Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Midoriya first noticed Tokoyami on the first day at UA High. He had a fascinating, powerful quirk, even then, when Midoriya was constantly overwhelmed with trying to figure out how to use One for All and his insatiable curiosity about everyone else’s quirks.

But the thought of Tokoyami didn’t make his heart pound and flutter right away.

It’s a long time coming, but Midoriya realizes he is truly smitten when Tokoyami comes back from his work-study with Hawks looking more confident, more united with Dark Shadow, and totally, deliciously yoked.

Midoriya always appreciated Tokoyami’s work ethic, his focus, and his unique sense of personal style. But improved self-confidence looks alluring on the bird-headed boy.

Midoriya knows he’s weird by most people’s standards, what with the muttering and intensity, but even he knows he’s going to embarrass himself soon if he can’t stop himself from staring at Tokoyami’s forearms or the way Dark Shadow bonks his head against his host’s companionably.

He can’t stop smiling when he thinks about the sun shining off Tokoyami’s black, glossy feathers. He’s caught himself murmuring questions about the nature of Dark Shadow — are they sentient? Does he consider himself independent from Tokoyami even though he can’t be separated? What does it feel like when Dark Shadow is inside Tokoyami-kun’s chest? He could fill a notebook with the things he wants to know.

Including: what would it feel like if Izuku held Tokoyami’s hand? If they went on a date, would Midoriya be dating them both, or just Tokoyami? So many questions, so few he has the courage to ask.

Sooner than he would have liked, Midoriya is facing the reality of his stupid, terrible friends figuring him out.

“Take a picture, it will last longer,” Uraraka snarks quietly when she catches him watching Tokoyami’s shirt hem flutter in the breeze as he stretches outside the dorms.

“Wish I could,” Midoriya mutters before slapping a scarred hand over his mouth.

Uraraka holds her stomach as she laughs at him, hunching over in her mirth. When she finally gets a hold of herself, as Midoriya studiously ignores her, red flaring across his cheeks, she squeals far too loudly.

“You really do like him!”

He starts loudly shushing her halfway through the sentence, grinning in embarrassment and glancing up to see Tokoyami and Dark Shadow looking at the hubbub with twin deadpan expressions. Dark Shadow tilts their head consideringly and Midoriya throws his arms over his face, turning to go somewhere else. Anywhere else. Perhaps the bottom of the ocean.

“Wait up!” Uraraka says, grabbing her backpack.

“Can’t, have to go defenestrate myself,” he mutters.

“You can’t throw yourself out a window, you’re already outside, dumbass,” Bakugou calls.

“Oh! I’ll go back into the building, then,” Midoriya replies blithely, shooting finger guns at his childhood friend.

“If you hurt yourself, I’ll fuckin’ kill you,” Kacchan growls, moving in front of Izuku’s path back to the residence hall.

Izuku can’t help but smile in response to that, because for Kacchan, that’s an indisputable declaration of friendship.

“Would you quit that and tell me everything, please?” Ochako says, turning huge eyes his way. Kacchan drifts away, more interested in what Kirishima is up to a few meters away.

“You figured it out,” he says, powerless in the face of one of his best friend’s most potent weapons. “I like him. Like him, like him, okay?”

He starts smiling and feels his cheeks redden despite his best efforts and covers up his face, flustered.

“I’m glad YOU finally figured it out,” Ochako countered. “I’ve known you liked him since the sports festival.”

Todoroki and Iida approach as Izuku sputters indignantly.

“How could you know, if I didn’t even know?” He demands.

“The way you got all doe-eyed when he worked with you even though you had the gazillion points headband,” she says.

“Oh, did he figure it out?” Todoroki huffs a laugh. “Took you long enough.”

Izuku abruptly sits on the ground with a harrumph.

“Not you, too,” he grumbles. “Am I the only one who didn’t know?”

“I don’t think Tokoyami knows, but I believe Dark Shadow does,” Iida muses.

“And you don’t think he told Tokoyami-kun?” Izuku stares up at Iida, incredulous.

“He may well have, but Dark Shadow is mischievous,” Iida says. “You should make your feelings clear. Tokoyami may have a flair for the dramatic, but he is honorable. If he doesn’t feel the same, he will be kind.”

Izuku flops all the way back, his green hair mixing in the grass.

“And how exactly am I supposed to do that?” He covers his burning cheeks with his hands.

“He likes apples,” Uraraka says slyly. “You could give him one and use that as a conversation starter.”

“You could build him a nest,” Todoroki teases. Izuku tears a handful of grass out to throw ineffectually at him. Todoroki stops it with a well-aimed puff of icy air.

“You’re terrible,” Izuku mutters.

But that does give him half an idea.

Todoroki notices the glazed over gaze of a Midoriya deep in thought.

“Please tell me you’re not actually going to make him a nest,” he groans.

“Shut uuuuupp,” Izuku laughs, throwing his backpack toward his friend.

After class has finished for the day, Izuku settles down at his desk with a cup of tea, a notebook, and his laptop, ready to research.

He knows Tokoyami is mostly human, but what if he has some bird-like instincts? It’s better to arm himself with the knowledge of all his options than to stumble into a faux pas.

He starts by trying to figure out what kind of bird Tokoyami might be related to. Crow or raven maybe? But his red eyes look different from corvids’ fathomless black eyes.

He guesses it doesn’t matter a whole lot, since Tokoyami is a person with a bird head and not a whole bird, but sets that thought aside for now. He looks up crow and raven behaviors and laughs at videos of crows sledding down a roof. He reads about people who have befriended crows, slowly, over time, with gifts of food and a quiet place to eat and drink. He finds out that if his aim is to gain a crow’s trust, he will have to be patient.

Of course, Tokoyami isn’t a crow. But he figures patience is a good start, taking copious notes.

Later, he blushes as he navigates to a website about bird courting rituals. He finds a list, torn between academic interest and the mortifying prospect of the practical application of his newfound knowledge.

