dryeyes | dadzawa open post

I--I don't think that's it, sensei! [Izuku's head jerks up in surprise, not realizing Aizawa might not have actually been serious.]

All Might... he just likes to know what's going on... um. [He trails off, gaze sliding away rather suspiciously. He knows why All Might likes to keep tabs on him, but it's not something that he can tell Aizawa, after all. It's probably best that he doesn't mention just how often he and All Might meet, when no other student has such an arrangement.]

[How earnest. He's joking, of course. Rather than thinking he was suspicious, All Might was still stuck on a bit of Eraserhead's image. Aizawa liked being viewed as such a hardass. If All Might were to realize exactly how soft-hearted he was... he'd die of embarrassment. He can still internally chuckle at Midoriya's quick defense.]

He shows you favoritism. [Even without knowing the whole extent of it, Aizawa knew that much. He knew from the moment All Might showed up to bother him after their first lesson.]

Rest assured, I'm providing you the same kind of opportunity I would give any student in this situation. [Again, from his perspective he was going to make this show of attention seem like a terrible thing to have. Being a favorite of his was much tougher because he pushes his favorites to the breaking point.] He shouldn't have to worry about it.

[Immediately, Izuku's shoulders curl in on themselves even as his face fills with color. The thing is, he can't even deny it. So, he doesn't.]

I promise I won't tell him anything about this. [It's strangely easy enough to agree to. All Might has a lot of things on his mind as it is, and Izuku would be loathe to add to his worries in any way.

He dips his head in a a bow again.] Thank you. I wouldn't want to be treated any differently anyway.

[It's a good thing that embarrassment can be read as so many other things. For calling him out so readily on his poor lying, Midoriya can at least keep that connection secret.]

[So, Midoriya is dismissed as Aizawa goes back to his paperwork. Time passes. By Thursday, the principal has approved the necessary paperwork. Officially, Izuku Midoriya is enrolled in an extracurricular run by Shouta Aizawa. Saturday rolls around and while the other students have time to chat about much-needed time to see their families, these two have work to do.]

[a bzzt bzzt text will arrive on Midoriya's phone, from Aizawa's number. the only content of it is an address and a time. Following that will lead to a place at the edge of the city where Aizawa is waiting.]

[Thankfully, Izuku's able to slip out of the dorms without much questioning from his friends. With a quick search on his phone to get the directions to the location, he sets out.

It doesn't take Izuku very long to get there, and he perks up when he spies his teacher ahead.]

Sensei! [He calls, breaking out into a relaxed jog. Even if this had started out as an arrangement to keep his classmates from finding out what happened, Izuku has never turned down work that could help him along the line. Besides, he's a little curious what his teacher has planned.]

Ah, you made it. [He taps something on his phone, like checking the total elapsed time. Could be worse.]

It's a little early for patrols. We'll be filling the time until then with basic training. [He doesn't have a beach full of junk, though. Not that he realizes exactly how much basic training Midoriya has done over the course of this last year. More can't hurt. He gestures at a nearby river, with a bridge over it.]

You see that bridge right there? You're going to be making a lap between it and [he shifts, pointing off into the distance] it's sister bridge. [You're going to have to trust him that there's a bridge where he's pointing, it's too far away to see.]

It's about ten kilometers away.

Ten kilometers... so it'll be twenty altogether. [Mentally, he's already doing the math and... coming to the conclusion that he'll apparently be running a half-marathon during his training with Aizawa that day. Well, he never backs down from a challenge.]

Is there a time limit? [Izuku squints in the direction his teacher's pointing.] And I'm guessing I won't be using my quirk...?

[They were good questions to ask. He was taking it seriously. Maybe overthinking it. That was something the kid was prone to, after all...]

No time limit. Although if you take too long, I'll go patrolling without you. [Which he assumes wouldn't be met with an objection. After all, Midoriya wouldn't want it to interfere.]

Since this is an extracurricular, I could authorize its use. [He notes, idly, like it's some far-off consideration.] ... for today, go without it.

[There's a flicker of understanding in Izuku's eyes. Even if there isn't an official time limit, he's expected to be back here in time for patrol--no, even earlier than that, to give him time to recover. Going on patrol tired would be a terrible idea, and Aizawa would know that. Satisfied with the conclusion he's come to, Izuku gives a sharp nod.]

