Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"The first incident was in Ching-ching city, an extraordinary child was born who radiated light after that reports of people with superpowers popped up across the globe, no one knew what was causing these quirks; before long the supernatural became the totally normal, dreams a reality. The word became a superhuman society with about 80% of the population possessing some uncanny ability, our streets look like scenes from comic books a city swilled with chaos and confusion a new profession dominated our collective consciousness; it was an age of heroes!"

Inko Midoriya looked up at the stars, those beautiful orbs, some very bright some hardly visible, regardless all came together to form a spectacular picture, nor for the first time she was awestruck by the sheer beauty of the cosmos; she sometimes thought that like stars all humans on earth hade a propose some would stand out brightly and some could hardly be seen but all of them were adding they piece of light, making a difference.

This thought was comforting to her since she often felt she was one of those tiny, tiny stars, having been born into a simple family, gone to a simple school, chosen a simple career… the only bit of brightness in her life had come when she met Hisashi, unlike her he seemed to shine a lot brighter, he was by no means rich, nor too handsome, or wielded a strong quirk that would make him stand out, but from the moment she meets him, she could see a fierce light shining in said of him, a passion and love for life that she lacks up on till then, he had given her that light that spark. What she did not know is that he often thought of her similarly, he saw in said of her determination and strength wat his carefree and wild spirit lack, they complemented each other perfectly.

But now, standing on the porch of the Kansas farmhouse, looking at stars that because of the brightness of her home city lights of Musutafu she never saw, she felt like that spark, that soft light was going extinct, the scenery was blurred as the tears she had been so fervently trying to hold back finally began to flow, she fell to her knees sobbing, no longer caring if the other heard her, her loos was too big.

From the moment she married Hisashi, they had known they wanted children but the young couple's life was that of constant work trying to stay afloat, they scarcely had time for each other much less a child so they waited. Three years when by when finally, the big news came, the goal they had been working towards, Hisashi had been given the big promotion and was been sent to work overseas earning sufficient money so that Inko could stop working and use their combined savings to buy a new apartment, the weight of rent having finally being eliminated.

Sure, it was not amazing but it was home their home; now with Inko free of the long working hours and two spare bedrooms in the house, all they lacked was some little ones to occupy them.

That had been the plan; they tried for months, Inko taking pregnancy tests became a common occurrence, but they always came negative and with each negative result she felt her hope crumbling. Finally, they had taken the decision to go to the doctor, samples and studies were taken, Hisashi was hopeful assuring his wife that "everything would be all right, or it would be something easily fix", she smile and agree, but no amount of reassurance from her husband could push away the feeling of dread that pulled at her stomach.

A week before the results were supposed to come in, she and Hisashi boarded a plane headed towards the United States to visit their dear friend the Kent's, it had been years since she had seen the woman that was not only her best friend but the closest thing she had to a sister, how such an unusual friendship had come to pass was quite a story.

Inko experience a relatively normal childhood, she grew up in a normal home, with a mom and a dad, and two older brothers, they weren't the closest family but they were sufficiently loving, Inko couldn't say she had lacked affection, food, shelter or clothes; that, however, changed when she turned fifteen.

Her mother found out her dad had been having an affair which led to months of fitting and finally a long and bitter divorce, her older brother, who was 19 at the time, could not take it anymore and moved in with his girlfriend, her other brother who was 17 demanded his parent give him emancipation setting him free from legal restrictions as a minor, they agreed, glad to free themselves of another custody battle, a soon as the necessary legal arrangements were done, he left home.

That left Inko to deal with the turmoil that was their home, her mother had begun to drink more and more alcohol, leading her to only receiving partial custody on Inko, her father married the woman he had been unfaithful with, she brought along her two daughters who were only 2 and 3.

Inko was a gentle soul, but none of her natural goodness could eradicate the burning hatred she had for the woman, sure her life had not been spectacular but it had been a normal decent life surrounded by the people she loved but everything was broken because of that woman.

Part of Inko always knew her father was to blame as well, but the part of her that loved the man who had given her life just refuse to accept that.

The witch, as Inko like to refer to her, never did much to gain her affection either; when Inko came to stay with them she was forced to do housework and serve as a baby sitter to the two lithe girls while her father and his wife when out to dance and drink away the night; going to her mom was not much better, she had become a full-on alcoholic sometimes so intoxicated she would take out her anger and pain hitting Inko who spent her time cocking and cleaning after her, afraid that if not feed and constantly watch over her mother would drink herself to death.

Her grades at school became worse and worse and Inko feared she would fail the school year and be forced to retake it; the final blow came when one of her teachers saw the cuts on Inko's arms cause by the beer bottles her mother threw at her in fits of rage, afraid that she was being abused at home he called child protection services.

Inko refused to acknowledge that her mother was hurting her, but after several hours of gentle words by the agent, she finally told them the truth crying violently.

Her mother was sent to jail and put in mandatory addiction therapy, Inko's full custody was then given to her father and she moved in with him and his family permanently.

Life improved somewhat for Inko, she was no longer being physically and mentally abuse and her grades improved allowing her to pass ninth grade, but life wasn't great either, Inko now not only hated her stepmom she hated her dad for turning her mom into a monster. The constant housework was a pain, the lithe girls were a pain and she lashed out at them even though she knew it wasn't their fault, they were the victim in the situation just as much as herself.

In a moment of desperation, she contacted her older brother begging him to take her in, but he refused, he and his now-wife were hardly staying afloat, they could not have her in, she would only be a burden. Those words hurt Inko so, so badly because she felt they were true, she was nothing but a burden.

She fell into the hands of depression, which got so much worse when her other brother, the one she hadn't heard from in a long time, committed suicide, the police found his body days later decomposing at the bottom of a river.

Inko felt like she was being pushed into a hole with every passing day, a hole she could never hope to dig herself out of, and sometimes very dark thoughts plagued her consciousness, wouldn't it be better to end it all? to free herself of this miserable life? She couldn't see an end to it, a light in the distance that she could reach, nothing, just darkness and she didn't want it, couldn't bear the thought that there was nothing else for her, no way out, wouldn't it be so much better to join her brother? to free herself of this exitance that was only a burden to the one around her and herself?

Surprisingly the thing that motivated her to change came from the person she hated more than anything, her stepmom became pregnant, Inko knew what was coming, she knew the woman, knew she would be forced to take care of that baby along with the other two children, the idea caused her so much dread she considered fleeing home.

A better solution came instead in the way of a simple announcement the Japanese board of education publish on their internet page, which offered highschoolers who could not afford normal exchange programs a chance to participate in one to the U.S, the program specially targeted teenagers in difficult family situations offering them to stay for one year in the U.A.S and attend school there. The chance of getting a stable home and learning fluent English for free was an amazing opportunity and, for Inko, it was an escape plan.

She applied, for once the disaster that had been her life becoming useful for something as she was chosen out of thousands of applicants. The news wasn't well-received by her stepmother but she didn't care, the woman who had been playing the role of the main antagonist in her life could no longer stop her.

On her sophomore year of high school, she packed her bags and boarded a flight headed towards, what she hoped, was the start of a new life or at least a break from her depressing old one.

She was sent to Smallville, a town, that as its name subjected was notably small, but Inko loved it, every inch of corn and grassy fields, having grown up in the city, in very small apartments with lots of people cramped together the idea of so much open space, such clean air, and blue skies, it was all a dream to her, but the best thing was her adoptive family, the Clark's.

Inko had not realized just how starved for affection she was until she met them, the mother sweet and gentle, the dad a strong father figure but at the same time loving with toward his children a love that he extended to Inko without reserve, like her family there were a younger girl and two older brothers, in the beginning, it hurt her to see the two lively boys, a painful reminder of her lost brother and the older one, who she had cut ties with after he refused to take her in, but soon the rambunctious twins warm up to her and she began to see them not as hurtful reflections of her lost but as a new family, a truly loving one that cared for her.

She became especially close with Martha Clark, they were the same age and share a lot of interests, even though there was a language barrier at the beginning they somehow always manage to understand each other, soon they were inseparable, forming a bond that would last a lifetime.

The day was bitter when Inko exchange program ended and she had to go back to Japan and her blood family, but Inko had changed in her year with the Clarks, the dread pain and depression she had carried around, the horrible belief that she was nothing but a burden, all of that was in the past.

The Clarks had shown her she was not a burden, far from it, she was special, she was loved, and more than anything they left her with the promise that when life got hard and her blood family turned their back on her she always had her other family, the people that had transcendent blood bonds and shown her that love had no barriers. Inko left promising to return when she turns 18.

During her last two years of high school manage she managed to balance her studies, working at home, especially taking care of the new baby, her half-brother, and working in a fast-food place, saving all the money to buy her tickets for America.

She graduated with decent grades and within a few weeks of her 18th birthday she was on a plane bound for the little town in Kansas where her real family was.

Life got better for Inko over the years, she applied and went to a decent college choosing to study accounting. On-campus, she met the man who would become her husband, a bright hyperactive boy who was studying to become a Biomedical Engineer. Inko had regularly considered moving to the States, the Clarks had promised her a home until she could get on her feet and numerous Colleges offer scholarships to foreigners, however, Hisashi was the reason she stayed in Japan the Clarks may have helped her in her teen years but Hisashi was her future. Despite her choice to remain in her home country, she never forgot the people who put her back together when she was falling apart.

She visited Smallville almost every two years, eventually bringing Hisashi along so her family could meet her fiancé.

Inko was at Martha's wedding when she married her childhood sweetheart Jonathan Kent, Martha was at her wedding when she married Hisashi.

The two women kept in touch over the years, especially when the painful news that Martha seemed unable to have children came, those were hard times for both of them as Inko help her friend through the pain.

Pain she was now experiencing, not even the stars, the fresh air, the distant sound of the cows in the pasture, could distract her from the words that bounce around like painful bullets in her head.

"I'm sorry Mrs. and Mr. Midoriya but it appears that you are unable to have children", the doctor had said over the phone, proceeding then to explain the reason, most of it Inko did not completely understand but she got one clear message: They couldn't have children and it was her fault.

Hisashi had asked the doctor if there was anything that could be done, he apologized again but said there was nothing that could fix the issue.

She looked up at the stars thinking about the doctors while another round of sobs shook her body. Hisashi walked up behind her silently, he took a seat on the squeaky porch stairs and put his arms around his wife, he didn't say anything, what was there to be said? Is it not your fault? Inko may not have a degree in the medical field even with her limited knowledge she knew it was her fault that they were unable to have children.

She sobbed into his shoulder for several minutes, his shirt getting stained with her tears. Hisashi held his wife in silence, shedding a few tears of his own that he made a great effort to hide from her, it hurt him to see her like this and he didn't want to add to her pain by making her feel even more guilty.

Inko's sobs gradually became softer and softer, her body appearing to had run out of tears to shed, softly she untangle herself from his embrace, still she said noting and almost appear to be refusing to meet his eyes, taking the hint that she wanted to be alone f he gave her a soft peck on the lips and went inside.

A few minutes passed before the screen door once again opened, this time it was her best friend, Marta Kent, who, like Hisashi, sat down on the floor beside her, but unlike him, she did speak.

-"You know the doctors are sometimes wrong, look at me, they said I would never have a baby but three months ago, against all odds, I gave birth to little Clark."

Inko only gave her a sad look for an answer.

- "Inko look at me", Martha commanded, "Nothing is writing in stone, you have to have faith, life has thrown you down so many times, and yet, you kept on fighting this is just another obstacle, but you will overcome it like you always do, if you want to have a family have faith that your wish will somehow come true," she paused for a second looking deep into the other woman's eyes, "And remember Inko family is not just determined by blood ties."

The words seemed to at least stunt Inko enough to make her speak as she caught her friend's meaning. "Maybe you are right," she murmured after a while, filling new conviction, "I'll have faith..."

Martha smiled, her gray eyes shining like river pebbles. "Inko through all the hard times in your life faith has kept you going, to promise that things could get better", she grabbed her friend hands, "Just keep on having faith dear, keep on believing and remember I would always be here for you no matter what".

The two friends hugged, a new level of understanding between them, after that Martha left as Clark started crying and needed to be fed.

With the last echos of her friend steps, however, Inko once again felt the small conviction crumble, somehow she sensed this was some sort of punishment from the universe, she remembered the many time she had stricken her two stepsisters in angle when they made a mess that she had to clean, how, when her stepmom needed her the most during her pregnancy she left, how she had hated her half-brother because taking care of him took so much of her time and energy, how she refused to help her older brother when he contacted her, desperately begging her to help him take care of his newborn baby as his wife had left him, all she had said is that it was too much of a burden and hung up, and now the universe was punishing her, now she could not have a baby of her own; she almost laughed at the irony.

She no longer felt like crying, a numbness had come over her as her mind progressively went into deeper darker places, digging up old painful memories she had long since buried.

Deciding she might as well be miserable inside and free of the mosquitos that eagerly bit at her exposed flesh she got up, cleaning the tear streaks from her face with her shirt sleeve as she opened the screen door.

Jonathan Kent was sitting in the kitchen reading some newspaper, Martha was upstairs, and Hisashi had probably gone to bed in the visitor's room, Jonathan nodded at her visibly uncomfortable, he was bad at this sort of thing even in their teenage years he had practically suffered an aneurism trying to confess to Marta, as he admitted to Inko he would rather deal with an angry bull than with emotional people, not to say he was insensible he just found it hard to find the proper word to consol somebody.

Clark had brought out in him a softer side, Inko had never seen him smile more than when Clark was born, his eyes lighting up every time he saw his little boy.

Speaking of Clark, Inko looked down at the baby in his cradle, he was a healthy three-month-old ray of sunshine as people would say, such a happy baby, he seldom cried and seemed to always be in a good mood.

He gave her a toothless smile as soon as he saw her, the grey eyes he had gotten from his mother twinkling with baby merriment, Inko picked him up bouncing a little on her feet which made him go into a fit of giggles, she smiled enjoying the babies happiness, softly brushing his sandy blonde hair with her fingers before putting him back in his cradle as he kept on beaming at her with such pure delight, such a happy baby she thought not for the first time, a little beam of sunshine.

She had imagined her  future baby' like that, little bundles of happiness who would never have to worry about anything, children who would have perfect childhoods with parents that love them and who would always have their mother by their side even as they grew up into teenagers and adults. The thought sent a fresh wave of pain trough Inko, but it was short-lasting as another wave of giggles from Clark chased it away.

As she tickled Clark's belly, making him turn red with laughter, an idea began to form in her heart, an idea that kept on growing as she prepared for bed and finally laid down beside her, already fast asleep, husband.

Inko's blood family was a mess, but she had been adopted into a new family who loved her regardless of only knowing her for a short time, they had ignored the barriers of culture, language and race, they had shown her the support and love she had so desperately needed.

She should follow their example, maybe she could not have a child of her own blood but she could have a child to love with all her heart just like the Clarks had loved her. With new determination, Inko fell peacefully asleep that night thinking about all the little babies who needed a home, who needed parents to love and protect them, a home and love Inko was more than ready to provide.

Next morning Inko woke up feeling peaceful, her resolve from last night stronger than ever; she snuggled up to the form of her sleeping husband waiting for him to wake up, the movement seemed to the trick as soon Hisashi opened his golden eyes, his face forming a sleepy smile as he saw his wife beside him.

- "Feeling better?", He asked in a groggy voice.

She kissed him on the cheek, "Huch better actually, I'm thinking adoption."

Hisashi's eyes twinkle at her words as he planted a kiss on her forehead, "Adoption sounds great dear."

She sat up looking at him playfully, "What about we discuss it on our walk to the lake today?"

Hisashi's smile became even wider, he had believed neither of them would be in any mood for the two-hour-long walk but his wife's happiness and energy were contagious.

"That sounds even better", he said getting out of bed in one smooth motion.

The couple bathed and dress for the trip, anxious to be on their way before the early morning Kansa sun got the chance to assault their pale complexions.

Even though it was quite early, dawn just breaking over the horizon, the Kent's had somehow managed to wake up before them, the sounds of activity coming from all parts of the house.

Not for the first time, Inko found herself amazed at their discipline and slightly embarrassed at her tardiness as she joined Martha in making breakfast.

Inko told her about her resolve to adopt a child, explaining how the Clark family set an example for her and how she was really to shower a child with love just like they had done with her.

Martha found herself immensely happy as her friend's new conviction and wasted no time in giving her the names of a few good agencies in case they wanted to adopt an American baby adding in all the knowledge she had about the process of adopting, a plan that, until she became pregnant with Clark, had been underway for the Kent's.

The two women talked excitedly as Jonathan rocked Clark in his strong arms and Hisashi made faces at the baby, the happiness of the woman penetration the entire house.

They ate a happy breakfast, full of pleasant conversation and laughter, Clark joining in the merriment of the adults, laughing whenever they did.

With Martha's help, Inko pack made and packed sandwiches for their lunch along with snacks and several water bottles, with the final promise to be back before diner they were on their way, through pastures and small forest the young couple walked and talked happily, they discussed many things, where to adopt, how to adopt, did they want a girl or a boy? a newborn or an older baby? maybe a toddler? Could they adopt twins? There were just so many possibilities.

They were on the subject of names when they finally arrived at their destination. It wasn't much of a lake, more like a large pond, but Inko loved it, it had been one of her favorite places as a teen and still held a lot of sentimental value for her.

She climbed atop one of her favorite rocks, leaving her backpack hanging from a tree, for his part, Hisashi arranged his meager fishing equipment and once again started his yearly attempts at actually caching something edible, his failures always produce a good amount of laugher from Inko.

They continued talking, Inko skipping rocks and writing baby name ideas on a small notebook she had brought for the occasion, Hisashi casting his lines in several different areas of the pond attempting to catch something other than a shoe, all in all, it was a great start of the day for the Midoriya's.

Inko was in the middle scrolling a Facebook page when a sudden sound distracted her, she and Hisashi both looked up at the same time as something high up in the sky caught their attention.

They stood almost transfixed for a few seconds trying to make sense of what they were seeing, too late did they realize that whatever it was, it was coming right at them, Inko scrambled down from the rock and ran to the cover of the trees along with her husband, both falling down from the shock wave as the first meteor stroke the lake, Hisashi tried to protect his wife with his body as much as he could but both of them knew that if they were struck it would be over.

It seemed forever for the scared pair but in truth, it lasted around a minute, granted it was the most terrifying minute of the couple's life, their lives flashing before their eyes every time a meteor narrowly missed them.

They stayed huddle together for a long time after the last of the meteors had fallen, waiting to see if it was truly over while coming to terms with the very fortunate reality that they were both still alive and mostly uninjured but for a scraped knee Inko had gotten climbing down in her hurry to get down from the rock.

Reluctantly at first and with their knees shaking with fear they stood up, the view that met them was simultaneously the most awe-striking thing they had ever seen and the most terrifying.

What they saw at that moment would not only change their lives forever but would one day change the world, however, in that instant they didn't know that, and the unfamiliar sight that could be seen across the lake brought little more than fear into them.

A huge crater was smoking; considering they had just survived a meteor shower it was not unusual as there were many similar smaller craters around them, the difference was what laid embedded in the middle of this one, something that could only be described as a spaceship.

Inko let out a gasp as she caught sight of the shiny machine, her hand shakily reaching for Hisashi who barely reacted as he found himself mesmerized by the out-of-word design of the spaceship, his specialty was far from being space-aeronautics but he could still tell the machine was impressive.

The feeling, however, was swiftly overtaken by fear, who could have sent a spaceship, the Russians? Had some military test gone wrong? China? Nasa? Could it be a bomb in disguise? This last possibility made him shudder, he really wanted to put some distance between himself and that thing no matter how much his scientific mind was screaming for him to go and check it out.

"Come on Inko let's get out of here," he said, reaching for his wife, almost jumping in surprise when he found the woman he loved had already crossed half the distance towards the mysterious object, "Inko what are you doing?", he cried, running towards her, grabbing and pulling her back.

"That thing could be dangerous let's get out of here!", He said, trying to coax her into moving.

Inko looked at him with an almost sleepy expression, "I hear crying".

For a second Hisashi thought his wife was still in shock from the recent experience, that, or she was in some sort of trance induced by the stress from the situation, he looked down at her trying to determine how to best approach the situation, he was about to just resign himself to carrying her when he heard it too, the unmistakable sound of an infant crying. It was muffled but there was no mistake, worst of all, it seemed to be coming from the spaceship.

Hisashi found himself in a big dilemma, for starters that thing just had danger written all over it and it would be the act of a madman to approach it but on the other hand, the sound of an infant crying produces an immediate response in his human brain creating an urgency to help, could he live with himself if he ran away now and maybe let a baby to its fate? Would his consciousness leave him alone if he turned around now and refused to even assess the situation? He answered himself as he firmly grabbed his wife's hands trying to hide just how much his own were shaking; he looked her in the eyes seeing none of the fear he felt reflected in them.

"Let's go check it out "he finally managed to say.

They approached it with caution, the rock and earth in the crater were still smoking something Inko fix by using her quirk to attract small globs of water from the lake and throwing them at the earth, steam roused with a fierce hiss as the water evaporated as soon as it came in contact with the scorching earth, Hisashi tried to help with his water bottle running from the crater to the lake int what he, was sure, was quite the comical dance, it took them a long time during which the baby's cries ceased, making them work even faster.

Finally, after what had felt like hours, they began walking toward the spaceship on a narrow path of safe earth.

It was truly a remarkable piece of technology, made of a silvery bluish metal, sleek and exceptionally aerodynamic, it had a small engine way too small to actually be able to move something this big, Hisashi thought to himself but then it looked nothing like anything he had ever seen on earth so he couldn't very well call it technologically impossible, especially considering it had just fallen from the sky.

Carefully he touched it, brazing himself as he knew full well that if the earth around hit had been hot, the machine would be unbearably so, to his great surprise it was cold to the touch unlike the earth surrounding it, to his even further a hissing sound suddenly came from its interior.

Purely out of reflex he took a step back almost stepping on the smoking rocks, the machine kept on hissing almost like it was adjusting the atmospheric pressure inside of itself; Hisashi had to hold himself back from turning around and making a run for it, the only thing that kept him rooted in place was his wife whose face showed no fear.

What appeared to be a cockpit started to open slowly, dividing itself into two halves, the motion so fluid and silent it reminded him of a flower opening its petals, it also showed that, unlike what he had first assumed, the entire outer shell wasn't just a single piece of metal but had moving parts, it had just been so well crafted that when they fit together it gave the illusion of being a single piece.

This discovery, however, didn't hold his attention for long as the moving doors also left in plain sight what the ship had been so carefully built to carry.

Inko stood almost petrified as the doors fully parted revealing their precious cargo, sure she had heard the crying but not even that had fully prepared her for the sight that awaited her.

The entire situation had such a dream-like quality she felt inclined to believe she was in a dream, this simply was too good to be true, life was never these easy... but despite how hard she tried to wake nothing happened, with every attempt she became more and more convinced that this was reality, what she had in front of her was very much real and it was a miracle, a miracle from heaven.

Both of them stood in a trance looking down at their little miracle until said little miracle started wailing very loudly.

Gently she picked up the crying newborn who was snugly wrapped in a red blanket, she rocked it trying to calm the baby down using every method she knew off but her best efforts proved mostly fruitless, at least their crying became a normal volume whimpering instead of an ear-splitting sound.

-"What kind of monster would put a baby in an aircraft and send it flying to their fate?". She exclaimed horrified.

-"I have no idea". Hisashi answered looking more worried by the second, "Let's just hope whomever it is, doesn't want it back". He said as he moved his wife gently away from the spacecraft, there was no telling when it would decide they were a threat and attack them, especially now that they had taken its passenger.

The idea of someone taking away the child seemed to scare Inko and it didn't take much more convincing for her to leave move away from the crater.

"We need to get far away from here, I don't care if somebody wants this baby back if you dare to send a child in an aircraft for whatever purpose then you don't deserve children", she said quite firmly, clutching the crying baby to her chest.

Hisashi could not agree more with her except for the fact that the trip back to the Kent's house was a two-hour affair, which was two hours more than the time he wished to be walking around fully exposed, and more importantly, he didn't want to leave the space ship laying around for the authorities to find and wonder what had been inside, if the theory that had begun to form in his head was true then they would have no chance keeping the child.

"Not yet," he said reluctantly after pondering their options, "I really think we should take the ship with us, hide it, and there's no way to move it all by ourselves, we will have to call the Kent's for help, they can bring up their pick-up truck".

Inko seemed hesitant but she knew there was a lot less time spend if her friends just came to pick them up in their car, finally, she nodded and Hisashi brought out his phone to make, what he was sure, would be the weirdest conversation of his life.

Inko walked a little way from her husband, sitting down on a fallen log, all the while looking down concerned at the child who now seemed to be gasping for breath in between sobs, she ordered herself not to panic and think of what to do, she had taken care of her baby brother, she knew how to deal with babies.

-"Maybe it's just too hot". She murmured as she unwrapped the blanket from the baby's frame, finding that it was only wearing some sort of diaper, tired of having to think of them as "it", she took a quick peek.

"Well... you are a boy", she informed the baby who didn't seem very impressed and only kept on crying and gasping for breath.

She tried everything to calm it down, she rocked him, she made sure his diaper was clean, burp him, everything, but nothing seemed to work, "Perhaps he is just hungry", she thought, trying to reassure herself.

She swallowed, looking down at the baby, the truth was that try as she may she just couldn't push away the impression that he was dying, that at any moment he would take its last shaky breath in her arms, the thought brought tears to her eyes but she quickly wiped them away, she had to be strong, as soon as they got out of here, she would take him to a hospital the doctor would help him, he would be okay.

At that very moment a ray of sunshine filtered through the branches of the tree canopy above her, enveloping the baby in warm light, Inko prepared herself to move thinking the bright light would bother the already clearly pained and uncomfortable baby, surprisingly it had the contrary effect, he seemed to calm down almost immediately his breathing becoming something close to normal, Inko looked down at her child with a mixture of surprise and mostly relief.

She smiled as she considered him like that for the first time, her child, it had quite a good ring to it.

It didn't matter that he looked nothing similar to her or her husband, not green eyes or hair like hers, or golden eyes and copper curly hair like Hisashi, no, this baby was quite the opposite to them with electric blue eyes and black hair, not to mention it had no Asian features making him an entirely different race than her, but it didn't matter, none of it did, he was hers, her child.

She bent down, giving it a gentle kiss on its pinkish cheek, coming back with the taste of salty tears from his previous crying.

It would be many years later that Inko discovered that those tears weren't just the babies, the remnants of his crying mixing with the tears of another mother and father who had kissed their newborn baby goodbye.

At that moment, however, Inko paid no mind to such matters, she was thrilled at the fact she had just become a mother, and whatever little thought she gave to the people who had put her baby on a spaceship was that of disdain.

Hisashi came back from his phone call and sat heavily beside her, passing a hand through his hair nervously at the sight of his wife seeming to be lost in a little world of her own as she looked down at the baby.

"I'm thinking about naming him Izuko", she said, gently passing a hand through his soft hair.

"Um... maybe we should not get too attached," he commented trying to sound casual, wincing internally as her wife turn to look at him sharply.

"What do you mean?!". She exclaimed, giving him the look she reserved for utter disapproval of something of someone.

-"Am..." he whispered, fidgeting with his fingers like he always did when he got nervous, "I may or may not strongly recline on my theory that the child is not of human ancestry", he cleared his throat caching another look from Inko that meant: get to the point already.

"I think that baby is an alien,". There he had said it and before she could tell him he was delusional he proceeded to explain, "That spaceship? It's like nothing I've ever seen... I'm 99% sure the metal it's made of isn't even from Earth... not to mention the design and engine are unlike any kind of technology we humans have developed... if that ship is alien the government will be all over it in seconds... they won't let us keep the baby just because we found it first."

Inko took the news with a surprisingly calm demeanor, not quite the freak out he had been expecting.

"It's okay", she finally said, "I'm certain there is a logical explanation, maybe the aircraft is alien and some government found it and decided to send a baby on it since it wasn't the right size for an adult or it's a metal created by someone's quirk, you know just how many quirks there are out there".

Hisashi wanted to believe her but he knew there were many holes in that theory, for once, sending babies in random spacecraft was illegal and unethical, if the autbaby'ses hadn't stop it the heroes would have, not to mention it flew over American sky's', some satellite or other radar would have picked it up and the army would have shot it down from the sky, that or the place would be swarming with the military right now and even if someone had found the spacecraft or created it and decided to run experiments on it and manage not to get detected by thousands of satellites and a bunch of heroes they would have sent an animal not a baby and been careful not to crash it in random places for people to find, and even if some sorry excuse for a human had sent a baby flying they would not have programmed the ship to open up on landing so people could find that they had used an infant for experimentation.

There seemed to be a lot more evidence pointing toward the fact the child was an alien, the design of the aircraft was far more superior than anything they could manage on earth, how it was fuel was a mystery to him he would have to study it more in-depth to try to figure it out, and, probably the stronger piece of evidence, it had come along with meteors, it was one thing to send a ship to space, it was another to cause a meteor shower

All of these thoughts passed through Hisashi's mind in seconds, he was about to object to Inko's theory, hoping to convince her not to get her hopes too high, but she beat him to the punch.

"But even if he's an alien, I don't care,". She looked at her husband firmly. "Yesterday, when I found out I could not have children of my own... It all felt like the end of the world for me...but as I was there... wallowing in itself hatred I remember that there is something stronger than blood bonds...and that something is love...yesterday I promised myself I would adopt a child regardless of anything, race, gender or even disability". She passed looked down at the sleeping form. "I was given so much love by a family that wasn't my own and now I am ready to give all the love in the work to a child and I don't care if it's a different species than me it still needs a home and people to love him and I will give all of that to him."

Hisashi certainly wanted to see it from his wife's perspective but he could not push aside the fact that the child could be a weapon of massive destruction, or an alien spy breaching Earths defenses so his race could invade, what if it was some sort of parasite that would leach on to them? What if it brought diseases humans had no way to defend against? and what if the child was harmless but the government found out they had taken him, would they be imprisoned for the rest of their lives? Would they be killed to silence them? Was it worth putting their life's on the line for an alien whose motives were unknown?

Inko seemed to have made up her mind, but Hisashi was dubious the questions too great, the unknown infinite, could they risk it all for a baby they had just found? They could always adopt another child and turn this one in to the authorities, what they would do with him was up to them, maybe in that way, they would be spared.

The thought was so cruel he hated himself with passion even as he seriously considered it, the one thing stopping him was his wife, she held the baby with so much tenderness and love, just the way she looked at the child was enough to make his defenses start to crumble.

The baby looked harmless, weak, not at all like a dangerous alien who would turn, the fact that the baby looked so human-only made his resolve waver more, besides, what his wife had said was true, he knew Inko's past, he knew what she had gone through, he saw the true power of love in the beautiful strong woman that was his wife.

His eyes once again migrated to the baby sleeping peacefully in a ray of sunshine looking almost angelic, what little resolve he had left crumble as his wives words, and the babies beautiful face began to warm his heart up, he pushed away all doubt and fear, all uncertainty and instead opened his heart to compassion, tenderness and mostly love, he wondered if what he was beginning experiencing was what new fathers felt meeting their baby's for the first time, must be because that was his baby, his and Inko's son.

"We will have to be very careful Inko", he finally said coming to this conclusion; "That the government is not swarming this place right now does not mean they will not find out if we are not careful, they will take him away from us Inko, we have to protect him".

Inko grabbed her husband's hand firmly resolve clear in her eyes, "They won't take him away, we will do everything to protect him, everything."

He put his arms around her, the woman that he loved, the person that meant everything to him, his heart had ached with hers yesterday, the disappointment of not being able to create a child of their own was as much of a blow to him, but now, he felt as if his heart would burst with joy.

Both parents looked down at their miracle, how fast things could change in just a few hours.

-"I like Izuko," he said, as Inko placed her head on his shoulder, "Izuko Midoriya our son."

Chapter Text

"The first incident was in Ching-ching city, an extraordinary child was born who radiated light after that reports of people with superpowers popped up across the globe, no one knew what was causing these quirks; before long the supernatural became the totally normal, dreams a reality. The word became a superhuman society with about 80% of the population possessing some uncanny ability, our streets look like scenes from comic books a city swilled with chaos and confusion a new profession dominated our collective consciousness; it was an age of heroes!

Jonathan and Martha Kent drove in silence each of them lost in their own thoughts as their old truck bounced along the dirt country road, a lot happened in less than an hour, for starters Smallville experience a meteor shower of major proportions, luckily none of them or their property had been harm but still, the fright and shock were fresh, and then Hisashi call, telling a wild tale of how he an Inko found a baby on a spaceship and that he believed it was alien.

In any other circumstance, Jonathan would have told him he was crazy, but as he heard Hisashi franticly explain what happened sometimes accidentally switching to Japanese as he tried to convey just how much of an amazing and terrifying discovery, they made he actually found himself believe him, the man sounded like he had not only seen a ghost but the whole damn underworld.

Martha cleared her throat calling her husband's attention back to reality, "do you really think, well you know, that they found an alien?" Jonathan looked at the road for a few second swerving slightly to the left to avoid a potholed, "I really don't now Martha", he answered honestly, it seems so impossible, but then so were the appearance of quirks a 110 years ago and now look at the world, were aliens going to become a new part of the normal? Could this be the beginning of a new era?

Similar questions past through Martha's mind especially concerning the baby if it was truly alien could they even care for it? Could it eat baby formula? Did it sleep like a human? Did it even look human? Well, human appearance had become relative over the last years as quirks mutated and created new features in people until some hardly look human at all, I guess it has that going for it she mused it won't stand out even if it looked, well, alien.

The car turned the last bend in the road, the pond coming into view as well as the destruction around it, Jonathan brought the card to a stop beside the road, both of them took a deep breath bracing themselves for whatever they would find, finally, Johnathan killed the engine, "well, let's go", he said with a lot more confidence than he felt.

The Midoriya's heard the engine before they saw them, both looked at the bend in the road as the Kent's blue truck came around the corner, "Finally here" Inko breath in relief, "I'm sure they came as fast as they could" Hisashi countered, "Come on let's move from here so they can see us" .

Almost immediate they were greeted by their friends who seemed to have already spotted them despite the fallen trees and debris and were slowly making their way around the scorched ground.

Inko looked down at Izuku who had begun to stir in his sleep, "hopefully they brought some food for him" she murmured, "I could use a meal myself" Hisashi answer only half-jokingly, one could only take so much excitement without food, "you can eat the sandwiches in our bag" Inko retorted a little harshly "He is out priority", Hisashi put his hands up defensively," Okay, okay I know"

By then Martha and Jonathan had reached them, the two parties face each other for a few seconds non quite sure of what to say, "Are… are you all right?" Jonathan finally ventured.

"Yes, thankfully although I think we need a bath we kink of ate dirk for a while there" Hisashi replied smiling reassuringly, after which the tension evaporated, Hisashi lead Jonathan towards the space ship so they could brainstorm what would be the best way to extract it, Martha meanwhile neared her friend curios of the little bundle in her arms.

She ventured a pick half expecting an alien-looking baby, instead, she found a normal looking infant, a beautiful one if she may add.

- "Ohhhh" she cued, "what a beautiful baby Inko, did you name him already?"

Inko smile the picture of a proud mom, "Yes! His name is Izuku"

- "Izuku Midoriya, I like it" Martha approve, "I brought some formula, diapers, and some of Clark's clothes, Hisashi didn't really specify how big he was so I grabbed several sizes but he looks like a newborn to me".

"He does look to be that size" Inko agreed "Where are…?"

- "In the car" Martha responded anticipating the question "And we can put him in Clarks baby seat he'll be more comfortable sleeping there"

" Sounds great" Inko agreed following her friend happy to finally have something to properly care for her son, but as babies often are, they do not go along with the plans of adults, something new parents find out pretty quickly, Izuku was no exception. He protested loudly being woken up starting anew his gulps for air and unusually loud crying, although Inko noted with some relief he didn't appear to be struggling as much, he calmed down as he sucked on the bottle drinking it empty, crying some more after that but not as enthusiastically, finally dress in a soft blue onesie, he was about to be placed in the car seat when he promptly threw up all over his mother.

"Well," Martha started, as she tried to help her friend." I guess that formula didn't sit too well with him" she grabbed the baby from her friend's arms and started cleaning him with efficiently that could only come from dealing with such messes frequently "I have some other formula at home, we can try that".

"Good idea" Inko retorted as she cleaned herself as best as she could "Or maybe he just had too much, hard to tell with babies"

"Indeed" Martha acknowledged as she finished with Izuku and place him on the baby seat a ray of sunshine lulling him to sleep.

