Incomplete [Chapter 1]

“Thank you for being so patient.” The young lady smiled awkwardly. “They’re... very young, as you can tell.”

“It’s okay!” Izuku grinned, swinging a toddler from his hand. “We’re just glad everyone is safe and happy!”

“None of these kids have parents?” Katsuki asked bluntly, looking over the ocean of kids filing into the dining room to eat dinner. “That’s a lot of kids.”

“Some of them still have parents, but their parents can’t take care of them, so they were taken away. Others weren’t wanted by their parents so they were given up as babies. But yes, a lot of them lost their parents and had no other family who could take care of them. The kids here are all the ones who can’t go back to their parents, for whatever reason – there are other Homes for kids who just need a temporary place to stay, but ours is a longer term solution.”

“That’s so sad,” Izuku whispered, face falling. “These poor kids. How do you even have space for them all? Does the government fund everything for them? Do they go to school?”

“Would you like me to show you around?”

Katsuki glanced at his watch, but nodded faintly when Izuku gave him a pleading look – damn those big, shiny eyes of his.

“We have about ten minutes,” he agreed finally. “We need to get back in time to file our reports before people panic and end up giving us a ton of extra paperwork.”

While the kids got themselves washed and set up at the dining room table, the young lady led Izuku and Katsuki up the stairs, showing them a few small bedrooms with futon laid out across the floor. An open closet door in one room showed them a storage space split into six sections, to match the six futon, each with a sparsely-populated clothing rail and a few battered looking possessions beneath.

“Our under-threes share these rooms,” the lady explained. “They’re usually in and out quickly, especially the ones who already have their quirks, or manifest them while they’re here. It’s very common for couples to adopt a child with a quirk that will help in their family business, so they can carry on the family legacy when they’re older. Plus, many adoptive parents choose children with quirks suited to being heroes, or doctors, or lawyers, so they can help raise a future generation of talented individuals.”

“And the ones with quirks that aren’t as good?”

“Well,” she continued, smiling softly. “Everyone’s quirk is good for something, don’t you think? You might be surprised by the type of quirks some people come looking for! But yes, some of them stay longer, while we wait for the right people to adopt them, or while we wait for their quirks to show themselves and give us some more options, so the older kids live up here.”

She led them up another flight of stairs, showing them three rooms that were even smaller than those downstairs. Each one barely held the two beds inside, though Katsuki supposed the extra privacy probably made it worth it. They had nicer beds, too – full mattresses that didn’t need to be folded away, with thicker pillows to match.

“These are the rooms our three and four year olds reside in,” she explained. “It helps us to prevent any accidents between babies and preschool supplies, too. We’ve learned from past mistakes. The government only funds one uniform for each child, so if anything gets spilled on them or they get damaged, we usually have to find funds to replace them ourselves.”

“They’re all under five?” Izuku asked, eyebrows knitting together.

“Almost,” she nodded, eyes darting toward another set of doors. “We specialise in the babies and toddlers here. When they develop their quirks, if they don’t get picked up right away, they usually get moved to a home for older kids, with facilities to deal with quirk guidance and help families find the right child to adopt. We do have two older children currently, since they’re... Well, you asked about quirks that don’t inspire adoption, so this is them.”

“What kind of sh- lame quirks have they got?” Katsuki asked, curiosity piqued. “You said they’re all good for something, didn’t you?”

“Well... These two don’t have quirks.”

Katsuki froze at that, unable to quite meet her eyes, but she didn't seem to notice.

“Our two oldest are five and six, they're both Quirkless. Unfortunately no one wants to adopt a Quirkless child, so they'll stay here a bit longer, instead of taking spaces at a home for older kids.”

She opened one of the doors to show them a tired little room with a single bed inside. It looked more like a closet than a bedroom, with only a single narrow window inside, and just like all the others, it seemed to lack any kind of personal items. No toys, no books, not even any clothes other than a kindergarten uniform hanging on the wall.

