Idea: Villain izuku (He walks straight into his father's arms after All Might leaves him on the roof)
Welcome back, everyone!
More angst for ya'll in today's chapter.
I am so sorry-
Anyways...
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TW // Suicidal thoughts and themes, probably swearing, angst
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"Forget it, he'll never be a hero. Better to find out now than later, I guess". It stung. His classmates, one of Bakugo's followers, words embedded themself deep into his mind as the small green-haired boy stood facing the windows of the run-down classroom as he was staring intently at his red shoes. These damned shoes that quirkless people like him have to wear since they are seen as "underdeveloped" by society. They were the curse by which the quirkless could identify each other but also be belittled by those knowing about their meaning.
Thankfully, many people didn't even bother learning about the quirkless since they were a dying breed anyway. Now, you might be confused and question yourself: "But what about the 20% of quirkless people in the world?". Well, in Japan, a good 99% of the quirkless citizens, which make up about 0.5% of the percentage of the world, are over the age of 60 years and considered less rare in their former years, not as targeted as the remaining 1% of individuals bearing the "curse of being weak". Harsh, isn't it? But this is the sad reality of today.
Midoriya knew that, he knew that no one would ever stand up for him other than his Momma. She was the only one he had standing behind him, even if she didn't support his dreams of becoming a hero. Still, he tried to hold his head high and-! The sudden halting of footsteps made the anxious boy perk up once more, ignoring the sharp stinging sensation on his right shoulder. The exact shoulder where Bakugo had just moments before pressed down his hand and activated his quirk only to burn, burn, burn
BURN
BURN HIM AGAIN-
Hearing the lackey's confused grunts, Midoriya could only guess that Bakugo had stopped to throw some last damaging words at him to "finally give up", to "realize that he would never be able to become a hero and that he was destined to forever stay in his shadow as nothing but a mere pebble", a stepping stone for the great Bakugo Katsuki with his oh-so-perfect quirk. He despised it. He wanted to prove that he was so much more than just a stepping stone, someone that was disposable, someone weak.
,,Y' know...". Hunching his shoulders higher up as the ash-blonde spoke up, Midoriya kept his gaze fixated on his shoes, gritting his teeth as he prepared to just blend out his former childhood friend's hurtful words. He had already heard so many insults and creative ways for him to just disappear out of everyone's lives to not take up any more precious space and oxygen, that he was certain that Bakugo's words would not shatter him more than he already was. Oh, how naive he is.
Because those words that Bakugo was about to spit at him would haunt him forever. Lingering in the back of his mind as he fell further and further into darkness. The words would break his morals and twist him in such a way that he could never be repaired.
,,If you really wanna be a hero that badly there might be another way".
Freezing in his position, the freckled boy blinked down at the ground in confusion, unsure as to what the ash-blonde was trying to achieve by saying this. Maybe he was establishing a false sense of security? Or maybe-
,,Just pray that you'll be born with a quirk in your next life and take a swan dive off of the roof of the building!".
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Pray that you'll be born...
Born with a quirk in your next life.
Take a swan dive
Swan dive off of the roof of the building!
Swan dive
Next life
Swan dive
off of the roof
Swan dive
Swan dive
S̶W̶A̶N̶ ̶D̶I̶V̶E̶
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If you would ask him how long he had been standing in the classroom, staring blankly at his shoes, his bright red shoes, his label of being a quirkless person, he would not have an answer for he does not know. Midoriya was just so utterly tired, broken, betrayed even. This was the first time Bakugo had joined in on the suicide baiting. He couldn't help himself as he felt something deep inside him crack and crumble, barely holding together anymore as his head was carefully blank, devoid of any thoughts.
Was he in a state of shock? Probably. Did he care though? Midoriya did not know. He was too exhausted to cry, too exhausted to lash out or maybe even break something. He was tired. So he waited for his classm-... his bullies to leave the school grounds before finally moving, grasping the straps of his yellow backpack tightly as he approached the fish pond in which his destroyed notebook floated. ,,My notebook is not fish food". He mumbled, his voice hoarse and quiet.
His notebook was pretty roughed up and the water damage had smeared most of his entries but he would figure out how to decode and transfer them eventually. He'd simply start all over again, like always. His hands trembled as he glared down at the soggy book in his hold, his lip quivering while he clumsily fought the growing feeling of rage in his gut. What was he doing wrong? Was it because he was born quirkless?