Both women lapse into silence, yes babies indeed were hard to read at times, their little bodies were just starting to work and sometimes the smallest thing could upset them, however, what both women were trying and failing to ignore was that if Izuku was in fact an alien his body could refuse everything they gave him, the possibility of having to watch the child starve shook both mothers to the core.

"Perhaps we should see how the men are doing?"

Inko finally said trying to break the tense silence.

"Yea, maybe they need a hand" Martha agreed, "Stay here with Izuku, I'll go and see if they have any progress", as it turned out she didn't even start walking when their husbands came into view from behind the trees.

- "Hey" Hisashi call out cheerfully, "We have a plan"

- "A plan too…?" Inko started, it always annoyed her when Hisashi was vague when talking.

- "To get the spaceship out of course!" he stated way to confident

Jonatan looked at the shorter man incredulously "It is certainly not the best plan, but is all we got" he admitted, "and we will need your quirks".

Both women look at each other a silent agreement passing between them in seconds, Martha spoke for both of them "tell us what to do".

Inko had to admit the plan wasn't that bad, of course, it all hung upon the probability that the spaceship's weight was around the numbers Hisashi estimated but in truth, there were no better ideas, it wasn't like they could call a crane to hoist it up.

Currently, Inko sat in the bed of the pickup truck, Martha was behind her ready for Jonatan, who was standing one side of the crater, to give the signal; the truck had been driven around to get it as close to the crater as possible and then been hooked to the craft.

John did a quick once over and then wave at them, seeing the signal Hisashi push the gas driving the engine to its limit, on their side Martha put both hands on her friends back, immediately Inko felt the effects of her friends double, triple quirk; Martha had an ability that was no use to her, it could only affect others, once she activated her quirk if she touched somebody with one hand it would double the power of the other person's quirk if she touched them whit both hands it would triple, it only lasted as long as she was in direct contact the other person and left no residual effect, even though her ability had been mostly useless for the majority her life it was now proving quite essential as she used it in combination with her friend.

The dual cooperation of the motor and the two women manage to pull the spaceship free of its rooky imprisonment, placing it on the bed of the truck was a whole different order of operation but after some very sweaty minutes, it was secure and cover with a tarp ready to be transported to the Kent's farm.

"That, actually, turned out much better than expected," Hisashi remarked, leaning against the truck drinking greedily from a water bottle "you know I could really use those sandwiches you mention earlier Inko sweetheart"

Jonathan opened the driver's door hoping in "We will have a proper lunch when we get home, I think we should hurry up seems like we are really pushing our luck here, the authorities were already in town when we left from what I heard, it won't take them long to start looking around the countryside"

"Actually, you know what?" Hisashi retorted opening his own door, "that sound about right let's go home"

Inko climb in beside her husband placing one hand protectively on the baby chair were Izuku slept "home" she repeated in a whisper, but she wasn't thinking of the Kent's lovely yellow country hose, she was thinking of her own home, her apartment in Musutafu city, a home that as she looked at Izuku's angelic form she knew was finally complete.

Inko manage to open the apartment doors on the second try, tiredly she pushed the two suitcases inside and lock the door, Izuku was, as usual, making sufficient noise to wake up the dead, she had planned to make a discreet entrance to her apartment complex, especially considering it was 2 a.m., that plan hadn't gone too well, but after a thirteen-hour flight with a restless and fuzzy baby, she was drained to the point of not caring.

She sat heavily on the couch freeing Izuku from the baby carrier, faintly she could hear her neighbors moving about confirming her suspiciousness that Izuku had, indeed, awaken the whole neighborhood, o well, that could not be helped, for now, she'll feed him and try to get him to sleep, she put Izuku on the couch placing some pillows so he could not fall, he was too young to roll over anyway, tomorrow she would have to get him a proper cradle.

She entered the kitchen putting some water to heat to make a bottle for Izuku. Sitting on the table, waiting for the water to boil, she thought of the events of the last two weeks, in truth saying her vacation to the U.S.A had not gone as planned was an understatement.

After safely accommodating the space ship in the Kent's door cellar a more pressing issue aroused which was the business of getting Izuku legal documents, one of Martha's older brothers was a lawyer so they determined the best course of action would be to contact him which led down a rabbit hole of calling lots of people and paying loads of money for favors and bribes, but in the end, it paid off since a week later they have managed to get Izuku adoption papers, vaccine certificates, American Passport and birth certificates, registering him as a Japanese citizen would come later once they went back home.

In the midst of all of this came the struggle of feeding Izuku, he threw up almost everting given to him, his breathing had gotten better but he still cried most of the time, which thankfully did no faze Clark at all; after a very tense week, to everyone's relief, Izuku had begun to keep down his food better starting to eat almost normally.

Even in the excitement and constant worries Hisashi had gotten Izuku's DNA tested, he had made the long drive to Metropolis and bought the necessary equipment, which surprisingly was not too much, after that it was a matter of getting a sample from the baby and then, well, waiting, the uncertainty was the hardest part they were all quite sure that Izuku was an alien but getting to see an actual confirmation would certainly make it a lot more real.

Finally, the test was done and they all stood together waiting as Hisashi read the results several times his expression becoming almost comical, "Wow, this…. This, I don't even know how to describe it" Inko hade place a firm hand on her husband's shoulder, "Please try honey we all want to know".

- "Of course, of course" He murmured as he fidgeted nervously whit his fingers "Okay so you know every living organism of planet earth in physical appearance appears to be very different, but, their most basic composition: cells, are similar, and all cells have DNA and RNA which are built on proteins which leads to all of us living things to, in a sense, share similitude in our genetic pattern, for example, humans share 60% of our DNA with bananas as ridiculous as those sounds…" He paused for a second, passing a hand through his copper curls

" But this… his DNA, if we can call it that, shares noting, and I mean noting 0% percent of similitude with humans or anything on planet earth for that matter, its structure is a lot more complex than a human's I can barely comprehend any of it, not to mention things I'm guessing are something similar to proteins that I have never seen or imagine could be possible, the testing could not even begging to decode them; the very base of life in our planet is Carbon, but his… his is different" he looked up at the people all around him taking a deep breath before continuing " he is not human, not even close, without a doubt hi is an alien there is nothing on earth that comes close to creating something… something like him, if the government gets their hands on him, I… I don't know what they would do but it won't be good, I'm sure of that".

Inko hugged her husband who's usually cheerful expression was clouded with dark thoughts, as a man of science he understood better than anybody just what dangers Izuku face from the governments and many other entities who would pay Billions just for a piece of him, "It's okay, we will protect him" she stated trying to reassure him and herself.

- "You can count on us" Jonathan added grabbing his wife's hand, "We will help with anything we can if when you go back to Japan and something happens and you need a place to hide or to hide him or anything else, remember you will always have a home in here".

Inko looked at her friends that now more than ever were family, "Thank you" she answered close to tears, "thank you so much."

Inko was finishing feeding Izuku just as a nook came from the door, she was usually a very sweet and kind person but at this time of night all she could feel was exasperation, reluctantly she got up still carrying Izuku who was eagerly drinking his bottle, after some maneuvering, she managed to open the door to find her next-door neighbor Mrs. Tanaka.

"Hi Mrs. Midoriya, I'm really sorry I hope I'm not waking you up but I heard a baby crying and you guys were out of the county so I came to see what- "

That's when she finally seemed to realize what the bundle in Inko's arms was.

- "Oh dear, did you? Is it yours? you didn't look; you know… pregnant"

Inko looked at the other woman making a conscious effort to be polite if she remembered correctly Mrs. Tanaka also had a young baby so she was just concerned with the noise, no need to be rude.

- "We adopted him recently" she retorted rooking Izuku who was beginning to get annoyed now that his bottle was empty

"Oh I see, congratulation, again I'm really sorry for bothering you I was just concerned I'll take my leave now, good night."

Inko smiled tiredly at the other mother "No problem Mrs. Tanaka, good night to you too".

That ended the interaction but she was sure it wasn't the end of it, by tomorrow night the entire neighborhood would know that the Midoriya's adopted a baby, she would have to deal with the questions that were sure to come, why did you choose to adopt instead of having your own? Are you going to adopt more? And, why did you adopt an American child instead of an Asian one?

Well, just add that to her list of things to do for tomorrow, for now, all she needed was sleep, she got ready for bed as Izuku sucked his thumb a habit he had quickly developed but it seemed to help with the constant crying.

That night she slept on the double bed placing Izuku on the side that was normally occupied by Hisashi, she missed him now more than ever, especially with all the things she would have to do alone, but he had to stay back in the states to start his first three months of work, leaving Inko to deal with a new baby alone, but this did not discourage Inko, she had wished for a baby and now he was here and nothing, and she meant it with all her heart, nothing would get in the way of she and her son.

Hisashi sat on the living room reading tree months' worth of mail address to him, a couple of ads some coupons… 6 months old Izuku played happily with his toy trucks on the carpet in front of him, once in a while, one of them would go under the couch and Hisashi would get up and fetch it for him.

In the kitchen Inko was busy preparing dinner humming a little song to herself, all in all, the picture of a perfect family, Hisashi felt happy, really happy, he was on vacation after his second 3 month period in the U.S and was enjoying his son, who had been tree moths last time he saw him, most of Izuku's strange behavior as a newborn were gone, his breathing was perfect, he ate a lot, well, plenty of formula and some specific foods, Inko had found out pretty quickly that he was unable to keep down certain foods but they were working on that, his parents were hopeful that as he did with the formula, he would outgrow the problem.

He was still kind of sensitive, loud sounds would make him scream and he had begun to get frequent nose bleeds, on the other hand, he had never gotten sick even when the flu was going around the neighborhood kids so he was unusual in that aspect, but well who new anything for sure with an alien.

Hisashi looked at his son fondly, tree little freckles had appeared on his nose, promising more to come, well he has that in common with me, he thought as he flipped through another add and found an article from the scientific magazine he subscribed to, the title caught his attention and he began reading eagerly becoming so engrossed he failed to notice one of Izuku's cars going under the couch, Izuku waited patiently but his father did not react, wanting his toy back Izuku crawled close to the couch and with one small baby hand lifted it.

Hisashi screamed in surprise as he felt the couch elevated along with him.

"Oh my god" Inko exclaimed from the kitchen seeing her 6-month old son lifting a two-seater sofa plus a grown man, incredibly Izuku did not seem to notice anything unusual as he reached for his toy and put the couch back down with surprising gentleness, her first thought was that Izuku had developed a quirk but that wasn't right kids developed quirks at around age 4 and secondly and more importantly Izuku wasn't human.

- "Are you alright?" She finally managed to asked getting close to her husband who looked shell shock,

- "Did that just happened?"

- "I'm afraid so"

He looked at her bewildered, "Had he ever, did he… had he ever done anything like that?

She looked thoughtful for a while "well he did sit and crawl before time and sometimes would grab my fingers so hard I fear he would break them but something like this… no"

- "Another mystery" he stated, the unknown always annoyed his scientist's brain, but as he had... no scratch that, as both of them had learned from the day they receive Izuku into their lives, constantly searching for answers and wondering was meaningless, all it would do was create uncertainty and doubt.

Izuku looked up at his parents smiling brightly fully immerse in one of his rare good moods, he extended his arms asking to be picked up.

Hisashi lifted him up gently, "well, whatever comes up will deal with it".

Inko gave Izuku a kiss on the cheek, "we certainly will, now what about we go and have dinner."

Inko walk down the street, 4-year-old Izuku holding on to her hand, she looked down at her son who was sucking his thumb something he always did on the rare occasions he when outside, she knew he was uncomfortable, over the last years his aversion to loud sounds had become a lot worse and going outside brought just that.

For a while he had hated smells, it got to the point where she was forced to buy special cleaning products, fortunately, he got over that, still, the sound thing was a problem, it hadn't taken long for Inko to figure out that he could hear things a lot louder than she could.

''Super hearing" Hisashi call it one afternoon as Izuku perfectly pick up his voice from the other side of the house, that in combination with Izuku's strength was dangerous, he could get startled with anything which could lead to him losing control, which, and Inko hated to admit but it was the truth, could get someone killed or seriously injured.

For safety reasons Hisashi and Inko had registered Izuku with an enhanced strength quirk that way if he broke something accidentally nobody would notice anything unusual and would be warier of his strength, they had been clear with Izuku that he needed to be very careful with his strength or he could hurt somebody and he was never to show any of his other abilities in public, Izuku even doe tree years old at the time seemed to perfectly comprehend what was requested of him, regardless his parents were reluctant of letting him play with other kids worried that he would slip up.

Inko silently look at her son his big blue eyes not missing anything as they walk along, luckily it was a sunny day, Izuku love the sun he was always calmer when he was exposed to it, Hisashi had once joked he was solar-powered, Inko often wondered if there was any truth to that statement.

His eyes suddenly light up as Mrs. Bakugo came around the corner, like Inko holding some groceries and walking with her son: Katsuky, over the last years Bakugo had become one if not the only friend Izuku had in Japan, Inko had first become friends with Mitsuki when Izuku was still a baby both of them bonding over having similar age children, Mitsuki had often visit Inko of the long periods in which Hisashi was absent, on those occasions she brought Katsuky along, naturally, he and Izuku had become friends.

- "Hi, Bakugo" Izuku called excitedly waving to his friend.

- "Hey, Midoriya are you going to come play in the park today?"

- "Am…" Izuku glanced at his mom silently asking for permission.

- "Sure you can honey" she answered trying to put her worries aside, he was a kid, after all, a little bit of fun once in a while would do him good.

The two women did some small talk as their sons played around a little, after a while, noticing the time Inko call Izuku who was, with the help of Bakugo trying to catch a stray cat.

- "Come along son we got to go"

Izuku reluctantly dropped the chase and grab his mother's hand politely calling goodbye to Mrs. Bakugo and Katsuky.

Mother and son resume their walk home, Izuku eagerly telling his mom about the cat.

- "It was black mommy! Like a panther! and its eyes were yellow…"

Inko listened happily as her son talk on and on, his previous discomfort forgotten, they were reaching the crossroad when a large truck carrying metal construction materials was about to cross, at the last second another car came speeding in, both vehicles attempted o avoided a collision hitting the brakes producing a high pitch noise of tires on cement, the truck made a sharp turned its cargo coming loose producing a horrifying clank as it all spill down the street.

Izuku uttered a scream of pain at the sudden deafening noise momentarily forgetting to control his strength, Inko had utter a gasp at first seeing an accident about to happen, that gasp, however, morph into a wail of pain as Izuku in a moment of distraction broke her hand.

Dc. Kyadi Garaki walk through the halls of one of his many hospitals a little jig in his steps, many nurses and doctors call out greetings and he always called politely back, he adjusted his green lenses glasses as he when down another hallway, he really didn't have any destination in mind, you could almost say he was enjoying the business of the hospital, looking here and there at interesting people at interesting things, he entered the emergency area of the hospital, his favorite because of the chaos and confusion that always ruled it, chaos and confusion that made for unique opportunities.

His eyes scanned the crows with practice precision, one person called his attention especially, he approached the crying child with curiosity, looking down at him for the first time in many years the Doctor fell disoriented, what exactly had called his attention to this kid? He looked completely normal, big electric blue eyes, unruly black hair, and little freckles in his nose and cheeks, yet as he looked at the child he was unable to figure him out, worse thing? he could not figure out what he could not figure out, the sentiment was truly perturbing to the science man.

- "Um, hi?" The kid greeted out shyly, getting his thumb out of his mouth to speak.

- "Hi there", Dc, Kyadi greeted using his most gentle tone, "are you here alone, where are your parents?".

He shook his head softly, "I'm waiting for my mommy, she…" his voice broke for a second almost like he would start crying again, "she had an accident, her hand… is… is, broken", at that point the kid could not hold back his tears any longer and started his weeping anew, the Doctor roll his eyes behind his glasses, he hated dealing with kids, but his curiosity was strong, and it was curiosity that had driven him to where he was in life.

As if the Universe wanted to reward him, the kids suddenly whimpered in pain and held his hand over his eyes as his nose started dripping Dc. Kyadi's favorite substance: blood, oh yes! Beautiful, beautiful blood! But had to contain himself, he had to hold his act together of concern Doctor, and so he pulled out a tissue from his pocket.

"Are you alright child?" He asked hiding his content behind a concerned and fatherly tone, "use this to stop the bleeding, place your head back, just like that" the kid did as he was told but the pained expression never left his face, looking down into the bright blue eyes feel heat coming from them, maybe a quirk developing? the kid was the right age. Some people were beginning to notice the interaction and observe with curiosity, granted a nose bleed was the lesser of many injuries in the emergency room but people were bored, and most had been waiting long hours to be attended,they could use a little distraction.

"Does anything hurt sweetie?" the old woman sitting beside them asked, noticing the child's pain expression.

- "I… my eyes hurt sometimes and then I get a nosebleed," the kid admitted, "mommy calls them stress headaches", the woman gave him a gentle smile "poor baby".

The doctor could not care less, he didn't show it in his expression obviously, but the only thing he wanted right now was the red soaked fabric, "Okay let's change that", he finally ordered giving the kid another tissue placing the used one in a sterile plastic bag all in one fluid motion, luckily everybody was too busy looking at the cute kid to notice this, regardless who would question him? all he needed now was to get out of here tactfully.

As it turned out today was his lucky day because at that very moment a woman walked towards them, her right hand in a cast.

- "Izuku, are you alright?"

Although there was no physical resemblance, especially considering the kid wasn't Asian, Dc. Kyadi immediately knew this was the brat's mom.

- "Just a little nosebleed mam I'm assuming you are his mother?" he inquired pleasantly, hands behind his back a picture of professionalism, "probably stress, his fine now".

The woman looked almost frightened for a second, a panicked expression crossing her eyes, a lesser person would have missed it but the doctor was an excellent observer, he wondered about this, but just as soon she seemed to get her composure back, "Yes I am his mom, and we need to go, if you excuse us, Doctor."

She extended her good hand to her son, the kid appeared to be scare to take it, the Doctor observed in curiosity, as he finally and reluctantly extended his hand, holding on to his mom with a delicacy that almost no four-year-old should have,

- "Have a nice day mam" he called out as woman and child walk away, she didn't answer but he didn't mind, he had better things to do; he resumed his walk true the hospital, if you looked at him you wouldn't notice anything different, but behind the green lenses his eyes burned with excitement.

He whistled a happy little tune as he went deeper and deeper into the building until finally arriving at his office, he closed the door behind him and remove a portrait off the wall, behind it a retina scanner activated, he removed his glasses allowing the machine to properly do its job, a hissing sound came from the wall as one of its sides move revealing a secret entrance.

He smiled with contentment as he entered the secret lab, his precious machines humming to life sensing his presence, he sat in his comfortable leader chair emptying his pockets of the days' worth of recollection which consisted of several plastic bags, all with samples of blood, normally he would have a lot more since he accumulated them throughout the day, but today he was just too excited to wait.

He carefully grabbed the one from the crying kid, Izuku, as his mother had called him, he placed it in solution, watching as the blood abandoned the fabric, once the process was done he place the petri dish inside one of his many machines, along with all the other samples.

This could be considered a sort of hobby of his, getting blood samples of random estrangers and examine them, especially their quirks and how they work, the sturdy of quirks was his passion, he had dedicated his life to researching and using quirks, regardless of the fact he could not very well use small blood samples to create and replicate quirks, the extra study help him in his projects, not to mention occasionally finding an interesting quirk, or a very powerful one, on those instances he would contact the boss, and they would discuss if this individual could be used.

He reclined back, reading some documents, the samples would take a few hours to be properly analyzed, but he could wait, never had his instincts been wrong about somebody, he had high expectations for Izuku, very high expectations indeed.

Martha Kent placed the steaming apple pie in the kitchen table the delicious aroma filling the room, satisfied with the product of her morning baking, next on the list of chores for the day was shelling some fresh peas Clark had pick for her earlier, after that she could get started with lunch and then well… more work, life never stop on a farm but she been raise like this and she enjoyed every moment of every day, she had never known different and if given the chance wouldn't change it for the world.

She was halfway through the pot when her phone started ringing, she was a little annoyed, who would call at this time of day when everybody was either working the fields or preparing food? regardless she checked who it was, instantly forgetting her annoyance when she saw it was Inko video calling, she wiped her hand on her apron before answering, hoping her hair looked decent.

- "Hello, Inko how is it going? Been some time since your last call."

Inko smile from the other side of the word, "well it's been kind of busy, sorry".

Martha shook her head, "don't worry about it, I have my share amount of busy, how is Izuku doing?".

Inko's smile faltered slightly, "Well actually today something happened…".

Inko went on to explain the events of the day, especially her worried about Izuku getting a nosebleed in a hospital of all places, and how he had been really down since the incident.

Martha listen attentively until Inko finally seem to run out of steam she carefully considered what her friend told her before answering

"A lot of people have accidents with their quirks, I can still see why he would feel guilty, but don't worry I'm sure he will get over it soon and…" she suddenly paused looking intently at the little hand that was trying to reach her pie,

"Speaking of quirks 'Clark' got his" Clark stop in the middle of his attempted robbery upon hearing his name, he looked at his mother noticing the warning look, he gave her an innocent smile placing his hands behind his back like a good little boy.

Martha regarded her son fondly, allowing her face to relax, and an idea formed in her head now that Clark was here "Why don't you call Izuku over so Clark can show him his quirk? I'm sure that cheer him up", she commented to her friend patting her lap for Clark to come over.

Inko agree and call Izuku, who appeared a few seconds later, "Hi aunt Martha" he said with a smile, that she noticed wasn't a big as usual, Clark for his part had successfully climbed into his mother's lab, his blond head blocking the camera for a second as he accommodated himself, "Hi aunt Inko, hi Izuku" he call waving excitedly at the phone, "Hello Clark" Izuku greeted a little more enthusiasm.

Martha wiped a dirt stain from her son's face rearranging his golden locks into something that could be considered presentable "Clark do you want to show Izuku you quirk?"

Clark's smile widened "Yes!"

He extended his hands towards the phone, a look of concentration overtaking his features, suddenly like somebody had turned a light bolt on, his palms started glowing with soft yellow light,

Izuku pressed his face closer to the screen, his eyes wide "Wow! That is so cool",

Clark's palms stop glowing as he lowered them, "Thanks! But I still think your quirk is cooler" on the other side Izuku's smiles vanished, "I…sometime I don't like my quirk", noticing the change in the ambient Inko intervene, "Sunlight from your palms huh? Just like your father", Clark nodded happily not noticing his friends change in mood.

"Well the doctor said it's not completely developed so it will probably be a little different than Jonatan's" Martha added, gently pushing Clark to the side so could see her friend over his head

"Anyway, Clark has to go help his dad, don't you sweetie?" Clark looked reluctant, but after waving one last time to Izuku and Inko, obediently jump from his mother, running to the back porch and into the fields where his father awaited him, Inko dispatched Izuku as well telling him to get ready for bed.

Once both little boys were gone the two women talk for a good while, Martha caching her up on speed on some of the town latest events and gossip, which, in a relatively calm town like Smallville were few but known by everybody, Inko on her part talk mostly about Izuku who was a constant source of worries for both families, after all the Kent's were the only other humans who knew about him, the only other people on the planet who knew about the little alien child who lives among humans.

Izuku brush his teeth slowly, he could still hear his mother talking with aunt Martha over in the living room, he tried to block the conversation but it only worked when he really concentrated, it was extremely frustrating especially to a four-year-old.

Even at a young age, Izuku was already familiar with constant discomfort, from his earliest memories something was annoying him, a smell, a sound, a taste, a texture…

He jumped down from the little stool he used to reach the sink tugging at his yellow pajamas that were beginning to be too small for him again, mom had sent him to sleep, but that was the farthest thing from Izuku's mind he knew that as he tried to fall asleep he would remember what he had done today all the guilt coming back fresh, he wonder if mom would be to mad if he just watched a little Tv, he looked at the clock trying to calculate just how late it was, and if it was acceptable, he finally made up his mind to just see one carton.

He turned on the Tv, which had been in previous use by Inko and was still in the news channel, he was ready to move to the children's tv when something caught his attention, it was a man, a hero to be precise, he was emerging from what looked to be a disaster area with a lot of people on his arms, and he was smiling and laughing while he saved them, the reporter was going on in amazement in the background, " He is saving all of those people, All might is saving all of those people, and he is smiling!".

Izuku's eyes shone with realization as he saw the hero carrying the survivors, that hero was as strong as him! And he was helping people!

- "Mommy!" He called out excitedly, "mommy!"

He ran across the house moving way too fast for a kid his age practically appearing in front of his mother who had just hung up with Martha.

- "Mommy, mommy come here!"

Inko look down surprised at her over-excited son his mood change surprising her, "what is it baby?" but he was already tugging her along to the tv where the same clip was playing on loop.

- "See mommy, hi's strong like me, see, see, see?"

Inko looked at the tv, not finding anything too spectacular, a hero doing their job, but it had spoken to Izuku on a level she could apparently not comprehend but it made her happy to see her kid excited about something.

- "Yes Izuku, he is very strong", she read the text trying to find the name of the hero, "All might, that his name, he is very strong like you!".

Izuku smiled brightly at her, jumping up and down in excitement, "All might is so cool mommy, he is my hero!".

Inko grabbed her son's hand with her good one trying to avoid him bumping his head on the sealing "Izuku I am very glad you have found somebody to look up to but is time to sleep okay?" Izuku nodded, obediently allowing his mother lead him to his bedroom, where she tucked him in she was about to give him his good night kiss when he sat up a little grabbing her good hand.

- "Mommy?"

- "Yes, Izuku?"

- "All might is very strong because of his quirk?"

- "I think so" Inko answer not sure where Izuku was going with this.

He considered this for a moment "All might has a quirk, you have a quirk, daddy has a quirk, Bakugo has a quirk, everybody has a quirk but I have a lot of them?"

The question surprising Inko, she wasn't certain how to respond, she knew one day Izuku would ask why he was different but she didn't expect it so soon, Izuku looked up at her, his eyes seeming to shine in the partial darkness.

- "Mommy, what is wrong with me?"

Inko felt like somebody had punched her in the stomach, the raw emotion in her son's eyes, the doubt, and pain that his voice carried, all of it looking so wrong and foreign in such a young child, she threw herself to him, hugging him tightly.

"There is nothing wrong with you Izuku, noting! You are different and that makes you special" she grabbed her son's face making him look her in the eyes, "Izuku you are special and unique don't ever think that you are anything else, okay?"

He seemed taken back by his mother's reaction but considered what she had said for a few seconds before finally nodding, giving her a soft "Okay".

Inko pressed him to her breast, rocking him softly like she used to do when he was a baby.

- "Mommy?" he said after a while in a sleepy voice

- "Yes, Izuku?".

- "I'm sorry about your hand…I… I don't want to hurt others I want to be strong like All Might and help people."

Inko smile in the dark, passing a hand through Izuku's black hair, "I'm sure you will honey, I'm sure you will help lots of people".

But Izuku never heard those words he had already plumbed into a deep sleep in his mother's arms.

Dc. Kyadi Garaki, felt like laughing and crying all at the same time, he was old, much older than his appearance lead to believe, he liked to think of himself a man that could not be surprised after his many years of experience, but this, this was the discovery of the decade, no scratch that, of the century! The millennium! Oh! The boss would be please, indeed very, please.

He activated the huge screen in front of him holding the page with the results tightly, he re-read them once again hardly believing what his eyes were seeing.

Sometimes when he did his little game with the blood samples he liked to believe himself a fisherman, casting his hooks to the vast sea never knowing what he would catch when he found an individual with an interesting quirk or a very powerful one he would think of it like a big fish, a great price, but this? This was a whale, no, that was oversimplifying it, this was a monster, he had found a monster that didn't even belong in the sea.

He smiled as his boss appeared on the screen, unable to hide his eagerness.

- "I hope this is good, doctor, it is an inappropriate time to call".

- "I assure you, sir, this is absolutely worth it" he could not tell the expression of the dark figure on the screen but he knew he had caught his attention.

- "I found something of very big importance, something that could change everything".

- "Get to the point Kyadi, I don't like to be toyed with." The silhouette commanded with a warning tone.

- "Yes of course, of course," the doctor said, passing a hand nervously on his mustache, "well there is no other way to say this, sir, I found an Alien."

Missis. Youi was currently walking among her first-grade class, peeking over little heads to see how they were doing on their Kanji practice sheet, occasionally she would ask a question to one of her students checking their progress.

Her eyes fell on Midoriya Izuku, he was a brilliant student year ahead of his peers, that combine with a remarkable quirk made him stand out, that's why she noticed his change in behavior, he was usually a very attentive and participative kid but today he was too quiet, too still he almost looked catatonic.

- "Midoriya" she called "can you go to the board and write 'U' please?".

When she didn't receive an answer she came closer to stand in front of his desk, "Midoriya are you all right?".

Izuku locked up at his teacher terrified, he had been having a normal day, but during the last hour his hearing began to get out of control, usually, he could keep it down to only the things around him, he had developed the ability to ignore the constant noise, but now it felt like he could hear the entire city.

His teacher's steps felt like explosions in his head, and as he looked up at her, hi didn't see the usual Missis. Youi, he saw muscles and tendons, bones, and organs, for anybody it would be shooking, for a first grader it was a nightmare.

- "Are you all right Midoriya?" she asked again noticing the fear in the child's face.

"Aught!" He exclaimed covering his ears as her voice sent waves of pain in his head, he looked down trying to get rid of the terrifying sight, instead, he saw through the floor, he gasped in surprise thinking for a second that the floor had disappeared.

By this point Missis. Youi was very concerned with him, "Midoriya Izuku! Answer me what's wrong?"

It was too much, too much for Izuku to handle, he stood up abruptly, sending his chair crashing to the wall, and then he ran, out of the classroom, breaking the door in his path, he ran down the hallway, all the way getting chase by his teacher and most of his classmates, finally seeing a scape he locked himself in a maintenance closet curling up against the wall.

- "Midoriya, opened the door right this instant!" his teacher called trying and failing to turn the lock handle.

- "Leave me alone" his muffled voice carried true the wood, his eyes glowing with frustration and anger, Missis. Youi suddenly yelp as she felt the door handle turn red with heat, she looked back trying to see if any of her students had done that, she couldn't remember any of them having a quirk capable of that but she could be wrong, regardless, her priority was getting Midoriya to calm down and open the door.

She tried for a long time but no amount of gentle words seemed to get to the kid; that's why she signed in relief as Mrs. Midoriya finally came running down the hall, she gave up her spot in front of the door gladly.

Inko hardly spared a glance at the crowd of kids and staff who had congregated around the door, right now she needed to talk to her son.

She leaned against the door, placing one hand on the worn wood "Izuku" she called out gently "what's the matter?"

On his side, Izuku's head rose as he heard his mother's voice a sound that stood out to him even in the hell of noises assaulting him.

- "Mom the world is too big" he finally answered, unable to fully put to words what he was experiencing.

Inko considered that for a second trying to find a way to help her son, "well then make it smaller, Izuku, pretend that my voice is a little island, can you see it?"

A few nervous seconds pass before a soft reply came:

- "I see it"

- "Okay then swim toward it" she half-whispered knowing her son would hear her, a minute pass, around her the kids and adult were murmuring but she trusted Izuku to could deal with this, finally the nub turned slowly and Izuku's tear stricken face appeared, he ignored the snickers and remarks from his classmates instead throwing himself into his mother's waiting arms.

Bakugo was among the crowd of kids and had been carefully observing the entire thing unfold, and had gotten one clear message: weakness, Izuku was weak, he needed his mommy because he was crying in a closet, pathetic.

Izuku was his friend, or well use to be, because after this he would tell him clearly that they were no longer friends, he did not associate with a weakling, he smiles at himself with his new resolution, even making joining as the kids whispered about Midoriya "his parents don't let him play with other kids" a boy with red dragon wing said, Bakugo let a cruel smile part his face "yea his weird and a loser."

He kept on smirking even as Izuku walked out hand in hand with his mom, even as he turned back to look at them with a sad expression almost like he could hear them.

- "Get lost… Deku" he said remembering another way to read Izuku's name, Deku meant weakness and that's what Izuku was, weak, his smile became even wider, Deku, he like the sound of that.

Hisashi walk the hallway leading to his apartment, he felt exhausted after the trip from the States but that was overshadowed by his happiness to be home, he had miss Izuku's birthday by a week but now that he was here he would compensate double.

As he near the apartment door he brazed himself, he loved surprising Izuku, so neither he, nor Inko ever told him the exact date of his arrival, but surprising Izuku was a dangerous thing, whenever he first saw him he would launch himself to hug him as any boy would do after not seeing their dad in months, but getting hit by Izuku wasn't just like getting hit with a tractor as some may joke, it was the entire farm coming at you.

That is why when he opened the door and call his usual greeting, "I am home!" and there was no blur jumping at him, he was perplexed, Inko appear from the Kitchen, smiling warmly, she trapped him in a jug and gave him a kiss.

- "Welcome home dear, we miss you".

He looked at her confused, "Where is Izuku?"

Her smile seemed to falter, looking closely at her he could see her tiredness and worries filtering true her expression, "what's wrong Inko?" he asked cupping her face gently in his hands, she shook her face.

- "I don't know, he… he is having a hard time, his vision is getting out of control and that triggers his hearing and… he is so uncomfortable but I don't know how to help him…", she leaned her head against her husband's chest slowly he raised his hand rubbing comforting circles in her back.

- "I'll go talk to him, maybe I can help," he said looking her in the face, she nodded trying to find a grain of hope in her husband's words, he had helped him before maybe he could do it again, "hi is in the leaving room."

Hisashi nodded at her reassuringly and walk to the living room, not at all surprised at finding the curtains drawn tightly close, and the lights turned off, casting the room into almost complete darkness, Izuku was laying on the very same sofa he had lifted when he was six months, showing the first real indication of all the powers to come.

right now doe, he looked powerless, curled in fetal position under a blanket, eyes tightly close, his hands over his ears.

- "Izuku?" Hisashi call out uncertainly

- "Hi dad" he answered not even bothering to move.

Hisashi kneeled down in front of his son coming to eye level with him.

- "What is it Izuku? What's bothering you?"

Izuku opened his eyes slowly, looking at his father, "dad… I don't know, is just sometimes I see a lot of things, is not how it used to be with X-ray vision, now I see a lot more thing I… I don't even know full well what they are and it's all jumbled together, I don't how to control it… lights are really annoying they are… too bright to the point of being blinding, right now? I can perfectly see in the dark, but in full light, it backfires and… I… don't know how to control it, any of it…"

Hisashi looked down at his boy, the wheels in his brain working full speed trying to come up with a solution, he knew Izuku managed to get control of his X-ray vision, it had been grueling, but now it sounded like he had finally expired his free trial and was getting the full deal of seeing everything, it would be tedious to get a hold of this one especially if several types of vision activated simultaneously.

- "Hm… see in the dark you say?" he asked suddenly thinking of something.

Izuku sat up, draping the blanket around himself, "Yea, perfectly."

Hisashi stood up excited, "I got an idea kido, wait here"

He ran to the room that served as his office, in one corner black plastic containers held some of his equipment, and hopefully what he was looking for, he searched for a while finally production with a victorious grin what he had been looking for, he when back to where his son was sitting, staring at the tv mesmerize even doe it was turned off he wondered if perhaps he was looking at something else, something he couldn't see.

- "Here," he said handing him the object "try them on."

- "Welding goggles?" Izuku asked holding the dark lens glasses in front of him.

- "Exactly! they block a lot of light and if you can see in the dark then this will help" Hisashi explained.

Izuku shrugged his shoulders and put them on, "Oh" was all he said at the beginning, "I actually have to concentrate to see through them!"

Hisashi walked to the light switch "Okay son now I'm going to turn the light on and you tell me how it goes."

Izuku nodded and Hisashi flipped the switch carefully observing his son ready to help immediately if needed, but found himself having to resist the impulse to laugh at his son the googles looking too big for his face "everything okay kido?"

- "Actually… yes! the lights don't bother me as much; this is actually a good idea dad".

- "Of course all of my ideas are great," he answered faking offense.

Izuku smile at him, and finally, he received his long-awaited hug, as Izuku's form blur and appear in front of him, wrapping him in a bear hug,

- "Careful with my ribs Izuku" He managed to wheeze.

Izuku detached himself from him and Hisashi for the first time notice just how tall he was becoming, only eleven and already almost at the same height as his father.

- "Son you most stop growing, your mother and me can hardly keep up buying you clothes and shoes." He joked messing up Izuku's already messy hair.

Izuku shrugged it off, trying to re-accommodate his hair, Inko appeared hearing her boy's laughter a relief expression on her face.

- "Izuku! You look like an ant" she said, trying to hide her laughter.

- "I do? Let me see", he blurred and disappear, appearing back a few seconds later giggling, "I do look like an ant…"

Hisashi finally allowed himself to burst into laughter then, seeing the merriment his son's face.

