Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“Eat this!”

Izuku blinked in surprise and confusion as All Might held out a single golden hair plucked from his head. When the Symbol of Peace had offered to give him his quirk, this hadn’t been what he’d expected.

Still, he gingerly reached out his hand to the hero and took the hair from him and looked at it.

Taking a deep breath he steeled himself and looked at it for a long moment before...

“STOP!”

A childish scream resounded across the beach stopping both he and All Might in their tracks. They turned to see a small form rushing to them. It was a small girl, maybe five at most, wearing an oversized shirt as a dress, her arms covered in bandages.

The child had pale hair and from her forehead sprouted a large glowing golden horn. As she stumbled towards them, she called out. 

“NOT YET! STOP!” she cried out as she half ran, half stumbled towards them.

Without pause, without thought, both Pro Hero and student rushed towards the girl’s side, with All Might arriving well before Izuku.

As he approached he could see that the pale girl’s face was a rictus of agony. Across her skin, he could see what looked like angry cracks of energy under her skin, while her crimson eyes literally glowed as she looked up to him.

“Do not worry, young girl,” All Might said, his heroic smile spread wide across his face. “For I am here.”

“Izuku,” she said through gritted teeth, ignoring the Number One Hero. “Take it! Please! I don’t know how much longer I can hold on.”

“W-what?” he gasped. Take what? How did this girl know his name? What was going on.

Looking to All Might, he saw that the large man seemed just as confused as Izuku did.

“One for All!” she gasped in agony, the tears of pain running down her face, “It’s ripping me apart! Take it!”

Izuku’s confusion redoubled, how did this little girl have All Might’s quirk? He felt his brain go into overdrive as he considered it, but his instinct to analyze was driven down by something much deeper and more fundamental to his nature. 

All Might had spent the last ten months training him to properly contain his quirk. Without it he’d been told he’d explode ... and apparently this little girl, a small child with no preparation was in the process of doing just that.

Without a moment’s hesitation, or any demand for explanation, he plucked a hair from her head and swallowed it. 

“What is going on here, young girl?” All Might said furrowing his brow. “How do you know about One for All?”

“Hair... takes time... to digest,” she said with an agonized growl as tears of pain made their way down her face. “Blood.... It has to be blood.”

Izuku went wide eyed. “B-blood?!”

Seizing what looked like a second wind she sat up and looked him dead in the eyes.

Then she bit off the tip of her own tongue.

“Young girl!” All Might cried out in horror as she spat out the bloodied piece of flesh. Doubly shocked when a moment later she cried out, opening her mouth, and behind blooded teeth they could see that she had a complete tongue. 

“Open a wound!” she screamed, “Mix my blood with yours!”

“I-I don’t have a knife!” he cried out. If they had to mix blood, how could they do it if he couldn’t injure himself?

“Your pen!” his mentor and hero said to him. “Break it and stab yourself, Midoriya-shonen. It is the most convenient way.”

Izuku reached into his pocket and withdrew the aforementioned plastic shaft from where he kept it.  After all, he never knew when he might feel the urge to take some notes. Then he snapped it off, transforming the cheap plastic writing implement into a crude shiv, and stabbed himself in the hand.

Ignoring the pain, he pulled it out of the now bloody wound and reached down to pick up the small, grotesque lump of bloody flesh that laid in the sand at his feet, before rubbing it against his wound, mixing his blood with that of the girl before him.

The effect was almost instantaneous. He felt a sensation of warmth spreading through his being while the girl gasped in shock and relief.

“Thank god,” she muttered as the energy cracking under her skin began to fade, and her rictus of agony was replaced with a smile of relief as her horn began to stop glowing.

“Now you’re going to have to explain what is going on,” All Might said in the stern but caring tone of a skilled teacher.

She smiled up at him. “Let me give you this first...”

She wrapped her hand around his and her horn flashed.

If he hadn’t been looking at All Might, he wouldn’t have even been able to see it. One moment, he looked as he always did. In the next he could see the years evaporate off of the man in an instant, making him look like he had during his introduction to the hero scene, so long ago.

“W-what?” he gasped as he actually dropped the girl onto the sand in shock pulling away as he looked at himself. 

Blinking he looked at his hands, and without a moment of hesitation pulled up his shirt. What had once been a hideous mangled wound that took up the side of his body was now unmarred flesh.

“Oh my!” he gasped. “Oh my! Oh my...! GOODNESS !”

The injury that had been limiting him, that had forced him to seek a successor was gone. Somehow, in but a moment, this small girl had reverted All Might back to his prime. 

For a moment, a shock of terror filled Izuku. All Might no longer needed a successor, so what would become of him? But at the same time, he knew his fear was unfounded. He knew, in the depths of his heart, that she hadn’t been lying when she said she needed him to take One for All from her.

He could feel it inside him, like a raging fire. Which raised the question - what was going on? How did she have a second One for All?

How had she done all of this?

His brow furrowed for a moment as he considered what he’d seen. Her horn had been glowing the entire time she’d rushed towards them, until he had taken One for All. Then once it was gone, the glow had stopped. Was her quirk some form of regenerating quirk? Repairing her body as quickly as One for All could destroy it?

But then she’d used it on All Might and he hadn’t just healed but he looked visibly younger? He looked like he was in his twenties again. She’d not only healed him but had somehow completely revitalized him.

And when she bit her tongue off, it seemed to have been like she'd never bitten it the very moment she spat it out. He’d watched thousands of hours of hero fights in his years and had scarfed down as much theoretical and scientific knowledge on the subject of quirks as he could understand without specialized degrees... and only then because the related virtual class work simply wasn’t readily available on the internet. 

And from there he’d learned two things. First, regenerative quirks didn’t work that fast, and there was virtually always some form of ramp up time. You didn’t just get injured one second and be utterly fine the next. It had to heal, even if it was very very quickly. Also, it was universally accepted that regenerative quirks didn’t work on old injuries. The wound had to be open and even then they often had limits as to how much they could heal. Do too much damage and there would still be lingering scaring.

Eri’s quirk just broke every rule he’d read about on the subject, a fact that made his head swim. 

However, all of that was secondary to the simple fact that there was a little girl in trouble in front of him, a fact which shut down his normal need to take notes hard and fast as he looked down at her unmoving form, his heart filling with dread. “All Might, is she...”

The Number One Hero looked up to him with a small smile. “Don’t worry, Midoriya-shonen, she’s simply asleep. I imagine that wWhatever she’s gone through has taken a great deal out of her...”

Izuku nodded dumbly. “Um, yeah...”

“Midoriya-shounen,” All Might said as he pulled several coins from his pocket. “Go to the vending machine on the street and fetch some juice and sugar candy for this child. When she wakes up, she will be in dire need of the carbohydrates.”

Izuku nodded and gingerly accepted the money. “A-alright.”

“And once she awakens, she’ll have a great deal to explain...”

Izuku paused for a moment. “I-I have some thoughts...”

All Might looked back down to the girl before laughing. “Of course you do, Midoriya-shonen. And I will happily hear them once you have retrieved the juice and candy. Remember, as a hero, that those in need must always come first.”

He smiled and nodded. “Right!”

-------------------------

Toshinori Yagi was concerned. Deeply concerned. And quite confused, to be honest. He’d expected today to be an emotionally charged one. After all, he’d been expecting to name young Midoriya as his successor. Instead things had gone infinitely more... strange thanks to the intervention of this mysterious child who was quietly snoozing before him.

She’d somehow arrived with a second copy of One for All, and he was rather sure it was One for All, because the marks and energy running across her body were similar to the way his own master had described it manifesting in some of its previous hosts. Then she’d proceeded to pass her copy of One for All to young Midoriya and then heal the very injury that had necessitated him passing on the quirk to begin with.

Now, if he was a more suspicious man he’d be suspecting that this had something to do with him, but in all honestly it wasn’t his modus operandi. While All for One was capable of an almost supernatural degree of patience and was vindictive beyond measure, he wasn’t a man who favored tricks and subtly.

That and he was dead. Or at least Toshinori hoped he was. The idea of that man being alive and recovering was Toshinori’s greatest fear.

A small smile, one unlike his normal wide, comforting smile, crossed his face. Or at least it had been. The idea of facing All for One in his diminished state filled him with an unspeakable dread, but already he could feel the fires of One for All burning within him at an intensity he’d not felt since before the battle that had left him broken. That alone was proof enough that there was no malicious intent. There was simply no way in the burning depths of hell that All for One would ever heal his arch-nemesis. The idea of a fair fight wasn’t even in the man’s vocabulary.

He gently scooped up the tiny girl in his great arms, holding her delicate form with the greatest of care. Now, thanks to this child he would not be training Izuku as a successor. No, he’d be training the young man to become his equal . Together they would stand side to side against injustice as if brothers . 

And Toshinori had to admit, that thought filled him with a heady sensation, not one of pride but of anticipation. The world no longer needed a replacement Symbol of Peace... and perhaps that was for the best. Now young Midoriya would be gifted with something Toshinori felt that he’d never been given himself. One that All for One had taken from him with the death of his master: the opportunity to chart his own destiny. 

He had to wonder, what high ideal would his noble student decide to embody?

But first, he had more immediate concerns. Now that the chaos was put to rest and the girl was no longer being torn apart by this second manifestation of One for All, he had to wonder how she’d gotten it and how she’d known to find them. She couldn’t have had it for long, her body had been ripping itself apart at the seams. He was one long accustomed to pain, and the agony on her face had been apparent to all but the most blind of men, to say nothing of the telltale signs of One for All’s power manifesting within her. 

Even more, her small form was covered in bandages and her clothing was sparse and tattered. No loving parent would dress their child as such and between the loose bandages on her limbs he could see the telltale signs of scars, some old, some fresh. It set off his heroic instincts like nothing else, and while some would call it a baseless assumption, he knew in his heart what was going on.

He’d seen this before. Someone had been mistreating this girl. Someone had been experimenting on her. And that was something that he, as a hero, as a man, and as a human being... It was something he could never, would never, tolerate. 

And that was nothing to say of the boundless personal debt that he owed to this little girl. He’d long adapted to living in a state of constant pain from his injury, and had long abandoned all hope that it would ever cease. Yet here he was, finally free. He found it almost impossible not to smile from the infinite physical relief that she’d given him. 

And that wasn’t even counting the other benefits both great and small. He could once again enjoy a full meal. The days of eating spoonfuls of food according to a strict diet and subsisting on what felt like an apothecary's worth of supplements and medications were over .

To say nothing of the fact that he could once more stand proud and unimpeded as the world’s symbol of peace without having to limit his active time due to his wounds! And while he realized it was very selfish to put that second to his own personal gain, one never realized how important the little things were to one’s emotional well being until they were taken away.

Anything this child needed, he’d see to it, no matter what it may be. 

“A-all Might!” Izuku greeted him as he approached the entrance to the beach. “Is she still alright?.”

“Yes she is!” he replied with a smile. “I decided that it was unbecoming for me to simply wait on a cold wet beach for her to awaken. Whatever she’s been through has taken a lot out of her and it wouldn’t do for her to catch cold now would it?

“Um, of course not!” he replied. Such a shy boy, but brave. He knew he’d become one of the greats. 

“So, where are we going?” he asked a moment later after he’d fallen in behind Toshinori.

“We’re going to Might Tower,” was his response, which caused his student to gasp.

He couldn’t help but smile even more as young Midoriya had what only could be described as a ‘nerdgasm’. Some would belittle him for it as the boy began to stammer off facts about his home/headquarters in a near illegible stream of consciousness muttering, as young Midoriya would sometimes do. Toshinori however, he wasn’t one to judge.

After all, finally being able to acquire an authentic copy of Action Comics Number 1 had left the Symbol of Peace nearly insensate for the better part of a day!

“S-so how are we getting there?”

“Drove here,” was his casual response which caused Izuku to gasp. “I’m taking her to my car.”

“Are we going to drive in the Allmobile!?” He asked excitedly, referring to the iconic vehicle originally created by his dear friend, college companion, and gadgeteer sidekick, David Shields. 

“No,” Was Toshinori’s reply. One that caused the young man to look somewhat like a kicked puppy. “The Allmobile is too ostentatious for everyday use. We’re taking that...”

He indicated over the boy’s shoulder to his daily driver. It was a far more subtle vehicle, much better suited to traveling the streets of Japan without attracting undue attention. 

His wonderful 1968 Shelby Cobra GT-500 ! 

--------------------------

“All Might?” Izuku asked nervously, speaking up to be heard over the roar of the ancient vehicle’s archaic, and from the sound of things, massive and powerful internal combustion engine.

“Yes, Midoriya-shonen?” All Might calmly asked. 

“Um, so what’s the plan?” He asked nervously. Right now he was just along for the ride and a little confused. After all this was all just a bit much to take in. He felt like he’d been swept up in a storm by it all.

“Well, like I said, I’m taking her to Might Tower to keep her safe until she wakes up,” All Might replied. 

Izuku nodded, but couldn’t help but feel nervous. After all. Today was the day of the UA entrance exam...

His eye twitched. The UA entrance exam.

With a trembling hand he pulled his phone from his pocket and his heart turned into a block of ice when he read the time. 7:02 AM.

The exam started in less than two hours. LESS THAN TWO HOURS!

He released a sound that sounded not unlike a terrified piglet, causing his mentor to look down at him with concern. 

“Is everything alright, Midoriya-shonen?”

He held up the phone with a trembling hand. “The UA exam is in two hours!” he exclaimed in shock.

“Oh,” All Might blinked, “I’d actually forgotten about that...”

Forgotten! How could he forget something so important! Without it he’d never be able to go to UA! He’d never be able to become a hero, how could he forget something like that? He’d be stuck going to some normal highschool and would never be able to make something of himself! 

Izuku turned to the door and looked at the street running below them. Okay, if he opened the door right now and fell out sideways he could turn some of his forward momentum into sideways momentum, bleeding it off and allowing him to clear the highway! Then he could make it to the closest train station and rush home for a shower and change...

No, he didn’t have the time he’d have to make due by just picking up some washcloths and a cheap track suit or something at the closest department store and wiping himself down in the bathroom. And if he was fast about it he could make it to the train station in time to...

“Calm down, Midoriya-shonen...”

“I AM CALM!” he exclaimed, sounding anything but.

“Relax, my boy,” All Might said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, and stop muttering about jumping out of my car. Making me rescue you isn’t going to help either of us get there any faster.”

Oh god, he said all that out loud? 

He wanted to die.

“If you’re a little late,” the Symbol of Peace continued, “I’ll take the blame and say you were with me. Besides, even if you do somehow miss the test...”

Izuku felt his stomach bottom out and his vision began to fill with spots at the mere thought of it...

“Then it really doesn’t matter anyways. You were always going to make it to the Hero Track no matter what.”

Izuku couldn’t help but blinked in shock as everything came to a grinding halt. 

“What?” he blinked in confusion, “I-I don’t understand, All Might.”

“I only told you to take the test because I wanted to challenge you.” He grinned. “So even if you were to fail utterly... or, perhaps, had taken a little longer to finish the beach and missed it, then I would have simply exercised my prerogative to have you entered as a recommended student! You’re in no danger of failure! I didn’t intend to tell you this because I find that without a mountain to climb, you’ll never go beyond your limits. Plus Ultra, right?”

Izuku could only laugh frantically. Alright. So this was all a test. And not the kind of test he’d thought. Yeah. Wonderful. “Heheh...” he giggled frantically, “P-Plus Ultra...”

“That’s the spirit!” All Might exclaimed, “Now here is what we’re going to do. We’re going to take the girl to Might Tower, you’re going to take a shower, I’ll have a fast meal prepared for you, and a change of clothes sent up while this darling girl is settled in one of the guest rooms under watch. Then I’ll take you to UA with me and you’ll do your best on the test! Don’t worry about your grade. Just be the best hero you can be, and if you fail, own that F! Show us what you’ve got!”

Izuku slowly nodded and took a deep breath and gave his hero a weary smile. Okay. He could do that. “R-right!”

“That’s the spirit!”

“Just own question?”

All Might nodded.

“What do you mean ‘Own that F’?”

All Might blinked. “Oh, right. That’s an American thing. Um. Own that E !”

Okay. He guessed that made more sense.

Izuku took a deep breath and leaned back before looking up to the hero. “All Might, I’m sorry... I was just...”

“No need for apologies! It’s a big day, It’s natural to be nervous.”

He nodded. “I just feel like...” he looked at the girl in the back seat. “...Like I was being selfish.”

All Might simply chuckled.  “Don’t worry, Midoriya-shounen. You can’t be selfless every moment of every day. As long as you keep your heart in the right place, that’s all that matters...”

“I see,” he said with a nod, “I just hope she’s okay.”

“As do I, Midoriya-shonen. As do I,” he smiled, “It is why I intend to do all in my power to see to her safety and security. And I believe that, with the possible exception of UA, there is no safer place for her in all of Japan than in the heart of Might Tower.”

Izuku nodded. He could agree with that. Might Tower was almost the center of heroics in Japan. While it was most famous for being All Might’s center of operations, the Number One’s home base hosted a number of smaller hero teams and independents who operated under All Might’s aegis, being given ready access to the state of the art faculties within for a mere pittance compared to the immense cost of setting up their own bases. It was said that all that All Might asked in return was that they hold themselves up to the same sort of lofty standards of courage and good behavior that he himself followed.

He couldn’t help but smile. He’d visited the tower on a field trip when he was 10 and had been blown away by the experience. He even had the 3D puzzle of the tower proudly dominating the top of his book shelf. And the chance to visit it as not a tourist, but as All Might’s protege? 

It was a dream come true. It was almost enough to still his burning concern for the girl lying on the bench seat behind him.

Almost.

Looking back, he just hoped that Eri was going to be alright...

--------------------------

Once they arrived at Might Tower, All Might had been quick to get into action. First, he’d called in his medical team to pick up the child and take her to somewhere safe, warm, and comfortable. If he was right and she’d been experimented on, he didn’t want her anywhere near the sterile environment of a hospital room. 

He’d had her taken to one of the tower's many guest suites to sleep it off and had asked that one of the many Pro-Heros based in the tower keep an eye on her along with a nurse until he was able to return from UA.

As for young Midoriya, he’d ushered him up to his personal locker room for a quick shower while ordering a proper change of clothes to be sent up to him while All Might changed into his Hero costume.

“All Might?” 

“Well, speak of the devil, Midoriya-shonen!” he said with a deep laugh as the boy walked into view.

One thing that Toshinori would never openly admit is even after all these years he still found it flattering, and maybe a bit embarrassing, when he saw someone dressed in imitation of himself. So of course, he had to hide a bit of a blush when he saw what Izuku was wearing. 

The brave young lad was clad in a tracksuit, but not just any tracksuit, no. An All Might branded tracksuit he had brought up from the giftshop. This way he didn’t have to go through the trouble of having anything bought, as he technically already owned everything in that shop. Buying from one of the other stores would have introduced additional complexity, and with it, possible points of confusion. As this was already an odd day, he wanted to give that rat bastard Murphy as little additional purchase as possible on the day’s events as was physically possible.

This way all he’d had to do was order a selection of clothes brought up and let the young man simply take what he felt he needed and be done with it.

“Thank you for the clothes, All Might...” Izuku said with a slight blush followed by a deep bow, “I’m sorry for being a bother...”

“Nonsense,” Toshinori said in a tone that brooked no argument, “I’d been prepared to pass you my quirk . A simple change of clothes is nothing .”

“Still I...” the boy stammered, causing Toshinori to smile.

“Really, there’s no trouble, Midoriya-shonen,” he spoke with a chuckle. “Come along, we don’t want to be late!”

Izuku nodded furiously and jumped in step beyond him, following him dutifully as he walked down the halls. For a moment, they were in silence before the boy looked up to him.

“All Might?”

“Yes, Midoriya-shonen?” his mentor asked a peaceful smile on his face. 

“I was thinking about the girl’s quirk,” he said after a moment of thought. “She has me a little confused.”

Even without taking One for All into account, he’d been far too hasty in claiming that the boy had no potential as a Hero during their first fated meeting. His gift for quirk analysis was exceptional, to the point he honestly wondered if the boy’s apparent ‘quirklessness’ was simply the result of a lazy pediatrician being unable to spot a subtle ability. After all, not all super powers were flashy. Sometimes even the most powerful could be anything but.

“Do your best thinking in the shower, do you?” he lightly teased, causing the boy to stammer lightly before laughing aloud. “I know the feeling. So what have you been thinking, my boy?”

“Well, I don’t think she actually has a healing quirk,” young Midoriya stated, causing All Might to raise an eyebrow. He’d like to know the boy’s logic. 

“Really now?” 

“I’ve never heard of a healing quirk that works instantaneously,” he said after a moment, causing Toshinori to nod in agreement. Not had he. “Plus she was able to heal... well... you. And it was strange to see. It was like one moment you were the way you were then I just blinked and you looked young again.”

He chuckled. He was right. He’d gone from a broken man to hearty and whole in a blink. What an amazing ability that girl possessed.

“So what do you believe her ability is then, if not a healing quirk?”

He paused for a moment, “I have some ideas but they’re a bit silly.”

“Lay it on me, Midoriya-shounen!”

He blushed and lowered his head. “No, it’s kind of stupid I shouldn’t have...”

“Nonsense, Midoriya-shonen!” All Might exclaimed. “I’m sure whatever you’ve surmised may be outlandish, but never stupid. And I’ve run into some very outlandish things in my years so no matter how odd it may seem, it may at least worthy of being acknowledged as a valid theory, even if it is something of a longshot!”

Izuku took a deep breath. “I think her ability might have something to do with... time . You don’t just look healed. You look young .”

Toshinori frowned slightly for a moment. He was right. He’d been so busy just basking in the sensation of good health he hadn’t honestly considered it, but now that he did... 

He paused for a moment and stepped back, looking at his reflection in one of the windows that lined the hall. This wasn’t just his relief taking years off of him, was it? He really did look like a young man again.

As he began to walk again, he could only chuckle at one thing though. The girl had kind of set herself up for some troublesome interactions with his female compatriots. Midnight alone would outright hound the poor girl...

“So what are you thinking?” he asked, looking at the young man walking lock and step with him.

“I think her ability is somehow connected to time...” Izuku stated. “Like she’s somehow able to reverse the flow of time on something. Like maybe when she bit her tongue off, she just reverted her body to the way it was before she did. Or when she healed you, she didn’t actually heal you, but just put your body into a younger state?” 

“So you believe her quirk is somehow able to rewind an object?” he asked.

The boy paused and then lowered his head, “Yeah, it’s kinda stupid and impossible I know. I’m sorry I...”

“Stupid? Absolutely not! Impossible, maybe!” he exclaimed with a boisterous laugh, “But in the absence of the probable, the most feasible impossibility becomes the probable! I believe it was Aristotle who said something along those lines?” He paused in thought, “I may be confusing the quote. I’ll admit, it’s been quite a few years since I took philosophy in college.”

The boy blushed brightly. 

“Besides, my own former sidekick, Sir Nighteye...” Who he’d absolutely needed to inform about his new state. “He has the ability to see into the future. Compared to that, a little girl who can reverse time isn’t that outlandish, now is it?”

Izuku nodded. “No, I guess not.”

They continued to walk for a moment before reaching the elevator.

Without pause, he pressed the button for the top floor causing the boy to blink in confusion.

“Wait, why are we going up?” he asked, a small amount of fear making its way to his voice.

“Because we have less than an hour to make it to UA,” was his honest response, “We’ll never make it in Tokyo traffic.”

The boy’s eyes went wide with horror.

“Which is why we’re going to be driving in this...” All Might finished, timing his words perfectly with the opening of the door.

Young Midoriyta’s squeal of horror transitioned seamlessly into an earsplitting fanboy squee as he beheld what lay beyond the door. 

It had been some time since he’d used it,  after all, he didn’t travel with others much these days, but there it sat, as pristine and majestic as the day that David Shields had built it... 

His personal heroic conveyance...

The Allmobile .

Chapter Text

The Allmobile touched down inside the UA employee lot with a bit of a thud, and with time to spare at that. It had been a little rough, Izuku had to admit, but it hadn’t been at all scary. He trusted All Might with his life after all, and he knew that All Might hadn’t been sighted driving it in over 5 years.The reason he abandoned use of the Allmobile had been the subject of countless internet discussions and debates, everything from it having worn out to having been destroyed, but now he knew the truth of the matter. 

For some reason, Sir Nighteye and All Might ALSO seemed to stop working together around those same five years ago. Izuku was tempted to ask about that, but it was hardly the time, or the place. 

Whatever the reason, All Might no longer had a sidekick or companion since the battle that had led to his terrible injury and thus hadn’t needed to drive around in a two seater. Lack of need leads to a lack of use. There you go; nice, simple, logical . 

His fellow nerds on the internet would never believe the reason was so simple.

He felt... good . Right before they left, All Might had a breakfast sent up to them using the Might-Chute, a mini-elevator that led from the lower levels to his personal “Might Only” area that allowed him to send up food and supplies without needing to call for staff. 

What he had sent up was strange to Izuku. He called it an “ All American On the Go Super Breakfast ”. Izuku called it a belly busting monster. A giant sandwich made out of ham, bacon, sausage, some ungodly substance he identified as ‘scrapple’, and eggs... and fried and served between two full sized pancakes that had been drizzled with maple syrup as if it were a sandwich sauce. With a side of fried potatoes with ketchup. 

All Might, of course, hadn’t eaten because he was driving... but at the same time his food bag had dwarfed Izuku’s own. It looked almost as large as his backpack .

He felt overstuffed and like he was about to fall into a food coma, but at the same time, All Might’s vague warnings about “needing the calories” had him on edge. He’d heard rumors that the UA Entrance exam was, at least to some degree, a combat test. He’d been nervous about that. Something not helped by the fact that when he’d asked All Might about how to use his quirk, he’d simply told him “squeeze your bottocks and yell this inside your heart”. 

All Might had then yelled “Smash” at the top of his lungs and laughed, before warning him that while he was a proper vessel, he’d been made one in a hurry. Words that didn’t exactly fill the young man with confidence. After watching that girl stumble forward in clear agony simply trying to hold it, he was filled with a whole new respect for All Might’s power. He hadn’t been kidding when he said it would rips his arms off and make him explode. He’d seen it almost happen and it was terrifying. With that sort of graphic respect however, came awareness. He could feel the fires of One for All burning inside him. The collective power of generations of heroes passed on to him... by an odd little girl .

He’d just watched a little girl almost explode simply carrying the quirk. It was enough to fill him with a great deal of caution and maybe a little bit of dread. Somehow he just knew that if he took All Might’s advice and just went in swinging, he’d end up hurting himself. Badly.

That’s why he’d spent most of the ride to U.A. poking at the flame inside him, trying to figure it out. Trying to feel the warmth without getting burned...

And true enough, just doing that was enough to make his muscles ache. Good thing All Might kept some pain relievers on himself at all times. Otherwise he might have sabotaged himself before even getting started.

He’d need to start by using as little of One for All as possible and slowly trying to ramp up until he’d hit his limit. He just hoped it was enough.

“Hey, watch it dipshit!”

He blinked as he was pulled out of his musing by the familiar form of his oldest friend. Whom he’d just walked into.

Whoops?

“Oh, um, sorry Kacchan!” he said with a blush and stammer. 

“Get in my way again, Deku, and I’ll kill you,” he sneered as he glared at Izuku.

“G-good morning to you too I guess...!” Izuku exclaimed, backing up slightly as his old friend sneered back at him. 

Strange. He had to admit. Bakugou hadn’t tormented him since the sludge villain incident, he was still nervous around him. But now, he felt a new confidence. He felt put off, but for the first time in a long time... he wasn’t scared. 

Did One for All have a mental effect? Did it strengthen your will as well as your body? Or was this the effect of his hard work and training? Ten months ago he’d have vomited in terror by now. Now on the other hand he was standing at the edge of a brave new world: one where dreams came true. He needed to talk to All Might about it when he had the chance.

He just needed to remember one important thing. The test was just a formality! This was a Hero School! What was important was acting like a hero! He didn’t care if he failed, what was important was being the best hero he could! And if that wasn’t good enough, he’d own that E! It didn’t matter what anyone said! He was going to become the hero who saved everyone!

“Wow! You’re excited!”

Izuku blinked and looked over to a smiling round faced girl standing next to him. She was cute. And she was talking to him?

“Um, hehehe,” he said rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. “Aren’t we all?”

She nodded with a laugh. “Yeah! I guess we are! Just do your best...” she paused, “And thanks.”

Izuku blinked. “Thanks?”

“What you were saying...” she said blushing slightly, lowering her head. “About ‘Owning that E’.”

His eyes went wide with shock as the color drained from his face. “I-I said that out loud?”

She nodded and looked to him with determination in her eyes. “And you’re right! No matter what they throw at us... the most important things we can do is be the best hero that we can be!”

Frantically he began to look around himself at the small crowd that had gathered during his rant. There were at least a dozen fellow applicants standing around him in a circle. 

Behind her, a pale kid with purple hair muttered, “‘Just be the best hero I can be’, huh?”

“Awesome advice!” exclaimed a pretty redheaded girl who gave him a very large thumbs up.

“So cool! That sounded like somethingAll Might would say!” exclaimed a very pink girl on the other side of him.

“Yeah, that was damned manly!” a boy with sharp teeth exclaimed from next to her as he gave a fist pump.

“I’m going to have to tell everyone what he said,” stated a dumpy looking boy with grey hair.

“What did he say?” asked a girl with horns in poorly accented Japanese.

“Come with me cutie, and I’ll explain everything,” said a short kid with purple balls on his head and an anything but innocent expression on his face.

Izuku slowly felt his blood run like ice at all the sudden attention.

They heard him. Everyone had heard him.

Oh god.

He felt so embarrassed. 

He wanted to die .

---------------------

“ I Am Here! ” All Might explained as he burst into the control room from which the various teachers were going to be watching the practical exam. “And I hope no one minds, but I brought myself a light meal.”

“Greetings, All Might-san,” Nezu said as he walked in, raising an eyebrow as he looked at the bag of food the number one carried. “Don’t you think you’re overdoing it?”

Toshinori could only chuckle. The small, High Specs chimera was, of course, referring to the strict diet necessitated by his emergency gastric bypass. The one he no longer had any reason to follow due to his newly restored physical state.

“No, no I don’t,” he replied with a wide smile. “I feel like I’m a growing boy again!” He guffawed. “And I’ll explain everything when we have a moment after the exam.”

He leaned in. “Just do me a favor and keep Chiyo-san from freaking out on me, okay?”

The small, hyper-intelligent being simply laughed at the request. “No promises.”

‘Fair enough’ Toshinori guessed as he sat down to watch the proceedings. In the corner of his eye, he saw Midnight approaching him but felt no need to comment.

“So, who’s the kid you came with?” she asked, glancing at him sideways as he settled in.

For his part, All Might could only flinch ever so slightly. He’d been hoping to keep his relationship with Midoriya understated, but he guessed giving the boy a ride in the Allmobile of all things had taken that idea and torpedoed it across the bow. 

“He’s a good prospect,” Toshinori replied after a moment, “Strong quirk, strong character. Reminds me of myself at his age.”

“Well he certainly has spunk,” Snipe observed.

“He has the applicants all fired up,” Vlad King said with a chuckle.

Toshinori raised an eyebrow and looked over to the others. “What did he do?”

“He gave a speech about not caring about the grade and “Owning that E” if it was what he had to do to be heroic,” Eraserhead said blandly from his spot in the corner. “I assume you had nothing to do with that?”

All Might could only laugh weakly. “I might have mentioned something about just giving it your all no matter what, but Midoriya-shounen isn’t the type to go around giving speeches...”

“He seems to have done it unconsciously,” Nezu observed, “Less a speech, more a rant to hype himself up. Once he realized he had said it all aloud, the boy looked quite mortified, but either way it had largely the same effect. Though he did just, at least partially, expose our secret grading criteria, if only by accident.”

“I think we should keep a close eye on him after this little stunt,” Shota remarked. “Not going to say we should remove him outright, but I’m concerned he may have an unfair advantage.”

“If he did,” Hound Dog growled. “Then he didn’t take his time in sharing it with everyone else.”

“I agree,” Midnight replied. “And depending on how the other students react, I think we should consider giving him Rescue Points for this little stunt.”

“Wait, what?” asked Snipe. “Not saying no, I’d just like to know your logic.”

“I can see where she’s coming from,” Cementos observed. “Part of being a hero isn’t just to save people’s lives but to build up their spirits. In a way he just rescued his fellow applicants from their own fears and doubts.”

“I agree,” replied Power Loader. “Leadership is an important heroic trait, and intentionally or not, it's a good trait to see in the next generation..”

“ If he passes,” Eraserhead pointed out, letting the statement float for a moment before continuing. “If he’s all talk, he’s out. We’re looking for heroes, not self-help gurus.”

“Harsh,” Vlad King said with a slight nod. “But more than fair. We judge him on his potential. If he’s as good as All Might-san says he is, we’ll award points to bump him up in the ranks.”

“And if he’s borderline,” Watchdog added. “We’ll favor him for acceptance as long as he seems true to his words.”

“Wonderful!” Nezu said with a smile. “It’s so wonderful to see my staff being so thoughtful.”

“Not quite sure about the blonde kid who told him off, however,” Watchdog added.

“You mean the sludge villain kid?” Lunch Rush asked, earning a nod.

Midnight chewed her lip for a moment, “Really? So what’s wrong with the kid?”

“Something about his personality reminds me of Endeavor’s,” was Ryo’s bland response. 

“I fail to see how that’s a problem,” All Might cut in, “Despite his prickly attitude, Endeavor’s an exemplary hero.”

Everyone shared a look, making Toshinori wonder if he was missing something before he sat down and opened his lunch bag, removing his favorite “in the field” meal. One he hadn’t been able to enjoy since he was injured.

Two Bacon Barbecue Mega Might burgers... (twin glorious one pound patties of beef, served on brioche buns with bacon, American cheese, barbeque sauce, and topped with onion rings), Four Might Dogs, (foot long all beef Coney Island franks slathered in onion, grated cheddar cheese, and “Three Alarm” chili), a set of Double Cheese fries, two dozen Buffalo Smash hot wings, and a 14 inch All Meat pizza. Served with a two liter chocolate protein shake and a pint of whole milk: because strong bones need calcium!

A perfect light lunch for any hero on the go, and the very thought of it made him salivate...

Taking a deep breath, he took a bite out of the first burger and felt like he wanted to cry. It had been almost a decade since he was able to really enjoy his favorite meal.

Oh yeah... tastes so good... 

With his eyes closed he slowly chewed enjoying every bite of the special blend of beef that made up the burger, the smokey flavor of the bacon, the richness of the cheese, the sweetness of the sauce, and the salty onion ring combined with the fluffy, buttery bun... 

It was heavenly.. . 

He could almost cry.

“So, Toshinori-san...” Midnight asked him, leaning onto the table.

“Hmn?” he asked, not wanting to pause in his first burger feast in five years, not even to reply to one of his comrades. 

“The way you’re moaning into that sandwich, I have to ask. Is it really that good, or is there a girl hiding under that table?”

Part of him wanted to flush and deny by instinct, but he was too damned happy right now to let the sexually charged heroine ruin his meal. He spent the last five years subsisting on powders and pills. He’d long given up any hope of having a proper meal, and nothing was going to ruin this for him. It had also been far too long since he’d felt comfortable bantering with an attractive woman, and it wasn’t like they were in the watchful eye of the public, so why not have some fun?

“No, Nemuri-san, there isn’t,” he said after swallowing the mouthful of beefy goodness. “But I have to ask, was that a request or an invitation ?”

A deep “Oooh” resounded through the room as his other compatriots responded to the counter burn he’d laid upon the ridiculously attractive woman.

“Hmn, I don’t know,” she said as she reached and picked up one of his chilidogs. “That depends.... Which do you want it to be~?”

Toshinori raised an eyebrow and looked at her as she threw back her hair, cocked back her head, and began to move the bread and chili blanketed shaft towards her mouth. 

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” he warned. While not as hot as his wings, which in true hot wing tradition were so spicy that some questioned their fitness for human consumption, the Three Alarm Chili on those dogs was still not for the faint of heart. Nor the faint of stomach. 

Nor the faint of sphincter, if he wanted to be completely honest...

She smirked and deepthroated the chili dog. About half way down she began to squirm, her eyes almost bulging from their sockets. He wasn’t sure if it was pure force of will or lewd talent that allowed her to bite down and swallow before she threw the remaining sausage onto the table and scampered back, her face turning red and her eyes bloodshot.

“Water!” she rasped out, chili still dripping down her chin. “ Oh god ! I need water! It burns! It burns !”

Smirking lightly, Toshinori held out his milk to her. “I guess my sausage was too much for you.”

She almost tore the carton out of his hand, using it to wash out the burn as she glared at him.

“Well, I have to say All Might, your cream is the best,” she half-growled, desperately trying to recover the offensive in their battle of innuendo. 

“Don’t you know it,” he replied, wearing his trademark smile and giving her a thumbs up.

Rather than giving a response, Midnight simply huffed, and in a silent concession of defeat, walked to the other side of the room, nursing the small carton of milk as she did so. 

For a long moment the room sat in silence as All Might enjoyed his victory by smugly downing the remaining third portion of the hotdog in one mighty bite, something that had the frazzled woman glaring daggers at him. He returned it with a cheeky smile and refocused on his feast without remark. 

“Well,” Shouta remarked, summing up the general feelings of the entire room, “ That just happened.”

Slowly, Snipe nodded as he watched the number one eat. “All Might truly is the strongest hero, peerless in all forms of combat...”

“Oh shut up you two,” Nemuri sulked.

-----------------

UA’s main auditorium was everything that Izuku could expect and more, a massive chamber dominated by a trio of projection screens that individually wouldn’t look out of place in most cinemas.

And most awesome to him was the figure standing at the podium in the center of it all.

“For all you examinee listeners tuning in, welcome to my show today! Everybody say ‘HEY’ !”

Izuku barely resisted the urge to squeal.

