Chapter Text
"Everything is in order," he stated.
Two people stood in the middle of an endless dark void, staring at a massive bright rectangular screen that seemed to float in front of them.
"Great!" The Jester yelled enthusiastically as he hopped around with delight, "Start the shift." His cheerful tone abruptly faded and was replaced by a malevolent one, his theater mask morphing into a devilish grin.
The Other gave The Jester a slight smile before carefully approaching the screen and reaching out his hands to it.
The Jester began cackling maniacally as The Other approached the screen before everything turned white.
. . .
The shift has started.
. . .
Shuichi Iguchi was a child who was born with a peculiar quirk that gave him a lizard-like appearance, and others, including his own parents, mocked and abused him because of it.
His parents were both average people with normal quirks who lived a normal life together, thus having a child with such an appearance surprised them. Shuichi's parents were increasingly disgusted with him as he grew older, to the point where they would ignore his needs.
His father owned a local restaurant just a few blocks away. Shuichi had never been able to eat there because his parents would only let him eat what he cooked.
On the other hand, his mother was a prostitute. Shuichi has no idea what that is, but based on how his mother describes it to his father, he would be disgusted.
Overall, his parents were assholes.
They would hit, kick, ignore his whining, and have him clean their entire house every day. It seemed to go on forever.
People would also bully him because of his appearance, labeling him a freak. Shuichi, of course, was deeply hurt by all the names he was called, but his parents did nothing to stop it.
Iguchi learned on his own, and he's fine with it.
Shuichi Iguchi, who is now seven years old, had become accustomed to the maltreatment. He stopped going to school after his parents pushed him to drop out, and now he spends his time playing video games and watching TV shows to escape the reality he's in.
That's when he saw Stain for the first time.
The number one hero.
Wearing a crimson-red cloak, a metal mask with a single gap line across the mask where the eyes would be, twin blades strapped to his back, and standard mercenary garb.
Stain stood atop a rooftop caught on a low-quality camera, yet his features were easily distinguishable whilst the number one hero began battling numerous villains on his own before eventually achieving victory.
Shuichi was now inches away from the TV screen in his room, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
Every day, he would turn on the television at precisely the time the news would air and began scribbling notes in a spare notebook he had, immensely inspired by everything Stain did.
When he grew older, he aspired to be like him. A hero.
. . .
Then there was the week following that.
“THAT'S RIGHT! SCRAM!” A man roared at the top of his lungs with a woman standing by him with a glare, his father brandishing a knife as Iguchi sprinted as far as he could away from his house, clutching the same notebook in which he had written his notes, tears streaming down his face. What did he do to deserve all of this?
He found himself in the heart of a bustling metropolis. How long had he been running for? Shuichi shook the thought from his head as he sprinted through the city beneath an orange, hazy sky.
He kept on running all while his heart pounded, his stomach knotted. The gecko was gasping for air, felt as if he was choking.
Thoughts raced through his mind. The child was trembling uncontrollably. He had nowhere else to go.
In the midst of an empty sidewalk, he came to a halt and dropped to his knees. When he raised his head to look around, he observed only a few people going about their business. He must have gone to a less densely inhabited part of the city.
He was gasping and sobbing silently, wiping tears from his eyes.
The small lizard boy was approached with light steps. Iguchi turned towards the steps and noticed a small boy with dark green hair and a large scar running down from his forehead, over his left eye, and down over his cheek; around his height and probably about his age too, in front of him.
“Why are you crying?” The boy asked with a completely neutral expression, as if he had been in the same situation with other people many times already.
On one hand, the boy held a grocery bag full of various fruits and.
In embarrassment, Shuichi sniffled and returned his gaze to the ground.
“It's nothing—” Shuichi choked on his words as he struggled to speak through his sobs.
The boy simply stared at him, his face expressionless. He didn't believe the lizard at all. Instead of asking more questions about the situation, the boy would grab the gecko's arm and pull him up from the ground, saying, “Follow me.” He said this in a monotone tone as he continued walking down the sidewalk, the groceries in one hand and Shuichi's arm in the other.
“Wh-where are we going?” Shuichi questioned, his voice trembling and anxious. Don't get him wrong: he's still traumatized from being kicked out of his home by his own parents, but his fear of the boy at the moment outweighs all of his sadness.
The green-haired boy simply stayed quiet, which made Shuichi even more scared of what's about to happen.
The two were now in what appeared to be the suburbs, with houses all around them. Iguchi was still worried about what the boy would do. Is he going to bring him to the police station? Is he even aware of what happened? He doesn't want to see his parents again and has no plans to return home after what just happened.
All of his previous crying had gotten his favorite T-shirt with Stain on it wet, and his dark-blue pants were filthy from when he dropped to his knees back in the city. It bothered him.
His train of thought abruptly came to a halt as the boy turned several corners before arriving at a few buildings that appear to be apartment complexes.
