Aizawa stood frozen in the doorway, eyes wide with a mixture of shock and disbelief. Bakugou and Izuku stared back at him, the weight of the conversation still hanging in the air. The silence stretched, growing heavier with each passing second.

Finally, Aizawa blinked, his expression shifting from shock to something more serious. He closed the door behind him quietly and stepped further into the room, his usual calm demeanour now clouded with a storm of emotions.

"You two..." Aizawa's voice was low, steady but strained. "You're telling me you think Valerie is my daughter?"

Izuku, ever respectful of his mentor, fidgeted slightly, looking to Bakugou for support. Bakugou, however, had never been one to back down.

"That's what the evidence points to," Bakugou said bluntly, his tone a mix of frustration and certainty. "Valerie's quirk—her shield that erases quirks on contact—it's too similar to your erasure quirk. And we saw today that you couldn't erase her quirk. Plus, the stuff about her mom, Odette, being here in Japan the same time you were? It adds up."

Aizawa's jaw clenched, the tension in the room thick enough to cut through. He ran a hand through his dark, messy hair, staring at the ground as if piecing everything together. His mind raced back to the memories of Odette—her bright smile, her determination, and the sudden, unexplained way she left all those years ago. Could it be? Could she have been pregnant and never told him?

He looked up at the two boys, his voice quieter now, more vulnerable. "Odette never said anything... I didn't know."

Izuku, who had been carefully analyzing every detail, stepped forward cautiously. "Aizawa-sensei, if she left without telling you, there must have been a reason. Maybe... "

Aizawa's eyes darkened at the thought. The idea that Odette might have kept something like this from him was painful, but at the same time, he could understand her fear. Their futures had been on divergent paths, and neither of them had been ready for the kind of responsibility a child would have brought.

But still, if Valerie was his daughter, that meant he had missed out on years he could never get back.

"Have you shared your suspicions with anyone else?" Aizawa asked, his voice more to himself than to Bakugou or Izuku.

The boys shook their heads, "If she really is my daughter, then... I need to know for sure."

Izuku nodded. "We can find a way to confirm it. There are ways, but we need to be careful. Valerie doesn't know yet, and if this turns out to be true... it'll change everything for her."

Aizawa sighed deeply, his shoulders sagging as the weight of the situation settled over him. He looked at Bakugou, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, though the fire in his eyes was unmistakable.

"And what about you?" Aizawa asked, his tone shifting. "I've noticed you two getting closer. If Valerie really is my daughter, I'm not going to stand by while—"

Bakugou's reaction was instant, his defensive walls shooting up. "It's none of your damn business what happens between me and Valerie."

Aizawa raised an eyebrow, his smirk faint but present. "Is that so? Because if she's my daughter, I'd say it's very much my business."

Bakugou's face flushed red, but before he could launch into a tirade, Aizawa's expression softened. "I'm only just finding out I might have a daughter. I'm not ready to be a grandfather so make sure you manage your hormones"

Bakugou's eyes widened in pure horror, his face going an even deeper shade of red. "Wh—What the hell are you saying, you damn—!" He tripped over his words, completely flustered for the first time in ages.

Izuku couldn't suppress the tiny laugh that slipped out, earning a glare from Bakugou that could melt steel.

Aizawa chuckled, the first time Bakugou had ever seen him laugh. "Calm down, Bakugou. I'm just messing with you."

Bakugou growled, his embarrassment turning into frustration. "You'd better back off, old man. I'm not—!" But before he could finish his threat, he turned on his heel and stormed out of the room, muttering curses under his breath.

Izuku watched as Bakugou disappeared down the hall, still flustered beyond belief. Aizawa, now left alone with Izuku, let out another sigh, but this time it was lighter, the tension beginning to ease.

"He'll be fine," Aizawa muttered, more to himself than to Izuku.

Izuku smiled, still trying to wrap his head around the whirlwind of revelations they'd just uncovered. "Do you think you'll tell Valerie soon?"

