Chapter Text
Monoma didn’t have a lot of friends growing up. He was kind of rude, most could attest to that. If there was ever a trial held to prove his snottiness, he’d probably be given a life sentence. But, that didn’t mean that he never wanted friends. He did. He really did-so thank god for class 1-B and their patience for his rabid dog like obedience. Which could basically just be shortened down to; he had no obedience. Ever.
If he saw Bakugou Katsuki coming over, he’d automatically get into pouncing position, ready to make fun of the guy’s face or failures or whatever else he could come up with. He had been bullied for most of his own childhood, so he knew what made people tick.
Class 1-B put up with it all. They were some of greatest people he’d ever met, he could just tell they were all destined for great things. So, you know what? Fucking sue him for wanting his class to have to spotlight instead of class 1-A. He doubted that they all really deserved their spots anyways. What could that one guy do? Swing his tail at people? Sure, some of their quirks were cool-but none of them could beat Kendou’s battle strategy thinking or Kurori’s surprise attacks.
It was so frustrating to see people as amazing as them being held back so Izuku Midoryia, Todoroki Shoto, and Bakugou Katsuki could have one of their weekly public therapy sessions (half of the time having to do with either daddy issues or unresolved sexual tension).
They were his friends and he did what he felt he had to in order for them to get the attention they deserved.
So, when someone new just happened to waltz right into his life...someone who was kind and funny and so hardworking...he couldn’t help but let that same dedication and loyalty take over.
There was someone in UA who not only was in a class who got less attention than his own-but was also the most heroic and amazing person to grace the face of the earth. Monoma had never heard someone sound so honest and sarcasticly morbid at the same time, but Shinsou Hitoshi checked both boxes.
The guy made him rethink his standing at UA and even his similarities with 1-A. And that was not a common occurrence for Monoma.
He was lowkey falling in a no homo kinda mutual respect with a guy he met after texting the wrong number about heels.
He also just happened to accidently set that same guy up as a criminal. Looking back on it, he probably shouldn't have drawn dicks all over a pro hero’s car. However, in his defence, drawing dicks on anything is funny.
Well, not to the school board apparently, seeing as they were about to expel Shinsou, but they were old and dumb and bitter about never being gifted the opportunity to engage in some mindless vandalism.
Monoma wasn’t even sure how he could appeal to their personalities, since they were so set on booting out a student-but he was going to give it his all.
You know, even though he was over ten minutes late to the meeting and it wasn’t open to students or civilians and he had nothing prepared and he had no clue of Shinsou was actually pissed at him or anything-
But there was no turning back now!
“I am here for Shinsou!” He announced to the waiting room outside the principal’s office. His eyes tracked over to where a woman sat behind a desk and looked at her like how he imagined a pro would, “I demand that you let me see him.”
“Uh-Shinsou Hitoshi?”
Monoma blanked for a second, forgetting and wondering if that was really the guy’s name, before nodding stiffly, “Yes! Him. I demand to see him this instant. I will not tolerate a ‘no’. I have come too far for-“
“He’s in the auditorium with the school board.”
Monoma frowned, “Really?”
“Well...yeah. Anything else?”
“Uh, no. I just thought it’d be a little harder to get that information.”
She blinked at him, “Do you want to restart? I can pretend if you want, or-“
“No, I seriously have to go and help him,” He backed away and made for the exit, “But-uh-thanks for offering, that was really nice. Gave me some confidence for what i've gotta go do.”
“Wait, what-“
Monoma shot out of the room, zooming like Ilda Tenya and ignoring the yells from the woman behind him. He ran across campus-for the second time that day-and ignored the heavy breathing that rang from lungs. He was a physically fit teenager, but he was a damn heavy breather when he had to run.
He passed a few of his own classmates as he went and waved at a few that sent him confused stares. He ignored the thumbs up he got from Midoriya Izuku, who sat with Uraraka Ochako on a bench near their dorm-and finally
FINALLY
he got to the auditorium. It loomed over him, big and imposing, large metal doors waiting to be opened and slammed with power.
It was a little intimidating. If he wasn’t so set on saving Shinsou Hitoshi’s future academic life-he might’ve run away crying. But
he wasn’t going to leave Shinsou.
Not when he wanted to meet the guy so badly.
And especially not when he was the real guilty party.
Shinsou didn’t deserve that.
Maybe the kids in 1-A did. But Shinsou didn’t.