Standing in the center of the stage was the black clad, big haired and small mustached form of radio jock and pro hero, Present Mic!

The room resounded with the sound of crickets.

Or might as well have...

“What a refined response...” the teacher said with a shrug. 

He was in the presence of Present Mic! The pro-hero who’d be teaching them all English! Oh this was so awesome! He had to literally bite his tongue not to start talking about how cool he was and how he listened to him every week, but after his last couple slips he was willing to do anything short of stab himself in the hand with his pen again to not make an even bigger fool of himself.

“Well, if none of you have anything to say, then I’ll quickly present to you the big rundown on the practical exam! So...” he pulled back and posed. “Are you ready... YEAAAAH!”

Izuku swore he tasted blood as he bit down to keep from losing his cool.

“If you’re going to bite your tongue off Deku,” Kacchan remarked from his seat next to him, “Just make sure to bleed to death on the other guy next to you.”

Izuku paused and glared at his old friend. After what he’d seen today, he failed to find that amusing. 

“Not funny, Kacchan,” he said with a sour expression on his face.

The blond raised an eyebrow and growled at him, "Backtalking me , Deku? Where'd that spine come from?"

"My quirk finally came in, Kacchan,” he said, thinking of a quick excuse. Katsuki would know something was up if he just showed a quirk out of nowhere and it wasn’t completely unheard of for quirks to delay their manifestation until they could be used safely, “I've spent the last 10 months training it for this."

The blonde barked a laugh of contempt. "Well I guess your balls finally dropped, Deku. Took long enough. But even if you're not a quirkless loser anymore doesn’t mean you’re still not a loser . We'll see how your shitty quirk performs when we see the rankings."

Izuku frowned and glared back at the presenter. “I guess so.”

“Alright you listeners! We’ll be conducting a set of ten-minute mock urban battles after this!”

Behind him the screen changed to show an indicator of their current location along with a map of UA’s seven mock urban battle centers that they used for battle training and exams of all shapes and sizes. Centers only physically possible due to help of the Concrete Hero: Cementos, who was also one of the honored teachers at UA.

“After the presentation, you’ll head to your specified battle center, okay? You can bring whatever you want with you....”

He looked down at his exam ticket and noted it said Battle Center B, then looked over to Kacchan, whose ticket put him in Center A.

“In other words, they won’t let you work with your friends, huh?” Kacchan remarked glancing at Izuku’s card in return, words that made Izuku’s heart feel a little lighter. He referred to him as a friend. 

“You’re right, Kacchan,” he observed. “Our numbers are consecutive, but we’re in different centers.”

“Don’t look at my card, dipshit” Katsuku sneered, despite the fact that he was looking at Izuku’s.

Yep. And that good feeling went away fast.

“Damn,” Kacchan went on to say, “Now I can’t crush you.”

Like tears in the rain...

“Three different types of faux villains are stationed in each battle center and you earn points based on their level of difficulty. Your goal, dear listeners is to use your works to earn points by disabling, immobilizing, or otherwise rendering the faux villains unable to fight! Though of course attacking other examinees and other unheroic actions are strictly prohibited!”

While he spoke a cute pixel art demonstration of cartoon Present Mic kicking down blanked out cartoon villains dominated the massive screen.

Izuku nodded. Of course it would be. This was a hero school, if you’re willing to attack another examinee, you didn’t belong here.

Bakugo clenched his jaw slightly and sneered in response, clearly showing his thoughts on the matter.

Then a young man several rows in front of them jumped to his feet, and raised his hand while yelling at the top of his lungs, “May I ask a question?”

“Okay!” replied Present Mic.

“On the print out there are four types of villains!” the tall boy, who honestly looked more like a senior than a freshman exclaimed, “If this is a misprint, then UA, the most prominent hero school in Japan should be ashamed of that foolish mistake. We examinees are here in this place because we wish to be molded into exemplary heroes!”

He then turned around and glared at Izuku and Katsuki. “In addition, you two have been talking the whole time...”

“What a crock,” Katuski sneered. 

Izuku couldn’t help but agree. Maybe it was the knowledge that he actually didn’t need to be afraid about the test, or maybe if it was the confidence he had gotten from being acknowledged by All Might, but he couldn’t help but respond. 

“M-maybe you should have let Present Mic-san finish first? I’m sure he was going to get around to telling us about the fourth villain...”

“Hate to say it,” Bakugou said with a nod, “But Deku here’s got a point, dumbass. Maybe you should try checking your own shit before calling anyone else out on theirs.”

The tall black haired boy recoiled, but before he could respond, Present Mic called the room to order. 

“Alright! Alright! Examinees 2233, 2234, and 7111... all of you just settle down!”

7111, the guy who’d pointed them out paused and bowed. “My apologies.”

The entire room chuckled. 

He coughed as a looming black outline began to dominate the screen, giving Izuku a strange sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach for some reason.

“Anyways listeners, the fourth type of villain is worth zero points. That guy is an obstacle, so to speak. There’s only one in every battle center and it will go crazy in narrow spaces, so watch out! It’s not impossible to defeat, but there’s no reason to defeat it either. I recommend you try and avoid it. So I’ll leave you off with this. In the treasured words of the Pro Hero Napoleon Dolomite: ‘A true hero is someone who overcomes life’s misfortunes.’ So make sure to remember or school motto...”

He pulled back and spread his arms wide. “ PLUS ULTRA !”

He then leaned in and smiled. “And everyone? Good luck suffering ...”

Izuku couldn’t help but let loose a tired chuckle. Now wasn’t that ominous.

----------------------------

Ten minutes later found Izuku getting on the bus to examination ground B. After sitting down he was surprised to find 7111, the boy who’d called him out sitting in the seat next to him.

“You are the one everyone’s been talking about,” he said after a moment, “The one who gave the speech about ‘Owning the E’ in front of everyone.”

Izuku shrank under the attention, “I’d, um, hardly call it a speech.”

“I will admit you were correct in that I should have waited for Present Mic-san to finish, and that in light of what he said afterwards, my aspirations were unacceptable. And I do apologize for my poor behavior. I still must say that your speaking in the middle of the presentation was still unacceptable.”

“Don’t worry, it’s okay. And I’m sorry about that,” Izuku admitted, “I just tend to um... mumble a bit when I get excited,” he paused, “Or scared. Or...” he flinched at the self realization. Yeah, best to just be honest about it. “I just mumble a lot.”

“I accept your apology as well.” he said after a moment. “But I have to ask you. What did you mean when you said ‘Own that E’? I have no intention to fail this exam, but you clearly have confidence in those words. Have you figured out something about the exam? Some secret the rest of us don’t know about?”

“I... well...” Izuku paused and looked up to the taller boy. “We’re trying to get into a hero school, right? So shouldn’t that be the most important thing? Being the best heroes we can be, I mean... And if we have to make a choice between doing the heroic thing and just trying to beat the exam... Well, we’re here to be heroes, right?”

“Of course!” the taller boy exclaimed, “ Of course the finest institution of heroic education in all of Japan would observe the behavior of its prospective students to determine their fitness! Competency in battle is important, but the good character and moral rectitude of the applicants is just as important... if not more so !” 

He looked down to Izuku with an almost frightening degree of intensity before bowing to him as much as his seated position would allow, “Thank you for sharing with me, who showed you such disrespect, the hidden secret of this exam! I am in your debt!”

“Um, it’s just a gut feeling, really.”

“And as my elder brother, the Turbo Hero: Ingenium has told me numerous times, that often ‘a hero’s best sensory organ is their gut’!” he exclaimed “And my gut tells me that your gut is reading the situation accurately so I will put my faith in our combined intuition and aspire to act as a true hero during this exam! What is your name?”

“Um, Izuku... Midoriya Izuku...”

“Midoriya-san, I look forward to seeing you become a fine hero.” he said with an ear splitting grin while taking what Izuku guessed was an attempt at a heroic pose, “And when we finish this test, know that you can count on me, Iida Tenya, to be a friend and ally!”

This guy was weird, and way too intense, but Izuku knew that Tenya meant every word of it and had a feeling that with this proclamation, he’d just earned a friend who’d watch his back, no matter what.

“Um, thanks... you too...”

“You know, you’re pretty cool, curly.”

Izuku blinked and looked up at the figure of a large, muscular boy with a red and white striped pompadour who was leaning over the seat and looking at him.

“Yeah,” said a girl with what looked like earphone covers for ears, from the other side of the seat, “I feel like I could take on the world right now!”

Izuku began to pale and looked up. What he saw made his blood run cold. Everyone on the bus was looking at him and several had their cellphones out, probably calling friends who were in the other examination areas.

As he looked around, his eyes locked on the pink cheeked girl who’d seen him rant the first time. “Yeah, he’s right. You’re pretty cool, Izuku-kun!”

Izuku’s eyes went wide as his head began to swim.

A girl just said he was cool. 

A real life actual girl.

A real life actual girl just said he was cool !

Chapter Text

Izuku took a deep breath as he walked towards the battle zone, with Iida Tenya making sure to stay by his side. When the taller boy had said he saw Izuku as a friend and ally, he clearly didn’t mean “after the exam”.

“You know, you don’t have to stay close to me,” Izuku remarked looking at Iida.

In response Iida looked at him with an all too intense look on his face, “True Heroes watch the backs of their allies!”

Izuku took a deep breath and closed his eyes. For the past couple minutes he’d been struggling to connect with One for All. Once the freak out was over in the bus he’d decided to put his mind to trying to feel out his power and much to his own disappointment he was finding it less than intuitive. 

He’d do his best no matter what, but without his quirk he wasn’t sure how much use he would be. 

“Iida-san,” Izuku said as the massive door slowly began to close behind him, “Just promise me that you won’t fail on my part. Okay? My quirk can be pretty touchy and if it doesn’t kick in I don’t want you holding back on my account. Be a hero, but don’t sacrifice your dream for me, okay?”

The tall boy began to shake and Izuku swore he began to tear up as he said, “Such nobility! You are truly going to be one of the finest heroes of our generation. Very well! Should the situation come to that, I will do my best to honor your wishes.”

Izuku blushed. He really wasn’t used to getting positive reinforcement and Iida was clearly the type to voice his opinion freely both for good and ill it seemed. He’d clearly come to the rather strong decision that he considered Izuku to be a good guy. It was flattering, and for someone not used to it, maybe a little off putting. But still flattering and honestly, he liked the other boy's earnest nature, even if he wished he’d tone it down a bit.

No matter what happened after this, classmates or no, he’d want to try and still be his friend.

“And start!” Present Mic exclaimed from a podium overlooking the ground.

Izuku blinked and looked up, as did most of the applicants present.

“There’s no such thing as a countdown in a real fight!” the Pro Hero said with a laugh, “Consider the baton tossed! Go! Go! Go! ”

At that, the other applicants began to run off, Izuku closed his eyes and began to reach inside him to draw off the power that was One for All, but while he could feel the heat, he couldn’t grab hold of it. It was like smoke in his hands, there but immaterial.

He gritted his teeth and tried harder to, to no avail. 

“Are you ready Midoriya-san?” 

And even worse, now Iida, who’d said such kind words about him, was willing to hold back to cover him when he didn’t even know if he really could use One for All yet. It filled him with shame and self loathing to think this guy, who was a bit stuffy but every bit the hero might fail because of him. 

It made him hate himself.

He opened his eyes and they went wide as he saw a Three Pointer barreling around a corner, moving towards Iida from behind at high speed. The other boy saw his reaction and turned around, just in time for it to reer back and lift its massive arm in a crushing blow.

In an instant Izuku was in motion, cracking with energy as he punched the robot in the chest, sending it flying 20 meters through the air and through a concrete wall. 

“What a powerful quirk!” Iida exclaimed as Izuku looked down at his hands.

It was like One for All had responded to his need, cloaking his body in its energy like a cowl. It clicked to him, as if by instinct. A cowl. Full Cowl.

Narrowing his eyes, he nodded to the other boy and entered a full run, powered by the fires of One for All. His guess was that he was operating on somewhere between three to five percent of its full power. Not much, but that was still enough to push him far above and beyond natural human limitations. Enough that it would have been a moderately impressive physical reinforcement quirk even at this level. 

Off to the side, he saw the boy with the pompadour who’d called him cool earlier standing in place, his arms in a cross block as a one pointer hammered at him from above.

Diverting course, he rocketed through the air and kicked the robot’s head clear off, and moved to intercept the next group that he saw down the street, while off to the side he could see Iida delivering a spin kick to a two pointer using the thrusters in his legs.

“Hey, hold up!” the guy he just helped out called to him, driving him to freeze in place and turn about. “Could you do me a quick favor!”

“Yes?” he asked, looking back.

“Punch me!” the kid exclaimed, pulling back his arms and pointing to his stomach. 

Izuku blinked. Did this guy just ask what he thought he asked? “Wait, what?”

“My quirk lets me absorb and redirect Kinetic energy!” he exclaimed, “But these robots are kinda weak and aren’t enough to give me a real charge. By the time I’ve got enough juice to cut loose, the test’ll be over! You got a super strength quirk, right? Think you could give me a quick pick me up? Please?”

Izuku paused for a moment and then nodded before pulling back his arm, and punching the other boy square in the gut while drawing on as much of One for All as he could without it being outright painful.

The young man’s eyes went wide and he gasped at the impact,his feet lifting off the ground. He clenched his stomach for a second and looked at Izuku with a mixture of shock and admiration. “Crap, man! I actually felt that. Holy shit! Thanks bro.”

With a nod and a smile he was off to start earning his own points while Iida looked at Izuku with clear pride.

“Very heroic, Midoriya-san!” he exclaimed before looking at the street and the robotic villains lining it. “So, how about I take the left?”

Izuku grinned, feeling a sense of pride swelling within him as for the first time in his life he felt like he was for real. That he was a hero. That he could do this.

“Right!”

And together, they were off in a blast...

---------------------

“That kid of yours is something else,” Shota said to Toshinori as they watched him and the Idaten’s youngest working with impressive synergy. 

While the two’s number of villain points were on the strong side of average, they were racking up Rescue points by an exceptional amount. Whenever they could, they would always be there to back up another prospect, sometimes even pausing for a moment to offer a word of encouragement to one of their fellows. In all ways both of them were acting in a manner that very much fit the model of the ideal Pro Hero. 

“I know,” All Might said with a proud smile. He’d honestly feared that young Izuku would hurt himself, but instead he was latching onto One for All with an adeptness that rivaled his own. When he’d met the boy he had a good feeling about him, and it more than pleased him to know that his choice in successors was ideal, even if he’d technically hadn’t passed One for All onto him due to the small girl’s intervention.

“This entire year is looking impressive,” added Vlad King as he looked over the other cameras. “Those two aren’t the only ones who seem to be cooperating.”

Toshinori nodded as the display showed several team ups. On one screen he saw a girl with massive hands throwing a boy with a hardening quirk into a cluster of villains like a human missile. On another, a pair of girls seemed to have synergized their quirks, with one having generated a speaker stack and a wheelbarrow while the other combined her quirk with the creations to use as a sonic cannon. Arena D had a pink haired and skinned girl with horns holding onto the flying horn fired from the head of a hooved girl, using it in order to maintain a height and mobility advantage while literally raining acid on a field of enemies. 

“The rescue point numbers look like they’re going to be the highest they’ve been since I’ve been teaching,” Midnight said as she nursed a cone of soft serve ice cream, courtesy of Lunch Rush.

Toshinori felt slightly guilty. He’d warned her, but she still looks a little out of sorts due to the spicy chili. What he really pitied her for though was the experience to come. If you weren’t used to that level of heat, it could be worse going out than going in ... he made a mental note to warn her of that when the exams were over.

Returning his attention from Midnight to the task at hand, he looked on with a smile at many of the student prospects. A purple haired boy who, while completely lacking in Villain points, had seemingly dedicated himself to getting injured and frightened applicants out of the line of fire. A young man with steel skin who seemed to have decided to use himself as a human shield for more vulnerable students. A short kid with purple balls on his head who seemed to run interference every time one of the villains tried to attack a girl in his presence. 

Even Midoriya’s young school friend was impressive in his own way, standing amongst a scattered field of burning wreckage, his eyes all but glowing with the excitement of battle. 

“This has actually given us a bit of a quandary,” Nezu admitted. “We don’t really have anything in place to reward cooperative behavior during the exam. And while Midoriya-san’s words seem to have motivated the crowd quite nicely, but it really would be something of a push to call them rescue points now wouldn’t it?”

“I had an idea about that,” offered Thirteen. 

Snipe nodded. “Let’s hear it.”

“I’ve been wondering about this for years. Perhaps we should consider adding a third qualification,” Thirteen replied, “ Hero points.”

Nezu cocked his head. “Interesting, comcept, Thirteen. Explain please?”

“Well, if a young applicant behaves in a suitably heroic fashion, we award them Hero points to reflect their good nature and positive attitude. Sportsmanship, cooperation, encouraging others. These are all important facets of heroism. If we want to cultivate a noble, heroic spirit, we should show favor to those whom it seems to be a natural inclination.”

“I like the sound of that,” replied Ectoplasm.

Hound Dog nodded. “Me too.”

Midnight took a long, lick of her cone then said, “Why not? I’m in.”

Nezu looked over the group. “Good idea. Anyone have any concerns?”

“I do,” cut in Eraserhead, “First, it’s not fair to previous years. I’m sure there’s plenty of kids who would have qualified by these standards who were either dropped or were sent to General Ed.”

Nezu grinned, “And I am more than willing to personally review the exam results of our previous years to see if any would qualify for the Hero course under these new standards, but as it stands, all we will be doing in this case is making an unofficial policy official. We have allowed exemptions before. This would just be codifying it.”

All Might nodded. He’d heard of this. Of good natured but borderline students being given overly generous rewards of Rescue points to make the cut, or of students who outright failed, but managed to catch the eye of one of the proctors, being invited to test again as a recommended student in spite of their grade. 

“Alright,” Shota replied, “That’s fair, but I need to point out that with the numbers we’re seeing, unless we raise the cut off, both Hero Courses are already going to be oversized as is.”

Nezu scoffed. “Really, Eraserhead? What does it say about a hero school if our greatest problem is that we will have too many   worthy prospective heroes? It is a problem we must tackle with pride. If need be, we shall designate 1-C as a third hero home room this year. See? Problem handled.” 

He smiled and it was an evil smile. “But enough of that. We’ve seen how these kids handle themselves when they’re on top of things. Let’s see how they work... under pressure. ”

He walked over to the console and began to laugh maniacally as he pressed the activation button for the Zero Pointers. 

“HAHAHAHA!”

“Does he seriously need to laugh like that EVERY year?” Aizawa asked no one in particular.

-------------------------

Tenya knew something was wrong when he felt the rumbling. It was a base sensation that traveled up through your legs to the tips of your fingers before reverting to settle in your stomach like a pit of dread. Even the familiar, comforting rev of his Engine was lost in it. Instead all he felt was the sort of primal terror that he imagined his far distant ancestors had faced when forced to confront a lion without the power of a quirk to see them to safety. 

And this was why, he imagined, that Midoriya started running towards the danger. After all, if they were feeling this fear then he knew that others were too, and it was the duty of a hero to assuage the fear of others, even if they were terrified themselves.

Between the power of his Engine, and Izuku’s most impressive physical renforcement ability that actually allowed him to keep pace with Tenya, at least in these confined conditions where he wasn’t able to go all out, they were able to clear the distance in moments.

As they entered the clearing they saw a handful of frightened students run past them, away from one of the most terrifying things that Tenya had ever seen. 

Technically, the term ‘skyscraper’ refers to any building taller than ten stories high, and using that traditional definition he could say without a moment of hesitation that the massive robotic villain bearing down on them was easily ‘the size of a skyscraper’. It looked like it should have been set against a monster like Godzilla than highschool students. No wonder they’d refrained from telling them any details. If they wanted to see how perspective heroes felt in the face of existential dread, well, they had it.

As he recoiled he was shocked to see Izuku spring off into motion, his face one of mute horror and desperation.

“What is it?”

“That girl!” he exclaimed frantically.

Iida’s eyes went wide with shock and horror as he saw the sweet, rosy faced girl from the bus sitting in the machine’s path, seemingly trapped under debris. This was it, he realized to himself, his moment of truth. He had come here, to UA, to learn what it was to be a hero. And now he was faced with a decision, he could risk his life and leave the girl to die, or he could live by his own words.

There was only one answer.

Without an instant of hesitation, he was off, running faster and harder than he had ever in his life. Running as fast as he could, he pressed on. The engine in his legs burned as he pushed his limits into the red and beyond. Yet even then it felt to him as if he was running through snow while the machine was on a well conditioned straight away, approaching her faster than he could respond to. 

Tears of fear, pain, and shame ran down his cheeks as he pushed on, he fought through the burning agony in his calves and pushed onward. He was faster than Midoriya, he had to be the one. He was the only one who could, and he would rather die a true hero here and now than watch this girl lose her life and live the rest of his days knowing he was a fraud!

Suddenly a green blur blasted past him and into the air as if shot by a cannon. He couldn’t help but gasp as he looked up to see Midoriya rocketing through the air wreathed in power. He’d grown used to seeing the signs of his new comrade’s quirk in the mere handful of minutes they’d fought side by side. He’d read many times that it was in combat that you grew to know someone the fastest after all, but this was something else entirely. 

Where before the boy had been sheathed in lightning, now there was only fire. He cleared the distance from himself and the villain in the blink of an eye and even over the noise he could hear the Izuku scream All Might’s iconic battle cry at the top of his lungs as he kicked the giant machine in the chest.

“SMASH!”

The result was mindblowing . Tenya was almost pulled off of his feet by a high pressure wave generated by the sheer force of the impact as the upper half of the villains body, a mass that had to weigh hundreds, if not thousands, of tons was torn from its lower and sent flying into the distance by the sheer power that Midoriya possessed. It was a humbling sight, one that normally would have sent him into a state of mute shock, but he had other, far greater concerns. 

Managing to regain his footing he continued onto the girl only to find her already pushing the debris off herself. Or rather, the debris floating away as if weightless drive by the force of her kicks as she freed herself.

What an amazing quirk! 

“Are you alright?” he asked, doing his best to channel his elder brother’s character and spirit.

She nodded. “Thank you for helping me I...”

Her eyes went wide and she pointed up. “Oh no.”

Following her vision he went wide eyed to see Izuku falling limply through the air, the crackle and glow of his powers absent. Iida went numb with shock in the realization that whatever Izuku had done had clearly expended the totality of his stamina. He was helpless, and at this height, such a fall would undoubtedly be lethal.

It was a thought the girl clearly shared as she limped towards the broken shoulder of a three pointer, her face a mask of determination.

Of course, he realized. She too was a perspective hero and as such, she obviously was no more capable of allowing another to fall to his death then he was.

Without a moment’s thought, and with a yelp of surprise, he scooped her into a bridal carry and looked down at her. “We’ll intercept him together!”

She nodded. “Right!” Then she touched his arm and he experienced zero gravity for the first time. It was a shock, but he’d always enjoyed swimming even if he always needed to wear special leggings to keep the water out of his engines and to counter their mass. 

Spinning about he engaged his engines and with their thrust driving him, Iida Tenya experienced the wonders of independent flight for the first time in his life. 

As they grew closer he saw that Izuku was utterly limp, seemingly unconscious from whatever exertion had permitted him to strike that machine with a blow that All Might himself would have found impressive. 

Increasing his thrust, he knew he only had one go at this as the girl in his arms prepared herself to use her quirk on Izuku.

They had to get the timing perfect. And thank the stars they did. As they rocketed past him she slapped him, canceling out most of his mass and his acceleration, leaving him to simply dangle in the air while Tenya rocketed towards one of the broken buildings the villain had destroyed.

Spinning about, he kicked off of it and shot towards his comrade’s limp form. 

As his shoes approached the ground, the girl touched her fingertips together and he felt his mass return to him. Throwing on his brakes, he half stopped and turned about, arriving at Izuku’s side in nearly an instant.

It was only then that he put her down, and in retrospect, he was glad he hadn’t done so a moment later as the second she was on the ground she began to vomit. If he’d waited he’d have gotten it on himself rather than his shoes. He didn’t react though, he’d been prepared for this. One thing his parents and brother had both told him was that in his time as a hero he’d get covered with every kind of fluid, hygienic and otherwise. It was part of the job.

Tenya did not blame her. The girl must have exhausted her quirk, he realized. His calves literally burned in agony, to the point that it was taking all his willpower not to fall to his knees and cry out in pain, she was vomiting, and Izuku was in a sorry condition all around, but they were all still alive. They’d all faced a deadly challenge and had lived and acted in full accordance with the creed of UA. To go beyond: Plus Ultra.

Gritting his teeth he approached Izuku and was horrified by what he saw. The young man’s body was swollen and red, and his breathing shallow yet rapid. Even his eyes were bloodshot, staring into space with a look that bespoke pure agony. It was as if he’d burst every capillary in his body during that display. He couldn't help but wince. The pain must be unimaginable.

He tried to fight the pain in his legs and pick up his new friend and carry him to safety, but his body failed him. The pain in his legs was growing too great and despite all of his trying, the flesh surrendered despite the will’s desire to go on. Looking down at his limbs, he could see his Engine glowing through his skin. Even his heat resistant body was being pushed beyond its limits, with smoke wisping from his tortured calves.

“No!” he cried out as he struggled to fight the pain, “NO! Just a little longer!” he hissed to himself desperate to push past the pain and stand to his feet, but he simply couldn’t manage to get to his feet no matter how badly he wanted to. 

“Help!” he screamed frantically out, as he finally conceded defeat, “He needs help!”

“No need to cry out, dearie! I’m coming right there!” a matronly voice said as she approached. 

Turning he saw a small, elderly woman walking using a cane shaped in the form of a syringe. 

He saw her pause to give one of the other applicants a hand full of gummy bears and a peck on the cheek before continuing on.

“Oh my, what do we have here?” she gasped as she looked at Izuku. “Poor thing, it looks like he pushed himself too far...”

She knelt down and kissed him on the cheek. Almost immediately Tenya could see Izuku’s angry swollen flesh begin to pale and relax, returning for a normal color while his labored breathing relaxed. 

“And you two,” she said turning to the gravity girl and himself, “I see your legs are acting up but I can’t heal you until they cool down enough that the heat simply won’t undo any good I do...” she looked towards the other students and raised her voice. “Does anyone have a water quirk?”

“I do!” called out a short, bald, rather rotund boy in a pink jacket with an almost featureless face just as round as his body.

She smiled. “Deary, do you think you could cool his legs for me?”

He nodded and then turned to Tenya. “Sorry ‘bout this...” Then his body distended massively, almost quadrupling in size, before he opened his mouth and...

“BLARG!”

A great deluge of water shot out of his mouth onto Tenya’s legs as the boy’s body began to deflate back to its previous size.. On one hand, it was absolutely disgusting. This was the second time someone had vomited on him in as many minutes. On the other, the sensation of the water on his engines, sucking away the heat and cooling them to manageable levels was just so unimaginably relieving that he simply couldn’t summon the energy to care.

She nodded in approval and he could hear her mutter something about ‘five to that one’ before kissing him on the cheek. Normally a part of him would feel embarrassed at being kissed by a little old grandma, but after the stress he’d just gone through, not to mention being puked on twice, he frankly couldn’t summon the will to care about having a mildly embarrassing quirk used on him.

Instead he simply took a deep breath as the pain was banished, and she passed him a handful of gummies. “There you go sweetie...”

He sighed in relief before looking up to her as she tended to the rosy faced girl with the gravity quirk.

“Did we act as true heroes should?” he asked weakly as she began to move on.

She smiled at him. “I’d certainly say so, young man. I’d certainly say so.”

Tenya smiled and onto his back, He could only laugh as he felt the stress of the last ten minutes begin to fade. He’d come here to pass a test. His intent had been to attend this school, to become the finest hero he could possibly become. But to pass the test in accordance with his own standards, he had been forced to become that hero. He smiled. And no matter what, he would remain that hero until the end of his days...

Chapter Text

Midoriya Izuku’s world was pain. Not the kind of pain you could fight through, but the kind of mind numbing, soul rending, pain that could reduce the most stalwart of men into a gibbering mass of trembling flesh. Pain like stubbing a toe, but over every single millimeter of his body. 

It had started with something that had, at the moment, seemed like a good idea. He was trying to save that girl, and when it had become clear that neither he nor Iida would reach her in time, he stopped drawing off simply the residual warmth of One for All, and had, in effect, set himself on fire drawing on as much of the energy as he could gather to boost him enough to take it out before it could crush her. 

Even through the veil of agony, he hoped it worked. He’d been able to remain lucid just long enough to kick the damned thing before the pain caught up with him. He was rather sure that the origin of the pain was that he’d torn his muscles. All of them. He’d effectively turned One for All into the world’s most powerful meat tenderizer , and he was the steak.

It felt like an eternity that he’d lay there, trapped in his own mind, by his own pain... but then, in an instant, it receded. 

For a moment he simply lay in place trying to recenter himself, waiting for the stars clouding his vision to fade, and his temporary agony fed madness to recede..

“Ow.” he muttered to himself.

“Midoriya-san, you’re awake...” 

Izuku groaned and looked up to find Iida and the girl standing over him. Slowly he sat up to see the field was all but deserted, applicants had already left save for these two. 

“What happened?” he asked as he sat up.. 

“You saved my life,” replied the cute girl with the pretty smile. “Thank  you...”

Izuku blushed and began to stammer. Oh god, a cute girl was actually talking to him!

She walked over to him and held out her hand to help him up. “My name is Uraraka Ochaco!”

He smiled nervously and took it. “Um... It-it’s nice to meet you, Uraraka-san! I-I’m Midoriya Izuku.”

“And I am Iida Tenya, Uraraka-san. It is a pleasure.”

She smiled. So cute! “It’s great to meet you, Midoriya-san, Iida-san! Ihope we’re in the same class if we get in.”

“I agree,” Iida replied, “With my speed, Midoriya-san’s power, and your versatility, I am sure we will make for a most excellent team.”

Izuku took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Punching killer robots? Easy. Talking to girls? Hard.  

To distract himself for a moment, he looked at the devastation around him. The countless smashed robots and the massive hulk that lay behind him. He’d done it. He’d done what All Might had said. He’d been the best hero he could be... and in doing so had saved a life. 

“Today was a good day,” he said after a moment, basking in the sensation. He just hoped he was right. If he had led these two down the wrong path, he’d hate himself forever. 

“I agree, Midoriya-san” Iida replied with no lack of personal pride, while Uraraka simply acknowledged his statement with a cheerful, girlish “Uh-huh”.

“So what happened after I blacked out?” More like a red out, but still, “After I kicked the zero pointer?”

“Uraraka-san noticed that you were falling from the sky.” Iida stated, “So together we caught you. She used her quirk to render me weightless, and I used my Engine’s thrust to fly up to catch you, were upon she used her quirk to cancel your momentum.”

He blinked as his mind focused on the most important part of that statement. Her quirk. “Weightless? What’s your quirk?”

“Zero Gravity!” she replied with a smile. “Anything I touch I can make weightless....”

She touched a broken piece of robot and it began to float.

His eyes went wide as he considered the multitude of uses for such a quirk. It would be priceless in everything from heroism to construction. Just the value in the space industry alone could make her billions. She could charge a billion yen just to touch a satellite before launch and they’d shower her with money if she wanted.

“So cool!”

She blushed. “Thanks! Your quirk is pretty awesome too! Watching you kick that thing, it was like watching All Might in action!”

Izuku froze and laughed, scratching the back of his head. Oh crap! Were they going to guess his secret? “Well, I wouldn’t say it was like All Might...”

“Hahahahahaha! Did somebody say All Might?! ”

“Gagh!” Izuku gasped as All Might appeared from almost nowhere, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt with his hands on his hips and his smile as wide as ever.

“Because if so... then I Am Here! ”

Both Uraraka and Iida both gasped. “All Might!” they cried out almost as one, both of them awestruck by the presence of Japan’s Number One.

“It is a pleasure to meet you All Might-sama,” Tenya exclaimed, bowing deeply. “I am Iida Tenya. I am honored to meet you!”

“At ease, Tenya-shonen. And how about you, young lady?”

Uraraka flushed deeply and bowed as well. “I’m Uraraka Ochaco...”

“And it’s good to meet you as well, Uraraka-shojo. Anyways, I was just passing by and decided to check up on the young lad who made some additional work for me,” he said, giving Izuku a smile. 

Izuku went cold and froze. “A-additional work?”

“Yes. Your kick was quite impressive, Midoriya-shonen!” he leaned in conspiratorially and stage-whispered to Izuku, “Maybe a little too impressive, really. You actually managed to clear the boundary of the Battlezone. I had to personally redirect it to make sure it didn’t land on anything important.”

Izuku went pale. Oh god. Had he managed to mess up even then? Would they kick him out for this, even with All Might’s recommendation. He began to quiver in place as his mind constructed horrible scenario after scenario about how they’d punish him for almost dropping a giant robot on the school.

“Relax, Midoriya-shonen!” All Might exclaimed patting him on the back. “Breath normally. Everything is all right, because  I Am Here. I simply spiked it into one of the sports fields and nothing got hurt except for some grass.”

“Am I going to have to pay for that?” Izuku asked, more than a little frantic.

“No, of course not, my boy! That’s why you’re here, after all,” All Might clapped him on the back, “To learn to master your strength and become a great hero some day!”

He took a deep breath and began to relax. Okay. Everything is okay. He’s not getting expelled before he can even get accepted. Everything is all right.

“So, um, All Might-san?” Uraraka asked, “Why are you here? I mean, at UA?”

All Might leaned in and looked side to side. “Can you three keep a big secret?”

“Of course, All Might-sama.” Iida stated, puffing up his chest, “Any secret you ask of me, I will take to my grave, upon the honor of my family and the Idaten Agency!”

“No need to go that far kid,” All Might replied with a raised eyebrow, “But here we go. This year... I aaaam... joining the faculty ! I am here because I am going to be a teacher! Perhaps even one of yours .”

Iida gasped dramatically while Uraraka made something of a girly happy sound. 

“Wow! We’re going to learn from the Number One hero himself!” Uraraka exclaimed, before pausing, “If we pass.”

“Not to worry, Uraraka-shojo. I’m sure the three of you have nothing to worry about. In fact, between the four of us again... and I’ll freely admit I might be saying too much... I’d be stunned if you three weren’t all in the top ten. I won’t say any more, but I have high hopes for all of you and I look forward to seeing you here, in this great Hero Academia!”

All Might stepped back and smiled. “Anyways, the other reason I’m here is because Recovery Girl ordered someone to come and take Midoriya-shonen to the infirmary if he wasn’t already up and about.”

Izuku flinched. Maybe he had gone a little too far...

“After all, the bus has already left...”

Izuku grimaced. And now everyone was walking because of him...

“But don’t worry. I’m sure the ambulance will be more than happy to drop you three off at the main building. So I bid a good day to you all and I’m off!”

He lept into the air in a blur of motion. 

“Amazing,” Iida said in an awed voice as All Might left. “To be personally graced by the Number One Hero...” 

“He looks a lot younger than he does on TV,” Uraraka thought out loud.

Izuku twitched slightly. That was because he just was de-aged by a little girl with an amazing quirk who also healed a terrible wound that was given to him by a terrible, mysterious villain who also gave me a copy of his quirk. But he couldn’t say that out loud.

“Um, maybe he changed his diet?” 

Uraraka thought for a moment and nodded. “Yeah, maybe. All his food brands are super greasy American food. Maybe he switched to something with less saturated fat?”

--------------------------

“A Burger feast !?!? Really, Toshinori! Are you trying to kill yourself?” 

All Might laughed and scratched the back of his head as he wilted slightly under the death glare of Recovery Girl. She was one of the few people able to cut through his armor, almost without effort. He supposed that was because the small elderly woman had become something of a surrogate aunt to him doing his days at UA, and since his injury she’d been one of his head medics. So if anyone had the right to be angry at him, it was her. 

“Actually, Chiyo-san,” he said weakly, “Something has come up that I was going to tell you about...”

“And I supposed it is something that permits you to go off your diet,” She glanced at Nezu, her scowl apparent and the annoyance clear, “And you didn’t stop him?”

The small nonhuman simply shrugged, “I trusted that Yagi-san has his reasons.”

She scowled and glared at the Symbol of Peace, “And what came up that you could eat like you were never injured? And return to your natural form, there’s no use in burning your time here.”

Toshinori smiled. “Actually, about that. It would probably be easier if I showed you.”

He then pulled up his shirt, exposing his unmarred and unscared torso. Chiyo gasped in shock while he swore he could hear the gears turning in Nezu’s head at the sight. 

Slowly the older woman walked forward and placed her head to his torso in shock. “How is this possible...” she looked up, “Your body was damaged beyond all our ability to repair. It was even beyond healing quirks...”

“A small girl did this. One who...” he paused, “Perhaps it would be best if we were to call Midoriya-shonen in. He was present and he seems to have an eye for detail that I will freely admit I sometimes lack. I believe his input would be priceless in this situation.”

Nezu nodded and walked over to his phone to make the call.

----------------------

When Miru Momoru told others that he was a nurse, they tended to give him funny looks. After all, most people couldn’t parse past the stereotype to realize that yes, there was indeed such a thing as a male nurse. That said, he didn’t mind, personally felt that he was destined for it.

After all, his quirk was Healing Touch. It gave him the ability to impart his stamina to others, speeding their natural healing and in extreme cases giving those on the edge the strength to keep from falling into the abyss. Some people would have lamented that they didn’t have a flashy quirk, but he’d always been a peaceful child and in time he grew into a peace loving man. He was grateful that he was blessed to be among the few gifted with the ability to heal. To be able to relieve someone of their pain, or even stave off death. 

That was why it felt so out of character to him that he so sorely hoped that when All Might found the son of a bitch who’d harmed the precious, innocent child before him. This girl who reminded him of his own darling daughters. That he turned his face into mush . No... to Powder .

