[Trigger Warnings: Mentions of torture, blood, eating disorders]
Sorry, this chapter is a little late, I decided sleep was more important.
---
[Third person]
- Room 701 'Private Ward' | 4:20 pm-
The sounds of birds chirping outside Izuku's window made him annoyingly jealous. He just wanted to leave, walk somewhere, fly somewhere, do anything outside this room because no matter how long he looks out the window he knows he can't leave.
He groaned as he turned his attention back to his textbook and started to annotate on little post-it notes the key points about the confusing line of succession in the Japanese line of power throughout history. Why he had to learn this, he didn't know but he honestly just wanted some distraction from his current situation. His hands kept shaking violently as the random waves of pain overwhelmed his arms.
He grumbled as he pushed his books away to cradle his arms, if he even nudged his bandages in certain parts it felt like he was right back to whatever caused the injury. He couldn't walk, barely write, hadn't dared move his wings and he could hardly talk.
He was having different doctors come in and ask about his injuries. He had some kind of specialist dentist come in to check up on his teeth but he couldn't bare the woman touching his jaw. The thought of it just sent chills down his spine. He knew the kind woman wouldn't hurt him but he couldn't not see ... Him.
The smallest things required help and he hated it, he would rather be independent than relying on other people but sometimes you have to let people do their jobs.
Izuku sighed, flinching from his warm breath over the open wound in his gum. He then returned to grumbling about his history work to take his mind away from his pain. He softly mumbled over and over the names that he couldn't remember off the top of his head as he slowly compiled a mental list so he could start to make a graph to help him remember.
It was no surprise when the soft knocks of one of the nurses were unnoticed by Izuku as his mumbling took his full focus. The nurse, who was already accustomed to his patient's unusual behaviour, chuckled as he let himself in for a quick check-up.
He tapped the edge of Midoryia's bedside to get his attention which quickly snapped his attention to him making Izuku flush in embarrassment.
"So-sorry m-mister, I-I tend to m-mumble when-whenever I-" Izuku tried his best to talk but was quickly informed that as good as it was that he was well enough to talk again his vocal cords would heal a lot quicker if he let his voice rest. Izuku nodded. He should learn sign language Izuku thought as the nurse began to efficiently go through his check-up.
"Okay, everything seems to be healing well, we are going to have a professional come in and have a look at your wings tomorrow. Is there anything I can do for you while I'm here?" Izuku shook his head but quickly stopped as a jagged pain shot up his spine. Izuku cursed under his breath and through gritted teeth and a strained smile said he'll just press the call button if he has any issues.
When the nurse left Izuku had never felt more relief, not that he didn't like the nurse. Quite the opposite, he was a very reassuring person. Izuku never really went to hospitals as he rarely got sick but he can say that the nurses have been really kind and helped him whenever he reluctantly asks for it.
Izuku went back to quietly repeating everything he could remember about his textbook as the hours ticked by. And as those hours ticked by Izuku became very aware that he was more sensitive to the smallest noises and disturbances than he had ever been as a vigilante. Every little gust of wind that pushed the window open a tad more, every irregular beat of a machine, every pattern of footfalls that walked anywhere near his door. Paranoia is the word he would use. Distrustful of every little fault. Things that would throw his mind back the hell he escaped from. Escaped isn't a very good word for it, he just got pushed around until they deposited him at the bottom of a lake.
Speaking of, how did he even get found? He thought that Kurogiri would just scoop him up once everything inevitably fell to pieces at the villain's feet. However, Izuku had realised while with the League of Villain, stupid name in his opinion but that really didn't matter when he was chained to a wall like an animal. His throat tightened as his mind wandered back to Shigaraki's sadistic laughter. He frowned, shut his eyes and willed away the memories. He just wanted to forget them and move away to the US or something. Somewhere away from the League. Somewhere really far away from everything.
A creak of an opening door by the stairwell alerted Midoryia to someone approaching his room. His mind spun as he glanced over to the window, always a good escape strategy but not so much when you aren't sure if your wings are even able to move. Izuku would be surprised if his legs even work. One of his legs had felt a little funny since he woke up. He hasn't been able to check but he has a feeling that the bite mark from the Nomu left a bit of an impression.
Izuku cursed himself as the reality of being completely helpless even when in a 'safe' environment. He didn't trust the hospital with his safety, his life yes but not exactly his safety. He couldn't predict when Shigaraki might drop by just to give him a little visit and frankly Izuku was unsure if he would ever be able to sleep soundly alone.
Izuku's anxiety peaked as the footsteps stopped outside his door. He swallowed thickly as he watched the doorknob jiggle before swinging open. Izuku could practically hear his heartbeat skyrocket, mainly because his heart monitor was very loudly conveying that message.
"Hey? What's poppin- hey, wait, are you okay?" Hawks walked in and his smile faltered as he saw Izuku staring at him, his eyes wide and his heart monitor soaring.
