It was a Sunday. The first day of the week and the last day of the weekend. There was barely a cloud in the sky over Musutafu, and everything was just...

"AAAAAAAHHH! I OVERSLEPT!"

Izuku flung himself out of bed and threw on his workout clothes, nearly punching a hole in his sweatpants in his haste to run for his bedroom door, which he almost tore off its hinges. Pushing his arms through the sleeves of his tracksuit, he turned to his mom in the kitchen to offer his goodbyes.

"GOODMORNINGMOMILOVEYOUBUTIMLATETOAMEETINGANDIGOTTAGOSO-"

"Izuku, Izuku! Slow down! I can't understand a word you're saying when you're talking that fast!" Inko said with her usual worried expression. "What's gotten into you this morning? You haven't even brushed your teeth!"

Izuku took a deep breath, managing to slow down enough to articulate each word properly. "I-I-I overslept! I was supposed to meet with A- a friend to go over my training to get into U.A. and I can't keep him waiting and-"

"Training? Today? But it's your birthday, honey!"

"M-My birthday?" Now that he thought it about it, it was July 15th. The day he came to Earth. The day baby Kal-El became Izuku Midoriya. "So... so much has happened lately that I hadn't even thought about it..."

"I don't blame you," she cupped a hand on his cheek. "You've gotten attacked by some really scary Villains, found out where you came from, and even recaptured your dream. That's enough to make anyone's head spin."

She pointed him to the dining room table with the rice spoon. "Why don't you go and sit down while I get your breakfast ready?"

"Mom, I'd love to, but-"

"It's your day. You can afford to miss training just this once."

"But-" she flashed him a look that said she wasn't taking no for an answer. "Okay... I'll... I'll text him to let him know that I won't be there today."

Sorry, All Might!

"Your friend will understand. After all, this only happens once a year!" Inko said with a smile as she laid a bowl of rice on the table. "I know your father and I have said this before, but... the day we found you was the most important day of our lives."

Her expression dimmed, "And... I know you haven't really enjoyed your birthday since... you know..."

"Mom... It wasn't your fault," Izuku felt his fingers scrunching up the fabric of his pants. "I just... I was sacred. Scared of what I am. Scared of what I did to Kacchan. I thought if you had a normal son then..."

"I don't want to hear another word of it," she began laying down other things. "I just want my son to have the best birthday ever! So eat up! You don't want your food to get cold!"

"O-Oh, right! Thank you for the food!" he hadn't realized how much she'd made until after he'd picked up his chopsticks. Grilled salmon, sausages, croquettes, natto with the raw egg mixed in, yogurt, and fruit.

"I wasn't sure what you were in the mood for, so I made you everything. If we have leftovers then we can save them for tomorrow. So don't worry about a thing, okay?"

Izuku's gaze lingered on his mother for a few more seconds before he finally began to dig in. "Thanks, Mom!"

She took her usual seat across the table from him. "I hope the salmon is good. I went down to the fish market early this morning to get the first catch of the day."

He choked on some of his rice. "That early? You really didn't have to go so far!"

"I'm your mother, Izuku. This is the least I can do for you on your birthday. Is there anywhere you'd like to go, today?"

"You're... really serious about this." Inko just smiled back at him. "But if there was a place I wanted to go..."

"You're on vacation, so we have the entire day to ourselves. How about Might Tower?"

"Might Tower... maybe..." he'd visited Might Tower plenty of times. While the place would never completely lose its appeal, it just wasn't as cool anymore now that he could speak to the man himself. "How about the Tokyo National Museum?"

Inko blinked in surprise. "The TNM? You've never wanted to go there before."

"W-Well, a new exhibit dedicated to Endeavor was just opened there. I wanted to see what all the fuss was about."

"Oh, alright. I just thought All Might was your favorite Hero, and all."

"He still is, but it's good to admire other Heroes too! There's so much you can learn from them!"

"Well, if it's what my baby boy wants to do, then that's what we're going to do!"

