Izuku took it all back. Not being in the hero course was the worst. Not being able to meddle and influence what was going to happen was driving him absolutely mad. Because here he was, looking down at Kacchan's internship request list, and all he could think about was Tenya. Well, Tensei, actually, and Tenya's reaction to his brother's ambush. To Stain, the Hero Killer.

"Oi," Katsuki frowned, flicking a finger against his forehead. "Snap out of it, you're being loud as fuck."

"Was I mumbling?" Izuku asked, scared he might've accidentally leaked something. "Sorry if I was saying nonsense, I-"

"No, you just... Ugh, just tell me what's going on with you today," Katsuki complained, taking the list out of his hands. "You've been acting off ever since I asked you who you think I should intern with so spill, nerd. Is it because it's not you?"

"Huh?" Izuku asked, confused. Not him? What did he mean by that?

"Don't act dumb, Izuku, I know you wanted to be a hero more than anything else when we were kids," Katsuki scoffed. "So is that it? You're sad cause you're not in the hero course? Am I rubbing it in too much?"

"What? No, no, that's... That's not it, I promise," Izuku said, forcing a smile. Well, maybe it was a little bit, but he couldn't tell Kacchan that. "I'm just not feeling too well today, sorry."

"Don't apologize for feeling like shit," Katsuki frowned. "Should've stayed home if you weren't feeling well."

"It's not that bad, I swear," Izuku said, taking the list back. "And I know just who you should intern with! Here! Best Jeanist! He's a top five pro hero, which means it'll look good on your resume and he's got a bunch of experience! I can't guarantee you'd like it there, though... I mean, all sidekicks and interns are required to wear denim-"

"Yeah, I was thinking the same thing," Katsuki interrupted, pausing for a moment. "You won't happen to know how that'll go, do you?"

"Like I said, everyone needs to wear denim. He's uh... He's really strict with his morals," Izuku rephrased. "And I don't think you fit his perfect hero picture at all, so that'll be...challenging, for the both of you. If you decide to accept his offer, of course! You don't need to just because I'm suggesting-"

"Ugh, shut up! I wouldn't have asked you for advice if I wouldn't consider following it," Katsuki pointed out. Right... Izuku really needed to remind himself that this Kacchan actually liked him, even if he didn't have his memories. He'd never been relentlessly bullied, not by Kacchan, not that bad by anyone else either. It was easy to forget when all Izuku knew was to keep his timeline standing as much as possible. Alterations tended to flow into one another, mixing and mingling together. Izuku's lives all blended together in a way, making it hard to separate this reality from any other sometimes.

Being together with Kacchan was easy, though. Loving him came naturally to Izuku. But knowing he didn't have his memories, moments in time that so fundamentally changed them as people, it made things a little harder. Made conversations seem more...rehearsed, in a way. Stiff. Repeating. Guess that was the correct word for it. Repeating. Like a scene from a movie, a chapter from a book. Stagnant. Never changing. But that wasn't true. Things were changing. Izuku was changing things, changing his fate, his path in life. But not this, not Kacchan. Never Kacchan.

"You're really zoning out today," Katsuki sighed. "Are you sure you're-"

"I'm fine," Izuku said quickly. "I uh... Can you do something for me, Kacchan?"

"Depends," he shrugged.

"Can you ask Best Jeanist about the Hero Killer if you go intern with him? Ask him whether he's planning on going to Hosu City?"

"The Hero Killer? What brought that on all of the sudden?" Katsuki frowned.

"He injured Ingenium, one of the pro heroes stationed there," Izuku explained. "He's Iida's older brother- You know, your classmate, the one with the glasses and the rigid hand chops? I'm kinda worried about him... I think he's going to do something reckless."

Katsuki frowned, studying his face, as if picking him apart.

"Do you just think so or do you know so?"

"...I know," Izuku admitted. "He's going after the Hero Killer, he's out for revenge."

"Glasses doesn't seem like the type to break the rules like that. He's not a reckless fuck like someone else I know," Katsuki pointed out. Izuku knew Kacchan was calling him out, which was childish and not the point of this conversation at all. Izuku knew he was reckless, and he was working on it. Really!

