#this reminds of a fic I read forever ago where deku was got my a villains quirk

[habken]

bakugou seems the type to just kind of hunker down and go bush if he did end up getting lost in Australia if he goes camping while he's there, he's spiteful, resourceful, and he 100% read up on what to look out for in Australia so he knows not to stick his hands in any holes (though he might still box a kangaroo just to prove to himself he can lol)

Deku flies over to Australia in a panic and finds him munching on some bush tucker with twigs in his hair and going "what took you so fucking long"

very fun concept to think about deku frantically flying over to Australia to retrieve bakugou who’s been home aloneing it up down under

[chibistarlyte]

one day

He's okay, Katsuki has to remind himself again, almost afraid that Todoroki might slip right through his calloused fingers if he doesn't hold on tight enough. 

ayyy here’s a follow-up to my previous todobaku fic some days, this time from bakugou’s pov as he deals with the aftermath of todoroki’s depressive episode.

thank you to kat @sunshineijirou​ for the beta, as always! <3 ilysm!

fic can be read below the cut or here on ao3! you can also find a masterlist of all my bnha fics here!

.

If someone had told Katsuki, when he woke up this morning, that by this afternoon he’d be spooning with his secret crush after said secret crush jumped down to his balcony in some kind of depressive fit…

Suffice to say that Katsuki would have never believed it, even if his life depended on it.

Yet here he is, arms wrapped around Todoroki Shouto’s waist and his face buried in the back of his neck as the other boy sleeps peacefully in his bed. Or, Katsuki assumes peacefully, judging by the light snores and soft, lax features of Todoroki’s face.

Well, Katsuki thinks as he breathes a warm sigh against the other boy’s still frigid skin, at least Todoroki is safe now. It would be an outright lie to say that Katsuki hasn’t been worried about Todoroki all goddamn day, ever since he saw the other boy sitting precariously on the edge of his balcony and uttering uncharacteristic existential thoughts earlier that morning. 

Just a little bit ago, when Todoroki had jumped...Katsuki’s heart had all but stopped in his chest.

Unconsciously, Katsuki tightens his grip around Todoroki and digs his nose deeper into the soft skin at the nape of Todoroki’s neck, breathing in his scent. He’s okay. He’s okay.

Katsuki jolts as he hears a loud buzzing noise, his palms sweaty and sparking in his alarm. He quickly retracts his arms from around Todoroki, afraid of burning the other boy with his Quirk. Katsuki belatedly realizes the sound is his phone vibrating on top of the headboard. Wiping his sweaty hands on his shirt as he sits up, he reaches for his phone and unlocks it with a click. A notification bubble at the bottom of the screen tells him the class 1-A group chat is active with messages right now.

Midoriya: hey guys has anyone seen todoroki-kun since class was over? he left before i could catch up with him and he hasn’t answered any of my texts and when i went to his room to check on him he didn’t answer… Uraraka: i haven’t seen him since our rescue exercise, deku-kun. are you sure he came back to the dorms? Midoriya: i mean i’m not positive but where else would he go? Iida: Todoroki-kun has been acting strangely all day...perhaps he heeded our advice and sought out Recovery Girl? Kaminari: nah bruh, i was at rg’s office after class for my broken wrist, i didn’t see him there Tokoyami: I can have Dark Shadow scope out the area and look for Todoroki, if needed. Yaoyorozu: I am worried about Todoroki-san. He wasn’t acting like himself today, and I fear to think what would happen if he’s alone right now. Jirou: which room is his???? i can listen in and see if hes there Kirishima: he’s on the fifth floor, right above bakugou’s room

Katsuki sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. Great, now Todoroki has the entire class worried after him. They’d send out a goddamn search party if Katsuki doesn’t say something.

So he starts typing.

Bakugou: relax u damn extras, icyhot’s with me

There’s a short pause in the chat as several people begin typing and soon enough the messages flood right in.

Midoriya: what???? todoroki-kun is with you, kacchan?! Jirou: shit, dude, he must be fucked in the head to go hang out with explody Kirishima: is he ok?? are u guys in ur room bakubro? Mina: DID U KIDNAP THE POOR LAD, BAKUGOU?!? Uraraka: can we come see him?

Katsuki lets out a frustrated sigh and thumbs back a response.

Bakugou: if any of you assholes even think about coming and pounding on my door, i’ll break ur fuckin fingers. halfie’s asleep so you chucklefucks need to keep quiet

As if to make sure the group chat hadn’t somehow awoken Todoroki from his slumber, Katsuki looks away from his phone to the sleeping boy next to him. Not much has changed in the last few minutes, save for a slight twitching of Todoroki’s nostril and the fingers of his right hand slightly curling and unfurling.

When his phone pings with another message, Katsuki sees that it’s from Kirishima. He opens their text messages.

Kirishima: hey bakubro is everything ok?? i mean not just with todoroki but with u too? Bakugou: i’m fine, shitty hair. not sure about him, tho Bakugou: he was pretty messed up when i brought him in Kirishima: what happened? Bakugou: the crazy fucker jumped from his balcony down to mine like an idiot, coulda hurt himself Kirishima: … Kirishima: ...was he trying to Kirishima: u kno…

Katsuki doesn’t want to think about the reasons behind Todoroki’s actions, behind the other boy’s strange and despondent behavior all day. He knows Todoroki’s got family issues, with what he’d overheard at the sports festival in their first year. Then, after having dinner at the Todoroki household and interning with Endeavor all those months ago, Katsuki has been able to put the pieces together well enough. 