"I remember this!" Izuku ran up to one of the glass display cases. "This is the Heat Gun! The opposite of Captain Cold's Cold Gun, it is able to release concentrated doses of absolute heat that can melt pretty much anything! I mean, that might be an exaggeration, since that kind of energy probably would have destroyed the universe a long time ago, it's still cool! Er, hot!"

He originally wanted to visit the TNM to see the exhibit the Ultra-Humanite was so insistent on destroying, but he was having a lot more fun here than he ever would have expected. Maybe it was just because he was a huge nerd of Heroes in general, but who knew that they'd have such an extensive collection here? Endeavor wasn't his favorite Hero, but he was still someone with an amazing track record for success and someone to look up to, just not as much as All Might.

"But would they really keep the real thing here? Seems kind of dangerous." A quick use of his X-ray vision quickly proved that it was just a really well-made replica. Izuku breathed a sigh of a relief. Who would want a repeat of the S.T.A.R. Labs incident anyways?

He was pulled out his thoughts when his eyes locked onto a meticulously designed hologram depicting events from several years ago. "Oh, I know this one, too! This is the time Endeavor took down the Ultra-Humanite's robots when they were terrorizing Pop Step's concert! I guess he really doesn't like pop music, huh?"

"Are you enjoying yourself, Izuku?" he turned to see his mom walking up to him.

"Yeah, there's just so much to look at here!"

"That's good. I'm afraid I don't understand a lot of the stuff here. It's kind of scary, to be honest."

"Is there anything you want to look at, Mom?"

"Oh, no, I couldn't. It's your birthday, not mine."

"It's fine! Let's go find something you want to see!"

"Well, that Greco-Buddhist exhibit is supposed to be wonderful..."

"Greco-Buddhist?" Izuku instantly thought back to that fateful day on Mt. Fuji. "I thought that was getting taken down for the Endeavor exhibit."

"Apparently All Might himself came here to ask the curators to keep both exhibits," Inko cupped her right cheek with her hand. "I haven't a clue why, though. He doesn't seem like the artsy type."

"All Might came...," Izuku couldn't hide the smile on his face. "Well, if All Might thinks it's good enough to stay, why don't we go see it?"

"Oh, alright... Let's go, son."

The exhibit was littered with artifacts he'd never seen before. Statues of Buddhas and characters he didn't recognize. Gateways similar to the torii he was used to were erected against fresco paintings while carvings of gods, angels, monsters, and other fantastic beings were littered throughout the place. They even had pillars that once held up buildings.

While he could appreciate its historical and cultural value, none of the art particularly resonated with Izuku. It just wasn't as interesting to him as the Hero-related stuff he was used to looking at. That wasn't to say it wasn't beautiful, but he couldn't help but feel a little bored.

"Hercules..." Inko muttered as she gazed at one of the carvings by the back corner. A small smile crept up along her face before she began to stifle a soft giggle.

"Mom? What's so funny?" Izuku asked as he walked over to her. The carving showed a demigod, apparently named Heracles, Hercules, or Alcides, holding up what looked like a globe. Nothing about it seemed particularly humorous.

"Oh, no. It's not the carving itself. One of the names of this character is Hercules. I watched an old movie with the same name with your father when we were still just dating."

"Um... what was it about?"

"It was about a child born to the king and queen of the gods. But they were forced to leave him alone in the pouring rain on Earth because of the tricks of the evil god of the underworld."

"That sounds kind of dark."

"Actually, it was a comedy," that took Izuku aback, but Inko continued. "But that child still had his incredible god-like strength and was raised by a pair of humans who found him on the mountain after wanting a child their entire lives. He wasn't liked by his neighbors for being different and he was a little clumsy at first, but he had a heart of gold and wanted nothing but to help others. After finding out where he really came from, he embraced his identity and worked hard to become a great hero loved by everyone."

"That's..."

Inko smiled and brought her arms around him, "That boy is just like you, Izuku. And just like that boy, I know that you're going to be an amazing Hero."

Izuku felt himself beam as he returned the hug. "Thanks, Mom. I won't let you down."

"I know you won't."

They left the museum a half-hour later. After stopping by a diner for a late lunch, the Midoriyas decided head over to Harajuku Street to do some shopping. Izuku's wardrobe, Inko complained, consisted almost entirely of joke shirts, shorts, and cargo pants.

