Chapter Text
Leaving their home so suddenly was sad and Izuku risked lots of extra yelling and even smacks for delaying their departure by standing in his tiny bare room, mournfully looking at everything they weren't taking with them. Then he picked up his little bag and followed his mother….
Riding the train was fun, kicking his little legs he watched the outside world change, farms and fields and towns and cities and changing trains and it was all very exciting, and noisy, and he kept his tail tucked into his trousers, ears flattening at the sounds all around him as, finally, his Mummy’s new boyfriend met them at the platform, swooping down and laughing and hugging Mummy and then they were off again, Izuku trailing behind like always.
*-*
In the new place he was even less welcome than in his old home but he loved the closet he got to sleep in, even though the boyfriend was mean and glared at him so much, even reaching out to pinch and slap at him when Mummy wasn’t looking.
But that was okay, Izuku was quick and the man almost never got him, and the closet was tiny and he loved tiny spaces! It had a few boxes in it that he stacked as a barrier only someone tiny like him could get past quickly, there was even a pile of old blankets and rags and three coats for some reason on the floor and t-shirts and even a half unstuffed pillow, AND it had a vent in it, right at the very back!
And if he pushed the rusted cover off and followed the vent all around bends and up narrow pipes, and it wasn't easy at all but he could do it if he tried really hard, and it was worth working really hard because it led to the outside and outside was where he wanted to be. So it was all good, for now anyway.
***
A brand new school was scary exciting too, and he was dropped off by Mummy, and he had paid close attention to the route because she said, "Remember this, you’ll be doing it yourself from now on!” So he did, taking note of the scents and sights, ears twitching as he captured the sounds around him, paying so much attention that he almost missed when she let go of his hand and pushed him at the doors.
Izuku wanted to clutch her hand tight, to ask for a hug, to demand and stamp his feet and scream that she love him like all the other kids getting dropped off were loved but he knew better by now so instead, he sighed again and trudged to his doom. Or to a fun day, it was anybody's guess at this point what was waiting for him inside that building.
****
Turns out what was waiting for him was his introducing himself with his name, a fact, something he was interested in, and his quirk.
"Hi, my name's Midoriya Izuku, I’m almost six, I have black hair, I love quirks an’ heroes, an’ my quirk is called Cat cause it gives me cat like atrid…. attribu… cat-like things I can do!”
And a spiky blond kid yelled out, “That's lame, what goods somethin’ like that for bein’ a hero?”
The biggest worry was, the teacher didn't make the kid apologize for yelling, and frowned at Izuku when he asked where to sit. After his old school, he'd hoped this one would be better but it was looking like it was gonna be the same.
Ah well, never mind, at least in the last one he eventually learned how to stop kids hurting him so no one was gonna hurt him here, not if he had anything to say about it anyway. But he’d keep his tail tucked into his trousers cause gettin his tail pulled HURT!
No one did though, they didn’t even try, but even with that it still wasn't comfortable cause they all kept lookin at him with all frowns and squinty eyes, and at art as he sat at the round tables, trying to get his picture to look right, the blond was there too and kept distracting him so bad, asking questions and not giving Izuku time to answer and it was finally too much when they reached out to snatch his drawing and Izuku slapped out twice, hissing a warning.
The blond paused, blinking before he frowned and yelled “GIMME THAT!” and snatched at Izuku’s page so instead of a warning slap, this time Izuku connected hard and stitched lines of bloody fire across the back of their hand with his claws!
The yelling the teacher did was amazing, you’d think he’d have killed the kid for the amount of fuss and bother instead of his giving what the yellow-haired menace deserved for grabbing Izuku's stuff! Standing in the corner Izuku fumed and chuffed and huffed to himself, a quiet endless rumble of hurt feelings and stress, until eventually he was let go to sit in his seat again, a warning and threats ringing in his ears.
Honestly, by that point, all he wanted to do was curl up in the sunbeam blazing away across the floor and sleep but, yawning, he sat down and tried to focus, wondering why the other kids were staring at him so funny.
*****
Katsuki knew he shouldn't bother the new kid but they were just so cool, and their ears were so cute, and yelling had always worked before but this kid was ignoring him and his drawing looked really great too and he just wanted to see it and then the kid hissed at him but seriously, like that was gonna stop him so he grabbed the page and - "WOW, that HURT!!!"
Looking at the scratches across the back of his hand right before the teacher did what they always did, which is overreact to anything and everything, Katsuki agreed that maybe he’d asked for it but then the kid was in the corner and the teacher was being awful and all he wanted was to be friends and he couldn't help the sniffle, he wasn't crying, he wasn't!
But it kinda felt like he was cause the new kid would never like him now.
Watching the cat kid eventually allowed to go back to his seat, the final awful was piled onto Katsuki’s bad day when they yawned and their tongue was pink and cute and his fangs were fuckin awesome!
****
The blond kid smelled really sad.
Izuku realized when he thought about it that they'd never smelled mean, just eager and loud and pushy so, when they went past him with yellow head hanging, Izuku said, “You c'n see it now, I finished at snack time.” and held the drawing out, “You c'n 'ave it if you want?”
“Woah, really? But it's like really really good, wow, how’d you get this good?” Katsuki stared in awe at All Might, air woooshing around a punch, and the villain had exed out eyes and everything!
Clutching the page tight to his chest, Katsuki asked, “You mean it? I can have it for real?”
“Yep, no take backsies, all yours! My mummy won't want it anyway.”
And just like that, easy as anything, they were friends.
***
School was pretty good, MUCH better than his last one, and his new friend was loud and funny and super smart and thought Izuku was cool as well and they were gonna be heroes together, but only after Izuku taught Kacchan all about underground heroes and how cool they were and yes, All Might was amazing, but underground was night time heroes and way cooler and because his new friend was super smart, Kacchan agreed.
Eventually.
How Sensei reacted to Izuku helped that a lot, because he’d ranted about how only DAYLIGHT heroes counted and that Bakugo was too powerful to pass up on limelight and bla bla bladebla bla…
Kacchan was solidly on the side of nighttime heroes after that, and together they started working on it, even doing some training on the playground after lunch as they ran round blasting super-powered punches at each other.
So school was good.
Home….. not so much!
Which is why he was outside at midnight, six weeks after moving into the new apartment, wandering the streets, working on his mental map of his new territory, scrounging for food if he got lucky enough to find something good, wearing not two feets, but four.
Even Mummy didn’t know about his four feets.
Eyes open wide, sniffing the night air, tail waving proudly, he studied the stretch of girder before him, the ground below littered with building debris and pipes and big spools of whatever the heck and almost turned around but if he went forwards then he’d cut off heaps of walking to reach his goal and he was hungry and the restaurant he was aiming for always threw away great food so, he bravely stepped onto the I-beam.
And was just fine, totally fine, until a swish of wind in talons was his only warning and an owl tried to snatch him up for their dinner and he yooooowled as he jumped away from its grab and fell and an echoing brrrrrrmling thump and he was in one of the upturned pipes which was great because the owl couldn't reach him - and it tried, for a long moment of flapping and clawing, followed by a screech of frustration and it was finally gone and he could breathe - but also not great at all because….
The pipe was big enough for him in kitten form to stand up in, to turn round in, but it was smooth and impossible for him to climb and it was too small for him to fit if he turned back to his human shape and he was so scared that he did the only thing a sensible almost six year old could do, he cried!
***
Eraserhead yawned, a real jaw cracker, not bothering to cover it or keep it quiet, it was almost time for his break and sue him, he was tired! Hizashi had been away for the last week and was away for the next 7 as well, and it was just so bloody hard to sleep without his moving around in the bed beside him, generating heat like a blast furnace, like almost impossible! Shouta’d even started sleeping on the floor sometimes because it was a tiny bit easier to get a bit of sleep like that, even if it was worse in every other way.
He was also bored, the patrol so far had been quiet as a grave, so quiet he could clearly hear an owl hooting in the distance, the wind sighing across the roof he was on, a kitten crying, distant traffic, people laughing in an all-night cafe….
A kitten crying?
Turning his head carefully to pinpoint a sound nature designed to be difficult to locate, unless you happen to be a mother cat anyway, and he finally got a bead on it, heading straight to the clean-up efforts of a villain-attack site.
It was dangerously chaotic and just the kind of place kittens managed to die in so he carefully moved through the jumble of materials, focused on the sounds of distress, and finally found a huge pile of pipes strapped together and placed not on their sides like a normal person would put them but on end.
‘Right, kitten’s in a pipe, shit!’
The overhead girder looked promising so he tossed a loop of his weapon over it, swinging up and onto the pipes, landing with all the jar of a thistledown, and shone his infrared light into each one, his goggles giving him a nice clear view down to the ground.
The kitten was right in the middle and jumped about a foot when he said, “Heeeeey little one, looks like you're in a bit of trouble, eh?”.
****
Having given up on ever escaping, the words from out of the dark almost gave Izuku a heart attack, but once he managed to think about the words themselves he felt hope blossom in his chest. Looking up at the person who’d managed to sneak up on him so silently and gave a broken meeew because he was tired and scared and it was a stranger but they had a nice face and how were they going to reach him from all the way up there?
Turns out it was simple when a scarf-like thing dropped down to him, gently wrapped around his middle, and lifted him into the waiting hands of the hero, and Izuku was sure it was a hero now because they smelled amazing! Kind and concerned and nice and relieved and of coffee and sweetness and Izuku just wanted to stay in their arms forever!
Wriggling a bit he managed to reach their neck where he buried his face, pressing in for maximum comfort, and began to purr like a motorboat, both from relief and to help calm himself down.
But once Izuku had calmed down enough to think past how good the man's arms felt, he could clearly smell a few not-so-nice things, like hunger, and loneliness, and they were tired as well!
Why would a hero be tired and hungry, wasn't he a grown-up?
Still purring Izuku leaned far enough away from the man's neck to get a good look at him, smiling at the bright yellow goggles - ‘They must be super useful!’ - and studied him intently, earning himself a grin, fingers rubbing at his neck which felt amazing, and a, “Come on Little One, let's get you to the shelter.”
Which, ‘Oh NO! Not a shelter, I has ta go!’ The thought was only just finished when he got his chance, as soon as the hero was back on the ground, and the man jumped down as soft as any cat could land, Izuku braced all four feet, kicked a mighty kick, and sprung free, hitting top speed as soon as his feet touched dirt.
