Archive of Our Own

General Studies. The place where dreams of being a hero come to die.

That's what they say anyways. And for the most part? It's true. For others, it only adds fuel to their fire.

Take Shinsou Hitoshi as an example. Failed the Heroics Exam and just barely scraped by into General Studies. It would dishearten even the toughest of people, but Shinsou wasn't tough, he was just used to being denied the things he wanted.

So he took his hatred towards the judges and the biased exams and threw himself into his training, not bothering to listen to anything his classmates had to say, until…

Midoriya Izuku was as quirkless as they came. Everyone knew that.

And so no one bothered to interact with him past asking for last night's homework or trying to bully him. Or trying to get him to "Shut the fuck up" about heroes and quirks.

It was practically taboo to even look at him. A single glance is all it would take to ruin your social standing forever.

And Izuku knows this. God knows he knows this. He's lived this since he was diagnosed quirkless.

Diagnosed as a Baseline. A Geneless Deku.

To associate with him in any form other than 'putting him in his place' would guarantee you a one way ticket to the bottom of the food chain.

But hey! At least they'd be on the food chain.

So yes. Everyone knows not to speak to Midoriya Izuku.

And yet, the tired boy with the purple hair and deep voice still does.

He speaks with him, albeit in quiet tones barely above a whisper. But he speaks to him! And that's all Izuku could ask for really. Of course, the fact that they're both social outcasts trying to be heroes only adds to the sense of comradery between the pair. It's only natural that they get along.

“So what could I do to train my quirk?”

Shinsou was sprawled out on the floor of Izuku’s bedroom, having just finished his homework. Izuku on the other hand, had finished his homework in school and had been theorising the many ways Shinsou could use his quirk, so he practically pounced on the boy in his haste to get his analyses out.

“Okay so your quirk works with verbal responses right?”

“Ye-”

“So I thought maybe it could work with non-verbal responses like flinching or rolling your eyes y’know?” Izuku barreled through his analysis, barely letting the other boy get a word in as he explained all of his different hypotheses and the things they'd have to try to test them out.

"And what if you didn't actually need to say anything at all! You could use non verbal cues to initiate contact and take control! Your quirk is so cool Shinsou!" Izuku gushed about the boy, only stopping when Inko called them.

"Sorry for interrupting, but I made some snacks for you both. They're just in the kitchen if you want them." She smiled down at the pair, who had somehow ended up in a tangled mess on the floor.

"Thanks mum! We'll be out in a second" Izuku looked up at her and beamed, before twisting around and trying to extricate himself from Shinsou's limbs.

"Sorry about that." He chuckled nervously, "I get a little excited about quirks sometimes."

"Yeah. I noticed."

Izuku winced a little, helping the other boy up. Shinsou sounded angry, or maybe angry wasn't wasn't right word for it. He sounded a little… put off? Izuku was used to the other boy's sarcasm. He knew Shinsou could be as dry as the desert on a hot day, but it sounded a little different. He really hoped he wasn't mad.

"It's fine, Midoriya. I just wasn't expecting it. I won't be forgetting about the 'dry' comment though."

Izuku felt blood rush to his cheeks. He'd been mumbling again. He really had to curb that habit if he had any chance of being a hero. Heroes don't just announce their plans for everyone to hear! It's fine though, while Shinsou is training his quirk, Izuku can train his ability to stay quiet.

"Now what was your mum saying about snacks?"

Izuku brightened a little, leading his friend the other boy out of his room and into the kitchen, raving about how amazing his mother's cooking was.

"He seems like a nice boy."

Izuku watched Shinsou's retreating back, sparing a glance at the heavy grey clouds on the horizon, before turning to face his mother. He hoped the other boy got home okay, maybe he should have offered him an umbrella?

"A bit quiet, but that hardly matters. Oh Izuku, I'm just so happy you've made a friend!" She ruffled his hair, eyes lit with a brightness he hadn't seen in years, something like hope. "You've never had anyone over except for Katsuki, and even then it's been a long time since I saw him within these walls."

Izuku swallowed, trying his best not to acknowledge the wetness in his mother's eyes and the guilt that laced her voice.

"Yeah, I'm happy I met him. He hasn't treated me any different because of… yeah"

Inko's eyes widened as she visibly stifled a gasp.

"He- He knows? You told him?" Her voice trembled

Izuku squeezed the fabric of his trouser pocket in his hand - thankfully hidden inside of the pocket - trying to stem the tears that threatened to fall from his eyes.

"I didn't have to"

It was mumbled and unclear, but judging by the warm arms that embraced him only a moment later, Inko heard it. He let himself go limp in her grip, allowing the dam to break, letting the river rage and cascades fall from his eyes. He sobbed against his mother, hugging her tightly as she whispered in his ear.

"I'm so sorry hun, they're idiots if they think something as stupid not having a quirk makes you broken. You're perfect to me sweetie. I could never ask for a better child."

