Chapter Text
"Unfortunately, your son has profound hearing loss. We have methods you can look into and a list of support groups you can check out if you'd like?"
Doctor Tsubasa handed a slip of paper to Inko. She thanked him and silently grabbed her son's hand. Izuku looked at his mom's face in confusion. He didn't know what was going on. Not entirely.
Inko's face was a mix of regret, sadness, and concern. Izuku thought she might start crying again. It's not like she wasn't expecting this outcome.
6 years ago Izuku and his then-best friend, Katsuki had been playing with a few of their other friends. The Doctor's own grandson had been there too. They had been crossing a log and Katsuki fell into the river below. Izuku, the sweet little boy he is, rushed down to go help him. That's when it happened.
None of the boys wanted to explain it at first. Izuku was bleeding out the side of his head so he was Inko's top priority. Katsuki had explained how he had used his quirk. Inko assumed he meant accidentally, he was just 4 then. Katsuki apologized and proclaimed it was an accident and he didn't want to hurt Izuku like that.
Izuku had lost his hearing in his left ear then. Inko had felt pretty bad about that. She treated him to his favorite ice cream and made Katsudon for dinner, his favorite food, for the entire week after the accident. Her little man was still so sad afterward but he kept a brave face on for Mom.
Katsuki had started losing his hearing too, but Mitsuki had been able to afford Sign language lessons and hearing aids. Inko didn't have that luxury. Hisashi had left after Izuku's second diagnosis. This one hurt him more.
Izuku was diagnosed quirkless about 3 months after his ear was damaged. Inko felt as if it were her fault. Maybe if she had a stronger quirk, Izuku would've gotten that. Now Izuku spent most of his days crying alone because Inko didn't want to tell Izuku he couldn't be a hero without one.
At least Mitsuki had agreed to help Izuku learn to sign with Katsuki. Those two became fluent quickly over the 6 years. Inko had tried to learn as much as she could. She wasn't as good as she could be but she could hold conversations with Izuku and it was nice.
A slight tugging on her sleeve drew Inko's eyes to her son. Her son hasn't spoken since 8 years old. He explained it as trouble with hearing his own voice and not being able to control how loud he was, something he got in trouble for at school.
"Mom, when I become a hero, will you smile again? I'd like to see you happy again," he signed an extra smile at the end of his sentence.
Inko felt the tears falling from her eyes. She didn't have the heart to tell him that would never happen. She didn't have the heart to tell him she might never smile. She didn't have the heart to tell him because he only started smiling again after his diagnosis last week.
"Oh Izuku," she spoke as she signed clumsily, "As long as you're happy, I'm happy."
That was the small truth she could share. That wouldn't break his or her heart and maybe she could let him keep dreaming for just a bit longer.
The noise in the room was a dull buzz at this point. Everyone was talking, Izuku could see their lips moving, but none of it was words. He was used to it at this point, but still, it made him long to be able to hear again. Just hearing aids would be nice, maybe it could help him focus better.
His mom couldn't afford that or an interpreter so here Izuku was, raging migraine and buzzing in his ear, attempting to focus on what his teacher was saying. Several papers flew around the room and most of the kids started showing off their quirks.
"They're probably talking about future careers," Izuku thought bitterly.
Kacchan had jumped on top of his desk. Who knew what he was saying, his back was to Izuku. None of the other students would translate even if they knew sign and the teacher didn't seem to care. Keeping up with the lessons was hard enough on its own but it seemed everyone in the building just wanted him to suffer more.
A hand slammed down in front of Izuku. He felt his mouth open on its own as he jumped. A kid covered their mouth with their hand. "They're laughing at me," Izuku thought.
Scorch marks were left on the desk when the hand was removed. Kacchan was right in Izuku's face, screaming. When people screamed they normally didn't enunciate their words correctly. Kacchan had lost some of his hearing and his parents could at least afford a speech therapist so he knew how to shape his lips in a readable way. It became a habit for him over the years.
"Deku, you won't even cut it as a rent-a-cop, what makes you think you could get into UA?"
Izuku was naturally timid, not normally as blunt and bold as signing could be.
"No harm in trying," his hands shook as he signed.
"Hah! Just to try? Are you stupid or something? You'd probably die in the entrance exam!"
Izuku just shrugged. Kacchan had tensed up exceptionally throughout a single sentence. If Izuku tried to speak to him more, it'd just irritate and instigate another issue of "putting him in his place." He didn't need an explanation as to why he had another nasty burn or why a bruise was forming on his face or why he had so many cuts on his arms.