She had been filthy and unkempt, and showed clear physical signs of low-grade malnutrition. Her limbs were riddled with countless cuts and small wounds, both old and fresh. It had been all he could do to keep from crying as he cleaned her up and tended to her injuries. 

To see anyone in pain made him despair. To see a child in this condition, it was like falling into an abyss. Ironic then that he was All Might’s personal medic, the daily caretaker of a man who was in constant agony. But then again, witnessing his suffering despite the pain it caused him was a weight on his soul that he was more than willing to bear. After all, if All Might was willing to fight on despite his own suffering, sacrificing himself for the good of others, then he would do all he could to help shoulder as much of that great man’s burden as he could despite how much it made his heart ache.

“Hey, doc.”

He smiled and looked toward the hero who had greeted him. “Hello, Mount Lady-sama.”

The voluptuous blonde woman in a horned costume (which if you asked him, was maybe a little too tight to be considered appropriate) stepped up to his side and looked over the girl before turning to him. 

“How’s she doing, doc?”

“She’s deeply asleep,” he replied, “Whatever happened to her has drained her strength completely. If she wasn’t showing signs of REM sleep, you’d think she was in a coma.”

“She going to be alright?” the normally flamboyant woman asked, her eyes shining with sympathy. 

“With time and rest, I believe so,” he replied sadly. “I’ve lent her as much of my stamina as I can, for now. From here, we have to wait and see.”

The Pro Hero nodded and looked at him. “Go rest up. I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

She was right. He needed a bottle of juice and maybe a light nap to rebuild his reserves. However, before he left, he gently placed his hand on the child’s head. “Be well, little one.”

--------------------------

Five minutes after Nezu made the call, a terrified Izuku Midoriya walked in with the poise and expression of a man marching off to his own execution, muttering to himself about how he hadn’t even been accepted and he was being sent to the principal.

“Relax, Midoriya-shonen,” All Might said with a calming tone, “You’re simply here to help me explain to Nezu-sensei and Recovery Girl-san what happened this morning.”

“Oh, okay but can I say something before we start?” he asked.

Nezu nodded. “Go right ahead, young man.”

Young Midoriya turned Recovery Girl and bowed. “Thank you for healing me. I’m sorry I wasn’t fully conscious to thank you.”

She looked at him. “What happened that injured you so badly, young man?”

“A girl was in danger so I drew too much from One for All and hurt myself,” he replied. 

“So!” Nezu said with some pep, “This boy is your successor then?”

Izuku and Toshinori shared a look. They both could sense what the other was thinking. “ You tell him.”

Being the adult in the room, All Might sighed and looked back to the small mouse-weasel-otter-creature and said, “Not exactly?”

Nezu perked an eyebrow. “How so?”

“It’s a bit of a story,” All Might began, “And like all good stories, it begins with a girl...”

“Really, All Might? That sorry opening?,” Nezu said with a chuckle.

“H-he’s being fully serious,” Izuku replied, “When he was about to pass One for All to me a girl showed up.”

“Tell me more, please.”

Izuku looked up to All Might who nodded. “She looked like she was in pain. She had a glowing horn and her body was cracking with energy... and she ran over begging me to take One for All from her.”

“She had all of the signs of the quirk going out of control,” All Might added. 

“Well, she bit off her own tongue to get blood flowing but her quirk reverted the injury...”

“Reverted, not regenerated, you say?” Nezu mused. 

Izuku nodded. “I stabbed myself with my pen and rubbed her tongue against the wound. When the blood mixed, I got One for All. Then she reversed my would and used what was left of her energy to make All Might young and healthy again.”

“You sound like you have some guesses as to the nature of her quirk?” Nezu asked.

He nodded. “I think her quirk rewinds time,” he replied, “I know it sounds a bit extreme but she had her quirk going until she gave me One for All. She said it was ripping her apart but while she looked to be in pain, she didn’t look injured. I think she was rewinding herself so One for All didn’t...” he paused and flinched, “Kill her.”

“Fascinating...”

Izuku looked up. “I’ve been thinking about it and I came up with something. It’s still a little out there but... it does explain a few things.”

“Hmn, do tell, young man...”

Izuku looked to Toshinori for guidance and he simply nodded in response. “Go right ahead, Midoriya-shonen. I’ve trusted your instincts so far.”

He frowned slightly. “I know you said don’t count out the impossible but this is going to sound impossibly impossible and...”

Nezu looked at him. “All Might-san trusts your judgement, Midoriya-san. Every theory is valid as any other until it has been eliminated.”

Izuku sighed. “I think she’s a time traveler.”

Recovery Girl blinked. “You can’t be serious.”

Nezu raised his paw. “No, no, Chiyo-san, let the boy explain.”

“She knew exactly where we would be, when we would be there, and what we were doing,” he replied, “Who else could have known that? And she had One for All.”

“Are you sure it’s One for All?” Chiyo asked, “This could be a trick.”

“No,” Toshinori replied, matter of factly. Having had time to clear his mind and think about it, he could feel the flames of One for All burning brightly in young Midoriya. He carried within him the same sacred touch that Toshinori bore. “It is One for All. Of that, I have no doubt.”

“It could be possible,” Nezu replied, “Though it would probably be better to simply ask her to explain, where is she?”

“Might Tower,” was Toshinori’s reply. “I ordered my personal staff and even some of the Pro Heros who operate out of the tower to keep an eye on her in my absence. She was exhausted by her ordeal and passed out from exhaustion almost immediately after restoring me.”

Nezu smiled. “So does this mean that you will have time to watch after a homeroom?”

Toshinori’s eyes went wide. Oh no. Oh hell no. He was not letting this hyper intelligent little rodent weasel him into this. “Absolutely not! For the past five years I’ve been barely able to handle my responsibilities.”

“As a teacher you have responsibilities to the school, and with your body completely healed, your responsibilities should be no problem...”

He knew exactly how Nezu operated. Let him have a word in edgewise and he’d use that High Specs brain of his to bludgeon you into submission with logic until you begrudgingly did whatever it was he asked of you. The only way to avoid it was to avoid it by giving him zero room to converse. Therefore, he only had one thing to say on the issue....

All Might shook his head, “No.”

“All Might-san, I...”

“All the no.”

Nezu scowled. “Be reasonable, Yagi-san...”

“Iie. Nyet. Non. Nein.... NO!”

The hyper intelligent rodent scowled in annoyance, but clearly knew when to quit. “Very well, but now that you’re no longer on a Time Limit, I do expect you to dedicate time to every hero class rather than just 1-A as we’d previously agreed.”

Toshinori paused. Okay, he’d take it. “That is entirely fair. I have no problem giving every student in this school my full attention when needed, I just want it recognized that Midoriya-shonen is my personal student as well.”

Nezu nodded, “Very well, but I expect no favoritism.”

“Um, excuse me?” Izuku asked. “But does this mean I’m accepted?”

Nezu paused for a moment and smiled at the boy. “While I’m normally adverse to let students know ahead of time, as I believe it’s unethical, in this case I believe it’s fair to say the jig is up. Yes. I doubt there’s a single member of the staff whom you didn’t manage to impress with your performance in the exam. Your exact placement however, that I am going to be leaving in the air. Have to maintain some surprise, after all!” 

He began to laugh, an experience that from the lad’s horrified face, clearly put the fear of God into young Midoriya. It certainly scared the hell out of him.

All Might sighed and leaned in. “You’ll get used to it kid... but in the meantime,” He placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled. “ Welcome to your Hero Academia! ”

Izuku’s response was simple. A nonverbal squeal of pure, unadulterated joy. 

---------------------------------------------

Izuku looked quietly into the guest room at the sleeping figure of the little girl who suddenly appeared in his life. While it wasn’t actually a hospital room, as All Might had decided not to place her in one of Might Tower’s infirmary rooms, instead choosing one of the guest rooms, it was starting to look a lot like one to Izuku regardless.

While he and All Might had been at UA, his medical staff had cleaned her up, changed her into a nightgown, and given her an IV.

Sitting next to her, reading a manga, was the shapely form of Mount Lady.

“ I am here , very quietly entering the room,” All Might stated, in a voice far gentler than he normally used, causing the Pro Hero to look up. 

“Munchkin’s safe, big guy,” she said before frowning slightly, “Can’t imagine what she’s been through. Poor kid.”

She gently petted the little girl’s white hair for a moment with a soft smile on her face before looking to All Might as her expression hardened. “When you go after the fucks that hurt his kid, call me. I’d like to put my size 300s right up their asses.”

Without a moment of hesitation, Izuku pulled out his notebook, and made a note. Mount Lady in her transformed state wears size 300 shoes.

“Um, what are you doing, kid?” she asked in confusion, before narrowing her eyes in recognition, “Heeey, aren’t you that brat who threw his bag at that slime guy last year?”

“Um,” Izuku blushed, “Yeah.”

She glanced to All Might. While her mouth didn’t say a word, her face was clearly asking why Izuku was here.

“While I’d be thankful if you didn’t spread this around,” All Might began, “I’ve taken Midoriya-shonen under my wing. He has a strong, heroic character and his quirk is similar to mine.”

She blinked. “Really? I can’t see if. If it was, that sludge guy would have been splattered all across the landscape.”

Izuku blushed and turned to All Might, who nodded to him. It was time to deploy the cover story, “I actually didn’t even know I had a quirk until I started training with All Might.”

She blinked, clearly befuddled. “The hell does that work?”

Izuku mentally exhaled. They discussed what to do in situations like this. Now that All Might was whole again, he couldn’t use his skinny form to hide the fact that he was personally mentoring Izuku from the public eye. They’d be lucky if the tabloids didn’t already have pictures of him riding in the Allmobile. A cover story was needed to placate the media. It was agreed that they’d base it on the excuse he’d given Kacchan, building off it enough to tell just enough truth to obfuscate the truth of One for All. Now here’s hoping that it was convincing.

“I will tell you a secret, if you swear yourself to absolute secrecy,” All Might stated bluntly after a clear moment of consideration.

“Um, okay?”

“Midoriya-shonen is a late bloomer.” All Might replied matter of factly, pausing for a moment to add impact to his statement, “As was I. We were both registered as quirkless as children when in fact we both possess physical reinforcement quirks that require a strong body to function properly. Without a powerful enough physique to support our quirks, well,” he chuckled darkly, “the words ‘chunky salsa’ come to mind...”

To emphasize the concept he made an exploding motion with his hands. 

Mount Lady visibly grimaced, turning a little green at the thought. As did Izuku. He wasn’t kidding. What happened when he fought the zero pointer was the best case scenario. And this poor girl almost suffered something far worse.

“It was only under the guidance of my dearly departed mentor that my body became strong enough to support my quirk, and I was thus able to grow into my power and become the hero I am today.”

Izuku perked up at the word “Mentor”. Another thing he’d have to ask him about later.

She blinked. “You’ve never told anyone about your quirk before, why are you telling me now?”

“Because most of what I’ve told you is a matter of public record, if you know where to look.” All Might replied bluntly, “I was registered quirkless until I applied to UA. While I don’t like to discuss my youth personally, I recognized the same signs in Midoriya-shonen here.” he gave Izuku a hard pat on the back, “And felt I would be remiss if I didn’t offer him the same opportunity to live up to his potential.”

She nodded in understanding. “I can see why you don’t talk about it. A lot of people would have a hard time working their heads around the idea that you of all people were once functionally quirkless. Must have been terrible...”

“Actually no,” All Might replied with a small, honest smile. “If anything, I’m grateful to have had the opportunity.” 

Mount Lady looked at All Might, with absolute bewilderment. An expression mirrored by Izuku. In what way was being quirkless an opportunity?

“The what now?” she asked, “I’m sorry, but I don’t get it.”

“A wise man once said that ‘A strong man, who has known power all his life, may lose respect for that power. But a weak man given strength knows the true value of that strength, and with it, he knows compassion.’.”

Izuku swallowed. This wasn’t the normal boisterous All Might he’d grown used to seeing. This was something else, something far more... personal.

That was something Mount Lady picked up on as well as she looked at him, mouth slightly agape. “Wow, I... Wow. That’s... deep. Real deep,” She paused, clearly struggling with the enormity of what he’d just told her, “Is that your big secret? Why you’re not like a lot of the other heroes?...” she went quiet for a moment, biting her lip as she struggled to put her thoughts into words. “You’ve never looked down on anyone, have you? It’s because you understand. You... you who stand at the pinnacle of what it means to be a hero... you’re there because you know what it's like to lie at the bottom of the heap...?”

“You see, that’s just it. I don’t see myself as standing at the pinnacle of anything . I see myself as a pillar . Giving them something to rely on, something that they can lean on, something that they can always trust to support them, even in their darkest moments.” he smiled, “It’s why I always say ‘ I Am Here ’. It’s not to advertise my presence, it’s to reassure the people around me that everything will be alright.”

Izuku had to write this down. All Might had never given an answer to why he wanted to be the Symbol of Peace beyond “I simply knew.” He almost tore several pages out of his notebook to scribble in insight to what could essentially be considered the biblical creation myth to All Might fanboys everywhere.

The pages all but smoked as he desperately tried to record the words of his idol.

“And... is that why you always smile?” she asked in a small, almost childish voice as she looked up to him, the awe on her face completely unveiled at this point, “Because they need something to depend on?”

All Might closed his eyes and looked misty eyed for a moment. “Because no matter how scary it might get,” he was clearly quoting someone, “You have to smile and say it’s okay....” He looked off into the distance, his trademark smile on his face, but instead of looking mildly plastic as it normally did, Izuku could tell that it was entirely authentic, “Those who keep smiling are the strongest after all.”

Mount Lady at this point was looking at All Might with complete and utter awe as she struggled to parse what he’d just told her. And Izuku was much the same. He’d always all but worshiped All Might, and to hear the truth to his motivations just doubled, no, tripled his intense admiration for the Hero. 

“ I will be their mountain! ” Mount Lady suddenly exclaimed, her eyes misting with emotion.

“Shsh!” All Might half-exclaimed, putting his finger to his lips before pointing at the girl, who seems to toss in response to Mount Lady’s outburst of emotion.

The voluptuous heroine recoiled for a moment, looking mildly abashed, before bowing at the waist, and continuing in a much softer voice, “My name... I took it because it sounds cool.” she admitted, “But now... after hearing this? I’m... I’m going live up to it. I-I will be their mountain. Mount Lady, the mountain that will always shelter the innocent from the storm. Thank you, All Might-san...”

“Not just the innocent,” All Might said with conviction, “Sometimes the greatest thing, the most heroic, and the hardest thing you can do... is to try and save the villains from themselves . They’re not always evil... all too often they’re just... lost . Trapped by a pit of hopelessness and lashing against a society that they feel has rejected them. All too often it falls on us, as heroes, to give them the first hand up to escape that darkness and step into the light...”

She took a deep breath, “I... I have a lot to learn, don’t I?”

“We all do, even me,” All Might replied matter of factly, as he placed a hand on her shoulder. “ But you’re already a fine Hero. I’m sorry about the preaching.”

“N-no!” she whispered loudly, catching herself before she could yell out, as she looked up to him with wide, impassioned eyes. “When I was a girl I always looked up to you. I wanted to be like you, and I hoped I could be as heroic as you are. Now... now you’ve shown me the way, All Might-san.”

All Might chuckled and rubbed the back of his head, “About that. Don’t just go trying to copy me, okay? Just take this as friendly advice, and find your own path to being a great hero.”

“I will,” she paused, “I mean I won’t... I mean I’ll...”

He laughed and smiled at her. “I understand what you mean.”

She blushed and bowed to him again, “Thank you, All Might-san.”

“It was my pleasure.” he said with a smile.

She nodded. “I’ll make you proud.”

“No,” he replied sharply, and frankly, “Don’t make me proud. Make yourself proud. Be someone you can look in the mirror and be proud of.”

She nodded strongly, her face a mask of determination. “I will.”

He smiled. “Good. I’ll take over for now, alright?”

She nodded and started for the door, walking with determination. And butt wiggle. A lot of butt wiggle. Izuku had to admit, the latter caught a lot more of his attention than the former.

Pausing as she reached the door, she looked back at them before bidding farewell with a playful wave and wink as she returned to character, effortlessly readopting the flirty and mildly irreverent attitude that had become a hallmark of Mount Lady’s brand since her introduction.

“Later, All Might... Small Might.”

Chapter Text

“Mom,” Izuku exclaimed as he entered his home. It had been a long day. It had been dark when he left, and it was dark now. He just hoped that  his mother was still awake. “I’m home.”

“Izuku!” His mother exclaimed running over to him and giving him a hug. “You’re home!”

She pulled away, her eyes shining with happiness as she looked at him, “How did you do?”

Izuku smiled. While he’d focused most of his efforts on preparing for the practical exam, he knew he’d done well enough on the written that he’d passed. And as for the practical... well... before he’d broken himself punching out the Zero Pointer, he and Iida had been neck and neck for kills. And considering Iida was a member of one of the most prestigious hero families in Japan, he felt that the taller boy was a good stick by which to measure himself.

That and he’d been outright told that he passed. But thinking about it and judging it for himself filled him with pride and accomplishment that just being told he passed in passing simply couldn’t. It was a new sensation, and one that he very much hoped he’d get used to.

“I did great,” he replied with a smile, “I got in without a doubt. I’m going to become a hero.”

Her already misty eyes began to stream with tears as she pulled him into a tight embrace.

“Izuku!” she called out, “I’m so sorry Izuku... I’m so sorry I doubted you! ”

“It’s okay mom...”

“No it’s not!” she exclaimed, pulling away and looking at him, her face filled with shame, “My boy. My baby boy. You... you’ve accomplished so much Izuku! You’ve reached your dream, and it was in spite of me !”

“Mom!” he exclaimed, “Don’t blame yourself. You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I’m your mother,” she whispered, “I should have believed in you. I should have done more. I should have helped you...”

“You just wanted to protect me,” he replied, “I understand. You were scared for me. I was scared too. It’s okay.”

She smiled and pulled him back into a hug.

“How was I so lucky to have such a special boy?” she asked as she hugged him tight.

Izuku smiled and squeezed her back. “I guess my mom raised me right.”

She laughed and pulled away, smilingly radiantly. He always thought his mom had the best smile when she was happy, and he hoped that she would be happy more. When he was little he never understood why she was sad all the time. It had only been when he’d grown older and started to study quirks that  he understood.

She blamed herself for his quirklessness, and as much as he hated to admit it, there was some cause for it. Her and his father didn’t have synergistic quirks. Her quirk was small scale telekinesis. His father’s was fire breathing. 

When a couple with synergistic quirks had children, their quirks would often complement each other in some way. Sometimes their quirks would favor one parent or the other and occasionally the two would meld, creating a powerful hybrid quirk. But in virtually all cases the children were born with strong, healthy quirks.

When a couple without synergistic quirks married, most of the time the quirk would simply favor one parent or the other, but occasionally one of three things would happen. First, the quirks might meld in unexpected ways. For example, he might have been born with the ability to control flame like his mother with small objects. Or he could have had an Aberrant quirk, a quirk unrelated to either of his parents. Aberrant quirks were basically a fresh draw on the superpower lottery. They could be extremely powerful, but also had the potential to be unstable. Then there was the final possibility. The parents’ quirk factors might cancel each other out leading to a genetic throwback: a quirkless child.

If she hated herself for marrying a man without thinking of how their quirks would affect their children, Izuku hated himself for destroying their marriage. When he was little, his father had almost always been busy, but had clearly treasured every moment he could with them. Once he’d been diagnosed as quirkless, he began throwing himself more and more deeply into his work until he took a position overseas. 

And the worst part was, in his heart, he understood that his father blamed himself too. That his son being quirkless was somehow his fault, and that the only thing he could do to make up for it was to provide for them the best he could.

He wanted his mother to smile all of the time. He wanted his father to not feel like he had a duty to sacrifice himself for their sake. He wanted his family to be whole again... or at least for his parents to be able to find happiness, no matter what form it was in. He didn’t want to be a burden on them anymore. And now that he was going to become a hero, he wanted them to know that everything was going to be all right because he was here .

“I have such a day planned for tomorrow!” she said with a wide smile. “I know you’ve been training hard, so I’ve been giving you your space, but now that you’re in... I’ve missed you Izuku.”

He couldn’t help but flinch. He’d already promised All Might he’d help watch the girl. They’d both realized she needed someone friendly that she’d recognize to be there, and All Might couldn’t wait by her side 24/7. He still needed to be a hero, and do things like go to the bathroom. And that was with him deciding that her comfort and sense of safety was more important than petty things like sleeping in his own bed for the next few days.

He’d already had his specially built Bigntal Recliner wheeled in.

His mother’s face fell, that look of happiness vanishing, something that made him feel like a dagger was twisted in his gut.

“Something came up, mom,” Izuku replied, “It’s... complicated.”

She looked at him in confusion, “What happened?”

Thankfully, All Might had decided that with the cover story in place it would be safe to tell her the truth. Or at least most of it. They’d keep the true nature of One for All to themselves. Fow now they’d go with the excuse he’d come up with and just claim he had an Aberrant quirk.

Which technically wasn’t actually a lie. All first generation quirks were Aberrant and One for All was as old as the modern world. A legacy of heroism passed down from generation to generation: a torch created to light the way to a brighter world. 

He loved his mother dearly, but he knew she wore her emotions on her sleeve and could cry at the drop of a pin. He didn’t want to upset her, so he’d been planning on easing her into the fact that he was All Might’s student. But now... seeing the look on her face...

“Mom,” he placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled. “I need to make a call real quick, okay?”

She bit her lip and nodded, her eyes watering slightly, causing him to wince slightly. He hated it when his mother got upset. 

---------------------

Midoriya Inko was terrified for her son. It felt as though over the past year they’d grown apart. She could almost pin it on the day to when he came in full of hope and vigor, and with that ridiculous meal plan. It had been expensive to cover, and hadn’t been nearly as good for her as it was for him, but when she saw the look of hope and joy on his face... well... she was his mother. Mothers make sacrifices for their children and it had been the first time she’d seen him show hope in years. What was a couple of kilos in exchange for being able to see her baby boy smile?

Before all of this, she and Izuku had been extremely close. Her son had been her best friend, but now he almost felt like a stranger. She knew teenagers grew apart from their parents, and she accepted that. Struggled to, but she accepted it. But he was keeping so many secrets from her and she just wanted to know what was going on. So she could support him. So she could help him....

“Mom?”

“Izuku?” she asked, looking up to her son, “What was that call about?”

Izuku sighed. “Mom, you’ll probably want to sit down for this.”

She frowned and nervously did so. When someone said that, it never sent well. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong mom,” he replied, looking quite uncomfortable himself, “Just I need to say some things that are complicated.”

“Alright,” she replied, “What’s going on.”

She didn’t ask him. She ordered him, as his mother. She needed to know.

“Mom, these last ten months? I haven’t been training on my own.”

“I guessed as much,” she replied, “Who have you been training with?”

Her Izuku was such a bright, kind hearted, sensitive boy. She was afraid that someone had lured him into some kind of trouble...

Her brow furrowed. If someone had taken advantage of her baby boy, well, she’d get to see how well her quirk worked on eyeballs.

“Um, mom, what’s with the scary face?”

“Please continue,” she dryly stated.

He smiled wearily. “Um, well, after what happened with the sludge villain, I caught the attention of um, someone who decided to help me...”

Seeing Izuku on the news charging at a monster that had the heroes staying away had been the single most terrifying moment of her life. 

Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. “And who was this someone...”

Eyeballs...

“A pro-hero,” Izuku replied, “He said that all the greatest heroes... they all... well... he asked me why I did it, and I told him it was because Kacchan, he looked like he needed help and my body just moved on its own. He said that all the best heroes would tell that very same story... that their bodies did the same... and he offered to help me become a hero.”

Now she wanted to cry. She wanted to scream. She wanted to protect him from the world. But having heard that, what did she really have to complain about? That someone out there besides her had finally seen how brave, special, and wonderful her Izuku was?

She wanted to say he was quirkless, that he’d just get himself killed. But if he could pass UA’s entrance, something famed for being virtually impossible to the point it was often seen as unfair to all but those with the most flashy, combat oriented quirks, then he’d already proven her wrong. 

She’d strangled his dream once, and she’d hated herself ever since. Now that he’d overcome everyone who doubted him, including her , how dare she even think it? She’d have to thank this hero from the depths of her heart, for believing in her baby when no one else would ...

“Who is your mentor?” she asked. Which hero did she have to thank for teaching her son how to stand proud? For pulling him out of that pit of self-doubt and resentment? One she herself had helped plant him within when she had pitied herself instead of trying to support his dreams. To whom did she owe her most humble and impassioned thanks?

“I..” Izuku paused, “He’d like to tell you himself. Tomorrow. The reason I can’t spend tomorrow with you is because this morning, before he took me to UA, we came across a girl...”

Inko blinked. “A girl?”

Her son nodded. “Yeah, mom. A little girl ran up to us, she was injured and looked to be in trouble. She fainted soon after and is still asleep. He took her to his office and...”

“Why not to the hospital?” she asked. What kind of hero doesn’t take a little girl to the hospital?

“She has a powerful quirk and looked like she was abused,” Izuku replied, causing Inko’s eyes to widen. “There’s a chance bad people are looking for her so we wanted to make sure she’s kept somewhere safe and secure.”

“Then why his office?” she asked. Was he endangering her son? The kind of people who’d do terrible things to little girls were the types of villains who might try and take them back. And if her Izuku was there when they did... 

Izuku looked thoughtful for a moment. “He’s based out of Might Tower.”

Inko nodded in full understanding, her fears put completely to rest. That explained everything. Might Tower wasn’t just All Might’s personal hero agency, but she knew that he also permitted a number of other heroes to place their offices there as well. It also had a free medical clinic open to anyone in need without question, one that specialized in difficult quirk cases, along with a small emergency trauma ward. It was one of the best equipped non-hospitals in Tokyo. 

And as for keeping the girl safe, anyone who wanted to go after her wouldn’t just have to deal with the numerous heroes working there, but would face the wrath of the Symbol of Peace himself. And she couldn’t imagine that the smiling man would at all tolerate that sort of nonsense. Thanks to Izuku’s obsession with All Might she’d watched more videos of him in action than any other three mothers combined, and one that thing she’d learned about that wonderful , heroic man was that arguably the fastest way to really piss him off was to endanger children.

She shuddered when she remembered that time he fought that horrible bear villain. He hadn’t been smiling then... and when he was done, neither was the bear.

She normally wasn’t one to question the decisions of Pro Heroes, but in this case she’d been left wondering. But hearing the details, she could completely agree with his mentor’s decision on that front. Sometimes heroes could seem a bit reckless, but this mysterious hero, whoever he was, was clearly experienced if his thoughtfulness was any indication. She could respect that, and it did help calm her maternal fears, but there was one question she needed answered before she could be fully at ease with this.

“But what does this have to do with you?” she asked, “Why does he need you there?”

“I was there when she fainted,” he replied, “He’d like someone she’d recognize to be there when she wakes up. So she’s not scared, and he can’t be there all the time.”

Inko’s face slowly softened and her smile grew. Her Izuku, acting like a hero already, trying to heal the world with his smile. “Well then, we can have some time together after she wakes up then, I guess...”

Izuku, her darling boy smiled at her, “Actually... would you like to come in with me tomorrow? He’d like to speak to you and I’d like to spend the day with you too, mom... and maybe once everything calms down, we can have a special day, just you and me?”

“Of course I would,” Inko said with a beaming smile. Now this was her Izuku! Her kind, sweet, thoughtful, and oh so brave little Izuku. She’d get a chance to spend the day with her son, and a chance to meet the man who’d give her boy a reason to stand proudly... and thank him from the very depths of her heart.

“I’d like nothing more in the world.”

-----------------

Sasaki Mirai, known to most as Sir Nighteye, took a deep sip of his bubble tea as he looked at the slumbering girl that lay before him as he examined her expressions. She was sleeping deeply, but by the occasional twitch and microexpression, he was getting a feeling that her dreams were anything but sweet.

This lined up with the scars going up and down her limbs, some healed, some fresh. Someone had been taking a great deal of blood from this girl and without any care as to her comfort or wellbeing. The fact that they did so by cutting rather than simply drawing it like a civilized person pointed to a degree of casual sadism that filled him with a cold fury.

Glancing at Toshinori, their eyes met and he could see the concern in the larger man’s eyes. Of course All Might would be deeply concerned for any child in this condition, to say nothing of the girl who had reversed the horrible injury he’d suffered at the hands of All for One. 

“So, your new protege believes her quirk is temporal in nature?”

“Yes,” his friend replied, “He also believes she’s a time traveler.”

Mirai looked at the girl and gently nodded. “I find that hard to believe. However... if you’d asked me yesterday if the future could be changed, I would have said no. Never before has my Foresight ever been wrong...” he paused for a moment, “But now everything has changed because of this... child’s intervention.”

A smile slowly spread across his face. “She gives me hope.”

Toshinori’s eyebrow peeked, “Really?”

He looked back down to the girl and nodded. “Yes. While it’s a useful ability, sometimes the most terrible thing you can do is to look upon the future, to see what is to come, and to know that no matter matter what you do, you can’t change it. This girl... I didn’t foresee this. My quirk didn’t see her here and now. She’s proof that nothing is set, and that free will is not an illusion,” he looked back up to his old friend, with a thoughtful expression, “While the loss of absolute clarity may reduce the effectiveness of my quirk to a degree, I welcome it. To know that we mortals can defy the fates and be the architects of our own destiny trumps any inconvenience I might face.”

The Number One’s expression softened. “I’m happy for you. I’ll admit, I’ve always worried about you and your fatalist attitude. I think this is the first time I’ve ever seen you at peace.”

“Perhaps it is,” he said, taking a sip of his drink. He chewed on one of the tapioca pearls for a moment before looking to Toshinori, “Though I doubt you would have called me in just to tell me about our pretty little time traveler here. Does it have something to do with your youthful appearance?”

Toshinori nodded and lifted his shirt. Mirai’s eyes went wide when he saw the heinous wound on his friend’s torso, or rather, it’s absence .

“She rewound my body,” Toshinori stated with no lack of pleasure, “Yesterday I ate a steak dinner for the first time in half a decade and I no longer look like a zombie when I’m off the job.”

“That’s... This is wonderful news, Toshi! I-I’m so happy for you!,” While he normally wasn’t one for emotional displays, he was beyond ecstatic. So much so that he actually gave the larger man a hug. All Might was not only his best friend and mentor in heroics, he was his personal hero, the person he looked up to the most. He was not ashamed to say he had every piece of licensed All Might merchandise ever sold, and several that never made it to sale.

“Thank you, Mirai,” Toshinori said with a smile.

“So, I’m guessing you’re not going to be passing on One for All then?,” he said as he attempted to school his emotions in favor of the topic at hand. While he might have felt as giddy as a first time father, this was neither the time nor place.

“Not anytime soon,” was his response.

“Hmn,” he nodded, “Have you broken it to Midoriya-san then?”

Toshinori simply laughed in response. “He’s aware. Thanks to this girl, he has no need of it.”

Nighteye blinked in confusion. “What?”

“She was, at least for a short time, the host of One for All. A separate One for All. She came to us on the brink of death. It seemed that it was only her quirks ability to rewind her body that was keeping her from being torn apart from within. She passed the quirk to Midoriya-shonen, then she used the embers of One for All within her to restore me. And then she fainted.”

He blinked in surprise. What. Seriously. What? “That’s ludicrous enough that if we weren’t entertaining the idea of something as equally ludicrous as time travel, I’d find it hard to believe.”

“As do I,” his friend chuckled, “As do I... but... just because it’s difficult to believe doesn’t mean it can’t be true.”

Toshinori then paused for a moment. “But anyways, there’s something else I wanted to talk about.”

“Yes?”

“First... you were right,” he said, causing Mirai to almost lose his composure if only for a moment. “I do need to spend time being... just Toshinori.” He took a deep breath, “Before my injury, I felt like I couldn’t risk it. Having a life. Having loved ones would have been selfish, because all I would have been doing is painting them as targets for All for One. I couldn’t handle losing someone like I lost Nana- she was almost a mother to me, you know that. To put myself, or someone else through that? And after...” he closed his eyes, “I was a broken man, Mirai. I couldn’t live a proper life anymore. How could I? I was in constant pain and had a daily diet of medications so vast I can’t even remember half their names after five years of taking them. I didn’t have anything left to offer anyone. What was I? A skeleton living off milkshakes? If I’d made it to 60 I’d have been utterly shocked. Being the Symbol of Peace was all I had left.”

Nighteye felt a lump forming in this throat. Normally his friend never opened up like this, instead choosing to paint a brave face for the world. But this was something else. “Toshinori...”

Toshinori smiled, and half laughed, half sobbed, “But that’s the past. All for One is gone, and I’m whole again... I think... I think that for once, I just maybe can afford to set aside some time for Yagi Toshinori.”

Nighteye placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder and simply smiled. “Toshi?”

“Yes?”

“I’d like to work with you again,” Mirai’s smile was beaming, “And if he’s good enough that you would have made him your successor, I guess... I’m sure that Midoriya-kun’s going to get along well with Togata-kun.”

His friend blinked, clearly confused. “Wait, really? That was it?”

“What was it?”

“I was wondering what I’d have to do, how hard I’d have to beg for you to work with me again,” All Might admitted.

Mirai snorted, “I never wanted to stop working with you. I just couldn’t bear to watch you grind yourself to dust like that...”

“I see,” Toshi muttered to himself, “Going to have to call Dave, I guess....”

Sir Nighteye blinked in confusion. David Shields? “Why?”

“Looks like I’m going to need a bigger car.”

Mirai couldn't help himself. He began to laugh. And so did Toshinori. They must have looked like a pair of jackasses. Two grown men laughing to themselves to the point of tears at a joke that honestly wasn’t even funny, but he couldn’t give a damn. For the first time in years he felt like everything was going to be alright.

He smiled as he wiped his eyes, “It’s good to have you back.”

Toshinori smiled. Not All Might, Toshinori. “It’s good to be back...”

Then the moment was broken when his phone began to scream “ A PHONE CALL IS HERE! A PHONE CALL IS HERE!! ”

He had to groan, “I see you’re still using that idiotic ring tone...”

Blushing slightly, Toshinori picked up the phone. “Um, yes... I see.... Well. Right then. Thank you for sending me the heads up.”

He turned off the phone. “Midoriya-shonen has just arrived with his mother.”

Mirai nodded. “I guess I should get going then?”

“I don’t want to chase you away,” Toshinori said, “But at the moment, it might be for the best. We have a cover story, but I won’t have time to fill you in before they get here.”

He nodded. “I understand completely.”

Chapter Text

Izuku had to fight the urge to squeal like a 12 year old girl meeting her favorite boy band as he walked through the grand doorways of Might Tower, his mother in tow and his access card in hand. The day before, All Might had been sure to get him a Might Tower ID. It was a biometrically linked RIDF card with his picture on it. The card could be used to access doors and elevators, get him through security, and was linked to his bank account so he could buy items from the underground shopping center as well as eat from the myriad of  restaurants on the lower levels.

Normally they were used by employees and occupants, but as he was now basically All Might’s official apprentice, the Symbol of Peace had decided that Izuku being able to access the upper levels without having All Might having to call down for them to let him in would be a good idea. That and it would probably save time.

This alone would have left him giddy beyond reason. But even more, the Symbol of Peace had set up a cash line for him, saying that it would also be a good idea for him to be able to buy meals, basic hero supplies, and other goods he felt he needed without having to, in his exact words, go ‘mother may I’, every time he needed something. As long as Izuku didn’t ‘go nuts’, he said he’d trust his judgement. And that was a trust Izuku would never abuse. Not in a million, billion, trillion years. 

“Izuku,” she said with a smile. “I remember when I brought you here when you were little... I never imagined you’d be here training with one of the heroes who work here...” her eyes lit up. “It’s amazing.”

Izuku couldn’t help but grin. “You haven’t seen anything yet, mom.”

She blinked at that. Walking slowly and with as much confidence as he could, because if he didn’t, he probably would have begun skipping, the young hero walked up to the entrance desk and scanned his card.

“Midoriya Izuku and guest.”

Behind the desk, the security checker’s eyes went slightly wide as he looked up from his monitor. Whatever his screen had just told him obviously surprised him.

“Do... Do I need to sign in?” his mother asked, clearly shocked that Izuku had been given a Might Tower access card.

“Um, no Midoriya-san. You’re fine.”

She looked over to Izuku in confusion.

“My mentor must have called in ahead,” he said as weakly as they passed by the guard.

He then approached the elevator and scanned his card, only to find the digital call button automatically lit up with a glowing M.

He blinked wondering what that meant when the elevator arrived with a proud cry of “ THE ELEVATOR IS HERE!” followed by a loud ding.

His mother blushed at the hero's digitized voice, something that made him smile. He wondered how well the two would get along once she actually met him?

“This is amazing, Izuku!” she said with a wide eyed smile, her face showing the same sort of wide eyed wonder that Izuku himself shared. 

“I know mom,” And boy did he ever. He was fighting the urge to squeal in joy. Though he said it nice and cool-like because he didn’t want to geek out in front of his mom. He wanted to look like a badass for her, not just some fanboy. As he spoke, he hit the button for the 72nd floor. That’s where Eri’s room was after all.

The music that started was quite possibly the least painful elevator music that he ever heard, a sort of cheerful, jazzy, swing rock beat that has him humming along. Even his mother seemed to be bouncing her foot slightly. 

“All Might-san has good taste in music,” his mother observed, her finger tapping with the beat as the elevator rose with swift, butter smoothness before arriving with a ding and a proud proclamation of “YOUR DESTINATION IS HERE!”

The door opened to a sight that had both Izuku and his mother standing in shock. There before them, standing in just a pair of dark slacks and an untucked, light-blue dress casual shirt was the Pro Hero, Sir Nighteye. And even more shocking was what he was carrying in his hand: A half-drank bubble tea in a commemorative All Might action cup. The one that had him in his Silver Age costume. 

