Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was dark in Izuku’s bedroom. The sun had set hours ago, but no stars lit the sky. There was a stifling silence throughout the room, which even the young man’s breath barely broke. The pillows and comforter were still neatly set on his bed, and Izuku lied right on top of them.

But he did not sleep.

He was not ‘wide awake’, as some might say, but he was nowhere near rest either. Behind him, on his bed stand, he barely registered the flickering light of his cellphone, as he received email after email, and phone call after phone call, from his friends, but he did not move to pick it up.

From the crack in his doorway, a tiny bit of light trickled in, along with the static sound if the TV. Static, far away voices continued repeating words he didn't want to hear. No. He needed not to hear them.

He could hear his mother's sniffles and sighs as she tried to hold herself together for him. Now and then, she would check on him in his room, but he would pretend to be asleep, as to avoid being asked any unneeded questions, or being told unnecessary things.

But he couldn't actually sleep. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw it all over again: the blood.

There was so much of it. It spread across the floor to his shaking legs in what seemed like an instant. The puddle around his feet felt more like a deep, red ocean, which his heart sank deep into. He could remember his voice cracking, as the fragile walls of his entire world began to fall apart. There, in the center of the blood was

“Izuku?”

Izuku Midoriya leapt awake at the sound of his mother's voice. He didn't know when or how he had fallen asleep. But light from the sun had began to spread itself through his bedroom. Inko must have heard the bed shake under him, as she kept speaking even though he hadn't responded to her.

“Izuku, dear.” Her voice was soft and scratchy, as if she had little sleep that previous night herself. “You have a visitor. He's that nice detective. The one who was friends with… you know.”

Izuku sighed softly. If he was being honest, he would have told his mother that he wasn't in the mood for visitors, and to ask the visitor to come back later. But this was someone whom he owed a lot to. And someone that could possibly answer some questions. So he did not debate the issue.

“Okay, Mom.” He finally replied, “I'll be there in a minute. Just let me get dressed.”

By the time Izuku made in downstairs in a blank white t shirt and jeans, his guest was already taken a seat on the living room couch.

“Hi, Detective Tsukauchi.” Izuku said, as he came into the man’s view. The younger boy sat down on the couch opposite to his elder. Naomasa Tsukauchi nodded his head at Izuku with a smile. In the past, his expression had always seemed blank, but welcoming. Today, however, his grin was strained and forced. Izuku clenched his hands on his knees, bracing himself for whatever the detective had to say to him.

“I have something.” Naomasa started, and leaned to his side to pick up and present Izuku with a brown cardboard box. “Something for you, that is.”

Izuku was a little perplexed. He didn’t know what to expect, but he certainly didn’t expect a gift.

Though, looking closer at the box, maybe gift wasn’t the right word. It was a little beaten up, with duct tape over all the corners. Packaging tape was wrapped around it three or four times, as if the person who wrapped it didn’t want it to be opened. And on the left side, there was a few spots of dark red color.

As Izuku hesitantly took the box from Naomasa, he ran his finger over the red stains. “Is this…”

“Blood, yeah.” Naomasa answered quickly. Izuku flinched a little and pulled his fingers away, letting the box fall on his lap. “His, I’m sure.” The detective continued, “You know what his condition was like. With his coughing.”

Izuku’s eyes widened as he listened to Naomasa go on. He looked down at the box, then to Naomasa, then to the box again, and the quickly picked it back up and held it close to his chest. “Y-You mean… this is from--”

“Toshi--” Naomasa started, then corrected himself. “All Might. Yeah.”

Izuku held the package out in front of him. His eyes welled with new tears, as Naomasa continued to explain.

“He asked me to give it to you if he…” He trailed off. Izuku’s shoulders stiffened and he hugged the box again. “If anything ever happened to him.” Naomasa finished.

“What… What’s inside?” Izuku asked. Wiping a stray tear from his eye.

“No idea.” Naomasa said, and stood up. “He never told me. I might be a Detective, but I don’t snoop around my friends’ belongings without their permission. Giving it to you was my only instruction.”

Izuku held the package in his lap. He turned it around and around, looking for a clue on the outside. It didn’t even have his name on it. All Might had trusted Detective Tsukauchi completely to get the box to him.

Naomasa’s hand landed softly upon Izuku’s shoulder, and the boy looked up with tired, curious eyes.

“Don’t forget. You’re his successor.” The detective told him, wearing his worn out smile. “I don’t know if I should tell you to smile at a time like this, but… keep your chin up, kid.”

Izuku looked down to his knees again, but nodded.

Naomasa sighed softly, and then spoke once more. “I’ll be off then.” Izuku heard him walk out from living room, and apologize to Inko, who had just finished brewing tea, before making his leave.

Izuku stayed on the couch. Quiet. Thoughtless. He held the box in his hands but couldn’t feel it. He felt like he might doze off again, but he didn’t want to. He didn’t want to have that dream again. He didn’t want to remember…

“Did he give you a present?” Inko’s voice brought Izuku from his daze. She placed a cup of tea softly down onto the coffee table in front of him.

“Sort of…” Izuku whispered in response. He picked up the cup of tea, and sipped it in unison with his mother, who had her own.

The room fell silent after that, save for the soft sips of tea. Inko peered over her glass at Izuku. The boy had always cried easy. It was clearly genetic because she was guilty of the same, but his eyes seemed redder than ever before. The bags under his eyes looked like the time he and Katsuki had given each other black eyes while rough housing as kids. And his expression looked blank. She had seen her son depressed before, but this was different. He looked… lost.

“Izuku, dear.” She broke the silence once again. Her son placed his now empty cup on the table, and looked across to her. “I can’t imagine what you’re going through right now but please… Promise you’ll talk to me. Maybe not right now, but when you’re ready.”

Izuku stood up, taking the box with him. “I will, Mom. Promise.” Inko smiled thankfully at him. “Thanks for the tea, Mom.” And with that, he quietly walked back to his room.

Once in his room, Izuku flopped back onto his bed. He curled up around the package, holding it close to his chest, and took a deep breath. He had no idea what would be in this package. But, he needed to find out. He pushed himself off his bed and rummaged around in his desk until he found a box cutter, and then returned to open the package. He was careful to cut along the seam, so not to damage the contents. Once both top flaps were loose, he opened it.

A flurry of papers shot out of the box, and Izuku leapt back with a slight shriek. The papers must have been packed in tight to have erupted so violently out of the box. He hurried to pick up the papers, and found they were all in bundles, taped at the side, with a note on top. “When you’re angry”, “When you’re guilty”, and “when you don’t feel important” were just a few.

“What?” Izuku mumbled, as he gathered all the stray bundles up. When he returned to the box he saw an envelope at the bottom of it, which had “Midoriya” written on it, but scratched out. Under that was written. “Deku. Please read this first.”

Izuku carefully placed all of the escaped bundles to the side of the box, and picked up the enveloped. He ran his finger under the lip to open it, and then pulled out yet another paper bundle. He unfolded it to reveal a letter…

To Deku, my pupil, my successor, my boy.
If you’re reading this. I’ve died.

Izuku’s heart broke all over again. His mind flashed images of blood, and All Might’s thin form in the middle of it all. Crumpled up like a thrown out piece of paper. He took a deep breath. He needed to read this.

I’m sorry. I’m sure it wasn’t pretty. Afterall, I decided that if I could have a peaceful death, I wouldn’t have to write anything to you. I would tell you everything you needed to know in our time together, even on my deathbed. But, clearly that wasn’t the case.
I made a promise to twist fate with you, and I’m sorry I couldn’t keep it. But I swear on my honor, on my memory, that that broken promise is the only lie I’ve ever told. Especially to you.
By the time I wrote this, you had already exceeded all of my expectations. That is a fact. But I know, that without me, you will find it hard to go on.
To help you, I’ve written you letter after letter in the last few months. Whenever you need to hear my voice, please read one. There’s one for any feeling you may come across in the next few years.
I promise, you’re going to be All Right. No matter what, I am here, with you.

Toshinori Yagi
All Might

Izuku pushed the tears from his eyes, refusing to let them sully the ink on the page. He took a weepy breath, and pushed the box and the bundles away from him. He heard them tumble to the floor, one after another, but he didn’t care. He didn’t want to read them. He didn’t want to be reminded. He didn’t want this to be real.

His hero... was gone.

Chapter Text

Izuku Midoriya had a lot to think about.

Once again, he found himself lying in his room alone. He heard his mother knock on his door, but once more, he ignored it. He was fairly sure she had left him a lunch outside the door. But he wasn’t hungry.

On the floor next to his bed was a pile of letters from All Might--from his hero.

When he tried to remember All Might’s last day, all he could remember was his own screaming. Screaming for All Might to get up. Screaming for him to wake up. Screaming that what was happening couldn’t be real.

But, it was real.

And All Might had written Izuku letter after letter to help him cope with his death. Even though he didn’t want to face the reality, he owed it to All Might to read them. Or at least… just one.

Izuku rolled over his mattress and reached down into the pile of letters on the floor. He picked them up one at a time and read the note on the front of them. He shook his head one after another.

Finally, he found one that caught his eye.

When You’re Not Feeling Okay

“How could I be?” Izuku asked softly with a sigh. But, it suited his mood regardless. Izuku rolled back onto his bed with the letter in his hand. Carefully, he pulled the tape off the edge of the bundle of papers, and unfolded them to reveal the first letter.

Young Midoriya,

What’s got you down today? Is it me? Sorry about that. But it’s okay to feel down sometimes. Remember what I told you when we first met? I told you that I’m always scared. I smile just to trick myself into thinking I’m not. I trick everyone into thinking I’m brave.

But it’s okay to be scared.

And the same goes for feeling down.

No one can be happy all the time. Give yourself a day off to rest. Think about your own health. Think about how the world needs you in the best shape you can be.

Izuku sighed. Maybe this wasn’t the right letter to start with. He hadn’t finished the first page, but he flipped to the next one to skim it. What he found surprised him though. In the middle of the page, a couple of the inked letters were smeared in small, darkened circles.

He ran his fingers over the letters. He recognized it. He had cried on his school work more time than he could count. The way the teardrops cupped the letters into a tiny pool, which he couldn’t wipe away, else he might smear the words until they became illegible. It was the same.

Izuku sighed again, but this time, a tiny, melancholy smile came to his lips. He reminded himself, again, that he owed this to All Might. He couldn’t just skim through these letters. All Might had put his blood, sweat, and tears into these letters, and he would read them all. Beginning to end.

Izuku flipped back to the first page and continued reading.

When my Master, Nana Shimura, passed away, my world seemed to shatter. Nana had given me everything. She had turned me from hopeless, quirkless boy, to the man that would become a World’s Pillar.

I would have done anything to bring her back. But that doesn’t happen.

Izuku knew that, but his eyes had began to tear up anyway. He clenched a fist, then reached for the tissues on his bedstand, to wipe away his tears before they fogged his vision too much for him to read.

I didn’t talk to anyone about it. Gran Torino was the only person, at the time, that knew the true relationship between Nana and I, and the truth of One for All. But Gran Torino was not the kind of person to talk about his feelings. Though, I know he was hurting too. We both hurt in silence. I think, to an extent, Gran Torino blamed himself. He pushed me hard so I would be better than him. Better than both of them. So I would never let someone I loved die ever again.

But, Young Midoriya, please do not hurt in silence like I did. You have so many close friends. You have your mother, and your teachers. Even if they don’t know the secret of One for All, you have never been one to hide your admiration of me, whether I deserved it or not.

Nedzu, Recovery Girl, Naomasa, Sir Nighteye, Gran Torino, and of course, Young Bakugo. You have many choices of friends and acquaintances that know our secret too.

You don’t have to hurt how I did.

That was where the words blurred.

I know I’ve always criticized you for your ever active tear ducts, telling you crying is unbecoming of a hero, but please don’t bury your tears under a smile now. Talk to everyone you can and want to. Cry every time if you need to. Cry for weeks or months if that’s what it takes.

But when you’re done, know that you are strong. No matter how much you’ve cried, you are a hero. You’re my hero.

You’ve saved me more times than I can count. I know you don’t believe it when I say that. But it’s true. So keep your chin up, Champ.

Yours Truly,

All Might

Izuku softly lied the letter onto the bed next to him. He pulled his knees up to his chin and wrapped his arms around them, burying his face and weeping quietly. He missed All Might. He wanted to see him again. Just letters weren’t enough. But they were all he had left.

In the kitchen, Inko could head Izuku’s sniffles. She sighed softly. Her eyes were red and tired, just like her son’s. She had lost plenty of tears over the loss of the Symbol of Peace too, but even more worrying over her son. He had hardly eaten in the last three days.

Yes, it was three days ago when he was escorted home by his teacher, Mr. Aizawa. Inko nearly fainted when she opened the door. Izuku was shaking and couldn’t speak, and he was absolutely covered in blood. She had screeched his name and held him tight.

“Don’t worry. It’s not his.” Aizawa had said in a tired voice.

“What?” Inko had questioned, and held Izuku in front of herself. “You’re not hurt? Then… then who’s blood is this?”

She had felt Izuku’s arms tense under her grasp, but his eyes remained blank.

“It’s All Might’s.” Aizawa spoke again, “I’m afraid… he’s been killed.”

That was when Inko’s legs had given out. Both she and Izuku had tumbled to the ground. Aizawa had helped them to their feet and over to the living room couch to collapse again, and then let himself out.

Since then, Izuku hadn’t smiled. He’d barely spoken. She had been surprised to see him drink his tea earlier, but now, standing in front of his bedroom, she realized it was not worth getting excited over. The lunch she had made him was still wrapped in plastic, sitting in front of the door. She picked up the plate, and wasn’t surprised to find it was cold. She sighed softly, and slowly turned from the door.

But to her surprise, the door behind her opened up.

“Mom, wait.” Inko swung around and saw her weary son standing in front of her. Izuku’s eyes met hers for just a second, but then he looked away. “I don’t mind eating it cold…” He mumbled.

Inko gasped a little, and then smiled softly for her son. “Nonsense, it’ll only take a moment to reheat. Let me just take it to the kitchen real quick.”

“T-then--” Izuku stuttered before Inko could leave, “I’ll come too. We can eat... together.”

Inko’s eyes widened, and then softened. “Izuku, dear. You don’t have to force yourself…” She told him kindly.

“No, no I… I want to.”

“Okay. Then let’s go the kitchen.”

Izuku followed his mother, pondering exactly what he wanted to say to her. How he could talk to her without revealing the secret of One for All.

But when she placed a piping hot plate of lunch down in front of him. He knew what he wanted wanted to say.

“Thank you, Mom.”

Chapter Text

Izuku’s room was dark again.

He lay in his bed, under the comforter this time, but his eyes were still wide open.

Lunch had been okay. Dinner too. His stomach was full now, but his heart… that was another story.

He watched his clock as the red, LED numbers flashed, turning from 2:59 to 3:00.

He sighed.

Izuku rolled over in his bed, and looked at the ceiling. The poster that looked down at him was of his fallen hero. His clock was shaped and painted like him too. Everything in his room was. He had been so proud of his All Might collection for a long, long time.

He never thought he might find it painful to be surrounded by All Might’s likeness.

He pulled his arm over his eyes, shielding him from the view. He didn’t know what he was going to do. He knew he couldn’t bring himself to sell all of his belongings related to his hero. He knew he would regret that someday. Maybe he could just pack them away until the pain had settled. If the pain settled.

On the opposite side of his bed from the alarm, a soft buzzing sound caught Izuku’s attention. The boy sat up and looked to his left. On his bedstand, his phone vibrated over and over, until it carried itself off the bed stand and fell onto his bed. He picked it up and read the notifications on the lock screen.

-LOW BATTERY (10%)

-12 Messages

-10 Line Notifications

-20 Missed calls

-4 Voicemails

Izuku bit his lip, and then turned to his left, reaching for the charging cable on his desk. He plugged his phone in, and then placed it on the table, before turning away from it again.

He didn’t mean to ignore his friends, but he just… he didn’t want to talk about it. He didn’t want to talk about him . He wasn’t ready.

But, what was ahead of him was another quiet, lonely night. He sighed, and turned his head to his desk again. Sitting in the middle of the desk was the brown, cardboard package he had received from Detective Tsukauchi the day before. It was still filled to the brim with letters from All Might.

In the introductory letter, All Might had written that Izuku could read them over the course of the next few years. So he knew he didn’t need to read them all right away. But maybe…

Izuku stood up and pulled at the string of his desk lamp, illuminating a small part of his room. He shuffled off his bed and over to the box of letters. Slowly, he dug through them, looking for something that caught his eye. He thought he had seen one before… one that said.

“Here it is.” He whispered to himself, and then read the title softly. “When it’s too early in the morning.”

Izuku pulled out the chair from his desk and sat down. He pushed the box to the side, and opened the letter on the desk in front of him.

Izuku Midoriya,

What’s keeping you up? How early is it? 2? 3? A hero needs his sleep you know. Can’t save the world without a little shut eye.

But, I’m sure you wouldn’t be reading this if sleep would come so easily to you.

What’s keeping you up? Are you thinking about someone? Someone special?

Izuku snorted half a chuckle at that. As if he could be so carefree right now.

Is it a nightmare?

He swallowed that laugh before it even finished. How did All Might do it? How did he know exactly how he was feeling, when he had already left their world.

I had a lot of nightmares after Nana’s death. Sheesh, I had nightmares after meeting you. For months I lived in fear that I was leading you to an early grave. I would wake up in a cold sweat after seeing you torn apart by the very quirk I had given you.

But you always made it through. Those dreams weren’t real. They represented my worries, but not my reality.

Chances are, yours are different.

Izuku swallowed back his tears. Maybe he wasn’t ready for this letter after all. But it was true. The visions he saw when he closed his eyes weren’t from his imagination, they were from memory. The office floor stained red. The discarded swivel chair with it’s wheels still absently spinning. The body…

Izuku clenched his eyes shut and then opened them quickly again, trying to rid himself of the thought. He shook his head violently, and then rubbing his eyes dry.

Don’t think about it, Deku. He referred to himself with his hero name in thought. Don’t let it win.

I can’t erase your memories. But I can tell you things get better.

After Nana’s death, I didn’t think things ever would. Gran Torino’s teachings were much rougher than hers ever were. He wanted to make me stronger, but my heart was still weak after losing my mentor.

The nightmares went on for months.

One day, though, Naomasa asked me something. He asked me if I was okay.

As you know now, Naomasa knows everything about One for All. We had grown up as quirkless boys, the both of us. So, my gaining a quirk so late in my development was a huge surprise to him.

But I didn’t tell him everything right then. I just told him one word.

“No.”

He didn’t push me for answers. He just patted my back and said to me “Okay.” And then we sat quietly together for a long time. I mulled over everything that had happened. I thought about what Nana would want me to be doing. I racked my brain over why Gran Torino was pushing me so hard, so soon after losing his friend.

And then the nightmares stopped.

After that day, I was able to sleep peacefully for a while. I had the energy to fight back against Gran Torino, and my training improved.

So, I implore you to reach out to a friend. Maybe everyone is asleep, but maybe you’ll be lucky enough that one of your friends is awake, waiting for you to call them.

You don’t have to tell them everything right now. You don’t have to tell them anything , but just hearing a friendly voice might bring you peace of mind.

Sweet Dreams,

All Might

Izuku exhaled slowly. All Might really did know just what he needed to hear. He wondered if his mentor actually knew him so well, or if he was just predictable.

The boy turned his head to the edge of his desk, where his phone was still perched. He picked up the handheld device, and unlocked the home screen. He scrolled through his emails. He stopped at Ida’s first, and skimmed them. His bespectacled friend typed in all caps, asking him if he was feeling okay. Telling him to call him if he wanted to talk.

Izuku chuckled a little. The caps really fit Ida’s eccentric personality. He could practically read the messages in his voice.

“Thanks, Ida.” Izuku typed in as a reply and sent it, then moved on to another stream of messages.

When he opened Line, he found all 10 messages were from the same sender. Ochaco Uraraka had sent him 5 text messages, with 5 stickers in-between.

Deku, are you alright?

An icon of a puppy, shivering in the cold.

Sorry, I guess not.

A sticker of a striped kitten shedding a single tear.

I’m not okay, either. I’m scared.

Another shivering puppy, this one sitting in a box in the rain.

I’m so sorry you were there. I’m so sorry you were the first one to see…

A sticker with a cat with it’s ears pulled back and it’s eyes averted from the screen.

I’m worried about you.

A sticker of a pouting hamster.

Izuku ran his finger across the screen a couple times, scrolling back and forth between the messages, and then selected the text box.

“Thank you for worrying about me, Uraraka.” He typed, and pressed send.

Izuku exhaled softly, and placed his phone face down, happy with his efforts.

He just about leapt out of his skin as the phone suddenly lit up the desk under it and began vibrating.

Izuku grabbed the phone again and fumbled with it in his hands as he tried to turn the screen to his view. When he finally did, he realized he was getting a call.

“Calling - Ochaco Uraraka”

Deku held back a gasp. He hesitated for just a moment, and then hit the “accept” button, and pulled the phone to his ear.

“H-Hello?”

“Deku!” Ochaco’s voice rang through his ears, louder than anything that had reached him in days.

“H-Hi, Uraraka.” He replied with a much softer voice.

“I was so surprised to see you reply at this time of night.” She sounded tired, but her voice wasn’t clouded with sleep, so he doubted he had woken her up. “I guess you can’t sleep either, huh?”

“No… I’ve just got… a lot on my mind.”

Ochaco replied with a soft hum to show she could understand.

“But…” Izuku smiled a little, “It’s good to hear your voice.”

He heard her gasp over the line. His ears could have been tricking him, but he thought she might have giggled a little too. “I’m happy to hear yours too, Deku.”

Izuku clenched the fabric of his pant leg in his fingers.

Maybe he wouldn’t sleep tonight either, but, he might finally find some peace.

Chapter Text

The high pitch ring of his morning alarm filled Izuku’s room and shook him from his slumber. He had traded in his clock that screamed “I am Here!” for something more basic, since he found his previous one woke him from his sleep expecting to see someone who was, in fact, not there. Someone who couldn’t be there.

His old one was packed away, with maybe half of his All Might paraphernalia. He decided he that removing it all from his room at once might be too lonely, and left out his favorite, and most nostalgic items.

Izuku lifted a shaky hand and smacked the off button on his alarm, before rolling over under his covers. Why did he even bother setting one anyway?

“Izuku, time to wake up.” He heard his mother call, as she knocked on his bedroom door. “It’s your first day back to school, remember?”

Oh. That’s why.

It had been a week since the incident. 7 days since he last spoke to All Might.

It was also the first day that he had ever not wanted to go to UA.

Reluctantly, Izuku rolled out of bed and pulled his school uniform from the hanger on the back of the door. He got dressed slowly and took his time getting to the kitchen to eat breakfast.

“Do you have everything you need?” Inko asked him, over her bowl of rice, “It’s back to the dorms today, right?”

“Oh… Oh yeah. I guess it is.” Izuku hadn’t really considered it. It had only been a week, but he was getting used to home life again: just him and his mom. But, he also thought that being surrounded by so many of his peers again might be better for his mental health.

I guess I’ll need to grab one more thing then. He concluded.

After breakfast, he stood at the door with his school bags, plus another bag of clean clothes, courtesy of Inko. On top of that bag, he had laid his box of letters from All Might, taped back up to keep out wandering eyes.

“Are you going to be all right?” Inko asked. She ran her fingers through her son’s bangs and patted his cheek gently. “If you want to take a couple more days off, no one will blame you.”

If he was being honest, Izuku would have gladly taken than suggestion. But he remembered how far behind he had fallen when he was expelled. He couldn’t risk his studies for the comfort of home. So he shook his head. “Thanks Mom, but I’ll be okay.”

Mother and son exchanged a short hug, then said their goodbyes, and Izuku set out for school.

On his way to class, other UA students passed Izuku, giving him hellos or simply nodding their heads or grinning. Some ignored him altogether. He wore a shaky, but forced smile the whole walk there.

The gates to his school never seemed so enormous to him. He unconsciously hesitated, stopping in his tracks when he walked into it’s shadow. Students behind him mumbled and whispered in confusion as they walked around him.

Izuku’s shaky smile had been traded out for a frown, and he looked down from the gate to his feet. Maybe he would just go home after all.

“Deku! Good Morning!”

“You’ll be late if you stop, Midoriya!”

Two hands smacked Izuku’s back at the same time, and he stumbled forward, through the gate. Izuku turned back to see Tenya Ida and Ochaco Uraraka behind him. The tall boy holding his hand up in what looked like a salute, and the brunette waving at him cheerfully.

“Don’t hold up traffic, ya’ damned trash.” A familiar voice growled. Katsuki stomped past Ochaco and Tenya, and glared at Izuku, right in the eye, as he passed him too.

Ochaco squinted her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Katsuki, but the group, for the most part, paid him no mind.

“Are you ready to go in, Deku?” Ochaco asked, leaning towards her green haired classmate.

“Yes, the pros have promised it is safe for us students again. No more mystery intruders waving around knives now.” Tenya explained, striking his hands about as usual.

“Ida!” Ochaco whispered harshly to her tall friend, and elbowed him in the side.

Tenya turned his attention to Izuku, to see the shorter boy’s face had gone pale. He was biting his lip and his whole body was tense.

Tenya exhaled in spite of himself, and his brow furrowed. “I’m sorry, Midoriya. That was insensitive of me.” His shoulders slumped with guilt.

Izuku gulped audibly, and then let out a deep breath. “To be honest, I don’t want to go in.” He said. Both Ochaco and Tenya frowned. “It happened here, after all.”

His friends balled up their fists, not knowing how to respond.

“But, I’m going to go in.” Izuku looked up at them with a new, shaky smile. Tears fought their way to the corner of his eyes, though he tried to keep them inside. “I’ll do it for him.”

Ochaco and Tenya’s expressions were still terribly worried though.

“But, I could use some help.” Izuku stated, and then held his hands up to his friends.

Tenya looked puzzled at what his friend meant, but Ochaco, who understood right away, took Izuku’s hand in hers and stood at his side. Tenya let out a soft “Ah!” when he caught on, and followed suit.

Then the three walked into school, hand in hand.

Class went by quicker than Izuku expected. Aizawa made mention that the school was safe, as Tenya had already stated, but did not mention anything about All Might.

Izuku took notes diligently in every class, and found that working distracted him from his troubles.

He was leaving his last class of the day when Aizawa caught him in the hallway.

“Midoriya.” His homeroom speaker called his name, and he turned around to meet the tired man face to face. “If you wouldn’t mind, could you come with me to the faculty office?”

