Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Sorahiko picked at his plate of taiyaki, the snack seeming unappealing in the moment. Nedzu and the others chattered next to him, scribbling into notebooks they'd procured from Theta. Catastrophe after apocalypse were brought up and explored in their hushed conversations.

There were several tables constructed at the top of the stairs, mahogany and pine carved into beautifully indecipherable designs and covered in an array of every dish imaginable. The adults sat around one table, prophesying destruction with every word. Well, most of the adults – the teachers had surrounded Toshinori and were pestering the boy with questions and accusations, much as the students had all surrounded little Izuku. They'd all ignored the steaming piles of delicious food so they could satisfy their own curiosity instead.

Sorahiko didn't really care. More for him. Taiyaki was piled high on the plate in front of him, his other favourite dishes visible in the distance even though he wasn't in the mood for a larger meal. Theta had intimate knowledge of each person's personalities, it seemed. Yet another intriguing power their host possessed.

But of course, the most noteworthy of the dozens he'd shown so far was this theatre of his.

He was no stranger to future-sight. Nighteye's Quirk, bless his soul, had baffled him at times, but it was resolute, immutable, and perfect. There was no way to change the events the man saw. Time was fated from the beginning, predetermined with absolutely no way to cheat it.

And then there was Theta, proclaiming the opposite. Whatever, whoever, he was, it seemed impossible.

He finally picked up a sweet, throwing it into his mouth and chewing thoughtfully.

Yet not. Yet, somehow, possible.

Sorahiko was a Hero, and Heroes needed all the advantages they could have. To know the machinations of their worst enemy months in advance was a priceless gift. They'd use it well, though it wasn't clear how much they could change. Whether the man would change his plans or not, they couldn't know, but there was now no choice but action.

They had to act.

To stop a war.

He glanced at his left, immediately catching Nedzu's eye. The principal nodded at him after a moment, his whiskers twitching imperceptibly, and Sorahiko exhaled.

Because what else could be coming, banging on their doors and knocking on their windows, but war? He felt it in his bones – death and chaos approached, panic and fear in its wake.

Him escaping Tartarus meant nothing short of all-out war. Civilians caught in the crossfire between Heroes and Villains, the world collapsing into itself with nothing but a single teenager to protect them. War was coming, and they needed to stop it. Before it was too late.

He once again peered down the stairs at the gigantic screen, Deku stood frozen upon it with his hand held high in triumph. Around the boy's neck, a thick yellow cape hung, a jarring sight to his eyes. It flowed in the silent wind, billowing behind the young Hero.

Sorahiko took another takoyaki, crunching down with a sour face.

It was war, he knew. Survival was unlikely.

Still, he'd enjoy the takoyaki while he could.

"Really." Tenya said, staring down at his classmate. "Really."

Midoriya stared back, emerald eyes defiant even as a soft and comforting smile was on his face. "Yes."

He placed his head in his palms. Midoriya was adamant on this matter, which he supposed he should be glad for. "You… you could've told Todoroki and I, at least?"

The smile on the boy's face was even brighter when he peeked at him through his fingers. He didn't seem at all surprised at being attacked by his entire class once Theta had paused the screen. "I'm sorry, Iida, but this really isn't something I can just tell my best friends about. It's literally the biggest secret in the world."

Within him, he knew that to be absolutely true. In Midoriya's place, he would do the exact same thing, and probably be much worse at keeping this secret than he was.

But still, like, really?!

"You're not wrong." Todoroki jutted in, still staring out into nothing with blank eyes. Well, blanker than usual. He was stood next to Midoriya, acting as a buffer between him and the rest of the crowd. "Anyway, it's not like you really tried to hide it. Even I picked up on it."

Tenya blinked, not missing the way Midoriya stiffened. Not… in surprise. More… fear.

"You did?!" Mina shouted, elbowing her way through the assembled mumbling crowd to grab the boy by the collar. "And you didn't tell any of us?!"

Todoroki looked unperturbed. "Not fully," he corrected himself, raising a single finger and ignoring the way Midoriya began to melt into himself. Tenya moved to grab his friend, still listening closely and keeping an eye on the other boy. "My original hypothesis was that Midoriya was All Might's secret love-child, but I see now that that was wrong."

Tenya's mind screeched to a sudden halt, and he was only barely aware of Tsu nodding and Aoyama ooh-ing. "You know," he said, seemingly ignorant of how an entire half of the room had frozen, "I had the same thought not too long ago! They look like each other if you think about it, do they not?"

Todoroki nodded far too quickly, a dangerous glint coming to life in his eyes. "Yes. They even have the same smile."

Aoyama nodded as if slowly realizing that to be true, a finger on his lips. Suddenly turning on his heel, he moved to stare Midoriya in the face and shove a glittering microphone under the boy's chin. Where the hell did he get that, Tenya thought distantly. "Any comments, monsieur Midoriya? Will you deny these allegations?"

The boy made a sound that could've been the dying keel of a tortured animal. Tenya wasn't sure – that could've been him, too. How in the world had Todoroki come to that conclusion? Or Aoyama, for that matter?!

The Frenchman nodded again at Midoriya's response, thoughtful. "I see, mon ami. Thank you for your time." The microphone dissolved into more glitter and rainbows.

"Todoroki," Tenya finally choked out, "how?! How could Midoriya be All Might's love-child?!"

"Well," the teen said in a voice perfectly serious, "you see, when a man an-"

"No!" Midoriya interrupted loudly, his voice cracking. "Not having that conversation again. Todoroki, shut up, Iida, shut up. Okay, let's move on to some easier questions, like, I don't know, about One For All maybe?"

Shouji raised his hand(s) in the air, far above the rest of the crowd, and Midoriya immediately pointed a crooked finger at him. "Yes good go!"

"Hey, no fair!" Hagakure shouted out, Tenya faintly hearing the sound of a muffled stomp and a pained yelp from Ojirou. Tenya grimaced. "You only picked him because he has so many arms!"

"Shouji, go." Midoriya commanded, ignoring the girl entirely.

The other boy looked startled by the vehemence, but spoke his question anyhow. "In what manner is One For All… passed on? When you said 'inherit', I'll admit that I too thought… as in, passed to the… child of the last bearer."

Tenya sighed, turning away. The poor boy's face was beginning to get almost too red to look at, and this conversation was doing bad things for his heart. He decided to go and join Bakugou atop the staircase, and maybe finally get some breakfast. After all, he'd spent his night studying.

"No." Midoriya said, speaking through tightly gritted teeth. "I – just, no. It works through DNA transfer. You have to ingest the DNA of the previous bearer."

Tenya immediately turned back. "Midoriya, please tell me you didn't cannibalize All Might."

"What?" Midoriya's mouth made a series of strange motions. "No, I just ate his hair!"

"…I can't tell if that's worse or better."

"Wha- Better!"

"Okay!" Hagakure interrupted the two with a shout, shoving through to the front of the freshly stunned crowd surrounding Midoriya, Tenya amongst them. Because, well, Midoriya ate All Might's hair. Absolutely maniacal behaviour, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't think his friend was capable of it. "My turn! Could I have One For All or will I have to steal your hair?"

Midoriya immediately slammed a hand atop his head, hiding his fluffy curls. "Please don't steal my hair," he muttered, his eyes suddenly cagey. "Uh – because you won't get One For All. Yeah. Unless I want you to. You can't steal One For All."

Even Tenya had to admit that was not reassuring. In fact, if any of the Villains were listening, he wouldn't be surprised if they deduced the exact opposite.

"In-teresting." Mineta murmured at the back, clasping his hands sharply.

"No." Todoroki responded curtly. He wasn't even looking at the other boy.

"I didn't-"

"No."

"Fine."

Several flights below, Dabi tapped a young blonde on the shoulder while holding a plate of food in the other hand. "Stop staring at the green brat. It's creepy."

"Really?" Toga stared up at him, her head cocked to the side. As if she didn't know – so annoying.

He frowned at her. His face did not change. "Yes. Eat." Shoving the plate of assorted foods at her, he settled back into his seat and tried not to grimace. The staples were strangely painful today. He had tried to eat some food, but it just wasn't appetizing, so he thought he'd give Toga his plate. Since, it seemed, she didn't want to go upstairs and eat herself, much more enamoured with staring at the green kid and his friends.

The teenager took it happily, digging into the meal without so much as a thanks. Dabi sighed, leaning forward and pulling his phone out from his pocket. He flicked it open, mentally damning Shigaraki for not getting him a smartphone before they were all kidnapped. Bastard.

And of course, the thing was dead.

He leaned back in his seat, rubbing his forehead and trying to relax. What was there to do now – go up, listen to Shigaraki and mister 'generic evil doctor' talk about how to kill the Heroes? No, he didn't want to spend any more time at the tables than necessary. Their leader had already decayed four of them – by accident or on purpose, he couldn't tell – and Dabi wasn't in the mood to be caught in the crossfire between Shigaraki and strawberry cakes. Perhaps he should chat with Re-Destro about murdering some kids? Or maybe he could annoy that Geten dude for a while.

Whatever. None seemed rather appealing. He settled back into his seat, closing his eyes and putting his head back. Dabi hadn't slept last night… a quick nap wouldn't hurt. The Heroes were taking their damn time eating, some of them not even started yet, and with Toga next to him, he'd be relatively safe getting some sleep. Worst thing that could happen is she'd draw on his face.

He opened his eyes, straightening his back and eyeing the dozens of Heroes on the opposite side of the theatre. Come to think of it, that was pretty bad.

He still yawned, unable to stop it. Crossing his arms and sitting back after a moment, he settled in for a long and boring few minutes. He pointedly stared at the screen with a blank face, and not the few Heroes that had already returned to their seats.

Damned bird kept looking at him, sitting next to a still Endeavour. He, very assuredly, did not care.

He did not.

The theatre suddenly shook, a series of ear-splitting beeps echoing through it. "Breaktime's over." Theta rumbled, Izuku feeling almost annoyed by his words. He hadn't even gotten to eat any breakfast yet. "Take your food back to your chairs. It's time to continue."

Oh, good! Izuku rushed up the stairs away from his friends, ignoring their continued lines of questioning behind him. Perhaps he could get some toast or something.

He managed to get a little more than that, grabbing some eggs and rice and piling it all onto a plate. The classmates that had been interrogating him quickly followed, hastily gathering their own breakfast. Izuku smiled as he rushed back down the stairs at just the moment Theta began speaking again, wedging himself onto a couch in between Todoroki and Uraraka. Somehow, the two of them had gotten back down before him.

Twisting his shoulders and listening to the AI, Izuku was ready for some space from the many questions of his classmates. At least, for now. Uraraka and Todoroki were the kindest of them all, quiet and gentle with their questions on the rare occasions they had them.

But, no doubt they'd have more questions ten seconds from now. So he wasn't exactly free, he just had a small break.

~ Theta spoke at last, the screen crackling and glitching into a sepia filter like the movies of old. "There are some things that must be explained. So, we will travel back in time for a moment. The following scenes take place a while before Deku left his hero academia…" ~

"Oh?" Rikiya rubbed his chin, an eyebrow raised. "A flashback? How novel."

Perhaps it would grant them some more important information on the boy. It was sorely needed – Skeptic's many skills were of no use in this theatre. Something was blocking him from accessing the electronics of the Heroes, and Rikiya had little doubt as to who it was. Memories of Theta's boisterous laughter rang in his ears.

~ The screen showed a bed with a heavily bandaged hand resting upon it. The sleeve poking out from the bandages was dark green with sharp black highlights, clearly indicating it to be Deku's costume. A man wearing a sleek suit was holding onto the cast with both hands. ~

"Midoriya…" Satou groaned good-naturedly. "Of course you're in the hospital."

