Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“I’m supposed to be the guy that’s always smiling, right?” All Might lamented, shocking Izuku with how bitter he sounded despite his cheerful tone, adding on, “I’m the symbol of peace. People everywhere have to think that I’m never afraid. Pro’s like me can’t ever be afraid.”

Izuku was surprised to see All Might like this. Ignoring the obvious shock at the man’s form because what the fuck-

But to think the man did have some anger towards his pedestal was shocking. He wondered if All Might had ever planned to be as big as he is. It seemed like All Might spent his career chasing number one, and that his plan had been to become the greatest hero. After hearing the hero’s words, however, he started to doubt that had ever been what All Might had planned.

If Izuku followed his footsteps, would he become just as bitter?

“But, honestly? I smile to hide the fear inside. It’s just a brave face I put on when the pressure is high,” All Might spat, clenching his fist and looking up at Izuku, continuing, “This job isn’t easy. Pro heroes are always having to risk their lives. Whether you see them doing it or not.”

I wonder if he means underground heroes, or even referring to whoever caused him that injury.

“Some villains just can’t be beaten without a quirk or even the correct quirk,” All Might asserted, sending a spike of pain- maybe closer to betrayal -through Izuku’s chest.

He almost wanted to plug his ears, not wanting to hear what the man would say. Knowing what he was about to state. He gripped his backpack straps to brace himself.

“So, can you be a hero like me? Not without a quirk.”

The pain spread, filling Izuku from head to toe. His bracing didn’t help. Expecting the words didn’t help. No matter either of those facts, he couldn’t help but feel shattered by the man’s admission.

“I see,” he whimpered out, his head bowing in shame.

All Might stood with a grunt before he started walking to the door of the roof. His words were kind as he suggested, “If you want to help people, there are plenty other ways to do it. Find the right officer and they’ll sponsor you into the academy. Overrides your quirk status. Sure, they get crap because the heroes capture most of the villains, but talk to the right hero and they’ll express they can’t get the job done without the police. It’s a fine profession.”

All Might paused at the door, at which Izuku spent a moment hoping the hero might take it back. Might tell him he can be a hero. Tell him it was a sick joke. Apologize as April Fools had been over a week ago. Admit it was a habit from his time in America.

“It’s not bad to have a dream young man. Just, make sure the ones you pursue are attainable.”

With that, the door closed, Izuku left, staring at the ground in anguish. Alone with his thoughts as his dreams had been crushed.

Chapter Text

Izuku, once he had been able to get through his shock, berated himself. Why wouldn’t All Might teach him what reality actually was. What hero would let a stupid kid like him go around with such ridiculous dreams? The man saves people, for gods’ sake. He wouldn’t want to witness Izuku dying because he was trying to chase some dream to become a Limelight-

“…or even the correct quirk.”

“So, can you be a hero like me ?”

Before Izuku’s realization could be pondered, he heard an explosion, jerking the fanboy in him to action, excitedly exclaiming, “A villain! I wonder which hero will show!” and sprinting for the door.

He paused as he grabbed the door handle. He couldn’t help but start questioning not only himself, but everything he ever even had the notion to think.

Should I even be watching hero fights? Does it actually teach me anything? I’ve learned how heroes’ strategize and how they fight, sure. That hasn’t taught me how to strategize or fight, has it?

Sure, I’ve managed to survive this long thinking, “What would a hero do?” But, is that just because Shade-san has been there to make sure I’m safe? What would happen if they didn’t always manage to show up in time?

Was Kacchan right?

He sighed, deciding against going to the source of the explosion. Instead, as he walked through the door and down the stairs, he planned to just go home. If he could even call it that. He had a lot of rethinking to do. Hence, he may as well use his walk to do so.

He wouldn’t be able to be a Limelight hero, he concluded. All Might was right. But , he didn’t say Izuku couldn’t be an Underground hero. Or even Twilight! Twilight would be best, as he would want to give kids like him hope. He would just be better set working underground to stop criminal organizations instead of big time villains.

And he already does that with petty criminals anyways.

