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The quirked body is superior at all levels, Midoriya knew this since he was a child. Yes, it has a quirk that back in the pre-quirk days would’ve been seen as something straight out of a sci-fi movie, but it is physically superior thanks to the lack of limitations that a quirkless body would have.
It doesn’t have all those unnecessary organs or bodily structures.
Wisdom teeth, sinuses, appendix, and many more.
These are all seen among pre-quirk bodies before quirks became a product of everyday life. All that unfortunately haven’t evolved out of modern-day quirkless individuals.
Nowadays, this is how quirkless diagnosis is determined. On top of not developing a quirk by the age of 5 and having the extra joint on the pinky toe, if someone has one or more of these termed “pre-quirked body parts” then it’s certain that kid will never develop a quirk.
This nuisance is exclusive to that 20%, quirked people don’t have them. And now, with how rare quirkless individuals have become, these pre-quirk body parts are the least talked about in science classes. But Midoriya knew. He very much remembered having talks about his quirkless body with his mom, especially on the signs associated with wisdom teeth complications or even an appendix burst.
“Remember, Izuku, if your jaw hurts or even if there is pain behind your teeth, please let me know. That means your wisdom teeth are impacted.”
Yeah, he has wisdom teeth. Lucky for him. Thankfully, he hasn’t had much problem with them, so his hope is that they will remain unimpacted. And well, they need to remain that way, because, considering the lack of surgeons specialized in something so “pre-quirked”, he rather not put his mother through the added stress to get them out.
“Appendicitis is also something to watch out for. If you suddenly get intense abdominal pain, that could mean something is wrong with your appendix. It’s not for certain but please let me know if that happens.”
Appendicitis. If he were to tell his classmates about it, he is sure he would be met with confused looks. That condition has become so rare that not even doctors are knowledgeable about the condition. One will have to go to someone specialized in quirkless physiology to get something like that addressed. But again, that has never happened, and he hopes it never happens. Well, one hopes. You can’t control fate, especially on something so uncontrollable like this.
It happened one Monday morning, Midoriya felt something sharp in his stomach, like a jabbing pain. Naturally, he freaked, his mom’s words about appendicitis and gallbladders ruminated through his mind.
He rummaged through his closet, pulling out his UA uniform, the sudden stabbing pain gone but the dulled and constant sensation still there.
“It’s nothing, Izuku. It may just be what I ate last night.” He said as he laid out his outfit, “I-I’ll take some stomach medicine. Yeah, that’ll help with this!” He concluded, hesitantly.
So, with his fears heightened and his mind running at a thousand miles per hour, he got dressed and popped some stomach medicine. He then grabbed his yellow school bag and headed out.
Now here he was, at school, sitting while Ectoplasm taught the math lesson for the day. The pain hasn’t subsided. For the entire morning, it’s been there, getting stronger by the second. The dull pain in his abdomen progressed to a sharp pain in the lower right side of his stomach. As he tried to listen to his teacher, he would occasionally clutch his pencil as each round of pain traversed through his body. The flares were intense, the muscles in his hands ached as he tensed his stiff fingers.
With the unoccupied arm, he hugged his stomach, begging for some relief from this seemingly never-ending suffering. But it was to no avail. It wouldn’t stop. He remained discrete, breathing deep and softly through the pain, and suppressing his whimpers as they desperately tried to burst out of his lips.
Not only was his abdomen in increasing agony but he was feeling fatigued and cold?
He set his pencil down and placed his hand on his cheek, his breathing hitched. He was burning up.
Eyes of fear manifested. He knew what this was. Those warnings from his mom, they were all there.
“…you could have fatigue and a fever. If you start feeling nauseous, tell me, that is a definite sign.”
Even if he knew, he couldn’t accept it. What can he do? Tell his teachers that his appendix is going haywire and announce to the world, “Oh, by the way, I’m quirkless.”
Absolutely not.
