It happened, as most tragedies do, on a perfectly sunny day.
Izuku was out on patrol in the city, ever vigilant. Now an intern who was rapidly growing in popularity, "Deku" was hailed as the next All Might, a shining figure of power and justice.
As he bounded from rooftop to rooftop, scouring the bustling streets below, Izuku went through his mental checklist of possible threats. There had been a prison break recently: a villain by the name of Impetus, an old enemy of All Might. A few surges in crime were occurring in parts of the city, but beyond that nothing serious was afoot. That was good – Izuku liked his hero work to be as uneventful as it could be, since that only meant peace and order in his area.
The morning passed swiftly and without hassle, like he had expected. Izuku had agreed to having lunch with All Might later that day (he still had trouble calling him Toshinori, or even Yagi-san). The weather was pleasant, breezy, easily allowing for a nap in the sun's warm light.
Izuku made his way to the place where he and All Might were having lunch. It was a diminutive restaurant that still exuded a cheery atmosphere, the prettily arranged furniture making it instantly likeable. It was a place of refuge, and perhaps that was why it had remained All Might's favourite restaurant after all these years. The restaurant had never been shut down thanks to a number of generous donations, the donor's name remaining undisclosed.
He rounded a corner, only to find his mentor already seated there out in the open. Several years had passed since the exposure of his true form on television, and while he still garnered some whispers and stares from passers-by, he was starting to blend in with the crowd rather well.
"Midoriya, my boy!" called All Might. "Over here."
Izuku promptly sat down across from All Might, grinning widely at him. "All M – Toshinori-san. You alright?"
A dry but good humoured chuckle. "I'm fine. How's work treating you? You might have been in the field for a few years now, but don't forget you're still a rookie to me."
"It's been good, actually!" Izuku replied, a bubble of happiness welling up inside him at hearing his hero address him so familiarly. It was a feeling that would never go away, he reckoned. "Crimes have been down for a while now. I almost feel like I can relax a bit, but you know me."
At that, All Might smiled, saying, "All thanks to you, no doubt."
"E-eh? Well, I did my best, I suppose, although the other heroes around me helped as well…ahh, I can't really say I did all that – "
"Calm down, Young Midoriya. I was just praising you, there's no need to get worked up!" All Might laughed. "Shall we order?"
Izuku only nodded, blushing in his embarrassment.
It happened, as most tragedies do, when he least expected it.
They had just finished their meal, and All Might was looking at Izuku critically. "Young Midoriya," he started, a tad awkwardly. Then he cleared his throat, once, and said in a fonder tone, "Izuku."
Izuku blinked and gave him a questioning look, the confusion written all over his face. He opened his mouth, about to ask, but All Might shook his head for Izuku to stay quiet.
"Izuku, my boy," All Might – Toshinori – repeated. "I just want to tell you, that…I wanted to tell you how far you've come."
Izuku blinked again, slower this time. "Um, T – "
"You've been an amazing student, Izuku, and I'm glad that I chose you as my successor." Toshinori continued, ignoring Izuku's outburst. "Not once, did I ever feel like I made the wrong choice."
A large, frail hand rested itself on Izuku's smaller one; both scarred and calloused, both having borne the power of a punch that could split the heavens. Izuku swallowed heavily. "T-Toshinori-san…"
His vision was narrowing, focusing onto the emaciated figure in front of him. Here was the person he'd looked up to since childhood, the person who'd given him the chance to even think about achieving his dreams, and that same person was, he was –
"So, Midoriya Izuku, my student, my successor. Hero Deku. I want you to know, that no matter what, I'll always be – "
Out of the corner of his eye, a movement. A glint of steel, gleaming wickedly in the sun's warm light.
Acting in pure reflex, Izuku hurtled out of his seat, almost faster than the eye could see. A villain, a knife in their hand, poised to kill. A victim too shocked to even begin to scream. Dashing forward, Izuku's mind went on overdrive. Motive? Abilities? He was halfway there before he recognised the features of this particular villain.
