Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

I was four when I found out I wouldn't get a quirk. In a world where quirks are the norm. Being quirkless, you became an automatic outcast. So it was no surprise when my father left fast, leaving just me and my mother. I thought she would love and support me despite being quirkless but it wasn't long until she left me as well. She dropped me at an orphanage outside of the city. They took me in, fed me and gave me a home until that happened. I had finally gotten a quirk but it was extremely destructive. It was triggered by emotions so when a kid stole my teddy from me, I threw a tantrum almost destroying the entire orphanage. The caretakers tried to help me at first getting in heroes and specialists to help me control it but I was still a kid. They eventually gave up, they were going to throw me out if I didn’t get adopted soon, but who would want a kid with a dangerous power he can’t control?

A man came just in time. He promised he would help me, and teach me to control my power. He straightened his arm out beside my ear, his palm facing the brick wall behind me. I heard the dealing ‘bang’ before I even processed the rumbling and crashing. I flinched hard away from the man’s hand. My head turned to face the wall, a cool breeze freezing my ears. I froze as soon as I saw it. My mouth was agape and I couldn’t even think about speaking much less say something. 

The wall, or what’s left of it, was almost completely destroyed. Rubble and debris were blown metres away from where it usually stood. The image looked as though a wrecking ball was knocked through it. Dust from the concrete filled the air, scratching at my throat as I breathe. “Is this what you want to do? What you want to be?” His voice dripped with honey, not sweet, more like…poisonous. It was tempting, his charisma almost had me agreeing. 

My head turned and my eyes flickered to him unconsciously. He was already staring at me which took my breath away. His gaze alone was intimidating, terrifying. I gulped, my throat dry and sore. I asked: “Am I going to be able to be a hero one day?” He twitched at this question. His peering eyes faltered for a millisecond. 

“You could be something better.” His enticing words trapped me. Better than a hero? Would I be able to do good and save people after I learned how to control my power? To utilise it? He didn’t let me respond as he walked through the new hole in the building. It seems he already knew my answer. I followed him out. 

"This will be your bedroom from now on," he said. He didn’t sound like the same man who adopted me. His tone completely changed. It wasn’t even the same terrifying person. It was someone else, he sound apathetic and indifferent. He left without another word and a slam of the door. The room was engulfed in darkness, the window adding little light. I sat down in the corner of the small room and pulled the blanket over my legs trying to warm up. 

I sat in there for what felt like hours before I heard a faint conversation I recognised. I slowly opened the door and peeked my head out. It was a re-run of an old All Might interview. I rushed out of the room and stood dead in front of the television. I must’ve startled him because he shuffled to the side. “You like All Might?” He asked sounding neutral but unimpressed. I nodded my head really fast, not looking away from the TV.

“He’s my favourite hero! I want to be like him someday and save lots and lots of people.” I explained enthusiastically. He didn’t look too impressed. His eyes narrowed but a grin crept up onto his face. 

“Don’t worry, you will save lots of people if you listen to me. The world will become a better place, and you can create that,” The man knelt in front of me, a hand placed on my shoulder, squeezed tightly but loosened after a second. The man tilted his head. “Do you want to do that?” I nodded slowly, looking into his eyes. “Okay, but you have to listen to everything I say, alright?” 

“I will,” I said slowly, slightly unsure.

“Good.” His hand dropped from my shoulder, brushing down my arm. “We’ll start tomorrow. It’s getting late. Go to sleep.” He guided me back to the small room and locked the door behind me. I felt scared in the tiny space. It was cold and dark. I ended up having to make a makeshift bed with some cardboard boxes I emptied. I opened my notebook -the only thing I own- and a pen I found sitting on the floor, missing a lid. I started drawing my future hero costume. I’ve always had a rough idea of what I wanted but I was always adding stuff or changing things like the colour or accessories. 

I began writing about my quirk -now that I finally had one. I’ve only used it once and I wasn’t in control but I got a basic idea of what it was. I knew it was a telekinetic type of power. At least It was the closest thing to it. It was similar to my mother's but much stronger. I always thought that her quirk was cool, though dad's power was much cooler. My mom had telekinesis, but she could only float small objects towards her and my dad could breathe fire. I remember how he used to light his cigarettes. 

I fell asleep writing in my notebook. It was the first night since I was without my parents that I felt some kind of comfort, even though I was sleeping on a cardboard box with a thin blanket. The caretakers were nice -well until I almost destroyed half the orphanage- they fed me gave me a bed and were nice to me despite not having a quirk. Though, I can’t say there wasn’t favouritism for the kids who had a quirk or the kids with cool ones with a promising future as a hero. Like this one kid with the power to control metal. I admired him like the other kids but he was self-centred and thought he was better than everyone else. So he picked on me, the quirkless kid. That was when I learned nobody is born equal. Even when you have no control over it you were picked on for being different.

I only had one friend throughout the year I was there. He was muzzled by his parents and thrown out. He had a brainwashing quirk where if someone answered him he could have control over their mind. When he accidentally brainwashed his parents they beat him and left him in the orphanage. He learned it was dangerous to speak so he stopped altogether. He didn’t pick on me or cast me out when he found out I was quirkless -even when I could’ve killed him with my newly discovered, very dangerous quirk.

I was snapped out of my dream when I heard the door unlocking. I leaned up to see the man, he still hadn’t told me his name but I wasn’t going to ask now. His smile was gone as he stared at me. “Let’s go.” That was all he said before he started walking away. I paced after him not asking anything. He didn’t seem like he wanted to talk. He led me into a massive empty room, somehow colder than my own-if that’s possible. The windows were bigger but it was still dark outside so he flipped a switch on the wall and the light turned on. My eyes squinted as they adjusted to the bright light first thing in the morning. At least I think it’s morning. The sky outside was dark but I was unsure if it was morning dark or nighttime dark. 

“What are you doing?” I asked as he walked into the middle of the room and stood next to a dummy that looked like a person. 

“Hit it,” I looked at him confused. “You want to control your power and become strong right? So use your quirk and hit the dummy.” I didn’t respond but I knew what to do. I put my hand out as they did in the movies thinking it might work. It was probably useless but I thought it might help me direct it at the target instead of just shooting it out. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on my power. I kept trying to shoot a direct line towards the dummy. I opened my eyes but the dummy was the same, not even a slight movement. 

The taller man let out a gruff, dry laugh. He folded his arms and sighed. He was starting to look scary again but this was different, he looked lethal. “This is as much as I guessed anyways.” He spoke quietly. 

“What?” 

“You’re just as useless as I thought you would be.” His words cut deep and I flinched. “A pathetic little boy that was abandoned by his parents. I understand why they did it now. Why the caretakers casted you out? You have a power, but you can’t even control it?” He clicked his tongue. “Maybe I should just send you back-“

“No!” I screamed, a surged of energy flowed through my veins, through every part of my body. A force pummelled throughout the room. Everything was slow. My mind was able to process everything that happened. The man was shoved back into the wall, along with the dummy, although the dummy was in worse condition. The wall surrounding simultaneously cracked, the room was covered in dust from the broken stone.  

After a few seconds, my mind finally processed what happened. I noticed the man on the ground and ran up to him. I looked down at the man who looked like he was in pain. “Are you ok?” I asked frantically worried about if I hurt him. 

“I’m fine,” though he said that his voice was strained. When he got up he hissed and held a hand on his lower back. He spoke as he stood up straight. “Now,” he looked me dead in the eye “What did you learn from that?” 

“W-what do you mean?” 

“Did you feel or maybe sense something different before you released your power?” He suggested.

“I’m not sure. Maybe?” I tried to think back. Tried to remember what it was like. What it felt like. “I felt a… I don’t know, maybe like a rush in my veins before it was gone. Like a sudden surge or something like that.”

“Good, good. This will get better from now on." His grin grew larger and more sinister. I had a feeling this is going to be bad. 

Chapter Text

I woke up dreading the day already. It was too early for this shit. Most people would be too excited or too stressed to sleep the night before the UA entrance exam but I passed out at six in the evening after training with Shigaraki from seven in the morning and a  bit  of studying for the big day. You’d also think I’d be fresh as a daisy from sleeping thirteen hours but for  some  reason, I feel like I slept three hours. 

I checked my phone and the time said: six-fifty-nine.  Shit.  The next thing I knew was the time turned to seven and a blaring alarm went off, adding to the throbbing pain in my head. I grabbed my phone instantly and pressed the stop button but my finger just couldn’t land on it. After about six tries, it turned off. I sighed in relief and took my phone off charge. I threw my blanket off of my body and swung my legs over the edge of my bed-I finally got a proper bed. 

I reluctantly got out of bed and went downstairs for breakfast. I was greeted by a horrible smell of burnt bacon and toast that may have been on fire -at least that’s what it smelled like. I walked into the bar and saw Shigaraki fanning the smoke and Kurogiri opening a window. It was a few seconds before they noticed me. Shigaraki spoke first. “Mornin’ cupcake,” he knows I hate being called that but he won’t stop because he loves pissing me off. I waved him off knowing it won’t do anything. “What? Not get enough beauty rest?”

“Shut the fuck up,” I said.  I  was the one stuck on this dumb mission where I had to go to school and UA at that. I had a pounding headache so I took a bottle of painkillers from the medicine cabinet and swallowed two dry.

“Cheer up champ,” Shigaraki started. “It’s your first day at school, you should be happy. People dream of going to the best hero school in the country. Think of it, meeting future pros, meeting actual pros, all of that information in the palm of your hand. It’s amazing to dream about. I wish I could go just to strangle those teachers, you’re really lucky you know that?” He made some weird gestures with his hand. I knew he fantasised about doing this but he wouldn’t exactly blend in. 

“Then why didn’t you go when you were a kid?” I simply asked, although I already knew the answer. The question is more of a formality. 

“I would’ve disintegrated the entire school, not that I don’t want to but it’s not a great idea for being undercover, is it?”

“Anyways, it’s not the first day at school it’s just the entrance exam. I’m not actually in  yet . And don’t get your hopes up because I may not even get in.” That’s right. My quirk still can be uncontrollable, I have learned to control it but it’s tied to my emotions so when I, for example, get angry I am a loose canon that will most definitely kill you if you’re close enough. I do have the brains since I have been studying since I was five years old. All For One had me doing AP subjects from when I was seven. The old man had me homeschooled when he adopted me. Well, not him per se, but there were some scientists and a lot of YouTube videos.

“Of course, they will accept you. You’re a genius and you have this really strong power you can control without moving a muscle.”

“Are you…complimenting me? Oh, God. Did you hit your head or something? I think there's something wrong with you. Or are you just messing with me?” I gasped feigning shock, a hand over my mouth. “Or maybe you finally realised that I’m just so much better than you.” Even though I was joking his reaction was priceless.

“W-what of course not,” I hummed. “I’m just boosting your confidence that’s all. Sensei told me too.”  Of course,  he did. He always uses sensei as an excuse. Whether it’s chores or having to go to UA. 

