Work Text:
Since the age of seven, Izuku has known nothing but darkness, living in a world moving around him that he can’t see. He’d told his mom that he’d spilled chemicals in his eyes, he’d been cleaning something at school, and the chemical he was using splashed up into his eyes. It didn’t explain the burns, they were obviously there, he could feel them, and she hadn’t asked, she scolded him for being careless on their way to the hospital.
Izuku swore never to tell a single soul just what caused the darkness to come.
He’s going to break that promise seven years later to the most unlikeliest person.
He just doesn’t know it yet.
…
It’s not uncommon for Nezu to receive letters after the entrance exams come and pass, some for recommendation individuals to be place in a specific class, he receives a sparse few of those who thank him for the acceptance but find that they have to withdraw their enrollment, he receives quite a few letters.
But never, in all his time as principle, has he received a letter written in braille.
Now, he knows how to read braille, most of his staff does as well, just in the off chance an impaired individual makes their way into these beautiful halls, so it’s no problem for him to read its contents, it just causes him to pause, for the briefest of moments, in the awe and surprise at having received a letter written in such a way.
Slowly, he drags his paw over the lifted ‘words’.
Dear Principle Nedzu,
I apologize if I’m being a bother to you, I can imagine you must be very busy, what with the new school year coming to a start in the next few weeks. My names Midoriya Izuku, I applied for the support course, I made Eraserhead a pair of goggles, I had asked if they could be given to him, as a gift of sorts, from a fan, but I don’t believe they were given over despite the confirmation that they would be.
I digress, I just wished to get that off my chest.
I am writing to enquire about the truth behind your policy for service animals, see, as I’m sure you can deduct from my braille writing, I’m blind, completely and totally sightless, I can’t see the light of day, pun completely intended. I was recited the policy on the school website that service animals were allowed, see, I have a guide dog, a Kai Ken named Raja, she looks like a tiger, the name was completely intended (hopefully you’ve seen Aladdin because if not this joke is going over your head). She’s up to date on all her vaccinations and I have documentation showing so, and documentation that she is an actual service dog.
If I am still able to attend, given my obvious flaw, I do need my workbench set up in a specific fashion so I know my way around without fumbling for everything, I had my friend draw a diagram of how I would need it to be, if its not too much trouble.
Thank you for your time, and for allowing me to attend your school despite my major setback, and I apologize if this letter was impertinent in any fashion.
Midoriya Izuku
…
“Tell me, Maijima,” Nedzu interrupts the discussions of the teachers preparing for the first day of school kindly, sipping from a cup of tea, he looks up from his book. “Did you ever give Aizawa those goggles you had said you’d give to him?”
“The goggles?” The support department teacher scratches at his head for a moment. “Oh, the goggles, I have them, yes, but I didn’t give them over.”
The stoat hums interestedly, Aizawa lifts his gaze from his coffee to look at the other hero, and Nedzu closes his book. “Have you inspected them?”
“I have,” Maijima nods. “They’re quite impressive considering, I couldn’t find a single flaw in their design, well thought out, practical.”
“If you found no flaws in their design and practicality,” the mammalian takes a sip of tea. “Why haven’t you given them to the one they were intended for?”
“Well, Nedzu, with all due respect.” The evacuation hero starts. “The boy who designed them is blind, though I haven’t found anything, that doesn’t mean there isn’t something in them to be cautious about, to no fault of his.”
“A blind child took the exam?” Toshinori questions in concern. “Surely he didn’t get in, even if he were to enter the support department, it would still be far too dangerous.”
“Quite the contrary,” Nedzu denies. “He passed with nearly flying colors, all but one of the judges choose to pass him, I in turn used my power as being the principle of this school to accept him. Tell me, Maijima,” the support teacher shifts in his seat with having the stoat’s attention focused solely on him. “You gave him raving remarks in the commentary on the application form, yet refused to pass him, any particular reason why?”
“Other than the obvious?” He shakes his head. “I couldn’t in good conscience admit a blind child into this field of work, support design takes a keen eye, though no fault of his own, he doesn’t possess that.”
“I think,” Nedzu takes another sip of his tea. “You’d be surprised just how powerful a blind individual can be. I expect you to treat him as you would any other student. I’m sure as a quirkless blind child, he’s faced more than enough adversity in his lifetime, he will not face any here, this school does not tolerate bullying in any form, something of which I want to emphasize given the circumstances, any incidents are to be brought to my attention immediately.”
