Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Oh my gosh, hi! You’re so cute! Can I keep you?”

Midoriya Izuku slowly opened his eyes with a groan and then jerked backward in surprise at the sight of a fanged pink visage hovering in front of his face. He looked around wildly, taking in his surroundings. The last thing he'd known, he was being suffocated by the sludge villain who was trying to escape All Might. Something something, it wanted to steal his body? Which seemed sorta weird. He didn't even want this quirkless body of his. Why would a sludge villain want it? Now the sludge that had been suffocating him was gone, and he was sitting up against the wall of the underpass. With a really ferocious looking pink head floating in front of him? That was... wholly unexpected.

Then Izuku looked past the black and yellow eyes and the jagged teeth and the slightly elongated head shape, and he noticed that the head existed on the end of a thick pink tendril of slightly shiny pink goo. He followed the tendril to its source, which turned out to be... him? There was a gooey pink mass covering the upper right portion of his body, and the head was a part of that? Well that was certainly weird. But it just seemed to be sitting on him, as opposed to suffocating him and trying to steal his body. So it was a marked improvement in his lot in life.

To be honest, this whole thing just seemed like the icing on the cake of the worst day of Izuku's life. He'd attended his first day of his final year of junior high school. Gotten called out for wanting to be a quirkless hero. Gotten shouted at by his former friend. Gotten suicide baited by said former friend. Had his personal belongings destroyed, for good measure. Gotten attacked by a villain. But... well, it couldn't possibly get worse from here, right? And at least he was getting to meet a hero? Or at least he thought the pink goo thing was a hero. Maybe he should ask? “Hi! Um, did you save me? Are you a hero? I’ve never heard of a hero with a quirk like yours.”

Shaking its head, the pink thing turned to look over at the bubbling mass of sludge on the ground a meter or so away from Izuku. Oh. So that's where the villain had gone. Considering he'd tried to kill Izuku, the fact that he was just sorta... right over there was moderately terrifying. “I am not! I am… an alien! I'm between host bodies at the moment. I was just sorta blurbing along, minding my own business, when I saw that guy trying to kill you. And I was like, mou! That’s super rude of him! So I saved you from him! And then you were sorta messed up so I bonded with you to try and heal you, and now we’re here!”

Izuku looked down at where the pink mass was growing out of him. So it wasn't just sitting on him, which would have been weird enough. A bit too familiar in their relatively conservative society. But it had bonded with him? Wait. What did that even mean? “Eh? You bonded with me? That seems very familiar of you! I don’t even know your name!”

“Oh! I’m sorry! I would have told you my name already but you were, well, unconscious.” Another tendril of pink goo emerged from his side, forming into a primitive looking hand that offered him a peace sign. “You can call me Ashido!”

Izuku reached into his book bag, pulling out his trusty notebook and then frowning. Between Bakugou and the sludge villain, his poor notebook was not having a good day. Which was sorta depressing, because he'd put a significant amount of work into the entries that comprised the first half or so of the book. “Okay. So I can’t take notes about you. But I have a good memory. So. Your name is Ashido. Nice to meet you. I’m Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku.”

Ashido’s goo hand reached out to shake and Izuku obliged her hesitantly. Her? Well, in his defense, the alien sounded vaguely feminine and also it was pink? Which might have been stereotyping of him, but he felt like it was safe to assume Ashido was a her unless told otherwise. The goo wasn’t actually unpleasant, it turned out. A little warm. Not slimy or gross at all. “Nice to meet you… Midori!” Ashido let out a giggle at the confused look on Izuku’s face. “We’re bonded! You’re mine now! So I gave you a nickname!”

“Okay, so let’s discuss that for a minute. What do you mean by ‘bonded’?” Izuku made air quotes with his fingers and then looked down at Ashido’s tendrils. “You’ve clearly become a part of me and I honestly don’t know how I feel about that.”

Her head bobbed as Ashido smiled widely. “I am! So, uh, how do I explain this? Basically Klyntar exist as a species of symbiotes. We bond with hosts to experience their lives and enrich our own. Some of us are… honestly not great. But some of us are. I’d like to think that I’m one of the good ones. And so I came to Earth looking for a host to enjoy life with. Met a nice girl near where I landed. She let me bond with her for a bit. I picked up some cool acid powers from her. After a while, the whole 'we' thing got to be too much for her and so we parted ways. Moved on with my life. Found another host. They weren't so great, so I got the hell out of there. And then I found you. And you’re just the cutest thing I’ve ever seen and you needed help so I bonded with you. And here we are.”

Izuku smiled nervously at Ashido as he pressed his fingertips together. “Okay but like... you join with a person? And experience life with them? And through them? Forgive me if this is me seeing something that isn't there, but the way that you talk about being bonded to a person makes it all sound so very…” He trailed off, hesitating for a moment. “Relationshippy?”

Scoffing, Ashido waved dismissively at Izuku's observation. “That would be weird. Don’t make it weird.” Her head whipped around, invading his personal space. “Unless you’re into it. In which case… hey baby. You come here often?”

His face exploding in a blush, Izuku brought his hands up to his cheeks. Despite his embarrassment, though, he found himself laughing at her use of what even he recognized was a terrible pickup line. "Oh gosh. Um. Hey? Honestly, I kinda do? This is my second favorite way to walk home. So I come here... reasonably regularly?" His cheeks still flushed, he ducked his head and then peeked up at her. "Are you actually flirting with me? Because I genuinely can't tell what's going on here. I've literally never had a single person flirt with me before. Human or alien."

“Wait, what? Really? Why?” Ashido’s primitive hand warped back into a tendril that she used to rub his cheek gently. “You’re super cute! And you seem really nice! And you haven’t run away screaming yet, which I mean… major points with me, lemme tell you.”

Lowering his hands from his face, Izuku gestured down at himself. Then he paused. "Which part do you want me to answer first? The why I'm not running part, or why nobody likes me part?"

Ashido considered that for a moment and then added a bit of mass to where the tendril met her body so that she could affect something approximating a shrug. "Actually, I'm genuinely curious why the fact that a goo girl with vicious teeth sitting on your body isn't like, holy shit fucking run territory for you. I'm not going to lie, I am not the friendliest looking thing out there."

While she wasn't wrong? "Yeah but like, you're the friendliest thing out there. At least to me." Izuku gestured down at himself again. "I mean, like, I have... perilously few positive social interactions. Even the cashier at the konbini near school seems like he's looking down on me. Sure, you're a pink goo from outer space that's evidently decided to take up residence on my body without asking. But like, at least you're friendly? You're the nicest person that I've met in a while. Why would I run away from that?"

Ashido cooed softly. "Aww, that's... hella depressing to be honest. Because yeah, I'm a really nice person. But at the same time, like, I shouldn't be the only nice person that you've met in recent memory. Midori! Why do people hate you so much?"

Grimacing, Izuku let his head hang. “Well I guess it’s mostly that… well, I assume you’ve been here long enough to know what quirks are. Since you mentioned your first host had an acid quirk. And I… I don’t have one. So a lot of people look down on me because I don't have a quirk. I can't really do anything useful. So how am I going to become a productive member of society? Why bother with me?"

Ashido let out an aggravated huff. “Well that’s just stupid. People are stupid. Society is stupid. And I don’t care. You’re cute and you’re nice and now you’re all mine. So to double back to the 'am I flirting with you' question... I mean, kinda? We're gonna be together for a while, at least if I have anything to say about it. I definitely wouldn't say no to getting to know you better. If you're into it."

"I... err..." Izuku's mind raced as he stared Ashido in the eye. On one hand? This was going... really fast. But then, like, sometimes people did just hit it off the first time they met and they started flirting because they liked each other. Obviously never with him but like, Izuku read manga. It happened. At this point, he didn't really know Ashido. They'd literally just met. But she was friendly and cheerful and just... full of life. And Izuku liked those things. And so he smiled bashfully. "I'm kinda into it? If it's not making things weird."

Ashido reshaped her tendril into a hand and shot a finger gun at him. "So keep flirting with you. Got it. On it. Watch me flirt. But also like, I did mention that we're bonded now, right?" Izuku nodded slowly and she pointed her finger at herself. "Okay but like, what I don't think I mentioned? Is that this isn't a one way street. It's give and take. You give me experience. Life. Purpose. And I give you... me. So I guess you'll always be quirkless, but as of literally right now? You're no longer powerless. You have me. And I am fucking amazing."

Eyes widening, Izuku bounced in place slightly. "Wait, you can what? So what, I'll have like, acid powers all of a sudden?"

Bobbing excitedly, Ashido spread down Izuku's right arm. "You will! Or rather, you do! Among other things, but yeah, let's start with that. So hold out your hand, palm up." Izuku hesitantly complied, and watched in disbelief as a bubbling white fluid pooled in his hand. "So yeah. Acid. That's how I beat the villain who was attacking you. I got between you and him and then just sorta... acid."

"...wait, you what?" Izuku looked over at the bubbling puddle of sludge on the ground and his eyes - if possible - got even wider. "Is he still alive?"

Ashido looked over at the puddle and then back at Izuku. "Do you really want to go over there and try to find out?"

Hmm. That was a good point. Izuku slowly slid his back up the underpass wall as he rose to his feet, stretching his arms over his head to work out the tightness in them. "So working with you, I'll be pink and have acid powers? I can think of worse things in life. I kinda like pink. It's not my favorite color per se, but it's pretty high up there as far as colors go."

Pink spread over the rest of his body and Izuku found himself staring down at the ground from a slightly higher vantage point. "Bum bum bum! I am Ashido, but also… we are Ashido! We can work together as one being and we're stronger, faster, and then also have those really nifty acid powers. What else? I can also make tendrils so we can climb and swing and I guess stab things if we want to? I'm not really into that, to be honest. Like, I'm fine being inside you... wink... but I don't really want to be inside anyone else? Even a little? I feel like that should be a just us thing."

Izuku tried to pull out his phone but found himself unable to reach into his pocket because, well, he was Ashido. Which... maybe they could workshop the name a bit? If not, he understood, but it was a little on the nose. Making his way through the underpass, he emerged on the other side and peered at his reflection in the window of a nearby building. "Um, the teeth are certainly a choice. I guess someone has to challenge Gang Orca for his title of Hero Who Looks Most Like a Villain."

"Yeah, I can do a combined form face without my teeth but I just don't want to. Sorry not sorry. Love me, love my teeth." The portion of Ashido covering his head peeled away, shifting to become the head on a tendril again. "I'm not that bad looking, am I? And before you answer, keep in mind that I'm evidently the first girl to ever flirt with you and your chances of actually dating me depend on this answer."

Izuku’s eyes went their widest yet as he shook his head slowly. “I am probably going to mess this up really bad because I have negative one charisma but I honestly do think you’re really pretty, Ashido. You’re definitely different from anyone I’ve ever met before, but you have your good points. And I feel genuinely honored that you decided to pick me to be your host.”

Throwing her head back, Ashido laughed. “Guess we found the monsterfucker.” Izuku’s jaw dropped and she laughed again. “What? Midori, I am a pink goo. I’m not mad that you like me, I’m just seriously questioning your tastes.”

That made Izuku huff softly even as the corner of his mouth quirked upward. “I don’t know, you’re sort of a cute pink goo? You’re, uh, what’s the word I want here? I guess… you’re very fetching?”

“Fetching. You’re so articulate, Midori. Or awkward. Probably just awkward, to be honest.” Ashido winked one black and yellow eye at Izuku, making him huff again. “But I suppose you passed my little test… monsterfucker. Heh. Did you know there’s actually a scientific name for that? You are a teratophile. Oh! We should use that as a hero name! Teratophile: the… Something Hero.”

Izuku snorted softly as he looked at his reflection again. “I could call myself that in public exactly once. And then someone would google it and I would die of embarrassment.” Leaning in, he made a vague gesture that Ashido managed to correctly interpret, covering his head and manifesting the fanged visage again. “This is actually really cool now that I'm getting used to it."

"I told you I was fucking amazing!"

Chapter Text

Not wanting to linger under the underpass all day - especially if the villain managed to recover from whatever Ashido had done to it - Izuku set off on a meandering path toward home. For once, he wasn’t in any particular rush to get there. At the same time, he didn’t really have anywhere else to go at the moment. So he was pretty much just… taking the long way home with Ashido.

As they made their way back out onto more populated streets, Izuku was genuinely amazed at the lack of reactions that he garnered. He was on the taller side as Ashido, bright pink, and his face could make children cry. Oh, and he wasn’t wearing anything that resembled conventional clothing. That was the sort of thing that people would stare at, right?

Except it turned out that it wasn’t. Had quirks really so thoroughly desensitized people to weird things at this point? Ashido was a pink goo girl from outer space! That was weird, right? But no. Apart from a few sidelong glances, Izuku attracted practically no attention as he walked down the street with his new companion.

It did sorta reassure him that they’d probably be able to avoid scrutiny over his newly ‘quirked’ status. Late bloomer, sentient quirk? Izuku could probably sell that, right? “Hmm. People have sentient quirks. Or at least I’ve heard some people do. I’ve never met one, although I would love to because it would be incredibly fascinating to-“

His mouth moved without his permission, a mixture of his voice and Ashido’s emerging. “Midori. Focus. Like, your big brain is one of your selling points as far as I’m concerned but also like… I am not the brightest symbiote. Keep things simple for me.”

“Right. Right. Sorry. Basically, I was trying to figure out where we go from here.” Izuku pictured Ashido receding again and she did, making him blink. Then something occurred to him. “Wait a second. Can you… can you read my mind?”

Forming her head on his shoulder again, Ashido nodded eagerly. “We can share thoughts, yeah! Your mind is amazing! And like I said, I’m stupid. So I can’t really contribute much on that front. But I can teach you a few things. If you want. Have you ever wondered about the multiverse?”

He honestly couldn’t say that he had, at least before today. That being said, Izuku was definitely wondering about it now. There was a multiverse? There was a quantifiable, empirically provable multiverse? And Ashido knew things about it? He had… so many questions. Then he shook his head to clear it. “I’m going to have so many questions when I get home. You, my dear, are getting an entire notebook all to yourself.” He froze and then looked over at Ashido’s floating head. “Are you a dear? Did I just make things awkward?”

“Um, a little? Clearly I’m a princess. Which we will definitely add to the back end of the dating conversation when we get home.” Ashido stuck her tongue out and Izuku recoiled a little; that was a heck of a tongue. “I will, however, accept Pinky as a nickname if you want to give me one.”

Turning to Ashido, Izuku grinned nervously. “How do you feel about Bubblegum as a nickname? It’s pink, it’s a goo…”

Ashido considered that for a moment before nodding. “I like it. I will be Ashido or Bubblegum until you man up and ask me out, at which point I will be Princess. You’re not as bad at this as you think, Midori.”

Izuku pictured himself returning to normal and the majority of Ashido promptly disappeared back to wherever she went when not in use. Inside him, based on her earlier comment. Which was a little concerning. He was pretty sure that his own insides occupied all of the inside of him that he had. "Okay, so the reason I was thinking about sentient quirks - as you evidently probably already know - is that I’m trying to figure out where we go from here. Should I keep you a secret? Just pretend that you're my quirk?"

Pink goo swirled around Izuku's arm and then off down onto the ground, forming into an entire pink humanoid with the symbiote's black and yellow eyes. Ashido bounced lightly on her toes and smiled at him... with some awfully sharp teeth. Was it wrong that he kinda wanted to see what she’d do to one of the pork cutlets in his mom’s katsudon? "Nope! I am... your new alien friend! Maybe girlfriend; we really do need to discuss that when we get home. But as long as we hold hands, I can be out here on my own and exist and talk to people and do most human stuff. Like eat chocolate. Oh my god, Midori, we need to buy some chocolate on the way home. I am craving it like you wouldn't believe."

Izuku stared down at their joined hands and blushed brightly. "Hold hands with a girl? That's so... lewd."

Reaching across, Ashido poked his chest. “Seriously though, Midori. I need chocolate. Well, specifically I need phenethylamine. Which is the biggest word I know, and please don’t ask me to spell it. But yeah. It’s in a bunch of places. Brains. Chocolate. I have been informed that out of those two, chocolate is the more socially acceptable thing for me to eat.”

Now that he has access to his phone, Izuku made use of it, pulling it out and awkwardly stumbling through typing out the unknown polysyllabic word. “It says here that it’s found in… huh. There’s some kind of algae that I can’t pronounce but it’s got several times more phenethylamine than chocolate.”

That piece of information earned him a disgusted look from Ashido, the pink girl sticking her tongue out. “I refuse. I am not eating algae, no matter how good it may be for me. Chocolate, Midori. I want chocolate.”

Nodding absently, Izuku continued to scroll through the article because learning new things was never a bad time for him. “Seeds. Nuts. Lentils. Huh. Uh, it says here that natto is also a good source of phenethylamine? The more you know.”

“Wait, what?” Ashido’s eyes widened as she leaned in toward Izuku. “Midori, can you buy me natto? It’s literally my favorite food.”

Wait, seriously? But it was so slimy. And the smell wasn’t his favorite either. That being said, Midoriya Inko hadn’t raised an idiot and so Izuku knew better than to insult what was evidently his new companion’s favorite food. At least out loud. “Okay but like… gosh, I’m blushing just thinking about this. But imagine how cute it would be if I fed you pieces of chocolate.”

Pulling back, Ashido considered that for a few seconds before leaning in toward him again. “Okay but what if you just feed me natto? Also cute. And it’s natto.”

She had him there, didn’t she? Izuku smiled at his companion. She was pretty much offering him the world at this point. His own quirk, or at least a good approximation thereof. A chance to be a hero. Companionship. Maybe even a relationship. What was a little natto compared to that? “You know what? You’re on.”

As the two wandered off down the street, they attracted a few more looks than before. Possibly because Ashido was a bright pink goo girl? But also possibly because of their public display of affection? Or maybe the fact that they were taking up more room? Something to keep an eye on, Izuku decided. He couldn’t do anything about the first two, but if walking together as a conjoined pair was discourteous of them… wait. Couples went out all the time. Families went out all the time, and that was three or more people together. So hmm. Probably either the goo girl or the hand holding. Meh. Izuku guessed he was just going to have to get used to attracting attention.

Although while most of him was exulting in his sudden good fortune, a small part of Izuku wondered… should they be attracting attention? What if someone started asking questions? What if… what if someone tried to take Ashido away from him? Or what if people discovered that she was an alien symbiote and someone made her a better offer? Because to be honest, he didn’t really have a lot to offer her. Cuteness aside, evidently.

What if… what if when Bakugou found out, he wanted Ashido for himself? If she could give a quirkless worthless nobody like Izuku the power to be a hero, what would Bakugou be like with Ashido supplementing his abilities? He really would be the next number one hero, there was no doubt in Izuku’s mind.

Given that she probably didn’t have a traditional respiratory or digestive system on account of being goo - although somehow she managed to eat - Izuku was genuinely surprised when she managed to clear her throat to draw him out of his thoughts. “So. Just out of curiosity. What are your thoughts on polyamory?”

That made Izuku stare blankly over at his companion as they continued on. “Bubblegum, I’m a quirkless social pariah. I never even thought I’d have a friend, much less a girlfriend. Asking what I think about polyamory is like asking what I’d wear to the Academy Prize show: I’ve never thought about it because I was pretty sure I’d never be invited. Why?”

“Okay so you’re not inherently against it. That’s a good start.” Ashido brought two tendrils around to fidget and press against each other before looking over at him again. “I maybe kinda sorta have a girlfriend? Which means that if we date… surprise! Two girlfriends!”

Izuku’s jaw dropped. “…what?”

Bouncing in place, Ashido waved her free hand and several small tendrils. “Surprise! Two girlfriends! How exciting, right? Polyamory is a thing and it turns out that you are invited. Well, assuming we date. If not… surprise, I’m gonna need you to take me to see my girlfriend!”

Sighing, Izuku spotted a nearby alley and hustled over to it, Ashido giggling softly as she skipped along next to him. Once they were alone, Izuku turned to face Ashido. “Okay. So. You have a girlfriend? I understand why that wouldn't stop you from flirting me, since you’re evidently polyamorous. But… you have a girlfriend? I feel like this is something that should have come up during the overall partnership and bonding portion of the conversation. This is kind of a big deal, Bubblegum.”

Ashido shook her head and waved her hand dismissively. “It is not. I mean, we’re partners. We’re symbiotic. Did you really think that meant you’d just go about life as usual and you’d never have to do anything I wanted to at all ever?”

The question made Izuku flinch as he realized… kinda, yeah. That was exactly how he’d naively assumed this would all work. After all, how much of a life could a goo girl from outer space have outside of the host she was bonded to? Then again, given that he had literally no social life, anything was more of a life than he had, wasn’t it?

Izuku instinctively bowed apologetically before bringing Ashido’s hand up and squeezing it between both of us. “You probably already know this, but that’s pretty much exactly what I was thinking. And I’m very sorry for that. So I guess the question I should be asking is… how exactly does this work? In the event that we don’t manage to agree to date and I’m just your host and, well, surprise girlfriend?”

“I’m honestly not sure how it would work if we don’t end up dating? I mean, I’d kinda… need you there for obvious reasons.” Ashido thought about that for a long stretch, long enough that Izuku started to fidget in the slightly awkward silence. Finally, she spoke. “I guess that this gives me an incentive to convince you to date me? Date us? Because Musutafu to Tokyo is a bit of an ask, isn’t it?”

Considering he knew exactly how long a trip that was from his regular pilgrimages to Might Tower? Kinda, yeah. Especially if there was absolutely nothing in it for him. Then something occurred to Izuku. If it made Ashido happy… was there truly nothing in it for him?

Hmm.

“Why don’t we… why don’t we table this discussion until we’re at home and can have a nice long proper talk about… everything.” Izuku smiled nervously, letting one hand pull away from Ashido’s so that he could gesture back and forth at them. “This is all just a lot very fast and I recognize that I need to make some fairly important decisions fairly quickly but I would like to make them somewhere quiet, comfortable, and most importantly… privately?”

Ashido perked up, smiling widely at Izuku. “Yeah. Yeah, we can absolutely do that, Midori.” She leaned in, lowering her voice a little. “Can we maybe take a slightly straighter route home from here? So we can have that conversation?”

That seemed fair, yeah. And so Izuku nodded and led her out of the alleyway and to a nearby bus stop. Ashido was polite enough to merge back into his body for the ride, and they made it back to his neighborhood without any issues. He wasn’t lucky enough to live directly on a bus route, but it was close enough and so in no time, they were back at his apartment building.

Izuku stared up at the fairly unremarkable building uncertainly before looking over at Ashido. His family was comfortable but not particularly well off. “Please tell me that neither of your former hosts lived in a house? Or else this is going to be very disappointing to you.”

"Nope!" Ashido popped the 'P' slightly as she emerged from inside him, resuming her pink goo girl form as she stared up at the building. "My girlfriend doesn't either. Don't worry, I am completely fine with this situation. I mean, it's not like I need much room. I don't exactly have belongings."

A good point, yeah. And so Izuku nodded resolutely and made his way up the stairs toward the encounter that could make or break his future. After all, even if he was down for being Ashido's host, there was exactly one person who could overrule him. And so he unlocked the door, braced himself, and then swung it open. “Mom! I’m home! And I brought a friend!”

Peeking her head out of the kitchen, Midoriya Inko raised an eyebrow. “Is this one visible?” At the sight of Izuku standing in the entryway with Ashido, her eyes went wide. “Oh. Hello there.”

Ashido burst into laughter at that, leaning against Izuku’s side with surprising weight for a girl made of pink goo. Not too much weight, but more weight than Izuku had expected. Because, well, she was made of goo. “I don’t want to ruin the surprise but that is going to be so funny when she visits.” She waved animatedly to Inko, who stared at her in surprise. “Hi, Mamadoriya! I’m Ashido! Izuku’s new best friend!”

Glancing over at his companion, Izuku rubbed the back of his head as he turned back to his mom. “I made a friend today? Who might possibly turn into a girlfriend? That’s a work in progress though.” Inko’s eyes got even wider before rolling back in her head as she collapsed to the floor. “Huh. Maybe should have saved that one for when we were sitting down?”

Chapter Text

“Huh. Maybe should have saved that one for when we were sitting down?”

“Is it mean that I think that was funny?” Ashido looked over at Izuku with a grin and then raised her free hand in surrender when he responded with an exasperated look. “Fine, fine, lemme help out. You and your little noodle arms probably can’t pick her up.”

Hey! She was completely correct, but at the same time… hey! Izuku watched interestedly as Ashido switched to connecting to him by a tendril at his hip, freeing up both hands to pick up his mother. Turning, Izuku gestured into the living room. “Um, couch maybe? I don’t really feel comfortable going into her room.”

Ashido spawned an extra arm so that she could gesture to herself without shifting her grip on Izuku's mother. “Do you want me to? I mean, I’m a girl. It’s probably okay.”

“No, let’s just put her on the couch for now.” Ashido did as requested and then turned back to him, making Izuku rub the back of his head. “So now… I don’t know, important discussions in my bedroom? Although we should probably leave the door open. You are a girl, after all.”

Giggling, Ashido bounced back over to Izuku, splashing over his body and covering the right side of his chest and his arm. “You’re so cute, Midori. Being worried about what's proper and all.” She leaned in, her teeth grazing his ear. “I am literally inside you right now.”

Izuku exploded in yet another blush - a frequent occurrence around Ashido - and buried his face in his hands as he hurried down the hallway to his room. After a moment’s thought, he closed the door. They needed a little privacy, after all. “Okay. First and most important question. Are you just messing with me, or are we actually going to date? Like, I feel like all other discussions will be shaped by how this one goes.”

His body moved without his input, and Izuku found himself sprawled out on his bed staring up at the ceiling. Oh. That was a thing she could do? That was... slightly concerning, given how much more outgoing and energetic Ashido was compared to him. His companion slid off of him, assuming her goo girl form in the space between him and the wall. “I mean, humans are awfully cute to me. And you’re especially cute for a human. Like, I just want to…” Ashido giggled, rolling halfway onto his chest and reaching up to play with his hair. “Your hair is so fluffy! And full of secrets! Do you mind if I steal it?”

Laying there stiffly under her, Izuku cocked his head to the side uncertainly. “Steal it? Uh, I’d rather you not? I’m kinda attached to it. Literally.”

“No, I mean… hang on, it’s easier to just show you.” Ashido shifted and warped, turning herself into a much more humanoid form that yes, featured Izuku’s hair. Except in pink. All of her was pink, including her rudimentary attempt at clothes, except for her black and yellow eyes. Even those were more human, though, forming distinctly human style eyes with black sclera, yellow irises, and the conventional black pupils. "I'm sorta making this up as I go along; I've mostly either been in goo form or combined form in the time that I've been on Earth."

Continuing to stare at her, Izuku raised an eyebrow. "Is that... I don't know, comfortable? Like, it seems like an awful lot of effort to put into just existing. You're mostly just... goo. Turning yourself into an entire accurate human - with clothes, even - seems like a lot of work."

Ashido looked down at herself and then shrugged. "I mean, it's a little more difficult, but it's not really hard or anything. I can turn into clothes and stuff. So if you're comfortable with it, you can actually wear me to school as your uniform. Uh, not a pink uniform. I can turn different colors to accurately imitate things. Like..." She flexed and looked over at her arm as her pink shirt turned into an imitation of All Might's costume. "I am here!"

That made Izuku's eyes widen as he stared at her in fascination. "That's so cool! I was curious if you being pink meant that my hero costume would have to be pink if we went through with this-"

"Uh, it does. We are Ashido."

"...oh. Okay. But like, I can wear other colors the rest of the time? That's cool." Then something occurred to him and Izuku went rigid. "Wait, what about like... underwear and stuff?"

Ashido winked playfully. "Midori, I'm literally inside you right now. And you're worried about me being on your junk?" He opened his mouth to respond and she let her tongue flick over her lips. "I mean, I wouldn't mind being on your junk. I would not mind that at all."

Squeaking, Izuku shook his head rapidly. "Bubblegum! I... why do you have to make everything weird on me? Gosh!" Izuku tried to get away from her by rolling over, only to end up with Ashido pinned between him and the bed. He let out another squeak and promptly rolled back over onto his back. "Do you like, feed on my embarrassment or something?"

"Uh, not particularly? I just think it's funny." Ashido grinned down at him, displaying a mouthful of teeth as sharp as her regular form's. "That being said, I do consume your phenylethylamine and adrenaline, so you becoming a hero would be fucking great. I also increase your dopamine levels, so... happier Midori because of me?"

Izuku chuckled softly at that. "And here I thought I was just happy because you were being so nice to me."

Shrugging, Ashido's grin widened. "Six of one, half a dozen of the other. It's a side effect, not something I actively control. We're happier together, but like... I can also deliberately try to make you happier. Which brings us back around to..." She gestured to herself. "What do you think, Midori? Am I more dateable like this?"

Frowning, Izuku hesitantly reached up and grabbed her hand. “Bubblegum. Ashido. Like I said earlier, you’re a very fetching pink goo. You don’t have to pretend to be something you’re not around me. If you want to be a scary pink goo girl? Be a scary pink goo girl.”

“Pfft. Fucking monsterfucker.” As Izuku sputtered indignantly, Ashido waved their joined hands. “No, no, be horny on main for my goo-ness. I genuinely love it.” The awkwardness of the situation increased markedly as she slid to straddle Izuku’s midsection, perching on his stomach as she resumed her more monstrous form. “Real talk. We’re bonded. You can get rid of me. I’d really prefer that you didn’t. And if you don’t? We’re literally going to be inseparable. Like, this is the furthest I’ll ever get from you. And even now, we can still share thoughts because, well, bonded. So I don’t really want to put all the decision making on you because you’re a bottom and that’s not really your strong point, but how things go really is up to you. Friendship. Relationship. It's all good to me. I am down for whatever and so it all depends on what you decide you want out of this situation.”

Izuku raised his free hand now that he had one and held up a finger. “First of all, I’m not a bottom.”

Snorting, Ashido shot him a look that was surprisingly obviously condescending for a goo monster that he was still learning to read. “Midori, I’m in your brain. You’re a bottom.”

Scowling, Izuku looked away from her knowing gaze. “You don’t have to call me out like that. Besides, I’m not a bottom.” Ashido made a noise of disbelief and he nodded adamantly. “I'm just a switch in the most bottom way possible.”

Ashido brought her right hand up to her mouth and coughed into her fist. “Bottom.” Izuku stuck his tongue out and she quickly reciprocated. Wow. Yeah. That was a tongue. “Seriously though. If you want to be like, very good friends who occasionally fight crime together, that’s enough for me. I’ll just enjoy the adventures we have together. But if you want to like, be my boyfriend and I’ll be your goofriend? I am seriously so down for that. Humans are great. I love humans.”

Furrowing his brow, Izuku considered the matter deeply. No matter what, he wanted a friend out of this. And he was going to have one. Ashido was very upfront about that. But at the same time... it might have been the complete lack of affection from anyone other than his mother speaking, but the verdet sorta wanted someone to... want him? Like, leaving aside that Ashido was a girl made of pink alien space goo? In less than an hour of knowing him, she already knew him better than literally any person on the planet, his own mother included. And she still wanted him. Which was just mind blowing. Because he was really fucking weird. She knew him and she wanted him and Izuku just wanted to be wanted at this point. They would have to figure out a few things. Like that whole girlfriend situation of hers. But did he really want to look a gift horse in the mouth all too closely?

"I do not." Ashido cocked her head to the side and Izuku tapped the side of his head. "You should already know."

Giggling, Ashido bounced a little on top of him. And huh, he hadn’t noticed how light she was before now. Which made sense given that she was an alien goo. "I do, though! I was just being polite. Do you, like, want to take this all telepathic? Well, strictly speaking I'm not a telepath. I can't read minds in general. I can just read your mind. But you know what I mean."

He did. And Izuku shook his head in response to her question. "I kinda... like your voice? If it's all the same to you."

"Rizz! Midori has rizz!" Ashido giggled again before leaning down to rest her elbows on his shoulders and loom over him. "So. Those were certainly thoughts. And I have a good idea where this is going... but I'm still going to make you ask. Just for propriety's sake."

Izuku found himself genuinely smiling in response. Ashido seemed to have a way of bringing that out in him. His face faintly ached already from all the smiling he’d done in the last hour. “Okay though. Do you want to be my, uh, goofriend?”

Nodding eagerly, Ashido bounced again. “I do! Ahh! This is amazing! I’m so excited. Let me just…” She collapsed forward onto him, turning into pink goo that spread over his body and… purred? It was a faint vibration that Izuku could only really compare to a cat purring. It was really cute though. “I have a boyfriend! This is so exciting! I’ve only ever had girlfriends before. I wonder how this is going to be different? New experiences! Ahh!”

Oh, that was an excellent opening for him. Because despite her claims that they shared thoughts, Izuku hadn’t figured out how to make that work yet. “About that. You have a girlfriend. Now that we've gotten past the 'are we dating' stage, I feel like we probably need to discuss that at length."

“We do!” Ashido writhed a bit, twisting around his body, and then his phone floated up into view in the grasp of her tendrils. “I hope she picks up the call from a random number. I, uh, don't exactly have my own cell phone to call her from. Hmm. If I'm living here... wait, I still don't have a job or a steady income. So I still can't get my own phone. Rats."

Given that he didn’t have any friends, his favorites tab in the phone app was depressingly bare with only his mom present. As Izuku watched, Ashido nimbly flitted from the phone app to the contacts app, added a new contact, and then added it to favorites under his mother’s contact. Then she started a video call Izuku sucked in a breath. No time like the present, evidently.

The phone rang enough times to make Izuku anxious - which didn’t take much; he didn’t like making phone calls - before eventually being answered. The screen shifted to display a black fuku with… nobody in it? “Ashido! Oh my god, where have you been, girl? I knew you were going to jump hosts but I wasn’t counting on you just being incommunicado for two weeks!”

Poking her face up out of Izuku’s chest, Ashido waved a tendril. “Hey baby hey! Yeah, uh, things were getting a little toxic with You-Know-Who so I decided it was time to move on. Lived the single life for a bit, and now… meet Izuku! My new boyfriend.”

“Oh my god, how exciting!” The uniform bounced up and down a few times between leaning in closer. “Wait. Is he just your boyfriend or is he our boyfriend? Asking for reasons. Because he is awfully cute.”

Ashido giggled and waved a tendril at the phone. “You haven’t even introduced yourself yet. And for fuck’s sake, pair your FLIR camera. This is disconcerting as hell.”

The uniform gasped and then twisted, digging into her book bag. After a few seconds, she emerged with what she was looking for and moved it up out of view at the top of the screen. There were a few soft mutters and then the world exploded into color, including a now visible girl inhabiting the uniform. “There. Is that better?”

“It is! Just because I have enhanced senses in person doesn’t mean I can see you through your phone.” Ashido looked up at Izuku, who was staring raptly at the phone. Because in his defense, Ashido’s girlfriend had an invisibility quirk? That was just so cool! “He’s going to be hypothesizing about your quirk for the near future. Derail him for me?”

The girl reached up to toy with the neckline of her fuku. “Derail him how?”

Ashido huffed. “Can you not be a thot for like, thirty seconds? Introduce yourself, please.”

“Can’t stop, won’t stop. But fine.” The girl offered a wide smile and a wave to the camera. “Hi! I’m Hagakure Tooru! Nice to meet you! And yes, my quirk is Invisibility. Cool, huh?”

Izuku nodded eagerly, sitting up a little on the bed to get a better look at her. “It is! How does it work? Are you bending light around yourself? Does light pass through you? How much of the electromagnetic spectrum do you affect? Ashido mentioned that you use a FLIR camera; is the heat you radiate the only way to detect you?”

Looking from side to side, Tooru hesitantly lowered her hand away from her neckline. "Wait, are you being serious? I was trying to flirt and all you just want is to know more about my quirk?" Izuku nodded rapidly and she sighed. "Um, well, I guess I can answer a few questions for you..."

Chapter Text

"So, last night went well. I feel like last night went well."

Izuku nodded in agreement before yawning widely. "Uh, maybe went well for a bit too long? I do not feel like I got enough sleep last night. I don't know if I want to be up until one in the morning too terribly often."

Bobbing her head, Ashido used a tendril to shove a slice of apple into her mouth. "No, no, that's fair. That was my fault. We got a little carried away catching up, and then both of us were trying to get to know you, and we just... talked. A lot."

They had. And it was fine, at least this one time. Izuku had genuinely enjoyed getting to know Ashido better. Which was still... he had a girlfriend? He had a friend? Okay but he had a girlfriend? He wasn't sure what to do with that. Or how to avoid messing it up. He was going to have to stop by the bookstore this afternoon and see if there were any relationship guides for teenagers. Uh, teenagers with alien goofriends? Probably not. Hopefully generic boy and girl advice would work for him.

They reached the front gates of Aldera Junior High School and Izuku looked over at Ashido uncertainly. She was a very visible pink blob growing out of his very black gakuran. "Do you want to be, uh, let's go with less obvious?"

"Um, no? Like, I'm coming to class with you and fuck them if they try to stop me. I'll fight a bitch." Ashido manifested two stubby arms and threw a few punches before looking back over at him. "Why? Do you want to hide me?"

Izuku thought for a moment, considering how to phrase what was going through his head. "I don't so much want to hide you as protect you from seeing what my life is like? Quirkless people don't really have it great and I do sorta have a bully?"

Bristling, Ashido's arms grew more substantial. "I'll fucking fight them! Let me at them! Ooh! I hate bullying! Midori, you deserve better than that!"

"Some would argue otherwise. My teachers especially, it seems. I don't know. I guess I'm just used to it by now?" Izuku shrugged awkwardly as he looked over at the still agitated Ashido. "I just sorta... do my best to survive it, get out of school, and enjoy the rest of my day."

Ashido huffed. "Nope. We're going in there like this. And I'll fucking fight your bully, and I'll fight your teachers, and I'll fight anyone else who messes with you. I'm your girlfriend. It's my job to protect you."

Opening his mouth, Izuku paused. He was reasonably certain that was a complete reversal of traditional gender roles, but he didn't exactly mind it? Having someone who actually cared about him was really damn nice, he realized. "Okay. So we'll just-"

"Deku! Why the fuck are you pink?"

Oops, okay, evidently they'd be dealing with Bakugou Katsuki sooner rather than later. Izuku watched as his former friend turned bully stormed up to him, his two lackeys trailing behind him. Izuku looked down at himself before pointedly raising the arm that Ashido was still spread over and waving. "Hey Kacchan. I made a friend?"

Bakugou's eyes narrowed at the verdet. "You're a quirkless loser. You don't have any friends."

Pink spread down Izuku's right leg and then it jerked upward, his foot slamming into Bakugou's crotch. As the blond folded in half with a pained shout, Ashido scowled down at him. "He doesn't just have a friend! He has a girlfriend! Something you'll never have with an attitude like that!"

Izuku looked down at his foot and then over at Ashido in disbelief. "Did you just kick Kacchan in the balls?"

"I did and I'll do it again!" Little explosions popped from Bakugou's hands and Ashido hissed like an angry cat as she jerked backwards. "Or maybe I won't. Uh, fun fact. I am weak to fire and loud noises. Strongly suggesting that we get the fuck out of here because hoo boy, I..." She spread down the rest of Izuku's body, ducking into Bakugou's personal space and kneeing him in the groin for good measure. "Huh, I didn't know I had it in me. Okay, I'm done. Time to go before he explodes me."

The sharp pops from Bakugou's hand encouraged Izuku to make himself scarce, hurrying past the boy and into the school. "Okay so when were you going to tell me about that specific weakness, Bubblegum? I feel like knowing that you can be hurt by fire and loud noises is fairly important if we're going to be heroes together."

Retracting to cover just his right shoulder and upper arm, Ashido emerged again once it was safe. "I don't really run into things that can threaten me very often, so it honestly just sorta slipped my mind. Your bully is sort of our natural counter. I guess we're just going to have to kick him and run from now on?"

Or they could avoid him? That sounded much safer for everyone involved, to be honest. Izuku made his way down the hall and into his classroom, making his way toward the back and taking his seat. Looking up from the papers on his desk, the teacher did a double take. "Midoriya. Something seems different about you today."