"This is different," Izuku said, pointedly ignoring Kacchan's jab at him. "Please Kacchan, this is serious. He could get seriously injured."

"I'll voice your concerns to our homeroom teacher," Katsuki promised. "And I guess mentioning the Hero Killer to Jeanist wouldn't hurt, either."

"Thank you," Izuku smiled, taking his hand. "That really means a lot to me."

"It's nothing," Katsuki huffed, avoiding Izuku's eyes as his cheeks burned up. He wasn't as used to these displays of affections as Izuku was. Which was super cute and adorable, and Izuku may or may not have been enjoying how easily he got Kacchan all flustered like this.

//\\
\\//

Izuku knew Katsuki would be on the scene, knew he was on his way to Hosu right now. The ash blonde had texted him, telling him that much. He also knew Shoto would be in the city with Endeavor, although he didn't know how much help he would be now that he was still emotionally constipated, still conflicted with himself and his quirk. Izuku knew all that, knew that theoretically, Tenya wouldn't be alone. That at least someone would find him. But he didn't know in which state they'd find him, and that worried him more than anything.

He'd be injured, for sure. How bad Izuku wouldn't know until it was all over. That's to say, he hoped Tenya would only be injured. Stain didn't get the name Hero Killer for nothing, after all. Izuku knew that. He also knew he'd never forgive himself if something were to happen to the person he once called his friend. Izuku was this close to going out there himself to make sure Tenya would be alright, but he couldn't.

How would he explain his presence there? How would he explain how he knew about the attack or where to find them in the cluster of dark backstreets that were littered all over Hosu? Izuku wasn't supposed to, he was supposed to stay put and let others handle it. He wasn't a hero anymore. Maybe a vigilante- No. Izuku had thought about it. About becoming a vigilante, but it was just too dangerous without a quirk. He'd get hurt way too often without good or reasonable excuses and he barely had any free time as things were now.

Still, he couldn't help but regret that decision as he turned on the news, watching the Nomu wreck chaos all over Hosu. He knew Tenya was out there, somewhere, far away from where the cameras were pointing. Far away from these Nomu, who tore down street lights and roared into the darkness of the night as heroes evacuated any lingering civilians. It didn't take long for the news crew to catch sight of Endeavor, focussing on the number two hero in an instant. Izuku could see a few glimpses of Shoto here and there, too.

Best Jeanist was absent from the fight though, or at least from Izuku's limited view of what was going on. So maybe...maybe he'd found Stain? Izuku could only hope. He bit his lip as he watched a Nomu punch Endeavor in the face, bouncing his leg up and down as he glanced at his phone. No new messages. Kacchan was probably in the middle of all the action right now- Not that Izuku had any real video evidence of that. Up until Izuku could see some bystanders being whisked away by the threads of their clothes.

"It's Best Jeanist! Best Jeanist is on the scene!"

The camera turned, showing the number four hero in all his glory. Yes, four, because All Might was still active. Endeavor was second, still higher in rank than Jeanist, but the number four hero was way more popular, so Izuku wasn't surprised when the news crew decided to highlight him instead of Endeavor. Still, he couldn't catch a sign of Kacchan anywhere. No blobs of black and orange and green. No explosions. No yells or shouts or death threats. Then his phone rang, showing his boyfriend's name displayed across his screen.

Izuku never picked up the phone that fast in his life.

"Kacchan? Are you okay? Hosu City is-"

"Shut up!" Katsuki hissed in his ear. "Where the hell is he, Deku?!"

"Wha-"

"Iida!" Katsuki specified. "I told Jeanist about him when he asked why the hell I wanted to go after the Hero Killer and he thought it was noble as fuck but he's gone and I can't fucking find him so-"

"I'll send you the coordinates right now," Izuku interrupted, putting his phone on speaker as he tapped away. "You should forward them to Best Jeanist. Stain is going to be there, so be careful."

"Coordinates huh?" Kacchan huffed, but Izuku could tell he was smiling. "Let me guess, no questions asked?"

