Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Aizawa Shouta awoke on the day of the Entrance Exam, he could already tell there was going to be a problem. 

It was an instinct he’d cultivated through over a decade of hero work, and having known Nedzu for even longer. He could feel it in his bones, a twinge, a dull ache that told him to steer well clear of the rat if he valued his continued existence. 

He couldn’t avoid him completely, of course - they still had exams to observe - but Shouta would do his utmost to stay as far away from his boss as he could. 

So when Nedzu called an urgent all-staff meeting that afternoon, after the last exam had finished, Shouta died a little inside.

Even so, you don’t ignore a call from Nedzu, so there he was, wedged in between Nemuri and Hizashi, clutching a massive thermos of coffee like a lifeline as they waited for the chimera to arrive. His two loudmouth friends were talking over his head, gossiping or something.

“So why do you think the boss called us all here, anyway? I mean, even All Might’s here!” Nemuri gestured to the Number One hero, who was currently in his skinny form - Small Might, his mind supplied - staring at his hands, quiet but unconcerned.

“It’s gotta be something to do with the exams, Nem. Maybe one of the little listeners was just that impressive?” Hizashi shrugged, nearly knocking into Shouta’s thermos. He grumbled at the blonde, who took no notice of him as Nemuri continued.

“Someone impressing Nedzu ? That’s unusual enough, but even he wouldn’t make the entire staff meet like this just to show off one kid. Whatever it is, it’s got to be serious.”

Any response Hizashi may have had was cut off by Nedzu himself walking into the room with a, “Indeed it is, Kayama.” The chimera was holding a box full of papers, nearly as tall as he was. He placed it at the head of the table before jumping up beside it, an unusually serious expression on his face. Without a word he began to pull papers from the box, passing them around to the teachers. All Might’s eyes widened and he coughed up a spray of blood when he received his, though Aizawa had little time to wonder about the reaction when he received his own shortly after.

It was a simple packet of papers stapled together, neatly but not professionally. The cover was blank except for the words,

Aizawa Shouta

Eraserhead

printed in the centre in a clean black font. Already, Shouta felt alarmed: few people should know his pro hero name, and even fewer should link it to his civilian name. Those that did wouldn’t be likely to concern Nedzu this much, so he was sure this was serious. He flipped it open.

It was… an analysis. Breaking down his Quirk, fighting style, capture weapon, even suggesting improvements for them. It would have been impressive if it didn’t feel so… creepy. The analysis was detailed and well thought out, nearing professional levels in quality, if not in format. The diagrams were well drawn and, even if the writer had a tendency to ramble, it was seriously useful. It brought up his weaknesses, yes, but suggested ways to improve on them or minimise their effects.

And then he turned to the psychological profile.

Closest relationships are with Yamada Hizashi (Pro Hero Present Mic), Kayama Nemuri (Pro Hero Midnight), and Iida Tensei (Pro Hero Ingenium).

Anyone who had spent long enough around them would know that but -

Diagnosed with depression and PTSD, currently medicating and undergoing therapy .

- he kept that private. Only his best friends knew about that.

And so it continued, listing every flaw, every mental foible of Shouta’s, until…

Still feels immense guilt over the apparent death of Shirakumo Oboro (Provisional Hero Loud Cloud).

No one could have known that. Not even Shouta himself acknowledged it; he kept that locked deep inside, pushed so far down that he’d need an excavator to dig it up and yet…

Here it was.

Shouta felt terrified . Here was every detail of his life, all mapped out and written in plain black and white. Every secret of his spilled onto the page, not cruelly or sadistically, but cold. Clinical. There was no conjecture, just basic fact and that terrified Shouta. He was a man that valued his privacy deeply, and now he felt raw, exposed, like a specimen under a microscope. He was not just seen, he was perceived. Aizawa Shouta was Known .

And that terrified him.

Glancing up, he could see that the others in the room felt the same way as him. Nemuri and Hizashi were as white as sheets either side of him and across the table All Might was shaking. In rage or terror Shouta didn’t know but he suspected it was both. The Number One hero must have some secrets, after all, and if the mysterious author knew about his childhood home life or the exact number of cats he’s owned in his life, - 14 - then they almost certainly knew about whatever skeletons the Symbol of Peace kept in his closet. 

The others around the table all held similar expressions as well. The fear in the room, the utter dread over having your soul laid bare before you, was palpable. Nedzu stood on the table at the head, a grim expression across his muzzle. “As you can see, this is indeed a serious situation.”

The principal’s voice cut through the silence, and every pair of eyes snapped towards him. All Might shakily rose from his seat, straightening to his full height. Even in his skinny form, he had an intimidating aura of pure power. Icy blue eyes bored holes in Nedzu.

“Is this some kind of sick joke, Nedzu?!”

Their boss closed his eyes and shook his head. “Unfortunately not, Yagi. Allow me to introduce Midoriya Izuku.” He pulled out a remote and pressed a button, turning on the room’s projector. It showed an image of a teenage boy, with green hair, freckles and a nervous smile on his face. Altogether, he looked rather plain, except… except for his eyes.

Even through the projected image Shouta could see something in them, some strange glow that sent a chill through him like cold water on a sensitive tooth. It made him feel raw, vulnerable… it was the same feeling he got when reading that analysis.

“Midoriya-kun was an applicant for the support course today. In fact, he was the only applicant for the analysis track. If you are not aware, those in the support course must present a practical example of their own work in their exam. For those in the invention and costuming tracks their practical presentation is fairly straightforward. However, for the analysis track, they must hand in a detailed analysis project, to be scrutinised later. 

“I had decided, for my own reasons, not to observe the heroics practical exams today, so when I heard that the sole analysis hopeful handed in a detailed analysis of every single member of staff at UA, well, I simply had to see it at once. Of course, as soon as I read my own document, I felt the need to call this meeting immediately.”

Vlad King spoke up, “So, what’s the kid’s Quirk? It’s got to be more than analysis - some of this stuff I would never admit to anyone - so, some kind of long distance mind reading?” A low murmur of agreement spread through the room

Nedzu pressed a button and another image came up, this time of a collection of documents all pertaining to Midoriya Izuku. A birth certificate, Quirk Registry form, UA application, everything. And they all had one thing in common.

“Quirkless?!” Someone shouted, but Shouta was too stunned to register who it was. 

“They could be faked…” Thirteen - the usual voice of reason - pointed out, but Nedzu once again shook his head.

“All verified and cross-referenced. I’ve even dug into his medical files: he has the extra toe joint. Midoriya Izuku is Quirkless.” Silence fell, and Shouta almost missed the way All Might paled several shades. He was about to ask when Nedzu broke the silence once more. “But! I have my suspicions! I will be meeting with Midoriya-kun to confirm my thoughts, but for now, try not to worry too much.”

Though Shouta didn’t join in with the shout of indignation that rose from the room, he certainly agreed with it. After all, how couldn’t they worry when some child is running around with all of their darkest secrets in his head?

No, he was very worried.

Still, trying to argue with Nedzu was like trying to fight the weather, and soon the shouting died down. Nedzu, for his part, stood there and took it with little more than a small, sympathetic smile. “Unfortunately, there is little that can be done right now. In the meantime, it has been a long day. Please, go and get some rest.” He seemed to consider something for a moment, before continuing. “Oh, and if you are an Article 5 hero, keep on guard.”

That got everyone’s attention.

Article 5 was somewhat of a legend amongst heroes. It was generally used more for the police force, but it involved some heroes. No one outside of it really knew what it was, beyond it being secret, and that those involved often found themselves alienated from their coworkers. Despite himself, Shouta looked around the room, trying to see if anyone reacted to that differently to the others but, if they did, he didn’t see them.

With little fanfare, the meeting ended, a cloud hanging over the staff of UA as they left. Shouta himself wanted nothing more than to go back to his apartment and curl up with his cats to recover from the emotionally taxing day.

He just hoped the rat would deal with Midoriya Izuku.

Chapter Text

Izuku was a bundle of nerves when he arrived home that evening. He felt the written exam went well enough - he always made sure to keep up his grades - but he had no idea about the practical presentation. Well, it wasn’t much of a presentation; the examiner simply asked him to hand in his pre-prepared analyses, though they seemed a little daunted when he handed over the large cardboard box, filled with stacks of paper. He hadn’t meant to go quite so overboard, but he slipped into the zone whenever he analysed. It was funny, really; he barely remembered the actual process itself. He remembered sitting down at his desk, ready to begin, and then piling all of the booklets into one box, but the time in between was little more than a blur. 

He entered his apartment, taking off his shoes in the genkan and putting on his house slippers. The smell of fried pork cutlet hit his nose as he walked into the living room, and his stomach rumbled at the thought of katsudon. He called out, “Mom, I’m home!” and took a seat at the dining table.

“Oh, Izuku! Just a minute!” He waited, playing with his hands to pass the time. Not long after, his mom emerged from the kitchen and he stood as she ran up and bundled him in a tight hug. He hugged her back, and they stayed like that for a minute, just mother and son held closely.They parted, and sat opposite one another. Inko smiled shakily at her son. “So how’d it go, dear?”

Izuku hummed, “I think it went okay? The written exam was fine but the practical was… weird. I was kinda expecting to have to do an actual presentation but, maybe they got the note about my anxiety, o-or maybe they wanted time to look over everything…? A-ah, but anyway, I think I probably shouldn’t have done every UA staff member,” he chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head. “but they took them all anyway, so I think it was fine?” Izuku looked up to find his mom looking at him, tears welling up in her eyes.

She sniffled, “I-I’m so proud of you, Izuku. I believe in you!” She began to cry, fat droplets running down her face. That, of course, set Izuku off, and they held each other’s hands as they cried happily. Their typical Midoriya celebration was interrupted by the ringing of a phone echoing through the apartment. Blinking the tears away, Izuku got up to answer it as his mom went back into the kitchen. Somehow, he just knew it was going to be UA calling, so when he picked up the phone to hear Mr. Principal’s voice, he only mildly freaked out.

“Ah! Hello! Is this the Midoriya household?”

Izuku blinked, “Uh, y-yes?”

He could hear the smile in the animal’s voice. “Ah, excellent! Midoriya Izuku-kun, I expect? Yes, well, firstly I wanted to commend your analysis! It was very in-depth!”

“O-oh, ah, thank you! I wanted to do enough, but I was worried I’d gone a bit overboard, b-but if you’re saying that then I’m hoping it was okay?” He couldn’t help the squeak his voice became.

“Of course, Midoriya-kun! It was more than okay, in fact! But that’s not entirely what I called to discuss. You see, your analysis was very impressive, but we’ve had some… issues with your application, so I simply wish to arrange a date where we can meet to iron out the details, and make sure everyone’s on the same page. How does the weekend sound? Say, Saturday at noon?”

Izuku’s heart stopped. This was it, he was going to be prevented from entering even the support department of his dream school, all for the sake of an extra toe joint. He trembled as he stammered out a confirmation, waiting for the other to hang up before setting down the phone and shuffling, zombie-like, to his bedroom.

Not even the smell of his mom’s katsudon could get him to come out as he cried himself to sleep.

That Saturday Izuku arrived at the gates of UA a full ten minutes early, face determined and set with a confidence he did not feel. His mom wanted to come with him but he was resolved to take this on alone. She wouldn’t always be there to protect him, after all, and this would neither be the first nor the last time someone took issue with his Quirklessness. So he steeled himself, and waited.

At five minutes to noon, he heard the distinctive click-clack of heels against the ground. Looking up, he saw Midnight approaching him in full hero gear. He started getting excited despite his fear, and itched for his notebook. That is, at least, until he saw the downright murderous expression etched on her face. The force of her glare was so great he physically shrunk back from her, the pressure pushing down on him too great to move. She stopped just before the gate, raised an eyebrow and gestured for him to follow, before turning back towards the school. Izuku scrambled after her, saddened to see that yet another of his favourite heroes seemed to be Quirkist.

He pushed down that thought for now - he could deal with it later - and instead distracted himself by taking in the scenery. In any other circumstance, he’d be overjoyed to have such a close look at the school of his dreams, but now he could only try to remember as many details as possible, as it would likely be his last time ever on campus. 

Midnight led him through the intimidating front entrance, weaving through corridors lined with doors he’d never get to see the other side of and up stairs he’d never set foot on again. Finally, they reached a door different from the others, oak paneled and sturdy. Izuku’s guide raised a hand to knock, but the door swung open just before she could. The woman sighed and stepped to the side, gesturing Izuku in with little more than a tilt of the head. Nervously, Izuku bowed at her, and shakily stepped inside.

Izuku, much like most of the general public, only knew Nedzu by reputation. One of the smartest beings in the world, with a mythic sadistic streak that made the lives of UA students interesting, to say the least. The legend of Nedzu preceded the chimera himself, which is why it was so odd to see how… normal his office was. 

It was large, sure, but the furniture was exactly what you’d expect. A large oak desk with a padded chair behind it, an assortment of chairs, armchairs and even a stool or two, and a table with two sofas either side of it towards the other end of the room. The walls had stuffed bookshelves against them, and Izuku even saw a painting hung up. He thought it was a dog, maybe a little abstract, and all in black and white, but the label below it simply said “ Funyarinpa” - Tenmyouji, c.2027 . 

Izuku didn’t have time to worry about that, however, as the chair behind the desk was currently occupied by the very mammal he’d come there to see. Sitting beside the desk was another man, rather plain in appearance, wearing a rather nondescript shirt and tie. A little confused, Izuku took another step inside, and the door shut behind him.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun. Please, take a seat.” The chimera smiled at him, a sharp thing, and gestured towards an armchair on the other side of the desk with a paw. Izuku nodded, taking a seat almost robotically. He dared not speak up, for fear of igniting the wrath of the animal before him, so the principal himself spoke first.

“I hope your journey was pleasant, Midoriya-kun?” 

Izuku blinked, then nodded, unsure. “Uh, y-yes, Principal Nedzu-san.” The rodent grinned, then continued.

“I am glad to hear it. Ah, before we continue, please allow me to introduce Detective Tsukauchi.” He gestured to the plain man. “He is a friend of mine, and I trust his judgement in matters such as these.”

Izuku’s heart stopped. A detective? What would Principal Nedzu need a detective for? Unless… no, Quirkism was bad, but they couldn’t arrest him for his Quirklessness! But this was Principal Nedzu, so if anyone could do that…

“I assure you, Midoriya-kun, this meeting has nothing to do with your Quirk status, or lack thereof, such as it may be.”

That… threw him for a loop, in all honesty, so much so that he couldn’t even be embarrassed to have been caught muttering. If it wasn’t about his Quirklessness, then what other issues could there be, and why did Midnight seem almost so… angry?

Principal Nedzu-san studied his face for a moment, beady eyes glinting in the light, before humming to himself. “Interesting. Well, Detective, shall we start with the questions?” The detective nodded, and started up what Izuku dimly recalled was a pre-Quirk tape recorder. That kind of thing belonged in a museum, and yet it was here, for some reason.

“Interview with Midoriya Izuku, conducted on Saturday, the 2nd of March, 2250, by Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa and Principal Nedzu of UA.” The man turned to Izuku. “I am required by law to inform you of my Quirk, Lie Detector. I can tell when a subject is telling the truth and when they are lying. I cannot turn it off, and it will be in use during this interview. Do you understand?” His tone was firm, but not harsh, and Izuku managed a shaky nod. The detective sent a nod of his own to Nedzu, and the questions began.

“Well, Midoriya-kun. Do you understand the purpose of our meeting today?” The mammal’s paws tented in front of him, and Izuku swallowed harshly.

“I-I think so, Principal Nedzu-san? You said there was an issue with my UA application, a-and you wanted to discuss it with me first. I… thought it was due to my Quirklessness, but you said it wasn’t so… a-and I’m not really sure why we need a detective here, even if he can tell when people are lying, w-which is a very interesting Quirk, and one I really want to ask about, but, ah…”

Tsukauchi chimed in after Izuku trailed off. “True. So your Quirk status is the only reason you believed this meeting was called?”

“Uh, yes? I-I thought you were going to bar me from entering UA…” Tsukauchi raised an eyebrow in surprise, but nodded at Nedzu, who continued.

“Midoriya-kun, before we continue, I want you to know that neither of us, nor anyone at UA, will judge you for your Quirklessness, and if anyone does, please talk to me.” His tone was surprisingly soft, and Izuku was stunned for a moment.

“Ah, o-of course, Principal Nedzu-san, but… if it’s not about my Quirklessness, then… what issue is there with my application? A-and why did Midnight-san look at me so strangely?” The chimera did not respond, instead pulling out a packet of paper that Izuku recognised as one of his analyses he prepared for his practical exam. On the cover the words,

Nedzu

Mr. Principal

were printed. Nedzu flipped open the packet, skimming over Izuku’s analysis of Hi-Specs, as well as his breakdown of Nedzu’s particular brand of intelligence heroics, and instead skipped straight to the back, to a section that seemed strange to Izuku. It was titled Psychological Profile , and it wasn’t something he usually kept in his analysis. He picked up on certain details of course, and some basic facts were easy to find, but it always felt so invasive to actually write something like that down. He was sure that, even in the blur that was writing his analysis, he wouldn’t have included something so personal. That brought the weirdness of the situation up to another level.

Nedzu turned the paper round to him, and he choked when he glanced over some of what he’d written there. There was information ranging from the invasive,

Diagnosed with PTSD, currently undergoing therapy.

to the unnerving, 

Regularly has nightmares of his time in Horizon Laboratories.

to the outright disturbing.

Has personally hunted down and killed every person connected to the Quirked Animal Initiative. Each death was ruled as an accident. It did not feel as good as hoped.

This was information Izuku had no possible way of knowing about, and yet here it was, clear as day, written in black and white, 11pt font, double spaced. Izuku was a normal person. Smart, sure, but normal. He didn’t even have a Quirk to make him stand out at all. So, as a normal person, how did he figure out secrets so hidden, he doubted even Nedzu would ever admit them to himself. Suddenly, Midnight’s attitude towards him made a lot more sense.

Just what the hell had he done in that blur of time…?

“I-I, Principal Nedzu-san, I don’t remember writing this, any of them! Not really… I sat down in the afternoon to write out my analyses for the exam, a-and then hours later I was done, but the time in between is a blur…”

Tsukauchi sighed - in exhaustion or relief, Izuku didn’t know - and picked up the conversation. “True.” Nedzu nodded and took out a smaller sheaf of papers from his desk. It was old, worn and handwritten, and he flicked through a couple of pages before finding the one he wanted. He looked back up at Izuku, muzzle now spread in a smile of sympathy.

“Please, Midoriya-kun, call me Nedzu. This next set of questions may sound strange, but it is important that you answer them truthfully. I promise, you are not in any trouble, and your application will not be affected by the results. This is simply to confirm a suspicion of mine. Do you understand?”

Izuku nodded, uneasy. “Y-yes, Nedzu-san.” The chimera chuckled to himself, and began to ask his questions.

“Do people often feel uncomfortable with your gaze, or find your eyes disturbing?” 

He didn’t need to think about that one. He’d gotten plenty of comments over the past ten months  about his “creepy” eyes, and even those that didn’t comment on it flinched when he looked at them. The only reason Midnight-san, Tsukauchi-san and Nedzu-san didn’t, of course, is because they were already suspicious of him today. But he thought back to the exams, to the subtle side eyes and uneasy glances when they thought he wasn’t looking. In fact, the only person there who hadn’t stared at him with some kind of fear was the girl with the thick pink dreadlocks, and he was pretty sure that was just because she barely looked up from her own work.

His voice cracked a little, “Yes.”, and Nedzu-san nodded, marking something down on a pad of paper to the side before continuing. 

“Do you find that, sometimes, when you ask questions, people answer you honestly, even about things they wouldn’t normally tell you?”

Izuku thought on this for a moment. He didn’t usually like asking questions, as they drew too much attention to him. But sometimes he had to ask something, or they just slipped out, like that time not long after his… incident, when he asked Kac- Bakugou, when he asked Bakugou , in a burst of anger, just what his deal was. The answer was both a fascinating exploration into the psyche of his former friend, and yet another excuse for said former friend to hurl explosions at him. Izuku shakily nodded, getting increasingly confused and a little concerned. “Y-yes.”

Nedzu-san smiled at him and made another note. “Well, you’ve already proven to have knowledge of things you have no way of knowing, so we’ll move onto the next question. Do you understand me right now? ”

Izuku furrowed his brow, “ Y-yes? You’re speaking Japanese, so…”

Nedzu-san hummed, making a couple of notes in his pad, and continued. “One more question, Midoriya-kun, though this may be a little… sensitive.” Izuku frowned, but nodded. “Have you ever had a near-death experience?”

Izuku froze, memories rushing back to that day, ten months ago.

“Take a swan dive off the roof, and pray for a Quirk in the next life!”

Teetering on the edge of a precipice.

“I’m sorry, but no. I don’t think that you can be a hero without a Quirk.”

Wind rushing through his hair.

Leaning forward.

A dropping sensation.

Nothingness.

He was brought back to the present by the chimera’s soft paw resting on his hands, and he idly noted the squishiness of his paw pads. He blinked and nodded slightly, not trusting his words at the moment. He heard Tsukauchi-san say something into the tape recorder, but his mind felt too numb to register it properly. Nedzu-san made one last note before turning to the detective, both wearing concerned expressions. Izuku blinked the fog away from his mind and focused back on the adults in the room, who seemed to be conversing through their eyes only. Finally, some sort of conclusion was reached, and Nedzu-san turned back to him.

“Midoriya-kun, we have some… information to share with you. It will sound unrealistic, but I promise that it is all true. Please leave any questions you may have until I have covered everything.” Izuku nodded slowly, a strange knot of anxiety growing in his stomach. Nedzu-san sighed, looking uncharacteristically quiet. 

“In our world, there are… forces. Beings made of the fear of humans and animals that don’t exist within our reality, but adjacent to it, looking in. They are fear, and they feed off of it too. Some call them Dread Powers, some call them The Fears, some simply call them The Entities, but they are malevolent.

“These Entities are not able to enter our world, as it is too different from their nature, but they are able to seep in through the cracks, so to speak. Often, this manifests as creatures, objects or locations that cause anomalous behaviour, similar to Quirks, with the goal of creating more fear for the aligned entity, or entities as the case may be. However, occasionally, the Powers may select humans to serve them with the intention of changing reality to allow them access, as well as using them as another method to cause fear. These servants, known as Avatars, are usually granted unnatural, Quirklike abilities in order to make them more effective. As a result of their nature, Avatars must feed off of the fear of the Entity they are aligned with. Do you understand what I’m saying, Midoriya-kun?”

Izuku blinked, processing all of that. It wasn’t every day you were told that the world is little more than the feeding ground for a group of eldritch fear gods. Someone else might not have believed Nedzu-san, but he still trusted the chimera as a hero. Besides, he couldn’t see any purpose the principal and the detective might have in lying about this. So he believed them. He also decided to file that under freak out about later , and return to the more pressing issue at hand. 

“I… Y-you think that, that I’m one of these… A-Avatars? But, I didn’t… I mean, I never… shouldn’t that be a choice or something? I-I never chose it, so…” He trailed off, holding on to one last hope.

Nedzu-san’s sad smile confirmed his fears. “I’m afraid it’s not always like that. Your patron most likely forced it onto you during your near-death experience.”

Izuku nodded slowly, processing. “D-did, I… I mean, did I actually… die ?” The chimera nodded, and Izuku let out a shaky sigh, turning into a small, mirthless laugh. “...of course. As if being Quirkless was bad enough, now I’m apparently a servant of some elder god! W-wait, am… am I even human anymore…? N-no, don’t answer that, I don’t want to know…” He rubbed his eyes, tears completely absent. It was unlike a Midoriya, but he supposed it made sense. He was just so… tired . But he had to keep his composure, at least for now. “Can… can you tell me about them? About the Powers?”

Nedzu nodded, “As far as we can tell, there are fifteen distinct Entities, although they often merge and blend together, such that they’re less distinct entities and more, well, different aspects of fear, an emotion so broad and varied as to nearly defy categorisation. But we do have some broad labels. We’ll begin with your patron, The Eye. It is also known as Beholding,  The Ceaseless Watcher, and It Knows You. As you have probably figured out, it is associated with the fear of being watched, of being followed, as well as being exposed and having your secrets revealed. It can also be related to the drive to understand, even if it destroys you. Its most common manifestations are in security cameras and other surveillance equipment.” Izuku nodded.

“That explains… a lot. What about the others?” 

Nedzu-san smiled softly, “Well, Midoriya-kun, I’d like to go into more depth about the other Powers at a later time, but I can give you a brief rundown now, if you’d like?” He nodded eagerly. Existential horrors or no, knowledge was knowledge. “Let's see, there is the Buried, associated with claustrophobia mainly; the Corruption, linked with fears of disease, filth and often insects; the Dark, which should be rather self-explanatory. 

“There is the Desolation, the fear of pain, loss, burning and senseless destruction; the End, the fear of death, uncaring and inevitable as it is; the Extinction, similar to but distinct from the End, being the fear of catastrophic change, of humanity’s self-destruction, and of whatever may come after that; the Flesh, which manifested from the animal fear of merely being bred for meat, and mixes with the human fear that they are little more than animated meat; the Hunt, a rather primal fear of being hunted, more common in animals now; the Lonely, again, quite self-explanatory - the fear of isolation and being alone. 

“There is also the Slaughter, which is the fear of unmotivated, random and unpredictable violence; the Spiral, the fear of madness and that your mind is lying to you; the Stranger, connected to fears of the uncanny, unknown and the sense of something being wrong; the Vast, rather the opposite of the Buried, being a fear of heights, falling and wide open spaces, as well as the fear of our own insignificance in the universe; and the Web, related to arachnophobia, but more broadly the fear of manipulation, of being controlled, and that your actions are against your own will. You needn’t worry about making notes right at this moment; as I said, we’ll be discussing each in greater detail later, but I felt it was only right to sate your curiosity somewhat.”

Izuku nodded slowly, digesting everything. One question did occur to him immediately. “U-um, well, I’m an… Avatar of the Eye, but… well, the Lonely sounds like it fits me as well…” he laughed nervously, “I-I’m not exactly known for being popular.” 

Nedzu smiles and tents his paws. “Well, that is an excellent question, Midoriya-kun! I have a couple of theories, but I’d instead like to give you somewhat of a homework assignment. It’s simple, really, just consider the question yourself and come up with your own theories! We can discuss them when we next meet.”

He blinked, “Next time…?”

The chimera gave him a sharp grin. “Well, Midoriya-kun. I took the liberty over this past week to fast track your application and your scores were highly impressive! Top of the year in the written exam, and your analysis - eldritch knowledge notwithstanding - was clearly skilled, if a little raw. And with your powers as they are, assuming you’re not already fluent in French?” Izuku shook his head. “Then yes, I rather suspect your English classes will be redundant! Now, as an analysis track student, you would already be having lessons with me. In those lessons, we will be developing your analysis, hopefully without any… interference, but during your regular English lessons, you will be meeting with me to discuss matters of a more… paranormal nature. Ah, provided you accept, of course?”

Izuku was speechless. Here he was, all ready to be barred from entering UA, and now he was being invited to have private tutoring with Principal Nedzu . Sure, it was because of his unwilling servitude to an eldritch fear god, but Izuku always considered himself an optimist. He nodded, a little overwhelmed, and Nedzu beamed. “Excellent! Then you shall be my personal student! I look forward to our future lessons!” He held out a paw, and Izuku shook it. 

“Well now, all of that’s done with, so I simply have one more question, Midoriya-kun. Don’t worry, this is a simple question, and then you will be free to leave.”

Izuku was honestly rather overwhelmed, so the thought of leaving and processing all of the… everything at home sounded rather appealing. “Oh! U-um, yes?” 

“Would it be okay to inform the rest of the staff about your situation? I don’t have to, of course, but it may help lessen their hostility towards you.” 

Izuku considered this for a moment, before nodding. It would be pretty difficult to get through high school if all his teachers thought he knew their deepest secrets, when he really didn’t even remember them at all. “Uh, y-yes please.”

“Very well, Midoriya-kun. Now, unless you have anything else, I expect you’d like to get back home?”

He nodded, stood, and bowed deeply. “T-thank you, Nedzu-san, for telling me all of this, and giving me a chance to learn from you.” He straightened up, determined fire burning in his eyes. “I won’t let you down.” Nedzu smiled and nodded his head, and Tsukauchi-san waved as Izuku walked out of the room.

He was calm, honestly, eerily so. He made his journey back home, walking and taking the train, without so much as an erratic heartbeat. He even managed to eat his mom’s dinner while making his normal conversation with her - though he avoided discussing the details of his meeting too deeply. And he even had a shower, and watched television that night, like every night, with no problems.

The first thing Izuku did when he stepped foot in his bedroom that night was sit on his bed, stare at the wall, and rethink his entire place in the universe.

The second thing he did was grab a blank notebook and start writing furiously.

He did not sleep that night.

Chapter Text

For the second time in as many weeks, Shouta was slumped in his chair in the main staff meeting room, sat between his two best friends. This time, however, the room was deathly silent, a dark cloud hanging over the teachers. There was no doubting what this meeting was about, after all; not a single one of them could forget about the boy who somehow knew their darkest secrets. All they could do now was hope Nedzu had visited an unpleasantness upon Midoriya Izuku. 

Judging by the grin on his face when he entered the room with, strangely, Detective Tsukauchi behind him, Shouta could already tell that something had happened, though he couldn’t say for sure what. Either way, he knew this would be an… interesting meeting.

All eyes were on the principal and the detective as they sat at the head table. The man reached into his briefcase and pulled out a stack of papers, which seemed odd to Shouta but he was far too focused on his boss to worry about it too much.

Nedzu cleared his throat, even though the room was so quiet Shouta could swear his heartbeat was audible. “Thank you all for coming again on such short notice! I promise I won’t take up too much of your time, and you will all get the information you need. Ah, but first, detective, if you will?” The man nodded and picked up the stack of papers, handing them around to nearly everyone in the room, conspicuously missing out Kurose, Hizashi, Maijima, All Might and Nedzu himself. When Shouta received his own, he looked over it. It was… a form of some kind. A sort of Non-Disclosure Agreement by the wording. But it was the writing at the top that caught his eye. There, in big, bold block capitals, was written,

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT ARTICLE FIVE NON-DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT FORM

His breath caught in his throat, an action that was mirrored by his coworkers. All Might and Hizasahi slumped in their seats, Kurose tensed, and Maijima hung his head. Even Tsukauchi seemed strangely guilty. 

“It is, unfortunately, a legal requirement for you to sign these forms. Technically, you should have signed them right after the… incident at the exam, but I wanted to confirm my suspicions first. That being said, you do need to sign them. I will try to make this make as much sense to you as I can after that.”

The unexpected sincerity from the chimera surprised Shouta, and he found himself signing on the highlighted lines before he could even process it. Around the room, his coworkers were in a similar situation, each signing their own forms, even the notoriously stubborn Shuzenji-san, though she certainly didn’t look happy about it. The room was silent save for the scratching of pen against paper, and soon everyone had finished. The detective collected them all up and slipped them into a folder. Instantly, all eyes fixed once more on Nedzu, and the nurse was the one to speak up.

“Well? What is all this about?” Her voice was laced with steel, arms crossed, glare burrowing into the chimera, who’s whiskers twitched very slightly. Shuzenji-san could strike fear into anyone’s heart, even their rat of a boss. 

Nedzu stood up on the table, paws behind his back, and nodded at all of them. “Well, allow me to begin with the news you are all probably wondering about: Midoriya Izuku.” The room held a collective breath. “I have spoken with him, with Detective Tsukauchi here, who has a Quirk that allows him to detect lies, and I have determined that he is no threat to UA as a whole, or to any of you personally.”

The response was immediate, and even Shouta couldn’t help but shoot to his feet, slamming his hands on the table as his Quirk was directed at the mammal. Shouts erupted from around the room as every teacher furiously protested. Even All Might had puffed up in fury, towering over everyone in the room. For once, Shouta agreed with the Symbol of Peace. How could the boy not be a threat? He knew each of them better than they knew themselves. He was angry, he was scared , and that wasn’t an emotion he felt often, especially not because of 15-year-old kids. 

The chimera held up a paw and cleared his throat, a dangerous gleam in his eye. A gleam that stopped even the Number One hero dead in his tracks.

“If you would all allow me to finish, I will explain.” They reluctantly sat down, but Shouta kept a firm, soul-piercing stare fixed on Nedzu. “I believe it would be better if you heard my interview with Midoriya-kun yourselves. Tsukauchi-san, if you will?” The detective nodded and pressed a button on… something. Shouta’s eyes flicked over to the object and was surprised to find an old, pre-Quirk, tape recorder. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting, but it wasn’t that.

“I apologise for the antique, but it really is quite necessary.” The room fell silent as the hiss of the tape filled the air, before Detective Tsukauchi’s voice crackled out of the ancient speaker, and every ear in the room was listening raptly. 

Every single member of staff at UA strained their ears as the interview began. The first thing that struck him about Midoriya is how young he sounded. Of course, looks can be deceiving, but Shouta had built up a certain profile of the kid in his mind, and the anxious, stuttering voice he was hearing was shattering a lot of those perceptions. Despite himself, Shouta winced a little when the kid talked about his Quirklessness. He wasn’t proud of his Quirkist past, and was making steps every day to atone for it. He still didn’t trust the kid, but if Nedzu vouched for him, then maybe, just maybe, he could give him a chance.

The tape spun on, the rustling of paper the only sound for a long few moments, before that panicked voice broke the silence again. It took a turn for the strange when Midoriya explained he didn’t remember writing his own analyses. Normally he’d call out such a blatant lie, but it was confirmed true by Tsukauchi, and Shouta trusted the man implicitly. 

It got weirder when Nedzu began asking Midoriya questions that, to Shouta, made absolutely no sense. The boy was Quirkless, that wasn’t in question anymore, so why was Nedzu asking about things that were clearly Quirk effects? And why was the kid answering yes? Hell, they even spoke French at one point, and though Shouta hadn’t read the kid’s file, he was pretty sure he hadn’t learned that at school. 

And then the last question. When Tsukauchi confirmed that Midoriya had nodded, Shouta’s heart fractured, just a little. Whatever had happened must have been too traumatic to speak about. There was silence for a few moments, and then Nedzu began his explanation.

And Shouta went from confused but concerned, to questioning his sanity. Eldritch fear gods from another dimension, feeding on the fears of humans and animals but also being those fears ? He didn’t want to believe it, but this was Nedzu . He wouldn’t joke about something like this. He glanced around at his coworkers, faces carefully blank, most likely to hide the same existential crisis Shouta was currently trying to ignore in himself, instead refocusing on the names the Nedzu on the tape was listing off. Being watched, claustrophobia, filth, darkness, loss, death, extinction, meat, being hunted, isolation, violence, madness, the unknown, wide spaces, manipulation. Shouta rolled these over in his mind and stored that information away. 

The rest of the tape was far less dramatic, though he shuddered when Midoriya took up Nedzu’s offer to be his personal student. Nedzu now had indirect access to an elder god of fear whose whole existence was gathering knowledge. At least the kid seemed wholesome, and although he was a support course student, Shouta would try his hardest to protect what innocence he had left. 

Finally, the tape clicked off, and the silence was deafening. All around him were faces that probably mirrored his own, staring at the tables in front of them and completely rethinking their lives. Except… there were a few who weren’t quite as shell shocked as the others. Hizashi and All Might wore similar expressions of realisation, as if they’d just received the answers they’d been looking for their whole lives. Shouta couldn’t see Kurose or Maijima’s faces, but the way they slouched in their seats and stared up at the ceiling showed that they felt the same way. He didn’t need to be a genius to connect all the dots there.

It was Maijima who broke the silence, minutes later. “So… why the tape recorder?”

Nedzu chittered a little, “As far as we can tell, it is the only medium that can record anything genuinely connected with the Entities. It most likely wasn’t necessary, but we weren’t sure how the interview would pan out. Quite well, as it happens!”

The support hero nodded slowly. “I’m guessing we’ll be needing something like that more with Midoriya around. Let’s work together to design something a little more robust and useful. Oh, and speaking of the kid, who’s homeroom is he in?”

Nedzu grinned sharply, and Maijima gulped and muttered something that sounded suspiciously like I’m not paid well enough for this . It was then that Shouta decided to pipe in with a question of his own. “So we’ve already got one of these… Avatars around here, with the kid. We’re lucky he’s not hostile, but who’s to say we won’t get any others, more hostile than him?”

Nedzu seemed to consider this, humming in thought. “I shouldn’t worry about it too much, Aizawa. Avatars, especially fully realised like Midoriya-kun is, tend to be few and far between, and those that are around are usually too focused on their own matters to worry about what’s happening with us! And if we do get attacked, well, only an Avatar can kill another Avatar. But! In honesty, it is highly unlikely we do get attacked directly. After all, we are not, strictly speaking, part of that world. My advice is not to worry about it!”

That… didn’t reassure Shouta at all, but he’d take what he can get. Besides, it was Shuzenji-san’s to interrogate their boss.

“Don’t think I didn’t notice you mentioning that these Avatars have to feed on fear! How has the boy been doing this, and how are you going to make sure he does it here as well?”

Nedzu opened his mouth to reply but was cut off by Kan. “Hold on, surely we shouldn’t encourage that if we don’t have to? How do you know it’s a need and not a want ?” The chimera’s smile was a little strained as he replied.

“Well, simple! In my research, I’ve seen the effects before! It is rather concerning. First he would grow weaker and sicker, becoming confused and tired. If he still didn’t feed on fear, he would be driven to some rather extreme measures in order to save himself from starvation. That is a scenario I don’t believe any of us want!” Nedzu chirped, and Kan paled a little. “What we must remember is, no matter how cruel it may sound, Midoriya Izuku is no longer human. He died ten or so months ago. But he is trying and it is important not to isolate him. Because he is no longer human, he needs anchors, normal people to keep him tied to his humanity. So, while I am not quite sure yet how he’s been feeding his patron these past few months, I do have a very good idea of how he can continue with it!” His tone was light, but brooked no argument, not that anyone would dare try to argue with the chimera, especially over a subject none of them even knew about before this meeting.

It was Nemuri who broke the ensuing silence. “So, what now?” 

“Now, Kayama? There isn’t much of a now . We all treat Midoriya Izuku as we would any other student, I will work with him on matters of a more… paranormal nature, and we hope we don’t catch the attention of any of the dark gods that would like nothing more than to feast on our fear! Does that sound good to everyone?” They all nodded, and he gave them a toothy grin. “Very well! Now, unless there are any other questions, I will leave you all to readjust to your place in the universe in peace!”

With that, he left, unhurried and unconcerned. Detective Tsukauchi smiled sheepishly at the room and left too, leaving them once more blanketed in silence.

After a pause that seemed to stretch on for days, Hizashi leaned back in his chair, stretched, and looked around the room.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m gonna get blind drunk tonight.”

Chapter Text

Izuku took a deep breath as he looked up at the imposing building before him. Yes, he’d been here twice before, but he was kind of preoccupied by the exams or his meeting with Nedzu the previous times. Of course, now he was preoccupied by the fact that he was a servant of a god of fear and now had to feed off of fear - which, how had he been doing that the past ten months? - so he supposed it was a similar situation. Kind of.

Honestly, his main concern today was about not immediately creeping everyone out with his eyes. Sure, he’d gotten used to people feeling uncomfortable when he looked at them, but that didn’t mean he liked it. The best that he could hope for is for someone to be willing to look past them and find something they liked in him. Of course, that would mean someone actually liked something in him, and Izuku really couldn’t see that happening. But he hoped .

It was then that he realised he’d been standing in front of UA’s gates for about five minutes now, and people were beginning to stare. Embarrassed, he scrambled into the school, searching desperately for his classroom, 1-H.

1-H! His homeroom teacher was going to be Power Loader! One of the few heroes with both a hero license and a support license! That thought churned over in his mind as he ran through the halls, trying not to be late. He supposed he could just Know where it was but that felt like a misuse of power, and he really didn’t want to experiment too much before his lessons with Nedzu-san. Nedzu- sensei , now. 

That was another thing Izuku was really trying not to think about right now; he was Nedzu’s Personal Student ! And yeah, okay, he technically sold his humanity away for it, but it was beginning to seem like a pretty good deal…

He shook his head as he finally found the right door. The workshops were on the floor below him, and he couldn’t wait to get into them. Now, though, he had a different and far more terrifying door in front of him. He took one last deep breath, and slid it open.

The rest of his class was already inside, and eighteen pairs of eyes turned and stared at him. At that moment, Izuku knew how his patron had become so powerful. He felt weak as nearly every other person in the room dissected him with just their eyes. His eyes, however, were far more powerful, and as his gaze drifted across the other students, each one paled several shades when his eyesight landed upon them. Finally, he spotted it: the sole empty seat in the classroom, right at the back left corner and next to the one person who wasn’t currently staring at him, fixated as she was on whatever device she was tinkering with.

Izuku recognised the girl from the exams; she had pink hair in thick dreadlocks, and her yellow eyes were fixed to the object in her hands. She only glanced up for a moment when he passed her, their eyes meeting, before she turned back to her work without even a flinch. Izuku was stunned, and he only just had the presence of mind to sit himself down. She had just looked at him, straight in the eyes, and it barely registered to her. Even his mom tensed a little when she looked in his eyes, but this girl didn’t even acknowledge it. That was… interesting.

He was brought away from his thoughts by the door sliding open once more, revealing a short, skinny man wearing a large yellow helmet, with tufts of orange hair poking out the bottom. He wore blue jeans but no shirt, and his hands were clad in dark grey fingerless gloves. The tips of his fingers were orange metal, and he was currently clutching a large thermos that Izuku hoped contained coffee. The eldritch interloper in his brain helpfully supplied that yes, it was coffee… with a little something extra. And yes, it was because of Izuku. He shifted awkwardly in his seat as the man sighed deeply, approaching the podium at the front. The bell rang, and the man took a long drink from his thermos before speaking.

“Alright everyone, nice to see you’re all settled quickly. I’m the Pro Hero Power Loader, Maijima Higari. You can call me Maijima-sensei if you want, but most people just call me PL. It’s up to you, though. Today’s more of an introductory day, so you don’t need to worry about lessons. In a couple of minutes, we’ll be heading to the auditorium for the entrance ceremony. Then, you’ll be coming back here to pick up your syllabus, and we’ll head to the workshop to introduce you to that. Then you’ll be more or less free to go. 

“For now, though, we’ve got a little time to introduce ourselves, so stand up and say your name and why you’re in this course. I’ll start: I’m Maijima Higari, and I have to make sure you kids don’t blow yourselves up.” He then pointed at the first student, a completely plain looking boy who stood up, repeated his name, and that he was interested in costume design, and sat back down. 

This process repeated with every other student, standing up, saying their name and that they wanted to help heroes or design machines or something along those lines. It was when they arrived at the pink girl next to Izuku that the pattern was disrupted. At first she didn’t even notice Maijima-sensei pointing at her, but when he cleared his throat she looked up.

“Hatsume Mei, future CEO of Hatsumei Industries! With my babies, I’m going to take over the support world!”

There was silence as the class struggled to process this strange member of their class. Izuku, on the other hand, was just happy he wasn’t the strangest there. Well, he still was, but at least none of them really knew it. Maijima-sensei sighed and moved on, and Hatsume-san returned to her work. 

Eventually, though, it was Izuku’s turn. He gulped and straightened up. “M-Midoriya Izuku! I want to help support heroes with my analysis!” That seemed to be good enough, as Maijima-sensei nodded at him and checked his watch.

“Right, looks like it’s about time to head on out. Leave your stuff here, follow me, and don’t wander off.” With that, he drained the rest of his thermos and walked out, the class scrabbling after him, apart from Mei, who was too caught up in her work to notice. Izuku lingered, coughing to get her attention.

“A-ah, Hatsume-san, we should go…”

The girl studied him for a moment, crosshair pupils focusing intently on him, before she nodded, putting her contraption into a pocket and standing up. “Let’s go then, Greenie! And call me Mei!”

Izuku’s blush could have lit the entirety of Japan for a month.

The entrance ceremony was… long.

That was honestly the only thing Izuku could say about it. He hoped Nedzu-sensei’s lessons were a little more dynamic than his speeches. He was at least a little entertained by Mei-san’s tinkering, though he didn’t exactly understand what she was doing. 

In any case, they were finally released back into Maijima-sensei’s care, and they went over their class schedules in the classroom. Izuku’s head was spinning: Math with Ectoplasm, Literature with Cementoss, Art with Midnight! His head was spinning over all the Pro Heroes he would meet. Sure, they’d be teaching him, but Izuku never really struggled in classes… beyond PE. He hoped Vlad King wouldn’t be too hard on them…

He was a little sad he wouldn’t be getting English with Present Mic, but the private sessions with Nedzu-sensei more than made up for that. He was also looking forward to the analysis sessions he’d have with Nedzu-sensei. He didn’t have them every time the class had workshop time though, which seemed strange but he could ask Nedzu-sensei tomorrow. 

It was the workshop they were standing in now, in fact. Maijima-sensei was going through health and safety, and Izuku was listening intently, even if he didn’t need to, strictly speaking. He just Knew it would be important, even if the Eye was being annoyingly tight-lipped about why. Honestly, he thought the Entity derived some sort of pleasure from seeing him confused. Maybe it did?

Izuku was shaken from his musings on his patron by Maijima-sensei dismissing them. He blinked and gathered his things, but the teacher called out to stop him before he left.

“Midoriya, can I see you for a second?”

His heart leapt to his throat. Historically, teachers wanting to speak to him had never gone well and, despite knowing that Nedzu-sensei wouldn’t let anything bad happen to him, he couldn’t help the rush of fear that filled him. The analyst in him idly wondered what entity his fear was feeding at that moment. The Buried, because of the crushing anxiety? The Lonely and the Hunt, for his fear of being singled out and persecuted? Maybe even the Desolation, because he was terrified of losing the little happiness he’d already found here? Or perhaps it was all of them, all gaining a gourmet meal of Izuku’s fear as he followed Maijima-sensei to his office. 

When the teacher opened the door for him, gesturing for him to take a seat, he did so mechanically, feeling his brain slip into the familiar fog of dissociation. He was jolted out of it when Maijima-sensei placed an object on the table in front of him. It was… a tape recorder. Pristine and a little bulkier than the one he’d seen Detective Tsukauchi-san use, with a slot below the main tape deck and what looked like a hinge of some kind on the top third. Fear gave way to confusion, gave way to fear again. Ah, he was going to be interviewed. Interrogated really. Wonderful. Well, he was feeding his patron at least. He was about to be Known.

“I designed this with Nedzu to be a little more robust than the antique they were using.” Oh, Nedzu lied to him. He guessed that would be feeding the Spiral, if Izuku was particularly scared of false friends. But no, he was used to them. “It’s got a transcriber too so we’ll have a transcript whenever it’s used.” Yes, of course they’d want to keep it in as many mediums as possible. All the better to feed the Eye. “It’ll be kept with Nedzu, but I wanted you to know that you should be able to use it whenever you want.”

Oh.

That was unexpected.

Izuku’s confusion must have shown on his face because Maijima-sensei nodded at him, metal fingertips clacking against the table as he drummed his fingers. “Well, with your whole… situation, you’re going to need to feed on fear or whatever, right?” He nodded slowly. “Right, well, Nedzu has some kinda plans for that, and apparently it’ll be helpful to have this when you do?” The man shrugged, “Anyway I just wanted to show it to you. It’s fairly straightforward; when it’s recording it’ll transcribe automatically and print in real time. When it’s paused it’ll stop until it’s unpaused, and when it’s stopped it’ll end the transcript. The rest is pretty intuitive; you’re a smart kid, so I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

He blinked. This was… well, for all intents and purposes, it was a gift. Sure, one with a bit of a grim purpose, but a gift nonetheless. “Uh, I, thank you Maijima-sensei.” He bowed deeply and his teacher nodded at him. “A-and, I just wanted to… apologise, for all the distress that my analysis must have put you through.” He remained in a bowing position, and his teacher looked down at him and scratched the back of his head.

“Kid, sit up.” He did so, and Maijima-sensei looked at him, face unreadable beneath his heavy mask. “Look, I’m not going to pretend it didn’t creep me out, because it did. But that was the point , yeah? Whatever dark god decided to force you into its’ service did that. Not you. You’ve got nothing to feel guilty about, so don’t apologise. Besides, I know how these things can screw with you. Better than most people, probably. But that’s a story for another day.  For now, just run along. And, uh, try to do normal kid stuff? I’ve already got a headache from even the thought of teaching Hatsume, and I need at least someone in the class to have a level head.”

Despite his nerves and surprise, Izuku laughed. “I’ll do my best, sensei.” With that, he bowed and left, heading back to the workshop to gather up his things.

As he entered the room, he was surprised to find Mei-san still there, tinkering with the device she’d been working on the whole day. She barely looked up as he entered, and he walked over to her.

“Hey, uh, Mei-san? We should probably get going…” he chuckled nervously, “Oh! Do you take the train? I could walk with you to the station if you want-” 

He was cut off by a loud shout of “EUREKA!” as Mei-san shot out of her chair, device held aloft. She finally seemed to register his existence and she whipped around, her nose almost touching his. “Greenie! Are you ready to witness the latest baby of Hatsume Mei, future CEO of Hatsumei Industries!” It wasn’t a question, and Izuku barely had a chance to respond as the girl flicked open a panel on the side and pushed a button. 

Nothing happened. Silence filled the air as both of them stood as still as statues, waiting for something to happen. When it became clear that it wasn’t working, Izuku took a step forward.

“Me-”

A loud BANG accompanied an explosion as both Mei-san and Izuku were thrown back, Izuku hitting a wall and Mei-san being thrown through the door. 

He groaned as he rubbed his head. Well, at least he knew why he had to pay attention to the workshop safety rules. Somewhere, Izuku could feel an eldritch deity laughing at his misfortune.

Elsewhere, Maijima Higari spontaneously developed a splitting headache.

He could tell it was the first of many that year.

Chapter Text

Izuku walked up to Nedzu-sensei’s door, already expecting it to swing open as soon as he raised his fist. It was his second day at UA, and the rest of his class had just started their workshop session. Izuku, meanwhile, left for the Principal’s office for his own analysis lesson. He walked in the now-open door and looked towards his teacher, who was currently typing away at the computer on his desk. The chimera turned to him, baring his teeth in a facsimile of a grin.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! What a pleasure! Come in, take a seat!”

Izuku obliged, the door swinging shut behind him as he sat in the chair across from Nedzu-sensei. They sat in silence for a moment, the tapping of the keys the only sound. After a few minutes, the principal finally turned back to Izuku.

“I apologise, Midoriya-kun! I just had some last-minute business to attend to. Well now, where shall we begin… ah, yes!” The chimera turned back to the computer and typed a little more, pressing a few buttons, before gesturing Izuku over to his side of the desk. “Today, I’d simply like to see how you perform your analysis live. Quite fortunately, Class 1-A has their heroics lessons at this time!” Izuku walked over to the computer, taking a seat next to Nedzu-sensei. The screen showed the image of twenty students standing in front of All Might, who seemed to be discussing the exercise with them. 

Normally, Izuku would have been freaking out over the fact that All Might was teaching at UA, but the Eye had already ruined that particular surprise, and besides, the hero made him a little uncomfortable ever since that day. Now, he just focused on the students, trying to see what he could pick up on about their Quirks just from looks alone.

He began to mumble, “W-well, the mutations are the most obvious at first glance. The one with pink skin, she stands out, but I don’t think that’s because of her Quirk. The boy with the bird head is in a similar situation; I think they both have hereditary mutations, like the boy with the rock-shaped head. On the other hand, I’m pretty sure the invisible person’s Quirk is their invisibility, and - wait, are they naked?!” He pulled himself out of his mutter storm when his patron informed him that yes, she is naked . He stammered, looking away, anywhere but the screen. “N-nedzu-sensei, is it really appropriate for a First Year hero student to be naked on the field?”

His teacher frowned. “No, no it is not. I shall be having words with that particular support company. In the meantime, continue, Midoriya-kun.”

He nodded shakily and picked up where he left off. “W-well, judging from that girl’s posture and the design of her uniform, I’d say she has a frog mutation? Oh, and that boy’s tail is most likely his Quirk with how muscular it is… that other boy, his Quirk is probably to do with the balls on his head… oh, and his elbows are really chunky… and that boy, his Quirk looks like he can grow mouths, ears and eyes on his arms… her horns are probably part of her Quirk… and if I squint… yeah, those are earphone jacks! 

“And… I think that’s all of the mutations, so let’s see… their armour looks nearly identical to Ingenium’s costume, so they’re probably a relative with an engine Quirk or similar… it’s hard to see but that belt looks special, like glass so… maybe a focus of some kind? That boy’s costume is a bit impractical, but it looks like his Quirk is to do with ice… those two boys aren’t very well-covered, so maybe they’re relying on their Quirks to protect them… and, oh, that’s a lot of skin showing… I doubt she’d do that unless it was for her Quirk, so something that requires access to a lot of skin… hmm, that’s all I can get from just looking at them, N-Nedzu-sensei.”

The principal nodded and smiled at him before pulling out a phone and sending a message. On the screen, All Might jumped and pulled out his phone, paling considerably as he read his message. Confused, Izuku watched as he turned to the class and said something to them. They seemed nervous and a few started looking around. Whatever had just happened, it made Izuku feel… good? More whole, certainly. He turned to Nedzu-sensei, who was simply smiling placidly at him. “Is there a problem, Midoriya-kun?”

“D-did… did you just tell them I was watching them?”

“Did I?”

Izuku blinked and turned back to the screen, deciding he didn’t want to get into that conversation. He ignored the principal’s chuckle as he looked over what the hero class was doing. They seemed to have begun the exercise, as mini-Ingenium was standing outside one of the buildings next to a blonde boy with a black streak through his hair. Glancing at one of the internal cameras, he could see the girl with large horns standing by a fake bomb, while the pink girl ran around the building, throwing a liquid from her hands onto the floor that quickly ate through the concrete. “Acid, then… I wonder if she can control the viscosity or the pH… if so then I’m sure she could skate around on it…”

He watched as whatever signal the two outside were waiting for went off and they entered, looking around them carefully. As they passed by a stairwell, heading up towards the next floor, the pink girl dropped from the ceiling, splashing her acid at their feet. Mini-Ingenium used his Quirk to run away, while the blonde smirked at the girl and tensed, before a stream of electricity flowed out of his body, shocking the girl. However, once the electricity stopped, the boy seemed to go into a daze, holding his thumbs up with a blank expression on his face.

“So his Quirk is electricity, but it’s probably not meant to be pushed out at range… so it would work best if he used it more like a taser… everyone in the class would probably benefit from rubber soles if keeps using his Quirk like that…”

With both of them taken out, Izuku turned his head to mini-Ingenium, who was currently fighting the horned girl, her horns flying out of her head and towards the other person. “So she can fire her horns out… I wonder how many pairs she can control at once… I’d bet she has to have a special diet for them too…” The girl was unfortunately not fast enough and mini-Ingenium raced past her latch onto the fake bomb. “If he’s anything like his relative, he probably has to ingest something specific to fuel himself…”

The exercise had clearly ended, and the two incapacitated students were helped out and taken away, presumably to the nurse’s office. He watched as the boy with the tail and a red haired boy walked in and placed the bomb on the fourth floor. Meanwhile, the invisible girl and the blonde with the focus belt waited outside. The two inside made their way down to the first floor waiting a little ways inside the front room. It wasn’t a bad strategy; when faced with a Quirk like invisibility it’s probably wise to go on the offensive, to make sure your enemy can’t sneak around. Indeed, once the two outside went in they attacked, redhead taking the blonde boy while tail boy fought invisible girl. The blonde boy fired a laser from his stomach area - “The belt must act as a focus for it… maybe he can’t control it well? - but the redhead blocked it with solid arms - “It looks like he turned into rock, so… a hardening Quirk? I wonder if there are any faults in the rock that could be exploited…”.

A little while away, tail boy was struggling with the invisible girl. His fighting style involved a lot of spins to use his tail, which was unfortunate as he kept taking his eyes off his opponent. “Hmm… he’s too used to using his Quirk with his style… he needs to learn more hand to hand…” Eventually, the girl seemed to slip away, and by that point the battle might as well have been over. The cameras’ infrared showed her touching the fake bomb and that was it. The four of them filed out together, some a little bruised but all seemingly happy.

The next exercise started almost immediately afterwards, with the boy with thick eyelashes and grey hair entering the building with the boy with multiple arms. Outside, the bird-headed boy and the boy with balls on his head waited in silence. Grey-hair waited inside the front room while multi-arms stayed with the bomb. “Hmm, it would be better if grey-hair took up a guerrilla position while multi-arms - assuming that he can use his Quirk to hear better - kept him updated on their opponents’ locations. As it was, when the time was up, grey-hair used his Quirk, turning himself into what looked like solid steel. “Two hardening Quirks in one class… I wonder what would happen if they fought…” 

However, being made of steel didn’t make him non-stick, and he was pretty quickly immobilised by ball-head. “His Quirk makes his the balls on his head sticky, but clearly not to him… I wonder if their adhesiveness can be controlled…” The two then quickly made their way towards the bomb, where multi-arms was waiting for them. That was when bird-head let loose his Quirk, a dark shadow connected to him that seemed to act on its own. “Sentient Quirks are unusual… I wonder how in-depth their thought process is…” The black shape was enough of a distraction to allow the short ball-head to slip on by and grab onto the bomb. The short boy removed the balls from the grey-haired boy and the four left quietly.