For a split second Izuku reminded himself that he’d have to buy a bubble tea so he could get that cup, before remembering the fact that he was standing less than a meter from Sir Nighteye. 

In casual dress. 

With a bubble tea .

“Ah! Izuku-kun,” Nighteye said with a warm smile and the kind of friendly tone you normally only use with one whom you’re well acquainted, “Good to see you’re well...”

He then nodded to his mother, “Looking lovely today, Midoriya-san.”

His mother released a sound that sounded something like a squeaky toy. Izuku couldn’t blame her.

“Your... ‘mentor’ asked me to let you know he had to handle some quick business, so please just wait up.”

“Um... okay,” Izuku said weakly as the tall, thin man walked past him into the elevator as he and his mother just sort of shuffled out. 

With a look of clear amusement in his eyes, the Pro Hero pressed the button for the ground floor and gave him a friendly wave farewell. One Izuku could only weakly return with how shocked he was.

“Um, bye...”

“Izuku?” his mother asked him, looking at him with an expression of downright awe, “A-are you on a first name basis with all the big heroes?”

Izuku gulped and said the only honest thing he felt that he could. “N-not all of them...”

His mother just looked at him with watery-eyed pride as they started down the hallway towards Eri’s room. They arrived there a good two minutes later and he found that his card was able to unlock the door without any trouble. 

Inside the room was as he’d left it the night before, barring the addition of All Might’s massive recliner that also had a blanket and pillow along with it. Clearly he was spending most of his time here. Which made Izuku wonder where he’d gone to and what important business he needed to get done.

A question answered a moment later when he heard the flush of a toilet.

Oh. That kind of business...

For her part his mother quietly approached the sleeping girl with a look of sadness. “Such a pretty girl,” she said, “What kind of monster could harm such an innocent child?”

“I don’t know...”

Inko gasped as she turned around and found herself looking at the herculean form of the world’s strongest hero .

“All Might-san...” she gasped.

“But I intend to find out, because if I allow harm to befall one small girl right in front of me, then how can I call myself the Symbol of Peace?”

She quickly bowed. And then bowed. And bowed again. “M-my apologies, All Might-san! I didn’t know you were here. We were just waiting for Izuku’s mentor and I don’t know who he is, just that he was there to watch over this little girl... it makes perfect sense that you’d personally become involved in this and...” she quickly began stammering on a list of almost unintelligible platatues and apologies and she continued to bow, almost by clockwork at this point.

“So that’s where the kid gets it...” All Might muttered to himself as he drew back slightly, causing Izuku himself to blush deeply and almost start apologizing himself for his own behavior.

“And as for the identity of Izuku-shonen’s mentor, ponder no longer!” 

She paused and looked up as All Might struck a heroic pose .

“Because I AM HERE! ”

His mother simply stood in place and blinked, her face a clear mask of confusion as her mind refused to parse what was going on. 

“What.”

All Might deflated. Well, not literally deflated like he used to, as he no longer did that, but he did seem to lose his gloriously hammy heroic presence due to Izuku’s mother's clear confusion. She clearly couldn’t believe what was going on before her eyes.

Izuku didn’t blame her. Some mornings he wanted to pinch himself because he wondered if it was all a dream. He never did. Because if it was, then he didn’t want it to end.

“All Might-san?” she asked after a moment in a trembling tone. “Y-you are the one who has been training m-my Izuku?”

“Indeed!” he said with a smile. “I hope the All American Dream Plan wasn’t too much of a burden...”

Inko’s eyes began to water, and in almost a blur, she had her arms wrapped around the waist of the Symbol of Peace blubbering incoherent words of gratitude. Izuku himself felt his eyes begin to water as his mother’s tension broke like a dam, letting loose a deluge of thanks, about inspiring him, about believing in him, about being there for him when no one else was...

Gently All Might placed his hand on Inko’s shoulder and gave it a light squeeze. “All is well, Midoriya-san. Your thanks are accepted, but are unnecessary.”

She pulled back and looked at him through wet eyes. “W-what?”

“It is I who should be thanking you for raising such an exemplary young man! Your son is a brave and courageous boy with the soul of a true hero,” He paused thoughtfully, “Several months ago, I was suffering through a hard moment and in that time your son’s courage and nobility was an inspiration to me . Helped put my head back on straight and remind me of what it means to be a hero. If not for him, I would have rendered myself a hypocrite. If I didn’t train him, then I wouldn’t have been living up to my own standards.”

Inko looked at him in complete shock. “W-what happened?”

There was a pause.

“What I am about to tell you,” All Might began, “I am telling you in full confidence. Understand?”

She nodded. “Y-yes, All Might-san.”

“Six years ago I was seriously injured in a battle with a powerful villain,” he replied, “I was able to defeat my enemy, but only at great cost. He injured me terribly and in doing so reduced my ability to use my quirk. For the past several years, I’ve been able to spend less and less of my time as a hero. Eventually it would have degraded to the point that I was effectively quirkless...”

She went wide eyed with horror. “N-no, All Might-san!” she gasped, “Before you... everything was terrible. Villains everywhere, quirk trafficking, kidnappings... W-we need you!”

He gave her shoulder a squeeze. “You didn’t need me , you needed a Symbol of Peace , and in Izuku-shonen, I saw one worthy of that mantle.”

She gasped, pulling back and looking at her son with a mixture of awe and terror.

“But that is no longer the case. Thanks to an experimental treatment, I am now as hale and hearty as I was in the height of my prime! But this does not mean I have forgotten my would-be successor! No! Now I hope to raise him up to stand, not as my successor, by my side as a true equal ! A strong and mighty hero in his own right! Perhaps in time he may even surpass me, as every teacher hopes of their student.”

“How,” Inko asked, her fear and confusion clearly apparent, “How is that even possible? My son doesn’t have a quirk... and the sort of villains you fight...”

Izuku flinched slightly at that.

“I see how that would be a concern, Midoriya-san,” All Might replied, “And is the other reason I chose your son as my successor. His quirk is like mine.”

She looked at him in complete confusion. “His... quirk ?”

“Yes,” All Might replied, matter of factly, “His quirk. Like Izuku, I was effectively quirkless until I reached my 15th year.”

Inko’s eyes widened in shock.

“It was only when I met my own mentor, and she began to train me, that we discovered the truth. That I did indeed possess a quirk: an Aberrant quirk. An unbelievably powerful physical reinforcement quirk. So powerful in fact, that until my body was able to handle its might, my own subconscious suppressed my abilities in order to preserve myself. To keep me from accidentally destroying my body with my own mighty strength.”

“And that’s why you had him buy all those weights, eat that special diet, and go to that beach in the morning before the sun was even up...” she said as she began to make the connections.

Izuku blushed. “You knew about the beach?”

“Izuku, I wash your clothes,” she replied flatly “You didn’t think I noticed the sand? All the sand. Everywhere?”

He could only blush. He actually never thought of that...

“Indeed! It was all to prepare his body to become a worthy vessel for his own potential...”

She stumbled to a seat and fell onto her rear, slowly looking up with a look of odd contentment on her face. As if a great weight had been lifted from her shoulders. “My boy. My brave, powerful boy...”

She looked up to her son with tears streaming down her face and a look of wordless joy. 

“Izuku...?”

“Y-yeah mom?”

She smiled widely. “Remember when you were a little boy?”

He blinked in confusion. What?”

She smiled. “Help!”

His eyes went wide and began to water as he remembered that childhood game. Playing All Might. A game that had stopped when he received his diagnosis as Quirkless. When neither of them could bear it any longer.

He was barely able to say the words, so thick were his emotions as he realized what she was doing. “I am Here!”

This was it, he realized, his mother's recognition. Her acceptance, and her telling him in the most simple terms that she believed in him and his dream. 

He hugged his mom and began to cry on her shoulder as she cried on his. 

“Um,” All Might said, looking a little uncomfortable about intruding on what he felt to be a personal moment, “Maybe I should leave?”

“D-don’t you dare, you wonderful man!” Inko cut in using her ‘mom’ voice, “We have you to thank for this as much as anyone.”

He blinked. “Er... As much as I appreciate your thanks, I actually do need to get going. I was going to ask Izuku to watch her for several hours in my place. How about I have something sent up? How about sushi? Everyone likes sushi!”

She blinked. “Um, it’s good, I guess. But it’s a bit pricey so we normally don’t have it too often...”

All Might just smiled and plugged something into his phone. “And there you go. And Midoriya-shonen? Remember to download the Might Tower Room Service app. That way if you need something, you can have it sent right up! And if she wakes up, be sure to call up my medic. You’ll find everything in the app.”

Izuku blinked. Really? “Um, can I get some Katsudon?”

With a laugh, All Might nodded, “Absolutely my boy! Get whatever you want, just don’t go too crazy. And as for me... I must wish a good day to you both. After all, there’s a-heroing to be done!”

She waved him off with a playfully dismissive tone. “Alright. Go... go off and save the world then.”

He nodded with a wide smile and a thumbs up. “Yes, ma’am!”

---------------------

The first thing she sensed was the smell. That sweet delicious smell that made her stomach ache and rumble. It was enough to pierce through the veil of her exhaustion and pull her back into the waking world: the pain and emptiness of her hunger.

Eri awoke with a quiet groan, squinting her eyes as she shifted her head away from the bright light. It wasn’t just her belly. Her everything hurt. Had it all been a wonderful dream? Escaping? Helping the heroes? 

Slowly she turned over, towards that beautiful smell and opened her eyes. Thankfully the blinds were closed and the lights were dim as shapes came into focus. 

She was in a bed, and not the small cot that Chisaki had ‘given’ her, but a big, soft, warm bed. And was wearing a comfortable night dress, not the scratchy worn clothes she was given to wear. And her arms and legs didn’t hurt... and through the blinds she could actually see the sun!

Sitting off to the side were a pair of people. A chubby woman with green hair and a kind face, and a boy with green hair and freckles. One she recognized. It was like someone flipped a switch. She knew him. She knew him from the beach... She knew him from... from... 

She... 

She gritted her teeth and cried out as... as she remembered . As a crushing wave of thoughts, images and sensations fell upon her like a tsunami, threatening to wash away her very identity. They were material but at the same time, ethereal. They were like fantasy yet were reality. They were memories but at the same time they were a dream. They belonged to someone else, but at the same time they were fundamentally and absolutely... hers .

It was like a beautiful agony. It hurt so badly, but at the same time it left her feeling complete...

In a moment, the boy was by her side while the mother right behind him.

“Are you okay?” he asked, frantically “Are you in pain? What hurts.”

“Don’t crowd her, Izuku!” his mother warned.

She reached out and took his hand, her eyes locking in on his as she took his hand as tightly as she could as the chaotic jumble of thoughts and images began to order themselves...

“I-zu-ku...”

------------------------------------------------------------------

“Damn it all!” The Rabbit Hero Mirko cursed as she jumped back from the damned villain she was fighting. 

It had all started with a standard regular call. Villain robbing a jewelry store, hero needed to contain them.That part had been okay. What hadn't been okay was what happened when she’d arrived and thrown down with the prick.

“Hehe... you might want to watch that first step,” the villain known as Kirkbi laughed as he reformed from the field of vicious, hateful, unholy multi-colored caltrops he’d been reduced to after hitting him with her last, literal body shattering blow, one that had clearly done more damage to her body than his.

She gritted her teeth and ignored her smarting foot as she fell back into a fighting stance. She always hated depending on other heroes unless she had to, she loathed nothing more than those who couldn’t stand based on their own strength. But now, this was starting to feel more and more like one of those times when it was unavoidable. He wasn’t particularly tough, but his power was tricky, and the nature of it all but negated the core of her fighting style.

After all, even with her ridiculous pain resistance and will power, how bright an idea was it to kick a bastard who had a body made out of Legos ? Grapples didn’t work either because he could almost effortlessly configure the thousands of bricks that made up his body into any combination or even disintegrate and reintegrate himself at will.

In other words, this fight was shaping up to be a total pain in her tail. 

“How about you just let me go, hero. I got what I came for and I don’t really want to hurt anyone, but keep this up and those cute little bunny feet of yours will be left in ruins!”

Her crimson eyes narrowed and almost began to all but glow with fury. No. He hadn’t. The son of a bitch hadn’t... “Did you... did you just call me a bunny?! ”

“Yeah, why not? You’re actually really damned cute! With those floppy ears and that bushy tail...”

“You son of a bitch...” Yep. That was it. It was official. He was going to fucking die .

Roaring in anger she leapt forward and moved into a flying spin kick. Seeing her plan he reoriented his bricks and shattered with the impact, but not before her foot once again came in contact with plastic hell.

“Oh! Ouch! Ugh! Son of a...!” she cried out as she landed on one foot, bouncing about trying to keep from landing on the sharp little demon cubes that covered the ground.

“You already knew that didn’t work, right?” he taunted, “I guess the cream between your ears must have curdled a bit from disuse, eh chocolaty?”

Her eyebrow twitched. Yep. She was totally murdering this prick. She was sure they could just dismiss it as a justifiable homicide.

“Quick question? You ever consider going with odangos? After all, you’ve already totally owning the Moon Rabbit look. Might as well go all in, right?”

She gritted her teeth with fury, loosing a primal roar, ripped a public bench from the ground and smashed him over the head with it. She always hated that stupid old anime and cursed every bastard involved with the idea to remake it for her generation. Even as a kid, seeing someone with her leitmotif acting like a moronic weakling was absolute hell. One of the worst parts about growing up with her quirk was the teachers had never even let her punch the smug little pricks who had the nerve to call her Usagi to her face! Not that it ever stopped her.

“Why won’t you just shut up! ” she roared.

“Because nothing amuses me more than watching dumbass heroes do more damage than I do? I mean seriously, Usagi-chan...”

She could feel her jaw begin to ache as her vision began to turn red from pure unadulterated fury.

“How much is the public going to have to pay to clean up your tantrum here?...”

His face shifted into a bullhorn. “YOU SEE THIS, PEOPLE? WITNESS YOUR TAX DOLLARS AT WORK!”

Fucking hell. He was trying to mess with her head. She needed to cool her jets and get her head back in the damned game!

She took a deep breath to try and calm herself. She’d get hers once this annoying prick was taken down. She might not be equipped to beat this guy, but she sure as hell could keep him occupied long enough for backup to arrive...

“HAHAHAHAHA! IT’S ALL RIGHT NOW! WHY? BECAUSE I AM HERE!”

Shit. Well speak of the devil. Normally if things were messed up enough that she actually needed backup, she’d have been pleased as punch with it being the Number One, but in this case the problem with All Might being her backup in this case, was that his quirk was kind of like hers. If her quirk decided to take a whole bunch of crystal meth. And started doing lines of coke. And don’t forget the trigger. All the goddamned trigger. Along with some anabolic steroids too, just for good measure.

She suspected that she’d lost track of the analogy somewhere...

In other words, while he was OP as shit, he was actually something of a poor match up against this guy. 

That said, seeing the smug prick’s eyes go wide with pants-shitting terror for a split second was the highlight of her day. 

“Heheh... oh look, it’s the Symbol of Peace! What are ya gonna do, smash me to pieces?”

“No, actually!”  he replied, before glancing over to Rumi, “I’m sorry I took so long, but I had to pick up a solution to your blocky little problem here.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Really? What are you thinking?”

All Might smiled and proudly held up a three liter bottle of Krafti glue.

The villains eyes widened with horror. “Oh no...”

Rumi’s eyes narrowed and her mouth shifted into a sadistic grin. “Oh hell yes .”

“Shitshitshit!” The villain began to disassemble himself, probably in an attempt to make for the sewer, but before he could do so, All Might threw the bottle at him. It slammed into him with cannon like force, coating his entire body in the sticky white ooze. 

Kirkbi’s howled in torment as his body began to slow its movement, the adhesive doing its job and gumming up both his body and his quirk, rendering him motionless. She wouldn’t lie and say that look of hopelessness in his eyes didn’t fill her with an intense sensation of personal pleasure. She hoped they’d wait a good while before dumping his ass in solvent to loosen that crap up.

Looking up to All Might, she had to admit: This kind of stuff was why he was the Number One Hero. Glue on Legos. Of course. So damned simple. Made her want to kick her own ass for being so thoughtless. She let her temper get the best of her and stopped thinking.

“Are you alright, Mirko-san?”

“Yeah,” she said with a sigh, “Glue. Ugh. I feel like such a dumbass. I let him get under my skin instead of thinking. Stupid, rookie mistake.”

He smiled as he placed a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t beat yourself up over it, Mirko-san. Even I have my moments...” he glanced at the bakery across the street, “How about I buy you a nice slice of carrot cake to calm your nerves.”

Her eyes narrowed, “You making assumptions there big guy?”

He recoiled slightly and raised his hands in a placative way, clearly looking embarrassed. “I apologize. I-I didn’t mean to make any...”

She laughed, “Just messing with you, All Might. I love Carrot Cake.” Screw the stereotype, Carrots made everything better and she’d go to the mat with anyone who said otherwise. “Let's do this.”

They shared a laugh and began to walk across the street until his phone began to proudly proclaim that “ A PHONE CALL IS HERE! ” , causing her to pause and turn to him with an absolute look of incredulous confusion 

“Seriously? That’s your ringtone?”

All Might coughed in embarrassment and answered his phone. 

While she didn’t want to do so, she couldn’t help but eavesdrop on the conversation. After all, she was the Rabbit Hero Mirko, and her ears weren’t just for show.

“Um... All Might, she’s awake...”

This had Mirko’s eyebrow peeking slightly. Huh? Who was this “she”?

“I see. Is she well?”

“She seems a bit out of it, but the medic said she’s doing okay. She’s mostly been eating. I think it was the smell of my katsudon that woke her up, so I let her have it. Now she’s half way through that huge sushi platter you got for my mom...”

“Well, I had bought that with the intent for you to share it,” All Might replied, “But anyways, do whatever you need to do to keep her calm, happy, and safe. And make sure that she doesn’t eat so much that she hurts herself.”

“R-right!”

“Anyways, just hold down the fort, young man, and I’ll be right over.” 

Hmn, interesting...

The Symbol of Peace clicked off his phone and turned to her and looked over. “My apologies, but duty calls.”

She smirked, “We’re both pros, I know the deal. Go handle your business, hero. Call it a raincheck and we’re golden.”

He nodded and with a smile and a thumbs up, he was off with a jump that made her feel a little pang of envy as she watched him vanish into the horizon. 

Taking a deep breath, she twitched when she heard cameras going off.

The color slowly began to drain from her face as she realized exactly what that meant. 

“Uh oh.”

The damned paparazzi were here, weren't they? And she’d just theoretically, if you squinted really hard, had just set up a date with All Might right in front of them, hadn’t she?

She sighed in defeat as her ears began to droop as she accepted her shame and embarrassment. She was doomed. Doomed. Doomed. Doomed. The celebrity tabloids would never let her hear the end of this...

“Ah, crap.” 

Ugh. That better be some absolutely gourmet carrot cake...

--------------------------

Eri could only groan in contentment as she rubbed her belly. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten this well. The fact that the food had tasted impossibly good to her was just the cherry on the sundae...

She paused for a moment... Sundaes! Ice cream ! Those were a thing!

“Midoriya-san?” she asked politely. “May I please have some ice cream?”

Izuku looked over to his mother and asked, “Mom?”

“Are you sure you have the room young lady?”

Eri nodded rapidly. With the way her quirk worked? She’d always have the room.

“Alright,” she said after a moment, “But under one condition.” 

Eri blinked. “Yes?”

“How do you know our names?” 

Eri blushed and lowered her head. “That’s very complicated and it’s one I don’t feel comfortable answering without All Might-san being present.”

“I see,” Inko replied with a small frown, “Then how about you tell us your name?”

At that Eri couldn’t help but feel embarrassed. She never properly introduced herself. “I’m sorry. Please pardon my rudeness. I was just so hungry!”

The woman smiled at her. It was warm and comforting. “That’s all right. I could tell.”

“My name is Eri,” she stated.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Eri-chan,” Inko replied gently patting the girl on the arm. “And I don’t want you to worry. You’re safe now.”

Eri sighed and lowered her head. If only that was the case...

“Um, Eri-chan?” Izuku asked, pulling her out of her funk. “What kind of ice cream would you like?”

Eri’s eyes lit up. “A sundae, please,” she said with some girlish excitement, “A strawberry parfait sundae.”

Izuku quickly punched the order into his phone. “There you go.”

“Thank you, Midoriya-san,” she replied, schooling her emotions.

She sighed and leaned back, enjoying the feel of the soft, comfortable bed when the door opened, causing her to jump slightly. She had fresh memories of when her door opened, it was normally because Chisaki had something he wanted from her. And that always meant blood and pain.

Instead she looked up to see the comparatively titanic, but ultimately benign, form of All Might entering the room in full costume. 

“Little girl,” he said with his hands on his hips and his face twisted into a completely ridiculous looking grin. “There’s no reason to fear, for I AM HERE! ”

“My name is Eri” she replied mildly. Good god, what a shameless ham. While in her head she knew that he was the number one hero, he wasn’t her number one.

“Well, Eri-yojo,” he said after a moment, “There’s a few questions I have for you...”

He looked at Inko. “Would you be so kind as to give Izuku-shonen and I some time?”

She nodded. “Of course, All Might-san.”

“Wonderful!” he reached into his pocket and pulled out a card. “And while you’re doing that why not go down to the shopping center and get yourself something nice.”

She shook her head seemingly almost a little bit mortified. “I couldn’t! I don’t want to be a burden.”

“No burden! I insist,” he replied, “Just don’t max it out, okay?”

She turned ghost white at the very concept. “O-of course!”

She paused for a moment, “There’s a Uwabami Boutique, could I... buy myself a shirt please?”

He waved it off. “No worries, Midoriya-san. Go buy yourself an entire outfit.”

She flushed. “I couldn’t! It would be far too much.”

All Might simply smiled. “Buy something nice that you enjoy. Don’t worry about the money.”

She bit her lip and nodded, slowly leaving the room, looking down in shock at All Might’s charge card as if it might bite her. But once she was gone, All Might looked at the young lady and sat down in the massive recliner next to her bed.

“Now, young lady, I hope you’re doing well?”

“Well enough,” she whispered. 

“I’m sorry you’re not feeling any better,” he replied sadly, “But if I may ask, I have some questions for you...”

“She nodded. “I-I take it you want me to explain what’s going on.”

“That would be ideal, yes.” he replied.

She nodded. “As I already told you, my name is Eri,” she began. “This is going to sound insane, but I’m from the future...”

What confused her was their reaction. Rather than show surprise, he and Izuku shared a look. Izuku looked embarrassed while All Might simply looked proud.

“What?”

“Midoriya-shonen here guessed that would be the case.”

She couldn’t help but smile. That was her Izuku! Of course he did. He was brilliant, after all!

“Well,” she said with a laugh, “This will make things much easier. I was worried about how I was going to convince you.”

She took a deep breath. “My name is Eri. In my time I was the Pro-Hero Flashback . My quirk is called Rewind . It allows me to reverse time on any living object I have physical contact with, or in extreme cases, within my immediate vicinity.”

“Yeah!” Izuku said with a grin. “I kind of guessed some of that too from the way your power worked on All Might. You have an amazing gift...”

She couldn’t help but swallow as she was overcome by a wave of emotion. As she remembered the first time he said that. Or rather... the first time he would have said that in another time, in another life. The first time anyone ever would have said it... except now, this was the first time.

“Eri-chan?” he asked, “Are you well? You’re crying...”

She blinked away her tears and smiled. “Yes. I am. Thank you. I was just...remembering something.”

He smiled and scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. 

“So, Eri-yojo,” All Might began, “I do not wish to pressure you, but how did you come to be here... in the past? And why do you look like a child? Unless it is somehow an effect of your quirk, in which case I beg your pardon.”

“I am a child,” she replied after a moment, “Kind of... Technically, I guess? I didn’t actually go back in time. At least not physically. I sent my memories back in time to... um... me ? The reason I had One for All was that Izuku passed it onto me... to future me. As part of our preparations of making this trip.” She paused. “Though I didn’t expect One for All to make the trip too...”

All Might nodded. “I see. And if I may, why did you feel that this was necessary? To travel back in time like this?

Her eyes hardened, losing all child like innocence.. “Because in twelve years, aliens are going to invade the Earth and enslave humanity.”

”What?!”

Chapter Text

A long pause hovered over the room as both All Might and Izuku attempted to parse what she’d just said. If you’d asked him in private, Toshinori Yagi would have admitted to believing in aliens. He wouldn’t call himself a conspiracy nut by any means, but it was a large universe. He wasn’t so arrogant as to believe humankind, even with all of its innate wisdom and power, were the pinnacle of evolution.

And if you caught him in a moment of levity, he might even jest that they were long overdue. After all, the world had turned into something out of comic books, and in those old stories you couldn’t go a week without an evil space empire or some godforsaken abomination from the depths of space trying to muck about with the people of Earth. 

That said, this wasn’t a joke.

“Excuse me, Eri-yojo, but did you say aliens?”

She nodded. 

“And that’s why you came back? To warn us?” Izuku replied, his eyes wide with terror. 

She nodded again. “Because if we don’t prepare, then mankind is doomed.”

“B-but we have heroes!” he said weakly. “They’d fight them.”

“And we did,” she replied, bitterly, “ You did. You defeated them every time you fought, but that still wasn’t enough.”

He sucked in at the mention that Izuku was on the forefront of that conflict. Which made perfect sense, as by that time the young man would have been in his prime as a hero.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “There were just too many of them and too few of us.”

She looked up at him, something in her posture shifting. Although she still looked like a small girl, to All Might’s experienced eye she almost looked like a veteran soldier preparing to give an after-action report. “They attacked without warning or possibility of reprisal,” Eri said, her tone disconcertingly brisk for one so small. “They hit most of the major cities and infrastructural sites from orbit, from well beyond our reach.  It was like Hiroshima and Nagasaki on a worldwide scale. A hundred cities burned in less than 24 hours. Many of our strongest heroes died that day. Lemillion, Dynamight, even Endeavour... the list goes on and on... and after decades of neglect, the militaries of the world were completely helpless to resist them...”

She closed her eyes, “Within a week, a billion people were dead and virtually all organized resistance had been destroyed.”

Toshinori felt his legs weaken under him. It felt as if One for All had just been torn out of him, leaving him in a condition that would have found his previous emaciated form enviable. He all but crashed into his chair, looking up to the ceiling blankly. 

He felt cold inside. For the first time since he’d been given his quirk, he felt lost and without direction. He’d dedicated his life to being society’s Symbol of Peace, but what was a symbol in comparison to... that . 

“W-we have to stop them,” Izuku said, causing Toshinori to crack a small grin. That boy. That boy . Even now when faced with the future of the end of the world, he kept his wits about him. “What do we need to do, Eri-san?”

The girl looked at him. “The reason they were able to surprise us is because we’ve stopped looking to the stars.” she laughed, “Melissa used to lament endlessly that we’d become so obsessed with heroics and quirks that we stopped wondering what was out there...”

This caught his ear. Melissa? As in Melissa Shields? Dave’s daughter?

She grimaced, “The irony is that our technology isn’t actually that far behind theirs. Just we’ve spent the last century dedicating our best and brightest to building newer and shiner support gear rather than trying to accomplish... greater things ...” 

Toshinori could only nod. Dump a couple of drinks in him, and David would often complain about the same. As dedicated as he was to helping heroes do their duties, what the man really wanted to build was a spaceship.

“They were able to overwhelm us because we’ve become complacent. The average human is actually, individually, far more powerful than they are. They don’t have quirks . If we prepare ourselves, arm ourselves, put our petty differences to the side and unite...“

She smiled. It was quite possibly the most vicious expression he’d ever seen on a small child. “We can survive. We can win. ”

“That’s... a good plan,” Izuku admitted after a moment.

All Might swore he saw the girl smirk. “It better be. You’re the one who came up with it.”

Izuku’s eyes went wide with panic. “M-me? But I’m just...”

“...The Symbol of Hope,” she interrupted, completely cutting him off, leaving the boy gaping like a goldfish in shock.

Toshinori let loose a long-suffering sigh. This shit had ‘ Crisis Event ’ written all over it. “We’ll have to work with the villains, won’t we?” 

She gave him a tired look, her eyes glancing away as her body language became a bit uncomfortable. “Let me put it this way, All for One was one of humanity’s most stalwart defenders.”

That little nugget of information hit Toshinori like a cannonball to the gut. Frankly, he was glad that he was sitting down otherwise he might have fallen over in shock. The very idea made him want to vomit. First, she’d just told him in the most blatant and unforgiving terms possible that All for One was still alive. Second, that they’d been so desperate that they’d been forced to depend on him to help protect humanity? To let that vile creature effectively become a hero ?

The very idea of him being... ugh . Just the thought made him almost want to have his emaciated body again just so he could actually vomit blood in order to properly express how thoroughly disgusted he was at the mere thought .

“Hopefully things 4aren’t going to get so desperate this time,” Toshinori said through gritted teeth.

The apologetic look the tiny albino girl gave him in response offered him no reprise.

“Who’s All for One?” Izuku asked, “And what does he have to do with One for All?”

Toshinori could only sigh. Of course he’d make the connection, the name was something of a giveaway wasn’t it?

“All for One is the villain who gave me my injury,” All Might replied, “I’ll explain the details later, but yes, he is connected to One for All. And as for who he is, he’s basically the closest thing we have in this world to evil incarnate.”

“The ‘Devil King of Crime’ if you asked him,” Eri replied, “And he isn’t evil incarnate. Believe me, I’ve fought worse. He was a terrible person, don’t get me wrong, but he was on our side.”

“I can’t believe you’re making excuses for that man...” Toshinori said with a scowl. On a logical level, he understood why. In the end, All for One was still human and they’d shared a common foe. But the idea of anyone even mildly defending that monster for any reason... The twisted bastard who’d killed his master, almost destroyed his life, and committed so many other atrocities over the lifetimes he’s existed that he couldn’t even begin to list them.

“He gave his life to buy me time,” Eri said with a note of - was that sadness In her voice? “He sacrificed himself to give humanity a second chance.”

Toshinori couldn’t help but grimace. The idea of All for One dying as a... oh god , even thinking it made his stomach churn. The idea of All for One dying a hero... Just. Ugh . He wanted to throw up.

“Lets just talk about something else,” he begged after a moment. Discussing All for One’s decision to become the ”Token Evil Teammate” wasn’t something he wanted to do without a bottle of antacids and a barrel of whiskey. “ Anything else. Please?”

“What were they like? What did they do?” Izuku asked, changing the subject.

“Planet looters,” she replied, her eyes glazing over.

If he’d had any doubt before, that thousand yard stare clinched it.

“Pirates,” she said, slipping back into her more militant body language and behavior, “From what we were able to find out they weren’t part of any big space empire, though they might have been in the employ of one. They were in it for slaves and wealth. They found out about Earth by picking up our media broadcasts and when they heard about quirks they got really interested. They bombed the planet, enslaved the survivors, and put them to work stripping the planet of its resources. People with strong or interesting quirks were experimented on or shipped off world to be sold as slaves. Those they didn’t find useful were sent to the mines, or worked to death in their factories. But out of all of it, it was the breeding camps that were the worst. They would...”

“I believe we’ve heard enough,” Toshinori almost begged the girl. He’d been expecting to hear something bad, but this.... It just kept getting worse, didn’t it? He couldn’t bear to hear anymore of it. The future, it seemed, was something best taken in small doses. 

“How far into the future are you from?” Izuku asked, his eyes running with tears, but his face as hard as a rock. 

“Twenty years,” she replied.

“Shit,” All Might muttered, “So, assuming you became a full fledged hero around the time they attacked, you fought them for eight years.”

She nodded. “I was in my last year of UA.”

“Eri-yojo, I believe this is enough for now,” he said, trying to cut off any continued conversation. He’d heard enough. He needed to process this before they went on. He needed to talk to the others. Come up with a plan. Figure out what was going on. Keep himself from going mad from the revelation. The usual.

There was also the fact that calling her Eri-yojo wasn’t exactly fair. She...

Good lord. She’d sent her memories back, overwriting her younger self. Did that mean she basically had murdered her child self to send them this warning? 

“Eri-san,” he said after a moment. “What are you? Are you a woman who went back in time? Are you a child who has the memories of an adult?” 

“I don’t know,” she replied in a small voice, looking every bit the lost child her stature implied. “Yesterday, I was just me. Then I got all that power and... I was me, but at the same time, I was someone else. I just walked out. And I killed people...”

All Might couldn’t help but frown. “Who did you kill?”

She bit her lip, looking quite uncomfortable.

“Um,” Izuku coughed, “She’s already said a lot. I doubt she hurt anyone who didn’t hurt her first. Maybe we should ask about it later?”

“No, it’s fine. Just... Chisaki wasn’t there... but he had several members of the Eight Bullets and a number of his thugs watching me,” she muttered to herself in desperation, “I just... erased anyone who tried to stop me from leaving.”

Toshinori couldn’t help but suck in a deep breath. “Erased.”

Oooooooh boy did he not like the sound of that.

“Like I did with my....,” she paused before continuing, taking a moment to compose herself., “By accident, but this time, on purpose. I... rewound them until they didn’t exist anymore.”

He grimaced. Okay. It was official. This girl's power was utterly terrifying...

“Don’t look at me like that!” she cried out. “I don’t want to hurt anymore... I just... I just... I had to go and there was no other way! When used offensively, my power doesn’t do nonlethal.”

“Eri-chan, we’re not judging you!” Izuku interrupted, “It’s just... we’re surprised is all. All powers can be scary! Imagine how much harm someone could do with One for All.”

“Someone cruel could use this power to shatter cities and rearrange continents ,” Toshinori said, “I was just surprised and... I want to apologize.”

“You healed All Might with a thought ,” Izuku added, “Your power is amazing... it’s such a blessing .”

Eri’s eyes watered at Izuku’s words. “Izuku,” she sobbed, “You always say that. Every time... you say that!”

He blinked. “I do?”

She nodded and smiled a wistful smile as tears began to well up in her eyes. “You do.”

The boy took in a deep breath and smiled as wide as he could. “ Well that’s because it’s true, Eri-chan!”

She smiled weakly. “Thank you.”

Taking a moment to try and collect herself, the girl continued, “After I gave Izuku One for All, healed All Might-san, and fainted, I woke up here. And I was me again. But then I remembered, though it wasn’t the same. It was like a dream but it was also like remembering something I just forgot and then I remembered and... who am I now?”

“You’re Eri,” All Might replied, “Which Eri no one can tell you, but you are you and you are who you wish to be. Are you a young girl, given the memories of her future self to warn us? Are you a woman from the future who has traveled back to her younger self to save humanity? Someone entirely new? That is for you to decide...”

“And if you’re not sure,” Izuku eagerly added, “We’ll be there to help you figure it out, okay?”

She nodded. “T-thank you, Izuku!”

All Might pouted a little on the inside. And what was he, chopped liver?

Still, he knew it didn’t behoove him to be jealous. She was from Izuku’s time as the holder of One for All and was, apparently, the Symbol of Hope as he had been the Symbol of Peace . It made him proud that Izuku had reached such heights, almost as much as the circumstances that required a Symbol of Hope horrified him.

He was pulled from his musing when a sudden chime at the door informed them that Eri’s ice cream had arrived. Standing up, he walked to the door to receive it. 

On the other side, a bored looking young man in his late teens to early twenties who, clearly attempting to hide a pair of earbuds under his too unkempt for regulation haircut, was standing behind a cart with a monstrous ice cream parfait sitting on top of it. He also noted to his mild annoyance that his shirt was untucked and his tie was exceedingly poorly done.

“Like, room service here’s your....” the young man trailed off as he slowly looked up, and up, and up to finally meet All Might eye to eye, his going as wide as saucers as he realized that he was standing nose to nose with the Number One Pro-Hero... and effectively his highest superior because technically most of the staff were in some way employed by Toshinori. 

Now, while Toshinori didn’t directly handle the corporate aspects of his agency beyond general oversight, this kid was right in his face, and he knew well that if he reported this directly to his supervisor it would be the kid's ass. Double so because, as far as he was concerned, it was the supervisor’s fault for letting him look like this in the first place. So he’d need to handle this like a boss.

Gently, without breaking eye contact, Toshinori removed a 2,000 yen bill from his wallet and tucked it in the young man’s shirt pocket. After all, he always made sure to tip generously no matter the establishment or server. 

“Um, y-your ice cream, sir,” the young man stammered off.

“Thank you,” Toshinori replied as he slipped into his ‘disappointed authority figure’ face, “Though before you go...” he looked down at his name tag. “Tarumi-san.”

“Y-yes sir?” The poor kid looked like a deer in headlights under his gaze.

He looked at him. “Tuck in your shirt, ditch the earbuds when you’re on the clock, and get a trim. You can even tell your supervisor that the company will cover it, if just this once. Now, give me your tie.”

The young man nervously removed the offending item and handed it to All Might.

“Now pay attention...”

Slowly, he tied the young man’s tie for him, making sure to carefully describe every step. 

“Now undo it and do it yourself.”

Tarumi-san nodded and did as he was told, hands shaking all the while. When he was finished the tie was poorly done, but looked infinitely better than it had before. 

“That’s a start,” Toshinori said, “Now, I believe I can trust you to conduct yourself properly in the future?”

“Y-yes sir,” he whimpered.

“Excellent!” was Toshinori’s response as he recovered the ice cream with his usual smile. “Now I hope you enjoy the rest of your shift.”

The young man nodded and quickly skedaddled, looking far more professional than he had when he’d arrived.

“I hate doing that... “ Toshinori remarked to himself as he walked back in. 

“Eri-shojo,” he said as he did so, as at this point he guessed it wasn’t fair to call her ‘little girl’ with all she’d seen and her current existential crisis, “Are you sure you can eat all of this?”

After all, the sundae was only about the size of her head.

“I have a stockpile quirk, All Might-san,” she informed him.

