Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Izuku gently picked up one of the mixtures, careful not to shake it. This mixture was particularly volatile, so he didn’t want to set it off. Carefully he attempted to pour it into the concoction on the table. He only needed to pour a little bit into it, but he had to be slow and methodical. He stuck his tongue out of the corner of his mouth in concentration.

Only a little bit, that’s all he needed to complete the potion.

The door to the lab swung open loudly, hitting the wall with a loud thud as a yell echoed through the chamber, “Deku!”

Izuku startled at the noise, his eyes widening as the mixture fell from his hands. “Oh no…” A yelp escaped his lips and a puff of smoke surrounded the space, obscuring him from his bully’s view. “No, no no no!” he frantically thought as he accidentally inhaled the smoke and stumbled back into the table, the other mixture wobbled precariously. Izuku didn’t notice until it fell over and a flash of light suddenly filled the space as well. “Well, guess I’ll die.” Izuku surrendered to his fate.

The smoke burned his skin. His lungs and eyes felt like they were on fire and he instinctually squeezed them shut, collapsing to his knees as the pain stretched throughout his body. Izuku quirky realized what was happening when he felt his bones stretch uncomfortably. The teen shrieked in agony, but the noise only came out more like a frantic chirp.

Eventually the smoke cleared and Izuku felt the pain die down, it still lingered but it wasn’t all consuming like it’d been before. A sharp intake of breath drew his attention to the door and Izuku was hit with the realization that he had definitely shrunk.

“Dragon…” Kacchan murmured in surprise before the realization seemed to really hit him and he poked his head into the halls to warn everyone else in the school, “Dragon! There’s a dragon in the lab!”

He turned his head back to Izuku and smirked as he approached, “Defeating a dragon will definitely get me a ticket straight to UA, even if it is only a baby.”

“Kacchan it’s me! I-I’m not a dragon.” Izuku desperately tried to explain, but once again only chirps came out. If Kacchan didn’t understand him then he needed to find a way out. He had no doubts that Kacchan would kill him, doing so would definitely cement his belief that he was the strongest.

His eyes darted around the space for an escape route, flickering to a slightly open window past Kacchan and to Izuku’s left. They were fairly high up though… could he survive such a drop? Kacchan had said he was a dragon and dragons could fly, right?

There was only one way to find out.

The dragon turned teen darted between Kacchan’s legs and straight to the window, throwing himself out of it and plummeting towards the ground. Izuku managed to stretch his wings out and slightly slow his descent, but he couldn’t figure out how to use them to actually fly.

“This was a dumb idea, such a bad plan,” he thought as the ground came closer, letting out as close to a scream as he was capable of. He made a silent apology to his mother, who was currently a traveling merchant earning money for his boarding school. This would devastate her.

He heard the magicians in the building behind him frantically yelling.

“The dragon’s calling for someone!”

“How did a dragon get into the school?!”

“I bet it was Midoriya, he’s been spending all his time in that lab lately! He must’ve brought it in!”

Izuku shuddered and accepted his fate, there was no way he was going to survive this. However, a shadow came over him and he found himself hidden by giant claws. He gasped at the sudden feeling of being swept from the air, relieved not to be dead when he realized what was happening. He peeked through the very small gap in the claws to look up at the dragon. A dragon had just saved him, not just any dragon. All for One, the dragon who wouldn’t hesitate to burn down an entire village for the smallest reason. Izuku was so screwed.

All for One had simply been flying high in the skies over Musutafu, keeping an eye on some of the humans down below. Especially the children, wondering which ones he could easily snatch and potentially give a special potion he kept in his hoard.

Now that Tomura has grown old enough and left the nest, he wanted to fill it once more with a new child…but one that he could keep for a much longer time.

He remembered smelling all of them as they walked around, the only one that caught his interest was a young boy who lacked magic of his own. Only magicless children could be transformed into dragons.

He would be perfect for the transformation…which just left snatching him up as soon as the school day ended and bringing him to All for One’s nest.

So he never expected the child to actually turn himself into a dragon first!

Such a cute green little hatchling, he couldn’t help but to fly down and scoop him up the moment he saw him try to fly out of the school.

New prize clutched in his claws, All for One purred as he flew to his hoard.

Already knowing how to spoil this hatchling as soon as they arrived home.

Izuku didn’t understand what was going on. Why had All for One taken him? What was going on? He had no clue and did not want to find out.

Unfortunately for him, it seemed that he didn’t have a choice in the matter. The dragon’s claws were far too close together for him to squirm out of, and Izuku didn’t want to anyway. He had no clue how to fly, and the ground was far below them, houses looking like tiny pinpricks on the Earth’s surface.

All that was left for Izuku to do was wait and hope that dragons didn’t cannibalize one another.

The flight to All for One’s lair seemed to take an eternity, Izuku having nothing to do but stare at the ground far below and anxiously await his fate. Eventually, though, the dragon started to descend, carefully landing in a cave jutting out of the side of a remote mountain.

Izuku was carefully released from the beast’s hands, allowing him to look around at his surroundings. The cave was gigantic, the roof towering fifty feet or more above him, corridors stretching out into the shadows, leaving their true lengths unknown. Luxurious items flooded the cavern, more gold, precious gems, priceless paintings, ornate statues, and so much more covering the cavern in mind-boggling numbers.

His newfound instinct itched to take some of it for his own, build his own hoard, but he stamped them down. There was no time for this, and he didn’t want to risk angering the larger dragon. This didn’t seem to concern All for One, however, the beast nudging him towards the massive pile.

“Go ahead, my little one,” he crooned, eyes softening as he looked at the smaller dragon, “Take whatever you like best, and I’ll bring it back to the nest for you.”

Izuku squeaked in confusion at the dragon’s words, not understanding why such a notoriously selfish beast would want to part with any of their hoard. The dragon seemed to understand the unspoken question, though, as he looked at him in mild amusement, love still evident in his eyes.

“Oh don’t be so hesitant, my little hatchling. It’s a father dragon’s duty to help their child create their own hoard, after all.”

Izuku’s mind froze as his brain tried to process All for One’s words.

W-what?

Izuku shook his head fervently. “I’m...I’m not your son. You must be mistaken. I’m not a dragon, I’m human!”

“Mistaken? Oh, now aren’t you adorable,” the dragon teased, nudging the smaller one with his nose. “As if I care what species you originally were. It’s so rare to find the Magicless these days. Although…” He chuckled, the heat of his nostrils warming Izuku’s back and left-wing. “You’re not magicless anymore.”

The young dragon stilled. “Were you...how do you know that?”

All for One tilted his head, a knowing look emerging across his serpentine face. “I know many things, little hatchling.”

“You can’t keep me here,” Izuku tried to argue. His wings rose with his frustration, flaring out despite his fear.

If anything, the dragon seemed amused by his actions, lips pulling back into a fang-filled smile. “And where will you go, little one? Back to your village?”

“I...I’ll find a cure. All potions have cures,” he said.

“Indeed they do. But yours is especially powerful. I’ve no doubt it will take quite a bit of searching to find all the ingredients. And then there’s the time limit.”

Worry flooded the baby dragon’s features. “Time limit?”

“I think that’s enough for tonight. You look quite tired, little one. How about a small nap before our first meal together?”

“I’m not tired!” Izuku exclaimed, even though a soft yawn escaped his lips moments later. He scowled at the other dragon’s amusement. “I can’t stay here with you. I have a home. I have things I need to do, places I need to b--”

A loud confused chirp left his mouth as All for One gathered him in his claws, depositing him on a giant pile of gold. Strangely, an unusual heat rose from the metals. It would have been nice if he wasn’t so adamant about leaving. Talons enclosed his attempt at escape, however, the creature’s paw creating a sort of jail for the young one.

“Your place is in my nest,” All for One stated, leaning forward to look at the baby dragon. “All you need to do right now is sleep. I imagine your transformation was quite the ordeal.”

Izuku struggled against the claws but found no give. He huffed, body slumping to the ground as exhaustion overtook him. He blinked, trying to keep his eyes open. “I’ll figure…out a way...home.” He mumbled as his body instinctively curled, his new tail tickling the side of his face. He hated how nice the gold felt against his scales, warming him inside and out.

“Rest now, my little hatchling,” All for One remarked, head resting near the claw that held his new babe. He relished the small sleepy chirp his new child released as he fell into his first sleep as a dragon, new magics slowly reworking his human instincts into those that matched his current form. Try as the little one might, All for One had been down this road before with little Tomura.

No, the only problem now lay in the competition with other dragons. Hatchlings were rare enough as it was. If they caught wind that All for One had a new one…well, he would make sure nothing of the sort would happen under his watch.

All for One awoke the next day more rested than he’d been since Tomura left the nest. All for One rolled over languidly, gently reaching out with one paw to pat around the gold for his new treasure. When he couldn’t find what he was looking for, he turned his great head and cracked open an eye to find the most adorable thing he’d ever seen.

Izuku, his little hatchling, was building his first hoard.

All for One nearly cooed at his new baby. The hatchling had crawled to the other side of All for One’s pile of treasures, separate on the stone from the gold they had slept on. There, Izuku had a little pile of precious stones, gold, and other treasures that had been previously scattered among All for One’s hoard.

However, though Izuku had made quite some progress in his little mound, he was only a hatchling, and hatchlings needed to play. The little baby must have been distracted by the shiny, red ruby that now found its way between Izuku’s baby teeth. The little dragon was alternating between throwing the jewel in the air and chewing his way through the precious stone. Adorable. All for One finally lost his cool when Izuku dropped the jewel and then tumbled head-over-heels trying to swipe at it like a little kitten.

“Awe, look who’s already such a grown-up hatchling.” All for One said with a crook in his smile and a lilt in his tone. Izuku squeaked in surprise and fell over backwards when All for One spoke. He nearly melted to the floor right then and there from the sheer adorableness of the action. It didn’t last long, sadly, as Izuku was soon up on his baby claws, spikes raised and wings flared

“All for One!” Izuku squeaked like the baby he was, “We need to talk!”

Izuku tried not to cry as he realized what he had done. Had he really fallen prey to his new instincts so quickly? How much longer would it be before nothing was left of him but a beast?

He hadn’t even noticed what he was doing, his mind too occupied with thoughts of hoard and greed as he took in the precious items glinting in the sunlight. The dragon had said to take what he wanted, after all, so was there really any harm in doing so?

Before he had time to think about it, Izuku had already begun to create a pile of whatever caught his interest, carefully selecting his new treasures and placing them delicately in a pile of his own.

That was before the red light glinting off of a large ruby had shone in his eye, his mind instantly turning to thoughts of attack! His cheeks would have turned bright red to match the jewel at the reminder of who had seen his mad wrestling with the stone as if he were nothing more than a mere animal, if it weren’t for the simple fact that they were covered by shiny green scales.

Nonetheless, Izuku tried to gather the remaining pieces of his dignity as he spoke to the larger dragon, unconsciously puffing himself up as he did so.

 “While I am thankful for your hospitality,” Izuku carefully began, “The fact remains that I am not a real dragon, nor your son, and so I’d like for you to allow me to go search for the cure to my current–”

“Oh that’s right!” All for One interrupted Izuku, completely unapologetically, “We completely slept through dinner, my little one! You must be ravenous!”

Dinner…?

The thought had briefly crossed his mind when he’d awoken, but he’d become so distracted by the glinting jewels and shimmering stones within All for One’s hoard, he’d thoroughly forgotten. But at the dragon’s reminder, he did recall that the last time he ate was a quick breakfast with his mother before leaving for school that morning.

Or... was it even the same day? How long had he slept if he’d apparently been captive here long enough to have passed dinner? And more importantly, what kind of dinner was entailed when it was for a dragon?

(A small, chirping part of his mind happily conjured up exactly what his new body was craving, and he immediately shied away, pushing that desire back.)

He raised his snout away in fake disdain, refusing to break eye contact when his stomach let out a rumble from the previous thoughts. “Thank you, but I’m not hungry.”

All for One’s smile merely grew, terrifyingly knowing.

“Th-the time limit!” Izuku was quick to deter the conversation. “How long do I have before this... becomes more difficult.” Before I can’t change back. “Please, I need to know; I can recall the ingredients I had been working with in the chem labs, and I have a rough idea of their portions.” He looked down to the ground, wings ruffling as he worked through his options. “I don’t know how I’m going to get back in there to claim the ingredients, but it was probably the magnesium sulfate mixing with essence of amphiptere too abruptly. If I hadn’t been shaken, it would have fused to make a potion for variation of energy propulsion- and the counter to that should be muriate and crude calcium phosphate, so if I intermixed those with a pure drop of core magic, though that one may not be in the schools…”

The most dangerous dragon alive kept quiet, watching as his little one’s mind worked furiously. To All for One’s delight, he was mumbling everything out loud, clearly unaware. What an incredible find this hatchling was! Not even training in the guild academies yet, and here he was demonstrating critical alchemy work of any seasoned wizard. No, this child was surely not to leave him any time soon. But if I fail to help him, even with his gradual instincts building, he may not properly form the bond to me, and any other dragon will be able to claim him if I’m not careful. He refused to allow that possibility. “Little one.”

The stumbling of ingredients and theoretic combinations faltered, the small form ducking in abashment. His perfect dragonlet. “I can see that this is very important to you...” He relished as the little green scale perked up, a naive glimmer of hope in his eyes. “But I feel you’re not taking into consideration all that life as a dragon has to offer- my hatchling, you have gone from a magicless, helpless bipedal to a creature of strength, magic, and power.” Seeing his new child withdraw at the words, he carefully pressed on. “But I would not be a very good father if I did not try and help you with this; I propose a deal.”