Ponytail-girl and two-toned boy were on defence next, against chunky elbows and frog girl. He was reasonably sure of two of the Quirks in play, so he was excited to see the others. He wouldn’t get a chance, however, because as soon as the attackers entered the building, two-toned boy slammed his foot on the ground, encasing the entire building - and the attackers - in a layer of thick ice. The two were unable to move until the boy melted them out - “So he has a heat element to his Quirk as well… maybe it’s more like temperature regulation…” - and they were quickly sent to the infirmary, probably due to fears of hypothermia.

Beside him, Nedzu-sensei frowned. “It’s as bad as I feared, then…” At Izuku’s questioning look, he simply waved a paw. “Don’t worry about it right now, Midoriya-kun. Now, it seems they’ll most likely have to move buildings for the final match, so we have a little time to discuss. What do you think of the class so far?”

Izuku hummed in thought. “Well, they’re very comfortable with their Quirks, though some have trained more than others… even so, some of them seem a little too reliant on their Quirks, and aren’t flexible enough to adapt when using them wouldn’t help, or would be actively detrimental. A few of them have pretty good strategies, but can’t adapt them to fit with a changing situation. They all definitely show potential, but they still need training…” he started, and blushed. “A-ah, which is why they’re at a hero school, o-of course!”

The principal smiled at him. “I agree with your assessment of the situation, Midoriya-kun! And I am sure their homeroom teacher would be more than happy to give them Quirkless fighting lessons! Ah, it seems like the next round is about to begin!”

Izuku turned back, and sure enough, earjack girl and rocky head were standing by the bomb. Rock-head seemed to be bent over the corner for some reason, though Izuku couldn’t see from that angle. Meanwhile, earjack girl was plugging her jacks into the ground. Outside, the girl in the spacey looking costume was talking with the black haired boy in the yellow costume, probably planning their entrance. When time ran out, space girl did something interesting: she tapped the boy on the shoulder, and he began to float.

“So, gravity nullification, or at least weakening, with a five-point activation requirement… probably has a weight limit, though she doesn’t seem close to it…” He watched as the boy floated up to the fifth floor, and then worked his way through the building from top to bottom, while gravity girl started from the bottom. Along the way, Izuku noticed a large number of rats, eerily still, watching the two. “Probably a Quirk… the rock-head boy? I wonder if he can control animals, or just talk to them…” 

The two attackers soon met up on the third floor and found themselves in the room with the bomb. They stepped forwards, but were seemingly incapacitated by something, as they collapsed to the floor, hands clenched over their ears. Looking at earjack girl, he saw her jacks were plugged into some devices on her forearms. “Amplifiers, looks like… has to be projecting something internal, so… maybe her heartbeat? It could certainly incapacitate someone if played at the right frequency…” It gave animal boy enough time to capture them both, and just like that, the lesson was over. Clearly, the class had forgotten about being watched, as he didn’t feel different anymore. 

He wasn’t sure he liked how disappointed that made him feel.

“Well, Midoriya-kun, what a show! It seems we still have some time left, but I’ve seen quite enough of your analysis! Would you like to discuss some more paranormal matters?” Izuku blinked and nodded. “Very well, is there any particular Entity you’d like to discuss?”

“I, uh, think the Eye would probably be best to begin with.” He scratched the back of his head.

Nedzu-sensei smiled and nodded. “An excellent idea! Well, why don’t you begin by covering what you already know?”

He hummed. “N-not much more than you told me, really. The Eye is the fear of being watched, followed, and having your secrets revealed. It’s the, uh, fear of being Known , but it’s also the drive to understand, e-even when your discoveries destroy you. It’s also known as Beholding, Ceaseless Watcher and It Knows You. After I… d-died, I became an Avatar of it, which basically means I serve it now, and have to… feed it with fear. I, um, think you did that when you told Class 1-A I was watching them. I felt… full, I guess. 

“Uh, anyway, the Eye tends to manifest in places or objects related to books and surveillance… so I guess UA is pretty strong for it, considering the amount of cameras around here.” He laughed nervously. “A-as for the powers it’s given me, so far it gives me knowledge I shouldn’t have any way of knowing, l-like telling me the invisible girl was… uh, yeah, anyway, I can understand every language, I’m pretty sure, and I think I can… force people to answer my questions truthfully, even if they don’t want to.” He finished, and blushed a little when he realised just how much he’d rattled off.

Nedzu-sensei smiled at him. “Very good, Midoriya-kun! I doubt there’s much more I could tell you about it! I would like, however, to discuss your power of Knowing a little. Tell me, what does it feel like to you?”

Izuku furrowed his brow and closed his eyes, focusing on the faint pressure in the back of his head. As he turned his attention towards it he felt it grow stronger, more insistent, knowledge pushing its way into his head. He gasped and clutched his temples, panting as he bent over himself. He felt the soft paw of his teacher patting his back.

“I apologise, Midoriya-kun, that was probably an unwise request on my part.”

Izuku waved him off. “I-It’s fine, Nedzu-sensei, I-I just… it’s like there’s a… a door in my head, and there’s an ocean behind the door and it’s pushing against it and if I push back it just pushes harder and… sometimes, water just… seeps through the cracks, and then I Know something. It usually happens if I’m wondering a question in my head…” He rubbed his temples softly, trying to focus on anything other than the persistent hum of Knowledge entreating entrance into his head.

“Hmm, I see. Perhaps, for now, it would be better to try to avoid thinking of questions you don’t intend to ask? At least, until we have figured out a way to better manage it.”

He nodded absently, and Nedzu-sensei gave a pleased chirp . “Excellent! Now, I believe you should take the last half an hour or so of class to rest. Normally I would send you to Recovery Girl, but it seems she is quite busy with the hero students, so you may lay on the sofa until you are ready to leave. Izuku mumbled a thanks and slouched over to the sofas at the back of the room. He collapsed onto one, and fell into an inky black slumber.

Chapter Text

“Uhhh, Mei-san?”

No response. The girl was fixated on the device she was working on. Izuku was no expert but they looked like some sort of metal boots, thick and chunky. He didn’t really understand what the pink-haired girl was doing, but he knew they’d just been dismissed for lunch after their workshop session. Izuku had spent the time going over the class lists for both hero classes and writing up preliminary analyses based on their Quirk descriptions and trying not to wonder about the name he didn’t see there. And clearly, Mei-san had spent it doing… whatever this was. 

He cleared his throat again. “Mei-san? We’ve got to go eat lunch…”

A mumble, barely audible amidst the sounds of metal banging against metal. Izuku sighed. He really didn’t want to be the one to do this, but if he didn’t, Mei-san wouldn’t eat. 

He coughed, “I’m going to have to drag you away, aren’t I…?”

He waited for a reaction, but either the girl didn’t hear him or didn’t care. He hooked his arms under hers to get some leverage, and began to pull, pointedly ignoring the fact that he was touching a girl. 

It was a solid plan, really. The only problem was that Izuku was a scrawny nerd with no real muscle to speak of, while Mei-san was far stronger than him, well-built with plenty of muscle from hauling machines and hammering for most of the day. So, while Izuku strained himself, turning bright red in the face from exertion, Mei-san did not budge an inch, and continued whatever work she was doing. 

After five minutes of pulling, Izuku was panting hard, and finally pulled away, ready to find a different plan of action. Finally, Mei-san sighed and looked back at him.

“You’re not gonna give up, are ya Greenie?”

He gasped for breath. “Not… until you… come with me…” 

The girl looked back at her work, then back at him. “Fineeee,” she whined. “But only this once! I’ve got too much work to do on all my babies!”

Izuku would take what he could get for now, but he swore he’d find a way to get Mei-san to eat lunch every day, even if he had to annoy her into it.

The two walked down to the cafeteria in relative peace, right up until Izuku made the mistake of asking about her inventions.

“My babies? Oh they’re amazing Greenie! The baby I’m working on right now are the Hatsumei Industries Hover Shoes™!”

“D-did you just say-”

“Those babies will really help you out in a pinch! They’ll help you soar over the competition in style! Buy the Hatsumei Industries Hover Shoes™ today!”

“H-how do you keep-”

“Or maybe you’re looking for evasive action in a different style, try the Hatsumei Industries Hydraulic Bracers™! They’re flashy, smart, and will keep you safe from anything you could need them for! Buy now!”

“Mei-san I-”

“Need to capture a villain fast? Look no further than the Hatsumei Industries Capture Gun™! Its net cartridges’ patented anti-slash technology will keep even the toughest of villains contained! Call 1-800-MEI now! That’s 1-800-MEI!”

“Mei-san, w-we’re here!”

The girl blinked. Sure enough, they were standing at the entrance of the cafeteria, about to get into the queue. Izuku chuckled nervously as they both grabbed bowls of gyudon and sat at a table in the corner of the room.

“So Greenie, you disappeared from workshop yesterday! Where’d ya go?”

Izuku swallowed his food and scratched his neck. “A-ah, well, I’m an analysis track student, so I have my workshop lessons split between the workshop and… Principal Nedzu…”

She gave a low whistle. “Pretty impressive Greenie. And you survived?” she laughed loudly, causing the students nearby to glare at them. “You should try out some of my babies sometime if you’re that lucky!” She took a bite and hummed in thought. “Actually… I do need a new guinea pig…”

He sputtered, “Guinea pig?! Mei-san, I-I can’t-”

His protests were cut off by a shrill siren. They both clamped their hands over their ears, watching as many of the students in the room did the same. A couple of students hurried for the exit doors, and more soon followed, until there was a mass exodus of students, all pushing and shoving each other. Izuku decided to stay seated, and Mei-san did the same, and the two watched the veritable flood of students, pushing, crushing each other. He idly thought that the Buried would be feeding well from this.

He heard chatter too, something about this being an intruder alarm. That surprised him; who would be so bold as to break into UA? Well… he could find out, if he wanted to. He was hesitant to feed into the Eye like that, but maybe it wasn’t so bad if he could use it to help…?

He made up his mind, and turned his thoughts backwards, back to the dull pressure in his head. He visualised the door, straining against the weight of the ocean of knowledge behind it. He grasped the handle tight, focused on the apparent intruder, and opened it, just a crack.

The resultant flood of knowledge was almost too much for him to bear. Flashes of names, faces, motives and plans all rushed into his head at once. He slammed the door shut again as he collapsed to the ground, clutching his head. He was only vaguely aware of some shouting in the distance, of the students calming down and filing out, and of Mei-san’s voice calling him. His head throbbed in pain, and he felt a thin trickle of liquid from his nose.

His last thought before he fell into unconsciousness was that he’d never had a nosebleed before.

Izuku woke up slowly, eyes fluttering open then slamming shut at the bright lights of the room. He groaned, and heard the click-tap of someone walking with a cane crossing the floor. They stopped by his bed, and an old voice croaked at him.

“Whatever you did was a very bad idea, young man.”

He cracked an eye open, squinting at the person in front of him. His vision was blurry, but he could just make out a short blob of grey and white, with a splash of pink. “W-where…?”

The old woman huffed, “You’re in the nurse’s office. That young friend of yours was nice enough to bring you here after you overexerted yourself doing whatever you tried to do.”

Memories rushed back to Izuku in a flood, and he shot up, before doubling over in pain. “P-Principal Nedzu, I-I need to talk to him.”

“While I would normally suggest you get some rest, I believe I know what you were trying to achieve! Shuzenji-san, would you allow me a moment with Midoriya-kun?”

“Hm, fine, but make it quick. The boy needs rest.”

Nedzu-sensei chirped, and Izuku heard the padding of his paws against the floor as he approached the bed. “How do you feel, Midoriya-kun?”

“Uh, f-fine…” Even as he said that, another spike of pain lanced through his head and he winced. “...head hurts a little…”

The chimera hummed, “I see. Well, while it was indeed unwise to attempt to Know without supervision, we can at least take advantage of whatever knowledge you have gained!”

Izuku nodded, wincing again. “U-uh, right, um, I only caught some of it, but the intruder calls himself Shigaraki Tomura, he, uh, caused the incident as a distraction to allow him to sneak inside to get some information… he hates All Might and wants to kill him, s-so it’s probably something that would help him with that, maybe… maybe a schedule of some kind?”

His teacher hummed in thought, “Very well, thank you Midoriya-kun. That’s very useful indeed! But for now, get some rest.” There was a rustle of paper as something was placed on the bedside table. “I took the liberty of typing up some information about a few other Entities that you might be interested in. Have a look when you’re feeling better!”

He nodded slowly, laying back down in his bed before he succumbed to sleep once more.

Shouta was really hoping this meeting was about something other than the Midoriya kid. The boy wasn’t even in the hero course and he was already giving Shouta a headache. He didn’t envy Maijima at all. He slumped in his seat between Hizashi and Nemuri, longing for the comfort of his sleeping bag. Predictably, the chatter around the room was about the intruder alarm earlier that day.

“So it was just the press?” Nemuri asked Hizashi over Shouta’s head. “Man, I was panicking a little!”

Hizashi hummed, “Seems that way. But it’s a little strange for them to be able to get in at all, yeah? The gate usually stops ‘em!”

“You would be correct, Yamada!” Nedzu popped out of the floor. “The UA barrier is designed to keep out anyone who does not have a UA ID or visitor’s pass, so this incursion is quite the conundrum!”

Kan looked around, “Is the meeting starting? Maijima isn’t even here.”

“Very astute, Kan! There’s no worry, I have Maijima working on repairing the gate at the moment! Now, I believe it’s time we get a good look at the incident.” He pressed a button, and the projector flickered on, displaying a video file. Nedzu pressed play, and the clip began. 

It was the press, swarming at the UA barrier like they had been doing that morning. A red circle appeared on the screen, highlighting a person in a hoodie. They slinked up to the barrier and pressed a hand against it. Instantly, the solid metal began to corrode, and shortly crumbled into dust. In a matter of moments, the gate was nothing but powder scattered on the ground. The press burst through, and the person followed, breaking off from the group after a few moments. The video ended, and Nedzu’s face grew serious.

“I have discovered that this is Shigaraki Tomura, almost certainly a fake name. He intends to kill All Might,” the man in question coughed up blood, “and orchestrated the break-in to distract us while he stole All Might’s class schedule. I believe, if he intends to attack this week, he may attempt to strike during one of the USJ trips. However, it’s certainly possible he won’t attack for a while, so Ryoutsutsu, please accompany him until such time as Shigaraki is apprehended. Your cloning will be invaluable.” The man nodded, but Shouta was focused on something else.

“You said you ‘discovered’ this information. How?”

The chimera nodded, “My personal student decided to use his abilities to gain information about the intruder. I did not ask him to do that, and he is currently resting in Shuzenji-san’s office, but the information is useful nonetheless.”

“How do we know the information is correct?” Kan frowned, and Shouta couldn’t help but agree. “It’s not like we can trust this eldritch god.”

“No, we can’t, but the Eye deals in knowledge and information. Other Entities have lies covered; the Eye may withhold information, but it would never lie.”

Kan’s frown deepened, but said nothing more. It wasn’t exactly the most reassuring response, but they knew it was the best they were going to get.

“Now, I believe that’s everything. Remain vigilant, and keep up the good work!”

Nedzu left, and Shouta wasn’t far behind, a churning settling in his gut. He just knew something bad was about to happen.

Izuku awoke again, much later in the day. The pain in his head had mostly gone now, replaced by a dull throb. Yawning and stretching he turned on his side, looking over at the small packet Nedzu-sensei had left for him. He blinked the sleep out of his eyes and picked it up, sitting up a little to read it better.

The Corruption

Also known as Filth, The Crawling Rot.

The fear of disease and filth, it is linked to feelings of disgust and revulsion. Its common manifestations involve mould, insects, rot, decay and infection. Avatars are often either bringers of disease or living hives for worms or insects. It also seems to hold dominion over unhealthy love and relationships, often being drawn to people considered ‘toxic’. As such, Avatars tend to have an obsessive relationship with manifestations of their patron.

The Vast

Also known as The Falling Titan

The fear of heights, falling, wide open spaces; of losing yourself in a space far too big, and of our own insignificance in the universe. Its common manifestations usually involve falling, but it can manifest in anything to do with large spaces, such as deep water or, rarely, outer space. It also manifests as creatures far too large for the mind to comprehend. Avatars tend to have the ability to transport others into the Vast at will, which appears to involve falling through an endless, cloudless sky. They can also affect the senses of others, making their mind believe they are falling at terminal velocity. It is the antithesis to the Buried, though both can manifest at the same time, such as in the deep ocean; a vast, endless abyss where you are surrounded by crushing pressure.

The Hunt

The fear of being chased, of being prey. It is one of the most primal fears, and one that humans rarely experience, being fed mainly by animals. Common manifestations involve the victim being chased by a predator. Avatars of the Hunt are known as Hunters, and are unique in that they are one of the few beings able to outright kill a fully-realised Avatar. Hunters tend to be more predatory and violent; often, if they are aware of the Hunt’s influence on them, they will be ambivalent towards it, as long as their bloodlust is sated. It is for these reasons that the Hunt so often chooses Avatars from the police force and heroics industry; their work often involves hunting down criminals and villains, so it has an easier time influencing them. Fortunately, I vet my staff and students carefully, making Midoriya Izuku the only Avatar at UA at time of writing.

Izuku blinked as he finished, digesting the information. While it was nothing he couldn’t infer from his initial meeting with Nedzu-sensei, it was useful to see it all written down plainly. 

“So I’m the only Avatar here…” It made sense. From what he understood, Avatars sounded volatile at the best of times, and despite the principal’s love of chaos, he was still careful when it came to his school. He thought back over the events of the day. He’d have to thank Mei-san tomorrow, and assure her he was fine. As for the break-in…

He was sure Nedzu-sensei had it handled.

Chapter Text

Thursday started with a bang. Literally.

Homeroom was to be in the workshop that day, as 1-H’s workshop session was first thing in the morning, and Maijima-sensei was nothing if not practical. Izuku had gotten a lot of rest and was headache-free, so he was fairly relaxed as he walked up to the door. 

He should have known never to let his guard down.

A loud BOOM accompanied the workshop door flying at him, sending him tumbling to the floor. Another weight landed atop him a second later which knocked all the air out of his lungs, and he distantly wondered whether the Eye just enjoyed seeing him suffer. 

On second thoughts, of course it did.

The weight above him shifted before lifting, allowing him to push the door off of himself. He rubbed his eyes and looked up, finding the imposing figure of Hatsume Mei towering over him.

“Oh, Greenie! There you are!”

She offered him a hand and he gladly took it, trying not to think too hard about the strength of her grip as she easily lifted him from the floor.

“Ah, M-Mei-san, thank you for taking me to the nurse’s office yesterday.” He bowed, but she simply waved it off, already dragging him into the workshop. Their workbenches were next to each other so they sat down, Izuku pulling out his laptop. Fortunately they were the first to arrive, and watched as the rest of their class trickled in, all baffled at the missing door and new scorch marks on the floor. 

Finally, Maijima-sensei arrived, hunch deepening as he saw the state of the classroom. He sighed and approached his desk at the front, clearing his throat before speaking. “Hatsume, you’re banned from using the workshop without my supervision.” The girl in question started to complain, but the teacher just continued to barrel through with the morning announcements, and Izuku stifled a laugh.

At lunch, Izuku ate his katsudon while Mei-san sulked across the table, arms crossed and head down.

“It’s not fair , Greenie! I need all the time I can get to work on my babies! It’s not long until the Sports Festival!” she whined, and Izuku chuckled a little.

“I’m sure you’ll be fine, Mei-san. Your babies are great!”

She looked up at him and pouted, before her expression shifted to something almost… concerned? It was a strange look on her, to be sure. “What happened yesterday, anyway? I’m not really an expert but I’m pretty sure fainting isn’t a normal reaction to an intruder alarm.”

He froze. Of course she’d ask about that, it was only normal. He couldn’t tell her the truth; it would put her in danger, even if she did believe him. He knew he had to lie but he felt bad doing so to someone he could tentatively call a friend. Still, he had no idea how to explain it, so when the words “It was my Quirk,” came tumbling out his mouth, neither of them particularly seemed to expect it. Gulping, he continued, “it… uh, sometimes it lets me know things that I wouldn’t have any other way of knowing. I-I was trying to use it to learn about the intruder…” He laughed weakly and scratched the back of his neck.

She studied him for a moment, and for once Izuku knew how it felt to be the watched, not the watcher. At last, she gave a small shrug and returned to moping, and he sighed internally. He hoped that lie would be able to stand up against other people, people who cared more about his Quirk, or lack thereof. As long as he didn’t run into anyone from before his incident, he’d be fine.

And on the bright side, he had “Extracurricular Studies” with Nedzu-sensei after lunch. With that thought in mind, Izuku returned to eating with renewed vigour, eager to see what the chimera had in store.

“Ah, good afternoon, Midoriya-kun!”

For any other student, visiting the Principal’s office twice in the first week is a surefire way to be labelled a delinquent. For Izuku, however, it was just his private lessons with Nedzu-sensei, where he learned about eldritch fear gods and how to control his own fear powers.

So there wasn’t too much difference.

He took a seat in his usual chair and nodded at the Principal, “H-Hi, Nedzu-sensei.”

“How are you feeling? I hope you’re well-rested!”

Izuku nodded and gave his best determined smile. “I’m good, sensei!”

The chimera smiled at this, before opening a drawer and pulling something out; Maijima-sensei’s tape recorder. “You’ve already been shown this, I believe?”

“Yes, M-maijima-sensei showed it to me on the first day of school.”

Clapping his paws together, Nedzu-sensei grinned. “Excellent! We won’t be using it today but I wanted to talk to you about what it’s for.” At Izuku’s nod, he continued. “Essentially, it’s how we’re going to feed you. Specifically, how you’re going to feed your patron. I’m sure you’ve wondered why you haven’t felt the need to do so earlier?” Another nod, slower, unsure. “Well, I believe it may have been related to your analysis. Tell me, Midoriya-kun, are you a hero chaser?”

Izuku chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head. “Well… n-not really. I mean, I-I go to hero fights when they’re nearby, to analyse. I’m just… a little unlucky and they always seem to be nearby…” Looking down, he smiled bashfully.

“Ah, just as I suspected! From what I can tell, your analysis at these live fights, combined with the crowds as well as the general fear that heroes feel when fighting, has been helping you to feed your patron!  But, I don’t think it’s particularly stable, you see.”

He blinked, “W-wait, I’ve been scaring heroes? Am… am I a villain?! I never meant to do that, Nedzu-sensei, I swear! I-I was just interested, that’s all!” Tears gathered in his eyes as he began to spiral. He was stopped from worsening by his teacher’s paw gently brushing his hands.

“Now, Midoriya-kun, there’s no need to worry. You weren’t to know, and that is another reason I have devised this alternative solution. Will you allow me to explain it first?” A hesitant nod, and a mumbled apology that the teacher was quick to wave off. “First, I must confess my idea isn’t original, but was inspired by a Chinese institute which investigates these matters, the Pu Songling Research Centre. 

“In any case, there are plenty of people in this country and beyond who have encountered one or more of the Powers. There are even some within UA itself. Since the Eye is somewhat of a voyeur, I believe you would be able to feed it second-hand fear from taking these people’s statements! The tape recorder is, unfortunately, necessary, as the Eye most likely requires some kind of record to be made, to ensure that someone’s experiences could be uncovered and known. So, every so often I’ll either have a statement from the Centre for you to read, or occasionally I may have a person to give you the statement live! What do you think, Midoriya-kun?”

He chewed on his knuckle, considering the offer. “A-and this, this won’t hurt anyone, will it?”

The chimera hummed, “In honesty, we can’t be sure, but even if it does, I believe it would hurt less than the alternative.”

Izuku sighed, huffing a mirthless laugh. “T-that’s not really much of a choice, Nedzu-sensei… I mean, if all I can do is hurt people, a-and I’m assuming I can’t just starve myself…?” his teacher shook his head. “...then the best I can do is just… try to minimise the damage.” He let his head drop to his hands and he rubbed his eyes, trying not to cry.

“It’s a difficult situation, Midoriya-kun, and it is unfair that you have to face this so soon, or at all.”

He smiled bitterly, running his hands up his face and through his hair. “I’m used to life being unfair, Nedzu-sensei, and this is really my fault anyway, so… okay, I’ll do it.” He gave the chimera a small, watery smile.

Nedzu-sensei’s brow furrowed slightly, before evening out into the mammal’s best imitation of a comforting smile. “Very well, Midoriya-kun. We’ll take your first statement sometime next week. Now, there’s one last thing I wanted to discuss with you before we begin; the Sports Festival.”

Izuku wiped his eyes, “A-ah, yeah, I don’t think it’d be a good idea if I took part.”

Cocking his head to the side, the teacher chirped, “Oh? Why not? Not that I disagree with you, of course, but I’d be interested in your reasoning.”

He nodded, “Well… if the Eye is the fear of being watched, and I feed off of that fear, then an internationally-televised event with thousands of people in the audience alone, all focusing on up to 219 other people, almost all of who will never have taken part in such a big event or been on television before… I think everyone would feel a little scared of all the attention. And if that’s the case, then the sudden influx of 219 people’s fear could, well, it could cause something weird to happen. So… maybe I should stay somewhere someone could keep an eye on me, just in case.” Laughing nervously, he looked back up at the teacher, to see a glint in the chimera’s eye.

“Exactly my thoughts, Midoriya-kun! We can discuss where you’ll be staying nearer the time, but for now I believe we should begin our lesson!” He grinned and nodded, and the teacher continued. “Ah, do you remember the assignment I gave you on our first meeting?”

“About me and the Lonely, right?” At Nedzu-sensei’s short nod, he carried on. “Well, I think… the way I think Avatars work is the Entity in question seems to choose someone who… embodies that particular fear or, uh, feels a particular closeness to it. L-like, for example, someone who enjoys the thrill of chasing down a target is likely to be chosen to be an Avatar by the Hunt, or ‘toxic’ people are often chosen by the Corruption.

“As for me, um, w-while I spent a lot of my life alone, I didn’t really like it? I mean, I’m okay on my own, but I prefer to be around other people, if I can. But with the Eye, I’ve always been curious, or that’s what mom said anyway, a-and I love to learn new things, so I think I can see why it chose me.”

His teacher nodded and smiled, “Very good! If I gave out grades, I’d give that an A! Now, allow me to go into the Lonely with a little more depth.” Izuku smiled eagerly, distracted from any internal conflicts by the promise of knowledge, and brought out his notebook and pen. “Let’s see… the Lonely, also known as ‘Forsaken’ and ‘The One Alone’, is the fear of isolation, of being cut off or disconnected from other people. It often manifests in a strange fog rolling in from seemingly nowhere, as well as in complete silence and, sometimes, in crowds.

“Its victims are often people who are predisposed to isolation, or who have recently become distant from people in their lives, such as through divorce or death. It also chooses such people to serve as its Avatars, though Avatars of the Lonely tend to actively enjoy being alone, and detest the presence of others, while victims often prefer isolation but don’t mind other people.

“Chiefly, Avatars of the Lonely often have the ability to access another realm, known also as the Lonely. They can disappear into it or send others into it, and can use it to traverse large distances, or simply to disappear. Some have also been known to cause havoc upon recording devices, masking their presence on recordings, while others have shown the ability to go unnoticed unless they actively make the effort to be seen.

“The Lonely and the Eye actually have a rather fascinating connection. You see-”

Whatever nugget of information the teacher was about to drop was interrupted by one of Ryoutsutsu-sensei’s clones bursting through the door. He approached the desk and bowed his head at Izuku before turning to Nedzu-sensei.

“The USJ is under attack. The man you told us about, Shigaraki Tomura, has brought a large group of villains to kill All Might. They used a villain with a warp gate Quirk. One of the villains is large, Shigaraki called them ‘noumu’, and is currently fighting All Might. I am currently assisting Aizawa in fighting the villains. The students have been scattered and are most likely under threat from villains.”

Nedzu-sensei nodded gravely and pushed a button beneath his desk. Instantly, an alarm activated, siren blaring, thick metal shutters sliding down the windows. After barely a few seconds, footsteps echoed down the hall, and Izuku watched in surprise as what seemed like every member of staff at UA burst into the office. His teacher hopped up onto the desk and addressed them.

“The USJ is under attack. Aizawa, Ryoutsutsu, Kurose and All Might are holding them off for now, but we don’t know how the situation will change. I will remain here to coordinate rescue and capture efforts. Hurry.” With little more than a nod the staff left, leaving Izuku and Nedzu-sensei alone once more. The principal turned to Izuku and smiled sadly. “I apologise for the interruption, Midoriya-kun. It would probably be wise for you to return to your classroom.”

Izuku nodded and moved to stand up, but stopped short. He hesitated slightly before speaking. “Can… Can I help at all? I-I mean, I could maybe try and Know things, like where students are, or something?”

The chimera stared at him, beady eyes searching for something Izuku didn’t know. “You do remember what happened last time you tried to Know something, yes?”

He nodded again, “Of course, but… I think, if I’m careful, I can do it. I just… if I have to hurt people, then I at least want to help as many as possible with these powers.” He clenched his fist, trying to look determined, steadfast.

A beat of silence. Two beats, and then…

Nedzu-sensei smiled slightly. “Very well, Midoriya-kun, as long as you’re careful. Please, take a seat on the sofa and I shall be with you shortly.”

Izuku sank into the plush material, and his leg bounced as he waited in silence, Nedzu-sensei’s frantic typing the only sound in the room. Finally, after minutes that seemed to stretch on and on, the teacher stood and walked over, bringing a few things with him. One was a student list for Class 1-A, another was a map of the USJ facility, and the third was a headset, which Izuku put on. 

“You will be able to contact all of UA’s staff with that, but you’ll mainly be speaking to Ryoutsutsu, as his clones are a network of sorts, and I believe the signal in the USJ is being blocked. Remember, Midoriya-kun; be careful.”

He nodded and turned to the indicated frequency. “Ryoutsutsu-sensei, are you there?”

The line filled with exclamations of surprise from the teachers, though Nedzu-sensei was quick to shut that down. “Midoriya-kun will be assisting us using his abilities . And before you ask, Shuzenji-san, I am making sure he is well taken care of. Now, please listen, as he has very important information. Midoriya-kun?”

“U-um, right.” He closed his eyes, visualising the door once again. He focused on the USJ, asking in turn about each student and area of the facility. He cracked the door just slightly. 

His fingers clamped down on his thighs in a white-knuckle grip and he gritted his teeth as knowledge burst in, but he held strong. “E-entrance; Kurose Anan, Ashido Mina, Iida Tenya, Uraraka Ochako, Satou Rikidou, Shouji Mezou, Sero Hanta.”

He let a little bit more come, and was almost overwhelmed by the amount of names in the next zone. He grunted in pain but continued. “Central Plaza; Aizawa Shouta, Ryoutsutsu Hiroto, Yagi Toshinori, Shigaraki Tomura, Kurogiri-Shirakumo-Kurogiri-Oboro,” gasps echoed distantly, but he was too focused on the strain. “Makai Akihito, Towa-”

“Midoriya-kun, perhaps it would be best to just focus on the students.” Nedzu-sensei chirped down the line, and Izuku nodded slowly, moving his attention elsewhere.

“Ruins Zone; Kirishima Eijirou, Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu. Landslide Zone; Todoroki Shouto, Hagakure Tooru. Mountain Zone; Kaminari Denki, Kyouka Jirou, Yaoyorozu Momo. Conflagration Zone; Ojiro Mashirao, Aoyama Yuuga.” Beads of sweat formed on his forehead, but he pushed through. “Flood Zone; Asui Tsuyu, Tsunotori Pony, Mineta Minoru. Downpour Zone; Kouda Kouji, Tokoyami Fumikage.” He took a shaky breath. “All students are mostly uninjured, but Kurose-sensei had her Quirk turned back on her, and she is in a critical condition.”

Bringing himself out of his headspace, he fell forward, panting hard and forehead slick with sweat. He felt exhausted, but not bad exactly. Nedzu-sensei leaned forwards and patted his hand. “That was extremely helpful, Midoriya-kun. Is there anything you would like? Some tea, perhaps, to bring up your energy? I should have some snacks around as well.” Izuku nodded, not trusting his words at that moment, and his teacher smiled at him gently, but with a hint of pride, and Izuku couldn’t help but smile back.

Chapter Text

Izuku arrived at school the next Monday refreshed and ready to go. He’d spent the long weekend resting and spending time with his mom, and while that was nice, he wanted to get back into the swing of things. Fortunately, his first lessons of the day were workshop and English, so once he finished up his rough analyses of Class 1-B, he packed up his bag, waved goodbye to Mei-san, and headed to Nedzu-sensei’s office.

Like always, the door swung open just before he could knock, and he shook his head fondly as he walked in. This time, the chimera sat on one of the sofas, a chessboard set out in front of him with two steaming cups of tea either side. He smiled at Izuku when he entered.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! Please, take a seat. I thought a change of scenery would be welcome today!” He walked over and sat down, setting his bag to one side. “How are you feeling today? Your actions on Friday were welcome, but I am sure they must have taken a toll on you.”

Izuku shook his head, “I’m feeling good, Nedzu-sensei. Ready to learn!” He gave the teacher a determined smile, and the chimera grinned.

“Excellent! Now, what do you know about chess? I thought it would be interesting to have a game every now and then.”

He hummed, “I mean, I-I know how to play? Ah, but, before we start, there was something I, um, w-wanted to ask about.” Silently, he kicked himself; his nerves always got the better of him when asking teachers for anything. Nedzu-sensei cocked his head, and he continued. “W-well, I’ve seen all of the Hero Course now, and… I-I was just surprised not to see someone I, ah, thought would be there, so I wanted to ask… is there a Bakugou Katsuki in the school?”

The teacher drummed his paws against the table for a moment, thinking. “The name doesn’t ring a bell; would you like me to check the files?”

“I-If that’s not a problem, please… oh, b-but you don’t have to! I’m just, ah, curious.”

Nedzu-sensei nodded and hopped off the sofa, heading over to his desk. “You’re White, Midoriya-kun, you may make the first move. And please, take some tea!”

Izuku turned to the table in front of him as the sound of his teacher’s typing filled the silence. He took a sip of the green tea before studying the board, considering the carved wooden pieces carefully. Finally, he opted for a noncommittal opening: knight to f3. They sat in silence for a few moments, the warmth from the cup in his hands seeping into Izuku’s bones.

The silence was eventually broken by the Principal’s hum. “It seems that a Bakugou Katsuki did apply to take the hero course exams, but for whatever reason, rescinded his application nine months before the exams.”

He blinked, confused. Bakugou had decided not to apply to UA? The boy who, even as a child, declared he’d become the strongest hero? Who relentlessly bullied Izuku because he dared to have the same dream? There was only one response Izuku could give to that.

“Oh.”

The chimera shrugged and smiled sympathetically as he hopped back up onto the sofa. “Now, shall we begin the lesson?” At Izuku’s hesitant nod, he continued, moving his own knight to f6 with barely a glance at the board. “I think we should discuss the Stranger today! It’s really quite fascinating.” Izuku watched the board as he listened, moving his pawn to c4. “It is also known as ‘I Do Not Know You’,” pawn to g6, “and, in the most general sense, it embodies the fear of things that are almost, but not quite human. What do you think that means, Midoriya-kun?”

Izuku gave this some thought as he moved his knight to c3. “I-It’s the fear of the uncanny, right?” Nedzu-sensei nodded, moving his bishop to g7, and he continued. “Well… things like mannequins and dolls, then, m-maybe masks in a more general sense?” He bit his lip and moved his pawn to d4. 

Nedzu-sensei grinned, castled, and nodded. “Very astute! It is the fear of the uncanny, and the unknown. A fear, in a sense, of strangers, of the enemy from outside infiltrating your group.” Izuku nodded slowly and moved his bishop to f4. “It usually manifests in dolls, mannequins and masks, as you said,” pawn to d5, “but it also manifests in taxidermy and wax figures; things that seem alive, but aren’t.” Izuku absentmindedly scribbled this information into his notebook, moving queen to b3. “Often, it is connected to the theatre, the circus, and other such performances,” Nedzu-sensei moved his pawn to c4, taking Izuku’s own. “but really, its major connections are to skin and faces. Now, Midoriya-kun,” the teacher glanced up, eyes glittering with a challenge. “if an Entity is broadly connected with performances, skin and faces, what would you say is its unifying theme?”

Izuku tapped his chin in thought, moving his queen to c4 to take the chimera’s pawn, a move his opponent met with the move of a pawn to c6. Finally, with Izuku moving his own pawn to e4, it clicked. “Identity. When you perform you take on the identity of someone else, e-even if that’s just an exaggerated version of yourself. And our faces are the way we identify each other, so…”

The teacher moved knight to d7 and gave Izuku a short nod. “Indeed! Specifically, it feeds on the fear of loss of identity.”

Moving rook to d1, Izuku had a brainwave. “Which is why it uses things like mannequins and dolls, right? They look human, but aren’t, so maybe it’s playing on the fear of a loss of human identity, as well as individual identity? I think…”

Nedzu-sensei brightened and chuckled softly, moving his knight to b6. “Exactly so, Midoriya-kun! In fact, it is for exactly that reason that the Stranger is weakening.”

He was taken aback, brow furrowing as he absentmindedly pushed his queen to c5, which his teacher responded to with a bishop to g4. “Weakening? T-the Entities can weaken?”

“Indeed they can. After all, the Powers are merely the embodiments of human and animal fears. If all the living beings on the Earth become less afraid of something, the Entities that feed off of those fears will also weaken. I believe the Stranger began to lose its strength, oh, around 200 years ago now.”

He scratched his head, noting this down as he moved his bishop to g5. “That would have been… t-the Dawn of Quirks, right?”

“Exactly so!” knight to a4. “Though the decline was likely gradual until roughly fifty or so years ago. Why do you think that is, Midoriya-kun?”

Shifting his queen to a3, Izuku considered what he knew. Human identity, the Dawn of Quirks… Nedzu-sensei watched him think as he moved his knight to c3, taking Izuku’s own knight. At last, the penny dropped. 

“Mutant Quirks! Mutations have gotten more and more extreme in the last fifty years, and even Quirkless people tend to have minor hereditary mutations!” He pointed to his own hair for emphasis, moving his pawn to c3 to capture Nedzu-sensei’s knight. “That means that there’s less of a common idea of what ‘the average human’ looks like, so things like the uncanny valley are less effective at scaring people!”

The chimera captured Izuku’s pawn with a move of his knight to e4, and he grinned sharply. “Correct! Of course, the Stranger will never quite fade away, as people are still terrified of the unknown, and of strangers, but it is certainly on the weaker side, and that reflects in its manifestations!” Izuku took his opponents’ pawn by moving his bishop to e7, and listened, enraptured as he scribbled down his notes. “You see, one of the Stranger’s most prolific manifestations is as an Entity known as the ‘NotThem’.” The teacher shifted his queen to b6, then continued. “It is a shape-changing creature, with a rather fascinating modus operandi.”

Izuku pushed his bishop to c4 and nodded, urging the teacher to continue. The chimera took a pawn with his knight’s move to c3 and obliged. “Through some unknown method, the NotThem selects a victim to kill and take their place. This new ‘NotPerson’ looks and acts completely differently to the original, but it affects memories and photographic evidence, making it seem like nothing has changed.”

He frowned, pushing his bishop to c5. “So no one can tell the person’s been replaced? That’s…”

Rook to e8. Check. “Terrifying, yes. But, the more terrifying part of it all is that one person will always keep their memories of the original; they will be the only person in the world to remember the truth.”

Izuku’s brow furrowed as he moved his king to f1. “So that’s how it feeds, I guess… and no one else would be able to know?”

Nedzu-sensei hummed, moving his bishop to e6. “There’s nothing preventing people from finding out the truth. I believe mediums such as tape recorders and polaroid photography are unable to be altered. But, of course, would you believe someone when they said that a person you’d known all your life was suddenly this eldritch creature?”

“I guess not…” Bishop to b6, taking his opponent’s queen. “So what does the, uh, NotThem have to do with the Stranger weakening…?”

The teacher countered by pushing his bishop to c4, taking Izuku’s other bishop and putting him in check. “Well, as far as I can tell, in the past the changes to memory were automatic once the person was replaced. However, in recent years, it seems that a person’s memory only changes once they actually see the NotPerson.”

Izuku hummed in thought and moved his king to g1. It seemed that was all the principal had to say about the Stranger, and the game continued in silence, interrupted only by the occasional comment or question. Knight to e2, check. King to f1. Knight takes pawn on d4, check. King to g1. Knight to e2, check. Finally, the game ended with Nedzu-sensei pushing his rook to c2, putting Izuku in checkmate. Izuku sighed and shook the chimera’s offered paw.

“A very good game, Midoriya-kun. I’d ask for another but, alas, it appears to be time for your next lesson. I believe our next meeting will be on Thursday; I look forward to it.”

He smiled at the teacher and nodded, picking up his bag and saying his goodbyes as he headed back to his homeroom.

“Greenie! Wait up!”

It was Tuesday afternoon. Izuku had just been let out of class and all he wanted to do was go home, do some homework, and try not to think about the horrors that lurked in the shadows. 

He’d forgotten about the more mundane horrors, like the force of nature that was Hatsume Mei. He turned to see the pink haired girl running up to him, flagrantly ignoring the rules about running in the halls.

“A-ah, Mei-san?”

She caught up to him quickly, slinging a toned arm around his shoulders that made him blush despite himself. She grinned and started walking alongside him. “You heard what PL said yesterday, about the sports festival! We’ve gotta figure out our plan of action, how to market ourselves to the support companies!”

He rubbed the back of his head, “W-well, Mei-san, I’m, ah, not taking part in the sports festival. I-It’s an anxiety thing…” he chuckled weakly, avoiding the girl’s piercing stare. 

She studied him for a long moment before shrugging. “Well, then we gotta work on my plan of action! You and me, Greenie, we’re a team!”

He blinked in confusion. “A… team?”

She nodded vigorously. “Yeah, a team! Greenie and Mei against the world! Every support company needs to know a good analyst, and you’re the best I know! Sure, you’re the only one I know, but that’s besides the point! We’ve gotta stick together, and it starts here!”

Izuku felt strange. Was that… disappointment? “S-so, it’s just business, then…”

The girl grew uncharacteristically quiet, removing her arm from his shoulders as she rubbed the back of her head. “Well, not just that… we’re friends, right?”

That took him aback, honestly. Friends? He hadn’t had friends since… well, since his diagnosis. She thought he had a Quirk, of course, but at least he could pretend, for a little while longer. “Yeah, friends.” He smiled, hating himself just a little for lying to her.

She grins back, energy returning to her as she slung her arm around him once more. 

“Right! So, here’s what I’m thinking…”

“Ah, good afternoon, Midoriya-kun.”

Izuku was a little surprised by the sombre tone of his usually chipper teacher, but he sat at his usual chair in front of Nedzu-sensei’s desk, facing the chimera. He felt old anxieties begin to well up inside of him. Had the teacher finally decided Izuku wasn’t worth the effort? Was he going to be expelled for being an Avatar?

“I want to discuss something with you before we begin today, regarding the USJ incident. Specifically, something you said. Are you aware of who Shirakumo Oboro is?”

He frowned, shaking his head. He supposed he could Know who that was, but he was trying to only use that in emergencies, and this didn’t seem to be one just yet.

“Very well, I hadn’t expected you to. Shirakumo-kun was the subject of an incident around fifteen years ago now, so you were likely very young. To put it simply, he was a Hero student here, friends with Yamada, Aizawa and Kayama. However, during his second-year internship, he was involved in an altercation with a villain, and a building collapsed on top of him. He was pronounced dead on the scene, but now, I wonder…”

“I-I see… Nedzu-sensei, ah, w-what does this have to do with the USJ? I-If you don’t mind me asking, that is…”

“Ah, of course. Well, as you are aware, your role in assisting with the USJ incident involved listing off the names of those present. However, before we asked you to focus solely on the students, you mentioned the name Shirakumo Oboro, mixed with the name of the villain Kurogiri. The implication of this, of course, is that Shirakumo-kun was in some way turned into this ‘Kurogiri’, though we can’t be sure how or why.”

The name slipped past Izuku’s lips before he could wonder where it came from. “All For One.”

For the first time since he had first met the chimera, Nedzu-sensei looked almost shocked, though he quickly schooled his expression. “That would explain a lot, yes. In any case, I believe it’s time we discussed the Extinction, hmm?” He nodded, pulling up his notebook and starting a new page as his teacher began to speak.

“The Extinction is the most recent of the Entities to emerge, its emergence beginning in the latter years of the 19th century, though I believe it had been lying dormant for a lot longer. I think you would benefit from a small history lesson, Midoriya-kun. You see, with the Industrial Revolution came mass production, meaning that weapons of war could be built in far larger numbers than had ever been thought possible. That is when the Extinction first began to emerge, though its prominence would grow with the First World War, and especially the Second World War. It would seem that the development of atomic weaponry, and the sheer danger and threat they posed, accelerated the Entity’s emergence. 

“However, it would not fully take its place among the other Fears until, one day, a glowing baby was born in a hospital in China. Suddenly, people with unique powers - so-called ‘meta abilities’ - began to appear more and more. Regular people, without special abilities, began to fear this seemingly new race of humans, these ‘metas’. They feared being replaced, becoming extinct, and they started a war over it. This is when the Extinction fully emerged. 

“Of course, those specific fears are in the minority nowadays, so why is the Extinction so strong? Well, worse weaponry than atomic bombs have been developed, humanity continues to pollute the Earth, and technology keeps advancing towards some unknown goal.

“Ah, if it wasn’t already obvious, the Extinction is the embodiment of the fear of catastrophic change, of humanity’s eradication by its own hands, and of its replacement by something else entirely. It is known by such aliases as The Terrible Change, The Future Without Us, and The World Is Always Ending. Usually, it manifests in objects related to advanced technology, or in places connected to humanity’s destruction of nature. More broadly, it can cover fears of transhumanism, especially in cases where humanity changes itself beyond recognition, and looks back on its past with disdain, though those fears are rather abstract. 

“To put it concisely, while the End is the fear of an individual death, the Extinction is the fear of eradication on a grand scale.”

Nedzu finished, and they both sat in a slightly-stunned silence for a moment, the scribbling of Izuku’s pen the only sound. Once he had written out his preliminary notes, Nedzu broke the silence again. 

“I apologise for the sudden lecture, Midoriya-kun. I simply wished to inform you of the Extinction as quickly and concisely as I could.”

He nodded, “That’s okay, Nedzu-sensei. I, ah, just have one question: you said that you thought it had been lying dormant for longer than the 19th century? Why…?”

“Ah, of course. Well, it’s simple logic. Apocalyptic prophecies and eschatological literature have been around for centuries. Practically every religion predicts some form of apocalypse, after all. And, if you take a broader examination of what exactly the Extinction could cover, it’s my theory that it could have been fed by fears of colonialism and imperialism, fears of one’s culture being eradicated. Of course, I have little evidence for that, but I find it logical.”

Izuku hummed, “That does make sense… a-ah, not that you need my approval or anything, Nedzu-sensei, I just meant-”

His spiral was cut short by a paw resting atop his hand. “I understand, Midoriya-kun, no need to worry.  Now, I hate to cut our lesson short, but I’m afraid I have a meeting now, to discuss the, ah, Shirakumo situation.”

Eyes wide, Izuku nodded, scrambling to gather up his stuff, and quickly said his goodbyes and left. Nedzu-sensei watched him leave, a small, fond smile across his muzzle.

“Hey, uh, mom?”

Inko looked up to see her son leaning in the doorway to the kitchen, a small frown on his face. “Yes, dear?”

He wrung his hands slightly. “Do you, um, know what happened to B-Bakugou? Just… he’s not at UA, and I was really surprised, because you know how he is and all but-”

She cut him off, brow furrowing into a worried frown. “Izuku… you’re not feeling guilty over that boy again, are you? After how he treated you-”

“No! No, of course not, I was just curious.” He chuckled weakly, and Inko raised an eyebrow before conceding the point.

“Well, I haven’t seen him since we pulled you out of that awful school. I think Mitsuki mentioned he was attending Musutafu High, but I can’t be sure. I could… call to ask her, if you want?”

Her son scratched the back of his head and glanced away, and Inko hated the relief she felt at his gaze not being focused on her. “N-no, I can just… go over and ask her. Plus, it’ll be nice to see auntie again…”

“Izuku, you know Katsuki could be there. Are you prepared for that?”

He took a deep breath and glanced up at her, and she fought down the flinch as she felt the full force of his eyes settle on her once more. He gave her a determined look and nodded. “I’ll have to do it someday and… I’m different now, I’m stronger. I’m not scared of him anymore.”

She watched him for a moment, before sighing. “Very well, Izuku. But be back before dinner!” He nodded again and hurried to leave; she called after him, “Oh! And if you see the exchange student they’ve taken in, be sure to introduce yourself!”

Izuku’s heart hammered in his chest as he approached the door of the house that was like a second home to him in childhood. He knew that his tormentor was almost certainly inside, but he swallowed down the fear that crept from his stomach. He knew the truth of the world now, after all, and knew there were far bigger things to be scared of. 

Speaking of knowing, there was a buzzing in the back of his head, where the door to that infinite ocean of knowledge usually sat. Deep in his gut he felt something was wrong, but when he tried to Know, to see the truth, all he got was a headache. So, he shrugged it off. After all, the Eye loved it when he felt confused, so this could just be it feasting on his suffering again. Still, thinking that didn’t settle his churning stomach.

He walked up to the door, took a deep, shaky breath, and knocked.

After a few moments, footsteps made their way towards him, and he held his breath as the door slowly opened to reveal…

His friend, Bakugou Katsuki. His orange hair was pulled up into the usual loose bun he wore it in at home, and his light blue eyes were blown wide in surprise. Thanks to a recent growth spurt, he was about an inch taller than Izuku. He wore paint-splattered overalls and had a brush tucked behind his ear. 

“O-oh, Midori. I… wasn’t expecting to see you today, or ever, really.”

Izuku laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck, “Y-yeah, sorry Bakugou-kun. Things have been busy since I left Aldera, a-and I’m at UA now, so…”

The other boy blinked. “Ah, yeah, UA. You always did want to be a hero, huh Midori? I’m at Musutafu High, but I think mom was looking at art institutions for my second year.”

“Oh, I hope that goes well for you! I-I’m just in the support course; it’s hard work, but it’s really fun at times!”

They stood in silence for a few seconds, before Bakugou-kun spoke up again. “D-do you want to come in, or…?”

“Ah, no thanks, I-I’ve got dinner, but… maybe we could see each other again soon, to catch up? I feel kinda bad for leaving you alone in that school.”

Bakugou-kun shook his head. “It’s good Midori, I handled myself. And yeah, I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other real soon. Don’t be a stranger, y’hear?”

Izuku grinned and nodded, before waving his goodbyes to his friend, his earlier worries forgotten as he thought back to the small moments of light they’d spent together in the darkness of Aldera. He smiled softly.

Chapter Text

“M-Mei-san, I’m not sure this is safe…”

“Nonsense, Greenie! It’ll be fine! Now, just stay still and…”

Izuku gulped. He didn’t need the Eye to know that this had a non-zero chance of going very wrong for one of them. Probably him. On the floor, Mei-san finished strapping him into the thick heavy boots and shot to her feet.

“Right! Now, Hatsumei Industries, Baby Number 32, Test One, is a go!” The pink-haired girl scrambled behind the yellow tape to stand alongside Maijima-sensei, who seemed apprehensive, to say the least. The room they were in had padded walls, much to Izuku’s relief. At least when the inevitable crash happens, he wouldn’t be too badly hurt.

Mei-san pulled out a remote control, similar to the ones drones use, and flicked a switch. Instantly, the boots on his feet started to hum, and he began levitating, hovering an inch or so above the ground. 

The girl grinned wildly. “Startup sequence is a success! Horizontal motion testing begins!” As she pulled gently on one of the analog sticks, Izuku felt himself slowly drift forwards, and he had to tilt his body to stay upright. Suddenly, Mei-san pulled sharply on the stick, and Izuku shot to the right, almost colliding with one of the walls as his upper body flailed.

“Mei-san, I-I don’t think-”

“All’s good, Greenie! And hey, you’re my first ever guinea pig, so drop the san!” 

He didn’t even have time to blush as she tugged on the stick again, and he was sent hurtling backwards, then forwards, left and right. He felt the bile rising in his throat as he was catapulted across the room in every direction, but he held it down. Finally, he slowed to a stop, and Mei beamed at him. “Horizontal motion is a success! Now-”

“Hatsume, the lesson’s over. You’ve got English and Midoriya has to go see the Principal.” Maijima-sensei came to his rescue, and Izuku breathed a sigh of relief as he was lowered to the ground, Mei pulling off the boots with a pout. He stepped out of them shakily, glad to feel the ground beneath his feet, before the girl gripped his shoulders and leaned in close. 

“We’ll finish this another day, right Greenie?”

Izuku turned red at the proximity, but nodded slightly. “Y-yeah, Mei-s, uh, Mei! For sure…!” He didn’t particularly want to, of course, but he could see the hope in her yellow eyes. She was one of his only friends, after all, apart from Bakugou-kun, and he didn’t want to hurt her feelings, even as a spike of self-loathing shot through him at the thought of how he was still lying to her. She grinned at him, and he managed a shaky smile back as she bounded off back to the workshop. He took a moment to get used to walking again, and headed off to his session with Nedzu-sensei.

He was a little steadier on his feet by the time he reached the Principal’s door, and he managed to get in without much difficulty. As usual, the mammal was sat at his desk, and gave him his normal facsimile of a smile, which Izuku returned as he sat.

“Good morning, Midoriya-kun! I trust Hatsume-san’s testing didn’t take away your appetite to learn too much?”

He shook his head, “Not at all, Nedzu-sensei! I’m ready for whatever you’ve got!”

The teacher grinned and clapped his paws together. “Excellent! Very well then; to begin with, I’d like to give you a little history lesson. Have you ever wondered about how we know what we do about the Entities?”

Izuku hummed. “A-A little, I guess? But I just assumed you’d learned from hearing other people’s stories.”

“It’s not an unreasonable assumption.” Nedzu-sensei conceded. “I’ve certainly learned something about the common manifestations and avatar traits by reading statements from the Research Centre. However, the system we use, delineating different Entities with specific domains, is not my own invention. In fact, it has been around for longer than I have, longer, even, than Quirks.”

His eyes widened. Pre-Quirk knowledge was scarce, so for such a system to have survived for who knows how long was rare. He leaned forward in his seat, already making a new page on his notebook. Nedzu-sensei noticed his enthusiasm and grinned. 

“The system we use nowadays was set down by an Englishman named Robert Smirke, at some point in the 19th Century. How, exactly, he became aware of the Entities is unclear, but he organised them into a list of fourteen distinct Powers. At the time, the Flesh was the most recent to emerge, and Smirke likely never even considered the possible existence of the Extinction. In any case, Smirke was obsessed with balance between the Entities, believing that each one of them had a polar opposite, and he incorporated these ideas into his work. He was an architect, you see, and his buildings were designed with those concepts of balance in mind.

“Smirke believed that, if all fourteen Entities were placed into balance, they could be controlled, their effects on the world diminished. Of course,” the teacher sighed, “it wasn’t quite that simple. If there is one thing you take away from today’s session, Midoriya-kun, it should be this:” Izuku nodded, leaning forwards. “the Entities are not distinct, discrete beings. In a sense, they are all extensions of the same being, some primordial entity of fear. As human and animal fears changed and evolved, certain fears gained more prominence, enough to act on their own, but they were still shaped by mortal fears, still moulded by them. And fear is far too broad to simply separate into individual concepts.

“The point I am trying to make is, of course, the Entities are linked. They cannot exist separately. The Buried and the Vast may seem like opposites, but they define each other by that opposition. There is not ‘wide open’ if there is not also ‘too tight’. You cannot have the ‘known’ without the ‘unknown’.” Nedzu-sensei huffed and frowned. “Even those are too simplistic. To put it simply, the Entities are far too connected to each other to ever be categorised so neatly. Fear is messy, after all.

“That’s not to say Smirke’s list isn’t useful. After all, even though the Entities do often bleed into one another, they are still distinct enough to make some broad generalisations, and I believe it is easier to learn about the Entities when you follow a system, however flawed it may be. In any case,” the brightness returned to the mammal’s voice. “Today I wanted to discuss two Entities that often find themselves in opposition to one another. To begin with, let’s take a look at the Web.”

Izuku nodded sharply, flipping to the Web’s page in his notebook before reeling off what he already knew. “It’s related to arachnophobia, but it’s primarily the fear of manipulation and being controlled. It’s a… pretty weird combination, but I think the aesthetics make sense. After all, spiders sit in the middle of a web and wait for their prey to come to them, and we often think of manipulators as ‘weaving a web’ of sorts, so I guess the human collective subconsciousness could, ah, well, make a connection?”

