Chapter Text
When Izuku got his acceptance letter (and wasn’t that a surprise? The freaky Deku getting into the UA’s hero course!), his first coherent thought after his relieved and shocked sobbing calmed down was “hopefully UA will be different to Aldera”. Looking around the rocks separating himself, Asui (Tsu; she’d asked to be called Tsu), and Mineta from the veritable army that Aizawa alone was fighting, Izuku felt a hysterical giggle build up as that thought randomly popped up in his head. As he watched the scraggly-haired villain reach out and touch Aizawa’s elbow, making it bloom red in the second it took for his teacher to wrench himself free, Izuku felt a cool hand grip his tightly.
Looking over at the teenager he’d only met less than a month ago, Izuku felt his heart ache at the sight of his newest friend’s face. He squeezed the hand back and Oboro’s attention flicked over to him for the briefest moment. “He’s going to get himself killed,” the whisper sounded choked with unshed tears and frustration, “and I can’t do anything to help him like always.” The hand tightened further on Izuku’s but the green-haired first year student barely noticed as he looked back over at his teacher, who was now dodging the massive, bird-beaked monstrosity and knew he had a choice to make.
Only, Izuku realised as he watched with horror as Aizawa was slammed into the ground with enough force to make chunks of concrete and dirt spray upwards, it wasn’t really much of a choice, was it? He was in UA’s hero course to be a hero. He couldn’t just stand aside while someone was being hurt. That wasn’t who he was! But… if he did this, if he revealed one of the two things he’d sworn to keep secret for as long as possible, then things would change. UA might become just another Aldera for him and he didn’t know if he could survive three more years of that. Especially not after gaining the new tentative friendships he’d made.
Oboro’s half sob, half gasp had Izuku looking back over at Aizawa and bile churned in his stomach as he watched the creature let go of Aizawa’s now-mangled arms. The black-haired hero was then slammed back into the ground, his head hitting with enough force that Izuku winced the impact. Behind him, Tsu and Mineta were quivering, Tsu less than Mineta, and beside him, Oboro went to move forward but Izuku used his grip on his hand to keep him in place.
“Izuku, what-?” Oboro started but Izuku cut him off with a shake of his head.
“Tsu, Mineta, I’m sorry in advance but this conversation is going to make no sense to you. I’ll explain later,” Izuku said, looking back at his classmates, knowing that if they did all survive this, it would likely be the last time the two of them would look at him with anything other than fear or malice in their eyes. Before either of them could let out anything more than a confused noise, Izuku turned back to Oboro. “I can help Aizawa-Sensei but I need you to do something for me,” he told him. He could hear Tsu and Mineta shift as they likely tried to look around him to see who he was talking to.
“Anything,” Oboro didn’t even hesitate to answer, eyes flicking between Izuku and Aizawa. “What do you need?”
Izuku took a deep breath. “I need you to go and talk to the others,” he didn’t specify who he meant, “and explain to them that I can give them energy to become visible for a short amount of time. They’ll be able to interact with the world again but in exchange for me doing this, I need them to help us get Aizawa-Sensei away from the monster and keep the villains distracted until the other heroes arrive,” he said, trying desperately not to trip over his words.
“That’s only part of it,” Izuku said before Oboro could find his voice. “I also need you to get me into the middle of the fight. I can’t give my energy to those who’ll help from here. I haven’t practiced with it much and can only spread it out a few metres around me. 10 metres has been my max,” he explained.
Oboro nodded, though something flickered in his eyes. It was gone too quickly for Izuku to identify. “I’ll be right back,” Oboro promised, steel in his voice as he vanished, only to reappear near the battlefield where he started talking rapidly to the group of ghosts who lingered there.
“Midoriya, who were you talking to?” Tsu’s blunt voice croaked quietly behind him.
Izuku flinched, unable to suppress it, but turned to face his classmates once more. Mineta looked three moments away from fleeing back to the shipwreck and away from Izuku but Tsu met his eyes unflinchingly.
Izuku looked back over to Oboro, who had now moved onto another group of ghosts, though more were gathering around him, before he looked back at Tsu. “It’s, um, part of my quirk,” he admitted, eyes downcast in habit. He didn’t want to see the moment when she turned against him. Almost everyone his age did when they found out about his quirk. “Uh, I can s-see, talk to, and interact w-with ghosts,” he admitted, rushing the words out like it might make a difference if he did.
Tsu blinked but Mineta stumbled away from him. Unfortunately, before either Tsu or Izuku could grab him, he rushed out of their hiding spot and fled for the trees on the other side of the plaza. Before Izuku or Tsu could process their classmate abandoning them and giving away their position, a shadow fell over the green-haired pair of teenagers. Looking up, Izuku felt horror flood his system as the blue-haired villain Aizawa had fought against reached towards Tsu. Remembering how Aizawa’s elbow had started bleeding as soon as this person had touched him, Izuku didn’t hesitate in shoving Tsu aside. The shout of his name from a fearful Oboro was soon followed by the feeling of rough, dry skin settling over his face, resting with the thumb under his nose and the fingers and palm splayed up his left cheek and eye.
The pain Izuku was expecting and had tried bracing for never came and he opened the one green eye not covered in surprise. The villain who held his face in his hand might’ve been grinning, though Izuku couldn’t tell since his face was covered by a severed hand. “You really are cool, Eraserhead,” the villain muttered, turning to look over his shoulder at Izuku’s teacher.