That only proved to make Izuku cry harder. The sour tear tracks that ran down his face were soon hydrated once again, this time in sweet, happy tears as Izuku was reminded how amazing his mother was.

She knew, after all, what it was like. They'd both lived, and continue to live, the life of the quirkless. They both knew the ins and outs of discrimination, what they could and couldn't say around people and which laws did and did not apply to them.

Hisashi did too, once upon a time. The three of them knew what it was to be quirkless like the back of their hands. But unbeknownst to the happy trio for the first few years of Izuku's life, Hisashi played the role of Icarus in this tragedy.

He worked hard and was great at what he did. 'Dragon's' support gear was the best in the business, flying high above even the most ambitious of competitors. All it took was a single dream of Hisashi's for his feathers to burn, leaving him to plummet to the ground. Once he made that announcement, he was done for. Inko had her reasons to dissuade Izuku from being a hero after all.

After watching her husband announce his quirk status to the world, pleading for equality because they were all human weren't they? Well… Very few people were happy that a Baseline made it that far in life. They took it out on her husband, ripping Izuku's father from their shared life forever.

But that's a different story entirely.

The point is, Inko knew about discrimination. She knew how horrible people could be in the world of heroes and villains they lived in. She knew how awful it was to be avoided and teased, often bullied and abused by her classmates. But she knew how glad she was to find someone, to find a friend.

She was so happy that Izuku had found someone like she had. Maybe he would grow up happily, finding a life-long friend in Shinsou like she had with Mitsuki. Though hopefully his friend's children (if he had any) wouldn't be such quirkist assholes.

Only time would tell.

"Are you not going to get anything to eat Shinsou?"

Izuku was a little concerned, his friend never really ate all that much at lunch time… but that could just be because he was never hungry at lunch! He might go home and eat his lunch after school? Or maybe he just doesn't like eating in front of people? Hmm, no that couldn't be it, Izuku had seen Shinsou eat in front of others before.

Maybe it's something to do with the bullying? Despite finding a friend in one another, they never could escape the jeers and insults that were thrown at them in the classroom. But the taunting had certainly died down a little since they became friends, it was probably something to do with picking on two people at the same time instead of just one.

Maybe he decided not to eat, because then their classmates would have nothing to take from him?

"Nah, don't have anything." Shinsou said, face pressed against the cool surface of the table. Maybe he had a migraine? He complained a lot about how his quirk affected him, ranting about his insomnia and the frequent migraines he gets because of it. In that case, food would probably help him!

Izuku looked down at his tray. His mum didn't always have time to make lunch for him - which was fine, and completely understandable. She was a very busy woman, being a single mother and an accomplished lawyer couldn't be easy - so on the days that Izuku wasn't bothered to make his own lunch, he brought money to get something from school.

He got up from his seat, pushing his tray towards Shinsou with the disposable pack of chopsticks that came with his lunch.

"Here. You start eating and I'll be back with another set of chopsticks in a minute. We can share!"

Shinsou's head, still flat against the table, gave a little nod of confirmation. And that's all Izuku needed to go and get his chopsticks.

He hoped Shinsou liked what he had for lunch. He went over the money he'd brought with him today, calculating whether or not he could get something else for Shinsou if he didn't like it. He quickly realised though, that he'd used the last of his money on his lunch. Damn, he thought he'd brought more with him this morning. He probably did, but he must have spent it somewhere else. Or someone had taken it when he wasn't looking. It didn't matter though, he'd just have to get better at hiding his stuff.

Walking through the cafeteria alone was a little unnerving, but he made it from one end to the other just fine, he could do it again. He pocketed another set of chopsticks before walking back towards the far corner of the cafeteria.

Shinsou would probably want to train again later. Which was good! It meant that they'd both be fit and performing at 100% for the Sports Festival. But… training with Shinsou was very physically demanding. Very rarely would Izuku take water breaks for fear of not being strong enough to fight, but when he did, Shinsou wouldn't even notice. He was so dedicated! It was like Shinsou was in his own little world when he trained. Izuku would be lying if he said he wasn't a tiny bit jealous of Shinsou's ability to just, zone out. Sure, Izuku could zone out all by himself but this was more like… being able to ignore everyone? It made Izuku a little… well, a little green with envy y'know?

Izuku blinked quickly, dispelling the thoughts from his head as he realised he'd made it through the cafeteria once again. He spotted Shinsou, walking towards him and bouncing down into the seat with a smile on his face. He loved being with his friend.

Separating his chopsticks, he reached for the tray. He thought it might be best to half the meal and give Shinou the first choice as to which half he wanted. It would be the most fair after all.

So he slid the tray in front of him, ready to start halving the dish before him but… it was just that, a dish. There was no food left. But that can't be right, right? Izuku definitely hadn't eaten anything before he left so-

"Ah yeah, I just got really hungry because of my migraine, I didn't mean to eat it all." Shinsou had his head down on the table again, arm extended across the surface while he twirled the used chopsticks between his fingers.

