Archive of Our Own ^beta

Having fought so many villains, especially ones like Shigaraki and All For One, being on the field again even after so many years was fine, but this he felt nervous about?

He couldn't help it, though, because this, this was different. Different from anything he has ever done before. He is just worried. Worried about being too slow, worried about missing it, about not being able to witness it or being able to support Ochako.

His class would be fine; he knew that. Nezu already answered his message. His classes were already covered.

As far as he knew, his boss already had a teacher on standby to step in while he planned their schedules should he have to leave. He certainly wouldn't put it behind him.

His mind's focus wandered, though. Back to Ochako. Aside from all his worries, he is pretty relieved about the timing, since she at least hadn't been alone. Tsuyu had been visiting her when it happened, as one of the only ones who knew. She texted him on their way to the hospital. She grabbed their hospital bags as well, so he didn't have to worry about grabbing them before or texting someone to bring them around later. He was really grateful.

So when he finally stepped through the hospital's door, he headed straight for the reception, ID already in hand. Its occupant was smiling at him politely when she saw him. Smiling back, he swiftly handed her his ID.

"I'm here for Uraraka Ochako. She was said to have arrived about an hour ago, in labor," he explained.

"May I ask about your relation? As you're probably aware, only close relatives or-"

"I'm her partner. And the child's father," he cut her off. Under normal circumstances he would feel guilty, but he was impatient, and his anxiety was getting the better of him, even if he felt ashamed to admit it.

It was late afternoon when Ochako heard a knock on their front door. They weren’t expecting anyone today, so she assumed it would be one of their parents coming over for a surprise visit. Probably Inko, then. Oh, and a surprise it was. As she opened the door, though, she was met with a face she certainly did not expect to see.

"Aizawa? What are you doing here? Is something the matter? Did something happen at UA? It’s not that you’re not welcome. It’s just... You usually don't visit any of us. Ever. Especially without a reason," Ochako asked.

This certainly was unusual. Their former homeroom teacher never visited any of them, not to mention at home.

They still held contact, of course, which was especially easy since Izuku was his coworker, but they usually only saw him when visiting U.A. for a workshop or something like that. Or seeking out one of the teachers specifically. Or on very rare occasions when he decides to join one of their class reunions, only after being severely bullied to do so, of course. He never stays long for those, though.

Seemingly unfazed by her surprise, his face stays as calm and unbothered as always. "I just wanted to make sure Midoriya is all right. He hasn't been at work for a while now. Neither did I see any news on him being on the field recently. The same goes for you, though." He gave her a look, which she decided to pack away to decipher later. "And while the rat seems to know why, he certainly doesn’t seem to want to let us know the reason for his sudden disappearance. So, since no one seems to think of giving me any logical reasons for his absence, I decided to check on him myself. It’s the most logical thing to do, after all."

She let out a sigh but opened the door for him to step in nonetheless.

"This was bound to happen after all, I guess. Come in, I can show you where he is."

She went ahead, only to stop a few steps later and turn around to face him again. She lifted her index finger to place it in front of her lips and made a quiet “shh” sound. "Be quiet, though. It was rough to get her to sleep today. I'm grateful they are finally able to get some rest, so I'd rather it stays that way," she gave him as a warning before turning back and leading him towards their wide-open living room door.

The scene in front of them was quite unambiguous.

There on their couch was Izuku, lying on his back. His body sprawled over it were it not for the backrest and the baby sleeping soundly on his stomach. One of his arms was draped over her as if he was scared she would fall down otherwise. The other was draping down from the couch, almost touching the floor in front of it. A burp cloth was draped over his right shoulder, and his head was turned to the side, facing the room.

On the coffee table in front of them stood a baby bottle, filled to about a quarter with milk.

The rest of the room was just as telling with the amount of chaos to be found in there.

The play mat behind the table was cluttered with toys. The basket next to it was lying on the floor, its contents spilling out onto the mat. On the sideboard behind it was a bat plushie. Lying there, out of reach.

They quickly figured out that she loved stuffed animals, but as for the bat... She always cried when she saw it. So they hid it up there for now to keep it out of her line of sight.