Izuku froze. Words caught in his throat. He bit his lip, and then slowly inhaled and exhaled. “S-Sure, Mr. Aizawa. No problem.” He stuttered.

Hesitantly, the boy followed his teacher to the offices. He trailed a couple feet behind him. Inside, his stomach was churning. Why did he have to go there? He didn’t want to. Not yet.

The sound of the door sliding open brought him back to reality, and he watched Aizawa enter the room.

Suddenly, Izuku’s feet couldn’t move. His heart was pounding in his ears. This was it. This is where it happened. He didn’t want to go in. There was blood. So much blood. And All Might would be there, on the floor, not moving--not breathing. He couldn’t go in. He just couldn’t!

“Hey, Kid. Step lively.” His homeroom teacher’s voice ripped him out of his terrible memories, and back to the real world.

Aizawa could see how the boy’s face had paled. He was painfully stiff. He wasn’t going to move on his own. The dark haired man sighed. He reached for Izuku’s arm, but the boy flinched away.

“Look.” Aizawa said sternly, “You need to come in. You need to see this room.”

Izuku’s eyes were wide with fear and worry and heartache, but he lowered his defences, and nodded slowly. “Sorry, sir.” He whimpered. Aizawa sighed, but nodded, and walked back into the room, with Izuku behind him.

The first thing Izuku noticed when he came into the room was at his feet. Whole new flooring through the entire space. He looked up in surprise, and the next thing caught his eye.

All Might’s desk was gone.

Not empty or replaced: just gone. A blank space was where it belonged. Izuku’s heart sank again.

“I’m sorry. I know… this is tough.” Aizawa sighed, “For us members of the faculty to have allowed you to be the first to enter the scene of the crime is unforgivable. We can’t do anything to fix that now, though.”

Izuku clenched his fists at his side, keeping his eyes cast to the ground as he fought back his imminent tears.

“But, we want to erect a memorial of some kind, here. Where his desk was.” Aizawa walked over the the empty space, and Izuku followed. He stood where his mentor used to sit every weekday. Where he would answer his phone and eat his lunch. Where he graded all his students’ papers.

“And the rest of the faculty thought we should ask you to design it.” Aizawa finished his statement.

Izuku turned his head up quickly towards his teacher, surprised by his words, and tears fell from his eyes. He tried to find the words he wanted to say, but then turned his head down again. “I don’t deserve to. I didn’t do anything for him…” His voice shook and cracked through every word.

Aizawa sighed once again, and then reached for Izuku’s head, ruffling his hair under his palm. “Just… think about it.”

Izuku took a deep, wet breath, and tried not to sob. “I just… I miss him so much.” His voice was followed by the sound of his tears hitting the floor.

“I know kid.” Aizawa spoke softly, still stroking the student’s head. “I know.”

Later that night, Izuku sat in his dorm room, on the floor with his back against the bed. He thought about what Aizawa had asked him, but still couldn’t think of any reason that he deserved such an honor.

He stretched his legs out and pushed his unpacked duffle bag across the floor. Then he heard something tumble down from on top of it.

All Might’s box of letters now lay on top of Izuku’s outstretched leg.

He sighed. “What? Are you trying to tell me to read one?” He asked the box. Or maybe he was asking All Might. He didn’t really know himself.

Izuku stretched out to the box and brought it back to his lap. He peeled back the tape he had added to it that morning, and began to shuffle through it. He pulled out the letter he had looked at each time he opened the box.

On the top of it was written: “When You Miss Me.”

Dear Midoriya,

 I miss you too.

Izuku rubbed away his new tears that immediately developed at the first line.

At least, I’m sure I do now. I don’t know where I’ll end up. Heaven or Hell. Maybe I’ve already been reincarnated as a new life to look over you. Maybe I haven’t passed on at all, and my spirit is hanging over your shoulder reading this letter too. If you feel something on your left shoulder, that’s me.

Izuku chuckled lightly. He wasn’t surprised, but still felt a little disappointed to not feel his mentor’s ghost pat his shoulder.

I don’t know what I did to deserve your praise. When I first met you, you were just another fanboy. I’d met other fans like you before, though none quite as insistent. Even young Nighteye was more reserved than you, and he tired me out so much I let him be my one and only sidekick!

He hadn’t written it, but he could almost hear All Might’s boisterous laughter after that line.

But the more I got to know you, I saw how dedicated you were. How strong your will power was. You’re a better man than I ever could have dreamed of being.

“There’s no way that’s true, All Might.” Izuku murmured quietly.

But no matter how well you got to know me, your dedication never dwindled. Even after you witnessed my weaknesses, and you realized I was not the omnipotent hero I made myself out to be, you still treated me like I was the only person worth your praise.

Midoriya, my boy, although I don’t deserve your praise, it still means the world to me. I cherished each and every praise you gave me, as I am sure you cherished all of mine for you.

So, I ask you to continue cherish those memories. Whether they are good or bad. As long as they are of me, I know I’ll live on inside you. I know I can’t ask you to not miss me, but I want you to know I’m still here for you. I’m here, Midoriya.

My spirit might not be hanging over your shoulder. I might not be teaching your class, or sitting at my desk, but I’m still here.

I’m in every smash you punch or kick out. I’m in every word and trick and technique you learned from me. I’m in your smile, as shaky as it may be.

I’m in these letters. Reread them as many times as you need. Read them over and over until the ink all rubs out. Frame them in your room if you want. Do whatever it takes to remember that I will never leave you alone.

And, in some small way, if you could let the rest of the students of 1-A know the same, I would be grateful. Every one of you kids deserves to know I’m watching over you. Every one of my students should know that, no matter how far away I am, I miss them.

I know you can find a way, because you are Deku.

Thank You,

All Might

Izuku smiled with a sigh and looked at the ceiling.

“Well,” He whispered, and reached for an empty notebook and a pen. “I guess I don’t have a choice now.”

Izuku flipped open to the first blank page, wrote at the top, “All Might’s Memorial, concept #1” and began to draw.

Chapter Text

The chatter throughout the classroom was unbelievably loud. Every mouth was full of words, ready to share opinions, retelling the previous night, or just bragging about a accomplishment long past. Despite all the noise, however, Izuku had dozed off at his desk.

The mop-haired boy had his head cradled in his arms, and was softly snoring away the morning while his classmates socialized.

Ochaco turned her head for a moment, distracted from her conversation with Ida, and noticed her other best friend snoozing.

“Awe, look at Deku.” She squeaked, “He’s out cold.”

“Sleeping at his desk with hurt his posture.” Ida spoke knowingly, “We should awake him before Mr. Aizawa arrives.”

“Yeah, I guess you’re--” Ochaco’s words were cut off when the sliding door slammed open. All the students immediately jumped into their seats. Except Bakugo, who scoffed at his classmates, before taking his time sliding off Kirishima’s desk and making his way to his own.

“Alright class, listen up.” Aizawa spoke, walking into the room and down the aisle of desks. “I have an important announcement to make.” As he passed Izuku’s desk, he smacked the boy on the head with the class roll book.

“Hu-wha?” Izuku jumped awake. His classmates stifled their laughs, and his face turned red with embarrassment. “S-Sorry, sir.” He stuttered.

Ochaco pressed her hands together, winking at him, as she tried to apologize quietly for not waking him beforehand.

“You have it, don’t you?” Aizawa asked the confused boy. Izuku looked at him blankly as he tried to pull his teacher’s words together and make sense of them.

“O-Oh!” He exclaimed, “Yeah. I have it here.” He looked down at the notebook in front of him on his desk. He flinched awkwardly when he noticed the drool on it’s cover, and quickly rubbed it off with his sleeve, before opening it to a marked page, and handing it to Aizawa.

His instructor gave the page a once over, and nodded to him, then made his way back to the front of the class.

To Izuku’s surprise, Aizawa held the notebook up in the air for the class to see. “In addition to the public memorial in Tokyo, the faculty is erecting a private memorial for All Might in the faculty office where he once sat. Midoriya was already asked to design the memorial. Anyone who is interested in helping with its construction can come to the faculty office during lunch hours.”

“Haaaah?” Bakugo’s voice echoed through the classroom. “What the shit is that?” His voice was followed by the stomp of his foot on his desk, and the boy stood on his chair with the other foot, looming of the class. “Why the fuck should Deku get to design that? What’s so great about him?”

“Sit down , Bakugo.” Aizawa growled. His eyes flashed red and his scarf began to float a small bit around his neck.

Bakugo growled under his breath. He nearly shouted Make Me! To his teacher, but was fully aware that Aizawa would do just that. Begrudgingly, the boy took his seat again, but didn’t pull his glare away from Izuku, who nervously avoided eye contact.

Aizawa sighed and relaxed. “If anyone has any problem with the project, they can also come to the faculty office to voice their concerns. ” He finished. “That’s all. You may prepare for first period.” And with that, Aizawa wrapped himself in his sleeping bag, and collapsed to the floor.

During class, Izuku mulled over what Katsuki had said in his outburst. Bakugo’s reaction hadn’t been that different from his own, albeit much angier. But he had decided he would design the memorial anyway, because All Might had asked him to make sure the class knew he cherished them. He asked him for a favor from beyond the grave.

But he also understood his lifelong rival’s anger; because All Might cared for all his students, why did Izuku deserve special treatment? Well, he knew why All Might thought he might. But the other faculty did not know the truth to their relationship as mentor and pupil. Why did they ask him to do the design? Was it just out of pity? An apology because they weren’t able to save him from the sight of his hero’s death?

Izuku clenched his pant leg in his fist under the desk. Maybe he would ask them on his lunch break.

So, after second period, when the bell rang for lunch, Izuku gathered his backpack and readied himself to rush to the faculty office.

“Deku?”

Ochaco’s voice pulled his attention back to the moment. He turned to his friend to find a concerned visage.

“Wh-What is it, Uraraka?” He stuttered.

“You shouldn’t…” She spoke slowly at first, like she was trying to figure out what she wanted to say. Then she stepped closer to him, raising her fist to her chest and spoke again. “You shouldn’t worry about what Bakugo said. I’m sure whatever you designed was great!”

Izuku stared at her wide eyed, taken aback by her earnest words. He averted his eyes from her determined expression, and rubbed the back of his head with his hand. “Thanks, Uraraka.” He mumbled. “I just… I need to go to the faculty office real quick. I’ll meet you and Ida in the cafeteria, okay?”

Ochaco lowered her hands to her side and pouted. “Oh, okay.” She waved slowly as her friend headed out without her, and then turned back to Ida, who had observed the whole exchange.

Izuku hadn’t even opened the door to the faculty office, before he realized Katsuki had beat him there.

“This is bullshit! Deku doesn’t deserve special treatment!” The blond boy shouted at the top of his lungs. “I could design a much better memorial than him anyday. ”

Izuku slowly opened the door just a crack, and peeked inside. Bakugo was stomping back and forth in front of Aizawa, who was slumped in his chair, looking more tired than usual. “You haven’t even seen it yet…” The black haired man sighed.

“That doesn’t matter! Anything he makes is garbage! Just ‘cause he was here first, doesn’t mean…” Katsuki’s voice cracked a little, to Izuku’s surprise. “It doesn’t mean he deserves to decide how I remember All Might.”

Aizawa’s attention was caught by the boy’s shaking body. He stood, and placed a hand on Katsuki’s shoulder. “Bakugo, if you need to talk…”

“I don’t need ANYTHING!” Katsuki shouted obstinately, and slapped away Aizawa’s hand. He turned on his heel and stormed towards the door, slamming it open. Izuku leapt back from his classmate, but Bakugo’s eyes immediately struck him, and he stomped closer. He growled nonsensically in Izuku’s face, which normally would intimidate the boy, but Deku was distracted by the pained look on Bakugo’s face.

Without saying any actual words, Bakugo turned away from Izuku and stormed off towards the cafeteria.

Izuku took a deep breath as Katsuki’s stomping got further and further away.

“Do you want to take the design back?” Aizawa’s voice make Izuku jolt in surprise. He noticed his teacher leaning out of the doorway in front of him. “If you really don’t want your design to be the final one, we can ask someone else.”

Izuku looked at his feet, which he brushed against the tile floor under him, considering his answer. “No… I want to do this.”

Aizawa nodded, and leaned back into the doorway. “Good. If that’s all, you should go to lunch.”

Izuku nodded, and turned from the door.

Aizawa walked slowly back to his desk and slumped back into his chair. As soon as he did though, another voice called his name.
“Um, sir.”

Aizawa looked back to the doorway.

“I’d like to do what I can to help.” Ochaco stood at the doorway, clutching a fist in front of her.

That night, Izuku ate dinner in the dorm’s dining area. Ida and Kirishima kept him company most the night, chatting with him and asking questions about the memorial.

“You shouldn’t worry too much about what Bakugo says, you know how he gets when he’s angry.” Kirishima told him over dinner.

“Yes. The Bakugo we know is always pent up over something. It’s nothing to get down over, Midoriya.” Ida agreed.

Izuku took their words to mind, but still was hung up on how hurt Bakugo had looked when he glared at him earlier that day. He didn’t see Bakugo at all that night, and was sure he had come home before him and shut himself in his room to brood.

After dinner, Izuku excused himself and went to his own room. He collapsed on his bed and sighed to himself. Bakugo knew Izuku’s secret. He thought it had brought them closer to being friend again, like when they were kids: before Katsuki developed his quirk; before Katsuki began to think he was better than Izuku.

But now Katsuki was just furious with Izuku. So angry he couldn’t speak to him.

“What if I really don’t deserve this?” Izuku mumbled. He held his hand up in the air, reaching out to the ceiling. “All Might, you put so much faith in me. But, I don’t deserve it. I’m nothing special.” He sighed, and let his hand slump down again. It slipped off the bed and into a pile of papers.

Without needing to look, Izuku realized his hand had fallen into All Might’s letters to him.

He didn’t dig through the box, but just took it as a sign to read one, and plucked off the top from the pile, and brought it back to his face.

When you don’t feel important

Izuku chuckled at how appropriate it was, and then sat up to read it.

Midoriya,

My boy, how can you not feel important?

“Easy for you to say,” Izuku sighed, “You’re the symbol of peace.”

Or at least… you were. He tried not to hear himself think.

Everyone is important. Every single person on the planet.

But you are even more so, because you are the next symbol of peace.

Have you said it yet? Have you looked out at the world and said “I am Here”?

I’m sorry I missed that. I’m sorry I missed so, so many things. But even if I’m not there to see them, everything you do is important.

Every little thing that happens in the world changes the future in some way. And you’re going to change the world in a big way. You’re going to bring the world the peace it deserves. That’s what I fought for, and that’s the job I passed to you.

Remember what you said when your mother didn’t want you to return to UA after the Kamino incident?

Izuku’s mind suddenly filled with memories of All Might’s battle against All for One. It was the first moment that All Might had ever seemed mortal to him. It was the first real time that he thought he was going to lose his hero.

But the reality of it happening was much more earth shattering than that previous fear.

You told her it didn’t matter where you studied, because you would become a hero no matter what. And you showed her that letter of the boy thanking you.

When that boy thanked you, how did you feel?

Izuku turned his eyes away from the page and up at the ceiling. He remembered putting his life on the line for Kota. Kota, who had previously been so feisty and spirited, had become terrified and unable to move.

When he received the letter from him, he really felt it for the first time. Like he really could become a hero. It wasn’t something he was told out of pity. It wasn’t just a dream or an expectation. It was a reality.

You were that boy’s hero. And you’re mine too. So don’t let anyone make you think you’re not worthy of being who you are. Don’t let anything ruin your smile.

You are the future of this world.

You are Deku.

What was it that Uravity said that meant?

Do your best!!!

So don’t you dare give up!

All Might

Izuku laid the letter on his chest. “Okay, All Might. I’ll do my best.” He whispered, and rolled onto his side. As he began to doze off, Izuku realized he hadn’t seen Ochaco come back to the dorms that night.

“Deku! Deku wake up!!”

Izuku jolted awake. He found himself in his bed with the lights still on, but the sun was rising now. He turned his head to his door, where he heard Ochaco knocking on it non stop and shouting his name.

The boy stumbled over to the door and pulled it open. Ochaco was waiting outside of it, nearly jumping up and down with excitement. She showed him a great smile, which was blinding so early in the morning.

“What is it, Uraraka?” He yawned, and held his hand over his mouth. “It’s Saturday…” To his surprise, Ochaco snatched his upheld hand and began to drag him out of his room. “Wh-waoh! Where are we going?”

“Where do you think?” She cheered, turning her head over her shoulder. “It’s done!”

He furrowed his brow in confusion. “Done? What’s done?” Maybe he was still tired, but she wasn’t making any sense to him.

“Duh!” She laughed at his oblivious expression, “The memorial!”

Izuku’s eyes widened.

As Ochaco dragged him into the school with her, she told him that she had recruited Momo to help make materials for the memorial. With Momo’s quirk creating resources, and Ochaco’s lightening them, they were easy for anyone to work with.

“Honestly, Momo made the base for everything, we just had to refine it. But, we still worked way into the night on it. ” She chirped. Izuku only then noticed the dark circles around her eyes. “We wouldn’t have made it in time, if it weren’t for Bakugo that is.”
Deku was more surprised by that than anything. “Kacchan?” He was sure Katsuki was more likely to destroy their hard work than help.

“Yeah!” She cheered, “It was great, he came in pissing and moaning like usual, but then…” She slowed down a bit in her rush, and Izuku was finally able to walk right next to her. She turned a smile to him, “But then he saw your design, and he all of a sudden wanted to help. And he was a big help, though he had to keep his quirk out of it.”

“Kacchan… liked the design?” Izuku asked in almost a whisper.

“Yeah, Deku.” Ochaco’s fingers squeezed his hand tightly, and he felt the blood rush to his face. “Of course he did. You’re amazing.”

Deku stared at her with mouth agape. He took a deep breath, and then averted his eyes shyly, “Thanks, Uraraka.”

Ochaco grinned, and then the two of them found themselves in front of the faculty office. Even with the door closed, they could hear the commotion inside. Izuku hesitated to open it, but Ochaco grabbed the sliding door’s handle and slammed it open. All of class 1-A and many faculty members turned their heads to the entrance.

Izuku suddenly felt terribly nervous, as the spot light abruptly shone on him. The room was quiet for just a second, before it broke out in cheers.

“Midoriya, this is amazing!” Kirishima shouted over the crowd.

“It’s so cute!” Hagakure chimed it.

“I can’t believe you designed this!” Ashido cheered, “It’s so cool!”

Deku laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head bashfully. He felt Ochaco’s hands on his shoulders, and she guided him into the room. As Izuku made his way through the crowd, his classmates patted him on the back and shoulders, grinning at him the whole time.

When he reached the spot that All Might’s desk once stood, he found Bakugo lying on the floor, with a whittler's knife in hand, carving at the bottom of an enormous piece of wood.

“Oi! I told you guys I wasn’t done yet! What the fuck is Deku doing here?!” Katsuki shouted at his classmate, but they all seemed to chuckle at his anger.

“Oh calm down, Bakugo. If we had to wait for your permission, we’d never be allowed to show Deku.” Ochaco grinned at him.

Bakugo scoffed. “Whatever.” He sat up and turned his head away from his work.

The wood acted as a base of the memorial statue, but also had carvings in it. There were short figures carving out going all the way around the wooden, circular base, each of which was designed to look like a different member of class 1-A.

Standing on the base was a life sized stone statue of All Might, in his favorite pin striped suit. He stood with his arm crossed and his signature smile on his face.

Izuku walked around the back to have a better look at the figures at the bottom, and found the second half of the statue. Hiding behind All Might in his muscular glory, stood another statue of All Might in his shrivelled form, smiling all the same.

Izuku made a full circle around the statue and then stopped in front of it to read the text that Bakugo had been perfecting when he had arrived.

“In Memorial of All Might. Who gave his all for the world, and gave everything he had to his students. May his memories live on in each of us.”

Izuku bit his lip, but didn’t really fight the tears that formed in his eyes. He rubbed his eyes with his sleeve, and turned to his classmates. “Thank you, guys.”

Everyone grinned and giggled for him.

“No way, Deku.” Ochaco stepped close to him and nudged him with her elbow. “Thank you. No one else could have designed something like this.”

“Tch.” Bakugo scoffed, as he came to his feet. “It’s not bad. But it was a lot of work, so you owe me.” With that, the blond kid kicked his way through the crowd and left.

Once he was out of earshot, Ochaco leaned closer to Izuku, and whispered to him. “You’d never guess it, but I totally swear I saw Bakugo crying while he worked on this.”

Izuku turned a surprise look to the girl, but was caught off guard when Aizawa’s hand landed on his shoulder. “You did good, kid.” He told him, “All Might would be proud.”

Izuku grew a bittersweet, shaky smile.

“I know.”

Chapter Text

It was cold.

“I…”

Winter had come in late that year, and it was a frost bitten february.

“Deku, I…”

Ochaco’s frozen fingers clenched onto her skirt, like she was hanging on for dear life.

“I like you.”

Izuku’s couldn’t bring his eyes up to look at her. They were locked on the handmade chocolate in his hands. Chocolate he never thought he would be given willingly. Honmei Chocolate: Chocolate to represent one’s true feelings.

“I like you! Deku!”

Her voice was louder now, she was putting her whole heart into this confession, screaming through the wind and snow that blew between them.

Izuku’s brow furrowed. He took a deep breath, but he still couldn’t look at her.

Slowly, he reached his hand out, offering the chocolate back to the girl who had given it to him.

“I’m sorry, Uraraka.” He heard a broken gasp from her, and shut his eyes tight. If he looked at her now, he might break too. “I can’t accept this.”

He could hear her trying to tell him it was okay, though her trembling voice gave away how she really felt. He felt the chocolate leave his cold hands.

“I’m sorry.” He repeated, and then turned and ran without looking back.

Izuku’s eyes were downcast as he reached the dorms. I’m such a coward. He repeated in his head over and over again. She didn’t deserve that.

When the boy opened the door to the dorms, heads turned as if on queue. Ashido, Jirou, and Hagakure were all staring at him with huge, curious, anticipant eyes. (Well, he could only assume for Hagakure.) His stomach sank. They knew what had transpired. They were clearly waiting for the outcome.

He quickly turned his gaze away from the girls, pulling the door shut behind him, and stumbled up the stairs for the second floor. He heard the girls gasp and begin to chatter amongst each other. He was sure Ochaco would only be shortly behind. At least she had friends waiting to console her.

Izuku dragged himself into his room and collapsed on the floor next to his bed. His body shivered, but not just from the cold outside. He took a shaky breath, and then pulled his knees up to his chest and hugged them, hiding his face in them.

A few months ago he would have been ecstatic to have heard those words from Uraraka. He wouldn’t have believed them either. But that wasn’t why he turned her down. It was because he believed her that he felt he had to.

Uraraka was Izuku’s first crush. Maybe his first love. She was the first girl he ever spoke to. She was his first friend besides Katsuki, with whom he walked the line between friend and enemy every day.

She was the person who called him “Deku” and caused the paradigm shift that turned his world upside down.

Not long ago, he would have done anything to know she felt the same about him.

But things had changed since All Might’s death. For the first time, he felt the crushing sadness of losing someone close to him. It was suffocating. He was still healing. He spent every day terrified that someone else could be taken from him.

And, when Ochaco confessed to him, with the snow falling around them and the wind in their ears, he realized what being All Might’s successor meant.

Izuku was the future symbol of peace. The next world pillar. He would have to put his life on the line every day. Villains would come from across the world to take him down. Some mystery assailant could come take his life any day.

Just like one had to All Might.

And anyone who loved him would have to live with the pain he was in now.

The very idea broke him. His fantasies of dating Uraraka; of holding her hand in public; of watching movies late into the night; of waking up next to her; all of his dreams turned to nightmares in an instant. All he could think of was her tears. Her sobbing over his casket and screaming at him for leaving her.

The very idea brought fresh tears to his eyes. Izuku sobbed into his knees. He wanted to apologize over and over again for breaking her heart. She didn’t deserve this. She had worked so hard for the perfect Valentine’s Day scenario and he had gone and ruined it.

Izuku took a deep, quaking breath, and turned his head to the ceiling. “Am I doing the right thing, All Might?” His voice wasted in the empty air around him. “I don’t want to hurt her…”

Then, a thought came to his mind. Izuku rolled onto the carpet on his side. He wiped the tears from his eyes and peered under his bed. He could just barely make out the shape of a small box shoved into the corner in the darkness. He reached, stretching his arm as far as he could, and caught the edge of the box with his index finger, slowly dragging it out from under the mattress.

Once revealed, he swept off the dust from the box from All Might. It had been months since he last read a letter from him, but he had remembered seeing one in particular before. A letter that he thought was strange at the time. One that didn’t suit the mood of the rest of the letters. He dug his way through the box, and found it.

When It’s Valentine’s and I’m Not Around

He wondered what had caused All Might to think to write this letter. Was it Valentine’s Day the previous year when he thought of it? Still, he thanked All Might for thinking ahead, and hoped that this letter had the answers he needed.

Peeling away the aging tape, he opened the letter.

Dear Midoriya,

Is it the season of love already? Do you have someone on your mind? Someone you hope might give you chocolate? Someone you would do anything for?

Is it Uraraka?

Izuku laughed dryly. He really was just that transparent, wasn’t he?

Does her name still make your heart skip a beat? Whenever that girl spoke to you, you would become so flustered. Sometimes, the same happened to her, when she was staring at you without your knowing.

Uraraka did that?

I hope you haven’t waited too long to read this. I’d hate to think that someone could have stolen her heart from you, while you were hesitating.

“That would be better for her.” Izuku told himself, “Anyone besides me would be…”

But maybe you don’t want to hear relationship advice from me. Me, who had no romantic encounters under my belt in all my years. But, that was my choice.

As you know, my master’s husband was killed by a villain who was targeting her. And, because of that, she gave her own son up for adoption to protect him.

I looked up to my master, but due to knowing that her love for her family was what ultimately tore her family apart, I vowed to never fall in love.

Izuku’s heart sank. He had made the same decision as All Might after all. He wasn’t sure if it was a good decision, but now, he felt it was the right one.

Don’t be like me.

Izuku’s eyes flashed wide open again at that line.

Holy shit, don’t make the same decision as me. Loving someone is not a weakness. I learned that when I found myself in love with 20 students. I love each and every one of you, and that love gave me strength. I constantly found myself able to push past my limit if it was for you kids.

I learned my lesson too late. I don’t know if I can say I regret not falling in love, but I do regret not letting others into my heart until so close to my end.