Ignoring the upset tones of the hero calling for him, he kept running, only stopping when he was undercover, deep enough that no one, even with super duper goggles, could see him.
He didn't move again until dawn began to lighten the sky.
*-*
Seeing the kitten bolt into the darkness, Shouta was devastated. He’d almost convinced himself to keep this one, but he’d planned to drop it at the shelter, place a hold on it, and then talk to Hizashi - and visit it every single day until Hizashi got home, that was a given - but the kitten took all of that right out of his hands and, tears prickling at his eyes - and seriously, how old was he to be crying about a kitten - he got back to work, at least he’d get to eat in a little while, he’d forgotten to do so before he left for his shift.
Feeling lower than low, he tiredly got back to work.
******
Kacchan was worried about him that morning as Izuku yawned and kept dozing off but once his friend told him he was playing outside all night long, Kats stopped worrying about them bein so sleepy, he knew enough about the cat kid by now to know how much he was out at night.
Of course, his friend playing outside all night long, even with his quirk - and Katsuki felt so special when Izuku told him he was the only person in the whole wide world to know he could be a kitten too - made Kats worry lots and lots about them, but it was better than him being with his mother's boyfriend who was so mean.
Were all friends so much worry?
Tuning back into his friend's rambling, Kats heard, “They were amazing! Kacchan, you wouldn't believe it, when they had to save me outta'pipe they had this long scarf thing and used it ta” - “You had to be RESCUED from a PIPE?”
Blinking in surprise at how upset Kacchan sounded and smelled, Izuku said, “Ummmm yeah? But it was okay, I din't get hurt or anything, the owl totally missted me! An’ they were really nice!”
Reaching out very very slowly - Izuku had taught him right at the beginning of their friendship to move carefully, to speak softly, to not explode without telling his friend to cover his ears, or else Kacchan would sport more bloody scratches, once even a bite - Katsuki took his shoulders, shook him ever so slightly, and said, “You could have died. An’ where would I be then? No friend, no way to find yer stupid body, just a shrine an’ that's it.”
Shaking a bit harder he said, " Be careful, promise me, promise me you’ll be careful!”
The lazy, tired blink made him want to scream but the chirped, “Okay Kacchan, I promise, I’ll be careful! Now, if’n you don't wanna get bit, stop smelling like toffee near my mouf! I’m staaaaaaarving! You gots any fizzy lemon drops left?”
If there was one thing in the world that’d distract them both it was fizzy lemon drops and Kacchan had to admit that he’d eaten the last one before school. “Poop! Well, I gots an apple, I snagged it before I left BFs place, we c'n share it. An' lunch isn't too long away, and YES," he rolled his eyes, "I prooomise, I'll be careful tonight but, shhh, don't tell but," Izuku grabbed his bag and opened the back pocket, "look what I found in the bedroom closet!”
In the bag were two packets of jerky, the really good stuff that cost so much, and Katsuki reached for one, mouth watering, only to have it jerked out of his reach. “Whyyyyy, come on, I just wanna taste it?”
“Nope,” the popped p sounded insufferable smug, “these are for my hero. He rescued me and,” checking to be sure no one was listening, Izuku said, voice a tiny whisper, “he smellded hungry Kacchan, an' lonely, so I'm gonna find him and give him one tonight and give him some comp’ny too cause no one should be lonely like that.”
“But Zuzu, aren't you lonely like that?”
“Yeah, but I’ma kid, he's a grown-up…. it’s different Kacchan, it just is!”
“Sooooo you’re gonna what, feed him?”
“Yep, I waaas gonna give em a fresh killed bird or mouse, those are always soooooo yummy but then I found BFs stash so I grabded some of those instead and I’m gonna find him tonight and give him one, easy peasy.”
“Well, you just be fuckin careful, no more pipes, you gots it?”
“Yep, I gots it!”
******
Getting out was easy, getting out dragging a package of jerky not so easy, and getting it to where he’d last seen the hero was impossibly hard so instead, Izuku turned back to his two-footed form and simply carried it with his hands. It was either that or give up and he wasn't a quitter.
Next though was finding the hero, so once he was in the right area, he stashed the treat and changed, sniffing the air because as good as his mostly human nose was, his cat nose was even better, and started tracking.
It took him less than an hour to find where several scent trails crossed and he pranced off to get the treat, if the hero crossed THIS roof so often that it smelled like them lots and lots, then he’d probably cross it tonight too.
Finally settled in place, Izuku curled up to doze, warm in the cool night air because his coat was so thick and soft and long. It was terrible when it tangled but so comfy it made up for it.
****
There was something on the roof tonight, a bit of trash or, no, it had fur, and was small, and “Kitten?”
The excited meeew that greeted his voice made him smile in relief for the first time in over 24 hours. He'd been so sure he’d never see it again but despite that, he’d checked the building site three times the night he'd lost the tiny scrap and once already tonight regardless of how little hope he had, and now, almost a mile away, here was his little friend.
His little friend who was dragging something over to him, something that crinkled like, “Plastic?”
Kneeling down he took it from the now bouncing fluff ball, reading it in the low light, “Jerky?”
Catching the excited kitten as it jumped onto his knee, purring like a demon, he asked again, “Jerky?” Only to get a nod and little paws lifted, patting at the package, a mrrrrripppp and he was being head-butted, the purr if anything even louder and he couldn't help it, he laughed.
“You brought me jerky? Why? And better yet, how?”
Ears folding back, Izuku growled, patting the man's stomach, head-butting him a few times for good measure, and obligingly, the man's stomach rumbled with the hunger Izuku could clearly smell. Eyes opening wide in surprise, he stared right up at the startled hero and gestured with his paw, in a clear, "That's why!" gesture.
In return he got a delighted laugh and a “Didn't anyone ever teach you to not take food from strangers?”
And oh, that's a good point, how could Izuku take care of his hero if they wouldn't take food from him?
“Well, we have met before, so….” The sound of crinkling packaging being torn open, the heavenly smell of high-class dried meat filled the air, and Izuku was drooling. Pouncing with all claws out he got a laughing “Careful!” but he ignored it in favor of digging his teeth deep into the piece he’d been given, chewing with a determined pleasure, the flavor trying to overwhelm him, not even hearing, “Well, if someone is trying to poison me they seem to be doing a crap job at it, you look like you're enjoying it just fine. Now, don't tell Zashi or he’d have my ass, right?” Then his hero was eating his gift and Izuku couldn't be any happier.
This time it was harder to escape the hero but he managed it.
*****
Shit, shit shit shit was on an endless loop repeating in his mind because the kitten had gotten away again, the clearly quirked kitten because it couldn't be anything else than quirked with the way it was behaving.
Still, he consoled himself, if he’d met them twice he would probably meet it again, and next time he’d be ready!
*-*
He wasn't ready because this time the kitten dropped a jerky packet on him from an awning and scrambled away with a chittering laugh and was gone like smoke.
“Kemuri, smoke, huh, that's a good name, take THAT Zashi, I can too name things!”
The next night he got a dead bird in his hair, and admittedly, he yelled in shock but, seeing bright green eyes gleaming at him he said, “Yes, thank you, but please don't kill anything for me, I really am NOT that hungry!”
Of course, as he hadn't eaten in over nine hours, his stupid stomach growled at him, and the kitten gave him the most unimpressed look he’d ever been on the receiving end of. Even NEZU couldn't top it, and suddenly, he prayed his one-time Sensei, all the time Dad, never heard about this, not only would he laugh himself sick over a kitten trying to feed Shouta rather than the other way round but the ruler that haunted his dreams could very well show up when Nezu was sure to ask why a kitten felt the need to feed a pro hero and well….
Maybe he needed to pay more attention to his eating schedule, save himself a world of hurt if Zashi or Nezu caught him skipping meals again!
Glancing back up at the kitten he said, “If I promise to not try to keep you, will you join me for some food?” Because the kitten was just as thin as Shouta himself was, the bones were just hidden under soft poofy black fur.
The enthusiastic nod and suddenly falling bundle had him reaching out to catch them, “Woah, a little warning next time Kemuri!”
A complicated little sound and head tilt and he felt his face heat up, “Yeah well, you haven't exactly told me your name and you disappear just like smoke so, Kemuri. I won't use it if you don't” - which is as far as he got before the tiny form in his hands wriggled free of his grip to climb up his arms, across his chest and pressed purring against his neck. “So, like it?” A frantic nod and he laughed, “Come on then Kemuri, let's eat!”
******
Hizashi had been gone three weeks, and Shouta had forgotten to eat more often than maybe he should have but now, well, being pelted by three dead mice was the final straw, he’d enjoyed sitting outside at a cafe the day before, eating katsu pork with his new little friend more than he'd ever expected to do, so he caved and said to the eager face staring at him from the ledge of a building, “Alright, if you stop killing things for me, I promise, I will eat every day from now on, if you join me that is.”
If he could get the killing to stop AND get the kitten to eat too, well, Shouta eating every day would do three good deeds and one of them was to help him avoid Nezu’s ruler so, win win win! And the kitten throwing himself at him was even better than anything else, so he cradled the tiny buzzing thing close, rubbing his nose in their fur, and bit back a laugh when his face was grabbed and a tiny tongue rasped across his eyebrows in a vigorous face washing.
Muttering to the chest pressed against his nose Shouta asked, "Not clean enough for you?"
A stern fluffy frown and the grooming moved onto his bangs which is where he called time, “If you start on my hair we’ll be here all day, come on Smokey, let's eat!”
******
“So you’re eatin’ with him now?”
“Yep, every night!” Izuku nodded as his crayon followed the line he’d drawn with his pencil. “We had fish an' rice last night, I woulda had some veg too but there was soooo much fish I gots all filled up wif that, it was yummy!”
“I haf to take care of ‘im, Kacchan, he’s important!”
“Of course he is, he’s a hero! But he’s a h e r o Zuzu, he’s supposed ta take care of YOU!”
“No, he isn't! Imma CAT Kacchan, an' cats take care of people! Oh, I forgots ta tell you, I heard mummy….”
The sadness of what he’d heard suddenly filled him all the way up to the top but he swallowed firmly and made his voice work, even if it was really tiny now, “She’s leavin’ Kacchan, leavin’ me.”
Looking at shocked red eyes he said, “I espected it, cause cats leave their kittens when the kittens c’n eat real food and I c’n eat real food for years now so it's really ni-ni-nice she stayded this l-long!” He suddenly had caramel-scented arms around him as he cried, but he was a big cat now, not a kitten really, not anymore, so it was right and proper that his mother was leaving!
