Chapter Text
It was just another secret Izuku had to keep, he could do that. Of course, this secret had a whole new group of people that knew about it, so keeping track of just who knew what was somewhat of a headache, but he could do it. He had to.
It absolutely wasn’t stressful having to keep so many secrets either. At least, that's what he tried to tell himself.
The newest secret was innocent enough. It wasn’t about how he used to be quirkless, it wasn’t about how Kacchan used to be the worst of all the bullies, it wasn’t being trained by All Might, it wasn’t getting a quirk from All Might, it wasn’t One for All or its history, it wasn’t his future starring role in a war. No, the newest secret was innocent.
His hair was turning white.
Though, by saying turning, it would indicate that he still had any green left, which wasn’t the case. His hair WAS white. It started slow, with a single root. A strange question to his mom, tears, and then like a train wreck, it happened all at once. Now he and his mother had a new tradition on Friday’s.
Dying the roots of his hair back to green in the sink the second he walked in the door.
Because as innocent as his new secret was, it was only a small question away from the larger secret he was trying not to think about. One that Izuku hadn’t known until the first white hair and one he honestly wished he never knew at all.
Turns out his mom had really poor taste in men and that it’s difficult to be a father when you lead an entire villain organization.
It was hard to look at All Might after Izuku learned that he was the son of All Might’s greatest foe, and by the extension of One for All, Izuku’s greatest foe too.
He was proud of himself for only throwing up three times after learning about it.
Since of course, fate liked to play with Izuku’s life like a bad day-time drama, he had gotten his father’s awful genes of going prematurely white. Genetics, hormonal changes, quirk side effects, there were so many different names for how Izuku woke up with green hair one day and three months later with white hair. Of course, researching it online, Maria Antoinette syndrome was the most favored name for his sudden need of hair dye.
He knew eventually, he’d have to include someone else on his newest secret, but he was hoping it would never come to that. Then, UA had to announce that no one was allowed to leave campus for a month, due to mandatory drills over the weekends. People were bummed, but Izuku was terrified. He wouldn’t last a month, he and his mom both knew that. He also couldn’t do it himself, he was both terrible at it, and he was sure that the communal bathroom they all shared wasn’t the best place. Everyone always knew when Kirishima touched up his roots, the sink would be stained red for days afterwards.
As Izuku stood adjusting his new headband for the 100th time, making sure that his very white and very obvious roots weren’t peeking out from underneath, he considered asking Kirishima to help, but that meant Kacchan would find out too.
That was part of a worst case scenario that Izuku didn’t want to think about. Kacchan and All Might could never know. If they saw white, they’d ask too many questions and Izuku would spill everything. His quirk would be taken, he’d lose everything, and there would be nothing he could do to stop it.
Instead, he tried to steer clear of 2-A altogether, which is how he found himself staying after English with shaky hands, and another adjustment to his headband.
“Mic-Sensei, can I ask you a strange question? One that would just stay between us?” Izuku asked his English teacher after everyone had left. The usually boisterous blonde was one of Izuku’s two favorite teachers, and someone he’d come to trust through his first and second year at UA.
“Sure, Lil Listener, ask away!” Mic-Sensei told him with a smile. One on one interactions with the hero were always a little different than when he was in class. He’d usually tone down the showmanship and it always gave Izuku a look into what he acted like in his personal life.
It never failed to make Izuku feel special.
“Do you by chance, dye your hair?” Izuku questioned, hopeful and wishful that blonde wasn’t his natural color. Izuku had never wished for someone to have different colored hair so much in his life.
Well, aside from himself.
“Nope! It’s all natural.” Instantly, Izuku’s shoulders dropped and his eyes fell to the floor. He wasn’t sure who else he could ask and he really didn’t want to ask Kirishima. He began forming plans in his head on how he’d once again try himself, when a hand waved in his vision. “Why did you want to know if I dyed my hair?” Mic-Sensei asked after getting his attention back.
“Oh, no reason. It’s nice. Your hair. That’s all. Well, I better go.” Izuku tried his best to lie, but even he cringed at his own poor attempt. As he stepped toward the door the hero spoke again.
