Chapter Text
Akashi Kei lived a pretty simple life. There was nothing extraordinary about it. That is, until she got her quirk. Her quirk was called ‘Trigger.’ Because of her mother’s ability to regulate her own body temperature and her father’s quirk to discharge energy in the form of static, Kei’s quirk allows her to pressurize that heat and static into bullets and to discharge them from her hands. Though Kei often couldn’t control these blasts of heat and electricity, and it would often wind up with her in timeout. As she got older, Kei figured out that she may be able to control her quirk if she had a support item of some kind. This led her onto the path to become a hero!
-----
It was after school when Kei found herself walking down the halls of her middle school, Aldera. Because she was a third year student, all of her classes were on the third floor. Taking a quick glance out the window, Kei could see students walking out in the courtyard and getting ready to go home. She couldn’t wait to get home either. The people here at Aldera were very rude and a bunch of bullies. Especially to her older cousin, Midoriya Izuku, who was only older by a few months. Kei hated the way people would treat her sweet cousin, all because he didn’t have a quirk!
Midoriya Izuku was quirkless.
And these rotten people at Aldera all thought that it was okay to so blatantly bully her Izuku! That’s why Kei did everything in her power to protect her favorite and only cousin. In their first year at Aldera, Izuku and Kei were placed in the same class. When Kei first witnessed the bullying and sucide baiting by her fellow classmates, Kei got into a fight with the teacher for turning a blind eye to illegal quirk usage. That had landed her in detention for a month, and a very harsh punishment from her own parents. From then on, no one messed with Izuku so long as Kei was around.
In the following years though, Kei swears that she was purposely placed in a different class than Izuku! With an annoyed huff, Kei picked up her pace to Izuku’s class. “I swear to god if Katsuki is hurting Zuku again, I’ll throw his ass out the window.” Running her right hand through her shoulder length black hair, Kei let out something akin to a growl. She stopped in front of a door, where muffled yelling was coming from.
Kei slammed the door open, a crack splitting the air, as all noise in the room stopped. Electric gold eyes narrowed at the sight. There was her precious cousin, Izuku, cornered against the chalkboard at the back of the classroom. His usually bright, emerald eyes were glossy and downcast. Surrounding Izuku were three of his main bullies, including the ‘Rising Star of Aldera Junior High,’ Bakugo Katsuki. As much as it pained Kei to say it, she grew up with Katsuki. Her, Izuku, and Katsuki were all best friends when they were little. Then Izuku was diagnosed as quirkless, and Katsuki promptly cut them out of his life. But it was fine, Izuku didn’t need him anyway.
“Katsuki, you have five seconds to get your hands off of him.” Kei threatened, stalking into the room in all of her five foot and four inch glory.
“Oh look, Deku’s guard dog finally showed up.” One of Katsuki’s lackeys sneered. Though Kei could see the not-so-subtle way that the boy with the long fingers shook. Admittedly, Kei had nearly beat up the kid for tripping Izuku in the cafeteria last year. Poor Izuku had run out of there so fast and had a panic attack in the bathroom. Of course Kei had helped her cousin first, before stomping back in the cafeteria and laying the finger-boy flat out on his back, in front of the entire school. Thankfully, the teachers were lenient in her punishment that day and was only stuck with cleaning duty for a week.
“Oi, finger freak.” She turned a nast glare toward the boy. He stiffened under the weight of her gaze. “You and your boyfriend better get our asses outta here, before I throw your asses out the window.” Kei tilted her head towards the door.
The two lackeys frowned, but scurried out the classroom with their tails tucked between their legs. Kei wasn’t someone they wanted to mess with. Other than Katsuki, Kei was the strongest person at Aldera. If it weren’t for her sticking up for Deku all the time, the teacher’s and everyone else would’ve loved her.
When the door shut again, Kei turned her eyes to the raging blonde with sharp, red eyes. “The fuck you bothering me for? Huh, Kei?” Katsuki snapped at the girl. It was strange. Kei was the only one that Katsuki called by their name. It wasn’t “extra” or some other stupid nickname like “Deku” or “Finger-Fuck.” But everyone at Aldera assumed it was because Katsuki saw Kei as an equal.
