Cuddly Midori

Invisible But Not Forgotten

Tokoyami in his Hawks Onesie, drawn by me :)

Toru is unfortunately very used to being forgotten, it's a hazard of her quirk after all. Most of her family can relate to the struggle of not feeling like the people around them care or remember. It's why her family has rules for interacting with people: make your voice and gestures expressive, wear enough clothing that people can at least guesstimate what you're doing and where you are, don't feel bad when people avoid looking at you, talk a lot, etc.

It's one of the reasons that 1-A was such a novel experience, they rarely forgot her after the second week, they made an effort to talk with her, Shinso, Ashido, and Ojiro almost always knew her facial expressions, Midoriya and Aizawa had an uncanny ability to look her directly in the eye more often than not, nobody avoided her here. It was truly all she could ask for in her friends.

That's why when, a few months into the second semester, she was left out of the class shopping trip, she broke down. She thought it would be different here, it really felt better, and they probably didn't mean to forget about her, but it still hurt. It really hurt.

She stood in the commons for probably fifteen minutes, processing that they really did leave without her, it's been so long since that last happened. Then she snapped out of it, eyes suddenly wet, vision blurry, she ran to her room and felt an overwhelming urge to hide until she felt better. She didn't want to call her mom after telling her all about how amazing her class was at remembering her. Breaths shaky, she slipped out of her dress and shoes, yanking the ribbon from her hair, and ran out of the dorms.

It was stupid, yes, running into the surrounding forest without her clothes or her phone, but she wanted to be alone, didn't want anyone to find her until she cried out her disappointment in peace. She settles a decent half mile from the dorms, curled up against a tree trunk, quietly crying invisible tears for a few minutes until she noticed a warm weight around her.

Opening her eyes, she saw a lot of green, Izuku's hair almost blending into the tree leaves and grass. He was curled around her, rocking her lightly back and forth, a soft murmuring and leaves rustling made for a not at all unpleasant din. Once her tears dried and her mind was calmer, he quietly apologized, "I'm sorry, I forgot to tell you that the girls decided to not go with the boys. They rescheduled the trip for an hour after. I'm really sorry I got distracted! They didn't forget about you, I promise, they just thought it'd be better for the girls to go shopping by themselves every once in a while..."

He kept apologizing, but it all fell into the back of her mind as she processed that they hadn't forgot about her, they just forgot to tell her. That was okay, because, knowing Izu, it wasn't forgotten because she was invisible, but because he was side tracked with cuddling or sleeping. And that was okay. That was perfectly fine, she felt better with every word he said as he came dangerously close to tears himself.

"Shh, it's fine, Izu. I don't blame you, it's perfectly reasonable," she tried to calm him now, gently patting his head and shoulder.

"But I hurt your feelings! I-"

"It was an accident," she cut him off, shuffling around so she could hug him back, her mood now far better. "And I totally forgive you, Izu! You didn't mean to forget and you came to get me as soon as you remembered. It's fine."

He opened his mouth and she preemptively cut off any more apologies, "so when are the girls leaving?"

He glanced down at his phone with wide eyes, "ten minutes." Before she could even move to get up, a flash of green left her sitting on her dorm room bed, Izu at the door, giving hurried 'sorry's before leaving her to get dressed.

Maybe this day wasn't so bad after all.

(And if the girls spoiled her on the trip, well, no one would admit it.)

Chapter Question: What is your new years resolution? Do you think you can accomplish it?

Mine is to eat healthier and lose 20 pounds by April as well as write and draw more. I think I can do it, this year for sure!

See you all next year and have a happy New Years!