"I'm sorry," Izuku answered. "Please... Please be careful Kacchan. The Hero Killer has a blood quirk. A paralyzer. Tenya, he'll-"

"He'll be fine," Katsuki told him. "Got your message. Call you when it's over."

With that he ended their call, making Izuku even more anxious than he was before. He didn't know where Kacchan was or how long it would take for him to get to Tenya. He didn't know in what state his former classmate would be once Kacchan got to him, nor whether the Hero Killer would still be there or if he'd already- No. No, he'd be there. He had to be. If he wasn't, then... Then Tenya would be... Izuku clenched his fists, staring at the news broadcast as he resisted the urge to call Kacchan. It was out of his control now, there was nothing he could do to change Tenya's fate.

But if fate really wanted things to remain as they were, to have things play out like they were supposed to, then surely it would spare Tenya's life, right? Because he wasn't supposed to die today. He was supposed to live and influence the future. Then again, fate hadn't made him class president, which was something Izuku had come to see as a fact rather than a coincidence. So he wasn't sure, didn't know whether or not Tenya would make it out alive or whether he'd be seriously injured. Whether he'd be reprimanded or suspended or expelled, or whether it would all get covered up by the police.

Kacchan said he'd call, right?

Izuku glanced at his phone before glancing back at the screen, watching Endeavor burn a Nomu to a crisp. He winced a bit, feeling sympathy for the mutated criminal. Izuku was glad he'd never been burned like that when he was deformed so many lifetimes ago. Still, it didn't make these Nomu any less human, any less susceptible to pain. Izuku knew they had feelings, knew they were conscious up until a point. He knew Tsubasa was out there, somewhere in Hosu City. Lost. Confused. It made him wonder whether he'd go after Kacchan, like he once went after Izuku in the past...

He wouldn't know until it was over, until Kacchan called him back with the latest update. Until there was nothing left Izuku could do... He sighed, shutting off the screen. There was no point in making himself worry if there wasn't anything he could do to change the outcome. Yeah, he should just try to distract himself! Keep himself busy until Kacchan called! Yeah, he could do that! He'll just do some schoolwork, tinker on some of his latest inventions, workshop some ideas- Izuku had enough things to keep both his hands and mind occupied for the time being.

And so he worked. He drew and calculated and fidgeted with all kinds of parts and components until it did something useful. Izuku was busy, yes, but he was restless. His leg bouncing nervously as he worked, his eyes trailing away to his phone from time to time. Watching the minutes, the hours pass by without any news. Izuku lied before, when he said he'd never answered a call that fast, because the moment his phone made the faintest sound, he'd tapped the green phone icon.

"Kacchan? Everything okay? Are you hurt? Injured?" Izuku asked before Katsuki could get any word in. "Please tell me you're-"

"I'm fine, Izuku," Katsuki interrupted. "I found him in time. The Hero Killer was a pain in the ass to deal with, though. You were right about his quirk, not that I'm surprised."

"...And Tenya..?" Izuku asked.

"He's seriously injured, but he'll pull through," Katsuki hummed. "You never told me you and glasses are close."

"Oh, we're- We're not that close," Izuku stammered. "I was just worried about him, is all! I'm happy he's okay."

"Hngh," Kacchan mumbled, and Izuku could hear rustling. "Gotta get going, nerd, it's almost lights out."

"Lights- Are you staying at the hospital?" Izuku asked, his eyes widening. "You're injured-"

"I'm fine," he groaned. "Just a few cuts, it's no big deal. I'll be back on the street patrolling with Jeanist the day after tomorrow. Can't say the same about legs, though. He's... It's bad, Izuku. The doctors said he'll be fine, sure, but we have no idea how long that's gonna take."

At least he wasn't dead.

"Anyway, lights out soon," Katsuki continued. "So uhm... Thanks for helping me out today and, uh, good night."

"See you this weekend?" Izuku asked. "We can go see that new action movie that's out, maybe grab a bite to eat while we're out?"

"It's a date," Katsuki said. Izuku just knew he was blushing on the other side of the line. "See you then."