A/N: Hello everyone! It's been... a tad too long, hasn't it? Some things have been going on in my work life (I GOT A PROMOTION WOOO!!!) so I haven't had a ton of time to write. But if you've been reading my stories for any real length of time, you know that months or years between updates is pretty par-for-the-course for me. (._.) Sorry.

That being said, I've been working on my bnha stories lately! My Discord has been amazing at keeping me motivated by giving me a ton of reactions to my snippets, and even FANART! WOOO!! I'm hoping to update some of my more popular stories like Instinct and Viridian sometime soon (at the very least, I'm actively working on those chapters)

Please keep in mind that I read most of my reviews (if you're reading this on FF.net, I'm sorry. I no longer read reviews there as the site itself has gotten very toxic. That being said, if you're reading this on Wattpad, I might catch your review months later because those notifications get BURIED. Ao3 readers, I'll catch your reviews usually within 24 hours of you leaving them, and Quotev reviews will be read when I remember to check Quotev. XD) If you would like to join us on my Discord, I'll leave the link down below. You can not only reach out and talk to me and other creators, but you can pick up roles to get pinged for updates, story snippets, sneak peeks at unposted materials, livereads from the author, and even vote on things I need a hand deciding on for the story!

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All that aside, please enjoy the new chapter! :)

Discord Link: https://discord.gg/zgqMjcBqRx

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The moment they'd gotten home and had dinner—something the kid's mother had happily whipped up to the tune of Put Your Hands Up! Radio—Midoriya had made a beeline for his bedroom, new merch clutched protectively in his arms.

Shouta had given an amused flick of his tail before nodding his thanks to the mother for the meal and following the kid. The boy was already assembling the Eraserhead figurine, oohing and ahhing at all the details.

"Look! His goggles are part of his identifier!! Though yellow's an odd color for someone who wants to go unnoticed, he's never been known to use anything else. I think the color or item might have some personal significance to him, but I really can't know what." The kid rambled about his own Quirk and fighting style, which... okay, it was weird to have someone excitedly rambling about Eraserhead to said hero, but the kid didn't know that this seemingly random stray cat was the very hero he looked up to.

It was strangely nice to have a fan, though. Not that Shouta had ever wanted fans, but to know that his existence gave this kid the hope to follow his own dreams made him feel warm and fuzzy inside. When he had two legs under him again, he'd be sure to find Midoriya and thank him properly. Perhaps a little hand-to-hand training might give the kid the edge he needs to work through that biased Entrance Exam.

After the Eraserhead figurine was assembled and had been carefully placed on Midoriya's shelf, the kid cracked open the book on Underground Heroics. The boy was snuggled into an All Might sweatshirt and had the replica scarf of Shouta's Capture Weapon wrapped around him. The only thing missing from the cozy picture was a purring cat on the kid's lap.

Well, Shouta supposed the desk could work too.

The kid startled a bit when he leapt up and made himself comfy beside the keyboard, but after a moment the boy started running a hand down his back. Shouta didn't fight the deep rumble in his chest as he let his eyes droop a bit. The kid seemed to be verifying every new piece of information in the book, filling the heroics booklet with all kinds of sticky notes as he went.

Shouta startled out of a light doze to the sound of the bedroom door opening. Midoriya Inko poked her head in with a fond smile, carefully making her way into the room. Looked like the kid had fallen asleep at the desk. The computer was still on some obscure hero website that Shouta had never heard of, and his heart skipped a beat when he realized what this meant.

The computer was unlocked. If he could keep the kid's mother from shutting it off for the night, he should be able to look up a route home. He could get back to Hizashi.

Midoriya's mother carefully scooped the young teenager into her arms with strength that had to have come from being a firefighter, and gently tucked him into bed, carefully unwinding the scarf and folding it at the foot of the bed so the kid didn't strangle himself in his sleep.

"He left it on again." She tutted softly, looking at the computer. Shouta wasn't about to risk his golden opportunity, so he did something he'd seen his own cats do hundreds of times.

He laid himself across the keyboard, tail possessively curling around the mouse and sent the woman a stern look that all but dared her to move him. The woman laughed softly, raising her hands in surrender before gently running a hand down his back. His tail flicked but he didn't pull away from the touch.