I took my phone out of my pocket and looked at the time. “I gotta get ready,” I said before getting up to my room. I was promoted a few years back and got an actual room upstairs. It even has I window I could look out of. Kurogiri wished me good luck as I went to get ready. It took all of twenty minutes to get dressed, and do my hair and teeth. I chose a discreet outfit. Simple black trousers and a navy hoodie. You’re supposed to wear your middle school uniform but since I was homeschooled I don’t have one. I mean they can’t exactly give out to me for that. I brought a pencil case for the written exam, earphones for the train, my notebook and a few small knives with a bag for them.

I packed up my bag and went back downstairs. Shigaraki wasn’t there anymore leaving just Kurogiri. I waved him off as I said my last farewell and left through the front door. UA was quite far from where I was so I had to take the train. I didn’t want to commute this far to school every single day. The train station was approximately fifteen minutes from the bar and the train ride was another twenty.

The train was at the station when I arrived. I barely managed to get on and was fortunate enough to get a seat close to the door. It was one of the train’s first stops so it was empty enough. 

The train was half full of adults and students on their way to school. I looked around scanning the people on the train. There was a tall kid with purple hair. He looked a little familiar but I couldn’t pinpoint where I recognised him from. From the corner of my eye, I noticed a little dude with balls on his head trying to peek up a girl's skirt. I didn’t feel like getting up from my seat so I used my quirk to nudge her shoulder a bit. It got her attention and she turned around to see the dud taking pictures of her. I may not be a hero but I   still  loathe  scumbags like him. She gave him a few well-deserved punches and called the cops. 

I looked away and noticed the tall guy with purple hair staring at me. I tilted my head and gave him a look that said ‘what?’, he just look back down at his phone. I did the same and pulled my earphones out and began listening to music. I closed my eyes and waited for my stop.

It was a few minutes later I heard the train lady’s voice saying my stop. I put my earphones back into my pocket and stood up. I picked my bag up from in between my legs and went to stand where the door was about to open. I was the first out of the door and started walking to the school -it was only a five-minute walk from the station. There were more students than I thought there would be. I heard a group of people talking about how nervous they were. I didn’t particularly feel nervous, there were other schools. Although UA is a one-shot kind of thing. It was the best hero school in the country and the closest to the bar. Plus there were even rumours that some famous pro hero will teach this year. The old man said it would be a great opportunity if I were to go to UA. 

I was making my way to the entrance when someone rushed passed me and knocked me over. I closed my eyes and braced for the impending slam into the ground. I didn’t feel myself hit the concrete so I looked up. Some girl was grabbing my backpack. I picked myself up and took a step back from her when she let go of my bag. She smiled at me. “It’s my quirk. Sorry for using it without asking first. But it’d be bad luck if you fell, right?” 

“Oh, yeah. Thanks.” I said flashing a small smile. We stood there for a few moments in silence. “Well, I’ll see you in there. Good luck.” I said before walking away. I glanced momentarily back at her as I walked off. An anti-gravity quirk, huh? That’s something to remember. I made a mental note to write that in my notebook later. The first thing that was taking place was the written exam. This was the least worrying part of the test. I was very confident academically. All For One made sure of that. Although I was always pretty smart and I always enjoyed the lessons I had to take. Still, since I was the smart one it meant that I was doing everything for missions. 

I sat next to some angry-looking blonde kid. When he saw me looking at him he got really angry and shouted at me. I didn’t really pay him any mind but I hated it when people shout at me. The pro hero at the front was explaining the written test. Present Mic was the instructor so I definitely didn’t have any trouble hearing him. Some smart-looking dud stood up eccentrically asking a question which Present Mic answered. He did a full run-through of the rules of the practical exam we will be taking. We had to destroy some giant robots. It seemed too weird. Although the UA acceptance rate was low doing an exam like this could make them lose many people with quirks that aren’t catered to taking down giant robots. There must be another way to get points.

The test was much easier than I thought so when I finished the test early I started thinking about what they’ll do to fill in the points. They might evaluate people's quirks and take that into account or something. Saving people, maybe? I mean it is a hero school it is not a huge leap. I was thinking until Present Mic called and said the test was over. 

They led us outside to change into activity gear. I just left on the clothes I was already wearing. It was a tracksuit anyways-I’m not really into clothes that stand out, nor do I care if I look nice. 

They split everyone into groups. I didn’t recognise anyone except for the girl I met out front and that gut who spoke weirdly during the introduction. 

I didn’t talk to anyone before the practical. Everyone started sprinting as soon as they heard the buzzer that notified them to begin. I took my time. There were plenty of robots and I could save some people. I didn’t want to use much of my power today but I will use just the right amount to pass. I got enough points in the written exam to make up for a small mess up in this unless it all depends on this. I can’t take that risk.

I started running to find a robot, preferably a small one. If I can get multiple ones with low points I won't stand out too much and get the score needed. I jogged into one street and saw the giant robot worth zero points. Deciding it’s not worth it, I was about to leave when I noticed the girls from earlier about to be hurt. She was laying on the ground. Her leg was trapped by a piece of rubble. Everybody was running away not bordering to help her. This was a perfect opportunity to get some points.

I stopped and looked at the robot. Should I crush it? Or should I push it back? I stretched my arm out and closed my eyes. I mastered quirk but using this much strength will take some focus. I brought my power to my arm. I felt the same rush I always feel. It was like what happened when I was in the orphanage, the strength was the same but this time  I  had control. I shot. I opened my eyes when I heard the destruction. 

Shit.

I used too much strength. There was a massive hole in the chest of the machine. I watched it fall on its back, creating more debris. I looked down to see notice the girl again. I ran up to her and used my quirk to send the rubble that caught her leg flying away. “Are you okay?” I asked. She nodded and tried to speak but her hand went straight up to her mouth.  She looks pale and sickly.  She pushed my hand away and threw up. I back away accordingly and waited until she had cleared her system. I manoeuvred around the vomit. I put her hand around my shoulder and helped her up. I made small talk to her to keep her distracted until the healer and a pro hero came rushing over. The hero took her off my hands. The healer, a small old lady, examined her while they brought her away. Her hand went up in silent ‘thank you’ as she looked back at me. 

I checked the time and realised I only had a few minutes left so I ran around the course, trying to find a few smaller robots, but that task was proving too hard seeing as most of them were already taken down. I managed one or two more points before the test was over.  Will I still be able to pass this?

Chapter Text

My UA letter came in today. I was sitting at the bar and the fancy envelope was on the table in front of me. Shigarari was hovering over me and his hands rested on my shoulders. I swear Shigaraki is more excited about this letter than I am. Kurogiri was behind the counter cleaning whiskey glasses. He remained impassive as he always ways but I could tell he was still anticipating the, as he says, obvious, acceptance letter. “Come on!” Shigaraki begged. He was bouncing on his feet and gripped my shoulder tightly to the point I had to move away from his touch. He noticed this, he took his hands from my body and pulled his gloves up further. He opted to put his hand on the back of the wooden chair. “Hurry up and open it!”

I sighed and slowly picked up the envelope. I hesitated before cracking the red wax on the back and opened the letter. I was surprised to not find an actual letter in the envelope but a small metal disc. We all stared at it for a few seconds before it suddenly flashed. I was startled and dropped it onto the counter. Shigaraki squealed and fell backwards. He picked himself back up quickly, coughing to hide his embarrassment and leaned in closer to the flashing disc.

Something that surprised even Kurogiri was a video of the number one hero, All Might. I wonder what he’s doing in the video. He explained that I had passed which Shigaraki had a snide ‘of course’ to the acceptance. I feel he has developed a small big brother complex over me, which he will probably deny to this day. He was here when I arrived, he was a couple of years older than me at that time but he was still a child. It took a few years for him to even start talking to me, which I learned was because of his quirk. It was something that brought us closer together. Our dangerous powers made us outcasts, so we fit in here quite well.

This video was unique to me, that girl, the one from before that I saved, asked if she could give me her points. I didn’t realise some people were that selfless. Her power is strong and will only get stronger in a school like UA, but she asked to give it all up, just for someone who saved her. I guess this is what people mean by heroes and heroic actions. I’ve never actually witnessed one myself. It was an odd sight, she wouldn’t get anything in return, she would lose more than she gained but she still seemed so set on it. Heroism, an odd thing, isn’t it?

I apparently didn’t actually get enough points to pass the practical exam but I had received something called ‘rescue points’. They were points you could receive for saving others. I knew there was another factor in the test. UA was the best hero school for a reason, they trained the best heroes and had the best to offer. The rescue points I got put me from the bottom of the list to 7th. The video ended and turned off. The red flashing light on the metallic disc flickered slowly until it eventually died down. “Well,” I took a deep breath and used my quirk to send the disc into the bin. “That was...,” I stood up, unwilling to finish my sentence, although I guess Shigaraki understood what I meant, and went in the direction of my room.

Heroes.

I’ve wanted to be one since I was a kid. It had always been an unattainable fantasy, a pipe dream, and still is. It’s something I will and can never be. When I was quirkless, I was laughed at. When I had a quirk, I was feared. A monster, an abandoned, unwanted orphan. I was told I could never be a hero, so I became the opposite, a villain.

I slammed my bedroom -if you can call it that- door and leaned against it. I glanced towards the desk, my eyes settling on the thick black sketchpad, the one I still couldn’t seem to throw out. I have kept all of the hero analysis notepads and still continue to use them and add more, I have built up a large pile over the years, but that one is completely futile to me. It’s the one where I drew all of my old hero costume ideas. They’re all dumb-looking, impractical and not to mention, outdated. They would be useless in this day and age with today’s technology.

I marched to the desk and picked up the thick, black sketchpad. It brought back memories of my childhood. Not just the memory of admiring and wanting to be a hero but also All For One beating that idea out of me. I hate him. I was happy he got me out of that orphanage and taught me how to control my quirk, but, this, is not what I wanted. A villain? I could almost laugh at the term. I was not the villain here. I may hurt people but that’s so the people around me can’t get their hands dirty. Shigaraki loathes me when ‘I don’t let him get some fun’, when in reality, I don’t want him to do that. Hurting people, innocent people.

All For One is the real villain here, and not because he hurts people, kills people or is greedy for power, but because he raised children to do his dirty work for him, and die for him if necessary. His brainwashing has worked on Shigaraki, but not me, and I will never lower my head to him, at least not meaningfully. That’s why I needed to get into UA. To become stronger, make connections, powerful ones, and allies. Someone who can help, help me kill All For One. It’s been in my plans for years, the one I have been plotting for as long as I have been here. It’s something that I will see through, even if it ends with my death. It’s something I need to do, for the sake of others, especially the ones around me.

I force myself to stop thinking, these thoughts were harming me, physically and mentally, it suffocates me to the point I can’t sleep and affects my rational thought. I think about just killing whenever we are in the same room. It would be easy to take him by surprise but it’ll be near impossible to kill him with just a sneak attack. I need to get stronger and that’s what UA is for.