"O- Oh. Um… that's fine. I wasn't really that hungry anyway." Izuku's stomach protested quietly, rumbling just enough to be audible, but not heard thanks to the background noise of the cafeteria.

" 'kay, we're training after school in Gym Delta." Shinsou lifted his head up, keeping Izuku paralysed with just his gaze on him.

He nodded, fixing a bright smile on his face as he remembered how much fun it was to train with Shinsou.

The USJ was attacked.

All of the teachers just left halfway through the classes after lunch, and a bunch of third years started patrolling the halls.

Izuku was terrified, as any sane person would be. Most of the class was scared, whether they wanted to admit it or not. There were a few that loudly proclaimed how they'd be able to take the villains down in a matter of moments if they were there.

It was less impressive and more… funny. At least they were providing some sort of relief during the attack. Most people found refuge in talking to their friends or messaging their family. Izuku knew well that his mother wouldn't even see the messages until long after he'd finished school so there was no point in trying to text her. It would only serve to make her worry.

So Izuku had turned to Shinsou. Shinsou, who didn't seem all that scared about the attack. He just kept staring out the window and wouldn't talk to anyone. It was weird.

But Izuku let it go. Everyone responds to things differently, and he has to respect that, just because Shinsou didn't outwardly express any emotions, doesn't mean he didn't feel anything. He could be terrified for all that Izuku knew.

He just needed to be there for the other boy. So when Shinsou told them they'd be training for 4 hours today after school instead of their usual 2 hours, to make up for the time they lost yesterday, Izuku readily accepted and texted his mum to let her know that he'd be home late.

He was there for Shinsou in the days that followed the USJ attack. When Shinsou rallied the class to declare war on 1-A, Izuku watched from the sidelines as Shinsou stood up to the different members of the class. He watched as Shinsou confronted Bakugou about how his bad behaviour could get him thrown out of the Hero Course, allowing Shinsou to take his seat for himself.

They trained harder from then on, their 2 hour sessions becoming 4 hours which only grew longer on the weekends. He helped Shinsou to get through his emotions so they could both be ready for the Sports Festival.

The man that gave them access to the gym kept hanging around while they trained. Izuku wouldn't have noticed if he'd led a different life. But he had been quirkless since the day he was born, and people like him needed to be on high alert at all times. Having bad situational awareness just wasn't an option for him.

So he noticed as the man watched their training sessions. Noticed how the man's face was forever stoic, and how he never sat down, just leaned against the door and watched. He didn't seem all that threatening in appearance. A simple black jumpsuit and a grey scarf was all he wore. His hair was always messy, and he seemed to have a pretty severe case of dry eye if Izuku's vision didn't deceive him.

He was watching again today, staying longer than he ever had before. Usually he'd leave after the first 15 minutes, coming back half an hour before they finished up. But he broke that pattern today, staying by the door for the entire 6 hours they were training. Izuku thought it was strange, especially since it was a Sunday and most people had better things to be doing on a Sunday than watching two teenagers beat each other up.

But that brought up another point. Was this man a teacher? Considering the access he had to the school, he must be an important member of staff. But if he was a teacher, then who was he? Izuku's mind flew with the possibility of a hero he didn't know.

His thoughts were very quickly shut down as a hard punch to the gut threw him to the mat. He lay there, gasping for air and staring at the ceiling as Shinsou came into view.

"This isn't a fucking joke Midoriya. I don't care what you were thinking about, but you'd better be focused by the time I get back" Shinsou's voice was low, almost dangerously so.

Izuku understood the message though. He'd fucked up. He shouldn't be thinking of anything other than his opponent(s) in a fight. Creepy hobo man or not, Izuku needed to focus on the fight.

Izuku continued to lie there as he regained his breath.

Shinsou was right. Even though his delivery was harsh and a little unnecessary - though it was probably due to the adrenaline pumping through his system - he was right in telling Izuku to focus. They only had a few more weeks until the Sports Festival, after all.

He lay there for another minute before sitting up and walking over to his water bottle. He noted that Shinsou had gone for water as he drank from his bottle. Shinsou's bottle - less of a bottle and more of a thermos for coffee if Izuku was being honest, but he wasn't going to judge - was gone from where it was earlier.

He waited a few minutes for Shinsou to get back. When he didn't, Izuku set down his own water bottle and went to find him.

Shinsou probably didn't need Izuku to check up on him, but he'd rather see if the other boy was okay than leave him by himself.

Checking the water fountain seemed like a good idea, so Izuku headed there first. However, as he neared the edge of the training mats that covered the floor, he heard a voice. It was faint, but Izuku somehow still heard it.