In all honesty, she was kind of ashamed to let Aizawa see their living room in such condition. But she was just as tired, too exhausted to care too much at that moment. That's the life of being new to parenthood, after all. They were still trying to adjust, she told herself. No one had the right to judge them. Not right now, at least.

"Since when?" he asked quietly.

"Last month," she answered him with a hushed voice. "That's why he had to leave work so suddenly. I was in labor." The teacher next to her let out a silent hum.

After a few moments she turned and walked into the kitchen, signaling him to follow. She started to brew coffee as he sat down.

"Who else knows?"

"Our parents and Tsuyu. She was helping us manage everything while I tried to stay out of the public." He hummed thoughtfully.

"We didn't mean to worry anyone. We just wanted to keep it under wraps. The less people know, the better. You never know."

"So am I right to assume the 'medical reasons' for your break were your pregnancy?"

She nodded as she placed a cup in front of him and sat down in the chair opposite him, her own cup in hand.

"We never even made our relationship public, and we don't intend to," she started after taking a sip. "It's just... even with how society is nowadays, how it's changed... We know it's not the same as it was when we were young, but that doesn't mean there are no threats. There are still enough villains out there, even if their numbers are decreasing. And you can't just go around assuming every one of them has morals. Being the child of the current number four and twenty-four isn't really reassuring in regard to safety."

A soft smile found its way to her face as her eyes met Aizawa's. "Plus, the pressure of being a pro hero's child isn't exactly what we wish for her."

"I understand your worries, but have you considered how to handle this going forward?" he asked as calmly as ever. "There will be a lot of questions for you two. I taught you hellspawn long enough to know how curious all of you are. And Yagi's been whining my ear off non-stop as well. Not to mention the public. The vultures are everywhere. Keeping it down will be difficult. And as much as I understand your reasoning, having to worry about as few people slipping up as possible, having few people to support you might prove to be more of a hindrance than not."

She sighed again. "We know, but it's worth a shot. We've been thinking about the pros and cons for quite some time now. About who to let know..."

"Still, consider who you let in on it. You, of all people, should know that, given your experiences."

"We will, just... Let us adjust first. We wanna figure everything out before taking further steps. No need to get overwhelmed and not be able to handle the aftermath."

"All right, the decision is yours to make after all," her former teacher said as he set his cup down.

"Thanks," she smiled at him, relief flooding her face.

She heard a door close as quiet footsteps slowly approached the kitchen, a quiet and sleepy voice humming. She glanced at the doorframe as they drew closer. "Wha's goin' on?" he slurred.

He looked up at her a little confused as he stopped in front of the kitchen, rubbing his eyes, not fully awake yet. Green, untamed locks either flying everywhere or plastered to his face, sleep lines apparent on the side of his face from being pressed to the couch. His shirt hung lopsided/distorted over his frame.

His eyes traveling from Ochako to Aizawa.

"Aizawa-sensei?"

"Hello, problem child," he greeted the green-haired man.

Izuku looked at Ochako again, who was now walking in her boyfriend’s direction. "What's the matter? Did something happen? Do I need to-", he asked, a little clearer now.

Ochako let a giggle slip before giving him a quick kiss on his cheek. "Don't worry. He just wanted to make sure you were okay. Nezu doesn't seem to be very reassuring with his secrecy surrounding you."

“Oh.”

She laid a hand on his chest and looked him deep in the eyes, reassuring him that everything was fine without having to say another word. He held her gaze for a few more moments before looking back at his former homeroom teacher, whose face was just as neutral as ever.

After a moment, Ochako stepped back into the kitchen, heading towards the coffee machine. "You want some?" she asked even though she already knew the answer.

Her boyfriend hummed a response before rounding the table and taking a seat next to hers as she stood to prepare his coffee.

He sat straight to face his coworker instead of laying his head down on it in between his arms to continue napping like he desperately wanted to.

"So, how are my students doing?" he tried to ask politely to get a conversation going.