“You’re not my...” Oh, how wary he looked at All for One! “A deal?”

Red eyes gleamed down at the little treasure. “I will tell you how long before the transformation becomes permanent, I can even help you... procure some of the more difficult ingredients. But you will have to create this cure yourself, and you must not neglect your dragon form, and the instincts it carries.”

He watched as the reality of that deal set in. His little one could handle volatile ingredients and equipment easily with his previous form, but as a baby dragon, it would be that much harder. Worse, feeding into his instincts may risk it being harder to connect to his human form. But really, what choice did his child have? That’s it, little one. Accept that this is your only course of action.

“I... what if, what if I don’t want to act on my instincts?” Izuku chirped out, voice unsure. ‘What if it frightens me?’ hung in the air.

Oh, dear hatchling. “I suppose we can discuss those moments when they happen.” He leaned down, so his snout was mere feet from the tiny dragonlet. His precious gem was so small- three of his dragonlet could fit into All for One’s mouth alone. “But I grow impatient, hatchling. Do you accept my deal?”

The green form shook with indecision, but a deliberate bristling of the captor’s spikes and wings- to telegraph impatience- had the child tripping over himself a moment later. “Y-yes! Yes, I agree to your terms, I accept the deal!” Small wings wide and spread in alarm, he dared to look the other dragon in the eye. “T-Tell me the time limit, right now.”

Smoke curled out of the giant dragon’s nostrils, a fanged grin satisfied. “You have a month’s time, little one.” The lie was so easy, and with a new fledged dragon, virtually undetectable. “Plenty of time. Now, since I’m keeping my end of the bargain.” He watched with some glee as the youngling startled when his claws soundlessly moved forward, trapping him within the elder creature’s possession. “I think we should indulge your most pressing instinct, and have a meal together.”

Izuku didn’t know what to expect when the dragon All for One decided they were going to have a meal, but it certainly wasn’t for the beast to drop an entire dead cow in front of him.

Izuku gaped at the dragon incredulously. Did he seriously expect him to be able to eat it all? It was twice his size! Not only that, but the meat was completely uncooked, blood could even be seen dripping from the wounds in its side.

Izuku didn’t want to admit how good it smelled.

“It’s... It’s raw,” was all he could bring himself to say to the larger creature, trying to hide the fact that his mouth was watering.

“And?” All for One asked with a knowing grin.

“I... I can’t eat that. I’m human.”

The dragon let out an amused huff, pushing the smaller being towards the cow.

“And while you may see yourself as one, that doesn’t change the fact that currently your body is that of a dragon, my little hatchling. Your body needs to eat raw, uncooked meat right now. It can’t process anything else.”

Izuku tried to protest again but stopped himself before he could. Loathe as he was to admit it, All for One did have more experience in these matters than him, even if he did have a strange obsession with parenting him. Plus, the meat was looking more and more appetizing by the minute, even if he did try to hide it.

When the dragon nudged him again with his muzzle, Izuku finally gave in. He walked to the corpse, using his new claws to tear off a piece of the meat. He bit into it slowly, feeling his fangs easily tear into the soft flesh. The flavor that met his tongue was odd, unlike anything he’d ever tasted before, but it was delicious, and Izuku craved more of it. Before he knew it, he had forgone using his paws altogether, instead simply turning to tearing the meat off with his teeth alone before snapping it up in his jaws.

All for One watched all of this, delighted. His little one had started taking to his new instincts so quickly, diving into them as easily as a duck does water. Izuku truly was the perfect choice for a hatchling, and he couldn’t believe the luck he had in the child causing the change all by himself.

It would make All for One’s parenting seem far less aggressive to the boy than if he had completed the transformation himself. And if he helped the boy find the ingredients himself... Well, the hatchling didn’t need to know that it truly would take only a mere week to complete, rather than the month he had promised the boy.

Besides, finding the ingredients would take so much time, especially if All for One arranged for some... ‘accidents’ to occur along the way. And All for One could hardly be blamed if the potion failed to change back his hatchling before the month was up, now could he? Potions of this caliber could be notoriously volatile, and it was so easy for one to work faster than expected...

Yes, his little one would have no reason to suspect All for One’s involvement at all.

Chapter Text

Izuku's tongue ran over his fangs, swallowing any bit of the lingering flavor. He let out a satisfied chirp before being hit with the realization of how quickly he’d let his new instincts take over.

Izuku heard All for One let out a chuckle as he shrunk in on himself in embarrassment. He still didn't understand what the old dragon wanted, why was he calling him his son? Why was he willing to help Izuku find the ingredients for a cure? Was he even being honest about helping him?

All for One was being kind to him right now, but he couldn't let his guard down or trust the dragon. He'd done a great amount of damage to his kingdom and was known to be quite vicious and cruel.

"Why don't you go play with my hoard?" The ancient dragon broke through his thoughts. "You can continue making your own with some of the items in it."

Izuku shook his head, "I need to focus on the cure." He determined, carefully watching the dragon for his reaction.

"We agreed you would take care of your dragon form including your instincts. Making your own hoard is very important for a hatchling such as yourself."

"But I'm not a hatchling!" Izuku exclaimed, he'd never hatched from anything, the term didn't fit him in the slightest.

"Oh, of course you're not." Izuku got the feeling the dragon wasn't taking him seriously. "Regardless, a dragon has mental and emotional needs like a human does and a hoard is very important for them. You need to embrace those instincts, little one." He gestured towards the hoard with his head.

Izuku reluctantly sighed out of his nostrils, "Fine." The sooner he got this over with, the sooner he could start determining what he'd need for the cure.

The dragon was clearly pleased with his response as he nuzzled Izuku then pushed him towards the hoard, "Go on them," he prompted.

The little dragon hesitantly took a step forward, his eyes glancing around the hoard for anything that caught his attention. He paused when his eyes landed on a dark red ermine blanket with white cendal lining, it seemed incredibly soft. That would be so nice in my nest, he thought to himself, a pleased chirp escaping him before he could stop it.

He gently grabbed at the fur blanket with his muzzle and pulled it out. A paw briefly brushed against it revealing that it was softer than he'd imagined. Curiosity overcame him as he nuzzled against it purring in pleasure at the soft texture. Izuku soon found that he'd managed to wrap himself into the pleasant silk and fur blanket, unable to figure out how to move his unfamiliar limbs to get out of it.

At least he could begrudgingly understand why he might be considered a hatchling now.

All for One leaned down, purring softly at how his new hatchling got so tangled up in this blanket. He cooed, nuzzling his precious little one. While he could help him get out of this predicament, All for One felt that it might make things just a little easier.

So he picked up his tied up little hatchling and moved to lay on his back, placing his child down on his stomach where the warmth would slowly lull the little one to sleep.

As he waited for the little one to fall asleep, he thought over his hatchling's old human name.

Had he not liked it, how adorable it was and....how similar it is to All for One's own true name....then he would have had it changed in a heartbeat. Izuku would be a perfectly fine name for his hatchling, but he may need to come up with a more fitting title for others to call him.

Tomura was fine without a title, thinking they were lame when compared to the name All for One had generously gifted him. Even then his title had become Shigaraki, which fit his former hatchling.

So that just left a title for Izuku, a title that would continue to make All for One coo and strike fear into the hearts of those feeble humans…

"Perhaps…I should give you my late brother's old title? One for All may not strike as much fear, but it would be poetic in a way," he hummed in thought, noting how his hatchling was barely paying attention to what he was saying.

"For a while my brother was the only family I had left. Then came Tomura, but he felt less like a son and more like a student…you though? I think you would make for a fine son, to be part of my new family," he murmured, feeling Izuku shift as he got comfortable.

Slowly, All for One closed his eyes as he contemplated other titles he could have Izuku be known as.

Izuku looked around, bemused but relieved to find himself back in his old classroom. Though where everybody else had gone was a mystery- had there been an assembly? Does he need to go too?

He moved to get out of his seat, planning to hurry out and check the auditorium, but immediately tumbled with a yelp, legs once long and gangling now short and less coordinated. Struggling to get up, he felt his tail catch under a chair as his wings struggled to heave him up. Wings! That's right- I turned into a dragon! Unable to gain proper footing, he stayed where he had fallen, trying to piece together what had happened. Had he returned to gather supplies? Was All for One here too? What if someone saw him?!

As if he had spoken the situation into being, he watched as the door banged open, Bakugou and some of his faceless classmates following behind. Izuku couldn't help the flinch as those angry red eyes narrowed in on him. "Deku? What the hell- you're a dragon?"

He recognizes me! "Kaachan!" The dragon chirped, once again trying to rise and failing while his classmates looked on in disgust- why couldn't he just stand up? "I- I had an accident in the labs, and I need to make a cure before-" His plea for help was cut off by racious laughter from the group of classmates, Bakugou doubled over with tears in his eyes.

"You useless idiot! You got yourself turned into a dragon?! How stupid can you be?!"

Izuku flinched back, his difficulty rising only growing worse. "It's not like that! You're the one who startled me when I was working, if you can help me-"

"And after being a useless, magicless nobody your whole life, you finally got power, and you're going to go back to that?!" The laughter suddenly shifted to something darker. No- the room itself was growing darker, more shadowed. "Why would anyone help a dumb Deku like you? You might as well just stay a dragon." The red eyes glowed, the other classmates seeming to fall away. "Who cares what a Deku wants? At least now you can be useful- the teacher can sell you for ingredients, or magic!"

"They wouldn't do that!" Izuku yelled, feeling tears prick his wide eyes, hating how familiar those words were to his own fears. "The teacher can't- I'm a student, my mom won't allow it!"

Bakugou scoffed, "But Deku." He slouched, his tone becoming condescending. "If you can't talk to anyone, how are they gonna know you're a dragon?"

"I can talk!" Except, now that Izuku tried, it was coming out as barks and chirps. “What? No, no no-“

"Useless, magicless nobody." His bully gave him a look of disgust. "Hey teach, there's a dragon in here!"

"Stop!" Izuku managed to roar, as the room started to crowd with more students and teachers, hands reaching for him. "I'm a human like you! It's me, Izuku! It's me!" Hands were tugging at him now, and he struggled more, tears falling freely. "It's me, it's me!"

"Izuku?"

That voice- he knew that voice! He looked around wildly, Bakugou and the other angry faces surrounding him seemingly frozen. "It's me, it's me..." He repeated weakly.

"Izuku, my hatchling, you need to wake up."

Gasping, the little green dragon blinked up into the large red eyes of All for One, who held the blanket he had previously been wrapped in. The blanket- he had been tangled in it, it was why he couldn't get up! Carefully, the white dragon set the hoard item to the side, blowing warm air at the frightened dragonlet. "Little one, are you with me now?"

Bakugou's sneering face flashed in his mind- his teachers and students trying to grab at him, not knowing it was him, or worse, not caring. "I… I'm fine." The chirped response was hoarse.

"You were having a terrible nightmare." The dragon nuzzled him carefully, voice calm. "Everything's alright, I'm here, I won't let anything harm you."

Izuku fought against the tears that threatened again, sick of appearing weak in front of his captor. "I don't need you to protect me, I need you to help me." Swallowing, he looked back up to the larger creature, forcing his voice to be authoritative. "No more games. Tomorrow, you help me gather some of the ingredients. Or I leave and our deal is off."

The red eyes blinked slowly at him. The cave grew quiet, and Izuku was afraid that the elder would lash out at him for the brash demand. Instead, All for One nodded his head. "You are clearly very upset. Go back to sleep for now. Tomorrow, I will do as my little dragonlet asks."

The young wings drooped in relief. "Promise." He chirped, somewhat petulantly.

"I promise." He gave a soft, fanged smile. "From one dragon to another."

Knowing he wouldn't get a better response, Izuku barely noticed the instinctual action to curl into himself, tail wrapping like an anchor. Part of him was afraid to close his eyes once more, but a soft, steady rumbling started about the cave that helped him drift off. Soothing, he didn't even notice when the purr tapered off, All for One keeping vigil to ensure no further nightmares worried his little one.

Tomorrow promised to be an interesting day for them both.

The dragon All for One awoke long before his hatchling, contemplating how the day would go as the sun slowly made its way above the horizon.

He had thought about contacting Tomura in order to help delay his little one, but had ultimately decided against it. The humans would teach his son a lesson far more effectively than he ever could, especially considering the fact that Izuku was still unable to communicate in anything other than Dragon Tongue.

Yes, he thought as he watched his little one stirr, moving his head so that his hatchling would think him to still be sleeping, his son would learn soon enough that he couldn't rely on human help.

Izuku awoke slowly, blinking his eyes open brightly as he took in his surroundings. It was early in the morning, golden sunlight pouring into the cavern and reflecting everywhere off of the massive piles of gold, casting everything in a warm glow. Looking up, he saw that All for One had indeed stayed wrapped around him for the entire night, body pressed right against his. He hated how comforting it was, how safe it made him feel, all serving to highlight how important getting the cure was.

With this thought in mind, Izuku pushed himself to his feet, slowly making his way out of his hoard to the dragon next to him. He started to nudge the dragon, softly at first, then harder once it became clear that that would not work. Briefly, he saw All for One's eye open before quickly shutting once again. Annoyance struck him. He was pretending to be asleep!

Izuku didn't have time for this. He needed that cure as quickly as possible and needed the dragon's help to do that. Taking a deep breath, hoping that All for One would simply think he was playing, Izuku bit down as hard as he could on the larger beast's tail.

All for One’s eyes flew open, he certainly hadn't expected his hatchling to use such a method to wake him. He feigned a yawn as he got up and stretched. He briefly glanced at his son and saw an unamused expression on his face. It was clear that he had noticed All for One was awake earlier.