- "Imagine is you when to school like that" Hisashi commented making them all laugh more.

- "Bakugo would have a field day", Izuku manage to wheeze clutching his stomach

And so they all laughed for a good while until Inko told them to go wash their hands for diner, a huge smile on her face overwhelmingly tankful to see her son happy again.

This is not chemically possible, I thought, even as I flip another page of the book, that it's not how acids work! this novel had been a bad idea, should have listen to the bad reviews on YouTube… It was then that something decided to interrupt my internal monologue, forcing my gaze away from the book and to the slow-motion soccer ball that was about to hit me right in the face, seriously?

Before I could really think it trough I caught it, and then remember I probably should not have done that, I was no longer wearing glasses, I didn't need to worry about breaking them, but then again, it was my first day without them, and you know the saying: old habits are hard to kill… or is it old habits die hard? 

I look at the person responsible for that throw, Bakugo, who stood at the edge of the soccer field giving me a vile glare.

- "Lost something?" I ask, trying to sound innocent.

He crossed his arms over his chest, "give it back Deku"

"If you insist" I answer throwing it with a little extra force, he barely stopped it almost losing his balance in the process, I ignore him as he cursed at me, and went back to my reading, sitting under this tree, sunlight filtering through the leaves, it was ideal and noting Bakugo did would ruin it.

I had already guess he would be pissed off today anyway, for the last year and a half I have been wearing glasses that dad design imitated the light-blocking capability of welding goggles he, however, applied a technique similar to reflective glass so people could actually see my eyes , to anybody, they would simply look like a normal pair of lenses.

Obviously, Kacchan had found them hilarious, a good source of names to call me, I did my best to ignore him like I had done for years, enduring his ridiculing and taunting, the one thing I never allow however was for him to damage them, they meant nothing more to him that something to poke fun off, but to me? They meant the difference between passing months in complete darkness, wrestling with my own brain trying to get a hold of my vision, or living a somewhat normal life, I guess never getting the chance to destroy them had annoyed him and now he had lost his chance, hopefully forever.

- "Deku!", I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at Kacchan, seriously why didn't he just leave me alone? He came closer holding the ball in his hands "Why don't you come and play Deku? Since you refuse to fight me you little bitch!"

I considered moving to read somewhere else since he clearly was not going to leave me alone, there was really no point arguing with Bakugo, but today, well, today was a good day, maybe if I was careful, extremely careful, noting would happen.

- "Fine," I said, closing my book, placing in on a nearby picnic bench, tugging at my black uniform as I walk towards my team, it was beginning to be too small for me, again, mom was going to love that.

- "So you decided to finally man up Deku?", he taunted as I pass by him, it must have look funny considering I was a full head taller than him but nobody laughed, nobody was crazy enough to pick a fight with Bakugo and the only person he wanted to fight which was me did not pick a fight with him.

I joined with my team, and the game resume, in a matter of fifteen minutes we were winning largely thanks to me but I wasn't really enjoying any of it, the entire time had been tedious, careful here, don't kick the ball too hard, don't break people's legs on accident, don't kill somebody, still, it was progress, maybe I could actually finish this game without faking an injury and going out because I was too scared to injure somebody. That was until Bakugo came running full speed at us with the ball, clearly very angry that his team was getting a beating, I had to take care of that because obviously nobody else would.

I intercepted him and very delicately tried to steal the ball, Kacchan, however, seem to have other plans with an explosion he propelled himself at my face one arm extended ready to blast my face, instinctively I put my arm up to block it too late realizing there was no need I wasn't wearing glasses… but the damage had been done, my arm pushed against him it may not seem like much but I hadn't control my strength, I didn't even mean to touch him, I saw in slow motion as his face contorted in pain, I saw as he felt and heard lauder than anybody the sickening crunch of his arm breaking.

The entire field stood still, watching Bakugo's grotesquely broken arm in shock, finally, a girl screamed and as if on cue everybody unfroze moving in all directions, mostly towards us, others running to get the teachers.

I look down at him horrified, I thought of X-ray his arm to see how bad the damage was but couldn't bring myself to do it, his form laying on the ground really trying to hold it together closing his eyes so as not to cry, it made my stomach turn a filling of dread slowly rising through my body, a filling so unsavory similar to how I felt when I broke my mother's hand, but that was an accident this… this could have been avoided it was all my fault for going along with Kacchan, for letting him bate me into this.

- "Kacchan, I'm… sorry, I'm so sorry" I tried to apologize, how could I have been so stupid? haven't mom and dad warmed me time and time again? "Sports are dangerous" dad always said, "normal people get hurt in them all the time now imagine what could happen if you lose control for just one second?", I look down at the blond boy as teachers knelt down beside him his face a mask of pain, this, this is what could happen.

- "Midoriya, are you all right?" a teacher asked, his balding head shining under the strong mid-day sun, "Yea… I'm fine, it… this was all my fault", he looked at me with a mixture of pity and something I could not quite read, "Did you use your quirk?", I look at the ground, just how did I explain this? It wasn't like I could de-activate my speed or my strength… "I… I… did, I'm sorry, it was an accident".

He shook his head, "Knowing Bakugo he probably used his quirk as well, the kid is reckless" he put a hand on my shoulder, "you are a good kid Midoriya, I now you didn't want to hurt him but you have a strong quirk so you must learn to be careful", yea like I didn't know that? Like most of my life hadn't been carefully avoiding hurting someone and hiding all my other powers but still somehow managing to be pointed out like a freak, somehow managing to not fit in no matter how hard I tried! he knew nothing, what more I had these abilities but I couldn't even do what I really wanted to do with them, couldn't become the person I wanted to be, noting I had immense power jet could do nothing…

I shuffle my feet filling the beginning of a headache, great this could not get better, "Yes I know sir, I'll be more careful next time" I finally settle on answering, he nodded at me again, and went towards Bakugo who was being helped to his feet by other teachers.

I felt pain beginning to pool behind my eyes, Ugh, need to get out of here…nobody really noticed as I slip by, too concerned with Bakugo, I push true the school door wondering if maybe they would let me go home.

I rub my eyes trying to get rid of the burning pain but as I knew from past experiences this never work, why did this always happen to me when I got stress? It hurt dammit… I felt like something, no, someone crash into me, I look down in surprise to find Aqua on the floor, the books she had been carrying scattered at my feet.

- "Aqua? I'm, sorry didn't see you there" I quickly apologize helping her pick up her books.

- "You dam tree; are you so tall that you can't see the little people?" She said jokingly, taking the hand I offer her to stand up, she looked at me rubbing her head "by the way what are you made off? Steel? that hurt"

- "More than you now" I whispered

- "Pardon?"

I gave her a smile that probably came looking more like a grimace "nothing". Fantastic! the pretties' girl in my class who I have a crush on is talking to me and I can't concentrate because my head is killing me, really could this day get worse?

- "Hey Midoriya?" she asked suddenly becoming nervous, her heart rate accelerating.

I tighten my fist, get a hold of yourself idiot, it's just a headache… that was probably caused by the guilt of breaking a kids arm like it was a twig! And now you are acting like an idiot in front of a girl, I swallow filling as a wave of heat attempted to cook my eyes from the inside out it had never been this bad before and this situation probably wasn't helping.

- "Um, yea Aqua?" I ask between gritted teeth, she didn't seem to notice her green eyes pointed towards the floor her aqua hair braided messily, she is so pretty… and carrying one of my favorite novels, maybe I could talk to her about books?

She opened her mouth to said something instead a scream came out as the very book I had been looking at couth on fire, my first thought was that I somehow did that it had never happened when I got headaches but by this point, I have learned that noting made sense with me, it wouldn't surprise too, considering the heat I felt coming from my eyes so much more intense than ever before, my second thought was run get out of here! This is bad very bad if I was developing a new quirk it could turn dangerous.

- "Ugh, am… I'll see you around" I called running down the hallway as she looked at the book burning on the floor with a concerned expression, and there went my chance with her now she probably thought I was a freak… but I could pout over that later right now where could I go? were? Were? I stop on my tracks as somebody appear in front of me.

- "You shouldn't run in the hallways you now?" the girl commented, her violet eyes looking me up and down like I was a dead cockroach, I've never seen her around, but if I had to take a wild guess I would say she was a visitor, probably 16 or 17, way too old for to be a middle schooler, but too young to be a teacher.

- "Am… I… I was just, arg…" I grab my head as I felt another heat wave come from my eyes this one worse than the last one, If I look at her I could hurt her, look at the floor just look at the floor…

- "Kid are you alright?" she asked "You look like you're going to be sick, on second thought if you are going to puke, please get out of here," she said moving out of the way pointing at the general directions of the bathrooms like I wasn't a student here.

- "It's just my quirk acting up" I half lied, "but I was going to the bathroom any wa- "

I never got to finish the sentence because, all of a sudden, the fire alarms started wailing horrendously laud, probably triggered by the book I burned previously I would reason later, but at the moment all I could do was press my hands against my ears trying to block the deafening sound which spiraled my barely contain super hearing out of control, this… this was bad this was exactly the kind of situations that got people killed, I need to get out of here and fast I could not bear to hurt another person today no matter the risk.

Luisa Lane's life was complicated so would call it fun, others would hate it, she herself hadn't determined jet how she felt about it, her family constantly moved from city to city sometimes not even bothering to unpack in their new homes because of the briefness of their stays, she had gotten used to a life of constantly missing places, saying goodbye to friends, and never knowing where she would be in a year.

A huge change had come to her life when Colonel Lane, her father, had been sent to Korea and decided to take his family with him, learning a new language and culture had been exiting for ten-year-old Luisa, adding an extra challenge when her parent made an extra move to Japan after a few years in Korea so the girls could learn Japanese as well.

In the midst of all of that, her mother got a job in Japanese institute who was launching a new English programs for their schools, basically, her mother's job was to go from school to school and explained and show the program, sometimes she took Lois along, she didn't mind skipping school for a day especially now that her parent took the decision to send her back to the States to finishes High school and was enjoying her lasts days on Japan, talking with other teens was fun, flirting with hot guys was the best, that possibility wasn't opened this being a middle school and all but anything to avoid that pesky math exam.

After an hour of her mother talking to the headteacher, she had gotten pretty bored and decided to explore the school her visitor label giving her access to most of the hallways, it had all been going very monotonously noting really catching her attention until a boy came running down the hall coming close to colliding with her.

- "You are not supposed to run in the hallways" she scolded annoyed.

The kid tried to explain himself but suddenly grab his head, grunting in pain, what was up with this kid? He better not be sick in front of her, or she would throw up as well, she let him now as much but he seemed to almost be ignoring her looking at the floor like it was the most interesting thing ever, seriously?

He gave some lame excuse about his quirk like she was going to believe that a twelve-year-old still had problems with their quirk, she would hardy buy that from a third-grader, maybe she should activate her quirk and pull the truth out of him just to prove a point... he was about to say something else when the fire alarms started blaring and the water sprinkles activated, the kid look like somebody had sliced him in half, he pressed his hands against his ears his body doubling over slightly, she couldn't be sure because of the overwhelming sound of the alarms but he sounded like he was whimpering, he tried to move but his valance seemed to be off and instead knock into some lookers, making a huge dent.

- "Kid we need to get out of here," she said trying to grab the boy's arm to pull him along, whatever was wrong with him he could sort it out outside right now they needed to evacuate the building.

He looked at her, his eyes disoriented like he was seeing her and at the same time not, and for a moment she swore his eyes glowed, electric blue turning reddish-orange, she felt immense heat coming from them, like miniature suns, she saw the skin around his eyes glow… Huh, maybe he hadn't been lying about his quirk acting weird… she was about to tell him to get whatever his ability was under control when he just disappeared, his forms blurring for a moment and then gone only leaving behind a small rush of air.

I look at himself in the mirror of the service bathroom panting, the fire alarms still scream annoyingly in my ears but now that the first shook of that was gone I had managed to get a hold of myself.

I rubbed my eyes the heat from them was fading but if left behind an annoying sensation kind of itchy, but that was the least of my problems I use my powers in front of that girl, my strength, my speed, and I was pretty sure she had seen my eyes which had been glowing mere seconds ago, this was bad, really bad, if she didn't know who I was or what my quirk was maybe she could let it go but if she dug a little she would find out the truth that there was something wrong with me, dammit…

What would my parent do if I told them? They would be scared out of their minds without a doubt, I hated to worry them, they already spent a good amount of time doing that, this would only worsen it.

I sat down on one of the bathroom corners, faintly I could pick up accelerated shuffling of feet and frantic voices as the building was evacuated, I tilted my head back looking at old sealing tensing my hands as wrestle with myself on what I should do, the building was completely quiet when I finally stood up, I was far from proud with my decision and I couldn't stop the guilt that came with it but I was firm in my conviction.

I slipped out of school silently, joining the rest of the students outside as the fire department entered the building, I didn't see the girl anywhere around and I hoped to never see her again but regardless my parent would not find out about it, not from me at least I would deal with the consequences of that encounter by myself.

To say that Bakugo was angry was an understatement, he wasn't just angry he was furious to the point where doctors were warning him to calm down or they would completely sedate him, the only thing preventing him from literally exploding was the ever-present pain of his arm… and his mother keeping a close eye on him.

How? How did Deku manage to break his arm? He knew Deku was strong that was his quirk but he barely touched him, Deku wasn't even trying to push him, he had tried to shield his face and accidentally made contact with him jet it send him to the ground and completely broke his arm… just how strong was Deku?

That was the annoying question that had plague Bakugo's life for years, he Bakugo, was strong his quirk was an amazing and he rule over everybody else but did it really mean anything if he could not prove that he was the strongest? He hated to admit it but he had never beaten Deku, sure he had blown explosions on him push him to the ground tried to fight him, but although Deku never fought back he somehow manage to no get hurt and simply walk it off… how fucking irritating, it wasn't a proper win if his opponent didn't end on the ground completely defeated, and it was next to pointless if his opponent didn't go all out and that was the only thing Deku seem to be good at, holding back what was he scared of anyway? what was his deal?

He breathed in deeply, hissing as the movement hurt his arm, he had to be a realist at the moment he could not do anything what he really needed was to get better so he could be ready when the opportunity arose, he grabbed all the rage he was feeling towards Deku and seal it, he would store it away and use it when the moment came, no matter how hard he had to try no matter how much Deku refuse to fight him he was going to beat him and prove he was the strongest once and for all.

I looked at my rooms sealing concentrating on the hum of my fan so as not to pay too much mind into the neighbors arguing upstairs, to my right a poster of All might seemed to glare down at me condescendingly, I resisted the urge to tear it down along with it every merchandise I had of him, he was my childhood hero, somebody strong, very strong like me, but at the same time, he symbolized what I could never achieve: be a hero.

I vividly remember the night my mom hade hug me while I watch one his videos, the image blurred by my tears, it was the very one I saw on the tv the day I broke my mom's hand a few months ago, the very one that showed me that even if I was so strong I could still do good, I could still help people, it was the day that I realize what my calling was, or so I thought… mom let me go with it for a few months until finally, telling me I couldn't be a hero simply because I was different and nobody could find out.

- "Izuku, I'm sorry," she said crying while she hugged me, "I'm sorry…"

I receive a similar answer from dad a few months later when he returned, a simple and hardly explain no, even my four-year-old self knew it was a certain no, not: up for discussions, not: let's see what happens in the future? No, final answer, I had not brought it up once since then.

What were these abilities good for? Why did I have them if I couldn't even use them to help people? Why? Why…? just why? why did I have to hide my true power? My true abilities? Why was I born a freak? What happened to my real parent? Why did they give me up? And as always it all boiled down to: What was wrong with me? what was so horribly wrong with me that my parents hide me from the world, a world full of people with amazing powers and jet I stood out.

I felt like punching something but that was a big no, no for me, all this question plaguing my mind the development of a new ability, the incident at school, it was a lot maybe I should really get rid of all of this superhero stuff all it did was make me mad anyway, but I just couldn't let it go, no matter how hard I tried.

Mom call from the kitchen announcing diner was ready, I super-speeded my way right behind her trying to startle her but she hardly blinked at my sudden apparition, she was really used to this ability by this point, but when I first discovered just how fast I could go I scare her more than a few times seemingly teleporting from place to place.

- "Izuku honey could you set up the table?" She asked filling the dishes with steaming food.

- "Way ahead of you," I said trying to smile

She ruffled my hair, "Don't be hard on yourself Izuku, it was just an accident okay? Just try to avoid playing sports" she must have seen my downcast expression because she added, "I made your favorite diner today: Katsudo, but you probably already knew that because you smell it…"

I hug her "I did, but thanks mom you are the best" she gave me another smile as I help carry the food to the table.

- "Hm, this smells delicious Inko," dad said as he sat on his usual place on the table he took a sip of juice looking trying to figure me out, "how are you feeling son?"

I shrug my shoulders "Fine I guess, kind of guilty but fine"

None of my parents answer, they looked at each other probably having a silent conversation, mom put her fork down turning her full attention to me "There's something else bothering you Izuku, I can tell"

For a second I panic remembering the accident with the violet eye girl but really thinking about it that wasn't it, all it did was work as a mask for what was really plaguing me, everything that happened today only worked to bring back with full force the contend doubt that was my life.

I felt all the questions that I so often ask myself raise to mind, when I was four I voice the most important of them and I had received a simple answer that wasn't really an answer, it had been sufficient for me then, but now, I had grown, became stronger, developed abilities that were close to impossible to control and I wonder again and again what was wrong with me? would I receive a concrete answer now that I was older? Or would I be pushed again with some half-hearted explanation that I was special?

- "I… I… just…" I look at both of them feeling their concern for me their love, I breathed in deeply preparing for what I was about to say, "Mom, dad… what is wrong with me?

Mom didn't look surprised she almost appeared to have been expecting something like this, "Izuku, we, well..." she looked lost for a second, "I know I can't answer the same way I did all those years ago, you are older and things have change, but…" she looked at dad as if asking for support.

- "Son there is nothing wrong with you" he started "but you are different, and there is a reason why, you are 12, old enough to know, you deserve to know, but is not something easily explain" he paused for a second carefully picking his next words "we will explain everything, or at least everything we know on our next trip to Smallville, it's a few months from now, I understand if you are impatient but believe me Izuku it will be much better that way."

They both looked at me expecting my answer, I roll around what they had said, this was the closest I had ever gotten to actually getting and explanation about myself and who I was, the going to Smallville thing was weird but well nothing was normal in my life maybe it just had something to do with the fact I was born in the U.S, regardless waiting a few months would be nothing compared to all the years I have waited to finally receive an answer.

- "Seems good," I said finally said giving my parents a thumps up before digging into the food I was starving, they seem a little disconcerted with my answer but well what else was I supposed to do?

I practically felt the tension melt from them as they started eating looking at me occasionally as if expecting me to act up.

That night for the first time in a long time I feel sleep with some peace of mind, surprising considering the day I had, but at least I knew that I would get answers soon and answer as to why my life was this way, whenever I like what I would learn… I'll just have to wait and see.

Chapter Text

"The first incident was in Ching-ching city, an extraordinary child was born who radiated light, after that, reports of people with superpowers popped up across the globe, no one knew what was causing these quirks; before long the supernatural became the totally normal, dreams a reality. The world became a superhuman society with about 80% of the population possessing some uncanny ability, our streets look like scenes from comic books, a city swelled with chaos and confusion, a new profession dominated our collective consciousness: it was an age of heroes!"

I walked silently amongst the crowds, blending in, following the flow as people went from place to place, some more purposely than others but yet they all moved not wanting to stand still and halt the flow.

It had been a long flight and an even longer day but after a few hours cramped inside the small airplane seats we had made it into the United States, the bustling Metropolis airport welcoming us to the constant life of its city reflected on the never-ceasing movement of its airport.

My parents were notably more tired than me, while they needed sleep to function adequately, I had found I could survive on next to none, an ability I rarely took advantage of, since I like sleeping, but came in handy on occasions like this.

A few minutes ago, mom had handed me an empty bottle asking me if I could go get some water since our luggage had been delayed, normally she didn't like letting me out of her sight but she was tired along with my dad and they had preferred to sit it out.

Nobody gave me too many second glances now that I was in the states, not as many as I got in back Japan at least, my lack of Asian features no longer calling unnecessary attention, I placed my free hand in my pocket looking around curiously at all the activity going on around me but the constant was noise beginning to make me uncomfortable and so I accelerated my pace rounding the corner where I had previously seen the water fountain when we had passed this area previously.

A girl was already there, filling her own water bottle, I stood a few feet away politely waiting for her to finish but silently hurrying her up. Maybe I would have noticed if not for the constant bombardment of sound, if maybe when I met her my mind hadn't been so distracted, regardless it was too late as I only recognized her the moment she straightened up, turning to look at me.

Violet eyes widened as they caught sight of me, I felt my heart rate accelerate in panic, are you serious? of the entirety of the human population, of all the places on earth, of all the different time zones, and still, I somehow managed to be in the exact same place and time to meet one of the last people I ever want to see?

I consider playing it cool, pretending I didn't recognize her or maybe saying that I was someone else but she had already read the expression on my face and by her mannerism, I don't think she was going to make some remark around the line of: 'Small world am I right?'. A full-on interrogation seemed more likely, so instead of wiping the stupid expression off my face and trying to come up with something I did the one thing that would probably make me look even more suspicious, I turned around and ran.

Lois Lane stretched her neck in every way possible attempting, and failing, to get rid of all the annoying pains only an 11-hour flight could give you, she was exhausted, hungry, and with only a few dollars in her pocket.

Her aunt had promised she would be on time to pick her up from the airport, which of course she didn't and now Luisa found herself wandering around trying to figure out where to get some food for the little money she had.

She dragged her steps in annoyance and exasperation, she hadn't wanted to move from Japan, leaving her family and everything she had known and call home, even the sound of English being spoken around her was strange, but her parents were very insistent on her finishing high school in the States and for her to attend college, speaking of which she still had no idea what she wanted to be or do with her life and she only had two years to figure it out, yea no pressure.

She passed a water fountain and thought it was a good idea to at least get some water, she hadn't noticed just how thirsty she was, she grabbed her empty water bottle and opening it as another announcement came over the loudspeakers and she pressed the side of the fountain the machine making a soft humming sound as it did its work some of the cold water splashing on her hand as her jet lag brain tried to hold the bottle steady, it was half full when she felt somebody behind her, probably waiting to use the water fountain as well and she silently willed the water to go faster as impossible as that was, she really was in no mood to make small talk with strangers.

That immediately changed the moment to turn around, almost dropping her bottle in surprise as she saw who was standing behind her, his hair was slightly longer and he had gotten taller but here was no doubt about it, the kid from the incident all those months ago, the one that had kept her awake at night thinking if maybe she had gone crazy because there was no way what she had seen was true…

His vibrant blue eyes opened in surprise, a mirror expression of her own, she needed to question this kid, she needed the reassurance that what she had seen was true...

She tightened her hands in determination, she could do it, she only needed to talk to him a little and her quirk would do the rest, make him give her all the answers she wanted.

The kid, however, seemed to think 5 steps ahead of her, and instead of hanging out to chat he turned around and took off running.

All dignity forgotten, she raced after him with desperate steps, even if they kicked her out or she got arrested she didn't care. Finally, the chance to get some answers was in reach and she'll be damn if she let it go.

HEY! She screamed running after me

Oh, hell no, I thought, trying to find a way out of this one before someone stopped me, could I maybe super speed myself out of this? probably not, security about quirk usage was especially tight in airports, I was already classed as a high danger passenger I didn't need anything more on my record, still, it left me with the question of what to do? maybe I could lose her somehow or hide? I looked around me frantically searching for an escape route.

Ahead of me, a security guard was scanning the crowds with a precise eye, if I advance anymore, I would be caught, without thinking I entered the first door that I found blinking when I found myself in a spacious expensive-looking room, huge windows lining an entire side washing it in natural light, it would have been an ideal place to hide if not for the several people standing in there.

In the blink of an eye, five guns were pointed at me, their holders with absolutely no hesitation on their stone-cold features.

"Wow" I exclaim, instinctively putting my hands in the air, how did I just manage to get myself from one mess to an even bigger one?

"Identify yourself" a ginormous grey skin man croaked out, his black spy style sunglasses reflecting my every expression.

"I … um" I tried to stutter out, looking lovingly at the door while I weighed my chances of outrunning bullets.

"I gave you an order," he said, his voice becoming more threatening

"It was a mistake" I blurted out "This is all just a big misunderstanding I swear!"

Grey skin didn't look too convinced but a younger woman walked forward putting her gun down, "Okay let's all calm down" she said in a soft but commanding voice, "It's just a kid and I don't want to shoot anybody today".

She may have been the smallest but she was clearly in charge because the others lowered their guns but didn't put them away, sending me a clear message that I was still very much in danger, "What's your name kid?" she asked, coming a little closer, her shiny black heels clicking on the stark white floor.

I swallowed nervously; this may be a bad situation but it didn't mean I was about to forget all the lessons my mom had given me in 'stranger danger'... "I don't think I can't tell you that," I said nervously.

She raised a single dark eyebrow, "Can't or won't? Because I'm sure you will answer to a gun".

I didn't move, I didn't even flinch as she pointed her gun directly at my face, whiting such a short distance I wasn't sure I would be able to dodge a bullet but I was not about to back down, if they wanted to play the intimidation with me, I would show them I could play too, "Won't", I answer my voice coming out a lot stronger and determine than before carrying a tone of danger.

She gave me a smile that showed no resemblance of friendship more like a predator going for the kill, "Don't get cocky with me kid, or I will shoot and I can promise you that from this distance I won't miss"

I gave her a smile of my own my face devoid of all the past panic, "you can try"

She clearly had not expected that answer, her stance wavered slightly, eyes showing confusion, the safety of her gun came off with a click but she was clearly beginning to consider if it would be any good, "Lex?" she finally asked after a tense moment, "what should I do with him?"

I tried to puzzle who she was talking to since she appeared to be the leader after all, surprisingly none of the suit-clad people around me answered, instead, from one of the many black sofas another man I hadn't noticed sat up.

His appearance was completely different from the others, where they were all clad identically and in perfect black professional clothes his outfit was a complete mess like he had just grabbed the first things he saw in the closet, nothing match, from the long white silk coat to the bright yellow polo, that hurt the eyes, over a pair of pants that would be more suited for mining or other heavy-duty work, his hair didn't help his case too much either, auburn and wavy clearly mated and not well brush, it was almost shoulder-length currently falling down from a half-made ponytail.

He stood up slowly, in one hand a tick volume of biochemistry and micro genetic engineering, in the other a stress ball which he squished continuously as his emerald green eyes scan the entire room with almost painful slowness and disinterest finally coming to land on me

A shiver went down my spine as he observed me attentively and for the first time, I genuinely felt afraid, not like before where I was just worried about making a scene, now my body became tense with imminent danger, I could hardly believe it, for the first time in my life of constantly worrying about hurting someone I was terrified that someone would hurt me.

Lex Luthor read another page of the book at what seemed to be superhuman speed, his brain drinking in the information like a sponge accumulating and carefully organizing the knowledge, despite this he was still notoriously bored even with another part of his brain working on some problems he was trying to solve back in his lab, he sighted turning another page realizing with disappointment that everything covered in the next chapter he already knew.

He was about to skip to another part of the book when the sudden opening of the security door caught his attention particularly because that door had very strong locks, someone had entered with lots of force or using some sort of quirk.

In light of the circumstances anybody else would have looked up immediately startle, Lex Luthor's brain however work in a different way than most, his reaction perfectly controlled, he boringly assigned another part of his brain to monitor the situation if it turned threatening, he would maybe bother looking up.

Twenty pages later Mercy finally call him, to his surprise he was a little impatient and somewhat curious as to see who was managing to give his highly specialized guards trouble, by the voice it sounded like a kid and at first he had almost convinced himself it was an honest mistake, kid took a wrong door and in his hurry broke the locks with his quirk, still... he detected something strange the panic on the boy's voice sounded almost fake, like an actor only going through the motions of what should be expected if you were being pointed at with guns, his suspicions only increase at the progressive change in behavior from their intruder.

Lex got up trying to hide the grin that threatened to spread across his face, oh this was going to be entertaining, he scanned the room faking disinterest his eyes finally landing on the author of all the disturbances.

Lex almost did a double-take, every single part of his brain stopping whatever it was doing to gaze at what stood before him, suddenly he felt like laughing and crying all at the same time, his disbelief too immense as his normally perfectly control emotions scrabble together, heartbeat accelerating as he suppressed the instinct to take a step back sudden fear t as he looked around at the other people present in disbelief.

Couldn't Mercy see it? couldn't any of them see it? How were they not trembling in fear at what stood before them? panic threatened to overwhelm him and if Luthor knew something it was that anger and fear are the worst emotions to take control so he swallowed forcing the yarn ball that had become his brain to untangle, slowly taking the control from his emotions and giving it back to the rational, he needed to be careful, more than he had ever been because what stood before him wasn't human.

Under the child-like disguise, behind the vibrant blue eyes, Lex had seen behind it all and found… found something so... alien.

The man advanced towards me with threatening steps, to my surprise I found that the smell of fear was coming off him, his heartbeat slightly accelerated, he was just as scared as I was, although this knowledge didn't exactly make the situation better it gave me the small amount of courage I desperately needed, courage that began to waver the closer he got to me, humming a tuneless song as he passed the woman, who I had previously believe to be in charge, grabbing her gun one swift yet strong-motion not pausing to look at her or anybody else for that matter his eyes always on me until he stopped at arm's reach, green eyes seeming to dig into my soul as he smiled at me, a smile that never reached his eyes even as I found his gun less than an inch away from my face.

"What would happen-" he whispered in an unsteady voice "If I pull the trigger?"

I tightened my fist the metal water bottle I had been holding crumbling like paper as I made a conscious effort not to look at the gun against my head, my eyes never leaving his.

"You will kill me", I answer in a surprisingly steady voice.

His smile widened coming closer to a snarl, "Your eyes tell a different story, my boy, you don't believe that for a second do you?"

I didn't know how to answer or what to do. This situation had completely escalated out of control and I had no idea how to get out without doing something rash, which was beginning to sound more and more appealing. My silence seemed enough of an answer for him and by the look in his eyes I was sure he would shoot, making me tense in readiness, I had never tried my invulnerability with bullets and honestly, I wasn't sure how it would go. But the shot never came, instead, he lowered the gun, his eyes never leaving mine, "Go now boy but don't tell anybody what happened here or you will suffer the consequences".

I looked at him dumbfounded, his smile became something close to friendly but his eyes never lost their fierceness, "I don't want to hurt you". He assured me taking on a soft almost brotherly tone spreading his arms as if he wanted to hug me, I swallow fearfully detecting the lie on his words his heartbeat giving him away.

"What is it boy?", he asked in a sweetly sick voice, "You can go, no harm will come to you", I practically jump away from him as he lied again, I started taking unsure but quick steps back towards the door never giving him my back, I was sure he was going to do something and I wanted to be ready... but nothing happened, not as I opened the door, not as I once again enter the crowded hallway and walk away into the crowds my fear never truly beginning to diminish until I had put twenty feet and a bunch of people between me and that man.

I was about to breathe a sigh of relief when his voice reached me, "My name is Lex Luther by the way kid, remember it because I'm coming after you". A few people gave me weird looks as I stood frozen in fear, my fits tightening as heat began to pull behind my eyes from the stress. I needed to get far, far away from here but my body refused to walk; how could he have known that I had super hearing? Nobody except a few people knew that, how did he figure it out?

My head hurt as I began to feel the magnitude of my new found adversary my stomach shrinking in fear even as I came back to my very worried parents with a crush water bottle and a plaster innocent face, I didn't tell them anything of what had happened instead making up some story about accidentally breaking the bottle, it wouldn't be the first time and I didn't what to put them in danger by telling them the truth.

In truth, there was no way I was getting anybody else involved, that man… Luthor, he shook me to the core, almost like he saw something inside of me that even I couldn't, something that made me dangerous, yet his final promise resonated in my ears, and I had no doubt that he would take down every single person that got on his way to get to me, I could defend myself but would my parent? Could they stand up to someone like that? I hated to admit it but most likely not, they had protected me for my entire life now I needed to protect them even if it meant keeping silent, I was sure my decision would come to bite me in the ass later but it seems the smaller of two evils.

So, I smile nicely as we meet uncle Jonatan, who had come to pick us up, I answer all the question and made some small talk as we began the drive to Smallville but my mind wasn't really on it, horrible scenarios played on in my head of what could happen if Luthor ever got hold of my parents… I shudder and instead tried to focus my attention on the outside attempting to distract myself.

We pass several streets the constant activity of the city on full display, caps passing us by noisily, people walking frantically from place to place never really stopping, businessman and woman on the phone and heroes patrolling the streets, I've read that metropolis seemed to be a magnet for dangerous villains, as a result of which there was an unusually high concentration of heroes and hero agencies along with an Academia, Metropolis hero academy, I thought lovingly of the place, I had thought that maybe I could study to be a hero here in the U.S but my parents had let it clear it wasn't happening anywhere.

I sighted as we pass a particularly grant hero agency, now that there was a lot more distance and a bunch of heroes between me and that Luthor guy I was beginning to feel safer, which, I knew was ridiculous if he wanted to really hurt me he would probably track me anywhere, he just seem that kind of person, but as I sat on the car with my family the entire incident with Lex and meeting the violet eye girl seemed like a bad dream, a very bad one and very much dangerous one but still something distant like if I got far enough from them I would be safe.

I lean against my mom and she cradled my face automatically, her hand brushing my hair, her warm and love made the last strings of fear begin to dissipate, on this trip I was finally going to find out the secret of whatever made me so different, maybe if I learned it, I could somehow avoid Lex Luthor or at least be prepared to deal with whatever he wanted from me.

I close my eyes falling into a half-sleep in my mother's arms, there were a lot of fears surrounding me, for once I was terrified that I was just some sort of scientific experiment and that my parents were just waiting for the moment to turn me back into a lab and get paid for pretending to be my parent and putting up with me, the thought was incredibly painful the notion that everyone around me had only pretended to care for me was probably one of my worst nightmares and now ad in the fear that Luthor would come and destroyed everything I loved...

I shook my head trying to get rid of the intrusive thoughts, whenever I like it or not, I was going to get answers, and to be honest I really needed them probably more than anything, this incident just showed how much my ignorance would cost me, I just had to trust my parent that their love was honest, that they truly care for me no matter what… and that I could protect them no matter what.

I let myself fully succumb to the tired sleepiness that had taken over me, I was not physically tired but mentally I was exhausted from the entire ordeal and it wouldn't hurt to take a nap, there was still a long way to go to Smallville.

Martha Kent turned to look as Clark entered the kitchen, the screen door slamming after him, his blond hair had pieces of hay stuck every way from his morning work of staking, his shirt soaked with sweat both from the heat of the morning and heavy work, at his feet his faithful dog Lala walk along looking lovingly at her master.

"Clark honey-" she began turning back to the stove, "you need to take a shower and put on some decent clothing to welcome the Midoriyas okay? no working clothes"

Clark nodded at her distractedly as he analyzed the insidie of the fridge like something new could have sprung to existence since his last inspection this morning, seeing nothing of interest he grabbed the milk, drinking it straight from the carton hoping his mother wouldn't notice... which of course she did.

"Clark" she exclaimed taking the carton from his hands "have some manners, drink from a glass"

"This is a farm," he muttered.

"Here", Martha said, handing him the glass of milk

He accepted it and sat heavily on the kitchen table, Lala wagging her tail happily at him, he rubbed her ear fondly her brown eyes staring at him with pure happiness, "So, are you excited to see Izuku again?", his mother asked, her back to him, he took a gulp of milk, a white mustache forming, "I mean yea-" he began wiping his mouth on his shirt since his mom wasn't looking "It's been a while last time I saw him we were what… ten?"

His mother nodded, chopping some fresh spring onions, "Don't worry Clark I'm sure you guys will reconnect fast, you always have, besides you two have been in contact over the phone, haven't you?". Clark stood up hurriedly gulping the last of the milk, "Yes we have and I'm not worried about that it's just that Izuku even through text always sounded so… lonely I don't know how to explain it but I find it hard to understand him sometimes if that makes sense?"

Martha looked at her son who had gone deep in thought, the empty glass still in his hand, " Clark... Izuku, well Izuku is different I'm sure you have already noticed that and sometimes he struggles so much to control his abilities, to not show them on accident and hurt somebody, to just fit in... he withdraws to himself to the point where he trusts no one enough to develop a full friendship, Inko tells me he use to have a friend when he was younger but after an incident at school that boy turned on him and has made life difficult for him since and there is not much Izuku can do about it".

