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After slightly more than a year out of high school and officially employed at Ryuukyuu's agency, Ochako's pay as a sidekick was already more than decent, according to her.
She had been living by herself since her first year of high school, when her parents couldn't afford to send her too much money, so Ochako had learned how to budget long ago.
That was why she was able to send some money to her parents as soon as she had found a place near the agency.
She was beyond happy to be able to support them from the get go. Even if what she was sending wasn't too much, Ochako was proud of herself because it was a big step in order to get to her goal of giving them a comfortable life.
Between rent, groceries, bills, and sending money to her parents, Ochako didn't have too much money for unnecessary expenses. Most of what was left she saved for emergencies or for her eventual agency if she ever decided to open one.
Despite not swimming in luxury, Ochako had a handful of dresses and accessories for special occasions. A couple of them had been gifts from her friends but the one laying on her bed was a recent purchase.
It was a simple, ankle length, pastel pink dress that she had bought for the occasion.
Ryuukyuu's agency had been invited to a gala for some hero awards. Ochako's boss couldn't go and she had sent her with Nejire as representatives of the agency. It was a minor event so Tsuyu had decided to join Ryuukyuu at work to help cover the absence of the heroes attending the gala.
Ochako got out of the shower and readied herself to go out. Once the preparations were done, she got into the taxi that Ryuukyuu had sent to her house and she gave the address to the driver.
Nejire wasn't there yet but, fortunately, Mina arrived at the same time as Ochako.
The two women greeted each other and they started chatting about their jobs and their latest adventures.
When they entered the room, Mina told her that she wanted to go towards Bakugou and Kirishima.
Ochako was more than happy to chat with her friendly classmate, even if he was always accompanied by Bakugou. The two of them had been a couple since their last year of high school and they had opened the Dyna-Riot agency together soon after their graduation.
Bakugou's parents had helped with the initial funding but the efficiency of the hero duo got them to be already well on their way to paying off their loans. They had a sizable amount of employees in their various departments.
They were usually too busy to attend events like that, so Ochako hadn't managed to chat with them about it yet.
"Eijirou texted me saying they are already here. They should be near those tables!" Mina pointed towards the back of the room.
Kirishima was easy to spot in a crowd, between his brightly red hair and his growth spurt in their second year.
They headed in his direction and they soon saw Bakugou standing next to him while talking to a man with a head full of green curls and a suit in the same shade.
"Do you know him?" Ochako asked Mina before they were in hearing range of the trio.
"Never seen him before, but that suit seems to be too tight in all of the right spots!" Mina's reply was accompanied by a wiggling eyebrow.
Between the comment and the gesture, Ochako was half amused, half embarrassed and she let out a small chuckle while her face reddened slightly.
Bakugou saw them coming and the stranger turned around to see who had arrived. Ochako was delighted to see that the man was gorgeous from the front too. He had a sweet smile, lovely freckles, and eyes as green as his hair.
"Nerd. These are Pink Cheeks and Raccoon Eyes. Extras, this is Deku." Bakugou's introduction was predictably rude.
"Hey, don't be an asshole!" Mina chided.
"Forgive Bakugou here. He was raised by wolves." Ochako teased.
"I'm used to him. We've known each other for a long while. I'm Izuku Midoriya." He introduced himself by offering his hand.
Neither Mina nor Ochako said anything about the strange introduction and they each shook his hand: "Ashido Mina!"
"Uraraka Ochako, it's a pleasure to meet you!"
"The pleasure is all mine! I knew that you were friends with Kacchan but I still can't believe I'm meeting Pinky and Uravity!" He replied excitedly.
"Are you a fan? Also, who's Kacchan?" Mina asked curiously.
"Tch. Nerd's a fan of almost every single hero in the world." Bakugou teased.
"Kacchan isn't totally wrong," Midoriya agreed sheepishly, "but, as his classmates, I've always kept an eye on you! As soon as you dropped a meteor storm on him, I was immediately a fan, Uravity-san."
Mina widened her eyes. "As much as I love people praising Ochako, I need you to back up for a second, Midoriya-san."
"Please call me Izuku, Pinky-san. You too, Uravity-san!" He interrupted
"Only if you do the same!" Mina wasn't bothered by his forwardness.
Ochako saw his discomfort and tried to meet him halfway: "At least drop the honorifics!"