I don’t want you to have those regrets too. The “what if’s” of missed opportunities can become much heavier than the disappointment of rejection.

So, don’t you dare reject your chance at love. Reach out and grab it. Hold onto it.

And if it is still Uraraka you long for, hold onto her. She believes in you. And you need to believe in her too. Believe that she can fight her own battles, that she will always come home safe, and she will believe in your safe return too.

Please don’t let your heart go to waste, as it is the biggest heart I’ve ever witnessed.

Best Wishes,

All Might

Izuku’s hands were shaking. He kept rereading the letter, making sure he understood, and then he scrambled to his feet. He left the letter on the floor behind him, and tripped out of his dorm’s door, not bothering to even shut it.

The green haired boy rushed up the stairs, past the third floor and up to the fourth. He ran down the corridor to the last door on the right, and grabbed at the handle.

And then he froze.

He could hear her inside. For a moment, he was just relieved that she had made it back to the dorms safely, and kicked himself mentally for leaving her alone in the cold. Then, his heart sank as he realized just what he was hearing.

She was crying. Her voice cracked, sobs interrupting every couple words, as she wailed to Ashido, who he could hear trying to console her.

His chest felt tight, as he loosened his grip on the doorknob. Instead, he softly knocked at the door.

He heard her snivel out a “Huh?”

“Maybe it’s Toru, or Kyoka.” He heard Ashido say. After a moment, the door cracked open, and the pink haired girl stood in the crack of the entrance. Her black eyes opened wide at the sight of him, and then her brow knotted and she grimaced. “What do you want?”

He was at a loss for words. He tried to look past her. If he could just catch Uraraka’s eye, he was sure she would speak to him.

“Oh, no. You’re not coming in here.” Ashido griped, “Haven’t you done enough already?” And with that, Ashido slammed the door shut.

Izuku clenched his fists, but he wasn’t angry. Not with Ashido at least. Maybe with himself. Mostly with himself. He shut his eyes tight, and held in a sob. He was such an idiot.

“Was that Deku?”

His head shot back up when he heard her voice again. He heard shuffling in the room.

“You shouldn’t see him, Ochaco!” Ashido shouted, “He’s just a jerk.”

“No, he’s not!” Ochaco nearly screeched. Even Izuku flinched at her volume. He heard her breathing hard, and then some footsteps towards the door. “Don’t ever let me hear you say that about Deku.”

Izuku couldn’t take his eyes from the doorknob as it turned. He took a big gulp of air, and then the door opened, and his eyes met hers. Her wet, red, hopeful eyes. She took a deep breath, and then cried out his name. “Deku!” Without knowing what was happening, Izuku found Ochaco leaping into his arms.

“I’m sorry, Deku! I’m sorry!” She sobbed. Her arms were tight around his back, and her forehead was buried in his shoulder as she sobbed warm tears onto him. “Please don’t stop being my friend!”

Izuku’s strength left him when he heard those words. He dropped to his knees, bringing Uraraka with him as she let out a tiny yelp.

“Why would I… I would never… I couldn’t…!” Izuku stuttered out words, unable to form a whole sentence. He wrapped one arm around Ochaco, and the other he stroked through her hair, trying to calm her tears. “I love you, Uraraka.”

The words left his mouth without his will. That wasn’t what he had come to say. His heart began beating faster--too fast--he could barely breath. No, no no no. He didn’t mean to say that. Not yet.

Ochaco had fallen silent, but her hold on Izuku was just as strong.

He needed to explain himself.

“I’m sorry…” He mumbled into her shoulder, and then propped his chin up so he could whisper into her ear. “I didn’t want to hurt you. I’m just… I’m so scared Uraraka.” He took a deep, shaky breath, as tears began streaming down his face. “Ever since we lost All Might, I’m so scared to lose someone else. And I’m so, so , scared of leaving someone behind. I wanted to save you from losing me. So, I tried to push you away.” He continued to stroke his fingers through her hair, “I’ve always dreamed that you might like me. But, I’d given up.”

Ochaco was still quiet, but she had begun to rub Izuku’s back, trying to quell the seemingly endless fountain of tears that ran down his cheeks.

“I wanted your chocolate. I wanted to hold your hand. I wanted to love you and be loved by you.” He sobbed out every word he had kept secret for the longest time, “But I didn’t want to hurt you. But I did anyway. And I’m so… so sorry.”

This time, Ochaco pulled away. She released herself from Izuku’s embrace, and for just a moment, she faced the teary eyed boy with a strong, resolute stare. Then, she stood. She turned and left the tearful mess that called himself Izuku on the wooden floor, and walked back into her apartment. He heard Ashido whisper a “What the hell, Ochaco?” but the brunette ignored her pink friend. She walked out of Deku’s view from the open door, and then returned after only a moment. She paced right back out the door, and kneeled down to Deku, holding a box in her hand. Opening it, she revealed the chocolate she had offered him that morning. Except now, the heart shape was broken into many smaller pieces.

“Sorry, I threw it away… but it should still be good.” She spoke sheepishly, and then held it out to Izuku.

The green haired boy only half understood what was happening, but he reached out a shaky hand for the chocolate. Before he took it though, Ochaco snatched it away.

“Deku, if you accept this chocolate, you have to promise me! You have to promise you’re not going to lie to me to keep me safe. Never again.” She put as much emphasis on ‘never’ as she could.

Izuku’s eyes shook, barely able to stay concentrated on her earnest expression. He turned his glance away, unable to hold the same resolve at the moment. “What if I get hurt?”

“Then I’ll protect you!” Ochaco replied. The immediacy of her response brought his eyes back to hers.

“What if I don’t come home?” He asked.

“Then I’ll go look for you!”

“What if someone uses you as a hostage to get to me?”

“Then I’ll fight until I’m free!”

“What if I…” Izuku’s gaze softened, “What if I told you I loved you?”

Ochaco was taken aback by that question. She grew a solemn smile, and chuckled softly. “You already did.”

Izuku laughed awkwardly, “Yeah, I guess I did…” He picked up a small piece of the chocolate, and examined it half heartedly.

“What if I told you the same?” Ochaco spoke up, bringing Izuku’s attention back to her. “That I love you, too.”

Izuku dropped the chocolate, and he felt his face grow warm. He slapped a hand over his mouth, as the gravity of the situation finally set in. He had confessed to Uraraka. And not with the same “like” she had said to him that morning. He had said “love”. And just now, she…

Ochaco pushed the box of chocolate out from between them. She crawled on her knees, closing the distance between herself and the young man. “Well, what would you do, Deku?” She asked.

Deku had timidly leaned back, and was now balancing his weight on his hands behind him, but Ochaco only crawled closer.

He shut his eyes, and drew a sharp breath. “I’d promise to always be there for you. And to never lie to you. And to love you with my whole heart!” He nearly shouted.

With that, Ochaco beamed a wonderful smile at him. He felt like all the tears under his eyes were being dried by the morning sun, and he couldn’t help but share a shaky smile himself. Then, Ochaco threw her arms around him, collapsing onto Izuku and knocking him onto his back. He let out an ‘oof’, but the girl didn’t seem to notice. She hugged him tight, and rubbed her head against his chest. “You make me so happy, Deku.”

Ashido stood at the doorway and stared down the hall towards the stairwell, at Jiro and Hagakure, who had been lured upstairs by the commotion. The pink girl shrugged, “Seems like it worked out afterall.” And then she shared a smile with her friends, who came running over to Ochaco.

“Oh, cuddling in the hallway. How brave~” Hagakura teased.

Izuku’s face was red, not exactly welcoming an audience, but Ochaco seemed content where she was, on the floor on top of him, so he turned his head away to try to avoid their eye contact, and stroked Ochaco’s hair softly.

And for the first time in a long, long time, he started to really feel like things were going to get better.

Chapter Text

Spring had come. Spring had come twice more since All Might’s passing, and class 1-A was 1-A no more. They were not 2-A, and, by the end of tomorrow, they would not be Class 3-A either.

Graduation was finally here.

It was the night before, and Izuku was leaning over his desk, wracking his brain over the blank paper in front of him.

“How’s the speech going?” Ochaco asked as she walked out of the rest room in a bathrobe, and a towel wrapped around her brown hair. “My sweet little valedictorian~” Izuku blushed and chuckled gently as she ruffled his green curls.

Ochaco’s eyes fell to the paper on his desk. “Oh. Not well, huh?”

Izuku’s spirits dropped again. “No, not really.” He sighed. “You should probably head to bed before me.”

Ochaco now had her arms around Izuku’s neck and her head onto of his. “If you think so…” She said with her cheeks puffed up in disappointment. “Can I stay here? Mister Aizawa already did the room check, right?”

“Yeah, it did not look good that you were in my shower.” Izuku turned his head to the side, remembering his teacher reprimanding him no more than twenty minutes ago. “He might come check your room later, so you probably should go.”

“Booo…” Ochaco sighed, but hopped up. “Well, good luck, Deku.” She gave him a gentle peck on the cheek, and then said goodnight, before letting herself out.

Izuku waved goodbye to his girlfriend, and turned back to his paper. Despite there being nothing written yet, he couldn’t help but smile. He had made it. All the way through high school, and at the top of the class. He knew All Might would be proud of him.

But, he didn’t know how to say goodbye to his school. He didn’t know how to portray his love and respect for all his classmates in a 10 minute speech. He had worked on his nerves. His smile was not nearly as shaky as it once was, but his mind was jumbled and unorganized.

His eyes slowly turned to his closet.

He hadn’t lied to Ochaco about Aizawa’s room check. He really had been chewed out by his exhausted teacher, who had ended his rant with: “If you two want to be in graduation tomorrow, you better be in your respective rooms at lights out.”

But it wasn’t the only reason he had suggested she head back to her own dorm.

He stood on his toes and reached for the top shelf of the closet. Izuku pulled down All Might’s box of letters and brought it to his desk. It had been years since he had read a letter from his mentor, but he had saved one letter in particular to read upon his graduation.

It was a day early, but he thought it might just be the inspiration he needed.

Izuku carefully opened the aging box, the cardboard had more pieces of tape added to its edges with every year.

He pulled out and opened the bundle he had in mind.

When You Wonder How Much I Love You

Izuku couldn’t help but wonder what All Might truly thought about him. He was All Might’s Pupil, his successor, but he remembered criticism over his tears, or his shaky smile, or his fanboyish ways. In letters previously read, All Might said he loved all his students. Izuku knew he was no exception. But he also knew that his relationship with All Might was different than the other students.

And this was the letter that would elaborate on that.

To my dear son,

Izuku stopped. Son?

All Might usually started off his letters with a “Dear Midoriya” or “my pupil”. For him to use the term “son” towards him… He couldn’t understand.

Does it make no sense, or perfect sense, that I would think of you that way?

Regardless, it’s the truth.

It wasn’t immediate. But over time, I recognized that my attachment to you wasn’t solely because you were my successor, and that I saw you differently than the other students.

It was the way you genuinely wanted to help others. The way you smiled even though you were terrified. The way you threw yourself into danger even though you knew I would disapprove.

The way your hair felt when I patted your head. It was just like mine when I was younger.

When I told you I was born quirkless myself, I said I saw myself in you, did I not? By then, I had already realized how I felt about you.

It was during the villain attack at USJ when I first realized it. When I smashed into the building, thinking ‘what have you done to the kids’ and saw you near Shigaraki, I almost shouted it. “Stay away from my boy!”

Days after that event, I kept thinking about it.

My boy. He’s my boy! I’m raising him. I’ll make him the best hero, better than even me.

I talked about it to some of my hero colleagues that had kids of their own, without going into detail. They talked about how they encouraged their kids to try anything, but also about being strict when needed.

Maybe punching you after the Kamino incident was too much, but that wasn’t all I took from what they told me.

When I held your head on my shoulder that night, everything was as it was meant to be. Everything finally felt right. Hugging my son and letting him cry.

Did you know I cried too? Only a little.

Izuku sniffled and wiped tears from his eyes. He remembered that night clearly, as if it were only hours ago. Of course, he had noticed All Might had also wept, but he never could have called his hero out on it.

He had known long before that, that All Might wasn’t the invincible man he had made himself out to be, but the night in Kamino had made it far more earth shatteringly obvious. Not just for him, but for All Might too, he thought.

I should have hugged you more.

A knock on the door pulled Izuku out of the letter again. Without waiting for an answer, the door opened, and Aizawa poked his head in. Before even looking to the tenant, he scanned the room.

“Ochaco already went back to her room.” Izuku told him.

The cracking of the young man’s voice drew Aizawa’s attention to him. He saw Izuku continue to wipe tears from his eyes.

“It’s light’s out, problem child.” Aizawa told him, and stepped into the room.

“I know, Mister Aizawa, but I’m still writing my speech for tomorrow.” Deku told him.

Aizawa raised an eyebrow to him. “Looks more like you’re reading something, to me.”

Izuku jolted a bit, and pressed the letter to his chest. He had never been caught reading one of All Might’s letters before. “It’s just… an old letter for someone. For inspiration…” His eyes cast down onto his blank speech ahead of him, “I’ve had a hard time writing this…”

Aizawa sighed, and then drew in a deep yawn. “I’ll give you another hour, but only because you’re valedictorian.” He ruffled the young man’s hair with his palm, and then turned towards the door. “When I come back around though, the lights better be off.”

“Yes, sir.” Izuku nodded. He watched Aizawa until he had closed the door behind him, and then turned his attention back to the letter.

I should have been more proud to be your father.

But I’m not.

You have a real father, though I was never so lucky to meet him. So I never could admit how I felt. I didn’t want to make you feel awkward.

Still, I couldn’t help but hope that you saw me as more than just your hero, or your mentor. Maybe that’s selfish to say after I’ve died though.

It was selfish. Izuku couldn’t deny he felt that way. How could All Might ask him to love him so much now? It was cruel.

But, he did.

Izuku’s memories of his father, Hisashi Midoriya, were hazy at best--barely clearer than All Might’s; who had never met the man. Outside of being a man who could breathe fire, and the source of his mother’s income, Izuku knew almost nothing of his real father.

Even now, on the eve of his graduation, he would not see his father’s face. Though he had sent an invitation to Hisashi, his father had emailed Izuku and apologized, telling him he couldn’t make it.

His days with All Might, were exactly how he imagined spending time with his dad would have been like.

I know I’m a selfish old man, but I love you so much. I know you’ll make it through school. I know you can be at the top of your class and make your debut, telling the world “I Am Here!”

And I know you can do it all without me at your side. Because you’re my boy. Because I made it, even after I lost Nana. And you’ll be even better than me.

Because you were raised by the one and only, All Might.

Love, Dad

Izuku straightened the letter out in front of him. His finger stroked across the ink of the word ‘Dad.’

He wore a bittersweet smile. All Might really was selfish, making him feel so loved by a man who was long gone. But he was glad he had read it. He was glad he had saved the letter for that night. Now, he knew exactly what he wanted to write.

The next morning the sun shined down onto Izuku’s podium like a spotlight. As the boy stared towards it from behind the curtain, his heart jumped around in his chest. His nerves were aflame. He had readied himself for this though. This would be his first public appearance of many, many to come.

“And now presenting, our Valedictorian, Izuku Midoriya!” Present Mic bellowed out.

That was his queue, Izuku threw back the curtain, revealing himself in his hero costume. The crowd ahead of him cheered, and as he took his place behind the microphone, he could see Ochaco excitedly waving from within the crowd. He could also his mother crying his name at the top of her lungs.

Izuku laughed off his nerves, and smiled to the crowd.

“Good morning, everyone! I hope you’ve been looking forward to my speech, because I was up all night writing it. Really. I thought Mister Aizawa might strangle me when he found me awake, still writing, at 2 am.”

He could see his former homeroom teacher at the front of the crowd, rolling his eyes.

“But, once I was ready, this came together right away. I took some inspiration from a letter that someone very important gave to me a couple years ago. That friend couldn’t be here today, but I’m sure they won’t mind.”

Izuku cleared his throat, glanced down at his first queue card and began.

“Congratulations to all my brothers and sisters. Does it make no sense, or perfect sense, that I would think of you that way? Regardless, it’s the truth…”

Chapter Text

It was a warm summer night. The sky lit by the moon and stars, not a cloud in sight. The grass was damp from the daytime’s humidity, but the air has lost such stickiness after the sun had set.

Izuku’s curly green locks blended into the grass beneath.

He lay sprawled out on the ground, at the top of the hill at the park outside his mother’s apartment.

To his right, Ochaco lay, one hand in the sky, holding a L-shape with her thumb and index figure, measuring the stars as she had seen in a movie once. Her other hand clutched Izuku’s right hand, their fingers entwined.

To his left, lied Tenya. He held his right hand over Izuku’s left, and his free hand roamed through the empty grass next to him.

“The stars are so pretty tonight, Deku.” Ochaco whispered, not wanting to break the natural silence, but too in love with the sky to keep her words in.

“Yes, Midoriya.” Ida agreed, in a much softer tone than his usual. “It is the perfect night for stargazing. Did you check the almanac before inviting us?”

Izuku shook his head, but kept his eyes on the stars above.

“What brought this on, then?” Ochaco questioned curiously, “Not that I’m complaining.”

Izuku remained quiet. His answer wasn’t one he was ready to share just yet.

He had been packing what was left of his belongings in his mother’s house, earlier that day. He had been hired at a Hero Agency in Tokyo, and had found an apartment of his own to rent. His mother was in tears, but nonetheless proud.

It was when he went to clean out his closet that he found it.

Amongst the mounds of All Might paraphernalia he had packed away, when his grief was at it’s peak, was a couple pieces of paper bound together. When he pulled it out and read the note on the front of it, he realized right away what it was.

When You’re Staring at the Stars, Looking for Me

“It must have fallen into the closet when I opened the box…” He remembered opening All Might’s box of letters the first time had sent them flying into the air. He still didn’t know how his mentor had managed to close the box, when it was so clearly packed past its limit.

He read the title over again. “Stargazing, huh?”

It had been a couple months since his graduation, since the last time he had read something written by All Might. Without much thought, he peeled back the tape at the bottom of the letter, and flipped it open.

“Sorry, All Might. I don’t think I could read this with just the light of the moon.” He chuckled lightheartedly, wondering if All Might had really considered that when writing the letter, and sat down on his bed to read it.

Stargazing, huh, Midoriya?

Sounds romantic. Did you bring someone with you? I’ve poured my heart out into these letters, and I don’t know how comfortable I am with you sharing them with your date. But I trust you.

“Don’t worry, All Might. It’s just me.” He whispered to the letter.

Do you often look up at the sky looking for me, wondering if I’m looking down at you? Do you trace the stars and create constellations in my likeness? Do you hold your hand to the sky and wait for me to take your hand in return?

Izuku sighed softly to himself. He was, in fact, guilty of all three of those. Though, the constellation part he had been doing since he was a small child.

When I was your age… Well, when I was in high school. I can’t be sure when you’ll choose to read this, but I digress. When Nana was still training me, before she was taken from me, she and I would fall asleep under the stars all the time.

Nana loved the night sky, you see. She loved tracing constellations and pointing at the brightest star in the sky and saying. “That one’s you, Toshinori. And it’s only going to grow brighter.”

Imagine her face when I told her that the brightest stars in the sky were often not stars at all, but satellites, reflecting the sun’s rays from the other side of the world.

Izuku couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought. He wished he knew more about Shimura Nana. He wished All Might had shared more about his past with him, face to face, instead of tidbits in these letters.

I should have taken you stargazing while I was still with you. Whenever we were out on the beach at night, with the stars out, we never took time to enjoy them, did we? No. We were always training or running. Or crying, knowing your overactive tear ducts.

Sorry about that, I suppose Gran Torino wore off on me.

He never took me stargazing, not when it was just the two of us. Though he would sit with Nana and me when we did. We always woke up on his couch, so the old man must have carried us both home afterwards.

But, I hope you did bring someone with you tonight, to enjoy the stars with. Look into the sky, and find the brightest star. Or satellite. It doesn’t really matter what it is. As long as it lights up your heart.

But find that bright light, point it out, and know that it’s my star. That’s where I am right now, looking down on you. Shining for you and for every single person who ever needed me.

And remember, you’re my star,

All Might

Izuku layed the letter to his side with a teary smile. He rubbed his arm against his eyes, rubbing away the drops that had begun to form. Then, he reached for his phone, dialing a number and holding it to his ear.

“Hi, Ochaco? Yeah, it’s me. I was wondering if you wanted to meet up with me tonight to do some stargazing. We can invite Ida too. Yeah, I think so too. Uh-huh. Sounds great. Yeah, see you later. Bye.”

He hung up his phone and held it to his side.

Then he heard his mother calling his name.

“Izuku? Izuku?...”

“Deku!!” Ochaco shouted into the young man’s ear, snapping him out of his recollection.

“Huh? Sorry!” He yelped, “I guess I zoned out for a minute.”

“Apparently,” Ida spoke up, as he leaned on his elbow to face Izuku, “I thought you had fallen asleep.”

Ochaco nodded. “Yeah. I asked what brought on this stargazing idea and you just blanked out.”

“Oh, I just…” Izuku mumbled, trying to think of an answer he was comfortable with sharing. He pulled his hand from Ochaco’s grasp, and reached towards the sky. “Do you… thinks he’s out there somewhere? Watching over us?”

Tenya and Ochaco let out a simultaneous “Ah.” as they quickly understood what, and who , their friend meant.

For a moment, all three kids were silent, as Izuku stared between his fingers at the brightest light he could see in the sky.

“That one there, he’s staring at us all from that star.” Ochaco put one finger between Izuku’s and pointed at the same star. “I’m sure of it.”

“But… isn’t that just a satellite, reflecting the sun?” Izuku laughed awkwardly.

“Whaaat?” Ochaco whined, “Is it really?”

“Actually, you’re both incorrect.” Tenya interjected. Both his friends turned to him with curious visages. “That light there isn’t a star or a satellite, it’s Mars.”

Ochaco and Izuku exchanged glances, but quickly turned their attention back to Tenya for explanations.

“It’s only visible from earth every decade or so, so we’re lucky to see it at all tonight.” He struck one hand up to point at the light. “The planet that represents the God of War. They say all champions’ spirits originated from it, so, it’s a great choice for All Might’s new home.” He turned his head to his friends, beaming with delight. “Good job, Uraraka.”

“I-I had no idea.” Ochaco mumbled bashfully.

Ochaco gave out a squeak as Izuku’s arm wrapped around her shoulder, as he pulled both her and Tenya into a hug. “Thanks guys. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“It’s a good thing we’re all going to hero agencies in Tokyo, then.” Tenya grinned.

“Nu-uh!” Ochaco giggled, “It’s a rescue agency for me! If you guys ever need saving, you know who to call!”

The three of them laughed, as they all collapsed back into the grass. Above them, Mars shone down, and Izuku stared up at the planet that would light his way.

Chapter Text

Izuku was not a young man that would be described as “short tempered.” He was logical and calculating. Any burst of rage or adrenaline he had ever experienced were easily justified. He had been that way since he was a child.

It was one of the traits that were considered the most hero-like, even by the former Symbol of Peace--rest his soul.

Knowing that, however, only made Izuku’s current appearance more surprising.

The young man sat behind a table, arms crossed, foot repeatedly tapping against the floor as he tried to keep himself under control. He refused to look at the detective across the table from him.

Naomasa Tsukauchi was speechless himself. He sighed, staring across at the angered young man in front of him.

He had only run into Izuku a little over an hour ago…

Tsukauchi had been been reporting to an incident in Tokyo City. A call over the airwaves on a serial purse snatcher, who had struck again, and was making an escape towards the train station, where the police lost him in the crowds every time before.

Tsukauchi planned on beating him there, and putting his crime streak to an end.

Just as the detective swerved into the parking lot, his sirens blaring and pedestrians scattering (but staring on, still), he had heard a great SMASH!

By the time he had exited his car, he realized most of the work had already been taken care of.

The perpetrator was sprawled out across the concrete, grunting under the weight of the hero standing on his back. He reached for the dropped purse, but the green suited hero shouted at him.

“You’ve already been apprehended! Give up!”

The thief flinched at the screechy voice, and then his hand slumped as he gave in to his captor.

Izuku stepped one foot off the perpetrator's back, and removed the other foot after he had pulled both of the thief’s hands behind his back. He exhaled, still catching his breath from the previous pursuit. “Now I just need to notify the police to arrest you.”

“Already here, Deku.” Tsukauchi’s voice prompted Izuku to turn his head, and he saw the detective making his way over to him and the captured thief with a pair of handcuffs. “Great job, as usual, young hero.”

“Detecitve Tsukauchi!” Izuku let out in surprise. He took a step back as his elder took the perpetrator into custody, and trailed behind him as Tsukauchi led the robber to his car.

“It’s been a while, what brings you to Tokyo?” Izuku questioned.

“Well, to be honest,” the detective started, and slammed the door shut behind the exasperated detainee. “I came looking for you.”

Izuku pointed at his own face in confusion. “For me?”

“Yes, but, it seemed the precinct I was taking temporary stand at needed more help that I expected, so I haven’t had the chance to track you down yet.” Tsukauchi leaned back against his car, and turned to look at the young hero. “How are you doing, new Symbol of Peace?”

Izuku let out a tiny gasp, and turned his eyes away. “Don’t call me that, I haven’t done anything worthwhile yet.” He rubbed the back of his masked head with his hand. “The world still hasn’t looked my way. All I do is take down no names and little inconveniences. I can’t tell them ‘I’m Here.’ Not yet.”

Izuku felt a hand on his shoulder, and he turned his eyes back to his mentor’s old friend. Naomasa smiled at him softly, with his usual blank eyes.

“You’re doing great, son.” He told the masked hero. “Toshinori didn’t reach the spotlight right away either, you know.”

Izuku fidgeted a bit, under the gaze of someone who he still owed so much to. He knew Naomasa was right. Izuku had barely graduated high school still, he was still working as a sidekick to multiple of the heroes at his agency, though he was recently allowed to do patrols on his own, on calm days like their current one.

All Might’s age was a mystery to him, but he was sure the Symbol of Peace didn’t make his big debut until his mid twenties at least. Though that was based off of assumptions and unproven calculations.

Still, he knew he was expecting too much of himself too quickly. He opened his mouth to thank Naomasa, but the detective cut him off.

“Speaking of Toshinori… I think you should come with me, back to the precinct.”

Izuku’s mouth remained open, but all that came out was a wordless gasp.

At the precinct, after bringing the crook in that Izuku had apprehended, and putting him into holding, Tsukauchi took Izuku with him to a soundproof room, where the two of them could speak in private.