The rest of the school day passed with minimal incident. The other kids looked at Izuku and whispered and laughed behind their hands. Not that they needed to, he wouldn't be able to understand them, they didn't enunciate well enough. The fact that they put in extra effort to do this just made him feel more isolated.
When the other kids had started out picking on him about his deafness Kacchan had jumped in. Kacchan had told them he wouldn't be able to do anything because he was pasta with no powers, not because he couldn't hear their snide remarks.
Now though, Kacchan barely comments when they cover their mouths or speak quietly on purpose. Now Kacchan just burns Izuku's notebook and throws it out a window. Now Kacchan just tells him things that hurt even if he can't hear his "tone of voice" like his grammar teacher likes to talk about.
"If you really want to be a hero," Kacchan's back was turned towards Izuku but with only one person in the room talking he could make out the words, "pray for a quirk in your next life and go take a swan dive off the roof."
Kacchan had turned around completely. He stared at Izuku waiting for a response. Izuku just huffed and grabbed his backpack off the ground.
One of the other kids made a comment that Izuku didn't catch because they were leaving and no one spoke louder than Kacchan, especially around him. But especially when it was about Izuku.
Outside, Izuku found his notebook in a koi pond. They were nibbling at the pages.
"That's not your food that's my notebook," Izuku lamented.
Izuku couldn't wrap his head around Kacchan suicide-baiting him. If Izuku actually did that Kacchan would get into trouble and never get into UA. It didn't matter though, Izuku would still be a hero regardless.
The scent of rotten eggs burned in Izuku's nose. Maybe passing under the bridge wasn't a good idea? The sewer gas might've gotten out if the covering is open. It's not too dangerous, right?
Izuku wasn't too worried about the situation until something wrapped around him. Whatever it was, was trying to shove itself down his throat. It was green and large and moving and alive. It tasted just as bad as it smelled, albeit worse because it was also slimy.
Izuku wasn't sure if anyone would be able to hear him if he tried to scream because he couldn't hear himself, but that didn't matter now. He couldn't scream with this thing choking him. Tears fell down his cheeks. He didn't want to die yet.
Izuku felt light-headed as he gripped the slime. His migraine kicked in, and he swore he heard liquid moving in his ear. Izuku panicked more as he remembered he lost hearing in his right ear because of the buildup of fluid. Was he about to lose all sound?
Izuku lost his balance completely and would've fallen if the slime wasn't holding him. The world blackened around him as he lost consciousness. Before he lost all feeling he felt the ground shake.
Toshinori smacked the kid he just saved a few more times. If this squirt could just wake up then he could leave and drop this villain off with the police. When the kid sat up and started rubbing his head, Toshinori let out a sigh of relief.
The kid seemed panicked and started searching for something, found his notebook, panicked when he realized he already had his autograph then bent over in a bow. When the boy had straightened up he brought his hand down similar to a sumo wrestler accepting his winnings.
"Young man, if you are all right, I'll be taking my leave now!"
The boy started waving his hands wildly, which made almost no sense to Toshinori, and realized something before going to unzip his backpack again.
Toshinori got ready to jump again. He went far and noticed the boy was holding onto his leg.
"Hey, let go!"
The boy shook his head and looked down then back up at him.
"That would be a very far fall. Hang on!"
Toshinori landed on a roof and felt some blood start to trickle up his throat. Shit. He needed to go somewhere else, his time was running out. The boy seemed to swipe his hands around a bit and looked like he was doing a more rigid version of normal gestures.
Toshinori wanted to smack himself, this boy is using sign language. Now, Toshinori was no expert on the language but he learned a bit when he was studying abroad so maybe that would help?
Toshinori felt his time run out and steam piled up as he transformed back into his true form. The boy stared straight at him and looked like he'd seen a ghost. This was a normal reaction to him at this point.
Toshinori started to sign, "My boy, you have to keep my true form secret."
The boy in front of him continued to stare but now he looked confused. Toshinori's expression matched the boy's as he signed something that wasn't clear to Toshinori either.
"I'm not fluent in sign, maybe we should just write this out?"
Toshinori made motion-like writing with a pencil in his hand. The boy grabbed his notebook and flipped to a blank page. Toshinori sighed as he started writing things as concisely as possible. The boy watched as he wrote down what he had planned on telling him.
The boy read, curls blocking his eye's movement as he read Toshinori's writing. Toshinori noticed how focused he was on the reading. He also noticed he was similar to Nighteye, with the green hair and analysis ability.
Toshinori had read through his notebook while he was looking for a page to autograph. His analysis ability was on par with a few pro heroes, perhaps if he were able to do this during battle he'd make an excellent hero.