He’ll deal with this. He’ll go through the day and once he is back in the dorms, he can call his mom. She’ll know what to do.
He’s just hoping he can go through the day with these flaring pains.
“Remember, the homework is due tomorrow, no exceptions.” Ectoplasm voiced.
“Huh?”
Wait, what was the assignment? He thought. He was so preoccupied with the pain in his abdomen that he did not pay attention to the assignment or even the lesson itself. The blank page on his notebook staring before him was evidence of his inattentiveness.
“The hell is wrong with you?” Midoriya perked up, Bakugo turned around to look at him, “Your dam breathing, I was this close to clobbering your face. It was getting on my dam nerves!”
“Oh! Um—I-I’m sorry, Kacchan. I’m just tired. I-I was just trying to stay awake.” Midoriya quickly uttered.
Bakugo swiftly peaked at his midsection, seeing how Midoriya seemed to hug it tightly. His eyes squinted in suspicion.
“Sure.” He concluded as he stood up and walked away.
Midoriya turned back to his belongings and began to pack his notebook and pencils, all while listening to the chattering happening around him. It was now lunch, meaning that afterward, they’d have some hero training. Normally, he would be excited for food. With the rigor of their studies, food was something he welcomed without question. But at this moment, he had zero appetite, his need for food was non-existent.
Maybe he’ll sneak out and hang out somewhere else until lunch is—
“Hey, Deku!” Midoriya heard the high-pitched scream of Uraraka, disturbing him from his thoughts. He looked at her, rushing toward him.
Why was the world moving? No, why does he feel like he was moving?
He blinked a few times; he needed his body to listen to him and just calm down for a second.
“Come on, we’ll get the best choices if we are the first one there!” She exclaimed.
Midoriya silently cursed. This was the worst time to be approached by her friend, how would he sneak out now? Maybe he’ll just excuse himself. Yeah, that should work. So, with that in mind, he stood up and prepared himself to make his exit.
“A-Actually, I need to—AH!”
However, before he could take a step, a sharp agonizing pain shot through him. He squealed as the sensation spread. It felt like he had just been stabbed straight through his abdomen. In an instant, he sat back down.
“Deku!? Are you okay!?” Uraraka panicked. The chattering around them quieted down. Eyes bore on him, clearly curious about what was happening.
No! Stop it! He urged his body. This was the worst time for him to have a flare-up, especially with his classmates around. Could his body just wait until he reached the bathroom or something?!
Midoriya took deep breaths and stood back up, his legs dangerously wobbly. Uraraka looked at him, worried.
“Deku?”
They can’t know, they can’t!
They’ll know he’s quirkless. They’ll know!
“I-I’m fine.” He whispered.
“Midoriya!” Iida shouted, Midoriya flinched from the sudden shout, “You look sick.” The teenager turned. He could see his friend, approaching him, “You should go see Recovery Girl to get checked out.”
“Yeah, you look super pale,” Uraraka added.
Recovery Girl. Does she know about his quirklessness? What if she doesn’t!?
No, he couldn’t risk it.
“N-No, I’m fine, I just need to—go to the bathroom to freshen up.” Midoriya forced himself out of the barrier that both Uraraka and Iida made, his sight at the classroom’s entrance. He clutched his stomach, breathing profusely while he laboriously made his way out, his classmates gazing concerningly, “Please don’t worry, I-I’m fine. I just need to—I just need to—AH!”
Midoriya howled.
Another stab, but this one was nothing compared to the previous ones. He collapsed to the ground, unable to sustain himself as the painful feeling crashed through his body.
“Midoriya!” He heard someone yell, but he couldn’t hear who it was. The violent pounding of his heart inside his ear drowned out all the noises.
This pain was tremendous and all-encompassing. It didn’t just pierce his stomach, it lashed across his lower back making the torment even worse. He curled up in pain, doubled over with agony.
“Dammit! Someone! Get a teacher quick!”
No, please, don’t.