Ashido extended a tendril and offered a peace sign. "Yo. I'm Ashido. Midori's girlfriend from outer space." The teacher stared at them in disbelief and Ashido offered a wide, toothy grin. "Yo."

"I, uh, met an alien yesterday? And we've bonded? And now we're dating? She's sorta... literally attached to me. Although she can..." Izuku stretched his arms out and Ashido took the hint, disappearing under his uniform jacket before peeking an eye on a tendril out of the wrist. "Is that better?"

Sighing, his teacher shook his head. "Objectively, no. Midoriya, you can't just bring an alien to school. For that matter, you can't just have an alien girlfriend. Have you told the government that you've made first contact with an unknown species?"

Before he could respond, his body jerked up out of the seat and made its way down the aisle. Ashido spread herself over Izuku's body completely before producing a card out of nowhere in particular. A decidedly interesting ability that he wanted to ask many questions about later. "I actually have a Residence Card and everything. I am a completely legal alien in Japan."

The teacher took the card from Ashido and studied it closely. "Name: Ashido. Date of birth: July 30, 2236. So you're the same age as Midoriya? Interesting. Nationality: Klyntar? Period of stay... you added a sticker over the official expiration date that says 'can't stop, won't stop'."

"I mean, I'm pretty hard to deport so I'd like to see them try." Ashido took the card back and tucked it into herself for safekeeping. "Although I'm now living with Midoriya so I'm going to have to go down to city hall today and update my place of residence. I'm a law abiding alien, thank you very much."

Nodding absently, the teacher waved a dismissive hand. "I guess just... go take your seats, then?" As Ashido turned and guided Izuku's body back to his desk, the verdet heard the man mutter. "So all those conspiracy theories on YouTube were right. There really are aliens among us. Huh. The more you know."

Ashido slid their shared body into Izuku's seat before relinquishing control, making him wobble slightly in his seat as he regained full control of himself. "Okay. So. Question. Now can we go telepathic? I feel like sitting here talking to each other out loud all day during school would probably be frowned upon."

A soft snort emerged from Izuku and he nodded. How did telepathy work? Just... think loudly, maybe? 'I feel like you may be onto something? I don't know if we want to talk too much, though. I still need to learn everything that's being taught so that I can pass the written portion of the entrance exam to get into UA High.'

'Eww, hero schools have written exams? That sounds so boring.' Ashido peered around the classroom curiously. ‘That being said, I’m literally in here with you and so I know exactly how far ahead you are. You’re not a genius - no offense - but you’re the second best student in this classroom after the exploding boy. You can afford to miss a lesson or two.’

While she technically wasn’t wrong, Izuku sorta genuinely enjoyed learning. Like she’d said, he wasn’t a genius but it was something that he was reasonably good at all the same. But he also had a responsibility to Ashido now. Hmm. Pulling out Hero Analysis for the Future Volume A, he flipped to the first clean page. ‘So…’

Ashido retreated into his body, making the entire rest of the class visibly relax around him. ‘So! We have been dating less than twenty-four hours! And I’m an alien! And you’re not! We have… so much to learn about each other!’

Nodding out of habit, Izuku tapped the end of his pencil against the notebook page. ‘Can you tell me more about you? Or Klyntar? Or both?’

‘Um, talk about myself? Absolutely! I’m great at that!’ An image popped into Izuku’s head of a meteorite streaking through the atmosphere. ‘So, we’re symbiotes. We live to find hosts, pretty much. Art, music, pretty much culture as a whole… we don’t really have that. Everything we have is what we find through our hosts. So we fire ourselves off into space and pretty much hope for the best.’

Things had worked pretty well if she’d ended up here on Earth with them. She could have landed on Mars or something. Which was still uninhabited, despite humanity’s best efforts before the dawn of quirks. Izuku scribbled down that information before humming softly. ‘So are there more of you or were you just a lonely rock floating through space for a while? Uh, more of you on Earth, I mean? Obviously you’re not one of… well, you’re one of a kind to me, but in a literal sense-‘

Laughter bubbled through their shared mindspace, making Izuku smile faintly in spite of himself. An image of Ashido smiling widely pushed its way into his mind. ‘Compliments will get you everywhere with me, Midori. But yeah, there’s billions of us. Which sounds like a lot but it really isn’t when you consider that we’re spread over multiple galaxies. I can ask the hive mind for an exact count of Klyntar in this reality if you’re really curious?’

Izuku paused in the middle of another note, staring down at the word he’d just written. ‘There’s a hive mind?’

‘And I’m still dumb! Amazing, isn’t it?’ Ashido giggled again before forming a tendril so that she could flip it nonchalantly, making his classmates murmur until the teacher shushed them. ‘But yeah, there’s a hive mind. Being cut off from it is the ultimate punishment for a Klyntar; a fate worth than death. Because it means that anything you experience won’t contribute to the greater whole and at that point… well, what’s the point? But yeah. Don’t do anything too embarrassing. The entire species is watching.’

Oh. No pressure, then. Izuku grimaced before adding that to his notes. Then he wrote ‘be mindful’ and underlined it three times. His hand added ‘be demure’ of its own - or rather Ashido’s - volition and he sighed before shaking his head fondly. This was going to take some getting used to… but he honestly didn’t mind it. ‘We got distracted. Are there more of you on Earth? Do you have Klyntar friends that you’d want to hang out with? I can’t travel too far at my age, but… maybe Tokyo? Or Hamatsu or Nagoya?’

Ashido hummed softly in the back of his mind. ‘Hopefully Tokyo. I want to see Tooru. But while there are around a dozen of us on Earth, we’re pretty spread out. You’re not going to meet another of my kind unless you want to go to Los Angeles. Wait. Can we go to Los Angeles? Because we just experienced bacon-wrapped hot dogs through the hive mind and… mama wants.’

Discreetly pulling out his phone, Izuku googled bacon-wrapped hot dogs and they turned out to be exactly what they sounded like. He furrowed his brow as he tucked his phone back into his pocket. ‘Los Angeles is a definite no - I don’t even have a passport - but my mom and I could probably figure something out? Like, it’s literally just a hot dog, some bacon, and a bun. And toppings. It doesn’t seem too difficult.’

'Oh? You gonna gobble some glizzy for me? Gonna be a real glizzy gladiator?' Izuku made a disgusted noise at that, making Ashido giggle audibly enough that his neighbors shifted in their seats again. 'I'm just messing with you. I'll eat them myself. But I mean, I don't want to sit there eating in front of you, especially if you don't like them.'

Izuku shook his head slightly before doing his best to project a vaguely negative feeling toward Ashido. He still had no idea how this worked, but he was trying his best? 'No, hot dogs are fun. I'm more a pork sausage person, though. Or... well, a pork in general person? Seafood and pork and a bit of chicken. Not a lot of beef.'

A visual of sausage being made popped into Izuku's head unbidden, making him blink. 'The best hot dogs aren't made from beef or pork! They're made from mystery meat! I don't want to know what I'm putting in my mouth! I just want to enjoy it!' Izuku snorted in amusement, making Ashido trill. 'Your mind just went somewhere dirty! No! I feel like I just dropped a cinnamon roll on the floor!' Oh. Oh shit. His girlfriend was going to know... any and every time he had an inappropriate thought. Not that his mind tended to go those places often, but... Ashido's goo form was actually kinda pretty? 'Monsterfucker.'

Izuku sighed. 'I'm really not beating those allegations any time soon, am I? So. There aren't many of you on Earth and none of them are local, so I don't need to worry about explaining to my mom why I have random goo people over the house. Or need to travel to goo people. Cool. Um... okay, here's probably a weird one but I'm curious. How do you reproduce? Do I have to worry about that when we get older? Like, this isn't going to help the monsterfucker accusations but like... can I get you pregnant or something?'

'Oh my god, no! That would be so weird! Where would I even keep a baby? I'm goo!' Ashido was silent for a few seconds before snickering softly. 'No, I reproduce asexually. Like, I spawn. I can also shed to make little extra mes, but I'm honestly not smart enough to tell you how that differs from me making entire separate children. And I’ve never done it, at least on purpose.’

Jotting that down, Izuku nodded slowly. Spare Ashidos? One Ashido was enough for him, thank you very much. ‘Okay so I feel like we should probably have you touch the hive mind about… all of that. Just for safety’s sake. Um. Hmm. What else do I need to know immediately?’

Ashido vibrated faintly against his skin. ‘I know what I need to know. What kind of music do you listen to? And can you dance?’

Chapter Text

"Is it me or are we sort of high up? I feel like we're high up."

"Pfft, this is nothing compared to New York. Remind me later to tell you about some of the adventures that symbiotes have had while living in New York. They have some crazy ass adventures." Having already covered his entire body, Ashido grinned at Izuku from her customary neck stalk on his right shoulder. "You're the one who wanted to learn how to use me properly. There's no substitute for experience."

Izuku nodded slowly as he leaned forward, staring down at the ground, which was an uncomfortable distance away at the moment. "And we can't get experience on the ground? I feel like we should be able to get experience on the ground, Bubblegum."

Scoffing, Ashido shot a tendril out of the side of his body which bridged the gap between him and the next building over. "Let's see you do this on the ground, Midori." And then she tipped their shared body over the edge of the roof.

While he'd never been the type to swear before? Literally ever in his life? Now seemed like the perfect excuse to break that streak. "What the fuuuuuuck?!" Izuku gave Ashido full control over their shared body, allowing her to do a somersault in midair before lashing out with another tendril and continuing down the street. "This is just something that you do?!"

"Yeah! The first symbiote on Earth sorta pioneered this idea, and then we've refined it ever since. It's a great way to get around fast, isn't it?" Ashido swung them a few buildings further along the street before launching them back up into the air to land on a roof again. Moving their body to the middle of the roof, she surrendered control. "So? What do you think?"

Izuku shook his head rapidly. "I never had a reason to think I had a fear of heights but oh look, I have a fear of heights. I never want to do that again. Ever."

"I agree!" Izuku went rigid at the sound of a familiar voice, and then slowly turned to find All Might standing behind him. "I am... here! Wondering what you're doing, young lady?"

Letting out a squeal possibly only audible to dogs, Izuku spun around and clapped his hands together excitedly. Ashido hurriedly receded from his head so that Izuku could meet his idol face to face. "All Might! It's really you!"

All Might laughed boisterously. "It is! And I apologize. Young man, it appears. The pink sorta... threw me off for a second. Now. Young man. Why are you using your quirk in public?"

"Oh my gosh, I'm getting arrested for public quirk use by All Might!" Izuku bounced up and down excitedly. "This is the most amazing day of my life!"

Chuckling awkwardly, All Might rubbed the back of his head. "Not the reaction that I usually get, I'm not going to lie."

Snorting, Ashido grew her way up out of Izuku's shoulder. "You'll have to excuse him, Midori is quite possibly your biggest fan. This is literally, like, three of his real person fiction plots come true."

Izuku frowned and looked over at his girlfriend. "You've been on my AO3? How did you even find it?"

"Midori. Midori, I adore you. But... that was so dumb, I'm surprised I didn't say it." Ashido leaned in, pressing her forehead against Izuku's. "Midori, I'm in your mind. I know that you're SmallMight0538. I know everything you've ever written. I know what you're planning to write tonight." Turning back to All Might, she winked. "Three different stories about you."

"I... see." It was clear that All Might did not but Izuku appreciated the effort all the same. The towering man stared at the pair uncertainly as he looked from Ashido to Izuku and back. "Do you have a sentient quirk, young man?"

Shaking his head, Izuku gestured excitedly to Ashido. "This is my girlfriend, Ashido! She's a sentient goo from outer space. She's a symbiote? We're symbiotic? I'm her host. Are there laws about alien symbiotes doing alien symbiote things? I couldn't find any, but I might have missed something."

All Might's brow furrowed as he studied the two of them. "I... don't rightfully think so, to be honest. I don't really think we have any laws at all governing aliens. Huh. Personally I wasn't aware that aliens actually existed... or at least that's my story and I'm sticking to it. Heh."

Wait. Wait a second. That implied that All Might had known about aliens before literally just right now. Possibly even encountered some himself. Izuku had... so many questions. "But no, I mean, I don't think it's illegal for Ashido to do the things she can do? I mean, it's certainly questionable. But not illegal per se. So... I mean, I definitely don't want to go. I want to talk to you. I want to ask you questions. But like, in a legal sense. Can we go?"

After considering the question for a moment, All Might shrugged helplessly. "I guess? I can't see a reason to detain you if you're telling the truth about hosting a Klyntar. Which it seems to me that you are." Wait. All Might knew exactly what Ashido was? Now Izuku had even more questions! "That being said, that's kind of cool of you, young man, I'm not going to lie. Do you want to become a hero with her?"

Izuku nodded eagerly as he gestured to Ashido's head. "I'm quirkless, to be honest. So I didn't really have much hope of ever becoming a hero. I wanted to. But the 'how' was... pretty lacking. Then I met her, and with her abilities? I finally have a chance to live my dream. To become a hero who saves everyone with a smile. Just like you, All Might."

"I can..." All Might looked uncommonly solemn as he stared down at Izuku thoughtfully. "I can relate to that more than you can possibly imagine, young man. Well, good for you. And good for Ashido. I've got a feeling that the two of you are going to go far. Just make sure you train up in case you run into a fire villain. They're a bad matchup for you."

Okay so All Might was definitely familiar with Ashido’s kind! There were so many questions Izuku wanted to ask… but he was pretty sure that he wasn’t allowed to know the answers. “Oh! Before you go! Can I have your autograph?”

All Might laughed boisterously at that. “If you’re as big a fan of mine as your companion claims, I would expect nothing less.” Izuku hurriedly dug out the most recent of his general hero notebooks and held it out to the man. Pulling a Sharpie out of nowhere, the blond signed it with a flourish and handed it back to Izuku. “Always a pleasure to meet a fan.”

"Thank you so much. This will be an heirloom. A family treasure passed down for generations to come." Izuku stared at the signature in awe, and then chuckled softly as Ashido blew on it. Black Sharpie was pretty instantly drying and smudge proof, but he appreciated the sentiment all the same. “Well, it was nice meeting you. Goodbye?”

Checking his watch, All Might thought for a moment before nodding decisively. “If you’re hosting a Klyntar, you’re probably a pretty good jumper. Not quite on my level, but pretty impressive none the less. Have you tried that out yet?” The verdet shook his head and the massive blond perked up. “I’m thinking of becoming a teacher. Let’s give it a try. Do you want to learn how to jump?”

Izuku’s eyes widened. “Do I?!” Then he thought back to the sheer abject terror of swinging over the city streets with Ashido and he furrowed his brow. “Do I?”

Surging up to cover his face, Ashido let her tongue loll out playfully. "I do! I do! Pick me, All Might!"

That made the hero laugh and offer a thumbs up. “Nice to see some enthusiasm, young Ashido. And… I didn’t catch your companion’s name.”

“Oh! It’s so like him to be so starstruck that he doesn’t even remember to introduce himself. His name is Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku.” Ashido took full control of their shared body and bounced lightly on their toes. “So! Let’s jump, All Might!”

“Yes! Let’s!” All Might bounced up and down enthusiastically, displaying the sort of joyous energy and enthusiasm that the man was known for. Well, he was known for that and being able to punch so hard that he changed the weather. “So. The secret is to spread your weight evenly across both feet, and leave both feet in contact as long as possible.” He gestured downward. “If you push off on just your toes, you’ll dig a hole in the ground. Same thing with landing. Think of it like trying to walk on an icy lake. If you put too much weight in one spot, what happens?”

Considering that in this case, the metaphorical ice was about to be someone’s roof… oof. Izuku would really rather not. Ashido nodded in understanding before turning her attention to the next roof over. “So let’s just… whoop!” She managed to take off with minimal collateral damage, sailing across the gap between the two buildings as Izuku screamed mentally. Thankfully that didn’t seem to distract her, and she touched down just as lightly as she took off. “And tada! I did it! Midori, this is fun! Imagine how fast we’re going to be able to patrol between that and the swinging? Thanks for the help, All Might!”

Izuku sighed, exerting just enough control to shake their shared head despondently. “I am gonna have to get used to being this high off the ground, aren’t I? Sigh. I thought I had escaped that when I didn’t develop a flight quirk.”

Ashido let out an excited gasp at that, peeling halfway off of Izuku and forming her own upper body and head so that she could clap her hands together. “Okay but question. I can absorb the DNA of people that I’m bonded with. What if we go find someone with a flight quirk, I bond with them just long enough to sample their DNA, and then we start flying around with some sick… ass… dragon wings?!” She paused, thought for a moment, and amended that statement. “Or maybe ten pink angel wings? I’d be down for either, to be honest.”

Given that he was not particularly interested in being off the ground any more than he had to be? Izuku was going to just pass on that entire plan. Not that it wasn’t cool. It just wasn’t for him. Turning back to All Might, he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Well, it was… positively amazing meeting you. I’ll cherish this moment for the rest of my life. But I’m sure you have better things to do than hang out with us.”

“Ha ha! Meeting you has been a pleasure, young Midoriya. I genuinely enjoy meeting the next generation of heroes. And passing on a little bit of what I know.” Stretching his arms up over his head, All Might bounced in place energetically. “But it is true that I should be off. Crime waits for no hero!”

As Izuku waved goodbye, he abruptly froze as the completely unexpected happened, the back of All Might’s costume warping and extending in a blue and red tendril that formed into a familiar head shape. “Good luck, you two.” All Might’s Klyntar companion grinned widely at them. “And remember, nobody will ever believe you.”

All Might jumped away, leaving Izuku and Ashido standing dumbfounded on the roof staring after him. Izuku looked over at Ashido with wide eyes. “Okay so we’re going to go from never having sworn before to swearing twice in one afternoon. Because… what the fuck?”

Throwing her head back, Ashido cackled. “Holy shit! I wonder if he… you know what? I’m going to keep that from the hive mind. Because clearly he doesn’t want anyone to know. That is… so fucking cool. I wonder how he got that strong? Because I’m pretty strong but I’m not, like, All Might strong or anything.” Looking over at Izuku, she grinned mischievously. “I wonder if this means that All Might is a monsterfucker or if that’s just a you thing?”

“These are slanderous accusations and I won’t stand for it.” Izuku huffed softly before turning his head and rubbing his forehead against Ashido’s playfully. “Well, since we basically have approval to experiment with your abilities from the literal number one hero… what else can we do?”

Flowing back over his body, Ashido gave Izuku a gentle squeeze before taking control and bounding over to the edge of the roof. “Well, I have an idea based on the whole acid thing to give us another mode of transportation? Just don’t wanna try it on a rooftop in case I mess it up.” She threw herself over the edge of the roof, and then shot out a handful of tendrils to slow their descent so they hit the ground gently and didn’t leave a crater. Looking around, she made toward the nearest alley. “Again, not sure how this is going to go, trying not to be a public nuisance in the process of finding out.”

Considering they were bright pink, easy to identify on account of being bright pink, and Izuku was the Japanese citizen who would presumably be held legally liable for any damage they caused? He wholeheartedly agreed with that. “So what’s your cool idea, then?”

“Okay so there are acids that don’t, like, eat stuff alive or anything. Chill acids. I can make those, too.” Ashido kicked up one of their feet and gestured down at it. “So I want to try making a weak, slippery acid under our feet and then keep it flowing and slide on it?”

Izuku blinked a few times as he processed that. No offense to Ashido or anything, but that was a surprisingly intelligent idea of hers. And not something that had occurred to him in all twenty-odd hours of him having acid powers. Which sorta proved that he was better as an external observer; to be honestly, all he’d thought of doing with his new powers was acidic melee attacks and maybe shooting or throwing acid at people if he could manage it. Although to be fair, he was brand new to actually having powers to hypothesize about. So he felt it was sorta understandable. “Well, let’s give it a go, then. Can we slide on acid?”

Sliding her foot against the ground experimentally, Ashido paused and cocked her head to the side. “Wait. I wonder what we actually can do on acid.” She cocked her head to the side. “LSD is literally an acid, right? So theoretically I could make LSD and even make it inside of you so there’d be no trace and-“

An exasperated sigh escaped their shared mouth as Izuku shook their head. “Drugs aren’t heroic, Bubblegum. So let’s stick to the actual literal acid.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Bubblegum.”

Chapter Text

Flopping down on his bed, Izuku let out an exhausted sigh. Today had been… a lot. Ashido improved his body considerably, but he hadn’t realized how out of shape he was before today. It really drove home how unobtainable his dream of being a quirkless hero would have been. But he didn’t have time to dwell on that sort of thing. He needed to become a better host for Ashido. Not to mention a better Izuku for himself.

“My body is exhausted but my brain is not.” Izuku stretched on the bed and then smiled as Ashido poured off of him to occupy the space next to him on the bed. “Tell me more about… anything. I just really like talking to you.”

Ashido giggled and gave his midsection a gentle squeeze. “Just keep rizzing me up and see where it gets you, Midori. Hmm. Well, how much do you know about the history of Earth? Because symbiotes have been here for a while, and if Tooru’s history homework is anything to go by? Hoo boy are they leaving some things out.”

To be honest, history wasn’t Izuku’s greatest subject outside of superheroic history. If he was even more honest, he didn’t really… have a best subject outside of obsessing about heroes. He wasn’t stupid. As Ashido had pointed out, he was second best in his class. But he didn’t really stand out in any one subject, let alone all of them the way Bakugou did.

Shaking his head to clear it, Izuku focused on creating a tendril of his own and after a little trial and error, managed to snag his notebook off the desk. His pencil took a few more tries, but in short order he was ready to take notes. “How long have Klyntar been here? I guess I just sorta assumed that you were newcomers because, well, I can’t see you really blending in that well before the rise of quirks.”

"Excuse me?" Ashido turned and splashed back over his body, disappearing completely into his clothes with the exception of her mouth. "I can be very discreet. I can be the epitome of discretion. And most of us still are to this day. I mean, you don't hear about a bunch of goo heroes on the news, do you?"

Ooh, that actually raised a very interesting question that Izuku had been wondering. "So are there other Klyntar heroes? Klyntar hero hopefuls? You mentioned that you feed off of adrenaline, so heroics would be a very good field for you guys to go into."

Ashido returned to her resting goo girl form on the bed next to him before shaking her head. "All Might and now us makes two. We're fairly noble as a species. Well, the ones of us who aren't corrupted by bad hosts and turned into absolute douchebags, that is. But where I was going with that is... we're mostly good guys but we don't control our hosts. Think of how small the percentage of heroes in the world is. That's a whole lot of not hero people for us to bond with and experience life through."

Nodding slowly, Izuku tapped his pencil against the page of his notebook. "I guess you're right. I mean, I feel like almost everyone dreams about becoming a hero at some point in their lives, but very few people are cut out for it. So mathematically speaking, the odds of finding a host who actually goes into heroics - even with your help - is probably slim. So who was the first symbiote on Earth, then?"

"Venom! Well, kinda. Venom, and Riot, and... uh, two friends? They were all exiled from the hive mind, although they let Venom come back, so I know some stuff about him but less about the other three." Ashido pressed a tendril against Izuku's forehead and he found himself watching a black figure and a silver figure - both obviously Klyntar on human hosts - fight viciously. "Blah blah blah, Riot tried to lead his legion of idiots to Earth to invade it, blah blah, Venom stopped him and killed him, blah. Venom lived here for a while, had some adventures, sacrificed himself to destroy a codex, then rebonded to his host from a splinter fraction of himself. Bonded with Spider-Man for a while. I assume you know who Spider-Man is, right?"

Letting out a little squeak, Izuku nodded eagerly. "I do! He's literally legendary. He's an actual pre-quirk hero who continued operating well into the Troubled Times. But... oh! The black costume era! That was a Klyntar?"

Ashido nodded in return. "It was! After that, Venom decided he'd had about enough of Earth. He got Doctor Strange - yes, that Doctor Strange - to help him return to space, made his way back to Klyntar, and petitioned the Agents of the Cosmos to let him return. He was accepted and... I dunno, really. I can poke the hive mind later if you really care."

After thinking for a second, Izuku waved his hand dismissively. What had happened to Venom after he left Earth was significantly less interesting to the verdet than what had happened while the symbiote was still on Earth. "Can you tell me more about what it was all like back when he was here? There were so many different kinds of powered people back then, but now all we have are quirks."

"Do we? Do we really, Midori?" Ashido grinned widely at Izuku as she reached up to grab his head between her hands. "Are you ready to have your mind blown, Midori? Are you ready?" Izuku nodded and her grin grew even wider, which was bordering on terrifying given her vicious teeth. "Inhumans. Novii. The Talokanil. Sorcerers. They're all still here on Earth with us. You just don't notice them."

Opening and closing his mouth slowly, Izuku made a consternated noise. "I feel like we'd notice the Talokanil at a minimum? Although given that they live in the ocean, maybe not?"

Ashido pulled out their phone and called up an image of a hero that Izuku vaguely recognized. "Okay, so say a Talokanil and Bubble Girl were walking down the street. How would you tell them apart?" That was... that was a really good question. Granted the Talokanil had displayed a distinct Mesoamerican aesthetic to their outfits during the Invasion of Florida, but that didn't mean they couldn't wear clothes that would help them blend in. Wait. Was... "No, Bubble Girl is not a Talokanil. She was just the first blue chick I could think of to use as an example."

Scratching that out on his notebook, Izuku cocked his head to the side. “I wonder if there are any Talokanil with quirks? They’re… I assume they’re descended from humans. I’m not sure how. But it seems like a logical assumption. They look too much like us for it to be a coincidence. But yeah. I wonder.”

“I mean, maybe? The entire hive mind has limited exposure to them because we’re not terribly often aquatic. But…” Ashido thought for a moment and then shrugged helplessly. “I feel like the best answer is that anything’s possible. Maybe we’ll be the first ones to meet a Talokanil with a quirk.”

That would definitely be cool. Izuku wasn’t sure how much he’d have in common with someone who lived in the ocean - did they even have heroes down there? - but he would definitely enjoy the experience. “So I suppose sorcerers are just ‘emitter quirks’ in society? Spread out enough that nobody starts getting suspicious why these unrelated people all have literally the same exact ‘quirk’?”

Ashido nodded in affirmation. “Yup! But also like… the few times they’ve been caught on camera in the last two hundred years are deceptive. They’re a fairly small group. So apart from parents and their children - whose 'inherited quirks' you can explain super easily - the odds of any one sorcerer running into another out in the wild is pretty slim.”

Nodding, Izuku scribbled more notes even as his brain whirled. “Inhumans would probably just pass for quirks, huh? And novii. They’re probably as rare as sorcerers but who’s ever going to know if you got your powers from something other than the Plus Alpha gene?”

“Got it in one. There’s an Inhuman living here in Japan with her family. She’s about your age.” Ashido thought for a moment before shrugging. “I’m not going to out her, but I’m pretty obviously me so she may choose to approach us now that we’re us.”

Oh? Oh! That would be fascinating too! Inhumans were even less understood than the Talokanil. The Talokanil had waged war with the Americans over some of their environmental policies in the 2020s. The Inhumans had just… experienced a spate of random manifestations with their rocky Terrigenesis and then seemingly disappeared from existence. Izuku would enjoy talking to a Talokanil, but he would absolutely love a chance to meet a genuine Inhuman. Then something occurred to him and he peered at Ashido thoughtfully. “Do you maybe know where quirks came from? There were so many things lost in those early days of chaos, but Klyntar were there.”

Ashido rolled up and onto Izuku, smiling down at him. “I was genuinely wondering how long it would be before you asked me that.”

Smiling shyly, Izuku let his notebook flop against his chest so he could reach up and touch her cheek. “I’ve had a lot on my mind.”

Much to his surprise, Ashido narrowed her eyes at that. “Where did you learn that? You’re not that smooth.”

Izuku looked away. "Uh, r/pickuplines? I'm, you know, trying?" That made Ashido giggle softly and Izuku decided to try his luck. "Are you a magician?" Ashido arched one brow at that and so he pressed on. "Because every time I look at you, everyone else disappears."

Throwing her head back, Ashido giggled loudly. "That's so cheesy! I love it! You know what? I'm going to encourage this. I'll keep out of your mind when you're on our phone so that you can keep surprising me with these." Izuku smiled at her and she bumped her forehead against his gently before pulling away. "In all seriousness, are you sure you want to know? It's not exactly like, cursed knowledge or anything but I feel like it might be frustrating to know the truth and not be able to tell anyone. Or at least not be believed by anyone."

Oh, like that woman in Greek mythology. Sorta. Hmm. Izuku nibbled his lower lip before nodding decisively. "Maybe nobody else will know, but I will. And I feel like that's the important part."

"Fair enough. Okay. So. There was the Snap in 2018. Where Thanos erased half the population of the entire universe from existence. When it was reversed in 2023, scientists are convinced that some sort of cosmic radiation or something was left behind, because the glowing baby was born almost nine months to the day later." Ashido lowered her voice conspiratorially, leaning in closer to Izuku. "But the truth is... so much weirder."

Izuku leaned in, lowering his voice likewise. "Tell me."

Sliding an image into his mind, Ashido presented Izuku with an image of several forms in dark leather outfits. "Quirks had already been here for centuries. The governments all knew about them. There were even some skirmishes between different factions. The glowing baby was just the first one that the others couldn't hide in time."

Izuku's jaw dropped. "I... what? But the glowing baby is pretty universally accepted as the dawn of quirks. Are you saying there were more?"

"Yeah! Like... oh, there's a few quirk users here in Japan whose father was born in 1832. He, uh, he kinda has a thing for Japanese women? So every so often, he'll spend a decade or so here, leave a child or two behind, and then wander back off." Ashido giggled mischievously. "I'm absolutely going to introduce you to his youngest daughter. She's also our age and she's amazing. But he's not even the only one. You know that douchebag Mister Sinister who just won't go away? The one where everyone thinks it's like, a Dread Pirate Roberts situation? It's literally just one guy and he's almost as old. Oh, and then there's this fucking nutjob from Egypt who was born in like... something something BCE? God, if I could snap one person out of existence, En Sabah Nur would be it. Obviously I've never met him, but just from what the Klyntar know about him, I don't want to."

Pausing, Izuku considered that and then decided against asking questions. Clearly Ashido didn't like the guy, so asking for details would probably be rude of him. "So there was just an entire clandestine society of quirk users living hidden from everyone else?"

Ashido hummed affirmatively. "Yup. They called themselves 'mutants'. The gene kept manifesting and manifesting and the percentage of people with it kept growing and growing and then suddenly quirk users are the dominant strain of humanity." She thought for a moment and then snickered. "Thankfully the mutants' name for themselves never caught on. They were convinced they were an entirely new species of humanity and tried to call themselves..." She snickered softly. "Homo superior." She snickered again and then winked at Izuku. "Hey baby. Wanna be a superior homo?"

“Excuse me, that is bisexual erasure, thank you very much.” Izuku paused and then blushed brightly at that confession. “Uh, surprise?”

Ashido’s black and yellow eyes went wide at the unexpected revelation. “Midori, you’re bi? I didn’t know that. I mean, same obviously. It’s pretty obvious considering I have both you and Tooru. But I never knew that about you. You keep surprising me.”

Waving dismissively, Izuku looked away. “I mean, I’m into pink goo girls from outer space so I don’t see how this is a surprise.” Meeting her gaze, he shrugged uncertainly. “I mean, obviously my options are limited to whatever comes my way and guys have been even meaner to me than girls. Then again, if I disqualified an entire gender based on how the majority treated me, I guess I’d just be… goosexual?”

Giggling, Ashido winked at him again. “Are you goosexual, Midori? Would you genuinely be more into Tooru if she was a goo?”

Deciding to play along, Izuku rubbed his chin as he considered the question. “I mean, what kind of goo would she be? Would she be a completely invisible goo? Because that might make things a little difficult. I feel like a big part of her appeal is how she dresses and accessorizes herself, and how she emotes to make up for not having a visible face. That would be pretty difficult if she was just a completely invisible alien goo. But-“

“Midori, I was kidding!” Ashido swatted his cheek playfully with a thin tendril of pink goo. “You’re putting way too much thought into this, you little monsterfucker.”

“Okay but now you’ve got me thinking about it for real and-“

Chapter Text

“This beach is gross. This beach is really gross, Midori. Can I catch diseases? I feel like I’m going to catch something from this place. Why the hell are we here?”

Stretching his arms up over his head, Izuku grinned widely at his constant companion. “I’m not going to lie and say it’s not a lot. It’s certainly something, isn’t it?”

Ashido continued to look back and forth wildly, stretching herself to what might have been the limits of her abilities. “Can you get tetanus from looking at something? I think I just got tetanus. And I can’t help but notice that you’re not explaining why we’re here.”

Stretching his arm out, Izuku gestured to the towering piles of trash that surrounded them. “Simple. You can enhance my strength and my speed. But my strength and speed are terrible. I am a noodly, nerdy little junior high student and you thinking that I’m cute is pretty much the only thing that I have going for me at the moment.”

Ashido cooed softly, retreating from her survey of the beach to rub her cheek against his. “Aww, Midori. It’s not the only thing you have going for you. I mean, I’m kinda shallow, so I’m not going to lie, it’s a big part of what you have going for you. But-“

That made Izuku laugh incredulously as he nuzzled her cheek. “I’m sorry, Bubblegum, but you call yourself shallow and…” Trailing off, he gestured down at himself. “This is your idea of a good time?”

"Oh shut up, you're adorable." Ashido grabbed his head between two small tendrils and stared into his eyes. "You're adorable and you're mine and I'm yours so just sit back and enjoy it, alright? Although..." She looked to the side. "Can you enjoy it somewhere that's not here?"

Izuku shook his head and gestured to the trash a second time. "No, so meeting All Might has me thinking. Like, he's clearly working with a Klyntar but... that guy is pretty jacked. Like, he's massive. Obviously I’m never going to be All Might. I mean, look at me. I’m…” He brought his hand up to the top of his head and then outward to indicate his height. “And All Might is…” Pushing up onto his toes, Izuku did his best to approximate the number one hero’s imposing size. “But still. What if getting stronger means that we can do... okay, I don't think anyone other than All Might will ever be able to do All Might things, but what if we can do some Ashido Might things if I get stronger?"

After thinking for a moment, Ashido swatted his cheek with one of her tendrils. "First of all, never say Ashido Might again. We will workshop a better name. We're also not punching people while shouting the names of American cities. I refuse. But I don't hate this idea. Do we have to do it here, though? Like, is there something wrong with going to a gym?"

Shrugging, Izuku pulled a trash bag out of his back pocket and shook it out. "I mean, being a hero isn't just about glamorous villain battles. A real hero is focused on serving their community in any way possible. Why pick up gym weights when I can get stronger by picking up trash?"

That made Ashido sigh and shake her head as she pulled away from Izuku's face, moving to hang over his shoulder. "You really are that good of a person, aren't you, Midori? Well, I guess this is what I signed up for when I bonded with you. Helping old ladies cross the street and getting cats out of trees and picking up trash. All right. Let's do this. Let's pick up some trash."

Nodding determinedly, Izuku stepped forward and covered his hands with a layer of symbiote before reaching for the first piece of trash. Ashido let out a slightly disgusted noise but didn't outright protest, so he put it into his bag and quickly moved on to the next piece. There was so much trash and his garbage bags were only the thin kind that his mother used in the kitchen, forcing him to pick his battles for the time being. He'd have to equip himself better and fast if he wanted to make a serious attempt at cleaning up even the edge of the beach, he realized.

Then Izuku frowned as he pulled away a pizza box to reveal an entire microwave. Weren’t most consumer electronics recyclable? How had this ended up here? He let his gaze wander over the trash, and his eyes widened at the sight of dozens of appliances, ranging from microwaves to washing machines and dryers to what appeared to be several entire fridges. One of which looked to be a commercial model. Supposedly trash washing up on the beach had led to Dagobah’s questionable state, but Izuku was fairly certain that there weren’t just entire fridges floating in the ocean. Were people littering here illegally?

Wait, was that an entire truck? Izuku did a double take. How did a truck end up on the beach? That definitely wasn’t the sort of thing that could just casually wash up on a beach. People were definitely… was that even littering? Could you litter an entire truck?

"What was that?" Ashido's head whipped around and she narrowed her eyes as Izuku tried to follow her gaze. "It sounded like a cry for help?"

Given that Ashido's senses were considerably better than his when they weren't in their shared form, Izuku was inclined to believe her. He pushed up on his toes for a moment before realizing the futility of the effort in the face of towering piles of trash. "Where? Can you pin it down?"

Ashido nodded and then surged to cover his body. "Assuming direct control." As Izuku pulled back mentally to give her full access to their combined form, Ashido bent her legs and leapt up over the top of the trash. She perched agilely at the top of one pile, looked around for a second, and then leapt off toward the shoreline. She touched down with a bit of a crash and then did a double take. "Holy shit, Midori, you called it."

Retaking control, Izuku nodded dumbly as Ashido receded so that he could stare down at the girl who had caught herself on a piece of debris on the edge of the water. Specifically, a Talokanil girl who appeared to have seaweed for hair. He would have been willing to dismiss it as an interesting fashion choice save for the fact that it was actively writhing and fighting against what appeared to be an entire car pinning her the girl's leg. "Don't Talokanil have superhuman strength?"

Looking over at him, the girl huffed incredulously. "Yaan in muuk' ba'ale' lela' jach nojoch." Well first of all... oops, he hadn't meant to say that so loudly. Secondly, he did not speak whatever that was. Could Ashido translate? Would it be rude to ask if she was currently declining to? Before Izuku could figure that out, the girl sighed softly. "Forgive me, I tend to spend most of my time with my mother's people. Would you possibly be so kind as to assist me? If you can?"

"Um, considering that you're cute? Absolutely." Ashido pushed insistently on Izuku's back, nudging him forward toward her. "Midori, you can absolutely lift a car with me. Just... fuck that thing up onto the pile over there and free her."

Izuku was pretty sure there was a certain level of technique involved in safely lifting an entire car, and that he definitely shouldn't just 'fuck' it in any given direction. But... yeah, sure, you betcha. Leaning down, he spread the symbiote over his body again to enhance himself and then grabbed at the bumper. Carefully, he eased it up and into the air, off of the girl's leg and then high enough that he could toss it to the side. Then he held his breath as he waited to see if he'd destabilized that particular trash pile, only to exhale when nothing happened. Turning back to the girl, he smiled brightly. "Are you okay?"

The lengths of seaweed that comprised the girl's hair levered her to her feet and she looked down at her leg before nodding slowly. "I will be, with a bit of time and a bit of water. I heal quickly below the surface." Looking back up at Izuku, she adjusted her rebreather before cocking her head to the side. "You are very kind for a surface dweller. I know that my people... do not have the best reputation."

"It's cool! You found the biggest monsterfucker in all of Musutafu! He's into this shit!" Izuku shot Ashido a horrified look and she grinned back at him cheekily. "You are! And you are! You think she's pretty!"

Well yeah, but he was going to keep his thoughts to himself! Izuku looked over at the girl, met her eyes, and both promptly blushed and looked away from each other. Because Ashido was right: she was very pretty. Talokanil turned blue when exposed to air and this girl was a very pretty shade of blue. And the seaweed for hair thing, well, he really was into the weird shit. It was beautiful in an exotic sort of way. "Well, now that the ice has been broken... I'm Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku. What brings you to Dagobah Beach?" He was curious about Musutafu in general, but... why had he found her in this particular spot in Musutafu?

Scuffing her foot gently against the sand, the girl continued to look around uncertainly as she drew her hair around her body protectively. "Ibara. Pleasure to meet you. My father is from Matsuda in Kanagawa. He owns a house on the Sakawa River, so my mother and I can come and go quietly as we please. I was... oh, this is rather embarrassing."

Izuku shrugged awkwardly and then jerked a thumb back over his shoulder. "I mean, I was here to find you because I'm cleaning trash to get stronger so I can apply for the hero course in high school. Whatever your reason, it can’t be much weirder than that.”

“You wish to become a hero?” Ibara fidgeted before taking a step forward, clenching her fist in front of her passionately. “I too wish to become a hero. I am here because I was attempting to find a safe place to breach the surface in Musutafu. So that I can commute from either of my parents’ homes and attend UA High School next spring.”