“I’m going to save Shinsou!” He shouted, stomping his feet and slapping his face with both hands. It was like hyping himself up before a big performance-only this time, he was hoping to make Shinsou Hitoshi the most innocent seeming boy alive.
He opened the doors and stepped inside, letting the open air of the room fill his nose. For some reason, the rows of seats had been put away and instead, a large circular table had been set up to seat what looked to be twenty pro heros.
And right beside Pro hero: Erasorhead, sat the man, the myth, the socially awkward insomniac teenager with the most gorgeous purple eyes that Monoma had ever seen; Shinsou Hitoshi.
He forgot what to say for a moment, feeling like he had been kicked in the stomach and unable to form any words. He was finally able to see Shinsou in person and he was in awe.
The boy was...unsurprising. He looked exactly as Monoma imagined, tired but clever and unable to wear his uniform unwrinkled. The purple was different though. The striking shade of violet made his heart do somersaults and his stomach flutter with butterflies. All in all, Shinsou Hitoshi was exactly what he had expected-only slightly more stunning.
“...you here? Monoma?”
The blonde blinked and realized, quite embarrassingly, that the heros were staring at him. Not only that, but they had asked him a question and he hadn’t been paying attention. NOT ONLY THAT BUT ALSO, Shinsou was
looking.
Right at him.
Maybe he should’ve smiled? No, that’d be weird, his smile was little creepy somtimes too.
That would ruin his first real introduction with the guy.
“Hello,” He started, slinking further into the room. He noted that Endeavor was in the room and held back a glare, “Hi there, my name is Monoma Nieto.”
The silence was louder than anything anyone could’ve said.
“Um, yeah, this is one of my students,” His homeroom teacher muttered to the other adults around the table. He seemed embarrassed.
Oh whatever, Monoma didn’t need him for what he was about to do. He could figure it out.
“Vlad King, why is he here?” Best Jeanist’s voice came from inside his jean turtleneck.
“Well, he isn’t supposed to be.” Aizawa frowned and made a movement like he was about to get up and remove the boy-
But Monoma had a plan now.
Well, actually, it wasn’t really a plan, since it was a terrible idea-but the way Shinsou looked absolutely terrified before any of the attention had been on him-fueled his desire to save Shinsou’s honor. And, if he could also get off scott free, then that was just a bonus.
“Good evening, UA school board. I hope that you are having a good day, however, I am here to ruin your chances of discrediting a certain student’s school life.” He stood up tall and spoke without a hint of worry.
They stared back at him nonetheless.
“I’m sorry-what?” Hawks (Uh oh) asked.
But, as one asks, one shall receive.
“I am Shinsou Hitoshi’s lawyer.” Monoma explained, marching over to the table and stuffing himself between a pro and the very very confused purple haired teen. They made eye contact as Monoma stood beside him and then, in that precise moment, he flashed a grin that he knew looked cocky and hot. Or maybe it looked dumb, who knows really.
“Lawyer? Did you just say lawyer?”
“I did,” Monoma nodded, pulling a pad of paper from the backpack he had been lugging around everywhere, “Mind if I borrow that?” He whispered to Shinsou and pointed at the pen in the boy’s front pocket.
Shinsou let out a snort. And then blushed and ducked his head and handed over the pen. Monoma might’ve passed away right there at the display, from sheer adoration.
“You can’t be Shinsou’s lawyer, you’re like sixteen.”
Monoma sighed and began to write on his paper, holding it to his chest, “I can be and I am,” He looked to the principal and felt his heart beat anxiously in his chest, “That's okay, right, sir?”
The rat/beat/dog/mouse responded easily, “I don’t see anything wrong with that. Go right on ahead.”
Endeavor did not like that, “You cannot have a child represent another child, this is ludicrous!”
“To be fair, Enji, this isn’t really a courtroom and the kid has no parents to be here and support him,” Hawks replied surprisingly, “And you’re not scared of a kid, are you?”
The table began to murmur and Endeavor began to squirm.
Monoma let out a hearty chuckle, “Great, now, since we’ve all agreed that I’m Shinsou’s lawyer-“
“I never agreed.” Shinsou frowned.
“-we can begin to go over the case. Firstly, what exactly is the charge against my client’s good name?”
Midnight took up that question and raised a whip as she answered with a playful grin, “Vandalizing a pro hero’s car with dicks.”
“Midnight! Don’t say it like that.” All might reprimanded, obviously uncomfortable with being around adults who were swearing around two children.
“Yes, with washable paint though.” Monoma said, like the number one pro hero hadn’t just been cut off.
