Chapter Text
Todoroki Shouto became friends with Midoriya Izuku in his first year of high school.
In his second year, they got into a relationship. In their third, they graduated with a kiss and a squeal from Uraraka who did the same to her girlfriend, Tsu.
In his third year of being a hero, and celebrating his boyfriend’s rise to top ten, they got engaged.
Five years later, they were happily married and Izuku was now number one, with Equilibrium Hero: Duality right behind Explosion Hero: Dynamight, who begrudgingly (but also somewhat contentedly) followed Deku. Eri was his niece essentially, because which one of his Former Problem Class A hadn’t he adopted? Well, Mineta had been switched to Gen Ed and Shinsou had taken his place, and he was later expelled when Midnight caught him looking up a girl’s skirt in between classes.
Yeah, he didn’t count. Eri was in her second year at UA, and Kouta was in his first. They were both friends, and Kouta loved Izuku in the way Izuku had All Might as a middle schooler.
Yagi Toshinori was an interesting father in law. He was energetic, and Yagi Inko (Midoriya was now a nickname because of her look rather than an actual name. She always introduced herself as Yagi with a smile.) had somehow managed to reign him in when he wanted to buy Izuku an unreasonably expensive gift.
Shouto did, with Endeavor’s card mostly out of spite for the man. It's also because he knew Izuku would love the product itself. It was a large poster of All Might that, when held at the right angle, looked like Yagi, still known as All Might to the world.
Izuku hung it up immediately in his room, which was shared by Shouto, and the Todoriya family was happy.
Izuku’d come back with a few bruises, Shouto would dress them and then they’d ensure he wasn’t injured.
Eri came over every weekend, and they usually sat and watched dumb American movies (Izuku loved them. He was such a westernabo. He’s pretty sure he got it from All Might.) and train occasionally, usually of Eri found something new she wanted to try with a new opponent or if she wanted to learn new techniques.
Eri brought Kouta one day, unaware they’d might, and Izuku just greeted him casually while Kouta smiled and waved.
They’d explained how he’d saved him during the training camp, and it made sense to Eri.
She’d laughed, surprised she hadn’t realized it sooner because he had one of the earliest autographs from Deku, and she did too.
They’d all eaten dinner together that night, laughing and poking fun at each other while Kouta’s red sneakers sat next to Izuku’s.
But then…
Then it happened. Izuku, tears in his eyes, pushed Shouto away. He smiled at him, not his smile he wore for civilians, but a smile that let Shouto know he was opening himself up.
The villain shot a beam at him, which somehow didn’t hurt him, and Todoriya Izuku was down.
Todoroki Shouto was blank, mild empty except for one phrase.
He’s alive, he’s pretending, he’s waiting for the villain to get close so he can land a blow.
He chanted it like a mantra and thought the black edges at his vision were from hyperventilating.
The villain, who looked rather like a gorilla, had lifted him easily and threw him against the rock until Shouto was sure Toga would be overjoyed at the sheer amount of blood that poured out of his skull and onto that rock.
He fixated on that spot of blood, not even noticing the charge at him until everything was white.
Ah, he thought, Is this the afterlife? At least I’m with Zuku.
But it wasn’t. Shouto should have known death was a mercy for him, he wouldn’t receive.
He silenced his alarm and sat groggily up on the futon, looking over and thinking it was a bad dream, expecting to see his husband snoring.
He was met with a blank wall. It was unnerving, considering the hero posters and painting Izuku placed and painted right onto the walls.
”It’s important to have a hobby that doesn’t have to do with hero work,”he’d said, deliberate brush strokes making up a nice stream with a log bridge Shouto was sure he’d seen around Musutafu before. “This is mine. You have yours without even realizing it. You garden, every night after patrol you check on them and make sure they aren’t dry or over watered.”
But now, nothing was there. No husband, no painting, no plants, no posters.
Nothing except for a wall.
A familiar wall, to be exact. One he remembered from his childhood, one that was in his childhood room.
Further examination of the room proved that it was in its state from when he was about 14. The scorch mark on the door was missing, however the one by his mirror was there.
He sighed at sat up, walking towards the dresser. His hair was shorter than it had been when Izuku…
He shook his head, dispelling the thoughts before he could think about it too much.
First thing’s first, investigate. Form a hypothesis.
Based off the room around him, and its state, he was probably in the past. But why?
Izuku would probably know.
(Izuku wasn’t here, his mind supplied and you couldn’t save him.)
He stepped out, socks muffling his footsteps against the hard wooden floor. He heard his sister in the kitchen, preparing breakfast.
Once he entered, he saw Natsuo sitting over the table with a bowl he was angrily scooping food out of.
Okay, that helped place the time. After Touya… But around the end of his third year of middle school.