“We have a five year old girl in here,” she continued, reaching for the final door. “And a six year old boy in here. They have their own spaces, since they’ll probably be here for a while yet.”

The door swung open on two small children sitting side-by-side on a small bed, freezing when they saw the adults in the doorway. Their eyes widened, and for a moment everyone was silent, before the lady stepped aside and pointed at the stairs.

“You’re missing dinner,” she said. “Go quickly or there’ll be nothing left.”

“Not hungry yet,” the boy mumbled, eyes turning straight back to his ancient-looking book.

“Me too,” the girl nodded, pulling her knees up and leaning over to see the pages. “Can’t I have rice later?”

“You can’t keep doing that every night.”

“But I like rice!”

The boy elbowed her lightly and she snapped her mouth closed, eyes darting up for a moment to look at Izuku, then at Katsuki.

“We’ll eat later,” he grumbled. “When the kids are finished.”

“It gets a little messy sometimes,” the lady whispered, getting a laugh from Izuku and a raised eyebrow from Katsuki in return. “You know what babies and toddlers are like.”

“Gross,” Katsuki huffed, getting a tiny snort out of the boy on the bed. “I’d do the same.”

“That’s Yoshiki,” The lady spoke up, quickly moving the conversation away from the rising debate. “And this is Koharu, they’re our long-term residents.”

“Hi! I’m Izuku, sorry we interrupted!” Izuku spoke up, offering them his best smile. “We were just having a look around the building and didn’t know you were in here.”

“You’re the hero.”

“I am! I’m Deku, and this is my partner, Dynamite! We just wanted to make sure you were all okay, after the big fight in the area earlier.”

“I know.”

She pointed at the tiny window across the room, and Katsuki raised an eyebrow.

“You shouldn’t stay near the windows when there’s a villain,” he warned her. “We don’t want you getting hurt if anything goes wrong.”

“But it didn’t go wrong! You were super cool! Yokkun likes heroes, we always watch!”

“Thank you,” Izuku smiled warmly. “Just make sure you’re being safe though, okay? Even heroes make mistakes, sometimes.”

The girl’s eyes were a surprisingly bright shade of blue, shining with excitement over the talk of hero fights, and Katsuki couldn’t help but think the expression was far too familiar. She had bright blonde hair that looked like it hadn’t been brushed in weeks, but with her chubby cheeks and her big smile she was actually pretty cute. He couldn’t help but think it was a shame that potential parents wouldn’t care about any of that, too focused on the career prospects she might have in almost two decades’ time.

“It was nice to meet you both!” Izuku piped up again, bright as ever. “We’ve gotta head off, sorry again for barging in! You should really go get some dinner, though, it smelled really good!”

“Okay! You caught the bad people, right?”

“Absolutely, they’re long gone. You’re super safe now!”

“I'm safe anyway, Yokkun takes care of me!” Koharu told him emphatically. “But I want the others to be safe too!”

“You're very lucky.” Izuku smiled fondly. “I'll keep everybody else safe, then, since you're okay already.”

“Okay!”

They exchanged a couple of quick farewells, and the moment they moved toward the hall again, Katsuki saw the look in Izuku's eyes. It took all his willpower to repress his groan – He knew exactly where this was going.

“We have to take them home, Kacchan,” Izuku whispered, his eyes watery. “Just look at them, listen to them!”

“We can't, Deku. We don't have the time, or the space. We don't own anything kid-appropriate. We only got married a month ago!”

Katsuki could practically see Izuku's heart breaking, his eyes dropping to the floor as his face fell.

“You're probably right,” he mumbled, running a hand through his hair. “Sorry, Kacchan. I'm gonna go say goodbye to the rest of the staff, then we can head off.”

He headed back down the stairs again, following their impromptu tour guide toward the doors, and Katsuki paused, sighing as he glanced back at the two young children.

“You two need a good burger or something in you,” he growled, eyes narrowing. “You’re too tiny, go eat.”

The little girl went quiet for the first time, pressing her back into the wall, and the boy glared at him through the doorway.

“Leave her alone, you're scaring her.”

