Kacchan

Some days, Inko felt as though her nerves would never be able to settle back down again.

It had all started on the day she'd chosen to adopt the alien baby that she'd found in the woods, as her own son. She'd taken one look at the adorable little emerald orbs he had for eyes, each one so similar to her own, and simply fallen in love with him then and there.

There were always horror stories about what the governments of the world did with 'special children', whether they were children with Quirks that were notably strong at birth, Quirks deemed to be dangerous, or simply those they felt that they could one day make use of, 'for the good of their country'.

The Japanese Government was no exception to this.

While no cases had ever actually been proven as being true, (at least, not in Japan anyway), there were far too many rumours abound for her to ever dismiss the idea in its entirety, and the mere sliver of a thought about what they might be willing to do, if they ever discovered that an alien walked among them, made her shiver with fear.

She would have thought that taking the child in - Izuku, she'd named him - would've been the most harrowing part of claiming him, but her nerves never seemed to be allowed long enough to properly rest.

First it had been the act of claiming him for her own.

She'd spent the first few weeks terrified that a group of soldiers would show up on her doorstep, kicking it down, before they came in and took him from her. She'd done everything she could to create a paper trail for her son, one that was as impeccable as she could make it, including moving apartments, faking the idea of having a home birth to register him with a hospital that wasn't local to her new address, and asking her mother to arrange for a retired plastic surgeon friend of hers, to make one last house call to alter his hair colour.

Second, had been the sleepless nights.

There had to be something in the air; something that Earth had that Izuku's homeworld, (wherever that was), simply didn't (or vice versa). She was still learning everything she could about being a mother, and a single mother at that, but she'd set the cot up in the corner of her bedroom, where she could keep him close.

She'd thought that by keeping him close, that he'd be safe, but that hadn't helped when she'd listened to him sleep. Each and every breath he took caused a strain on his tiny little body, making each movement a struggle, a painful intake followed by an exhale of relief, only for the cycle to repeat itself, over and over again, as she wondered if each breath that he managed to take would end up being his last.

Third had been his Quirk.

She'd never have imagined that Izuku would develop a Quirk of his own.

Truth be told, she hadn't really taken the time to consider the idea of a Quirk at all, far too worried by everything else in their lives that could go wrong to focus on that particular fact. The idea of Izuku developing, or as she would have expected, not developing a Quirk of his own was a problem for the future. It was something she could worry about explaining when Izuku reached his fifth birthday without one appearing.

Yet apparently that wasn't a problem she was ever going to have.

Her son had a Quirk, (should she even be calling it a Quirk, if she didn't even know if this was the norm? Was it possible that all of his people had Quirks, the same way humans did? Or maybe they all had the same abilities, each one of them being as strong as her son was and would be? Or maybe it was something that was unique to Izuku, possibly even the reason he had been sent here, cast away from his family?).

Either way, she supposed that it didn't matter. Her son had a Quirk, and it was already apparent that the Quirk was going to make him quite powerful, and there was the strong possibility that it might grow even stronger as he grew older; many other Quirks did, after all.

And just like that, she was worried about her first set of concerns all over again.

Despite the worst of her worries, however, no nameless, faceless government agent in sunglasses and a plain black suit had arrived on her doorstep, so she'd taken the next frightening step in Izuku's development.

Enrolling him in their local pre-school.

=== === === === ===

"I'm sorry, but it's Midori, isn't it?"

Inko blinked, as she turned to face the newcomer, who like her, also seemed to have her son with her, "Ah, it's Midoriya, actually", she offered a brief bow in greeting, which was quickly returned, "I'm sorry, but have we met?"

"Oh, right, yes, you probably don't remember me", she offered her an apologetic smile, "I mean, you probably see a few hundred people a week. I'm Mitsuki. Mitsuki Bakugo", she pulled forward the small child beside her, who looked to be identical to her in almost every way, "and this is my son, Katsuki. You were his nurse when he went in for his last check-up", she chuckled, confusing her for a moment, "I don't think I've ever seen Kats behave himself so well before. It made quite the impression, let me tell you".

Inko smiled, "Well, I'm glad everything went well", she tried to pull Izuku in front of her, but one hand had a death grip on her trousers, while the other clutched Mister Doggo to his chest, "Izuku, would you like to say hello to Katsuki?"

"Hello", he murmured, still not moving from behind her.

"Come on brat", for a moment, Inko thought she should be concerned at the other woman's harsh choice of words, but the man now stood behind her, a placid-looking gentleman that Inko assumed was her husband, just sighed, with a fond smile on his lips, as he guided the younger boy forwards, which made her think that this might've been a common occurrence.