Despite himself, Izuku found himself bringing his hand up to his nose uncertainly. "Are you allowed to have piercings at UA High School?"

The question made Ibara stare at him incredulously as she reached up to touch her nose ring self-consciously. "...that is the biggest barrier to my entry that you can think of? Teche' juntúul j-ma' na'at." Pausing, she blushed again. “I apologize. That was unkind of me. True, perhaps, but unkind.”

Stretching out to cross the distance between them, Ashido offered the Talokanil a tendril. "Let's forget he said that. But yeah, his manners are slightly lacking. He didn't even introduce his better half. That's me! I'm Ashido! I'm a Klyntar! We're bonded!"

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Ashido. My people are not unfamiliar with your kind, although contact has been rare.” Ibara shook the proffered tendril politely before pulling a cell phone in a chunky case out of outfit. “Reception is not the best when I’m with my mother, so I am not online as much as a surface dweller, but… would you like to become friends? Since we share a common goal?”

Izuku let out a sigh of relief at the question; Ashido hadn’t ruined things with her jokes. Because he definitely wanted to know more about this girl… and her quirk! Holding out his hand, Izuku waited until Ashido dropped their phone into it before smiling at Ibara. “I would love that! Maybe we can hang out here at the beach some time? I’m serious about trying to clean it up. I guess… I mean, Ashido can jump me and my bags of trash back to the other side, so I suppose I could try to clean up the water side of the pile first?”

Smiling, Ibara inclined her head slightly. “That would be positively wonderful. I would appreciate that greatly. I think… yes, if you can create a safe space for me here on the beach, I believe that I could find time to visit you on occasion.” She took a step closer, eyeing Ashido curiously as the symbiote retreated a bit toward Izuku, and then held her phone out. “Shall we?”

“We shall.” Izuku brought up his contact card and then bumped his phone against Ibara’s to transfer it. Her phone pinged softly and then she repeated the process, transmitting her information to him. The card popped up on his screen and he did a double take. Was that a selfie with an orca? How cool! Handing his phone back to Ashido, he rubbed the back of his head nervously. Now what? Maybe make a graceful exit and go back to cleaning the beach? Or at least offer her an out? Izuku could talk to anyone about their quirk - or in Ibara’s case, her entire existence as a Talokanil - all day long, but Ibara might have better things to do and want to get back to them. “Well, I’m sure you have things to do…”

Mirroring his gesture, Ibara likewise rubbed the back of her head, the seaweed making an odd rustling noise as it shifted. “Actually, I do not.” She looked down at her hands and then reached into her pocket. “I found a very pretty shell while I was swimming near the shore. Would you like to see it?”

Izuku blinked and then shrugged uncertainly. He didn’t know much about the subject - or, well, anything - but he couldn’t go through life just talking about the things most familiar to him. Especially since he was pretty singularly obsessed with heroes and most people were not. “I mean, shells are pretty cool, I’m not going to lie. So… yeah, sure.”

Her hand halfway back out of her pocket, Ibara froze and stared at Izuku with wide eyes. “You do? Are you certain? Nobody ever wants to see my shells. I have an entire collection, actually.”

That was something Izuku could definitely relate to. Nobody ever wanted to hear about his notebooks, at least not until he’d met Ashido and then Tooru. Not having anyone to share your passions with really sucked. Did he having a burning fascination with shells? Not particularly. But Ibara did and that was what mattered. And so Izuku nodded decisively. “Ibara, I would absolutely love to see your shell collection.”

As Ibara scooted closer, reaching down to remove a small bag from her belt, Ashido let out a soft coo. “Aww, is this cute? I feel like this is cute.”

Chapter Text

“Aww geez! Bubblegum, come back! I’m kinda shirtless at the moment?”

Ashido looked back from where she was curled halfway around Tooru’s empty school uniform and grinned toothily. “Oh I know. You need to keep working out so that it becomes a better view.”

Looking down at himself, Izuku continued to blush. “I mean, I’m actively working on getting in better shape, especially now that I might actually make it into hero school. But at the same time… you are terrible at being clothing.”

That made Ashido blow a noisy raspberry at him. “Fuck you, I’m fabulous.” She gave Tooru a squeeze before retreating to cover Izuku completely again. “For the record, I can expand enough to cover you and hug Tooru. I just don’t want to.”

“Why are you like this?” Izuku shook his head in resignation before offering a hand to Tooru. “Hey. It’s a pleasure to meet you in person finally.”

Tooru bounced in place and then shook her head. “We are metamours at a minimum, Midori. We do not shake hands. We hug.” She suited actions to words, wrapping her arms around Izuku and squeezing him as he stood there uncertainly. Pausing in place, she peered up at him. “You’re not very good at this.”

Even as Izuku hesitantly raised his arms to wrap around Tooru, Ashido let out a trill of laughter. “Be gentle, I’ve only had him for a week so far and he’s super awkward. And weird. But he’s mine.” Ashido gave Izuku most of his shirt back and then spread herself over Tooru’s upper body, covering the invisible girl with pink. “So, how are things going? Have you found yourself a new girl to kiss yet?”

Waving dismissively, Tooru pulled back from Izuku a bit but stayed well within his personal space so that Ashido could remain spread over them. “Considering you’re the only girl who wants me? Not really, no.”

“She kinda does that, doesn’t she?” When Tooru cocked her head to the side, Izuku gestured to himself. “Adopt the unwanted. It seems like it’s sorta her thing. Although I have no idea why people wouldn’t want you. You’re amazing.”

Tooru let out a little gasp and Ashido created tendrils between their bodies so she could clap them together. “He has rizz! It’s an awkward, bluntly honest sort of rizz, but it’s there.” The invisible girl nodded rapidly before leaning in and hugging Izuku again, making Ashido coo. “Aww, we’re fucking adorable. I have good feelings about this.”

Reaching out, Tooru grabbed Izuku by the hand and then looked around curiously. “Midori, do you mind if we… we? I feel like I’m a lot easier to read when I have Ashido with me.”

Well, it was going to have to be a ‘we’ since Ashido had successfully convinced him to let her imitate his uniform today and he didn’t have an alternative handy. “Yeah, I guess we’ll just have to…” He trailed off, looking down at their joined hands. “Yeah. Wow. I’ve held hands with two girls. Never thought I’d get this far.”

“You can get further later if you play your cards right.” Ashido spread over Tooru’s face just in time to visualize the girl’s playful wink, making Izuku squeak awkwardly. “Kidding, kidding. Or am I? Guess we’re going to have to find out.”

Forming a bridge between their shoulders, Ashido manifested a mouth so that she could reply. “You’re ridiculous, but I love you anyway. So, what’s the plan? We met you in Tokyo instead of inviting you down to Musutafu because Midori has this pervasive fear of running into people from school. He’s, uh, they didn’t treat him very well because of the whole quirkless thing and they’re still getting used to me. They’re not good people.”

Tooru huffed and leaned against Izuku's side, inadvertently squishing Ashido in the process. "Well fuck them. You seem great, Midori. As for today's plans... I do not know. I'm pretty much used to Tokyo at this point so I'm not really a great person to ask about touristy things to do."

Popping back up on Tooru's other shoulder, Ashido sighed. "Tooru. We're not here to see the sights. Unless you're the sights. What I mean is… we’re here to see you. We want to spend time with you, and let you get to know Midori so you two can decide if you want to date. So like... what do you do for fun? How do you want to spend the afternoon?"

Tooru considered the question for a few seconds as she straightened back up, hand still in Izuku's. "Hmm. Something with food at some point. You eat. I eat. I assume Midori eats. Like, that's something we can do together. Other than that... oh! We can do the date that we never did because you broke up with our last girlfriend. Let me just..." She pulled out her phone and began tapping at it rapidly. "They have an opening for today! Let's go make jewelry, Midori!"

"Uh, I guess?" Izuku chuckled softly as Tooru tugged on his arm, leading him off down the street. "What kind of jewelry? And how do I wear it without Ashido getting jealous of you?"

Ashido scoffed and manifested a tendril so that she could wave it airily. "You're allowed to have stuff on you other than me. I'm not that possessive. We were going to make cute bracelets together and wear them but, uh, yeah. Things happened. I am absolutely down to make bracelets with you guys. Not sure what I'm going to do with mine, but I'll figure that out after we're done."

Looking down at his hands, Izuku let out a thoughtful noise. “I’m not ambidextrous per se, but since you can control it as well as you want to… what if I make a bracelet and put it on my right wrist, and then I let you have the left wrist? And you can put whatever other jewelry you pick up on that hand too? Like rings? You seem like the kind of girl who would like to wear rings.”

“Oh my god, that does sound like fun!” Ashido craned her tendril so that she could peer over at Izuku’s hand. “Can I get us a manicure? I want to get our nails painted.”

The question made Izuku look down at his hands a second time. Having only one hand’s nails painted would probably look weird. Maybe less so given how active Ashido was? It could very clearly be her hand if he convinced her to linger on the left side of his body? On the other hand, there were at least two boys at Aldera who painted their nails, so… maybe he could just get both hands done? It sounded very relaxing, if nothing else. “How much does a manicure cost? And who’s paying?”

“I’m partial to Nail Salon Pinky in Shibuya. It just sorta resonates with me.” Ashido and Tooru shared a giggle at that before the pink girl continued. “And it runs like… I think ten thousand yen for plain color, eleven thousand for a basic design. I kinda wanna get, like, black nails with little pink symbiote tentacles painted on them? So probably eleven thousand yen. As for who’s paying… Midori, I don’t have a wallet.”

Izuku narrowed his eyes at his girlfriend. “So where do you keep your Residence Card?”

Ashido sighed at that. “Shoot. You weren’t supposed to remember that. Ugh. Fine.” A tendril emerged from herself holding a wallet and she waved it back and forth for a few seconds before reabsorbing it into her body. “But you should still pay for me. Us. I mean, it’s your nails?”

That made Izuku chuckle softly. “Oh, I see how it is. When it’s actually getting a manicure, they’re our nails. When it’s time to pay, they’re my nails.” He stuck out his tongue, found himself rethinking that a split second later, and then did it again as Ashido returned the gesture. “But I mean, that’s not bad. Maybe not every week or anything, but I can probably make that work.”

Thrusting two little tendrils into the air, Ashido cheered softly. “Aww yes. We’re gonna look so good, just you wait.”

As they wandered down the street, Tooru consulting her phone every so often, Izuku found himself casting about for a safe subject to discuss. "So, I just want to say that I really appreciate you taking the time to answer all of my... many and varied questions about your quirk. It really means a lot to me. Analyzing quirks is sort of my thing."

Tooru waved her free hand dismissively at him. "Midori, everyone needs to have something that they're passionate about. Never apologize for that. To be honest, you actually made me think on a few of them, so I guess I should thank you? I've always just sorta taken my quirk for granted but you have me looking at it in new ways. Do you really think that I can learn to bend light with my quirk?"

Well, it was sort of an educated wish but yeah? Izuku had done some hasty studying on the electromagnetic spectrum and when combined with the fact that they couldn't see what Tooru ate or drank, it pointed to her body warping light rather than being invisible in and of itself. And so in theory? "It's possible. Maybe we can run a few experiments some time and see how things go? Obviously it's not going to happen overnight, but we have a solid ten months until the entrance exams and so I feel like it's not an unobtainable goal?"

"Huh. Cool. Personally, I like your theory that I might be able to control the way light bends around me and make myself visible." Tooru gestured down at where Ashido had slid between her body and her uniform, rendering her a reasonably visible pink Tooru wearing a normal school uniform. "Like, I genuinely adore the way that Ashido makes me feel seen in a literal sense but at the same time? She can't be with me one hundred percent of the time. Being able to make myself visible would be huge for my social life."

Personally, Izuku couldn't understand why. He'd even gotten Tooru to go without her FLIR camera on yesterday's video chat. Sure, her being invisible took a little getting used to but if he could get the hang of the basics in a matter of days? Then why couldn't the people close to her do a better job of making her feel normal? Not something to verbalize, he decided; he was too new to be challenging a nebulous 'everyone' at the moment. "How do you feel about headbands? The only thing I really have a problem with is telling where you're looking when you're trying to draw my attention to something. That would go a long way to help me out."

Tooru bounced lightly on her toes and offered him a wide smile made of Ashido's teeth. "Midori, I would love it if you bought me headbands. Oh! Oh! Buy me some with horns on them. That just sounds like a fun idea."

"Wait, we're allowed to have horns now?" Ashido manifested a full head out of Tooru's shoulder and looked around. "I want horns! Wait, let me just..." A pair of crooked, pale yellow horns grew up out of the top of Ashido's head and then she gestured to them with a tendril. "Tada! Midori, thoughts? Can we do something with this?"

Huh. They actually just looked very... natural and right on Ashido for some reason and so Izuku nodded agreeably. "I assume you mean like with the whole combined form thing? Yeah. I wouldn't mind having horns like that. You should definitely keep them."

Ashido manifested a similar pair of horns out of the top of Tooru's head and giggled. "Also, can you hurry up and date so I can be like, we are girlfriend and just vibe with Tooru for a bit? We must look a little ridiculous walking around like this, me just being a random appendage sticking out of you and all."

Blushing faintly, Izuku waved his hand. "Don't rush me, I'll be there when I get there. Also, aren't you bonded to me? Can you actually do a 'we' with Tooru too at the same time?"

"Eh? I mean, kinda? There's a certain level of like, mental attachment in a bonding more than a physical attachment? Unless you let me bond with you on a molecular level. In which case we're pretty much just one blob of flesh coexisting together." Ashido swung around, poking her head out of Tooru's left shoulder to grin at Izuku. "Wanna become one person with me? We'll be super hard to kill. And we'll be able to shapeshift. Come on. You know you want to."

Izuku reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose. "I am not becoming a single person with an alien girl that I've only been dating for a week. That feels like rushing things a bit. Also, how would that even work? I'm a boy and you're a girl. Wouldn't becoming one person get a little... weird for us?"

Grin widening, Ashido looked Izumi up and down. "I do like girls better. Have you ever considered being a girl, Midori?"

That elicited a sigh of exasperation from Izuku. "I have not, no."

"Would you like to take a moment to consider it?"

"I would not, no." Ashido pouted faintly at that and Izuku bumped his cheek against hers gently. He didn't have anything wrong with her being bisexual but more femininely inclined. He just didn't have any interest in being a girl. No big deal, right? "Let's get back on track, though. You were saying the bonding is more mental than physical? Before you went off on that tangent?"

It took Ashido a few moments to remember what she was talking about, and she shook her head. "Sorry, sorry. Yeah, that was a tangent. Okay so but like, technically we can go our separate ways at any point? I didn't want to immediately because I was healing you and like, you would have been worse for wear if I did. But that's done. So there's nothing stopping me from going from being Midori's goofriend also covering Tooru to being Tooru's goofriend also covering Midori. Like I don't want to actually leave leave you, but if it benefits us? Yeah, I can just... hop off you for a little bit if we need to."

Oh. That actually answered a question that Izuku hadn't been aware he'd been pondering. Because given that Ashido had broken up with at least one host, there was a chance that maybe someday they'd want to part ways too. Knowing that they could without killing him or something was actually really reassuring. He found himself considering Ashido's request and nodding. "Gotcha. Well, when Tooru and I get to that point, I guess I'm okay with sharing you with her. Actually. Tooru. If we can do that, I have an idea." He leaned in toward her. "What if we apply to take the entrance exam together and we share Bubblegum? Like, if she can just jump back and forth between the two of us at will, we can probably both pass the test with her help."

Tooru let out an excited gasp. "What?! Tell me more!"

"Okay, so..."

Chapter Text

Walking down the street, Izuku admired the bracelet on his right wrist. The verdet had proven to have deft fingers, nimbly weaving strands of green, pink, and iridescent material into a unique pattern that he found pleasing to look at. He wasn’t entirely sure what it was made of; the material wasn’t like anything he’d ever seen before. Possibly something quirk created? That would be fascinating. He should have asked questions. Whatever it was, though, it was his now. And on his left wrist was a simpler, pink dominant bracelet that Mina had made for them. They were both pretty in their own way, and Izuku was more than willing to be seen with both of them.

He was also back in physical clothes, and not because Ashido had gotten tired of him. Tooru had dragged the two of them into a store and treated Izuku to what she had described as a ‘mini makeover’. Evidently she was… considerably less fond of his ‘t-shirt’ shirts than he was. He didn’t especially mind the attention. He felt… sorta handsome in a nice shirt and some slacks. And it left Ashido free to concentrate on Tooru, which he felt was fair. They deserved to catch up with each other.

Humming softly to himself, Izuku fished his phone out of his pocket and held it up in the air to take a selfie. He wasn’t really much of a social media person for obvious reasons. He was pretty sure his most popular account had three followers, one of which was his mother. But he looked nice and he was out with his girlfriend and a… whatever Tooru turned out to be. So why not preserve the moment for posterity?

And if all else failed, his mother would probably enjoy seeing him have fun.

Tooru bumped against his shoulder and Izuku looked over at her curiously. She pantomimed raising his phone again and then promptly tucked herself under his opposite arm. Izuku blushed faintly but obliged, taking a picture of the two of them. And then another when Tooru let Ashido peel back to expose half of her invisible face. The result was essentially a hollow symbiote girl which honestly looked creepy but in a cool way.

There was… okay, to be honest, there was never just one question in Izuku’s head. His brain was always far too busy for that. But there was a particularly pressing question at the forefront of his mind at the moment. “Where do we want to go for dinner? Uh, my treat because Tooru paid for the jewelry making class?”

Clapping her hands together, Tooru smiled up at Izuku brightly. “Ooh! Ooh! I’m going to be the good girlfriend by enabling Ashido’s single minded obsession with-“

A wrist and fist manifested from Tooru's shoulder, Ashido pumping into the air excitedly. “MOS Burger! You really are the best girlfriend! Midori! Let’s get burgers!”

“…why burgers? Why that particular burger?” Izuku looked over at the pair of girls curiously. “I feel like there’s a story here that I need to hear.”

Tooru shrugged nonchalantly before reaching over to grab Izuku’s hand in her own. “Why not burgers? They’re delicious. But no, MOS Burger is where I first met Ashido. So it’s mostly a nostalgia thing on my part. Personally I don’t have a horse in the best burger race. I just eat whatever I feel like. You’ll have to ask Ashido why they’re her favorite burgers.”

Popping out of Tooru’s opposite shoulder as the girl remained tucked under Izuku’s arm, Ashido grinned. “Okay but like, they’re the perfect burger. Not too many vegetables to get in the way. Meat with meat sauce. There’s always some sauce left in the wrapper so you can dip your fries. You can’t go wrong with a MOS hamburger, Midori.”

Izuku let out a chuckle at that. "You’ve convinced me, Bubblegum. So I mean, if you guys really want. I have enough money for something... not super nice, but nicer than fast food. But if burgers are what's calling your name, far be it from me to argue."

Leaning in even closer, Tooru lowered her voice slightly. "I love it when I take Ashido for burgers because finally there's someone to make sure they get my order right. Sure, I can order no pickles but someone has to make sure that I don’t get pickles and it’s not going to be me.”

Oh my gosh, that was a mood. Izuku was terrible at interacting with retail and food service workers, especially when something went wrong. He still hadn’t tried to return that All Might hoody he’d bought recently that had turned out to have a stain on the inside. Maybe Ashido could help him with that? Izuku pulled out his phone again, checking it curiously. “Well, there’s more than a dozen MOSs in Tokyo. Do we want to go to a specific one? The closest one?”

The order of the day has been silent communication and so it was no surprise when the pair of girls conferred silently again. Strangely, Izuku hadn’t found himself to be jealous of their mental conversations, which… presumably bode well for their whole three partner situation going forward. Ashido spent a minute or two quietly conversing with her girlfriend before announcing their decision. “Dogenzaka! There’s a movie theater across the street! We can have dinner and then catch a movie before heading home!”

Burgers and a movie? He had enough leftover allowance for that, and it seemed like a reasonable way to repay Tooru for the outfit and bracelet.  Izuku selected the destination in his phone and then set his phone to holographic. Following glowing arrows in the air just made him feel like a video game protagonist sometimes. As they set off toward dinner, he looked over at Tooru. “So you mentioned that you like cute things. Is that how you and Bubblegum met?”

Ashido trilled happily at that. “Rizz!”

“That’s a good one, Midori. But pretty much yeah. Ashido tends to be very public with her presence, and so I saw her and her last host walking around together. And I was like… what is that? That’s kinda cool. I want to know more about her.” Tooru looked over at Izuku and then raised their joined hands, tugging lightly at the pink goo spread over his skin. “Unsurprisingly, Ashido did most of the talking and so while it wasn’t love at first sight, it was definitely a connection. Navigating romance as a human, a host, and a symbiote is a little difficult, but we made it work. I wasn’t… entirely into her host, though, so I wasn’t mad when Ashido announced that she was jumping ship to look for someone better.”

And he was better? Seemed fake, but okay. Izuku laughed nervously, reaching up to rub the back of his head. “I’ll try to live up to your expectations? Asking genuinely, though, do you want to just be metamours? Like, we could treat this like a situation where I had a sentient quirk and they were into you?”

Tooru’s lips quirked upward at that. “Dating a sentient quirk?”

“I don’t know, imagine if I had like… a big shadowy figure growing out of my body that was sentient and you liked her and she liked you but you didn’t like me.” Tooru stared at Izuku in amusement, making him huff softly. “Sentient quirks are a thing. It could happen. In all seriousness, though, I’m just like… trying to offer you an out? I am weird and quirkless and I don’t really think I’m attractive and I’m pretty universally unwanted outside of literally just my mom and Bubblegum. If you just want to date her, I won’t be offended.”

There was a moment of silence and then Tooru glomped onto Izuku  aggressively. “Aww, Midori! You’re great! I mean, we’re still in the discovery phase because we’ve only known each other for a week, and this is literally the first time that we’ve met in person. But so far I haven’t seen a single thing that would make me not want to date you. Beside, how would that even work? You gonna sit and read a book while Ashido and I make out?”

Izuku blushed brightly at that, and then buried his face in his hands as Ashido winked at him. “Does that actually… happen?”

Giggling, Tooru winked at Izuku as well. “You are not the only teratophile in this group, good sir. I am down bad for symbiussy.” When Izuku let out a squawk, Tooru’s giggles became an outright laugh. “Kidding, kidding. I’m not ready for that yet. But I mean, tentacle goo girlfriend from outer space? Who has a definite taste for humans? We’ve probably both seen enough hentai to know where this is going someday.”

Doing his best to keep a straight face even as he blushed, Izuku looked over at Tooru. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Unfortunately, Izuku now shared his brain with someone else and that person had a really big mouth and no filter. “He does! He so does, though!” Ashido cackled loudly as Izuku groaned and hid his face again. “He’s a total bottom. He wants to get tentacled just as much as you do, Tooru.”

Peeking out from between his fingers, Izuku peered at Ashido’s grinning face. “You can’t prove anything.”

Ashido’s grin grew distinctly mischievous. “I can see your dreams, Midori. Do you want me to show Tooru?”

“I do not, no.” Izuku shook his head defiantly before huffing softly. “Is this what having friends is like? Or a girlfriend? Is this just… normal? I have no idea what I’m doing here, but I guess I don’t mind it? It’s a little embarrassing, sure, but it’s also sorta fun?”

Tooru gently nudged him into motion, keeping herself tucked against his side to guide him along as he continued to keep his head down, his cheeks bright red. “Honestly I’m not going to lie, I think we both just do some of this because you respond so obviously to it. Like, I’m not trying to embarrass you or anything. I just think you’re cute when you blush and so I like to make you blush a lot.”

“He really is cute, though!” Ashido stretched her head across so that she could rub her cheek against Izuku’s playfully, making him smile and chuckle softly. “I’m with Tooru, though. I try not to do it too much. I don’t want you to be completely useless. But a little teasing every now and then is fun. Or maybe more than just a little. A moderate amount. Yeah. Moderate teasing is fine.”

Izuku’s hands dropped away from his face as he peered over at Ashido. “It’s not fair, though. I don’t know how to tease you. I mean, I don’t really know how to tease anyone but even if I did, I can’t really think of what I’d tease you about.”

Giggling, Tooru smoothly slipped her hand back into Izuku’s once it became available again. “Tease her about being a useless bisexual. I know I do.”

“It’s not my fault! Women are just so pretty!” Ashido craned her tendril to follow a woman as she passed them on the sidewalk before sighing wistfully. “Women.” Turning back to Izuku, her eyes widened. “Midori! How theoretically open to polyamory are you? Like obviously Tooru is a prospect, but can we maybe get more girlfriends after her?”

Grinning, Izuku regarded Ashido bemusedly. “Two girlfriends is already a lot of girlfriends from where I’m standing. That’s already two completely separate sets of chances to mess something up. How would I handle having even more girlfriends? How many girlfriends do you want to have?”

Ashido thought about that for a moment. “Twenty-seven. Twenty-seven is an excellent number of girlfriends to have.”

Jaw dropping, Izuku shook his head in disbelief. “Twenty-seven girlfriends is a ludicrous number of girlfriends. That’s like, a harem comedy protagonist’s number of girlfriends. What would we do with twenty-seven girlfriends? How would we even have twenty-seven girlfriends? That’s so many girlfriends!”

Flipping a tendril nonchalantly, Ashido grinned at Izuku. “Okay but when you think about it, there’s literally billions of girls in the world to date. Compared to that, twenty-seven girlfriends isn’t that many.”

Izuku opened and closed his mouth several times before making a contented noise. Technically speaking, she was right. Which was the best kind of right, according to that one meme. Or heck, Ashido was an alien. There were probably trillions of people in space. Or whatever came after trillions. Quadrillions? That sounded fake; he’d have to look it up later. But yeah, space had a whole lot of people in it. Compared to that, twenty-seven was an infinitesimally small number of girlfriends. But at the same time? It was a lot of girlfriends to him. And so he decided to offer a counterproposal. “What about two? Me and you and Tooru and two. That way we make one four or two twos and you can just hop between whoever has the most interesting plans that day?”

“Hmm. I like it, I like it.” Ashido looked from Izuku to Tooru, reaching out a tendril to caress the side of her head. “Tooru. What say you? Two more girlfriends sound doable?”

Tooru tapped a finger of her free hand against her chin as she considered the question. "It... does? Although I mean, I'm bisexual. I'm down for boyfriends or girlfriends. Ashido is bisexual. Midori, what about you?"

Theoretically? Bisexual. In practice? Completely unwanted. At least until he’d met Ashido. And Tooru seemed great too. But Izuku didn’t want to bring the mood down by dredging up his personal issues, especially in a public setting. So instead of voicing those thoughts, he chose to grin and shrug. "Uh, boyfriends or girlfriends would be okay with me. That being said, Ashido seems to prefer girls so if we have three votes for girls and two votes for boys, the girls will win?”

“Mmm, fair enough, fair enough.” Tooru cocked her head to the side as she thought. "So yeah. Two partners of indeterminate gender sounds doable from where I'm standing. So in conclusion... yes, Ashido, you can have your five way relationship. Your Ashidobowl."

Ashido let out a cheer at that but Izuku was rather rudely distracted from the conversation at hand as something slammed into his legs. Before he could even process that, he felt a small form scurry upward to his chest. He looked down and his eyes widened at the sight of a smaller figure with a somewhat familiar appearance. Namely, it looked like he did when completely combined with Ashido, just smaller and redder. When the figure just continued to hang off his chest, grinning widely, he raised an eyebrow. "Hi?"

The small figure's tongue lolled out of their toothy mouth as they offered a peace sign. "Yo."

After looking from the new arrival to Ashido and back, Izuku's other eyebrow inched upwards. "Can I... help you?"

The voice was a little on the low side but still distinctly female and fairly young. "You have my mom."

Chapter Text

"You have my mom."

Nodding slowly, Izuku looked over at his girlfriend again. “Ashido? Is there something you need to tell me?”

Abruptly retracting from Tooru, Ashido formed more fully around Izuku and migrated her head tendril to his shoulder to get a better look at what was unmistakably a red symbiotic child clinging to Izuku’s chest. “Oh shit, that is a red one. We need to get out of here.”

Clambering up a bit higher, the girl reached up and grasped Ashido's head between both hands. "Mom. Hi. Mom. Did you miss me?"

Ashido chuckled nervously as the girl’s hands played over her face. “Uh, hey baby girl. Please don’t murder me.” She looked over at Izuku and nodded in the child’s direction. “It’s a red one.” He could see that, yes. Ashido turned back to the girl and smiled widely. “So, um, hi. I do not remember spawning but I'm really stupid so... eh? Weirder things have happened. What's your name? And where did you come from?"

"I'm Houfuku!" White eyes narrowed and then the symbiote's visage peeled back to reveal a white haired girl that looked as young as she sounded. Oh, she had a small horn growing out of her right temple. That was sort of cute. Smiling, the girl offered another peace sign. "And I'm Eri. Houfuku and I are best friends. Well, she's kinda gotta be my best friend because she's my only friend."

Shifting to hold Eri against their shared hip, Ashido bounced the girl lightly as she smiled at her. "And how did you end up with... uh, she named herself Houfuku? That's kinda cool. Little edgy. Are you sure she's my daughter?"

Eri nodded eagerly. "Yuh huh. I'm connected to the hive mind, so I know... a lot of things. Not too many things. Houfuku keeps me from seeing stuff that I’m not ready for. But there’s still a lot of things for me to learn. So, okay. You had... the acid host and then another host and then this host. And waaaay back between the acid host and the other host, you hitched a ride on a fucking yakuza scumbag. Somehow you left part of yourself on him, and he was part of the yakuza that were holding me captive, so it went from him to the guy in charge of making sure I didn’t die to me and... tada!"

Tada indeed. So there was now a symbiotic child running around, with all the powers that Ashido gave him if not more. Izuku sighed in exasperation. She was out in Tokyo all alone, or at least there didn't appear to be any parents chasing after her. So she was possibly an orphan, or maybe a runaway. A small girl with no obvious caretakers, and an undeniable bond to him and Ashido. He knew where this was inevitably headed, but he did have... more than one objection. "First of all? Language."

Scoffing, Eri looked over at Izuku. "The fuck you say?"

Izuku stared back at her impassively. "Language. You are... how old are you?" Eri held up six fingers and he nodded determinedly. "Six is far too young to be swearing. Please stop swearing."

Eri considered the request for a few seconds and then shook her head determinedly. "I don't want to. And I mean, I'm learning all sorts of cool words from Houfuku. Not that I didn't know a lot of bad words from before she found me, but now I know even more bad words. It's so great."

Sighing, Izuku shook his head in response. "It is not great. I don't even really swear and I'm fourteen. You definitely don't need to be swearing at six, young lady."

After staring at him in disbelief for several seconds, Houfuku's fanged visage rose to cover Eri's face again as she erupted into a maelstrom of tendrils, forcing Izuku to wrap two tendrils of Ashido around her and hold her out a safe distance from his body. "Fuck you! I do what I want! You're not the boss of me! Rah!"

"...oh gosh, symbiote powered tantrums. This is going to be wonderful, I just know it." Izuku looked over at his companions in search of assistance, making Tooru shrug helplessly as Ashido made a thoughtful noise. “I am open to suggestions right now if anybody has one.”

Continuing to stare at Eri as the child devolved into inarticulate hisses and growls, Ashido hummed again. “What if we just set her down on the sidewalk and walk away?”

Izuku stared at Ashido in disbelief. He didn’t really know terribly much about parenting, but he was reasonably sure that was a terrible suggestion. “I’m sorry, what did you just say?”

“Okay but like, fine. She doesn’t want to listen to you. That’s seriously fine. She doesn’t have to. But at the same time, Houfuku is a mature symbiote. We kinda hit the ground running as a species, especially because we link to a hive mind. I don't have to do anything to raise Houfuku. She emerged fully cooked. She's ready to live her best life on her own. So if her and her host don’t want to play by our rules?” Ashido waved a tendril dismissively. “We can leave her here.”

Ah. So here was that moment where Izuku became uncomfortably aware that his girlfriend - his goofriend - was not in fact a human. And to be honest, he wasn't entirely sure how to deal with that. Because if Ashido didn't feel any sort of responsibility to Houfuku? He couldn't exactly force her to. And without some sort of bond between Houfuku and Ashido, any responsibility for the child running around hosting Houfuku just sorta fell apart.

And so as he considered his next step, Izuku found himself stepping back and objectively analyzing the situation at hand. Taking care of an abandoned child was the heroic thing to do, and he wanted to be a hero. But at the same time? The more Izuku thought about it, Ashido did make a strange sort of sense. And her advice wasn't terrible. Maybe it was worth considering?

After all, he wasn't responsible for Eri in any way, shape, or form. Ashido evidently wasn't responsible for Houfuku. They could take care of themselves or failing that, they could find someone to take care of them. He was fourteen, a week into having his first girlfriend, and he had no way to support or take care of a child. If Eri actually wanted to stay with him? That would be one thing. He could try his best to make things work. There was no guarantee it would. But they could do their best to see how things went. On the other hand, if she didn't? His life would be... so much simpler if he followed Ashido's advice.

As much as he wanted to be a hero… as much as he wanted to be like All Might? Izuku wasn’t naive enough to think that any hero - even his idol - could solve literally every problem. Maybe Eri and Houfuku weren’t a problem that he’d be able to solve. Maybe it’d work out. Maybe he could be her hero today. But at the same time, he had to accept the possibility that it just might not be meant to be.

Wait. It would be heroic to take her to the police, right? He could absolutely take her to the police if she decided that she didn't want to come with him. That was a great plan.

And so as Eri continued to rage, Izuku shook her firmly but not terribly roughly, making the girl squawk indignantly and stop flailing. "Okay stop. You’re the one who came and found us. I’m pretty sure that ‘I’m bonded to the alien that came from the alien bonded to him’ is not a legal relationship that the government recognizes. You’re not required to be here and I’m not required to help you. If you don’t want Ashido to be the boss of you? And me, because I’m bonded to Ashido? You can go find someone who you do want to be the boss of you. Or we can bring you to the police."

Slumping, Houfuku receded to reveal Eri looking distinctly despondent as she mumbled an apology and then peered up at him. "I really don't want to go away, though. I'm tired of being alone. I'm sorry. I just... I'm me and I want to be me and I want you to accept me?"

"Okay, but I'm not saying I won't accept you but at the same time..." Izuku slowly brought Eri back in toward his body, resettling her on his hip once it became clear that she was calming down. "Do I have to accept the swearing? I feel like I should be encouraging good behavior and trying to smooth out your rough spots as part of being, uh, the boss of you."

Eri pouted at that. "But my life so far has really fucking sucked. There's not a word that expresses the fuckiness of fuck, you know? Like... fuck! It expresses what I'm feeling."

Sighing, Izuku shook his head. "Well, maybe we can work on that in the future. Or... something." He sighed resignedly as Eri beamed, shaking his head slowly. His mother was going to be absolutely appalled by Eri, he just knew it. But that was a problem for later tonight's him. "Okay. So. Let's try this again. Hi. You're Eri and Houfuku. I'm Izuku, and you obviously know Ashido. And the invisible girl is Tooru."

That made Eri do a double take as she looked over at Tooru's empty uniform. "Oh. Hey. I didn't see you there."

Tooru laughed in response. "I get that a lot. Nice to meet you, Eri. And Houfuku. I hope we can get to know each other."

After a moment, Eri turned her attention back to Izuku and he smiled encouragingly at the girl. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that we have a lot to talk about. And most of us doesn’t need to be discussed in the middle of a sidewalk. We were about to go get dinner. Do you want to come with us?"

"Oh fuck yeah. The only thing I've had to eat lately was fucking yakuza." Eri shuddered violently before shaking her head. "It was fun eating my captors, but I have regrets. Not about eating them. They fucking deserved it for torturing me. But Overhaul gave me the shits."

Izuku had questions... but at the same time, for the first time in his life, he wasn't sure he wanted to know the answers. "Okay, so we're clearly going to agree to disagree on the swearing thing. At least for now. You've... eaten people? Uh, they sound like bad people, but you do know that eating people is wrong, right? Like, you should not be eating people and you should not eat more people in the future."

The question made Eri stare at him in a way that left him feeling distinctly stupid. "Yes I know that killing people is wrong. I'm six, not stupid. But like, if it was gonna be them or me? I decided it was gonna be me. And, well, it turns out it was me. And here I am."

Fair enough. Especially if she had been… Izuku was pretty sure she’d mentioned being tortured? While he wasn’t entirely sure murder was ever justified - that seemed like a slippery slope to go down - he could at least understand her mindset? “Well, there’s plenty of real food in your future if you come with us. And chocolate? According to what Ashido’s told me, Houfuku would probably like that.”

Rather than form a separate head like Ashido did, Houfuku opted to cover half of Eri’s face and commandeer her mouth to respond with the same slightly lower voice that he’d heard earlier. “I would like that! I would like that very much, Dad.”

Izuku grinned bemusedly at the appellation. “So just like that, I’m Dad now?”

“I mean, Ashido is my mom and you’re bonded to her. So pretty much, yeah.” Houfuku shrugged before reaching Eri’s arms up again to pat at Ashido’s face. “I’m so glad I found you.”

Ashido leaned into the touch before turning to smile at Izuku. “Tantrum moments aside, this is going better than I thought it would. I was such a little shit that I was genuinely expecting some sort of karma to come back around for me with my own daughter. Huh. Maybe I should have more kids? That could be fun. I have like, dozens more seeds…”

Eyes widening, Izuku shook his head vehemently in response. “I do not need to take care of dozens more symbiote children. No offense, but I’m not even sure how we’re going to take care of Eri and Houfuku. I mean, I’m fourteen. And you can’t exactly like, take care of her for us while I’m at school.” Pausing, he looked over at Tooru before smiling awkwardly. “Um, how do you feel about teenage parents?”

Without Ashido covering her, Tooru was harder to read for obvious reasons but Izuku was pretty sure that she was tapping her finger against her chin based on her pose. “Hmm. Depends. Am I also allowed to call you Daddy?”

Before Izuku could answer, Houfuku retreated so that Eri could scrutinize the invisible girl. “Wait, why do you want to call him Daddy? He’s not your dad.” Her eyes narrowed further. “Are you being gross?” There was a brief pause and then her red eyes widened. “The hive mind says that’s a gross thing! Eww! Stop it! Stop being gross, Tooru!”

Throwing her head back, Tooru cackled loudly. “Never!” When her laughter subsided, she looked over at Izuku. “In all seriousness, this isn’t a deal killer. Like, I’m not going to dump Ashido over it and I’m not going to disqualify you for helping take care of her child. So yeah. Let’s do what needs to be done.”

“Right. What needs to be done.” Izuku looked down at Eri and then around at the people surging around them on the sidewalk. In the age of heroes and quirks, Eri’s mottled red and black symbiotic form honestly wasn’t that weird. They’d have to coax her into a more socially normative appearance eventually, but seeing as how nobody was raising a fuss about her? Or for that matter, him? He’d let it be for now. “Let’s go, Eri! Dinner time!”

Eri pumped her fist into the air enthusiastically. “Yay! Dinner!” Shifting, she rested her head on Izuku’s shoulder as he set off, making Ashido coo. “Does wherever we’re going serve apples? I love apples.”

Furrowing his brow, Izuku looked over at Ashido in askance. He was more of a Burger King man, to be honest. The symbiote shook her head in response. “They do not! Kids meals only come with fries as an option. But you know where does have apples? Konbini! And we can stop at one after dinner and buy you… all the dessert!”

That made Eri cock her head to the side, staring off into space. “Houfuku, how many apples can we store inside us? I want to bring home as many apples as we can carry.”

Houfuku surged up over the girl’s face again. “This bad girl can fit so many apples.”

Chuckling softly - because even he knew that meme - Izuku shifted Eri slightly in his arms, and then chuckled again as she spawned multiple symbiotic tendrils to secure herself in place where she was. He glanced over at his reflection in the window of a business as they walked. “Sometimes love is a boy and a girl. And sometimes it’s a boy and a boy, or a girl and a girl. Occasionally, it’s three or more people. And sometimes… sometimes love is a boy, a girl, and the pink goo from outer space that likes to spread over both their bodies.”