Izuku sat across from Naomasa, his hooded mask pulled back to reveal his anxious eyes and ever present freckles.

“Don’t look so nervous, Midoriya.” Tsukauchi said with a half hearted laugh, but it didn’t seem to calm the boy’s nerves at all.

“What is this about, Detective?” Izuku asked shakily. He had not been in an interrogation room for quite a few years. Not since the incident. It was bringing back some unpleasant memories.

Tsukauchi sighed, but nodded. “Sorry, I won’t beat around the bush then.” He apologized. “I got a call from Eraserhead a couple weeks ago.”

“From Mr. Aizawa?” Izuku referred to his former homeroom teacher by his pedestrian name.

Tsukauchi nodded, “He said there had been a vandalism incident with the statue your class built in the faculty room.”

Izuku flinched. “The memorial?” Why would someone vandalize that? He thought.

“Problem is, the vandalism in question was on the back of the statue, and the faculty doesn’t know how long it was there before someone noticed it.” Tsukauchi explained.

“The back of it? You mean…?” Izuku squeaked.

“Yes. The back of the memorial you designed was a statue of All Might’s lesser known, ‘true form’, as we might call it. And the form he was found in on the day of his passing.”

Izuku swallowed down those memories. They were far from repressed, but it had been a long time now, and he had learned to cope with them. He remembered the words that All Might had written him, and calmed himself down before a panic attack hit.

He sighed, once he was sure the thoughts had passed. “I don’t understand why you felt you needed to tell me about this personally.” Izuku turned his head to look around the room, “And um… privately also.”

“Because of what the vandalism, in particular, was.” Tsukauchi’s words brought Izuku’s attention back to him. “The smaller All might statue was covered, from chest down, in blood red paint.”

Izuku’s eyes widened, and he sank deeper into his chair. Suddenly, he felt like he was ankle deep in blood again. Swimming through a red ocean, reaching for All Might’s hand as his hero was always just out of his reach, drowning in his own blood as he was taken from him over and over again.

“Midoriya!”

Izuku snapped back, gasping deeply, as Naomasa stood on the other side of the table, reaching across and shaking the young man’s shoulders.

“I’m sorry. Sorry. I just…” Izuku brushed the cold sweat from his forehead with one wrist, and tears from his eyes from the other. “I can never really forget.”

Naomasa stared at him with concerned eyes, very slowly leaning back to take his seat. “I know. I’m sorry. I should have been more delicate.”

“No. No, it’s fine.” Izuku took one more deep breath, “I’m a hero now. I can’t allow myself to get like this. Please forgive me.”

Naomasa remained quiet as Izuku finished collecting himself.

“Why would someone pull a prank like that?” The young hero finally spoke without a shaky voice. “Isn’t there any security footage of the incident?”

Naomasa shook his head. “No, unfortunately, there is a week of missing footage from the security cameras in the faculty office. Though we can surmise that the incident took place during that week, it’s still very little to go off, and as it’s just a vandalism case, we cannot get clearance for further investigation.”

Izuku pouted with a sigh, but nodded his head.

“And that’s why we’re reopening All Might’s murder case.”

Izuku’s green eyes flashed wide open, and he flicked his head up to engage eye contact with the detective across from him. “What?”

“We’ve decided that due to the subject of the vandalism and the missing footage, that it could be related to the case and now is the right time to begin new investigations.” Naomasa continued to explain, but when he turned his eyes to Izuku’s he fell silent.

Izuku’s eyes were glazed over. His eyebrows fell from surprise to anger, and he slowly stood up. “What do you mean reopen the case?”

Naomasa inhaled sharply. “Midoriya, you have to understand. After months with no lead, we couldn’t keep investigating All Might’s case. The trail had gone cold.”

“That’s--That’s…” Bullshit! Was what Izuku wanted to shout, but he was doing everything he could to hold himself together at the moment. “He was our Symbol of Peace! He never would have stopped if something happened to either of us. How could you just stop investigating?” He growled. “All this time, even with all the memories and nightmares I’ve had to endure, I believed that you were hunting the villain down. But you had given up…”

Naomasa gaped at Izuku, looking for the right thing to say. “All Might wouldn’t have wanted us to focus on just him and neglect our other cases.”

“All Might is dead!” Izuku slammed his hands on the table with a shout.

Naomasa gasped, and then shut his mouth entirely.

With nothing else for either of them to say, Izuku fell back into his chair, arms crossed. His foot tapped against the ground repeatedly, but he couldn’t bring his attention back to Naomasa. “Why didn’t you tell me?” He asked without turning his head.

Naomasa remained silent for a moment.

Then he sighed. “It wasn’t necessary.”

He could see Izuku flinch at that response. He admired the boy for always being able to hold his anger back, for knowing when and when not to get mad. But he knew he was walking on eggshells with the young man now. He didn’t have to ask Izuku to know that the young hero felt betrayed.

“So, why are you telling me now?” Izuku asked.

“We… were hoping…” Naomasa took a deep breath. “We hoped you would be willing to work with us on the investigation.”

For a moment, silence returned to the room. Naomasa hoped that Izuku was considering his proposal, but was in internal turmoil over not treating the whole situation with more care.

“So, you only need to tell me because I’d be useful to you?” Izuku asked.

“Midoriya, that’s not--” Naomasa began, but the young man across from him stood up from his seat. Without turning his head to the detective, Izuku passed him and went straight to the door.

“Thank you for everything you’ve done for me up until now, Detective.” He spoke with a flat tone, and then let himself out.

Before Naomasa could even call his name, Izuku had dashed out of the precinct.

Izuku had run the rest of the way home. He had run through alleys and back roads to avoid citizens or anyone who could still see him running through the streets in his hero uniform with his eyes full of tears.

By the time he reached the apartment he was renting in the city, his eyes and nose were red from him constantly rubbing them.

He slammed the door open with full intent of running to his bedroom and burying himself in the covers, but when the entrance opened in front of him, a pair of brown eyes quickly turned to him.

“Ah! Deku! You surprised me.” Ochaco squeaked, as she stood up from the living room couch. “I hope you don’t mind, I let myself in. I mean, that’s why you gave me a key right? I just thought that since you had a long day today, I could make you some dinner so you didn’t have to...” As she stepped closer to Izuku, she got a better look at him. His heaving chest and worn expression. And his sleeve soaked in his own tears. He never hid that well. “Deku?”

Ochaco came closer still and pushed his bangs back to see his reddened eyes. Her brow knotted with worry. “Did something happen?” She stroked his cheek gently.

Deku merely let out a quick sob, and let more tears fall, unable to put words together.

Ochaco reached past her boyfriend and shut the door behind him, and then wrapped her arms gently around his back. He sank into her embrace, though he didn’t seem to have the strength to hug her back, but he buried his face in the crook of her neck and began to sob again.

Ochaco ran her hand through his hair, humming a song neither of them remembered the words to. Between sobs, he breathed in her scent, and began to regain his calm.

“Thanks, Ochaco.” He finally whispered into her shoulder.

Ochaco shook her head. “No need to thank me. I’m always here for my Deku.” She spoke sweetly, “Do you want to talk about it?”

Izuku’s brow knotted. “I’m sorry, I--”

“No, no apologies. It’s okay.” She reassured him. Though she didn’t always like it, she knew Izuku had his own fair share of secrets, and most of them had to do with All Might. But bringing that up now would not help the current situation. So, she stepped back, holding him at arm’s length. “Why don’t you go lay down for a bit, and I’ll make you something good to eat when you’re feeling up to it.”

Izuku nodded slowly. Before he went to his room, though, he leaned down to Ochaco and pecked her on the lips. She giggled softly to him, and kissed him on the cheek in return.

“And wash your face, your kisses always taste so salty after you cry.” She giggled at him. He nodded again, this time with a fraction of a smile, which Ochaco took as a small victory.

Izuku had taken a quick shower and changed into a t-shirt and lounge pants, before he curled up in his bed and buried his head under the pillow.

But he wasn’t tired.

On the inside, Izuku felt torn apart. He had always felt he owed so much to Detective Tsukauchi, who had been his closest connection to All Might for most of the time he knew him. Now, he felt betrayed. The man who had kept him informed about so many subjects to do with All Might, had hid something paramount from him.

Because him knowing would not have been useful .

It made no sense to him. He had trusted Tsukauchi, but the feeling was not mutual. He was sad. He was confused. But most of all, he was angry.

Tsukauchi had been the person to give him All Might’s letters, his only way to hear All Might’s words now. How could he have been the same person to hide All Might from him?

He gasped.

The letters.

Izuku flipped up off the bed and took a quick look around his room. Where had he put them? He had not read a letter from All Might since he had moved into his new apartment some number of months ago. He looked under his bed, and then in his closet, and then under his desk, before he found the small box of letters tucked under an extra futon in his linen closet.

Deku sat back down on his bed with the box in his lap. He pulled out the letters one at a time, reading the titles carefully, until he found one with the advice he needed. The one he chose had a simple title.

When you’re angry

Izuku sighed, and flipped the papers open.

Dear Midoriya ,

Angry? That doesn’t sound like you. Have you been taking lessons from Bakugo?

Izuku found himself rolling his eyes in spite of himself. But, All Might was right. Izuku was usually the kind of guy who could keep his wits about him.

Sorry, I shouldn’t tease you when you’re upset. So, more seriously…

A hero must never get angry, Deku.

All Might used Izuku’s hero name, and the young man felt called out on his actions.

A hero must keeps their temper under control. They must not lose themselves in anger. They must stay unbiased with citizens and villains the like. When we lose our control, people lose their lives. Remember that, son.

Izuku sighed. He knew All Might was right.

I am not innocent. I have let my temper get the better of me more than once. It’s put me in danger, and it’s put you in danger too. At times like that, my compulsion to win took over my sense of justice. I wish I had been around longer, so I could have better taught you, and of course young Bakugo, to better control yourselves when necessary.

But Bakugo is a special case. His temper combined with his quirk can still bring him to a victory. You are not like Bakugo. You are calculating. You think before your every action.

So what has got your blood boiling? What could get under my pupils skin that he’s looking for my ghost’s advice on how to deal with it? I wish I were there with you to help.

But I am not and that cannot be helped. So, I will do my best I can from the past to help you in your present.

Is it a villain that has you up in arms? I have my doubts on that. I don’t think you would take the time to read a letter from me if there was a villain that were bad enough to get under your skin.

In that case, it has to be a friend. Someone you trust, who betrayed that trust. I hope I’m right, else the rest of this letter might not be helpful.

Izuku sighed with a creaky smile. “No, it’s okay, All Might. You know me pretty well.” He whispered to the paper, before turning to the next page of the letter.

Midoriya, you’re an excellent judge of character. You would not be able to confidently call someone your friend if you didn’t trust them, and trust goes two ways. Chances are, if you feel betrayed, your friend feels they have betrayed you too.

They’re just as angry with themselves are you are with them, maybe more.

If I’m right, then I want you to finish reading this letter, and give them a call. Or run to their house in person. You need to be the hero that I know you are. Save them from their inner demons. Forgive them.

If they were worth your trust once, they will be worth it again. Anyone you call a friend deserved a second chance.

You were my second chance, Izuku… but, I’ll elaborate on that in a different letter.

Don’t go looking through all the letters for that now. That’s cheating. And heroes don’t cheat.

Sincerely,

All Might

Izuku stood up slowly. He folded the letter back up and buried it under the unread letters, at the bottom of the box. After returning the box to it’s previous home, he took a deep breath, and headed for the bedroom door.

As he reached for the doorknob, however, it was pulled away from him, and Ochaco stood on the other side of the doorway, with phone in hand.

“Oh! You’re awake!” She chirped, and held his smartphone out to him. “You have a call, from Detective Tsukauchi.”

Izuku stared at the phone like it was a foreign object. He hesitated to reach for it.

Ochaco tilted her head to the side. “Deku, if you’re still not feeling well, I can ask him to call back.” She said with a tinge of worry in her voice.

“N-No, it’s fine.” He stuttered, and finally took the phone from her hand.

She gave him an unconvinced stare. “Well, if you’re sure you’re feeling better, come to the kitchen when you’re done with the phone, okay?”

He nodded to her, and she gave him one more concerned smile, before tiptoeing away.

Izuku watched Ochaco until she was out of sight, and then slowly closed the door again, before putting the phone to his ear. “Detective Tsukauchi?”

The voice on the other end was scratchy and husky, but it was definitely the same man he had spoken to earlier that day. “Midoriya, I need to apologize.”

“N-no…” Izuku mumbled into the speaker. “ I’m the one who needs to apologize. I… I took it too personally. I’m sorry.” He clenched his fist.

He heard Tsukauchi sigh on the other end. “You’re a good kid.” He said, “But this is still my fault. I never should have hid changes in the case from you. It’s true that you’re not an investigator, and it’s not necessary to tell you every detail, but you’re involved.” Tsukauchi exhaled again. “You’re the closest thing Toshinori had to a family. Concealing information from you is unforgivable, and I apologize.”

“It’s not.” Izuku spoke clearly into the phone.

“I’m sorry?” Tsukauchi replied.

“It’s not unforgivable.” Izuku finished. “I do forgive you and…” He took a deep breath, “I’d be happy to help with the investigation any way that I can.”

He could hear Tsukauchi let out a small gasp. That brought a bit of a smile to Izuku.

“I’m happy to hear that.” The detective said. “Drop by the precinct tomorrow morning, and I’ll brief you on further details.”

“Yes, sir.” Izuku nodded, despite the person on the other side of the receiver not being able to tell.

“And, Midoriya?”

“Yes, sir?”

“Thank you.” Tsukauchi’s voice sounded relieved as he spoke those words.

“There’s no need to thank me.” Izuku said with a shaky smile, “I’m a hero, afterall.”

Chapter Text

Izuku took a deep breath. He had a lot to take in. The young man sat in a bustling police precinct, in his civilian clothes this time. On the opposite side of the desk he sat at was Naomasa, the detective nearly hidden behind the pile of manilla envelopes stacked up in front of him. An officer placed yet another onto the pile as they passed.

Naomasa raised a waving hand in thanks, but there was little interaction between them.

“Detective Tsukauchi…” Izuku mumbled, ducking his head as yet another policeman ran by with a file of their own in hand. “Are all these files related to…?”

“All Might?” Naomasa finished Izuku’s sentence, “Afraid so. But worry not, I’ve spent the last couple nights studying them and I’ve created a brief version for you to peruse.” The detective slid open a drawer to his side and pulled out a tablet, and turned it to Izuku. “It’s in digital format, but I’ll ask you to not copy it to any other devices. This is still police material, and we can’t take it outside of the precinct right now.”

Izuku nodded sternly.

“I’ve also left out any graphic images that might disturb you. I know you have a lot of painful memories tied to this case.” Naomasa sighed, “I really want to thank you again for working along with us.”

“Tsukauchi…” Izuku started, but bit his tongue, not sure how to phrase the question he wanted to ask. “When you say graphic images… have you…” He mulled over his words all the more. “Have you had to look at those images, over and over? I worry you may have had to relive this... more than I have.”

Naomasa’s shoulders sank, and he gave Izuku a sad smile. “Well, for the most part, my friendship with Toshinori is kept under wraps. It would be a conflict of interest if my superiors knew we were close.”

Izuku withdrew into his seat and looked down to his red shoes. “I’m sorry…”

Naomasa’s hand fell hard on his shoulder, and Izuku’s eyes were brought back up to his elder’s. The detective shook his head. “There’s no need to apologize, Midoriya. I wanted to take this case. I wanted to find out who did this to my friend, and I knew what that meant for me.”

Izuku couldn’t quite show Naomasa a smile, but he gave him another nod, and the dark haired man returned it with the best smile he could muster.

“Now, how about we take this somewhere a little less…” Naomasa looked about the precinct at other officers shouting at one another, or tripping over each other to get out the door. “...crowded.”

Izuku gave a soft laugh in response. “That sounds like a good idea to me.”

It was about a half an hour later that Izuku and Naomasa settled down in the cafeteria attached to the precinct. It was past lunch hours and the room was practically vacant. Izuku had bought himself a can of green tea and an iced coffee for Naomasa. The two men sat across from each other, with the tablet in the middle of them, facing Izuku, as the detective flipped through the pages of the document from across the table.

“So, we started this case with basically no suspects, as you might already know. Outside of your testimony, we took some from other faculty members, namely Shota Aizawa and Chiyo Shuzenji. Also known as Eraser head and Recovery Girl.” Naomasa flipped through a few pages of text that were recordings of the interviews with the faculty.

“Since we were starting with almost nothing, we of course turned to previous offenders. I personally went to the prison where All Might’s long time enemy, All for One, is being held.” He flipped to a page that looked to be All for One’s case file, but much of it was censored. “Sorry, we still can’t open up about a lot of details on his case, but we weren’t able to get a lot of information from him, anyway.”

Naomasa sighed, and Izuku turned his attention from the tablet, back to the detective, who’s face was filled with disgust. He clenched his fist, “Outside of laughing, he said almost nothing to us.”

Izuku clenched his teeth. He shouldn’t have expected less from the man. But thinking of anyone laughing over All Might’s death made his blood boil.

“But, there was one thing that was interesting from the interview.” Naomasa interjected. He flipped to the next page of the case file and pointed at one short quotation on the page. Izuku read it slowly.

[All for One: “What? He’s dead? That’s amazing!” -Laughter-]

Izuku’s eyes widened, and he turned his head up to Naomasa. “He was surprised?”

Naomasa nodded. “Right, which leads to the next part of the investigation.” He flipped to the next page, which was a bit of text surrounded with poorly shot photos of Shigaraki, most of which looked to be screen grabs from television recordings.

“There’s no evidence to show that the League of Villains was related to the incident at all.”

“What?” Izuku gasped.

Naomasa frowned, but kept his eyes on the file, as he quickly swept through files on all of the known members of the League of Villains. “The League hasn’t made any move since All Might’s death. Though Tomura Shigaraki stated that his goal was to kill All Might, he hasn’t gone any further since the incident, not even coming out to crown himself the killer.” He explained, “On top of that and All for One’s interview, there was also no documented movements from the League since the case with the Eight Precepts of Death. It’s almost as if, after Eri was taken into police custody and Chisaki was arrested, that the League disbanded. But we have no proof of that either.”

Izuku’s shoulders sank. He realized that there had been no mention of Shigaraki or the League of Villains in the past few years, but he never thought anything of it. In fact, he was relieved. Despite them never being taken down, he had relished in the lack of villainy in his everyday life. He may have even convinced himself that they had been taken down by someone else, and weren’t his problem.

Izuku was disgusted in himself. He bit his lip and clenched his tea tight in his grasp. “So… we still have no leads?”

Naomasa shook his head. “Unfortunately so.” He sighed again, and took a sip of his canned coffee, “And that’s why the case was put on hold.” The detective stood and pushed the tablet closer to Izuku. “You’re free to flip through the rest of the file. I need to get back to today’s work, but just drop it off at my desk before you leave. And if you think of anything, just give me a call.”

“All right, sir.” Izuku agreed, but barely turned his stare from the tablet’s screen.

Naomasa patted Izuku’s shoulder as his passed. “And remember, none of this is your fault.” He stopped right behind the young man, and continued to speak with his back turned to him. “Sometimes, working on cases can make you think like that. Like ‘if only I had done one thing differently’ or ‘if only I could have arrived a moment earlier.’ But… it’s no one’s fault. No one but the killer’s.”

When Naomasa turned his head over his shoulder, Izuku was looking back over his own, his eyes moments from tears. “Call me if you need anything.” Naomasa finished, and walked out of the cafeteria.

Izuku had reviewed the case file a few times over on his own, before returning it and walking himself home. Ochaco was still out on hero duty, so he returned to a lonesome apartment. The young man put some leftovers in the microwave before taking himself to his room and immediately walking to the linen closet where he still had his letters from All Might hidden. He opened the box, knowing well which letter he wanted to read, and pulled out a letter titled When You’re Angry at Yourself.

He couldn’t help it. The moment he realized he had been taking advantage of a peace that he didn’t create--a temporary peace, caused by mysterious disappearance of villains instead of the defeat of them--he had began to beat himself up over it.

He couldn’t stand that he had not noticed. And, even more so, that he had not cared . What if the League had been working under the radar this whole time, and were creating terror everyone was blind to.

He didn’t want to be part of that everyone .

Izuku furrowed his brow, and sat down on his bed, before opening the letter.

Dear Midoriya,

You must forgive yourself.

Izuku bit his lip. How could All Might write that as if it were easy for him?

No matter what you have done that you find so vexing, before anyone else can forgive you, you must be able to accept your own forgiveness.

Everyone makes mistakes, even heroes. I’ve made my own fair share of mistakes, but I do the same with my mistakes as I do with my fears. Laugh them off! Smile them away, my boy!

I’m not saying you should run away from you troubles, that’s not very heroic, but you cannot let your mistakes from the past shape who you become in the future. No matter how hard life gets, you mustn’t be too hard on yourself. Always believe in yourself. And when you make the wrong decision, own up to it, and learn from it.

We can’t rewrite the past, Midoriya. After Nana died, that’s all I wanted. I thought, “If only I were a little stronger…” and I would dream of going back in time with my strength at its peak and saving her.

But time travel isn’t possible. There’s no changing what has happened. Instead we must find a way to right the wrongs of the world. That is our job as heroes.

Do you blame yourself for my death?

The letter crinkled in Izuku’s grasp, as the boy took a deep, teary gasp. He didn’t want to think about that, but, at the time of the crime, it was all that was on his mind. All Might’s wounds were still fresh when he found him. If he had arrived a few moments earlier, could he had saved him? He didn’t know, and it pained him.

But he had pushed those thoughts out of his mind. It wasn’t until starting investigations that they began trickling into his subconscious again. Naomasa had warned him about this. And he knew the detective battled these sort of thoughts every day. He had to be stronger. But he felt weak at heart, and it only made him hate himself more.

It’s not your fault.

I want to write that over and over again. If I filled this entire letter with those words, would you believe me?

No matter what happened, no matter how close or far you were when I passed, I will never blame you, and you should never blame yourself.

Even if you were right in front of me, I would have smiled for you before I died. I can’t stop you from hurting over me, but I would do anything to prove you innocent. You are not to blame. You are everything I worked for, you were my second chance, and I will never regret meeting you.

You’re an amazing hero. So please accept your own forgiveness. And know that no matter what you’re agonizing over, I forgive you too.

Please love yourself as much as I love you,

All Might

Izuku sniveled to himself and tugged up his bed sheets to his face to wipe his eyes with them. He held the letter to his chest and sobbed.

“I’ll try, All Might.” He whimpered.

Just then, the sharp ‘beep’ from his microwave filled his ears, and he remembered he had put off his dinner to read the letter.

He stood up from the bed, wiping his eyes one more time with his palm and left for the kitchen. As he stepped into the kitchen, however, he noticed the microwave door already open. He blinked in confusion. Had Ochaco returned while he was reading?

He peeked into the microwave, and what he saw sent chills up his spine. What previously had been a glass bowl of leftover pasta, was now nothing more than a pile of decayed ash. He then noticed the handle to the microwave door had begun to crumble at the middle.

The young man leapt up, as alert as he could be, but before he could turn around, he felt a hand at his neck. The thumb to one side and three fingers to the other.

“A teary face doesn’t very well fit a hero, you know.”

Deku froze.

“Now, why don’t you quietly do as I say, and your cute girlfriend won’t have to come home to your corpse.”

Izuku gulped audibly.

He didn’t have to turn around to recognize the sleazy voice of Tomura Shigaraki.

Chapter Text

All Izuku could hear was his heartbeat in his ears. It was overwhelming. His immediate thought, when he realized who was taking him captive, was to take down Shigaraki--regardless of what might happen to him.

But the villain made mention of Ochaco, and he lost his will to fight. He couldn’t imagine leaving Ochaco alone now. He couldn’t let her return to his apartment just to find his body. He wasn’t putting anyone else through that. And he hadn’t yet made his debut. The world had not heard him say ‘I’m Here’. If he died before then, he would be letting down All Might. He would be letting down the whole world.

So, he quietly obeyed his captor.

After having been lead through a black warp gate, he was left behind a set of black, steel bars. Shigaraki took another warp gate to step to the other side of the bars, as there was no key; no door; no way out.

Izuku, for a moment, took his eyes off the villain to gain his bearings. He was definitely underground; maybe in a cave. They were surrounded in rocks and dirt. The hideout was make-shift to say the least. There was little in the room to imply they had been using it for long, and he had to assume they had created it simply as a holding cell for him. This was a long time in the making.

He then turned his scowl back to Shigaraki. The young man had scars around his neck from his scratching. His hair had grown down to the middle of his back, but was tangled and clearly uncared for. His right eye, which had always been scarred, didn’t seem to be able to open anymore. The last few years had not treated him well.

Standing next to him was Kurogiri, the creator of the warp gates. His physical appearance seemed to have not changed at all since Izuku had last seen him, but his true appearance was still hidden under the fog that made up his visible body. The armor around his neck seemed worn, but still shined, as if he took the time to polish it daily.

“What are you doing here, Shigaraki?” Deku asked, trying to keep his calm. “Where have you been ?”

“That’s none of your concern.” Kurogiri answered instead of the man in question.

“You want to know why I’m here?” Shigaraki laughed, “What are you doing here? You’re such a pathetic hero, getting taken hostage so easily. What’s taking you so long? I can’t make my debut until you make yours.”

Kurogiri seemed to sigh as the silver haired man began to rant. “Shigaraki, I don’t think--”

“Shut up, Kurogiri.” Shigaraki interrupted him, “It’s his fault I can’t make my name as a villain. Now that All Might is dead, I have to take down the new Symbol of Peace, but look at him.”

Shigaraki pointed straight at Izuku, who stared at him with wide eyes. He wasn’t surprised that Shigaraki knew of the connection between him and All Might, due to his relationship with All for One, but he was being called out on his own insecurities. He couldn’t make excuses. Naomasa had told him to take his time, but he couldn’t ! The world needed him.

“Sure, he’s a pro now, but all he does is catch purse snatchers and make patrols. If I take out a guy like that, it’d be like kicking a baby. No one would respect me.” Shigaraki stomped up to the bars between him and Izuku. “So, what’s taking so long, little All Might Jr.? Daddy’s shoes too big to fill? Ahahaha!!” Shigaraki broke out in laughter that make Izuku’s strength crumble.

He mulled over everything Shigaraki had said. He told himself to not let it hurt him. Shigaraki was a villain. He would do anything to break Izuku’s resolve.