The boy looked up worried. Toshinori pulled up his shirt to show the wound he mentioned in the writing. He hadn't written who he fought to receive a scar this bad, but he did mention it was a fight 5 years back. He had lost his stomach.
Toshinori glanced at the page when the boy finished writing his thoughts. They were very messy, but the boy had a clear point. He had gone over all the official fights of that year and concluded that there was no way Toxic Chainsaw did that.
Toshinori began to write. He complimented the boy's memory and affirmed that, no, Toxic Chainsaw did not do this.
The boy began writing again. This time on a fresh page with the header reading question. Toshinori stood up and dusted himself off. He wondered if he could respond to his question verbally. Lip reading is something people did right?
The boy looked up with tears forming in his eyes. Was he trying to ask a sensitive question? The large green eyes filled with hope and a little bit of fear.
Toshinori looked at the page. In very messy letters was a short paragraph. Toshinori mentally chuckled at it.
"I've always wanted to be a hero like you since I was young. I've been told by everyone that I can't and I want to know if it's true. Can I be a hero without a quirk?"
The brakes in Toshinori's head slammed immediately. This kid's analysis ability wasn't off but without a quirk?
"No, it's too dangerous even for those of us with quirks," Toshinori made sure he spoke as clearly as he could. He had to get moving soon and writing would take too much time.
"If you really want to help people you could join the police force or support, those analyses could prove useful there."
The boy looked down as he deflated. Toshinori could see the tears starting to drip on his notebook. Hopefully, the kid could get home alright on his own, Toshinori had a villain to arrest.
Toshinori left the rooftop and realized the villain wasn't there. Looking out the window revealed a fight going on in the shopping district and he raced towards it praying that it was something else and the villain was still in its bottle.
Katsuki struggled against the sludge monster holding him. He'd been stuck for a few minutes now. Those extras had been saved almost immediately but Katsuki was stuck fighting from inside the villain.
Katsuki thought he was used to holding his breath, he did swim often, but this was something else. Maybe it was worse that the villain was trying to force itself inside him. The thought of throwing up came to Katsuki's mind but there was no way he would even be able to do that.
People had gathered to watch. Why didn't one of them do something? Are they all really that weak? Does not one of them have a quirk they can use to help? At least help that idiot put out the fires?
Katsuki's vision was starting to fade. He could barely hear the commotion anymore, there was quite a bit of shouting though. The sludge released around his mouth and he gulped in the air. In front of him was Deku. Deku?
"What the hell are you doing, Deku?" Katsuki choked out.
Deku signed the words Katsuki knew were but didn't want to hear, well see.
"You looked like you needed saving."
The sludge villain was moving. In his peripheral vision, Katsuki saw the thing move its hand forward. It went down to crush Deku.
Katsuki shouted but cut himself off when he saw All Might. Oh. All Might is here. Why the hell did it take so long? Why did Deku have to almost die for Katsuki to get saved?
A rush of wind momentarily knocked Katsuki out but he regained his senses quickly. It had started to rain. All Might was being cheered on. Deku lay next to him.
Katsuki was checked over by paramedics and then some pros came over and offered a spot at their agency as a sidekick. Katsuki was nobody's sidekick. They called him strong for holding out so long but he couldn't save himself. Were they lying? Was Katsuki really as weak as Mom said he is?
Katsuki stalked home. Deku already left but he had to make something clear first. He could easily catch up to him. Deku was always slower than all of their classmates. He couldn't even catch up to most of the girls. This is why he would always be weak.
Deku was trudging home slower than usual when Katsuki found him. What the hell was up with him? Whatever, it didn't matter. All that mattered was Deku knowing his place.
Katsuki grabbed Deku's shoulder and spun him around.
"Listen here Deku. You didn't save me. You didn't do anything except make yourself a liability! You'll never be anything more than a quirkless weakling!"
Katsuki stalked off after that. He left Deku to deal with his own bullshit.
Izuku heaved another disappointed sigh. Kacchan was right, after all, he had done nothing except put himself in danger. All Might had to save him again. Maybe he was right, he shouldn't be a hero.
That's when All Might slid in front of Izuku in full Might form. He then spits out blood and became his small form again.
Izuku passes over a handkerchief his Mom makes him carry usually. All Might gratefully takes it and dabs at the blood. He then makes a point to clear his throat.
The street is completely silent so hearing what All Might says isn't hard just like when All Might spoke on the rooftop Izuku's greatest fear. Now All Might was speaking his greatest desire.