Ashido nodded in agreement. “And their symbiote child who swears too much.”

“That too.”

Chapter Text

“Hey, uh, Mom? Remember how you used to make jokes about how I’d never-“

“What have you and Ashido done now, Izuku?”

Peeking around the door, Izuku smiled nervously at his mother as she peered out of the kitchen at him. He looked down at Eri, who he was making a concerted effort to keep hidden from view, and then back up at his mother. “Okay. Mom. I need you to promise that you won’t be mad.”

The request made Inko sigh deeply and shake her head in resignation. “You’re my son and no matter what happens, I will always love you. At the same time? Sometimes our children do things that make them not like them very much. What… have you done, Izuku?”

Izuku nudged the door open to reveal Eri riding on his hip. The white-haired girl hung there awkwardly, Ashido extending a tendril to grab one of her arms and wave hello. “Surprise. You’re a grandmother.”

Pinching the bridge of her nose, Inko let out an even more exasperated sigh. “My son kidnapped a child. That honestly wasn’t what I was expecting, I’m not going to lie. Still. I don’t remember there being a chapter about this in any of the parenting books that I read.”

“I get a grandma out of this? Fucking nice!” Evidently coming to terms with the situation, Eri squirmed out of Izuku’s grip and manifested a set of spider-like legs out of her back that she used to skitter into the apartment, darting toward Inko. She reared up on them, bringing herself level with the woman and waving to her excitedly. “Hi! I’m Eri! And this…” Her symbiote surged up to cover her face, causing her voice to drop a little. “Is Houfuku!”

Inko looked from Eri to Izuku and back. “I see. So it’s like that then.” Smiling softly, she reached out and wrapped her arms around the duo, drawing them into a hug. Houfuku stiffened for a moment before relaxing and leaning into the embrace. "Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Eri and Houfuku. Welcome to our home. Have you eaten?”

Turning her head to the side, Houfuku burped up an entire apple core that fell to the floor with a wet splat. With that done, she receded to reveal Eri's face again, the white-haired girl smiling uncertainly. "I mean, I could go for more apples if you have any?”

Before Izuku could chastise his new responsibility, Inko gestured to the floor. “Not if that’s what you’re going to do with them. Clean that up, young lady.” Having evidently learned her lesson - or possibly respecting Inko more than Izuku - Eri hurried to comply, looking around wildly before spotting the garbage can and using a tendril to deposit it. When she had, she peered up at Inko, who nodded in approval. “Better. In that case…” Reaching into a bowl on the counter, Inko produced an apple and handed it to Eri before winking over the top of the girl’s head at Izuku. “You and Ashido can figure out how to split the apples we have.”

“Wait, what? I have to share my apples with her?” Forming up out of Izuku’s shoulder, Ashido looked over at the verdet pleadingly. “I changed my mind. Can we put her back where we found her?”

Eri manifested two extra human arms with her symbiote so that she could flip Ashido off with both of them. “Fuck you, Mom.”

Surprisingly, Inko looked amused rather than horrified at the display. “Welcome to fatherhood, Izuku. Best of luck to you. If you’re doing this, she’s your responsibility. I’m just the doting grandmother here. Well, as long as she doesn’t dirty up my house.”

Ah. So much for the hope that his mother would provide a positive influence as he tried to coax Eri toward socially acceptable behavior. Sighing, Izuku lassoed the girl with a tendril and lifted her into the air, bringing her back over to him. “Do you wanna go see our room?”

Nodding eagerly, Eri peered down the hallway. “Houfuku taught me how to read. Yours is the one with the All Might nameplate.”

“You do not need to be able to read to know that.” Ashido giggled and wrapped some additional pink tendrils around Eri. “Prepare yourself, baby girl. It’s sort of a lot.”

That made Izuku roll his eyes. “I have a perfectly normal and average room, thank you very much.” Making his way down the hall, he opened the door and stepped inside. “See? Normal.”

Eri looked around with wide eyes. “Holy shit, Dad is a fucking weirdo!” At Izuku’s offended noise, she looked up at him and nodded emphatically. “Dad, this is fucking weird. Like, really fucking weird. Normal people don’t live like this. Houfuku, tell him.”

Hesitantly creeping up over Eri’s face, Houfuku looked around awkwardly. “On one hand, Eri has some skewed views on how people live. The whole ‘being held captive’ thing and all. But, uh, with all due respect? Dad? This is pretty weird. Mom, how do you live like this?”

Ashido peeled almost completely off of Izuku as she sighed despondently. “I try not to think about it, to be honest.” Keeping herself linked to Izuku with a thin tendril, the otherwise independent goo girl plucked her daughter from Izuku’s arms. “But hey. We outvote him three to one now. How do you feel about pink? And unicorns?”

“I mean…” Houfuku turned and rubbed her cheek against Ashido’s shoulder. “I kinda like pink.”

“Aww.” Ashido grinned down at Houfuku and then over at Izuku. “My daughter is a suck up. Nice.” Making her way over to the bed, she pirouetted and then flopped down on her back with Houfuku on top of her. “So. Question. Do you like splitting time with Eri the way you do or do you want to…” Trailing off, she gestured to herself.

Houfuku looked down at herself as Izuku closed the door behind them, moving to sit at his desk. “I spent a while having to hide myself, so I’m used to just letting her run the show while I whisper in her ear. This whole being on the outside around people thing is new to me. Although maybe I could…” She hesitantly peeled herself off of Eri and then paused before reversing course and surging to cover the girl again. “Uh, maybe after we buy her some clothes. I’m literally the clothes on her back right now.”

That was an issue that Izuku could relate to, having run into the same problem with Ashido earlier that day. He also made a note to pick up some clothes for Eri tomorrow. It’d probably mean no new All Might merchandise this week, but he had responsibilities now. That and, well, if his companions had anything to say about it, there was going to be a lot less merchandise in his future. Maybe that was part of growing up and maturing? At least until he was old enough to have a job that let him afford a house with home office where he could display his collection?

Grabbing his Ashido notebook, Izuku skipped to the two-thirds mark in the book and then wrote the names of his two new daughters on the page. “So, Eri. Very important question.” Houfuku peeled away to reveal her host, the white-haired girl peering over at him curiously. “You’re six. Which means that by now, you should know what your quirk is.”

Ashido shook her head in warning. “Don’t do it, baby girl. It’s a trap.”

Ignoring Ashido’s warning, Eri sat up and then held up her hands. “It’s kinda weird? I can’t do it on demand. Or at least I haven’t figured out how to do it on demand. But I deleted my dad and Overhaul said I did it by rewinding him out of existence. Which I mean, if he never existed, how do I exist? Quirks are bullshit.”

Quirks were fascinating… but yes, sometimes quirks were bullshit. Izuku scribbled that down in his notebook under Eri’s heading before pointing the end of his pencil at her. “What if you’re a stockpile quirk? You build up a supply of… something. And then expend that supply to rewind things?”

“I mean, sounds as likely as anything else I’ve ever heard.” Eri looked around before leaning toward Izuku and lowering her voice slightly. “I have absolutely no idea how my quirk works.”

Izuku grinned faintly at that, and then something occurred to him. “Do you have to touch something to rewind it?” Eri nodded and the verdet hummed softly. “Can Houfuku create enough of a barrier to prevent you from rewinding things? I’m just wondering if we need to buy any sort of protective clothing to help keep you safe.”

That made Eri shoot an exasperated look at him. “You mean keep people safe from me. I’m not stupid, Dad. But yes. Houfuku didn’t copy my quirk because she thinks it could be dangerous in someone else’s hands. Like, whoever she bonds with after me could have problems controlling it. Or choose to do bad things with it. So it’s not in her. And I need skin contact to use my quirk. Or at least I think I do. So if you’re really worried… gloves?”

Hmm. Did she have a five point contact quirk? Because then artist’s gloves could be an unobtrusive way to dampen her quirk. Assuming they made any in her size, which… they may not. Although his mom did like to sew? Then again, did they really want to go experimenting with such a volatile and dangerous quirk? On one hand, Izuku really loved learning about quirks and exploring them. On the other hand, he really didn’t like the idea of being ‘deleted’.

Wanting to distract himself, Izuku began sketching Eri and Houfuku on the first page of what would likely grow into a lengthy entry about them. He’d already drawn Ashido a handful of times, meaning he was starting to get familiar with representing symbiotes. He made sure to make the right side of her face visible so that he could depict her horn, while allowing Houfuku to cover the left half.

“Midori!” Izuku looked up from his sketch and raised an eyebrow at the sight of Ashido fiddling with his - now effectively their - phone. “Can we make a Tapple account? I feel like Tapple is the superior option because it’s for more casual daters than Pairs or Omiai? Like, I do not want someone to try and put a ring on our finger. I just want those two other girlfriends that you told me I could have.”

Eri peered back and forth between them curiously. “More moms? Not too many, right? I feel like that could get confusing.”

Giggling, Ashido grabbed Eri and shook her playfully. “Wait, wait, maybe I can get some votes on my side here. How do you feel about twenty-seven moms? Can you imagine having twenty-seven whole moms?”

Eyes widening, Eri shook her head. “No way! That’s way too many moms! Like, four moms. You said you can get two more girlfriends? So what, Tooru and another girl and another girl? And you? I guess I’m okay with that. But that’s it. I refuse to have more moms than that.”

Hah! Finally someone who could see reason. Izuku spun his pencil between his fingers a few times before pointing the end in Ashido’s direction. “Do you promise not to put anything embarrassing on the profile if I let you handle it?”

Twisting, Ashido shot finger guns at Izuku. “I absolutely promise not to mention that you’re a monsterfucker. If anyone figures it out from the fact that you have a dating profile for you and your alien goofriend, that’s not my fault.”

“That’s pretty much the best I can hope for, I suppose. Because heck if I know what to actually put on one of those things.” After a moment’s consideration, Izuku pointed upward toward Eri with his pencil. “Don’t forget to mention her. And I’ll get a selfie with her.” Ashido made a quizzical noise and Izuku shrugged. “I don’t think we should be getting involved with any girls - or guys - who don’t respect that we have a very important responsibility in our lives.”

Eri puffed up her chest proudly at his words. “I am important, aren’t I? Fuck yeah I am.”

With Ashido occupied on the bed with his phone while simultaneously forming his entire outfit, Izuku didn’t have enough remaining symbiotic mass to stretch out a tendril and so he rose to his feet and moved over to pick Eri up again. Was she too old for them to be holding her this much? She didn’t seem to mind. That being said, Izuku made a mental note to go pick up some parenting books tomorrow. Along with some tangible clothing so that she could stop running around as a red gooey figure. “So, what do you think so far? There’s no place like home, and this is your home now.”

Nodding, Eri leaned into Izuku’s chest. “I like it. Maybe needs a little bit less All Might. Like, you have a lot a lot of All Might stuff. But I can work with this.”

Everyone has to grow up eventually, right? Maybe his time was coming a bit earlier than everyone else’s. Humming softly, Izuku reached up to play with his new charge’s hair. He was at a loss as to how to engage with a six-year-old girl, especially since he didn’t want to be the sort of parent who expected technology to raise his child for him. Oh! Idea! “Do you want me to braid your hair?”

Eyes widening, Eri nodded eagerly. “Can you? I like having long hair, but it can be a lot to deal with. A braid would be really cool.”

“Well, I’ve never braided hair before, but you know who has? At least one person on YouTube.” Izuku retook his seat and settled Eri on his lap before opening his laptop. It took him a matter of minutes to find a tutorial for a style he liked, and he set it to play, watching with one eye as he began working with Eri’s. The sound of a camera shutter made him look up at Ashido. “Can I help you?”

Grinning widely, Ashido snapped another picture. “I’m pretty sure that men who are involved with their children are super attractive to women.” Oh. Huh. Were they? Izuku had asked her to take a picture, although he’d been thinking maybe more like… something cute at the park or something? He paused as Ashido flopped forward onto him, spreading over his body. She formed her customary head tendril and held their phone up with another tendril. “Smile!”

Izuku smiled as best he could, making a peace sign the way Tooru tended to. She seemed pretty cool, so it was probably a cool thing to do. As Ashido continued to snap pictures, Izuku summoned his courage and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Then he paused. “This is not going to help me beat those monsterfucker allegations, is it?”

“It's really not!”

Chapter Text

A week passed, and then two, and Izuku fell into a happy little routine. Inko proved more than willing to keep an eye on Eri during the day, meaning that Izuku didn't need to become a junior high dropout to take care of his new daughter. Ashido learned to stay concealed enough at school, although they did talk mentally for portions of each day. Tooru had visited one of the Saturdays but not the other, although they did video call every night without fail. And so as April turned into May, Izuku found himself... content, for the first time in a long while.

Their forays to the beach continued on a fairly regular basis, with Izuku devoting two or three hours an afternoon three days a week to his effort to clean it. It might not have been the most strenuous workout plan, but no longer felt like he was about to die by the end of each session, so clearly he was making some form of progress. Ibara had reappeared twice, both times with new shells to show off to him. He'd gotten to do an entire three page entry on Talokanil, and a fourth about her quirk Seaweed. Against all odds, he had somehow managed to make a friend all by himself. It was nice.

Something else that was nice? His Friday night date nights with Ashido. Sure, they weren't exactly a conventional couple, what with her being a Klyntar and him being her host. But they managed to have fun together. Ashido was inordinately fond of rhythm games, although she was too light on her own to apply pressure to the sensors. Izuku was starting to become passable at dancing by way of indulging her. And he'd managed to pick up enough tickets to bring home some cute prizes for Eri.

For the most part, Izuku kept himself out of Tapple, although he had made a point of inspecting the profile that was publicly posted for 'Midoriya Izuku (AND ASHIDO!!!)' on the service. Every day when he dug his phone out of his backpack for the walk home, there seemed to be a few more notifications from the app than there had been the day before. He was keenly aware that Ashido was talking to... at least one person, if not more on the service. But she hadn't brought anyone to his attention yet, so he assumed that nothing serious was going on.

That changed on a Friday, when the bell rang and Izuku checked the after school chore list to verify that it wasn't his turn to clean the classroom before turning and heading out for the afternoon. As he yawned and stretched in the bright sunlight of a spring afternoon, Ashido shifted around him and transformed from his uniform to a bright pink t-shirt and jeans. "Midori. Midori. You don't have anything planned for this afternoon, right?"

Setting off down the sidewalk, Izuku shrugged. "I mean, do I ever have plans for a Friday evening? You're the one in charge of deciding where we go on dates. I leave my calendar open for you. As long as we're home in time for our video call with Tooru, I'm all ears if you have something in particular that you want to do. Why?"

"Uh, so, I've been flirting a little flirt. Well, been flirting a lot of flirt to be honest. And then remember how I mentioned there was that girl I knew whose father was born in 1832?" Vaguely. They had covered a lot of ground during that particular discussion, and most of it in only cursory detail. But yes, Izuku passingly remembered her mentioning such a girl. Assuming her normal position on his shoulder, Ashido grinned at him as she poked two tendrils together. "So I invited her down here from Nagoya? She'll be getting here in... uh, she says her school is near the station and Maps says it's an hour and sixteen minutes from her station to our station? So let's say that she'll be here in an hour and a half, give or take?"

Izuku reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose as he let out an exasperated sigh. "You don't think this was maybe something we should have discussed a little before you offered to hang out with her? Seeing as how you're sorta... attached to me, Bubblegum?"

Huffing softly, Ashido flailed her tendrils. "I mean, it's not like she's a stranger? We kinda sorta barely knew each other before bumping into each other on Tapple, but we've been really hitting it of? And did I mention that she's not technically a stranger? And technically correct is the best kind of correct!"

Oh, so this wasn't just a meeting of friends, this was a possible date situation. Fantastic. Izuku let out another sigh as he shook his head despondently. "Bubblegum, when I agreed to let you run wild on Tapple, I kinda expected that you'd respect me - or for that matter, us - enough to talk to me about these sorts of things? I admit that I don't know much about relationships, and even less about polyamory, but... communication? We're supposed to communicate, right?"

"And we are! Right now! Which..." Ashido slumped slightly and looked away from him. "Is probably pretty awful of me, especially given how awkward and anxious you can be. I'm sorry. Are you mad at me?"

Izuku shrugged as he continued down the street, orienting himself and heading for Shin-Musutafu Station. If she was coming from Nagoya, there was only one way that she was possibly coming into town and there was no sense in avoiding the inevitable. "I'm a little annoyed, yeah. But I'll get over it. As long as... Bubblegum. Ashido." Caught in mid cheer, his girlfriend abruptly sobered and looked over at him with wide eyes at the use of her real name. "Please don't do this again. Please? Just... talk with me."

Nodding fervently, Ashido rubbed her cheek against his. "I promise. I just sorta got carried away and one thing led to another and the next thing I knew I was like, 'hey, Midori would probably love to meet you, we should hang'. Maybe I should have, I don't know, arranged a video call? Or maybe let you text with her first?"

"That would have been nice, yeah." Izuku looked down at himself, subtly altering his outfit to have a black t-shirt with the words 'Host Body' scrawled across the chest in white katakana. That made him chuckle and Ashido huff in exasperation so... mission accomplished? "What's done is done at this point. Just gotta get to the station and... I don't know, I guess I'll grab a tea or something."

Ashido rubbed cheeks with him again. "You're being exceptionally cool about this and I thank you... so, so much for that. Can you get me a tea? Do I deserve tea at this point?"

Considering that ingesting anything was more of a guilty pleasure than a necessity for a Klyntar, Izuku was tempted to say no... but he also wasn't the type to hold things against people. She'd messed up. She'd apologized. Life was going to go on. "Yeah, let's go get some tea, Bubblegum."

As they walked, Ashido made a thoughtful noise. "Whatever happened to me being Princess? Like, I seem to recall that discussion being that I would be Bubblegum until we started dating and then switch to being Princess. Well we've been dating for weeks, Midori, and I haven't been called Princess a single time. What gives?"

"Honestly, I just sorta like Bubblegum for you. It's unique. Like you. I mean, think about how many girls out there must get called Princess by their boyfriends? Way, way more than get called Bubblegum." Izuku grinned faintly as he looked over at Ashido, the symbiote clearly considering his words. "I can switch if you absolutely want me to, but... you're a good Bubblegum."

Freezing, Ashido looked over at Izuku with wide eyes. “Can you call me that again? I think… I think I just accidentally discovered that I have a praise kink.”

Izuku sighed again at that. “I… you… you know what? I can probably do that, yeah. Not all the time; that would devalue it. But like, I guess when you deserve it? Do you want, like, good Bubblegum or good girl or..?”

The discussion over Ashido’s newfound - and strangely endearing - kink consumed the rest of the journey to the station and most of their stop for tea. Eventually, Izuku checked his watch and his eyes widened. “Oh shoot. We weren’t keeping track of time. The train is either getting here any minute or it might have-“

“Already gotten here!” Izuku jerked backward in surprise as a girl invaded his personal space, grinning widely. “Hi! I have enhanced senses so I basically went ‘hmm, what smell haven’t I smelled before?’ and it led me straight to Ashido!”

Izuku nodded slowly as he scrutinized the girl in front of him. She has blonde hair pulled up into twin messy buns, bright yellow eyes, and… were those fangs? How cool! She had pretty obviously come straight from school without the advantage that he had in Ashido’s endless wardrobe options, and was still wearing her uniform. He quickly recovered from his surprise and shot the girl a bright smile. “Well hi! I’m Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku. It’s nice to meet you. And… did you say that you have a sensory quirk?”

Grinning cryptically, the girl straightened up and took a step back, raising her hand and wobbling it from side to side. “I have enhanced senses as part of my quirk. My entire quirk… is for me to know and for you to find out.” Sprawling into the chair across from him, the girl offered her hand. “My name is Toga Himiko. We have… literally never talked before.” At Izuku’s amused look, she gestured to Ashido. “Yeah I’m kinda aware that she’s the one talking for both of you. Same texting style the entire time. Pretty obviously not two people actually sharing the account.”

“You’ve got us! Midori is pretty shy and awkward. I think it’s endearing? And he’s got this sorta bluntly honest rizz? But he’s not the best conversationalist. So I sorta took point on trying to meet people.” Ashido spread down Izuku’s arm and formed a blob of pink on the table between the two before waving a tendril. “So yeah. It’s been me the entire time. And let me just say that we get along amazingly. That’s why we’re here.”

Himiko nodded agreeably before reaching out and grabbing Izuku’s tea, taking a sip from the straw. When Izuku made a protesting noise, she grinned playfully. “What? I’m probably going to kiss you later. It’ll be less weird then.” As he sputtered and blushed, she giggled brightly. “Oh, this is fun. I have a good feeling about this.”

Reaching out, Ashido poked Himiko’s other hand with a tendril and then completely enveloped the girl’s hand when the blonde nodded in approval. “Yeah, I mean, I feel like I did a really good job explaining me and Midori so that you could make an informed decision. So now all that’s left is to see if we get along as well in person as we do online.”

Izuku looked back and forth between the two. “And ask about her quirk?” When the girls looked over at him, he rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I really want to ask about her quirk.”

Giggling, Himiko put his tea back down so that she could stretch her other hand out toward him. “Do you have to ask me? I mean, I kinda just want it to come out in a natural sort of way. Like, you’ll get to see my quirk eventually. And then you’ll know what it is.”

“You know what? That seems fair.” Izuku reached out to give her hand a squeeze and then rose to his feet. He really wanted to know what her quirk was… but he would respect her wishes. Respecting women was important. His mom had thoroughly drilled that one into his head. “So what is our plan for the afternoon? Since I didn’t participate in the planning at all.”

Ashido kept herself spread down his arm in a bright splash of pink so that she could remain on Himiko’s hand as he stood up. “Himiko is a pretty avid DDR player. So we were going to go to the arcade. I want to try karaoke but I’m not sure if that’s too loud a noise for me?” At Izuku’s curious glance, she flicked a tendril at the arm she occupied. “Fire and very loud noises. I have exactly two weaknesses. So, uh, don’t try to fistfight Present Mic in a Denny’s parking lot or anything.”

He would, uh, take that under advisement. It gave Izuku a very valid incentive to keep working out, though. If he ever had to tackle a sound or fire based villain, it was just going to be him and his fists. He’d have to make sure he was ready for that eventuality. “Okay. So station to arcade. Arcade to maybe karaoke. Food either at karaoke or after. Or maybe before, depending on how long we’re at the arcade. We’ll play it by ear. Does that sound like a good plan?”

Hopping up, Himiko moved to press her symbiote covered hand against Izuku’s until Ashido receded enough where she could interlace her fingers with Izuku’s. Ashido cooed and promptly spread back down to cover their joined hands, making Himiko smile toothily. “It does. Why don’t we get going?”

Evidently a pair of junior high students made a more tempting target together than Izuku did with just Ashido for company, because they made it two entire side streets before he found himself confronted by a sweaty, disheveled man wielding a knife. “Hey! Hey! No funny business. Just give me your wallets and I’ll let you be on your way. Nice and easy. Nobody needs to be a hero.”

Izuku and Himiko exchanged a look before laughing loudly at his words. Oh gosh. He had certainly picked the wrong pair of teenagers to rob, hadn’t he? But before Ashido could do anything - or for that matter, Izuku could take things into some pink symbiotic hands - Himiko looked over at the mugger, her eyes gleaming. “You know what’s better than having knives?” The man stared at the blonde warily as Himiko slowly let go of Izuku’s hand. Without warning, she lunged forward. She brought her right hand up in a fist, and then there was a curious wet sound as her flesh parted and two gleaming blades emerged from between her knuckles. She pinned the man to the nearby wall, waving the blades in his face as he cowered from her. “Being knives!”

Sucking in a breath, Izuku let out a delighted squeal. “Himiko! That’s your quirk? It’s so cool!”

Ashido sighed. “Midori. Focus. Please.”

He was focused! He was completely focused! On how cool Himiko’s quirk was!

Chapter Text

“So what exactly is your quirk, Himiko?”

Himiko grin, preening a bit at the attention. “I call it Wolverine. After my dad’s old hero name. And I mean, I could call myself that as a hero if I wanted because my half-sister pretty much stays in America but… eh, I’ll figure out my own hero name before I graduate.”

Scratching ‘Quirk: Wolverine’ under Himiko’s name, Izuku tapped his pencil against the page. “Okay but what does that mean exactly? Like, I vaguely know that the wolverine is an animal, but apart from that…”

That made Himiko perk up. “That’s actually sorta impressive. Not being condescending. Like, wolverines only live in northern Russia. So I don’t expect anyone around here to know what they are. But okay. I have claws. Hands and feet. They were originally bone, but my father knows a guy and so those of us in the family who want to carry on the heroic legacy have the option to get ours dipped in adamantium.”

Izuku let out a low whistle of admiration. “Wow. He must know a really important guy. The only adamantium in the entire world is what they’ve extracted from that Celestial in the Pacific over the years, which makes it ruinously expensive for even the biggest corporations to use commercially.”

Nodding solemnly, Himiko raise her hand and made a fist. “It’s a responsibility that I won’t take lightly. But yeah. He has his entire skeleton coated in adamantium. Most of us only have our claws. It makes us lighter and faster, but he’s noticeably stronger.”

Some of that was relevant to Himiko herself, and Izuku scribbled down what was, relegating the rest to the back of his mind to discuss later. “So you have the claws. And enhanced senses?”

“And enhanced senses. And I can heal from almost anything that doesn’t kill me. Oh, and my entire family has really slow aging because of our quirks.” Himiko thought for a moment before perking up. “Oh, and I have low level superhuman speed. Like I’m no Ingenium, but I can move pretty fast when I want to.”

Izuku paused, looking up from his notes. “So you heal fast and you age slow?” The blonde nodded affirmatively, and he cocked his head to the side. “So what, you’re basically immortal? At least compared to the rest of us.”

“Uh, kinda sorta? I have a pretty powerful regenerative ability, but I can’t regenerate my entire head. So if you cut my head off…” Himiko closed her eyes and stuck her tongue out as she made a dying noise. “Other than that? Pretty much, yeah. My father has been alive since 1832 and still looks like a regular Caucasian man in his prime. Completely unremarkable in a crowd.”

As Izuku jotted that down, something occurred to him and he looked up from his notes. “You’re… you’re not from 1850 or something, right? Like I’m not against a little bit of an age gap but that would be a bit much.”

Laughing, Himiko shook her head. “Nope. Completely ordinary teenage girl here. My birthday is August 7, 2236. So based on what Mina tells me, you would actually be older than me for a short period of time each year.”

“So am I! For like, a week!” Ashido swirled around Himiko’s leg as the blonde rested her foot in Izuku’s lap. “Can we get the foot stuff over with already? I am not about the foot stuff. At least not in this reality. I’m sure there’s some reality where I’m completely down for foot stuff, mind you, but this isn’t it.”

Himiko grinned wickedly and lifted her foot toward Izuku’s face. “I don’t know, Ashido. Izuku kinda strikes me as the type of guy who would be down to suck on some toes.”

At Ashido’s noise of disgust, Izuku blushed but decided to play along because he got perilous few chances to turn the tables and mess with his girlfriend. “I mean, I don’t know about that but like… what if you eject that claw you were telling me about and we use it like a skewer? Just slide some yakitori on it and then I eat it off?”

“Oh my fucking god, you two are freaks.” Ashido wrapped tendrils around Himiko’s ankle and yanked the laughing girl’s foot back down to rest on Izuku’s lap. “Y’all are nasty. I am leaving.”

Izuku joined Himiko in her laughter even as he reached down to rub Ashido’s tendrils reassuringly. “Even if you didn’t already know, I’m just kidding. You’re safe from foot stuff with us. Although we should probably hurry this up.” He looked around, finding every patron of the KFC staring at them completely obviously. “Uh, yeah.”

Continuing to laugh, Himiko curled her toes and then a long metal claw appeared that matched the ones that he’d seen emerge from her hands. “I mean, I'm pretty much down for whatever. Let them stare. I got over my insecurities a long time ago. Anyway, obviously don’t want to do this without having the right footwear, but I have a blade in each foot to go with the two in each hand. Sexual dimorphism. The ladies in the family are all like this. My father and his male descendants have three in each hand and none in their feet.”

Quirk inheritance was also fascinating and a subject that Izuku loved to discuss. He glanced from her foot to Himiko’s face and back before beginning to sketch her foot next to the drawing he’d made of her hand with both claws extended. “Are you close to them? I have to imagine that with a four hundred and eighteen year old father, your family can get a bit… uh, extended?”

Himiko reached into her backpack and pulled out her phone, waking it and tapping at it for a few seconds before turning it to face him. On the screen was Himiko with a freckly redhead, and Izuku watched as a short loop played of Himiko ejecting her metal claws while two flaming claws emerged from the girl’s knuckles. “This is Grey Sheena of the Grey branch of the family. That one goes back… I wanna say I’m like, her great-great-aunt or something like that? My father knocked up her ancestor way back in 2003. He’s only married twice in his entire life so most of us have our mothers’ names.”

Huh. That was… so the claws were a dominant quirk trait then evidently? Neat. Izuku hesitantly swiped left to see if there was another photo of her with her relative, and then promptly exploded into a blush and jerked his hand back when he found himself staring at a selfie of Himiko in a bikini. Clearing his throat, he pointedly ignored her giggles as he went back to his notebook. “Do you have a family tree? Could we make a family tree? Is that even possible at this point?”

“I mean, I genuinely don’t care what my family tree is? I pretty much just figure if they have a claw or nail quirk, they’re related to my dad or Uncle Victor and that they’re not dating material.” Himiko thought for a moment before shrugging nonchalantly. “But I guess it would be a good excuse to spend a bunch of time with you, so what the hell? Sure.”

Izuku perked up at that. He still wasn’t sure why any girl wanted to spend time with him at all ever, and this girl wanted to spend time with him doing something related to quirks? “Will you be my girlfriend?” The second after he blurted that out, the verdet clapped his hands over his mouth, his blush returning.

Perking up, Ashido looked back and forth between the two of them. “Oh my god, Midori, what the hell? I thought I was the impulsive one! And here you are, just straight up asking a girl out? Let’s fucking go!”

“Sorry, I just… she seems really cool! And she’s really pretty! And her quirk is fascinating! So I said something awkward by mistake!” Looking over at Himiko, Izuku flapped his hands anxiously. “Just forget I said that. Or like, you can slap me for being too forward if you want? Oh gosh, I just made things so weird, didn’t I?”

Laughing, Himiko captured one of Izuku’s flailing hands and squeezed it. “You’re adorable. And the answer is yes.” Izuku’s face fell; people always left when he made things weird. He’d ruined the good thing that Ashido had going, hadn’t he? Gosh, he hoped she wasn’t too mad. What if she was? What if she left him? What if- “Not yes you made things weird, you silly goose. Yes I’ll be your girlfriend. Now we just need Ashido to ask me out and we’ll be all set.”

Izuku’s eyes widened. “Wait, really? I… you… are you sure?”

“Yuh huh! You’re adorable and Ashido is great and I dunno, you kinda strike me as the kind of guy who would let me rub my cheek against him and smell him a lot.” Himiko blushed faintly at that. “Quirk thing. My last few exes were, uh, not down with it. Also I sorta play bite? And nobody’s been cool with that either.”

Well that was just rude of them! These days, there were a lot of interesting little behaviors that people manifested because of their quirks’ influence. And there was nothing wrong with Himiko’s unique differences. “I mean, just don’t do it right after I clean the beach because… eww? But other than that, absolutely.”

Himiko cocked her head to the side curiously. “Are we talking about like, sweat smells? Because you have no idea how into that I am.”

That made Izuku blink a few times, and then he shook his head. “No, uh, Dagobah Beach is covered in trash. It literally looks like a landfill. I’m trying to clean it up both as community service and to get stronger before the hero course entrance exam. I want to become a better host for Ashido so I’m not just coasting on her abilities, if that makes any sense?”

Pondering that, Himiko slowly let her head loll to tilt to the other side. “Just out of curiosity, is there stuff that could be cut into smaller pieces to make it easier to move?” Izuku nodded slowly and she held her hands up, ejecting all four claws. “Can I come help on Saturdays?!”

“Oh my god, idea. Wait, wait, first of all…” Ashido made a finger gun tendril in Himiko’s direction. “Hey, baby. You wanna be goosexual too?” Himiko nodded and giggled, retracting her claws as she leaned back in her seat. Ashido let out a sigh of relief. “Cool. Because I didn’t really have a plan for if you dated Midori but didn’t want to date me. Need to figure out what you and Tooru’s status is going to be, but so far so good. Okay, so, my idea. You bring a bag to school on Fridays. Take the train to Musutafu after school. Sleep over. Clean on Saturday. Sleep over. Dates on Sundays. Sleep over. Train to school on Monday. Thoughts?”

Izuku held his hands up before Himiko could respond, shaking his head vehemently. “Bubblegum, I adore you, but no.” When his companion looked over at him, Izuku held his hand up off to his side. “We have a small but not that small responsibility. I am not going to try and fit me, Eri, and anyone else into my room. Especially given how much you like to sleep separate. There is no vacancy at the inn.”

After pouting for a few seconds, Ashido recovered and made a counteroffer. “Train on Saturday morning, less beach, date, train home?”

Considering that, Himiko nodded agreeably. “Nagoya to Musutafu isn’t horrible. Maybe not every weekend, but some. Sure. That being said, would there be an opportunity for some sort of cuddle time as long as I vacate the house before bed time? Because I fucking adore cuddles.”

Izuku raised an eyebrow at that. “So what I’m hearing is that you’re basically just a cat?”

Grinning widely, Himiko nodded. “I really am, though!”

“I mean, I’m probably going to lay there very stiffly for the first time or two. I’m awkward. Ashido and I are working on it, but I’m not quite there yet. But I mean, sure?” Izuku looked down and then made a thoughtful noise. “Huh. Your foot is still in my lap. And I don’t mind. Wait. Am I into feet?”

Ashido retched. “I will leave you if you turn out to be into feet. Don’t test me, Midori.” The girl waved a tendril at him threateningly. “No foot stuff in this relationship. None.”

Grinning wickedly, Himiko retracted her foot claw and let her foot slide off of Izuku’s lap before leaning to the side and gesturing downward. “Didn’t you say something about being most of his clothing? Aren’t you covering his feet… right now? Sounds to me like you’re the one who’s into foot stuff, Ashido.”

Eyes going wide, Ashido looked back and forth in alarm. “Oh my god. My old hosts used to have me turn into all kinds of cute socks for them. And I’d do it. Am I… oh god, am I into foot stuff?”

The three teens - technically, at least - looked at each other before dissolving into laughter. Izuku reached out, patting Ashido fondly. “I mean, I’m not going to judge you but if you are, I feel like that we should keep that in mind when we’re looking for your third and final girlfriend?”

Himiko nodded rapidly. “I am not the foot stuff girlfriend. All jokes aside. Not kink shaming you, Ashido, but I’m not kink saming either.”

“Now I’m having an existential crisis! Because I kink shame people into foot stuff, but now it turns out that I may be into foot stuff! I’m a hypocrite!” Ashido flailed her tendrils in the air frantically before letting out a soft huff and relaxing. “Let’s change the subject.”

The trio sat there in silence for a moment and then Himiko picked a new topic of conversation. “So, you have a daughter?” Izuku nodded slowly and her expression became teasing. “Does that mean I’m allowed to call you Daddy?”

Groaning even as Ashido burst into laughter, Izuku hung his head. “Why does everyone keep asking me that?”

“I’m mostly kidding. Mostly. Like, I’m weird but I’m not that weird.” Himiko giggled and then made a beckoning gesture. “In all seriousness, I feel like this is a significant factor that we probably should discuss before things get any more serious? So… discuss. You have a daughter?”

Izuku nodded slowly. “Let me preface this by saying that I don’t mean this in an avoiding responsibility way so much as a literal way. But she’s more Ashido’s daughter than mine. She’s the host of Ashido’s daughter Houfuku, as you can probably tell from the pictures on our profile.”

Making a noise of agreement, Himiko gestured to Ashido. “Yeah, the whole pink goo, red goo thing is sorta hard to miss. But you’re taking care of her? Them?”

“Yeah, so Eri is actually pretty cool when she’s not swearing. I do take care of her and Houfuku, and…”

Chapter Text

After spending more time than was advisable in the KFC that they’d ostensibly only gone into to wash the blood off Himiko’s hands, the trio finally made it to the arcade in downtown Musutafu. Or rather, one of the arcades. The city was big enough and prosperous enough to have a few. Izuku didn’t particularly have a favorite, so he’d let Himiko take the lead on that.

Eating before heading off to game had proven to be a slightly questionable life choice, but they still had fun even if they were a little less agile on the DDR machines than normal. Izuku had then proceeded to win Himiko a stuffed cat from a claw game, and nabbed a unicorn for him to bring home and add to Eri’s slowly growing plushie collection.

He’d also discovered that either he had above average hand-eye coordination or Ashido enhanced his abilities, because he’d absolutely destroyed a few people in shooting games. Given that he’d never tried anything other than the hero fighting games before and had absolutely no experience, it was either natural talent or Ashido and given his overall self-esteem? Izuku was inclined to believe it was the latter. She was, after all, the source of pretty much everything that was good in his life.

From there, they’d headed over to Blue, which had turned out to be a slightly pricier karaoke experience than Izuku expected but still within his budget. It also seemed nicer than the average karaoke bar, which he hoped would impress Himiko. She seemed excited enough to be there, though, trailing her hands over everything she could touch in the lobby.

Before they could head off to their individual room, Izuku noticed a petite girl with purple hair sitting in the lobby. Or to be more precise, sitting in the lobby staring at him. He blinked a few times, looked around to make sure that Himiko wasn't close enough for the girl to be looking at the blonde, and then double checked that Ashido was hidden away. She was... fairly attention grabbing, after all, and for good reason. But no, the girl was staring at him. Why? Summoning his courage, he made his way over to the girl and waved to her uncertainly. "Can I help you?"

Inwardly, Izuku was surprised by his boldness. And partly blamed Ashido for being a questionable influence on him. Before he’d met her, he wouldn’t have just… approached a pretty girl and talked to her. And she was pretty. She was slender, with purple hair and dark eyes. She appeared to be wearing a skirt suit - which seemed a little formal both for her age and the setting - that was black with a jagged white pattern on the lapels. He was intensely curious about what appeared to be a tuning fork peeking out from beneath her bangs. Fashion accessory? Quirk mutation? Either way, it was cool.

The girl cocked her head to the side and then made a series of gestures with her hands. Izuku shifted in place uncertainly; was that Japanese Sign Language? Signed Japanese? He didn't exactly know the difference, other than that there was a difference, and he could understand neither. The girl stared at him, signed a few more things, and then the corner of her mouth quirked upward. She held up a finger, reached into her bag, and pulled out a stack of index cards. Shuffling through them, she handed one to Izuku.

Taking the card, Izuku looked down at it. "Hello. My name is... oh wow, this is definitely unique. I apologize in advance if I mess up the pronunciation... Boltagon Kyoukastra?" He peered up at her and waved a bit more comfortably. "Nice to meet you, Boltagon. My name is Midoriya. Midoriya Izuku. And..." He beckoned for Himiko to join him, gesturing to his companion. "This is Toga Himiko. And... wait, can you even understand me?" The girl smirked faintly, taking the card back and searching through her collection before handing him another. "I am mute but not deaf. You can speak normally to me. Oh. Huh. I've never met a mute person before. First time for everything, I suppose."

Unfurling from his shoulder, Ashido waved a tendril at the girl. "Hey, Kyouka. Long time no see. How you been?" Boltagon signed something back at Ashido and the pink girl sighed. "One of these days, I'm going to bond to someone who speaks Signed Japanese. That day, sadly, has not happened yet, so... yeah."

"Ashido, weren't you hiding so that we would only count as two people for karaoke?" Izuku looked over at his girlfriend, who looked around wildly before disappearing back into him. Granted the fact that Ashido evidently knew this girl was interesting and he wanted to know more… but hiding? Turning back to Boltagon, he carefully handed the second card to her and cocked his head to the side. "So, not to be rude, but you were staring at me?” She nodded. “Because of Ashido?” She shook her head. “Okay then I’m definitely confused.”