“Let's go.”
The boy spoke in his usual emotionless tone, as he drew Iguchi into the building,
He came to a halt as he stepped onto the cold, marble floor with his own feet because he lacked shoes, causing the other boy to come to a halt and turn to look at him.
His stare was cold and piercing.
It sent shivers down his spine, but he managed to say something, “I-I'm not going in h-here—”
Shuichi said to the boy, slightly lowering his head.
The boy simply stared at him before pulling the lizard in further.
“W-W-Wait—”
He was even more terrified. He was helpless; there was nothing he could do. The boy's grip was tight, pulling Shuichi deeper into the building and up a flight of stairs.
They came to a halt in front of a door, which was most likely where he lived.
Iguchi gulped as the boy repeatedly knocked on the door.
“Dad, I'm home.” The boy said this in an emotionless tone before the door in front of them opened, revealing a man wearing a really strange and intimidating mask, a suit and vest, and a dark gray blazer draping over his shoulder.
“Ah, Izuku. Have you gotten the groceries?” The man asked of the boy, whose name appears to be Izuku, who simply returned his gaze to the man before responding, “Yes.”
The boy pushed the bag onto the man, who only sighed in response. He was perplexed as he looked over Izuku's shoulder and at Shuichi.
“May I inquire as to who this is?” The man asked Izuku in a gentle tone, his gaze fixed on the lizard. Izuku turned over to face me, then returned his gaze to his father, saying, “I found him in the middle of a sidewalk crying.” He stated unequivocally.
Shuichi stared wide-eyed at both the man and Izuku before backing up and collapsing against a wall.
The man simply sighed again before kneeling in front of Izuku in order to reach his height and speak face-to-face, despite the fact that the man has no face to begin with.
“How many times have I told you to stop bringing strangers back to our home, Izuku?” The man questioned Izuku, who merely looked down in response, embarrassed.
“But he was crying alone, and I couldn't just leave him there.” Izuku replied, his gaze fixed on the ground.
Shuichi would get lost in his own thoughts, his stare locked onto the boy and the man while they would continue to talk. Other people, particularly his parents, made all of his life decisions. But now he's at a loss for what to do. He's not smart, and he's not going to run away. What if the man catches him?
Thoughts kept racing through his mind, each one making him more nervous by the second.
After what seemed like minutes, the man stood up and took a step towards Shuichi, who whined and shut his eyes tightly in response. This caused the man to come to a stop and look concernedly at the boy.
“I will not inflict any harm on you, I promise.” He attempted to reassure the lizard boy, who reluctantly opened his eyes and turned his gaze to the man who was now a few feet away, lending out a hand.
Shuichi hesitantly grabbed the man's hand before being helped up. Shuichi muttered a 'thank you' and fiddled with his notebook on-hand, his heart still pounding.
The man gently placed a hand on Shuichi's shoulder and asked in a polite tone, “What is your name?”
This prompted Iguchi to return his gaze to the man before glancing away, still tense. “S-Shuichi...” “Shuichi Iguchi..” the boy gulped, looking back at the man.
“It is nice to meet you, Shuichi.” Despite the fact that he had no facial features due to his large bulky, skull-like mask, he could sense the man genuinely smiling as he released his hand from his shoulder.
“W-What about your name...?” He asked back hesitantly, causing the man to fall silent for a brief moment. Shuichi regretted asking at the time. Panic had arisen in him before the man finally responded,
“I have no name.” He partially lied, not really wanted to reveal his true name, causing the boy to tilt his head in confusion, “But if you were to ask others, either 'Sensei' or 'All For One' is what they would call me by.” He hoped the child understood. Fortunately and unfortunately, the child did understand what he was saying but had no idea who All For One is, let alone his history or what he did as Japan's most notorious villain.
“Nice to meet you...-” Shuichi put on a nervous smile for the man, who was perplexed by his reaction. Had he not been aware of what he had done before?
“Where are your parents?” All For One asked almost immediately, concerned at where his parents were when Izuku found him on the sidewalk. Shuichi's heart plummeted all of a suddenly. He had no intention of returning to them.
“N-no, I-no, I'm not going back to them!” “And why not...?” Shuichi said angrily, causing the man to tilt his head in confusion. He inquired of the youngster, intrigued but concerned.
“T-They've made my life a living hell—! Kept on hitting, kicking, hurting me! I-I don't want that anymore...!” Shuichi burst into tears in front of the two.
All For One was perplexed by his sudden outburst before placing his hand again on the gecko's shoulder, “Is that so?” In a menacing tone, he asked, kneeling in front of him on one knee.
Shuichi got the impression that the aggression in his tone was directed more at his parents than at him. Iguchi locked his gaze on All For One for a brief moment as Izuku sighed and carried the bag of groceries into his house.
