Ch. 1: The Name of a Hero
"Well Midoriya, are you ready?" called out R-rated hero, Midnight.
"Oh, yes." answered Izuku Midoriya, hero in training. Today was the day that Class A of U.A. High get to pick out their hero code names for their internship. Most of Izuku's classmates had generic names that defined their superpowers, or quirks like "Invisible Girl" or "Tailman". Others were clever nods like "Red Riot", "Uravity", and "Froppy". Shoto Todoroki an Tenya Iida jst picked their first names however. Now, it was Izuku's turn to reveal his hero name. He got up in front of the class, took a deep breath, and flipped the board. On it, revealed his hero name:
DEKU
Many of the classmates stared in shock as to why he would pick this name. Katsuki Bakugou, the student responsible for the nickname, was also in shock, though he didn't really show it.
"Really Midoriya?" asked Mineta.
"You sure about that?" questioned Kaminari.
"Yeah man. Remember, that could be your name forever." added Kirishima.
Izuku only stared in silence and decided to reveal his answer. "I'm aware of that. This name has been with me for as long as I can remember. It was always a reminder of how useless I was back then and how I could never amount to anything. This name had given me nothing but pain and suffering and was always used to taunt how I was a loser. It kept reminding me that no matter how I dream of being a hero, I would always be helpless." Many of the classmates were now looking intrigued by his answer, not to mention felt a little sorry for their friend.
"I hated it, but someone important in my life changed that for me. Because of that, the meaning of it changed for me. It gave me hope that I can amount to anything I want. He rose a small smile and continued. I no longer view this as an insult to my hopes and dreams. I now view it as a chance to keep moving forward. A word that doesn't mean 'worthless' or 'helpless', but rather it stands for 'never give up'." At that, Ochako Uraraka smiled and blushed as her friend quoted her impute on the name.
"I shall be known as the Hero for All: Deku." announced Izuku, feeling quite proud of himself. Ochako nodded with a smile at her friend, Bakugou merely looked up in confusion and distaste, while the other classmates felt a swell of pride and comfort in their friend, taking something that hurt him in order to push towards his goal. Midnight smiled at the student in admiration as Izuku went back to his seat, knowing full well that one day, "Deku" will be the name of a hero.
To Be Continued...