And cats made the best support animals and he could take care of his hero and be useful and he’d even get to visit Kacchan sometimes because he’d followed his friend home one day so knew where he lived so he said, “I’mma gonna haf ta stop school when Mummy goes, her boyfriend says they c’n start over somewhere in the sun? I don’ like the sun much, i’s hot, but she’ll like it okay so that's good, I wants her to be happy too, ya know?”
“You are too nice, anyone ever say that to you?”
“Ummmmm, no?”
“Well, you fuckin are. Promise me you’ll come visit, 'kay? Cause when she goes away and you start taking care of a hero yer gonna be busy so you gots to make time for me too, I need my friend too!”
“We are gonna still be friends, right?”
Hearing the fear and loneliness in his friend's voice, Izuku suddenly lunged for his Kacchan, wrapping him in a fierce hug. “Of course we will, always!!!”
His Mummy was gone when he got home, the apartment feeling empty and cold, like no one had ever lived in it before rather than only being gone for a few hours. Most of the furniture was still in place, dirty dishes in the sink, drawers left open and the closets ajar, and in vain Izuku looked for the note.
In stories there's always a note but not for him, his mummy had just left, no goodbye, no see you later, no I always loved you, no take care of yourself, nothing.
“Well, mama cats don’ tell kittens I love you,” he told himself fiercely as tears crawled down his face, “i’s okay, I’ll be okay! I’mma big boy now, I c'n eat real food an' everythin', and now I have a job and all I haf ta do is do it, an' visit Kacchan enough so he stops bein lonely, an I c’n do that when my hero sleeps during the day so, do I need anythin from here?”
Looking at his closet, tiny and full of things that didn’t belong to him, he shook his head, “No, nothin'.” He simply didn’t have anything to take with him so he changed to his fluffy form and pushed the grate out of his way, he had a hero to find!
*****
Kemuri found him on patrol.
Well, as soon as Shouta had seen the kitten following along behind he’d scooped him up, sat down, and they’d shared the food he’d brought with him, resolutely thanking him for the dead rat the kitten had brought him (while setting it aside and pretending it didn't exist as they ate) and damn, it was almost as big as the fluff ball was so the hero had no idea how he’d killed it, cats were awesome ambush predators but the size alone should have had his kitten finding a better, safer, prey item.
“I thought we agreed you wouldn’t kill things for me Smokey, I really can take care of myself.” And yes, maybe he'd earned that look, those ears flattened sideways at him because, pressing his palm against the freshly bandaged slash on his thigh he winced, “Yeah, alright, perhaps I spoke too soon but I took them down, AND I ate already today, TWICE, so you really don’t have to worry about me.”
“If anything, I should be worrying about you kitten, do you have a home or what? With how you disappear like your namesake, I really don’t know, you’re thin but not too bad.” - he ran firm fingers down spine and ribs, smiling as the tiny tail lifted like a flag as he rubbed the base of it, Kitty button indeed - “And you're smart, quirked at the very least, so, is tonight the night I get to see where you live or are you gonna go poof and be gone?”
Getting no answer, not that he was expecting one, he settled down for the rest of his brief break, stroking soft black fur as the tiny thing vibrated his leg with how hard it was purring.
Keeping to their agreement he packed his bento box away once it was empty and said, “Right, see you tomorrow night, be SAFE getting home, right?” Only for the kitten to chirrrp and dart into the shadows.
Heart hurting, Shouta got back to his patrol, it was only a few weeks to go until Zashi got home, he still couldn't sleep but at least because of Kemuri he was mostly eating properly again, but he just wanted the kitten to be safe, it didn't matter where, but he’d really love it to be with him and Hizashi.
Maybe tomorrow he’d just ask if Kemuri wanted to come with him? Couldn't hurt to ask, and EVERYONE was always on him about using his words so, maybe….
Hitting his stride he got back to work, eyes steady and true as he looked for trouble on his route.
*-*
'He goes so FAST!'
Izuku was shocked at how fast his hero was, and despite how Izuku too was fast, he was getting outpaced and while he’d wanted to watch his hero’s patrol for a bit before getting their attention again, if he didn’t do something quick he’d be reduced to tracking him by smell and that would take ages so he braced his feet on the edge of the building, the gap way too wide for him to jump, and YOWLED!
Watching his hero twist his head so fast to see who made the sound that they skidded into a jumbled pile of limbs and curses, Izuku breathed a sigh of relief when they got up again, only limping a bit as they ran back his way, watching in amazement as they effortlessly bridged the gap and chirrped as he was picked up in careful hands.
‘Sooo careful, I love how careful he is wif me!’
*-*
Hearing the kitten's voice from behind him his foot skidded on gravel as he spun to see and down he went, cursing as the slash in his thigh erupted in pain again, he’d been getting by alright but now it was like someone had poured acid in it but that didn't matter because, leaning over the edge of an eight-story drop, was Kemuri!
Heart almost stopping in dread, Shouta threw himself across the gap, snatching the fuzzy thing up, and cradled it to his chest, “Heart attack, that's your new name Kitten, heart attack!”
“What are you doing? We’re miles from anywhere we usually meet up, are you what, following me?”
He hadn't really been expecting an answer but the tiny black head nodded enthusiastically at him, a tiny paw reaching up to bat his face, and people down on the street should be able to hear the purring it was so loud and he laughed, “Why are you following me, eh?”
And oh, tiny paws were curling around his neck, a little head pressing against it, the purr dropping off to a stuttering buzz only to stop entirely. Something was clearly wrong and now he was going to have to guess so, as the kitten had spent the last few weeks eating every night with him and then leaving, but tonight Kemuri’d eaten and hidden and now was following him, there couldn't be too many reasons to work through so he'd try the most obvious first.
"Did something happen at your home?"
A nod.
"Did someone hurt you?"
A shake.
"Fuck, I am crap at this game!" but kittens so often get abandoned at a certain age so, “Did someone who was taking care of you,” it was surprisingly hard to say the words, “get rid of you?”
A nod and a shuddering breath.
“Oh kitten, oh Kemuri, oh sweet Smokey, come here.” He cradled the shaking body, heartbreaking sounds only just audible, and said, “It’s okay, it’s okay, do you remember that first night? When I said that about a shelter?” Suddenly freezing his bundle even seemed to stop breathing so he hurried back into speech, “I wasn't going to leave you there for long, just long enough to check if you had an owner and had your shots up to date and let my roommate know you were gonna be joining us, I promise, I was gonna come visit you that morning and every single one after that until I could bring you home, but you left and I couldn’t find you and then you found me and then it was all jerky and dead birds and….”
He gave a surprisingly damp chuckle, “I even started eating properly again, just so you’d stop worrying about me. And I haven't talked to Zashi yet cause he’s on assignment and he can't exactly call home but he's gonna love you too, I know it, so it’s okay if your old people were so fucking stupid as to get rid of you, it just means you’re free to come live with us, we can take care of you….”
The frantic shake of the little black head stopped his words because - didn't he want to be taken care of? But then Smokey braced his front feet on Shouta’s collarbone and booped his nose, rubbing his head against the hero’s chin before sitting back into his hands.
“Sooooo,” Shouta carefully asked, “you don't want me to take care of you?”
Again a head shake, feet against his chest, and a tiny headbutt and face pat.
“You want to take care of me?”
He felt silly to even ask but the big happy nod he got in return was a clear answer to the question, and he gave a soft laugh, “Kitten, I’m a grownup, I can take care of myself AND you!”
Which is when his injury was stared down at, and then a judgmental eye was aimed at him, then around at where Shouta had just leaped across, back to the wound, and then his face again.
Even without words the kitten clearly said, “You’re hurt, and kept working, and even JUMPED with a fresh mobility disrupting injury and you say you can take care of ME? You can't take care of YOURSELF!!!”
“Anyone ever tell you you're a judgemental little shit?”
A cheerful chirrp and a nod and he laughed, “Yeah, I bet they have. Alright, as I CLEARLY can’t continue to patrol while carrying you, and my leg is hurting like fuck, and if Zashi ever got wind of my working three hours on a cut leg” - the sudden shocked string of mirrps chirps hisses and growls that met those words had Shouta thinking, 'Oh shit, damage control!' - “And don't you dare tell him, right? If you don't tell then I’ll call my relief and go home. You come with me to make sure I take care of it properly, and then we’ll both get some sleep, how's that sound?”
Just because Hizashi couldn't speak cat, and the kitten clearly couldn't speak human, Shouta didn't put it past Smokey to somehow manage to tattle on him so this way his bases were covered and doing it like this Kemuri would be home with him tonight which is what he’d wanted ever since he’d rescued the scamp from that pipe.
The long considering look from a very judgmental kitten did make Shouta squirm a bit but the nod and sudden resumption of purring had him grinning in relief, “Come on then, let's go home!”
*-*
Izuku was very very tired, and not just from the miles-long run trying to keep up with his hero, no, it was trying to take care of the man!
That was so HARD!
He’d let the hero carry him so Izuku could keep track of the smells and sights of where they were, he had to be able to get back to Kacchan after all, so that was just logic, but once they got where they were going, they’d gone into a tall building, smelling clean and cared for - very unlike the one the boyfriend lived in - and then into a very pretty apartment but now….
His hero STILL hadn't taken care of his leg properly!!!
Food and water had both been found for Izuku right away but the man himself still hadn't had a drink, or food, or even gotten a first aid kit out so it was clearly up to his support cat to get the job done properly.
Turning his back on the can of tuna - it wasn't going anywhere after all - Izuku set out on the hunt. The bathroom was the most likely place to find a first aid kit but, even bracing his feet and clawing the cabinets he could reach open, he struck out.
Growling at the figure leaning on the doorframe, asking him if he was done exploring and wanted to eat yet he pinned his ears back fiercely at him, gave a growling rumble and tried the kitchen, that was the other likely place to find what he wanted.
This time he found it, not under the cabinets where he was kind of expecting to find one but on the counter, an extra big one, which is why he missed it the first time, he wasn't expecting a first aid kit big enough to carry a small dog in, or even a medium-sized dog, it was a Big Box!
