Finally done with his homework, Izuku fell back into his chair with a sigh. His back had begun to ache from the way he had been curled over his desk for over two hours. Internally, Izuku was glad for his habit of doing homework the night he got it. He would have had a completely free weekend had he not been in this unfortunate situation. But there was no point crying over spilt milk, Izuku reasoned that as long as the homework was done, everything would be fine. Sure, Izuku was well aware that his teachers would be lenient with him, not only because of the situation but because he was an all-around good student. Ever since Izuku had started education his teachers had always gushed about how good a student he was and what a delight he was to teach. That sentiment hadn't changed, even as Izuku had grown older and moved into middle school. Teachers weren't supposed to have favourites, but Izuku knew that he was certainly favoured above other students. He wasn't going to complain, it just meant that his teachers were nice to him, something he desperately needed seeing as people his age seemed to have an innate aversion to Izuku, well, except for Katsuki.

Izuku stood from his desk and started swinging his arms around and twisting his torso to get the slight aching out of his back, his shoulders and back both clicked quietly, leaving in their wake a soft ache that would diminish in a few minutes. With no more homework to do, Izuku wasn't sure what to fill his time with. He could read or catch up on the various series he had started but had a penchant for not finishing, but he wasn't in the mood to sit and focus on a screen or the pages of a book. If he did that, Izuku knew that his mind would start to wander and the sharp ache of anxiety would make itself known in his chest.

He pondered on going downstairs and taking Emi up on her offer of gardening. Izuku had only tried to maintain a garden once when he was in elementary school. It was the school garden and seeing as Izuku was part of the gardening club, it was his job to look after the tomatoes, cucumbers and beetroots that were grown. He was never very successful though.

Making his mind up, Izuku exited into the hallway and down the stairs. Maybe Emi and Eri would be able to teach him something about not killing plants just by looking at them.

Eri and Emi knelt in the dirt in the back garden, giggling and exchanging inside jokes when Izuku emerged from the house. What had initially seemed like a good idea spurred on by Izuku's desperate desire to be rid of his own thoughts seemed less enticing now. It seemed as though seeing the mother-daughter duo going about their business had inspired a bout of shyness in Izuku. Who was he to intrude on a bonding moment between the two of them, even if he had been invited? After all, that invitation was two hours old. That was two hours in which either one of them could have decided that they actually hate Izuku and never wanted to see him again.

As was par for the course, Izuku's self-destructive thoughts and catastrophization barred him from being social and joining in on the activity. He sighed quietly to himself, ready to simply return to his room when Emi caught sight of him and called over.

"Izuku!" Emi called happily, "You're here! That's amazing. Why don't you join us? We're just about to plant these flower seeds."

"Oh..." Izuku stuttered, "Are you sure? I don't want to intrude on the time you spend together..."

"Nonsense!" Emi beamed, "Eri wants you to join us, don't you honey."

"Yep," Eri flashed her childish smile, ruby eyes alight with the glee one often sees in the eyes of well-loved children, "I love gardening. And your hair is green, so you should love gardening as well."

Izuku couldn't help that chuckle that slipped from his mouth, such childish logic was strangely heartening to see. "Ok, I'll join you."

Izuku shuffled over to the pair and knelt in the grass next to Eri. It looked as though they had already started planting seeds, there were several spots in the flowerbed with freshly overturned dirt. Some of them were moist from the water that Eri had been gently raining down upon them.

"Just take a trowel and start digging. The seed packet said to bury them five centimetres apart. Now, I'm not sure about you, but I'm not in the habit of carrying a ruler around with me and going into the house to find one would be too much of a hassle, so we've just been guesstimating where to plant them." Emi explained.

Izuku nodded and took the trowel in hand. He set to work digging up soil, planting seeds, covering the hole and measuring. He absorbed himself in the process, smiling and shyly joking with his new caretaker and her daughter as he went.

As Izuku had predicted, Emi was an easy person to get along with. She cracked jokes constantly, she laughed loud and with vigour and she was a genuinely nice person. When Izuku accidentally spilt water all over her trousers, she wasn't mad, she simply made a joke about it being time for her to have a shower anyway. Izuku was at ease with her, she didn't look at him with pity. She didn't treat him like he was a child of Eri's age. She was very different from the clear-cut and serious nature of her husband, but Izuku had often heard the opposites attract, a phrase that proved true when looking at the Emi, Hizashi and Shota.

Eri proved to be just as sweet and lovely as she had been the day before. Seeing as she was apparently the resident gardening expert, she guided Izuku through the steps of planting the seeds and ensuring that they were well looked after. She explained excitedly that her parents had let her start a garden nearly as soon as she was adopted, something she had never been able to do whilst being moved from one foster home to another. Despite only being eight years old, Eri had been through a lot, in Izuku's eyes she was incredibly brave, he didn't think he could be thrown around the foster system as much as she had and still come out with an innocent and carefree smile on his face. It was a testament to her strong will and the caring nature of her parents that she was able to smile in such a way.

"And now we just have to wait for the flowers to grow and make this ugly back garden pretty!" Eri exclaimed happily.

