Chapter Text
“What do you mean he attacked a nurse?”
“I mean just that,” came the far too calm reply of the doctor as the pair headed down the corridor. Their pace was swift, but not as swift as Aizawa wanted it to be. Thankfully, anyone they encountered in the halls seemed to know that this was urgent and simply stepped out of their way without a word of complaint.
Shaking his head, he insisted, “I know my student. He would not attack someone for no reason—“
“And I never said he did not have a reason,” the doctor interjected, his pace hesitating.
Aizawa’s eyes narrowed. “What happened ?”
The doctor halted, a heavy sigh escaping him as he turned to meet Aizawa’s gaze. “Long story short? Your student allowed the victim from the raid to imprint on him, and his Omega is reacting… poorly .”
Red eyes flashed, causing the doctor to back away from Aizawa as he demanded, “Start from the beginning. Now. ”
The first thought he had upon entering the room was that everything smelled too sterile.
Which should be expected. The room smelled just as the rest of the hospital did: over sanitized with a touch of chemicals. This was good in theory but bad in practice when it came to situations like this. When someone fell to their baser instincts, scents became increasingly important, and such a sterile environment could often send the person into a scenting frenzy. Usually Alphas and Omegas were placed in rooms with faint pheromones, not enough to overwhelm or trigger territorial behaviors, but enough to take the edge off.
It was very obvious that this room was not equipped for that.
So, he was not surprised at the sight he found in front of him. Both Omegas were curled up together on one of the hospital beds that had been shoved into the farthest corner of the room. The other bed had been stripped of sheets and pillows, and it was clear that his student had made an attempt to build a nest out of the flimsy offerings available. The pup was carefully perched in his student’s lap, curled into his chest as the Omega leaned against the corner of the wall and rubbed his cheek along the distressed pup’s head, purring loud enough for Aizawa to hear from the doorway.
Something deep within Aizawa’s chest swelled with pride. It was a stupid, instinctual thing of his Alpha, but seeing the Omega comforting the pup, protecting the pup, all while the only pheromones in the room reeked of protective Omega, made him want to rumble in approval. He didn’t, of course, because trying to bring his student out of this state would only be more difficult if his Alpha praised him, but he still could feel his Alpha pressing at the edge of his awareness all the same.
Eventually, having asserted that they were both alright for now, Aizawa decided to make his presence known. “Midoriya?”
The change in behavior was instantaneous. Eri vanished from sight, tucked behind Izuku as the elder Omega shifted into a crouch on the bed, ready to spring at a moment’s notice as a low warning growl filled the air. Aizawa hesitated in the doorway, slowly lifting his arms in a surrender gesture, making no moves to progress any further into Izuku’s makeshift territory.
His Alpha, surprisingly, did not take offense to the Omega’s threatening growl. He had always had a bit of a hair trigger on his instincts, something that had only been wrangled after years of practice and discipline, but his Alpha almost always took offense to instinctual acts such as this. Yet the feeling of pride only swelled in his chest, a small rumble of approval escaping him before he could stop himself over Izuku’s willingness to fight for the pup.
He cut off the rumble as soon as it had started, but the damage was done. Izuku’s Omega, still poised for a threat, tensed ever so subtly, and Aizawa feared he would lash out…but he didn’t. Midoriya, still tense but less so, tilted his head with a confused look on his face. The growl faded, and his student let out a curious chirp.
Which…Aizawa could work with. Curiosity was preferential to aggression by far, which should make things easier. That was, so long as Izuku was willing to listen.
“Midoriya, it's alright,” he began softly, still unmoving from the doorway but slowly lowering his hand, holding one out like an offering. “It’s Aizawa. Your sensei.”
Izuku made no sound, simply eyeing the hand warily.
After some hesitation, he decided to press his luck. Stepping forward slowly, he kept his hand held out, holding a steady gaze on the teen. “It’s okay, I’m not going to hurt you.” He glanced at the pup peeking around the teen. “ Either of you,” he gently coaxed as Izuku leaned back ever so slightly at his approach, but made no other move against him.