Also, why did he want to be a hero? Sure, there was nothing wrong with wanting to be a hero for the fame as long as you got the job done. But…

“I’ll end up more popular than All Might himself and be the richest hero of all time!”

The idea of going for fame left a sick feeling in his stomach for some reason.

The ruse no longer was a ruse it seemed.

Izuku wanted to give others hope, which may have been why he was pursuing Limelight. In doing that, though, was it for the sake of others or satisfying some need deep inside himself? What was being a hero for others if it wasn’t inherently selfish? Could he want to be a hero without being selfish?

And I’m getting existential. Great-

He took some deep breaths to calm the anxiety that had started to build from the looping thoughts, feeling his head lean back with the urge to let it jerk.

That was another thing. He really wanted to understand why his body did that sometimes. Sure, he could look it up, but the internet wasn’t the best place for looking up medical issues. And he already had a fair amount of medical anxiety as it was. Thus, asking a doctor would be his best bet. However, he was hesitant to ask his mother to take him, as it was expensive just to get stitches with his quirk status. Asking his mother to take him was something he wasn’t willing to get a lecture for.

She already got mad at him for running out of burn cream on a monthly basis last year as it was. He wasn’t up to getting a lecture about the cost of getting something so “superficial” checked out. Even things that needed to get checked out he struggled to know because just about anything he needed was met with a huff of annoyance.

Izuku looked up at the sound of another explosion, realizing his feet led him straight to the fight. He really was a fanboy at heart, and he chuckled at his own obsession. He may as well check out the scene while he was there. He walked up to the crowd and stood on his toes to try and see.

The slime villain?? He must have fallen out of All Might’s pockets when I jumped on him! Fuck, I’m such an idiot!

Wait, why are the heroes just doing damage control? If Death Arms has Kamui launch him into the slime villain, he’d be able to pull the victim out! Hell! Even that baseball hero duo would be able to! If you hit where he isn’t paying attention he’ll be straight up liquid and not solid! Hell! If Mount Lady walked into the alley and grew big it would help! I already know she doesn’t give two shits about property damage! With Backdraft being stuck working on putting out fires for damage control, he’s the only one actually doing his job!

Anger filled Izuku as he watched the scene, although it switched to stomach turning guilt as he heard the crowd start to talk about how All Might had been chasing the villain.

Fuck, its my fault. I caused All Might to run out of time! What can I do?

He didn’t think as pushed his way to the front, ignoring the people that got annoyed by his shoving. The next thing he knew, he was yelling, and he couldn’t- wouldn’t -stop himself.

“What the hell are you bullshit heroes doing?! There is a victim and you’re standing to the side waiting for another hero?! I understand you are worried about your own separate abilities to stop him, but maybe if you fucking work together you could save them! Distraction is a thing! Work together! Stop relying on yourself and rely on each other!”

Death Arms turned to glare at Izuku, Izuku meeting the glare with his own. The hero opened his mouth to retort when the Pitcher of the Baseball duo started yelling instead.

“He’s right! Death Arms, you’re probably the only one strong enough to get the kid! Wait for my signal!” he yelled, before turning to his partner, “Batter up!”

The Catcher nodded, sprinting to the other side of the villain. The Catcher started chanting the distraction that is used against batters, shouting, “Hey, batter-batter- Hey batter-batter- SWING!”

The duo chucked their baseballs into the villain’s face, causing him to yell out in pain as his hold on the victim loosened.

“Now!”

Izuku’s eyes widened, locking eyes with Kaccan. The boy yelled as he was released, and before Izuku could do anything stupidly impulsive, Death Arms sprinted in and yanked Katsuki out of the villain’s grasp.

“Lady! Grab him!” Kamui Woods yelled.

Mount Lady reached into the alley and pulled up the slime villain, wrapping him in her glove to keep him from getting away.

“Got him!”

“Damn you heroes!”

Izuku stared, surprised that his yelling had helped. Had his analysis worked after all? He was speaking from the analysis he had written, but to think that he had actually helped?

Maybe me being a fanboy isn’t so bad after all.

The police were able to start moving to arrest the villain. A paramedic was listening to Katsuki’s lungs to see if any sludge was in them as Death Arms and The Catcher practically sang praises about his resilience and his quirk.