Izuku’s vision was filled with the sight of the red glare of his bloodied teacher focusing on the villain who still held Izuku’s face in his hand like his life depended on it. Although, Izuku thought somewhat hysterically, it was Izuku’s life that depended on his teacher’s quirk right now. He could hear Tsu’s breathing quicken as she likely realised the same thing Izuku had when he caught sight of his teacher. There was no way Aizawa-Sensei would be able to keep his quirk activated for long enough for another pro to arrive. From the malicious amusement in his eye, the villain had realised that as well.
“You know,” the villain rasped, his fingers tightening to an almost bruising grip on Izuku, “All Might was the whole reason for our launch date being today.” Izuku could feel Tsu grip his upper arm, like she was trying to figure out if she could pull him away before Eraserhead’s quirk failed. “But then he didn’t show up!” he ranted. Izuku vaguely wondered if the raspiness of his voice was a side-effect of his quirk as he tried finding Oboro. Tsu’s strong though trembling grip on his arm was keeping him from freaking out too badly, especially when he saw Aizawa struggling to keep his eye open and quirk activated. “But no matter. A lot of launches have unexpected bugs and sometimes the script needs to be changed.” Izuku watched as Oboro became more frantic in his explanation to the gathered ghosts. “Maybe a couple of NPC brats dying will be just as good an opening scene as the death of All Might.”
The warp villain who’d separated the students on the landing appeared suddenly behind the lead villain and Izuku noted Oboro flinching, pausing momentarily before he went back to explaining Izuku’s request to the last of the ghosts. Izuku felt relief flood through him as he noted that majority of the ghosts looked determined. He hoped he’d just get the chance to use his quirk and give his teacher some back up until the rest of the pros arrived.
“Shigaraki Tomura,” the warp villain intoned, voice monotone, “one of the students managed to escape before the doors of the facility closed completely,” they said and Izuku felt himself and Tsu relax. Iida would have back up here soon. “I recommend leaving this place before the pro-heroes arrive.”
The leader – Shigaraki – whirled on the warp villain, releasing Izuku in the process. “Kurogiri, if you weren’t our way out of here, I’d kill you,” he snarled as Tsu helped Izuku stumble away from the pair. Izuku didn’t know why Tsu hadn’t left his side yet but he was grateful she hadn’t as he struggled to keep himself upright. The adrenaline rush from the villain holding his face was still buzzing under his skin but it also felt like his knees were turning to jelly from the relief he felt at being out from under Shigaraki’s hold.
Oboro appeared suddenly by Izuku’s side and if he wasn’t as used to ghosts doing that as he was, Izuku would’ve jumped out of his skin. “Most of them have agreed to help,” Oboro reported, speaking quickly. His eyes kept flicking from Izuku and Tsu to the pair of villains to Aizawa then back to Izuku and Tsu. “The ones who won’t help have agreed to stay out of the way. They don’t want to see kids killed in front of them,” he said.
Izuku nodded to show he’d heard as he watched the two villains standing barely a metre away from him and his classmate. “Can you get me to the middle of the plaza?” he asked, voice low to try and prevent the villains from hearing him. His eyes flicked to Tsu. “Actually, can you get both of us to Aizawa-Sensei and get the ghosts who’ll fight there as well?” he queried.
Oboro didn’t hesitate as he nodded. “If you can make me visible, I can keep people out of your way,” he said.
Izuku shook his head. “I meant with Cloud,” he told him. Oboro gave him an odd look. “When I give you energy, you should be able to use your quirk,” he explained quickly.
Oboro's eyes widened in shock for a moment before he seemed to shove it aside. “Yes, I can get you both there,” he confirmed and that was all Izuku needed to hear before he grabbed Oboro's hand and fed him energy.
From Tsu’s gasp, Izuku knew the exact moment Oboro became visible. He gave the older teenager a nod just as the two villains realised a third person had appeared next to the two hero students. Oboro moved quickly and both Tsu and Izuku soon found themselves being swept up by a white cloud. The blue-haired villain cursed as Oboro directed the clouds at an impressive speed, landing Izuku and Tsu right next to Aizawa and the stationary beaked monster. Aizawa was still bleeding copiously from various injuries and Izuku felt tears well up in his eyes at the sight.
Oboro raised his gaze from Aizawa to wave at an average looking man dressed in baggy jeans, an oversized hoodie, and well-worn sneakers. Izuku would’ve been shocked to learn if this man had been older than 25 before his death. The wave must've been a pre-arranged signal because all of a sudden, Izuku, Aizawa, Tsu, and Oboro were surrounded by at least fifty ghosts, maybe more, all of whom were ready and obviously eager to fight for UA against the villains. All of them were still invisible to everyone living except Izuku but that didn’t stop a few of them from yelling at seemingly random villains.
Aizawa, who was somehow still conscious, was staring at Oboro. The one dark eye that wasn’t swollen shut was looking at the wispy-haired ghost with nothing short of shock. Izuku winced. He didn’t know the full story of how Oboro and Aizawa knew each other nor did he know why Oboro had tied himself to Aizawa but he did know that they had attended UA together and that they had been close friends. Seeing Oboro in front of him, looking as young as he had when he died, must’ve been nothing short of a shock for his teacher.