"Mom... I told you, it's fine."

"I know, dear. But does it hurt to look? You haven't exactly bought many shirts recently, have you?"

"No... but it's such a trendy part of Tokyo. It's embarrassing... Maybe you can just get stuff for yourself?"

"I'm sorry, Izuku. But don't you want to make a good first impression when you make your new friends in high school?"

"Mom..."

Before they could continue their conversation further, they both heard a familiar laugh penetrate the air.

"AHAHAHA! Young Midoriya... IS HERE!"

The pair shielded their faces as the Number One Hero landed in front of them with a resounding crash and an enormous gust of wind. He was wearing the same white shirt and black trousers he wore when you first met.

"Oh my gosh!" Inko gaped, "I-I-It's-"

"A-All Might!" Izuku exclaimed. "W-What are you doing, here?"

"Midoriya, my boy. It's nice to see you again! And I'm guessing this is your lovely mother!"

"I-Izuku... A-All Might knows you by name?"

"Yeah. He saved me from the Sludge Villain and the U- that Villain that showed up when I went camping near Mt. Fuji!"

"I did indeed! But that's not why I'm here!" All Might continued, reaching into his back pocket. "You have a marvelous boy, Mrs. Midoriya, and a little birdie told me that today is his special day!"

He produced a neatly wrapped present complete with a taped on ribbon addressed to the younger Midoriya. "Happy Birthday, Izuku Midoriya!"

"A present, for me?" Izuku wasted no time in taking it from All Might's hands (offering a few more pavement-scraping bows of gratitude) before tearing the wrapping paper open with his super strength. "No way... this is..."

"A limited-edition Golden Age action figure of yours truly! With complete posability and all of the accessories included!"

"T-These aren't even supposed to be out until next month! You can't even pre-order them yet!"

All Might's smile seemed to grow a little wider, "That is correct! I pulled a few strings and got the first one off the line just for you!"

Izuku bowed so low that his forehead left a crater in the sidewalk. "THANK YOU! THANK YOU SO MUCH!"

"AHAHA! While I'd love to stay and chat, I'm afraid that there's justice-ing to be done and evil-doers to thwart! So with that, I'll take my leave! Have a wonderful day, you two!"

With that, All Might took off into the sky with a mighty push of his muscled legs, leaving everyone present awestruck as the Symbol of Peace made his exit.

It took several seconds for Inko to remember to breathe. "T-That was All Might... The World's Greatest Hero... he's... he's..."

"Even cooler in person, I know!" Izuku replied with a toothy grin. But that grin faded as onlookers began to swarm them with cameras at the ready. "Uh... I think we should go!"

But they were too late, the paparazzi that had been following All Might had already surrounded them, leaving them with no real chance of escape. Unless...

"Mom, I can get us out of here! Hang out to me and don't let go!"

"Izuku, what are you talking about?"

"Just trust me!" Inko did as she was told, clinging to her son like a life raft in the middle of a tossing ocean. Not a moment later did Izuku push off the ground with his own powerful legs, carrying them far above the rooftops as he flew in the direction opposite of All Might's path. Try as they might, the onlookers below couldn't keep up with the teenage Kryptonian, watching helplessly until he was completely out of sight.

After that trying event, the Midoriyas agreed to lay low by heading home. No use in making the news more than they already had.

"T-That was terrifying... I-I don't know how you do it, Izuku... This flying... thing..." Inko said as she began ascending the last flight of stairs to their apartment.

"I'm so sorry, Mom! I didn't mean to scare you like that! I-I just couldn't think of another way out of that..."

"No, no, you did your best. I just hope that you won't get in trouble with the Heroes..."

Izuku twisted the doorknob and ushered his mom inside. "I guess... but it's not like we were trying to break the law or anything! S-So I'm sure we'll be fine!"

"I hope so..." she replied as she entered.

"Hey, you two!" said a voice from the kitchen. "How's the birthday boy doing?"

"Dad?" Izuku asked as he turned the corner, "Dad!"

The teenage Kryptonian immediately wrapped his arms around Hisashi and lifted him into the air, "It's so good to see you!"

