Archive of Our Own ^beta

The 1-A class makes it all the way to 3-A.

The, in capital and italics, because though Shouta has had a few 1-A classes now, there are simply none quite like The class. He thinks if that title is threatened, if there's ever a class on or beyond the level to dethrone the current holders, then he'll hand in his retirement forms straight to Nedzu.

When Shouta first began teaching, the plan was only ever to take every year’s Heroics 1-A class for homeroom. Meaning every year, while his students move up, Shouta gets a new batch of students to work with.

Here's the thing about The class: that doesn't happen. Shouta goes with them to 2-A homeroom, and then to 3-A.

Mostly because they refused to let him go, threatening to all expel themselves and start again from 1-A if they're forced to change homeroom teachers now after everything.

It’s definitely the signs of an unhealthy attachment, perhaps, but Shouta also refuses to let them go, so he can’t exactly say shit. He definitely would’ve handed in his resignation papers if Nedzu dared to separate him from his class.

The class. His class.

Neither title will be taken away from those students, and he's pretty damn certain of that.

They make it to 3-A, and then to graduation. Most of them.

All of them make it alive, at least.

Minoru doesn't make it past 2-A, but Hitoshi fills in the spot like it was always meant to be his to begin with. All twenty students make it to graduation, and Shouta is both so incredibly proud and also incredibly terrified for what they have in store for the world.

He doesn't fear what the world has in store for his students, not anymore.

At least, not in terms of what kinds of villains will throw themselves at his students in future, what kinds of situations they'll face as heroes — no, his students have already dealt with so much by the time they make it into 2-A, that he doesn't worry about that at all.

He doesn't worry about their paths as heroes. In fact, he's more nervous for the rest of the world to finally start to understand just what his students are capable of.

No, he's more worried about their paths as just ordinary people, dealing with typical emotions and just standard human things. The situations they've dealt with as students means they are more experienced than most other Pro Heroes by the time they're even 20 years old in the field, but he does worry about how they will handle scenarios outside of hero work.

What they faced as students has made them incredibly strong, brave, extraordinary heroes.

But it's also made them traumatised kids. Fighting in a war they were too young to be in, and Shouta worries how such things will impact their future on a personal level.

There's a level of guilt, a level of responsibility, that Shouta can't bear to let go of.

So when they graduate, Shouta tells them to stay in touch, and he means it.

The class groupchat stays strong for a while. A few months, at least.

It begins to taper off as everyone gets busier, all of them figuring out where they're working, trying to establish their own agencies and goals. Every now and then, a message will come through: a request for team-ups at first, as they all move around and most of them aren't quite settled yet into specific areas.

As they start to settle, agencies knowing well who's around them, those requests taper off. They go through the Hero Network now, if they need to reach out beyond their usual teams.

The usual teams are something like this:

Denki, Eijirou, Mina, and Hanta establish their own agency together. Katsuki establishes his own agency too, but it's pretty much conjoined with that entire group anyway as they work together so often. Kyouka and Mezou join them often enough as well.

Momo creates her own agency with a couple of the students from 3-B, and they team up often enough with those from his class that there's hardly a division there, much to Sekijiro’s annoyance and Shouta's bemusement.

Tenya, Ochako, Izuku, and Shouto establish an agency as well. Momo and Tsuyu work with them most often. Sometimes, Katsuki will work with Shouto and Izuku — though it's a little less like working together as it is just challenging each other.

And Izuku basically teams up with everyone, beyond his class, beyond just the students at UA, beyond any kinds of ranks. It seems like every day, Shouta has a new article to read about Deku's latest team-up!

Rather than establishing an agency, some students end up working elsewhere; Tooru and Hitoshi end up working as underground heroes. Mashirao, Yuga, and Fumikage end up working with already established agencies.

With teams established and heroes settled, the groupchat changes to become the occasional screenshotted headline about another student, and for a few hours, it'll be a chorus of congratulations! to each other.

That tapers off eventually, too.

Probably because there's just so many headlines.

It's kind of easy to keep up with his former students when they're all over the damn news. All the goddamn time. It's overwhelming, actually. Shouta has to set aside time in his day now to catch up on all the headlines.

By their first year of debut, all his students are within the top 100 ranking. Their time as students has already built them a strong rapport amongst Japan's public. By the second year, most of them are in the top 50.

A few of them crack into the top 20: Momo and Ochako.

Izuku, Shouto, and Katsuki manage to get into the top 10.

Shouta is incredibly proud, and all too relieved. Despite All Might's retirement, and the movement of anti-heroism having risen, his students have somehow managed to change the narrative and gain the public's support and trust — and he's incredibly glad to see that society can understand the potential in them too.

Shouta doesn’t just see them in headlines, though. Sometimes, some of the students come by to see Eri.

He's adopted her now, having done so after The class graduated. It's logical, he tells everyone. After all, now that his Quirk has been restored, it is still the best match-up for Eri's.

He tells them that, even though Eri has learned enough control by now to be able to stop, and has been able to do so for a while. None of them call it out — at least, they're not brave enough to do so to his face.

Mirio and Izuku visit weekly, coming by Shouta's apartment with matching grins as they take her out on Friday afternoons. Lemillion is currently the number one, though it’s a precarious position with all the scores closing distance.

It's always bemusing, seeing both of them standing in his doorway, politely waiting for Eri to rush out with her bag packed. It's especially bemusing when he answers the door with his hair in messy braids, courtesy of Eri, and she'd bestowed a small clip with a sunflower on it to pin back some of the loose pieces.

He doesn't think he'll forget the sight of Izuku's eyes, wide and open and fearing death as he tries, desperately, to not laugh in Shouta's presence. Mirio does laugh, because he's never been one to fear Shouta. And he'll certainly never forget answering the door at night, Izuku and Mirio returning Eri, both of them with matching braids and clips in their hair too.

Mirio's clip is bright green, and has a rabbit on the end. Izuku's is bright yellow, with a big smiley face plastered on it.

But then, one Tuesday night, it's just Izuku at the door. He's come to say goodbye before he leaves for America.

Reports have been vague, because it seems like the request for Deku is for a rather well-kept secret mission.

"At least a month," Izuku tells him, crouched down and hugging Eri as she sniffles into his shirt.

Eri's emotional progression is quite frankly miraculous after everything she's been through, but ever since Mirio and Izuku started up their weekly visiting routine, she's never gone without seeing him. No matter what, no matter the mission or the injuries, Izuku and Mirio will always make sure they see her, even if they have to move the day around.

A month had turns two.

Two months turn into a year.

After Izuku realises he won’t be making it back to Japan, he takes up video-calling Shouta every couple of weeks, because Eri doesn’t yet have a phone that has such functions.

Shouta doesn't have many headlines about Deku to follow, not in Japanese, though sometimes Hizashi will come over with an American article pulled up on his phone and he'll translate it for Shouta and Eri.

Shouta doesn't have headlines or Izuku standing before him every week, but he still tries to keep an eye on Izuku. He's vibrant and bright, fitting in well for the first couple of months.

And then something happens. Izuku doesn't call as often, and when he does, the calls are only ever late at night for him, and early for them — not giving them nearly enough time before Shouta has to coax the phone from Eri's hands because she has school, and Izuku clearly needs some sleep.

Izuku's smile is no longer as wide for Shouta, but he makes sure it's even bigger for Eri, not letting her catch a sight of the weariness on his shoulders. Even though Shouta requests for Hizashi to look a little deeper into the news, and he does his own research when he has the time, there's still nothing he can find.