Izuku glanced around himself and took note of several things. There were dozens of unconscious villains strewn around the ground, courtesy of Eraserhead. There were dozens more getting back to their feet and/or moving towards the four of them. Shigaraki and Kurogiri were still standing where they had been before Oboro got him and Tsu away from them. Shigaraki was watching them while Kurogiri seemed to still be trying to convince his leader to leave. Yaoyorozu and a few others were still on the landing near the entrance; Yaoyorozu and Ashido working together on what Izuku quickly realised was Thirteen. He spared a thought in hoping the rescue hero was alright.
Izuku saw Kurogiri open a new portal next to Shigaraki and glanced around himself to find the matching portal open a few feet away from the beaked villain who was still sitting near them unmoving. “Get Aizawa-Sensei and Tsu up to the others,” Izuku ordered Oboro.
Oboro gave him a nod as Izuku moved a couple of feet away from them both to give Oboro room to work. He saw some of the other ghosts move towards him, staying out of Oboro's way as he used Cloud to scoop Tsu and Aizawa up and float them over to Yaoyorozu and the others. He met the gaze of the same ghost Oboro had waved over. “Thank you for helping us,” Izuku said as he kept one eye on the portal that Shigaraki has yet to step through. It was like the villain was waiting to see what Izuku’s plan was. “You’ll be able to use your quirks once I give you energy. I’m going to try and encase as large an area as possible so you aren’t forced to stay close to each other but because I’ll be giving so many of you energy, your quirks might not be as powerful as they were when you were still alive,” he warned them, eyes drifting over them all.
“Thanks for the heads up,” the ghost in the oversized hoodie – who Izuku thought was the impromptu leader for the gathered spirits – said, “but that’s not going to stop us. These villains aren’t going to hurt anyone else if we can help it. Especially not kids who’re barely in their teens,” he snarled, glaring at a villain who was lying unconscious a few metres away and bore a striking resemblance to the ghost. “We can hold them back until the other pros arrive if you can keep the energy going.”
Izuku nodded at the pointed look as he squared his shoulders and desperately hoped none of the gathered ghosts could see how much he was trembling. Oboro stood by his side, a strong presence that helped him feel a little braver. With his teacher and classmate no longer in the way and the ghosts waiting on him, Izuku reached for his energy and flung it around himself, visualizing it as a shield that he could widen to encompass more area. It was a part of his quirk he hadn’t practiced with a lot, thanks to the lack of time between discovering it and now.
He felt himself reach his limit sooner than he thought and he looked around. Like he’d told Oboro, he’d only managed to make his energy reach 10 metres in all directions around him. It only encompassed a little more than a third of the ghosts and he knew that wouldn’t be enough. Taking a deep breath, Izuku forced the energy out further and for the centre of the shield to move away from him so the energy could cover more ground in front of him rather than behind him where it would be wasted. He could immediately feel the drain on him increase but he didn’t stop. The ghosts who were now visible and tangible had thrown themselves into the fight. The stunned villains who had obviously been taken aback by the sudden appearance of previous victims and loved ones angered at the path they’d taken found themselves on the defensive and Izuku soon only had Shigaraki and Kurogiri’s attention on him.
Oboro was standing by his side, the cloud he’d used to transport Aizawa and Tsu now being used to defend Izuku but he wasn’t alone. Three more ghosts were sticking close to Izuku as well. Either Oboro had guessed that Izuku wouldn’t be able to protect himself and warned the others or these four at least had realised it. The green-haired teenager wasn’t going to question how they figured it out; he was just grateful for them. Izuku could feel an immense pressure build up in his head that was only strengthened every second he kept his shield up for the ghosts. Shigaraki looked incensed – or Izuku guessed he did; it was hard to tell when the majority of the villain’s face was covered with the severed hand – at the appearance of the heroes’ newest allies.
“You’re cheating! You’re supposed to just be an NPC!” the villain snarled, trying to get to Izuku. The ghosts who had taken up the role of Izuku’s bodyguards weren’t making it easy for him. “Or are you a hidden boss?” the villain mused as he reached out to touch the closest ghost. Izuku felt his heart lurch in fear as the ghost’s arm disintegrated under the villain’s touch. The ghost glared at the villain but kept a cautious distance.
“Is she okay?” Izuku asked, guilt and fear lacing his voice as he kept an eye on the injured ghost. She must've heard him because she gave him a thumbs up with her remaining arm but she didn’t otherwise interact with him. Izuku couldn’t stop from staring at the ghost’s missing arm. He didn’t think Shigaraki’s quirk would work against them.
“Izuku,” Oboro said, worry laced in his voice. Izuku glanced up at the ghost before he looked in the same direction as him. They watched as the warp villain assisted Shigaraki in getting closer to the group. The purple mist villain stayed out of the battle himself, merely assisting by warping low-level villains and ghosts alike out of his leader’s way.
Izuku felt warm blood start to drip slowly from his nose. It was the first sign that he was approaching the last of his energy and was risking quirk exhaustion. He wiped the blood away, feeling it smear across the top of his lip and side of his face. “The pros will be here soon,” Izuku said, trying to reassure the ghosts around him. The look on Oboro's face told him he knew Izuku was also trying to reassure himself. “Just a little bit longer,” he whispered to himself. He could feel his limbs trembling as he fought to keep himself upright and his quirk active.
One of the ghosts who’d taken up the job of Izuku’s guard suddenly leapt in front of him, filling his sight with the image of a white dress-shirt covered back that now had something sharp – Izuku’s quirk obsessed mind thought it looked similar to a porcupine quill – poking out, a few inches to the left of where a human’s heart would sit.