Midoriya ('Izuku, I guess') nodded and Mina went back to her previous thought: "We got sidetracked. You called 'The God Explosion Murderer Dynamight' Kacchan?! And you lived?"
Midoriya laughed genuinely and Mina gave Ochako a knowing wink, fully aware that he was making a positive impression.
"Sorry, old habits die hard." Midoriya didn't seem to be too apologetic.
"Sometimes he calls him Kacchan even at the agency. Kat's always grumbling about it. Says it's unprofessional." Kirishima teased both of them.
Midoriya seemed to side with Bakugou: "Because it is! You are my bosses! I'm trying to call him by his hero name but the nickname comes naturally."
"So you work for them?" Ochako seemed to gather this much.
"I do. I recently came back to Japan after a handful of years and Kac- I mean Dynamight, offered me a place in the investigative squad of his agency.
Not that he couldn't do it himself, I'm sure you know how smart he is, but I love the job and he gets to focus on villain apprehension."
Ochako was surprised by it: "You are telling me that Bakugou trusts you enough to delegate part of his duties to you?! When we were doing group projects back in high school, he always looked over (and usually changed) everyone else's parts!"
"Yeah, that sounds like him. He did go over some of our work a couple of times." Midoriya downplayed his skill.
"Only a couple of times? You must be crazy smart, then!" Ochako praised. She was proud to see a blush creeping up on his face.
"Thank you," he almost stuttered, "but I am not as interesting as you.
You are trying for a mixed rescue/villain apprehension career, right?
I've watched all of your fights that have been filmed but I bet there's a ton I don't know about you!
Like, I know how well you meshed Gunhead's fighting style with Ryuukyuu's and with appropriate use of your quirk. At the same time, last week, when you arrested that massive villain, it was clear that it was a move you came up with on your own but the fluidity spoke of mastery of your own body and it showed a lot of practice behind it.
Also, yesterday when I watched your efforts after the earthquake down near Osaka, I loved your approach in minimizing both time consumed for each single rescue and the risk of further collapses.
How do you manage to juggle being so proficient with these two aspects of hero work? You must be really dedicated!"
Ochako tried to avoid laughing but the mirth in her voice still came through her reply: "You sure talk a lot!"
"Yeah, sorry, I know." He seemed dejected and Ochako hurried to correct her mistake: "No no, I'm sorry, I didn't mean it in a bad way! I really like talkative people!
I was just a little bit embarrassed because most of your speech was about praising me. I'm not used to compliments."
His smile came back. "Totally deserved praise. You are an amazing hero!"
Ochako had been too busy talking with Midoriya, so she had missed that Mina had dragged the other two heroes a little further away to let Ochako befriend Midoriya. However, they were still in hearing range of the conversation because Bakugou made a fake gagging noise, when Izuku complimented her.
Mina sent him a glare but Ochako pretended not to notice.
She resumed the conversation with Midoriya without acknowledging the interruption.
"You are such a flatterer!"
"I'm really not!" He complained, "I would really enjoy hearing you talk about your work and your experiences!"
Ochako decided to bite the bullet: "Tomorrow I have a night patrol, let's grab a coffee together beforehand, so we can get to know each other a little bit."
The meaning of her offer was abundantly clear and he immediately caught on, based on how much he started to blush. "I'd - I'd like that," he stuttered.
The moment was again interrupted by Bakugou. "The nerds are flirting. Disgusting."
"Weren't you top of your class academically?" Midoriya asked at the same time as Ochako shot back with a "Don't you still go to sleep at 8.30, nerd?"
"Shut up, asshole.
And you, Deku! We gotta go. Ponytail and Ears have arrived and I wanna get over that meeting as soon as possible."
He started dragging Midoriya towards the entrance and Kirishima followed the two of them, waving to Ochako and Mina: "I'll probably be back while the two of them talk with Yaomomo. The conversation between Izuku and her will be a nightmare."
Ochako was about to reply, before Bakugou yelled: "I'll text you Deku's number, Pink Cheeks!"
As soon as the three of them were out of earshot, Mina turned to Ochako with the widest grin: "Damn, girl! You work fast! Already got a date!"
Ochako scratched her neck. "Yeah, he was too much my type to not shoot my shot. Smart, cute, shy, and he seemed kind too."
"He was also thicc as fuck." Mina added shamelessly.