Izuku felt his body relax, the fear and some of the anger finally melting away. Everything was okay. The villain was in custody. Bakugou was getting medical attention. He could leave, so he did.

Well, tried.

“Hey, kid! Kid! Greenie!”

Izuku turned around towards the voice, seeing The Pitcher running up, Kamui Woods following behind him.

Izuku felt a twinge of guilt. He’d been pretty harsh when yelling at the heroes. It wasn’t respectful in the slightest. Was down right rude in his own opinion.

Before he could apologize, however, The Pitcher exclaimed, “Hey! Thank you for yelling at us.”

What?

Kamui Woods nodded. “Had you not pointed out the flaw in our logic, that kid would probably still be in the villains grasp. Just probably no longer living.”

“I- But I was rude about it?” Izuku questioned, jerking a laugh out of the Baseball hero.

“Maybe you were. But, we probably deserved it. I quite literally am a member of a duo and I still didn’t think about combining my abilities with my teammates. There’s no excuse for my lapse in thought. I could probably use a refresher in teamwork, and it’s only thanks to you that I was able to do so.”

The hero bowed, Kamui Woods bowing his head as well.

“Thank you for your quick thinking. If you ever need an agency to analyze for, I’ll take you in right away. Your ability is too good to not listen to.”

Izuku stumbled over his words, feeling overwhelmed as he asked, “Analyze for? What do you mean? And I swear, you don’t have to thank me-“

“And I’m thanking you anyways! But, who do you think comes up with the plans to take down big bad villains? Hell! Some of us even have earpieces that connect us to our analyzers to get their help! Sure, being able to analyze the field and work to take down a villain is a hero’s job, but sometimes even we fall flat.”

Izuku didn’t know that. He was honestly reeling from the information.

“I’ll let you head home now,” The Pitcher exclaimed, ruffling Izuku’s hair, “Don’t get into any trouble on your way, all right?!”

“I won’t,” Izuku promised, probably only able to respond because of instinct.

Kamui Woods nodded, and the two heroes left to continue checking the scene and looking for anyone caught in the attack to take care of.

“My boy,” a voice behind him asked, one that Izuku knew right away despite only having just met the man, “Would you mind if I walked with you? I have some things I’d like to discuss.”

Izuku turned, confirming the voice did in fact belong to All Might. He nodded, figuring it probably wasn’t best to answer him verbally in case he revealed something, and started walking, All Might beside him.

Chapter Text

The two had been walking for about ten minutes, and were well away from the scene of the crime despite their slow speed. Izuku only felt it safe enough to speak then.

“I’m sorry for distracting you from the villain.”

And it seems the All Might thought so as well, as he similarly said, “I need to apologize to you, kid.”

“What?” Izuku exclaimed, surprised at the man’s words, “But I distracted you and got in the way of you taking in the villain! I-“

“AY! DEKU!”

Izuku cut himself off, the two turned to find the source of the voice, seeing Katsuki sprinting up.

“JUST KNOW THAT I DIDN’T NEED SAVING FROM THE LIKES OF YOU, DEKU! I KNOW YOU WERE THE ONE TO YELL AT THE PROS! I DIDN’T NEED YOUR HELP AND NEVER WILL! UNDERSTOOD YOU WORTHLESS DEKU?”

With that, the blonde turned around and stomped away, leaving Izuku and All Might stunned.

“There are many things wrong with that boy’s thought process that I can’t even begin to list,” All Might pondered, turning to look at Izuku as he asked, “Is he always like that?”

Izuku shrugged, ignoring a twinge of guilt, “Pretty much, yeah.”

“He’ll never get anywhere with a mentality like that. Let alone becoming a hero.”

Izuku looked up in shock, blurting, “But his quirk is-“

“A quirk means nothing if the holder isn’t a hero,” All  Might objected, stating, “One may have a heroic quirk, but that quirk can’t help someone who isn’t heroic themselves.”

Izuku may have understood, and maybe even agreed with All Might’s explanation. There was not a single objection Izuku could make against the hero’s words. He, however, had a long way to go in terms of processing and accepting the words.