Starting to begin his way home on a different route than usual, Midoriya let his thoughts run free, his viridian eyes narrowed at the ground as a frown pulled at his features. No. It wasn't his fault that he was born this way. It was society's fault. All of it. They were taught that the quirkless were worth less than them. That they were a burden in their "gifted world". It made Midoriya want to curl up and laugh at all of the hypocrisy.
200 years ago when quirks first showed up they were the ones seen as abnormal, as wrong, as monsters. But now? Research into space exploration and further expeditions down into the depths of our oceans were halted in favor of the arising quirks. Humanity was evolving backward and they were too blind to see. The greenette ground his teeth together silently, stopping under a narrow passageway as he stared blankly at a spray-painted wall showing some kind of gang logo.
,,Why do I even care anyway?". Midoriya dejectedly mumbled before promptly slapping himself across the face. ,,No! What are you thinking, Deku? These thoughts are no good for a future hero! Be like All Might and-!". The sound of something metal rattling snapped the greenette out of his thoughts, redirecting his attention to the sewer top that flew open in front of him. Staggering back, his face blanched when he realized what was emerging out of the sewers. "Oh no".
A person- no. A monster made out of green sludge rose from the ground, his entire body except for his eyes and teeth seemed to be made out of that strange goo, which Midoriya could only guess was his quirk. ,,God damn All Might. Chasing me all the way through the sewers!". Wretched the person out of slime, not yet taking notice of the middle schooler. Backing away from the stranger, Midoriya clutched his notebook close to his chest with shaking hands, his breath growing erratic.
"Please, not today, not like this-". The poor boy couldn't help his rapidly spiraling thoughts, knowing that with his luck he'd be as good as dead. No hero would find him down here. He slowly backed away further and further, silently cursing his trembling legs when suddenly the monster turned around, his yellow eye now resting on him as its snarl morphed into a twisted grin. ,,What do we have here? A medium-sized meat cloak?". Midoriya froze, his heart lurching up to his throat as he gaped at the villain in front of him.
Before he could even react, the sludge reached out and completely enveloped him in a slimy, suffocating cage. Gurgling and flailing wildly to get the villain off of him, he felt tears prick his eyes as his entire body got thrown into fight or flight mode. He needed to get out! He couldn't just die here! What would happen to his Momma if he died now? "Think Deku! I just saw him a few seconds ago, any weak spots? Disadvantages? How could I use his form against him?" Midoriya tried to desperately analyze the situation but the shock along with the disgusting feeling of goo being forced down his throat and into his lungs was too much for him to handle.
Meanwhile, the monster was happily babbling something about how big of a help he was being and that he was so glad that he had been down here, resulting in something deep inside of the greenette flip and shattering. This was the first time in probably 10 years that someone told him that they were excited to see him, and that he was being useful. It hurt and it tore into his mind as his vision began to blur. He was going to die here. Alone. Suffocating because of this villain. A villain who was grateful for his "help". So he stopped. His struggling ceased as he quietly accepted his death. Would Kacchan finally be proud of him? Sure, he hadn't jumped off of the roof but he still died!
It didn't matter because it was over. The pain would finally stop. And society would lose another waste of space.
No one would miss him except for...
"I'm sorry Momma".
A sudden loud bang followed by muffled shouts hit his ears as he was launched backward with the villain, feeling himself hit a wall and fully slip into unconsciousness. The last thing he saw was the silhouette of a tall, muscular man in blue, red, and white with a tinge of yellow.
,,All... Might?"
His vision went dark.
...
Midoriya's entire body ached, his lungs feeling like they were set on fire as his throat cramped, making it hard to breathe. Was he dead? No, he could still feel the pain all over along with the wet feeling of the sludge... The sludge! He had been attacked by a villain and almost died. But who- the sensation of someone smacking his face was brought to his attention as he lurched upwards, coughing out slime and remains of the villain that had tried to force itself into his lungs. What...?
The stinging sensation of someone hitting the side of his face once again pulled him back into reality, his mind still trying to wrap itself around the situation. ,,-hey? Hey! Ah-". Slowly forcing open his heavy eyelids, the greenette's blurry vision fixated on the man leaning down to him. It took him a few seconds to realize just who was standing directly in front of him and gave the poor boy quite a shock. His idol, his hero- the number one hero of Japan had saved him from the sludge villain!
