Chapter Text
Izuku’s phone buzzed with a familiar ringtone, although one he hadn’t heard in a while.
Auntie Mitsuki.
“Hey, kiddo! You need to swing by and pick up your fashion show tickets. Don’t be late!” she chirped. “Noon sound good?”
Izuku hesitated. The fashion show wasn’t until six... Auntie was up to something but... “…Sure. Noon works.”
By the time he arrived, Mitsuki was waiting with a grin that spelled trouble. Before he could even say hello, she held out a hanger draped with a suit that looked far too formal for anything in his life.
“Try this on! You’ll look smashing,” she said, practically bouncing.
Izuku stared at it. His heart sank. Yep. This is exactly why I don’t ask Auntie Mitsuki for clothes help…
Moments of awkward struggle later, and several mild protests, Mitsuki had gotten him into the expensive-looking suit.
It was itchy and stiff and just felt wrong. Plus he was so nervous that he would ruin it that sweat broke out immediately.
The stress of the fitting made his mind wander back to yesterday's events. That bite mark on Officer Sato's neck - the curved indentations, the specific spacing of the teeth. I’ve seen that pattern before, I’m sure of it. But where? His brow furrowed as he tried to focus, but Auntie's voice cut through his concentration, pulling him back to the present.
Auntie sighed and relented. “You look so darling- but I suppose comfort is important.”
After an hour of back and forth he ended up with a stylish but wearable outfit that wouldn’t be ruined by nervous sweating. Small victories.
Next came the gift shopping. Auntie’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “Now that you look dapper, let’s get something for your girl!” She dragged him off to store after store of high-end perfumes and jewelry that would take his allowance for the next ten years to pay for.
“Is she more of a Shiseido or an Issey Miyake girl?” Auntie asked.
Izuku was going cross-eyed looking at a crystal bottle with liquid gold swirling inside- Izuku swore it looked like it cost more than his entire existence.
A saleswoman whispered something about rare ambergris, which only made Izuku panic harder.
What even is ambergris? And how was it rare?
The overwhelming sparkle of diamonds made his head spin, and suddenly he was back in that medical tent, staring at those vivid teeth marks. Sharp canines, slightly overlapping... why did that feel so familiar? The memory felt important, urgent even, but it slipped away like water the moment he tried to grasp it.
Shaking himself back into the present he answered Auntie. “I- I don’t know! I didn’t focus on what she smelled like!”
Auntie sighed all dramatically before pulling him over to a jeweler. “What about these earrings?” She held up delicate pink diamond studs that sparkled like tiny captured sunsets. “Or this necklace?” She pointed to a collar of white diamonds haloing a single midnight-blue sapphire, the kind of piece Izuku was sure belonged in a museum, not a shopping bag.
Izuku was spiraling- his arms flailing as he tried to anchor Auntie Mitsuki back into reality. “Auntie- AUNTIE! Toru is invisible most of the time and besides this is only our second... Third date? Does doing each other's nails count as a date?”
Mitsuki cut him off. “You bet it does, brat! But fine, no jewelry this time… yet. What else does she like?”
After several back-and-forths, they settled on a plush cat. Mitsuki insisted on adding a DIY sewing kit so Toru could make clothes for it. “Shut it, brat! You said she liked fashion- she’ll love this!”
With gifts in hand, Izuku headed back to UA to pick up Toru.
He arrived at the dorms with a nervous smile. Toru emerged in a stunning teal dress. “I designed it and sewed it myself!” she said, spinning a little for him.
He nervously held out the gifts. “These are for you!” He pushed the plush cat and the DIY sewing kit into her hands awkwardly.
She squealed with joy. “Give me a minute to put them in my room! We have to be fast if we don’t want to be late!” she chirped, dashing inside to stow the gifts.
Izuku took out the notebook he had squirreled away in his suit jacket, and scribbled a few notes discreetly. “Likes teal, sewed her own dress. Enjoyed the gifts.” before hurriedly putting it away before she came back down.
Idiot you knew she sewed her own dresses- she said she made the one when you went to the cat cafe too. He reprimanded himself as the elevator dinged and Toru came back from her room.
On the way to the show, they grabbed a quick bite from a street vendor. Some yakitori skewers that fit neatly in hand.
As they walked, Izuku found his mind drifting again to that haunting image - the perfect crescent of tooth marks on pale skin. He'd definitely seen that bite pattern before. But when? Where? The harder he tried to remember, the more elusive it became, like trying to recall a dream after waking.
They finished eating just before arriving at the location, tipping the empty skewers into a trashcan. Izuku still thinking about where he had seen those marks...
“Tickets?” Said an elegant voice. Izuku gulped as he looked at the man dressed in a suit much like the one he turned down from Auntie, a single elegant eyebrow raised as he eyed the pair.