Iguchi gulped nervously before nodding slightly, prompting the man to back up and ask, “What are their names, and what do they do for a living?” He asked the boy, the aggressive tone long gone before Shuichi told them his parents' names and what they did, unsure of what the man would do next.
“Thank you.” All For One responded as he reached for the blazer draped across his shoulders and properly wore it before returning his gaze to Shuichi.
“You are welcome to stay with Izuku in our home while I am away.” He said, perplexing the youngster. Shuichi had expected him to take him to a police station or something, as any reasonable person would, rather than leaving them in their home, where he could potentially be lying about his parents and steal things.
As he looked around the corridors, he realized the man had long since vanished. Shuichi took a brief moment to gaze at the sky before entering their house with trepidation, closing the door as he went in.
The youngster had a look around. It had a warm, inviting ambiance, with orange-hued lanterns illuminating the apartment, a few plants in pots on the walls and floors, several paintings, and a portrait of what appeared to be Izuku's mother and father, All For One, with the boy standing between them.
He considered his current situation. Any other person would be skeptical and would most likely leave. No one would simply stay in a stranger's home after fleeing their own, but this is Shuichi: A young boy who has never been able to make his own decisions in his life. The only significant decision he ever made was to follow Stain's ideologies and become a hero.
Shuichi would sigh and continue to stare at the portrait of Izuku and his parents. They all seemed to be having a good time; he wished he had the same relationship with his parents. He gave it some more thought and finally decided to give them a chance. After all, he has no other life to return to now that his own parents have kicked him out.
He gave a sincere smile as he walked by the picture frame on his way into the cozy-looking house. He'd walked into what appeared to be the living room, where Izuku sat on a couch, watching the news on TV.
Izuku waved for the gecko to sit next to him without even turning around to look at him, as if he knew he was already there. Iguchi went to sit next to the emotionless boy on the couch, glancing over to Izuku then over to the TV, only to find Stain being interviewed by a reporter.
His eyes brightened at Stain's presence, prompting the boy to hug the notebook he'd been carrying all along. Izuku side-eyed the gecko, perplexed as to why he was so enthralled by the hero.
“What's with the sudden excitement?” He questioned, his tone deadpan, as if he didn't care how Shuichi felt.
“Because he's cool, and I want to be like him!” Shuichi exclaimed, his tone brimming with delight, that he didn't even take his gaze away from the flat screen.
Izuku remained silent. He intended to introduce himself to him once he'd sat down on the couch, but now doesn't seem like the right time, what with Iguchi fawning over the number one hero and all.
Shuichi looked over to the boy, “Do you, um, have a pen?” He asked reluctantly.
Izuku merely stood up and took a pen from one of the drawers near the television, which he gave over to Shuichi, who replied with a simple 'thank you' before opening his notebook and scribbling down some notes.
Izuku sat back down on the couch, his gaze drawn to Shuichi's notebook. It was crammed with notes about many heroes, the most notable of whom was Stain. When he took a closer look, he realized he had written down every detail about the heroes, from their quirks to their fighting style. Izuku was impressed for the first time by someone like him.
“What is that for?” Izuku persisted in his questioning, to which Shuichi responded enthusiastically, “Oh, um, this is where I keep all my notes on heroes, especially Stain!”
Izuku raised his brow, causing the other boy to blush in embarrassment as he closed his notebook “No, it's okay. I won't judge.” Izuku reassured with a slight smile, to which Shuichi replied with a brief apology.
“I haven't introduced myself yet, have I?” Izuku decided it was time to introduce himself. He has been dragging this out for far too long.
Shuichi shook his head slowly in response, returning his gaze to the boy as he introduced himself. “Izuku Midoriya. It's nice to meet you.” He didn't waste any time getting to the point.
“Shuichi Iguchi, um, nice to meet you too!” He introduced himself hesitantly as well, and Izuku chuckled slightly at his nervous demeanor.
“Cool name.”
“Yours is cool too!”
. . .
“—and what would you say to children and youth all around Japan who aspire to be heroes when they grow up?” A reporter approached the number one hero, Stain, in the middle of a city that appears strangely familiar to Shuichi.
The two had spent the entire day together, watching a variety of TV series, sitcoms, entertainment programs, and even telenovelas, until they returned to the evening news.
Stain responded to the reporter's queries around 8 p.m., his partially muffled voice coming from the TV encouraging Shuichi even more as he continued to scribble in his notebook while the other boy, Izuku, slept on the opposite side of the sofa.
The apartment door opened for a brief moment before closing as Shuichi was watching TV. Shuichi turned around and saw that All For One had returned.
The man sighed to himself before removing his blazer and hanging it on a coat rack, then turning to face the two boys.
“Have you two eaten yet?” Shuichi was about to ask what he had been doing when he was interrupted by the man's question, to which the lizard boy responded by shaking his head.