"You win. I won't touch the computer." She promised, and Shouta felt somewhat relieved. Then the woman spoke again. "Thank you. For looking after my little Izuku." She whispered. "I don't know if you're a cat with a Quirk or something else, but please keep an eye on him for me. Please be there for him when I can't be."

Shouta held her gaze and dipped his head in a firm nod. Midoriya Inko nodded back in thanks and left the room, making sure the door was cracked so Shouta could leave if he so chose to. After a long moment, he climbed to his feet and cautiously stretched.

It'd only been a week since his encounter with Midoriya's classmates. His ribs still screamed at him whenever he moved wrong, and while his left foreleg didn't give out as much as before, it still wasn't overly reliable. His body was still quite badly hurt, and the longer he went without actual medical help, the worse off he'd be. And he sure as hell wasn't going to wait for one of them to take him to a vet.

Though the kid was worryingly adept at medical treatment, that knowledge didn't extend to cats. Shouta wasn't sure Shuzenji's expertise extended to animals either, but her Quirk would probably work about the same, and he'd rather be treated by someone who knew he was a human rather than some veterinarian who treated him like a regular cat.

Shouta gave the door one last glance before turning his attention towards the computer. It was on and unlocked and he finally had access to the one thing that could tell him how to get home. The kid's mom was part of the 49th Firehouse. She would have an entire week off-shift where she could stay with her son and keep an eye on him in Shouta's absence.

He ignored the part of his mind that had already decided to return to the kid after making sure his husband and coworkers knew he was alive. He would dwell on that thought later, after he'd had the chance to deal with his more pressing issues.

It was harder than he'd like to admit, using paws to navigate the mouse to click on what he wanted. It took him way too long to actually open a new tab in the web browser. After a solid ten minutes of trying and failing to type without fingers—he'd need to apologize to Nezu for pointing out all his typos the one time the principals' computer went down and he'd been forced to use a normal keyboard, because this was hell—he settled for taking the longest pencil he could find in the kid's jar and using it like a stylus to hit the right keys.

Even that was difficult. His feline eyes liked to try seeing things far away. Focusing on something close to him was giving him a headache faster than caffeine withdrawals, and it took him far too long to type each word. Each time he hit a character, he had to jerk his head back and glance at the screen to verify he'd hit the right one. And half the time, he'd aimed the pencil wrong and had to start over.

It was a harrowing process.

By the time he'd finally gotten the directions he needed, and had the headache to prove it, it was nearly sunrise. There was a train less than fifteen minutes' walk from his current location that would take him to UA. He had ensured he memorized street names in case he got turned around again, but he also made sure he knew his way back.

He carefully exited out of his browsing session and set the pencil on the desk. The kid would probably be heartbroken when he woke up to Shouta's absence, but he couldn't stay any longer without letting Hizashi know he was okay. He tried his best to stamp down on the guilt that swirled in him as he leapt from the desk to the floor and then up to the window the kid always kept open for him.

He was really fucking attached to this kid. It was more than the fact that Midoriya had amazing potential as a hero—he did, and Shouta had every intention of fostering that potential however he could—it was that this kid was so alone in his life. He thankfully had his mother, but other than that? Shouta had a nasty feeling that Coffee the cat was the only friend this kid had. He couldn't, in good conscience, leave this kid alone when his mother worked two weeks at a time.

"I'll be back, kid. I promise." His soft voice echoed in the room in the form of meows. "Hopefully next time we meet, I'll have two legs under me." Though that wasn't very likely. If the Quirk hadn't worn off by now, it would need to be either manually deactivated by the kid who'd first used it, or counteracted with a second Quirk. Either option would take time to locate someone, and Shouta didn't want to leave the kid without him once his mother went back to work.

One week. He had one week to sort this mess out. He did his best not to think about that as he carefully launched himself out the window and onto the branch of a nearby tree.

Linelinelinelineline

Getting a free ride on the subway was laughably easy as a cat. Hardly anyone had bothered to glance down, and those who did hadn't paid him any more mind than those non-stray-feeding pricks he'd encountered in his first few days as a cat. That said, he was actually somewhat grateful for it this time.

