"i mean what would you say to him, todoroki?" midoriya asks as he looks at unlit logs with a frustrated expression.
todoroki stays silent for a moment before he speaks up, "it depends. to have a complete stranger try to change your mindset sounds like a pretty irritating conversation. what matters, are actions. you have to show him what you're trying to prove. if you're going to rely on words alone, then they better be incredibly powerful. what you say doesn't matter near as much as what you do."
midoriya stares at todoroki with a shocked expression before he thinks back on all might's words about how his actions back at the sludge incident inspired him.
midoriya smiles small and looks back at the unlit logs. "you're right. it's crazy, y/n told me the exact same thing. your advice was very similar to what she told me earlier." he says.
"if two people tell you the same thing, you should probably take it and run with it." todoroki says. midoriya nods "yeah, you're right. thank you, todoroki."
"of course. also midoriya." todoroki says, making midoriya look up at him.
"about y/n-"
the two boys turn their heads when they hear a yawn. they see you yawning as you walk towards your classmates who are already eating. you just got out the shower and decided to throw on a plain black sweater crop top with dark gray sweats and your iconic white sneakers, your hair in a low bun. (if you can't do that, imagine something loose for tonight :)
"hey y/n! cute outfit!" you hear mina compliment. "thanks, mina." you say as you throw your hands behind your head.
you make your way to todoroki and midoriya and crack your neck "hey you two." you say. both boys nod at you as you yawn again.
"hi y/n. tired?" todoroki asks.
"i want nothing more than to sleep." is all you say as you rub your eyes. the two boys are silent as you start grabbing food, humming a tune.
you go to pull out your phone when you realize it's not in your pocket "damn.. i left my phone back at the dorms." you whisper.
"what was that?" midoriya asks. you sigh in annoyance "i left my phone. i'll be back." you say before you walk away.
you continue to hum a tune as you walk back to the dorms, stuffing your hands in your pocket. you feel the breeze hit you as the sound of leaves crunching fills your ears.
you stop when you see kota wandering around the girls dorm room and you raise an eyebrow "what are you doing at the girls' dorms?" you ask.
kota slightly jumps before turning to you. he huffs and looks away "what's it to you?" he sasses.
you stare at him blankly "well first, you're a boy. and you're what, five? do they just let you wander wherever? these are woods." you say.
kota stays silent before scoffing "i was trying to find mandalay." he shortly answers. you hum as you start walking to the dorms. "well i don't think she'd be over here." you answer as you pass kota who just stays silent after that.
"why do you wanna become a hero?"
you stop in your tracks as you process his question. "to protect people" you answer.
"but why? you'll die." kota says in anger. you straighten your back as you don't turn to him. "even if i do, it'll be in vain." you say.
"that's stupid..." kota says. you turn to face him and stare at him "so you're calling your parents stupid?" you ask.
kota tenses up as you say that "you know too?" he asks. "yeah." you shorty answer.
"they left me..." kota says. he then turns to you and glares at you "they left me! i'm all alone.."
'if only you knew that i was alone too. still am'
"you know they left for a good reason, right?" you say. kota's glare fades for a quick second before it hardens again. "what's that supposed to mean?" he yells.
you stare at him for a moment before looking up at the sky, taking a deep breath. "listen kid, i would be going against my own advice if i were to dump some sorry words onto you. just let someone show you. let them open your eyes and make you realize why heroes do what they do." you say.
kota's glare disappears as he stares at you. "it can be tonight, tomorrow or the next year. you'll eventually know why we do what we do. there'll be that someone who will show you." you say.
you take another deep breath before looking down at the small kid with a blank expression. "maybe that person will be me. who knows." is all you say before you turn around and walk to the dorms.
꧁꧂
"it's time for an awesome test of courage! we're gonna win!" mina cheers as kirishima, kaminari, sero and sato cheer in the background.
"not so fast. it pains me to say this, but the remedial class will be having extra lessons with me tonight." aizawa's bored voice rings out.
all five of their expressions drop as they walk behind aizawa with depressed auras. you shake your head as you stuff your hands back in your pockets.
"okay! so class b is going to start as our scarers. when they're in place, class a will lead in pairs every three minutes. there are tags with your names on them at the end of the route. your goal is to collect those! now those who are scaring aren't allowed to make physical contact with the pairs. use your quirks to scare others, got it?" pixie-bob explains.
"the winners are the most creative students who make the most people piss their pants!" tiger adds.
"did we really need that visual?" jirou says in disgust.
"alright! everyone draw to see who your partners will be!" pixie-bob as she holds up multiple strips of paper.
everyone grabs a piece of paper and start to group up with their pair. you grab a strip of paper and flip it to see the number 8.
you look around to see everyone paired except a single green-haired boy. you smile small as you make your way to midoriya.
"izuku. i take it your number 8?" you ask. said boy turns to you and nods, flipping his strip of paper that indeed shows the number 8.