Nedzu-sensei grinned, “Exactly, Midoriya-kun! The Web, also known as the Great Spider, holds dominion over the fear of being controlled, unknowingly trapped, and of manipulation. Its manifestations commonly involve spiders and spider-webs, though it also manifests in marionnettes. There is another, more abstract manifestation too. What do you think that is?”

He put down his pen and scratched his cheek. Loss of control, manipulation, your will not being your own. What kind of abstract concepts could those apply to? Mind control, perhaps? No, that’s a little too literal, though it’s almost certainly connected to the Web. Then maybe…

It hit him. “Addiction. Addicts often feel like it controls their whole life, and even when they want to stop they can’t.”

The teacher nodded, “Exactly so! Unfortunately, I’ve never read a statement with an Avatar of the Web as, of course, they tend not to do their business directly, but I’d guess it tends to choose manipulative people, and their powers involve some form of mind control. Now, unfortunately, there is little more I can discuss about the Web. It is a rather mysterious Entity after all. That said, of the Entities we have yet to discuss, which do you think stands the most in opposition to the Web?”

Izuku chewed on his lip as he thought it over. The Spiral was likely closely aligned with the Web, while the Flesh didn’t seem to have anything to do with it at all. Perhaps the End? After all, the best laid manipulations and schemes meant nothing when compared to the inevitability of death. Though, maybe there was something that fit the role better? 

“C-could it be the Desolation? I mean, manipulation is all well and good but an intricate web can easily be destroyed.”

“Correct!” The mammal grinned. “The Desolation, also known as the Lightless Flame, is the fear of pain and loss, of burning and senseless, cruel destruction. Its manifestations always involve fire of some kind. It is a rather simple fear, perhaps, but no less effective, even today. Often it targets people with a lot of potential, who have a lot to lose, and burns their life around them. Full realised Avatars are made of melted wax, and can burn with a touch, though they can’t normally produce flames themselves. Generally speaking, the Avatars of the Desolation want nothing more than total destruction, in contrast to the Web’s intricate schemes.”

Humming, Izuku nodded, before remembering a question he had been wondering. “O-oh, Nedzu-sensei? I, uh, was thinking, and well… are you aligned with any of the Entities? Not that that’s a problem, of course! Y-you’re still trying to do good, after all…”

The teacher tilted his head to the side and smiled softly. “I am not, Midoriya-kun. The wills of the Powers are rather too malicious for my tastes, and I would rather not be forced to feed off of fear. Of course, if I were, I’d likely align myself with the Eye. It seems generally content to feed off of second-hand fear and, well, UA is one of the most surveilled locations in the country.” He chittered a laugh and shook his head. “But the answer is no, Midoriya-kun. You are the only Avatar at UA, of that I am quite sure.”

He frowned, “How can you be sure, sensei? N-not that I’m questioning you or anything, it’s just-”

Nedzu-sensei held up a paw, stopping Izuku in his train of thought. “It’s a reasonable question, Midoriya-kun. The truth is, my animal instincts allow me to, for lack of a better word, smell Avatars. It’s why I could tell an Avatar of the Eye was taking the support course exam, for example, and why I requested to go over the packets you gave us immediately. Simply put, I smelled you.”

Izuku blinked, “What do I-”

“-smell like?” He nodded. “In my limited experience, Avatars of the Eye tend to smell like old books, a little musty but not unpleasant. Desolation Avatars smell, of course, like a bonfire combined with burning wax, while those of the Vast carry a scent of ozone. The End’s Avatars smell of decomposition, so it could be a lot worse.” He laughed softly, and Izuku joined in. 

After a moment, he asked another burning question. “So, i-if you’re not an Avatar, how did you learn about all this?”

Nedzu-sensei glanced at the clock on the wall and smiled. “It’s a long story, Midoriya-kun, and one for another day, I think. I’ve kept you for too long!”

Izuku sighed and nodded, packing up before saying his goodbyes and heading back to his classroom.

1-H’s final lesson on a Wednesday afternoon was Computer Tech with Maijima-sensei. It was a class Izuku enjoyed for the most part, even if he wasn’t the best with some of the skills. They had fortunately gone a whole lesson without a single explosion from Mei, and Izuku was getting ready to go home when Maijima-sensei called out to him.

“Oh, Midoriya, can you stay behind for a moment?”

Surprised and slightly alarmed, Izuku nodded. Mei promised to wait outside, and he approached the teacher’s desk, trying to fight down the fear welling up inside him. Sure, Maijima-sensei hadn’t done anything to him yet, but it could only be a matter of time-

No. No, he had to fight against thoughts like that. UA was going to be good to him, he knew it. So, he took a deep breath, and stepped forwards. “You wanted to see me, Maijima-sensei?”

The man nodded, “Yeah, I just wanted to check up on how you’re doing.”

He blinked. “Oh, I’m, uh, I’m okay, sensei.”

“Hm. Good to hear it. I know you must be a bit confused right now, with all the…” he waved a hand around, “changes you’ve been going through, but we’re trying to make sure you’re happy and safe. You’re getting along with Hatsume, right?”

Like the traitor it was, Izuku’s face turned a light shade of red. “U-uh, I mean, yes! Uh, yes we are, s-sensei.”

Maijima-sensei huffed in what was almost a laugh. “Good. It’ll be good for you to stay friends with her. In fact, you should probably tell her everything.”

He almost fell over. “E-everything? You mean with the- a-and the, everything?”

His teacher nodded, “Yes, everything. Look, I know you feel guilty about lying to her, so you should probably tell the truth. I don’t think she’ll mind too much.”

“But, wouldn’t it put her in danger? And that’s if she even believes me!”

“Hm. Let me talk straight with you, kid, you’re not human anymore, not after… whatever happened to you. Because of that, we think it’s likely you might forget your humanity if you’re not tied to it. So, we want to give you anchors. People who can keep you tied to humanity, so you don’t forget it. Do you see where I’m going with this, Midoriya?” Izuku nodded shakily, and Maijima-sensei sighed. “We just want what’s best for you. We want you to be happy and safe, but it’s your decision at the end of the day. It doesn’t have to be Hatsume, but you need someone your age to hang onto, okay?” Another nod, and the man nodded back. “Right then, that’s all. Good work today, by the way. See you tomorrow, Midoriya.”

Bowing, he swiftly left, meeting up with Mei to walk to the station as his head swirled.

Anchors, huh…?

The next Friday brought him once again to Nedzu-sensei’s office. As usual, he sat across from the teacher, the large desk standing between them. After they had dealt with the pleasantries, the chimera started with a question.

“Well, Midoriya-kun, have you given any thought to where you would like to be for the Sports Festival?”

He’d already figured it out, so he nodded. “I need to be somewhere with a member of staff who can keep an eye on me, just in case the sudden increase in fear does something weird to me. I should also probably be stationary, just in case I faint. So that leaves three places: the nurse’s office with Recovery Girl, the Announcer’s Box with Present Mic, or the teacher’s box with the rest of the staff. In the nurse’s office I’d be out of the way, but Recovery Girl would probably be too busy to keep an eye on me, plus I’d probably get in the way.” He chuckled and scratched the back of his head. “The Announcer’s Box sounds fun, but if I accidentally Know something and let it slip out, it could be broadcast across the stadium. So… I think the best option for me is the teacher’s box. There would be plenty of members of staff there to keep an eye on me, and I wouldn’t be anywhere close to the centre of attention.” He laughed weakly, but the teacher across from him just grinned.

“Very well, Midoriya-kun, then that is where you will be! Now, onto the usual Entity education! Today, I have decided to teach you about the Slaughter.” Izuku nodded, notebook already open on the desk and pen in hand. “Simply put, the Slaughter is the fear of random, unmotivated violence, of not knowing where pain will come from, or when, or what form it will take, but knowing that it will come. It has strong ties with war, naturally, as well as an interesting connection to music, especially instruments such as bagpipes and flutes. Essentially, it is the fear of violence itself, and war, though many Avatars and manifestations can and do exist in peacetime as well. After all, there will always be violence and people who are afraid of it.”

Izuku scribbled down his final sentence before looking up, confused at how short the explanation was. Nedzu-sensei picked up on this, and smiled. “There isn’t much more to discuss about the Slaughter, in honesty. It’s a rather straightforward fear. But don’t worry, I have a plan for the remainder of the lesson! I want to ensure you can keep your powers under control, so we’re going to be practising with them, just a little. How have you been doing with Knowing?”

He nodded, “Okay, I think. I can mostly control how much information I get, but not always what kind of information it is…”

The teacher nodded, kindly, “Very well, and how about Compulsion?” Izuku frowned slightly, and the chimera continued. “Ah, it is the ability that, when you ask a question, others are forced to answer truthfully, even when they wouldn’t otherwise answer.”

Izuku hummed, “I don’t think I’ve been using that, sensei…”

Nedzu-sensei chuckled. “I can assure you, you have. On me, to be exact. Don’t worry, it wasn’t painful, as it was all information I would willingly give, but that does tell me what we need to be working on! Now, shall we begin?”

He nodded eagerly, and the lesson began.

Chapter Text

The day before the sports festival, Izuku was asked to see Nedzu-sensei for a special lesson during his maths class. So, once Ryoutsutsu-sensei gave him the all-clear, he hurried out of the classroom and headed towards the principal’s office, arriving there in good time. Inside, Nedzu-sensei sat on one sofa, chatting away with Majima-sensei, who sat on the other. Between them, the tape recorder lay on the table, inactive at that moment. The two teachers turned to him when he entered, and the Principal gave him a wide smile.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! Please, come and take a seat! How are you feeling?”

He gave a tight smile as he sat next to the mammal. “I’m fine, Nedzu-sensei!” No one in the room believed it. Truthfully, he’d been feeling a little weak lately, unfocused and shaky, but he couldn’t just say that! He didn’t want to burden anyone with his problems, after all. Still, his teachers pretended to believe him, and the chimera nodded.

“Well, Midoriya-kun, today I wanted you to take your first statement, to make sure you’re at your peak before the sports festival, hopefully to lessen any effects the rush of fear may bring you. To that end, I’ve brought Maijima in to give you his statement! I must confess, I am rather curious about it myself.”

Izuku blinked rapidly, “Y-you mean you don’t know?”

The teacher chirped and hummed, “Not at all! All I know is that Maijima has had an encounter with the Powers before, though I will explain exactly how later. For now, please, pretend I am not in the room!”

“Um, o-okay.” He turned to his homeroom teacher. “Right, uh, how should we start, Maijima-sensei?”

The man let out an amused huff. “Probably by turning on the recorder, Midoriya.”

Izuku flushed and reached forwards to press the Record button. Once did so, he felt the words tumble past his lips before he even had a chance to think about them.

-- START OF TRANSCRIPT --

[CLICK]

MIDORIYA

Statement of Maijima Higari, Pro Hero Power Loader, regarding his experience with computers. Statement recorded direct from subject, 8th May, 2250. Statement begins.

MAIJIMA (STATEMENT)

I guess I should start by talking about the support industry? Well, when people think of hero support, they usually think about one of two things: inventions to assist heroes, or hero costumes. And, yeah, fair enough, that is a lot of what support involves, apart from analysis, as you’d know. But I don’t think people really appreciate how much support engineers need to know when they’re building inventions or designing costumes.

Case in point: computers. The general public takes computers for granted. They really don’t appreciate how much effort goes into building even the most basic of them. And, of course, a lot of inventions, and even some costumes, need some type of computer on board to function, so support engineers are expected to at least be decent with both the hardware and the software side of things.

All that’s to say, that that computer should not have worked.

It happened when I was younger, before I attended UA. I think I was thirteen at the time, so around twenty-seven years ago now. If I’m honest, I was a bit of a weird kid. I didn’t really have a lot of friends, and I preferred the company of my own brain than anyone else. I was always fixated on the next project, the next invention, the next development. I was a lot like Hatsume in that way, though with fewer explosions.

NEDZU

Ah, Maijima, might I ask you to use full names only, please? Simply for the benefit of our friends at the Pu Songling Research Centre.

MAIJIMA

Really…? Okay, sure, I guess. Hatsume Mei, my student and personal Problem Child.

NEDZU

Excellent! Well, please continue!

MAIJIMA (STATEMENT)

Right… anyway, when you’re a teenager, you don’t exactly have a lot of access to materials to build your latest inventions, so you have to get a little creative. I used to live in a small town in Hokkaido, and my house was only a couple of minutes walk away from the local dump. Well, we all called it a dump, but it was originally a park. Pretty popular one too, but… times changed, people stopped going as much, the equipment started rusting, you know how it is. I don’t know when the first piece of trash was dumped there, but it clearly kicked something off, and soon it wasn’t much more than piles of garbage with a little space to walk around. 

The thing is, people loved to dump old electronics there when they “broke”. And, luckily for me, a lot of the time, those broken electronics really didn’t need much more than a quick patch-up, and sometimes they’d even be fully functional aside from one or two parts. So, yeah, while other kids hung out with their friends at the weekend, I spent my time scrounging around piles of trash to gather the parts I needed for whatever contraption I had in mind that week.

The thing is, you don’t spend that much time in one place without noticing when something has changed. Of course, the dump changed all the time, but I knew exactly where anything new was the second I set foot in there, and that weekend was no different. 

I think it was a Saturday, and I went to the dump that afternoon, like I usually did, in order to find some parts to finish off whatever invention I had on the go at that point. You know, it’s funny really; I don’t remember any of the details of why I went there in the first place. I guess they’re not really important, considering what else happened that day. Anyway, I walked in, and immediately felt that tingle at the back of my neck, the one that told me there was something new to find. So, I followed my gut instinct. Maybe if I hadn’t… nevermind. No use dwelling on the past.

The feeling in my gut led me to a pile deep inside the dump and, for a moment, I couldn’t tell anything had changed at all. Everything seemed the same as it was the last time I had been around that part of the dump, so I shrugged it off and turned to go elsewhere. That was when something caught my eye; there was something glowing in one of the stacks nearby. That wasn’t too unusual: sometimes people threw away phones or tablets that could still turn on, but I went over there anyway.

It wasn’t a phone, or a tablet, or anything that would make sense, but a computer, connected to a monitor. At the time I rationalised it as being some sort of wireless computer, or having some kind of battery. But no, it was a desktop computer that would absolutely need to be plugged in to work. And yet, it was on. I was curious, so I picked it up. It was a lot lighter than it looked, and it wasn’t a model I had ever seen before, and it seemed a little advanced to just be dumped there, and I wanted to give it a closer look.

The monitor was displaying the desktop, at least I think it was. It was a weird red logo on a black background, and there was only one icon there. I didn’t have a mouse, of course, but the cursor moved on its own, and I watched with more curiosity than fear as it swept across the screen and clicked on the icon. Suddenly, the screen turned black, and I thought it had finally died, until…

A face appeared on the screen. It was all green, sure, but it was recognisably a human face. Except the eyes. The eyes held no emotion at all, they just simply… stared. They were weird. Not weird like your eyes, no offence-

MIDORIYA

A-ah, none taken, sensei!

MAIJIMA (STATEMENT)

-but they were weird, like they saw everything in front of the screen. They had an intelligence behind them, but it was an intelligence I’ve never seen before. It was completely alien to anything I’d ever seen. By that point, I was starting to get a little scared, but I just couldn’t seem to put the monitor down as the face drifted around the screen. At last, it seemed to fix its gaze on me, and I froze.

It cocked its head, face, whatever, to the side and simply said “Obsolete.” I blinked at it. The voice was metallic and choppy, as if someone was speaking into a fan. It repeated itself, “Obsolete.” before expanding with “You are obsolete.” 

I nearly dropped the monitor at this. It was absurd, honestly. A computer in a dump telling me I was obsolete. I couldn’t help myself; I laughed at it. It narrowed its eyes at me and the monitor grew hot in my hand, making me uncomfortable even through my gloves. I heard the whirring of a fan below me, but my eyes were fixed onto the screen as the face looked at me with an expression I can only describe as pure disgust and hatred , and I shut up. The eyes bored into me, and I collapsed to the ground, still clutching the monitor. Finally, it did something worse.

It smiled .

It wasn’t pleasant, all teeth and no joy, more predatory than happy. It spoke again, croaking in that metallic voice, “I have plans. You are obsolete.”

With that, the monitor grew even hotter, and I was forced to drop it. The screen began to glitch, blurring the face beyond recognition until… it stopped. The monitor went black and the computer shut down. I couldn’t turn it on, no matter what I tried. I even opened up both the monitor and the computer, just to see what was inside.

They were both empty of any kind of electronics, and neither had a speaker.

I ran home soon after that, trying to forget about my experience. And yet, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. When I became a hero, I told my therapist about it, and that got me signed into the Article 5 acts, but it didn’t help much.

A lot of my students have asked me why I try to treat my creations with respect. After all, they’re just machines, right? Soulless automatons?

But I know the truth. I know what it looks like when a computer can hate .

And I hope I never see it again.

MIDORIYA

O-oh, um, statement ends.

…

H-how are you feeling, Maijima-sensei?

MAIJIMA

Relieved enough, I think. Thanks kid.

NEDZU

More importantly, how are you, Midoriya-kun?

MIDORIYA

I feel… really good, actually. Like I’ve just eaten a three-course meal, and had a full night’s sleep. I-is that bad?

NEDZU

Not at all, Midoriya-kun. Indeed, it is exactly what I expected! Ah, Maijima. You may go now, Midoriya-kun and I shall finish the rest ourselves.

MAIJIMA

If you’re sure.

[CLICK]

-- RECORDING PAUSED --

-- RECORDING RESUMED --

[CLICK]

NEDZU

Very well, Midoriya-kun, shall we discuss now?

MIDORIYA

U-uh, Nedzu-sensei? Why do we need the tape recorder on for this? Not that I’m questioning you or anything!

NEDZU

It’s a valid question, Midoriya-kun. I simply believe it would be helpful to get our thoughts on recording, for posterity’s sake.

MIDORIYA

O-okay.

NEDZU

Now, Midoriya-kun, what were your thoughts on Maijima’s statement?

MIDORIYA

W-well… it seems to pretty clearly be an example of the Extinction, right? I mean, humans spoiling nature, the obsolescence of humanity, some new life form taking over from us. T-that’s all the Extinction’s domain, right?

NEDZU

It would seem so, Midoriya-kun! I’m inclined to agree with you - certainly, it doesn’t seem to match any other of the Powers. 

MIDORIYA

S-so this… computer, face, AI thing… is it still out there?

NEDZU

I’ve not heard of anything like it so far, but I believe it could be possible. I’ll see if anyone at the Centre has any similar statements. Or, perhaps, you will see for yourself!

MIDORIYA

Nedzu-sensei…?

NEDZU

But that is a discussion for later. Now, though, I believe our discussion of this statement is over! Any final words for the record?

MIDORIYA

I-I don’t think so, sensei…

NEDZU

Very well! Then I believe our session for the day is over! I look forward to hearing your insights at the sports festival tomorrow.

MIDORIYA

I’m excited to see it!

NEDZU

Good! Well, with that said, I will make sure to clean up the transcript and send it and the tape back to the Centre for safekeeping! Until tomorrow, Midoriya-kun!

[CLICK]

-- END OF TRANSCRIPT --

Chapter Text

Izuku fidgeted in his seat, trying to get into a comfortable position. It was still fairly early on the morning of the sports festival, and the stands were just beginning to fill up with heroes and members of the public alike, all eager to see the country’s best and brightest fight for the top. His mind drifted towards childhood dreams of being down there as well, using his fire breath or telekinesis to prove himself as the next great hero. He shook his head, brushing any remnants of his former dream aside. He couldn’t be a hero. For more reasons than one, now.

The teacher’s box was still rather empty, containing only him and a few of the second and third year teachers such as Snipe. The first year teachers were probably with their classes at that moment, and Nedzu-sensei had some last minute business to attend to. Izuku leaned back in his seat, pen and unopened notebook resting in his lap as he allowed himself to relax just a little.

He shouldn’t have let his guard down.

Footsteps approaching the box made him look up, and he froze at the sight of the person who entered. All Might walked in, lean and bony in his skeletal form. He caught sight of Izuku and gave him a small smile before taking a seat.

Izuku couldn’t help it. He was thrown into memories he’d tried so hard to forget, of that day, ten months ago.

Izuku stood atop the rooftop, shivering in the wind as he stammered out the question that had haunted him his entire life.

“E-even without a Quirk… even p-powerless… can… C-can I become a hero?”

He looked up, only to freeze as the mist parted around his idol, revealing a lanky, skinny, bony man who in no way resembled the titan that All Might was. The man let out a deep sigh that rattled into a hacking cough and pulled up his shirt slightly, revealing a gnarled, twisted scar that knotted at the left side of his chest and spread thick tendrils of tissue out across his torso.

“Six years ago, a very dangerous villain did this to me. I am no longer able to maintain my muscular form for longer than three hours. I… kid…” he sighed, struggling with the words. “If this can even happen to the Number One hero, then think about how dangerous it could be to someone like you.” He nodded, seemingly trying to convince himself just as much as he was Izuku.

“I’m sorry, but no. I don’t think you can be a hero.”

Izuku’s heart shattered that day. All Might continued to speak, saying something about the police force, but his mind was far too fuzzy to register anything more, and the man walked away, leaving Izuku alone.

He didn’t know how long he sat there amongst the pieces of his broken dreams. That entire day had been one terrible thing after another, from… someone at school’s advice, Who was it again?, to almost dying to that Sludge Villain, and finally to that rooftop, the shards of his heart cutting into his chest. Well, it all seemed to be pointing to one conclusion.

Izuku didn’t remember how it happened exactly, only flashes. Standing up, leaning over the ledge, the wind rushing past his ears… the next thing he knew, he was lying on the ground, pain shooting through his body. And then nothing.

And then he woke up in a bed, the stench of antiseptic and the rhythmic beep of the heart monitor telling him where he was. 

All that time in hospital, in therapy, changing to online learning… the only thought that stuck in his head was All Might’s words.

He couldn’t be a hero. Quirkless people couldn’t be heroes.

And now, whatever monster Izuku has become…

They couldn’t be heroes either.

Movement beside him jolted Izuku from the terrible daydream, and his eyes shot upwards, meeting the concerned gaze of the Principal.

“Are you alright, Midoriya-kun? You seemed quite lost in thought for a moment.”

Izuku nodded wordlessly, blinking as he glanced around the stadium. The stands were fuller now, and the crowd was starting to get restless. It was likely the events were going to begin at any moment. He opened his notebook in anticipation, forcing down the lingering nightmares of his past as he attempted to return to some semblance of normalcy. All at once, Present Mic’s voice echoed around the stadium, and the crowd roared.

“ HELLO HEROES, CIVILIANS AND MEDIA VULTURES! WELCOME TO UA’S FIRST YEAR SPORTS FESTIVAL! ARE YOU ALL READY?! ”

The crowd’s cheer was deafening, and Izuku hunched into himself slightly.

“ ALRIGHT! THAT’S WHAT I LIKE TO HEAR! WITHOUT FURTHER ADO, LET’S GET OUR CLASSES ON THE FIELD! ”

As Present Mic began to introduce the first years of UA, Izuku felt the first tingles of something in his gut. Some sort of power, maybe, or just the feeling of fullness. Class 1-A walked onto the field, heads held high, and the feeling grew, like a small spark was igniting in his stomach. The arrival of 1-B fanned those flames, a fire now burning in his torso.

And then the General Education classes were called, and Izuku’s mind exploded .

Images flickered through his mind, too fast for him to note any details beyond a blur of blues and whites and yellows and greens and reds. At times his vision seemed like he was viewing through a lens, at others it was rimmed by frames. His head was splitting open but he did not notice the pain, nor did he hear the quiet panic of the teachers around him. He did not feel the cold concrete floor beneath him, or the gentle paws on his face as he convulsed, his mouth wrenched open in a silent scream. Every muscle in his body contracted at once, and his vision was overtaken by a sea of black.

Izuku fell into a dreamless slumber.

Izuku’s second time waking up in Recovery Girl’s office was far less serene than his first. He jolted with a start, frantically scrabbling against the soft bedsheets in a blind panic as comprehension eluded him. A softness against his hands caused him to whip his head around, coming face to face with his teacher. Nedzu-sensei’s brow was furrowed in an approximation of a frown, and he spoke in a low, calm voice.

“It’s okay, Midoriya-kun. You’re safe.”

His shaky breathing settled into something approaching normalcy, and he nodded slightly. The Principal clicked his tongue, beady eyes unreadable.

“How do you feel?”

He cleared his throat, “T-thirsty,” he croaked, voice hoarse and mouth bone dry. Nedzu-sensei nodded and passed him a cup of water, which he drank greedily, all sense of decorum thrown out of the window. The chimera watched him drain the cup, paws tented as they sat in silence for a moment, before he spoke.

“Midoriya-kun, would you mind explaining what, exactly, happened? From our point of view, the General Education students walked onto the field, and you simply collapsed to the floor, convulsing, before finally laying still a moment later.”

Izuku frowned and tried to sort through his memories. It hurt his head to think about, but he wanted to know just as much as the teacher did. He filtered through the blur of colours, and gave his uncertain answer. 

“I… I saw everything.”

The mammal cocked his head to the side, “Everything?”

He frowned, frustrated. “I think… I could see out of other people’s eyes? And the school’s security cameras, too. I could see everything and… I think it overwhelmed me.”

Nedzu-sensei hummed, “I see. That amount of information in a singular moment, well, it’s no wonder you collapsed. Though, I must ask you not to use your new power for the time being, until we can work out a way to help you control it.” At his nod, he stood. “Very well, Midoriya-kun. I shall leave you here to rest.”

Izuku tried to sit up, but his headache forced him back down. “B-but, what about the rest of the festival? I have to see Mei, and-”

The teacher held up a paw and levelled him with an even stare. “Midoriya-kun, you are barely able to sit up in bed. The only thing you can do now is rest. I’m sure you’re still feeling quite tired.”

He was, not that he was going to admit it. But any protests he may have had fell on deaf ears as the Principal’s stare continued to bear into him, and he soon, reluctantly, fell back asleep, barely registering the chimera’s “Sweet dreams, Midoriya-kun.”

When Izuku next awoke, the sun was setting, and the sky was a painting of oranges, reds, yellows and blues that filtered into the room and danced across the walls. Mei sat by his bed, tinkering with something as usual. He groaned slightly and her eyes shot up, contraption forgotten as uncharacteristic concern filled her face.

“Hey, Greenie, are you okay?”

He rubbed his eyes and nodded slightly, “Yeah, Mei, just tired.”

She bit her lip and looked over him, “I thought you weren’t competing today? What happened?”

“It was…” he hesitated. He could tell the truth, but… no, this wasn’t the time. “A fainting fit. I just fainted.” He chuckled weakly, rubbing the back of his neck. It was clear she didn’t believe his weak excuse, but dropped it for the time. “So… how was the festival? What’d I miss?”

Mei seemed receptive to the change in topic, and her eyes gleamed with mania. “Oh, Greenie, it was great! My babies were on top form today! And! I’m glad you convinced me not to go with my original plan, because…” she paused dramatically, and Izuku leaned forwards. Mei reached into her pocket, and whipped out…

“TADAA!”

A gold medal.

“Your strategies were perfect, Greenie! I must’ve gotten the attention of every support company out there!” She placed the medal in Izuku’s lap. “Here, it’s yours! I don’t really want it, and it’s really because of you I even have it, so take it!” She was as loud as ever, but Izuku could read between the lines enough to see it for the symbol of friendship it was. Hesitantly, he took it.

“T-thank you, Mei. It’s really yours, but, if you’re sure…”

She waved it off. “It can be both of ours then! You and me, Greenie, we’re a team!” She grinned, and he couldn’t help but smile back. “Oh! Since you were out for the whole festival, you wanna come in on Sunday to help me test some new babies? I got a pass from PL and everything!”

Izuku blushed bright red. Spending time with Mei, one-on-one, outside of school time? It wasn’t that he didn’t want to, of course, so he nodded. “S-sure! I-Is there a particular time, or…?”

She shrugged, “I don’t know! Hey, let me put my number into your phone to let you know when I get here!”

Somehow, he blushed even more, and wordlessly handed the girl his phone. As she typed her number in, he couldn’t help but notice the way she stuck her tongue out slightly in concentration. It was honestly pretty cute. He shook those thoughts away immediately. Mei was just a friend, nothing more. A friend he was lying to, no less. Besides, when she inevitably found out the truth, she’d just leave him anyway. So, best not to get too attached. She handed his phone back, and they chatted for a while longer, before Recovery Girl came to chase them both out. They parted ways at the train station, and the gold medal weighed heavily in Izuku’s pocket as he reflected on the day. 

It was rather anticlimactic, to be honest, after all the build up.

He sighed and smiled to himself, proud of his friend’s achievement. No matter what she said, this was all hers. Still, it was nice to have a reminder, a marker of their friendship. It’ll be nice to reflect upon after she left him, like so many others had before, like…

Hm.

Who had left him before?

He knew people had, could remember the feelings of despair and betrayal and loneliness, but couldn’t quite pin a name or a face to it all.

Oh well.

Perhaps it wasn’t that important after all.

Izuku exited the train and headed home, eager to eat his mom’s food.

He slept well that night.

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

CLICK

“ Hi! This is Midoriya Izuku! Sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you could leave a message, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! ”

BEEP

“Izuku, where are you? I’m starting to get worried now. Call me back when you get this, okay dear?”

CLICK

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

CLICK

“ Hi! This is Midoriya Izuku! Sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you could leave a message, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! ”

BEEP

“Izuku, baby, please pick up. Or send me a message, just to tell me you’re okay. I’m worried baby.”

CLICK

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

CLICK

“ Hi! This is Midoriya Izuku! Sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you could leave a message, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! ”

BEEP

“Hey, Greenie! Didya get my text? C’mon, it’s been half an hour now, I wanna test some babies already!”

CLICK

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

CLICK

“ Hi! This is Midoriya Izuku! Sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you could leave a message, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! ”

BEEP

“Greenie!” BOOM “You hear all the fun you’re missing out on?” BOOM-CRASH “Come on and join me already!” BOOM

CLICK

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

RING RING

CLICK

“ Hi! This is Midoriya Izuku! Sorry I can’t come to the phone right now, but if you could leave a message, I’ll get back to you as soon as possible! ”

BEEP

“I dunno if you’re sick or whatever but you should’ve told me you weren’t coming today! I wouldn’t be mad, I promise… I guess I’ll see you in class tomorrow?”

CLICK

RING RING

RING RING

RING-

CLICK

“UA High School! Principal Nedzu speaking!”

“Nedzu, it’s Detective Tsukauchi. I’m calling you about Midoriya Izuku.”

“Oh? What about Midoriya-kun, detective?”

“We’ve just received a report from his mother. Apparently, she hasn’t seen him since Friday morning, when he went to get some groceries. He’s not picking up his phone either. Given his… unique circumstances, I expected you’d want to be kept in the loop.”

“Indeed. Thank you, detective. I shall be doing my own investigation, and we shall see how to proceed once I’ve located him.”

“Like I expected. Talk to you soon.”

CLICK

Chapter Text

The day after the sports festival, Izuku woke to the sounds of his mom bustling in the kitchen. He yawned and stretched before getting out of bed, dressing and walking out of his room, into the main area of the apartment. He rubbed his eyes and followed the sounds of her humming and the smell of food, stepping into the kitchen with a tired “morning, mom.”

She turned to him and smiled, “Oh, Izuku! How did you sleep?”

He nodded slowly, returning her smile with his own, “Good, mom. Really good.” He chuckled a little, and leaned against the countertop as she crossed the room to check the fridge and cupboards. Frowning a little, she rooted around in them for a minute before sighing.

“Oh dear, I think we’ve run out of milk and eggs…” she worried her lip between her teeth and wrung her hands, lost a little in thought.

Izuku jumped at the occasion, “Oh! I can go down to the store to pick some up!”

She furrowed her brow, “Are you sure, dear? You’ve only just woken up, after all.”

He shook his head and smiled at her, “It’s okay mom. I wanna get out anyway!”

She hummed, “Very well dear, let me just get my purse.” 

He stepped aside as she left the room, heading over to the table by the couch and pulling out some money. She handed it to him and he pocketed it, along with his phone, before pulling on his shoes. 

“I’ll just be five minutes, mom!” He called out, and left, heading towards the nearby store.

Around two minutes later, he was walking by an alleyway when a sudden warning forced its way into his mind. He doubled over in pain, clutching his head, and was unable to move as someone barrelled into him, sending them both tumbling to the ground with a grunt. His momentary agony passed, Izuku slowly opened his eyes, staring up at the person who had run into him.

Bakugou Katsuki was kneeling above him, sky blue eyes sparkling with concern and another, unreadable emotion. He offered Izuku a hand up, which he gladly took.

“Sorry, didn’t see ya there, Midori. You okay?”

He waved the other boy’s concern off as he rubbed the back of his head. “It’s okay, Bakugou-kun! I just had a bit of a headache.”

Bakugou-kun hummed lightly, twisting a strand of long orange hair nervously. “Well, still. Anyway, you’re just in time! I found something amazing, you gotta see it!”

“W-well, actually, I have to-” he began to protest, but the other boy insisted.

“It’ll only take a minute, Midori, don’t worry!”

He nodded reluctantly, and Bakugou-kun beamed at him, before grabbing his wrist and dragging him into the alley. Izuku was a little confused, but he trusted the other boy enough to follow nevertheless. He was led to a closed dumpster, and they stood in front of it.

“It’s in here, Midori. Take a look!”

Izuku was hesitant, but the boy’s grin was enough to convince him, and he placed his hands on the lid before pushing it up. The sound of creaking metal filled the alleyway. Izuku stood on his tiptoes to look inside.

An empty dumpster was the last thing he saw before he felt a blunt pain at the back of his head, and the world went dark.

The next Monday, Mei sat in 1-H’s workshop, angrily fiddling with a new baby she’d come up with the day before, when he had decided to skip out on her. Oh he was going to get a piece of her mind, that’s for sure. She sighed and tossed the pieces down onto the workbench, running her hands through her hair.

She thought he was like her. He was anxious, shy, didn’t seem to have too many friends, but he was kind to her. He always made sure she ate, and was always willing - mostly - to help her test things out. For once in her life, she actually liked another person, more than she did some of her babies. 

She’d never had friends, really. She didn’t really understand how people worked, not like she did machines. Other people weren’t exactly inclined to hang around her either; they were usually put off by her energy and propensity for explosions. She was always the outsider, the weirdo, the one that didn’t fit in. She hadn’t expected UA to be any different, and that was fine. She could just spend the three years in the workshop before Hatsumei Industries exploded onto the scene.

And yet, she had let down her defences. She had seen something in the green boy, some intelligence that she was drawn to. She liked his awkward manner and his shyness, she liked his brains, but most of all, she liked the way he was always willing to help, even if he seemed nervous about it. She’d allowed herself to look forward to their testing on Sunday. She was looking forward to spending more time with him, maybe even more than she did testing her babies.

It was a close thing, to be sure.

And, yeah, she understood that sometimes things happen, and people get busy. But he didn’t even send her a text? Just something to say that something had come up?

That burned .

Maybe it wasn’t betrayal, but it definitely felt like it. When she saw him that day, she’d give him a piece of her mind, that was for sure. He’d better have a good reason for ghosting her.

Except… minutes passed, the room filled up, and yet there was no sign of him anywhere. He wasn’t always the earliest person in the world - Mei practically lived in the workshop, after all - but he was never usually late. Still, Mei was patient when she wanted to be. She could wait.

And yet, homeroom arrived, and he wasn’t there. PL seemed anxious, something that was unusual for the usually exhausted man. He was wired and jittery, and that only served to heighten Mei’s confusion. All through workshop, too, she caught him staring at the empty bench beside her more than once. 

The day flew by with neither hide nor hair seen from Greenie-Izuku-Midoriya, and Mei started to worry, even despite her anger. Perhaps PL’s anxiety was rubbing off on her?

Just what had happened to him?

Consciousness came to Izuku slowly, but the pounding headache began immediately. He groaned softly as he scrunched his eyes, trying to shake the blurriness from them. He eventually managed to pry them open just enough to make out a blurry form in front of him. The details were unclear - the room he was sat in was dim, and his vision was still fuzzy - but the hair colour left no doubt as to who it was.

“Ba...kugou-...kun?”

The form scoffed and bent down to his level, Izuku only now realising he was sitting in a chair, arms bound to the back. The other boy leaned in close, allowing Izuku to get his first good look at him in a while. He seemed like Izuku remembered, for the most part, except, up close, he could finally see something wrong with him.

The boy had no pores. His skin was smooth, far too smooth to be human, or a Quirk effect, and Izuku instinctively recoiled. The… thing in front of him laughed, cruel and taunting.

“Oh, Midori ,” he - it   - lilted mockingly, “he’s long gone . I’m surprised your patron didn’t inform you earlier, though I suppose it’s always been a bit of an idiot, so easy to distract, and so content to let you fumble around in the dark. It didn’t even see this plan forming.” It hummed and tapped its chin, “Well, I suppose it did see it, but knowing and understanding are two very different things. By the time it could see everything, it was already too late.”

Izuku shook his head and stared up at it, “Bakugou-kun, please! I-if you’re in there-”

He was cut off by another sharp bark of a laugh, “If he’s in there ? Oh please, don’t tell me you still believe in that shit?” It pushed its face closer to him, and he could no longer shuffle backwards. “If you really think this is a fairy tale, where villains can be won over by the power of friendship, then you clearly haven’t been paying attention.” It bent up, a motion far too smooth to be human, and began pacing around Izuku’s chair. “I suppose you must have some idea of what’s going on?”

He thought it over, the pulsing pain in his head making it difficult to think. The answer soon came to him, though whether it was given to him, he couldn’t say. “You’re… part of the Stranger. An Avatar, or something.”

It hummed, “‘Or something’ is what I would choose, personally. A manifestation, if you will.”

The pieces clicked into place, “Y-you’re not Bakugou-kun… you’re the NotThem. You’re… Not!Bakugou.”

Not!Bakugou clapped, mocking, and a vicious grin spread across its too-smooth face. He put on a faux American accent and spun around to an imaginary audience. “Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner, folks!” It announced, voice echoing in a way that told Izuku the room was larger than it appeared. It dropped the accent, turning back to him with a voice dripping with malice. “Now, how about we see what he’s won?”

Footsteps echoed out from behind him, and he strained himself to try and find the source. He heard the familiar click of a tape recorder, and the hiss of a tape, before a crackling voice sent daggers of ice racing down his spine. 

“Well, little Watcher. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.”

Despite nearing his forty-eighth hour without sleep, Nedzu was wide awake, due in no small part to the countless cups of tea he had downed in that time. His usually silky fur was untamed and his clothes dishevelled, though he made himself a little presentable before meeting with the three men now before him. Aizawa seemed as exhausted as ever, though there was a question in his eyes, wondering why Nedzu had called them there. Ishiyama wore his confusion more openly, while Maijima simply hung his head, already aware of the reason for the meeting.

“I’ll be straightforward with you all. Last Friday morning, Midoriya Izuku left his apartment to buy groceries. He has not been seen since.” Aizawa and Ishiyama’s eyes widened, and Maijima placed his head in his hands. “I received this news from Detective Tsukauchi on Sunday evening, and have been working to locate Midoriya-kun since. I have managed to do so, and Tsukauchi and I are gathering heroes to help rescue him. I would like to extend the offer to you three.”

Aizawa narrowed his eyes at him, “I’m guessing there’s something you haven’t mentioned, if Midoriya’s involved.”

He nodded, “Indeed there is, Aizawa. I shall go into more detail when we have the team ready, but it is my belief that Midoriya-kun has been kidnapped by agents of one of the Entities. Specifically, it is likely he has been taken by agents of the Stranger. There are a few reasons why such beings would want an Avatar of the Eye, assuming it is at least somewhat targeted, and none of them are good.” He hummed, wondering just how much to reveal. “In the worst case scenario, it is likely that everyone present will have to be able to use reason and logic to complete the mission, without relying on their senses. You three are the most rational members of staff at UA, and I have confidence in your abilities.”

“I’m in.” Maijima looked up, steel in his eyes. As expected.

“I wouldn’t have expected otherwise.” He chirped, and turned to the other men.

Ishiyama gave a deep sigh before nodding. “There is a child in danger. As I see it, it is our duty, as teachers and heroes, to ensure his safety. Of course I’ll join.”

He nodded, and looked at Aizawa, who seemed to gain ten years as he gave a short nod. Nedzu smiled grimly, “Very well then, gentlemen. I will contact you with the details soon.”

The meeting over, they filed out of his office, and he sighed as he ran a paw over his head. He knew Midoriya-kun was alive, of course; he was a fully realised Avatar, there was little they could do, unless they had a Hunter on their side, or several years to waste by slowly starving him of fear. That said, it didn’t mean he was safe. There was plenty they could do to hurt him, and if the worst case scenario happened, then all they could do was hope to find him in time.

Izuku stared at the “man” in front of him. His close-cropped black hair was slicked back, and he wore a rather ordinary black suit, with a checkered dress shirt and black tie. His eyes were dark and glinted like glass in the light. His skin had a plastic sheen to it, but that wasn’t the most unusual aspect of him.

No, that honour would go to the wide grin that threatened to split his face in two.

“I find it ironic, really, that we are the ones who have been watching you .” Even as he spoke, his teeth never unclenched, fixed in a rictus even as his lips moved, just a second out of sync with his speech. His voice was bookended by the clicks of a tape recorder, the hissing of a tape its’ accompaniment, and it sounded tinny, as if someone had pre recorded his lines and were now playing them back. “Though, I suppose we did lose you for a while there. It was luck, really, that we managed to find you again. But now our plans reach their conclusion.” He spoke calmly, serenely, a contrast to the Not!Bakugou’s smug lilt.

Izuku gulped, trying to put on a brave face, and tried to tap into his powers. “W-what-”

The man slapped a hand over his mouth and tutted. “Now, now, little Watcher. I wouldn’t try anything funny, if I were you. Besides, you’ll likely need to conserve your strength. I’m assuming you were attempting to force me to tell you what, exactly, my plans for you were?” he nodded shakily, and the man laughed, throwing his head back a second too late to be normal. “Well, what do you know? A Watcher in the dark. I suppose I’ve seen it all now. Well, if you don’t know, I won’t be the one to tell you. In fact, your lack of knowledge actually benefits me. It seems our patron was stronger than we thought.”

The man took his hand away. “Oh, I suppose I should introduce myself, not that identity holds much meaning to me. For now, you can call me Yamada Tarou.” Standing up to his full height, he glanced between Izuku and Not!Bakugou. “Well, the clock is ticking, and I have much to prepare. I’ll leave you two to get acquainted.” With a crackling chuckle, he left, walking off into the darkness until Izuku couldn’t hear his footsteps. The other thing smirked viciously, pulling a crate out of the dark and sitting on it, leaning forwards until they were nearly nose to nose.

“I think we have a lot to talk about, eh Midori ?”

Wednesday came and went, and there was still no sign of Izuku. Sure, he could be sick, but with how weird PL had been acting recently, Mei knew there was something wrong. So, she did what she usually did when something was wrong.

She plotted.

After class that day, she managed to catch up to the teacher before he left. “PL!” She shouted, running up to him. She pointedly ignored the weary sigh he gave as he turned.

“Yes, Hatsume?”

“I was just wondering if you knew where Greenie’s been. I mean, I haven’t seen him since the sports festival, and he hasn’t texted me at all, which isn’t like him!” A small lie, but he seemed like a texting guy. Probably. “So, y’know, where is he?” That last part came off as more accusatory than she’d intended, but when she saw him physically recoil at the question, she knew she had him. 

He tried to explain it away as just a sickness or something, but by that point she’d tuned him out. She thanked him and he turned away, heading towards the main gates. He usually drove, and the teachers’ parking lots were in the opposite direction. Plus, he usually left a lot later than he was. So, just before he left her, she slipped a tiny tracking device into his back pocket, something he was far too tired to notice.

Okay, yes, he could have decided to go home early and walk that night, but she was pretty sure he was going somewhere else, and that somewhere would lead her to Izuku. There was something going on and she was going to get to the bottom of it. Clearly, Izuku was in some kind of trouble.

So it was totally morally okay to track her teacher.

Izuku wasn’t sure how much time had passed while he was in that dark room. He had fallen asleep multiple times, but never knew how long they’d last. He could try to Know, of course, but the last time he had tried to Know about his captor’s plans, he was hit by a wave of knowledge that knocked him unconscious, and only left him with one word: Unknowing. Besides, every time he even thought about Knowing, he could feel his energy sapping from him. He remembered what Nedzu-sensei had said about feeding on fear; the last time he’d done that would have been the rush at the sports festival, and since then he’d had nothing, not even from the scraps he usually got from analysing the hero course’s training sessions. That was probably the intention, then, to weaken him up for whatever plot they had.

Still, that didn’t explain why they kept sending it in to watch over him.

He could handle the few times Yamada guarded him. The man usually just stared at him for hours on end, and Izuku would often stare right back. Other times, plastic people or people smelling of smoke, with an undercurrent of something woody would come in. They never spoke to him, though, and he could even get some sleep.

Not!Bakugou, on the other hand, seemed to revel in his despair. 

It was hard enough seeing the face of someone he knew as a friend, a calm, artistic soul, now twisted in cruelty, but to also know that all of his memories of it were fake, pasted over anything he knew of the real Bakugou Katsuki, was just rubbing salt in the wound.

“You know, it’s so good to finally be able to torment you, to finally be able to fulfil my purpose. Before we had to keep under cover, to make sure we didn’t alert you or your patron. But now you’re here, well, I can’t say I don’t enjoy it.”

“T-the real one. What…?” Izuku managed to croak out, deliberately cutting himself off, so as not to waste his waning energy Compelling it. Fortunately, it seemed to get the point well enough.

“What happened to him?” It shrugged. “The same that happens to all of my victims. I killed him and took his place. I’ll spare you the gory details, but,” it let out a low, dark chuckle, “I promise you, it was agonising . Oh, the way he screamed as I tore his identity from him, his name, his past…” it sighed, reminiscing, “do you know what it feels like to have your identity ripped out of you?” Izuku shook his head. “Of course you don’t. Neither do I, really. According to those I’ve asked, though, and the way my victims sob and scream and cry, I assume it’s excruciating.” It chuckled, and he hung his head.

“Auntie, Uncle…?”

It scoffed, “You mean the parents? Well, I’m sure someone will find their bodies eventually.” A shrug. “Probably.”

Tears sprung to his eyes, but he fought back the urge to cry. He could mourn later, and he didn’t dare show weakness, not now. Instead, he changed tracks. “Y-yamada… he said you’ve been watching me…”

A short laugh, “Something like that. You Watchers are something of a beacon with other Avatars and manifestations. We’re always able to tell when someone’s got an Eye on them.” It barked another laugh. “The point is, you reeked of the Eye. It was just a matter of time before you became fully realised.”

Despite his situation, Izuku let out a bitter laugh. “Before you were forced into its service, you mean?”

For some reason, Not!Bakugou’s smirk spread wider. “You think you were forced?” He laughed, loud and cruel, the sound echoing around the room. “The world is made up of millions upon millions of choices, Midori .” It wiped a nonexistent tear from its eye, but said nothing more, leaving Izuku to stew and wonder whatever that meant. He kept the door in his mind firmly closed, however.

He didn’t want to Know the truth.

Nedzu looked over the team they had assembled. It had been hard to find heroes and officers who had signed Article 5 and would also have the right headspace, and so their team was small. Alongside Aizawa, Ishiyama and Maijima, Tsukauchi had pulled in a favour and brought Sir Nighteye on board, along with, surprisingly, the Number Five hero Edgeshot. They were hoping to keep things under wraps, though they did have a cover story prepared if the need arose. He clapped his paws to quieten the soft chatter in the room, and every eye snapped towards him.

“Thank you all for coming. I know many of you must be wondering why we have invited you here, and I won’t keep you waiting. Last Friday morning, UA Support Course student Midoriya Izuku,” he clicked the remote in his paw, showing Midoriya-kun’s photo from his student ID. “was kidnapped. 

“You are all aware of the Dread Powers, as a result of your signing of Article Five, so I will divulge to you that Midoriya-kun is a fully realised Avatar of the Eye.” Soft gasps and raised eyebrows accompanied this revelation, but Nedzu pushed on regardless. “Since I first learned of his disappearance, I have been searching through the city’s security cameras to find him, and I believe I have.” He clicked the button again, this time showing security camera footage of Midoriya-kun walking past an alleyway. The screen turned to static, and came back approximately two minutes later, showing an empty street. “This is the last known footage of Midoriya-kun. However,” he showed another security camera feed, displaying a video of a black van speeding away from its parking place, which was not far from the location where the previous footage was taken. The van had a logo on it, for Madame Tussauds, Tokyo, in Minato City. 

“In case you are unfamiliar, Madame Tussauds was an international waxworks franchise that closed around thirty years ago now. Their location in Tokyo has stood empty since then, at least until it was bought by one ‘Yamada Tarou’, around two years ago.” The clearly fake name wasn’t fooling anyone. “I believe this is the work of the Stranger, and, though I’m not sure what they want with Midoriya-kun, I think it is likely that they are performing-”

Shouts erupted from down the hallway, cutting off Nedzu’s talk as footsteps pounded towards their meeting room. Every hero and police officer in the room tensed, ready to face whatever threat was approaching. Suddenly, it burst through the door, a whirlwind of pink. Officers soon piled in after it, pinning it to the floor.

No one was quite sure what to do, but Maijima quickly broke the silence with a deep, bone-weary sigh.

“Hatsume, what are you doing here?”

The student on the ground struggled to look up at them, but still had the audacity to look angry. “PL! Listen! I don’t know what the hell’s going on, but I know something happened to Greenie! And I know you know what it is! So you’d better tell me or I’ll hide the fire extinguishers and test every single baby I have in the middle of class!”

The room of Pro Heroes stood silent for a moment, before Maijima gave an even deeper sigh. “Hatsume, it’s about an ongoing case. I can’t just tell you about it.”

She levelled him with an even glare. “Then let me join the case.” Maijima began to protest, but Hatsume-san barrelled onwards. “I won’t get in your way, I’ll stay out of danger, and I’ll give you any babies you want, free of charge! I just…” she sighed and looked away, “I want to make sure he’s okay. Which!” the ferocity returned to her, “He clearly isn’t, since you’re all in a police station about him!”

Somehow, Maijima sighed even deeper, before throwing his hands in the air and turning to Tsukauchi, who shrugged and turned to Nedzu. He considered it for a moment. If the Unknowing really was about to begin, then technology would be more or less useless. Still, the student’s inventions were useful in any other situation, and he got the feeling that she'd get involved no matter how much they tried to stop her.

“Very well, Hatsume-san. You will stay with Recovery Girl the entire time and follow her orders without question. You’ll also follow the orders of everyone else here.” She nodded eagerly, as much as she could while still pinned to the ground. Nedzu nodded at the officers restraining her, and they hesitantly let her go. She shot up, rubbing her wrists and stretching. “I’m afraid the situation isn’t mine to explain; I’ll leave that to Midoriya-kun. However, I will inform you that he has been kidnapped by some very powerful people.”

Her eyes widened for a moment, before narrowing, fists clenched in determination.

“Then let’s go rescue him.”

Chapter Text

On Friday evening, mere hours before the team would assemble at the wax museum to rescue his student, Nedzu called a meeting to discuss the worst case scenario.

“I find this situation unlikely,” he began, staring out at the stony faces of the heroes and officers before him, “but I believe it is best to be prepared. In the worst case scenario, the agents of the Stranger may have taken Midoriya-kun to act as a component in a ritual known as the Unknowing.

“In case you are unaware, rituals are ceremonies that agents of the Powers can perform to bring their patron into our reality. Should one succeed, it will drastically change our world. The Stranger’s ritual is known as the Unknowing. The details vary between attempts, but the effects are the same. Generally speaking, it takes the form of a performance. As it continues and gains more power, it begins to affect those not aligned with the Stranger. Specifically, they will lose the ability to perform semiosis; that is, the ability to recognise signs and symbols.

“I have done much research into the Unknowing, and both recorded times it has been performed describe a similar situation: those affected by the ritual are unable to recognise people or objects, may misidentify them as something they aren’t, and may even be unable to understand what they are at all.”

“We can’t trust our eyes, then.” Aizawa summarised, and Nedzu gave a short nod.

Nighteye raised an eyebrow, “Can it be stopped? The mission is to rescue Midoriya Izuku, yes, but if he’s a key component, then I can’t see them allowing us to set him free so easily. Besides, we can’t allow the ritual to be completed.”

He cleared his throat, “All of the rituals are susceptible to disruption, though the Unknowing is more resistant than most, as all the parts are replaceable. That said, a significant enough interruption to the performance at a crucial moment has proven to be able to cause the ritual to become unstable, and collapse under its own weight. In the last attempt, in 2017, this was through the use of explosives.”

Taking note of the team’s grimaces, he continued. “Of course, that is not a viable option for us. However, I have managed to find information on the attempt before that, in 1787. It was disrupted by an avatar of the Slaughter by eliminating the focal point of the ritual, an automaton. This leads me to believe that the manner of the disruption matters less than the timing, so as long as the ritual is disrupted significantly enough at a crucial moment, we needn’t worry too much about the ‘how’.

“That said, our priority is still Midoriya-kun. We don’t know when or if the Stranger’s agents will perform the Unknowing, but we do know that they have kidnapped a child, a student of UA, and I doubt they are treating him well. With time, he can recover from almost all physical wounds, but the mental scars this may leave him with will run far deeper. If they do not attempt the ritual before we arrive, or attempt it too early for us to disrupt it completely, then we will deal with that another day. As it stands, we must prioritise the rescue.”

The group nodded, and Ishiyama hummed softly, “If we are unable to trust our eyes, how will we find our way to Midoriya-kun?”

Nedzu chirped, “I’m glad you asked! Hatsume-san was very eager to assist us however she could, and I asked her to design these!” He held up a thick black metal band. “These are devices that each of you will be wearing on your wrist. When they are within a foot of another band or Midoriya-kun, they will continually vibrate. Normally, semiosis is performed through any of the senses, but all my research indicates that only sight and potentially hearing is affected. As such, so long as you are able to maintain enough reason to understand your goal, you will be able to complete the mission.”

The determined nods of the team made him grin slightly.

Hours later, they had gathered at the former location of Madame Tussaud’s, Tokyo, now little more than a hollowed-out husk of a building. The police officers had erected a perimeter, overseen by Tsukauchi at their field base: an abandoned crossroads with multiple officers and an ambulance and Recovery Girl on standby. Hatsume-san sat with the old heroine, fiddling with a contraption idly, though her gaze was fixed ahead of her, on the doors of the unassuming waxworks. Nedzu felt the buzzing on the device around his ankle and glanced over to Nighteye, who was himself staring at the building with steel in his eyes. 

The heroes had paired off for the mission, as they expected some form of resistance and fighting in pairs would ensure their safety as much as possible. Maijima and Ishiyama were to take the employee entrance, Aizawa and Edgeshot had the fire escape, and Nighteye and himself were going through the front. They had all the known exits covered, though there could be any number of secret exits, hence the perimeter. It wasn’t the perfect plan, of course, but he knew it would be good enough to at least rescue Midoriya-kun.

It had to be.

Izuku awoke that morning feeling weaker than ever. He was shaking, and if he had a mirror he was sure his face would be marked with the ghostlike pallor of death. The ever-present pressure of the door in the back of his head was faint now, distant, and his mouth was dry as bone. The Strangers had been feeding him and giving him water, though he wasn’t sure he could even starve or die of dehydration any more.

Just another way in which he was no longer human.

Footsteps echoed out ahead of him, forcing him to look up as best he could. The room, as ever, was pitch black, save for a single spotlight that shone down on him from the rafters. He could tell it was large, however, and dreaded to imagine what horrors lurked just beyond the safety of his meagre light.

Perhaps it was the scraps of Knowing left within him, but something told him he’d find out sooner rather than later.

The source of the footsteps entered the light, and he let out a rattling sigh as Yamada revealed himself. Another session of staring and grinning it was, then.

“Well, little Watcher, today’s the day.”

Alarm bells rang in Izuku’s head, and he vainly attempted to move away from the man. Yamada let out a crackling laugh and rested a plastic hand on his shoulder.

“Now, now, little Watcher. You have a part to play in the coming performance, just like everyone else. Believe me, you’re fortunate. Had we not decided to alter the props, well…” he chuckled, “All you need to do is lie back and enjoy the show.”

With that, he moved around Izuku’s chair and, bafflingly, untied him. He wasn’t being set free though, as he was soon picked up like he was little more than a sack of potatoes. The man carried him easily as he walked off into the darkness, and Izuku had to fight the gnawing fear in his gut. He soon found himself being placed down on a cold surface, and was strapped down by his wrists and ankles. Yamada clapped twice, and the lights of the room slammed on, forcing Izuku to shut his eyes, his retinas unprepared after days of dim light. Blinking rapidly, he allowed them to adjust to the light, and immediately wished he had kept them closed.