"What's wrong with my garden, young lady?" Shota had, at some point and without Izuku even noticing, emerged into the back garden to watch them.

"It's boring, Dad!" Eri repeated stubbornly, "It's all grass, concrete and more grass. What's interesting about that?"

"There's a vegetable patch over there," Shota said in reply to his daughter's complaints, "That adds something to the garden."

"Yeah, but flowers are prettier than vegetables that don't even taste nice!"

"There's no point in fighting her, Sho, you know that. She's as stubborn as you are," Emi laughed.

Shota sighed, clearly he was used to his argumentative daughter disputing every word he said. Despite the world weary sigh that he heaved, Shota had a small smile playing at the corner of his lips. Despite his stern exterior, Shota was clearly a secret softy.

Izuku watched the scene play out with a gentle smile on his face, he couldn't help the slight bittersweet ache the pounded in his chest. Despite them opening their house up to him, Izuku wasn't part of this family. His family was a disjointed broken thing. His mother was an alcoholic with mental health issues and his father had abandoned him, only ever calling when he suddenly remembered that he had a son. It didn't make for the most cohesive unit. But, then again, Izuku thought of the Bakugos as his family. What other name could he possibly give to the family of three who had been there since he was born, who took him in without question and loved him unconditionally.

The loving bickering was interrupted by Izuku's ringtone as it screamed from his back pocket. Apologising with red dappled cheeks, Izuku pulled his phone from his pocket and answered without glancing at the contact details.

"Hello?" Izuku answered.

"What's up nerd? Just calling to check up on you," Katsuki grumbled over the line. As always, he adopted a tone which made it sound as though he was fed up with Izuku, but Izuku knew he was simply disguising his genuine care. God forbid Bakugo Katsuki shows any gentle emotion.

"Oh, hi Kacchan," Izuku beamed, "I'm doing ok. I've been gardening. I did some homework as well, I don't want to fall behind."

"Tch. As if those asshat teachers would even punish you. They're always kissing your ass!"

"I didn't need the imagery, Kacchan." Izuku sighed.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. You been feeling alright, though?" Katsuki queried. It seemed as though he made a conscious effort to tone down his usually abrasive voice for a moment, deeming it necessary given the fragile topic matter of Izuku's fluctuating mental health.

"Ah," Izuku chuckled awkwardly, he glanced over at the others and saw that they had moved towards the backdoor to give Izuku some privacy, he felt a swell of gratefulness balloon in his chest, "Not really... I woke up having a panic attack today. It wasn't great."

"Shit, really?" Katsuki swore, "I didn't even know that was possible,"

Izuku snorted derisively to himself, "Yeah, it can happen. It's happened a few times before, but it was... well the panic attack itself wasn't better, per se, but Shota helped me calm down so...Yeah."

"That's good, at least he knows how to do his job," Katsuki snorted, "He'd be a pretty shit therapist if he didn't know how to deal with panic attacks."

"Do you always have to veil your relief and praise in insults, Kacchan? You can say nice things you know, I promise you won't hurt yourself," Izuku teased.

"Make me, asshole," Katsuki snorted. Izuku shook his head with a smile. He could always trust Katsuki to pull him from his 'little funks' as he liked to internally dub them.

"I best go now, but I'll call you later, ok?" Izuku hummed.

"Alright, try not to die without me," Katsuki hung up before Izuku replied. It was just like him to get the final word in, Izuku truly believed he'd go to extraordinary extents just to have the final word in a conversation.

Lunch was a messy affair. Eri had somehow managed to smear ketchup across her cheek whilst making a sandwich, crumbs littered the table (much to the vehemence of Shota), and Emi had to change her top after accidentally spilling her entire drink on herself. Yet despite these accidents and messes, Izuku enjoyed himself. He slowly worked himself into the jolly dynamic between Eri and Emi, he chortled shyly at Emi's jokes and asked Shota question after stilted question about his work in psychology. If he hadn't believed it before, he truly believed now that he could settle with this family. Just until Inko got better, of course, nobody could replace his mother, even if she was a bit of a mess and required some serious help from professionals.

"So, Izuku, you'll be finishing middle school this year, right? Ten or so months, yeah?" Emi asked.

"Yeah," Izuku hummed, "I... I'm planning to apply to UA, you know, I thought I might as well try and get in. I've got loads of backup options in case I don't get in, since the acceptance rate is so low, you know."

"I'm sure you'll be fine, you seem like a smart kid," Emi reassured him, "How are you doing at school?"

"Oh, alright, I guess. I'm definitely one of the top students in my year group. My friend, Kacchan, is doing better than me, he's aiming for UA as well." Izuku said shyly.

"Well if you're top in your year group then I have no doubt that you'll get in. Hey, maybe you and your friend will both get in. That would be great!" Emi beamed. Izuku couldn't help the smile that slid across his lips. Emi's smile was so infectious.

"Yeah, hopefully."

Hizashi burst through the front door, calling to his family as he entered the house, "I'm home!"

Eri perked up from where she was sitting beside Izuku on the sofa, she spun around and leapt into her father's arms, squealing happily all the while. Izuku watched the interaction out of the corner of his eyes, not wanting to intrude on the reunion of father and daughter.