The ride was uneventful. If anyone thought it was strange that a cat had decided to ride the train until it reached a specific stop, then nobody showed it. Shouta trotted out of that station with his tail held high, grinning to himself as he recognized the area instantly. He'd followed expelled students home before, to ensure they were safe and in a relatively acceptable headspace after their expulsion. Many had taken this same train, so he knew the route to the school from this station.

Still, that confidence was what got him into trouble the first time, so he made extra sure to search for landmarks and street names as he went. He was more relieved than he'd expected once the looming gates of UA came into sight. He'd gotten into a light spat with some strays nearby, but he'd managed to stand his own ground. These ones were more malnourished than him, so despite his injuries, he'd walked away with only a few scratches to his already messed up leg. Considering the fact that he was hopefully about to get treatment from Recovery Girl, he wasn't too concerned with it.

He eyed the gate dubiously. Nezu was smart. He was a creature of plans upon plans who usually accounted for every possibility. Putting the guy with High Specs in charge of security was the most logical course of action, but now he was cursing the decision. Nezu was the type to have a security system that could probably recognize a person disguised as an animal.

There was no way he could break into the school. Nezu would've accounted for many, many things, and while Shouta was sure a situation like this had never quite come up in the rat's plans, he was equally sure—having been the principal's student at one point—that Shouta himself wasn't going to be able to figure out a way around the security system anytime this decade.

He eyed the wall. Too tall to jump and no clawholds for him to latch onto. He'd probably file his claws to the quick if he tried that. Plus it wasn't like Nezu wouldn't be prepared for something along those lines, and he really didn't want to find out what kinds of security he had against it. "If the gates get triggered, then someone's bound to come investigate." He soothed himself, idly licking his chest fur to smooth it down before blinking at the subconscious action. "Damn cat behaviors."

Though it was a shaky plan at best, it was all he had to work with. If he went to try and retrieve his Staff ID from the brick behind the dumpster, he wasn't sure he'd be able to find his way back here. He'd rather risk a misunderstanding first than end up on the streets again.

Shouta took a deep breath and walked forward, flinching when the gates slammed shut before his whiskered nose. His ears went back almost instantly, but he'd expected as such. It was only a matter of time before someone came to investigate what had triggered the security system.

He planted his fluffy butt on the concrete before the gates and resolved to sit there until someone came. They couldn't hold the school in lockdown forever. Not without an obvious threat outside, and one little cat was hardly a threat.

That aside, if Nezu's curiosity wasn't piqued by a cat setting off the gates, then said cat politely sitting and waiting undoubtedly would. He knew his old teacher. Nezu would send someone to check on the situation. Shouta just had to hope it was someone he could reason with, or goad into leading him to the rat himself.

Even still, it felt like hours before a soft beeping sound had him perking up. It was the sound of someone's Staff ID being scanned. The heavy metal gates eased open, sinking back into the archway of UA's gates, revealing a rather perplexed Vlad King. The man stared at him in utter confusion.

"A... cat?"

Shouta's first thought was a curse. The man was a dog person. The subtle nuances of cat behavior would be utterly lost on the white-haired hero. That aside, he also wasn't the kind of guy to pick up on a subtle hint like 'take me to Nezu'. In fact, he was much more likely to take him straight to the police, which would throw a wrench in all of Shouta's plans.

Shouta's second thought was of how tired Vlad looked. He took a long moment to really observe the white-haired hero. Vlad had light bags under his eyes. There was a shadow to his crimson gaze that had to have been caused by Shouta's disappearance. The man looked like he hadn't slept in days. Guilt shot through him like a physical wound. It throbbed and ached when he realized he had caused this stress.

And if Vlad was this bad off—a man that Shouta really had only interacted with in a professional setting despite them occasionally hanging out as teenagers—then how bad off was Hizashi? He had to get to him. Before anything else, he needed his husband to know he was alive.

Shouta locked eyes with Vlad, giving as innocent a meow as he dared and moving to groom his paw. He needed the man to lower his guard.

"A cat wouldn't set the gates off though." Vlad narrowed his gaze. "I think we need to take you to the police."

Shouta gave another deliberate meow—a taunting one, goading the man as if saying 'come and try'. Some of that message must've gotten through, because Vlad's expression became irritated and he took several steps forward, aiming to make a grab for the feline.