The first item on the list is singing. Izuku nearly gives up there, not having much confidence in his singing voice. But he keeps researching, because he’s never been tripped up by walking into a new situation with too much knowledge.

Another website shares some interesting facts about how crows sing to attract a mate that have Izuku feeling a bit of hope.

Instead of singing loudly for the whole neighborhood to hear, crows get close and sing softly, the website divulges. This ritual includes “soft cooing, rattles, growls, bowing movements, and mutual nuzzling” as well… Midoriya doesn’t know about rattling or growling, but his cheeks redden at the thought of mutual nuzzling with Tokoyami.

He thinks maybe he could sing softly. It’s not that different from talking softly, and he does that all the time, without even realizing it. He just has to sing a song that interests Tokoyami and his shadowy quirk.

He’ll need advice for this. He checks the time and groans; it’s already well past his bedtime. Izuku attempts to sleep despite his newfound knowledge and the half-baked plans tromping around his head.

The next day, at lunchtime, Izuku gently snags Jirou’s arm before she can sit down.

“Um, Jirou-chan, can I ask you a quick question?”

Her ear jacks tremble and she looks uncomfortable. Izuku wonders for a moment if she thinks he is going to confess to her right there by the line for Lunch Rush, his face reddening.

“It’s about music! And, um, Tokoyami-kun?” He says in a rush.

She smiles, her ear jacks taking a more relaxed posture.

“Oh, ok, sure!”

He sighs in relief.

“I am -- Um, I’m interested in listening to some new types of music, and I was wondering if you might have any recommendations? Especially something you know Tokoyami-kun might like?”

Jirou covers her smile with one fingerless-gloved hand, all worries about Izuku’s line of questioning seeming to have evaporated. He takes just a moment to be embarrassed at himself for being so utterly transparent, but then Jirou is talking again.

“When we did the school festival performance, I think he said he likes, like, kind of dramatic, emotional rock, or goth rock, like Velvet Web, or the Fallen Bones,” she says.

Izuku whips out his “Wooing Tokoyami” notebook, code-named “Economics,” and jots those down.

“Thank you, Jirou-chan!” he gushes. “This is so helpful! I owe you one. Do you have any other recommendations?”

She lists a few other music groups unfamiliar to Izuku, all with similarly spooky-sounding names, and wishes Izuku good luck with a subtle wink and a point of her ear jacks.

He ducks into the line for food with a blush, ignoring the glances his friends cast his way. He’s armed with a question about class for Iida-kun as soon as he approaches the table in an effort to avoid the line of questioning he knows is coming from the look on Uraraka’s face.

He is able to keep his earnest class representative and friend talking for most of the lunch period, but Iida-kun eventually runs out of steam, more focused on eating his lunch before it’s time to return to class.

“What were you asking Jirou-chan about, Deku?” Uraraka finally asks excitedly.

“Oh, just wanting to listen to some new music,” he says in an attempt at an off-hand manner, clenching his jaw as he feels his ears heating.

“Don’t you usually listen to soundtracks from All Might movies?” Todoroki asks, quirking a pale eyebrow at him.

“Yes,” Izuku says, nodding sadly. “But I don’t think he is going to be making any more movies, do you? All the more reason to branch out.”

“So what kind of music do you want to listen to now, Midoriya-kun?” Iida asks.

“I thought I’d ask around, starting with Jirou-chan,” he said. “She is the Hearing Hero, after all.”

“What did she recommend?” Uraraka looks genuinely interested.

Shit. He hadn’t gotten this far in his plan to keep his “Wooing Tokoyami” plan to himself. Izuku begins shaking a leg under the table as he tries to think quickly.

“She told me about some rock bands I might like,” he said, listing off a few names.

“Those sound scary,” Todoroki says. “Sounds like something Tokoyami might listen to.”

Uraraka’s gaze snaps to Izuku.

“What are you up to, Midoriya?” she says, eyes narrowing.

The lunch bell rings, and green crackling lightning races up and down Izuku’s body as he books it from the cafeteria.

“Gotta go!” he calls out as Iida shouts, “NO QUIRK USE IN THE CAFETERIA!”

.

Izuku spends the evening studying while listening to the bands Jirou-chan recommended. A lot of the tracks are really long, featuring many different movements, kind of like classical music. And there’s a lot of orchestral instruments, in addition to heavy guitars, drums and even synths.

It’s admittedly out of his comfort zone. He doesn’t think about music that much, in his spare time he is mostly focused on hero analysis, and more recently, harnessing One for All. But he finds his head bopping to some of the songs as he slowly makes his way through his homework.

One song on a playlist he finds is particularly catchy and reminds him of Tokoyami. The mood reminds him of Tokoyami intoning, “Revelry in the dark,” before the test of courage on their field trip.

“And when the adrenaline is rushing high
and you're reaching for the very sky
You can't go down down down down
You can't go down down

Forget your grey life
Forget your tomorrows
Get into the bliss
Get out of control”

He puts “Get Out of Control” by Daniel Ash on repeat and settles in to do as much homework as he can before dinner.

Chapter Text

Despite the fact that Izuku is well on his way to knowing “Get Out of Control” and a few other favorites from his new music playlist by heart, he has to put his tentative wooing plans on the back burner. There is so much to do. School, homework, internships, the UA-mandated therapy he’s been assigned after the fight with Overhaul and witnessing the death of Sir Nighteye… and sometimes his therapist gives him homework, too! Part of him wants to bristle at that, but then he remembers what Aizawa-sensei had said when the therapy sessions first started for Izuku and everyone involved in the Overhaul incident.

“Trouble child, how do you think professional heroes get through all of this?” He spoke in his usual laconic tones, but his eyes were piercing. “We all have to have someone to talk to, someone to vent to, someone to teach us how to overcome and keep going. What kind of hero school would we be if we put you in traumatic situations and didn’t equip you with the tools to recover from them?”