“I didn't mean to, it's just my face.”

She cracked a tiny smile at that, and Katsuki sighed, poking his tongue out at her.

“So what, are you two siblings or something?”

“No, we're best friends,” the little girl – Koharu? – answered. “Yokkun is the strongest person I know, he's the best! He always looks after me.”

“Oh yeah? You're pretty tough, huh?”

“Not really,” the boy shrugged it off. “Just bigger than her.”

“Yeah, makes sense. I’d better go, before the nerd starts crying without me. Make sure you eat something.”

“We will.”

With a little nod, Katsuki walked away, far slower than usual as he thumped down the stairs. He caught up with Izuku in the entryway, heading for their shoes, and let out a long, low sigh, bracing himself for the stupid words he was about to say.

“Look,” he began. “If it really means that much to you, we could... Look into it.”

Izuku's face lit up, and he threw his arms around Katsuki's neck, squeezing tightly as he planted a kiss on his lips.

“You really mean it?!”

“No guarantees. I’m willing to see what it takes and figure out if we can handle it.”

“I'm so excited, Kacchan! We can take them to a good school, and teach them that it's okay to be Quirkless, that they can still be strong and smart and brave anyway, and they can get into a good high school and a good university and then they can be super successful even without-”

His voice was cut off, muffled by a strong hand, and Katsuki rolled his eyes.

“Calm down, idiot. We need to buy a fuckin' house first.”

“Or at least a bigger apartment,” Izuku agreed.

“Fuck that. If I'm gonna be a dad, my kids are gonna have a yard to play in.”

With one more brief kiss, Izuku turned back to visit the staffroom again, grinning like it was the best day of his life as he asked for information about adopting. All the workers seemed surprised by the request, but like any good employee they jumped to find him a collection of brochures about the process, presenting him with a little stack of different pamphlets to take home.

“Thank you so much!” he grinned, bowing multiple times. “I'll read it all tonight and come back again tomorrow to see you!”

He skipped along the path as they headed off, only levelling out a little once they reached the train station and the crowds around it. Somehow, he managed to contain himself the whole ride back toward their apartment, only starting to bubble up again as they got closer to home. They still had to file their reports before they could finally be off-duty for the night, but Izuku was already a thousand miles away, daydreaming about starting a family. Katsuki couldn't help but smile at him fondly, watching the sheer delight in his face as he hugged his papers the whole way home.

“Reports,” Katsuki demanded, snatching the pile from Izuku's arms the moment they got into the apartment building. “Then shower, and food, then we'll read it all together.”

“But Kacchaaaaan!”

“You heard me.”

Izuku pouted, but nodded his agreement, following Katsuki up the endless flights of stairs to their door.

It was nice to have their own space together, where they were free to act and speak as they pleased without fear of people overhearing and causing a media scandal. They'd spent a long time renting out cheap apartments by the week in various areas of the city, moving from place to place as it suited, but when they'd gotten engaged it had made much more sense to get something long-term – Hero pay didn't exactly make it difficult, once they’d established themselves. So they'd ended up with a little apartment just out of the city, with excellent soundproofing to avoid the traffic and nightlife noise that reached them, and separate bedroom, bathroom, and living areas instead of the studios they’d had prior.

What they didn't have was a second bedroom – let alone a third.

That was Katsuki's first concern, though when they started reading the paperwork his list grew in a hurry. Safe environment to live in, facilities to take care of a child, financial stability. He was pretty sure they could handle it, but what if? He would drop dead on the spot if he was rejected from trying to do something good.

“This article says kids who don't get adopted often end up in homeless shelters or even prison. They get passed from institution to institution without a chance to make anything of themselves. Isn't that sad?”

“Yeah,” Katsuki agreed quietly. “It is.”

“And this bit says they'll make a home visit to check we're equipped before they'll start the process, and that we’ll have heaps of time to make sure we’re ready before it becomes official, so we don’t have to worry about rushing into anything!”

“Yeah, that's why we need a fuckin' house before they start visiting and shit.”