I flip open the sketchpad to a new page and take a seat at the pitiful excuse of a desk. It was an old-school desk I found at the dumpster behind the bar. The chair was just as bad, it was the matching school chair to the desk but it was missing two legs. It’s possible to balance on it when I sit awkwardly with my feet going in two different directions, and if I lean a certain way, leaning forward and just slightly to the right.

I grab a pencil from the tin can that was for peaches but they were long eaten. I began sketching. I already had an idea of what I wanted. It was a variation of the many drawing I made in the past. Black, obviously. A loose, full-length suit that had small, dark green -to match my hair- lines on the arms and legs. The suit went up to my neck but had some extra fabric to pull over my mouth, you know, for identity reasons. I added a pair of dark green, almost black, big boots. I left the tech part to a minimum as I was inexperienced with knowledge of a quirk like mine. I don’t even know what to do with something like mine, who the hell had a quirk like this? It wasn’t like I was controlling the air around me or gravity. It’s like I build up energy and use that to push something away. Or the slight weaker things I can do like pulling, it’s almost just as effective but much easier to pull than push, I have to use actual physical strength to push while I can pull with almost no effort.

I finished labelling the costume sketch, the colours and the uses of each part of the outfit. It was very simple but it was enough for now. I closed my sketchpad and leaned back.

I officially start UA next week. I was excited but I was nervous. I may hate villains but I still have a deep-rooted hatred for heroes. They can’t save the people that need saving. They preach goodness and save people with their flashy and good-doing quirk. This makes society turn people with violent and uncontrollable and ugly quirks into monsters and social outcasts. They may not know the effect they have on the outlook of life now -a cool quirk makes you worthy- but that just honestly makes it worse. They can’t save people like us, because we’re not in physical danger. Just emotionally being attacked by mankind and thrown out.

Something I’ll always hate them for is not being able to save me, and the people like me. The ones prone to being turned into a villain, in some cases a vigilante or an anti-hero. I was taken in by One For All because I was dangerous and weak. And that is something I never want to be again. I want to be able to help the people around me, and the people like me. The people that are used, abused and broken. That is the conclusion to my plan, if I get to live. But I still hope to make that dream come true, even if I can’t realise it.

I went to bed with my head full, suffocating.

The week passed by slowly. I had only trained and studied. It was all I was allowed to do. My UA uniform was delivered and it was, unsurprisingly, the perfect fit. It made me feel like a child, even though I technically was one, I still didn’t like it when Shigaraki laughed at me. Kurogiri gave me some affirmations and told Shigaraki that I was doing the one thing he couldn’t, and then it was my turn to laugh. Shigaraki scowled at him. He left the bar for his room, not seeing me off. Kurogiri waved to me as I left through the bar’s backdoor. It would seem a bit suspicious if a high schooler left a bar at the crack of dawn. School started at 7 in the morning and the commute was pretty far so I had to leave early. Ugh, this is already so much of a hassle.

On the train, I saw the same person I saw on the way to the entrance exam. The purpled-haired guy. We made eye contact, again. He seemed to recognise me or at least thought he did by the way he tilted his head. I noticed his UA uniform and thought, I guess he got in too. I only stared at him blankly until he looked away. On the train, I got many envious looks from people who saw the UA uniform.

My body jerked when the train stopped. I looked up from my phone and realised I was at my stop. I had taken out my earbuds and pocketed my phone before I got off the train. The train station wasn’t far from UA. The walk was just under ten minutes. The tired-looking, purple-haired wasn’t behind nor in front of me. I assumed he went some other way. Although I couldn’t find any shortcuts when I was here last time. I shrugged it off when I reached UA. It looked bigger than last time. Goosebumps went up my arms as I shivered with nerves.

Chapter Text

I was sorted into the Hero Class, 1A. I entered the room and suddenly had everyone’s eyes on me. I appeared to be the last one here. Most people were standing at their desks or sitting on them, they were talking to others, already becoming fast friends. I remembered some of them from the entrance exam. The ones I recognise are strong and stand out. I made a mental note to write down the ones that I needed to watch out for.

That one student from the entrance exam. The stuck-up one. Came up to me. “I apologise!” He shouted and bowed deeply in front of me. I took a step backwards, slightly startled. He kept drawing unnecessary attention to me, the attention I didn’t want nor did I need. He straightened back up and shouted, “I was wrong and judged you without knowing you! I apologise!” He bowed back down but straightened up after only a few seconds.

I needed to get the attention off of me quickly. “It’s fine, really. I know I don’t exactly look like much anyways.” I offered a sheepish grin and patted the side of his arm, attempting to come off friendly. Keep your head down. I ran that thought through my head as I smiled -if you could even call it that. It’s hard to smile with no real emotions behind it. I just hope my practice paid off.

A couple of years ago a villain came into the bar. His past profession just happened to be a psychiatrist. Shigaraki was messing around and jokingly asked him to finally diagnose me as a psychopath -or at least a sociopath. The Doctor decided to get a little bit too nosy and actually test me. To my luck, and to Shigaraki’s dismay, I was told I was in fact not a psychopath or a sociopath. While I was laughing at Shigaraki he told me while I am not either of these things there is still a high chance of having alexithymia. Which is, if you go by standard dictionary definition: the inability to recognise or describe one’s own emotions.

I was able to learn how to recognise others and plaster it onto myself. I still feel emotions, that’s something people tend to get mixed up on often but I struggle showing it or sometimes even recognising what emotion it is that I’m feeling. I believe I developed it when All For One took me in. The pain from training and stress took a huge toll on my mental health. I distinctly remember seeing myself in the mirror but not really seeing myself. I suffered from an identity crisis growing up. I needed therapy. Kurogiri recommended it, says he knew a guy who had done that sort of stuff.

Apparently, villains needing therapy were more common than you think. While it’s still rare, like 1 in 30 rare, it is still more frequent than you might think. I had to hide it from Shigaraki which was easy since he is so clueless, still, it was hard lying to him, plus he is very curious. I still can’t believe I actually needed therapy, I am supposed to be a villain. I am getting way too used to this “calling myself a villain” thing. It shakes me to my core to be even mentioned with the likes of some of them, not including Kurogiri and Shigaraki. Not that I have even built a name for myself, but I am still mentioned when All For One or Shigaraki are mentioned since I do most of the damn work for them. Planning, comms, tracking, analysis, everything. It surprises me how dumb some of the villain and heroes are. Although the underground heroes are the tricky ones. They are the best type of heroes. Ones that don’t need to have a flashy quirk or the fame that comes with one.

It’s what makes them so scary. Scary to me, at least.

I found a seat at the far wall and leaned back into the chair and closed my eyes. As uncomfortable as it is, I needed to relax. My mind has been racing all day and I can’t stop it. I didn’t get much sleep with the nerves about starting a new school. My eyelids flickered open, I glanced around the room. My eyes landed on a few familiar faces from the entrance exam. I studied most of the people that came into this class. The ones I focused on are the students that got recommendations; a creation quirk and a fire and ice quirk. The raven-haired girl looked friendly in contrast to the split coloured hair guy.

Ha. That angry-looking chicken guy is here too. I remember he had a strong quirk. Guess I got to watch out for a good few of these guys. This year's batch is a good one. I noticed I didn’t see the purple-haired guy on the train. He must be in another class. Slightly disappointing if I must say. My thoughts were interrupted by a voice.

“Hello, Izuku!” A familiar face came into view and almost startled me.

“Hi,” I threw on a kind smile and tiled my head in silent question. “Uhh, I’m sorry, I realised I don’t know your name.”

“Ochako Uraraka.” She practically exclaimed. “Thank you for, you know, saving my life.” She put out a hand to shake. I complied and loosely shook her hand.

“It’s fine. You wouldn’t have actually died. There are many safety features and countless heroes and rescue staff to help you when you need so even if I didn’t help you, you wouldn’t have died. You probably wouldn’t even have been injured too badly.” I said, to my own surprise, quite bluntly. Her smile faltered from its seemingly usual cheerful expression. A few heads close enough to hear turned to me and looked stunned. “Just saying,” I added, mumbling. Her lips perked up into another smile but this one didn’t seem to reach her eyes. She took a seat at the back of the classroom without another word.

The door suddenly opened, the conversation stopped and everyone's attention was on the creaking door. “If you’re here to make friends then you can pack up your stuff now.” A voice; seemingly from nowhere. I spotted a yellow sleep bag just outside the door. A head popped out of its end. Front? “Welcome to UA’s Hero course.” The man said, unzipping himself from his sack. “It took eight seconds for you to shut up. That’s too long for a hero. They need to be fast and have quick reflexes.”

Our teacher? I thought. Is he a pro? I’ve never seen him before. If he’s a teacher at UA then he has to be a pro. He looked too worn out to be a pro, though. “I’m your homeroom teacher, Shota Aizawa.” He introduced. So he is our teacher. But, I still couldn’t shake a feeling of recognition I felt in my gut. I have a feeling he’s going to be a tricky one. “Put these on and head outside.” He panned. Straight to it, I guess. He pulled a blue uniform from his sack.

A few minutes later when everyone had gotten changed we were on the field. Uraraka was the first one to say something. “A quirk assessment. What about orientation.” She complained.

“If you’re going to be a pro you don’t need to waste your time on pointless things. UA’s teaching has a very flexible approach. It means that the teacher can do what they want with their class. And I am the teacher here.” His response made Uraraka flinch back just slightly. I mean, I’m not going to start whining about missing something as useless and boring as orientation. He sighed and went on to explain the natural disadvantages in this world caused by quirks and the people with them.

“Bakugo,” That was the angry chihuahua if I was remembering correctly. I sat next to him during the written exam. “You got the highest score on the entrance exam. What was your farthest distance throw with a softball when you were in Junior High?” He asked with his hands pocketed.

Blondie answered. “Sixty-seven metres, I think.” Huh, nice.

“Right, try doing it with your quirk,” Aizawa told him. Oh, it seems that not every hero is dumb. Is he… No. I pushed my thoughts away. UA wouldn’t do that, or at least I don’t think they would.

Bakugo was already in the circle marked down with white tape. He held a softball in his right hand. “Do what you want as long as you stay in the circle,” Aizawa informed him.

“Alright man, you asked for it?” Oh, so he’s cocky. I can honestly say I’m not surprised. With a quirk like his own, he was probably treated like a king since he got it.

He started planting his feet and started swinging his arm. He released the ball with a dramatic show and the softball shot into the air at an alarming rate, surrounded by explosions. “Everyone has to know their maximum capabilities first. It’s the most rational way to figure out your potential as a pro hero.” Aizawa held up a phone-shaped device to us. It showed: 705.2 metres. My eyes went wide with shock, there were mixed reactions within the crowd, most being excitement.