"Say hello Kats".

"Hello", the boy scuffed one of his shoes against the ground, "can we go now?"

"No, son", the man told the boy, looking amused at his son's sullenness, and based on their non-reactions, Inko assumed that this was also common enough behaviour from him.

"Oh, right, this is my husband Masaru. Masaru, this is Inko Midoriya. She was Katsuki's nurse when I took him in for his last check-up. The on I told you about".

She bowed, as the woman's husband did the same, "It's nice to meet you".

He smiled, still looking completely at ease, "You as well. I remember Mitsuki telling me that one of the nurses managed to make him behave himself for an entire minute", he eyed his son, still amused, who scoffed in response, "you have to tell us how you did it. We're completely hopeless with him".

"Nonsense", she smiled, liking the pair already, "I'm sure Katsuki's a lovely boy, aren't you?"

The boy responding by grumbling, as he continued scuffing his shoe against the ground.

"And this is Izuku", she told him, trying to push him forward, but he was stubbornly keeping one arm hooked around her leg, "go on Sweetie, say 'hello' to the Bakugos".

Slowly, still clutching Mister Doggo in his other arm, Izuku let go of her for a moment, offering a quick bow of his own, as he all-but whispered the word, "Hello", before stepping back behind her.

"He's adorable", Mitsuki whispered to her.

She grinned, "I know", before losing the grin when she look over at the clock hung on the nearby wall, "okay, Izuku, it's time now".

"No", he said, clutching her leg, and she held back the urge to wince at the tightness of his grip, "don't leave".

"Come on now Sweetie, we talked about this".

He gripped her leg tighter, and she sighed, as she did her best to kneel down and pry his hold on her leg loose. His Quirk, thankfully, seemed to wax and wane depending on the day. Sometimes, he would break things by accident, simply by attempting to pick them up; other times, he could drop, throw and squeeze others, but nothing else would happen.

While it was possible that Izuku simply didn't understand how to 'activate' his powers, she had the sneaking suspicion that it was actually all in his head, and control over his superstrength would come with age.

After all, despite the fact that he'd managed to break two walls, two chairs, a table leg and several dishes, as well as tear several towels in half and a tablecloth, somehow, Mister Doggo had managed to remain in perfect health, despite being the one object Izuku kept with him at all times.

Which reminded her.

"Now, Koharu-sensei's going to look after you, just until I come back, okay?"

Izuku shook his head, "No".

Sighing, she managed to pry his grip loose long enough to kneel down in front of him, and plucked Mister Doggo from his hands as well, tucking him into the space between her t-shirt and her cardigan, just out of reach from his ability to grab at it.

"Look at me, Izuku", she waited a moment, until he looked up at her, and she ran her hands over his hair, "trust me. This can be a lot of fun. You can make friends, like Katsuki here, and play and learn".

"Like with Miss Sakura?"

His voice was small, scared even, but she smiled, "Yes, just like with Miss Sakura, and that was fun, wasn't it?"

She paused for a moment, waiting, but eventually he nodded.

"See, now I'll take Mister Doggo with me for safety, and then, when you're all done, we can both come and pick you up, okay?"

He eyed Mister Doggo longingly, but slowly nodded, "Okay".

"Now give me a kiss goodbye".

Izuku flung himself at her, and she didn't hesitate to catch him, letting him hug her for far longer than she normally would've, had it been any other day. Instead, she held him there for a while, as the elder Bakugos attempted to do the same with their son, but who seemed stubbornly against it.

She remembered him from his check-up visit now.

His appearance hadn't stood out to her, but she remembered his attitude now. He'd spent the entire visit staring at the poster of All Might up on the wall, after she'd told him that even All Might had to get his check-ups done too. If it was good enough for All Might, then it was good enough for him, and he hadn't even flinched.

He was a brave kid.

"Now go make friends, okay?"

Little Bakugo shrugged at his mother's suggestion, "'Kay".

"Why don't you go ask Izuku if he'd like to be friends. I bet he'd like to play with you".

"That sounds lovely", Inko agreed, "Izuku, would you like to play with Katsuki?"

Slowly, he nodded, "Okay".

Reluctantly, he pulled back from her, letting her go, but before he could hunch up on himself, she kissed his cheeks, as he squirmed, looking as embarrassed as most of the other children in the room, as their parents did the same to them.

It was hard not to cry.

Izuku, not unlike her, had a very expressive face, always seeming to have every emotion, no matter how minute, clearly visible on his features, and as she left him for his first day of pre-school, she could see all of his anxiety at being left behind, and she worried for a moment that he would start crying, and if he started crying, then she knew that she would start crying too.

