Chapter Text
Aizawa Shouta prided himself on being observant.
It was a big part of being an underground hero, for one, so he had honed his observation skills through lots of time and life-or-death situations.
So when he noticed his resident problem child, Midoriya Izuku, acting strange in class, he began to pay a little more attention to him. He kept his eye out for any red-flags that could indicate something is going on. And he curses himself now, because there are... a lot. Something was going on with his student, and he was going to figure it out.
—
Shouta was in the teacher’s lounge one afternoon, grading his students’ recent essays on hero laws. He sighed to himself after reading Kaminari’s paper, before making haphazard slashes with his red pen through a multitude of mistakes. He scratched a 64% at the top of the page before flipping to the next student. Shouta groaned lightly, before running a hand down his face. Not that he wasn’t proud of Kaminari’s grades improving since the beginning of the year, considering he started around the mid-fifties range, but he sure gets a lot of C’s and D’s.
He glanced back down to the next student, seeing Midoriya’s name scrawled at the top in the chicken-scratch he calls handwriting. He chuckles a bit, reading through Midoriya’s exceptionally long essay he managed to churn out during the hour time limit. He truly excelled when it came to topics like these; writing facts and quoting sources off the top of his head, including theories and stuff like the morality of whatever topic he happened to be dissecting. Shouta was not at all embarrassed to admit he often enjoyed reading his problem child’s essays, always proving to be incredibly insightful. This one was no different, outlining everything needed plus way more depth analysis and theories. Well, plus ultra, Shouta supposes with a small smirk. He marked a quick 100% at the top of the essay as he hears the door to the lounge open.
“Shouuuuu~ your class is insane! How do you deal with them?” Hizashi whines loudly as he barges into the room and flops onto the couch Shouta is sitting at. Shouta huffs lightly before turning to meet Hizashi’s eyes with a deadpan expression,
“What’d they do this time?” Hizashi sighs dramatically,
“In class today, Bakugou was yelling something-or-other at Midoriya, and Uraraka decided to go off on him for being a jerk, which only made him yell even more, so Iida tried to get them to stop but no one would listen. Kirishima eventually had to stop Bakugou from punching Uraraka, who looked about ready to punch him as well, only to be calmed down by Midoriya.” Shouta rolled his eyes. Of course it started with the top two problem children this year.
“Of course it’s those two starting something.” Hizashi grimaced,
“Well, I’m not sure if this is important, but it seemed like Bakugou got angry at Midoriya after he got a question wrong that Midoriya answered correctly.” Shouta hummed in response. That wasn’t particularly out of the ordinary, Bakugou had an ego a mile wide, and, for whatever reason, also had this petty rivalry with Midoriya that sometimes made them difficult to deal with when they were together.
“But get this,” Hizashi continued, pushing his glasses down onto his nose and looking pointedly at Shouta, “I swear, when Bakugou turned to face him, Midoriya flinched. And I don’t think that’s the first time it happened.” Shouta raised an eyebrow at that. While to many, Hizashi seems like an airhead because of his loud and bubbly personality, he is still a great hero and is incredibly smart and observant.
“You’ve noticed it before?” Shouta asks, thinking back over the past couple of weeks. They had definitely been strange, what with all the villain attack and his class being targeted by the League. But for Shouta to miss blatant flinching from Midoriya... Flinching back like you expect to be attacked, that is something that gets ingrained into someone over a long time for it to be a reflex like Hizashi claims to have noticed. Sure Midoriya has seemed skittish and anxiety-ridden the first week or so, which has greatly decreased down as of now, and had that habit of dissolving onto a stuttering mess whenever people talked to him... Crap. Shouta missed something. Something important.
“Yeah,” Hizashi replies, a bit deflated. “It’s been happening less recently, and now it hardly ever happens around anyone besides Bakugou, for some reason.” He finished with a faint furrow to his brow, chin resting on his hands clasped in front of him, elbows on his knees. Shouta scowls at what that could imply. What any of his problem child’s strange habits could imply.
“That’s... concerning.” Hizashi bobs his head in agreement. “I think we need to keep an eye on him, see if there’s anything else you can notice?” Shouta asks. He hopes he can get more information before having to confront someone about this, whatever this is. He doesn’t want to walk blindly into a situation with so little to go on. A major rule when it comes to underground heroics: always get the most information you can about a situation to minimize risk. Hizashi nodded,
“I can ask some of the other teachers to keep an eye out too, if you’d like.” Shouta smiles lightly at his friend,
“That’d be great. Thanks ‘Zashi.” Hizashi grins widely, showing off glittering white teeth.
“‘Course Shou! Anything for you and the little listener! I just hope nothing bad is going on...” he trails off dejectedly.