Clark considered what his mother had told him, washing his glass on the sink. "I want him to not feel so lonely I mean he trusts me; we are like brothers but I don't think that there is much I can do about his situation back in Japan although if I was there, I would punch that kid so hard in the face he would see the Lord''

Martha smiled at her kid, proud of the man he was becoming normally she would never approve of violent actions or thoughts but in this case... she could let it slide, "Clark I'm sure that just your friendship and company is enough for him", especially with what he will learn on this trip, she thought but she didn't say it out loud.

Clark smiled, one of his signature sunshine smiles, "I can be the best, best friend in the world".

Martha pulled at his ear only half teasingly, "Am sure you can but mister best friend but what about you go get a shower for now hm? you don't want to chase him away, do you?".

Clark made an exaggerated pouty face. "Do I have to?"

Martha gave him an extra-strong push toward the stairs letting go of his ear, "Absolutely young man so get going". Clark resigned to his fate and went up, his mother looking fixedly at him from her spot below where she didn't move from until she heard the shower start.

Satisfied that at least that was sorted out she went back to work preparing lunch for her guest, she was excited to see her friends and happy that Izuku finally got to hang around someone his age who he didn't have to pretend with but at the same time she was worried, a lot was hanging on this particular visit, she knew Inko and Hisashi would be revealing the truth to Izuku, weather Clark would learn of it as well would be up for discussion but she believed her boy had the maturity necessary to take it, or so she hoped but although they were growing more and more every year they were still children and there was no way to tell how children would react to certain circumstances all they could do was make educated guesses, after all, there was no chapter on the raising children's book that read 'how to tell your child that they are an alien and make sure their friends will react well'.

She looked out the window, half expecting to see their truck rolling down the road but she knew better, it would be a while before they arrived, so she turned back to the remaining green onions that still needed to be chopped taking her nervousness and worries to the cutting board.

Clark tumble downs the stairs coming dangerously close to slamming into his mom who was finishing arranging the pretty going out clothes she had put on to welcome her guest, she turned to give Clark a critical eye pushing some rebellious strands of hair from his face, "Mom" Clark complained, he could hear the truck nearing the house they had no time to waist.

She smiled at him, wiping her hands on her pants in a nervous gesture, "I know, I know honey, let's go greet our guest"

The truck came to a stop as the screen door close behind them the rumble of its engine silence as Jonathan turned it off, Hisashi was the first out of the car followed by Inko who stretch, smiling as she caught sight of Martha, the two women short of ran towards each other hugging tightly both talking enthusiastically at the same time, from around the car came Izuku his hands in his pockets, awkward as always.

"¡Hey!" Clark called to him and Izuku smile as he caught sight of his best friend, they bro-hug patting each other in the back, "Man you are getting tall", Clark half remarked half complain, although he had tried very hard it was clear he wasn't going to get taller than Izuku

Izuku scratch behind his ear shaking his head, "Na you are just getting shorter", Clark fake immense insult, answering with a snarky remark of his own, their mothers watching them fondly, glad that they had fallen into their usual easiness so fast, "Aren't you going to say hi to Aunt Martha?". Inko asked winking at her friend, Izuku interrupted his bickering enough to make a sleepy smile, "Sorry" he murmured giving his aunt a hug, Clark, with a look from his mother also went through the formalities of greeting Inko and Hisashi

The adults engage in some small talk with each other, the two boys doing the same, finally in between laughter at something Hisashi had said Martha pointed towards the house, "You must be tired, please let's go inside so you guys can bathe and change clothes, after that we can have lunch".

The idea resonated with everybody and they all moved towards the house together, laughing and joking, Clark playfully punching Izuku on the arm and then complaining about how that hurt which just caused Izuku to laugh harder, it was like music to everybody's ears, specially Inko who spent her days worries about her child, seeing him so carefree and happy, surrounded by people that loved him serve to dissipate some of her doubts about how telling him the secret, she knew they own it to him, he deserved to know why he was different… but it was still scary, terrifying.

She took a deep breath forcefully pulling her eyes away from her smiling son, everything will be alright, she assured herself, everything will be just right… and even if it wasn't, they would still be there for him no matter what.

The familiar smell of the barn hit me as we entered Clark in the lead, drying corn, hay, old wood and oil, rust, and many other smells filling my nostrils with familiarity, "We are going to your loft?", I ask catching up to Clark, "Obviously, I have some new stuff to show you, well actually a lot since it's been like two years".

"You mean you have more old junk to show me?" I ask teasingly, "let me guess more radios?"

He flushed partially in anger and partially in embarrassment at my mention of his particular obsession with collecting old radios, "First of all", he said standing one step above me, "Radios are cool and second no it's not just radios you will be surprised at what people pull out of their attics around here".

"Dead bodies?" I ask sarcastically, which made him laugh," Na that's too much to ask for a little town like this, I mean it's even in the name 'Smallville', the most excitement we get around here is when they elect the next Miss sweet corn and a bunch of girls start fighting over it and drama unfolds, that and when a new Luthor corps scandal arises and a bunch of people get together to protest outside their plants but it just ends up getting brush under the rug, probably because of bribing or whatever, those guys are still here after all".

His expression changed as he looked at me probably because I looked like I saw a ghost, "You okay?"

"What did you just say?", I ask my voice doing nothing to conceal my sudden paralyzing fear

"The Miss sweet corn competition?" he asks doubtfully

I shook my head, "No the thing about scandals and protesting…"

- "The Luthor Corps scandals, what about it?"

I swallowed trying to suppress the panic that threatened to take over me, I had heard right Luthor corps, was this some sort of coincidence that I just got out of a tight situation with a man named Lex Luthor, and all of a sudden, I heard something like this? "What?... What are they? like you mention something about Plants, what do they do?", I ask, trying to sound casual.

He looked at me weirdly, probably wondering why I wanted to know about some random organization all of a sudden.

" Well-", he began scratching his head, "I don't know much about them, I just know my dad doesn't like or trust them very much and so does the majority of people in town, they are some sort of company that researches and fabricates technology or something like that I'm not sure but one of their main competitors is Wayne enterprises so they must be in a similar business which also means they are like billionaires"

I nodded like I was very interested and this was just a random conversation topic, "Do you know who owns it?"

"Dude, do I look like the freaking Wikipedia?"

I shrug, "Maybe?"

He rubbed his chin, a habit he picked up from his dad, as he looked deep in thought, " Yea actually you know what I think I do remember, some old fart call Lionel Luthor is the head however his children help with running the company, and you are in luck there was a recent scandal with one of them so I think I remember their names, the youngest is a girl call Lena Luthor", he lean towards me like somebody was somehow hearing our conversation, " I saw her picture on the article, she's hot,", when that didn't get much of a reaction out of me he continued, "and the older one is called something like… Alexander? Alex?"

"Lex?" I blurted out

He snapped his fingers, "Yes that is! Lex Luthor"

I grip the stair's railing so hard it shatters, "Hey!" Clark called out alarmed, "Careful… you, okay?".

I cross my arms hiding my hands under my armpits not trusting my self-control at the moment, "Sorry, I just… lost it for a second there, were you going to show me something?"

He looked at me disconcert but clearly could not tell what was spoking me, finally, he seemed to give up and turned around, going up the stairs, "Yea my great-great grandpa's telescope, mom found it in the attic the other day, can you believe how old this thing is? like it was around-..."

His voice faded to the background my mind going in circles of panic, he was real, Lex Luthor was real, not just some weirdo I had to imagine, not some isolated incident I could just run away from and not ever think of again, he was a real person with what looked to be a very wealthy company backing him up all the resources necessary to track and find me at his disposal.

It was as Clark showed me the old telescope, blabbing about the model and how they had found it, that I truly realized just in how much danger I was, deadly danger, I had a huge target on my back, now that I think about it had always been there, my parent knew this, that's why they had kept me hidden, why they had been so insistent on me keeping my abilities a secret, there was a reason for all of this, the same reason why Lex Luthor was now after me…

I needed to know, it was painfully obvious that ignorance was just hurting me, I had waited months since that promise around the dinner table, months just to come here and find out the truth, but now it seemed that even waiting five more minutes was unbearable, I needed to know now, Lex Luthor could be in the front door somebody else could be following me and I didn't know what to do, how to protect my family, they were all in danger because of me…

I wanted to run, to run faster than ever and get away from here, to get them away from danger but at the same time I knew I had to protect them and in order to to do that I had to stay, I had to keep them ignorant, I couldn't let them learn about my meeting with Lex Luthor or his treats I couldn't let them know that a multimillion company could be after us at any moment...

Clark ranted on about the telescope and other recent and findings of his, too busy in his eagerness to talk about his passion for radios and antiquities in general that he didn't notice how I was trembling, how my hands never left my armpits, how even as I nodded along and participated in his conversation my eyes hardly lingered on what he showed me, my vision wandering behind walls and fields, landing on the ginormous building too modern and secure looking for a simple rural town like Smallville, it hadn't been hard to find, Luthor Corps, what could they possibly be doing inside? What brought them to a simple town that had nearly nothing to offer except thousands of square miles of corn? I wish I knew I wish I could see, but most of the building was lined with lead, the only thing I couldn't see through, it seemed like a bad sight, just like Luthor's building I could not see through his plans or the when and the how or even the why, I would only find out when it was too late and he pounced.

Inko sipped the cold sweet ice tea while a soft summer breeze rustled the leaves of Martha's potted plants, the smell of county all around her the purity of its air never ceased to amaze her, Izuku was probably enjoying it even more than her, he always complained that the city smelled too much or sounded too much or flash too much, it was overwhelming, she had always wished that they could have moved to a more rural area free of the city and all its chaos, a place where Izuku could have developed his abilities in a more tranquil scenery instead of being forced into it, she sighed as a little butterfly landed on her hand sipping a few drops of tea that had spilled.

Yes, it would have been wonderful for Izuku but after his adoption and all the amount of bribing and payments they had done they were left stripped of their meager savings and in debt, moving would have been too expensive she would have had to take on a job and there was no one they could trust with Izuku so they had stayed in the big noisy, flashy smelly city... but in a sense, she felt it had shaped him, made him more determined and stronger as he overcame the challenge one by one.

She leaned back on the rocking chair, enjoying the quiet peaceful moment, her mind, as usual, had turned towards her son, his beautiful electric blue eyes his freckles and always messy hair her little boy that was not so little anymore, already taller than Hisashi but still he was her baby, the little baby that she had found on that spaceship more than twelve years ago and that now she had to tell the truth too, she now had to tell her son that just wish to fit in, that just wanted to be normal and not stand out the boy that was already freak by his powers, he had to tell him that he wasn't even human, that somebody had put him in a spaceship and sent him here and nobody knew from where or the why, she feared it would break him, he had overcome many things, fought to get control of his emerging abilities, held back even when he was beaten to the ground turned the other cheek even when all of the kids that tormented his life could be defeated by him like a lion swapping off a fly...but still, she feared that this would break him that not only his desires to fit in were impossible but his dream to be a hero was out of his reach.

She knew he still wanted to be a hero, she knew that he had never given up on the hope of it even after they had told him no, she was sure that the only thing keeping his hope up was that he still did not know what made him different, in his mind maybe when he found out it would have a solution or there would be some way around it… but there was none, she knew that, Hisashi knew that everybody did except himself.

Tears threatened to come and they would have fallen down her face if it wasn't for Martha who arrived at that precise moment, a glass of sweet tea in her hand, "Thanks for waiting", she said, sitting down on the porch swing, rocking herself slightly, "So, we have a lot to talk about".

Inko nodded, "Indeed, it's been too long".

"You are worried, Inko", Martha said softly after studying her friend, "Thinking about Izuku?"

"No, I mean yes but… actually yes I'm worried about how he will reach how he will handle it, you know it's a lot to take in"

Martha nodded gravely, "It is… on that same matter, I know we have not discussed it and I'm not sure how you guys will feel about it but Jhon and I think that we should tell Clark as well, he doesn't voice it a lot but I know he is beginning to have questions about Izuku like why he has so many quirks and why he keeps them hidden."

Inko took another sip considering her friend's words, "you know I think it will be a good idea a very good idea in fact, they can help each other and I think it will be great for Izuku to have his best friend there for him in a time like this, it will probably do more harm to keep it hidden from Clark it could put a veil of division between them that shouldn't exist."

Martha looked relieved, "That's good! That's really good to hear, I know my boy will help Izuku along with this one, I know it".

Inko smile tiredly at her friend and she smile back both of them lapse into silence looking towards the barn, were the faint sound of laughter and conversation of their sons could be heard, the sound made them happy and at the same time anxious, worries and anxiety that's what the entire day had felt like and both were sure it would only worsen as the minute's tick to down the moment of truth.

The two families spend the rest of the afternoon talking and just enjoying each other's company however there was an almost palpable tension in the air that just grew and grew as the day became darker, even Clark, who wasn't aware of what was going on saw the tension in everybody's faces, noticing how his friend had become increasingly more restless and fidgety.

Like a bubble it grew and grew, the conversations eventually ceasing as they all lapse into their own thoughts, even the sound of diner getting prepare and the soft warm light of the house couldn't cheer them up, finally Hisashi could take no more, he stood up, pushing his chair back.

"We can't keep on doing this", he said tensely, "I can't eat like this, and I know none of you can so why don't we just get it over with?"

What few sounds had been going on in the room completely ceased, Clark looking up from his phone in confusion.

It was a while before anybody could speak, all of them looking at each other. Finally, Jonathan stood up as well, "I think Hisashi is right, it's not good keeping this up its draining us, let's just go".

The two women nodded, silently turning off the stove and making sure nothing would burn in their absence, Izuku got up as well from his perch on the couch, his hands clasped tightly together, "Hold up", Clark said, finding his voice, "what's going on? where are we going?".

Everybody looked at each other awkwardly, locked in a mental game of 'who is going to tell him? 'Martha ended up being the chosen one and she walked up to her son laying one gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Clark, have you ever wondered why Izuku is… different? Why does he have so many quirks and hides most of them? Clark looked confused for a few moments, " I mean, I have but I never thought it was too important… is it?"

Martha nodded gravely, "I'm afraid so honey, and Izuku is going to find out as well so you guys help each other out, okay?"

Clark still looked confused but nodded, "okay I'll try to understand, whatever it is, I will try"

We walked outside silently, all our previous laughter and meaningless conversation completely gone, somehow it felt like we were going to a funeral, and I hated it, hated that whatever it was so bad it created such an ambience.

I didn't realize where we were or even while we were leaving the house until we were right beside the doors to the cellar and Uncle Jonathan was unlocking them, "what... why did we come here?" I asked, turning towards my dad.

He landed down helping uncle with the heavy chains around the door, "Izuku there is a reason why we waited to come to Smallville just to explain what makes you different, the reason is here". The heavy chains fell to the floor making a clanking sound against the barn floor.

I look at the open doors, in the dim light looking completely dark like the mouth of a huge animal waiting to swallow us all, not a nice sentiment.

Uncle went first, to illuminate the rickety wooden steps with his hand, Aunt Martha followed him, then Clark, who Illuminated the way for my parents with me behind them the only one who didn't need light to see.

At the end of the uneven steps the damp coolness of the cellar greeted us, the smell of metal old paper, wood, and earth permeating the ambient, uncle move around the room until he found the string of the light bulb which he pulled, it flickered a few seconds before fully turning on illuminating the room.

Old wooden stands lined the walls fill with generations worth of old junk, farm equipment, tools, and just about anything else imaginable, it looked like any other cellar in this town and probably the entire state if it wasn't for the yellowish-white tarp that was covering an object in the middle of the room, I was about half the size of a small car but it had a weird shape kind of like an oval put more pointed towards one end and curiously there was a weird smell coming off it, metal-like but it didn't quite match anything I have ever smelled before.

"What's that?", I asked although I was becoming more and more convinced, I didn't really want to know the answer.

My dad step towards it with almost sacred reverence, gingerly he took some of the tarp in his hand turning back to look at me, "Izuku, this is the reason why we came all the way here why we waited, what you are what makes you unique is so... big that if we told you without this you would have thought we were crazy", he made a pause taking a deep breath clearly brazing himself for what he was about to say, " Izuku, you have always known you were adopted, there was hardly any way for us to hide that but the truth is that we didn't adopt you, not from an adoption agency at least, Izuku we found you."

I took a step back surprise, "You found me? Where… how?"

His eyes filled with tears as he lifted the tarp exposing what was below it, "We found you in this".

Besides me Clark gasped in surprise; I would have probably done the same had my body not gone into shock seeing what was before me.

It was beautiful, nobody could deny that even the in meager yellow light it shone with a bluish tint light caching its smooth aerodynamic form, a crest engraved on its front, a sudden flash-back filled my mind, I was in a vastly different place from this dusty cellar I could see that even as the image appeared blurry, somebody was holding me tight while loud sounds bombarded all around us and in a particularly clear part of the memory the same ship stood in a pool of light its engine glowing blue.

I shudder at the sudden memory, a feeling of dread enveloping me, "That's a spaceship", I whispered, not as a question but as a statement of truth, nobody contradicted me.

"You found me in a spaceship", I said, turning towards them, my voice taking on a panic tone, "But that doesn't necessarily mean I'm a…" I stopped; the words wouldn't leave my mouth.

"It doesn't mean that does it, dad?" I asked practically begin for him to agree with me, instead, he shook his head, "I'm sorry Izuku I thought the same thing when we found you so I did some tests and…" his voice broke, "I'm sorry Izuku, but you are".

I shook my head, "NO, I… it can't be… I'm an alien?"

I was hoping somebody would contradict me, tell me I had misunderstood but everybody avoided my gaze except for Clark who was still looking at the spaceship in wonder, I took a deep breath passing a hand through my hair.

"Why don't you touch it Izuku?" mom asked, speaking up for the first time.

I look at them, anoyed,  that was the last thing I ever wanted to do, "It has never done anything from the day we found you", she continues ignoring my look "but maybe if you touch it, it will, don't you want to find out?".

I knew what she was doing, she was trying to distract me trying to lessen the blow of what I had just found out, regardless it was better than the overwhelming desire to go out, running and screaming into the cornfields, that had overtaken me.

Everybody fell silent as I walked towards it, holding their breaths in anticipation, with trembling fingers I reach out and touch the metal, at first it felt cold very cold for the temperature around it but as I fully laid my hand on it, its surface started to warm up as if reacting to my touch, a low purring sound coming off from the inside as it began to faintly glow, suddenly a high pitch sound filled the air making me jump back, an image of a man appearing over the ship.

I felt into a sitting position in my hurry to scramble away from him afraid that he might do something but the hologram only look around the room his eyes finally landing on me, "Greetings Kal-El, I'm Jor-El, your father"

I swallow my hands digging into the ground, " I'm forever sorry that I'll never see the man you've become and it pains me to have to record this as your only means of getting information about who you are and where you come from , I wish I could explain a great deal more than what will be in this recording however time is short, as you may have already notice Kal-El you are not like the humans you live around, they may exhibit powers similar to yours but they are still nothing compare to what you can do and the reason lies in your biology, you came from a place call Krypton a planet inhabited my millions of Kryptonians, a species that looks identical to humans but that because of the harsh ambient of our planet develop the capacity to absorb use and accumulate solar radiation, Krypton belong to a solar system with a red stars, the oldest kind, consequently the radiation we observe didn't do much of a difference ,however, under earth's yellow sun you will develop amazing abilities far beyond what any human could wish to acquire you will be like a god amongst men.

He paused his expression darkening, "You may wonder why we send you away, why your mother, Lara Zor-El, and I choose to send you alone to a faraway and underdeveloped planet, but the sad truth is that Krypton is no more, our civilization became greedy and tried to get more resources by mining the core of our planet which made it unstable, I tried to warm the council but they turned a deaf ear and by the time they notice our rapidly worsening situation it was too late to evacuate the planet or call for help, only I who had been prepare manage to send you away on a spaceship before our planet exploded."

His face suddenly contorted in pain his voice becoming unsteady, "Your mother and I wish to see you grow up above all, we wish to see you become a man but we know it impossible so always remember, we might be gone but we live through you so make us proud be a symbol of hope for the people of earth Kal-El, and remember you may look like them but you are not part of them, you are special, you are my son and most importantly… you are the last son of Krypton."

With those final words, the hologram disappeared leaving me looking at an empty spot, tears running down my face as I shakily got up looking at my family who were observing me like milk about to boil on a stove, I pass a hand over my face wiping it frantically, trying to get rid of the tears that didn't seem to stop.

"I… I need to go", I managed to croak out.

"Izuku no!", my mom cried trying to reach for me, but I was faster, way faster, and in a blink of an eye I left taking my sorrows to the cornfields.

The dust hadn't even settled in the room when Inko began sobbing, hiding her face behind her hands. Martha also looked red-eyed but she was trying to keep it together for her friend's sake.

Hisashi gently embraced his wife, allowing her to bury her face in his shoulder, "What do you think he saw?", Martha wondered in a tight voice, "All I heard was a soft purring sound and the air above the spaceship seemed to be wavy but that's all".

"He probably saw and heard a lot more than us", Jonathan venture, "whoever send the spaceship probably program it in a way that only he could activate it and as an extra precaution that only he could see and hear it"

"It was probably a wise choice," Hisashi answered, "considering what the scientist would try to do if they had gotten a hold of it, we can ask Izuku when he returns". He immediately regretted his word because although he didn't say it out loud, they were all thinking it... if he returns.

Martha bowed her head trying to hide her tears while Jonathan waved a hand in front of his shell-shocked-looking son, "Hello? earth to Clark, are you their kido?".

Clark shook his head, "I… I need to sit down", he said practically collapsing to the cold floor grabbing his face, "This… this is a lot to take in, give me a sec".

Martha and Jonathan look at each other, so far Clark was taking it in with a reasonable amount of shook but still good, from here on things could go either way, they just had to let Clark alone to analyze the situation and forge his own opinions pushing him too much would be a bad idea.

"Take your time son", Jonathan said settling down on the floor as well, "I have a feeling there is a long wait in front of us".

I'm not sure how much I ran, I just know it was a lot, after getting far away from the house and the spaceship I had slowed down to human speed probably the only reason I hadn't yet abandoned the cornfield but there was no way I was still in the Kent's property.

I wish I could feel tired. I wish I could run until my lungs burn and my muscles scream with effort but I knew that wouldn't happen no matter how hard I tried so instead I just let myself flop to the ground, laying my forehead against the soft black earth of the field.

I felt numb and like a huge blister all at the same time, my mind swimming with thoughts and unanswered questions but mostly a deep-rooted sadness that was setting in accompanied by new blossoming grief.

All I had ever wanted was to belong to not be that one weird kid to not get thrown to the grown just for standing out when you were so desperately trying to fit in...I had led a life of being constantly scared of hurting someone forever with the remorse of what I did to my mom, a life of fearing that one day would lose control, an existence that felt like a tightly compacted spring that would bounce at any moment, and through all that, my one dream had been to be a hero, to at least use these curse abilities for something good, something noble but now I was realizing that I couldn't, my meeting with Lex Luthor really opened my eyes to that, becoming a hero, putting myself into the public was dangerous, I already call out too much attention without trying, and then there was the matter of who I really was…

Alien, Izuku Midoriya was an alien, I shook my head sitting up somehow that name didn't fit in with the title, what had my father called me? Kal-El that was my birth name, an alien name, for an alien child...

I laid back down but this time looking up at the stars, I had come from somewhere in the vast expanse of the universe, probably far, far away... but did it matter how far?, Krypton was gone along with all its people, I thought about that man, my father he had called himself, I could certainly see the resemblance we look almost identical however I knew for a fact my eyes were my mothers, a sudden pang of grief hit me as another deeply buried memory resources of the face of a beautiful woman looking down at me with electric blue eyes, wavy brown hair framing a perfect face a few freckles lining the nose, the memory was only a flash and if I tried to concentrate too much on it disappear, that all I had left of my biological mother a fleeing blurry memory…

She was gone along with my father and my entire people; I was not only alone on planet earth but in the universe… the last of my kind

I felt my body heave with sobs, the stars blurring as fresh tears fell down my face, and I cried, cried for a long time, mourning my lost humanity, mourning the dreams that weren't possible and overall, I mourn the death of my long-lost planet.

Hisashi Midoriya sat on the steps leading to the back entrance of the house, he knew Izuku would be coming this way trying not to get noticed, that's just how he was, he had never wanted to call attention to himself just being content with fitting in, of course, he had never fully managed to this and sadly Hisashi was sure he never fully will, there was just something about Izuku… most people didn't' notice it or a least their conscious mind didn't but their subconscious did which just made him stand out unintentionally.

He passed a hand through his hair, now with this… it was like a final blow for his son, he was probably devastated and it hurt him not to be able to be there for him right now... but it had been his choice to get away from them and if he needed to go through this alone, they would respect it, besides there wasn't much they could do about it.

He tapped his foot impatiently, waiting for anything to indicate that Izuku was coming back, inside, Martha Jonathan and Inko were sitting on the kitchen table sipping some tea and attempting to do some small talk, Clark had been allowed to stay up late and was distractedly watching something in the tv munching on a late-night snack, some of them could have gone to sleep while the others kept watch but they all knew nobody could it was left unspoken, not they would have gotten too much sleep anyway.

Although he pushed it away, the thought that Izuku was never coming back still tried to creep into his mind enveloping him a net of hopelessness, to think that the last glance of his son would have been in that old cellar... he shook his head trying to rid of the intrusive thoughts, Izuku would never do that to them, he tried to tell himself, even if the message given to him had told him to go somewhere to do something Izuku would have told them so, left them some sort of message, he would never abandon them like this, but the pestering truth was that none of them knew exactly what Izuku had seen or heard...what if it had called him to go back to his planet not allowing him to tell anybody? or it had called for him to … do something terrible he couldn't bring to say, something like exterminating the human race, the thought was so horrible he felt like slapping himself.

What was he thinking of his own son? Why did he place him in such low esteem? the beautiful boy he had raised, held, and loved and who had retaliated that love to him? How could he put him in such a light? and yet his mind had subconsciously begun to think of ways to stop or even...kill him if it became necessary, what's worse he felt more terrible about the fact that he couldn't think of a single way of stopping his son, short of dropping nukes on him, rather than how his mind was so quick to jump to conclusions.

His eyes threatened to fill with tears and emptiness enveloping him tightening around his chest at the mere thought of having to harm his son, even for the sake of humanity.

Suddenly Lala, the Kent's shepherd dog who had been keeping watch with him, perk up looking at the cornfield as she began to bark, Hisashi felt a simultaneous wave of hope and despair, there was little doubt that Izuku was the one approaching, nobody else would be coming from the cornfield and if it had been an animal Lala would have already rush it, the real question as weather Izuku would come out of that cornfield, the Izuku who he knew and love or a distant potentially dangerous stranger.

He stood up, bracing himself trying to remain calm because Izuku would probably be paying attention to his vitals, Lala seemed to recognize Izuku's scent because she made a happy little bark and tail wagging went into the cornfield, that's good he thought dogs are good at sensing intentions, now he could also hear the distant rustle the soft sound of steps coming closer the stalks of corn moving as the person approach walk amount home until the figure was just a few feet away from coming to view.

Lala was the first to burst out her tongue hanging to one side goofily and just behind her… he practically fainted in relief, it was Izuku, head down, feet driving and looking utterly defeated but it was still his son, the boy look up at this with sad solemn eyes, he truly looked horrible, his hair was messy and damp from the dew, the front of it cake with dirt some of it on his face, he knew he had been crying, with Izuku it was usually hard to tell, unlike humans his eyes didn't redden, his face didn't blush or get a runny nose, but his lashes were damp and tear strains painted clean lines on his dirty face.

"Izuku," he said softly, "Are you ready to go inside? "He wanted to talk it out with him at the moment but his parental instinct was telling him that the best thing for the boy right now was to get clean and have a good night's sleep, he would speak in his own time.

But Izuku didn't make and attempt to move, not even making eyes contact with him

"What is it Izuku? Is there something you need to tell me?"

The boy opened his mouth slowly as if every motion required lots of thought and effort, his eyes filled with so much despair and pain it made him want to hug and hold him like a baby and tell him everything would be alright... but he resisted the urge clapping his hand together.

"Can I…" Izuku began, his voice coming off raspy and, in a whisper, as if he was barely holding back tears, "Can I just keep on pretending to be your son? Can I just pretend all of you are my family?

Hisashi felt like his heard drop to his feet and he could no longer hold back, he wrapped his son in a hug holding his head against his shoulder, "Izuku", he said on the verge of tears himself, "You are my son, we are your family", he whispered kissing his son's head murmuring softly to him, slowly Izuko's arms embrace him as well and he felt the tension leave his son's body as he melted into his father's embrace, " I love you Izuku, we all love you so much", Izuku tighten his grip around him but Hisashi didn't complain, he would gladly pay several broken ribs for his son any day, "I love you too, I love all of you" came Izuku's muffled reply, and now Hisashi could no longer hold back tears as he held his son under the blanket of stars on that warm summer night.

Chapter Text

Mr. Suzuki eyed his third-year junior high students with a seemingly critical eye, their attention, for once, completely drawn to him, or to be more specific, the papers he was holding still slightly warm from the printer.

"All of you know what these papers are'', he began, "This are career aptitude test, you are third-years now, it's time you start thinking seriously of your futures", he said in a serious tone that was purely for effect at his expression morphed into a silly smile seconds later and he threw the papers into the air, "But why do I even bother? I know all of you want to be heroes!".

His class erupted into cheers, the students activating their quirks in their excitement, he permitted it for a few seconds allowing them to at least enjoy the moment. It was obvious to him, and just about anybody with an ounce of common sense, that there was little chance any of his students could actually manage it, their quirks were too weak or simply not adequate for the job. That was the case for the majority of his students, but there were two notable exceptions, he thought, looking at his class again, raising his hand to calm them down, his eyes drifting, as they often did, to the two prodigies.

First, there was Bakugou Katsuki, a hot-headed kid, who's rude manners and violent behavior were constantly getting him in trouble, regardless his quirk was amazing, if destructive, and there was little doubt in anybody's mind he could get into any school he set his mind on.

"Oh, c'mon teacher don't class me in with this bunch of losers I am the real deal!", The boy in question said his feet resting comfortably on his desk, his chair tilted back as his eyes glare at his classmates before jumping on top of his desk, "I'm going to apply and get into U. A!", he shouted loud enough for the classroom next door to hear him.

Immediately a murmur went up amongst the class, "The national? he is applying for the national?", somebody exclaimed, "It only has a two percent acceptance rate", another one whispered.

Bakugou seemed to enjoy the spotlight grinning maniacally, "Yes, it is hard but that's exactly why it is the only place worthy of me! I ace all my tests. I'm the only one who has the potential to enter U.A! I'm going to become more popular than All might and end up the richest hero in the world!".

"There he goes again", Mr. Suzuki thought, basking in his own greatness, sure the kid had potential but somebody needed to take him down a few notches before he could actually manage anything. He looked at his class again, his eyes briefly meeting with his other star-student, immediately seeing an opportunity to take the attention away from Bakugou.

"What about you Midoriya?", he asked the blue-eyed boy, "Will you try for U.A?". He knew the question was pointless, although Midoriya had gotten even better results than Bakugou in almost everything the boy didn't seem to be interested at all in becoming a hero.

As expected, Midoriya shook his head, "No teacher I'll be applying for several science high schools, I want to be a doctor", he stated simply, which only brought in another wave of whispers from the class.

"That's wasted potential!"

"I know right? if I was that strong, I would be applying to U.A in a heartbeat"

"Isn't it selfish of him to not use his quirk for good?".

Bakugou, clearly pissed the attention had been taken away from him, suddenly jumped, bringing his hands down on Midoriya's desk and making it explode causing several kids to scramble away, by this point, very much acquainted with the kind of destruction Bakugou could bring on.

The only person seemingly unfazed was Midoriya, the boy just looked down at his destroyed desk not with fear, but rather exasperation, "Was that really necessary Kachan?".

Bakugou, gritted his teeth, Midoriya's attitude never failed to make him mad, "Was it necessary? was it? Of course, it was you dirtbag, trash like you should know their place!", he said getting in the other boy's face, "Are you so all mighty you think becoming a hero is too good for you hu? hu?". Bakugou shouted as his hand found Midoriya's shirt and pulled him forward, "You think you are above all of us, don't you?".

Mr. Suzuki saw a flash of anger cross Midoriya's eyes and for a second found himself fearing for Bakugou's safety, but the look was fleeting and the boy simply stood up to his full height, a good head taller than Bakugou, "I don't think I'm better than anyone Kachan", he began, "If anybody thinks like that it's you".

Nobody dare laugh, it was a strange sight to see anybody stand up to Bakugou, not that much of anybody had the capacity to do so, Midoriya was of the few who could, and he rarely did, much of the time just taking the punishments Bakugou pour down on him without saying of doing anything, this time, however, Bakugou seem to have caught him in a bad mood.

"Let me go Kachan". He said his voice dead serious bordering on angry, a tone that just seemed to make Bakugou angrier, "You think I'm taking orders from you…hu? you really think so? you useless nerd?!".

The hand Bakugou was using to hold Midoriya's shirt began to smoke which would make anybody else tremble in fear at what that smoke signified, but Midoriya apparently didn't care grabbing Bakugou's writs and pulling it away with ease, "I said let go".

Bakugou clearly wanted to fight but one look from Mr. Suzuki stopped him, that, and Midoriya having already walked out of reach and towards the door, "I'll get another desk". He informed the teacher, his voice unusually tense.

Normally Mr. Suzuki would have sent Bakugou on such a mission considering he was the one who ruined the desk but judging by Midoriya's expression the boy really wanted to get out of there, something had him in a bad mood, be it the mention of the future careers, Bakugou's outburst or something else, regardless, Mr. Suzuki was a long-time teacher; he saw the lines of tension in the boy's frame.

"Go ahead". He answered, turning back to his class as the door closed behind Midoriya.

Bakugou for his part sat back down, arms crossed, his eyes slitted in anger, "It's not over, I'll get you eventually you fucking piece of shit". He mumbled thinking nobody could hear him, but out in the hall, the receiver of his threats turned back to look back at the classroom door, his eyes flashing red for a moment before he took a deep breath, calmed himself, and silently walked down the hall.

In another part of the city people scrambled out of the way as a huge slime villain ran by causing chaos, the occurrence as always was beginning to draw a crowd of onlookers, "There's just no stopping him hu?". A woman remarked as she exited the supermarket,

"Where are the heroes?". Another gentleman exclaimed anger beginning to sip into his voice as he shielded a small child with his body.

"If they could do something they would have already". An older teenager counter joining in.

Unbeknownst to them, and to everybody around a hero was indeed capable of stopping such treat and as luck would have it, he was standing right behind the murmuring group, his muscles swelled his clothing stretching to keep up as his seemingly weak, sickly form, was abandoned for the one everybody knew all too well.

"Of course, he can be stopped!", All might call making everybody turn to look at him, their expression changing from hopelessness, fear, and anger to those of hope and excitement, "That villain will be stopped", All might promise, "Because I am here!"

The final bell had already rung a while ago as I got up to leave, a pair of chattering girls the last to exit, before Bakugou and his sidekicks surrounded my desk, "Thought I was done with you?". He asked with an ugly expression on his face.

I tightened my fist in a conscious effort to control myself, today I really was in no mood to put up with Kachan's bullshit, not after the painful reminder of my lost dreams, not after all I had once aspired to be was practically dragged across my face as an insult.

Bakugou was applying to U.A, the place that I, over anything else, had once upon a time wished to attend, I had little doubt that I could get in, my grades were the best and with my abilities passing the physical part of the entrance exam would be a breeze...but… I just couldn't apply, and so I had to watch as Bakugou, of all people, live my dream.

I look at the blond boy, not for the first time considering how nice it would be to throw him against a wall, how surprised he would look as the air was forced out of his lungs as he experienced how it felt to be at the receiving end of his beatings-, "stop", I told myself "You can't use your powers against people one miscalculation and they end up dead just...deep breath, calm down, deal with it".

"Why aren't you answering you little shit?". He asked, getting in my face, "You seriously thought I was done with you?".

I stood up looking down at him, "Yea actually we are done for today see you", I said trying to get away, which of course didn't work, instead, he grabbed my backpack, which in my hurry to get away I had stupidly forgotten to get, and promptly chucked it out the window.

Every Second of its path across the air, every single moment I saw in slow motion as it exited the window, I could have saved it at any moment, one second of speed and it would be back safely in my arms, but my life just seemed to be filled with "could not" because I simply couldn't reveal the rest of my powers, and so I watch helplessly as I fell out of view and landed below with a splash.

Anger swelled inside of me and before I knew it my hand was around Bakugou's shirt collar as I lifted him up from the grown bringing him to eye level with my face, "What the hell was that for Kachan? want me to throw you out the window as well?".