=== === === === ===

"So…", as they left the children behind, Mitsuki sidled up beside her, her husband, Masaru, following dutifully behind her, "if you don't mind, I have a question?"

She eyed her warily, worried about what the unusually forward woman might ask her, "Yes?"

"Is it true that one of the kids in the hospital managed to tear down an entire wall?"

Inko couldn't prevent the groan from escaping her lips, no matter how hard she tried to stop it, "For the love of- no. He didn't tear down a wall, he just put a hole in some of them. Yes, they needed to close the daycare while they fixed it, but I offered to help".

"You offered to…", her voice trailed off, as Mitsuki's eyes widened in realisation, before flicking between Inko and the side, off in the direction of the school, "no… but he's so cute and quiet. He's not even my son, and I wanted to give him a hug. He managed to break walls, as in, more than one?"

Inko couldn't help it, she groaned again, as Mitsuki's hand shot out, taking Inko by hers, as she began marching them off.

"Wait! Where are we going?!"

"We're going to get tea", Mitsuki told her, not bothering to ask for permission, "and then I want to hear all about how that sweet little boy of yours managed to physically destroy a bunch of walls".

"It was only two", she protested.

"Yeah, you're not making this story sound any less interesting", the other woman told her, "now come on, let's get something to drink before I make you spill everything".

=== === === === ===

"-and I had no idea!"

Masaru, having only grown more amused as the tale went on, raised his eyebrows, even as he lifted his tea to his lips, "None at all?"

"No! I just thought they needed my help with the rest of the children".

"And meanwhile, your son had casually tossed a building block through the wall?"

"Yes!"

"You have to admit", Mitsuki said, setting her own cup down, "it does sound a little odd, especially at that age".

Inko sighed, "Believe me, I know".

"Hell of a Quirk though", Masaru mused, "and so different from yours too".

"Actually, the doctor thought that it might be an advanced form of telekinesis through physical contact, so maybe not so much, but who knows?"

"Cool", Mitsuki grinned, "not every day a Quirk like that pops up".

"Indeed not", Masaru agreed, "if I remember rightly, the old saying is, 'Quirks are bullshit', isn't it?"

For some reason, while she could imagine Mitsuki cussing out an entire squadron of sailors, the sound of the polite and affable Masaru doing the same caused her to giggle, but she managed to compose herself quickly, and found herself asking, "Trust me, you only hear about the good ones. Doctors and nurses, we see far weirder things than you ever get told".

"I'll bet!"

"I can only imagine".

Despite herself, Inko smiled, "What are your Quirks, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Mine's called 'Glycerine', and as you can see", Mitsuki waved a hand in front of her face, "it replaces my sweat with glycerine. For this most part, it just helps constantly moisturise my skin, keeps me looking young-"

"-and beautiful", Masaru interjected.

Mitsuki smiled gently, the softest expression Inko had seen on the other woman's face yet, "I work as a model, so I won't lie say and it doesn't help. Masaru's actually a fashion photographer. That's how we met".

"Cam & Lottie's Fall Collection", Masaru mused, "I remember it well. It was one of my first jobs, and I almost set fire to one of the dresses. If an angel hadn't appeared out of nowhere to help me, I would've been fired for sure".

Inko chuckled, "You set fire to a dress?"

"Almost", he laughed along with her, "my Quirk is 'Acid Sweat', and don't worry, it's very mild, but I was nervous that day, so I kept fidgeting, despite the fact that enough friction can cause the acid to combust, and when it eventually did, a few of the sparks got onto one of the dresses", he shuddered, "thankfully no one noticed before the shoot was over, and even then, they blamed it on heat from the lighting equipment".

"They never knew it was you?"

"No idea", he shrugged, "the second we were done, I all-but ran away. I'm just really glad that girl who helped me, made me stop long enough to give me her number", he reached across the table, threading his fingers with his wife's, "who knows how things would've turned out, if she hadn't".

"That's a lovely story", she told the Bakugos, meaning every word of it. Even sat across the table from them, she could see and feel the love they had for each other.

She wished she had something like that.

"Is there no Mister Midoriya?"

She did her best to smile, and not panic, aware that Mitsuki was looking at her hands, as she held her cup up, examining her fingers for a ring, and shook her head.

"No. I didn't know Izuku's father very long. We weren't even dating and neither of us wanted to stay in contact".

"Does he know?"