Eventually, he found himself near the edge of the bed, holding out his hand at a respectable distance. “It’s going to be okay, Midoriya,” he soothed, holding Izuku’s wary gaze. “I promise: I won’t let anyone else interfere. No one will try to take your pup again.”
Then, after an awkwardly long pause, Izuku hesitantly moved forward, keeping his eyes on Aizawa as he stretched towards the hand and took a cautious sniff…and then Izuku let out a loud, excited purr, leaning into the hand and head butting it like a cat.
Aizawa let out a sigh of relief that he did not realize he was holding. Fingers curling through the teen’s hair, he allowed the Omega to seek his comfort while thanking his luck that his gamble had paid off. If he had gotten himself bitten by a student, Hizashi would never let him hear the end of it.
And Hizashi would have laughed himself sick at Aizawa’s expense.
“Problem Child…” Aizawa muttered as Izuku continued to purr, switching from head butting the hand to suddenly grabbing it, dragging the man closer to the makeshift nest.
He watched as Izuku shifted around, giving the hidden pup a few encouraging chirps, gently coaxing her into peeking her head out farther from the corner she was tucked into. Eri eventually relented, looking up at Aizawa with fearful eyes, fingers digging into Izuku’s shirt. Izuku simply continued to purr, shifting the girl to his lap while trying to calm her. His stiff fingers swiftly ran through the pup’s hair, making it look as presentable as possible given the situation, and then while hugging the girl to his chest, Izuku looked up at him with a beaming smile and expectant eyes.
The mannerisms, the look on the Omega’s face, all of it was making wheels turn in Aizawa’s head. His hindbrain pressed at his awareness, trying to make him see… something about this situation. Honestly, if Aizawa didn’t know better, he would say it felt as if Izuku was a pack Omega showing off his new pup to his Alpha—
And then it clicked for Aizawa that this was exactly what Izuku was doing.
It wasn’t new knowledge for Aizawa that Izuku had come from two Beta parents, and from the interactions he has had with the boy over the year, it would not surprise him to learn that Izuku did not have an established pack dynamic. Not to say that he was mistreated, but there are some things instinctually that Betas simply cannot supply for Alphas and Omegas. No amount of love and care can change that.
But for the teen to so easily defer to him as a head Alpha?
“Therapy,” Aizawa muttered. Izuku tilted his head in confusion, and the Alpha simply sighed, reaching up to pat the teen’s head. Izuku immediately began to purr loudly , Eri watching the entire interaction with a look of wonder. “I am signing you up for mandated therapy.”
Izuku did not understand a word of what Aizawa was saying and simply chirped happily in response.
When Izuku woke, the first thing he realized was that his entire body ached . His joints were stiffer than usual, his muscles protesting every shift of his body, feeling as if he had overworked himself in training. Which, if he had done so…again…Aizawa-sensei was sure to be upset with him.
The thought made him wilt a bit.
But then as the stiffness settled, the onslaught of scents began to hit him. The scent of another distressed Omega mixed with his own was the strongest, along with an underlying fainter sterile scent that reminded him of Recovery Girl’s office. He silently hoped that this was not where he was, because he could not handle a lecture from her and Sensei at the moment—
Something shifted in his arms.
His eyes popped open, blinking to adjust to the harsh lighting, and tilting his head down, he found himself staring at silvery white hair, hair so long that it spilled across the rest of what looked like a makeshift nest of flimsy hospital sheets. And then he remembered.
“Eri,” he whispered quietly, his arms tightening around the little girl as a purr slipped out of him. He pressed his face to the top of her head, listening to the soft breathing of the little girl tucked against his chest, fast asleep.
“You finally awake, kid?”
Izuku’s head snapped up, looking towards the far end of the bed to see Aizawa sitting perched just at the edge of his nest. The man looked tired as he sat down his cell phone, more so than usual, but he had this almost… relieved look to his eyes all the same.
Izuku nodded, managing a quiet, “Yeah…I think.”