"Yeah, that too. He was very well built. Something that I look for in a partner." Ochako conceded.
Mina nodded. "We kinda have to. Or we'd snap them in half during sex.
Did you know that Tooru accidentally broke her partner's arm? She said she was even being careful!"
Ochako laughed. "It's Tooru, what did you expect?! It was bound to happen."
"Are you talking about Hagakure breaking her date's leg during sex?" Kirishima joined them.
"I thought it was his arm?" Mina both stated and asked.
Kirishima shrugged. "Dunno, still hilarious anyway. Poor dude didn't know she's jacked. Jirou said he's fine now."
"You and Kyouka are lucky to have landed with our classmates. You don't have to worry about being delicate." Mina huffed in half fake envy.
"Soon enough you'll both find someone who won't be crushed by your thighs!" Kirishima encouraged her.
"Speaking of… Heard you got a date with Izuku!" He smiled at Ochako.
"I think so? We didn't define it and Bakugou still has to send me his number." Ochako shrugged.
"Wait, let me text you." Kirishima said while picking up his phone.
"What can you tell us about him?" Mina was curious.
"Nothing much. He loves to talk but he rarely says anything about himself and Kat only told me the basics.
They were childhood friends before Izuku moved to another country. He came back here less than a month ago and Katsuki immediately offered him a job saying, and I quote, 'Dumbass will get in trouble otherwise.'
You both know it means he cares about him." Kirishima finished with a smile.
"He said that Bakugou gave him investigative work. Can't believe that he'd delegate something like that." Ochako believed what Izuku had told her but she was still surprised by it.
"Kat used to be in charge of that but, as soon as Midoriya started working for us, he gave him a ton of work. In the beginning I was surprised by it but then I saw how good Izuku is and I understood why Kat thought he could handle it." Kirishima explained.
"I thought you were the only one he trusted like that. Aren't you jealous?" Mina asked teasingly.
"Nah, they are like brothers. They call each other's parents Uncle and Aunt.
Midoriya is a kind soul but he takes no shit from Kat, who, in return, knows quickly what he means when he starts mumbling.
Half the time they seem to be at each other's throat. The other half they work together seamlessly."
"Ah, yes. That sounds a lot like two siblings." Mina agreed.
"But enough about him," she wanted to change the topic, "tell us everything about running an agency!"
They spent the rest of the evening listening to Kirishima and asking him questions. Ochako was eager to learn about it so she enjoyed their chat.
She spotted Midoriya every now and then and they waved or smiled at each other every time.
When Nejire arrived, Bakugou immediately introduced her to Midoriya. His plan was to leave the two chatterboxes alone while he took a break. He joined Kirishima while saying: "Hearing Deku fanboying over every hero gets annoying very quickly."
The segment of speeches and awards passed by very quickly and Ochako went home soon after that.
She texted Midoriya and they set up a place and time for their date.
Ochako went to the café right on time wearing a sundress and some flats. She saw that Izuku was already sitting at a booth wearing casual clothes; the red sneakers were kind of an eyesore but the trousers and the short-sleeved button-up shirt were miles better. Especially considering that the shirt let her see his massive biceps.
One of his hands had a criss-cross of scars and, even if Ochako was curious about it, she tried to avoid staring at it.
As soon as he saw her, Izuku got up and hugged her as a greeting.
He noticed her surprised expression and he immediately apologized: "I'm really sorry! I didn't want to make you uncomfortable!"
Ochako tried to reassure him. "Don't worry, it was just unexpected!"
"Sorry again. I'm still not used to using Japan's customs again."
Ochako was used to people who loved physical contact. Nejire, Mina, Tooru, and Kirishima were all very friendly and didn't spare their hugs. "It's really not a problem! A lot of my friends are huggers." She brushed off his concern.
"To be fair, I wasn't one until I left Japan." He admitted.
A server came to ask for their orders and they both went for cool drinks with an amount of sugar that was only acceptable every once in a while.
"Yesterday you mentioned not living in Japan too. Where have you been?"
"I lived in the US for basically four years. I went there immediately after middle school and I left a handful of weeks ago. My family is Japanese but my father started working in the US when I was still a toddler. My mom and I finally joined him ten years later.
They both still live there but I wanted to come back to Japan, so here I am!" He explained with a smile.
