Crossing Fates : Special Story 3 - The Bean Starts School (BakuDeku)

2 - In Mommy's Arms

"Iori!" Tetsutetsu shouted. "Don't make me come after you, buddy."

He could tell Tetsutetsu was too cheerful to be mad.

Tetsutetsu almost never got mad, but Iori also didn't want Tetsutetsu to find out where he was, because then Mom and Dad would find out too.

And what was the point of spying if you couldn't keep it a secret?

Releasing his hold on the support beam, he let himself fall. Like a cat, he twisted in midair so that he landed in a crouch, right side up.

Trudging around the corner of the house, he shapeshifted back into a human boy and went inside for lunch.

The rest of the day seemed to go on forever. Desultorily, Iori played Spy Nyr some more, but his heart wasn't in it.

He was starting to feel nervous about school.

What if the other kids didn't like him? How was he supposed to learn to socialize if that happened?

From the way Dad was talking, it sounded pretty important.

And besides, what if he didn't make any friends?

*****

For supper, Mom cooked his favorite meal, spaghetti with meatballs, and Iori, Izuku and Katsuki ate together in the breakfast nook off the kitchen.

Mom had meatballs with his spaghetti too, but his were the fake kind.

Iori wasn't like Dad about food- even though he liked real meat a lot better, he liked fake meatballs just fine too.

For some reason, tonight, his spaghetti noodles were hard to swallow, and he pushed the meatballs around his plate, until Mom frowned and asked, "Are you feeling all right, sweetheart?"

He wasn't sure. All his feelings were tangled up in a knot, and he didn't know how to untangle them, or how to answer him.

So, he shrugged and said, "Sure."

Mom looked at him for a long, thoughtful moment. "I've never seen you without an appetite."

After thinking about it for a moment, he shrugged again. "Me neither."

Both Mom and Dad laughed, and then it was Dad's turn to study him.

Dad's keen, red gaze seemed to see everything, and Iori squirmed in his seat. But all Dad said was, "Maybe you'll be hungry later, or in the morning."

"Sure, maybe," he mumbled, fiddling with his napkin.

"Why don't you go upstairs and take your bath?" Mom suggested. "I'll be up soon to tuck you into bed."

Iori looked outside.

It was still plenty light outside, but Mom had already talked to him about how he would have to go to bed earlier on school nights.

At the time, he hadn't minded, but now it kind of sucked.

"Do I have to?" he asked. "It's so early, and I'm not tired."

"Yes, you have to," Mom smiled at him.

Mom's smiles were the most beautiful thing in the world, and they almost always made things better.

They almost even made an early bedtime okay, but not quite.

He thought about arguing, but he could tell by the calm look on their faces that Mom and Dad were going to team up on this one.

He heaved an aggrieved sigh. "Okay, fine."

As he slid out of his seat and stood, Dad swept a large arm around him and pulled him in for a hug.