“So this looks fun?” Aizawa question. His voice was stern and laced with what I could guess was fury. “You have three years to become a hero. You think you can have an attitude like that the whole time?” He craned his head downwards and smiled, but even I could tell that it wasn’t a joyful grin. From what I could tell, it was mischief -I’ve seen it on Shigaraki’s face too many times not to recognise it. “ Today you will compete in physical eight tests to gauge potential. Whoever comes in last place will be expelled. Immediately.”

Immediate expulsion? That doesn’t sound like a very hero-y thing to do. I looked around me and noticed there wasn’t much fear in the students, just determination. Looks fun.

Chapter Text

Only two of the tests allowed me to use my power except for the long jump and the grip strength test but it was hard to use force on something I was already holding. It’s like my mind knew I was using-physical-force and therefore it was harder to apply a sort of mental force to it. The sheer amount of concentration I had to use tired me out and it felt like my veins were on fire. I felt myself growing hotter every time I used my quirk. 

Weird. I thought. I’ve never had this feeling before. My arteries burned like I was using my quirk but I wasn’t. 

The next test was the softball throw. Uraraka went first. With her antigravity quirk, she had an extreme advantage. With just a touch of the ball, she was easily able to get first place in the softball throw. The screen showed infinity. 

The pain in my arm was getting worse. I couldn’t even fully clench my hand into a fist now. I hardened my face so I wouldn’t show I was in pain. I put my hands behind my back and held my right wrist in my left hand. Unfortunately, I was next. I swallowed the pain in my aching arm and I took a few steps forward until I was in the circle. I picked up the small, white ball that rolled in front of me. My fingers and forearm screamed in agony as I clenched the sphere. 

I tried my best to ignore it and got ready to throw the ball. As I pushed energy towards my arm but it disappeared just as fast as it came. It felt as though my arm was getting torn off. “Ah!” A short, but loud gasp escaped me as the ball rolled out from my hand. I tucked my right arm into my chest and scrunched over into a crouch. I shut my eyes tightly and forced another groan of pain that was waiting to come out. The pain seemed to momentarily block out my hearing as I didn’t notice Uraraka and a few other students crowded around me, from their concerned faces I guess they were asking me if I was okay. 

“Two metres.” I swung my head to Mr Aizawa. His eyes were glowing red. The tape that previously hung loosely around his next was now fraying around his torso while he held the end of it. His hair flowed in the air as though the wind had carried it with a breeze, the only absence was the gust of wind. Yellow goggles rested around his neck, hanging down his chest.

Eraserhead?! Was the first name to pop into my head. A quirk which can erase other people's quirks when he can look at them. One of the most terrifying quirks and is definitely the scariest underground hero in my opinion. Getting overpowered in a fight is one thing that everyone hates and is afraid of it, but to get your power getting taken away from you, rendering you powerless, in my book, that’s the most fearful one.

I straightened my thoughts and hobbled to my feet, a few students had their hands ready to catch me if I suddenly toppled back over. I dragged my feet towards the teacher.

“Give me another chance, Eraserhead.” Whispers among peers sparked up at the name. Eraserhead was infamous in name only. He was the most known underground hero but most people don’t even know what he looks like. That is a true hero in my point of view. You know, if I cared for them. Eraserhead is a hero I never want to cross in my lifetime. But, this makes my plan that much easier. 

“Why should I?” His voice was questioning mixed with…amusement, I think. “Why should you get another chance?” He said again. My mouth opened to respond but he spoke up again. “Tell me why I shouldn’t just expel you now? Do you want to be a hero? You abuse your body until it’s damaged and broken. You ignore your suffering until it destroys you. Overusing your quirk until you can’t even throw a ball. A hero like that will just get themselves killed the moment they get on the front lines. Taking care of yourself is important for taking care of others. If you can’t succeed at a simple task like that then you will fail very, very fast, and I will personally take care of that if I have to.” He finished with a fast intake of breath. He finally cancelled his quirk and closed his eyes for a moment. He didn’t raise his voice once in that sentence but his tone made it seem like it, as if didn’t even need to be said loudly, just clear and dominating. “But fine, if you want a second chance, take it. Just know, if you fail you will be expelled this second.”

He retreated a couple of steps. I stood still, eyes wide, for a minute before putting myself back together. If only he knew the irony of saying something like that to me. A person that fought for everything, that had to suffer to prove himself. Not even just to his mentor but to his own brother. 

I forced my aching body over to where the ball landed, two metres from the line. I went down to pick it up with my right hand but swapped it for my left at the last second, scooping it up from the ground. While my other arm was in pain, as well, it wasn’t nearly as bad as the right one. When I was back in the circle I readied myself again, left leg in front this time. I concentrated the energy into my fingertips, much less than I usually would. I released the ball using my fingers as the driving point. The same boring pain run up my left arm and through my fingers but it was manageable 

I heard the beep of the measuring device and turned to check my score. 705.3. It could’ve been much better but with what I was dealing with now it was alright. 

Eraserhead looked at me with the same indifference as ever but motioned towards the school with his head, “Go to recovery girl, get healed, go home and rest. I don’t want to see you again today. 

I skipped out on recovery girl, much preferring seeing my doctor instead. I got off the train one stop ahead of where I usually get off. I met a doctor a year ago with a healing quirk that is…quite useful I must say. I held my right arm the entire way to her apartment. The pain in my body eased down but my right arm was relentless. Refusing to give me a break. An old man gave me a pitying look on the train which I returned with a blank stare that made him look away quickly. 

It was half an hour before I reached the apartment. I kicked her door aggressively until she answered the door, which was near five minutes. “What?” She shouted. Her bedhead was comical as she pushed it down in futile efforts as it seemed knotted. She rubbed her eyes and yawned. “Oh, Izuku? What are you doing here?” 

I didn’t answer her as I brushed past her into the furnished apartment. I sat on the couch and waited for her to follow me. She had a cigarette lighted and sitting between her lips as shiest across from me on the edge of the coffee table. “Let me see it.” She stated, already knowing what I came here for. It’s always the same thing; healing I can’t do myself. 

I stretched my arm out so she could examine it. She held my wrist, not letting go even when I flinched and groaned. She squinted her eyes as she studied my arm. 

Hana Sakai, my personal doctor and luckily also a trained one. She is registered as quirkless officially but her quirk is a really handy one. A healing quirk with no side effects that works instantly and perfectly no matter the injury. Just not on illnesses. She hides it as it will be manipulated easily and would kill her in the end. 

She also works on the down low and has a very small clientele. Me being one of them. She has a high price but I get it for free. She wasn’t able to cover her tracks well enough so I used that to blackmail her when I found her. Be my personal doctor or I rat you out to the police. It was an offer she couldn’t refuse, and she was getting something in return. I offer security and cover her tracks, do the financials, the background sort of stuff. 

“Hold on,” she put her half-burned cigarette into the ashtray on the coffee table and went into another room. She came back out with a couple of items in her hands. Including a needle, a pen and a ball. 

She placed herself in front of me again and put the items beside her on the table’s surface. “Close your eyes.” She said and I complied without any protest. I knew her enough to trust her in her skills. “Tell me if this is sharp or dull.” I nodded and waited for the feeling.

I was unsure but it didn’t feel like a needle so I said: “Dull,” The light press I felt disappeared. I waited a couple of seconds but I didn’t feel anything. “Em,” I started.

“Okay,” I heard a clatter on the table. “Open your eyes.” I did so and saw a grim expression. “Em, next I’ll ask a couple of questions.” She bounced her knee. I could hear the rattle of the table under her, caused by her bouncing and an uneven leg of the table. “Does your hand feel tense or tight?”

“Uh, yeah, kind o-“

“Are your muscles weak?” I nodded, not wanting to get interrupted again. Her knee quickened and her eyes floated around the apartment, looking everywhere but me. “Do you feel a buzzing or tingling sensation in your arm?” 

She hit the nail on the head. “Do you know what’s wrong with me?” I asked. She took my sentence as confirmation and abruptly stood up and walked towards a long window across the apartment. Her eyes were closed and her fist was up at her mouth. 

She was silent for a bit until she spoke, “How old are you again?” It sounded like she was going to be sick. “Did your quirk do this to you?” She asked another question before I respond to the first one. 

“I’m 14. And yes, it did, How did you know that?” My voice rose and I straightened. 

“Damn it!” She cursed. Her hand went from her mouth and covered her eyes. “I think it’s um,” she didn’t finish her sentence. 

“Spit it out, Hana!” What the hell is so bad about my arm that she can’t even say it?

“It's nerve damage, Izuku.” I felt my heart drop. “Early stages but it is serious.” She went on but I don’t think I wanted to hear anymore. “From the looks of it, if it was caused by your quirk, if you use your quirk much more you could lose feeling in it.”

“But you can fix it, right?” I could hear the strain in my voice. It was a sad scratch more than words. I could feel tears prickling in my eyes, threatening to fall. 

“I don’t know if I can.” Her words were breaking as if she was crying. “I will try my absolute hardest to heal you. If my quirk doesn’t work I will find every treatment possible to help you. Okay?" I wanted to speak but I couldn’t make a sound. I felt trapped in my own body. “Do you hear me, Izuku? I will everything in my power to help you.” Her voice had meaning behind it and I knew I could trust it. I nodded. I dropped my head, looking at the floor. I didn’t want her to see me cry. I let all the tears I held fall, they didn’t stop for ten minutes. I knew she heard my sobs but she didn’t say anything. I was silently thankful for it. 

When I was done she walked into the same room she gathered the items. “I’ll get the bag.” 

Chapter Text

Hana came out of the room a few minutes later with an I.V stand with an I.V drip and a blood bag attached to it that had an O negative label on it. This was Hana’s quirk. Blood transfusion. If she transfused her blood with someone else’s they would be healed. As soon as the healer’s blood is fully transfused into the patient's body you are completely healed. No side effects, no setbacks. 

That’s where the small clientele comes from. If she had too many customers she will lose too much blood. And this is also the reason she remains ‘officially’ quirkless. She would be exploited and end up dying. 

“Remember, I’ve never had a case like this so I don’t know if this will work.” She put the stand next to the couch. I scooted over, almost sitting on the armchair. She attached the cannula to my lower forearm with a painless prick. She favoured the right over the left, hoping for a quicker effect. She connected the tube to the cannula and rolled the roller clamp. 

I saw the I.V and blood slowly drip and flow through the tube, running down into my arm. I felt the humming in my head die down as the pain dulled ever so slightly. “It’s working,” I said with a grin on my face. I could feel the effects but it was slower than usual. “I think,” I added, not drawing out any false hope. Hana still didn’t smile, or even show any resemblance of hope or expectation. She was biting her nails. She chewed the nail down too short and I could see her draw blood. Thanks to her short height I was able to reach up from where I was sitting and grab her hand. I took it away from her mouth and held it, I squeezed it reassuringly. 

Hana’s body sagged as she placed herself down on the couch beside me. Her hand relaxed in mine.