“Well yeah, that’s why I’m not blowing a fuse anymore.” Hawks snorted.
“Wait, how’d you know it was washable?” Present mic asked.
“Because I’m a genius, now,” Monoma snapped, “I have to inform all of you, that not only is it completely illogical to expel a future hero for vandalism that went away in less than twenty four hours-but there is also no possible way that Shinsou could have even done it as he has an alibi.”
That hooked them. They launched into interrogations, proving that yes there were Pros, but also that yes, Monoma was great at capturing an audience.
He spared a look over at Shinsou and smirked at the intrigued look in the boy’s eyes. ‘Who are you and what on earth are you talking about?’ seemed to be playing in his mind.
“What the hell are you talking about, Monoma? Shinsou’s said that he went on a walk around the dorms during the time of the vandalism. And, no one saw him actually doing so.”
Monoma silently thanked the gods above for Present Mic to be dumb enough to reveal what Shinsou had already said so he could match up the stories-and then he answered with the best lie of his life, “That’s because he thought no one saw him around that time.”
The table was quiet again.
“What?” Aizawa asked.
“He thought that no one saw him, but someone did. And, that person was…” He gave a pause for dramatic effect, letting them lean forward and then, “Me.”
It was a solid performance. Maybe a 9/10, he definitely could’ve given a longer pause. Maybe added in a spin? No, that would’ve been ridiculous...unless…
“Are you saying that you saw Shinsou at the time of the crime?” Principal Nezu asked, voice in a tone that almost sounded like he was rooting for Monoma and Shinsou instead of his fellow alumni.
“I did. I one hundered percent did.” Monoma nodded, lies leaking through his teeth.
The table sat back in silence, most likely shocked, but also unable to argue if there was a witness who could vouch for Shinsou. He looked over at the boy he had framed and bit back a smile when they met each other’s eyes. Shinsou didn’t bother like him and flashed a tired grin that could make a grown Monoma blush and screech.
“Wait wait wait-are we not forgetting that Eraserhead claimed to have seen the guilty party at the scene of the crime and kept it secret just to cover for him? How do we know that this isn’t some elaborate scheme to make him look innocent too?”
Monoma was seriously starting to hate Endeavor.
How did Hawks put up with him? Was Hawks a sugar baby? Did Endeavor buy him a lot of stuff? Thst probbaly wasn’t Monoma’s business, but it was funny to think about. Either way, Endeavor was starting to piss him off.
Before he could argue back, his homeroom teacher came to his aid, “Monoma has never met Shinsou before, Endeavor-san. As much as I hate to resort to stereotypes, Monoma is what we call a social butterfly, where as Shinsou is a quiet and reserved student. I’m pretty sure Shinsou doesn’t have many friends. No offense.” He added, glancing at the purple haired youth.
Shinsou didn’t reply, simply sinking down low into his seat and glaring at the table in front of him. Monoma had never felt so defensive of another person until that moment, suddenly feeling rage over someone making a generalization of one’s character.
“While I agree that Shinsou and I have not met each other before now, I think a more suitable reasoning would be that we are in different courses.”
“Oh yes, sorry, that sounds more appropriate, yeah.” Vlad King mumbled apologetically.
“But what about Eraserhead? Maybe he asked Monoma to do him a favor of covering for one of his favorite students-in exchange for transfer into his class.”
Monoma couldn’t hold back a retching noise at that.
Eraserhead glared at him, but agreed with his noise anyways, “Monoma has made it extremely clear to everyone here at UA, he despises everything about my class. I’m assuming that that would also include me in that hatred.”
That was true, he didn’t care much for Aizawa, but he was starting to warm up to the guy from Shunsou’s constant praising of the man over their messages. He wasn’t sure why they were so close either. Maybe they were related.
“I guess we can’t argue with that.” Hawks shrugged, picking up his things and getting ready to leave.
“Wait-“ Midnight said, making Monoma inwardly grown, “Why would Monoma help someone who he actively hates? Shinsou Hitoshi is the new transfer student for 1-A, yes? He’s replacing Mineta Minoru’s spot and yet he’s getting special treatment? I don’t understand why Monoma would help him.”
Oh.
Oh?
Shinsou was going to be in 1-A? The worst fucking class in the entire galaxy? The group of students that paraded around like they were better than everyone else? The very people who he was rooted in an intense rivalry with?