"Hizashi, it amazes me that you manage to forget the house rules every time you leave the front door," Shota sighed, glaring at his partner as he passed by, "And Eri, don't jump over the back of the sofa, you'll hurt yourself."

"You're no fun, Dad," Eri whined.

"I'll remember that next time I take you out," Shota lightly admonished, "Although with the way that you're throwing yourself about the next place I'll be taking you is the hospital,"

Eri snuggled deeper into Hizashi's arms and whispered something that made him laugh boisterously. His head was thrown back and his shoulder moved up and down as his booming laugh echoed through the room.

"I think I'd rather not know what our daughter said to make you laugh so much," Shota sighed, he gave the giggling pair one last look as he rounded the sofa and sat next to Izuku.

Throughout this interaction, Izuku had diligently been trying to read, his mind was bubbling with pictures he wanted to attempt to draw. It was a hobby he had started to pick up in the weeks leading up to his mother's hospital visit, but he hadn't gotten very good at it yet.

Sensing that Izuku wanted to be left to his own devices, Shota didn't say anything to the teenager, instead, he pulled out his own book and opened it to a dog-eared page. The two of them sat there, sinking into the soft sofa cushions, reading. Noise surrounded the two of them, and having two very extroverted and loud people living together often made for loud environments and happy atmospheres. Izuku didn't mind. Already he could feel himself adjusting to the ways of the Aizawa-Fukukado-Yamada household.

It scared Izuku. The apparent ease with which he could settle into this foreign environment. He felt... Well, he didn't want to say that he felt at home, doing so would be betraying his mother, but he did feel welcomed and safe. Everybody in the house had his implicit trust, even after the small amount of time he'd spent with them. They all exuded an air of trustworthiness. The way they did so varied. Izuku trusted Shota to not spread the things he told him in confidence. Izuku trusted Emi and Hizashi with his emotions and dreams. Izuku trusted Eri in the way that you tend to trust younger children, tinged with fondness and a slight protectiveness. Izuku didn't want to say that he felt at home, and yet the warm emotions spreading through him told a different story. He was starting to make a home for himself because this was the first place he'd felt truly safe for a long while. There were no expectations for him to act as others expected him to based on the cheerful child he had once been. The people here hadn't known him prior to his world fracturing and his exuberant nature dimming. They couldn't compare him to the past, and Izuku was internally grateful for that fact.

The relatively relaxing day came to an end with the house's occupants spread across the sofa, watching Tokyo Godfathers. Hizashi had insisted they watch the heart warming film that 'gives found family' (as Hizashi had so graciously put it). Despite his eagerness to watch it, Hizashi cringed and averted his gaze whenever the characters said something questionably transphobic or homophobic. "It's because of when it was made!" Hizashi protested despite the fact that nobody in the room had any issues with watching the film.

"Izuku, how are you going to get to school tomorrow?" Hizashi asked kindly, "It's a forty-minute walk from here, I'll gladly drive you if you want,"

"Oh, no, it's ok. I can just walk, I wouldn't want you to go out of your way," Izuku dismissed.

"I'm driving you. I'm driving Eri in that direction anyway, plus, I need to have a meeting with your school." Shota said, eyes glued to the screen as the mystery of the abandoned baby began to unfold.

"Oh...Ok. But I'm happy to walk when you can't drive me to school, it's really not an issue," Izuku reassured the adults around him.

Shota didn't give a verbal response, he simply nodded his head and directed his full attention back to the film. Emi and Hizashi smiled kindly at Izuku, they didn't try to disguise the fact that they'd be driving him to school whenever they could. Possibly to spend more time with their new ward. Possibly just to get out of the house in the mornings. Either way, they had become fond of the boy in the short time they had known him and they wanted to do whatever they could to make sure he settled well and saw them as dependable figures in his life.

"Goodnight, Izuku," Emi whispered across the hall.

Izuku glanced over his shoulder, eyes settling on the drowsy-looking woman standing a few meters away. "Goodnight, Emi,"

Izuku closed his bedroom door behind him and fell exhausted onto his bed. His exhaustion had washed over him like a tidal wave. Izuku couldn't help but think his exhaustion was caused, in part, by him being around new people for the majority of the day. Despite the fact he was settling in well, he'd still had moments throughout the day when he had wanted to curl into a ball and block out the voices of everyone around him. But he had persevered. And he felt all the better for it. The family he had been placed with were easy to like, if he couldn't stay with his family, at least he was with nice people.

As Izuku rolled over in his bed and pulled his duvet over his head (the only way he could sleep; he'd formed the habit as a child and still couldn't get rid of it), he pondered on the fact that his mother hadn't called him that day. Izuku wouldn't lie and say he was sad about that fact, if anything, he was glad. He felt guilty for even thinking about it, but he really didn't want to talk to Inko at the moment. He couldn't help but think it would only make everything worse.

With characters from his creation acting in a story of his own making flashing behind his closed eyelids, Izuku drifted off to sleep. Anxiety and worries of what was to come left behind in the waking world. 

Thank you for reading. I might not be able to post next week, but we'll see what happens. Anyway, I hope you have a wonderful day wherever you are.