Something happens, but there's no headlines — there's just a very tired hero halfway across the world from Shouta, who always manages to cut the call before Shouta can open his mouth and ask what's really going on.

Shouta finds himself with Toshinori, spending a lot more time with him than he ever could have expected.

It's an interesting development.

Eri is the one to bring it up with a gasp to him one morning, setting her cup down.

"All Might would miss Izuku too, right?" She asks, frowning.

Shouta blinks into his coffee. He sees Toshinori in the halls, but their teaching schedules don't really line up this year. As it turns out, Toshinori doesn't tend to hover nearly as much when it's not his protegees in one of the classes — and, thankfully, Toshinori's teaching methods have improved well enough that Shouta doesn't feel the need to watch over his lessons either.

Toshinori had crossed his mind, back when he'd first heard the news that Izuku was going to work in America. Izuku has stepped out from All Might's shadow already all on his own, but it seems that he's still willingly following the path that All Might has previously laid out.

"Maybe," he offers, because he tries to be honest where he can with Eri without hurting her feelings — she's still young, and she's already dealt with so much. Shouta doesn't need to remind her of the reality of the world when she's been amongst the very worst of it.

"I should ask Mirio if he can invite All Might..." Eri hums to herself, and Shouta ducks his head as a small, fond smile makes its way onto his face.

And what Eri wants, Eri gets.

The next Friday, Mirio and Toshinori stand at Shouta's door.

And on a whim, a couple of Friday's later when they've come back with Eri, Shouta invites them both inside for a drink.

Toshinori can't really tolerate alcohol with his injuries, so he sticks to having apple juice with Eri. Still, Shouta can't say that he hates the company, and when Toshinori leaves, the darkness around his eyes seems to have brightened.

So that becomes a common thing for all of them now. Mirio takes Eri out privately, just by himself some weeks, but the weekly time with Toshinori becomes something of a routine. Even though Izuku isn't here with them, Shouta decides he'll still pin down this new change in his schedule as something he's caused.

Besides, it's good for Eri. It's evidently good for Toshinori, too, who's admitted to feeling lonely over the past couple of years — and it's undoubtedly only gotten worse without Izuku's presence.

And really, though Shouta won't admit it aloud, it's good for him too.

Katsuki loses a battle when he's twenty two.

He defeats the villain, but he is unable to save someone.

Many would call that winning, including Shouta himself, but he knows how Toshinori's teachings have influenced both Katsuki and Izuku: save to win. Win to save.

Izuku and Katsuki have seemingly taken this to heart, because they manage to follow this teaching admirably well.

Most heroes, by that age, have faced a loss of life in a battle. It's been an impressive measure on Katsuki's record that he hadn't yet, and it has been noticed by the media.

The Symbol of Victory, they call him, because his tenacity and personality are well-known attributes about him now. Dynamight has not lost a fight yet, and he has not lost anyone either.

It happens during school hours, but there's quiet murmurings from students and teachers alike that gives Shouta a small heads-up that something has happened with a former student.

It's Dynamight's first civilian casualty.

When Shouta reads the reports and watches the footage after school, he knows that there's nothing Katsuki could have done. There's photographs of him, plastered everywhere and attached to every fucking article, and it all makes Shouta's stomach twist in disgust.

She was trapped under rubble before Katsuki even made it to the scene. The fight dislodges some of it — there's very little Katsuki could have done to prevent this, because it's not his fault that the villain decided to trample over the debris.

Katsuki takes the villain down, but there is nothing that can be done for the girl. Katsuki frees her from the rubble, but then they're stuck waiting for the paramedics.

No matter how fast the paramedics would have been, Shouta knows there was nothing that could have been done for that little girl. Katsuki could only sit by her and talk to her and hold her hand.

The photographers and Katsuki could only do as much as each other in that moment — but Katsuki sat by the young girl and held her hand and talked to her, while the photographers and reporters just stood aside and took photos of this girl's last moments, just to try and get a shot of Katsuki.

They've blurred out the image of the young girl. But there, in high quality, is Katsuki with his head bowed and his fingers clenched around a charm that was previously pinned on the girl’s dress.

It's in the news cycle for too long.

Despite the media focusing on the statistic that Dynamight has a civilian, a small child, die in his battle — there's an outcry of support from the public. The images have touched their hearts, and they mourn along with Katsuki for this little girl and for the fact that there's nothing he could have done.

He's still their Symbol of Victory. But it is also a reminder that he is just a young man, and he is very much human too.

"How's he holding up?" Shouta asks Toshinori, when he next comes by.

Toshinori sighs, looking harrowed. "He's... upset."

Not exactly an emotion that's commonly known for Katsuki to display. He hasn't stopped working since the incident, but that's also the problem — he's working too much, now, throwing himself into as many battles. Trying to save as many lives as he can, like that will help him repent for the little girl’s life he couldn’t save.

His fellow heroes, his usual team-ups, trail him. They fight together more often than not, even though it does not seem like it's something Katsuki has actually agreed to.

Still, they don't leave even when his face is captured in photos with a sneer, and Katsuki doesn't actually abandon them either.

"He keeps her charm with him," Toshinori reveals softly, and Shouta lets a small, sad sigh escape.

Everyone remembers their first loss.

Most of them are just fortunate enough that it's not the front and centre of newspapers for days on end, with photographs and reminders and stupid, stupid statistics.

Shouta passes Toshinori a note, once Toshinori goes to leave. It's been folded and refolded perhaps more than a couple of times.

Inside, there's a list of names and locations. Offices that Shouta has visited over the years, different people he's spoken to, ones he knows that are good people. They'll help, if Katsuki will let them.

"Pass that onto him, will you?" Shouta asks, and though Toshinori is obviously curious about it, he pockets it without peeking at the contents — and Shouta does not fear that he will, either.

"I will," Toshinori promises.

"You don't need to say it's from me," Shouta says. He hasn't texted this information to Katsuki because he doesn't want Katsuki to feel pressured to respond. This way, at least, Katsuki can take the information and decide what he wants to do with it.

Toshinori's smile is small. "But he'll probably take it with more consideration if I mention it."

Shouta can't exactly argue it. In the end, he's not sure if his advice actually reaches Katsuki — for all he knows, Katsuki might have just sent the paper smouldering the moment he got his hands on it.

But over time, with each and every battle, Katsuki seems to shift back more into his usual self. His friends still team-up with him in battles, but now Katsuki's face is captured with amused smirks and his typical, well-known irritation is depicted rather than actual anger.

It will not be the first life that Katsuki loses, Shouta knows. It will not be his first loss.

But Katsuki's title of Symbol of Victory has been given for a reason, after all.

On the occasion, Shouta comes home to find Hitoshi on his couch.

Most of the time, Hitoshi just lets himself in. This time, though, Shouta had gone out to the shops for under an hour, and Eri had been the one to let him in.

"Coffee's on the table for you," Hitoshi says distractedly, engaged in a board game with Eri — who seems to magically have the tendency to win these kinds of games. Or rather, Shouta and Hitoshi are just lazy opponents who like to see her smile. She waves at him, and he gives her a small nod in greeting.

"Thanks," Shouta grunts out, placing down his bags and picking up the coffee. He'd meant to get one while he was out, but he'd gotten distracted as he caught the glimpse of a new headline report playing across a screen.

Hero Deku returning to work in Japan.

He's not sure if the same headline is the reason that Hitoshi is now in his house. Many things have brought Hitoshi to his home; missions, a request for help, boredom, or the need to be with someone and remind himself to breathe.