It was a couple of hours before the blood bag and I.V drip were empty. Hana was still wide awake next to me despite the fact she was working the night shift tonight. I tried to get her to sleep but she refused, and she probably wouldn’t be able to sleep anyways. I don’t think her knee stopped bouncing the entire time. 

She took up and checked the two bags were empty before unhooking the two from the I.V stand and throwing them in the bin near the door. Hana gently took the cannula from my arm and threw it in the bin along with the bags. She didn’t say anything until she came out of the room where she put away the I.V stand. 

“Izuku, I need you to listen to me.” She pointed a finger at me. “This was a long time coming. Especially with you overusing your extremely dangerous and powerful quirk, you got that?” I reluctantly nodded, with my eyes on the wooden floor. “It doesn’t matter if you didn’t feel it, but nerve damage is not a spontaneous thing. It also doesn’t matter if you don’t feel it in the future, because it is there and always will be.” My eyes widened at her words, but I already knew what she meant, it was no real surprise to me. “You will either never use your quirk again or learn to completely control it, keep a lid on it, you know?” The thing is I already could control it. Was it the strength she meant? It will take me a while to understand what she meant, but I will spend all long as it takes to figure it out and be able to safely use it again. “ I strongly recommend the former but I know you won’t do that. So, you will come here or to the hospital every day for a checkup, I don’t care if you are busy. If I find you are abusing your quirk or body I will drop you as one of my clients so fast it will give you whiplash.” I snorted at the terrible metaphor which I received a glare in return. “I turn myself in if you even think about blackmailing me with that, okay?”

“Yes, ma’am.” I saluted. She smiled at me, really smiled, the first one I saw today. The older women’s smile made me feel warm inside. She is like my big sister. She took an A4 piece of paper from the coffee table behind her. She started writing with a pen she found discarded on the floor. I wasn’t able to see what she was writing but she turned around before I was even able to glance over her shoulder. 

She said, “What’s your teacher’s name?”

I was tempted to lie but decided it was no good, not to my doctor. I answered, “Aizawa Shouta.”

“From?” She asked as she wrote his name.

“UA,” I said, nonchalantly. 

Her head whipped around and her brown eyes met my green ones, hers wide. “Did you just say UA?” I nodded slowly. “Okay,” her voice went high-pitched. “Okay, that’s normal. That’s fine.” She went back to writing but I could see her hand shaking. “Give this to him straight away tomorrow, okay?” 

“Yes,” She handed me the folded-up piece of paper. She didn’t let me read it until I was out of the apartment. She told me to get lots of rest and to take of myself. 

I opened the paper as soon as I was in the hall. I read it as I walked. It was a doctor’s note. 

Dear Aizawa Shouta of UA High School.

Izuku will not be participating in any activities or events that require the overuse of his quirk or extremely strenuous exercise.

For further information, call XXX XXX XXXX
Or refer to Shizuoka Hospital, Office 16.

Regards his doctor,

Hana Sakai



I was debating whether or not I should give this to Aizawa but I decided it was best if I did as he will probably kick me out if I just refuse to do stuff. I groaned dreading the next day. 

It turns out Mr Aizawa's expulsion test was just a ruse to get everyone riled up. I had a feeling about that. I also gave him my doctor's note which he read quickly and gave it back to me. He didn't let any expression show the emotion he felt. I had trouble reading him, but I'll figure it out soon. 

UA’s Hero course curriculum. There are normal core classes like English. Then eat in the mornings. Present Mic taught English and unfortunately probably the most boring class there is. It was also easy, elementary level. I taught myself English when I was homeschooled. It’s nowhere near perfect but I can pass the subject with ease. 

Present Mic was too loud for the morning. I already have a headache. 

It was time for lunch now. It was in the main cafeteria. The food was the best meal I ever had in my entire life. Kurogiri can cook but it’s nothing special. And Shigaraki somehow manages to burn everything he makes, one time he charred soup. All he had to do was put it in the microwave. For some reason, he thought in needed ten minutes in there and the microwave sort of exploded. 

For the first class this afternoon it was finally time for hero basic training. 

I was able to keep my exterior calm but inside my mind was whirring, spiralling. When All Might came into the classroom my eyes widened. There were gasps and comments of excitement all around the classroom. He immediately introduced the basic hero training concept. He probably felt he didn’t need a self-introduction. I mean, he doesn’t really; everybody knows him. 

“Let’s get into it! Today’s lesson will pull no punches!” He pulled out a card that said battle. 

“Real combat?” I said out loud but it was meant for myself. Battle training already? I thought it was moving very fast but I preferred it this way. 

Bakugo spoke from the seat in front of me. “Fight training!” He made a winning motion with his hands.

“But one of the keys to being a real hero is…looking good!” He dramatically pointed to the wall where four panels came out. Each panel had five silver cases with green numbers on them. “These were designed for you based on your quirk registration forms at the request you sent in before school started!” The class cheered out in glee. Costumes were some people’s favourite part of UA and becoming a hero. 

I almost forgot about the form I filled out for it. It was made quicker than I thought it would. “Get yourselves suited up and meet me at Ground Beta!” All Might said finally, letting us all change.

Chapter Text

It was a while before everyone was ready in their gear and headed to Ground Beta. It was different to what I imagined. Although I hadn’t been able to picture anything. I know I hadn’t thought of an actual city. Or what looks to be a city. It’s obviously much smaller, has no residents nor any type of furnishing, just the buildings and roads.

It’s smart. I thought. It will get us used to the city environment so when we’re most likely working in one we’ll know how to get around it and cause minimal damage if possible.

“Style is an important starting point, young ladies and gentlemen.” All Might stated. His fists were pressed against his hips-as they usually are-he’s very dramatic in everything he does. The entire class had changed into their gear, they were all decked out with additions to their suit that’ll help enhance their quirk.

Take Bakugo as an example: He has grenade-shaped gauntlets around his wrists. Their purpose is to collect the nitroglycerin-like substance he sweats in order to create bigger explosions when he has built up enough of the substance. It’s also how his power works, his body produces the substance to create explosions.

It’s slightly unfair how these guys get amazing, powerful quirks. They were probably raised like heroes from the day they had their quirk examination. How do they get that treatment their entire life and no sort of setback, like mine? I just had to get nerve damage of all things, didn’t I? A disadvantage that if it becomes permanent I will have to do physical therapy for the rest of my life.

I don’t even have a family. Shigaraki and Kurogiri don’t count in this scenario. All For One is a laughable excuse for a guardian. A guardian in name only and a fake name at that.

My suit was less flashy and honestly quite boring compared to the rest of them. Some of them were casual like Denki’s and Jirou’s but some stood out like a sore thumb, some like, well, Bakugo’s and Iida’s. Tenya’s looked familiar to me. It took a while for me to piece it together and I realised it reminded me of the pro-hero Ingenium. I think read somewhere that Iida was in a family of heroes. I might be remembering wrong or mixing him up with someone else but his quirk is too similar to Ingenium’s to call him a big fan or coincidence.

I had to settle for making my costume myself due to my lack of identity. I was still working on my registration form and my birth certificate. I had to find the perfect time to slip the birth certificate into the database. It needed to be done when no one noticed it coming through. Maybe when a big villain causes a ruckus and there’s an evacuation. I also had to update my quirk registration. I hadn’t had the time over the years due to being stuck inside and you need to update it in person. I am registered as having a quirk but there’s no information on it. If someone from this school takes a good look at my record it will seem like I’m hiding something.

My hero costume was a black body suit that had red details going down the side of the suit. It was short-sleeved but armbands are covering the majority of the arm, they are connected to fingerless gloves. A dark green utility belt wrapped around my hip with two compartments. My footwear is a pair of long black boots that went up mid-thigh with a red sole. For identity reasons, I had a mask that covered half of my face. It was a metal cover with a sort of animal-type jaw. It rested around my neck until I pulled it up.

“Now it’s time for combat training.” All Might snapped me out of my thoughts.

“Sir,” Iida interrupted as he put his hand up. “This is the battle centre from our entrance exam,” Oh, this is the place. I didn’t remember what it looked like from then. I hadn’t even thought of putting the two together in my head. “So are we doing urban battles again?”

“No,” All Might answered, holding up two fingers. “We’re going to move two steps ahead. Most of the time, fighting villains takes place outside, but statistically speaking the really bad villains appear more frequently indoors. Imprisonment, house arrest, backroom deals…In this society filled with heroes, truly intelligent villains hide in the shadows!” Don’t give them too much credit, they only prefer it. It’s easier to move around in the dark. It’s true only the dumb villains appear outside in broad daylight in a society where heroes are normal but the ones that learn even a small bit know that backroom deals and nighttime activity is the smartest option. But it doesn’t make them smart, and definitely not the most intelligent. “For this class, you’ll be split into villains and heroes and fight 2-on-2 indoor battles.”

“Isn’t this a little advanced?” Asui questioned with a tilt of her head.

“This is a real battle to understand the basics! However, the key this time is that there’s no robot you can just beat up.” He explained.

A few questions about the battle came up like how to win, beating people up, expulsion as a punishment, how we will be split up…and how awesome Aoyama’s cape is?

All Might went over the rules of the game. The heroes have to either catch the villains or recover the villain’s nuclear weapons. As simple as it is All Might had to exaggerate it with fancy words, hand movements and, of course, he had a script.

All Might carried a ballot box for the selection. “We’ll choose teams by drawing lots.”

“Isn’t there are better way?” Iida asked.

I answered him before All Might could. “Think about it, Pros often half to create makeshift teams with heroes from other agencies on the spot, so maybe that’s why?”

“I see, life is random series of events,” He muttered. He commended me for my quick thinking and said to All Might: “Please excuse my rudeness.” He bowed. All might brushed it off.

Uraraka and I were on Team A. The first pick was team A and D. Uraraka and me against Bakugo and Iida. We are the heroes while Bakugo and Iida are the villains. Of course, I was up against the kid with anger issues. At least I had Uraraka on my team.

I found Bakugo glaring at me. It took me off guard, I raised an eyebrow at him. I glowered back at him through hooded eyes, it surprised him and despite my intentions just to defend myself it only angered him more. Does he not like me for some reason? I couldn’t remember anything I did to him, I don’t think I’ve even spoken to him.

The villains were let into the building first to set up. We had to wait outside until five minutes were up and then we would be allowed in and the battle would finally commence. All Might gave advice to Bakugo and Iida: “The key to being successful in this challenge is to embody villainy. Go all out. Don’t be afraid to get hurt. If things go too far, I’ll step in.” I barely overheard the conversation. I don’t think All Might should be worried about them getting hurt. I gave him my doctor’s note so it’s a bit weird to put two people; one with limited access to their quirk and someone whose quirk isn’t fit for close combat in with someone like Bakugo. I know hand-to-hand combat so I’ll be fine at close combat, but Bakugo can do both close and far combat with his quirk and I don’t know how good his physical skills are.