"They are fine," the older hero answers. "Or, well, as fine as they can be after switching from one of the school's softest teachers to one of the strictest ones. You coddle them too much." Izuku snorted lightly at that. Of course he would say that.

Ochako sat a cup of coffee in front of him, which he quickly thanked her for. She went to sit down again as small cries found their way through the hallway into the kitchen. Izuku jumped up instantly, only to be stopped by the brunette.

"Stop, it's my turn," she said softly. "You make sure our guest is cared for. He came here to check on you after all." She vanished a moment later, not giving him a chance to argue.

"You two really are one and the same. At least I don't have to worry about you being taken care of then." Izuku snapped his attention back to Aizawa, embarrassment spreading across his cheeks.

"Sorry," he muttered before sitting down again. Wait... "You don't- How do you..."

"I've been here for a while now, problem child. Uraraka showed me. You seemed to be fast asleep on the couch." If he didn't know better, he would have thought he saw a subtle smile on the older man’s lips.

He sighed. "Right. It just... She cried all night. We barely got any sleep. Ochako got this morning while I looked after her, and I didn't really get the chance yet. I wanted to wait until Ocha got some of the chores done since she didn't let me help. It's just so much right now. I mean, we knew it would be, but we still underestimated it, I guess. Though we already put so much effort into preparations..." A wry smile found its way to his lips. It only made the bags under his eyes even more apparent.

"You'll get the hang of it eventually. No one’s suddenly born with a perfectly mastered skill. It takes time. Everyone needs to practice for everyone. Hell, you still remember Yagi’s poor first attempts at teaching, don’t you?” Izuku couldn’t help but wince.

“Besides, I've known you two long enough now to know you’ll manage. Though I've already told Uraraka, you two should think about who you let know. As much as you always try to manage yourself, there are enough people who'd be willing to help you, and you should consider it. Parenting isn't easy, I know as much."

Izuku huffed a quiet laugh before lowering his cup again. "We will. Thanks for the advice," he smiled. "Well, since you know now... Do you want to meet her? Properly, I mean." The younger man looked up, green eyes sparkling lightly.

"What happened to being careful with who knows what?" he retorted.

"Well, you are already her, aren’t you? So what would be the point? Might as well let you get to know her," he shot back, his smile widening slightly.

The older man seemed to be contemplating for a moment before answering.

"I guess there is no logical reason against it. Might as well see for myself what gremlin you got there that gives the both of you such a hard time, even though one of you somehow manages to keep 20 hellspawn somewhat in line."

And for the first time in months, the Erasure Hero heard his once-student laugh wholeheartedly. Not stressed or tired huffs or strained smiles that made him look like he was about to fall over and fall asleep, but a bright and genuine laugh. One that made his eyebags look at least a tad less dark than before. And that alone makes his very likely to be following headache worth it.

Though he now understood what had caused his previous stress.

Aizawa followed Izuku to a closed door on the left side of the hallway before the latter knocked on it. "It's us, Ocha. Can we come in?" They waited a moment before they heard a muffled "Come in." from the other side of the door.

The shorter man opened the door and held it for his colleague to enter before carefully closing it behind them and joining his side again.

They now stood inside a nursery room. The light pastel colors swirling on its walls made the white furniture seem less plain. It more so seemed to be balancing the room out.

The brightly colored toys scattered everywhere and the playmat on the ground did not only make it obvious that this was the room of a child but also worked as accent colors.

It was so blatantly obvious that Izuku wasn't in charge of decorating this room.

Standing in the middle of the chaos, though, was Ochako. Baby in hand as she turned to face them.

She was smiling like a proud mother ready to show off her newborn to anyone willing to see.

It made it so very obvious to anyone seeing them like this, like the proud parents they were, how much it pained them to keep this a secret. Their smiles surely would have been able to convince even the last oh-so-skeptical person that their secrecy stemmed from worry and care. That all of this was to keep their daughter safe.

The black-eyed man slowly approached the brunette holding her child. The kid's dark blue eyes left her mother and strolled over to the stranger's face, not that she was fully aware of it being a completely new one yet.