But getting up to it was a challenge he was well up to so, judging his leap, he sprung for the seat on the barstool, digging his claws into the leather seat and launched himself across the gap, landing neatly onto the counter, dodging the hands as his hero said, “Woah Smokey, careful!” and finally pounced on the first aid crate, spinning and staring dead in the man's eyes as he gave a very low growl, patting the box under his feet.
Izuku’d put up with being laughed at because finally, after he was lifted down off it, the box was opened at last and things were set out on the counter and he was told, “Right, I’m going to go shower, NO, don't worry, I need to get clean anyway and that's easiest, I’ll take care of the cut after that, I promise.”
“Now, you eat!” he was plonked down by the plate again, “And I’ll be right back.”
Happily mumbling around each bite of tuna, Izuku listened to the shower, the hissing swears as hot water clearly hit the damage, and finally sat back when he finished eating and the water turned off, almost at the same time. Following the activity by sound alone he was pleasantly surprised when the hero really did only take a few moments, padding back to the kitchen in nothing more than a towel around his wet hair, a ragged t-shirt, and boxers, blood trailing down his leg, despite the cloth pressed to it.
A shocked warble and Izuku was scooped up, "Don't worry, it's not that bad Kitten, now, watch, first we use the disinfectant…."
Sitting on the counter, watching the skill and attention to detail - as well as learning a few new swear words cause it clearly hurt really bad - Izuku watched as the wound was cleaned, disinfected, and a really clever gadget was used to seal the damaged skin back together, “It’s a mix of glue and regrow, no idea how it works really but it has some tech and some quirk effect and it’ll speed healing by times about ten and,” the hero downed two pills, “with some pain killers, just over the counter cause I don't take anything stronger if I can help it, I’ll be fighting fit by tomorrow.”
A firm shake of the tiny head and Shouta asked, “Not tomorrow?” Izuku shook his head again, tapping his front paw three times hard against the counter.
“Three days? Smokey, no way.”
Standing up Izuku stamped his front feet several times in clear anger, ears pinned and tail lashing and got, “Not three, not for something this minor, BUT,” Shouta had to raise his voice over Izuku’s rising yowl, “But! How about I give it two days?”
Studying his hero for a long moment Izuku could clearly see that this was as good as he’d be getting so he slowly nodded, then nodded again firmer when he was asked, “So, you agree to two days recovery time then? Good!”
The box was packed away, the counter wiped down, and Izuku was suddenly scooped off the counter and against that safe chest and he yawned, closing his eyes and purring happily, he’d done it, taken care of his hero!
He never even felt as he slid into a deep sleep, cradled in the arms of a young man who followed him into slumber a very few minutes later, just as soon as he lay on the couch for, “Just a few minutes Smokey, I’ll close my eyes just a little bit and then get that incident report finished.”
*-*
Day one had them sleeping late, waking eventually, and making breakfast. Izuku sitting on the counter to eat because he’d managed to get to his plate before his hero put it on the floor for him and he hissed like a steam locomotive until he got, “Alright, damn, eat there then, but you're on the floor when Zashi gets home, he will go batshit crazy if you have dirty paws on his clean work surfaces.”
Sitting down Izuku lifted his paws, one by one, inspecting them for dirt, before looking at his hero and shrugging his confusion, because his paws were nice and clean. Getting in reply a laugh and a, “Yeah, they look clean but Zashi is a bit of a clean freak.” Looking around the room Shouta said, “Oh, ummmm, maybe we should do a bit of a cleanup? I know he’s not due home for a few more weeks but it’s a bit of a mess in here.” As Izuku immediately abandoned his breakfast to start cleaning he was scooped up and deposited back at his dish, “Nope, you finish eating, I’ll have a second coffee, and THEN we’ll start cleaning!”
*-*
The plan lasted just long enough for them to collect the dishes, corralling them back to the kitchen, and start on gathering up the dirty clothes that had migrated from where they should have been - the hamper - when a cheerful chime on the laptop sounded.
A sudden spiking surge of joy/concern/worry/FEAR as his hero lunged for it, snapped it open and gasped out in a rush, “Zashi, what's wrong, are you okay, do you need me to come get you, WHAT'S WRONG!!!”
Having been abandoned on the floor behind the couch when Shouta lunged right over it to answer the call, Izuku looked frantically for anything that might cause that change in scent when the words finally made a bit of sense as someone yelled “SHOUTA, I’M OKAY!!! Calm DOWN Babe’s, it’s okay, breathe, I didn't mean to freak you out, I know how you are but we had a break in the case and I got a moment and I’d be damned if I passed up on the chance to see my Shoubear, shit, you look…..”
A long considering pause before he said slowly, “... .like you’ve lost weight.”
“Ahhhh, yeah, about that!” - and that was as much as Izuku could stand because his hero sounded small and guilty and not on his watch! Leaping for the back of the couch he climbed strongly, rounding the top and stood, fur puffed out, at the man's shoulder, finally hissing at the figure on the laptop screen!
“Aaaaand gotten a demon to replace me with!”
Izuku kept his eyes on the stranger but he started to relax when his hero laughed, reaching up to stroke down his spine and he wobbled at that, it did feel soooooo nice and then his hero did it again and again and Izuku's head started to feel a bit fuzzy and his front feet started padding and kneading the couch fabric and he was lifted down and cradled and only just managed to hear…
“Yeah, not to replace you with, you ass, but he adopted me, you're gonna love him, he makes me, and I mean MAKES ME, eat! Has a real thing about it, you're gonna be best friends. Hey Kemuri, look, that’s my boyfriend Hizashi, I told you about him but there he is, you gonna say hi?”
As the hand petting him stopped long enough for Izuku’s brain to turn back on he huffed, studying the face closely. Without being able to smell the person it was hard to know what they were actually like but he did like the bright green eyes, the widening smile, and it might be nice to meet them because the apartment smelled like his hero who seemed to be named Shouta and it smelled like this other person too so, finally deciding, he looked up at the one holding him and nodded, then turned back and chirriped at the screen.
‘Oh, manners!’ Izuku thought so sitting up fully he bowed as best he could, gave a trilling meyow, and finished with a nod and chirrp. Then he settled back down and just watched as, eyes widening at his display, the stranger said, “Ummmmmm Babe, your kitten just, just…… did it just bow and say hi?”
“Yeah, he does that. Like I said, he has serious opinions on things like manners and health issEATING, on eating, he likes me to eat!”
*-*
Shit, shit shit shit what was wrong with him today, a surprise call and he was on cloud nine to be talking to Hizashi but he’d already been called out on losing weight and let slip Smokey made him eat which meant - “Shouta, you have been eating, right?”
“YES, ummmm, yes, yes I have.”
“Seriously?”
"Yeeees, seriously, I have been eating” - Because eating with his kitten counted, right? Right? He was sure it did! - and he smiled for real this time, “Smokey and I had dinner together every single night for the past few weeks and we had breakfast today now he's home with me so, seeeeeee, I can be trusted to eat when you’re not here.”
The ever-so-skeptical glint in Hizashi’s eye was concerning, especially when he got a skeptical one from his kitten as well but he ignored them both and asked the really important thing, “Does this mean you can come home sooner?”
He wished he hadn't when Zashi’s face fell as he said, “No, but it does mean we have a much better chance of pulling it all off so if we do, then I might be a bit earlier, no promises babe but fingers crossed, ya dig?”
"Yeah, I do indeed dig! Goof, now, tell me everything you can!"
*-*
Listening to two heroes talk about work made Izuku’s heart sing, even though his hero had LIED about eating properly, and Hizashi seemed really nice too so it wasn't nice to lie to him, and now his hero smelled guilty in addition to everything else but happy seemed to be a big part of how he felt right now too, and sad, and wishful - which wasn't even a real word most of the time but it was an unmistakable scent to Izuku’s nose - and that bit guilty and tired and hungry again too so Izuku promised to make sure they ate and had a nap, there wasn't much else he could do about all the rest of it.
Support cats had limits and he knew his, food and sleep and help clean and make smile and keep company, not in that order but all of them as much as possible.
Purring again as the big hand started to rub behind his ears, he nodded into a doze, letting their voices wash over him, not even realizing they were talking about him.
*-*
“Not fussing Shouta but I thought we agreed to talk about adopting and pick out someone together? But, awwwwwww!” - Izuku gave a huge yawn, then dropped his face to press nose first into Shouta’s knee - “Maaaan, alright, I take it all back, we picked him together, right now!”
“Yeah,” Shouta stroked a finger down the bumps of the too thin spine, “he’s something else. Ummmm, like, really something else. When you get home I think we should take him to Nezu-sensei.” - 'Give it a few weeks, I’ll have the weight on again, and these past weeks will be behind me and consigned to history, my ass will be safe!' - “After you’re home for a while of course, so you both get to know each other, because he has a quirk, clear as day. Intelligence for sure but he might have persuasion too because he, shit Zashi, the first night we met he got out of my arms and disappeared and I cried, like, actually cried!”
“And then when I saw him again it was like seeing you unexpectedly, like the sun just came out on a rainy day.”
Resisting the urge to pick the kitten up and plant a kiss right between their adorable ears, he said, “It’s weird, a few weeks ago I never even knew he existed but now, if we lost him…..” His breath hitched as he mumbled, “don’t know what I’d do.”
“Oh Sweetheart, look, he’s right there and you picked the perfect name for him so now, tell me why that name and all about how you met him, right now!”
Sitting back Hizashi listened to the full story, making mental notes of all the tiny times his tricky love betrayed himself on how he’d been behaving, up to and including how the new kitten had been helping him clean the apartment. But Shouta was only messy when he was sad, or lonely, and he clearly hadn't been eating so Hizashi had time for one quick call before he had to get back to the case so, a long and soppy messy kissy love you love you more goodbye later, he called his favorite short, furry, badass dadsei.
It was for Shouta’s own good and, resisting the urge to squirm remembering the last time Hizashi had managed to wind up in trouble with Nezu-sensei, he smiled when the call connected, and settled in for a short chat.
*-*
A quirked kitten, and with an intelligence aspect to the quirk? And his Shouta clearly not behaving himself as he should? “Yes, you really did do the right thing telling me all about it, sweetheart.” He comforted Hizashi that he was indeed doing the right thing to tell Nezu, because with Hizashi probably still an unknown number of days away from returning home, and with how fast their beloved trouble magnet could get himself into difficulties, it was best to deal with this now.
Hanging up with reassurances of his love for Hizashi, his surety of care for Shouta, and his burning curiosity for the new life his Shouta had found, he hung up and set about brewing himself a fresh cuppa.