He had a lot of unconscious biases he had learned towards quirks; he was sure about that. He figured it might be something he’d have to undo, but he just wasn’t quite sure how.

“But, as I was saying. I want to apologize to you. And before you try and argue with me about your admittedly ridiculous action,” he stated, red hot embarrassment flooding to Izuku’s cheeks as he asked, “please listen?” at which Izuku nodded.

“I was rude to you before,” All Might began, his expression one of guilt and sorrow, “You have all of the brains of making a hero. I was wrong to tell you you couldn’t.”

 “You told me I couldn’t be a Limelight hero,” Izuku said sheepishly, trying to sound confident despite his anxiety, “Not that I couldn’t be a hero.”

All Might’s sorrowful expression turned into a bright grin. “You caught onto my word choice.”

Izuku’s eyes widened, putting together All Might’s last two sentences as he exclaimed, “Wait! You actually- I wasn’t just-“

All Might started laughing, laying a hand on Izuku’s right shoulder. Izuku held back a wince at the touch as the man got a hold of himself.

“Of course I didn’t mean you couldn’t be a hero!” he exclaimed, his words filling Izuku up with hope, “I mean, you definitely don’t have the body of a hero. No offense, but you are a twig.”

“None taken,” Izuku said, shock still present in his voice. He grabbed hold of his backpack straps, trying to contain the feelings that he did not quite understand.

“But when it comes down to being a hero, a quirk only determines where you would work. It’s nothing more than someone’s spirit and ability that dictates whether or not you can be a hero!”

The feeling of overwhelming hope brought tears to his eyes, and he couldn’t quite stand up right at the strength of the feeling.

“Young man,” All Might started, resolution in his tone as he stated, “you can become a hero. There is no doubt about it.”

The tears fell, and Izuku wasn’t sure how to get rid of them. All Might simply held his shoulder lightly, offering a soft comfort.

“I’ve been wanting to hear those words for a long time,” Izuku explained, rubbing his eyes and chuckling softly in between sniffles, “I didn’t know I’d be such a baby once I finally heard them.”

“It’s quite alright, my boy. There are probably some emotions that need to go with those tears. Just let them out.”

And so, Izuku wept, feeling some of the pain go with it.

I can be a hero. I will be a hero.

Chapter Text

“You want to train me?!”

All Might let out a loud laugh, but Izuku somehow was able to tell that it was not a rude one. Izuku’s tears had quelled, after which the two continued their walk. That had been when All Might told Izuku his offer, causing Izuku’s shock as they were slowly getting closer to Izuku’s apartment.

“Of course I do! Who would I be if I let you attempt to get into a hero school with your form?! That would be setting you up for failure!”

Izuku stuttered, “I’m certain I’d find a way to get stronger! You don’t have to go out of your way. I-“

“Young man…first, what is your name? I probably should have checked your school bag in case you didn’t wake up, but I did not.”

“Oh!” Izuku exclaimed, surprised that he hadn’t told the man his name either and answered, “My name is Midoriya Izuku.”

“Thank you. In this form I ask that you refer to me as Yagi.”

“Of course!” Izuku exclaimed, nodding.

“Now, Young Midoriya. I will admit that training you will be in part to clear my own guilt,” the man said, at which Izuku moved to protest, only stopping as Yagi held up a hand. “I understand you hold no ill will towards me, but I do still feel bad for not just telling you out right. That was ridiculous of me. And, personally I would love to see your growth as you become a hero. You’ll probably become one of the better Underground heroes out there.”

Izuku smiled shyly, rubbing the back of his head as he corrected, “I was actually planning to go Twilight! I felt that would give me a better chance to be able to push for more quirk acceptance while still helping people?” he explained, getting shyer and unsure by the end.

Yagi’s expression morphed into one of confusion, asking, “What do you mean twilight? Is that a term that is used by the common folk?”

Izuku held his hands up and shrugged, moving them in a ‘so-so’ manner as he explained, “Kind of? It just means a hero who has an Underground and Limelight persona. Like how pro hero Midnight is also the underground hero Nightshade.”

Yagi’s eyes widened. “Nightshade is Midnight? How many people know this? Who else did I not know was a twilight hero?”