He scoots down the bed until he’s lying down again, his arm against Todoroki’s back as he holds his phone up to text with Kirishima.

Bakugou: idk, he hasn’t told me anything, just basically been a zombie the whole fuckin time. he was so cold and he wasn’t usin his quirk to warm up, bastard’s lucky he didn’t get hypothermia or some shit Kirishima: do u need anything? Bakugou: i told u, i’m fine Kirishima: ok...but srsly, i’m here for u if u need to talk...or if i can bring you anything, yeah? Bakugou: yeah, yeah, i get it hair for brains Bakugou: ...thanks Kirishima: i gotchu bro

Katsuki sets his phone on silent before locking it and placing it up on his headboard again. He rolls onto his side, chest against Todoroki’s back once again, and reaches around to touch the back of his hand to the other boy’s forehead. It still feels colder than it probably should, but warmer than before, which Katsuki counts as progress. 

He settles his arms around Todoroki’s waist again and scoots closer until they’re flush against each other. Katsuki tangles his legs with Todoroki’s to help warm them up—Todoroki’s bare ankles feel cold against Katsuki’s own heated skin.

He's okay, Katsuki has to remind himself again, almost afraid that Todoroki might slip right through his calloused fingers if he doesn't hold on tight enough. 

"You really fuckin' scared me there for sec, half-n-half," Katsuki murmurs against the back of Todoroki’s neck, feeling the moisture of his own breath bouncing back at him from their close proximity. "The hell did you think you were doing?" he asks the air, knowing full well that Todoroki is dead asleep and can't hear a word Katsuki is saying. 

And thank fuck for that, because Katsuki can't seem to shut himself up and continues speaking.

"Don't you realize how many people care about your stupid ass? How important you are to everyone? Fucking Deku, Round Face, Four-Eyes, Yaomomo...me…"

Katsuki clenches his jaw to stop his mouth from betraying him any further. He has no idea what's compelling him to such honesty. Perhaps it's because he knows Todoroki can't hear him, knows that he won't have to suffer any unfortunate consequences of having his feelings laid bare in front of him. 

Just...seeing Todoroki fly through the air, even if it was only for a few seconds...Katsuki could have forever lost the chance to say all the things he wishes he were brave enough to admit. 

He sighs through his nose, his teeth gritting painfully against each other as he tightens his jaw even more. Fucking coward, he chastises himself.

"Bakugou?"

Katsuki's heart stills in his chest as Todoroki’s confused, sleep-laden voice drifts into his senses. Todoroki stiffens in his grip, muscles tense and taut, almost as if he's afraid of something. Unconsciously, Katsuki's arms tighten around the other boy’s waist and he finds his hands pressing almost protectively against Todoroki’s abdomen.

"I'm here," he answers belatedly, nuzzling his nose against Todoroki’s skin—still too cold for his liking, but ever so slowly getting warmer.

Todoroki exhales, going boneless in Katsuki's arms. There's a minute shift of his head as he digs his cheek into the pillow. "I...didn't dream it, then…" he says a bit absently, sounding so, so tired.

"Dream what?" Katsuki asks softly, his fingers tracing odd shapes on Todoroki’s skin.

"That I was here...with you," Todoroki clarifies, letting out another exhale that made him deflate like a balloon with too many leaks.

Katsuki is unable to keep from snorting. "Couldn't very well let you leave after you just—" He stops himself from finishing that thought, because the idea that Todoroki really might have been trying to off himself was too much for Katsuki to handle. "Look, you could barely walk and were hardly coherent enough to make it back to your room. I couldn't let you leave and end up hurting yourself or some shit."

Todoroki lets out a breath that sounds suspiciously like a laugh. 

"Don't you fucking laugh at me, you bastard," Katsuki says without any real threat. "Sorry for fucking caring about your stupid ass."

It's then that Todoroki starts to pull away, curling in on himself. He untangles his legs from Katsuki's and worms his way out of Katsuki's arms until he’s at the edge of the bed, the two of them no longer touching. 

Katsuki's heart sinks into his stomach. Damn it, there goes his stupid mouth ruining everything again.

"You shouldn't care about me," Todoroki says, sounding miles away. 

"Why the fuck not?" Katsuki bites back, not liking where this conversation has turned. 

"I'm not worth it," Todoroki repeats his words from earlier, and they still feel like a knife stabbing right through Katsuki's chest. 

He doesn't understand why someone like Todoroki could ever think he's worthless.

It makes him...angry.

"What the fuck is it gonna take for you to realize that you are worth it?" Katsuki says in a harsh whisper, trying to reign in his rage. He knows if he explodes now, he might chase Todoroki off and cause him to do...something…

Todoroki doesn't answer.

Against his better judgment, Katsuki reaches for Todoroki’s back. His fingers barely graze the black t-shirt he's wearing before he notices a significant drop in temperature. Frost begins crawling up the shell of Todoroki’s ear.

"No, no, stop that," Katsuki says as he frantically scoots closer. He envelops Todoroki in his arms once again, willing his own body heat into the other boy to cancel out the freezing power of his Quirk. 

