text.
'I am lightning, the rain transformed.'
Izuku didn't know what to make of that. Another user had edited footage of him to some sort of… music video? He got curious and clicked the 'play' button.
'—and then along came Zeus! He hurrrrrled his thunderbolt—'
Okay, that was enough internet for today. The boy tapped his chin in understanding while he closed the video. It wasn't so much that Kiri was brutal, really. He was aware of how everything she'd learned was either from witnessing street fights and combat between vigilantes and villains. She just absorbed information and retained what she found the most useful. Kiri wasn't being sadistic or vicious on purpose… she just saw a threat and moved to neutralize it in the most efficient way she knew how. Right now she was back to an innocent kid, still drawing and coloring on the paper he'd given her.
Izuku smiled, observing her from the corner of his eye. Based on the rough silhouette she was sketching it appeared to be a group of individuals standing in a row, with roaring flames in the background. He could easily tell which gender was which since she drew the men as boxy while the women were more rounded. Her drawing depicted eight people in total.
There was a guy with bunny ears, a girl with bat wings, what looked like a ninja of all things, Kiri in her Valkyrie form, a cowboy, a smaller Kiri(?), a girl in a frilly dress, and a robot with a flashing strobe siren for a head. Izuku smiled as his sister continued to draw, sketching in a big heart at the top right of the page and coloring it a bright shade of red, then scribbling in a pigtailed shadow within the shape.
"There, all done." She nodded to herself, satisfied. "Look, nii-chan. Check it out!"
"Very nice, Kiri." he smiled, earning a giggle from her. "These don't look like the guys in One For All. Who were they?"
"Friends! They helped me from time to time and I helped them." Kiri said enthusiastically, coloring more orange flames into the background of her drawing.
Vigilantes. Izuku realized with some amazement. It wasn't just that, either—he was pretty sure her drawing depicted some sort of vigilante squad. Those flames in the background… When was this? For a moment he feared for the safety of his sisters but then he remembered how they were far more experienced than him when it came to combat. It was why Inko reluctantly allowed them to go out in the first place.
"Amazing..." Izuku hummed thoughtfully, inspecting the drawing like a museum curator. "Tell me more about this masterpiece."
Mimi rolled her eyes playfully while her sister giggled again, the brunette pointing at the characters she drew one by one. Admittedly she wasn't that bad of an artist; Izuku knew she was certainly better than he was back when he was ten.
"This is Kochi and Kazu. The Cruller and Poppy!" Kiri pointed at the bunny and bat pair. "They're super nice."
"The Crawler and his little girlfriend, Pop Step. You might have heard of them, aniki." Mimi breathed out a stream of flame, using it to roast a particularly large peanut. "We met them just the other day."
"This is Mr. Stendy." Kiri pointed at the ninja and made a face. "He's cool, but kinda mean."
Izuku raised an eyebrow.
"And that's me!" She then pointed at the sketch of herself, pure white and featureless. "I beat up a lot of bad guys that day."
"Good job." He gently rubbed her head while thinking. That day?
"This is Mr. Gold. He's a funny guy, but I think he's hurt or something. When I saw him again he was cut in half."
That dragged Izuku out of his thoughts. He glanced at the bandana-masked cowboy Kiri was pointing at before studying her face carefully. The boy wondered how much violence she'd seen during her time as a vigilante—she still seemed so innocent.
"Um, cut in half?"
"Yeah. I met him back when you told me to go sit with Mr. Yagi. Half of him's gone. Like, poof!"
Wait, what?!
"Hold on a second. You met a friend of yours when you sat with Mr. Yagi?" Izuku muttered. "One of the teachers used to be a vigilante?"
"Mmm-hmm. He's Mr. Snipey now. I made another drawing of him, see?"
The little girl held up another sketch up to his face and Izuku was met with what was unmistakably Snipe's visage, the distinctive tan gas mask and dreadlocks easily recognizable even through childish coloring. Izuku frowned, thoughts spinning in his head.
"Snipe-sensei used to be a vigilante… huh. Where's his hat?"
"I'm wearing it! Hehehehehe."
Lo and behold, she was. There was a tiny Kiri sketch at the corner of the page and sure enough, a cowboy hat was perched atop her dainty little head.
Snipe used to be a vigilante named 'Mr. Gold'? No, judging by how Kiri's been giving everyone nicknames, his street name had to be something related to the color.
"He looked, um, pretty whole to me the last time I saw him." Izuku remarked.
"No, not body." Kiri pondered for a second, then made a chopping motion with her hand. "Soul. Soul cut in half."
Before he could question what she meant by that chilling statement she continued to introduce him to the characters she'd drawn, eagerly pointing out the girl in a frilly dress and the robot beside her. He could tell Kiri was trying to depict it as a robot due to the gears she drew at its joints, almost cartoony in appearance.
"This is… Miss Miu and Mr. Red." Kiri added a little more color to 'Mr. Red' with a flourish of her pencil. "I don't really know them because I only met them once. They came together, and Mr. Red is a robot! Miss Miu is a… a… mahy-shojo."
"Ah, I see." Izuku continued to entertain her while quietly observing. "Hmm, did you mean 'mahou shoujo'?"
"Yeah, that!"
A Magical Girl? Those were rare nowadays. He knew that there was a team of them that operated in Tokyo, with many others stationed around in various parts of Japan. They first appeared during the middle of the Dark Age, with rumors of young girls being chosen by strange creatures and given fantastic powers. The original reception was met with much mockery and jokes until they actually proved that many of their members were stronger and more competent than most heroes. Citizens began questioning the integrity of heroes and their abuses of power soon after, especially since their taxpayer dollars were funding those 'protectors' while the Magical Girls worked for free. With their salaries and reputations on the line many heroes grew desperate and angry at those supposed upstarts.