,,You're finally awake- good". All Might rumbled as he took a step back from the panicking fanboy. Midoriya was having trouble comprehending the moment, his mouth hanging open as he stared up at the hero before snapping up, word-vomiting dozens of "thank you's!" and "Ohmygoshit'sAllMight"s as he scrambled to grab his notebook for the pro-hero to sign. ,,No need to thank me, young one! It is my duty as a hero, after all!" The blonde hero laughed his iconic laugh and Midoriya almost fainted once again as he saw that All Might had already signed his notebook.
,,S-Still- thank you so much All Might s-sir! It's an honor! Ah- If I may ask, what happened to the villain..?" The green-haired boy asked curiously, turning his head to the spot where the slime villain had first caught him, taking notice of the slowly drying spot that remained on the stone floor. ,,Oh?- Right, I have collected his body and contained him in this bottle here-" The hero held up a soft drink bottle which was filled with green sludge up to the brim, "-so do not worry. Now, if you'd excuse me, I'll have to safely deliver him to the police station to be taken care of!". All Might answered as he readied himself for take-off.
Midoriya being Midoriya of course decided that it'd be a good idea to latch onto the hero's leg since he still wanted to ask him a few questions, it's not like you get saved by the number one on a daily basis, after all! All Might realized too late that he had the middle schooler hanging on his leg and jumped off, almost pushing the boy off mid-air once he noticed him. Landing on a nearby roof, All Might immediately began to scold Midoriya for his reckless behavior only to promptly deflate and scare the already traumatized boy half to death for the second time this day.
This led to the pro hero sitting down with a deep, exhausted sigh and explaining to Midoriya, a scrawny middle-schooler he had only met maybe 15 minutes prior to this, how he had gotten seriously injured about eight years ago in a fight and lost his stomach along with lasting damage to several of his vital organs. Midoriya could only stand in disbelief as his idol told him all of this, his stomach churning at the disturbing mental image his mind provided him upon hearing the explanation.
Rendered completely speechless at his hero's words, Midoriya blinked down at his red shoes. How was he supposed to respond to this? He now carried the secret of the number one on his shoulders, now knowing how easy it would be to take the hero out. How one could destroy the carefully balanced system of peace with this knowledge and throw the nation of Japan into chaos? It unsettled him. But still, he had a question he had to ask his idol. Hunching up his shoulders, the green-haired boy fixated his emerald-green eyes on electric blue ones as he opened his mouth.
,,All Might, sir...? Do you think that... someone powerless q̶u̶i̶r̶k̶l̶e̶s̶s̶ w̶o̶r̶t̶h̶l̶e̶s̶s̶ could become a hero? Someone like me?".
The answer he received to his question, the question that meant so much to him, his kin, his people- it made him fall into despair.
,,Pro heroes are always having to risk their lives. Some villains just can't be beaten without powers.
So no,
I honestly don't think you could become a hero without a quirk".
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,,... Ah... I see". His body felt heavy. It was like he was about to collapse onto the ground, unable to stop the tiny spark of hope he had protected for so long from flickering, before going out and leaving nothing but darkness behind. It hurt. His head was spinning- ,,I... I'm sorry for bothering you, then...". His heart was aching. ,,There are still other ways you could help- "take a swan dive off of the roof-", maybe you could try becoming a police officer?". His lungs were burning-
He couldn't even process All Might's last words as he was left on top of the roof, the steel door falling close behind the pro hero's retreating form. It took him a few more seconds to catch up with his brain, not realizing that as soon as the hero had left he had crashed to the concrete floor, his eyes stinging with tears as the feeling of not being able to breathe returned once again, etching away at his lungs as he fought for air.
His idol, the number one hero he had always looked up to, the star of Japan, and their savior had, without even noticing, just brutally crushed the trembling boy's last spark of hope, his fragile dreams that he had so desperately clung to even though everyone told him to just give up. And he finally cracked. He finally let go and crumbled to the ground, his tears steadily flowing down his face as his throat burned and itched.
He couldn't do this anymore. Everything just hurt hurt hurt hurt HURT-
And it would never stop as long as he was the way he was. U̶s̶e̶l̶e̶s̶s̶,̶ ̶b̶r̶o̶k̶e̶n̶,̶ ̶d̶i̶s̶p̶o̶s̶a̶b̶l̶e̶.̶
"Maybe Kacchan-... Bakugo was right after all". The greenette wondered silently, dully staring at the rusted railing a few meters away. "I have no place in society". Even though his body protested, he raised himself off of the dirty floor, slowly limping over to the edge of the building. The phantom pain of the burn on his shoulder shot through him as he rested his bruised hands on the cold railing, staring down into an empty, dirty, and dark alleyway.