All Might's teaching is questionable. I don’t know if it’s a lesson or a lack of skills.

“It’s a lot of work to memorise the building’s floor plan,” Uraraka said. I listened as I tried to make the layout of the building stay in my head. “But All Might is just the same as when he’s on TV. Unlike Mr Aizawa, it looks like there is no punishment, so we can relax-you’re not relaxed at all.”

“Huh?”

“You look like a student studying for final exams.”

“Sorry, I’m thinking too hard. I’m wondering why All Might let Bakugo and I go up against each other. I mean I don’t expect any favouritism but it’s a little unfair,” I turned to Uraraka and noticed she seemed confused. I further explained, “You know, I get injured when I overuse my quirk so I had to get a doctor’s note and give it to all of my teachers. I also had it registered in the school's system so they're aware of it. I’m only allowed to use a small portion of my power and scarcely until I learn to use my power without hurting myself.” I shared.

Uraraka had a pitying look. “I didn’t realise it was so serious. They shouldn’t have put you up against someone so powerful. It’s not favouritism at all if you went against someone less strong. It’s more unfair that he did do this and he’s aware of this too. If we end up losing then the teacher, the one who is supposed to be mentoring and encouraging us, will have set us up for failure. Also, if we do lose don’t think I’ll blame it on you, I know it must be hard to have a quirk that your body can’t handle.” Uraraka offered a warm smile with her words.

Before I knew it I heard All might’s voice threw the megaphone, he told us to begin.

Chapter Text

Uraraka and I climbed into the building through a window, making sure to be as quiet as we could with our landing and also speaking. “Successfully infiltrated.”

“A lot of blind spots, Be careful,” I warned. Although I memorised the building's layout it was hard to keep remembering where I was and how to figure out where I was supposed to go. We stopped at the corner and peeked warily around it, the coast was clear so I went ahead, with Uraraka following me.

I’ve got to use my head. I can’t use my quirk, at least not to the extent I might need against Bakugo and Iida. So we will have to rely on Uraraka’s Zero Gravity and whatever combat I need. Indoor battles and battle in tight spaces is something I focused on when studying so I should be fine as far as a normal school battle test will go. If this stays at the same level as one, I should probably expect something to go wrong with Bakugo and his overzealous personality.

I was stuck in my head when Bakugo appeared in my peripheral. He flew around the corner, ready to attack. He had an explosion ready to hit us, but my reaction to jump to the side, bringing Uraraka with me, was too quick for Bakugo to hit us. “You okay?” I asked Uraraka as I got off of her.

“I’m fine, thanks.” She sat up. “Izuku?” She pointed up to my cheek. I brushed my hand against the left side of my face. A steak of blood was smeared on my hand.

“It’s just a scratch.”

The smoke cleared around us and now Bakugo was in sight. “Come on, Midoriya, don’t dodge.”

“I knew you’d come for me first,” I said as I rose to my feet. “Figured you would try to catch me by surprise.” It was what I expected him to do. He either sees me as the biggest threat between the two of us or the weakest link. He might think that my quirk can possibly rival his at some point, it might be easiest to get rid of me first. Or, he might be starting with the weakest, if he was putting every factor on the table, and remembered that I get injured when I use my quirk then he could think he’s getting rid of the weakest first.

Bakugo started sprinting towards me, his hand raised, ready to fire. “I’ll beat you up just enough that they don’t stop the fight.” I was used to quick thinking so when I managed to read his very obvious body language I was able to grab his right arm before he could swing in with a right hook. Bakugo stopped just enough that I could tell he was caught off guard. Even stopping for one second could lose you the match.

I swung my leg around, bending my knees and planting my body. With a shit-tonne of body strength, I was able to throw him over my shoulder and slam him into the ground with a loud crash. The blow winded him so it took a moment for him to rise.

“Your body language is obvious, did you know that?” He turned to face me and seemed confused. “I’m guessing starting with a right hook is a habit you have. You always started with that in a fight. You probably never lost so you assumed it was an iron-clad move. A knock-out.” His face twitched at the accusation. “I wrote analysis’ for hundreds of heroes in a notebook. I wanted to learn everything I could about heroes.” He was scowling now. I could see him visibly anger at my words. “Compared to them, you’re as easy to read as a child,” I smirked. “I may have weaknesses you thought you could bring out but I have more strengths than you could imagine. I’m not helpless just because I can’t control my quirk.” I spit out the last few, I was fired up.

“Just shut up and defend the weapon!” I was confused until I noticed his hand pressed to his ear. He must be talking to Iida. “I have more important things to worry about.” His hand retreated from his ear. It was only a few seconds until he was attacking again.

I was able to warn Uraraka before Bakugo reached me, “Uraraka, go!” At least both of us won’t be stuck here. Bakugo pounced at me with a kick, I blocked it with my arms to soften much of the blow, but it stung my forearms like crazy.

“Looking away? You must be sure of yourself.” Bakugo was focusing on the wrong things so in a short second I was able to wrap a small strand of the capture tape around his leg. In the time Bakugo was going for the kick I remembered Eraserhead’s capture tape in action. From what I learned about Bakugo so far is that he lets his anger get the better of him and gets impatient. So he’ll probably for another strike, a punch is more like since he’s in the air, a right hook to be more exact. I pushed myself back and dodged his attack.

Thank God, I was right. That would have been a dangerous blow if he caught me since I was right next to the wall. He kicked first this time to keep me from predicting his movements. He’s a fast learner. He got into a ready position again and I did the only thing I could think of right now. Run. “Come back here, Midoriya!”

I got him off my tail. The layout of the building was worthless now, I didn’t even know what direction I was facing. “Where’s that flashy quirk now?” I heard a rough shout that could only belong to Bakugo. I guess he realised I was holding back now. A bit slower than I thought he was. I found myself resting at a corner marked 2F. The numbers and letters weren’t written on the layout so they were pointless but I’ll know if I’m running in circles if that even means anything.

He’s completely forgotten about Uraraka now so that’s good. Uraraka isn’t the best but I have a feeling she’ll be able to take on Iida, depending on the circumstances. Iida would have been the better choice for sending out to stop us with his mobility and I’m sure Bakugo know this so he probably made this decision on his own. They aren’t working as a team like they’re supposed to. If we were to take them head-to-head together our chances would be low. The best option for us is to take them both on separately for now.

Stay away from his hands. I reminded myself. “Stop hiding you coward, come out and face me!”

Chapter Text

I was still hiding when Uraraka contacted me. “Um, Izuku?”

“I’m here,” I responded immediately. “How’s it going?”

“Iida knows that I’m here. Sorry!” She apologised. “Right now he’s monologuing,” I asked where she was. “The middle of the fifth floor.

“Okay, you’re right above me.” I looked at the ceiling. “We probably don’t have much time now. We have to finish this fast or they win.” I hung up on her. I clutched the tape in my hand and resolved my feelings. I have trained for years and I can’t beat a guy like this? I am embarrassing myself. Just because I have a slight set back like not being able to use my quirk I can’t win. I was trained in combat since I was five. I’ve had multiple teachers in many different types of martial arts and hand-to-hand combat, including All For One and I, can’t beat this small fry.

I heard a ringing and I swung my head around. Bakugo was behind me? How did I not hear that? He held his arm up and said, “They’re all loaded up.”

“What do you mean?”

He ignored me and asked a question of his own. “Why aren’t you using your fancy quirk?” His eyes widened and his pupils dilated. I can’t tell if he’s taking his role too seriously as the villain or if he’s just plain crazy. “Don’t tell me you’re underestimating me, Midoriya? Get over here and show me what you’re made off of.”

I know he’s just riling me up but I don’t have a choice. If I run he’ll just follow me, and we’re running out of time. “Since you’re such a stalker I’m sure you know how my quirk works. I produce nitroglycerin-like sweat from my hands and make it blow up. Imagine what I can do if I had a lot of it.” I guess he’s using the grenade feature on his suit. I got to say, good design choice. He pulled up a tab on the grenade and then slid the silver rod. “These gauntlets have been storing my sweat for a monster blast.” I could see the explosion through the barrel of the gauntlet. How am I going to dodge this? If this is as big as I think it will I’m dead, figuratively, I hope. I racked my brain for ways to dodge this but came up short of any idea except for one, one dumb way. “He’ll be fine as long as he dodges!” He shouted, but I don’t know who to.

He pulled back the tab completely. The explosion spread through the entire width of the hall. I could feel the heat growing closer and closer to me by the second. It won’t be long until it reaches me. I thought.

Shit. “Ah!” I screamed as it hit me. It blasted the windows and destroyed the walls. The building shook as it carried through it. I coughed as I sat up. The explosion hadn’t burned me but the arm of my costume was sheered off. “Is this even allowed?” I said.

I heard laughing then I saw Bakugo walking out from the black smoke. “These are awesome. The more I have stored in these gauntlets, the stronger the blast.” I saw the left grenade flash on. A second one?! “Come on, use your stupid quirk, Midoriya.” He walked up to me and coached over. “I’ll force you to surrender even if you’re at full strength. “What’s the matter, you look scared?” He laughed. “I didn’t hit you, so you can still move, can’t you? Come and get me!”

I can’t do anything since he can use his quirk long-range and short-range. What do I do? I held my hand to my ear. “What’s the situation?” I asked Uraraka.

“Are you ignoring me again?” Bakugo sneered. “I’ll get your attention.”

Uraraka explained the situation to me. “Go to the pillar by the window!”

“Fine, then!” Bakugo screamed. He seemed frustrated. What happened to him when I was talking to Uraraka? “Let’s fight it out with our fists!” He charged towards me. I got myself ready, planting my feet. I won’t be able to dodge this one. I’ll have to counterattack. I reached my fist out to attack him but he must have expected it since he swung around me and set an explosion onto my back. I groaned. He used a smoke screen to distract me then changed his trajectory and went around to my back. He’s smarter than I thought.

“Here it comes! The right hook you were winning about earlier!” He swung his right hand around his body, gathering power and smashed it into my elbow. He didn’t stop there. Bakugo grabbed my arm and threw me over his shoulder. Did he copy my move? My back smashed into the ground, it felt broken. My vision blurred. He isn’t going to give me a break. I won’t be able to beat him with a quirk.

I worked for years, building strength, speed and power. I barely relied on my quirk but I can’t even beat someone with a strong quirk when I’m missing mine. It’s not fair. He gets a strong quirk and becomes a bully, always coming out on top. He’s the one that will become a hero, despite the terrible attitude and borderline deadly actions he pulls during training.

Screw it.

I started running away. I stopped at the window. “Why won’t you use your quirk against me? Still think you can stop me without it?” He spits out as he strutted towards me. He was trying to get at me. And it was working. I’m still so weak after all these years. “Do you think you’re better than me?”