When the heroes declared them illegal villains tried to capture a few in hopes of replicating their technology and powers the mysterious ladies revealed that they had an organization of their own; calling themselves the Magical Girl Legion and defeating every single hero that was sent to fight them. In the end, the Hero Association had to begrudgingly accept them as vigilantes and leave them alone to prevent an all-out conflict. Now that the heroes had All Might and Endeavor the Legion seemed to lay low, keeping to themselves but still conducting their clandestine operations against evil.
Kiri continued to point at her drawing, getting Izuku's attention again. This time he got curious and decided to be the one to ask instead.
"Kiri, why did you draw yourself twice? One big and one little."
"That's not me, onii-chan. That's Eri!" Kiri pointed at the one-horned, white-haired little girl she sketched. "We grouped together to save her from some really, really, really bad people."
"I see…" Izuku muttered. The Vigilantes busted some sort of human trafficking operation?
"And this is Miss Rabu-Rabu!" she gestured at the ponytailed shadow within the heart shape.
"Rabu-rabu?"
"Rabu-rabu!" Kiri repeated excitedly. "She and her boyfriend have their own show on HeroTube… Ah! Show!"
The little girl turned to her sister, seeming to have remembered something.
"Mimi, let me watch the TV! It's time for Super Smackdown!"
"Haaaaaaahh?" Mimi drawled, one eyebrow raised. "You mean that trashy wrestling show? No way, I'm watching my favorite anime now. I need to see who wins the Nariyuki bowl."
"You can record it!" Kiri stood on the sofa.
"Why would I record it if I'm watching it now?"
Both girls pouted, and before Izuku knew it they leapt to grab the remote. The children began scuffling mid-air, not wanting to hurt each other but determined to watch their respective shows.
"Gimme!"
"No! It's mine!"
"Um, girls—" Izuku began.
Kiri pushed at her sister's face childishly, one hand pressing on the button to switch channels.
"—and in the blue corner, it's Anaconda Anaguma! Will the champion defend his title against the dark horse newcomer—" the TV blared, the audience going wild.
Mimi snatched the remote back and grappled with Kiri, swapping back to her channel.
"—Senpai~ I want to tell you how I truly feel about you. Will you listen to the sound of my heart—" Romantic background music accompanied those cheesy words.
The twins continued wrestling in the air, Izuku not quite sure what to do. If only his mother was here instead of shopping for groceries. He'd been reading an Ebook recently, Parenting For Dummies, but he hadn't gotten to the part where it would tell him how to solve problems like this!
Click.
"—there it is, it's the infamous Serpent Drop!" the announcer screeched, losing his mind. "Good god, are you seeing this?! It's a spit-swapping make-out match between these two behemoths, the fight of a lifetime, hell-in-a-cell, triple-threat cage match—"
Click.
"—It was me! I was the one who made those chocolates and put them in your locker, because…" the cutesy anime girl on screen sniffed, eyes wet and sparkling. "...I was too scared to tell you! You were the one who saved me when I was at my darkest point—"
Kiri let her invulnerability field flow around the remote, wrenching it towards her. Mimi instantly retaliated by doubling down, two of Aftermath's arms manifesting and helping her pull at the tiny device. The two girls huffed with effort, cheeks puffed out while they fought. Izuku's sisters turned to him, both fully expecting him to take their side.
"Gyaaaa! Papaaaaaaaaa!" Mimi wailed.
"Uwaaaa! Onii-chaaaaan!" Kiri squealed.
Izuku sighed, knowing that this was all part and parcel of raising kids. How was he supposed to tell them that he knew what their favorite shows were and had already set the TV to record them both just in case? Then he needed to figure out who should watch what they wanted first…
His dilemma was solved when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. The sisters froze, heads swiveling towards the door while slowly floating back down onto the couch. Izuku stood, suspicion already bleeding into his thoughts. They didn't get many visitors, and his mother already had keys to the house. Who was it?
Izuku made his way to the door slowly, carefully. His sisters trailed behind him, having felt his earlier suspicion and ready to act just in case anything happened. Reaching the door he peered through the peephole, only to see that whoever was at their doorstep was hunched over, cradling a bundle in their hands. They shivered and looked to be in pain, Izuku immediately growing concerned. Was it one of the neighbors who was sick or something? His fingers edged around his cellphone, ready to dial emergency services as he flung the door open.
Standing there was Monoma Neito.
Izuku was too stunned to speak at first, the twins peeking out from behind him in curiosity. Monoma met his gaze, face pale with dark circles under his eyes. He looked like he hadn't slept the previous night, his skin all pasty while he shivered.
"M-monoma-kun? What are you doing here?" Izuku asked. "Did something happen, you look awful! U-um, do you need any medical attention—wait, how did you know where I live?"
"Ughhh… Led me to… you." the blonde groaned painfully. "You did this to me, you prick…"
"I… I did?" Izuku stammered. "Wait, what did I do?"
Monoma gently held out the bundle he was carrying, looking completely exhausted.
"Take responsibility."
The baby in his arms gurgled happily when she saw Izuku. A blonde baby girl with heterochromia and freckles.
"Oh." Izuku said.
[x]
Haimawara Koichi, aka The Crawler, hummed to himself as he got off the train. Hosu City was freezing cold just like always… luckily he brought a coat. It was good that the station was so near to the hospital, a mere five-minute walk and he'd be within its cosy lobby. Some people gave him strange, amused looks as he passed—probably because of the coat he wore. He looked like a man-sized cat in the ridiculous thing but he was willing to do so just to make his visitor happy. The coat purred and he petted it warmly; Zwei was probably getting itchy from possessing it for so long.
The receptionist sent him a quiet smile and nod as he approached. Koichi smiled back. Many normal citizens knew of his vigilante status, yet none of them would rat him or the others out after all the good they did. Even heroes couldn't be everyone at once… and when they weren't, the vigilantes would be there to help the weak and innocent.