“You know damn well why, you ass.” Kei glanced past Katsuki and met eyes with Izuku. “You alright, Zuku?” she asked with a frown. Her green haired cousin bit his lip harshly, but nodded his head.
“You can’t protect Deku forever, dumbass.” Katsuki grunted. “He needs to learn his place, which is beneath me!” Before Katsuki could even raise a hand to let out an explosion, Kei had shot a pressurized bullet of heat and electricity between her cousin and the blonde. The bullet left a dark burn mark the size of a quarter on the chalkboard inches from Izuku’s head. Katsuki growled, glaring at the raven haired girl. “He’s quirkless Kei! Useless! The damn Deku should forget about becoming a hero!” The explosive teen ranted. “You know Deku’s gonna apply to Yuuei!? The bastard’s gonna get CRUSHED there! It’s better I teach him his lesson now!”
Kei sighed, walking forward as Katsuki continued to scream about how he’s going to be the number one hero. Again, Kei tilted her head to the door, silently motioning Izuku to get behind her. The freckled teen nodded, slowly moving away from his position against the chalkboard. With another sigh, Kei turned around and decked Katsuki. Her right hand met the boy’s jaw, effectively shutting Katsuki up and throwing him into the wall.
“Kei!” Izuku squeaked from behind her.
“You asshole!” Kei snarled, “What gives you the right to stomp on someone else’s dream? Huh, Katsuki? You think you’re God or some shit?” Katsuki growled back, pushing himself up right. “Well, newsflash, you’re not. You are just some teen bully with an inferiority complex. What kind of hero are you gonna be when you let your so called ‘friends’ sucidie bait and beat up someone else, huh? When you go pro, you just gonna turn a blind eye to some kid on the streets getting beat up because they’re quirkless? Let me tell you, you’d be a shitty hero, Kats.”
Before Katsuki could even say anything, Kei grabbed her cousin by the wrist and promptly dragged him out of the school.
-----
Izuku followed his cousin out of the school building. His shoulder hurt from Katsuki burning him, but he didn’t want to say anything. It would probably make Kei even more mad, and Izuku is positive that he wouldn’t be able to stop her from murdering their ex-best friend. “Ah, um….K-Kei?” Izuku called out. The girl hummed, but didn’t turn back to him. “K-Kacchan threw my notebook out the window..I-I need to get it..please?” Kei paused mid-step, before turning to Izuku with a blinding smile.
“Sure, Zuku. Why didn’t you say so sooner, silly.” Kei laughed sweetly. This was the Kei that Izuku knew, not that scary person in the classroom. Kei was the nicest, most caring person that Izuku knew. Well, besides his mom. But that all changed when his raven haired cousin decided that she was to defend Izuku at the age of four. When Izuku was diagnosed as quirkless, he lost everything. His friends no longer liked him. His teachers pitied him. And even his mom, who could only apologize for not giving Izuku a quirk, was never the same. Of course Izuku knew that his mom, auntie, and uncle still loved himed. But Izuku didn’t want apologies though, he wanted people to be his friends and to believe in him.
And the only person that stuck by him was Kei.
The two cousins walked around the school, the side where Izuku’s classroom was. It didn’t take long for the two to find the missing notebook. It was floating in the school’s small koi fish pond. Izuku sighed, plucking it out of the water. “Is it salvageable?” Kei asked from over his shoulder. The boy shrugged, flipping the notebook over and taking a look at it. The front was nearly scorched completely, courtesy of Katsuki’s explosion quirk. And half of it was soaked all the way through from the pond water.
“I dunno, but I’ll try to dry it off at home and rewrite whatever I lost.” Izuku said, standing up. He turned to Kei, who was waiting with a scowl on her face. Izuku bit his lip, then sighed. “Just leave it, Kei.”
“Zuku-”
“Really, it’s fine.” Izuku cut her off. “After all, Kacchan is going to be an amazing hero one day.” He smiled, before motioning Kei to follow him home.