“No!” We pounced at each other. We met at the centre of the building, fists ready. I did the one thing I shouldn’t be doing at the moment. Using my power. I drew energy into my arm, not all of it and not at full strength, but enough. There was a tingling sensation but it was nowhere near as before. Bakugo’s hand sparked. I heard All Might speak before I shouted over him. “Uraraka, now!”

“Okay!”

Just as Bakugo’s and my fist were about to clash I changed the direction of my fist upwards. The force smashed through the ceiling and the rest of the floors in the building. The windows were destroyed. Waves of pure force continued through the hole I put in the building and carried on into the sky. The sound was deafening but it was tuned out by the pain in my arm. It was manageable all of my attention was on it.

I just hoped Uraraka was going along with the plan.

“This was your plan from the very beginning wasn’t it?” Bakugo drew my thoughts from my arm to him. He stared up at the gaping hole through the layers of the building. “You were playing me this entire time, you bastard.”

“I wasn’t going to use it,” I mumbled. Bakugo was making me crazy even after everything is over. “Don’t you get it, Bakugo? This was a last resort. I had to turn to this because you gave me no choice!” I screamed out. Bakugo was clenching his jaw and fists. “You don’t get to be the angry one here, okay? I am destroying my body!” He flinched at my tone. “You could’ve killed me with any of those moves!” Bakugo started but I knew what he was going to say. You dodged them. “And don’t even think of saying I dodged them. This is about if and what. You didn’t know if I could actually dodge them. I didn’t know shit about how powerful your blasts were until I saw them up close. So don’t even think about playing the victim here when everyone knows you’re not.” I took a second to take a breather before I continued. Bakugo’s angry expression dropped and was replaced with shock. “You were the stronger one in today’s battle, you were almost always a step ahead, a higher level. But now that you lost you feel tricked? Explain to me how? How I tricked you and how you’re the victim because I’d love a reason for it?”

I couldn’t even feel the pain in my arm anymore as I panted. Bakugo was left shellshocked and speechless. “That’s what I thought.” That is the last thing I said before my vision blurred and I fell to the ground. My conscience faded in and out before I blacked out.

Chapter Text

The rest of the versus battles continued while I was recovering. I was pissed that I wasn’t able to witness the rest of the students’ quirks but I was able to get the recordings of the matches. Which, I feel, was even better. It was simple to get the copies off of All Might when I told him my interest in analysing. He was more than happy to hand them over when I showed him an old analysis of a retired hero. All Might told me not to tell anyone else that I was analysing them. Said people don’t like it when you know too much about them, especially their quirk. 

I was back at the bar, re-watching all of the battles while I took down notes on my classmates in my room. I was able to grasp most of their abilities but not to the fullest since it was only a small-scale fight. What pissed me off more was that they also didn’t show many signs of weakness. Small things like gaps they left open from lack of experience were the only things I was able to note down.

My doorknob rattled. Someone tried to open it and thought it wasn’t locked. It turned and shook a few more times before it stilled. “Izuku,” Shigaraki’s voice. “Open the door.” 


I sighed before pushing myself from the desk. The chair rolled back as I got up and went for the door. I pulled it open a crack and peeked through the gap. “What do you want? I have homework.” I seethed. I never thought I would be using that excuse in this life. I’m getting too used to this. Anyways, I’m too busy for his antics. What does he want now? To break into an illegal gambling site and mess with the numbers. Although, that was fun. But not worth the trouble we got into by almost revealing my IP address. Didn’t think gamblers had such good resources.  


He stared at me through hooded eyes and let out a heavy breath. “Sensei doesn’t like it when you lock the door,” I saw a motion and realised he was taking his glove off. He pressed a hand to the door. I jumped back from the disintegrating wood and landed on my ass. I caught the moment the ash fell to the ground and Shigaraki’s unamused expression.

“What the hell, Shigaraki?!” I roared. I pushed off the floor then pounced at him and grabbed his collar. “What are you doing?!” I noticed movement in the corner of my eye. He’s putting it back on. I noted. I knew he wouldn’t hurt me but that knowledge didn’t make his quirk any less terrifying. 

He grabbed my wrists, tight, and yanked them off the hem of his shirt. “You’ve been getting on my nerves these past few days, not to mention Sensei! He’s not even here but he can tell there’s something wrong with you!” He burst out, waving his hand dramatically. His brows were furrowed, forming new wrinkles. His lips were pressed together while he waited on my answer. 


My mouth opened and closed a few times before I completely shut it. I can’t tell them. What will happen if I’m useless? Will I be thrown out? Questions flocked through my head, suffocating me.

“Fine,” He said, void of emotion. “We’ll have to do it the hard way then. Just know I gave you a chance, And,” He paused. He looked at the ground and bit his bottom lip. He said, almost a whisper, “I’m sorry.”

What? I was confused before he punched me. I held my ground but I wasn’t able to get out of the grip he now had on my hair. He dragged me out of the room and down the hall. I struggled, a lot but he just tightened his grip on my hair and tugged it harder in return. “Let go!” I screamed, trying to get free. I dropped to the floor and clawed at his hands, futile efforts with his gloves. 

Before I knew it there was a hand hovering over my throat. It wasn’t just me, not even grazing me, and then I knew. It was his bare hand. “It’s much harder to disintegrate human flesh, takes a while, but if only touches you for a second you will get off with a nasty scar and in a shit-tonne of pain.” He muttered in my ear. His breath was cold against my skin. I silenced immediately and felt the need to swallow the saliva building up in my mouth, I refrained, scared my Adam’s apple might brush off him. 

I nodded slowly in confirmation. He lifted me by my hair. I followed behind him, keeping an eye on his uncovered hand floating near me constantly. I was brought down a hall. One I recognised because I wasn’t allowed down it. Not in the ten years I’ve been here. I was warned personally by One For All never to go down there. I never found out why and I never planned on finding out. 

“Wait,” My throat was dry.

“Shut up,” Shigaraki said, seeming to understand what I meant. At the end of the hall was an elevator. There were multiple floors to the building but I had always assumed they were empty. He pushed the button with the up arrow and the door opened immediately. He pulled me in with him and pressed the button for the fourth floor. The top floor? I also took note of the ‘B’ on one of the buttons. Basement? 

It was a few seconds before the doors opened again and I was met with another dark corridor. His pull on my hair had now loosened but was too firm to pull away from him. I was still too wary of his bare hand, still floating near me, never straying too far. 


He finally released the hold of my hair and dropped me to the floor. My hand rushed to soothe my stinging scalp. My other hand brushed my heel where the sock was torn and revealed blood pooling at the scrapes and rolling to the wood panels below. Shigaraki stood facing the door, not batting a glance towards me.

When his head tilted down to me and his red eyes settled on me I felt a shiver run through me. His expression was dripping with emotion; a million apologies flooded his eyes. His eyes contradicted his action; his words. “I’m sorry.” He muttered.

I was about to protest when the door was pried open. The dark didn’t allow me to identify the lanky figure standing in the doorway. His silhouette portrayed a skinny man with a gelled-back head of hair, and formal attire underneath his long, white lab coat. His striking blue eyes pierced me through, taking my breath. His narrow, almond-shaped eyes slanted as he looked at me, a cruel smile forming on his lips. 

“He’s here,” He spoke. His voice was more high-pitched than I expected it to be, out of character for his devilish appearance. If I wasn’t terrified right now I would probably laugh. “You can go back now.” He spoke to Shigaraki but kept his stare on me.


I gulped, my throat burning with the action. From the corner of my eye, I watched a detached Shigaraki slowly step back, My head flickered to him after noticing the movement. I searched for his eyes, for confirmation, for an answer. I didn’t get one. 

Shigaraki retreated, my eyes following him down the hall, into the elevator until it finally closed—after what felt like forever I just stared into the empty, dark hallway, hoping he might come back, have a change of heart. He didn’t.

“Izuku Midoriya? Is it?” I didn’t confirm. I wanted to know what was going on. I opened my mouth to speak when I felt a prick in my upper arm. My gaze travelled to the source of the feeling where I saw a syringe, the needle halfway in my flesh. Before I could react the man pushed the plunger, and I felt the clear liquid shoot into my arm. I went to grab the syringe or his hand—I don’t remember—before my vision went blurry, then black. Nothing.

Chapter Text

“Hey,” A voice you might take as light-hearted spoke. “Izukuuu~” It sang. A snapping sound rang in my ear. When my eyes lightly flickered open, my lids resting half closed. My vision didn’t completely clear up. I barely processed the hand waving in front of my face.

I groaned when my brain registered the pain in my scalp and my arm where the needle had punctured my skin. My entire body was numb, the only thing I could feel was pain, and the only thing I could move was my eyes. Listless, is the word I would use to describe this feeling.

My jaw was slack, my mouth slightly parted, but I registered the stiffness of the dried-up drool that ran down the side of my face. My eyes dropped to the sight beside me, a man, however not the same one that was at the door earlier.

A young, slender-looking man. His long face and small features made him seem older than he is. Pinkish, pale skin, stark black hair and dark bags under his eyes made me wonder if he ever slept. “Sir, he’s awake,” He said with a boyish smile that revealed his true youth. He stood up from his crouch beside me and took light steps backwards. 

“Oh, goody!” He clapped enthusiastically. The older man stalked towards me with an elated grin on his face as he could barely contain his excitement. He got up close and bent over so we were face to face. He dipped his nose into the crook of my neck and took a deep whiff. With a frantic breath, he retreated. “You smell nice.” 

My brows furrowed. “Oh, don’t look so disgusted. It’s a compliment. Only a small few smell as good as you,” he brushed off my expression with a wave of his hand. He leaned in close, and I realised something, he smelled of nothing. While he looked as though he hadn’t showered in weeks. 

His assistant, with his strict gaze on me from the back of the room, eyes twitched and mouthed something I read as: “Interesting”. 

“You’re strong,” The older man’s voice drew my attention back to him. Confusion laced my face. “Ha…fine, I’ll explain.” He straightened back up and walked towards a window that faced another building, letting little to no sunlight in. “My quirk gives me an extraordinary sense of smell. Able to differentiate drugs, chemicals,…quirks.” I flinched hearing that last part. 

I’ve never heard of a quirk like that. 

By the looks of this room, he’s been living up here as long as I have. And to think I’ve never heard from or even seen him. It shows just how little All For One trusts me, and another reason to loathe him. “Emotions are strong so better keep that temper I’ve heard so much about contained.” 

“Who…ugh…are you?” I croaked out. I twitched my fingers. I was slowly starting to feel my limbs again. The odd sensation of blood rushing down my arms and legs to my fingertips and toes. I struggled to swallow the phlegm in my mouth. Despite how weak I felt I forced the familiar force through my veins, ignoring any pain that travelled with it. I shot up and stretched an arm out at the man who was still gazing out the window. He was flung to the left, his body like a lifeless doll with no resistance. To anyone else, it would have happened in a millisecond but to me, it moved in slow motion. I caught the look on his face, impassive even at the cracking of his body hitting the wall, and how his eyes flick to me, just for a second, before he hits the ground. 