A handful of strange behaviors were now easier to understand for Ochako. "Oh, that's why you immediately wanted us to call you by your first name!"
"Exactly, going from everyone calling me Izuku to Midoriya-san feels weird." He admitted.
Another server arrived with their drinks and the two pastries that Izuku had ordered. They both thanked him and Ochako took a sip of her refreshing drink before resuming their talk.
"The opposite would have been weird for me. Did you get used to it quickly?"
"Yes, surprisingly so. I became friends with a lot of people and I lived in a city that had a nice blend of cultures, so I didn't feel too left out despite having a Japanese accent.
Speaking of accents, you are from the Kansai region, right? But you still went to Yuuei instead of Shiketsu?"
"The exam for Yuuei was a couple of weeks earlier than Shiketsu's so, when I passed it, I withdrew my other application.
Also, I'm from the Mie prefecture so I would have had to look for a place to stay anyway." Ochako had actually passed the tests for another couple of hero schools but they had been just a backup plan.
"Wait, you lived alone while attending a hero school?" Midoriya was surprised.
"For the most part, yes.
Yuuei offers rooms for third year students who live too far from Mustafu."
"Kacchan lived near Yuuei so I bet he didn't even know about the dorms.
I'm sure it was a bonding experience for you and your classmates!"
"Not really. I was the only hero student who accepted. Everyone else kept staying in the places they had been living in since their first year. I accepted only because it was cheaper than what I already had."
Ochako had enjoyed living in what was basically a studio apartment on school property, no commuting time and quality housing for a modest price.
Even if she'd had to deal with Hatsume's explosive personality.
"I had a neighbor who basically lived in the support labs so I was mainly by myself."
Midoriya nodded as if she knew Hatsume's habits. "I get it. Some support students are just like that. A family friend would sometimes isolate herself in the labs for a week straight when she was occupied with a project."
"Yeah, she'd probably get along well with my friend then." Ochako was scared of what would happen if Hatsume met someone capable of keeping up with her. Probably world domination.
"Let's hope they never meet, then." Izuku shivered, probably getting to the same conclusion as her.
He took a bite of his pastry and offered her the intact one. "Wow, these are incredibly sweet! Feel free to take the other one. I'm pretty sure you'll need the energy on your shift."
Ochako could count on one hand the times when she'd refused food and most of them included a nauseous stomach after overusing her quirk. However, she didn't want to be rude. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely! I wouldn't have asked if I didn't want you to have it!" He confirmed while pushing the plate towards her.
"I know heroes consume a lot of energy while on the job!
Wait, was I insensitive? After seeing your drink I assumed you could eat something like this. But maybe due to your quirk, you prefer to get liquid and more digestible food, since it has some kind of side effects on your stomach." His excited tone quickly turned into speculative and fast paced.
"Hold on a second. I don't think I ever mentioned or showed my stomach ache to the media. How did you know? Bakugou?" Ochako stopped him and his mumbling.
"No, I think it was your second year's sports festival? You had to prevent a fake building from falling and you clutched your stomach for a while before passing out.
Most people probably thought it was just exhaustion but I could see that there was more to it."
Ochako was impressed: "The building falling was in our second year, yes. And you spotted my reaction? What a keen eye!"
"Thank you, I've always loved analyzing quirks. Especially amazing and complex ones like yours!" He complimented, "I bet training it must have been hard!"
Ochako shivered, remembering Aizawa's hell training during the summer camps: "You're right. Bringing out its potential was a pain.
Overusing my quirk gives me heavy nausea and you can guess what happens after that.
Luckily, I was also physically tired during the second event of the sports festival so I passed out before feeling too sick."
"So you prefer to work on an empty stomach?" Izuku went back to his original offer.
"Nah, it doesn't matter either way.
Eating something before a shift isn't an issue. I just didn't want to take something you were planning on eating." Ochako explained.
His face lit up and he slightly pushed his plate towards her: "Oh, then don't worry! It's all yours!"
Ochako accepted the offered pastry and she took a bite.
"Oh, you were right! It's really tasty! I come here often because this cafe isn't too far from the agency and they have nice drinks. But this is the first time I actually get something to eat. I'll have to come back more often!"
They ordered two other sweets and Midoriya started asking questions about her agency and her job. He asked about specific cases and about general impressions.