Toshinori nodded. That explained everything. Stockpile quirks were actually not terribly uncommon. Many quirks used pools of built up energy to power themselves. In fact, the only reason One for All was in any way exceptional was because of its ability to be passed on, carrying with it the combined hopes and efforts of its previous hosts. There was a reason he called it a sacred torch. It was an ember of potential that over time, grew into a raging inferno of power.

This actually explained multiple things about her. For one, why she was given One for All to begin with. Giving One for All to a woman who already possessed a stockpile quirk would have been like plugging her directly into a municipal fusion reactor. It would have boosted her base power and potential by orders of magnitude. It also explained why such a small girl could pack it away like she did. She was feeding her quirk as well as her body.

It was something Nana had complained about after passing on One for All. She could no longer eat as much as she wanted to and never gain a pound. It was probably also one of the contributing factors as to why his connection with One for All had been waning. His own dietary limitations had badly reduced his ability to contribute meaningfully to his quirk.

“Come to mama~~!” the little girl cooed in a disturbingly adult manner as he passed her the giant ice cream parfait. She quickly pulled a whipped cream covered strawberry off the top and took a bite out of it, making a face that was horrifyingly out of place on the downright cherubic child. Her following moan of... ‘satisfaction’, even more so.

“Oh god yeeeeeeeeesssss~ !”

It felt as if a dozen icey spiders were walking down his spine, as he looked on in mute horror. It was like watching a train wreck unfold in slow motion. At least he wasn’t alone in his suffering. Young Midoriya seemed just as dismayed by her reaction as he was. 

“Don’t give me that face!” she exclaimed, thankfully taking on refreshingly normal childish pout. “Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve had ice cream? Or fresh strawberries? Or whipped cream? Real. Whipped. Cream.”  

“A long time I guess,” Izuku remarked. “I... I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“Thank you, Izuku,” She smiled lightly and picked at the ice cream for a moment looking sadly at it before eating again, this time savoring it in a distinctly less... mature fashion. 

“Are you okay?” he asked upon seeing her sad smile.

“I was just... thinking,” she replied.

“About what?” He asked.

She looked over. “I was just reminded of that...” She took a deep breath. “None of Chisaki’s men knew how to cook. So they would just feed me lukewarm takeout or instant ramen... and none of them ever bothered with treats. This was arguably my first real meal in years in both lifetimes.”

Toshinori had to twitch to keep from snarling. Nothing pissed him off more than abused children. Children were innocent. It was the duty of adults to protect them from the cruelties of the world, and those who would knowingly harm or neglect a child were on the short list of people he considered to be completely irredeemable. Meanwhile, Izuku was beginning to look downright horrified at the clear implications. No wonder the girl was mildly malnourished.

“Is this ‘Chisaki’ still alive?” All Might asked darkly. He actually was hoping so. Toshinori, despite his choice in vocations, wasn’t a particularly violent man. However, sometimes... there just comes a time when a son of a bitch just needed a good, swift, thorough smashing .

She shuddered. “Yes. And he’s going to come for me.”

Toshinori nodded. “And when he does, I’m going to make him regret it.”

She looked up to him and smiled with a playful vindictiveness, “Not as hard as Izuku did though.”

At this the young man blinked. “Wait...me?”

She looked at him with an expression that radiated warmth and admiration. “Even when I gave up on myself you never gave up on me. So I believed in your strength, and then we combined our quirks and you destroyed him . I’ll never forget what you told me that day.” Her smile grew. “You saved me. You taught me to smile. To me, you’re the world’s strongest hero. Not All Might, you .”

Izuku’s eyes went wide and he just sat there for a long moment, looking lost, as if his brain had ground to a complete stop. Toshinori could sympathize. He’d had people approach him like that before. Even now, after decades of being a Pro, the idea that someone could have such profound and unconditional faith in him was still humbling.

To Izuku, a boy starving for acknowledgement,  it must have been completely overwhelming.

“Don’t let him touch you,” Eri said looking at Toshinori. “No matter how strong you are, if he touches you, you die.”

Toshinori’s jaw tensed. “Explain please, Eri-shojo.”

“His quirk, Overhaul, is extremely powerful.” she said in a serious voice that sounded like something out of a combat briefing. “It allows him to rearrange any matter he touches on an atomic level. Don’t kill him, we’ll need it. But at the same time, he’s dependent on his hands to use his quirk, so the best way to be safe would be to destroy his arms.”

Toshinori frowned, “Eri-shojo, I’m not in the habit of casually mutilating villains because they have difficult quirks.”

“In my timeline he killed Nighteye,” she said. “Tore off his arm and impaled him with a spike.”

Toshinori’s eyes narrowed to slits as his neck tendons tightened. She was clearly trying to goad him on and, much to his shame and annoyance, it was working. He’d lost enough loved ones already, and despite their many arguments and disagreements, Mirai was like a younger brother to him. He would not let that future come to pass.

“Why?” Izuku asked. “Why did he do this to you, Eri-chan?”

She closed her eyes. “He was trying to use my blood to create a quirk destroying drug,” she replied grimly, “Something that would selectively rewind people’s quirk factors to the point that they don’t exist. His plan was to sell villains quirk destroying bullets and then sell a quirk restoring drug to heroes, making the  Shie Hassaikai the rulers of the underworld... more feared than even All for One.”

Toshinori felt his blood run cold. The man was insane, and worst of all, sanity was of no consequence because he actually had the potential to put his madness into action. “Was he successful?”

She nodded sadly. “In creating the bullets? Yes. He was. But don’t worry, he doesn’t have the permanent version yet. The temporary one he has right now only works for a couple hours.”

All Might took a deep breath. Well, it looks like the Shie Hassaikai just went to the top of his to-do list. Right alongside finding whatever godforsaken rock All for One had crawled under, because if he was ever going to have to negotiate with that unrepentant monster for the sake of mankind’s continued survival, they’d be having that conversation in the depths of Tartarus.

The bowl of Eri’s ice cream clanked as she placed the spoon down within. 

“All Might-san?” she asked carefully. “Would it be alright if I went back to sleep? I’m still tired.”

Toshinori smiled at the girl. “This room belongs to you as long as you need it, Eri-shojo.”

She nodded. “Thank you...” she then looked to Midoriya and smiled. “It’s good to see you again, Izuku. Please come and see me often, okay?”

He nodded. “Alright, Eri-chan. I’ll do that.”

Her smile was like a small sun. “Thank you.”

Toshinori stood up and motioned towards the door. “Is there anything else you need, Eri-shojo?”

She looked up. “Something to write on. I had to memorize a lot of stuff and I want to get all of it down before I forget anything important.”

He nodded. “Of course. I’ll have that and a couple changes of clothes sent up . If you want to explore the tower, just let me know and I’ll get you an escort. And if you need anything else, don’t hesitate to ask.”

She nodded. “Thank you, All Might-san.”

Chapter Text

Izuku felt numb.

There was no other way to describe it. It felt like his entire world had gone to sleep on him and he was trapped screaming in the back of his head as pins and needles worked their way up his body leaving him functioning almost on autopilot. It was a sensation he was all too familiar with, to be honest. Every time he had to fess up to the fact that his dreams were nothing but a self-delusion. 

He’d only felt it this badly three times before. When the doctor had said he was quirkless. When his mother had apologized when all he wanted was for her to believe in him. When All Might had told him he couldn’t be a hero. And now...

And now after Eri told him that in 12 years aliens were going to burn the planet from orbit, kill a billion people in the first week, then brutally enslave the rest. Because no, you can’t just enslave humanity, you have to do it brutally. Because reasons.

He was doing his best to keep his cool. He’d actually gotten quite used to functioning perfectly well despite being overcome with depression and fear and absolute bone gnawing terror. The secret was to put one foot in front of the other and keep walking.

“How do you feel, Midoriya-shonen?” All Might asked him as they walked through the hall towards the elevator.

“I’m terrified,” he admitted, “Aliens. Real aliens. Real evil aliens.”

He grimaced. He must sound like such a coward. In front of All Might no less.

“I am too,” the Symbol of Peace admitted, causing Izuku to pause and look up at him in shock. 

“Y-you are?”

“Very much so,” All Might replied, “I’m still only human and this is far beyond anything I ever had to prepare for emotionally. I do believe we’re both floating on the same raft, my boy.”

Izuku laughed with just a little hysteria. “So it's not just me?”

“It’s not just you,” All Might confirmed. “I’m sorry you’re not going to have the option, on account of your age, but I at least intend to get extremely drunk tonight after hearing all of that. Between All for One being alive and this alien thing, today seems very much the perfect circumstance for that sort of thing. And that’s not even counting the fact that it’s been six years since I’ve been permitted to consume alcohol.”

Izuku felt his blood go cold in his veins. To hear All Might of all people say that he was terrified of what was to come and that his plan for dealing with it was to get drunk and deal with it in the morning was... he hadn’t thought it could get any scarier. Well, silly him. 

“My suggestion? Spend tonight with your mother. Hold her close and don’t let go.”

Izuku smiled slightly. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea. He guessed. Still, there was still one question nagging at him. 

“All Might,” he asked after a moment of consideration, “Who’s All for One?”

“He’s...” All Might paused for a moment, “He was the ultimate evil that One for All was created to defeat. During the dawn of the current era there were two brothers. One was strong and possessed a uniquely terrifying quirk while the other was quirkless and weak. The stronger brother’s quirk permitted him to steal the quirks of others for himself, and to gift those quirks to others, if he so wished.”

“Pass on quirks?” Izuku observed, “That sounds like One for All.”

“It does, because they are related. You see, All for One’s brother? He was sickly and weak, but he possessed a strong sense of justice. For some reason, All for One forced a quirk that stockpiled stamina onto him. Perhaps it was out of a desire to control him, or perhaps out of some twisted form of brotherly love.”

Izuku nodded. Giving someone who was naturally sickly a quirk like that would probably allow them to live a relatively normal life.

“What neither of them knew however,” All Might continued, “Was that his brother did indeed have a quirk. His quirk was a useless quirk that only allowed itself to be passed on to others, and was the only quirk that his brother could not steal. However, once he was given the stockpile quirk, the two melded. The quirk that stockpiles energy and quirk that can be passed. They combined to create One for All.”

He closed his eyes. “It’s ironic, thinking about it, that all of our troubles are the fruits of that misbegotten era... first All for One, now this .”

“Yeah” Izuku admitted with a gentle nod. “Somebody famous once said that if we hadn’t had the phenomenon, and all the chaos surrounding it, we’d probably have interstellar travel.”

All Might nodded. “And if we were among the stars already, we wouldn’t be sitting here like lambs to the slaughter.”

Izuku sighed. He was right. Because they’d turned inward and stopped looking towards the stars, they’d left themselves ignorant and vulnerable. And now they had 12 years to accomplish about 120 of discovery and preparation. 

No pressure! 

“But I believe we’re getting off topic,” All Might stated, “All for One rose during that period of chaos, gathering followers. He took the quirks of those who would resist him and granted them to his followers. He worked in the shadows to get his followers into positions of power with the intent of becoming the shadow ruler of Japan.”

“You know, come to think of it,” Izuku said after a moment, “ I’ve heard rumors on the hero forums about certain people being figureheads for someone else. But they were dismissed as conspiracy theories.”

“The dealings of thugs and criminals rarely make it into the text books,” he replied, “As for the brother who would become the first wielder of One for All, he attempted to stop All for One when he saw what his brother was doing. But even with the stolen power granted to him by his brother, he was too weak. So he passed his quirk on to another in hopes that it would one day be gifted to one with the strength and will to put an end to his brother’s tyranny. And then in time, that holder passed the quirk on. And that holder passed it onto another and so on. Until it reached me. One for All is not just cultivated power, it also carries with it the hopes and dreams of those who came before.”

Izuku looked down at his hands, lost in thought. When All Might had told him about it, it had just been a quirk. A strange and exceptional one, but he hadn’t grasped the sheer gravity of it. It was a legacy. A mission. 

He thought back for a moment, his mind going back to what Eri had called him. ‘The Symbol of Hope’. He would have had to fight on despite the inconceivable odds against him. Despite witnessing the best and brightest humanity can offer being cut down like pigs to the slaughter. He would fight because he believed that humanity could win and could keep winning. And in turn that belief would inspire others. He was effectively All Might for that horrible future... but at the same time he was something different.

Then it hit him. Having One for All wasn’t just about being the strongest hero. It was about being what the world needed. In times of strife, conflict and later order, the Symbol of Peace. And in times of sorrow and despair, the Symbol of Hope . 

One for All really was a sacred torch, wasn’t it? One with a singular mission: to ensure that the fires of courage, hope, and justice were never extinguished. To be the light in the darkness to ensure that humanity never lost its way.

On one hand, he was humbled and inspired by the enormity of faith All Might had to have had in him to grant him this honor. On the other hand... he was coming to the slow and completely terrifying realization that he was effectively The Chosen One . In the literary sense.

No pressure!

He couldn't help but break out in hysterical giggling from the stress, which caused All Might to look down to him with concern. “Relax Midoriya-shonen. I understand what it’s like.” He paused, “Well, somewhat. My own mentor was clear about the threat of All for One from the beginning. The aliens are new, but I at least understand somewhat what you are going through.”

Izuku took a deep breath and steadied himself. It was not an easy process. His statement did however beg a question.

“Your mentor...” Izuku asked looking up to All Might with a thoughtful gaze. “She was the seventh, wasn’t she?”

All Might paused in mid step and took a deep breath as if to steady himself.

“Yes. She was the bearer of One for All before me. Her name was Shimura Nana. She was...” he paused for a moment, “When I looked at you, I saw myself looking back. In you, I saw a reflection of the foolish orphan boy holding onto an impossible dream that she saw fit to put her faith in. I would have been disgracing her memory if I had turned you away. She... Nana was the only mother I’ve ever known. And he killed her.”

Izuku couldn’t help but freeze in shock as he saw tears welling up in All Might’s eyes as he spoke those words. No wonder All Might hated All for One so much. Just thinking of what he’d do to a person who murdered his mother... he’d rip them apart, and anyone else who stood in his way,  with his bare hands and to hell with the consequences. 

“Compared to that pain,” he said through gritted teeth, “The injury he gave me was just a love tap... ”

After years of dealing with crying adults, thanks to his mother’s hair trigger waterworks, Izuku had an almost ingrained instinct of what to do in such a situation. And seeing the person he respected most in the world on the brink of tears, he couldn't help but follow it. Without remark or hesitation, he hugged the massive man, wrapping his arms around the muscular giant’s waist. 

Towering above him, All Might was rendered speechless by the unsolicited show of physical affection. 

“I... I...” he trailed off for a moment before laughing himself silly and patting Izuku on his comparatively tiny back. “You’re certainly a character, my boy! Thank you.”

Izuku pulled away with an ear splitting grin on his face. He just hugged All Might and had sorta gotten a hug back! If it wasn’t for the whole looming apocalypse thing, this would have arguably been the best day ever. Except for yesterday. But all in all this had been a good week. Except for the... well... best not to think about it right now because that path led to uncontrollable weeping and a complete psychological collapse that would leave him crawled up in a ball sitting in a pool of his own fluids.

No pressure!

-------------------------------

Inko honestly didn’t know what to say, do, or think. When she’d asked All Might if she could go to the Uwabami Boutique she’d actually felt a little guilty for taking advantage of his kindness. Honestly, she’d been intending to buy the cheapest shirt or maybe pair of socks, primarily with the hope of getting one of their shopping bags.

Mitsuki would lose her damn mind if she saw it. She’d always been the prettier and more fashionable of the two of them. She could never hold herself back from gushing (or griping depending on her opinions at the time) over the latest magazines and fashion trends. The fact that theshopping bags alone were made out  of some sort of finely made cloth that most other places would charge you for underscored the quality of the brand, along with the prices that it demanded.

What she hadn’t expected was to be whisked away by a pretty, smiling, and impeccably dressed young girl with white downy feathers for hair. Who then proceeded to whisk her away on a merry journey through the strange and exotic land of high fashion with nary a set of brakes to be seen. 

And now, a quarter of a million yen later , she found herself the proud owner of a new outfit. Not a new wardrobe. An outfit. An. Outfit. Singular. That was almost as much money as her husband sent home in a month from his job overseas. And it had brought her one outfit.

She felt wracked with guilt. She’d wanted to say no, but the girl was so forceful and the outfit... 

It made her feel pretty again. Like she had been before Izuku had been misdiagnosed as quirkless and her entire world fell apart. Before she’s turned into a human nikuman .

But while she felt guilty about spending so much of the Number One hero’s money, despite his insistence that she buy herself an entire outfit, that sensation was drowned out almost completely by the joy she felt for her son. 

Her Izuku was going to be able to reach his unreachable dream and that made it all worthwhile. Every gram. Every tear. Every single moment of every sleepless night. All of it.

Now it was all that Inko could do to wander about the shopping center, clustering her immensely expensive purchase to her chest as she people watched. It was strange seeing pro heroes hanging out amongst normal people.

Thanks to Izuku she could actually recognize most of them. There was Slidin' Go eating a bowl of gyudon, Compass Kid with a load of groceries, and Mount Lady walking out of a shop holding...

She blinked. Was that an otome game?

“Well, heroes have hobbies too, I guess.”

She was interrupted from her musing by a buzzing from her pocket. Pulling it out, a small smile came to her face as she saw it was a text from Izuku.

We’re coming down, mom.

Standing up she started towards the express elevator, arriving just in time to see the door open to show her son and his mentor. She didn’t think that she’d ever get over that.

“Greetings Midoriya-san!” he exclaimed with his trademark boisterous joviality. 

Before he could continue though, Inko began to bow before him and held out her bag.

“I’m sorry, All Might-san!” she exclaimed, “I became too excited and I abused your kindness! Please, accept this back. I don’t want to be a burden to you!”

The massive man blinked in surprise and then began to chuckle before letting his face harden ever so slightly. “Please step back into the Elevator with us, Midoriya-san, so we do not make a scene. I know for a fact that the paparazzi tend to infest the public areas of Might Tower, despite the strict limitations on camera use.”

She nodded nervously and did so. All Might looked over to a nervous looking Izuku before giving him a smile and pushing the button for the top floor. One of the ones that hadn’t been illuminated when she’d used the elevator.

“This should keep it moving long enough for me to explain this to you, Midoriya-san,” I know perfectly well how expensive Uwabami-san’s boutiques are, and I knew exactly what I was getting into when I told you to buy yourself an outfit.”

“But it’s so expensive...”

The large man took in a deep breath. “Did you enjoy yourself, Midoriya-san?”

She slowly nodded. Very much so.

“Then all is well,” he replied, putting on his largest smiled, “Because...”

“...You are here?” she asked nervously. 

He blinked. Then he blinked again. And then he began to laugh. “No, actually, but that was very well timed. No. What I was going to ask you is... tell me, Midoriya-san, what is the name of this tower.”

“M-might Tower?”

“Yes. And who owns Might Tower?”

She bit her lip. “Yo-you do?”

“Yes,” he replied, “I do. I own a fortified skyscraper located on some of the most expensive real estate in the world. While I do not like to show off my wealth, the simple reality is I am one of the richest men in Japan. I don’t know where I rank, because I don’t care.”

Slowly Inko’s eyes went wide as she realized what he meant. Heroes made their living off, among other things, their merchandise. And All Might’s brand was everywhere. Hell, looking down at the package in her arms she realized that she’d easily ‘donated’ at least twice as much to the man simply due to the volume of All Might collectibles, posters, toys and other memorabilia that she bought for Izuku over the years...

“ I don’t value money. I value happiness, safety and camaraderie. I grew up with simple means, and I have simple tastes. Buying expensive things because they are expensive is something I find very distasteful.” he looked down at the bags. “When you bought those, were you happy? Did it make you smile ?”

She slowly nodded. “Y-yes?”

“Good. Money well spent,” he said matter of factly in a beat that left no room for argument. 

She took a deep breath and nodded to him. With that done, he hit the button to take them back down to the lower levels. As they did, she looked over to her son. She’d honestly expected him to say something during this exchange. Instead she was heartbroken to find him looking distracted and forlorn. 

“Izuku?” she asked nervously, “Are you all right?”

He looked up at her with a tired smile. “Y-yeah mom. I just...” he paused, “Eri’s story.”

He looked up to All Might for a moment. The massive hero nodded to him.

“She’s been through...” he paused and his face hardened, “What she’s been through is... it’s unspeakable mom. I guess I’m just... still trying to come to terms with it.”

“Even I am left feeling blanched simply having listened to it.” All Might added.

Inko could only gasp. Her sweet little boy saying something was unspeakable was one thing. He wore his heart on his sleeve and would find any sort of abuse to be the most horrible thing ever. It’s one of the things she loved so dearly about him, his kind and honest heart.

But for not just a Pro Hero, but the Pro Hero to say the same... 

Oh god. What horrors had that poor, darling innocent child been forced to endure? She’d seen the scars herself. Oh, what cruelties had been inflicted upon her? She could only imagine. 

And imagine she did as her mind began to fill in the blanks....

She... she... she...

“Mom!?”

“M-midoriya-san! Please calm yourself, there’s no reason to cry!”

-------------------

Eri hugged herself tight under the covers of her bed. 

Eri had never slept easily. For the longest time Chisaki had haunted her nightmares. Even after all of the pain and sacrifices that had been made in her name, she’d never been fully free herself of his shadow. And then, a decade later, when she was finally strong enough to chase the demons away on her own, the world had ended, giving her a whole new host of nightmares. 

And that wasn’t counting the fact that he was not some specter of the distant past. That future was no longer relevant. She’d walked out herself and he was going to look for her.

Her eyes slowly drifted towards the clock. Two in the morning. Not an hour for good little girls to be up and about. But she hardly was a little girl anymore, was she? Chisaki had destroyed her innocence long ago and now she had the memories of a grown woman resting in her mind.Sometimes they were clear as day, sometimes shadows eluding her grasp, but they were real and they were hers. 

Part of her hated herself for it. Hated her future self. Hated Flashback for what she’d done. She’d sacrificed what was left of her childhood as cruelly as Chisaki and his scalpels. And really, what sort of sadistic idiot draws blood by cutting? Needles are a thing for a reason!

But she’d done it to save humanity, and in doing so have given Eri her childhood. It was distant, and it was bittersweet but... there were so many kind people. Too bad it never was going to be real. Memories only she’d have that no one else would ever share. But even now, that proof that there were so many kind people in the world willing to fight and sacrifice just because someone needed help? It gave her hope. Just like it always had. Just like it always would.

But enough of her existential crisis. She did all of this for a reason.

Slowly she climbed over to her bedside and retrieved the pad and pen that All Might had left for her.

She had a lot to record and not a lot of time to do it. With her memory feeling muddled and confused since she passed on One for All, she simply couldn’t risk forgetting anything. Every nugget could spell the difference between humanity’s survival... and... well... her having to do this shit all over again. 

Though she had one important thing she needed to handle before she even considered writing anything down. One problem that overshadowed all others and simply could not be ignored.

She really had to pee.

Chapter Text

There was no one in the world that Iida Tenya admired more in the world than his elder brother, Tensei. It had saddened him when his brother had been unable to see him after the exam, and that he’d been busy the next day as well, but he understood why and would never resent him for it. His brother was a fine hero who was dedicated to his duty above all else. He had no doubt that the older Iida had been pulled into some urgent task that he simply couldn’t set aside, not even for family. 

It was because of this, that his face was filled with greatest joy when he came down in the morning to see his brother sitting at the family table, having a polite conversation with his parents. 

“Big brother!” he said with a wide smile as he approached the table. He couldn't wait to tell his brother about the exam. From how he’d acted before and how he felt in the aftermath, it was a life changing transformative experience that taught him a valuable lesson he would carry to the end of his days. As expected of a school as prestigious as UA! Even their entrance exam was so profound as to teach you important lessons in heroism!

This caused his mother to chuckle and looked at him, “No love for me and your father then, Tenya-chan?”

He paused feeling completely aghast. “My apologies mother, I...”

She smiled and waved it off. “Oh, I’m only teasing you Tenya. You’re too much like your father sometimes. So serious,” she learned and gave him a wink and a smile. “Even when you were little, you were my little man... so mature...”

Tenya couldn’t help but blush in mild embarrassment. 

She glanced conspiratively over to his elder brother, “Unlike some people I know.”

This time it was Tensei's turn to blush as he rubbed the back of his head. “Come on, mom...”

“Leave the boys alone, Hanabi,” his father childed politely as he lowered his paper just far enough so he could shoot his mother a glance.

She rolled her eyes in response, “There you go again. The natural enemy of fun.”

Tenya could only sigh. His parents were always like this. Their relationship was a quirk marriage, a union made to further their careers as well as ensure the strength of the next generation of heroes. This wasn’t to say that they didn’t get along, they openly admired each other as heroes, but their relationship was passionless. More like old friends than husband and wife. Right down to the endless snarky banter. 

It got old . 

That said, his mother was right. He did take after his father. Iida Tenka, the Pro Hero Virtium, was a serious man. To those who did not know him, he would seem detached, even disinterested. But when he did commit to something he did so with every fiber of his being. Including parenting.

His mother on the other hand, the Pro Hero Nitra, was a much more jovial person. That wasn’t to say she wasn’t dedicated, just she tended to have a stronger sense of humor. Or at least that’s what she thought.

“So, Tenya, how was the test?” his elder brother asked with a smile. “I’m sure you did well.”

“All Might himself said that he believed that my placement would be within the top ten,” he stated, his heart glowing with pride in his accomplishment. 

The moment that his father put down his paper, Tenya knew he’d made a mistake. He’d promised the Number One hero that he’d hold his becoming an instructor in confidence and in his excitement, he’d let it slip. He felt his face fall as he felt overcome with shame.

“Are you saying that All Might was in attendance?” his father asked.

“Please disregard my statement, father,” he said shamefaced, “It was not for me to say.”

His father smiled slightly and slowly picked his paper back up, clearing reading the expression on his son’s face. “Of course. You said you were speaking to a member of the faculty?”

“Stop fishing, Tenka,” his mother warned, causing the man to chuckle and then sigh as he buried his nose in the paper again. His father had always been the more nosy of the two, unable to let go of anything that caught his interest. A good trait to have in a hero. In a parent? Not so much.

“Um,” Tenya coughed, “I have good reason to believe that I scored in the top ten,” he began again, causing his brother to chuckle. 

“Sure you do, little brother. So what happened?”

“It started with an odd, muttering boy,” he replied. After all, in the end it came down to that strange character. “His name is Midoriya Izuku. While I did not hear his first speech myself, he apparently had surmised the true intent of the exam and shared it with some of the other prospective students.”

“You’re telling me this kid figured out the Rescue Points?” Tensei asked, causing him to blink.

“Then he was correct? There really is a hidden metric?” Tenya asked, feeling entirely vindicated in his decision to place his faith in Izuku’s instincts. He’d have to contact him and tell him about it. He was sure his erstwhile partner would appreciate the knowledge that he’d been right.

“Yeah, just don’t tell anyone,” Tensei warned, “They keep that secret for a reason.”

Tenya nodded in acceptance. Belay that. 

“What I’m more interested in is that Tenya-chan made a friend!” his mother exclaimed with a happy smile as she clapped her hands together with glee.

Tenya sighed. Here we go again. He was never comfortable with his peers so he’d never had much in the way of friends in middle school. It was always something which had always left his mother concerned, and him a bit lonely to be completely honest. But Tensei had always been around to make up the difference so it never was as lonely as it could have been.

“So when are you going to invite Izuku-kun over for dinner? Just let me know and I’ll have Shimi-chan make us something super special!

“Leave the boy alone, Hanabi,” his father said in a level voice.

“All fun, Tenka. All that is fun,” she said with a snort. 

Tensei rolled his eyes at their mother’s antics. “Come on, Tenya. Finish the story.”

He cleared his throat. “Of course. Anyways, Midoriya-san’s speech was about ‘Owning the E’. His belief was that we should act as if we were already heroes and focus our efforts in behaving in a suitably heroic manner, even if we feel it might negatively affect our scores.”

“Ballsy,” was Tensei’s reply, “I like him already. So what happened from there?”

“When we were on the bus to the challenge zone, I questioned him more deeply on his philosophy,” Tenya replied. He very intentionally left out how he had made something of a fool of himself in front of the entire testing body. That was something he would carry to his grave. “I found his logic to be valid and was impressed with his character, so I offered to work with him in the exam. After all, the best heroes work closely with their allies.”

He could hear a grunt of approval from behind his father’s paper. Cooperation and teamwork had always been a policy that was encouraged within the Idaten Agency. While the core family team all shared similar Quirks, the Idaten Agency had never fallen into the trap of adopting a strict theme. Instead they welcomed a wide variety of talents to allow them to adapt to any situation and cover any potential weakness. 

“Our combat synergy was surprisingly good,” he continued, “He seemed to be able to predict and work around my fighting style with relative ease and this, combined with his own natural combat ability made him very easy to work with. We were able to destroy many of the robotic villains and aid a number of our fellows.”

Tenya couldn’t help but smile at the memory. Most of that ten minutes had actually been some of the most fun he’d ever had.

“I actually enjoyed myself greatly. There was this one point villain that I used as a launching board to sail over two other villains so I could dropkick a third that was moving to blindside a girl with a mushroom quirk. I actually kicked a villain so hard that it flew through the air and landed on a second villain. Then there was this one where Midoriya-san grabbed the arm of a two pointer, spun it around, and launched it into my path so I could intercept it in mid air. We never even had to stop moving. By focusing on being a hero rather than treating it as a test, it was actually a great deal of fun and it felt very fulfilling.”

“I’m glad. I always enjoy being a hero. Nothing is better than helping people,” Tensei replied, “And I’m glad you found a friend. It’s always good to find field partners that you can work with. So what’s his quirk?”

Tenya couldn’t help but tense for a second. Midoriya’s quirk. That was something he’d spent the last couple days mulling over. That he was able to keep up with him and his ‘Engine’ was an impressive feat in its own right. Had it just been that, he’d have simply said it was a physical enhancement quirk and left it at that. But... there was that moment with the Zero Pointer. What he’d done to it, and what he had in turn, done to himself.

“His quirk is...” Tenya trailed off for a moment. “It’s intimidating.”

This caught his brother’s attention, as well as the attention of his parents.

“You said this kid was strong,” his mother said carefully, “You never said ‘intimidating’.”

“When I talked to you and father, I hadn’t really had time to think about it. But now that I’ve had time to sleep on it?” he paused. “His quirk appears to be a physical enhancement quirk of some form. When he activates it, his body crackles with green lightning and his physicality seems to be multiplied many times over....”

“Sounds like something from a shonen anime,” his father observed.

Tenya blushed slightly. It really did, didn’t it? “It appears to be a very powerful one, but he seems to have relatively poor control over it.”

“That can be dangerous,” Tensei replied with a frown, “You can easily hurt yourself, or those around you with a quirk like that.”

Tenya shuddered slightly, remembering Midoriya’s angry, swollen body and ragged gasps for air. “I know. He seems to limit his quirk to a fraction of its full power for just that reason. But when the Zero Pointer showed up...”

“I remember those,” Tensei laughed, “I won’t lie, I think I almost wet myself when I first saw them. Those things are scary.”

“They are,” Tenya agreed, “And we saw a girl trapped underneath some rubble. It was about to roll over her...”

He took a deep breath. “I tried to get to her, but even when I had redlined myself, I wouldn’t have been fast enough to reach her before she was crushed.”

“But she survived, right?” his father asked, in a somber tone, his newspaper folded and away, “It’s been years since there’s been a fatality in the UA exams, and it would have been in the paper...”

“Midoriya-san, he...” Tenya closed his eyes for a moment, “He was behind me one moment and the next he’d closed the distance between us and the girl. He kicked the zero pointer so hard that he tore it in half . So hard that the faculty had to divert the torso so it would land in one of the athletics fields as not to endanger the school.”

“Aren’t those battlezones kilometers away from the school?” his mother asked.

“And correct me if I’m wrong,” his father added, “But aren’t those machines the size of an office building ?”

Tenya nodded. “Yes. On both counts.... It was almost like watching All Might .”

A sudden hush fell over the room.

His brother could only blink. “Wow.”

“‘Wow’ indeed” his father seconded.

“The girl, she had an anti-gravity quirk. With the time that Midoriya-san gave her, she was able to clear the rubble herself. When we looked up we saw Midoriya-san falling from the sky. She used her quirk on me and rendered me weightless. Then we caught him by using her quirk to cancel his momentum.” He smiled for a second, “With her canceling my mass, I was able to fly ...!”

That got a chuckle and a smile out of his brother. He’d always envied his elder brother’s ability to go airborne using his elbow thrusters. “Good for you, little bro! So what then?”

“When we landed, he looked...” Tenya couldn’t help but grimace, “He looked like he was in great pain. Bruising over his entire body, ragged breaths, bloodshot eyes... Even with Recovery Girl’s quirk it was several minutes before he was able to fully regain consciousness.”

Everyone winced and for good reason.

“If your friend’s quirk is as powerful as you say,” his father said, “Then it is no wonder he has difficulties. Stay close to this one. Should he succeed, he’ll definitely go far. Having such a strong ally will do much for your career and bring prestige to the Idaten agency.”

“Was he okay?” Tensei asked. “And what about the girl?”

“Uraraka-san only twisted her ankle, while Midoriya-san seemed fatigued but all right.”

“Good,” Tensei replied, “And you were okay?”

“Nothing I couldn’t handle,” Tenya replied, trying to sound as nonchalant as possible.

“Ten-ya!” his mother said with a frown, “Is that so? Because I distinctly recall you saying something about redlining ? Did you overheat your Engine?”

He paused and then sighed, lowering his head. “Yes mother, but Recovery Girl attended to me moments afterwards.”

“And we all know that healing quirks don’t always work properly on mechanical mutations!” she exclaimed.

He lowered his head. “I’m sorry mother...”

“How bad?” she demanded.

He flinched. He couldn’t lie to his mother even if he tried. “I could see the glow through my skin?”

“I expected better of you, Tenya,” she said with a deep frown.

“Yes mother. I’m sorry, mother,” he muttered with a deep sigh of resignation. He knew what was coming next.

“I’ll make an appointment with Shumata-san for tomorrow,” she said in a tone that brooked no argument. 

Damn it. He closed his eyes and hung his head in defeat. He always hated having to go see the mechanic.

“Oh, and Tenya?”

“Yes mother?” he asked, his head still low.

“Tell me about this ‘Uraraka’ girl you talked to and seem to know the name of...”

His eyes widened slightly as he looked up to see an almost manic grin on his mother’s face. 

“Was she pretty?”

Tenya looked over to his father, who had quickly retreated behind his paper.

And then to his brother who just shrugged at him.

“On your own little bro. Sorry.”

He swallowed by reflex as he turned back to the intense gaze of his creepily smiling mother.

‘Help.’ The young hero desperately pleaded to no one in particular.

-------------------------------------

Toshinori smiled as he knocked on the door to Eri’s room, with a smile on his face and a large platter of food held in the other. Since the girl had a stockpile quirk he was sure she’d be hungry. 

A moment later he heard a muffled voice at the door. “Who’s there?”

“I Am Here!... with Sustenance! ”

He swore he could hear her groan through the door before it opened. 

“Being short sucks,” she muttered to herself as the door swung open. 

Toshinori nodded. That was about the exact opposite of his problem, really, but he could sympathize. His hero form was taller than most rooms.

“I’ll have you brought a footstool, Eri-chan,” he replied nonchalantly, “So where do you want your breakfast?”

“On the coffee table, please,” she said quietly as she retreated back into her room. 

He nodded and gently placed the food down before removing the cover. He understood better than anything that to feed quirks like theirs you needed plenty of food so he’d decided to order up a reduced version of his favorite daily breakfast.

In this case, a short stack of pancakes, a pair of waffles with fruit, bacon, eggs, a three egg ham and cheese omelet, two pieces of buttered toast, a single bowl of Cinnamon Toasty Squares (they were a child’s cereal but he didn’t care. They were delicious .), a carton of orange juice, and plenty of milk. 

Looking over he saw that she’d been watching TV, and was mildly surprised to see that the news was on. Maybe he was just making assumptions based on her size, but he’d half expected to see cartoons. If only because even he had to admit that they had a cathartic value. 

“I’m getting up to date,” she explained, picking up on his questioning gaze.

He nodded. “Of course, Eri-chan. There is something I must ask you.”

She nodded. “Yes, All Might-san?”

“Would you be willing to speak to Nezu, the principle of UA, and Sir Nighteye?”

“I would,” she replied looking up to him, “I remember Nezu-san, he passed in my freshman year. He was a good man who even in declining health never gave up on his students.”

All Might frowned at that. They’d never known the chimera's lifespan. In fact he knew that his lifespan was one of the few things that the small being actually was apprehensive over. It wasn’t the question of death, it was the uncertainty, and as saddening as it was, he guessed they now knew.

“And while I know he’s not the same Sir Nighteye,” she continued in the same quiet tone, “I would very much like to thank him. He died to pull me out of Chisaki’s hell, and I’ll always honor his sacrifice.”

Toshi’s jaw clenched slightly at the reminder of his partner’s other death. He very much did not like this alternate timeline. 

“I’ll send the message asking them to come here. Unless you’d like to go to UA to meet them.”

“I’ll be happy with whatever,” she replied, “And last night I filled the notebook.”

Eri handed the open notebook to the hero and started pointing at the marked pages

“The marked pages are things you need to handle right away,” she made clear, “They’re time sensitive. I don’t remember everything, and I was writing as I remembered it rather than based on when it happened so there’s no order to it. I did get down the most important things though.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Oh? And what are those?”

“Several mathematical formulas that serve as the foundation for several important pieces of the alien’s technology and the molecular structures of a number of compounds that don’t currently exist on Earth,” she replied with a great deal of seriousness, “Melissa drilled me until I could repeat them in my sleep.”

“I’ll send them to her father,” he replied with a nod. His old friend could do more with them than anyone. “And I’ll have more notebooks sent up.”

“And tell him about One for All,” she added, causing him to flinch somewhat. 

Yes. He sighed. That too. Along with Mirai, David was one of the two men that Toshinori would outright describe as being his ‘brother’, and letting the man know his secret was at least a decade past due. 