…
Izuku wakes up the day of his first day at UA to a wet tongue licking his face, and he laughs, pushing the dog’s muzzle away as he slowly sits up. “Okay, Raja, I’m awake, I’m awake, thanks for the impromptu face wash.”
Raja barks, hopping off his bed, she sits next to his right leg, pressed against it, and he uses her as a guide to get up out of his bed.
He set his clothes out the night before, the uniform, he actually got into UA despite his disability, he did it, he actually did it.
Dressing carefully, making sure it was on just right, he calls out. “Raja, harness.”
The Kai Ken barks, retrieving her harness from the desk, and sits in front of him, lifting her paw up to rest on his knee so he knows she’s there. It’d been difficult at first, harnessing his guide dog without being able to see how or if he were doing it right, but he’s been doing it for six years, he knows what he’s doing now. Raja helps him too, stepping in when she needs to step in, touching the back of his hand with her nose when it’s on the way it’s supposed to be, and he glides his hands down the straps that go around under her belly and snaps them together.
“Raja, leash.” The dog parts from his side and he hears the jangle of the latch on the leash as she retrieves it. Hooking it onto her collar, curling his fingers around the handle, he stands. “Raja take me to the door please.” He follows her as she steps forward and feels around for a moment for the door handle, before leaving, he reaches to the right, where his backpack always sits, containing his notebook and supplies for Raja to get through the day. “To the bathroom, please.”
Brushing his teeth is always the hardest, because the tooth brushes in the group home are never in the same place they were in the night before, he knows the feel of his toothbrush, but sometimes it can take him forever to find it.
“Hey Toph.” An arm curls through his right arm. “Heading to the bathroom?”
Hitoshi, his guide human, his best friend, the one person in the group home that didn’t, either, bully him, or treat him like an invalid, he’s blind, not an idiot, he knows how to do stuff, he just can’t see what he’s doing. “Yep, excited Hito, you got into the hero course, this is your very first step to being a hero!” He leans over slightly and stage whispers. “I’m excited for you!”
The teen at his side laughs softly. “Yea, Zu, I’m excited. Are you?”
“I sure am, dude!” They turn into the bathroom. “I’m nervous too, but I guess that’s to be expected, Raja doesn’t know the halls yet, so we might get lost a few times.”
“That’s no biggie.” He hear the water turn on and Hitoshi lifts his hand to hand him his toothbrush. “You’ll just be fashionably late, being on time is overrated, I’m always fashionably late.”
Their group home is only a few blocks from the school, so they walk there, Raja guides him, and Hitoshi’s arm is curled through his left arm, so he’s good, either way, a guide human and a guide dog, what did he do to deserve such kindness?
…
They stop somewhere, Izuku assumes it’s a four way intersection in the hallway, and his friend squeezes his arm. “Are you sure you don’t want me to walk you there?”
“Nah, go learn to be a hero.” He shakes his head. “Me and Raja will get there eventually.”
He knows Hitoshi is pursing his lips, he can feel it, but, like he said, Hitoshi doesn’t treat him like he’s an invalid, so he squeezes his arm again and pulls it back. “Okay, but if you need me, text me or send Raja.”
“She doesn’t know where 1-A’s classroom is.”
“Oh, right.” Hitoshi heaves a sigh. “Text me, you got your phone right, in your back left pocket?”
“I got it.” He shoves his friend in the side. “Go, dude, go learn to be a hero, I’ll get there.”
His friend squeezes his arm, and he hears him walk off, his footsteps echoing down the otherwise empty hall.
“Raja, to the right.”
His dog guides him around and they traverse through halls, stopping so he can ‘read’ the braille on the name plates, none of them ever say support.
Here he is, Izuku’s just walking along, Raja at his side making sure he doesn’t run into anything, when he does, runs right smack dab into a living breathing person, and he stumbles backwards, he’d have fallen over if they hadn’t have grabbed his arms to keep him from doing so.
“I am so sorry!” He tugs on the handle. “Raja the point is to make sure I don’t run into anyone or anything!”
“Hey, it’s okay, I wasn’t paying attention.” He knows that voice, where does he know that voice, he’s heard it before. “You okay, fledgling?”
His mind provides a name. “Oh my god, I ran into Hawks, I’m so sorry sir, I can’t see where I’m going and Raja can be an asshole sometimes when I don’t give her treats in the morning and—”
A hand on his head brings him to silence and he hears the man chuckle softly. “It’s okay, big guy, I’m not upset. Call me Takami, what’s your name?”