If he was right, he was going to need it!
*-*
Izuku was recovering from meeting a brand new person, even if it was only on a computer screen, but instead of being curled up still sleeping it off, instead he was chasing a little red dot up and down the hallway.
His hero was clearly enjoying the game, as was he if he was honest, and while Izuku was a bit tired he seriously was gonna GET THAT DOT!!!
He was at the far end of the hallway when the chirping ring of a call coming in, a different ring tone this time, and while the first one had caused Shouta to fill the air with complex stress-induced scents, it was NOTHING to this one!
Racing down the hall to the couch, not even pausing as he rocketed up and over, landing on his hero's lap Izuku was full-on yowling, a rising wail of cat fury because his hero smelled panicked, stressed, borderline frightened, guilty, and ashamed! And whoever could make him feel like that was gonna get EATEN!
“Kemuri? Hey kitten, it’s okay, sweetheart, stop it, that's my…. That's Nezu, it’s okay, don’t worry, he’s safe, he’s good, really he is!”
“Oh my goodness, you are a feisty one, aren't you? Shouta-pet, would you introduce me to your new friend, his language is none too clear with his distress and desire to protect you. And that begs the question, why should he feel the need to protect you so fiercely? Have you been up to things you shouldn't perhaps?”
The eeeeeyaaaaaaawwwwooooooo of kitten rage had started to tail off but with his realization that Nezu clearly knew something, he felt his guilt/shame/reluctance increase and his panic/escape urge kick in and in a clear correlation, Smokey redoubled his noise, this time adding hissing and spitting as he struck at the screen, claws out and ready to use.
Wincing as those same claws pierced his trousers as the little tail lashed, and shit, it was him! It was SHOUTA’S emotions that was doing it! He was feeling like shit and knew what he had coming to him if he knew his mentor at all and, “Shit, Nezu, damn! Okay, first, Kemuri, calm down, Nezu is my FRIEND!”
The kitten swiveled his head fast enough to fall over if his claws weren’t sunk deep into fabric but he still managed to stager slightly, shock on his face and total disbelief and that was just NOT going to do so, sucking in a deep breath, Shouta braced himself, this was gonna make sure his ass was grass and Nezu was not just a lawnmower but a high powered strimmer!!!
“Right,” running his fingers from the base of the kitten's ears right down his spine and gently catching his tail to continue the stroke right to the very end, then starting over, he did that enough times for the kitten to stop breathing funny, for the growl to finally end, “so, you gonna let go of my knee so I can explain?”
Looking down at his paws his little friend suddenly seemed to see how deep his claws actually were, and he sniffed and gave a new yowling cry, this one with his ears flat down to the sides and he would have jumped clear but Shouta caught him, “No, it’s okay sweetheart, it’s really okay, it’s just a few scratches, nothing LIKE…. well…” - “No Shouta, please do tell, they are nothing like what?”
And the voice was soft and kind and as flexible as Mount Everest so with one final wince the young hero gave up and started talking, “We need to go back a bit Nezu, so I’ll just talk, yeah?”
“Alright, tell it in your own way little one but please do make haste to reassure your friend, his distress is very clear.”
“Smokey, first, Nezu is my friend. He was my teacher,” - “Still am Shouta-pet!” - “IS my teacher, and I’m guessing Hizashi called him because he’s worried about me. Which you,” - he gently booped the tiny pinkish nose - “should be able to relate to because you adopted me because you were worried about me too, right?”
A happy nod as the kitten's paws started to knead against his stomach and he cradled him in one arm, using his free hand to continue petting the still-tense form. “So, EVERYBODY is worried about me and, usually I’d say piss off to the lot of them BUT, well, this time it's warranted.”
“I have things I've been taught to do when something like this happens.” A small mewww of confusion had him elaborating, “Sometimes when I’m alone I do stupid,” - “SHOUTA, now is not the time to make anything worse so remember your kindness please!” - “shit, ummmm, foolish?" At Nezu's nod, he continued, "Yeah, foolish things which is why the people who love me worked it out years ago so I know what to do when it happens but this time…”
“I didn't do any of it.”
“If your nose is as good as I think it is Smokey then you must have smelled some of it when we met? Because by then I hadn't been sleeping right since Zashi left, and,” he winced again, “and I kinda, well, I wasn't eating right either.” He risked a glance at the screen and his bottom clenched in dread as what was left of his stomach evaporated, Nezu-sensei had that special tilt to his ears, just a bit to the sides and ever so slightly back that spelled certain death to any ability Shouta had to sit in comfort any time soon.
But his reaction to those ears had the kitten turning his head to hiss at his sensei so he said, “No, now, behave! I’ve already told you, he is my friend and I trust him.” Leaning down he whispered into the tiny black ear, “He is seriously Dad shaped!” And he almost laughed out loud when the kitten swiveled his tiny head right round to study the figure on the computer screen, clearly trying to figure out how Dad shaped they were!
“However, in this situation what I trust most is that at his earliest opportunity, he's going to “discuss” my bad choices thoroughly with me and that's never fun.”
A tiny inquisitive mrrrrp and Nezu added,” Kitten, I am planning on sorting his naughty backside out as soon as the two of you arrive at UA today.”
Rolling his eyes, Shouta said, “Yeah, that! So you’ll forgive me if I smell a bit upset cause I know I’ve earned it but….” he barely contained his sniffle but Smokey climbed up him anyway, burying his little face against his neck and began to vibrate with purrs, clearly trying to cheer him up.
“You have been champion at helping me remember to eat but, sweetheart, while support cats are great you're still little, I have big friends and Nezu to make sure I remember to do that, and to help me sleep, and to give me space with them when things get too much when I'm alone, and I didn't go to any of them, and every time they reached out to me I told them I was fine so…..”
He rubbed his cheek across that soft black fur, murmuring, “I’ve been lying to them too Smokey, and I don't know how cats handle this kind of thing but humans, and Nezu as well, handle it by.... by….”
“Spanking, dear one, the word is spanking, and you have well earned one.”
“So, both of you, I want you to get dressed properly, brush your hair and fur, and catch the first bus after you are ready. I’ll be waiting in my office for you,” - Izuku wondered why that made his hero smell relieved and wished, not for the first time, that he could speak - “and,” a long pause where Nezu clearly was looking at something off-screen which suddenly made him smile, “Kemuri? While Shouta and I have our talk, would you like a tour of UA?”
*-*
Shouta, his hero was for SURE called Shouta and he was all grown up but he was gonna get, gosh, get a sp, sp, one of those? Should he protect him? Make sure the furry scary but maybe not too scary person didn't do that?
But his hero already said he deserved it, and not eating was bad, like, really really bad! And sleep didn't happen right sometimes but he’d smelled so tired a few times it was scary and if he really did have people to help him - and wouldn't that be nice to have that too Izuku thought wistfully - then maybe he should just let this Nezu do what he was gonna do?
But he was his hero’s support cat! And IZUKU was supposed to protect him!
Conflicted, he held still as Shouta brushed him, because it felt really strange, good though, really good, like he thought it would feel to have a proper Mummy cat take care of him and he heaved a sigh, still not sure what to do and it was all so much, he was just little, how was he supposed to do his job properly if he got confused so fast and….
“Hey hey hey, shhhhhhh, come here Smokey, it’s alright, everything is fine, yes it sucks that Nezu is gonna tan my hide but you don't have to worry about me, really you don't. I’ll be fine, really I will.”
Pressing his face into that perfect hollow between neck and shoulder where he was suddenly being cradled, Izuku closed his eyes and tried to purr but it wasn't working.
*-*
Something was wrong with Smokey, really wrong, and Shouta was the WORST person in the world to try to figure shit like this out but he was gonna do his best cause his kitten needed him, so he just kept talking, glad he’d managed to get dressed fast enough that this meltdown was happening as he got them both out the door.
Coiling his capture weapon around his neck he used it to cradle and shield the little body as he kept talking, “You can trust Nezu, I do. I trust him with my life, never mind my ass,” he chuckled at the thought, “he was my teacher when I was fifteen, he was the one who saw I was in a bad situation, he saved me.”
“Smokey, Nezu saved me.”
“He took me in, gave me a safe place, gave me rules and structure, he trained me to be a hero and he is rock solid safe. He’s so much more than a sensei, or a mentor, and you keep this to yourself but he really is a Dad, like, a proper one! He's my Dad and you are going to love him, really you are.”
“And you're gonna LOVE Hizashi, he’s my boyfriend, we room together, you already know that but, well, when he isn't home it's hard to sleep, he’s so noisy, and he moves all the time, even when he sleeps, so when he’s not home it's all silent and I can't sleep but we have things in place for this, I have him recorded so I can listen to him at night, or if it's really bad I can go to Oboro’s house, or to Nemuri’s, or even to Ryou’s or Nezu’s places, I could have done any of that and not just been a miserable lump.”
Snuggling his nose into soft sweetly scented fur he said, only just barely able to say the words, “I deserve it Smokey, it’s gonna be awful and horrible and terrible and all that shit but I earned it, past me is a stupid fuck!”
“So both of us are gonna walk right up to UA, go in like a big grown-up human and awesome support kitten, and you are going to mind your manners with my dad - or else we'll see if support kittens need a bit of corner time if they're rude - and then you go and have a nice tour, I can see how excited you are about it, go on, your ears don't lie.”
He laughed when he got a huff and a firm paw batting his chin, “Now, here’s our bus, come on, keep your head down so no one sees you, that way we save on the bus fare - a gasp and totally shocked eyes met his and he laughed again as he paid for them both, “I’ll stop it now but you really are easy to tease, anyone tell you that before?”
A solemn shake to the little head had him saying, “Then you hang out with the wrong people, my crew is gonna love you, and they tease people they love, just warning you now.”
He kept a running murmured conversation going until they were off the bus and into the big building, only running out of words as his mouth got suddenly dry when he knocked on that familiar door, which opened for him, the scent of the room a familiar and comforting one - old books, old wood, tea, and incense and safety.
Relaxing again as he realized he'd once again managed to stress his kitten out, and he was so glad he had Nezu because quirks were one thing but this, his Smokey, that was something else again, and then, a shock to have him crying out, Hizashi was there, right there!!!
