Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

‘Come to the mall with us Midoriya, it’ll be fun!’

Izuku is no longer having fun.

An arm drops around Izuku’s shoulders pulling him into an oddly possessive side hug. His eyes drop to the black sweatshirt sleeves long enough to cover the person’s wrists and the long pale fingers gripping his shoulder with the pinkie extended.

“Player 2.” the familiar voice rasps. “Long time no see.”

Izuku freezes, mind running a mile a minute to try and find a way out of this as a slight tremor starts building in his hands. “Sh-Shigaraki. Wh- are you-“

The villain’s grip tightens as his voice drops to a hiss. “Calm down will you? I’m not going to hurt you!”

“A-Aren’t you?” Izuku manages, the phantom pain of the Noumu’s grip from his nightmares making itself known in his side. A wave of vertigo hits and he blinks as hard as he can to focus on the here and now as his mind tries to convince him he’s falling through open air again. “You didn’t have any problems with hurting me last time!”

Shigaraki pulls back to stare Izuku in the face. “The fuck are you talking about, I didn’t even touch you last time! If this is about your little friend then yeah I did touch her but nothing even happened so chill the fuck out!”

“That’s not- I’m- you-“

“Listen!” Shigaraki interjects, giving Izuku a hard shake- no easy feat considering the arm still wrapped possessively around him. “I’m not gonna apologize for something I didn’t even do!”

“I’m not talking about the USJ!!!”

The words burst out of him, leaving him heaving for breath and Shigaraki hisses at the volume, red gaze darting around to check if anyone’s watching them. A few odd glances come their way and Shigaraki finally steps back and releases him with a muted curse.

“I’m talking about Hosu!”

“Hosu?” The villain sneers, lowering his voice with effort. “I was nowhere near you in Hosu! I didn’t even know you were there till after!”

“Oh what? So I’m supposed to believe the Noumu grabbing me and trying to carry me away to what would have been a most painful death if Stain hadn’t saved me had nothing to do with you!?!”

Shigaraki falters, clearly taken aback. “...yes?”

Izuku opens his mouth to argue further and Shigaraki grabs him again. “Listen here short stack, I like you so I don’t want to hurt you but if my side quest gets cut short because you can’t keep your voice down then you’ll be forced to play a penalty game, understand?”

Izuku slowly nods and the villain loosens his hold again. “Good. Now, act like we’re old friends.”

***

“Why did you drag me in here??” Shigaraki growls lowly, eyes scanning around the sporting goods store as if looking for a trap.

Izuku forces a nervous laugh. “Well. You said to act like old friends so um. That reminded me of my friend Ur-“ he cuts off before he can say her name. Shigaraki may not be here to hurt him but until he’s made it clear that the benevolence extends to the rest of his class it’s best to keep as tight lipped about them as possible. “My friend with a five point touch quirk recently bought a glove here for workouts so her quirk wouldn’t affect the equipment…”

He reaches for the nearby shelf and Shigaraki’s arm tightens over his shoulder reflexively before finally letting him go.

Izuku swallows down his relieved sigh and digs through the products before producing a gray one. “I noticed by the way you hold your pinkie that you don’t have anything like this since it looks like you always keep it extended so it’s slightly curved… That’s the number one mark of a five point touch quirk honestly so you should probably get something like this if you don’t want people knowing your quirk right off the bat just by looking at your hands...”

Shigaraki’s eyes narrow and Izuku gulps. “Um uh not that I’m telling you what to do! You don’t have to- I’m just- I noticed right away and any trained analyst would probably too but if you-“

He cuts off as the villain tugs the gloves from his hold to inspect them. “Why these?” His tone is disinterested but Izuku takes the opening for what it is.

“This one seemed like the best option based on the data I already have. The fingers are all touch screen compatible which I thought would be a big plus considering you like to play video games.”

