Chapter Text
When you were young, not much mattered to you. Life was simple. You know that feeling when you're a kid and you're so blissfully unaware of everything wrong with the world? When you're innocent enough to smile at the way spiderwebs look when they're covered with raindrops — when there's no drama between friend groups because the biggest issue you have is who took your red crayon.
All that ended when quirks presented themselves in your life. You remembered it like it was yesterday. Once you were blessed with this power, your whole life flipped upside down. Everyone started acting differently — they didn't exactly try to hide their intense reaction at your quirk — and mixed with your mother's not-so-sound advice... let's just say things didn't go so well.
~
"I don't get it... What's so great about All Might?" You stared at the large poster of the Pro Hero that Izuku brought in for show and tell.
As if you had committed murder, your friends turned to gawk at you in horror. It was silent for a few seconds before their confusion grew loud.
"Hah?" Katsuki raised an eyebrow, his eyes wide. "What are you even talking about?" He scoffed.
Izuku blinked at you. "Well... he's All Might!" A bright smile spread across his face as he thought about his hero. "He's the Symbol of Peace! He always makes sure everyone is safe and happy with a big smile!"
Katsuki nodded along. "Yeah. He's strong and tough- the Number one hero!" He grinned, his eyebrows furrowed. "Nothing can stop All Might." His eyes narrowed into a cocky glare aimed at you. "And I'm gonna be just like him."
Izuku's smile softened as he tilted his head to the side. "How can you not think All Might is great?" He leaned forward, as if physically yearning to hear your answer.
Truth be told, it wasn't just All Might you didn't understand the hype around. It was heroes in general, really. Sure, they were flashy and cool with awesome power, but at some point the fascination with them just wore off. You didn't know when it happened, but you knew for sure that one day they just weren't that great. In your opinion, the police basically did the same thing and they barely got any credit for their efforts. And what about the villains? If you were just talking about quirks, the villains had some pretty cool quirks too. But you could never mention that to your friends.
"Well," You started, your eyes flickering up to the side as you contemplated how to respond. "I think Best Jeanist is pretty cool." You smiled, crossing your arms. "Super stylish." You nodded to yourself. "All Might is totally cool too, but his outfit is kinda weird."
"What?" Izuku let out a small laugh as he stared at you. "But his hero costume is iconic!"
Katsuki let out a loud scoff. "His outfit. Tch. Of course you would be focusing on that." He huffed.
You pouted softly as you glared at the ash blonde. "What does that mean?"
"You're a girl." Katsuki explained as if it was simply common sense. "Girls are always thinking about clothes or hair or makeup- stupid stuff like that." He leaned back, crossing his arms. "It's why you could never be the Number one hero." He let a toothy grin slip onto his face.
Your lips quivered downwards into a soft frown. A girl couldn't be the Number one hero? But why not? You remembered this part pretty well. According to Katsuki, girls were supposed to be into clothes, hair, and makeup. You guessed maybe you were into clothes? But not really. Did that make you a bad girl?
"I could be Number one hero if I wanted." You mumbled. Your eyebrows slowly furrowed and your eyes narrowed into slits. With a sudden wave of determination swarming through you, you leaned forward, a large grin on your face. "I'm gonna be the Number one hero, and I'll do it way better than you would." A smirk pulled at your lips as you came face to face with a raging Katsuki.
Katsuki gritted his teeth together as he leaned forward, his forehead pressed against yours. "Yeah, right." He scoffed. "Like you could beat me."
"Uh, guys?" Izuku poked his head between the two of you, dispersing the competitive buzz that fizzled between your heads. "Stop fighting. All three of us are gonna be great heroes!" He smiled sweetly, his large doe eyes practically sparkling.
You and Katsuki stared at each other for a second, both silently deciding to put your competition on the back burner for the time being.
You glanced at Izuku, your lips quirking up. "Yeah." You nodded.
Katsuki rolled his eyes, a small smile forming on his face. "Whatever."
~
That was before everything changed — back when everything was simple and easy. When you, Izuku, and Katsuki were still friends. It was the day you decided to be a hero. It wasn't because you wanted to save people, definitely not out of the goodness of your heart. You simply wanted to prove that you could — that a girl could become the Number one hero.
And for a while, the three of you worked towards that goal together. You hung out before school, during school, and after school, always trying to go on adventures and playfully compete against each other. The three of you were so excited to compete against each other when your quirks kicked in.
But then Katsuki got his quirk.
It was bright and flashy and powerful. A quirk like that easily made him one of the most popular kids in school. Everyone truly believed that his quirk would allow him to become Number one, or at least pretty high up on the list. You thought so too. But he changed. It all went to his head — everyone constantly calling him 'the best' and 'the strongest'. Everyone always raving to him about how cool and powerful he was. He felt like he was too good to hang out with you and Izuku.