Her face resembled her father's with the way the baby fat puffed her cheeks, though the hair sprouting on top of her head suggested it to be brown.

"I say she'll have brown eyes. The chances are way higher for her to get brown ones. Though she'd definitely look less like us if they stay blue," the heroine smiled.

"Not fair, she already gets her hair color from you. Let me at least have her get my eye color," her boyfriend pouted, stepping closer to them and taking his daughter out of her arms.

She stuck out her tongue. "It's not like I can influence it."

"You two are impossible. How did I manage to survive you and your class so long?" Aizawa grumbled, fingers already pinching his eyes.

They both tried to hold back the laugh that threatened to bubble up their throats with varying success until a light and warm laugh filled the room. Completely oblivious to the meaning of what was just said.

And that caused the dam to break.

Smiles and laughter were breaking through and making their way to the surface. Even the oh-so-stoic heroics teacher couldn't help but smile at the scene before him. The image of his two former students' happy family was being etched into his memory.

It only reminded him of what they all fought to protect that very fateful year and how much they had grown since then. All of their hardships weren’t for nothing.

They may not have been his students anymore, they may not have been for a long time now, but that didn’t stop the fondness in his heart from showing.

It wasn't until the little one's laughing stopped that they turned their attention fully back to her. Her hands were fully outstretched and making grabbing motions in Aizawa's direction.

Izuku looked at the latter, meeting his confused gaze, and smiled again. "Do you want to hold her? You don't have two, of course! But she seems to want that."

He sighs after a moment, stretching his arms out. "Why do I always get dragged into this kind of things?"

He may have seemed annoyed to anyone else, but they could see right through him. Anyone in their former class could, really. All thanks to knowing this man for about a decade now and having been in his homeroom multiple years.

They passed her to him and corrected his hold of her.

Smiling at the image, they watched their daughter grabbing at and playing with the underground hero. She seemed to be especially interested in his capture weapon.

Aizawa's eyes left her after a moment to look up again and finally ask a long overdue question. "What's her name?"

They swallowed hard and looked worried at each other, holding eye contact for a moment. A heavy silence found its way between them.

Izuku rubbed the back of his neck nervously before he broke the silence.

"Well, you see... We weren't exactly sure. We had two names in mind specifically. We aren't sure if it was the smartest decision, but-"

“Himiko,” Ochako blurted out.

“Himiko? Like Toga?”

She gave a quick nod.

“Why?”

Ochako wrapped her arms around her torso.

“A lot happened back then. And I... I was the only one there at the end. I was the only one of us to ever really have a chance of seeing who she really was, to really see past what everyone else saw and understand her. It’s just... If-If I just had-”

A sob ripped through her. She had to take a breath and tried to stop her tears from falling.

Izuku grabbed her shoulder and pulled her into a hug. He was slinging an arm around her, holding her close, and placed his head on hers. He lightly swayed her back and forth while muttering small nothings in her ear.

After a minute or so of staying like this, Ochako willed herself to speak again.

“Toga wasn’t evil, she was just misled. She never had a support system she could rely on until the leak came around. Everyone only ever tried to tell her how creepy she was. She was a nice girl under all of it. She just wanted to be herself. Society just failed her everywhere possible. I think... I think I would have loved to be her friend at some point.”

Her tears were still falling, but they were starting to slow down.

“It’s not like anyone would immediately question it either,” her boyfriend took over. “Himiko isn’t that rare. A lot of people choose it because it sounds pretty. It’s not like we will just forget what happened. No, it’s the opposite. We’re just willing to see the girl behind everything.”

He lifted his head to look at Ochako, placing a kiss on her forehead.

“I understand your reasons, but be careful.”

They both released a breath they didn't know they were holding and smiled.

“She will still have your last name, don’t forget that. Though, I think she would be happy about your decision. At least from what I’ve heard you share about her. Plus, your connection to her is quite obvious considering your program. Not that most people would look that deep into it.”

"Thanks, we appreciate it. Really."

“Speaking of though, what was the other name?”

They both shared a look before answering.

“Nemuri.”