Shigaraki’s eyes snap up to his and Izuku panics. “N-Not that I know for sure! I just assumed from the terminology that you use that you are at least somewhat familiar so it was a safer bet to take it into account than to not make the assumption and have the gloves be-“

“You’re right.” The villain interrupts, head tilted slightly to the side like Izuku is some kind of puzzle game he needs to unlock. “What else?”

“Oh uh well this model has fingerless pinkie and ring finger. They have an option with fingerless thumb, pointer and middle but I thought that this one would work best for you since it could double as a deterrent for your habit.”

“My habit?” The voice is low and dangerous and Izuku scrambles to explain.

“I used to pick at my cuticles!” He bursts out, face flushing under the weight of the other’s gaze. “It wasn’t pretty, I really used to um. Just. Really dig in. It would bleed and I stained a couple shirts and my bedspread and just. When I decided to try and kick the habit I realized that while the damage wasn’t limited to any one finger in particular the main culprits of the actual picking were my thumbs and pointers. So I covered those four fingertips with bandaids and um yeah.”

Shigaraki’s red eyes are full on glaring now but the words stop for no one without actual intervention and so Izuku finds himself continuing with “so I. I thought it could help you with. With.” Unable to formulate his thoughts into words any longer, Izuku's finger comes up to his own neck and slowly drags the nail downwards with a blunt edge.

Shigaraki’s glare intensifies to the point of looking downright murderous. “That. Is none of your business!”

The silence between them falls sharp and menacing and for a single second Izuku panics before Shigaraki is turning with a scoff to toss the gloves back onto the shelf harder than strictly necessary. “It’s a good thought kid but like you said last time my quirk is my main weapon of choice. Putting a sheath on it is nice in theory but it’s a handicap I can’t afford in battle.”

There’s a brief moment where Izuku entertains the idea of making a handicap joke before ultimately deciding that some things just aren’t worth dying for.

“It would only be a handicap if you let it.” He mumbles. “I mean a five point activation means if you’re wearing the glove you’ve already got three fingers touching it because of them being inside. So in a pinch all you’d have to do is bring your remaining fingers down onto the palm to disintegrate the entire glove.”

Shigaraki comes to a complete stop.

People shuffle around the aisles, cash registers ding, the door opens and closes, but still the villain doesn’t move.
Finally he turns back, staring at Izuku head on. “You’re a genius.”

It’s said less like a compliment and more like a fact, a prelude to a question he’s building up towards.

Izuku flushes and ducks his head. “N-Not really, anyone could have thought of it if they really wanted to I’m just-“

“If you refuse to be acknowledged as a genius than aren’t you implying I was just too stupid to think of it myself?”

Izuku blanches, hands flying wildly as he opens his mouth to try and placate the villain.

The villain who is smirking at him.

Izuku huffs and covers his face with his hands. “You’re messing with me.”

“Yup.” Shigaraki laughs, grabbing the gloves carefully and snagging a couple extra. “It’s been a while since I had so much fun.”

The villain heads to the checkout counter, and Izuku finds himself following behind, mildly shocked that Shigaraki is actually planning to pay.

“So.” The man says, leaning back on a bench, newly gloved hand wrapped around Izuku’s shoulder to hold him close. “Since you’re such a genius and all. Why are people so obsessed with Stain and not me?”

Izuku takes half a second to wonder if he should be trying to escape before realizing that honestly, here is someone he doesn’t have to hold back with. He can say what he really thinks, give over his truest deductions and he doesn’t have to worry about losing friends or being called weird or being attacked for it or treated like he’s creepy.
And isn’t that strange to realize. Here is a bona fide villain leaning against his side and all Izuku feels is safe to finally speak his mind.

It’s… weird.
But also… really nice.

“Collateral damage.” He says slowly, choosing each word carefully so as to fully explain his position. “At your core both of you are villains, using your quirks to kill because you’ve become discontent with hero society. The only real difference is collateral damage. Heroes aren’t perfect. The common citizen doesn’t have personal ties to heroes so all they know of them is the public persona and whether they’ve ever failed. And the citizens that have been personally wronged by heroes?” his voice cracks as he whispers. “They don’t forget.”