Shinsou was going to be classmates with...Midoryia Izuku? Monoma could just imagine, walking into the lunchroom and seeing his favorite purple haired boy sitting with the 1-A brats, complaining about their tragic backstories and the troubles that came with actively seeking out danger and villains without plans. Oh, god, Shinsou was going to be fighting against him in next year’s sports festival.
Shinsou was to join the enemy, leaving him stranded and betrayed by someone he deeply cared about. He couldn’t even begin to think about the next few nights that would result in him crying himself to sleep.
He looked down at Shinsou, eyes wide and hurt. Why wouldn’t he at least text and tell him? So what if they didn’t know each other in real life before now? He tried to say all of that through his eyes, letting the blue pools reflect into Shinsou’s amythest pupils.
Shinsou frowned and he froze.
Finally, it clicked. It didn’t matter if Shinsou was in 1-A. Yeah, it sucked and he hated the class, but Shinsou was Shinsou.
Shinsou was kind and sarcastic and had the prettiest purple hair that Monoma had ever seen. He wanted to be a hero, not to seek glory, but to help people. And he wanted to do it honestly. That’s what set him apart from the assholes already in 1-A.
The boy had experienced what it was like to be prejudiced against for having a less than desired quirk for a majority of his life. He and Monoma had discussed the troubles of quirks dozens of times, most late at night, complaining but never telling what exactly they could do (he was going to have to ask Shinsou what his quirk was after they got out of there).
Shinsou Hitoshi was going to be a great hero, but in order to get there, he had to be in the hero course. Monoma had to respect that, as difficult as it was, because he
cared. A lot. He really cared about Shinsou. He cared about him even when Shinsou didn’t even know who he really was. He cared about Shinsou even though he was awful at making friends. He cared even though he had accidently framed Shinsou for vandalizing a car with penises. He cared because Shinsou was a wonderful person.
“I’m not helping him, senseis,” He chuckled, “I’m simply saying what’s right. And I think Shinsou is going to be a wonderful hero, regardless of what class he is in.” He looked one last time at Shinsou and finally they both mirrored each other’s awkward yet kind smiles.
“I have high hopes for you, mindfucker.”
…
“Wait-what did you just say?” Shinsou jumped up from his chair, gaping openly with a look that Monoma could only describe as ‘dumb caveman realizes he’s been sitting in front of his online bestie without realizing it for over ten minutes’.
The rest of the table began to get up, Principal Nezu declaring that Shinsou was free to go and that he and Aizawa needed to have their own private discussion somewhere else.
Monoma, ripped the page that he had been writing on, out of his notebook and folded it in half. He quite liked the doodle of a cat he had done while pretending to do notes.
Hawks seemed to like it too, grinning at the image when his-what Monoma could best describe as-sugar daddy turned away to complain to the teachers sitting next to him.
“Hey, uh,” The pro hero muttered, forcing Monoma to lean in to hear, “I want you to know that the paint came out really quick with a good wash, so I probably would’ve just voted for your classmate to stay, even if your lie fell short.”
“M-my lie? How did you-”
“Takes a lier to know a lier.” Hawks shrugged, patting a still frozen Shinsou on the head like a dog, “Do you know what teenage boys like also? I’m trying to get my future step son to like me.”
Monoma had to bite his tongue to remind himself he was talking with a pro hero. An incredibly highly rated hero for that matter.
“Y-your step son?”
“ Future step son. Do you youths like Mario kart?”
“Uh-I think...you should ask your step- future step son’s friends or partners what he likes. ‘Cause I think I remember the only time I’ve ever seen Shoto Todoroki smile was when your car got painted with dicks.”
“...I never said it was Shoto.”
Monoma turned away and backed away from the man, hurrying to the doors. He had just finished saving a man’s life, he needed to get some food.
“Hey, Shinsou!” He called over his shoulder and the boy jolted out of his daze, “Do you want to grab some dinner together? I think a new ramen place opened up near campus.”
Shinsou stared in answer. In fact, it got sort of creepy towards the end, until he started to move forward and join Monoma at the doors.
“I-uh-sure. I just-I need to ask-are you-?”
A message passed between the two and a flash went over Shinsou’s eyes like he finally understood.
“I am.” Monoma nodded.
“Cool.”
They walked out of the auditorium together, heading on the same path.
“Yellow and purple go together.” Shinsou said after a minute.
“What?”
“You asked me if they did, when we first talked. I’m finally answering you; they do.”
…
“Please tell me you’re not talking about you and Kaminari-“
“I’m not.”