Chapter Text
Shouta panted softly as he ran through the darkened streets, rain pelting down as he moved, a small body pressed against his chest where it was wrapped up in a thin blanket to keep them safe from the cold and water. It was freezing out, the end of winter, and definitely not a time one would normally be outside. His thin t-shirt and sweatpants did nothing to stave off the cold, though he'd take his chances.
He had to get to the safe point before he was discovered missing. Before they were tracked down and dragged back. Before he was seperated from the only reason he kept fighting to stay alive. There was no other option, they had to make it.
Coming up to the warehouse, he slowed his pace before walking inside to find three beings that made him want to weep with gratitude. The first was his old mentor, His Purple Highness, looking older and more worn but still the same. The second, Recovery Girl, at his own request so he could ensure that the cargo he carried was safe as can be. The final was the one he had reached out to for assistance, had convinced his old friend who had been turned into a monster to send messages back and forth for him. Nedzu, the principal of UA and the only person with the means to help them disappear.
"Aizawa," Highness said, stepping forward.
Shouta quickly said, "He has me microchipped. The back of my neck, it's too deep for me to get it out myself."
Nedzu nodded, walking forward as he asked, "Recovery Girl, if you would?"
Shouta sat down on the ground to give her more access, shifting the bundle in his arms and getting a soft whimper coming from it. "I know, Pup," he whispered, rubbing the blanket gently. "Just a little longer."
He hissed as he felt the sharp sting of a knife slicing through his skin, his grip on the blankets tightening. He refused to make any noise as he felt the coldness of a pair of tweezers slip between the pieces of skin. It wasn't near the worst kind of pain he'd felt all these years in the hands of those monsters. No, this just felt like a papercut compared to that.
As soon as she pulled away, a small clink of metal echoed off the concrete floor, indicating that it was out. He was almost home free.
"We need to move," Nedzu said. "We have a van waiting outside."
Shouta nodded, getting up carefully and following the pro-heroes to a non-descript black van. He was ushered into it, finally letting out a sigh of relief as they pulled away from the warehouse. They were finally free. Free from the hell that was his prison for the past five years.
"You're okay," Highness said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "You're safe now."
"Thank you," he breathed, looking around at them all. "Thank you."
"We'll need to know what happened to you," Nedzu informed him. "Once we're back at UA, of course."
Shouta nodded in understanding before a soft, childish voice asked, "Mama?"
He gently pulled off the sopping wet blanket to reveal a mop of white hair plastered to pale skin, a pair of cat ears the same color drooping pathetically. Bright green eyes looked around curiously before gasping and hiding their face against Shouta's chest. It was understandable as he had only been around 3 others people in his young life besides Shouta.
"A Child?" Highness asked in surprise.
Shouta just nodded silently before he grabbed as he leaned down and kissed the wet hair, only to have the head shake to try and get the water off as he pulled away. He couldn't help but laugh softly at that. His little kitten was so funny.
As soon as they pulled up outside the school, they were met with three other identical vans. They got out, Shouta being ushered inside as their driver got out and another got in, all 4 cars going in a separate direction. They were trying to confuse the man who was after Shouta, he realized. They were truly trying to help them escape.
They walked into the school, the driver and three pro-heroes walking upstairs. They stopped at the infirmary, Recovery Girl giving Shouta a gym uniform. He put it on before he was given a smaller shirt with the letters UA on it. It still looked like the small cat hybrid was swimming in the shirt but it was dry and warm even with his tail poking out from the bottom.
"Let me heal you and make sure he's okay," Recovery Girl urged him.
Shouta shook his head. "I'm fine. He's wet but he'll be fine too. They made sure of it."
The school nurse tutted at him but didn't argue much to his relief. He clung to the small child, silently praying that this wasn't a dream. That they had actually been able to escape.
He was led up to Nedzu's office and sat down on one of the couches, a cup of steaming hot tea in front of him. He picked up the cup, sniffing it before taking a sip. Old habits died hard when you were a hostage for five years.
He held the cup up to the small mouth and softly said, "Sip slowly, pup. It's hot."
They sat in silence, Shouta finally beginning to relax as the small body in his arms stopped shivering as they drank the tea. As soon as they were done, Shouta put the cup down when a blanket was put over him. He looked up at Highness, a grateful smile on his face.
"You can take your scent patches off," Nedzu softly softly. "It will be easier for them to understand."
Shouta pulled off the patch from the pup in his lap, the smell of a content pup hitting their noses. He hesitated once he reached up to his own, unsure of how everyone would react. Two heroes and one person he was unsure of who they were.