Boltagon flipped through her index cards, an intent look on her face, and then gave up and pulled out a blank card and a pen. She quickly scribbled a message on it and then handed it to Himiko, who accepted it. "It says here that… obviously she can't sing - which I mean, duh, she’s mute - but she likes listening to people do karaoke." She looked over at Izuku and then back down at Boltagon. "So basically you’re like, a karaoke cuckold?" Boltagon's cheeks exploded into a blush and her index cards went flying as she brought her hands up to cover her face, making Himiko cackle. "I'm just messing with you. But okay, so, you're staring at us. You can't sing. You want to listen to people sing. Is that your way of saying that you'd like to come listen to us... well, me sing?"

Before Boltagon could respond, a new voice entered the conversation. "I guess this means that she's tired of listening to me sing for her." Izuku looked back and did a double take, making the new arrival chuckle wryly. "I'm weird, thanks for noticing."

The new girl wasn't weird. She was cool! Izuku let his eyes sweep up and down over her, drinking in every detail. He'd heard of heterochromia before, but he'd always thought that it meant two different color eyes, not two different color... everything. But the girl was neatly bisected vertically, with one half appearing baseline human and the other half... less so. Her human half had pale skin, red hair, and a turquoise eye. Her other half had blue skin marked with a subtle pattern of curving grooves, white hair, and a solid red eye without any visible differentiation between the sclera, iris, or pupil. Oh, and that side had a pointed ear and a black horn. She was wearing… Izuku wasn’t really particularly well versed on all the various subtypes of lolita. But she was wearing a black jumperskirt with gleaming silver grommets running along the right side of it. Black and silver studded bracelets gleamed at her wrists as she moved, and she had a matching collar on. She was just so... "You're really neat!"

Both the girl's cheeks colored at that: her human cheek a familiar pink and her inhuman cheek a darker shade of blue. "Thanks. Well, I'm Todoroki Asekala. Spelled with a kanji and some Elder Futhark because I'm extra. Nice to meet you." Leaning to the side, she peered past Izuku. "Should I go ask for a refund for our room? Are we going with them?"

Considering that Izuku had discovered a new source of entertainment for the evening - namely, asking the two girls about their quirks - he didn't have a problem with this idea. He didn't mind it one bit. But... hmm. He was kinda here on a date with Himiko? Like, their first date? Was inviting random girls to join them inappropriate? He looked over at her uncertainly.

"Wait, this is going to be my decision? Oh, right, Ashido mentioned that you were a bottom." Himiko rolled her eyes before looking over at Boltagon consideringly. "I mean, I've already decided that I'm going to date Izuku and Ashido. So I guess... well, if he's talking to one of you about himself, I'm still getting to know him better. And you'll probably ask me things about myself, which he'll hear the answer to. And the half and half girl smells really good. So you know what? I'm for it. Let's go, ladies and Izuku."

Todoroki looked a bit bemused by that. "I smell good? That's new as far as compliments go. I'll take it, I guess. But I'm not wearing perfume?" She sniffed herself experimentally, shrugged, and then held out her hand to Boltagon. "Shall we?"

Holding up a finger, Boltagon hurriedly collected the index cards that she'd scattered at her feet. Then she nodded determinedly, rising to her feet and taking Todoroki's hand. Himiko gestured for them to follow her, and they set of down the hallway toward their room. Izuku looked over at them curiously. "Forgive me if this is rude, but are the two of you dating?"

Todoroki and Boltagon exchanged looks and then Boltagon's eyes crinkled with mirth as Todoroki laughed out loud. The heterochromatic girl shook her head fondly. "We aren't, no. Kyouka has a very lovely girlfriend that isn't me, and as for me... how do I say this politely?" Boltagon raised her hands and pantomimed something getting penetrated, making Todoroki squawk indignantly. "You stop that. You stop that this instant." She looked over at Izuku, blushing faintly. "But no, I'm straight."

"Psst. Midori." Ashido peeked out again, looking over at Todoroki speculatively. "Use your weirdly effective rizz and see if you can score some of that jötussy. She's cute as hell."

Himiko looked back at them as she walked, raising an eyebrow. "So what, goo girl, we've been dating for two hours and I'm already yesterday's news? You're looking for someone new already?"

Sighing, Izuku flicked the back of Ashido's head. "This is why I'm afraid to let you do the talking for both of us. Now look what you've done. You've offended Himiko."

That made Himiko wave dismissively. "Nah, I'm just messing with you. Todoroki is super cute. Although... jötussy?"

"I'm half jötnar. On my mother's side. Hence the blue." Izuku let out a noise of understanding; he'd assumed it was just a quirk thing. The truth was turning out to be so much cooler. No pun intended. Todoroki gestured to herself. "You can call me Asekala if you want. I'm used to answering to my first name most of the time; there are a lot of Todorokis, after all."

Izuku bit his lower lip uncertainly before deciding to take the opening. "I hope this isn't rude either, but... are you related to Endeavor? Todoroki isn't an uncommon last name, but he's indisputably the most famous Todoroki in Musutafu."

Asekala looked a bit surprised at that. "I'm genuinely amazed that you even know who my father is. He's not a particularly well known hero. He's not even in the top fifty."

Nodding eagerly, Izuku dug into his backpack and pulled out the notebook that he carried covering local heroes. Both to make updating their entries easier and because, well, he was much more likely to get their autographs than a hero who patrolled in another prefecture. "Endeavor! Todoroki Enji! The Gentleman Hero! He's only a part time hero but if you extrapolate his case resolution rates to a full time patrol schedule, he'd easily qualify to be in the top ten. He's known for his speedy takedowns and immaculate control over his Hellflame quirk."

"Wow, you really do know who my father is, don't you?" Asekala smiled bemusedly at that. "But yeah, between three wives and eleven kids, he doesn't have as much time for heroics as he could. He always says that any man can be a hero, but it takes a real man to be a husband and a father. And so that's what he's dedicated his life to. Personally, I think he has the potential to be so much more than he is... but I guess I can't complain about him sacrificing his career to be there for me and the others."

That was probably more thought provoking than Asekala had intended. Because Izuku was a father. Was he going to be a good one? Was he going to be a good partner to Ashido... and Tooru when they finally resolved that and now Himiko? With Ashido, he knew that he could become a hero, but what kind of man would he grow up to become? Especially given that his absentee father had left him without a strong male presence in his life. How would he know how to be a good father, when he'd grown up without a father?

He'd just have to do his best and hope that his best was good enough, Izuku decided. Although maybe there was a group online that he could join for advice? Or even... "You know what, Todoroki?"

"Asekala, please."

"Right. You know what, Asekala? I'd like to meet your father someday. He sounds like a really outstanding person." Izuku nodded resolutely before slipping between the two new additions to their group and opening the door that Himiko had come to a stop in front of. "Shall we?"

They shall, evidently. Izuku waited as the girls passed by him one after another, marveling a bit at how tall Asekala was. She was easily ten centimeters taller than him, quite possibly the tallest girl that he'd ever met. He followed her into the room and closed the door behind himself, looking around curiously. Boltagon made a point of parking herself exactly in the middle of the seating that ran along the back wall, a content expression upon her face. Asekala bemusedly made her way over to join the violette, leaving Himiko to poke and prod at everything with the curiosity of the kitten that she apparently shared traits with.

As soon as they were safely ensconced in the room, Ashido let out a sigh of relief and tumbled off of Izuku's body into her goo girl form standing next to him. They'd actually gotten to the point where he could trust her with being his wardrobe and she could manifest a body for herself, which was phenomenal improvement in a scant few weeks. It made Izuku curious what she might learn to do next. "Alright, who's ready to sing? Kyouka is obviously out... Himiko? Asekala? Either of you up to duet? I'm a mezzo soprano, and Himiko strikes me as a soprano? Asekala, what's your range?"

Asekala brought her hand up to her throat. “Contralto. As expected.” Izuku nodded in understanding; she did have a deeper voice than Himiko or Ashido, only a hair higher than his own. “That being said, I’m passable at transposing melody lines on the fly, so I can sing pretty much anything they have here, although sometimes it sounds a little… mmm, funky I suppose?”

“Oh, fun! Wahh, I want to do a duet with you!” Ashido made her way over to the karaoke machine and perked up. “Holy shit, they have songs in like ten different languages on here! Let’s fucking go!”

Chuckling softly, Izuku made his way over to sit an appropriate distance away from Boltagon. This was going to be interesting.

Chapter Text

“Can you snuggle someone platonically? Because seriously, Asekala, I can feel your heat from here and Mommy likes.”

Izuku snickered softly at the wide eyed look of disbelief on Asekala’s face. “She’s kinda cat-like. It could be worse. At least she’s not asking to bite you platonically.” From her spot sprawled across Izuku’s lap, Himiko promptly grabbed the verdet’s right arm and sank her teeth into the soft flesh of his inner arm. “Like that.”

Also, that didn’t feel unpleasant? The pressure was sort of nice, and he didn’t at all mind the four little pricks of her fangs digging into him. Huh. Izuku was discovering new things about himself today.

Looking down at Himiko, Asekala reached out hesitantly and patted the top of the girl’s head. “I mean, I suppose that if you agree not to do… that… to me? I guess I’d be okay with you snuggling my right side.”

As Himiko scrambled across Izuku’s lap and into the narrow gap between the two, Izuku perked up… and then grunted as Himiko accidentally drove a knee into his groin in her eagerness. From her spot in front of the karaoke machine, Ashido’s head shot up. “Hey now! Watch it! I have plans for that thing!”

“Sorry! Sorry! Want me to kiss it better?” Himiko winked playfully at her victim, making both Izuku and Asekala blush. “Just kidding. Not in front of an audience.”

Still blushing, Izuku swatted Himiko’s shoulder gently. “That’s your objection? Not the fact that we first met a few hours ago?”

Himiko thought for a moment and then shrugged. “I’m a fun first date.” Turning back to Asekala, the blonde stretched herself along the heterochromatic girl’s human side and then sighed in satisfaction. “Oh my god, this is so good.”

And then she promptly began purring.

Reaching out hesitantly, Izuku rested his hand on Himiko’s back and then grinned over the top of her at the bemused looking Asekala. “So. You’re literally half warm and half cold. Is that your quirk?”

Asekala raised her blue hand and wobbled it back and forth. “It’s a side effect. I can use ice magic with my jötunn side, and then my father’s fire with my human side. My quirk registration is pretty on the nose: Half Hot, Half Cold.”

Eyes widening, Izuku reached for his backpack and rifled through it for a few seconds before retrieving his locals notebook. The Todorokis lived in Musutafu, so Asekala counted in his mind. “So you can make fire and ice? That’s such a cool quirk, Asekala.” Even as he wrote that down, he peered past her at Boltagon. “While I’m at it, what’s your quirk?”

Boltagon just smirked at him, shuffling her stack of index cards but not drawing one. Reaching over, Asekala cuffed the violette’s shoulder gently. “If you can ever get her to tell you, you’ll have my respect. I’ve known her for going on three years now, and I still don’t know what her quirk is.”

Hmm. Mysterious. Well, there was always next time, or the time after that. What else did he want to know? Lots more about Asekala’s quirk. And her magic? That seemed intriguing. Izuku had never met anyone who could do magic before. “How does your magic work?”

“It’s really nothing that exciting, to be honest. Like my mother has honest to god magic, and I can just create ice.” Asekala held up her right hand and then flicked her fingers outward, conjuring a spike of ice. “The only real advantage I have over my siblings - and two of my mothers - is that there’s a mental component and so I can shape mine. Shoukou and Hwa-Eol just shoot ice out of themselves all willy nilly. No finesse at all.”

Ooh, more names. Izuku jotted them down. “You’re all Todorokis, right?” Asekala nodded and he added the appropriate kanji. “So Todoroki Shoukou and Todoroki Hwa-Eol. That doesn’t quite sound Japanese.” Then again, neither did Asekala… maybe he could use a discussion of her sibling to segue to a conversation about her own name?

Asekala twisted a little in her seat, shifting Himiko so that she could reach across and take Izuku’s pencil. She wrote one kanji and then four unfamiliar symbols. Presumably the Elder Futhark that she’d mentioned earlier? Then she repeated the same kanji followed by another kanji. “Okay. So. We were born days apart so we all essentially have the same name done three different ways. Ase. A reading of the kanji for ‘burning’. Kala. Asgardian for ‘freezing’. Because of my powers. Get it?”

Wow, he hadn’t even needed to ask and he’d gotten the explanation that he was looking for. Izuku nodded excitedly and then pointed at the second name. “Burning again and then freezing. Shou is another reading for the same kanji, and then kou is a kun’yomi reading of the kanji for freezing.”

“Mmhmm. My father got three bisected daughters at the same time and went, yup, they’ve got to have split quirks. And named us accordingly. Turns out he was right, so… good on him?” Asekala finished by scribbling some Hangul next to the third time that Izuku had written her last name. Oh. So that’s why her other sister’s name didn’t sound Japanese. Because it wasn’t. “And then names don't work quite the same way in Korean. Seon insisted and my dad is whipped, though, so the closest they could figure out was Hwa-Eol. She maintains Hee Hwa-Eol as a tsuushou. Shoukou’s mother took our father’s last name, so she doesn’t use one. And I don’t have one because my mother doesn’t want me advertising who she is. I keep telling her that the average Japanese person doesn’t understand Asgardian naming practices, but she’s adamant.” Izuku raised a brow at that and Asekala sighed. “Technically I would be Lokajardottir Asekala if I used a tsuuhou.”

Ashido gave a start at that but when she failed to enlighten him, Izuku decided to let the subject drop. For now. He indeed did not understand what the fuss was about, but clearly Asekala didn’t want to talk about it. He could always ask Ashido about it later. Casting about in search of a safer topic of conversation, his eyes darted from Asekala to Boltagon and back. And then it hit him. “Oh! New question!” Izuku gestured back and forth between them with his pencil. “How did you two meet?”

Settling back into her seat and adjusting Himiko, Asekala shot Boltagon a fond smile. “We attend Musutafu Gakuen together, along with Reikilith. We’ve been in the same class since we got to junior high. People treated us both weirdly - me for my heterochromia, her for being mute - so we bonded over that and we’ve been at it ever since.”

Huh. Neat. Izuku scribbled down the unfamiliar name, resolving to revisit it later. And huh. Musutafu Gakuen. That was… over in Higashitakajoumachi in Aoi Ward, wasn’t it? Not too hard to get to, if they became friends and wanted to hang out. Although that was a good question. “Do you want to be friends?”

Opening and closing her mouth, Asekala finally settled on chuckling softly. “Izuku, your girlfriend is rubbing her cheek on me. I think we’re friends already.”

On her other side, Boltagon nodded and drew an index card, passing it across to Izuku. He looked down and smiled. “I can call you Kyouka? Um, can I call you Kyoukastra? Honestly that’s just a really pretty name in my opinion.”

As Kyoukastra flushed at the compliment, Ashido came bouncing back over to them and then sprawled out on top of Izuku, rejoining the mass of her that made up his clothes. “Like I said, it’s an awkward blunt rizz but he sorta has rizz.” Forming her customary head tendril, she smiled up at Izuku. “So, this has been fun. I had fun. Fun was had. We should do this again.”

Izuku checked his watch. “We still have half an hour. Do we want to run out the clock just hanging out talking? Does anyone want to sing one last song? Do I want to sing a song?” He considered that, cocking his head to one side. “Do I? I’ve never really sung before. I’m probably not any good at it, because I feel like it’s one of those practice makes perfect sort of things?”

Shrugging lazily, Himiko looked over at Izuku and yawned, exposing her fangs. He squealed softly in delight, prompting her to turn her head back and forth, showing them off better. “You really are a little monsterfucker, aren’t you? You’re into all the weird shit.”

“You know what? I'm tired of pretending I'm not. Like your fangs are cute and Ashido’s Ashido is cute and Kyoukastra's tuning fork is cute and I want to know what Asekala’s cheek grooves feel like and…” That earned him an odd look from the heterochromatic girl even as Kyoukastra blushed again, and Izuku ducked his head. “Sorry. That was weird of me.”

Looking down at Himiko, Asekala snorted softly. "Lemme just say that I am straight and monogamous. So this whole... thing you have going on? With more than one girl, and being 'goosexual', and all? Not my thing at all. That being said, as long as you don't try to make it into something that it's not? Like, I'm okay with Himiko snuggling me. And I guess I'd be okay with you touching my face."

Izuku shifted on the couch, leaning across Himiko and tracing one finger over Asekala's cheek. He shivered softly, noticing that his skin was turning faintly red from the contact. "That actually feels really fascinating. Except you’re colder to the touch than I was expecting. Although maybe I should have expected that, if you’re putting out enough heat on your other side that Himiko can feel it from over here with me?”

"I mean, we're called frost giants for a reason, Izuku. Yeah, I'm fairly cold." Asekala grinned at him as he sat back in his seat. "Curiosity satisfied?" Even as he nodded, Kyoukastra reached up hesitantly and touched the girl's cheek, making Asekala look over at her in surprise. "Et tu, Kyouka?" The violette grinned faintly and Asekala sighed, shaking her head. "Still straight. Don't go getting any ideas." After a moment's thought, Kyoukastra grinned wickedly and presented a new index card, whose message made Izuku do a double take. "Heavy are the hips that wear the strap... shut up. No. Go away. We are not dating. No. Shoo. Why do you even have that on a card? You’re a damn virgin, Kyouka.”

"Gyatt." Spanning off of Izuku, Ashido tumbled across Himiko's back, on to Asekala, and then all the way across so that her face was a few inches away from Kyoukastra's. "Hey, baby, hey. Asekala may not want to hear about this, but I am all ears. Have you ever considered being goosexual?"

Evidently she was willing to make jokes to Asekala but when faced with a flirtatious girl, Kyoukastra reverted to type. Blushing as brightly as Izuku, she jerked backwards away from Ashido as she shook her head rapidly. Even as awkward as he felt, Izuku decided to take pity on the girl. "Ashido, she already has a girlfriend." The pink girl looked back at him and he raised a finger. "Yes, we're polyamorous but you trying to date Kyoukastra and her girlfriend would put you over the limit that we agreed to."

Ashido looked back at Izuku and pouted. "Aww, c'mon. Just think. She could peg you." Ah yes. Izuku hadn't wanted to die of embarrassment recently, but there was that feeling back, old friend that it was. Turning back to Kyoukastra, Ashido manifested a tendril with a hand on it so that she could shoot a finger gun in the violette's direction. "Okay, so I guess we can't date... but if you and Reikilith break up? Call me."

Kyoukastra nodded solemnly and Ashido retreated back across the group to inhabit Izuku’s body. The verdet looked over at the karaoke machine thoughtfully. In all seriousness, did he want to try singing? He’d probably embarrass himself, but wasn’t that a quintessential part of going to karaoke with your friends? Like, not everyone could be good at singing.

As he considered his options, Izuku let his hand slide upward to play with Himiko’s hair. Mewing softly, she reached out and grabbed at him, trying to pull him closer to Asekala so she could snuggle both of them simultaneously. Izuku got as close as he dared to the girl, grinning bemusedly all the while. Well, he may not have come to a decision about singing yet, but he could make good use of the time they had left while he considered it, right? “So, Himiko. You can regenerate, right? What’s the worst injury that you’ve ever had to recover from?”

Himiko pondered that, rubbing her cheek on Asekala’s shoulder before looking back at Izuku. “Uh, I let my American cousin shoot me once to see what would happen? What happened was that I got shot. It fucking sucked, but I healed pretty quickly.”

Staring at Himiko with wide eyes, Izuku’s mouth worked silently. It took him a moment to recover and then he leaned in. “He shot you?”

“He’s American. It’s kinda their thing.” Himiko waved dismissively before leaning her head back down onto Asekala’s shoulder. “It was a valuable learning experience. There aren’t many guns in the wild in Japan, but some criminals have them. I can fight through being shot a time or two if I need to.”

Bubbling and reverting to the pink appearance that they took on when they were working together, Ashido gestured to herself with a tendril. “Guess who is pretty much bulletproof? Me! It’s me! You can survive getting shot thanks to me!”

Wait, what? Izuku looked down at Ashido in disbelief. “I can what?”

“Yeah, uh, you’re gun proof. Knife proof. Uh, we can’t be tear gassed. And I can heal a lot of things. Like, as long as it’s not fire or loud noises? We’re pretty invincible.” Ashido peered over at Asekala. “Crap. I now know two natural counters.” Kyoukastra held up three fingers and Ashido whined. “Oh right, you too. God, why am I attracted to girls who are bad for me?”

Himiko giggled and made a grabby hand, pulling at Ashido’s mass until the pink girl spread onto her as well. “I promise to be good for you. I promise to be real good.”

Snuggling across her two partners, Ashido vibrated softly. “Aww yes. This is a good thing we have going. I like this.”

Hmm. Singing would require him to get up, he finally concluded. And Izuku wasn’t really feeling that idea at the moment. This whole situation was really nice. So instead he pulled out the notebook that had gone from being him and Ashido to their growing polycule as a whole, and flipped to Himiko’s page. He jotted down the part about surviving a gunshot and then tapped the end of his pencil against that line. “Weird question. Adamantium is pretty much indestructible. And Himiko’s blades look really sharp. If Himiko tried to stab me, who would win: her blades or Ashido?”

That made Himiko sit up and look over at him, an eager expression on her face. “Can I stab you to find out? I love stabbing things!”

Was it bad that Izuku kinda wanted to say yes?

Chapter Text

"So. Midori. How did you enjoy meeting your first Inhuman?"

Izuku froze in mid wave, turning to look at his girlfriend as she grinned smugly at him. "Asekala is clearly like, two different things, neither of which is an Inhuman. So by process of elimination... Kyoukastra?" Ashido nodded slowly and Izuku leaned in, lowering his voice. "Kyoukastra is an Inhuman?"

Nodding, Ashido’s grin widened. “She is. So is her lovely girlfriend. They’re actually the reimagination of the genetic profiles of the king and queen of the Inhumans from the dawn of quirks.” At Izuku’s curious look, Ashido flipped a tendril. “Asekala may not know what Kyouka’s ‘quirk’ is, but I do. And once you meet Reikilith, you can’t unsee it.”

“But enough about them! You’re supposed to be on a date with me!” Himiko grinned widely at Izuku as she leaned in and bit Izuku’s shoulder gently. “I didn’t mind sharing you for a bit because it worked out well for me, but now you’re all mine again and I want to keep it that way.”

Izuku chuckled softly before nodding in Ashido’s direction. “What does that make her, then?”

After a moment’s thought, Himiko nodded decisively. “Also mine.”

Fair enough. Izuku chuckled and took Himiko by the hand, rubbing his thumb gently over the spot where one of her claws emerged. She responded by extending her claw far enough to prick the end of his finger. “Gosh, Himiko, you’re just so… cool. Are you sure you want to be dating me? I’m not much to brag about.”

Izuku found himself bracing as Himiko twisted and threw herself at him, wrapping her legs around his waist and resting her arms on his shoulders. His face exploded into what might have been the brightest blush of his life as the blonde took his face in both hands. “Remember how I told you that I was going to kiss you later? Well, it’s later.”

Nothing in his young life had adequately prepared Izuku for this moment, so he found himself hoping for the best as Himiko mashed their lips together. Well, he’d seen people kiss before. It seemed simple enough in theory. So Izuku leaned into it, pressing his lips against Himiko’s more firmly. She let out a little growl, sinking her fangs into his lower lip and tugging it as she pulled back. Which… if Izuku hadn’t been into the experience before, he certainly was now.

Himiko leaned up, pressing a little kiss to Izuku’s nose, and then she grinned at him. “I have only known you for a few hours and I already think you’re amazing, Izuku. We have a lot to learn about each other, sure. But what I’ve seen so far? I really like. So yeah. Yeah I wanna date you. As long as you want to date me.”

Eyes widening, Izuku nodded his head rapidly. “Himiko, you’re one of the coolest people I’ve ever met. I… hmm. Compliments are going to get interesting in a polycule, I just realized. You’re cool, Tooru’s cool, Bubblegum’s cool, I’m just surrounded by cool. You’re right in that we need to get to know each other. But that’s what our next dates are for. And I suppose me texting you, now that I know you exist.”

Still clinging to Izuku, Himiko leaned in to rest her head on his shoulder. “You really don’t mind that I’m sorta… fuck, I’m just kinda feral. I’m like a cat but I’m an outdoor cat that likes to roam around all day murdering small animals and then show up for affection.”

“I… wait. Do you?” Himiko made a curious noise and Izuku elaborated. “Do you kill small animals? I’m not judging or anything, but I kinda want to know what I’m getting myself into.”

Lifting her head back up, Himiko shook it vehemently. “That was just an analogy, you silly boy. Or a metaphor. I don’t know what the difference is. But no, I just mean like… I don’t know what I mean. I just feel like I should warn you that I am a jirai kei sort of girl for a good reason.”

Honestly, Izuku could see it. It fit. She was dangerous and could be bad for the wrong person. But maybe he was going to be the right person for her. “Do they make a boy version of that? So we could match maybe? That would be cute, right?”

Himiko let out a soft giggle. “I tell you that I’m a landmine waiting to be stepped on, and that’s your takeaway. You’re something else, Midoriya Izuku. I don’t know what’s going to come of this. But I kinda wanna see where it goes. Where we go.”

“Same though! You guys are so cute!” Ashido swung back and forth, looking at the two of them, and then she looked around. “Can we see where it goes somewhere just a little more private? You guys are kinda causing a scene.”

Izuku looked around and abruptly paled as he realized that what should have been a private moment had just played out on the sidewalk in front of Blue with an entire crowd watching. There was a little bubble around them, and just… dozens of people staring. A girl near the front of the crowd whistled and thrust her hand into the air. “Kiss the pink girl, green boy!”

Throwing her head back, Ashido laughed loudly. “Don’t tempt him! He’s a monsterfucker! He’ll do it!”

Summoning a bit of Ashido for added strength, Izuku swung Himiko around onto his back and then pushed through the crowd as he darted off into the night. He managed to make it five blocks with Himiko on his back before slowing a bit. He was pleased to note that he was only breathing a little heavier than normal, unlike how that would have gone a mere month ago. He shifted Himiko on his back and then hissed softly as she dug her conventional nails into his shoulders. “I take it you don’t want to get down?”

Himiko whined and buried her face in Izuku’s neck. “You’re warm. And you smell good. And also I’m your girlfriend and therefore it is my right to cling to you if I feel like it.”

A soft chuckle escaped Izuku. “Fair enough. Okay. What do you want to do now? We had three objectives and we’ve achieved all of them at this point. So… what now?”

“Hmm. I’m going to be a step-mom. Or I already am because we said yes to each other? Not sure how that works.” Himiko kicked her foot gently against Izuku’s side. “Take me to meet Eri. And then I’ll walk from your house to the train station and go home.”

That sounded like a good way to round out the evening. Izuku bit his lower lip uncertainly. “Do you maybe want to try some of that cuddling? There’s a good chance Eri may try to join us, but… well, you are the one dating a single dad.”

Himiko laughed and rubbed her cheek against Izuku. “Absolutely. Love it. Let’s go, Izuku.”

With Himiko still on his back, Izuku made his way to the bus stop and onto the bus that went closest to his house. A few people gave them odd looks, although whether it was because of the girl on his back or the girl growing out of his shoulder, Izuku didn’t know. When he stepped off the bus, he paused for a moment and then shrugged. “Mom took Mina pretty well. She should be okay with me bringing you home.”

“Speaking of which, I am absolutely not going to be introducing you to my mother anytime soon.” Izuku opened his mouth, only to be cut off by Himiko. “She’s exactly what you think a woman who gets knocked up by a quatercentenarian would be like.”

Izuku had… absolutely no idea what that might mean, but okay. Carrying Himiko up the stairs to his apartment, the verdet braced himself and then opened the door. “Mom! I’m home! And I brought, uh, I have another girlfriend?”

From her spot on the couch, Inko shot her son a deadpan look. “What’s weird about this one? So far you’ve brought me pink goo and evidently the other one is invisible. You do not have a good track record at this point.”

Himiko held her hands up in front of Izuku and extended her razor sharp claws. “Knives!”

“…wonderful.” Rising to her feet, Inko made her way over as Izuku kicked his shoes off in the genkan. She looked Himiko up and down, sighed deeply as the girl waved her claws excitedly again, and then reached up to ruffle Izuku’s hair. “You sure can pick ‘em, sweetie.”

Laughing, Ashido extended a tendril out to rest on Inko’s shoulder. “I promise that the next one will be normal. Or, well, normal-ish.”

Inko gave Ashido a deadpan look. “The fact that there’s going to be a next one worries me already. And put those claws away, young lady, you’ll gouge somebody’s eye out.” Himiko squeaked softly and retracted her claws at the demand. “Much better. Now. My name is Midoriya Inko. Ashido dubbed me Mamadoriya and you’re free to call me that as well. What’s your name, dear?”

“Toga Himiko, ma’am.” Himiko offered her hand to Inko, who eyed it warily before shaking it. “I will absolutely call you Mamadoriya. It’s a pleasure to meet you. You’ve raised an amazing son.”

Inko smiled faintly. “Sometimes I agree with you, and sometimes I wonder.” Reaching up, Inko ruffled Izuku’s hair a second time before gesturing off down the hallway. “Izuku, Eri is in your room working on her new notebook.”

Stepping toward the hall, Izuku paused and looked over at his mother curiously. “She had a notebook?”

“She has a notebook. I don’t think you understand how much that girl looks up to you. Don’t waste it.” Inko pulled away, heading for the kitchen. “I’ll make some chocolate dipped apple slices for her and Ashido to share.”

Izuku nodded absently as he headed down the hallway toward his room. So his notebooks were what had rubbed off on Eri? Not maybe the not swearing? Sigh. At least this proved he had some sorta influence on her. Whether or not it was good depended on who one asked. Opening the door, he peeked inside. “Psst. Eri.”

Looking up from what she was doing, Eri’s eyes widened. “Dad! Hey! You were gone forever!” Pausing, she huffed and looked away. “Not that I missed you or anything.”

Houfuku slithered up out of Eri’s back and grinned at Izuku. “Hey Dad. She definitely missed you.” As Eri tried to shush her symbiote - who had appeared over the cute dress that Eri was wearing, rather than being her outfit anymore - Houfuku cocked her head to the side. “Where were you, though? You’re not usually out this late.”

“I was on a date! And out with friends! At the same time!” Izuku grinned happily as Eri peered up at him curiously. “And I brought someone home with me! Other than Ashido!”

Rising to her feet, Eri’s expression became suspicious. “She’s not going to be gross, right?”

Izuku grimaced and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “We did kiss already.” Before Eri could protest that, he reached out to grab Himiko and pull her into view. “Meet Himiko! She’s basically a cat!”

“What do you mean, she’s a cat? She looks pretty normal to me.” Eri let out a delighted gasp as Himiko raised her hands and extended her claws a few centimeters. “She’s made of knives? That’s so cool! Wait! Can you get a gun girlfriend? Guns are even cooler!”

Izuku shot his daughter a reproachful look. “Guns aren’t cool, Eri. Guns are very dangerous and-“

Shaking her head, Eri summoned Houfuku around her and then gestured to herself. “Not to me! I’m gun proof! So yeah! Guns are cool!”

Well that… wasn’t inaccurate. Still maybe not the best viewpoint to have, but Izuku wasn’t really sure how to argue that with Eri. She was still at that stage where the concept of empathy was still developing, and so if something didn’t affect her? It didn’t bother her. A discussion for another time, though. He didn’t need to realize a more dangerous version of Bakugou, after all. “Himiko was hoping to cuddle a little. Do you wanna come up on the bed with us and tell us about your day?”

“I mean, I guess. But no gross stuff. That would be really fucking nasty of you.” Izuku rolled his eyes as he led Himiko over toward his bed. Of course they weren’t going to do anything inappropriate in front of a child. What kind of person did she take him for? As he stretched out on the mattress, Ashido bubbled out of him into the space between him and the wall, turning onto her side to minimize the room that she was taking up. Looking over at her, he grinned. “Hey, pretty lady. You come here often?”

“Pfft. Monsterfucker.” Ashido reached up and grabbed at Himiko as she lowered herself onto the bed, the blonde partially infringing on Ashido’s space because… oh, right, they needed room for Eri, didn’t they? Ashido didn’t seem to mind, quickly sacrificing her humanoid form in favor of spreading along Himiko’s body. “Can we get a tall girlfriend? So far all the girls in this relationship are short as shit.”

Izuku chuckled. “I will take that into consideration during my completely nonexistent flirting with no girls at all ever.” He let out a grunt as Eri collided with his stomach, the girl rearranging herself to best fit the remaining space. “So, Grandma says that you have a notebook now?”

Evidently Eri had seen fit to bring it with her, because she held it up with a flourish. “I do! I’m writing about the multiverse!”

That made Izuku furrow his brow uncertainly. Even he didn’t know much about the multiverse yet. Presumably she was drawing on Houfuku’s access to the hive mind that he knew existed but hadn’t really put much thought into. There were probably… a lot of things out there that Eri didn’t need to know yet. Houfuku had seemed to be a good influence so far, but she was also a symbiote who probably didn’t know much about human development. “Oh? And what have you written so far?”

“Houfuku is showing me other yous!” Eri began flipping through the pages of her notebook, showing off a series of crayon drawings surrounded by hiragana. “Like did you know there’s a you whose quirk is green fire?”

Izuku shook his head and studied the drawing. ‘Dad is villain’, huh? To be honest… yeah, he probably would have traded a villainous father for having a decent quirk. Or, well, any quirk. Shaking his head, he reached up to flick at the corner of the page. “That’s pretty cool. What other mes are there out there?”

“Uh, there’s a lot of girl yous. Like, a lot a lot. You may be a boy them? I’m not clear on that.” Eri flipped to a drawing of a girl in a red and white outfit. “There’s a girl you who does cocaine!”

Lovely.

Chapter Text

“You’re on your phone a lot these days. Who are you talking to?”

Izuku jerked in surprise at being addressed, looking up to find Yuki Mitsuki standing in the aisle beside his desk. Wait. She was the most popular girl in class. Surely she wasn’t talking to him, right? And so he gestured to himself. “Are you asking… me?”

Shrugging, Yuki gestured toward the pair of pink arms emerging from his side, a phone clutched tightly in them. “Well, either you or Ashido. One of you is on that phone a lot, and I’m insanely curious who you’re talking to. No offense, but you don’t really have… friends.”

At least as far as they knew. These days, Izuku had an entire life separate from his school classmates and given that he deliberately kept them separate? He wasn’t offended that even Yuki didn’t know about… “Uh, I do though. And a girlfriend. A girlfriend separate from Ashido, I mean. A human girlfriend. And... Tooru and I are kinda working on things?”

Her long silver hair, always swirling through the air defying gravity, formed into a dozen stiff spikes as Yuki’s jaw dropped. “I’m sorry, you what?”

“Yeah, uh… Ashido?” Izuku glanced down, trying to get a look at what his girlfriend was doing. “Can I see our phone for a few?”

Ashido tapped at the screen a few more times before spawning her customary head stalk so that she could huff softly. “Sure. Not like I’m playing Candy Crush or anything. Ruin my streak.”

Despite her complaints, she handed the phone over and Izuku flipped over to the Photos app so that he could flick back through the camera roll. He had a whole bunch of pictures with Himiko from their last two dates, and even more pictures of him and Tooru. “Let’s go in reverse order. This is Toga. She’s from Nagoya. Bubblegum met her on Tapple and we got along really well so we decided to meet in person.”

That made Ashido scoff softly. “You mean I got along with her really well and so she decided to… oh wait, I got in trouble for that. Never mind. Not going to brag about that whole mess. Continue, Midori.”

“Good decision. So yeah. Yuki, this is Toga.” Izuku flicked to a picture of her curled up between him and Asekala from their first date. “She’s basically just a giant cat. Except she has adamantium claws.”

Yuki shook her head vehemently, her hair standing straight up in surprise. “Midoriya, you can’t just show me a picture of you cuddling with two girls and then be like, oh, this is her quirk.” Snatching the phone out of his hands, Yuki stared at it intently. “Who’s this other girl? She seems familiar.”

Doing his best to look innocent, Izuku pressed the tips of his index fingers together. “Todoroki Asekala?”

That made Yuki raise an eyebrow. “Of those Todorokis?”

“Kinda?” Izuku blushed as Yuki’s expression became - if possible - even more disbelieving. “Listen, that one’s not my fault. I was taking Toga to karaoke and we ran into Todoroki and…” The verdette paused, furrowing his brow. He’d deep dived Inhumans into every nook and cranny of the Internet after Ashido’s revelation, but he hadn’t really looked into Kyoukastra herself. What if she was as - or more - famous as Asekala? “Uh, I ran into Todoroki and a friend who decided to join me and Toga for karaoke for the night.”

Yuki looked from the phone to Izuku and back. “Where does the cuddling come in? That’s the part I’m stuck on more than the fact that you personally know Todoroki Asekala.”

Shrugging, Izuku made to take his phone back and then rolled his eyes as Yuki took a step backward. He could have grabbed it with Ashido, but as long as she wasn’t doing anything malicious? He’d allow it. “So Todoroki's human side is warmer than normal because of her quirk, and Himiko is basically a cat. So she went from cuddling with her to sorta sprawling across both of us because Todoroki's jötunn side is colder than normal so Toga didn’t just want to be all over her.”

Eyeing him shrewdly, Yuki raised an eyebrow. “And you just… cuddle with girls now? You?”

Izuku let out an offended noise at that. “What’s that supposed to mean? I can cuddle girls. I mean, I literally wear my girlfriend to school. How is me cuddling girls more unbelievable than that?”

“I’m not going to lie, I didn’t consider that.” Yuki rubbed her chin thoughtfully, her hair finally relaxing back down into the swirling tendrils that Izuku was used to seeing. “Now that I am? You’re even weirder than I thought.” Casually tossing his phone at him, the silver-haired girl gestured for him to follow after her. “Walk with me, Midoriya.”

Izuku rose from his seat and grabbed his bag, Ashido spawning at his mental nudge so that he could consult her. “Are we doing this? I mean, I feel like it probably won’t end poorly?”

Grinning wolfishly, Ashido looked from Izuku to Yuki and back. “I mean, she’s hot so I’m in.”

Of course she was. Izuku rolled his eyes but waved his arm at Yuki, who began heading down the aisle toward the classroom door. “We’re going to go to a cafe and we’re going to drink something and you’re going to talk until I get all the answers I want. And if I like those answers, maybe I’ll give Ashido my number so that she can text me.”

Chuckling softly, Izuku followed behind her dutifully. Especially with Ashido by his side, what was the worst that could possibly happen if he went along with this? “You do realize that we share a phone, right? I’ll be able to text you too.”

Yuki considered that for a few seconds and then flicked a hair tendril dismissively. “You strike me as the type of person who texts like a book. All proper like. I’m sure I’ll know if you try to sneak into me and Ashido’s conversation.”

“Pfft! She’s got you there, Midori!” Ashido bumped her forehead against the side of Izuku’s head playfully as she giggled. “It’s so bad. Complete sentences! Punctuation! No abbreviations! Wait no, that’s a lie, he knows what ‘lol’ means.”

Scoffing softly, Izuku turned and bumped his forehead against Ashido's. "For the record, I also know what 'DTF' means. I'm a little alarmed at how often it seems to come up in your Tapple conversations, I'm not going to lie."

Ashido gasped at that. "You've been reading my Tapple chats?"

"Bubblegum, you pulled a girlfriend out of literally nowhere on me. Granted Toga worked out for the best, but... once bitten, twice shy." Ashido cringed and Izuku shrugged; he'd forgiven her for the misstep, but that didn't mean that he'd forgotten it. Or that he hadn't learned from it. "I realized that I kinda need to keep more of an eye on you than I had been."

After thinking about that for a few seconds, Ashido rebounded and winked at him. "See anything you like in our inbox? I could put, like, extra moves on that girl for us."

