For a boy whom aspired to be the purest person in the world, helping and saving others wherever he could, had he a quirk. Life should've been calm for him, respecting his wishes and doing everything to elevate him. However life isn't like that for Izuku Midoriya. It was yet another hellish day for the quirkless boy in green. His high school tormented him for his lack of a quirk, the boy he once viewed as a brother tormented him mercilessly and on top of all that, he's persistently reminded by both students and staff that the world he so desperately wanted to be a part of was so agonisingly out of reach, that it seemed foolish to even try.
Izuku sighs at the end of the day as he flips through his notebook, that small A5 booklet was his shield in his daily life, providing a brief escape from hellish reality into heavenly aspirations, which is why it always stung him when Katsuki Bakugo snatched it out of his grasp.
"I wasn't done talking to you yet, Deku." he growled.
"H-hey. Could you give that back Ka-Chan?" Izuku whimpered.
Bakugo raises his hand to the front of the notebook, using that dazzling quirk of his to scorch it, he scoffs as he discards the notebook straight out the window, much to Izuku's horror.
"That's... so mean Ka-Chan..." he sighed.
Bakugo walks toward our boy in green and lays his hand gently on Izuku's shoulder, before firmly gripping it, Izuku grows more worried as he feels the hand heating up his shoulder and smoke starting to flow upwards into the air around it.
"Like I was saying. Don't apply to UA ya stupid nerd. You'd only fuck it up like you always do." snapped Bakugo.
Izuku looks out the open window, visibly upset whilst Bakugo, more than satisfied, smirks as he walks away, his two cronies trailing after him .
"It's a shame he doesn't get it! He'll never be a hero!" said one.
"Oh well, better to find out now than be disappointed later, I guess" chortled the other.
Bakugo stops as he settles his hand down on the door handle, he smiles to himself, realising he could put the nail in the coffin for the day.
"Ya know Deku? If you want to be a hero so badly there might be another way."
He pauses as he turns around.
"Pray you'll be born with a quirk in your next life. Then take a swan dive off the roof." he grins.
Izuku grits his teeth and turns his attention from the freedom of the open window towards the captivity of Bakugo's cocky gaze. Grief and anger filled Izuku's eyes, oh how he wanted to shout, he wanted to bellow, he wanted to scream at the top of his lungs at Ka-Chan. Someone he looks up to, the coolest person he'd ever met. Only he wasn't so cool, he was such a bully.
"Something wrong, nerd?" Bakugo laughs as he lets off mini explosions in his palm.
But all Izuku can do is let tears run down his face as he stands there in fear; because as much as he couldn't stomach it, as much as he tried to prevent the thoughts from running wild across his mind. The agonising truth was that he was powerless in this life to prevent any of this happening. Bakugo and his two henchmen leave the room laughing all the while, Izuku just slumps down at his desk as the dam he built to keep all of his tears in caves in, and they all start to flow out at once.
Izuku leaves the high school building about half an hour later, he had to be sure he wasn't going to get harassed anymore, he'd just about reached his limit for the day.
'That idiot, going round telling people to kill themselves... Imagine if I actually do jump. What does he do then huh? Knowing him, probably laugh.' Izuku thinks to himself.
He looks into the fish pond as he sees what became of his notebook, it was mostly intact, however the front and edges were scarred by the explosion, and the fish who called the pond happened to be nibbling on it.
"My dreams turning into fish food... That's enough, give it back. Please." Izuku utters as he gently reaches into the pond and retrieves the notebook, being careful not to disturb the fish as they slowly return to their normal lives.
"Stupid jerk." Izuku curses as he walks away from the campus. Thinking to himself again, he liked thinking to himself a lot, partly because it was one of the only things he could genuinely control.
'I'm a waste of space... I always try to see the best in everything and help everyone I meet. But it always ends up thrown back in my face. I'll keep doing it anyway, because I don't know when to quit. But... It's exhausting.'
Izuku's route takes him towards an underpass, not that he took much notice as he continues thinking.
'All Might always seems so invincible. He never struggles or anything; I bet he never has to worry about anything like getting his papers burned. He just smiles and laughs. Maybe I should more of that. I believe in myself, so I might as well show it.'
Izuku walks into the tunnel as he starts to bellow his confident laugh.
"Ha ha ha! HA HA HA! AH ha ha ha!" he laughs.
However the squelch and mushy noise behind him causes him to turn around and his false confidence disintegrates. The sludge villain rises up and pounces on the boy in green.
"H-HELP!" Izuku cries
"I'm so glad I ran into you! I need a new flesh suit to sneak out of town before I'm tracked down and you'll do quite nicely!" the sludge villain explains. Izuku tries to scream at the top of his lungs, but he remains quiet again as his throat is filled with sludge.