“Wait, you mean,” Izuku turned his gaze back to the man with a disembodied hand over his face. “You didn’t kill All Might?”

Shigaraki stopped mid-laugh, and turned a scowl to Izuku. “Of course not. You think I’d be hiding away if I had an accomplishment like that?” He growled, “My goal was stolen from me. My master was locked up. I had to find an entirely new goal… Just because some creep beat me to All Might!”

“Do you know who did, then?” Izuku shouted through the bars.

Shigaraki clicked his teeth. “Even if I did, do you really think I would tell you?”

Izuku’s glared at the villain, but Shigaraki turned his back to him.

“So, what are you going to do with me?” Izuku asked.

Shigaraki sat down on a large rock formation near the wall of the make-shift room. “Well, I guess if I want to kill you, I have to out you as All Might’s disciple first…” He scratched at his scarred neck, “But I’ll have to find some evidence… Or maybe if I keep you locked up long enough, you’ll crack and spit it out on your own.”

“Never.” Izuku promised him.

Shigaraki turned a wicked sneer over his shoulder. “Well… we’ll just have to see about that.” He then looked to Kurogiri. “Get me another warp gate to his home, I’ll do some searching.”

Kurogiri nodded, and whipped open another black cloud at Shigaraki’s request. As the silver haired man stepped through it, he turned his head to Izuku again. “I hope Uravity shows up so I can bring her body back for you.”

“Ochaco would never lose to a hack like you!” Izuku leapt to his feet and shouted at the top of his lungs. But Shigaraki responded only with laughter as he disappeared through the gate.

Once his laughter had dissolved through the other end of the gate, Kurogiri closed it and sat down on the rock Shigaraki was previously perched on. He laid a headset down on his lap, and spoke into it. “Please let me know when you want the gate reopened, Shigaraki.”

“Yeah, yeah. Sure. Now let me concentrate.” A crackle of Shigaraki’s voice came through the receiver.

Kurogiri nodded at the headset, and then turned his head to Izuku, who still stood in his cell, glaring at the villain, with his hands on the bars.

“You can try to break the bars, but there’s no point. This room is entirely isolated underground. We filter in oxygen through a small warp gate on the ceiling.” Kurogiri pointed up to a small black hole at the top of the cave. “Even if you escaped the cell, there would be nowhere to go. So, personally, I would prefer if you saved your strength so Shigaraki can have fun with this little game of his.”

Izuku growled. It wasn’t the first time Shigaraki and the League had referred to human lives as ‘a game’, but he would never get used to it. It infuriated him. But he collected his thoughts, and decided to try to get some information. “Where is the rest of the League?” He asked, “Is it just you two now?”

Kurogiri shook his head. “That is none of your concern.”

Izuku gave a small growl, but then sighed. He was in no place to be interrogating anyone at the moment, and Kurogiri was not the kind of person to answer any questions that did not benefit him. The captured young man turned his back to his captor, and sat down in the far corner of his cell. For the moment, he would wait it out. Shigaraki wouldn’t find anything in his home, and he would come back before long.

It was just a matter of time. Shigaraki might let some more information slip if Izuku got him riled up, he just had to keep his wits with him.

He took a deep breath, and tried to take his mind away from his current situation.

But every time he did, he remembered being choked by the slime villain the day he met All Might. He remembered losing his breath and being sure it was the end of him. And then suddenly being freed with a gust of wind.

He remembered what it was like to be saved by his hero.

But his hero was gone. No one was coming to save him. His shoulders shook as he tried not to cry.

Shit . He thought, as a notion came to him. The letters.

The letters All Might wrote to him and signed every single one. Where he talked about Izuku as his successor and about One for All. They were in his room, in his closet. If Shigaraki found them, if he took the time to read them, it would be game over. He couldn’t let that happen.

But what could he do?

So, he did what he found himself doing every time he felt lost in the last few years. He unclipped a pocket on his belt, and pulled out a folded pile of papers. While hiding in the dark corner of his cell, he opened a letter from All Might. One he kept on him at all times, in case he fell into despair, and needed advice from his mentor. A letter titled, When You Need Me.

He squinted through the darkness, and read the letter quietly.

Midoriya, my boy,

I know you must feel like this often. With me by your side for such a time, it must be hard to not have me to turn to when you’re in peril. But let me tell you a secret.

You haven’t needed me for a while now.

Izuku shook his head at the letter. No. No you’re wrong All Might. I’ll always need you. He thought.

I know you might not agree with me, but, I can remember apologizing time and time again that I wasn’t there to save you. And you always told me ‘It’s okay.’ Though you may have said that merely to save my feelings, it was true. It was all right. Because you could always save yourself.

On the beach, after the Kamino Ward incident, I thanked you for saving yourself. But it wasn’t the first time you had. Every time you find yourself in danger, you find your way out of it. You have a will to live like no other. I know, no matter what mess you have gotten yourself into this time, you’ll be able to get out safely.

Izuku only shook his head again. All Might didn’t understand. He couldn’t. He was cornered. If only he had kept the letters somewhere else. In a lock-box or in police custody. He had never considered the danger it could put him in.

He felt like he had already lost.

And if you honestly cannot save youself. It’s still not over.

Izuku’s eyes widened at that sentence.

Because you have one of the most heroic quirks, and it’s not one I gave you. It’s the quirk you were born with.

You attract other heroes to you. You make friends with everyone, easier than anyone I’ve known. And those friends won’t let you down. Those friends won’t have to apologize for not saving you, because they’ll always have your back.

Izuku stared at the letter, and remembered his own words to Shigaraki. Ochaco would never lose to a hack like you!

He already believed in her. Those words had left his mouth without a thought. Since the Valentine’s Day in high school that he had confessed to her, he had trusted her without a doubt.

All Might was right.

So, my boy, I promise, you don’t need me anymore. You may wish to see me, and I wish to see you, but you will find your way out of danger without me. You always have. That’s what makes you such a great hero.

So don’t give up!

All Might

“What are you doing in that corner?” Kurogiri asked, and Izuku noticed his shadow looming behind him, as the villain stood at the bars. “I can hear you snivelling. Have you already given up hope? Shigaraki will be bored by that.”

Izuku leapt to his feet and turned to Kurogiri, flicking the one tear left in his eye. “My tears don’t make me weak, and I will not lose to either of you!” He shouted at the villain.

“What is that?” Kurogiri pointed at the crumpled paper in Izuku’s fist. “Were you reading something?”

Izuku shoved the letter back into his pocket and grimaced at the shadowy man. “It’s none of your concern.” He mocked him.

Kurogiri glared at the green haired man, and summoned a gate in front of himself, sticking his torso through it and opening his hand to Izuku. “Let me see it. ” He demanded.

Just then, Shigaraki’s voice broke through the headset. “Kurogiri! I found something. Open the gate!”

Kurogiri scoffed, and leaned back through the portal and out of Izuku’s cell, before closing the portal, and opening another one.

Izuku’s body stiffened as Shigaraki stepped through his portal with his cardboard box of letters in tow. No, I’ve got to do something! He thought frantically.

But before he made a single move, Shigaraki looked over his shoulder and shouted, “Close the gate, Kurogiri! Close it!”

Before Kurogiri could obey his command, a pair of pink booted legs came flying through the portal, and Uravity landed a flying kick to the side of Shigaraki’s head, taking the man down instantly. Right behind her, Ingenium flipped through the gate and kicked Kurogiri in the armor on his neck, slamming him against the wall.

Just as the gate closed behind him, Ida pulled out his phone from his armor. “Location sent.”

“Give up villains! The heroes and the police are on their way.” Ochaco shouted, standing with one foot each on Shigaraki’s hands.

“You can’t capture us so easily.” Kurogiri growled, but nothing followed. He gasped. “Why won’t my warp gate summon?!”

“Sorry, I guess you didn’t see me slip in during the commotion.” A groggy voice spoke from near Izuku’s cell. The green haired boy turned his head in surprise to find Eraserhead leaning against the bars on the outside of his cage, his hair floating above his shoulders. “The police better get here quick, I can’t keep staring at that purple cloud forever.” He groaned.

“Mr. Aizawa!” Izuku shouted in surprise.

Eraserhead sighed. “C’mon kid. You’re what, 20 now? You can’t keep referring to me like I’m your teacher on the field.”

“Sorry, sir.” Izuku mummbled, he figured telling him he was 19, not 20, was probably not the issue here. “I mean, sorry, Eraserhead.”

“That’s better.” His former teacher snickered.

The faint shout of “Stand Back!” echoed through the cave, before explosion after explosion began to sound through the shaking walls.

“Sir! The cave could collapse on them if you’re not careful!” Izuku recognized Naomasa’s voice shouting. But the next voice is what gave him a real surprise.

“Shut up! If a rock can kill them, they’re shit heroes anyway!” Katsuki screeched, and then one more deafening explosion blasted the wall open. “Deku, you fucking idiot! What kind of hero gets taken hostage?!”

Izuku never thought he might sigh in relief to Katsuki’s shouting, but nothing else seemed appropriate at the moment.

The clean up of the scene took longer than expected, but with the arrival of the police, Aizawa was able to relax. Tsukauchi had revealed a syringe of liquid, and described it as a quirk-erasure serum that was still in testing.

“It won’t last for long, but long enough to take these two into custody.” He told Izuku, before shooting up a writhing Shigaraki, who kept spewing profanities no one was happy to remember. Kurogiri had been subdued by the falling rocks in the crumbling cave, and gave little struggle as Naomasa sent the needle down behind his armor. His black flames disappeared and his average man’s face was revealed for the first time.

With their quirks temporarily erased, the two villains were taken into custody as quickly as possible. Then the attention was turned to Izuku.

Ochaco used her quirk to remove the rubble around the bars, and with the crumbling walls, the seemingly impenetrable bars fell over, and Izuku stepped out.

“Deku! I was so worried!” Ochaco shrieked, and threw her arms around him.

“Yes, you gave us quite a fright, Midoriya.” Ida agreed, and wrapped his arms around both of his friends.

“How did you guys even find me?” Izuku asked, enjoying the warmth of the group hug.

The hug loosened but Ochaco kept her arm around him. “I was coming back to your apartment, and I saw a portal in your window from the street. And then when Shigaraki stepped out, I didn’t know what to do!”

Ida nodded, “Then she called me, and we decided to stake it out until another portal opened.” He explained. “While we did, I sent emails and text messages to nearby heroes and that’s when Aiza--I mean--Eraserhead joined us.”

“And I called Detective Tsukauchi and now here we are.” Aizawa finished the explanation. “And now we should leave before this place collapses.”

The three young heroes looked at the crumbling walls.

Izuku laughed uneasily. “Yeah, that’s true.”

As the group of heroes ducked out of the tunnel that Katsuki had blown through the walls of the mountain Izuku soon found he was hiding in, he looked out at his former rival, shouting at the police truck that was soon to take the villains away.

“Who called Kacchan, then?” Izuku asked.

“I called him once we discovered your location.” Naomasa stepped over to the group. “We had to work fast, knowing that Eraserhead could only keep his eyes on the villains for a few minutes at most, so gathering explosives was out of the question.” He turned his gaze to the excessively angry hero, stomping and shouting at the villains as the truck drove into the distance. “He agreed almost immediately. Though I’m sure he said something like ‘I can’t wait to see Deku’s sorry face when I save him.’”

Izuku chuckled. “Yeah, that sounds like Kacchan.” He nodded.

“Now, I need to speak to Midoriya alone for a moment.”

Izuku was caught off guard by how serious Naomasa’s voice suddenly became. His two friends didn’t seem to notice though, and nodded before giving them some space.

Naomasa patted Izuku’s back, and lead him behind his police car, where they were mostly hidden from the rest of the group.

“What is it, Detective Tsukachi.” Izuku asked.

“Well, first of all, we found this on the scene.” He pulled Izuku’s box of letters out from under his jacket, and handed it to him.

Izuku gasped, and grabbed the package from him, hugging it close to his chest. He had almost lost it, his only remaining connection to his hero. “Thank you, Detective. But… is it okay to give me this?” Izuku asked, “Isn’t it evidence?”

“Yes, well…” Naomasa’s brow furrowed, “Can I see your hands?” Izuku looked up at him worriedly, but tucked the box under his arm, and held his hands out to his elder.

“I’m really sorry about this, Izuku.”

Izuku was surprised to hear Naomasa refer to him by his given name, but that paled in comparison as the detective clipped handcuffs around Izuku’s wrists.

“Wha--” Izuku started to exclaim, but what cut short by the dread that followed in Naomasa’s voice.

“Izuku Midoriya, you are under arrest for suspicion of All Might’s murder.”

Chapter Text

Izuku Midoriya, age 16, sat in his seat, waiting for his Heroics 101 class to start. To his right, his best friends, Ida Tenya and Ochaco Uraraka, were chatting up a storm, but Izuku couldn’t take his eyes off of the clock.

“Is something wrong, Deku?” Ochaco caught his attention, “You’ve been staring off for a while now.”

Izuku flinched, suddenly feeling like everyone in class had their eyes on him now. “N-no, it’s just…” Izuku stuttered, “Don’t you think All Might is a little late?”

“Well, he used to run late all the time, because he was taking down villains, right?” Ochaco asked, hoping to settle his nerves.

“Yeah, but that was before the whole Kamino thing.” Ashido chipped in, leaning her pink head into the conversation, “He’s always been on time since he retired.”

Izuku’s face paled at the mention of Kamino ward. He still felt some regret towards All Might’s retirement. Since that time, All Might hadn’t been able to teach them using practical exams, but only through written tests and lectures. Though, he still had much experience to teach from, and all of the students loved to hear his personal stories of heroism.

But Ashido was right, he was never late anymore. He had no reason to be.

“Maybe he just slept in…?” Ochaco suggested, though her smile seemed as unconvinced as her voice.

“Maybe…” Izuku nodded slowly. He couldn’t help but worry. He knew more about All Might then the rest of his class. He knew All Might’s secrets.

Just then, All Might’s voice echoed over the speakers. Izuku Midoriya, please report to the faculty office.

“Ah, that was him!” Ashido chirped.

“See, it’s fine Deku. He’s just waiting on you.” Ochaco clapped her hands together with a smile for him. “So, why don’t you go see him, and bring him back, so we can start class.”

“Yes, Midoriya. Go quickly, so we don’t miss any more precious time to gain knowledge.” Ida agreed.

Izuku stood from his desk with an anxious nod, and jogged out of the classroom. What could All Might be calling him to the faculty office for? Whenever they needed to speak in private, it was always after class, and in a separate, unused room. The faculty room seemed too public. It didn’t make sense to him.

However, Izuku wasn’t one to question All Might. He looked up to All Might more than anyone else, and if he needed to speak Izuku that very moment, regardless of where it was, it must have been important.

Izuku arrived at the faculty office, and took a deep breath, recovering from the dash he made to his destination. After regaining his composure, he slid the door open, saying, “You wanted to see me, All Might?”

His foot made a splash as it hit the faculty office floor. Izuku looked to his shoes curiously, but his skin crawled as he saw what he had stepped in.

A puddle of blood surrounded his foot.

Izuku quickly pulled his foot back, letting out a slight shriek. His eyes followed the river of blood that met him at the door, and he found the source.

All Might lay motionless, surrounded in a puddle of blood that stretch out for what seemed like miles, and had ran its way from his desk to the door.

Izuku’s mouth went dry.

“All Might!” He screeched at the top of his lungs, and rushed over to his mentor. “No. No no no no!” He cried, and lifted All Might’s shriveled form from his shoulders, shaking him gently. “All Might, wake up!”

Through his tears, Izuku could make out four, no, five gashes in All Might’s button down shirt, where his blood was still pouring out from. Knife wounds had dyed All Might’s yellow suit red.

“All Might, speak to me!!” Izuku screamed, and continued to shake the gentleman in his arms. “Please, All Might!”

“Midoriya, what are you--” Aizawa’s voice trailed off into a gasp, as he turned into the office. He quickly spun to the wall and pulled the fire alarm, before hitting a button on the wall and shouting into the overhead speaker.

“We have an emergency. This is not a drill. Students are to stay in their classes with their teachers. Principal Nedzu, please report to Class 1-A’s Heroic’s 101 to stand watch over the students.” He spoke hastily, but precisely. “And Recovery Girl, please report to the faculty office as quickly as possible.”

When Aizawa made his way over to Izuku, the boy was sobbing uncontrollably, and cradling All Might’s head in his arms. “Mr. Aizawa…” He gasped his teacher’s name between his tears. “He’s not… he’s…” Izuku couldn’t get through a single sentence before breaking down into sobs again.

“Lay him back down, Midoriya. Recovery Girl will be here soon. She’ll do all she can.” Aizawa told him, but Izuku couldn’t move.

When Recovery Girl arrived on scene, she was rendered speechless. She dashed to All Might’s side, kneeling down next to him, but after checking his vitals, she stood again.

Slowly, the youthful heroine shook her head.

Aizawa clenched his fist at his side, but Izuku didn’t react.

He had already noticed that his hero wasn’t breathing. He didn’t need to hear Recovery Girl’s next words, to already feel the weight of the situation.

“It’s too late.”

The next to arrive of the scene were the police, including Naomasa. The detective stepped into the room with a combination of confusion and grief shown on his face. He walked very slowly over to Izuku, who sat collapsed on the floor, with All Might’s head in his lap.

Naomasa stooped down and patted the young man on his shoulder, but the boy didn’t respond.

“He’s been like this since we got here.” Recovery Girl said shakily, “He won’t move or speak. He’s too shaken.”

Naomasa turned his head to the tiny healing heroine. “He was the first on the scene, then?” He asked her. She nodded her head in dismay.

“The other faculty had all already reported to their classrooms. Whoever did this, they did it quick, and got out of here as soon as they could.” Aizawa spoke absent mindedly about the situation.

Naomasa nodded slowly, and then turned his attention to Izuku. “Midoriya, I’m sorry about this, but I need you to come with me to the station to ask a couple questions.”

The boy still didn’t respond though.

“Midoriya please…” Naomasa spoke shakily, “They need to…” He hesitated on his words, and bit his lip. “They have to bag him up.”

Izuku’s head flicked to Naomasa, with fresh tears in his eyes. He wasn’t able to form words, but just screeched out more cries, and threw his arms around Naomasa.

The detective slowly ran one hand through Izuku’s hair, allowing the boy to cry into his jacket. With the other hand, he gently lifted All Might’s head, and laid it back onto the blood covered floor, before slowly standing, bringing Izuku to his feet along with him.

The boy was covered in blood, the blood of his friend, that was now rubbing onto Naomasa’s jacket, but he kept his arm around Izuku’s shoulder, as he led him towards the exit.

Naomasa stopped in front of Aizawa, and spoke to him. “I’ll need to question you and Recovery Girl too, after you’ve escorted all of the students off the premises.”

Aizawa nodded, but his eyes were stuck on the crumpled figure, lying in blood on the floor.

A pair of policemen came into the room as Naomasa and Izuku exited, one of whom carried a black bag made of thick plastic.

“Please, treat him gently.” Naomasa whispered to them.

Less than an hour later, Izuku was seated in an interrogation room at the local police department. His blazer hung on the chair behind him, still dripping with blood, and the front of his button up shirt still held some red on it.

Naomasa sat across from him. The both of them had dark, heavy expressions on their faces. The detective sighed. “Just, tell me everything that happened today.” He asked the boy, “I’m sorry to make you relive it.”

And so Izuku began to retell the story, through his tears and sobs. The same story he retold three years later, in the same room.

“And that’s everything I remember about that day.” Izuku finished his reiteration of what he was still sure was the worst day of his life.

Naomasa nodded, and turned his head to Officer Sansa at the end of the table. The cat headed officer held a written recording of Izuku’s official statement from years ago. The policeman nodded back to the detective. “Outside of a couple minor details, it matches up.”

Naomasa sighed, and slumped back in his chair.

“Detecive Tsukauchi… What is this about?” Izuku asked, “I don’t understand why…” He lifted his wrists, and the chains that connected them jingled together.

The detective sat up straight again, “I’m sorry, Midoriya, I really am. There’s just… there’s been more evidence discovered.”

Izuku’s eyes lit up, “You’ve found a new lead?” He asked.

Naomasa nodded, but he didn’t show Izuku a smile. “But, that lead brought us to you, Midoriya.”

“Oh, right.” Izuku’s shoulders slumped. “Can you tell me anything?”

“We can, but…” Noamasa seemed to mutter, “It’s pretty incriminating.”

Izuku nodded with a stern expression.

“While we on our rescue mission for you, a short blurb about your situation was shown on a public news station.” Naomasa explained slowly, “They showed your photo, out of your costume, and shortly after, we got a few calls to the precinct. Witnesses from the day of All Might’s murder.”

Izuku clenched his hands together, and listened quietly.
“We had three different witnesses report that they saw you, or someone who looked like you, running out of UA the day of the murder.”

“B-But!” Izuku stuttered, “I left with you! And before that, I was in class. My whole class can vouch for me.”

Naomasa nodded, “Yes, and if these calls were all we had, we would be able to let you go after hearing your statement again. However…” The detective turned to his Sansa at the end of the table, and the police officer slid a manila envelope over to him. “We received a recording, from an anonymous sender, at the precinct since you arrived.”

“A recording?” Izuku questioned.

“Yes, the lost security tapes from the faculty office.” Naomasa laid his hand on top of the envelope.

“You mean from the prank on the statue?” Izuku asked, feeling awful confused to how that could have gotten him arrested.

“No, from three years ago.”

Izuku froze. His voice caught in his throat. He began to notice how dark the bags under Naomasa’s eyes were. He understood what the detective had watched.

“You mean… of the murder.” Izuku stated. The statement was more for himself than the detective, but Naomasa confirmed still.

“Yes, and… I’m sorry, but I have to ask you to look at these stills.” He opened the envelope in front of Deku, and what he saw made no sense to him.

Over the course of 20 or so printed stills of the video, Izuku was shown standing in front of All Might, and then pulling a knife on the hero, stabbing him over and over, and then shown running from the scene. Tears formed at the corner of Izuku’s eyes, as he subjected himself to the torture of viewing them, his fingers digging into his knees. In the last couple images, he was pictured again, stepping into the room. That was the version of himself that he remembered.

“B-But, that’s not me!” Izuku cried, leaping to his feet.

“I want to believe you, Midoriya. And I know it doesn’t make sense, but I have to look at this in an unbiased view. There’s too much evidence against you now for me to let you go free.” Noamasa spoke softly, as he gathered the prints back up and hid them in the envelope again.

Izuku fell back into his seat, shaking. He didn’t understand what those images were. He didn’t understand how someone could use his face to kill his hero. Tears began to flow down his cheeks and his sobbing began. He couldn’t think of anything to do now. Everything was crumbling around him, just like it had three years ago.

“Midoriya,” Naomasa spoke up, “I’m sorry, but I do have more questions.” He sighed, “Unfortunately, despite taking in two known members of the League of Villains, we haven’t had any luck questioning either of them.”

Of course… Izuku thought to himself, but didn’t respond. That was just his luck today. He gave little reaction to Naomasa, but the Detective continued to explain the situation with the other two convicts.

“Shigaraki seems to be quite used to interrogation. Not only has he refused to give us any information, regardless of how he’s pushed, but he’s already tried to bite out his own tongue and kill himself.” Naomasa ran a hand through his hair and sighed heavily. “He just seems awful young to already be so far past saving…”

Izuku peered up from his lap. Had Tsukauchi really considered Shigaraki redeemable, even after all the young man had done? He remembered that, when All Might was told of Shigaraki’s relation to Nana Shimura, he found himself no longer able to fight the young villain anymore. Maybe that sentiment had rested in the detective’s mind too.

“And Kurogiri… his quirk makes it difficult to keep him under control.” Tsukauchi continued, “But, constantly introducing the quirk erasing drug into his bloodstream could threaten his life, so he’s been forced into an induced coma until we find another way to question him without his imminent escape.

“So, that brings us to the next subject.”

Izuku heard the detective place something on the table. “I know I said once that I wouldn’t ask, but now that this is evidence, I have to... What’s in this box, Midoriya?”

Izuku turned his head up enough to see his box of letters from All Might sitting on the table in front of him. He took a deep breath, and spoke. “They’re letters. Letters from All Might. To help me cope with his death.”

Noamasa gave an understanding “Ah...” And then slowly opened the box. “Is it alright if I read one, to confirm this?”

Izuku sniffed and rubbed his eyes. “I guess it’s okay, if it’s you, detective.” He told his elder.

“Thank you.” Naomasa nodded to the young man, and began to slowly rifle through the box. “Why don’t you read one too?”

Izuku was surprised by Naomasa’s words, and turned his head up to see the detective was holding a letter out to him, with When Things Won’t Stop Going Wrong written on it.

“This seems pretty relevant right now.” The detective gave him a shaky smile.

Izuku slowly took the letter from Naomasa and looked at him unsure, but the detective still nodded to him. He turned his head to Sansa, and the furry officer shrugged. “It’s alright with me.”

Izuku turned his eyes back to the letter. “Thank you.”

My Dear Boy,

I can’t imagine the pain I’ve put you through. How many of my letters have you read now? Is this your first? Or maybe it’s even your last. I’m sorry. Every time you open one, I remind you that I’m gone. I’m truly awful for putting your through this.

Izuku shook his head at the letter. He was prone to speak to them, but tried to hold his words inside, since he had company while reading one for the first time.

I’m sure that losing me shattered your world. But I left these letters to get you back onto your feet. So, what has happened to cause your world to crumble once again? Something I did not account for, for sure. I won’t fail you a second time though, son.

Izuku bit his lip. You’ve never failed me, All Might. Don’t say that. He thought.

Regardless of what the world has thrown at you, it’s your world. Only you can decide when to give up, so don’t let the world keep you down. Find what you need to break through this.

When you saved that child during your summer camp gone wrong, you told me you were sure you were going to die for a moment. The very thought terrified me. What had I gotten you into? Why wasn’t I there to help you? But despite how much you had shocked me, you were still alive to tell me the story.

You’re resourceful young man. The night, you met a number of villains you would later meet again on the battlefield, and you took what you learned from a life you risked your life, to better yourself for the future. How can you do that again?

Izuku sighed. How could he relate that nightmare of a summer camp to this situation? It was true, he had met a lot of the League of Villains for the first time that night, but now, they were gone. Missing in Action. They could be out there right now, causing havoc, while he was locked up in an interrogation room.

They could have been responsible for All Might’s death, and he couldn’t do anything about it.

If your world falls apart, you have to rebuild it. You are the world’s pillar now, son. Even if you haven’t made your debut. Even if no one knows besides you, it is the torch I have handed you. I know it’s a heavy burden, but I don’t regret passing it to you.