He took a breath and put on an apathetic face as he pulled out the (healthy, but annoying) junk his father made him eat.
He’d prefer cold soba, or even katsudon if Izuku or Inko made it. Inko made the best katsudon, he understood why it was Izuku’s favorite. He’d gotten her recipe, so now he was able to make it just as good.
But he couldn’t, not yet. Not until UA, when he was able to see him again.
Even then, he’d have to wait until Heights Alliance was built, that way they’d be together.
Aizawa did have overprotective tendencies though… Once he became Principal following Nedzu’s retirement, he changed the exams to make it fair for examiners with non-physical Quirks, such as one underground teacher with purple hair.
For example, the robots were kept, however there were also redemption chances for non-physical or the Quirkless, such as finding an object and keeping it on your person so that the robot would not achieve it.
It was balanced out rather nicely, he thought. Once he realized he’d gone from Point A to Point D in his thoughts, he shook himself as he headed out the door for his private school.
Another day of boring class, although this one would be for a different reason than normal.
Staring up at the large tortoise plowing through the less well-known area of the city, Shouto decided to stay around the area in case he was need in a pinch.
While he cringed at the thought, Endeavor’s reputation could get him out of trouble in case he wasn’t in the slim zone between self-defense and vigilantism.
It was then, he noted, a green-haired boy with a black uniform a little too close to the villain’s range for his liking.
And really, why didn’t he expect it? After all, Izuku had always been eager to analyze hero fights while in their second year if he hadn’t been able to help, wether it be for reasons of not having his costume and braces, or that he simply wasn’t needed when he only had his Provisional Licence.
Why would anything be different now?
Releasing a thin amount of ice beneath his feet, thin enough it’s melt before someone would notice, he slid towards him.
With his left foot, he prepared to shoot a mini-glacier should he decide that no, he wasn’t close enough for the best analysis he could do.
He was glad he wore a hoodie right now, considering he currently was wearing the hood to conceal his identifiable two-toned hair. Otherwise, with Izuku’s impeccable memory, he’d put two and two together some day.
However, his scar was still there, so he just hid his face from the greenet’s view.
It was rather tame, considering the fight with Shigaraki they’d had before their second year. Eri’d been forced to rewind Zuku’s arms due to the sheer amount of damage he’d done to them.
Thankfully with her training, she’d managed to place him right before the fight and with a little working out he’d been able to activate everything he had during the fight.
Even if only for short bursts of time, other than done specific skill.
And, of course while Shouto had gone soft at the mummering of his future husband’s hypnotically relaxing tone, the villain had gotten close enough to blow Izuku and Shouto away with a stomp, which sent waves through the concrete.
Gritting his teeth, Shouto sent an ice ramp behind him and Izuku which went up before carrying him away to a safer rooftop.
Izuku blinked when he saw their location, and Shouto couldn’t help but let his soft smile leak through his apathetic mask, if only for a moment.
“There’s stairs towards the bottom floor of the building.” He said as he melted the ice ramp at boiling point, to avoid water falling onto onlookers.
He blinked again before burrowing into himself slightly, nodding as he headed toward the stairs.
Shouto caught up with him quickly, and he matched his pace on the steps.
“So,” he began, glancing towards him slightly, “what’s your name?”
“M-Midoriya Izuku…” he haunched over himself. Shouto frowned, over ever so visible if you haven’t known him well.
He was glad Izuku had entrusted him with the truth of One for All, and how he’d been Quirkless until the day of the Entrance Exam for UA, so Shouto completely understood his behavior.
“I’m Shouto, nice to meet you.” He decided in that moment, screw it he’d already spoken to him and used his Quirk in front of him, why wouldn’t he notice him, and looked up at him, eyes soft and face warm with a smile.
Izuku hadn’t seen it yet, considering he’d been glancing at the floor. But when he did look up,the sincerity of the expression was comforting.
“Anyways,want to talk for a bit?” He asked, having been getting closer to the bottom of the building.
Izuku was rightfully suspicious, but he nodded anyways.
Having arrived at the bottom of the stairs, Shouto exited the abandoned building and sat in the front steps next to Izu-Midoriya, he didn’t have the right to call him Izuku yet.
Slowly, as their small conversation of getting to know each other progressed, Izuku had loosened up.
Then, when Shouto had noticed that the villain had been apprehended, he stood up and offered a hand to him.
With the sun from behind him, he must have looked like some angel or something to Izuku, considering that was how Izuku had often called him fondly.
Izuku’s eyes twinkled, and he gripped Shouto’s hand and pulled himself up. Izuku was about to say goodbye, when Shouto blurted out something Izuku had done last time, in the original timeline.
“Can I have your number?”