“But, I’m pretty good at dyeing other people's hair.” Mic-Sensei offered and Izuku turned his head back and darted back to his place in front of his teacher so fast, he barely noticed the green lightning from his quirk surrounding him.
“Can you help me? It’s kind of an emergency, but it’s also a secret.” He begged. Mic-Sensei gave him a happy amused smile, not understanding the nature of Izuku’s frantic behavior and probably related it to excitement.
“Sure, Lil Listener! Hair emergencies are my right up my alley! What color are you wanting to go?” Izuku gripped his backpack straps tighter for a moment.
“Promise me, you won’t tell anyone.” He tried to muster up all the desperation he felt into one expression and he hoped by the confusion that passed over the other man’s face, it came through. Mic-Sensei nodded his head slowly, eyebrows still bunch together, and Izuku looked back to the door, verifying no one was there before taking his headband off, letting his hair fall back into his face, and the white roots poking out on the top of his head show. “I need to dye my roots back to green.” He whispered.
“How long have you been dyeing your hair green?” Mic-Sensei questioned, reaching out his hand to gently card through Izuku’s hair, looking over all the white roots.
“About 6 months. It started happening shortly after I turned 16.” At this point, Izuku was praying that the next stray quirk he was hit with was a permanent hair dye quirk so at least then he could justify easily why he no longer shared his mother’s green hair.
“6 months? Did something happen? Are you okay? Should I be worried?” Mic-Sensei started rattling off questions that Izuku wasn’t prepared to answer in the short lunch period he had. Was he okay? Well that was a loaded question.
Well physically I’m fine, but I found out my father is a supervillain and I can’t talk to anyone but my mom about it. Only she doesn’t know a lot of the detail and I really want to talk about the implications of me having the quirk my father helped create and then started a 200 years long war over. Since I have no one to do that with, I’m a tad stressed out.
Only, he couldn’t say any of that.
“Can you please help me dye it tonight? It’s getting harder and harder to justify why I won’t take off this hairband to everyone. I think Kacchan is one glance away from blowing it up.” Izuku pled. Mic-Sensei nodded his head in understanding and gave a gentle smile.
“Bring your dye to the teacher dorms tonight at 7 and I’ll help you.” Izuku smiled widely as he felt a bit of worry slip off his chest. He could definitely make it to 7.
“Thank you so much Mic-Sensei!” He cried out. He put back on the hair band and pushed his hair back to cover up the roots once again before running out of the room and off to finish the rest of his day.
At 6:59pm he stood at the door that read, ‘Yamada, Hizashi’ with his gym bag. In the bag, he had his hair dye, a towel, and an old shirt he didn’t care if he ruined. He only knocked three times before the door was opened and Mic-Sensei greeted him with a wide smile.
It took a moment for Izuku to register the blonde was his teacher, as he was no longer in his hero uniform and instead a pair of black sweatpants and a ‘Hands up Radio’ shirt with what looked like a pair of prescription glasses and his hair pulled back into a loose bun.
“Hey, Little Listener! Come on in. Shota just went on patrol at 6pm, so we have the place to ourselves.” Izuku followed him in as he spoke but seemed to freeze at the name Shota.
Shota… Aizawa?
Izuku’s homeroom teacher Shota Aizawa?
While Aizawa-Sensei was the other of Izuku’s favorite teachers and a man he trusted and respected, but one he still very much wanted to keep his secrets from. Izuku was terrified that Aizawa-Sensei wouldn’t forgive him for keeping so many secrets, and for being the son of a man who created a monster that almost killed him.
“Aizawa-Sensei, is your…?” Izuku trailed off slightly, hoping Mic-Sensei would fill in the blanks. The teacher turned around and gave a sheepish smile.
“We’re married!” As if reading the look of panic that crossed Izuku’s face Mic-Sensei held his hands up. “Don’t worry, I didn’t tell him you were coming. I said I’d keep it a secret. Also, no Sensei outside of school hours.” Izuku nodding in understanding, feeling slightly better, but also somehow worse because he’d asked Mic to keep a secret from his husband. “Come on, Little Listener, let’s get you back to green.”
Izuku followed Mic into a bathroom right off the living room that already had a chair placed in the middle with towels on the counter.