"hm. how convenient." you say as you flip your strip with your pointer and middle finger. midoriya's eyes widen as a smile breaks out onto his face "we're together! that's a relief."
you nod as you stuff the small strip of paper in your pocket, standing next to midoriya. the first set of pairs already went through the woods and due to the blood curdling screams, you assume class b is doing a good job at scaring.
suddenly, there was black smoke being produced from the woods that caught multiple people's attention. some even started sniffing and had confused looks on their faces "do you guys smell that?" someone asks.
all of a sudden, pixie-bob was being lifted in the air before getting thrown to the bushes near the woods. everyone backed up as they looked around for the source of the attack.
"first, let's get rid of these feral cats." a man said as he placed a block of cement against pixie-bob's head.
"yeah" another responded. a lizard man who looked to resemble stain. "why the heck are there villains here?!" mineta asked as he steps back.
you and midoriya make eye contact as you both start to back up as well. midoriya's face flashed realization then fear as he started whipping his head around. "where's kota?!"
your eyes widen as you also start to look around for the child. by the time you look back, midoriya is already running into the woods "izuku! where are you going?!" you ask.
before you can get an answer, more screams are heard, making you turn back to the villains. "how are you doing this evening, u.a high school?" the lizard asked. "we are part of the vanguard action squad of the league of villains." he explains.
your eyebrows furrow as you continue to step back. "i should crush this kitties head. how 'bout it? should i?" the villain with red hair and sunglasses says.
"you get away from her!" tiger yells. "now hold on, bis sis mac. you too, tiger." the lizard interrupts. "when deciding if someone should live or die, we must be careful that we're abiding by stain's principles." the lizard says.
"you're criminals! the woman laying there is named pixie-bob. she's a pro hero who's saved countless lives! she's giving her all for these young heroes, pushing them to reach their full potential! what give you such a reason to cut her life short?!" tiger yells.
"they're villains. they don't care." you say as you get into a defensive position. this causes the villains to look at you. the two study you for a moment before looking at each other with questionable looks.
they start whispering to each other which makes you narrow your eyes. "what the hell are you whispering about?" you ask, starting to get impatient.
"tiger! i've talked to everyone else. trust the safety of the other students and ragdoll. you and i will stay here. we'll hold them off as they all return to camp!" mandalay instructs.
you feel the ground slightly shake and you look behind you to see dust in the distance. you narrow your eyes. 'that's where izuku ran off too. there might be a villain. that means he's facing him alone.' you think.
you don't even think twice before you set off running into the woods.
꧁꧂
"sorry.. for blowing you away as well." midoriya says through gritted teeth.
kota looks back at him and sees that midoriya caught his shirt with his teeth. midoriya pulls him back to the surface and starts looking around.
kota looks back at him and his eyes widen at the heavy damage that's been dealt to him.
'why....?'
"let's get back to camp. it's not far from here." midoriya shakily says.
dust forms, making midoriya turn his head slightly and his heart drops when he sees the villain he thought he took out stand up.
'no way.. it can't be! i was at 100%... it was the same as all might's power.' midoriya thinks in fear.
"that punch was too obvious. but that wasn't bad, midoriya!" muscular says as he slowly starts to walk towards midoriya and kota.
"get away!" midoriya yells, his arm bruised and his head bleeding. muscular ignores him, continuing to walk to him "nah. i feel like attacking all of a sudden." the villain says.
'it's no good. what should i do?' midoriya thinks as he grits his teeth in frustration.
suddenly, a large surge of lightning comes down from the sky, striking muscular. midoriya and kota's eyes widen as the villain in front of them gets electrocuted.
'that move... it's from-'
a figure lands on the ground as dust forms around them. muscular recovers and grunts in pain "what the hell-" he gets cut off as he gets kicked from behind, sending him flying into a wall.
you take a deep breath as you look at muscular who starts to get up. you look at midoriya and kota's shocked expressions. "y/n..." midoriya trails off.
"it's fine. we're in this together now." you say to midoriya. you look behind him and see kota staring at you with a scared expression.
"so a little girl swoops in to try and save the day, huh? well too bad it ain't gonna happen." muscular says as he stands up. you glare at him as you keep your quirk active. "damn villain. why the hell are you even here?" you ask in annoyance.
"how should i know? i just want to fight." muscular says as he starts walking towards you. you stand your ground, trying to act unfazed while on the inside, you start to freak out. 'kota's here. i need to protect him first. what the hell do i do?'
"as long as i can stretch my wings and unleash my quirk, i don't care." muscular says. you scoff "villains never have true intentions. they only want to hurt people and cause destruction. well that's not happening tonight." you declare as your eye starts to glow.
you narrow your eyes as muscular puts on some eye cover and glares at you. you look behind him to see midoriya ready to jump at him.
you take a slow breath as you try to hold your ground. muscular takes a swing at you but you easily dodge, seeing kota quickly getting on midoriya's back.
the ground starts to shake as you land on the rock wall, quickly planting your feet and jumping off of it. "what kind of power..." you trail off in disbelief.
muscular turns around and quickly charges at you again. you barely escape as you jump away again, landing farther away from the villain. 'shit. he's fast and powerful. how the hell are we supposed to take this guy down while protecting kota?' your mind starts to go wild as you dodge yet another attack.
the rushing winds makes you lose your momentum and you go skidding across the ground, feeling rocks scrape your skin. you grunt as you conveniently land in front of midoriya and kota.