“Nice try, arsehole, but I know all of your tricks,” the ghost snarled at the stunned man who had a porcupine quirk. Izuku watched as the ghost tore the quill out of his chest and launched himself at the villain. He just knew the fact he’d almost been skewered was going to add itself to his nightmares within the next few nights.
There was a sudden rush of cold accompanied by a familiar explosion that had Izuku relaxing while Oboro and the two remaining ghost guards tensed up further. “The hell are you doing, nerd?” Bakugo’s snarled question had Izuku almost collapse in relief.
“Kachan,” Izuku breathed in relief, glancing over his shoulder to see his best friend standing behind him with two of their classmates. Todoroki looked as stoic as ever whereas Kirishima was looking at Izuku with alarm, taking in the blood streaming from Izuku’s nose. It warmed Izuku’s heart immensely but he turned his focus back to Bakugo. “I’ve got my quirk active,” he told his oldest friend, knowing that he would understand what that meant. “Four are guarding me but one’s attacking the porcupine mutant quirk. Others are keeping the villains entertained,” he continued.
The spiky blonde nodded once before he turned to the other two. “Don’t hit anyone glowing and make sure those unglowing fuckers don’t get near the nerd. He can’t fight while his quirk’s active like this,” he barked at the pair. “I’m going after Handsy,” he declared, a wildly excited gleam in his eyes as he stared at Shigaraki.
“Five-point touch activation quirk,” Izuku gasped out as a wave of pain hit him. His quirk was fighting him on staying active and he could see a couple of ghosts flicker slightly before their forms resolidified. “Disintegration quirk. Don’t let him touch you,” he warned through gritted teeth as he felt blood stream faster from his nose.
Bakugo’s jaw clenched as he took in his best friend. Blood was steadily streaming from both of Izuku’s nostrils, leaving a gruesome trail that made its way down his lips to drip off his pale chin. Sweat was beaded on his forehead and Bakugo could see his green curls were damp, though he wasn’t sure that was solely due to sweat since he could see his gym uniform was also damp. His entire frame was trembling and Bakugou knew the only reasons Izuku hadn’t collapsed from quirk exhaustion yet was sheer stubbornness and the ghosts at his side.
“Got it,” Bakugou said in response before he blasted himself towards the blue-haired villain, right fist raised in preparation.
Izuku saw Todoroki glance at him, a look in his eyes that made Izuku feel like he was a puzzle the duo-haired boy was trying to figure out. “Bakugou said the glowing people were on our side?” he questioned and Izuku nodded, biting back a groan as the movement aggravated his aching head.
“Yeah. Part of my quirk,” Izuku grunted out. Todoroki gave a nod and asked no more questions as he moved, ice quickly capturing several villains in his wake.
“Mido-bro,” Kirishima said, hand quickly moving to grasp Izuku’s elbow as the green-haired boy’s knees threatened to give out again, “it’s super manly of you to push yourself like this but can’t you stop your quirk? I’m sure Todo-bro and Baku-bro will be able to figure out who’s on our side or not!”
Izuku snorted weakly, spraying a light mist of blood from his nose that had Oboro and Kirishima grimace. “The glowing people are my quirk. If I stop my quirk, they disappear and it’ll just be you, Todoroki, Kachan, and me against all of them and I’ll probably drop once I let go of my quirk,” he explained, wincing at admitting he’d be vulnerable.
Kirishima’s brows furrowed in confusion but before he could ask anything, the sound of glass shattering and a booming “I AM HERE!” echoed throughout the USJ. Izuku’s attention was immediately on the massive silhouette of All Might as the man fell to the ground, causing dirt to spray up around him at the force of his landing. He felt relief spread throughout the facility as calls of All Might’s name sounded, both from the villains and the students.
“Finally,” Shigaraki muttered, Izuku barely able to hear it over the sounds of the continued fight and Bakugou’s explosions that Kurogiri was redirecting with his portals away from his leader. “Nomu!” the villains’ leader called. Izuku was not the only one to flinch when the monster that had been standing idly by straightened. “Kill All Might!”
The beaked monster didn’t hesitate as it launched itself with a blood-curdling screech at the blonde hero. “All Might’s here now,” Oboro said and if Izuku’s head didn’t currently feel like it was one pulse of headache away from exploding, he might’ve sassed the ghost for pointing out the obvious. “Why don’t you let us go now and get up to the landing with Shouta and your classmates?” he suggested gently.
From the way Kirishima’s grip tightened slightly on his bicep, Izuku knew his classmate agreed with Oboro but he still shook his head slightly. “I can’t until the rest of the pros are here,” Izuku said. “Todoroki and Kachan won’t be able to hold all of these guys back from us until then and I don’t know what kind of state the others are in up there,” he pointed out, eyes flicking to the landing where he could see Aizawa laid out next to Thirteen with bandages breaking up the black of his costume.
The third unknown ghost who’d split from the group to attack the porcupine mutant quirk rejoined them and the three ghosts Izuku still didn’t know the names for took up position in front of Izuku, Kirishima, and Oboro. It took Izuku a few moments longer than it normally would’ve to realise that they were putting themselves as the front line of defence since Kirishima and Oboro were occupied with keeping Izuku upright. It took everything in Izuku not to choke up at the thought of these three strangers putting themselves in danger like this for him.