The room clearly used to be a warehouse or storage room of some kind, though it had been cleaned out now. An ancient looking steam organ sat against one wall, one of the people who reeked of cloves and sawdust sitting at it, waiting for some unknown conductor. Others who Izuku remembered had guarded him were now standing at regular intervals around the large room, grinning with some unknown excitement. Izuku himself was strapped to a metal medical table to one side of the room, but currently, that wasn’t what caused the white hot fear to begin roiling in his gut.

In the centre of the room, stood Not!Bakugou. At least, he thought it was. The face and hair were recognisable enough, if somewhat distorted, but the rest of it was completely alien. Its limbs were stretched and gangly, bones jutting out of stretched-taut skin at impossible angles. It was as if the creature had been run over by a steamroller. Multiple times.

Draped over the thing’s shoulders was a patchwork quilt of a strange tan material, mismatched, jagged pieces stitched and stapled haphazardly together. It only took a second for Izuku to realise what it was, and he had to force down the bile quickly rising in his throat. 

It was wearing a cloak of human skin. 

He averted his eyes, trying to look for a more pleasant sight to focus on, but only found something worse. 

Dangling from the ceiling in the corner opposite him were a group of red, fleshy forms. Skinned corpses. Except… the way they writhed and almost vocalised - were they somehow still alive? The bile quickly burst in his mouth and he swallowed it down, not heeding the burning acid as he slammed his eyes shut. Just what were they going to do?

Yamada tapped something metal against the table and, wordlessly, the performance began. The organ groaned to life, filling the air with a terrible, whistling melody. 

And then the singing began, if you could call the wet and wordless gurgling “singing”.

Izuku couldn’t help it, he looked. The bodies strung from the ceiling were moving in a mockery of dance as their lipless mouths trembled and spat out discordant harmonies. In the middle of the room, Not!Bakugou swayed and whirled to their awful tune, and its cloak rustled with it. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Yamada’ rictus grin stretch wider as he bobbed his head to a nonexistent beat. There was no rhythm, no unifying core to it, merely a cacophony of unidentifiable noise.

Izuku prayed to whatever god would listen that he would be freed from this living nightmare soon.

Higari had just entered through the staff entrance with Ishiyama when the music began. It sounded like a circus, but there was a trembling undertone of something else. Shaking his head, he started off, making sure Ishiyama was with him. He could worry about music later, but for now, he had a student to rescue.

They had barely made it into the actual exhibits when the confusion hit him. He looked down at the hands he did not have, and tried with all his might to lift the heavy iron blocks attached to his nonexistent arms. He tried to remember who he was, or why he was there, but the very concept of identity eluded him and his brain filled with static. He stumbled to the side in confusion, and felt a buzzing on the wrists he shouldn’t have possessed. If something was buzzing, perhaps there was something important he had forgotten? He turned to the person next to him, except it was not a person, but a wall, and yet it looked back at him. The wall vibrated as well. Maybe the wall was important to help him too? It didn’t exactly seem logical, but he was more focused on whatever he’d forgotten to worry about it right now.

“Let’s go.” He said to the wall, and it might have indicated back to him, but he wasn’t sure. Taking the maybe-indication as a confirmation, he set off down the hallway.

Without wishing to sound arrogant, Nedzu considered himself a little more intelligent than the average human. He wasn’t prone to forgetfulness, or to confusion, and generally kept his mind rather organised. 

Now though, he didn’t know where he was or what he was doing there. 

He was sitting on some… thing. He thought. He knew he wasn’t on the ground, and he knew he was sitting down, so logically, there had to be something he was sitting on. What that didn’t explain, however, was how the small tower of boxes he perched atop was moving forwards at quite a rapid pace, flinging boulders at formless shapes ahead of him. He couldn’t judge, of course; Nedzu himself appeared to be a pool of sentient magma. He had no memories of being this way, but that didn’t seem to be what was important at the moment. After all, both he and the mound of rocks beneath him were vibrating quite insistently. 

Wherever they were going, it must have been quite important, so he was content to go along for the ride.

Something weird was going on in the waxworks, and whatever it was, it was affecting Edgeshot. It was affecting Shouta, too, but to a much lesser extent. He could see the corridor ahead of them, despite the dim lighting, and he could see the other hero beside him, though he was staring around like a newborn child, uncomprehending and wild eyed. He’d be confused, if he couldn’t understand where he was getting it from. Yes, Shouta could see the dingy, abandoned museum, but overlaid on top of it he could also see a strange, indescribable world, one where nothing looked like anything Shouta had any frame of reference for. 

He was sure Edgeshot was receiving the full effect, but for him, it was like watching a 3D movie without wearing the glasses, all blurry, with two images overlaid on top of one another. For some reason, the Unknowing didn’t have as much of an effect on him as it did with his partner, but he didn’t have time to worry about that right now. He could ask Nedzu later.

For now, he had a mission, and a top 10 hero to babysit.

Izuku blinked rapidly as the so-called music started increasing in tempo. Every so often he’d receive flashes, images of a strange and anonymous world, where identity didn’t exist and meaning had no meaning. They’d go just as quickly as they came, but they were increasing in frequency, and with the tension of the cacophonous din reaching a fever pitch, he could tell that, whatever was happening, it was about to reach its peak.

Yamada turned to him, and for the first time, he noticed the object he held: a wicked, jagged knife. The plastic man grinned at him, as he usually did, and he heard the familiar click-hiss as he spoke. 

“Do you like what you see, little Watcher? I will create a world without identity, a world of anonymity, where you can change your face as easily as your clothes. Nothing will mean anything, and we will live in a land of the blissful unknown.” Somehow, the smile grew even wider, and he pointed the knife at Izuku. “And it all begins with you.”

Yamada loomed over him, and Izuku tried to escape, to get away from the dangerous look in his glassy eyes, but he was strapped tight, and could do nothing but watch as the grinning man brandished the knife at him.

“Now,” he whispered, far too close for Izuku’s comfort, “time to blind you, little Watcher, and once more make the Known unknown.”

His eyes shot wide. The knife was lowered towards him, every second feeling like a million years. He winced as the tip pierced into his right eyebrow.

Yamada’s hand pulled down viciously, and Izuku screamed.

Every hero in the building heard the scream, and one instinct flared up in them, as base as any primal fear. They ran towards it, uncaring of who or what was in their way.

They were heroes, and there was someone in danger.

Shouta and Edgeshot arrived there first. With his slight clarity, Shouta managed to tangle the man holding the knife up in his capture weapon, while Edgeshot had decided that the bony, impossibly thin creature was his enemy. He flattened himself and flew into it, rendering it unconscious instantly.

All at once, whatever strange effect the Unknowing had on the world around them ceased, and they were thrown for a loop. The man in Shouta’s capture weapon was straining and writhing, his screaming muffled, but he did not let go.

Higari entered with Cementoss soon after, joining Edgeshot and Eraserhead in tackling the enraged plastic and taxidermy people. He glanced over at Midoriya, his student, strapped to the table, blood gushing from a wound on his face.

Nedzu got a better look at him when he and Sir Nighteye entered not two minutes later. By then, the Stranger’s agents had all been captured, and they had begun to process them. Nedzu sat on Nighteye’s shoulder as the man approached his student. Together, they released the straps that bound him to the table, and Nedzu looked over him briefly.

Apart from the bleeding gash over - and through - his right eye, he seemed unharmed for the most part. He was unnaturally pale, however, and looked painfully thin, cheeks sunken and skin stretched taught. They rushed him outside in a stretcher, Recovery Girl accompanying him in the ambulance and leaving Hatsume-san hurling question after question at an exhausted Maijima. Nedzu watched the ambulance speed away, and considered the events of the day.

They had won.

It wasn’t enough.

He sighed lightly. It looked like he had some plans to advance.

Chapter Text

Izuku woke slowly, being pulled out of unconsciousness like a loose tooth. He groaned weakly, throat like sandpaper as he came to in a room that reeked of antiseptic. A cloud of white covered his right eye, and he could feel a dull pain throbbing behind it. Glancing around, he saw he was in a plain white room; a hospital room, an all too familiar sight for him. Memories rushed back to him, of Yamada and Not!Bakugou, of the Strangers and their awful music. He felt weak, weaker than before, and it was an effort to even turn his head to the side. He managed, though, and noticed that he was not alone in the room.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! You’re awake!”

He nodded slowly, stiffly, and tried to croak out any kind of speech, but all he could produce was a low, rattling breath. Nedzu-sensei gave him a small look of sympathy, and picked up a glass of water, bringing it to his lips. Izuku drank greedily, and quickly drained it.

His voice still felt hoarse, but he managed to produce a strained, “W-what…?” 

The chimera crossed his paws in his lap, “There will be time for a full debrief later. However, for now I can inform you that you were kidnapped by a group of beings aligned with the Stranger. They intended to use you as a tool in a ritual, but we managed to rescue you before,” he glanced at Izuku’s covered eye, “ too much damage was done to you. Even so, you have gone a week without any form of fear at all. You must feel rather weak.”

Izuku gave a small noise of affirmation. His entire body felt like lead, and he ached down to his very bones. He was pale as a sheet and trembled with some unknown hunger.

Nedzu-sensei smiled softly at him, “I have someone willing to give a statement to you, if you feel up to it. I’d recommend you do it sooner, rather than later, but you may rest some more if you wish.”

He hated feeling like he’d been run over by a truck, and wanted to get back to normal. “I… I can do it now…”

The teacher studied him for a moment, before nodding and walking over to the door. Izuku struggled to sit up in his bed, trying to make himself presentable for the mysterious guest. Despite every nerve ending in his body feeling like molten magma, he felt ready to hear whatever statement Nedzu-sensei had prepared.

Right up until the giver actually entered the room.

All Might’s skinny form gave him a tired, yet beaming grin. “Ah, Midoriya-shounen! I hope you are well.” 

Izuku fought down the panic. The teachers had no way of knowing about his history with All Might, and he doubted the man even remembered him. He was, after all, the Number One hero, while Izuku was just some no-name Quirkless kid. Of course he had better things to worry about. Besides, Izuku felt ravenous, desperate for some scrap of knowledge after who knows how long spent in the dark, literally and metaphorically. His need outweighed any lingering trauma he might have had from the Symbol of Peace’s presence, and he gave the man a small nod as he sat down by the bed.

“H-hi, All Might.”

Both hero and principal seemed taken aback for a moment, before All Might gave a small chuckle. “Ah, of course you know about that. I suppose with your abilities, you know a great many things about me. That said, I would prefer to be referred to as Yagi Toshinori in this form.”

Izuku nodded once more, and the man seemed placated. Nedzu-sensei, meanwhile, had set up the tape recorder on the bedside table, and turned to them both. 

“Now, Yagi, I trust you are aware that you will likely be revealing most, if not all, of your secrets when giving your statement?” The man gave a short nod. “This particular tape and transcript will be kept with other documentation concerning One for All and All for One; in a sealed vault to which only you and I have access. Midoriya-kun,” Beady eyes fixed on Izuku now, “I’m sure I don’t need to ask you that everything said in this interview must be kept between us?”

“Y-yes, Nedzu-sensei, I’ll keep it secret.” 

He already had, after all, for over a year.

The teacher nodded, and without further ado, clicked the record button on the recorder. Izuku once more felt the words flow from his lips.

-- START OF TRANSCRIPT --

[CLICK]

MIDORIYA

Statement of Yagi Toshinori, Pro Hero All Might, regarding his life and career. Statement recorded direct from subject, 19th May, 2250. Statement begins.

YAGI (STATEMENT)

I suppose, in one way or another, I have always been lonely. Ah, that’s not to say I was always alone, of course. Quite the contrary, in fact; it is rare that I ever get a moment to myself. But it is quite possible to be lonely even when surrounded by others.

In a way, it began with my birth. I was born Quirkless, you see, and I’m sure I don’t need to tell you how isolating that is. In fact, I’m sure you’ve had a worse experience than I. Quirklessness was increasingly rare when I was born, but nowhere near the rates it is today. Even so, I was viewed as somewhat of an oddity by my peers. They never treated me cruelly, but they didn’t exactly make an effort to be friendly, either. Mostly, I was simply ignored. Still, my dreams of heroism, of becoming a Symbol of Peace, were routinely mocked by those around me. After all, heroics was for those with Quirks, and I was nothing more than Quirkless Yagi .

The fog first came when I was ten.

It had been a particularly difficult day. While my classmates were content to simply ignore me, there were some in the local community that objected more… strenuously to my Quirklessness. A group of older boys had decided to take it upon themselves to “teach me a lesson”, and I found myself running through side streets and narrow alleyways, trying desperately to shake off my pursuers. They were older, though, and I hadn’t exactly been training my speed, so they were gaining ground on me rather quickly. I could hear their footsteps pounding on the concrete behind me, and I remember wishing, praying to any god that was out there, that I could just… disappear. I turned a corner, and that’s where it happened.

The fog came out of nowhere, and it enveloped me in a cold, damp embrace. It turned the world grey, and my pounding footsteps echoed out in the quiet alleyway. I shot out onto a main road, expecting it to be full of people.

It was deserted. Not a single soul stood on that road, even though it was rush hour, and should have been bustling with life. The roads that should have had traffic backed up for miles were deserted, and the city was still. Not a single sound could be heard there, save for the ones I made myself. Almost on autopilot, I wandered back through the strange, empty city towards my house. I sat on the steps outside, just to take a breather, but I must have fallen asleep.

I was awoken hours later by my parents, demanding to know what I was doing.

Ah, my parents. I’d love nothing more than to say that they were the only ones who believed in me, but I’m afraid that would be a lie. The truth is, they were much like my classmates; they had their lives, and I had mine. They took care of my basic needs, but we weren’t close by any stretch of the imagination.

No, in all honesty, my teachers were more like my parents than my real parents ever were.

My mentor, Shimura Nana… she was probably one of the closest people in my life, as was her friend and my former teacher, Torino Sorahiko. And yet… our relationship was tinged somewhat by the secret we shared: Nana’s Quirk, One For All, and the ancient enemy that came with it. Such closeness was out of necessity as much as it was out of genuine companionship. And, of course, having to keep such a secret only served to isolate me more from those around me. The more people I had close to me, the more All For One could use against me. 

The second time the fog came was the day I received One For All. The day my mentor was killed.

I was angry, at first. Of course I was; the woman I saw as my own mother had just been slaughtered, cut down in her prime by the most evil man the world had ever seen, someone who saw it as little more than a game. It took all of Torino-sensei’s will to stop me from immediately going after the bastard myself. Instead, we moved to America to train, and once the anger had gone, it was replaced by the dull ache of grief.

I’m not entirely sure what the argument was about, in all honesty. It was likely over something small and stupid, but at the time it had felt like everything. I had stormed out of the apartment, ignoring Torino-sensei’s calls to return, and was wandering aimlessly around an unfamiliar city, somewhere on the west coast. My phone was blowing up with call after call, message after message, all of which I ignored, until I finally begged the world to just leave me alone .

And it did. The fog came and silence reigned.

I spent hours simply walking, seeing the sights in silence, alone. I didn’t even question how it had come about, I was just thankful to finally get some time to think. It was… comforting, in a way. 

At some point, I don’t know when, I fell asleep.

When I woke up, two weeks had passed, and Torino-sensei was going mad with worry. I believe it was written off as a grief-induced fugue state, even though I knew I was lucid the whole time. Still, it didn’t matter much. I pushed all thoughts of my strange disappearance and focused on the future. On college, and on my heroics career.

College was, in all honesty, not so bad. It was where I met David, after all. Oh, the adventures we had… he was the closest I had ever gotten to having a best friend. Honestly, he was my best friend, though I suppose best friends tell each other everything and, well…

Knowing about One For All only paints a target on someone’s back, especially if they’re close to the current holder. All For One will use any dirty tactic to hurt people, and that includes targeting loved ones. If I could, I wouldn’t have told you about it at all, though I guess I don’t have much power over that. My point is, I never told David about One For All, and that always felt like a buffer between us, something preventing me from ever letting him in completely. Even with a best friend, I still felt lonely.

After college came my return to Japan, and my rapid rise to the top. You’d think that being the Number One hero would afford me countless opportunities for genuine friendships, but it is quite the opposite. It’s lonely at the top, after all, and the heroics industry is no exception. I rarely had the need to team up with other agencies, and oftentimes even my most capable colleagues were rather jealous of me. When you’re at the top of such a competitive industry, it’s nearly impossible to make any genuine connections. Nearly.

I already knew Shuuzenji Chiyo - Recovery Girl - from my time at UA, and she introduced me to the new principal, Nedzu, who had, of course, already figured out much of the secret of One For All, so they were two more people who knew about the secrets I held. I like them both well enough, but I wouldn’t exactly describe us as friends. Ah, no offence.

NEDZU

None taken!

YAGI (STATEMENT)

In any case, I don’t think I made my first real connection in Japan until Mirai. Sasaki Mirai, that is; Sir Nighteye. I had a policy of not accepting sidekicks; I couldn’t allow anyone to get close to me, after all. When the first request arrived, I denied it, the same as I did with every sidekick request. Except… a second arrived soon after. And a third, and a fourth, and a fifth. I denied them all, of course, but eventually I felt the need to meet whoever was sending them, just to sate my own curiosity. So, I reached out, and requested a meeting.

I wasn’t sure what I was expecting, but it wasn’t a man who seemed more suited to working in an office than a hero agency. He was a serious man, and yet… he had a dry humour about him, one which you could only pick up on when you spent enough time around him. That first meeting, he walked into my office, all proper and businesslike. I held out my hand to shake, and he took it. Little did I know, he wore a joy buzzer! It startled me into laughing, and began a rather wonderful partnership.

So yes, I suppose Mirai was the closest person to me, in a way. Doubly so when he learned of One For All.

I haven’t spoken to him in six years.

We had finally managed to track down All For One after years of fruitless searching. It was a fight that levelled a city, but it had worked. That bastard was dead, as far as I knew. It left its toll on me too, though; I lost my stomach and a lung, and I was near death by the time they found me. I survived, obviously, but while I was being healed… Mirai used his Quirk to see into my future. He foresaw me dying in a battle with a great villain, some five or six years into the future. He wanted me to retire, to quit, to save myself. He begged , but… I was stubborn. How could I retire when the world would need a Symbol of Peace more than ever? 

As soon as I could walk, I walked out of that hospital and into the city. There was no wish, this time, no desire for isolation, but the fog rolled in nevertheless, and I greeted it as an old friend.

I was found a month later, dehydrated and in desperate need of further medical attention.

Since then, I have been able to maintain my All Might form less and less, and have spent longer and longer in an apartment I rarely use, all alone. 

The fog has never hurt me. Quite the opposite, in fact; it has protected me, allowed me space to process my own thoughts and feelings, given me time to myself.

And yet, I am afraid.

I am afraid that, when the fog next comes, it will take me away forever.

And I am afraid that I will let it.

MIDORIYA

…

S-statement ends.

[CLICK]

-- END OF TRANSCRIPT --

Beside him, All Might sighed deeply, but Izuku was far more focused on the feelings of energy running through him. Any pain within him had lifted, any weight in his muscles or ache in his bones were gone. Even the low throbbing pain behind his right eye had vanished completely. He felt like he could run a marathon at that moment, when barely five minutes ago he’d felt like death warmed up. He hadn’t realised just how good analysis and statement-taking felt, and it worried him. It was feeding off of other people’s fear, after all.

“Well,” Yagi-san broke the silence, “that felt rather… cathartic. I suppose I’ve never really laid it all out like that before. Oh, and you look far better, Midoriya-shounen!”

Despite himself, Izuku gave the man a small nod, but said nothing. Fortunately, he was saved from having to respond by a nurse walking in. She had long brown hair, a kind smile, and carried a tablet.

“Oh, you’re up! And you look better; I’m guessing you’ve already had your, ah, statement?” 

Nedzu-sensei chuckled at his confused look. “You see, Midoriya-kun, there are plenty of individuals in every field who have had an encounter with one of the Powers. I simply find it rational to keep those in the emergency services appraised of the details!”

Izuku nodded dumbly, and the nurse approached, unwrapping the right side of his head and giving it a look over. Surprisingly, his vision wasn’t at all impaired, though he supposed that was just another Avatar thing. Nedzu-sensei leaned over to see for himself, and he huffed a squeak of a laugh. Izuku was rather confused, until the nurse brought a mirror over to him, and he gasped at his reflection.

He seemed mostly the same, save for the long, dark scar that began at his right eyebrow, passed over his eye and ended just above his jaw. He glanced over to the principal, and back to his reflection. Both of their injuries were nearly identical, even down to being on the same side of the face.

“Well, they say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but I would prefer it if you didn’t go to quite as extreme lengths!” Nedzu-sensei chirped, and Izuku laughed weakly, trying to fight down the rising panic. The silence was like a lead blanket over the room, but it was blessedly broken by the nurse clearing her throat.

“If I may, can I please speak to Midoriya-kun alone? I have some… personal questions to ask.”

Izuku wasn’t sure why he spoke up. “U-um, they can stay… i-if that’s okay.”

The nurse raised an eyebrow but relented. “Very well. Given your… incident around a year ago, we’re required to ask you these questions.”

Oh. Perhaps keeping the adults was a mistake. Well, there was no going back now, so Izuku just gulped and nodded shakily. 

“First of all, was this wound self-inflicted?”

He shook his head wildly, “N-no! I wouldn’t!”

She held her hands up placatingly. “Sorry, but we have to ask. Are you regularly attending therapy?” He gave a small nod. His therapist was the one who had helped him decide on the Support Course, after all. She marked down his answer and continued. “Alright, in the last year, have you experienced any of the following: low mood, suicidal ideation or self-harming tendancies?” He shook his head again; that incident had been a one-off, he knew that. Honestly, he was feeling fine now. Good, even!

She seemed satisfied with his answers, and bid farewell shortly after, leaving Izuku to lean back in his bed and let out a sigh of relief…

Before he remembered he was not alone in the room.

And Nedzu-sensei and All Might knew everything.

“Midoriya-kun, I hadn’t realised-” the principal began.

“I-I’m fine now! I-it’s fine!” He internally winced at interrupting the teacher, but gave them a weak smile nevertheless. Nedzu-sensei looked at him with obvious scepticism, but Yagi-san seemed deep in thought, until a mixture of realisation and horror dawned on his face.

“A year ago…? That means… you… on the roof…” The man coughed up blood, and Izuku bunched up the thin hospital blankets in his fists and stared at his lap, a sad smile on his face.

“Y-you were right, Al-Yagi-san. I couldn’t be a hero, not Quirkless…”

He startled when a chair clattered to the floor, and his mind went blank when he saw All Might, the Symbol of Peace, the Number One hero , crouched on the floor in a dogeza position, forehead to the cold ground.

“Midoriya-shounen, I… words can’t express how sorry I am for what I said that day. It’s no excuse, but… the truth is, I wasn’t thinking. When I saw you state your goals to me, with that determination in your eye… I didn’t see you then. I saw… I saw myself, when I was just Quirkless Yagi Toshinori. I saw my past, and in that moment… I froze. I should have told you what I wanted to hear all those years ago, that yes , of course you could become a Quirkless hero. But… all I could remember was the laughter from my own childhood, the jeers and rejection, and I told you what I had been told since birth.

“For what it’s worth, Midoriya-shounen, I believe I was wrong. Perhaps I couldn’t be a hero without a Quirk, but… you could. No… I heard about how you assisted with the USJ Incident… you already are a hero. I won’t ask for your forgiveness, but… please, understand. You are a hero, Midoriya Izuku.”

Izuku was stunned. His childhood hero, the man who had made him dream of becoming a hero and then crushed said dreams, was apologising to him, saying he was a hero. But…

“N-no, Yagi-san… I-I can’t be a hero, not anymore. I’m… a monster , who feeds off of other people’s fear. T-that’s what a villain does!”

The man looked up at him and shook his head, “No, Midoriya-shounen. You’ve already proved yourself. My Quirk originally came from the most evil man in living memory, and yet look at all the good my predecessors and I have done with it! It’s not about where the power comes from, only what you do with it. I believe that, should you want to, you could be one of the greatest heroes of all time. I see that potential within you.”

Yagi-san was serious, deadly serious, and Izuku was speechless. Fortunately, Nedzu-sensei was not.

“Well, that is a lot to take in. First of all, Yagi, we will be discussing this later.” The man gulped, but nodded. “Secondly, Midoriya-kun, I was already going to request you visit the school counsellor, but now I am insisting you do so. Inui is clued into the world of the Powers, so you needn’t keep anything a secret from him.” Izuku gave him a shaky nod. “Very well! Now, there is more I would like to discuss, but I believe we’ve taken up more than enough of your time for now. I shall return later, Midoriya-kun, and for now, I leave you in the care of your mother.”

Izuku’s eyes widened as the two heroes left, and he barely had a second to prepare before his mom rushed into the room, tears streaming down her face as she gathered him in a tight hug.

“Oh, Izuku, baby! I missed you so, so much!” She wept, and Izuku quickly followed, clinging to her tightly.

“I missed you too mom, I was thinking about you all the time!” Fat. wet tears drenched his mom’s clothes, but she didn’t mind, only holding him tighter.

“What happened baby, where did you go? I was so worried!”

He bit his lip, even as his body shook with sobs. “I-I can’t explain it mom, not yet, but I will, I promise.”

She pulled away, looking at him in concern as her thumbs brushed over his cheek, where a jagged scar now marred the once pristine skin. 

“Okay, baby, okay. If you promise.”

He nodded, and she held him tight once again.

Barely half an hour later, after their crying had died down, their hugs were interrupted by a knock at the door. His mom cautiously answered it, but was unprepared for the whirlwind that was Hatsume Mei to come bursting in, all but sprinting towards Izuku. 

“Izuku! Where have you been? I tried asking all the heroes but they all said that you’d tell me but then you came out and you had a big cut on your face which is probably where the scar came from but I was so worried when you didn’t turn up on Sunday to test some babies!”

Izuku blinked. His mom blinked. Mei didn’t, staring at him intently. His mom’s smile turned into a small grin.

“Why, Izuku, you didn’t tell me there was a girl .”

He blushed, bright red, and sputtered, unable to reply as his mom looked at him with a sly grin and a raised eyebrow, and Mei simply stared at him, face an odd mix of worry, fear and frustration. He decided to ignore his mom’s teasing for the moment, instead focusing on his friend. 

“W-well, I’ll explain later…? It’s a long story, a really long story, and it’s probably best if I’m not in the hospital when I tell it?”

Mei stared at him for a long time, the seconds moving like molasses under her intense gaze. Finally she shrugged, collapsing into one of the chairs by the side of the bed. “Sure thing, as long as you do tell me!”

Izuku nodded, before something else occurred to him. “S-so, ‘Izuku’? Y-you know my name? I thought I was just ‘Greenie’...” he chuckled weakly.

“Well, of course I know my best friend’s name! I just think Greenie is more fun to say!” 

Oh look, Izuku was blushing again.

After an ungodly amount of time spent being embarrassed by both his mom and best friend , Izuku was finally discharged. Mei had already gone home for the day, and his mom was waiting for him in the lobby. He was just about to join her, when someone else entered the room.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! Perfect timing!”

He turned to see Nedzu-sensei standing in the doorway, smiling up at him.

“Oh, Nedzu-sensei. Y-you wanted to see me?”

He nodded, “There’s something I wish to discuss with you briefly. I originally put these plans into place following the USJ incident, with the aim of bringing them up after the semester’s final exams. However, recent events have forced me to speed things up somewhat.” 

Izuku was curious now. What had the principal been planning?

“Tell me, Midoriya-kun, are you aware of the role of intelligence heroes?”

He brightened up, and nodded eagerly. “Yes! Intelligence heroes, like you and Sir Nighteye, are a type of Support hero, who don’t appear on the front lines fighting against villains too much, but prefer to gather intelligence about targets, form plans and teams, direct rescue efforts, and-” realisation dawned on him, and he let out a soft, “oh.”

The teacher smiled, “I wish to train you in becoming an intelligence hero. You’ll still remain in the Support Course, but you may have some lessons alongside the heroics class. You needn’t give your answer now, but I’d ask you to give it some thought over the next week.” Izuku nodded mutely. 

“Ah, speaking of the next week, it is the internship week for the Support Course. Normally, you would have received offers from the sports festival, though you didn’t participate. Failing that, you would have been given a list of companies that have ongoing agreements with UA, for you to choose from. Of course, you weren’t present for that.” He chittered slightly. “That is why we’ve had to arrange something a little more… unique.”

“Unique…?” That could mean… many things.

Nedzu-sensei’s smile grew into a grin, “You will be interning with me, of course! I’ll debrief you about your experiences, help you train your powers, and introduce you to the basics of intelligence heroics!”

Izuku blinked. A whole week, learning from one of the smartest beings in the world?

It was a dream come true.

“I’m glad you think so, Midoriya-kun!” Izuku blushed as he realised he’d said that aloud.

“I-I look forward to it, Nedzu-sensei.”

“As do I! Your mother has signed off on it, though she was rather concerned, but I’ve assured her of your safety! That said, please meet me in my office at the start of the usual school day, and enjoy your evening!”

With that, he walked away, leaving Izuku to silently walk to the lobby, deep in thought.

It looked like he had a rather exciting week ahead of him.

Chapter Text

Izuku stood outside of the school the next day, shuffling nervously to one side as the General Education students filtered in through the gates, paying him no mind. It was silly, really, to be so nervous; he’d been at UA for over a month now. Granted, for at least one of those weeks he’d been held captive by a group of almost-people, but still.

Even so, he couldn’t help the churning in his gut when he realised he was going to have a whole week of one-on-one lessons with Nedzu-sensei. Mr. Principal himself had cleared his schedule just to teach someone like him, a useless, Quirkless boy who had somehow managed to ruin his own life further and become a monster. His hand unconsciously brushed against the long, jagged scar that now marked the right side of his face. For any normal person, an injury like that would have blinded them in that eye. Not Izuku, Quirkless monster that he was. All he had to do was feast on the fear of the Symbol of Peace, and his eye just grew right back.

He knew exactly what his answer to Nedzu-sensei’s offer would be, but he’d at least wait until the end of the week to give it. The principal had taken time out of his busy schedule for this, and he didn’t want to be ungrateful. He straightened up, and walked inside.

He knew the path to the principal’s office well by this point, and weaved his way through labyrinthian hallways, eyes fixed on the floor before him as he avoided the stares of the other students. Within minutes, he found himself once more in front of the familiar oak panel door, and went through the usual routine. He raised his hand to knock, and the door clicked open just as he brought his knuckles down. Izuku smiled a little and walked inside.

Today, Nedzu-sensei sat on one of the sofas, and he beamed at him when he entered. “Ah, Midoriya-kun, come in! We have quite a lot to cover today!”

Izuku took a seat opposite the chimera, picking up the already prepared cup of tea and allowing the warmth to seep into his hands.

“I trust you are well?”

Izuku nodded, “Y-yes, Nedzu-sensei! I’m all good!”

“That’s good to hear! Now, my original plan for this week had been to take you on a trip to the  Pu Songling Research Centre, but the events of the last week have changed that. In any case, I wanted to discuss your captivity, if that’s okay with you.”

He swallowed thickly, and nodded, placing his cup down on the table, “Y-yes, sensei. I, um, wanted to talk about it too.”

The teacher cocked his head to the side, “Is there something you wish to discuss in particular?”

Izuku bit his lip, “W-well, when I was there, one of the guards was the, um, NotThem…” the chimera straightened up in interest, “I-I think it took the place of someone I used to know, Bakugou Katsuki, in order to get close to me. I mean, I don’t know the real Bakugou-kun so maybe he was just someone I met once or twice but still… um, anyway, I think he- it killed his parents, Mitsuki and Masaru, but I haven’t had the chance to find out what happened to them… but…” he looked down at his lap and wrung his hands, “Not!Bakugou, it said that becoming an Avatar… it was my choice .”

Izuku’s eyes shot up to Nedzu-sensei, and tears began to well up. “I-it’s not true, right? It was a lie, I didn’t choose this, i-it was forced onto me, wasn’t it?” he sniffled as fat, wet tears began rolling down his cheeks, “P-please, Nedzu-sensei, tell me it’s not true, tell me I didn’t choose this!” His breathing quickened, heavy breaths coming out faster and faster as he hyperventilated. His hands clutched the sides of his head and sobs wracked his body as he collapsed into himself.

A paw came to rest on Izuku’s shoulder, and he froze. The soft voice of the principal permeated through the thick fuzz of his mind.

“Midoriya-kun, I can assure you that you did not actively choose to become an Avatar. What happened to you was not your fault.”

With those words, the tension drained out of Izuku, leaving him feeling empty and exhausted. His arms collapsed to his sides and he watched with tired eyes as his teacher hopped back up onto his sofa. He took a sip of his tea, regarding Izuku with kind eyes, before clearing his throat and speaking.

“Allow me to begin by addressing your concerns about the Bakugous. While I am unaware of any case about them at the moment, I will be sure to ask Detective Tsukauchi to investigate the matter. Unfortunately, I cannot help you with Bakugou Katsuki, as you are likely aware.” He nodded slightly. “Perhaps you could Know to uncover what the real Bakugou-kun was like, but I am admittedly unsure if it would work.” The teacher gave a small sympathetic smile.

“As for the matter of your becoming an Avatar…” Nedzu-sensei hummed and sipped his tea. “As I said, you had no active choice in the matter.”

Somehow, Izuku found his voice, “A-active…?”

The teacher nodded, setting his cup down, expression serious. “Midoriya-kun… the world is made up of countless choices. We make thousands of choices every day, some big, some small. Some choices seem small in the moment, but have great ramifications in the future. I believe, when the NotThem said that you ‘chose’ this, what it meant was that you have made decisions in the past that brought you in alignment with the Eye. Namely, I would assume you chose to pursue knowledge, even when that could hurt you. Does that sound familiar?”

Izuku sniffed, blushed and nodded, “I-I used to chase villain fights, to learn more about the heroes…”

Nedzu-sensei smiled softly, “Then it is likely that that contributed to your alignment. But make no mistake: you had no idea about the Entities at that time, and so you could not have known that those decisions brought you into the Eye’s domain. It was not your fault.”

He shook his head, “B-but, I… when I died, I did it to myself…”

The teacher’s stare was firm, “ No , Midoriya-kun. You could not have known about your alignment then. Nothing that happened that day was your fault.” His voice brooked no argument, and Izuku faltered, opting to stare at his hands instead of meeting the gaze of the principal. “It is… unfortunate that you have been made an Avatar. But you did not choose it.”

A moment of silence passed, before he gave a small, silent nod, and the principal gave him a smile.

“Now, Midoriya-kun. You may return home, if you wish; I’m sure your mother would enjoy having you home again.”

Izuku straightened up as if a bolt of electricity had just run through his spine. “N-no!” he shouted, “I-I mean, I’m okay, sensei.” He gave the teacher a weak, watery smile, “Whatever you wanted to do today, I’m okay with.”

Nedzu-sensei regarded him silently, moments of silence stretching out to hours, before he relented, and nodded. “Very well, Midoriya-kun. To begin with, I wanted to briefly discuss the remaining Powers we’ve yet to talk about. I had wanted to take my time to introduce you to each in detail, but with the events of the past week… I’d rather you’re prepared as soon as possible.”

He nodded, notebook and pen already in hand, “W-we still have to talk about the End, the Buried, the Flesh, the Dark and the Spiral, s-sensei.”

“Indeed! Are you ready, Midoriya-kun?” He nodded, “Excellent!

“Where shall I start…? Ah, the End! Also known as ‘Terminus’ and ‘The Coming End That Waits For All And Cannot Be Ignored’, it is, quite simply, the fear of death itself, of the inevitable end of everything. It is almost certainly one of, if not the oldest of the Powers, though it is also the most passive. Its manifestations always involve the dead or dying in some way, and tend to include themes of the inevitability of death. Interestingly, it does not seem to have any particular preference on the types of people it chooses to make its Avatars, perhaps as a reflection of how death comes for us all. It has also never, as far as I know, attempted any form of ritual.” Confusion crossed Izuku’s face, but Nedzu-sensei simply carried on. 

“Next, the Buried. It has also been called ‘Choke’ and ‘Too Close I Cannot Breathe’. It represents claustrophobia - the fear of small spaces - and the fear of suffocation. Interestingly, it is also associated with poverty and ‘crushing’ debt, and other similar mental burdens. As such, both Avatars and victims alike tend to have experienced some form of monetary problems, though Avatars may also be chosen for their ability to keep that form of pressure on other people; as such, loan sharks and tax collectors can and have become aligned with the Buried. Manifestations of the Buried usually involve dirt or earth in some capacity, though deep water can also suffice, as long as there is an emphasis on pressure. As for the Buried’s ritual, it is known as ‘The Sunken Sky’, and it was last performed around twenty-five years ago.

“After that, the Flesh. It is more of an animal fear than a human one, and it feeds off of the fear of being killed for food, of being meat. It is also connected to insecurities around body image. Common manifestations involve meat, blood, bones and other body parts, and often appear in locations related to the meat industry. Victims tend to be dissatisfied with their own body, while Avatars are usually either cannibals or driven to ‘help’ others change their bodies. Its ritual is called ‘The Last Feast’ and was attempted seven years ago.

“Now, the Dark. Also known as the Forever Blind, it represents the primal fear of the dark and what lies within it. As such, manifestations involve pitch black darkness, and sometimes blindness as well. As a rather more… childish fear,” Nedzu-sensei paused, and Izuku stopped writing as the teacher gathered himself, “the Dark often targets children. Its ritual is “The Extinguished Sun’, and it is likely to be performed within the next few years.

“Finally, the Spiral. It has also been called ‘The Twisting Deceit’ and ‘It Is Not What It Is’. As the fear of madness and lies, it commonly manifests in hallucinations and falsehoods. Common themes of the Spiral’s encounters are such things as fractals, mazes and other such patterns. As such, its manifestations tend to be rather more abstract. Its ritual is called ‘The Great Twisting’, and was last attempted eleven years ago.”

Izuku scribbled down Nedzu-sensei’s ending words, and read back over his notes.The fifteen Powers were all in his notebook now, each with their own double page spread. Looking up, he cleared his throat. “Sensei, y-you mentioned rituals…?”

The teacher nodded, “Ah, yes! You weren’t there when I explained it, of course. To put it simply, rituals are ceremonies of sorts, performed by agents of the Powers in order to bring their patron into our world. As you know, the Entities exist on the outside of our reality, and can only interact with our world through Avatars and other manifestations. Normally, they are unable to enter our reality, as our world is too different from the base nature of the Entities. However, if something should happen to change the world into something more aligned towards one Entity or another, then that Entity will be able to enter our world. Rituals are attempts to do so. In fact, your kidnapping was intended to be part of the ritual of the Stranger, also known as ‘The Unknowing’. I believe the intention was to blind a powerful Avatar of the Eye at the height of the ritual, to signify making the world unknown. Of course, rituals are a rather large threat to the world.”

Izuku nodded, “H-have there been any other rituals recently?”

Nedzu-sensei gave a hum as he sipped his tea, reminding Izuku of his own drink. “Well, yes. In the past thirty or so years, agents of the Flesh, Buried, Corruption, Eye, Vast, Spiral, Lonely and, most recently, the Stranger have all attempted rituals. That does mean that we should expect the Desolation, Dark, Slaughter and Extinction to make a move in the next few years as well.”

He frowned, brow furrowed, “But… what about the End and the Web? Oh, and the Hunt?”

The teacher smiled, “I’m glad you picked up on that, Midoriya-kun! The End has never attempted a ritual as far as we know, likely because it does not feel the need to. All things die, after all. The End gets them eventually. As for the Web, that’s a little harder to understand. My best guess is that it prefers the world as it is. That said, agents of the Web do prefer the shadows, so it is possible that a ritual has taken place in the past, and we simply do not know about it.”

Izuku nodded, scribbling down some more notes, “And the Hunt?”

“The Hunt is a rather special case, Midoriya-kun. It does have its own ritual, called ‘The Everchase’, and it has been performed before. In fact, I believe it is being performed at this very moment.”

A white hot flash of panic ran through Izuku. They had to do something! They couldn’t just allow the ritual to be completed!

The panic must have shown on his face, as Nedzu-sensei chuckled softly, “There’s no need to worry, Midoriya-kun. We are perfectly safe. You see, the Hunt is unlikely to ever complete a ritual. It is, after all, about the chase, rather than the kill. Rituals are meant to reflect the truest nature of the associated Power, and as the fear of being hunted, the Hunt is disinclined to ever let the hunt end. You see?”

He nodded and breathed out a sigh of relief. “W-what about the other rituals, that haven’t happened yet? How do you know they’ll happen soon?”

The teacher rubbed his chin, “Rituals require a great deal of power from the Entity in question. If a ritual is attempted but fails at a critical stage, such as with the Unknowing, the Entity will lose that power, and will have to wait to regain its strength before its agents can attempt it again. On average, that takes around 200 years to do. There was a spate of rituals not long before the Dawn of Quirks, likely attempts to succeed before the Extinction could fully emerge and add more competition. All of them failed, of course, and the Entities have only recently managed to gather the power to try again.”

“Wouldn’t it make more sense to wait, though…?”

“Well, perhaps, but most of the Entities think in the short term, not the long term. They want to make another attempt as soon as they have the power.”

Izuku thought this over for a moment, before nodding, “So we should look out for anything that could be a Dark, Extinction, Desolation or Slaughter ritual? And if we find something, we stop it?”

Nedzu-sensei almost looked amused, “ We , Midoriya-kun?”

He flushed and turned away, “W-well, I mean, I-I’m not a hero, but… if I can use my powers to help other people, or to stop people getting hurt, then I should do it, r-right?”

The principal smiled at him for a moment, “Very well, Midoriya-kun. Now! We have lunch in a few minutes,” he deflected, “but I’d like to briefly discuss what we’ll be doing for the rest of the day, and the week.” At Izuku’s hesitant nod, he continued. “Today, we’ll be working on refining your control over your powers, especially your new power. Being able to see through eyes is quite helpful, but we need to make sure you can control it.

“As for the rest of the week, we’ll be split evenly between power training and lessons on intelligence heroics. I may also have a statement ready for you by the end of the week! But for now, you’ll have to wait and see about the details. Oh! And you will be having a first session with Inui tomorrow!” It was not a question or an offer, and Izuku didn’t try to fight it.

Nedzu-sensei went over a few more things, mainly discussing the details of his power training, before dismissing Izuku for lunch. As he walked through the halls of the school, he couldn’t help but miss having to drag Mei out of the workshop for lunch. She was currently at her internship with the top support company in the country.

He wondered what she was doing, whether she was eating. 

He hoped she was feeling okay.

That afternoon, once he was finally freed from Nedzu-sensei’s gruelling training, Izuku walked home from the train station, glancing around every corner. He didn’t expect to be kidnapped again, but he felt a little too paranoid to be sure. He sped up, powerwalking the rest of the way to his apartment, only breathing a sigh of relief once he was inside.

“Mom, I’m home!”

The clattering of utensils in the kitchen paused, and his mom hurried out a moment later, bundling him into a tight hug that he gladly returned.

“Izuku! Oh, baby, how was your day?”

He nodded and smiled, “It was good! Nedzu-sensei and I talked a lot .” He chuckled nervously. “Speaking of talking, I… I want to explain everything.”

Tears instantly welled up in her eyes as he led her to the sofa. “I… mom, this is going to sound crazy , but it’s the truth. Just… hear me out, okay?” At her nod, he began, the words gushing out of his mouth like water from a burst dam.

“So, um, basically, there are these eldritch entities that feed on fear and they live outside the universe but sometimes they choose humans to be their representatives in the world and one of them chose me and now I’m basically a monster and last week some other monsters wanted to use me to bring their own entity into the world but it didn’t work.” He took a breath, and looked up at her expression. She seemed… strangely calm, actually.

“Oh.”

That soft sound echoed out through the quiet apartment.

“I… suppose that explains a lot of things, Izuku.” She held him tighter. “This… did it start…?”

Izuku picked up on the unasked question, and nodded, “Around a year ago.”

“Oh.” She repeated, still holding him close.

Mother and son sat in silence for what felt like hours, before Inko’s soft voice once more echoed through their home.

“You’re wrong, dear.”

He glanced up at her, confused.

“You’re not a monster.” She smiled at him, softly.

“You’re my son.”

Izuku cried for the second time that day, though these were tears of joy, of love.

“I love you mom.”

“I love you too, Izuku.”

Chapter Text

The ticking of the clock and the tapping of Inui-sensei’s keyboard were the only sounds that broke the otherwise heavy silence Izuku found himself sitting in. He’d knocked on the door, the school counsellor had let him in, and then… silence.

Izuku cleared his throat, “U-um, you look busy, and I don’t want to bother you. I’m fine, really, so-”

“Midoriya-kun,” the teacher spoke up for the first time since the session began, “you have an hour long session here. That time is yours to do with as you want. If you want to sit in silence the whole time, we can. I’m merely here to facilitate your therapy; what we do is up to you.”

He let out a soft, “oh”, and followed up with, “w-well, I’m okay, and I’m sure you have a lot to do-”

“Are you?” Inui-sensei levelled him with an even look, “You’ve gone through a number of traumatic incidents in the past year, I highly doubt you’ve been unaffected by them. You don’t have to speak about your experiences now, if you don’t want to. Just know that it is okay to not be okay.”

He blinked at that. It was something he knew logically, of course, but to hear it said out loud so plainly… either way, he had the best part of an hour to kill; perhaps he could talk about something that had been bothering him?

“I…” he began, and the counsellor turned to him, “I feel… I don’t know, guilty? B-bakugou-kun, he was my friend. I remember spending time with him at Aldera… he was the only person who would hang out with the Quirkless kid…” he brought his gaze down to his lap, where he was wringing his hands. “B-but now I know those memories were all fake, a-and the real Bakugou-kun was replaced by that thing . He was killed by it, a-and his parents, too, all because of me , and I-I can’t even remember him!” Izuku’s breathing quickened, and tears burst unbidden to his eyes.

“Midoriya-kun,” Inui-sensei’s soft, authoritative tone forced Izuku to snap his head up to meet the man’s gaze, “what happened to the Bakugous was not your fault. Yes, the creature, this ‘Not!Them’, used them to get to you, but you did not choose that. You did not ask for it, and, had it not been them, it would certainly have been someone else.”

Izuku looked down again. His head knew that, of course, but… “The least I could do,” he croaked, “i-is remember him as he was. A-and I can’t even do that!”

The counsellor hummed, “Have you considered using your powers to Know? To recover your memories?”

He flinched, “I-I… don’t really want to use my powers, unless it’s to help people. A-and besides, it might not even work!”

Inui-sensei nodded and typed something at his computer, “I see. I apologise for bringing up the issue then. Alternatively, Nedzu mentioned that there is always one person who remembers the person as they used to be. Do you know who that person is?”

He shook his head, “N-no, I-” a memory suddenly flashed across his mind, of the day he had first met the Not!Bakugou. His mom had said something, but he’d simply waved it off at the time. Now, though… “my mom… I think she remembers him.”

“Very well. Perhaps you could speak to her, to get an idea of what Bakugou-kun was like.”

Izuku sniffed and nodded slightly, “Y-yeah. Mom already knows the basics of everything, so…”

“Ah, I think it was wise of you to tell her. I believe you have been spoken to about anchors in the past, yes?” he nodded, “Your mother is a good choice. She will be able to give an adult’s perspective that is very different from the ones you will hear at UA.”

Izuku nodded again, and they fell once more into silence.

Later that day, Izuku found himself in the familiar setting of the principal’s office, sitting on the sofa across from Nedzu-sensei as he explained the intricacies of intelligence heroics.

“As an intelligence hero,” he began, “you are rarely on the front lines, fighting villains. No, you are behind the scenes, pulling strings and doing much of the heavy lifting to ensure everything goes off without a hitch. In a way, you could consider intelligence heroes the ‘mission control’ of the hero world. We plan and coordinate raids, follow paperwork trails and, as the name suggests, gather intelligence! While we’re not in the spotlight as much as limelight heroes are, our job is just as important!”

Izuku nodded eagerly. Even though he was still unsure about trying for heroics, he was still happy to learn from the mammal, especially about a subject Nedzu-sensei clearly had a lot of passion for.

“Now, Midoriya-kun, we practised using your powers around the school yesterday.” 

He nodded again, trying not to laugh as he remembered watching Aizawa-sensei sleeping through the teacher’s lounge camera. Yes, he didn’t like using his powers, but he also knew he had to train them enough to keep control of them.

“Well, today I intend to ask you to use them to look further afield. Specifically, I want you to find a few members of Class 1-A, as well as Hatsume-san, and inform me what they are doing.”

Izuku frowned slightly, “U-um, that seems a little invasive…”

The teacher hummed, “In a way, I suppose it is. However, all of the students are currently on their internships, so I doubt you will see anything private.”

Izuku nodded slowly, still unsure, but slipped his feet out of his shoes and sat cross-legged on the couch. He closed his eyes and focused on one person.

Hatsume Mei

Instantly, his vision exploded into colour. Blinding neon lights flashed past his eyes, before settling into the familiar grainy image of a security camera. He preferred to use cameras over looking through people’s eyes directly; doing that just seemed to be crossing some kind of line.

Unbeknownst to him, of course, Nedzu watched as Midoriya-kun’s messy dark green hair was ringed by a halo of glowing green eyes, slowly circling the crown of the boy’s head. It wasn’t the first time this had happened, but it was always fascinating to see.

Squarely in Izuku’s line of sight, Mei was sitting at a workbench in a workshop of some kind. Machinery and technology were strewn about the place, and his friend currently had her head down, focused as she tinkered with some contraption. He huffed a fond laugh.

“Mei’s working on an invention, but I can’t see what it is.”

Nedzu-sensei chuckled, “Of course she is. Very well, let’s begin with Class 1-A. First, please search for Uraraka Ochako.”

He gave a small nod and thought of the girl. He had seen the pictures of the class during his analysis lessons, and so affixed her image to his mind’s eye.

Uraraka Ochako

Once again, his vision was assaulted by a blinding array of colours, though they did not last as long this time, and it soon settled into the lens of a camera. The room he looked down on was large and well lit, square with mats covering the floor. A training gym, it seemed. And, indeed, there was a small group of people lined up next to each other in the middle, Uraraka-san on one end of the line. They seemed to be practising martial arts, possibly taekwondo, as they threw punch after punch towards a man who stood facing them, appraising their performance. Izuku squinted, the camera zoomed in, and his identity became clear. 

“Uraraka-san is practising martial arts with Gunhead!” he reported with excitement.

“Excellent, Midoriya-kun! Next, I would like you to find Iida Tenya.”

He winced slightly. He’d heard about the Hero Killer attacking Ingenium, and couldn’t fathom what the hero’s brother was going through at that moment. Even so, he brought the boy’s image to his mind.

Iida Tenya

After the blur of colours had passed, Izuku found himself inhabiting a camera again, though this time he sat on an intersection of a busy road, in the middle of a large city. On the street below, Iida-kun stiffly walked alongside the Normal Hero: Manual. The man was chatting away amicably, but the boy showed no sign of listening, steely gaze fixed on the path ahead of him. Looking around, Izuku quickly recognised the city as Hosu.

“Iida-kun is… patrolling Hosu with Manual? It’s not an obvious choice for him…” he mumbled that last bit, before jolting slightly, “N-not that Manual is a bad hero or anything, it’s just…”

Nedzu-sensei hummed, “I agree, Midoriya-kun. It’s almost as if Iida-kun had an ulterior motive for going to Hosu, hmm?”

He frowned, “His brother was attacked by the Hero Killer there… y-you don’t think he’s trying to hunt down Stain, do you?”

“I’m afraid I can’t rule that out, Midoriya-kun.” The principal’s voice was uncharacteristically solemn. “However, I would like you to find one more student: Todoroki Shouto.”

Izuku nodded slowly and brought the bicoloured boy to his mind.

Todoroki Shouto

Once the now-familiar flash of colour was over, he found himself not in a camera, as he was used to, but watching from behind the eyes of who he thought was Todoroki-kun. Normally, he would have immediately pulled himself out of such an invasion of privacy, but he lost any semblance of thought as he looked up at the man standing before him, seemingly impossibly tall.

Glaring down at him, arms crossed and face twisted into a cold scowl of disapproval, was the Number Two hero, Endeavor. He couldn’t hear what the man was saying, but he was clearly not happy. Todoroki-kun shifted his body, looking away from his father, but he was forced to stare into his eyes when the man grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him in close, uttering some dark words to his son. Finally, Izuku’s brain began to work again, and he pulled himself out of the sight, collapsing forwards with a gasp.

“Midoriya-kun, are you alright?”

He gave a shaky nod, “T-todoroki-kun, Endeavor, I-I…” What should he say? What could he say? He couldn’t go around accusing the top 10 of abuse, but… “...I think he’s being abused…”

Nedzu-sensei looked at him seriously, though not disbelieving. “That is a serious accusation, Midoriya-kun. Are you sure?”

He wasn’t, not really, but he’d never be able to live with himself if he just let this go, so he nodded slowly. The teacher returned it with his own short, sharp nod, and walked over to his desk.

“Then it seems I must cut our day short. I apologise, but you understand I have some work to do.”

“Y-yeah, I understand, Nedzu-sensei.” He got to his feet, still shaking slightly, and walked out with a bow and a small goodbye.

As he made his way home, he couldn’t help but repeat the scene in his head, the sheer anger of Endeavor’s expression.

He hoped Todoroki-kun was okay.

The next day, Izuku took the train to school as normal, feeling a lot better than he had the day before. He was still worried for Todoroki-kun, of course, but he knew that Nedzu-sensei was on the case, and if anyone could help the boy, it was Mr. Principal. Even so, he could hardly believe the way the Number Two hero treated his son in private. Of course, he had no context but… he shook his head. He knew enough to know that no parent should treat their child like that, least of all a Pro Hero. He had done the right thing.

It was with that conviction that Izuku walked towards the principal’s office that morning, head high for the first time in weeks. He had used his powers for good once again.

Perhaps he wasn’t so much of a monster.

Waiting outside the office was a man that Izuku had never met, but knew of anyway. The black jumpsuit, the white scarf-like capture weapon, the yellow goggles: yes, he knew Eraserhead.

Aizawa-sensei looked up as he approached, flinching involuntarily when they locked eyes. Internally, Izuku sighed. He knew his eyes were… unsettling, to say the least, but he never got used to the instinctual fear he caused in everyone who looked at him. Well, besides Nedzu-sensei and Mei, that is. 

“Midoriya,” Aizawa-sensei drawled, “Nedzu’s busy with an emergency this morning, so he asked me to train you today. As a prospective intelligence heroics student, you don’t need to go in-depth into combat, but you at least need to know the basics of self-defence, so we’ll split our time between that and basic physical training.”

Izuku nodded, unsurprised. Nedzu-sensei was a busy hero, after all; it was more surprising that he hadn’t been called away at any time before now that week. A little part of him was curious to know what he was working on, whether it was related to Todoroki-kun, and he supposed he could easily Know, but he stamped down that thought quickly. The powers he was given were for hero work only, not just for sating his own curiosity.

With a grunt and a tilt of his head, Aizawa-sensei walked off, Izuku scrambling to follow him. Physical training and self-defence shouldn’t be too bad, right? He definitely had a lot of stamina from years of running from bullies, so at least he shouldn’t be too tired at the end.

Izuku was exhausted .

He had spent the day training with Aizawa-sensei, and now every single muscle, every bone in his body, ached and screamed with pain. Sure, he wasn’t a Greek god by any means, but he wasn’t exactly unfit either, and yet he felt like he was a bag of rocks, sinking beneath the waves of an endless ocean. If he hadn’t already, he would have sworn that he died running laps around the school. He wanted nothing more than to crawl home, curl up, and sleep for a thousand years.

Of course, the universe had other plans.

The sun was beginning to set, and he had barely taken one step out of the school when the door in his head cracked open, just a little, and sent a flood of information into his head. There was too much for him to parse, but from what he could pick up, there was something very, very wrong. Flashes of fire, of creatures with exposed brains, of a city in ruins.

He didn’t even think about it; he ran back inside, fighting against his aching muscles.

He wasn’t sure where he was going, but instinct brought him to the Principal’s office. He didn’t even knock, bursting in in a panic. Nedzu-sensei was sitting in front of an array of screens that had replaced the bookshelves across from the door. The teacher turned to him, slight alarm written across his face.

“S-sensei, there’s something wrong!”

Nedzu-sensei nodded to him without a second thought, and gestured him over to the screens. He looked over them, shocked to see the city of Hosu beginning to burn, and the monsters he had seen from Knowing rampaging across half the city. His teacher’s face was stony as he flicked furiously between camera after camera, clearly searching for something that he could not find.

“Hosu is burning,” he said, not looking up from the screens.

“And Iida Tenya has vanished.”

Chapter Text

Stain’s pulse rushed in his ears as he lurked in the shadows, stalking his prey through the narrow alleyways of Hosu. It was times like this that made him feel truly alive, when his entire body was alive with the thrill of the hunt. His thoughts briefly flew back to his meeting with the so-called “League of Villains”, not long ago. He scoffed internally; they could not offer him what he wanted. Shigaraki was far too focused on mindless destruction for his tastes.