He sat back down and leaned his snout forward, nuzzling his little one -who squirmed anxiously- and inconspicuously pushing him closer to his side. When he was close enough he wrapped an arm around him, causing his hatchling to chirp and open his wings in surprise. All for One pulled the small dragon against him and rolled onto his back.

"If you wanted to play you could have just said so." He smirked, All for One was pleased to see him embrace his dragon instincts, but even so he needed to learn not to wake him up in such a way. "I'm still very tired though and it's not safe for a hatchling, like you, to leave the cave alone. You'll have to wait to play."

He shut his eyes and pretended to be asleep once more, holding his son tightly against him.

Izuku was not amused in the slightest. All he wanted to do was get the ingredients he needed, so he could go back to being human as soon as possible.

He growled lightly, "You're not even sleeping! You've been awake this whole time!"

There was a light rumble from the giant dragon's chest, somewhat resembling a hum. Izuku took it as acknowledgement.

"You promised to help me find the ingredients in the morning. If you're not going to help me then I'm going to leave," he threatened.

There seemed to be a sigh from the older dragon and he was gently deposited onto the floor. "I did. Alright, then let us find what you need. Do you know what you'll need?"

Izuku nodded, he'd spent a good amount of time thinking about it already. "I know I'll need a form of pure magic, something like a unicorn hair, a phoenix feather or a siren scale. A dragon scale would have worked if I was turned into literally anything else, but something so similar to what caused this is more likely to speed up the process. Those are really hard to get though and they don't typically keep them in shops. I have heard of some alchemists being able to ask for such things in the past, but I can't speak with even humans right now. So, I doubt I'd be able to speak with anything else…"

"I know where we can get a Phoenix feather."

Izuku immediately cut off his muttering and looked to the dragon in interest. All for One said, "There's a nest in the forest beside the village I found you in. I'm sure a phoenix wouldn't mind you taking on feather, though I have heard it is notoriously difficult. Especially outside of molting season."

That was a good point, but he needed to get that ingredient as soon as possible. He swallowed. "Then that should be the first ingredient. We should gather the harder ingredients before the easier ones." If everything went well he should have a cure in just a few days.

Izuku had wanted to start searching for the Phoenix feather immediately after All for One had agreed to, but the larger dragon insisted on eating first.  Izuku had protested at first, but this was one thing that the parental beast had been unwilling to compromise on, and Izuku didn't want to test his luck any further than he already had.

Plus, he did have to admit that breakfast had sounded like a good idea.

An hour later and Izuku was ready to leave, leaving him facing his second issue: getting there. He didn't know how to fly (yet, a part of his mind that he tried to ignore whispered) and the only other option was All for One. Again.

"You better actually take me to the Phoenix nest," Izuku warned, trying to sound threatening, "You promised, remember?"

"Yes, little one," All for One replied, amused, before snatching him up with his talons.

Izuku squaked in protest before accepting his fate. They did have to get going after all, and it was pointless to waste time trying to convince All for One to use a different method of transporting him.

With a single flap of the larger dragon's massive wings, they were off, heading in the direction of Izuku's village.

Now that he wasn't panicking, Izuku actually found himself enjoying the ride. It was pleasant, the ride calming and the view (small as it may be through the gaps in All for One's talons) beautiful as they passed through massive mountain ranges.

An hour later, the area started to look more familiar, Izuku beginning to recognize the building far below them. Not long afterwards and they had made it to the forest on the outside of the village, All for One starting his slow descent back down to the forest floor.

With a quiet thump unbefitting of a beast of such magnitude, All for One finally landed in a small clearing, gently setting Izuku back down on the ground.

Izuku stretched before pushing himself back up and looking around. The woods stretched forwards dauntingly in front of him, dark and seemingly endless. They had finally arrived.

Izuku hadn't even made it a step further into the ominous trees when there was a heavy thud and he was rolling sideways from the great vibrations that shook the earth. When he managed to right himself and scrambled to his feet, Izuku turned to find All for One sprawled languidly behind Izuku like a great, lazy cat.

"Wha-What are you doing?" Izuku sputtered at the dragon before him.

"Oh, I can't go in there," the dragon said, "I'd never fit between the trunks."

Izuku glanced behind him, the space between the trees spanning almost as wide as the dragon's wingspan itself. Izuku turned back to the dragon to make this fact known to find All for One stretched out, a lazy smirk on his scaly face. Izuku hissed.

"Now, no need to be upset about it, little one," All for One said, toothed grin growing ever wider on his big, stupid face, "I'm sure a big dragon-- sorry, human-- such as yourself could make the journey on your own?" Izuku didn't answer him, but he couldn't help the squeaky growl that escaped his fanged mouth as he turned and marched into the dark woods on his own.

Stupid All for One! Stupid dragon curse! Izuku couldn't help but vent in his mind as he made his way through the trees. He was only distracted by his anger for so long, though, before the fear of his surroundings set in. The maw of the dark woods seemed to yawn before him, like some monster's mouth waiting to snatch up something so tiny and weak as magicless Izuku. The longer he spent walking through the dark that seemed more like night than day, the more something inside him screamed to go back to All for One. He'd probably just love that wouldn't he, Izuku fumed, before marching on with a renewed sense of determination.

However, soon the dark forest started thinning, and… It started looking familiar, if Izuku was being honest. The sun shining through the trees gave the area a soft glow, making it feel warm and inviting. Izuku could hear sounds from the city in the distance, and there was a stream that niggled at something in his brain. Ah! How could he forget? This was where he and Kacchan played in their youth before… Well, before Izuku was labeled magicless and he was ousted as a freak.

That put a damper on Izuku's already down mood, but he continued on in spite of the bad memories. If he could just become a human again, he could prove everyone wrong! He had a plan, he just knew he could make it to UA with his skill in potion making (accidental dragon transformation aside). Now, he just needed to find that feather, but how did one go about finding a phoenix nest when one had neither magic nor potions to assist? Wait! Izuku thought, I'm a dragon! I could just sniff it out! And indeed, Izuku took in a big whiff of the surrounding air, when a sweet, fiery odor caught his attention. That must be it!

Izuku began to rush forward, eager to claim the ingredient. The trees thinned more and more, which was a little confusing since he thought phoenixes were solitary, wild birds, but in his rush he had little care to understand the intricacies of phoenix behavior. He was too close to his goal to slow down now! Moving as fast as his new, clawed legs could carry him, Izuku smelled how the scent grew stronger and stronger, but also there was a popping sound. . ?

Too late, Izuku realized what that meant when he ran snout-first into a young, muscled body after rounding the last grove of trees. The person let out an oof as they both tumbled to the ground. Izuku was immediately trying to scramble away, but a calloused hand wrapped around his tail and pulled him back towards the figure.

"Hey! It's you!" they said.

Izuku twisted around to face them, red eyes blazing down at the trembling dragon before they spoke again. "You're the dumb dragon that showed up when Deku disappeared!"

"No! It's me, Izuku!" Izuku tried to tell him, but Kacchan couldn't understand the pitiful squeaks that left his mouth. Kacchan's eyes only darkened and he gripped tightened painfully on his tail.

"You-- I'll kill you, you extra!" he growled before letting loose an explosion on Izuku's tail. Izuku let out a terrified squeak, but he was surprised to find there was no pain. His baby scales, though weak for a fully-grown dragon, must have been strong enough to defend against Kacchan's magic? He didn't have much time to ponder when Kacchan threw Izuku into the air towards the trunk of a tree with a frustrated shout, his little body slamming into the wood with a pain filled shriek. His tiny form, while built for heat, wasn't quite ready to handle any sort of blunt-force trauma.

Before he could recover Kacchan had already marched over and pinned Izuku to the ground where he lay, hands popping with the rage that was clearly showing on Kacchan's face. "You little freak! You'll pay for what you did!" he shouted, ominously reaching out his palms towards Izuku's eyes before a ground-shaking roar ripped through the forest.

Out of nowhere, All for One was reaching out to throw Kacchan away from Izuku, claws scoring a line down his torso. The middle schooler was launched away, tumbling through the air before landing in a crumpled heap thirty feet away.

"Kacchan!" Izuku shrieked, trying to scramble towards the boy but a massive set of teeth enclosed around him, scooping him up before taking Izuku further away from his hurt friend.

Katsuki lay in pain, bones aching and sides stinging from the flesh wound he'd been given by the massive dragon, a single name ringing in his ears as the sounds of wings beating and tiny squeaks drew further, and further away.

"Deku...?" He mumbled, red eyes staring at where the little dragon had disappeared to with the most feared monster in history.

Chapter Text

"Let me go," Izuku cried, squirming against All for One's jaws. Despite the sharp teeth right next to his pinned body, he was not afraid, some instinct deep inside of him keeping him pacified. "Kacchan!"

"Little one, calm down," All for One said, his voice muffled by Izuku's body.

"Kacchan!" Izuku screeched, "Put me back down!"

"No, little one. We had a deal, and I will not let you get any more hurt than you already are."

"But I didn't even get the Phoenix feather!" Izuku resumed his frantic struggling, desperate to convince the older dragon to set him back down.

 "Izuku," All for One whispered, exasperated. Izuku stilled at the mention of his name. Was this the first time the dragon had used it?

"You have over three weeks left to find your ingredients, my hatchling," the older dragon continued, "It simply isn't necessary to risk your safety to get this ingredient right now."

By this point the forest was far below them, All for One flying back in the direction they had come from. Izuku stopped fighting. Loathe as he was to admit it, All for One did have a point. Nonetheless, he couldn't help but worry for Kacchan. Was he alright? Unfortunately, it seemed that the larger beast wasn't keen on letting Izuku back to check on his attacker.

The rest of the flight back was tense, tears periodically welling up in Izuku's eyes as he thought about what had happened and of Bakugou's potential fate. He hoped that someone found him and got him back to safety.

Eventually, they made it back to the cave, All for One circling a few times before finally landing.

He set Izuku down, finally letting the smaller dragon out of the toothed prison.

Izuku stumbled out, before turning to All for One.

"What if he's hurt?!" Izuku immediately rallied, now that he could face the dragon head on. "You hurt him!"

"He hurt you, dragonlet." The elder rose to his full height, exasperation clear in his tone. "Should I have stayed away while he attacked? Would you have stood up for yourself?"

"It's not like that!" The green creature refused to back down. "Kaachan was confused- I tried to tell him..." He trailed off, hating how helpless he had felt, how useless.

All for One blew out a stream of smoke, lowering himself so he could nuzzle the small form. The action was still a bit frightening, but the dragon moved carefully, gently, and the heat radiating did feel comforting. "You truly seem to be a magnet for trouble, little one. The boy is fine, it should be just a flesh wound." He rubbed his large snout against the more vulnerable scales along Izuku's neck- but the dragonlet surprised himself by letting out a soft trill, which the elder responded in kind. Safe. Trust. The instinct felt like a compulsion, and the younger quickly backed away, worried about the power of that feeling.

It was only a few days in- and already these instincts were taking over? I need to make up for lost time. He looked back up to the elder dragon. "With what happened with Kaachan… we might need to gain a phoenix feather last, or at least wait a few days so no one is searching for dragons there. What about the essence of magic next?"

The predator leaned back, expression guarded. "You would need an essence of magic to build the base of the cure. But the best vials are kept well protected within the city walls- considering what one human child did to you, I'm not inclined to let you wander into a den of them."

Izuku opened his mouth to argue, wanting to be angry, but… he was right. He didn't want a repeat of that- familiar faces looking at him with loathing, with hate. A thought struck him, though. "Fine. Then... then because I have my own magic, you can help me create the essence myself."

All for One looked down at his little hatchling. While it is true that his little dragonlet has his own magic and could get an essence for the potion, there are a few issues with that one.

He knows that the potion would require essence of magic, yes, but it can't come from the being who wants to be turned.

There is also the issue of how dangerous it is to extract it from a hatchling this young, especially with an injured tail. But his hatchling is stubborn, All for One can tell, so maybe it would be best to do this as a means of gaining trust. A small bit of honesty mixed in with some…omission.

"I'm afraid it will be too dangerous for you to do it yourself for various reasons, and if we use your own essence then it wouldn't work anyway. This potion is very particular and finicky- using your own essence may give you a human form, yes, but it will only be temporary."

He could already see Izuku open his mouth to protest, but All for One carefully brought up a clawed finger to hush his hatchling.

"It is the truth. It is also dangerous for a hatchling to do it on his own, even more so with an injured tail. I can't let you risk your health and life over this," he explained.

"But you said-"

"And I will help you. I'll give you some of my own essence, but I can only extract it when the moon is full, which you are in luck–that's at the end of this week," he explained, though he knew this was not completely accurate.

He could easily do it right now, but it wouldn't be nearly as strong as if the moon was full. Hopefully at the end of the month, the end of the time limit he lied about, his hatchling will have forgotten about his old life and fully given in to his instincts and be bonded to All for One.

And using his own essence will hopefully help in that process as well.

Katsuki helplessly watched the massive white dragon flew off, taking Izuku away with it.

He had been wondering how the dragon had managed to dispose of Deku so quickly, but the small beast shouting that stupid nickname was all he needed to understand. The dragon was Deku.

Figures the nerd would've found some way to give himself magic, accidentally or not.

But while that solved one mystery, it didn't explain how he'd managed to get kidnapped by All for One, of all dragons.

It must've happened sometime after he jumped out of that window.

The entire school had gone into lockdown at the beast's sighting, no one willing to risk gaining the dragon's wrath. But Deku didn't have any warning or anywhere to hide.