The delay in his hopes feels kind of unfair when Izuku thinks about it too long, but he reminds himself that patience is key. He will just have to be around Tokoyami whenever he can, namely class, studying, and when they see each other at Endeavor’s agency. They are all aiming to be top heroes. The problem about putting his crush on the back burner is that at times, it feels like it is all he could think about.

He daydreams between classes and before he goes to sleep at night. His mind’s eye is filled with glossy feathers, strong hands, and the deep tones of Tokoyami’s voice.

He tries singing quietly one Saturday, when they’re both working out at the gym at Endeavor’s agency.

He’s doing squats, the muscles in his legs shaking finely as he pushes himself to the limits of what he can do without activating One for All. The gym by design does allow quirk use, but Izuku knows his abilities with One for All will only grow if his capacity without it does, as well.

Once he finishes his set, his eyes straying toward Tokoyami doing what seems to be an endless amount of pull-ups, he takes a break to drink some water, and if he just so happens to hum a bit, well, what could it hurt?

He hums his favorite Fallen Bones song quietly, hoping he’s on key. Tokoyami doesn’t pause, but Dark Shadow peeks over his shoulder, their head tilting in that ever more familiar posture of curiosity the quirk has around Izuku.

His heart pounds. He keeps humming, trying to affect a casual posture.

“Do you have a cramp?” Todoroki asks, and Izuku jumps a mile in the air.

“What? No. What? Why?” Izuku asks when he catches his breath, deactivating One for All.

“You were standing really weird,” Todoroki says. “And making a groaning sound? Are you in pain?”

Izuku sighs. When he looks up, he could swear Dark Shadow is smirking at him somehow.

“You could say that,” he replies. “Come on, spot me while I do chest presses.”

After that utter failure of an attempt, Izuku abandons the ‘singing near Tokoyami’ phase of his wooing plan.

He goes back to the list. Feeding another bird, or providing for them, is another step birds take to show they are a worthy mate. Maybe Uraraka is not completely off base. He feels like he needs to bounce this idea off of her.

He finds her in the common room and asks if she wants to go for a walk. She gets a look on her face that makes him feel hunted, like a hamster in the crosshairs of a housecat.

“Are you finally going to tell me what you’re up to?” She stills, like the moment before the pounce.

Izuku takes a deep breath in and out of his nose.

“Do you promise not to make fun of me?”

“Absolutely not,” she replies immediately. “But I will help you come up with something better.”

“How do you know my idea is bad? You haven’t even heard it!”

“Ok, ok, Deku, I’m sorry, just tell me,” she says. She looks remarkably unrepentant.

Once they hit a peaceful area of campus, a jogging trail surrounded by the bright green buds of newly-leafed trees, Izuku begins to explain.

“You guys were teasing me, but Tokoyami is part bird. So I thought I’d look at bird courtship --” Uraraka cries “Oh, no!” and giggles helplessly. He pouts at Uraraka. It’s not that bad of an idea!

“Let me finish! I THOUGHT I’d look at bird courtship and think about how it could be applied to human courtship.”

“Oh,” she says. “That’s actually not a completely terrible plan. So what were your ideas?”

“Well, this website I found said that crows sing quietly near their mates,” he said. “So that’s why I was asking Jirou about music. I thought I’d learn what Tokoyami likes and, and sing it near him. To see if he notices.”

Uraraka bites her lip, eyes wide. She nods slowly.

“And how,” she asks, sounding choked, “did that go?”

Izuku kicks at a piece of gravel.

“Tokoroki-kun asked me if I was groaning in pain from a muscle cramp and I gave up,” he admits.

Izuku doesn’t appreciate the amount of time it takes Uraraka to stop laughing.

“SO,” he interrupts her hilarity, “I thought I’d try your idea. Try to give him an apple, or an apple pie, or something.”

“Ok, hang on, hang on, let me catch my breath,” Uraraka giggles. “Let’s come back to the apple thing later. I think you’re making this too complicated.”

“What do you mean?”

Izuku doesn’t pout. He doesn’t.

“The music, the singing thing,” she says. “Don’t you live on the same floor?”

“Yes, but Aoyama lives between us,” he says. “I would have to play my playlist terribly loud for Tokoyami-kun to hear it, and it would be rude to Aoyama.”

“Don’t you ever leave your doors open? On my floor, the girls leave their doors open when they feel like socializing,” she explained.

“No, but that could work,” Izuku replies, beginning to mutter. “If I make sure it’s okay with Aoyama, I could figure out a time when Tokoyami will be home and leave my door open so he hears the playlist and then we can have a conversation about it, and that’ll make it easier to have another conversation in the future -”

“Exactly,” Uraraka beams. “No singing from you necessary.”

“Hey!”

“Let’s face it, Deku-kun,” she grins. “Tokoyami may have a bird head, but you are zero percent songbird.”

.

Izuku does have to let Aoyama in on his plan, because it doesn’t make much sense unless he explains it.

“Aoyama-kun, would it be all right if I leave my door open?” Izuku asks one Saturday, when he knows Tokoyami will be returning to the dorm from a jog.

“Mon lapin, are you feeling lonely? We can rendezvous! No need to be alone,” Aoyama says, aiming a wink somewhere over Izuku’s shoulder.

“Who are you winking at? You know what, ignore me,” Izuku says quickly. “I need to tell you something. I like Tokoyami and I want to talk to him more. I want to keep my door open and hopefully have a conversation with him about the music I am playing.”

“Ah, a snare of amour!” Aoyama sparkled. “Say no more, mon ami. I am happy to help any way I can!”

“Thank you so much, Aoyama-kun,” Izuku gushed. “I think he’s going to be back from his run before too long, and I wanted to try today, if that’s all right. But I don’t want to disturb you!”

Aoyama smiles beatifically.