He complimented her frequently when she was talking about her missions and he praised her teamwork with Tsuyu.
"You and Froppy work together with such an ease that it's obvious you are more than co-workers."
"She's been one of my best friends since our first year and we've worked together for years." Ochako agreed. "We are a well oiled machine."
"It shows! When you took down the Magister, the two of you seemed to communicate telepathically. She was always exactly where you needed her to be and vice versa.
By yourself, you are already a force to be reckoned with but I bet villains ciao in fear just at the sight of you two.
Are you planning to open an agency together?"
"Not at the moment, no. I can't talk for her. Personally I'd say, maybe, but I still have to build up notoriety and my bank account before trying to invest blindly.
Bakugou and Kirishima had an advantage in both fame and money and they are still working their asses off to get by. But I'm sure you know more than me about it."
Ochako trailed off to let Midoriya intervene.
"Yeah, Kacchan has always been a standout and his parents could afford to lend them some money. Red Riot's debut and work studies gave him a head start on getting recognition and his affable nature balances Kacchan's brashness."
"Their relationship also humanises Bakugou." Ochako added.
"That's true. It's easy to mistake his rudeness for lack of kindness but it's obvious they love each other."
Then Midoriya lowered his voice to a whisper. "Don't tell him I said this but Kacchan liked Kirishima for a while before making his move."
Ochako understood the underlying meaning beneath his words and her eyes filled with glee: "Are you telling me that Bakugou pined?!?! I would have paid to see that!"
"I wouldn't call it 'pining' but he mentioned him every now and then." Midoriya tried to correct himself but Ochako was relentless.
"Then how did you know for sure that he liked Kirishima?"
Izuku almost shivered in fear. "I can't tell you more than this because he would kill me but I realized Kacchan's feelings for Kirishima way before both of them."
Ochako knew that what Midoriya was saying meant that he helped out Bakugou to understand his emotion and she couldn't hide her laughter at the thought of Midoriya guiding him through the realization that he liked Kirishima.
Izuku saw her laughter and he immediately changed topic.
"What about you? Any high school romance?"
Ochako knew what he was doing but she decided to let him move the conversation onward. "Nothing much. A handful of crushes every now and then but nothing beyond a date or two. I was too focused on my training and I realized that they were all just friendships with attractive people. You?"
Midoriya seemed relieved by her reply. "More or less the same. I didn't have too much time for dating but I tried it a couple of times.
Out of curiosity… Have you ever dated someone who wasn't in heroics?"
Ochako knew why he had asked that question. Most of the heroes she knew rarely dated someone who didn't understand what being a hero meant.
Midoriya was working closely with Bakugou and Kirishima, so Ochako thought he was in a middle ground regarding heroics.
"I'd say yes? I dated a Support student when I was in my last year. She's actually the only person I went on a second date with!"
Ochako knew what she was doing. The pronoun drop had been a planned move. She was proud of her sexuality and she wanted people to know as soon as possible.
She didn't think Midoriya would mind, since he was friends with Bakugou but Mina always told her that she trusted too easily.
She knew that some people didn't seem homophobic until it touched them personally. Or that some people's minds immediately went into the gutter upon hearing that she was bi, as if it was merely something kinky and not an integral part of herself.
Ochako had some experience with people's reactions so, despite believing that Midoriya was a nice person, she carefully watched his face.
'Why bother with someone who wouldn't accept me?'
She didn't spot signs of either reaction. Instead she seemed to find relief ('what?').
He immediately tried to school his expression to something more neutral but he realized he'd been caught.
"Me too!"
He was probably replying to her story but Ochako didn't understand and she looked at him with confusion in her eyes.
"Sorry. That was a dumb reply.
What I wanted to say is: you aren't straight? Because I am bi!"
"Well, you aren't by yourself in that regard." Ochako let him understand her pun before grinning.
Looking into Izuku's eyes, she could pinpoint the exact instant the joke landed but, instead of being followed by the expected groan, he coughed behind his hand to cover a chuckle.
"Damn, I was trying to avoid laughing."
Ochako knew that a chuckle managing to escape was the highest form of compliment for a lame pun.
"Don't bother. I'm a comedic genius.
What's the most important part of a joke?Timing."
The second time, Izuku didn't even try to cover his giggle. "That joke is as old as time! It's not even funny!"
Obviously the rebuttal made her grin even wider.