Aizawa's face grew serious again, his gaze turning to the door Valerie had disappeared behind earlier. "I'll tell her... when the time is right. But for now, she has enough to deal with."

Izuku nodded, understanding the delicate nature of the situation. "She's strong. And... She'll be glad to know the truth when you're ready."

Aizawa gave a small nod, but deep down, he was still wrestling with the uncertainty. Would Valerie accept him, after all these years of not knowing? Would she blame him for not being there? These were questions he didn't have answers to yet.

But one thing was certain: he wasn't going to let Valerie face the future alone. Whether she was his daughter or not, Aizawa was determined to protect her from the villain threatening her life—and from the storm of emotions that was sure to come.

For now, they had to take it one step at a time.

---

Aizawa and Hizashi were just returning to the school after having coffee at their local cafe when they were approached by a woman they hadn't expected to see, Laura Kaminari, Denki's mother, was standing near the school gates, looking visibly distressed.

"Laura?" His voice was calm, but there was an edge of surprise to it.

Laura Kaminari, Denki's mother, stood before them, her expression lined with exhaustion and something else—regret. She looked like she had been searching for them for a long time.

"We need to talk, Shouta," she said, her voice steady but heavy with emotion. "I've been looking for you."

Aizawa frowned, his patience wearing thin. "What could possibly be so important that you've been chasing me down?" he asked, his tone curt. The stress of recent events had worn on him, and he had no time for games.

Laura inhaled deeply, bracing herself. "It's about Valerie. Denki told me about their encounter with the villain today"

Hizashi tilted his head, curiosity piqued. "This sounds serious, Laura. What's going on?"

Aizawa's stomach twisted uncomfortably, the name of his student—and potential daughter—hanging in the air between them. He had been searching for answers about her, but the last thing he expected was for Laura to come looking for him.

Laura took a shaky breath. "I knew about you and Odette... and I knew about her pregnancy. I was one of the reasons she ran off to South Africa."

Aizawa's eyes widened slightly, but he stayed silent, waiting for her to continue.

"Odette and I were close, as close as sisters could be," Laura continued, her hands shaking slightly. "But our family... our family arranged for her to marry Todd Black. It was meant to be a 'quirk marriage,' you know, to pass down our families' powerful electric quirks."

"But Odette was quirkless," Aizawa interjected, his mind already racing ahead.

"Yes, she was," Laura said, her eyes shimmering with regret. "But that didn't stop our families from pushing the marriage. Todd came from a long line of powerful quirk users. His quirk, condensation and evaporation, weren't electric, but it was strong enough that our families saw the union as beneficial. They believed that their child might inherit something even more powerful with Odette's intelligence and Todd's quirk. The Black's were known for their wealth and high influence on the hero Commission"

Aizawa clenched his fists, the weight of this revelation settling heavily. "And Valerie?" he asked his voice low, already suspecting the answer but needing to hear it.

"I should have told you this a long time ago," she started, wringing her hands nervously. "I... I kept a secret, Valerie's father—" she looked him in the eye, her voice firm despite the weight of her confession—"is you."

The words struck Aizawa like a punch to the gut. He staggered mentally, his hands clenched at his sides as anger surged.

Laura flinched under Aizawa's glare, but she didn't back down. "I know I should've told you. I know I should have done so much more, but I... I was scared, Shouta. Odette swore me to secrecy. She didn't want you to know."

"Why?" Aizawa growled. "Why didn't she want me to know? I could have—"

"Because she was trapped!" Laura interrupted, her voice shaking now. "She was trapped! She was pregnant with your child, but she was betrothed to Todd, and when he found out, he threatened to do harm to you and to Valerie"

Aizawa's hands flexed, struggling to control his temper. His daughter—his child—had been hidden from him all these years.

Hizashi's eyes widened as he glanced between them. Laura continued, her voice thick with guilt. "She didn't want this life, but she was trying to protect Valerie and protect you. And Todd, well... even though he raised Valerie as his own, he wasn't a good father. He resented her, Aizawa.. He could never have children of his own because of his quirk. He was hard on Valerie, especially when her quirk manifested. He couldn't handle seeing a child with so much potential, especially when it wasn't his."