“Me too, ‘Zashi,” Shouta replies softly, glancing down at Midoriya’s name on the paper in front of him, “Me too.”
—
The next day comes sooner than Shouta would have liked. He groans at the alarm blaring from his bedside table, wrapping his hand around his phone and prying his eyes open to shut it off. Last night was hellish. After an annoyingly long school day, he had parole, where he succeeded in taking down 3 muggers and 2 attempted assaulters, before getting slammed by some guy’s quick that allows him to shoot rocks out of his hands. Shouta now sports a nasty bruise on his left cheek, as well as one on his ribs. He groans again, before rolling out of bed and stumbling into his bathroom to get ready for the day.
Once he’s showered and dressed, feeling a tiny bit more lively, Shouta walks into the kitchen and brews a pot of coffee. While he waits, he flips out his phone and mindlessly scrolls through the news. Seeing nothing of interest, he suddenly has an idea that, frankly, he should have thought of sooner, what with his and Hizashi’s concern for Midoriya. He quickly opens up his email and composes one to Nedzu, simply stating he wished to see Midoriya’s file. Shouta never looks at his student’s files before the school year, opting to make his own judgement without being biased by the opinions of past teachers. He sighs lightly while rubbing a hand over his eyes. If something has been going on with Midoriya, maybe he should start reading them sooner, for all his students, just in case.
He sends the email then clicks his phone off just as the coffee is done. He pours himself a large mug, before downing it in one huge gulp. He sighs contently, before pouring himself another mug-full, grabbing his capture weapon, and popping his shoes one. His phone buzzes, alerting him to the quick reply Nedzu had sent, saying he could stop by his office anytime to see the file. Pocketing his phone, he heads out the door of his apartment, locking it and making his way to UA.
—
Shouta walks into classroom 1-A and his students immediately get to their seats and quiet down. He feels the corners of his mouth tilt up as he hides the emotion in his capture weapon resting around his neck. They’ve learned not to annoy him, good.
His eyes scan the room as they settle, resting for an extra moment on Midoriya before sweeping the rest of the room. His Problem Child sits attentively, notebook and pencil already out on his desk, ready to take notes. He is sitting up in his seat, but when Shouta makes eye contact for a second longer than normal, his student almost immediately hunches his shoulders slightly, folding in on himself like he was attempting to make himself smaller. Shouta’s eyebrows furrow, strange. Midoriya apparently notices a shift on Shouta’s face, his eyes widen slightly and start flitting around the room in quick glances, looking anywhere but at Shouta, and wringing his hands together under his desk. Huh, Shouta contemplates, what did he do to create this kind of nervous reaction in his student, just from a minutely longer glance?
Shouta files Midoriya’s reaction away for later and gets started on the lesson for the day. “Good morning, hellspawn.” He says flatly, sending his signature dead-eye gaze out across the classroom. “Today we’ll be going over quirk ethics in the professional workplace.” He glanced around the room, gauging his students’ reactions to that announcement. “This will include writing a short essay to the given question: How do quirks affect the socioeconomic status of the general public?” Some reactions to the topic and task for today were obvious. Mina, Kaminari, and Sero audibly groan about the fact that they have to write yet another essay. Kirishima and Hagakure both react less auditable, but are equally dissatisfied with the essay thing. The majority of the rest of the class has a combination of indifference of quiet thoughtfulness.
He was unsure why, but when he took a look at Midoriya, he suddenly had a strong determination gleaming in his verdant irises. It’s not unlike his student to get excited for more thought-provoking assignments, but he looked, specifically, like he had something to prove, whatever that may be. And to whom he was proving to, Shouta was unsure. Tucking this new, strange tidbit of information away in his newly dubbed What-Is-Going-On-With-My-Problem-Child folder, Shouta began with the lecture.
“What are quirks?” He began evenly, gaze flicking across the room. Iida, almost predictably, raised one hand in a smooth chopping motion. “Yes Iida,” Shouta intoned blankly. Iida stood abruptly, arm chopping again,
“Aizawa-Sensei! Quirks are the very basis of our society! They allow us to do so much more than the people of the pre-quirk era! We are stronger and more capable than ever!” Iida sat back in his seat, seeming finished with his response. Shouta sighed at his answer. While seemingly accurate to a point, it seems that his class would have a lot to learn if this was what the majority thought. A movement to his right caught his eye. Midoriya gingerly raised his hand, ducking his head a little when Shouta looked his way.
“If I may, Sensei...” he trailed off, waiting for affirmation.
“Go for it, Midoriya.” His head bobbed in response.