The boy in question flushed. "It's… it's usually not my fault!"

"Sure, kid." Aizawa's thumb massaged his forehead, for reasons more than one. Mainly the giant oaf sitting next to him. Midoriya was far too much like his mentor for his liking. "Sure."

~ 'I can feel it…' All Might's thoughts, worried yet retrospective, resounded out from the screen. '…One For All inside him…' ~

Chiyo turned to the two Wielders, an eyebrow raised in a frankly menacing way. "Can the two of you actually feel one another like that?" she asked with her cane suddenly tapping against the floor. The clicks echoed throughout the facility's walls, more than one person gulping warily.

Little Midoriya and Toshinori exchanged furtive glances across the theatre. They couldn't have looked more suspicious if they tried. "…somewhat?" Toshinori offered after a long moment. "It's easier for us to know what the other's thinking, I suppose. But it's not telepathy or anything!"

Chiyo looked away. Resting her head against her chair again, she let loose a long sigh, utterly unsurprised.

Of course she never knew about that, because Heroes never told their doctors squat. Damn idiots, don't they know Quirks like these have common drawbacks?! She can rule out pain transfer, at least – between the two of them, at least one would've realized by now. They're not that stupid. (Well, she hoped so.)

But emotional interference is something else to consider. She noticed that the two of them are almost always perfectly in-line with their reactions and emotions, and that can be extremely dangerous in the wrong situation. Such a connection could be hijacked by any number of Quirks! As Heroes, they really, really need to know this kind of stuff, but none of them ever care to learn what their Quirks can and can't do. All they ever want is to find a way to punch harder.

~ All Might's face was bleak, his eyes dark and shadowed. He seemed incredibly tired, dark eyebags marring the space beneath his eyes. 'However, I can barely sense it happening.' Deku's face was shown, scrapes covering his cheeks as he remained perfectly still, his eyes tightly shut. Under his eyelids, his eyes flicked to and fro in a way reminiscent of REM sleep.

The screen suddenly cut to black, though upon closer inspection, one could see that it wasn't truly black. It was a backdrop of a broiling void, shifting endlessly in the confines of Deku's mind. 'What happened to everybody…?' He thought, his voice slow and tired. 'I hope they're all okay…'

Deku stated several names all at once, the noises overlapping. 'Aizawa-sensei… Manual… Rock Lock… Gran Torino… Kacchan… Togata-senpai… Ryukyu… Todoroki-kun… Iida-kun… Endeavour… Hado-senpai…' ~

Hawks raised his hand in the air. His head was tilted, the other hand rubbing his chin. "Hey, so, we still have really no idea what the hell's happened, right?" He turned to Nedzu, golden eyes expectant.

The principal shook his head. The grip on the pencil in his hand tightened, and it cracked threateningly.

…Hawks didn't buy it.

"No. Theta – he seems to want us to figure the context mostly on our own."

The AI beeped rapidly. "Well, mostly. Mostly. I'd give more information, but I'm sure you all can figure it out given enough time. And if you don't meet my expectations, we can certainly go further back, or I can just give you a quick rundown on the future."

"Okay." Nemuri exhaled. He was… an annoyingly kind captor. "What do we know so far?"

"Good question," Nedzu said, tapping the same pencil on his nose. "We are aware that All For One and Shigaraki orchestrated a breakout of Tartarus. We do not know how or when, From the scene in front of us, we can deduce that there was some sort of fight that likely led to the breakout. Deku was involved and injured."

"No surprise there," Shouta grunted. "Teachers and the Big Three were present, as well as some other big-name Heroes."

Tomura scratched his cheek. With the Heroes' distant distraction interrupting the screen, Twice and Spinner had taken the chance to begin pestering him again. "I – I guess the first thing I would do after finishing up with the Doctor's experiments would be to go and free Sensei." he agreed with their loud assessments, watching the screen confusedly. "So that's… probably what happened."

It's the only explanation. It's the tactical move, and what he would probably still do.

~ The screen slowly panned to a close-up of Deku's face, the same void still swirling menacingly behind him. Suddenly, his eyes shot open.

"We need to have a talk before you wake up." a gruff, older voice said. The camera zoomed out to show the dilapidated remains of a bleak concrete room floating aimlessly in the voice. Eight seats, practically thrones, were set in a circle in the middle of the room, with Deku standing in the only empty spot available. All but the two seats on Deku's right were filled by unique individuals. Meanwhile, Deku himself was mostly made of the void, only about half of him physically present. Most importantly, the lower half of his face was missing, as well as most of his upper legs and arms.

On Deku's immediate left, a man with long silver hair parted in the middle and wearing a torn-up jacket over a dark bodysuit was sat, his arms crossed and eyes downcast. Past him, there was a tall lady with dark hair set in a high ponytail, glancing at Deku. She was wearing a similar black suit, with her arms exposed and a massive white cape crossed over her shoulders.

Between her chair and the next, a man with indiscernible steel gauntlets over his forearms and close-cut blonde hair was visible, standing and facing the single wall still standing. The seat past him was occupied by a thin and lanky young man. He was dressed simply in a grey long-sleeve shirt and jeans, and his hair, long and a soft white, shadowed his face. To his left, the next seat was occupied by a being of pure fire in the shape of a man. There was an outline of a steel door on the wall behind, half obscured by his chair. It shifted just as restlessly as the void, though the makings of a face were visible in its outline.

Past the flaming figure, a younger and smaller man sat leisurely with his feet on the edge of the chair and his hands over his knees. He had a high collar that partially obscured his face, and his hair was dark, short, and straight. Between him and the final occupied seat, another strange man could be seen facing the wall. He was even blurrier in the first, though his crimson bandana and a large ponytail of grey-ish hair were visible.

The final seat was occupied by the one who'd spoken, a bald older man with goggles resting on his forehead. His face was sharp and angular, carefully shaved stubble decorating his chin. He was dressed in black patched-up leather attire, leaning forwards with his hands steepled before him. ~

Ochako stared at the rough ensemble. The theatre around her had erupted into a storm of whispers and murmurs at the strange sight; Deku, standing in a room with these peculiar people.

"Huh. So those are the rest of the… Wielders?" She tilted her head, Deku and All Might's attention quickly falling on her. So she was correct. "They don't look half as cool as I expected."

Both Deku and All Might spluttered helplessly. "What – how?!"

"I don't really know." Ochako leaned back, tapping her cheek as she met Deku's far-too quizzical eyes. "I just expected… a little more pizazz."

He blinked at her. Somehow, he seemed even more confused now. "I – what – what even is pizazz?"

"I agree," Kaminari said thoughtfully. Leaning forwards, chin resting in the palm of his hand,he looked almost scholarly. "They just don't have the glamour that they require for their roles."

Twice interjected, his voice carrying across the room, "Yeah! They look stupid! Actually, I think the lady on the left's pretty cool. Kinda hot. Shut up!"

"Indeed." Mister Compress responded quickly, speaking over Twice. "My apologies, young man, but it is true. You must agree with us. With those unflattering character designs, can you truly say you're proud of your predecessors?"

Deku and All Might stared at the unanimously nodding theatre in abject horror. Both their jaws were hanging wide open as they listened to the Heroes and Villains like-minded comments, and it took everything Ochako had to stifle her many, many chuckles.

Tomura watched the screen, not joining his fellows as they jeered callously or commented dryly on the eight figures. He had more than a few choice words, especially for the Best-Jeanist-wannabe and his terrible haircut, but he found that he couldn't quite voice them.

Because right now, all he was doing was trying not to speak.

And it was all because of her. Because when the fuck was it not.

Nana Shimura. His grandmother. The ultimate source of his personal hells.

What, the fuck, was she doing there?

All Might's mentor, he knew that's who she was. What she abandoned his father to protect. But to have it thrown in his face like this – she was a holder of that damned Quirk as well. She was One For All. She was his opposite, his anathema.

His grandmother had sacrificed everything and ensured his life was hell so she could, what? Fight sensei? To teach that smiling jackass? So that he could in turn teach that green brat?

What an… absolutely useless way to die.

But still. But still.

This all hardly seemed coincidental. Like it or not, he was a descendant of a holder of One For All, and he was now destined to hold All For One. Like he said, hardly coincidental.

He pushed that thought away as easily as he ignored the further questions his subordinates were suddenly throwing at him. They'd noticed his silence, it seemed.

This was a thought… for a later moment. Perhaps.

First he had to murder Twice. For reasons completely unrelated to his previous words.

Meanwhile, within the second gallery… "Look! It's us!"

"Yes, Yoichi. We can see that."

"Us! We're on TV!" He sat back down in his seat, a massive smile splitting his face. "We're famous! Oh, I've always wanted to be famous."

En watched as Second slammed his palm into his face and tried to sink deeper into their shared couch and further away from the man.

He understood the feeling. Deeply.

~ "Sorry to put this on you while times are still this tough." The plainest one said, his voice soft and gentle as a stream flowing through the room. The screen cut to a close-up of his face, more clearly showing how young he was. Despite the long white hair covering his face, one eye was still visible. A light green, they were nearly the same shade as Deku's. ~

"He looks like Shigaraki." Sorahiko commented quietly, before realizing Toshi was sitting with the teachers. He looked to the detective instead – "You see it?"

Tsukauchi frowned. "Somewhat, I suppose. But given what I know about them all though, I doubt they're actually related."

Sorahiko grunted in response. Yeah, probably not. He was just getting paranoid now.

~ The screen quickly showed close-ups of the two standing facing the wall, their faces still not discernible. It then continued to cut through the faces of the rest of the WIelders.

"This is fate." The one on Midoriya's left said, turning his face to display a wicked set of scars running down his face. Two parallel jagged lines were etched from forehead to chin, crossing his left eye and the left corner of his lips.

The bald man hummed, leaning forward and glancing at the others. "Well… it's more ova' timing thing, really."

"Banjou-senpai talked to you last time, right?" The one with the high collar asked gently. His voice was low, almost smoky in its tenor.

The screen cut to the tall lady, her face stony. She remained silent.

Finally, the fiery man was shown. He, too, did not speak. ~

"Hey, kid." Rumi sat up, looking at Izuku over her shoulder. "You got any names for these weirdos?" Eh. A bit blunt, but whatever. She wanted to know who they were.

He looked to All Might, who coughed, drawing everyone's attention. Some of the Villains leaned closer, not hesitating for even a moment.

"Allow me. The one with the long white hair is named Shigaraki Yoichi, the First. The…" he paused at the sudden murmurs at the familiar surname, pondering it himself. "The two facing the wall are clouded in mystery, their identities unknown even to us, but they are the Second and Third Wielders. Fourth comes the man with the scar, Shinomori Hikage. His Quirk was Danger Sense. The bald man is Banjou Daigoro, the Fifth. You may know him as the Hero Lariat, prominent during Destro's times. He used his Blackwhip to save many lives. The Sixth is only known as En, Quirk: Smokescreen."

He paused again, this time his throat constricting at the sight before him. "Shimura Nana was the Seventh, and she was my mentor." He glanced at the screen once more. "Her Quirk was Float, and she was one of the greatest Heroes to ever live."

After a moment of silence for the man's emotion to pass, Best Jeanist asked, "And the person made of flame?"

"That's me," he answered, staring at the screen. The outline of his younger self was clear in the fire, back when he was still… himself. "At least, I believe so."

Shuichi tapped a finger at his scaled cheek, staring at his friend out of the corner of his vision. He seemed completely unsurprised by the revelation All Might had dumped on them.

Shigaraki Tomura.