Really, he probably should have told him during their college days, but he’d always been too nervous. By the time he’d gotten over that, he’d married and had a daughter. Toshinori hadn’t told him then because he knew the man would have felt obliged to help, and he simply couldn’t permit David to risk his wife and daughter against one of the cruelest monsters the world had ever known.

But with aliens invading, he guessed it was long past due.

“I’ll do that,” he replied without hesitation. 

“Good,” she replied, “One more thing though...” she asked, her cheeks reddening slightly. 

“Yes, Eri-chan?”

She took a deep breath to steady herself. “About my clothes...?”

He glanced at her. Yes. He’d ordered his merch sent up as an emergency measure. Now that she was up and about he’d have one of his assistants take her shopping. Or maybe ask Mount Lady, she seemed to have taken a shine to the girl, and it would also neatly solve the bodyguard question.

“I had clothes sent up from the gift shop for expediency’s sake. If you want more conventional outfits, I’ll have someone help you shop later on today.”

She flushed. “I-it’s not that All Might-san... it’s...”

She took a deep breath clearly deeply embarrassed by what she was about to say, if the almost phosphorescent glow on her pale cheeks was any indication, “We need to discuss my panties.”

All Might’s eyebrow shot up. Okay. That was just about the last conversation he’d ever expected nor wanted to have with a small child, regardless of her mental age.

“I don’t feel this line of conversation is appropriate!” he exclaimed after a long moment, blushing deeply and feeling more than a little mortified at the concept to be completely honest with himself.

“T-that’s why I’m bringing it up!” she said, her voice reaching a squeaky tone.

“I’m afraid I don’t follow,” Toshinori replied in increasing dread and confusion, “Why are you bringing up your... um... underclothes if it’s unappropriate?”

She closed her eyes. “It would be easier if I just showed you.”

He quickly turned around and frantically stammered, “T-that won’t be necessary!”

“Not the ones I’m wearing!” she shouted with clear annoyance.

He sighed in relief. Small miracles. 

“Then what...”

She stood up and walked over to the bathroom, slipping inside for a moment. “Hold on.”

A moment later she exited carrying a small package that proudly said on the front ‘All Might Girl’s Undergarments.’

Oh.... Um.... He didn’t know they made those. He swallowed a lump in his throat. And he very much did not like where this line of conversation was going...

Reaching into the back she withdrew a square of red and blue fabric before hooking her fingers into the legs holes and stretching it out for display.

He felt his stomach bottom out and his blood run cold as he saw that his grinning mug was being prominently displaced on the central triangle, in a place of honor, dead center on the crotch.

Oh dear god. This was the sort of nightmare they warned you about in First Year Heroic Branding... to say nothing of the fact that the idiots had plastered his face on little girls’ underpants! 

“Shit,” he muttered in English, unable to think of any better word to describe his thoughts on the matter.

For a moment, he was wondering if it could get any worse. And then he wanted to kick himself for asking that. A moment after he finished the thought, she turned the pair around, and it proceeded to get so much worse.

For proudly plastered across the back end were the words: ‘Watashi Ga Kita!’

The official english translation of his catchphrase was “I am Here”. It was what he’d used in America, and it would have been more than bad enough on its own. And if they’d used the kana it would have meant just about that. ‘I have Arrived’ was the literal translation. But no, they used the kanji, and one of the possible readings of the for kita was kuru, which meant come . And kuru and come were two of those words that meant the generally same thing in both languages. In just about every possible meaning of the words, both common and vulgar . And then on top of all that, you had the fact that Japanese was a high-context language , which meant...

They’d plastered his catchphrase, which could be unsympathetically read as ‘ I Came ’, on the ass of little girls’ underpants! Just the thought of it mortified him beyond all human imagination. Did he have to explain to people why this shit was beyond inappropriate? Just looking at it made him want to die . What genius ? What intellectual behemoth ? What... what mental giant among men had thought that any of this was, in any way, shape, or form a good idea ?

‘Plus Ultra ’ did not translate to ‘ Full Stupid ’!

“All Might-san, are you alright?” 

No, no he wasn’t, he reflected as he stood in place, an unmoving statue, his eyes wide with horror, his skin ashen and pale, with a wordless sound emanating from the depths of his throat that sounded like the squeal of a dying piglet. 

“A-all Might-san? You’re worrying me. Should I call for help?”

------------------------------

Izuku breathed slowly as he reached deeply within himself, feeling the burning flames of One for All. All Might hadn’t been kidding when he’d called it a Sacred Torch. The power was incredible, it felt like he had a fusion reactor in his gut.

It was strange, you’d think the sensation of having a wellspring of nearly endless power plugged directly into your soul would be an alien sensation, but no, it felt... right. Like he’d just plugged in something he’d be missing his entire life. 

Now if he could only control it. He’d been trying to recapture the feeling, the way it had felt during the exam. At the time it had come easily to him, by instinct almost. He’d cloaked himself in One for All’s power and in doing so had been able to do what had seemed to have been impossible to him just a day before. Now however, he could feel it, but it was like trying to grab a hold of water. It just flowed through his fingers without letting him grab hold.

Or maybe that was the problem? Maybe he needed to stop thinking of it as something he needed to hold onto and treat it like something fluid? Maybe if instead he could just channel it and let it flow around him? Let it flow through his being without restraint, without being held, a constant self-sustaining stream both within and without.

He smiled as he felt a familiar feeling of warmth behind to infuse his being. Yeah! He almost had it! Just a moment more and... 

“Izuku! Stop sparking at the breakfast table.”

Izuku’s eyes burst open to see his mother sitting across from him looking more amused than annoyed.

“Um, sorry mom...”

“Izuku,” she chided, “I know you’re anxious to test your quirk but there’s a time and a place for everything, and right now is the time and place for breakfast.”

He flushed and rubbed the back of his head, “Yes, mom. Sorry, mom.”

He took a deep breath and looked down at his plates. Plural.

“Mom?”

“Yes, sweetie?”

He poked at the dishes in front of him, which by most standards was a traditional japanese breakfast... for three. 

“Is someone else coming, or...?” he asked poking at the relatively vast quantity of food.

“No, sweetie, that’s all for you.”

He looked up in confusion. “Mom?”

“I read up on stockpile quirks last night, just like what All Might-san said yours is,” she replied sternly. “You aren’t just eating to feed yourself, Izuku-kun, you’re eating to feed your quirk as well! And a well fed quirk means it will never fail you when you need it. So eat up, I don’t want to see a single grain of rice left in that bowl, young man! If you’re going to be a hero, you’re going to need every bite.”

“But... but what about you mom? What about the budget?” he asked a bit frantically. While his father did send money, he knew it was enough to house and feed them comfortably, if he was eating this much more it might not be enough.

“I’ll make do,” she stated with a slight huff. “Your well being is most important. If I need to I’ll get a part time job.”

Izuku felt mortified at the very thought. His mom shouldn’t have to get a job just to feed his quirk!

“And the money we’ll save by not buying All Might merchandise will help as well,” she added.

Izuku’s eyes went wide with unspoken horror. No! Not his All Might collection! Anything but that!

“Izuku,” his mother said giving him a level look that clearly told him his unspoken horror hadn’t been as unspoken as he hoped, “You’re All Might’s personal apprentice, now. You could probably just walk into his gift shop, fill a cart, and no one would bat an eye edgewise.”

Izuku blinked in surprise. Yeeeeeeeeeeeees. His mother was right, wasn’t she? He could probably just do that, couldn’t he?

“Izuku, I don’t like that smile.”

He blinked. He was smiling, wasn’t he? And very widely. Why wouldn’t he be? After all, he had all the reason to. He could have all the merch now. The latest and greatest and all on release! He just had to walk in and just take it off the shelf. After all, All Might himself had said he could get anything in Might Tower that would help him develop as a hero ...

"Izuku, that was an observation, not a suggestion... Izuku? Izuku!"

...He could have All Might everything . Sheets. Plates. Bath towels. Underwear. That 40,000 yen one meter tall limited edition All Might plushy that he’d been coveting since forever ? It was all within his grasp! It was official. All of his dreams could now come true. Not only could he reach his dream of becoming a hero, but he could finally have the ultimate collection...

“I swear to god, Izuku, if you fill this house with merchandise, I’m taking it all to a Flea Market. All of it. ”

Izuku immediately snapped out of it, the manic rictus vanishing from his face as quickly as it had appeared. No! Not the Flea Market!  

“I-I understand, mom.”

“Good,” She sighed in clear relief, “So, how did you meet All Might-san?”

“Well, I met him after I was attacked by that sludge villain on the way home from school one day...”

His mother blinked in shock as her eyes began to well up with tears. “Wait! I thought that thing just attacked Katsuki! It attacked you too!?!? Oh god! You’re telling me I almost lost you and you never told me about it? ”

Izuku could only flinch. “Um, I was a bit overwhelmed at the time. A lot had happened that day. By the time I’d gotten home, I was a bit overwhelmed. You see... ummmm...” he paused for a moment, “First I’d just found out that All Might was injured and then after the second sludge villian attack, he’d just offered to make me his successor. Compared to that, I’d completely forgotten about the first villain attack.”

She sniffed, the waterworks flowing freely. “Izuku, I don’t want you to ever do that to me again. I know being a hero is going to be hazardous, but I deserve to know if you get hurt or are put in danger! Please, Izuku!”

Izuku couldn’t help but tear up. He had been keeping too much from her, hadn’t he? And while he didn’t want her to be afraid, not telling her would leave her to fill in the gaps herself, and he knew how her imagination would always lead her to the worst conclusions with stuff like that.

It was funny. He didn’t want to make his mom upset, but at the same time, he had to tell her stuff that would make her upset so she didn’t become even more upset. It was a classic no win situation.

Taking a deep breath, “Mom, I didn’t really get hurt in training,” he said after a moment of thought, “I think I might have overstressed myself a couple times but I never really hurt myself.”

She nodded, watery eyed and biting her lip. “So you haven’t really hurt yourself then?”

Izuku smiled weakly and scratched the back of his head, “I wouldn’t exactly say that...”

“Izuku...”

He sighed. “It was at the exam. I should start from the beginning.”

She gave him a level look. “No, you can tell me the rest once you’re done. What happened?”

Izuku sighed. “Mom, at the end of the exam... for the practicals they have us fight robots.”

“They have children fighting robots?” she exclaimed, flushing red. He could understand her feelings. If he hadn’t had One for All, he’d have felt it was ridiculous too.

“Mom,” he sighed, “We’re being taught to be heroes! They’re actually not that tough and they don’t have any lethal weapons or anything like that. It’s mostly to scare us and see how we deal with a combat situation.”

She nodded, accepting his explanation but clearly not pleased with it. “I see.”

“Well, at the end of the battle they sent in a robot that wasn’t worth any points. They said it was more an obstacle than an enemy. I think it was mostly to see how we’d deal with something really scary and outside of our ability to handle.”

She frowned. “What do you mean by ‘really scary’? Aren’t robots scary enough?”

“It was huge, mom,” he replied, “At least thirty meters tall.”

Her eyes narrowed slightly. Oh great, now she was getting angry. “And they expected you to fight that?”

“No!” he stammered out quickly, “They expected us to run, but...”

She looked at him. “But, what?”

“There was a girl,” he replied with a sigh, “She was caught under some rubble, in the path of the robot. They probably would have stopped it from moving before she was crushed, but I didn’t think about that at the time. All I could see was someone in trouble... and I couldn’t reach her in time...” he trailed off, “So I went full power.”

His mother blinked. “Didn’t All Might say your quirk was so powerful that it could kill you?”

“I’ve been training for months,” Izuku replied defensively. “And I wasn’t thinking about me. All I could see was her...” he paused for a moment, “She was scared, mom. All I could see was her eyes begging for someone to help her. I couldn’t just let her die in front of me. Not when I could do something about it.”

His mother looked at him with wide eyes. “Izuku...”

“I was able to save her. I destroyed the robot, but I hurt myself. It was the worst kind of pain... but I saved her .  And that’s what was important.”

There was a pregnant pause. A tense moment of silence between them before his mother slowly stood up from the table and walked around it. Not a word was spoken as she did so, then she walked up to him and pulled him into a tight hug. “Never do anything like that again.”

He slowly shook his head. “I can’t make that promise, mom... not when lives are at stake.”

She look at him, the tears readily flowing. “If something happened to you, Izuku, it would destroy me. Please .”

He bit his lip, feeling his own beginning to well up. “Only when it’s life or death.”

She stiffened.... but eventually nodded. “Alright. Just promise me you won’t use it for foolish things.”

He nodded. “I promise.”

“.... And Izuku?”

“Y-yeah mom?”

She hugged him tightly. “You’re my hero.”

Chapter Text

It had been some time since Nezu had hosted Sir Nighteye in his office. While the man had never been a student of his, being a former salaryman who, driven by All Might’s example, had become a hero later in life, he did not hold it against him. If anything, it comforted Nezu. He knew all too well that the UA entrance criteria were rather difficult for those with more subtle quirks.

This was in part due to design, though Rescue Points and now Hero Points did much to balance it out. The reality was that UA’s curriculum was largely designed around finding those who already possessed top tier quirks and forge them into some of the world’s most powerful heroes. An apt comparison too because he thought the best way to forge a young hero was to apply sufficient heat, pressure, and repeated physical and psychological impacts!

But again, the man before him was proof that anyone with the right will and character could be an exceptional hero. He was even tempted to ask the man to join the staff as a part time guidance counselor. Several of the new students coming into the hero track this year were students possessing less flashy quirks who had managed to pass on sheer gumption and gallantry. Right now his only teachers focusing on more subtle uses were Aizawa and Kayama. The problem with that was two fold. First, Eraserhead was notoriously picky when it came to mentorships. And second, Midnight had a tendency to act extremely... Midnight .

“This is an interesting tea, Nezu-san” the tall human stated gently as he sipped at Nezu’s favorite blend. It was a flavor that normally took humans a little time to adapt to, as it was more conditioned to his palate than those of the genus Homo , but humans who could appreciate good tea often found it to at least be a fascinating flavor. Something he often appreciated in turn.

He always respected Sir Nighteye. He had a good tongue for tea, was intelligent enough to hold a proper conversation, and his quirk allowed him to provide interesting insights. Sadly though, he doubted he’d take the offer unless he floated the idea with Yagi first. Sasaki was almost as picky as Aizawa. He’d need to convince All Might to convince Nighteye, and even then he’d need to be careful about which students he offered up to him for guidance. 

At least Togata was a given. Beyond that would involve careful consideration.

“I have heard you’ve seen our mysterious traveler,” he said, taking a sip of his tea, “What is your read on the girl?”

Nighteye smiled genially, almost causing Nezu to raise an eyebrow. The man was notoriously morose and fatalistic, but the cheerful smile on his face was anything but.

“Her power has a disruptive effect on my own,” he replied, “I believe I can confirm, with the utmost assurance, that Midoriya-kun’s assessment of its temporal nature is accurate.”

Nezu nodded. He could see. From the man’s profile, his fatalistic attitude was largely born out of a degree of existential angst over the question of Free Will. Most people would find a power that disrupted their own to be a bother, but he could see that Sasaki found it to be liberating. A panacea for his own fears and doubts. 

This was a good thing, overall, Nezu decided. A positive outlook was useful for Heroes and contributed to their long term mental and emotional stability. 

The door to his office slowly opened and he glanced over to see the broad form of Toshinori Yagi enter with a tiny pre-adolescent female. She was albino, with facial features that humans would find pleasing, and a small horn asymmetrically located on the right side of her forehead. He also quite clearly noticed the scars on her forearms peeking out from under her sleeves.

The last bit caught his attention with great intensity. Looking more closely, he studied her affect and condition, and quickly came to a conclusion that made his own scars ache. One that filled him with the same primal fury that fueled the ‘sadism’ that he was infamous for among his staff and students. He  and this girl clearly shared a kinship beyond the both of them possessing white fur. They were both the victims of cruel, systematic experimentation.

This was why he largely despised humanity. They were a species of stupid, violent, ignorant apes who mindlessly despoiled everything they touched and feared anything they couldn’t understand. But he was intelligent enough to understand that like all sapients, they were made up of individuals. Sure, there were the bad apples who ruined the bushel as the old saying went, But on the whole he found your average human to be kind, honest, and good natured, with each one possessing their own wonderfully unique little oddities that made them just so insufferably endearing. 

People were destructive, idiotic sheep; persons were unique, special snowflakes worthy of protecting. Quite the conundrum, he’d say. And in the end he’d decided to place his faith in the power of the individual to rise above. 

To go beyond. 

Plus Ultra, as they’d say.

Surprising was how the girl reacted to the sight of him. Most people were confused or even a little taken back at first sight. After all, he was a small, cuddly mammal in a suit and a double breasted vest. This girl on the other hand, she seemed to not only recognize him, but the microexpressions on her face showed that she was actually relaxed by his presence, and not by his ‘cute’ appearance, but rather by his personal presence as a whole. This implied familiarity.

Interesting ....

“ I am Here ... to discuss the future.”

“Greetings All Might-san,” he said, passively, “And... I see you’ve brought our young mystery. What is your name young lady?”

“My name is Eri,” she replied, “And it’s a relief to see you alive, Nezu-san.”

He raised his eyebrow at that. “Really? And just what happened to me exactly?”

“You died while I was in my freshman year. Old age,” she replied. “I’m sorry.”

Nezu nodded slightly. Well then, that answered one question. He had no idea of his natural lifespan.  Being a quirked chimera made it difficult to guess his relative age as the various animals he was composed of had many inconsistent years of lifespan. He’d already been noticing the aches and pains here and there for some time and suspecting his time was going to come to a close sooner rather than later. Having an estimated date, while certainly not a relief, was at least something he could at least prepare for rather than have to assume. And, all things considered, an approximate decade was something he supposed he could live with. And ensure that when he did pass, he did so with dignity.

“I see,” was his simple response, “No need to apologize and thank you for informing me. I’ll be sure to have my affairs in order when the time comes.”

She snorted slightly, “Not happening, you’re too useful to die. Once I rebuild my reserves, you’re on my list.”

“Your list,” he repeated, “I assume this has something to do with the way that you healed All Might-san?”

She nodded. “My power doesn’t heal, my power reverts people to a previous physical state.”

Of course. Not that it was something they hadn’t already surmised, but he guessed that the word healing was technically inaccurate, even if it was functionally so. After all, ‘healing’ All Might was well beyond anything a conventional healing quirk could ever accomplish.

 “And I’m guessing that is why he looks so youthful,” Nezu stated, “You physically reverted him to a physical state before he received his injury.”

“Exactly, sir,” she replied.

“And I assume you wish to physically revert me to a younger state, as you did All Might-san?”

She nodded. “Yes. Once my reserves recover, I’d like to Rewind you. Recovery Girl as well.”

“Of course. Please take a seat, and would you like some tea?”

She smiled and nodded, “Thank you, Nezu-san.”

He watched the girl and All Might sit down while he poured her a cup. Politely she took the tea and began to sip at it. She still seemed uncomfortable, but she seemed to slowly be relaxing. 

“So, tell us about yourself and the future you came from.”

She glanced over to All Might. “How much did you tell them?”

“Nothing,” he replied, “I haven’t had a chance to share the details.”

Nezu couldn’t help but be amused as he looked at the Number One hero and considered the massive difference between what he looked like before and how he looked now. Before, he’d been a sickly, emaciated figure who looked to be alive more thanks to sheer determination than anything else. Now, even with his quirk inactive he simply looked like a shorter, more vibrant All Might. This child’s power was awe inspiring.

He would have to consider her offer. One never simply just accepted being the subject of such a powerful quirk without at least some basic consideration, but he was sure that he’d do it even after giving it some thought. It was not everyday someone offered to extend your lifespan by years, if not decades.

As Nezu thought to himself, All Might reached into his bag and withdrew two stacks of photocopies. 

“How retro,” he said with some amusement, though he already knew why he’d decided to use the “dead tree” format in favor of digital.

“Yes,” All Might replied, “I thought this information was too sensitive, at least at the moment, to risk it being compromised.”

Nezu nodded in thanks and looked at the human child. “Would you like to begin or should we read this first?”

She sighed, “That was largely written as I thought of it in the middle of the night. Since I passed on One for All, my memories have become muddled,” she admitted, “But... I’m from twenty years in the future. In twelve years the Earth is going to be invaded by aliens.”

Nezu paused and looked down at the papers before him. Well, that was just about the last thing he ever would have expected.

“You’re serious?” Nighteye muttered in clear shock as he began to leaf through the papers. “Oh my, you’re actually serious.”

“I’ll admit, my own feelings on the matter were not much different than yours,” All Might replied, “But after a long night of thinking-” he paused “-and I will not lie, a good deal of heavy drinking, I realized that we simply cannot afford to overreact. We must stay the course and retain our focus.”

“Of course,” Nighteye replied with a sharp nod, “I’m just surprised that I didn’t see any of this .”

“Last night, I came up with a theory about that,” All Might replied, “I apologise if I’m not quite accurate, but I was somewhat intoxicated at the time. I think it has something to do with the alien’s ‘Faster Than Light’ drives.”

”Of course! Causality!” Nezu exclaimed. While All Might often played the buffoon, sometimes to the point of his own detriment, he was actually a very intelligent and well educated man; even if he tended to favor direct action over more careful consideration. Plus there was the obvious fact that One for All had to boost its user’s comprehensive speed to match the boost it granted to one’s physiology. After all, the brain was simply an organ, and in order to catch a speeding bullet, as he’d seen All Might do several times in the past, you had to be able to think beyond the speed of a bullet’s velocity. It was a cognitive trick that even Nezu’s High Specs quirk was incapable of matching.

“According to the laws of general relativity,” Nezu continued, “Anything that could be used to travel faster than light would, by its very nature, allow for time travel... and as Eri’s quirk, which is related to time can serve as a blindspot for your quirk...”

“Then anything that involves faster than light travel will likely do so as well...,” Nighteye finished grimly, “Suddenly my inability to comprehend temporal interruption is far less comforting.”

“I’m sorry,” Eri said lightly, “I know it’s upsetting but...”

“No,” Mirai replied, “It’s not anyone's fault. And I’d rather have to be told about it and have the opportunity to change the future than be doomed to be a modern day Cassandra,” he said in reference to the princess of Troy who was gifted with prophecy, but cursed so that no one would ever believe her.

Eri for her part could only nod. “The core principles behind their FTL technology was an important part of the equipment that permitted me to travel through time,” she replied. “They’re on page six.”

Nezu immediately turned to the page and his beady eyes went wide as he looked at the jumble of mathematics that had been half-scribbled on the page by a hand clearly unused to writing such complex formulas. 

Oh. 

Oh! 

Oooooh! 

This ... this was... something else . Something else entirely. He couldn’t help but laugh. And it wasn’t even a cackle. Even he had some trouble following this, and even then it was only just. If he hadn’t already seen the proof of her power sitting across from him, this alone would have convinced him. Because either this girl was a time traveler, or she was a genius in theoretical physics to a sufficient degree as to make Albert Einstein look like a drooling moron. And at an age where most children were still mastering basic addition. 

Out of the two, he found time travel to be the more probable.

“So, what’s the plan?” Nighteye asked, looking to All Might.

“I was actually hoping we could figure this out together,” the large man replied. “I will not lie and claim that I’m not feeling a little over my head with this.”

“Surely you’ve come to some conclusion,” Nezu asked the large human.

“I’ve decided that, at least in the short term, it would be best to follow the plan given to me by Eri-shojo. Reach out to my other contacts, handle the immediate issues she outlined in her report, recruit the individuals she listed...”

Nighteye paged through the notes and frowned. “Several of these individuals are criminals, if not outright villains in their own right.”

“Most of them aren’t bad people,” Eri countered, looking slightly offended. “They’re just... lost . They need help .”

Nighteye flipped the page and visibly grimaced. “And am I supposed to believe that All for One counts among those people?”

Nezu blinked and turned the page. All for One? Alive? And the girl seriously was suggesting they work with him? From a pragmatic standpoint, he could understand why. All for One was powerful beyond imagination and for all his terribleness, he had a vested interest in humanity’s survival. Then again, the very idea of being so desperate as to work with such a vile creature sickened him. As it clearly did All Might. And even more telling, All Might wasn’t speaking up against the premise.

“Of course not!” she replied strongly, “All for One is a monster. But at the end of the day, he’s our monster.”

Nighteye’s face twisted in pure disgust at the concept. “I cannot believe you are suggesting this... insanity .”

“Sir Nighteye-san!” she exclaimed, cutting him off, before her voice lowered back to a near whisper. “I respect you very much. In the original timeline you died to save me.” At that the man’s complaints came to a sharp stop at that realization, “And I know exactly how terrible All for One is. I had to work with him for years and he was never one to hide his history... if anything, he was proud of it. His methods were unspeakable, but he was a key factor in our survival. I’m not suggesting this lightly.”

“I see,” he said after a moment, looking towards All Might who took a deep breath and with a pained expression, simply nodded.

This more than anything made Nezu’s stomach twist. What she’d said so far was simply the tip of the iceberg.  What hadn’t she told them yet that was so horrible as to convince Toshinori Yagi that even entertaining the concept of allying with All for One was in any way an acceptable idea? He almost didn’t want to know, but he supposed he’d have plenty of time to become intimately familiar with it once he read this in full.

“It was that bad?” Nighteye asked, clearly dreading the answer.

“It was worse,” she replied, “So much worse. Billions dead. The world enslaved. Even All for One was, in the end, just another soldier.”

For a moment all conversation stopped as a pause fell over the room like a cold mist. The enormity of what she was describing was unimaginable, even for him. And he could imagine quite a lot.

“So, your plan is for us to establish contact with the... recruits you’ve outlined and use the knowledge within this report to best prepare for the imminent alien invasion?” Nezu said, trying to bring some motion back to the conversation.

“Yes sir.” she replied dutifully. 

“And what about you?” he asked.

She lowered her head. “I’ll rewind anyone who can contribute to the effort to their prime, like I did with All Might.”

Nezu nodded. Logical, but it made him question. “What else? You’re a child. One who legally doesn’t exist. You must have some idea what you want to do with your life.”

She flushed slightly. “In the long run, I really don’t matter. All that really matters is humanity's survival.”

“Nonsense, Eri-shojo,” All Might replied, “Your wellbeing is important as well.”

“I have to agree,” Nighteye replied, “I didn’t ‘die’ so you could suffer in silence.”

“I don’t even know who I am,” she replied bluntly, her affect not of a controit child, but instead reminding him of a veteran standing at the very precipice of her breaking point. This woman. This girl. This hero needed an intervention, needed grounding now , before her own doubts tore her apart.

“You implied that you went to UA,” Nezu asked suddenly. “What was your name?”

“Flashback,” she replied, “My hero name was Flashback.”

Nezu smiled at her, “Well, Flashback-san, what do you mean you don’t know who you are anymore?”

She paused for a moment. “I’m... on one hand, I feel like I’m just a child who has had all of this just... dumped on her head. On the other, I feel like a... grown woman trapped in a little girl’s body. I don’t know which is the real me anymore. I-I’m just not sure who I am anymore.”

“Perhaps you’re both,” was Nezu’s response, “Or perhaps you’re neither, and are instead a whole new person born out of the merger.”

He paused. “How old are you?”

 “That’s the problem,” she said with a sad laugh. “I don’t even know anymore...”

“How old was the woman who went back?” he countered, “And How old are you physically?”

“Six and twenty five,” she replied, confusion apparently on her childish face.

“So, you’re not sure if you’re the child or the adult. The six year old or the twenty five year old?”

She nodded. “Yes.”

He could only chuckle. “Well, mind a suggestion then, Flashback-san? Eri-chan? Whatever it is you wish for me to call you?”

She nodded gently. “At this point I’ll take whatever I can get...”

“You’re neither. Not anymore. You’re no longer the child, and no longer the woman. You’re something in between. You’re not six years old. You’re not the twenty five year old. Split the difference, take the average. That should put you at 15 and a half.”

“I...” she trailed off for a moment, “I don’t think it works like that.”

“And why not? If I did my math right, tell me, did you manage to graduate before the invasion?”

She frowned. “No. I didn’t.”

“I see,” he said with a nod. “It must be strange to be back here after so long.”

“Not really,” she replied, a small smile on her face. “After I was rescued, I spent most of my life living here at UA. As a child I had poor control of my quirk. Everyone here was so kind to me.”

Oh. That did not sound pleasant. An uncontrolled quirk capable of reverting a person to a previous state? The hints of shame and sadness in her eyes made it clear to him that not only was her quirk hyper-lethal, but she had killed with it before in this timeline. Likely a friend or family. Probably a parent.

The poor girl.

“Eri-chan,” he said, reverting to the childish form of address in order to connect with her both as the child she was now, and to summon the memories of the child she once was in the timeline that would never come to pass. “You deserve to have a life. Everyone here will do what they can to help you find your place.”

“Thank you. But it’s too much of a risk,” she whispered, “Chisaki is not going to take my disappearance lightly.”

Nezu frowned. A cold fury laced his next words, “Is he the one who experimented on you?”

“Yes!” she replied, “And he’s not going to stop putting those around me in danger until he’s taken into custody.”

“Are we talking about Chisaki Kai?” Sir Nighteye interrupted,“Leader of the Shie Hassaikai ?”

She nodded.

All Might turned to his former sidekick. “You know about him, Mirai?”

“Yes,” replied the lanky hero,”I’ve recently begun looking into the organization. Why would he be so obsessed with you, Flashback-san?”

“I put notes of my own on the back,” All Might stated grimly, “Based on what she told me.”

Nezu flipped to the back. He was expecting the worst, and he certainly got it. Terrifying quirk. Competent team motivated to the point of fanaticism. Quirk destroying drugs . 

“Oh my!” he heard Sir Nighteye mutter in exclamation as he also breezed through the sheets, “I had suspicions that they were engaged in something . They’ve been buying medical supplies, chemicals, pharmaceutical precursors. Nothing technically illegal so far, but...”

He took a deep breath, “I’d honestly been expecting them to eventually start manufacturing Trigger, or something along those lines. There was nothing that would have ever suggested anything close to this level of... depravity .” 

Nezu had to disagree. It made sense that many of the same compounds that went into a quirk enhancing drug would likely be used as part of a quirk destroying drug. But then again, this was a clear example of hindsight being 20/20. Given the same sort of information that Sir Nighteye likely had access to, Nezu doubted even he would ever come to such a fanciful sounding conclusion.

“Do you have any other information?” Nezu asked.

“Only that their organization seems to have gone to ground,” he replied, “Chisaki personally disposed of several of his points of contact and then vanished into thin air.”

All Might gritted his teeth, “Well, if you find him, you let me know. I want to deal with this bastard personally.”

“You’re not doing this alone,” Sir Nighteye stated bluntly.

“Mirai...” All Might began.

“Don’t give me that, Toshinori,” he countered, “If you’re worried, don’t. I’m not going to let him kill me twice and I have my own life to avenge, don’t I? You’re not doing this alone, so don’t even pretend.”

All Might chuckled. “All right. Just stay alive.”

“I very much intend to. And if it is my fate to die... then I’ll change it . I’ll will myself to live. And then we can go have drinks when we’re done, just like the good old days, how does that sound?”

Toshinori laughed. “Sounds good.”

“Don’t underestimate him,” Eri warned, “He’s as cautious as he is insane. He won’t move unless he thinks he has a sure-fire chance of getting me back. So if you want to use me as bait, I’m willing to do whatever it takes.”

“Absolutely not, Eri-shojo,” All Might exclaimed.

“I-it’s the only way...” she whispered. 

“No. We can find him,” Sir Nighteye replied, “With my abilities, we can do it without you having to endanger yourself.”

Nezu could only flinch. The girl was offering to risk being retaken by her tormentor in the hopes that he might be brought to justice. She certainly had the character of a hero.

“Then I’ll accept any form of protective custody you see as fit,” she replied.

“Are you expecting to just hide in the secure sections of Might Tower until he is taken in?” Nezu asked her.

“If need be, yes,” she replied.

“No,” Nezu replied, bluntly, his voice carrying with a determination that honestly surprised even him. “I will not allow that.”

Nezu willed himself to calm down and stared at the girl across from him

“Do you want to know what I see when I look at you?”

“Um, I guess so?”

“I see a girl. A young woman lost and confused. A heroine who sacrificed her entire world to give humanity a fighting chance. I will not allow you to cage yourself like that, Eri-san. You deserve better.”

She blinked in confusion. “W-what?”

“I’d like to make you an offer,” he stated, “I very much doubt you’d like to rejoin your... physical peers.”

She grimaced at the very idea of having to spend her days amongst a pack of first graders. “No.”

Nezu nodded. “Then how about this. It would be easy enough to create an identity for you. We tell largely the truth, but lie about your age. Claim that your appearance is due to your quirk and the experimentation you underwent. We can file you as the appropriate age, and allow you to attend UA as a first year student. There, you can establish new connections, complete your education, and find the security you need to protect you from Chisaki without having to lock yourself in one of All Might’s guest rooms...”

She blinked. “But haven’t the entrance exams already been finished?”

He grinned. “Not the recommended exams. With the increased number of hero course students we have this year, we’re going to have room for more recommended students as well.. Why as far as I’m concerned, you’re practically a shoe in. You were a U.A. student after all, even if it was in a past life. Your attendance will simply be a formality in order to maintain appearances. What do you say? You can’t hide forever.”

She looked down for a moment then looked back up to him, her eyes hardening with resolve. “Under one condition, Nezu-san.”

“And that would be...?”

“Put me in Izuku’s class,” she demanded, “I want to do everything I can to help him succeed.”

Nezu felt himself smirk. “Plus Ultra then?”

She nodded. “Plus Ultra.”

He began to chuckle. “Very well, Eri-san. Welcome back... to your Hero Academia.”

Chapter Text

Three days. She had three days to get ready for the U.A. Recommended Students entry exam. She didn’t know what to think about that. On one hand, she was skipping nine grades. On the other she’d agreed to repeat High School.

It was honestly sort of surreal, to be honest. Nezu, that crazy old creature, had been right. She really wasn’t the person she’d been just a couple days before. She wasn’t the little girl who had spent what felt like most of her life stuck in Chisaki Kai’s creepy pedophile S&M dungeon nor the grown woman who’d just sacrificed her entire world in the forlorn hope that she might just be able to save mankind. She was... the point of contact. The middle ground.

What he’d been doing was obvious, he’d been trying to give her a lifeline. Something to ground her. She’d (or her old self) seen it before, hell, she’d done it before. In the future she’d helped pull more than a few of her fellows from the brink of hopelessness and despair. 

She also wasn’t sure why she’d demanded to be in Izuku’s class. On one hand, she wanted to help him become the hero he was destined to become. On the other... she wondered if her  interference would get in the way of his growth. She just hoped she could help him in some way.

But that all depended on her being able to pass the damned U.A. Recommended Student entrance exam.... again . While yes, she knew that she was guaranteed a spot, she also knew that if she didn’t at least give a good showing, questions would be asked and the last thing she wanted to do was cause a scandal. Even more, her pride as a hero demanded that she get in honestly. She’d worked herself to the bone to pass the first time. And she was not going to fail it this time.

That meant she had to do two things. First, she wanted to pass the test honestly. Or at least have it look that way. She might be off on current events and recent history, but she knew she had the other academic fields down pat. Her Japanese grammar, spelling, and Kanji were easily beyond what was expected of a first year highschool student, she was completely fluent in English, and for the love of all that was holy... simply getting to the point where she could successfully memorize all the mathematics and physics material they’d demanded that she bring back with her probably qualified her for a damned PhD. 

It was then that he heard a knock at her door. 

This immediately put her on edge. She’d been told her lunch would take a good hour to fully prepare, and there was still a good ten minutes left. Carefully she picked up the cellphone that All Might had given her and placed her finger over one of the non-standard features that was built into this model: the panic button. Three quick presses on both volume control buttons would send an Emergency SOS to not only the police, but to All Might himself. 

She knew all too well how ludicrously powerful Izuku could be when he felt it was necessary to bring his full might to bear. She seriously doubted that his predecessor, the tellingly named All Might , the one who’d come up with the moniker ‘The Symbol of Peace’ would be any less gratuitous. 

A small, feral smile came to her face as she pushed the stepping stool in front of the door so she could actually reach the peephole. While she’d never admit it, part of her hoped that that man was idiot enough to try...

Instead, what she was was a shapely blonde woman in comfortable, stylish clothes standing at her door, looking relaxed, though maybe a little tired. She was also carrying a teddy bear.

She frowned slightly as she didn’t recognize her. 

“Who’s this?” Eri asked, her fingers still over the button.

“I’m out of costume, but I’m Mount Lady!” she heard from the other side, “I watched over you while you were out! Heard you just woke up, so I decided to check things out and take a look.”

Eri paused for a moment trying to remember where she’d heard that name before recollection finally came to her. 

Oh yeah, she was that former pro who went bankrupt when she was 12...

The exact reason why she went bankrupt eluded her. Something about mounting insurance costs and property damage. Last she’d heard about her was when she was in first year. Something about public drunkenness, disorderly conduct, and indecent exposure. Hadn’t seen her during the war. She probably died in the initial attack or ended up in one of the camps. For Mount Lady’s sake, she hoped it was the former. 

Makes sense that she would be active now considering her incident wouldn’t happen for another 6 years. She’d have to jot that one down in her book for reference. They would need every hero they could get on deck. 

“Come in.” she called out after a second of thought. She had watched over her while she’d been at her most vulnerable, and that meant a good deal to her on both ends of her identity. He’d woken her up from sleep to experiment on her enough times that she’d never been able to sleep easy. Even after a decade she’d still been an uneasy sleeper. You always had to respect the one on graveyard shift.

She moved her stool to the side and unlocked the door, allowing the woman entrance.

“Can I help you?” Eri asked, giving the woman an examining look. She was attractive, that much was for sure. And from the way she held herself, was very much aware of the fact.

