Archive of Our Own

Todoroki didn’t have a soulmark for most of his life.

Fuyumi was born with a crescent moon on her neck, Natsuo had spirals of something that looks like snow that appeared across his arms the same time he manifested his own quirk, and he remembers Touya with red wings blossoming across his back, but he himself had no marks at all for the longest time.

He wasn’t sure if that meant his soulmate was quirkless (rare, but that could make it easier to find them), hadn’t manifested their quirk yet (less likely as the years went by), wasn’t even born yet (increasingly weird as he grew older), or if he literally didn’t have a soulmate (a thought he tries to shove to the back of his mind).

His mother had tried to reassure him before when he was younger and he had asked about soulmates, telling them that it was fine if he doesn’t have one, since after all, she never had one, but that—wasn’t reassuring in the least.

(In fact, it had probably made it easier for their father to have brought their mother into a quirk marriage.

To this day, he doesn’t know if his father has a soulmark or not, but in the end, it probably doesn’t matter.

Endeavor’s ambition was more important to him than anything else after all.

Maybe some couples without soulmates were happily together without too many issues, but Todoroki has had front-row seats to his parents’ marriage his whole life, and he—

He’d rather die than put anyone through what his mother went through.)

And then—Touya was gone, his mother was gone, he had a new painful scar on his face, and he had to endure his training all on his own.

When he starts refusing to use his fire side, he also stops trying to examine himself in the mirror every day for a sign that his soulmark may have appeared.

(What difference did it really make if he eventually got a soulmate or not?

It’s not like they could help him.

He’s survived all this on his own—he doesn’t need them.)

But even if he was no longer looking, he could hardly miss the giant 9 that appears in bold, black strokes on his chest, over his heart the day of the U.A. entrance exams.

He touches it uncertainly, staring at it in the mirror.

(What did 9 mean? Did that mean that—they could make nine of themselves or something? They had power over things that came in nines? Did anything come in nines?

And—for it to only show up now, did that mean that he was possibly fifteen or at least a decade older than his soulmate?

He’s not sure he likes that.)

It’s not until PresentMic starts yelling down in the arena, and some loud-mouthed really tall boy starts trying to talk to him that he snaps out of it, hurriedly changes his shirt, and goes down to crush his competition.

(It didn’t really matter in the end, did it?)

And then he arrives at U.A., and Midoriya Izuku has soulmarks on his left and right arms of fire and ice respectively.

His heart leaps into his throat (had—had he finally managed to meet his soulmate?), until during the training exercise, the green haired boy’s quirk turned out to be a strength quirk he couldn’t quite control.

(That—didn’t sound like the soulmark he had.

But still—his own quirk wasn’t all that common—look at how much effort Endeavor had put into producing him—

And it sounded like he hadn’t manifested the quirk until a little bit before the exams, but—

What did a strength quirk have to do with the 9 on his chest?

Did he have the strength of nine men or something?

But in the end—did it really matter?

Having a soulmate or not wouldn’t make any difference at all to his goal of proving to Endeavor that he can win even without using his fire side.)

Midoriya seems pretty nervous around him, babbling and ducking his head whenever he catches sight of him, so Todoroki just lets him be.

(He doesn’t have the time or energy to deal with something like a soulmate anyway.)

But then the sports festival happens, and Midoriya practically shatters every bone in his arm and hand trying to convince him that his power is his own and to fight him all out and—

How could he not fall for him after that?

Honestly, he didn’t even care anymore if Midoriya was his soulmate or not, he was willing to take his chances (look at Natsu, he was still friends with all his exes even if none of them had in the end had turned out to be his soulmate, and yes, their mother had been served terribly by the man who was not her soulmate, but Midorya was nothing like Endeavor), but Midoriya—Midoriya kept avoiding the subject.

Sadly, neither of his siblings did.

“He seems like a nice boy,” Fuyumi says encouragingly, propping her cheek onto the palm of her hand. “A bit—enthusiastic at times, but that’s probably for the best.”

Natsuo snorts, “He’d have to be to offset Shouto. Still—intense isn’t bad in a soulmate. Congrats little bro, on being the first of us to find yours!”

Todoroki ducks his head, “…still not sure he really is though…”

“What? Who else could it be?” Natsuo demands. “If there’s another guy with dual fire and ice quirks, Endeavor’s going to lose his shit—which would be hilarious, but I feel like that’s not possible.”

Fuyumi nods, “Besides Shouto—you have a soulmark now, right?”

“It—I don’t know what 9 means though,” Todoroki says, running a frustrated hand through his hair.

“I still like that theory that it means he has the strength of 9 men,” Natsuo nods sagely. “Or I mean, easiest thing—just go up to him and ask if you can touch his mark, or vice-versa.”

“He can’t just do that!” Fuyumi interjects in a scandalized tone before Todoroki could even protest.

“I don’t see why not, I’ve done it a few times,” Natsuo points out non-plussed, rubbing at the swirling marks on his arms.

“It’s too forward!” Fuyumi says with a red face, “And you—you’ve been too brash before.”

“It’s the only way to know for sure after all,” Natsuo argues back. “Like if you just sent a message to Miruko, or even got Endeavor to somehow pass on a message to her to just ask— ”

“Miruko probably gets at least a hundred messages a day from people claiming to be her soulmate, and I—I’m not going to be that deluded,” Fuyumi says tightly, her hand going to the moon at the base of her own neck.

“Even when she’s got what looks like ice with sparks on her arms?” Natsuo demands. “I get why you don’t want me to try to send a message to Hawks about Touya, but—but this isn’t the same case, you’re alive, and I think she’d be happy—”

“I’m sure whoever Miruko’s soulmate is, it’s someone who will complement her and not have—and have an easier history to deal with,” Fuyumi says before turning back to Shouto. “Although for you Shouto—you two are friends, right?”

“I think so?” Todoroki mumbles, looking down at his feet.

(This was a long standing argument with his siblings, both about whether or not to try and contact Miruko for Fuyumi, and whether or not to contact Winged Hero Hawks since he had blue flames going up his arms and red wings that match the mark they remember spread across their eldest brother’s back.

Todoroki thinks that really in both cases—they should contact them. With Hawks, even if it was terrible news, at least he would know that his soulmate was no more. And with Miruko, Natsuo is right that her mark seems to match up with Fuyumi’s, and he really wants his sister to be happy.

But for himself—

He doesn’t know how to ask Midoriya that question.

He’s never even really had a friend before—and now he wants to leap all the way to soulmates? It seems like a lot even for him.)

“Then maybe that should be fine—he does seem very sweet, I can’t wait to meet him,” Fuyumi smiles at him.

“I don’t know about sweet per say, but I’m excited to meet him too,” Natsuo says, clapping him on the back.

“So—you guys both think I should just talk to him about it,” Todoroki says uncertainly, looking between his two siblings.

Nasuo nods, “Yeah! How else are you going to know?”

Fuyumi shrugs, “Well—touching soulmarks is maybe perhaps still a bit soon, but yes, you can ask him Shouto. At least—you could let him know what you think? And that you like the idea? You do, don’t you?”

Todoroki looks down at his feet, feeling his cheeks heat up a bit, “…yes,” he says quietly.

Both of his siblings beam at him, Natsuo reaching out to ruffle his hair.

“Aw, I didn’t even know you could blush, Shouto!” Natsuo comments jokingly.

Fuyumi sighs happily, “Then I think things should go well.”

(And—

The idea of being with Midoriya, with getting to go out with him, share things with him, and have some kind of claim on his time—

He can’t say that he doesn’t want that.

He would even be willing to set aside some of his ambitions for that.)