He had, yes. Did he want to admit to it? Wait, wasn't asking just a courtesy at this point, considering she could read his mind. Izuku decided that he should probably admit to it before Ashido remembered their mental link and went looking for the answer herself. "Uh, not going to lie, that girl from Mie Prefecture? The brunette." He considered for a moment how to articulate his thoughts before settling on something he hoped was reasonably respectful. "She looks very nice in leggings."

"Big ole booty makes my eyes go wide!" Yes, thank you, Ashido. That had in fact been what he'd been thinking. Izuku had just tried to take a more polite approach, what with Yuki being with them and all. "Seriously, though, she's great. A bit too long distance for my liking? She's all the way out in Kisosaki, which is even further than Himiko's Nagoya. Also, why are you calling her Toga? She's your damn girlfriend. Call her Himiko."

Izuku sighed and shook his head as he followed Yuki out of the school and into the afternoon sunlight. "The same reason that Yuki is Yuki. They're not on a first name basis with each other, so I felt like it was polite to-"

Looking back at them, Yuki grinned. "You can call me Mitsuki. Unless you really mess this up. In which case, I'll go back to being Yuki again."

No pressure, then. Izuku followed Mitsuki down the street and into a little cafe that seemed to be bustling with students from Aldera Junior High who weren't quite ready to separate from their friends and go home yet. "You're paying."

Izuku raised an eyebrow at that. "I'm pretty sure this isn't a date."

"No, I'm just spoiled. You're paying." Getting into line, Mitsuki grinned impishly at him. "I promise not to order anything horribly expensive?"

Looking at the menu, Izuku was pretty sure that he had enough spare cash on him to pay for him, Ashido, Mitsuki, and maybe one or two more people to boot. It was more just the principle of the matter to him. But Mitsuki was being nice enough to spend time with him, so he decided to go along with it. "So, be honest with me. Why are we here? Why are you talking to me?"

Mitsuki shrugged innocently. "I'm a gossip. I thrive on knowing everything about everybody. And nobody knows what's going on with you because nobody talks to you. So I realized that if I wanted to unravel the mystery that is Midoriya, I'd have to do it myself."

"Uh, I guess you can call me Izuku at this point. If I'm calling you Mitsuki." The two got to the counter, ordered, and Izuku handed over enough yen to cover the order, dropping the change in the tip charge. It cost very little to be nice to service workers, and he had a feeling that he and Mitsuki would be there for a while. They waited in silence for a few minutes, received their drinks, and then claimed the only remaining empty table in a back corner of the cafe. "I'm really not that interesting. Weird, sure, but not interesting."

"I'd beg to differ." Mitsuki ticked off points on her fingers. "You have a goofriend. And a girlfriend. And you mentioned someone named Tooru?"

"Oh! Oh! Mine!" Having reclaimed their phone on the walk to the cafe, Ashido pulled up a picture and held the phone up proudly. "Tooru is my girlfriend! Midori's metamour, but I feel like an actual confession is due any day now. Isn't she cute?"

Leaning forward, Mitsuki squinted at the phone. "...she's invisible?"

Ashido nodded. "But she's cute, right?"

Mitsuki opened her mouth, closed it, opened it again, and made a consternated noise. “Izuku. Help me out here?”

Chuckling, Izuku shrugged in response. “Ashido can see past the visible spectrum, so I feel like she appreciates Hagakure on a level that I don’t? She looked very cute in infrared when we were using a FLIR camera to chat, but honestly I kinda got over that and now we video call with her invisible because I can just sorta… read her gestures and movements to understand what she’s trying to get across to me?”

“Aww. That’s actually… kinda adorable, I’m not gonna lie.” Mitsuki flicked her finger across the screen and cocked her head to the side. “Hagakure wearing Ashido is… kinda cursed. Just an empty space surrounded by symbiote.”

Izuku snickered softly. “Like I said, I like her just the way she is but she feels that Ashido makes her more seen, so sometimes the two of them will pair off. There’s a few more selfies of that date if you wanna flip through them.”

Obliging, Mitsuki cooed softly. “You guys are actually pretty cute. And… wait a second. Where did the little red one come from?”

That made Izuku perk up and smile wider. “That’s our daughter! Eri is the white-haired human girl and Houfuku is the red symbiote. Aren’t they cute?”

Reaching up, Mitsuki pinched the bridge of her nose. “So you not only have an alien girlfriend, but you have a kid with her? Already? And another girlfriend and whatever the hell a ‘metamour’ even is? Is that a real word? It sounds like a made up word.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s not? Like Ashido claims she’s stupid, but she’s actually pretty knowledgeable about certain things.” Izuku shrugged; if that wasn’t the actual term for a boy and a girl who had a common girlfriend but weren’t dating each other, it was the one that he was gonna use. “But yeah. Uh. Life comes at you fast? Met Ashido, met Hagakure, and then Eri and Houfuku showed up and interrupted our first date so… now she’s here.”

“This is all just… so much.” Mitsuki shook her head in disbelief. “This is something out of a shounen manga, not something I expected to be happening under my nose to my classmate. So I guess my next question is… where are you going from here? What next?”

“Well, I mean, I don’t think it’s a secret that I want to be a hero. Kinda can’t be, since the teacher made a point of embarrassing me by reading my school choice form in front of the class?” Izuku held his hand out over the table and with a thought, Ashido flowed down his arm to cover it in pink. “Ashido sorta lives up to her name. Anyone she works with gains acid powers. She also makes me stronger and faster. And I’ve been working out pretty aggressively?”

Mitsuki’s lips quirked up into a mischievous grin. “Oh believe me, we’ve noticed.”

That brought Izuku up short. “We?”

Nodding, Mitsuki’s grin grew. “Literally every girl in the class has mentioned it to me. They’ve just been holding back because, well, you literally bring your girlfriend to class with you. Now that we know you two have some of freaky shit going on? It’s probably going to be open season on you.”

Izuku chuckled awkwardly, trying to reach up to tug at the neck of his uniform. Traitor that she was, Ashido stretched out of the way so that he couldn’t. “I, err, I’m flattered but…” Pausing, he thought for a moment. “Has Seisuigo said anything nice about me?”

“Wait wait, what?” Mitsuki grinned widely as she leaned in toward him. “You have a thing for Seisuigo? Seisuigo Mizu? That Seisuigo?”

Ashido turned her head stalk to look at him curiously and Izuku groaned, knowing there was no escape. “Ugh, fine, yes. I kinda had a crush on Seisuigo before I met Ashido. Her quirk is just so cool! Hydrokinesis! I have so many questions I want to ask her!”

Leaning in a bit closer, Mitsuki nodded. “Well, I have it on very good authority that Seisuigo thinks you’re cute. So I’m pretty sure that she’d be open to it if you tried to talk to her. And…”

Chapter Text

“Happy birthday, Izuku!”

“Happy birthday, Dad!”

Tearing up a bit, Izuku looked around the kitchen table. While it was still a smaller gathering by necessity - he refused to let his mother rent somewhere for a party for him - he’d managed to squeeze a surprising number of people into his apartment’s kitchen.

Ashido and Eri and Houfuku and his mom were all there, obviously. Himiko had made her way over from Nagoya and Tooru had come down from Tokyo. Ibara had made landfall in Musutafu, and Ashido had hopped onto Himiko to go over to the beach and collect her. He’d hesitantly invited Mitsuki, who had in turn invited Seisuigo because even weeks later, the silver-haired girl would not let him forget that he had admitted to having a crush on her. And that was about all he could fit in his apartment at once, and so he was very content with that turnout.

Things in his life were actually progressing pretty nicely if he did say so himself. Befriending Mitsuki hadn’t increased his popularity too much, and his classmates continued to largely ignore him. Or failing that, they tried to mutter things too lowly for Ashido to hear. Bakugou seemed content to glower at him angrily, presumably not wanting to get kicked in the groin again. Presumably he hadn’t realized that he held a tactical advantage over them, and Izuku was in no hurry to tell him.

At the same time, Izuku was continuing to get stronger from his workouts at the beach. He and Tooru were getting closer, as were he and Himiko, and he and Ashido were pretty much as close as they could possibly get. Oh, and his friendship with Ibara seemed to be progressing nicely. She was about the only person that he texted, even though her responses were sporadic owing to how much time she spent underwater.

For a quirkless nobody, his life was going pretty well these days if he did say so himself.

Picking up Eri, Izuku balanced her on his hip as he looked at the others. "I just want to say thank you for coming. Ashido and Eri kinda had to, but the rest of you didn't and that means a lot to me. Especially you, Seisuigo."

"I mean, I'm at your birthday party. I think you can call me Mizu." Mizu ducked her head, pressing her fingers together awkwardly. "And I mean, you're welcome? I couldn't get you much. But everyone deserves to feel like the center of the world at least one day a year."

Mitsuki grinned and bumped her hip against her friend's. "It's more than I got him. The pleasure of my company is the only gift he needs from me."

Laughing, Izuku nodded at Mitsuki. "Spending time with you is always great. I'm going to miss you next year when I'm at UA High. Or, well, wherever I end up. But hopefully UA? I really feel like I have a chance now."

Rolling her eyes, Mitsuki waved dismissively. "You know who you're going to miss more? Mizu."

"I... no comment." Izuku and Mizu both blushed, meeting each other's eyes for a moment before looking away. "Seriously though, thank you all for coming. I'm so happy to call you my friends."

Slinking over to him, Himiko sidled up on the opposite side as Eri and blinked her yellow eyes up at him playfully. "Oh, I'm a friend, am I? Is that all I am these days?"

Izuku sighed and leaned in, pressing a quick kiss to Himiko's lips. They'd done that a whole bunch of times already, but Izuku still wasn't used to the fact that a pretty girl actually wanted to kiss him and tended to savor each one like it was the first time. "You know you're the second best thing to ever happen to me."

Himiko arched an eyebrow at that. "Only second best?"

"I try not to play favorites, but... you're kinda in line behind Ashido?" The blonde considered that for a moment before shrugging and nodding, and Izuku looked down at himself. "Ashido, are you just going to vibe on me all afternoon?"

Spawning her head stalk, Ashido huffed softly as she stretched it out and around Himiko before curling it back toward him. "Well excuse me, Mister Popular. I'm running out of room over here. Besides, this is your day, not mine. And..." She looked both ways before winking at him. "We can celebrate on our own later. If you know what I mean. Do you know what I mean?"

Izuku had a pretty damn good idea what she meant, and he absolutely was not going to talk about it with his mother mere feet away. Seeking to change the subject, he let his eyes fall on his favorite Talokanil. Well, he only knew one, but that made Ibara his favorite by default. "Ibara! Is that a new rebreather? I don't think I've seen it before."

Bringing her hand up to her mouth, Ibara nodded affirmatively. "It is. If I decided to go to high school on land - at UA High School or anywhere else - I'm going to need a uniform code exception for it. And since it will therefore be a signature accessory of mine, I've been working on making it look attractive." She turned her head to the side. "The accents on my rebreather match my earrings and my nose ring."

They did! That was so cool! Izuku didn't particular want piercings for himself, but it was super neat that Ibara was coordinating all her accessories so well. "Oh, and Ibara! I wanted to tell you in person. Guess who's going to be in Odawara next week?"

"Erm, me?" Ibara looked around uncertainly. "The Sakawa River cuts through the middle of Odawara; my father lives in the Kayama District."

Izuku's eyes went wide. "Oh. I didn't know that. Uh, surprise? My mom is taking me to Odawara for summer vacation? I'm going to be like... a much shorter distance down the coast line from you?"

Grinning excitedly behind her rebreather, Ibara clapped her hands together. "I look forward to it."

Before they could discuss the matter in further detail - Izuku knew the name of where he was staying but perilously little other than that - Tooru came bounding up to him. "Psst. Hey. Midori. Can I give you your birthday present now?"

"I, uh, I guess?" Izuku looked around uncertainly before shrugging. "I mean, I haven't had a birthday party since I was four; I have no idea how this is supposed to work."

"Okay, so before we get dragged down by how depressing that is..." Tooru reached up, grabbing Izuku's head with both hands and pressing a kiss to his lips. His eyes went wide as he stood there stiffly, and Tooru gave him another quick kiss before backing away. "Your present for today is... me! I have decided that yes, I absolutely want to date you. If you haven't changed your mind about me, that is."

Before he could respond, Ashido spawned a stubby pair of arms so that she could clap her hands together excitedly. "Yo, this sleepover is getting better by the minute."

Geez. But also... geez. If Tooru was expecting the same considerations as Himiko? This was going to put a new twist on his plans for Tooru and Himiko to spend the night. His bed was definitely not big enough for Ashido, Eri, Houfuku, Tooru, and Himiko. And him, obviously. But that was something he could deal with tonight. For now? Izuku brought the hand not holding Eri up to cup Tooru's face. "You've been amazing these last few months. I would be absolutely elated if you're deciding you want to call me your boyfriend."

Reaching out, Eri batted at Tooru's face gently. "But I'm going to be watching you. You can be pretty fucking gross."

Tooru threw her head back and laughed. "I can be, though! So don't watch me too closely. I don't want to be responsible for scarring you for life." Ah. So Tooru was going to be the horribly chaotic and inappropriate parent who they did not leave with Eri unsupervised under any circumstances. Good to know. "Midori, can I have Ashido for a bit? I am just... not loving being invisible around strangers who I actually have to try and get along with."

"Yeah, not everyone is as good at reading you as I am, are they?" Izuku nudged Ashido with his mind, and she promptly obliged by flowing down his arm and onto Tooru. Thankfully he'd changed into some physical clothing before letting Ashido go running off with Himiko, he mused, or that could have gotten embarrassing for him. As Ashido formed up around Tooru, he turned to Himiko and cocked his head. "You know, I didn't get a chance to take selfies with Ashido Himiko. I'm kinda sad about that."

Giggling, Himiko batted her eyelashes at him. "I can wear her again later for you if you want." Leaning in, she lowered her voice to a seductive whisper. "What if that's all that I wear later?"

Yeah, Izuku wasn't going to entertain that with a response. Especially given that Himiko's quiet comment evidently hadn't been quiet enough from the way that Inko was eyeing the two of them. As per usual, Eri also didn't take kindly to the insinuation and smacked Himiko on the forehead. "Hey. Stop that. You're supposed to be the cool mom. I like you. Don't ruin a good thing."

Tooru bared her Ashido given fangs at the younger girl, who promptly summoned Houfuku so she could snarl back. The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds, and then Mizu spoke up hesitantly. “Is this normal around here? Also the little girl said fu… uh, a bad word?”

“I said fuck! Because… fuck!” Eri threw her hands in the air as Mizu gaped at her. “You get used to it after a while. Or you try to stop me and I tell you to go fuck yourself.”

Mizu nodded sagely. “Well, I’d hate to see that happen. Uh, you’re kind of a cute kid, swearing aside. Can I hold you?”

Retracting her symbiotic mask, Eri looked over at Mizu skeptically. “You’re kinda shrimpy. I could probably hold you better than you can hold me.”

Undaunted, Mizu took a step closer and held out her arms. “I’m stronger than I look. I’ve always wanted to hold a kid. You’re a little bigger than I expected but… eh? Gotta work with what I have and all that.”

“Uh… hmm. I mean, if you drop me, I’m absolutely going to bite you in revenge. If that’s a risk you wanna take…” Eri stretched her arms out toward Mizu, who carefully took Eri from Izuku and settled the white-haired girl on her hip. After a few seconds, Eri relaxed and rested her head on Mizu’s shoulder. “You’re not bad at this. So what, do you have like… a housewife thing or something?”

Mizu grinned and winked at Izuku. “Something like that.”

Groaning, Eri rolled her eyes. “And you’re being gross. I’m done.” She scanned the room before holding her arms out toward Ibara. “You seem like a not gross sort of person. Come take me away from this lady.”

“I don’t know about her not being gross, Eri.” All attention turned to Ashido, who spawned two extra arms out of Tooru’s side so that she could shoot finger guns at Ibara. “You know, because Ibara’s always wet for Izuku.” That earned her several disbelieving stares, and she huffed. “You know, because she’s a Talokanil? Wet? Cmon, that joke is gold.”

Izuku sighed. “This is my life now.” He watched uncertainly as Ibara took possession of Eri, the Talokanil carefully wrapping strands of seaweed around the girl to secure her. “Eri, aren’t you a little too big to be getting carried around constantly like this?”

Scoffing, Eri flipped Izuku off. “Fuck you, Dad. Walking is for chumps.”

This was his own fault for spoiling her, Izuku realized. He sighed and shook his head; as long as everyone was okay with it, he was just going to… leave the matter be for now. Tooru bounced over to him, tugging on his sleeve. “I was actually just kidding about me being your present.”

Mitsuki raised her hand. “I, on the other hand, was not.”

Tooru stuck a symbiote enhanced tongue out at Mitsuki before turning back to Izuku. “Seriously, I got you a present. You’re gonna love it.” She bounced over into the living room, and returned with the most poorly wrapped present Izuku had ever seen in his entire life. “Open it!”

Judging by the size… maybe a medium sized All Might plushy? Most of his memorabilia had been put into storage at this point, but Eri graciously tolerated stuffed Symbols of Peace that she could cuddle with. Unwrapping it, he found himself staring at something pink mottled with a bit of black. “Erm?”

“Okay so, perfect example.” Tooru gestured down at herself before reaching in to grab his present. She pulled it free and shook it out to reveal a pink cotton hoody with black veins embroidered into it. “Sometimes I steal Ashido. And today Himiko stole Ashido. This way… you can still represent your favorite goofriend!”

The remaining half of the package was a matching pair of sweatpants, and Izuku found himself tearing up again. “That’s so thoughtful of you, Tooru! I love it!”

Grinning, Tooru handed the hoody back to him. “Only the best for my man. Hey Himiko, beat that.”

Himiko rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “What if I kiss him with tongue?”

Holding his hands up in surrender, Izuku shook his head frantically. “Not in front of Mom, please. Gosh, everyone’s being so lewd today. Take it down a notch. Sheesh.”

Snickering, Himiko retrieved a wrapped box that had Izuku again analyzing the size so that he could hazard a guess. Uh… some sort of figure, maybe? The blonde handed it to him and offered a toothy grin. “Hopefully Eri lets you keep it.”

That set alarm bells to ringing and Izuku eyed Himiko suspiciously before slowly and carefully removing a bit of the paper so that he could peer at what was inside. It turned out to be a plain brown cardboard box. Unwrapping the rest of it, he opened the box to find… bubble wrap. Another unwrapping job later, and Izuku finally discovered what his present actually was. “Is this a figure of you?”

“Yuh huh! In my future hero costume! I already have it picked out!” Himiko smiled proudly as he let out a soft squeal. “I know how much you like hero merch, so I decided to give you what’s going to be the rarest and most valuable figure of me ever made once I go pro. And… I signed the base.”

Squealing again, Izuku gave Himiko the tightest hug that he could manage with one arm while holding the statue in the other hand. “I know exactly where I’m going to put this.” He released her and darted forward, only to skid to a stop and pause. “Does anyone mind if-“

All nine voices in the room answered in perfect sync. “Go!”

Chapter Text

“Dad! This place is so cool!”

It really was, though. Izuku couldn’t stop grinning as he explored the suite that his mother had booked for the family at the Hilton Odawara Resort and Spa. Staying in an American chain was almost like going on a vacation overseas without needing to leave home: the entire building was built and furnished around western sensibilities, right down to the tennis courts and bowling alleys that Izuku probably wouldn’t make use of. Well, maybe he’d take Eri down to try bowling at some point. Oh, and there was supposedly a well equipped fitness center, which meant he could keep up his workout regimen. Granted going on vacation meant an entire two weeks that he couldn’t see Tooru or Himiko, which sucked. But he’d had a big… last couple of months. He deserved a vacation.

At least he wouldn't be alone, or rather, without a peer for the entirety of his vacation. The nearest beach was around two kilometers from the hotel, but Izuku was in great shape these days and was pretty sure he could bust that out in... what, twenty minutes, maybe twenty-five? Less if he pushed it, more if he took the time to enjoy the scenery? Excitingly, Ashido had offered to create some gills for him so that he could spend some time in Ibara's native habitat and he… kinda wanted to take her up on that.

For the time being, though? He was going to spend a little quality time with his daughter at the hotel, possibly in a slightly more controlled aquatic environment. Or, well, anywhere else that Eri decided they should go. This was his first vacation in a while, but this was her first vacation ever, and he wanted it to be memorable. "Eri! What do we want to do first? We can watch a movie on the big TV. There's an arcade. We can go bowling. Or... there's something like eight different pools here." Dipping his hand into his pocket, Izuku pulled out his phone and checked the email that his mom had forwarded him from when she made the booking. "Uh, yeah, we have our pick of eight indoor pools and two outdoor pools."

Eri pulled her dress off and dropped it to the floor, revealing that Houfuku had her covered - literally and figuratively - in the form of a mottled red and black one piece bathing suit. “Pool!”

“Pool it is.” Izuku grabbed their suitcases and moved them into the slightly smaller bedroom. He took a moment to stare out the window at the rolling hills and forests before shaking himself. They had a pool to enjoy. “Ashido?”

“On it! On you!” Having switched almost exclusively to wearing Ashido about a month ago, his girlfriend had free reign to switch from the ‘host body’ t-shirt that he adored and a pair of jeans into a bathing suit. Much to his relief, it wasn’t anything embarrassing: a simple pair of pink swim trunks. Much to his chagrin, Ashido promptly sloughed off him into her more monstrous humanoid form in pure pink wearing a black bikini. “How do I look?”

Uh… uh… wait a second. Izuku’s eyes went wide as he realized something. They were dating! He was allowed to think she looked hot! It wasn’t perverted of him, that was normal! And telling her she looked hot would be a compliment, and girls liked compliments! “You look amazing. I bet all the other guys at the pool are going to be jealous of me.”

Ashido snickered softly as she wrapped her arms around Izuku’s shoulders. “Monsterfuckers aren’t as common as you’d think, so probably not. But I appreciate the compliment in the spirit it was given. Good job, Midori.”

Leaning in, Izuku pursed his lips and Ashido mimicked the gesture, allowing him to press his lips to hers. That was also an evolution of their relationship over the past few months. Izuku had pretty much just given up on feeling awkward about the fact that his girlfriend was a sentient pink goo from outer space and now he lavished as much affection on her as she was willing to take.

“Are you guys being gross in here?” Izuku couldn’t technically call Eri a cockblock because had no intentions of doing… that… with Ashido anytime soon, but her interruption was unwelcome all the same. He looked over to find her standing in the doorway, peering at them suspiciously. “Come on! It may be summer but the sun sets eventually. I want to go to the pool!”

Chuckling, Izuku made his way over to Eri and took her by the hand. “Let’s go check out the pool, Eri. Maybe we’ll meet someone with an interesting quirk.”

There turned out to just be... pools and pools and pools once they got downstairs, and Izuku found himself slightly overwhelmed by the variety of amenities. He didn't really feel a draw to the Olympic style pool with several lanes set up for swimming laps. There was a circular pool under a great big skylight, and Izuku found himself gravitating in that direction. There were loungers so that he could sit and watch Eri if her energy outlasted his, and a pair of hot tubs between the pool and the expanse of windows looking out over the landscape. Izuku was a bit curious how the experience compared to a traditional Japanese hot spring, but a cursory glance online had warned that they might not be good for Eri’s health and so he decided to forgo a dip for now. “What do you want to do, Eri? Has Houfuku taught you how to swim?”

Plopping down at the edge of the pool, Eri shook her head before gesturing down at herself. Izuku watched in amusement as her bathing suit surged downward to form a mermaid’s tail, and then up to cover her neck and form gills. “Can’t drown if you’re part fish. That should give me time to figure shit out.”

Fair enough. Izuku watched intently as Eri tipped into the water but when she seemed okay, he let his attention wander. He soon found himself looking around the pool area, or more specifically, surveying the other occupants of the pool. Ashido had done wonders to make him more social and while he was still a little awkward about it? He was starting to genuinely enjoy meeting new people these days.

His eyes landed on an unexpected sight, at least given that Odawara wasn't exactly a hotspot for foreign tourists according to the research that he'd done. Mostly because the only attractions in the area were a bit more traditional and cultural than foreigners seemed to appreciate. So the sight of a peach-haired Caucasian girl in a pink bathing suit sitting at the far end of the pool as a butler in an entire suit of all things hovered nearby? It kinda stood out to him.

Ashido followed his gaze and let out a low whistle. "Yo. Yoooooo. Midori, we gotta. Like, we can be her vacation fling. And she won't count against my total if she goes back to wherever she came from and we never see her again. Come on. Let's go talk to her."

"I... you know what? She is pretty. And I'm curious what brings her to Odawara. I'm not saying that I'm looking for a vacation fling. But I want to talk to her and, well, if you decide to flirt? I guess I'll survive. So let's go say hi." Making his way over to her, Izuku hovered for a moment until she looked up at him before waving and lowering himself to sit on the tile next to her. Ashido stood for a few seconds longer before taking a seat next to him and kicking her legs across Izuku's lap. "Am I intruding? Do you want to be alone?"

The girl looked over at him and the did a double take, her light blue eyes going wide. "I did, but I'm very curious about... this. Do you have a sentient quirk?"

Shaking her head, Ashido extended a hand across Izuku. "He does not! I'm an alien symbiote from outer space! He's my host!" The girl considered that for a moment before shaking Ashido's hand hesitantly. "Don't worry, I'm not gooey or gross!"

That made the girl smile faintly. "That honestly didn't even occur to me. No, my quirk can have some unfortunate interactions with other people's quirks. Painful interactions. I'm not used to being able to, well, touch someone who's talking to me."

Izuku sat up a little straighter at that. "Can you shake my hand?" The girl hesitated and Izuku thrust his hand out toward her. "Trust me, it'll be fine. I promise. And if it's not, well, Bubblegum can cover me pretty damn quickly and break the skin contact." After eyeing him uncertainly for a bit longer, the girl nodded and reached out uncertainly to take his hand. As their fingers met, Izuku grinned. "Well?"

"I... I can touch you." The girl's eyes lit up with wonder as she grabbed his hand, and then shifted to get a two handed grip on his. She stared down at their joined hands for a moment before looking back up at him and then cocking her head to the side. "You're... quirkless?" Izuku nodded proudly, excited that his shortcoming actually seemed to be working out in his favor for once. "I've never met a quirkless person before." She looked up at the butler lingering nearby. "Giulio! We need to meet more quirkless people."

The butler's lips quirked upward. "Lady Anna, I don't think it's considered polite to walk around asking people if they're quirkless. Perhaps you should simply enjoy your good fortune while you can?"

Pouting, the girl looked back down at Izuku and Ashido. "I guess that makes sense. Well, it's a pleasure to meet you both. My name is Anna Scervino. Scervino Anna?" She thought for a moment before shrugging. "You can call me Anna."

"I'm Ashido! And this is Midori!"

"Midoriya Izuku, but you can call me Izuku if you'd like. Or Midori, like Ashido and Tooru do." Izuku looked down at where they were still holding hands and then decided to throw caution to the wind and scooted a little closer to Anna. "I'm actually at this hotel for the next two weeks. Do you want to hang out while you're here? I mean, I know it's pretty much only because I'm quirkless but eh? I guess I'm okay with that?" And wasn't that a surreal thought? Someone wanting to hang out with him specifically due to his quirklessness.

Ashido leaned across Izuku and grinned widely. "And more importantly... how do you feel about vacation flings?"

Letting out a breathless little laugh, Anna squeezed Izuku's hands. "I would positively love to spend as many waking hours with you as you're willing to share with me. Giulio's quirk can cancel mine out in limited amounts, but I'm still starved for human interaction. I want to spend time with you both. And..." She trailed off, blushing a little as she ducked her head. "We'll see about the fling thing. You're the first person other than Giulio that I've touched in forever. I don't want to rush into anything."

"No, no, that's fair. And I'm pretty sure that Bubblegum's joking." Izuku shot a beseeching look over at his girlfriend, who raised her hands in surrender. "Yeah, she's joking. Oh! How are you with kids? Because we... kinda have one."

That made Anna do a double take again. "I'm sorry, you what? Is it human or alien?"

Izuku shot a look over at where Eri was splashing happily in the pool, using her symbiote given tail to flick water in different directions. "Erm, both?"

"Is that a..." Anna looked back and forth between her companions and Eri. "She's basically a smaller version of the two of you? That's fascinating. Oh! I've never held a child before. Would it be safe for me to pick her up?"

Reasonably? Izuku was fairly certain that Houfuku would protect Eri from the effects of Anna's quirk, whatever it may be, although he would probably hover close by ready to yank her away if the worst happened. "Um, it's up to her obviously? She does bite when she feels threatened, so... probably ask before you try to pick her up?"

Anna rolled her eyes at that. "Obviously, Izuku. I'm a shut in, not an idiot." She sat there holding hands with Izuku for a few seconds longer, smiling giddily all the while. "I can touch you. I don't know how long it'll take the novelty to wear off, but I'm going to enjoy it until it does."

“Okay but think of all the things you can do with Midori… don’t look at me like that, guys, I’m actually trying to be wholesome at the moment.” Ashido ticked off points on her fingers. “But like… you and Midori can splash around in the pool and not have to worry about touching. He can hug you. He can pick you up. He’s pretty good at that; he’s getting awfully jacked these days. Um. Did I mention hugs? Hugs are the shit. Oh! We could watch a movie and you could lean on him? And play footsie.”

Chuckling softly, Anna shook her head. “That last one seems a bit too romantic to me, but I’ll keep it in mind.” Then something occurred to her and she perked up. “Wait. If I can touch your daughter because of her companion, could I touch other people because of you, Ashido?”

“I mean yeah? Assuming Houfuku can protect Eri, which we’re sorta taking for granted at the moment. Either I could cover someone so they could touch you, or…” Ashido lunged across Izuku’s lap, tumbling through the gap as her form shifted into a mass of goo that pressed against Anna and began spreading over her skin. As the peach-haired girl watched in wonder, Ashido coated her up to the neck, replicating the hero suit design that she used with Izuku. “How about you being able to touch everyone?”

Anna ran her hands over herself hesitantly, and then stretched out a hand in her butler’s direction. He obliged, reaching out and taking her hand, and she let out an excited gasp. “I can still feel my quirk! Giulio, this is amazing. I’m completely insulated from the world, but I can still feel everything.” Turning back to Izuku, she eyed him speculatively. “I don’t suppose you’d be willing to part ways with her, would you? This could be life changing for me. I would compensate you appropriately.”

Shaking his head, Izuku reached out toward Anna and smiled as Ashido curled a tendril around his wrist. “We’re kinda dating so… pass?” Anna’s jaw dropped and his grin became chagrined. “I know, I know, I’m a monsterfucker.”

“I was going to put it in more polite terms. But yes, evidently you are.” Anna looked down as Ashido shifted around her, growing a tail to match Eri’s. “At the risk of seeming selfish, though… I don’t think I’ll get enough of this by the time you leave. I can touch a person. I can walk through a crowd without worrying about brushing against someone. I can do anything with Ashido. I… can be normal.”

That was something that Izuku could identify with. Ashido made him feel normal too. In a world full of quirks, with her, he finally was just… a boy in the crowd. “Yeah, I get that.” He gestured to the pool. “Well, let’s take her for a spin. Race you to the other end.”

Anna grinned at him and dove into the water, and Izuku hurried to keep up. After all, that was the source of his bathing suit swimming away from him…

Chapter Text

"Maybe... maybe stop walking into people, Anna?"

"But it's so much fun! And I don't have to worry about my quirk activating anymore. Just..." Anna deliberately slammed her left shoulder into someone who was trying to walk down the sidewalk, sending them stumbling back. Throwing her head back, she cackled in delight. "This is amazing!"

Izuku pinched the bridge of his nose and did his best to stifle a chuckle. Her behavior was atrocious but her enthusiasm was infectious. She was just being... horrifyingly rude at the moment. Reaching out, he wrapped an arm around her shoulders hesitantly and steered her away from another potential victim as they wandered through Minaka Odawara. Izuku had the munchies, Ashido was always down to eat, and Anna had yet to experience any food outside of the hotel's restaurants, a lacking that Izuku was intent on rectifying. Japan had so much good food!

As they wandered through the shops and stalls, Izuku found himself glancing over at Anna repeatedly, doing his best to be discreet while looking at the girl. Given that his first girlfriend was a pink goo monster from outer space and one of his closest friends was a blue girl from the bottom of the ocean, one would think that meeting a foreigner would be less fascinating for him... but they were wrong! Sure, hair colors were pretty universally distributed in the age of quirks, but her eyes looked so cool! And she was so pale!

Anna started to veer off again and Izuku promptly tightened his grip on her shoulders. “Please behave yourself. You look like me at the moment. Or like, what my hero costume is going to be. I don’t know if anyone’s watching, but I really don’t need video resurfacing in a few years of ‘pro hero Ashido’ acting horrendously on vacation.”

Looking over at him, Anna pouted faintly before breaking into a wide smile. “For you? Anything. So where are we actually headed? I am a little hungry, so I’d love to actually experience some traditional Japanese food right about now. And… oh look, is that a kimono rental place?”

Izuku followed her gaze to find that yes, Anna had in fact discovered a kimono rental business in the shopping area. He looked over at her and grinned. “Watch this. Bubblegum?”

“Ryoukai!” Anna looked down in surprise as Ashido morphed into a beautiful pink kimono with a black obi and a black haneri poking out of the collar. She even went so far as to form some black tabi and traditional zouri in pink for the girl. “Who needs literally anything when you have me?”

Spinning in a circle, Anna peered down at herself. “That’s so handy! How do people live without symbiotes? How did I live without this for so long? Ashido, you can have children, obviously. How much would I have to pay you to have a child for me?” Pausing, she looked over at Izuku. “That’s not weird, right? It’s basically surrogacy, which is a perfectly acceptable practice.”

Izuku thought for a moment and then raised his hand, wobbling it from side to side. “I’m not going to lie, it feels a little weird. But it’d be up to Bubblegum, obviously.”

“Hmm. Hmm, I say.” Spawning up out of Anna’s shoulder, Ashido formed a hand as well and tapped a finger against her chin. “I don’t particularly have a breeding kink. But I do have a praise kink? So if you keep complimenting me as much as you have, you might be able to convince me?”

Anna looked over at Izuku with an awkward expression on her face, and the verdet nodded. “Yeah, she’s like that.”

Smiling invitingly at Ashido, Anna smoothed one hand down the sleeve of her kimono. “You would be… such a good girl if you would be kind enough to give me one of your children. It could even be pink like you, Ashido. Pink is such a lovely color.”

“Lsdkgjaldkjfsdasf!” Ashido’s pink cheeks flushed bright red. “It was nice talking to you but I’m gonna go away now. Bye!” And with that, her head and arm dissolved back into the body of Anna’s kimono, disappearing from view.

Turning to Izuku, Anna grinned. “I think I’m winning her over.”

Izuku buried his face in his hands and sighed, but behind them he was smiling. It was honestly fun to see Ashido meet her match sometimes. Looking back up, he gestured onward. “It’s my mom’s vacation too, so I can’t ask her to babysit Eri and Houfuku forever. Why don’t we keep moving?”

The pair continued onward, Izuku keeping an arm around Anna for safety’s sake. He could feel a faint vibration under his skin where he was touching Ashido, making him smile. As they walked, Anna peered over at him. “What’s it like being quirkless?”

“What’s it like being quirked?” Izuku raised an eyebrow at Anna, who murmured a soft apology. “I’m sorry, that probably came off as defensive or rude. No, seriously, I’m curious. Both of my girlfriends have quirks that are always on, so I’ve never really talked to someone with a proper emitter quirk before.”

Anna tapped her finger against her chin thoughtfully. “It’s… hard to describe. Especially because my quirk and I have such a toxic relationship. I don’t really know how many people my quirk can work on; I gave up trying pretty quickly. But I managed to use Overmodification on my mother a few times, and…” She let out a wistful sigh. “It was beautiful. I feel so full of warmth and energy and potential and hope. And then when I touch somebody, it flows down through my body and out into them. It’s a powerful quirk, a dangerous quirk. I would have to be very careful with it if I could use it on more people. But sometimes I wish I could.”

That did sound pretty cool, Izuku couldn’t deny it. “I don’t know how much of this is being quirkless and how much of it is how people treat the quirkless… but I do feel sorta cold and incomplete. I felt separated from everyone else. Different. Unwanted. And then…” He let his hand slip down from Anna’s shoulders, running along her right arm fondly. “And then I met Bubblegum and everything changed. I’m not alone anymore. I’ll never be alone.”

Anna shot a considering look at Izuku. “You really do love her, don’t you?” Izuku nodded vehemently and the girl snorted. “You’re so strange. She’s literally goo. Wonderful goo. But still goo.”

Grinning, Izuku held his hand over the end of Anna’s sleeve and tiny tendrils of pink reached up to tangle around around his fingers. “Yeah, but she’s my goo.” Purring louder, Ashido shed a piece of mass that Izuku rolled around between his fingers a few times before pressing back into the greater whole. The last thing he needed was two Ashidos running around, after all. “So, what brings you to Japan? Your Japanese is surprisingly good for a foreigner.”

“Oh, you know how it is. Hiding from a vicious crime family under the watchful eye of All Might.” Izuku’s eyebrows shot upward and Anna grinned wryly. “Probably not the answer you expected, is it? But no, my quirk is very desirable to unsavory individuals. And there is at least one group who would do anything to acquire it. Anything, that is, except challenge All Might. I doubt they’ll try anything around Star and Stripe, either, so I’m headed to the United States at the end of the summer.”

Whistling lowly, Izuku shook his head. Sure, he’d love to meet the United States’s number one hero, but not like that. “What exactly does Overmodification do?”

Anna raised her hand and wiggled her fingers. “You’ve heard of enhancer quirks? Well, I have the enhancer quirk. My quirk enhances quirks. Permanently. Emitters become more powerful. Heteromorphs take on useful new traits. Transformation types… I’ve never touched one of those before, but I assume that they’d be enhanced in a beneficial way. If you’re lucky enough to survive my touch, the results can be amazing.”

“Huh. And since I have no quirk, there’s no reaction when you touch me or I touch you. Neat.” Izuku thought for a moment and then shrugged. “I can see why you’re careful to keep your quirk out of the wrong hands. Imagine if a villain touched you?”

“Yes. Exactly. Which is why I’m keeping on the move. Eventually the Gollinis will overstep their bounds and meet their match, and I’ll be able to return home. Until then? I’m trying my best to enjoy myself. So let’s get this mood back up, shall we?” Anna looked around curiously and then she gasped. “Oh! Izuku!” He followed her gaze and perked up. Now that was a stop he could get behind. “Tonkatsu Wabuta. Do you like pork? I love pork!”

“Anna, you are speaking my language.” Because anywhere that advertised its excellence in pork dishes had to have an amazing katsudon. Maybe not as good as his mother’s. But still pretty good. Izuku guided the girl inside and was surprised to find himself guided straight to a table. And sitting at the table was… “Tooru?”

Tooru brought her hands up to her face. “Oh my god, this stalking people thing is kinda fun! Himiko is really on to something!” She leaned forward over the table. “Your mom said you and your new friend were going out today. And I thought to myself… if I was Midori, where would I take someone for lunch?”

Izuku couldn’t help but smile. His girlfriends really did know him well. “So you found a place that serves katsudon and camped out until I got here?”

Shrugging, Tooru spread her arms. “They’re weirdly empty for lunch on a summer day? I don’t know, I’ll order the Lord’s Set to make it up to them or something. I don’t know what it is, but for thirty-two hundred yen, it’s got to be good.”

Izuku choked slightly at the price. That… okay, it wasn’t that much in the grand scheme of things. But it was still a lot to spend on lunch. “So you missed me so much that you took a train to Odawara? You couldn’t wait until our video call tonight?”

Huffing, Tooru’s headband whipped back and forth. “Midori, I have a short attention span and nothing to occupy my attention all day every day while school is out. You’re lucky I didn’t meet you at the train station when you got here.” She giggled and rose from her seat, offering a hand to Anna. “Hagakure Tooru. If you can’t tell, I’m one of this one’s girlfriends.”