“I brought a shirt with me.” Izuku said reaching into his bag to pull out his own towel, shirt, and dye.
“You change into that, just let me know when I can come back in.” Izuku followed his instructions, taking off his regular around the dorm shirt to put on the old black one. He thought about wearing it to his teachers dorm, but he’d never worn it around the dorm before, and he was already paranoid enough that people were watching his strange behaviors.
After he changed, he called Mic to come back in while he wet one of the corners of his towel and began to scrub at his eyebrows.
“Your eyebrows are white!” Mic announced surprised. Izuku looked up and stared at his teacher in the mirror, one white eyebrow showing as he paused at scrubbing the other. He saw the blush rise to his cheeks as he gave a jerky nod before going back to scrubbing the other.
“They only last about a week and a half dyed. I fill them in with green eyeliner and eyeshadow. It seems to work the best.” He admitted as he finished scrubbing the mixture out. He was left with white eyebrows that sat on red raw flesh. Mic nodded in understanding and the pair began to prepare for the dyeing session.
Izuku laid a towel on the back of the chair, one on the floor, and then sat on the chair. Hairband wrapped around one of his hands like a vise grip.
Mic had the dye mixed, gloves pulled on, and had just put the first dot of dye on Izuku’s scalp when fate decided once again to have a laugh at Izuku’s expense.
Mic’s front door opened.
Both of them froze before Mic whipped his head to the door and then back to Izuku, lifting a single finger to his mouth before exiting the bathroom quickly. Izuku sat there frozen, straining his ears as best as he could to hear what was happening.
“Sho, what are you doing home? What are you covered in?” Mic asked. Izuku heard a loan groan that he was accustomed to hearing in class.
“I’m home because I clearly need a shower, and there was a kid who lost control of their quirk at the park. They could put objects into perpetual motion, but they seem to have the same draw back as Uraraka does.” Aizawa told Mic, clearly disgusted. Izuku shuddered at the thought of what Aizawa was covered in but also panicked at the fact Aizawa would need a shower. In a bathroom. Where Izuku was hiding.
“Oh Sho, that’s awful! Use our bathroom. I’ll put your clothes in the wash.” Mic told him quickly.
“Why do you have those gloves on?” Izuku wished that his teacher for once would be unobservant.
“Oh these? I was about to put a new oil in my hair. Supposed to make it really strong.” Mic forced a laugh and Izuku almost cried with relief that there were pro heroes out there that lied just as poorly as he did.
“Hizashi.” There was an uncomfortable pause and Izuku wished he could have seen what was happening. “Why are Midoriya’s shoes by the door?” Izuku felt his whole world freeze as he looked at his socked feet. There were footsteps and Mic’s begging Aizawa to stop before the bathroom door opened and Aizawa stood in a very dirty uniform looking at Izuku’s terrified face, green hair dye on the counter, and back to the white in his hair. “I’m going to take a shower and then we’re all going to have a chat.” Without waiting for anyone to respond, Aizawa disappeared. Mic and Izuku stood there quietly until the sound of running water started.
“Let me go put his uniform in the wash, I’ll be right back.” Mic promised, his tone soft and reserved, and his smile completely lost.
They were mostly done with Izuku’s hair, when Aizawa showed back up in the bathroom. He walked in and sat on the closed toilet, staring at both Mic and Izuku.
“Why are you dyeing your hair green, Midoriya?” Aizawa asked. Izuku bit his lip and tried to think of an excuse that wouldn’t bring more questions up.
“I like green hair.” Izuku whispered. Green hair was like his mother and his mother was good. Green hair meant good. Silence once again filled the bathroom and Izuku took a moment to observe Aizawa in a pair of pink sweatpants and a band tee from a group Izuku had never heard of before.
“And why wasn’t I told by either of you that this hair dyeing session would be taking place here?” Aizawa questioned, though his voice was gruff, Izuku didn’t hear any anger, mostly just curiosity.
“I asked Mic to keep it a secret.” Before anyone could reply, Mic tapped on Izuku’s shoulder.
“I know eyebrows are a little more tricky, does the dye have to stay on as long as it does for your hair?” Izuku shook his head, ignoring the way Aizawa stared at his white eyebrows.
