Archive of Our Own

It began with the little things.

Izuku’s classmates became more cautious around him. Less of the touchy-feely stuff that he had grown accustomed to over the last year. 

He didn’t really even notice at first. Not until it progressed to the nervous glances he would get when they thought he wasn’t looking.

It’s fine, really. Maybe they were just confused about the new part of his quirk. I mean, while duel-quirks aren’t impossible, they usually are related somehow. But Blackwhips and strength augmentation don’t… really go together. It could be confusing for his classmates.

Or maybe they were getting tired of him like everyone else had.

So life went on.

Until it got worse.

Now some of his classmates began to outright avoid him. None of his close friends, though. Uraraka, Iida, and Todoroki still talked to him and sat with him at lunch (ignoring the glances the whispers the suspicion that sometimes flared up in their eyes) while the rest of his class distanced themselves. The look in their eyes that of suspicion and blame.

He was… confused to say the least.

Did they find out he was quirkless and want nothing to do with him anymore?

It seemed to get worse whenever he brought out his analysis notebook. They began to shy away from him whenever he muttered and scribbled out his thoughts into it.

Did they realize how creepy he was? Were they finally giving up on him?

Useless

Useless

Useless.

Even the teachers started acting strange around him. Though, he was used to it by now. He was just happy that they lasted this long without realizing how worthless he is.

But he has a quirk now, so why...

Aizawa-Sensei glared at him more often. That wasn’t really surprising, considering how he’s his least favorite student. You don’t get the name of ‘Problem Child’ for being liked, after all.

Mic-Sensei acted relatively normal, though he could tell he was trying hard to mask a dark look in his eyes whenever Izuku spoke in class.

So he stopped talking in class.

He didn’t want to risk his teachers hating him even more and taking it out on his grades like in middle school. He can deal with the looks and the isolation, he has to be a hero, and he has to keep his good grades in order to do so.

He began to revert back to his middle school state.

Shoulders drawn, eyes down. Only talking when directly asked. Studiously taking his notes, biting hard on his lower lip to keep the words from tumbling out.

His classmates and teachers hated his mumbling. So he forced himself to stop the habit.

What really got to him was All Might’s change in attitude. He avoided him and cancelled their training sessions. He supposes it should be expected. After all, All Might knew about his quirklessness. Izuku supposes that he was just finally realizing how right he had been on the rooftop that day.

Uraraka and Iida stopped hanging out with him.

It’s been about a week since everything began changing.

At first, Uraraka had been dragged away by her other friends, apologising to Izuku and saying ‘I’ll sit with you again tomorrow!’ Until one day she didn’t say it. The next day she didn’t even look his way as she sat at a table with Asui and a few other girls.

It was fine. He was fine.

Iida was next. Saying that as class rep he needed to form bonds with all his classmates, not just Izuku. So he left, and he didn’t return.

Todoroki was the only one left.

Izuku expected some excuse for him to leave as well, but it never came.

Everyday at lunch, Todoroki dutifully sat down next to him, looking at him with a ghost of a sad smile on his lips, and saying, “Don’t worry, you’re my friend.” Before eating his meal in a comfortable silence.

He was grateful. Totally, utterly grateful that Todoroki didn’t hate him now too (He was still unsure exactly why everyone hated him suddenly, though not really surprised).

Eventually Todoroki was the only one he even tried to talk to. Confiding in him at late hours when he couldn’t sleep. Doing homework together in the comfort of either of their dorm rooms. Even sharing in the rare affection Todoroki gave out.

And so life went on.

Until it didn’t.

Aizawa-Sensei asked him to stay after class one day, about two weeks after everything started returning to normal going wrong.

He flinched at his name being called, but tried to suppress it. He could see in Sensei’s eyes that he noticed, and didn’t like it.

He remembered never forgot from middle school that the punishments were usually worse if he showed fear.

He stayed in his seat as his classmates filtered out, none even sparing him a glance besides Todoroki, who on his way out, brushed a gentle hand on Izuku’s arm, whispering a soft ‘see you later’ and breezed out the door, ignoring everyone else.

Izuku felt himself relax slightly. Ever grateful for Todoroki being the one variable making these last two week infinitely better and different than middle school. 

He heard his name being called and he tensed. Aizawa-Sensei sounded so cold . He thought he had gotten used to the treatment, but Sensei was the first teacher to even treat him equally. He felt tears prick at the corners of his eyes as Sensei told him to follow, and started quickly at the room, sending suspicious glances back to make sure he was following.

Izuku almost had to jog to keep up with his teacher’s ever-quickening gait. Izuku tried to ask where they were going, stuttering so bad it came out almost incoherent.

Sensei did not answer, instead leveling him with that ever-cold glare and picking up the pace.

He led him out of UA and passed the dorm, where a police car waited for them.

Izuku ground to a halt.

A police car? What’s going on? Did he do something wrong?

He knew he did something wrong for every worthless breath he took. But him being alive wasn’t illegal, just pointless.

An officer roughly grabbed his arms and cuffed them together, before shoving him into the back of the vehicle.

Izuku began to panic. He thought back as far as he could, trying to remember anything he could’ve done to warrant his arrest.

There was the Stain thing, but that was so long ago and if he were arrested so would Iida and Todoroki, though he supposes he could be being used as a scapegoat. He shook his head. That didn’t make sense, they already cleared it up with the police.

There was the rescue at Kamino. But again, that was a whole group of them, and Sensei never said they were in any legal trouble.

Izuku couldn’t think of any reason he was being arrested.

Maybe they are making something up so the quirkless loser could be kicked out of UA, without bringing any charges of quirk discrimination on them.