"About Izuku?" She shook her head again, "No. I mean, I didn't know until he'd been gone for weeks. I keep an eye out, and if I ever see him again, I'll let him know, but it's just the two of us".

"And you're new here, right?"

"New-ish", she agreed, "I moved here for the job, and liked it enough that we chose to stay. I'm from Endo originally".

"Well that settles it", Mitsuki decided, "you have to let me show you around. I'll help you find all the best spots to get your hair and nails done, and we can go shopping. I've needed to for a while, and retail therapy should always be done with a friend", there was a gleam in Mitsuki's eyes that Inko felt she should be afraid of, "let's hope the brats get along. That way, we can let Masaru babysit while we go out-"

"You do realise that when I'm with Katsuki, it's called parenting, not babysitting, right?"

"-shush dear, and we can enjoy a girls' day out. You should be allowed to have fun too. What do you think?"

"I mean, it does sound nice", she agreed, "but work keeps me pretty busy".

Mitsuki scoffed, "Please, so long as I'm not on a shoot, I'm always able to make myself free, so don't worry about that. You. Me. A girls' day out. What do you say?"

It had quickly become obvious to her that Mitsuki Bakugo was not a woman to be taken lightly, "I think that sounds wonderful".

"Masaru, you're babysitting".

He sighed, "Yes dear".

=== === === === ===

The first day of pre-school was only a half day, compared to the full day that the others would be, and between worrying about Izuku and chatting with her new friends, Mitsuki and Masaru, Inko found that the wait quickly passed, and before long, the three adults were returning to the school to pick up their sons.

Peeking in, Inko relaxed when she was able to lay eyes on Izuku for the first time in three hours and was happy to find that he was doing okay. He'd calmed down, and was sat beside Katsuki at one of the tiny tables, the two of them seemingly fully engrossed with their colouring in. Izuku had chosen a seat at the edge of the table, and Katsuki had apparently chosen to sit next to him, but there was a gap between him and the next child, as the two boys seemed to be sharing a pot of crayons between the two of them.

"Well, my brat's not trying to kill anyone", Mitsuki mused, turning back to face her husband, "and he's playing with that adorable little boy. We'll call today a win".

Masaru sighed, while Inko couldn't stop herself from giggling, as the two boys traded colours, with Izuku swapping his red crayon for Katsuki's blue one.

"It looks like he made a friend", she said, intending to say it in her head, but instead she said it aloud, and the Bakugos nodded.

"Yes, it looks like they both did".

"Somehow", Mitsuki couldn't help but add under her breath.

They watched them for a few minutes, as the boys sat beside each other and continued to colour in, before Koharu-sensei called for everyone to come and sit together.

They couldn't hear her through the doors, but the children all made their way over to where she was stood, forming a circle around her. She gave them a stern look as she spoke, before the children returned to where they had been, and tidied up, putting their crayons and chairs away, as the few of them who had been drawing and colouring together, picked up their drawings.

Around the room, Inko saw others putting books and toys away, before everyone returned to their place in the circle. Once again, she couldn't hear what she was saying, but she did see her bow, before all of the children copied the motion, and then, one of the teaching assistants opened the doors.

The children grabbed their coats and ran out to greet their parents.

Izuku was no exception, and she braced herself for his grip, as he tackled her legs, hugging her knees. She picked him up, glad to see for herself that he was alright, and hadn't worried too much after she'd left. Apparently, she needn't have worried, because Izuku was grinning when she picked him up, before he gasped.

"Mister Doggo!"

As Izuku swiped his best friend from the pocket of her coat, and immediately launched into the thrilling tale of his day, which was apparently spent drawing pictures of All Might, including the one that he pressed into her hands. As he regaled his stuffed toy, little Katsuki strolled out of the school, and she fought back her chuckle at his childish strut, having apparently decided that he was too cool to run with the other children, before he handed his mother his own picture of All Might.

After admiring it for a moment, she handed it to Masaru, who was made to solemnly promise that he would keep it safe until they got home.

She shared an amused farewell with both Bakugos, promising Mitsuki that they would have their girls' day out, the next time that Inko managed to get a day off from the hospital, before they both nudged their son forwards.

"Go on Kats".

"Be nice. Say goodbye to Izuku".

Inko didn't known that a child that young could look so exasperated, but Katsuki managed it, as he threw his head back, looking and sounding bored, "Goodbye Izuku".

For his part, Izuku didn't seem to be bothered by his new friend's attitude, as he and Mister Doggo waved back frantically, "Bye Kats- bye Katti- Katsi…", Izuku scrunched up his nose in concentration, "Bye Kacchan! I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Don't call me that!"