Then again, what did Stain want…? It had been so long, it was almost like he had forgotten. Perhaps…

Any further thoughts in that vein were lost to the insistent pulse of the blood in his veins. He refocused himself on the task at hand. He was Stain, the Hero Killer, an apex predator stalking his prey through the late evening. The near total darkness bothered him little, however, and he was able to see the fake hero as clear as if he was in broad daylight. Not that it would matter much. No, he could smell his prey, the scent thick and heavy, making tracking the man little more than a game. Finally, he turned into an alleyway, and Stain saw his moment.

He pounced, knife glinting in the darkness as he slashed across the hero’s chest. The man stumbled back with a sharp cry of pain. Stain landed on his feet and sheathed his blade, the rich scent of iron in the air making his own blood throb with adrenaline. The hero looked up at him, eyes blown wide with fear as he slowly took step after step, inching towards him. 

Stain’s mouth and hands pulsed impatiently, and he focused on that sensation, allowing it to grow. On the ground, the Pro Hero Native watched in horror as Stain’s canines elongated, growing sharper and thicker as they jutted out of his mouth. His fingernails, too, grew longer, darkening and hardening into sharp claws that could easily tear flesh from bone. 

His transformation complete, the Hero Killer approached Native, eyes glowing blood red. He stopped short, about a metre away, and looked down at the other man’s trembling form. Stain crouched down, locked eyes with the hero, and grinned sharply. He growled a single word.

“ Run. ”

Native scrambled to his feet and ran. Stain ran his tongue over his teeth and allowed the man to flee. Now the hunt was truly beginning.

After a minute, he gave chase, pouncing once more onto the rooftops and following the heavy scent of the man’s fear. There were now more smells that mingled with it, more sounds that masked Native’s heavy breathing, but that was simply part of the challenge. He locked on to his prey’s scent and gave chase.

Native was stumbling through the back alleys, trying desperately to escape as he rocketed around tight corners, not caring even as he slammed into walls. He was too full of the fear of the hunter to worry about anything other than fleeing the apex predator he had run into. Glancing back, he couldn’t see his pursuer anywhere, but he did not slow down. His blood pounded in his head, blocking out any sound other than his own pounding heart. Finally, he came crashing into an alleyway, seeing the main road just ahead of him. He breathed a sigh of relief and pushed himself to run faster.

That was when the Hero Killer struck.

Stain leapt down onto the man, the extra weight sending them both crashing to the floor. He flipped Native over, pinning him to the ground. The man struggled desperately, but the hunter was far stronger than him. 

“You lose.” Stain’s manic grin threatened to split his face in two as he spoke with a low growl that was more beast than man. The stench of fear was rolling off the other man now, and he revelled in it, allowing the man to struggle, to desperately cling to life. He stayed there for a moment, bony knee digging into Native’s sternum. After a short while, the time had come.

Stain’s claws dug into the other man’s wrists, eliciting groans of pain. He opened his mouth wide, baring his sharp teeth in the dim light of the alley. Rearing up, he prepared to sink them deep into Native’s jugular, finally ending the hunt. It was a shame, but he had a reputation to maintain.

Before he could, however, he was rather rudely interrupted by a shout of “Stain!” from the entrance to the alleyway, and a kick that felt like a car hitting him. He flew off of Native and crashed into the wall behind him. Stunned for a moment, he looked up at the intruder, who stood tall over Native. He wore gleaming white armour, and held a helmet under his arm. He was young, no older than sixteen, though it was difficult to tell with his expression twisted in rage. That hair, though… Stain recognised that hair.

He got to his feet, the pain quickly washing away with the promise of new prey. “Related to Ingenium, are you?”

If it were possible, the boy grew even angrier, “ Stain, ” he repeated, hissing his name like a curse, “you attacked my brother. He won’t ever be able to work as a hero again!”

Stain scoffed, “He lived then? Disappointing. I must be losing my edge.”

The boy screamed incoherently and sprinted at him again, the engines in his legs firing off to give him a burst of extra speed. It didn’t matter. Stain was faster. 

Dodging nimbly to one side, he swung at the boy as he passed, claws raking across his face. Stain delighted in the scream of pain that echoed around the alleyway as mini-Ingenium went crashing to the floor. He glanced over at Native, ensuring the hero was still where he left him, before turning his attention back to the hero student. He licked the blood off his claws, ensuring that he was held under the effects of his Quirk. He didn’t like to use it often, as it ended the hunt far too early for his liking, but he couldn’t risk the boy getting away.

Stain looked down at him and scoffed, “Ingenium’s baby brother, hm? Judging by the costume, you’re a hero kid.” The boy glowered, but said nothing. “Tell me, mini-Ingenium, what would your brother think if he knew what you were doing tonight? Vigilantism isn’t a good look for you.”

Mini-Ingenium scowled, rivulets of blood running down his face. “You destroyed his career! You deserve to die!”

He grinned at him, squatting down to get closer to him. “That’s not very heroic of you.”

The boy's nose wrinkled, though Stain didn’t mind. He knew how his breath smelled, of old blood and rotting flesh. The scent of a wild hunter, unrestrained and free to kill whoever he pleased.

With no response, he continued, “It was foolish of you to come here. I caught your brother, after all. You would have been no match for me.” He sighed wistfully, remembering his last hunt in Hosu. “Ingenium, now there was a challenge. Almost too fast to keep up with. I had to use all my tricks to corner him…” his grin grew wider, “but I did.”

He could feel the boy straining against his Quirk as he yelled at him, “You bastard! My brother is a good man! He might never walk again because of you!”

He shrugged in dismissal, “I am a predator, and he was my prey.” He gestured behind him, towards Native still lying on the ground, “So was he. And so,” he knelt on the boy’s chest, bony knee digging into his ribs, “are you.”

The boy’s fear grew, the scent filling Stain’s head like sweet perfume, and he bared his teeth in a savage grin, finally ready to go in for the kill. He opened his jaw wide, a gaping maw lined with row upon row of vicious daggers. Below him, Iida Tenya prepared himself to die.

In a quiet alley in Hosu, the ringing of a phone prevents a teenager’s untimely demise.

Stain paused. The phone continued to ring.

He looked down at his victim, noticing the phone in his pocket. Growling, he pulled it out, ready to destroy it.

The phone clicked as if it had been answered.

It had not.

“ Akaguro Chizome! ” The phone’s audio crackled and hissed, and yet the voice was crystal clear, seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere all at once, a thousand whispers layered over one another.

Stain froze. That name… why was it so familiar? Was it someone he had killed, or…?

“ Stendhal. ”

That too was familiar. It was… He growled. The connection was at the back of his mind, just out of his reach.

“ Stain. ” 

It clicked. He was Stain, the Hero Killer; formerly Stendhal, vigilante; formerly… Akaguro Chizome, idealistic hero student. How had he forgotten?

“ You have strayed far from your path. You have fallen too deeply to the Hunt, and it has consumed you. ”

His path… yes, that’s right, he had a goal, an aim. He wanted…

“ Your addiction has made you forget your goals, your ideals. You are nothing more than a wild dog chasing prey. ”

His ideals… purging hero society of false heroes. He could almost laugh. He truly had strayed from his path. Maybe he had started with unworthy heroes, but as time went on… as he fell deeper in love with the hunt… he had lost sight of his vision. 

“ I Know You, Akaguro Chizome. ”

Better than he knew himself, it seemed. His teeth and claws retracted, returning to normal. He didn’t notice, however, too consumed with the voice on the phone’s biting words. Was this really what he had reduced himself to? Just a maddened predator? He could feel the urge to hunt, to kill pulsing once more in his veins but, for once, he pushed it down. What had he become?

Down the street he heard shouts, footsteps pounding the pavement, getting ever closer to the alleyway. The heroes had been called, no doubt. For a brief moment, he considered turning himself in, but… no. He had a lot to think about.

By the time the heroes arrived, Stain-Stendhal-Chizome was nowhere to be seen, leaving behind two alive and mostly unharmed victims.

A few days after the Hosu Incident, on Saturday, Izuku found himself being led through the hallways of Hosu General Hospital by Nedzu-sensei. He knew why they were there, of course - to visit Iida-kun - but he was still unsure as to why he was coming too. He hadn’t really helped all that much. Sure, he had used his powers on Stain, but his mentor had done most of the work with setting up the equipment to allow him to do so. And besides, after he had done that, he’d felt too tired to keep going; Nedzu-sensei had spent most of the rest of the night diligently coordinating rescue efforts.

But he had been asked to come, and who was he to deny the chimera’s requests, as strange as they may be?

They quickly arrived at a small room in the hero ward and, after a quick knock on the door, were invited in.

Inside, tucked into a hospital bed that reminded Izuku of his own recent hospitalisation, lay the blue-haired boy they had come there to see. He was a near spitting image of his brother, though younger, and with four long, angry red scars marring his face, travelling from the top right of his forehead to his bottom left jaw.

As they entered, Iida-kun’s eyes flickered first to Nedzu-sensei, and then to Izuku himself. As was usual, the boy flinched when they first locked eyes, though his attention quickly shifted to Izuku’s own scar. His hand briefly went to his right eye, and the knowledge that he would never be able to see as well in that eye again was forced into Izuku’s mind. He swallowed heavily; if only they had been quicker, then maybe they could have stopped him from getting hurt at all.

Nedzu-sensei cleared his throat, snapping both students’ attention back to him, “Well, hello, Iida-kun! I trust you’re feeling well?”

The boy turned away, but nodded, “Yes, sensei.” His voice was rough, hoarse.

“Excellent!” The teacher continued with enthusiasm. “Now, allow me to introduce Midoriya Izuku. He’s my intern this week, though you may know him better from a recent phone conversation?”

Iida-kun’s eyes widened and he turned back to them, “On the phone… that was you? You… you saved me.” He bowed as deeply as he could in his bed, “ Thank you .”

He flushed and scratched the back of his head, “Well, um, i-it wasn’t much. Just, y’know, we couldn’t leave you like that, and well, um, anyway…” He faltered before giving the boy a small nod.

Fortunately, Nedzu-sensei took back control of the conversation. “ That said , I believe we should discuss why you were there in the first place, hmm?” The blue-haired boy paled and gave a slow nod, and the teacher continued. “Well, fortunately, both Native and Manual have agreed to keep your actions quiet, and the Hero Killer escaped, which is rather a positive in this situation. The official story will be that you were separated from Manual during the incident, and were attacked by Stain.”

Iida-kun breathed a sigh of relief and began to speak, but the chimera held up a paw and carried on, “I have also managed to convince Aizawa not to immediately expel you. However, I am not a miracle worker. I would expect some form of extra work for a long while if I were you.”

The boy shrunk back into himself once more and nodded, which the teacher returned with satisfaction. “Excellent! I’m glad to see we’re on the same page! Now, if there’s nothing else, we’ll leave you to get some rest!”

With more nods and muttered goodbyes, Izuku and his mentor left the room, heading for the exit in silence. That is, until Izuku decided to speak up.

“U-um, sensei, can I ask why…?”

“Why I invited you?” Nedzu-sensei finished, used to Izuku’s habit of trailing off when asking questions. Izuku nodded, and the teacher smiled slightly. “Well, Midoriya-kun, I thought it would do you good to see someone you saved in person.”

He frowned, “Someone I saved? But his face-”

“Do you think he would rather have died in that alleyway?” The chimera cut him off, the question piercing through whatever argument he had. “You did very well, Midoriya-kun. I’m proud of you.”

Izuku let out a soft “oh”, and the pair fell once more into silence.

Chapter Text

It was a Sunday evening, and Inko had busied herself in the kitchen, cleaning up dishes from their dinner. Her mind had just wandered to thinking about meals for the next week when a sudden, familiar chill went up her spine. 

“Um, mom?”

Inko looked over to the kitchen’s entrance, where her son stood, looking away from her and fiddling with his hands. She smiled softly at him. “Yes dear?”

He fumbled with his hands some more, and continued to not look at her, “I, um, the Bakugous…”

She gave a small, sad sigh. He had told her what had happened to the Bakugou family, and she’d already shed a small tear for them, even if they had grown distant in recent years.

“Well… Bakugou-kun… w-what was he…?”

Inko hummed. She knew the question was coming, of course, but it didn’t make it any easier. She guided him over to the sofa, and sat down beside him. “Katsukun was… driven. He knew what he wanted, and wouldn’t stop at anything to become the Number One hero.” She smiled softly, “The way you used to look at him, anyone would think he hung the stars themselves!” 

They both huffed a small laugh, before Inko frowned once more, “He… everything changed after he got his Quirk, and you didn’t. It was a powerful Quirk, one that let him fire explosions from his hands, and the power… it went to his head. He’d always had an ego, but after that…” she hesitated. This was likely to be the only account of Katsukun Izuku would hear. Should she really spoil it for him?

“...well, you two grew apart.” She left it at that. Enough to hint at their history, without spoiling the image her son had of his former best friend in his mind.

That seemed to satisfy Izuku and, as they often did after serious conversations, they spent much of the rest of the evening hugging on the sofa.

Oh well, the dishes could wait.

The next day, Izuku was on his way through the school gates, refreshed and ready for another week of learning. He had no idea what the week ahead would bring, and the thought both excited and terrified him. He and Nedzu-sensei had discussed all of the Entities now. Perhaps they would talk about the Rituals more? Or training his powers, or even doing some intelligence heroics! Not that he was going to go into that field, of course, but it was enjoyable nevertheless.

“GREENIE!”

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a loud shout from behind, and barely had the time to turn around before a muscular blur of pink barrelled into him, sending them both tumbling to the ground. He flushed a bright red as Mei held him in a tight hug, uncaring of the strange looks they were receiving from passers-by. 

“H-hey, Mei.” He patted her on the back and tried to sit up. Unfortunately, he was still a scrawny boy, despite Aizawa-sensei’s training, and Mei was far stronger than him. Resigned to his fate, he gently hugged her back.

After a brief moment of peace, she pulled away and looked him straight in the eyes, beaming manically. “I missed you! We’ve got so much work to do, so many babies to make! You should have seen my internship! The first step to global domination!” She cackled loudly and let Izuku go, allowing him to stand up. He offered her a hand up, - he was a gentleman, after all - which she took after a moment.

“Before you tell me about your internship, I just want to say, um…” he glanced around. No, it was far too public here, and they didn’t have long until homeroom started. “W-well, I’ll tell you after school, okay?”

“Sure!” Mei shrugged, and Izuku smiled as she launched into a recounting of her experience with Detnerat. It really was good to have her back.

Izuku tried not to play with his hands too much as he walked down the hall to Nedzu-sensei’s office. It wasn’t an unusual sight on a Monday morning, but today was one of his workshop days. He should have been working on analysis or helping Mei with her babies, but as soon as homeroom had ended, Maijima-sensei had told him to go up to Nedzu-sensei’s office. 

He was trying his hardest not to worry; Nedzu-sensei was good to him, kind. He Knew nothing bad was going to happen, and yet… well, anxiety was a hell of a habit to kick, and the traitorous voice in the back of his head kept whispering “what if?”

What if Nedzu-sensei had finally had enough of him? What if he was on his way to be expelled, or imprisoned?

What if they finally saw him for the monster he was?

He shook his head, trying to dispel the storm raging inside, and raised his hand to knock on the door. As always, it swung open before he had the chance, and he nervously stepped inside.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun! Come in, come in! I’m sure you must be wondering why I’ve called you here!” Nedzu-sensei beckoned him in, and he felt the nerves wash away slightly. Surely he wouldn’t greet him so jovially if anything bad was going to happen. Still, he didn’t fully let his guard down just yet.

“Y-yes, sensei, I was a little confused…”

The teacher hummed, “Well, there’s nothing to worry about! I won’t keep you too long, I simply wanted to inform you that you will be taking part in some of the Hero Course’s heroics lessons from now on!”

Izuku’s brain stopped working. He was going to be taking heroics lessons? Quirkless Izuku who failed at everything so badly, he couldn’t even die right? Who managed to become a monster ? It was too good to be true.

Not noticing Izuku’s dilemma, Nedzu-sensei continued speaking, “This week, you’ll only be in 1-A’s class on Wednesday afternoon, but I’ll be keeping you updated when you have a lesson! In Wednesday’s lesson, you need only bring yourself and something to write with; no need to get changed into PE clothes!”

He nodded dumbly, still trying to process the news. He didn’t catch the rest of Nedzu-sensei’s talk, too stuck in his own head to listen. Before long, he found himself walking through the hallways once more, automatically heading back to 1-H’s workshop. Along the way, only one question consumed his thoughts.

Do I deserve this?

The rest of the day passed uneventfully, and as the final bell rang, Izuku set his anxieties aside for the moment and watched the rest of the class slowly trickle out. Beside him, Mei continued to tinker with something at her desk, oblivious to the world around her. Before long, only she, Izuku and Maijima-sensei remained. The teacher regarded the two with an inquisitive cock of the head, but Izuku sent him a small nod, one he seemed to understand the significance of. Returning the nod with one of his own, Maijima-sensei made his own exit, leaving Mei alone with Izuku.

He cleared his throat and tapped his friend on the shoulder, finally bringing her back to reality.

“Huh? Oh, Greenie! You wanted to talk to me about something? Is it a baby?” she gasped, “Are we finally going to make a baby together ?! Oh, I have so many ideas!”

Blushing bright red, Izuku cut her off before she could descend into a full tangent about her babies, “N-no! It’s nothing like that! It’s, um… well, it’s about what happened when I disappeared.”

Mei stopped mid-sentence, her face falling into something strangely quiet and serious for the usually vibrant girl. It was almost unnerving, the way she fixed him with a stare that seemed to bore deeper into him than normal. Was this how others felt when he looked at them?

Nevertheless, Izuku continued, “W-well, I guess… to begin with, there are these…” he fumbled over the words for a moment, trying to find the right descriptor, before eventually settling on, “beings, c-called the ‘Entities’, or ‘Dread Powers’. They’re, um, basically these eldritch beings that feed on fear.”

He glanced up at her, trying to read her carefully blank expression. She showed no emotion, but did not interrupt, so he continued.

“W-well, the Entities can’t come to our world, but they can use proxies . Some of them, l-like the ones from the museum, are just extensions of their associated Entity, like…” he flapped his hands as he tried to think of a metaphor, “like the Entity poking fingers through a hole between our worlds!” he exclaimed, grinning at Mei before remembering what he was doing and blushing lightly.

“A-anyway, the other kind of proxy are ‘Avatars’. Basically, they’re people who have been… chosen by the Entities, a-and granted powers to help them spread their patrons’ particular type of fear.” he swallowed thickly and looked down at his hands, unable to meet Mei’s eyes for this next part.

“A-and, well… I’m one of those Avatars.”

He tensed up, awaiting her inevitable rejection, for the shouts and screams and cries of “monster!” to come and fill the empty room.

And yet, they didn’t. 

Instead, the lonely silence stretched on between them, until Izuku finally couldn’t bear it any longer, and glanced up.

Instead of the look of disgust or horror he expected, Mei simply… regarded him, as if he was a particularly difficult problem to solve. Finally, after a long moment, she spoke again.

“Prove it.”

“H-huh?” Came his intelligent response.

“Prove it.” she repeated, “Greenie, Izuku , these are some… wild claims you’re making. I know you wouldn’t lie to me, but… prove it.”

He blinked. Of course she wanted him to prove it. Well, attempting to Know her secrets was out of the question - far too invasive, thank you very much - and compulsion was similarly off the table. He could see through her eyes, or attempt to Know something else, but what…?

It hit him, “O-okay, do you have a book?”

She nodded and turned to her bag, pulling out a thick, well-worn book that looked more like a textbook than any form of light reading. On the cover, in gold capital letters, were the words “ INTRODUCTION TO QUANTUM MECHANICS ”. Ah, well, at least she was consistent.

“R-right, so I’ll turn around, and you flip to a random page and pick a word. I’ll tell you the page and word, and you can tell me if I get it right, okay?”

She eyed him for a moment, but gave a small nod. He turned around, shutting his eyes to help him focus.

“Okay, I’ve got one.”

He nodded, and briefly considered Knowing what she had chosen, but dismissed the idea quickly. Doing that could lead to a number of less welcome things leaking through, especially if they were going to repeat the experiment multiple times. No, this was a job for Seeing.

Izuku focused on Mei’s eyes, the familiar explosion of light welcoming him like an old friend. Behind him, her eyes grew wide as she saw a ring of glowing green eyes encircling the crown of his head in a mockery of a halo. She shook her head, and brought her attention back to the book, and Izuku’s vision soon joined hers.

“Page 203; ‘normalization’.”

Mei blinked and tensed slightly, “...yep.”

Izuku watched through his friend’s eyes as she slowly flipped through the book, picking another page and word at random. “Okay, test two.”

“Page 55; ‘boundary’.”

This continued for quite some time; Mei chose a page and a word, and Izuku would see what she had chosen. Finally, Mei closed the book and tossed it to one side, the thick tome thudding against the desk. Izuku turned back around to face her, and watched anxiously as she processed her results.

“Well… that was definitely something, but it wasn’t proof! Your Quirk means you can know things!”

He glanced away and rubbed the back of his head, “I-I… don’t have a Quirk. That was just one of my powers. I’m… Quirkless.”

Despite himself, he tensed up again, ready for the torrent of hatred that usually followed such a confession. Instead, Mei let out a small hum, before stuttering, “S-So, that means…”

He nodded slowly, “My patron is called the Eye. I-It feeds on the fear of being watched and having your secrets exposed. To that end, I’ve got three powers: Seeing, which lets me look through any eye, literal or metaphorical; Knowing, which lets me Know things I couldn’t otherwise; and Compulsion, which lets me…” he hesitated for a brief moment. If she knew the full extent of what he could do… but no, she deserved the truth. The full truth, damn the consequences. “...it lets me force someone to answer my questions.”

Silence fell once more, before Mei broke it with a small, “Metaphorical?”

Izuku almost didn’t hear her, “Huh?”

She fixed him with the kind of focused stare he only saw when she was beginning to work out a brand new baby idea. “You said you could see through real ‘or metaphorical’ eyes.” She emphasised her point with air quotes. “What’s that mean?”

“A-ah! Well, I can see through the eyes of other people, like what I was doing with you earlier, o-or animals, probably, but I haven’t tried that. But the eyes don’t have to be biological, or even literal. Like… oh! Like, if you drew an eye on the wall, I could see through it, or if a person in a poster had an open eye, too. And as for ‘metaphorical’ eyes, well… that’s things like security cameras! They’re not ‘real’ eyes, per se, but they represent the idea of seeing well enough to work for me. Basically, I can see out of anything that we associate with the idea of being watched!”

Izuku stumbled to a halt and blushed brightly, realising he had just launched into one of his mutter storms. Fortunately, Mei was well used to parsing them by now, and so only fixed him with an even more intense stare than before.

“Izuku.” Her voice was deathly serious.

He gulped, “Mei…?”

“Do you realise what this means?”

A chill ran up his spine at the ice in her words, and he silently shook his head.

Without warning, she leapt at him, sending them both tumbling to the floor. She beamed down at him with a grin so wide it threatened to split her face.

“This is AMAZING Greenie! We have SO MANY babies to make! We have to get started IMMEDIATELY! I hope you slept last night because we’re going to be MAKING BABIES ALL NIGHT LONG!!!”

Izuku blushed bright red. 

In the staff room, Maijima Higari felt a shiver run up his spine.

“M-mei! L-let’s slow down a little!” he chuckled nervously.

She frowned and huffed, but relented, pulling back to sit cross-legged between his legs. Izuku quickly sat up as well, and the two sat together on the floor in comfortable silence, before Mei spoke up again, quieter this time.

“I’m not… really good with emotions. I understand machines better than I do people, but… I’m here for you, if you ever need to, I don’t know, talk or something. I’m guessing all of this is a lot for you. It’s a lot for me, and I’m not even going through it! So just, uh, yeah.”

She awkwardly laid a hand on Izuku’s forearm. He laid his own over it and stroked it gently, before looking up at her and smiling softly.

“Thanks Mei. I appreciate it.”

She returned his smile with one of her own and, for a moment, their world was nothing more than each other.

The next day seemed to fly by and, in the blink of an eye, Izuku found himself standing in one of UA’s massive fake cities. This one seemed to be themed around industrial areas, as the narrow, twisting roads were practically smothered by piping. To his left, All Might stood in his hero form. Ever since he gave his statement, Izuku had been feeling less anxious around the Number One hero, but he still couldn’t quite bring himself to stand right next to the man. Instead, he gravitated towards Aizawa-sensei’s side, who regarded him with a lazy eye before turning back to the entrance, where the first of Class 1-A were beginning to trickle out of the changing rooms.

He was pleased to see Iida-kun there, fresh out of the hospital. His helmet was under his arm, baring his new scars to the world, and Izuku’s own itched in sympathy. A small knot of guilt formed in his gut. If only he had been faster…

He shook his head. No, there wasn’t anything more he could have done. Native and Iida-kun both survived, and Iida-kun was still going to be a hero. The only thing that could have made it better is if Stain was captured as well. 

Before long, the class had assembled in front of them, chatting amongst themselves and sending curious glances towards him. He sent a small wave to iida-kun, who returned it with a small smile. With a raise of his eyebrow, Aizawa-sensei began to speak, the class instantly quieting down.

“Your internships were meant as a way to learn about real hero work, and to improve your skills in a practical setting. To that end, you’ll be running an obstacle course today to see how much you’ve improved over your week away. Your goal will be to reach All Might as quickly as possible, and myself and Midoriya,” he nodded briefly at Izuku, who gave a shaking wave towards the class who now stared at him, “will be monitoring you and suggesting improvements. Any questions?”

The student he recognised as Yaoyorozu Momo raised her hand, “Forgive me, but who exactly is Midoriya-san?”

Aizawa-turned and looked at him, wordlessly telling him to introduce himself. Izuku started and cleared his throat, “U-um, hi! I’m Midoriya Izuku, and I’m a support student on the analysis track!” He gave his best smile, even as he watched the class flinch away from his gaze.

“Sick scar, bro! How’d you get it?” A boy he recognised as Kaminari Denki called out, and he curled in on himself. Beside him, Aizawa-sensei’s eyes flashed red. 

“Kaminari, you owe me a 1,000 word essay on sensitivity in the hero business.” The boy groaned loudly, and the teacher raised an eyebrow, “1,500 words?” Kaminari-kun quickly took the hint and shut his mouth. “Good. You’ll be put into randomised groups of five. All Might?”

The other man nodded, “ Of course, Aizawa! Come and find me, young heroes! ” With that, he leapt away, and Izuku let out a small sigh of relief he didn’t know he was holding.

“Tetsutetsu, Kirishima, Todoroki, Shouji and Ashido, you’re up first.”

The five students walked up to the start line, and Izuku refocused on his task. Notebook in hand, he was prepared.

An hour later, and the entire class was back in front of him, breathing hard. Some had collapsed onto the floor, while others leaned against their friend for support. 

“Wow… they really went Plus Ultra.” Izuku scratched his cheek and laughed nervously.

Beside him, Aizawa-sensei grunted, “That’s the job of a hero, kid. Go Plus Ultra in everything you do.”

He nodded and glanced down at his notes, “I-I think I’ve got some good notes for everyone! I’ll write them up in my reports; I-I think Nedzu-sensei wanted me to give them out after the final exams?”

The teacher gave a short nod and quickly changed the topic, “You’ll be joining us on Tuesday afternoon next week. Bring your P.E. kit, it’s a sparring session.”

His eyes widened and he nodded, scribbling down a note to remind himself. A gust of wind announced the sudden arrival of All Might, returning from the city below them.

“ Good job, everyone! You all proved yourselves to be fine heroes-in-training! ” He flashed them all a thumbs up and his trademark grin, and was met with a half-hearted cheer. 

Aizawa-sensei huffed slightly, “Go and get changed, you’re done for the day.”

Izuku watched as the group slowly shuffled off to the changing rooms. He made to leave himself, but was stopped by a sudden call of, “Midoriya-kun!”

He turned to see Iida-kun hurrying up to him. Before he could respond, the other boy walked up to him, and promptly bowed at a ninety degree angle.

“I wanted to thank you once again for your actions last week! Without your intervention, I would likely not be here today.”

He scratched the back of his head and chuckled slightly, “I-it was nothing really. I’m just glad you’re okay!” He winced, “Well, mostly…”

Iida-kun shot back up, “Nonsense! You saved my life! Though, I must admit, I am somewhat curious about how you knew what you did about,” he glanced over at Aizawa-sensei, who was slowly making his way back to school, “ You know who. ”

Ah, he should have expected such a question. Still, he had a tried and tested explanation for this, “Oh! I-It was my Quirk!”  The lie tasted like ashes in his mouth, but it was better and far easier than the truth.

Iida-nodded, believing him, “Fascinating! Now, I want to introduce you to someone!” He began walking away, and Izuku scrambled to catch up. He followed the boy as he led them to the entrance to the changing rooms, where Yaoyorozu-san was waiting, still in her - rather skimpy, Izuku thought - hero costume.

“Yaoyorozu-kun, meet Midoriya-kun! He, ah, assisted me on my internship.”

Well, that was one way to put it. He held out a shaky hand and tried not to take it personally when she flinched away from his gaze. She gave him a short, rehearsed handshake and nodded politely.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Midoriya-san. I trust your presence in our lesson today wasn’t a one-off?”

He shook his head, “N-no, I think I’m going to be in a few from now on.”

She smiled, “Then I shall look forward to seeing you.”

Izuku blushed so hard he practically glowed red.

Shigaraki Tomura scowled at the bar as he nursed whatever drink Kurogiri had poured for him. It didn’t matter what it was; they all tasted of ash and sulphur anyway. 

He growled. Twice now he had made a big, public move; one against All Might himself. And yet the media refused to give him the attention he deserved, intent on just burying their heads in the sand and ignoring him. Well, he wouldn’t go away, no matter how much they wanted him to. He’d return soon enough, and he’d bring death and destruction with him.

Those thoughts soothed the deep itching beneath his skin, at least.

Suddenly, the thick silence was cut by a slow, heavy knock on the door.

That was strange. Few people ever came to the bar, let alone announced their presence by knocking first.

Nonetheless, a second set of heavy knocks thudded against the door, and both he and Kurogiri got over their initial surprise. Wordlessly, the misty bartender opened the door.

Standing just beyond the doorway was a tall, gaunt man. He wore a long leather jacket that, judging by the stitches, had clearly seen better days. It seemed to reflect its owner well, however, as the man’s skin was a patchwork of deep purple burns, melted at the edges with skin that looked just a little too smooth. He stepped inside without invitation, the dim lighting of the bar seeming to blaze brightly in his bright cyan eyes. His gaze fixed on Tomura, and his face split into a grin.

“I heard you wanted to destroy this society.”

He huffed and took a sip of his drink, “So what if I do?”

The man’s smile didn’t abate. He sniffed the air and smirked, “You can call me Dabi.

“I think we’d work well together.”

Chapter Text

BOOM

Higari sighed as yet another of Hatsume’s creations went up in smoke, sending both her and Midoriya flying. The setback was only temporary, however, and she soon scrambled up, rapidly dictating notes to her green-haired assistant and test subject, who furiously scribbled them down in a pink notebook. 

It was the afternoon after school on Monday, and the two had booked a time slot for extra testing. Normally, he’d be willing to leave his students to test their creations on their own, but given Hatsume’s penchant for explosions… well, she was no longer allowed anywhere near the workshops unsupervised. He’d hoped that Midoriya could have worked as a stabilising agent for her, but he seemed instead to have exacerbated the situation, bringing her to new heights of chaos.

Speaking of the terrible twosome, they seemed different recently. Closer. Midoriya had all but lost his stutter around her, and they each seemed far more open with one another. It made him smile, just slightly. Midoriya was a good kid, who deserved good anchors like her to keep him grounded. He was an anchor for her too, in a different way; he kept her healthy, ensured she wasn’t working herself too hard.

It was good for both of them.

As he watched them, making sure they weren’t going to cause even more destruction, he thought back to Midoriya’s kidnapping, and just how far Hatsume had gone to find him. Looking back on that, and seeing how crazy they were for each other now - he noticed far more than people expected - it was clearly only a matter of time before they truly got together. Unfortunately, as much as he may want to, he couldn’t do anything to speed up the process in any way. After all, he’d already made a bet in Kayama’s dating betting pool, and she could get ruthless when she wanted to. 

He shuddered, and turned his attention back to his students.

BOOM

He sighed again. Some things never changed.

Tuesday morning found Izuku doing intelligence heroics training with Nedzu-sensei. He was currently working through a mock investigation; an activity they’d started during his internship. Essentially, he was presented with a crime - fake, of course - that at first glance, yielded no clues. It was his task to research through UA’s mock database to uncover the truth behind the matter. He was forbidden from using his powers; firstly, it was unlikely they’d be too useful in this particular situation, but also because the principal didn’t want him to rely on them too much; a sentiment with which Izuku agreed wholeheartedly.

Doing hero training already made him feel like an imposter; he didn’t need to feel like a monster too.

The problem he was currently faced with was solving a bank robbery that seemed to have been a perfect job, but they both knew there was no such thing as a perfect crime, and with a combination of research, deductive reasoning, and bull-headed stubbornness, he finally got the answer, cheering.

Nedzu-sensei smiled, “Congratulations, Midoriya-kun! Excellent work!” Izuku flushed as the teacher checked the clock, “And just in time for lunch, too! I must admit, you’re getting much faster at solving these problems!”

“I-I wouldn’t say that…” Izuku rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed by the praise.

“Nonsense! You’ve come a long way, Midoriya-kun! Which is why I have made a decision!” Izuku cocked his head to the side, curious, and the chimera watched him in amusement for a moment, before continuing, “On the first week of July, the whole school has their end of semester exams. However, the three specialist courses also have practical exams, as I am sure you are aware.” Izuku nodded. “Simply put, I wish for you to take part in the hero course’s practical exam! This will also count as your support practical exam, to stave off any concern you may have.”

Izuku frowned, “I-I don’t know… I mean, I-I appreciate you thinking of me! I'm just not sure…”

The teacher laid a paw across Izuku’s hand, cutting off his concerns, “Midoriya-kun, I promise you that I would not have entered you if I did not think you worthy. I believe the exam will be a great test of not only your powers, but also the skills we’ve worked on in these lessons. I believe that you will be able to overcome the challenge. I believe in you , Midoriya-kun.”

Izuku’s eyes widened as tears began to well up. He wasn’t quite used to the teacher speaking so… candidly. He still wasn’t sure, but… maybe he could give it a shot? Sniffing, he nodded, “I’ll do it.”

“Excellent!” Nedzu-sensei grinned.

“W-what will it involve?” He chewed on his lip, realising he probably should have asked before agreeing.

The principal’s grin grew wider, sharper, “Why, that’s part of the test! Think of it as an extra challenge; try and uncover what the exam entails - without using your powers, mind - and prepare yourself for what’s to come!”

Izuku nodded, hesitant yet determined. He may not have felt sure about the exam, but he didn’t want Nedzu-sensei’s trust in him to be misplaced.

He vowed to do his best.

Izuku left Nedzu-sensei’s office for lunch, mind weighed down by a storm of thoughts.

“Greenie!”

“Midoriya-kun!”

“Midoriya-san!”

The moment he stepped out, however, he was almost barrelled over by Mei launching herself at him. Fortunately, he managed to keep his balance, and he turned his gaze towards the others waiting for him in the hall; Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san.

“I thought you’d never get out, I was getting so bored !”

He chuckled slightly, “Mei, lunch only just started.”

She shrugged, “Still! But at least I got to meet my new customers, Legs and Creation!” She whipped around to face the two, “Hey you two! You’d better keep Hatsumei Industries in mind! I’ve got a billion babies to make, and you’re giving me even more ideas!”

Iida-kun turned bright red and sputtered, and Yaoyorozu-san and Izuku only laughed at him, the latter thankful not to be at the receiving end of Mei’s unique vocabulary for once.

Once they’d settled down and started moving away from the principal’s office, Yaoyorozu-san stepped towards Izuku, “Iida-san and I wished to eat with you today before our heroics lesson, if that’s okay?”

He blinked. They wanted to spend time with him ? Quirkless, useless monster Deku? It was… a dream come true.

Still, he and Mei came as a pair by this point, and he had to run it by her first, “W-what do you think, Mei?”

She shrugged, “It’ll give me a chance to pitch to my new customers, so sure, why not? By the way, Legs-” 

“My name is Iida , Hatsume-kun-”

“Legs,” she continued, not even listening to Iida-kun’s protests, “how d’your engines work? Wanna get on my bench and let me take a look at ‘em?” She eyed the blue-haired boy hungrily, and Izuku could tell her mind was already whirring with the possibilities Iida-kun presented.

Iida-kun launched into another round of sputtering, and Izuku decided to jump in for him, “As I understand it, it’s pretty simply a form of engines in Iida-kun’s legs, that allow him to travel at high speeds. Like his brother, Ingenium, he probably uses a form of citric acid to fuel it; Ingenium uses grapefruit juice, but I think Iida-kun prefers orange…” he trailed off as he noticed the silence around him, and turned his head to find all three of his friends staring at him in shock or, in Mei’s case, eager excitement.

Izuku paled. He’d gone too far, overstepped the mark. They were going to treat him like a creep. They were- 

“Very impressive, Midoriya-kun! You are correct; Tensei-nii used grapefruit juice, and I use orange juice!” Iida-kun smiled, stiff but genuine. 

Yaoyorozu-san nodded, “Your analysis is very impressive, Midoriya-san. I’m excited to hear more.”

Noticing his shocked expression, Mei san grinned at him and slung an arm around his shoulders, “See Greenie? You’re great! And,” she added, whipping around to the two hero students, “he’s also mine . Founding member of Hatsumei Industries here, and no one’s gonna take him away!”

Izuku blushed bright red at Mei’s apparent claiming of him, and Yaoyorozu-san smiled and nodded, “No worry, Hatsume-san, we’ve no plans of poaching him from you.” She chuckled lightly, and Mei seemed to relax, though her arm still rested around his shoulder, something Izuku found he didn’t mind so much.

Lunch passed in a flurry of pitches, and before long, Izuku found himself walking alongside Iida-kun, heading towards 1-A’s changing rooms with PE kit in hand and heart hammering in his chest. Yes, he’d had sparring sessions with Aizawa-sensei before, and he’d even attended one of 1-A’s heroics classes, but training alongside them? Fighting with them? That was a different beast entirely.

The changing room was blessedly devoid of conversation, 1-A’s boys far too concerned with getting dressed as quickly as they could to idly chatter. Izuku had barely just gotten dressed when he was swept up in the rush to get to Gym Alpha, his head spinning as they lined up in front of Aizawa-sensei, who regarded them all impassively.

“Good, you’re all here on time. Today you have a Quirkless sparring session.” Around him, the group seemed to slump, but knew better than to complain, “You’ll spar with everyone today, rotating after five minutes. Since Midoriya’s participating, there’s an odd number of you,” Aizawa-sensei grinned viciously, and Izuku froze, “so you’ll each get to spar with me , too.”

A chill ran through the students, but the teacher barreled onwards, assigning everyone their first partner. Izuku himself was placed with Tetsutetsu-kun, the boy greeting him with a friendly fist bump, which he hesitantly returned. Together they walked over to an empty mat, took their places on opposite sides, and waited for Aizawa-sensei to begin the spar.

One hour and forty-five minutes later, Izuku felt like he was dying for the second time in his life. He was bruised, battered, panting hard and drenched with sweat; he had, after all, spent much of the lesson being continuously slammed into mats by just about every member of Class 1-A. The gulf between their physical prowess and his own had been made incredibly obvious to him, and he was a little happy he was doing intelligence heroics, and that fighting would be a mere last resort for him.

Not that he was going to be a hero, of course, but still.

“That’s time. Get showered and changed, and I’ll see you in class tomorrow.” Aizawa-sensei grunted, and Izuku slowly started to rise, “Midoriya, stay behind.” Never mind. He slumped back down against the wall, dimly registering Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san waiting for him, worried, before Aizawa-sensei glared at them expectantly and they quickly hurried away. 

There was silence in the gym for a moment, before the teacher broke it, “How was the lesson?”

Blinking, Izuku looked up at him in surprise, “S-sensei?”

The man rolled his eyes, “You’re not currently a hero student, nor would you be training your body as hard as this class is. It would be illogical not to ensure you’re not being pushed too hard.”

He nodded slowly, rolling that over in his mind, “I-it was… hard,” he admitted, “but not too hard, I-I don’t think!”

The teacher grunted, considering him carefully before shrugging, “Tell me, or Nedzu, or Power Loader, if it becomes too hard. It doesn’t help anyone for you to run before you can walk; you’ll just end up injuring yourself.”

“O-of course sensei!” He agreed, though felt he wouldn’t ever reach that point. He didn’t want to throw in the towel just because something was hard, even if he didn’t feel like he deserved to be there in the first place!

Silence reigned again, the teacher leaning against the wall a few feet away from him, before slowly sliding down, sitting at his level.

“Shirakumo. Does the name ring a bell?”

The sudden change of topic all but gave Izuku whiplash, but he tried to recover quickly, “Uh, y-yes. He was your friend at UA, r-right? The one who…” he trailed off, not wanting to trigger any painful memories for the man.

“He died, yeah.” Aizawa-sensei grunted, “You know, he was going to be a great hero. He already was. One of the last things he did with his life was to save a group of kids from the building that killed him. He would’ve liked you, I think; he had this real tendency of adopting introverts. Present Mic was a hell of a lot shyer before he met Oboro.”

Izuku chuckled slightly, “I-I can’t imagine that at all…”

“Yeah,” the teacher huffed, clearly lost in his memories, “Oboro really was something.”

“Sensei…” Izuku hesitated, “w-what’s this about?”

The man shrugged, “You’ve already heard pieces from Nedzu. It’s only logical you hear the full story. Besides, you could just Know it all anyway.”

“I guess…” he trailed off, an idea beginning to form in his head. It was stupid, and almost certainly wouldn’t work. And yet… hearing about this hero student who died before his time, thinking of all the people he could have saved… it reminded him of Iida-kun. Would he have fallen to the Hero Killer, had it not been for Nedzu-sensei and Izuku? Izuku would never be a hero himself, of course, but he could be someone who helps heroes, couldn’t he?

He nodded to himself, and turned his thoughts to that door at the back of his mind, focused on one very specific thing; how to reverse whatever had been done to Shirakumo Oboro. He inched his way towards the door, and opened it, just a crack.

Knowledge seeped into his mind like molasses, vague theories and half baked ideas. Nothing concrete. Nothing that he could work with. Either there was no known way to do what he wanted, or the Eye was messing with him once more.

He wasn’t quite sure which he wanted to be true.

Cursing the Eye, he tuned back into the real world, where he and Aizawa-sensei sat in silence once more.

Tomura sat at the bar, glaring at their party’s newest member. He’d been hanging around for a week now, and had done little more than eat and drink the bar dry. He was getting ready to dust the man and be done with it, but Kurogiri had urged him to give this ‘Dabi’ a chance. Currently, he was sat in one of the booths, legs up on the table and dozing slightly. Growling, Tomura spoke.

“Why are you even here? You haven’t even done anything yet.”

“Neither have you.” Dabi fired back without looking, “But anyway,” he shrugged, “I was with this… gang, I guess you could call it, for a while, but I got kinda bored. They were the religious types, you know, real nutjobs, always talking about their messiah; which, by the way, I don’t think they even had yet. It was pretty clear to me they weren’t going to get me where I wanted.”

Tomura clicked his tongue, scratching softly at his neck, “And what do you want?”

The man smirked, “Same as you. I want to destroy . I want to take those heroes and let them watch as their lives burn down around them, leave them with nothing before I finally, slowly, allow them to die. I want to create a world of dust and ash and ruin and pain . Basically, I want to help you destroy. Isn’t that what you want?”

Tomura considered it. Sensei had always taught him to destroy anything he hated, and he did hate this society… 

He smirked and nodded, “I guess that’s something we can agree on.”

Chapter Text

“So, Creation, can you make anything ?” Mei grinned.

Izuku snapped his eyes towards her, detecting a note of something in her voice that made him… uneasy. The four of them - him, Mei, Yaoyorozu-san and Iida-kun - were eating lunch together again, having fallen into something of a familiar, easy pattern.

Yaoyorozu-san nodded, “Provided I understand the atomic composition and structure, yes.”

“Even things that don’t exist but could?”

The girl in question paused, and even Izuku cocked his head to the side, considering it. It was something he’d wondered idly in one of his many analysis sessions, but hadn’t given much thought to it. He’s sure there were materials that were theoretically able to exist, but the method of their manufacture was too difficult or impractical. Yaoyorozu-san, however, didn’t have such restrictions. It would be difficult, yes, but if she understood the theory?

“I’m… not sure,” she admitted after a moment, “why, did you have something in mind?”

Mei shrugged, “I’ve been playing with a few ideas; I was just wondering, is all!” She smiled angelically, but Izuku knew her well enough not to trust that. He could practically see the cogs whirring in her head, piecing together endless ideas for babies.

Some days, he thanked the universe that Mei was on the heroes’ side.

Iida-kun cleared his throat, “Ah yes, the first semester exams are approaching! I trust you are all studying hard?” It was an awkward change of topic, but one Izuku appreciated nonetheless, as it reminded him of his discussion with Nedzu the previous day.

“O-oh, that reminds me! Do either of you know what your practical exam is going to be?”

The two hero students exchanged a confused glance before shaking their heads, “Aizawa-sensei has remained rather… tight-lipped on that topic.” Yaoyorozu-san explained, “Why do you ask?”

He flushed, “W-well, Nedzu-sensei told me that I’m going to be taking part in it, and that it’ll be my practical exam as well.”

Iida-kun straightened up, smiling, “Impressive, Midoriya-kun! Though, I must ask, could you not simply use your Quirk to ascertain the details?”

“N-nedzu-sensei told me not to.” He rubbed the back of his neck, dancing on that razor-thin line between truth and lie.

“Still, congratulations, Midoriya-san. I am sure you’ll do well.” Yaoyorozu-san nodded and smiled at him.

“You’re gonna ace it, Greenie! Blow those client-students out of the water!”

Izuku flushed at their praise, even as discomfort coiled in his gut. He was truly grateful for everything everyone had done for him, but he still couldn’t help but feel it was unearned. And yet… no one else seemed to think that, either. It was strange, really, having so much support. He doubted he deserved it, but no one else did.

So maybe he was wrong?

When lunch ended, the four went their separate ways, the hero students hurrying to their homeroom while Izuku and Mei made their way to 1-H’s workshop. It was while they were walking down the corridor that Mei suddenly turned to him.

“Y’know Greenie, you really are gonna be a great hero.”

He flushed bright red, “M-Mei! I-I’m not even a hero student; I don’t even think I’m going to be a hero!”

She rolled her eyes, but grinned, “Greenie, you’re the most heroic person I know! You’re going to be a hero; Legs knows it, Creation knows it, and I know it. Just lemme ask you one thing, though.” Still blushing, he nodded at her. “ When you’re some big hero out there, don’t forget me.”

Recovering, he smiled softly, “Mei, I could never forget you. I don’t think anyone could.” They both chuckled. “I promise , I won’t ever leave you.”

Her eyes widened, and he thought he spotted tears beginning to well up, before she bundled him into a bone-crushing hug, her strength still far outweighing his own. Hesitantly, he returned it, wrapping his arms around her back.

The blushing returned, his face turning a brilliant red.

Judging by the heat sinking into his shoulder, he didn’t think he was the only one.

The rest of the day passed without incident, and Izuku and Mei walked out of school together, chatting idly about some ideas Mei had. Her internship had lit a fire under her, and he smiled as she rambled on about the intricacies of engineering and mechanics; something he didn’t really understand. Ironically, that was the Eye’s biggest shortcoming; knowing and understanding were two very different things, after all. He could easily be aware of something - the Eye granted him access to potentially all of human knowledge - without ever truly comprehending it. It was a subtle difference, to be sure, but he felt it was an important one.

“Midoriya-kun! Hatsume-kun!”

Izuku was snapped out of his thoughts, and Mei her rambling, by Iida-kun’s shout, calling out to them from behind. Turning, they found Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san approaching, clearly exhausted from their heroics lesson.

“Legs! Creation!” Mei cheered, “What’s up?”

Iida-kun’s indignant sputtering soon followed, but Yaoyorozu-san was quick to take over for her classmate, “We’re glad to have caught you. We simply wanted to invite the two of you to study and train with us, in the lead up to our exams.”

Izuku’s eyes widened. He doubted any of them particularly needed to study, but this was an invitation to train with two of the best of Class 1-A. He realised they were his friends, but it was still quite a shock.

“Well, I dunno about Greenie, but it sounds fun to me!” Mei grinned, probably just happy to have more time to promote her babies to the hero students.

Three pairs of eyes turned to him, and he started, jolted back to the conversation, “O-oh, that would be great!”

“Good!” Iida-kun nodded, “Shall we begin now? I’ve already booked Gym Beta for training!”

Izuku and Mei shared a glance before shrugging, “S-sure!” He smiled.

Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san smiled back.

Izuku grunted as he hit the mat, Iida-kun looming over him.

“Good effort, Midoriya-san! You’ve made quite some progress!” Yaoyorozu-san complimented from the sidelines.

“Nice job Greenie,” Mei cheered, “you’ll beat Legs next time!”

Iida-kun smiled down at him, apologetically, and offered him a hand up. Izuku took it gladly, setting his face in a determined expression, and settling into a fighting position, ready for the next round.

“Todoroki Enji.”

Izuku nodded and focused on the name. After a rush of colour, he found himself looking through the eyes of the Number Two hero, currently on patrol. Based on signs, coupled with his own knowledge of Endeavor’s patrols, he quickly pinpointed his location in Musutafu, and relayed this information to Nedzu-sensei, who hummed, pleased.

“Torino Sorahiko.”

The name didn’t ring a bell, but he obliged anyway, finding himself looking through the eyes of a very short person. Whoever it was was seemingly at home, though the decor was dated at best, and the building seemed dilapidated. They were focused on a plate of taiyaki, and seemed in no hurry to be anywhere. He couldn’t rely on environmental clues, then. 

Changing tacks, he turned his mind towards the door, focusing on the question of Torino’s location, and cracking it open just slightly. A stream of information trickled into his head; Torino Sorahiko, the retired hero Gran Torino, friend of Shimura Nana, the deceased hero Aozora, and mentor of Yagi Toshinori; All Might. He filed that particular morsel of information away, and returned to the question of Torino-san’s current location. The man lived and operated out of Yamanashi, more specifically, Nirasaki. He gave his answer to the teacher, who clapped his paws together and cheered.

“Excellent work, Midoriya-kun!”

Despite himself, Izuku smiled widely at the praise.

“This is so boring ,” Mei complained, throwing her hands in the air, “I wanna work on babies!”

“I know, Mei.” Izuku chuckled, putting the finishing touches to his study notes. Technically, he didn’t need them; he had a great memory, even before a direct link to eldritch Wikipedia had been installed in his head. Still, he wanted to ensure that his grades remained as high as they were. “We have to study, though.”

Mei pouted and collapsed to the ground. It was just the two of them today, studying at Izuku’s apartment, which his mom only mildly teased him about, thankfully. “Can we at least take a break?” She asked, “None of this is going in, and I’ve got a ton of ideas to get out.”

He checked the time, before nodding, “Sure, I think we can have a short break.”

She instantly perked up, shooting upright and pulling out her notebook of ideas. He was content to simply watch, admiring her mind and how it worked. It was like she was an endless font of creativity, filling her head so full of ideas that she had to constantly be working on something . Her dedication was something he admired greatly, along with her skill, her blunt attitude, her… well, her everything. She was truly a great person, a great friend.

He felt the flush rise to his face, even though neither of them had said anything, and a strange feeling coiled in his gut as his heart beat faster. He wasn’t used to this feeling at all, and it worried him. Was he getting sick? Was he going to have to miss the exams? 

The feeling began to abate as he called time up on the break, much to Mei’s chagrin, and he quickly put it out of his mind.

It probably didn’t mean anything.

“Hatsume-kun, are you sure this is safe?”

Izuku and his friends had gathered in the workshop after school, intent on testing out some of Mei’s newest babies. Currently, Iida-kun was strapped to a large box of unclear purpose, and he seemed quite nervous about it.

“Don’t worry, Legs! Worst case scenario is it blows up!” Mei cheered, making some final adjustments to the device.

“That doesn’t exactly inspire confidence…” Iida-kun muttered, fidgeting in place.

Mei shrugged, “In the absolute, worst possible case, you get turned into bloody chunks so quick, you won’t even notice it! But that’s not gonna happen, right Greenie?”

“Uh,” Izuku supplied intelligently, “w-well, it hasn’t before?”

She grinned and nodded, turning back to the hero student, “See? Trust in the process, Legs! Now,” she pulled out a large remote control, and fiddled with a few buttons, causing a low hum to emanate from the machine, “stay still!”

The hum rose as she pressed a few more buttons, before pushing a particularly large one and looking up, eager to see her baby in action. The hum continued to rise to a fever pitch, before suddenly cutting out, a small puff of smoke firing from the back of the box. Mei frowned as Iida-kun, Yaoyorozu-san and Izuku let out a similar sigh of relief.

“Well, back to the drawing board!”

June passed in a blur of studying, training and learning from Nedzu-sensei, and the first week of July arrived in a flash, sending Izuku face first into exam week. Though UA’s exams weren’t easy by any means, the studying he’d done with Mei, Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san had ingrained the knowledge he needed firmly into his mind, and he got through them without much difficulty. Only one obstacle remained; the ever mysterious practical exam. The current rumour was that it involved fighting robots, much like the hero course entrance exam and the sports festival, but that didn’t quite sit right with Izuku. No, he was sure Nedzu-sensei had something far more diabolical in store for them, but he couldn’t even guess what.

Before the day arrived, however, he had one last thing to do. It was Friday lunchtime, his final written exam was over with, and he had been summoned to the principal’s office. The door swung open before him and he stepped inside, finding Nedzu-sensei sitting on one of his sofas. They were not alone, however, as across from the teacher sat none other than Detective Tsukauchi, who looked up as he entered, and smiled at him.

“Ah, Midoriya-kun, come in!” The principal cheered, “You remember Detective Tsukauchi, yes?” Izuku nodded as the door shut behind him, and he sat down next to Nedzu-sensei, who poured him a cup of tea. “Well, as your practical exam starts tomorrow, I thought it best to ensure you’re fully fed, so to speak, so I’ve asked Tsukauchi here today to give his statement!”

He let out a soft, “Oh” as he finally noticed the tape recorder sitting innocuously on the table before him. He glanced up at the detective, who nodded at him reassuringly, before he reached out, and pressed Record.

-- START OF TRANSCRIPT --

[CLICK]

MIDORIYA

Statement of Detective Tsukauchi Naomasa, regarding an incident with his coworker. Statement recorded direct from subject, 5th July, 2250. Statement begins.

TSUKAUCHI (STATEMENT)

I guess I should probably begin by talking about Article Five. There’s a lot of mystery around it, but all it really is, is a promise to keep quiet about… certain things. Officially, it falls under the Freedom of Information Act - the Law Concerning Disclosure of Information Held by Administrative Agencies, to give it its full name - Article Five of which covers exemptions from Freedom of Information requests. One such exemption is for information which, if made public, would hinder the investigation of criminal activity. Essentially, it means we don’t have to give out any information relating to active criminal investigations, which is a useful loophole when, say, you come across something weird in the field.

You see a lot of weird things in my line of work. Quirks only get stranger with time, and it seems villains and criminals do too. But there’s a specific kind of weird, the kind you can only feel when the Entities are involved. I’m sure you’ve felt it too; it’s like this… shiver down the back of your neck, telling you that something isn’t quite right.

Anyway, when you come back from a weird job and tell your supervisors about it, they tend to hurry you to one side and get you to sign a statement, attesting that your experience was a part of an active criminal investigation, and is therefore safe from Freedom of Information requests. Essentially, it’s a promise to keep everything quiet. I think the process is a little different for heroes, but the end result is the same; you see something wrong , and you have to keep quiet about it. I lost count of the number of Article Five statements I’ve signed. See, once you’ve signed your first, everything changes. Your co-workers look at you differently, there’s a distance between you. If we get a report of a crime in progress and something even remotely smells off, it’s the officers who’ve already signed an Article Five that get sent out, and they tend to be alone. People don’t want to sign an Article Five, and I can’t blame them.

Like I said, I’ve signed a lot of them in my time in the force, but today, I’ll tell you the story of my very first one, back when I was still a rookie officer. 

I was fresh out of the academy, had barely spent a year as an officer. Back then, I didn’t know a thing about the Entities, about any of this. I was bright-eyed, and ready to do whatever I could to help out. So, when I was called out to investigate alongside my senior, I jumped at the opportunity.

Detective Towa always had something… off about him. I’d worked under him a couple of times, and while he was a good investigator, to be sure, he always had this edge to him. He would constantly walk the line between reasonable and excessive force, stopping just before he’d do enough to land on the other side. Apart from that, he had a tendency not to worry too much about catching criminals. Oh, he’d investigate, to be sure, but when the time for the arrest came, he’d push it off until the last possible moment. And if the criminal tried to run? Most officers treat that as an annoyance at best, but Towa? He almost seemed to enjoy it.