So he keeps trying, carefully bringing up the subject of soulmates during lunch, and all of his classmates happily chime in, but Midoriya stays painfully silent, just rubbing at the soulmarks on his arm while not meeting his eyes.

(Does he—

Does he not want him?

He can’t figure out why Midoriya won’t even talk about it.)

Even after Iida finally confessed to Shinsou, and the two of them had confirmed that they were each other’s soulmates, Midoriya happily congratulated the two of them, but still shied away from Todoroki bringing up the topic of his own mark.

Finally he couldn’t stand it anymore and just confronts him about it after school when they are on their own in the dorms one afternoon.

“Do you think—have you met your soulmate?” he asks desperately.

Midoriya shifts in place, a pained expression on his face, his hands instinctively rubbing at the fire and ice going up his arms, “Todoroki-kun—it’s—it’s complicated,” he says weakly.

Todoroki swallows the lump in his throat (why should this affect him any more than anything else that had happened to him in the past?), “Do you—if you do not want me, then—”

“No!” Midoriya bursts out in a horrified tone, “I really—Todoroki-kun, you’re amazing, and you deserve so much better than anything that has happened to you so far, and—and—I—I would be so lucky if I was—”

“But you don’t think you are?” Todoroki interrupts, trying to understand exactly what Midoriya was trying to tell him.

“I—”

“You—Bakugou said that you only manifested your quirk when you entered U.A., and that’s also when my soulmark appeared. Your soulmark—it looks a lot like my quirk, and mine—do you have nine quirks maybe or something?” Todoroki desperately asks.

(It would be bizarre, but after Midoriya had pulled out that black whip quirk in the middle of the joint-training exercise, it was possible, wasn’t it?

And as to how that fit with Midoriya being All Might’s love child—

Well, no one had ever quite been able to say what All Might’s quirk actually was, right? And no one knew anything about All Might’s family—for all anyone knew, Midoriya had somehow hit the genetic jackpot and managed to inherit everything all at once.

It was rare, but it wasn’t entirely impossible, just with himself as an example.)

Midoriya’s eyes widen as he begins to murmur to himself, “Nine quirks—probably not nine , since All Might—but really, with everythingIsawit’snotoutsidetherealmofpossibilityanditcouldjustneedacatalysttoawakenbutexactlyhow…”

Todoroki patiently waits until Midoriya stops scribbling in his notebook (Midoriya in murmur-mode just needed to think things through and write things out) and startles, looking up at him.

“That is to say—no, I don’t think I have nine quirks, but—” Midoriya bites his lip, “Todoroki-kun—this is—there are things I can’t tell you—”

“If it’s about All Might—my family situation is complicated too, as you know,” Todoroki cuts in. “I don’t—whatever happened between your mom and All Might, it can’t be possibly as bad as between my father and my mother, so—”

Midoriya’s face had gone completely red, and he quickly waved his hands in front of him, “No! My mom really has nothing to do with this, I just—Todoroki-kun, there’s secrets that aren’t mine, and I—I can’t do this.”

He quickly runs off, and Todoroki is just left watching his back.

(He couldn’t do this.

As in, he didn’t want to?

But—he had just said that he did.

Or at least, Todoroki thinks that’s what he meant.

But then—what secrets?

It had to be linked to his quirk—wasn’t it strange after all that another one had appeared so suddenly in the middle of the joint training exercise, but—could it also be linked to All Might in some way?

It had to be—maybe Midoriya wasn’t actually All Might’s illegitimate son, but he had some sort of close relationship with him, everyone could see that.

And besides, who else could make Midoriya value a secret that highly?

But—that still didn’t explain why Midoriya was so jittery about the idea of having him as a soulmate or what he was supposed to do next.)

“Todoroki-kun? What are you doing just sitting there?”

Todoroki looked up to see Uraraka peering down at him, a worried expression on her face.

He stood up, brushing the dirt off of his pants, “It’s nothing. I was just—thinking.”

“Hm. Does it have anything to do with Deku-kun?” she asks, her fingers floating up to her mouth much like the way Tsuyu did.

Todoroki stares at her, “…how do you know?”

“Well, I saw him running off just now,” Uraraka says apologetically. “And—well, with Iida-kun and Shinsou-kun finally getting together, I thought that maybe he had finally decided to talk to you about his mark?”

Todoroki shakes his head, staring at the ground, “No, he—I tried to talk to him about it, but—he ran off.”

“Ah,” Uraraka says with a frown. “Well—you know, Deku-kun doesn’t really like to talk about his childhood, but—I feel like it was pretty hard for him before he got his quirk. I don’t think I met any kids in my old middle school that manifested that late.”

Todoroki nods (he had never interacted with many children in the past, but he had thought that at least finding a quirkless person with his mark may have been more straightforward than trying to sort through what a soulmark actually meant). “Yes. Also—the way Bakugou treats him.”

“Mm yeah, although at least Kirishima-kun is trying his best now to make him a little nicer I guess,” Uraraka sighs. “But my point is—I feel like maybe he had a hard time back then, with his soulmate mark being so cool, but having no quirk of his own?”

Todoroki’s brow furrows, “I—don’t follow.”

(What would his soulmate mark have to do with anything?

If anything—wouldn’t it help?

He had always envied his siblings for having marks of their own and knowing that somewhere out there was someone that would definitely care about them and could share their joys and sorrows.

He had never had that reassurance until now.)

Uraraka shrugs, “This is really just all speculation on my part, but—you know, I talked to Tsuyu about how people treated her in her middle school. Obviously she’s not the same as Deku-kun—her soulmate mark for my quirk isn’t quite as impressive as his mark, but—people used to give her a hard time sometimes about how her soulmate was so unlucky and how she wouldn’t be able to measure up—which is complete and total nonsense of course, Tsuyu is the best! But if they would say that to her, then for Deku…”

“It must have been worse,” Todoroki finishes, his fists clenched at his side.

(Then—while Todoroki was enduring Endeavor’s brutal training regimen—Midoriya had been enduring all the taunts and bullying that went along with his bred for quirk?

Another thing to blame Endeavor for, he supposes.

But who does Midoriya blame for all that?)

“So—you think the reason he doesn’t want to talk about it—is because he blames his soulmate for all that?” he asks slowly.

“Oh no! That’s not what I meant!” Uraraka says, quickly shaking her head, “I just meant that—maybe soulmates is a touchy subject for Deku-kun? I don’t think it has anything to do with you personally—he really seems to like you a lot, and I’ve definitely tried bringing it up with him a lot…but he just gets stuttery and blushy and runs away.”

“That’s about how my experiences with him go too,” Todoroki says, shifting in place. “But then—what am I supposed to do?”

“Hmmm,” Uraraka says, tapping her mouth much the way Tsuyu did, “I mean normally I would say to just go talk to him, but you have, and that hasn’t been working. Maybe we should ask Tsuyu? She might have some ideas. Or Iida-kun—if we can drag him away from dates with Shinsou-kun. Then again, Shinsou-kun may be able to help to!”

Shinsou gives them all a dubious look when Tsuyu suggests maybe Todoroki confronting All Might about his whole theory while Iida cites that that’s disrespectful behavior towards teachers.

“Or maybe you could just make Midoriya feel more comfortable with the whole situation?” he suggests.

Todoroki frowns as he looks at him, “What do you mean?”

“I mean—I didn’t really warm up to Tenya until I got to know him, so—maybe just take him places that he likes?” Shinsou says, glancing over at Iida.

Iida beams back at him, “Yes, that is a wonderful idea Hitoshi! Perhaps if you two go places together, Midoriya-kun will grow more accustomed to the idea of the two of you going out!”