“Uh, Midoriya Izuku, I prefer for you to call me Izuku, I don’t…I don’t want to be associated with my surname.”
“Sure, in that case, call me Keigo.” Fingers scratch the top of his head for a minute before the hand moves away. “If I can call you by your first name you can call me by mine.”
Izuku rubs the back of his head slightly. “Uh, okay, sorry for running into you Keigo.”
“Don’t sweat it fledgling.” He tenses when an arm curls around his, brushing his fingers over the smooth fabric of a coat sleeve, and smiles slightly. “Can I help you find where you need to go?”
“Uh, yea, sure.” The blind boy nods. “I’m trying to find the support labs.”
“Of course, sure, this way.” Keigo leads him forward slowly, until he can match his pace, before they walk normally, Raja walking at his side obediently. “You were almost there, just a few more doors down.”
“Oh, really?” Izuku grins. “Cool, I wasn’t completely lost.”
“Not at all.” The hero shakes his head. “You’d have found it if I hadn’t run into you.” He wants to correct him in saying it was in fact him who ran into the hero, but he gets the feeling the hero will continue to place the blame on himself, so he decides to save himself the argument. “Here we are, kiddo.”
Izuku reaches out hesitantly, curling his fingers around the door handle, he smiles. “Thanks, Keigo, sorry for running into you.” He opens the door and Raja guides him in before the man can say anything in retort, though he does hear him huff in indignation and giggles under his breath. Immediately, as the door closes behind him, whispers fill his senses, they all know his condition, why else would someone be holding the lead of a dog wearing a service dog vest and be wearing glasses indoors. “Just so we’re clear, I’m blind, not deaf, I can hear everything you’re fucking saying.”
…
Hatsume Mei is the only one who doesn’t treat him like an invalid in his entire class, they end up in the same studio, and he smiles when he finds his workbench set up to his specifications. They become fast friends, driving Power Loader-Sensei crazy with their explosions, he frets over Hitoshi after the USJ incident, much to the other boy’s amusement, he lets him fret though, he’s a good guide human like that.
Izuku finds that he is not permitted to participate in the Sports Festival, which makes sense, who would want a blind kid out there in all that mess, though it does sting a little, being the odd man out, but he sucks it up, deciding to cheer Hitoshi on from the stands.
If only he could find where he was supposed to go.
Raja barks and he stops, bringing her to a stop with him, and he turns his head when he picks up the sound of footsteps heading in his direction in particular. “Hey nestling.”
Smiling, the blind inventor turns his head slightly. “Hey Keigo.”
An arm curls around his. “Where we goin’?”
“Uh, the hero spectator box.” Izuku tilts his head slightly. “Real smart idea to leave a blind kid who’s never stepped foot inside the arena in all his life alone without directions.”
“Yea, real genius move there.” The winged hero chuckles softly. “I was heading there myself, walk with me?”
“Definitely.” The teen nods. “Lead the way guide bird.”
Keigo snorts and laughs softly, stepping forward, pulling him into matching his pace. “Guide bird, huh?”
“Well, you’re a hawk, therefore you’re a guide bird, I have a guide dog and a guide human too.” Izuku giggles softly. “First guide bird I’ve ever heard of though.”
“I like being one of a kind.” They stop and the hero turns him slightly. “Seven steps.”
He nods. “Got it.” They take the stairs slowly, he has to, he trips easily, though Raja and Keigo definitely help him avoid doing so. Whispers break out among the teachers and heroes in the booth, he feels the hero guiding him stiffen, but he nudges him with his elbow. “I’m blind, not deaf, if you’re gonna talk shit about me, sign it, better to do it behind my back then to my face.” The whispers fall silent. “Cowards.”
Keigo snorts in amusement. “Left.” Raja turns at the command, and he follows his two guides movements, until they come to a pair of empty seats. “Okay, we’ve arrived at our destination.”
“Thanks guide bird.” He laughs when the man chirps playfully and flops down in the chair next to him. “Purple haired boy, looks like a zombie, hair defying the laws of gravity, Shinsou Hitoshi, will you keep me informed, play by play.”
A shoulder nudges him. “For sure, kiddo.”