"This is underground hero Tracker," Nedzu introduced. "He's been keeping an eye on you for me while we planned all this. Since you left the compound, he was ensuring you were safe."
"Thank you," Shouta quietly said with a nod towards the hero.
The man just nodded before Highness asked, "What happened to you? You got your license and just disappeared."
"The boogeyman is real," Shouta said, his voice just above a whisper. "He… he kidnapped me while I was on patrol. He has… has a quirk that can change the secondary gender."
"Shouta," Highness spoke, his voice wavering. "When you say…?"
Shouta pulled off his scent patch, letting them all smell the new scent he gave off. He had been an alpha, agressive as the rest of them if not moreso. Now, he was a fucking omega, had been forced into this new role for the past five years.
"The pup-"
"My son," he quietly answered, his gaze going down to the now sleeping pup in his arms. "And his. He forced me to… to…"
"You don't have to say any more," Nedzu assured him. "We understand."
Shouta swallowed thickly as he tried to reign in the scent of distressed omega. His pup was used to it, had been raised to think the scent normal. But the otheres had never smelled this scent from him before. He knew it was uncomfortable, knew it wasn't something anyone wanted to smell.
"You're not there anymore," Highness gently said."You escaped, survived."
He let out a choked sob. "I had to leave… he couldn't…"
"Aizawa?"
Shouta shook his head, pulling the pup closer against him. He let himself cry for the first time in a long time, let himself feel something than an emptiness.
When he eventually calmed down, Tracker asked, "What of the pup?"
"His name is Izuku," Shouta softly answered. "He's four and his quirk just came in. I couldn't keep him there… one of his… employees… his job is to protect us. I convinced him to help us escape. He…" He shook his head. He couldn't think about Obo… no, Kurogiri right now. "He'll be punished for it. He'll be more angry that Izuku is gone though. He… on some level, he cared for him."
They were all silent at that, processing Shouta's words. While he was waiting, he pulled the blanket off his shoulders before wrapping it around Izuku, the small pup snuggling into it.
"You said his quirk came in," Nedzu finally spoke.
"It's an analysis quirk though I always thought he was born with his quirk. I have a feeling he gave him the analysis quirk. He also has a healing quirk he had since he was a newborn." He ran his fingers through the white locks. "He's only been around myself and three others his whole life."
"You'll be safe here," Nedzu said. "Obviously you'll have to stay on campus to avoid him finding you."
Shouta nodded, assuming that. This was the safest place he knew of in Japan. Besides, if the commission found out about Izuku, they would surely want his pup as well and they would only get to him over Shouta's dead body.
"You'll be remaining here for the protection of both of you," Nedzu said, looking at Shouta. "We will be needing to announce that you were rescued, but we will leave Izuku out of it. No one besides those in this room will be informed of where you are for the time being until things die down. We will also be announcing that due to what happened during your time in captivity, you are being forced into an early retirement and have left the country."
Shouta nodded with a sigh. He knew there was no way he could return to hero work. Not with Izuku in his life or him now on the hunt for them. He hated that he had sacrificed all those years of training with nothing to show for it.
"In the mean time," Nedzu continued. "I am in need for a laws and ethics instructor in the coming years. Recall is starting to talk about retiring."
That made sense. Recall was a twilight hero who was old when Shouta first started at UA and it had been eight years since he'd first met her. She was a good hero, had taught him a lot about working between the laws as an underground hero. She deserved some peace in her life.
"What does that have to do with me?" Shouta asked, looking at the rat.
"Why, it would be a good use of your time to start online classes. You can get a degree without even having to step foot off of the UA campus!"
Shouta sighed, his gaze shifting back down to Izuku. "Fine," he agreed after a few moments. "I'll do it. As long as…"
"I can assist you with teaching your kit," Nedzu assured him.
"We'll all help where we can," Purple Highness spoke up for the first time in a while. "Tracker will also be keeping an eye on you through his quirk. And I can come on my off days."
"We'll also set you up with a therapist," Recovery Girl added. "One who Nedzu is able to vet."
Shouta opened his mouth to argue but closed it before he could say anything. He knew his mind was fucked up after the hell he had been through. He knew he wasn't the same man he had been before. Eraserhead had been an alpha, cold and strong. Shouta Aizawa had been reduced to nothing more than an omega.
They allowed him to process everything before he asked, "Can I… I don't want to see or talk to Yamada or Kayama. Not now."
"We'll let them know you're safe, but will reach out on your own time," Nedzu agreed. "Now, shall we take you to where you'll be staying? I will give you a card to order everything you will need online."
