Chapter Text
A rough tongue and two voices woke him up.
“Hey, guy, I'd appreciate it if you didn't come here to do drugs or whatever the hell else caused you to pass out in the middle of the floor, we’re kinda busy here,” spoke a deep, annoyed-sounding voice.
‘Ugh, what happened? The last thing I remember is walking through the doorway to the big room…’ Deku thought.
“Shinsou, don't you have any sympathy? He could be in real trouble!” A brighter voice, filled with worry reprimanded the first voice. “Are you okay?” Deku lifted his arm from his face and the cat licking him backed away. He blinked his eyes groggily, sat up, and took in his surroundings.
Two men were beside him, one on his knees and one standing up and bending over. Both looked to be his age or a bit older. The man on his knees was obviously the one who sounded worried about him, considering he seemed relieved that he was awake. He had shockingly red hair that was spiked up tall, and weirdly sharp teeth. The man that was leaning over him was taller than the other. He had wild purple hair and deep bags under his eyes. He frowned down at Deku. Upon taking in the second man’s appearance and matching it to the name the redhead called him, he realized that this was the person he was looking for. He also looked vaguely familiar, but he shook this feeling off quickly.
“...Shinsou?” He asked, his voice rough. The man furrowed his eyebrows and his frown tightened.
“Huh? Do I know you from somewhere? Or are you here for the auditions and you just somehow passed out?”
“Auditions?”
“Nevermind, just get out of here before I get Kiri here to kick you out,” he grabbed Deku from under his arms and pulled him up to his feet like a child. Shinsou was surprisingly strong for someone that skinny. Deku blushed and sputtered.
“W-wait! I was looking for you because I need something!” His voice echoed off the walls of the large ballroom. Shinsou pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.
“Ok then, what did you need?” He sounded exasperated.
“I. Um. Uh, I'm trying to rem-” Deku suddenly froze and his eyes glazed over.
“What do you want from me?” Shinsou asked, his voice clear and forceful.
“I want you to forge a boat ticket for me to go to Tokyo,” he replied robotically. Shinsou then pinched his arm, releasing him from the trance-like state. He blinked a few times. “What was that?”
“That was my Quirk. If you'll just comply next time I ask you something, I won't have to use it on you again.” Deku’s eyes lit up and he smiled brightly, very unlike the usual reaction Shinsou got whenever he brainwashed someone. He was taken aback a bit.
“Woah, you have a Quirk too? And such a cool one! I'm kinda jealous actually, I hardly even know what my Quirk is,” he spoke quickly like he'd been waiting his whole life to say this.
“Woah woah woah, slow down,” he put his hands on the green-haired boy’s shoulders, “first of all, yes I have a Quirk. Second of all, you have one and don't know what it is? How does that even happen?”
“Well, I mean, I've never really been allowed to use it since I'm not good at controlling it,” he looked down and gave a nervous smile.
“This old castle is all trashed anyway, why don't you try it out here?” Kirishima smiled, waving his arm around.
“Yeah, this castle is old and broken-down, but that's exactly why he shouldn’t use it in here. What would we do if it's destructive and it causes the ceiling to collapse?”
“I could protect us!” He hardened his body, as if to demonstrate. Deku gasped.
“Both of you have Quirks? What are the chances?!” He practically vibrated with excitement. It was apparently contagious, as Shinsou practically felt Kirishima smile brighter, if that was even possible.
“I'd rather not take my chances at getting buried under rubble, thanks. Anyway back to what brought you here. You want a boat ticket to Tokyo?” He faced Deku and asked. Deku jumped a bit and nodded.
“Yes please!”
“No can do.”
“What? Why?” He visibly deflated.
“You see, Kirishima and I are on a very tight schedule. We’re going to Tokyo as well, but we only have three tickets. One for me, one for Kiri, and one for Midoriya Izuku,” Shinsou replied, smirking a bit at the last part.
“Midoriya Izuku? Who's that?” Deku looked puzzled.
“You're kidding, right?”
“No, I don't know who that is.”
“Oh! Midoriya Izuku is the grandson of Toshinori Yagi, the super manly ex king! He went missing a long time ago, right after the revolution, and he's been looking for em ever since. We’re looking for him too, so we can return him!” Kirishima answered, forgetting to mention the reward money.