…
“The fuck you think you’re doing here you worthless piece of shit!” Izuku yelps when Raja’s leash is torn from his hand and he’s shoved back, he hears his dog barking, Raja is protective like that. “Shut up you stupid mutt!” There’s a loud pop and his dog howls and whines.
“What’d you do!” He can’t keep silent anymore, Raja’s his friend, his best friend (some might say Hitoshi would be offended, but he knows, Raja looks like a tiger, she’s his best friend too) and she sounds hurt. “Raja! Raja come!” He pushes himself over, feeling around with his hands, feeling for her leash, and cries out when a foot smashes down over the fingers of his left hand. “Ow! Get off!”
“You’re worse then all those other extras, blind and quirkless, as if your ass wasn’t useless enough before!”
“Yea,” Izuku knows he shouldn’t. “And who’s fault is that! Don’t forget how I went blind Katsuki!”
“Hey! That’s enough!” The teen breathes out in relief, he’s never been so happy to hear Keigo’s voice in his entire life time, footsteps echoing down the hall quickly, the sound of a struggle, someone yanking someone around. “Nedzu’s office Bakugo! Now!”
“Why the fuck—”
“Because I said so, that’s why!” He hears someone stumble, undoubtedly Katsuki, even in his dumbest moments, his childhood friend isn’t dumb enough to stand against the number three hero. “Get moving!”
“Raja! Raja where are you!” The blink teenager calls, his voice cracking, breathing out a sob when a cold damp nose brushes against his cheek. “Raja!” A warm tongue licks his cheek. “Are you okay! Are you hurt anywhere?”
“She’s fine, nestling.” Large warm hands curl around his right hand. “She’s a smarty pants.”
Izuku smiles slightly. “H—How did you know to come?”
He can hear Keigo’s smile. “Raja came to me.” The greenette hisses when fingers poke at his fingers lightly. “I think you’re fingers might be broken, severely bruised at best, broken at worst.” A hand curls under his arm. “Come on, hatchling, let’s get you on your feet, Recovery Girl should be able to fix you up in no time.” The hero curls an arm around his waist as he guides him forward. “Come on Raja.”
The teen’s guide dog barks and trots forward, brushing against the boy’s leg as they walk, Izuku rubs at his face with his free hand. “Thank’s Kei.”
“Hey, don’t mention it, little bird.”
…
“Hey kiddos.”
He hears Hitoshi inhale deeply, and grins, waving in the man’s general direction. “Hey Kei.”
Izuku’s guide human tugs him closer by the sleeve of his hoodie and hisses in his ear. “You’re on a first name basis with the number three hero?”
He leans over and hisses back. “Yes.”
Keigo chuckles softly. “You both know I can hear you, right?”
Hitoshi squeaks. “Oh my god.”
The blind teen snorts and laughs. “What’re you doing here, guide bird?” His purple haired friend snorts and moves, Izuku hears a box opening, signifying that his guide human has open another one of their boxes they’d brought for their dorm. “Come around here often?”
“Well, I was in the neighborhood and figured I’d come see my favorite chickadee and his friend.” Izuku ducks his head slightly when an arm curls over his shoulders. “Need help unpacking?” Izuku waits. “Is Raja chewing on an All Might plush?”
Hitoshi barks a laugh.
Izuku giggles. “Yes she is.”
…
“Whatcha working on, Jasmine!” Mei knew the joke behind Raja’s name, thus, his name was Jasmine. “Ooooh that look’s interesting! Does it act just like a cat! Any extra features! OH! What about lasers!”
Izuku laughs. “No Mei, I’m not giving him lasers. It’s a present for Hito, he can’t have a real cat, so I made him a robotic one.”
“He’s going to love it, Jasmine!”
…
“Kei?”
The hero next to him shifts, his wing rustling around him, and fingers brush through his curls. “Hmm?”
Izuku licks his lips his voice small, sometimes, he missed being able to see the world around him. “Kei what does the sky look like?”
“Well, right now, it’s blue, like a light blue, but not too light, a nice medium light blue.” The hero massages his ear lobe gently. “There’s big fluffy white clouds up there, the sun’s there, obviously, there’s a few gray clouds in the distance, that might mean rain later.”
“I miss being able to see sometimes.” The teen admits softly. “I haven’t been able to for seven years.”
Keigo turns to look at the teen laying on his wing at his side on the front lawn as they both soak in the sun. “You mean you weren’t born that way?”