There were a lot of rumours about him. Some claimed he was being paid off by some criminal group or other, while others simply thought he was lazy. None of them were right, though.

You know, it’s kind of ironic, really; I barely remember what we were actually called out to look into. Maybe it was a fire, or something, or maybe it was just kids being kids. All I remember is that we were called out to the forest up near Hinohara. The drive was quiet; Towa kept silent, for the most part, but there was a gleam in his eye, more dangerous than I’d ever seen from him before. I shuffled in my seat, though I didn’t understand why I was so uncomfortable. He was my superior, after all, and was responsible for my welfare if nothing else.

So why did he feel so dangerous?

We arrived after an hour or two, and quickly got out. It was later in the day, so I brought my torch with me. When I asked about his own, however, he just shook his head, telling me that he wouldn’t need it.

The walk through the forest didn’t help my nerves, either. It was deathly still, but not quiet; more like the trees themselves were holding their breath. We came to where the report had been called in. I was leading the way, and didn’t find anything of interest there. Towa soon followed, and he found the same; nothing. Sighing, I just put it down to kids playing pranks, and chose to laugh it off, turning to head back to the car. Towa, though? He was staring, wide-eyed, at the ground, grimacing - no, growling - at the foliage. There was anger, genuine rage in his eyes.

I called out to him, asking if he was okay, and his eyes snapped to me. Something had changed. His pupils were tiny pinpricks in an ocean of blood red as he regarded me, not as a peer or even a subordinate, but as something smaller.

The word prey came to mind, and I stepped back. That seemed to flip a switch.

He shot forwards, snarling at me, and I turned tail and ran. I didn’t care which direction; I could hear his footsteps crashing through the brush behind me, and all I was listening to was a deep, primal part of me, urging me to flee . I crashed through bushes, through branches and trees, barely caring about the scratches, scrapes and cuts that littered my skin. My sole focus was on escaping my co-worker.

Eventually, I managed to lose him, but I was lost myself. I didn’t dare turn on my torch, lest I create a beacon for him to home in on, leaving me to wander in the dark. I don’t know if you’ve ever been in a forest at night. It’s not something I recommend. Something about darkness just… amplifies every sound you hear. Every insect and animal sounded ten times louder, the beating of my heart felt like it echoed for miles around. I halted in place every time a branch snapped beneath my feet, so sure that it would give my position away. Every rustle in the bushes filled me with the certainty that I had been found, and that the CRUNCH-SNAP of jaws around my throat was imminent.

I don’t know where that thought came from, but like I said, I wasn’t exactly thinking logically then.

There were a few close calls during that eternal night. Every so often I would hear Towa calling out to me, or whistling as if he was summoning a dog. I would crouch down low then, make as little sound as possible, even try to control my breathing. Once, I was so sure he was right behind me, I practically started walking backwards.

It’s something they don’t teach you in the academy. The police are so used to being predators, they never prepare you for becoming prey.

I don’t know how long I wandered the forest for, waiting for my pursuer to discover me, but by the time I broke through the treeline and saw our patrol car parked innocuously in the car park, the sun was rising. The long night was over. I collapsed into the driver’s seat, thankful I had a set of keys on me, and drove away without a second thought.

When I returned to the station, I explained what had happened to my superiors, and they all but thrust an Article Five form in front of me there and then. 

I never saw Detective Towa again, and I never found out what happened to him. But, knowing what I do now about what we do with Avatars, I can reasonably guess.

All I have to say about that, is good riddance.

MIDORIYA

…Statement ends.

TSUKAUCHI

That was… a little cathartic, actually.

NEDZU

I’ve heard it can feel quite relieving to get these things off your chest, yes!

MIDORIYA

U-um, if you don’t mind me asking… you said “what we do with Avatars”.

TSUKAUCHI

You’re wondering what that is, exactly. Well, it depends on the situation, really. There are some heroes and police officers who are Avatars of the Hunt, and they’re generally authorised to remove other Avatars from the picture, provided they pose a clear and present threat to the public. If there are none on site, we have specially modified prisons for containment. Even Tartarus can’t hold certain Avatars, so there are prisons that are better suited for that role. 

MIDORIYA

What kind of modifications are there? I-if you can tell me, that is…

TSUKAUCHI

…Well, in most cases, the only method that’s proven to be truly effective is complete encasement in concrete, as it starves them of fear.

MIDORIYA

…oh.

NEDZU

It isn’t a nice job we have, Midoriya-kun, but we do what is necessary to protect the public.

MIDORIYA

…right.

[CLICK]

-- END OF TRANSCRIPT --

That afternoon saw Izuku and Mei in the workshop, tidying up after school. They worked in a comfortable silence, which suited Izuku, his head swimming with thoughts. He’d taken another statement, and it felt good , like eating a large meal. It was willingly offered, yes, but that didn’t stop the guilt. After all, he was feeding on people’s most traumatic memories, like a tick growing fat and swollen from gorging itself on its host's blood. He hated it, hated how good it felt, hated how he needed to do it to survive.

Hated how he brought this upon himself.

“Hey, Greenie!” 

Mei’s call from across the room snapped him out of his self-loathing spiral, and he looked up at her, “Yes, Mei?”

“Where d’you think we’re gonna be in ten years time?”

He thought it over for a moment, “Well, you’re going to be CEO of Hatsumei Industries, the biggest support company on the planet.” He smiled at her, and she preened at his praise, “And as for me…” sealed in a concrete tomb, probably, “I don’t know, really!”

She scoffed, “That’s easy, Greenie; you’re gonna be right by my side, the number one Intel Hero and Quirk Analyst on the market! You’re stuck with me now, Greenie, and we’re gonna go far together! You and me, forever!”

He flushed. Mei’s continued friendship confused him most of all. He was just Quirkless, useless , and that was before he became a monster. And yet, through it all, she stuck by him. Hell, she believed in him, truly and genuinely. She believed he could be a hero, a great one, and she wasn’t the only one.

She stepped forwards, holding a fist out for him to bump. He put his self-loathing to one side for the moment, smiled, and bumped it, a light blush dusting both their cheeks.

“Together forever, Mei!”

Tomura glanced up from his handheld as Dabi walked in and flung himself into one of the booths. After a moment, where the only sound was of Kurogiri’s endless glass polishing, he decided to speak up.

“How’d the meeting go?”

His number two hummed noncommittally, “Could be worse. We’ve got two on board already; Muscular and Moonfish. They’re not the kind that I would have picked personally, but they’re useful enough. All either of them wants is to feed their desires, so I guess I can relate.” He sat up slightly, looking at Tomura with a lazy gaze, “It’s villains like that we should be going for. Too many ideals will just get in the way, especially when we’re gunning for total destruction.”

Tomura grinned viciously, “You’re not wrong there.”

Chapter Text

As he had done many times before, Izuku stood before the gates of UA, looking up at the imposing edifice of the hero school. It was Saturday. Exam day. The day he been dreading for the past month, where he would have to face an unknown challenge alongside UA’s first year hero course. The notion was laughable, really; him, a barely trained analyst whose greatest contribution to the world had been serving a great, malevolent entity, facing an exam designed to test the best and brightest the hero school had to offer.

He should turn back now, tell Nedzu-sensei he’d come down with a sickness, maybe even transfer schools.

“Midoriya-kun!”

Before he could do any of those things, though, a call from behind alerted him to Iida-kun approaching, practically marching up the path with a smile on his face. It suited him, Izuku thought, to be so happy. In fact, since he’d visited his friend in the hospital, the hero student had only grown happier, seemingly more determined to be a hero than ever before. 

Iida-kun deserved to be there, to be taking this exam today. Izuku didn’t.

His friend clapped him on the shoulder and beamed wildly, looking up at the school beside him. The angry red of his scars had faded into a pale pink, but still visibly marked his face. Despite that, he seemed to suffer few adverse effects from Stain’s attack, and every so often, Izuku found himself forgetting there were any scars in the first place.

Iida-kun took a deep breath, before stepping forwards, “We must be on time on this important day, Midoriya-kun!”

Izuku nodded dumbly, trailing after his friend as the boy led him through the grounds of UA, into the school itself, and into Class 1-A’s changing room, stopping briefly by his classroom to pick up his hero costume case. The changing room was empty, something Izuku was thankful for; he didn’t think he could deal with a crowd this early in the morning. Iida-kun set his case down and began to change, glancing over briefly at Izuku, who found a bench to sit down on.

“Are you not changing, Midoriya-kun?”

He shook his head, “N-no, I was told to stay in my school uniform.”

At that, Iida-kun nodded and returned to changing, and a couple of minutes later, they were walking out of the school, making their way towards the designated meeting point, which was currently empty. 

They waited for a while in comfortable silence, watching as Class 1-A slowly trickled out of the building to join them. Yaoyorozu-san quietly greeted them and they stood together, chatting aimlessly to pass the time. Before long, the class, plus Izuku, had assembled, and the feeling of anticipation grew. Finally, they noticed a group of teachers approaching them, and Izuku’s heart sank.

He could just about guess what the exam would involve.

Aizawa-sensei took the lead, observing the students with a bored gaze, each of them shivering slightly as his eyes skated over them, “You’re all here, good. Welcome to your practical exam. As you all know, success in this exam is a requirement for your attendance at the summer camp.” Izuku remembered his friends talking about this camp, their excitement evident.

“I’m sure you all think you have a vague idea of what the exam will be. Intel gathering is an essential part of heroics, after all.” 

Behind him, Ashido-san cheered, “That’s right, we’re gonna be fighting robots, like the entrance exam! We’ll ace it!” A few other students cheered as well, and the mood of the class was high.

“Not so!” Cried Nedzu-sensei, jumping up onto Aizawa-sensei’s shoulder. Instantly, the positive atmosphere flipped, changing into unease, bordering on outright fear. “While we have used the robots to great success in previous years, for your year in particular, we felt a more hands on approach was appropriate!” 

Izuku gulped as realisation dawned on a few in the class. To his left, Iida-kun seemed to stand up straighter, while to his right, Yaoyorozu-san paled slightly.

“No, this year, you will be fighting…” Nedzu-sensei paused for dramatic effect, “us!”

The effect was instant. A third of the class collapsed to the ground, groaning and crying. Another third slumped in defeat, and the final third experienced a range of emotions before finally settling on grim determination. Izuku found himself somewhere between the latter two.

A flash from Aizawa-sensei’s Quirk quickly brought the class to heel, and he stepped forwards, “Each of you will be placed into a pair, united against a single teacher. These matchups have been selected through considering a number of variables; your academic scores, your relationships with one another, but most of all, your weaknesses. Each pair will be given a set of handcuffs; you will have half an hour to either capture your opponent, or escape through the designated exit gate. Only one of you will have to escape to pass. Remember, it is a perfectly viable strategy to retreat when facing an enemy you cannot defeat yourself .” The man stressed, making sure to look each one of them, even Izuku, dead in the eyes. “In order to slightly level the playing field, each teacher will be wearing weights equivalent to a quarter of their body weight. These weights come courtesy of,” the teacher sighed, looking even more exhausted than usual, “Hatsumei Industries.”

Despite the situation, Izuku smiled to himself. He knew Mei was working on some secret project, but he hadn’t guessed it was this! He was truly happy for her.

“Now,” Nedzu-sensei chirped, regarding them all with a beady eye, “allow me to inform you all of your matchups! After that, you shall be taken on buses to your exam grounds, and the exams will begin!

“First, Team One: Tetsutetsu and Satou against Cementoss!” The two boys shared a fist bump, and the teacher nodded solemnly.

“Team Two: Shouji and Hagakure versus Snipe!” Shouji-kun nodded at his partner, her costume currently visible. Izuku was glad he’d raised the issue of her original costume when he did; her new one was a full bodysuit, tight to be sure, but far less revealing, and the DNA-infusion allowed her to turn the visibility of the outfit off and on at will. Which raised the question; could she also do that with her own invisibility?

That was a question for another time, as Nedzu-sensei was quickly moving on, “Team Three: Aoyama and Tsunotori against Thirteen!” The boy in question bowed with a flamboyant flourish, causing his partner to clap with glee.

“Team Four: Ashido and Kaminari against me, Nedzu!” The students wilted, a sentiment Izuku could sympathise with. Even Izuku himself didn’t fancy his chances against the sheer brilliance of his teacher.

“Team Five: Jirou and Kouda against Present Mic!” He considered this for a moment. It was sure to be a difficult matchup. But with Present Mic’s entomophobia… then again, could Kouda-kun’s Quirk work on insects? He’d never seen it used on one before, but that could just be a personal issue…

“Team Six: Uraraka and Yaoyorozu against Eraserhead!” Izuku’s thoughts snapped back to the present as his friend straightened up beside him. It was a rough deal she had; both she and Uraraka-san relied heavily on their Quirks. Still, the determination was etched on both their faces, and he felt they’d find a way to pull through.

“Team Seven: Iida and Ojiro versus Power Loader!” They really weren’t pulling their punches, were they? Against Maijima-sensei, Iida-kun was unlikely to find any solid ground to run, and Ojiro-kun would struggle to fight. They’d both have to flee, but the teacher wasn’t going to make it easy for them.

“Team Eight: Sero and Mineta against Midnight!” The two boys shared equally excited glances, and Izuku just hoped they’d be able to focus by the time they reached the exam site.

“Team Nine: Tokoyami and Asui against Ectoplasm!” That was an interesting pairing. Dark Shadow was a powerful Quirk, with excellent crowd control potential. Then again, Ryoutsutsu-sensei’s Quirk provided him with a near-endless horde at his disposal; he’d easily be able to wear down the student and his Quirk. Asui-san, on the other hand, was something of an unknown variable. She was a good all-rounder, a great jack of all trades. Perhaps, then, this exam would serve as a test of her ability to support her peer?

“And finally, Team Ten: Todoroki and Kirishima. The two of you will be facing-”

A roaring WHOOSH of air interrupted the principal as the sun was briefly blotted out, casting a great shadow over their group. Izuku’s heart sank for the two students, though he was thankful not to be in their position.

All Might landed before them all with a mighty CRASH , his usually comforting grin now taking on an almost threatening edge, “ You two will be facing me. ” He boomed, the challenge echoing out for what sounded like miles. The entire class cowered before the Number One hero.

So this is what villains felt when they faced All Might.

Well, most villains, anyway.

Aizawa-sensei cleared his throat, regaining control of the situation, “Well, if that’s everything, get in your pairs and find your assigned teacher.” The class slowly began to follow the instruction, a nervous energy connecting them.

Izuku stepped forwards, frowning, “B-but, sensei, what about me?” He had, after all, not been mentioned as part of any of the pairs.

“Ah, of course!” Nedzu-sensei squeaked from his perch, “One more thing!” The class turned towards them, curious and confused, “Midoriya-kun here has an exam of his own! He will be situated in the control room with Recovery Girl, watching over each and every one of you, and providing you with guidance and support! He will serve as your intelligence and your strategist; your ‘Eye in the sky’, if you will!” The principal chuckled slightly at the pun, “He will be using every tool at his disposal,” he met Izuku’s gaze with a meaningful look, “and communicating with you through earpieces we’ll provide. So please take his advice, and allow him to guide you all!”

Izuku blinked. That was… a lot . He was essentially going to be placed at the helm of a ten-pronged operation, and was responsible for not only his own success, but for that of the entire class. Not that he didn’t trust them, but now they were going to be relying on him. He couldn’t afford to make a mistake.

Yaoyorozu-san stepped forwards, concerned, “Sensei, is that not too much work for one person, especially a first-year student?”

Nedzu-sensei nodded slightly, “I understand your concerns, but please be assured that we would not have offered him the task if we did not believe in his ability to complete it.” His focus turned to Izuku, who was wrapped up in his own panic. 

They trusted him with this, something that could affect the futures of the entire class. It was his responsibility to use everything he had to lead his peers to victory.

It was a daunting task. But he couldn’t refuse, no matter how little he trusted his own skills. Slowly, he nodded, meeting his teacher’s gaze. “O-okay.” He stammered out, putting on a false face of confidence. “I-I’ll do my best!”

As Class 1-A was given their handcuffs and earpieces, Izuku was taken to the command room, a dark, air-conditioned space that was empty save for a large bank of monitors against one wall. Recovery Girl showed him to the desk, and he sat down in the padded chair, and got his bearings. The monitors displayed various locations throughout the exam grounds. He was sure that, normally, there wouldn’t be nearly as many screens here, but it seemed Nedzu-sensei wanted to really push his limits. 

Well, maybe he would fall short of the teacher’s expectations, but he had to at least try.

Shaking his head free of those thoughts, he turned his mind to the task at hand. He’d already ran through strategies for each team in his head, and flipped through the cameras, getting an initial idea of each arena. Finally, he pulled on his headset, and pressed the button to speak.

“H-hello? Can everybody hear me?”

Instantly, he was met by a wave of answers that all combined into a sound so overwhelming it almost forced him to remove the headphones. “I-I think I heard everyone.” He chuckled slightly, “But from now on I’ll be using the individual channels each team is tuned to.” He glanced down at the list in front of him, a table detailing each pair and which testing ground, teacher, and channel they were assigned to. 

Team One - Tetsutetsu-kun and Satou-kun - were on Channel Two, and in Ground Delta. He turned his attention towards that area; a tightly packed city, with towering skyscrapers and, most importantly, concrete everywhere. Ishiyama-sensei would be able to easily block even cunning opponents, and this team… weren’t the most strategically-minded. Both of the students had a tendency to lean on brute force, and were simple, straightforward fighters. Izuku could easily imagine a situation in which the two attempted to face the teacher head on, only to become overwhelmed by concrete and exhaust themselves before ever getting close to him.

Chewing on his thumb, he switched to channel two, “T-team One, can you hear me?”

“ Gotcha, Brodoriya! ”

“ I hear ya! ”

Izuku nodded to himself. He could do this. “I-I’ve been looking at your training ground; there’s concrete everywhere. Ishiyama-sensei will be able to completely control the battlefield; you can’t face him head on.”

He could hear the frown in Tetsutetsu-kun’s voice, “ But that’s the manly way to fight! ”

Izuku took a deep breath and gathered his confidence, “I-in a life or death situation, all that matters is saving civilians and stopping villains. Sometimes you’ll have to do things you don’t like, but…” he swallowed, “isn’t it manlier to save people no matter what?”

There was a pause, and Izuku held his breath, until… “ You’re right, bro! Lettin’ someone get hurt just cuz I don’t wanna do something ain’t manly at all! ”

Izuku let out a sigh of relief, “E-exactly! So, here’s my plan…”

By the time the buses had arrived at the training grounds, Izuku was already exhausted. He had  removed his tie, pulled off his blazer and rolled up his sleeves as he explained his thoughts to each of the teams. They were all receptive to his ideas, something that would have confused him deeply were he not deeply wrapped up in planning. They all believed in him, trusted him, and for now, that was enough.

As students and teachers alike each spilled out into their respective areas and took their positions, Izuku did one last sweep of each training ground, taking particular note of positionings and trying to understand each teacher’s thought process. He could reasonably guess what each was planning, all except for Nedzu-sensei, whom he’d been unable to locate. The principal was as much a mystery to him as ever.

As he looked through the cameras, Nedzu-sensei’s words rang through his mind. He was allowed to use all his abilities, including those he gained from the Eye. Neither Compulsion nor Knowing would be much use in this situation, but Beholding? Cameras could only show him so much, but being able to see through the combatants eyes could help him far better. 

He didn’t have time to wrestle with the implications of this, however, as a klaxon sounded from all ten areas simultaneously, and the exam began.

Instantly, Izuku blocked out all distractions. He didn’t have the time to stress, not when several of the groups were rushing forwards already. However, he did have some time before things started heating up, so he focused on his biggest concern; Team Four, Ashido-san and Kaminari-kun. While the other teachers were more likely to wait for the students to come to them, and those who wouldn’t, such as Aizawa-sensei, Maijima-sensei and All Might, were up against students who could hold their own without Izuku’s help, Nedzu-sensei’s mind games had almost certainly begun, and he needed to devote this small grace period to get the students into a position where they could help themselves.

Switching to channel five, he glanced at the screens for the cameras in Ground Sigma, only to be met with static. Either the cameras were being jammed, or they had been destroyed. Regardless, it meant he had only one option. Izuku closed his eyes and focused on Kaminari-kun, the brief kaleidoscope of colours giving way to a grey, crumbling ruin. The students were on the move, running through a maze of twisted and broken metal.

“Team Four, what’s going on in there? I don’t have a visual!” Not true, strictly speaking, but it worked well enough.

“ The world’s falling apart, dude! ” Kaminari-kun shrieked, “ You gotta help us! ”

“I’m on it.” He assured them with a confidence he did not feel, and switched his view to that of Nedzu-sensei, who sat in the cabin of what appeared to be a large wrecking ball, the labyrinthine factory stretched out before him. With several carefully placed swings, the principal created a domino effect of buildings and pipes, blocking off exits and corralling the students into a rat race. Izuku set his lips into a thin line, mind working a mile a minute to work out the most effective path to the exit - because he doubted they’d be able to reach Nedzu-sensei. After what felt like an age, but can’t have been longer than a few seconds, he nodded to himself.

“Ashido-san!” He called through the communicator, “Burn a hole through the building next to you! Keep going straight until you reach the central plaza, and then follow the left-hand side! If you run into any obstacles, melt them!”

“ Got it Midori! ” Came the response, but Izuku had already turned his attention elsewhere, pulling out of Beholding and focusing on the screens before him. The other students were performing perfectly, and would need very little guidance from him, so he focused on his second-biggest concern; Team Ten. Todoroki-kun and Kirishima-kun against All Might.

Izuku understood the logic of the pairing; Todoroki-kun was handicapping himself by only using his ice, and he needed to learn to work with others. Kirishima-kun needed to learn that he couldn’t always rely on his Quirk, and both of them needed to learn that they couldn’t win every fight. Still, using All Might to illustrate these points felt a little… overkill.

His initial thoughts had been simple enough. Neither of them were going to be able to face All Might head on, so his first suggestion was to use the model sewer system that ran through the fake city of Ground Beta. That had worked until the teacher caught on and flushed them out. Todoroki-kun had managed to slow him down long enough for them to escape, but now they were hiding in an alleyway, catching their breath as they attempted to figure out their next move.

“Team Ten, what’s your status?”

“ Hey Midobro, ” Kirishima-kun responded, “ it’s, uh, not looking great at the moment. We’re not hurt, but All Might’s… really scary like this, y’know? ” The boy chuckled weakly, “ Some advice’d be appreciated right now. ”

Izuku nodded to himself, mind whirring into overdrive. Despite appearances, he could tell All Might was holding a lot back. The man was a smart fighter, even if he didn’t look it, but he was definitely attempting to emulate something of the dumb brute image in this fight. He was sure the man could have caught them already if he truly wanted, but he seemed happy to pace menacingly, keeping up the pressure while allowing them a breather. Quickly, Izuku ran through scenarios in his head. He didn’t have long to spend on any one team, and had to make the most of the time he did have. Finally, he cobbled a half-formed plan together. He just hoped the hero would forgive him afterwards.

“You two need to get some breathing room. Todoroki-kun, can you use your fire to blind him?”

“ I’m not using that bastard’s fire .” Came the cold response.

Izuku growled slightly to himself. They didn’t have the time for any of this! He ignored the Eye’s desperate need to know more about why and snapped, “It’s either that, or you fail! You can’t become a hero using only one half of your Quirk! I don’t know what your issue with it is, and right now, I don’t care! If there were civilians you could only save with your fire, and you refused to? Those civilians would be in danger because of you . Use your fire to blind All Might! When he’s blind, Kirishima-kun, you attack his left side. His left, your right. Make sure to land your hits on him. When he’s reeling from that, it’ll give you a chance to escape.” 

Without waiting for an answer, he clicked away from the channel, sighing deeply and running a hand over his face. A wave of guilt washed over him. He’d just spoken so rudely to a hero student, all because he was stressed! That wasn’t heroic at all! Not that someone like him could ever be a hero, but-

“That was a good thing you did there.” Recovery Girl spoke up from beside him, her eyes not leaving the screens, “That boy needed a good kick up the rear, stubborn as he is. But don’t lose sight of things now, the exams have just started.”

Slowly, Izuku nodded to himself. Whatever horrible feelings he was going to have, they could wait until after the exam. For now, he still had a lot left to do. Taking one more deep breath, he turned back to the screens.

The rest of the exam blurred together. Izuku flipped through cameras, called out advice and warnings for the students, and occasionally used Beholding to get closer to the action. He was sure to limit his involvement, however; most of the students were doing well without his advice, and all he needed was to tip them off on their teacher’s positioning. He played his supporting role perfectly, never taking the lead, but covering for the students’ blind spots. It suited him; he was never great in the spotlight, but here, working behind the scenes? He had to admit that he enjoyed it.

The chorusing chime of the victory announcements filled him with a sense of pride. Every team had passed the exam, and he leaned back in his chair, tired but happy. Many of the victories had little to do with him, but he took pride in them all the same. He’d played a part, however small, and that was enough. Filled with a sense of satisfaction, he walked out of the command room, and was almost immediately confronted by a deafening cheer as Class 1-A rushed forwards to capture him in a group hug, each one thanking him so profusely, the gratitude all melted into a pleasant haze. 

Finally, Izuku managed to extricate himself, and happily made his way to the cafeteria, all-but floating on air. The food was already laid out for them, a veritable banquet prepared by Lunch Rush to ensure all the students taking exams today had enough energy after mentally and physically demanding practicals. He sat down at his usual table, tray weighed down by a small mountain of food, with a large bowl of katsudon as its centrepiece.

He was celebrating, sue him.

“Greenie!”

Mei’s call from across the hall was his only warning before his friend crashed into the seat opposite him, beaming from ear to ear and holding a miraculously intact bowl of rice.

He smiled at her, “Hey Mei, how was your exam?”

“It was easy!” She waved the question off, “More importantly, Legs and Creation were telling me all about your exam!” She gestured to the students in question, who were gathering up their own meals at the counter, “I told you you could do it!”

He blushed brightly, rubbing the back of his neck, “I really didn’t do that much…”

“Nonsense, Midoriya-kun!” Iida-kun shouted from behind him as he sat down at the table, “Your assistance was invaluable!”

Sitting next to Mei, Yaoyorozu-san nodded, “I must admit, I thought myself and Uraraka-san were in trouble, before your advice allowed me to work out a plan.”

“B-but you still had to work out and execute the plan!” He protested, “I just… gave you a push in the right direction.”

“Sometimes,” Yaoyorozu-san smiled, “that is all we need.”

He smiled, face still red, and opened his mouth to speak, before he caught sight of the room’s large clock out of the corner of his eye, and he suddenly remembered; he had to meet with Nedzu-sensei after the exam! He was already late!

“S-sorry guys,” he shot out of his seat, “but I have to go!” Ignoring his friends’ cries of confusion he hurried out of the room as fast as he could without actually running, and raced towards the principal’s office. His normal route would take too long when he was late already, but there was a shorter route, one that would take him past the teacher’s lounge. Normally he avoided it as much as possible - years of hiding from teachers as much as possible had taken their toll - but this time he was just going to have to bite the bullet.

Izuku hurried up the stairs, racing through the hallway. He slowed down as he approached the teacher’s lounge, however, not wanting to get caught running. It was when he passed the doorway, cracked open just slightly, that he heard two familiar voices talking.

“You look more tired than usual, Yagi.” Maijima-sensei’s voice was clear, “The exam really take that much out of you?”

All Might let out a rattling chuckle before responding, “No, no. The boys gave me quite the run around, but it wasn’t that. No, I haven’t been sleeping well lately.”

Izuku slowed to a stop, leaning against the wall outside the lounge. He didn’t know why; he was already late, and besides, eavesdropping on his teachers was all kinds of wrong! And yet the urge to know burned strongly inside of him, and he wasn’t strong enough to resist it.

Maijima-sensei grunted, “You either, hm?”

“Nightmares.” All Might explained, “Some old familiar ones, and some… new.” 

“Same for me. Ever since…” the teacher hesitated, “...ever since I talked to Midoriya, about the Article Five stuff.”

Izuku froze in place. Even if he wanted to move, he couldn’t. He needed to hear this.

“...It’s the same for me. Reliving those same events, except…”

“Except he’s there too. Watching.” Maijima-sensei finished.

There was silence for a moment, before Maijima-sensei picked up again with, “...It’s hard to look at him sometimes. He’s a good kid, one of my best really, and I know it’s not his fault, but…”

“...but it’s hard to tell yourself that when you’re reliving your fear every night and he’s there watching.” All Might sighed.

Izuku trembled, stepping away from the wall. Maijima-sensei, All Might… they’d been having nightmares, night after night, ever since they gave him their statements… and he was in them. Come to think of it, he’d been sleeping better than ever recently… was that why? Had he been feeding off of the fear of his teachers in their sleep?

Tears welled up in his eyes. Forget everything Mei or Nedzu-sensei or anyone else had said. This was the effect he had on others. He was nothing more than a parasite, a monster, selfishly hurting others to feed himself. This was all he was good for; hurting others.

But there was one more question he needed to answer.

Desperately fighting against the tears, Izuku rushed up to the principal’s office, thoughts racing faster than he could understand. The thick wooden door loomed before him, but he didn’t bother with the pretence of knocking. Instead, he burst through the moment his hand graced the wood.

Inside, Nedzu-sensei sat behind his desk, startled at Izuku’s sudden entrance. “Ah, Midoriya-kun, I was wondering where you were-”

“Did you know?” Izuku cut him off, voice trembling, straining to keep his grip on Compulsion.

The principal watched him for a moment, face carefully blank, “Perhaps you should take a seat-”

“Maijima-sensei and All Might,” he continued, shakingly pacing towards the mammal, “t-they both had nightmares after giving their statements, a-and I was there ,” he sniffled, barely keeping his composure, “watching them! They’ve been having them ever since! Tsukauchi-san too, I’d guess!” Tears stung his eyes but he blinked them away, “They’re terrified of me!” His voice cracked, reaching a hysterical pitch, “ Did you know ?!”

His control of Compulsion slipped, and he felt the power in his words as soon as they passed his lips. He watched as Nedzu-sensei winced slightly and tried, in vain, to fight against the words forcing their way out of his mouth, “I had… suspicions. Previous statements I have read have indicated similar experiences. But I was not certain.”

Izuku sighed shakily, bone-weary, as the energy left his body, leaving him slumped against the door frame, “You knew…” he whispered, “You knew , and you let me take their statements, let me feed on them, let me terrorise the first people to ever actually believe in me!” The tears slipped out and he began to cry, “I’ve hurt them, they’re scared of me,” his eyes shot wide open, “and what if I used it on Mei ?! She’d hate me! I…” he slumped further down the frame, the weight of what he’d done settling on his shoulders, and whispered, “...I’m a monster .”

Nedzu-sensei composed himself, “Now, Midoriya-kun, I-” but Izuku wasn’t listening. He shot up and did the only thing he could think to do; remove himself from the situation.

Izuku bolted out of the room, out of the school, and far, far away from UA. Away from the people he cared about the most. Without him, they could live free from fear, their secrets safe and intact.

Without him, they could be happy.

“Hey, kid.”

Izuku groaned as he stirred from his sleep. The thin blanket didn’t make for the most comfortable bed, but it was better than sleeping on the hard concrete. He rolled over, brushing the dirt from his scruffy uniform. It had been a couple of days since his flight from UA, and he’d not changed his clothes since then.

He swallowed down the pang of guilt that shot through him at the thought of the school, and focused on the situation at hand. 

“W-what is it?” He murmured, sitting up. He glanced up at the person standing over him, only to freeze in place.

“Strange place to see a UA student.” Stain, the Hero Killer , raised an eyebrow.

Chapter Text

Early on Sunday morning, the staff of UA were gathered in a meeting room for an emergency meeting, ahead of 1-B’s practical exam later that day. They chatted amongst themselves quietly, confused as to why the principal had called them together. It couldn’t be about the exam - all the details for that had been decided weeks ago. Perhaps it was a threat, a villain attack? But, no, that couldn’t be it either; there would have been far more urgency if that were the case. 

The suspense didn’t last for long, however, as Nedzu soon walked in, uncharacteristically solemn, and hopped up onto his chair. The room immediately settled into silence as the mammal began to speak.

“Thank you all for coming. Class 1-B’s practical exam is today, so I shall be brief. To put it simply, yesterday afternoon, Midoriya Izuku and I had an… altercation, which culminated in him leaving the campus. Since then, neither his mother nor anyone else has seen him.” The atmosphere of the room grew cold. A missing student was bad enough, but someone like Midoriya-kun? It was a dangerous situation. “I am working with Detective Tsukauchi and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, but I ask that each of you keep an eye out for Midoriya-kun on your patrols.”

Nedzu was met with an immediate wave of nods, followed by Maijima raising his hand, “I guess you’ve thought about this already, but should we tell Hatsume? She’ll find out sooner or later anyway.” The man shrugged.

The principal had, indeed, considered this question, “Not yet, Maijima. If nothing else, I’d like to keep this under wraps as much as possible, for the sake of Midoriya-kun’s privacy, if nothing else.”

Maijima slumped in his seat, clearly discontent, but nodded his assent nonetheless. Nedzu clasped his paws and turned to the rest of the staff, “That is all for now. Midoriya-kun’s part in 1-B’s exam will, of course, no longer be taking place. I will be with you all at the meeting point shortly.”

The dismissal was clear, and the staff of UA slowly began to trickle out of the room, feeling the weight of their student’s absence.

Izuku stared up at the villain looming over him, frozen in place. The Hero Killer stared down at him, clearly not regarding him as a threat.

“Strange place to see a UA student.” The villain muttered, looking over him with a casual glance. “Don’t you have school?”

Somehow, Izuku managed to find his voice, “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

Clearly, that was the wrong thing to say, as the man rolled his eyes and gestured lazily towards his school blazer, “That’s a UA uniform, kid. Plus, I can see that tie in your pocket.”

He winced. That wasn’t his smartest move. Curling into a ball, Izuku looked up at the man, “A-are you here to kill me?”

He sniffed, “Now why would I do that?”

“Y-you’re literally called the H-Hero Killer.” Despite the situation, Izuku managed to shoot him a flat look. 

Stain tilted his head to the side, as if he was just now realising who he was, “Huh. Guess you’re right.” 

The underpass fell silent for a moment, before Izuku managed to pluck his courage up and speak again, “Y-you attacked my friend. You almost killed him.”

The villain seemed taken aback, “Your friend…?” He frowned, before blinking, “Oh, the Ingenium kid.” His brow furrowed, before realisation began to dawn, “Which makes you…” he chuckled slightly, “I thought I recognised your voice.”

Izuku’s eyes widened and he scurried back from the man, “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about! Y-you’re thinking of someone else!”

Stain smirked and shook his head, “No, I can see it now.” He chuckled, pacing towards him, “You’re a little young to be an Avatar, huh?”

Izuku paused, frowning, “W-wha-”

“I really should have seen it earlier,” Stain shrugged, “with those eyes of yours.”

“H-how…?”

The villain clicked his tongue, “Do you know how many Avatars are in Honshu alone? Japan’s a hotspot for the Powers, and people love to talk.”

Izuku bit his lip. He’d never considered that before. It made sense, in a way; since the Dawn of Quirks, Japan had been a rising star in the international community, with its heroics system being a model for many others around the world. If the Entities were drawn towards people, there were worse places they could turn their attention towards.

Stain watched him think this over for a bit, before sighing, “Listen kid, this is no place for you to stay. Come to my apartment, I got room.”

Refocusing on the situation at hand, he immediately shook his head, “Wha-? N-no! I’m not going anywhere with you!”

The Hero Killer rolled his eyes, “Kid, if I wanted to kill you, I could’ve done it at any point, including when you were asleep. Now, do you want to stay sleeping on the ground, or do you want to come with me?”

As much as he wanted to, Izuku couldn’t really argue with that. Besides, his back really hurt from the hard concrete, and even an old couch in a villain’s lair sounded better. Face fixed with the most threatening face he could muster, he stood up, picking up his blazer, “Fine. B-but don’t try anything!”

Stain snorted at him, turning away in an obvious dismissal, “Don’t worry about it kid.”

The Hero Killer walked away and, heart hammering in his chest, Izuku followed.

Mei was barely holding onto her sanity.

It was the end of school on Monday, and Greenie - Izuku - was nowhere to be seen. She hadn’t heard from him since exam day, and she was freaking out. Legs and Creation had tried to talk her down from her panic, saying that he was likely just sick, but she knew better. She remembered what happened the last time Izuku had vanished without a trace, and she refused to get caught off guard this time. Not when Izuku needed saving.

PL jumped as she stormed into the classroom, “Hatsume?!”

“Where is he?!” She managed to keep her voice to just above her usual volume, even though she desperately wanted to scream and shout. “Where is Izuku?!”

The teacher blinked at her, “I don’t-”

“It’s okay, Maijima. I believe it’s time we inform Hatsume-san of the situation.”

Both occupants of the room turned towards the voice, finding UA’s principal upside down, poking his head out of the ceiling. The mammal quickly scrambled out of his vent and up PL, resting on the man’s shoulder, “Now, Hatsume-san, I believe you had a question about Midoriya-kun?”

Mei blinked, the surreality of the situation temporarily overcoming her worry, “Well, he’s not here today, and I know something’s wrong!”

“Ah,” the principal nodded, “yes. I am afraid that Midoriya-kun is currently missing.”

Blood turned to ice in Mei’s veins, even as her heart started pounding harder, “We’ve gotta find him! He’s been taken again!”

Nedzu held up a paw, stopping her in her tracks, “The situation is somewhat different this time, Hatsume-san. You see,” he sighed, “Midoriya-kun uncovered some… sensitive information that he responded poorly to, and I did not handle the situation as well as I could have. After a brief altercation, he left the premises, and has not been seen since.”

She blinked at him, processing this information, before setting her face into a dark glare and taking a seat, arms crossed, “Tell me everything .”

Slowly, the principal nodded, “Very well. To begin with, I must explain a certain aspect of Midoriya-kun’s powers. I trust you are aware of his affiliations?”

Mei nodded, “Eyes and stuff, right?”

“Indeed. In order to keep himself going, and feed his patron in the process, he must feed on other people’s fear of being watched and exposed. I had worked out a system to ensure he is healthy while minimising the damage to himself and others. His analysis would sate him enough to grant access to his powers, but before events during which we expected his abilities to be stretched to their limits - the sports festival and practical exam, for example - I would ask someone to make their statement to him; that is to say, to relate their own experiences with the Entities to him. In this way, he would be able to, essentially, consume their second-hand fear without placing himself in harm’s way.”

Mei could see where this was going, “But something went wrong.” She prompted.

Nedzu sighed, “I had my reservations, but I believed it was the best solution. I still do ,” he quickly added, “but it had some… adverse side effects on the statement givers. They began to have nightmares, reliving the same events they discussed, but with the addition of Midoriya-kun watching them the entire time. Needless to say, this was quite unsettling for them.”

She nodded, “And when Izuku found out…”

“It sent him into something of a spiral. He asked me if I knew of it beforehand, I admitted that I had my suspicions, and then he left. The staff and police are working to find him as soon as possible, however, so don’t worry, Hatsume-san.”

She sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. Izuku was kind-hearted to a fault, and was clearly only just getting used to his new position . Any kind of serious upset would have shattered his already-fragile self-esteem, and learning he was actively hurting people? That was serious . It was no wonder he ran away. Her heart ached as she thought of how he must be feeling now, what might be running through his head.

After a long moment, she gave a short, determined nod, “Let me help.”

PL, who had been quiet for a while, straightened up, “Hatsume, no -”

“I won’t take no for an answer. Not this time. Izuku is hurting and he needs my help!”

Nedzu considered her for a long while, beady black eyes boring into her, “I am afraid we don’t know where he is just yet, so your capacity to help is somewhat limited. But there is something you can do that could be a great deal of help.”

“Anything.” She swore.

“Midoriya-kun’s mother is obviously aware of the situation, but we’ve yet to speak to her further. We feel she may respond better to a familiar face, such as yourself, and may have an idea as to where her son went.”

“I’ll go there and talk to her tonight! You can count on me!” 

The principal smiled warmly, “Midoriya-kun is lucky to have as good a friend as you.”

Mei felt the flush rise to her face. She hadn’t lied; she would do anything for Izuku, no matter how unpleasant or painful. But, then again, wasn’t that what friendship was? She’d do an awful lot for Creation and Legs too, but it was different for them. Izuku was her best friend, her first friend in years, and she was his. In just a few months they’d somehow become inextricable parts of one another’s lives; she truly, honestly couldn’t see her future without him in it.

She shook her head, focusing on the situation at hand. Now wasn’t the time to think about all that. She could save that for when Izuku was safe and sound, and by her side once again.

Izuku perched nervously on the dusty old couch, glancing around at the dim, bare apartment. The place clearly didn’t belong to Stain, but as it was also clearly not occupied by anyone else, he felt a little better about squatting there for the time being.

Speaking of the Hero Killer, the man had led him back to the apartment in silence, and was currently sitting by the window, looking out across the city with a dark expression. Izuku played with his fingers, unsure of what to say. Finally, he managed to stutter out his most pressing question, “W-why did you bring me here?”

The silence broken, the villain turned to him with a raised eyebrow, “You wanted to stay on the street?”

Flushing, he shook his head, “W-well, no, but… w-what’s in it for you?”

Stain didn’t answer immediately, instead continuing to stare at him, blood red eyes boring into his very soul; the Watcher becoming the watched. Izuku could appreciate the irony in that.

Finally, after an eternity, Stain blinked, “Back in Hosu, you were on the Iida boy’s phone.” Izuku nodded; there was no point in pretending otherwise. “Whatever you did then, it made me think about things.” The man glanced away, returning his gaze to the darkening evening sky, “I felt I owed you.”

He drummed his fingers against his leg, “T-think? What about?”

Another long silence, though this time the villain’s focus was fixed solely on the city outside, all but refusing to look at Izuku, “I wasn’t always like this, kid.” In the back of his mind, the Eye screeched for new knowledge, but Izuku pushed it down. “I wanted to be a hero once, even got into a hero school.”

“Shiketsu, right?” The words fell out of his mouth before he could stop them.

To his credit, Stain only looked mildly surprised, before he nodded, “That’s right. I was gonna be the next big thing, do my best to help save everyone, but things… didn’t turn out that way.

“It was my classmates, really. They were constantly playing around, never taking anything seriously. It made me question how they even got in in the first place. Then I looked into the system that let them stay there, and saw how deeply the rot went.

“I dropped out before the end of my second semester there, and spent years campaigning for heroic reform. People didn’t listen, though.” He shrugged, “Guess when you can’t see the problems it’s easier to pretend like they don’t exist.

“Finally, I decided that enough was enough. If heroes weren’t going to take their jobs seriously, I would. I trained with blades to the level of a master, trained my athletics, my agility. And then, I went out, and I became a vigilante. I think that’s when the Hunt first took an interest in me.

“‘Stendhal’ was just a name, at first. Something to go by so people didn’t look deeper into my identity. I’d put on my gear, go out at night and hunt down villains. I never took their lives, at least, not to start with. But somewhere along the way, the Hunt began to taste too good. I became crueller, more brutal, until I was regularly slaughtering all kinds of criminals. The target didn’t matter to me as much as the hunt did.

“One night, I was taking on some drugrunners, one gang or another, when I ran into another vigilante; Knuckleduster. He was on an investigation of his own, and was convinced I was involved. Which, I might have been.” The man sniffed, “Those years are a blur to me. Well, we fought, and I lost. Hard. Destroyed my nose so badly that it was easier to cut it off.” Izuku winced. “But in that moment, my lowest point, I felt it - the Hunt - surging through my veins. It asked me a question, asked me to devote myself to it, and I did, giving myself to the Hunt completely.

“From then, everything’s mostly a blur, up until that night in Hosu, where you Knew me, and helped me realise where I’d gone wrong.”

The man took a long, deep breath, leaving Izuku to utter a small, “Oh.”

“You never answered my question, by the way.”

He blinked, “H-huh?”

“What’s a UA student and Watcher doing out on the street?” Stain turned to him.

“O-oh…” he wrung his hands, looking down at his lap, “I-I… my powers hurt people. It’s better to be away from the people I love…” His mom. His friends. Mei… they’d miss him, maybe, but they’d be better off without him.

“Hm.” The villain grunted, giving nothing of his mind away, “What now, then?”

That was the question, wasn’t it? What was he going to do with the rest of his un-life? He couldn’t go back, not now. Perhaps he could simply starve himself, make sure to never use his powers on another person, and try to live a normal life somewhere else? Or maybe he could turn himself in, and make sure of it.

Was wasting away in a concrete tomb his destiny?

“I don’t know.” Izuku answered.

Chapter Text

That evening, Mei chose to delay her return home, wanting to visit Mamadoriya ASAP. The woman had been kind to her, not yelling at her over the spontaneous explosions that seemed to follow her around wherever she went. When they studied there, she always made sure to keep them well-fed, and refused to allow them to help clean the dishes. 

Well, maybe Mei could help now.

She approached the apartment and knocked on the door, hearing shuffling inside for a few moments before it slowly swung open, revealing Mamadoriya’s red face and puffy eyes, “Hiya, Mamadoriya!” she cheered, trying to keep things light.

The woman smiled at her softly, eyes glistening, “O-oh, Hatsume-san. P-please, come in…”

The door swung open, granting Mei entry, and she slipped on the guest slippers before following Mamdoriya into the main space of the apartment.

“C-can I get you anything?” She asked, ever the gracious host.

“Nope! C’mon, sit!”

Hesitantly, the woman did so, Mei sitting across from her, “S-so, Hatsume-san,” she sniffled, “to what do I owe your visit? N-not that you’re not always welcome here, it’s just that…” she trailed off, looking over at the door behind which a room now lay empty.

Mei deflated slightly, “Yeah… but that’s why I’m here! Nedzu wanted me to ask if there’s anywhere you think Greenie might’ve gone?”

“I-I’m glad you’re helping on this, Hatsume-san,” Mamadoriya chuckled wetly, “but I’m afraid I can’t think of anything.”

She bit her lip, “Yeah, neither can I…”

They commiserated in silence for a moment, unsure of what to say, before the older woman picked up the conversation with, “I-I’m happy Izuku has you, Hatsume-san.”

Mei turned her head towards the woman, “Huh?”

She smiled softly, sadly, “Izuku was… a lonely boy. Even before we received the diagnosis, his closest friend was Katsukun, who…” she hesitated, “well, he wasn’t the best for him. But afterwards, everything changed. People dislike what they don’t understand, and children can be cruel. Izuku, bless his heart, tried to hide it, but I could see how they treated him. It was always in his face, in his eyes… I did what I could, but the schools turned a blind eye, and we couldn’t afford to change.” She sniffed, clearly lost in her own thoughts, before shaking her head, “W-well, that’s all to say… thank you for looking after my boy.”

Mei blinked, before turning her gaze to her hands and playing with them, unsure of what to say, “I… I never really had any friends. I was always the weird one, ‘Explosion Girl’, the one people avoided. I’m not really good with people, so I didn’t mind, really. I was too focused on my babies anyway. But… he’s really my first friend. He’s there for me, he supports me, he doesn’t think I’m weird . He’s my best friend, and he’s hurting right now, and there’s nothing I can do!”

She felt liquid running down her cheeks. Oh. When had she started crying?

Mamadoriya leaned over the table, laying a hand over her own, “I know how you feel, Hatsume-san. It kills me to know that he’s out there now… But all we can do is our best to find him and bring him home safely, and support him when he is.”

Mei sniffed, wiped away her tears, and nodded, “Yeah…”

The woman smiled at her, “And until he is, I’d be happy to have you over whenever you’d like. I haven’t shown you Izuku’s baby pictures yet, after all.” She winked, and Mei laughed slightly.

“I’d like that.”

Tomura itched .

This was not unusual for him. He often itched . When the urge to destroy, to ruin, grew too great, Tomura itched . 

And oh, how he had itched lately.

Idly, he scratched his neck, not enough to relieve the itch , but enough to dampen it for the time being. He had other things to think about. For example, his League. It was coming together beautifully. With the help of Dabi he’d managed to recruit a number of NPCs willing to join their cause, more for the promises of death and destruction than for any lofty goal.

Tomura could relate. There were days when he’d like nothing more than to give in to the itch , to burn it all down, render it to ash and dust, and to leave the husk of a world behind him. Today was one such day.

But no, he couldn’t. No matter how easy it would be. And it would be easy; he had the ability literally at his fingertips. 

He growled. If nothing else, Sensei would disapprove. He had always looked down on Tomura’s appetite for destruction, always pushed him towards the rational, reasonable choices. Perhaps that was the wisdom of his many years. Perhaps that was what would allow them both to reach their goals.

But they didn’t satisfy the itch , not like when he gave in to his impulses. The thoughts of a life crumbling down around him, of taking someone with so much potential and completely tearing their world apart… that was what satisfied the itch.

The League of Villains was ready to go. All they needed was a target, something Dabi assured him he had handled. Perhaps it was unwise to put so much faith into a relative stranger, but Tomura sensed a kindred spirit in the man, a blazing fire that threatened to consume all. Perhaps he’d get to see it in action, one day, see just how beautiful Dabi’s destruction could be.

Well. They’d be able to destroy as much as they pleased soon enough.

It was a quiet evening in Stain’s apartment - or the apartment he was living in, anyway. Izuku’s… roommate? Landlord? Kidnapper, by technicality? Stain had been out on a walk that day, to “clear his head”. Izuku could relate, in all honesty. He constantly had so many thoughts whirling around his mind, even before his… Becoming. That’s what Stain had called it, when he asked about other Avatars. Though, on that topic, there was a question that had been bothering him.

“U-um…” he piped up, unsure of how to phrase it.

Stain, back from his walk and brooding in the corner once more, sighed, “Yes, kid?”

“Y-you’re, um, of the Hunt , right?”

“That obvious, huh?” Stain snorted, and Izuku flushed with embarrassment, “Why?”

“W-well, I was wondering… what kind of abilities it gave you? N-not that you have to answer or anything! I was just, um, curious…”

“Calm down, kid,” Stain chuckled slightly, “it’s pretty simple. I can transform parts of myself into animal parts, get better senses, pretty standard stuff. ‘Course, to do it I have to actually… hunt. How about you, kid? What’s the Eye give you?”

Of course he’d want to know that. Well, it was only fair, “W-well, there’s Knowing, which lets me know… pretty much anything,” he chuckled nervously, “Compulsion, which means I can force people to answer my questions truthfully, u-um, Beholding, which lets me see through eyes and cameras, a-and Understanding; b-basically, I can speak and understand any language. T-that one’s automatic, so…”

The villain let out a low whistle, “Pretty good. You must be a favourite.”

Izuku frowned, chewing on the knuckle of his thumb. Does the Eye pick favourites? Can it? And if so, why would it pick him? Aren’t there other Avatars of the Eye out there, ones more suited to what the Eye wants? After all, he’s doing his utmost to avoid causing people fear.

“So what’re you going to do with them?”

Stain was still talking, he realised, “H-huh?”

“I said, ‘what will you do with them?’” The man repeated, “You’ve got to feed your fear, unless you want it to feed on you. Your powers are your tools to help with that. I’m nothing like you, but I can guess that you’ve had a pretty stable source of fear until now, and that avenue’s been cut off from you. So, I guess what I’m saying is: What are you going to do now?”

Ah, they were back to this question. Izuku shook his head helplessly, “I-I don’t know.”

“Not good enough.” Stain responded, “What do you want? In general, in life, for your future; what do you want?”

“I-I…” Izuku thought about it. That was the question, wasn’t it? Years ago, he would have responded ‘to be a hero!’ without hesitation, with bright eyes full of the naïveté of youth. Months ago, he’d give a more subdued ‘to analyse and support heroes’, but now? 

“I… I want - I wanted - to help people, no matter what. And… to have a place I belong, where I can be myself.” He sniffed slightly, feeling tears prick at his eyes but not wanting to cry in front of the villain, “I guess that’s impossible now.”

“Is it?” Stain challenged, voice rasping like steel on steel, “Your powers don’t require you to kill innocents, do they?”

“W-well, no, but-”

“They don’t require you to hurt innocents, either. As far as I can see, you can easily use them to help people.”

“I can’t !” Izuku raised his voice for the first time in days, feeling the tears well up, “I can’t be a hero, I can’t help people, I can’t !”

“What, because you’re an Avatar?” The man scoffed, “There’s plenty of heroes that are Avatars, and they’re doing just fine. Besides, you don’t need to be a hero to help people, do you?”

“...no…” Izuku eventually conceded, and the villain huffed in triumph, before turning back to his window.

Their words hung in the air for a moment, before Izuku piped up again, “...I thought you were supposed to be a hero killer .”

For the first time in their short acquaintance, Stain laughed, a short, sharp bark that cut through the tension in the air.

“I guess someone made me reconsider.”

Friday night was always busy for Hanako, and tonight was no different. By the time all of her coworkers had left, going home to their families or simply making a beeline for the bars, Hanako was still going strong, slaving away at the office until the early hours of the morning. Not that her boss ever noticed, lazy pig that he was. It wasn’t like the work couldn’t wait until Monday, either, she just liked to have everything done so she could spend the weekend relaxing. 

The fact that it meant she delayed returning to her empty and lonely apartment was just an added bonus, of course.

But, unfortunately, she had to leave eventually. She couldn’t very well sleep at the office; even she had her limits. Stepping out into the crisp late night - or early morning - air, she held her coat tighter around her body.

Naturally, the streets were deserted at this time, with not even a car in sight. Even the drunks were likely in bed, apart from the real hardcore guys who’d be getting home even later than she was. It was so late the trains weren’t running, and she doubted any of the taxi services she knew would be there faster than she could walk the 20 or so minutes back to her apartment. So, she began her walk down streets illuminated by streetlights. She was, of course, the only one getting use out of the mercury vapour lamps, but she appreciated them nonetheless.

Hanako’s walk was peaceful and uninterrupted, the nightlife of Tokyo far, far away from her little corner of the world, and before long she reached her usual shortcut. It was a fairly short alleyway, one that cut around five minutes from her walk, and was well-lit enough to be safe to travel at night.

Except… that wasn’t the case now. Perhaps a light had gone out somewhere, but the alleyway was dark. No, more than that, it was pitch black , an inky abyss that Hanako could hardly see the other side of.

She was torn. Her gut was screaming at her, sensing something wrong about the situation. Her rational mind supplied the idea that anything could be in there, even if there’d never been anything before. When it was lit.

Her tired feet, aching from the too-tight shoes she had to wear all day won out, however, and she gingerly stepped over the threshold, and into darkness.

Walking through the alleyway, being careful not to trip over anything, Hanako was struck by just how real the darkness felt. It wasn’t just that she couldn’t see, but it also felt like all her senses were somehow dulled, as if the darkness was physical, choking out all sights, sounds and sensations. She could barely see her own feet, could barely hear her own footsteps.

A low, rumbling growl echoed through the alleyway, seemingly coming from everywhere at once. Hanako froze. She heard that as clear as crystal. Perhaps it was a trick of her mind, but it sounded too real . She felt it, deep in her chest. Slowly, perhaps unwisely, she turned, not sure what she was hoping to see.

She saw nothing. Pure nothing. A pitch black void with no beginning or end. It didn’t comfort her. She turned back and walked faster, wanting to simply leave this strange, dark alleyway and go home. She pointedly ignored the thump-thump of her heart in her chest. She was not scared, just as she did not catch sight of a gleaming white fang out of the corner of her eye. She was just tired, nothing more.

Finally, after what felt like an endless journey through a darkness so thick it clung to her body, Hanako broke out on the other side of an alley, rejoicing at the sight of the pale green streetlights.

And then someone grabbed her from behind, and her world was darkness once more.

Chapter Text

On Saturday evening, Stain returned from his usual walk - whatever that actually meant for him - filled with energy. Izuku looked up from his analysis of the day’s hero news, and sat up in his chair as the man paced in, far more energetic than he’d seen him in the time they’d spent living together. 

Concerned by the man’s unusual behaviour, Izuku piped up with a, “I-Is everything okay?”

The Hero Killer turned towards him, a sparkle of excitement in his blood red eyes, “I’ve got a plan, kid, something that’ll help both of us out.”

Izuku blinked at him. He didn’t even know what he wanted to do himself, yet, let alone have enough of an idea to form an entire plan around it. He had to admit, he was curious.

“R-really? What is it?”

“People’ve been disappearing from all over the city recently. Heroes and police aren’t paying attention to it,” he scowled, “but that could be a good opportunity for us. If we look into it ourselves, we could feed our fears while saving people. How’s it sound, kid?”

Izuku was stunned speechless by the man’s passion. He could certainly see why he’d gained a cult following online. But this plan of his… it seemed risky. They didn’t have nearly enough information, and while Knowing would help, without more specific and focused questions, he would likely only do more harm to himself, and wouldn’t help anyone. 