“I think this plan will go best if I relocate, so you two amoureux can bond over music without worrying about me,” he muses. “I think I’d like to visit a café today, in fact I’m feeling a little peckish right now.”

He grabs a light jacket and slips into his shoes, Izuku stepping back into the hallway to give him space to leave his room.

“I really owe you one, Aoyama-kun, thank you, thank you,” Izuku says, somehow simultaneously grateful and suddenly quite nervous to put his silly little plan into action.

Aoyama pats him on the shoulder.

“You can do this, mon lapin,” he says firmly. “Plus ultra!”

With that, Aoyama saunters down to the elevator.

Izuku takes a deep breath and tries not to freak out. He wants to be around Tokoyami more. He likes him because of his morals, his drive, his personality and his interests, and because he’s cute. This plan, if you can even call it that, will hopefully help him be around Tokoyami more.

“Plus ultra,” he mutters, and turns the music up. He darts out into the hallway to see if it’s audible, but not obnoxiously so, from the hallway. He worries it might not be loud enough, so he runs back to turn it up just a bit.

He bops along to the fast-paced guitars of “Just One More Kiss” by Buck-Tick, nervously keeping an eye on the doorway.

Before the song ends, he hears footsteps coming down the hall. He waits as long as he can before he moves to the genkan area of his room, spotting Tokoyami returning from his run.

Oh, no. He’s made a tactical error; he’s struck speechless by the sight of Tokoyami in black running tights and a loose black tank top, sweat dampening his ever-present red choker. He’s turning red; he can feel his ears and face burning.

They’re looking at each other. Izuku has to say something.

“Oh, hi, Tokoyami-kun,” he stammers. “H-how are you?”

“I am well,” he says gravely, after a beat. “And yourself?”

Dark Shadow, approximately the size of a house cat, pokes their head over Tokoyami’s shoulder.

“Hi, Dark Shadow!” Izuku says. “I’m doing well, just um, listening to some music and tidying my room.”

His room is mostly tidy already, but he panicked and thought he needed to be doing more than just listening to music.

“Hi, Izu-kun!” Dark Shadow caws cheerfully.

Tokoyami turns his head to scowl at his quirk.

“Don’t be so familiar without permission, Dark Shadow,” he scolds.

“I don’t mind!” Izuku insists. “He’s cute.”

He blushes further and looks down at his house shoes as Dark Shadow coos in triumph.

“See, he doesn’t mind, Fumi-umi-umi,” Dark Shadow teases.

“You are a specter comprised entirely of vexation,” Tokoyami retorts. He looks back at Izuku as Izuku looks up at him. He tilts his head, listening. “Is this the Novembers? I didn’t know you were a fan.”

Izuku feels a burst of triumph. His plan is working!

“I just recently started listening,” he said. “I found a couple bands I like, but I’m looking for more! What kind of music do you like?”

Dark Shadow nudges him in the back of the head.

“He loves this loud, dramatic stuff,” the quirk replies.

“Don’t lie, you like it, too,” Tokoyami says. “Midoriya-kun, pardon me, but I’m a little disheveled from my exercise. Would you mind if I stepped away to clean up? I could return a little later to discuss this further, if you’d like.”

“I would yes like that!” Izuku blurts, before smacking a hand to his face. “Please take your time. I will be here.”

Dark Shadow giggles at him. Izuku lowers his hand to see Tokoyami and his quirk both looking at him with their heads tilted similarly. Izuku thinks the corners of Tokoyami’s mouth, where his beak connects with skin, are turned up in a small smile.

“We’ll think of some music you might like!” Dark Shadow caws. Tokoyami sketches a short, gallant bow, and turns to walk to his room.

Izuku’s heart gallops in his chest. Oh, they’re coming to his room, to be in his room and talk to him. He might have a heart attack.

Chapter Text

Izuku snatches his phone from the dock, pausing his music so he can think. He can feel his heartbeat pounding in his chest; it’s an unsettling sensation, like his heart is going to climb over his sternum. 

He texts Uraraka, fingers shaking minutely in his excitement. 

“You’re a genius and also please help!!”

“DID IT WORK?!?!” she responds immediately. 

“It worked! And he went to change clothes but he’s going to come to my room to talk about music! WHAT DO I DO?”

“1. Take a deep breath. You’re fine.

2. Remember why you’re doing this. You like him, you want to know more about him, you want to be near him. 
3. Relax! Have fun! You like him, so enjoy being around him!”

Izuku sends a quick thanks and a dozen or so thankful emojis back before he sets his phone back down on its dock, playing music at a lower, soothing volume. He doesn’t know how long it will take Tokoyami to return from his room, if he will shower or just change. Uraraka is right; Izuku needs to relax and enjoy the time with Tokoyami that he gets. Who knows what craziness being heroes-in-training will throw their way next. Maybe Tokoyami will decide Izuku is too weird to be around and start avoiding him after this… but no. That’s not a helpful train of thought. 

Just when Izuku is about to get up and stick his head out of the door to see if Tokoyami has decided not to come back, he hears a door close. Moments later, Dark Shadow peers around the threshold of his open door, golden eyes glowing with excitement. 

“Izu-kuuuun!” they crow, launching their cat-sized self at Izuku where he sits in his desk chair. Dark Shadow’s texture is confusing, soft and solid but also somehow gossamer, like a small animal wrapped in a cloud. Izuku pats him carefully, grinning. 

“Hi, Dark Shadow!” he replies, forgetting his nerves for a moment. The quirk leans their head into Izuku’s touch, emitting a soft trilling sound that ends in a click. 

“Oh!” Izuku gasps, intrigued. “What does that noise mean?”

“It means they’re being coquettish,” Tokoyami chides as he follows his quirk into Izuku’s room. “Have some shame, Dark Shadow.” 

“Oh, how so?” Izuku doesn’t stop petting Dark Shadow, who aims a supremely unrepentant smirk at Tokoyami. In response, Tokoyami merely sighs. 

