No turning back

out of sight, out of mind

Hitoshi was doing his usual rounds of the neighborhood. The place had pretty standard hero patrols during the day, but come nightfall there was next to nothing, meaning the scum of the earth all came out at night to wreak havoc.
Pulling up his hood Hitoshi made sure the cheap plastic cat mask was secure on his face, sure he was just a middleschooler but somebody had to help the people around here, the heroes sure as hell weren't.
It's just extra training, he would tell himself as he came home with bruised ribs and a black eye. It will make me a better hero, he would tell himself as he taunted the asshole of the night into replying to him. It'll be easier to get into UA if I have the experience, he would tell himself as he ran from the cops.
A fluttering piece of paper caught Hitoshi's eye as he ducked into an alley. It was taped to the brick wall, a missing poster for a kid his age, messy green hair and soft meadow green eyes, the photo was of him smiling blindingly into the camera in a black middle school uniform. The information said his name was Midoriya Izuku, he went to Aldera Junior High and he had been missing for almost three months now.
Hitoshi's heart went out to the kid's mother, she obviously hadn't given up hope despite the time that had passed, he knew what the police would be saying to her right about now, they had done the same to the couple down the street from him when their daughter had gone missing, and that was going on five years ago.
Though Hitoshi wondered, he'd heard so much about that little girl, she was all over the news for weeks at least, and yet this was the first he'd seen of this Midoriya. Then again Hitoshi had never heard of Aldera Junior High either, for all he knew it could be over the other side of Japan, which really just made him feel worse for the boy's mother, desperate enough to travel this far.
Smoothing down the poster he added another piece of tape from his own stash to the bottom so it wouldn't fly away in the wind.
With a final glance at the street Hitoshi spied a small woman with a large messenger bag and a roll of tape, she was only a little ways down the road, taping up another missing poster.
Hitoshi smiled sadly, watching her move slowly along, pausing every so often to pull another poster from her bag and tape it to a wall or shop window.
With a sigh he pulled off the mask, tucking it into his hoodie pocket, it wasn't like there was a heap of crime around here since he started making a name for himself, and trotted off after the woman.
"E-excuse me," he called softly as he got closer, not wanting to scare the poor woman who he was over a head taller than, "excuse me ma'am."
The woman who he assumed was Mrs Midoriya startled slightly, almost unsure that somebody was actually talking to her, "uh, yes?"
Hitoshi gave what he hoped was a reassuring smile, he could never tell, "I was just wondering if you could use a hand, o-or at least the company, this isn't exactly the safest place to be walking around by yourself at night."
Tears gathered in the corners of Mrs Midoriya's eyes and her lip trembled, Hitoshi instantly panicked wondering what he had done wrong when she smiled widely and nodded.
Calming down a little he walked by the side of Midoriya Inko, as he learned her name was, helping her stick up posters and letting her gush about her son well into the night. Eventually though they ran out of posters and Hitoshi invited her to his house for a cup of tea.
"Oh I wouldn't want to trouble you and your parents," Inko waved him off, "you've already helped so much."
"It would be no trouble really," Hitoshi insisted, "my mom and I are insomniacs and it would be nice to have the company."
What he didn't say was that he didn't want her going home alone to an empty house this late at night, it didn't sit well with him, maybe he could even convince her to stay in the spare room and go home in the morning.
Thankfully Inko agreed to tea at least, they walked together out of the business district and into the housing area. Hitoshi loved the way the land seemed to be stretching out the further they walked, houses becoming further and further apart separated by lawns and gardens and trees, it was his favourite part of walking home. The Shinsou household was situated across from a very large park which was really more of a small forest than anything else, during the day it was beautiful, but during the night it was awfully eerie.
Hitoshi grabbed his housekey from out of the pot plant next to the door, unlocking and opening the door for Inko to walk through, "mom," he called out, "I brought someone home with me."
"Hitoshi do you have any idea what time-" his mother's words died on her lips the moment she rounded the corner to see Inko standing there, the epitome of discomfort.
Within minutes the two were chatting along at the table, cups of tea warming their hands and fresh biscuits that Hitoshi's mom had stress baked sitting on a plate between them.
Hitoshi smiled, he hadn't seen his mom this animated since his dad died. Suki had curled up on his lap and was happily purring away as he watched the window. A sudden flicker of movement in the trees made him pause though, putting down his cup he looked closer, and there it was again, somebody seemed to be running through the trees toward the street. No too slow to be really running but they were definitely in a rush to get away from, something. That was all it took for Hitoshi to be outside in a dead sprint across the road, his mother's and Inko's shouts seemed miles away as his entire focus was on the small body moving through the darkness.
Breaking the treeline his stride barely faltered, he didn't really know what the hell he was going to do once he got there, he hadn't thought at all he just knew that whoever this was needed help, and fast.
Knowing his mom she had already on the phone to the police, it wasn't the first time shit had gone down in the park and it likely wouldn't be the last, it also wasn't the first time Hitoshi had flung himself headfirst into a situation like this. Rounding another tree he ran smack bang into the oncoming person, relying almost purely on instinct Hitoshi wrapped his arms around them and veered left, the trees gave way to an open area with a playground that was visible from the street. The person easily stuck with him, slinging an arm around his waist to support their weight and the faster movement.
Bursting into the open Hitoshi saw the police pull up to the curb and spill out of their cars, the wail of an ambulance sounded close and people were standing out the front of their houses, nights disturbed by the commotion. The adrenaline slowly began to wear off, the pair made it a few more steps before collapsing onto the ground, Hitoshi gulping in lungfulls of air, his chest burning with every breath. Glancing sideways at the stranger he had just possibly rescued the air was sucked right back out of him. Green hair marred with soot and dried blood covered a pale freckled face, haunted acidic eyes stared forward as heavy breaths wracked his thin frame, his uniform though torn and bloody was easily recognisable. Hitoshi had just found Midoriya Izuku. The only difference was a bloody wound on his left cheek, it circled around his eye and curved down his jawline to hook under his chin, muscle was exposed and the skin was so thin Hitoshi could make out the shape of his teeth.