Hawks glanced between the vigilante and the equipment he was hooked up to as the heavy reality made itself apparent to the hero. Midoriya's wings were suspended off the ground and wrapped in varying levels of bandages. Hawks saw the recognition in the boy's eyes but it didn't help his heart rate from staying at 143bpm (beats per minute) and rising.
"Hey, it's me. Hawks, I'm not here to hurt you bud." Keigo slowly approached the teenager's bedside, keeping a close eye on the monitors as he held his hand out for Izuku in an attempt to show he meant no harm.
Izuku's mind flashed images of Shigaraki back and forth between what he thought was reality and his past which only caused him to panic more.
Hawks took careful note of Izuku's rapid blinking as if he was trying to get something out of his eye. Was he seeing something?
Izuku grasped his shirt whilst unconsciously hiding his injured hand behind his back as he backed away further. His mind knew that Hawks wouldn't hurt him but something was clawing and biting viciously into his trust.
If Hawks really cared then why didn't he save me? He's a hero, right? Why didn't he help me?
Why did nobody help me when I needed it the most?
Izuku felt his belief in Hawks waver as his flashbacks slowed to a halt and his heart rate started to calm down. Why did nobody come to save him? Was he not worth it?
Izuku glanced down at Keigo's outstretched hand then back up at the honey eyes he once found sweet. Izuku internally scoffed as he listened to his heart rate slow very loudly in his ears, he rolled over onto his side and shut his eyes and pushed away as many negative thoughts as he could.
Needless to say, Keigo was confused, one moment the vigilante is on the verge of having a heart attack and looks like he is about to get stabbed and then the next he just rolls his eyes and rolls away from him.
"... Hey bud, I see your doing better. You looked pretty hideous when they brought you in, not going to lie." Izuku huffed out a displeased noise which showed that he was at least listening. Better than silence Keigo concluded. "But never mind that I heard from a nurse that you're not really supposed to talk so I'm sure you can deal with that right?" Izuku huffed out another response before turning back onto his back with a strained breath. Keigo pulled a chair to Izuku's bedside with an obnoxious scraping noise
Izuku didn't want to face the hero beside him because his head told him not to trust him anymore but a twisting pain in his gut told him that he was being stupid and needed to get over himself. But that feeling was drowned out by the recent memories, it's not the kind of event you can easily forget about.
"Right, um, I would offer you chicken but I heard you can't eat for some reason? Or, actually, it's because of the -um. Well, I'm sure you know why." Izuku scowled as he glanced at the hero who had awkwardly retracted his hand. Izuku knew his stomach wasn't quite right and even then he refused to eat anything the hospital provided. He didn't want to eat even if his stomach growled at the thought. "... So, I heard you'd be ready to leave in about a week if you continue to recover well with the help of the staff's healing quirks." Izuku hummed softly as he stared out the window behind the hero.
Takami was trying to keep the conversation going but he was struggling. He couldn't blame the boy though, he heard about the injuries the vigilante received and to him, it sounded like he had gone through actual torture and he was sure if he should press into what happened just yet.
"Dabi's legal case is going well, Nezu has chimed in with the case, like he said he would, and he's leading the prosecution into a legal trap so he can tie up the case by next Monday. Crispy is way too lucky, though I'm sure he wouldn't be too pleased with what Nezu has in plan for the guy because bounty hunting is looking like the only job he's going to do when it's over." Izuku muttered a response but quickly clamped his jaw shut as his mouth tickled with the strong taste of blood. He cursed himself internally. "What was that?" Keigo couldn't tell what Izuku tried to say so he curiously leant forward with an eyebrow quirked up.
Izuku slowly turned to face the hero as a smug grin pulled at his lips.
"I said..." Izuku smiled even wider when he felt blood waterfall out his mouth as he went to talk. Hawks immediately jumped back and went to call for a nurse as Izuku tutted at his ruined bedsheets. "I-I said that Dabi is a l-lucky bastard and I have a g-good first choice for him to hunt i-if he's taking s-suggestions." Izuku held a hand to his chin as blood continued to trickle out the corners of his mouth. He guessed he somehow put too much pressure on his jaw or something and reopened a wound. Oh, fun.
The growing pain in Midoryia's jaw convinced him that acting smug for no reason wasn't a good idea when he might have just worsened his recovery time. He rolled his eyes as two nurses burst in at Hawks call and he was quickly scolded and shoved out the room.
This was going to be a long week.
***
"What do you mean?" Izuku swallowed, he didn't like this conversation. Not one bit.
"As I just said, there is nothing that can really be done. We don't have anyone with a quirk that has the capabilities of regrowing a limb and we can't reattach something that, in your words, 'turned to dust'." The doctor deadpanned. Midoryia perched himself on the edge of his bed as his bandages had been temporarily removed from his wings to let them breathe. Izuku's wings were in no way well enough to allow the boy to fly but, on the upside, they were a lot lighter on his back. Izuku absentmindedly stared at the sunset as he processed the information.