The ground quaked as All Might and the nomu continued to exchange blows. Shigaraki was bragging about how the nomu was a match to All Might at 100% of the hero’s strength while Kurogiri found himself having to fight against Bakugou rather than directing the blonde’s explosions away from his leader. Izuku found himself watching All Might and the nomu closely, trusting Oboro and Kirishima to keep him upright and the other three ghosts to keep them safe as he did.
He could see the beaked beast wasn’t tiring and while not obvious, All Might certainly was. It was something Izuku had noticed recently while watching footage of All Might’s increasingly infrequent public sightings and subsequent fights. He wasn’t sure what had happened – it could’ve been age or maybe an injury – but All Might wasn’t as strong as he used to be and if Shigaraki was telling the truth, this nomu was. It looked like a fight that All Might was going to struggle with and Izuku didn’t want to see what would happen if the hero actually lost. He had to help but he didn’t know how! He couldn’t move without collapsing and even if he could fight, he was just a first-year hero student! The only fighting experience he had were a handful of hero classes, one of which he was knocked out for, some lessons from Kachan after his self-defence classes, and dodging his bullies from Aldera!
“Izuku, you need to calm your breathing down or you’re going to hyperventilate,” Oboro's warm voice interrupted Izuku’s spiralling.
“Yeah, man! Hyperventilating right now wouldn’t be very good,” Kirishima said, wrapping an arm around Izuku’s shoulders. “All Might’s got this fight in the bag! I can see your brain steaming from here, trying to figure out how to help –“
“That’s it!” Izuku exclaimed, wincing at how his head protested not only the increased volume from his exclamation but his sudden movement as he straightened. “Oboro, you need to tell All Might that thing’s weakness!” he said, turning to the ghost next to him.
“I don’t know its weakness though,” the dead teenager pointed out.
“The exposed brain!” Izuku said hurriedly. He could see Shigaraki looking at them. “If All Might can hit it in its brain, he should be able to take it out!” he explained. “Stay in range of my energy and tell him!”
Oboro eyes widened in understanding before he flashed out of sight, reappearing on the other side of the battlefield where the two titans clashed. Izuku’s attention was taken away from his friend when an explosion of Bakugou’s sounded much closer than it should’ve. He looked over in horror as his best friend appeared out of a portal right behind them, explosions still firing and unable to stop himself. Before he could hit them, Kirishima was suddenly directly between Izuku and Bakugou, quirk activated so he could catch the explosion without being injured.
The collision did push Izuku to the side though he did manage to stay on his feet solely thanks to the closest ghost abandoning his fight while the other two teenage boys crashed to the ground. Movement flashed nearby and Izuku looked up in time to see Shigaraki running at him for the second time, hand outstretched. The ghost who’d saved him moved to get in front of Izuku but Shigaraki didn’t so much as hesitate. His hand wrapped around the ghost’s throat and Izuku let out a choked gasp of horror as the ghost disintegrated before he could let out more than a startled cry. Izuku stumbled backwards as he tried to escape the touch but he was much too slow and he let out a pained cry as he felt the skin and flesh on his left shoulder disintegrate under the villain’s touch. Too-warm fingers gripped his right wrist and he found himself tucked into an equally warm side as a rush of freezing ice forced Shigaraki away from him and his saviour.
“Are you alright, Midoriya?” Todoroki asked, left hand raised to summon more ice at a moment’s notice.
“Yes. Thank you,” Izuku whimpered as pain flared over his shoulder. He could feel blood running from the wound but he didn’t look. “Can you still see glowing people?” he asked, hoping upon hope that he could. He didn’t think he could activate his quirk again if he’d dropped it.
“Yes. Can’t you?” Todoroki asked, sounding a little confused.
“They all look the same to me whether my quirk is active like this or not,” Izuku admitted. “Kachan was the one to tell me they glowed when it was active.”
“Izuku!” The shout of his name came from both Bakugou and Oboro as the latter flickered back to his side while the former went after Shigaraki. Izuku noticed quite a few of the ghosts move to join his childhood best friend. He could only hope that Bakugou’s explosions didn’t hurt the ghosts like Shigaraki’s quirk did.
“I’m okay!” the green-haired boy said as soon as he could, making sure Bakugou could hear him as well. Oboro's eyes found his bloodied shoulder and whatever he saw caused the whispy-haired boy to flinch. “I’ll be fine,” Izuku reassured him.
Todoroki had let go of him when Oboro appeared, leaving the ghost to be the only thing keeping Izuku from collapsing. “Why can’t you see the glowing?” Todoroki asked, his brow furrowed slightly. “Who are they?”
Kirishima caused the distraction Izuku needed to get out of answering Todoroki when he was thrown through the ice wall left from Todoroki pushing Shigaraki away. “Are you okay?” Izuku cried, voice tight with worry and guilt.
“I’m good!” Kirishima claimed, climbing back to his feet. Izuku’s eyes raked over his body but he couldn’t see any signs of injury. “My quirk means I can take a hit or twenty!” he reassured Izuku, pounding a fist on his hardened chest as though emphasising his claim.
A scream of rage from Shigaraki had them, including Bakugou, looking in his direction. They soon discovered what caused the anguished shout when their gazes followed Shigaraki’s to find All Might standing triumphantly over the downed nomu. Izuku had no idea if the thing was still breathing or not but he didn’t care right at that moment. Bakugou was the first one to take advantage of the villain’s distraction and launched himself with a shout of “DIE!” and a sparking palm aimed at Shigaraki’s turned head.