“ Stop,”  And just like that, the feeling in my arm, is gone, and my body has frozen. My eyes race to the voice belonging to the young man. The look in his eyes has changed. Before he just seemed like a broken young man, now when I looked into his eyes it was an endless pit, one filled with despair and anger and frustration. “ Lie down .” Unwillingly my body followed his command. 

From across the room, the older man pushed himself from the ground and straightened up. “Haa…,” He limped his way over to me and lifted his arm. The strike came before I could process it. “It’s not very nice to fling your new friends across a room, now is it?” He spoke incredulously. “Ryosuke, tell dear Izuku to stay still. This process will be more painful if he’s not compliant.” 

“Yes, sensei Ito,” Ryosuke was next to me in a few seconds, leaning down at my ear. He whispered, “Don’t move,” In an instant, my body complied. My eyes were glued to the ceiling, my breath hitched for a moment. My chest contracted painfully with each intake of air. I was conscious of everything, my thoughts ran wild but my body wouldn’t respond. 

I could hear everything but do nothing about it. I could hear it when Ito was talking about what to do to me and I could feel it the moment he stuck a needle in the side of my arm. I couldn’t feel anything other than the slight pinprick until the steering pain hit me like a truck. It felt like I was burning up from the inside but no death could end the pain. I wanted to scream but the command was still shouting inside my head.  Don’t move. 

I was unsure of the time. The thin fabric covering the windows did nothing to stop the morning light from seeping in. I concluded it was now dawn but from then on I felt more groggy and sleepy as the hours went by. My eyes slipped closed and got a few moments of shut-eye every few hours. Constantly being woken up by Ito or Ryosuke for checkups or a new injection. The pain was the worst after the third, and final injection according to Ito.

I eventually got used to the pain. With my mind clearing up and my body frozen, with nothing else to do, I got to thinking. About this floor, about whatever the hell they were injecting me with, about  who they are . Unfortunately, I came up blank on the first two. No matter how much I racked my brain I could even come up with theories. But, luckily for me I have a very good memory, and their names were something that irked me for hours before I finally remembered.

Ito Fuyuki and Tachibana Ryosuke. A scientist team. A couple of years ago Shigaraki and Kurogiri wanted to recruit a small team to help in other aspects that I couldn’t help with. I was young at that time so they were sneaking around trying their best to hide it from me but that was a battle lost. With my curiosities growing along with me they couldn’t hide much from me. I got ahold of the list of potential scientists. Ito and Ryosuke were the only ones circled in red. The search went cold thereafter and I didn’t hear anything from then on. I guess this is where they ended up.

I slipped in and out of consciousness and finally, I could feel the twitching in my limbs.  I guess Ryosuke’s command s  have a time limit.  It was a while before I could completely move my body and I stayed still until I was sure I could walk. I leaned up and swung my body over the side of the makeshift bed. I rolled my shoulder and stretched out my muscles. My hand lingered on my upper arm where the needle pierced numerous times. I couldn’t wrap my head around what the hell was going on. I was startled when Ito strutted into the room. He briefly glanced at me, not even the tiniest bit surprised I was up. 

“Good, you’re up.” He was writing on a clipboard while glancing at me now and then. “Ryosuke’s power usually only lasts for 12 hours.”  12 hours. I was here for 12 hours.  Hopefully, the school still has me marked for sick leave. 

“What is it?” I asked, clenching my right arm. I looked up and his head was tilted to the side, eyes focused on me. 

“The injection?” 

“Yes, of course, the injection! The reason you kidnapped me!” 

He sighed deeply and put his clipboard down. “Sakai Hana,” My blood ran cold at his words. My heart dropped at what could’ve happened. I vigorously and consistently made sure that any sort of evidence that I had contacted Hana was erased or nonexistent. 

“H-how do you..”

Ito finished my words, “Know your little doctor friend?” He raised a brow.

“Is she…is?” Okay.  Alive.

“She’s fine, no one touched her yet.”  Yet.  I’m glad she’s fine but the fact he knows her name discomforting. “We only know her name and that she is prescribed pain medication for, what was it?” He pretended to think. “Oh, yeah, nerve damage.” 

I looked down and gulped nervously. “It’s just a minor setback. It’s nothing.”

“That’s not for you to decide.” Ito stalked closer to me stopping right in front of me. He dipped down to the hollow of my neck and took a heavy breath. “It’s working.” He whispered. 

“What’s working?” I asked, drawing back from him. “What did you do to me?”

He walked back to his clipboard and picked it up, he reviewed its contents again and ticked a few boxes before dropping it back down on the tables. “That’s for me to know and for you to not.”

“Don’t give me bullshit, give me answers!” I pushed myself from the bed and strode towards Ito. Stopping only inches away from him. “What the hell did you do to me!”

He stared at me with his bored eyes, resolve settling into his expression. He probably realised I wouldn’t make this easy. 

Ito turned to face me. “Fine. But you might want to take a seat for this.” Confused, I did as he suggested. “Let’s start.”

Chapter Text

I sat in my room, still in a state of shock. My brain replayed his words over and over and over again, as though it was still processing them. I suppose I was.

“I’ll make this quick,” He said. “What we gave you doesn’t have a name but it’s based on another one of our experiments called the Nomu Operation,” His eyes glazed over and his grin wrinkled his eyes, he looked as though he was reminiscing a fond memory. “The Nomu Operation is a surgical-based experiment where we artificially replace and add body parts, organs and quirks.”

My blood ran cold. They could do that? Did they do that to me? My fears worsened when they showed me the video. The video revealed a blue beast with a muscular body, a brain showing at the top of its head and a toothed beak. “W-what is that?” My voice shook as I got the words out.

He laughed. “That is my Nomu. It’s our first successful one so far.”

“That’s not going to happen to me right? Right!?” The thought of being that mindless, disgusting-looking creature gave me shivers. 

“No, no, no, no!” He assured. He went on, “The results are similar but the treatment and the disposition down to a molecular level are completely different. You didn’t think Sir would let me do that to you. While my Nomu’s are useful, they are mindless. You are much more useful with your intelligence than any quirk,” I gulped. I didn’t think he knew about my analysis skills. While I don’t hide them, I rarely talk about it. “You know about Sir’s quirk, right?” I froze. I wasn’t told about them. I figured it out. I’m not supposed to know. 

“No, of course not,” I defended. I can lie well but from the grin on Ito’s face, he could see right through me.

“I know you know!” he sang. He stood up and swayed his way over to the small window he could just about see out of. “You’re not the only one who’s smarter than they look.” His tone took a more serious note before he switched back to his manic tone. “It’s called All For One, but you know that already. What you don’t know is his brother.” My blood ran cold. He has a brother? “His brother was nothing like him. He had a conscience, kind to a fault. He was believed to be quirkless. Until they realised he was more like his brother than they thought. Unlike Sir’s where he consumed others' quirks, his brother could pass them on. This created the famous One For All legacy.”

" What do you mean? What legacy?”

He laughed. “A power passed down from generation to generation to the most worthy. The current and most famous carrier of this power is All Might.” 

What?

“All M-Might?” 

 Before I could fully react he clapped his hands and returned to his seat in front of me. “Let’s get back to the experiment.” He said. “Your dose, while mixed with tens of other things, its formulae is the original One For All’s blood and Sir very kindly donated two quirks. Swift and Blackwhip. Swift is a speed-based power with the added benefit of feather-like footsteps, I guess.” He put up two fingers. “The second one is a little bit more complicated. This wasn’t exactly donated. This was the power of an old One For All carrier, Lariat.”

“What do you mean? How did Sir get that power?” That was the part that didn’t make sense. I don’t have all of Sir’s quirks marked down but I know for certain he doesn’t have one like that.

“That’s where things get tricky.” He said. “It was Sir that gave it to you, he didn’t have this quirk. He had Lariat’s blood. We don’t know if it’ll even work but it’s a gamble. If it does work, you will have an extremely developed quirk. Especially if it's with you.” At my confused expression, he continued. “From what I’ve heard, your body is perfect for carrying and evolving quirks due to your intelligence on quirks and your strong frame of mind. Basically, you can flourish with almost any type of quirk.

“It’s just quite unfortunate that the quirk you were born with grew with you until it grew faster than you and caused almost irreparable damage to you. By the way, that doctor of yours is very skilled. What’s her quirk?”

Remembering Hana, I picked up my phone and dialled her number. She was my emergency contact so it was ringing in seconds. Ito promised me he wouldn’t go near her as long as comply in the coming weeks with my treatment. It rang but went to voicemail. The worst scenario popped into my head.  Is she okay? Is she alive?  Before I could call her again her name popped up on my screen. I answered. 

“Hana! Hana! Are you okay?”

“Woah there kid. What’s up with the shouting, it is one o’clock in the morning. Also, why are you up? You’re not training again, are you? It's really important that you heal-“

“No, no! Wait! So you’re okay?”

“Unless being up for 36 hours counts as being okay, yes, I’m delightful. And you didn’t answer my questions, mister. I don’t want to see anything bad at your next checkup, you hear me?”

“Yes, yes, I hear you,” I sighed in relief. She’s just her usual self. If anything happened to her I don’t know what I’d do. She’s the only light in my life. She’s like the older sister I never had. Like the family I never had. “I just couldn’t sleep. Nothing serious.”

“Uh-huh. So you’re not mumbling away like a crazy man as you scribble in your little diary.”

I laughed. “You got me there…,” I played off. She knew me more than I liked. It was dangerous for her to be this close to my heart but I couldn’t seem to pull away even if I wanted to. “And it’s not a diary! It’s an analysis journal. I’m not some little kid anymore.”

Hana laughed like it was the funniest thing in the world. “Sweet Izuku, you’re gonna be a little kid in my eyes even when you’re an adult, I’ll still want to pinch those little cheeks! You’re too pure for this world. ” She spoke as if she was speaking to an infant not and put on a baby voice.

“Stop!” We talked for a couple more hours until tears formed in my eyes when I yawned, I fell asleep while talking to her. 

I got a few unexplained absences from UA but I just informed Aizawa that I needed a few extra days to heal.

While I was gone I was informed that we would be doing a training course at USJ. I was unfortunate enough not to miss the voting of the class president. Momo easily got votes due to her intelligence and Ida just about got it. I was surprised that I was only one point behind Ida. 

The emergency alarm went off and Ida proved to be a good leader when he organised all the panicking students. I’m not sure why but I was proud of him. I shook off that feeling. 

It wasn’t until later that I heard the teachers talking about the barrier to the school being disintegrated. My heart dropped as I realised who it was immediately. I didn’t think they would move so fast, especially after hearing that All Might will be teaching here from now on. 

I had a little bit too much fun until now. I forgot I had a mission. 

I’ve done things I don’t agree with before to keep my cover but somehow, betraying the friends I’ve made feels like I’m getting my heart ripped out. 

Maybe it’s time to do something about it.