And with that, the man proceeded to the kitchen, where he immediately began cooking something with the ingredients Izuku had purchased from the grocery store.
The man put on a green apron with a flower symbol on it, which Shuichi thought was odd given the man's intimidating appearance and the fact that no one else would expect him to wear something like that if they looked at him at first glance.
“Um, about my parents—” Shuichi queried hesitantly from the living room as steam billowed from the kitchen, accompanied by the satisfying sizzling noise made by the pan.
“They fled the country.” The man's voice came from the kitchen, and the pleasant smell of the food All For One cooked captivated the child before he shook his head and returned to the topic.
Shuichi was clearly taken aback by the response he received. Fled the country? What exactly does he mean by th—?
“I meant everything I said.” All For One spoke up once more, as if he knew what he was thinking, “After your parents kicked you out from your home, they both went to an airport and boarded a flight to the United States. All of this had been planned ahead of time while you were busy.”
Shuichi's mouth was agape as a result of this. How did he come to know all of this? Was he telling the truth? Shuichi's mind raced with excuses, trying to figure out how the man knew what his parents were up to.
“I'm taking you to the police station tomorrow. Be ready.” He stated bluntly out of nowhere.
“—Huh?”
. . .
Shuichi had entered Izuku's room, the boy close by. Izuku flipped a switch, which turned on the lights.
Shuichi looked around the room and thought it was quite plain. There was a bed with a white sheet, a nightstand with a lamp on top, a bookshelf in the corner with few books in it, and a desk with a laptop on top. There were hardly any decorations around the place, not even posters or anything that would make it more lively.
“If you want, you can sleep in my bed.” As he hopped onto the bed, Izuku abruptly spoke up, turning his gaze to Shuichi, who only tilted his head in confusion in response.
“Oh, um, okay...-” Shuichi said as he walked over to sit next to the green-haired boy.
“It was nice getting to know you.” Izuku blurted this out of nowhere as he glanced at the room's wooden floorboards.
“Same here..." Shuichi sighed as he lay down on the soft bed next to Izuku. Both kids stared at the plain white ceiling as Shuichi started mumbling something under his breath.
Izuku looked over to the lizard boy after a little period and realized that he had fallen asleep completely; all he can hear now are the other kid's faint breathing. Izuku stepped up and turned the boy over, carefully resting his head on the pillow before covering him with the blanket.
Before proceeding down the shadowy halls of the dark house, Izuku turned off the lights and closed the door. His father's room was at the end of the hall.
Slowly opening the door to the room, he spotted his father reclining on his beloved green leathered couch, wearing what appeared to be dark grey pajamas coupled with oversized lounge pants, peering out the window. Though, he still wore his strange skull-like mask for what ever reason.
“What is it, Izuku?” The boy perked up as he heard his named being called out before he approached the man and sat on his lap before looking out the window as well.
It had been a lovely, starry night. This evening, there was very little light pollution, which pleased both Hizashi and Izuku. Thousands of crystals twinkled in the sky as the two exchanged glances before Izuku spoke up.
“Can Shuichi stay with us?” All For One was taken aback when Izuku asked out of the blue.
“Why... why do you ask..?” Hizashi reluctantly replied, perplexed as to why his son would want another child to stay here when they had only met for a few hours.
“I've never had a friend like him before,” Izuku said, looking down at the ground. He got right to the point and didn't say anything else. Hizashi cocked his head, puzzled.
“I've always had a neutral opinion on both heroes and villains. . .” Izuku continued as All For One listened intently. “But with how Shuichi talks about Stain, his enthusiasm and optimistic personality, I just...-”
Hizashi knew exactly where he was going with this: “I've decided that I wanna become a hero some day, just like he does..-” Izuku paused, clearly concerned that his father would disapprove of his dream, given that he was once Japan's number one villain.
“Izuku.”
Hizashi placed a hand on his son's head, ruffling his hair, as the boy gently raised his head to gaze at his father. “You do not have to be concerned about me disregarding your dream.” As he said that, Izuku's eyes seemed to light up for a brief moment with hope.
“I will fully support you regardless of whether you want to be a hero, a villain, or anything else when you grow up. I may have been the number one villain in the past, but that does not mean I can not change.”
Izuku was silent, his head slowly lowering. He was expecting the worst outcome, but instead received the best. The boy could feel tears welling up in his eyes, but he simply shook his head to dismiss them. He hadn't felt like this in years.
“And about Shuichi,” Izuku looked up at his father with a surprised but curious expression, “I'll see what I can do.”
Under the eerie mask, he could sense his father's gentle smile. Izuku smiled back, embracing the man as Hizashi hugged him back.
“Thank you. . .” Izuku mumbled, giving up on holding back the tears that streamed down his face, eyes closed.
Hizashi simply patted Izuku's head as the two slowly fell asleep on the single couch they were sharing.