To Katsuki's surprise, Todoroki shifts and rolls over so that they're face to face. Tears snake sideways down Todoroki’s face and melt into the pillowcase. Katsuki feels incredibly guilty for still finding Todoroki so beautiful.

Katsuki's hands find the small of Todoroki’s back, his fingers tangling in the cotton of his t-shirt. 

"I'm sorry," Todoroki chokes out, squirming and wiggling until his face is hidden against Katsuki’s chest. 

"Nothin' to be sorry for, icyhot. We all got shit to deal with," Katsuki mutters into Todoroki’s hair, wanting to lay a kiss along the part of red and white. But he refrains.

Todoroki just nods. Katsuki can feel his tears soak into his shirt.

They stay like that for what could have been moments or hours, for all Katsuki knows. When he hears Todoroki’s breathing even out again, and notices a faint warmth pulsating through the air, Katsuki sighs in relief.

It's amazing how one day can change so many things, he muses. Katsuki's world has been tilted off its axis in the span of mere hours, making him reevaluate almost everything he's come to learn about himself, about Todoroki. He knows, without a doubt, that he cares for the idiot in his arms. His moment of clarity had come the second Todoroki had let go of the railing.

Katsuki swears to himself that he'll make Todoroki realize how much he matters to everyone. And, maybe one day, how much he matters to Katsuki.

[chngmic]

A Whole Lot Greater Than the Sum of His Parts - Halloween Fic Exchange

For @skyroseblog or now @skywalkertvvins . Happy Halloween! 

This isn’t scary at all (fuckin rip my horror writing), but this could be considered a creature AU if you thought about it. I suppose. 

Well, I hope you enjoy! I actually had to cut it because it was longer than it already is (and this is pretty long). I may make oneshots to add those moments I had to cut out. 

Thank you for reading, as always!

AO3 Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/1256616

The invention Todoroki Shouto’s father kept in the basement had been a part of his life ever since he was little. He could easily remembering the cutting of metal and the smell of iron vividly, eating his breakfast and staring at the locked basement door, hoping maybe the glare from his eyes could shoot a laser and knock a hole in the door.

His father was very secretive about his creation, not letting anyone else see it - not even his wife knew what is exactly was. Shouto would always ask his mother what his father was building, and his mother always avoided the question by distracting him with questions about school.

As Shouto grew up, he also became bitter. His father started forcing him into the engineering field, as well as abusing his family. Shouto was to “become the next great inventor, and needed the advanced courses he deserves”, as his father said, making Shouto to watch him work.

He still never saw the creation his father spent his whole life working on.

Shouto also found out that he hated machinery - the coldness and apathetic aura that surrounded the rooms he worked in reminded him too much of himself. He could feel himself slowly losing the spark he had inside, rotting into a cold, calculating machine himself.

It got even to the point to at his father’s funeral, no tears were shed out of his eyes. Why should there be? The old man ruined Shouto’s life and drove his mother past the brink of insanity, leaving her to pour boiling water on his face and give him a brand of his own passiveness in the fight against his father. Yet, he was his father, his own flesh and blood, and Shouto should feel something, but he didn’t, and watched his father be put in the ground. His family would be talked about of course - people could understand Shouto not crying, but when a whole family just stares as their father is six feet under, it causes concern.

-

“Your father left a will, did he not?” Shouto’s close friend Iida asked one day as they poured over books about mechanical engineering. “I remember seeing your mother being told its requests.”

“He did,” Shouto said slowly, copper and iron starting to tang his tongue. “He left everything to me. The house, the inheritance. Even the key to his room in the basement. He didn’t leave anything for Fuyumi, or for my mom and brothers. He’s a pain in my ass even while covered in tons of dirt.”

Iida snorted, pushing his glasses atop his face. “That’s terrible, truly. What are you going to do about it?”

Shouto closed the book he was reading. “Split the inheritance and sell the house, giving the money from the house to a charity. I hope the bastard rolls in his grave.” That made Iida fully laugh, shutting his book as well.

“You sound a lot like Bakugou right now,” he teased, which made Shouto groan. “Just saying! I’m curious about this as well: what are you going to do with the basement key? Throw it away?”

“Actually, yeah,” Shouto blinked as he started placing stuff in his bag. “There’s nothing in there that’s of use to me. You have any good ideas, Iida?”

Iida hummed. “Well, this is just a suggestion, but I would be very curious to see what my insane dictator of a father has been pouring his life into for the past 16 years. You can’t help but want to know, right?”

Shouto nodded, shrugging. “Yeah, I suppose. Curiosity kills the cat, though.”

“Yet satisfaction brings it back,” Iida finished, throwing his bag over his shoulder as he stood up. “Not saying you have to do this, but I think it would be good closure.” With a wave, Shouto’s best friend left, leaving Shouto with half finished notes and half finished thoughts.

-

The door to the basement still looked the same as it did years ago. Shouto took a deep breath, holding the key in his grasp. It was silver, a simple design that wasn’t meant to be showy. Clearly his father did not want people knowing about this room or project.

“Are you sure you’ll be okay by yourself?” Fuyumi said gently, an ever cautious hand wavering over Shouto’s shoulder. He covered his sister’s hands with his own, smiling a soft smile that’s only been directed at her.