“They’re making raven sounds, when they know full well how to communicate in at least one human language,” he replies, casting a dour eye on his quirk. “Trying to be more interesting than he actually is.” 

“We’re plenty interesting!” Dark Shadow retorts. 

Izuku giggles, he can’t help it. Their back-and-forth is always amusing to him. 

“You guys are funny,” he says, then realizes he sounds like a simpering flirt. He feels his ears burning. 

“Aww, we like you, too, Izu-kun,” Dark Shadow coos. 

Izuku looks up at Tokoyami, who stops in his tracks, the feathers on his cheeks fluffing out adorably. 

“Coquettish,” he murmurs in his deep voice, smacking one large hand to his forehead. He smoothes his palm down his beak before adjusting his black shirt with both hands. He looks to Izuku, who is still sitting in his desk chair.

“Oh!” Izuku can’t believe he didn’t consider this. He only has one chair. “Would you like to sit here, in this chair? Not with me in the chair of course, just you. Or we can both sit on the bed? Or… I could stay in the chair and you could sit on the bed, or we could sit on the floor..?”

“I think we’ll all fit on the bed just fiiiine,” Dark Shadow leers. Tokoyami gives the tail of the quirk a short, sharp jerk, and the quirk sails back to their host with an offended squawk. 

Izuku lets out a shrill giggle, feeling his entire face burn what must be a truly intense red.

“Ok, I’ll just get my laptop and we can go over there,” he says faintly. 

Tokoyami and his quirk seem to be having a silent argument, staring at each other and making small, emphatic gestures until finally Dark Shadow cries “Fine!” with a huff. 

Izuku looks between the two with confusion as he settles on his bed with his computer. Tokoyami sits down next to him, moving with such grace that the mattress barely moves, but there’s plenty of space between them. 

Tokoyami looks sharply at his quirk, who sighs.

“Izu-kun, I apologize for my inappropriate and lascivious comment, and I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive my impetuous behavior,” Dark Shadow intones, placing heavy emphasis on the lofty phrasing his host often uses. 

Izuku bites his lip, afraid that if he laughs at Dark Shadow right now, he will hurt Tokoyami’s feelings. 

“Thank you, Dark Shadow, I accept your apology,” Izuku says, hoping to keep a tight leash on his urge to giggle at the quirk’s humor.

“You’re more gracious than we deserve,” Tokoyami replies gently. 

Midoriya stares at the other young man, who is just a bit shorter than him. He doesn’t know what to say; Tokoyami is gallant like someone from an old novel, but he really seems to mean it. 

“Thank you,” he finally replies, still somewhat at a loss. “You’re very kind.” He smiles down at Tokoyami, who gazes steadily at him. 

“Aaaaaanyway,” Dark Shadow interjects after the moment of them looking at each other goes on just a bit too long. “When did you get into goth music, Sunshine boy?”

Izuku snorts a little at that moniker. 

“I don’t think anyone has ever called me that before,” he says. “But, um, I think you have a cool style, like, your room? So cool. And Todoroki-kun was teasing me for only listening to hero movie soundtracks, so I asked if Jirou-chan knew what you listened to.” 

It's mostly true, if only a little out of order. 

“What bands did she recommend?” Tokoyami asks, head tilted toward Izuku’s laptop. “I’ll see if she was right, and then we can go from there.” 

Izuku shows him the playlist he put together with the bands Jirou suggested, as well as a few other things he’s found through various suggestions and websites. 

Tokoyami confirms Jirou had his taste pegged, then suggests several more groups, bands, and solo artists, with Dark Shadow interjecting excitedly on occasion. 

Izuku feels an exhilarating rush of sharing this interest with Tokoyami, heads drawn close together over the computer on his bed. Before he realizes it, golden late afternoon light is pouring in through his dormitory window and his stomach is growling. He recognizes an opportunity to mark another courting step off his list. 

It’s not quite dinner time, but he has some shiny green apples stacked on his desk. He grabs two and holds one up in offer to Tokoyami. 

“I could slice them, if you like,” he says somewhat shyly, feeling silly. 

“Oh,” Tokoyami says. “That would -- that would actually be lovely, thank you.” 

“Sure thing,” Izuku replies, turning back to grab a paper plate and a knife, making quick work of the apples on his computer desk. He stares at the apples as he slices them carefully, not wanting to do something idiotic like slicing his hand open while his crush is sitting there. 

A beautiful, somewhat melancholy song plays from his computer as he returns to his bed, placing the plate with the sliced apples between them. 

“This is pretty, what band is this?” 

“This is Evanescence,” Tokoyami replies, moving his hand carefully to select an apple slice. “They’re American, they have a kind of dramatic, operatic rock and alternative sound. The vocalist is sublime.” 

He takes a bite of the apple slice and Izuku feels terribly rude suddenly. 

“Dark Shadow, forgive me, do you want some apple slices as well?”

Dark Shadow makes an “aww” sound.

“Izu-kun is so thoughtful,” they say. “I don’t eat, but Fumi can eat my share.” 

“They are delicious,” Tokoyami murmurs after finishing his bite. 

“I’m glad you like them,” Izuku says. “They are a special kind from where I grew up, in Musutafu. I’ve always liked them, too.” 

Tokoyami gives Izuku a soft look, his beak angled demurely down. 

“That makes it even more special, that you shared them with me,” he replies. “Thank you.” 

Midoriya can’t help but smile at the other young man. He is so kind, so handsome with the afternoon sunshine gilding his glossy black feathers and the veins and tendons of his strong hands and forearms. Izuku is hit with the sudden urge to feed him a piece of apple, but almost immediately decides he would die of embarrassment if he tried to suggest it. 

He looks down at the plate of apple slices, the pile growing smaller as they enjoy eating them. He goes to grab another slice, but Tokoyami reaches for the same slice at the exact moment he does. 

