To Be Vigilant(e)

Enter: Dadzawa

(A/N: sorry I havent been uploading. I actually forgot this existed. Lmao. Oh btw, I got an actual Fanfiction.net account so lmk if I should cross post these stories there.)

"No."

Clank

"No."

Thump

"No."

Thud

"... AW HELL YEAH A BAGEL!" Shit that was loud. Akatani Mikumo (A/N: Midoriya Izuku) was currently digging through his dumpster. Yes- his. He will fight you for it.

About a month had passed since "The Incident" in which he got stabbed. In that time, Akatani had begun to make a sort of name for himself. Every night he would leave his ever evolving trash house in search for evil doers.

However, the issue with having a name and gaining popularity in the slums means heros, police and even villains have started coming after him. That brings up issues. For one, he knows he isnt any match for heros or villains for that matter. No way. The best he could do was avoid them.

Just as he was about to take a bite of his stale bagel, he hears a noise. 'Footsteps' his mind supplies. Someone's here. He tenses, subconsciously reaching for his knife. It was rusted and stuck open but it did the job and that's all that matters.

"Who is it? What do they want? Why are they here? Their footsteps are light but carry weight. It's not a child. Is it a villain? Should I look? I'm gonna look." He looks. Shit.

Its Eraserhead.

He just sits there, frozen, with a half eaten bagel hanging out of his mouth.

"Kid you shouldnt be out here so late. Go back to the shelter. It's not safe at night." The hero scolds. He clearly hasnt ever been a homeless teenage orphan before. Who knew?

Izuku lowers to speak. "Those? Those are worse than staying out here. Tanks but no thanks." He moves to take a bite of his meal.

Eraserhead seems to consider this. "Alright well if you arent going in. Then either come to the station with me or let me get you some kind of real food. I don't like the idea of leaving a child on the street but I still have patrol." He sighs into his scarf.

The greenette's eyes narrow, searching for any deceit but cant seem to find any in the tired heros black, earnest eyes. He nods after a moment of hesitation and attempts to sneak his prize (the bagel) into his pocket without the homeless looking man seeing. No such luck.

"Kid, give me the bagel." Eraserhead admonishes blankly.

"No. This is my bagel. Get your own dumpster." The secret vigilante refused him, clutching his abdomen tightly, as if the older man would try to steal it.

Said man only sighed in defeat and continued to lead his temporary charge to the nearest convenience store or coffee shop still open at the late hour. They walked in silence for a good part of the trip before Eraserhead broke.

"Alright kid. I'm gonna be honest with you." He started ,"I recognize you. From before, I mean. Before we get there, I need you to answer some questions." The kid tensed out of the corner of his eye. "You dont have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable but I need to know if you are safe."

Midoriya (A/N: yeah I'm just gonna write him as Midoriya but he goes by Akatani Mikumo) paused in his gait and took a deep breath.

It's fine. Hes just worried about you. Hes a hero. You loved heros.

Loved. Past tense. Before I realized how rotten they are. Before

E. n. d. e. a. v. o. r.

But this is ERASERHEAD  an underground hero. He doesnt care about publicity or fame! Hes a hero to help people!

Not necessarily.

"Kid. Hey, are you alright?" Was that worry?

"Yeah. I'm fine. Ask you questions." He deflected. The hero side eyed him doubtingly but said nothing of it.

"Are you safe where you're staying currently?"

They were coming up on the shop- a small soup kitchen that a charity put together for the many  homeless people here. They served decent food and it offered a small communal bathroom too.

"Yeah. I'd say it's safe. At least it is now."

"I know you went through something horrible recently. That can affect anyone- not just kids. So, are you currently a danger to yourself or others?" He asked seriously.

Midoriya thinks to his nightly ventures. To the people he promised to protect from villainous heros. He thinks to the stray cats he feeds when he has enough spare change or extra food to. He cant help any of them if hes dead or dying from self inflicted wounds. So no. Hes not a danger to anyone. If anything, he helps society, even if the police and heros dont see it that way.

The pair of disheveled bodies sat in a small booth with some hot soup. Eraserhead snagged some treats from a nearby vending machine for both of them. "No. I'm not a danger to anyone." Except for those who deserve it. "If anything, I'm a help to society. I feed the strays that I find and give them families if I can. I've protected other homeless kids. I'm respected in this community, which is more than I could ask for. More than I've ever had." His answer was honest to a fault. Looking over the table, he could see the covered shock on the scraggly mans face.

Eventually, Aizawa sighs with a nod. He sips his coffee and pinches the bridge of his nose as he senses the massive load of paperwork that he'll need to file later that night. "Alright kid, here's what I'm gonna do. I'm going to get you a phone. Not a super nice one or anything- just one so that I can, in good conscience not bring you in."

They exited the kitchen, not before Aizawa left a donation, and stalked over to a convenience store across the street. There, the pair found the disposable phones( not unsimilar to Deku's phone but not broken) and paid for one.

When they stepped out of the store, the Erasure Hero quietly wrote down his work number and handed it to the homeless boy. Being a disposable flip phone, numbers couldnt be saved on the device so they had to make due.

"Make sure to keep that safe and know where it is. I dont want random people calling me. Use it if you need help. There are people that can- help, I mean." He trailed of, giving the younger a look before he swooped off into the night with his capture weapon.

"Cool." Midoriya smiled as his new potential ally swung into a dark alleyway. The sky was just starting to lighten, signaling the rise of morning. Hed better head back to base.