“I’m sure I’ll be fine, Fuyumi. There shouldn’t be anything too horrible down there. He was a piece of shit, but I don’t think he would build anything to tarnish his reputation.” Steeling his nerves, he unlocked the door with the simple silver key, pushing the basement door open. “You’re welcome to stay here and wait for me though,” Shouto said behind his shoulder, shrugging. “If it makes you feel better.”

“It actually does, so I’m going to do that,” Fuyumi said, sitting in a pulled out kitchen chair. “If you’re not back in ten minutes I’m coming down, just saying.”

Shouto snorted and waved at her behind him, slowly starting to descend the stairs. Squinting, he took out his phone and put the flashlight on, at least until he found the light switch. The kitchen light got dimmer and dimmer as he went into the basement until there was only him and the light guiding him.

After what felt like forever, which was probably like 3 to 5 minutes, Shouto hit the last stair, and the lightswitch. A generator hummed as he looked around at his father’s invention table, still with metal scraps, and the mess of tools and materials strewn about the room. When Shouto watched him work, he was never in the basement - it was his father’s research lab that he was in most of the time, watching him build little trinkets and gadgets.

“He sure didn’t keep the place spotless,” Shouto muttered, turning his flashlight off. He glanced around, but didn’t see anything particular.

His heart stopped.

In the far corner of the room against a wall was a boy, seated on the floor. His eyes were closed and didn’t seem to be breathing. After a second look, because panic made you think stupid stuff, Shouto realized that he had lines from his eyes that fell vertically to his jawline. He was wearing green, black and red armor, plates coming together to form some sort of jumpsuit. There were bright red shoes that could have lightened up the room themselves, and atop his head was green curly hair. He appeared to be slumped against the wall, sleeping.

At second glance, Shouto realized the boy was plugged into the wall, and wasn’t even a boy at all - it was a robot. His breath stuttered a bit upon this realization, and Shouto slowly walked to the robot, and bent down in front of them, his hand reaching up and brushing the breastplate, looking for a switch.

“Is this the thing my father has been working on for a decade and a half of his life?” Shouto whispered, freezing when he felt the switch. He paused, thinking of the consequences.

There aren’t any consquences. The only person who’d give you any consequences kicked the bucket a few weeks ago.

With that in mind, he flipped the switch to On.

The robot’s generator hummed, and slowly their eyes opened, blinking blearily. Shouto looked at them in awe, waiting for them to speak.

“Ah,” the robot said softly. The voice sounded like a young boy, around Shouto’s age. “Um. Hello.” They gazed around, seemingly confused. “You aren’t the professor. Who are you?” They asked, head turning with a little whirring sound to make it look like their head was cocked.

“Professor...I’m guessing you mean my father,” Shouto said slowly. “I’m Todoroki Shouto, his son.” The robot’s eyes widened, and they smiled happily.

“Shouto! I’ve heard a lot about you!” They beamed. “My name is D3K|_|, but please, call me Deku!” Shouto stared at Deku, confused.

Why would his father name a robot useless?

“Is that your only name?” He asked Deku, his eyebrows furrowing. The robot continued to look confused.

“Yes. The professor gave it to me. I’m very proud to own it!” They said, puffing out their chestplate. Shouto smiled a little at their antics.

“Okay, I understand. How long have you been charging?” He asked the robot, unplugging them. Deku stood up, stretching their limbs.

“I don’t have an exact concept of time, but the clock the Professor placed in me said I was placed in hibernation about 3 weeks ago.”

A month? Shouto blinked, but sighed softly. “That’s understandable.”

“Speaking of the Professor, where is he? He usually is the one who wakes me up,” Deku exclaimed, looking around as if Shouto’s father was hiding, waiting to jump out of the shadows. Shouto stiffened, and placed a hand on Deku’s shoulder.

“Ah, Deku, I’m sorry, but ah, the Professor, as well as my father died a week ago. He won’t be coming back.”

Deku stared at Shouto with wide eyes, and looked down again, looking crestfallen. “I-I seem yes. Human’s do do that, I suppose. They aren’t forever, like I am.” They let out something like a sigh, and smiled ruefully at Shouto.

“I don’t know much about emotions. The Professor was teaching me about them, and I’m still learning, and right now...I feel this tightness in my chest. I don’t have a heart, so why is it so tight?” Deku asked, their robotic hand coming up to grasp at his chestplate.

Shouto let out a shaky breath, and looked down at the robot, “That’s called sadness, Deku. That’s what you’re feeling.”

“Oh.” A pause. “Sadness. I see.”

-

“So he was just….in Dad’s basement?” Fuyumi asked as they watched Deku look around the kitchen in awe. Shouto nodded.

“It’s just as insane as it sounds. I can’t imagine why he would build them in the first place. Maybe Pops was trying to create a mature AI with human emotions?” Shouto guessed, rubbing the back of his head. “Anyways, I can’t bring it in myself to turn them off. This isn’t their fault.”

“What are you going to do?” Fuyumi asked, looking up at him. He laughed humorlessly, grinning down at her.

“What else? I’m going to take Deku in. Technically, they’re my property now,” He said, placing both hands on the back of Fuyumi’s chair. She blinked.