"Thank you," Shouta let the words fall from his lips. "Thank you…"
"You don't need to thank us," Highness said, gently putting a hand on his shoulder. Shouldn't couldn't help the flinch that escaped at the touch. "We're all just glad you and your pups are safe."
It turned out the safehouse they were in was an underground bunker. Shouta could vaguely remember Hizashi and Oboro talking about a rumor that UA had hidden bunkers. It wasn't like the space they had been kept in by him. Other than the fact that there were no windows, it looked exactly like an apartment and a much better one than his first apartment at that.
It was big with three bedrooms, a kitchen, a bathroom, and a living area. One of those bedrooms would eventually become Izuku's, though he knew there was no way he would allow his pup to leave his side any time soon. The other, he could probably use as an office though it wouldn't be needed for quite a while.
He set Izuku down to sleep on the couch next to him as he turned on the television, ensuring it was almost on silent so as not to disturb his pup. He flipped through the channels before stopping on coverage post- villain fight. He could remember back when he was on the outskirts, watching His Purple Majesty handle the press. It has definitely confirmed his want to go underground.
His heart stopped beating as he saw his high school crush and best friend standing next to Nemuri, the two of them in their hero costumes. He had forgotten how they had looked though it seemed Hizashi had grown his hair out and looked even more like an overgrown cockatoo. Nemuri looked just as great as ever, especially with her new costume design.
He found himself turning up the volume, listening to their voices. They sounded so much older now, so much more mature. There was even a comment about a new radio show Hizashi had started. They had done so much and Shouta… all he had to show for the past five years was trauma.
"Mommy?" A small voice asked.
Shouta's attention immediately snapped over to Izuku, the small pup rubbing his eyes and looking around in confusion.
"I'm right here, Pup," Shouta softly answered, putting a hand on his small arm. "Did I wake you?"
The white head shook no before his son's attention went to the television and he asked, "What's that?"
"It's called a television," Shouta explained. "It shows moving pictures with sound. Right now, I'm watching someone talk to two heroes."
"What is heroes?"
Shouta's heart broke as he remembered that Izuku knew nothing about the outside world. It simply wasn't allowed, let alone any talk of heroes. It wasn't his pup's fault he didn't know anything nor was it his own. The one time he'd tried to teach Izuku about the outside world, he'd ended up on the doctor's table. He'd definitely never done it again.
"They're protectors. They help keep people safe from those who want to hurt them."
"Like Giri?"
Shouta gave a sad smile as he agreed, "Just like Giri." He kissed his son's head. "These heroes used to be my friends before you were born."
"They look nice." Izuku climbed into his daddy's lap, laying against his chest. "But they look sad."
"You think so?"
"Uh-huh."
Shouta let Izuku talk, knowing it was the analysis quirk at work. At least he did until his pup became frustrated that he didn't have the words to explain things. He turned off the television and nuzzled the frustrated pup, scenting him all over.
"Mommy," he giggled, squirming in Shouta's arms, tail swishing happily.
"Do you want to see where we're staying?" Shouta offered. "We're not with your father anymore. No more doctor, no more hurts."
Izuku looked up in awe at those words and it broke Shouta's heart once Again. All Izuku had known was pain and fear and he hated it every single day his pup had to experience it.
He lifted up his son and made his way through the apartment, showing him the fully stocked fridge and cupboards along with the pristine bathroom and the big bed they would be sharing. They had even stocked nesting supplies for them.
"Want to help me build our nest, Pup?" Shouta asked.
At the eager nod, he began pulling things out and setting them down for use. When he got to the bottom, he tensed at the scents. There were scented items from His Purple Highness, but also from Nemuri, Hizashi, and Tensei. Tears filled his eyes as he breathed in the familiar scents, the weight of how much he had missed them crushing down on him.
"Mommy?" Izuku hesitantly asked, worry in his voice.
"I'm okay," Shouta whispered, wiping his tears away as he put the scented items back up. "Let's start on our nest. And we can order more things if we think it needs it."
They worked on the next until Izuku had started dancing with the need to use the bathroom. Shouta just shook his head and sent him to the bathroom while he himself went out to the kitchen to find them something simple to eat. After only having bland food for years, they would have to work their way up to that point so quite a few things were out.
In the end, he ended up making some rice and miso soup for the both of them. He would have to ask Nedzu for some sweets for Izuku to try as well.
Once they finished eating, they went back to finishing up their nest. As soon as they were inside of it, Izuku was out like a light again and Shouta was left to fall asleep to his pup's light snores. For the first time in a long time, he was able to fall asleep without being on guard.
Written by a human in Ellipsus.