“No, they only need about ten minutes.” Mic nodded his head and took off the gloves, reaching over to start a timer on the counter.
“Midoriya, what’s going on?” Aizawa questioned him. Izuku felt tears rising in his eyes that he tried to keep at bay. Before shaking his head.
“I can’t tell you. It’ll lead to questions and questions will lead to secrets and no one knows all of the secrets. If you find out, I’ll get in trouble, I’ll get thrown out of the hero course, of UA, I’ll never be a hero and my family will be in danger. I can’t do that, I can’t tell anyone.” His voice started to become frantic as he spoke faster and faster. “I can’t look into it either, because then people will know. But, we have a right to know! Did he cheat on my mom? Is history repeating itself? Did he plan this whole thing out? Am I a pawn, was she?” Strong hands gripped his shoulders, pulling him from his thoughts and broken mumbles. Aizawa’s worried eyes were focused on his and Izuku couldn’t help the tears. “I’m sorry, I’ve just been stressed. We couldn’t go home the last few weekends, so my mom couldn’t help me dye my hair, and I’ve been so worried about people finding out. I’m sorry.” He cried, the stress pouring out of his eyes.
Mic and Aizawa both quickly began trying to help him calm down, help him regulate his breathing. It took a few minutes, but eventually Izuku was able to uncurl from himself and slow down the tears.
“Izuku, I need you to look at me.” At the mention of his first name, Izuku raised his head to look up at his teacher. The teacher who had to risk his life because his father was a monster. “I’m not going to expel you. Unless you’re actively trying to bring down UA or committing crimes, there’s nothing you can say that will make me expel you. Now, it sounds like you’re keeping several secrets. Is there anyone that knows these secrets?”
“There are all split up amongst different groups of people.” Izuku told them making Mic cringe.
“That sounds really difficult to keep track of. Is there anyone you can tell them all too?” Mic asked and Izuku shook his head in response. “What about All Might? We all know how close with him you are, I’m sure he knows one or two already. Can you tell him the others?” Izuku felt his eyes go wide and he shook frantically.
“Anyone but him. He can never know.” There was a finality to Izuku’s voice that seemed to surprise everyone in the room. Aizawa shot a glance to Mic and gave a nod.
“Zashi and I are pretty good secret keepers. If you need someone to tell, then tell us. We won’t judge you.” Before he could refuse, the timer went off, and Mic grabbed the dye once again to lightly apply it to his eyebrows.
He did need people. He needed people he could talk to that wouldn’t judge him. That he could freak out to. That could help him with the theories about certain white haired villains that were close to his father, that he refused to let himself think about on a normal day.
“It’s a lot.” Izuku finally told them. Mic gave him a small smile, resetting the timer once again.
“I’m not going back on patrol and Zashi is off tonight. We have time.” Aizawa told him and Izuku nodded.
Thirty minutes later, he sat on his teachers couch with his freshly green hair that made him feel far more comfortable than he’d felt in weeks.
“There are going to be a lot of parts of the story that don’t make sense until they all do at once. So just, please wait until the end to ask questions.” He waited for a nod from both of his teachers before he took a deep breath and began. “My mom married a man who worked off and on in America and they had me. My dad would come back a few times a year, but he never stayed long. Always had to return to America. He had white hair, he told my mom that it went white around 16, same with his father, and his little brother. That’s when I went white too. It’s a family thing apparently. I’d never met any of the other men in the family, so it had always been me and my mom. Well, and the Bakugou’s. My mom and Kacchan’s mom are best friends, so he and I have known each other since we were born. We used to talk about being hero partners together, but then he got his quirk, and I never did. When I was five, mom took me to the doctor and they diagnosed me as quirkless. Double joint in my pinky toe and everything.” He paused briefly to give everyone in the room a moment to digest that. “Then, Kacchan didn’t want to be hero partners anymore. Instead, he became a bully. When I was 8, my dad stopped coming back. For some reason, my mom just stopped talking about him. All the pictures were taken down, and one of the only times she ever yelled at me was when I’d ask about him. So, I stopped asking. Fast forward to when I was 13. The bullying was worse, everything was worse. I had scars from bullies that I had to keep secret. One day Kacchan told me to take a swan dive off the roof, so fearful of him