Izuku paused, halting his walking as well. He didn’t notice Yagi continuing to walk before pausing a few steps ahead of him and looking back. They were right in front of the apartment, coincidentally.

Was it common knowledge? Or was he such a big hero fan that he figured it out?

Thinking about it, Midnight has never outright talked about being Nightshade. Never even hinted at it. Neither had Present Mic about being Songbird. Was it common knowledge?

“I don’t think it’s actually common knowledge,” Izuku corrected, realization setting in as he pointed out, “Midnight has never talked about being Nightshade. I just kind of figured it out.”

Yagi’s expression was one of shocked horror, before a look Izuku didn’t know how to describe passed over. Izuku wasn’t able to process what it meant before Yagi asked:

“Your notebooks. Do you have one I could borrow? The information in it was good and thorough, and I’d like to look at it.”

That was cryptic…

“Sure! I have some finished journals at the house. I can run in and grab one for you. Any particular hero you’re interested in? My analysis may not be that great though.”

A considering look passed over Yagi’s face, and he pondered while holding his chin. His finger pointed as he requested, “May I see the ones for myself and Principal Nedzu, if you have one for him that is?”

Izuku blushed, embarrassed. He had hoped Yagi wouldn’t ask for his own. He just hoped he hadn’t written anything embarrassing. He cleared his throat to hopefully clear his embarrassment, and found that he failed as he squeaked out, “Sure! Nedzu-san’s is a bit old, as I haven’t updated it much since I had a research spiel into UA. I couldn’t find much about him as a pro, but I might research him a bit more knowing that analyzer’s exist now. I wonder how…”

He got stuck in his thoughts, only stopping when Yagi rested his hand on his head. He had flinched a little in surprise, Yagi pulling his hand away at the flinch.

“Sorry, young man. I didn’t mean to startle you,” Yagi apologized earnestly, “You hadn’t responded to me calling your name, so I tried to get your attention the best I could.”

Izuku blushed again, wondering if his blush ever went away in the first place. He rubbed his neck shyly, “Sorry. I get caught up in my thoughts a lot.”

“That’s quite alright!” Yagi affirmed, smiling at Izuku as he explained, “What you were mumbling was fairly intelligent, you just got to the point that I couldn’t understand you. You didn’t know analyzer’s existed?”

Izuku shook his head. “I only found out today when I had yelled at the heroes. That one member of the Baseball hero duo- The Pitcher -said he’d take me as an analyzer. I asked him and he explained.”

Yagi nodded, letting out a soft, “Huh,” before smiling teasingly and explaining, “My boy, Nedzu-kun is the analyzer that if a hero or even the police are struggling, they go to Nedzu-kun.”

Izuku’s balked. “THAT’S SO COOL!” he exclaimed, bouncing, “I’m definitely not getting any sleep tonight.”

Yagi chuckled. “I ask that you attempt at least, as I plan to return the journals to you tomorrow. If you are free tomorrow?” the hero asked, seeming to know the answer.

Izuku’s head nodded violently, exclaiming, “Yeah! I don’t have school tomorrow, so I’m available whenever!”

“Excellent!” Yagi declared before asking, “Would you be willing to meet me at Takoba Municipal Beach Park at 10 am then? Ample time to sleep in for the sake of your research.”

“I can do that, yeah!” Izuku exclaimed, “Wait here and I’ll grab them really quick.”

Izuku barely spared Yagi a glance as he sprinted up the stairs and went in. His mom wasn’t home, so she wasn’t able to question why he had run into his room and then sprinted back out.

“Here you are!”

Yagi accepted the notebooks, smiling as he ruffled Izuku’s hair. Izuku didn’t realize he had nuzzled the hand until the man let go, feeling mortified, but Yagi said nothing.

He simply smiled softly, stating, “I will see you tomorrow! Eat plenty and get a nice rest, alright?”

“I will! Thank you!”

“No need. Goodbye.”

“Bye!”

Chapter Text

“My Bunny! You live!”

Solanum giggled as he was practically tackled by the twilight hero, stumbling with Nightshade as they hugged him tight, rocking the two of them side to side.