Because I attacked him, Katsuki angrily reminded himself. This is all my fault.

Was Deku in danger? Undoubtedly. Nobody managed to be near the beast and live to tell the tale, especially not someone as weak as him. All for One was likely just playing with his prey before going in for the final kill, like a cat with a mouse.

But what can I do? I couldn't even stop Deku from being taken, how am I supposed to get him- All Might!

The Number One Wizard was sure to be able to take on All for One. He had beaten him in the past, kept him from destroying many cities. If Katsuki got his attention, he'd be sure to help.

With this new goal in mind, Katsuki set out down the forest path. He had a new mission to complete.

All for One could see his little hatchling was getting restless and antsy. Frustrated with how he has found yet another way to delay getting yet another ingredient with the ever so convenient migration of the only being that carried this particular ingredient.

How unfortunate that his hatchling couldn't go after them with how weak and underutilized his wings were.

"Either my luck is terrible or you're delaying on-purpose," his hatchling remarked.

"No, I told you. In order to reach the migration spot it will take three days of flight, and then I will miss that precious window to extract some of my own essence for you," he explained, digging through his hoard for something he acquired fairly recently that he knows little Izuku would absolutely adore and maybe even add to his small hoard.

"Well, what if I fly there myself? I just need to take the time to learn it and then when I go there you can have the essence extracted and then that will be two of the ingredients knocked out," Izuku suggested, eyeing the hoard as his tail started to swish back and forth like a kitten ready to pounce.

All for One stopped and looked back.

It was a sound idea, though he isn't too keen on letting his hatchling go off on his own.

If another dragon decides to claim him then…but then Izuku was giving him those adorable eyes that he has been slowly mastering over the past few days.

Slowly he gave a sigh.

"Very well, I'll teach you how to fly. But first we need to do some basic wing stretches."

Katsuki Bakugou arrived at the tower belonging to All Might, the Number One Wizard. It was modest despite belonging to such a great man: just a brick tower with a single staircase winding up it. The blue roof had a golden rooster wind vane on top. A second, smaller tower attached to the side was decorated with a golden bell.

Katsuki approached the staircase, only to bounce off an invisible bubble. A curse escaped his lips. Of course the Number One Wizard would have security.

He shouted, “Excuse me, sir! I need to talk to you!”

There was no reply.

“It’s very urgent! I need your help!”

Still nothing. For all he knew, the bubble kept out sound too.

Katsuki summoned up his largest fire ball and threw it at the tower, screaming, “My beep friend got beeping kidnapped so you’d better help me save him you beep.”

He stopped, astonished at the strange sounds coming out of his mouth. Some sort of magical field that prevented swearing? He was even more astonished when the fireball bounced off and headed for his head.

Screaming, Katsuki flung himself at the ground. The flames whizzed over him.

All Might threw a window open, crying, “Oh, no! Young boy, are you hurt?”

Katsuki got to his feet and dusted off his knees. His hair felt slightly singed. “My friend got kidnapped by All for One.”

All Might’s eyes widened, then narrowed. “You’d better come in.”

Katsuki sat on a wooden stool, holding a cup of tea. The wizard’s kitchen was jam-packed with interesting items, from the shelves on the walls holding jars with eyes and scales to the herbs hanging on the walls. He sat in front of a small wooden table for two. A pair of orange-red eyes peered out of the cast iron stove, which must be powered by a lesser fire elemental. The glass cabinet held a set of porcelain plates carved with the symbol of an ancient long-dead kingdom. Katsuki had heard tales of All Might uncovering and evacuating those from a lost city. Books sprawled across the floor, including several rare titles the school library had been trying and failing to obtain for years.

All Might nudged aside a priceless spellbook with his foot and set down a plate of cookies on the table. They were slightly burnt, but Katsuki wasn’t about to pass up on the chance to eat cookies made by All Might himself. What if they gave him great magical power? He nibbled on the edge of a strawberry shortbread. Nothing happened. He told himself that he wasn’t disappointed.

“What happened to your friend?” All Might asked.

“He got turned into a beeping dragon hatchling and then that beeper All for One carried him off!” Katsuki scowled. “Can you do something to turn that profanity censor off? The beeping is getting annoying.”

“It came with the tower when I purchased it. Besides, you’re far too young to swear,” All Might said. “How did your friend turn into a dragon?”

Katsuki hesitated. With the imposing blue eyes of the Number One Wizard boring into him, it wasn’t easy to admit that he’d been the one responsible. “Well, uh, you see, someone interrupted him while he was making a potion, so I think that must have caused an accident. Then that ‘someone’ saw a dragon and reflexively attacked.”

“How terrible!” All Might’s voice turned into a growl. “Many people still have ignorant prejudices against dragons. All for One’s vile behavior has only made that worse. But what kind of monster would attack an innocent hatchling who’s done nothing wrong?”

Katsuki squirmed in his seat. “Err, yes. Very…terrible.”

“I’m so sorry that you and your friend have been the victims of such a bigoted, violent imbecile.” The wizard gazed at him with sincere sympathy.

Katsuki idolized All Might, so each word struck him like a blow. He sank down further in his seat.

All Might said, “Now I’ve upset you. I’m sorry. Please, tell me everything.”

Katsuki filled him in on everything (leaving out his own culpability). As the wizard’s face became more and more grim, Katsuki’s fears increased.

Afterward, All Might stroked his chin. “All for One is the most dangerous dragon in existence. I’m glad you came to me for help—this is beyond what you can deal with on your own. By now, I’m certain All for One will have formed a hatchling bond with your poor friend. Only another dragon can help him break free. Fortunately, I know someone who will help.” There was an evasive note in the wizard’s tone on that last sentence. He stood up. “I’ll depart at once.”

“I’m coming with you.” Katsuki stood up, too.

“I’m afraid not, young Bakugou. This is too dangerous.”

“Like bleep! I’m the bleeping best wizard in my class! I can bleeping kick that bleeping dragon in the bleep bleep. I have to save Deku, it’s my—” Katsuki stopped himself before he said fault.

“Your desire to help your friend is commendable, but you’re too young.” All Might’s eyes hardened to blue diamonds. “Only the dragon I know is strong enough to face All for One. My, uh, friend also knows how to turn dragons back into humans. I’ll save your classmate. Never fear, I’m here!”

Despite Katsuki’s censored curses and digging in his heels, he was forced to leave the tower.

Once alone, All Might climbed up to the roof of his tower. Then he spread his arms and transformed.

A massive golden dragon rose into the air, with finned ears, two huge horns, and an armored tail gleaming like the sun. He set out over the forest, determined to find All for One and save this innocent dragon hatchling. Who knew what All for One intended? The evil dragon wasn’t exactly the generous type. He probably wanted to turn the hatchling into a brainwashed pawn.

All Might wished he’d been able to explain everything to young Bakugou, in order to reassure the boy. But his dragon form was a strict secret. All Might also understood why young Midoriya had been transformed into a dragon. Young Bakugou had said that his friend had been magicless, and only the magicless had the ability to become dragons. All Might knew this because years before, he’d accidentally turned himself into a dragon using the same potion. If someone with magic tried to use it, they’d become a unicorn instead.

Prejudice against the magicless made their lives difficult, as All Might keenly remembered. If people knew that the magicless could turn into dragons, a race hated due to All for One’s murderousness, then the persecution would get worse. For that reason, All Might had been unwilling to reveal the truth.

However, All Might was confident he’d been able to convince young Bakugou to be sensible, trust in adults to handle matters, and go home.

That just went to show that although All Might was the world’s greatest wizard, he knew very little about children.

Katsuki pushed open the door to Deku’s lab. It hadn’t been cleaned since the young wizard’s unfortunate accident. A stench like rotting eggs hit his nose.

Fortunately, Deku kept his laboratory neat and tidy. Katsuki was easily able to find the necessary ingredients in his cabinet. The nerd also carefully ordered his potions book, still lying open to the last recipe he’d been working on.

After gathering all the ingredients, Katsuki carried the pot over to the burner to brew. A sizzling noise and a lavender scent rose off the potion.

He could tell that All Might had been lying to him about something. Probably about finding a dragon—why would the number one wizard know any of those monsters? Therefore, Katsuki saw only one way to save Deku and make up for his mistakes: become a dragon himself!

Katsuki shuddered to imagine the disappointment on All Might’s face if he found out Katsuki had been the one to attack Deku. He couldn’t bear for his hero to develop such a low opinion of him. Katsuki squeezed his eyes shut and replaced the image of a scornful All Might with All Might telling him how proud he was of Katsuki for making such a large sacrifice of turning into a dragon.

Then All Might would be forced to take him along because he’d said the mission required a dragon, Katsuki would defeat All for One in battle to establish his fame far and wide, and he and Deku would return to being human together. The perfect plan.

A timer dinged, drawing Katsuki from his daydreams. He peered in the caldron. The potion had turned the perfect shade of pink. Katsuki dipped in a cup and took a sip.

A purple cloud covered Katsuki. He felt his bones shifting and changing. Triumph filled him. It had worked! As expected, he was a genius!

Katsuki landed on all fours. He looked down to see he had hooves. Hooves? It wasn’t supposed to be hooves!

Catching a glimpse of himself in the window, Katsuki screamed. Only a whinny emerged.

Katsuki's mind screeched to a halt as he looked at his reflection. Instead of the fangs, scales, and wings of a dangerous dragon fit to go on a quest with All Might stood a... a unicorn.

His hands, rather than mighty claws like they should've been were pearlescent cloven hooves, glimmering slightly in the dim light, a matching horn jutting out from his head. His mane and tail seemed an off-white at first, until Katsuki turned to look at it better and the light caught on it, reflecting a pastel rainbow instead. The only thing still slightly familiar was his fur, which had remained the same color as his human hair had been.

Katsuki wanted to curse in frustration, but the only thing that came out were whinneys. He didn't understand what had gone wrong. The potion had matched Izuku's exactly, so what could've caused the drastically different effects?

Was it the amount of each ingredient put in? I know Deku added some extra on accident when I startled him. That could be it. But no, I accounted for that, after all, although I suppose it could be a volatile ingredient. So what could've affect- wait. Magic. Deku was magicless. If I take that into account... Yes. That explains it.

Katsuki let out a huff.

That doesn't help me figure out what to do now, though. Should I try to contact All Might? He'd probably know what to do, but I don't know if he's still nearby. It's better than nothing, though.

Determined, Katsuki tried to take a wobbly step forward, before collapsing onto the ground. Cursing mentally, he tried to stand up again. He managed to do it for only a few seconds before falling to the ground yet again.

'It's a good thing that there's no school today,’ Katsuki grumbled, 'If any of those extras saw me like this, I'd never hear the end of it.'

Izuku bent sideways, stretching his wing over his head. All for One counted, “Eight…Nine…Ten…Now the other side.”

With a groan, Izuku shifted to the other side. He was pretty sure he’d been through this same exercise already. In fact, he was getting more and more suspicious that this was all a stalling technique. He asked, “Didn’t you say we were chasing after a magical being that had a tendency to migrate? Shouldn’t we get going?”

All for One said, “Proper wing stretches are very important. What if you got a cramp? Now, lift your tail in the air as high as you can.”

Izuku had definitely done that already. As he raised his tail, he asked, “What magical being do I need to find?” If he knew, then he’d have already charged past All for One out of the cave.

“I’ll tell you once you’re done your exercises,” All for One said. “Spread your wings as wide as you can.”

Tottering slightly, Izuku spread his wings. A flash went off in his face. He blinked.

As the smoke cleared, All for One held a crystal ball. It had captured an image of Izuku inside. The dragon said, “You were so cute, I had to capture this moment for posterity.”

Izuku’s temper snapped. He lunged for the older dragon’s throat.

All for One easily twisted his neck away. But Izuku’s movement had been a feint. At the last minute, he ducked down low, snatching up the crystal ball. He ran away to the back of the cave with his prize in his mouth. A leap carried him up to the ledge above. He have jumped-half flew. He could fly! He’d known all along that damn dragon had been holding him back.

“What wonderful predatory instincts you have!” All for One didn’t sound upset at all.

Izuku planted his claw on top of the ball and pushed down. “We’re leaving now, or I break this and all your precious pictures.”

All Might soared through the air, reaching out for the scent of magic. A powerful dragon like All for One knew how to cloak himself, but a young hatchling wouldn’t be able to help spewing magic everywhere. If All Might could smell out even a drop, then he could track it back to the source.

His wings froze, causing him to drop like a stone, at a sudden blaze of magic. He flapped, catching himself just above the ground. It smelled like lightning and ashes, hot and overpowering. Too strong to be from the hatchling—a new transformation? And it seemed to be coming from the school, too.

All Might changed course.

Izuku stared at All for One, ready to press his full weight onto the crystal ball or perhaps even knock it down from the ledge where he perched. He could feel his tail swish slightly at the thought, wondering how high up it would need to be to break...and if it isn't broken then maybe he could bat around with it for a while....

He shook his head, remembering what was more imperative. He could play later, once he had the next ingredient for the cure. Especially since he had to catch…whatever was migrating.

"Monarch Fairies. Around this time of year they're migrating south for hibernation and breeding purposes," All for One finally explained. "As you appear to be in a hurry, I guess we can start the true flying lessons…but don't expect to get it right away. You are considered a hatchling and normally they don't truly start learning to fly until a year after the transformation is permanent-" he seemed to freeze, as if he didn't mean to say that.

Izuku could feel himself bare his fangs. "What do you mean a year after it's permanent? Is that the truth or are you trying to delay again?" Slowly, he was starting to realize that there might be a reason for All for One's reluctance in gathering all the ingredients. Even though he still had a good while until the end of the month, something told him…or maybe, had All for One been lying to him this whole time? "Tell me the truth. Do the effects really become permanent after a month?"