Following the sound found him outside one of the changing rooms, where he found that what he heard wasn't a voice, but rather two voices. One of them was low and foreign to Izuku's ears. It made him panic, thinking of who it could be until he heard Shinsou's voice respond.

He calmed down slightly, listening to Shinsou and the Voice have a calm conversation. If they were both calm, then maybe there wasn't anything to worry about?

The door was closed over, leaving a small crack between the door and the frame for Izuku to peek through. It was only when he saw who it was that he really started listening to the conversation.

"-asically, I'd be training you and your little green friend everyday after school if you're both up for it. I've been watching you both for a while now, I've seen how dedicated the two of you are and I've decided to train you. Now are you interested or not?"

It was the man, the man that watched them train! That must be why he hung around. Izuku assumed it was because he didn't want either of them to get hurt, but he wants to train them!? That must mean he's a Hero, but who is he?

"Of course, sir. I would love to train under you, Eraserhead." Shinsou's voice was eager, and based on what he said and the admiration in his words, he must have known of the Hero before he introduced himself.

Izuku couldn't see Shinsou through the crack in the door, but he could see the man- Eraserhead's, face flicker with surprise before settling back to a neutrality that could be easily mistaken as boredom.

"Good. Talk it over with your friend. If he agrees then I'll see you both in Gym Beta after school tomorrow. And know this, I don't accept tardiness." Eraserhead's words were clipped, bordering on annoyed as he walked for the door.

FUCK

Izuku scrambled back from the door, almost hitting his head against the far wall in his haste to get away. He eventually found his feet and started sprinting back towards the gym.

He reached his stuff and threw himself down, hoping he could pretend to recover his breath so he wouldn't look suspicious.

The sound of a door closing calmed Izuku's racing heart. Aside from the fact that he was very nearly caught eavesdropping - by a Hero no less - he had a new hero to research tonight. It had been a while since Izuku had a new hero to analyse. He was really looking forward to it.

Footsteps grew closer to the mat Izuku was lying on, reminding him that Shinsou was probably back from his talk.

"Get up Midoriya. We're not done."

Yep, that was Shinsou's voice. Gruff and curt as always, but Izuku didn't miss the way his lips curled up ever so slightly at the edges as he stood up.

He'd never seen Shinsou smile before, and even though it was more of a Not-Frown than a smile, he still thought it was nice.

Izuku was a patient person, always had been. He needed to be if he was expected to live past middle school. His mum had always told him to be patient, that it would eventually get better. All he needed to do was wait. And Izuku was good at waiting. He'd waited 4 years for a quirk, and then foolishly waited another 3 just in case. He couldn't push past bullies or stand up to villains - not yet anyway - but he could wait. Wait until they tired themselves or eventually gave in.

So he waited patiently for Shinsou to tell him about Eraserhead's training offer. He waited all throughout their training session and right up to the end of school the next day. And Shinsou turned around before he left, and Izuku thought that this was it, he was going to tell him! But he didn't, he only said how he couldn't train tonight because his parents needed him home early. He never mentioned the offer.

And that was fine! Izuku completely understood, because if Shinsou couldn't go to training, then why would he tell Izuku? Surely they should go together so Eraserhead doesn't favour one over the other. So he waited again, waited throughout his own training session - a short one in comparison to the 4 hours Shinsou usually encouraged them to complete - and waited the next day too. But then Shinsou came up to him, mentioning how he sprained his ankle during PE and so he wouldn't be able to train today.

Izuku found it a little strange, since they only had PE on Mondays and Fridays, and it was a Tuesday. But maybe he meant yesterday? Yeah, that was it. It must've been when Izuku went to the water fountain during dodgeball. It sucks though, because Shinsou wouldn't be able to train for the next week if he wanted to recover properly, which he no doubt would. But Izuku could just train by himself this week, it wasn't a problem!

He just has to wait a little bit longer.

So he trains alone like he did yesterday, but he goes to Gym Beta instead because it's smaller. It's easier to train alone because of the equipment. Sure, there's a joint training room beside it, but it's almost always empty because only the teachers have access and it's supposed to be for one on one training.

Leaving his water bottle down, he begins his stretches. Most of his warm-up is a mix of stationary stretches, but the final part is a small run. If we were in Gym Delta, he would run around the perimeter of the gym maybe 3 times to stretch any muscles he didn't target in the first half of his warm-up.

Gym Beta was smaller though, more compact. He'd need to run around at least 5 times to get the same stretch as usual. So he jogged over to the edge of the room and began running alongside the wall.

His fifth lap was almost finished when he jogged past the door again. There had been noises coming from the door throughout his warm-up, but he'd elected to ignore them. It was probably two Hero Course students training for the Sports Festival. Or it could be a teacher helping a student to prepare. Whatever the case, he had been ignoring it as the noises became louder and louder.

And then he identified the noises as voices. There had only been grunts so far, but they soon became words of encouragement until they stopped completely. Then he could really hear the voices, despite how muffled they still were.