using his quirk on me once again, I took a different route home. I was attacked by the sludge monster and All Might saved me. A very poor decision later, we were on the roof where I learned about his small form, how much time he had left, and his injury from 5 years previous. He told me I couldn’t be a hero and left me. On the way home, Kacchan was being attacked by the sludge monster and I ran into save him. All Might found me after and offered to give me his quirk. His quirk is called One for All. It has a rather bloody history and is part of a war between All for One and the whoever is the holder of One for All at the time. I’m the 9th, All Might is the 8th, and the other 7 died in the ongoing war. So, for the next 10 months, he trained me and then on the day of the entrance exams, he gave me his quirk. Of course, Kacchan knew I was quirkless, so after Ground Beta, All Might thought it was a wise choice to bring him into the secret. Now I’m getting the quirks from all the different users that have had One for All as well. Which is why Black Whip and Float are so different from the original I showed. Fast forward again to a few month after I turned 16 and I found a white hair. My mom broke down into tears and told me about my father. My super villain father who stopped coming home when I was 8 because he was mostly mortally injured in a fight with All Might. So, now I have white hair and All for One is my father. Also, One for All was created because All for One had a quirkless brother who he gifted a stock piling quirk to, but who actually had a quirk, it was the ability to pass on a quirk. The two combined into One for All. Also, this last part isn’t a secret, but it is a really bad feeling I have. One for All’s successor, is Shigaraki, who is over 16 and also has white hair. So, it’s possible once again that One for All and All for One are once again shared by brothers. So, there’s my secrets.” Izuku finished his life story and looked at his teacher’s to find them completely still. He’d tried to make it as short and choppy as possible but he knew it was still a lot. After a few moments of silence and the awkward fidgeting of his fingers, Izuku watched Aizawa pick up his phone and raise it to his ear to make a call.
Panicked and betrayal washed through him.
“Nezu, I’m canceling class tomorrow. Send an email to my class and to Zashi’s. Both classes can have an off day.” Aizawa didn’t seem to wait for a response before hanging up. That seemed to break Mic out of his frozen state.
“Is there anything else?” Mic questioned nervously.
“Iida, Todoroki, and I were the ones that fought and beat Stain. Stain liked me well enough that he and his followers still send me letters sometimes. They even sent me a congratulatory letter when I won the sports festival this year. I’ve also been a part of a few fights that I didn’t tell anyone about. Like, Gentle Criminal, I fought him before the cultural festival last year.” He paused thinking over everything important that he’d kept secret before snapping his fingers as he remembered another. “Oh! One for All traps the souls of all the previous users in it and they talk to me in my dreams or anytime my consciousness is not completely in control.” He smiled to himself before looking up at the bewildered faces.
“Ghosts. There are ghosts.” Mic muttered to himself while Aizawa drug a hand over his face.
“This is, quite a lot to take in. I honestly don’t know where to start. Where do YOU want to start, kid?” Aizawa asked and Izuku felt a strange comfort that he hadn’t before. No one had ever asked him his feelings or opinions on all the secrets he’d kept.
“I want to know that I’m right to freak out and that I’m not being over dramatic.” Mic and Aizawa both stared at him for a moment before Mic began hysterically laughing.
"You have so many rights to freak out, I think I'm having a nervous break down, FOR YOU." Aizawa nodded his head slightly to show his agreement with Mic and Izuku felt the bubble of nerves turning in his stomach until he joined Mic's crazed laughter.
Knowing that he was justified in his feelings and that he wasn't the only one having a hard time handling it all, Izuku felt better than he had in a long time.
For the rest of the night, he sat there talking to his teachers, screaming in anger, crying out frustrations, and theorizing wildly. Mic promised to help him dye his hair whenever he wasn't able to go home, and both teachers promised to keep his secrets.
Affer that, life went on, Izuku still had his secrets that he stressed about, but it all felt a little easier having people to rely on.
That was, until a few weeks later, when class A had their next encounter with the League. Both groups were walking around festival booths, everyone in their normal clothing. It was clear that neither group was prepared or even wanted to fight, and both quickly made moves to retreat.