"..." The doctor sighed at Izuku's silence and continued.
"Look, we can get you a prosthetic ring finger if you'd like." Izuku's ears perked up at the idea. No way was it anyway as cool as a bionic arm but he wasn't up for losing an arm for an upgrade just yet.
"Yeah... Yeah, I'll take it."
"Okay then, I'll come to visit tomorrow for measurements then."
"Got it."
"Goodnight young man."
"Same for you." The doctor left promptly leaving Izuku alone as he stared out the window at the beautiful view. He felt like a bird trapped in a cage. He grimaced. Like an animal.
***
The hastened heavy footfalls of the number one hero were being succeeded by the light footsteps of a panicking woman as they both rushed down the nosy hall as echoed noises from all the different patients bounced around the walls.
"All Might, sir, I understand you're the number one but we highly recommend you don't enter that room, the patient isn't exactly the most cooperative and he's only gotten more aggressive to everyone. Including the staff. Wait, Al-" The doctor stumbled after the fast-paced hero as she held onto her glasses and tried her best to keep pace with the large muscular man.
"Listen, I understand your concern but it isn't needed as I AM HERE!" All Might tried his hardest to reassure the panicking doctor as they continued to progress to the famed troublemaking teen's private ward.
As All Might approached the private ward the anxious ramblings of the doctor drowned out as angry muffled shouts echoed out of a certain room. All Might slowed his pace as he listened to the yelling. The curtains looking to the room were drawn blocking all Might's vision as he eavesdropped.
"I don't care! Do you really think I care about something as small as that? Just give me a prescription or something!" A young male voice barked which earned a response from an older gruff voice.
"You can barely walk- Stop moving! You're going to damage your wings even further! If you keep doing what you're doing and don't let yourself rest you will lose your ability to fly, you may lose your leg it gets infected, again may I add. Hey, don't to- Leave that alone! Sit back down! If you put too much stress on your heart it could just give out!"
"Cry me a damn river! I'm fine, I'll take time off school or something!"
"Sit down! Stop being so stubborn!"
"Fuck off!"
"Don't make me go get the staff to restrain you kid, we will do it if you put yourself or me in danger."
"Like hell I'm letting you tie me down like I'm some kind of rabid dog! I don't want your help!"
"Your stubbornness isn't helping you kid, please don't make me get security again."
"Fuck. Off." All Might stood quietly by the door and watched as it swung open and shut as a doctor in a white coat slammed the door. The man pinched the bridge of his nose as he reached for something in his pocket. Awkwardly, All Might continued to stand there like a student had been told and told to stand outside the classroom. As he stared down his nose at the medical profession and watched as the man slowly realised who was lurking to his side.
The doctor swallowed hard as he started to fear his career's future. He nervously looked up to the hero who could only offer a reassuring smile.
"A-All Might. Wha- what are you doing here?"
"I'm here to see the boy, is everything okay?" The doctor chuckled as he brushed his hair out of his eyes with his rough hands as his eyes fell downcast.
"Well because of HIPAA I legally cannot tell you anything but I will tell you one thing." The doctor pulled his phone out of his pocket as he went to walk by. "We are going to need your strength when we restrain him." All Might, slightly taken aback, watched over his shoulder as the doctor started to phone someone as he walked away.
The hero hummed to himself as he started to wonder how he was supposed to approach this situation. If the kid was being so aggressive with hospital staff then what's the kid going to do when he walks in. He knows the boy already has a strong distaste for him for some unknown reason which the hero hoped to find out as he clicked the door open much to the doctor that had followed him to the vigilante's room.
All Might took a deep breath before pushing the door open and the situation immediately became fully apparent as one of the glass windows was boarded up in a messy job with some cheap MDF. It was awfully cold most likely due to the draft coming in from the broken window. A broken mirror lay leant against the wall as splashes of blood lay uncleaned on the wall opposite the lonesome single bed. A few cameras were positioned around the room and a couple of high tech machines stood by the door as the bed was missing its bedsheets.
All Might looked at the boy sat cross-legged on the bed as his bandaged wings were seeping blood down onto the bare mattress. The yellow halo hung low on the boy's head as one of his horns had a noticeably large crack down the centre.
Izuku heard the door open and immediately groaned as he built up the strength to yell at whoever was brave enough to open that door.
Midoryia rested his chin on his shoulder as he glared at the towering hero that loomed unintentionally creepily in the doorway. Izuku watched as the blonde man looked at everything little thing furnishing the room till they locked eyes.