"You're progressing well for someone who's only been training under me for a few days. Another few weeks of this and you might be ready for the Sports Festival." One of the voices grunted, almost apathetic if not for the hint of approval in its tone.

Izuku didn't mean to stop. Really, he didn't! But that was Eraserhead's voice. And sure, Izuku didn't know the man at all but… he couldn't help but think about his offer. Who was he training? Izuku was training by himself and Shinsou had gone-

"Thank you, Aizawa-Sensei."

Izuku barely stifled a gasp. That… that was Shinsou's voice. But Shinsou went home. He went home, and even if he didn't he wouldn't be able to train. He sprained his ankle!

So it couldn't be Shinsou. Maybe Eraser- Aizawa, was training someone else? Yeah, that had to be it. He was training someone with an impersonation quirk. Because Shinsou went home.

He quickly ducked down to the doorknob and looked through the keyhole. Once he saw that it wasn't Shinsou, he could forget about it and go back to his training.

He just needed to see.

The room was small. Izuku could tell that, even with the limited vision he had. Blue training mats lined the entire room from floor to ceiling. And there in the middle of it all was Aizawa, crouching over Shinou's body which was sprawled out over the ground.

"I said might. But if you have time to talk, then you have time to train. Get back at it, Shinsou. If you can't, at the very least, get a single hit on me by the end of the day, then you haven't a hope of transferring." Aizawa smiled, a creepy thing that was too wide with far too many teeth. Then Shinsou got up with a similar grin fixed on his face, and the two flew at each other.

Izuku's eyes barely saw it all, misting over with tears the second he saw Shinsou in the room.

He backed away from the door, slowly at first and then quicker until he was sprinting away from the door at a speed he hadn't rivalled since middle school.

His hands trembled as they grabbed his water bottle, almost losing it to gravity twice when picking it up. But then he was gone, he ripped the gym's door open and shot off down the path towards the school gates like a bullet.

It wasn't until he was at home, safe under the cover of his duvet with his head nestled between soft pillows that he realised he'd forgotten his uniform in the changing room.

Izuku begins to see less and less of Shinsou. They sit right beside each other in class, sticking together for projects and various other group activities. They both eat lunch together every day - Izuku has started bringing a packed lunch along with some money, just in case Shinsou is a bit too hungry and leaves nothing for Izuku - and yet they barely speak to one another. Not for Izuku's lack of trying, he always tries to start conversation between them both when he finds himself sitting in uncomfortable silence. Shinsou usually shoots his voice down with a glare or something similar.

The other boy claims he's too tired to do anything else but focus on training and classes, and that's fair. Izuku's tired too, but the difference probably lies in their training schedules. Shinsou trains every day after school, as does Izuku, but Shinsou trains for longer, much longer than Izuku. And though Shinsou doesn't say it, doesn't excuse himself from training any longer, Izuku knows. He knows that he could never compare to training with Aizawa and that he isn't owed an apology or an explanation.

So he trains by himself after school. He puts his all into his training, ending up a sweaty mess with his curls slicked to his head. And then he gets changed and walks home via the main streets while it's still light outside. He, of all people, knows the dangers of walking home alone along sketchy side roads under shady underpasses.

He's getting stronger though! He can feel it when he sits down at night, newly formed muscles sore and sensitive with an exhaustion that could rival Shinsou's. And that's the point of his training, to get stronger. Once he and Shinsou get into the Hero Course, everything will get easier. Sure, they'll have to do extra training and work outside of school, but they'll do it together! And once the fear of failure is gone from their minds, they can get back to normal.

He'd thought that he and Bakugou would be like that too, once upon a time. He believed that they could get over their little spat once Izuku got his quirk, and then they could be Heroes together! Of course, that never happened, because Izuku just had to go and ruin it by not getting a quirk.

It'd be different this time though. He couldn't control his quirklessness, but he can get into the Hero Course.

He won't lose another friend.

The sky was a pretty pink colour as Izuku made his way to school. The sun was only just rising, allowing the red tinged rays to crest the hill of UA and spill out onto Musutafu.

Izuku's fingers wouldn't stop fidgeting as he made his way to school. People kept staring at him along the road, no doubt in excitement and anticipation of the events of the day to come.

The Sports Festival was today. Despite having months to get ready for it, Izuku felt irrationally unprepared. He had trained hard for this, but his brain kept saying he'd fail.

He did his best to drown out the thoughts with analyses as he walked up towards UA. He went over what he knew about Eraserhead - very little, due to his status as some sort of underground hero that never interacted with the media. He only knew about his costume because he'd seen it up close, and his quirk because even he, the social outcasts that he is, has heard the rumours about the "Demon teacher of 1-A" with his terrifying red gaze that could strip a vital part of you from yourself in seconds.