“I mean, I suppose you can do that. Will your school let you though? You can’t have a different gendered roommate,” Fuyumi countered, leaning back to watch Deku open and close the oven repeatedly in awe.

“I can change that,” Shouto said. “Hey Deku, did the Professor ever give you preferred pronouns to go by, or a gender?” Deku looked up at Shouto’s words.

“Well,” Deku hummed. “Considering I am a robot, I am genderless. So I have no gender. Though, the Professor did build me with a masculine structure, and used masculine pronouns. Going off of that, I assumed he saw me as a male.”

“Disregarding that bas-I mean, the Professor’s opinion,” Shouto corrected - he didn’t want Deku to find out how the Professor actually was just yet. “How do you identify, Deku?”

“Well, if I had to decide on how I feel, I do honestly feel masculine,” Deku said genuinely, shutting the oven door. “So I suppose use those pronouns for me, they make me quite comfortable.”

“Alright then,” Shouto said to him, a small grin on his face. “See? It works out.” Fuyumi sighed.

“Well, whatever, I guess he is a robot. The people at your school aren’t politically correct enough to ask, I bet,” Fuyumi said dejectedly, waving her hand. “He’s your robot now, so do what you want with him.”

Deku beamed, his eyes almost lighting up like a light bulbs. “I get to be with Todoroki? That’s exciting!”

Shouto shifted, and sighed. “I guess. I’m not that fun to be around honestly. All I do is work.”

Still with that same stupid smile. “I’ll help you then!” Deku exclaimed, standing up straight. “I’m an ever growing, ever maturing AI! My intelligence level is high as well!”

Fuyumi and Shouto glanced at each other.

“Have fun with him,” Fuyumi said.

-

“So, what do you do?” Deku asked as he watched Shouto plug in his charger and other means. Shouto paused, pushing the block to the side and glancing towards the robot on the bed.

“I’m currently an engineering student,” Shouto said, stiffening a little as his guard went up. He hated bringing up his forced career track. Now that his father’s dead, though, Shouto supposed he could change that, but there was still this voice in his mind forcing him to stay with it. Deku’s eyes widened.

“So you work with machines as well! Are you aiming to become like the Professor?” Deku asked innocently, swinging his legs up and down on the bed. Shouto’s stare went cold, and he looked away. “I don’t want to ever be like him.”

Deku blinked, confused. “The Professor said you were going to be though. He said that you were his masterpiece, and that-”

“Deku.” Shouto’s voice was ice, and it made Deku freeze in his tracks. Shouto looked up at Deku, eyes piercing.

“The Professor is dead. He also didn’t consider the fact that I am my own person. His ideals aren’t my own,” he said sharply. “So please, don’t bring up what he said about me again.”

Deku’s eyes dimmed, and he sagged a little. “I-I apologize. That was rude of me, talking about things I have no idea about.”

“It’s not your fault,” Shouto sighed heavily, not wanting the robot to think he hated him. “You’ve only been with the Professor so far, so you only know his ideals.”

“What are your ideals, then?” Deku questioned, staring at him. Shouto blushed a little, going back to setting Deku’s things up.

“I originally wanted to be a writer,” he finally said, standing back up and walking to sit next to Deku on his bed. “A novelist, to be more specific. I love writing stories. My father saw it as fantasy though, and forced me into engineering.”

“Do you not like machines?” Deku asked slowly. Shouto shook his head. “Why not?”

“They’re cold, and hard fact. They deal with too many factual things and I don’t feel my soul in them. I don’t feel the love that I do in a book.” Deku was silent and he glanced over at the robot, who was stared at his red metal feet.

“Do you think I have any love, Todoroki?” Deku asked softly, his hands clutching the comforter below him. “Do you feel love in me?” Shouto thought for a moment.

“My father doesn’t have an ounce of love in his body. So if you do, it’s not his,” he said, trying to find the right words.

“Can I find it then? Love?” Deku asked immediately, turning to look at Shouto. Shouto blinked, staring into Deku’s eyes.

“There’s many different types of love, but…” Shouto thought about his sister, Iida, Uraraka, Momo, and even Bakugou and Kirishima. He thought about how despite how cold he was when he entered University, they warmly welcomed him, and made him feel like he was important.

“If you’re surrounded by the right people, then yes. You’ll find it.”

-

“So your father built a robot?” Iida exclaimed at their friend group’s study meeting. “Like, an actual talking robot?”

“That’s so cool!” Uraraka said, clapping her hands together. “Do we get to meet it?” Shouto closed his eyes and tried to focus on not telling his friends to stop talking at the same time.

“To answer your question Iida, yes, he did. I can’t believe it either. To answer your question, Uraraka, he’s still new on people. The only people he’s met are my father, my sister, and myself,” Shouto said, sipping his coffee as he read his textbook.

“Does he have a name?” Uraraka asked, abandoning her note taking to question Shouto on his new friend. Shouto sighed - once Uraraka started getting curious, there was no way out.

“He said to call him Deku, which is kind of a contradiction since he’s basically named worthless-”

“It doesn’t sound like that to me!” Uraraka said. “It kind of also sounds like ‘I can do it’, you know?” Shouto blinked. No, he didn’t know, but that was a far better alternative to think about.