Because I know there is no one more worthy of it than you.

No matter how much your world falls apart, know that there is always a shoulder you can fall on. You have allies in every direction.

Izuku peered up from his letter to Naomasa, who was staring down at a letter he had unfolded on the table. The detective looked as if he might have been fighting back his own tears, but he wore a sheepish smile.

Though Naomasa had been the one to arrest him, the detective still wanted to believe in Izuku. He wasn’t questioning Izuku because he wanted the boy to confess, but because he still viewed Izuku as a comrade on the case. He needed Izuku’s input. He needed Izuku to help him understand what this new evidence meant.

Izuku leered back to his own letter, for the last couple words.

Know that you don’t have to rebuild your world alone. Everyone you care for is there for you, and will help how they can.

And know, even if you can’t see me, I’m with you all the way.

All Might

Izuku let his eyes skim over the letter again, as he mulled over everything he had read, and then he closed his eyes to think.

The summer camp mentioned in this letter, and also in one he had read prior also, was what Izuku still considered his first failure. He had let Katsuki slip through his fingers and into the hands of the villains. And the events that followed lead to All Might’s retirement.

But, despite how negatively he looked upon the events, he had learned a lot about himself, his power, and about his enemies from those times.

Still, what could he take from those darkened memories that could help turn his current situation around?

After another moment of concentration, the young man’s green eyes flashed open again.

“Tsukachi.” Izuku spoke to catch Naomasa’s attention. The detective pulled his eyes from another letter, and wiped away a tear that had fought it’s way into his eye.

“I’m sorry, Midoriya. I shouldn’t have kept reading them.” He spoke in a cloudy voice.

Izuku shook his head, telling Noamasa that wasn’t the present issue. “When I was still fifteen, I met a good number of the League of Villains at a summer camp.” He spoke slowly, “One of them was a young lady who I met a number of times after that. Her quirk allowed her to take on the appearance of anyone whose blood she drank.”

Naomasa looked at Izuku shocked, and then dug through his files of League of Villain members, landing on one in particular.

“During my Hero License exam, a girl we now believe to be the same villain in disguise, drained some of my blood.” He watched as Naomasa’s face turned pale. “If she were to have drank that, and taken on my appearance…”

“Then, All Might’s murderer would have been…” Naomasa whispered.

Izuku nodded.

“Himiko Toga.” The two recited in unison.

For a moment, the room fell silent. They both knew that what they had fallen upon was nothing more than circumstantial evidence, and it would take more than their agreement on this conclusion to release Izuku from custody.

But with Himiko Toga’s status and location unknown, the case would once again come to a stand still.

To the surprise of both Izuku and Naomasa, a soft chuckling began to rise from the end of the table. The two of them turned their heads to Officer Sansa, who held one hand over his furry mouth.
“Sansa…?” Naomasa questioned softly.

“Sorry, sorry.” The cat headed officer apologized, “It’s just…” The officer peered over in Izuku’s direction, “It took you long enough… Izuku Baby.”

Chapter Text

“Deku still hasn’t called.”

Ochaco’s voice broke the silence in her apartment. She sat on the couch in her living room, staring down at her cell phone, tapping the screen every time it dimmed due to inactivity. She just wanted one call. One text. Anything to let her know what was going on.

“Why would he just leave without saying anything?” She turned her eyes up to Tenya, who sat on her couch next, leaned forward with his arms folded across his knees. His clunky armour was stacked up to his side, and he sat in tank top and tight sports pants.

He also had been asking himself the same question. He and Ochaco had only only taken their eyes off of Izuku for a moment, and when they turned back to him, the green haired hero was ducking into the back of Detective Tsukauchi’s patrol car.

They tried to follow, but Izuku had looked out the back window at them, and shook his head. They felt their heart sink, but he turned them his best smile, as the car drove away from his two best friends and comrades.

“I’m sure he had good reason.” Tenya finally replied to Ochaco’s question. “The detective may have needed his help right away, and he didn’t have time to waste.”

“What couldn’t we have been helpful for?” Ochaco asked him, clenching her fingers onto the rubber hero suit that covered her legs. “And there was also…” She thought back to the scene they broke into, as she took out Shigaraki with one surprise kick. “...that box.”

Tenya turned inquisitive eyes to her, and Ochaco began to elaborate.

“That box that Shigaraki had, he had taken it from Deku’s room.” She leaned onto her shoulders and twiddled her thumbs. “I saw it once, hidden in a closet, but he’s never opened it around me. I… I got the feeling he didn’t want me know even know about it.”

“Did you look inside?” Tenya asked.

Ochaco shook her head harshly. “No, I couldn’t.” She told him. “I trust Deku. And I know he trusts me too, so I couldn’t open it. I would be breaking that trust.” She sighed, and gave Tenya a half hearted smile. “I just… I wish he didn’t have to hide things from me.”

Ochaco felt Ida’s arm wrap around her shoulder, before her friend pulled her into his chest and hugged her tight. “Midoriya loves you, Uraraka. If he does have secrets, he will tell you when the time comes.”

Ochaco took a deep breath, and smiled, hugging Tenya in return. “Thank you, Ida.”

Then, the bespectacled man pulled from her grasp and stood. “Let’s go, then.” He offered Ochaco a hand up.

The brunette took her friend’s hand, and gave him a confused glance. “Where?”

“To the precinct.” Tenya replied, and yanked his friend to her feet. “Midoriya is waiting for us, afterall.”

Ochaco’s visage turned from surprised to confident in a matter of seconds, and she gave Tenya a strong nod.

The officers that filled the precinct continued their work; answering phone calls; typing up case files; filing paperwork, were all the while left unaware of the events that currently were taking place in one of their interrogation rooms.

Inside, Izuku and Naomasa had leapt to their feet, and turned their attention to the feline officer at the end of their table.

“What did you just say, Sansa?” Naomasa whispered roughly.

Izuku shook his head in reply. That wasn’t Sansa.

“It’s just so funny.” The furry officer snickered, “You never blinked when this little kitty showed up with a recording today, which you had thought had been lost for good. And then, when he wanted to help you question little Izuku, and you didn’t think twice. What a terrible detective, meow.” Sansa’s voice began to deteriorate from his own to a higher pitched, feminine one.

“Officer Sansa was involved in multiple cases when I was still in high school, and in All Might’s murder.” Izuku spat, “Don’t pretend you didn’t know that when you targeted him.”

There was a splatting sound all around the so called ‘Sansa’, as his appearance began to melt, and drip in the floor, slowly revealing the appearance of the true speaker. “Oh, Izuku Baby, you’ve gotten so sharp with your words since we last talked.” They giggled, “Though I can’t say that I dislike it…” A grin spread across the face of the villain in front of them.

One last piece of her melting costume slipped from her chin, and Himiko Toga was finally revealed. Her hair must have grown quite a bit in the last few years, as it was all kept in one large bun on the back of her head, with bits and pieces breaking loose, and one long piece hanging down on the left of her face. But her sadistic smile was exactly the same.

“Did you miss me, Izuku Baby?” She cheered, and jumped up and down in the deteriorating disguise at her feet. Her body was left bare, but she didn’t seem to be preoccupied by her own nudity at all.

Izuku stomped one foot forward, and the chains between his wrists clanked together. “Why, Toga?” His voice was hushed, but laced with fury.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” She giggled, and held one finger to her chin. “I wonder if I should tell you…”

“Answer one question for me, Toga.” Naomasa spoke in a focused voice, which brought Izuku’s attention to him. Izuku turned his head to see the Detective standing in a stiff position, his fists clenched tight, but his expression firm. “One thing in the footage, and in Izuku’s testimony don’t add up.”

Himiko turned an uninterested expression to Naomasa, being much more interested in tormenting Izuku, but didn’t interrupt the detective.
“He stated that All Might called him to the office, but by the time he would have, the crime would have already taken place, and All Might was already motionless.” He glanced at Izuku, who had his head down, staring at his clenched fists. “However, the entire class recognised it as All Might’s voice. So, how was it that you lead Izuku to the scene with All Might’s voice.”

Himiko gave a “Hmph!” And then grinned. “Isn’t it obvious?” She reached towards the messy bun on her head, and both Izuku and Naomasa braced themselves, expecting her to draw a weapon. Instead, she pulled out a vial of dark red liquid. “All I had to do was stand in the blind spot of the cameras, and make the call myself. Do you really think I wouldn’t do my research on the security system? Silly detective... ” She giggled, “Once I take on someone’s appearance, it’s easy to copy a voice, you know. And I was already just covered in his blood after all… I even saved a little for you!” With that, Himiko crushed the vial in her hand, and let the the blood drip onto her tongue.

Izuku’s skin crawled as the young lady licked her lips, and then her appearance began to shift, a new skin thickenning over her own. A darker new skin, with protruding cheekbones and deep set blue eyes. She wasn’t even half transformed, when she let her new voice escape her throat. All Might’s voice. “Have you missed me, Deku?”

The fury in Izuku’s heart over boiled, and his power exploded inside of him. Without a second thought, the young man yanked his arms apart and broke the chains between them as if they were plastic. He let out a furious screech, and leapt towards Himiko, fists ready.

“Ah-ah-aah~” Himiko teased him, waving her finger back and forth. With a flick of her wrist,  Izuku’s box of letters abruptly landed in her hands.

Izuku stopped in his tracks, and his fists fell to his side. “Wh--”

“Silly Izuku Baby, like I wouldn’t come prepared.” Himiko shook her newly formed disguise off of her, as a couple drops of blood wouldn’t have lasted her long. She spun a string around her finger, with a knife hanging off the end of it, flying in smaller and smaller circles, until the string was fully wrapped around her finger, and the hilt of the knife landed neatly in her hand. “I keep my knives on string these days. It makes it sooo much easier to grab things.”

She grinned at Izuku and Naomasa, and then ran her finger over the hilt of the knife, before pressing a switch on it. Oil ran up a small tube in the center of the blade, and a tiny flame popped out the tip. “Now, why don’t you sweet boys sit down for me?” She turned her knife turned lighter towards the box.

Izuku’s leg’s shook along with his resolve, and he stumbled back and fell back into his seat. Naomasa turned an anxious frown to him. “Midoriya, they’re just letters. We can’t--”

“ Please Detective Tsukauchi.” Izuku clenched the fabric of his pants under his knuckles. “Just, go along with it for a moment. Until we figure something out.”

Tsukauchi let out a gasp of breath, genuinely surprised by how much Izuku would risk for the letters.

“They’re all I have left…” Izuku whispered, “and I haven’t read them all.”

Naomasa sighed, and begrudgingly took his seat. For the moment, he would let Izuku think of a solution, but if it came down to it, he would sacrifice the box of letters if he left the need. Despite the strain it might cause on his and Izuku’s relationship.

“Good boys!” Himiko grinned, and let go of the switch on the knife, letting the fire go out. She then softly put down the box. “I bet you read these all the time, Izuku Baby. When you’re feeling down or trapped.” Izuku held in his anger as he watched her dig through the box, pulling out letters and reading their titles. “Oh, this one sounds good.” She held up one letter. “It says ‘When you’re angry at the world.’ Is that how you feel right now, Baby?”

“Put those down, Toga!” Izuku shouted at the villain.

“Hmmm… sounds like a yes to me!” She cheered, and held the letter above her head. “I’m going to read it to you!”

“Don’t you dare!” Izuku shouted again, but withdrew his anger when Himiko turned her lighter-knife to the letter again, smiling at him sadistically. He growled a bit, but gave in. “Do what you want. But you won’t get away with this.”

Himiko giggled softly. “I do love it when you talk that way, Izuku Baby.” The blonde psycho peeled back the tape on the top of the letter, and unfolded it.

“Let’s see…

“‘ Dear Midoriya… ‘ Oh, he refers to you by your family name? That’s so boring. Anywho…

“ ‘How can you be angry at the world? I hope you have read my other two letters about your anger at this point. ’ Oh! Is this part of a trilogy?”

Himiko kept breaking from her reading to laugh and tease Izuku more. The young man bit his tongue and listened the best he could.

“ ‘I’ve already told you that a hero must keep their temper under control, but to be angry at the world, that is quite the anger. You must know that you are in charge of saving that very same world. ’ Wow, he’s putting a lot on your shoulders, Izuku Baby… Isn’t it too much pressure?”

Izuku shook his head. All Might believed in him, that’s why he had pushed him when he was still alive, and why he continued to push him forward in these letters. He wouldn’t let Himiko get in his head.

“ ‘As the next symbol of peace, what you should feel towards the world is love…’ ”

Himiko’s voice trailed off. Izuku turned his eyes to her, to see her staring down at the letter with forlorn eyes. “Wow. Shiggy was right afterall, huh? You’re the real deal, Izuku Baby.” She said softly. After a moment of silence, the young lady shook her head, and turned her attention back to the words on the paper in her hands.

“ ‘Though, when you love something, I guess it’s only natural to get mad with it sometimes. Because you know it can do better. Because you have to protect it and it keeps putting itself in danger. Because it keeps breaking all its limbs.’ Haha, he’s totally calling you out, Izuku Baby.” Himiko laughed, “ ‘I can’t help but admit that I got angry with you once and awhile. It seemed like you never learned. No matter what I taught you. Or Gran Torino. Or any of your teachers for that matter, you only kept putting yourself in danger. You kept making the same mistakes. You kept being so self sacrificing.

“‘But that’s my fault, isn’t it? I was the one who told you that self sacrifice was heroic. But if you sacrificed too much… you would never be able to right the world.

“‘So yeah, I got mad with you. I got mad over, and over again. But it was because I love you. And I believe in you.’”

“Wow… what a sap...” Himiko’s words were those of teasing, but her voice was far away.

“ ‘So, I know that, even if you think you’re angry with the world, it’s because you love it so much. If you’re mad at the whole world, you have to do what you can to fix it, so that you can look upon it with a smile again.

“‘That’s your job as a hero. And as my pupil.

“‘It’s a big job, but I know you can do it. Good Luck, My Boy. All Might.’”

Himiko gave a half hearted laugh. “That’s so funny. He really thinks you can do anything, Izuku Baby.” Her teasing still lacked the bite that they previously did, but Izuku and Naomasa remained vigilant. “Hey, wanna know why I did it?”

Izuku was caught off guard by her new question. He let out a light gasp, and leapt to his feet. “Of course, I do!”

She smiled at him weaker than usual. “At first, it was to get back at Shigg--Shigaraki.” She said, as she folded the letter she had just read and placed in back into the box. “You know when we fought you along with that mafia, right? With that Overhaul guy?”

Izuku couldn’t forget that. That day was a turning point in his life. His first real mission with his hero licence. Where he and his senior UA students put everything on the line for one little girl, who needed their help.

“Well, that same guy killed Big Sis Magne. She never did anything to deserve that.” Himiko slowly took a seat on the cold metal chair behind her. “He didn’t respect her and he didn’t regret it, and yet Shigaraki still allied with that jerk. That’s when I realized it… We didn’t mean anything to him. We were just pawns.”

Izuku kept his eyes on the girl, as she stared down at the table under her nose. He hadn’t heard her talk like this before. He hadn’t heard any villain talk like this. She seemed so… human. He remembered learning in class that most psycho and sociopaths become the way they were because they lacked sympathy and empathy, but… that didn’t seem like the case for Himiko.

“So, I thought I’d hurt Shigaraki back, and take away his prize. So I did it. I killed All Might.” She confessed, but didn’t show him the sadistic grin he had grown used to being on her face.

“But, why did you go to such lengths to frame Midoriya?” Naomasa questioned her, making use of the interrogation room once again.

Himiko glanced at the green haired man seated in front of her. “Because, I wanted Izuku to love me.”
“What?” Izuku’s voice broke from his mouth without him thinking about it.

“I mean, you don’t love me, do you, Izuku Baby?” She asked him, but didn’t wait for an answer, “No, it’s more like you hate me, right? But, I thought that if I took away All Might, who you love the most, you would have no choice but to love me! And if I framed you, you would have to notice, and come after me!” She began to smile as she remembered her plan, and put her hands in the air as she continued. “I thought, after him, I’d keep taking out your loved ones until I was all that’s left! And then you’d be mine, ya know!” She held her hands high above her head, and stared into the empty space between them, as if watching her fantasy come to life, one only she could see.

Izuku’s brow furrowed, and he had to take his eyes off of Himiko as she continued her rant.

“I would take out Ochaco too! Even though I wanted to be her friend, she’s in the way now that you’re dating, so she has to go too.”

Izuku’s attention was quickly brought back to Himiko with those words, and he strengthened his stance, holding his ground and glaring at her.

“But, it’s not going to work.” Himiko’s smile faded again. Her arms slowly fell back to the table, and she pulled back at the cardboard flaps of the box of letters, and peered into it. “After reading that letter, it’s pretty obvious. Even though he’s dead, you still love him.” She sighed, “You’ll never really be my Izuku Baby.”

Izuku was left speechless. He didn’t know whether to be angry, or sympathetic. Though her explanation was heartless, her own forlorn expression left him confused. But then she flicked her wrist again.

Izuku felt a wire spin around him once, and then twice, too quickly to break, before it constricted him and he was yanked over to Himiko.

She caught the wire by one finger and angled the knife at it’s end to land safely in her hand, and she turned the blade to Izuku’s chin. “And that’s why I’m just so sad, because now I have to kill you.” She frowned. “It’s really heartbreaking, Izuku Baby.”

Tsukauchi had leapt to his feet and reached for the handgun at his waist, but Himiko turned Izuku towards him, and nicked his chin with the knife. She grinned as a drop of blood ran down his neck. “No no no, Mister Detective. Don’t move, or it’ll only happen faster.”

Naomasa cursed at himself internally for letting it escalate this far. He should have pulled his gun on her as soon as she revealed herself, instead of letting himself be held hostage by letters . But, when he looked into Izuku’s eyes, he saw that the young man held his resolve still. Despite his situation, he seemed calm and prepared.

“I didn’t know you were so in touch with your feelings, Himiko.” He spoke slowly and precisely.

The blonde gasped. “Izuku Baby, that’s the first time you’ve called me by my given name, today.”

“I thought all you sociopaths were totally unfeeling, but you’re different, aren’t you, Himiko?” Izuku continued.

Himiko pulled away her hand holding the knife to press one hand over her red cheeks. “Oh, Izuku Baby, you’re making me blush.” Her eyes darted back and forth, “Okay, before I kill you, would you… would you call me ‘Himiko Baby’?”

“Sorry.” A new voice came out from behind her, and Himiko felt a pair of hands on her bare waist. “He’s taken!” Ochaco’s voice shouted out, as she threw the villainous blonde into the air. In her surprise, Himiko’s knife fell from her hand, and the wire around Izuku loosened.

“Wh-What? When did you get in here?” Himiko squealed, and kicked around, trying to figure out how to balance herself on open air, but with her gravity depleted, she continued to just float closer towards the ceiling.

Ochaco didn’t grant Himiko a response however, and turned her eyes to Izuku, who had freed himself entirely from the knife and wires. “Get her, Deku!” She shouted.

Without a single question, Izuku power flew up from his feet through his whole being and he leapt into the air, clenched a fist, and threw a punch towards Himiko. The young lady squirmed around in the air, and cried out, before the fist landed hard on her nose, and sent her flying towards the floor.

In a dash, Ida flew into the room and caught the criminal in his arms, subduing her quickly.

“Le-Leb me bgo!” Himiko cried out, through her bloody nose and broken teeth. “How coulb you boo thif to me, Ifuku Baby!”

“He’s not your Izuku Baby. ” Ochaco stood in front of her with her arms crossed.

Izuku stepped up behind Ochaco, and wrapped his arms around her waist. “You were so distracted by my words, you didn’t see Uravity slip into the room at all.” He gave Himiko a mocking wink, “Ochaco thinks I’m hilarious when i try to flirt, but it fooled you.”

To his surprise, however, Ochaco shoved Izuku backwards and then spun around and smacked her hand across his cheek.

“O-Ochaco?” He stuttered, and held his hand to his cheek.

Ida and Naomasa both looked up as they cuffed Himiko, confused by the current events unfolding.

Ochaco stood with her fists curled up at her sides, and clenched her teeth. “You promised me!” She shouted at Izuku, “You promised you wouldn’t hide anything from me. Even if it was for my own good…”

“Ochaco…” Izuku started, “I just--”

“You just what ?! You don’t think I can handle it? You don’t want to put me in danger?” She shouted, and turned her head up to show her tears falling down her cheeks, “But it’s okay for you to be out, putting yourself in danger, nearly getting yourself killed and you don’t have to tell me anything?!”

“It’s just... “ Izuku tried to search for the right words, and he held his hands out as he tried to offer an explanation. “It was All Might’s case… It’s personal.”

“I know.” Ochaco said sternly, and took a deep sniff back. “I know you have secrets. I don’t know what they are… But I know they’re about All Might. And I know about that stupid box! ” She pointed a finger to the box of letters on the table. “I don’t care what your secrets are… I just…” Ochaco’s stance loosened and her hands fell to her sides again. “I wear my heart on my sleeve Deku… I can’t keep living like this. With no idea what you’re thinking…”

Izuku slowly stepped towards Ochaco. The young lady flinched at first, but didn’t move. “Ochaco, I…” He took another step towards her, and reached his shaky arms towards her. “I’m sorry. I did break my promise. I shouldn’t have hid so much from you.” He slowly wrapped his arms around her again, and this time, she didn’t push him away. She just stood still and shook and sobbed in his arms. “I’ll tell you everything, I swear.”

“When?” She demanded through her tears.

“Soon.” He promised, and rested his chin on the top her her head. He relaxed as he finally felt her arms wrap around him. “Tonight, even.”

“You can’t break another promise, Deku.” She reminded him, and took another deep breath.

“I know.” He told her, “I won’t. I’m sorry.” He sighed, as Ochaco’s shaking settled, and she nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck. “I love you.”

Chapter Text

The absent minded atmosphere that once filled the police precinct, had been flipped on its head. The arrival of Uravity and Ingenium on scene had caught the attention of dozens of officers, who now crowded outside the door, where Himiko Toga’s arrest had taken place.

The young lady spat profanities and blood from her mouth, as Tenya split the crowd, so that Noamasa could follow through with Toga in front of him, one hand on her shoulder, one on her cuffed wrists. Izuku followed after them, Ochaco trailing behind, their hands entwined with one another’s.

The group made their way to the exit of the building, but found themselves trapped in by a group of onlookers once more. This time, however, it was the press. Dozens of reporters and cameramen bustled outside the tinted glass doors, arguing with each other over who would get an interview first.

Naomasa stepped back and turned Himiko to Tenya, passing the prisoner off to him with little to say. He then cracked the door open, and the shouts of the reporters outside poured in.

“Sir! Is it true that Deku was arrested at the scene of the crime?”

“Witnesses say that he was connected to All Might’s case, do you have any comments?”

“If Deku has been arrested, does that mean he was All Might’s killer?”

Naomasa took a deep breath, and then held his hand up. The voices drained down to a hushed murmur, and the detective took his chance to speak. “All charges against the hero Deku have been dropped. Any further comments on the subject of Deku’s abduction or All Might’s case will be taken at Deku’s public press conference tomorrow morning.”

Izuku sent a shocked expression towards Naomasa, but the detective looked back over his shoulder and gave him a reassuring nod, then looked back out to the crowd. “Return with your equipment and questions tomorrow at 10 am, and Deku will tell you everything. Now, I must ask you to disperse.”

A couple of other officers moved past Izuku and then Naomasa, and helped escort the more stubborn reporters off the premises, while the rest left upon their own accord. Once there were none within clear sight, Naomasa turned back and threw his jacket over Himiko’s face, in case wandering eyes still hid outside. The young lady struggled, but was taken back into Naomasa’s hands, and led out blindly to his patrol car. Himiko struggled as she was forced into the back door of the vehicle, but without her arms being freed, and her gnawing teeth covered, she had little fight left to give outside of random kicking. When she was finally inside, Naomasa pulled his jacket from her, and slammed the door.

The detective sighed in relief, and leaned back against the car to catch his breath. He had closed his eyes for only a moment, when footsteps cued him to open them once again. Izuku stood in front of him, looking nervous. He scratched the back of his head with one hand, while the other hand was still held by Ochaco, who looked on with a mix of confusion and worry painted on her face.

“Are you sure I should be making a press conference?” Izuku asked softly, “This was your case, detective. You should take credit.”

Naomasa shook his head, and stood up straight again. He laid his hand on Izuku’s shoulder, and gave him another smile. “You solved this for me, kid. And besides, don’t you think it’s about time you finally said it? This is your chance to say it to the whole world.”

Izuku clenched his chest with his free hand. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and nodded. “Thank you, Detective.” He said, and then turned a determined gaze to his elder. “But, if I’m going to, I need to speak to Toga, for just another moment.”

Naomasa asked no questions, but simply nodded. “You can ride with me to her temporary holding facility then.”

Izuku thanked Naomasa, and then turned to the brunette who clenched his hand tighter by the second. “Ochaco, there’s a lot I need to tell you, and I want to tell you right now, I really do, but--”

Izuku’s words were cut off as Ochaco wrapped her arms around him. She shook her head softly. “It’s okay, when this is all over, after you’ve told everyone whatever you guys are talking about, you can tell me everything. With your own words. Just you and me.”

Izuku wrapped his arms around Ochaco, and whispered thank yous into her ear, before gently kissing her cheek. He slowly let go of Ochaco, and stepped towards the door of the patrol car that Naomasa was waiting for him in. “I’ll see you in the morning.” He promised her.

She nodded to him. “Be careful.” He nodded in return, and then stepped into the open car door, and closed it behind him.

Ochaco watched Izuku ride off in a police car for the second time that day, this time driving away as the sun set, and she waved him goodbye, unable to see if he waved back.

“So, what was it you wanted to speak to our prisoner about?” Naomasa asked Izuku, as they drove down the quiet road together. He peaked into the rear view mirror, and could see Himiko through the barred divider, curled up on the back seat, scowling. “I can’t promise she’ll work with you.”

Izuku peered over his shoulder, through the same divider.

Himiko’s eyes flicked over to him, and they were locked in eye contact for a moment. “What is it, Izuku?” She asked, sounding far more depressed than her usual demeanor.

“I just have one question, Himiko. If you could answer it, well, I can’t ever forgive you. But, I’d appreciate it.”

The young lady scoffed. “Izuku, I’m a villain, remember? What do I care about appreciation? ” As she responded as well as he could have expected, Izuku realized that she was dropping the ‘baby’ honorific, which she usually added to his name. “But, if it’s you, Izuku. I might consider it.”