Instead of fear all I saw in his face was glee, "So are you finally going to fight me, Deku? Finally decided to man up? just don't expect me to go easy on you".

His words snap me out of whatever power had taken over me and I let him go with a little more force than necessary, "I won't fight you Bakugou, no matter how hard you try no matter how much you tempt me, I won't fight you so stop trying".

His buddies looked like they wanted to add some comment to the conversation but I stopped them with a glare simply turning my back on all of them and leaving the room to go outside to try and rescue my backpack, or whatever was left of it.

I looked at the koi pond, the fish swimming around my floating backpack, curiously nibbling at it, at least it hadn't sunk, I thought, grabbing it roughly, making the fish scatter in fear.

"What a shitty day", I muttered, silently apologizing to the fish, none of this was their fault; my day had started with a hero-villain fight blocking my way to school, making me almost late and the rest of the day had just been downhill from there.

For some reason watching hero and villain fights just pissed me off, when I was younger, I had love to watch the conflicts analyzing and storing every bit of data I saw from them, trying to prepare for what I thought was my future as a hero, now I was older, now I knew the truth about myself, now I knew that it was impossible and watching the fights just made me madder as it poked its finger into a barely healed wound.

The last years had been hard, the years after I had learned the truth of who I was, or more specifically what I was.

A Kryptonian, I was an alien living amongst humans, I held so much power it was ridiculous and yet the best thing I could do with it was becoming a doctor, not that there was anything wrong with it, if anything it was a career choice with as much heroism as being a hero.

With my special vision, I could detect illness earlies on that any other test, I was an inbuilt X-Ray, Microscope, M.R.A, ultrasound and whatever else there was machine, yes being a doctor I could save a lot of life's, I could even become a rescue doctor attending to disasters zones, all by myself I could rescue people from close to any situations, detect them long before anybody else did, lift entire buildings off of them if necessary, my heat vision could work as an emergency cauterizer and I could detect injuries long before we arrived at the hospitals.

As my mother had said, I would make the perfect doctor, and I could save just as many lives if not more than if I was a hero, the same fame and glory wouldn't come with it but that was never what I had been after, all I wanted was to use my gifts for good, maybe it wasn't what I had initially wanted but there was still a hell of a lot of heroism in it.

The thought cheered me up slightly and I tried to promise myself I would no longer dwell on my past aspirations; I had a new path in life and I was determined to do as much good as I could with it.

I came to these conclusions as I walked under a bridge on my way home, so engrossed in my own internal dilemmas that I did notice the huge figure that loomed behind me until it spoke.

"Ah... a nice strong body, this should do".

I practically jumped out of my skin at the sound of the voice, turning to look at the huge slime person that now stood over me. I was about to ask him what the hell what he just said mean but he pounced first, a piece of his chest clinging on to my neck as another tried to enter my mouth, the feeling of cold mucus-like substance in my mouth was so disgusting that it activated a gagging reflex I didn't even know I had as I grabbed it firmly and tried to pull it out, but no matter how hard I tried to get a hold of it the slimy substance just passed through my fingers, it was like trying to grab water.

My initial shock gave in to anger and then rage, my eyes heating up and I looked at the huge disgusting body, "Deal with this!", I thought as I shot my heat vision into it.

It recoiled instantly leaving my mouth free again, I coughed a few times trying to get rid of the disgusting feeling as I turned to look at it, my eyes still glowing red.

The burns had apparently only worked to distract it as no true harm appeared to have been inflicted on him, probably the main benefit of having a slime body. Part of me was relieved that I hadn't actually hurt it and the other just wished he had been left with two gaping holes.

His entire body shrunk before my eyes and I knew he was preparing to jump at me again, "Oh no you don't", I whispered punching him with more strength than I had ever used before.

Like some sort of mess up confetti the pieces of this body scattered everywhere, for a second, I was terrified I had killed it, but then I saw small pieces trying to reform, ugh, this thing really was nasty, now I just needed to call the police to restrain him, hopefully, I wouldn't have a problem with them, I had done it in self-defense and this villain really needed to be contained.

I was about to deal them up when my hearing suddenly picked up somebody else close by, immediately I looked towards the direction of the heartbeat, afraid of how long they could have been there, afraid of what they could have seen.

Those fears didn't last for long as I caught the jaw-dropping sight of exactly who was standing before me.

"All might?", I ask weakly, suddenly forgetting my entire vocabulary.

His signature smile widened, "Indeed my boy, fear not for I am here!". He shouted, striking a pose.

I swallowed as my brain went into full panic mode, I needed to get an autograph but all my notebooks were soaked...dammit, maybe he could sign something else, my backpack my shirt? anything would do…

He smiled again looking down at me, "Not that my help is needed any longer here", he said beginning to gather the chunks of the villain and storing them in a large soda bottle, "By the way that was an amazing punch my boy a remarkable quirk if I have ever seen one have you consider becoming a hero?".

And there it was...the words the sour the moment for me, whenever I thought I had gone over it and was heading strong towards becoming a doctor something reminded me that no matter how hard I tried to convince myself going into the medical field was the best choice it was never truly what I wanted.

I must have taken a while to answer because he paused to look at me probably noticing my discomfort at the question, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to", he said kindly, "And you don't have to pretend you want to become a hero just because I'm asking, I believe there is heroism in any work if it's done correctly".

I nodded silently as he went back to gathering the last chunks. He was almost finished when a new crazy thought began to surface, getting to not only met All might but having, what may be considered, a conversation with him seemed straight out of my never-ending book of impossible, and yet here I was doing just that, maybe...maybe, just maybe he could help me out with another impossible.

I was about to speak when he closed the bottle lid and securely placed the container in one of his pockets, "Well I got to hand this guy over to the police".

"No wait!", I thought as he lifted his hands up in a farewell gesture and squatted as if ready to jump, "I can't let him go yet!" my mind screamed, "I have some many questions and most importantly maybe he can help me…", but before I could gather the courage to speak or even reach out to him, he launched himself into the sky with blinding speed.

It took me a few seconds to make a decision, here I had a chance, probably the opportunity of a lifetime to solve my problem, to fulfill my dream...I had to take it no matter the cost.

I bend my knees slightly and jump after him, admittedly I had never done something like that before, sure I knew I could jump really high with my strength, probably jump over skyscrapers I just never put it to the test and now I realize I had really miscalculated, my jump taking me higher than him, not to mention he seemed to be advancing by using air pressure me on the other hand...gravity was pulling me down quickly and unfortunately in a direct crash course with him.

"Oh-uh", I thought as I approached him, "think, think Izuku figure something out!", I practically begged myself as I got closer and closer.

Running out of options and in a desperate attempt not to fall upon the city I reached out and grabbed his leg as I fell by, making a very conscious effort to not break his leg in my desperation.

Understandably he didn't seem to take this kindly. "Hey, hey, hey! what do you think you are doing?", he called, shaking his leg and trying to push me off, "I love my fans but this is too much!".

"Wait! we are flying", I said in my best imitation of a terrified voice, "If you push me off, I'll die".

Surprisingly this just seemed to just have occurred to him as he stopped shaking me, "Oh that's a good point".

"I just...have a lot of things I need to ask you...personally", I said trying to explain myself and not appear as an obsessive fan, "You are my favorite hero...my role model".

He just looked at me briefly and just sighted, well at least he stopped trying to push me off…

We landed a short while later on one of the many buildings around us, "That wasn't a very good move". He pointed out looking at the city, "Bang on one of the doors, and eventually, someone will let you in", He said, starting to walk, never turning to look at me, "Now I have to go, see you around".

"No! wait a minute!", I said, my voice acquiring a desperate tone, "I have to know!" the world's hung in the air like a heavy curtain my mind replaying all the painful memories I keep buried...my dad's tear-filled eyes as his voice broke on the words, "I'm sorry Izuku but you are an alien",

My biological father's pained face on the hologram that recorded the last few minutes of his life, "Krypton is no more".

My mother's broken face as she told me that I couldn't be a hero.

Lex Luthor's gleaming green eyes always haunted me.

"I... I have always wanted to be a hero", I began trying to make my voice stop shaking, "But...there's something different about me...I'm scared that if I make myself public...that if I become a hero… a lot of people would harm me, or my family".

That for once made him look at me again, "Something that makes you different?". He repeated like that was something that required further explanation, which it did.

I swallow, moment of truth, I had to make a decision, would I reveal my secret to him in the case that he could help me out? or would I try to tiptoe around it and hope for the best?

I closed my eyes tight, coming to my decision, praying that I wouldn't regret it...but the words never came out of my mouth as a sudden hissing sound filled the air and I opened my eyes, alarmed as to what could be causing it, only to recoil in horror at the sight before me…

I bit my tongue before I could yelp in surprise at what I was witnessing.

In another part of the city, a particular bottle filled with suspicious content began to move as its unwilling occupant woke up, groggily wondering where it was, what had happened?

Slowly the last few hours began flashing across his mind, especially one of a blue-eyed boy punching the living daylights out of him.

He growled, "If it wasn't for him, I'll be out of town already!", He shouted in anger, now if he could only get out of this pesky bottle maybe the situation could still be savable.

As if by fate his plastic imprisonment was suddenly and violently kicked by a boy, this one blond and with forever angry red eyes, "That was harsh", one of the other two boys walking behind him said, "Weren't you and Midoriya friends once?".

"Didn't he break your arm a while ago?". Another one added, "Is that why you bother with him so much? I mean you shouldn't... guys a total loser".

Bakugou looked away with an annoyed expression, he himself wasn't sure what made him so angry about Midoriya, was it his quirk, that even with his destructive explosion he had managed to protect him from even getting a scratch? Was it the fact he broke his arm?

He shook his head, no I wasn't any of those it was just...his eyes, the fucking expression he always wore, so sad and solemn but at the same time so angry and fierce, how he looked down at him like he was a pathetic cockroach.

It was just the way Deku looked at him when he tried to beat him into submission and yet his eyes spoke of many secrets too big for him to comprehend...that was what drove him crazy, but of course he couldn't say all of this out loud, not to these pathetic losers that always clung to him just because he was strong...

"Somebody has to bring him down from his mountain", he said coming up with the explanation of the spot, the can he had been holding suddenly combusted as he activated his quirk, "I hate it when he just, ugh...when he talks like he's better than everybody else".

His two friends just looked at each other, neither of them quite understood Bakugou's problem with Midoriya apart from the fact that he could possibly be stronger than Bakugou, still, it was better not to point that out.

"Hey, why don't we just go to the arcade?". One of them suggested trying to distract his hot-headed friend, "We could take our minds off all of this".

Bakugou looked at the floor again before murmuring, "Fine". Is not like he had anything better to do after all.

"Or...we could sneak into the bar and pick up some chicks", the other one suggested with a crooked smile.

"Now... that would be nice", his friend answered a little too enthusiastically.

"You idiots!", Bakugou screamed, jumping into the conversation, "If we get caught, I can't get into U.A!".

They didn't bat an eye at his screaming, by this point accustomed to his outburst, that's why he found himself confused as their faces suddenly morphed into masks of fear.

"Hey... what's that?". One of them managed to mumble, pointing at the giant slime monster that had seemingly formed out of thin air.

Alarm Bakugou turned around only to be met with the nightmare-inducing face of a muck villain, his sharp pointed teeth opening into a terrifying snarl. "Ah... a nice skin suit". He said towering over the blond boy, "And it has fire!".

I swallow once, twice, no this couldn't be happening, there was no way this was All might, and yet...everything pointed towards it, the hissing sound… the sudden apparition of this apparent stranger, surely, I would have heard something if a switch had taken place, not to mention they were wearing the same clothing, there was little doubt in my mind that what was in front of me was reality.

Still, regardless of all the evidence, I just had to ask, still willing this to all be a mistake, "Are you...you are All might?", I ask hoping beyond hope that I was wrong.

His hollow face turned to look at me, his entire frame almost appearing to be a walking corpse, "I can assure you I am All Mi-". Before he could finish his sentence a mouthful of blood filtered in between his teeth.

Alarm I scanned him, noticing abnormalities that looked to be produced from an old injury, one that had comprised a lot of his major organ systems, "Were you...injured?", I ask trying not to blow my cover.

He sighted sliding down into a sitting position, "I trust you to keep your mouth shut", he began, "Don't go writing about this online or telling your friends", he lifted his shirt up revealing the crater on his side the skin red and with several layers of scar tissue, I had already seen it when I scanned him, still it didn't fail to place a feeling of dread in the bottom of my stomach.

"I got this five years ago in a big fight", he explained, "My respiratory system was practically destroyed, I lost my whole stomach, all the surgeries have worn me out and it can't be fixed... now I can only do hero work for 3 hours a day the rest of the time...I look like this".

"No way", I murmured still not believing it even as I had seen his insides, the damage he had taken and knew it was very much the truth, "Five years ago?". I asked, "Was it your fight against Toxic Chainsaw?"

He shook his head, "Wow you know your stuff but no... that punk could land a few hits on me but he couldn't bring me down…", he said, "This fight... most of the world hasn't heard of it, I did everything I could to keep it undercover".

He paused looking back at the city something close to sadness passing through his face and crawling into his voice, "I'm the hero that always smiles...that's never afraid but in truth...", he looked at his hand, "I smile to hide the fear...to cover for the pressure that comes with this job…".

He looked at me fixedly as if trying to figure me out, "What is it that makes you a different boy? a hero's life is always in danger if whatever makes you different is already a huge threat to you maybe you shouldn't be a hero...can you tell me what it is?".

I looked at him again, he had told me his secret, trusted in me, the least I could do was to retaliate, still it was hard to sort out where to begin, might as well get the worse part over with.

"I'm...not human", I said hoping he wouldn't freak out, "I was sent from another planet here to earth when I was an infant because my native world...exploded... it's completely gone…".

I look at him again reading his confused expression, "I'm not crazy I swear it's the truth...I can prove it...I don't have a quirk I have abilities a bunch of them... way more than anybody should have, I can show you…".

He got up beginning to head to the door, "No I believe you with that look in your eyes...yea I do but...I'm not sure how I could help you with that, I see why your life is dangerous...being a hero could probably only worsen it in all truth...I don't know what to tell you". He said opening the door, pausing to look at me briefly, "Is not bad to have dreams young man... but sometimes the noblest thing to do is putting your and your family's safety first".

The door closed behind him like the final bell of a funeral taking with it whatever hope I had left for my dreams, with that closing door I felt that little spark of faith that had lived within me for so long, refusing to die, finally go dark

I could feel the tears beginning to pool in my eyes, my entire being screaming for me just to lay on the floor and curled up like a wounded dog to lick its wounds.

A sudden explosion made me cringe, the sound tearing at my ears, probably a supervillain, I thought looking at the black column of smoke, but who cares? some hero would show up to control it, they always did, I took another look at the cloud of smoke as the smell reached me but I refused to hear, refused to acknowledge whatever was going on, it wasn't my problem and it would never be.

Screams pierced the air in another, not so distant, part of the city as the civilians tried desperately to run from the slimy villain, others stood around with a mixture of horror and morbid fascination as the villain destroyed its surroundings without mercy utilizing the quirk of the helpless boy who laid trapped in its clutches.

The situation had quickly turned desperate as all of the present heroes had found out, rather quickly, none of their quirks were adequate for the task, not to mention the kids' quirk was causing explosions left and right. After a few brief and fruitless encounters, they had resolved to simply wait for a hero with the right quirk to show up and pray the kid could hold on until then.

That was the scenario All Might was greeted with as he leaned against a light post trying to catch his breath, his worst fears had been confirmed, in his hurry to avoid running out of time he had dropped the villain and now everybody, especially the hostage, were paying the consequences…

"How could I have been so irresponsible?", he muttered bitterly as he observed the scene just as helpless as everybody around him, his heart shattering as the traped boy suddenly freed himself enough to speak

"Let me go!", he screamed, his voice piercing the air with utter anger and, more than anything, fear.

The sky was grey as I walked back home, purposely taking the longer route to avoid the villain scene, my heart weighing me down, placing a heaviness on my steps that no other strength on earth had ever managed.

I've never realized just how much of me had actually wanted to be a hero, how much my dream had filled me and now all I had was a vast sea of emptiness, everybody had told me, even I had come to the same conclusion, being a hero was too risky for everybody involved and especially for me... yet hearing it from my hero, from All might hurt more than anything ever could…

A scream suddenly pierced the air making me stop in my tracks, I had been blocking the noise from the attack quite well but that scream...I heard it loud and clear like the person had been right beside me and I knew that voice, I knew exactly who it belonged to...

Quickly I activated my x-ray vision seeing through the building, through everything, and into the chilling scene, the villain from earlier, the one that had tried to trap me was somehow loosed again.

My mind began rewinding what had happened in the last hour, trying to figure out how the villain could have freed himself... the bottle! All might had placed it in a bottle and when I grabbed on to his leg it probably felt off and neither of us noticed...which meant all of this was my fault, because of me Kachan was now captured…

His terrified expression, his agitated heartbeat made it evident he was in pain, how he, a normal human has not yet suffocated, was a miracle, how he could still fight on…

Worse of all were the heroes that surrounded them, it didn't take much time to pick up from the conversation around that they were helpless in the situation, even All might, in his skinny form was there, if he hadn't intervened it meant that he simply couldn't.

I could help, I could free Bakugou from the villain and decimate it again, but...I wasn't a hero, I couldn't, as a civilian, intervene in such things and besides it meant calling in a lot of unnecessary attention, my face plastered all over the news and the internet everywhere…

Still... Bakugou's face was like a magnet that didn't let me look away. His eyes suddenly turned towards me almost like he could see me across the distance, eyes wide with fear and pain, eyes filled with panic as death crawled closer.

That did it, his pleading look was enough for me to get into motion, speeding myself into the scene using this power in public for the first time, breaking the promise I had made to my parents, shattering all the years of concealing my abilities.

A part of my mind thought that this was insane that I should just turn back, a hero would arrive, the day would be saved, but Kachan's wide scared eyes didn't let me stop, even as I had to push the crowd out of my way, even as the heroes screamed at me, but I didn't stop until I was on top of the disgusting slimy body.

"Deku?", Kachan asked weakly as he saw me, "What are you doing here?".

I did my best to smile at him, "Kachan... I just couldn't stand there and watch you die", I said before placing one of my hands on his eyes to both protect him from the heat and stop him from seeing what I was about to do.

My eyes turned red as the heroes yelled at me, as the crowd stood in stunt silence at what they were witnessing, the heat accumulated as I pointed it at the villain concentrating it until he recoiled just the tiniest bit allowing me to pull Kachan out of the way and giving me a clear path to punch it.

All might was still in bitter contemplating of his own ineptitude when a sudden blur when through the crowd knocking people down and then speeding towards the villain, the form becoming clear as he was on top of it, All Might's eyes widen as he saw the same boy from earlier launching himself at the slime monster.

He observed in amazement as the teen somehow managed to free the other boy and then without any apparent hesitation drew his fist back and hit the villain.

There was a booming sound at the sheer force of the blow delivered, a small blast wave hitting the crowd and lifting a dust cloud so thick it blocked everybody's view for a few seconds stopping them from telling exactly what had gone down.

The silence was deafening as the air cleared revealing a silhouette, the tall lean frame of a blue-eyed boy gently holding in his arms the previously captured teen, now unconscious but appearing otherwise unharmed.

Nobody was sure what it was, the still clearing dust, the sheer desperation that had envelope them previously, or the almost poetic sight of the two boys but the crowd erupted into cheers even the heroes joining in, none of them were sure just what touched them about the scene just that it did, but there was one amongst the crowd, however, that did understand the image perfectly.

All might immediately understand the significance of the picture, it was like a painting that should be title 'heroism', a boy who had no training who was possibly risking it all running up to save someone were no other would go, were not even the heroes dare to risk it, that was the very definition of heroism boil down to its very essence, risking your own life for the good of others, putting everything on the line to save every single person in need of a hero.

He remembered his conversation with the boy, regretting what he had said, that boy wanted to be a hero but he didn't realize that he already was.

In that moment, surrounded by the cheering crowd, All Might took a decision, he would help that boy, whatever it took he would help him to become a hero greater than himself.

I lean over Kachan's unconscious body as soon I had destroyed the villain, the dust cloud that had form giving me enough time to scan him carefully, making sure nothing mayor was damage, he looked like he had just fainted from exhaustion and shook, a couple of bruises from the struggle here and there but otherwise unharmed.

I sighed in relief debating whenever I should make a run for it now that I was out of immediate view, maybe then I would save myself the attention, but it seemed like a cowardice move, if not the most reasonable. I debated with myself for a few seconds before coming to a conclusion. What was done was done and now I had to face the consequences of my actions.

With that resolution in mind, I gently picked up Kachan, beginning to walk toward the heroes in order for him to get medical attention. What I wasn't expecting was for the crowd to begin cheering as they caught sight of me.

I stood for a few seconds uncomfortable with the attention and not sure what to do until the heroes surrounded me, one took Kachan away from me while the others repeatedly inquired if I was okay and if I needed medical assistance.

Once they were satisfied that I was, in fact, unharmed they proceeded to scold me to no end about how irresponsible that had been, how I could have gotten hurt or killed. It was what I had expected to get from them but I could still tell their hearts weren't fully on it.

Kachan for his part, once awoken was repeatedly congratulated by the heroes for his bravery, compliments that he didn't seem to accept or want, instead, glaring at the floor and occasionally at me.

It didn't take long for the media to arrive and begin trying to snap pictures of the scene and especially of me and Kachan, I repeatedly tried to maneuvering myself so they couldn't take a good picture of my face, a mission that I was sure proved fruitless, still, seeing my apparent discomfort with the cameras the heroes finally let me go with a final warning not to do anything of the sort again.

It was not until late afternoon that I was finally on my way home, the soft fading rays of sunshine bathing everything in warm yellow light.

Despite my best efforts, my picture was already circulating all over the news, a particular image coming on repeat. It looked like it had been taken just moments after I had rescued Kachan, the dust still clearing around me as I held him in my arms, it looked almost poetic so much so I hardly recognized myself in it.

In between repeating showing of the image along with other pictures and several videos taken from a bunch of angles and an outstanding number of reporters and commentators talking about the entire incident I was sure every single person in the city, maybe the country, had memorized my face from every angle imaginable.

I resisted the urge to just run home, I knew that a severe scolding would be awaiting me there but that seemed better than just walking out here in the open, my head down in an attempt from making eye contact with anybody passing by.

The quick sound of steps and a familiar heartbeat approaching made me turn around trying to hide my surprise and annoyance at who was running, dead spring, towards me.

"Kachan…?" I ask as he comes to a stop a few feet away from me panting from all the running he must have been doing to get here.

"Listen Deku". He began his face contorted in anger, "I would never ask for a pathetic weak loser like you to help me...", he said, refusing to make eye contact but his trembling fist conveyed the message sufficiently, "Don't think you can look down on me! You got that? I was perfectly fine by myself. You are just a failure too afraid to even try to be a hero, you didn't help me!". He paused for a second as if measuring me up, "What you did? It was nothing, don't forget it".

With that he turned around, "I don't owe you anything!". He called already halfway down the street

I sighed, with the way the day was going I congratulated myself on still having enough self-control to stop myself from running, grabbing, and throwing Kachan against a building to see if he would finally shut up and leave me alone, wasn't it enough that I had saved his life? apparently not, besides he was right what I had done wasn't that spectacular, I had seen All might do far bigger things, if I had waited long enough, I was sure a hero who could have handled it eventually.

I watch Bakugou move down the street for a few more seconds before turning back around, time to head home and receive the scolding of my life I guess... or that was the plan as a sudden whoosh of air hit me and All might was now standing in the middle of the street right in front of me.

"I am here!", he called his tall figure partially blocking the sun.

"All might?", I ask surprised, "What are you doing here sir?".

He flexed his huge biceps, "Oh well I just happen to be passing by and-", his sentences were interrupted as a cloud of vapor envelope him and the sound of his coughing fill the street, and just like that, in a matter of seconds, his other form stood were once a wall of muscle was.

He coughed a few more times before looking at me again, his previous smile absents as his voice took on a more serious tone.

"Young man I came here to thank you", he began, "But also to discuss your question from earlier…. if it hadn't been for you and how you ran without a thought into that fight the blood of that boy would have been forever in my hands, thank you for saving him, and for showing me what a true hero looked like".

I shook my head frenetically, "No, no... it was my fault that he ended up there, that things turned out the way they did...his blood would have been on my-…".

"I'm not done", he said interrupting me, "You told me you weren't human, that you were an alien hiding amongst us and that if your secret ever came out you would be in grave danger, so when I saw you throwing yourself into the fight, you, a boy who had spent his entire life so fervently hiding who he was... you were willing to throw all of that away to save a life...it inspired me, it showed me what a hero's heart looks like".

I looked at him confused at what he was going on about, trying to suppress the little spark of hope that jumped, whiting me, at his words.

"There are many stories about heroes in their younger years", he continued, "But what most of them have in common is that, in the face of danger, their bodies move before they could think, almost on their own.

For some reason his words of my parent came to mind as he spoke, "I'm sorry Izuku", they had said, "But that's just the way that things are", and maybe they were right, this was possibly the most dangerous path to take but still the dying embers of a dream suddenly came to life within me like a roaring fire and I understood I could no longer put them out no matter how much I tried…

"What happened to all of those heroes happened to you today". All might said as he stood before me, "Young man I know it won't be easy but I promise that I will help you to take the path of a hero, I will protect you and who you truly are, it may seem impossible but I'll make you a promise today, you can be a hero".

His words sealed the deal and I understood at that moment that heroism was the only path for me to take, hadn't my father, Jor-El, confirmed this? he had sent me to earth to be a symbol of hope for humanity.

At that moment as tears of happiness threatened to fill my eyes, I promised myself that without a doubt, I would not only become a hero, I would become a symbol of hope for all of humanity, I would become the greatest hero.

Chapter Text

"The first incident was in Ching-ching city, an extraordinary child was born who radiated light, after that, reports of people with superpowers popped up across the globe, no one knew what was causing these quirks; before long the supernatural became the totally normal, dreams a reality. The world became a superhuman society with about 80% of the population possessing some uncanny ability, our streets look like scenes from comic books, a city swelled with chaos and confusion, a new profession dominated our collective consciousness: it was an age of heroes!"

Inko Midoriya smiled to herself as a soft breeze dissipated some of the heat lingering in the air. It was a pleasant summer afternoon in Smallville, she was currently sitting on the porch swing, a big brim hat on her lap and gardening gloves in her pocket as she waited for Martha to finish changing so they could both go and tend to the garden.

It had been several months since the events of that afternoon, the event that changed the curse of her life, and especially the life of her son forever.

Izuku was running late, something he rarely did, worse off he wasn't answering her calls. She tried to reassure herself that nothing was wrong, maybe he had a good reason not to pick up, maybe something had come up in school, there was a lot of perfectly reasonable explanations as to why he hadn't come home on time, still, as it often is with mothers, her heart was heavy with worry for her child, heaviness that only increased as the minutes tick by.

In an attempt to calm herself she turned on the tv, hoping to find something to at least distract her, what she saw however made her heart droop.

There he was, his face clear as day. "And on to what is, probably, today's biggest stories", the pretty female reporter was saying, "A young middle school boy step in where nobody else would all to save his friend, more on the story after a brief pause", she announced cheerfully as the image change to an advertisement for cleaning products.

Inko sat in complete stunned silence for a few minutes before frantically flipping through several of the other news anchors, her stomach just sinking and sinking further every time she found not only images but videos of her son using his speed and strength to rescue a familiar young blond boy.

Finally, she couldn't take it any longer and she turned the tv off, "What have you done Izuku?", she whispered, "What have you done?". Frantically she tried to call him again, begging him to answer but the phone rang on and on to no avail.

With one final try, she ultimately gave up on reaching him that way and got up, determined to look for him the old-fashioned way. She was in the middle of putting her keys into her pocket when she heard a soft knock.

Hope crawled its way up her throat as she practically ran, and with trembling hands, threw the door open to reveal her son's familiar face.

"Izuku!", she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around his chest, "Where have you been child? I was so worried!".

Izuku awkwardly patted her on the back, "I'm...sorry mom...didn't mean to scare you…". He said, trying to reassure her everything was alright. After a few moments, she began untangling herself from the embrace and looking at him fixedly.

Now that he was once again safe in her arms the fear was melting giving way to anger at what he had done, how much he had risked himself. She was about to begin to severely scold him when she noticed the imposing figure behind him.

She stifled a scream of surprise at who was standing behind her son, probably the last person she had ever expected to meet, here, in front of her apartment of all places.

"Good afternoon mam", All might call politely, "If you don't mind, I find myself in need of speaking with you".

That was enough to snap her back into reality, "Is...is this about Izuku?", she asked, placing a protective hand on the boy's shoulder.

The man nodded, "Indeed mam, I have come here to talk to you about your son but...please do not worry he is not in any sort of trouble".

Inko found herself still uncertain about what was going on or even what to do, why was All Might in her doorway? What did he want with Izuku?

She fidgeted nervously with the hem of her shirt for a few seconds before sighing, "Okay…Please, come in sir", she said moving out of the way so the tall hero could enter.

The man walked with surprising grace and silence for somebody his size and after some hesitation, took a seat on her kitchen table after she signaled to him that he was welcome to join her.

The conversation that followed was long and especially trying for her. All might began by explaining how he had met Izuku, how Izuku had confessed his secret to him, and how the boy dreamed of becoming a hero, despite the circumstances he found himself in.

As All might talk on and on, she felt herself panicking more and more, and with every minute that passed, it became harder for her not to show it, her act of calmness and collectiveness becoming harder and harder to keep.

"Mam you son has a great power", All might said, appearing to be finally coming to the end of the long and arduous conversation, "I understand why he had kept himself hidden from the world for most of his life, and believe me it was the best choice but…", he paused for a few second as if organizing his thoughts, "Today Midoriya saved somebody using his powers, not only his strength but his speed, most people will let it go...hell I think there will be very few who will even remember what happened today withing the week...but...there are always those who notice...and those are the dangerous ones".

He laced his fingers together looking seriously at her, "I'm in no way wishing to scare you with this…", he began, "But your son could already be in potential danger…".

Besides her Izuku stiffen, his eyes taking on a guilty look, "I... I have never told this to anybody", he murmured, looking down at the table to avoid eye contact, "But...there was something that happened a little more than a year ago... on our trip to the U.S... I met a man...his name was Lex Luthor".

With every word that Izuku spoke of the encounter Inko felt more and more dread building up in her chest, why was he just telling her this? He could have disappeared one day and they wouldn't even know where to start searching, it was truly a miracle that this individual hadn't yet done something. Considering just how shaken Izuku sounded as he narrated the entire incident, she had little doubt that this man, Luthor, was extremely dangerous.

All might sat through it all, listening attentively and not interrupting Izuku until he was done.

"Well… I must say, that is a very worrying tale young Midoriya", he began turning back to look at Inko, "All the more reason to allow him to attend U.A mam, I will arrange everything for his secret to be kept safe, and I promise you, nobody will get to your son, you can forget about this Luthor guy because U.A will not only dedicate itself to training and shaping Midoriya into a hero, but we will keep anything and everything from getting to him…"

He looked back at the young boy, "You won't have to worry alone anymore my boy", he said in a reassuring voice, "If you join U. A and somebody tries to get to you they better be prepared to fight through the entire staff and me!".

Inko sat in silence for a few minutes before getting up, "Mr. All might", she began, "This offer...it truly generous, in all honesty... all my life I had only tried to protect Izuku from the world...but now...now I'm beginning to see that he will always be in danger no matter how much I hide him and... if you can...", her voice broke slightly but she powered on, "If you can truly help me and his dad protect him... we will be forever thankful".

All might slowly got up, placing a reassuring hand on Izuku's shoulder, "Mam, it will be an honor helping to protect this fine young man", he began, "And it will be even more of an honor to work with him in the future when he becomes a great hero".

That night their lives had changed forever, with the help of All might Izuku had applied for U. A, the hero had been straight forward with them when he told them that Izuku's secret would have to be disclosed to a few people in order for him to be accepted in and, more than anything, to guarantee his safety.

It was a risk they had to take, a risk that paid off as Izuku's application was accepted and he was officially invited to partake in the entrance exams and earned a spot in the hero course.

Once it was official, the next thing to do was training, whether other students pushed themselves to their very limits in an attempt to become stronger, with Izuku it was different, what he needed to work on was control.

He had to be able to use just the right amount of strength in a fight in order to avoid seriously injuring somebody, or worse, killing them. This kind of control could only be achieved with practice, but it was an immense risk for him to use his abilities openly, especially in a city where every square inch of land had surveillance cameras.

The solution ended up being simple, instead of their usual two-week stay, Izuku and herself would be staying for little more than two months in the Kent's farm. Big open fields, nobody around for miles, a small town in the middle of the countryside, it was the perfect place for Izuku to train away from prying eyes...

Her wandering thoughts were once again brought back to reality as Martha finally came out of the house, closing the screen door with her hip as she tied her hair back.

"All right", she called cheerfully, "Say we get going? Last I checked my pea plants were doing great, maybe we will have some fresh ones for dinner today".

Inko smiled at her friend getting up from the swing, "That sounds lovely".

"Holy shit!" Clark shouted, ducking behind me as the boulder I had been aiming my heat vision at exploded violently.

"Sorry…", I muttered as I shielded him from the shards of rock that flew everywhere.

"You really need to get a hold of that", he said, peeking over my shoulder at what remained of the boulder, "I doubt that will be a useful ability if you just kill everything with it".

I sighed in frustration, so far using heat vision was proving challenging, sure it was useful if you need to kill everything in a 50-meter radius in three seconds, but that was hardly what I was aiming for.

That was probably the reason All Might had advised me to keep the ability hidden for the time being, as well as my advanced senses, the only abilities I would be using openly for the entrance exams, and up until I couldn't hide the others any longer, would be my strength, speed, and invulnerability.

"It's a good combination", All might had said, "Eventually people will find out about your other abilities, no doubt about that, but you will call enough attention to yourself as it is...for the sake of your safety, it's better to go slowly".

At first, I had been disappointed, I wouldn't be able to openly use my super senses or my heat vision which would limit my range since heat vision, technically, was my only long range attack ability...but now, that I was actually trying to control the intensity and power of the heat...maybe it was a good idea to not use this thing in fights just yet… for now, I needed to keep on learning to use it, practice every chance I got, if any ability of mine had potential for utter destruction it was this one.

"Maybe we should stop for today", Clark suggested, seeing my frustration, "Clear your mind...we can try again later".

I wanted to argue that we should give it a few more tries but, to be honest, I was mentally exhausted, and we were running out of rock, how many had I hit today? probably a ton considering we were both covered head to toe in a fine layer of dust.

"Fine", I said, turning around and beginning to head back to the house, "But I'll practice for longer tomorrow to compensate".

"Actually...", Clark began, catching up to me, "I thought that maybe tomorrow we should take a break...do something else".

I raise an eyebrow at him, "Like what? seriously I really need to get this under control".

He sighed passing a hand through his hair, "I know, I know Izuku but...maybe taking a rest is for the better, the more frustrated you get the more your powers go haywire, maybe taking some time off it's what you need?".

I considered his words for a while as we walked besides a large field where cows grazed peacefully, several of the animals coming closer to the fence to see if we had brought them food, "Say we take the day off...what do you suggest we do?", I asked after a while, patting one of the cows on the head.

He smiled, "We should go camping!", he said happily, "There are some nice areas for it in the forest, and it's just a short hike away".

"Only the two of us?", I asked incredulously, earning myself an eye roll from Clark.

"Of course,", he said, "We aren't children, no need for an adult to come along...besides... the place is just a half an hour drive from here...you could run that in like... 10 seconds".

I consider his proposition, "Yea...It doesn't sound like a bad idea...I have always wanted to go camping", I said, scratching behind the ear of another cow as a third tried to eat my jeans, "Think my mom will let me go?".

Clark chuckled putting one arm around my shoulder, "Of course she will! if she has her doubts, I will just talk my mom into talking your mom into letting you go".

I smiled, Clark's enthusiasm was infectious, and just hearing the excitement in his voice at the prospect made me want to go as well, "All right then, sounds like a plan".

Inko moved to the next row of cucumbers, humming a little song as she carefully pulled out the weeds that persistently grew on the soft soil. A few rows ahead of her, Martha, was also tending to some of the plants, making sure her summer garden was all going according to plan.

Both women had been working now for more than an hour in the afternoon heat and after a few more minutes, just when Inko finally finished all the rows of cucumbers, Martha straightened up from her tomato plants.

"I think we are done for the day", She announced, wiping sweat from her forehead with the back of her sleeve, "Now all we have to do is pick some peas for dinner and we can head inside".

Inko nodded, looking at the mouth-watering peas in question with anticipation, the plants were loaded, the pods vibrant green.