“That does suit his personality better,” Shouto said thoughtfully, taking another sip of his coffee, textbook unfortunately ignored.

“Does he have a personality? Considering the fact that he’s a robot,” Iida said, curious as well. Shouto nodded, agreeing.

“That’s what I thought, but Deku is quite polite actually. He has this childlike innocence about the world and believes that everyone is a good person,” Shouto explained, leaning back in his chair. “Even my father.”

“Does he know about your father?” Momo piped up, after listening to the conversation for a good bit. “I’m sure your father wouldn’t tell his robot that he’s abusing his family.”

Shouto chuckled a little. “Not that I know of. I can’t bring myself to hurt him like that, though. It would kinda suck finding out the person who brought you into this world was also trying to take people out of it.”

There were hums of agreement as the conversation came to a close.

“I still want to meet him though.”

“God damnit.”

-

“Angelface told me you have a fucking robot now,” Bakugou said to Shouto while they were at the gym. “How is that?”

“My old man’s,” Shouto replied, placing down his weights. “I don’t have it in me to turn him off permanently, so he’s staying with me.” Bakugou grunted, placing his weights down as well.

��Are you sure it isn’t gonna fucking shiv you in your sleep or something? It was made by that piece of shit after all,” Bakugou exclaimed, wiping his forehead off with his sleeve. Shouto barked out a laugh.

“He got upset yesterday because I killed a spider in the bathroom,” he said, grinning slightly. (“If I had a crying function, I would be sobbing right now! How could you have killed Spidey?”

“Wait, you named him?!”)

Bakugou snorted. “It sounds like a fucking wimp. Aren’t robots supposed to destroy the world or something?” Shouto rolled his eyes, picking up a heavier weight.

“This isn’t War of the Worlds, dumbass,” he said, pumping up and down. “He just acts like a human being.”

“Well, isn’t that great? A robot who acts like a human, and a human who acts like a robot.” Bakugou grinned. “You two are perfect for each other.”

Shouto didn’t speak to him for the rest of the session.

-

“He’s so cute!” Uraraka squealed upon seeing Deku in Todoroki’s room when she, Iida, Momo, and Kirishima came to visit. Bakugou and Momoko were currently in class (“But they send their regards!” Kirishima said cheerfully.)

“Um, thank you!” Deku said uncertainly. “Todoroki, who are these people? Did you allow them entrance?”

“Yes I did,” Todoroki said gently, ever patient. “These are my friends Uraraka, Iida, Momo, and Kirishima,” he introduced, pointing to each of them in turn. “They wanted to meet you, so I brought them here.”

“Ah! So these are friends!” Deku said, beaming. “Of course! Well, hello! My name is D3K|_|, but please call me Deku!”

“Hi! I’m Uraraka, like he said!” She said in a bubbly tone, beaming at him. Shouto had to turn away from how much sun suddenly filled up his room.

These two are dangerous together.

“Hi there, it’s a pleasure to meet you!” Deku replied, sitting cheerfully on his bed. Shouto smiled softly.

“My name is Iida,” he said in a professional tone, holding his hand out. “I have heard much about you. It’s great to put a face to the name.” Deku stared at Iida’s hand, confused. “Um…”

“Take your left hand and place it in his hand and move it up and down,” Shouto whispered to him, and Deku’s mouth made an ‘o’ shape, doing so. Iida moved away, satisfied.

“Yo! I’m Kirishima,” Kirishima said cheerfully. “Any friend of Todoroki’s is a friend of mine! Feel free to talk to me anytime, I heard I’m quite easygoing.” Deku smiled again, nodding at his words.

“Thank you! I’ll be sure to keep that in mind!” Deku said genuinely, making Kirishima grin.

“You’re really cool. Todoroki, does he have lazers and shit?” Deku shook his head.

“Professor made me to be exactly like a human, so I don’t have many powerful functions,” he admitted, sagging a little. “My intelligence and design though is very extraordinary!” Deku said proudly, puffing out his chestplate.

“If you don’t want him, can I keep him?” Uraraka whispered to Shouto.

“He’s mine, sorry,” Todoroki whispered back. She pouted.

“Anyways, I must leave, I’m afraid. I have class to attend,” Iida said, pushing his glasses up to his face. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Deku. I hope we talk soon!” After bowing low to the ground, he left.

“What a goody two shoes,” Kirishima joked, and him and Uraraka joined the pair on the bed, and talked for a few hours.

(“Did you like them?” Shouto asked Deku after they left. Deku thought, and smiled a soft smile, making Shouto’s heart leap.

“They’re amazing. They make you smile in a different way. That’s….that’s love, right?”

Shouto smiled.)

-

A couple of months passed since he decided to take in Deku, and Shouto could definitely feel something happening to his body. Lately, he was starting to get nervous around the robot, like the butterflies in the stomach, heart pounding kind of nervous. Shouto wasn’t running a fever (he had Deku check) so he wasn’t sick. He didn’t understand why he was feeling this way.

From the way Momo was grinning, Shouto could tell he wasn’t going to like his answer either.

“From what you’re telling me, I’m 90% sure you have a crush on your robot,” Momo said, calmly sipping her tea after Shouto’s tangent.

Shouto choked on his coffee.

“I beg your pardon? I can’t have a crush on him. He’s a robot!” Shouto said in an unusually high voice, making Momo chuckle.