"Those are the best ones! Like this one: I hate Russian dolls, they're so full of themselves!"
Midoriya started wheezing: "Please tell me you didn't tell that one to Creati!"
Ochako beamed at him. "Izuku, you are a genius! I'll do it next time I see her!
Which is probably going to be soon. We are going to have a meeting tonight at Ryuukyuu's agency."
As soon as she realized what she'd said, Ochako made a surprised noise and she looked at the time on her phone.
"Wait, I'm late! I've gotta hurry!
Thank you for today, it's been fun!"
She immediately stood up and, without thinking too much about it, she planted a quick kiss on Izuku's lips.
Ochako speed-walked to the door, leaving him flabbergasted at their table.
Her shift at work went by placidly but smoothly.
However, after Ochako went back home, when she had barely fallen asleep, she heard her doorbell ringing like crazy, as if someone had fallen asleep on it.
She groggily went to open her door but she didn't see anyone through the peephole.
'Maybe they did fall asleep on the doorbell.'
Ochako opened the door but she couldn't see anyone. Turning to look at her doorbell she saw that someone had put tape on it in a way to leave it ringing.
There was also a letter taped under it.
The only thing on the letter was:
"We've got your boyfriend. Follow our instructions if you want to see him alive."
'Boyfriend?!
Oh, they mean Izuku! They probably saw us and followed him home.'
Ochako immediately tried to call him but it rang for a while without any answers. She decided to see if someone could track his device. So she called Bakugou who probably had a teacher on it.
"Pink Cheeks. What do you want." He 'greeted'.
"I received a ransom letter for a 'boyfriend'. Since we just went on a date yesterday, I assume they mean Izuku and that he isn't at work." Ochako went straight to the point.
"His shift is supposed to start in a couple of hours. Did they say what they wanted?"
"Only to follow instructions. Of which there were none."
"It means they've got someone spying on your place.
Get your ass over here while I send Eijirou to his place and I track his phone."
In perfect Bakugou style, he closed the call without waiting for her reply.
To be fair, Ochako understood his urgency and she was quick to obey.
As soon as she arrived at the Dyna-Riot agency, Bakugou started talking.
"His phone seems to be at his place. Red Riot is about to get there to confirm that Deku's not there.
I called a couple of people to check if he's with them but nobody has seen or heard from him since yesterday evening.
He's been taking sleeping pills since he came back to Japan so the fuckers probably took advantage of that."
Before Ochako could reply, Bakugou raised his hand to his comms. "Red Riot is at his place.
Uravity is here, I'm putting you on speaker."
The last part was obviously for Kirishima.
Everyone was in work mode so Red Riot was quick to assess and relay the situation. "There's a letter on the floor just behind his door. Someone slid it inside. I'm checking the place before opening it.
Living room and kitchen are clear. Bathroom and closet too.
There's a broken window in Izuku's room and his phone on the nightstand.
Call for someone to make a more thorough search. I'll wait here."
Dynamight barked some orders through his phone before turning his attention back to his partner. "What did the letter say?"
"Nothing much. It's a ransom letter for Uravity telling her to get to some coordinates alone and with 10 million yen.
The appointment is for tonight and the place seems to be a standard seedy warehouse. It's an obvious trap to attack her but they don't seem to be the brightest villains. We've got more than 12 hours to scout the place."
"Yeah, 12 hours is a lot. I'll send someone to discreetly check the place.
Deku's gonna wake up in the meantime if those fuckers haven't drugged him up to the gills."
The next sentence out of Bakugou's mouth nearly sent Ochako into a fit of rage.
"Guess I have to look for another analyst now." He sighed to himself.
Ochako was ready to throw hands. Bakugou had never been one to back down from a challenge and she had seen him come out on top out of much harder obstacles.
Apparently Kirishima agreed with Ochako.
"What the fuck, Kat?! Are you giving up?!"
He sounded both astonished and betrayed.
"You are both such dumbasses. Didn't you go on a date with him, Pink Cheeks?! Eijirou, don't you know that " Bakugou started.
However, before he could continue, his phone started ringing and he immediately picked up.
"All Might, what did he say? I'm putting you on speaker so that Uravity and Red Riot can hear."
Ochako was again thrown off by Bakugou. 'All Might?! Our former number one?!'
"Thank you, young Bakugou." The voice did sound similar to All Might's.