“What’s happening to him?! This isn’t a cold!”
Just leave me, I’m fine.
Somebody touched his head. He felt so nauseous, he could feel the bile rising from his stomach.
“Oh god, he’s burning up!”
They’ll find out, they’ll find out I’m quirkless.
“Dammit, extras! Move it! Give him some space.” Midoriya opened his eyes which he was unconsciously squinting. His eyes were teary from the flaming pain. Bakugo was crouched before him, his gaze in its usual scowl.
“I knew it.” He whispered.
Knew what?
“I’ll take him to Recovery Girl but let Mr. Aizawa know,” Bakugo said, his tone soft, shocking the rest of class 1-A, not used to this side of him.
He guided Midoriya up to standing, the move sent a burst of nausea through his senses. He desperately tried to keep the little food he had from expelling out of his body. He moved Midoriya’s arm, so it was wrapping around Bakugo’s shoulder. Then he wrapped his arm around the green-haired teenager’s torso to keep him stable.
“Kacchan…No…” Midoriya whispered.
“Shut up. Stop being a self-sacrificial idiot and let us help!” Bakugo exclaimed. He walked toward the entrance, with Midoriya firmly held within his grasp, “I’ll be back.”
“Please text us, Bakugo!” Uraraka shouted. He closed the entrance door and headed toward the infirmary.
.
.
.
The two walked in silence, not speaking a word. It was quiet in the hallways. Many of the students were now in the cafeteria so the halls were empty except for a few stray students, each passing with a curious glance in their direction. Bakugo didn’t care; he was more concerned for Midoriya. He looked like he could pass out at any moment.
His steps were slow as he kept up with Midoriya’s pace, stumbling a few times. It was clear he was having a hard time staying upright.
“It’s your appendix, isn’t it?” He whispered out of nowhere, ensuring nobody was around to listen.
“Huh?” Midoriya asked.
“Tsk, you think your mom is the only one who knows about those dam organs from the pre-quirk days. She told me, Deku, about the symptoms. I guess because I’m one of the few who knows about your quirkless body, she wants me to keep an eye out. Especially since we are living in the dorms.” Bakugo explained.
Midoriya let out a pained wince. So, his mom told him.
“Thank god that woman told me. Knowing that you would rather kick the bucket than tell someone, having me know about that kind of crap is necessary after all.” Bakugo quietly voiced.
Bakugo could see the sign on top of Recovery Girl’s office in the distance. They were close.
“You should’ve told someone. You don’t have to let them know what it is.” Bakugo explained.
Midoriya lowered his gaze, “I-I feared they might p-piece the puzzles together. If—they knew about this, t-they’ll know I’m q-quirkless. It’ll be c-catastrophic, Kacchan.”
“Well, you can trust Recovery Girl and I feel like you could even trust Mr. Aizawa. And All Might!? Heck, he is the one who gave you the dam power!” Bakugo replied, “You can’t risk your life for something like this, dammit. What would those around you think if you dropped dead all of a sudden.” Anger laced his words, but they were mixed with worry.
Midoriya noticed his concern. Even through his tough skin, he knew when something was troubling him.
But he was right, ignoring his health, even exclusively quirkless ones, could kill him.
“Sorry, Kacchan. I-I’ll tell someone n-next time.” He apologized.
“You better. Even if you do have a quirk, you can’t ignore your dam body!” They reached the infirmary’s door. “What would I tell your mom if something happened to you.”
“Yeah…thank you.”
“Tsk! Let’s just go in. Oh, and one word about this and I’ll explode your brains out, got it!”
Midoriya let out a soft chuckle, “My lips are sealed.”
Bakugo opened the door and the two walked in.
“…but Izuku. I want you to remember, don’t be afraid to ask for help. There is nothing wrong with your quirklessness.”
His mom’s encouraging words echoed through his mind.
Sorry, Mom, I promise I’ll ask for help next time. Stupid me.