All for One froze for a second, trying to think of a way to placate his hatchling. There were only two days left until the transformation completed itself, after all, and he needed to make sure that his hatchling didn't find out until it was far too late. But what to say? He decided that a half-truth was best in this scenario.

"... Not quite, my little one. I must admit, I did stretch the time limit a bit... But not by much," he amended after seeing the hurt look on his hatchling's face. "You have around a week and a half left," All for One smoothly lied.

The smaller dragon slumped slightly in relief, although it was quite clear that he didn't quite believe the older beast. "Then why have you been trying to stall so much?" his hatchling asked, regarding All for One with suspicion. "Do you even want me to go back to being human at all?"

No, All for One thought possessively as he spoke. "Of course I do! I want what's best for you, my little one. Although," and here the older dragon paused, deciding to admit some truth to soften the lies, "ever since my older hatchling, Tomura, left the nest many years ago, I must admit that I've been quite lonely. It's a feeling sometimes called 'empty nest syndrome,' by other dragons, though I prefer not to use the term. So when I found a young hatchling, you can imagine just how excited I was. And so when I learned you wanted to be human again, well, I decided to…Lie a bit, just enough to spend some time with you. I promise, I never thought to go against your wishes and make the transformation permanent."

Izuku stared with a strange expression. “I’ll believe you,” he said, and before All for One could relax, he added, “if you teach me how to fly and take me to the Monarch Fairies right now.”

“Of course,” All for One said, with little choice but to agree.

In human form, All Might knocked on the laboratory door. “Excuse me? Do you need help?”

No one replied.

All Might raised his voice. “If you’ve turned into a dragon, then I know how to help you. I promise.”

He heard a choked sound and some shuffling.

The child might be hurt or in shock. All Might blasted through the lock with magic and opened the door.

The room was dimly light and smoky from the still-boiling cauldron. Yet through the darkness blazed the radiant rainbow mane of a unicorn.

The unicorn screamed, “Don’t fucking look at me unless you can fucking change me the fuck back!”

All Might blinked. He would recognize that uniquely profanity-filled voice anywhere, even now it was coming out in Unicorn Tongue. “Young Bakugou?”

Chapter Text

Katsuki huffed for a few seconds after his outburst. Under normal circumstances he wouldn't curse at THE All Might like that, but he could not stand the thought of the great wizard seeing him like this. A large part of him wanted to blame Deku for this, because if it wasn't for him then Katsuki wouldn't be a unicorn in the first place.

Though a very tiny part of him recognized that it was his own fault.

"You…did you try to turn yourself into a Dragon?" All Might asked, slowly stepping closer. His bright blue eyes stared down at Katsuki with the purest of concern, his hands held up in a placating manner. "It'll be ok. I can undo this for you, and then you can explain to me why you decided to try and become a dragon."

Katsuki held his tongue, looking up at the wizard only to suddenly freeze when he noticed something that wasn't there before…not when Katsuki was still human anyway.

He could see that All Might's eyes glowed in an unnatural fashion and had slit pupils like a reptile. Large translucent horns grew out of his head and it seemed like he had scales dotting over his face and even a pair of large wings and a tail…also translucent and seemingly incorporeal as they just phased right through the walls and tables. Even more confusingly, All Might was speaking in a sibilant reptilian tongue, but Katsuki could understand him perfectly. A teacher had once said that all magical creatures could understand each other. Katsuki was not yet ready to face the full implications of that. At the sound of that voice, his blood pressure skyrocketed.

Katsuki couldn't explain the sudden pounding in his heart, but he huffed and lowered his head and dragged a hoof across the ground.

"Young Bakugou?"

Katsuki ignored the call of his name as he suddenly charged forward. His horn missed All Might, but he didn't stop running. Instead driven purely by what he would later realize to be instinctual fear as his new form practically took control over his mind- especially as he realized that the man who was before him was no human.

No…he was a dragon.

"Young Bakugou!" All Might called out, but by the time he left the building Katsuki was already gone.

All Might raced through the winding halls after the young unicorn, but to no avail. His human form, as athletic as it was, was no match for the sheer speed of the frightened, newly transformed boy, still far too susceptible to his newfound instincts. To make matters worse, the halls were far too small to risk shifting back into his true form.

By the time he made his way to the exit of the building, it was obvious that young Bakugou was long gone, having managed to clear quite a bit of distance in his panicked hase.

Looking around to make sure that no humans were nearby, All Might transformed into his draconic form, the larger body being far more magically sensitive than his human self could ever be.

With a massive flap of his gigantic wings, All Might took to the sky, heading as fast as he could for the tiny speck of magic off in the distance, quickly being overshadowed by the multitude of magical creatures that lived in the forest the small unicorn had evidently fled to.

All Might sighed, pushing himself to move as fast as he could. This could take quite some time, especially if young Bakugou fled from his presence yet again.

Hopefully a unicorn's time limit was similar to that of a dragon's. All Might was far too unqualified to care for and advise a newly formed unicorn, and if this were to become permanent he feared that there was a long, messy road ahead for both himself and the young Bakugou.

"Perhaps it's time to rest for a bit?" All for One asked, hovering close to Izuku as they both flew over the mountains. "We don't want you to damage your wings after all, as you are still a hatchling-"

Izuku pointedly ignored the dragon as he pressed on. He’d only been flying for an hour and he was already exhausted. At this rate he could collapse before he reached the Monarch Fairies, and he was running out of time! No resting, he needed to get there and fast. Despite his earlier claim, he did not believe or trust All for One to help him turn back.

He flapped his wings harder, pulling ahead of All for One as he forced himself to go faster.

"Izuku stop, you'll hurt yourself!"

He didn't stop, no matter how genuine the concern sounded. This was probably another act, likely a way for All for One to delay them even further. "No, there's no time. We have to get there now- Ow!" He suddenly shouted, feeling a sharp pain flare up from his wings. But he tried to shake it off, making an attempt at ignoring the pain.

Though it got more difficult with each flap of his wings until, ultimately, he felt them seize up and refuse to move any further.

He screamed as he started to plummet to the ground, only to be caught in clawed hands.

"I tried to warn you," All for One said, slowly landing before carefully examining Izuku's wings. He then gave a sigh. "Wait here, I'm going to grab something to wrap your wings up so they can heal easier."

Izuku gulped, turning his head to look at his wings. He tried to move them only to hiss when a jolt of white hot pain flashed through him. "What…what's wrong with them?" he asked.

"You likely sprained them with how far you pushed yourself. I wouldn't be surprised if you broke them," All for One began. "A hatchling at your age isn't supposed to be flying, I tried to tell you a few times. I remember my own father telling my brother and I the same thing. My dear brother didn't listen though, and would still try to fly with broken wings until…we had to amputate them."

Izuku gulped when he heard that. "But…it shouldn't matter when I go back to being human, right?" he asked.

All for One chuckled softly. "Little one, it does matter. The state of your wings reflect on the state of your human legs, as they are connected to your spine. A permanent break could result in paralysis, and I don't think you would wish for that when you're human again," he explained.

Izuku went wide eyed as he stared up at All for One.

"And how long will it take for me to be fully healed?" he asked.

"It depends on how serious the injury is. It could take anywhere from three days to a month, and that depends on what form you are in," All for One said.

"Form?"

Here, All for One chuckled lightly. "When in full dragon form, such as we currently are, it will only take three days for severe injuries to heal fully. But if, say, you are in a human-ish form? Then it will take far longer to heal." His body soon began to glow a bright color until he started to shrink down.

Izuku gasped in shock when he saw All for One transform right before his eyes.

Dragons could actually…?

"Normally I don't like taking this form, but it will be easier to wrap your wings up with hands instead of claws."

Izuku sat, motionless, shocked into a stupor as the older dragon carefully wrapped his wings up in bandages he had procured from... Somewhere. He didn't have the emotional or mental capacity to wonder about their origins, not when he had this new piece of information to process.

Eventually, All for One made a sound of satisfaction, leaning back to take in his work. Izuku was surprised at how... Ordinary the dragon seemed. He had white scales dotting his skin, yes, along with claws, horns, and a tail and wings, but all of these could be passed off as vestigial mutations or dragon ancestry, which, while extremely rare, certainly wasn't unheard of. Hell, even the great wizard All Might looked like he came from a distant lineage of dragons!

Izuku didn't have time to take in the beast's humanoid form for long, however, before he was growing again, returning to his much larger self.

"You- You mean I could've taken a human form this entire time?! Why didn't you tell me!" Izuku yelled as he finally found his voice. He couldn't believe it- as soon as he found out how to make life much, much easier for him, it was taken away by his injury.

The older dragon glanced down at his puffed up form, amused.

"You can't, little one, not now anyways. Only dragons who have let their time limit tick down and the potion become permanent can. It's due to the concentration of magic in your body- it only gets strong enough to allow you to change forms once you've left behind your humanity, and, as I remember, that is exactly what we are here to prevent."

With that he moved to pick up Izuku, the boy squawking in protest, as his eyes widened and a small growl escaped, “You could have gotten that phoenix feather in the forest this whole time?!” he exclaimed. All for One didn’t respond to him as the hatchling slowly calmed. He probably couldn’t hear him as he took to the sky, flitting through at a much faster rate than the slow pace they had been moving at previously.

Did I slow us down by insisting on flying myself? Izuku lamented as he watched through All for One's talons as the once massive treetops became nothing more than tiny specks below them.

After landing in a clearing, Izuku looked towards the horizon where he saw the sun was starting to set. The further it went down, the more antsy he got. He knew he was running out of time, but his father-

He froze at the sudden thought.

Why did he...? He doesn't have a father! It's just him and his mom, just him alone, no one else!

But something in him recoiled at the thought of not having a father.

Was it because he was getting closer and closer to the deadline, that hatchling instincts were becoming harder to fight off?

At least he had roughly another week…but he still couldn't help but fear that maybe they were off with the deadline.

He turned towards All for One, seeing the great dragon stare at him with consideration. What could possibly be going through his head?

Was he thinking of going back to taking his time, the selfish desire at having a new child enough to consider delaying until it's too late?

He yelped when the dragon picked him up suddenly, moving him to the makeshift nest that was built while Izuku was busy playing with some leaves like a kitten. He tried to protest when he felt All for One start to groom him, but the way his scales tingled had him purring.

Izuku covered his mouth, growing stiff when he realized what just happened.

He had to get that antidote now! He needed it! He needed to....

He stopped when he smelled something. Pine, though it had a hint of smoke in there…much like a campfire really. His whole body practically melted while the….while his…while Dad continued to groom him.

Slowly his eyes closed, feeling incredibly safe as he gave a much louder purr.

As he fell asleep, hoping that morning would come quickly, he only thought of safety even as a very very small part of him was screaming that this was all wrong.

But it felt right.

All for One watched his little hatchling carefully. Izuku seemed fidgeting, glancing around the clearing. He must be getting close to his permanent transformation. Keeping one eye on the little dragon, All for One added a few more sticks to his makeshift nest. Just a little longer…

His eyes met Izuku’s. Childlike anxiety stared back at him. Yes, it was definitely time.

All for One picked up his hatchling and placed him in the nest, ignoring the squawk. Now was a critical moment. He needed to groom and scent-mark his hatchling in order to solidify their bond. There had been endless trouble with his little brother due to him running away and failing to bond with any adult dragon, but he didn’t want to think about that right now. This was a special moment.

Settling the hatchling between his paws, All for One started tongue-bathing his head. He was rewarded with a cute little purr.

All for One released his scent glands, flooding the air with pine and smoke. He rubbed his neck against the top of his hatchling’s head, just to make sure he got a full dose.

To his gratification, Izuku purred again and leaned into the touch as if seeking the source of his scent.

Magic danced between them, feeling like an electric spark deep in All for One’s chest. Izuku closed his eyes and went limp.

All for One was swamped with a wave of affection for this tiny thing. His beloved child. The bond went in both directions, though of course he didn't need magic to find Izuku cute. The extra push left him so full of affection that he almost couldn’t handle it. He had a mad urge to leap up and conquer the entire world just so he could present it to his hatchling as a gift.

But that would involve getting up, and All for One couldn’t possibly leave his sleeping hatchling alone. The world had been saved for another day.

All for One picked Izuku up and carried him back toward the cave. With a little luck, the hatchling would have forgotten all about the ingredient that he’d so desperately desired.

All Might ran through the forest. After scenting young Bakugou, he’d transformed back into his human form. If he tried to approach as a dragon, he might trigger the young unicorn’s prey flight instincts again.

The sun was already setting, and he couldn’t leave young Bakugou alone in the dark forest late at night. What if the boy encountered something dangerous?

Even in human form, All Might’s sense of smell was heightened. He followed his nose to a crop of trees. A flash of rainbow mane glinted through the oak trunks.

All Might stopped. “Young Bakugou, I admit that I’m a dragon. I’ve hid it too long due to the prejudice of the magical community. Perhaps that was my mistake, when I could have been working harder to change people’s impressions of dragons. I’m not like All for One. I’m not your enemy. I only want to help you before your transformation becomes permanent. You don’t need to be scared—”

Katsuki exploded from the brush, shouting, “Who the hell is scared? I’m not scared of anything.”

All Might smiled. “I’ll help you gather the ingredients for the antidote to your potion. There’s nothing to fear. I’m here.”

“I keep telling you, I’m not afraid—” Katsuki choked. He toppled sideways, falling onto the grass.

All Might paled. Could the transformation be turning permanent? But how could it be happening so soon?

