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Aizawa Shouta does not need anymore cats. That said, he acquires, well, more cats. (much to the chagrin of Yamada Hizashi. Shinsou, on the contrary, is enthusiastic about this change.)
To be fair, it isn't Aizawa's fault. If anything, it was his students' fault.
The first kitten was Todoroki Shouto's doing.
It was a gloomy Sunday night, the heavy winter showers drowning out all sound in the city. Shouto was heading to the park to clear his mind, paying no heed to the cold, when his senses sharpened. He couldn't tell what was causing it, but he could feel a sense of distress, could almost hear someone— no, something— calling out to him. His pace quickened and his eyes searched.
Finally, he heard it. Turning the corner into a shadowy alley, Shouto heard the pitiful meow of a baby kitten. There, he thought, in the cardboard box! He rushed over to the corner where the box was places. A tiny calico kitten was huddled in the corner, its tiny, frail body violently shivering. Shouto's eyes widened.
He scooped the baby into the pocket of his sweatshirt and gently warmed it using his quirk. The tiny body eventually stopped shaking, and Shouto began to feel miniscule vibrations running through his hand. It's purring. Shouto was overwhelmed. All his life, he'd been raised to believe that his fire side meant death and destruction, but here was a baby kitten completely trusting his heat, trusting him. Shaking off his thoughts, he pulled out his phone. Aizawa would know what to do with the kitten.
Aizawa was in his kitchen, making tea for Yamada, Shinsou, and himself when he got a call. Excusing himself, he answered the phone.
"Aizawa Shouta speaking."
"Sensei!" Todoroki's voice said. Oh god, Aizawa thought, not another villain attack. He knew that Todoroki was a serious student, would never call for something trivial. If he was reaching out, there must've been a serious issue.
"I found a kitten and it needs help." Oh. Never mind then.
Aizawa sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Why does this concern me? And why aren't you at the dorms?"
"We aren't allowed to have pets in the dorms." He suspiciously didn't answer the second question. Aizawa doesn't press.
"Fine. Bring him to my home." Twenty minutes later, Todoroki knocked on Aizawa's door. The teacher opened the door, took one good look at both the shivering kitten and the soaking wet boy, and let them inside. He felt guilty at the prospect of taking the kitten and kicking the boy out, so he let Todoroki stay the night.
Aizawa's other cats only sniffed the calico once before accepting it. That was easy enough.
The second kitten came courtesy of one Midoriya Izuku.
While out on patrol during his work-study, Izuku came across a group of children huddled around something. He couldn't really tell what it was because everyone was surrounding it, but it was clearly enough to attract all of the kids'attention. He decided to investigate, just to make sure it was safe.
Izuku walked up to the group and peered over a blond kid's shoulder. There, laying in the middle of the circle, was a Russian blue kitten, playing with a butterfly. The kids were absolutely delighted by the kitten. It didn't have a name tag, though, or even a collar. He asked one giggling child, "Do you know who's cat this is?"
"I don't think he has a home," and oh, that was the saddest thing Izuku had heard in a while. As a hero, he felt like he had the responsibility to save everything, even kittens. He decided that he had to take the kitten to Aizawa. He'd know what to do.
After class next Monday, Midoriya waited until everyone else leaves to catch Aizawa's attention, practically vibrating with nervousness. Aizawa sighed.
"Yes, problem child?" he asked.
"Sensei! I know we're not allowed to have pets in the dorm, but there was this homeless kitten—" Midoriya was interrupted by Aizawa raising his hand.
"Just bring him to me."
When Aizawa returned home with another kitten, Yamada said, "Again? Really?"
"I don't wanna talk about it." He was not getting soft, he swore.
The new kitten was very well accepted by the other cats. His playful nature even got the older ones to liven up a bit. Aizawa smiled.
The third kitten was all Kirishima Eijirou's fault.
Eijirou may not have been the brightest kid, but he had a heart of gold. So, when he saw a stray tabby rummaging in the trash for food, he knew what he had to do. He scooped up the little guy, gaining a few scratch marks in the process. Eijirou then snuck back in to Heights Alliance, grabbing a can of tuna from the pantry on the way to his room.
The first order of business was bathing. Using a soft towel, warm water, and Downy soap, Eijirou gently cleaned the kitten. The poor little guy kept letting out pitiful meows, and every time Eijirou would softly shush and rock him.