-----
It was well-known that the two cousins lived together. It was mainly because Kei’s parents were always traveling abroad. Kei’s mom, Hisaki, was a very well-known quirk specialist. On the other hand, Kei’s dad, Tamaki, was an up-and-coming hero support scientist--who mainly got called to America for work. Because of her parent’s jobs, Kei lives with her mom’s older sister, Auntie Inko and Izuku.
Izuku and Kei normally took the back roads home, mainly to avoid any people from school that go downtown to hang out. “So, Katsuki mentioned that you’re applying to Yuuei?” Kei began, earning a flinch from her jumpy cousin. She sighed at that. “You know that I would never hurt or judge you like that, Zuku.”
“I-I know..Sorry, I just-” The emerald eyed teen began, but Kei shook her head with a smile. Izuku sighed, calming himself down before speaking again. “I want to be a hero, Kei.”
“And you’ll be a great one.” Kei stated with so much confidence and certainty that it made Izuku tear up. “I say go for it, Zuku. Yuuei will be hard to get into, but if anyone can get in without a quirk, it’s you.”
“You really think that I can be a quirkless hero?” Izuku asked carefully.
Kei glanced at Izuku, before turning back to the road ahead of her. “Like I said, if anyone can do it, it’d be you. And I’m not just saying that because I’m your cousin and I love you. I’m saying it because you are single handedly the most determined and stubborn person I’ve ever known. Even more so than Katsuki!” Izuku gave a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of his head. Kei giggled at that and rolled his eyes.
As the two cousins passed under a bridge, there was a noise that broke through the air.
CrrrrreeeEEAAK!
“It must be my lucky day. The perfect meat suit!”
It happened so suddenly. One second Kei and Izuku were laughing amongst themselves, and the next, Izuku was gone from her side. Kei snapped her head to the side, and cried out at the sight. Izuku was being swallowed by thick, smelly sludge. A quirk, her mind helpfully supplied. The pain on Izuku’s face as the goo slid down his throat was enough for Kei to raise her hands in the form of finger guns. “Let go of Izuku, YOU BASTARD!” Kei’s fingertip glowed a faint red color as heat pooled at the tips. A small ball of gold electricity grew in size. Kei finally released the bullet, discharging the ball directly into the smile’s eye.
“GAHHHH! AHHHH!” The slime man screamed, as he threw Izuku out of him. Izuku fell forward, coughing out green goop. Kei ran forward, blocking her cousin that was on the verge of passing out. “You little whore! I’m gonna get you for this!” The villain yelled, swinging out a thick rope of slime. Kei tried to dodge, lifting her arms to block her head, but the attack was too fast. The slime man hit her on her left side. Kei could practically feel her ribs break, as she was thrown into the wall.
“K-Kei.” Izuku whimpered out, as Kei hit the floor, coughing up blood.
“Izu-ku” Kei tried to move her stupid body, but she was hurt.
“Fear not! I AM HERE!!” A voice boomed through the empty underpass. And the number one hero, All Might, came crashing out of the sewers where the villain had come from. “Texas…..SMASH!!!” The hero screamed, fist blowing a hole in the villain's liquid body.
Kei’s eyes blurred at the gust of wind that blew past at All Might’s punch. With the villain’s body dispersed throughout the underpass, both Izuku and Kei passed out from shock.
-----
Kei heard someone calling her. Who was it?
“Kei! Kei!”
Kei’s eyes snap open, only to be met by wide, green eyes. She blinked a couple of times to clear her vision. “Zuku?”
“Th-thank goodness!” Izuku blubbered in response. “Y-you were b-b-bleeding around your mouth and I-”
“I’m okay, Zuku. I think I just broke some ribs.” Kei winced as she sat up. Her dear cousin fluttered around her, not knowing how to help.
“Ho-hospital!” The anxious boy cried out, tears already pooling at the corner of his eyes.
“The young man is right.” A deep voice came from behind Izuku. Immediately, Kei tried to move to protect Izuku. The effort ended up with her collapsing against the wall again, heaving. “You should go to the hospital.” Kei looked up to glare at the voice, but was surprised to see the number one hero crouching beside them.
Kei inhaled sharply. “A-All Might!”
“Yes! I AM HERE!” The hero smiled widely. “I must apologize for getting too caught up in the hunt for this villain. Usually mistakes like this aren’t really my style, but thanks to you two, I have contained the villain!” All Might proudly showed off two liters of soda bottles that were now filled with the slime villain.