This was exactly what the Erasure Hero had been waiting for. Shouta grinned as he dashed forward like a cat outta hell, using the loophole of the gates recognizing Vlad's Staff ID to bypass the security of the gates. He distantly heard the man yelling after him and giving chase. Either Vlad thought he was a stray that'd managed to get inside—a foolish and dangerous assumption—or he rightly assumed he was someone under the influence of a Quirk using this as a way to sneak into UA.

Either way, there was a very low chance that Vlad would recognize him as Aizawa. Hizashi or Nezu would be his best bet. This in mind, he tore through the familiar halls of UA, doing his best to ignore the way his injuries screamed at the sudden abrasive activity. He turned corners at breakneck speeds, using his tail to counterbalance and keep himself from falling, mentally smirking when he heard a loud smack and some soft cursing from behind him.

Cats could turn corners more sharply than people, after all.

At this hour, Hizashi wouldn't be in class. Shouta was sure it was his free period, which meant the Voice Hero would be in the Teacher's Lounge. Nezu would undoubtedly come if he caused a commotion too, so his best bet was to aim for the place with the most staff members.

An inexplicable instinct had him swiftly dodging to the side, narrowly avoiding a flash of crimson that'd pierced the floor. He barely resisted the urge to shoot an incredulous look over his shoulder. "Are you trying to kill me?!" He hissed.

Vlad was using his Quirk to try to catch him. The man really wasn't pulling any punches, and Shouta gave a low growl of warning as he poured on more speed. His left foreleg felt like it was seconds away from giving out on him, but he was nearly to the Teacher's Lounge.

Luck, it seemed, hadn't fully abandoned him. Just as he was scrambling to figure out how to open the door without losing speed, someone did so from the inside for him. He slipped between the legs of someone he belatedly recognized as Nemuri, causing Vlad to run into her full-tilt. He snickered softly as he dashed into the room, earning startled yelps from the occupants.

He scrambled around the edge of the couch, aiming to put something behind him so nobody could come at him from a blind spot. Then his eyes had landed on something else.

Someone else.

Because there, standing there between Thirteen and Cementoss with an utterly baffled look, was Hizashi. The man was in his Hero Costume, but looked horrible. His hair was dull and his eyes held bags nearly as deep as Shouta's on a bad week. His skin was dry and it looked like he hadn't moisturized in weeks, and his eyes.

God, his eyes were so hollow. He looked like someone had sucked all the happiness out of his world and forced him to continue going through the motions of life. With a start, Shouta realized that's probably what had happened.

He'd been gone for weeks. They'd probably been searching for his body by this point. Hizashi must've been wrecked.

Shouta had frozen when he'd seen Hizashi. The couch was to his back and the occupants were all within his line of sight, but Hizashi took up nearly all his focus. He hadn't thought about how he'd get his husband to recognize him—he supposed he'd thought that it'd just... happen. That Zashi would always be able to tell it was him because they'd always had that deep connection.

And, to his credit, Hizashi looked like he was trying to place something in regards to the feline before him. But before he could try to speak up—to prove somehow that he was who he was—a pair of hands wrapped around his midsection harshly and hoisted him off the ground.

"Gotcha!" Vlad gave a wide somewhat vindictive grin from where he was leaning from the back of the couch. Shouta yowled loudly, hissing desperately as he scratched and bit and tried to get out of the too-tight grasp that was lighting an inferno of pain in his ribs. He didn't filter the curses that passed his lips because nobody could understand him anyways.

Vlad didn't seem to mind the claws or fangs, though. His gloves apparently protected him from Shouta's kitty teeth and his bracers meant that any claws that could reach the Blood Hero ended up doing more damage to the feline than the hero.

"Now, are you a cat with a Quirk or a person disguised as a cat?" Vlad narrowed his eyes as Nemuri slid back into the room. Her forehead had a nice red spot from where the two had collided, and Shouta couldn't help but bitterly wish it'd been hard enough to knock Vlad out.

"I'm sure the police can aid us with that." Nemuri nodded, and Shouta's heart lurched painfully.