Several things suddenly happened at once. Izuku’s quirk wavered once more, causing the ghosts to flicker as he fought to keep his quirk active. Shots rang out from the landing, startling Izuku enough that his fragile hold on his quirk dropped. The bullets pierced Shigaraki’s outstretched hand and in other non-fatal areas. Kurogiri’s purple mist started reaching for his master. All Might realised there were students fighting against the leader of the villains and launched himself at them.
Kirishima and Todoroki were quick to catch Izuku when his knees gave out at the same time as his quirk. Oboro and the other ghosts suddenly disappearing from sight caused worried shouts to come from the teachers and students watching. Bakugou cursed as Shigaraki disappeared from view, swallowed by the purple portal that Kurogiri also disappeared into. The villains still somehow standing were given no reprieve when All Might landed, causing the ground to shudder and villains to lose their footing.
Izuku felt himself being lowered carefully to his knees as he watched the pro-heroes who doubled as their teachers swarmed the plaza. All of them immediately went after the villains who were still standing. Izuku watched through barely open eyes as several Ectoplasm clones joined the fray. So it took him by surprise when he found himself face to face with Present Mic. The blonde hero looked openly worried as he took in Izuku’s state.
“Are you little listeners alright?” he asked as he took in the three other teenagers.
All three nodded but Kirishima was the only one to speak. “Mido-bro was the only one who really got hurt, I think,” he said from where he was crouched next to Izuku.
Mic’s jaw tightened a little as he looked at the blood covered student in front of him. “What happened?” he asked, not wanting to move the injured student until he knew he wasn’t going to hurt the teenager more.
“S’alright,” Izuku slurred, shifting where he knelt. “s jus’ quirk ‘saution,” he said.
“Handsy got a good hit in as well,” Bakugou ground out. His red eyes were glaring at the drops of blood that were all that remained of Shigaraki. “Disintegration quirk to Zu’s shoulder.” He ignored the look Kirishima was giving him for the use of the nickname.
“Okay,” Mic said, a little relieved. The blood on Midoriya’s face must’ve been from a bloody nose. He knew the teen’s quirk was a mental one – though he didn’t know much more than that – and he knew quirk exhaustion with mental quirks can present as bloody noses and headaches, which he suspected the kid had with how he squinted against the lights of the USJ.
“Are the children alright?” All Might’s booming voice caused more than Izuku to flinch as the man approached them. Mic was a little surprised to see how quickly all three teenagers were quick to move as though they were going to square up against Japan’s number one hero for Izuku’s sake. He almost laughed when he saw Todoroki’s confusion at having done so.
“They’ll be fine,” Mic said, standing and turning to face the other blonde hero. “Why don’t you go and help with the arrests or finding the other students? I’ll get the listeners up to the medics, ya dig?” he suggested.
All Might’s smile didn’t dim as he nodded. “Good job, students! You handled yourselves well for your first fight against real villains!” the man boomed before he walked back over to the scuffles going on between the more stubborn villains and the other heroes.
Present Mic turned back to the students to find Bakugou crouching down next to Midoriya. “How bad is it, nerd?” the blonde asked, voice as soft as it could get.
“I can’t see them anymore.” Mic could barely make out the muttered response and a glance at Kirishima and Todoroki showed that he wasn’t the only one who didn’t understand that response.
“Shit, Zuku,” Bakugou cursed. “You haven’t pushed your quirk that hard since you were eight. You’re gonna be in for a shit couple of days,” he grumbled. Izuku didn’t offer more than a pained whine in agreement. “Get outta the way, Shitty Hair,” Bakugou barked at Kirishima, voice still quiet enough that Izuku didn’t react to it.
“What? Why – hey!” Kirishima yelped when Bakugou shoved him aside.
“Bakugou,” Present Mic started scolding as he helped the red head up while Todoroki watched impassively from the side.
“What? He was in the way,” Bakugou grouched. They watched as he positioned himself on Izuku’s right and helped him get his right arm to rest over his stomach before he moved his left arm to sit on top of his right. “The nerd’s exhausted his quirk. He won’t be able to walk by himself,” the spikey blonde said defensively as he scooped Izuku up bridal style. A faint grimace was the only sign that the green-haired boy was still somewhat conscious and aware of what was happening.
“Right,” Mic said, deciding to focus on the injured student rather than the fact that the most explosive and prickly student he’d ever taught was voluntarily cradling an injured classmate with zero complaints. “Let’s get Midoriya to Recovery Girl,” he instructed, ushering the students to move towards the staircase that led from the plaza to the landing where several students and the principal were convened.
Present Mic half-led, half-flanked the four teenagers as they moved to make sure no opportunistic or hidden villains tried to attack them but they made it up to the landing untouched. Multiple shouts of each of their names greeted them, causing Present Mic to hold his hands up in an attempt to quieten everyone down. A glance at Midoriya showed no reaction to the onslaught of noise which told Mic that the kid was now unconscious. The glare Bakugou levelled at his classmates also told him that the blonde was aware of that fact and was now much more worried for his friend.
Several worried eyes widened at the sight of the bloodied Izuku. Mic saw Mineta hovering in the background of the group, looking slightly guilty but – surprisingly – disdainful towards Midoriya. He felt his eyes narrow behind his orange-tinted glasses but forced himself to put that aside for now. It could be dealt with later once this whole mess was cleared up.