"Do not be afraid, heroes. Izuku is unharmed and he should wake up soon.
Melissa has already tracked him and hacked their camera feeds. She'll give you access to them in a second."
Ochako didn't know who Melissa was, but she was glad they were going to be able to assess Izuku's condition soon.
"Why didn't Deku wake up when they entered his room?" Bakugou asked.
"Would you believe me if I said that Danger Sense didn't perceive them as a threat?" There was mirth in All Might's voice and Ochako couldn't understand why.
'What's Danger Sense?! Is that Izuku's quirk?'
"What's his conclusion? Unwilling to really hurt him or simply too weak?"
Bakugou's questions didn't make sense to Ochako. 'Wasn't Izuku asleep the whole time?!'
"Both, according to Izuku." All Might was definitely smiling on the other side of the phone.
"Will he use his quirk?"
At Bakugou's question, Ochako realized that she was definitely missing a lot of context.
"Only on the cuffs and to get out of his cell. Probably not on the criminals." All Might relayed calmly.
"Good. Less paperwork for me." Bakugou's relief was only slightly more understandable.
'It's obviously self defense!'
All Might chuckled at that.
"For you maybe.
I've got to go. You know what's going to happen. I'll have a ton of paperwork waiting for me.
We'll be quite busy for a long while here.
Hurry up, Izuku is about to wake up.
See you soon."
The living legend closed the call and Ochako immediately pounced on Bakugou (not physically but it was a close call).
"What was that?! Does All Might know Izuku? When did they talk?"
Bakugou marched towards his office. She was about to yell at him for ignoring her when he turned his head.
"What are you doing?! Follow me. You don't wanna miss this."
Inside his office, Bakugou turned on a handful of monitors while talking to Kirishima. "You should be able to see one of the cameras.
What I'm about to say stays between us and don't ask more about it."
Ochako nodded quickly and Kirishima agreed.
"Deku has a special connection to All Might. They are able to communicate in their sleep. And also "
For the second time, Bakugou was interrupted. The screens started showing feeds from cameras. On one monitor, Ochako could see four people sitting around a table, another showed two people standing outside of a door.
However, the monitor that caught everyone's attention was the last one.
Izuku was sleeping on a bed with his hands cuffed to the sides of the metal bed frame.
Ochako recognized two of the people sitting around the table. "Those two are suspected allies of a villain I apprehended not long ago."
She relayed the information while pointing towards a man and a woman.
Before anyone could reply, they saw Izuku opening his eyes.
He seemed to be calmly assessing his situation before sparks started forming around him.
In the blink of an eye, he freed his hands by smashing both the bed frame and the handcuffs before letting the sparks fade.
The sound alerted the guards who closed in on the door.
Not a smart move, apparently. With a swift kick, Izuku smashed the door into them and knocked them out.
Two of the cameras were starting to be covered by debris and smoke. ('Where did it come from?!')
Izuku quickly headed to the room with the four criminals. He was shrouded by a cloud of smoke so the villains didn't see him coming despite being prepared for combat.
For a couple of seconds, the view was obscured but, when it cleared, Ochako was slightly more relaxed.
Two of the four criminals were on the ground.
The other two were on opposite sides of the room and Izuku was facing one of them. It was the one responsible for clearing the smoke, judging by the winds around her.
The other one launched something from a hole in his hand. Through the cameras Ochako thought it looked like a small rock but it moved too quickly to be sure of it.
Whatever it was, the object was about to hit Izuku in the head when, without even looking, he ducked down.
The rock nailed the wind villain in the head and, with the speed and the grace of someone very well trained in combat, Izuku moved to the other side of the room where he knocked out the rock guy.
Bakugou's phone rang again and an instant later, they saw Izuku picking up a phone from the villains.
'The camera feeds are delayed.' Ochako realized.
"Kacchan!" Midoriya greeted without any hint of tiredness in his voice, "Toshi said that you got involved. I'm fine!"
"I can see that.
He's sending Detective Tsukauchi so that you won't be asked too many questions.
As soon as he arrives, get your ass over here. I'm not writing your paperwork. And I ain't explaining shit to your girlfriend."
Bakugou's tone was clearly teasing.
Izuku's reply was some embarrassed screech followed by a whisper: "Oh, that's why Toshi couldn't stop laughing."