“Hi, Shade-san!”

“How often do I have to tell you to drop the ‘san’, Solanum?” they exclaimed, feigning anger that only got Solanum giggling, “If anything, call me ‘Shade-chan’!”

They didn’t expect or want a response. They never did. They instead focused on hugging Solanum and giving him affection.

Solanum wasn’t complaining, and he let them fret over him for as long as they wanted. Their affection always helped him relax, which proved that he was definitely touch-starved.

Well, it was a normal response to be relaxed by affection, but it was different for him. He just wasn’t sure how to articulate that.

“I have a treat for you!” they finally said, pulling away softly as they started digging through their tool belt, explaining, “For making it through your first week of your third year. Want it?”

“Yes! What is it?” Solanum asked, bouncing excitedly despite his subconscious disappointment at them having to let him go to grab it.

“So, Bun,” they said, building suspense, “I got you some mochi!”

Solanum’s eyes widened excitedly, and he had to hold himself back from snatching the container. “Thank you!” he exclaimed, biting into one the moment he got the container open.

Nightshade smiled, looking at Solanum with soft eyes. “Course, Bun.”

They sat together on the roof, eating the mochi together as Izuku bullied them into having some.

“How was your first week?” they asked, seeming to already expect a bad answer.

Solanum’s smile dropped, and he rested his head sideways on his knees as he mumbled, “It was decent until today,” starting to pick at the matcha mochi he was holding as he explained, “I ruined the ruse. I think I hurt him too much.”

Their face fell at that. “Fuck, I’m sorry, Bunny. I know you were trying to protect him,” they lamented, wrapping an arm around Solanum’s shoulders.

“It’s okay. I should have realized. I pushed him away and it’s my fault,” he shrugged, taking a bite of the mochi and changing the topic, “I met someone who wants to train me during the day though. He knows and everything quirk-wise.”

Nightshade clapped excitedly, and Solanum couldn’t help but giggle at the fact that they hadn’t let go of his shoulders to do so.

“Nice!” they congratulated, “Now I know someone will be helping to train you when you’re supposed to be awake!”

Solanum hummed. “He doesn’t know I’m a vigilante though.”

“That works because you technically aren’t a vigilante,” they pointed out, getting another smile out of Solanum.

“True.”

They sat in more silence, looking up at the stars.

“Ugh. Such a sweet sight. I’m getting a cavity.”

Solanum giggled at the deadpan voice, looking over to see Eraserhead standing on the edge of the roof they were on. He couldn’t help instinctively preparing to run though. He trusted the pro, and he was certain Nightshade wouldn’t let him take him into the station anyways. But, the man still wasn’t that high on the list of people he trusted.

“Leave us alone, Eraser,” Nightshade whined, hugging a giggling Solanum closer while combing a calming hand through his hair, “Let me spoil my Bunny in peace!”

He simply snorted, looking at Solanum as he asked, “When are you gonna let them adopt you, kid?”

Nightshade squawked while Solanum went red.

“They wouldn’t want me for a kid,” he said, looking down a little disappointed, “I’m a handful.”

“Hey, none of that,” Nightshade said, grabbing Solanum’s shoulder.

He couldn’t hide his wince from them, and they gave him a look, at which he pulled his arm out of his sweater sleeve and let them see the burn. He had worn a tank-top to avoid irritating it, although the sweater didn’t help.

“Did you already add burn cream?” they asked, going to their toolbelt anyways.

“We’re out,” he admitted, earning a glare that wasn’t directed at him.

“What happened, Solanum?” Eraserhead asked, walking over to stand besides Nightshade to look over their head.

As far as Solanum could tell, Eraserhead knew he didn’t trust him. His small actions like being closer to Nightshade than Solanum told him so. It helped the man earn more trust.

“Bully,” he simplified, letting Nightshade apply the burn cream and put gauze over the burn.

They were soft as they applied it, giving equally soft apologies whenever Solanum so much as hissed.

“You guys have been out of burn cream since the week before school let out, Bun,” Nightshade pointed out.