“No.” Izuku answers softly. “I was blinded when I was seven. Someone splashed ammonia in my eyes. I got Raja when I was nine. Then came the accident. The caretakers at the orphanage tried to take her away from me, said she’d be the groups pet, but Hito stopped them by telling our social worker. Raja’s not my pet, she’s my eyes, I use her to see.”
He feels the hero shift. “Who did it?”
The teen smiles sagely. “That’s for me to know and you to find out, feather boy.” He acknowledges he may had deserved the fingers that started pinching his side after that last comment.
…
Izuku takes comfort, Raja pressed against his leg, Hawks hand pressed to the small of his back, as Aizawa introduces him to his hero students. “This is Midoriya Izuku, he’s going to be partaking in our training today.”
One boy calls out. “Cool dog, man!”
“She’s so cute!” A girl calls. “Can I pet her!”
“Sorry,” he keeps his tone soft. “She’s working right now.”
He hears someone scoff. It’s Bakugo. He knows it is. “How the hell can the shitty cripple help train us?”
Izuku tenses and the hero at his side scratches his lower back soothingly, Raja growls, he nudges her and she barks before falling silent. “You’re all probably wondering what he means by that, so I’ll cut to the chase, I’m quirkless and I’m blind.”
Another boy calls, he sounds familiar, the same ring that Ingenium has in his voice. He surmises it must be a relative, little brother perhaps, he knows the speed hero has one. “Isn’t it dangerous for one with your conditions to be in a hero school, you are more prone to come to harm than others.”
“Just because I don’t have a flashy power and can’t see doesn’t mean I’m an invalid.” He snaps, Hawks coos softly in his ear in an attempt to calm him down and soothe him, Raja snaps her jaws threateningly, as though daring him to continue harassing her human. “Being this way has taught me a great many things, I don’t need a quirk or sight to kick ass, I don’t even need Raja to fight my battles, though she insists, she’s a tad protective.” Some of the students giggle and he smiles. “I use my other sense to compensate for my lack of vision, for example, I can hear a student, based on the movement and change in air direction around him, he’s a tiny creep, reaching up to touch a girls….backside.” He hears them all turn, and sure enough, a girl yelps and a boy shrieks.
“Mineta,” the eraser hero growls. “This is your second warning, you get to three, you’re out and a sexual harassment charge will be stamped on your record, no hero school worth their honor would accept someone with such a blemish.”
Izuku giggles softly when the winged hero mumbles something under his breath. “Today you’re going to learn to work with your other senses, you can’t rely on just one or two, you need to know how to utilize all of them to work at your best. Starting here.” The hand on his lower back disappears as the hero bends over to pick up the box hidden behind Aizawa’s desk, it thumps as he sets it down, and that hand returns to his lower back. “In this box are a special kind of glasses, I made them myself, there are varying degrees of blindness, just because someone is legally blind doesn’t mean they can’t see anything at all. There’s complete blindness which refers to a total loss of vision. I am completely blind. I see nothing. There is night blindness or nyctalopia, which is not classified as total blindness, but is still quite substantial, this is when a person’s eyes can’t adjust to dim lights or darkness. There’s color blindness of course which is as it sounds referring to someone who can’t distinguish certain colors. There’s partial blindness, being blind in one eye while the other is fine, this also includes those who are farsighted and nearsighted.” He feels for the box and pats it when he finds it. “Each of you are going to wear one of these glasses, starting here, and meet us out on the training field. They are auto designed to flit between the different types of blindness, starting with total loss.”
A girl with a soft voice calls out. “We could get hurt if we can’t see anything though.”
Izuku remains pointedly silent and Hawks picks up for him. “Then you will understand how it is to live a day in his life without anyone or anything to guide him. Take this as a lesson on empathy, not to be confused with pity, do not pity someone with a disability, mental, physical, or otherwise. Pity is an insult, those with afflictions still desire to be treated like normal human beings, empathize with them, understand what it means to walk a mile in their shoes. Knowing what others go through in their everyday life will make you into a better hero, you will run into fans who are blind or deaf or mute, sometimes a mix, or all three, treating them like you would anyone else is the most important thing a hero should understand. Know the difference between empathy and pity. Understand their struggles and acknowledge that they are heroes in their own right for powering through despite their setback.” The blind teen smiles when fingers scratch his back again. “Izuku is in the top three of the support department, he is one of Power Loaders prized pupils, despite his disability. He has to work twice as hard as everyone else so people see him and not his disability. I won’t say who, but one of the judges in the entrance exam gave him raving remarks on the application form but did not pass him on the fact he was blind alone. Let this also serve to teach you not to take the simple things for granted.” The winged hero nods at the box. “Everyone come get a pair of glasses and make your way out to the training field for today’s training.”