“Thank god…” Kei sighed, looking at her cousin. “You okay, Izuku?”
“Oh, um, yeah!” Izuku nodded frantically. “I’m alright! B-but I really think we should take you to the hospital, Kei.” The boy wrapped his arms carefully around his cousin, and lifted her up slowly.
Kei chuckled, giving a tired smile. “Not gonna get an autograph?”
“I already did!” Izuku grinned widely. “All Might signed my notebook!” Kei could tell that Izuku was ecstatic. He had met his idol after all.
All Might paused for a second. “Would you like me to call an ambulance?”
Before Izuku could accept the offer, Kei waved the hero off. “I’m fine.” Ignoring Izuku’s ‘you’re not!’ from beside her, Kei pointed to the villain that was tucked safely in the pockets of All Might’s cargo pants. “I’m well enough to get to the hospital on my own. Besides, shouldn’t you take that guy to the police as soon as possible?”
“Yes! You are right, young girl!” All Might declared in his usual loud and upbeat voice. “A pro battles not only enemies, but also time.” He said, crouching down and tensing his muscles.
Izuku frowned, “A-already? I...uh, wanted to ask--”
“Until next time...Thanks for your support!” All Might jumped up into the air.
Kei couldn’t react in time. Her stupid cousin lunged forward, grasping All Might’s calf just as the hero took to the sky. “IZUKU!” Kei cried out, stumbling forward to try and chase the two. It was hard though, considering something was absolutely piercing her lung. “Sh-it.” She gasped, wrapping her arm around her midsection. “If anything happens to Izuku, I swear, I’m killing All Might myself.” Kei cursed, slowly making her way toward downtown Musutafu, the direction where the number one hero had jumped toward.
-----
It took longer than anticipated for Kei to get there, which was understandable, considering her several broken ribs. By the time Kei was around the corner, she was heaving. Gritting her teeth though, she continued toward the shopping plaza.
There were crowds of people, screaming. What was going on? Kei headed toward the sounds of popping and explosions. At the entrance of the plaza was a large group of people, mostly civilians and some news reporters already mixed in the crowd. There were other heroes there too, blocking the entrance. Kei pushed her way through the crowd, ignoring the angry ‘HEY!’s coming from the people she bumped into.
Finally making her way to the front of the crowd, Kei got a clear view of what was going on.
The sight made her freeze in horror and shock.
There was the slime villain that had attacked her and Izuku. But this time, the person caught in its grasp was none other than Katsuki. Now, Kei and Katsuki may not have gotten along anymore, but the latter was still someone that has been a constant in Kei’s life. Just because he was a bully, didn’t mean he deserved to be killed and used by a villain. So the sight of her...ex-best friend...choking on the same disgusting villain that nearly killed Izuku, made Kei’s blood boil.
Kei grit her teeth, taking a step forward, but was stopped by the hero, Backdraft. “All civilians must stay back for their own safety.” The firefighter hero said.
“I know him!” Kei argued. “That’s my classmate! I can’t-I can’t just sit here and do nothing!”
“Please leave this to the heroes, little girl.” Backdraft looked down at Kei. “I promise that we’ll do everything in our power to get your friend back.”
Kei couldn’t believe the naivety of these heroes! There were people cheering them on, but the heroes here weren’t doing anything! The slime villain continued to make use of Katsuki’s explosion quirk, burning everything around him to keep the heroes away. Kei could see the look of fear in Katsuki’s eyes. He was terrified, and Bakugou Katsuki was never terrified. Kei debated what to do.
“I know Kats’ quirk better than anyone.” She whispered to herself. Kei thought of all the times that Katsuki had used his quirk against her and Izuku. She had years of experience when it came to dealing with his explosions. This was just a more intensified and wild version of Katsuki’s normal attacks. Kei could do this.
But before Kei could do anything, a blur of black and green raced past her. Was she seeing things? Or was that really Izuku that had rushed into the fray?