Izuku nodded, willing to take that chance. He sat back in his seat, and took a deep breath. “I know now, that you used my face to kill him… To kill All Might. But…” He bit his lip, and clenched the fabric of his pants as he formed the words. “Did… Did he die, still thinkin you were me ?”

It was the thought that Izuku feared the most; that All Might could have died, thinking that Izuku had betrayed him. How could he continue to train and fight in All Might’s place, if the very hero that gave him his power thought he was a villain?

In the rear view mirror, he saw Himiko’s expression change from indifference, to surprise. She quickly sat up, and her shocked face formed a grimace.

Izuku turned his head back over his shoulder, and Himiko looked him in the eye again. “That was probably the worst part, ya know? How cocky he was. He was the one being stabbed, but… he made me feel worse. He took the fun out of it.” Himiko huffed.

“Does that mean--” Izuku started, but Himiko’s glare cut him off.

“You told him too much about me. I never even met the guy, but ya know what he said as soon as I jammed the knife into his stomach?” She asked. Izuku flinched at her words, not wanting to imagine All Might’s death. Not again. “He turned around in his chair, thinking I was you for just long enough for me to stab him, but once I had, he says ‘You must be Toga.’”

Izuku felt a weight lift from his chest. All Might had only fallen for Himiko’s disguise for mere seconds. All Might had really trusted him.

“It pissed me off! I just kept stabbing him, trying to shut him up, but, do you know what he says next? What slobber escaped his mouth?” Himiko spat, bringing Izuku’s attention to her once again. “He tells me not to use his ‘son’s cute face’ for ‘such vile things.’ He didn’t even act scared--totally ruined my high.”

Naomasa tried his best to grin at Izuku, but his face looked pale, like he might have been feeling sick. “He used his last words to call you his son. You must be proud.”

Despite himself, a crooked smile crept onto Izuku’s own pale face. He didn’t think a smile could find its way to his face during the current conversation, but he was proved otherwise.

“Oh no, those weren’t his last words!” Himiko shouted, and leapt towards the divider, but was snapped back into her seat by the seat belt over her shoulder. Both Izuku and Naomasa glanced into the rear view mirror in response to her outburst.

“His last words were far more irritating.” She grumbled, and then looked up to Izuku again. “Before I tell you though, I want to be clear. I did not want to be caught. I wanted you to know it was me. I wanted you to hate me so much, Izuku. So much that I was the only one you could think about. So much that you abandoned everything else chasing after me, that trying to find me became your entire life… and then you would finally be mine.” In the mirror, Izuku could see Himiko’s signature sadistic, dreamy smile appear on her face once again, but it faded away just as quickly. He could hear the sound of the chains between her wrists clinking together, as she yanked at them hopelessly.

“But it didn’t happen.” Her voice was hushed once again, “I underestimated you. I was so sure that he was wrong, that I willingly cornered myself with you in that room and confessed. And in the end… I proved that cocky man right.”

“Toga…” Izuku peered over his shoulder.

“I don’t want you pity now, Izuku.” She turned her eyes from him. “But if you want to know so bad, his last words were…”

The car fell silent. Izuku and Naomasa’s ears were open wide, waiting for Himiko to bring herself to speak again.

“‘When Izuku catches you, tell him thanks for me.’”

A gasp left Izuku’s throat.

Before he or Himiko could say anything else though, the car came to a stop.

“Here we are.” Naomasa said. Izuku peered out at the prison they had driven up to the gate of.

“This is just just temporary.” Naomasa reminded the two other passengers. “We aren’t sure if keeping Toga in the same facility as Shigaraki and Kurogiri will be a safe idea, but we don’t want them anywhere near All for One either. They’ll likely all end up in prisons in different prefectures. But we’ll hold her here over night.” Naomasa drove through the gate as he explained the situation, and then parked to exit and pass Himiko off to a prison guard.

As the back door opened, and Himiko was lead out, she glanced back to the green haired man in the front passenger seat. “And Izuku?” She spoke to him in a sharp tone.

He gave her eye contact once more.

“You’re not welcome.” The blonde spoke, and then was lead away from the car.

After a few moments, Naomasa climbed back into the car. He turned his head to Izuku, who sat quietly, with his hands clasped together.

“You okay, kid?” Naomasa asked, rubbing Izuku’s shoulder gently.

Izuku nodded. “Yeah. It was good to hear it all.” He said softly, and turned teary eyes to Naomasa. “It feels like it’s really over now.”

Naomasa sighed, and sent Izuku a grin, before starting the car back up. “Not quite yet, but you’ll get through it.”

Another hour of driving had passed, before Naomasa parked outside of Izuku’s childhood apartment.

“Are you sure this is where you want off?” He asked the young man.

“Yeah.” Izuku reassured him, “I’m sure my mom’s been worried. I’ve never been able to keep myself out of trouble, even though I keep promising her I will.”

“All right.” Naomasa said, having been convinced, “Take this with you then.” He reached under his seat, and pulled out Izuku’s box of letters. The young man let out a gasp, and quickly retrieved it from the detective’s hands. He hugged it against his chest.

“I’m sorry that I risked so much for these letter, Tsukauchi.” Izuku apologized, but held the box just as tight.

The detective shook his head. “It’s fine.” He told Izuku, “In the end, the words in those letters brought everything together for the case. Even after he’s been gone for so long, we have a lot to thank All Might for.”

Izuku smiled shakily, and nodded his head. After that, he said his goodbyes to Naomasa, and headed up the stairs to his mother’s apartment.

Izuku had been greeted by a teary eyed Inko, and the Midoriya’s held each other and weeped for a while, before Inko finally released her son to go to his childhood room. Inko now used it as a guest room, so the bed was made, and there was still a lamp in the room. The lamp didn’t shed a lot of light in the room, as it had gotten to be quite late, but it was enough light to read a letter.

And that’s just what Izuku meant to do. He reached into his box of letters from All Might, and reorganized them into ones he had read and ones he hadn’t, as Himiko’s rummaging through it had mixed them up. He found he only had five letters left unread.

His chest tightened at the thought that he had so few words left from All Might now. Slowly, he picked through the small pile of unread letters, and chose the one he had been looking for. When Everything is Right Again.

He imagined it to be a counterpiece to the letter he had read after Naomasa had arrested him. He unfolded the letter, and took a deep breath, before opening it.

Izuku Midoriya,

What did I tell you? I knew you could do it. You made it through the world falling apart, and I’m sure you’re a better person for it now. If that’s possible. You’ve always had more good in you than any other man, woman, or child I have ever met before.

Even when it seemed like the end of the world, were you still able to keep your head up? Your eyes forward? That’s what it takes to be a hero.

I’m very proud of you, son.

Izuku held the letter tight in his fingers, and wore a teary smile as he read.

So, now that you can move on again, what’s next for you? Will you finally make your debut as the new symbol of peace? I hope you find yourself ready for it.

I think sometimes, you felt crushed by the pressure. But, it was something I faced every day. I told you that, and that my smile was to hide that fear and pressure. Have you worked on your smile? Even if it’s shaky, it’s genuine. As long as it inspires hope, you’ll be ready.

It worked on me every time. Your smile filled me with hope.

Izuku couldn’t help feel a little self conscious about his shaky smile. It was nothing like All Might’s trademark smile. That’s why he had incorporated a smile into the mouth guard of his original costume design. He covered his mouth with an artificial smile to make up for his own, but he knew now, that the honestly of his smile was part of the hope he had to invoke.

And now All Might was telling him that his smile was enough to make the symbol of peace himself want to smile too.

The feeling was overwhelming. He clenched his chest under his hand.

When everything seemed dire, that’s when you pulled out that smile. When you told me we would twist fate together, your smile was so shaky, and there were tears in your eyes, but I knew you were smiling for me, and I couldn’t help but smile myself. Though my smile was crooked, as it always was in my tiny, shrivelled form. But you seemed to love that smile just as much.

You smiled for me, and for yourself, to keep your hopes up when your world was crumbling. And now, I know you’re smiling for everyone, because your world has come back together, and that’s all thanks to you, isn’t it, my boy?

I’m sorry I couldn’t change fate like I promised you. I really let you down, didn’t I?

Izuku shook his head, letting tears shake from his eyes. Never All Might. You could never. He thought.

But, look how far you have come without me. I couldn’t be more happy to call you my pupil. You’re everything I ever hoped and more. Keep doing your best, and I will always be proud of you.

All Might

Izuku peered down at the letter with teary eyes and his signature shaky smile. “I’ll get better at it, All Might. I’ll smile so wide, no one will ever question if I’m your successor.” He whispered. “I promise.”

A knock at his door caught Izuku’s attention, and he packed the letters back up again. “Izuku, honey,” Inko’s voice came through the door. “Your interview is at 10 tomorrow right? You should get some sleep. I called Ochaco, and she said she would bring you a suit in the morning. The one we have here won’t fit you anymore.”

“Okay, thanks, Mom.” He replied, and turned off the switch to the lamp in the room.

Chapter Text

Dear Deku,

A new adventure, huh? I guess that means you made it, didn’t you? You made you big debut and said to the world, “I am Here.”

A shaky smile spread from one of Izuku’s rosy cheeks to the other.

I’m so proud of you, son. I knew you could make it. My only regret is not being there to witness it myself. But, I know it was something to behold.

So what’s next for you, son? The world has its eyes on you now. I’m sure you’ve already blown them all away, but you’ll have the press on your doorstep by morning. Prepare yourself. They’ll have more questions than you can handle. I don’t think I need to tell you to keep One for All a secret.

Izuku nodded. It had only been hours since he was standing in front a crowd of reporters, cameramen, and news anchors alike, all holding up their own microphones or taking notes on free paper. He had heard his voice, for the first time, echo through microphones propped up in front of him.

For the first time, he had spoken to the whole world.

It took quite a bit of squirming to keep my quirk quiet amongst the media. I’m sure you’ve seen every one of my interviews, my little fanboy. You know the hoops I jumped through to keep our secret, and I expect the same of you.

But is that enough of an adventure for you, my boy?

Your adventure is sure to be better than any I went through, because you already have a whole party of friends to enjoy your time with. I’m proud of you, Midoriya. You were a shy boy when I met you, but you never hesitated at making friends.

Take their hands and adventure with them. Take on villains together. Save citizens together.

The world is full of possibilities. Adventures can surprise you when you least expect it. Consider my own hero debut.

Do you think I ever expected to see that plane come crashing down, full of passengers? Never in my life did I, and I would never wish that upon anyone, but I leapt into action. I never expected that day to be my debut, but I was prepared for anything. As I sure you were when you made yours.

Izuku smiled. He was definitely more prepared for his interview than All Might ever had been for his debut, but the case that had proceeded it--the arrest of Toga; the words he shared with her--they were nothing he had prepared himself for.

What a show it must have been. The start of your new adventure. The new Symbol of Peace, Deku. My pupil. My boy.

Izuku’s smile dipped down as he ran his fingers over dried, tear smeared letters in the ink.

I’m sorry, it seems I’ve cried on another letter. I just… I would have given anything to be there. Though, I know I am proud of you now, no matter where I am, the All Might that is writing this letter right now is broken hearted. I hope you were surrounded by people who love you, as much as I do.

As you continue your new adventure, think of me. I’m still with you no matter what, and wish I were with you, in person, right now.

You’re everything I expected and more,

All Might

Izuku wiped his eyes free of tears, and took a deep breath. He held the letter close to his chest, repeating All Might’s words in his head a few times over.

The sound of the door opening in the guest room where he sat, brought his attention from the letter. Ochaco leaned into the doorway. “Deku, you’re missing your own party, what are you doing in here?”

He looked up to her, lowering his unfolded letter towards the open box on his bed, and watched as her eyes fell on the same box. Her eyebrows knotted, and she stepped into the room, carefully closing the door behind her. Slowly, Ochaco made her way over to Izuku. She watched as he folded delicately folded up the letter in his hands, and laid it gently on top of the other papers inside of the parcel.

Ochaco peered at the box with wondering eyes, and then turned her eyes to Izuku. “Are they… letters?” She asked gently.

He nodded he head, and ran his hands over the box after he closed it. “From All Might.” He heard Ochaco give a bit of a gasp, before she softly laid her hand over top of his. “He left them for me, to read if anything ever happened to him.”

Ochaco reached her hands towards Izuku’s cheeks as new tears rolled down them. She flicked them away with her thumbs, and held his face in her palms as she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.

Izuku sighed into her lips and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, pulling her closer to him. His hands began to wander into her soft hair. And then...

“Yo, Ochaco what’s taking you two so long!” A cheerful suddenly voice broke into the room.

Izuku and Ochaco leapt apart as Mina slammed the bedroom door open again, stumbling into the room with Kirishima and Sero behind her. “Whoops, looks like we might be interrupting, boys.” The pink woman chuckled with a hand over her sly lips.

“N-No! We were just--” Izuku stuttered, but Ochaco stood up, and took his hand in hers, inviting him to follow.

“We’re coming now, be a little patient, Mina.” She laughed gently.

As their three friends laughed their way out of the room again, Ochaco looked back over her shoulder at Izuku. “You can tell me more, when it’s just the two of us.” She whispered, “For now, it’s your party! Mister ‘Symbol of Peace.’”

She grinned at him with a smile bright enough to lighten the entire dark room, and the couple mosied out of the room together.

As Izuku and Ochaco stepped into the living room, an array of party poppers exploded all around them, sending loud ‘pops’ into their ears, and confetti all over the room. A chorus of voices shouted out, “Congratulations, Midoriya!”
The tiny, two bedroom apartment was packed to the max with more people than ever recommended. All of Izuku’s high school classmates, as well as some parents, and a couple faculty members, stomped around the room.

Izuku made his way through the center of the room, scratching the back of his head nervously. Excited cheers surrounded him with every step. As he made it to the side of the room, where the parents and faculty were chatting, he stopped in front of his mother first.

“Oh, Izuku, I’m so proud of you.” She cheered. The tiny woman wrapped her arms around her son in a tight hug. “But your mother’s heart can only take so much. Promise me you’ll stay out of trouble.”

“I will, Mom. Promise.” He knew he had made that promise more times than he could count, and broken it over and over again too. But he would promise his mother the same thing a million times if that’s what she needed to hear.

“Don’t worry, Miss Midoriya, I’ll keep him out of trouble.” Ochaco’s hand slapped Izuku’s back as his mother released him from his hug. He gave Ochaco a grin, and Inko nodded to the young woman.

Next to Inko was Shota Aizawa, who looked like he might fall asleep at any moment, despite the cup of coffee he held in his hand. He turned his head to Izuku, as the young man stepped towards him.

“You did a good job, kid.” He murmured, and reached out a hand to ruffle Izuku’s hair. “The old man would be proud.”

“I know. Thanks, Mister Aizawa.” He responded, and then bit his tongue. “I mean, Eraserhead.”

His former teacher sighed, and shook his head. “Aizawa’s fine.” He reassured the young hero, as he removed his hand from the kid’s moppy hair. “As long as it’s not on the job.”

Izuku grinned at him. “Yes, sir!”

Just then, there was a knock on the apartment door. Izuku turned his head over his shoulder. “Is someone not here yet?” He asked.

“Just one~” Mina sang, “The life of the party himself.”

With an indignant SLAM the apartment door was kicked open, and Katsuki stomped his way into the living room with a scowl on his face.

“Ka-Kacchan!” Izuku stuttered, and squeezed through the crowd to reach his childhood friend. “I didn’t think you’d come.” He confessed.

“What? Am I not allowed here?” Katsuki spat, which caused Izuku to flinch and take a step back. Somehow, even after all these years, Katsuki still intimidated him.

A fist landed on Katsuki’s head, however, and his hisses were silenced. “Katsuki! That is not what we talked about.” Mitsuki Bakugo came into the apartment door behind her son, with Masaru right behind her.

Katsuki rubbed his head, and turned to his mother swiftly. “That hurt, hag!” He shouted.

“Yeah? Well, you deserved it!” She shouted back, “Now…” Mitsuki’s angered expression changed to a softer one, giving the sweetest smile she could manage, though it seemed ingenuine. “What was it you wanted to say to Midoriya?”

Katsuki glared at his mother, and then scoffed, and turned back to Izuku. “Can we talk? Like, without everyone listening?”

Izuku was taken aback by the request, but nodded nervously. “Y-yeah, sure.” He stuttered. The crowd parted to let them through, and Izuku lead Katsuki back to the guest room again. He stepped in and turned on the small lamp, and Katsuki followed him in, before slamming the door behind him.

Izuku leapt at the sound of the door shutting with the normal “Katsuki force”, and then turned to face the blond man. “So, uh, what’s up, Kacchan?” He asked nervously.

“I saw your interview.” Katsuki cut right to the chase.

“Y-yeah I figured. That’s what this party is for right? It’s like, a viewing party for the re-airing. So I can see it.” Izuku explained.

“I don’t care about that!” Katsuki shouted, and Izuku flinched again. The blonde took a deep breath, trying to remember the breathing exercises his agent was trying to get him to use. “I care about what you said.”

Izuku gulped audibly, but stayed quiet, to let Katsuki speak.

“You called yourself his apprentice or some shit. Everyone knows you’re connected to him now, to All Might.” Katsuki spoke slowly, and precisely. “You gotta live up to that now, you got that?” Katsuki clenched his fists, but in the barely lit room, Izuku could still see sparks fly from them. “Don’t you dare shame his name, you hear me?”

“I won’t, Kacchan.” Izuku finally responded, his voice more resolute than he usually managed in front of Katsuki. The blond man looked him in the eye. “I know I have a lot to live up to, and I’ll be all that and more. I promise. On All Might’s honor.”

Katsuki turned his chin up, as if still looking down on Izuku, and showed him a haughty smirk. “You better, or I’ll come after you.”

Izuku laughed nervously. “I don’t think that’s something a hero should be saying, Kacchan.”

“Yeah? Well, you’ll hear it again if you beat me to Number one hero, so watch your back, ya’ damned nerd.” Katsuki spat.

Despite the cruel words, Izuku couldn’t help but smile. It really felt like everything was returning to normal.

“It’s time, guys!” Mina burst through the door again, with Ochaco trying to hold her back. The brunette tilted her head apologetically, as she couldn’t stop her pink friend from interrupting.

“Do you ever knock, ya’ fuckin’ alien?” Katsuki shouted at her, but Mina just laughed in response as Katsuki chased her out of the room.

Ochaco remained at the door, and watched them run out with a smile, and then turned to Izuku. “Are you ready, Deku?” She asked, and held a hand out to him. He nodded, and took her hand in his, allowing her to lead him back into the living room.

When they stepped into the room this time, silence greeted them. Everyone was sat down around the TV, whispering softly to each other. Hagakure leapt to her feet, from the couch, and gestured with her gloved hands for Izuku and Ochaco to take a seat in her place, before she settled down on the floor.

Izuku and Ochaco squeezed into the small space provided, and someone else in the room hit the light switch, leaving the TV to be the only illumination in the room.

“It’s starting!” Ochaco whispered, and linked arms with Izuku excitedly.

On the TV screen, Izuku slowly walked up the stairs onto the stage that Naomasa had ordered for the event. He walked to the center, where a podium stood, with 4 different microphones set up in front of it. The sound of hushed whispers from reporters and onlookers alike flooded out of the speakers.

Izuku cleared his throat and took a deep breath, and then spoke into the microphones. “Last night, after years of investigation, with the help of the police department, my fellow heroes, and detective Naomasa Tsukauchi, the culprit of All Might’s murder was finally taken into custody.”

The crowd was sent into an absolute uproar. There were cheers and cries filling the air. Izuku held up his hand, as he had seen All Might do in many of his interviews, and the crowd began to quiet again.

“I have spent many sleepless nights, dying to know who had taken him from us. It was a cruel deed, and now, we have taken in three members of the infamous League of Villains into custody--one of which, has personally confessed as being guilty of All Might’s murder.”

Izuku listened as the crowd burst out into noise again. One reporter stepped up to the stage, holding up their own microphone, pleading out questions. “Are there still existing members of the League of Villains? What are they planning now? How do the heroes plan on dealing with them?”

Izuku raised his hand again, and spoke. “We have come to the understanding that the League of Villains, as we knew them, have disbanded. But there are still many former members on the loose. And I will take it upon myself to hunt down each and every one. And ask my hero brethren alike, to help me do so, until the world can sleep peacefully again.”

Another reporter stepped forward, and caught Izuku’s attention with their question. “Deku, why have you taken this upon yourself? Is it true that All Might was your inspiration to become a hero?”

Izuku nodded, and looked out upon the crowd. “It is true that I, like many other heroes, was inspired by All Might’s heroic acts when I began my own journey to become a hero. But there’s more than that.” Izuku took a deep breath, close his eyes for a moment, and then opened them with a smile. “While I was a student as UA, I trained personally under All Might. I am All Might’s successor. I will become your new Symbol of Peace, as my teacher, hero, and master wanted. And I will protect all of you.” As the crowd’s voices heightened, Izuku took a moment, to glance straight into each camera he could see, and then raised his voice once more. “My name is Deku. And I Am Here. ”

The room had fallen entirely quiet, save for the soft sound of sniffles that the two Midoriya’s were guilty of letting out. Mistuki stood next to Inko, rubbing the mother’s back, and Ochaco leaned against Izuku, her head on his shoulder.

“I’m proud of you, Deku.” She whispered.

“Yeah,” Ida whispered from his seat on the floor, in front of the couple. “You’re really something.”

“Thanks, guys.” Izuku snivelled quietly, and glanced up to the wall above the TV, where he had mounted one of his old posters of All Might once again. “Thanks alot.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 15: When You’re Guilty

Izuku’s hands were shaking.

The young man sat on the couch in his living room. Ochaco’s head rested on his shoulder, as the young woman had dozed off next to him. He didn’t want to wake her. Maybe he should wait.

In his lap, was his box of letters from All Might. Ochaco now knew what the contents were. She understood the weight that the little brown box carried for Izuku.

But the letter in Izuku’s hands felt the heaviest of all.

When You’re Guilty was what it read.

He was scared to read it--scared to know that All Might was disappointed in him. But he had broken his promise he had always sworn to keep for All Might. In fact, he had broken it a second time. The first time, he was still in high school, when Katsuki figured it out himself.

He wanted to read it though. The guilt he felt in his chest wasn’t something could live with. He needed All Might to scold him, and hope that he would be freed from the weight on his heart.

Slowly, he unfolded the letter, and swallowed his pride.

Dear Midoriya,

What is it you find yourself guilty of? Did you let a villain escape? Lose track of a civilian you meant to save? No. You wouldn’t take time to read this if that were the case. I know what it was. You told someone our secret, didn’t you? About One for All?

Izuku clenched the papers in his fingers. “I’m sorry, All Might.” He whispered, “I had to. She deserved to know.”

Son, I too broke my teacher’s promise quite a few times. I told Nedzu and Recovery Girl my secret, because they were my superiors. I told Sir Nighteye because he was my sidekick. But, the time I broke it, that I felt most guilty for, was telling Naomasa.

But I was glad I told him, because he was my friend. He was my best friend, and the only friend outside of the hero world who knew everything about me. I could be myself around him. So, even though I first felt guilt from breaking my master’s promise, to a civilian of all people, I never regretted telling him.

Was it your best friend that you told, too?

Izuku’s tears fell onto the letter faster than he could catch them. He nodded his head harshly, taking a deep, sobbing breath. “She is. She’s my best friend.” He whispered through his tears, “I love her so much, All Might.”

The secrets of One for All are something you should take seriously, don’t get me wrong, but that doesn’t mean you have to carry them alone. I trust you, son. And if you trust someone so much that you would tell them our secret, I trust them too.

I wish I could have met someone you would consider so dear. I hope I did.

Izuku smiled at that sentence. He hoped that, somehow, All Might knew that he had met that person. He had teased Izuku about his crush on Ochaco, in a previous letter he had read in high school. Could All Might have imagined that the same girl would be the subject of another letter, that Izuku would read, some years later?

By the time I had told Naomasa my secret, Nana, my master, was gone. I’m sorry that you had to relive that experience of mine. But, as I write this letter, I hope that the guilt you feel might feel will be lifted. Gran Torino scolded me for getting Naomasa wrapped up in my secrets. He told me that it was too dangerous, and if I really cared, I would have kept my mouth shut.

He was always so crass. But, Naomasa is an excellent police officer. He was never in danger. I’m sure that the person whom you have told our secret to is just as strong, in both will and body.

“She is.” Izuku whispered, “You’re the one who reminded me of that, All Might.”

So, hold your head high, Izuku Midoriya. Cast away your guilt. You have nothing to apologize for.

In fact, I want to thank you. Thank you for finding someone you can trust, after I’ve left you. Before I began writing these letters, when I began to contemplate my own mortality, I feared how my death could stunt your growth. I feared that you would not trust anyone again, because you might lose them too.

Thank you for proving me wrong,

All Might

Izuku took a deep breath. It was as All Might had predicted in his letter.

Earlier that day, when Izuku and Ochaco returned to his apartment for the first time since his abduction, he had sat down with his girlfriend, and told her everything.

He told her how he was born quirkless, and how meeting All Might had turned his life around--how he owed everything to All Might. He told her how he wasn’t even meant to be the one given his quirk by All Might, and that the hero had ignored all other advice and given Izuku the power of his own accord.

He told her the secrets of One for All. Of the relation to the villain that All Might had fought in Kamino Ward some years ago. About that villain’s relation to the League of Villains.

He told her what All Might meant to him. More than a hero, more than an instructor, but as an inspiration; as a father figure; as family.

Ochaco wept as Izuku explained the complexity of their relationship, and the kinship he felt with All Might. As he described the many one-on-one talks he had shared with their teacher. His own tears fell as he recounted his conversation with All Might about Sir Nighteye, and his premonition.

“We swore we would twist fate together. We would prove Nighteye wrong.” He had said shakily, and taken a deep breath. “But, I failed him.” Izuku’s own words had caused his heart to break all over again. He had felt Ochaco wrap her arms tight around him, as she pressed her face against his chest, and wept onto his shirt.

“That’s not true, Deku.” She had promised him, snivelling back her tears. “You’ve done so much. You’re amazing, Deku.”

The two of had sobbed together, wrapped up in each other’s arms, until Ochaco had fallen asleep at his side.

He now sat, with his box on the armrest next to him, stroking his hand gently through Ochaco’s hair. The brunette groaned softly as her eyes fluttered open.

“Sorry, did I wake you?” Izuku whispered.