"y/n, are you okay?" midoriya asks as he bends down to you. you say nothing as you start to cough. you attempt to get up while the dust blinds muscular.
'if we get back to camp, mr. aizawa will be there. if mr. aizawa can erase his quirk, then we might have a shot.' midoriya thinks as he watches your struggling figure.
muscular laughs as he charges at you again. your arm gets grabbed and midoriya jumps away, taking you and kota with him. he lands as kota gets off his back. he lets go of your arm and you stumble as you try to stand straight 'that one hit already fucked me up. this isn't good.' you think.
"we have no choice... we have to defeat this guy right here, right now." midoriya says to you. you nod as you feel your body start to hurt "yeah. we can't risk letting this guy get to anyone else."
"we have to save him... izuku." you say. midoriya nods as you both think of kota who's shaking in his shoes behind you.
both of your eyes flash determination as you stand straight. "stay back, kota." midoriya warns. "when you get the chance, run back to camp, you hear me?" you add.
"don't tell me you're... it won't work! we have to run!" kota protests. "it's fine." midoriya says as you both activate your quirks. muscular turns and smirks when he sees you and midoriya together.
'one for all, 100%!' midoriya thinks. you feel your lightning pump through your veins and into your legs as you prepare to attack.
"detroit..." midoriya starts as you both get ready. you both charge at the villain and reel back your arms and legs.
"SMASH!" midoriya finishes as you punch and kick at the same time. the wind starts to blow things back and you feel the terrain under you start to crack.
'keep going y/n. you have to!' you think as you grunt in pain, keeping your attack full.
"what's wrong? that was weaker than before!" muscular yells. "i will not let him past me!" you hear midoriya yell out. you stay silent as you feel your leg start to burn in pain.
"run... dammit!" you yell out to kota who you know is still behind you two. "RUN!" you and midoriya yell at the same time.
'these kids.. man they're the best!' muscular thinks with a wicked smirk. he starts to add more power into his attack, making the ground below you crack more.
you and midoriya continue to hold your own as you output more power into your attack. it's a huge blow out as you and him yell out.
"shut up!" midoriya yells, screaming in agony and frustration. you also yell out as you feel your legs start to give in.
"why...?" kota asks as he's forced to watch you two fight for your lives. muscular grows even stronger, is that's possible. "show me your blood!" he yells, putting more pressure on the two of you.
you and midoriya have your backs to the ground, continuing to push against muscular. "I'M GONNA CRUSH YOU!" muscular yells in excitement.
the ground breaks again, scraping your back. you feel yourself start to lose consciousness from the lack of air and you feel your eyes close in defeat.
that is until water splashes muscular. he adverts his focus to kota who threw water on him, letting you and midoriya take a huge inhale. you both start to pant heavy as kota yells out in despair.
your eye glows as you feel your quirk start to recharge. you look at midoriya who grabs your hand and stares at you with his quirk active. "izuku..." you breathe out.
midoriya shushes you, staring into your eyes. "our move. that blast." you manage to catch his strained voice and your eyes widen in realization.
you try to steady your breathing as you continue to look into midoriya's eyes, feeling your quirk recharge. it starts to grow more powerful as you and midoriya push against muscular.
"as if, we'd let you kill him!" midoriya yells. you both stand up with your hands still interlocked. this time, you also punch with midoriya instead of your normal kick.
you start to yell out in pain as you feel your quirk overload. it grows stronger and stronger and you grit your teeth. "dammit.." you breathe out. 'how much more.. can i take..' you think as you feel yourself about to burst.
you yell out as your quirk hits its final point. with midoriya's hand still interlocked with yours, a huge blast blows like it did yesterday. it sends muscular flying and he slams into the wall harshly.
you feel midoriya let go of your hand as you start to lose your stance. kota stares at you two in disbelief as you and midoriya cough out blood.
'just let someone show you' your words ring in kota's mind as he watches you cough up more blood on the ground and midoriya stand up straight.
'let them open your eyes and make you realize why heroes do what they do.'
you start to get up as well, feeling blood drip from your head and onto the ground. you attempt to keep yourself from passing out as you place your hands on your knees.
'there'll be someone who will show you.'
you fully stand up, feeling your legs grow back their strength. you continue to pant heavy as you spit blood out your mouth.
"why..." kota trails off, looking at you and midoriya who finally stand straight.
'maybe that person will be me.'
kota starts crying as midoriya yells out. you just trying to steady your breathing.
"my heroes....." the small child whispers with tears flooding his eyes.