“Start looking for one, then! With three bedrooms!”

“And a yard.”

“And two bathrooms, since you never get out of the bath.”

“Shut up,” Katsuki growled. “A good school district.”

“Aren’t all schools basically the same until high school anyway?”

“Shut the hell up.”

“Okay, okay! Good school district.”

“We should get big bedrooms,” Katsuki suggested, looking down at the real estate listings Izuku was already handing him from the recycling bin. “Um, they might be nervous at first. So they should have, like... A safe space, right? So they can just stay in their room for a while if they want?”

“You're so perfect, Kacchan,” Izuku praised, winding his arms around him from behind. “So kind and thoughtful and smart.”

“Shut up,” Katsuki snorted, shoving the papers back in Izuku’s face. “This is all online, dipshit.”

“You're gonna be the best Dad ever.”

“Damn right I am.”

─────

The staff seemed surprised to see them again when Izuku and Katsuki showed up on their doorstep, but Izuku flashed them his most heart-warming smile and quickly they invited him in. More kids were hanging around this time, no longer preoccupied by the prospect of dinner, and quickly a small crowd of knee-high children formed around them.

“What's your quirk?” a toddler asked, tugging at Katsuki's pant leg. “What can you do? Can you show me?”

“I make explosions,” he answered, holding out a hand to produce a few firework-like bursts. “See?”

“Splojins?”

“Explosions. I make things go boom.”

“Wow! Look guys he makes things go boom!”

Izuku grinned when the kids mobbed him immediately, begging him to blow something up, and after a moment he piped up with a quick suggestion.

“How about we go outside?” he offered. “Then Dynamite can show you stuff a bit better.”

Walking was difficult with a school of fish around his feet, but Katsuki managed to get out the door in one piece, and Izuku vaulted over the fence to toss him some scrap vegetation from the surrounding trees. For the next ten minutes he was exploding leaves in kids' faces, making them laugh and cheer every time they got spattered with greenery, and Izuku watched on fondly.

“What can you do, Mister?” someone asked, breaking away from the group.

“Me? Um, I can make myself stronger. So I can jump higher and kick things harder.”

“How high can you jump?”

“Pretty high.”

“Can I see?”

“Yeah, okay.”

He took a few steps back into open space, putting a single percent of his Quirk into his legs, and smiled at the astonished faces when he launched himself above the rooftops, every kid suddenly turning to look.

“That's so cool, Mister!” the kid gushed, a few more starting to defect from Katsuki's crowd in favour of watching Izuku. “Can I jump with you?!”

“Ah... Yeah, I guess so.”

He crouched down to let the kid climb onto his back, holding on tight to his legs, and he couldn’t resist a grin at the excited yells in his ear as he sprung again. He landed to a group of cheering, clamouring kids, all wanting their turns next, the group growing rapidly.

Soon Katsuki managed to clear out his own group in favour of the extreme piggy-back rides, and with a little smile to himself he slid back into the building. There were two familiar faces missing from the crowd, so he showed himself upstairs to the tiny bedrooms, knocking lightly on the door despite it already hanging open.

“Me again,” he said needlessly. “I hoped I could talk to you a bit more.”

“S-Sure, Mister, come in.”

He sat down on the floor, leaving plenty of space between himself and the kids, but still both of them looked a little nervous to see him. Despite knowing and seeing their nerves, he couldn't seem to make the corners of his lips twitch into a smile – he’d never been good at that, even when he was happy, let alone when he was trying.

“When I was little,” he began quietly. “My... my best friend, he was Quirkless like you guys. I was really mean to him about it, though. Awful, honestly. I said lots of things that were totally unacceptable. So talking to you guys yesterday made me kind of sad about that. I hope you guys have it better, these days, than he did back then. I'm glad you have each other, at least. I should have been there for him. You two look out for each other, okay? Forever.”

“Koharu will probably get adopted, then I might not get to see her anymore.”

“Why do you say that?”

“She's still young and cute. People will like her more.”

“But you're a boy, Yokkun. People always want boys!”