"Good Afternoon, sir. The usual?" a nurse came up to him, nodding.
"Yeah. How is she?"
"She's been improving, actually. Still no signs of her Quirk, though… We suspect that the trauma she experienced might have caused her to temporarily lock it away. We have a few medical bots on standby ready to help calm her down just in case of an incident, but so far they've just been gathering dust."
"I see. I didn't think they were necessary in the first place, though."
"Trust me, sir. It's better to be safe than sorry, especially with an area-of-effect Quirk like hers."
Koichi grimaced. The last time she'd activated her Quirk she'd panicked, and the result wasn't pretty. Still, it was good to hear that she was doing relatively alright. It pained him to leave her here… it was why he visited her three times a week.
The papers in his briefcase were like a lead weight in his hand. A tiny box was doing its best to burn a hole in his pocket.
"Here she is, Room 203." the nurse bowed to him courteously. "Please knock before you enter."
"Right." Koichi took a deep breath. "Anything else I should know?"
"Mmmm, not really sir. She has been talking to herself recently… but then again, she's only six. Kids will be kids."
An imaginary friend? She must be lonely, cooped up in that sterile room. Koichi sighed, promising to himself that he'd get her out of here eventually. He knocked twice on the door, patiently waiting for the response.
"U-um, come in!" a little voice squeaked.
He gently pushed the door open, presenting a warm smile to the little girl on the other side. She was sitting on her bed, in the midst of watching cartoons when her lovely red eyes lit up with a small happiness upon recognizing him. She was still learning to smile.
"Hello, Eri-chan."
[x]
Things were in a bit of a rush in the Midoriya household. Izuku had quickly guided Monoma in and let him rest on the couch, rushing to the kitchen to make some hot chocolate for his new guest. Kiri and Mimi stared at the baby in the visitor's arms. The infant stared back with mismatched eyes, one sky-blue and the other an emerald-green. The freckles on her face were an exact match to Izuku's.
"It's a baby." Mimi said quietly, trying not to panic.
"It's Newborn!" Kiri squealed with pure excitement.
"As a baby!"
"She'll grow!"
"Ugggghhh…" Monoma interrupted both sisters with a pitiful groan.
A quiet mewl came from Newborn, her tiny little fingers reaching out at empty air. Monoma gently rocked her from side to side, his head rising and falling tiredly all the while. There was a soft rustling and Izuku soon returned with beverages along with some berries since he didn't know what babies ate.
"Here, Monoma-kun. Um, I'll help you to hold her."
"Careful…" the blonde groaned.
Izuku carefully accepted the bundle Newborn was wrapped in, gazing down at her tiny form while his heart raced. She cooed at him, letting out several soft noises when she saw his face. Then she smiled.
Tears beaded at Izuku's eyes and he started to cry with relief.
"Oooooooh. Oooohh…" Izuku sniffed, rocking the baby in his arms back and forth with utmost care. "I-I'm so glad… so h-happy that you're alright!"
"Whoa whoa whoa, don't cry. If anyone should be crying here it's me." Monoma grunted, eyes half-lidded. "You have no idea what you put me through..."
"Oh! R-right." Izuku made a small bow while still holding the child. "Monoma-kun, I'm so sorry—"
"An apology isn't what I need right now. I want an explanation." he hissed. "What did you do to me?!"
"I… I don't know."
Monoma's expression cycled through anger, fear, then despair for a moment before he calmed down.
"You hung up on me." he accused. "Blocked my number."
"That was me. My bad." Mimi admitted sheepishly.
"No, it's my fault." Izuku said quickly, defending her. "Monoma-kun, you could have just told me what happened calmly instead of screaming through the phone lines—"
"I was freaking out, okay?!"
He paused and took a deep breath to compose himself, visibly deflating.
"Look. I had a really bad day yesterday when Naoto appeared out of nowhere. It's what I've named her; the name was what my mom would have called me if I was a girl." Monoma explained, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She—I don't know how to describe it. It was like she was clawing her way out of me."
"Did you lay an egg?" Kiri asked.
"Sweetheart—" Izuku said hurriedly, blushing.
"Yeah, how'd you know?" Monoma blinked. "It's all a blur. I was in pain, then there was this glowing… egg, I guess? Then it turned into her."
The newly christened 'Naoto' made more baby noises and the Midoriya family glanced down at her. She wasn't able to speak? Kiri picked up and cradled her half-sister lovingly.
"So… what did your parents think?" Izuku ventured.
"They're overseas; I live alone. When Naoto appeared, I… I panicked. I wanted to call an ambulance, or, or something but I felt this strange connection to her. I know she's a part of me, but… how? How am I supposed to explain this to my mom?! Where did this baby come from? Did my Quirk make her or something?"
"I think so. You copied my Quirk, and well…" Izuku hesitated. Should he? He should, since Monoma was dragged into this mess. "Kiri and Mimi here are the same."
"Hello~" Kiri waved, looming over Naoto. "Here, hold her."
"E-eh? Me? But I…" Mimi squeaked nervously when Kiri handed the baby over, now cradling her new half-sibling. "W-wow. She's warm…"
More soft noises emanated from the bundle. Monoma stared at the children, then at Izuku with his eyes wide in disbelief.
"That can't be right. Your Quirk is some sort of projection-barrier Quirk! I… I felt it!"
"Yeah and she's sentient. Alive."
Kiri made a few faces at her new baby sister while Mimi watched carefully. The infant laughed, her voice small and fragile.
"This is crazy. I thought I was dreaming… if not for the fact that I've been wide awake since yesterday afternoon. I don't even know how it happened!" Monoma exclaimed. "How?!"