He carefully looks over Hitoshi as he sits down on his couch. He doesn't seem too haunted, like he's run here because of demons biting at his heels. He just seems tired, but with the workload he's taking on, Shouta has come to expect that.

"You staying for dinner?" Shouta asks eventually. If Hitoshi wants to tell him what brought him to Shouta's door, then he'll tell him in time.

"If you don't mind," Hitoshi replies, just to be polite, because they all know Shouta never minds.

There’s a common theme, he thinks, with people turning up at his door. There’s a heavy kind of loneliness they carry with them.

Shouta isn't exactly the best remedy for that — he's not very social, and he's tolerant of such things at best.

But still, he opens his door for the people that turn up.

Perhaps it's not as much loneliness as it is finding solidarity.

As Eri goes to wash her hands before dinner, Hitoshi speaks quietly as he packs away the game they were playing.

"It'll be good to have him back in the country," Hitoshi says, and neither of them require a name to know exactly who it is that Hitoshi is referring to. "It means a lot more work, and a lot more villains will go underground, but... it'll be good."

It's just how it is — with the display of strength and power and hope, there will always be forces rising up to oppose it. Izuku's presence is strong enough to deter it publically, but they'll just try and work more sneakily to get around such a renowned hero.

It also speaks of Deku's lasting impact, even though his career has really only just begun as a Pro. Izuku has been away for an entire year, yet he's still in the Top 20 ranking in Japan, and even though there's heroes like Lemillion and Hawks and all the other students from the 1-A class, Deku is just that formidable.

"When's he coming back?" Shouta asks, because he'd been meaning to check up on it after he got home anyway.

Hitoshi gives a small shrug. "It's being kept quiet, actually. Probably to stop the flood of crowds at the airport. Rumour is he's already heading back, though. So within the day, I wager."

Shouta feels himself raise an eyebrow. Izuku's been there for over an entire year, which is enough time to settle and create a routine in a new country. It seems very sudden, especially as there's no immediate danger in Japan for Izuku to return for.

"Something bring him back?" Shouta finds himself asking, even though he's not certain if Hitoshi will know the answer.

It seems like over the past few months, Izuku hasn't just been low on contact with Shouta. Hitoshi let his frustration slip a few weeks ago, annoyed that Izuku isn't listening to him about something. Toshinori's loneliness seems to only grow larger, even though it seems like his former students have taken to trying to keep him company as well.

Izuku, with more team-ups and friends under his belt than it seems there are people in this world, has been concerningly quiet lately. Something has happened, but no one seems to know what.

Hitoshi sighs.

"More like something made him leave," Hitoshi responds, but there's an edge to his tone that warns Shouta to be careful.

Eri walks back in, and it's clear that she's heard snippets of their conversation because she's watching them with open curiousity.

"Deku's coming back?" She asks, hopeful.

The edge in Hitoshi's voice softens completely, and he turns around to give Eri a smile. "Yeah, kiddo. He'll probably take a day to settle in, but I'm sure he'll be heading over to visit you first."

Eri is visibly excited about the news, but there's still concern there too, and she's not quite letting herself celebrate just yet. "Something happened in America?"

Hitoshi walks over to her and pats her on the head. She's growing quickly, because Shouta can still remember having to crouch down to get on her eye-level, but now he only needs to bend his knees to reach. "Yeah, we think so. We think he's a bit upset about it, so let's do our best to make him feel better once he's home, okay?"

Eri's hands clench into determined fists, and she nods. "Yeah!"

Hitoshi gives her a fist-bump, and then goes to wash his hands before he joins them for dinner.

Something has happened, but there’s no headlines that detail it, and so Shouta does not know what it is that has brought Izuku back home.

Izuku doesn't talk about it.

He visits, as Hitoshi said he would, the day after he arrives home. His return was somehow kept quiet, but there's been people staked near his apartment for a while now. There's about one hundred pictures of Izuku stepping out of the taxi the moment he returned, though he's managed to avoid getting his face captured.

The second Shouta gives him the approval to come by, Izuku is at his door. Eri throws open the door, and Izuku immediately grins and throws his arms open to catch her.

"You've grown so much, oh my god," Izuku says in awe, his voice thick, though he still swings her around easily in his arms.

He has to put Eri down, but she doesn't go far. She takes hold of his hand and pulls him into the apartment.

"Welcome home, problem child," Shouta says in greeting, and Izuku gives him a watery, sheepish smile.

There's a bruise around his eye, and some cuts near his jaw. It's a strange injury, and Shouta hasn't actually seen him injured in a long time now. 

He's too fast. Untouchable on the field. 

It makes Shouta pause as he looks over the injuries, but he supposes there's a chance Izuku got tied up in a bad mission, his last in that country. 

"Thank you," he replies. Then, a little quieter: "it's nice to be home."

Eri makes him sit down and starts to immediately talk, asking for stories — she's gotten some from Hizashi, but she doesn't point it out even as Izuku goes over some of the same ones she already knows about. Shouta joins them, placing down cups of tea for all of them.

Eri's so invested in his stories that she hardly drinks, and Izuku hardly gets the chance to until he manages to get Eri to talk about what she's been up to. Shouta sits and listens quietly, letting both of them catch up.

Izuku has a lot of stories, and his voice is clearly joyous as he talks about all the heroes and friends he met while over there, but he's careful to avoid talking about anything else.

"Deku," Eri says at one point, getting Izuku's attention. He's always attentive, making sure his attention is only ever on her when she's talking to him. "Are you... are you staying in Japan?"

"Yeah, I am," Izuku replies with a smile, and Eri beams.

Her mouth does open at one point, her emotions shifting into that same kind of concern she showed when she talked to Hitoshi, but she eventually presses her lips together and does not bring it up.

Shouta's curious too about what's led Izuku back here — about why he left America so suddenly. He thought that maybe Katsuki's incident would bring him back, but Izuku had been caught up in a cluster of villain attacks and hadn't made any indication he'd be heading back. It's been weeks since then.

"And you'll visit me every Friday, right?" Eri asks instead, and Izuku gives her a nod.

"Yeah, of course! I heard All Might has been coming over," he replies, and she smiles bashfully.

"We both missed you a lot," she admits, and Izuku sucks in a sharp breath and blinks repeatedly, trying to stop the tears before they start.

"I missed you a lot too," he replies, and he opens up his arms. She falls into them easily, as she always has. Keeping her close, he whispers into her hair, over and over: "I'm sorry, I'm home, I'm sorry."

It seems like neither of them are willing to separate from each other. Shouta's tired, and he has to get to marking, so he stands up and cleans up the mugs from the table.

"As long as you don't disturb her bedtime too much, you're welcome to stay the night," he tells Izuku as he passes by, and he doesn't give Izuku the chance to try and refute him as he walks into the kitchen.

He can still hear Izuku stammering, trying to work up a refusal, but Eri speaks — pleads for him to stay tonight.

And what Eri wants, Eri gets.

Tenya comes to U.A along with Tensei, one day.

They come together to present a seminar to the hero course students. Tensei has taken to doing it over the past couple of years, speaking to the young students about the very real consequences and injuries one can face in the field, and how to deal with that. He shows them that there's still pathways, that things don't stop just because they can no longer work on the field.

For a lot of his students, not being able to be a hero on the field is their greatest fear.

And all too easily, it can be a reality.

Tensei manages to construct his seminars in a way that leaves the students with a good reality-check about the risks and the costs of being a hero — but the next day, the students always arrive with so much more drive and passion than ever before.

The difference this year is that Tenya comes along, too.