“Scervino Anna. Hah. Got it right on the first try.” Anna grinned and waited until Ashido extended over one of her hands so that she could shake Tooru’s. The invisible girl made a curious noise and Anna sighed as Ashido retracted again. “Troublesome quirk. A lucky few can touch me safely. Everyone else gets to experience debilitating pain.”

Tooru cocked her head to the side. “Huh. I’m kinda into that.” Izuku stared at his girlfriend in disbelief and she waved her hand dismissively. “Kidding, kidding. Although I’m not into pain but I will freely admit that I’m curious if I’m one of the lucky few.”

Looking down at her hand, Anna frowned. “I’ve been excruciatingly careful for years at this point. And when I do get close to someone and tell them the risks, they decide the odds aren’t worth it. But, I mean, if you really want to? Izuku looks strong enough to scrape me off the floor and carry me back to the hotel.”

Izuku gave a start at that. “I’m sorry, what?”

“Yeah, the feedback goes in both directions. She’ll get debilitating pain. I’ll have a seizure. Fun for everyone.” Anna smiled wryly before holding her hand out to Tooru. “But, well, what’s a seizure between friends? Maybe I’ll get lucky. Hopefully.”

That made Izuku shake his head resolutely. “Oh heck no. We are absolutely not doing this. Tooru, Anna, are you both out of your minds?”

Tooru shook her head in return. “You know what they say, Izuku, if you don’t enter the tiger’s cave, you won’t catch its cub. Everything good in life requires a little risk. And if this goes badly? You can say that you told me so.”

Sighing despondently, Izuku shook his head. “Well, if there’s no talking you two out of this… go nuts, I suppose.”

“Can I do this the super gay way?” Anna cocked her head to the side and Tooru let out a peal of laughter. “That’s not a no!” And she pressed herself against Anna and brought her face in toward the peach-haired girl’s.

Izuku could tell the exact moment that their lips met because the entire restaurant exploded into light. A white brilliance for a moment, that quickly became saturated with scintillating, oscillating colors. The light solidified, spreading out from Tooru’s lips to reveal the entire girl that Izuku had seen using infrared. Just… visible and made of rainbow light. It was frankly beautiful, and he was in awe of the entire thing.

His eyes slid over to Anna, and Izuku took note of the black seeping out of her roots and spreading down her hair. There was a faint blue glow at the edge of the black that was slowly progressing down her peach colored locks. That was… an interesting visual tell. She’d obviously used her quirk before. How long did her hair stay black before returning to normal?

Oh, and there were flowers spreading outward from the two of them, like something out of a yuri manga. That was hard to ignore. In spite of himself, Izuku pulled out his phone and snapped a picture. He figured that Tooru at a minimum would want to commemorate the experience.

When they broke apart, Anna laughed giddily as she brought her hands up to her face. “That was better than I ever could have imagined. I’m going to need to find myself a boyfriend when I get home. Or maybe a girlfriend. Or maybe one of each so that I have twice as many people to kiss. Thank you, Hagakure Tooru. Just… thank you.”

Looking down at herself, Tooru let out a low whistle. “Holy shit, our kiss was so gay that I turned into a giant glowing gay. Hah. Midori, are you sure you won’t let Ashido turn you into a girl? I feel like this is a sign.”

Smiling, Izuku took another picture of Tooru for posterity. “I mean, being bisexual is still a rainbow sort of orientation, isn’t it?”

Tooru thought about it for a moment and then perked up. “You’re absolutely right. Never mind.” Turning back to Anna, she grabbed the girl’s head between her glowing hands and smiled widely. “Does your quirk work more than once? Or is this as weird as I’m going to get?”

Anna shook her head as best she could in Tooru’s grasp. “It just keeps making you different and better over and over until… I don’t know, maybe you’ll reach a pinnacle of perfection and it’ll stop? I’ve never tried.”

“Cool. Then let’s make shit weird, babe.” And Tooru pressed her lips to Anna’s again.

Chapter Text

By the time the restaurant staff noticed what was going on with the two girls and threw the three of them out, Anna’s hair was completely black and Tooru was a living rainbow floating a few inches above the ground. Which if Izuku was honest, he was over the moon about at the moment. He could completely analyze Tooru and her quirk again… from scratch! This was the coolest thing to have happened to him in at least a week!

It took Tooru a few tries to figure out how to properly control her modified quirk and touch back down on the ground, but she managed. And then she promptly floated back up into the air because Anna was taller than her and she liked being able to meet the girl’s gaze.

They managed to snag meals to go from Odawara Champon, which looked like no champon Izuku had ever seen before but he would be the first to admit that he was far from an expert on the Nagasaki dish. It wasn’t bad, but he wouldn’t make a point of seeking it out again before he left Odawara. Huddled together outside, they ate their lunches and watched the crowds go by. Or at least Izuku was watching the crowds go by. Anna and Tooru had decided on a slightly risqué way to pass the time. “Psst. Anna.” Tooru elbowed her companion playfully before nodding toward the passersby. “The redhead. Smash… or pass?”

Craning her neck to spot the person that Tooru was talking about, Anna hummed thoughtfully. “Pass. After what we did earlier, I’m finding myself fixated on lips. And hers don’t look very appealing.”

“Hmm, fair, fair.” Tooru watched the crowd for a brief period and then pointed a bit obviously toward another person passing them. “Smash or pass?”

Despite presumably being out of hearing range, the girl that Tooru had pointed to turned to look at them. It was then that Izuku got his first good look at her, since he'd been staring down at his lunch when Tooru noticed her. Very American looking, with blonde hair and blue eyes, wearing a pure white kimono embellished with a silver snowflake design. She narrowed her eyes and they began glowing blue, and then Izuku heard a voice in his head. 'Can you three... maybe not?'

Izuku let out an excited gasp and almost dropped his champon. "A telepathy quirk! That girl has a telepathy quirk!" He waved to her, beckoning her closer. "Don't mind them, they're just... them. But hi! I'm Midoriya Izuku! It's nice to meet you!"

Making her way over, the girl looked them all over before sighing softly. 'I know who you all are at this point. Telepath, and all that. It's kinda hard not to know everything about everyone around you. That being said, I really could have gone without knowing that one of your companions wants to have sex with me. The other one is a bit more polite, thankfully.’

"Tooru wants to have sex with everyone. That's just how she is. You get used to it." Izuku reached out his hand, held it there for a few seconds, and then reluctantly retracted it when the girl refused to shake it. "I feel like introductions should still be a thing, though? You may know who we are, but we have no idea who you are."

Stretching up out of Anna's shoulder, Ashido's eyes widened at the sight of the girl. "You guys, that is a Frost. Glowy blue eyed telepath girl with blonde hair? Hahaha nope. Not fucking with that. Anna, Tooru, it's been nice knowing you but I am getting the fuck out of here."

Ashido peeled herself off enough of Anna that the girl let out a startled shriek, dropping her own meal as she grabbed at the pink goo frantically. "Ashido! Calm down! If all else fails, I can just... grab her and incapacitate her. And then have a violent seizure and have to be carried back to the hotel by Izuku. But at least we'll be safe from..." She eyed the blonde thoughtfully. "You're one of those Frosts, then?"

The girl smirked faintly and bowed to Anna, which made Izuku blush. She’d been a little bit more relaxed with the neckline of her kimono than socially acceptable, and it was quite a view. ‘Frost Kaitlyn. And yes, I’m one of ‘those’ Frosts. I can trace my ancestry back to the Mayflower, and my mutant heritage back to the early days of Xavier’s.’

Izuku had absolutely no idea what the Mayflower was, but he did in fact happen to know what Xavier’s was. “You’re a descendant of Emma Frost! The White Queen! The second and currently extant headmistress of Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters.”

‘Yeah, she’s my mother. Nobody’s been able to figure out why our transmorph state makes us all immortal, we just… are.’ Frost made a gesture and Anna’s bowl of food reassembled itself and floated back up into the girl’s hands. ‘I’m also part Grey. Sadly I take after Mother in most ways? The flaming psychic signature that Rachel and some of my other relatives have is honestly much cooler than the blue eyes.’

Staring at Frost, Izuku’s eyes widened. “You’re the daughter of Frost Emma and Grey Jean?”

That made Frost’s smirk grow a little larger. ‘You don’t want to know, I promise.’

Tooru raised her hand and looked around. “I mean, I kinda do. Because I’m imagining how it might have worked, and-“

‘Please stop. That’s just… no. Eww. Especially because they’re my parents.’ Frost eyed Tooru, who just grinned smugly at the blonde. ‘And now you’re picturing you and I… sigh. You do realize I can lobotomize you with a thought, right?’

“Then I die the way I lived: being really fucking thirsty.” Tooru playfully winked a colorful eye at Frost. “Because never have I ever kissed a girl made of diamond before. But it doesn’t have to stay that way.”

Izuku watched in fascination as the faintest of blushes appeared on Frost’s cheeks and was promptly chased away by her transforming into the glittering diamond form that she shared with her mother. It was only then that the verdet heard her actual voice for the first time. “I’m supposed to be sophisticated but… fucking hell, that was a mental image. That was not ‘kissing’, Hagakure.”

Grinning widely, Tooru made a peace sign and blew a kiss at Frost. “Can’t stop, won’t stop.” She looked over at Anna, down at her lunch, and frowned. “That’s been on the ground. Gross. We need to get new food for her.”

Izuku looked down at his bowl, which was at best a third eaten, and then traded with Anna. After all, as curious as he was about the newcomer’s quirk? And parents? And literally everything else about her, given that she lived at the fabled X-Mansion with the equally legendary X-Men? He also recognized that girl talk was a sacred tradition, and he didn’t necessarily need to be there for it. Especially since his presence wasn’t required for Ashido to be able to participate. Not to mention that Ashido could do just as much good working with Tooru as she could with him, so he was doubly unnecessary at the moment. “Here. You girls can talk and I’ll go find something to eat. Back in a bit.”

Minaka Odawara was a decently large retail space with a wide variety of food options, and so Izuku pretty much had his pick for what he was going to grab for a replacement meal. He swiftly made his way back to the Nishisho Food Stadium portion of the mall where Odawara Champon was located. He eyed Porquetti Amo for a moment before dismissing it. He had no idea where Anna was from apart from nebulously ‘Europe’. For all he knew, she hated Italians and Italian food and would not be impressed by him showing back up with a panini.

After likewise passing up Niha Soba Shoan and Mixed Soba Nanatei - he just wasn’t in the mood - his eyes landed on a smaller shop advertising ochazuke of all things and he made his way over to buy a bowl for himself. A little salmon, some mixed tsukemono, a serving of nori, and scallions to garnish all served on top of a bowl of rice with tea poured over it? Perfect on a summer day. And more familiar than the supposed champon that they’d bought together with Anna. Between finding it and eating it, he managed to waste a solid half an hour, which he figured was an adequate amount of time to let the four girls talk. And so he threw his trash away before making his way back down to where he'd left the girls, only to raise an eyebrow at the absence of both Tooru and Anna. “Do I want to know?”

Back in her flesh and blood form, Frost looked over at him and shrugged before speaking out loud. “I’m taking your new companion with me from here. Mom’s telepathy range is pretty much… existence. So I told her about Scervino and her powers, Mom told Mother, and Mother politely requested… well, bluntly ordered, really. That I bring her back to Westchester. Mother’s very curious to meet her, and also thinks she’ll be safer at the school than wandering the Japanese countryside. After all, All Might is powerful to be sure but he can’t be everywhere at once.”

Very true. Izuku liked to think that they would have been capable of keeping Anna safe, especially now that Tooru was a flying rainbow girl, but… they were nothing more than aspiring hero hopefuls at the moment. Frost Emma and the X-Men were some of the strongest heroes on the planet. “Okay. Makes sense. Uh, make sure you pick up her butler before you leave? She just sorta… ran off on him today.” Frost offered a faint smile and a nod, and Izuku looked around again. “So what does that have to do with the fact that Anna and Tooru are missing?”

“Do you want Scervino to take your companion with you when she leaves?” Izuku’s eyes widened and he shook his head rapidly, making Frost snort. “I didn’t think so. So I sent them to change. They’re roughly the same size; Scervino can wear Hagakure’s clothes back to the hotel. And Hagakure assured me that she’ll happily wear Ashido for the afternoon.”

Izuku opened his mouth, closed it, and then considered his words carefully. “Just so we’re clear. You sent Anna and the girl who gets more powerful each time they kiss into a secluded place unsupervised?”

That made Frost’s eyes widen. “Mistakes were made.” She turned and hurried off toward the bathroom, and made an outraged noise loud enough to be heard out where Izuku was standing. A minute or so later, she returned pulling the pair of girls along like scuffed kittens. “Time to say goodbye, everybody.”

Looking surprisingly cute in Tooru’s very loud outfit - she’d even made off with his girlfriend’s headband and jewelry - Anna pouted and waved goodbye reluctantly. “I mean, I’m excited that I get to meet the X-Men… but you guys were pretty cool.”

“Don’t worry, Anna, I got your number and I’ll share it with everyone. We’ll always be just a text away.” Tooru tried to lean across and give Anna one last kiss, only to be foiled by Frost. “Rude. Just because you don’t want to kiss me doesn’t mean that other people don’t either.”

Spawning up out of Tooru’s shoulder, Ashido waved a tendril at the peach-haired girl. “You were really cool, Anna! It was great meeting you.”

As Frost released Tooru and wandered off down the street with Anna in tow, the iridescent girl looked over at Izuku. “They probably could have stayed with us until at least the end of the day, right? I somehow doubt that they’re going straight from here to America right at this exact second.”

Izuku laughed softly. “For some reason, I get the feeling that Frost didn’t like us very much.” The pair exchanged a look before dissolving into laughter. Tooru was and would always be an experience. And some people weren’t ready for that. Personally? Izuku loved her just the way she was. Then he paused, his eyes widening as he stared at Tooru. She tilted her head to the side and he cleared his throat nervously. “Sorry. I just… I love you? I kinda just realized that.”

“Wait, have we literally never said that to each other?” Tooru floated up to eye level with Izuku and cupped his face in her hands. “I love you too, Midori!”

The two kissed and Ashido spawned out of Tooru’s shoulder so that she could let out a soft coo. “Aww, you guys are so cute. This is great. I love this.” She looked around curiously. “Okay so we got our new friend taken away. Which sucks. But we still have each other. Which is great. What do we want to do with the rest of our afternoon?”

Izuku considered his options. He was secure enough to just... not need to be present constantly. He wasn't sure if Tooru and Himiko had gone on any dates without him or Ashido, but he wouldn't have cared if they did. And he didn't really mind the idea of Ashido and Tooru having the afternoon to themselves without him. "Well, you're a little floaty, yeah?" Tooru nodded slowly and Izuku gestured upward. "Do you want to see how floaty you really are?"

Clapping her hands against her cheeks, Tooru gasped excitedly. "I might be able to fly now, huh? That's so fucking cool of me! I wonder if I leave a little rainbow behind, kinda like how Endeavor trails flames after him when he flies? Oh! I kinda want to find out! Ashido, do you want to come with me, or..?"

"Um, absolutely. And not just because being a half-naked flying girl would probably have you going viral for all the wrong reasons." Ashido squealed happily and clapped two little tendrils together. "But like... you want to take me flying with you! That's so romantic!"

Laughing, Izuku nodded in the direction of the larger portion of the shopping center. "I have a feeling that you guys aren't going to be back until later, so I'm going to go grab Tooru some replacement clothes and a pair of pajamas." The iridescent girl opened her mouth and he held up a finger. "No."

Tooru pouted and crossed her arms over her chest as she began to slowly ascend into the air. "Fine. But if you're going to make me wear clothes to bed, I'm going to be rolling that waistband until there's ass crack, damn it."

Sighing, Izuku shook his head resignedly. "You are going to give our daughter trauma at some point, Tooru. You know that, right?"

"Oh come on, she sees Ashido naked all the time." Tooru gestured down at her body emphatically. "Ashido is naked right now! She's just straight gooing it, the way she always does!"

Ashido rubbed a tendril against her forehead. "She's... not wrong?"

Chapter Text

"I wonder where Ibara is? She's technically not late, but she tends to be earlier than this?"

"Leave the poor girl be. You're in her backyard at this point; I can't imagine she'd visit Odawara without stopping by to see her father." Ashido stretched a little pair of tentacles out of either side of his swim trunks as she made a yawning noise. "Besides, the sun is great, the beach is peaceful, Eri is eating a raw fish..."

Izuku's eyes went wide and he looked over to find Eri in a hybrid state that was more Houfuku than Eri but not entirely her shared symbiotic form. And sure enough, she had some sort of flatfish clamped in her oversized jaws as she stared at him innocently. Pulling it away from her mouth, she shrugged. "It's basically just sushi, Dad."

Opening and closing his mouth several times, Izuku made a consternated noise. Mostly because she... technically... wasn't... wrong? "Okay, so... I feel like this is where I should tell you that you shouldn't put things in your mouth if you don't know where they've been?"

"Dad, don't be ridiculous. I know where it's been." Eri gestured out at the water with one hand as the other clutched her prize against her chest. "The ocean. Duh." And with that, she leaned down and bit the fish, tearing a sizable chunk of the head off with her vicious jaws.

That was gross, right? He wasn't the only one who thought that was gross? Sadly, Himiko was still in Nagoya and Tooru had returned to Tokyo two days ago, meaning he had nobody to support him. Especially because he somehow doubted Ibara would judge Eri for eating a live fish. Or wait. Was that being racist of him? Talokan had some very advanced technology. Surely they had some way to heat food underwater, right?

Speaking of Ibara, the girl picked that moment to breach the surface nearby, causing a bit of a commotion in the process. Izuku watched bemusedly as she approached the water's edge riding on the back of longfin mako shark. He rose to his feet, waving to her excitedly. "Ibara! Where did you get a shark from?"

Casually dismounting her companion, Ibara shrugged and patted it on the head. "Oh, Talokanil have a symbiotic relationship with most larger aquatic predators. I'm on very good terms with the entire shiver of makos that live near Odawara."

"You're so cool, Ibara!" The girl ducked her head and blushed as Izuku waded into the water. Pausing, he looked back at Eri. "I'm going for a swim with Ibara. Don't eat anyone while I'm gone."

Eri offered a peace sign as blood dripped from her jaws. "I make no promises!"

Izuku shot a reluctant look at the beach but... he wasn't going far, and Ashido had great hearing. If something happened, he'd know about it. And so he gave his goofriend a mental nudge, feeling her surge up his body into a slightly more covering bathing suit so that she could easily reach up and cover his neck and mouth. Diving into the water, he took an experimental breath before letting out a sigh of relief. He'd seen Eri do it before, obviously, but experiencing it for himself was definitely... well, an experience.

Ibara spiraled around him as he descended into the water and Izuku's eyes went wide. Under the water, her skin returned to a more conventional caramel color that was as equally alien in Japan as her blue skin, but no less attractive. He'd been wondering what her natural skin tone was, given that she had a Japanese father and a Talokanil mother. Now he knew. He opened his mouth to compliment her, only to be brought up short. How did people talk underwater?

That didn't seem to be a problem for Ibara. "We're adapted for it. I don't know exactly how Ashido is giving you gills and what creature she's imitating. You may not be able to vocalize underwater. I suppose this means I'll have a respite from your questions for as long as I keep you down here with me." And she winked playfully.

Izuku let out an affronted gasp, bubbles trailing from the pink symbiotic membrane that covered his mouth, which only made Ibara laugh. Huffing, he kicked his legs and shot past her, only for her better adapted body to quickly catch up with him. They weren't too far down, so the sunlight still penetrated easily, shining through the forest of wakame that she guided him toward. Fish darted here and there, slipping in and out of the rocks and seaweed. Being underwater was so neat!

Motion out of the corner of his eye made him look to the right and Izuku's eyes widened at the sight of an unfamiliar girl. Ibara moved to float between the two of them, gesturing back and forth. She had long dark hair, dark eyes, and seeing her next to Ibara really allowed the boy to pinpoint what facets of Ibara's appearance she inherited from her father. Presumably, this was a pure Talokanil girl. "This is one of my friends. Itzel. I thought you'd enjoy meeting another Talokanil, Izuku."

"Ki'imak in wóol in k'ajóoltikech." Itzel waved hello and then smirked faintly at him. "¿Ka na'atik teen?"

Ibara shot her a reproachful look. "He does not and you know it. Stop that." Turning back to Izuku, she offered an apologetic look. "Many of my kind regard your kind about as well as... well, your kind regards mine. It's a mutual distaste."

'Can we maybe have a little fun with her?' Ashido's voice drifted through Izuku's mind and her raised an eyebrow. A pink tendril extended out from his body, wrapping around Itzel's ankles and hurling the girl away through the water. 'Tag! She's it!'

Spinning around, Izuku swam as fast as he could in the other direction, laughing as best he could underwater. Ibara quickly caught on to what was going on and joined him, waving to Itzel as the two headed deeper into the water. "You do know that we're faster than you in the water by far, right?"

But that didn't mean he was going to give up without a fight! His thoughts racing, Izuku coaxed Ashido into a more aquatic form, turning him into something resembling a merman of fiction. He was blatantly stealing the idea from Eri, but what she didn't know wouldn't hurt her. He wasn't quite sure how to describe it, to be honest. He wasn't kicking, really. Was he flapping his tail? Pumping it? Whatever one wanted to call it, he was using his tail to push himself along at greater speeds than his legs had been capable of, enabling him to put a little distance between himself and Itzel, and forcing Ibara to work to keep up.

Itzel inevitably caught him, slapping her hand against his back. Without pausing, he created two new tentacles of Ashido and promptly tagged her back before hurling her off in a random direction. Gosh, this was fun! He hadn’t realized how much he’d needed to just… relax and enjoy himself.

The three teens traded tags back and forth, although Ibara faired the best out of them with her seaweed hair outdoing Ashido’s tentacles. Itzel was far and away the fastest and most nimble of the three of them, though. Eventually, their little game broke up and they returned to the shore, breathing heavily. As Itzel and Ibara fitted their rebreathers, Izuku smiled widely at them, letting Ashido melt back into a pair of swim trunks. “That was so fun! I never really appreciated how fast Talokanil could be. Itzel, you’re such a good swimmer!”

“Erm, thank you.” Itzel ducked her head, blushing faintly. Ibara looked back and forth between them a few times, and then her eyes widened and she nudged Itzel gently with her elbow. The ravenette scowled and elbowed her back a bit more roughly before turning her attention back to Izuku. “So you are the… Izuku… that Ibara talks about regularly?”

Izuku smiled brightly at her and nodded. “That’s me. Midoriya Izuku. You can… oh, you already called me by my first name. I was going to say that or Midori like my girlfriends do.”

Eyes widening, Itzel turned and hissed to Ibara. “Mix juntéen ta wa'alajten wa jach ki'ichpan.”

“¿Ki'ichkelem wáaj? Mix juntéen tin ts'áaj cuenta.” Whatever was going on, Ibara looked very innocent as she spoke, which made Itzel even more flustered. Turning back to Izuku, she smiled. “Would you mind if we joined you for a snack?” Itzel elbowed Ibara again but the quirked Talokanil continued on undeterred. “I know from experience that this beach has a nice concession stand.”

It did? It did! Izuku bounced over to where Eri had returned to their towel and umbrella, curling up in the shade. And… yikes, he needed to find some wipes or dip her in the ocean or something. That was a concerning amount of blood. Shaking his head, he smiled. “Hey Eri! Ibara’s here and she brought a friend. Do you want to come say hi?”

Eri looked up from the book that she’d pulled out of his Dad Bag - not a purse, definitely not a purse - and pondered that. “I don’t like strangers. But I do like Ibara. Can I say hi to Ibara and ignore the stranger?”

“You know what? Sure.” Scooping up his wallet, Izuku tucked it into a pocket that Ashido helpfully created for him before grabbing Eri. Walking was for chumps, after all. He carried her over to the pair of girls, and Ibara waved excitedly. “Itzel. This is Eri and Houfuku. My daughter.”

Itzel slumped a little. “U'uyej. K'aas.” That earned her an odd look from her companion and she did her best to recover, smiling at Eri. “Well, it’s very nice to meet you… child covered in blood and fish guts.”

Looking down at his daughter, Izuku sighed softly. "Houfuku. Could you perhaps..?" Eri's clothes ripped and the viscera disappeared from view. "And the face." A red tendril emerged, rubbing over the girl's face to clean it. "Thank you, Houfuku." Izuku smiled widely at his companions before gesturing in the direction of the concession stand. "Let's go!"

Eri squirmed her way free and launched herself across and into Ibara's arms, curling around the Talokanil. "Hi! Ibara! Hi! Do you have any new shells you can show me?"

"As a matter of fact, I do!" Shifting to hold Eri with one arm, Ibara dug into the pouch on her belt and emerged with what even Izuku could admit was a beautiful shell. It was shades of blue and gleamed softly in the afternoon light. "What do you think?"

Taking it from her, Eri turned the shell over in her hands several times before holding it up against Ibara's cheek. "It reminds me of you!" Huh. Eri wasn't wrong. The shell was a shade or two darker at the lightest point, but it was a similar blue to Ibara's skin above the surface. Interesting. Maybe he should start looking into shells, especially if Ibara was going to remain a fixture in his life. She allowed him to ramble about heroes and quirks. Knowing more about her interest couldn't hurt.

Everything along the shore in Odawara seemed to exist in the shadow of the elevated highway that ran parallel to the water, and Izuku frowned as he stared up at it. "I didn't really notice it when we were having fun, but that's kinda noisy. Do you maybe want to go inland a little bit and find somewhere calmer?"

Raising an eyebrow, Itzel gestured down at her dripping wet body and very non-Japanese outfit. "Is that really the best idea, Izuku?"

"You know what? Fair enough." Izuku chuckled as he approached the concession stand, fishing out his wallet. "I've seen Ibara eat regular Japanese food. Itzel, are you pescatarian?" That earned him a confused look and he hurried to explain. "Can you eat chicken and pork and beef, or only fish?"

Itzel continued to stare at him in confusion. "Can I eat what?"

Thankfully, Ibara interceded on her friend's behalf. "We're obligate omnivores, the same as surface dwellers. Itzel may not like what you give her, but it certainly won't harm her."

Good enough for him. Izuku studied the menu and perked up. "Oh! They have menchi-katsu! That's a fun food to introduce you to Japanese culture with." He ordered four, paid the cashier, and received his snacks, which he quickly passed out. "Okay, so these are... hmm. Probably going to be a bunch of unfamiliar words here. I didn't ask if these are pork, beef, or both, but it's ground up animal meat, salt, pepper, and chopped onion. Then they batter and fry them, and you eat them."

Eri served as an eager demonstrator of the concept, biting hers clean in half and somehow managing to chew and swallow more food than her mouth should have accommodated. Probably Houfuku, to be honest. She loved human food as much as Ashido. Speaking of his companion... Izuku tore his patty in half and held it up on his right side. Ashido quickly formed a head and two stubby tendril arms, grabbing it and taking a bite. As she chewed, she looked over at Itzel. "By the way, I speak pretty much everything. You thirsting over my boyfriend is honestly adorable, but you'd be a little bit too much of long distance for me to really be down for it."

Itzel's mouth opened and closed several times, and then she shoved her untouched patty into Ibara's hands before turning and fleeing back toward the water. Ibara shot Ashido a reproachful look. "Was that really necessary, Ashido? Look, you've scared her off."

"More for me." Ashido stretched out a longer tentacle and reclaimed Itzel's menchi-katsu from Ibara, likewise breaking it in half so that she could share with Izuku. "And besides, the whole using another language to gossip is just so tacky. I kinda had to call her out. Sorry not sorry."

Shaking her head, Ibara sighed. "This is why I can't have nice things, I suppose." Bringing her patty up to her mouth, she nudged the rebreather aside so that she could take a bite. "Out of curiosity, Ashido, would you be able to supplement my respiratory system the opposite of the way that you do with Izuku?" Ashido made a puzzled noise, prompting Ibara to elaborate. "Could you make it so that I can breathe on land without needing my rebreather?"

Ashido spawned a few extra tendrils so that she could rub them all together excitedly. "Ibara. For you? Absolutely. Just out of curiosity... is the rebreather uncomfortable or anything? Like, I don't mind the idea, I'm just a little curious why because this seems a little sudden and..." Her black and yellow eyes widened. "You're eating. Ibara, do you want to eat something new?"

"I do." Nodding fervently, Ibara leaned in toward Izuku and Ashido. "I wish to... lick an ice cream cone."

Oh. That was relatable. Ice cream was delicious. Ashido evidently agreed. "Make it chocolate so I can enjoy it with you, and you're on."

"Deal."

Chapter Text

Summer vacation passed faster than Izuku would have liked, and all too soon he was back to school and his regular routine. Which was honestly fine with him, because he hadn't been able to see Himiko for the entirety of his vacation in Odawara and that kinda sucked. He loved Tooru, sure, but he loved Himiko too. And he loved Ashido, of course. He'd never really pictured himself as the type, but it'd turned out that he was and... that was just fine with him.

Things continued on in the same pattern that he'd left them. Bakugou did his best to avoid Izuku and Ashido. Mitsuki and Mizu made up for the rest of the school not knowing how to handle an alien host in their midst, eating lunch in the classroom with him most days. Mizu in particular was… interesting. Evidently she really did want to be a housewife when she grew up, and routinely brought him bentos complete with apple slices for Ashido. Very rarely, other girls joined them. That was a nice change of pace.

And so life continue apace until one day when it didn’t.

“So, you’re really not useless anymore, are you?” Leaning against the lockers, Bakugou stared at him with an unhappy expression. “You managed to find someone who tolerates you, and it’s the fucking space alien with bullshit powers.”

Looking over at his former friend, Izuku shrugged. “I was never useless, Kacchan. I just hadn’t figured out my path in life yet.”

Bakugou pushed off the lockers, eyeing Izuku intently. “You and me. Outside. Prove you’re worth something.”

That made Izuku roll his eyes. “I’m not going to put Bubblegum in danger just to prove something to you. Sound and fire are her weaknesses, and you’re literally both of those. It’s a bad matchup. Not to mention that I don’t owe you anything. Not anymore.”

“So what?” Bakugou leaned into Izuku’s personal space. “You gonna let some people die someday because it’s a bad matchup for your goo princess? Gonna just shrug and walk away without even trying?”

Drawing himself up to full height, Izuku put his hand on Bakugou’s chest and pushed him back. “You’re not a villain and I’m not a hero. I’m not even a hero student yet. Yeah, I’ll probably need to learn how to handle Bubblegum’s counters. But not today. And not from you.”

Pushing off his locker, Izuku turned and walked away. Now that Ashido was his entire wardrobe apart from when he knew he was going to be spending time with Himiko or Tooru, he swapped from his indoor slippers to his outdoor sneakers with a thought. He likewise banished his uniform to the depths of Ashido’s brain until tomorrow, replacing it with a t-shirt and cargo pants. And so he stepped out into the early autumn afternoon and inhaled deeply, ready to put the school day behind him.

Or at least he tried to.

“Fight me, Deku!” There was the crackle of explosions and then something slammed into Izuku from behind, sending him stumbling forward. Before he could recover, there was another sharp crack and pain blossomed across his back as Ashido let out a cry of distress. Recovering, he reached back and hissed at the feeling of burned skin as Ashido slowly oozed back into place. So she’d instinctively recoiled from the explosion? He couldn’t blame her. They sucked. Palms crackling, Bakugou stared at him from the front walkway of the school. “Be a fucking man for once in your life!”

Turning to face Bakugou, Izuku drew himself up to full height. “No! I’m not going to fight you! I don’t have anything to prove! I don’t care which of us is… more whatever or whatever it is you’re trying to prove to yourself! No! I refuse!”

Palms still crackling with restrained explosions, Bakugou grinned viciously. “You don’t have a choice, Deku!” Thrusting his arms out behind him, he launched himself toward Izuku. Bracing himself, Izuku dodged to the side and grabbed the blond with tendrils of Ashido, spinning and hurling the boy away. Landing in a crouch, he snarled. “Not good enough! Let’s see what you’re really made of!”

Izuku looked around wildly but while there was what seemed like half the school watching, there wasn’t a single member of the faculty present. Not that any of them would have stopped Bakugou if they were, he realized sourly. He really was stuck with this situation, wasn’t he? If he ran now, he’d just be stuck dealing with Bakugou tomorrow or the next day or the day after. That being said? “I don’t want to fight, Bakugou!”

“I don’t care, you damn Deku!” Bakugou hurled himself toward the smaller boy again, throwing wild punches augmented with explosive power. “You’ve been walking around like you’re hot shit ever since the goo showed up. Like you’re better than me. Like you’re someone. Let me show you why you’re not!”

Scowling, Izuku twisted to the side and brought his arm up, clotheslining Bakugou and sending him bouncing across the pavement. "I really don't like swearing, Bakugou, but... for fuck's sake. Stop this before one of us gets hurt. Because I'm pretty sure that I'm stronger than you now. I can hurt you if I want to. I just don't want to."

Bakugou growled loudly at that. “Just like old times, eh, Deku? You’re out here looking down on me again. ‘Oh, I’m stronger than you, Bakugou.’ Pfft. You don’t want to hurt me? Well fuck, that makes one of us!”

As his opponent lunged at him again, Izuku took a page from Eri’s book and bent backward, spawning six spider legs so that he could scuttle away before straightening back up. Running his hand through his hair, Izuku huffed softly. “I’m not looking down on you, Bakugou! I’m just… why do you have to hurt people? How does that prove you better? How does that make you a hero? Heroes are supposed to save people, not hurt them!”

Throwing himself into an explosion propelled spin, Bakugou came flying at Izuku again. And then the tide of battle abruptly turned. "Bitch." A wave of sound slammed into the boy, hurling him away before he could reach Izuku. The blond hit a car hard, caving in the side before dropping to the pavement. He surged back to his feet with a snarl, only to be slammed into the car again by a second wave of sound. "Stay down."

Izuku looked to his right and let out a sigh of relief at the sight of Kyoukastra and an unfamiliar silver-haired girl. The girl had what was clearly animated hair, swirling around her body in thick tendrils as she glared at Bakugou, and suddenly Ashido’s words came back to him. Black Bolt and Medusa. The legendary Inhuman rulers from the turn of the twenty-first century. Kyoukastra and her girlfriend… were engineered from the DNA of Black Bolt and Medusa.

Holy shit.

Kyoukastra launched herself forward as Bakugou attempted to recover again. Grabbing him by the throat, she slammed him against the side of the poor car for a third time, and then a fourth time for good measure. When he continued to struggle, she pulled the door clean off the car and bent it around him, pinning his arms to his sides. Making her way back over to Izuku, she fished her cards out of her bag and shuffled through them before holding one out to Izuku.

‘Hope that guy has insurance.’

Yeah, with a quirk - no, a power - as destructive as Kyoukastra’s, that was probably a card she’d needed more than once in her life. Sighing, he pulled the smaller girl into a tight hug. “I’m so glad you’re here, Kyoukastra.” The violette went rigid and exploded into a blush, and Izuku yanked himself backward. “Sorry. I… sorry.”

Approaching them, the silver-haired girl snickered softly. “So you’re the boy that has my young prince all aflutter.” She offered her hand. “Amaquelin Reikilith.”

Izuku took her hand and shook it excitedly as he let his gaze sweep up and down over the silver-haired girl. Both her and Kyoukastra were in their school uniforms still, but Amaquelin had accessorized hers with a black mask that ran from her nose down into the neckline of her uniform. “Pleasure to meet you, Amaquelin. And I just think Kyoukastra is really neat. Sorry for hugging her. That was out of line.”

“Don’t be. Sorry. She’s very huggable, despite her aloof demeanor.” Reikilith’s eyes crinkled as she stared at Izuku. “And you can call me Reiko like my classmates if you want. Or Reikilith, since you insist on calling her Kyoukastra, evidently.”

Vibrating slightly in excitement, Izuku grinned widely. “I would love to call you Reikilith. That’s such a cool name!” Then he finally registered something she’d said and jerked in surprise. “Aflutter?”

Kyoukastra made frantic signs to Reikilith, who ignored all of them. “She hasn’t shut up about you since she met you. Well, so to speak.” If possible, Kyoukastra blushed even darker at that, burying her face in her hands. “Anyway, I’ve been very eager to meet you. You made quite the impression on Kyouka.”

“I feel like that was probably more my girlfriends than me, but… thanks I guess?” Izuku rubbed the back of his head before peering down at his hands. “Speaking of which… Bubblegum. It’s safe now. You can come back out.”

Vibrating faintly, Ashido spread down into a long sleeved shirt and spawned her head from the right cuff as she glared at Bakugou. “Ooh, I want to go kick him in the nuts again! I don’t like that boy! I don’t like him at all!”

Izuku put a calming hand on his arm and pink tendrils emerged from the black fabric, curling around his fingers. “Shh. Maybe… don’t antagonize the guy who already doesn’t like us?” As he rubbed his hand back and forth over his arm, he looked over at Kyoukastra and Reikilith. “Not that I don’t appreciate you being here. Really, I do. But why are you here? And, uh, how? Our schools let out at the same time and yours is a decent distance from here.”

“Magic dog.” It was a testament to the chaos of the situation that Izuku hadn’t noticed the unnaturally large bulldog until then. The dog let out a friendly woof and bumped his head against Izuku. Reikilith reached down to pet him. “This is Lockjaw. He’s been a companion of the Royal Family since Black Bolt’s reign. He’s an Inhuman who was turned into a dog by Terrigenesis. He can teleport himself and anyone touching him, so we asked him to teleport us to you.”

Huh. Well, that covered the ‘how’ rather nicely. As Reikilith continued to pet Lockjaw, Izuku eyed them uncertainly. “So if that’s basically… a man with a teleporting dog quirk? Isn’t treating him like a dog sort of dehumanizing and humiliating?”

Reikilith shrugged. “I thought so too at first, but evidently he’s into it.”

Considering that he was dating a blob of pink goo from outer space, Izuku probably wasn’t in a position to judge people… but that was weird, right? It felt weird. Izuku shrugged uncertainly. “Well, you picked a really good day to visit. So thanks. Now what?”

Looping her arm through Reikilith’s, Kyouka signed for a bit and then turned to her girlfriend expectantly. “Kyoukastra extends an invitation to join us for tea.” Reikilith chuckled softly. “Obviously, I’ll be holding up our end of the conversation.”

That prompted Kyoukastra to fish out a card. ‘She has jokes.’

“We would love to join you for tea! Oh! Can we bring someone?” Ashido giggled excitedly as she slowly migrated her head upward along Izuku’s arm to her customary spot on his shoulder. “Izuku has a not-girlfriend here at Aldera who’s honestly lovely. Izuku, you should date Mizu.”

Izuku sighed and shook his head in amusement. “I already have three girlfriends including you, Bubblegum. Just because we set a limit of four girls doesn’t necessarily mean that I need four girls.”

Leaning in, Reikilith winked. “You know who would make an excellent fourth girlfriend? Kyoukastra.”

As Kyoukastra opened her mouth and let out a silent scream, Izuku decided to follow her lead and blush brightly. “Well I’m very flattered but we did set a limit of Bubblegum plus three so we wouldn’t be able to date both Kyoukastra and you, and so-“

“Oh, you don’t need to date me.” Reikilith winked again. “Kyoukastra and I were literally made for each other, but that doesn’t mean we have to do everything together.” She rubbed her hands together, leaning in even closer. “If you kiss her, can I watch?”

That made Kyoukastra and Izuku look at each other before letting out silent screams together. From Izuku’s shoulder, Ashido clapped stubbby little tendrils together. “See, I told you that I could flirt with Kyouka! This is great! I take it back! Don’t date Mizu! Date Kyouka!”

Sighing, Izuku shook his head. “Listen, this is all a fairly private conversation that we don’t need to be having in front of my entire school. So yes, Bubblegum and I will join you for tea. No, Bubblegum, we’re not bringing Mizu. Because yes, Reikilith, we can discuss your… idea… when we get settled at the cafe. Does that work for everyone?”

Pulling away from him a bit, Ashido grinned widely at Izuku. “You know, you’re kinda hot when you take control like that. Maybe you really are a switch.”