“Heeeey SHOUTA! Baby I have MISSED you, it's AMAZING, the op got canceled, like, they just up and said GO HOME! Can you believe it? It's like a dream, like a DREAM and here I am, I only just got here this last second, REALLY it was JUST THIS SECOND, I swear portal quirks are the BEST THINGS in the WORLD and I am all ready, willing aaaand able to escort this absolute PRINCE on the grand tour but you come here first though!”, and suddenly Izuku’s hero was enveloped by the loud one, and careful arms were waaaay too close to him as they kissed.
And eeeewwwwww!!! He wriggled free and was handed by his hero to a different pair of hands, these long and bony and claw-tipped and he looked up, not too far because they were so much smaller than the other two who were STILL KISSING and yuck, just ewwwww!
Turning his back on them both, he looked again at the one holding him, the one who was gonna.... Izuku didn't even like thinking it, even though he’d never ever had a spanking himself because his Mummy never seemed to care what he did as long as he was out of her sight, and his teachers made him stand in the corner sometimes but …..
“Little one, you seem to be thinking very hard indeed, is it possible for you to tell me what has captured your attention?”
And oh, he smelled so strange but soooo nice, and could he talk to them? Not as a human of course but as a kitten? How hard could it be?
Turns out, hard, it was very hard indeed, especially as he only had a few minutes before his hero stopped kissing and hugging the new one to try it out in, but he managed to make enough strange noises to catch their attention when they heard him and came over, asking Nezu, "What are you doing to my support kitten?”
“Ahhh Shouta-pet, they're simply trying to tell me what's on their mind, unfortunately, they seem to speak no form of feline language I have ever encountered, so I am still as curious as I was before they started.”
“However, I think now would be a good time for Zashi-love to take your little friend on the grand tour so we can get our talk out of the way, so here you go.” - and Izuku found himself handed to the new Hero who took him with exquisite gentleness, cradling him as he said, voice a rumbling purr, “Heeeey there Kemuri, it’s so nice to meet anyone who loves my Shouta like I do and I heard you were ultra protective of him, you even made him eat right, how good are you, you’re amazing!”
“Now, let's get this rockin' tour on the road!” and he was being taken out of the room and he briefly struggled, a frantic mewwww and Shouta was there, “It's alright, remember?”
Izuku nodded sadly, ears drooping, and was reassured again, “I’ll live Smokey, so you two go have fun, now, out you get!” and the door was closed and he was in the hall and it was UA and he was in a hero's arms and, “WOW!”
“Yeah, wow indeed little one, now, how about we start with the clinic cause it's right by the front doors and go from there?”
*-*
It seemed when you got a grand tour of a clinic it meant a really nice old lady made a big fuss over you, listening to your heart and looking in your eyes and ears and he got weighed and they even took blood but he wasn't scared at all because Hizashi held him and it wasn't a needle or anything, it was a QUIRK and it was soooo COOL and then he got a meat flavored gummy to eat and they were almost out the door when he remembered ‘OH manners!’ and struggled to jump down, but instead of being let jump he was set down and he got up on his haunches and bowed and gave his best attempt at thank you which was, unsurprisingly, a complicated chirrping meeew and then, a bit shy now, he scrambled back into the arms that had come to feel safe really fast.
‘I wonder why he feels so safe?’
But the thought went right out of his head when he was carried into a cafeteria, a MILLION TIMES bigger than the one at his old school, or even the school before that one, and he met that hero too, and he got a little plate of fried something that tasted really good and was told by the hero that he was too thin, “Zashi kid, you gotta feed this little one better!”
And then they were off again, and he learned the support department made him sneeze, and not stop sneezing until they were running halfway across the field to get him into the fresh air, and then there was something else to see and Hizashi was a nonstop fountain of amazing stories and it was all totally brilliant and between one story and the next he was yawning, eyes blinking so slowly, and then Zashi’s phone chirrped and they were heading back to Nezu’s office.
‘Good,' thought Izuku, 'I c'n check on m'hero and then sleep, ’m sooo tired!’
____________________________________________________________
Watching Hizashi charm Kemuri was like something from a dream. Actually, Hizashi home a full two weeks early was exactly like a dream, a super great one-in-a-million dream and then the added kitten cuteness was almost enough for him to forget, just for a moment, what he was here for, or rather, in for.
He gave a soundless chuckle at his gallows humor, sighed as the door closed, and reluctantly turned to face Nezu because this was gonna be awful!
A truer word had never been thought, he mused to himself a little bit later when he’d had to go over every single thing he’d managed to fuck up in the short time Hizashi was gone, up to and including lying about doing alright.
Consoling himself that, despite it all, he’d gotten the best, most perfect support kitten in the world out of it all, he stood where told, deeply and totally grateful that it was Nezu’s office rather than his discipline room, not because he’d get anything like a lesser sentence but because the couch was so much more comfortable than that awful padded prop!
Like, aaaargh, it was horrible to dangle on both ends, nothing to hold onto or brace properly against or anything so, pretending to be stoic and brave, he pulled his trousers down - resolutely ignoring any embarrassment over his pragmatic choice to go without underwear today - and bent over the arm of the couch, burying his head in his arms, and tried to brace himself but the first smack of the ruler was always such a surprise, so sharp….
And loud!
And the next was just as bad, that crisp snap that sounded so much louder than it was!
And hurt so much more than it should be able to!
And it was followed by more, the measured cadence, this time without a lecture because Shouta knew well and truly what he’d done wrong so he couldn't even distract himself with Nezu’s voice, and the world narrowed down to a pin-point moment of red hot fire being stoked across his ass and he gave the first yelp, and then a broken gasp, and then he was full on crying because he knew better, he knew so much better!
And then Nezu was giving his upper thighs attention Shouta never ever wanted them to have, and then ruler connected to the fullest part of his bottom a few horrible times, and then the undercurve for a few more as he YELLED as the world ceased to exist, only this moment right now and the red hot ruler and how sorry he was and how he’d never EVER do it AGAIN!!!
Hearing “Last ten Shouta” he totally froze in dread before the first one landed, not with the snap which was enough to have him sobbing his heart out but with a loud SLAP, and as bad as it was before it was ten times worse and he hollered and yelled and wriggled and kicked but only a little bit of kicking because too much of that would earn him extra and the ruler had already landed five blistering times and then, finally, the ruler connected twice to his upper thighs as he squalled and then three across his sit spots as he wailed and it was done, finally finished, and he gave up and just lay across the arm of the couch, limp and repentant, head still cradled in his arms, shoulders shaking with the strength of his sobs.
When he calmed down enough to actually be able to speak, he managed through his still hitching breaths to say, “M-maybe I’ll re-remember this next ti-t-time and not do it - do it again?” And Nezu gave a soft laugh from where he was now sitting beside Shouta, who was curled up small on the couch, tucked under a soft heavy blanket, strong claws gently scratching across the young hero's scalp, “We will both of us hope so!”
__________________________________________________
Entering the office, the first thing Izuku smelled was his hero’s nervousness but because he knew how smells layered through time he focused on the smell's progression rather than each one, paying such close attention that his eyes closed on their own, and he smelled not just the nerves but then, 'Oh, gosh, shame and super sorry and Nezu smells.... I think.... is that how they smell when they're sup... surpor... ummm really Dad shaped? I think so? But Shouta smells, oh, that's pain, ouch, big OUCHIE! It smells like a spankin' HURTS, I’m glad I’m a kitten now, we don' get spankens!'
'But, he smells like really BIG sorries? And yeh, like he’s not gonna do it again, and he still smells like he hurts but not like that awful cut made him smell, and he smells relieved and happy and comfie like I guess anyone would smell when they have their family with them?'
'Good family though, not bad family.'
Izuku's eyes were still closed but now he was handed to his hero, who was saying, "See Smokey, I lived. Shit, and I learned better, Nezu seriously hates it when we risk our health, and lying? What was I thinking? I know better, but it’s alright sweetness, it’s all good now and I think a certain kitten could do with a nap, so here we go, I’ll sit here on my hip so, oh fuck, oh shit shit shit that huuuurts!" - and Izuku stretched up, eyes still closed, and licked Shouta's nose, was repositioned into maximum comfort and he was gone.
***
"He asleep? Awwwwww kitten do be tired. Shouta, oh my gods, look at his little toe beans, how did you find anything this cute? He’s amazing, and so smart! Nezu, is he like you? I know animals can have quirks but this little bean seems so different to any quirked animal I've ever met."
"Ah, yes, until the tests come back that Chiyo did today, I need you both to keep him safe."
Nezu’s unexpected frown had them both sitting up, watching as Nezu went to the couch, reaching out to Shouta’s armful, running the back of his claw down the tiny spine, watching as the kitten stretched his paws, kneaded them a few times, give a deep sigh and settle to stillness again.
"I think perhaps I know what is going on but until I have proof, keep him safe, be kind, I know you both will but be very kind indeed, this little mite deserves it so much." The sorrow in that trusted voice had Hizashi’s own eyes tearing up so Nezu clapped his hands together softly, saying, "TEA!"
"And enough of the sadness, both of you, it has been too long since I had my two favorite people for a visit, so, Hizashi, tell me all about the mission!"
With unlimited cups of tea, love, and laughter, several hours sped past in a golden haze.
*-*
Izuku didn't wake up until they got back to the apartment, one minute he was in Nezu’s office and the next the smell of something heavenly had him blinking at the living room, and he gave a huge yawn and jumped, trying to grab a dangling bit of chicken, only half awake, and he missed both the chicken and the jump but he was caught in long strong fingers and told, "WOAH, lil’dude, careful! No sleepy jumps! Here, nooooooo now, wait, I know you have better manners than that!" and oh, yeah, he did, didn't he?
Feeling properly ashamed of himself Izuku suddenly remembered what happened to even big people who forgot things like manners and his ears drooped as he tried to figure out how to say sorry but instead, he was scooped up and told, "It’s okay, I get it, you were still mostly asleep and got all excited and I dig that, the food smells amazing, but it’s gotta cool before itty bitty kitties can eat it, and shhhhhhh, we won't tell anyone we had Chinese take away tonight, okay sweetheart?"
Nodding frantically Izuku reached up and patted both the hero's cheeks, giving his nose a lick as well, hoping it would say how excited he was about the food and sorry for his bad manners and was relieved to hear, "Awwwww, it’s okay fluffy, really it is." And he was hugged and he could have cried he was so happy and it got better when he got food and it was fantastic and so much of it! Even though all he got was chicken and some sauce, he was just even more sure he had made the right decision, adopting his hero was the best idea he’d ever had!