Aizawa let out a snort. “Well, you are finally speaking coherently, so I guess that’s good enough for now.”
His brows furrowed in confusion. “Coherently?”
And now the Alpha just looked amused. “Your Omega took over for a bit.”
“… what—? ”
“Shhh, watch your volume,” Aizawa softly chided as he shifted to face Izuku better. “And don’t sit up. It took you a while to coax her to sleep. She seems to trust me, but was wary for a bit despite you… introducing us.”
Begrudgingly, Izuku stopped attempting to sit up, settling back down in the nest as he glanced down at the heavily sleeping pup in his arms. “…what do you mean by introducing ?”
Aizawa hesitated, something that Izuku was unused to seeing the man do. He had always known Aizawa to be forward and direct, to not sugar coat a situation no matter how harsh he might sound. The idea of something Izuku did to make the man pause like this—
“…you presented her as a pack pup to me.”
Ah. That. That would explain it.
And once the realization sunk in, Izuku was mortified .
“I what? ” Izuku asked in a panicked, hushed whisper. “Oh, I am so sorry! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable—” He rambled on, only for Aizawa to wave off his apologies.
“Midoriya, it’s fine,” Aizawa insisted, reaching out over the edge of the nest slowly in order to pat Izuku’s head. “I swear, it is alright. You were stressed and coping with an imprinted pup. Your instincts kicked in, and you did wonderfully considering the circumstances.”
“…I did?”
Aizawa nodded, letting his hand rest on Izuku’s head. “You did. When I got here, you already had her calm and comfortable, safely tucked in a nest with you. You also fiercely protected your pup till I got here so that you could safely rest with her.” With a rare, warm smile, Aizawa praised, “You did so well, Omega.”
Izuku had never been one to lean into his dynamic. Neither of his parents really knew anything about it, and what little they did know, he pretended to be fine without. Growing up both quirkless and a male Omega was difficult, and while he could not really do anything about how he was born, he could do something about his behavior.
So, he suppressed what he could about being an Omega. He avoided the stereotypes, mimicked his parents as best he could, slapped on scent patches, and continued on with his life. Most people did not even know he was an Omega, to be honest, and those who bothered him growing up tended to focus more on his quirklessness rather than his secondary gender.
For a while, it was as if he had never been an Omega in the first place.
Even at UA, he avoided the topic as best he could. Omegas weren’t rare , but they were uncommon in Heroics, enough so that he was the only one in his class. The only other Omega he knew of in the Heroics course was Monoma, and the teen wasn’t exactly… sociable . Thankfully, none of his class had ever really pressed about his secondary gender, and the few times it had come up, he swiftly shifted the conversation and no one seemed to notice.
But now, here he was, being praised for being a good Omega. Not only praised, but praised by an Alpha he genuinely looked up to, the one that his inner Omega often whispered as their pack Alpha. It was—
It was overwhelming.
But he didn’t know what to say other than a faint, “Thank you…” as he ducked his head, burying his face into Eri’s hair. Her scent was still tainted by dust and dirt, having only been briefly cleaned up upon her arrival here, before she woke up and lost control of her quirk, before she cried for him as her power flared, before he burst into the room without hesitation and pulled her into his arms with soothing purrs and promises of never letting go—
His head was a mess. He never thought he would have any pups. Had never wanted to have any, never had the desire to carry, yet now, something in his soul had clicked for this pup. This one was his . He may not have carried her, but he could not care less about DNA. Whoever her carrier was, they no longer mattered. Eri was his pup, and he would fight tooth and nail before he let anyone take her from him—
…wait.
“…Sensei?”
“Hmm?”
“…did I…my Omega…lash out at anyone?”
Aizawa blinked. “Oh yeah.” Scratching Izuku’s head absently as he spoke, he casually remarked, “A nurse tried to take Eri from you after you calmed her down, and your Omega reacted. She’s fine, though.”
“Oh, that’s good—“
“She only needed four stitches from when you bit her.”
“…from when I what?! ”
Hizashi liked to believe he wasn’t an overly clingy mate.