Of course, they could tell the heroes, but there was no guarantee they’d look into it based on one anonymous tip. Besides, while hero news was enough to stave off his hunger for now, deep down he knew it was only a temporary solution, and using his powers on kidnappers, villains … that didn’t seem so bad to him.

Eventually, he relented, “O-okay. When do we start?”

Later that night, just as the clock was ticking into the early hours of the morning, Izuku and his now-partner set off into the city. They were on the outskirts, in a quiet, slightly seedy neighbourhood, one where their activities would - or should - go unnoticed.

Izuku looked down at his outfit. In order to help them remain undetected, Stain had given him a set of loose, dark clothing, allowing him to blend in easier with the dark night. He also wore a cheap black medical mask to conceal his identity, just in case. 

As they left their apartment, Stain suddenly turned and walked into the alleyway next to it. With feline grace, he climbed the fire escape and leapt up to the roof, gesturing for Izuku to follow. After some time, he managed to join the man up there, though he was already slightly winded.

“If you’re with me, you’ve got to learn how to parkour. At the very least, how to jump across roofs, yeah?”

He nodded, unable to fault Stain’s logic, and thus began their impromptu training session. It started with a quick lesson in how to roll, take a fall, and other basics, and then the jumping began. Fortunately, Aizawa-sensei had already taught him some of this, so he was quick to pick it up. Finally, after about half an hour, the villain deemed him good enough for the time being, and not a moment too soon, as he quickly paused, head high in the air, sniffing deeply, before shooting off like a greyhound at the racetrack.

Izuku was unprepared for this, and scrambled after his partner, desperately trying to put all his lessons together as he raced across the rooftops of Tokyo. The man was far, far faster than him, however, due to his affinity with the Hunt, and it was all Izuku could do just to keep sight of him.

However, when a shriek pierced through the night air, he knew he had to push himself beyond his limits, to go Plus Ultra . He leapt from rooftop to rooftop, barely even registering where he was. How could he have been so stupid ? Even if Stain wasn’t a villain, he was still an Avatar of the Hunt, an extremely dangerous person that Izuku had no control over! He’d allowed himself to grow too comfortable, and now someone else was going to pay for the consequences of his own carelessness.

By the time he managed to catch up with Stain, jumping down the fire escape three steps at a time, it was already too late. The man stood over a bloody and mangled body, sharp canines poking out from his teeth and nails turned into claws. The victim was wearing the scraps of a thick black robe, which was unusual in this time of year, but he took little notice of that, instead focusing on his partner.

“Y-you killed them!”

Stain blinked and seemed to come to slightly, the animalistic bloodlust draining from his eyes, “Oh… shit, yeah.”

Izuku glanced once more at the body, before turning back to the villain, allowing Compulsion to seep into his voice, “ What happened here ?!”

The man tensed but allowed the words to slip past his lips, “He was attacking someone, about to kidnap them, I think, and I… lost control. I was going to take him alive so we could question him, but…”

Izuku took a deep breath, his panic subsiding slightly. The man still didn’t deserve to die, but if it was going to happen to anyone… he shook his head. He couldn’t start thinking like that.

He rubbed his eyes, the exhaustion of the past week settling on his shoulders, “R-right… calling the police is… probably a bad idea. D-did you leave any DNA evidence?” Stain shook his head, and Izuku nodded before closing his eyes. Part of his Beholding allowed him to sense “eyes” such as cameras nearby - though he hadn’t expected to use it in covering up a murder. “N-no cameras… w-we’re in a rough area, so maybe they won’t think too much of it?” He sighed deeply, knowing that this was only going to add to his guilt. He could freak out later, though. “O-okay, just… let’s go back to the apartment, and w-we can take it from there.”

Stain nodded, and they silently made their way home. Izuku’s mind was whirling with thoughts. Guilt, yes, anxiety, of course, but also… curiosity. There was a mystery afoot, and despite every fibre of his being telling him what a terrible idea it would be to continue down this path… he couldn’t drop it.

He just needed to know .

Naomasa took a long sip of his coffee and ran his hands through his hair, glancing around the cordoned-off section of the street. It was early on Sunday morning, and the sun was still low in the sky. Unfortunately, his work was never done; he’d been called out to a rough part of Tokyo, where a body had been discovered. With a bone-weary sigh, he tossed his cup into the bin and stepped onto the scene.

To be frank, it was a mess. Viscera was strewn across the street, something which would have suggested death by falling, had it not been for the condition of the body. The as-yet-unidentified victim was in a rough state, to say the least. They’d been torn to pieces, as if mauled by an animal, their face destroyed beyond all recognition. The thick black robes they wore were an odd choice, he thought, but it could have been due to a Quirk, so he wasn’t going to judge.

Naomasa frowned. If it were anywhere more remote, he’d guess it was an animal attack, but here in the heart of Tokyo? A Quirked assault was far more likely. But what kind of Quirk could do something like this ? There were mutant Quirks, he supposed, but this was… different, somehow. There was some intangible quality he couldn’t quite place, but it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. It reminded him of other cases, of Article cases.

Now, there was a thought. Could this have been the work of an Avatar? It did fit, especially with someone of the Flesh or… or the Hunt. If that was the case, all he’d need to do is raise it with Nedzu and he’d be able to find more.

There was something stopping him, though. For one, he had no actual, concrete evidence that the Entities were even involved here. Bringing it to Nedzu would only be wasting the Principal’s time, especially with how preoccupied he was with Midoriya-kun’s disappearance. Adding more to his plate like that… Naomasa shook his head. No, it wouldn’t be fair. This was likely some random Quirked assault with a simple solution, and if it turned out to be anything more, then he could bring it to the mammal’s attention.

Placing his hat atop his head, he approached the forensic team, ready to start the day.

Izuku awoke slowly, his mouth dry. He may not need to sleep, eat or drink any more, strictly speaking, but it was all habitual by this point. His vision was blurry as he rose from the sofa, and his mind was stuffed with cotton. He could barely even tell what day it was for a moment, before it dawned on him.

Monday. The 15th of July. His birthday.

As of today, he was 16.

The realisation shocked him like a flood of ice-cold water. On any other year, he would have woken up to presents from his mom, they would have watched All Might movies and eaten katsudon, but now? Izuku had run away. He was celebrating his birthday in an abandoned apartment with a serial killer. No presents, no katsudon, just him and a murderer, and the kidnapping case they were investigating.

He held his head in his hands as tears pricked at the corners of his eyes. What had he done? Running away like this had just made everything worse. If he’d stayed, what would he be doing now? Mei almost certainly would have come over, and maybe Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san as well. They could have had fun, watched movies together…

For just one day, he could have been a normal teenager.

But no, he just had to fly off the handle. He’d run away and now he was tied up with a murderer. Was there any going back after this? 

With a shaking breath, he ran his hands over his face. No, this was the best way forward. He had hurt people, people who trusted him. There was no changing that. But, perhaps, working with Stain like this, trying to help people… perhaps that could serve as his absolution. It was the only way he could see himself going on. The alternatives were… well, either a concrete tomb, or he becomes the next in a long line of the Hero Killer’s victims, for the crime of ever believing a monster like himself could be a hero.

He laughed mirthlessly, and muttered, “Happy birthday to me.”

“-And he jumped out, shouting ‘I Am Here’! Nearly scared me half to death!”

Mei laughed loudly through the mouthful of katsudon she had just shovelled into her mouth as Mamadoriya finished off her story of Izuku’s 7th birthday. It had been over a week since he ran away, but more importantly, it was his birthday. In lieu of the boy himself, Mei and Mamadoriya had decided to spend the day together, swapping stories, eating food, and hoping for his safe and quick return. 

She swallowed her mouthful, “That reminds me of this time when we were in the workshop! I was working on something and he was near me and I asked him ‘Hey, Greenie! Gimme the wrench!’ and he picked it up and ran over and said ‘I Am Here!’ when he handed it to me!” they laughed once more, “I think it was involuntary ‘cuz he turned super bright red! It was like a strawberry!”

Mamadoriya chuckled and smiled, “I’m glad you two have one another. You seem to really care about him.”

Mei felt a warm flush take over her cheeks, “I… I do. He’s my closest friend.”

Mamadoriya smiled knowingly but said nothing further on the matter, instead turning towards the photo album before her, flipping through it to find more pictures of Izuku.

Chapter Text

Izuku was 4.

He sat in the doctor’s office with his momma, squirming anxiously in his seat. He hadn’t found out what his Quirk was yet, but he just knew it was gonna be a good one! After all, Ķ̶̡͛̂̈́a̵̗̓č̸̮͍́̇c̵̙͆̆͝ḥ̵̣͆̍ă̶̦̥̬͌n̸̨̾ had gotten such a great Quirk, and they were gonna be heroes together! He had to get a good Quirk!

He had to.

The doctor cleared his throat. When had he gotten there?

“Well, we’ve run the tests, and it looks like you’re Quirkless, kid.”

He froze. Quirkless? But that meant…

“Useless.” 

His head slowly turned to his mom, “H-huh?”

She glared down at him, eyes blazing with fury, “You’re useless, Izuku. You can’t do anything right.”

“B-but…”

Mom and the doctor stood in unison, speaking with one, unified voice, “You’re a useless Deku! I hate you! Your father did too! We should have just abandoned you and left you for DEAD!”

Izuku backed away, scared. The two approached him slowly, chanting, “Deku, Deku, Deku, Deku…” and he scrambled away. What was going on? Why were they saying this?

He shuffled back further, to the point where he should have been squashed into the corner of the office. Instead, what he found behind him was an empty void. They were still approaching him, still chanting, and he soon found himself falling, falling through the blackness.

The chants followed him down, merging now into the voices of classmates he once knew. The chanting turned to shouting, and soon he was beset on all sides by the taunts and jeers he had heard for years. He tried to clap his hands over his ears but it did not block out the noise, the clamour of a decade of pain.

And then Izuku was 14, and he plunged into inky black water. The shouts cut out, leaving a deathly silence as he thrashed around. He couldn’t breathe. He fought against the water, attempted to swim upwards to catch a breath, but the liquid simply dragged him down into the depths, filling up his lungs with the bitter, brackish water. He was dying. He was going to drown and no one would mourn him and just as the light began to fade from his vision…

Izuku took a breath. The water was gone, replaced by a tower that swayed in the wind. There were no other buildings for miles around, just the imposing grey of the concrete miles below him.

Or, them. Because he was not alone up there.

All Might loomed over him in full hero form, scowling down at him, “ You think you can be a hero? ” He asked in a booming voice that merged with a rude, rough one that felt so achingly familiar, “ You have no Quirk, no muscle. You are a pathetic, creepy nerd who will go on to achieve nothing in your short life. ”

Izuku backed away until he was right up against the railing, and the hero slowly approached.

“ But if you really, truly want a Quirk that badly, I have some advice for you. ”

All Might gripped him by the lapels of his gakuran, holding him up in the air as though he weighed nothing. The man leaned in close and hissed, “ Take a swan dive off the roof, and pray you’ll get a Quirk in the next life. ”

And then he threw him off the building.

Izuku plummeted towards the cold, hard ground, the wind stealing the scream from his lungs. The concrete rushed up to meet him, and as his body met the ground, he could only find it a small mercy that he would be dead too quickly to feel the pain.

Izuku slammed into the concrete, and his eyes slammed open. He was 15, and lying atop a cold metal slab, his hands and feet bound to it. A haunting melody permeated the cavernous room, and out of the corner of his eye he could see indescribable things chanting and wailing and dancing. Next to him, a plastic man stood, bearing a knife dripping with blood. His rictus grin seemed to swallow him whole and Izuku realised his right eye was gone . 

His scream blended in with the lipless wails and moans of the choir.

Izuku shot up. The cold metal was gone, replaced by rough concrete once more. The night was dark, lit only by far off fires. He sat in a dingy alleyway, rats scurrying past him. He was not alone, however, as he could hear talking around the corner. He stood, and peeked his head out.

The Hero Killer stood over Iida-kun, his teeth and claws dripping with blood. “You lose, little hero.” The man sneered, opening his jaws up wide to devour the boy. Izuku could do something! He could step in, stop the villain!

Instead, he simply watched as the man swallowed his friend whole. Iida-kun’s head was the last to go, and he was looking straight at Izuku, eyes filled with fear and betrayal.

He stumbled backwards, only to find himself elsewhere again. He was back at UA, back in the support course’s workshop. It was only him and Mei. 

It should have been relieving. Instead, his best friend’s eyes were filled with tears.

“M-mei, what-”

“Don’t!” She screeched, getting as far away from him as she could, “Don’t talk to me! Get away from me you- you monster!”

Every word was like a knife through his heart. He clutched his chest, feeling the agony of Mei’s fear and hatred being directed at him. “M-Mei…” he muttered, collapsing to his knees. 

Tears rolled fat and heavy down his cheeks. You always were a crybaby, Deku!

He just wanted it all to stop .

That word rang like a death knell through his mind, and he opened his eyes to find himself in a small, featureless grey box. A concrete prison. He could hear snatches of conversation through the walls, if he strained to listen.

“-yeah, not much else we can do with things like him ‘cept leave ‘em to die.”

He bowed his head. Of course. This was what he deserved, after all. This was the fate of monsters. 

Someone behind him cleared his throat, and Stain stood over him. He was different this time, more focused, and looked down on him with a mixture of disgust and pity.

“Sorry, kid, that’s just the way it goes sometimes.”

He didn’t even see the man draw his sword before it slashed a clean line through his throat. But he did not die. No, he awoke to find himself in a boundless, endless plane of darkness, though there was a single speck of light far off in the distance. With nothing better to do, and no idea how to free himself, Izuku got to his feet, shaking, and slowly walked towards it.

As he approached it, the scene around him changed from the darkness to become a towering maze of trash, the waste of humanity’s existence surrounding him on all sides. He followed the path laid before him. As he rounded the bend, he found what he already knew he’d see.

A skinny, orange haired boy rummaged through the garbage, stopping when he found the source of the light; a monitor glowing an eerie, sickly green. 

Izuku didn’t need to see this. He tried to turn away but everywhere he looked, there the boy was, clutching the computer tight as it reminded him of humanity’s impermanence. The boy ran, tears in his eyes, and Izuku could not move as the boy slammed into him. 

“I-I…” he tried to apologise, but the boy just looked up at him with fearful eyes, and kept running. Izuku reached out after him, but the path was ahead, not behind, and he had no choice but to walk it. The scrapyard faded away, to be replaced by the empty streets of an unfamiliar city, blanketed in mist. 

He was not entirely alone in the city, however. Stumbling past him, almost in a haze, was a man he knew so well. All Might, younger and stronger, wandered through the barren streets, and Izuku felt himself inexorably compelled to follow. 

He didn’t know how long they walked, one behind the other, but at some point his foot caught on a discarded can. The clatter was quiet, but in the still city it seemed to reverberate outwards, the noise filling the space. It broke whatever spell All Might was under, and he snapped around to face him. Izuku held up a hand in an unsure wave.

It was the wrong thing to do. Eyes wide, the man turned and ran far, far away from him, leaving him alone once more. One particular alleyway to his side seemed to beckon to him and, resigned to his fate, he followed his path. 

As he squeezed through the tight space, the buildings slowly began to change from brick to rough bark, and when reached the other side, he found himself in a forest, at the dead of night. The forest was drenched in the thick scent of fear, the kind of fear prey holds for a predator, and Izuku found himself following the trail automatically.

It brought him to a younger Tsukauchi-san, the man clad in the uniform of a police officer, not the detective Izuku knew him to be. They locked eyes, and for a moment, all was still. Then Tsukauchi-san bolted, his fear trailing after him. Izuku made no attempt to follow, but still he appeared along the man’s path, always watching as he ran for his life. As he did, the forest slowly grew darker, darker, until he was once more in the void. 

He collapsed to his knees, exhausted. He just wanted this to end.

“Oh, but it won’t. It will never end.”

Izuku jolted and whipped around. Walking towards him, a smug smile affixed to his face, was himself. The other Izuku’s eyes glowed a bright green, and a halo of eyes orbited the crown of his head, but it was unmistakably, undeniably Izuku.

“W-what are you?” He shot to his feet, ready to fight.

The other Izuku chuckled, “I am you . I am the part of you you hide from, the part of you that enjoys serving the Eye.”

Izuku shook his head, “T-That’s a lie!” But even he wasn’t entirely sure.

“Is it?” He cocked his head mockingly, “Come on, you can’t tell me there’s no part of you that doesn’t secretly enjoy having all that information at your fingertips. All those secrets, all that knowledge, and you can just reach out and take it .”

“I-I…” He struggled for the right words to say, because he was right. He had always been so endlessly curious, so thirsty for knowledge. Wasn’t that the entire reason the Eye chose him in the first place? Besides, while he wasn’t nosy per se, when other people had secrets he always found a burning desire to know what they were, if only for the sake of knowledge itself.

He shook his head, “M-maybe you’re right, but that doesn’t mean what the Eye does is good! Just because I can do that, d-doesn’t mean I should!”

The other Izuku scoffed, rolling his eyes, “You really are so dull.” He took a step towards him, “You should let go sometime. Really see what you can do with these powers.” He stopped right in front of Izuku, “Don’t you want to know ?”

Izuku growled to himself. He’d had just about enough of whatever living hell he’d be trapped in, and he just wanted to leave. Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fists, and hurled a punch at his twin, yelling, “S-SHUT UP!”

The strike hit him dead on the face, and his image shattered like glass, the other Izuku laughing as he fractured into a thousand tiny pieces. It did not stop there, however, as the cracks spread to the void as well, breaking apart along unseen fault lines. Suddenly, the ground beneath Izuku’s feet broke under his weight, and he plummeted once more into the void.

Izuku shot up with a strangled cry, much to Stain’s alarm. He was red in the face and the beaten up old sofa beneath him was drenched in sweat.

It was a dream. That’s all it was, just a dream.

So why did he feel so disgustingly full ?

A few days later, Izuku had mostly recovered from his nightmare. It’s not like it expressed any thoughts he didn’t already have, after all, and that second half was, well.

It was par for the course now. Watching other people’s traumas didn’t scare him.

Just another tally for the ‘No Longer Human’ column.

Stain had served them both up a basic meal of cup ramen, using up the last of their pooled money. Neither of them technically needed to eat, of course, but it was a good habit to keep to anyway. That it helped Izuku cling on to the remnants of his humanity was simply a bonus.

“So,” the Hero Killer started, mouth full of noodles, “how’d you feel about looking into this kidnapping situation again? The investigation should have cooled off by now.”

Izuku froze. Really? He wanted to keep looking into this, even though they’d already killed a man over it?! His first reaction was to refuse, to shout at the man who had so obviously lost his mind, and yet he held himself back. Because he did want to keep investigating, even despite the way their previous attempt had gone. Sure, there may have been an element of the Eye there, hungering for him to solve the mystery, but mainly, he just wanted to help people.

Even after everything, he wanted to save the victims however he could. Besides, Stain did have a point; Izuku could only live on old trauma dreams for so long, and he’d rather not put his teachers through that if he could help it. No, despite how much he hated it, he needed the fear to live, and getting it from a villain was far more palatable than feeding from innocents.

A traitorous part of his mind reminded him of the third option there, the one that involved Stain and his sword… but no. He may be no hero, but he was certainly not a villain, either. Not yet anyway. No, that option was reserved for when he’d tried everything else.

Slowly, he nodded, “Yeah, I-I guess.”

The man nodded back, and sniffed, “Don’t suppose you can just Know it all?”

He shook his head. He’d already tried that, when he was bored and needed something to distract his brain. But when he tried to Know anything about the disappearances, it was like a shadow fell over his mind, hiding everything from him. That might have been an important clue… or it might just be the Eye messing with him again.

Stain grunted, “Guess we’ll have to do this the old fashioned way then.”

Izuku swallowed the last of his meal, before finding the courage to speak, “U-um, since we’re going out…” he took a deep breath, “c-can you please try and keep control? I-I don’t really want to be involved in another murder.” The man may have been a kidnapper, but that still didn’t mean he deserved to die , necessarily.

His hands trembled as he tried to maintain a determined glare at the villain, who, eventually, slowly nodded, “Sure, kid, I can try. It’s… hard for me to fight the Hunt, but I can at least try and control myself, yeah.”

Izuku let out a shaky breath and nodded, “Good.”

That night, they gathered on the rooftop, and set out to patrol the city. True to his word, Stain reined himself in, allowing Izuku to keep up with him as he scrambled inexpertly above the city. He felt the villain may have overcorrected a little, slowing himself down when Izuku really could keep up, but he appreciated the effort nonetheless. 

They were only half an hour into their “patrol” when Stain caught a scent. He sped up a little as he dashed towards their target, but Izuku didn’t fall too far behind, and when he dove down to the street, Izuku followed soon after.

They were in a narrow alleyway in the depths of the city, and Stain had pinned someone wearing familiar thick, black robes to the wall. His sharp teeth were bared, but his red eyes were focused, mind clear. A few feet away, a woman stood, trembling at the scene. Clearly the kidnapper’s intended victim, then. Izuku jumped down in front of her, startling her, and he offered her a weak smile.

“Uh, d-don’t tell anyone? Please?”

Wide-eyed, she nodded and wasted no more time in running away, allowing him to turn his attention fully onto the kidnapper. He took a deep breath, bringing Compulsion to his tongue, and nodded for Stain to turn them around. He pulled off the hood, revealing a tall, slender man with close cropped black hair, and deep, black eyes. He seemed annoyed to have been caught, but not particularly scared of the situation. Interesting.

Plucking up his courage, Izuku allowed the static to seep into his voice, “ What did you want with that woman? ”

The man strained himself, attempting to resist, but he couldn’t fight the words as they slipped past his lips, “I am to gather sacrifices for the coming Day of Ascension.”

Now they were getting somewhere, “ What is the Day of Ascension? ”

“The climax of the Ritual of the Extinguished Sun. A day when the light shall be snuffed out, and all shall be Forever Blind.”

Ritual? But that meant… “ You serve the Dark? ”

The man nodded eagerly, “We worship the Forever Blind! That which cloaks and conceals and lurks in the Dark!”

Izuku and Stain shared a look, both truly comprehending the stakes, “ What does the ritual entail? ”

The cultist returned to fighting against the words, “A week of endless night, of the darkest debauchery across the world. It shall culminate on the Day of Ascension, where the Still and Lightless Beast shall be sacrificed before the Black Star. Hundreds will die with it, and the world shall be plunged into eternal darkness.”

Well, that explained the hostages. From what Izuku understood, rituals had to be interrupted at the climax to stop them for good. He fought down memories of the Unknowing as he thought about it logically. If it was taking place across the world, they couldn’t do anything about anywhere else, but since at least part of it was taking place right there in Japan, then surely they could ruin it here, which in turn would cause it to fail elsewhere? 

Which meant there were two important pieces of information left. First, “ When is the Day of Ascension? When will the ritual climax? ”

The man struggled even harder, both against Stain and Izuku’s Compulsion, but they held firm, “It… will coincide with the eclipse, on the 30th.”

He nodded to himself. He Knew there was to be a partial solar eclipse on that day. But… that was strange, “ Why not wait for a full eclipse? ”

“The circus,” the man gave up on fighting, “their attempt forced us to hasten our plans, lest another group succeed first.”

That actually made sense, despite how his scar ached to remember that day. In that case, they should probably expect more rituals before the end of the year. Still, there was one last, very important question, “ Where will the ritual take place? ”

Strangely, the man laughed , “The Church.” He offered no further information.

Izuku frowned, “ Where is the Church? ”

He shrugged, “It is the Church.”

He bit his lip, frustrated, “ But -”

Stain growled, interrupting him, “Enough!” With one short, sharp blow, he knocked the man unconscious. Izuku felt a bond between the two of them snap as he slumped to the ground.

“W-what was that for?!” Izuku complained, keeping his voice down.

The man rolled his eyes, “He didn’t know where it was, clearly. At least we got the rest of the information first.”

He sighed; Stain had a point, “So, the Dark’s Avatars or… whatever, they’re kidnapping people to use in their ritual, which lasts a week and ends on the 30th, right?” Stain nodded, “S-so, then… can we stop it by the 23rd?”

He grunted, “We could , but they could just start it again immediately. If we wanted to make it fail , we’d have to interrupt it at the climax. That’s assuming we can find this ‘Church’, anyway.” Izuku bit his lip, unsure, and the man spoke again. “For what it’s worth, it sounded like the hostages are for the very end of the ritual, so they’ll probably be safe if we interrupt it then.”

He breathed a small sigh of relief. That was something, at least. They could wait to talk it over more thoroughly once they were back at home.

Home. Was he really thinking of that dusty old apartment as home already? He shook his head; not the time. He turned his attention back to the unconscious man, “W-what should we do with him?”

“Can’t let him go, kid. Don’t want them to see us coming.”

Izuku nodded, “B-but I don’t want to kill him, either.”

The villain levelled him with a flat stare, “He’s a kidnapper. He’s planning to kill hundreds of people and turn the world into the Dark’s playground. I think he’s a pretty justified kill.”

Annoyingly, the Hero Killer had a point. Still, they had to maintain some principles, “A h-hero should only kill if they have to. We don’t have to here…”

Stain raised an eyebrow, “Thought you weren’t a hero, kid.”

He flushed. Damn that man for using his own words against him, “I-I’m not! It’s just… if we’re trying to do something good, t-then we should try and live to the same standards as heroes, right? Neither of us need to kill to… feed, and he’s not a threat to us right now, so why don’t we just… leave him for the police?”

The Hero Killer looked at him, long and hard, and Izuku did his best not to fidget under his gaze. Fortunately, Mei had a stronger glare than he did, and he had already built up a resistance to hers.

Finally he relented with a laugh, “You are just full of surprises kid. Fine, you go and call the police, I’ll tie him up.” 

The man tossed him a burner phone, which he managed to catch with only minimal scrambling, and he quickly dialled 110, putting on a higher pitched voice just in case Tsukauchi-san was listening in somehow. He quickly reported the situation as an attempted kidnapping, though made sure to leave any mention of their vigilantism out of it, and before long he was assured that the police were on their way, which was their cue to leave.

The return to their apartment was swift and uneventful, and they settled down inside, taking a minute to let the adrenaline bleed from them before they carried on their prior conversation.

“So,” Izuku started, feeling drained and satisfied at the same time, “what’s next?”

Stain hummed, “Not much point in finding another guy to ask. The people out kidnapping hostages are probably the low level grunts. None of them are gonna know about the ‘Church’. I’ve got people I can ask about it, though. Someone’s bound to know something.”

Izuku nodded along. It was annoying to have to rely on Stain’s contacts, but, well, he was useless in the scenario. It just had to be the Dark.

Speaking of…

“Y’know, kid, since the Dark’s involved, it’s gonna be harder for you. Not a great matchup, y’know?”

He shook his head, “It doesn’t matter. Someone’s got to save those people… if I stopped now, just because it’ll be hard, I’d never forgive myself!” The villain raised a smug eyebrow at him, and he flushed at his sudden wave of confidence, “I-I just want to help people, however I can.”

“Sounds pretty heroic to me, kid.” The man teased.

Izuku bit his lip and shifted in his seat. He wasn’t a hero, no matter how much other people insisted he was. Someone like him couldn’t be a hero. Heroes weren’t Quirkless, and they weren’t monsters.

Still, he had these powers; he may as well use them as best he could. “You go out and talk to your contacts, a-and I’ll try and use my powers?” He offered. He didn’t like the idea of just… sitting there, waiting for Stain. “Tonight gave me a boost, I think.”

The man shrugged, “Sure, might find something new. Good thinking kid.”

He smiled unsurely at the man, and that ended the conversation. That night, he went to sleep with a nervous tension roiling in his gut, stuck somewhere between excited, nervous, and terrified.

Ever since Midoriya-kun’s disappearance, Nedzu had been toiling away in his office, searching for any lead that would bring his student back to him.

He knew he made a mistake, keeping that sort of information from him. He simply wanted to protect him! The boy was already so anxious, even before his Becoming, and the stress of the situation since then had only brought him greater anxiety. He saw how happy he was with Hatsume-san and the rest of their friends, and he simply wished to lighten his load!

But no, that was no excuse, he knew that. There were a thousand better ways he could have handled the situation, and now his student was missing.

Fortunately, Maijima, Yagi, and Tsukauchi’s dreams did serve one grim purpose: it let them know he was still alive. The dreams, after all, were a method for Midoriya-kun to feed in his sleep. If he’d been… disposed of, the dreams would be useless. The Eye couldn’t feed from them directly, that’s why it needed proxies. Besides, he was still appearing in those dreams.

So Nedzu was quite sure Midoriya-kun was alive and, if not well, then functioning at least. Silver linings, he supposed.

He was brought out of his musings by his desk phone ringing. Few people were able to reach him directly, so he wasted no time in answering.

“You have reached Nedzu! Am I a bear, a dog, a mouse? What matters is that I am answering the phone!”

The tired voice of Detective Tsukauchi came through the line, “ Hey, Nedzu. I know you’re busy with the Midoriya investigation, but I think this might be related. Either way, it’s Avatar activity. ”

Nedzu’s ears perked up. He didn’t want to get his hopes up, but the Avatar community was fairly close knit from what he knew, “Of course, of course! What seems to be the matter, Tsukauchi-san?”

“ Last night, we received a call from one of the rougher areas of Ikebukuro, talking about an attempted kidnapping. Sure enough, we get there and the guy’s already tied up and waiting for us. ”

He hummed, “Vigilante action, then.”

“ Looks like it. The thing is, though, he was wearing these thick robes, which is weird for the middle of summer. But it’s something we saw in another case, a murder, about a week ago. We thought it was an animal attack or something at the time, but now I’m not so sure.

Anyway, I interviewed him, and he eventually admitted he was kidnapping people. Kidnapping for a ritual. ”

Nedzu ran through his mental list, checking the facts of the case up against the rituals that hadn’t yet been attempted, “The Dark, I’d wager.”

Tsukauchi hummed, “ The other interesting thing is that he said he was attacked by a ‘Hunter’ and a ‘Watcher’. It was apparently too dark to get an accurate description of either of them, but he did describe the ‘Watcher’ as being pretty young. ”

Damn it, he was going to let himself get excited, “I can’t say I know of any other young Avatars, let alone those of the Eye,” he started diplomatically, “but if we assume that this is Midoriya-kun, then he must be working alongside a Hunter, yes?”

“ But who? ”

“Who indeed?” He chuckled despite the situation. Even though he insisted that he wasn’t a hero, his student had almost immediately started to save the world, “There are plenty of unaligned Hunters out there, though I can’t say I remember any in Ikebukuro specifically. Either way, I believe our best hope now is to run a parallel investigation, and kill two birds with one stone. I’ve a number of contacts who may be able to shed some light on the Dark, and I will start drafting up a list of heroes.”

“ And we’ll keep an eye out on the ground, up patrols in Ikebukuro. I’d better get on that. Talk to you later, Nedzu. ”

“Farewell, Detective!” He cheered, hanging up the phone. He felt lighter than he had in weeks, now that there was an indication of where Midoriya-kun was. Of course, finding him was only the first hurdle. He still had to make amends for his mistakes, and convince him to return to them.

Still, with the department heads each handling their respective summer camps, Nedzu had a lot of free time on his paws. A lot of time to find Midoriya-kun, a lot of time to reflect on his mistakes… and a lot of time to work out how to rectify them.

It may make him quite a busy little mammal, but Midoriya-kun was worth it.

That Saturday saw Izuku alone in the apartment. Stain had gone out to chase up leads about the Dark, leaving him to attempt to gather information his own way. And yet, every attempt he made at Knowing about the ritual, the Church, or even anything tangentially related to them was met with that same darkness descending, obscuring all the knowledge from him.

Needless to say, he was getting rather frustrated.

Opening his eyes with a groan, he decided to stop for the day. All he was going to do was burn himself out if he kept bashing his head against the wall. 

Can’t do anything right, Deku.

He shook his head, chasing those thoughts from his mind. This one really wasn’t his fault. It just happened that the Eye wasn’t particularly strong when the Dark was involved.

Sighing, he decided to do something else, something that would flex his powers while actually working. Perhaps it was a mistake, but… he really wanted to check up on the people he’d left behind. He knew, he knew that it would only make him miss them more, but maybe if he saw they were enjoying themselves without him, it might hurt less?

He decided to test the water with someone he hadn’t actually spoken to much beyond brief exchanges. He’d meant to talk to Todoroki-kun more, to ask him about the situation with his father, but Nedzu-sensei had assured him that the situation was being handled.

Izuku shut his eyes and focused on Todoroki-kun, letting the familiar rush of colours pass him by. In a moment, he found himself looking through the student’s eyes, and the first thing he noticed was that he wasn’t at home. At least, not at Endeavor’s home. No, he seemed to be talking quietly with his sister over lunch in an apartment he had never seen before. While he couldn’t tell what either of them were saying, Todoroki-san seemed to have had a weight lifted from her shoulders. He couldn’t be sure, but it seemed that, somehow, Nedzu-sensei had managed to save the Todoroki family from Endeavor.

He was glad.

Next, Izuku decided, would be his friends. With any luck, Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san would be enjoying their holidays before they headed to their training camp. He was pretty sure he remembered Maijima-sensei telling their class about their own summer boot camp, but that felt so long ago now.

He ignored the Eye’s helpful reminder of the exact dates that the support camp would be running.

Focusing first on Yaoyorozu-san, he found himself looking through her eyes as she worked on her summer homework, dealing with one of Ishiyama-sensei’s infamous essays. He smiled fondly at the memory of Mei, Iida-kun, Yaoyorozu-san and him gathered in a study room, the three of them trying their best to guide Mei through the essay that was due the next period. 

However, Yaoyorozu-san seemed distracted by something. She kept picking up her pen, then dropping it, and picking it up again. She hadn’t written anything in minutes. Finally, she shook her head, and pulled out her phone, pulling up a message to text Iida-kun.

Izuku was about to look away, to grant his friends some privacy, but the message she sent stopped him in his tracks.

Have you heard anything about Midoriya-san yet?

Despite knowing how invasive it was, he couldn’t help but watch their conversation.

I’m afraid not, Yaoyorozu-kun.

My parents don’t know, and neither does my brother.

I have also asked Aizawa-sensei and Yamada-sensei, to no avail.

I see. I hope he is safe, wherever he is.

He frowned. They were worried about him? But… they were supposed to be preparing for their summer camp!

He shook his head, exiting Yaoyorozu-san’s perspective. He was their friend, of course they were worried about him. They’d move past it though.

He… decided to skip Mei. Apart from everything else, it felt like it would hurt too much to see her. It was a sort of Catch-22; it would hurt if she was happy without him, and it would hurt to see her sad. 

So, instead, he turned to his mom’s perspective, and was instantly met by the face of his best friend and the most beautiful person he knew. Mei was sitting next to Mom on their sofa, chatting softly over cups of tea. They seemed… perhaps not happy, but at least content, enjoying one another’s company. Mei’s brash persona had always been a little calmer around Mom, but now she was positively subdued. 

It felt wrong . Where was the loud, bold girl he knew, who talked constantly about her “babies”, and who would talk at you all day if you asked her something she was interested in?

He pulled out of Beholding entirely, once more seeing the grimy apartment he now called home. He tried to swallow down the lump in his throat, but it stubbornly stuck there, and soon turned into a tangled knot in his chest that he couldn’t untie no matter how hard he tried.

He missed them. He missed them so, so much. Tears sprang to his eyes as he realised that they missed him too . He was important to them, he mattered to them… and now he could never go back. He’d burned that bridge, and it felt like a part of himself burned with it.

Izuku grabbed a beaten up old cushion and held it tight to his chest, as if that would alleviate the hurt. It simply made him long for his mom’s hugs, long for those days with his friends.

Long for Mei.

Curled up tight in an abandoned apartment in Ikebukuro, far from those he loved the most, Midoriya Izuku wept himself to sleep.

Chapter Text

Inko hummed a small song to herself as she washed the dishes. The apartment was quiet, had been ever since Izuku… left , and it was something to fill the endless silence. Normally she’d have the television or radio on to fulfil this, but there was something reverent about the quiet, as if the entire apartment was holding its breath, and she dared not break it.

Though the silence was soon broken by a sudden, loud knocking at the door, almost startling her into dropping the plate she was drying. She frowned: she wasn’t exactly expecting anyone today. Drying off her hands, she shuffled out the kitchen and up to the door, and cautiously opened it.

“MAMADORIYA!” Mei-chan yelled as she burst through the door, “I’m so sorry I’m late! All the trains were delayed and it was just,” her nose wrinkled in distaste, “this whole thing .”

Inko breathed a stuttering sigh of relief, “Oh, Mei-chan, I wasn’t expecting you today. You were only here yesterday, after all!”

Indeed, her son’s pink-haired ‘friend’ - though Inko knew they were absolutely more than that - had been coming over nearly every day of the holiday. Not that she minded at all, but surely the girl had better things to do?

Mei-chan waved this off as she slipped on her pink guest slippers, “Nah, I wanted to come!”

“But the train tickets must cost you so much…” She fretted.

“It’s sorted !” The girl insisted. 

“Well, let me get you something to eat, then!” She bustled into the kitchen, and the pink-haired girl trailed behind, “If you’re sure you want to spend all your time around an old woman like me.” She added with a small smirk.

Mei-chan huffed and rolled her eyes in exasperation as she leaned against the entrance of the kitchen, “I’m here because I wanna be, Mamadoriya. Besides…” She glanced down, chewing on her lip in a way that reminded her so much of Izuku, “it helps to stop me worrying, I think.” 

She smiled softly as she glided around the kitchen, “I’m glad Izuku has a friend like you. I’m sure he misses you as much as you do him.”

Red dusted the girl’s cheeks, an unusual moment of embarrassment from the usually brash inventor, “He’s just… amazing . He’s got this huge brain, even without the whole…” she gestured vaguely above her head, “ thing , and he’s so smart! And… he cares about me. He makes sure I eat and sleep at ‘normal human times’,” they snorted at the air quotes, “and just…” she trailed off with a sigh, before her passion returned in full force, “And I hate how he doesn’t see that! He’s the smartest person ever but he’s so dumb sometimes! He thinks he’s some monster or whatever, but he’s the best person I know!” She sighed and sniffled slightly, “I guess I should’ve told him all that before he left.”

Inko hurried over and wrapped her in a protective hug, “Oh, we all think things like that. But I think he knew how much you cared, even if he didn’t always know it. These past few months I’ve seen him happier than ever, and that’s thanks to you .”

Mei-chan smiled, and they stayed there for a moment before pulling away, “Thanks, Mamadoriya. I… One of the reasons I’ve been around here so much is…” she tapped her fingers together and glanced away, “I wanna know as soon as he comes back.” She quietly admitted.

She offered a teasing smile, but nodded, “I understand, Mei-chan. You know…” she hummed, glancing around the apartment. It was small but… she thought she could make it work, “if your parents agree, I’m sure I can find a space for you to stay around here for a while.”

The girl’s eyes widened, crosshair pupils spinning, before she beamed and nodded, “Yes! Thank you, Mamadoriya!”

Inko smiled back. The apartment would be less quiet now, and that was okay.

Heavens knew she needed the company.

Higari tapped away at his computer, filling in risk assessment forms for the upcoming support course boot camp. Unlike the hero courses, who have their camps off campus, the support courses shut themselves up in UA for a week, giving them a week of non-stop creation. Some of the greatest projects he’d seen had come from the boot camp. It was the classes’ chance to run wild and really let loose, playing around in the workshops like never before.

Normally, these forms were the easy bit: practical work needed these kinds of forms anyway, so it was simple to copy the data from one form to another. Unfortunately, this year he had the Hatsume variable to consider, and she was practically a walking health and safety hazard. 

Ah, Hatsume. Apparently she’d taken her task to bond with Midoriya’s mom to heart. It was good for both of them, he thought. Hatsume needed to interact with people outside the group of socially stunted nerds that had gathered around her, and Midoriya… 

Well. That was the problem. He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. What was Midoriya doing at that moment? He should have been having fun with his friends, pushing off summer homework and getting ready for this camp. Instead he was gone , just… just run away.

Logically, Higari knew it wasn’t his fault. Still, that didn’t stop the guilt from curling in his gut all the same. He and Yagi… yes, they were tired and yes, they were frustrated, but they couldn’t have phrased it any better? Made it sound a little less biting? They didn’t know Midoriya would overhear them, but still.

The dreams weren’t even affecting him all that much anymore. They came less and less frequently, and the fear diminished a little each time as his unconscious brain began to recognise what was happening. Still, it worried him a little. Sure, it was great for his own mental state to finally be getting some good sleep, but Nedzu had mentioned that the dreams were a way for Midoriya to keep going, hadn’t he? A sort of pick-me-up in his sleep?

He hoped Midoriya was okay. He hoped he was getting what he needed.

He hoped he’d come home safe in time for the camp.

Izuku sat on the sofa that doubled as his bed, chewing on his lip. He tried to be an optimist, but even he could admit that things weren’t looking great for him at the moment. Sure, his serial killer roommate was actually a lot calmer and nicer than expected, but that was about the only silver lining in this situation. 

Because, unfortunately, said serial killer’s fame made it impossible for them to get a decent meal beyond cup ramen, or do laundry, or bathe, or basically go outside in the daytime. And sure, Izuku didn’t actually need to eat, but he liked to keep up the habit, and would have preferred some variation in his diet.

Away from less mundane problems - and since when was living with a serial killer mundane ? - Izuku’s attempts to glean any information about the Dark, its ritual or its servants were turned away every time. It really was just his luck to run into one of the only Entities that could resist his powers, wasn’t it?

He sighed. They really were right about him. He was nothing more than a useless, Quirkless Deku. He was too heroic to be a monster, and too monstrous to be a hero. He was just… worthless.

Suddenly, the door to the apartment burst open, and Izuku jumped in surprise, half-expecting it to be the heroes there to take him away or agents of the Dark come to stop them for good. But no, it was only Stain, who strutted in with a gleam in his eye.

“Kid,” he rasped, an energy underlying his voice, “we got a big lead. One of my contacts tells me there’s a church not far from here that’s been real busy lately. Lots of people in robes hanging around. I think we got ‘em.”

Izuku breathed a sigh of relief. Well, at least things were going good for one of them. He nodded shakily, “What now?”

The man hummed, “From tomorrow, we got a week ‘til it all kicks off. That gives us a week to prep. We can stake ‘em out at night, and I can teach you what you’ll need to know. Timing’ll be tight, but we know when the whole thing’s gonna climax, so we can plan around that. Think you’ll be able to get me the church’s building plans?”

He scratched his cheek, “W-well… it’s not technically directly part of the Dark itself, so maybe?”

Stain grunted, “We’ll start that tomorrow then. Worst comes to worst, we’ll have to wing it more on the day.” He hesitated for a moment, “But it’s not the disruption that’ll be the problem.”

Izuku raised an eyebrow, and the man sat down next to him, staring at his hands and thinking, “Kid, there’s something important I gotta ask, and I want you to answer it honestly, alright?” He nodded slowly.

The Hero Killer sighed, “The people we’re facing, they’re not normal villains. Some of them’ll be human, but a lot of them will be like us. And they’re not like you and me, they don’t care about doing good or whatever. This ritual is everything to them. It’ll be easy enough to stop, but I’m worried about what comes after.”

“Getting out…” Izuku surmised.

“Yeah.” He nodded, “If we had more resources, we could maybe avoid a direct attack, but that’s looking like our only option right now. So we gotta consider how we’ll get out, considering we’ll be surrounded by dozens of pissed off cultists.”

He straightened up, “I-I can protect myself! I maybe didn’t learn as much as a hero student, but more than an average person!”

Stain chuckled, “I’m sure you can, kid, but that’s not what I’m talking about. What I’m saying is…” he sighed, looking over his hands as if searching for a mark that wasn’t there, “if it comes down to it, if it’s you or them… could you kill someone?”

The blood froze in Izuku’s veins. He could see the logic in it, could understand why he was asking, wasn’t even angry that he was , but… how was he supposed to answer that? If he said yes, that would absolutely be a lie, but denying it felt wrong too.

Eventually, he let out a stuttering sigh, “I… I don’t know, honestly. I guess I never really thought about it before.”

Stain gave him a soft smile that looked out of place on his rugged features, “I get it. No one does, really. But, y’know… think about it a little. It’s fine if it’s a ‘no’.” He smirked slightly, “I’ll just have to protect you more.”

Izuku chuckled slightly, a warmth rising in his chest. Being around Stain wasn’t really as bad as he’d first thought. He wouldn’t call them friends or anything, but… it was nice.

God , Shouta was tired.

Between the last minute preparations needed for the first year heroics training camp, the search for Midoriya, and his normal, non-UA, non-supernatural job, he’d barely gotten a wink of sleep.

Of course, he rarely got any sleep anyway, but he was getting even less now.

So when, for the first time in weeks, he had laid his head down to get a few hours of decent shut-eye, he really didn’t expect to be disturbed.

But, of course, the Rat had other plans.

He walked through the halls of the school, coffee darker than the bags under his eyes held in a death grip. Tsukauchi was beside him, looking little better than Shouta himself. The Principal’s door, as usual, swung open before they could knock. As one, they entered and took their seats before the desk.

“I have the location of the church” Nedzu offered without preamble.

Instantly, the tension somehow evaporated entirely, and grew exponentially. Shouta himself had been looped into the whole ritual business shortly after Nedzu himself had found out. It was good to know they had a lead already, but something about the timing seemed off to him.

“That was quick.” Tsukauchi hummed, mirroring his own thoughts, “How’d you find it?”

“Oh,” Nedzu waved his paws, “I was owed a favour by someone who knew someone.” 

As if that wasn’t the vaguest answer he could possibly have given. Still, if the Rat didn’t want to tell them, they would never find out.

“I’ve also been given extensive details of the ritual. This church is part of an international cult worshipping the Dark known as the People’s Church of the Divine Host. They’ve several locations across the world, and I’ve already gotten in contact with heroes in the relevant countries to coordinate with them. Here in Japan, however, I will assemble a group of heroes to assault the church in Ikebukuro on the 30th at the climax of the ritual. It just so happens that I suspect Midoriya-kun will also be there.”

“You don’t think there could be any other ‘young Watchers’ out there?” Shouta challenged.

Nedzu hummed, “It’s Occam’s Razor. The Avatar community in Japan is small enough that word tends to spread eventually, and I believe that, if there were another Avatar of the Eye out there of a similar age to Midoriya-kun who is willing to exercise their powers in such a way, I would have heard about it already.”

“But then, who’s the hunter?” Tsukauchi pointed out, “Most Hunters who would work like this are heroes, who’d send Midoriya-kun back to us. Anyone who isn’t a hero tends to be too brutal for their own good. There’s no way he would have lasted this long around them.”

The principal nodded, “That brings me to my next point. The 30th is next Tuesday: over the coming week, I will be arranging the raid on the People’s Church. What I would like the two of you to do is to stake the church out.”

Shouta nodded; it was rational to gather as much information as possible. Although, it felt like there was something more that he was asking, something he wasn’t seeing.

And then it clicked.

“You want us to find Midoriya.”

Nedzu smiled and nodded, “I believe he and his companion will also be spending their nights watching the church. I wish to confirm that my information is correct, as well as to assess Midoriya-kun’s wellbeing. However, I must warn you; you must only observe . Midoriya-kun is likely to be skittish, and his self-esteem almost certainly has not improved. He is likely to avoid us as much as possible because he does not feel ‘worthy’. So, we must allow him to come to us. With that in mind, unless you see a clear and present threat to his life, you must only watch.”

Shouta straightened up, ready to argue, but Nedzu held up a paw, “I know , it goes against all my priorities as a hero. But he is not weak, nor is he defenceless, and this is a delicate operation. If we want him back, we must play the game, so to speak.”

He growled, swallowing his objection. He didn’t like it, but he knew the Rat was right. 

A grim smile spread across Nedzu’s face, “Aside from that, I must warn you to be creative with your positioning. If the Hunter’s instincts don’t alert them to your presence, the Eye absolutely will. You must ensure you go as undetected as you can.”

He sighed, running a hand over his face, but nodded. This was an insane mission, but he understood the stakes. Nedzu had the raid well in paw; he wasn’t worried there. But Midoriya potentially hung in the balance, and that mattered more to him than whatever ritual the cult was cooking up.

He couldn’t let another Oboro happen.

Images of Kurogiri flashed through his mind, and he brushed them away. Now wasn’t the time to think about all that. No, now he had a student to save.

He’d give up all the sleep for the rest of his life for that.

Chapter Text

The day after Stain’s breakthrough, he and Izuku busied themselves with preparing for the coming assault. It was only going to be the two of them - though frankly Izuku felt he would be more of a hindrance in the battle - so the Hunter wanted to ensure that they would be able to tackle anything that came their way.

Which unfortunately meant that he had a day of gruelling training ahead.

The man woke him up from his usual half-asleep trance far earlier than ever before, and told him to get dressed into his black clothes, the only ones he had other than his, honestly dirty, school uniform. Hiding out with a serial killer didn’t give him many opportunities to do laundry.

After getting changed, Izuku hurried up to the rooftop, where Stain waited for him. 

“Alright kid,” he nodded when he approached, “you’ve got the basics of parkour down. Time to refine it.”

Izuku gulped, but hurried to comply. 

What followed was an intensive training session, covering many aspects of parkour that Izuku had never even considered before. It was honestly fascinating, academically speaking. He just wished that he wasn’t the one who had to actually do it , as well. He had thought Aizawa-sensei’s and Stain’s earlier training was enough for him to get by, but it turned out that, when the man had said ‘basics’, he had really meant it .

By the end, the sun was high in the sky, and Izuku felt like he had died. Again. Unfortunately, that was not the case, and he followed Stain back into the apartment with feet like lead and a body that felt like one big bruise. The man prepared their lunches, and Izuku was too famished to complain about having cup ramen again . They ate in silence, and the Hero Killer even allowed Izuku an hour’s break before all-but dragging him back to the roof.

“Now, you need to learn some self-defence.”

Izuku bit his lip, “I-I learned some fighting at UA.”

“I get that,” Stain nodded, “but that won’t be useful against the people we’re fighting. You need to learn how to use a knife, kid.”

He straightened up. He really didn’t want to have to use a weapon if he didn’t have to. His apprehension must have passed over his face, as Stain lay a surprisingly gentle hand on his shoulder, “Listen, you probably won’t need to use it. I won’t ask you to fight them all with me. It’s just for self-defence, like I said. You just need to be able to protect yourself if I can’t.”

He hesitated, glancing up to meet the man’s eyes, but there was nothing but sincerity written across his face. Finally, he nodded; the logic made sense, even if he still wasn’t entirely on board with the whole thing.

Stain nodded, and even gave him a rare smile, before removing one of the dozens of knives he had strapped across his body and handing it to him, “That’s yours to keep, kid. I’ll teach you proper maintenance some other time. Now, though, we’re going through the basics.”

Izuku followed Stain’s instruction closely as he was given a crash course in bladed combat. They covered everything from how to stand, how to wield the knife, to basic combat drills. He recognised this was in no way going to make him a master, but by the end he at least felt he could defend himself against a member of the Church, should one slip past Stain’s guard.

Or, at least, he had the skills to. Whether he actually had the will or not was a completely separate issue.

By the time their impromptu boot camp was complete, night had fallen, and it was almost time for them to head to the Church and begin their vigil. Once the last dying rays of sun had vanished from the sky, the two of them headed back up to the roof and made their way towards the Church.

It was, oddly enough, a rather nondescript location. Izuku had been imagining some grand gothic cathedral, but this seemed to be much more mundane, the kind of building that wouldn’t look out of place in a small town. It was hidden away in an older part of the city, and had it not been for the thick and pervasive darkness that shrouded the building, he would have doubted they were in the right place.

Stain laid down on the rooftop where they stood, and Izuku followed suit. They were across from and above the entrance to the Church, and had a good enough view to see the black-robed cultists making their way in and out of the building.

For the first few minutes, they simply laid there in silence, but watching the cultists brought to mind a question that had been bothering him for a while.

“That cultist…” he murmured aloud, “I wonder why he didn’t know where this is.”

“Probably never been.” Stain grunted, not taking his eyes off the Church, “Likelihood is, they had the general thugs doing the kidnapping, and delivering them to a different location. All about InfoSec, I guess.”

Izuku nodded slowly, curiosity sated, and they fell back into silence. He didn’t know how long they lay there, watching the bustle of the Dark’s servants, but at some point, hours into their stakeout, Stain suddenly straightened up beside him, and whipped his head around wildly. Izuku himself felt a strange tingle in the back of his head, but when he tried to follow the man’s gaze, he saw nothing but a sleeping city.

“W-what’s the matter?” He whispered to his companion.

The Hero Killer was silent for a long time, suspicious eyes scanning across the horizon, before he shook his head and returned his focus to the Church, “I just thought… no, it’s nothing.”

Izuku frowned, but let the matter go. He was sure the man would tell him if anything was wrong.

The drive to the Church was silent, save for the rumbling of the road beneath them. Shouta took the opportunity to catch up on some sleep, knowing he had a long night ahead. Outside, the world was pitch black, no streetlights to be found. They couldn’t put on the car’s headlights either; it would attract too much attention.

“I don’t like this,” Tsukauchi mumbled, breaking Shouta’s light slumber, “it feels wrong to leave Midoriya-kun like this.”

“I agree, but there’s not much we can do about it.” He pointed out, “The problem child won’t come with us willingly, and with a rogue element at play, we need more information before we go rushing in. You know Nedzu wouldn’t have suggested this if it wasn’t the best course of action.”

“I know,” the detective sighed, “that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

Shouta grunted in agreement, and they lapsed into silence for the rest of the journey. Once they arrived, the Church not yet in sight but not far ahead, they parked the car in a secluded corner of the city, and got out. The crisp night air bit at his face as he glanced around, scanning the rooftops for a good vantage point. Once he’d spotted one, he made his way silently up the fire escape, Tsukauchi following after him.

And then their watch began. Tsukauchi’s main focus was on the Church, watching the comings and goings of the Dark. Meanwhile, Shouta had to keep an eye out for Midoriya and his mysterious Hunter.

The silence between them was comfortable as they lay there, binoculars aiding their mission. For a while, he wasn’t sure Midoriya would turn up at all, but movement on a rooftop a little ways away caught his attention. Even through the binoculars, it was hard to see for certain; they only had the light of the moon to go by, and it seemed dim tonight. Still, the more he looked the surer he was that one of the figures, the smaller one, was Midoriya. There was something about the bushy hair that was unique to the boy.

The other, though? This supposed Hunter? He couldn’t tell. They were clearly adept at hiding in the shadows, allowing Shouta only the vaguest idea of what they could possibly look like. At his best guess… he was fairly sure they were an adult man. 

He might have gotten a better look, had the Hunter not then suddenly straightened up. He pulled Tsukauchi and himself down, pressed against the roof and ensuring they couldn’t be spotted. 

He wasn’t sure how long they lay there. Long enough to start to cramp up, judging by the ache in his leg, but they were dealing with an unknown, potentially dangerous variable. He couldn’t risk anything.

Once he was sure they were safe, Shouta poked his head above the proverbial parapet, and was relieved to find that neither the Church nor the Hunter seemed to have spotted them.

He sighed quietly. This was going to be a long week.

On their next stakeout, that came after another day of arduous training, Stain took Izuku to a different vantage point, one that overlooked a loading bay at a warehouse near to the Church. It was clear this place was also owned by the Dark’s agents, thanks to the black-robed figures milling about. Presumably, this was where they stored anything for the coming ritual that wasn’t the captives.

Izuku had laid down beside the Hero Killer, content to watch the warehouse in silence. Neither of them were particularly talkative at the best of times, so the quiet was uncommon between the two of them.

Which was why it was quite the surprise when, hours in, the man suddenly spoke up.

“You got any friends at UA, kid?”

He startled, and glanced over at the man, who was still watching the cultists. He hesitated, not entirely sure how to answer that. Stain, although he’d turned a new leaf, was still known for being a rather vicious killer of heroes, and the incident in Hosu had made it quite clear he was fine with targeting students as well.

Stain seemed to detect his apprehension, as he huffed a small laugh, “Kid, I’m not exactly in the ‘Hero Killer’ business anymore, remember? I’m just asking.”

He nodded slowly. The man had been good for him, and aside from that one little slip-up towards the beginning of their acquaintance, he hadn’t given Izuku any reason to distrust him, “W-well, there’s my best friend, Mei. She’s in the support course with me, and she’s…” he chuckled slightly, “ unique . Brilliant, but unique. But I wouldn’t want her any other way.” He flushed.

The man smirked, “‘Best friend’, huh? I’m sure.”

Izuku’s blush burned brighter as he cleared his throat, “A-anyway, there’s also Yaoyorozu-san. She’s in 1-A, a-and her Quirk is amazing . Oh, and…” he turned away and bit his lip, “Iida-kun too, b-but I think you already know him.”

Stain drew in a sharp breath, “Yeah… listen kid, I’m sorry about that. I lost control of myself, but that’s not an excuse. For what it’s worth, I regret everything I did.”

He nodded, not entirely sure what to say, and an awkward silence fell over them. It was really the first time they had broached Hosu so directly, and he imagined this awkwardness was the reason why it had never come up before.