=== === === === ===

"Hi Kacchan!"

"Don't call me Kacchan!"

=== === === === ===

"Bye Kacchan!"

"That's not my name!"

=== === === === ===

"Now, say goodbye to Izuku and Inko, son".

He huffed, "Goodbye".

"Goodbye Katsuki".

"Bye Kacchan!"

"I said don't call me that!"

=== === === === ===

"Granmima! Granmima!"

"Whose making all that racket this early in the morning?!"

No doubt worried at being scolded, Inko watched, utterly amused, as Izuku slowed his run down to a brisk walk, and ceased his yelling, as the two of them rounded the side of his grandmother's house, where they found Ima and Sherubi sat out on the back porch together.

Sherubi, no doubt having perked up at the sound of Izuku's voice, immediately bounded over as they approached, his tail wagging behind him, barking his greeting, as he began running circles around them, only pausing when Izuku reached down to scratch his ears, before he rolled onto his back to demand a belly rub.

"Well then", Ima made a show of staring them down, while Inko hung back, content to let her have her fun, "who are you? And why are you here?"

Izuku grinned, showing off all of his pearly white teeth, "It's me Granmima! Momma and I came to visit!"

Ima just shook her head, "The only person who calls me Granmima is Izuku, my grandson".

"That's me!"

"No, it's not".

"Yes, I am!"

Ima sniffed, "You can't be my grandson".

Izuku scowled, "But I am, Granmima, promise".

"I doubt think so, you see", grinning as Izuku looked away, Ima reached over and swept him up, her fingers immediately finding his tummy for a round of tickling, "my grandson's not nearly this tall, but he is ticklish".

Inko couldn't have stopped herself from smiling if she'd tried, not that she did, but who could blame her? Seeing your mother tickling your son senseless, as he squirmed to get away from her, pearls of laughter escaping him with every breath he took.

It didn't last forever, thankfully, no matter how adorable the sight was.

"Alright you two, settle down", she plucked a still giggling Izuku from her mother's grip, idly wondering how her mother managed to still lift him so easily, especially at her age. Even with the use of her Quirk, Izuku wasn't as light as he used to be.

Her boy was growing up so fast.

"Izuku, why don't you tell Grandma about your time at school", she gently bounced him on her lap, as Sherubi trotted back over to them, laying down besides his owner, "and you can tell her all about your new friend".

"Oh, did you make a friend, Sweetie?"

"Yeah! Kacchan!"

Inko smiled, "His names Katsuki. They met on the first day of pre-school, and they've been getting along since", she told her mother, happy to have something good to tell her about Izuku's experiences. Whenever she called her mother for parenting advice, or just to talk about what had been happening, it felt as though she never had anything to say that she could consider, 'positive'. Most of their talks always seemed to be about what had made her worried that week, and what she feared might happen next because of it.

Her son making a friend was a nice change of pace.

"You made a friend, Sweetie?" Izuku nodded his head, and Ima smiled, "well go on then, tell me about him. Is he nice?"

Izuku tilted his head, as he thought about it for a moment, "No".

=== === === === ===

"Hi Kacchan!"

There was a sigh, one that shouldn't come from the mouth of any child, but Inko recognised it for what it was.

A sigh of defeat.

"Good morning Izuku".

=== === === === ===

Author's Notes:

The name of Izuku and Katsuki's pre-school teacher is never given in canon, as they only feature in a handful of shots, but here, I've given one of them the name: Koharu-sensei.

Ko (小) means 'small' or 'little', while Haru (春) means 'spring' (as in the season, not the water feature). Together, they invoke the idea of small things at springtime, which is the beginning of the year, and I think that makes it a fitting name for a pre-school teacher. While it's a gender-neutral name, it's more often found among women than men, so that's what I'm going with here.

Writing for children is so much harder than writing for older adults. I hadn't realised how hard it would be to understand baby/toddler/child Deku and Kacchan, until I had to try and get into their heads.

I'll have to remember that for the next time I want to involve children.

The shoot where Masaru and Mitsuki met, Cam & Lottie's Fall Collection is a reference to the story titled, Superman: Camelot Falls.

I've planned out a lot of this story, seriously from start to end, I have plenty of notes for each part of each volume, but I won't lie, I really wanted to put in a scene here of Izuku getting his sense-based powers, similar to the scene in the 2013 movie, Man of Steel, involving him being overwhelmed and needing his mother to help him get them under control.

What a shame that it would've ruined my entire story outline.

Ah well, you never know! There's a spot, (way in the future), where I might be able to work something similar in, but like I said, who knows?!