"Those look delicious", She said as her friend handed her a pail to put the peas on.

"They're lovely, aren't they?", Martha answered proudly with a smile as she crouched amongst her plants, picking the most mature pods.

Inko followed her example and in a few minutes, the pail was almost full with the green legumes. As she leaned forward to reach a particularly reap pod, out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something amongst the many stems of the plants, buried close to the surface, curiously she moved some of the dirt away revealing a small black rock.

Thinking nothing of it, she grabbed it and was about to throw it to the edge of the garden when she noticed something unusual. The rock had a harsh surface, similar to volcanic rock, but in some parts small green crystals grew.

"What's this?", she asked her friend, who looked up from her work.

"Oh, that just meteor rock", she said, waving it away, "When the meteor shower came most of the meteors were similar to things scientists had found previously, but in some rare cases they came with pieces of that".

Martha got up walking up to her friend, who handed her the rock, "The green crystal emits some sort of radiation according to what the scientist told us", Martha explained, observing the rock, "They assure us it doesn't have any negative effect on any form of living thing", she added, handing the rock back to Inko.

"As a fact, there is one big meteor of that type right under these plants", she said patting the soil around the peas, "It got buried too deep so we just decided to let it stay there...it wasn't worth the trouble of digging it out".

She looked once again at Inko, who was holding the small rock in wonder, "Those are medium rare", she said, "You can sell it for a decent price to a collector or museum".

Inko considered the rock for a few seconds before putting it in one of her pockets, "I'll save it to show it to Hisashi, he's probably going to want to study it".

Martha nodded, picking up the now full pail, "All right, say we go get wash up and begin preparing dinner? I bet those boys will be very hungry after spending the entire day outside".

Inko got up after her, taking off her dirty gloves, "Work never stops on a farm, does it?", she remarked good naturally to her friend to which Martha only chuckled, "You have no idea".

Clark opened the screen door with one hand while still trying to dust his clothes off with the other, "Man, I got half the Sahara's worth of sand on me", he complained as the back door to the house opened and aunt Martha and mom came in, both of them looking like they just came from the garden.

"Your back early today", aunt observed, patting Clark on the head, something she had to stretch to manage, "Something came up?".

Clark gave her his signature smile, "Not really...we just felt like doing something different today". He said as mom approached me with a smile.

"My...you two are dirtier than usual", she said brushing some dust out of my hair.

All of a sudden, a weird feeling overtook me, something didn't feel quite right, mom seemed to notice it in my face and got closer, "Is there something wrong Izuku?".

The feeling got stronger and it evolved from a weird sensation to a heavy feeling of exhaustion that bordered on being painful. Had I overused my powers? It seemed unlikely considering my heat vision hadn't ever waver in intensity...and I had felt the same as ever just a few seconds ago.

"I'm fine", I said after a few seconds, "Probably just tire".

Her brows furrowed, "Okay but...you don't usually get tired Izuku", she said with concern.

I shrug it off, "I've been practicing a lot lately...maybe I need to take a break".

She nodded after a few seconds of looking fixedly at my face, "Alright…", she said stepping back, "Try to not push yourself too much honey…".

The feeling began to dissipate, the exhaustion vanishing, "Of course", I said giving her a small smile.

"Well... boys", Martha says, "What about you two go and get clean? can't have you dragging half the dirt in the county into my living room".

"Right away", Clark called already making a run for the shower, a run that proved fruitless as I simply speeded my way there first, causing him to direct some rather colorful words towards me under his breath.

I smirk to myself as I stepped into the shower, the weird exhaustion has completely gone away, maybe I had just imagined it? I shook my head; whatever it had been I was fine now so it probably had been nothing.

By the time I got out of the shower I had completely forgotten about the entire thing, my mind now focused on other stuff, and especially the camping trip. Despite my initial lack of enthusiasm, I was really beginning to look forward to it, just a day to relax and take my mind off of training for a few hours, enjoy the outside, it was going to be great.

Inko looked at her son from across the dinner table with barely concealed concern. They were all now showered and clean from the day's work, sitting around the table enjoying the food that Martha and herself had prepared.

She took a bite of the fresh steam peas, they were just the right amount of sweet and soft, perfectly cooked so why wasn't Izuku eating them? He was never picky about food, yet, he was devouring all the other things on his plate but completely avoided the peas.

He seemed to catch her stare from across the table and she raised an eyebrow at him looking pointedly at his peas, immediately he caught her meaning and looked down at his untouched food reluctantly… she only glared at him harder and after a few second of ignoring her stare he sighed and took a mouth full of the green legumes, looking like he had some difficulty swallowing them.

She kept observing him as he ate another spoonful and swallowed it, satisfied that at least he wouldn't let his peas completely untouched, she turned back to her conversation with Martha and Jonathan.

She didn't pay too much mind to Izuku until she noticed his side of the table had gone too quiet, she looked over, just in time to witness the moment Izuku abruptly let his cutlery fall on his plate, his face had gone pale and a thin sheen of sweat covered his forehead.

"Izuku!", she exclaimed, already getting up, there was definitely something wrong, terribly wrong, Izuku never got sick.

"I…feel weird", was all he said in a soft voice, before he ran to the closest bathroom, the sound of vomiting reaching them after a few seconds.

His mother was behind him, horrified as she found her son double over the toilet holding his abdomen in pain.

"Izuku", she breathed, kneeling beside her kid, trying to keep it together for his sake, this wasn't supposed to happen, he couldn't get sick...

"What's wrong honey?", she said cupping his face in her hands.

"I feel sick", was all he said, still doubled over in pain.

"All right just...relax I'll move you to the sofa in a minute", she said, trying to keep herself from falling apart while she wiped his mouth and flushed the toilet.

By this point, the entire Kent household was also at the doorway, all of them observing the scene with worry.

"I'll help you move him", Jonathan offered, placing one of Izuku's arms around his shoulder. Izuku winced as he was moved but otherwise didn't say anything, not even as he was slowly laid on the living room sofa.

Meanwhile, Martha ran over to the table, carefully observing Izuku's plate, it looked like he had eaten all of his food except for a few peas, she knew the discovery was mostly pointless since none of them felt sick and if there was something on this earth strong enough to make Izuku throw up they would all be dead.

Regardless, she took a mental note of this before moving back into the living room where Inko was kneeling by Izuku's side, he didn't look nearly as sick as before but he was still pale and obviously in pain.

Jonathan was in the middle of questioning both boys as to what exactly they had done that day, inquiring if they had come in contact with a stranger, or anybody really. They both answered not to everything, they hadn't even left the Kent property.

Meanwhile Inko had dialed her husband's number and was explaining in quick Japanese what had happened, Hasashi's voice could be slightly heard as he gave her some instructions while she nodded all the time, some relief coming over her face.

"He said that he had no idea what could have caused it...but the best thing to help him right now is probably sunlight", she said putting the phone away.

"Well... under normal circumstances that would be a problem", Martha said, looking at the deep darkness of night that the living room windows showcased.

The entire group looked at each other, "I think we have it covered", Clark said as he and his dad activated their quirks, their hands emitting a soft yellow glow, sunlight to be precise.

Usually their quirks had little use, but as the yellow light fell upon Izuku, and the lines of pain in his face began disappearing, at that moment, they wouldn't have changed them for anyone's.

It had been almost a full week since the "incident", as we had taken to calling it, a full week and the adults still wouldn't let me out of their sight, I wasn't even allowed to stray far from the house. Our camping plans with Clark had gone out the window and I wasn't even allowed to practice my powers. In summary I had done nothing, absolutely nothing, for a whole week except help mom and aunt around the house.

I sighed in exasperation as I sat on the porch swing, sipping from a glass of ice tea as bees and butterflies flutter around aunts' flowers, I wanted to move again, to be able to practice again, hell more than anything I found myself hoping I could go on that camping trip with Clark, but... here I was... doing nothing.

Of course, I could understand my families concerned, I had never gotten sick, sure I use to throw up stuff as a baby but that had been left in the pasts, and what I felt that day...it was pain, and it had scared me, I had never experienced anything like it, and it would have probably gone on for a while if uncle Jonathan and Clark hadn't help me with their quirks.

Most frustrating of all was the fact we still had no idea what may have caused the reaction, we had all eaten the same food, yet, I was the only one who threw up or felt sick. It was my personal theory that it had to do something with the peas, they had smell weird to me, and I had trouble swallowing them, almost like my body was refusing them from the beginning, but I hadn't share this with the others since I couldn't possibly come up with a single good explanation as to why the peas had affected me in particular.

The sound of a car made me look up from my self-contemplation, particularly because of the familiar heart that came with it.

I smiled to myself as I got up, at least one good thing had come out of all of this, dad had gotten permission from work to come and visit us, using a few days of his vacation ahead of time.

I got up, walking to stand in the porch steps as he parked the small grey sedan he used when moving in the states, "Hello son", he called as he caught sight of me.

I smiled at him, going in for a quick hug, "How was your trip here?", I asked, as he stretched his legs.

"It was nice...driving down country roads is therapeutic", he said with a soft smile, before grabbing me by the shoulders and examining me closely.

"How have you been feeling?", he asked after a while.

I shrug, "Apart from that day...I haven't felt sick since".

He considered my words, "Well...you do look fine...what about your powers? same as always? have any of them been acting up?".

I thought about it for a second as, in the distance, I could hear mom and aunt Martha walking towards the house probably having heard the car, "Not really...", I began, "Well after I got sick...they were weakened for a while but they got back to normal after less than an hour".

Dad frowned at that but finally let me go, "I see…", he said deep in thought, "Well...that sounds like when you got sick you lost solar power but...you have never done that before so there must be something that triggered it…".

He sighed, clearly unable to come to an immediate explanation, "We will figure this out Izuku", he promised me walking towards the house, "One way or another we will figure it out".

In a dark office, situated in one of the most impressive buildings in Metropolis, a young, auburn hair man sat back on a comfortable leather chair. Besides him, on an old radio he always kept around, one of his favorite pieces of classical music played at atrocious volumes.

In front of him several monitors showed a video from different angles, that of a young middle school boy jumping towards a villain to save his friend.

The man tapped something on one of the screens replaying a particular clip of the incident, the only existing recording of the event that had managed to capture this particular angle. It showed the boy's eyes changing from blue to bright, shining red, sclera and all. It was evident the temperature they were producing was so high they almost looked like they were emitting red vapor, their glow so intense it made the skin around his eyes translucent.

His smile widened as he leaned back in his chair, his brain taking in every angle from each recording, committing the images to memory.

"You have grown Izuku", he said to the boy on the screens as if he could hear him, "I can hardly wait to see you again".

"I promise the place is somewhere around here", Clark said walking ahead of me and up a hill, "Last time I came with Peter we just...walked around here and eventually found the path…".

"Sounds like a solid plan", I said sarcastically, carrying both of our camping bags, "Why won't you just describe the damn place so I can look for it with my X-ray vision? that would be helpful".

He rolled his eyes at me, "No, I'm in the boy scouts. I'm sure I can find it on my own...besides you don't even get tired, what are you complaining about?".

I resisted the urge to swing him over my shoulder and superspeed myself around until I found the stupid trail, but I guess this was part of the experience of camping, maybe half the fun of it was getting lost?

I looked around as the sun began to dip behind the horizon, well, even if we were probably hopelessly lost at least the forest was interesting to look at not to mention it was just so quiet compared to other places, it was a welcome change, no use spending my time complaining about the trails that Clark never seem to manage to find, I had promised myself I would enjoy this trip since it had been such an effort for mom to allow me to come.

It was two days into dad's visit that he seemed to give up on finding an explanation of what had happened, he had examined every angle, considered every possibility but still couldn't figure it out.

He was the one who convinced everybody to let me wander outside again, there was little point in keeping me confined to the house, and he assured them it was probably good for me to get as much sunlight as I could, he even went as far as to convince mom to let me go camping telling here I had spent too much time cupped up in the house, and so, I was here, trekking through the small hills and forest of Smallville, following Clark who had, so far, only found all the paths by mere chance.

"Oh shit", Clark called, having stopped in front of a rugged, looking half abandoned, small trail that went downhill, "Shit, shit, shit", he cursed, observing it, "We took the wrong turn back there… and ended on the wrong side of the mountain, this one is the long way to the camping grounds".

"I told you didn't I? you should have let me guide '', I say leaning against a tree, the forest beginning to get darker as night approached.

"Shut up", he said in between gritted teeth, looking exasperatedly at the path like it was to blame for his poor sense of orientation.

"I will take us too long to retrace our steps", he said, swatting away a mosquito, "Without cheating with your speed that is...and we agreed not to do that so...let's just go… this path leads to the river but you can cross it in one jump so that shouldn't be a problem".

"As long as we don't end up in Hawaii", I say walking after him.

"How the fuck would we even end up in Hawaii?", he said, carefully walking down the muddied path.

"With your very refined orientation skill I wouldn't put it behind you", I said teasingly, making him curse at me as he slid part of the way down and almost fell on his butt.

"Think it's going to rain tonight?", he asked after a while looking up, "It's been pouring like crazy this past few day".

I sniff the air, taking in all the scents around us, I consider the various smells for a few minutes before shaking my head, "Na... we are good for tonight".

"Good to know", he said, "I would hate to get soaked but…", now he was smirking, "Seeing that power of yours in action it just so happens to occur to me...have you considered working in the canine division of the police? You won't even need a dog, it would be just you", he said mockingly as he almost slipped again.

"Have you considered opening a tanning salon?", I retorted as we arrived at an even steeper part of the area just after I thought such a thing was physically impossible, "You wouldn't even need a machine it would be just you".

Clark looked like he was thinking of another retort but instead just laughed, "That was a good one", he said looking at the path, "Say...why don't we go around this? I don't feel like mud sliding today".

"As long as you can find the path again", I said smirking at him.

"Oh, shut up", he said, already walking away from the mud mess and into a more solid area.

I followed him, standing a few steps behind him, humming a little song while he still fumed about my comments on his orientation abilities muttering something under his breath. We had walked several meters from the main trail when I began to feel dizzy. At first, I tried to push the sensation away, thinking that I was just imagining it, but it just got worse and worse, pain overtaking my entire body.

"Wait...Clark ', I managed to wheeze out, but he didn't seem to hear me, too busy trying not to step on any snakes or hunting traps, I took another step, desperately, trying to call his attention.

The pain only doubled in intensity, my legs giving up from under me as I stumbled to the grown with a wince.

"Izuku?", Clark said turning around alarmed, his eyes widening as he saw me on my knees.

"Izuku, what's wrong?", he said, kneeling beside me and grabbing me by the shoulder.

"I don't know", I rasped out, "But it hurts...really bad".

He took one good look at my face and curse, fear crawling into his expression as he began fumbling around his pockets, bringing out his cellphone, "It's going to be alright", he told me, probably trying got assure the both of us, "I'll just call our parent they will know what to do".

I nodded weakly, by vision begging to get blurry as waves of pain washed over my body non stopped, making me want to throw up, making me want to scream but I knew that if I did that Clark would only get more scared and I needed him to be as level headed as possible.

With trembling hands, he tried to dial up the number, looking at the screen in increase desperation as the seconds stretched on and the call didn't get through, "Please...please…", he silently begged the phone, more and more anguish creeping into his face until finally, he snaped, "God dammit", he shouted, "Not signal, it says no fucking signal".

"Is okay Clark", I said in between gritted teeth, "Just… walk a little uphill...I'm...I'm sure you can get a signal there".

"Right, Right I'm sorry", he said getting up with the intention of moving, however, in that moment, I felt it, felt as the ground began giving away.

"Clark move!". That was the last thing I shouted before the earth seemed to split open, swallowing us into the darkness.

Clark had tried to react, he had tried to go back to grab Izuku and run but it was too late, before he could even take another step forward the soggy ground caved in from under them.

Clark screamed, both out of surprise and fear at abruptly finding himself in free fall from an uncertain height, it was all so sudden he hardly had time to process what happened as he fell, only that somebody seemed to hug him from behind and that same somebody tried to cushion his fall. He felt as his head hit something hard, causing him to cry out in pain before he saw red and the word went dark.

What awoke him was the screams, somebody seemed to be screaming right in his ear, "Ugh…so annoying, why couldn't they shut up?". He thought, his head was killing him and the noise wasn't helping. Vaguely he could feel something warm and sticky coating his face, a much more conscious part of him wondered if that was blood, but that thought was quickly shut down by the overwhelming majority of his mind that only wanted to go back to sleep...now... if he could just get a little more comfortable… "ugh, why was the ground so wet and rocky?", he thought, wait… ground? Why was he on the ground?

The screams finally stopped, turning into soft moans and whimpers of pain, "Finally", he thought relieved, now he could finally go to sleep in peace.

"Clark", a voice called in between whimpers, "Clark please...please help".

The pleading voice sounded familiar, way too familiar, but Clark's delirious mind struggled to match a face to it.

"Clark...Clark please…", the voice kept on pleading desperately, the sheer pain and anguish that the voice carried made him slowly begin coming to his senses. Hadn't he fallen just now? yea it seemed like it, they had been walking and the ground had just given away, probably eroded by the recent heavy rains... "wait... they?", he suddenly thought, "Who were they? who had he been with?".

All of it came back to him abruptly, the way Izuku had fallen to his knees in pain, how he had gone to help him, how the earth seemed to disappear from under their feet, and how Izuku had cushion his fall.

"Izuku!", he shouted, sitting up abruptly, his eyes snapping open and looking around, desperately trying to see anything in the dark hole, the sharp movement made a wave of nausea hit him so strongly he barely had the time to move his head to the side and avoid throwing up in his lap, his eyes stinging both with the effort of his body vomiting and the blood that ran into them.

"Clark...", Izuku's voice called weakly from somewhere to his right.

"Izuku", he said, dizzily moving to his friend's side on all fours, not yet trusting his sense of valance to attempt walking on his feet.

Izuku was only a few feet from him, at first glance he looked mostly unharmed, only a few cuts here and there, cuts that made him realize that whatever was happening Izuku's powers weren't working, he had never seen Izuku bleed, never, on top of that, and probably more terrifying, was his face.

Izuku had gone completely pale, his expression morphed into one of complete agony, his eyes closed tightly as he whimpered in pain.

With a horrid sensation, Clark realized that the screams he had heard had been Izuku crying out in agony, now he looked like he couldn't shout anymore, his breathing coming out with a painful rasping sound.

"Of god", he said, kneeling by his friend, tears of hopelessness threatening to cloud his vision, "Izuku please tell me what wrong let me help you".

"I... don't... I don't know", the other boy said barely finishing the sentence before falling into a coughing fit, blood emanating from his mouth.

"Okay...it's okay", Clark said shakily, "I'll figure it out I promise".

He didn't know if it was a promise he could keep, but there was nothing else he could think of to help his agonizing friend.

"Think, think, think", he pleaded with himself, "There must be a reason, everything had a reason". He muttered, observing every inch of his friend in search of clues. Just when he had made up his mind to turn Izuku around so he could search his back for injuries it suddenly struck him that he looked green...no something seemed to be glowing green from beneath him.

"I'm going to move you for a second", he said, maneuvering around Izuku and grabbing him from beneath the armpits to drag him back, Izuku was way too heavy to be easily lifted, especially considering just how dizzy Clark felt from his head injury.

His friend cried out in pain as he was moved, it looked like he was trying not to do it for Clark's sake but he just couldn't hold himself back, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry", Clark apologized as he gently laid him back down.

Oddly enough moving him seemed to have helped Izuku, not by a lot but he looked just the tiniest bit better, encouraged by this Clark move back to where Izuku had previously landed, a couple of feet away from the center of the pit.

It had been a rough landing, a pile of rock hardly provides cushioning, but what he found interesting was that tiny specks in the rocks were glowing green.

Having grown up in Smallville he was familiar with meteor rocks, he had seen a couple of big pieces in his lifetime, and occasionally he would still find rocks with just grain size bits of it, still, he had never in his life seen them glow.

He knew the rocks were radioactive, he knew they were supposedly completely safe to be around for humans… a theory began to surface in his mind, a theory that he hoped wasn't proven correct but... Izuku wasn't human and these rocks could very easily come from the same place he had, they had arrived with him after all.

He grabbed one of them, below it more there was more, bigger pieces of the stuff, a meteor rock had fallen here, he realized, a big one, its weight sinking through the grown probably was what created this crater in the first place.

He grabbed the rock he was holding, smashing it several times against another one until it broke clean in half revealing a ping-pong ball size piece of green crystal in its interior.

"Izuku…", he began, "I... I think I know what the problem is…"

It had all happened so suddenly, the ground giving away, the fall, my only thought through it all had been that I needed to save Clark, he wasn't going to survive the fall, not from this height.

Somehow, I had managed to grab him midair, holding on to him tightly even as the pain intensified the more we fell until I was close to passing out, even as we hit the ground and sharp painful rocks dug into my back and the pain just became pure agony.

Despite my best efforts, I was sure Clark had hit his head when we landed, still, I didn't check on him, all I could think of was how his weight on top of me made it hard to breathe, how every movement I made sent searing pain down every nerve. It felt like every inch of my body that was touching the sharp rocks was being melted by acid.

I screamed as I push him off of me, the sound bursting from my mouth as it felt like my entire body was being burned, disintegrated, my very cells being destroyed one by one. I was dying... that was all I could think of as I scream on gulping down air in between, sobbing at the thought of dying...at just how painful it was.

I those moments of desperation, as I struggle just to breathe, as I was barely clinging to consciousness knowing that if I succumbed to the darkness I would probably never wake up again, desperation overtook me and for a few minutes there was nothing else on this planet, I didn't even know my name, were I was from, who were my parent, why was I even here, all there was in the universe was the agonizing pain and me, the subject of its torture, if only I succumb to the void, allowed the darkness to take me...the pain the torture it would be all over. ... would be free...

I'm not sure how I managed to pull myself out of the brink of letting myself go into nothingness, but it was probably the small part of my mind that refused to die, the part of me that made me remember, remember that I wasn't in this hole alone...somebody else had fallen with me...somebody could still help me.

"Clark", I called with whatever little breath I had left, as I forced myself to remain conscious, alive, fighting, even if it was agony, "Clark please...please help me", I pleaded, hoping that he was awake, that he was alive and that somehow, he could help me.

I am not sure of how long I cried out for him, but eventually, his voice responded, sounding raspy and choked but still unmistakable him.

His face appeared over me, a huge wound on one of his temples was bleeding heavily, but he hardly seemed to notice it, his face plastered with deep worry and anxiety.

He asked me what was wrong, a question I had no answered for, a question that just reminded us of just how helpless we were, I was dying, there was no way around it, I felt cold, I could feel blood crawling up my throat and into my mouth, my vision seeing double and triple with black dots dancing across it, and worse, the pain never went away, it just continued eating at me making me half wish it would all be over faster.

Clark said something, but it seemed to be coming from far away and I could no longer muster the strength to figure out what he had said.

He began dragging me away from where I had landed, the abrupt movement and my back getting scraped by all the sharp rocks made me scream before I could help it, the sound just sprouting from my throat at just how much pain I was in, I couldn't stop, not even as I felt Clark's hands tremble as he apologized repeatedly.

Even my half-delirious mind noticed how the pain receded the more he moved me, the acid burning sensation gone from my skin, now all that was left was the deep horrible throbbing pain that seemed to be determined to eat me to my bones, despite this, I found myself relishing the sensation, I never knew so many shades of agony existed and I was glad it had at least gone down a notch.

From somewhere I could hear Clark banging something together, rocks? it sounded like it.

"Izuku…", he called after a while, "I... I think I know what the problem is". he said sounding nervous, "I'm going to get close to you...tell me if you feel anything different alright?".

I had no idea what he was going about but I nodded at him, anything to keep me distracted. I heard his steps approaching me slowly, at first I felt nothing, or well nothing outside of the agony I was already in, I only began to feel it when he was just a few feet away from me, the pain worsened.

"What...?!", I gasped, "What are you doing?", I said, turning to look at his approaching figure for the first time. He was holding baseball-sized lumps of a green crystal that seemed to be glowing.

"I'm so sorry for this", he apologized kneeling beside me, "But… I need to see something". He said before pressing one of the crystals to the bare skin on my arm, there it was, the acid burn sensation but even worse, like the very rock, was shoving liquid fire into my veins, melting my arm from the inside out.

I screamed, making a move to push him away, or move my arm away, anything to get rid of green rock, "Stop, stop please stop".

He took the crystal away immediately, "That's it!", he said, throwing both of the lumps of green rock to the other side of the hole, "Izuku it's the meteor rocks...they are radioactive... they are the ones that are hurting you".

It took me a few seconds to fully process the discovery, still half stunt from the pain the rock had caused when in direct contact with my skin, "That's...really? a fucking rock?", was all I could manage to blurt out, feeling like laughing at the stupidest of it all but I just couldn't muster the energy for it.

"We have to get you out of here...and away from those things", Clark said, looking up at the patch of the sky some 10 meters above us, a sky that was now almost completely dark as night took over.

"Easier said...than done", I mutter, also looking up at the fading sunlight and with it my only advantage in this hell hole.

Clark tried once again to call our parents, even 911 but his phone was still out of signal, situation that was only aggravated by the fact we were practically underground, our other communication device, my phone, had been crushed by our fall, effectively leaving us with no way to call for help.

He tried to throw the rocks out of the hole but he hardly managed to get a few out and most of the time they only came back down threatening to hit us.

"Fuck this", Clark shouted in frustration, kicking one of the curse things to the other side of the hole, which wasn't much of a difference in a five-meter space, but it was the best thing we could do.

"Fuck this", he repeated, "I'm going to try climbing up", he stated already looking at the slippery muddy earth around us for any footholds.

"Hold on", I called out to him, "That's dangerous Clark…", I stopped trying to catch my breath and just ended up coughing up more blood, "Clark…" I continued, "The walls are very unstable...you could... bring the entire place on ourselves...besides...you are hurt what if you faint?".

"Dammit Izuku…", he shouted, "I know…I know but…", his voice broke as he fell to his knees, "I... I just can't stand to watch you suffer...I don't want to watch as you slowly die Izuku...I… I just can't", he broke into full-on sobs, "I'm sorry...I'm sorry that I can't get you out of here…If only I hadn't suggested we go camping...none of this would have happened...I'm so sorry Izuku this is all my fault".

I tried to sit up, an attempt that was far from successful, and I realize just how weak I had become, I couldn't even push myself off the ground, "It's okay", I tried to assure him, "I'm sure it will be okay…", it was an empty promise, even I could hear just how weak my voice sounded, how it rattles off my chest, the sound of a dying person. I felt like, breaking down into sobs just as Clark had, cry because of the pain that just wouldn't stop, cry because I was going to die and because Clark had to see it all, blaming himself for every second of my death, but I held myself back, biting my tong, it wouldn't do for both of us to fall into despair at the same time, maybe later, when Clark had calmed down, it would be my turn.

He cried for a while, seeming to get it all out of his chest before getting up with new determination, "I... I can't get you out of here", he said, "But at least I can keep you alive for longer...until somebody finds us".

He sat with his back against the wall, in the furthest place from the rocks, he placed one hand under my back and lifted my chest forward slowly as I gritted my teeth trying to stop myself from screaming. He put both his arms around me, my head coming to rest on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry…", he said again, "I wish there was more I can do...but this is all I have", he said before activating his quirk to its full power, his entire body glowing with yellow light, especially his hands that were now so bright it hurt to look at.

"Somebody will find us", he promised as we both sat together, "I'm sure of it…"

Sheriff. Williams walked slowly down the muddy trail, cursing to himself as he stumbled in the dark, the small led lantern he carried not providing nearly enough light to safely navigate the unpredictable trail. Here he was, his day off, and what was he doing? walking in the middle of a cold humid night through the forest all because his wife had "a feeling".

The sheriff dearly loved his wife Melissa, he truly did, but sometimes he cursed himself for having married a woman with an "I have a feeling" quirk, as he had taken to calling it. It wasn't anything fancy like being able to see the future in clear detail or precise prediction of any sort, sometimes she just had a feeling about something and if she obeyed it, it would lead her to something, be it pleasant or unpleasant, relevant or irrelevant, was always up in the air.

Today she had nagged him for the entire afternoon that he should head out towards this area, she "Had a feeling", that there was something going on here. At first, he had said "no way", he was going out at night to such a remote area only because she had "a feeling", for all he knew her "feeling", was sensing a lost baseball cap... but she had been insistent, claiming she had never felt it this strongly before.

In the end, he had agreed to come down here and check it out, both to get her out of his hair and both because his consciousness was nagging at him that with the last frequent rains something could have happened close to the river.

"So far nothing", he thought to himself bitterly, apart from mud all across the trail and a few fallen trees, the forest was as always, and more full of mosquitos than usual to top it off he thought miserably as he arrived at a particularly steeped part of the trail, he shone his flashlight for as far as it could go but the light only showed more mud, deciding he would rather not end up breaking any part of his skeleton, he began looking at the forest to see if he could walk around this part, that's when he noticed a faint light coming from somewhere to his right, several meters away from the trail.

It didn't appear to be the light of a lantern, it almost looked like it was coming out of the growing intrigued, he carefully began walking towards it, "Is somebody there?" he called, wishing he had his trusty handgun with him.

"Be careful!", a voice shouted from somewhere ahead of him, "The ground is very unstable".

The voice sounded ragged and out of breath but nonetheless familiar, he just couldn't quite remember who it was, well... that was far from his first priority as he was beginning to piece together where the voice was coming from, using the rope he had brought with him he tied it first to his waist and then to a sturdy looking three before getting on his belly and crawling towards the light.

His worst fears were confirmed as he got closer, the earth had caved in because of the recent rains, and it sounded like somebody was trapped.

Slowly and carefully, he advanced, pausing frequently to make sure the floor wasn't about to give away, it was a painfully slow process and he didn't even dare to breathe too hard for fear the earth would give in under his breath, relief flooded him the closer he got the edge and nothing had moved from under him.

With one final, careful, movement he poked his head out to assess the situation.

The scene before him was an alarming one, two boys were trap in the bottom of an extremely unstable looking hole, both of them seem to be injured, Clark, as he immediately recognized the Kent boy, had an ugly gash on his head swollen and cake with dirk and filth, not to mention the kid look extremely dehydrated, his clothes sticking to his body with sweat and a look of extreme exhaustion on his face.

In his arms there was another boy, one he vaguely recognized as a kid that sometimes came to visit the Kents', this one, despite his lack of major visible injuries, looked even worse than the Kent boy, he was as pale as a sheet of paper, his breathing was irregular and it was evident there was some form of internal bleeding going on, as blood trickle down from his mouth and nose.

He paused for a second to thank the heavens for his wife's quirk, if these boys had been left much longer out here it was evident the black hair one would have died, "How long have you been down there?", he immediately asked, his policemen training kicking in.

"About...three...hours", Clark responded, gulping air within every word.

"Clark", he began looking wearily at the kid, "You can stop using your quirk now, I have a lantern, you look ready to faint".

The boy shook his head, "No… no I'm fine...please...please just call my dad".

"He and the firefighters and ambulances, you both need immediate medical care", he said, bringing out the satellite phone he had for exactly this type of situation.

"No…", the other boy blurted out opening his eyes slowly, "Please… no hospitals…".

"I'm sorry kid but this is not the time to be scared of needles, you look like you have some serious internal bleeding", he said, already dialing 911.

"No... please just call my dad first…", Clark pleaded, "He...will...explain".

The Sheriff looked at both boys in turn, none of them looked to be completely in the right state of mind, still, he needed them to remain calm, it wouldn't do for them to go around freaking out, it was better if their parents could calm them down, assured them everything would be alright and that the authorities had this under control.

"Fine… but it will be quick", he said, dialing the number for the Kents's house, it rang two times before Jonathan's familiar gruff voice answered, "This is Jonathan Kent speaking how can I help you?".

"Jonathan this is the sheriff, I'm afraid to tell you there had been an accident, your boy along with a black hair one, I think you know him, fell into a deep pit close to the southern bank of the river, they are both still alive but both need immediate medical assistance".

There was complete silence on the other end of the line for a few seconds, "Anderson…", he began, using the Sheriff's first name, "Please trust me on this one, don't call the emergency services, especially no ambulances, we will be there as fast as we can".

The Sheriff couldn't quite believe what he had just heard, looking at the phone in stunt silence, "Have you gone crazy Jonathan?", he asked, "Those boys need to go to the hospital immediately, Clark has a serious head injury and the other one is throwing up blood for fucks sake!".

The line went quiet again as if Jonathan wasn't quite sure of what to say, "Anderson...I know this is hard to comprehend but...the black hair one...Izuku is his name, he can't go to a hospital, just trust me, it will end poorly for him…", there was a moment of hesitation, "Please get Izuku out of there and then about...Clark...call an ambulance for Clark".

Anderson swallow in disbelief, the Izuku kid looked like the one most in need of medical assistance if there was even the smallest chance of his survival he needed to be on his way to a hospital in the next half an hour, however, he had known Jonathan from primary school, both of them had played together in the football team back in high school, they were good friends and in all his years he had never found Jonathan to be anything but an absolute man of his word, when Jonatan told you to trust him you did because that was simply the best course of action, period.

"I can't believe I'm doing this", he muttered to himself, "All right Jonathan, I'll get the boy out, can't promise I'll be too gentle about it seeing as I have next to no equipment...but I'll trust you on this one".

There was an audible sigh of relief from the other end of the line, "Thank you Anderson", Jonathan said, "We will get there as soon as we can". After that Jonathan hung up not even waiting for any sort of answer from him.

Sheriff Anderson looked wearily at the two trapped boys, what exactly had he gotten himself into?

Inko had tried to swallow the lump of worry that had taken a residence in her throat, it had been several hours since they had last heard from Clark and Izuku, the boys had promised to call once they had settled in for the night in one of the camping spots, however, night had fallen more than two hours ago and still nothing, they had tried to dial them up them several times but it looked like Izuku's phone was dead and Clark's was out of signal.

Jonathan had tried to calm her down by assuring her that signal was always poor in those areas, they probably were unable to call, or simply had forgotten to, noting unheard of when dealing with teenage boys.

She had tried to believe him, tried to calm herself down, Izuku was invulnerable, nothing could hurt him...or so she had thought, now all she could think off was of his pained face a few days ago as he clutched his abdomen, a face that was still fresh in her memories.

In an attempt to calm her nerves, she had agreed to play some chess with Martha, both of them sipping cups of warm tea while the men talk in the living room, however, as much as she tried, she couldn't really put her mind on the game and was losing badly, in a few more moves Martha would probably take her king.

The kitchen phone rang as she moved another one of her pieces in an attempt to salvage the game. Jonathan got up to answer it and she didn't really pay too much attention to the call until she noticed that Jonathan had gone pale, fear crawling into his expression, in a usually stoic, calm man like Jonathan the expression was so foreign in him, fear instantly settle in the bottom of her stomach.

Martha noticed it as well, her expression turning into a mask of worry, both women got up from the table in the same motion.

"What is it?", Martha mouthed to her husband, Jonathan only shook his head, still listening to the other end of the line.

"Anderson…please trust me on this one, don't call the emergency services, especially no ambulances, we will be there as fast as we can".

The horrid sinking feeling in Inko's stomach intensified, her body going into shock as she realized what Jonathan had said, and instantly knew that something had happened, something terrible. If Jonathan had said to not call ambulances that meant that Izuku was involved somehow and worse of all, he was probably hurt.

Clark wasn't sure anymore of what time it was, it felt like they had been here for days but once he glanced at his watch it looked like it had only been three hours, it had felt like an eternity, an eternity of pain, sweat, tears, blood and misery and he wasn't sure just how much longer he could hold on.

Clark's quirk was a mix of his parents' ones, he had gotten his father's ability but with the added bonus of being able to use it at different intensities, something he had gotten from his mother, however, unlike her, who could maintain her quirk active without getting tired, he had a limit and began experiencing symptoms of exhaustion when using his quirk for a prolonged period of time, especially if it was at its maximum intensity.

He felt hot, way too hot, he was sure he was running a high fever, his head felt like somebody was ramming a hot piece of metal through his eyes, the extreme fatigue and dehydration only adding to his misery. At that moment, he would have traded his soul for a glass of water, hell he would do it for just a sip, anything to relieve the painful dryness of his throat. His arms were sore and cramped from holding Izuku, not to mention nausea that only got worse the more time he pushed his limits.

Amongst all of his misery, all thought the pain and discomfort there was one force him to keep on going, to keep up using his quirk even if it was cooking him alive, the drive that kept him going was the thought of saving Izuku.

His friend needed him because right now, Clark's quirk was the only thing keeping him alive.

Izuku's condition had progressively deteriorated as time advanced, albeit at a much slower pace, it was still painful to see how he was slowly weakening more and more. Both boys had tried to keep each other company, to distract each other, and most importantly to keep each other conscious.