Aizawa's breath hitched, his heart breaking at the thought of Valerie being mistreated for something beyond her control. He had always prided himself on being able to see the truth behind people's façades, but this—this had slipped through his fingers, hidden behind the veil of time and distance.

"I saw it firsthand at our parent's funeral," Laura added quietly, tears gathering in her eyes. "Valerie was so young, and Todd was so harsh. That's when Denki and Valerie connected as cousins. They've been supporting each other ever since."

Aizawa's expression darkened. The thought of someone being harsh with Valerie, his own daughter, boiled his blood.

Aizawa's head swirled with emotions—rage, regret, confusion. Hizashi laid a hand on his shoulder, grounding him. "Shouta," Hizashi said gently, "it wasn't your fault."

Laura reached into her bag, pulling out a worn, leather-bound photo album. She extended it toward Aizawa with trembling hands. "Odette made this for you. She kept it hidden, but after she passed, I found it. It's an album of Valerie growing up. And there's a letter for you inside."

Aizawa stared at the album for a moment before slowly taking it from her hands. The leather felt rough and worn under his fingers, as though it had been handled with care over the years. He hesitated, his breath shaky, before flipping open the first page.

The first photo showed a baby Valerie, her tiny face scrunched in a smile. As he turned the pages, each one filled with pictures of her at different stages—toddling, her first day of school, playing in the yard—he felt a growing ache in his chest. He had missed all of it. All of her milestones.

And then, tucked into the middle of the album, was a folded letter. Aizawa pulled it out carefully, opening it slowly, almost afraid of what it would say.

It was written in Odette's neat handwriting:

Shouta,

I hope this letter finds you someday, I've written it probably a million times and even though I never dared to give it to you myself. There's so much I wish I could have told you.

I never wanted to leave you, but I was scared. Scared of what would happen to you.

You have a daughter, her name is Valerie. She has so many of your features, your stubbornness, your heart and your ever-so-famous resting bitch face. Every time she gets angry, she gives me the same look you used to—one that could silence a room. I purposely tease her some days just to get that look out of her.

She's everything I wish I could have been—strong, independent, fierce. I hope she finds you one day, and when she does, please tell her how much I loved you, and how much I wish things had been different. I wanted her to know her real father, the man who would have loved her more than anyone.

I love you both with all my heart Shouta, forever and always.

I'm sorry for everything.

Odette

Aizawa's throat tightened as he finished reading. His hands trembled, and for the first time in years, he felt completely unmoored. His mind raced through the years, the moments he'd missed, the love Odette still had for him, and the daughter who had unknowingly grown without him.

He let out a breathy chuckle, one filled with sorrow and pain. "She has my look when she's angry," he muttered, thinking back to Valerie's fierce determination during training. He could see it now, the resemblance that had been staring him in the face the whole time.

Hizashi, who had been flipping through the album quietly, gave Aizawa a soft smile. "She's got your fire too, Shouta. No doubt about it."

Aizawa's heart ached with the realization of everything that had been kept from him, but also with the understanding that he still had a chance to be there for Valerie. He looked up at Laura, his anger simmering but not gone.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?" he asked, his voice low but heavy with emotion.

Laura's face crumpled. "I was scared, Shouta. I didn't know how to handle it. But when I saw Valerie struggling... when I heard how much she was hurting under Todd's care... I regretted it every single day."

Aizawa took a deep breath, collecting his thoughts. The anger he felt would never fully leave, but now there was something more pressing. Valerie. His daughter.

He stood up, resolve settling into his bones. "I'm going to tell her," he said quietly but firmly. "She deserves to know the truth."

Laura nodded, wiping at her eyes. "She does."

As Aizawa and Hizashi left, the album of memories tucked under Aizawa's arm, the weight of the truth had finally settled. He knew the next step. It was time to approach Valerie. Time to tell her everything she deserved to know.

****

PLUS ULTRA