His mind soon began to draw blanks though. Maybe trying to analyse someone he knew basically nothing about wasn't the best idea. But it got him to school and distracted him from his thoughts, he noted privately, so maybe it was a good idea? He couldn't be sure.

He headed up to his classroom for his teacher to take attendance. From there they'd go out to the stadium and get ready for the first round. Opening the door, he went for his seat where he met… Shinsou?

It was obviously Shinsou, but he looked different. He seemed more alert than usual. Less tired.

"Morning Midoriya." Shinsou said, looking down from where he stood and, was he always that tall? Izuku thought they were a similar height but, apparently not.

"Morning Shinsou! You seem happy today." He replied, his joy at speaking to his friend for longer than a few short words was practically audible at this point.

"Oh I am. Say, we should team up for the first few rounds. We won't be able to team up in the last round, but we could help each other out till then. You up for it?" Shinsou's eyes were alight with mischief, mischief they would no doubt cause throughout the festival.

"Sure!"

The first two rounds pass by in a flash, so much so that Izuku can barely remember what happened. He and Shinsou must've passed through to the 3rd round though, as they were walking towards the arena once again. This time, they couldn't work together, not even slightly. They were fighting each other. Izuku gave Shinsou a blinding smile before they split apart, wishing him luck in their fight.

"Welcome back to the arena folks! You're just in time for the third round. And what an exciting round we have! Because not one, not two, but three non-hero course students have made it to the final round. We're making history today!" Present Mic's voice boomed across the stadium, his quirk was so loud that he wasn't given a microphone, he didn't need it.

"On one side, we have the dark horse of the General Education course, the mysterious and elusive Shinsou Hitoshi!" Present Mic's announcement was followed by a roaring crowd as Shinsou began walking towards the platform.

"And on the other side, is none other than one Midoriya Izuku, his best friend! My, my folks, what a fight we have to kick off the third round. Will this break their friendship or will it further strengthen their bond? Who knows, so let's find out!"

The crowd seemed to enjoy that, as they roared when Izuku walked out of the stadium. However, loud as the crowd's cheering may be, it couldn't compare to the deafening beat of Izuku's racing heart in his ears.

It wasn't fair. They shouldn't have to fight one another straight away. In order to get noticed and transferred into the Hero Course, they both needed to place in the 3rd round. But that wouldn't be possible if they both had to fight against one another in the first division.

He tried his best to push aside his thoughts as he climbed the steps to the platform. But with trying to empty his mind came more thoughts, thoughts about the fighting ring. And, isn't it a bit high for high schoolers- first years no less, to fight on? What if someone falls off? Yes, Cementoss is standing guard in case that does happen, but what if he can't catch them? If someone were to fall off they could do some serious damage to themselves.

The crack of Midnight's whip is the only thing to break him from his thoughts, the noise bringing him back into reality. Right. He needs to focus. He's about to fight Shinsou, and as much as he doesn't want to win, he needs to. Surely Aizawa has seen Shinsou's potential and will transfer him to the Hero Course too, but this is Izuku's only chance. He can't afford to fuck it up.

"Now boys. I want a nice, clean fight. Am I understood?" Midnight's voice was serious, not a trace of her hero persona could be heard as she looked at the two boys. Ironically enough, it made Izuku relax. Maybe it was because someone seemed to, outwardly, be taking this seriously. Whatever it was, it calmed Izuku's worries until he could stuff them away in a box for future him to deal with.

They both mumbled a response when she raised her eyebrow, obviously unimpressed with the amount of time it took to answer her.

"Good. Now, I'll count you in. 5… 4..."

Izuku looked over at Shinsou and saw him signing something, they only knew the basics of fingerspelling, and each other's sign names. Izuku's was the sign for green, and Shinsou's was the sign for purple.

H-E-Y Midoriya?

"3… 2…"

Yeah? he signed back quickly

"1…"

Shinsou smirked as he signed, G-O-O-D L-U-C-K

"FIGHT!"

And then Izuku turned around, walking towards the edge of the platform.

He tried to stop his feet, simultaneously proud of Shinsou for the use of his quirk and scolding himself for falling for something so easily, but it was no use. The fog in his mind had rolled in quietly and quickly, taking over his body and forcing it to move against its will.

Tears streamed down Izuku's face as his legs brought him closer to the edge. He was almost out of bounds now, Shinsou would win.

His feet crossed the line, and the crowd went wild, but he couldn't hear it through the cotton that filled his brain.

He continued to walk despite having lost. Shinsou must be celebrating or something and forgotten to let him go.

Midnight was congratulating Shinsou now, confused at what had happened, but announcing his victory nonetheless. Cementoss wasn't concentrating on the fight since neither of them had abilities that could split the ground open. His assistance wouldn't be needed to fix the ring.

Maybe that's why nobody noticed when Izuku's feet met the edge, and his body fell forwards, suspended in air for a single precious moment before crashing onto the hard cement that waited for him, a few metres below.

