Chapter Text
I watch the clouds go by as I stand on top of the roof I was left on. All Might didn’t even bother to get me down… I guess it’s my fault for inconveniencing him.
With a sigh, I sit down cross-legged on the roof when my legs get tired. I pull out my phone when it dings, but it’s just Mom saying she will be home late. I’m about to put my phone back in my pocket when a news alert chimes. I stare at it for a couple of seconds before shutting my phone off and putting it away. I can’t be bothered to deal with anything hero-related right now. I lie back and keep watching the clouds as I try to clear my mind.
I keep thinking of what All Might said, how I should be realistic…
If only he knew what was realistic for the quirkless…
I remember reading the statistics: 89% of quirkless people don’t survive past sixteen. Seventy-two percent of those deaths are suicides; another seventeen percent are hate crimes.
Even if you survive past sixteen, no one will hire you. You can’t even shop at some stores.
Realistic… yeah, let’s be realistic.
I roll over and get to my feet. In a daze, I walk over to the edge of the roof. I robotically take off my shoes and set them next to the edge. I place my bag in front of them. The thought of writing a letter doesn’t cross my mind till I am standing right next to the edge. My eyes drift to my bag before the daze washes over me again, and I am falling through the sky.
The clouds shrink above me. Then comes the impact—and everything goes dark.
~~~
Ow.
With a groan, I sit up and clutch my head as an intense migraine hits me. I look around even as pain shoots up my spine. I am… in a hospital?
With another groan, I stand up. As I finish getting up, the pain slowly disappears. I look at my arms to see if there are any IVs, but there’s nothing, so I have no idea how the pain is disappearing. With a little huff, I start to look around. This place could definitely pass as a hospital at first glance, except most of these medical tools have not been used since pre-quirk times. I am pretty sure I read an article about how most pre-quirk-era tools were banned from any medical establishment.
I shake my head and look around the room for a door. I start to freak out slightly when there’s no door anywhere. I don’t get a chance to freak out for long before a part of the wall opens like a door. I stare wide-eyed at the short man who walks into the room. He’s dressed as a doctor—and wait, is that MY doctor?
“Dr. Tsubasa?” I say in bewilderment. I was told he moved to America…
Dr. Tsubasa looks up at me with wide eyes and a slightly frightened expression.
“How are you…”
I am getting more confused as Dr. Tsubasa comes closer to me like I’m some wild animal.
“You were dead! I made sure to check.”
I freeze when I hear this, so I don’t pull away before Dr. Tsubasa grabs my arm. I flinch, but he just feels my pulse and pushes me to sit back on the bed.
“Is it your quirk? No, you were definitely quirkless… right? I mean…”
I listen to the doctor as he mutters and mumbles, all the while doing a general checkup.
“What tests did I do to check?”
I frown at the now slightly deranged-looking doctor.
“Not tests, just one. You just did the pinky toe joint test,” I say as the doctor finally backs up and studies his chart.
“Oh, well, no wonder. That test is super inaccurate.”
My eyes twitch as the doctor waves his hand dismissively.
“Then why did you do it?” I say, trying to keep the grouchiness out of my voice but failing terribly, judging by the glare I get in response.
“Well, how am I supposed to know? That happened so long ago.”
I just sigh and close my eyes for a second before opening them again.
“So… what am I doing here?” I say after taking a few calming breaths.
It’s like a switch flips, and the doctor is happy again.
“Well, originally, your dead body was going to be separated into parts for our Nomu!”
I stare at the doctor, who now looks fully deranged. Eventually, I just sigh and slump down.
“And what’s a Nomu?”
I immediately regret asking, but the doctor launches into an explanation. The details should horrify me. Instead, I find myself leaning closer, caught by the anatomy of it all. Maybe it’s the shock, or maybe I’ve just never had anyone willing to talk about this interest with me before.
The doctor describes the most horrifying, grotesque, disgusting thing—and somehow, it sounds absolutely amazing. I have always had a secret hobby of studying anatomy and how the body works, but I tend not to let people in on that. If Mom could barely stand to look at me the same way when she saw me doing my hobby… I don’t want to imagine how much worse my life would have gotten if everyone knew. So, with a grin, I snatch a spare notepad off the counter and a pen lying around to take notes.
I haven’t been able to talk about this interest openly, so I don’t hold back any of my theories.
The doctor is absolutely thrilled when I cut in to suggest a change in the process, and before I know it, he is grabbing my arm and dragging me out of the room. I am led to a room that definitely is for experiments.
~~~
Time seems to fly as the doctor and I work, but eventually my stomach growls. The doctor stops and puts his tools down. I frown but put the tools I’m holding down as well.
“Come, come.”
I follow the doctor as he heads out of the lab and through a purple portal. I hesitate for a second but shrug. What’s really the worst that can happen?
I walk through and end up in a… bar? I look around, and this is definitely a bar. I shrug again and head over to where the doctor is. The doctor points me to a plate of food that’s at the end of the bar. I sit down and quickly start to eat. The whole time, I watch as the doctor talks to the TV on the wall. The TV is talking back, so at least the doctor is not crazy.
I finish my food. The portal man takes the plate through a small portal, and I thank him. Then I stand up and go back over to the doctor. I freeze when the voice on the TV asks who I am. I wasn’t expecting to be talked to.
The doctor looks at me and motions for me to speak, so, with a shrug, I do.
“Midoriya Izuku, sir,” I say with my hands in my pants pockets, rocking on my heels.
His laugh sends a shiver down my spine, but I keep smiling. It’s never a good idea to show fear.