"Now now, don't struggle. It'll only make your death more unpleasant. But I really appreciate this, you're a real hero!" chuckles the sludge villain.
Izuku's words start to materialise in his head as he's forced down by the sludge villain.
'I'm... gonna die... maybe I deserve this... I... I...' his thoughts start to stumble as he runs low on air, the crazy eyed sludge villain getting closer and closer, Izuku shoots a glance down at the floor to see his notebook open on one of the pages. All Might's page. Tears well up in Izuku's eyes as he remembers his invincible idol; All Might.
'No... I'll never give up! Never! I won't end this way! Izuku cries to himself as he starts to punch and claw at the sludge, if he was going to die, he'd at least put up one hell of a fight. However the sludge villain is only amused by such a feeble effort.
"Oh. You've still got fight in you, hmm? I like that. You'll be a very useful puppet." he slyly says.
Izuku's eyes start to blur and darken, he was running on adrenaline alone at this point to avoid blacking out, so he doesn't really register the sewer grate in front of him rocketing it's way into the tunnel roof and the hulking brightly suited man who follows it upwards. The sludge villain turns around and screams in horror, realising the one person he didn't want to see, had found him.
"It's a dirty job... But I'll always be the one to do it. Hang on a little longer young man, I'm here." thunders All Might.
"N-no! This isn't fair! How did you find me-" the sludge villain cries out, however he isn't able to finish his words. All Might had already made his move.
"TEXAS SMASH" cried the symbol of peace as he unleashes one of his signature moves, the sludge villain is torn apart by the force of the attack and falls apart into multiple pieces, Izuku himself taking a massive gulp of air in as he crashes onto the ground, his vision darkening as his body moves to reset from the trauma he just endured.
'...All... Might..?' are Izuku's last thoughts as he blacks out. He lies on the floor, dormant. But alive.
All Might pulls a device off of his back, a vacuum of sorts and starts to hoover up all of the individual pieces of the sludge villain, he does it successfully and looks at the device in a form of silent awe as he returns it to the spot on his back.
"Thanks Dave. This worked a dream" All Might says to himself as he gently hovers a hand over Izuku's mouth, he feels the warm breath of life push against it. He also saw the notebook, but he doesn't move to it.
"Still kicking? Great!" All Might says as he gently picks up Izuku and carries him into the warm glow of the shining afternoon sun, he sets him down on the comforting green grass and starts to gently slap his face.
"Hey, wake up! Hey, Nap-time's over young man!" he calmly says.
Izuku's eyes twitch as he slowly returns to the land of the living, his senses all return to him. Which is why he's dumbfounded when the first thing his eyes and ears register is that of the hero he looked up to the most.
"Rise and Shine!" All Might exclaims.
Izuku's eyes almost burst out of his head and he can't help but fall back slightly as he comes to terms with his current reality.
"All Might? All Might!? Is that really you!?' he croaks.
"The one and only!" All Might smirks as he gives him a signature thumbs up.
Izuku's practically hyper ventilating at this point, the one he'd always wanted to talk to was right there in front of him, he needed to think, he needed...
"C-could you please sign my notebook, please?" Izuku manages to spit out.
All Might warmly smiles.
"Of course!"
Izuku reaches into his blazer, only to find it empty, he pats down his pockets, to find them only containing the usual stuff he carried, even diving into his rucksack and rummaging through it frantically.
"It... It was here somewhere!" Izuku exclaims. He looks into the tunnel as the light flickers on and off, the brief illumination lighting the notebook he'd searched for, just over there. He leaps onto his feet and takes off towards it.
"Ah! Please, just wait a moment!" he shouts as he sprints off to get it. All Might stays crouched there, a small smile on his face.
'He seems like a good kid' he thinks to himself as the young man returns, presenting the notebook and bowing before him sincerely. All Might gently takes the notebook from him and scrawls his iconic signature over a double page in the book before gently handing it back again to the boy in green. Izuku's close to excitement breaking point by now as he revels at it.
"T-thank you! I'll treasure this forever sir!" Izuku cries. All Might couldn't help but grin at that.
"Thank you for your support, fanboy! You were mighty brave against such a terrifying villain. You should be proud!" All Might boldly states.
Izuku grins hearing that All Might, THE All Might said that he should be proud of himself for showing such bravery in the face of danger. But inside Izuku's overworking brain he couldn't help but shake that one phrase... 'fanboy'. Like he fully accepts he is an All Might fanboy, he has been since he could remember, but to hear All Might call him that... No, he couldn't have meant it maliciously or anything like that, it's just All Might with some hearty talking.
"All Might... There's something I need to ask you; it's... kinda-" Izuku solemnly says as he starts to speak.