Honestly, you couldn’t really afford to be one in this career field. Being a hero meant long hours, high risks, and very frequent hospital visits. This was universal no matter what branch of heroics you went into. But when you compare the schedules of a Limelighter and Under? They were lucky to have any time together at all. But even still, it wasn’t too bad during the first few years post graduation.
Then Shouta decided he wanted to be a teacher.
Most people were surprised when they learned that it was Shouta who pushed for both of them to get their teaching licenses. Which, yeah, Hizashi could understand from a surface level. Shouta was not the most sociable person, and he seemed like the last person who would want to be locked in a building with hundreds of hormonal teenagers on a daily basis.
Honestly, even Hizashi had been surprised about the decision…until Shouta mentioned Oboro. How Shouta wanted to honor their lost packmate, how he felt an urge, a need to try and train future heroes, to do everything in his power to ensure that none met an early demise like Oboro had. It was an impossible task, they both knew it. But well…here they were.
Neither regretted the choice for a second. With hindsight and experience, Hizashi could easily say that this was their calling. And considering the severe unlikelihood of he and Shouta ever having their own pup, this was the closest they would ever come to raising one. A grim thought, but something they had both come to accept…to a degree.
But overall, Hizashi found himself content with their career choice. It did , however, lead to mildly inconvenient situations…such as his mate being locked in a quarantine ward after a huge Yakuza raid for three days.
So yeah. He didn’t think he was clingy, but even he had his limits.
The main reason he hadn’t tried to weasel his way in yet was because he knew the separation was for a good reason. The second Shouta was able, he had texted Hizashi an update about everything going down. Was Shouta allowed to? Probably not. But, not to sound callous, the person in charge of everything had kind of kicked the bucket during the raid so there was not really anyone around to stop him.
He felt bad for Nighteye’s team. The hero had always had a bad habit of hoarding responsibility with operations like this, so trying to figure out who could do what was a nightmare task Hizashi wouldn’t wish on anyone. Supposedly FatGum’s agency had stepped up to take point and assist, but the vague reports Aizawa had gotten were still a paperwork nightmare.
Policing what mates were texting each other was not exactly high on anyone’s priority list.
But what was high on Hizashi’s personal priority list was helping Midoriya Izuku.
Some people were making that difficult , however.
“Look, I’ve shown you my ID and my hero license… twice ,” he drawled in an annoyed tone, tapping the cards in question on the counter he leaned on. “I know for a fact that the Hero in charge of Midoriya Izuku and the rescue victim requested my presence, and I know he alerted the quarantine ward staff when I was arriving. All you have to do is check!”
“It’s a quarantine ward for a reason,” the receptionist replied, her tone short and clipped. “And I know for a fact that they have not been letting any guests visit those two in particular—”
“Until today,” Hizashi interrupted. “Because I know that Lemillion was allowed in the room this morning as a test run to see how the two reacted, and things went well, hence why I was requested to visit and bring…” He dramatically lifted his other arm, brandishing the gigantic and frankly heavy duffel in the air that caused him to stumble some. “ Supplies! ”
The receptionist did not budge. “I was not alerted of any of this—”
“Probably because they don’t have the time to personally call every single member of staff to update them on changes—!”
“It should be in his account—”
“If it's not, then it's a mistake, one which could be easily resolved by contacting the quarantine ward—! ”
“Mic, watch your volume,” a voice called out from down the hall at the same moment a familiar numbness hit his quirk.
Spinning around, he had to physically restrain himself from launching at the man in question. “Sorry, Eraser,” he replied coolly, grinning like a loon as he pointed a finger gun. “They just seem to have misplaced my backstage passes, yo!”
Shouta rolled his eyes, trying and failing to hide his grin. Hizashi noticed that his mate was missing his capture scarf, an oddity for the paranoid Alpha, but Hizashi kept his mouth shut. Familiarity beyond a professional level was a boundary for both of them when in public. Both were in costume, and neither wanted to risk letting their relationship go public just yet. The woes of being Limelight: fans just didn’t know how to mind their damn business, and the last thing Shouta needed was civilians tailing him on patrols to ask about their relationship.