Toshinori's eyes lingered on the new scar on Izuku's jawline, it went from just below his chin up to his ear in a thin white line. He had awfully dark bags under his eyes and he looked extremely thin, almost like he hadn't eaten for days. His hair had been messily cut where it looked someone had tried to trim back the locks of wild dark green but had stopped halfway. His neck looked like it had been scratched raw and the further the hero looked the more sickly the student looked.
Midoryia narrowed his eyes as the hero continued to stare at him. He didn't like being ogled at. It was uncomfortable. Izuku threw a pillow at the hero which the man easily caught. The hero did a quick double-take as he glanced between the fabric and the student. All Might tried to smile and went to talk but Izuku already muttered a sharp, "Shut up." All Might's smile wavered as he felt a loss for words. He cautiously walked towards the boy who never took his eyes away from the hero but refused to make any kind of eye contact.
"Young man, I am here to ta-"
"You turn down the volume for me? I'm flattered, doesn't take away from the fact I hate you though." Midoryia spat bitterly as he shuffled farther away from the approaching hero.
All Might held his tongue as the difficulty of what he was about to do just slapped him in the face.
"... Okay, I am not going to hurt you young man I just want to talk."
"I don't bite, why does everyone assume I'm going to hurt them as soon as they see me. " Izuku sighed, dragging his gaze away from the hero as he gazed out the window. "So spit out whatever you came here for and leave."
"Okay then, we understand you went through a lot when you were missing so do you mind explaining what happened to you. It doesn't have to be much and you can say it at your own pace." Izuku raised his bandaged hand and the gap between his pinky and middle finger took the hero aback a little as he looked between the injured hand and the boy's eyes as Izuku brought it back to his lap and started rubbing small soft circles on the palm of his injured hand.
" I went flower picking in the mountains with little fawns All Might." Midoryia deadpanned.
"... What?" All Might blinked as he took a seat beside the boy. Midoriya's jaw dropped as he narrowed his eyes at the hero.
"Are you serious? No! Take a swing in the dark All Might and use your brain for two seconds if that isn't too much to ask for. What do you think happened?" Izuku glared at the hero as he subconsciously dug his nails into his bandages causing blood to slowly soak through wrappings.
All Might ignored knew what the boy was implying but he didn't want to believe the awful reality where that happened.
"... Torture?"
"Ding ding ding, we have a winner." Izuku deadpanned again as he stared out the window, again, grimacing.
"... Do you want to ta-" Midoryia tutted before interrupting the hero as he felt himself become more irritable.
"No, no I don't want to talk about the week of actual torture. No, I don't want to explain what I went through because guess what, I'm not so proud of what happened back there." Midoryia growled out as his harsh gaze fell on the hero. All Might felt the atmosphere of the room darken significantly as a small voice at the back of his head told him to leave.
"Young man, I'm always here if you need to talk to someone." The hero smiled the iconic smile that he used against all his harshest foes and to his citizens but his shining smile for the first time in a long time failed to offer any kind of comfort for the boy. In fact, it only aggravated him further.
"I don't want your help. I can deal with this on my own. You failed to help me the first time so I don't know why I expected you to save me the second time. That's on me, believing in a poster boy." All Might felt a dark confusion loom over his head as he stared at the boy who pushed himself off the bed and limped over to the window.
"The second tim-?" Midoryia snapped back before the hero could finish his sentence.
"Don't bother trying to remember, it's in the past now anyway."
"Wait, no, what happened the first time?" All Might pushed making Izuku bare his teeth as his nails clawed into the wooden sill causing his nails to break and bleed.
"Get out." Izuku breathed out as he hung his head, fighting the boiling anger that festered in his gut.
"What was th-" Izuku grabbed his halo and flung it at the hero which sliced straight through his upper arm and smashing into the wall with a loud crash. The hero recoiled in pain, inhaling sharply, clutching his arm as blood spat out onto the clean floor. Toshinori stepped back, his eyes wide as he saw the utter hatred in the boy's eyes.
"Get the hell out of my room!" Izuku barked as he snarled at the hero, red sparks flickering at his fingertips as he glared daggers into the number on the hero's soul. His tail swung viciously back and forth as Izuku felt his built-up resentment start to break through his walls.
All Might pursed his lips shut tight. The best thing to do was to just leave, it was obvious enough that the boy wasn't going to talk. His smile fell as pain rocketed up and down his arm. Warmblood soaked the hero's shirt and leaked through his fingers as he turned to leave. Midoryia watched the hero exit and quietly shut the door behind him were shouts of alarm from different staff members erupted.
Izuku quietly waited for his halo to dislodge itself from the wall and watched as plaster peeled off as it zipped back to its spot just above his head, dust sprinkling his hair. The boy stood silent as he rest his back against the wall and slid down to the floor and started mentally preparing himself for the angry mob of staff coming to restrain him. His wings curl around him as he quietly whispered to himself that this is better than the League. Anything is better than Shigaraki.