“You have all the symptoms,” she explained gently. “I felt the same way about Jirou when I met her, and look at where we are now.” Her engagement ring glinted in the sunlight by the window they were sat by. Shouto felt sick.

“Jirou is a human though! She’s flesh and blood, not machinery and electricity!” He shrilled, clearing his throat to calm himself down. “Is he even capable of liking me back? If what you’re saying is right, did I just set myself up for the ultimate unrequited love?!”

Momo placed her teacup down. “Well, you said it yourself, he’s an ever growing AI, so he has a mind that grows like a human’s. Also, a lot of humans have prosthetic arms and legs! It’s just, his entire body is a prosthetic, I suppose.”

Shouto placed his forehead on the table. “That doesn’t make me feel better.” Momo gently patted his head, resuming to look at her book.

“Just sit on it for a little bit. I could be wrong, but that’s what I’m saying, and what the others will say I’m sure.”

Shouto’s groan could probably be heard down the block.

-

When Todoroki was out at class or studying, Deku usually hung out with Iida’s girlfriend Mei and helped her out. She was very eccentric and brash, but extremely clever and genuine. Deku liked her a lot, and could see why Iida did. Right now Todoroki was with his friend Momo, so it was the perfect time to ask the inventor a question.

“Pardon me Mei, but I think I’m malfunctioning,” he said, making Mei pause and pop her head up from her current project.

“What do you mean? I’m sure I can help you, but I just checked you last week, What’s the problem?” Deku looked at his hands, clenching and unclenching them.

“When I’m around Todoroki, my chest feels very warm,” he started, watching Mei work. “And my memory drive feels quite fuzzy. So does where I assume my stomach would be.” He sighed loudly. “I can’t figure it out. I don’t have a heart, so what’s wrong with me?”

Mei stared at Deku.

“Oh my god, you want to touch tonsils with Todoroki.”

“What does that mean?” Deku asked innocently.

She stared at him. “Nevermind,” Mei said, placing her wrench down. “Anyway, Deku, based off those deductions, you have romantic feelings for Todoroki.”

“Feelings?” Deku asked, watching her go back to work. “Romantic feelings?”

Mei hummed trying to think of an example. “Yeah. Like how I feel for Tenya. How Tenya feels for me. It’s like….you want to be with them all the time. Seeing them smile makes you smile. If they were upset or angry the world sort of feels like it’s crashing down.”

Deku nodded, his eyes bright with wonder. “Okay. I see what you’re saying, and….I do want to be with Todoroki all the time.” He looked back down at his hands. “When he smiles, I want to smile. Seeing him upset - it makes me feel what you might call ‘worried’?” At Mei’s encouraging nod, he goes on. “Todoroki is an amazing person. He wants to be a writer, and I think he should be one. I told him so, but he said he has to stay in engineering,” he frowned. “Why does he feel like that?”

Mei was silent as she stood up, examining the metal machine in her hands. “I feel like that’s a conversation for you and him to have, Deku. I would ask him since you don’t already know.”

Deku nodded, thinking. “Yeah, I’ll ask him about that. Thanks for listening, as always! I’m glad you’re my friend Mei.” She laughed, waving him out the door.

“Yeah yeah yeah. Go get your man.”

-

“Hey Todoroki?” Deku asked as he watched Shouto get ready for bed. “Can I ask you something?”

“Hmm?” Shouto turned to look at Deku, his shirt halfway over his head. Deku looked away pointedly, more focused on his feet.

“Why are you sticking with engineering?” Deku finally asked, his hands fidgeting in his lap. Shouto froze as he was putting on his pj shirt.

“What?”

Deku looked up at Todoroki determinedly, a glint in his whirring green eyes. “You’re a fantastic writer. You have such a way with words, and I can tell there’s nothing else you would rather do than write. Yet you force yourself into engineering, where I can even tell it hurts you. It makes your eyebrows furrow, and you frown a lot, and….” Deku hesitated. “I don’t like seeing you so sad. It makes me feel sad. So, please tell me why you put yourself through something you don’t want to do.”

Shouto stared at Deku for a moment, meeting his eyes. Sighing softly, he finished putting on his shirt, walking to sit on his bed with resigned dedication. “You really are persistent, aren’t you?” He muttered with a quiet scoff, his hand coming up to cup Deku’s cheek. His cheek was metal, that much Shouto could tell, but it was also warm, power generating through the wires that encompass the robot before him.

Deku’s eyes widened, but didn’t push him away. He looked more confused at the gesture than anything, but him not moving Shouto’s hand away from his face meant that he trusted him - due to an unfortunate incident with Uraraka sneaking up behind Deku, he wasn’t too fond of people touching him without permission. Seeing Deku letting his guard down in front of him made Shouto’s heart melt.

“Todoroki?” Deku whispered, looking up at him. “What’s wrong?”

“Shouto,” Shouto said, clearing his throat to avoid any voice cracks. “Call me Shouto. I feel as if we know each other well enough.”

If robots could blush, Deku certainly did. He glanced away from Shouto’s gaze and he could feel his cheek get hotter, which made Shouto chuckle. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to. It’s just a suggestion.”