"Well, um, remember that time when you copied my Quirk during our match? That's probably it…" Izuku suggested.
"Except my Quirk doesn't last that long."
"Mine does. Indefinitely, I think."
Monoma looked at the two children, burying his face into his hands.
"Do you realize the implications of this? Your Quirk is alive! Sentient!"
"So is Dark Shadow." Izuku said. "Look, Monoma-kun. I'm not as special as you think I am…"
"Well excuse me, but I think a fifteen year-old guy going into labor is pretty fu—" Monoma bit his tongue. "—freakin' special. What am I supposed to do now?!"
"We can try feeding her for a start. She's pretty hungry." Izuku suggested, carefully accepting Naoto when Mimi handed her over to him.
"I tried. She doesn't eat, doesn't poop, she just stares at me. I should be freaking out even more, but somehow I'm not. Before you ask, I used to help babysit my cousin so I know how to take care of a toddler; don't judge me."
"Wasn't going to. Alright, the first thing we need to do is to make sure she's comfortable…"
"She is. When she's not she'll do this horrible scream. Trust me, you do not want that to happen. Wait, how are you so calm about this?"
"That's because little Naoto-chan is probably eating my emotions as we speak. I think I can feel it." Izuku rocked the baby in his arms back and forth. "Aren't you, itty-bitty babby. Who's a pretty little angel! You are~! You are~!"
"What?! Dude, focus!"
"R-right, sorry." Izuku said, blushing. "Here's the thing; Naoto-chan here probably doesn't even need to eat conventional food if she's like my sisters; she's a sort of empath. Emotions are what she feeds on—it's probably why you're less stressed than you're supposed to be."
"At least we'll save on food costs…" Momoma muttered before shooting Izuku a dirty look. "I'm still going to make sure she's fed, just in case."
"Ma." Naoto said.
"She spoke!" Izuku gasped, eyes shining with wonder. "You didn't tell me she could talk!"
"She can't, not really." Monoma shrugged, gently accepting when Izuku passed her back into his arms. "That's the only word I've heard her say."
"Da." Naoto said, this time looking directly at Izuku. The teen resisted the urge to cry out of joy.
"Okay, that's new." Monoma blinked. "Do you recognize him, Naoto? Is that why you wanted to come here?"
"Wait, what?" Mimi asked.
"How do you think we found you guys?" Monoma sighed wistfully. "Naoto here wouldn't stop crying until I realized what she wanted; to get out of the house and go… somewhere. She pointed in a direction, and I went. Here we are now. I think she's much smarter than she looks."
"She was drawn to me? Ah…" Izuku said.
"What are we going to do? I'm too young to be a dad!" Monoma complained. "I haven't even had my first girlfriend yet and I already have a kid! This is all your fault!"
"M-me?" Izuku stammered. "Monoma-kun, I said I was sorry! Look, I didn't expect something like this to happen either!"
The sisters quietly retrieved Naoto and placed her on the couch next to them as both Izuku and Monoma began their screaming match, complete with fingers being pointed accusingly and rising voices. Unbeknownst to them Naoto began to sniff, her lower lip starting to tremble.
"Too bad, it did! Take responsibility!"
"What do you want me to do? Wait, don't tell me you're planning on just leaving her here!"
"Of course not! What kind of guy do you think I am?!" Monoma fumed. "Unlike you, I'm not the type to just makechildren and leave them without a word!"
A memory flashed in his head. Inko sobbing at the kitchen table with her head in her hands while four-year-old Izuku peeked from behind a corner, their family photograph wet with teardrops, a four-year old him all alone in an empty house—Izuku's eyes turned to pinpricks.
"Don't you dare!" he yelled, losing his patience. "How can you say that?!"
"Well, it's true!" Monoma snarled back. "God, this is so messed up!"
Naoto wailed and began to cry.
Her voice was a high-pitched, ear-piercing scream that caused everyone in the room to flinch and immediately cup their ears, a psychic distress call that scratched on the insides of their minds like nails on a chalkboard. It was exactly like what happened during the U.A Sports Festival, but this time Izuku could actually feel something resonating from the signal.
LOUD-SCARED-HUNGRY-SCARED-HELP!
"Oooooh! Oooohhhh…" Monoma quickly hugged the child and began rocking her from side to side gently, calming her down. His right eye was glowing with a brilliant sapphire hue, but it disappated as Naoto stopped crying. "Shhh, shh… It's okay…"
All three of the Midoriya siblings took a moment to get their bearings, still slightly dazed from the backlash caused by the newest member of their family. Izuku's chest flooded with guilt, the boy already taking a bow while he apologized to Monoma.
"I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to—" Izuku winced.
"...It's fine. I'm sorry too." Monoma said, sighing. "I... I don't know what to do. Is there anyone that can help us with this, like, a-a doctor, or something?"
"Mr. Birdy can help." Kiri suggested.
Tokoyami! Of course, he was the only other person that realized what happened back then! Izuku reached for his phone and opened his contact list only to mentally smack himself—he'd forgotten to ask Tokoyami for his number. He doubted Ochaco or Iida had it either.
"You don't have his number?" Mimi scratched her head in response to his muttering. "Hm. How about looking him up on Qwoter?"
Izuku borrowed her phone and did as she asked, typing in the words 'Tokoyami Fumikage' into the search bar. All that resulted in was no luck and zero hits—it appeared that Tokoyami didn't have an account.
"Try 'Dark Shadow'!" Kiri said happily.
"What? Pfft, like that's going to work—" Mimi huffed and typed it in anyways.
'xXxDarkShadowxXx is streaming [All Might's Amazing Adventure] via Qwoter! Click here to join.' the device's screen stated proudly. Clicking the link led to a livestream of Dark Shadow playing a video game.
"I can't believe it worked." Mimi said flatly. "Alright you two, just sit tight and I'll send him a message."