"Ingenium," he greets with a small, hidden grin as Tenya steps back into the classroom of 1-A. He's not dressed in his hero costume, but the title leaves his classroom with no guesses as to who's just walked into their class.

"Aizawa-sensei," Tenya greets back with a bow, and Shouta almost snorts at him. He's tried to get Tenya to shake the habit, and he's successful most of the time, but it seems like the habit has come back now that Tenya is back on U.A grounds.

It does, however, help his students to fear him even more to see that a hero in the top 30 is showing him such respect.

And, after all, this class knows damn well about The class. They're both rightfully terrified and respectful of anyone from it.

"1-A, this is the former class president during his years at U.A. I don't think I need to tell you to listen to him," Shouta addresses the class, and then steps aside to let Tensei and Tenya take the room captive.

Tensei speaks first. Shouta's heard this before, but it's always interesting to see how the student's faces change as they are told a detailed description of Tensei's injuries and the subsequent cost of such.

However, when Tenya speaks, Shouta focuses his attention entirely on Tenya.

Tenya speaks about Tensei's injury as well, but he speaks about his emotions when he found out about the fight. His anger, his guilt, his desire for revenge. He doesn't sprinkle anything softly — there's no point in doing so, otherwise it won't get through to these students, and Tenya knows it. He’s been in their seats before, after all.

"I was your age when this happened, and I sought to go after Stain for hurting my brother," Tenya says factually, eyes carefully sweeping over the room like he's trying to find any student doubting his words. "And because of my desire for revenge, I almost lost my life."

They don't. They're not foolish enough to — not after hearing Tensei's story. They can understand where Tenya’s emotions come from.

Shouta thinks over Tenya's words. A lot has happened since Tensei's incident, and it takes him a moment to think back on the time that Tenya is recalling.

His eyes narrow.

Tenya takes a deep breath. "The only reason I did not die the night I found Hero Killer Stain was because my friends came to help me. They are the reason I am alive, but because of my foolish actions, they got hurt as well."

He'd never been told the details, frustratingly. He'd heard they'd had a run-in with Stain while working at their hero internships, but he'd been assured that Endeavour had handled the situation.

When Tenya says this, however, he is looking right at Shouta. There's an apologetic smile on his lips, and he only holds it for a moment before he moves on with the rest of his speech to the class.

The apology means there's certainly more to the story than he was told.

And knowing the people involved, he's sure that it's going to give him a headache.

Still, when Tensei and Tenya wrap up, Shouta leads them into the teacher's lounge as the lunch bell rings. Tenya's staying around anyway, granting Shouta a favour by helping him out in his 1-A heroics class by playing a 'villain' for them to fight against.

"So," he drawls out, taking a seat on the couch and gesturing for them to do the same. "What happened in Hosu?"

Tensei reaches up to pat Tenya's arm as he wheels by. Tenya doesn't seem too flustered by the questioning, meaning this is something he likely planned to reveal to Shouta anyway.

"Well, you see, it's not exactly like the official reports suggested..."

And Tenya tells him the story.

By the end of it, Shouta has his head in his hands, a headache making itself known just like he expected it to.

Fucking problem children.

"Iida, so help me god, if this class gives me half the grief that you, Bakugou, Todoroki, or Midoriya gave me— no, still give me, then I'm going to start charging my ensuing medical bills straight to you."

Tensei just laughs, and Tenya does not argue.

Jirou suffers an injury.

She is the first of his students to retire from full-time hero work. She still works part-time, but her Quirk has been impacted, and the lasting damage means she cannot operate at the same amount that she has been.

It's formidable, really. Usually, by the time heroes reach their mid-twenties, a few in their graduating class would have already left the line of work, or perhaps some have even died on the field.

But Jirou still works when she can, determined to continue in her passion. The easier workload just gives her time to explore other avenues now. For example, making and playing music.

She joins a band, and she puts the first live music-gig poster in the class groupchat.

Shouta sends the invitation forward to the rest of the teachers that personally know her, and then directly messages Hizashi and says you're coming with.

When the night comes, Shouta is in the corner of the pub with Hizashi, both of them seated at a table and nursing a drink. Snipe joins them soon after, as does Sekijiro.

The pub fills up quickly. Most of U.A's hero alumni from Jirou's year attend, all of them crowding up together close to the stage. There's a couple missing, likely stuck on active hero duty — Shouta can't account for Izuku or Todoroki from his own class, and from the numbers, there's a couple missing from Sekijiro's as well.

When Jirou performs, her friends cheer so loudly that Shouta thinks they could almost rival Hizashi. Shouta sips at his drink, and he's reminded of the concert they'd performed in their first year — providing hope and inspiration and comfort to the unease that had risen.

Some things truly do not change, no matter how many years go by.

Hizashi elbows him at one point, giving him a wide grin. "Your students really are rockin'."

Shouta smiles as he takes a sip from his drink. "Yeah. They are."

Jirou can't work full-time anymore as a hero, but what she's doing here is important, too.

And it's good to see so many of his students after so long. Not just in articles and paparazzi photographs and nightly news headlines — now, they're in front of him, all of them laughing and dancing and having fun.

It's well deserved, and Shouta sits back and enjoys the sight of it.

After Jirou finishes performing, a few of them end up wandering right near Shouta's table. The second they realise who's sitting at their table, there's a loud round of festive cheers, varying in intoxication levels.

It's good to catch up with the group of them, and lots of them are excited for the upcoming U.A Sports Festival — and, apparently, are on the lookout for who they'll place requests in for when it comes to internships.

And that's a strange thought, thinking that the heroes in front of him will become mentors of Shouta's current class.

Honestly, it's a little terrifying.

Everyone seems to be doing okay though, relatively. They're all still close with each other, and their smiles are still bright and their passion is still burning strongly. There's scars on some of them — some of them Shouta knows the cause of, most of them he doesn't.

Eijirou, who's had his arm thrown around Katsuki and is trying to convince him to do a round of shots, is the first to spot Jirou wandering over to them. He starts up another round of cheers, all of them congratulating Jirou on her band's performance.

When her eyes land on Shouta, there's a clearly remorseful expression across her face. Shouta stands for the first time tonight, making his way over to her.

He can see her injury better now. One of her earphone jacks has been sliced off entirely, and the other has been damaged as well. It'd been a brutal fight, and Jirou had won it despite her injuries.

He understands the type of emotions his presence must bring to her — he's a reminder of all her years dedicated to studying, a reminder of her goal to be a Pro Hero. Now, forcefully, that dream has been taken from her after just a few years.

"You did well," he praises, and he's not just talking about tonight's performance.

"Thank you," she says with a smile, and he thinks she understands. "It's... it's weird, not being out there full-time. But I... I don't regret anything, either. I'm really proud."

"You should be," he says with a nod. "I am."

Even under the darkened lights of the pub, Shouta can still catch the embarrassed flush of red across her cheeks.

"Yeah!" Denki cheers, throwing his arm around Jirou's shoulders. "We're so proud of you! You'll invite us to your next gig, right?"

"Oh, um, if you want to come," Jirou replies, and Denki ruffles a hand through her hair.

"Of course! Right guys?"

There's another resounding cheer, and Shouta supposes that he'll be seeing his former students a little more often now.

One Friday night, with Izuku, Mirio, and Toshinori in his home, Izuku seems nervous.

After a few weeks of being back in Japan, he thought that Izuku had improved enough that whatever had haunted him from America seems to have become less of a concern. But now Izuku's leg is bouncing up and down rapidly, clearly anxious, and Shouta can't quite think of what else might be making Izuku nervous like this.