He'd told them, once, that his sensei had given him that name. Shuichi huffed, disquieted – had he truly named Tomura as part of his family? It seemed… unlike the man.

He scoffed, shaking his head and berating himself. It wasn't like Shuichi claimed to understand the ancient Villain. All For One had his reasons, and, well, Shuichi was just glad he seemed to somewhat truly care for his pseudo-son.

Daichi clapped his hands, startling Kurogiri and Nighteye both. The rest of the Wielders watched in muted annoyance. Second, for one, was a few more interjections from punching the man. "Good job, the idiot knows five out of his seven predecessors! Bravo, bravo!"

"…Have you ever, even once in your life, tried to not be an asshole? Maybe you'd enjoy it."

~ 'One For All's successors… in a vision again!' Deku thought in surprise.

"But it looks like we have a bit of time here." Yoichi continued. "Previously, we were only able to interact with you when you were severely mentally shaken." ~

Uraraka's, as well as most of his friends', eyes rubber-banded to him. Plus his teachers and the Heroes and the Villains, but he was able to mostly ignore them.

Hm.

Man, this place sucked.

"It's really not as bad as he says." he tried quickly. "Frankly, he's over-stating it. I was not severely mentally shaken when I last spoke with them."

Tsu stared. Her blank eyes were very effective at making him squirm. "You agree that you were somewhat shaken, though?"

He raised a finger, and let it drop back down. "Let's do this later, alright?"

Kacchan, sitting a few seats down from him, did not try to hide his amusement one bit. Izuku bit his cheek, once again turning away from the inquisitive eyes.

"When was this… last time, Midoriya?" Iida was staring at him again. Which was fair. Iida, he could honestly say, was one of his closest friends. Weird to have after fifteen years, but true. And now he'd been told that his friend had been keeping this… secret from him for as long they've known each other. Izuku didn't know how he would deal with that. In his opinion, Iida was doing much better than Izuku himself would be doing.

He chewed on his lip, worrying. "Uh, during joint training with 1-B? When I unlocked Blackwhip."

"Unlocked," Shouto deliberated on the word, his head tilted to the side like a puppy. "Like, as in a video game?"

"Maybe," Izuku said tiredly. He looked across the theatre, Shigaraki by chance meeting his eye. For a moment, the two both thought that the other looked undeniably tired.

~ "In the last four months, my power, One For All, has been growing exponentially." The screen showed a small black dot against an incomprehensible pattern. It grew larger and larger at an increasing rate, eight sparks eventually coming to life in its core. "And with that increase in capabilities, profiles on the previous holders of One For All were copied and pasted. And over time, we were able to communicate with one another as well."

The screen cut to a fuzzy flashback, showing a gruesome yet vague scene - those able to peer closer saw through the darkness, a bloodied Shigaraki's hand reaching for the camera with All For One himself seemingly growing out of his back. "Since the previous encounter," Yoichi continued gravely, "with my brother forcing himself inside our domain, it's become easier for us to come before you." ~

'Oh.' Nedzu, with his massive intellect, thought. 'That's not good.'

His ears flicking and trying the conversations of his companions, he scratched down more lines into his notebook, several pages already filled. He'd had his suspicions, of course. All For One was a gambler at heart. He loved taking risks.

But to leave his Quirk in another's, especially Shigaraki's, hands as he ventured out and was captured… Nedzu could not see why he would do such a thing. To spice up the game? No, he was smarter than that. There was something else. Something he needed, and something Shigaraki specifically could give him.

One For All had resisted his grasp for centuries. Perhaps he thought someone else would have a better chance at wrenching the Quirk from the Wielders? Was it blood relations, perhaps? Could he himself not steal the Quirk because it didn't register as stealable for some reason, or was there something else?

Curiouser and curiouser. He'd give it more thought soon; for the time being, he had to continue to gather information, not dwell on it.

From what they'd just witnessed, however, it was clear Midoriya was no less indomitable than his predecessors. He'd evaded capture from All For One just as the rest had.

Nedzu glanced at the boy, his whiskers twitching in amusement.

He'd never expected anything less.

Meanwhile, many people wondered what, exactly, 'his brother' had meant. Some – many, came to the wrong conclusion.

"Yoooo." Kaminari whispered, shaking Katsuki's shoulder until it rattled. "Yoooo."

"What, dumbass," he growled as he turned to his companion. The shitty video was getting interesting, and he just wanted to watch without interruption. But it seemed that was an impossibility.

Sparky's eyes were wide-open. "That Shigaraki dude has a brother! And he's, like, Midoriya's dad! Or, well, great-great-great-granddad. Wait, does that mean Shigaraki is super-old as well?"

Katsuki sat back in his seat and shut his eyes. Why me.

And above them all, Daichi stiffened, rage already beginning to boil his blood. Kurogiri none too subtly moved away. He grabbed the wrist of his Noumu, squeezing tightly – he wanted to break something. Someone.

Already?! Already, this brat had stopped Shigaraki in his tracks and evaded capture?

How?!

"Let go of Kurogiri, would you?"

Daichi paused at the voice coming from behind his headrest, subtly dripping with malice and the promise of pain. He sighed.

Slowly releasing his Noumu's hand, the beast withdrawing even further away, he truly lamented the fact he was never able to turn En to his side. Perhaps he shouldn't have tried to kill his lover, no matter how much of an annoying pest she turned to – him and En could have had so much fun.

~ "Well, yer' privacy is safe, so you don't need to worry about being watched all the time!" Banjou shouted, a massive grin on his face. The screen panned to show Deku, one hand on his void-covered mouth as indiscernible noises escaped him. "ACTH– YOU HAVE NO MOUTH AGAIN!" ~

"This guy's annoying." Kyouka grumbled, a hand on the side of her head. "Can't he be quieter?"

"No," Midoriya responded with his hands on his cheek, understanding of her plights. "He can not."

Banjou drooped into himself, spluttering. "Wha- does- does Izu not like me?!" he wailed, grabbing onto a startled Nana. "Say it ain't so!"

"Banjou, get off me." she said wearily, slowly prying him off by his face.

The man collapsed off of her and onto the ground, his body limp and eyes empty. Nana nudged him with her foot once, before leaving him for dead.

~ 'No…! Even back then…!' Deku thought, his tone surprised but certain. Suddenly, another picture was shown, this time of an enraged Midoriya, no mouth but still shouting. 'I was able to make noise… My voice is slowly manifesting in this realm!'

His eyes closed in deep focus, Deku put his hand to his mouth – rather, where his mouth should've been. "Wat deed yu meen… aboot haveeng to tack…?" In the background, Banjou clapped his hands, pride and surprise mixing in his expression. ~

Joy trickled into Izuku. It was clear how much he was progressing with One For All, able to defeat Muscular in minutes and now even able to speak in the Wielder's Realm! Though, from the startled giggles from some of his classmates, his speech wasn't exactly perfect. Well, there was always more work to do and more ways to improve.

Though, he did wonder – what was that picture of? How had Shigaraki entered the Realm, with All For One in tow? It was absolutely grotesque, the scene he'd discerned.

What, exactly, had happened between the three of them?

~ "I will do the talking…" the Fourth said, a titanic form rising to loom over Deku. Suddenly, he was shown in the light, his attire clearly shown to be a ripped and torn Hero costume. "My name is Shinomori Hikage. And I am the Fourth User of One For All."

"Your previous fight brought forth my power through your will."

"Vight!" Deku responded, a scene playing out behind him. It showed Deku, darkened by shadows and surrounded by jade lightning, his eyes blown wide open and his irises pin-pricks in an almost predatory gaze. The same visual aid shown during the Muscular battle – a small bolt of stylized lightning – emanated from his head. ~

No one spoke, but in the moment everyone's mind went to the same place – worry, or fear. The boy seemed animalistic in that single frame, primal in his rage.

And the rage alone was an impossible sight to those that truly knew the boy. Ochako reached over instinctively, grabbing Deku's hand with care. Glancing at her, he weakly brought a smile forth. Trying to reassure her that he was alright even though she could clearly see he was rattled by the picture. She squeezed it gently, forcing herself to return the smile.

~ "You scared me there," Shinomori said, a hand on his chest.

"Sowwy…" Deku responded, shrinking back a little.

"I was alerted to be alert to your alertness manifesting," the man continued, his gaze falling to the wayside. He looked worried.

'What a way with words…!' Deku thought in his usual eloquent voice, seemingly awed. ~

"Really, Hikage?" Third said, turning to the man. "That's… really?"

"Shut up," he responded, a light blush dusting his cheeks. "You're not much better with speeches."

The man sat back in his seat, begrudging.

Unaware of the Vestiges above, Shigaraki Tomura blinked in pure and abject horror.

'Did… did he just say 'sowwy'?

~ Lunging forward and abruptly throwing a punch at Shinomori, Banjou began speaking. "Mister Shinomori here is a weirdo hermit who lived in the woods cuz' he was so irritable when it came to society." Danger Sense activating on-screen, Shinomori dodged the attack easily.

"It was a turbulent time," he retorted quickly. "I wasn't the weirdo, everyone else was." In the background, a strand of Blackwhip hissed out from a retreated Banjou.

Suddenly, he attacked, several whips striking towards the silver-haired man. He dodged each with unparalleled grace and fluidity, speaking calmly as he did. "Are you aware," he said, turning to Deku even as he jumped between the attacks, "of my age and cause of death?" ~

"I have a bad feeling about this," Mashirao muttered to Hagakure. "The music's getting way too tense."

She slapped his arm, leaning forward and watching with what he was sure were starry eyes. "Shut up and watch."

He sighed for the tenth time in as many minutes.

"Forty years old, died of being a weak-ass bitch." Daichi recited. "Like, come on. Who dies because their own Quirk's too strong for them? Weaklings, that's right."

Hikage put his head into his hands. "…Someone please figure out how to shut that idiot up, or I will."

Yoichi reached over to pat him on the back, almost condescendingly. "Good luck with that."

~ "Yoo wre forty," Deku said slowly, looking up. HIs eyes were confused. "Cuz of deff wss…"

A picture of a notebook appeared, many words scribbled out. 'All Might's file didn't list a cause of death,' Deku thought, worry laced in his tone. 'No… it looked like he scratched it out while writing it-'

His thoughts were interrupted by Shinomori, half his face shadowed. In the light, his scars seemed even more terrifying, his bright purple eyes tight and emotionless.

"It was old age." ~

Todoroki and Uraraka grabbed his sleeves from either side, horror filling both their expressions and exclamations. It was a strange sight to see on either of his friends. They usually kept such powerful emotions to themselves.

With his friends panicking and shouting around him once again, Izuku was in a relatively familiar situation. However, this time he felt quite simply blank.

Dead… at forty. Well, that was a fair few years away, he supposed.

Katsuki watched as his… friend, was quickly smothered by his worried and distressed classmates, and wondered what was wrong with the world. But he swallowed, steadied himself, and breathed instead.

One For All wasn't fully made outta idiots. They had something to say, something helpful. Something that meant idiot Deku wasn't about to die.

Toshinori, meanwhile, realized something that should have been clear from the beginning.

"Oh, fuck," he said to himself, before turning to the ring of teachers surrounding him. They were slowly getting over their horror, which wasn't good for him, because it would very quickly turn to rage. "Alright, it doesn't look good, but I promise Izuku will be fine." he quickly said, nodding at the screen. "Watch for a moment. Shinomori will explain."

They did not watch for a moment.

~ The video continued despite the uproar in the room.

"Old age…?!" Deku said, his eyes horror-struck. "At 40…?!"

The camera slowly panned down from behind Shinomori as he spoke, the void picking up its pace as it shifted endlessly. An impossible wind rushed through the room. "I didn't understand why either… Banjou and I were discussing it amongst each other, but it was through Yagi-kun that we were able to understand."