“Oh, well, that's nice of you!” He smiled sadly.
“Yeah yeah, we’re practically saints,” Shinsou grabbed Deku’s wrist and led him out of the room and towards the stairs, with Kirishima and the cat following close behind. “Now come on, I told you that we’re busy. It’s time for you to go,” he let go of his wrist at the top of the stairs, pointing towards the large gap in the boards where Deku entered. Kirishima came and stood next to Shinsou as the cat decided that now was the perfect time to purr and rub itself against Deku’s legs.
“Aw, well, I wish you luck with your search!” He said, bending down to gently move the cat away from his legs. As he bent down, Kirishima looked over at the large portrait behind them. Midoriya Izuku’s likeness was right behind where Deku was. He stood back up fully, starting to leave.
“Wait!” Kirishima shouted and shot his arm out in a ‘stop’ motion.
“Huh?” He raised an eyebrow. He was now standing right beside where the young prince was painted.
“Shinsou, look!” He pointed to the two pairs of emerald eyes staring back at them. Shinsou squinted for a second, and then his eyes widened in shock. Painted green hair mixed with lively green locks, the freckles matching up almost exactly. The only difference was the man standing before him was older and covered in a smattering of scars. Shinsou opened and closed his mouth a few times, before leaning over to Kirishima and shielding their faces with his hand.
“Are you thinking what I'm thinking?”
“They're like, the exact same! Do you think he could actually be Izuku?” Kirishima excitedly whispered.
“Well, I don't know about that, but he's a damn good doppelgänger. Our plan would be perfect with him!” He broke the small meeting and looked back over to the green-haired boy, who looked more confused than ever. The cat was back around his legs, purring up a storm. Shinsou cleared his throat. “I don't believe I ever caught your name,” he smiled at the boy. This just confused him even more and made the tips of his eyes go a bit red.
“...Deku.”
“Is that a last name, or?” He waved his hand around lazily.
“It's… just my name, I guess. I don't really have a proper last name or first name,” he looked down and started messing with his hands. “I was just kinda found wandering around alone when I was 8. I don't remember anything before that. Oh! Geez, sorry, didn't mean to give you my life’s story,” he laughed nervously. Shinsou’s face seemed to soften a bit before going back to the almost fake-looking smile.
“Ah, that's alright. So you don't remember a thing before you were 8?” He asked.
“Nope, not a thing.”
“That’s… interesting. Did you know that Midoriya Izuku went missing on his 8th birthday?”
“Uh, no. I hadn't heard of him until today, remember?” He had a puzzled look on his face again.
“How old are you now, Deku?” Kirishima chimed in.
“I'm 18. Or, at least, I think I’m 18. Not too sure when my actual birthday is,” Deku replied. Shinsou hummed.
“Did you know that it's been about 10 years since the prince went missing? That would make him 18 now.” Shinsou added, him and Kirishima starting to circle around the boy.
“No, I- are you even listening to me? I just said I don't know anything about this guy,” He huffed, getting a bit annoyed.
“I know, I know, but don't you think it's pretty strange?” He stepped closer to Deku.
“What are you implying?”
“I'm implying that you may be exactly who we’re looking for.”
“...you know what? I think I just realized something.”
“Hm? And what would that be?” Shinsou’s smile grew into something Cheshire-like.
“You're crazy,” Deku said plainly. The smile dropped instantly. He marched into the adjacent room and came back a minute later with a small mirror in hand, shoving it in Deku’s face.
“Look at you, and then look at him,” he said, pointing at the canvas face of Midoriya Izuku, “and tell me you aren't the same person. Everything lines up!”
“I mean… yeah, I guess we look similar. But me? Royalty? What a joke,” he started towards the stairs.
“Technically you'd be ex-royalty!” Kirishima said, trying to help.
“Oh, yeah, that definitely makes it more likely. Thank you for that insight, sentient rock,” Deku scoffed, continuing down the steps. “Sorry, but I'd rather not hang around here getting my hopes up,” as he arrived at the ground floor, the cat practically flew down the steps and locked itself around his legs. He stopped in his tracks, not wanting to inadvertently harm it.
