Deku x Shaggy: Confused Love

An Educational Experience

The towering, shining walls of the gym reflected light just as well as the sounds of combat resounding from the floor. Deku found himself diving to the side to avoid a sudden charge from Shaggy. Ultra Instinct had one advantage over One for All, and that was how quickly it could be activated. It was near instantaneous, and Shaggy made ample use of that aspect to keep his trainee on his toes.

Deku's poorly timed dodge sent him rolling into a storage rack. Glancing up to see Shaggy approaching, he made a mad grab for a street hockey stick and pointed it at his assailant.

Not a moment too soon, Shaggy skidded to a halt, barely managing to avoid skewering himself on the weapon, "Shit!"

Jumping to his feet, Deku threw the stick aside and raised his hands in apology, "I'm so sorry Shaggy! Are you okay?"

Shaggy laughed, obviously not the response the boy was expecting, "You did it, man! You, like, used your surroundings."

"Huh?" Deku tilted his head, turning to look at the scattered supplies before smiling, "You're right! I did!"

"You're reaction time's, like, pretty impressive too." Shaggy noted, shocked at the legitimate talent the kid had.

Deku shrugged shyly, "I've had more real life experience than most students I guess."

Shaggy scoffed with a smirk, "I've watched the news."

"What's all the racket in here?" A demanding voice sounding from the doorway of the gym. A tall boy with dark blue hair marched into the room, definitely an Iida, with a disapproving glare and odd, chopping hand motions.

"Oh, sorry Iida, I was just training." Deku apologized with a smile.

"What are you training for?" A small girl with a brown bob popped out from behind her much taller friend, surrounded with a bubbly enthusiasm that reminded him ever so slightly of Fred.

"Just to get better." Deku replied with a laugh, "You can't really be trained too much, right?"

The bespectacled boy gave a resolute nod, "Absolutely, it's good to see that you're taking your education seriously."

Deku was about to respond, but the wide-eyed girl's attention was drawn upward, "Who's that?"

All eyes turned to Shaggy, who did his best not to appear too uncomfortable at the sudden spotlight. Thankfully, Deku decided to do the introduction, "This is Shaggy Rogers! He was part of a high school crime fighting group called Mystery Inc. from America!"

"So... why's he here?" Iida prompted, eyes narrowed in slight suspicion behind his glasses.

"His group isn't together anymore, so he moved here." Deku continued, a sense of excitement about him, "He agreed to train me, and he has a ton of super cool experience! He teaches things that Aizawa doesn't! Isn't that cool?"

"Being trained by an American hero? Yeah!" The girl gasped, "That's awesome!"

"You bet it is!" Deku gushed, and Shaggy found himself more and more shocked by what a freaking fanboy this kid was, "His quirk is super cool and is actually kinda like mine! He can go super fast too." the kid smirked at his taller friend, "Maybe you two should race sometimes."

Iida's brow furrowed, and Shaggy was quick to raise a pleading hand, "Hold on, man, like, don't be putting bets on me. That's an Iida right?"

The student in question nodded, extending a hand in a weirdly robotic motion, "Yes, Tenya Iida, pleasure to meet you."

Shaggy accepted the much too firm handshake, chuckling when his hand was freed, "Yeah, I wouldn't stand a chance in a race with an Iida."

The girl extended an enthusiastic hand, "I'm Ochaco Uraraka."

Shaggy returned a much less stern hand shake, "Nice to meet you both. I guess your Midoriya's classmates then?"

Ochaco nodded fervently with a wide grin, "And his best friends too!"

Shaggy smirked at that, so the kid did have some close friends, "What're they, like, teaching you kids 'nowadays' anyway?"

"UA's biggest selling point is not only it's reputable staff but the simulations that they're able to afford." Iida answered as if he was giving a presentation, "We perform a lot of scenario training l-"

"Like hostage situations, and building infiltration, and one on one, and group fighting, and different terrains, and public situations," Ochaco rambled, cutting into Iida's speech which obviously perturbed the boy, "They put us in so many cool areas."

"They also do a lot of training to have us strengthen our quirks and know how to best use them." Deku continued.

"And then there's the publicity training." Iida sighed, that topic clearly not being his preferred.

"Publicity?" Shaggy raised a brow, already not liking the sound of that.

"It covers choosing our hero names, crafting our images, as well as how to handle public appearances and make a brand." Iida elaborated.

Shaggy frowned at that. He knew it made sense to teach them the social aspect of being a hero; it's what their society required, but he wished it wasn't that way. What happened to simply saving people's lives? When did heroes become celebrities as much as crime fighters? Names, images, besides the practical aspects of a costume, who would care how a hero looked when it came down to their life being saved?

"Anyways, we just wanted to make sure that the gym wasn't being destroyed." Iida stated.

"Don't worry," Deku laughed, "We'll clean all of this up when we're done."

With a nod, Iida turned on his heel, "Excellent, I'll be off then. Remember to study for the exam as well."

"We have an exam?" Deku gasped, a hint of a whine slipping into his tone.

"Yep!" Ochaco chirped glancing over her shoulder, "Maybe we should all study later!"

"That sounds like an excellent plan!" Iida agreed, a touch of childish energy finally about him.

"Yeah, I'll see you guys tonight then!" Deku called after his friends, who waved back before exiting.

"They seem like good people." Shaggy commented.

"They are." Deku smiled fondly, almost proudly, "I'm happy that they think of me as a best friend."

"You, like, feel the same?" Shaggy asked, wondering if there was subtext to that last statement.

Deku nodded, "They're the best friends I could have ever asked for."

A pang of guilt suddenly rang through Shaggy's chest. Was he really planning on stealing this kid from such innocent, kind students?

"Hey, Shaggy, I was thinking," Deku began, "About what you said a few days ago about friends."

"What about it, man?" Shaggy inquired.

"Well, you're helping me become a hero, and I've really enjoyed hanging out with you." Deku shifted nervously, "You even helped me feel better about myself, so I think of you like a friend too."

"Really?" Oh God, the guilt.

"Yeah, I think we might even have some stuff in common too." Deku waved a hand dismissively, "N-nevermind, forget I said anything."

"No, man, I get it." he quickly said. This was good progress, no point in letting it go to waste, "I'm glad you feel that way, and, like, I've been liking this too."

"Yeah?" Deku smiled shyly, obviously being anxious to hear that response.

"Yeah, man, you're cool." Shaggy smirked, "How about we get back to training now?"

With a resolute nod, Deku got back into a sparring position, and he and Shaggy resumed their by now well rehearsed dance.