“But—Deku-kun already likes Todoroki-kun, doesn’t he?” Uraraka cuts in, furrowing her brow. “I’m not sure if more dates would make much of a difference…”

“It can’t hurt kero kero, ” Tsuyu says with a shrug. “At the very least, maybe he’ll decide that the dates are so nice that he can get over whatever is already holding him back?”

Todoroki nods slowly, “That all sounds fine but—I’ve never been on a date before. Or taken anyone anywhere myself.”

(Perhaps he should ask Natsu?

Natsu has gone on plenty of dates before, he thinks, based on what Fuyumi has said before.

But would what worked for Natsu work for him? Natsu was always so cheerful and outgoing, and Todoroki knows he’s not—)

“You know what he likes though, right?” Shinsou prompts him.

“All Might and pro-hero/quirk trivia,” Todoroki immediately answers.

“Maybe there’s a con nearby soon?” Uraraka suggests, taking out her phone. “It feels like something Deku-kun would like.”

Todoroki also takes out his phone and searches. It turns out that there is indeed a mid-size pro-hero convention coming up that’s about a train ride away, and scrolling through the schedule and events, it does sound like something Midoriya would enjoy, even if Todoroki has never been to a convention himself before.

“Should I get platinum VIP or gold VIP?” he mutters, looking through the badge selections.

Uraraka’s eyebrows shoot up into her bangs, “I mean—you can afford platinum ?”

“I’m using Endeavor’s credit card,” Todoroki explains, scrolling through the badge descriptions, “Platinum obviously has more access, but I’m not sure if Midoriya may be too exhausted to have personal photoshoots and go to this charity banquet…”

“That’s true, Midoriya-chan may have dehydrated from all his tears by then,” Tsuyu nods.

“On the other hand, you could simply not attend the charity banquet if Midoriya-kun is too tired by the end of it,” Iida points out.

Uraraka glares at Iida, “Such a waste of money!”

Iida holds up his hands, “The money from the badge to the charity will have already been paid for by then! Todoroki-kun and Midoriya-kun could simply make their excuses if they are indeed too fatigued to actually attend!”

“I feel like Midoriya will make an effort to go even if he’s tired,” Shinsou says languidly. “You may as well go platinum.”

So Todoroki buys the platinum badges, and Midoriya looks as if he’s about to cry when he offers him one.

“For—for me?” he squeaks, staring at the badge in his hands as though it is some kind of priceless item and then back up at Todoroki, “Are you sure?”

“Yes. Endeavor couldn’t make it, so my sister gave me these,” Todoroki says, reciting the excuse Shinsou had come up for him. “I thought you’d like to go.”

“I’d love to!” Midoriya enthuses, clutching the badge in his hand before looking at him again, “But—are you sure you want to take me?”

“Who else would I take?” Todoroki asks, puzzled.

“It’s only the third-biggest con that comes to this city, and has most of the top pro-heroes attending, I don’t think it’d be hard for you to find someone else who wants to go with you,” Midoriya says in a tone that is slightly dry and slightly—something else that Todoroki can’t quite identify.

Todoroki shrugs, “Maybe. But I want you to come with me.”

Midoriya oddly enough turns a bit pink at that, “Oh—oh. Well—alright! Um, but, I should probably tell you that—you may have to drag me out of the merch/artist alley halls? And if you don’t want to wait in line with me for some of the panels or autograph sessions, I totally understand…”

“I don’t mind,” Todoroki says honestly. “As long as you don’t take me to an Endeavor-related panel, I’ll be happy to wait in line with you.”

Midoriya’s nose slightly wrinkles, “Oh, I’d never do that to you! Are there any panels or autograph sessions in particular you want to go to though?”

Todoroki shakes his head (honestly, he hadn’t even checked the schedule before buying the badges), “I’ve never been to convention before, so I’m not entirely sure what to expect.”

Midoriya goggles at him, “You’ve never —well, I’ll have to make sure we go to as many fun things as possible then! Good thing you got VIP badges, that’ll at least cut down on the time we may have to spend in line. I can’t believe your family doesn’t want to go—Oh, speaking of that…now that I think about it, some people may recognize you at the convention. You could wear a hat I guess? Or if you want, I have extra All Might hoodies, and—you could just put the hood on and blend in with everyone else.”

“I’ll do that,” Todoroki says decisively (partially because a photo of him in an All Might hoodie was bound to piss off Endeavor, and also—a small part of him feels warm at the idea of wearing Midoriya’s clothes). “Meet you early on Saturday morning?”

“Yes! I have to go and analyze this schedule now…how can we go to all the All Might panels and also make it for the autograph session Kamui Woods is doing…” Midoriya says, throwing him a brilliant smile before running off with his cellphone in his hands and muttering under his breath.

--

Todoroki thinks that everyone should go to their first hero convention with Midoriya. Not only does he know about everything there and had researched all the events and schedule thoroughly, but he was also just so enthusiastic.

He compliments all the fanartists parked in artist alley, he can talk shop with most of the people at the merch stands, he takes a billion photos of cosplayers while gushing about how cool their costumes are, and he’d already neatly drafted out well-thought out and informative questions for panels.

It was true that he cried during the autograph sessions, but that was okay, Midoriya did tend to cry when he was happy, Todoroki had found.

“I’m sorry Todoroki-kun,” Midoriya says, sniffling into some tissues Todoroki had given him. “I’m a mess…”

“It’s okay,” Todoroki says, patting him on the back, “I thought the slideshow with Sir Nighteye and All Might was pretty moving too.”

“Wasn’t it? They were a team for so long—but are you also having fun, Todoroki-kun?” Midoriya worriedly asks him, turning to look at him.

“I am,” Todoroki answers honestly. “I’ve never seen so many costumes before—the art is pretty cool too. And the trivia game was fun.”

“Yes, and I can’t believe we managed to win passes to next year’s convention as well!” Midoriya burbles happily.

“All thanks to you and your encyclopedic All Might knowledge,” Todoroki says fondly.

Midoriya rubs the back of his head, “Ah—but it was a team effort! You identified all his major villain battles as well!”

“I’m pretty sure you could have done it too,” Todoroki points out. “Are you ready for the banquet?”

“Oh god, the banquet,” Midoriya whispers, standing stock still and staring off into the distance. “I—I completely forgot about that. What am I going to say? What am I supposed to wear? What happens if I throw up or cry—”

“I brought more tissues, and if you throw up—I can make a distraction?” Todoroki offers, lighting up his left hand briefly.

Midoriya hurriedly shakes his head while chuckling a bit, “Ah—no, Todoroki-kun, please don’t light anything on fire—but thank you for offering.”

Todoroki nods, “As for the rest—I think we can wear whatever, but if you want something fancy to wear, I could call my sister? And I’m sure you have a ton of questions you want to ask Kamui Wood, Fat Gum, and Wash.”

“I really don’t want to bother your sister unnecessarily—and I also have a lot of questions for the Wild Wild Pussycats too!” Midoriya hastens to add.

“It wouldn’t be any trouble, Fuyumi loves you—and she loves dressing people up,” Todoroki says quickly.

(Could he be any more obvious?

Although—if they did call Fuyumi, he’d be afraid that she would squee all over Midoriya, and maybe even Natsu would come home to take a look.

But—he has to say that he wouldn’t mind seeing Midoriya in a suit again either.)

Midoriya starts muttering under his breath, “Itcan’tbethatfancyproheroeswilldefinitelyjustbewearingtheircostumes—butdoesthatmeanwecanwearcostumestooorshouldwebemoreformal—”

Eventually Midoriya winds down and turns to face him, “I feel like—us wearing our costumes may seem a bit presumptuous, but wearing really fancy clothes may also be too much—what if we just wear slightly nicer clothes?”