Unfortunately for them, the private message she sent was ignored by Dark Shadow since he was currently in a multiplayer match. Trying to communicate via his chat yielded no results either since any messages sent would be drowned out by his viewers' comments. It seemed that Dark Shadow was rather popular; Izuku understood the appeal of watching a sentient Quirk just doing everyday things. They could see Tokoyami himself just relaxing in the background while his brother played, reading a book with his earbuds in.
"Tokoyami-kun, huh? We could wait for his brother to finish but I don't think that's going to be anytime soon." Monoma observed.
"Mm. If you guys give me a bit of time, I think I know a way to get his attention…" Mimi said.
"Do it. Meanwhile, I think we have some milk in the fridge." Izuku glanced at Naoto, who looked to be around one-year-old despite only being 'born' yesterday. "Oats… babies can eat oatmeal, right? We've got some berries that aren't too sweet either."
"Yeah, but fruit needs to be pureed or finely chopped…" Monoma explained, and together they ventured into the kitchen to prepare.
Izuku and Monoma spent the next few minutes slowly feeding Naoto some solid food which she seemed to like. Luckily they managed to find an old baby bottle in the cupboard and cleaned it, Izuku testing the temperature of the milk on his skin before letting her have it. Naoto continued suckling on the bottle when they went back to the living room and found Mimi absolutely destroying Dark Shadow in-game on Izuku's Z-box console. Kiri was watching it all happen both live and on stream via their shared smartphone, giggling all the while.
"Hit 'em with the happy feet, wombo combo!" Dark Shadow was screaming, furiously mashing his controller. "Brother, this kid is wrecking me! All hyper-aggressive and sh—what the hell, he just hit me from across the map! How?! Hooooooowww?!"
"Uh-huh. Good job." Tokoyami said in the background, not paying attention at all.
"That'll do it." Mimi leaned back into the couch, satisfied. "Kiri, please man the comms while I kick his ass a bit more."
"Huh?" Kiri glanced at the headset that was dropped into her hands. "Why me?"
"Well, he recognizes your voice. You guys met, remember?"
"Oh yeah. Okays." Kiri put on the device, her little girl voice echoing over Dark Shadow's livestream when Mimi sent him a private voice message. "Hello~ Hello, hello shadow birdy~"
Izuku peeked over her shoulder to see the text chat exploding with comments, cycling twice as fast as it had before. He rolled his eyes at what they were saying.
**omg girl**
**girl gamer**
**loli voice**
**Fake, it's a synthesizer or something**
**wwwwwwwwwwwww**
"Tiny Queen!" Dark Shadow responded immediately. "Is that you? I should have known! At last, a worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary—"
"My onii-chan wants to speak to your onii-chan. It's important." Kiri said, watching Mimi's character unleash a brutal combo on Dark Shadow's.
"Can it wait? Brother dearest doesn't like to be interrupted when he's brooding."
"I heard that." Tokoyami said in the background. "And I am not brooding."
"It's importannttttt~" Kiri continued. "Onii-chan made a baby with someone."
Izuku closed his eyes and started counting to five mentally. When he opened them the chat was now focused on his supposed plight.
**lmao onii-chan**
**Family drama inbound**
**how do i subscribe to this girl**
**she sounds way too young**
**Ganbatte onii-chan**
Inhale, exhale. Deep breaths. Fortunately Dark Shadow soon informed Tokoyami what was happening and was now trying to video-call Izuku through Qwoter. The green-haired boy accepted quickly, coming face to face with his tired-looking classmate a moment later.
"Um, hi, Tokoyami-kun. Sorry to contact you this way." Izuku began. "There's been a bit of a… development. Monoma-kun's here with me and, well, remember when he copied my Quirk back then—"
"Let me guess, she turned into a baby." Tokoyami said flatly.
Izuku blinked. Tokoyami continued to look unamused as always.
"Yeah, actually. How'd you know?"
"...As I suspected. Alright, the first thing you need to do is feed her. Just as Dark Shadow feeds on darkness, you need to find out what she consumes to fuel herself."
"Oh, we've done that already. She eats emotions so we'll probably need a place with a moderate amount of people—" Izuku started muttering to himself. "A place with people, where there's also food."
"A family restaurant." Monoma said. "Or a cafe."
"That'll do. I know this nice one down by Nakamura Street…" Izuku turned back to his phone. "Tokoyami-kun, would you mind meeting us there?"
"Sure, I was looking forward to speaking with you. It wasn't like I was doing anything important anyway."
"Says you!" Dark Shadow complained. "Well everyone, that's the end of this session even though I was winning."
"No he wasn't, look at the scoreboard." Mimi said nonchalantly.
[x]
In an unknown location somewhere deep beneath a city; a pudgy man was hard at work. His fingers flew over the keyboard, ignoring the occasional bloop and bubble of the liquid-filled tanks behind him. His precious test subjects, slowly growing into the magnificent bioweapons that All For One desired.
There was much work to be done. The shadowy dictator had ordered operations to ramp up for their next assault to make a statement, perhaps to herald the coming of his new protege. Shigaraki Tomura… only time would tell if he would be a worthy successor. The Doctor stood up and stretched his legs, admiring his handiwork as he walked between countless rows of cylindrical tanks; each containing an immature Nomu.
Subject #355 was turning out well, thick knots of jet-black muscle covering his arms. The Doctor thought he looked rather peculiar with that strange head, the conversion operation having replaced most of his head and leaving only his lower jaw intact. He made the most amusing noises.
Subject #328 was… suboptimal. Though his four eyes provided him with enhanced vision the repertoire of Quirks that he'd been given were not very powerful. An absorption Quirk that didn't actually nullify the damage taken, a malleable tongue Quirk, super-strength… he'd make a good foot-soldier, but nothing more.