And isn’t that the truth.
Izuku can still vividly remember the heroes who didn’t act while Kacchan was in trouble.
And if Kacchan had actually died that day?
He knows he would have felt secretly vindicated if Stain had gone after any of them.

That thought scares him and so he pushes it away to continue. “So when Stain makes the news for having killed a supposedly false hero… they feel ‘here’s someone who gets it.’ and then. Then they go about their day business as usual. They’re unaffected personally by the hero’s death which leaves them free to cheer Stain on. Secretly of course, in the deepest recesses of their hearts and from behind anonymous usernames because at the end of the day it is still murder. But cheer him on they do.”

Izuku takes a deep breath and risks a glance at Shigaraki.

The villain hasn’t moved, looks to be actually listening and so Izuku clears his throat and goes for it. “While you… well. The attack on Hosu alone led to destruction of multiple buildings, both residential as well as business. There were fires and the train tracks got damaged.” Izuku shudders as it starts to sink in that he’s sitting comfortably beside the man responsible for all that chaos and his voice hushes impossible further. “People got hurt and people died. Some lost their homes and some lost their jobs and. That’s just a lot to expect people to ignore even if they did agree with your goals.”

“But at the USJ-” Shigaraki interjects and Izuku steamrolls right over him.

“Kids were at the USJ. First years at a hero school sure but still kids. All Might was your main target and only the teachers got hurt but that doesn’t take away from the fact that you put twenty kids in danger and would have killed us all if we hadn’t fought back. And public opinion. Will never side with child killers.”

“So you’re on Stain’s side?!?” Shigaraki snarls, sounding remarkably put out about this for some reason.

“What? No! Fuck Stain!”

It comes out as a shout, bursting with indignation and hatred and he doesn’t even register Shigaraki leaning away from him wide-eyed as Izuku spits. “He goes around ending careers and killing the ones that he’s deemed ‘not even deserving to live’ but he fucking has All Might up on his pedastal as the only one he actually believes is worthy so deep down he’s not even trying to spread a message or affect change! He’s just waiting for every single other hero to give him a reason!”

Izuku is on his feet and yelling now, but he can’t stop- won’t stop because it’s been way too long since these thoughts have occurred to him with no way to let them out and he’s done keeping them bottled up. “Being a hero for the ‘wrong reasons’ doesn’t take away from the fact that you saved someone! Even if you only did it for fame or money that person is still alive because you stepped in and did something! Acting like you can only be a hero if you’re altruistic just means you don’t value life as much as you value heroism!”

Izuku falls silent, finally noticing the way Shigaraki and everyone in the courtyard is staring at him. He flushes and throws himself back onto the bench, posture bent and defensive. “Fuck Stain.” he mumbles.

Shigaraki doesn’t say anything for a minute. He’s squinting at Izuku like something’s occurred to him and he just needs the last piece to tie it all together.

“So you don’t agree with Stain…” he says slowly, leaning closer as a smile pulls at his cracked lips. “And you don’t agree with the league… but you do agree that hero society isn’t perfect.”

He says it like it’s a prize, like it means something important.

Izuku shrugs. He’s already shared so many of his private opinions, what’s one more?

“I mean yeah. Growing up as I did… sure it's got flaws. I didn’t really have anything better to do than chase after fights and you start to realize very quickly which heroes are prioritizing being the one to make the actual save over teamwork and stuff. And then there’s heroes who make it big on the charts and then stop actively patrolling if they aren’t specifically requested and kind of segue into just being famous.”

The name Uwabami is on the tip of his tongue but he bites it back. No specific examples. Shigaraki might be tolerating his presence and maybe even enjoying the conversation but that doesn’t erase the fact that he’s still a villain. Izuku needs to be careful or he’ll accidentally set the man on a new path and be culpable in any subsequent attacks.