The teen hears some of them grumble as they come to fetch their glasses. Hawks pulls him back a few steps, when they yelp as their vision is suddenly just gone, and he giggles when he hears them stumbling and fumbling around, running into things as they find their way to the door.
“You would get sadistic glee out of this, problem child.” Aizawa grumbles, but he’s not kidding himself, Izuku can hear the smile in his voice. “It is hilarious though.”
They walk behind them, both heroes watching them just to be sure they don’t seriously harm themselves but allowing them to stumble and bump into things as they make their way down the hall. Raja chuffs at his side as she laughs in her own way, he loves her so much, she’s the best pal anyone could ask for.
Keigo’s arm around his waist pulls him in closer to his side. “Are you sure you wanna do this, fledgling?”
“Kick a bunch of snobby hero students asses?” He nods excitedly. “Definitely!”
The winged man laughs softly and squeezes his side playfully. “That’s my nestling!”
Some of the students fall down the steps on their way outside, neither teacher makes any indication of stopping them nor helping them, others figure it out on their own and get down safely, Izuku’s long since counted every stair on every stair case, inside and outside, and committed them to memory so he knows how many stairs to step down or up on.
“Are we there Sensei?” A girl asks in front of them. “Did we make it?”
Aizawa snorts. “You tell me Uraraka.”
“I—I don’t know!”
Keigo snorts this time. “Nestling, are we on the outdoor training field?”
“Uh,” the blind teenager scuffs his sneaker and stomps for a moment. “Yea.”
A boy snorts. “How would you know?”
“Easy.” Izuku chirps brightly. “The training field is made of dirt, it’s raked everyday to keep it from growing compact, the loose dirt softens any falls, it is the only outdoor patch of dirt that is loose. Scuffing my shoe, I can hear the loose dirt moving around, stomping my foot, I can feel the impact with each blow, softer then it would be on compact dirt.”
…
“Hey Kei?” The hero hums in front of him. “Can I feel you?”
Keigo turns to look at the boy sitting across from him. “Feel me?”
“Uhuh,” Izuku nods slightly. “So I know what you look like.”
“Sure, baby bird.” Large warm hands curl around his and his hands are curled around the man’s cheeks. “Feel away.” The teen giggles softly as he feels around the man’s face and feels him making faces at him. “Am I handsome?”
“Nah,” the blind boy shakes his head. “You’re super ugly.”
He shrieks when a finger jabs him in the belly harshly. “Hey now! Watch it mister!”
…
“Hey, where you going mister?” Izuku shrieks when fingers catch him by the ankles and he’s tugged back down. “I’m not done with you just yet.” Fingers start poking around his belly again and he shrieks with giggles, batting wildly in what he hopes is the direction of the hero’s hands, he’s honestly just batting at wherever his belly is poked. “I’m gonna getcha for trying to escape before I said you could.”
The teen squeals when ten fingers claw into his belly, arching his back before falling back onto his bed in his dorm room, kicking behind the hero straddling his waist, smacking down at his hands wildly.
…
Izuku doesn’t hear him coming over the rolling thunder and the heavy sound of the rain pelting down over him, soaked to the bone, sitting in the middle of the front yard, knees pulled up to his chest. The rain hides his tears. Raja lays at his side obediently, not making a sound, her harness still in his dorm. He used to love thunderstorms, him and mom would stay up late, sitting in front of the window with cups of hot chocolate watching the lightning dance across the sky and the rain cleanse the earth.
Mom.
He rubs at his nose with the back of his hand.
Izuku misses being able to see, he can’t see the storm, reminisce about the times him and mom would cuddle up under a large blanket with their hot chocolate and watch the storm rage through the window. All he has now is the sounds of the rain and the thunder. He misses being able to see people smile, the faces of new friends, the shine in people’s eyes when they finally accomplished something they’d been trying to do for so long. He misses being able to see the leaves change, snow blanketing the ground, flowers blooming. The teen misses being able to see his favorite movies, read his favorite comic books, write his notes like he used to.
He was never normal because he was quirkless.
But he was complete when he could see.
He misses being complete.