“I-It’s okay, Shouto!” Deku exclaimed, that determined gleam in his eye again. “You’re right, we have known each other well enough to go by that name! Unfortunately, I just have the name Deku, but that’ll have to suffice.”

Shouto let out a puff of laughter, and pulled his hand away from Deku’s face and placing his hands in his lap. “Well, you do want to know, don’t you? Why I won’t change my major and why I make myself miserable in engineering.” At Deku’s earnest nod, Shouto looked away, telling the story to the ground.

“I apologize. I haven’t been the most honest with you, Deku,” Shouto said with a sad smile. Deku cocked his head, listening. “My father, the Professor….he may have been a brilliant inventor, but he was a horrible father and husband. He abused my siblings and I, and my mother to the point of insanity.” His hand slowly crept up to the scar on the left side of his face.

“My mother did this to me. She poured boiling water on me, saying that I was unsightly because I reminded her too much of my father. I don’t blame her - my father drove her into a corner where she couldn’t get out. It just made me angry.” He felt a hand on his shoulder, and placed his own hand on Midoriya’s, knowing the robot was trying to comfort him the best he can. “He made me bitter. He was forcing me into something I didn’t want to do, but I had no choice. My father controlled everything about my life. Now that he’s dead, I suppose that’s not true, but this has been a routine for all my life. It’s become mechanical movements.” His laugh was bitter. “Honestly, I think you’re more human than I am, Deku.”

Deku was silent as he spoke, and after a moment’s pause, he quietly asked, “What makes you think I’m more human?” Shouto looked up at his glowing green eyes, which held a slight bit of confusion.

“You’re so bright. You have this gentle aura surrounding you, and you’re so alive. Deku, you feel emotions so strongly, and it’s so beautiful. You’re beautiful.” Deku’s cheeks flushed as much as a robot’s could, looking away. “Me? I can’t seem to feel. It took me so long to get the friends I have now, mainly because they’re persistent jackasses and sort of forced me to be their friend.” Shouto smiled softly. “I am thankful though. They’ve helped me a lot.”

Deku turned so he was sitting in front of Shouto, and took Shouto’s hands in his. “I don’t know too much about grief, and sadness,” Deku said slowly, trying to process his words to come out of his mouth in a correct manner. “I’m always learning, and still learning. Shouto, coming from a machine, I don’t think you’re more of a machine than myself.” Deku squeezed Shouto’s hands. “Humans work differently than machines. We either work or we don’t. We can easily get fixed and not remember how much we hurt, or had hurt. Humans don’t function like we do. Human’s can get fixed in a sense, but they don’t fully heal. There are scars, bruises, blemishes. You can’t turn a gear and get fixed.”

Shouto stared at Deku with wide eyes, listening to what the robot had to say. “You’ve been through more than most others have. Professor hurt you physically and mentally all your life up until this point, and you’ve had no one you felt comfortable enough to turn to.” Deku stared determinedly at Shouto. “Listen to me. One thing I have learned is that humans are not meant to be alone. You just can’t. You've subconsciously realized this, and you’ve made friends. You have been living this routine, this function, all your life. Todoroki Shouto, life is not meant to be on one function. The parts of you, the abilities you have, they help you to do multiple functions of life, and living. You are a whole lot greater than the sum of your parts.” Deku blushed a little, rubbing the back of his head with one hand.

“If I’m beautiful, than you are too,” He mumbled, looking away from Shouto. Shouto felt his hands reach up and cup Deku’s cheeks and make him look straight at him. Deku blinked, looking at Shouto with wide eyes.

It was like Shouto was on autopilot. He leaned in towards the robot before him and gently connected their lips. Deku made a small noise, but didn’t move away, and actually closed his eyes, taking in the presence of the male cupping his face. He could feel the heat from Shouto’s hands, and from his lips, and it set Deku on fire. He moved his hands to sit lightly on Shouto’s knees, holding them.

Shouto pulled away, and scanned Deku’s face, as if he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. Then, it was almost as if he got his bearings; the boy blushed and took his hands away, looking down at their legs.

“Ah, sorry,” He mumbled, refusing to look at Deku. “You just, said something amazing. That was my first reaction.” Deku was silent for a moment, and Shouto squeezed his eyes shut, ready for the inevitable rejection that was coming.

“Well….” Deku paused. “I’m not sorry. I actually really enjoyed that.” Shouto whipped his head up to look at Deku’s face, trying to figure out if he was joking or not. Deku chuckled a little bit, looking Shouto straight in the eyes with a shaky smile.

“So you-?”

“Yeah.”

“You actually wanted to-”

“Yes. I did. I’ve been thinking about it for a while.”

Shouto just stared at him with a dazed expression on his face, and Deku started laughing more. He finally broke out into a smile, shaking his head. Suddenly, Deku’s expression turned serious, making Shouto sit straight up.

“I don’t know much about romance,” Deku said, his chin up. “Yet, I would like to learn. I already know that I hold romantic feelings for you. According to an article from Wikihow I analyzed, we are supposed to go on these things such as dates. I don’t know what a fruit has anything to with it, but I will do my best!” His eyes held passion, and Shouto did the only thing he thought to answer that question.

He laughed.

“Okay, sounds good,” Shouto said, feeling the oil in his veins turn to blood, and the generator of his heart starting to beat instead of run.