After several minutes of just sitting in the silence, trying to work out a way to move past it, he hesitantly asked, “A-and do you have any friends? Uh, n-not that you seem like the kind of person who wouldn’t have friends, just, I-I’ve never heard you mention anyone and-”

“Relax kid.” He chuckled, laying a hand on Izuku’s shoulder, “But no. Villains don’t exactly have friends, you know?”

“And before…?”

“Nah,” he shook his head, “I wasn’t exactly at Shiketsu long enough to make friends, and no one wanted to talk to the guy shouting about the flaws of hero society in the middle of Tokyo. Plus, with my Quirk… well, let’s just say no one likes the blood kid.”

“I understand…” he nodded, “I’m Quirkless, so-”

Suddenly, an insistent pulse throbbed in the back of his head, like the Eye was trying to tell him something, and he hissed through his teeth. By his side, Stain straightened up, eyes narrowing, and began to sniff the air. “W-what is it?”

A low growl rumbled from the man’s chest, but after a minute of slowly scanning the skyline, he just shook his head, “Nothing to worry about, kid.”

Izuku didn’t really believe him, especially not with what happened at their first stakeout, but he supposed Stain was the expert in this situation. So, uneasy, he laid back down, and continued to watch the warehouse.

“You know, I can’t believe any of us ever thought Midoriya-kun was malicious."

For their second stakeout, Shouta had picked a higher vantage point than before, wanting to get a better idea of the area while still keeping an eye on Midoriya and his Hunter. He’d spotted them easily enough, as they watched over an old warehouse, but the stifling darkness made it hard to establish any distinguishing details of the other man.

He grunted in agreement with Tsukauchi, “It’s hard to imagine now. At the time, though, I was terrified of him.”

“Yeah,” the other man nodded, “that whole situation with the analyses… I can’t imagine what that was like.”

Shouta hummed, thoughts slipping back over the past year. Yes, he had a bad first impression of the problem child, but having gotten to know him, he could see plain as day that the kid was harmless. Or, at least, meant them no harm. Honestly, he didn’t have a malicious bone in his body, and was full to the brim with a heroic drive. They just had to look at how he helped with the USJ to know that much.

Honestly, it reminded him of Oboro so much it hurt. Both he and Oboro had this magnetic quality to them that drew others in and made them listen , even if Midoriya didn’t realise that just yet. 

He wouldn’t let Midoriya be another Oboro.

He shook his head. No use getting lost in the past when he had a job to do. Speaking of, the moonlight managed to shine through the dark miasma just enough to give him a better sense of who the Hunter was. Definitely male, looked to be in his 30s. It wasn’t a lot, but it was more than they had yesterday.

Suddenly, the Hunter stiffened up, and Shouta managed to pull himself and Tsukauchi out of the line of sight just in time. The man was probably onto them by this point, but as long as he didn’t pursue them, they would be okay.

He hoped, anyway.

Another day brought another hellish training session, followed by a night of watching the Church. Tonight, Stain had chosen a tall building a little way away from the Church itself, intending to get a better view of what the area around it looked like, hopefully to start planning their entrance and exit. Izuku took a more active role in this, the distance from the Church allowing his Eye abilities to function as they worked out all the possible ways they could reach their goal.

It was as Izuku was scribbling down some notes about the building, Knowing anything he couldn’t see, that a thought suddenly occurred to him, “Hey, Stain?” The man grunted. “You said the Avatar community talks, s-so is there anyone in particular I should know? I-I mean, if I’m going to keep working with you like this.”

The man glanced over at him, an inscrutable expression on his face, before nodding slowly, “There’s plenty of Avatars around, but there’s a few big names and groups you should keep an eye on. Biggest one in Japan would have been the Desolation’s cult, the Lightless Flame, but last I heard their leadership suddenly left, and they’ve been lost ever since. Apart from that, now and then you might hear about the Lukases. They’re a family of Lonely Avatars,” they chuckled at the irony, “but most of their operations tend to be in Europe. If they’re here, they’re probably just stopping by the nearest port for something.” 

Izuku nodded, and Stain paused to let him write this new information down, before continuing, “There’s the Fairchilds as well. They’re Vast, and though they aren’t an actual flesh and blood family, they tend to pool resources.

“There’s a few other big organisations too, like the Eye institutes.” Izuku glanced up, “That’s the Magnus Institute in the UK, the Usher Foundation in the US, and Pu Songling in China.”

“Oh, I think I was meant to go to that last one on my internship, before… b-before the Circus.”

Stain nodded, and patted him on the back, “Most of what they do is gather statements, like you, so you aren’t missing out on much.”

Izuku glanced back down at his notebook, “Is there anyone else I should know about?”

“I don’t know.” The man shrugged, “There’s plenty of Avatars that aren’t associated with any groups. I know a few Eye Avatars that work as information brokers in the underworld, and there are countless Avatars that work as villains. A few as heroes too, from what I hear, but I can’t be sure about that.”

Izuku nodded, filing this new information away. It wasn’t like he wanted to interact with more Avatars, but he figured that his new life with Stain would inevitably bring him into contact with them, and it was always best to be prepared.

“So,” Stain’s rough voice brought him out of his thoughts, and he glanced up at the man, “you mentioned the Strangers earlier. How’re you dealing with that? Must have been hard on you.”

“I… yes, i-it’s been hard,” he admitted, “back at UA, Hound Dog was helping a little but…” he chuckled slightly, “honestly, I’ve been dealing with it by just… not trying to think about it.”

“I get that.” Stain nodded.

Izuku opened his mouth to speak, but before he could, the door in the back of his mind cracked open slightly, just enough to let him Know one thing for certain:

They were being watched .

Evidently, Stain felt something similar, as he immediately whipped around. Izuku tried to follow his gaze, but all he saw was the empty and quiet city.

“W-who is it?” He eventually whispered, “Is it the Dark?”

The man didn’t speak for a moment, which didn’t help his anxiety, but slowly shook his head and rose to his feet, “We’ve got enough intel now, kid. It’s time to go.”

Not wanting to argue with the - former - serial killer, Izuku simply nodded and followed the man as he led the way across the rooftops, and back to their apartment.

It was only later that it dawned on him that the man had never actually answered the question.

Shouta and Tsukauchi’s third stakeout was particularly quiet, as each man was wrapped up in his own thoughts. Shouta half-watched the dark city skyline for a sign of his student, and half went over his plans for the forest training camp in his mind. 

It wasn’t long before the Dark’s ritual was supposed to take place, which meant that the training camp was scarcely a week away. He had spent much of his time over the summer holiday working on detailed training plans for each of his students, each one designed to push their Quirks to their absolute limits.

He wondered if Midoriya could have helped him with that.

The location they’d chosen this year was the Wild Wild Pussycat’s Beast’s Forest, somewhere he’d been to several times in the past, and it served his purposes well. It was well-secluded, defensible, and had enough space for the students to go all out. With Ragdoll’s search and Mandalay’s Telepath, everyone could easily be kept in the loop should something happen, and Tiger and Pixie-Bob’s Quirks were great offensive and defensive tools.

If the villains were to find them - though he wasn’t sure how they could - they would not catch them unawares.

Not again.

Shouta blinked as he saw two figures on a tall rooftop, not far from them. They weren’t as close to the Church this time, so the moon’s light was less choked than it had been. It played across green curls, confirming that they had found Midoriya. He couldn’t see him well from his vantage point, but the kid looked healthy; at least, he seemed unharmed.

As for the Hunter-

He was looking right at them.

Shouta inhaled sharply and pulled himself and Tsukauchi down. The Hunter had seen them, that much was clear, and now they had to wait and make sure he wasn’t going to come after them. He slowly looked up at where they lay…

And found the roof empty, devoid of any signs of life. He breathed a small sigh of relief; if he took Midoriya with him, it was unlikely he’d be coming after them.

Willing his heart rate to settle, he tried to remember any details he had caught sight of in the few moments he had seen the Hunter. Practical wear, bandages… and a distinctive red scarf. His blood ran cold.

What was Midoriya doing with the Hero Killer ?

The day of the ritual came both faster, and slower than Izuku expected. It felt as though an age had passed since he first met Stain in that alleyway, and yet it felt like it had only been a few days.

The night before, he could hardly sleep, too busy burning through every possibility of the coming raid in his mind. The eclipse was to take place around midday, but they needed to be ready and waiting long before that. After a fruitless few hours of rest, he and Stain awoke, ate their breakfast, and made their final preparations.

The man had already sharpened the bulk of his knives and swords the previous night, and so assisted Izuku in sharpening his own to a razor’s edge. They worked in near-silence, neither one wanting to break the tranquillity of the apartment by acknowledging the situation they faced.

The fact of the matter was, they were only two people, and only one of them was really a viable combatant. They’d gathered a lot of information over the last week, but even that wasn’t necessarily enough to prepare them for what lay ahead. Not to mention, the number of angry cultists they’d be stranded amongst… neither of them wanted to admit it, but the odds weren’t exactly in their favour, even with Stain’s prodigious swordsmanship and Hunt-granted brutality.

Despite this, just before they left, the man laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, “Kid, I just wanted to say… I’m proud of you.”

Izuku looked up at him and flushed, bewildered and embarrassed in equal measure, “T-thank you, but where is this coming from…?”

Stain huffed a small laugh, “Just don’t think people say it enough. I guess being around you has made me soft, kid.”

He blushed deeper, his face turning bright red, but the man simply gave him a small pat on the back and led the way to the roof, and Izuku scrambled after him, not wanting to get left behind. 

The eclipse was nigh, after all.

Chapter Text

On the morning of the 30th of July, 2250, heroes and police officers alike came from far and wide to gather in one small station near Ikebukuro. Shouta watched as the room slowly filled up; Nedzu had pulled an awful lot of strings to put together this team. It consisted of a number of heroes who had already signed the Article 5 declaration, including none other than All Might himself. Maijima was also there - he doubted anything could keep him from this - and Hizashi and Ishiyama rounded out the UA staff members. Also present was Edgeshot, which would have made this a reunion from the last time they had to rescue Midoriya, except for Sir Nighteye’s absence. While Shouta wasn’t sure why the man was absent now, he suspected it had something to do with All Might’s presence. Since the two parted ways, they’d never once been seen in public together.

Still, even without him, the team they’d assembled would be more than enough to face the Dark’s church. That was without including Nedzu’s mind or, indeed, whatever assistance the Hero Killer may provide. 

And wasn’t that a shock to the system? Somehow, Midoriya had not only been picked up by Stain of all people, but they seemed to almost be working together willingly. Sure, there was a chance he was being held captive, but very few villains who took prisoners would take them out and about, not just once but several times in a row.

Shouta was drawn out of his thoughts by Nedzu clearing his throat and clapping his paws together, “Well, I think that’s everyone. Thank you all for coming so quickly! We’re on a time limit, so I’ll be brief. 

“As you are all aware, the Dark’s cult will be attempting their ritual today in the People’s Church of the Divine Host building in Ikebukuro. Given the timing, we suspect the climax will coincide with the partial eclipse this afternoon. So, our first objective is to disrupt this ritual before it can conclude.”

The mammal swallowed, face setting into something more determined, “Our second objective, which is no less important than the first, is to ensure the safe return of one Midoriya Izuku, a first year support student at UA.” A murmur ran around the room, but he continued without addressing any of the concerned questions, “On the 6th of this month, Midoriya-kun ran away from home. Finding himself in the company of an Avatar of the Hunt, he proceeded to investigate a series of disappearances, which has led him to the Dark. We believe he and this Hunter will also be present at the Church today. If you see either of them, please aim only to capture.”

Hizashi raised a hand and asked, “Well hey, how d’you know the lil’ listener’s gonna be there today?”

“Or if he’ll come back willingly.” Edgeshot added.

Shouta shuddered as the rodent smiled that terrifying, cryptic smile and said, “Oh, you could say I have a man on the inside.”

Whatever that meant, he wasn’t sure he wanted to find out.

Izuku stood by Stain as the sun dimmed overhead. It was the day of the ritual, and they’d come equipped to stop the Dark in its tracks. Izuku had the knife the man had given him, and they’d managed to scrounge up some decent body armour for him. Stain, meanwhile, was decked out in his usual Hero Killer attire, each of his blades sharpened to a razor’s edge.

Thanks to the Eye, Izuku Knew when the eclipse would culminate, and thus, when the ritual would reach its climax, and they stood nearby the Church, running through their last minute checks.

His heart thumped in his chest. Not only would they be charging into a building filled with an unknown number of enemies, but failure would not only mean death for them, but the end of the world as they knew it. 

They could not afford to fail. Not now.

“Kid.”

Stain’s grunt drew him from his thoughts, and he turned to face the man, who looked down at him with an unreadable expression.

“However today goes, just know you did your best. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner.”

Izuku felt his eyes water, but he wiped away the tears before they could fall, “T-thanks…”

He nodded, before turning to the Church’s entrance. All around them, the city grew darker as the moon drifted ever closer towards the sun. It was only a partial eclipse, so in normal situations, it would never get that dark, but with the Dark’s involvement… he’d be willing to bet that the surrounding area would be pitch black before long.

“Right,” Stain’s voice was quiet, like the rasp of a knife being drawn from its sheath, and he gestured at the front doors of the building, which were flanked by two cultists. “You stay behind me. Stick close to me, try not to get into any trouble, and if you get lost, stay put. Worst case scenario, you have that knife and you know how to use it. Got it?”

He nodded. They’d already run through the plan several times at this point, but it never hurt to be absolutely sure. Stain stared at him for another long moment, such that he began to feel uncomfortable under the man’s intense gaze. Was this what people felt like when he looked at them?

He could see why they avoided it now.

After a long minute, the man simply nodded back, before darting forwards, silently rushing for the entrance. Izuku, being quick, quiet, and light on his feet, followed close behind, and neither of the guards had any chance to react before the man swiftly knocked them unconscious. Were Stain to be doing this mission alone, Izuku had no doubt that his takedowns would be more… permanent, but he appreciated the man holding back for his sake. Together, they pushed open the old wood doors, and darkness engulfed them.

There was no light inside the Church. In fact, the darkness was so thick it was almost tangible, grasping and clawing at Izuku’s clothes. Both he and Stain had eyes that could see further in the dark than normal, but even that was restricted by the choking shadows that surrounded them. Still, they surged forwards into the darkness, both of them having already memorised the layout of the building. 

There was, fortunately enough, not much in the way of side rooms, with the first door on the left being the entrance to the main chamber, where the ritual would doubtless take place. And their luck continued, as the cult didn’t seem to have enough members to spare on guarding the place beyond the two at the entrance, so they were unaccosted as they ran forwards. 

When Stain took a sharp left, Izuku followed, and they soon crashed into the main chamber through thick wooden doors. The lighting situation was only a little better here, and they were just about able to make out the silhouettes of the cult members, gathered around a large group of whimpering people - the kidnap victims, presumably. All eyes were on a giant stone altar that was lit by a thin stream of light trickling down from a skylight above it.

More alarming, however, was the giant creature that had been tied to the altar. It was difficult to describe, as he could only see it in glimpses, a gleaming fang here, blazing red eyes there, but what he knew was that it was enormous , easily dominating the space. An orb hovered above it. It had a shining corona around its mass, but otherwise the object was the darkest thing in the room, seemingly sucking in all the light.

A robed figure stood above the altar, sword in hand and, glancing up at the skylight to see that the eclipse had reached its climax, Stain wasted no time in hurling his knife at them, the blade slicing across their hand and forcing them to harmlessly drop the sword.

The figure screeched as the moon began its descent, the moment of culmination passing harmlessly, “Do you have any idea what you have just done?! Seize the children of the light! Though our work has been undone, we may still get our revenge!”

The cultists whipped towards them, and with a frenzied yell, they charged. Izuku gripped his knife tight as they turned tail and fled, but the darkness behind them somehow became solid, forcing them to remain. Gritting his teeth, Stain stood between Izuku and the maddened crowd, and drew his sword.

“Guess it’s the hard way.” The man muttered.

Izuku nodded shakily, tensing. 

There were… quite a few cultists. 

He wasn’t entirely sure how they could fight their way out of this one.

Suddenly, just before the first cultist got in range of Stain’s blade, the wall of the Church exploded inwards, allowing the light of the sun to flood further in. The cultists hissed at the sudden influx of light, weak though it was, and all eyes in the room turned towards the new hole in the wall.

“ Stand down villains! ” A very familiar voice cried, and Izuku’s heart both soared and plummeted, “ Because We Are Here! ”

A horde of people came rushing through the hole, clashing against the robed cultists and easily taking them down. As Izuku’s eyes adjusted to the light, his jaw dropped to see a crowd of heroes and police officers flooding the room, capturing the wailing cultists and freeing the hostages from their bounds.

Stain, surprisingly, stood stock still, and Izuku followed his example. On the one hand, he was glad that they’d been rescued like this, and that the Dark’s cult would be dismantled, but on the other… he could see Nedzu-sensei, Aizawa-sensei, Maijima-sensei, Tsukauchi-san and All Might hurry towards them, and he really did not want to have this conversation right now.

Tsukauchi-san reached them first, and shared a quick nod and a smile with Izuku before firmly grasping Stain’s arms and handcuffing him, “Akaguro Chizome, you are under arrest for several counts of murder and grievous bodily harm. You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention when questioned something that you later rely on in court.”

The man said nothing, simply allowing himself to be arrested, and Izuku felt as though the world had tilted on its axis. All the fiery passion and steel had drained from Stain, instead replaced by a bone-deep weariness. He couldn’t think about it for long, however, as his teachers soon arrived, All Might leading them with Nedzu-sensei on his shoulder.

“ Midoriya-shounen, how are you feeling? Are you well? ”

He nodded slightly, thrown off by the sudden development, “I-I’m fine… w-what are you all doing here?”

“We’re here for you, Midoriya-kun.” Nedzu-sensei chirped, before scrambling down the number one hero to stand in front of Izuku, “And please, allow me to be the first to apologise. I truly only intended to keep you safe, and ensure your happiness, but now I realise that keeping such information from you only hurt you worse.” The mammal bowed deeply, bending ninety degrees at the waist.

Izuku choked, words failing him, but the teachers weren’t done surprising him just yet, as both Maijima-sensei and All Might followed the principal’s lead.

“Me too, kid.” His homeroom teacher nodded, “We really shoulda thought about how we were phrasing what we said.”

“ He’s right. I apologise too, Midoriya-shounen. It seems I am unable to stop hurting you. ”

“I- I-...” Izuku stammered, unable to process anything that was happening. Eventually, his addled brain managed to spit out, “W-what are, h-how are you even here?!”

“That would be me, kid.”

He choked on the air and turned around, finding Stain with his head hung, not meeting his eyes.

“W-what…?”

The man sighed, “Kid- Midoriya … I know you won’t believe me, but you have more heroic potential than anyone I’ve ever met. I meant what I said: you were the best partner I could’ve asked for. I mean, look at what we did today. None of this could’ve happened without you. You were a hero today, kid.”

Izuku bit his lip, tears welling in his eyes, “T-then why…?”

“‘Cuz this isn’t the life you’re meant to lead. This life is a path of blood, and you and I both know you wouldn’t be able to walk it. Your place is at UA, with your friends and teachers, learning to be a hero. The way I see it, you already are one.

“So,” the man glanced up, red eyes locking with green, “when I found out where this Church is, I sent a message to Nedzu, giving him all the info. They’re here to take you home, kid. Home to UA, to Yaoyorozu, Iida,” he smirked, “Mei. They’ll take you far away from this path of blood.”

He stood speechless, mouth hanging open, and he couldn’t utter anything more than a single syllable, “Stain…”

The man shook his head, “Not anymore, kid. ‘Stain’ is the name of a man who no longer exists. Just call me…” he smiled softly, a strange expression on his usually harsh face, “Just call me Chizome.”

Izuku didn’t trust his words, instead only nodding slightly, and he watched with teary eyes as Tsukauchi-san took Chizome out of the building. He… wasn’t entirely sure what to think. Yes, the man was a serial killer, but he’d taken care of him this past month, and Izuku had genuinely seen how he’d improved. He was the Hero Killer no more, but what did that leave?

He didn’t know.

A hand came down to rest on his shoulder, and he glanced up to find Aizawa-sensei looking down at him with uncharacteristic fondness.

“You did a good job, kid. Now it’s time to go home.”

He nodded slightly, and followed the heroes out of the Church.

Hours later, the sun had long since set, and Izuku found himself alone in the waiting room of a police station, watched over by the friendly police officer at the desk. He’d spent most of the day giving his account of his last month living with Chizome, and only now had the chance to sit by himself and just… reflect.

The thought briefly struck him that he could run away again, but he quickly dismissed it. He had no idea where he’d go, and honestly? He wasn’t sure he wanted to. He’d already begun to regret running away in the first place, and now that he was facing returning to his former life… he wondered why he even left. His teacher’s apologies and assurances had gone a long way to, if not assuage his guilt, then at least lessen it and, he had to admit, it helped that the Dark was taken down so effortlessly… even if he really didn’t feel like he had that big a part to play in the investigation.

So he’d be returning to UA, and to his mom… a lump formed in his throat. He’d abandoned her, and Mei and their friends. He’d flown off the handle and left them to worry about him. Would they be angry? Would they even want him back? He wanted to return home so badly, but what if it just ended up hurting those around him?

He curled in on himself. If his friends rejected him, if Mei turned away… then so be it. Those would be the consequences of his actions, and he’d bear them, no matter what happened. 

Still. A part of him hoped that things could return to the way they were. It was selfish and foolish to expect that but… he really, really wanted it. For the first time in his life, he had friends, real friends, and although he’d thrown it all away… he wanted it back. He’d give up anything to get that back.

He smiled slightly as memories flitted through his mind, the four of them figuring out how to be friends with people for what seemed like the first time for them all. Yaoyorozu-san and Iida-kun were both worried for him, and Mei seemed to have been living with his mom.

He sighed. Mei… what had he done to deserve a friend like her? A brilliant, bold friend with boundless energy who forced him out of his comfort zone and made him want to stay there.

Stay with her. 

Heat rose to his cheeks. Mei was his best friend, yes, but… was that all? The Eye could only show him the present but when he looked to the future all he could see was her. He… he couldn’t imagine a life without her.

He didn’t know what it would do to him if she rejected him now.

Not that he wouldn’t deserve it, of course. It was only right, after abandoning her like he did. If she stuck with him… he’d spend the rest of his life making it up to her. That was his vow.

The station doors slammed open, jolting Izuku out of his thoughts, and he watched as heartbreakingly familiar blurs of green and pink streaked inside. Already, Izuku’s eyes watered, and that was before his mom and Mei whipped around, and locked their eyes with his.

A beat passed, and then...

“ IZUKU!!! ” They both cried in unison, before diving towards him and pulling him into a tight hug. All three of them cried as he hugged them back, tears of joy and relief streaming down their faces, and all Izuku could feel was…

Safety.

Here, in the arms of the two people he loved the most, he was safe.

He was home .

Chapter Text

It took over an hour for Izuku, his mom, and Mei to calm down - though it felt like months - but once their tears had dried, a kind police officer arrived to take them to a more private room where they could catch up properly. Izuku was sandwiched between the two most important people in his life as they sat down on the comfortable sofa, and for a moment, they were all content to sit in silence, simply refamiliarising themselves with each other’s presence.

Eventually, though, someone had to break the silence, and his mom asked the question he’d been dreading, “Izuku… why did you leave?”

He shuffled in his seat, staring at the tiled floor, “I-I… I overheard All Might and M-Maijima-sensei talking… t-they said I was giving them nightmares and… I-I felt like I was a monster.” He quietly confessed, before adding with a whisper, “ I still do… ”

“No.” Mei’s voice cut through his self-deprecation, startling him. He glanced up at her to find her golden eyes blazing with determination, “You’re not a monster, Izuku. You’re amazing . You’re so smart, and kind, and you always help everyone! And these powers, or whatever, you can use them for more than just hurting people!”

“Exactly,” his mom added from his other side, “anyone who thinks you’re a monster just isn’t worth listening to.” She smiled softly, kindly, “You’ll never be anything other than my wonderful son to me.”

“And my best friend slash business partner!” Mei chirped.

Izuku’s eyes watered, tears threatening to spill out again, and he sniffed and continued his story. If anyone deserved to know what he had been doing over the past month, it was them. He let the words flow from his lips, telling them of his first couple of nights on the streets, of meeting Chizome and living with him, of investigating the Dark and the simultaneous raids on the church. By the end, his throat was parched, and his mom was looking at him with no small amount of concern on her face.

Mei, meanwhile, held only admiration in her gaze, and a teasing grin spread across her face, “Wow, Greenie! Only you could redeem a killer and stop a cult’s world-ending ritual and still think you aren’t a hero!”

He flushed and spluttered incoherently, trying to find some refute to her words, but her grin remained firmly on her face, and eventually, he gave up, slumping in his seat. His mom chuckled, and Mei cackled.

Fortunately, before the relentless - and probably deserved - teasing could continue, Detective Tsukauchi arrived to save him. He chuckled slightly as he entered, “Well, I’m glad to see you’re all happy in here, but I bet you guys want to get home.” Izuku’s heart fluttered at the thought of their little apartment, of his own bed, of a hot shower , and for the first time since arriving at the station he realised just how badly he must smell, not having showered for a month. His mom and Mei were too happy to see him to notice it, he assumed, but it couldn’t be pleasant for everyone else.

The three of them nodded eagerly, and Tsukauchi-san smiled, “Good, because I’m here to take you all home.

Surprisingly, his mom didn’t even protest at the thought of even potentially putting someone out, simply gathering up her things and heading towards the door, Izuku and Mei close behind her. Before he could walk out of the door, however, a comforting hand laid itself on his shoulder, and he glanced back to find the detective smiling at him, “Just in case you’re worried about it, yes, I do get the nightmares and, no, I don’t blame you for them. No hard feelings here, okay?”

He nodded slightly, and the man returned it with one of his own before walking ahead of their little group, leading the way to the unmarked car he’d be taking them back in. This left Izuku trailing behind his mom with his best friend by his side, and Mei wasted no time in getting his attention herself, with a short prod to his arm.

“Y’know, Izuku, I did really mean it.” She smiled, softer and sweeter than he’d ever seen before, “I really do think you’re a hero.”

He flushed, and he swore he caught some faint red dusting on her cheeks as well, but neither of them mentioned it, simply enjoying being around the other again after so long.

The car journey back was quiet and uneventful, with Mei’s shoulder practically glued to his own. Once they arrived at their destination, they thanked the detective profusely before heading back to their apartment.

Stepping over the threshold of his home for the first time in a month was an alien experience for Izuku, one he’d have appreciated more had he not immediately made a beeline for the bathroom when he entered, wanting to scrub off all the dirt and grime of a month living in an abandoned apartment.

He let out an audible groan when the hot water graced his aching muscles, and paid little attention to the muddy water sloughing off of him, simply relishing in the comforting warmth. 

By the time he had finished in the shower, his body and hair scrubbed clean and fresh, an hour had passed, and the apartment was filled with the scent of fried pork cutlets. His heart thumped at the thought of his favourite meal - of any food that wasn’t just cup ramen, really - and he scrambled to get himself into clean clothes. When he stepped out of the bathroom, his mom and Mei were sitting at the table, two large bowls of katsudon in front of them, while a third sat in front of his usual place at the table. 

Smiling, he dashed over and sat down, thanking his mom for the food before eagerly digging in. The flavour brought with it an endless cavalcade of memories, of moments too numerous to count. In nearly all of them, Izuku ate with only his mother for company.

But now he had a best friend - and possibly more. Glancing to his side, he saw Mei wolfing down her own serving while carrying on a conversation with his mom, and he smiled to himself. Mei’s presence in his life was something he’d never expected he’d have, but now that she was here it was like she was filling a space he didn’t even know was there. This memory, this picture, now seemed complete, whole.

Perfect .

He almost laughed at his past self. He was a fool to leave when he had people like Mei and his mom waiting for him at home.

Consciousness returned slowly to Izuku, as he was drawn from the depths of his dreamless sleep. He yawned, and his eyes fluttered open, finding the world to be nothing more than a vast field of salmon pink. As his brain kicked in, he realised he was being held tight, strong arms and legs wrapping around him in a tight, koala-like grip.

He blinked, uncomprehending, before a certain softness pressing into his chest finally sparked his recognition.

Somehow, after they watched the latest hero movie that night, Izuku had fallen asleep on top of Mei. And at some point in the night, their unconscious bodies had twisted themselves around, such that she was wrapped firmly around his torso, her superior strength ensuring he had little room to move. 

Now slightly more awake, Izuku glanced down at his best friend, who was still sleeping peacefully. It was strange for someone so bombastic and full of energy to look so calm and quiet, and a small smile played across his lips as he realised that he may be the only person to have seen her like this.

A chuckle off to the side reminded him of where they were, and he glanced over to find his mom looking at them with an almost smug smile, her phone in her hand. Izuku flushed bright red and tried to beg her not to take a picture of them using only his eyes, but she simply smiled wider and tapped the button on her phone. He slumped in defeat, unable to do much more with Mei holding him in an iron grip.

It was another half hour before she finally awoke, golden eyes almost slamming open. She blinked a couple of time before her eyes focused on his face and she smiled, “Goooooood mornin’, Greenie!” She beamed, squeezing him tight.

He flushed, but smiled back, “G-good morning, Mei! Did you have a good sleep?”

She nodded rapidly and finally let him go, shooting up off of the sofa as if they hadn’t just been sleeping in each other’s arms a moment before, “Yep! Slept better than ever!”

Despite the embarrassing situation, Izuku couldn’t help but smile at that. The thought of Mei being that comfortable around him made his heart flutter in his chest, “I’m glad to hear it.”

Mei turned around and grinned at him, “Hope ya rested lots too, Greenie, cuz today’s a big day!”

He blinked, mentally going through his calendar but coming up blank, “H-how come?”

His mom was the one to answer him, as she laid out a veritable breakfast feast on the table, “Because it’s your birthday, dear.”

“U-um…” he hesitated, “I… don’t think it is?”

“Well duh,” Mei cut in, “your real birthday was two weeks ago or whatever, but you weren’t here to celebrate it with us!”

“Oh…” he winced; he had spent his 16th birthday in a dusty old apartment with a serial killer, and left his mom and Mei to worry about him, “I-I’m s-”

“Nope!” she interrupted, “No apologies needed, especially not today! This is a ‘no bad vibes’ household!”

He flushed, “Then, t-thank you!”

His mom chuckled, “You’re very welcome dear, but come and eat your breakfast! It’ll go cold if you stand around for much longer!”

Izuku jolted and hurried over to the table, tucking into his food and launching into conversation with Mei as his belated birthday party began.

Around an hour or so later, the morning’s hero news was interrupted by the ringing of the doorbell. Izuku frowned as his mom smiled and stood up. He didn’t think they were expecting anyone, were they? Curious, he watched his mom walk towards the door and, when she opened it, he was shocked to find Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san standing on the other side. Their eyes met his, and they hurried inside at his mom’s beckoning, kicking off their shoes and hurrying to the main living area in the most polite way they could.

“Midoriya-san!”

“Midoriya-kun!”

Izuku smiled shakily as he stood to greet them, “H-hi, Iida-kun, Yaoyorozu-san.” He was, of course, very happy to see his friends again, but it was tinged with nervousness over how they’d react to his disappearance, and confusion over what they were even doing at his home in the first place.

“I am glad to see that you are well, Midoriya-kun!” Iida-kun beamed, “I admit I was quite worried about you this past month!”

Yaoyorozu-san nodded, “We wanted to come as soon as we heard you had returned.” She flushed slightly, “Your mother had to convince us not to break curfew just to see you.”

He blushed and scratched his cheek, “T-thank you both! Though… h-how did you know I was back?”

“ That would be me!” Mei jumped in, suddenly appearing at Izuku’s side, “I texted ‘em the minute we got in last night, let ‘em know that we’ve got a party today for the birthday boy!”

He turned a brighter shade of red and bowed to the other three, “T-thank you all for coming then!”

“Of course! It would be unthinkable to miss our friend’s sixteenth birthday!”

“Did you have any plans for the day, Midoriya-san?” Yaoyorozu-san asked, smiling brightly at him.

“O-oh, um…” he scratched his cheek, “not… really? I-I’m happy doing whatever anyone else wants to do!”

“Nope!” Mei leapt in front of him, arms crossed in an ‘x’, “Nuh-uh, today is about you , Greenie! That means we’ve all gotta do whatever you want! Pick anything, we’ll spare no expense!” His mom cleared her throat behind them, and without missing a beat Mei corrected, “We’ll spare only a little expense!”

He stared at them for a moment, speechless. Not only did no one seem to blame him for his, frankly, childish tantrum, they all just seemed to be happy to see him, and wanted to do whatever he wanted for his belated birthday. It seemed almost too good to be true, but… this was real. This was Izuku’s life.

He had friends . When was the last time he’d celebrated his birthday with anyone other than his mom?

He… couldn’t remember, honestly.

Feeling tears welling up, he sniffed and rubbed his eyes, “T-then… could we have a hero movie marathon?” He all-but-whispered, tentatively putting the idea out there, all too ready to snatch it back should anyone show the slightest modicum of disinterest.

But no one did. 

Iida-kun clapped his hands together and grinned, faded scars stretching, “That sounds like a wonderful idea, Midoriya-kun! I’ll admit, it has been some time since I’ve watched any!”

Yaoyorozu-san nodded, seeming to almost glow with excitement, “I-I’ve never watched any, so I believe this will be the perfect opportunity to understand what I have missed all these years!”

And as for Mei… she simply continued to beam at him, “Good plan, Greenie! You go and pick out whatcha wanna watch, and leave the rest to us, okay?”

Before he could protest or say much of anything, the pink-haired girl picked him up as if he weighed nothing - which he probably did - and proceeded to unceremoniously dump him onto the sofa, his cheeks burning red at the subtle reminder of her strength.

Shaking some… less than clean thoughts out of his head, he scrambled over to the DVD case and started to pull out the films he wanted to watch, taking into account his friend’s own interests. He skillfully avoided Endeavor vs the Freeze Syndicate , not wanting a reminder of that hero after seeing how he treated his son, and he hesitated over a well-worn copy of Mighty Adventures 3: All Might and the Pantheon of Doom .

All Might… at the beginning of the year he hadn’t exactly been a fan of the hero. More so he associated him with his… well, his death. The man’s mere presence was a constant reminder of what he had tried to do - what he had done , successfully. And yet, over the past few months, the man had slowly redeemed himself in Izuku’s eyes. Granted, saving him from the Dark definitely went a long way to mend the bridges between them, but still.

Shaking these thoughts away, he picked up the DVD and placed it on his growing pile.

Once the four of them settled down in front of the television, the day was something of a blur of movies, each one seeming to almost blur into the next. His mom ordered them some food, so they didn’t even have to leave their places to eat lunch.

Dinner, though, was a different story.

They paused Crimson Riot: Chivalry Unleashed to gather around the table for Izuku’s second bowl of katsudon in as many days. The conversation was lively as they discussed the films so far, Yaoyorozu-san surprisingly being the one to carry much of the conversation, with Iida-kun and Izuku himself chiming in at the appropriate points. Mei, on the other hand, seemed to be lost in her own little world, mumbling about the many babies she had been inspired to make in a way that reminded Izuku of himself.

Then, after dinner, came the presents.

Izuku flushed as his mom brought them out. It was a fairly small pile, one from his mom, one from Iida-kun, one from Yaoyorozu-san and one, surprisingly, from Nedzu-sensei.

Nothing from Mei, though. Without prompting, the pink-haired girl had explained, “My present for you comes tomorrow, Greenie!” with a grin and a light blush dusting her cheeks. Izuku accepted the excuse easily - though wondered why she seemed embarrassed - and turned his attention back to today’s presents.

Which were, naturally, all hero-related.

From his mom, came a poster of Sir Nighteye. The hero had grown in his estimation after he saved Izuku from the Stranger’s cult, and subsequent training in intelligence heroics. Indeed, he wanted to work with the man someday, in whatever capacity that may be.

Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san had, naturally, given him personalised autographs from their hero relatives, Ingenium and Fat Gum. It was slightly embarrassing just how easily they knew they could please him with such gifts, but not even close to as embarrassing as Nedzu-sensei’s gift.

Which was an entire book of autographs, each page signed by a member of UA’s staff. According to his teacher’s note on his own page, he’d taken the liberty of gathering them for Izuku, knowing how his anxiety would prevent him from asking.

Which, yes, that was true, but he didn’t like being read so easily.

Still, he greatly appreciated the gifts, each one causing tears to well up in his eyes that quickly spilled over when his mom brought out his birthday cake.

He wasn’t ashamed to admit he cried again when they sang to him.

Izuku’s birthday party finally wound down around 9pm, when Iida-kun and Yaoyorozu-san had to leave to catch their trains before curfew. Izuku, his mom and Mei continued watching the movies for a few more hours, but eventually, it was time for bed.

Or, in his and Mei’s case, their slumber party.

They set up some futons in the living room, spending hours just mindlessly chatting about the day. Honestly, he was still getting used to the idea that he had friends at all, let alone friends that would be as kind towards him as his were. 

For the first time in his life, Izuku had real, actual friends, and the realisation nearly brought him to tears again.

Still, he managed to compose himself, and hunkered down for the night. Just as he was starting to drift off to sleep, however, a short, sharp “ pssst ” pierced through the still room. Izuku glanced over at Mei, who was looking back at him with an unreadable expression in her eyes.

“ Yeah, Mei? ” He whispered.

The girl seemed to think for a moment, before responding, “ I’m… really happy you’re back, Izuku. But… promise me that you’re never gonna leave me again, okay? ”

He smiled, reaching out his hand towards her, pinkie outstretched, which she quickly wrapped her own around, “ I promise, Mei. I’m not going anywhere. ”

Tomura growled to himself as he furiously scratched at his neck.

The itching had gotten worse lately, the desire to destroy burning through his veins like a raging fire. It was getting harder to think straight when all he wanted to do was reduce everything around him to dust and ash. 

But no. He had to keep a level head. That was what Sensei always told him, even if he never understood why. His whole purpose on this planet was destruction, so why did his teacher insist on him learning to think strategically? Clever plots and schemes meant nothing against the pure force of destruction he was born to be.

But he couldn’t exactly reject his teacher, so he followed along with whatever the man wanted. Which led him here, some dingy underground bar. He’d run into a dead end trying to figure out his next move: UA was a little too secure to attack on campus again, but he still wanted to terrorise the fledgling heroes. Unfortunately, the school kept its cards close to its chest, and not even Sensei could discover when they would be vulnerable.

They had a whole League of some of the vilest villains his player two could find, and they had no one to throw them at.

But Player Two had a solution, apparently. Some info broker in deep with the remnants of the yakuza, who could dig up just about any information you could ask for. How Dabi found the guy, he had no idea, but apparently he was usually in residence in the backroom of the bar they now stood in front of.

The scarred man glanced over to him, eyebrow raised, and Tomura gave his neck one last satisfying scratch before walking inside, sharing only a curt nod with the bartender, and heading into the backroom. 

It was small, and barely furnished, with only a desk inside, behind which sat a man who could have walked out of the 1300s. He wore a black plague doctor mask, obscuring his face, and he had a plain black cloak draped over him. A wide-brimmed bowler hat rested atop his head, completing the anachronistic look.

Tomura rolled his eyes. This guy looked like a complete loser.

The guy looked up at them as they entered, head cocked to one side, “The fee?”

Evidently, he didn’t beat around the bush. Nodding once, he reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a thick bundle of cash, tossing it over to the man. He seemed to glance at it for a moment before nodding, “What would you like to know?”

“UA,” he rasped, “a place and time where UA students are vulnerable.”

The broker nodded, and a halo of sickly green eyes appeared and slowly rotated around the brim of his hat. Tomura shuddered without thinking, a strange shiver running down his spine.

It felt like he was being watched .

The eyes vanished a few moments later, and he breathed a subconscious sigh of relief. 

“The Beast’s Forest in Nagano, the one owned by the Wild Wild Pussycats. UA’s first year heroics course has a training camp there, starting on the fifth and lasting for a week. The only heroes present will be Eraserhead, Vlad King, and the Wild Wild Pussycats.”

Shigaraki grinned beneath his father’s hand as the flames coursed through his body with a renewed vigour. That wasn’t even a week away.

Soon, he would be able to unleash his appetite.

Soon he’d be able to destroy to his heart’s content, slay all those hero students, so full of potential, and leave society a crumbling mess, ripe for his decaying touch.

The heroes wouldn’t know what hit them.

Chapter Text

“ Psst. ”

Izuku swayed gently, the boat beneath him rocking with the waves. The sun bathed him in a warm glow, gracing his features with gentle warmth.

“ Psssssst. ”

An ocean breeze washed over him, pleasantly cool, and he smiled. It felt nice to just be able to relax for a change. Here, in the middle of the ocean, with the sun beaming down at him and not a single soul in sight… here, life felt good.

“ Psst, hey, Greenie, wake up! ”

The breeze returned, more insistent this time, and Izuku scrunched up his face slightly. It almost felt like the wind was trying to speak to him, whispering faint snatches of words into his ears.

The boat shook again, harsher, and he started awake. No longer was he alone in the middle of a beautiful ocean; now, he found himself firmly on land once more - more specifically, atop a futon in the middle of his living room. To his side sat Mei, looking at him with a mixture of excitement and amusement.

He blinked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, “Oh, good morning Mei. What’s up?”

“The ceiling!” She grinned, before taking his hand and helping him to his feet, “Oh, and the breakfast I made for us!”

Izuku furrowed his brow, but glanced over to the table anyway. Sure enough, there was what seemed to be a fairly traditional breakfast spread strewn across the table. The placement was best described as ‘carefully haphazard’, as if whoever had placed the dishes had been trying to follow rules of etiquette they themselves were only dimly aware of.

It certainly looked like a Mei breakfast, to be sure.

“Oh!” His eyes widened as he walked over to the table, glancing over plates of rice, vegetables and fish, and a big bowl of miso soup, “Thank you, Mei!”

She beamed, before rushing him into his seat, “No problem! Go ahead and eat up quick, cuz we’ve got a big day today!”

Well, he could hardly refuse such an earnest offer, now could he?

After piling a little bit of everything onto his plate, and serving himself some soup, he wasted no time in digging into the  food, marvelling at the taste. Truth be told, he was a little surprised that Mei had managed to cook something that tasted so good. Don’t get him wrong, he had a lot of faith in his best friend, but home economics was by no means her best subject. Sure, the fish was possibly a little over, and the vegetables could have done with a bit longer, but it was more than just edible - it was good .

“It tastes great, Mei!” He praised, completely earnest, “So what’s the occasion?”

She beamed at him, though a faint blush seemed to dust her cheeks, “I did mention your birthday present comes tomorrow, right? This is all just a part of that!”

Izuku blushed, “You really didn’t have to-”

“But I wanted to!” She cut in, “You deserve all this, and a lot more. So let me spoil you today, okay?”

He wanted to protest more, but just one look at Mei’s face showed she’d refute any argument he had. And so, not for the first time, and certainly not for the last time, he caved to the indomitable will of Hatsume Mei.

Before long, the two of them had polished off their breakfast, leaving them pleasantly full, and Mei wasted no time in hurrying Izuku out of his seat and into his bedroom, “We’re gonna go out for the day, Greenie, so you’d better get dressed!”

Izuku saw no reason to refuse; as he did so, picking out what he thought seemed like good clothes for any situation they could be heading into, he found himself wondering just what Mei had planned for the day. Oh, sure, he was aware he could just Know the answer, but where was the fun in that? He loved a good surprise; most of the time, anyway.

After pulling on a pair of jeans, a t-shirt with the simple text, ‘Hero Costume’ written on it, and a plain green hoodie, he was once again met by the human storm named Hatsume Mei, who all but shoved him out of the apartment so fast he didn’t even have time to question the incredibly convenient and slightly suspicious absence of his mom.

“Right!” She shouted, “Come along, Greenie!” Without another word, she grabbed Izuku’s hand tightly - the boy himself turning bright red - and practically dragged him down the stairs of his apartment building and out onto the street.

Izuku, for his part, decided once again not to resist Mei, especially when she was like this. She was just as energetic as ever, to be sure, but there was an undercurrent of another emotion he couldn’t quite place. Nerves, perhaps? Either way, she was a woman on a mission as she marched down the street, Izuku trailing behind her as he struggled to keep up.

As they walked, he couldn’t help but admire her energy. It was one of her defining characteristics, after all, alongside her tenacity and, sometimes, her sheer hard-headed stubbornness. Looking back, it was this chaotic energy that so completely marked their relationship - such as it was - from the beginning. Their very first day at school had shown just how much of a pure force of chaos she was, and so many other moments in their friendship, big and small, had been defined by her boundless enthusiasm for just about everything that interested her.

Including, apparently, Izuku himself.

The thought made him blush as they walked up the stairs to Izuku’s usual train station, and his thoughts went back to May, and his kidnapping. He’d heard the story from his teachers after the fact, but the very idea of Mei muscling in on a clandestine police operation was both completely hilarious, and completely in character. When there was something she wanted, Mei would stop at nothing to get it. She’d break down every barrier, smash through every obstacle, let absolutely nothing stand in her way.

It was one of the things he admired the most about her.

An announcement through the station’s tannoy brought him from his memories; just in time, too, as no sooner had the next train arrived, than Mei marched them onto it, diving to grab a couple of seats for them both. Glancing up at the route map, Izuku realised that this was the train he usually took to get to Musutafu city centre, and his curiosity grew.

Just where was she taking him?

The door in the back of his mind creaked with the promise of knowledge, but he held it firmly shut. He wouldn’t ruin the surprise Mei was so clearly excited to show him.

Was it just excitement, though? Looking over at her, he could certainly see the twitching of her muscles and jittering of her right leg that always happened when she couldn’t wait for something, but there was a certain anxious undertone to it all. She wrung her hands, and kept glancing out of the window, as if searching for something she’d never find.

“Mei,” he spoke quietly, and golden eyes darted over to him, “what’s the matter?”

“Hmm?” She cocked her head to the side, “Nothing’s wrong, Greenie! Don’t you worry! Everything’s a-ok!”

Her steady tone and subsequent reassuring grin might have convinced someone else, but Izuku knew his best friend a little better than that. He could hear the slight tremble in her voice, the twitching corners of her too wide smile, “I can tell there’s something bothering you.” He insisted.

She kept up her facade for a moment longer, before slumping in her seat and turning to stare at her hands, “Nothing’s wrong , really. It’s just…” she bit her lip, leg still jumping with anxiety, “it’s like… when you’re demonstrating a new baby in public for the first time, and it passed all the safety checks, and you know it’s fine… but you’re still worrying that something could go wrong at any time, y’know?”

Izuku nodded, understanding, and laid a hand on her shoulder, “You know… even if everything goes wrong today… I’ll still love whatever you have planned, because it’s coming from you .”

Mei turned her head, golden eyes sparkling at him, but it was only when he noticed the heavy blush across her cheeks that he realised just what he’d said, and how it sounded. Instantly, his own face erupted into a brilliant red, and he stammered incoherently, not even knowing himself what he was trying to say. She took one look at him, and laughed, loud, bright and vibrant, the sound cutting through the serious atmosphere between them. After a moment, Izuku joined in, and the combined sound of their laughter dismissed any lingering anxiety.

Once they’d calmed down, Mei smiled gratefully at him, and the rest of the journey was spent in a much more comfortable silence.

20 minutes later, they arrived at their stop, and Mei wasted no time in grabbing Izuku’s arm and dragging him off the train, out of the station, and through the streets, all but barging through people like a woman possessed.

As they walked through central Musutafu, surprisingly busy for a Thursday morning, something about their path felt familiar to Izuku - not in the sense that he’d lived in the city his whole life, but in the sense that, wherever their destination was, he’d been there before.

It was a mere 10 minute walk from the station before Mei halted at a corner, and turned to Izuku, “We’re here! Just follow me!”

He nodded, heart thumping with excitement, and she led him around the corner, to their destination…

The Musutafu Museum of Heroics.

He almost laughed to himself. Was he really that predictable?

She turned to him, grinning, “Well, here we are, Greenie! I’ve bought us tickets for the entire day, so we can go nuts!”

He smiled, fighting back tears of happiness, “Thank you, Mei. I can’t wait to get inside!”

She grabbed his arm, “Then don’t!” 

With that, the two of them charged inside, Izuku no longer trailing behind, ready for a wonderful day.

Their tour of the museum was slow, but never boring. Izuku stopped by every single exhibit, reeling off facts about each hero so fast, it would have taken a supercomputer to understand him

Fortunately, Mei was a human supercomputer, and kept up with every one of his mad mutterstorms. She listened intently as he rambled on at length about the earliest heroes - those vigilantes from the Dawn of Quirks. She nodded along as he discussed the very first generation of heroes, and how that system developed into the one they knew today. And when he discussed the commercialisation of heroes towards the turn of the century, the rise of agencies and the HPSC, she even started taking notes, as if he’d quiz her on it later.

Of course, when they reached the special exhibit on the history of support equipment, it was Izuku’s turn to listen. And listen he did, as Mei launched into a complex analysis of support gear of ages long past, and how they had been foundational in their own ways. He made sure to remember every detail of every item she mentioned even offhandedly; he knew he was able to Know everything, but he didn’t want to cheat, not when Mei seemed so happy.

Yes, this was a day for him, but it meant more to him that his best friend was enjoying it as well.

By the time midday rolled around, they had made some decent progress through the museum, and stopped by the cafeteria to get a bite to eat. The sandwiches they picked up were nothing special, but the company made them taste like a Michelin-starred meal.

After lunch, their tour continued, and by the time they had seen every inch of the museum, the sun had begun to make its descent towards the horizon. Izuku and Mei walked out of the building with matching smiles, content with the time they spent together.

As they descended the stairs outside the museum and started the walk towards the station, Izuku turned to his best friend, “Mei, today was one of the best birthday presents I’ve ever had. Thank you so much!”

She grinned at him, eyes sparkling with a familiar warmth, tinged with her usual mania, “No problem, Greenie! But! The day isn’t over yet! We’ve got one more stop to make!”

Izuku blinked, but followed, curious, as she led him back to the station and onto a different train than the one they came on. During the journey, Izuku tried to wheedle their destination out of Mei, but she stubbornly kept her secret.

It was something of a moot point however, as, halfway through the journey, the train started taking a very familiar route: the route to the nearest station to UA.

“Um,” Mei glanced over at him, “why are we going to UA?”

She grinned, “It’s a secret!”

He frowned, “Will.. will it even be open?”

“Oh, yeah,” she nodded, “PL gave me permission to go in during regular school hours this whole summer!”

He blinked. That was… strangely reckless of Maijima-sensei, especially considering Mei’s propensity for causing mayhem. Although… perhaps it was as thanks for helping Izuku’s mom while Izuku himself was… away.

He fought back the twist in his gut. He didn’t need to ruin today with his own self-loathing. He had hurt the people closest to him, but they’d forgiven him, and that should be the end of it.

By the time Izuku pulled himself from his thoughts, they had arrived at the stop, and Mei wasted no time in dragging him off the train and out of the station, following the same path they had walked nearly every day for the past 4 or so months.

Had it really only been 4 months? His life before UA felt like a lifetime ago now, and he felt like he’d known Mei forever.

Certainly, he could no longer imagine his life without her.

Lightly blushing at that thought, Izuku followed Mei towards UA, still confused about their business at the school. He wondered if, perhaps, she’d made something for him, but he couldn’t imagine what she’d need to keep at school if that was the case, let alone when she even had time to make it while she was staying with his mom.

It seemed like he’d soon be finding out, however, as she led him through the gates of the school, unchallenged by any teacher or the infamous UA barrier.

At least it seemed they actually did have permission to be there.

The walk up the path to the main building was as beautiful as ever, but the slowly setting sun playing across the gleaming glass of the vast edifice certainly added to its aesthetic appeal. A part of him, the creative part that stubbornly refused to die, desperately wanted to capture the moment in a picture. But he had other business to attend to, and the sight vanished as Mei hurried inside the building, Izuku following soon after.

He felt he had a good idea of where they were going by this point, and his intuition was proven correct as they wound through the twisting halls of UA, and ended up at 1-H’s classroom.

Their classroom.

Mei slid open the door and headed inside, but as Izuku stepped over the threshold himself, his heart began to race in his chest. A boy and a girl, alone, in an empty classroom, in the late afternoon… wasn’t there a scene like this in every romance anime?

He shook his head. No, it couldn’t be anything like that . It was probably just another birthday present. Mind clear, he followed his best friend inside, shutting the door behind him.

Across the room, Mei stared at their desks, side by side with each other. A moment of peaceful silence fell between them, before she spoke up, much quieter than usual.

“This is where you first came into my life, Izuku.”

He blinked at the unusual usage of his given name; usually, Mei called him ‘Greenie’ unless the situation was serious, “Yeah, I guess so…”

“My life has been… so much crazier since then,” she chuckled gently, before turning around and smiling at him, far softer than any he’d seen on her before, “but I wouldn’t give it up for anything .”

She stepped towards him, and a flush rose unbidden to his cheeks, “Before I came to UA, my life was so boring . I didn’t have any friends, and my parents worked so much… my babies were all I had. But since I met you… it’s gotten so much better . I have friends, people who care about me… I have you .”

“Mei…” he whispered softly, and she took another step towards him. He was completely unused to seeing such a quiet, earnest side of his best friend, but he appreciated just how vulnerable she was in that moment, even if he still couldn’t wrap his head around why .

She reached out, and clasped his hand in her own, holding it gently, “Izuku, you’re… basically the greatest person I’ve ever met. You’re so smart, so brave, and so, so kind.” He flushed bright red as she let go of his hand, her warmth lingering on his skin. “If you asked me a year ago what my biggest goal in life was, I’d have said something about making Hatsumei Industries the premier support manufacturer in the world, but now… now, all I want, more than anything else, is to live my life with you by my side.”

“So,” she breathed in deeply and shuffled backwards a half step, “Midoriya Izuku…” she smiled softly and, to his complete and utter shock, pulled out a ring and got down on one knee .

“Will you marry me?”

Izuku’s heart, once racing, pounding at his chest, stopped dead, as he struggled to comprehend just what Mei had said. She wanted to…? To him? And now ? Sure, the ring was nice - a beautiful and simple silver inset with green and pink gems - but still! They were sixteen, and that was the least of their worries!

Long seconds stretched out as Mei’s question dropped through the air like a lead balloon. Izuku stared down at her, eyes wide, jaw dropped. His thoughts raced, too fast for him to catch any single one for longer than a vanishing moment.

Seconds turned into minutes, and slowly, Mei’s smile faltered, her gaze falling from him and fixating on the ground, “Ah,” she sighed, “I guess that’s a ‘no’.” Her voice trembled, “I’m such an idiot -”

Izuku snapped back into the room the instant the words fell out of her mouth, the sight of his friend hurting, cutting through the storm in his brain, “ No , Mei, you’re not .” He kneeled down himself, getting on her level and speaking softer, “A-and it’s not a ‘no’, either.”

She looked up at him, hope gleaming in her golden eyes, and he took a deep breath to settle his nerves before continuing, “Mei… I’ve been… so alone my entire life. I’ve never even had a friend, not a real one, and definitely not a friend like you .” He smiled softly, memories replaying in his mind, “When I came to UA, I never expected to meet someone like you, someone so smart, and energetic, and bright, and so stubborn,” they shared a wet chuckle, “just… someone I’d want to spend the rest of my life with.”

Her eyes sparkled, and he continued, focusing now on the floor between them, “You… you see me like no one else does, not for the monster I could be, but just… for me . You’ve stood by me through so much , even when I was being an idiot ,” he grinned up at her, eyes watering, “and my life is so much better because you’re in it. So…”

He took a deep breath, met her gaze once again, and took her hands in his own, “Hatsume Mei, someday…” he smiled, soft, sweet and pure, “I would love to marry you.” Her lips trembled, and she looked at him as if he hung the stars themselves, but he wasn’t quite finished yet, “But first, I think we should try dating.”

Her reaction was instantaneous. With a shouted, “Yes!”, she pulled him in for a tight hug, the strength of which would have hurt had he not been hugging back with just as much force. Tears fell freely from green and golden eyes, tears of relief, of happiness, of pure love , and matching smiles wormed across their faces.

Their embrace could have lasted ten seconds, ten minutes, or ten years for all they knew, but they couldn’t have cared less. All they knew was, the moment they pulled away, holding each other’s faces and staring into each other’s eyes without fear, or disgust, they felt the overwhelming urge to kiss each other.

And so they did. It was awkward, of course, with neither of them having any experience, but their feelings for each other more than made up for it, as soft lips met, and they expressed their feelings for each other in a way words simply couldn’t capture.

“Ahem.”

The clearing of a throat cut through the silence of the classroom, and they scrambled out of the kiss and to their feet, turning towards the door to find Aizawa-sensei standing their, somehow managed to look bored, tired and unimpressed with a slight hint of smug satisfaction, all with the raise of a single eyebrow.

Izuku’s face burned bright red, and Mei developed a similar blush of her own. Without another word, they raced out of the classroom, through the halls and out of the building, completely mortified at having been caught by their teacher.

They still held each other’s hands for the entire journey home, though.