Izuku drops the slice, acutely embarrassed at himself.

“Oh, sorry,” he says, gesturing for Tokoyami to take it. “You go ahead.” 

But Tokoyami takes the apple slice, pushing it back into Izuku’s fingers, both of his hands surrounding Izuku’s crooked, scarred one. 

“No, I insist,” he replies, his hands warm and smooth in contrast to the cool sensation of the apple in his fingertips.

“Oh,” Izuku stutters. He raises the piece of apple to his lips as Tokoyami watches, unblinking, and shyly takes a bite. “Thanks, Tokoyami-kun.” 

“I would like it if you called me Fumikage,” the other teen replies after a pause, his cheek feathers puffing and a sweet red flush spreading from under his choker down to his collarbone. 

Izuku fumbles the bitten apple slice in shock, then tries to catch it, upsetting the whole plate onto his bedspread in his haste. He quickly scoops the apple slices back onto the plate, hoping they’re not too fuzzy from the blanket. Dark Shadow titters in the background, and Tokoyami reaches back to flick them. 

“Thank you, Fumi -- Fumikage,” Izuku says, a smile spreading across his face. “Please call me Izuku, too.” 

“Oh,” Tokoyami breathes. “Izuku. Thank you for this privilege.” 

Izuku looks at their hands, centimeters apart. His name sounds so good in Toko -- in Fumikage’s voice. His fingers twitch as he thinks about reaching out and intertwining Fumikage’s long digits with his own shorter, scarred ones. He smiles down at Fumikage and his quirk, who is peering over his shoulder and vibrating slightly, blurring at the edges. 

“Dark Shadow, are you all right?”

Tokoyami looks over his shoulder and his cheek feathers puff again. 

“Ah, that happens sometimes, when I’m feeling a little … emotional,” Tokoyami admits in a low voice. 

“This is just exciting!” Dark Shadow crows, nearly shouting. Izuku blushes violently and turns his reddened face away from Tokoyami and his quirk. 

“Stop it,” Izuku hears Fumikage mutter through clenched teeth at his trembling quirk. 

“Sorry, Izu-kun,” Dark Shadow croons lowly. 

“It’s all right,” Izuku says, still examining his familiar wall of All Might posters. “I’m… excited, too.” He bites his lip, fighting off an embarrassed grin. 

Tokoyami’s phone vibrates, and Izuku feels more than sees him fish it out of his pocket, the bed bouncing lightly. 

“Oh,” he says. “Izuku, I almost forgot, I’m supposed to dine with my parents tonight. I’ve got to leave soon.” 

Izuku feels a bit sad that they have to end their hangout, but he understands Fumikage wanting to spend time with his parents, especially after they all moved into the dorms. 

He looks back at the shorter man, smiling. 

“Thank you so much for spending time with me today, Fumikage, Dark Shadow,” he says. “This was really fun. And - thank you for sharing your musical knowledge with me! I can’t wait to listen to more.” 

Fumikage reaches up and moves a strand of Izuku’s wild green curls out of his eye. He lightly tugs on the strand, his fingertips brushing against Izuku’s brow. 

“It was an absolute pleasure,” Fumikage murmurs. “Izuku, I hope we can spend time together again very soon.” 

Izuku’s ears burn and his blood rushes at triple speed through his body. He aims a wobbly smile at Fumikage, standing to escort him out of his room. 

Dark Shadow swoops over Fumikage’s shoulder and headbutts Izuku gently, nuzzling their warm, fuzzy head under Izuku’s chin and into his shoulder. It tickles a lot. 

“Izu-kun is the nicest and the cutest,” Dark Shadow coos as Izuku giggles helplessly. 

“I like you, too,” Izuku says, petting Dark Shadow, but making eye contact with Tokoyami, who bows slightly and tugs on Dark Shadow. 

“Until we meet again, Izuku,” he says. 

“See you soon,” Izuku says, watching until they go into their room. He closes his door and falls bonelessly onto his bed with a flump. 

He pulls his pillow over his head and shrieks. 

“AHHHHHHH I LIKE HIM SO MUCH!”

Chapter Text

Fumikage can feel the cloying, viscous strings of smugness reaching from his internal and psychic connections with Dark Shadow as he walks away from Izuku’s room.

“I tooooooooold you,” Dark Shadow begins, too loudly. “I told you he likes you, too!”

“Would you shut up?” Fumikage hisses through his beak. “He’s going to hear you!”

Fumikage hurried to close his door behind himself and his quirk, kicking off his sneakers at the door.

“If you ruin this with your incessant cheek, I’ll never forgive you,” Fumikage hissed at his quirk, not bothering to look back at the shadowy presence as he opens his closet to look for clothes to wear to dinner.

“ME ruin it?” Dark Shadow scoffs. “I’m at least 50 percent of the reason he is even talking to you, you… introvert!”

Dark Shadow spits the word introvert like it’s a curse.

“You’re 100 percent too much,” Fumikage retorts hotly. “Did you see the way you made him blush when you made that over-familiar comment about his bed? He nearly combusted.”

“Yes, I saw it, and it was CUTE!” Dark Shadow’s expansive gestures brush the decorations on the wall, making them rattle precariously. “He’s adorable, and he’s perfect, and if you don’t LOCK him DOWN, I will make you regret it, I swear to the Goddess!”

Fumikage realizes they’re feeding off of his agitation. As much as he wants to grab a coat hanger and beat his quirk with it, he refrains, flicking open the blackout curtains to let the afternoon light in and settling on his bed in a comfortable pose. He takes deep breaths in through his nose and out through his mouth.

“He is outrageously cute,” Fumikage concedes in a level voice after Dark Shadow has shrunk back down to his usual size. “And I like him, and I think you’re right that he might like me -- us -- too, and that’s why you have to have some restraint.”

Dark Shadow whines pathetically.
“But I waaaaaaaaaaant him,” the quirk moans, flopping over Fumikage’s pillow. “And you do, too, I can feel it.”