Even if unicorns might have a shorter time limit than dragons, he never would have guessed it might be as short as a day. Unfortunately, All Might knew very little about unicorn transformations.

Regardless, he had to help young Bakugou. All Might ran forward and stroked the fallen unicorn’s pelt, infusing his hands with healing magic. “Can you tell me where it hurts?”

Katsuki moaned. A spark of magic leapt between them.

All Might paled. In the absence of an adult unicorn, was Young Bakugou trying to imprint on him as a parent? Impossible! He didn’t know anything about unicorn foals! He still had a kidnapped dragon hatchling to find! What was he going to do?

Katsuki moaned and thrashed on the ground. Everything felt so strange since his transformation. The sunlight was too bright, the smells were too intense, and even the sound of insects buzzing overhead was too loud. Information pelted his brain from all directions like a hailstorm. He could detect every single impure thing in the forest, from the dragon chasing him to the pond a mile away where someone had dumped magical potions. He had an intense urge to run to the pond and dip his horn in to cleanse it. He resisted, because he was not a slave to his instincts or a neat freak like the Iida family.

The strange magical spark running through his body only made his overload worse. At first. Then the magic settled into his bones, bringing with it a feeling of calm. He felt safer. At peace. He no longer feared that All Might would try to eat him. (Why had he ever thought such a ridiculous thing about his idol? Damn flighty horse nerves!)

“Are you feeling better?” All Might asked.

Katsuki struggled to stand up on his four feet, determined not to embarrass himself any further in front of the Number One Wizard. “I’ve never been better.”

“That’s probably a sign our bond is taking effect.” All Might did not sound thrilled about this. “Recently transformed magical beings form a parental bond with the closest adult of their kind when their transformation becomes permanent. I’m not sure how one happened between a dragon and a unicorn…but I will do my best for you.”

“Permanent?” Katsuki screamed. Glitter fell from his mane as his head shook.

“I’m afraid so. I’m sorry.”

A horrible thought occurred to Katsuki. “You don’t think such a bond could happen with All for One and Deku, do you?”

“My goal is to prevent such an occurrence. I have no doubt All for One would be a cruel and tyrannical father. If you’re feeling well enough to move, then I must leave you in a place of safety, then chase after them at once.”

“I want to come with you,” Katsuki insisted.

All Might frowned. “I don’t think you understand how dangerous this could be. Furthermore, you’re in no condition to exert yourself.”

“I’m as strong and tough as ever!” Katuski took a step forward. More glitter shed from his mane. He desperately hoped that part wouldn’t be permanent. It tickled his nose, and he sneezed.

The force of his sneeze sent Katsuki flying. His horn impaled a tree trunk. He was stuck with his head bowed and his back legs in the air. “Ahhhhhhhh!” He thrashed madly.

“Young Bakugou. Calm yourself.” All Might placed a hand on his head.

Once, a dragon’s touch would have been terrifying, but now Katsuki immediately calmed down. His breathing steadied. It must be the bond between them.

“I’m going to get you out.” All Might flicked his fingers, and a magical hand pulled Katsuki free and gently set him on his feet.

“I can’t understand how that stupid tree got in my way,” Katsuki mumbled, mortified.

“Surely now you see why I can’t take you along. You’re too inexperienced with your powers.”

“But I—” Katsuki cut off as he detected something coming toward him. A bright, pure presence. It felt like another unicorn, although he certainly hoped not. He hated the pouncy, arrogant horses. And no, becoming a unicorn had not changed his mind about how much he disliked them.

A light blue unicorn with a glittering rainbow mane trotted out of the trees and looked between Katsuki and All Might with sparkling purple and blue eyes. Her horn glowed as she stood tall.

"Greetings, I am Celestabellebethabelle and I detected a young unicorn foal here with my magic. It was a good thing I had finished my three o'clock posing in front of a rainbow before-"

Katsuki could already feel irritation growing as he lowered his head and dragged a hoof back. "Shut your trap you arrogant horse! I don't want to deal with any of you," he snapped, his own horn glowing an aggressive red as various explosions started to pop from the tip of it.

"Young Bakugou, we should-" All Might started to say.

"Egad! A dragon kidnapped this young foal!" Celestabellebethabelle shouted, rearing up before slamming her hooves against the forest floor. "Don't worry baby, I'll scare him off and then you can come with me to the herd."

Katsuki actually snarled. "You are not taking me away from my dad!" He shouted, only to stop as he processed what he just said. "Wait.. no, he isn't actually- But he's the Top Wizard and not evil like All for One and his ilk! So go take your sparkles and rainbows and shove it up your-" he started to say only to cough up glitter. "What the f-"

More glitter.

"Oh dear, you should know that us unicorns can't say any naughty no-no words. I am surprised it took you this long to cough up glitter from the curses I heard on my way here," Celestabellebethabelle said. "But it seems you are blinded by imprinting on one of those beastly dragons. At least your bond will be easy for us to break, luckily you aren't one of his kind."

"My kind?" All Might said before shaking his head. "Listen Miss Celest, I-"

"It's Celestabellebethabelle, you will call me by my full name!"

"Alright, Miss Celestabellebethabelle, I'm afraid that we'll have to get going now. We have a hatchling to save from All for One..."

"Oh you mean that green monster? Yeah, Charlie sensed that the Great Dragon had bonded to a new hatchling an hour ago. Good thing too, maybe having a new hatchling will stop him from hunting in our territories."

"What?"

Celestabellebethabelle only smiled. "Oh, were you hoping to stop this? Well I'm afraid you're too late for that. So give me the foal and I can point you in the right direction so you can try to steal a hatchling from a very very protective parent."

All Might paled with horror upon realizing his quest had already failed.

"Little foal, it's likely you have already been contaminated from this dirty reptile already," Celestabellebethabelle continued, muzzle somehow moving to look down at All Might in disdain despite the quite dramatic height difference, "You need to come with me now, join the herd where you belong, and leave this golden terror to his quest. Then we can fix you up, make you a proper unicorn."

Katsuki glared at the stupid, egotistical unicorn. Did she really think that he would voluntarily leave with her, after everything she had just said?

"Listen, Celesa-whatever the rest of your absurdly long name is, " he growled out, sounding far more like his adopted father than the unicorn he was speaking to, "I don't get what your deal is, but there's no way in hell that I'm coming with you." Katsuki powered through the glittered spewing from his mouth.

Celestabellebethabelle gasped in shock, a manicured hoof reaching up to cover her mouth.

"You dare talk to me like that? To one of your own kind? This scaled menage must've been even worse of an influence than I-"

"DON'T TALK ABOUT ALL MIGHT LIKE THAT, YOU SAD EXCUSE OF A PAMPERED HORSE!" Katsuki screeched, tackling the elder unicorn to the ground in an instant, sparks dancing around him in his rage.

Celestabellebethabelle shook her long, immaculate mane as she regained her balance, before stopping to stare at one of the tips of her fur, now smeared with soot. She turned to look back at the snarling foal, her expression now equivalent to his in anger.

Nobody in the forest would later be able to recall who had struck first, not even the participants themselves, but when all was said and done, it didn't really matter. In the end, the fight only lasted a few minutes, and by the time it was finished, Celestabellebethabelle was lying back down on the ground, fur now seeming more grey than white, and smelling heavily of singed fur.

On top of her stood Katsuki, chest heaving as smoke curled around his form, seeming to look far less like a young unicorn and far more like a dragon hatchling (and as All Might stood off to the side watching the chaos, a part of him that he was terrified to acknowledge hummed in pride at his small, strange hatchling).

It was a few seconds later that Katsuki and All Might finally got the location they needed. Both hoped they arrived before All for One managed to carry out any dastardly plans to use Izuku, as he was undoubtedly planning on doing.

Chapter Text

Izuku woke up to a feeling of warmth dancing over his scales, like a sunbeam. He instinctively curled closer to the warmth. A low, rumbling laugh came from above him. Then another blast of warmth. A gust of wind? Did wind laugh?

Cracking an eye open, Izuku realized he was cradled in All for One’s long tail. The dragon’s head rested against his like a pillow and his breath had been warming him up.

Izuku ought to be annoyed about this, but he only felt peace and contentment. That bothered him.

Straining against the tail coils, Izuku tried to stand up. Raising his head, Izuku looked around at the cave. He was back in the cave? When had that happened? He could have sworn that he needed to do something important, but he couldn’t remember.

“Lie still,” All for One said.

Izuku’s whole body collapsed into a boneless heap. It was hard to summon the will to stand up again. He felt so safe and relaxed. And his mind kept returning to the strangeness of that like a tongue prodding at the hole left by a missing tooth.

“Did you do something to me?” Izuku asked. “I haven’t felt this mellow since I accidentally inhaled some potion fumes.”

“It’s completely natural for a tired hatchling to seek out sources of warmth,” All for One said. “Are you hungry? I prepared some food for when you woke up.”

Izuku had a feeling he was being distracted, but then his stomach growled.

Minutes later, Izuku stared down at the meal offered to him before slowly taking a bite. Usually it took him some time to get into the mood to actually eat straight after waking up, but he also knew that if he didn't start eating then it would worry his dad.

He almost froze with how natural that sounded.

Trying to think about what could have happened to cause such a drastic change, he thought about what happened last night.

Or he tried to at least, but thinking about it only made him feel warm and fuzzy without any clear picture on what could have happened.

Maybe he got sick or something?

What kind of illnesses would a hatchling contract?

His dad coaxed him into taking a few more bites of his meal, only to stop when a new scent approached.

It was similar to his dad's scent, but there seemed to be something a little more musky...reminding him of a graveyard and rotting corpses. (Don't ask Izuku how many times he'd slipped into the graveyard to collect ingredients. He still shivered at the memory of Dr. Tsubasa, the resident Necromancer, digging up corpses for whatever army he was trying to build this time. Their silent agreement had been "I will pretend I didn't see you if you don't tell anyone you saw me.")

His dad gave a low rumbling growl as he straightened up, tail moving to hide Izuku from sight.

He carefully peaked over the tail, blinking at the sight of another white dragon, only his scales had a blueish tinge and looked dry and cracked. His hair was a ratty mess while he stared straight at All for One with equally red eyes.

A few seconds of silence before the new dragon shifted into a humanoid form, looking to be almost twenty, as he gave a low bow.

"Father, I heard rumors that you were looking for ingredients?" The dragon asked, revealing himself to be All for One's first hatchling who recently left the nest.

"Ah, Tomura. You are correct. Come, please meet Izuku," his dad said, perking up slightly while pushing Izuku out into the open. "He's why I need the potion."

Tomura said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you, little brother.” His smile looked a little strange, as if he wasn’t used to the expression, but seemed sincere.

Izuku said, “If you’ve brought the ingredients I need for my cure, then you’re the best thing I’ve seen all week.”

“Isn’t your new baby brother adorable?” All for One cooed. “Just look at those sparkling green scales.”

“Yes, very cute,” Tomura said obediently. He exchanged a glance with Izuku that held a great deal of mutual understanding and exasperation.

“I’ll fetch the cauldron while you two get to know each other.” All for One headed for the back of the cave. “I have a self-brewing one. They’re extremely rare, I had to kill—that is to say, I had to be very persuasive to obtain it.”

Tomura and Izuku awkwardly stared at each other. Eventually, Izuku asked, “Where do you live?”

“I set up my cave in the Southern Continent,” Tomura replied.

“That’s quite far away,” Izuku said. “Do you visit often?”

“Let’s just say the distance was part of the appeal.” Tomura coughed into his fist. “But now that you’re here, I’ll be able to visit more often, because I won’t be afraid he won’t let me leave.”

“What was that last part?” Izuku asked.

“Oops, did I say that out loud?” Tomura looked shifty-eyed. “I mean, nothing.”

Izuku added this information to his existing pile of suspicions. This potion had better work.

All for One carried back a giant golden cauldron. A silver spoon floated in the air above it. The spoon dipped into Tomura’s sack, scooped up a jar containing small eyeballs, and dropped it into the cauldron.

“See?” All for One chuckled. “It does all the work for you.”

“Cool,” Izuku breathed, watching as the spoon darted around gathering ingredients. He crept closer to the cauldron, eager for a peek, until a blast of purple smoke drove him backward.

“Don’t get too close, it could be dangerous.” All for One scooped Izuku up with his tail and nestled him close to his side.

“Hey!” Izuku protested.

“Come, now, you’re shortly about to become human again. Can’t you let me enjoy this?” All for One tried to make pleading eyes. On a giant dragon, it looked unnerving.

A wave of warmth washed over Izuku, removing his annoyance. “All right.” Was it just him, or had he become more compliant toward All for One lately?

Before he had time to think too much about it, Tomura shifted back into a dragon and settled on Izuku’s other side, sandwiched him. “It’s nice not to be the baby anymore.” Tomura said with a satisfied rumble.

Izuku’s eyes drifted closed.

He woke up to All for One calling, “The potion is ready!”

In human form again, Tomura held out a silver flask with a murky green liquid.

It smelled like a cross between Kacchan's smelly socks and one of Dr. Tsubasa’s undead minions. But Izuku was desperate. He pinched his nose with one claw and downed the potion in a huge gulp.

The liquid sparked like fire down his throat. He gasped and choked.

“Water?” Tomura offered him a bottle.

Izuku gulped it down gratefully, tears streaming from his eyes.

“My poor hatchling,” All for One nuzzled his head. “Are you all right?”

“I’m okay.” Izuku blinked away his tears. “But…I’m still a dragon.” He looked down at his claws. “Does it have a delayed effect?” he asked, hoping and praying.