Kei blinked as Izuku slipped past both Backdraft and Death Arms. Both heroes had tried to grab him, but if Izuku was anything without a quirk, it was agile. Without thinking, Kei chased after her cousin, hands already heating up to shoot if the slime villain tried to attack Izuku again. “Get back here, you fools!! STOP!” Death Arms had cried out.
“Deku? Kei?” “It’s those kids.” Kei faintly heard both the villain and Katsuki speak over the yells of heroes and civilians.
“You’re dead.” The villain growled, adjusting its hold on Katsuki to try and fire off the blonde’s quirk. The terrified look on Izuku’s face only pushed Kei to run faster.
Izuku grunted, throwing his book bag at the villain--its contents spilling. Kei stopped running, holding up her right hand in the shape of a gun. Izuku got close to the villain and attempted to claw Katsuki out of the slime. “Kacchan!” Izuku cried with worry.
“You two! WHY?!” Katsuki glared and screamed as Izuku got rid of the slime around the blonde’s mouth.
Kei aimed her pseudo gun, and fired off a bullet straight into the villain’s eye. The slime screamed in pain.”M-my legs just started moving! I dunno know why!!” Izuku cried back. “But, you...you looked like you needed saving.” The freckled teen tried to grin through his tears.
“Izuku, you dumbass!” Kei screamed, firing off bullets at any slimey tendril that tried to grab Izuku. “I’m going to kill you both after this!” She barely jumped out of the way as a glob of slime was shot at her.
“Stop...it!” The villain screeched. “Just a bit longer! So stop...getting in MY WAY!” The thing reached out for Izuku with a large hand. Kei ran forward, holding her hand up with five bullets already charging at the tips of her fingers.
Kei could vaguely hear the heroes behind her running and yelling for her and Izuku to get away. “Don’t touch him!” Kei yelled, firing her bullets. She may not have perfect control over her quirk yet, but at this range, even Kei could hit her mark. With her five shots, Kei managed to shoot a vertical line through the villain’s arm, causing it to fall off.
Almost like magic, All Might appeared to be towering over Izuku and Kei. “The lesson that I left you with...I should practice what I preach!” The number one hero said through clenched teeth. “A pro should always be ready to risk his life!!” All Might charged up his punch, before hitting the villain directly in the face. “DETROIT SMASH!!”
The gust of wind created by All Might’s punch knocked Kei into Izuku, and Izuku into Katsuki. The three unceremoniously tumbled to the floor. It was silent for a few minutes as Kei lay on the floor, staring up at the sky. She sighed to herself, closing her eyes and just breathing through the pain in her side.
Then it started to rain. Kei could feel the drops on her skin, but she couldn’t bring herself to care about the crowd’s excited chatter. Immediately there was movement from the other heroes at the scene--Backdraft, Deatharms, Kamui Woods, Mt. Lady, and Slugger. Someone kneeled down next to her. “K-Kei..?” The voice was timid.
“If I wasn’t in so much pain, I’d kick your ass Izuku.” Kei opened her eyes and was, again, met by the sight of her anxious cousin. He didn’t meet her eyes, and Kei sighed. “I’m kidding. But really, I’m just trying to catch my breath.”
“You’re hurt.” Izuku muttered. “You shouldn’t have…”
“No, you shouldn’t have.” Kei groaned, moving to sit up.
Izuku flailed at Kei, “No! Don’t get up! You broke your ribs earlier!!”
“Oi. Deku. Shut the fuck up.” Katsuki growled out through clenched teeth. Kei was surprised by how restrained it sounded. Red eyes glanced Kei up and down. “And don’t move, you dumbass.”
Kei giggled, but it was cut off by a sharp pain in her side. She groaned again instead. “Don’t make me laugh.”
The next few minutes passed by in a blur. Kei was hauled into an ambulance after it was confirmed that ‘yes, doll, your ribs are most definitely broken.’ Despite the pain she was in, Kei didn’t hesitate to snap at a hero or reporter that dared yell at Izuku. ‘There was absolutely no need for you two to put yourselves in danger!!’ they had said. Kei furrowed her eyebrows and frowned, “And what were you doing? Standing by and watching as the plaza burned down?” She said with narrowed eyes.