Okay. I'll be back in a reasonable time. [Reasonable for his own expectations, he means. With that, Izuku breathes in and then takes off running toward the other bridge.]

[There is the briefest of waves as Aizawa watches him go.]

[When he returns, he will see that Aizawa has apparently passed his time... fishing in the river. Was he hiding the fishing rod before? And, man, there are a lot of cats congregating in that area, almost as if he never intended to keep any fish in the first place.]

[When Midoriya makes himself known, though, there will be a brief electronic chirp of Aizawa stopping the timer that was tracking how long it took him to run it. He can balance business and pleasure at the same time.]

[Even if he's in fairly good shape, running that kind of distance without prior training has obviously taken its toll on him. As soon as Aizawa hits the timer, Izuku bends over his knees, face red from exertion as he pants heavily. Not a word of complaint escapes him, though.

In fact, he looks more startled than anything when he spies the fishing rod.] You--you fish?

[It's the first thing that pops out of his mouth in a wheeze, even if he has other questions. Like where did all these cats come from??]

[Hardly any breath for a question and that's the one he goes with, huh. He doesn't answer for a moment as he sets down the phone to tug the line in- there's only a very small fish at the end of the line but several of the cats in the area trot closer and start meowing insistently.]

It's a hobby. [He replies, slowly unhooking the fish and passing it off to a particularly impish-looking black cat. The rest get dismissively waved off as they meow and paw.]

I'd say, [he glances down at the phone again] that was a reasonable time. Now catch your breath. [He'll enjoy the company of the cats a bit longer, then, until they realize he's not feeding them any more.]

[Izuku watches the scene unfold with some measure of bafflement, though he does mentally add the information to his file on Aizawa--his teacher's fond of cats. Who knew?

Carefully, Izuku walks over to join him and sits, looking just a little crestfallen when the cats shy away from him, as strays are likely to do.] Do you visit this area a lot, sensei? They seem familiar with you.

[There's a bit of a tired look in response. He told you to catch your breath and this is the kind of question you waste it on? Still, holding that look for a handful of seconds earns a response.]

... cats remember people who feed them, that's all. [Basically, yes, he's totally in this area a lot. Even his recreation activities serve a logical purpose, that is, feeding cats. The cats remember and that's why they meow affectionately at him like small children.]

Sometimes I start my patrols from here, if I'm already out of the house.

[He can't help being curious!! This is his first real look at Aizawa outside the usual school grounds, after all. Even if they are technically still in the middle of a lesson.]

You must feed them a lot, then. [Izuku says with a slight grin, before finally falling silent to rest. As fascinating as this all is, he doesn't want to use up all of his teacher's patience already when there's still some time left before the day's over.]

[It's a slightly different Aizawa from during school, just like it was slightly different Aizawa when he was working as Eraserhead. It's an Aizawa that will gently cup his hand around a cat's head and give it an affectionate pet. One that'll put up with an older cat lazily batting at his capture weapon.]

[There's a small "hn" response to Izuku's statement. It's not factually incorrect. He doesn't need to object to it. They can sit in silence for a little while before he picks up the fishing stuff and tucks it away into a basket.]

We'll just do a standard patrol today, the type any hero should be able to do. [At that point, he'll start shooing the cats away, making sure his capture cloth is secured around his neck with no ends dipping out to entice the cats to stay.]

First: describe the purpose of a hero's patrol. [were you expecting a quiz. no? too bad.]

[Despite the silence, it doesn't feel uncomfortable. Izuku makes note of this with some surprise, even as he leans back and observes the gentle way his teacher handles the cats coming up to him. Somehow, he feels a little disappointed when Aizawa starts packing away his gear.

That doesn't stop him from hopping to his feet to follow Aizawa.]

Patrols? Um, beside the obvious reason like being able to reach an incident much more quickly, they help discourage potential villains from causing trouble and also help make the civilians feel safer. [He answers quickly, without hesitation.]

Good. [Regarding both the speed and the quality of the answer.]

Plenty of greenhorns focus in too much on the first part. A hero's patrol can serve as far more deterrence than actual combat... and ideally that deterrence should be enough. [There was a reason the job market was allowed to get so flooded with heroes (well, that and less critical instructors than himself). It was why individuals like the Hero Killer could be so successful- and strike so much fear, indecision, and ignite a wave within the populace.]

