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“No, nope, not happening.” Dabi’s arms waved in clear disapproval as he stared across the empty bar at his pro hero boyfriend. The shabby surroundings seemed to enhance the dread on his face once he saw the kid held tightly against Keigo’s chest. “Take it back to wherever you found it.”
Curling his wings around his front, shielding the sobbing child from the fiery temper of his burnt beau, Keigo huffed. “Dabi, come on,” he started, walking past the stools reserved for friendly villains. Dabi froze, glaring, as he got closer, but only watched and waited in silence. “I found him at the park hiding in a bush, I can’t take him back.”
A sharp laugh cut him off before he could continue, but after a second the villain got his breath. “He’d blend right in with a bush,” the villain explained, his mirth still coloring his tone.
"Dabi!" Keigo squawked, affronted, as he held the child closer. It was rude to say, even if it was kind of true. "Just because he has green hair does not mean I couldn’t see him, and if I could, so could anyone else."
The ‘hmm’ Dabi let out at that sounded menacing, and Keigo had to look down at the child buried against his chest as he burrowed harder. The eyes he knew to be just as green as his hair, were shut tight and hidden on the other side of a down turned head. This kid didn’t need to be listening to this.
“When did you get so protective of children, anyway?” Dabi’s look was suspicious as he waved his winged hero to sit next to him on the couch, scooting over enough to give him room with the kid.
Keigo sat carefully, helping the child reposition himself in his lap. Once they were settled, he ran his fingers through soft curls and looked up at Dabi offended. “Always, you jerk, I’m a pro hero. It’s in the job description to care.”
“A pro hero secretly dating a villain,” he pointed out, “but I guess we’re ignoring that part?”
With a snarky smile, Keigo nodded.”Consider it ignored.” Dabi snorted, but nodded for him to continue. “He was being bullied and hid from them, he has a burn on his arm to prove it.”
That had the villain’s attention in a second, burns were personal. “Let me see.”
Suddenly forest green eyes were staring up at Keigo, fear in them as curls whipped around with the back and forth motion of his head. “Nn-nn…” the child whined, and Keigo pet his curls in an attempt to be soothing.
“I don’t think he wants you to.”
“No, really?” The sarcasm was thick. “I couldn't tell.” After a moment he seemed to decide to let it go for the moment, not ready to force it, and gestured to Keigo to go on if there was more to tell.
“His mom passed away a couple months ago, he was living in the park, and he has nowhere else to go.”
“Is that it?”
Keigo nodded, it was all the information the little one had given him before Keigo offered a hug and they'd flown back here.
“We treat his arm and send him on his way then,” Dabi said, nodding along with his decision.
“Back to the streets?” Keigo was not thrilled with that answer, his instincts telling him not to let this kid go back to such an unsafe environment.
Dabi shrugged, clearly not caring. “Or the system.”
The little voice hidden within a safety net of red wings squeaked in fear at that suggestion. “No, they'll kill me! Please don't take me there?”
The hero and the villain exchanged concerned looks before amber eyes looked down to foresty curls. “Why would they kill you? I mean, I know the system isn't great, but…”
“I'm quirkless,” the little voice whispered, barely audible.
Keigo did not expect the growl that left Dabi’s throat at that, and looked up at the black haired villain in surprise.
“No foster care then,” he snarled, face dark at the idea.
In an attempt to lighten the mood, Keigo asked, “Now whose protective?” The look shot his way told him the joke wasn't well received however, so he continued to hold the child to his chest in silence afterwards as Dabi stewed. Then the villain started to think aloud.
“There are a million reasons why a villain and a hero should not be bringing a kid into a dingy bar full of other villains. Where would he sleep? Whose going to feed him? What about clothes? School? But I'm not sending him to die or be bullied some more…”
Keigo felt his heart skip a beat at the wildly protective look in Dabi’s icicle blue eyes. He loved this side of his beau, both a safety and a danger, it was a thrill he thrived on. “What do we do then?”
“I'm thinking,” Dabi growled, and the child clung tighter to Keigo every time his voice dropped like that. Keigo loved it, clearly the boy did not. He would have to deal with his never ending hug, however, while they waited.
In the midst of Dabi trying to come up with an idea the door leading into the bar slammed open, snapping all of their heads over, even the little one that couldn't see through the wall of feathers. Light blue hair barged in, red eyes glaring around the room as Shigaraki stormed to the bar.
“The hell are you doing here Keigo?”
The hero blinked, but was undeterred and uninterested in the aggressive getting. That was just how the villain leader was. “Speaking to Dabi about something.”
“About a kid.” Dabi was quick to throw him under the bus, wasn't he?
“A kid.” Shigaraki repeated as he clanked glasses around, emanating his own personal brand of chaos like the child he seemed to be. “Where the hell is Kurogiri? Why are you talking about a kid?”
“Oh I don't know, because Keigo is hiding one behind his wings?”
Ruby red eyes bore into Keigo's amber with a flash of anger. “A kid?! What kind of pro hero brings a kid to a villain hideout? Get him out of here!”
The rage was showing from his higher pitched voice and clearly elevated blood pressure if the vein in his neck was an indicator.
“You're right, Shigi, I should just take him to All Might, I'm sure that guy will take good care of a quirkless child and not make any assumptions about the dangers of dropping him off at child services,” Keigo drawled, keeping his tone level as he opened his wings slowly to partially reveal the shaking boy clinging to his midsection. The fear at the mention of that was clear as the boy ducked his head, and Keigo found himself resting a hand on his unruly curls in comfort.
Clearly the mention of the number one hero was enough to catch Shigaraki’s attention, in exactly the way Keigo had hoped. “No!” The loud foot stomping forced Keigo to bite his lip so he didn't smile. Dabi huffed in amused annoyance next to him, he knew exactly what was happening if he knew Keigo at all. “You're not taking him! You said quirkless?! He's staying!”
The small form finally started to let go of Keigo as he looked up at the angry man across the room. “You… want me?”
“I just said I did, didn't I squirt?” Shigaraki walked over and studied him. “Scrawny, weak, but that can be fixed…” he didn't react when the boy flinched at his words. “Quirkless, scared, obviously used to being hurt.” With one finger raised the villain grabbed the child's wrist to inspect the burn mark there. The child let him and Keigo wondered if this was going too well. “Yeah, we can work with him, make him strong. He'll be good, strong, useful.” With a confirming nod he looked down at the kid. “What's your name kid?”
Even Dabi seemed surprised by this turn off events so quickly, especially the kid's opening up to the scariest, or at least most temperamental, of them all, when Keigo looked at his boyfriend. A small voice answered, though, proving Shigaraki was doing something the kid connected with.
“Izuku.”
“Fine, great, Izuku we're keeping you. I'll show you where to sleep later, I'm going to find Kurogiri and get him to make me a drink.” Then he started to storm off, before turning to look back at Keigo directly. “Keep him away from heroes, hero, he's ours now!” The door shut after those words and he was gone.
Icicle blue eyes looked at Keigo, blinking. “Why is that what you wanted?”
“He's safer here than with anyone else I know.”
“That makes no sense and you're insane, but whatever. Welcome to the club kid,” Dabi huffed to their newest member. “Guess you're one of us now.”
Izuku smiled, for the first time he didn't look scared and he sat all the way up like belonging somewhere, being wanted, not being shut out or ignored, was all he ever needed to bloom. Maybe Keigo was right.