Finally, there was Subject #005. Ah, poor Number 5. How he wished to soar, just like his namesake. Now he was so warped that he didn't even look human anymore. The Doctor leaned in closer to peer into the tank. This one had room for a few more enhancements; a boosting Quirk would pair nicely with the telepathic one. Maybe he could boost Number 5's telepathic abilities with a neural array, yes, that would provide some excellent data!
The Doctor brought up his tablet and found the blueprints for the aforementioned device. It was an ugly thing: a circlet of diodes, vacuum tubes and twisted metal coiled around a superconducting ring; a crown of kitbashed tech. Its installation required a direct interface into the subject's brain; Nomus already had theirs exposed so he didn't see a problem with it.
Minutes later Subject #005 was on an operating table, his chest rising and falling periodically. The Doctor began cutting into exposed gray matter with a laser scalpel, discarding things he found unnecessary. For a moment he wondered if his patient realized what was happening to him before deciding he didn't really care; the pudgy man humming a cheery tune while he worked. A rancid, burnt smell filled the air when he reached the subject's Amygdala and began his modifications. Sadness? Burn it. Fear? Cut it out. Rage? Oooh, that was good. Keep it. Happiness? Tossed into the biohazard bucket.
There! Now he had enough space for the neural array. Melding circuitry with flesh was always tricky… the host body would usually reject such an unnatural fusion but with a regeneration Quirk like this so many things were possible. A little weld here and there, watching jet-black discolored flesh crawl over green circuit boards and voila.
The Doctor smiled, leaning back to admire his work. He chuckled for a moment when the operating table shifted into an upright position, the patient strung across it like a religious icon. It was funny, really. The ring-shaped neural array and those spread wings made for a nice image.
[x]
A pair of teenage boys and their siblings made their way to the cafe, getting quite a few amused looks along the way. Izuku was holding hands with both his kid sisters and Monoma was holding a baby with a makeshift cloth carrier. They were an odd group to say in the least.
The cafe was named the 'Little Song', a cosy little joint that reminded Izuku of an old-school diner. There weren't that many people around but Naoto seemed to get her fill as she spotted a couple arguing in the background. A few seconds later they seemed to calm down out of nowhere, enjoying each other's company once more. Several menus were slid over to Izuku's table, with a smiling waitress cheerfully mentioning that there were kids meals and food for babies available should they need it. Tokoyami and Dark Shadow strode in soon after, the moody teen dressed in black from head to toe.
"Hi, Tokoyami-kun." Izuku smiled.
"Hey." Tokoyami replied.
"Yo." Monoma said cooly.
The three boys simply stared at each other like the awkward teens they were while their siblings started socializing.
"Hello Birdy!" Kiri waved excitedly.
"Greetings, Tiny Queen!" Dark Shadow cawed, then focused on Mimi. "You have brought the other Tiny Queen! Wonderful, absolutely wonderful!"
"Sup, bird boy." Mimi waved. "Hey, say hello to the baby."
Naoto continued suckling on her milk bottle, unafraid when Dark Shadow stretched over the table to get a better look at her.
"The Newborn! She lives!" the projection gasped, visibly exhilarated. "Rejoice! Truly, this is an auspicious moment."
While Dark Shadow continued to coo and squeal over the survival of his kin, Izuku, Monoma and Tokoyami began leafing through the menus for something to order. There was a surprisingly varied selection that included dishes from many different cultures… Izuku hummed to himself. He wasn't that hungry, but perhaps he'd get something nice and sweet for the sisters.
"What are you getting?" Monoma asked absentmindedly. "Maybe I'll order some more oatmeal and fruit for Naoto."
"It's not for me either, it's for them. " Izuku nodded, noticing how his sisters were peeking at the menu. "This melon parfait looks nice and big. Would you two like that?"
"I'm fine with anything." Mimi shrugged.
"Ice cream!" Kiri exclaimed with eager delight.
"The number twenty-two? Looks really fancy." Tokoyami said in quiet contemplation.
"Anything to make them happy." Izuku smiled at his feathered friend. "You know how it is."
"Hmm. True." He turned to the approaching waitress, looking up at her. "Hello, I'd like a—oh."
Jiro Kyoka stared down at the three boys with a deadpan expression, dressed in a cute waitress outfit and holding an electronic notepad in her hand. Her eyes slowly roamed over Tokoyami and Dark Shadow at first, but grew suspicious upon seeing Izuku and Monoma. A quiet gaze observed the sisters and how close they were to Izuku, then the baby cradled in Monoma's arms. She made the slow, deliberate action of reaching into her pocket and brought her smartphone up to her ear.
"Hello, police?"
"J-J-Jiro-san!" Izuku exclaimed, panicking. "H-h-hi! U-um, I—"
"Heh. Relax, I'm just messing with you." she laughed, smirking at him playfully. "Don't worry, Uraraka-san sent us a selfie she took with your sister; I know who she is. Hmm, she's even cuter in person."
"Hello hello." Kiri waved.
"Greetings. Apologies, we didn't know you worked here." Tokoyami said.
"Mmm-hmm. What a coincidence. What really surprises me is blondie over there." Jiro slid her eyes over to Monoma. "I thought you hated our class and yet you're hanging out with my classmates… guess this is the first time we're speaking, eh? I'm Jiro Kyoka, nice to meet you."
"Monoma Neito. Charmed." Monoma said dryly before turning his attention back to his baby sister. "I'll have the brunch special, I didn't have breakfast... You guys got any baby formula or something like that? She needs some milk."
"Brunch special and one warm milk, got it. Want some fruit and water to go with that? Alright." Jiro nodded, not seeming to question why he was holding a toddler. "What about the rest of you?"
"Can I have uuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh—" Dark Shadow began.