Deku stood in front of Hikage, shrouded by the void. It flowed to the right in the breeze, his hair flowing with it. Shinomori continued, "In layman's terms, One For All is no longer able to be held by a regular person." ~

"Oh, wow." Yaoyorozu said softly.

Toshinori, wrapped up in Eraserhead's scarf, gagged, and moments away from being murdered, was glad someone else figured it out.

"Guys," she said softly, standing and turning to the group of students slowly piling atop of Midoriya. Her eyes widened when she saw the other scene in the back of the theatre, but, wisely, she ignored it. Smart child, he thought. "I think they're telling him this because Midoriya's, ahem, different, and he'll be alright in the end. We should keep watching."

Though the students did not at all extricate themselves from above Midoriya, they did stop shouting and screaming. Which was good. He supposed.

Hanabata Koku relaxed slightly, poking his fellow Villain. Skeptic turned to the politician, raising an interested eyebrow beneath his bangs. "Well, would you look at that? A Quirk that kills the user." He laughed softly, some pity swirling in his gut for the kid. Not much, mind you. He deserved it, really. "Seems like Re-Destro hasn't got anything to worry about. Kid'll be dead before long, especially if all that crap about exponential growth applies."

Skeptic stared at him skeptically. "Really? Look closer, Hanabata."

"Eh?" He poked his fellow again. "What's that supposed to mean?"

As usual, Skeptic ignored him. Koku crossed his arms and turned away in annoyance, blowing a strand of hair out of his eyes.

~ "Huh…?" Sweat dripped down Deku's forehead, confusion clear in his eyes.

Shinomori reached towards his left eye, slowly brushing his hair away from his scar. "I held One For All for the longest out of anyone aside from Yagi-kun." The scene cut to a view of a shirtless Shinomori from behind, standing in front of a boulder cleaved perfectly in two. His hands were raised in fists, his toned body heaving as he breathed.

"For those eighteen years, I evaded All For One while training this power. With his phenomenal strength, I realized that I would never be able to beat him in that state. I just had to nurture this power myself so that someone else could do it."

"And in my final year…" He pulled the hair completely off the scar, revealing it in all of its size and terrible glory. In this close-up, the scar could be seen more clearly, and some noticed it wasn't exactly a scar as much as a… crack. "The Quirk broke my body." ~

Some of the more aware students pondered who All For One was, Momo, for one, was glad that her original hypothesis was correct. The rest hardly noticed, more preoccupied with Midoriya's future and safety.

"This does not sound good in any way." Nemuri said, straightening her whip threateningly. Little Midoriya with a Quirk that could break him?! Which, now that she thought about it, wasn't much different to what it was doing to him right now. She looked down at All Might, cracking her whip once more.

Yagi, for his part, stared back defiantly. Which made sense – she really doubted the four-decade Number One Hero would ever be galled by his coworkers. But still, he deserved this.

Kinda.

"You're sure Midoriya'll be alright?" Yamada asked in a troubled voice from his position, sitting atop the mummified form of the man. The Hero wriggled in a way that might've been a yes. Yamada looked up at Aizawa, his lips twisting. "Maybe we should let him out."

"Not yet."

Even she was beginning to feel bad for the bound man. But only just. "Then when?"

"Come on, let me have a few more hours."

~ "At first, I thought it was a case of me having a weak condition. At worst, a chronic disease… But with Yagi's existence, he could confirm all theories and suspicions for me." Deku's eye was shown, both blown wide open in shock. "Me dying of old age… it meant that One For All will surely burn away the life force of any one of its holders." ~

"Alright, you can have a few more hours."

~ "Eiffe fours…!" Deku stared, confused. Shinomori stood on his left, staring down at him impartially. "Fat's sherrible!"

("But…! Wait a moment!") he continued, the scene cutting to a view of Yagi's stand-in. ("What about All Might, who held One For All way longer than Shinomori-san?!")

"That's the thing we're trying to say," Yoichi continued. His long hair fell to the side as he tilted his head. "I didn't have One For All for all that long, and I died while fighting, so… there wasn't a lot to compare it to. Yagi thought that the incongruency in lifespan had to do with some invisible limit to the load each of us could take on."

Deku was shown again, his fingers on his chin and deep in thought. Yoichi continued, "Which lead to Shinomori-kun wondering to himself if Yagi had something he didn't." Deku startled back, eyes widening as he seemed to realize something that was truly surprising.

"All Might," he said, the void falling from the background to twist around him like a fog. It suddenly disappeared, revealing Deku dressed in his Yuuei uniform with a younger All Might, from his Yuuei days, standing behind him. "Is Quirkless." The void-made-solid evaporated, leaving behind only Deku. ~

"Oh, snap." Momo muttered again, gently shaking Jirou by the arms. "I'm a genius."

"Was there ever any doubt?" she asked, trying to pry her off without the other girl noticing. "…What exactly are you talking about?"

"You'll see."

~ "Right." Yoichi said, a side-profile of his face appearing on screen before switching to a view of All Might's spectral form. "It's with Yagi-kun, who's still alive today, that we learned this information, as a model of his subconscious relays all the information he learns back to us. We haven't brought it up with you just yet because we weren't so sure… but after listening to my brother, I believe the confirmation is clear."

"The idea that a portion of a Quirk User's conscious permeated within the new User makes us wonder how and why elements of Yagi-kun's being are here, despite him being Quirkless. We thought that a successor's consciousness manifesting itself in this realm was tied to their Quirk. But Yagi, being Quirkless, is different to all of us. So he's a unique sample that we'll have to observe."

"It seems as though Yagi alone," the screen cut to All Might holding onto Deku's arm in the physical world, worry etched onto his face, "was able to summon our consciousness without knowing about it himself." ~

Wait, what? Toshinori quickly escaped from Aizawa's scarf – he was going to give the man a stern talking-to on the importance of secrecy and also self-restraint – to stand up and look at the screen more closely.

He… he was the one to summon the conscious? He cradled his chin in his hand; Yoichi probably meant that throughout his career, he'd given the Quirk enough time to grow and develop, and polished and perfected it to the highest degree until even the consciousness of the previous holders were brought to life within it.

It made an amount of sense. He sharpened the blade to a perfect edge, and passed it on to Izuku, who could use it to its fullest potential.

He caught his boy's eye in the midst of the crowd surrounding him, and two grinner at each other in understanding. This was… good. Great knowledge for their future.

Perhaps he'd try to teach Izuku meditation of some type – it might make it easier to contact the Wielders at the stage they were at. With their knowledge, it would be even easier to mentor Izuku into understanding and using his Quirk.

~ "For forty years, Yagi-kun has had One For All." The screen showed two glass goblets on a shadowy surface, one filled with steady water and the other overflowing. "Those who are born with a Quirk already have their metaphorical cup filled. Adding One For All to their cup makes it crack and spill over, leading to what happened with Shinomori."

Suddenly, it switched to a series of seven glasses, each shattered and cracked in some way. But at the forefront of this row, there was a steel goblet, shining brilliantly with a steady pool of water contained within. "Toshinori's was an empty cup, so One For All likely conformed and fitted itself to become his true Quirk, in a sense." ~

"Ohhh." Snipe said. "Ohhhh."

Toshinori turned back to Aizawa with his arms crossed over his chest. "Do I get an apology?"

The other teacher only raised an eyebrow, clutching his capture weapon as he sank back into his armchair. Shameless, really. "Don't act like you knew about this."

"I had no reason to think Midoriya's experience with One For All would be any different than my own." he argued, before sighing in muted annoyance. "In any case, let's just be glad young Midoriya is alright."

Which, it seemed, the Heroes' side of the theatre was taking well to heart. Izuku was no longer slowly suffocating beneath his friends, though he had to admit their worry was not unplaced. Even Izuku was shocked by First's reassurance that he wasn't going to crack open like an egg.

But all the while this was happening, Tomura had been looking at his own hand, and seeing only weakness.

"So that's why I need a new body," he said, Garaki glancing at him once before nodding. The doctor was as enraptured by the screen as the rest of his companions. "I see." He clenched his hand into a fist, wondering how it would feel when it was enhanced. Would it still be him? A body made to hold All For One instead of Decay. "It's the first thing we're doing, doc, no matter what. Remember that."

~ Another close-up of Yoichi's side-profile appeared, the young man's eyes hard as he stared at Izuku. "Though it's still unknown as to the causal relationship between One For All being inherited and adapting with the user's Quirk," the camera zoomed far out to once again show the crumbling room floating aimlessly in the void, "it looks as though those with the least to offer, the Quirkless, have the most potential when inheriting this power." ~

Shouto's eyes narrowed, mismatched colours staring at the screen. "That's… a bit of a rude way to put it."

Midoriya shrugged against him, seemingly trying to relax after the pandemonium of the past few moments. "He was born a few centuries ago, I think. Besides, he thought he was Quirkless himself for a few decades, until he passed One For All on."

His eyes narrowed further. "He thought he was Quirkless? Then… how did he know to pass on his Quirk?"

Midoriya paused. "…Good question."

~ Deku stared down at his hands, only his abdomen and his upper arms visible. ("In summary,") he began, voice still muffled but growing more powerful, ("we cannot risk passing this Quirk onto 'normal' people already blessed with Quirks of their own.")

Shimura Nana, Shigaraki Yoichi, and the ethereal Yagi Toshinori all stared impassively at him.

("That One For All needs to be given out cautiously. That's what you're saying.")

Yoichi nodded slowly. "With each generation, Quirkless people have become more and more infrequent. Which means potential applicants are limited."

Deku stared with a thoughtful expression, another scene playing out on screen: a picture taken at sunset, a thin All Might surrounded by smoke staring at a younger Izuku with his shadow stretching far down the street. The Hero had his back to the screen, his right hand raised and pointing at the surprised middle school student.

"This is something neither you, Yagi, or any of us could have predicted… the fact that One For All was passed onto you was nothing short of a miracle." Yoichi sighed, his shoulders falling. "If only we were able to communicate with our successors faster… perhaps we could've prevented… the tragic deaths of more people…"

Sir Nighteye was shown from the back, a grey filter over the screen. It quickly cut to Yagi's form, his head bowed. Even wreathed in flame and faceless, he seemed… sad. ~

Mirai blinked, before turning to the Wielders. Yoichi stopped him, placing his hand on the man's shoulder and languidly sitting down next to him. "You were a great person for Yagi," he said softly, squeezing his shoulder and smiling. "You won't know how much your death affected him. It nearly wrecked him. To be surprised that we wished for you to live… is foolish. Be proud of what you've done, what you've accomplished."

His throat felt uncommonly dry. "Thank you."

Yoichi paused, before wrapping his arms around his shoulders and hugging him. Mirai put his arms waving up in the air, surprised by the sudden display. "Anytime, friend."

~ "in other words, kiddo," Banjou interrupted, his face devastatingly serious. The same void as before wrapped around Deku again, before erupting off and revealing him dressed in his Hero costume with an utterly shell shocked look in his eyes. "You may be the last successor of One For All."

'Huh,' Izuku thought. 'No pressure.'

Across the room, Tomura snorted to himself. 'Last successor of One For All versus the first successor of All For One. What fun.'

Izuku turned to look at the light-haired Villain. He was smiling to himself again. 'Just gotta fight off Shigaraki and All For One both. Alone. Cool.'

'Just gotta kill the kid and all his friends. Yay, more fun.' Tomura itched at his neck for a moment, before a chilling smile crept onto his face. 'That should actually be fun, though.'