However All Might presses his finger to his ear as Izuku begins to speak, nodding along to what's being said, giving Izuku the confidence to keep talking and finally unearth his deep dark feelings. Unfortunately, All Might's acknowledging the words coming to him through the communicator in his ear, nevertheless Izuku keeps talking, but All Might's really listening to his trusty sidekick; Sir Nighteye.
"All Might; I've got Mr Togata here, I was hoping you'd be able to give him one of your pep talks. The strain of his classes are taking a toll on him and he needs support." Sir Nighteye crackles down the communicator as the line then goes dead, causing All Might to zone back in to the here and now, with someone who really really needed him to have listened to all of that.
"... It just can't be so hard to dream right? I just wanna be someone that helps others. Just like you." murmurs Izuku.
All Might awkwardly scratches the back of his head.
"N-no, of course not young man. Always keep dreaming!" blurts out the symbol of peace.
Izuku looks confused as he hears that.
"But... what about all those pushing me down, about the fact I'm trying my best... but-" Izuku forces out of his mouth but is cut off by All Might, who's faced had wrinkled up.
"I'm sorry young man, but my heroism requires me to leave! A hero must always be everywhere at once!" he exclaims as he turns away and takes a few steps back, his bright red cape fluttering in the wind.
"Wait! All Might!" Izuku helplessly cries out, but it's too late, All Might lunges into the air at top speed and leaves Izuku on the ground, helplessly looking up at the bright blue sky. Izuku looks down at the notebook, seeing All Might's signature engraved onto the pages, and also seeing the teardrops that start to fall on top of it.
"I had so much to ask you... So much I needed to hear you say... Damn it all." Izuku croaks as he sniffs and quietly cries under the tree. He didn't hear the man walking past him, the man in the lab coat and glasses. However the man saw the despondent young man, and feeling a sense of goodwill, checks up on him.
"Young man, are you alright" asks the coated man.
Izuku looks up wiping away his tears as quick as he can, trying to hide the pain in his eyes. It never did him any good telling people he was upset, he always feared that he'd make them upset too, and all he wanted was to make people smile.
"Y-yes, I'm okay sir. Sorry for the concern." he exclaims.
However the coated man isn't so easily swayed by these false words. He appears disgruntled at the explanation.
"No you're not. Something's distressing you,' he bluntly responds, he then looks down at the open notebook, seeing the All Might signature.
"Ah... an All Might signature, have I been incorrect and are these are tears of joy perhaps?" the coated man says.
Izuku grits his teeth, he had an audience now, he had to re-erect the emotional dam to bolster himself back up, but try as he might. He just couldn't, he grits his teeth and breathes in sharply.
"I... I don't know anymore." Izuku mutters.
The coated man takes a knee in front of the miserable boy in green, meeting him eye to eye.
"Your friends will be jealous though, no? Your very own All Might signature!" he replies.
"I... I don't really have anyone like that." Izuku says as he looks down at his notebook, the one thing that did give him a sense of solace.
"Oh... my apologies young man" the coated man replies sadly, however he couldn't help but notice the copious amounts of writing on the page as the notebook slowly folded inward, almost like a letter that had been opened, spooling it's contents into the eyes of anyone cheeky enough to have a glance, this made the coated man deeply curious.
"My... what detailed notes, are you a fan of heroes my boy?" he inquires.
Izuku silently nods, he tries to speak, but his emotions had locked him out of using his voice at the present time.
The coated man gently extends his hand out.
"May I? I promise you that I'll not harm your workings." he assures as the boy in green nods again gently passing him the scorched notebook.
Upon reading, the coated man's eyes bulge from behind his spectacles, blown away by this young man's insight and knowledge, he turns the page and low and behold, it's the same again, this time for another hero. Even for a man of his... understanding of heroes and quirks. He was learning tidbits he'd not even considered and realising traits that he'd not even comprehended before in multiple heroes. He was shocked.
"Young man, your work is truly magnificent! Truly! You're a prodigy!" he shouts.
Izuku, despite such revered praise, is quiet, he just lets out a sigh, the agonising truth still pressing against his mind. Now more than ever.
"I'm still quirkless... It doesn't change a thing." he solemnly mutters.
The coated man sets down Izuku's notebook into his lap and he gently rests a hand on his shoulder, he takes a deep breath in and begins to talk.
"Young man. The agonising truth this society projects onto all of us in which your value lies within the quirk you happen to have... Is a lie." he begins.
That's enough to make Izuku look at the man.
"You did all of this without a quirk or aid of any kind. No, whilst having a quirk would give you a clear and noticeable advantage, to truly excel you must be able to take advantage of your advantage. However you've taken and made an advantage for yourself on others your age, without any of the flashy powers or ego." he continues.
That's enough to make Izuku start to tear up.
"You could do anything in this world if you set your mind to it. All you need is the conviction to see it through and the will to act on it. Young man, your dreams can become reality." concludes the coated man.