Stop, you have a quirk now. They can’t know. Do they know?

Izuku was led into the police station by a rough hand gripping his arm. He’s aggressively shoved into a chair in an interrogation room, quirk-suppressant cuffs locking his wrists to the table before him. He’s left alone for the moment. He knows there must be someone watching from behind the one-way mirror, but that doesn’t stop the silent tears from dripping down his face.

He sits quietly for what he thinks is an hour, before a burly police officer barges into the room, door slamming in his wake. His skin is almost geometric in texture, kind of like Kirishima’s when he hardens, and he wonders faintly what his quirk is before the hands are slamming on the table in front of him, making him jump.

Izuku’s eyes shoot up, wide and wet with tears, as the interrogator begins asking yelling questions.

“Where is the league?”

“W-what? I-I don’t know?”

“How did they find out about the training camp?”

“I d-don’t know!”

“How many members are there?”

“I don’t know! I only s-saw who was at t-the camp!”

A harsh hit to his face has him blinking spots from his eyes. He can feel sticky liquid drip sluggishly from the new cut on his cheekbone. So it has to do with sharpening his skin, his mind languidly supplies him.

“Tell the truth! We know you’re working with the League!” The interrogator yells, seeming frustrated.

... oh.  

They think he’s working with the League?

That’s what the past two weeks have been about? The isolation and the harsh looks, it was all because of that?

Izuku could laugh. It wasn’t because he was quirkless, they actually just thought he was a villain.

Izuku glanced up, mind reeling. “I-I am not working with the League. I have never had contact with t-them outside of when they were threatening m-me or my class.” He states as clearly as he can, glad that his classmates didn’t hate him because of his past, but sad that they would think so lowly of him that he would work with villains.

The police officer looked infuriated, leaning in uncomfortably close to Izuku’s face with rage in his eyes. “We read your notebooks .” He spit out, like that was a damning fact.

He felt his brows furrow. His notebooks? What did that have to do with them thinking he was with the League? He asked as much, and felt another blow come to his face, making his head turn to the side with the force and him gasp with the sudden pain.

“I’ll be asking the questions here, villain. ” His interrogator growled out.

Izuku felt his eyes fill with tears again. They wouldn’t listen! Nothing he said seemed to change their opinions that he was already guilty. What happened to innocent until proven otherwise? The officer continued barking out questions, to which Izuku felt himself answer blankly. No more hits came, thankfully, but he wouldn’t have felt it anyways. He curled up instinctively and did not lift his gaze from the ground, he zoned everything out. He felt like he was floating, a bystander to himself. He didn’t know how long he was in there before the man gave up and left, but it felt no short to hours.

Eventually, he faintly heard the door open and shut, and his name being spoken softly. 

He didn’t react.

He heard the same questions being asked again, gently this time, in a soothing tenor.

He answered truthfully, like he had done the entire time.

He saw a hand come into his vision, and he instinctively flinched back. The hand stopped for a second before reaching towards his wrists and gently unlocking the cuffs. 

Izuku pulled his bruised wrists to his chest, rubbing them lightly as he felt a hand fall on his shoulder. He flinched again, then relaxed a little into the steady, grounding weight.

“C’mon kid. Let’s get you out of here.” He heard the soothing voice of the detective, the one with the lie-detecting quirk he recognized now, whisper gently, before leading him up and out of the room, into a car, and back to the UA dorms.

Todoroki was standing outside the dorms, a worried furrow in his brow. His eyes lightened slightly when he saw Izuku, then darkened with sadness and anger at the state he was in.

Todoroki rushed up to Izuku and gently and shakily took his face in his hands, softly running a warm thumb across his uninjured cheek, catching the tears there.

“What did they do to you?” He murmured quietly, as Izuku’s tears fell silently down his face.

Todoroki wasn’t one for initiating physical contact, so when he abruptly pulled Izuku into a soft embrace, he completely melted in his arms, tears flowing harder now.

“T-they t-though I w-was the t-t-traitor!” Izuku forces out between sobs. “I-I-I tried t-to tell them t-the truth but t-they w-wouldn’t believe me!” He heaves in a gasping breath and wraps his arms tightly around his friend's middle. 

He felt himself being led into the dorms, supported by a strong arm around his shoulders. 

He heard a chorus of his classmates' voices, “Hey Deku-kun!”

“Hello Midoriya.”

“Whoa what happened to your face?”

“Midoriya, how are you?”

Izuku shut his eyes tightly and leaned closer into the warmth of Todoroki’s fire side.

He could hear Todoroki answer his classmates with an icy tone, “Don’t pretend like nothing’s changed. This is your fault.” Before guiding Izuku away from the chorus of responses and towards his dorm room.

Once there, Todoroki politely looked away as Izuku finally changed out of his school uniform, then tucked him into bed, secured with a mountain on blankets.

“I’m sorry this happened to you.” Todoroki whispered, squeezing his hand around Izuku’s in comfort, before turning to leave. “Get some rest. I’m sure you’re exhausted.” 

Izuku didn’t let go of his hand. “Stay with me? Please? I-I don’t want to be alone right now.”

Todoroki’s expression softened, “Sure.” 

Izuku scooted a little to make room, before Todoroki slid in next to him, putting an arm around his shoulder and pulling him close. Izuku felt tears fill his eyes for the hundredth time today as he thought about the past weeks. How could he trust anyone again? If they all gave up on him so quickly with just a guise of suspicion?

He sniffled, shoving his face into Todoroki’s shoulder, and gently cried himself into exhaustion, before falling into a restless sleep.

And so life goes on, unfortunately.