“No, it should have worked immediately.” All for One narrowed his eyes, a puff of smoke coming from his nose. “Unless…don’t tell me that you’re magicless?”

“Yes, what difference does that make?” Izuku asked.

“Those who are magicless have a much shorter time limit for the transformation.” All for One sighed. “I’m so sorry, hatchling. You were too late.”

“But—” Tomura looked between All for One and Izuku, then closed his mouth.

Tears filled Izuku’s eyes. “I…I’m stuck like this?”

“My baby.” All for One gathered him close between his paws. “Don’t worry, I’ll look after you.”

A part of Izuku’s mind was screaming. Another part wanted to relax into the comfort of the embrace. He teetered on the edge. Tears overflowed from his eyes.

Tomura watched as his new baby brother seemed to be on the verge of crying. It reminded him of back when he was a young child, not a lick of magic in his veins.

A mage had offered him a deal- the power to fight back against Father.

He shook his head, pushing the memories of his old life down to instead focus on what's happening right now.

Steadily, he approached his dad and little brother. He held a hand out and lightly patted his brother's head, smiling when he finally started to relax.

"Well, look on the bright side. Even if the potion didn't work, it's still the first step in learning how to shift," Tomura began, remembering his own desperation at getting the potion ingredients together.

While Dad had been reluctant with helping him and Tomura knew he was stalling on purpose, he learned that it really was better to be a Dragon than a magicless Human.

As long as he got some personal space.

"Plus you even get a title! Dad must have thought of one to give you by now," he continued, hoping that his little brother will warm up to that idea.

"I was thinking One for All, my brother's old title," All for One admitted quietly.

Tomura said, "See? You'll love it, I know you will!"

All Might stood before a tree, muttering to himself as his hands drew designs in the air.

Although Katsuki had been having a very rough day, he had to admit that watching the Number One Wizard cast magic was damn cool. All Might’s hands moved so fast it seemed like they were leaping through the air.

The tree bent backward to form an archway. The inside glowed.

All Might glanced over his shoulder. “Young Bakugou, aren’t you good friend with Izuku Midoriya?”

Katsuki laughed nervously, remembering countless bullying incidents culminating in two murder attempts. “Yes, sure, Deku is the kind of friend where I would never try to burn him alive! Not even if I didn’t recognize him at the time!”

“What an oddly specific level of friendship,” All Might said. “Can I have one of your hairs? Unicorn hair has strong powers of protection. I can fasten it into a charm that will not only protect you but also those you care about from All for One’s magic. This should allow you to escape with young Midoriya.”

“Take as much hair as you need. Snatch me bald for all I care.” Katsuki tried to shrug, an odd gesture on a unicorn. “At least this stupid transformation will do me some good.”

All Might snagged a hair from Katsuki’s mane and muttered over it. It exploded in a shower of sparks falling harmlessly over the unicorn. “As soon as we enter the portal, you grab young Midoriya and run while I hold All for One off.”

“But I—”

All Might raised a hand. “Do not attempt to fight All for One under any circumstances. This is my condition for bringing you along.”

“Fine,” Katsuki grumbled. Anything was preferable to being left behind in this forest. What if more obnoxious sparkly unicorns with ridiculously long names tried to adopt him?

Izuku restrained a childish sniffle. He had no time to deal with these raging emotions. He needed to think. Was All for One telling the truth or had he been sabotaging the potion to delay? He thought back. All for One had always been coming up with excuses for not looking for ingredients. He’d been irritating and smothering. But he’d also fed Izuku, sheltered him, and protected him from Kacchan’s attack. Really, Izuku ought to trust his dad more—

Izuku blinked. Where had that thought come from? Since when was All for One his father? This transformation was messing with his head! He couldn’t even think straight!

Tomura and All for One were talking. Izuku barely heard them. He had to get All for One to stop touching him, or he’d never be able to think straight. Izuku leapt out of All for One’s claws.

“Is something wrong, hatchling?” All for One asked, reaching for him.

At the same time, a glowing blue portal formed in the air. All Might ran through it. Before Izuku could even fanboy over the Number One Wizard, All Might warped and grew in size, turning into a giant golden dragon.

“Deku!” A rainbow unicorn screamed, charging forward. He scooped Izuku up with his horn and tossed the little hatchling onto his back. Then he charged back toward the portal.

“Where are you going with my baby?” All for One screamed. He charged forward, but All Might jumped in front of him. The two dragons clashed into a blaze of fire and magic.

Tomura warped as well, turning into a silver-blue dragon with a white belly. He lunged for Izuku, but All Might blocked him with a swing of his tail.

The unicorn shot through the portal, carrying Izuku with him.

They came out in a forest. The unicorn slammed to a halt before he ran into a tree, and Izuku flew off his back. He managed to flap his wings just hard enough to stop him from hurting himself when he landed.

“Shitty Deku, did you break anything?” the unicorn shouted.

Izuku blinked. Something about that blond mane and foul mouth seemed very familiar. “Kacchan?”

The unicorn whinnied. “Who’s Kacchan? Never heard of him. I’m just passing unicorn who likes to rescue people.”

All Might staggered through the portal, shifting back to human form as he came through. His hair was smoking and his robes covered in soot. The portal snapped closed behind him. He said, “Excellent job, young Bakugou.”

“Dammit,” said the unicorn who’d just been busted as Katsuki.

Izuku looked between his idol and his childhood friend. “What just happened?”

All Might said, “We came to rescue you from All for One.”

“That’s right!” Katsuki puffed out his chest and pawed the ground. “I heroically saved you! This totally makes up for something we’re not going to talk about.”

Izuku stared at his paws. His head spun. “All for One…he was helping me obtain the potions ingredients to turn back…we only failed because I forgot to tell him I was magicless so my time limit was shorter…”

All Might’s face turned grave. “Young Midoriya, all dragons were originally magicless humans.”

“Yeah, if someone with magic takes the potions, they turn into a unicorn.” Katsuki’s ears drooped. “That’s what happened to me.”

“But…then…” Izuku’s head spun. He leapt up. For the first time, a small puff of flame came from his mouth. “He lied to me! He tricked me so that he could turn me into a dragon permanently. Why would he…why did he act so kind if he was going to…?” To his mortification, Izuku felt tears forming again. He squeezed his eyes shut to force them to stop. He refused to cry in front of All Might.

“Who knows what that twisted bastard wanted?” All Might shook his head. “He might have been trying to gather an army of dragons. The bond between you two allows him to exert control over your emotions. But don’t worry, I have a plan. I believe I can transfer the hatchling bond from All for One to myself.”

“Really? You’d do that for me?” Izuku asked.

“Of course. I’m here to save you.” All Might beamed.

After receiving instructions, Izuku knelt on the ground with his head on his paws. He tried to stay perfectly still, not wanting to disturb the circle that All Might had drawn around him. Yet despite his best efforts, his tail kept lashing with nervousness.

This was it. The moment he’d finally be free of the bond All for One had tricked him into, and All for One himself. Izuku’s heart gave a little throb of anxiety. It hadn’t been all bad. The older dragon had been very kind to him. But he was fairly sure that feeling was just the forced bond talking. The magic was trying to make Izuku depend on his supposed “father.” He refused to fall for it.

Katsuki stood in the trees behind them, watching. Izuku was equally intrigued. It wasn’t every day that a student got to see the Number One Wizard casting. All Might’s hands danced in elaborate patterns, forming sparks in the air.

Then All Might clapped his hands together, and he transformed. The magnificent golden dragon took Izuku’s breath away. Could he ever grow up to be so strong and cool?

All Might extended a claw. “If you’re willing to accept the bond voluntarily, then touch me.”

Finally, someone was giving him a choice. Izuku bounded forward and placed his smaller paw on top of All Might’s.

A warm feeling surged through his chest. He felt peaceful and safe, knowing the dragon in front of him would protect him. There was a tug under his chest that let him feel All Might’s location. More distantly, he also felt All for One.

Izuku asked, “When does the other bond go away?”

All Might tilted his head. “It’s not already gone?”

“No, I can still feel my bond with All for One.”

“Oh, dear,” All Might said.

Those weren’t words anyone wanted to hear from the Number One Wizard.

All for One gave a hiss as he flew out of his cave. Fortunately he could still track his hatchling through the bond, and once he had Izuku in a safe and secure location then he would make All Might pay for his transgressions.

Kidnapping dragon hatchlings was illegal under draconic law–well, everyone did it anyway. But how dare All Might kidnap a hatchling when he pretended to be so self-righteous? The snob wouldn’t even steal a cup for his hoard, and now he’d resorted to hatchling abduction. After All for One tore All Might a new one, then he would drag his scaly butt to the Draconic Council and demand justice! Even if the Draconic Council hated All for One, they might bother to enforce the law for once if he bribed them enough.

It was while he was flying above the forest that he felt it.

The shock was enough to cause him to careen down into at least fifty trees, a landing that he is grateful had no witnesses.

Well almost no witnesses, because a human woman with green hair and eyes had gone wide eyed when she saw the dragon before turning tail and fleeing like the pathetic coward her kind is.

He didn't pay her any mind, instead more focused on the fact that All Might was trying to prey on All for One's hatchling!

Trying to force a parent bond when Izuku already has a parent and didn't need any more!

Exposing his teeth in a snarl, All for One flapped his wings once more and started to beeline straight to where his hatchling was located.

Izuku was his son and he would make sure All Might and no other dragon forget that.

Meanwhile, Inko had received a letter while on one of her travels around the land from her former neighbors- Masaru and Mitsuki- about how Izuku and Katsuki both vanished from their boarding school in the Aldera Region.

Then there were rumors among the Magical Community that a very young dragon with green scales was sighted with All for One, with the assumption that All for One had sired a new son after his eldest had left the nest as far from All for One as possible.

She had a hunch that All for One had somehow kidnapped Izuku and Katsuki before deciding to turn one of them into a dragon.

While no one knows how dragons create hatchlings, she wouldn't be surprised if some of them involved turning anyone into a dragon to build up their forces.

The fact that he had the gall to possibly do this to her son fills her with rage.

Izuku is her son. He belonged to her and no one else and she would not let All for One or anyone else have him.

As she made it to the city after a close encounter with All for One himself, with the fortune that his attention was elsewhere and he didn't care for a human, she went into an alley where she would meet with a dealer who could possibly help her.

"Giran?" Inko asked, watching as the shady dealer stepped out of the shadows.

"You don't want to know the trouble I went through to get this," He said, his hair and scarf singed as he pulled out a vial. "But one Dragon Potion, as promised."

Inko nodded as she handed over the agreed upon payment.

Not even hesitating, she uncapped the bottle and chugged the potion.

"Oh yeah, I should have asked if you have magic because the potion only turns Magicless into Dragons."

She stopped and went wide eyed, not realizing that she had just screwed up by not doing any research. "What do you mean...?"

"Yeah, it turns those with magic into Unicorns and typically Dragons eat Unicorns so...sorry not sorry," Giran said, chuckling as he stepped out of the alley and disappeared into the crowds.

As he left, Inko felt herself become surrounded by smoke. The shift made her want to scream and cry from the pain, but it was over just as quickly as it began.

She looked down at her hooves and gulped. There had to be a way to undo this, right?

Just as the thought hit her, she felt something just outside of the city. A large group of Unicorns.... Herd. Family. Stick to the herd.

Mind going blank, she turned and wandered outside of the city and into the forest where she came across a unicorn with blue fur and a rainbow mane, her eyes literally glittering.

"Oh dear, come come. You don't have to be alone. My name is Celestabellebethable, what's your name?"

Chapter Text

Izuku sneezed.

“Are you ok?” All Might asked, immediately showing his concern for the young hatchling.

“I think so? I guess Da—All for One is still coming after us,” he said, though it felt like he was forgetting something.

Kacchan huffed from where he rested. “Honestly it’s probably a good thing Miss Inko isn’t here, cause I know she would flip out over two dragons trying to parent you.”

Izuku only blinked. “Who’s Inko?”

“Your mom.”

That only confused Izuku further. “But…I don’t have a mom? There’s Dad and Pops,” he said, only to groan when he accidentally called All for One a parental name again.

But it’s not like he could bring himself to hate the dragon who did take him in.

Kacchan stared at Izuku with wide eyes before turning towards All Might. “He forgot!?”

“Ah yes, that’s actually normal for hatchlings. When they form a parent-bond with a dragon they eventually forget their human life and even their human parents. If Izuku were to see his mother again, he wouldn’t recognize her as his mother and just see her as another human. The process goes faster if a hatchling has two dragon parents—” All Might stopped and froze. “By my tail. It’s a co-parent bond.”

“Spit it out!” Katsuki barked. “What’s wrong?”

All Might swallowed, a giant green Adam’s apple bobbing in his draconic throat. “I used a spell strictly for emergencies, to break a bond if a parent mistreats a baby dragon. It only works if the child has negative feelings toward the parent. I just assumed…that you would only feel hatred toward All for One.”

“I do hate him!” Izuku shrieked.

“But apparently that’s not your only emotion. You must also have some degree of attachment and trust for him. Thus, the spell instead made both of us into your parents.” All Might coughed. “This is my fault. I should have been more careful. I don’t blame you one bit. All for One can be very charming.”

“Really?” Izuku grumbled. “I don’t see it.”

Distantly, trees ripped and toppled to the ground. A faint dragon’s roar echoed through the forest. “Izuku! Where are you, Izuku?”

All Might raised his head. “How did he manage to find us so quickly? I know I shielded this place. He’s following the bond. I’ll hold him off.” The massive golden dragon rose up into the air.

Snarling, All for One shot forward and snapped for All Might’s neck. The golden dragon dodged, but the blow left a score of blood down his side.