Then Izuku was told he would never get a quirk. It got so much worse after that.
Katsuki ditched both of you. No- not only did he ditch both of you, but something changed in the way he saw Izuku. With no quirk, Izuku was a weakling to him. They were no longer on the same level, nor would they ever be, and Katsuki had no problem reminding Izuku of that every day.
When you tried to step between them, Katsuki only saw it as you taking sides. And maybe you were. Izuku was a small, fragile boy. You knew news of him being quirkless was quietly killing him from the inside out, and yet he braved life everyday, taking Katsuki's abuse with a watery smile on his face. You hated going to school. You just wanted your friend group back to the way it was before.
But then you got your quirk. After that, things just... ended.
~
"But Kacchan-"
"Don't touch me, Deku!" Katsuki scoffed, his palms emitting small crackles of fire and smoke as he spoke. "You're such a goody two shoes. A nerd." He growled, a cocky grin finding its way onto his face.
Izuku blinked, his smile wavering as his eyes began to water. "I just wanted to help you." He sniffed.
"Yeah, well I don't need help." Katsuki glared at the freckle faced boy. "Especially not from a loser like you."
You frowned, quickly wading into the water to stand in between the boys. "If you don't need help, maybe don't fall next time." You glared at Katsuki, watching as his jaw clenched at your words. "He was just trying to be nice."
Katsuki's eyes narrowed into icy hot daggers at you. "Tch. And you. You always defend him." He scoffed angrily. "You're supposed to be my friend and you're always taking his side! Who needs you anyway. You're just like Deku. Completely useless!"
Tears welled in your eyes as you felt a sharp stabbing pain in your chest at Katsuki's words. He had never spoken to you like that before. You'd always seen his malice aimed at poor Izuku, but to feel his acidic hatred coming your way... it felt as if your heart was slowly and painfully melting, taking every cell in your body down with it.
Fat tears rolled down your cheeks, dripping down your chin and nose and creating ripples in the water below. You let out a sharp gasp as your eyes squeezed shut and you keeled over. Your hand shot up to grab your chest, your knees hitting the muddy floor of the river as you violently gasped for air.
Should it hurt this much?
Everything just felt like too much. Your own sadness was amplified within you, along with Izuku's complex mix of anger and sadness. You felt Katsuki's rage, his glowing green jealousy, and his confusion. You even felt the malice of Katsuki's pathetic entourage that lingered behind him on the edge of the water. It clung to your heart, adding an extra hundred pounds that made it almost impossible to get back up.
"Nami!" Izuku's eyes were wide as he rushed to help you up. He turned to Katsuki, a frown on his face. "You didn't have to be so mean to her."
Katsuki stared at the scene before him with wide eyes. His body was tense and his heart screamed at him.
This was his fault- It couldn't be his fault.
It was all Deku's fault.
If Deku hadn't been quirkless- if he hadn't been such a damn nerd then maybe the three of you would still be friends. Then none of this would've happened. His face scrunched up in anger and disgust as he watched Deku reach his hand out to you and stare at you with those big bright eyes of his.
Pathetic.
"Are you okay?" Izuku's hand lingered in front of you.
You sniffed, your eyes still watery as you gasped for air. You reached up to take Izuku's hand, and that was when it happened.
The second your fingers touched, you could feel it all. Every single emotion Izuku was feeling. Sadness, anger, confusion, worry. You felt them all so strongly you could almost taste them — as if they were your own. You could feel his inadequacy and disappointment about being quirkless, and his quiet rage at Katsuki's newfound behavior.
And then it all went quiet.
You felt numb as you raised your head, tears still in your eyes. You watched silently as Izuku blinked, the look of worry on his face contorting into one of anger. He said nothing as his eyes narrowed, and before you could say anything the unthinkable happened. Izuku's hands were on Katsuki's shoulder's, and with one harsh shove the blonde boy had fallen into the river.
Your eyes went wide as you stared at Izuku. Katsuki's lips parted slightly, a dumbfounded look on his face while Izuku stared at his hands. It seemed like the poor boy had no clue what he had just done.
Izuku's eyebrows furrowed overtop his wide eyes. "Why did I do that?" He muttered to himself. He pursed his lips for a second, but then he glanced back at you.
It was you, wasn't it? It had to have been. He was sad, sure, maybe a little mad. But he would never put his hands on Kacchan... but when he touched you it was like... he was so overwhelmed with his sadness and anger that he had no say in what he did. It was only for a few seconds, but it was strong.
"What was that?" Izuku stared at you, as if waiting for an answer.
But you didn't have one.
It was only later that day when your mother took you to the doctor did you find out what happened.
You had gotten your quirk.
It was supposed to be a good thing, but your life as a six year old had fallen apart and your quirk only made it worse. You should've felt excited, but you weren't.