Chapter Text
The former symbol of peace had grown rather accustomed to the sight of his protégé wringing his hands and looking down, an unsure look crowning his face. It had, up to this point, been a rather ordinary meeting between the two of them. One For All had been developing rather well within the boy, perhaps even better than it ever had within its previous user. Izuku Midoriya, overachiever as always, had gone so far as to inherit 6 other quirks, and he was slowly but surely becoming a master of them as well.
Still, All Might could tell his boy’s mind was no longer on the topic of his quirk. He’d known Izuku for long enough to tell when he was about to ask a completely unrelated, usually bafflingly out of nowhere question. The tell was the eyes, any and all glint completely disappeared as soon as he was finished discussing One For All. Instead, it was replaced with a more relatable uneasiness. A hesitance, even. All Might would give him as much time as he needed.
It took a minute or two, but eventually, young Midoriya mustered up the confidence to look at his mentor and let the words out.
“All Might? Have… Have you ever been… Interested in someone?”
Yup. There it was. Both the completely unexpected question and the blood, shooting out of All Might’s mouth from sheer surprise.
“Young Midoriya!” he exclaimed in between coughs. “I suppose I shouldn’t be so shocked-–you are at that age after all–-but I guess I just never expected you to ask me of all people for this kinda advice.” The longer All Might took to answer the question, the more Izuku wanted to burst out the window and run to his room.
Although, considering his choice of decoration, that probably wouldn’t help much.
“P-Please just answer the question, All Might!” He squeaked out. Honestly, he was surprised this talk was taking so much out of him. He’d considered asking this question multiple times, but he’d always assumed it was too personal or just plain strange. All those other times, it was just another effort in his mission to obtain and memorize every bit of All Might lore that there was. The question never had meaning behind it. It was never a question of advice.
“Oh! Sorry, sorry.” The tall, blonde man took a moment to readjust himself, shifting in his seat to a more thought-accommodating position. He clapped his hands together and put them to his chin. “To tell you the truth, my boy, I never really let myself feel that way for anyone. Not too strongly, at least.”
Izuku tried to not let the disappointment reach his face.
“I was always too focused on being a hero, and, in my mind, entering any sort of romantic relationship stood contrary to that. I thought the responsibility would get in the way, or worse, my loved ones would be discovered and used as leverage. My master wrestled with that every day.”
Oh yeah. Midoriya should’ve remembered the 7th wielder, Nana Shimura. All Might told him the truth about Shigaraki, the story of how she felt forced to put her own child-–Shigaraki’s father–-up for adoption just so All For One would never discover and hurt him, only for it to backfire worse than anyone could have possibly imagined. Of course, All Might, witnessing that, would think that romance was detrimental.
“I see…” Izuku spoke with dejection.
Recently, he’d felt a strange tugging at his heart. A passion for someone that was unlike anything he’d felt before. It took him weeks to realize it, and he was only able to after he accidentally eavesdropped on a conversation Kaminari was having about Jirou, but the feeling that lingered inside of him was yearning. With cognizance came, naturally, intense worry and anxiety. That was the Midoriya special right there. But it was also packaged alongside a more self-aware nervousness regarding their positions. Was the wielder of One For All deserving of a partner? Even a fellow would-be-hero couldn’t be asked to deal with the monumental burden placed upon Izuku’s shoulders. He thought All Might would have the answer to his apprehension. Izuku just wasn’t prepared to not like the answer.
Seeing his student’s sorrow, All Might felt compelled to rectify it.
“But I think I was wrong.”
What.
Izuku’s head perked back up like a rabbit smelling food. His radiant green irises gleamed with interest in whatever his mentor had to say next. Never once had the concepts of ‘All Might’ and ‘being wrong’ crossed paths in his mind. For 16 years he’d never once considered the possibility.
“Teaching this class has taught me a lot of things, ironically enough. Teaching you most of all. Back at Kamino, when the world first saw my weak body and I first learned about Tomura Shigaraki, all I felt was misery. As I was standing there, for the first time in my life, I felt not only powerless but like I’d lost the will to fight itself.”
The scene back then was rough, and Izuku knew that better than most. The aftermath of Kacchan’s kidnapping had been one of the bleakest moments of his life. But still, to hear those words leave All Might’s mouth…
“It’s a different kind of love, obviously, but the thing that pushed me forward, the thing that pulled me out of my stupor and made me regain my spark, was the realization that I had someone to fight for. I couldn’t die because someone else needed, above all else, me to live.” He let the words linger, but something compelled him to be more blunt. “I’m only here today because I love ya, you little crybaby.”
All Might seemed to end his statement there, giving Midoriya ample time to process what had just been said. His hero, the person he had worshiped for all his life and dedicated himself to, the person that influenced his every waking moment and motivated his greatest dream, the person that adorned every corner of his room and his mind, had only survived his toughest battle because he cared so greatly for him.
“That’s why you gotta get someone that you live for. I’m too old and too feeble for a…” he waved his hand in a circle, thinking of a good word, “lover, but you’ve got a prime opportunity right now. Go get a special someone that’ll fill your mind whenever you feel powerless.” He patted his student on the shoulder and gave him the most hopeful, yet somewhat pushy grin he could muster. It was anybody’s best guess whether or not his student could see it through the tears.
“Thank you, All Might. I… I will.” Izuku wiped his eyes clear and flashed a smile of his own. That quote from earlier was definitely getting etched in his brain, never to leave his thoughts again. He’d truly peaked in life.
“Good!” All Might proclaimed. He was happy for the kid. So unbelievably happy. There was just one little thing his curiosity was simply begging him to ask. “So… Who’s the lucky lady?”
Just like that, all the pride immediately washed out of Midoriya’s body and he froze solid, doing his best to mimic a statue. His face lost all its color and his eyes shot open as wide as they could.
In what could barely even be quantified as a whisper, he said “...It’s actually a boy…”
Izuku Midoriya really was just filled to the brim with surprises.
***
Toshinori Yagi, better known to just about everyone as the former symbol of peace, All Might, had gone through somewhat of a change of heart. After once more learning that assumptions about his protégé were very much unwise to make and having to repeatedly assure him that ‘No, there’s nothing wrong with that! I still see you the same way and you’re still the same hero as always!’, he’d gone home to find himself feeling a strange melancholic way.
Seeing his boy grow up had been the best experience of his adult life, even better than the day he became number one. Nothing was so rewarding, so engrossing, and so damn feel-good! It could be more challenging than a tussle with All For One at times, especially considering his kid was in training to become a pro hero, but at the end of the day, he could feel nothing but joy at the way Izuku was developing. He was already someone worth looking up to.
And so that’s what All Might did.
If the boy was willing to go after a partner–-a boyfriend, All Might chastised himself-–all the while being dredged up in hero work and studying, then his mentor had no excuse. He’d told Midoriya that he was too old and feeble for a relationship, but that was really a lie, both to the boy and himself. The reality was that he was too damn scared; Of rejection and heartbreak, yes, but also of what young Midoriya would think about his taste in women.
Or, rather, his taste in woman, singular.