“Hey nestling.” Someone settles down next to him on the muddy soaked grass. “What’re you doing out here all on your own—” Raja barks in offence. “—With Raja.”
“Kei….” Izuku’s voice cracks. “I wish it never happened. That day. I wish it never happened. I wish I could see. See what you actually look like and not just the picture I have of you in my mind. See the faces of my new friends. See—” his voice cracks dangerously. “See everything.”
“If that day never happened, though, you wouldn’t have what you have now.” Keigo sighs softly. “Baby bird, I don’t know why things happen the way they do, why bad things happen to good people, why innocents have to suffer so much. I wish I had the answers to make you feel better but I don’t.” Thunder crashes above them. “But I have to trust that things happen for a reason. Nothing happens without meaning. You’ve lost so much, little one, but you’ve also gained so much more. You’re one of the top students in the support course, you’re Power Loader’s favorite student—tied only with Hatsume—he’s always telling us about the things you’re working on, you got me and Hitoshi. You got Aizawa and Yamada. Kamaya. Nedzu. You’ve got so many people rooting for you.” He nudges the teen with his elbow. “Life is about giving and taking, little one, it’s not fair, but it’s true. In order to gain, you have to give, you’ve been forced to give so much, but in return, you’ve gained so much more.”
“Thanks….” The teen sniffles softly. “For being here with me.”
“I’ll always be here with you, little one.” The hero brushes his sopping curls back. “How about we go inside, get changed into some warm pajamas, make some hot chocolate, and cozy up together—” Raja barks again. “—With Raja of course.”
Izuku smiles slightly and nods. “Yea, I’d like that.”
“Alrighty,” the hero stands first, and curls a hand under the teens arm and the other around his elbow, to help him to his feet, before curling his arm through his and guiding him forward. Raja follows at the boy’s side as always. “Let’s go get it.”
Izuku smiles, when the hero tugs him out of his dorm, through the halls, and into his own. When they climb into the man’s bed, hot chocolate in hand, and cuddle up together. One of the hero’s wings curled around him, one of his hands resting on his head, fingers scratching his scalp, and sips on his hot chocolate as the man reads to him. His way of watching movies.
Raja slithers up between his legs, her head resting on his right thigh, a comforting weight.
He sets his empty mug on the nightstand, after feeling around for it, the hero eventually guiding his hand (but letting him set the mug down on his own) before curling up on his side, head resting on the side of the man’s chest, his voice rumbling under his ear.
Izuku smiles.
…
“A hero doesn’t throw ammonia in someone’s eyes as a joke!”
The scream cuts through the crowd in the auditorium, the teachers turn, Nedzu lifts his gaze curiously, class 1-A turn to look behind, the guests, everyone turns to the back of the room. Izuku’s panting, having been the one who shouted, his guide dog nudging his leg with her nose as a warning, Bakugo stares at him in shock.
What was happening between them before the outburst is unknown.
Izuku pets his dog’s head soothingly. “A hero doesn’t blind people. A hero doesn’t permanently damage people. A hero doesn’t harm people.” He shakes his head. “You’re no hero, Bakugo Katsuki, and you’ll never be one. Heroes are supposed to inspire hope, make people feel safe, protect those who cannot and will not protect themselves. Anyone with a flashy quirk and half a brain cell can be a ‘hero’ but only certain few can be a real hero. That’s not you.”
“What the fuck are you saying!” Bakugo, unknowing that they’re being watched, pulls his fist back, explosions popping from it. “Are you calling me a villain!”
“You act like one! Your fist is raised, explosions popping, you’re going to punch me.” The blonde teen blinks in surprise. “That’s not something a hero would do. Like I said, a hero is supposed to make you feel safe, protected, make you know that everything will be okay because you are there. You’re about to punch me, Bakugo, that doesn’t make me feel safe, protected, and definitely no everything being okay.” Izuku rubs Raja’s head when she whines softly. “A hero is supposed to protect those who cannot and will not protect themselves, tell me, number one hero, if someone like me was being threatened by a villain, would you save them?” Silence echoes in the auditorium. “Your lack of response speaks volumes, Bakugo, you’ll be a hero but you’ll never be a good one, and definitely not in the top three, let alone the top ten, probably not even the top fifty either. Hawks is number three because people trust him, he makes them feel safe, Hawks is a hero. Miruko makes people feel safe, she inspires hope, little girls with supposed weak quirks see her and are inspired that they can do anything, Miruko is a hero. Kamui Woods is a hero. Eraserhead. Midnight. Present Mic. Ingenium. Mount Lady. Miss Joke. Sir Nighteye. Backdraft. Gang Orca. Vlad King. Power Loader. Snipe. Thirteen. Death Arms. Hound Dog. All Might. Ectoplasm. Nedzu. They’re heroes. But you, with your fist raised, prepared to strike me because I spilled your little secret, are not a hero.”