That's why we're starting with the most basic patrol. Prove you've got a good grasp of that and we'll start talking about how the pros differentiate their patrols.

[Praise! From Aizawa! Izuku soaks it in eagerly, as he does with any positive feedback that he gets.]

Yes, sensei! Are we going to be following your usual patrol route?

[So what if he's a little eager to learn. Ironically enough, going on patrol is one of the few prohero duties he hasn't gotten really familiar with yet--with Gran Torino, they hadn't even made it to their destination before being pulled into the fight as Hosu. And then during his internship at Nighteye's, his first one with Mirio had been cut short by their run in with Chisaki...]

No. [100% flat response.]

[Or, well... he can explain himself. In this case, explaining himself is also explaining the context of the lesson.]

The route I do is more specialized. It's tailored to the type of hero I am and the work I usually handle. The generalized experience will be more useful for you at first. [He wouldn't be surprised to realize that Midoriya's two experience had proved less than idea when it came to "normal" patrols. Maybe he should keep himself on higher alert, today. The boy was a trouble magnet.]

... Keep it up, though, and I might take you along for a usual one. [he half-glances away after saying it]

[A specialized patrol route? As if Izuku wouldn't be curious about the kind of work an underground hero would be involved in. Though he's disappointed by Aizawa's answer at first, Izuku quickly recovers and resolves to do well enough for Aizawa to make the switch eventually.]

Yes, sensei! [The words are even more enthusiastic than before. Though Aizawa's sure to be thrilled about Izuku's boundless energy, it's probably a good sign that he hasn't lost that obsessive love for anything related to heroics, despite the trouble he's gotten into so far.]

[He wouldn't be called an underground hero if he didn't occasionally deviate from the norm.]

[So, they'll go for a standard route. The total length of the patrol ends up being about an hour and a half, covering a wide area of the city in a grid-like format. They stick to the main streets, occasionally cutting through alley-ways (where there are more cats, and it seems like Aizawa is a little torn by having to just walk by).]

[They'll occasionally pass by other heroes. Despite Eraserhead's reclusive nature, they'll usually exchange a few words. As for what he says he's doing, when asked?]

Just babysitting. [Is it harsh or just his overly-logical way of viewing the world? Hard to tell.]

[As they make the rounds, Izuku keeps up with Aizawa just fine for the most part. He's so determined to do well and convince Aizawa that he's prepared to go on the usual route that he doesn't even try to ambush the heroes they run into with questions like he normally would. He's pretty sure that Aizawa had noticed the way he'd practically been shaking with the effort to keep himself quiet.

Either way, after being called a zygote by both All Might and Gran Torino at this point, Izuku doesn't even bat an eyelash at the babysitting comment.]

[The effort is noted. It's not noted in any significant way but Aizawa sees more than he lets on, as always. At some point these would just be coworkers. As far as he's concerned, there wasn't room for idolization between two equal workers. (It was an overly-simple, logical view of it, of course, because just about every hero had some inspiration.)]

[They finish up the route. No reported incidents. A few can be overheard but they're outside the effective range and other heroes are reported on the scene first. Aizawa taps out a few text messages on his phone, confirming for himself.]

All right, that wasn't too bad. [Usual Aizawa non-praise.]

This is what an average hero will do on the regular. If you don't get the basics down, there's no point in trying to specialize further. [His hand comes up to idly shuffle the strips of capture weapon around his neck.]

It's important to get experience, even if you have an image in mind of the hero you want to be.

[Izuku's quiet, eyes trained on Aizawa's face intently as he soaks in everything his teacher's telling him.]

The more experience you have in other areas, the more opportunities you have later on, right? [It's easy to recall what Uraraka had said when she joined Gunhead's agency for her first internship instead of opting for a rescue-based agency like Thirteen's.]

And not only opportunities... if there's a situation and the specialists are either already occupied or too far away to arrive in time for back up, then that means other heroes will have to step up and fill in for them. Having experience in all aspects of the hero job would prepare you for that, too.

[He turns hopeful eyes on Aizawa as he finishes his impromptu analysis, waiting for approval or rejection of any kind.]

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