“Mom may or may not have said that ‘she’s sick of buying burn cream just for me to put it over every injury I get so she’s teaching me a lesson by not getting me any this year’,” he quoted, both of the pro’s frowning at that.

“And you question the idea that I’d want to adopt you,” Nightshade said, earning a shrug from the kid.

“I know she doesn’t act like a mom, but what judge is gonna listen to me complain about that when ‘I should be grateful she doesn’t do anything worse’.”

Nightshade’s face darkened, “If she hits you, tell me. Please,” they near begged, holding the boy’s arm’s softly so he would meet their eyes, “I wouldn’t be able to handle you living with her in that case, kid.”

Solanum kept his gaze with theirs, ignoring how heavy his tongue felt as he said, “I will. I promise.”

He ignored that his next bite of mochi felt like dust in his mouth.

Izuku looked around the beach, noting some of the more fragile looking piles of trash.

“He wants me to clear the beach, doesn’t he,” Izuku thought to himself, jumping at a voice that suddenly spoke behind him.

“He in fact does!” was whimsically said, encouraging Izuku to turn around and see none other than-

“UA Principal Nedzu?!” Izuku exclaimed, looking down at Nedzu and up at Yagi, who was looking slightly worried.

The man smiled shyly at Izuku, his expression seeming to say, “Surprise?!”

“It is I!” Nedzu confirmed, bowing his head in greeting as he asked, “Am I a dog? Bear? Rat? Who knows!”

Izuku stared for a moment, before he realized that he was looking at Izuku questioningly. Which meant-

“You showed him my notebook,” Izuku breathed, putting his hands to his head, “That’s why you sounded so cryptic when you asked to see two of my notebooks. Now I’m gonna be locked up for being a creep-“

“No! No! That’s not why I showed him!” Yagi exclaimed, shaking his hands to calm Izuku, “I showed Nedzu-kun your analysis so he can help you expand on it! You show real promise as an analyzer and I wanted to give you a chance to get even better cause you’re amazing as it is!”

Izuku stared in disbelief, staring at Yagi. Then he looked down at Nedzu. Then back up at Yagi. And again at Nedzu.

“And you agreed?”

Nedzu grinned, simply stating, “No one else has ever accurately guessed what animal I am.”

Izuku froze, blurting, “I was right?! I guessed that when I was ten?? There’s no way-“

Horror spread on Yagi’s face as Nedzu cackled.

“Knowing your age only solidifies my answer!” Nedzu exclaimed, “Would you be willing to repeat it for Yagi-kun?”

Izuku nodded, shuffling his feet anxiously as he shyly explained, “I guessed you were an albino haired stoat, although I figured you may have some seeing issues despite the albinism not being visible in your eyes. And that because of experimentation, specifically assuming a growth hormone from a sun bear, that that’s how you are at the height you are.”

Nedzu hummed, confirming, “Correct! Even on the sight issues!”

Yagi put his head in his hands, muttering, “This may have been a mistake.”

“Don’t be so dramatic, Yagi-kun. I’ll wait for lessons on world domination until his second term at UA.”

Izuku giggled at first, before staring at Nedzu in shock. 

“Wait- What?!”

“Yagi-kun mentioned training you to become a hero and focusing on building your strength for most of this year. As such, he admitted he wanted you to go to his alma mater, but that he was going to leave it up to you.”

“I do want to go to UA!” Izuku blurted, blushing at himself, “But the acceptance rate is .2%?”

“Exactly. As such, in the chance you failed the hero course exam, I would guarantee you a spot in the analysis branch of the support course.”

Izuku spent a moment processing, before asking, “Isn’t that cheating? Also, there’s an analysis branch? How did I never realize?”

“It’s only cheating if the branch were consistently filled, kid,” Yagi explained, finally seeming to shake off his horror, “The analysis branch rarely has kids in it. There was one kid in it during my time at UA. And that was during my third year.”

“Tsukauchi was one of my first students, as well,” Nedzu noted, getting a squawk of shock from Izuku.

“The detective at the Musutafu prefecture??”

“That’s the one!”

Izuku stared in shock. He was doing that a lot but how could he not-

“And joining the analysis branch,” Izuku started, deciding faux confidence may be his only chance to even speak, “if I were to do the not so secret way of earning my way into the hero course through the sports festival, would I no longer get analysis lessons?”