"Wow," Hawks interrupted their thoughts, tugging restlessly at his jacket as he hovered in the air. "Isn't that… a lot of pressure to put on a kid?"

Below the winged Hero, Endeavour winced. Again. He'd been doing a lot of that recently, his eyes downcast as the video continued on heedlessly. It seemed every word of these impossible truths served onty to drive a stake deeper and deeper into his heart.

But he did not have the liberty of weakness. He was the Number One now. They all looked to him. He had to be strong.

…How?

"It is," Nedzu agreed, his voice loud in the quiet of the theatre. "Midoriya, even with what the future might bring, do not take too much pressure upon yourself. We, as Heroes, will be here with you."

Izuku blinked at the sudden assents from the dozens of Heroes in the room. The Lurkers, Best Jeanist and Hawks and Miruko, his classmates and his teachers – even Endeavour gave a late grunt that might've signified his agreement.

"Noted." Theta rumbled, speaking for the first time in a long while. A few students jumped in the air at his voice. "Might one explain why such duties should not be placed upon Midoriya Izuku? He has the strength and will for it, no?"

The room paused in silence, unable or unwilling to answer the AI's question. "Uh, well, cause he's a kid?" Mount Lady tried.

"Noted." he repeated. "However, Midoriya Izuku's power far outshines any of your own. He may be the only person on your side of the room who is able to stand against what comes. Will you still say he should not?"

"Yeah," she replied, as if there weren't any question about it. "Power or not, he's fifteen. Can't let him lead the charge."

Theta hummed, the noise eerie in the sudden silence of the room. "It's so surprising how quickly humans change their minds."

"Let's continue."

Mount Lady started talking again, "Wait a mo-"

"Let's continue."

~ Shimura Nana slowly stood up from her chair, her pure white cape flowing in the wind and falling behind her. The music grew impossibly tense as she stood.

She spoke as she moved.

"Are you able to kill Shigaraki Tomura?" ~

"Alright, hold the fuckin' phone." Denki said first, as always. He prided himself on having the first word here, though right now, he did not have any joy within him. Everything Mount Lady had just said, he'd agreed with. Hell, they were all teenagers. All Might's successor or not, Midoriya as a person didn't deserve to have this much weight on his shoulders. And this especially? "Kill?"

Edgeshot sat up straighter, a strange fire dancing in his eyes. "Heroes should never kill. This – to ask a teenager to kill a Villain is an exercise in ultimate folly."

Denki nodded, as did the entire room of Heroes. The Villains were silent, watching their side of the room with cold eyes. After all, the predecessor to the so-called Symbol of Peace had just asked a young boy to kill their leader.

Toshinori seemed frozen in shock and surprise, staring at the screen as if he couldn't understand it at all. 'Nana… what? Are you… lying, yes. You must be lying. Nana… really?' But even with that understanding, the initial thought persisted. 'Shigaraki isn't All For One. He doesn't… he can't… he can be stopped without bloodshed.'

'But what if we can't?'

'What then?'

Tomura leaned back with a sharp smile, placing his hand on his fist again. 'Really, grandma. Well, can't say I'm surprised.'

He felt eyes on the back of his head. He turned, seeing Midoriya already looking at him. The two met eyes, crimson locking against emerald.

Tomura scowled again. If there ever was such a pure 'no' written in a pair of eyes… what an idiot. He would relish killing him, teaching him the stupidity of his morality.

He hated Midoriya, and he was certain Midoriya hated him in turn. And what use was a person who didn't destroy what they hated? In this world, he was the fool and Tomura the king. These pathetic Heroes would all learn that soon enough.

And after he'd finished that, maybe he'd find his grandma's grave, and condemn it to dust.

Yeah. He smirked. Yeah, that'd work.

~ ("Excuse me?") Deku responded, his tone steel even as he drew back.

"…This isn't a request." Nana continued, slowly walking towards Izuku. The other Vestiges remained silent, watching and waiting. "This is a question of your will and intent."

The Hero stopped in front of him, looking down at the young boy. Her face was emotionless, long locks of sleek black hair falling over her eyes. "You saw him during the last interaction, and saw the face of a child who was crying. You felt that he was in pain." ~

Kurogiri watched, confusion visible on his misty face as he tilted his head.

Shigaraki Tomura… a crying child? In pain? Perish the thought.

Master seemed to agree, an uproarious laugh echoing through the galley. The Wielders gave him dirty looks, but he ignored them with ease. "Oh, brother. You really go out of your way to find the most naive children, don't you? First Yagi with his dreams of symbols and peace, and now this boy, pitying his enemy even when you've all decided to kill him. As if you even have a chance."

"Stupid." he said, simply. "You're all idiots."

Yoichi stared at the screen, his chin resting on steepled fingers, calm as calm could be.

"…you're the stupidest one here, brother."

"Excuse me?"

~ Deku looked up, his eyes opened wide in shock. "Our hearts and minds are one, so we could sense that feeling within you." she explained, her voice audibly empty.

Banjou interrupted, his hands on his knees from where he was sitting in his throne. "The problem is, we don't really see it the same way!" His eyes were squinted, disdain all over his face. "We can also sense the boy bein' hurt by All For One, but that doesn't mean that he wants any of our help though."

The screen cut to a serious close-up to Shigaraki's face, pure white hair falling over his eyes. Many people, Heroes and Villains alike, shuddered at the pure malice emanating from the sight. "Even in that tense situation, his eyes… they were filled with nothing but contempt." ~

"Hurt?" Shigaraki scoffed, very exaggeratedly rolling his eyes. "Here I was thinking they couldn't get any stupider."

Kyudai shifted in his armchair, hoping none of his many nerves were displayed on his face.

~ Yoichi raised his hands in front of him, gesturing. "He raised him that way."

Deku was shown again, shocked. As Yoichi continued, the young Hero's eyes grew stronger and more determined. "In Shigaraki's state… my brother has probably taken over his body by now. All For One's will has likely all but dominated his mind already."

"This all is just another attempt to get his hands on One For All." ~

Nedzu's pencil broke against the notebook, and he swore. Loudly. Thankfully, it was drowned out by the surprised exclamations from his fellow watchers. Most of the Top Ten were glancingly aware of All For One's existence, and had long since put one and one together. The rest had not.

The principal didn't waste a moment in turning to see Shigaraki's reaction to this knowledge.

For what should be world-shattering knowledge, the Villain seemed uninterested. He was still leaning in his armchair with his coat hanging behind him, cheek on fist and feet thrown over the armrest. No visible expression on his face.

Strange. Did he not believe the words of the Vestiges? It was possible, considering the level of brainwashing he must've been subjected to. Nedzu would keep an eye on him for the time being, but at the very least, it was good to know that his suspicions were correct.

All For One's body was weak and broken. Shigaraki's body was not. It was simple.

But… was it possible to stop it? At the moment, Shigaraki did not look nor act as if he was being possessed by All For One. If they stopped the Villain's plans in their tracks, that would be fantastic for their future chances. With All For One contained and Shigaraki merely himself, victory was all but assured.

Toga watched her leader with his tight eyes, waiting for him to explode into anger and accusations. To shout at the screen and the Heroes. To fight back.

But he did not.

Toga liked Shigaraki. Somehow. He was nice, sometimes, and they were a team now, for better or for worse.

So at this moment, she was worried. Very, very worried.

~ "As for mister Kouhai o'er here," Banjou said, pointing with his thumb at the so-far silent En, "and myself, All For One's tried to steal One For All from us twice, and failed both times!"

The metaphorical diagram of One For All appeared again, two bright stars floating in an empty void. "In order for One For All to stay safe from the evildoers, we require our successors to have an iron will… a nigh-infinite determination. Ours is a power all too valuable to be risked for just one lowly person… Shigaraki will use your lack of an iron will to his advantage."

'A power that cannot be transferred to another without the will of the user,' Nana thought with immense gravity, disjointed scenes showing what appeared to be a massive fight in the Wielder's realm playing out on the screen. Shimura was shown front and centre, defending against attacks that seemed to shatter the void the realm was born of 'And this is going to be a test of your determination.' ~

'Ah.' Katsuki thought, before frowning. What, hadn't the nerd already proven his determination? Fuck him, but there wasn't a man in the world with a steelier heart.

The fuck was the point of this?

"Lowly person?" Shigaraki said, his first words since that concerning revelation. Dabi glanced at him out of the corner of his eyes, watching. The man sounded almost… offended by Banjou's words, and not at all interested in the fact that All For One wanted his body. "Seriously?"

Blinking, Dabi finally shrugged to himself. If he didn't want to face that… well, the man's decisions were his and his alone. He had no part to play in this.

Not yet, at least.

~ "We've created and cultivated One For All for the specific purpose of eradicating All For One." Yoichi said, cutting to a view of him sitting on his throne. The Second was still facing the wall behind him. It then changed to a side-profile of the model of All Might's subconsciousness. "Yagi-kun is the prime example of this. But my brother keeps coming back, and Shigaraki seems to be a part of his strategy to make you lower your guard." ~

"Quick, ahem," Kirishima immediately grimaced at all the annoyed eyes falling on him, "question. Who is All For One exactly?"

Katsuki snorted – he'd forgotten some people didn't know the bastard's name. "Remember the dude with half a face that All Might kicked the living shit out of at Kamino? That guy."

Shigaraki sat up, instantly glaring at the explosive teenager. "Hey, All Might didn't kick the shit out of him, you brat. If he hadn't cheated, Master would've won!"

Katsuki, too, stood up with flaring hands. Soy-face and Shitty-hair shifted away from the explosions, a weary sigh escaping from both their lips. "Oi, All Might didn't fuckin' cheat! Won fair and square! Your 'master' was just too weak!"

Somewhere in the audience, Izuku let his head fall down into his palms. Uraraka patted him on the back comfortingly, while Todoroki took the opportunity to steal the remains of his breakfast.

"I'm going to enjoy killing you, you little shit."

"Haa? I'd like to see your ass try!"

Second rubbed his eyes, irritated by the display. "Will they ever stop fighting?"

"I don't think so." Yoichi responded, a playful lilt to his voice. "Besides, it's kinda cute. Like, in a 'my dad's cooler than your dad!' type of way."

"Isn't Toshi Izuku's dad, though?" En interrupted, confused. "I thought the loud child already had a father."

"Katsuki can have two dads, as a treat."

~ "Izuku-kun," Shimura said, the tense music finally rising to a climax. She began walking towards the boy, speaking, "I come to you not to merely tell you that there's 'no backing out now'. I feel like it's cowardly for me to even consider thrusting my will onto you like this."

Shimura's face was shadowed by her hair, but her eyes were lowered and filled with sadness. "But Tomura Shigaraki is my grandson. My grandson who became this way because I left his father at a young age to fight All For One. This all is the result of my actions." ~

Denki blinked at this new information that had set the theatre ablaze in whispers, before turning once again to the still-seething Bakugou. Eraserhead had… brought an end to their disagreement rather quickly.

The other boy stopped him in his tracks with a downright lethal glare. "Don't even."

"So," he said, unheeding this warning, "time to expand on what I said before. If this lady's like Midoriya's grandma and is actually Shigaraki's grandma, then that means they're cousins, no? Or maybe even brothers! But wait, since the first dude is also both their grandpas- oh, ew, I don't like th-"

"Ponytail!" Bakugou turned away, interrupting Denki's very important insights. "Gimme a knife. I need to get rid of an idiot."

Yaoyorozu refused, though not exactly for the efforts of Jirou trying to save him. Denki glared at her, crossing his arms and pouting.

She ignored him. As usual.

Ow.

"Oh wow, really?" Toga was up in his face, poking him. His fingers twitched. "Does this mean you're related to Izukkun?"