Izuku had started crying. He remembered how often his mom looked sad when he mentioned wanting to be a hero. He remembered him promising to make her smile when he finally became a hero.
"You can become a hero!"
This was something straight out of a fantasy book or a manga. Everyone had always said I couldn't and I could tell my mom was thinking it. To have the greatest hero ever tell me I can be a hero was just the cherry on top.
"You're the one who's worthy to inherit my strength."
Izuku scrunched his eyebrows. "Hopefully, he caught on to my confusion," Izuku thought as he wiped the snot dripping from his nose.
All Might threw his head back as he spoke, "That expression is pitiful, for now, it's just a suggestion, my boy. Your true test has just begun."
Izuku blinked even more confused than before.
"It's simply a matter of whether or not you'll try your damnedest to absorb my power!"
All Might must be senile. No one knew how old he was and he hadn't gone grey yet but he must be senile. What the hell was he talking about? Izuku would be tempted to laugh in his face if, 1, he wasn't feeling like crap and, 2, that would be rude.
"My quirk is a power not unlike the sacred torch of legend that comes passed from one bearer to the next!"
All Might spread his arms wide while he talked. His body language read as honest but Izuku couldn't help but feel this was a trick. I mean, a quirk that could be passed down? I mean no one knew All Might's quirk and he would always redirect attention when it came to questions about his quirk. The concept that it was passed down to him from someone else just made no sense.
"Don't just immediately shoot down the possibility. I may keep things close to my chest but I won't lie!"
That's true enough. There was never once All Might blatantly lie to someone. Izuku had been studying facts about humans for years, mostly posture and behavior related to how people were feeling. All Might wasn't hiding anything, but, he did say to not shoot it down.
"It's the power to transfer power and the name of that vaunted ability to which I've been entrusted is none other than One For All."
Izuku mouthed the last words. One For All. It wasn't the worst name he's heard a quirk have but it was definitely weird. Izuku wondered if All Might really would give this power to him.
Izuku nodded in acceptance of this power, One For All. All Might grinned in response.
"Now there's a quick reply, just as I expected, you young rascal!"
Toshinori sat on the fridge he was having young-Midoriya pull. This was to train his muscles to receive the quirk after all. Young-Midoriya was having a great deal of trouble though.
"This fridge makes for a fine seat! I sure am glad you haven't been able to budge it," Toshinori teased, "I'm getting awfully comfy up here."
Young-Midoriya shot a glare over his shoulder and continued to try to pull. He collapsed suddenly and lay there a moment. He sat up and turned to fingerspell his words.
"Why are we at the seaside park hauling garbage?"
Over the last few days, Toshinori had been trying to learn as much sign language as he could to communicate with the boy. It turns out the sign he learned abroad was ASL, which would clearly be a problem in Japan when the main sign here is JSL.
"Aren't you precious, it's because you're not a vessel silly!"
Young-Midoriya started crying and started to sign a word before finger spelling paradox.
"It's your body buddy! Say cheese!"
Toshinori snapped a quick picture of Young-Midoriya's pathetic string-bean frame.
"Think of One For All as the sum convergence of the power of all men. A body that weak wouldn't be able to withstand such raw power. Your limbs would blow off and you'd be blown to bits!"
Young-Midoriya yelped and jumped back at that notion. He gripped his arms tight like he was trying to comfort himself that they would still be attached to his body.
Toshinori passed Young-Midoriya's Communication! Notebook over to him. He stared for a few seconds before writing out his thoughts, lightning quick.
"That's not the full story my boy! I found this park online yesterday. It was left to rot years ago."
Young-Midoriya wrote down exactly what Toshinori had been expecting. He caught on quick, which was good, he'd need it in this field. Toshinori set his hand on the fridge he had been sitting on before.
"The young heroes these days are obsessed with flashiness, but the hero game ought to be a labor of love! Call it plain all you like, but I won't let the fundamentals get fuzzy! Mark this day, boy, as your first step towards being a hero!"
Young-Midoriya never spoke as far as Toshinori could tell, but he swore he heard him whisper the words "the entire beach" as he looked around in awe. Then determination filled his features and he immediately went to go pick up a tire wheel.
"I'll let you get started soon, but first," Toshinori pulled out a packet.
"My Aim to Pass: American Dream Plan. This will help you get your body in shape. This is going to be hard, are you man enough to do it?"
Young-Midoriya squinted up at Toshinori before writing something quickly. When Toshinori read it he chuckled.
"No, but I'm woman enough to do it."
"Very well," Toshinori smiled, "then it's time to get started!"