“We would either meet during your free period or find a class you don’t need to replace with your analysis classes!” Nedzu exclaimed, looking excited, “I wouldn’t punish you for working to be a hero, Midoriya.”

Izuku held back a quip at that and bounced excitedly, “I’d love to get analysis lessons from you, Nedzu-san!”

“Perfect. Along with, I have a suggestion for lessons if you would like to take it?”

Izuku tilted his head curiously, encouraging Nedzu to explain.

“I understand that you are currently enrolled in a middle school that is well known for quirk use despite the rules about that, yes? And that because of that fact, you probably experience a fair amount of kids ‘practicing their quirks on you’, yes?”

Izuku nodded, deciding that there was no point in trying to lie to Nedzu, “Daily, yes.”

“Would you like to test out of your year?”

“…They would let me do that?”

“They would let me do that.”

“What would I do during the school year?”

“Study the academic courses of your first year of high school with me as your personal tutor.”

“Why are you being so nice?” Izuku suddenly asked, hugging himself to calm himself. His lungs didn’t seem to want to work as he stated, “I’m-I’m quirkless. You know that, right?”

“I do, yes,” Nedzu agreed, “Yagi-kun let me know. He’s aware that a matter of someone’s quirk doesn’t define their worth to me.”

Makes sense, but still.

“I’m not used to people trying to help me,” he stated, getting a sad look from Yagi and a nod from Nedzu, “And at this moment I’m struggling to believe that Yagi-san didn’t ask you to do this part as well because of his misplaced guilt.”

“This is a surprise to me as well as you, Midoriya,” Yagi stated, “All I asked is that he help you build on your analysis skills. And I feel like my guilt makes sense, but we’re both experiencing the situation, so we’re both biased.”

Nedzu hummed, “When it comes to Yagi-kun’s guilt, I pulled up nearby surveillance footage and witnessed what happened. Along with, I got security footage from Aldera that showed what happened to you in that classroom, and I was able to hear what your bully said.”

Izuku froze, Yagi doing the same. Yagi for a different reason, as Izuku was certain Nedzu had not explained.

Not his fault not his fault- Kacchan was just lashing out- didn’t mean it didn’t mean it-

“A-Yagi-san didn’t know.”

“Either way. To have crushed a child’s dreams, a child who is a member of a group with a high rate? There were a lot of mistakes Yagi-kun made. So, I feel like his guilt is well placed, as well as deserved.”

It suddenly clicked for Yagi, and he facepalmed.

“I left a kid on a roof. Fuck-“

“One who had been suicide baited less than an hour beforehand as well.”

Yagi’s eyes widened, “Who-“

“No!” Izuku yelled, surprising himself, “Yes, my bully probably shouldn’t have said that. I can also start to agree that he deserves to be punished for said action…words-yeah-But-Keep in mind what he grew up surrounded by. If it wasn’t him, it was someone else, and I still want him to have a chance to go to UA.”

“Why would I allow a student like him in my school?” Nedzu asked, but it wasn’t sarcastic, Izuku realized. He was giving Izuku a chance to convince him.

To lie about what happened-

“Because if he’s in your school, you’ll be able to keep an eye on his behavior and punish him accordingly. Along with helping him have a second chance to learn the fault of his actions. I would trust you, someone who has experienced severe bias, to teach him what he did wrong and get him to actually learn from his actions. I’m not sure how other hero schools would react, and so far your only bad egg has been Endeavor.”

“What’s wrong with Endeavor?” Yagi asked, while Nedzu grinned.

“I’ll have Izuku’s first assignment be compiling the evidence to explain why to you. Well, second assignment, considering he passed his first test.”

Izuku’s eyes widened and he grinned, “I convinced you?”

“You did! However, I hope you know I will be putting him in the class of a teacher who has a track record of expelling kids like him.”

“As long as he has a chance is all I ask. If he screws up that chance, it’s his fault.”

“Now, what do you say to my offer?”

Izuku thought for a moment, before looking up at Nedzu with determination.

“I’m in.”