“Ah here!” Izuku stumbled, digging them out of his jacket pocket and handing them over.
“Ah my mistake, you are the guests Madam Kiyora mentioned. Let me call someone over to escort you to your seats sir, madam.”
With a snap of his fingers a teenager rushed over, tripping a bit on the carpet.
The man pinched the bridge of his nose. “Elegant as always, Samuel.”
The now identified Samuel blushed and spoke with an American accent. “Sorry sorry- I’ll lead you now!”
They had just gotten seated when the lights dimmed, and Izuku felt the air shift with anticipation. Spotlights arced across the glossy runway as the announcer’s voice boomed, “Welcome to the Kiyora Autumn Collection debut!”
Music pulsed- low at first, then rising into a beat that matched the rhythm of the first model’s stride.
Toru leaned forward, hands clasped with excitement. “Look at that silhouette! See how the lines make the coat feel taller than it really is?” Her voice was bubbling, rapid-fire with enthusiasm.
Izuku nodded quickly, trying not to look too stiff while his hand dipped into his jacket pocket. He flipped open the little notebook and scribbled.
Likes strong lines, elongating shapes. Appreciates clever illusion tricks.
Another model swept down the runway in a layered gown of smoky grays and silvers. Toru hummed. “Mmm, not my thing. The drape is too heavy- it hides movement instead of celebrating it.”
Dislikes heavy drapes, restricted movement, Izuku noted in tiny handwriting.
The next wave of designs sent a riot of color across the stage. Flowing fabrics that shimmered in jewel tones, paired with sharply structured jackets. Toru gasped softly. “That teal jacket! It’s almost the same shade as mine! Ohhh, the seam work- see how it doesn’t break even when she turns?”
Izuku’s pen scratched quickly:
Favorite color teal. Likes seamless construction.
He stole a glance at her- though stealing a glance at someone invisible mostly meant taking in the faint shimmer of fabric where the stage lights reflected against her dress. Even so, the way she leaned forward, completely absorbed, was dazzling in its own right.
One model paused at the end of the runway, spinning so the fabric of her skirt flared and shimmered under the light. Toru gave a delighted squeak. “Yes! That’s how you make fashion feel alive! I want to try that in my next design.”
Izuku wrote, underlining twice. Movement, life.
When the finale came, the runway flooded with models in coordinated outfits- a dramatic interplay of black, white, and electric color accents. The audience erupted in applause. Toru clapped wildly, bouncing a little in her seat. Izuku couldn’t help but smile, his hands joining in.
The lights brightened, signaling intermission, and Toru turned to him, her voice breathless with joy. “That was incredible. I learned so much just by watching.”
Izuku quickly tucked the notebook back into his pocket before she noticed. His heart felt light. Not because of the show itself, but because of how much it lit her up.
But even in this moment of happiness, something nagged at the back of his mind. Those bite marks. The spacing, the depth, the particular curve of the canines... He shook his head, trying to focus on Toru's excited chatter about seamwork and color theory. Now wasn't the time to be haunted by yesterday's mysteries.
Afterwards, Samuel came back and escorted them backstage. “I am sorry about before- very nervous, my first job- need it to pay for my apartment. I’m going to MediHigh here in Japan- want to be a doctor!”
Izuku gaped at him. MediHigh had a stricter enrollment rate then even UA- but 85% of its graduates ended up successful in the healthcare industry. They had some pretty strict quirk requirements last he heard- requiring impeccable control over the quirk or evidence that the applicant was truly quirkless. One of the few schools in the country that actually welcomed quirkless applicants, and his once backup plan.
“That’s amazing!” Izuku smiled, but they couldn’t talk long before they had to part ways.
“Zuzu!” Auntie put him in a headlock and gave him a noogie, messing up his hair.
Izuku pulled free so he would have an opportunity to introduce Toru to Auntie Mitsuki. “Auntie- this is Toru, my g-girlfriend! Toru- this is Auntie Mitsuki, otherwise known as Kiyora!”
Mitsuki laughed and slapped Izuku on the back. “Well done brat! You only stuttered once. Now go do whatever it is men do while we ladies talk fashion!”
Izuku ducked into the restroom and found a vending machine on the way back. He picked out drinks for both of them, a fruit tea for himself and a green tea for Toru- she seemed to like green tea based on his observations.
When he returned, Toru accepted hers and, without warning, planted a full kiss on his lips. Izuku froze, eyes wide, notebook forgotten.
“Thank you so much!” she said, grinning. “Kiyora said my designs were decent, and maybe we could work together on a collab once I go pro! You’re the best!”
He walked her back to the dorms in a daze, still processing the day, the gifts, the show, and that unexpected kiss. His heart thumped in a way that made him almost forget the notebook tucked safely in a hidden jacket pocket.