Police meant he wouldn't be at UA, which meant there'd be nobody who would know or recognize him. They'd probably put him under surveillance and wait for him to 'deactivate his Quirk', because most of the time situations like this involved the person turning themselves into an animal. When he inevitably wouldn't change back, they'd list him as a Quirked animal and he'd be put up for adoption if he was deemed domesticated enough to be around people. And if he wasn't...

He was about to renew his efforts of escape when something white caught his eye. His head whipped about to see someone who looked like a literal godsend at that moment. "I've already contacted the police. They'll be expecting us at the station shortly." His tone was short and to the point. He was probably pissed that someone had gotten past his security so easily, but there was something inherently exhausted about Nezu that Shouta had never really seen before. Something that said he wasn't in any mood for something tiresome like this.

Shouta abruptly realized that the principal was about to leave. His only chance at fixing this, at communicating with anyone, was about to walk away.

"Nezu!" Shouta shouted almost desperately as the principal began to make his way out of the room. "Nezu, it's me, Shouta!"

The stoat froze mid-step, eyes locking onto him with a more critical look. He had the mammal's full attention now, and he wasn't about to waste it.

"I swear, it's me. Please, believe me. Y-you were my mentor in UA for my last two years. I-I beat you at chess once—you were having an off day and I distracted you, but you still counted it as a win because I used my environment to my advantage! Hizashi's my husband, you were the ring-bearer!! You insisted on it because I'm the only student you ever personally undertook. You gave me full authority over my classes here at UA, and I can expel anyone I please, or revoke an expulsion!" He wracked his brain for anything that would prove he wasn't an imposter. "A-and..." He was coming up blank now. In his panic and desperation, his rational mind was utterly overwhelmed. If he had the biology for it, he was certain he'd be crying right now. As it was, desperate sounds were escaping his throat and he wasn't even aware enough of it in his current state of mind to be properly mortified. "Please. Please... Don't walk away."

Something flickered across Nezu's face—a momentary disbelief before his eyes hardened with realization. "Kan. Let him down. Now." The principal's voice was hard and carried an undertone of a growl. Shouta had never heard him speak that way. Vlad's shock must've also been great because he immediately let go, dropping Shouta like he'd burned him.

He would've caught himself if his foreleg hadn't given out on him. Shouta's pained scream echoed in the room around them, and he took a moment to lay there and process how much his body hurt. His gamble of running around like a feral cat had not been well-thought out. His injuries were scolding him for such an impulsive plan, but he had a chance now.

The whole room was silent, eyes shifting between Nezu and Shouta with uncertainty and surprise. After nearly a minute, Shouta forced himself to his shaking paws, carefully limping towards Hizashi. He didn't care what any of them thought, he just wanted to let his husband know he was still here. He was alive.

Nezu, it seemed, had finally found his voice again. He took a tentative step forward, almost hesitant. It was so very unlike the principal he knew. "Is that really you... Aizawa?"

The reaction was instantaneous. Gasps echoed in the silence as Hizashi roughly fell to his knees before Shouta, eyes glimmering with a hope so desperate that it hurt. "S-Shou?"

Shouta nodded, gently nuzzling the outstretched hand and wishing he could just wrap his arms around him and whisper reassuring words in his ear. "Yeah. It's me, Zashi. I'm... I'm still here."

"It's really him." Nezu confirmed. Shouta turned his head to glance at the principal. Though he couldn't raise his eyebrow in question, some animalistic body language must've gotten through to him because he tapped his own muzzle with a smirk. "Not only did you tell me things that only you could know, but your scent hasn't changed."

"Shou." Hizashi carefully picked him up, cradling him to his chest. He didn't even mind the way his injuries protested the action, because it was the safest he'd felt since becoming a cat. Shouta startled a bit when he felt something warm and wet hit his forehead, and he let out a low sound in his throat when he realized he was crying. "Thank god. Thank god you're okay." Shouta tried to nuzzle the tears away, some kind of low distressed sound escaping his throat as he did so.

"A-Aizawa?" Vlad looked torn. He stared at his hands and the tiny bloody claw marks that'd been added to his gear with something like horror. Bloody from Shouta scratching hard enough to wear his claws to the quick. "Did... Did I hurt you?"