“Are you sure you'd like to leave? It seems Bean has taken a liking to you,” Shinsou jogged down the steps, followed by Kirishima.
“Bean?” He turned his head to look at the two men, “is this your cat?”
“Yes, she is. Why?”
“She's the one who led me here. I was actually on my way to start work at a farm, but then I came to a fork in the road and I asked for a sign. She came pouncing out of the bushes at me, and then led me to the dock and back here. That explains why she looks cared for, actually. Bean… that's a really cute name!” He momentarily forget his annoyance to gawk at the cuteness of the cat and her name, “a cute name for a cute cat,” he looked back up at the purple-haired man, “ya know, you two actually look a bit alike, in a weird way.”
“Does that mean you think I'm cute?” Shinsou smirked.
“What? N-no!” He stammered, his face flushing, “anyway, I'll be leaving now, no matter how cute your cat is,” he tried to head towards the entrance, but Shinsou grabbed his wrist.
“Come on, just think about it, Deku. You asked for a sign, and you were led here. Maybe it's fate. And anyways, even if we’re wrong, you'll still get a free trip to Tokyo! At the very least, you can start a new life there instead of at some old farm.”
“At least think about it! We’d love to have you come with us, and maybe you can find your family!” Kirishima spoke hopefully.
‘My family? I mean, I've certainly thought about it; I doubt any orphan doesn’t wonder at least a little about their family, but I gave that up a long time ago. That man in the picture though, Toshinori Yagi, he does seem vaguely familiar. But then again, so does Shinsou. Maybe I'm the crazy one here,’ he thought.
“Ah, frick, I guess you're right. I've really got nothing to lose, anyway,” Deku said. Shinsou snorted at that. “What?”
“‘Frick’? You know you can say ‘fuck’ right? You're 18 and neither me nor Kiri cares,” he smirked as Deku’s face darkened again.
“The head of the orphanage was not a good person, and she swore constantly, so I guess it’s become a sort-of personal goal to refrain from it.”
“Hm, makes sense,” Shinsou shrugged.
“I think that's very manly, Deku!” Kirishima beamed, “you do what you need to to feel comfortable!” Deku looked at Kirishima and smiled. Shinsou silently decided that he liked that look on him.
“So, you are coming with us?” He asked, making sure everything was in the clear.
“I guess so!” Deku said, picking up Bean, “I really didn't want to leave this little guy anyway,” he lightly scratched her behind the ear.
“Alright, well, I supposed that since we’re going to be spending quite a bit of time together, we should properly introduce ourselves,” he stood next to Kirishima and nodded to him.
“Oh, yeah, good idea! I'm Kirishima Eijiro! This guy usually calls me Kiri, but you can call me whatever you want, really! I'm 19 and I'm hoping to work in construction someday,” he flashed a toothy smile.
“Nice to meet you, Kirishima-kun,” Deku smiled and jokingly curtsied with Bean still in one arm. Shinsou bowed, took Deku’s hand in his own, and pressed a chaste kiss to it, which caused Deku’s ears and face to practically go up in flames.
“Shinsou Hitoshi, at your service. 20 years old and before you ask, my Quirk messes with my mind and has made me an insomniac, hence the eyebags,” he pointed to his eyes and Deku suppressed a giggle, “I'm hoping to become an actor.” Deku suppressed the urge to tell him that the occupation seemed perfect for him.
“Well, nice to meet you too, Shinsou-san,” he gave him a bright smile, like the one from when they were talking about Quirks. Shinsou’s heart pounded, and suddenly he felt embarrassed about kissing the boy’s hand.
-
“Well, lead the way. You are the one who broke in here, after all,” said Shinsou. Deku huffed a small laugh and complied, going through the gap in the boarded entrance. When he was out of earshot, Kirishima hummed and whispered to him.
“I haven't seen you act that dramatic in a long while, something going on with you and him?” He nudged his shoulder.
“Pff, no,” Shinsou hoped his slight blush didn't betray him, “I'm just trying to convince the kid that this whole thing is real. The more he believes it, the easier this is for us. We’re going to be filthy rich in no time at all.”