Shouta came to a stop near Hizashi, and his eyes dropped to the bag. “What is that ?”
Brightening Hizashi held up the bag proudly. “Supplies!”
“Mic. We are planning to check them out within the next day or two—”
“And it’s a travesty that they did not have this sooner,” he cut in smoothly, grinning at the exasperation on his mate’s face. “They deserve to be spoiled.”
Though his mouth twisted into a frown, Shouta seemed to cave with a sigh. “I guess…” But Hizashi knew better. He could tell that Shouta was pleased. He had never been blatant about it, but he was the type of Alpha who fussed over his pack. It was not uncommon for things like gear and practical items to be switched out and upgraded without a word, even for extended pack. If Shouta had been able to leave the Omegas’ sides over the past three days, the grump of an Alpha likely would have been smuggling just as many things into the ward.
“I thought you weren’t supposed to leave your… student alone?” The receptionist asked in a snippy manner as she glared at the pair of them.
“Lemillion is watching them,” Shouta replied easily, unbothered by the rudeness that made Hizashi want to cause a scene. “Eri is comfortable around the Alpha, and I trust him not to do anything that would set off Midoriya. I had to leave because Present Mic messaged me that you were refusing him access.”
“There is no note about him being cleared—!”
“Then argue with your coworkers, not the ProHero.” Turning away from the receptionist to Hizashi, he jerked his head in a motion to follow him before turning around and heading towards the elevator, not waiting to see if Hizashi was behind him.
Hizashi didn’t need more approval than that, however. He gave the receptionist a shit eating grin before jogging after his mate till he fell in step with the man. “Wow, they really are being strict about all of this, aren’t they?” he asked quietly, eyeing the staff as they passed. All seemed to have eyes on them, a few whispering in low tones.
“I will give them the benefit of the doubt in that they have a right to be wary,” Shouta replied just as quietly, his eyes steadfastly remaining locked forward. “We have a traumatized pup with a quirk powerful enough to do serious damage to the hospital, and an Omega who has already proven volatile when protecting said pup.”
Hizashi let out a hum of approval at the last part as they reached the elevator. “Have you gotten yourself bitten yet?” he teased.
“No.” Then, Shouta grinned, a feral one that he usually only gave to freak people out...or when his Alpha was excited. “But I did have a pack pup presented to me, apparently.”
…oh?… OH.
Hizashi didn’t even have the chance to shout before a hand slapped over his mouth, Shouta’s quirk flashing. “Watch your tone,” Shouta drawled, clearly amused as Hizashi huffed. “The staff is already annoyed at us, let’s not make it worse.”
Yanking the hand from his mouth, he replied, “It’s not Eri or Midoriya’s fault about any of this. They don’t have the right to be annoyed—”
“Apparently, the staff does not like potentially ending up rewound out of existence or needing bite wound stitches.” The elevator finally pinged on arrival, and the Alpha shuffled Hizashi on. “I don’t like any of this either, but I’m doing my best to make it as easy on the two as possible…which means trying to avoid pissing off the staff.”
“Fine, I get it…” The doors slid shut, and Hizashi immediately buried his face into Shouta’s neck, scenting the man briefly while they were away from prying eyes. “We’ll get through this, okay?”
Shouta practically melted, a sight that no one outside of their pack ever was able to see, something that made Hizashi want to purr. “Yeah,” Shouta replied thickly. “Yeah, we’ll figure this out…” Then, more hesitantly, he added, “I do have something I need to talk to you about—”
“If it’s the proposal that Nedzu’s been poking you about, trust me, I already know,” Hizashi replied with a laugh. “The boss spoke with me this morning.”
“Of course he did…”
“I wish we had time to run it by Midoriya’s mom,” Hizashi lamented as he slumped further against Shouta.
“But Izuku still is not ready to tell her—”
“And legally we can’t tell her about the imprint without his consent since she’s not pack,” he continued with a mocking, dull tone. “I’m aware of the law, Shou.”