"Um," Izuku says eventually. Interestingly, he glances at Mirio.

Mirio just smiles bright and wide at him, clearly in the know. "You can do it!"

"Yeah," Izuku breathes out, trying to use some of Mirio's encouragement. "Yeah, um. Okay. Um. So... so the billboard results for the hero rankings are about to be released in a couple of days, and..."

Toshinori, sitting beside Shouta, has gone very still.

Usually, the heroes in the top 10 find out their results a little earlier, just to guarantee that they'll be at the ceremony and make sure that they know the order to go up in.

Shouta thinks back to the last half-year ranking.

Mirio had come in first. Rumi second. Keigo third, climbing back up the ranks. Shouto fourth. Katsuki fifth. Momo eighth.

Izuku, despite not operating in Japan for some time, came twelfth. An impressive spot to hold, considering he had basically no points on his work in Japan — and a sign that the moment he'd return to Japan, his rank would drastically increase.

"Will you come to the ceremony?" Izuku asks them, eyes wide and earnest. "I've- I've got you tickets, if you want to. Um, I understand if you're busy though!"

It's happening, Shouta starts to realise. It's really happening.

He's been waiting for this to happen. He always knew it would.

But now it's finally here, right in front of him. The day has come that one of his problem children has taken the number one spot.

"Busy," Toshinori laughs as he repeats the word in disbelief, but it's watery and choked up. "What nonsense, my boy. Of course I will go."

Izuku beams.

And then he looks at Shouta.

Shouta looks at Eri, because — the ceremony can go for a while, and he'll need someone to look after her.

"I got a ticket for her too," Izuku says quietly, and Shouta finds himself smiling.

"Then I don't suppose why not," Shouta replies, and Eri squeals in delight, throwing her arms around Izuku — and then, excitedly, around Shouta.

So just a couple of nights later, Shouta finds himself ushered into a seat near the front of the ceremony.

Eri is on one side of him, Toshinori on his other. Beside Toshinori, Shouta spots Izuku's mother, who's already got a tissue pressed to her eyes. Toshinori laughs upon the sight and gives her a side-hug.

Shouta used to only ever watch these ceremonies on the television — or, if he was too tired, he'd just read the articles the following morning. Recently, it's become something of a tradition for the U.A teachers to gather around in the same space and watch the ceremony all together, cheering and drinking as they watch.

One of Shouta’s favourite memories is all of the teachers cheering and drinking as Shouto Todoroki had placed higher than his father.

This time, he'd gleefully had to turn them down, just to rub it in that he'd been invited to the ceremony. He'd been met with groans, because all the teachers knew exactly what that entailed, and it meant a lot of their betting pools had just dried up.

The lights dim, and the host begins to speak.

It's almost an U.A alumni sweep.

Tenth goes to Itsuka Kendo.

Ninth to Momo Yaoyorozu.

Eighth to Yu Takeyama.

Seventh to Nejire Hadou.

Sixth to Keigo Tamaki.

Fifth to Rumi Usagiyama.

Fourth to Shouto Todoroki.

Third to Katsuki Bakugou.

Second to Mirio Togata.

First to Izuku Midoriya.

Inko Midoriya is not the only one crying. Toshinori is sniffling beside him, bottom lip quivering with pride as he watches his successor finally take to the stage.

Eri is smiling the widest smile, waving to the stage as Izuku steps up.

Mirio gives a little wave back, having noticed. Izuku, despite knowing about this days before, still looks rather dazed as he walks up on stage. He comes back to it once the microphone is passed over to him.

He notices Eri too, somehow, amongst all the bright lights and cheering. He gives her a smile and a wave, and Eri almost jumps out of her seat to run to him. Shouta has to grab onto her elbow to make sure she doesn't try, even though he knows Izuku wouldn't mind in the slightest.

Still, this is his moment, and Shouta watches as Izuku licks his lips and takes a moment to start talking with the entire world listening. Shouta almost can't hear him over the sniffling beside him.

But as Izuku speaks his final words, the auditorium is silent, everyone listening with rapt attention.

"It's all right now," Izuku says, with a wide, watery smile.

Izuku turns to look at the rest of the heroes on stage with him, and then he looks out at the crowd. For a moment, his eyes linger on the spot where his invited guests sit.

And with a loud, ringing voice, he declares:

"Why? Because we are here."

Jirou was the first to step down from full-time hero work, but she is far from the last.

He comes across Mashirao in the hallways at U.A, just a day after he'd been told that his former student has taken up a teaching assistant position as part of his studies at university.

Mashirao is still on the hero roster for emergencies, but otherwise his focus has turned to his studies and to teaching. It'll be good for the students to learn from him, and he offers a new perspective as someone with a heteromorphic Quirk and incorporating it into his fighting style.

It's strange, at first, to share the teachers lounge with a former student of his. But Mashirao has always been easy to deal with, and his presence is a welcomed one amongst the rest of the teachers.

Mashirao's teaching style is a lot different to Shouta's, but it's also different than Shouta might have expected it to be. Mashirao is strict, and though he'll entertain the students messing around, he always makes them pay for it in their sessions.

It's not an injury that keeps Mashirao from hero work — at least, not one big one. It's just a change of passion as he's grown older.

Rikidou's is an injury. He retires, and he opens a bakery.

Those who can make it come to the opening, and occasionally Shouta runs into his former students when he decides to get something after work. Rikidou always tries to give it to him for free, but Shouta manages to always win the battle of payment — though Rikidou does manage to sneakily slip him extra pastries sometimes.

It always reminds him of the U.A dorms, which are now only in effect for any students that request to stay in them during their time at U.A. That's only one block, now — the rest are emergency shelters, or temporary housing for those in unfortunate circumstances. Still, whenever he has something from Rikidou's bakery, he's reminded of the time spent in the dorms.

It's not exactly like he misses those times. It's easier now. Better, safer, for all of them. There's no need for the dorms now, the students no longer on the receiving end of villain attacks, and Shouta is undoubtedly glad for that.

Still, there's something melancholic in his chest when he tastes the efforts of Rikidou's cooking.

Kouji steps down as a full-time hero as well. Now, Shouta scrolls through television channels and sees him on children's programs, sitting around his many animal friends and reading stories to the camera. He sees him on news channels, promoting animal welfare and sanctuaries that he's running.

Shouta donates, and he knows other former students of his do too. They even make appearances along with Kouji, helping to bring promotion and awareness to Kouji's work.

It's just how it is. Time passes by, and dreams and goals change.

All of his students graduated and became Pro Heroes, but over the years, they end up in different positions with different goals.

To Shouta, they'll always be the most admirable heroes. It's why he tries to support them, even in different lines of work. Their efforts have not gone to waste, and he respects all their passion and drive that might lead them elsewhere.

He wants them to know that it's okay to not remain a Pro Hero, if that's not what they want to do anymore. He knows his former students better than most ever will, and he's seen all their work and effort over the years. He wants them to make sure they understand that the time dedicated to their studies and years of heroism will never be a waste, even if they find themselves on other paths.

He thinks they understand. They reach out to him, sometimes, when they see him. A simple thank you, or some offering to buy him a drink, or to help with a class if he wants them to.

(And it's an offer that he always accepts. It's fun to see the horror on his current students' faces.)

Hizashi turns up at his door with an umbrella, and an amused tilt to his lips but sadness pulling his eyes down.

"The rain is fitting, I guess," Hizashi says when Shouta opens up the door for him.

Mirio and Nejire have taken Eri for the day, giving Shouta the time to go with Hizashi.