Izuku nearly cried at Kei telling off the pros. While Katsuki straight up laughed in their faces. “HAH! I can see you’re picking up some of my habits, Kei!”
“Kacchan, don’t encourage her!”
On the other hand, Katsuki was praised by the heroes for his strong quirk and how tough he was while being held hostage. ‘You were real tough out there!’ ‘Your quirk is amazing!’ ‘When you graduate, consider becoming my sidekick!’ As Kei was pulled into the ambulance, she caught a quick glance of Katsuki’s grim face.
“Wait.” Kei told the paramedics to pause. They looked at her in confusion. “Katsuki!” The blonde jerked up to face Kei’s pale face against the gurney.
“What now, Kei?” Katsuki glared, but Kei could tell that he wasn’t actually upset.
“Don’t let it get to you, dumbass.” Kei rolled her eyes, letting the doors of the ambulance close. Kei was sure that she didn’t need to explain what ‘it’ was. Even after years of not hanging out together, Kei could still read the blonde’s face like a book. It was obvious that what the heroes said to him had bothered Katsuki. And she was 99.9% sure that it had to do with that inferiority complex of his.
-----
At the hospital, Kei went through a series of check ups and x-rays. She was then bandaged up and moved to a private room. Promptly five minutes later, Auntie Inko, Izuku, Auntie Mitsuki, and Uncle Masaru burst in. Kei wasn’t all that surprised to see her extended family, Mitsuki and Masaru. After all, her mom and Auntie Inko were best friends with Mitsuki.
“Keiiii~” Inko wailed with glossy eyes. The short, plump woman scurried to Kei's side and grabbed the girl’s hands tightly. “Are you okay, baby?! How bad are you hurt? Are you still in pain? Should I ask for more medication?”
“Auntie, relax.” Kei smiled. “I’m fine. Just a few broken ribs. The doctor said they need to heal naturally, instead of me being healed. And no, I don’t need any more pain meds.”
Mitsuki and Masaru walked forward. “You really gave us a scare, kiddo.” Masaru smiled tentatively, setting a small brown bear stuffed animal on Kei’s lap. “Sorry that Katsuki didn’t show up. He-”
“You know how that brat is.” Mitsuki cut off her husband. “He’s sulking in his room right now, but he does send his best wishes.”
“It’s fine.” Kei responded. “It was a traumatic experience for all of us. Are you alright, Zuku?” She glanced at her cousin, who was still twisting his fingers together by the door.
“Y-yeah.” Izuku looked up, slowly walking forward. “I’m sorry for the trouble I caused you today, Kei.” But the girl waved her hand. “Also, I’d like to speak to you. Privately, please.” Izuku glanced at his mother, auntie, and uncle.
“O-oh! Yes, of course!” Inko clapped her hands together. “You two must be starving! I’ll go pick up some take out, okay?”
“And we should get back to the brat, too.” Mitsuki ruffled Kei’s hair.
“We hope you get better fast, Kei.” Masaru smiled. “Don’t push yourself too hard kiddo.”
Kei nodded, waving the adults out. Once they were gone, Kei turned gold eyes upon emerald. “So?”
“Um, I don’t know how to begin…” Izuku bit his lip harshly.
“Whenever and wherever you’re ready.” Kei responded, patting the side of her bed.
Izuku sat. The room was silent for a moment before Izuku took a deep breath and began to tell Kei about his encounter with All Might before and after the fight.
“This is a secret Kei.” Izuku said. “Despite that, I wanted to tell you because I’ve never lied to you before. D-don’t worry though! All Might gave his blessing and all, but it must stay between us..”
“And who would I tell? I literally only talk to you Zuku.” Kei laughed at her cousin’s deep blush. “But I’m happy for you. This is a great opportunity that’s once in a lifetime! Though I still think you’d be a great hero, regardless of quirk. But even so, I want to be there while you’re training.”
“O-of course!” Izuku nodded frantically. He stared at Kei’s smile, before hesitantly speaking up. “I’m surprised you haven’t--”
“Oh don’t worry~” Kei grinned wider. “I’ll have a good talk with All Might. Or should I say, Toshinori-san~~”
Izuku promptly shuddered.
This was officially the start of their hero journeys.