********
Both his heroes were sound asleep when Izuku suddenly remembered, 'Oh GOSH! Kacchan, I forgot him! I gots ta go tell him all about it, but, how do I gets out?'
The bathroom window was the only exit he could find, and that was a really tricky jump but, claws scrabbling at the sill, he made it, however, when he squeezed through the gap he left a painful hunk of fur behind as it caught in a sharp bit of the window frame.
"Ouch, oh owie, that HURTS!"
Looking down he gave a bit of a gulp as all thoughts of lost fur fled from his mind, 'And I am really high up, oh gosh, but, oh, I c'n see the fire escape, an the bricks have pretty good grip so....' he tested his claws on the textured surface twice and easily lifted himself so he simply climbed, a diagonal course upwards and, pretending the way too many stories of air below him wasn't there at all, he focused fully and finally caught the grip of the emergency stairs and breathed a sigh of relief when all four paws were on a solid surface at last.
He’d made it!
'Now,' he looked around, 'i’s that'a way!'
It was also almost five miles as well but he had a good meal in him, he knew the way, and he made it to his destination long after his friend had set out for school but Izuku didn't care, he was so tired by then that he simply curled up on Kacchan’s windowsill - he’d reached it by climbing a nearby tree - snoozing in the sun until his friend got home.
"IZU!!!" the loud shout almost had him startling right off the ledge, "Oh gosh, oh damn, how are you, is your hero alright? Get your ass in here! Come on, change change change change change! Tell me all about it huuuuuury!!!"
Laughing Izuku changed back and it felt so weird being people-shaped again but the huge hug he got was great, and together they munched through Kacchan's cookie stash as Izuku told him all about it.
"So, even heroes get spankins?” Eyes open wide in horror, “Holy fuck, that sucks!” Rubbing his own bottom Izuku giggled, "What did you do Kacchan, I di'n' wanna ask but now you said somethin I can so go on, I told you all abou' me so now i's your turn!"
It turned out that picking fights cause his friend wasn't in school anymore had earned Kacchan spanks, and Izuku made him promise, "PROMISE me Kacchan! Promise you won' do it again, I gots ta go home an take care of my peoples but I can't if I’mmma gonna haf ta worry 'bout you all'a time too!"
"Yeah yeah yeah, I won't do it again." Rubbing his bottom he winced, "I wished I hadn't done it right away anyway but then I got ten spanks from Mamma and I don't want any more of those, right? So I’ll be good," - "No Kacchan, Nezu says my hero is good and made bad choices so i's the same for you, you're good too! - "....yeah," a dramatic eye roll, "right, just cause you're a support cat doesn't mean you get to be all wise and shit."
Together they ate enough cookies to feel sick, read comics and manga and laughed and wrestled and played heroes and it was only when Kacchan had to go down to dinner that Izuku headed home, giving his sad friend a big big hug and said, "Don worry, I’ll be back!" changed and jumped out of the window, scrambling across and down the convenient tree.
It was a long walk so he better get started. Sniffing the air he thought, 'I hope I gets home before the rain!'
**************
Kemuri was gone.
KEMURI WAS GONE!!!
It took them over an hour of searching to be sure of it, and it was Shouta, blood running cold, who saw the high window in the shower open just that little bit, a tuft of fur caught, and he gave a strangled cry.
Together they rushed out, expecting to find a broken little body twisted and lifeless after a fall from that height but nothing, and Hizashi said, "Wait, I know a girl!" and called a hero support technician he knew and in less than half an hour they knew their kitten had scrambled across a heart-stopping gap, climbed down the fire escape and headed out into the city.
They also knew he was feeling happy and excited at the time but that was all, her quirk could take them no farther.
It was Shouta who called Nezu, alerting him, and the Chimera started a search right away, and they had him on their laptop screen as he worked in his office jumping from camera to camera, following their kitten through the streets and across roofs and into and out of danger, Hizashi gripping Shouta’s hand tight enough to bruise when, "Right, be calm, I’ve lost him but he hasn't deviated from his path so far so I should be able to pick him up again, the two of you stay home in case he gets back before I find him, and please, don't worry, we will find him little ones, I WILL FIND HIM!"
The final words were almost snarled as the screen went dark, leaving Hizashi to burst into tears and Shouta, gripping him tight, felt an emptiness welling up inside, he was almost floating as he gasped because there wasn't enough air in the room, not enough because how was Smokey just gone like this but he was being told to do something, something, but what did it matter, Kemuri was gone, he’d fucked up somehow, his kitten had escaped them, left and…
"SHOUTA, Shouta love, breathe, NOW!" And oh, Zashi wanted him to breathe, but did he deserve to breathe, he’d lost - "Yes, you deserve to breathe baby, you didn't lose him, remember what Inita said, he was happy, and excited, he was going somewhere and he was going to have fun, he wasn't running away!"
"Nezu will find him!" The words helped thaw something inside him and, sucking a bottomless gasp of air he reached up and wiped Zashi’s tears for him because this was hard for both of them and his love said, “Thanks babe, that's good, now, keep breathing and hold me?"
Together they held on tight, waiting for news.
It was almost twenty hundred before they got the call, "Corner of Walsh and Benko, he’s waiting to cross the street, go now, he doesn't know it but there's a dog on his trail!"
Together they ran, Hizashi for the car, Shouta for the roof, one or the other would reach their kitten, and with traffic in the city like it was, it really could be either one!
In the end, it was a different hero entirely who saved Izuku, Nezu had alerted not just Shouta and Hizashi, but one more of his group of special people, and it was Hawks who got to him first, snatching him from the jaws of the hungry feral hound where Izuku was perched on the top of a rickety fence, hissing and spitting and trying desperately to find somewhere else to climb to, the dog’s snapping jaws only inches from his toes.
*********
"Heeeeeeyoooooo kitten, that looked a bit tense, how bouts we go up here, no dogs in the skies, well, not that I know of anyway! I’m Hawks, by the way, and I know two heroes they are going insane worrying about you!!!"
***
Flying was now officially Izuku’s favorite thing ever, he gave a high trill as they swooped lower and lower, finally landing on a roof where Shouta was already waiting, and he could hear thundering footfalls as Zashi climbed frantically up the fire escape to meet them on the roof, a full three miles still from the apartment, and Hawks landed and they could both see Kemuri was in his arms and the kitten was safe and Hizash was crying again but it was relief and joy this time and Shouta was saying "Don’t, don't ever do that again, gods, we thought we lost you!” and all of them were in a wet faced hug pile, even Keigo because he couldn't help it, he was just so relieved to have gotten there in time!
Izuku was making high warbling cries of distress because he hadn't meant to scare everyone, but they all smelled frantic, and he purred and patted faces and licked noses and eyebrows and ears and tried, tried so hard to tell them he didn't mean it, that he was sorry, and eventually everyone calmed down enough to get off the roof and he was being carried which was fantastic because all four of his feet hurt so bad, he’d been doing alright for so much of his journey but then he’d had to run for his life from that stupid dog - he didn’t like dogs, not big ones anyway - and there was glass all over the ground in several places when he was running and he must have cut himself because....
"Blood? Where’s the blood come from?" asked Hizashi.
And everyone was studying their hands, and arms, trying to trace the blood to its source. "Oh gods, Smokey, let me see!" And shouta turned him over, cradling him easily, and they all checked his little blood soaked feet, and three voices chimed the same words, "RECOVERY GIRL!"
And Izuku heard the tiny voice from one of their earpieces say, “As your car is now blocked in I have one with a driver waiting for you on the next corner. Everything will be fine, Chiyo is waiting for you, don't worry, we think her quirk will work just fine on your little one. Hawks, you can come too, I’m hanging up now, stay calm, tell Kemuri that he will be pain-free very soon, it’s all going to be alright, I promise you."
Being told by someone like Nezu that he was going to be fine was a relief, everyone else smelled so worried that Izuku was starting to worry really hard along with them but he sighed in relief as scritches behind his ears and under his jaw distracted him, and the car ride went by in a blur, and the nice lady was there once they got out of the car and back inside UA and she kissed him and he fell asleep, pain all gone.
What he didn’t know, at least until he woke up, was that her quirk only fixed people, not animals, and everyone in the room knew that.
--------
They were all in Nezu’s private quarters, his main sitting room was filled with comfortable squashy chairs and couches, grouped so he could have as many of his family over in comfort as showed up, and they were all looking at Shouta and Hizashi, crammed into their favorite chair together, the tiny fluffy black bundle in their arms, worry in their faces, when Hizashi, ever brave in the face of disaster, said, “He isn't a cat, is he?”
“No my dear,” Chiyo said, “I’m afraid not. I was eighty percent sure of it just on the test results alone but now I’m a hundred percent certain, my quirk simply does not work on animals!”
“But, he’s mine!” Shouta said, despair in his voice, “He picked me, he adopted ME! He can't be a kid, Nezu, he can't be! If he is, they'll want, they'll want him, oh gods, Zashi, they’ll want him back!”
“No, Shouta, no little one, listen to me, what did you tell me about the night he came home with you for the first time, you said he was what?"
"Oh, that's right, he said he was thrown away, they got rid of him."
Hizashi straightened suddenly, "You what?"
"Yeah, I asked when he looked so sad that night and he nodded, he was got rid of." Looking at his sleeping armful he repeated, horror drenching his tone, "Someone got rid of him, how could anyone do that?"
"We will find out Shouta, we will find out. However, right now, I want you to use your quirk on him, let's see exactly who we are dealing with now, and go from there."
It took time for Shouta to bring himself to where he could even try, it would change everything, and he just wanted his kitten to be his, and if he was a kid then - "Shouta dear, stop, you're going to panic poor Hizashi and you need to breathe a bit deeper too, that’s it," Chiyo said, tone firm and loving, "good, both of you, this is a big shock but we will all get through this, now, it probably won't work anyway but we need you to try."
Nodding, Shouta activated his quirk, and contrary to everyone's expectations, he was suddenly holding a child, tiny, curled tightly to his chest, one kitten ear pressed to his heart, the other one folded back on itself, a fluffy black tail peeking from where it was tangled between his drawn-up knees, and Hizashi reached out an amazed finger and pushed the crumpled ear back upright.
Staring at the most amazing thing they’d ever seen, holding the kid like a fragile treasure, Hizashi said, "Wow!" and Shouta gave a soundless giggle and agreed, "Yeah, wow."