“Of course I do,” Fumikage murmurs. “He’s amazing. But I don’t want to scare him away. If we push too hard, we could lose him before we ever had him. ”

Dark Shadow huffs, curling up on Fumikage’s shoulder.

“Fine,” he grumps. “But I want it on record that I think waiting is the worst.”

“I’ll make a note of it,” Fumikage says, fondly. “Let’s go see Mom and Dad.”

.
On the long train ride to his childhood home, Dark Shadow stays within Fumikage’s body, in the hard-to-define place within his chest. He doesn’t take up any physical space; it’s not like he’s crowding Fumikage’s organs when he disappears, but Fumikage can feel him there nonetheless. He feels secure there, especially in crowded spaces like trains and stores.

Dark Shadow has never liked the way people stare at him when he is out in public, not that he would admit it aloud.

Fumikage can tell they’re both thinking about M- Izuku on the 20-minute ride. Fumikage keeps remembering the way his frequent blushing highlighted his beauty marks and freckles, as well as turning his ears a very becoming shade of pink. He wonders if his skin would feel warmer there, if Fumikage touched him.

He thinks about the way they almost held hands. Fumikage wants to go on long walks holding Izuku’s hand, both for all to see and just for the pleasure of feeling his warm hand against his own.

He wants to give him something; maybe he would enjoy hero merch or some kind of experience. Maybe he could get Hawks to let Izuku interview him about his quirk. Izuku was insatiably curious about the details of the quirks of the pro heroes they’d begun working around. Fumikage can only imagine how many questions Izuku must have peppered Endeavor with through his work study so far. Hawks would probably take it in stride and be kind in his own flippant way.

Dark Shadow doesn’t reveal himself until they’ve left behind the hum of the town center and are headed toward the more residential area where they grew up. The residents of the small town are used to seeing Dark Shadow, as well as the similar shadow quirk of their mother. A few people nod in polite acknowledgement as they pass by.

Fumikage unlocks the front door and calls out “We’re home!” as he removes his shoes in the genkan.

His mother’s shadowy quirk flows into the entryway and immediately lunges at Dark Shadow for a hug.

The two quirks chirp and squawk at each other deafeningly, showing their love for each other by immediately devolving into gossip.

How Fumikage knows it’s gossip, he can’t quite explain, as the quirks communicate in a language of birdlike caws and crows broken up by raucous laughter, but from the way the two cut their eyes at Fumikage, it can only mean teasing for him in the future.

His mother follows her quirk into the entry, as quiet as the shadow bird is loud.

“My Fumikage, so good to see you, come give me a hug,” she says.

Fumikage happily complies, murmuring back, “Hello, Mom. How are you?”

“I’m great, even better now that my kids are home,” she says. She smooths his feathers back comfortingly, in a way only a parent can. Dark Shadow drifts over, nuzzling with Kurayami, their mother’s quirk, and accepting a hug and snuggles from the woman in turn.

“Where’s Dad?” Dark Shadow asks.

“I’m in the kitchen,” he calls out.

The two humans and their shadow quirks traipse into the kitchen from the front room and Fumikage strides to hug his dad, who reaches out with his beak and preens his ruffled feathers in a fatherly way.

Dinner is already laid out, and unless Fumikage’s eyes and nose deceive him, his dad has made his special apple-and-sweet potato curry. He feels his throat tighten.

“Dad,” he starts. “You didn’t have to.”

“I didn’t, but I wanted to,” his dad replies forthrightly. “We’ve missed you and we’re so glad to have you home, temporary though it may be.”

He tells everyone to sit down and starts dishing out rice and curry. It’s delicious, and Fumikage makes sure to tell him so. Dark Shadow sighs, wishing he could eat Fumikage’s favorite dish, just to see what it’s like.

“So tell us about what you’ve been doing down at Yuuei!” His mom says brightly, patting his hand. “Your Auntie Hiroto called and said she saw you on the news, patrolling with that Hawks hero.”

“Yes, I have been patrolling with him as part of my work study, with his sidekicks, usually,” he says, sitting up straighter, feeling businesslike at the discussion of his career pursuits.

“Hiroto-san said she saw you with Hawks, flying with him,” she says calmly, as if it’s commonplace for her non-winged son to soar through the sky.

“Thanks to me,” Dark Shadow boasts. Kurayami cackles loudly, throwing her spectral head back.

“Oh, hush, Kurayami, you have no table manners,” his mom says serenely.

“Yuma-san, you stick in the mud, aren’t you proud of Dark Shadow and Fumikage for working together so well?” The quirk pulls a face where Yuma can’t see it.

“Of course I am, and Asuka is too,” she replies, smiling at her son and his quirk and glancing at her husband.

“I am very proud of you both,” he says, crimson eyes steady on his children. He’s always insisted that Kurayami and Dark Shadow are their own people. It’s been important to Fumikage and Dark Shadow to have that support at home, because people at school and in the world at large don’t always seem to understand, and don’t treat Dark Shadow like they are anything but a party trick, Fumikage thinks to himself.

“Thank you, Mom, Dad,” Fumikage and Dark Shadow say in unison. Dark Shadow laughs a little and bops over to squawk with Kurayami, who is floating between Yuma and Asuka.

They share a more or less peaceful meal together until Dark Shadow says something to Kurayami, who squawks “Haaaaaah?! What’s this about a boy?!”

Fumikage turns his crimson glare on his quirk and says with venom in his tone, “You are a stupid jerk, Dark Shadow.”

He can’t find it within himself to reach his usual level of eloquence when his quirk and erstwhile nest-brother has just revealed the ONE THING he didn’t want everyone to know about yet.

“Language, Fumikage,” his mom chides softly. She looks up at Kurayami, who’s vibrating with curiosity, and Dark Shadow, who Fumikage can feel has absolutely no regret about opening his big, stupid mouth.