Aizawa had that frown on his face, the one that usually meant they would have trouble later to clean up. “It’s not ideal…”
“But this plan is for the best.” The elevator door pinged, and the two separated, though they did hover close to each other. “Nedzu poured over all the pros and cons with me, and I know the possible backlash we might have to help him face with his parents. But for the record…” Hizashi continued as they moved to leave the elevator. “I’m one thousand percent willing.”
“Are you sure ?” Shouta asked quietly.
“So long as Midoriya is comfortable with it,” Hizashi replied with a shrug. “I don’t really know the kid as well as I would like, so I don’t know how he would react—”
“If he is willing to consider me as pack Alpha, he would easily accept you—”
“Shouta. Even you know that Omegas have a more difficult time bonding with other Omegas—”
“Midoriya isn’t exactly a normal Omega.”
Hizashi’s head snapped to his mate. “What does that mean—”
“Just…” Shouta slowed his steps, looking up at Hizashi hesitantly. “I’ve only found this out in the past few days, and I’ve been doing my best to reassure him, but…he’s never really allowed himself to feel his instincts. He grew up suppressing his Omega.”
Hizashi paused his steps, his face twisting into a myriad of emotions. Shouta hung close, waiting, watching to see what exactly his mate was thinking—
And then Hizashi grabbed his arm in a vice grip. “Well then, we are just going to fix that, aren’t we?”
Izuku did not know what to do with himself.
He knew that he shouldn’t feel this awkward around Mirio. His senpai was nice , really and truly nice , and given everything that had happened over the past week—which honestly, had it only been a week since meeting little Eri?—Izuku should trust him easily. And in a way, he does…but his Omega was being difficult .
He kept his emotions and scent as in check as possible, simply watching Mirio and Eri interact. Usually, he would be trying to chime in and be involved, and he had done so for a time while Aizawa was here, but now the urge of his Omega to growl at the offending Alpha was growing stronger by the second. It was stupid and ridiculous. Mirio was not even doing anything wrong! Everything had been fine when Aizawa left to go get Yamada-sensei, but then…
Mirio sat on the edge of his nest.
Izuku did not think that the Alpha even knew that this pathetic pile of sheets was supposed to be a nest. It certainly did not look the part beyond the scent of Omega clustered in the spot, which really did not mean much given this had been their hospital room for several days now. However, his hindbrain considered this enough of a nest to make Izuku’s Omega shift uncomfortably inside him, wanting to lash out, to snap at the teen who should know better.
But Izuku felt ridiculous for being upset. He had been allowing Aizawa to sit next to the nest for the past few days without complaint, and all Mirio did was fill the vacated spot. He had gone years without a nest, yet now he was possessive over this sad excuse for one that he didn’t even want? He only kept this one constructed because Eri seemed comforted by it, and she did not seem to mind at all that Mirio sat on the nest. The girl already trusted so few people, so how could he even think about lashing out at the Alpha who helped save her? Even now, she moved towards the edge of the nest, listening, enraptured by the story Mirio told about his first Sports Festival—
Mirio shifted further into the nest.
Izuku ducked his face down, burying his nose into the coils of the scarf around his neck, breathing deeply yet quietly. When Aizawa had originally dropped the scarf around his neck before leaving the room, he had been confused by the gesture. Perhaps he was still confused. But the scent had been grounding for him all the same, in ways he did not want to think too hard about. As long as the scent kept him from biting Mirio, then he was not going to complain about it.
Internally, he sighed as his fingers dug into the bed. He had not bitten anyone since he was six , on days when Kacchan or another classmate was being particularly mean…mainly the target was Kacchan, much to the tiny Alpha’s dismay at the time and Kacchan’s mom’s amusement. But still…why was the urge becoming such an issue now ?
Thankfully, the door to the room opened, and Izuku could focus on something other than Mirio. Shifting a bit, ready to go on the defensive should the new arrival be a stranger, he relaxed immediately upon seeing Aizawa enter, Yamada close behind with—wow, that was a large duffel bag. But before Izuku could even ask, both of the men were frowning in their direction, Yamada in particular looking displeased, causing Izuku to pause.