The fog recoiled from his brain, almost as if it were harmed in some way before disappearing completely.

His mind was blessedly quiet as everything faded away.

He woke slowly, head heavy and uncomfortable in a way he isn't used to. He sat up from where he was lying down (when had he lay down?), vaguely taking note of the stiff surface he was sat on. It was stiff but also… soft? It wasn't comfortable, but it wasn't hard like the floor should be. So what was it?

His eyes had yet to cooperate with him and open, but his ears had finally started to process the sounds he could hear. It was mostly quiet except for the beeping of some sort of machine and the steady breathing of another person- no, multiple people.

There was also the distant sound of a crowd and… explosions?

"Oh, hello dear. I wasn't expecting you to be up yet. Are you feeling alright? You took quite the tumble."

A soft voice breached his ears, old and weathered but full of care. It made Izuku relax, until he realised that he'd never heard that voice before. He flinched away from the stranger as his eyes continued to stay stuck to his eyelids.

"Ah, my apologies. I'm Recovery Girl and you're in the infirmary at UA. You're eyes may be a little dry which is probably why you're struggling to open them. In order to heal you I needed to use my quirk, and I needed to take energy from part of your body to heal the damage. Give me a moment and I'll be back with some eye-drops."

The stranger- Recovery Girl. Shuffled away and started rooting through some drawers. At least Izuku assumed that's what happened. He still couldn't open his eyes, and wasn't that fascinating? That Recovery Girl's quirk made his eyes dry up so much. Maybe it had something to do with the energy she needed to heal him.

"Sorry about the wait. Despite my title, I'm not as youthful as I once was." She chuckled. He could hear her opening something before she started speaking again, "Now I just want you to lie back down and keep your eyes closed. Then you can try and open them again when I say, okay?"

He nodded, too tired to say anything as he lay back down on what he could now assume was a hospital bed - It would explain why it was so uncomfortable.

The drops that fell onto his eyelids stung a little, but the pain was brief and well worth it as he blinked his eyes open. And then shut them again because of the bright lights that hung from the ceiling. He blinked a bit more, trying to see through the little blue patches in his vision from looking directly into the light.

"Sorry if that hurt dear, you hadn't much energy when you came in and I needed to fix you up." Recovery Girl said, eyes kind and voice soft, as if he was some sort of wounded animal.

Maybe all doctor's talked like that? Izuku wouldn't know, he hasn't been to a doctor since that awful appointment with his pediatrician. That man never looked at him like that, never spoke to him so kindly. Maybe he was just odd though.

Some gummy bears appeared in front of his eyes and he looked up at Recovery Girl in confusion.

"They're for energy dear. You need some. I noticed that you haven't eaten today either, so I'll get someone to bring up some food from the cafeteria because you are not going to leave that bed until I say so. Understood?"

Recovery Girl looked down at him, voice still soft and welcoming but practically forcing him to agree. He shrank back at the mention of not having eaten today but ultimately nodded.

"I was too nervous to have breakfast this morning" He mumbled, half hoping she wouldn't hear him. Of course that wasn't the case, because she raised an eyebrow at him.

"It's okay to be nervous dear, but we can't let it control what you do, okay? It should be the other way around." She patted his head and turned around, shuffling over to check on the other patients in the room.

Izuku looked down at the gumming in his palm, eating all of them in a single mouthful before he could think anything of it. Then he adjusted his bed so he could sit up and look around while also being able to lie back.

He turned his gaze from where Recovery Girl was checking on a boy with blonde hair and - was that a lightning bolt in his hair? - looked up to the corner of the room where he found a TV.

His mind wandered as he watched Bakugou face down a girl from the Hero Course. It was an interesting battle but his brain had other things to worry about, like how he'd completed fucked himself over. He'd never get into the Hero Course with such a poor performance.

Then his mind wandered further, to his fight with Shinsou. He wondered why he ended up in the infirmary. The only things he could remember was the platform and then… concrete? His mind won't cooperate with him when he tried to recall what happened. That was gone though, he could just ask Shinsou when he visited him later.

He tried to stifle the tears that threatened to fall down his cheeks as his brain looped back around to the thoughts of 'You'll never be a Hero now, Deku'.

Watching the TV through blurred vision was difficult, but he managed, pushing the thoughts away until he sat lifeless watching the matches go by.

The sooner Shinsou got here the better. He could use some sort of comfort.

Izuku watched as Shinsou received his 1st place medal and waited for him to come to the infirmary to celebrate and show it off.

He didn't come.

But that was okay! He was probably celebrating with Aizawa and his family.

Recovery Girl offered him tissues as the trickle became a flood. He tried to ignore the pitying stares she sent him until he was allowed to leave.

Izuku stared at the empty seat in front of him, wondering where Shinsou was. Their teacher was about to begin homeroom and Shinsou still wasn't here.