They had talked about trivial things, serious things, stupid things, anything but their current condition, anything to distract them from the pain and the reality of their situation, and the very real possibility that no one would find them on time.

Over the last hour, Izuku had become weaker and weaker, his answers beginning to sound more and more like meaningless blabbering. Clark felt a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, Izuku was close to losing consciousness, and once that happened the end couldn't be far off.

He felt like crying again, but there was no water in his system to spare, instead, he gritted his teeth, feeling the deep ache of fear in his chest, fear and grief as seeing the friend he considered a brother wasted away in front of his eyes.

He talked softly to Izuku, even if he wasn't sure, he could hear him any longer, he talked on and on, even if it was just to tell him about the internal mechanisms of a tractor, or complain about last year's English teacher, anything to keep him distracting, anything to make sure that Izuku knew he hadn't left him alone.

He was in the middle of telling Izuku a stupid story on how he had outrun a bull in first grade when Izuku's eyes suddenly snapped open, "Somebody is coming", he whispered softly as he made a feeble attempt to point towards the direction of the approaching person.

Clark's eyes went wide as he now too, heard the soft sound of steps on mushy ground, he lifted one hand pointing it upwards hoping at least some of the light would be visible from above.

"Be careful!", Clark shouted, afraid that the person would end up just like them, "The ground is very unstable".

The steps stopped, now seeming to move away, after several minutes of apparent silence Clark began to fear that the person had gone away, or worse, Izuku had imagined it and Clark's dehydrated brain had gone along with it.

He was just beginning to feel despair again when a face poked over from the edge of the pit, a familiar one, "How long have you been down there?", Sheriff Anderson asked.

Jonathan made a very conscious effort not to hit the gas and speed down the empty roads like a demon, it wouldn't do for them to have an accident, or for their vehicle to fail here, in the middle of nowhere.

The tension in the car was almost palpable, the fear and anxiety of parents who fear for their children's safety, of parents who we're trying to keep it together despite not knowing what they would find once they got there.

Nobody even bothered to ask what had happened, or details on the situation, until they were all in the car, one look at Jonathan's face once he hung up the phone, was enough to set them all in motion. Ropes, lanterns, first aid kits, and anything else needed for a rescue were packed up.

It wasn't until they were speeding their way towards Smallville forest that Jonathan began to fill them in, "They fell into a pit", he explained, his voice unusually tight, "Clarks has a head injury and Izuku…", he paused, glad that he couldn't make eyes contact with the boy's parents, both of whom were riding in the back seat.

"The sheriff said he appears to have severe internal bleeding", he said, gritting his teeth as Inko put her face in between her hands, he considered whether he should tell them everything Anderson had said, in truth, it felt like a mercy to spare them the details, but on the other hand Jonathan was hardly a man who sugarcoated things, not to mention Hisashi was knowledgeable in this field, he had probably already figure out how Izuku was looking if he had severe internal bleeding.

"He's not in good shape…", he continued, in the softest tone he could manage, "Anderson said he's throwing up blood…"

Now Inko broke into soft sobs, besides him Martha also looked on the verge of tears, both from worry for her child and for the boy she loved like he was her own.

Jonathan knew exactly what every person in that car was thinking, he knew because he was having the same thought, "Why did they let them go?", it had rained so much, he should have predicted that something like this would happen, that the way would be dangerous, "Why, why, just why?".

Silently he prayed, prayed, and held on tightly to the steering wheel, wishing he could get there faster, wishing he could teletransport, wishing above everything that he could turn back time and make things right.

Clark tied the rope around Izuku's chest, waist, and legs in a makeshift harness, thanking the heavens that he had not only grown up on a farm, where tying things together was a constant necessity but that he was an active member of the boy scouts.

"Is going to be okay, you are okay", he kept on murmuring to his friend, who moaned and whimpered in pain every time he had to move him even the slightest bit.

His hands were trembling by the time he was done and he forced himself to calm down as he checked every knot several times to make sure it would hold, "You will be out of here in no time", he promised Izuku giving the rope several hard pulls to give the signal. He hadn't expected Izuku to respond, he wasn't even sure he was still conscious, so it was a surprise when Izuku opened his eyes looking straight at him, "Thank you", was all he said, his voice sounding firmer than it had for hours.

From somewhere out of their sight, The Sheriff, having seen the signal began pulling, slowly and painfully Izuku began to be lifted from the ground.

The sheriff's lungs burned as they tried to keep up with his body's demand for oxygen, every muscle in his body tense with the effort of the weight he was pulling, through his work gloves he could feel his palms beginning to blister. Despite all this he continued to pull, pausing every couple of seconds to make sure the ground wasn't giving away before he continued with the arduous labor.

With the lack of equipment at his disposal, the best strategy to get the boy out was to use a nearby three as a pulley to help him ease the weight, it was a solid plan, he just hadn't taken into account how heavy the boy was, he was a tall kid for sure, with the lean muscle of and athlete, still, he had never expected anything like this, did the boy had a higher density level because of his quirk? it sure as hell felt like it.

He puffed and cursed under his breath, pulling and wrestling with the weight for what felt like hours, until finally, he could actually see the kid's head, a few more pulls later his chest and eventually his entire body.

"All right, just a few more pulls", he told himself, "Almost there", he thought gritting his teeth as he slowly dragged the kid across the muddy grown as delicately as possible in order to avoid another collapse.

At least the boy was being helpful, not moving at all which allowed him to drag him like dead weight, "Is okay, you are doing great just a few more minutes", he assured the boy, trying to see just how responsive he was.

All he got was a soft grunt from the kid, but at least he was still conscious, or partially so.

After a few well-earned minutes of rest, he began pulling again, not stopping until the kid was right at his feet, with a deep breath he collapsed to his knees beside him.

"You're okay now son", he assured the boy as he brought out his satellite phone again, he had fulfilled his part of the deal now he would see about getting some proper rescue units to get Clark out.

The ride to the edge of the hiking trails had seemed to go in slow motion for the desperate parents. All of them scrambling out of the car before Jonathan even had the chance to fully turn it off.

"Which direction should we take?", Hisashi asked barely concealing his anxiety as he hit his flashlight repeatedly until it turned on.

Jonathan took a few precious moments to get his bearings, he had taken these same trails as a teenager but it had been years since he had gone campaign to this area and everything looked different in the dark, he had to be very careful otherwise they would all end up lost.

After several nerve-wracking minutes, he finally pointed with his lanterns to a particularly steep and muddy trail, "Is this way", he said, already walking towards it.

"Of Course, they took the worst way possible...those boys", Martha said, trying to stop her voice from shaking.

Inko placed a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder, both of them walking together in solidarity, both of them wondering just what they would find at the end of this path.

The pain had stopped, or at least most of it, this thought was the only thing on my mind as I took deep breaths relishing the sensation, part of me had been scared, scared than even after I got away from those rocks the pain wouldn't go away.

"How are you doing kid?", the man who had rescued me said, kneeling beside me while he examined me under the light of a powerful lantern he had hung from a nearby branch.

"I'm dizzy", I admitted, not sure of just how much I could tell this stranger, "And my back...it really hurts"

The man looked at me, appearing confused, "You seem to be doing better than when I first saw you back there in the pit..."

I swallowed, nervous about his remark, of course I was doing better, I just couldn't tell him it was because I was away from the meteor rocks.

He brought out his pocket knife after a few seconds of deliberation, "I'm going to cut your shirt off, I need to closely examine your abdomen and back".

His words brought in a pang of fear in me, at the moment he probably wouldn't find anything unusual, and it was true most of the pain I was experiencing at the moment was coming from my back, but a lifetime of fear of going to the hospital, of being found out made me anxious about anybody examining me in any way, especially it a weakened state.

"Okay", I said after a few minutes of hesitation, it would look weirder if I refused, especially considering we were already pushing our luck when Uncle John convinced him to get me out first before calling the rescue teams.

I wince as he helps me to sit up, my entire body protesting the movement, especially my back which I was beginning to suspect must be in pretty bad shape.

Carefully he cut off my T-shirt, or what remained of it, it was torn in several areas and covered in mud to the point it was impossible to tell what its original color had been.

He whistled from behind me as he examined the damage, "Well...this is a mess I don't know what else to tell you boy", he said, gently touching and are below my shoulder blades, immediately making me yelp and flinch trying to move away from his touch.

He scratched his head, "It looks like it's infected that's for sure", he remarked, "I really don't have the medical knowledge to deal with this…".

"It's okay", I said, "My dad...he is not exactly a doctor...but he knows how to deal with stuff like this".

He sighed, clearly something was weighing on his mind but he didn't say anything, only got up, "Lay back down slowly", he instructed placing my feet above me on a nearby fallen log, before rummaging around his rucksack, bringing out two bottles of sports-drinks, "I can't really give you anything to drink", he apologized, "Standard procedure for internal bleeding".

I nodded, I haven't vomited blood since I had gotten out of the hole, but as he said I would rather not push it, "Ill going to go throw this down to your friend, okay? stay calm and don't move, call me if your symptoms worsen".

I nodded as he walked away, glad that he was also helping Clark out, I hadn't even given too much thought to him during the entire ordeal, but now, thinking back, that head injury had looked serious, not to mention he had let his quirk burn his energy away in order to keep me alive.

When this was all over when we were both safe again, I had to thank him, I literally owe my life to him, I wasn't sure if I could ever repay him, but I was sure as hell going to try my best.

None of them were sure of how much time they had been walking, at least an hour, an hour of muddy trail, mosquitos, and constant stumbling, still, the little group moved along, barely noticing the tiredness in their legs, their body pump full of adrenaline fueling them on.

"We are almost there", Jonathan said, walking ahead of them as he reached the top of the hill they had been climbing, his light illuminating the sharp descent to the river, whose sound could be heard faintly, even from up there.

"There's a light coming from there", Hisashi said, pointing to an area several meters away from the main trail.

Jonathan turned to look towards the direction Hisahy had pointed, he had estimated the place to be a little closer to the river but that light could only mean one thing, "I think...that's the place", Jonathan said with a mix of relief and even more worry, "Finally", he whispered, "We are here".

Hasashi looked at the mess that was his son's back, "This... it looks infected", was all he could think of saying.

After the first tearful reunion as his family surrounded him, all of them trying to see if he was okay at the same time, the need to move him had arisen.

The rescue team would be arriving at any moment, and they wouldn't accept a no for an answer on taking Midoriya to a hospital. The problem with moving Izuku, however, was that he was heavy, awfully so for a boy his size.

It had been a collective effort between Jonathan and Hisashi to get him far enough away to not risk being detected, now, somehow, they had to patched him up enough for him to at least be able to walk with their help, there was no way they could carry him all the way back to the car.

The task, however, was proving harder than anticipated, Izuku had already updated them on his discovery with Clark, that the meteor rock was the one hurting him, and both Hasashi and Jonathan found themselves lamenting how they hadn't figure it out sooner, something so obvious, the answered had practically been under their noses. The mystery of why Izuku had gotten sick up a few days ago was also solved when Jonathan, with a downcast expression, inform them there was a big meteor under the part of the garden where the peas grew, based on this information Hasashi deduced that the plants had absorbed radiation and thus made Izuku sick when he ate them.

Although the discovery was massive and had finally helped them make sense of recent events, they were still in the dark on just how long the effects would last, or if they would go away at all, Hasashi's worst fear at the moment was that Izuku could be suffering from radiation poisoning.

"Okay Izuku...this is going to hurt a lot, but I need to examine these wounds more closely". He said, adjusting his head lamp. In front of him, Jonathan made the very wise move of getting out of Izuku's easy reach even as he kept his quirk active, bathing Izuku in soft yellow light.

Hasashi wasn't exactly sure of where to start, Izuku's back look like somebody had put him through a wood chipper, the flesh was ripped with deep ragged wounds that kept on dripping dark blood, and more worrying than anything, the skin around some of the bigger wounds had gone white, blackish green swollen veins surrounding them. That couldn't be good.

With a pair of tweezers that were stored in the first aid kit he, slowly, began prodding inside the deepest wound, immediately Izuku scream, a sound that was muffled as he kept his hand pressed firmly to his mouth, his eyes tightly closed, tears forming at their corners.

The sounds tore at Hisashi's soul, oh, how he wished he could change places with his son, take his pain away and suffer through this in his place, but that was simply impossible, the best thing he could do for his son was to keep on working, keep on digging, ignoring his muffle screams and pleas for him to stop.

Finally, he hit something hard, making sure he had a good hold of it he pulled it out, it was a dark shard of rock embedded with diminutive green crystal that glowed softly as they reacted to their close proximity with Izuku.

"So that was the problem", he said, throwing the damn thing as far away from him as possible, "I'm going to pull all of these things out of you Izuku", he assured his son, "You will feel much better soon I promise".

Quickly he returned to his heart-wrenching labor, wishing he could stop hearing his son's screams as he worked on.

"You want anything else? I could get you a glass of water", Izuku offered his friend, who was currently sitting in one of the living room couches watching the tv.

"I already told you Izuku I'm fine", Clark said, trying not to get annoyed with the other boy's overwhelming attention.

It had been a week since the accident, Clark had been rescued and rushed to one of Metropolis hospitals, where his injury was treated, he had a mild concussion and was severely dehydrated, but apart from a small scar, the doctor said he would return back to normal in no time.

For his part, Izuku had also fully recovered, to everybody's relief, as soon as every little bit of meteor rock were taken out of him, he had begun healing at an amazing rate, a good night sleep, and a constant helping hand by a combination of his aunts and uncles quirks and he was back to normal.

"You know you should give them a name", Clark suddenly blurted out, "The rocks I mean, sound weird to just calling them meteor rocks… not to mention it's a mouthful".

Izuku's face darkened as he flopped down on the couch, "I'm not sure...why would I even name those things?".

Clark shrugs, "Just seems a lot more practical", Clark muttered, "What about calling them...hm I don't know, toxic emerald? deathly green?".

"I hope you realize how stupid all of those names sounded", Izuku said rolling his eyes, "Not to mention they are way too long…".

"Hey... I'm just trying to help", Clark said muttering under his breath, before falling silent again, looking at the tv, and for a second Izuku thought he had given up on the entire thing until he spoke again, half an episode of an old, corny, mystery series later, "You come from Krypton, that thing probably comes from Krypton so what about kryptonite?", he said, his expression triumphant.

Izuku winced, not sure he wanted the very thing that could kill him to be named after his home planet, but he had to admit Clark's idea wasn't half bad.

"Well see", he said after a while, "But yea...that name... it's better than toxic emerald that's for sure".

I looked down at the small lead box I held in my hands, today was my last day in Smallville, it had been two whole months here, a lot had happened, I had trained a lot, I felt confident that my grasp on my abilities had improved significantly, I now felt sure that I could use them to fight, however, the most important thing was that I made that discovery that I wasn't as vulnerable as I thought, I could be hurt, and that perhaps was the most eyes opening experience of my life.

Tomorrow I would be boarding a flight back to Japan, in a few more weeks I would take the U.A entrance exam. All through my stay here, I had kept in contact with All might, updating him on how I was progressing, while he also reported on how things were going on his side of the ocean especially on how the process of getting me into the hero program was coming along.

I look back at the box feeling guilty, I hadn't told All Might about the accident, about my discovery of kryptonite, it just felt like something that had to be explained face to face and I had already promised myself I would tell him everything as soon as I saw him again.

As of now, leaning against a fence in the death of night, I found myself in a dilemma. All my life I had walked with a monstrous fear of hurting people, one wrong move and somebody would die, it was like living in a world made of cardboard.

Even after all the years that had passed, I still felt guilty about breaking my mother's hand and Bakugou's arm.

Some dark part of me also wondered what would happen if I lost control, or if somebody controlled my mind, or worse, if I willingly caused harm to others, could anybody stop me? how many heroes wouldn't have to die in such a fight?

It was a scary thought one that had plagued my mind for years...a fear that only grew as my abilities became more and more powerful, threatening to become uncontrollable...

Now I had a solution, I was holding it in my hands.

My dad had gotten me the lead box after I had opened up about those dark fears of mine it had been on a particularly warm afternoon as we sat together on the porch, watching the sunset, there is those moments of peace and quiet as I felt reassured by my father's presence, sure that he would understand and help me through anything, in that warm summer afternoon I spilled it all out feeling like I couldn't stop until I had gotten it all off my chest.

I remember how he had hugged me, comforted me, but he never denied any of the claims I was making, never told me it was impossible I would lose control or be capable of evil, we both knew it wasn't true and some sugar-coated lies were not what I had been looking for to receive in such an honest and vulnerable conversation.

The next morning, somehow, he had gotten his hands on the lead box. He had also helped me get a good size, pure, chunk of the stuff and store it safely away. I had been so sure of myself back then, but now that it was time to leave, and bring the piece of poison with me I was faltering.

I still remember the pain I felt in the pit, how I had cried in agony, the memory was far from being pleasant and it still gave me nightmares, part of me was clamoring for the moment I could put an entire ocean between me and this stuff.

I swallow, cursing at myself for being weak, for being afraid. I passed a finger over the smooth surface of the box, fighting with myself on what to do...on how to overcome my fear, of course, the solution was obvious, I had to confront it head-on, I just wasn't sure if I had it in me to do so.

Slowly I opened the lid, the pain hit me immediately, that familiar throbbing burning pain, the veins in my hands began to swell and turned dark green as they absorbed the poison, I gritted my teeth, feeling nauseous, my head throbbing with at an agonizing rhythm.

If I hadn't been leaning on the fence I would have fallen to my knees, the alien mineral seeming to drain every bit of energy my body possessed making me feel so weak...so vulnerable…

I could only endure it for a few seconds before I snapped the box close, almost collapsing in relief as the pain and weakness disappeared.

"That wasn't so bad", I tried to tell myself as I took several deep mouthfuls of air. Now that I had faced my fear. I found that... I was truly not any less afraid, if anything, the fresh remainder of the agony kryptonite cause only made me more reluctant to do what I knew was right.

I close my eyes, listening to my family's heart beats in the distance, to the soft sound of their breathing as they slept peacefully, I was afraid...even with the deep-rooted fear of what I could do clamoring for me to make the right decision, even fully knowing the monster I could become, I was still scared, terrified of the pain… but...If it was for their sakes, for the ones I loved...

I could never forgive myself if I hurt them, and I owe it to them for there to be some way to stop me, even if it meant killing me, I would take that any day if it meant sparing their lives.

With a final reluctant breath, I slipped the box into my pocket, I would take it with me, and give it to somebody that I could trust, somebody I knew would only use it if it was absolutely necessary.

With my mind made up I felt as if a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders as I realized that this was my first step into becoming a hero, not all the training I had done, not all my studying for the exams, this, overcoming my fear for the greater good, for the sake of others.

A hero's mission was to create a better, safer, world for everybody, and I would follow those ideals faithfully, even if in this case, it meant keeping the world safe from me.

Chapter Text

"The first incident was in Ching-ching city, an extraordinary child was born who radiated light after that reports of people with superpowers popped up across the globe, no one knew what was causing these quirks; before long the supernatural became the totally normal, dreams a reality. The word became a superhuman society with about 80% of the population possessing some uncanny ability, our streets look like scenes from comic books a city swilled with chaos and confusion a new profession dominated our collective consciousness; it was an age of heroes!"

The sun was just beginning to rise over the horizon when I saw the Number one hero again. It has just been a few days since my return from the U.S, but he had been eager to meet up, both to see and test out how my training had progressed.

It also meant I now had to tell him about the kryptonite, especially since I had chosen to give him the one piece I had brought home with me. He just seemed the best choice all around, and I trusted him with my life, but that didn't magically calm my nerves, just the thought of what had happen still gave me nightmares, retelling it wouldn't be easy.

He must have seen something was wrong the moment he laid eyes on me, my posture rigid, fingers tightly clutching a small lead box.

He was in his smaller form, a scarf around his neck against the early morning chill, his body drowning in an oversize jacket, which just served to make him look all the sicklier. Not that made him any less imposing, anybody who knew him would still see the number one hero, and my nerves still managed to get the best of me as I tried to stutter out the story, what had happened, and most importantly, what was in the box.

He remained quiet as I talked, yet his eyes never left mine, his brow slowly creasing, leaving him with a deep frown by the time I was finally done.

"So…you do have a weakness", he seemed to be talking more to himself than me, some of his usual strength deflating from his shoulders, "A radioactive meteor of all things".

His eyes found mine again, and he must have seen my fears showing through them because in a flash he was upright again, the worry torn away from his features by sheer force of will.

"This, what you are asking from me, is not a small thing", he told, me dead serious, "To keep some of that material, the one thing that can hurt you…You trust me to use it if the need arises, to kill you if that's what it takes".

I nodded firmly. "I know it's a lot to ask for, Sir, but…I trust you, with my life, and that of millions". Leaning against the rusted railing, I looked at the rising sun. "All my life I have lived in fear of hurting people, now that I'm going to become a hero, that danger becomes even greater. I don't ever want to hurt anybody, be it by accident or intentionally. It would reassure me that somebody close by has the means to stop me".

Forcefully tearing my eyes away from the drifting clouds, I turned to look back at his taller form. Even hidden by shadows I could see the conflict behind his eyes; heard his muscles tensing as he turned away from me, smoothing nonexistent wrinkles on his jacket.

I was practically vibrating with barely contained anxiety by the time he spoke again, "Very well, young Midoriya, I promise not to abuse the trust you have placed upon me".

I left out a shuddering breath, both filled with dread and relief, "Thank you, All might Sir, thank you so much".

He nodded, a worried yet firmly determined expression on his face as he took the box from my hands.

"You can open it", I ventured shakily as he stared at the unimpressive-looking box with a mixture of distaste and reverance.

He practically jumped, "No, no that won't be necessary young Midoriya", he tried to assure me but I insisted.

"It's all right… just, make it quick". In truth, I was practically shaking, afraid he would take me up on that offer, but I wanted him to trust me, to know that there was something inside that little box and that it worked.

He looked reluctant, yet, but hadn't outright refused, which stung somewhat, but I could understand, he was a hero after all, his job was protecting people, even from those he was close too.

"Are you sure?", he asked me again, even as his long fingers unclasped the simple lock. His eyes taking in our surroundings to make sure we weren't being watched.

I shrugged, hiding the increasing panic at being exposed to Kryptonite "Yes, go ahead".

The words had barely left my mouth before he had opened the box in one swift motion, seeming to just want to get it over with.

The effect hit me even before he had fully exposed the kryptonite. And I found myself blindly reaching out for something to hold on to, trying not to cry out as searing agony twisted my insides, a bone-deep throb making it hard to remain upright. With a strangled groan, I doubled over, clutching at my abdomen with my free hand as my vision blurred, debilitating nausea making me tightly close my eyes as I tried to not lose my breakfast.

Trough the haze of pain, I could see the familiar, sickening green glow coming from the open box. The fact that it only shone when I was close seemed to be fate's cruelties mockery. The few pieces I had left of my planet were the one thing that could kill me.

Looking close to throwing up himself, All Might silently watched as the glowing stone sapped the strength out of me, forcing me to my knees, all the while resisting the urge to scream at him to close the damn thing already.

Finally, he seemed to have had enough, and in one swift motion, the box snapped close, disappearing into one of his many pokets.

"You look pale", he commented softly, helping me to my feet, "Are you alright?".

Taking a few shaky breaths, I slowly composed myself, trying to avoid his apologetic gaze as I dusted off my pants, "Yeah, I'm fine now", I did my best to assure him. "The effects are only temporary".

He nodded to himself, "Good to know".

Though I had seen it so many times before, it was still surreal to watch as he suddenly change before my eyes, "Now-", he began, some cheerfulness returning to his voice as his muscles grew, transforming him into his well-known form, "What do you say we go and test out just how much you've really improved?".

For a second, I wasn't sure if I had heard him right. Before, when we had just met, we hadn't quite dared spar, unsure of my capability to control my abilities and unwilling to test just how durable the all-star hero was.

Now, finally, he seemed to deem me ready to actually train with him, and I found myself having to contain my excitement

"Really?"

He made an over dramatic version of a stretched, "Why of course! I'm eager to see just what you are capable of!". Turning around, he pointed to a distant mountain of junk, piled high over the years as people made it their own personal dumping ground.

"That looks like the perfect place to start with your training", he said smirking "So follow me if you can!".

And just like that he was gone in a gust of wind and I wasn't far behind.

For the next few days, and up until the very morning of the exam, All Might and I meet up to train.

With my powers being a lot less volatile now, he began to teach me how to use my strength, speed, and durability more efficiently while minimizing structural damages. He probably was one of the few people on the planet who could actually give me some pointers on the subject.

It may not have been long, but within the week I could tell I had improved, and since All Might was now a teacher in U. A, I would be able to keep on learning from him.

The morning of the exam we met at our usual stop overlooking the beach, though that day in particular we weren't there to train. What had once been covered with piles of trash was now spotless.

The junk had served its purpose, as All Might relentlessly drilled me on controlling my strength, of being carefully as I super speeded my way around labyrinths of my own making without touching or even so much as disturbing any of the carefully piled junk. Throwing stuffed around without out shattering it into a million pieces. Punching and lifting and so much.

On the last day All Might tasked me with cleaning the beach as fast as possible without denting or breaking anything, his tall frame never leaving my side as I completed his one last task. By the end of it all he had patted me on the back, repeatably assuring me that I was ready, a soft smile on his otherwise hard face, his eyes looking far away almost sadly. I wish I could have known what he was thinking then, why his mind seemed to had wondered off.

Now, on the actual morning of the exam it all seemed surreal, the fact that I was being send off by my favorite hero only added another lager or seeming impossibility to the situation. The one thing I had hoped for since I could remember was finally coming true.

All Might was the first to break the silence, gently clearing his throat to get my attention, "Do you remember how my quirk works young Midoriya? How it has been passed down for generations?".

I nodded absentmindedly, peeling my eyes from the scenery as I turned to face him fully. I remember, yes, something like that was hard to forget, to think that All Might hadn't even been born with a quirk yet had still managed to become one of the greatest heroes just prove why he was the number one.

"If you were human, I would pass it down to you without a second thought", he continued, "You have a kind heart, strong will, and fiery determination to protect others, I couldn't ask for more in a successor".

He placed one huge hand on my shoulder and I straightened up further, "But, my quirk isn't all I have to offer, I have succeeded in becoming a symbol, and that is the legacy I want you to carry", his face was hard but his eyes convey something close to fondness, "Become a symbol Midoriya, one that will bring hope into the hearts of all who see you".

I swallowed a lump forming in my throat, finding myself both moved and embarrassed by his praise, "Thank you, All Might sir, I promise not to disappoint you".

He laughed, ruffling my hair, "I'm sure you will not but-" and now he pointed as his watch, "-I do believe it's time for you to get going, if you don't want to be late that is".

It appeared that he had already caught on to my lesser-known power of being chronically late to everything.

Turning back to look at the general direction of U.A I gave him a quick nod, feeling nervous but mostly excited if anything was worth getting there early for, this was it.

U.A, somehow, managed to be even more impressive in person, the share size of the facilities giving me a pause as I walked up to the entrance.

As was to be expected, the school grounds were littered with students my age, all congregating here for the shared purpose of participating in the entrance exam. A mixture of emotions stirred in the air, nervousness plastered on most faces... with a few notable exceptions.

"Stupid Deku". I sighed tiredly, instantly recognizing the voice.

"Good morning to you too Kachan", I retorted drily, turning around to face the blond boy as he came to stand less than a foot away, glaring up at me.

"I thought you didn't what to be a hero", he snarled.

"I changed my mind".

A few people had begun to take notice of our little confrontation and I tapped my leg impatiently, avoiding the lingering gazes of passer byers.

Somehow, he managed to make his glare more severe and for a second I was sure he was going to attack me as usual. Instead, after a tense silence, he simply shook his head, "Whatever, get out my way before I set you on fire".

Well, that was a lot less violent than I anticipated, on the downside, however, I quickly realized that some people had noticed us, muted conversations arising as we were recognized.

"Isn't that the guy that single-handedly defeated the Sludge villain?".

"Are you sure, I thought-".

"His name is Izuku Midoriya-"

"Guy is the real deal-".

"What about the other kid? Katsuki Bakugou, I think? He's the one who managed to withstand being trapped by the same villain!".

"You are right! It's him, no way, both of them are taking the entrance exam?".

Tightening the hold on my backpack, I did my best to ignore the all-too-loud whispers. I hadn't expected to be recognized so fast, or by so many people, even if the photo that had been taken of me had become somewhat viral, I had figured the public would forget about me in a few days like any old news story.

Pretending to not notice the barely conceal staring, I accelerated my step as I made my way towards the main building, walking just a few meters behind Bakugo.

Too engrossed in my own thoughts and trying to get inside as quickly as possible, I managed to bump into somebody, their small cry of surprise snapping me back to reality.

Instantly I reached out to catch her but she didn't give me the chanceas I found she had managed to stop her fall by gently gloating in midair.

"I'm so sorry", I stammered out, I really should learn to be more careful, "I really didn't see you there…Are you alright?".

She scratched her head sheepishly, "I'm perfectly fine" she assured me with a small awkward smile as she landed back on her feet, seeming to be more amused than anything, "Don't worry about it".

Suddenly forgetting how to properly carry out a conversation I gave her a small nod, noticing just how pretty she was, heart-shaped face framed by brown hair, big expressive eyes staring up at me curiously.

Seeing as how I had forgotten how to speak, she ventured on, "Well…guess I'll see you around", she called, giving me another small smile as she walked away and towards the increasingly crowded entry, leaving me to stare after her like an idiot.

Smooth, real smooth, I told myself as I followed her, allowing the flowing mass of students to pull me into U.A's interior and hopefully our futures.

As more and more students began to fill the large auditorium room, my choices of seats were swiftly reduced, and somehow, I ended up beside Kacchan, whose red eyes flashed in anger as I sat beside him.

"Are you serious?". He asked way too loudly.

"There are almost no seats left", I hissed back, not finding myself too happy with the arrangement either.

"The floor is always an option", he muttered obnoxiously just as the light above the stage came to life and a thunderous voice resonated throughout the overly crowded room.

I cringed, covering my ears in annoyance as I recognized the owner of said voice, the pro hero most well-known for his radio show, Present Mic. Though I admired his work; I wasn't the biggest fan of his quirk, for obvious reasons.

"You are an embarrassment", Kachan muttered as I slowly took my hands off my ears, adjusting to the noise so it didn't feel like an entire herd of horses was trampling my skull.

"Shut up".

"Come on let me hear ya!", Presen Mic, again, shouted to the crowds.

Not a single soul answered, and I could quite distinctly hear peoples' blood pressures rising.

Acting like that hadn't just happened he went on, "Anyway, skipping right to the main show, let's talk about how the practical exams are going to go down… ARE YOU READY?".

I rubbed my temples, wondering whether he honestly needed to be that loud, I was pretty sure half the city could hear him.

"Now, boys and girls, get ready to rock and roll! As it said in the application requirement, all of you will be conducting ten-minute mock urban battles, bring whatever you want with you".

Behind him, the screen displayed a very simple map with a green box that read, "You are here", connected to smaller color boxes marked A-G.

"After you are done hearing the instruction you will head to your specific battle center, okay?".

Again, no response, even when he repeated the question in a futile attempt to make us speak up.

Ignoring him, Kacchan's attention was, instead, focused on the small slip of paper that marked each student examination center, "So… they won't let us work with our friends".

"It appears so", I said, eyeing my own ticket. "Even though our examinee numbers are consecutive, we are assigned to different areas".

"Damn…", he said, sounding disappointed, "Now I can't crush you".

Because of course that had been his first thought, I thought, as I looked at him flatly, honestly, what else had I expected?

"There are three different types of faux villains in each battle center", Present Mic went on, "You earn points for each of them based on their level of difficulty, your goal, dear listener, is to use your quirks to earn points by immobilizing the faux villains".

He pointed towards the crowd, "Of course, attacking other examinees and any other unheroic actions are prohibited!".

I side-eyed Kacchan making him scoff.

"I have a question!". A boy a few rows ahead of us said, jumping to his feet with his hand held high. Like somehow just speaking up would have failed to get him noticed in the deadly quiet room.

Not waiting to be granted permission to speak, he pointed at the informative sheet that had been passed around. "On the printout, there are four types of Villains".

"If that is a misprint, then U.A, the most prominent school in Japan should be ashamed of that foolish mistake!".

Putting his hand over his heart he continued, "We, examinees, are here in this place because we wish to be molded into exemplary heroes". He turned around, now pointing at me, the light reflecting off his square glasses, "In addition, you over there".

I pointed at myself with a frown, confused as he glared at me.

"Don't think that just because you were all over the news you will get in easy", he said solemnly, "If you are here only so chase after fame better you leave immediately. If you wish to stay, I suggest you wipe that arrogant expression off your face".

I swallowed nervously; did I have an arrogant face? Did I do something to offend him somehow? I was certain I've never seen him in my life thought, and I had a pretty good memory.

Struggling to keep my face neutral I said, "I'm not here because I want to be a celebrity, I'm here because I want to be a hero".

Before he could say anything else, Present Mic rushed to intervene.

"Okey, okay, examinee number 7111", he said, making a calm down gesture and wisely choosing to ignore our little exchange "Thanks for the great question!".

He pointed to the villain's silhouette on the screen, "The fourth type of villain is worth zero points, that guy's an obstacle, so to speak. There's one in every battle center, an obstacle that will go crazy in narrow spaces, it's not impossible to defeat, but there no reason to defeat it, either so I recommend that you try to avoid it".

Seeming satisfied with the explanation, and not even a bit embarrassed by his previous accusation against the school, the boy, Glasses, as I had already mentally nicknamed him, bowed down, "Thank you very much", he said, "Please excuse the interruption".

"Well, that's all from me", the hero said, "Finally, I'll give to you, listeners, a present, our school motto! The hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said: A true hero is someone who overcomes life's misfortunes."

He gave us a huge grin then, and then, for the first time, some students actually joined in as he shouted: "Go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!"

Seeing the battlegrounds up close was a shock, even if All Might had already described them to me, nothing had quite prepared me for their sheer size and the level of detail that had gone into them.

At least I wasn't the only one gawking.

"What is this?" Somebody whispered.

"The school had several of this, no way-". Another voice, further back added.

"U.A is amazing!".

Doing my best to stay out of sight I took to standing in the back, silently surveying those who I would be taking the exam with, mentally going over my lessons with All Might.

My original plan of action had been simple, I just had to earn enough points to pass while calling the least amount of attention to myself as possible. All Might, apparently had other plans, over the last week he had instructed me to do the exact oposite, take out as many robots as possible while still leaving just barely enough for others to pass.

At first, I had been confused and later irritated, unable to come up with a single good explanation as to why he would want me to do something like that, it just seemed unnecessary.

The first few times I voiced my concerns I could see him dancing around the question, but in the end, and after no small amount of nagging on my part, he finally gave in. "Some people...are still reluctant to let you in the program." He told me with brutal honesty. "We need to prove to them that you are more of a danger out there, where you could possibly become a villain, than on the side of the heroes".

It made sense, even if it was in a twisted sort of way. Though it stung, I had known not everybody would be so open to allowing me in. All I could hope for was for his strategy to work, and not turn the heroes against me.

Trying to distract myself, I looked around the small crowd awaiting to take the exam, noticing a face I recognized as the girl I had talked to before. I hadn't had a chance to introduce myself then…maybe I could do it now.

I hadn't so much as taken one step in her direction when I felt a hand on my shoulder. I whipped around, instantly irritated to find Glasses kid staring up at me.

"Can I help you?", I asked tiredly.

"That girl appears to be trying to focus", he said, "What are you doing here? Are you taking the entrance exam to interfere with everyone else?".

Seriously, what did I do to offend this kid?

"Do you have a problem with me?", I finally asked, hiding my annoyance behind a flat tone as I looked down at him, he wasn't short but I was still taller.

The entire confrontation was beginning to be noticed and I groaned internally. Because of Glasses, my attempts at going unnoticed were once again ruined.

"Wait... is that the kid from T.V?".

"No way! He is actually here, I didn't believe-".

"Don't tell me we have to compete against this guy-".

Oblivious to the comments around us, Glasses just keep on glaring up at me like he was trying to figure out where to start with listing all my misgivings but Present Mic, once again, didn't give him the chance.

"Okay, START!". he shouted from somewhere above, startling more than a few unsuspecting students.

"What's wrong?", he asked innocently, "There are no countdowns in real fights!".

That did it, in an instant I was forgotten as all the examinees took off running in a mad frenzy for the doors.

Resisting the impulse to follow them, I forced myself to remain rooted in place. Patience, I reminded myself, absentmindedly wondering if jumping over the walls was allowed or if that would be pushing it too much.