"Izuku... ribs..."

"Ah, oh, right. Sorry..." Izuku gently placed his much more fragile father back on the ground.

"Phew... getting stronger every day, huh?"

The boy scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Hehe, yeah..."

"You're a sight for sore eyes, Hisashi." Inko said as she got on her tiptoes to kiss her husband.

"Uh oh, what did I miss?"

"Izuku got a birthday present from All Might."

"That doesn't sound bad at all!"

"But we were swarmed by paparazzi as All Might left," Izuku muttered, "I had to fly us out of there to get away."

Hisashi grimaced, "Okay, that sounds bad. They didn't get your name or anything, did they?"

"All Might may have shouted our last name while introducing himself to Mom."

"Oh boy... I was not expecting this tonight," he pinched the bridge of his nose. "I'll see if I can pull up some of my contacts tomorrow. But for now..."

He unveiled several bowls of freshly made katsudon that were still piping hot. "I'd say we celebrate the most important day of the year!"

Dinner went by breezily, with the Midoriyas making small chat about the weather, Izuku's training and studies, and anything other than the fiasco that happened that afternoon (sure enough, a someone managed to capture a blur of them leaving the scene on the evening news).

"And then my co-worker comes along and tells the worst physics joke ever. Why can't you trust an atom?" asked Hisashi. "Because they make up everything! It's terrible, right?"

"I dunno Dad, it sounds like a joke you would make."

"Izuku, you wound me! I thought I raised you better than this!"

"But you're only here twice a month, tops!"

Hisashi continued to feign displeasure until all three of them laughed. "Well, then, it looks like we're all done. So how about we have cake!"

"That sounds lovely, dear."

The joy in the room evaporated. "Inko, what's wrong?"

"It's just... I wanted Izuku's day to be perfect and now..."

"Mom, it was perfect. Sure, we could have gone without the whole paparazzi thing, but it'll all work out!"

"It's not just that. I... I'm just scared for you," Inko continued. "I know you'll be an amazing Hero, but after hearing how two Villains tried to kill you..."

Tears began to well-up in her eyes, "I'm supposed to be proud and support you now that you've decided to chase your dreams, but... you're still my baby boy. I can't... I don't want you to end up like one of those museum pieces, Izuku!"

"Mom... I..."

"Sometimes, I do wonder what your life would be like if... you didn't have your powers. If you just watched Heroes from afar. Would you be safe? Would you be happy? I just..." she tried to wipe her eyes with a napkin, "I sound so selfish right now and I shouldn't be saying this on your birthday... I'm sorry! I'm so sorry!"

"Inko," Hisashi began rubbing her shoulders comfortingly, "what you're feeling is totally normal. But you have to remember that Izuku is growing up and has to make his own decisions. We all know the risks and being a Hero is dangerous, but we also know that he's ready to take those risks."

"I know, Hisashi... I know..." Inko turned back to her son and took him by the hand, "Izuku, please... promise me that you'll always come home safe."

"Of course, Mom," He fought back tears of his own as he placed his other hand on top of hers, "I promise."

After everyone had finally settled down, Hisashi went back into the kitchen to a retrieve a frosted ice cream cake with fifteen candles on it. "Well, this ended up being a lot more dramatic than anyone expected it too. But it's finally time for the birthday boy to make his wish!"

Izuku watched the candles light up as Hisashi blew his firebreathing Quirk across them. Even if he's seen it a dozen times before, Izuku couldn't help but marvel at the way his dad is able to do this without setting any of the walls on fire.

Both of Izuku's parents moved to either side of him, both to watch him and stay out of the way of any flying cake.

"Now, Izuku, make sure you blow out the candles and not the cake like you did on your-"

"Dad, I was ten. I learned my lesson already..."

"I'm joshing you! Blow out the candles already!"

Izuku grinned, taking a moment to think about everything he was thankful for. His parents. His birth parents. Meeting All Might. There were definitely some bumps in the road, but he knew he might just be the luckiest kid alive. Finally, he puckered his lips and prepared to extinguish all fifteen flickering flames at once.

"Happy Birthday, Izuku."