Shouta doesn't reply. He just picks up his own umbrella as they head out of Shouta's apartment building, pulling it up as rain drizzles down from the sky. It's quiet in the car, Hizashi's usually loud radio turned down to a low murmur.

Shouta knows the route all too well, blinking out at the window as he watches the scenery go by.

Some years, he runs into some of his students at the memorial. Sometimes, he comes across the handful of them that had been with Nemuri during her final moments.

Too young, Shouta is always reminded. His students were too young in that war.

He's forever grateful that somehow, his students had all made it out alive. But it did not, of course, come without loss — not without sacrifice.

His students wouldn't be here now if it wasn't for Nemuri. A lot of people wouldn't be. Nemuri laid down her life to save many, many others.

They walk through the memorial until they come to a familiar place. There, in front of them, is Nemuri Kayama.

Killed in action.

Hero and beloved teacher.

"So," he says, when he sees her name in greeting. Hizashi snorts at his tone, ducking his head. "The class finally had someone take out the number one spot. And, of course, it was the problem child."

Nemuri never got to find out about One for All, or that Izuku is All Might's successor. Shouta’s told her, but — well. He’s not sure how much she hears.

"All Might cried out of happiness," he tells her, because he's sure she'd be highly amused by that information. "It was distractingly loud, actually. I thought I was going to drown, between his and the Midoriyas' tears."

He tells her about Eri, too. Eri remembers her from her time in the U.A teacher dorms, but her memory is starting to wane. They do their best to keep Nemuri's memory alive, but some things are bound to be lost over time.

Next time, he tells her, he'll bring Eri along with them.

Yuuga's wedding invitation comes by mail.

Shouta supposes he only has himself to blame as he opens it up, because he should've known that Yuuga would add some kind of flair. Now there's glitter all over the floor, and all over Bastard who'd been weaving between his feet.

Eri loves it though, laughing as she spots Bastard shining under the lights. He'll have to wash the damn cat later, after he's managed to get most of it off his floor.

Half of the invitation is in French, but the important details are thankfully in Japanese.

Yuuga's engagement had been in the media a year back, and congratulations had flooded the old groupchat. It's a happy occasion, all of them excited for some news that isn't someone getting injured.

They're all invited, and Shouta soon finds himself at a venue which is, naturally, dazzling. More like blinding, but Eri is so excited that she's jumping around, and Shouta can't find himself to be grumpy.

It's strange, almost, seeing all his former students dressed up in suits and looking so grown-up. They all coo over Eri, those who haven't seen her in a while remarking on how big she's grown, on how nice she looks in her dress that Nejire has helped pick out for her.

The wedding is an interesting mix of traditional Japanese, as well as more European elements. Yuuga waits at the altar for his bride to head down the aisle, with Izuku by his side as one of his best men.

Yuuga's partner is someone he met on a mission, he's heard. A civilian that he rescued, and they ended up in a whirlwind romance. They've been together for five years.

It's a very happy occasion.

It's great to see his students celebrate it. Despite everything, despite Yuuga's position at U.A and his association with All for One, all of his students have shown up and are genuinely happy during the occasion and are happy for Yuuga.

Shouta expects that after this, he'll be receiving a few more engagement notifications and wedding invitations. He knows that some of them are in long-term relationships — some with each other, which is amusing and years in the making. Some are with other heroes they've worked with, and some, like Yuuga, are with civilians. Some seem to have no interest in it at all.

Those that have an indication of wanting to date, but currently aren't, are likely just too busy to date at the moment. But he notices some of them staying suspiciously close to each other, glances and touches they're trying to keep subtle.

Interesting indeed. He will definitely be asking Izuku about his thoughts on Shouto when he's around next.

It's getting harder to fluster Izuku, when it used to be so delightfully easy, so Shouta will take any opportunity that he can to do so nowadays.

A few months later, Yuuga has two announcements:

Firstly, he is retiring.

Secondly, and this is the important part of his announcement, the part he's incredibly excited to share with all of them: his wife is pregnant.

Shouta goes to visit them after Yuuga's baby girl is born, bringing Eri along with him and a present from them both.

Yuuga laughs tearfully, passing his baby over to Shouta to hold despite Shouta's very sudden and acute panic at having to unexpectedly handle a small child.

"Ah, if our little minou wishes to be a hero, then we will know exactly where to send her!"

Shouta just looks down at the little baby in his arms. She's looking up at him with big blue eyes, bubbling with laughter. Shouta can't help but smile softly down at her.

In his arms, right now, is the sign that his former student made it. He made it, and despite everything, he is happy and raising a child and he will be a great father. Yuuga is happy, and he has a family, and Shouta's former students are well and truly growing up.

He taps the baby on her nose, grinning as she tries to take hold of his fingers.

He looks up to Yuuga, and then he says: "please, for my sanity, do not."

Hitoshi comes over before Izuku.

Shouta decides to do some prodding, because he's curious.

"So, what's going on between Midoriya and Todoroki?" Shouta asks, and Hitoshi snorts.

"Told them they weren't being subtle," he remarks, shaking his head as he properly sits up from where he's been lying down on the couch. "They're not... officially anything, really. Izuku doesn't think he's in the right mindset."

Shouta hums, thinking it over. That's strange, because he knows what Izuku is like — he's selfless, all too caring, and seems to have his head screwed on right still. He wouldn't think that Izuku wasn't ready for a relationship, but he supposes there's plenty of factors that go into it that he's not privy to.

Hitoshi looks around, just to make sure Eri suddenly won't materialise in the apartment even though she's at school.

"When Izuku came back to Japan, he... uh," Hitoshi winces, face pulling in contortion as he stops himself and rethinks his words. He's not looking at Shouta as he speaks, clearly omitting some level of detail. "He stayed with Todoroki. Like, in his house. He moved out for a couple years, but I think they're back together in the same place."

Shouta feels his eyebrows twitch. "How long was he in the house with Todoroki after coming back?"

"Uhh..." Hitoshi trails off, thinking over his answer. "A few months."

This, Shouta had never known.

Izuku would have had the funding easily to secure his own place. He would've stayed with his mother, if he somehow couldn't get one. This information leaves Shouta with a lot more questions than answers.

Whatever happened in America meant that when Izuku came back to Japan, he needed someone by his side in such a way that he had to stay with them.

Shouta's stomach turns over.

Hitoshi is clearly being careful of Izuku's privacy, not revealing too much about the situation.

And Shouta — Shouta's curiousity has essentially been killed. He's not too sure he wants to know what caused Izuku to react in such a way anymore.

"Well," Shouta eventually says. "I hope it works out for them."

"Yeah," Hitoshi breathes out in agreement. "We hope it does too."

Now that Izuku has reached the number one spot, he does not ever seem to move from it.

The second to fourth spots go between Mirio, Shouto, and Katsuki with each of the ranking announcements. At one point, Shouto and Katsuki are equally tied for points, and they end up sharing the second spot. Katsuki is not pleased about it, and Shouto very visibly just smirks at him up on the stage and elbows him in the side good-naturedly.

Katsuki doesn't swear at him on stage, so he doesn't mind that much.

Eri starts at U.A.

She's not in the hero course, because she's always been more interested in other aspects than fighting. She wants to save people, but she does not ever want to be involved in fighting — so she takes the general course, with the intention to go into a field that will suit her Quirk. Still, it's strange seeing her in the hallways once more — this time grown, this time as a student.

She still looks so young. It's strange, because Shouta ever so clearly remembers The class in these rooms. But now they're out living their own established lives, achieving so much more than Shouta could have ever hoped for them.