The moment I deemed it safe I ran after them, carefully picking my way through their static forms until I was in front of the pack and face to face with a highway packed tight with villains.

So many points, it seemed almost excessive. I saw everything in slow motion, the many kids behind me pushing and shoving to get in first, fighting to prove they had what it took to be heroes and I was just about to rip that away from them.

There are still more villains, plenty for everybody, I halfheartedly told myself, this wouldn't be their only chance to pass.

But what if it is? Another small voice countered, what if they failed to get enough points all because I destroyed every robot in the vicinity?

"Put on a show", All Might worlds resonated within me and I tightened my fist, I had to pass this exam, I had to be allowed into U.A because I wasn't sure there was a future outside these walls for me, not after my secret was out, not after people saw what I was capable of...

I don't think many of the examinees fully realize what happened, how one second the robots were just within reach of their eager hands, and the next nothing but smoking pieces.

I didn't slow down, even after I was done, I didn't stick around to admire my handy work, or to see the reaction of the many kids behind me. I would do my part, and make a show out of myself, but it didn't mean I had to enjoy it.

Choosing the farthest possible cluster of robots I accelerated, hoping to outrun the gasps, the others' indignation, the way their previous admiration quickly turned to fear as they whispered my name.

All Might slowly shifted in his seat, a mixture of excitement and worry making him unusually fidgety as he struggled to pay attention to whatever principal Nezu was saying. Whether or not Midoriya should be allowed in had led to more than a few heated arguments among the teaching staff, and the room was heavy with an atmosphere of general discontent.

"-In this practice exam, the examinees have not been informed of the number of villains or their locations", Nezu, the school principal, was explaining. "They are put in a vast and complicated urban terrain, tasked with finding and taking down the various villains, all in a limited amount of time. To be capable of accomplishing this, the examinees must possess a very particular set of skills".

Moving around excitedly, in a way only a mouse can, he pointed to a screen showcasing a white-haired boy with multiple arms, all connected by a skin membrane.

"Firstly", the talking mouse said, "Information gathering, an ability to understand the situation before anyone else".

He jumped across the desk, focusing on another screen in which a boy with glasses ran through the testing area showcasing remarkable speed and agility.

"Mobility, which can be used in many different circumstances".

The image change just in time to show a blond boy destroying a villain using a laser beam coming from his abdomen, remaining abnormally composed despite the chaos around him

"Oh, and look at that! an excellent example of discernment, the ability to be able to stay calm in any situation".

Nodding to himself, he drew the room's attention to yet another of the many screens where a blonde boy, with a wild look on his red eyes, stood among the pieces of the many robot villains he had defeated.

"And of course, we can't forget pure combat ability", he concluded sounding proud of his little speech, "These are the basic abilities needed to keep the peace on the streets. In our exam we turned them into points".

There were a few annoying huffs from the tightly packed group of heroes, most of them quickly catching on to what U. A's Principal was attempting to do.

In not so many words, he was voicing what everybody in the room was currently thinking, whether reluctantly or not. Despite him having focused on different students to make his point, his eyes had never fully wandered far from the screens displaying footage from testing area B.

The tension only grew and All Might tapped his foot down impatiently, his eyes darting from the changing screens, to his colleagues, and back to Nezu's thoughtful face.

A rarity himself, principal Nezu was one of the few selected individuals who knew Izuku's secret, and thus, had been made private to the full extent of his abilities, All Might also knew, however, that watching Midoriya in action for the first time could prove overwhelming, terrifying even.

So far, the principal was taking it remarkably well, now it fell upon him to sway the rest of the staff in Midoriya's favor, and it appeared like he wasn't wasting any time.

With his previous speech, Nezu had efficiently made it clear to everybody that Midoriya was everything they looked for in future students. Alone, he could accomplish what would normally require a team of heroes with various talents. Subtly, he was painting Midoriya as less than a possible city-leveling disaster, and more like the brilliant hero he could become.

"Doesn't this year's group look promising?", Midnight asked nobody in particular, though her eyes never strayed far from the screen showing Midoriya; neither could most of the heroes, their expression ranging from amazement to barely concealed fear.

"How many points does he have now?", Somebody in the back asked, as yet another street of villains was destroyed in what seemed like the blink of an eye. The boy in question pausing only to tilt his head slightly before zooming off down a nearby alley, arriving just in time to save a girl from what would have been a serious fall.

They had already become familiar with this pattern, again and again, he disappeared and reappeared in different camera feeds, running across the city like it wasn't kilometers wide.

"He must be getting close to a thousand", somebody closer to the front answered.

"It's probably more", A third person added, "It's hard to keep up when he is barely more than a blur!".

Present Mic elbowed him then, "He beat your record All might", he teased, "By a lot!".

The bigger hero's smile only grew wider, very much the picture of a proud father, "I'll try to not get jealous" he answered good naturally, producing a few nervous chuckles from the heroes around.

Of course, somebody had to jump in and spoil the moment.

"Good thing we actually listen to All might and put ten times the usual robots in that testing area, otherwise, at the rate he's going, there wouldn't have been anything left for the other examines".

The bored and more than a tad irritated voice belonged to none other than the elusive hero Eraser Head, a pro who was rarely in the spotlight, prefering to work from the shadows.

It was evident he belonged to the group that wasn't too fond of the new kid and even less of the idea of allowing him into U.A. The only thing keeping him, and frankly all the others, from openly voicing their discontent and concerns was All might's strategy.

So far, Midoriya was doing such a fantastic job of proving how dangerous he was, even the number one Hero found himself somewhat uncomfortable with the idea of a teenager possessing such devastatingly destructive power.

Good thing the kid had been raised to be a gentle person, that the only thing he wished to do with his power was to save and protect others, because he wasn't sure that, even in his prime, he could have taken him down if he had turned out to be on the side of evil.

He sighed, the smile threatening to melt from his face. It was working all right, he thought bitterly, yet, considering the current atmosphere of the room, he couldn't help but worry about the attitude that the heroes would have when it came time to deal with Midoriya as a student.

He would try and smooth everything out as much as possible for the kid but it wasn't going to be easy, getting into U.A was only the beginning.

"Well…lest not get too ahead of ourselves", another hero called from his perch near the control panels, eager to provide some sort of diversion from the brewing discord in the room "The real test is just about to begin!".

Tenya Lida came from a family of heroes, all of which had proven themselves to be remarkable in the field. The heavy burden of such a legacy wasn't easy to uphold but Iida thought of it as an honor. That's why he had been so determined to not only get into U.A, but to stand out, he had to show just why his family was so exceptional.

Of course, his hopes were shattered not even one minute into the exam as somebody had already destroyed enough villains for all the others in the arena to pass, moving so fast nobody, not even him, realized what had happened.

Then the rumored whispers began, all wondering who could have done such a thing. For most, all it took was one good look around at the small confused crowd to realize one notable member was missing, Midoriya Izuku, because of course it had been him.

In the blink of an eye, Lida had lost his chance to stand out, all of them had, whatever they did would be but an afterthought in comparison, and the pattern only repeated itself all throughout the city as the exam progressed.

At first, he had thought Midoriya had some form of teletransportation quirk, using it to destroy the villains by appearing inside of them. This assumption, however, was quickly discredited as Lida realized he could feel the displaced air threatening to tear his clothing every time Midoriya passed close by, the distant sonic booms as he broke the sound barrier. Midoriya was definitely moving, just too fast for even his naturally faster perception to keep up with.

It was disheartening, but Lida was hardly the type to give up, he still needed to pass even if he had lost his chance to shine. Ignoring the force of nature that was Midoriya, he focused only on the task at hand, bitterly hoping the other boy would leave something for the rest of them.

That notion had been enough to send a spike of panic through him, and he redoubled his efforts, using his superior speed to cover as much ground as possible.

It was worth it, he told himself, again and again, trying to keep up morale. Despite his previous fears, he was earning points! Sure, once in a while Midoriya would come out of nowhere and obliterate every villain in sight, which was irritating at first, but, after a while, Lida had begun to realize that judging by how fast Midoriya took down villains, there shouldn't be any left at all.

This meant that either the other boy was physically unable to maintain that sort of destructive power for long, and needed to rest in between, or, what was more likely, he was intentionally leaving robots for the others.

His theory seemed more and more plausible as he noted that Midoriya wasn't disappearing off to somewhere in between his villan destruction stunts; more often than not, he seemed to stick around to help anybody who found themselves in harm's way. He even had gone so far as to tell other examiners where they could find more robots, or in which building they were hiding.

Lida wasn't sure how he was doing that, but so far, he had been proven right every time. Shaking his head, Lida forced himself to concentrate; Midoriya was a mystery for another day, every wasted second could cost him dearly in the end and the more time that went on the fewer robots there were.

With the pressure mounting, people were panicking even more. Bumping into each other in their haste and becoming increasingly more reckless.

Lida liked to believe he was immune to such influence but his burning legs and the way his chest ached every time he tried to breathe told another story. Doing his best to work through his obvious fatigue, he chased another villain into an alley where it would prove easier to destroy. That had been the plan, at least until a blurt came crashing from the sky, decimating the robot into what seemed a million pieces, he knew who it was even before the dust had cleared.

"Sorry", Midoriya said, not sounding too apologetic as he turned around, what seemed like a smirk briefly crossing his features, "Didn't see you there".

Overall, Lida considered himself a gentleman, conducting himself with care and dignity, striving to treat others in the same fashion, but at that moment he was ready to drop with exhaustion and stress and would have no problem dedicating more than a few choice words to the taller boy.

But, before he could actually unleash a rant about honor and respect, the amusement suddenly disappeared from Midoriya's face, his eyes snapping downward to look at the floor like it had turned into lava. Alarmed, he tried to ask what was wrong but his voice was lost under a deep rumbling that swiftly turned into a violent earthquake.

He fought to remain upright as glass exploded from every window in the vicinity, the ground splitting open threatening to swallow him whole.

From the deeps rose a massive shape, taller than any of the surrounding buildings, its shadow obscuring the sun. Lida could suddenly feel his pulse in his mouth, his hands shaking uncontrollably as he forced himself to look up.

The sight was enough to rob him of whatever breath he had left. Built out of solid metal and as massive as a mountain, the obstacle villain leaned down with a hydraulic hiss like it was trying to get a better view of the terrified kids below.

Lida should have known better than to stand still and stare, should have remembered Present Mic warning about the villain going crazy in narrow spaces. A hero couldn't go into shock! he screamed at himself; a hero shouldn't hesitate in the face of danger…

But he did, blame it on exhaustion, his brain was too muddled to think rationally, and by the time he decided that he should probably run away he had already lost his chance.

With a speed that nothing that size should possess, the villain threw back its massive metal arm and, with one thunderous swipe, destroyed the top of every building within its massive reach.

It wasn't up until the sky had gone dark with falling debris and the walls around him began to collapse that Lida finally made himself move even as he knew it was too late, far too late, he would never get out in time

I should have seen it earlier, I scolded myself bitterly, should have been paying more attention to my surroundings instead of enacting some petty vengeance.

The entire frightening display played out in slow motion before me as I stood frozen in place, feeling every single one of my accelerated heartbeats. It was only then that I realized how truly dangerous this exam was, did they really need to go this far? What was the point of endangering the examinees in such a reckless way?

The thick, suffocating, cloud of dust did nothing to block my vision, allowing me to witness in painful detail the pandemonium that broke around me as kids scream in terror, blindly trying to run away or find some sort of shelter.

The sight was enough to make me move and try and help in any way I could. I had messed up, and now the only thing I could do was try and get everybody to safety.

With less gentleness than I would have liked, I began moving people, getting them out of the way of the collapsing buildings, wishing I could have stayed back and made sure that I hadn't moved them too fast or accidentally hurt them but lacking even the few seconds it would take.

Only when I was satisfied that nobody was about to get crushed did I hurry back over to Glasses, whose eyes were wide in horror, his mouth opened in silent scream as what must have been half a building rushed down to meet him. With the entire alleyway collapsing I was running out of time to safely move him, so I did the only other thing I could think of

I pushed him down and leaned over him, using my body as a shield against the falling concrete and debris that broke mercilessly against my back. Biting back a wince, I locked my knees against the sudden extra weight that just kept on piling on.

Even when I was expecting it, it still managed to knock the air out of me, and I gritted my teeth as thousands of tons of concrete and steel settled upon me like a wet blanket.

The onslaught seemed to last forever, or maybe I was still perceiving the world in slow motion but I didn't dare relax until I had made absolutely sure that nothing else was about to fall on us.

"Are you alright?", I asked, carefully lifting the building pieces off myself, going slowly to make sure none fell on him.

"You saved me?", he voiced it like it was a question, like he couldn't quite believe it.

Should I not have? Maybe he thought he could have gotten out in time or had some other plan to save himself, though I had seemed unlikely.

I shrugged awkwardly, finding myself uncomfortable under his piercing gaze, though at least this time it wasn't judgmental.

"Uh-", I began, only to be once again saved from an awkward conversation by Present Mic, his voice resonating throughout the arena, "Two minutes left!".

Most of the kids I had saved were currently too busy being confused to fully pay attention to the announcement, a few even finding themselves retching violently. I winced softly; I suppose it was a small price to pay for not getting crushed.

They would be fine, a quick scan told me, I hadn't hurt them, most would probably be back to their previous task the second they got over their confusion.

It had been a close call, nobody had gotten seriously hurt, but it wasn't like I could just leave the giant crazy murder robot to walk around and further endanger everybody.

Turning back to face Glasses I made a vague apologetic gesture with my hand, pointedly looking up at the still nearby villain. "You should get out of here", I warned him before taking a cautionary step back, bending my knees, and leaping into the air.

Despite having gotten much better at controlling my jumps, making sure to not go higher than necessary, and coming up with a rough estimate of where I would land, this particular jump I was nervous about. One miscalculation and I could bring down the villain upon the unsuspecting kids below.

The air rushed by me as I soared past the surrounding skyscrapers and the green bulky villain standing among them, its shiny red eyes looking up at me. As I reached the highest point of my jump, however, I could feel gravity trying to pull me down and something else within me instinctually trying to resist earth's all-encompassing pull.

I swore I hovered then, feeling like it was being pulled in several directions at once, disorienting me so badly that, for one terrifying second, I couldn't seem to figure out which way was up and which was down.

Just as fast as it had happened, whatever had appeared to resist earth's pull gave out and I found myself in a quickly accelerating downward arc towards the villain's massive head.

The feeling was so sudden I almost cried out in surprise, but managed to get a hold of myself in time. I am invulnerable, I reminded myself, I wasn't falling to my death. I was, however, falling in a direct and quickly approaching collision path with a giant green villain head and I should probably do something about that.

Running out of time to figure out how to go about this villain destruction business, I decided to take a page from All Might's book. Throwing my arm back and tightening my hand into a fist, I smashed right into the center of its head.

The thick metal hull dented so badly it split open, allowing its metal insides to spill out unglamorously followed almost immediately by internal explosions that shook the entire giant frame.

The damage was clearly more than what the villain was built to resist and with a final screech its massive body toppled over, scraping the facade of a couple of buildings but otherwise avoiding further property damage, or landing on anybody for that matter.

I was close behind, managing to more or less land on my feet, though that didn't stop the concrete from cracking from the force of the impact.

"One minute left". Another announcement came just as I straightened up from my landing, allowing myself to let out a shaky breath of relief. Everything had more or less gone to plan, I had gotten more than enough points to pass, and defeated the faux villain as a bonus.

With one minute remaining, I had figured I could lay back and allow the few remaining villains to be taken by the other examinees; I was done.

In retrospect, I should have known better, this was the U.A entrance exam, nothing was guaranteed.

The dust had hardly settled around the faux villain when a telltale rumble made me go cold.

No_ I thought, denying what my senses were telling me. There was only supposed to be one! Present Mic had said so.

With a sinking feeling in my chest, I leaped upon the close's skyscraper, stumbling on the landing in my hurry. It felt like a bad joke, and all I could do was stare at the city as two more mountain size villains rose from its depths.

This was my fault, that was the first thing that came to mind, why else would there be three faux villains in one area? There was no way this was a mistake. It was insane, so many people were in danger, those things were killing machines!

Anger boiled within me and I had to clap a hand over my face as sudden fiery heat accumulated in my eyes. I knew there were cameras everywhere, watching, and I couldn't risk anybody getting even a glimpse of my other abilities, no matter how much I wanted to use my heat vision at the moment.

Calm down, I told myself, it's alright, I could deal with this. It was obvious the villains were placed as a challenge just for me. All Might had warned me about this, the stronger the hero the stronger the villains they would attract.

It was all just part of being a hero, I couldn't lose my temper just because somebody threatened to bring harm to others, most villains did just that. My job was to stop them before they could succeed, the faster I got there the less likely somebody was to get hurt.

Having managed to get a hold of myself, I took my hand off my face, calculated the distance from me to the closest faux villain, and leaped into the air.

"Was it really necessary to put three faux villains in that area?", Eraser-Head asked, sounding even more irritated than usual.

Most of the screens in the room currently showed every angle possible of the two new faux villains in testing area B. Placing more than one faux villain in a testing area was something that had never been done, and everybody seemed to be holding their collective breaths in anticipation.

"Well, it does spice things up, doesn't it?", Midnight responded automatically, a sadistic smile on her face. She appeared to rather enjoy the display of pure terror on the young faces of the students.

"We thought it would be good to give Midoriya more of a challenge" Principal Nezu said in response to both, "After all, there is no point reward for taking on the faux villains but there is an opportunity, the chance to shine".

Like the kid needed any more chances to show off, Eraser Head thought to himself. "The only thing it's accomplished so far is making the exam unfairly dangerous for the other examinees", he pointed out, as a few cameras focused on a girl with her leg trapped under debris, making her unable to get away from the approaching giant.

"To the contrary", Director Nezu refuted smoothly, "We knew for a fact that Midoriya could take the zero pointers with ease, by putting two more in the testing are we give all the other examinees the same opportunity he had. Not only to stand out, but to show who truly has what it takes to be a hero. It's no longer just about smashing robots and earning points; it's about putting yourself on the line for others".

His gaze turned once again to the front of the room and the screens showing the trapped girl, allowing them to see in full detail the panicked tears glinting in her eyes as she tried to free herself, the way she reached out to the many who ran right past her, begging for help. Most didn't even bother to look back.

Principal Nezu smiled to himself, "Having established that, let's see who comes to the rescue".

Lida wasn't ashamed to admit he had fled as fast as he could manage. It was clear to him, after seeing Midoriya easily shrugged off half a building and jumped up to meet the faux villain without a second thought, that the other boy didn't need his help.

Good, part of being a hero was knowing when you were outmatched (and he had to admit to himself that this was the case), all he could do was get to a safe distance and leave the titans to fight amongst themselves.

He also, begrudgingly, promised himself to find the other boy after the exam and apologize for his previous actions. It would hurt his pride, but Lida considered himself an honorable man, he could admit his mistakes, and he had been wrong about Midoriya.

Sure, the kid had an almost arrogant glint to his eyes, and yeah– he may have still been somewhat pissed about the villain he had stolen from him– but Midoriya had saved his life along with countless others, gone so far as to put himself in between Lida and a falling building and then proceeded to defeated the faux villain. The kid was already a hero.

Panting, he came to a stop a couple of streets later. After almost getting crushed he was more cautious, allowing himself to take a few precious seconds to catch his breath. By his rough estimates, he should have had enough points to pass, though he reckoned he could still manage one or two more after he recovered.

Straightening up, he began to scan his surroundings, hoping to find an opportunity, but was only met with the many stares of his fellow examiners, their eyes frantic as they searched for any remaining villains.

Not much luck here it seemed, maybe he could run around and try and find- His thoughts came to an abrupt halt as he felt the earth begin to shake below his feet, what had started as a soft rumble getting louder by the second.

This is not happening, he thought as his stomach twisted in fear— There was only supposed to be one and Midoriya had taken it down, he had seen it himself, why then was a brand-new faux villain clawing its way out of the city's deeps?

His brain's fight-or-flight instinct had him moving before he had even fully registered the situation. Zooming by the slower kids, ignoring all but his one objective of getting out of the narrow area that was sure to become a death trap.

It was only when he had gotten to the end of the street, sloppily trying to slow down and almost slamming into a wall, that he dared look back_ and that is when he saw her.

A girl was right in the way of the oversized machine, unable to move from where she lay, trapped under a huge piece of rubble.

Blood roared in his ears as he watched in muted horror, as she struggled to get free. Distantly hearing her unattended cries for help.

He screamed at himself to do something; she was about to get killed dammit! Wasn't he trying to be a hero? Wasn't this something heroes did? He was desperate, yet he couldn't move, couldn't breathe...

As more people got to safety, they too began to take notice of the chilling scene. There were shouts for somebody to help, to do something! They pushed each other forward yet refused to go themselves.

Their cries rose in volume as the seconds ticked down, a chorus of terror and fear united as one, begging somebody to save the girl.

From afar, the tremor of a sonic boom followed by the distinct sound of explosions served to momentarily distract the nearly hysterical group.

"That must have been the other faux villain". A blond boy, with a soft French accent, shouted to be heard over all the noise, his demeanor calm as he tried to bring some sense of serenity to the agitated crowd, "I'm sure Midoriya defeated it, he will be here soon to save her, no need to fret".

Sudden hope sparked all throughout the group of previously panicking kids, even Lida found himself significantly relieved at the thought that Midoriya, a boy none of them knew, would suddenly show up and save the day.

He turned that thought over in his head, feeling like there was some deeper meaning behind it all, but before he could fully make sense of the vague idea blossoming in his mind, there was a thunderous boom and figure descended from the sky with all the power of a comet.

Even after watching Midoriya lift a building off himself without breaking a sweat and defeat the giant villains with a single punch, it was still surreal to watch the ease with which the boy moved, how the zero pointer, previously so imposing, crumble under his fist, putting up about as much resistance as a cardboard cutout.

The entire thing happened so fast his mind only seemed to be able to capture glimpses of it, flashes of flying metal and fire, of windows exploding on all surrounding buildings from the shockwave of a single hit from a teenage boy.

Midoriya reminded him of All Might, he realized suddenly, both possessing the same insane raw force and overwhelming speed. Watching him in action, it occurred to him to wonder, if this is how the people that took the entrance exam along with All Might felt all those years ago, to know you would forever be in the shadow of a legend in the making.

"Times…UP!", Presen Mic shouted just as Midoriya landed but a few feet from the villain's spiled metal guts.

Understandably, it took a while for his words to settle in, for people to begin cheering or to sulk, to pat each other on the back, or just collapse exhausted.

Like invisible threads were pulling them all, most found themselves moving towards the fallen villain and, consequently, Midoriya, who had already lifted the boulder off the injured girl.

He was talking to her softly, kneeling besides her, his eyes turning to look at the leg that had been partially crushed.

"It's broken", he informed her loud enough for most to hear, "Its better if you down move until help comes… all right?".

His eyes darted briefly towards his small audience, looking like he was trying to ignore the barely concealed whispering about him.

Most kids around Lida were busy making wild guesses on how many points Midoriya had gotten, and the story of how he had defeated not one, but three faux villains, was, nos doubt, on its way to becoming and U.A legend.

Hearing them, Lida couldn't help but think that they were missing the point. It was like they had all forgotten that instance when all of them had the chance to do what Midoriya had done, but instead had allowed fear for their own safety to overtake them.

Would he have acted the same if this wasn't an exam? Would he had stepped in to save the day? Well, of course, that was a hero job! He assured himself, he would have stopped and tried to help; he would have found a way to defeat that villain-

And then it hit him, of course! This was all an exam; how could he have been so stupid and not seen this before? He came from a family of heroes; it was supposed to run in his blood!

"Don't look so gloomy honey, I'm sure you did well", Lida practically jumped out of his skin as somebody grabbed his hand, finding a small old lady looking up at him with a gentle smile. His mind immediately supplied a name for her, it was Recovery girl! Her healing quirk was the only reason why U.A could get away with such reckless exams.

Still holding his hand, she planted a kiss on the back of it, and just like that, all the scratches and bruises he had gotten when the building collapse were gone, and he found his chest no longer hurt, all fatigue gone from his previously trembling muscles.

"Feeling better?", she asked sweetly, even as she offered gummies to another kid, her eyes quickly falling on the most serious of injuries in sight.

"Oh dear", she crooned, coming to stand before the fallen girl, "Your poor leg".

Kneeling down with the slowness conferred by old age, she planted a loud kiss on the brunette's clammy forehead, eliciting suprised gasps from the crowd as her leg briefly glowed, the lines of pain quicly disappearing from her face.

"It…It feels fine, like nothing happened!", she exclaimed happily as she jumped to her feet.

Giving only some minor acknowledgment to the over exaggerated thanks from the previously injured girl, the elderly hero turned back to the rest of the little group.

"All right, lets finish this quickly", The small woman said cheerfully, "Is anyone else injured?".

Lida moved out of the way as the rest of the kids began to organize themselves to be tended to, his eyes turning to look towards Midoriya, who was already walking away, but not towards the exits.

Making a split-second decision he jogged to catch up.

"Where are you going?", he asked, in what he hoped was a casual tone.

Midoriya's head snaped back to look at him, seeming to be trying to decide whether Lida was about to try and scold him again. Okey, yeah, he deserved that.

Finally, the other boy shrugged, turning back to look at the city, he seemed almost awkward, "I was just going to check that nobody is trapped or too injured to get back to Recovery Girl", he said, his eyes scanning all of their surroundings with precision.

Just like he had thought, Lida grumbled to himself, coming to a stop as Midoriya turned the corner and disappeared out of his sight. He wasn't sure whether Midoriya had, from the beginning, recognized the true nature of the U. A entrance exam, or if he just always went out of his way to help others. The latter seem more likely_ and that just made Lida feel all the more guilty.

Taking a deep breath, Lida came to a solemn decision. Never again would he walk again from somebody in need, from now on he would act like the hero he aspired to become, next time, it would be him turning back to face the villain.

Feeling new purpose blossom withing him, he ran after Midoriya, speaking before he had even come to a full stop.

"I'll help-", he practically shouted as the other boy turned a critical eye upon him. Feeling self-conscious, he moved his hands up and down in a nervous gesture, "With finding people and getting them back that is…".

After a second, Midoriya's face relax and he saw the other boy smile for the first time, even if it was brief, "Fine, let's move then, we have a lot of ground to cover".

I was more nervous than I cared to admit, my eyes once again taking in the white envelope before me, a red seal with an official stamp the only indicator that this wasn't your usual mail.

Despite being certain I had done well in the exam, my score no doubt way higher than all my fellow examinees, some remnant of doubt still lingered withing me.

What if they didn't accept me just because I was an alien? Or All Might strategy backfired horribly and I was deemed too dangerous to be left alone, condemning me to some obscure government facility.

It had been differently before, when nobody but those I trusted new my secret. Now, I found my life in the hands of people I didn't know, and regardless of being accepted or not into U. A's hero course, nothing could ever be the same.

To top it all off, I hadn't been able to get ahold of All Might ever since the exam, which wasn't helping diminish my increasing anxiety.

Just this morning mom had handed me the red sealed envelope. Her hand trembling despite the brave smile on her face. I had briefly considered opening it right then and there, hoping to get it up and done with, but for her sake, I held back. Better for her to hear it from myself if it was bad news.

Doing my best to give her a smile of my own, I retreated to the safety of my room where I had been ever since, trying to gather the courage to open the letter that would dictate my future.

Brazing myself, I finally reached out, and in one quick motion, tore the envelope open, a small metal disk bouncing out.

Confused, I reached out to grab it only to be startled back as it chose that very moment to emit a blinding flash of light, creating a projection of an all too familiar face.

"I am here as a projection!", All might announce, looking at me fixedly from his holographic prison.

Even if he wasn't really here it was good to see him, and it did somewhat serve to calm my fears. It couldn't all be bad news if he had recorded this himself, right?

"There's a lot we have to talk about but they are telling me to hurry up so I don't push everybody else back", straightening up he continued, "You passed your written exam with flying color and broke every record in U. A's practical entrance exam with an outstanding two thousand and three hundred points".

None of that was news to me, the written exam had been a breeze and I had stopped counting at a thousand villain points, all logic pointed to the fact that I had been accepted but I still couldn't relax, not until I heard the world from his own mouth. Holding my breath, I listened as he went on.

"However! There is something you might now know. The entrance exam wasn't graded just on villain points", Again his eyes seemed to dig into mine "Young man, you did not only prove how strong you are and what a capable pro you will make, but you also proved that you have the heart of a hero! You showed yourself to be willing to help other in every and any circumstance. How can a hero school reject people who save others and do the right thing?".

He smiled warmly at me "We call them rescue points, they are given by a panel of judges, it the other basic ability we at U. A look at!".

The image flashed and in its place a list of names appeared, each with a score beside them. Mine was at the top of the list, thanks to the amount of villain points I had received, however that wasn't all, there was another score there, one I hadn't known existed.

"Izuku Midoriya, two hundred sixty rescue points!", All Might announced, "You have been teste far beyond what any of your peers endured and have still come out on top, no one can ever say you don't belong here my boy. You have been accepted into U.A!" , He extended his hand then, almost like he could pull me through the screen "Come on, young Midoriya_ This is your Hero Academia!".

Lex Luthor whistled happily to himself as he walked through the, otherwise, silent hallway. The design was minimalistic, but with a sharp futuristic edge.

He liked the place, for sure, but if it was his building he would make a few changes here and there, maybe lighting the almost exclusively dark aesthetic_ then again, the owner of this place wasn't known for being a sunny kind of person, so it suited him.

Despite his usual lack of care for his appearance, Luthor had actually put a calculative amount of effort into it today, after all, the person he was meeting wasn't especially fond of him. It wouldn't do for him to look out of place.

Besides, the media would no doubt get a hold of this and pictures of him would soon be plastered all over the headlines. It wouldn't do for him to be outdone by another billionaire, that was the kind of mistake his father didn't take too kindly.

His white suit was tailored made, his usual wild hair clean and neatly combed out of his face. He carried nothing but a briefcase, which he gripped in anticipation.

Forcing his face to match his current appearance, he plastered on an easy-going smile, that of a naive, arrogant, young billionaire.

He stopped his whistling, and pretended to smooth out hi suit, as he came up to the end of the hallway, and before a polished black desk, a middle age woman eyeing him critically from behind it. She was attractive, he noted, her makeup simple yet expertly done, her hair pulled back so tightly it looked painful.

"Mr. Luthor", she finally said, not a question, but a statement. She clearly didn't approve of his presence, him being the competition and all, but even in her privileged position, it wasn't like she had a say in anything.

He flashed her an arrogant grin, though he made sure to not appear too intimidating. "In the flesh".

Most people, Luthor could read like a book, and despite her passive, overly bored professional demeanor, he could tell she had a particularly strong distaste for him. Most people did against the Luthor name.

"He is ready to see you Sir", she said, making a slight head motion towards the imposing double doors only a few meters from them. Polished until they resemble black mirrors, they were probably stronger than the average nuclear bunker. It was an a not so very subtly way of announcing that only those deemed wordy got to talk with the boss.

"Of course, of course", he smiled again, and just to further annoyed her added, "Thank you honey".

He detected a minuscule eye twitch that she hid by pretending to adjust her glasses. How amusing, maybe later he would ask her out on a date to see just how she tried to squirm her way out of it.

With new found spring to his step, her reached the doors with the intention to knock but they swung open before he got the chance.

The office boasted the same design as the rest of the building, devoid of any personal touch but for the coat hanging from a nearby perch.

Behind a too neat desk, a leather chair faced away from him. Too big for its occupant, he could just see a crown of thick black hair, the person pretending to be engrossed in the breath-taking view only a sky scraper could provide.

"Luthor", A male voice finally spoke, distinctly young despite the speaker best effort to but on a mature tone. "What brings you here?".

Lex chuckled to himself, flopping down on one of the two comfy chairs situated in front of the sizable desk. "Business, of course, your city isn't exactly known for the scenery".

Sighing, the person finally spun around, revealing a boy who looked far too young to be there, the black hair neatly combed to the side, and a few stray freckles adorning soft pale cheeks gave him the clasical look of a high school boy send away to some outrageously expensive private academy so he would stay out of his parent's way.

Then he met his eyes and the illusion broke. Dark circles jumped against his too pale skin. Ice blue eye, lacking the spark that most his age possessed, stared at him with a mixture of wariness and barely concealing annoyance.

"What kind of business? I think I made it clear a while ago that I want nothing to with Luthor Corp".

Lex's grin widened, savoring the moment he had long planned for. "What kind of business you ask-", Lex repeated, pretending to actually consider it, "Well, you can rest assure, this more of a…personal matter".

He could almost hear the alarm bells go off in the young man's brain, and he had to resist the urge to burst out laughing. The boy was simply too easy to manipulate, his bones still aching from a recent growth spurt, yet here he was, trying to run one of the most powerful technological empires.

"My dear Bruce", he said in a tone that left the boy wondering whether he was being patronize, "I can assure you this business of mine concerns the both of us", changing his expression to an overly somber one, he lightly placed the briefcase upon the desk, opening it to reveal its content. "You see, I have discovered something that has me quite worried. I believe once you read through it, you will understand why we should put our differences aside to deal with this…problem".

Aside from a gently lifted brow, the boy did his best to betray nothing of what he thought of Luthor's entire performance. Making a point, he refused to look down at the briefcase's content, maintaining eye contact with the older man, brazing green fire clashing with cold ice.

Excellent, Lex thought, he had the boy's attention. With his curiosity piqued, all that was left to do was lead him gently in the right direction, pull at every hearth string, exploit every weakness, and the boy would fall right into the palm of his hand.

Even as his mind carefully modified his mannerism to go with every line he delivered, another part calculated his next moves, branching off from every possible scenario to create a solution. He had no doubt that whatever the kid did, he would be ready with a countermeasure.

He wasn't delusional enough to think that Bruce wouldn't know that he had some ulterior motive for this visit, he was counting on it. The boy may not have Lex's quirk fueled brilliance, but he was far from stupid. The trick was making him think he could outsmart Luthor and do things his own way.

"Suppose I believe you", Bruce began, slowly lacing together long delicate fingers, "I find it hard to accept you are doing this just out of the kindness of your heart".

And there it was, he was just too good at this. Lex laughed, making himself sound somewhat nervous, "Oh, well, I do suppose you have your reasons to believe that of me" he said, avoiding eye contact, leaning on his chair almost fidgetily, "I am not the most …ethical person, so to speak".

Bruce's glare only intensified, the action was unusual, as most couldn't withstand Luthor's potent gaze, much less return it. The boy had was certainly courageous, even if he was lacking in every other aspect, good, he would need that blind, stupid, bravery for what he was about to face.

"But Bruce…", he continued, putting on a mask of seriousness with just a touch of grief, "There is one thing you and me have in common", his eyes once met the boy's somber stare. So young, yet already opaque with sadness and grief, a permanent shadow seeming to linger upon him.

"We both lost people in the June 26 attack, people that were dear to us Bruce".

And just like that, what little light had been present in Bruce's eyes seemed to extinguish, his mind retreating into some dark little corner to hide from the world.

"You and me aren't so different, in some aspects I would even venture to say we are the same. Wes share our hatred for them, for the powerful, for those that possess quirks that make them little more than a tragedy waiting to happen", he paused, pretending to calm himself "They are allowed to walk freely among us Bruce, us normal, frail people, you should know this better than anybody else".

The young man was yet to speak, but his one quick glance towards the briefcase's content was all Lex needed.

Gently, he pushed it towards him, "Just look thought it Bruce, no strings attached. Hell! just dump the entire thing into the nearest trashcan if you want, but all I ask is that you give it a chance".

Bruce's spine stiffened just the slightest bit, clearly at war with himself. On one side, there was his natural distrust of Lex, rutted in old family feuds and outgoing conflicts between their respective companies, but on the other, there was the righteous anger that burned withing the boy. Hot, white, rage that clamored for justice.

Luthor understood what it was to carry such vicious rage, after all, it too had taken residence withing him, it just didn't manifest the way it did in Bruce, and that was what made them so similar yet so different.

"Fine", Bruce finally agreed reluctantly, "I'll take a look at it but don't think that I'll go along with any of your crazy plans".

"I wouldn't expect anything else from you" the older man said carefully. He still kept on an almost disinterested expression, but internally he was smiling triumphally. Just like he predicted, Bruce had fallen right into his carefully elaborated plan. Now all he had to do was play the waiting game.

In a few months, he predicted Bruce would come knocking at his door, defeated, and with his tail between his legs, reluctant, yet still begging Luthor to help him.

He would give it to him then, the secret to slaying a god, and in exchange, Bruce would unknowingly deliver right into his hands the ultimate price, the child that had fallen from the stars, Izuku Midoriya.