Shouta almost snorted. "I was already injured." He explained, letting Nezu translate for him. "It's... not exactly pleasant being stuck as a cat." He hadn't realized how cruel people could be until he found himself as someone not considered human. No wonder the strays he found on patrol always took so long to warm up to him. He'd always known that it was hard for cats to survive on the streets, but he'd never realized how bad it could be.

Nezu's understanding look had him tucking his head into his husband's chest. Shouta had been born a human. He'd never fully understood that humans—even at their cruelest—usually had a baseline kindness of some sort for their fellow humans. He'd never seen humanity from the view of an animal before. This, he realized with dawning horror, was the world that Nezu had seen his whole life.

Humans that didn't even bother to give him a glance. Who could care less if he died by their direct action or inaction. Humanity truly was filled with selfish and cruel individuals.

"What happened?" Nemuri's voice was scarcely a whisper, but it snapped him out of those thoughts—away from Nezu's eyes which understood, because he hated that Nezu could know what he'd gone through without even having to say a word. "We... when we couldn't find you, we assumed the worst."

"There was a villain attack the day I left school." Shouta's tail flicked with irritation, earning a startled chuckle from Hizashi when it whacked his hand. Shouta gave a little kitty smirk as he flicked his tail again, but aimed for his husband's glasses.

"Hey!" Hizashi's smile lit his whole face up as he gave a wet laugh, and Shouta mentally patted himself. His husband didn't look right with a frown. He couldn't help but notice the way a few other heroes in the room relaxed at the sound.

"There was a panicked kid—too young to control their Quirk. I blacked out for a bit before coming to as a cat. The migraine medication I took messed with my smaller form, and I... I got very lost. I ended up near the South Side for a bit. These middle school kids thought it'd be fun to play 'kick the cat', and this other kid took me home to help me heal up. I was able to use his computer to find my way here."

"Kick the cat?" Hizashi's voice was something between a squeak and a growl, like he was both infuriated by the information and properly horrified by it.

"As you could see with Vlad, I'm not really able to fight in this form." He responded somewhat dryly. It was still a sore spot with him.

"If you're hurt, we should have Recovery Girl take a look at you." Thirteen chimed in. Their voice was heavy with worry and relief.

"With a Quirk like this, if it hasn't worn off on its own yet, we'll need to look for other avenues." Nezu's tail flicked behind him. Maybe Shouta had just been a cat for too long, but he somehow understood that Nezu was deeply concerned with this turn of events, and also deeply relieved that he'd been found alive. "Aizawa, your safety and health comes first. Please rest up with Shuzenji. I'll handle all the paperwork regarding what's happened."

Shouta nodded, allowing himself to fully relax into Hizashi's arms as the Voice Hero got to his feet. His mind wandered towards Midoriya for a moment, but he shook that thought away. He could worry about the kid after he'd had the chance to soothe the worries of his family.

For the first time since he became a cat, Aizawa Shouta allowed himself to completely lower his guard and forget his worries.

Linelinelinelineline

Yamada Hizashi had experienced many things over these last few weeks. He'd felt a fear and despair unlike anything he'd ever known. He had learned that he was very much not okay without his Shou in his life. He'd also learned that he was still somehow able to keep his Hero Persona up well enough to keep most people from noticing something was wrong.

He also learned just how powerful relief could be. He'd helped with kidnapping cases before. Had seen the loved ones of the missing person fall into a despair so utterly foreign to him at the time that every word of encouragement felt like throwing string into a void when what was needed was an iron rope. He'd seen them fall to their knees in relief and sob without restraint when their missing loved one was returned to them.

He understood now. He'd felt that despair and was so so grateful that he had the chance to feel that same relief. The moment Nezu had called the cat by name, Hizashi's entire world had narrowed. Nothing had mattered but the sleek black feline that had limped towards him. Those coal black eyes were shimmering with desperation and guilt, a silent apology that Hizashi could understand even without words. He didn't need Nezu to tell him who this cat was, because it became clear the moment they'd locked eyes.

Only Shou could stare at him with so much love and devotion. He wasn't sure how his husband was this cat at first, but he knew beyond a doubt that it was him.

Once he had him in his arms—and why was he so light, he knew what a cat his size should weigh, and this was not it—he started to register the people around him again. Started to pay attention to what was being said beyond the translated words of his husband.

