A couple days after Midoriya had returned to class, the calls went through again. “Who is this?”

“Hello, this is a Recovery Girl from UA. Have I reached Mrs. Midoriya?” Came the breathy voice of a healer. Her shoulders were sore from fretting about why the phone lines had gone blank for a few days. The blackouts had happened all around Japan, but she hadn’t expected the phone-service dilemma to reach so close to them. 

A beat passed before a hesitant reply came. “Yes, I am Inko Midoriya.” A worried pause took over. “Is Izuku okay?” 

Recovery Girl breathed out a sigh of relief. “Yes, as of right now your son is fine. But the UA staff and I have noticed he has been acting a bit odd as of late, I was wondering if anything was happening at home that we should be aware of.”

There was a rustling at the end of the line, probably from moving around. “Strange?”  It was a whisper, as if Inko was talking to herself. “Well I guess he has been acting a bit strange lately…” She trailed off. 

This caught the attention of the healer, though. “Strange, how?” 

It took a moment for Inko to articulate her words. More rustling sounded before quieting again. “Well It’s just--he just--he. Izuku has always loved heroes. Always wanted to become one but--” She trailed off again, pressing her lips in a firm line. “Before he moved into the dorms, I had walked into his room to set down his laundry only to find he had gathered a collection of keys. I didn’t initially think anything of it--thought it was just a phase. But…” She took a shaky inhale. “The more I think about it, the less right it seems.” 

Recovery Girl stayed silent, letting Inko get all her thoughts out. The school nurse wrote down some notes following the surplus of information. 

“Izuku had a collection of hero figurines, All Might merchandise. But when I last entered, it was all shoved to the side and in its place was a bunch of keys. So many! The more I think of it, the less I feel comfortable with it…. Where did he get them? Why does he have them? I don’t recall him even hinting at them, much less mentioning them. And they covered almost three full walls, last time I checked! Keys on the wall, on the floor, in piles, in lines! Oh my goodness--” Inko was starting to become frantic. Her words came out swiftly yet slightly jumbled. 

Recovery Girl was now increasingly perplexed. What was going on?

She spoke up, cutting off Inko’s anxious murmurs. “Mrs. Midoriya. Can I ask you one more thing very quickly?” She spoke in a calm, clear voice. 

On the other end, Inko nodded. 

Unknowing of the acceptance, Recovery Girl just asked anyway. “Have you or Midoriya been sick as of late?” She spoke. 

“No, why?” Inko asked kindly, brows furrowed. “The last time he got sick was a stomach bug quite a few months ago. He’s since recovered.” 

“But you have not been ill?” Recovery Girl pressed, her pencil tip pressing against the paper, ready to write down at a moment's notice. 

“Not at all.” She spoke. Her answers sent more questions through the nurse’s skull. She was beginning to get a pounding headache. There was a moment’s pause where both people on the call were confused and silenced by their own questions. “What’s wrong? Are you sure Izuku is okay?” She was beginning to get frantic once more. 

“The reason I called you was because Midoriya fainted in the dorms. Thankfully, a couple of students were nearby and able to get him to my office nearly immediately. When he initially woke up, we had to sedate him because the anxiety medicine was making him paranoid and aggressive. From there, I was able to pull blood samples and run a few scans--checkup procedures…” She let that sink in before continuing. “I got those back today. Izuku is under the average height of most of his classmates but genetically is accurate. However, his weight is below normal of a kid his age.” She tried to state lightly but Inko wasn’t soothed. 

“What does that mean?” She asked, either unbelieving or utterly confused. 

“It means Izuku is showing small signs of malnourishment.” Recovery Girl almost flinched at her own bluntness. “I think it must have begun from a while back since his nutrient levels are staggeringly low. Have you noticed any progressions of his eating habits over the past year or so?” 

There was an even longer pause before the shaky sound of Inko’s voice came forth again. “Izuku has always eaten light.” She said. Recovery Girl could practically hear the tears dripping from the mother’s eyes. “But--oh goodness! I guess his meal portions had gotten a bit smaller over the summer--I remember briefly thinking about it one day but then I saw him getting snacks to take upstairs and thought nothing of it. Oh my--and then my shifts changed and I started getting later night shifts so I never saw him much…” Her voice cracked and drew thin at the revelation. “Oh, God. I’m a horrible mother.” And then Inko broke down into sobs. 

Recovery Girl pursed her lips, listening to the complete and utter heartbreak that was raking over Inko. She let the woman get out most of her tears and calm down slightly before continuing in a soft, delicate voice. After finishing her notes, she set down the pencil and turned her full attention to Inko. 

“You are not a horrible mother. And there is still time for Midoriya to recover. He isn’t severely malnourished, hence only a bit of stagnant meal plans with full minerals and nutrients. I was more concerned with his off putting comments and reaction to the initial anxiety medications. He spoke of you being ill and we have gathered a few other stray comments that he let slip. Some students and staff were concerned with his paranoia. I’ve contacted a few co-workers to ask about his reactions but they said they would prefer to ask both you and your son a few questions. Whatever is happening, I just want to ensure the safety of your son.” Recovery Girl finished.

There was a silence save for a couple sniffles at the other end of the line. “Thank you…I can answer some more questions when you need me to.” Came the soft reply. 

Recovery Girl gave the mother a watery smile, though no one could see it.