“Okay,” Todoroki readily agrees, “Is what I’m wearing right now okay?”

Midoriya glances over him and mutters to himself, “You could be wearing a bag and probably still look great.”

Todoroki’s eyebrows shoot up, “…come again?”

(Had he heard wrong?)

Midoriya flushes and runs a hand through his curly hair, “I mean—you look fine, Todoroki-kun!”

Todoroki looks down doubtfully at his All Might hoodie (that may or may not smell a bit like Midoriya’s shampoo), “I like it a lot—but you think it’ll be fine for the banquet?”

“When wouldn’t a limited-edition All Might hoodie be appropriate?” Midoriya demands hotly.

Todoroki’s eyes widen a little, “This one is limited edition? And you’re letting me just wear it around?”

“Oh—I mean—it’s really—I know you’ll be careful in it!” Midoriya says quickly, fiddling with the bag in his hand. “It’s fine, do you want a picture with it on?”

“Yes,” Todoroki says adamantly and then motioning Midoriya over as he takes out his phone. “Let’s both be in it.”

“Oh—sure!” Midoriya squeaks, and he jumps a little when Todoroki slings an arm around his shoulder (is he doing it right? He’s pretty sure he’s seen Uraraka do this when taking pictures with her friends), but his smile is incredibly wide in the photo they take.

“I think it turned out really well!” Midoriya says happily, looking at the photo.

“Mm,” Todoroki agrees, holding up his phone as well. “Can you send it to me?”

“Sure!” Midoriya agrees, quickly sending it over. “Ah—will your family mind though?”

“I think my sister will cry to see that I’m actually doing stuff with friends,” Todoroki replies, carefully saving the photo.

(Really, he wants to keep it for himself, but he’ll also send it over to Fuyumi since he does think she’ll like it—she has always enjoyed seeing photos of him and his friends. She’ll probably show it to Natsu, who will probably congratulate him on making progress with his soulmate.

He’s not sure if this is actually what this is but—he’s hopeful.

They’ve been having a good time he thinks, but—he probably needs to give it more time.

Maybe he’ll show the picture of them to his mother too.)

“I mean—your dad?” Midoriya asks awkwardly shifting in place.

Todoroki gives him a flat look, “If I actually sent it to him, it would be because I want to piss him off,” he points out. “Actually—it’d be kind of funny if Fuyumi did send it to him. He’d probably be mad for weeks. ”

“I thought you two were doing better?” Midoriya asks. “What with the internship and him saving Natsu—”

“The internship was just so I could learn more about my flame powers. Him saving Natsu—still doesn’t make up for everything else,” Todoroki interrupts, clenching his fists at his side.

(He still—

He’s not as vocal about it as Natsu, but he’s not really sure there’s anything their father could do to get him to completely forgive him.

He wants to try—for Fuyumi’s sake and for his own peace of mind, but—

His mother is still trapped in a mental institution because of Endeavor, and even if he doesn’t remember Touya clearly, Endeavor had something to do with his eldest brother’s death as well.

And yet—

There’s part of him who even now wants to somehow make his father proud of him, as if there was some way for that man to acknowledge him and prove for once that he’s more than what he thought he was.

He’s not really sure how to feel about that.)

Midoriya nods and is silent for a little while before saying, “That makes sense. I’m—sorry you have to put up with all that, Todoroki-kun.”

“Not your fault,” Todoroki says quietly, looking down.

(He shouldn’t have brought it up.

He knows that—his family is a mess, and why would anyone not already stuck in it want to get involved in all that?

Maybe it’s another reason why Midoriya is so reluctant to admit that they are actually soulmates.)

“Still—it’s been hard on you, I know,” Midoriya says, his voice as quiet as Todoroki’s.

Todoroki shrugs, shifting up some of the bags of merch Midoriya had bought, “It’s less hard when we’re trying to drain his bank account?” he offers, holding up Endeavor’s credit card.

Midoriya laughs, shifting the posters held in his own arms, “Ah—really Todoroki-kun, it’s fine if you use it, but to use it for stuff that only I want—”

“You never know, maybe I want to hang some of those posters in my room,” Todoroki says, nodding at the prints in Midoriya’s arms.

Midoriya presses them protectively against his body, “It wouldn’t fit with your décor!” he protests.

Todoroki cracks a grin, “You’re right. You’ll just—have to hold onto them for me then, right?”

Midoriya looks caught between his innate politeness and his sheer desire for limited edition, signed prints (he’s pretty sure they’ve visited every booth in the artist alley), “…if you get in trouble for spending too much, I’ll pay you back,” he says firmly.

Todoroki waves a hand, “Don’t worry about it. I don’t think Endeavor ever looks at his financials himself, I’m pretty sure he has an accountant who does it instead.”

“Makes sense. I wonder if All Might has an accountant…” Midoriya muses before noticing something on his phone, “Oh! I just remembered—my mom wants to me to invite you to our apartment for dinner.”

Todoroki blinks at him with wide eyes, “…really?”

“Yes, she just texted me to remind me—would you like to come?” Midoriya asks shyly.

“Yes,” Todoroki replies immediately. “Should I bring anything?”

“No, just yourself! And mom said she’ll be sure to make some soba for you,” Midoriya says with a big grin on his face.

“Alright,” Todoroki replies, making a mental note to bring something nice with him anyway (it would be rude not to. Maybe Fuyumi has some fancy snacks or wagashi he could bring in?). “Then—are you wearing an All Might hoodie too for the banquet?”

Midoriya tugs on the hood of his, “Well—you might be able to get away with it, but I still think I should probably wear something fancier…”

“Let’s match?” Todoroki suggests.

Midoriya blinks at him, then looks away and coughs with a slight flush to his face, “O—okay! If it goes wrong though—you’ll make some excuse while I go change?”

“You brought fancier clothes with you?” Todoroki asks, glancing at Midoriya’s backpack.

“I came prepared,” Midoriya nods, unzipping his bag to show Todoroki.

“Wow. Well yeah, I don’t mind. But I think it’ll be fine,” Todoroki says.

And the banquet does turn out pretty well. Midoriya is at first pretty nervous, glancing down at the notecards he made and continuously shuffling them, but Kamui Woods is nice and polite, and it’s not like they hadn’t met Mount Lady in person before (even if Todoroki still doesn’t understand her sometimes), and after Todoroki flubs a few of his own questions (apparently asking information about Miruko comes off as him being interested in her instead of just wanting to get information about her for Fuyumi), Midoriya comes out of his shell and starts asking questions as well. By the end of it, Midoriya’s laughing, has everyone’s autograph, taken lots of photos, and has even become texting buddies with all the members of the Wild Wild Pussycats.

If they don’t manage to eat much and spend most of the time talking, well, the point of the banquet wasn’t food after all.

“I can’t believe I got a selfie with every single guest there,” Midoriya murmurs as he looks through his phone.

“They were more than happy to,” Todoroki says before pausing. “You don’t think they’re going to tell Miruko what I said, right?”

“Probably not?” Midoriya replies, looking up at him. “Miruko is very busy and doesn’t like to team up with people—they might not even get a chance. I—didn’t realize you were so interested in her, Todoroki-kun.”

“I’m not, I just—we think my sister and her are soulmates,” Todoroki explains.

Midoriya’s eyes go wide, “Your sister and Miruko? Oh—then the firework crystal things on her arms—”

“My sister makes ice that can explode, and her soulmark is a moon,” Todoroki shrugs. “We keep telling her to talk to her, but Fuyumi thinks it’s too presumptuous or something.”