Once he would do this he'd no longer be in the way of anyone. He would no longer be a distraction, a bother. His mother would finally be happy again and maybe his Dad would return! They could have a restart and become the family he always wanted to have. The family he so desperately wants to be part of. But he knows as long as he is quirkless he is unable to achieve such a thing for it can only exist in his ridiculed fantasies.
A light breeze rushed past him, softly combing through his wild curls as his tears dried against his skin. Society is unbalanced, unfair, and ruthless towards those who did not meet certain requirements. Certain people such as himself. He knows that much. So maybe in his next life- He slid off his shoes and carefully set down his yellow backpack next to them- he would have a strong quirk to help the weaker- He swung his feet over the railing, leaning toward the edge as he felt the wind pick up- Maybe. Just maybe, he would be enough and make the world right. Make the world fair-
He closed his eyes, exhaling softly as he let go of the railing, sun rays warming his trembling body for probably the last time- And he would use all of his collected hate, his rage, and frustration to bend society, to correct unfair laws, and to establish peace. No matter who dared to step in his way he would make sure to overcome them and be the beacon the helpless and wounded so desperately sought. A shaky, pained smile ghosted over his lips as he shuffled forward, now standing directly at the edge of his new life.
"This is it."
So he let go.
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A sudden harsh tug at the back of his burned school uniform got him to stumble back with a surprised yelp, effectively getting him away from the edge. His eyes shot wide open as he attempted to whirl around to catch a glimpse of who had pulled him back only to be met with another yank on his uniform. Unable to resist the sheer power of the tug, he toppled back against the railing with a clank. Midoriya had no time to react as he was abruptly surrounded by strong, firm arms that swept him up and over the old railing before being dragged into a muscular chest.
His breathing hitched as he flailed helplessly once again, remembering the sludge villain that had attacked him half an hour ago. ,,H-Help-" He cried weakly, his throat dry and his voice hoarse from screaming. Who was this? Did All Might come back to get him? Was it one of the building's residents? A pitiful whine wrung itself out of his chest as he defenselessly shook his head. ,,Please- please just let me die-!". The sharp inhale of air from his capturer hit Midoriya's ears as he was pressed further against the person, a large hand untangling itself to settle down on his messy curls.
,,Oh my sweet, precious emerald. Who dared to do this to you? Shhh, my dear, it is all right now". The deep, baritone voice of someone hauntingly familiar got through to the struggling greenette, who immediately stilled in shock. A satisfied hum rumbled in his captor's chest, the crushing hold on him relaxing slightly as his other hand continued to soothingly comb through his hair. ,,You're safe now, Izuku". Fresh tears stung Midoriya's eyes as he managed to twist his head just a little to catch a glimpse of snow-white hair.
,,Papa's here now".
His lip trembled as the first, choked sob rattled through his body, shaking him down to his core. Before, he had cried silently to avoid any attention but now? He was full-on sobbing, gasping for air as he reached out to cling to his father's towering figure. And his father did not push him away, instead, he curled around his son in a protective manner and buried his head in his son's hair, murmuring soothing words to him to calm him down. ,,You've been hurt so much, my poor gem. I'm here now and I'll never leave again".
Izuku could only cry harder, his shattered world lying around him in pieces as he held onto his father like a lifeline, scared that he'd disappear if he let go. ,,It's not fair". He hiccuped pitifully into his father's suit. ,,I know". His father sighed quietly, squeezing his son carefully as he raised his head out of Izuku's curls. ,,They've hurt you so much, haven't they? Do you wish to change it? Reform society?". Izuku sniffled, nodding silently against his father's chest, his throat no longer letting him produce any words.
,,Then come with me, emerald. Together we will bring change into this corrupted system". The greenette raised his head up at his father, meeting his blood-red eyes with his own viridian ones. He wanted to ask "But how?" but was unable to form the words. So he let it be, reaching out to wordlessly take the outstretched hand his father was offering him. His father smiled down at him, a smile that made something in Izuku's frail soul flip and flutter, smiling back as a result.
Bakugo and All Might's words didn't matter anymore. He was with his father and his father would keep him safe. So he peacefully let himself get pulled in by his father, taking the place beside him as the entirety of the world was shaken up and broken apart only to be put back together again.
It seems that he didn't need to be a hero to change the world after all.
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Aaaand we're done! Wooo!
My keyboard still isn't repaired so that's a pain.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'll see you in the next one!
God, I'm tired.
(Art by me)
:D
Words: 3753
Next up: 11 - The grand reveal
26th.04.2022