“And all that's just the problem with the actual heroes themselves. Just having heroes at all has affected the way regular people react to bad things around them. We look away when people call for help because we aren't heroes and surely a hero will show up soon. People don’t try to save themselves even when they are able to and when powerless kids run in to help someone because the heroes aren’t doing anything they get scolded and told they could have died and made out to be worse than villains even though the heroes weren’t even fucking doing anything and he was literally dieing! How did it become my fault just because I didn’t have a-”

Izuku cuts off wide-eyed before forcing an awkward cough into his fist. “Um...”

Shigaraki laughs. “What’s this? A tragic backstory? Do I need to grind some more friendship points to unlock it or can I hear it now?”

Izuku shoots him a scathing look and the villain just grins at him so Izuku scrambles for a subject change. “Was that all? I did come here with my friends, you know, so they’ll be looking for me soon if they aren’t already.”

“Trying to get rid of me?” Shigaraki laughs. “Well alright then. Last question and I'll let you go. Since you agree there’s a problem and all.”

Izuku narrows his eyes, feeling like the villain is trying to trick him somehow. “Okay?”

“How exactly would you go about effecting change? Without enraging the masses and public opinion or killing off false heroes?”

“Oh. Is that all? Easy. Vigilantism.”

He gets up to leave and Shigaraki grabs him by the wrist to keep him in place. It’s with an odd sort of detachment that Izuku notes the grip is with all five fingers this time, Shigaraki adjusting to his new glove remarkably fast all things considered. “What?”

“You can’t just drop a one word answer on me and expect me to accept it. Explain. Now.”

By the wording alone it sounds like a threat but Izuku doesn’t feel like he’s in danger at all. In fact he’s starting to feel a prickle of excitement building at finally being able to share his most secret of old backup plans with someone.

“I’m glad you asked.” he beams, sitting back down so he faces Shigaraki head on. “So. Let’s say there’s a specific hero you want to depose, hypothetically let's call them… Endeavor. So the best way to tank their rankings would be to just show up whenever they do and save the day first. They lose face in the eyes of the public, can’t claim any wins or close any cases, can’t rise in the rankings, can’t get you fired because you aren’t actually a hero, you get the picture. Now if said bad hero Endeavor, hypothetically of course, is in the hero biz for quote ‘wrong reasons’ then it shouldn’t take too long of this to make him quit. He’d be losing money and popularity and if the vigilante spins it just right they can get public opinion on their side very easily since people love an underdog and civilians will be very loyal to someone that saves them, legal hero or no. Most people would find this kind of plan unachievable but you’ve got a warp user in your league right?”

“Kurogiri…” Shigaraki murmurs thoughtfully.

“Yeah so most vigilantes can’t just show up anywhere or get away easily once heroes have mobilized to chase them which- that’s another way to sway public opinion since if heroes start prioritizing catching the vigilante over saving people or taking down villains- something our hypothetical bad hero Endeavor would definitely do- then the public outcry would be huge! But ah I’m getting off topic. Um point is all you’d need is Kurogiri and an accurate hero scanner to be able to just arrive as soon as the call for a big hero goes out. And as long as you wear a tracker or something then Kurogiri could just warp you back to the base as soon as you’re done. No collateral damage, no unnecessary killing and no bad rep. Wins all around.”

“Not for Endeavor.” Shigaraki muses, leaning back on the bench and rubbing his chin.

Izuku coughs. “Hypothetically.”

The villain turns to look at him and the two share a look.

Shigaraki looks away first. “Sure kid.” he grins. “Hypothetically.”

***

Shigaraki Tomura watches the boy leave and chuckles to himself as he finally calls Kurogiri to warp him back to the bar.

“Vigilantism solely for the sake of crumbling hero society…” he muses while the line rings. “Sounds fun.”

Now he just has to convince the new recruits.

Chapter Text

As it turns out the new recruits don’t take much convincing at all.

“Oooo” Toga’s eyes shine with a manic glee. “If we're going to do this then we need vigilante names! I call Mystique!”