“I get that,” Midoriya says softly. “It would be—intimidating.”

(What was that supposed to mean?

Did Midoriya find him intimidating?

Surely not?

Midoriya had screamed at him to light himself on fire and launch an inferno at him during the sports festival; after that, what did Midoriya have to be intimidated by at all?)

“Still—if she doesn’t say anything, Miruko probably isn’t going to be able to find her herself,” Todoroki argues. “And she seems nice—even Natsu thinks so.”

Midoriya nods emphatically, “I’ve never heard anything bad about Miruko-san! Well—except that maybe she’s a little arrogant and could team up a bit more, but—that shouldn’t apply to relationships I think! I’m pretty sure I’ve read an interview with her where she said that although she’s dated girls who aren’t her soulmate, she doesn’t regret any of those relationships, so—she seems pretty nice in that respect?”

Todoroki makes a mental note to tell Fuyumi that (surely she’s read that interview though?), “Yeah—so she should talk to her soon. Or maybe—next internship I could try to get one with her.”

Midoriya purses his lips in thought, “I’ve heard she prefers more physical-type quirks, and she doesn’t take many interns…but I’m sure she’ll make an exception for you, Todoroki-kun!”

“We’ll see,” Todoroki replies. “So—when am I having dinner with you and your mom?”

“Oh!” Midoriya quickly checks his cellphone, biting his lip, “You think—would a week from now be too soon?”

“That’d be perfect,” Todoroki replies with a small smile. “I can’t wait.”

--

“Midoriya-kun is inviting you to meet his mom? Wow—Natsu never even got to that level!” Fuyumi exclaims, staring at him slack-jawed.

“Yeah, so—I was thinking—I should bring something right? Like wagashi?” Todoroki asks, shifting in place.

“Yes, that’s a wonderful idea! We have some sakura mochi—but maybe they’d like daifuku more? And Natsu brought back a box of yatsuhashi from Kyoto—maybe a variety box, that’s the trick,” Fuyumi mutters as she goes into the kitchen and starts taking boxes of wagashi out before calling over her shoulder, “And what will you be wearing?”

Todoroki looks down at himself, “…is this not alright? Midoriya didn’t seem to really make a big deal out of it, so I shouldn’t go too overboard maybe—”

“Shouto, this is your first time meeting his mother! First impressions are important! Let me see what I can do,” Fuyumi says, placing a box of daifuku and yatsuhashi on the table before going over to his room. “You’ll have to tell me all about it! Oh—and make sure you tell mother!”

“…are you sure that’s a good idea?” Todoroki asks, following her and twisting his hands together.

Fuyumi looks up from the pile of shirts she’s dumped on his bed, “Why wouldn’t it be?”

“It’s—her and soulmates—would it make her feel bad that I—that I have one?” Todoroki manages to ask.

Fuyumi stands up and walks over to him and places a hand on his shoulder, “Because she doesn’t? Shouto—she was always so happy when each of our soulmarks appeared—when she heard about yours, she was delighted as well. She always said that—at least this way she knows there’s someone out there who will care for her children the way they deserve to be treated.”

(That hurts for some reason.

Maybe because that’s what their father should have been to their mother?)

“…but we don’t know if Midoriya is or not yet,” Todoroki mumbles.

“I’m pretty sure he is,” Fuyumi says decisively, going back to the clothes. “And you’re meeting his mom! I’m so excited for you!”

“If you’re so excited over the idea of soulmates, why haven’t you tried to contact Miruko yet?” Todoroki asks.

Fuyumi pauses in taking out a blue shirt, “…Shouto, you’re lucky that your soulmate is just—right there and so accessible,” she says finally, folding the shirt neatly. “He knows you and likes you, and even if he’s a little cautious, he’s already falling for you as far as I can tell. Me—Miruko doesn’t even know I exist.”

“And she never will if you never contact her,” Todoroki says, somewhat frustrated (he feels like their conversations about this always ends up going in circles). “I talked to some pro-heroes at the convention, they said that she’s single right now—”

“You told other pro-heroes about me?” Fuyumi asks in a shrill voice, staring at him in horror.

“No, they all thought I had a crush on her, which was weird,” Todoroki says dismissively, wrinkling his nose. “Even Midoriya asked.”

Fuyumi lets out a startled laugh, “Oh—well you didn’t have to do that Shouto. Just—focus on Midoriya-kun, and let your sister handle her own matters on her own, alright?”

“…okay,” Todoroki says doubtfully. “But I can’t guarantee Natsu won’t.”

Fuyumi sighs, setting the blue shirt down with some nicer slacks, “Don’t follow Natsu’s example, Shouto, he’s too nosy for his own good sometimes.”

Todoroki makes a mental note to maybe let Natsu know about what the other pro-heroes had said about Miruko (maybe he could figure something out—Natsu after all has a lot more experience with romantic matters than he does).

“I think this will do,” Fuyumi says, pushing the clothes into Todoroki’s hands. “Now—remember to be polite Shouto—not that I think you’ll be rude, and I’m sure Midoriya-kun’s mother is nice since her son is, but just in case—”

“I’ll be good,” Todoroki promises, nodding and carefully setting the clothes aside. “I—I want her to like me too.”

Fuyumi grasps his hands and squeezes them reassuringly, “I’m sure she will.”

It turns out that Midoriya’s mom is actually almost as nervous to meet him as he is to meet her, taking out a giant variety of snacks, exclaiming over the wagashi he brought, bringing out a table full of delicious dishes, constantly telling him to eat more, and her eyes seem shiny with tears as she looks between Todoroki and her son.

“Is your mom okay?” Todoroki whispers to Midoriya when his mom bustles into the kitchen again to take out yet another dish.

“Oh yeah, she’s just—really happy,” Midoriya explains, smiling after her. “I never—this is going to sound kind of pathetic but—I never brought anyone home before.”

Todoroki blinks at him, “What about Bakugou?”

“Oh—Kacchan never wanted to come over when we were little, and when we were older—well, you’ve seen what he’s like,” Midoriya says awkwardly, looking down at his slippers.

(He has never quite understood why Midoriya calls someone who tormented him in his youth a friend, it’s rather strange.

Although as Midoriya himself pointed out, Todoroki also counts Bakugou as a friend of sorts, but Todoroki would maintain that going through joint remedial training together and having run after villains to save someone kind of forces you to call someone a friend after all that.

And while that does apply to Midoriya, they still shouldn’t count as childhood friends.)

“Well—I’m honored then,” Shouto finally says. “To be the first person you brought home.”

Midoriya turns red, staring at his feet, “I—do you have to word it that way—but um—I’m glad you came, Todoroki-kun!”

“Wouldn’t miss it for anything,” Todoroki says honestly.

Midoriya’s mom hurries out with a plate full of soba, “Izuku told me you really enjoy chilled soba, so I made some! It’s—probably not that great since the noodles are just store bought, and I’m sure you’re used to better—”

“These are delicious,” Todoroki says, slurping some up.

Midoriya beams at him then looks at her son, “You’re such a nice boy, Todoroki-kun—and Izuku has told me so much about you!”

“Good things I hope,” Todoroki says, glancing over at a fidgeting Midoriya.

“Of course! After all you’re—”

“Mom, aren’t the wagashi Todoroki-kun brought so nice?” Midoriya interrupts, picking up a yatsuhashi, “I don’t think I’ve ever had these before.”

“Natsu brought them back from his trip to Kyoto,” Todoroki says, his eyebrows furrowing (strange that Midoriya would interrupt).

“Oh, is that your brother? It’s so nice of you to bring us some!” Midoriya’s mom says, also taking one. “And you said you also had a sister?”