Even still, he hadn't fully calmed down until they were halfway to Recovery Girl's office. Nezu trailed along beside them, there to act as a translator for Shou. It took him a moment to realize that Shouta was nearly asleep in his arms. Asleep and purring.

A soft snicker escaped from him as he felt Shou kneading his arm much in the same way their cats did at home. He'd probably tease him about it later, when he wasn't relishing in the fact that Shou was still alive.

Shuzenji sent them a glare when they walked in, though it was focused on Hizashi. "You'd better not have gotten yourself hurt being reckless again."

Shouta's purrs stopped and the cat glanced up at him with narrowed eyes, a silent promise in his gaze that Hizashi would be talking to him about this 'reckless behavior' that had been mentioned. Hizashi would gladly take that lecture so long as it was given to him by Shouta.

"I have bad news and good news!" Nezu chirped. Shouta's disappearance had hit everyone hard, but Hizashi was surprised to find that even Nezu had been working himself ragged trying to find him. He'd never seen the principal drink anything but tea, but Shouta's beloved coffee had somehow found its way into Nezu's cup on more than one occasion after his disappearance. Wisely, nobody brought it up. Even still, he hadn't seen the principal so chipper in weeks.

Shuzenji must've realized this too, because her gaze flickered between Nezu, Hizashi and the cat in his arms that was giving her an eerily 'Shouta' glare.

"Start with the bad." The heroine's mouth was somewhat tight. Bad news in a medical setting was usually cause for major concern.

"Well, the bad news is that he's hurt." Nezu's smile widened as he gestured towards the cat. "And stuck. But the good news is we've found Aizawa!"

The woman jolted, eyes wide as she turned her focus towards Shouta. "Aizawa?" She breathed. "How did...?"

"Wayward Quirk." Nezu explained. "I'll call a meeting with the rest of the staff and Detective Tsukauchi later. It'll be good to have everyone on the same page regarding this, but for now Aizawa's safety comes first."

"You said he's hurt." Shuzenji directed Hizashi towards the bed, and the Voice Hero didn't miss the low hiss from his husband. Knowing Shou, he was probably irritated that she was talking about him like he wasn't there.

Nezu gave Shouta a look and Shouta gave a few low feline sounds. He smothered a laugh, knowing it wouldn't be appreciated. Shouta was quite cute as a cat. Silky mid-length black fur that was softer than a blanket, and there was a splash of cream around his neck that reminded him of Shou's Capture Weapon. Honestly, even as a cat he was handsome. He idly ran a hand down his back, smirking when his husband started purring again.

"'I've probably got a few bruised or broken ribs from where some kids kicked me. My left foreleg keeps giving out on me, too. Those are probably the biggest worries. I know you don't deal with animals much, but I figured you could still help.'" Nezu translated. How a few sounds could translate into something that long, he wasn't sure. Then again, Hizashi wasn't exactly fluent in cat.

Shuzenji made a tutting sound. "Well, I'm no veterinarian, but my Quirk works just the same on animals as it does people." She gently pressed a kiss to his forehead, right between his ears. Almost instantly, Shouta's eyes drooped and he gave a wide yawn. "Better?"

"'Tired.'" Shouta's tail-tip flicked, but he was already curling up on the bed. "'But the pain's mostly gone. Just sore.'"

"It might take another session or two, but you'll need rest before then." She looked towards Hizashi. "I won't keep him overnight or anything. You're good to bring him home."

"Our meeting will be first thing in the morning." Nezu's own tail flicked behind him. Hizashi couldn't help but think the principal was somewhat giddy with relief that Aizawa was okay. "Please don't be late."

Hizashi carefully gathered his husband in his arms, smiling at the soft warm fur, and nodded. He was about to head out right then and there, head straight home to curl up in their bed with his husband and just reassure himself that he was alive, when he abruptly remembered he was still at work. He still had classes to teach. It wasn't even lunch yet, and... "I..."

"I'll have someone cover your classes." Nezu's smile seemed warmer than usual, somehow. "You can have today to rest."

He'd never been more grateful to his boss than that very moment. "Thank you." He whispered before pressing a gentle kiss to the top of Shouta's head. "C'mon Shou. Let's get you home."