Izuku cries when he sees her in the uniform, which always manages to set Eri off too. Shouta just sighs and moves the box of tissues in front of them while Mirio just laughs and laughs.

Toshinori isn't with them today, unable to reschedule a specialist appointment. Taking care of his health, properly, has done wonders for him.

As the night creeps closer, Izuku receives a call. He steps out of the room to take it once he sees the name on his screen, his eyebrows furrowing as he looks at it.

It's not unusual for Izuku to receive calls, from friends or from hero agencies or from police. He'll take the urgent ones, sometimes out the door immediately, sometimes pulling Mirio along with him.

This call is strange though, because Shouta's caught a reaction he doesn't often see on Izuku: he looks troubled.

When he comes back into the room, he shoves his phone into his pocket, and he does not remove his hands from inside the jacket material. He looks tired, suddenly. Worn down.

"There's something I have to deal with," he says with a sigh.

Shouta can't imagine what the hell it is he'll have to deal with if it's got him reacting like this.

"Do you want some help?" Mirio asks him, clearly having caught Izuku's strange reactions as well.

"No," Izuku shakes his head. "Thanks, but it's alright. It's not a hero thing."

"Help doesn't just extend only to hero things," Mirio gently points out. Izuku just sends him a small smile.

"Yeah, I know. Thanks, Mirio," Izuku says, and then he walks out of the apartment after saying goodbye to Eri for the day.

"He looked upset," Eri states, arms folding as she stares unhappily at the door. She's getting a little bolder now — still impossibly kind and sweet, but she's definitely getting a bit of an edge. Hizashi likes to tell him that it's his fault for that, because she's just mirroring the person she admires most.

"He did, didn't he?" Mirio placates. "But you know him, he'll be okay. We'll make sure of it."

"Yeah," Eri replies with a determined nod, always so passionate about helping. "We will!"

Shouta ruffles her hair.

"Alright Mirio, if you're staying around, then come help with dinner."

"Yes, sir!"

"Don't call me that."

Hitoshi forwards him an article the next day.

Pro Hero Deku: hero or victim? A look into a previous relationship.

Shouta's stomach drops. He knows immediately it's not about Shouto — his relationship with the media is hardly cordial, keeping them at a careful, cold distance, not giving them the chance to snoop into his private life.

He scrolls through the article, mouth souring as he immediately sees the contents inside. There's photos of Izuku, right under the headline, caught up in private, domestic moments with someone else. He looks younger, not as bulked up as he currently is, not as scarred. These are from a few years ago.

Paparazzi shots make up most of the photo carousel, images taken at a distance of Izuku on a balcony with someone beside him, both of them wrapped up with each other. Holding hands over a restaurant table, tucked away in the corner, unaware of the camera. From the scenery, Shouta can tell these are from America.

There's a few shots taken from the perspective of someone else, someone intimate — Izuku standing in the kitchen with an oversized hoodie and some shorts on. A photo across from a table, taken of Izuku laughing. Selfies with both of them, Izuku smiling into the camera.

Initially, the article states, Izuku's boyfriend reached out to the media to try and publicise their relationship. They keep the man's name anonymous, and blur him out of any photographs. They do not want to bring the man any attention, they state, despite publishing the damn article anyway and revealing an aspect of Izuku's life he's managed to keep private for so long.

Shouta thinks the media must have been paid off until now, to keep those photos private from the papers. Maybe from Izuku, maybe from the hero commission. They didn't need their rising symbol of hope to encounter any difficulties on his path.

Inside the article text, the reporter states that the ex-boyfriend had tried to spin them a story. Stating that though hero Deku is so beloved and kind, behind closed doors there is a nastier picture.

There was no evidence to support this, the writer says. Of course, this does not discredit a claim. We began to research Deku's time in America...

They create a timeline. Photos, videos, all sorts that they can get their hands on, detailing Izuku's fights.

And there, amongst them, are dated pictures of Izuku. Some where he's clutching his arm, or his ribs, when a previous fight showed that he had not been injured or even hit. He's too fast to be injured in such a way.

Near the end of the timeline, with an added note that the ex-boyfriend tried to state this was the time he'd broken up with Izuku, there are some final pictures taken of Izuku heading out of the apartment. Some in the airport, his head ducked down, heading back home.

Despite his head being down, and a mask on his face, some photos have been snapped of Izuku as he goes through security. There's injuries to his face, ones that could not have come about from the fights he was involved in. They point them out, bright red circles clearly drawing attention to the bruising and cuts over his body.

Shouta has seen those injuries before. They weren't as bad, two days worth of healing doing wonders, but he remembers them. 

He remembers seeing them that day that Izuku stepped back into his apartment, and he had just thought it was a mission gone wrong. 

His stomach twists, and he hates that he's been unaware of this for so long.

Some hero fights are not made public, the writer acknowledges. While the case could have been that Deku acquired these injuries during such a fight, we looked into medical reports...

Shouta's fingers clench a little tighter around his phone. They delved into Izuku's private medical records, all just to write this story.

And so, the writer concludes that though the ex-boyfriend had tried to paint the picture one way, it is all too likely that Izuku was on the receiving end of a domestic abuse situation.

Shouta exits out of the article, and he presses his fingers to his eyes.

Fuck.

Though the article had — at least — not gone with the story that Izuku's ex-boyfriend tried to sell to them, this is still a gross invasion of privacy.

He remembers Izuku's face yesterday as he picked up the call, and he has no doubt that it's connected to the article that's just been published. His heart twists, and his fingers clench. Fucking parasites.

Within an hour, the article is taken down.

In its place, there is a new headline.

We apologise to Pro Hero Deku.

Like an apology will do anything, now. It's already made its way onto social media, and it's already circulating. It's already trending, screenshots and evidence of the article now forever on the internet for everyone to see.

Shouta can imagine that Izuku is already overwhelmed enough, likely dealing with constant calls from his friends and other heroes and reporters. Izuku's a lot friendlier with the reporters overall, but it's suspiciously quiet over the day. Izuku comes out in public once, but he only gives a quick nod to the reporters all stationed outside the agency before he vanishes, off to help in a fight a few streets away.

It's like that, for the next few days. Izuku does not stop to talk to the media — he just throws himself entirely into fights, taking down villains with quick and almost terrifying efficiency. Usually he's more approachable, open to discussion with the villains, but it's clear that Izuku does not want to be caught photographed any more than he already has been.

Izuku also isn't giving anyone the chance to work with him. He's getting involved in fights all on his own, wrapping up the problem likely before any hero can even start to make their way over to the scene.

Friday morning, a press conference from Pro Hero Deku is announced.

Shouta's stuck in classes, so he catches up on lunch break, reading a summary of the events.

Izuku had stood before a room of reporters. Shouto, Ochako, Tenya, Katsuki, Mirio, and Toshinori had stood by his side. There are reports that the rest of the class as well as other heroes, who'd been able to make it, had also been in the crowd or just outside the building, ready to support the number one hero.

Izuku has announced that yes, he is a victim of domestic violence in a relationship. But, like the article first published insinuated, there is no "or". There is just "both": Izuku is a victim, but he is also, most importantly, still a hero.

Along with the rest of the heroes at his side, they have established a non-for-profit organisation, which will donate funds towards domestic violence charities, as well as build shelters and create resources.

There's a different article headline that catches Shouta's attention, and he clicks on it.

Dynamight unleashes on reporters.

Shouta lets the video play without even bothering to read the reporter's article.