“Yes, she’s a pre-school teacher,” Todoroki says.

“My, she must have her work cut out for her,” Midoriya’s mom comments, “And I think Izuku-kun mentioned your brother is pre-med? Your family is so selfless, all of you going into fields where you just help people.”

“…yeah,” Todoroki says, unsure of really what to say to that (to comment on exactly how much his dad really helps anyone is probably not something to bring up in front of Midoriya’s mom), “Well—we do what we can.”

In the end, Midoriya’s mom insists upon him taking the leftover soba home in a Tupperware container, and she also piles food onto Midoriya as well.

“I keep telling her that the food in the dorms isn’t bad, but she still insists,” Midoriya says sheepishly as they carry all the containers back to the dorm.

“It’s nice,” Todoroki says. “My mother didn’t cook much back then, but—she also is always worrying that I don’t eat enough.”

“How is your mother?” Midoriya asks carefully, shifting the containers out of the way and looking at him.

“She’s doing better. Doctor thinks she may be ready to leave the hospital soon—as long as she doesn’t go back to my father,” Todoroki says.

“What does she think of that?”

“…I’m not sure,” Todoroki says quietly, “We don’t—we don’t really talk about that.”

(He likes to talk about happier things in his mother’s presence, and he thinks she does too.)

“….does she have people to talk to about that though? It’s lonely—not having anyone to talk to about—problems,” Midoriya says, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

Todoroki blinks and stares at Midoriya.

(He—had never thought about that before.

Maybe it’s because he never really had friends before, so he never knew what was missing back then, but now—

He wouldn’t give up Iida’s well-meaning lectures, Uraraka’s cheerful chatter, Tsuyu’s insightful comments, Shinsou’s sarcasm, or Midoriya’s warm presence for anything.

When was the last time his mother had friends?)

“Maybe my sister? I’m not—really sure. That’s—that’s kind of bad, isn’t it?’ Todoroki winces. “I’ve—been trying to be a better son, but it’s—hard.”

“I think you’re doing pretty good, Todoroki-kun,” Midoriya says firmly, stopping so Todoroki has to look at him. “You really care about her, and—I’m sure she’s really proud of you.”

“You think so?”

Midoriya huffs out a small laugh, “How could anyone not be of you?”

(He so badly wants to ask if that includes Midoriya himself but—

Is it still too early to ask that?

He feels like—they’ve grown closer maybe, and he so badly wants to press the issue, but he also doesn’t want to spook Midoriya into running away.)

“You as well,” he finally manages to say lamely. “You—are going to be such a great hero someday.”

Midoriya gapes at him, and then stammers, “Oh—oh you’re too kind, Todoroki-kun—that’s really—I mean I want to—but there’s a lot to live up to—”

“You’ve already surpassed most,” Todoroki tells him (Midoriya actually cares, and that’s more than what you could say about a lot of pro-heroes).

Midoriya turns red, coughs, “I really haven’t—oh, speaking of pro-heroes, there’s going to be a limited release of golden age All Might figures soon. Would—would you like to line up with me? Or if you don’t want to line up, I can just get you one too—”

“I want to line up with you,” Todoroki says seriously.

Midoriya beams at him and then shyly ducks his head, “That’s great! Um—so it’ll be next week. Maybe we can go after that math test? I still need to study for that…”

“I do too. Maybe we should ask Iida to do a group study session?” Todoroki suggests (group studying seemed to be things friends did together?)

Midoriya emphatically agrees, and so the subject changes to their more mundane classes, and they pass the rest of the walk back to the dorms in relative harmony, bemoaning the amount of English homework Mic-sensei had given them and whether or not the math test was going to be harder than usual.

--

The line is long, but Todoroki doesn’t mind with Midoriya vibrating with excitement at his side.

“I pre-ordered, so there’s definitely going to be figures there when we get to the front, but this store also has an exclusive signed poster!” Midoriya says, rubbing his hands together to keep warm.

Todoroki leans toward Midoriya’s side, heating up his fire side just a smidge, “But—you could get All Might’s signature any day.”

“But not the model-maker’s or designer’s signatures! They put in a lot of hard work too!” Midoriya argues earnestly.

“Mm,” Todoroki acknowledges, hiding a small smile (how is Midoriya this cute?). “I’m sure we’ll manage to get some of those too.”

“I really hope so—oh, it’s Kacchan! And Kirishima-kun!”

Todoroki turns to see Kirishima happily waving at them from further back in the line while Bakugou scowls at his side.

“Hey guys! You also here for the All Might figure, huh? We thought we already got here super early, but it looks like you guys beat us here!” Kirishima comments cheerfully.

“Because you took forever with your hair,” Bakugou grouses.

“It’s important to look manly for this!” Kirishima argues back, swinging their interlinked hands together. “Anyway, when did you guys wake up to get here?”

“Oh, I got up at 5,” Midoriya replies.

“Same,” Todoroki says.

“Nice! Hope that we get the figures soon though—I still haven’t finished my essay for Mic-sensei yet,” Kirishima says sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

“ What? ” Bakugou growls out, turning his terrible expression back to Kirishima. “You said you finished that!”

“Yeah well—we were having fun—”

“Oh, lookthelineismoving andohmygodwe’renearlythere!” Midoriya hastily interrupts as the store opens its doors and the line surges in. “I think I can see the figures! They look so cool! Oh—are they only letting the people who ordered go up to get things signed, that’s not good—”

“That’s fine, go ahead,” Todoroki says, motioning for Midoriya to go forward. “You can get ours both signed.”

Midoriya flashes him a grin before darting forward to retrieve the order and get the precious signatures.

“Aw, you two are so sweet,” Kirishima says, slapping him on the back. “So you guys finally got the whole soulmates thing figured out?”

“We’re—working on it,” Todoroki says quietly, wondering whether or not he should also slap Kirishima’s back.

Bakugou snorts, “Figures. So now when we consult All Might, we have to drag you in too?”

Todoroki blinks at him, “What?”

Bakugou’s face twists some more, glancing over at Midoriya and then back at him, “Eh? Shitty Deku still hasn’t told you?”

“Told me what?” Todoroki demands.

(There’s something that Midoriya would rather confide to Bakugou rather than him?

That doesn’t make any sense—what would Midoriya need to talk to Bakugou about?

That stings, no matter how he looks at it, and a delicate feeling of hurt rises up in his chest.)

Bakugou gives a shifty look as he awkwardly sticks his hands in his pockets, “…if he hasn’t told you yet, I’m not going to.”

“Well, now I’m curious,” Kirishima announces in a forced jovial tone. “What are you two hiding?”

Bakugou scowls at Kirishima, rubbing the red scar-like soulmark over his eyelid, “Never you mind, shitty hair,” he grumbles. “It doesn’t have anything to do with you.”

“But it does have something to do with me,” Todoroki states, looking at Bakugou. “And it has something to do with All Might.”

“Just—aren’t you two soulmates? Just ask him about it!” Bakugou snaps.

(Should he?

It didn’t work before, but maybe now—

But he does wish that Midoriya would just confide in him himself, without Todoroki having to chase after him and prompt him.)

“I’m sure it’s fine, Todoroki-kun!” Kirishima says cheerfully. “You two will work it out! You’re soulmates after all!”

Todoroki nods at him, and then Midoriya is rushing over with the signed figures, while Bakugou is pulling Kirishima with him to the front, so they split up, but both of their words still linger in his mind as Midoriya happily fanboys away.

(It’s easy for Kirishima to say something like that, he had established Bakugou as his soulmate fairly early on—but maybe he’s being too harsh on Kirishima when he says that.