He did not want to think about that. Or about his grandmother and her lies.

His hand spasmed uncontrollably, and Twice thankfully took that moment to remove the girl from his presence before he murdered her. Good man – Tomura was giving him a raise.

…Once they got back. And had, well, money.

~ Shimura's eyes were closed, and the despair writhing within her was etched deep on her face. "And as this failure I brought upon myself, it seems so harsh to just pass it on to a sixteen year old child."

"I understand this!" she exclaimed, gesturing widely. The screen began fading away. "But!"

"If my grandson… nay, if that thing reaches its full potential…"

A cocoon appeared on-screen, pulsating and glowing with a dangerous purple light. The ominous presence could be felt from simply a photo of it. Suddenly, it throbbed once, and then again, and then exploded, creating a shower of mucus and gore.

Left behind was Shigaraki, clad in only pants and dripping wet. His posture hid his face, hair white as snow falling over it.

Behind him, a pair of dark-coloured butterfly wings slowly stretched outwards, shaking off the grime. They were beautiful in some ways, but just like the cocoon, these wings emanated with a pure and simple malice.

"No one will be able to stop what comes next." Shigaraki raised his face, and the camera suddenly zoomed in at an intense speed. The man's face was gone, replaced with a horrifying skull whose mouth was open in a wordless scream. Some teeth were missing, others rotting. His eye sockets were black as sin, emptier than the void that formed the background.

Shimura continued grimly.

"You would be fighting against the manifestation of pure evil." ~

Jin grinned underneath his mask, leaning against Shigaraki and throwing an arm over his shoulder. On the screen, their boss emanated evil – pure badassery. "Yo, boss! Look a' that!" He extended his other arm, a thumbs-up entering Shigaraki's vision. The man growled. "You look awesome! No, actually, that's fucking terrifying, what are you talking about?! Awesome, I tell you!"

Tomura shifted irritably underneath Twice's arm, mentally taking back the promised raise even though he agreed with every single word the man spoke.

Awesome, yes. Terrifying, definitely.

He loved it. It was exactly what he wanted. His future, his dreams exacted. To become rage and evil manifest. This transformation he was promised was everything he'd ever hoped for.

Though… as cool as it looked, he… kind of, well, liked his face.

Tomura glanced at the doctor, hoping to himself all that stuff was just visual fuckery and that he wasn't going to be walking around without a face.

…If that was the case, he might have to rethink his decision. Could all that power really be worth it?

Izuku watched the screen, his lips thinned. The sight didn't scare him half as much as it scared some of his classmates. Instead, it somehow steadied him, determination rushing into his being.

A few stories up, he could feel All Might have the exact same reaction as himself. The same resolve poured through his mentor.

The sight was a horror to behold, that much was true. The aura was monstrous, the potential of it terrifying.

But it was the future, and he could not let himself be bowed by it. He might have to face this Shigaraki eventually. Fear is not an option – not for him.

Even a moment of hesitation could mean any number of terrible things. Nana was right about that much. His will and intent must, at all times and situations, be steel. The ramifications of failure were massive.

Yet, no matter what his predecessors said, he didn't want to kill the man. Shigaraki Tomura in this perfected form might bring unimaginable horrors in his wake. He may do terrible things and hurt countless people. Shigaraki may become a monster held in human skin.

But, even so, anyone could be saved. Izuku would hold true to that ideal, now and forever.

And as Midoriya watched the screen with tight eyes, thinking these thoughts to himself, Ochako watched him.

He was steeling himself. For what?

Readying himself to fight that. How?

She understood that, in some sense, it was his duty. As the Ninth Wielder of One For All.

But, still. To put all this weight on him… to tell him that he couldn't save someone he truly and desperately wanted to save… to ask him to do the unthinkable…

Ochako didn't like the Wielders all too much.

~ "There are people out there," A new snapshot now appeared, once again of Shigaraki. His mouth was open in an enraged scream, white hair separated into two rivers that flowed down his face and obscured his eyes. His body was criss-crossed in lines of blood and gore, and he seemed to be stumbling towards the screen. "Who cannot be forgiven, comprehended, or rehabilitated."

Deku stared at Shimura, composed and determined. "What if he's one of them?"

Shimura suddenly lunged forward, placing her hands on Deku's shoulders. "When a person who looks like he wants to be saved even though he simply cannot be saved…"

The young Hero looked his predecessor in the eye with a wide and stunned gaze. Shimura, her face cast over completely with shadows, stared down at him.

"Can you tell me that you have the will required to stop him at all costs?" ~

Tsunagu, carefully combing his hair back, watched Miruko as she mumbled to herself on their shared couch. The bunny Hero had her hand on her chin, her ears twitching above her head.

She was quite interesting, he had to admit. The questions she posed to herself were… thought-provoking. He couldn't answer half of them. He doubted Deku could either.

Miruko was unsurprisingly wary of the boy, while still somehow keen on him. The concept of a century-long line of Heroes was no new thing, but to realize that All Might and the position of Number One was hereditary as well was… surprising. (And Tsunagu said 'hereditary' because it was perfectly clear that Deku was the Hero's son, blood or not.)

As Best Jeanist, he'd never really wanted the position of Number One. He was perfectly fine where he was. Too many eyes would be on him if he was at the top.

But that was something their Deku would have to become adjusted to very quickly. The intrigue, the curiosity, even the suspicion and uncertainty at first. These questions, he'd have to answer.

One day; not just yet. The boy had a long way to go before his morals could be called into question. Certainly, he was being asked to commit murder, but that was in a future none of them would allow to come.

Miruko stood, and Tsunagu nearly fell off the couch.

"So, Deku. I've a question for ya'." The Hero crossed her arms. Her foot tapped on the hard floor, sounding up the stairs. Deku's shoulders rose up in defense again. "Could you kill someone, if it was needed?"

There was a beat of silence, before the Heroes rounded on her.

"Hey, wait, Miruko, that's really not something you can just ask a kid." Kamui Woods said, also standing. Tsunagu got to his feet just as the rest of the Heroes stood. He sighed behind his collar.

"Isn't it?" she asked, teeth bared in a rough facsimile of a smile. He flinched back. "C'mon, I like the kid as much as the rest of you. But he's probably the next Number One. Don't act as if he's not going to have to face this shit eventually."

Deku was frozen in his seat, though his companions were throwing some dirty glances Miruko's way. Tsunagu cleared his throat, "This is not the moment, Usagiyama. Death may be a permanent fixture of a Heroes' life, but the boy is far too young to answer such a question."

"Eh, I don't think so." she tilted her head, an annoyed eyebrow raised at him. "He's already in training to be a Hero, and we've got to ask and answer some tough questions. Like you're saying, life ain't kind. If the kid wants to be a Hero, let alone Number One, he needs to figure this shit out."

"It's not hard to figure out," Edgeshot interjected, biting his words out. "Heroes, don't, kill."

Miruko snorted. "Really, now? We've all got a case that keeps us up at night. Trust me, I've got my fair share."

"Accidents can happen, Miruko. We learn to grieve and we move on. This is not an accident. This is a purposeful death – a murder." His voice stern and calm, he stood, clasping his fingers into a hand-sign. Tsunagu sighed again – he really hoped a fight wouldn't break out. "There is never a case where assassinating a Villain is allowed. And even so, asking a child to do so is… insane."

She cracked her knuckles. "I'm not asking him to do so. I'm saying, when he's a Pro and he has to choose between a Villain and a civilian, can he do what's necessary? Can he? Millions are going to be depending on him."

"This is all foolish." Endeavour suddenly rumbled. The assembled Heroes turned to the mostly silent Number One. Even with his lethal flames, Endeavour had never accidentally brought about the end of a VIllain. "We become Heroes to save civilians. And in order to save, we hurt… the Villains. But we do not go hunting for them. We do not kill."

Hawks hummed, eyes darting downward as the attention fell on him. "Kill a Villain now and save a supposed thousand lives in the future. It seems simple to some and complex to others. Would you do it?" He shook his head, tucking his wings behind him. He knew his own response to the question, but he knew the others wouldn't like it. So instead he slowly turned, peering up the stairs, bright eyes searching for one person. The assembled Yuuei faculty looked down at the rest of the Heroes. They weren't interfering in this argument, yet shifted uneasily under his golden gaze. "All Might… you've done this before. You've made this decision. You know the answer, don't you?"

Yagi nodded at Hawks' question, much to the shock and surprise of the room at large. "Heroes… most of you will never have to deal with such a situation. Deaths during a fight may be common, but I doubt any of you will ever go out looking to bring an end to a specific Villain. For revenge, for heroic purposes, for whatever reason."

The titanic Hero looked down at his hands, turning them this way and that. As if imagining them to be something different, or remembering a moment long passed. "Most of you won't. Some…" he looked up, cerulean eyes blazing with a mortal flame. "I killed All For One six years ago. The bastard might've survived, but for six years I thought I had killed him. I ripped off half the man's face with my bare hands, and I have never regretted it. Not once."

The Heroes shrunk back from the precise force hiding behind the man's words. "There are some people in this world that cannot be saved. He may be one, but that isn't for me to say. We Heroes cannot pretend to be judge, jury, and executioner. We are executioners, only. Our decisions are made in the heat of the moment. I decided that All For One needed to die. I still stand by that decision, even as he rots in jail. And I can't say for sure how many people might have survived if I'd actually killed All For One that day, nor how many might've died because I didn't."

"But all I know is that this number is not zero. And that's enough." All Might seemed to look through all of them in that moment, his shadowed eyes soul-splitting. "When you make a decision, it is your duty to stand by it. Do not take away from the decision of another Hero. Do not call into question the integrity of your fellows, because every situation is different and an unwillingness to kill is a sign of strength. But still, stand by your own decisions on the matter, and in times such as these, do what you know to be necessary."

Tsunagu slowly sat back down with the rest of the Heroes, keeping his eyes on All Might. The Hero's eyes fell to his assembled students, each enraptured by his speech. "And, when the time comes, I trust in all of my students to do what they think is necessary. Not what I think is right. That is my duty as a teacher. And it is not your duty to question my students."

All Might nodded once more, eyes locking with his successor. Tsunagu noted the reaction of the green-haired boy – considering and pensive. As if he was rolling something around in his mind.

"Midoriya is his own person," All Might continued, speaking with finality. "His decisions are his own, and I stand by his choices as much as I stand by my own. To kill is no strength and to have mercy is no weakness. Remember that, all of you." He waved his hand in the air, utterly dismissing the conversation. Even if he hadn't, no one would have responded. "Continue, Theta."

But as the Heroes had their argument, the Villains watched, amused and contemplative both.

"Brat's an idiot if his answer is anything other than yes." Shigaraki muttered, talking to himself as All Might spoke. But Toga heard, turning to him with a questioning glare. He flustered underneath her gaze, snarling back, "Don't tell me you think he shouldn't kill. All these other Heroes are weak because they don't."

Toga shrugged. "Hey, I'm not saying anything. Izukkun has his own morals."

"What, so you don't think he's a dumbass?" Dabi scoffed as he interjected, leaning forward. "Hell, look at what we just saw a while ago. No offence, Handsy, but they really need to kill you if they wanna save their own precious asses. And if they're gonna listen to some naive kid and try to 'save' you, they're stupider than I thought."

Shigaraki's face tightened, and Toga grimaced mentally. "Whatever, Staples. Heroes are dumb, we already know this. Idiot should just say yes and give me a real fight." His fingers twitched in the air. "I'm gonna kill him anyway, so he might as well be giving his all."

Toga pouted, grabbing Shigaraki's wrist with a knife in the same hand. "Hey, you can't just kill him without me, alright? Promise?"