Kyoukastra quaked with silent laughter even as her cheeks remained rosy. Looking down, she eyed her hand for a moment before nodding resolutely and holding it out to Izuku. He eyed it uncertainly. “But you won’t be able to communicate.” The violette shrugged lackadaisically before thrusting the hand at him more insistently. Summoning his courage, Izuku moved to stand beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist. “How about this?”

Hesitantly leaning into Izuku’s side, Kyoukastra thought for a moment before offering a thumbs up. Then she signed and Reikilith dutifully translated. “She finds this acceptable, yes. As made obvious by the silly little grin on her face.”

Izuku looked down to discover that yes, Kyoukastra was in fact smiling. When she realized she was being observed, it promptly evaporated and her normal vaguely bored expression returned. But Izuku had seen it. He knew. “Any cafe in particular? I’ve been out a few times with Mitsuki and Mizu, but I don’t really have a favorite.”

Lockjaw bumped his head against Izuku’s stomach as Reikilith continued to pet him. He woofed softly and suddenly they were… somewhere else. Somewhere significantly warmer. Izuku's long sleeves evaporated with a thought as Ashido shifted to imitating a lighter fabric for his shirt and pants. Peering out the window, the first thing he noticed was that the sun was higher in the sky… and then he noticed the tropical jungle. As his eyes widened, Reikilith smiled at him. “Our afternoon tea and her morning tea tend to line up. It’s 7:45 in the morning here.”

Jaw dropping, Izuku released Kyoukastra and moved over to press his hands against the window as he stared out at their surroundings. Then he looked back at Reikilith. “Where… are we?”

The door opened and a dark-skinned girl with vaguely froggy features walked in. “Welcome to the Golden City, liyaxokozela. Welcome to Wakanda.”

Chapter Text

“Welcome to Wakanda.”

Izuku let out a high pitched squeak. “You took me across international lines? You took me to another continent? I don’t even have a passport!”

The girl let out an amused ribbit before turning and walking away. “Discuss this later. The princess is waiting.”

As Kyoukastra nudged him gently, Izuku’s eyes - if possible - got even wider. “I’m meeting a princess?”

Reikilith raised a silver eyebrow at that. “Izuku. Kyouka is a prince. Princess. Whichever she feels like being any given day.”

“Yes, and while I’m sure I’ll freak out about that later? I’ve done karaoke with Kyoukastra. Bubblegum knows Kyoukastra. This is like… a completely different princess. Who I really want to make a good impression on because… princess!” Izuku looked down and then shook his head frantically. “Ashido, help!”

“Ryoukai!” Ashido promptly shifted into a crisp, neat three piece suit in with a black and green tribal pattern on it, along with a white dress shirt, a green tie, and loafers. Popping back up out of his shoulder, she studied him. “Is this appropriative? I feel like when in Wakanda, but I’ve been wrong before.”

The still nameless frog girl looked back over her shoulder at him and smirked ever so faintly. “I’m sure her highness will appreciate it. You have similar tastes in clothes.” Oh? “Now come with me.” She turned and walked away, leaving Izuku hurrying to keep up as Ashido disappeared back into his suit jacket. She navigated the hallways in silence, leading them what felt like clear across the building and into a large, airy lounge that looked out over what could only be the Golden City. “Your highness. Guests. Late as they may be.”

“An Inhuman is never late, nor is she early, she arrives precisely when she means to.” Looking up from the rather sumptuous spread of food in front of her, another Wakandan girl with her hair pulled up into a spiky ponytail smiled at them. “Kyouka. Reiko. Always a pleasure. And I see you’ve brought me someone new to talk with this time.”

Kyoukastra offered a casual wave, bumped her hip gently against Izuku’s, and then pulled away. Turning to Reikilith, she signed something and then turned to the girl - possibly the princess - expectantly. Reikilith flicked Kyoukastra with a tendril of hair as she translated. “We had a bit of an… encounter… that delayed us. My prince and I are going to go change. Please keep Izuku company while we’re gone. And try not to break him. Kyouka seems fond of him.”

Doing his best to remain calm, Izuku reached out toward Kyoukastra and managed to tug her sleeve gently. “You can’t just… throw me in a room with a princess and then leave me alone.”

Reaching up, Kyoukastra cupped his cheek for a moment with a smirk before pulling away. As she looped her arm through Reikilith’s, the silver-haired girl called out to him. “You’re never alone, Izuku.”

Huh. She had a point there.

The two girls departed and Izuku hesitantly approached the girl that he assumed was the princess. There were other girls in the room with them - including the frog girl - but she just had… a presence to her. And Izuku could see what their guide meant about fashion sense. She was wearing a very similar outfit to his, albeit slightly less formal: a blazer and slacks in black with a colorful pattern on them. Although with a physique like hers, fitted vests probably got... uncomfortable, to be polite. Stopping in front of her, he bowed as deeply as he could. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, your highness.”

“Likewise.” As Izuku straightened back up, he found the girl studying him curiously. “You are… Izuku Midoriya? Kyouka has told me very little about you, but I do at least know that much. Do you mind if I call you Izuku? Last names are a bit of a foreign concept around here. They’re quaint, but ultimately unnecessary if you think about it.”

“You can call me Izuku. Sure.” She patted the couch and Izuku hesitantly took a seat next to the girl. “And, uh, what do you call yourself, then? If last names aren’t necessary? Surely there’s more than one person with whatever your name is. How do you keep them straight?”

The girl flashed a bright smile at him. “I am Momo, daughter of Hawa, daughter of Xolani, son of Ayakha, son of Liyema, son of Mbulelo, son of Nkuli, son of T’Challa, son of T’Challa, son of T’Chaka.” She waved her hand. “And so forth and so on, but I don’t expect you to recognize names from before our proper emergence into the world.”

Izuku blinked slowly. “Isn’t that… a lot to say? Every time you introduce yourself?”

Throwing her head back, Momo laughed delightedly. “I don’t say that every time, Izuku. Normally I would introduce myself as Momo, daughter of Hawa, and that’s sufficient. I was just having a little fun and trying to impress you.” She leaned in toward him. “Are you impressed?”

“Uh, kinda yeah. On two different levels. First of all, you’re descended from the legendary T’Challa? That’s so… wait. You’re the princess. You kinda have to be.” Izuku thought for a moment and then shrugged. “Also, I can’t remember my great-grandparents’ names, so the fact that you can remember all those generations is actually really impressive.”

Momo laughed again before reaching forward and retrieving a bowl and a spoon. “Would you care to join me while we wait for our companions? Your Inhuman friends have informed me that my tea - my breakfast - and your afternoon tea are only superficially similar but…” She trailed off, gesturing to the table. “Tea!”

Chuckling softly, Izuku surveyed the table. Teapots were evidently a universal constant, or near enough, and so he grabbed a cup and poured himself some tea. It was darker than he expected - especially as someone who preferred green tea - and so he sipped it hesitantly before perking up. “Wow. This is really good.”

"So, I find myself curious and I would be grateful if you would indulge me." Momo scrutinized Izuku curiously. "What is it about you that's attracted the attention of Kyouka and Reiko? With all due respect, you seem very... plain."

Considering he'd been called considerably worse in his life, Izuku didn't take that as the insult that it sounded like. Instead, he just held up his arm and nudged Ashido gently with his mind. She grew out over his hand, forming her head and snapping her teeth at Momo warningly. Then her eyes widened. “I would be mad at you for calling my boyfriend ‘plain’ but… hey girl hey.”

Izuku shot an exasperated look down at Ashido. “Bubblegum, that is a princess.”

“What's a mob to a king? What’s a king to a goo?” Ashido winked up at Izuku as he sighed before turning back to Momo. “Besides, chocolate is one of my favorite things. And I like my women like I like my chocolate.” Momo arched an eyebrow at that. “Dark.”

Momo bit her lip for a moment but was unable to stifle the laugh that bubbled up out of her at that even as her entourage shifted uncomfortably, one girl openly glaring at Ashido for her impertinence. “A Klyntar. How fantastically rare. And quite the charmer, it appears. She’s bonded with you, I assume? Delightful. Well, what explains a lot. Although I dare say that you and Kyouka are going to make quite the odd pair if you choose to return her affection. She's rather bad for you, isn't she?”

Perking up, Izuku shook his head. "Actually, I'm not entirely certain that Kyoukastra's quirk is sound? Has anyone ever studied the Boltagons in depth?" Momo cocked her head to the side and Izuku hurried to explain. "She was able to use her quirk practically on top of me a little while ago, and it didn't affect Ashido at all. Was she purposefully excluding us from the effects? Is her quirk something other than sound manipulation? I'm not sure, but I'd love to find out."

Ashido slowly shifted her head upward along Izuku's arm until she retook her customary place on his right shoulder. "Don't know. Don't care. Besides, we're supposed to be talking about me right now, not Kyouka. I don't know how you can get distracted from me. I am pretty amazing, if I do say so myself. His suit beats your suit, Miss Panther. Sorry not sorry.”

That made Izuku look from Momo to Ashido and back. "Miss Panther? Are you... have you already assumed the mantle of Black Panther? Also, Bubblegum, please be a little more respectful. Just because we're now on first name terms with the princess of Wakanda doesn't make her any less a princess."

Momo held up a finger. "I only have a first name. Everyone is on first name terms with me."

"And you're still the princess." Izuku shook his head, reaching up to flick Ashido's tendril gently. "Please behave?"

Ashido rolled her eyes and leaned in toward him, bumping the side of her head against his. "Fine. For you? Anything."

"Thank you, Bubblegum." That earned him an odd look from Momo and Izuku shifted self-consciously on the couch. "What?"

Momo shook her head, a faint smile on her face. "You have a Klyntar named 'Bubblegum'? Now I've heard everything."

Turning his head, Izuku pressed a kiss to Ashido's cheek. "I’d like to think we have each other, to be honest. Her name is actually Ashido, but she's a pink goo so... Bubblegum. She can be a lot to handle sometimes, I'm not going to lie, but I love her so... yeah. We're inseparable."

Momo's eyes widened. "You're in love with a Klyntar? That seems... awkward."

"Nah, when he's old enough, I'm gonna tentacle the hell out of him. I'm gonna hentaicle him. It's gonna be great." Both Izumi and Momo erupted into blushes at Ashido's words, making her laugh. "But yeah, he loves me and I love him and one of these days, we're going to join completely and then we'll never be alone ever again."

Izuku looked over at Ashido with wide eyes. "You brought that up once. You still want to do that with me? You want to be with me forever?"

Ashido tilted her head to the side. “Do you really want to have this discussion in front of a bunch of strangers?”

Now that she mentioned it? Not really, no. Although Izuku wasn't going to lie, the idea did have some appeal to it. He was... pretty much nothing without Ashido and never wanted to be without her again in his life, at least if he had anything to say about it. Sure, he let Tooru and Himiko host her on occasion... and Anna that one time, and Ibara another. But she was his and he was hers and together they were awesome. Izuku never wanted that to end. He just had a few very reasonable questions that he wanted to ask. What would their combined form be like? Would they be a pink and green goo together? Or would Ashido weave herself into his very DNA and become part of his human form? Would he join the hive mind? How long would they live?

Those were all things he could find out another day, Izuku realized. For now, he had a princess to impress - two, once Kyoukastra returned - and a whole bunch of new people to meet. Speaking of strangers, though... the verdette looked around the room uncertainly. “Am I being rude for not introducing myself to your companions? I’m not really sure how this works.”

Momo laughed again before making a beckoning gesture. “You don’t need to introduce yourself to my entire circle if you don’t want to. It’s an assortment of girls from the different tribes of Wakanda. It gives me a more varied perspective on the country and on life than I’d have on my own.”

“That’s so intelligent of you! A wise ruler has to know their country inside and out. What a great way to get to know your people.” Izuku looked around with a bright smile and then faltered when the one particularly muscular girl continued to glare at him. Leaning in toward Momo, he gestured to her. “Can I introduce myself to anyone but her?”

Following his gaze, Momo snickered softly. “Alika, behave. You’re making him uncomfortable.” The girl continued to glare at him unflinchingly and Momo rose to her feet, making her way over to grab the girl and pull her over to where Izuku was sitting before retaking her seat. “Izuku. This is Alika, my advisor from the Jabari Tribe.”

Alika just kept glaring. “Charmed.”

Izuku smiled uncertainly. “Can I ask what your quirk is?” The girl’s fierce expression twitched and he shrugged. “Sorry, I just… really like quirks. And I bet yours is cool if you’ve got the attention of the princess of Wakanda.”

Alika shrugged back at him. “Maybe it’s just my winning personality.”

Chuckling, Izuku nodded in concession of her point. “Could be, maybe. Can I ask anyways?”

“Bayyanuwar.” Alika held out her hand and Izuku watched in fascination as Momo reached over, the palm of her hand sparkling brightly. Something gleaming silver dropped into Alika’s hand, and her entire arm promptly took on the same sheen. “I can take on the qualities of things that I touch.”

Izuku sucked in a breath excitedly. He could think of literally of dozens of heroic uses for a quirk like that. “That’s so cool, Alika! That’s an amazing quirk!” He looked around excitedly. “Does anyone else have a cool quirk?”

Their guide held up one slightly oversized hand. “Tsuyu, daughter of Ganma. I’m a frog, liyaxokozela.”

“That’s a cool quirk too, Tsuyu!” Izuku surveyed the room again. “I bet you all have such amazing and interesting quirks.”

A shy looking girl in an all blue outfit raised her hand before making a shoving gesture and manifesting a glowing blue energy barrier in front of herself. “Ikhaka. Which is to say, I’m Lerato and my quirk is Ikhaka. I make shields.”

Before Izuku could do more than let out a squeal - because that was a very cool quirk too - someone cleared their throat loudly. “Your highness.” Izuku looked over to find what was undoubtedly the palest girl in all of Wakanda standing in the doorway, one hand holding the back of Kyoukastra’s clothing and the other grabbing Reikilith. “They were making out in the hallway again.”

Pulling herself free, Kyouka smoothed her hands over the black and white yukata she was wearing over a casual shirt and pants. She shot an irritated look at the smugly grinning new arrival before signing something choppily. Reikilith let out a huff of laughter before translating. “My prince reminds you that you’ve done worse in considerably more public places.”

“I would dare you to prove it.” The girl released Reikilith as well and then glided across the room in a long green and gold gown that dragged on the floor behind her, the sun glinting off the majestic golden horned headpiece that she was wearing. Perching on the arm of the couch, she leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of Momo’s head. “Kærasta.”

Ashido inhaled sharply. “Midori. That is a Loki.”

That made Izuku shoot an odd look at his companion. “The horns kinda give it away, yeah.”

“Oh. Yeah. Right, right.”

Chapter Text

Letting out a throaty chuckle, the decidedly teenaged variant of Loki waggled her fingers playfully from where she was perched at Momo's right hand. Said right hand rose to rest on the Asgardian's thigh possessively. Izuku turned his head slightly toward Ashido. "Asgardians aren't human, right?"

Ashido nodded. "Technically Lokis are generally jötnar, which are even less human than Asgardians. Which aren't human to begin with. But jötnar aren't even, like, human passing. Why?"

Biting his lip to keep from laughing, Izuku nodded in Momo and Loki's direction. "Does that mean that Momo is a monsterfucker too?"

"She really is, though." While her mouth remained hidden behind her mask, Reikilith's eyes crinkled as she glanced over at the thoroughly affronted looking Momo. "We wouldn't know if you weren't so indiscreet about it."

Momo opened her mouth, closed it, thought for a moment, and then sighed. "Fair enough, I suppose. That being said... this is Koli, daughter of Laufey. My closest confidant and, well, my girlfriend."

Waving her stubby little arms, Ashido shook her head. "Wait wait wait. Asekala is a Lokajardottir. I get that Asgardian and jötnar aging is kinda fucky compared to humans, but I feel like anyone involved with Todoroki Enji should not also be involved with a teenage girl? Because that is a whack ass polycule by anyone's standards and someone somewhere in this mess needs to feel ashamed of themselves."

“Oh, you’ve met my other self? Or at a minimum, her daughter?” Koli eyed Izuku and Ashido appraisingly. “Does she really walk around as some sort of half and half creature without a glamour? Or is that an affectation of hers created solely for social media?”

Izuku frowned at that. “She’s not a ‘creature’, she’s a perfectly wonderful person. Can’t say human being for obvious reasons, but we’ve met her, yeah. And she’s really cool.”

Doing her best to look innocent, Koli raised her hands in surrender. “As you say. I simply would never. Discrimination is alive and well in many countries, and I do prefer to blend in.”

Looking up at her girlfriend, Momo arched one pitch black eyebrow inquiringly. “Is that why you’ve chosen to look like a colonizer here in Wakanda of all places?”

“With all due respect… what?” Koli stared down at Momo in incredulity. “I’m sorry, would you rather I…” Trailing off, she waved a hand over herself, creating a wave of motes of green magic as her skin darkened and her hair took on a slightly more wavy texture.

Licking her lips slowly, Momo grinned. “I wouldn’t object, no.” Koli shot her an odd look and her grin widened. “You’re a blue alien at heart, Koli. I’ll love you no matter what form you take for me.”

“I just think she likes colonizing the colonizer.” Alika did her best to look innocent as Momo shot her a look. “Did anyone hear that? I heard a noise but I couldn’t make it out.”

Momo stared at Alika for a few more seconds before huffing softly, even as Koli let out a chuckle and reverted to the form that she’d been wearing when she arrived. “I see. Well, far be it from me to deny the princess her predilections.” That earned her a look of her own from Momo, and a louder chuckle emerged. “Love you too, kærasta.”

Wanting to get things back on track - and not particularly interested in Momo’s love life and preferences - Izuku gestured to Koli. “So wait. Other self? Are you or are you not the Loki who’s involved with Todoroki?”

Koli shook her head. “Are you familiar with the multiverse, or at least the concept thereof?” Izuku nodded and she sighed. “Good, because revealing that it exists is a conversation that I don’t particularly enjoy having. Both Todoroki’s Loki and I are refugee variants from other realities. Separate and distinct from the Loki who made mischief in this reality some two hundred years ago. In addition, I’m from one reincarnation cycle further along than either this world’s Loki or my counterpart in Japan, hence my youth. This isn’t a guise I take on for Momo’s sake. I really am an adolescent jötnar.”

Izuku found himself scrambling for his backpack so that he could grab his notebook. “So question. Asgardians reincarnate. Does that mean there might be a third Loki walking around at some point?”

“That’s actually a good question. Asgard fell, but a decent number of her people lived on. Including Thor, as you should very well know.” Izuku let out a little squeal; Thor was awesome! Koli rolled her eyes and chuckled at his response. “Yes, yes, Thor. But no, I personally suspect that the continued existence of enough individuals is keeping the cycle from continuing onward in this reality. I have no way of proving it, however. With that said, I have no idea what sort of terms my counterpart and the native Asgardians parted on, so I keep my interactions with them to a minimum.”

Frowning, Izuku peered into the top of his bag and sighed. He really needed to start carrying all of his notebooks with him; Volume 7 would have really come in handy at the moment. “As of… I want to say 2019? Somewhere in there. Thor has had nothing but positive things to say about his brother. So you might receive a warmer welcome than you think?”

Koli’s eyebrows rose and then she shook her head. “With all due respect, I’m quite comfortable here in Wakanda and in Wakanda I shall remain. At least for as long as I retain the princess’s favor.”

Looking up at Koli, Momo hummed softly. “And if I wish to venture to New Asgard? Either for business or pleasure?”

Koli reached down and ran her fingers along the braids atop Momo’s head. “My place will be by your side for as long as you wish it, kærasta.”

Ashido let out a soft coo. “Aww. Gay.”

Chuckling, Izuku rubbed his knuckles against Ashido’s cheek for a moment before turning back to Momo and Koli. “Just out of curiosity? Why am I here? You all seem really cool and I really enjoy meeting new people, and learning about their quirks. But… I feel like I don’t belong here? You guys are clearly all friends or at least acquaintances, and I’m… me.”

Reikilith finally moved to join Izuku on the long curving couch, pointedly leaving a space that Kyoukastra silently slipped into. “Kyouka is trying to impress you. Are you impressed?” Kyoukastra frowned and signed something that made the silver-haired girl laugh. “Of course you aren’t. We believe you.”

Hesitantly raising his left arm, Izuku allowed the sulking Kyoukastra to tuck herself under it before responding to Reikilith. “I am! I just… what do I talk to the Princess of Wakanda about? Also, does Kyoukastra have a crown or a tiara or anything? Since she’s a… prince?” Kyoukastra nodded slowly. “How come I’ve never seen it? I would have been impressed by that. If you’re trying to impress me, you should have led with that.”

That made Kyoukastra’s expression turn thoughtful even as Reikilith chuckled softly. “I’m sure she’s taking that under advisement. As for what you can talk to Momo about… literally anything. She may be a princess but she’s still a teenager. And an aspiring hero. I don’t know, convince her to apply to UA with us or something.”

“I… wait, is that an option?” Wide eyed, Izuku turned back to Momo. “Momo! Do you want to experience the absolute pinnacle of heroic education? UA High School is the alma mater of some of the best heroes in Japan… the world, even!”

Ashido snickered softly and bumped her cheek playfully against Izuku’s. “All Might. He means All Might went to UA.”

Nodding rapidly, Izuku turned to his constant companion. “Bubblegum, All Might is literally the best hero in the world.”

Snorting, Ashido shook her head in amusement. “Sweetie, I know you’re more than a little biased and I sorta am too. But I feel like Thor might have something to say about that. I mean, he’s a god. What’s All Might to a god?”

Izuku crossed his arms over his chest with a stubborn expression. “Has Thor ever been uppercut by the full power of the American Dream?” Ashido giggled and shook her head. “I rest my case.” His attention shifted back to Momo. "In all seriousness, UA High School in Musutafu offers a top notch heroic education. It's where I'm applying for high school.” Kyoukastra hesitantly raised her hand. “You too?”

“And me and Asekala for that matter.” Reikilith nodded at Izuku’s ecstatic look. “Kyouka can write in five languages and I speak three, so we had options. We decided that UA was right for us. Well, assuming we make it past the entrance exam, that is.”

“UA really is the best. All of the teachers are either active or retired pros. And they spare no expense. Supposedly they have a massive rescue training facility and multiple training grounds to simulate heroics in different environments?” Izuku frowned, furrowing his brow. “They’re also notoriously secretive; graduates are sworn to silence about the specifics of the entrance exam and their education.” He thought for a moment and then rebounded, breaking back into an excited smile. “But they pump out amazing heroes, so it’s got to be a good school. Oh! And Ibara is going to apply with us.”

Momo raised an eyebrow but when Izuku didn’t elaborate, she leaned in and lowered her voice slightly. “Who is Ibara and why should I care where she’s going to school?”

Setting his notebook in Kyoukastra’s lap - the violette immediately opening it and peeking inside - Izuku dug his phone out of his bag and unlocked it. Flipping to the Photos app, he pulled up pictures of Ibara and Eri at his birthday party. “This is Ibara. I think I remember her mentioning that her father’s last name is Shiozaki, but she mainly goes by Ibara. She’s half-Talokanil and half-human. Mostly Talokanil, to be honest. But she has a quirk!”

Given the tone of Momo’s skin, it wasn’t as noticeable as it would have been with others, but Izuku watched as a blush spread over her cheeks. “Is that so?”

Koli sighed and chopped the top of Momo’s head gently. “Monsterfucker.”

Momo grinned up at Koli unrepentantly, her cheeks still flushed. “Blue is my favorite color.”

“Flattery will get you everywhere.” Koli tapped Momo’s nose playfully before turning to Izuku and the others. “So she could attend school with her Inhuman counterpart, a Klyntar host, and other… interesting… individuals. That does sound more enriching than continuing to work with private tutors. Momo, your thoughts?”

Turning back to Izuku's phone, Momo smirked faintly. "I can't say that I'm not interested in the possibility. Although I dare say that I would face hurdles that the rest of you do not." Izuku cocked his head to the side as he sat back, tucking his phone away, and Momo gestured down at herself. "I'm the crown princess of Wakanda, Izuku. If nothing else, I'm not a Japanese citizen."

Oh. Well, it wasn't like UA was a state-funded public high school or anything. Why would she have to be a Japanese citizen to attend it? And even if it was, surely exchange programs existed? Izuku had no idea whether that concept was literal and if so, who they would need to exchange to gain Momo's presence at the school... but it was certainly worth looking into, wasn't it? "You should look into exchange programs. I mean, you have your entourage of advisors from other tribes, right? What kind of new perspectives would you gain from studying abroad?"

Momo nodded agreeably. "A surprisingly persuasive argument, Izuku. And you are clearly very passionate about the virtues of UA High School. I will take this into consideration. We still have several months to go, don't we? I believe Reiko has mentioned that your schools run from April to March, and it is only September."

"I've never been to school with an exchange student; Aldera just... is nobody's idea of a good time. But I feel like you probably want to decide by January or December at the latest? And winter will be here before you know it." Izuku thought for a moment, and then gestured to Kyoukastra. "Also, you get to go to school with us?"

"I do believe we've covered that already, yes." Momo grinned and looked up at Koli. "Should I be arranging attendance for one or two if I go through with this?"

The question elicited a disgusted expression from Koli. "Kærasta, I love you dearly... but I would die before I set foot in a high school. Besides, do you really want me to be attending classes alongside my... what even would Asekala be considered to me?"

That made Momo chuckle. "I don't think any language that I speak is prepared to discuss your relationship to your multiversal variant's children, gimbiya."

Ashido let out another little coo at that. "Those two are so fucking cute. I love it." She turned to look over at Izuku. "You know, we could stand to be cuter. Midori and Bubblegum are great pet names, but they're not really... romantic."

"But they're our names for each other and that makes them romantic." Izuku gathered his courage and reached up to cup Ashido's cheek. "No matter who we become as a hero or who you end up being to anyone else you meet, you'll always be my Bubblegum."

Tears appeared at the corners of Ashido's massive, jagged eyes. "That's so fucking romantic, Midori! I think I'm going to cry!" She sniffled and wiped at her eye with a tendril. "See, this is why I fell in love with you. You're the best host a girl could ever hope for."

He tried his best? Izuku pulled Ashido in and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, which made her blush a bit before melting back into his shoulder. He looked over to find Momo watching him with a disbelieving expression on her face. "What? We told you that we were dating."

"Yes, well, I didn't expect the two of you to be so... normal... about it." Momo thought for a moment before shrugging. "I don't know what I expected, really, but it wasn't that."

Before their conversation could continue, there was a bright flash from outside the windows followed by the sharp crack of thunder. Shuddering, Koli promptly slid her way into Momo's lap wrapped herself around the smaller girl as best she could. At her girlfriend's questioning look, she sighed. "I'm not overly fond of thunder for wholly understandable reasons."

Displaying the superior strength of the Black Panther, Momo wrapped her arms around Koli and then effortlessly rose from her seat with her girlfriend in her arms. Making her way over to the window, she peered out uncertainly. "It's always sunny in the Golden City. Thanks to our weather manipulation technology, it only rains in the areas of Wakanda where we farm and ranch. And even then, only exactly as much as necessary."

There was another flash of lightning and then Momo twisted away as the window exploded inward. A third bolt of lightning stabbed down at the floor just inside the broken window, leaving behind a group of teenage girls. One wielding a hammer that looked suspiciously similar to the legendary Stormbreaker stepped forward. "Hey. Uh, this is a little awkward but do you mind if my friend talks to the green-haired boy for a minute?"

Chapter Text

"Hey. Uh, this is a little awkward but do you mind if my friend talks to the green-haired boy for a minute?"

Momo set Koli down and cautiously backed away, looking back at Izuku incredulously as she moved. “Izuku? Do you know these people?”

Furrowing his brow, Izuku regarded the motley group. There was a girl who looked a lot like Thor, but clearly she wasn’t because Thor was Thor. He definitely didn’t know her. There was a suit of pink and rose gold armor that had vaguely female outline to it. He was pretty sure that he would remember her, too. There was something vaguely familiar about the girl in a red and white leather outfit holding a shield, but Izuku couldn’t place her. And he was wholly and completely sure that if he’d ever met the fawn-haired girl in green sorcerer robes before, Ashido never would have let him forget it.

Although oh! He did recognize the fifth and final girl. Izuku perked up and waved to her. “You’re the hero who debuted in Musutafu a few months ago. Ant-Lady, right?”

The blonde tossed one of her long curly bangs before offering him a peace sign. “Yeah, I’m establishing a foothold for our agency in Musutafu. Melissa will join me next year when she graduates, Camie is a first year at Shiketsu right now, and then Mei and Ochako are applying for UA this fall.” She smiled brightly at Izuku. “So what, are you a fan or something? Because if you are, I’m pleased to make your ass-quaintance.”

“Likewise! Because you’re super hot!” Ashido peeled off of Izuku, forming her pink humanoid alter ego as Izuku rose to his feet to accommodate her. “Also hey, Ochako, hey! You didn’t tell me that you’d picked out a hero identity already.”

Peeling off her red leather cowl to reveal a brown bob and a familiar face, Uraraka Ochako thrust her shield into the air. “We’re going to be the Avengerz! With a Z! To get around those stupid capitalist trademark restrictions!”

Oh! It was the girl from Tapple! That’s why she seemed familiar! Izuku waved hello to the girl before looking back over at Kyoukastra and grimacing. Right, Ashido had been flirting with Uraraka after her success with Himiko but before Kyoukastra made her interest known. Which wasn’t hard, considering the latter was literally today. Still. Awkward. “So, uh…” Izuku rubbed the back of his head awkwardly. “Hi? You came to see me?”

The group of girls exchanged looks and then the sorceress turned and made a few gestures, knitting the window back together into an unbroken whole. "We were vibin' and Ochacha was like, totes ready to be fr srs with you, but you totally left her on read!"

Izuku pulled his phone out of his pocket again and checked the upper right corner. “Maybe I should have asked Momo for the WiFi password? Because I don’t have signal here in Wakanda.”

“Heh. Yeah. That makes sense.” Thor Girl set her hammer down and gestured to Uraraka. “We just… got a bit too enthusiastically supportive, I guess? We decided that if you wouldn’t respond, we’d make you respond and so we got dressed and came to find you so that Ochako could confess.”

Sighing, Izuku shook his head. Once again, everything going wrong was his fault. If it wasn't for him, these girls wouldn't have... basically invaded the Golden City and damaged Momo's lounge. Granted the one girl had in fact fixed the window, but it was the principle of the matter. "Do you want to... can I just go with you and you'll leave and everything will go back to normal?"

Kyoukastra reached up, slipping her hand into Izuku's before shaking her head sharply. Reikilith chuckled softly. "I dare say my prince disagrees with that plan."

"It's okay, Kyoukastra, honest. I just... I clearly need to talk to Uraraka and reach an understanding, and we're all sorta infringing on Momo's hospitality at the moment?" Izuku looked down at the violette before smiling reassuringly. "We can meet for tea tomorrow, right?"

Kyoukastra looked to Momo beseechingly, and the Wakandan did not disappoint. "There's plenty of tea and seats to go around. Why don't we all just take a deep breath and relax a little bit? Oh, and Armor Girl. Be less armored. There's really no need for that."

The front of the armor split open, revealing a girl with skin darker than Momo's and bright pink hair. Her yellow eyes surveyed the room cautiously and then she stepped out of her armor. "I mean... there's kind of a need for that. I have a damn sight quirk. How am I supposed to be on the Avengerz with a quirk like that?"

Personally, Izuku was rather curious about the girl's quirk. What was it? How did it work? Momo seemed more fascinated by the suit's pilot as a whole, though, blushing as her eyes swept up and down over the girl. "Goodness. I..." Koli snickered and elbowed the princess, prompting Momo to elbow her back before smiling widely at the girl. "it's a pleasure to meet you, miss. My name is Momo, daughter of Hawa."

"Hatsume Mei. Future CEO of Hatsume Industries." Hatsume leaned in toward Thor Girl. "Do you think that if I'm nice to her, she'll let me have some vibranium for my experiments?"

Koli let out another snicker. "With cleavage like that, she's liable to give you half of Wakanda."

Huffing, Momo elbowed her girlfriend in the side a bit more roughly. "I have a type, okay?" That made Alika snicker, and Momo shot a quelling look at the Jabari girl. "You be quiet. You're only here because I have that type."

Hatsume raised an eyebrow and Koli elaborated for the girl. "She likes them brainy and busty. Your gifts are obvious when it comes to the latter, and I'm assuming you built that armor yourself and are therefore eminently qualified on the former front as well."

Letting out a soft noise of comprehension, Hatsume nodded in response. "Yeah, the Iron Meiden has a ways to go, but she's mine and I love her." She cleared her throat, took a step toward Momo, and then offered a wide plastic smile. "Some vibranium would go a long way in getting her up to spec..."

"You and your suit wouldn't be allowed to leave Wakanda if I let you work with our vibranium." Momo considered that for a moment before perking up. "Would you like some vibranium?"

Koli sighed and swatted Momo gently. "Down girl." She gave Hatsume another long look before stepping past her to invade Thor Girl's personal space. "Momo can play with her. You're the one that I'm curious about."

Rubbing the back of her head sheepishly, Thor Girl nodded. "Yeah, I can get that. Since you're... either a huge Loki fangirl or possibly a Loki variant. And I look like Thor. Um, well, I'm not. A Thor, that is. I just fake it really well. My name is Melissa Shield. And this whole... look... is my inventions."

A curious noise escaped Koli as she slowly circled Shield, reaching down to curl her fingers around the handle of the blonde's hammer. She lifted it effortlessly, hefting it for a few seconds before setting it back down. "I see. Your inventions?"

"Mmhmm. That's Thunderstrike. All sorts of little goodies packed into a compact, thematic design. Weather control. Four dimensional engine. The power source for the biomechanical suit itself." Shield gestured down at herself. "It's modeled after Thor, but imbues me with superhuman strength, superhuman durability, and flight. Oh, and the belt protects me from psychic attacks. Which... you'd think I'd need to build that into a helmet or something, but somehow I managed to get it working? Basically, it's emitting an energy field that-"

"Stop talking." Koli finished her first circuit of Shield and made a complete second circle before coming to a stop in front of the blonde. "You amuse me. You are welcome here."

Momo raised an eyebrow at that. "She is?" She looked down at Hatsume, who had a hopeful expression on her face, before amending her statement. "Which is to say, you all are welcome to partake in the hospitality of Wakanda both now and in the future. Assuming, of course, you learn where the landing pad is. Just because you can repair my windows doesn't mean that you should be breaking them on a whim."

Looking around, the sorceress raised her hand hesitantly. "Yeah 'kay but like... I do like... a lotta stuff peeps tell me to like... not?? I mean, y'know. I can use magic so why not make it better?"

Ant-Lady pinched the bridge of her nose. "These are my future teammate, ladies and gentlemen." She looked around. "Gentleman? Wow, it is a damn estrogen ocean in here. Kid, you need to make some guy friends."

"I mean, Kyoukastra identifies as a prince so..." Izuku gestured down at the violette, who was still gripping his hand tightly. She shrugged and he looked back up at Mount Lady. "And... huh. Asekala. Himiko. Tooru. Anna. Ibara. I... don't really know any guys, do I? Oh! I know Kacchan!"

Ashido scoffed. "I'd really rather you didn't, to be honest." Pink tendrils emerged from Izuku's back, anchoring themselves on the couch and then yanking him back and down to sit beside Kyoukastra again. "Oh, and Ochako... sorry but I think we hit maximum capacity without you? Kyouka made a move and Izuku hasn't said yes, but he hasn't said no either."

Groaning, Uraraka hung her head. "Damn it. Because the whole 'our boyfriend' thing would have been really on brand for me." Izuku blinked uncertainly and she gestured to herself before turning so he could get a better look at her shield. "I'm the new Red Guardian! The champion of communism! The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains! They have a world to win!"

Eyes widening, Izuku turned to Ashido. "I... did you know about this side of her?" Ashido nodded. "And you were still flirting with her?"

"I mean, yeah? You've seen that ass. Besides, Himiko is way weirder." Izuku made a consternated noise before nodding in resignation. He adored Himiko, but she really was weird. Ashido dropped down into the spot next to him, still in her goo girl form, and eyed him appraisingly. “So. About that twenty-seven girlfriend thing.”

Izuku couldn’t help it, he threw his head back and laughed at the absurdity of it all. “Bubblegum. You’re ridiculous. We wouldn’t even have time to have twenty-seven girlfriends. What would you do with twenty-seven girlfriends?”

Rolling her eyes, Ashido returned her mass to Izuku’s body only to spread out from his left sleeve onto Kyoukastra instead. Wrapping around the slender girl, Ashido’s head emerged out of a tendril on Kyoukastra’s left shoulder. “Uh, be a big gay goo blob all over twenty-seven girls. Obviously. Keep up, Midori.”

On one hand, Izuku was barely managing to keep up with Tooru and Himiko. And now Kyoukastra was sorta quietly edging her way into their picture. Would he still be able to be a decent partner if he split his attention any further? Also, what about Eri and Houfuku? They had children to think about. And Eri at a minimum didn’t seem particularly thrilled by the idea of more moms either.

But on the other hand… Izuku really did enjoy the attention and affection of having more than one girlfriend. Call him greedy, but having more than one person look at him the way the girls did was really great. Not to mention that Ashido was clearly in favor and honestly he wasn’t sure if he was doing enough to make her happy. In compensation for all of the amazing things she was doing for him. So if he could get Eri on board… maybe not a ton more people. But maybe just one more person?

Wait. Izuku looked across Kyoukastra at where Reiklith was sitting beside her. Their eyes met and she raised an eyebrow. “What?”

Izuku gestured between them as Kyoukastra looked back and forth curiously. “I was just thinking that okay, maybe I could possibly manage one more girlfriend? And, uh, I feel like you have first dibs? Because of the whole prince and, uh, I guess you’re her consort? Thing?”

Reikilith’s one visible eye narrowed in consideration. “Does being in the relationship mean I don’t get to sit in the cuck chair?”

As Kyoukastra brought her free hand up to her face, Ashido erupted into raucous laughter. “Okay so this isn’t getting us any closer to resolving the Ochako situation but I don’t hate it? I feel like Reiko brings some much needed humor to this polycule.”

Izuku looked over at his girlfriend. “But you make jokes all the time.”

“Midori, I tease you. Reikilith makes jokes.” Ashido surveyed the pair for a moment before amending her statement. “Kyouka makes jokes too, but having to lean in and squint at her cards sorta kills the delivery.”

“Valid. But also, who’s joking?” Reikilith shook her head. “I want to watch them kiss. I want to watch them make out. And when they’re ready, I want to watch Izuku pull Kyouka’s hair and take her to Pound Town. If I’m going to be expected to participate equally, I’m not sure I want to say yes to this.”

Before Izuku could respond - because how did one even respond to something like that - Koli chuckled softly. “You humans are so amusing.” Taking Shield by the hand, the ravenette led her over to Momo, collecting her as well with her free hand before leading both girls back over to the couch. “I’m not going to lie, I’m fascinated by this conversation. Most humans are too self-conscious to discuss such things in public.”

Inhaling, Izuku resisted the urge to just… cover himself with Ashido and hide from the situation. “Okay. So. Uraraka. I definitely appreciate the interest because you’re very pretty and I’ve told Ashido as much. That being said, my situation is currently… complicated. If you guys want to stay and talk, I absolutely would love to get to know you better. But if you’re specifically here because you want to date me? Which, I mean, seems fake because I’m no catch. But I just need to make it clear that I have no idea what’s going on right now and you may walk away from this disappointed.”

Uraraka considered that for a bit before shrugging. “I live in capitalist Japan. Life is disappointment.” After thinking a bit longer, she made her way over to sit on Izuku’s opposite side. “Call me Ochako. Have you ever read Marx’s Communist Manifesto?”

Izuku blinked several times at the unexpected question and then shook his head slowly. “I have not, no.”

Reaching behind her back, Ochako pulled out a dog eared copy of the book in question. From where, Izuku didn’t know. He wasn’t sure he wanted to know, to be honest. “Would you like to? It’s fascinating.”

On one hand, not really? On the other, she really did have an amazing butt. And so Izuku gave in and shrugged uncertainly. “I mean, sure? I guess?”