After all, even if it was obvious from Kirishima’s explosion soulmarks on his arms who his soulmate was, Bakugou had been as bad-tempered with him as towards anyone else.

And yet, Kirishima had still persisted through, and now as far as he knew, the two of them kept going on hikes, ski trips, and apparently merch lines too now.

Bakugou is not Midoriya though—thank god—so he still thinks that a more careful approach is needed.

That—doesn’t mean he doesn’t have so many questions though.)

“Are you alright, Todoroki-kun?” Midoriya asks, turning worriedly towards him. “Should we go get coffee or something?”

“Tea would be nice,” Todoroki replies (another chance for a date-like thing) before glancing at the All Might figure Midoriya is carefully cradling in a bag. “…you’re really close to All Might, huh?”

Midoriya laughs, rubbing the back of his head, “Well yeah—I’ve looked up to him for such a long time—although I know a lot of people really did. What did you like best about him as a kid?”

“…I saw a T.V. special of him with my mother. He—was telling kids that it didn’t matter what their parents’ quirk were, it mattered what they themselves did with them,” Todoroki says quietly, looking down. “I—liked that.”

Midoriya nods, “That makes sense. I saw that special too I think—I liked it too. Although—obviously my case was different than yours—I thought I didn’t have a quirk back then.”

“But you still applied to U.A.?” Todoroki asks. “Were you planning to use Support equipment to do the entrance exam?”

Midoriya shifts a bit in place, “I—yeah, sort of. I was—training all summer. Um—was really lucky my quirk came in when it did!”

(Midoriya is a terrible liar.

His face grows red, making his freckles stand out all the more, his hands keep moving, and his eyes keep darting all over the place.

So then, what is he lying about—his quirk?

And it has something to do with All Might.

But if he confronts him directly about it, Midoriya may run off again, and their nice moment now will be ruined.)

“You know—if there’s anything you want to talk about—I’m happy to listen,” Todoroki says haltingly.

Midoriya bites his lip, looking up at him. “…thank you Todoroki-kun, I—I’m really happy to hear that. It’s just—um—look, I really—let me—let me talk to a few people alright? And then—and then maybe I can talk to you about—things.”

Todoroki nods, his heart thumping in his chest (that means—maybe Midoriya trusts him more now?). “Alright. I would like that.”

Midoriya smiles at him, and Todoroki finds himself smiling back at him.

(Perhaps—if Midoriya is going to talk to someone—probably All Might, he should as well.

He can ask his mother what she thinks about all this.)

--

“Shouto,” his mother greets him with a smile. “How was the convention? Did you have fun?”

“Mm,” Todoroki nods, sitting down next to her. “It was nice. Midoriya was very excited, and we had a good time.”

“I’m glad,” his mother says, patting his knee. “So things are going—well with Midoriya-kun?”

“I—I think so?” Todoroki says hesitantly. “I don’t—I—I really like him, mother.”

“I know,” his mother says, her smile widening. “I’m glad.”

Todoroki fidgets a bit in place, looking down at his hands, “I think—he might be my soulmate—but I don’t really care if he is or not—but I think he does, and it’s—there’s something he’s not telling me, but he’s trying to?”

“Hm,” his mother murmurs, reaching out to grasp his hand. “Fuyumi mentioned a little bit of what was going on—Natsu was also very excited. I think—it’s good he’s trying to be honest with you?”

“I don’t know what I’m doing, mother,” he confesses. “I don’t—I’ve never felt this way before about anyone, and I’m—afraid that I’m going to say the wrong thing or do the wrong thing and then he won’t want anything to do with me anymore—”

“I don’t know a lot about Midoriya-kun, but based on what I have heard or seen, he doesn’t seem the kind of person to do that,” his mother gently interrupts. “He seems—the kind of person who will speak his mind if push comes to shove, and I think he likes you very much.”

Todoroki’s head shoots up, “How can you tell?”

“You talk about him a lot. And he seems to seek you out on his own quite often as well. I think—you’ll be alright. He cares about your feelings and your well-being, and—that’s really what’s most important,” his mother replies with a trace of sadness in her smile.

Todoroki shifts around awkwardly, “…I’m sorry,” he says.

“For what?” his mother asks, giving him a puzzled look.

“I—I’m talking about all this, when you—you never had—you got stuck with father instead—”

“Oh Shouto,” his mother says, leaning forward and resting her head on his shoulder. “It makes me so happy to know that my children have someone special out there for them who will care for them with all their hearts. I—I may not have been lucky, but—I have all of you now, don’t I? And—even if what I had with your father was not good for me—that doesn’t mean that I don’t still love you all and wish the best for all of you.”

Todoroki wraps his arms around his mother and takes comfort in her warmth.

(Is she right?

Then—maybe he should stop stepping around things and just declare himself to Midoriya.

He—he still doesn’t really understand all of this, but at least Midoriya will know where he stands on everything.)

“You have a chance, Shouto,” his mother continues, carding a hand through his hair, “A chance your brother—well. Touya would have wanted you to be happy too.”

“…do you think we should contact Hawks?” he asks quietly, looking up at her.

His mother bites her lip, her hands smoothing his shoulders. “I—perhaps. If only just to let him know that maybe—maybe he was the one.”

“I think so too,” he says, nodding. “But Fuyumi thinks it would be cruel.”

“…I don’t know Shouto. That’s something that—I wish I knew him better, then I would know what to say,” his mother sighs, but then looks up at him again. “But you—you have someone who cares about you very much, and I think you should go and try. Even if you’re not entirely sure what to do—I’m not entirely sure Midoriya-kun does either, and I think it’ll come to you.”

“Alright,” Todoroki says, looking at his mother. “Thank you.”

His mother smiles at him, “Of course. I’m so happy for you, Shouto—do tell me how it goes!”

--

Todoroki takes a deep breath as he stills his hands, waiting for Midoriya to arrive after class.

(It—had been much easier to be brave and hopeful when he had been talking to his mother.

Right now—what if everything goes terrible wrong and Midoriya doesn’t even want to be his friend anymore?

He doesn’t know how to deal with that.)

“Todoroki-shonen?”

Todoroki looks up to see All Might peering at him.

“All Might,” he nods jerkily.

“Are you waiting for Midoriya-shonen?” All Might asks kindly.

Todoroki manages to nod.

“Ah, I think Recovery Girl wanted to talk to him a bit—”

“Is he alright?” Todoroki asks immediately.

All Might holds up his hands, “Yes, he’s fine—she just wanted to check up on him—but actually—Todoroki-shonen, could we talk?”

Todoroki blinks at him, “Y—yes, alright.”

(Was it about Midoriya?

Did All Might not—approve?)

All Might motions him into an empty classroom and then turns around to look at him, “…so, Midoriya-shonen has informed me that—you two are very close. And there’s certain things that he promised me to keep secret that he now feels is important to tell you now.”

Todoroki narrows his eyes, “If you’re talking about how he’s secretly your son, I already guessed that,” he informs him bluntly.

(May as well get that out in the open.)

All Might chokes, coughing heavily, “Wha— what?”

“It’s fairly obvious,” Todoroki says seriously, “Do you need me to get some water for you?”

“It’s really not—Todoroki-shonen, Midoriya-shonen is not my son,” All Might says weakly, wiping a bit at the spots of blood at his mouth.

Todoroki nods, “I will continue to keep up that pretense.”

“No—really—” All Might sighs and sits down. “It’s—a bit more complicated than that. Or less, depending on what you’re imagining, but—I’m about to tell you a secret that you cannot share with anyone else.”

Todoroki nods firmly. “I promise.”

(Even without Midoriya being involved he would agree.