He snorted in tandem with Dabi, rolling his eyes.

~ The screen cycled between the faces of the other seven Wielders. Shinomori watched silently. Second and Third remained with their faces to the wall. Yoichi's hair flowed in the breeze, covering half his face. His lips were thin, soft green eyes watching intently. En was slumped in his seat, seemingly bored but wholly focused on the scene in front of him. Banjou remained silent, his jaw jutting out as he sat completely still. All the while, Yagi burned.

("To me.") Deku began speaking, and the screen cut once again to a view of the dilapidated room. Nana stared at him with a steely gaze, the wind suddenly beginning to whip up and disturb her hair. ("It may be awkward to say this… but I saw… no. I felt.") Shigaraki was once again shown in the sepia filter, speaking obviously harsh words to a stunned and shocked Deku, both in this void realm. ("When his consciousness manifested and entered the Vestige world, I could feel what Shigaraki was feeling when he was told to think about his aspirations. And, in the deepest parts of his mind…")

Shigaraki's face fractured and cracked into nothingness, revealing a hidden picture – one that had once been seen before. A greyscale picture of a young boy with black hair hugging a small dog to his body as he wiped away tears.

("I could feel… a child… crying.") ~

"Fuck, I'm actually going to rip him apart." Shigaraki growled. The hairs on the back of Atsuhiro's neck raised. "Just my hands. No Quirk."

He rolled his shoulders, his suit feeling a bit too tight and the room a tad too warm. What did any of this mean? What was their leader? What was going to happen to him in the future? "Break a leg, Shigaraki. We'll all be cheering you on!"

"Hell yeah I'll break a leg," he snarled in response, turning to glare at Deku. The boy turned away without reaction. "Both of 'em. Several times."

Geten laughed, unexpectedly interrupting them. "The kid'll probably break his legs himself, won't he?" Shigaraki ignored him, still seething in his anger.

Atsuhiro simply blinked at the young boy, before deciding that he probably was just looking to make nice with his new leaders. "Well, yeah, probably. That should save us some time!"

~ Shimura's expression began to slip away, her bottom lip wobbling slightly. Her arms fell from Deku's shoulders, but the Hero continued staring her in the eyes and speaking. ("I've fought against many people thus far.") he said, three spectral images forming on-screen.

A man with a red and gold bird mask and close-cropped hair, face filled with anger. A blond man, muscle fibres whipping around his body – Muscular, many realized. The third was a ghastly, almost zombie-like person, eyes rolled in the back of his head and his nose missing. His mouth was wide-open in a vehement shout, a blood-red scarf waving through the air behind him. ("They had their ways set inside them, I had no choice to stop them but by fighting.")

He looked down, extending his arms. Shimura stepped back. ("But, I never had the opportunity to explore their motivations and pinpoint why exactly they became Villains.")

A final image appeared – a man with messy silver curls and a bushy mustache dressed in a tattered cloak hugged a young woman with pink hair styled in twin ponytails. His face was bleak and eyes shadowed, while hers were filled with tears. ("If I fully understood them… some things may have gone differently. Our fights could have been resolved differently… perhaps.") ~

'Oh, great.' Tenya thought to himself, slumped in his seat. 'First All Might talks about hunting Villains and now Midoriya brings up Stain. Wonderful.'

Todoroki turned to the right, looking Izuku up and down. "…Did you really want to save Stain? How?"

Izuku flushed. Again.

~ ("Countless people died…") The screen showed a city and a mountain. The entire city had crumbled in onto itself, the space between it and the mountain nothing less than an empty wasteland. Dust swirled in the wind.

The screen cycled through images of four people – Bakugou Katsuki, dressed in his Hero costume and looking at the camera out of the corner of his eyes. Torino Sorahiko, mouth gritted. Todoroki Enji, eyes determined and blazing. Aizawa Shouta, face tucked behind his capture weapon. ("And many of those who I hold dear got hurt.") ~

Chiyo leaned forward, cursing loudly. Nedzu did the same, muffling it by biting the bottom of his pencil.

A city turned to dust. If this version of Shigaraki awoke, they would truly be in the endgame. Nothing could survive the war that would follow.

Decay was a terrifying Quirk on its own. Enhanced, to the level of All For One or One For All, it would become nigh-unbeatable. It was clear from the flat landscape of the space between the city and the mountain that it was decayed, and if it was capable of that, well, they were truly fucked.

Katsuki sat up. So, he'd been hurt during this battle. Sensei as well. The old bastard and the Shitty Number One too. "Oi, nerd, stop worrying about me! Got it?!" Didn't fuckin' matter. He'd be fine, no matter what, and besides, was probably just some scratch that the nerd was sad about.

Deku startled back, sorrow etched deep on his face. "But – what if you're actually hurt?"

"Shut the fuck up!"

Sorahiko looked down at his feet, the sounds of Deku and Bakugou scrapping a distant noise in his ears. It was nice, he supposed. To have them near. Like… grandkids, in a way. Hell, he was just glad Toshi found some kids to take care of before he died.

He can't say he hasn't lived a good, long life. Time comes for every man, in the end. Nothing to be sad about.

The detective laid a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry, Torino." he said, simply squeezing. "I'm positive you're fine. Trust me."

Sorahiko snorted, his eyes rolling. "Eh. Let's just watch and see, hm?"

Enji stared at the screen, an eyebrow raised. Hawks elbowed him – "You must be a damn good teacher if you're 'dear to him' after, like, one internship."

He blinked. "What the hell?" He turned, but Midoriya was too busy arguing with his blond friend. But Shouto met his eyes, a frown on his face and an eyebrow raised. Enji turned back to the screen. "Why me?"

Hawks shrugged, his shoulders remaining high. "Hey, I'm sure you're not that hurt. Relax."

"I - That's not what I'm talking about." He blinked again, squinting at the screen. "What happened?" Enji knew he was a good teacher, but this… wasn't because of that, he thought. Did something happen during the internship? The boy was already aware of their familial problems – this was the last position he thought he'd occupy in Deku's mind.

Maybe he learnt something during the internship. Grew, became better, cared more. Shouto didn't seem to think he was capable of it. He didn't think he was capable of it.

Hawks gripped his arm, and Enji looked down at the younger man. "Come on, man. Stop worrying. Kid probably just thinks you're cool."

Slowly, he nodded.

Maybe.

Yeah, that was definitely it. Had to be. He'd take that over a potential future where reconciliation was still an option and not a painful impossibility. Because losing that would hurt more.

Shouta, head in his lap and hands, groaned under his breath. "Fuck, who's gonna take care of Eri?!"

Hizashi rubbed circles on his back. "Relax, Sho. Nemuri and I are here, right? And you're still okay, hm? It's going to be fine, everything's going to be fine.."

"No, it very clearly is not."

Ishiyama sighed, the sound like boulders falling down a cliff. "Aizawa, please calm down. I promise you, nothing will happen to either you or Eri." he reassured, leaning closer to the pair. "There's programs in place, and not to mention, we have the knowledge to prevent you from being hurt in this time. Eri won't even know about a thing."

Nemuri nodded rapidly. "Really, Sho, it's fine. Eri's safe and you're safe. I'm here for you two, I'll always be here. You know how much Eri loves me!"

Shouta inhaled a deep breath, holding it for a long moment. Hizashi continued rubbing his back, looking up at the screen and wondering what exactly Midoriya had seen. Shouta exhaled, shrugging off his hand and sitting up. "Yeah, you're right. I'm… just worried about her. Damn it."

"It'll be okay," Nemuri repeated. Shouta, throat dry and tight, nodded. "It'll be okay."

It had to be, otherwise what was the point of all this?

~ ("However!") he exclaimed, the void covering his mouth resonating at a strange frequency. His emerald eyes were alight with a peculiar fire, one that those who knew the boy easily recognized.

Suddenly, the screen turned to white. The previously shown crying boy holding on to the dog was depicted on the left, a much younger version of Deku slowly stepping toward him.

("One For All is a power to save people, not to kill.") he said loudly, voice defiant. The void began slipping away from him, but the screen showed instead a snapshot of a computer screen. A video was open, the silhouette of All Might himself visible, several bodies draped over his shoulders. ("All Might taught me that lesson.")

Yagi looked up, his body of flame flaring slightly.

("And not just me either!") The statue constructed at Kamino Ward appeared on the screen, a battle-torn All Might standing proud after his final fight. Behind him, dozens of pictures were visible; of happy children and joyous students, safe and secure civilians. Main amongst them was a picture of a young Deku folding onto an All Might figurine, and blurred slightly, another picture of a young Shouto as well, smiling open-mouthed. ("All Might, and you guys, who helped grow and cultivate One For All… you were responsible for saving a countless amount of people from then to now!") ~

"Man, I love this kid." Banjou leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms. "I'm so glad we got him as our successor."

The other six nodded. Mirai's eye twitched, though he wisely didn't say anything.

"I wonder what he's going to do now," Nana murmured. "It's clear he wants to save Shigaraki, even in the present times, but how is he planning on going about it?"

Second sighed, his face falling into his palms. "Like an idiot, probably."

Shrugging, First responded, "Yeah, but like, we're all idiots. Kid wants to save his nemesis, we'll help him."

"See, this is why I always beat you."

"Our Toshinori was two seconds away from putting your ass in the ground for good. Sit down and shut up."

Todoroki suddenly stood up, Izuku raising an eyebrow. "Where're you going?"

He jutted his chin towards the couch Endeavour and Hawks were sharing. Izuku blinked. "Why?"

Todoroki shrugged, before walking off without another word. Izuku watched him leave, Uraraka's head tilting in confusion alongside him. That was… strange. And random.

"…Okay." she said. "Weird."

Izuku scratched the back of his head, staring as Shouto placed himself in between the two Heroes without so much as an introduction. The two seemed as confused as they were by the sudden development. "…Yeah."

Rikiya scoffed at the boy's words. "Really, now? Cannot kill in the pursuit of your dreams. All Might… ah, what a fool." He sighed in annoyance – the man that controlled their world, that for decades perpetuated the terrible societal structure they've been trapped within. Without him ever existing or interfering, their dream of a free world would've been achieved by now!

Shigaraki rounded on him without warning, and Rikiya suppressed another sigh. He really shouldn't have said that out loud. Another twenty minutes were about to be wasted listening to their leader ramble and rant about his hate of All Might.

Rikiya did hate him too, but… he had to say, Shigaraki's hate was much less refined.

~ The void smothering Deku was losing some of its darkness, greying out as he spoke, and the music playing in the background took on a much more hopeful tone. ("It's origins may have been rooted in the goal to eradicate All For One!") The screen began rapidly cutting between different points of view – first Deku, shifting his head and fighting through the void, then Yoichi, still silently watching, and Yagi, with his ethereal eyes blown wide open. ("But because you've all risked your lives and maintained this power, it's purpose has changed over all this time!")

A tear began making its way down Yagi's cheek.

("There's certainly a possibility that he can only be stopped by killing him… and I haven't thought about the logistics of how I would go about it…")

The void stripped itself away entirely from Deku, revealing him in a much younger version with a bright light shining upon him, his pudgy hands clenched into fists and his emerald filled with child-like hope. ("But I want to try saving this crying child!") ~

The sight of the admittedly adorable baby was not near enough to still the rage burning within him.

Tomura extended towards the couch Dabi and Spinner were sitting upon. The two idiots got the memo in time, jumping to their feet moments before it entirely turned to dust. Stubbornly, the floor beneath refused to follow.

He flexed his fingers once, before nodding and turning back to the screen. With that itch satisfied, the rest of his important tasks were simple to complete, such as ignoring the two idiots shouting at him.