“Um... Iida, while w-what you said was f-fundamentally true, there are a lot of, um, errors in that k-kind of thinking.” He began, turning in his chair to face his friend. “While q-quirks may give people amazing power, j-just because you have one doesn’t automatically make you s-stronger than someone without one.” Midoriya’s head cocked to the side, “What really accounts to a p-persons’ strength is the effort and determination they put into their goals. Quirks are just a tool to help them along. So while n-not having a quirk gives you a major disadvantage in many situations, it doesn’t define a persons’ ability to do anything, given they have to drive to do it.” Midoriya finished, stutter giving way slightly to that strange determination. Huh, Shouta supposes, I guess not everyone is as ill-informed as Iida. Still, Shouta was surprised that his problem child was so knowledgeable and passionate about this subject, given he grew up with an incredibly powerful and volatile quirk. Midoriya was still facing Iida, who began standing up, once again, to speak.
“Midoriya! While I can tell you are passionate about quirks, what you say is simply not true! Those without quirks are fundamentally weaker than those with quirks, especially when it comes to important professions like heroism!” Shouta’s eye twitched at the nods of agreement from the majority of that class. For someone, such as himself, who grew up bullied and ridiculed for his ‘weak’ or ‘useless’ quirk, he was not a fan of that kind of bigoted thinking. Midoriya seemed to feel the same way, somewhat strangely, as his fists were now clenched under his desk with a conflicted look on his face. Midoriya opened his mouth to speak but got cut off by Bakugou of all people.
“Shut it, Glasses! Quirks don’t freaking define you!” He huffed, clearly annoyed. At that statement, Midoriya turned from facing Iida to look at Bakugou, a strange expression on his face. Shouta really couldn’t tell what the array of emotions there meant, but it was slightly concerning. Midoriya’s features flitted between surprise and gratefulness and confusion and sadness and anger. Why would Bakugou agreeing with him lead to an expression of anger on the normally happy teen? Yet another thing to file away. Before this argument could get any more out of hand, Shouta interrupted,
“Iida,” He started, “Midoriya and Bakugou are correct. Quirks are not a defining factor in people’s lives, or at least they shouldn’t be. Most people act like they are, when, really, they are merely a means to an end, a tool to help you succeed. They do not determine your ability to succeed. There are plenty of people with incredible quirks who do very little with their life. And, if people weren’t judged by their quirk, plenty of people with weak quirks would be out there doing incredible things.” Shouta met each of his students’ eyes. “Quirk discrimination is real, and that includes the thinking that people with not specifically flashy or powerful quirks, or even no quirks, are lesser than others. It is not tolerated here or in any reputable, professional workplace.” Iida looked apologetic and a little guilty as he shot out a short apology, good. In fact, much of that class had a mix of thoughtfulness and guilt on their faces, mainly those who nodded to Iida earlier. Midoriya had a small grin on his face, determination flashing when he met Shouta’s eyes, before glancing away again. The most confusing expression was Bakugou’s, though. He had a heavy guilt and... something else in his eyes, but he seemed to be trying to cover it with indifference. It wasn’t working, and Shouta was just more confused. Bakugou was one of the two students who disagreed with Iida’s discriminatory statement, why was he feeling guilty? Just what was going on with his problem children?
Shouta sighed for what felt like the hundredth time today, before reaching under his podium to grab a stack of papers. He plopped them down on Bakugou’s desk, gesturing for him to pass them back, to which he obliged. “Here is the essay prompt for today, you have the rest of class to work on it. Think hard about your answers. Feel free to discuss quietly with your neighbors, but make sure your work is your own.”
He gestured his hand in his students’ general direction, signaling them to begin, and pulled out his obnoxious yellow sleeping bag. He slipped inside and zipped it all the way up, leaning against the wall where he could see all his students. A lot of students think he’s sleeping when he does this, which is what he intended. This way, he can observe his students without them knowing. The majority of them turned to their friends immediately when they got their paper, while some, like Todoroki, Yaoyorozu, and Tokoyami, quietly took a moment to think over the question. Bakugou, meanwhile, scowled down at his paper like it had punched his mother, while gripping his pencil tightly. Behind him, Midoriya was already scribbling furiously at his paper, pencil flying across the page and lips moving at frankly astonishing speeds.
Shouta shut his eyes and listened to the quiet chatter of his class, nothing seemed amiss until he heard a quiet growl coming from Bakugou, of course. Shouta opened his eyes as Bakugou whipped around in his seat, hands popping off little explosions above Midoriya’s desk. “Shut up stupid Deku! Won’t you ever quit your freaking muttering?! It’s pissing me off!” Midoriya flinched back harshly, letting out a small squeak, and pulled his shoulders in, hands clutched at his chest, and looked down. Kirishima turned to Bakugou, exasperation and a little confusion on his face,
“Dude! Calm down, it’s not that loud! Midobro just has to get his thoughts out, y’know?”