“Is the student alright?” The principal’s voice broke through the worried murmurs and Mic found his eyes drifting down towards the chimera.
“Quirk exhaustion mostly, if his report is right,” Mic told him. “Got an injury similar to Eraserhead’s elbow wound though.”
Nedzu heard what Yamada hadn’t asked out loud. “Aizawa’s already heading in an ambulance to the closest hospital but the wound suffered to his elbow was easy enough for the medics to deal with on site,” the chimera reported.
Yamada felt himself internally sigh in relief. He wouldn’t forget the sight of his best friend covered in white bandages and surrounded by worried students any time soon. “Good to know,” he said, unable to keep the relief completely out of his voice. “I’ll check back once we get Midoriya squared away with the medics,” he said. Nedzu gave a nod of agreement before he turned back to watching the heroes who were still in the plaza, though there was now no more fighting. “Kirishima, Todoroki, stay here please. We’ll be back,” Yamada instructed.
Bakugou followed with the unconscious Midoriya, ignoring the grumbles from his two classmates-turned-teammates as he kept two steps behind the Voice Hero while they walked towards the busted entrance. “You guys bomb your way in?” Bakugou asked, eyeing the damaged gates.
“Something like that,” Mic muttered before he found an awaiting ambulance and team of medics. “Let’s get the little listener looked at,” he instructed, waving to get the attention of the closest medic.
Bakugou’s grunt was his only response and Mic felt himself sigh a little as he watched the medic try to coax the ashy blonde teenager into setting his best friend down on the stretcher. He glanced back at the USJ and felt anger rise up inside himself again, like it had when they received the alert from Iida that there was an attack. The idea of villains breaking into UA was unbelievable yet here they were: one villain attack, two injured teachers, and one injured student later. He knew that Nedzu was likely seething on the inside at the idea of villains breaching UA’s walls and students being hurt as a result without a single alert going off. The very thought of what would’ve happened if Iida hadn’t managed to escape sent a shudder through Mic. It didn’t bear thinking about.
The sound of Bakugou arguing about staying behind brought Yamada out of his swirling thoughts and he turned to give the medics a hand in convincing his student that he couldn’t go with Midoriya to the hospital. The aftermath and what-ifs that would haunt him could wait.
Izuku blinked into awareness slowly. He knew, from the fragmented memories that floated through his mind, that this wasn’t the first time but it also felt like he would stay awake for longer than a handful of seconds this time. A couple more blinks had the sleepy haze worked away from his sight and he was able to glance around the darkened room. No one sat in the chair next to his bedside but considering how dark it was outside and the time displayed on the clock he soon spotted, Izuku wasn’t surprised by that. He knew that if it was daylight, Kachan would be grumpily slouched in the semi-soft chair Izuku had spotted, grumbling about the smell and noise of the hospital.
He was slowly sitting himself up, his arms shaking under his weight as his aching muscles burned and quivered with effort when he heard a gasp off to his right. He almost fell back into the bed from surprise when Oboro quickly moved into his line of sight. “Izuku,” the ghost breathed out as his eyes took in the sight of Izuku like if he glanced away, the boy was going to disappear. “You’re okay,” the ghost nearly sobbed.
His brain was still catching up with everything so Izuku didn’t think he could be blamed for saying, “of course I am?” in a questioning tone.
Oboro suddenly grasped his shoulders as he forced Izuku to meet his eyes. “Sorry!” Oboro yelped when Izuku winced and tried to move his injured shoulder from under Oboro's grasp. “What do you remember?” he asked once Izuku assured the ghost he was alright.
Izuku felt his brows furrow as he tried to think through his memories for whatever landed him in the hospital. It didn’t take long for Izuku’s memory of the USJ to come flooding back. “All of it,” Izuku said shakily. Tears were already falling as he remembered telling Mineta and Tsu about his quirk. “They’re going to hate me,” he sobbed, voice cracking.
Oboro was quick to round the bed so he could clamber up and hold Izuku to his side in a hug, being cautious of his shoulder. “They’re not going to hate you. Not all of them,” Oboro corrected himself when Izuku snorted in disbelief and whispered “Mineta” in explanation to Oboro's querying hum. “Quirk discrimination isn’t allowed at UA. The teachers take that kind of thing very seriously. And I doubt Tsu or Kirishima will hate you. Tsu stayed with you and tried convincing me to let her help when I was taking her and Shouta away from the fight. I don’t think Kirishima could hate anyone, to be honest,” Oboro said and earned himself a light snort from Izuku. “Why do you think they’re all going to hate you for knowing about your quirk? I could be biased but I think it’s the best quirk,” Oboro said, squeezing Izuku a little bit closer.
Izuku sniffled as he wiped the streaming tears futilely from his cheeks. “Because everyone’s hated me when they found out,” he admitted. “Everyone alive,” he corrected at Oboro's dramatic gasp of disagreement. “Except for Kachan but even he didn’t believe me about my quirk until we were seven and his grandmother passed away,” he said. “My quirk came in later than usual so people and kids were already treating me like I was quirkless which was bad enough but when my quirk presented itself, I was at school. Nothing turns teachers against you like you asking them why they had people they couldn’t see following them around.” Izuku unconsciously shifted closer into Oboro's cooler side.