Fumikage tilts his head and shoves a large mouthful of curry and rice in his beak to stall for time.

The silence is broken only by Dark Shadow’s snickering.

Fumikage sighs.

“There’s a young man, Midoriya Izuku, whose presence we enjoy more than most,” he admits. “He is extraordinarily hardworking, kind, and sincere.”

“We LIKE him, and Izu-kun likes us back!” Dark Shadow boasts.

“You don’t know that for sure,” Fumikage snaps in reply.

“Come ON! He checks you out all the time. He said I’m cute and he likes me. He fed you apples, tried to feed US apples, asked you about music, SANG to you!”

“You don’t know if he was really singing to me,” Fumikage protests.

“He’s courting you!” Kurayami crows.

“Oh my goodness, he is,” their dad muses.

“What.” Fumikage intones.

“It sounds like he is trying to court you like a bird would,” Mom giggles. “Oh my. Has he given you any gifts?”

“No!” Fumikage cries, his feathers ruffling in his embarrassment. He smooths them down with his hand roughly, frustrated with their lack of cooperation. “There’s no way he could be doing such a thing. Right, Dark Shadow?”

“I dunno, Fumi, don’t you think that is kind of something he might do? Write down a bunch of ideas in one of those cute little notebooks?” Dark Shadow blushes bright red. “I hope Kurayami is right.”

Fumikage covers his face. “Doesn’t that … embarrass you? If he’s treating us like a bird?”

“But I mean, that’s not really what he’s doing,” Dark Shadow replies. “He’s doing things he would do for a person, too. Finding common interests, politely providing a snack. BEING a snack.”

“You better make that boy your mate,” Kurayami crows.

“MATE?!” Fumikage squeaks. “Don’t you think that’s jumping forward a bit?!”

“Reel it in, ‘Yami,” Mom giggles. “But it does seem like he’s really making an effort to appeal to both sides of your nature, kiddos.”

“Reminds me of when you kept giving me shiny rocks,” Dad says, beak open in a grin. “I had to tell you I am part bird, but not a total bird brain.”

“Oh my goodness, you’re right,” Mom replies, laughing into her hands, a blush dusting her cheeks. “How could I have forgotten that?”

“Awww,” her quirk coos. “Sounds like history is repeating itself.”

Fumikage gulps, feeling like ice slipped into his stomach.

He had not truly considered the possibility of Izuku being a truly permanent fixture in his life that way -- a partner, a mate. He had only thought so far as knowing that he liked the young man and wanted to be around him more.

Dark Shadow has shrunk to the size of an iguana on his shoulder. He shakes a little in response to the feelings rolling over Fumikage.

“I think we’ve overwhelmed them,” Dad stage-whispers.

“I wasn’t trying to scare you,” Mom soothes. “He sounds like a nice boy, you should bring him here some time to meet us.”

“Okay, Mom,” Fumikage replies on autopilot. His gaze is unfocused as his future reshapes around the possibility of Izuku being a part of it.

“I don’t think you’re helpiiiiing,” Kurayami says through the side of her beak.

Mom pats him on the unoccupied shoulder and chucks Dark Shadow under the chin.

“Anybody in there?”

Dark Shadow locks eyes with her.

“Oh shit, we REALLY like him,” he gasps.

“Language,” chide their parents.

.
It’s a quiet train ride home. Fumikage still feels broadsided by the very real possibility that he may have deeper feelings for Izuku than those of a schoolboy crush. He doesn’t allow himself to think of the word, but it dances around in his guts anyway. He knows his parents didn’t mean to shock him by comparing his relationship with Izuku to theirs, but he is shaken nonetheless. His parents aren’t perfect, of course, no one is; but he thinks they have a wonderful and supportive relationship with each other. He would be lucky to find himself a partner as devoted as either of his parents are to each other.

By the time they get back to their dormitory, Fumikage’s discomfort has settled into resolve. He’s no less nervous at the thought of being around Izuku or being with him, but something about it feels less like shyness and more like anticipation.

Fumikage and Dark Shadow wordlessly decide to pursue more opportunities to be around Izuku as much as possible.

Fumikage tries to think of ways to maximize his time around his fellow hero-in-training without being creepy and without outright confessing, because despite Dark Shadow’s insistence that Izuku returns his feelings, Fumikage doubts deep down that he is worthy of being the object of Izuku’s affections. He’s just so… Radiant. An inner brightness, as natural as the sun’s rays, shines from Izuku’s very spirit. He wants to be the best, not for the fame, the money, or the accolades, but to save people and give people hope.

And he’s so attractive. Those bright green eyes, his lovely sun-kissed skin dotted with freckles like stars, his cheerful smile and his murmuring, which has gone from somewhat disconcerting to simply endearing as Fumikage has gotten to know him.

They’ve all grown up since they first met, but Izuku has gone from a wisp of a thing to someone who, while still shorter than average (but taller than Fumi!), there’s no missing the strength in his body. Fumikage has to force his eyes away from Izuku’s biceps and thighs at times, especially when they’re training together. It’s all too easy to get distracted by the physical beauty of the other young man. Fumikage has had more than one daydream about Izuku standing behind him, those arms wrapped around him, Izuku’s chin propped atop his head. He just thinks it would be nice, okay? To be that close to Izuku, to be enveloped in his touch and his attention.

Especially when Izuku turns those blinding smiles on Fumikage and Dark Shadow, which has been happening more and more lately. Ever since the day they put their heads together over Izuku’s laptop, sharing their enjoyment of music and the simple refreshment of fresh apple slices, Fumikage notices their gazes are drawn to each other like a couple of magnets. They share smiles at moments in class, at meals, and even when they see each other at their work studies.

Fumikage and Dark Shadow decide to take the next step, nervous though Fumikage may be. They want to be alone with Izuku again, to bask in the glow of his undivided attention. All that’s left is the asking.