“I already have a vigilante name.” Dabi smirks, staples pulling at the action. “But if crusty over there is taking requests then I vote for De Caveman.”

“Excuse me?” Shigaraki hisses, gloved fingers tapping at his neck in obvious agitation.

“Yeah, it’s got a nod to your quirk and your overall appearance. Decay-v-man.”

“Ha ha. Very funny.” Shigaraki snaps. “For your information I already have a name in mind. I am Ash.”
He spins suddenly to point a single finger of each hand at Dabi and Spinner. “and for my starter, I choose Charizard!”

Dabi groans and facepalms while Spinner shoots back a “Charizard isn’t even a starter! It’s the level 36 evolution of Charmander!”

Shigaraki’s face pulls into a wide grin. “You. I like you.”

Dabi sighs. “Nerds. I’m surrounded by nerds.”

“Well now that that’s settled, check out the costumes I ordered!”

There’s the sudden sound of a throat clearing and a drinking glass being cleaned aggressively.

“Ah Kurogiri. Kurogiri ordered. Anyway…”

A box is heaved onto the table and Shigaraki pulls out a plain hooded jumpsuit, belt, and gloves all in the same shade of black.

Toga pouts, finger to her chin. “Aww I was hoping for something a little more… red…”

Shigaraki rolls his eyes and throws her a jumpsuit the color of blood. As one, the other occupants of the room clap their hands over their ears as she lets out a squee of delight.

“The fuck is this?” Dabi asks once the shriek has ended, lip curled in disgust as he pulls something from the box.

“Oh that?” Shigaraki shrugs, mock casual. “A visor. Goes over the eyes.”

“I know that Dumbass! Why’s it yellow?”

“Ah.” One of Shigaraki’s fingers drags down his neck before he pulls it back to stare at it as if just realizing he’s wearing gloves. “It. Hides the real color of our eyes. Makes it harder to find what we look like. Yeah.” He nods as if he’s just managed to convince himself. “Also the color is technically called gold just saying.”

Dabi narrows his eyes but yanks out a gray-white fabric next. “And this?”

“Oh that one's cool! It’s a sleeveless turtleneck you wear under the jumpsuit that can be pulled up over the mouth and nose like a ninja!”

“Uh huh. And it’s this exact color because?”

Shigaraki steeples his gloved fingers together. “It was cheaper.”

“Oh really?” Dabi smirks. “because all put together the picture I’m coming up with is-“

A portal opens beside him, Kurogiri’s hand passing through to hold out a shot glass of something. Dabi snatches it instantly. “Never mind.”

“Why are the boots red though?” Spinner mutters.

No one answers him.

Dabi stalks up to the bar and slams his now empty glass down. “I’m not wearing that.” he grumbles to Kurogiri.

“Do not worry. Neither am I.”

“Okay League! Now that we’ve covered mission statement and costumes it’s time to plan our first target. For no particular reason, I propose Endeavor.”

Dabi’s lip curls. “Back off De Caveman. Endeavor’s mine.”

“Make me Staple Boy!”

Kurogiri sighs. “We are going to need more members.”

Behind him Shigaraki and Dabi settle their differences with an arm wrestle and Kurogiri doesn’t even have to remind them not to use their quirks.

Things are looking up.

***

Shouta Aizawa has the news playing while he is grading papers, only half listening to the report.

“Sources say that the official ‘Ash’s theme’ a song best described as boss battle type of music most commonly found in video games and anime, has been dominating the charts since the vigilante’s recent debut. Ash’s theme starts playing whenever the vigilante is about to show up to a fight, even when said fight is in a deserted alley or a crowded shopping mall. Some villains and criminals have been reported as running away at the sound of the opening riff, though apparently none of them get far, and the song is only growing in popularity in the days since Ash’s first appearance.
The creator of the song, amateur pianist Odina Chizu, says the song was a commission from a stranger- that she later realized to be the vigilante- before he’d actually done anything illegal, though he was clearly already making plans. Odina maintains that while Ash has unlimited free use of the song, only she receives the royalties as per their agreement and as such she has not done anything wrong. When asked about the assumption that buying the song helps fund Ash’s vigilante group League of Vigilantes, or Lov for short, Odina shrugged and said she doesn’t know how the rumor started but she and her bank account are not complaining.
We go now to our on the ground reporter, Uzi Meto for the latest scoop. Uzi?”