"Two coffees. One as black as my soul." Tokoyami decided for him. "The other with extra cream and sugar."
"I desire cheese fries, brother!" Dark Shadow cawed.
"And one order of that. Extra cheese." the crow-boy added.
"Hehehehe~ Yes!"
"Riiiigght." Jiro made a few swipes with her fingers. "What about you, Midoriya-kun?"
"One green tea for me, please." Izuku said politely. "And a melon parfait for these two."
"Hold on. Dude, that one's kinda expensive. You sure?" Monoma glanced over at a picture of the fancy-looking treat.
"Well, I don't really use my money on myself so I figured I'd use it for their enjoyment…" Izuku motioned to his sisters.
"Don't worry, I'll pay for everything. Think of it as a… welcoming gift from me." Tokoyami said.
The two other boys blinked in bewildered surprise until Jiro cleared her throat, raising an eyebrow. They quickly finished with their orders, with the waitress assuring Izuku that the dessert would be worth every penny. He couldn't help but watch her as she went, admiring her frilly skirt. A classmate wearing such a cute outfit...
Izuku blushed and looked away, only to find both Monoma and Tokoyami giving him a flat look. His cheeks burned even further, quickly deciding to change the topic by starting a new conversation.
"S-so! Um, we're all here. T-thanks for coming out to meet us, Tokoyami-kun! And, um, paying for the meal, I guess."
"No problem. I'm sure Dark Shadow is keen to finally meet more of his kin." Tokoyami said. "There were old records of beings like him, but never have we actually encountered another pair like us… until we met you. Fate has brought us together, crossing our paths."
"Fate, huh? You mind explaining what's going on here?" Monoma grunted, adjusting the baby bottle in his grip. "I was told that you'd be able to help me with… all of this."
"As you wish. The first thing you need to know that your Ascension is permanent." Tokoyami said casually. "Your new sibling, or daughter if you'd prefer; will not disappear. She may retreat within you, but she will not fade."
Straight to the point. A stunned silence befell the table until Monoma breathed a sigh of relief, rocking Naoto in his arms.
"That's… good to hear. At first I was afraid, but now I've become attached to her. I can feel it somehow; it's like she's a part of me."
"She is. You copied Midoriya-kun's Quirk, did you not?" Tokoyami leaned back into the plush cushion. "His Quirk and mine are essentially the same; Quirks that have gained self-awareness and the ability to project themselves into reality."
That last part caught Izuku's attention and he spoke up.
"Projection… My great-grandmother had a projection-type Quirk; she could create these psychic puppets. Do these types of Quirks have a higher chance of becoming sentient?"
"I can't say for certain. There's still so many things we don't know since our kind is extremely rare even among the Quirked community." Tokoyami shrugged. "The main factor you have to focus on is the self-awareness—they have a mind of their own. Their own lives… their own souls, if you will. Completely separate entities from the host body. Dark Shadow appeared when I was four, as a baby… so I guess this is completely normal."
Newborn gurgled again. Izuku's mind was spinning, observing her carefully while his brain cycled at over a dozen thoughts per second. Monoma had copied his Quirk. However, the result was Naoto… and as far as they knew she couldn't transform. She was born a child, but Kiri was born with the power to shapeshift herself, to look how she wanted to look. Mimi could shapeshift too due to her manifesting via Izuku's Valkyrie Quirk. In essence, Kiri was the projection/barrier Quirk made sentient. That would mean… ah.
Naoto wasn't a Valkyrie at all. She was Monoma's Copy Quirk made sentient, now with a body of her own.
Judging by the slight widening of Monoma's eyes he had figured it out, too. The boys exchanged a silent glance before returning to their own thoughts. Naoto did not have Kiri's invulnerability/barrier ability… but this could potentially mean that she had the power to copy other Quirks as well. Scratch that, she definitely did. Izuku was willing to bet that it had something to do with her scream ability that could echo in people's minds.
"Perhaps it's best that we start with the basics. Tell me what you two know about Quirks, everything you've learnt so far." Tokoyami said.
"Quirks first appeared back when the Glowing Baby was born." Monoma answered, reciting a textbook answer. "Hours after that people from all around the world exhibited signs of superhuman abilities or physical alterations despite not being anywhere near the area that child was born in. Superpowers, or rather, 'Meta Abilities'. That's where the word 'Metahuman' comes from. Quirks were thought to be the result of a virus that spread across the globe, perhaps through rats. Some people have even said that the virus that caused Quirks was first tested on lab rats, which then spread to regular rats which infested cities all over the globe."
"The nature of Quirks has led to mountains of research and experimentation, but we just know the bare basics of how they work. Although many theorized Quirks came from a virus the majority of the population believed that Quirks were not simply a mutation, but rather a step up the evolutionary ladder. As a result, those who were Quirkless are heavily discriminated against even today." Izuku added on. "It's… horrible to think about. I did a lot of theorizing and reading myself, but I'm still left wondering. I can't seem to think of an evolutionary advantage to all of this, especially when the results and effects are so varied. There are even instances where a Quirk doesn't suit the user's body and they can't handle it. Furthermore, Quirks are like muscles; the more you use them the stronger they become. They also suffer the same drawback; overuse could lead to difficulties and complications—the most common of which is exhaustion and bodily strain. A person's Quirk is defined by what is known as a 'Quirk Factor' in their DNA and body… This includes the primary Quirk power as well as all the biological mechanisms that allow said primary power to function properly. As for where the energy used to power Quirks comes from it's still relatively unknown. The laws of thermodynamics don't seem to apply to superpowers."
Monoma and Tokoyami simply gave him a look, and Izuku blushed. He'd been muttering again.
"S-sorry." Izuku stammered, watching how his sisters were making napkin origami birds with Dark Shadow out of the corner of his eye. They gifted one to Naoto who started playing with it.