It wasn't until Izuku made eye contact with Shigaraki that he tuned out what everyone was saying and instead focused on his own beating heart and his burning curiosity. Without thinking Izuku began to take a step forward towards the villains.
"WAIT!" He screamed, extending his hand. His eyes met Shigaraki's once again and the words came tumbling out of his mouth before he or Aizawa could stop them. "Did your hair turn white after you turned 16?"
Izuku was well aware of the confused stares he was getting from his class and even the villains, but he couldn't take his eyes away from the taken back expression of Shigaraki. Against his better judgment he reached to his own hair and lifted his bangs up, knowing the slightest peak of white would be shown on his roots and that only the villains in front of him would see the gesture. Shigaraki touched his own hair before Dabi seemed to snap out of his confusion and began to pull Shigaraki by the wrist into a portal Kurogiri had created for their escape.
"Please! I have to know!" Izuku began, once again trying to move forward, only to be stopped by Aizawa’s firm grip on his own wrist. He watched as Shigaraki began to sink into the mist. Only to receive his answer in the form of a shocked wave of realization that washed over the villain's face before the portal closed, separating both groups.
"Holy shit." Aizawa muttered under his breath in disbelief.
Izuku could feel his hands beginning to shake as he stared towards where the warp had been. He tugged his wrist forcefully from Aizawa’s grasp and let his body hunch over and he dug his finger against his scalp, pulling at the dyed hair in frustration.
The class began to move forward towards him, calling out his name, demanding to know what he was talking about, why he was upset, what was wrong. Their voices all merged into a loud inescapable chatter that felt like it was coming from all sides. He vaguely heard Aizawa yelling, but he couldn't make out the words. He was too busy listening to his own racing thoughts.
Was it true?
What was he going to do?
What would Shigaraki do?
Did his mom know?
His feet began moving on their own, starting off as nothing more than a shuffle that quickly turned into a quirk-powered sprint as he ran the distance to his mom's apartment. It took 8 minutes, using his quirk, to end up at the door. He flung it open, breathing hard, mentally and physically exhausted. His mother jumped at his sudden appearance at home before rushing towards him, trying to calm him down.
He opened his mouth to shout out his discovery of a brother when he remembered how upset and hurt she'd look just trying to explain that she'd fallen in love with a villain. He couldn't think about how hurt she'd be if she knew her husband had cheated on her and fathered another kid. He knew Shigaraki wasn't much older than he was. His parents had been together for 5 years prior to him being born, and he doubted that he and Shigaraki were more than 5 years apart.
He couldn't break her heart.
"Izuku, honey what's wrong?" His mother's frantic pleas broke him from his thoughts and he found himself keeping his mouth shut about his discovery and instead wrapping his arms around her and pulling her close. He silently apologized to her in his head for keeping this secret from her.
After a few minutes, his mother went to the kitchen to make some tea while he sat on the couch, trying to figure out how many siblings he had in the world. After a moment, he dug his phone out of his pocket and saw the dozens of missed calls and messages from his class. He found himself skipping over all of them in favor of going to Aizawa’s text thread.
Aizawa to Izuku
Where are you?
Are you okay?
We can talk about this.
Call me.
Izuku to Aizawa
I'm at my moms. I came here to tell her I had a brother, but I couldn't do it.
Aizawa to Izuku
I'm glad you're safe. Are you coming back tonight?
Why didn't you tell her?
Izuku to Aizawa
I couldn't tell her that her husband cheated on her. Or that my brother is a villain who wants me dead.
I don't know. I don't want to deal with the class right now. I feel like I'm going to scream or lash out, or both.
Aizawa to Izuku
You can sleep on my couch for the next few days. The class can't bother you in my apartment. I'm sure Zashi wouldn't mind the company.
Izuku to Aizawa
Are you serious?
Aizawa to Izuku
Yes.
Izuku to Aizawa
Yes, please. Thank you. I'd really appreciate that.
Maybe Yamada can just scream at me enough that I won't be able to remember today.
Aizawa to Izuku
The longest bit of amnesia he's ever caused was 3 hours. Better get to him fast. Though, the person also had mild brain bleeding after. Your choice.
Izuku to Aizawa
I was being sarcastic...
Aizawa to Izuku
I wasn't.