Had…he done something wrong?
Then, Mirio perked up, turning and calling out, “Ah, welcome back Aizawa-sensei! And good to see you Yamada-sensei—whoa, what’s with those looks?”
Aizawa shifted in a way that put him better in front of Yamada, as if blocking the other teacher from moving further into the room, before calling out, “I hope you asked permission before sitting, Togata.”
Mirio blinked, an easy smile still on his face. “What?”
Yamada leaned forward over Aizawa’s shoulder, now smiling though his eyes were steely. “You’re supposed to ask before sitting on an Omega’s nest, Togata.”
“Nest? What—” Mirio’s words suddenly cut off as he straightened in place, looking down at the hospital bed and noticing the arrangement of the sheets. Then, he was bolting up, arms in the air as he skittered back. “Ah! I am so sorry! Midoriya, you should have told me off—”
Midoriya held his hands up, trying his best to laugh it off and sound unbothered. “N-no, really! It’s fine—”
“No it’s not, Midoriya,” Aizawa cut in firmly, still blocking the doorway.
“It’s just a temporary nest—”
“Temporary or not, it’s still a nest,” Yamada chimed in smoothly, the harshness in his gaze melting as he directed his attention towards Izuku. “I know you haven’t interacted with Omegas much, but I bet your Omega wasn’t taking too kindly to the intrusion.”
Izuku flushed, ducking his head. “I…I was fine.”
“It was still horribly rude of me, Midoriya,” Mirio insisted, bowing to the younger teen. “I shouldn’t have assumed.”
“It really wasn’t that bad—”
“You were quiet.”
All attention shifted to Eri who seemed to shrink a bit under the attention. Still, she shakily continued to speak, though her voice was softer than before. “You…were talking earlier with us, but after Eraserhead left and Lemillion sat down, you got quiet, your voice and scent...I…I was worried .”
Izuku let out a low keen, holding out a hand to Eri’s cheek which she readily leaned into. “I am so sorry for worrying you, Eri. I…you were enjoying time with Togata-senpai, and I didn’t want to interrupt that.”
Eri’s lip began to wobble. “I don’t want you to hurt to make me happy.”
Izuku swiftly pulled Eri close, letting the sniffling pup bury her face into Izuku’s chest while he let out comfortable purrs. “Your happiness will always come first for me, Eri. I can’t change that…but I will do better about speaking up for myself, okay?”
Eri let out a particularly loud sniffle, looking up at the Omega. “Promise?”
Leaning down to rub his cheek against hers, he replied, “I promise .”
Aizawa let out a low chuff from the doorway, seemingly pleased from how things were going, only to growl as Yamada began to try and push his way around. Huffing, the older Omega practically whined, “Come on , Shou! Let me bring in their gifts, my arm is getting tired.”
Rolling his eyes, Aizawa drawled, “Do you promise not to maul Togata?”
All the other eyes snapped to the pair in the doorway, Izuku stuttering out, “Did you say maul ?”
Yamada seemed to pout . “Oh, you know I wasn’t going to hurt him—“
“Lying doesn’t become you, Hizashi.”
“…he apologized, it’s good now.”
“Are we sure about that?” Mirio asked with a fearful laugh. “Because I can’t phase away from punches anymore…”
Yamada waved off the teen’s concern. “You’re fine . Just don’t do it again!”
Mirio flashed a thumbs up. “ Noted! ”
Aizawa sighed, seeming to have enough of this, and finally stepped aside, relenting and allowing Yamada into the room. The Omega proudly sidestepped the Alpha, swinging the duffel off his arm neatly tossing it on the spare, empty bed. “Now then, gifts!”
Izuku tilted his head. “You brought things for Eri?”
Grabbing the zipper, Yamada dramatically opened the bag with a flourish. “I brought gifts for both of you!”
“… eh?!”
“So…we need to discuss some things—“
“I’m not giving her up.”