Impetus. The Speed Villain. Quirk: Grants short to medium ranged bursts of incredible speed.
All Might's enemy.
Izuku felt the smile before he saw it, felt the oppressive aura of that twisted grin, before his blood ran cold with realisation –
If he'd wanted to kill that person he could have done so by now it's too easy too easy why did he let me see him why did TRAP IT WAS A TRAP ALL MIGHT IS IN DANGER
– and Impetus disappeared in a blur, just like that: the victim unharmed, Izuku still running towards them, and All Might beyond him.
He's going to kill All Might – Toshinori – HE'S GOING TO KILL TOSHINORI STOP HIM NOW
Izuku spun around, so quickly he couldn't even see in front of him before his arm was crackling with One for All and he swung.
Please, god, let me save him…
There was, for a heart-stopping instant, an overwhelming blast of sound, a rush of wind. Everything else was washed away by the unmitigated noise, and Izuku felt the shudder in his bones – he'd used too much, far too much, what just happened?
It took several moments for the dust to recede. Moments that stretched out forever, with only an ominous creaking of wood.
The obscuring cloud of haze slowly lifted, and beyond that, Izuku saw –
– A body, limp amongst the broken rubble that only a second before had been the restaurant. A single, frail figure, with a wild mane of blonde hair and an emaciated frame and oh god is it really him why is he there why is he LIKE THAT THERE'S SO MUCH BLOOD WHAT DO I DO
As Izuku stood there in shock, disbelieving, unable to take in the terrible sight before him, so he did not sense the presence behind him until it was too late. A sudden, blinding pain erupted from the base of his neck, and Izuku cried out in pain. Or he would have, if any sound had come out; it had been driven from him by the blow. The young hero-to-be crumpled to the ground, his legs suddenly giving up on him. In a blind panic, Izuku desperately tried to move his arms up to cushion the fall, but to his horror, nothing would budge. He hit the hard pavement with a dull thud, the impact knocking what little breath he had from him. Straining to look up, his limbs splayed and useless, Izuku watched with growing terror the silhouette of Impetus looming above him. The villain was smiling a crooked, menacing grin that split his face. Why can't I move why can't I do anything –
"I always like to go for the spine," Impetus hissed with pleasure. "It's such fun when your target realises they can't move an inch. Nowhere to run, nowhere to hide…it's just us now."
"Fuck, you," gasped Izuku. "You – you killed – "
Impetus threw his head back and laughed. "All Might? Me, killing All Might? That's funny, Hero Deku," the villain leaned in close, until Izuku could smell the stink on his breath. "That's real funny, considering you were the one who killed him."
In that instant, Izuku saw red. "Shut up!" he shrieked with what little voice he could manage. He felt One for All pulse through his body involuntarily, its deadly power coursing within his veins, and suddenly he knew exactly what to do. He forced the quirk into his arm, concentrating it until he could feel the pressure build to unbearable heights and electricity was flowing painfully through the limb.
And then, he punched.
Miraculously, his arm moved, faster than even his own eyes could follow. One moment Impetus was standing victorious over Izuku; in the next instant, the gloating villain exploded.
Izuku fell limp once again, his quirk no longer active. Fuck, fuck, fuck… All around him he could hear the sounds of distant screaming; the muffled din as the terrified populace whispered to themselves in panicked tones. I did this. This is my fault. But the fallen hero did not move, he could not move.
A drop of liquid landed on his face. Izuku blinked, confused…then, as more of the strange liquid landed around him and splattered the ground with red, he realised it was what remained of Impetus.
Izuku's mouth fell open, and it was laughter that came bubbling out, breathy, crazed laughter that he heard spilling from his lips. It was all over now. Everything he had ever worked for, everything he had strived to be, evaporated by the fires of fate.
Behind him, the murmurs grow louder.