Bakugou closed the call and they watched the camera feed as Izuku turned beet red before putting the phone back in the criminal's pocket.
Then he takes something out of his pockets.
"Of course he has zip-ties in his pajamas. Of fucking course." Bakugou sighed and Kirishima chuckled from the other side of his comms.
They watched as Izuku checked on the criminals' conditions before tying their hands.
"Ei, I'm going to tell you a couple of things when you get back. Bring Deku's phone.
Later."
Kirishima closed the call with: "See you later Kat!"
Bakugou turned to Ochako: "You let him gush about you throughout the whole date instead of asking questions about him, didn't you?!" Bakugou asked while taking some papers out of his drawer.
Ochako could see that there were a lot of things she had missed about Izuku but his insinuation was still mean.
"That's not true! We both asked and answered some questions!"
"To be fair, he doesn't like to talk about himself too much and you would have had to sign a bunch of NDAs if he told you most of his story.
It's not my business what Deku wants to tell you but don't underestimate him."
Ochako knew that it was one of the highest compliments he could ever give.
"Now get out of my office." He shooed her away.
Later that day, Izuku texted her.
"I think I owe you an explanation."
Ochako had been waiting for his text, not wanting to be too pushy.
They met the next day on a pier overlooking a beach.
Izuku was sitting on a bench, looking towards the shore.
Ochako took the seat next to him while exchanging a quiet greeting.
She gave him some time to think about what he wanted to say.
After a minute he took a deep breath.
"Let me start by apologizing for not being forthcoming about myself.
Our date was delightful and you are a very lovely person but we were still getting to know each other.
I have a complicated past and a future that will be even more messy.
That's why I wanted you to meet me only as Izuku Midoriya and nothing more.
It didn't come up during our date but I should have said it regardless.
I'm a hero.
We knew that the HSPC would want to take their time with processing my American license and to give me a Japanese one. So Kacchan took me in his team to give me some work while getting to see Hero Society here in Japan."
Ochako didn't like that he hadn't been truthful and she couldn't understand why. However, she could see that there was more to his story.
"I was told that adding a country to a hero license was a smooth process. Were they wrong?"
"Usually it's true.
Getting a Provisional Hero License is more or less immediate and the full one usually requires a week if you submit the proper documentation.
However, I am a special case. I was told by the government that, since I'm Japanese but with an American license, they had to check that I didn't go there just to get an easier exam.
However, my mentor says it's because the HSPC and him had a couple of disagreements lately." He explained.
"Your mentor, All Might?" Ochako pushed.
"Yeah.
I think that both of those are part of the reason but there's also the fact that they wanted to thoroughly check my background, since I'm taking control of the whole All Might agency."
"YOU WHAT?!" Ochako couldn't control her outburst.
He nodded shily. "I'm All Might's successor.
That's why I hid that I was a hero. I've got quite the heavy legacy on my shoulders but also an amazing endorsement.
I wanted you to meet Izuku before you knew me as Deku, All Might's successor.
I hope you can forgive me. I really like you and I would love to continue going out with you.
However, I'd understand if this deception has stopped the forming of our friendship."
After years of knowing Todoroki and Iida, Ochako understood what it meant to carry a legacy and why Izuku had wanted to hide it in the first place.
Todoroki hated when people recognized him as Endeavor's son and not as himself. On the other hand, Iida had lived most of his life trying to fit in his brother's shoes.
'I don't think it would have changed how I felt about Izuku if I had known he's All Might's successor but maybe I would have been too scared to open up to him and to feel this connection between us.' Ochako could see the merits of Izuku's approach.
"I can see why you would do that. I don't like it but I can understand.
Either way, I'm really glad I was able to get to know you."
Ochako turned to face him and looking into his eyes she told him what she wanted him to know: "You are an amazing person and I would be dumb to turn you away just because you have a difficult road ahead."
Izuku was starting to get teary eyed and some of the tears fell when he laughed silently. "That was such a heroic thing to say."
Ochako smiled at him. "Heroes are not afraid to say what they think.
Can I kiss you?"
The question slipped quietly from her lips. Only the two of them were on the pier but the heart-to-heart had taken them so close that they didn't need anything more than a whisper.
Izuku was even more silent when he nodded and he leaned forward.
Ochako closed her eyes when she met him halfway to enjoy their quiet.