Izuku screamed and collapsed to the ground. A mass of emotions overwhelmed him: Dads fighting! Scary! Stop! Please, stop!

All Might retaliated with a blast of fire. For some reason, his flames sputtered and died before touching All for One. Torn by irrational feelings of fear, Izuku screamed even louder.

Katsuki leapt in front. “Stop it! You two are hurting him!” The unicorn rocked back. “Whoa, I suddenly feel extremely protective of Deku. Weird. Do we have a bond now too, through All Might?”

All Might shouted, “We can’t fight! We both have a parental bond with him!”

A wave of darkness washed off All for One, but it dissipated before it touched All Might. “My magic can’t harm you?” All for One snarled. “What have you done?”

“It’s a safeguard to protect dragons with bonds to two parents.” All Might landed next to Izuku and nuzzled him. “I’m so sorry.”

Izuku gasped for breath, his senses starting to return.

“If I hurt you, it hurts Izuku. Then I can’t even send Tomura to assassinate you?” All for One recoiled. “How could you create such a twisted bond, All Might? To think that you portray yourself as a savior!”

All Might flinched. “It was an accident.”

“A careless, cruel accident that hurt my beloved child.”

“Hey!” Izuku stood up. “You tricked me into a bond with you, and All Might asked. You don’t get to criticize him.” All for One flinched. Izuku continued, “Yeah, I found out about that! Did you really think I wouldn’t? Now you and All Might are going to have to make this work, because your fight is making my head hurt so much that I’m ready to kill you both.”

“Partial custody? With that thing?” All for One recoiled.

All Might said, “Young Midoriya can live with me, and you can occasionally visit.”

All for One snorted. “How about I live with my hatchling and you occasionally write letters?”

Izuku clutched his head. “Ow! No fighting!”

Katsuki growled, “Can’t you see you’re hurting him?”

All for One eyed Katsuki like a turd on his shoe. “What’s this thing?”

All Might said, “I also have a bond with young Bakugou, which seems to have connected him to young Midoriya.”

All for One recoiled. “You adopted a unicorn? And you haven’t yet died of shame? What a disgrace!”

“You’re the only disgrace in this family,” All Might growled.

All for One fixed Katsuki with a murderous glare. “Unicorn, you are not related to me. You have no connection to me. As far as I’m concerned, you don’t even exist. You are like air.”

Katsuki pawed the ground. “Who wants to be related to an ugly white lizard?”

As promised, All for One pretended that the unicorn hadn’t spoken. “Sadly, it appears this wretched bond will require us both to spend time with my hatchling. Preferably at different times, because I refuse to have you in my cave.”

“The feeling is mutual,” All Might said. “We’ll have to work out split custody.”

Katsuki shouted, “Hey! What about Miss Inko? Izuku is her son!”

Izuku blinked. “I don’t have a mom.”

“Of course you do,” Katsuki said. “Everyone has a mother.”

“Yes, but mine is…” Izuku wanted to say dead, but he had no memories of his mother dying. He had no memories of her being alive, either. “I have a mom?”

Katsuki said, “Yes, she’s been traveling the world for her job while you were at boarding school.”

A tear trickled down Izuku’s cheek. “I don’t remember her.” But he felt a gap inside him. Unbearable sadness rose up.

“Oh, no.” All Might shook his head. “The hatchling bond pushes out memories of previous parents, supposedly for the sake of smoother bonding with the draconic parent.” He glared at All for One. “Especially if someone doesn’t use magic to prevent that from happening.”

Katsuki stared at Izuku. “You really forgot Miss Inko?”

Izuku shuddered. He tried to dig up a single memory. Or even a hole where memories might be missing. But he felt nothing. “This is all your fault!” he screamed at All for One.

All for One took a step backwards. “It’s a natural part of the transformation. I didn’t anything.”

“You didn’t do anything to stop it either.” All Might glared. “I think you should leave. You’re upsetting him. We’ll settle our custody agreement from a distance, since that’s the only way we can tolerate each other’s presence.”

All for One did not look like a happy dragon. Steam rose from his nostrils and his tail lashed. However, he left. With one last demand that All Might contact him to discuss custody arrangements as soon as possible, the massive dragon took to the sky and faded off into the distance.

“Huh,” All Might said.

“What do you mean by that?” Katsuki demanded. “Do you think he’ll fly back and attack us from behind?” The unicorn spun around in a circle, hooves clattering nervously.

“No, I think he was sincere,” All Might said. “How strange. I never thought All for One would back off for fear of hurting another person. He doesn’t have enough empathy for that.” All Might cast Izuku a considering look. “He must be very attached to you.”

Izuku didn’t have the energy to care about All for One. He had greater priorities. “Where is my mom? I have to find her! She must be worried sick about me!” Izuku might not remember his mother, but he had a mother, and that changed everything.

Reacting to the hatchling’s distress, All Might started to curve a tail around him. Izuku winced.

All Might leapt backward, bashing over several trees with his bulk. “Oh, no. As long as I’m at odds with All for One, my touch hurts you, too. I really am going to have to make peace with that arrogant lizard as soon as possible.” The golden dragon did not look the slightest bit happy about this. “I have a unicorn friend named Shouta Aizawa. He has a strong information network among magical creatures. I’ll ask for his help finding news of your mother, Young Midoriya.”

“Thank you,” Izuku croaked, lowering his head to the ground to combat his headache.

“Young Bakugou, please stay with him. I’ll return soon.” All Might’s tone gentled. “I’ll find your mother. I promise.”

All Might was true to his word. Within the hour, he had news that Inko Midoriya had been transformed into a unicorn and kidnapped. All Might opened a portal to Inko’s location and let them through, carefully avoiding touching Izuku. Izuku hopped through the portal with Katsuki at his side. All Might stood behind them, careful not to get too close but ready to help rescue Inko. He’d told Izuku all about the attempted foal-napping of Katsuki.

A gaggle of unicorns stood together around a pool, chatting. Upon seeing a unicorn with rainbow hair, Katsuki screamed and pointed, “You!”

Celestabellebethabelle gasped. “Lady Inko! The kidnapping dragon is here with your very violent son.”

A small green unicorn stepped through the crowd. From the way the other unicorns parted before her, she seemed to command their respect. If this was “Lady Inko” then did that make her Izuku’s mother? Pawing the ground, she screamed, “Charge!”

The unicorns leapt on All Might, pummeling him with their hooves and stabbing with their horns. It was like watching kittens attack an elephant. Their hooves bounced off and at least one horn got bent. Glittering magic danced around the unicorns, but it was also deflected by All Might’s shields.

All Might bellowed, “Ladies, if you would calm down and listen to me, this is all a misunderstanding. Ow!” He winced as a horn caught him in the ear. Standing up and spreading his wings, he shook the unicorns off him. They fell in a spray of glitter.

“Retrieve the foal!” Celestabellebethabelle started toward Katsuki, but he lowered his horn threateningly, then she backed away.

“This is all a misunderstanding.” Izuku ran toward Inko. “I haven’t been kidnapped, Mom! I’ll explain everything.”

Inko knocked Izuku to the ground and then put her horn at his throat. “Hand over my son or the dragon hatchling gets it!”

Everyone in the clearing froze. “Mom?” Izuku asked weakly. “Uh, do you think that Kacchan is your son?” It made sense if Inko had lost her memories too. Only one of them looked like a unicorn foal, and it wasn’t Izuku.

Inko glared. “Silence! I hate dragons. One of them stole my beloved child from me, even if I can’t remember him.” Her voice twisted as if in pain and her hooves shook on the ground.

Celestabellebethabelle gestured with her hoof. “It was the evil dragon All Might, definitely! He’s the kidnapper! He savaged me during my rescue attempt.”

Katsuki protested, “Hey, I’m the one who beat you up, and I’m proud of it.” He slowly approached Inko. “Miss, you’re currently stepping on your son.”

Inko sniffed the air around Katsuki. “You don’t smell like my foal. You can leave.” She looked down at Izuku. “I don’t see how I could be related to a dragon…”

Izuku didn’t know how to make her believe him without his memories. This unicorn was his mother? His own instincts told him that it wasn’t possible. Her magic smelled leafy, sparkly, and entirely foreign to a dragon. But that was his instincts talking. Once he had been human, and so had this woman in front of him.

Looking down at him, Inko muttered, “Those eyes. I remember those eyes. My baby’s eyes.” She sniffed the air. Her eyes widened. She stepped off him. “My baby! I looked for you so hard, but you found me first.”

Just like that, Izuku knew. His mother still remembered him on some level, even after her transformation. His eyes welled up with tears. “That’s me. Mom, uh…I’m your son. From back when you were human.”

Inko made a sound between a shriek and a high-pitched whinny. Then she lunged at him. For a moment Izuku thought he was about to be attacked again. Instead she nuzzled him all over his scales.

Izuku couldn’t remember anything, but he couldn’t help tearing up at her display of affection. A dragon couldn’t exactly hug a unicorn, but he buried his nose in her mane. “Mom, All Might didn’t kidnap me. That was a different dragon. All Might rescued me and helped me find you again.”

Celestabellebethabelle said, “A dragon son is very irregular, but compared to that bad-tempered brute—” she pointed her nose at Katsuki “—you traded up.”

“Don’t be rude,” Inko said. “We did just attack them unjustly.” She lowered her horn at All Might. “I’m sorry. You apologize, too.”

“I’m sorry,” Celestabellebethabelle mumbled reluctantly.

“Very good,” Inko said warmly. Celestabellebethabelle perked up.

“No harm done,” All Might said, shaking glitter off his snout.

Izuku was a little impressed that his mother had taken charge so fast. “Mom, what should we do now? I don’t know if I’ll ever remember you.” He started sobbing against his will. “But maybe we can work on rebuilding our bond slowly.”

“Yes, please.” Inko sniffled, then sobbed out tears made of rainbows and glitter.

That got Izuku crying even harder until they’d flooded the clearing and sent all the other unicorns running away.

Izuku’s first family dinner was a massive picnic. They’d picked a clearing large enough to accommodate both unicorns and dragons. A huge blanket spread out over the grass.

Based on the custody agreement, Izuku spent a third of his time with All for One, a third with All Might, and a third with Inko. However, today his dads had promised to teach him how to become human again for the first time. Izuku would be able to return to school, assuming it all went well. Past encounters between his parents had gone poorly. All Might and All for One hated each other. Inko blamed them both for stealing her child. Especially All for One, who kept getting glitter bombs in his nest.

Izuku really wanted this dinner to be a success, because it would be much easier for him to go to school and spend his weekends with his family if they could all meet up for meals without trying to murder each other. He still got nasty headaches whenever his dads bit, clawed, or otherwise drew the other’s blood.

Tomura crouched next to a spit, roasting meat with his fire breath. Next to him, Inko’s horn levitated as she added spices to the meat.

All for One and All Might were setting the table, except they seemed to have turned it into a contest. All Might put down a golden plate, so All for One added a giant goblet encrusted with rubies and emeralds, then All Might started using magic to gild the napkins.

Izuku’s dragon instincts relaxed, feeling a positive feeling from watching his dads work together (however reluctantly.) When they got along, it made him feel safer. Even if he knew it was merely a hatchling impulse, he still relaxed on the grass and sighed contentedly.

All Might sneered. “I recognize that goblet. You stole it from the Bat Wizard after burning down his tower!”

“Still holding onto grudges from centuries ago.” All for One sighed.

“That was last year!”

“I see you brought out your prize cup from the last Battle Mage tournament.” All for One nudged the silver cup with his snout. “Do you think they still would have given it to you if they knew you were a dragon? Are you ashamed of your kind? Or afraid your adoring fans would turn on you?”

“Dragons like you make people distrust all of us,” All Might growled.

“Then you could come out publicly as a dragon, but no, you’d rather hide your identity like a coward. You’re a sellout.”

As the two continued to bicker, Izuku felt another wave of relaxation. Huh, his dragon instincts were very optimistic about the so-called cooperation between his dads. Apparently just having them in the same place without physically fighting helped.

Katsuki nudged Izuku’s side with his horn. “I can’t wait to be human again! Finally we’ll have hands!”

Izuku laughed. “Yeah, I’ve missed hands.”

Katsuki lowered his horn and nudged the ground. “So, uh, about what happened when I first saw you…I didn’t realize it was you…”

Izuku blinked. “What are you talking about?”

“Oh, good, you’ve already forgotten.” Katsuki whinnied nervously. “Never mind!”

On the other side of the clearing, All Might said, “I’ve put up wanted posters for the vile brute who attacked our hatchling.”

All for One snorted. “I’ve assigned all my spies to look for the human who tried to kill *my* hatchling.”

“Oh, that,” Izuku said. He turned to look at Katsuki, who had hidden his face in shame. “Are they talking about back when I first transformed into a dragon and you tried to kill me?”

Katsuki’s ears flicked back. “Kill is a very strong word. You might have survived the burning and impaling.”

Izuku said, “You should have just told All Might the truth. He would cut a child more slack. Then he wouldn’t be sticking up wanted posters looking for you, and he wouldn’t have told All for One.”

Meanwhile, All Might said, “I hate you, but I’ll work with you long enough to find the murderer before he can harm more hatchlings.”

All for One said, “A truce, then, at least until we get our revenge.”

Katsuki lowered his voice. “Please don’t tell them! Please! I’ll let you take any ingredients you want from my laboratory.”

Izuku grinned, baring his full set of dragon teeth. Katsuki had a very well-stocked laboratory. Furthermore, it was in Izuku’s best interests to maintain the All for One-All Might truce. “Deal.”