Izuku looks to be handling the hungry media with grace. He's standing at the microphones unwavering, a polite smile still on his face, even as he's almost blinded by the flashes from cameras. He's answering questions as best as he can, but he's not letting them overstep and become too personal.

Yes, it was an ongoing situation. Yes, he was with that partner for some time. No, he is not ashamed of it. No, he will not be pressing charges against the reporters who published the article. No, he will not be pressing charges against his ex at this time, but he may reconsider it. No, sorry, he will not answer that. Yes, he will go into more details about the non-for-profit organisation.

Some of the reporters are still too sharp, teeth snapping, trying to get something more controversial for their headlines. One of them is relentless, constantly shouting questions that are definitely overstepping. When it becomes too much, Katsuki's fingers brush against Izuku's elbow and he gently pulls him back before he sneers at the reporter pushing too much, too far, and unleashes verbal abuse into the microphone.

The video ends after that.

That afternoon, just like every other Friday, Izuku stands at his door with Mirio and Toshinori.

Mirio has his arm slung around Izuku's shoulder comfortingly. Mirio had sent a text to Shouta earlier, asking if perhaps it would be okay if they could stay in Shouta's apartment with Eri, if Shouta doesn't mind. They'll be smart enough to not bring any reporters to Shouta's doorstep, so he doesn't even hesitate to approve.

Shouta opens up the door and steps aside, letting all three of them into his apartment. He amuses himself with the thought that right now, he has three number one heroes in his apartment — a thought that, many years ago, would have been quite frankly ridiculous. Not to mention having an adopted kid.

But here they are, all of them grinning as they see Eri. Izuku holds her a little tighter than usual. She's too big now to properly pick up, but it doesn't stop Izuku from swinging her around with a hug before he has to set her down.

Eri's hands smooth over Izuku's cheeks, thumb brushing right under his eyes. "Are you okay, Deku?"

He places his own palms over her hands and gives her a sturdy nod. "I am, Eri. I have a lot of help and support. It was a long time ago, anyway."

Stupid hero, always trying to put on a brave face, always trying to make sure no one worries about him. It's not an excuse he'd ever let anyone else in his life get away with, yet he'll try and use it for himself.

"Maybe," Eri says thoughtfully, her head tilting slightly. "It doesn't matter how long ago it was, especially if it's come back like this."

Izuku's in a room of people that understand trauma. People that have all lived with it, and have felt the effects of it for so long. Izuku realises it, because he gives a sheepish smile and hums with something like agreement.

"Yeah, but... I've heard a lot of stories, and a lot of comments already, about my situation helping people deal with their own," Izuku says. "So... even though it's out in the open now, it's not so bad. Some good has at least come of it."

"You inspire people," Eri replies, and her hands slowly fall from Izuku's face. "Everyday. No matter what. You give them hope."

"Oh gods," Izuku mutters, looking up at the ceiling to try and starve off some tears. "I think Kacchan's going to set off an explosion in my face if I cry anymore today."

"But these are different tears, right?" Eri questions, though she sounds worried in case they're not.

Izuku laughs, putting his elbow over his eyes for a moment. "Yeah. Yeah, Eri. These are different tears."

"Good," she laughs. "Because Kouta would kick my ass if he found out I made his favourite hero upset."

"Stop it," he whispers, laughing because they all know exactly what she's doing.

"Hm," Shouta hums, getting Izuku's attention. "She's telling the truth, why stop her?"

Izuku just groans, defeated. Mirio ruffles a hand through his hair.

"Alright kiddo," Mirio says, addressing Eri and taking mercy on Izuku. "Let's go beat the number one's hero in your latest game you were telling me about."

Izuku is dragged into Eri's room with Mirio, and then it's just Toshinori and Shouta standing together.

"I assume the reporters who posted that article have been dealt with?" Shouta asks lowly, and Toshinori gives him a small, sad smile.

"Indeed."

"And Izuku's piece of shit ex?"

Toshinori's eyebrows raise slightly at Shouta's cold tone, but Shouta knows that they have a shared anger about this situation.

"He's... going to be dealt with," Toshinori says carefully. "Izuku has never wanted his name leaked, and unfortunately taking legal action against him will ensure that it's revealed. Understandably, the legal proceedings will take a lot of time, and he is... unsure of if he wants to commit such an effort to that aspect of his past. It will reopen a lot of old wounds."

"Mhm," Shouta responds, because he understands. The justice system can be a nightmare to deal with — it will help that Izuku is the number one hero in terms of how it goes through the system, but the public exposure will be a nightmare. He doesn't blame Izuku for wanting to keep it all quiet.

"Undoubtedly, the name will be leaked at some point," Toshinori says quietly. "It's just a matter of time before that happens. For now, the best thing we can do is make sure Izuku remembers the people around him."

"Oh, I'm sure no one will let him forget," Shouta says, folding his arms.

Toshinori gives him a knowing glance.

"No," Toshinori says. "I'm sure we won't."

Izuku does leave Japan, here and there.

Sometimes, it's a special request for his presence in another country. They never last for more than a few days, as Izuku only stays around long enough to finish the mission before he heads back home.

Sometimes, he reveals to Shouta and Eri, it's a personal trip to Otheon. He makes it every few months.

Occasionally, at the same time Izuku is in Otheon, Shouto is also absent from the news — so he can only assume that's not exactly a coincidence.

On one such trip, Katsuki is also absent from the news. He comes back with a new charm, dangling with the one he still carries around. Izuku does too, and when he catches Eri looking at it, he excitedly explains that it was gifted by a friend's little sister.

It becomes something of a routine — except one time, when Izuku is meant to leave for Otheon, he's spotted walking around the streets of Japan with one well-known pilot, Rody Soul, and the man's younger siblings. Shouto and Katsuki walk with him, Katsuki with the girl sitting on his shoulders and laughing as she reaches up towards the sky.

Shouta knows quite a bit about Otheon — at the time, like now, he'd gotten most of his information through headlines and live news reports. From Izuku becoming a wanted murderer, to the Humarise organisation threatening to end the world, to the subsequent saving of the day.

He knows Izuku was on the run during his time in Otheon, and he knows that there's something in Otheon that keeps him going back. It's interesting, seeing the evidence in those photographs — and no doubt there's a story behind the trouble they'd all encountered there, especially if Shouto and Katsuki are with them too.

When he comes around next, Mirio elbows Izuku in the side. "Next time, introduce us to your friends! How'd you meet them?"

"I do not want to know what kind of trouble you all encountered to meet them," Shouta cuts in, and Izuku immediately goes red, which means the trouble that Shouta probably imagines is nothing compared to the reality.

"Um," Izuku laughs nervously. "I'll, uh, bring them 'round next time?"

"Good!" Mirio and Eri both cheer.

"As long as you're not wanted for mass murder again, then sure."

After all, Izuku would be hard-pressed to cause as much strife to Shouta as he did in his first year at U.A.

The class has graduated.

Now, some of them are top heroes. Now, some of them are walking down different paths, with new goals and aspirations and careers.

Shouta’s had many classes over his years, but he’s never quite had one like The class. His class.

He reads about their victories and losses in headlines. He receives texts for meet-ups and more and more wedding invitations. He sends invitations out for Eri’s graduation from U.A.

His students have grown well, and he is so unbelievably proud.

It’s been years. So much time since they moved from 1-A and up to 3-A, taking him along with them.

But even after all this time, just as they refuse to let go of him, Shouta refuses to let go of them.

Stay in touch, he told them.

And, well, The class has always been the very definition of plus ultra.