After he was done cleaning the kitten, Eijirou folded him up in a blanket and hand fed him the canned tuna. He was absolutely ravenous, barely stopping to swallow before biting more tuna. Eijirou's heart broke.
Once he was finally done eating, the kitten took a nap. Eijirou decided to take one too.
Aizawa was not dumb. He knew that Kirishima had snuck a kitten into the dorms. Who wouldn't, with the incessant meows and not-so-quiet "it's okay little guy"s. Honesty, Aizawa was humored by the fact that the student thought he could sneak anything past him. Luckily, because Aizawa was already supervising the dorms, accessing Kirishima's room was easy.
Aizawa made his was to Kirishima's room. He knocked once and waited. Slowly, Kirishima pulled the door open just enough to peek his head out of it.
"Hi, sensei!" he said, giving Aizawa a nervous smile. He sent and unimpressed look back.
"Where's the cat?" he asked flatly. Kirishima's face fell, and he almost felt bad. The boy disappeared into the room only to come back with the tabby in his hands.
"Here you go." Kirishima's face was pointed downward, barely suppressed sniffles escaping his lips.
"Kid—"
"He likes tuna, just so you know. Treat him well."
Aizasa repressed the impulse to say all cats like tuna. Instead, he offered, "You can come see him anytime, at my apartment. When you graduate, if you still want him..."
Aizawa didn't even need to finish his sentence. Kirishima's eyes lit up. "Thank you, sensei! Thank you so much!" he said profusely.
"Just don't do it again."
Yamada wasn't even suprised this time, and neither were the other cats. The tabby playfully pounced on the calico and Russian blue, the older cats supervising. Yeah, he'd fit in well.
Shockingly, the last kitten comes from none other than Bakugou Katsuki.
Aizawa had no idea how he'd done it, but the kid had managed to hide an entire cat from him for weeks. He was practically seething at his student's blatant disregard for the rules.
Then again, he knew that Bakugou had been having trouble sleeping again. He knew how much the cats helped him calm down after a nightmare, so he was inclined to just take the kitten without punishing him.
Bakugou had other plans, because of course he wanted to be difficult. When Aizawa knocked at his door demanding the cat, he said one thing: "No."
The door was slammed in Aizawa's face. Oh hell no. Aizawa used his universal key to open Bakugou's door. He walked inside and demanded the cat. Bakugou petulantly held on to the blonde kitten, petting his head while sulking.
Aizawa sighed and took a seat on the bed. "Look, kid, I know you've been struggling with nightmares." When Bakugou's eyes widened, Aizawa tacked on, "You're not exactly subtle."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"If you... If you need to see a counsellor, or register for an emotional support pet, or even just need to talk, there are resources here for you. But I can't continue to let you break dorm rules."
Now, Aizawa saw this going one of two ways. One, Bakugou sees the logic in Aizawa's suggestion, gives the kitten to him, and visits a counselor. Or, the more likely option, two; he flat out rejects the help because he doesn't want to seem weak.
Bakugou whispered, "Let me keep her. Please." His voice was weak and shaky, eyes practically pleading with Aizawa.
Christ, Aizawa was not good at dealing with a sad Bakugou Katsuki. "Kid, I— if I let you break the rules,, then everyone will," Bakugou's shoulders slump. "How about this: I keep the kitten while I help you file for an emotional support pet, and once that process is through you can have her back. Sound good?"
Bakugou's eyes were wide and hopeful. He agreed.
While Aizawa spoke with several counselors on Bakugou's behalf, Bakugou took to an even more unexpected coping mechanism: knitting.
He slowly but surely made four little sweaters. When Aizawa aksed what they were for, Bakugou ignored him.
Once they were back at Aizawa's home, Bakugou gently scoops up his kitten and slides her into the sweater. It's probably the softest thing Aizawa's ever witnessed. He picked up the next cat and did them same, until all four kittens had tiny holiday sweaters. Shinsou definitely didn't take a picture for blackmail material, not at all.
At the end of the process, Bakugou was finally allowed to keep his kitten in the dorms. He named her Princess Explosion Murder (Princess for short) because of course he did.
Smiling, Bakugou pets Princess. In a rare show of consideration, he says, "You know, sensei, Half-and-half might need an emotional support pet, too."
Aizawa's heart warmed. He was already one step ahead of him, but it was nice to see Bakugou act caring towards another student.
He headed to Todoroki's room. He knocked once and was immediately let inside.
"Hey, kid. Do you want a cat?"
Todoroki's eyes lit up.