It wasn't like the other boy to be late, as tired as he was he was always at school on time. Usually before even Izuku arrived.

He would walk into the classroom and find the boy with his head down on the table, trying to get as much rest as he could before school began.

Izuku's brain kept throwing theories around about where he was. The darker, more fearful parts of his mind told him that Shinsou was abducted because he won the Sports Festival. He tried to ignore that though, and instead focus on how amazing it was that Shinsou actually won. Despite Izuku's faith in him, he never really thought someone from outside of the Hero Course could win, let alone against both of 1-A's powerhouses.

The bell rang a sweet melody signalling the start of class, effectively dispelling any of Izuku's thoughts on the matter. He could text Shinsou once homeroom was over and ask if he was alright.

"Everyone settle down." The voice of his teacher carried across the room, bringing an end to the ongoing conversations.

"Before I take attendance I have an announcement to make," He said, smiling from where he stood at the top of the room. "As I'm sure you're all aware, your classmate, Shinsou Hitoshi, won the Sports Festival yesterday. Because of this, he has transferred into the Hero Course, effective immediately."

The conversations started back up again, gossip being passed around like the common cold. But Izuku wasn't listening.

Shinsou had made it into the Hero Course. That's awesome. He proved everyone wrong and is on his way to being a Hero. It's everything they both wanted. It's just… Izuku didn't make it. He wasn't picked to transfer, in fact he'd be willing to bet that he was barely noticed past the fleeting thought of "Oh yeah, he lost to the winner of the Sports Festival in the very first fight."

Don't mistake his feelings, Izuku was happy for Shinsou. Really, he was. He just couldn't help but feel a little bitter, a little jealous of Shinsou for accomplishing what Izuku failed to do.

Well, he'd see the other boy at lunch and he could ask him about how amazing the Hero Course was then.

He had until then to shove away his envy and pretend like everything was fine.

Because it was.

It was fine.

Izuku practically sprang out of his seat when the bell rang for lunch. He'd taken some money from his bag during English, deciding to get to the cafeteria as soon as possible, leaving the lunch he made behind him in the classroom.

He walked quickly through the halls, careful not to run lest someone give out to him. He really didn't need that right now. The crowd of students only seemed to increase as the few classes let out slightly earlier than the rest were joined by every other class in the hallways.

Elbows found his ribs and feet tried to trip him up in his haste to find Shinsou. Izuku couldn't tell what part of the school he was in now - his mind registered the distant sound of explosions and mechanical tinkering and guessed that he was near the Support classrooms, but Izuku was too caught up in his pursuit to realise.

He was close to the cafeteria, he could tell by the tantalising smell of Lunch Rush's food, when he caught sight of a familiar head of purple hair.

Izuku could almost weap at the sight. Today had been an Ordeal to say the least, so finding Shinsou and being able to have lunch with him was like heaven.

He tried to keep up with Shinsou, shoving his way through the crowd of students, and he was getting closer, but damn those long-legged freaks. Sure, he was small, but Shinsou was also Tall and he was in no way helpful when Izuku was trying to catch up with the other boy. Especially when Shinsou didn't know Izuku was there.

He was tempted to just shout at Shinsou to slow down, that'd definitely get his attention, and he was planning on it but then…

Then he saw who Shinsou was with, heard what they were saying.

"The fuck were you hanging around with Deku for? He's quirkless y'know." Bakugou Katsuki's voice rang out, piercing through Izuku's heart and wrenching it from his chest.

"Oh I'm aware. For a Baseline, he had surprisingly good analyses though." Shinsou replied, voice light in a way it never was with Izuku. He tried to ignore the way his heart tinged at the slur coming from Shinsou's voice. People make mistakes. It was fine, right?

"Hah!? Don't tell me you actually fucking listened to that scrawny little nerd."

"No, I did."

Izuku tried to smile at the fact that Shinsou listened to his theories but his face wasn't cooperating, staying carefully blank, like one of the many masks he's practiced to perfection. It was almost like second nature to cover up his emotions, even after becoming comfortable in himself in the past few months.

"I listened to what he said… and then used it to cut him down when he got a little too comfortable around me. Had to remind him of his place y'know?" Shinsou laughed, nothing like the dry chuckles that Izuku was used to hearing from his friend the other boy.

And the Shinsou turned ever so slightly, letting Izuku see the broad smile on his face. Izuku's heart broke, shattering into tiny little fragments that could never be put back together. He turned around and began pushing against the crowd, fighting to get away from the cafeteria, happy laughter haunting his mind as he went.

Maybe he'd just leave UA. There was no reason for him to stay anymore.

And when he gets to his new school? He won't try to make friends. Not anymore.

He's done with people being friendly at first, only to stab him in the back later.

Friendship, True Friendship, it seems, is something Midoriya Izuku will never get to experience.