I climb so high just to feel a fall

Izuku had gotten careless recently.

He'd been spending more and more time on the surface, more and more time with humans...and with Angels. Well, two Angels in particular. For a variety of reasons, they were different from other Angels. Kacchan was, as always, a brilliant, untameble star. And Todoroki- what a treasure it is to know a name now. To know him. To get to know Kacchan all over again. The distance between them, the two different sides that they stood on... it was overwhelming to consider sometime. But there were moments of closeness.

Izuku craved every scrap of their company like a flower craved sunlight. He wanted them close. He wanted to show them his home. He wanted to be able to spend time with them without fear. He wanted them away from the overbearing, crushing weight of the Heavens. But he could not achieve any of that, and so instead they operated in this quiet, unspoken truce, the three of them. And Izuku enjoyed the time he had, and tried not to think too hard about how delicate their situation really was.

But before this, whenever he sensed Angels nearby while he was on his own, while he might've moved just close enough to catch a glimpse so he'd know what he was dealing with, he rarely risked getting any closer than that. If he was in a group, maybe, depending on the circumstances, but still. Unless the Angels were doing things that Izuku needed or wanted to put an immediate stop to, he didn't get close.

Nowadays though, whenever he senses Grace nearby he drifts closer than before, hoping to catch Katsuki, Todoroki, or both. If it wasn't them, he generally made a hasty exit (depending on the circumstances, anyway) without ever being detected. However, it was risky every time, and today that risk finally caught up with him.

Izuku's wings were exhausted. He had to land before he fell. He'd flown far. He'd just have to hope that he did enough damage that it wouldn't be worth it to pursue him that far. When he lands, it's clumsy, stumbling, shockwaves traveling up his legs. He wavers, stomach swooping with a wave of dizziness. For a moment, he doubles forward, coughing and gasping for air and holding his middle tightly. Black blood drips from his lips, iron sharp on his tongue. Waves of nausea roll over him, and all he wants to do is lay down right there.

But staying out in the open was too big of a risk. The smaller city he's in seems more or less deserted; it'd be easy to spot a lone demon from above, and Izuku doesn't have much fight left in him. He straightens up, heaves in air, and blinks spots from his eyes. He stumbles away, making his way along. He's in a suburbs, each house nigh-identical from the rest, and each in various states of disrepair. This place had been abandoned long enough that there was ivy creeping along many of the brick walls. Izuku makes his way past a ravaged section of wooden fence into an overgrown backyard, stumbling every other step.

The porch was covered by a roof, and Izuku stumbles up the low steps, dragging himself by the railing. The roof gives him enough shelter to avoid being spotted from above. He still left a blood trail, but that can't be helped right now, and hopefully it isn't too visible from high up.

Breathing raggedly, Izuku leans back against the wall, then slowly slips down it until he's sat on the ground. He feels cold, freezing cold. The magic of an Angel generally had that effect on him, making him feel like all the warmth was just being drained out of him bit by bit, and he shivers violently. He slumps forward, head resting between his knees and ruffled, damaged wings encircling him. He needed to get off the surface and down below to recover properly, but he'd drained a good amount of his magic in that fight. It was a 2 versus 1, with powerful angels, and Izuku held his own, but it took alot of his energy. He wasn't going to be able to make a portal to anywhere, and it'd be easier to do once the sun goes down anyway.

He'd rest, gather his strength, let some of his natural healing take effect, and then he'd go home.

Or at least, that was Izuku's plan before he sensed it. Grace. Close by too. Fuck!

Izuku couldn't run in his current state. He'd exhausted himself too badly. Heart pounding, Izuku reaches out and digs his claws into the brick to get enough of a grip to drag himself upright. He allowed himself one, two, three more heartbeats of support before he pushes off of the wall. If it's the same Angels, he'd have to finish what was started. At least he had a chance when they've already been injured and he already observed their abilities and their attacks. If it was someone enterily new... well. Maybe they wouldn't want to risk engaging with a cornered, half-dead demon. Izuku's never been the type to go down without a fight, in life or in death. Maybe he could scare them off.

He was still half-shifted, eyes completely black, wings larger than usual, hands turned black from his forearms down and fingers sharpened into claws that could only be used as weapons. Green lightning crackled weakly over him, his body instantly protesting the use of the volatile magic. He held those claws at his sides, teeth already bared and muscles bunched in anticipation as he took a few careful steps forward, hearing footsteps close too.

He was prepared for a fight, but the figure that turns the corner stops him short before he can even make a threat. Relief crashes over him like a wave and Izuku slumps like a puppet with it's strings cut. Tension drains out of him so quickly that he has to grab onto the wall to keep from toppling over completely. The magic dissipates and Izuku gives a breathless smile.  "Todoroki," He greets.