The words were steady and sharp, no hint of the hesitation that Izuku usually displayed when speaking to his teachers. He didn’t even bother to look up at them, eyes steadfastly locked on Eri’s sleeping form which lay curled into his side in the newly restructured nest.
Eri had perked up in curiosity when Hizashi had started pulling out the toys and blankets for the pair, letting Eri take the soft plush animals while cautiously offering the soft quilts to Izuku. Aizawa would likely need to pull Hizashi aside later and remind him to not buy Eri things in the future without Izuku’s permission, but for now the teen seemed accepting of the offerings.
Though the quilts certainly seemed to confuse him. Izuku took them as if they were a trap, and Hizashi had to spend the better part of the next hour gently coaxing Izuku into picking his favorites to add to the nest. Izuku didn’t even seem to understand that Omegas could even have preferences for what materials to add to their nests, or that he would not be rude to throw out a blanket with a texture he did not like.
Though even after explaining, all Izuku did was have Eri pick out the blankets and quilts she liked best and added them to the nest accordingly. The mated pair had shared a look over this but had kept their mouths shut. Izuku could be eased into proper nesting in time, but for now, it would be best to not stress him or the pup.
Which, speaking of the two…
Hizashi had a horrified look on his face. “We would never separate you from her,” he insisted, doing his best to keep his voice down as he pulled his chair closer. Despite Izuku mumbling that he would not mind the elder Omega in his nest, it was clear that was said more out of obligation than actually agreeing with the sentiment. Thus, Hizashi remained out of the nest and allowed Aizawa to continue to perch on the edge.
The Alpha in question shifted closer to the edge of the nest. “We want to ensure that you two stay together if that is what you want…but that means that there are some laws we are going to have to work around.”
Izuku seemed… wary but said nothing. “I guess I’m too young to have custody of her…”
“Usually, yes,” Hizashi began, offering Izuku an encouraging smile. “However, this isn’t the first case of a pup imprinting on another around your age, and considering it's so taboo to split up an imprint, there are… loopholes .”
At Izuku’s inquisitive head tilt, Aizawa leaned in to elaborate. “Legally, Eri can be placed under the custody of someone in your pack. It’s a temporary solution, at least until you are old enough to take full legal custody of her yourself.”
And at this, Izuku visibly shrunk. “Are…are there any other options? I…my parents are both Beta and have no solid pack bonds, and I never formed a true pack.”
“Officially, no, you do not have a pack,” Aizawa continued, keeping his tone soft. “However, I hope it is not too presumptuous to point out how your Omega has reacted otherwise in the past few days…”
Izuku looked confused before a dawning look of fear crossed his face. “You mean…I didn’t mean to—!”
Plopping a hand down on Izuku’s head, causing the teen to instantly quiet, Aizawa offered him a soft smile, one that was rare for the usually stoic man. “I promise , Midoriya, that I am not bothered by this…and I truly am honored that your Omega trusts my Alpha.”
Izuku’s gaze snapped away, uncertainty still clear on his face. Deciding to be the one to step up, Yamada chimed in, “And just like Eri imprinting on you having precedence, you are not the first student to packbond with a teacher. There are plenty of laws giving you protections and such for this, and legally, you can accept a packbond from whoever you like, so long as there is no risk of harm to you.” The older Omega left out that both cases were exceedingly rare and often formed due to trauma or pack isolation, but that was something to address with Hound Dog once the pair were settled.
Aizawa felt Izuku relax a bit under his hand, and he decided to move closer. A calculated risk, but Izuku did not tense or flinch at the action. He merely glanced up at the teacher curiously. “I guess getting to the root of things, I—“
“We!” Hizashi cut in, earning an annoyed look from Aizawa to which he simply grinned cheekily.
“ We ,” Aizawa began again with an eye roll before turning his attention fully back to Midoriya. “Would like to extend an offer.”
He could visibly see the wheels turning in Izuku’s head, the realization dawning over his face. “ What —“
“Midoriya Izuku, would you like to officially join our pack?”