~ Shimura's bit her bottom lip, still unable to stop the emotion leaking through onto her face. She lowered her eyes to the ground.

"That's right." Yoichi said, All Might crying on his left. "…And we'll be here to guide you on that journey."

Grabbing the man's shoulder, Yoichi comforted him for a moment before standing.

Izuku was shown, once again a teen garbed in void. He seemed surprised by the change.

"I'm incredibly glad that you, of all people, inherited One For All." He walked towards the pair, stopping to place another comforting hand on Shimura's shoulder. He patted her gently, his fair hair flowing softly.

In a wobbly voice, Shimura said, "…I apologize for testing you… like this." ~

"Oh, shit, it's a test!" Eijirou said, sitting up in shock. "What?!"

"Was it not clear?" Yaomomo asked him, tugging on her hair as a confused expression crawled onto her face. "All the arguments were about if this question was a real question and what our answer should be then, but it obviously wasn't true. Right?"

None of their classmates answered, and Eijirou began rubbing his forehead, trying to massage his brain into actually thinking.

Unfortunately yet expectedly, no thoughts came.

Though, on his left, Bakugou sighed in obvious relief. That sparked a lot of thoughts.

Toshinori exhaled, relief filling the opened space. Damn, it was nice to have confirmation that Nana was testing Izuku. Not only did it reassure him of his mentor's ideals, but also made it clear that One For All was not pushing its agenda onto Izuku.

That would've been kind of embarrassing after his whole spiel about his students making their own decisions.

~ "Gran Torino is still alive…" she said, voice wet. "When you wake up, please tell him that I said hello."

'Sorahiko,' she thought, a close-up of her face shown. Tears streamed down her face, and her despair was genuine. 'We made the wrong choice… but… our successor here is certainly determined. ~

"I'm alive?"

Naomasa patted him on the shoulder, a heavily relieved grin on his face. "Told you." He had no idea.

"I'm alive?!" The old man's palm collided with his forehead with a loud smack. "What was the point of all the death flags, then?"

"The what?"

"Nothing."

~ Yoichi's head swivelled, and he looked back with a sly smile.

"How about guys chime in now and help us out," he said coolly, the screen showing a close-up of the two Wielders facing the wall, the two that had remained silent so far. "So that Deku knows what to expect out of the rest of you guys' Quirks?

The screen faded immediately after, the scene of the hospital bed arriving instead, making it clear that Deku's internal dialogue had finished for the time being. ~

"Aw, I wanted to see their Quirks!" Tooru said wistfully.

"Well, we can guess?" Ojirou said, scratching his chin. "The ponytail guy looks like he's got something cool."

"Wait, more important than that," Mina interrupted, holding up a finger. The class's attention fell on her. "Is it just me… or does that guy look unnaturally like Bakugou?"

A beat of silence.

"…No, just you." Bakugou himself responded, visibly weirded out. "He looks nothing like me."

"I can see it." Ojirou nodded, leaning closer to squint at the screen. "That's strange. Great-grandpa or something?"

Bakugou blinked, scarlet eyes utterly confused for the first time in a long while. Immediately, the entire class decided, as one, to take this as far as it could go. "Haa? No. Definitely not."

"Actually," Iida said, Tooru looking at him and wondering if he'd add to the fun or end it, "he looks too much like our Bakugou. What's stopping him from being our Bakugou?"

"What the actual fuck are you talking about?"

Midoriya nodded rapidly, realization dancing in his emerald eyes. "Time travel?!"

"Exactly!" Iida shouted, throwing both arms in the air. "Is it so impossible?!"

"Oui, oui! How magnifique – just imagine it, our Bakugou travelling backwards in time to become the Second Wielder just so he can one-up Midoriya!" Aoyama sparkled as he spoke, and everyone nodded along to his words.

"I – are you all high? Is that what's going on?"

"Wouldn't that be a paradox, though?" Hawks asked, ignoring the explosive boy and peering at the class. "If he's here and also the Second User?"

"Not at all!" Yaoyorozu exclaimed, lying out of her teeth. Or, maybe she wasn't. Tooru didn't have the slightest understanding of time-travel. "It's totally possible!"

The winged Hero nodded, slowly.

"How incredible." Shouto added in a monotone voice, remembering his comment about One For All's origin. His father stared down at him in shock. "Bakugou, I cannot believe you would do such a heroic thing, going back in time to ensure One For All began."

"I - I didn't-"

"Such a bold and courageous action must be rewarded," Midnight said, a wide smile on her face. Aizawa glared red-eyed at her, before sighing. "Ignore her, Bakugou."

The boy finally breathed, something akin to relief appearing on his face. "But still, it is necessary for us to thank you for your actions." He nodded stone-facedly at Yagi, who immediately stood. "Thank you, my boy, for everything that you are going to do. From the bottom of my heart, I sincerely thank you. As the Second Wielder of One For All, you of course obviously outrank me. If you need anything from me, you must only ask."

"What the actual fuck."

"Hey, do you think you can teach me how to use it?" Midoriya asked, either oblivious to the boy's pain or enjoying it. "After all, you should have the most experience, being the Second Wielder and all."

Yoichi slowly turned to his best friend and closest confidante, not ignoring the way he'd been silent for so long, and gathered his hand within his own.

"You'd tell me if you were Katsuki from the future, right?"

The Second extricated his hand with extreme caution, shifting away shiftily.

"…Please say yes."

~ 'Not words… emotions…'

All Might's head was shown from the back as he stared down at his protege.

'I can feel them coursing through him…' ~

'Oh, great.' Chiyo thought, effortlessly ignoring the ruckus still continuing on. 'A confirmation. Now I need to get these idiots to actually do mental and emotional training.'

She rescinded the thought – Yagi already had extensive training in that area, and it wouldn't be difficult for him to pass his teachings on. Still, she'd procure a teacher for the boy herself. He needed one well-versed in the field.

~ Deku's face was shown, still fast asleep on the bed. 'Conversing with the previous holders… One For All's truth… my predecessor's test…'

Two knocks rang out from the door, and All Might straightened. After a moment longer of watching, he pulled his hand from Deku's cast, turned away, and began walking towards the door.

'I could only feel it ever so slightly, but I can feel this coursing through me as well.'

'That your Quirklessness wasn't a curse… It was a blessing.'

Yagi opened the door slowly, revealing Best Jeanist and Hawks, wearing a peculiar medical mask.

"How are you doing All Might," Hawks said, a robotic voice speaking from his phone. He rapidly tapped into the device instead of speaking aloud. ~

"Aww, did I lose my voice?" Hawks joked, deep inside himself hoping the condition wasn't permanent. But none of the Heroes near him laughed. Not even little Todoroki.

Did he have to sit next to all the boring old people? Maybe he could move, but then again, that felt like losing in the face of Todoroki's clear challenge. The young boy didn't like him, for some unknown reason.

~ 'Isn't this kind of rude?' Best Jeanist thought to himself.

"They call me 'the man that's a bit too fast'," Hawks continued, a clearer view of the two Heroes appearing. Best Jeanist was occupied with fixing his hair, but he seemed relatively uninjured. Meanwhile, Hawks' mask extended from his nose to the base of his neck, wires running along its length. "So I've been going around getting information from everybody."

All Might stepped outside, wiping his eyes carefully. "Ah, were you not done watching over Midoriya yet? I could come back another time…" ~

"Aw, were you crying?" Midnight cooed, leaning towards Toshinori. He leaned away, rolling his shoulders. "Obviously."

She shook her head with the same smile, undeterred. "They really are just father-and-son," she said, turning to speak to Snipe instead.

Toshinori spluttered mentally, but on the outside, he seemed quite undisturbed by her comments. She pouted.

Father-and-son?!

~ All Might shook his head. "No! It's quite alright. He'll be up soon. More than that, what are you here to talk about?"

The moment All Might left the room, Uraraka rushed in, followed by Iida and Jirou.

"Well, I was wondering about Midoriya-kun and One For All in particular."

All Might's eyes sharpened immediately. "It's existence was revealed to some Heroes who had joined the battle towards the end of it," Hawks said, side-eying the other Hero. "The media's been picking it up, and it's been spreading out slowly… and when I asked Endeavour about it… he told me that Shigaraki is going after Midoriya-kun." ~

'Ah,' Enji thought. 'I see. It's because I know about One For All.'

'…Or is it? That seems like too little for the boy.'

He clenched his fist, eying his son in the corner of his vision.

'Something happens… during the internship… and I think I know what it is.'

Atonement.

His fist shook.

Enji never deliberated on a decision like this. He was never afraid to make his choice, whatever it may have been.

But in this, he was.

~ "Whether he heard all of it or not… I want to make sure this problem is solved before it ends up in tragedy… after all…" He stopped, looking out the window of the hospital at the teeming buildings opposite. "We're not just fighting against Villains anymore. Society is there to fight against us as well."

All Might bowed his head, thoughtful.

'This secret was kept to prevent mass panic across society,' he thought, a scene of All Might scolding a chastened Midoriya appearing on-screen. 'I hope you understand that this is for your sake as well, got it?'

'We're not at that point anymore,' he thought, a picture of a glowing four-pointed star appearing. 'And they haven't given up on themselves either.' Hawks and Best Jeanist's profiles appeared, split down the middle.

"…This place isn't the best to talk about something like this. Come." All Might gestured, standing tall in the hallway of the hospital. "I will tell you everything." ~

"Please stop," Bakugou begged – begged!

Oh, Sero was enjoying this far more than he should. He rubbed his hands together. "Come on now, we all know it. Just admit it!"

"I cannot tell if you're fucking with me." He ran his hands down his face, pulling at his eyelids, and for a moment Sero thought he was going to blow them all up.

Man, this was fun. But, as with all things, it eventually had to come to an end.

"They're messing with you," Theta confided, his voice booming through the theatre. "Now that that's taken care of – thoughts? What have you learned? How will you use this knowledge?"

Nedzu stood, gathering the attention of all Heroes. Which was surprising, considering how small he was. "So far, we can see that a battle takes place in the near-future. Several individuals are injured, Midoriya amongst them. This battle was situated around a city that was nearly completely destroyed. And from the conversation with the Vestiges, we gained some insightful knowledge into the inner workings of One For All. We learned that it was revealed to some Heroes, supposedly Endeavour, and that the media was beginning to spread it. Additionally, we know that Shigaraki is hunting Midoriya."

Theta hummed loudly, the droning sound emanating from every wall.

"And, furthermore-" Nedzu began, but Theta interrupted. "Villain's side. You don't have anything to add?"

After a moment, it was clear no one was going to respond. The Heroes remained silent, watching the Villains.

After another moment of silence, a dangerously powerful aura permeated the theatre.

"Speak." Theta commanded.

Trumpet cleared his throat, standing quickly. His mouth seemed to move on its own accord. "Well, we learned about the Tartarus breakout, saw the future of Shigaraki and just how much damage he can do, learned that he was attempting to steal One For All, gained valuable knowledge on Deku's Quirks and how to counter them, as well as some of his weaknesses, especially in morality, and learned about All For One's interference and attempt to control Shigaraki and take over his body."

Trumpet sat back down, blinked, and looked down at his hands in horror.

Shigaraki sat up slowly, scarlet eyes glaring at the man with murderous intent.

Dabi leaned back, huffing in annoyance. He'd be the one to have to stop Shigaraki if he tried to kill Trumpet for speaking falsehoods - they couldn't afford to show infighting or weakness. But he doubted Shigaraki would see Trumpet's death as, well, either of those.

"Hm. Good for now. Next, we will return to the present-times, and see what happened after Deku defeated Muscular. After that, you may have another short break. We forge onward."