“Thanks Saya, while it’s unclear how the vigilante manages to transport giant speakers to play his theme before arriving, one thing is for sure, the people. Love it.”

“I just can’t describe the feeling, hearing that opening note and knowing that someone is here to help me.”

“It’s honestly a little bit like All Might’s ‘I am Here!’ you know? That song starts playing and you just relax because you know you’re safe now.”

“And what about the fact that he’s a vigilante and is therefore clearly breaking the law?”

“Well I don’t mean to be rude but he saved me. The heroes didn’t even arrive till much later and they were more interested in chasing down Ash than asking if I was okay.”

”You wanna talk law? How bout the fact that Ash’s Theme keeps disappearing off the music streams? I follow the creator on twitter, I know she’s in middle of suing since it isn’t her fault a vigilante is using her song. What about that law, huh???”

”Young man, forgive an old lady’s musings but perhaps if the heroes didn’t want him doing their jobs for them they should be better than him at doing it.”

A hesitant knock comes on Shouta’s door and with a sigh he lowers the volume and goes to open it.

“Midoriya? Is something wrong?”

The boy shifts on his feet, fingers twisting anxiously together before he takes a breath and straightens up. Green eyes flashing with determination meet Shouta’s stare head on. “Sensei! I was wondering about the official stance on vigilantes! Like um I noticed that some heroes seem to prioritize catching the vigilante while others first take the time to check on the civilians and keep the villains subdued till reinforcements or police arrive. So I was just wondering which stance is correct…”

Shouta sighs and rubs his eyes tiredly. “Always asking the tough ones aren’t you Midoriya? It’s complicated. A top hero with a group of sidekicks should prioritize the vigilante leaving the sidekicks to take care of securing the scene, especially if the villain has already been subdued. Likewise with a hero team. Chasing vigilantes should never take precedence over actual hero work, both because keeping people safe should always be the top priority, as well as to prevent civilians from feeling like the vigilantes care more about their safety than the heroes. Arresting the vigilante is worthless if it comes at the cost of a civilian life.”

“Ah okay. And what about working with them directly?”

Shouta pauses, staring down at his student through narrowed eyes. “Why do you ask?”

“N-No reason!” The boy flails. “I was just thinking if a single hero arrived on the scene of a catastrophe where a vigilante was already working to help people then wouldn’t prioritizing civilian safety mean cooperating together for the duration of the disaster?”

Midoriya’s eyes are wide and gleaming with innocence but Shouta can’t help but feel that he’s walking into a trap.

“Yes…” he says slowly. “A single hero should never try and fight a vigilante head on anyway since without a means to assure a peaceful surrender the hero would need to go all out as if fighting a villain which isn’t something the public likes to see. Legalities aside, most vigilantes are just people who really wanted to be heroes so treating them like villains makes us look bad.”

“Ah okay so like, if a kid saw a vigilante they shouldn’t try to take them down either right?”

That feeling from before is back with a vengeance but Shouta still can’t figure it out so it’s cautiously that he says. “Well most children would be unable to subdue a full grown vigilante, especially without risking bodily harm so it would be illogical to even try.”

“Awesome.” Midoriya chirps. “Thanks Sensei!”

And then the kid is skipping down the hall like Shouta has just removed a great weight from his shoulders.

By the time Shouta thinks to call after him ‘Wait, did you meet a vigilante???’ Midoriya is long gone.

He turns back to his apartment just in time for a picture of Ash to pop up on his screen.

“...am I seeing things or is that vigilante cosplaying as me?”