“I’m just stopping in to see how you’re doing!” the woman said slowly and cheerfully, as if she was talking to an idiot. Or a small child.

Great. And this was half the reason she agreed to Nezu’s cover story. While she was in many ways still a child, both physically and to a large degree, emotionally... her breadth of experience was simply too wide to be able to put up with it to any real degree.

“Mount Lady-san...” she began.

The woman smiled brightly, thoughtlessly cutting her off. “You can call me Yu-neechan, if you want!”

Eri bit her lip slightly. She’d always had trouble with loud, extroverted people like this. One thing she was all too aware of was that her childhood had left its mark on her. The emotional scars went deeper than the physical, and she’d always been an introvert. The fact that now, some of those very physical scars hadn’t even healed yet just made it worse. Only reason she even knew how to smile now was that she could recall enough good times to remind her... even if many of them were simply bitter sweet.

“And I brought you a friend,” she said, holding out the bear, “He’ll keep your safe at night, okay? Help chase the monsters under your bed away! Bears are good at that.”

“M-mount Lady-san,” she managed to mutter out before being cut off, again...

“Yu-neechan,” the woman insisted this time.

She was not comfortable calling a woman she’d just met ‘big sister’ even if she was just trying to be kind. Which despite her rather oafish approach, the woman was clearly trying a bit too hard to do. She was overwhelming, but there was a big difference between being exasperating and being offensive. Thusly, Eri took the attempt in the spirit it was intended, if maybe not the execution.

“Yu-san,” Eri asked, “How old do you think I am?”

“Five? Maybe six?” she asked.

Eri looked up at her. No time to start using her cover story like the present. “I’m fifteen.”

If Eri was a less polite person, she might have wished for a camera to capture the look on the grown woman’s face. It looks like someone had just dumped a bucket of ice water over her head.

“I-I-I am so sorry!” she managed to stammer out. “I just assumed and...”

Eri sighed. “It’s okay, Mount Lady-san. I don’t take offense and I am thankful for your consideration.”

The woman deflated slightly in relief. “Thanks. I’m really sorry, you just looked like a kid . With quirks being the way they are, I shouldn’t have assumed.”

Eri nodded slightly. Quirks could cause all forms of physical oddities. In a way she was fortunate that her own quirk mutation, her horn, was seen as being endearing rather than frightening as many could often be. 

“I was ordering dinner,” Eri said after a moment to the apologetic woman, “And I don’t mind. I am physically six years old after all.”

The woman sighed and walked inside, pausing as Eri hopped into the massive recliner that All Might had left in the room.

“I see the big guy left his chair for you,” she observed as she closed the door behind her. 

She could only nod in response. It was huge, comfortable, and he was not getting it back.

“You can have the sofa, Mount Lady-san,” she said demurely.

“You can still call me Yu if you’d like,” she said as she sat down, “So, what’s your name?”

“I’m Eri, Yu-san,” she replied. 

“Well, Eri-san, I hope you’re alright... I can only imagine what was being done to you,” she flinched slightly, “And with a mutation like yours...”

Eri raised an eyebrow. A condition like..?. She blinked. 

Oh. 

Oh dear. 

Mount Lady must have immediately gone to the worst case, hadn’t she? So-called ‘Peter Pan’ quirks, while not exactly common, were not unheard of. Quirks that trapped their owner in a state of eternal neoteny, giving them the appearance of a child even while being physically mature. She knew that such individuals could be the targets of all sorts of twisted degenerates, especially those whoes quirks effects were more extreme. 

“It’s not like that!” She nervously exclaimed. That was probably the only way that Chisaki hadn’t touched her!

“Fuck,” Yu muttered to herself.

A long pause passed by before the hero slowly stood up, “I’m sorry. I just keep making an ass of myself. I should go.”

“Don’t!” Eri found herself exclaiming, “Y-you’re the first person who ever visited me and brought me a gift just because...”

The woman blinked in surprise. “The first person to... but aren’t you fifteen?”

She nodded. Time to use that cover story again. Wasn’t even really much of a lie. “For as long, as I can remember really, I was kept in a lab and experimented on because of my quirk...”

Mount Lady grimaced. “I’m sorry. But they got you out. All Might rescued you, right?”

She bit her lip and shook her head. “No. He found me. I was able to use my quirk to escape and I ran into him and Izuku and they brought me here.”

“Oh.” 

The woman fell back onto the couch, looking downcast for a moment, lost in thought, before she looked up to Eri again. There was an expression of simple, overwhelming failure on her face. That more than anything told Eri that this one was for real. “You must feel like we failed you. Us heroes I mean...”

“No,” Eri replied, “It was still heroes who still saved me, in the end. And I know that if the heroes had known what was going on...” she paused and thought back to those memories of a rescue that never would be, “I know that they would have given their everything to save me. Even their lives.”

She paused and looked up. “That’s why I’m going to become a hero. To save other people so they don’t have to go through what I went through.” 

And to honor those who gave their everything to save me. To honor those who gave their everything to save humanity. To give me the chance to come back and change things. To ensure that humanity can look towards the future with hope rather than terror. 

To live up to his example.

Mount Lady smiled at her. “You’re a good kid.”

Eri smiled and learned back, picking up her book to begin to write in it. Making sure to outline what she’d remembered about Mount Lady and throwing down a note to maybe look into her finances. She seemed like a good person. She didn’t deserve to be remembered as a joke or a failure.

Once she was done, Eri leaned back and enjoyed the silent presence of another human being. Something that she often enjoyed more than talking, to be honest. When you talked things could get confusing, but comfortable silence was always comforting to her. There was a sort of calm it created you just couldn’t find anywhere else.

“So what’s your quirk?” Mount Lady asked, “If you don’t mind me asking.”

Eri closed her eyes. “My quirk is called ‘Rewind’...” she paused for a moment, “Think of life as being like... watching a movie at the theater. Back when they still used film? Normally life just ticks on until the movie ends, right?”

She nodded. “I guess so?”

“I can... turn back the reel. Physically reverse someone to a previous state. For example, if you lost your leg in battle... I could Rewind your body back to when you still had the leg.”

Yu blinked. “Damn, that’s a pretty impressive quirk. I mean, not the best in a fight... but...” her eyes went wide after a moment. “Is that why you look like a kid?”

Eri nodded dredging up the memories of the very real experiments she’d been put through to add authenticity to her statement. “Some of his experiments were more... invasive than others... I had to...”

“You had to rewind yourself to...” Yu finished with a flinch. “And I’m guessing when that happens you might overdo it?”

Eri nodded. The implication that he was the reason she looked like a child hung in the air without needing to be said.

“Shit...,” she said with a finch. “Whatever sick bastard did this to you, I’mma help take him down. I swear on my name as a hero.”

“No,” Eri stated bluntly, looking Mount Lady dead in the eyes. For a moment she could see the face of so many young heroes who’d thrown their lives away against the invaders by getting in way over their heads. “You absolutely will not.”

The woman blinked in surprise. “Wait, what? Why not?”

She took a deep breath and began to explain, “Chisaki’s quirk is called ‘Overhaul’, it allows him to rearrange subatomic matter at a touch. Unless you start and end the fight by clubbing him over the head with a dump truck, you are the worst possible matchup against him. I’ve seen him cause people to explode with just a touch. And even if your giant form is too big for that, and he is only able to blow your leg off , there’s nothing to keep him from doing something really crazy like turning some of your blood into cyanide and killing you that way. And yes, he is that creative.”

Yu’s face slowly grew more and more bloodless as Eri explained both his quirk and what he could do with it before she simply took a deep breath and said, “I can’t promise that, kid, I’m a hero. It’s what we do. But while I’ll do what I can to help... You’re right, I am not fighting that bastard. Like you said, it’s a bad match.”

Eri sighed in relief. Good. She’d seen too many heroes die in her life, starting with Sir Nighteye and ending with everyone she’d ever known and loved . She wouldn’t have this woman end like them.

“So I gotta know, if this guy is such a monster, how were you able to escape? Your quirk’s awesome, don’t get me wrong, but it doesn’t sound like it’s made for fighting.”

Eri looked up to her. “You know how I said that I could move people back, like rewinding a movie?”

She nodded. “Yeah?”

Eri looked her dead in the eyes. “What happens when you send someone back to the previews?”

Yu’s eyes went wide and she sucked in a deep breath. Eri knew that look all too well, and it still stung. Fear. “Okay. Nevermind. That explains that. And what’s your range?”

“Five meters,” Eri replied, with great reluctance. “I can Rewind anything living within five meters of me.”

“Wow,” She laughed weakly and then sighed, “I won’t lie and say your power isn’t scary...” 

She stood up and walked over to Eri as the expression slowly grew into a smile, “But then again, all the good ones are, I guess. I mean look at me. My quirk’s pretty cool, but I could do a lot of damage and hurt a lot of people if I really wanted to. It’s what you do with it that counts, and from the sound of things?” She ruffled Eri’s hair. “You’ll make a great hero, kid.”

Eri blushed and pushed her hand away. She was flattered but she didn’t exactly feel at ease at the physical contact. Then again, she understood entirely that the woman was trying to put her at ease, even if it wasn’t working terribly well. 

Maybe Mount Lady was just too much of an extrovert for her, but at the same time, she deeply appreciated the thought and effort. In manageable doses. At a reasonable distance.

There was another knock at the door and Eri looked over, but before she could say a thing, Yu raised her hand. “Don’t worry, kid. I’ve got this...”

Without waiting for Eri to reply she walked over to the door, “Who is it?”

“Room Service!” exclaimed a young man’s voice.

She opened the door, and then immediately froze in the doorway.

“Something wrong, ma’am?” the delivery man replied.

“Um, you sure you got the right order?” Yu said weakly.

“No ma’am, the order was pretty clear,” he replied, “One Extra-Large pot of Chanko Nabe?”

“It’s all right. That was my order,” Eri called out causing Mount Lady to round on her in surprise. 

“Seriously?” she asked in seeming disbelief.

Eri nodded and stood up, “Yes.”

Mount Lady stepped out of the way, still looking a little shell shocked as the server pushed in a flat bottomed cargo cart, upon which was resting a happily bubbling pot of Sumo Stew in a pot so large that Eri could probably curl up inside it, along with several cardboard office boxes containing all of the sides.

Eri felt her stomach growl at the very sight of it. So much delicious, glorious food ...

Looking up from the gloriously massive pot of meat, broth, and vegetables she looked at the young man pushing the cart 

“Thank you!” she called out with a wide smile.

“Enjoy yourself!” he said with a smile and a tip of his cap. And with that done, he was off leaving her alone with a pro hero and a massive pot of soup.

“Are you sure you’re going to be able to eat all of this?” Yu asked disbelievingly.

“I have a stockpile quirk,” Eri replied quietly, “And I expended all of my reserves escaping. They didn’t feed me much.” 

“Oh.” She could see Yu flinch again.

“And the U.A. Recommended students exam is in three days,” Eri added, “If I can’t take in at least a hundred thousand calories before then, I might as well just sleep in.”

Yu nodded. “Okay then. Don’t know much about stockpile quirks myself, but if you say so...”

Eri smiled. “If you’d like to try some, I wouldn’t mind.”

Mount Lady looked down at it for a moment consideringly. “Hm. Well, I skipped lunch so maybe...”

“They said it’s All Might’s personal recipe,” Eri added.

The woman blinked for a moment, then grabbed a pair of bowls, “Okay, now I have to try it. I’ll make you a bowl too...”

“Thank you, Yu-san,” Eri replied, “Do you mind if I turn on the news?”

Yu nodded. “Go right ahead...”

Eri smiled and turned on the news. On the screen was a square jawed man, who very much like her, had a single horn. Only his was on his left instead of his right, and she could see the stump of a second on his right side. For a moment she had to wonder why he’d cut his horn like that and why only one? While she wasn’t a vain person, she was proud of her horn and always made sure to buff and polish it so it would always have a proper shine. 

“...-have once again joined forces. Sir Nighteye will be returning to his previous occupation at Might Tower as a part-time sidekick. He has made it clear that his renewed partnership with the Number One Hero will only strengthen his and his agency's ability to serve the public...

Yu blinked as she watched the screen, “Huh. Not often you see a guy with his own agency go back to being a sidekick, even part time. Then again, this is All Might we’re talking about...”

Eri took the bowl and began to inhale the contents, causing the curvy woman to blink. “Don’t forget to breathe there, kid....”

Eri nodded “I won’t. And aren’t you kind of All Might’s sidekick, staying at his tower like this?”

Mount Lady visibly winced “Well, I technically have my own agency...”

Eri was hearing a ‘but’ in there.

“But... I kinda... got emotional, lost control, and now we need to fix the roof... And three floors,” she added weakly. Very weakly.

And now she was getting suspicions as to why she went bankrupt...

“...this year's Sakura Blossom festival is set to go off without a hitch...”

Eri looked up at her. “Mount Lady-san, what would happen if you lost control here?”

She blushed and rubbed the back of her head, “Might Tower is built like a fortress, Eri-san. I automatically shrink back down if I go big somewhere that can’t accommodate my size. I’d hit my head and my quirk would shut down before I could hurt myself. The insurance company is making me reinforce my own building so this never happens again.”

Eri nodded. Yep. That explains everything. She’d judge, but she knew all too well how powers were and the terrible consequences of them going out of control. She’d be mentioning this to All Might.

The TV switched to a scene of destruction and a man in a hardhat. Clearly a natural disaster or a villain attack. It was enough that both of them dropped all conversation to pay attention.

“I’m here in downtown Naruhata, the morning after a series of bombings rocked the neighborhood. Viewers may recall that three years ago, Naruhata was hit by a major villain in an incident known as the ‘Kaiju Attack’. Now the city looks like it has once again been attacked by a monster...”

Eri’s eyes narrowed. Naruhata ? Why did that sound relevant? Had she forgotten something?

She frowned as she listened in on the report. Something about a missing girl? 

The footage then returned to the horned reporter who was in the process of being handed a sheet of paper from off screen

“And this just in. The authorities have made a statement that the local Naruhata vigilante known as ‘Pop☆Step’ has been declared a villian and is wanted as a suspect for this incident...”

“Well, somebody just ruined their lives,” Mount Lady observed.

Slowly Eri’s eyes began to open with recollection. Pop☆Step ?

“Oh shit,” Eri muttered to herself as she scrambled for her notebook, pushing her soup to the side. “I can’t believe I forgot this...”

Yu blinked in confusion. “Forgot what?”

“That girl isn’t a villain,” she muttered as she began to frantically record everything that was flooding into her now jogged memory, “She’s being possessed by one.”

Chapter Text

“Oh my fucking god, Inko,” Mitsuki exclaimed the very millisecond she saw the outfit her old friend was wearing, “Who is he, and does Hisashi know?”

Of course, Inko being the adorable little cream puff that she was, blushed like a virgin school girl who just drank from the same can as her senpai, and began to stammer incoherently as her innocent, adorkable little mind struggled to parce her old school friend’s insinuation. 

Let’s face the facts here, kids, Mitsuki thought to herself as she watched the sweet, green haired woman flop around like a freshly caught fish on a pier, there was just about one way that a woman of Inko’s means could afford an outfit that stupidly fucking expensive. Well two. 

She could cut off Izuku’s All Might fund, but the chances of her doing that were pretty much ‘nill minus not a chance in hell’. Living vicariously through the Symbol of Peace was about the only way that sweet boy was able to deal with his unfortunate disability, and one thing she had to hand to Inko above all else was that the woman was one hell of a dedicated mother. Enough that Mitsuki was almost a little jealous at times.

If she was half the mom Inko was, well, maybe her Katsuki wouldn’t have come up to be such an insufferable little twerp with an ego the size and personality the general shape of Mount Lady’s butt. But this wasn’t the time for her to lament her own failures as a mother. She could do that later on in private with some cheap sake to numb her many regrets. And maybe one of Masaru’s messages. His fingers were fucking tantric sorcery.

Anyways, Inko’d slit her wrists before she deprived Izuku of basically anything that would make him happy. So the only way she’d ever dare to even look at that sort of outfit, much less actually carry it out of the store without being brought up on shoplifting charges, was that Mitsuki’s favorite little cinnamon roll had gone and found herself a sugar daddy who liked ‘em sweet and buttery.

“It’s not like that!” she finally managed to exclaim, her cheeks glowing red with embarrassment.

“Ohhhhhh!” she cooed. If she had outright denied, she would have believed her. Inko couldn’t lie for shit, and wore her heart so firmly on her sleeve, that Mitsuki had to wonder how she kept from getting blood on her shirts. But the fact she said “it’s not like that” meant there was something going on.

“Then what is it like?” she cooed, towering over the smaller woman with a wide grin on her face, “Tell me all the juicy details!”

Inko took a deep breath, desperately trying to center herself, and being the good,respectful friend that Mituski was, she didn’t needle her and instead let her collect herself.

“Mitsuki,” she began taking on the ‘mom voice’ she adopted whenever she got serious, “What I’m about to tell you stays between you and me. This is serious.”

Mitsuki scoffed. Inko always acted like everything was serious. Not that she could blame her. She had to bear the burden of raising a disabled son without any backup. She hadn’t even seen her husband in person in six years, and things had degenerated to the point they talked once, maybe twice a month at most. Of course she would make mountains out of molehills. When you were dealing with challenges like that, every rut in the road was just another weight on her already overloaded shoulders. 

It was why Mitsuki was so stuck on the “sugar daddy” story. Inko needed someone who would treat her like a lady, and maybe take a bit of the load off when times got rough, instead of just sending her a monthly check like her dipshit husband. Inko liked to defend him, saying he was doing all he could to support their family... but he could have done that in Japan. 

No. As far as Mitsuki was concerned, the man bolted the second he found out their kid was quirkless and was just keeping up appearances for the sake of his career, because god forbid his precious corporate record be marred by the shame of a divorce . So instead he was just dragging poor Inko along for the ride, the bastard.

With a husband like that, no one would blame her for finding a sweet man and getting her fluids changed. God knows the woman was well past due on an inspection!

“Meh, don’t worry Inko,” she said, blowing it off, ”You know I don’t kiss and tell.”

Her friend’s eyes narrowed to slits. That was enough to throw her off her game. For as much as a teddybear of a woman Inko was, every once in a while the women’s spine of steel showed through - usually whenever Izuku was involved. Like any good mother bear, she’d gleefully eviscerate anyone who got between her and her cub and right now she was giving her that look.

“Don’t give me that shit, Mitsuki. This is the real thing.”

Well fuck! It was official, the mic has been dropped. Inko just swore. It was all Mitsuki could do to nod. There was something going on here, something big. She knew when to keep her mouth shut. 

“Alright,” she said with a nod. “What’s up?”

“Izuku isn’t quirkless.” 

That was about the last thing she’d ever expect Inko to say, yet here she was.

“Excuse me?” Mitsuki asked, not quite believing what she’d just heard.

“My son has a quirk,” Inko repeated. “Izuku isn’t quirkless.”

“I’m sorry, but...” she took a deep breath. She was half tempted to think the woman finally cracked under the pressure, but she respected her far too much. “What’s going on?”

Inko took a deep breath and smiled. “About a year ago, after the whole slime villain thing...”

A rush of ice went down Mitsuki’s back at the memory. Her son was a spoiled, insufferable little shit in dire need of a reality check, but he was still her son , and she loved him dearly. She’d almost lost him that day. They’d both almost lost their sons. If not for All Might...

“Izuku has an anomalous quirk,” Inko stated, her expression softening into a small smile, “A powerful one. He caught the eye of one of the Pro’s at the scene.” She frowned with sudden worry. “He said Izuku’s quirk a lot like his, so he noticed it right away, and that Izuku was subconsciously suppressing it because his body wasn’t strong enough to use it without harming himself.”

Mitsuki flinched. Considering her son’s quirk was literally his explosive temper, she understood that fear more than most. Still, this was great news. Miraculous even, though it did beg the question of how did it miss notice this long? They should have seen signs before now.

“Then how did they miss it?” she asked, “You said it’s powerful, so they should have noticed something.”

Inko shook her head, “It’s a stockpile quirk. A physical enhancement one.”

Mitsuki frowned. It had been years since she’d taken Quirk Studies in High School. She remembered hearing something about stockpile quirks, but couldn’t quite remember what. Something about batteries? 

“It’s been a while, you think you could remind me?”

Inko nodded. “I had to read up on them myself. Unline most quirks, stockpile quirks don’t have a direct physical catalyst. Your quirk uses your sweat, Hisashi’s his breath, and mine requires mental focus and can give me migraines if I overuse it. Stockpile quirks slowly store up energy over time, charging up until it's needed, like a battery.”

Mitsuki nodded. Right. Now she remembered!

“And you’re guessing they missed it because when he was the right age for it, his quirk hadn’t had time to start building up much energy. He wasn’t doing anything crazy like lifting cars, and nobody would notice a little kid being a bit more energetic than normal...”

Inko nodded, frowning deeply “And with his third joint, which is a common sign of quirklessness...”

“They just assumed,” Mitsuki scowled, feeling completely in line with her friend. That lazy ass doctor had just seen nothing apparent, saw the extra toe joint and called it. Seriously, what kind of grand qualifier was any sort of consistent physical trait in today’s society? She had a coworker with a cat’s head, for god’s sake!

Inko nodded, her face mirroring Mitsuki’s. 

“Shit,” Mitsuki said with a sigh, “So why didn’t it show up later then?”

“It probably did,” Inko replied, with a sigh, “But with all the bullying...”

Mitsuki couldn’t help but flinch. Her son was responsible for more than a little of that. She just wished Izuku would actually tell her when Katsuki decided to be a little prick so she could actually punish him for it. Kid was way too kind for his own goo.

“... we weren’t able to notice the injuries caused by his quirk. And then, he just started suppressing it to keep it from hurting him worse.”

“So what changed?” she had to ask, “You said he’s caught the eye of one of the Pro’s. What happened?”

Inko smiled. Beamed more like. “He said Izuku’s quirk was like his. So he put him on a special diet and workout routine and taught him how to use it! And now my little boy is going to UA!”

Mitzuki’s eyes went wide. “Seriously?”

She nodded frantically as her eyes began to well with tears of joy. “He’s going to become a hero! He even made friends at the entrance exams!”

Mitsuki laughed and pulled her friend into a hug, “That’s great! I’m so happy for you two!”

“It’s like a dream, Mitsuki...,” she whispered as she choked back a sob, “I’ve never seen Izuku so alive. I’m just so afraid I’m going to wake up and it’ll all be back to the way it was again...”

Mitsuki only had one response to that. She reached down to Inko’s middle, took some flesh between her fingers, and gave the woman’s skin a swift twist.

“Ouch!” Inko cried as she jumped out of her arms with an accusatory look. “W-what was that for?”

She grinned, “I just pinched you. See? It’s all still here.”

Inko puffed up, turning red in the face in embarrassment and annoyance, which only made Mitsuki smile more. “You bitch!”

“Damn right I am!” Mitsuki said with a laugh, “So, I don’t want you to get me wrong, while I’m fucking ecstatic for you... that doesn’t explain how you got that outfit.”

Inko blushed. “I-it was a gift from... um... the hero who taught Izuku.”

Mitsuki couldn’t help but whistle. “Damn, must be loaded. Who is he?”

Inko slowly smiled at her. “Not telling.”

“Seriously? You’re playing this game?” Mitsuki asked, crossing her arms under her full bust with a deep scowl.

“Not my secret to tell!” Inko exclaimed with a trollish smile on her face, “So you’ll have to guess!”

Mitzuki frowned at her and grumbled as she tried to think back to that terrible day and recall the heroes who’d been there. The lazy asses who’d only moved after an apparently quirkless 14 year old threw his fucking backpack at the villian, reminding them to stop dicking around and save her son.

Physical enhancement? Well, that meant Backdraft was out. His quirk was purely elemental. Mount Lady was also out because her quirk was anything but subtle, and Inko’s clearly said ‘he’. Kamui Woods too, because she’d have thought they’d notice if Izuku looked like a damned tree. Maybe Death Arms? His might count, right quirk for it too, but at the same time she remembered seeing him chew Izuku out on live TV... so it was unlikely that he’d turn around and train him. Plus if it was him, well, they wouldn’t need to be so damned secretive about it.

At the same time though, it was sure as hell more likely than the other option...

Her eyes slowly went wide. The other option. Who by all reckoning also had some sort of anomalous physical enhancement quirk so idiotically powerful that it defied all attempts at comprehension to the point that it was still the subject of debate basically everywhere. That’s not even getting into the fact that the man was so filthy stinking rich, he could afford to buy an outfit like that without even bothering to look at the price tag...

“No...” she said, her mind refusing to parse even the possibility. 

A sly smirk began to cross Inko’s face as it all made sense. Of course he’d want to keep this under wraps. Otherwise they’d be buried so deep in the press that they’d never see the light of day.

“All Might,” she managed to crack out, her voice all but breaking as she said it. “He’s being taught by fucking All Might .”

Slowly an insufferably smug smile started to twist across Inko’s face. She knew it was all the answer she was going to get. But it was also all the answer she’d ever need.

It took her a moment to recover from the realization that not only was her best friend’s darling boy being trained by the fucking Symbol of Peace, but the absolutely terrifying implication that Izuku’s quirk was like his. Still though, if that was how she was going to play it...

“So,” she said pausing for a beat, “How is he in bed?”

The frantic gagging sound the other woman made was music to her ears.

------

...I acknowledge your ‘evidence’, if that’s what you insist on calling it, but I still believe my point is more sound. The evidence all points to it. His early career in sunny California, the multiple beachfront sightings over this past year. The simple fact is All Might’s quirk is clearly powered by Solar Radiation!

Izuku couldn’t help but shake his head as he posted his latest batch of nonsensical ‘evidence’ to HeroChannel. After all, the moment he’d discovered All Might’s secret he’d dedicated himself to throwing off anyone who’d even gotten close to uncovering his injury and/or the nature of his quirk off the scent. It was an irony too considered that beforehand he’d been one of the biggest All Might theorists on the imageboard.

Scrolling down, he skipped over the so-called Endeavour Army thread, before his eyes locked on something interesting that despite his best efforts he couldn’t help but click on...

What he saw before him was so wrong, yet so right . 

Mount Lady Wardrobe Malfunction.

He’d admit, most shots taken of the gigantic heroine were pretty lewd. He’d seen her several times in person, even had a chance to talk to her. Kinda. She was very pretty. She was plenty fit with all the right curves and a costume tight enough that it left absolutely nothing to the imagination. Less so when she was small, but he guessed it was part of what allowed it to stretch as much as it did. You couldn’t have a costume that could have that much give that didn’t wear like body paint on a twenty meter tall woman. And most of the images taken of her were from suggestive angles, often provided by Mount Lady herself for photo ops. 

This one was different. Apparently something had happened to her costume because instead of just expanding with her it had torn open in a number of places... something that left him with extremely mixed feelings.

The fact was, he was a 15 year old boy. While he did his best to behave in a respectable manner, and frankly being in the same room as a girl terrified him, the very sight of bare female flesh was hypnotic to him. Like a snake staring down a mouse, it was mesmerizing .

That said, on an ethical level, he was horrified by the reality of the image. This wasn’t staged. The look of shock and mortification on her face wasn’t faked. This was unexpected and he was disgusted by it. Just looking at it made him feel dirty and ashamed and he wanted to hit the back button so badly. He wanted to apologize to her that he’d even seen it to begin with and express his sympathies that it had ever happened.

But his hand was slow to move. Too slow. It was like looking at a trainwreck. You didn’t want to look, but you had to. On one hand, moral outrage. On the other, so much smooth, creamy feminine skin... Curse his unheroic teenage hormones! 

His extended moment of indecision was interrupted by the ringing of the phone, which frankly scared him out of his wits, causing him to all but jump from his seat before he hit the X on the tab so hard he was afraid he damaged his mouse.

Nervously he reached over to the house phone and picked it up with a nervous “Moshi Moshi?”

“Is this the home of Midoriya Izuku?” Half-demanded an excitable voice over the line that had Izuku pulling away from the phone nervously. 

“Superb!” he heard an exclamation over the line, “This is Iida Tenya, from the entrance exam!”

Izuku could only blink. Being able to talk to him again was kinda cool. They’d worked together really well. But that said, this was maybe a little uncomfortable, considering he hadn’t given him his number. “Um, how did you get my information?”

“I looked up the name Midoriya Izuku online,” he replied.

“Oh,” Izuku felt a little flattered. And a little creeped out. This felt a little ‘stalkery’. “You haven’t been calling every Midoriya Izuku, have you?”

“Not every Midoriya, and I actually didn’t find your information. I found your mother’s, and she’s a close likeness, so I judged this to be a good first bet.” he replied.

“Oh,” Izuku paused for a second, slightly relieved he hadn’t been harassing random strangers looking to find him. Though Iida finding him through his mom did creep him out a bit. Then again, he was the son of pros. Probably had proper investigatie training. “So, um, how can I help you, Iida-san?”

The other boy cleared his throat over the line. “Well, I told my family about you...” he began, “And they were very impressed.”

Izuku’s eyes went wide. “Your family? As in the core of the Idaten agency? The Pro Heroes Virtium, Nitra, and Ingenium?”

“Well, yes...”

Izuku couldn’t help but shake in his seat. Three pros had heard about his performance and were impressed! He could barely keep from squealing in pure pseudo-orgasmic joy at the very thought of it! This was like the best thing ever! 

“This is so awesome!” he cried out, trying not to squeal like a middle school girl who’d just seen something especially cute. “Pro heroes think I’m cool!”

“They didn’t put it in those terms,” Iida replied with some warmth, “But it is something my brother would probably say.”

Okay, this time Izuku wasn’t able to restrain himself, he did squeal like a schoolgirl, and he had no shame about it.

“So, how can I help you, Iida-san?”

“I’d like to officially invite you to visit us,” he replied warmly, “Before the beginning of school. It’s rare that we can find people able to keep up with us and they’d like to meet you. My brother himself observed that it can be hard for us to find partners, and I at least would like to believe we fought with impressive synergy. I find it likely that they might wish to see us train together to see it for themselves.”

Izuku nodded, still feeling giddy, but slowly slipping into a more professional mindset. There was an unspoken offer there. If they were impressed, they’d likely be scouting him to join their agency after he was finished UA. While he doubted it would go that far, Tenya was still a decent guy and the idea of working with him and meeting his family sounded pretty cool. “Alright, but I’ll have to check with my mentor beforehand.”

“Your mentor?” Iida asked with some confusion. 

“Yeah,” Izuku replied with a wistful smile. “I’m being trained by a pro. I got lucky enough to catch his eye and he liked what he saw...”

“Of course!” was Tenya’s overeager answer. “Of course a Pro Hero would spot someone with your character! It helps explain your fighting talents as well. So, would you mind if I asked the identity of your mentor?”

Izuku paused, “Well, that’s not really mine to say. But I’ll ask him if I can tell you. And if he says yes, I’ll let you know when I visit. If he okays it. Which he probably will, but I’m going to ask anyways because I want to make sure everything is good, and I don’t want to offend or upset him.”

“I understand Midoriya-san. I will give you my return contact information and you can call me at your leisure once your mentor has given you his approval!”

Izuku smiled.”Don’t worry, I have caller ID.”

“Excellent, Midoriya-san! I look forward to your return call.”

“Later, Iida-san.”

“I look forward to talking to you again, Midoriya-san.”

The two hung up with a click which left Izuku feeling pleased. 

Even though they’d just met, well, even if he was a little eager, Iida was a pretty cool guy. 

He just needed to ask All Might about it first.

-------------------------------

Tobita Danjuro was not a nice man. Or at least that was what he’d like to tell people. After all he was a villain. A criminal, albeit a rather gentle one by most standards. Which of course, was how he’d gotten his villain name!

He slowly sipped at his tea as he looked over the list of possible locations for his next great heist. He needed something out in the open enough for his cameras, but enclosed enough that it would be a good location for him to use his quirk if it came down to a fight. It also needed enough money to support him and La Brava for at least the next couple weeks, as well as to be insured enough that the loss wouldn’t harm the long-term bottom line of the target. The idea of making actual victims of people was distasteful to him. 

He was a man with standards after all. 

He supposed he could simply knock over another convenience store, or perhaps a Pachinko Parlor. After all, those nests of inequity were nothing more than thinly veiled gambling casinos and would be a source of both enough wealth to keep him in tea for a good long time, as well as a strike against the hypocrisy that laid under the thin veil of polite japanese society. But at the same time, he didn’t care about the money and most of those places were criminal fronts. 

He might be willing to risk himself against such an endeavor, but the attention it would bring to La Brava would be simply unacceptable.

He supposed that he could see if any other stores were interested in some ‘viral advertising’. He still had several offers in the air from interested parties. 

He was destroyed from his thoughts by a gentle knock at his door.

“Danjuro!” he heard La Brava call from the kitchen, “Could you get that?”

He smiled and stood up. “Of course, Manami,” he replied politely to his room mate and number one fan. The tiny woman was a surprisingly good cook, even if she needed a step-stool to perform the task. She was far more suited to the kitchen than his entirely lacking part-timer cooking talents.

Slowly he strode to the door and opened it with a smile and a flourish. “May I help...”

His voice died in this throat and his blood turned to ice in his veins as he slowly looked up at the titanic figure standing in his doorway, his eyes narrowing to pin pricks at the sight of the comparatively tiny box of Gold Tips Imperial being held in his powerful hands, before flitting back up to his wide, smiling face.

“ I am Here ... with tea! ”

Chapter Text

The fine china cup rattled slightly as Danjuro nervously placed it on the table in front of the Symbol of Peace. To say that he’d never expected to be serving tea to the Number One hero in his parlor was an understatement. But here he was, and it terrified him.

He considered himself a skillful villain who prided himself on his ability to make fast escapes without endangering himself or others. He was a man who prided himself on placing skillful grace over the sheer power and naked brutality so many others favored. If he was looking at any other man, he might be so sure of himself to believe that he might have a chance. But he wasn’t looking at any other man. Even dressed in simple slacks and a polo shirt, he was still looking at All Might.

It was not simply his overwhelming power that made him the Number One, no. There were other powerful heroes, but what made him special was the fact that he combined his near godlike strength with masterful control. Against the likes of even Endeavour, Danjuro’d give himself at least a fair chance of throwing the man off his trail and escaping. Against the Symbol of Peace? He might as well be pouring his tea into the wind for all the good it would do him.

“Thank you,” the massive hero replied as he gently lifted the porcelain cup, his left pinky fully extended. He took a careful sip, before placing it down, giving it a thoughtful nod. “Very good tea.”

He nodded. He might be about to see his dreams wither on the vine, but that was no excuse to be an unkind host. After all, if he had to be taken in, at least it was by All Might and not a hero of lesser fame and character. At least he had that much.

“Thank you.” he replied nervously as he looked down to see the man’s cup was empty. Of course such an impressively large man would drink an equally impressive amount of tea. He refilled it from his pot without a moment of hesitation.

“Danjuro?” he heard Manami call from the kitchen, “Who was it?”

He felt his heart still in his chest as All Might looked towards the kitchen and frantically said, “Don’t mind her, she’s just my maid.”

All Might looked back to him and sighed, a small smile on his face as he shook his head. “Please come in, La Brava-san,” the Symbol of Peace stated. “This conversation involves you as well.”

“Please don’t,” Danjuro begged without thinking, “It was I who pulled her into this foolishness. Don’t hold her responsible for my actions.”

La Brava stepped into the room, her hair up in a bun. The smile fell from her heart shaped face as she beheld the mountainous hero sitting across from him.

“No,” she whispered, tears welling in her eyes, “Please don’t... Don’t destroy Gentle’s dream...”

“I’m sorry,” All Might said in a soft tone. “I’m used to my persona putting people at ease. But it’s clearly making you both uncomfortable.”

All Might closed his eyes and sighed, then amazingly, he began to shrink. 

While still heroically built by any standard, he shed 30 centimeters of height. Still large, but far more manageable. Less a god for a new age, and more a mortal man. A powerful man, yes, but a man nonetheless. Even his hair followed suit relaxing from his trademark bunny ear bangs to a shaggy, relaxed looking haircut.

“And I don’t want to destroy anyone’s dreams.”

He paused looking Danjuro dead in the eyes, “But then again, I very much doubt this was ever your dream.”

Gentle Criminal wanted to protest, but All Might cut him off by placing a file on the table.

“At age 15, you applied to UA and several other hero schools over the following years. You were held back twice and attempted to pass the Provisional Hero exam no less than four times. The last time you’re mentioned on your records, you were fined for interfering with a Hero’s duties which lead to an injury,” he paused and looked at him, his blue eyes boring into his soul. “Why would someone so clearly determined to become a hero turn to villainy?”

Of course, Gentle thought to himself. Of course a hero of  All Might’s character would at least be willing to give him the dignity of explaining himself and telling his story before arresting him. It was the sort of courtesy that could be expected of the number one hero.

“You are correct,” he said as he placed his hand over La Brava’s to calm her, “When I was young, I wanted nothing more than to be a hero. I worshiped them. I longed to join their ranks, to become someone that would be read about in textbooks... but I’ve never been good at tests. I am no great genius, I am prone to act in accordance with my passions, and my quirk was untrained and untested. But I kept trying. And I kept failing. But I never gave up until... that day .”

He closed his eyes. “I didn’t intend to get in anyone’s way. Or intend to hurt anyone. I just saw a person in danger... and...”

“Your body moved on its own,” All Might finished, a small smile coming to his face.

Danjuro simply nodded. It was an odd way of putting it, but yes. That wasn't inaccurate, he supposed. He’d always wondered why he’d done it, but could never find an answer. It really was as if his body had reacted on its own accord.

La Brava’s look of admiration was a small comfort when discussing such painful issues, but it was a comfort nonetheless.

“After that, I was disowned by my parents and expelled from school. I ...For several years I lived from job to job, doing all I could to support myself. Much of the time, I spent my nights in media cafes and at times even sheltering within the halls of your own restaurant...”