“The teachers didn’t believe me when I said I could see people behind them, even when I described them. When my quirk came in, I could only see the dead. It took nearly a year for me to be able to hear them but by that time, everyone thought I was crazy or making things up,” he continued. He kept his eyes down on the blanket he was twisting between his hands rather than try and look Oboro in his eyes. “My mother took me to several specialists and all of them agreed that there was nothing mentally wrong with me and that this was likely my quirk since I had the quirk gene,” he said. “My mother was never haunted so I couldn’t use her ghosts to prove that what I was seeing was real. She’s never believed me about the ghosts.” The familiar weight of sadness pressed down as it did every time Izuku thought about his mother.
“Izuku…” Oboro trailed off, not sure of what to say. He’d only known Izuku for a few weeks and hadn’t yet asked to go home with him after school but now he was starting to think that maybe he should’ve.
“I’m used to it.” Izuku shrugged as best as he could. “Kachan only believed me when I was seven because by that time I could see and hear the ghosts and his grandmother had just passed. She hung around because she wanted to make sure I would pass a message to him for her,” he told the ghost. “She had me call him by an endearment only she ever used for him while it was just the two of them. Not even his parents knew about it so that’s why he started to believe me. But just because he believed me, it didn’t mean everyone else did,” he said. “School was just Kachan and me against everyone else and Kachan wasn’t always there to protect me. I was either ignored or bullied severely and the teachers didn’t care, not even when the kids used their quirks against me.”
“They did what?!” Oboro exclaimed, causing Izuku to jump from the shock. “Sorry. I’m sorry,” he apologised immediately as he squeezed Izuku in an apology hug.
“It’s fine,” Izuku dismissed. “But yeah, the kids used their quirks on me. Not all the time since Kachan nearly put one of them in the hospital when he saw them cornering me one day. But whenever Kachan had a doctor’s appointment or needed to attend quirk counselling or whatever, they wouldn’t hesitate,” he said softly. “So when Kachan and I found out we’d gotten into UA, I begged Kachan to keep the details about my quirk to himself. I didn’t want anyone to find out if I could help it because I wanted to make friends before they could judge me based just on my quirk,” he said, voice quivering as his tears continued to flow. “And now they’re all going to find out and they’ll hate me,” he sobbed again, turning into Oboro's side and causing the other teenager to adjust them both so they were a bit more comfortable while he tried to soothe Izuku.
After a few minutes of sobbing, Izuku abruptly jerked out of Oboro's hold in the middle of the ghost telling him about a time when Aizawa and Yamada had both petitioned for the expulsion of over a dozen students who had been bullying underclassmen. “Aizawa-Sensei?” The question was laced with guilt and worry. “Is he okay? A-and Thirteen?”
Oboro nodded immediately, internally cursing himself out for not having told Izuku that information straight away. It only took a few minutes of interacting with the teenager to see how big his heart is. “Shouta has several fractures and breaks. He’s lucky that the nomu didn’t cause any damage that would have long-term consequences and that the hospital has a couple of doctors on shift when he came in who had quirks that could help with broken bones. He’s got casts on both arms and his ocular orbit will need Recovery Girl to heal it when he’s rested a bit,” Oboro explained. “Thirteen needed surgery as well but they’ll pull though with no complications. I don’t have much more information on them,” Oboro admitted. “I didn’t know them before I died and it felt a little intrusive to listen in on their doctors,” he said.
Izuku nodded in understanding as he pulled Oboro down so he could lay on the bed properly. “That’s fair enough,” he muttered, sleep pulling at him after the emotional rollercoaster he’d gone through in the last several minutes. “You’re sure Aizawa-Sensei is gonna be okay?” he asked.
“You doubting me?” Izuku let out a huff at Oboro's faux offended tone. “Yes, I’m sure he’s doing as well as he can be right now,” the ghost assured him.
“Okay. I’m glad he is. Teachers don’t like me usually. They’ve never stood up for me like that before,” Izuku admitted. “I think they would’ve just stood there instead of helped me.”
Oboro felt his heart stutter at what Izuku had said and at how certain he seemed. He wanted to question Izuku further about his previous teachers but stopped when he felt Izuku sink further into him. Pushing aside the constant shock he felt at someone being able to touch him, Oboro shifted down a little on the bed to try and make Izuku a bit more comfortable. “Are you going to sleep?” Oboro asked, carefully dragging his fingers through the green curls. A sleepy hum affirmed his question. “Do you want to let me go so you can get more comfy?” he asked, amusement in his voice even as his anger and sadness at what Izuku had revealed about his childhood simmered just below the surface.
“Do you need to go check on Aizawa-Sensei?” Izuku asked, voice a little more awake at the thought of preventing Oboro from going to his best friend.
“Nah, Shou’s sleeping. I can stay a little longer if you want,” Oboro said, already resigning himself to being used as a pillow for now. Not that he minded. It’d been nearly fifteen years since he’d last been able to touch someone and if Izuku wasn’t going to argue against sleepy cuddles, Oboro was going to take advantage of it.
As he watched the hands on the clock slowly move while his fingers continued threading through Izuku’s hair, Oboro found himself hoping beyond hope that Aizawa would remember seeing him on the battlefield and that when he asked Izuku about it, he was kind about it. He really didn’t want to have to ask Izuku to use his quirk on him again just so he could smack his best friend upside the head if he hurt Izuku.