Katsuki managed a tiny, sad smile at that, shaking his head.

“What will you do, then? If someone wants to adopt one of you?”

“Say goodbye with a hug and a big smile,” Koharu told him firmly. “We'll still be best friends and I'll be super happy for him!”

“Yeah, I want what's best for her,” the boy agreed. “We've already talked about it.”

“What if someone decides to adopt both of you?”

“That'll never happen,” he shook his head. “Two Quirkless kids, a boy and a girl, so close together in age. No one will want that. Even our parents...”

He trailed off, and for a moment Koharu's smile faded.

“Yokkun's Mommy wasn't very happy when he didn't get a quirk,” she explained sadly.

“How about yours?”

“Mm... I was still little.”

“Oh. They thought it hadn't come yet?”

“Mm-hm! I said maybe it wouldn't happen, like Yokkun, but they said not to talk like that.”

“They wanted you to get one, huh?”

“Everyone wants their kid to get one,” Yoshiki objected. “Of course they did.”

“I guess they think it's for the best if you get one. Makes life easier or something.”

“You bullied your friend who didn't have one, you wouldn't want your kid to be Quirkless either.”

“That's not true,” he scowled, voice a little too sharp. “I was a stupid kid back then, I've grown up and I’ve apologised to him a ton and I try my best to make things better and make him happy every day of my life. Kids are dumb – you would know, you're surrounded by them. I just made some really bad mistakes that I’ll probably never be able to make up for, it doesn’t mean I’m still an idiot now.”

“Does he forgive you?”

“He says he does.”

“You don't think so?”

“It's hard to believe he could, but he's the nicest guy in the world so it shouldn't surprise me.”

The kids glanced at each other, and with a little sigh, Katsuki tried his best to give them a smile. He knew it had failed, but hopefully they’d at least gotten the point.

“Sorry, I didn't come here to vent. Why don't you tell me about this place?”

Yoshiki was quiet, but Koharu seemed to talk enough for the both of them, quickly opening up and telling him stories all about the annoying kids, the broken toys, the bad food. Before Katsuki knew it his phone alarm was buzzing in his pocket, and he silenced it with a quick tap.

“Thanks for telling me all this stuff. It'll be really helpful. I'd better get going now, though. You two look after each other, okay? I'll see you again soon, probably.”

“Bye, Mister.”

He found Izuku waiting for him downstairs, chatting with the staff as he swung a couple of kids from his arm, orange lights flashing beneath his skin that they all marvelled at.

“So yeah, we read through all the materials you gave us,” Izuku was explaining. “And we're thinking it fits, it seems like the right thing for us.”

“Well that's amazing news, Sir. You've interacted with most of the children, has anyone stood out to you?”

“We know the two we want,” he nodded, grinning. “It wasn't a question of picking two we wanted to adopt, it was about meeting two who we needed in our family, and deciding to adopt them.”

“Yoshiki and Koharu,” Katsuki clarified. “Yes, we know, and yes, we're sure.”

“Well, that's wonderful news!” She almost – almost – managed to hide her surprise. “We do ask that you think about it for at least a few days, but we'll gladly start the process if you call and confirm toward the end of the week.”

“Gladly. We'll talk to you later, then.”

Izuku set the kids down with a few quick apologies, and after a moment they ran off again to play together. Izuku watched them go, then smiled softly at Katsuki.

“Shall we take off, then?”

“Yeah,” he nodded. “We'll be back.”

“Thanks for your time!” Izuku added brightly, looping his arm through Katsuki's. “Talk to you soon!”

He glanced at his phone as they left, then gave Katsuki a thumbs up.

“Perfectly on time.”

“Obviously.”

They jumped on a train that would take them out of the city a little, past the area they were living in, then another three stops further. Izuku was buzzing with excitement by the time they got to their appointment, marvelling as he stared up at the wood-clad house, waving faintly to the woman in a pale suit who waited for them at the door.

“It's so pretty, Kacchan.”

“Yeah, it is.”


[Chapter 2]