This was All Might asking—the one person his father could never beat. The Pillar of Peace and Symbol of Hope, of course Todoroki would agree.)

“Alright. I suppose the easiest way to explain this—is that both Midoriya and I were originally quirkless.”

Todoroki’s brow furrows as he stares at All Might.

“What?” he asks flatly.

“The reason we have quirks now is because—I’m going about this all wrong,” All Might says nervously, his hands wringing together. “I’ve never had to explain this to anyone outside of a bearer before—I should have started with All For One.”

Todoroki’s eyes grow even wider. “Your quirks came from All For One ?”

“No! Well—in a manner of speaking—but no. Not really. One For All was meant to counteract All For One,” All Might says, and then explains the entire story of One For All and his brother with the transferrable quirk.

Todoroki has to sit down after that.

(He’d never heard of a quirk that could be transferred before.

But it made so much sense now, didn’t it?

The number on his chest, the way it had only shown up on the day of the U.A. entrance exam, Midoriya’s new quirks—

And why Midoriya had been so strange about the entire thing.)

“…I need to talk to Midoriya,” he finally manages to say.

All Might softly smiles. “He should be in the dorms now, fretting a bit. Do be kind to him, Todoroki-shonen—he has been worrying a lot.”

Todoroki blinks. “About what?”

“I think—he was worried how you would take it. He—it’s hard being quirkless, I know,” All Might says quietly.

(Did Midoriya think that he would reject him for having been quirkless?

Todoroki couldn’t imagine doing so—even without One For All, Midoriya was so kind and brave and selfless and cute—and besides, Todoroki has enough quirks for both of them.

Although now he supposes Midoriya has enough quirks to staff a small army now.

It’s a little weird having someone have more quirks than him, but it’s not bad.

Although—so far Midoriya has only shown two quirks, and given how long it took him to control just the strength one—)

“I’ll talk to him right now but—are you guys working on the other quirks too? Is that safe? You’re telling him to take it gradually, right? Midoriya can go overboard—he can’t break anymore limbs, I’m pretty sure it’s not good for him—”

All Might places a hand on his shoulder, “Todoroki-shonen, don’t worry. We are all working through it slowly and steadily together—and now with you here to support him, I’m sure Midoriya-shonen will be much cheered up.”

“…you really think so?” Todoroki asks, his voice soft.

(Even now—when he’s about to confess—

He’s scared.)

All Might nods, a smile on his face. “Yes. Go to him, he’s waiting.”

Todoroki honestly doesn’t even remember how he got back to the dorms, but he must have run, because he’s out of breath by the time he’s at Midoriya’s door and knocking on it.

Midoriya opens it and looks up at him, biting his lip. “I guess—All Might told you everything?”

Todoroki nods, “Can I come in?”

“Of course,” Midoriya says, opening his door wide for Todoroki, then going and sitting on his bed, hugging an All Might pillow to his chest. “You—you probably—if you’re not happy Todoroki-kun, I understand.”

Todoroki closes the door and looks at him, frowning. “Why wouldn’t I be happy?”

Midoriya hugs the pillow tighter to his chest, not looking at Todoroki. “That I was quirkless before.”

“You think that—what because you were quirkless, I wouldn’t want to be around you?” Todoroki asks incredulously.

“…when I was little—everyone thought my soulmark was really cool. I thought so too—and if my soulmate’s quirk was that cool, mine must be too, right?” Midoriya lets out a pained little chuckle that makes Todoroki’s heart clench. “But then—I never developed one. People—used to make fun of me and say that—my soulmate would be so disappointed when they found me.”

“I am not disappointed at all,” Todoroki says fiercely, sitting down right next to Midoriya so that their legs knock together. “Even if you didn’t have One For All, I wouldn’t be disappointed—how could I? You’re the kindest and bravest person I know—and who said that to you, Bakugou? Do you want me to go punch him?”

Midoriya blinks up at him, his cheeks adorably pink and highlighting his freckles (Todoroki wants to lick them—what a weird thought). “You—really? You’re not—I’m really not that kind or brave—”

“You cared about Eri when no one else did, and you charged in to save Bakugou against all those villains. And—you shattered your arms trying to help me during the Sports Festival, and we didn’t even really know each other back then,” Todoroki reminds him, clenching his fists at his side to keep himself from reaching out and touching Midoriya’s cheek.

(He hasn’t said anything, so he can’t move too fast and spook him.)

“…you’re the one who’s amazing, Todoroki-kun,” Midoriya says breathlessly. “You’re amazing with your quirk, you’re so nice, and you’re terribly attractive.”

“You think I’m attractive?” Todoroki asks hoarsely, not being able to help leaning in towards him.

Midoriya flushes redder, “You—you—of course you are! Everyone knows you’re the hottest guy in our year—”

“I don’t care about what anyone else thinks. Do you think I am?”

Midoriya manages a nod.

“Do you like me?” Todoroki asks, the question just slipping out of his mouth.

“Y—y—-y—yes,” Midoriya stutters out before burying his red face in the pillow.

At this point, Todoroki has to discreetly pinch himself to check that he isn’t dreaming.

(He imagined this so many ways—

But no, his imagination couldn’t produce all the All Might stuff in Midoriya’s room, he’s fairly certain.

Or Midoriya’s trembling warmth at his side.)

“I like you too,” he says finally, his own face so warm.

Midoriya’s head pops up, and his eyes are shining. “R—really?”

Todoroki nods, “I don’t think I’ve been subtle.”

“Yes, but—I wasn’t sure—after you finding out about everything—it’s a lot of trouble, this One For All stuff,” Midoriya says seriously.

“And I’m here for you for it,” Todoroki says with an equal amount of solemnity. “Besides—you know all about my family. What part of that isn’t trouble?”

Midoriya’s face is both teary and shiny, “I—I—I’m here for you too, Todoroki-kun.”

“Shouto,” Todoroki insists.

“Sh—Sh—Shouto,” Midoriya stutters out shyly. “I—you can call me Izuku too, but—can I touch your soulmark?”

“Only if I can touch yours too, Izuku,” Todoroki says, undoing the buttons of his shirt.

Midoriya squeaks, his blush traveling all the way to his ears, but his eyes never leave Todoroki’s chest. “I—yes, yes please.”

Todoroki reaches out his hands to finally grasp Midoriya’s arms, and the flames and ice come to life, swirling up and down the other boy’s arms.

“I always knew it would be beautiful,” Midoriya says creakily, tears shining in his eyes.

“Mm,” Todoroki manages to snap out of it long enough to say (his mark, his mark, his soulmate’s mark). “Touch mine too.”

Midoriya stretches out a trembling hand, and when his fingers touch the 9 on Todoroki’s chest, it crackles with lightning, first green, then yellow, then purple, cycling through colors until it glows pure white, and then cycles again.

Midoriya is openly crying now, and Todoroki quickly hands him a tissue.

“It’s just so—I didn’t think—I never even imagined—I’m a mess,” Midoriya says, blowing his nose, but not taking his hand away from Todoroki’s chest.

“It’s as amazing as you are,” Todoroki says quietly, laying his hand on top of Midoriya’s.

Midoriya gives a short little inhale, and that’s all the warning Todoroki has before he has a lapful of Midoriya in his arms, and their lips collide together.

It’s—oddly wet, neither of them know what they’re doing, and Midoriya nearly knees him in the stomach, but—

But they’re both laughing and hugging and so, so, so happy, and Todoroki can’t think how it could be better at all.

“I’m so glad you’re my soulmate,” he murmurs into Midoriya’s ear.

Midoriya snuggles into the side of his neck, “I am too.”