Ochaco shook her head, and stretched her arms over Izuku’s shoulders, leaning more of her weight against him. He wrapped an around around her shoulder, and she nuzzled her head against his chest.

“Tell me more about the letters.” She mumbled to him, barely glancing out of the corner of her eye to the box next to Izuku.

The young man nodded, petting the young lady’s hair again. “Detective Tsukauchi brought them to me, the day after his death.” Izuku explained, “I only read one or two at first, just occasionally, when I needed the extra comforting.” He sighed, “The first one really shook me up. At first, it was hard to read them. I thought that video or audio recordings would have been better, that way I could have heard his voice, or seen his face. But once I read a few of them, I realized he never could have recorded these.”

“Why do you say that?” Ochaco asked, turning her head up towards Izuku.

Izuku chuckled gently, “He cries way too much.”

Ochaco gave her own chuckle in response. “You’re one to talk.”

He nodded. “I know. But, there are more letters stained with tear drops than not. Though, I think some are mine now.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised.” Ochaco sighed gently, “My Deku has always been honest about how he feels. That’s why you cry so often.”

“Is that how you see it?” Izuku asked, with an eyebrow raised. Ochaco nodded knowingly.

He smiled with a sigh. “Still, I’m glad he wrote them. They feel more personal that way, somehow.” He admitted, and glanced at the box again.

“What does he write about in them?” Ochaco asked, trying to sit up a little more, but still tired from her nap.

Izuku sighed, trying to find a way to summarize the letters. “Most of them, he reminds me to keep my chin up. He tells me about his master, who I never learned much about when he was still alive.” Izuku leaned forward, and clasped his hands together. “He apologizes for leaving me alone, but tells me he knows I can become the hero I dreamed of, even without him.”

Ochaco wrapped her fingers softly around Izuku’s arm, and nuzzled her head on his shoulder. “He was right, you know.”

Izuku nodded sheepishly. “Yeah, he usually is.” He laughed gently, “He was right about you too.” Izuku’s cheeks were tinted pink, as he remembered the letter he had read on valentine's day, some years ago.

Ochaco tilted her head curiously. “About me?”

“Yeah.” Izuku sat up, and scratched the back of his head nervously. “He uh… he wrote me a letter for valentine’s day. It felt out of place but… it gave me the courage to go up to your dorm that day. After I turned you down.”

Ochaco held her hand in front of her lips, as if trying to hide the gasp that had escaped her lips. Izuku watched as her eyes swirled with tears again, and she turned her head, trying to hide them. “Really?” She whispered. Izuku replied with just a shy smile, and the young lady threw her arms around him, knocking him back against the armrest of the couch.

Izuku flinched, but managed to catch the box that had been resting near him, and Ochaco watched as he very carefully placed it on the floor, before returning his attention to her, and wrapping his arms around her.

The young lady laid against him, with her head nuzzled up under his chin.

“There’s only a few left now though.” Izuku spoke gently, running his fingers through Ochaco’s hair again. “I read a lot of them the last couple days. I want to save the last couple for just the right time.”

Ochaco nodded absent mindedly, as her eyes began to feel heavy again.

“Ochaco, there’s one more thing I need to tell you.” Izuku’s voice caught her ears again. “Or… ask you. I guess.”

This time, he got no response from the young woman who had nodded off on his chest once more. He sighed gently, and shook his head. “It’s fine. It can wait.” He told himself, as he fingered at the tiny velvet box on his pant pocket.

Chapter Text

Chapter 16: When It’s Snowing

Izuku’s heart was pounding with anticipation. It pounded harder than it ever had on any Valetine’s Day before. His white tuxedo felt too tight, too restraining, and he couldn’t help but tug at the neckline. He knew it was just nerves though.

He sat on a small wooden stool, in a small room, alone in the chapel. He had asked for a little bit of time alone, to pull himself together. But soon, he found himself yearning for company again.

He wanted to see Ochaco so badly. Just a little longer. He reminded himself. This will all be worth it. You can make it.

He heard his phone vibrate in the pocket his casual pants, which he had left folded on a table across the room. He stood up shakily, and made his way to it. Picking through the pocket and waking his phone, he read the message Tenya had sent him.

Your mother is outside. Can I let her in?

Izuku made his way towards the door, and turned the knob, opening it to reveal a nervous Inko Midoriya, with Tenya standing behind her.

“Midoriya, you can’t be near the door!” Tenya whispered harshly, and ushered Inko through the door, stepped in behind her, then closed the door behind himself. “What if Uraraka were walking past?” He scolded Izuku.

Izuku gave a panicked squeak and apologized.

“It’s okay, Ida.” Inko placed a hand on the taller man’s arm, and one on her son’s, trying to calm the two of them. “She didn’t, and everything is okay. No need to raise the tension.”

The two young men both sighed.

“Yes. I’m sorry.” Ida nodded. “I just want to do this right!” He clenched his fist. Izuku couldn’t help but laugh. Ida looked so regal, in his baby blue tux, standing tall with his fist clenched in front of him.

“You boys will both do great.” Inko assured them. She stood in a short, sky blue dress, that reached past her knees on her short body. Around her neck were a string of pearls, and her hair was ornamented with a matching pearl barrette.

“Thanks, Mom.” Izuku smiled gently at her.

Inko took a step forward, and wrapped her arms around her son, taking a deep breath, trying not to weep on his tuxedo. “I’m so happy for you, Izuku.” She whispered. “I’m just sorry your father couldn’t be here.”

Izuku shook his head. It wasn’t that he hadn’t hoped that Hisashi could make it. Though his father had been absent the most of his life, he still wanted to share his joy with him. But, the man who he wanted to be here even more than his actual father, was the one who couldn’t arrive, no matter what he had hoped for.

“It’s okay, mom. He’s with us, in our hearts.” He told her, though he wasn’t even entirely sure which ‘father’ he meant with that sentence.

“Ah, it’s snowing.” Tenya spoke suddenly.

Izuku looked back over his shoulder to the window behind them. He left his mother’s embrace, and walked slowly over to the tall glass window, and placed a hand gently against it. Surely enough, soft white flakes gently fell from the sky, perching themselves on the window sill, and the trees that surrounded it.

“It’s going to be a cold ceremony.” Inko reminded Izuku.

The young man nodded, and turned his head to his mother. “But this is exactly what Ochaco had hoped for.” He smiled, still watching the snow out of the corner of his eye. “It was snowing on our first valentine’s day too.”

Izuku’s eyes drifted from the window, and back to his casual clothing on the table across the room. He thought about what else he had left in his pocket.

“Is something wrong, Midoriya?” Tenya asked, and captured the shorter man’s attention again.

Izuku caught himself spacing out, and shook his head. “No, I…” His voice left him as he searched for words. “I just need another moment alone, to prepare myself.”

Tenya nodded. “I’ll come get you for your entrance.” He then lead Inko out of the room, the mother smiling gently at her son as she left.

Izuku sighed, and walked over to his discarded clothing again, picking up his tiny stool on the way. He sat down in front of the table, and dug into the pant pocket again. This time, instead of a phone, he pulled out a folded piece of paper, which read When It’s Snowing on the top of it.

A letter from All Might. One of the last few unread.

It had been over a year since he had read the last one. He had fought back the urge to read it on the snowy days that had passed in that time, but, when he prepared that morning, for the day ahead of him, he knew this was the day he had been waiting for.

Ochaco had gone on and one about how this, the most perfect day of her life, could only be better if it snowed. He had waited until the snow had began to fall to confirm with himself that bringing the letter was the right decision.

The tape that once held the letter bundled together had worn with time, and now hung loose from the paper. Izuku ran his thumbs over the corners of the paper, before slowly unfolding it.

Does this letter stand out to you, Izuku?

Today, it is snowing. I have already written you many letters, and I don’t know how many more I will write yet, but as I watch the snow fall outside of my window, I want to write about it.

What does snow remind you of? Maybe the chill of the wind? Or the warmth of hot cocoa. Holding hands with someone you love. Those are all good things. But for me, snow reminds me of new beginnings.

Izuku eyebrows knotted, as he smiled at the letter, already fighting back tears. All Might could never know how fitting this letter could be for Izuku on this day.

Winter is the last season of the year, but also the first one too. The snow falls, reminding us of the end of the year. It freezes the water and covers the ground. But, as it melts, we are reminded of spring, and the new year begins.

Snow is beautiful, but freezes out fingers and noses, reminding us that beautiful things can still sting. And it melts, as nothing lasts forever, not even beauty. But, as spring arrives, and the flowers bloom, new beauty arrives, and we remember that, even when something wonderful has ended, something even better will arrive for us.

Izuku Midoriya, your life has just begun. It’s true, I have been taken from you, and I’m sorry, but I won’t be coming back. I wish I could be there with you, for every step along the way. I want to see each and every one of your smiles, and hold you each time you cry.

Izuku’s shoulders shook despite himself. He reached for a tissue, but found none, and instead, wiped his tears onto the leg of his casual pants, not wanting to stain his tuxedo. He gasped between sobs, and clenched the letter tight in his hand.

But you will find your spring. You will find that new someone to hold you tight when you need it. You’ll find that person who will hold your hand in the snow, and roll through the newly bloomed flowers with.

You will find your new beginning. And I will be watching over you the whole time. For the rest of your life. So, step out in that snow.

Enjoy every minute of it,

All Might

“Midoriya, are you ready?” Tenya’s voice came through a crack in the door.

Izuku quickly folded the letter back up, and shoved it under his casual clothing. “Y-yeah.” His voice betrayed his tears, and he heard the door shut before Tenya stumbled in, pulling tissues from his pocket.

“You should have told me you needed tissues.” He told his friend, and kneeled down to wipe Izuku’s face free of tears. “I came prepared. I know you well enough.” The taller man laughed gently.

“Thanks, Ida.” Izuku chuckled a bit, before blowing his nose. He took a deep breath, and then stood again.

“Are you ready, now?” Tenya asked, with his hands on Izuku’s shoulders. Izuku nodded.

The show must begin.

Izuku stood outside under a wooden arch, painted light blue, with white faux flowers laced between the straps of wood. The snow fell onto the arch, which barely shielded Izuku’s curly hair from the white flakes.

He could feel his heart beat hard again, but took a deep breath, swallowing his nerves.

Friends and family sat to his side, huddled together, whispering about the snow, and the young man who waited in front of them. He glanced out at the crowd. There was no his-or-her side, everyone intermingled, and sat with their friends.

He caught Katsuki’s eye, in the crowd, and the ever-pouting blond man nodded his head back towards the chapel’s back door they sat outside of.

As Izuku turned his eyes to what Katsuki was gesturing towards, the sound of the organ playing hit his ears. The ever familiar tune, affectionately termed “Here Comes the Bride” echoed through his head, and his eyes widened.

Tenya and Tsuyu lead the procession, as Best Man and Maid of Honor. Tenya smiled at Izuku’s wide eyes, but the groom couldn’t take his eyes off the door, as the procession lead out, splitting right in front of Izuku, and taking their place to his left or right.

Then, Mr. Uraraka stepped out of the door, with his daughter at his side.

Izuku thought his heart might stop.

Ochaco’s white dress looked like it might disappear into the snow, as she took gentle steps through the cold grass. Her fingers were softly wrapped around her father’s arm, but her eyes were straight forward. When they locked with Izuku, he felt tears sting his eyes again, and could see Ochaco’s mist as well.

As they reached the arch, Mr. Uraraka gently squeezed his daughter’s hand, before letting her go to stand in front of Izuku, and take his seat next to his wife.

“Thank you, Daddy.” Ochaco whispered, before, she turned her teary eyes to Izuku.

“Are all you groovy kids ready for the best wedding ceremony of your life!”

Izuku and Ochaco both leapt in surprise, as Present Mic’s voice boasted from behind his podium. The voice hero stood in between the young couple, dressed in all black, and grinning widely. “I for one, never thought getting ordained as a joke would lead to me marrying two of my own students so many years later.”

Laughter filled the air as he joked. Aizawa, from the third row back, murmured something akin to “This is why I was against the whole idea.” But despite his grumbling, still smiled at his former students, who were the real stars of the day.

“Let’s get right to it, ‘cause I’m freezing!” Present Mic laughed loudly, and then turned his head to Ochaco.

The young lady reached out and took Izuku’s hands. He held her cold fingers tightly between his, and stared at her longingly, as she spoke her vows.

“Izuku Midoriya… Deku. You’re my hero. From the moment we met, we’ve taken turns saving each other left and right. You’ve inspired me to become a better me. And I can’t think of a way to thank you, better than to love you with all my heart.” She smiled at him, and the tears that fell down her cheeks warmed her cold skin. “On this day, Valentine’s Day, five years ago, it was snowing just like today, and I asked you out for the first time. And you turned me down.”

A couple gasps popped up from the audience, from those not present that day, when they were still in high school. The couple shared a little laugh, and Ochaco turned her head the the crowd. “It’s okay, it gets better.” Their friends and family chuckled softly, and Ochaco turned her attention back to Izuku. “But, you came after me. And you apologized. And you cried. And we made our first promise to each other. You promised to never hide how you felt, and I promised that I would always be strong enough so you didn’t have to worry about me. Because I would never leave you.”

Izuku nodded, and tears dropped off his chin. Ochaco pulled one hand from his grasp, to wipe the tears from his cheeks, and then held his face in her hand. “I love you, Deku. And I always will.”

Izuku sighed affectionately, leaning into her touch, and took his turn to speak. But, instead of what he had practiced, something else came out. “Ochaco, today, it’s snowing. And the snow is beautiful, but cold. It freezes our noses and fingers, but it also brings us closer. We hold hands to keep each other warm in the winter. But it doesn’t last forever.” Izuku wrapped his hands around Ochaco’s, and lifted them to his lips, breathing warm air onto her shivering fingers. “Soon, the spring will come, and flowers even more beautiful will bloom out of the snow. Life will begin again.” He sighed, peering over Ochaco’s hands into her eyes. She fought back tears, trying to keep herself from even blinking.

“Ochaco, you are my spring. Through the last few years, I’ve seen more downs than ups, but you’ve stood next to me the whole time. You are the sun who has kept me warm through this long winter. And I could not love you more for it.”

“Oh, Deku…” Ochaco whined, blinking her eyes and letting the flood of tears escape down her cheeks. She broke her hands free from his and cupped his face in her hands, stepping towards him urgently.

“Woah, woah, kiddos! Let’s get those rings out first!” Present Mic interrupted, to which Ochaco replied with merely a look of impatience.

Tsuyu and Tenya stepped forward, each holding a ring in their hands. Izuku gently took Ochaco’s tiny ring from Tenya’s hand, and Ochaco held Izuku’s in her fingers.

The couple gently exchanged rings, slipping them onto each other’s fingers, and whispering one last vow in unison. “You are my best friend, and the love of my life. And I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life with you.”

“Not that there’s any reason to ask, but Izuku!” Present Mic shouted into the ear of the groom. “Do you take Ochaco as your wife, to love and to hold, until death do you part?”

“I do.” Izuku spoke gently.

“And Ochaco, do you--”

“I DO!” Ochaco shouted loud enough to drain out the voice hero himself, and without further prompting, leapt forward and threw her arms around Izuku’s shoulders, and her lips onto his.

Izuku laughed into her lips, but generously returned the kiss.

“All right! That’s what I like to see!” Present Mic bellowed out to the audience, “Now let’s get inside before we all catch hypothermia!”

The audience erupted into laughs, and the bridesmaids and groomsmen began to filter out, while Izuku and Ochaco still held each other tight, wrapped in one another’s arms, in their own little world.

Chapter Text

“Deku, sweetie, did you bring that last box in?”

Ochaco’s voice rang from the kitchen, along with the sound of a sizzling frying pan, and the delicious smell of croquettes that came with it.

“Yeah, they’re all in.” Izuku replied, draped out across their newly bought red couch, which was still wrapped in plastic. He groaned at the sound of the crinkling underneath him, and propped his foot up on top of one of the dozens of boxes that littered their new living room. “Aren’t you tired, Ochaco? You should relax. I told you we could go out for dinner.”

“Are you crazy?” Ochaco replied, poking her head out of the kitchen, with a mixing bowl of rice in her hands. “We just bought a house Izuku. We need to be a little less frivolous with our money for a while.”

Izuku chuckled as his young wife lectured him about the importance of money management again. Despite them both being successful heroes, she still held the values her parents had raised her on.

She had cooked them dinner last night too, and he made a mental note that he would have to cook two nights in a row now, to make up for it.

Izuku sat up and stretched his arms over his head, before reaching out and opening a box in front of him. It was filled with books and video games. He sighed. Unpacking all these boxes, and organizing them, would take weeks.

“Ochaco, do you know where any of the shelves are?” He asked, looking around the room for them, but not seeing anything nearly as big anywhere in sight.

“We broke them down, remember?” She replied, in a softer voice, as she came into the living room holding two plates.

Izuku sighed. “Right.” More work. “Why did nobody tell us that buying a house was so much work.”

Ochaco handed Izuku a plate of croquettes and fried rice, along with a pair of chopsticks. “Probably because neither of our parents could afford one.” She took a seat on the couch, and felt the plastic crinkle beneath her. “Comfy.” She retorted.

Izuku laughed guiltily, and scratched the back of his head. “I’ll unwrap it before we go to bed.”

Ochaco nodded, and the couple enjoyed their dinner in each other’s company.

After dinner, Izuku pulled the couch free of it’s plastic, as Ochaco washed their dishes, and the two of them met in front of their new bedroom. The bed was the first thing they had made sure was set up properly, as they knew they would never finishing unpacking before the end of the night, and wanted to make sure they could sleep comfortably, after a long day.

The two of them took a deep breath, and Ochaco patted Izuku’s back. “You can go in first.”

Izuku nodded his head, and turned the knob, opening the door to their new room. He stepped in, and turned his head to the bed.

He froze in his tracks.

In the center of the bed, was a small brown box. It was worn from the years, and, outside of a couple of fingerprints, covered in dust. But he recognised his letters from All Might.

“I found it when we were packing our room. It was shoved under the bed.” Ochaco spoke softly, rubbed Izuku’s shoulder gently. “It didn’t look like you had opened it in a while.”

Izuku nodded, and slowly stepped towards the bed. He sat down on the mattress softly, and picked the box up, placing it on his lap. Ochaco sat down next to him and wrapped her arm around his, resting her head against his shoulder.

Izuku carefully swept the dust off the top of the box, revealing his name that was scrawled across it, once again. He gave it a half hearted smile.

Slowly, he opened it, and sighed at the letter that sat atop the pile inside.

“I never read the last one.” He confessed.

Ochaco peered up at him, wanting to ask him why, but let him continue to speak.

“I know it doesn't make sense. If I don’t read it, I’ll never know what he wanted to tell me. And, I can always reread the letters, if I want to hear his thoughts again. But this one…” He gently lifted the last letter. “This one’s just too hard.”

Ochaco’s eyes fell upon the title of the letter, written across the top of it. When I’m Gone.

“Deku…” Her voice betrayed her, sounding shocked.

“I know, it’s stupid.” Izuku spoke roughly, “It’s been seven years. I’ve read all these other letters, but if I read this one. I have to face the truth.”

He felt Ochaco’s fingers tighten around his arm.

“I’d have to admit to myself that he’s gone.” Izuku sobbed, as tears rolled down his cheeks. “Every time I even thought about it, it hurt too much to go through with. I just… I can’t read it.”

“Then, let me.” Ochaco’s voice was gentle, as she reached for the letter. Izuku’s teary eyes widened, as she took the paper bundle from his hand with little fight from him. “Let me read it to you. That way, you don’t have to do this to yourself. You just have to listen.”

Izuku stared at her for a moment longer, eyes still wide, before, he looked back to the open box, clenching the bed sheets at his side. He didn’t know how to respond. He didn’t want to admit it, but he was scared to know what that letter said. He was scared that after he read that letter, he would forget about All Might.

He knew that it sounded foolish, but the letter being there, nagging at him in the back of his mind, reminded him to not forget about All Might. But, that wasn’t the reason All Might had written the letters. It was the opposite.

The letters were meant to help him cope with All Might’s death, not make him hold onto it.

Finally, he nodded his head to Ochaco. He heard her sigh with relief, and then unfold the letter.

“‘ Dear Izuku, I’m so sorry.’” She read the first sentence, but stopped as Izuku let out a great sob. Ochaco leaned towards her husband, and rubbed his back, as she did when he had crying fits.

He shook his head. “It’s okay. I’m okay. Keep going.”

Ochaco nodded slowly, and turned back to the letter.

“‘I’ve written you a lot of letters now, and this might be the last one I write, but, I hope it’s the first you read.’” Ochaco sighed as she read that sentence, and wrapped her hand around Izuku’s. He clenched onto her fingers tight.

“ ‘Losing me might seem like the end of the world, but I promise, life will go on, even if mine is cut short. I have lived a good life. I have no regrets. Though, if I had not met you, that might not have been true.’ You hear that sweetie? He’s so grateful to have met you.” Ochaco whispered to Izuku, as she fought back her own tears, trying her best to keep a strong face for her husband.

“ ‘Midoriya, my boy, do you believe in second chances? I think all heroes should. To give a villain a chance to redeem themselves can seem hard, but what’s even harder, sometimes, is to give ourselves a second chance. And, my boy, you were my second chance.’”

Ochaco perked up, as Izuku raised his head, letting his teary eyes fall on the letter.

“ ‘I was a fallen hero when you met me. The press still covered my every move, but there was little left of the man that everyone knew me as. I was dying. Sir Nighteye’s prediction had taken it’s toll on my heart, and my willpower had dropped to near nothing. I did what I could as the symbol of peace, but as Toshinori Yagi, I was weak.’” Ochaco stopped for a moment, and glanced at Izuku, who had inched closer, trying to get a better look at the letter. She smiled at him, and finished All Might’s thought. “‘And then, I met you.’”

Ochaco pushed the letter towards Izuku, and he peered up to her. “Do you want to read part of it?” She asked. He shrank back, and shook his head like a child. She sighed at him, and leaned against him again, before continuing to read.

“‘You, my boy, were a child who’s hero had told you to give up. I broke your heart and your dreams, but you still rushed in to save Young Bakugo, like nothing in the world could stop you. At that moment, you turned my world upside down.’” Ochaco wiped a single tear from her eye, and sniffed back the rest of her oncoming tears. “Even All Might thought you were amazing, Deku. From day one.”

“ ‘After I met you, the old All Might was revived. Raising you, training you, and bettering you… these few years I’ve spent with you have been the best of my life. Being your mentor, and in some ways, maybe your father, has changed me for the better.

“‘Now that I’m gone, this is your second chance, Izuku.’”

Ochaco turned her head, as Izuku had leaned over her shoulder, to peek at the letter again. She lifted it towards him, and this time, he took it, and began reading it outloud himself.

“ ‘Become more than I ever expected of you. Become more than my pupil. Become a hero that inspires others to become heroes, like I did for you. I may have left this world, but that doesn’t mean your journey is over. On the contrary, it will open new roads for you. Now, you must learn to lead yourself to greatness.

“‘Don’t you ever let my death hold you back. You’re Izuku Midoriya. You’re Deku. You are the hero that will change the world, and I will not be responsible for that not happening.

“‘So, hold your head high. Take this second chance in your grasp, and become better than I ever was. I know you can.

“‘I love you so much, and miss you more than you know.

“‘Good Bye.

“‘Toshinori Yagi.’”

Izuku’s body shook as he clenched the letter in his fingers. Tears flowed down his cheeks like a river, and Ochaco rubbed her own tears onto his arm. She hugged him tight, sobbing into his shoulder, as he wrapped his arm around her, and sobbed into her embrace.

“He’s… he’s really gone, Ochaco.” He whispered. “He’s been gone… for so long. Why does it still hurt so much?”

“Because you love him, Deku.” She told him through her tears. Ochaco reached her hands to his face, and cupped it in her palms. “But he’s right, Deku. Look at where you are, and where you started from. You’re amazing. You’re everything he expected and more, and you still have so far to go.”

Izuku took a deep sobbing breath, and showed Ochaco a shaky smile. “Thank you.” He whispered.

Epilogue

Three years later, Izuku stood on stage, in the Auditorium of UA. Dressed from head to toe in his green hero suit, the young man took his place behind a podium, and spoke into the microphone in front of him.

“I thank you all, for inviting me here to speak today, on the 10th year since All Might’s passing.”

The crowd applauded loudly. Ochaco sat in the front row, with an infant in her lap, waving at their father on stage.

Izuku gave a great wide smile. “All Might raised me, and many other heroes, to become the great people we are today. We have so much to thank him for. He’s saved us more times than any of our collective memories could count. But… I have a lot of things to thank him for personally.”

Izuku took a deep breath. “After his death, All Might left me a box of letters, filled with his thoughts, and encouragement to help me continue to grow and become your symbol of peace. It’s thanks to those letters, that I was able to cope with his passing, and catch his killer. And now, with all of the known members of the League of Villains in prison, the world rests easy again.”

An applause broke out again, and Izuku laughed joyfully with it. As it quieted, he spoke again.

“If it weren’t for those letters, I may have never had the strength to tell my beloved wife, Uravity, how I really felt about her.” He gestured out to the crowd, and Ochaco stood up, waving to the crowd with her child in her arms.

“I have so much to thank All Might for… so I have written a letter of my own.” Izuku held up a single piece of paper. “You can’t see it from here, but all it says is ‘thank you.’ Because I have so much to thank him for, I can’t fit it on paper, but I know everyone else has things to thank him for too. So, I invite everyone, student and faculty alike, to come up on stage, and sign this letter, write what you’re thankful for, and we’ll send our words to All Might.”

The room applauded again, and then a line began to form towards the stage.

An hour later, Izuku stood outside, with his letter in hand. There were scribbles in pen and pencil alike, all over the paper, from back to front. So much, there was little white left on the paper. He stared at it with a sad smile, and sighed softly, before handing it off to Ochaco. The crowd had followed them outside, and watched as the gravity heroine released the paper from her grip, and it began to float into the sky.

Ochaco turned to the crowd, pulling a pair of gloves onto her hands, as Izuku held their child. “In a few hours, the letter will leave the earth’s gravity, and my powers will no longer be needed. Some people will say it will never reach him, but, I choose to believe that it will.”

“So, thank all of you for coming out here today.” Izuku spoke in turn, “If your friends weren’t able to make it out here today, tie your thoughts to a balloon, and let them go out of the window. We’re sure that All Might will have a chance to read everyone’s letters.”

The crowd clapped, some cried, and Izuku stared up at the sky, barely able to make out the shape of the letter, as it disappeared into the clouds.

The End