"No, it's fine. Go ahead, we're listening." Tokoyami nodded in satisfaction. "Good, let's see what else you know."
"R-right! I've looked all over the internet, but everyone's just as confused as to how it works. Take, um, Todoroki-kun for instance. There's no way the calories he takes in can produce that sort of output for his flames. The numbers just don't add up."
"That's right. But everyone knows that Quirks do not operate on conventional physics. Now the two of you have experienced this first hand though your siblings; they consume emotions while my brother here is powered by darkness. Something intangible. Perhaps they are still beyond our understanding."
"Baaaaa." Naoto slurred, her tiny fingers wriggling at Dark Shadow.
"Intangible, huh…" Izuku muttered. "Feelings. T-there's also the chance of an, um, an awakening of sorts. Some call it 'Quirk evolution' since the Quirk itself undergoes a significant change to become something more. I'm bringing this up because from my knowledge this can be caused by extreme stress and heightened emotions. Is that what happened to us? An awakening?"
"Yes and no. From the records and scrolls I've been reading through it seems to be unclear. Dark Shadow was born fully sentient when I was four. I don't think I had any traumatic experiences that caused this." Tokoyami nodded. "For a Quirk to gain self awareness this way? I suppose it's possible… the world is full of mysteries."
Izuku submerged into his thoughts. Extreme stress and heightened emotions. Kiri was born when he was around four years old. The day he was diagnosed as Quirkless… did that count as a traumatic experience for his childish brain, to the point where it was enough for his Quirk to evolve? Then he thought back to Yui's story of how she had been caught up in a villain attack and that made her Quirk evolve as a result. Shame filled his heart… he'd been 'traumatised' by something so petty and insignificant while she had feared for her life. Wait. Back then Yui had admitted that her Quirk influenced her thoughts a little. It was the same for him as well… since Kiri fed on his emotions he rarely stayed angry or upset for long. Quirks could definitely change a person, but the Quirk itself could also change due to a traumatic experience.
Tokoyami happened to hear the tail end of his muttering, closing his eyes wistfully as he contemplated and thought.
"The broken are the more evolved…"
Just as Izuku was about to ask what he meant Jiro returned with their food.
"Okay, this one's for you, for you, for you…" Jiro handed out the dishes expertly. "And for you. Take a picture, it'll last longer."
"Thank you, Jiro-san." Izuku smiled as she gently placed the melon parfait in front of an excited Kiri and interested Mimi. "Worth every penny, huh?"
"You don't know half of it. Took me ages to learn how to create this thing; the boss claims it's his masterpiece." Jiro huffed. "I'm inclined to agree with him—it has nine layers! Nine! Take a good look, I'll explain it from top to bottom. There's the cut melon with the original price of 7,500 yen, jelly and whipped cream, ice cream, melon granita…"
While she was explaining Kiri was getting hungrier and hungrier, her eyes matching Jiro's narration through every layer. Izuku could tell that she really wanted to eat it. Mimi meanwhile was carefully observing both Dark Shadow and Naoto, still keeping her guard up as usual.
"...non-alcoholic champagne sherbet, crunchy corn biscuit, melon jelly and whipped cream again, and finally melon juice at the bottom. The flavors mix together over time as you eat it so every scoop has a potentially different taste! This is some serious gourmet sh—I mean, stuff." Jiro corrected herself hastily.
"You seem rather enthusiastic about it." Tokoyami commented. "I thought you were more inclined to music and the arts?"
"Creating something like this is an artform by itself, dude. Anyways you boys enjoy yourselves, alright? I've got more customers to attend to." She turned to Monoma as well. "And you!"
"Me?" Monoma blurted out.
"You better take good care of that kid, got it?" Jiro huffed before she went. "Keep her happy."
Kiri looked up at her brother eagerly, as if she was asking for permission to eat. She didn't need to, really… Izuku simply gave her a warm smile and nodded for her to continue. The innocent delight that was etched across her face right after she took her first bite would be a memory he'd treasure for life. Mimi seemed to like it as well, slowly enjoying the creamy dessert until she wiggled her spoon at him. He took a bite and found it to be delicious, just as Jiro described.
Beside him Monoma was feeding Naoto, and opposite him Dark Shadow was chowing down on fries while Tokoyami sipped his black coffee. This was what hanging out with friends and family felt like! Izuku's chest filled with warmth. It was… nice.
"Where were we? Ah, right. Dark Shadow manifesting when I was around four years old… I suppose the same thing happened to you, Midoriya-kun?"
"Y-yeah. That's right."
"My Quirk manifested around that age too, but it wasn't sentient back then." Monoma slowly dug into his brunch. "But it is now? So… I copied the 'sentient' aspect instead of Midoriya-kun's Quirk?"
"I suppose so. Either way, it means you're one of us now."
"Wait." Izuku paused. "One of us. So, um, what exactly are we?"
Tokoyami took a long swig of his coffee before exchanging hard looks with the two other boys. His voice lowered to a whisper, making sure no one was around to hear them.
"What I'm about to say next must not be repeated to anyone else. This is top secret information that has the potential to turn society upside-down. Do you both understand?"
He meant it. Izuku gulped and nodded while Monoma did the same hesitantly.
"Okay. Usually this reveal would be done through a sort of formal ceremony in the past, but I'm not really one for tradition." Tokoyami sighed. "People like us are extremelyrare; maybe one in a million. We are what some would call a new type of human with a sentient Quirk. A union of Man and Quirk, subconsciously drawn to others of the same nature. Most of our kin were urban legends, battlefield myths… the Tokoyami family has kept records of such individuals from the beginning of the Dark Age to the Modern Age we are living in today."
Tokoyami steepled his hands, his expression deadly serious.
"We are known as the Ascended; theorized to be the next stage of human evolution."