Not even hearing the rattle of their Dad's keyboard, they simply stared at the sleeping form, Keigo draped across their shoulders crooning in awe, reaching out to stroke his talons through the tangled fluffy hair, until Nezu’s voice broke the stillness, "Everyone, say hello to Midoriya Izuku."
They looked up at his tone, because Nezu seldom showed much emotion in his voice, certainly nothing overwhelming, and never pure and unadulterated rage, but they all shared it when he continued, "His mother left the country three weeks ago, clearly without her child, and no one has reported him missing, not even his school because she withdrew him after telling the attendance office that they were moving to another country."
"So," he grinned, teeth totally barred, "I think, if the two of you want to anyway, we have a kitten clearly needing a good home!"
*******
'Mmmmmmm that smells nice,' Izuku thought to himself, 'smells like take away again, hmmmm wonder how much I’ll get to eat this time, they did say it was a one-off but then later Hizashi said my kitten eyes should be made illegal by the gen-va convenchen, whatever that is, so maybe if I just open my eyes first and see what’s going on for food?'
Yawning, he heard someone go "Awwwww look at how sweet he is!" But it wasn't one of his heroes so he ignored it, sitting up to blink sleepily, finally hearing his pillow rumble into speech, "You hungry kiddo?"
"Mmmmhmmmmm," he hummed, "yeah," rubbing his tummy Izuku frowned, “I really am! Wha’s't eat?”
"Well, you seemed to like it before so we got Katsudon. Lunch Rush made it for us, he said to make sure you ate lots cause you need to gain weight, and Chiyo agreed, but she added all sorts of boring grown-up stuff about proper meal plans and shi- things, yeah, things!"
Stretching a huge luxurious stretch, Izuku debated between eating and curling back up and compromised by wrapping his arms around Shouta’s neck and smooshing his face into the dark space and said hopefully, “A few more minutes?”
“Nope, no can do,” Hizashi chirrped, "Come on sweet one, sit up, you gotta eat now and then we'll talk and then you can sleep some more, hows that sound?" And Izuku wasn't given much choice when his pillow sat up, making him slide down to his hero's lap, and he blinked sulkily as he was handed a plate, adult hands keeping it steady for him as he was handed chopsticks and told, "Careful, it might be a little bit hot."
Still blinking sleepily he ate the first bite, then the second, and then was being told to slow down as he started eating super fast but he was suddenly soooo hungry and someone was still holding his plate and trying to take it from him so he hissed, baring his teeth only to be soothed with a glass of water and a calm voice telling him to, "Drink some of this, no ones taking you food kiddo, there you go, good boy, well done." as he handed the empty cup back and started eating again, slower this time cause no one had taken his food and he was getting a bit full now anyway.
Finishing he lifted the plate away from Hizashi’s hand who’d been holding the edge to keep it stable, and licked it clean. Then he had his face wiped clean, despite his grumbling, drank another cup of water and, with a sigh, leaned back against Shouta’s chest again.
And all the while something had been nagging at him, bothering him really bad, but he just couldn't figure it out!
Yawning again, this time from his increasing nerves, he looked when Nezu clapped softly for his attention and when had the hero gotten smaller? It wasn't much, not really, but he could clearly see a difference and he opened his mouth to ask but then froze, he’d been speaking, and he hadn't had a chance to practice talking in cat form, and everyone had understood him, and he’d picked up the plate and “Ohhhhhhhh no!”
Struggling frantically for a moment he was held carefully as he struggled, and when he tried to be a kitten again nothing happened and then he was crying cause he’d messed it up, messed it all up, how could he be a support cat if they knew he was a kid? They’d send him away or just leave him like his mother did because no one wanted him as a person!
"Izuku, that is NOT true! We want you! Can you look at me please? That's it, there you are!" Looking up Izuku saw both his heroes looked different with his human eyes, but still nice, and they smelled good too, love and worry and strong and determined and there wasn't anything like his Mummy used to smell, or her boyfriend either, and he nodded when Hizashi asked, "Will you listen first and then we can talk about it? We promise, all of us promise, that you are NOT going to be pushed away, never ever ever!"
"Cause real people don't do that, good people do NOT do that, and your mother certainly should never have left you, not like she did!"
"But," Izuku frowned in confusion, "I c'n eat solid food."
"Little one," Nezu asked after a brief confused pause, "what does eating have to do with it?"
"Oh, I lookded it up, Mummy cats leave their kittens when dey can eat food and not need milk anymore, so of course, she lefted me. No one else wanted me 'cept Kacchan and he already has parents so didn't need a kitten for always but then he askded them what happens to kids no one wants anymore 'cause we thought maybe they might wan' another kid and they said kids like that go into something called, ummmm, orpanages, or group homes, and that they didn't want any kid other than their Kacchan and why would they, he’s great, an' we looked up the places they put kids like me and…."
"I don' want that." Shaking his head he said again, "I don want that! I found you already by then," he patted Shouta’s arm, "an' you needed me, I know all about emotional s'pport aminals, an' I’m reeeeally good at it! I gots you ta eat an' take time off but you shoulda taken tree days off, not just two, but dats okay, you smellded much better by then anyway."
And cats 'dopt people all'a time, an' you liked me as a cat, and I was useful," he sniffled, wiping his nose on his shirt but then a tissue was being held to his nose and he was told to blow and he did, feeling a bit better now he wasn't so clogged up, "so I dopted you, you're my hero an' I’m your s'pport aminal, no take backs!"
Frowning at Nezu he repeated, "No take backs!"
"Agreed, no take backs."
"However, as we all now know you are a child and not a kitten, despite your most excellent cat quirk, we need to change the order of the words around a bit, to make it all legal. Because there is no such thing as an emotional support KITTEN, only emotional support cats."
"No, don't worry, you were doing a fantastic job but it's our job as adults to support you, at least until you grow up into a big grown-up cat, and then you can be an emotional support cat."
"Until then, how about we all adopt you, support you, love and care for and keep and cherish and protect you, the way you deserve to be? How does that sound?"
Thinking really hard about it all, Izuku asked with deep suspicion, "Will I gets to stay wif my heroes?"
"Yes, they will be, ahhhhh, well, if you want them to be, they can be your parents? Because cats and kittens all need a forever home and they want to be that for you, a forever home."
Eyes opening in surprise, Izuku twisted around to look up at Shouta and Hizashi who was cuddled so tight to his hero’s side his own little legs were across both laps, and said, "Really? You wants me forever? Even if I can’t be your s'pport till I’m all growed up into a proper cat?"
"Really really!" came from the golden-haired hero and a very low, "Forever. I want you, we want you, forever and ever Smokey, for always, even more now you're a kid than before as a kitten, and we both would have done anything in the world to have you then, but if we do it this way no one will ever be able to take you away, we won't let them!"
Tucking his feet under him Izuku got to his knees, reaching up to catch both of them in a hug, "I’m not very good at bein' a kid but I’ll try, I’ll try for you, p'ease le’me stay, I’ll be good, I pwomise, I’ll be so good…" and he was crying and he didn't know why but it was okay, he had warm safe arms around him, and they were saying words like forever and always and love you and his Mummy never ever said anything like that but he knew how proper people kids got treated and this was like that and he finally gave up any resistance, if they loved him as a kitten AND a kid, and they were heroes and didn't lie - other than naughty little lies ones that got them spanked and that kind didn't count really - then he could believe them, could trust them.
Saying between broken yawns and hiccuped sobs, "I wove you too!" he went limp in their arms, content to be held and just listen to all the plans, another exam by Chiyo, a bedroom for him, which did make him ask with a bit of disappointment, "Not a closet?" and didn't really understand why everyone smelled so shocked and sad but they all got happier when he added, "A room sounds nice though, Kacchan's room is da bestest so that'ud be great, can Kacchan come see it too?"
Happy when they said his friend would be totally welcome to visit, he felt a bit grumpy when they added, "But you will NEVER walk all that way to visit him, do you understand? No sneaking out, no running around the city alone, no frightening us all half to death, are we clear kiddo?"
And oh, that was a Nezu smell, a spankin' about ta happen smell, so he said hurriedly, "Uh-huh, I gots it!" and suddenly feeling doubly worried he added, "No spankins for doing it this time, right? You di'n say I wasn' allowed out so it wouldn' be fair to gets a spankin' this time!"
What there was to laugh about in that sentence Izuku wasn't sure but he was relieved when Hizashi said, "No, you're right, it wouldn't be fair to get a spanking for doing something no one told you want allowed. Tomorrow, after we all get a good night's sleep, we can go over all the rules." He gave a stern look at Shouta, "Because you need to learn them and Shoubear needs a reminder, ya dig?"
"Okay," Izuku chirrped "I dig!"
Giving a sleepy giggle Izuku added, "I climb too." And everyone laughed again.
They all smelled a mixture of sad and happy when Izuku managed to ask as his eyes drooped closed on him, "Is this what fambly is s'pposed to smell like?"
One more hug, a soft, "Yes Kitten, this is exactly what family is supposed to smell like." and he was deeply asleep.
****
Keigo had watched it all, adding very little as he smiled and laughed and chuckled and crooned in delight at how utterly amazing his brother's new kitten really was but now he had to ask, "Was this how you felt with us?"
And Nezu answered, "Of course it is, any good parent feels like this! Now, I want you all to sleep tonight in the visitor apartment next door to this one, and we will get your new son’s health exam done first thing in the morning. I’ll work tonight on the legalities - and he is already registered to you both in an emergency fosterage capacity with myself as the mandatory backup position - so you can all stop worrying now, everything will be sorted out just fine."
Had anyone asked him even just a month ago if his two kittens were ready to be parents he would have been reluctant to say yes but now, looking at them, and smelling their resolve and love and care as they cradled the tiny scrap of human jetsam that had come to rest in their lives, he smiled because, they really were ready for that biggest of adventures.
Getting up to brew a fresh pot of tea he listened to them planning the next few days, listening to Keigo adding his two cents worth, smiling as they called Nemuri and Oboro to tell them all about it, smiling even harder when both of them almost screamed "WE’RE ON THE WAY!!!" And simply took two more cups down, then reached for another one when Chiyo got a message from Ryou that he too was on the way.
It might be a bit unexpected but a family gathering was always welcome!
And a week that had been filled with unprecedented highs and lows ended in an impromptu and very quiet party, which their kitten slept right through.