Izuku dismisses him as he tugs on his guide’s lead. “Raja find Hitoshi.” The Kai Ken whines but obeys, guiding him away from the stunned blonde, down the steps of the bleachers, to the guide human’s side. “Hey Hito.”
“Hey Toph.” The purple haired hero student scoots over slightly and pulls him down gently as Raja lays at his feet. “How’re you doing?”
The silence is overwhelming, and Izuku’s breathing falters slightly, hand shaking as he tugs on his friends hand. “H—Hito, how much did you hear?”
Hitoshi sighs softly. “Everything, Beifong.”
“Every….Everything?”
The blind teen’s breathing hitches, the tall tell sign of the onset of a panic attack, and the teachers and heroes move to intervene.
Hitoshi raises a hand to stop them. “Come on Toph, lay down.” He turns the panicking teen around and pulls him down, resting his head in his lap. “Raja,” the service dog looks up at his call and he gestures over his friend. “Cover.” The canine barks softly as she rises, jumping up onto the bench, she crawls over her handler, turning to lay on her side over top of him.
“Shh, nestling,” the brainwasher jumps at the man’s voice and lifts his gaze to see Hawks squatting in front of him, brushing his fingers through the greenette’s curls, cooing softly. “Guide bird’s here too. Everything’s alright.”
…
“Mr. Bakugo, this is a very serious accusation, have you anything to say in response?” Nedzu looks away from the teen curled into the winged hero’s side to the blonde boy sitting in a chair on Aizawa’s other side. “You’ve been accused of blinding a person with ammonia, do you wish to share any truth in this accusation?”
“Tch.” Bakugo jerks his head around. “None of you understand. It’s none of your fucking business.”
Raja nudges Izuku’s hand with her snout when he starts clenching his fingers into a fist, Keigo whispers in the blind teen’s ear soothingly, and Aizawa glares at his student for his disrespect.
“Mr. Bakugo, I am willing to hear your response,” Nedzu’s tone remains pleasant. “However, you should be aware, I do have access to Midoriya’s medical records. I am aware he was blinded with ammonia when he was seven years old. I can’t help but speculate whom might be responsible given your recorded engagements in my school.”
“What if I did?” The explosive teen scoffs. “It was seven years ago, who fucking cares?”
Hawks turns a sharp glare on him. “You don’t even regret it, do you?”
“Why would I?”
The teen he’s addressing merely scoffs and looks away. “He’s right, you know, you’ll never be a hero like that.”
The principle turns to the only civilian among them. “Detective?”
Tsukauchi looks at the blind teen with sympathy shining in his eyes. “Bakugo is being honest when he asks why he should care, which could heavily lead us to the notion that it was indeed him who blinded Midoriya when they were seven.”
It’s been too long to be able to press charges for the act, but Bakugo is kicked out of the hero course, placed instead in general education, barred from reentering through the Sports Festival, and required to attend anger management courses.
…
“Is it okay if I adopt you guys?” Izuku drops the book he was ‘reading’ and Hitoshi goes slack jawed as the hero looks up from his phone at the silence that followed his question. “What?”
The blind teen turns. “Raja check.” His service dog rises from her place at his feet and nips at his fingers gently. “No, I’m not hallucinatin—can a blind person even hallucinate?”
Keigo snorts a laugh. “No, I seriously asked, and I was being completely serious about it too.”
“No tricks?” The purple haired teen narrows his eyes. “You’re not gonna jump up and go all jazz hands and yell ‘gotcha!’ right?”
“No no,” the hero shakes his head and tosses his phone aside as he leans over the edge of his bed to open the drawer in the nightstand and pulls out a stack of papers. “I got the forms all filled out, I just wanted to ask before I got them filed.”
“Guide bird.” Izuku breaks the teen’s reverie. “I would be sooo happy if you did.”
“Yea,” Hitoshi nods in kind. “Me too.”
“Cool!” The blonde man grins. “I’ll get them filed tomorrow!”
This is what Raja looks like
She's a Kai Ken
