Follow the River [Shoto Todoroki x Reader: Fantasy AU]

Chapter 10: Butterflies

(Y/n) hoped that Izuku didn't throw up all of the food he had just been blessed with into a magic bag that would automatically teleport the contents somewhere far far away. With all of his willpower, he eventually wobbled out of the ferry with the support of (Y/n), no accidents included.

Once he regained his composure, he stood up straight and walked in front of the trio. He took a large breath and exhaled dramatically. "Alright! You guys have done so much for me; the money, hospitality and kindness— so it's time I do something for you!"

"Oh?" Shoto raised a brow as he stepped out of the crowd, walking off to the side to listen to him.

"It's actually nothing crazy, but..." Izuku scratched the back of his head, calming down a bit. "It's a start. I have an abandoned house much closer to the city than my mom's— there's only two rooms though. We could use that as our base of operations! It'll be easy to get to the heart of the city, and yet there's no one nearby to bother us!"

"That's perfect!" Tenya praised him.

"Assuming Bakugo might make his move in the city," Shoto said. "But yes."

"You go!" (Y/n) exclaimed.

Izuku smiled from ear to ear with a blush. "Uh- I'm glad I can be helpful. I know it's not much but I'll do my best in the future too! I just don't want to be a complete dead weight while you guys are fighting..."

(Y/n) frowned. She didn't like hearing people call themselves a dead weight, especially repeatedly. Izuku had no business fighting. "We really appreciate it. But you don't need to try and be of use to us in that way," (Y/n) told him. "You're no fighter, you came from poverty— we don't expect anything of you, really. I'm sure S and Iida agrees."

"That's kind of harsh," Tenya said with a slight frown.

"Well, I didn't mean it like that- it's just that he doesn't have to feel like he's not contributing enough, because he doesn't really have to. We all have background in combat, Green Bean doesn't. It's our job to fight if anything happens."

"That's understandable," Izuku said. "Thank you, but I'd still like to try."

(Y/n) sighed. "I guess it can't be helped. Thank you for trying, Midoriya."

***

They all caught a glimpse of Shoto's ex-palace, covered by less fog than usual, as they followed Izuku to this 'abandoned house/base of operations'.

Shoto knew that he didn't miss it one bit. In fact, he felt a bit sick to his stomach looking at it, knowing that his father was probably inside of there. Shoto wondered if his father was in any shape or form... worried for his well being.

The sun was already set and the sky was starry. Izuku yawned, setting off an annoyingly long chain after him.

"Over there!" Izuku pointed at a small house on the side of a road, it's surroundings completely barren.

"We're in the middle of nowhere," (Y/n) said.

"That's why we moved," Izuku chuckled. "Sorry."

"It's barely an inconvenience," Tenya said. He patted Izuku on the shoulder.

It was a small, two bedroom house, as expected for a single mother living with her son at the time.

They all began to clean up, and the Prince's knight stopped him from trying to do so. She didn't want to allow Shoto to be reduced to cleaning, but he refused to do nothing.

It took a while to sweep the dusty floors and shelves, figure out where the lights were and replace the mattresses, but eventually, they could barely call it fit to live in.