He actually smiled slightly at those memories. Might Burger had a policy of remaining open 24/7 as well as a policy of offering small meals to those in need. He would have gone hungry many a night if not for All Might’s delegated kindness. After 10pm, they would even offer you a sleeping pad as long as you kept out of view of the counter and had it rolled up and returned before the breakfast rush.

All Might lowered his head slightly at that, hints of sorrow subtly crossing his features as he listened to Gentle Criminal's origin story. 

“Eventually, I was able to save up and get a small apartment.” he continued, “And for a time, I was almost happy. Then I encountered one of my old schoolmates. He’d become a pro hero. I was so happy to see him, but when I greeted him...” he paused for a moment as Manami squeezed his hand. 

She knew well that even after all these years, just remembering the experience still rattled him. 

“He didn’t recognize me,” Gentle said, trying his best to keep his composure, “He’d forgotten me. And it was then that I realized that I was doomed to be forgotten...”

“I decided that if I couldn’t be remembered as a hero, I’d be remembered as a villain. Though, as I’m sure you know, I have no desire to harm anyone. I abhor violence,” he looked up, “So I decided I would go onto ViewTube. Give people reason to laugh and smile. To stand tall and make my mark on history with my deeds and adventures...”

Gentle stood up and took a deep breath steeling himself for what was to come next. Glancing at his laptop he slowly closed it. Like a book, closing a chapter of his life.

Then he held out his wrists. “Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak, All Might-sama... I surrender myself to your custody. All that I ask is please, look after La Brava, and ensure that nothing untoward becomes of her...”

He knew how easily and how deeply Manami could love. If someone with dishonorable intentions managed to sink his foul hooks into her, the result could be unspeakable. The very thought filled him with dread.

“No!” La Brava exclaimed, jumping from her seat and dropping to her knees in front of the number one hero. “Please don’t! He saved me! Before I saw Gentle, I was lost. He taught me to smile and hope! He was kind and he accepted everything about me. He gave me a reason to love! A reason to live! Don’t take him away, please! He’s never really hurt anyone! Please! I beg you, please!”

All Might simply smiled and placed his hand on her head. “Fear not, Aiba-san. Tobita-san”

He slowly looked to Gentle. “I’ve been looking very carefully over your records, and you’re correct. You’ve never seriously injured anyone. In fact, in a number of situations, when presented with civilians in true danger, you’ve acted more as a vigilante than a villain.”

“I... It would be untoward to leave the innocent in danger,” Danjuro replied weakly.

“From where I stand, you’ve made a number of terrible decisions. And most of your failures have not been due to lack of talent, but because of poor judgement and a lack of self-discipline.”

Danjuro had to admit, that was painful to hear. Especially from All Might of all people. It was an old knife being twisted anew.

“However! Self-discipline and good judgement can be taught.” the Hero continued, his voice strong and proud as he stood to his feet. “What cannot be taught is a common thread shared among all great heroes...”

“....What?” he asked, barely above a whisper.

“That when they’ve seen those in need...” All Might slowly smiled. Not the huge plastic grin he normally wore for the cameras, but the subdued smile of someone who was genuinely pleased.“That when they saw someone who needed to be saved... their bodies moved on their own .”

Danjuro’s eyes widened with shock as All Might stood up, removing a pair of documents from the folder, which he placed onto the small table, covering his laptop.

“W-what are these?” His hand shook as he picked up the documents to examine them.

“During the dark days of upheaval that surrounded the dawn of quirks, several laws were passed in hopes of encouraging those who had turned to villainy to instead use their abilities for the good of all,” he said, “These ‘Heel-Face Turn’ laws are still on the books, even if they have largely been forgotten in this era. In such situations the individual...”

He then glanced to La Brava, “Or individuals ... must be sponsored by and taken into the care of a Pro Hero in good standing...”

Emotion began to rise up from deep inside Danjuro’s chest as his mind slowly began to parse exactly what All Might was implying... 

No...

No...

This was a dream. 

It had to be!

“I didn’t come here to arrest you,” he said, “I came here to take the measure of your character and I have not found you to be wanting.”

He couldn’t help but choke as the Symbol of Peace spoke...

“Tobita Danjuro, you can become a hero !”

Tobita wailed as he crashed to his knees, his body reeling as if struck as he felt his dreams, dreams that had long ago died, be fired anew. It was like a wound in his soul had left a painful hollow within him had suddenly been filled. For the first time in over a decade... he felt complete .

Overcome by emotion, he wept.

As he did, he could feel La Brava’s arms wrap around him to the best of her ability. 

“Gentle?” she asked, nervously.

He’d forgotten what it was like to feel true hope . He’d given up on it, instead clinging to a hollow delusion to fill that aching void inside himself. And now, he who had been trapped in the darkness, chasing an illusion out of the desperate desire not to be forgotten once again, was once again able to stand in the light...

“Gentle Criminal?” La Brava repeated nervously as she clung to his side, her bright, pink eyes filled with tears of fear and concern. 

Slowly, he smiled and wiped away her tears. “I have never been better La Brava...”

He slowly looked up to All Might then back down to his partner in crime.

No. His former partner in crime. Still his partner, but no longer in crime.

“But know now that Gentle Criminal is dead! ”

She recoiled, the shock and confusion apparently on her features. “W-what?”

Smiling widely and standing proudly, not with the bravado he’d long adopted to cover his inadequacies and long broken spirit, but instead filled with unshakable purpose and renewed resolve he proudly proclaimed to the world....

“From now on history will know me as GENTLE HERO! ”

-------------

That, Toshinori decided, was one of the most painful experiences of his life and a strong reminder to himself what it really meant to be a hero.

Being a hero wasn’t just about stopping the villains. It was about saving people. Sometimes from each other, sometimes from themselves. And sometimes the person who was in the most pain, in the most danger, in the most need of saving was the villian themselves. 

He’d long prided himself on being a hero who did all in his power to save everyone. Before his injury he’d dreamt of a time when he could act without the specter of All for One hanging over him like a phantom and begin to become the Symbol of Peace in truth. Not just the man who always defeated the villain, who won every fight, but the one with the power to reach down to those who had become lost and seize their hands. To pull them back into the light and show them that the world had not abandoned them. That no matter how hard they’d fallen, that as long as life remained within them, as long as they were willing to dare to hope, that they could still stand in the light.

After his injury, he’d all but abandoned that dream. It had been beyond him. He’d been in too much pain, he’d been too broken. He could barely keep up with his conventional hero duties. Even living a normal life had been beyond him. Nevermind trying to reshape the world into a fairer and more equitable place.

This experience had reminded him. And in hearing Gentle’s story, part of him had to wonder if he hadn’t been looking at a wraith of what could have been if he hadn’t found young Midoriya. If his own master hadn’t found him?

It was a painful thought to consider, but sometimes the most valuable truths were the most painful. And for that, he welcomed it. As a reminder. A reminder of what the Symbol of Peace was meant to be. 

Now... there were no more excuses. His body was whole. His spirit was ready. It was time for him to reawaken old dreams once lost. It was time for him to become the hero who saved everyone ...

It was time for him to not only look for those in danger, but to actively seek out those who had become lost, those who had been forgotten, those who had been abandoned, and to show them that someone still cared. That in this world, there was someone who still believed in them. Someone who would not reject them.

He knew all too well that there were those who could not be saved, those who refused, or didn’t want to be... but he also knew that such hopeless cases were the minority. Most villains became as such out of loss and desperation, not desire.

When he’d first gone out to try and recruit Gentle and La Brava, he’d done so with a sour sensation in his throat. Now however, he was considering Eri's list - or at least the bulk of it - with a different feeling all together.

She wasn’t giving him a list of villains to recruit. No. She was giving him a list of people who needed to be saved ...

“A Phone Call is Here!”

Toshinori almost jumped as his introspective moment was so brutally interrupted by the ringing of his phone. 

Glancing down at it, he smiled slightly as he saw the number of his successor turned protege. Speaking of hope for the future... 

“Moshi Moshi, Midoriya-shonen!” he said with pleasure.

“Um, hello, All Might-san!” the young man said nervously. “I wasn’t interrupting you, was I?”

He’d have to tell the boy to call him Toshinori some time. Infact, thinking back, had he ever told him his real name? Huh. He’d have to talk to the boy about it. Especially now that he actually had the opportunity to be more than just All Might. 

“No, no...” Toshinori said, waving it off, “I was just thinking, is all. What do you need.”

“Well, I’m wondering... can I tell people that you’re my teacher?” he asked, “I met someone at the exam, and we’ve started talking, and I admitted I was being taught by a Pro, and he asked who, but I couldn’t say and he was cool with that, but his family’s invited me to meet them and...”

“Relax, Midoriya-shonen,” he said, in a calming voice, “Breath my boy, breath...”

Izuku paused for a moment and he could hear the sound of slow breaths over the line.

“Good lad,” he said with an amused smile, “Now who are they and do you trust them to keep a secret? We’re going to be going public with it soon, likely after you begin UA. However, I’d like to handle it in a proper press conference and not because someone leaked to the press.”

“Um, he’s Iida Tenya, and he’s invited me to meet his parents and brother...”

All Might blinked. Huh. The Idaten? Then he smiled. They were trying to poach his little apprentice, eh? Well, good luck with that... either way, they were outstanding heroes. He’d worked with all of them at some point and they’d never failed to impress him. 

He was sure that they could be trusted. That said, Izuku needed to be a bit less dependent on him. He had a good head on his shoulders, he just needed to trust himself more.

“Young Midoriya,” he said after a moment, “I’ll trust your judgement on the matter. If you believe someone is of good character, and can be trusted... then I will put my trust in your trust.”

“Oh. Um. Thank you, All Might-san...” he paused for a moment, “Can I ask you something else really quick?”

Toshinori could only laugh. “Go ahead, my boy!”

“Would it be alright if I picked up some collectables from your gift shop?”

All of a sudden, Toshinori couldn’t help but facepalm. Of course. How had he forgotten what a complete fanboy the young man was? Suddenly he was overcome by the image of the boy's poor mother trapped in an apartment so full of his merch that she couldn’t physically move, having to be rescued by men with shovels . 

Part of him was tempted to say no, just so he wasn’t handing the boy free reign to become a hoarder. On the other, he knew that the boy’s mother likely paid for all of his previous merch and considering the volume of his branded stuff the kid likely owned, well, he didn’t want to be a financial burden to the poor woman more than he’d been already.

“Alright, but I reserve the full right to have an intervention if I believe you’re overdoing it. I will be watching what you take. I will not have you becoming a bother to your mother, Midoriya-shonen”

“Don’t worry,” Izuku said nervously, “Mom already threatened to fleamarket it all if I go too far... heheheh...”

He could hear the fear in the young man’s voice at the thought of it. 

Toshinori couldn’t help but chuckle. He had to admit, while the woman seemed fragile at first glance, she possessed a strong inner core that was quite formidable.

“Well then, I think we’re all in good order then...”

“Thank you, All Might-san...”

“Have a good day, Midoriya-shonen.”

“Um! You too! Thanks!”

He smiled as he hung up the call. Even with the specter of an alien invasion lingering over his head, or perhaps because of it, Toshinori had decided to live his life one day at a time. To live it to the fullest.

It was a good life.

Chapter Text

Toshinori smiled to himself as he enjoyed his lunch. He’d been wise to pick Dagobah Beach as a location for his meal. It was nothing like it had been the year before, and that fact filled the man with an intense sense of pride. 

There was nothing quite like community work that tested one’s strength, will, and dedication. Originally, he’d just wanted the boy to put a dent in the mess. He would have given him One for All regardless of the amount of garbage cleaned, as long as he had clearly given it all. It was just a test to measure his focus and dedication. And of course Izuku, being Izuku, had gone well above and beyond his expectations of what he could do here. He’d transformed an illegal dump back into the pristine dating spot it had been years prior.

Because of his protege’s efforts, he could see children playing and couples sharing each other's company amongst the white sands and rolling waves. It was a brilliant thing that filled him with hope for the future. Even if something happened to him, he knew the world was in good hands. After all, Eri had called the boy the Symbol of Hope. 

He had to prepare for the coming trials that she’d outlined, but he’d do so as he’d always faced them: with a smile on his face. Because the strongest never let adversity get them down. They have the strength to always smile, even in the darkest moments.

He smiled and took a bite from his gyudon , an old childhood favorite of his. Though he did have to admit, when he was young, he’d eat one beef bowl... not ten of them. With extra tempura.

Slowly, he pulled out his phone and scrolled through the list eventually stopping at the name of one of his most trusted friends. He’d been meaning to make this call for a long time. But between dealing with the immediate preparations and his own hero duties, he’d been putting it off. Partly due to his duties but, if he was being entirely honest, it was nothing more than a convenient excuse. Toshinori sighed. Coming clean with the man he kept in the dark for years wasn’t exactly comfortable. Doubly so because he should have done this decades ago.

Taking a deep breath, he scrolled down his phone and opened a call to David Shields. Nervously, he waited for the man to pick up.

“Toshi!” exclaimed the excited voice on the other end, “It’s been too long! How are you holding up?”

“I’m doing well, Dave,” Toshinori said with a smile. “Better than I have in years. ”

“Really?” he asked, “About that. I might be onto something that might help you with your problem. I just need a bit more time to finalize the research and... ”

He couldn’t help but smile at his friend’s statement. Even after all these years, Dave never failed to have his back. “About that, Dave. That’s part of the reason I’m calling.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah. I recently met a...” he paused for a moment, trying to think of a word that could properly describe Eri. “An interesting young lady. One with the most amazing quirk.”

David laughed. “That’s high praise coming from you, Toshi.”

He was well aware and meant every word of it. Eri really was an amazing young woman who had overcome pain and terror unlike any he could ever imagine and rose to the occasion gloriously. It was no surprise to him that his own successor had chosen her as the next in their line. Someone willing to throw themself into the winds of time in the vague hope of turning a bleak present into a bright future was more than worthy of bearing the sacred torch that was One for All.

If something were to happen to him, she would be his successor. She’d earned the right. Assuming her body was ready to accept his power by then.

“She healed me, Dave.”

There was a long pause on the other end. The next words out of his friend’s mouth were barely above a whisper. “What.”

“She healed me,” he repeated, “Her quirk is called Rewind. She used her power to undo my injuries.”

“This...” He could hear the man laughing with pure, adulterated glee. “That’s amazing,Toshi! Oh my god! I’m so excited! So happy for you! Oh my god! This is great! Ha-haaa! Yes! I can’t wait to tell Melissa! She’ll be so excited! This.... This changes everything !”

The hero slowly smiled as his old friend all but lost his mind on the other side of the line. He understood the feeling. It’s been days and he was still reveling in the joy of being whole again. 

“It does,” he agreed before stealing himself. “Which is why I need to talk to you as soon as physically possible. There’s a lot we need to discuss that has to be talked about face to face.”

“Well, you’re already invited to the next I-Expo...”

“No. As soon as possible,” he replied. “It would be best if you came to us.”

Toshinori could hear the man’s face turn to a scowl, “Toshi, you know how anal the board is about clearing us to leave. It would probably be faster for you to just wait for the expo instead of  waiting for the paperwork to clear.”

He knew all too well. It’s how that silly rumor that researchers on I-Island weren’t allowed to ever leave started. They could, but the legal hoops were so complex that it could take months to arrange. He honestly thought it was overreacting, and intentionally convoluted, but their security measures weren’t entirely without cause. Scientists were popular targets in many circles... 

A frown slowly crossed his face. A number of whom had vanished about five to six years ago, matter of fact. Not long after his battle with All for One. Experts in quirk-based medicine and bioscience...

Shit! 

He should have known! Hell, that should’ve been the first clue.

“First, I’m technically on the board,” Toshinori replied, more harshly than he’d intended. 

He’d invested heavily in I-Island when Dave had voiced his interest in working there, both to diversify his own portfolio and to ensure that his old sidekick was treated with the deference and respect the man deserved. A convenient side effect was this made him a voting member of the board of directors. At the time he just laughed and had one of his many lawyers warm the seat for him, never really doing anything with that membership.... until now.

“Second, do you really think they would deny me of all people direct access to my sidekick for a critically important strategy meeting?”

There was a long pause. “Wow. You really are serious about this, aren’t you? It’s not like you to throw your weight around...” another pause, “Ever."

“Deadly,” was his droll response, “There’s a lot I have to tell you. Both about recent going ons and...” he paused for a moment, “Things that, by all right, I should have told you decades ago.”

“And bring Melissa,” he added after a moment of thought, recalling how many times Eri had mentioned the girl. She’d clearly taken up an important role in the future and it would probably be for the best to start preparing the future generation now.

Dave couldn’t help but chuckle. “Alright. Well, she’ll certainly be excited to see her Uncle Might!”

“And I’ll be happy to see her too.” Toshinori replied. It had been several years since he’d seen his goddaughter. Before he met Izuku he’d been considering selecting her as his successor. As much as Mirai had insisted on pushing young Togita on him, Toshinori had never been convinced of his suitability as a successor. While he had the skill, drive, and passion to be an exceptional hero, being the successor to One for All required... vision . A certain hunger that went beyond simple drive and passion... 

The sort of indomitable will that Toshinori didn’t quite have the words to describe.

“...Great! And I’m looking forward to using this chance to meet your other partner.”

Slowly the smile faded from Toshinori’s face. Dave. And Mirai. In the same room .

“Ugh,” he grimaced, “I’m doomed, aren’t I?”

“ Absolutely ,” his old friend said with a chuckle. 

“Shit,” he muttered. Well, at least it would be nice to see everyone together. 

“Love ya too, Toshi.”

He couldn’t help but chuckle. “Later, Dave.”

“Stay safe and try and keep your insides on your inside this time, okay?”

He snorted. Smartass. “No promises.”

“Ha! Though really, Toshi, look after yourself.”

“I’ll try.”

“Good. Talk to you later, Toshi. Bye.”

Toshi smiled and hung up the call, leaning back against the retention wall as he turned his attention back to his lunch. This had gone far easier than he thought it would. He’d still have to tell him about One for All, All for One, and the whole Alien Invasion thing... but...

It would be nice to have his entire family together, even if it was just this once. 

-----------

Deep Fried Butter, Eri had decided was quite possibly one of the most horrifying foodstuffs ever created by man. Frozen butter, wrapped in pancake batter, deep fried, and then slathered in a pure sugar glaze. It was disgusting, it was revolting, it was literally fat, covered in carbohydrates, fried in more fat, then covered in yet again more carbohydrates.

Why Might Burger served it as one of their dessert options she had no idea, but once she’d found out about it, she was hooked. Or at least, she was interested. Not because of its flavor, or any real desire to eat deep fried milk fat , but because it was just about the most calorie dense foodstuff you could cram down your gullet without turning to eating raw lard or drinking pure palm oil. And to be frank, she’d rather deal with disgusting American excess than face the possibility of having to do that . 

This, of course, meant she’d be eating about a hundred or two orders of the little balls of crap over the next 3 days in order to get the pure caloric intake needed to feed her quirk heavily enough that she could make free use of it. And that was not even counting the normal meals she’d have to eat. Even with all fats and carbs she was taking in, her growing body still needed all the other proper nutrients and minerals found in a proper diet. Doubly so since she was borderline malnourished due to having lived off of takeout and instant ramen most of her current life.

The need for an endless stream of food combined with an honest desire to get out of her room had led to her heading to one of the more isolated booths in the Pro-Hero section of Might Tower’s food court, one of the ones next to the Roppongi streets that passed beneath it.

Part of her, the child part of her,  was so shocked to see so many people. The other part of her, the survivor, could only look towards the bustling scene with a grim determination. This is what she came back for. Not just to save her loved ones, but to save them all. Because in the end, they were all just trying to live their lives and they all needed a hero to save them from what was coming...

“Hey kid, aren’t you a little young to be eating here all alone?”

Eri’s breath was all but wrenched from her lungs, as her eyes went wide at the sound of a familiar voice. One she hadn’t heard in years. Or ever really, but to her it felt like years.

Slowly, and all but gasping for air, she turned to look at the, at least to her, towering figure of the “18+ Only” Hero: Midnight. Or as she’d known her for the most of her previous life... Aunt Nemuri . The woman who’d taught her how to be feminine. The woman who was in many ways the closest thing she had to a true maternal figure in her life after her own stupid bitch of a mother had abandoned her. 

While she’d known on an intellectual level that she’d still be alive in this time, it hadn’t quite processed until this very moment.

“You okay, kid?”

Eri sniffed and rubbed her eyes, which had begun streaming with tears without her even being aware. 

“I-I’m sorry,” she said meekly, almost unwilling to trust her own vocal cords, “Y-you just reminded me of someone... who died.”

The woman winced and slowly sat down with a smile. “I’m sorry, kiddo. Though I have to ask, why are you here and why are you alone? This is the hero section. Nobody else is supposed to be here. Do you need help?”

Eri couldn’t help but smile. Despite her scandalous reputation and sadistic streak, her aunt had always been a compassionate person. She cared about people, even to the point that she’d be willing to step out of the limelight if that was what it took to help them. It was why she’d been willing to “transition” out of the whole “Sex Bomb” part of her career, even if it had been done with all the poise and grace of an angry honey badger being told it had to go to bed without dinner.

Or at least had until Eri rewinded her to her physical prime. Though she could do without watching the woman marvel about how perky her tits were... again .

“I’m fine,” Eri replied, as she fought to regain her composure, “And I’m authorised to be here.”

She held up her “All Access” pass card, something that had the woman’s eyes widening slightly. The card was special because it theoretically gave her access to the entire tower, All Might’s personal sanctum included. 

“Wow.” Nemuri blinked. “Just wow. Who are you, kid?”

She paused for a moment, “Right now, I’m in All Might’s care. And I’m not a kid...”

She smiled and pushed her reading material to the woman.

“Wait,” Nemuri picked up the tablet, “This is the primer for the U.A. Entrance exam.”

Eri nodded. “Yep! I’m actually fifteen.”

The woman, who in another life, was her aunt flinched slightly. “Ah. Peter Pan quirk?””

“No. Age reversal,” was Eri’s reply, “My quirk’s called Rewind. I can reverse the effects of time on living things.” she raised a finger, “And before you ask, yes, I can use it to make you 18 again. No, I’m not doing it right now, and yes, I’m willing to do you a solid at some point as long as you don’t start feeling yourself up in front of me while marveling about how firm your tits are!”

Midnight stood there, mouth agape for a moment before her expression slowly twisted into a manic grin. “Oh, I like you kid. What’s your name?”

“Eri,” she replied. 

“Well Eri, I hope you pass...” she paused, “And not just because you offered to zap a decade off me. Though I have to ask, why do you look like a kid then?”

Eri sighed. “Because I was being kept in a lab and had to reverse myself due to some... “invasive” procedures.”

The woman's eyes went wide, honest horror apparent on her face as her mind clearly supplied her with the worst. “Holy shit. I’m so sorry...”

Eri nodded, and sighed sadly. “Yeah, but I managed to escape. All Might found me and took me in for the moment, and I want to be a hero so...”

She shrugged and took the tablet back, “So there you go.”

Midnight smiled. “Okay, I really like you now, kid. You’ve got guts and passion. I’ll definitely vouch for you when the exam’s on.”

Eri smiled. “Thank you.”

Nemuri smiled. “My pleasure...”

She glanced down at the massive pile of take out containers on the table, along with the multiple orders of fried butter that she’d been consuming when she’d arrived.

“So, um..... What the hell are you eating?”

“Fried butter,” Eri replied, causing Midnight to turn an interesting shade of pale olive.

“Are... are you serious? I... just the sound of it is enough to make my arteries harden.” she said with a horrified grimace.

“Stockpile quirk,” Eri replied, “And I exhausted my reserves escaping. If I want to have a chance at passing the exam, I’m going to need to build them back up. That means eating lots of really unhealthy stuff.”

Nemuri picked up one of the containers and looked at one of the glazed, golden battered grease balls with a look of utter disgust. “Well, I think you have the unhealthy part well in hand. You have my sympathies, kid. I can feel my thighs getting bigger just being next to this shit...”

“Well, look on the brightside,” Eri replied with a thin smile. “I could theoretically eat my weight in chocolate and not gain an unwanted gram.”

“I take it back,” Nemuri grumbled, as she placed the revolting treat back down, “Now, I officially hate you.”

Eri grinned like a shark. “Just for that, I’m going to eat two entire liters of ice cream in your honor .”

Nemuri snarled. “Little bitch.”

“First,” Eri said with a smirk, “Talk like that, and I won’t Rewind you. Second, if I was feeling generous, and was willing to push my quirk... we could easily, say, go on a full on gluttony binge... you know, the kind that you’d normally never even consider because it would put twenty kilos on your ass, then just zap it right off once we’re done...”

There was a long pause as Nemuri parsed the idea and then began to smile manically at Eri... again. “Nevermind, you are now officially, my favorite person.”

Eri smiled and honestly had to resist the urge to cry. She didn’t know how much she’d missed this. Her back and forth dialogues with her aunt were one of the things she treasured most from her future self. It was all she could do not to jump over the table and just hug the woman. Both parts of her were in absolute glee.

Nemuri took a deep breath, “You know... one thing, Eri. I’m almost tempted to ask how a girl with a time reversal quirk exhausted herself escaping, and I doubt it was by shrinking yourself back to being a kid to slip out.”

Eri froze. Then she slowly shook her head.

Nemuri flinched. “I guessed as much. I think I’m just going to leave it there because I have a feeling this’ll give me nightmares if I asked.”

Eri nodded. “Yeah.... That’s probably for the best.”

-----------

Iida Tenya smiled as he patted his brow dry after yet another successful run through the family obstacle course. He’d improved his time by a whole two tenths of a second over his last run. Not his best time, but still close to margin of error. Enough that he was satisfied that with a couple more runs he’d be able to surpass his old time and have a new milestone to focus on defeating!

This, he thought, was the true spirit of heroism. 

Pushing past your limits with every action, and rather than gloating about every past success, using them as a measure to judge your future successes against. Never be satisfied, don’t save two, save three. If one could save three, that means one could save four. Always forward, always faster, always better, build on every success, learn from every mistake. Be honorable, be just, never arrogant, always fair. That, to him, was the path to becoming a hero!

He smiled as he fell back onto the bench to let his muscles rest and his stamina recover before his next run. The path to heroism was walked one step at a time and he was proud to walk it. Proud to have taken the first step already, even before his heroic education started, even if he needed help realizing it. He hoped that Uraraka and Midoriya would be in his class. To him they already shared a heroic bond forged in a trial of courage and fire.

Perhaps it was simply a hunger for a bond with his peers that he’d never been able to experience in his junior highschool years. He could already imagine a bright future for the three of them. Once they had graduated, he was absolutely sure his family would permit him to offer them places of honor in the Idaten agency. Together they could be a wonderful team. With his ever growing speed, Midoriya’s undeniable power, and Uraraka’s near limitless flexibility they would make for a mighty combination. 

He just hoped he wasn’t being too bold in assuming Uraraka’s stance on the matter. Mirodiya may have already shown himself to be open to Tenya’s friendship, but he did not want to presume. Not that his own presumptions could match those of his mother, who was already imagining the possibilities of a Zero Gravity/Engine hybridization. Just thinking of his mother reflecting on such a Quirk made his face burn and filled him with a degree of embarrassment bordering on mortification.

He was also hopeful that he would find additional camaraderie  among the students of UA. Friends and allies who would help him rise to greater heights, and whom he, of course, would do his best to aid in their quest to become the finest of heroes. After all, that was the true strength of heroes. 

Heroes were ultimately reactive. It was a hero’s duty to protect the innocent, to respond to threats to the public good as they happened. Without a threat, there was no need for heroes to take action. This gave villains the initiative. Sometimes it was possible to predict them, to undermine them, but only after their plots had already begun. This initiative, coupled with a much greater willingness to resort to lethal force, gave villains a dangerous advantage. But despite this seemingly overwhelming advantage, villains could be countered by a force more powerful than any other. A singular ideal his family and their agency treasured above all others.

Unity. Cooperation. Coordination. A unity of purpose that transcended all else. Individually, they were strong. Together, they were an unstoppable force for justice. They, collectively, bore the name of the God of Speed as a declaration of purpose. To proclaim that whenever innocents were at risk, they would be at the forefront! It was what made them Idaten!

His internal musings were interrupted by a buzzing from his gym bag.

Pausing, he walked over and withdrew his phone. On it was a simple message from Midoriya that made him smile.

My mentor said it was okay. When do we meet up?

Tenya’s smile grew wide as he typed in his reply. 

‘I will check with my parents, but I believe I will be able to send a car over tomorrow some time before noon.’

You don’t have to do anything like that, I can take the train!

No. Absolutely not, Tenya decided. He wanted to treat Izuku with the proper dignity and respect one treated a fellow hero, and he knew in his heart that his parents would agree. 

With that in mind, he typed in ‘I insist.’

Okay. Are you sure? Was Midoriya’s responding text.

He smiled and followed up with a rather strong statement that he felt encapsulated his feelings well.

‘One doesn’t ask heroes to take the train.’

‘Oh. Thank you. I mean it.’

“The pleasure is mine,” he muttered to himself as he typed in the same. 

‘I’ll let you know when you can expect the car.’

‘Do you want me to tell you who my mentor is?’

Iida pondered for a moment. Tempting, but no. He wanted to discuss that face to face.

‘Tell me tomorrow.’

Okay.

-------------

When Kugizaki Soga and his two friends had come to deliver Knuckleduster’s letter, Haimawari Koichi had been in a low place. The situation with Kazuho was beyond his ability to deal with as he was now. She’d been possessed by that Bee parasite and had been branded as a villain. 

No. She was a hero, not a legal one, he’d admit, but she was a hero. And sure, she could be flighty and selfish, but when the going got tough, Pop would do what it took to help people. She didn’t deserve this. He needed to help her, and he knew he couldn’t trust the pros, even if he gave them all the information he had. After all, who’d listen to him? The Crawler wasn’t an official hero, a pro. He was just some vigilante... technically a criminal himself. 

But none of that mattered, he thought, as he pulled the All Might hoodie that made up the most identifiable part of his costume around himself as if it were a security blanket. Pop needed help, and he’d save her, even if it cost him his life. That’s what All Might would do. That’s what Knuckleduster would do. That’s what any real hero would do. And it was what the Crawler would do. 

“So where are we going?” he asked, looking to the spiky haired former thug turned, well, he wouldn't really call him a vigilante hero, but he was certainly a vigilante and his heart was in the right place, even if his attitude was still pretty terrible. 

“The old man,” he said, referencing the fallen Pro who was in many ways their collective mentor. The former hero O’Clock, who somehow lost his quirk before becoming the now retired vigilante Knuckleduster. “He left a place behind, said to use it if you ever were in trouble. This is trouble.”

“Yeah,” replied Tochi Moyuru, a large bald man with a single whips of flame burning on his head like a fury topknot. He smiled at him. “It’s around here someplace, right Soga?”

“I wonder what’s in it?” Muttered the final of Soga’s two comrades, the lizard-like Tokage Rapt.

“You haven’t been there?” asked Koichi.

“No, only Soga has, but I bet it’s all sorts of cool!” Rapt replied, a wide smile on his reptilian muzzle.

The green haired man smirked. “Yeah, it is... and here we are.”

He grinned and motioned up to a medium sized warehouse. It was among a dozen other identical buildings, older but still in passible conditions, still solid looking despite the broken windows and cracks in the concrete..

“A warehouse?” he asked, “Is this it, Soga?”

The green haired 20-something punk nodded and started to unlock the garage door. “Inside. Then we talk.”

As it slid open, they beheld a sight out of a movie. 

“What the...,” Koichi muttered, in slight discomfort as he took it in. “This place looks like the home of a terrorist cell .”

And it really did. There was a living space, full racks of weapons, fuel, and equipment, even a full on conspiracy wall on a cork board on the far end. The place was fully kitted out. It really was like something out of an old movie.

“Haha! Awesome!” Rapt exclaimed, “We got us a secret base!”

“The letter wasn’t the only thing the old man left behind,” Soga said as he walked deeper inside. “He said use anything in here that you need.”

Koichi frowned. This was getting more out of hand minute by minute. “Anything, huh?”

“Check it out, Moyu! Shotguns!” Rapt said with a laugh as he held up a pair of what looked to be actual pump action shotguns.

“Don’t touch those.” Soga growled, looking back, “They’re loaded.”

“Sweet!” Rapt exclaimed, taking one of the weapons in hand. “The real deal then!”

“Don’t point that at me!” Moyuru exclaimed, backing away.

“And enough of that...”

In what seemed like a blink, a large, muscular blond man had all but teleported to Rapt’s side, pulling the gun out of his hand and holding up and out of the way.

“The fuck?” Soga exclaimed spinning around, spikes exploding from his back and arms as he readied his quirk. 

Rapt also jumped away with the speed and agility granted to him by his quirk, while Moyuru stepped back as the flame on his head intensified, file leaking from his mouth and nose as he readied his fire breath. 

Even Koichi had fallen into a combat stance as he looked at the unexpected new arrival.

“You were following us, weren’t you, asshole?” Soga said accusingly.

“Yes, I will admit I was,” he replied. “I was hoping to speak with Haimawari-san, but when I saw you together I decided to let you finish before interrupting.”

“Bullshit!” Soga explained, “Now how about you tell the truth before we kick your ass.”

Koichi’s eyes narrowed. After years as an illegal hero, he’d developed a fighter’s senses and everything inside himtold him that this was a fight they couldn’t win. Whomever this stranger was, he was completely unafraid of them, facing down four reasonably powerful quirk users without even the slightest sign of fear. What he did see was the way the man’s feet were planted, and while relaxed, his stance allowed him almost complete freedom of moment. He was an experienced fighter for sure. He’d say he even reminded him of Knuckleduster, but no. That wouldn’t be fair to say because as much as he respected his old master, this guy was clearly on a whole other level.

“I believe him,” Kochi said, with a smile, stepping forward with a hand extended, “Haimawari Koichi. And you are?”

The tall, well built, shaggy haired man looked at him with an eerily familiar smile as his bright blue eyes shined at him behind a pair of long, messy bangs. “Yagi Toshinori, Haimawari-san,” he said as his large hand all but engulfed Koichi’s own, ”It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“So, you wanted to talk to Koichi,” Soga said with a scowl. “You found him. Say your piece and get going. We’re busy doing important stuff.”

“Planning how to deal with the Pop☆Step situation, I assume,” Yagi said, a small frown crossing his face.

“She’s not a villain!” Koichi exclaimed immediately in response, “She’s being possessed by a parasite that’s controlling her mind!”

“If that’s so, then may I ask why you’re not telling any pro heroes?” Yagi asked as he looked down at him.

“Because who’d actually believe us?” Koichi replied. It wasn’t like he wanted to do this solo, but the simple fact is no pro would ever believe him. Considering he was long known to be her accomplice, the best case scenario was that they’d take him in for questioning wasting precious time. The worst case scenario was them just arresting him and calling it a day. Then Queen Bee would use her and throw her away, just like most of its other hosts. Kazuho would die and there would be nothing he could do to save her.

“We have to save her,” he said, “We’re the only ones who can.”

“We’re the only ones who’d even really try ,” Soga added with a contemptuous snort. “The fucking Pros only care about making sure they look good for their next shampoo ad .”

That wasn’t entirely true, Koichi had to admit. He’d been planning on asking Eraserhead and Midnight for help. He was pretty sure that he could convince them. It was just too bad Captain Celebrity was back in America... he was kind of an asshole, but he was sure that Chris would have helped for old times sake. Maybe he could ask Ingenium?

“I think you’ll find that most Pros actually care very much,” Yagi said in response, before looking Koichi in the eyes. “There’s no talking you out of this then?”

He shook his head, his eyes full of determination. He wasn’t just going to sit back and do nothing while Pop was in danger. She was his friend, and more than that, she was someone who needed help. He might not have much of a chance against whoever this guy actually was, but he’d do whatever it took.

“Good!” the large stranger exclaimed, his eerily familiar smile returning full force, “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear!”

“So, if you’re not here to stop us, did the old man send you?” Soga asked with a frown.

“I assume you mean Oguro-san,” Yagi replied with a pained look on his face, “If so, then no. But I do know him... in passing.”

“Hold up!” Soga growled, “How the hell do you know the old man’s name!”

That was Knuckleduster’s real name, and Soga actually knew it? Koichi had to admit, he was a little hurt by that. That his master hadn’t trusted him with those kinds of details. But.... what about that business card he gave his mom... the one with his “day job”?

Yagi sighed and he could see pain in the man’s eyes. “....It was my fault he lost his quirk...and by extension his career as a Hero,” Yagi admitted. Koichi’s eyes widened in shock. Knuckleduster had been a Pro? And he’d somehow.... lost his quirk ? No wonder he’d been so crazy. That was like someone ripping out a piece of your soul. The mere idea of it was horrifying .

“The one who... injured him was my worst enemy. I thought he was dead and he was able to exploit my assumption. He retreated into the shadows and used his anonymity to further his wicked plans without interruption.”

“Your...  enemy ?” Koichi asked, “You’re a Pro Hero.”

It wasn’t a question. He’d already suspected it, but this basically just confirmed it.

Yagi nodded. “I am.”

Koichi nodded. He was a little surprised, to be completely honest, but not very. It explained a lot, such as his ability to trail them without being seen, and his immediate, seemingly instinctive intervention when Rapt was waving around the guns. Plus the strange sense of familiarity he had. It was like he knew who this man was, but couldn’t quite place it... like his identity was just at the edge of his perception.

“Bullshit, let's just get rid of this guy...” Rapt growled out. 

“Let ‘em talk, man,” Moyuru said, earning a look of appreciation from Yagi.

“I already knew about the Bee,” Toshinori said, as he looked over the conspiracy wall. “She’s being dominated by a parasite that has bored into one of her eye sockets and is using her body to host its hive. The villain Queen Bee .” 

It was all Koichi could do to shudder. Soga had just just told him about the truth of his master’s daughter on the way over. That had hurt, both from the horror and from the fact that Knuckleduster had never told him. The letter had soothed some of his pain(at least from the lack of trust) but hearing it again though, it just poked at the wound.