“S-sorry Kacchan. I’ll try to b-be quieter.” Midoriya spoke in the meekest voice Shouta thinks he’s ever heard of his student, the one reserved for when he’s talking to Bakugou. Shouta scowls and immediately activates his quirk, hair raising, and fixes his glare at Bakugou, effectively shutting off the mini explosions.
“Bakugou, Midoriya,” Shouta doesn’t miss the tiny flinch his problem child has at his name being spoken, “Quit arguing and finish your papers, now.”
“Yes Sensei!” Midoriya squeaks out quickly, settling back at his desk, and hunching over his paper. Bakugou grumbles out an affirmative sound before turning back around and focusing back on his paper as well. Shouta settles back in his cocoon, his quirk switched off. Seems like both Midoriya and Bakugou are on edge today, but for what reason? And how does Bakugou connect to Midoriya’s behavior? Shouta knows that they grew up together and are rivals, but then why does Midoriya constantly flinch back when Bakugou is in his, unfortunately frequent, angry moods? Shouta assumed Midoriya was just skittish, which he thought was confirmed by how he stopped flinching at every sudden move or raised hand of his classmates near him. Yet, he hasn’t stopped flinching around Bakugou… and they grew up together… Shouta shook himself out of his thoughts. He doesn’t want to assume anything, but it feels like he’s missing something important. It’s like he has a few pieces of a puzzle, but has no idea what the picture is supposed to be. It’s frustrating, frankly. Hopefully, he can talk through his thoughts with Hizashi later today, and see if he’s noticed anything now that they’re actively looking. But for now, Shouta thinks he needs to have a quick chat with Midoriya, just to make sure he’s okay, after class. While he gives of the impression he hates his job and his students, he actually cares deeply for each of them, though he will never admit it in so many words. The bell rings suddenly, jerking Shouta out of his thoughts. His students begin packing up for lunch as Shouta stands and shrugs off his sleeping bag.
“Put your essays on my desk on your way out.” He announces to the class before turning to Midoriya’s desk as saying, slightly quieter, “Problem Child, a word before you go to lunch?” Midoriya tries to suppress yet another flinch, and to suppress the anxiety clearly on his face. Neither work very well.
“Y-yes, Aizawa-Sensei.” He replies, seeming resigned to whatever he thinks Shouta wants to talk to him about. Midoriya’s friends come up to him briefly, before being assured that he’ll catch up with them later and that everything’s fine. Todoroki is there too, having taken to Midoriya after the Sports Festival, and growing closer from the Stain incident. Shouta is just glad that Todoroki has finally come out of that emotionless shell he was in at the beginning of the year, even if it was through somewhat illegal activities. Midoriya smiles at his friends as Uraraka says something, to which he nods in response. Then they finally walk out of the classroom, depositing their papers with varied enthusiasm on the way out. All at once it’s quiet, their group being that last to leave, making him and his problem child the only two left. Shouta leaned against his podium, arms crossed and expression deceptively blank, as he gouged his students' reaction. Midoriya was tense, fidgetly slightly in his seat, but seemingly trying not to. His eyes, once again, avoided Shouta’s like the plague, glancing between the door and windows like they were possible escape routes. What happened for him to react this way? Clearly he’s done nothing wrong.
“You’re not in trouble, Midoriya.” He jumps slightly, eyes snapping up to finally meet Shouta’s gaze.
“O-okay Sensei,” He stutters out with a slight tone of… was that disbelief? “T-then may I ask, um, w-why I’m here?” His student looked up at him with big green eyes, confusion, disbelief, and, oh gods, fear apparent on his features, although he tried to hide them. Shouta’s brows furrowed in concern. Why would his student not believe he wasn’t in trouble? And why was he afraid of Shouta?
“I just wanted to make sure you’re okay. You’ve been a bit jumpy today.” Shouta kept his tone even, not giving in to the concern he felt. Midoriya relaxed a little at that.
“O-oh. I’m perfectly f-fine, then!” Midoriya shot him one of his ‘sunshine smiles,’ as his friends dubbed it, seeing as they were so bright and made the person on the receiving end feel like they can’t help but to smile back. And yet, Shouta couldn’t smile back, noticing instead the way the smile didn’t quite reach his students' eyes. “If t-that’s all then, may I g-get to lunch?” Midoriya practically pleaded not to be alone with Shouta anymore.
“Yes, that’s fine. But if you ever need anything, you can talk to me, alright?” Shouta drawlled, hoping his student could see that he truly means it. Midoriya’s eyebrows furrow slightly,
“S-sure Sensei.” He stated, not disrespectfully, but with confusion and disbelief evident in his tone. Midoriya stood, grabbing his bag, and left the classroom, glancing back once.