That's more than enough to make Izuku cry. The words he needed to hear, the words he always needed to hear is more than enough to shatter his negative emotions as he cries out in grief and in joy. His eyes are like two great waterfalls as he gently rests his warm hand on the cold one of the coated man, that still lied on his shoulder.
"T-thank you sir. I... I really don't know how to thank you." says Izuku.
The coated man smirks.
"Well... maybe I could offer you a small incentive to keep up your persistence?" he slyly says.
Izuku tilts his head at the mention of this, he wipes away his tears as he tries to focus up.
"An incentive?"
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Dr Tsubasa; I'm a lead doctor and quirk researcher... And today I learned more from a few pages of your notes then I did from years of experience," says the good doctor,
Izuku's eyes start to fill with something he'd not felt in a very long time. Hope.
"I'd like you to become my understudy" Dr Tsubasa says.
"But I'm just a kid! I'm still in high school! I'm a quirkless nobody! A useless Deku!"
"Yet you're already more capable in your own research than half of those on my current staff."
"S-say... I feel like I've met you before..." Izuku inquires
The doctor nods, he was surprised that this young man had actually remembered him, unbeknownst to him, that was a core memory in Izuku's head, practically replaying it in his own mind at least once a day, it was a day that made Izuku who he was today, for better and for worse.
"I was the doctor that... unfortunately had to give you the news about your quirk status." answers Dr Tsubasa.
"Yeah I remember now." Izuku replies.
"Izuku... Help me in my research and I may be able to give you the thing you so desperately want. Even though you don't need it in my opinion."
Izuku's eyes widen... he wasn't about to say what he thinks he's about to say, is he?
"A quirk. A quirk of your very own." confirms the doctor.
Izuku's eyes at this point almost burst out of his head.
"But... You can't give other people quirks, quirks are genetic! You can't give someone a quirk like a birthday present, that would undermine everything we know about quirks, wouldn't it? exclaims the confused boy in green.
"Very perceptive Young Midoriya. But remember you're talking to the lead quirk researcher of this great nation. When there's a will, there's definitely a way! Wouldn't you say?
Izuku nods.
"I,,, Wait. Is this... allowed? Like, is it legal?"
The doctor chuckles as he takes on a more serious tone, causing Izuku to gulp.
"Izuku, I won't force this on you, nor will I rope you into anything you don't want to do. But, yes, this is allowed. Nothing is taboo in the pursuit of knowledge!" Exclaims the doctor.
Izuku thinks for a moment, about his dream, about his life, about his mom, about all of the people he could help and save, about the world he could help bring about...
"I accept. Yes. I'll become your understudy." he states.
Dr Tsubasa smirks as he offers a hand down to the boy in green.
"No reluctance, just as I thought. Come my boy, someone as special as you doesn't belong on the floor." declares the doctor.
Izuku softly takes his hand and he rises onto his feet, feeling a sense of weight removed from his shoulders as he stands. Was he always this light? Dr Tsubasa hands him a card, containing his personal contact information.
"When you get home tonight, call this number. It'd be good to know you got home safely, furthermore we can discuss the logistics of your new understudy role." instructs Tsubasa.
Izuku bows before the man who had given him a second chance, at life, at what he loves most and at the chance of being a hero.
"Yes of course, thank you sir."
"Izuku Midoriya. You'll change the world, I assure you of that."
Izuku smiles and begins to restart his walk home after all of the interruptions, he'd not had such a hectic commute since Kamui Woods accidentally blocked off an entire block with his vines.
"Thank you Dr Tsubasa! I'll call you as soon as I get home!" shouts Izuku as he runs off, a grin plastered across his face. His dream, the one that was always mocked for being so far out of his reach had just ended up within touching distance to him. That grin on his face? That was pure unadulterated happiness, for the first time in a while, the thoughts in his head start to escalate.
'An understudy role for a quirk researcher. This could be it, this could be my starting line. I can learn so much from Doctor Tsubasa and if I do get a quirk, I could seriously apply to the hero course! It's happening! It's really happening! Izuku practically giggles as he thinks this tom himself.
Dr Tsubasa watches him leave and turn the corner with a spring in his step, he smirks as he picks up his phone and taps it, holding it up to his ear.
"It's me. Listen, I might have a new project for us... Yes, this one seems different... Yes I offered him a quirk; but with your grace of course... Excellent. I'll teach him everything he needs to know. Thank you sir." he chatters down the phone as the conversation comes to a natural end, he stows the phone back in his bright white coat and begins to walk again, his hands by his sides. He thinks inside his labyrinthian mind.
'Everything he needs to know indeed. That boy genuinely wants to change the world for the better, with a few of the right pushes, he'll truly achieve that goal. For himself, and for us. Excellent.
Made by:truen