This Time

Chapted 21

Yagi Toshinori wasn't often an impulsive man, but he was amused at himself for the situation he now found himself in as a result of one of those rare rash moments. The message from Melissa had been a surprise, but the longer he thought about this trip, the more excited he got. So, it made sense he'd want to share this excitement with two of the most important people in his life, right?

"I am here! Waiting to ambush young Midoriya on his walk home from Yūei!" he called out cheerfully as he ran towards the surprised green-haired boy frozen on the sidewalk. "Hi!" Really, he shouldn't still be keeping up his hero form after being forced to stay in it for so long earlier in the day - it really was becoming excruciating at this point - but dammit, he was too excited to wait on a taxi, and the plane he'd chartered was already waiting!

"Huh? What are you doing here?" the teen exclaimed.

Toshinori released the hold on his quirk, and with a puff of steam and a couple coughs he was in his emaciated form again. "Young Midoriya, there's a place called I-island. You ever heard of it?"

All Might realized his mistake as enthusiastically the boy began word vomiting every fact he knew about the island. Usually, Toshinori was annoyed whenever his student began muttering like this, but he was in good enough spirits to more or less ignore it. After indulging the teen a few seconds, he tried to grab Midoriya's attention again. "You wanna go there with me?" he nearly had to yell to break through his rambling.

His successor looked stunned a moment, and he really had to wonder how long it would take the kid before he got over being so awestruck by the hero. Midoriya had come a long way in the year he'd known him, but he still seemed shocked every time All Might wanted to talk to him. "Really? You want us to go together?" he asked with wide green eyes.

"I don't mean we'll just be goofing off. As my successor, there are lots of tricks of the trade you'll need to learn about," he explained, and really it was a pretty good excuse.

For Hara, he didn't quite have an excuse like that.

After waiting on the kid to hastily pack a bag and tell his mother bye, the hero and his protégé climbed into the taxi Toshinori had called for while he waited. "There's one more place we've got to stop before we head to the airport," he told the boy seated beside him as he pulled out his phone.

The phone rang twice before a grumpy voice on the other end said, "I sure do hope you're calling to tell me what this is all about, finally."

Toshinori coughed. "I'll explain when I see you, we're on our way to pick you up now."

"'We'? Who else is in on this? You can't just jet in, tell me to pack a bag and then leave, Yagi!"

"Young Midoriya is with me," he said, glancing at the kid and noting how he was very carefully trying to look like he couldn't hear the phone conversation. The boy had manners, at least, because Hara was definitely being loud enough on the other end that Midoriya could probably hear every word. "Just, trust me, okay? It's a good surprise."

"Fine. I'll be waiting outside," she growled, before hanging up.

"Uh, was that Hara?" Midoriya asked curiously. "She's coming too?"

"Yes. This is a good opportunity for her to network. After her mission with Yūei is over, she could make a fresh start if she wanted," Toshinori explained lamely, rubbing the back of his neck. He knew it was a poor reason, but he couldn't tell the boy the truth was simply that he wanted her there, of course.

The taxi pulled up outside the apartment building, and there she was, glowering at him when he opened the door. "Now, I know you're wondering what's going on," he started.