Chapter 2: Roaring Almighty!

Manga following. Anime borrowing.

It was dark by the time she got home. The uniform dull facade of the apartment block never looked so welcoming. For the first time in months she shunned the stairs for the elevator, slouching down in the corner as it slowly took its time ascending.

Stepping into the apartment, all was dark except for a single ominous glow deep inside the house. Izuku dumped her considerably lighter school bag on the ground and toed off her school shoes, lining them up neatly in the entrance way. She walked nervously into the main area, where the dining table, kitchen, and lounge room were all located in a room of only a few square meters.

The single light source turned out to be the TV. The news running but muted, creating an atmosphere akin to some villain's evil lair. Sitting at the table, illuminated from behind by the crisp LCD light, was her father. Arms crossed and a glare on his usually cheerful and chubby face.

"Do you know what time it is?" He grouched with eyebrows ticking up, like a thermometer, letting Izuku know just how much trouble she was in.

Well, the sun had only just gone down, and they were coming into winter, so…

"Six thirty?"

"Eight!" Inko shouted, starting to leak a few manly tears. "I got your text that you were going to be late, but I didn't realise how late. You sent it at three thirty! I was thinking five or six – not eight!"

Alright, time to start explaining herself before he got even more upset. If he started crying, she always started crying, which makes him cry more and … it's best to avoid that.

"There's a pretty good reason, Dad. I suppose it all started because I decided to walk home, instead of taking the train." Yes, good place to start. Nice and normal… ease him into the coming outrageous story like a frog in the saucepan.

"And why did you make that change, young lady?" Her father asked, aghast. "It's only a seven minute train ride to get from the school station to ours. And it's a forty minute walk – tops! Dear, dear, dear."

"Well, it was a busy day at school. We got our career aspiration forms and…" here her father blinked into a much more calmer expression, realisation halting his dramatics. "…there were some things I wanted space to think about. And walking always helps me think."

"Oh, Izuku. Come over here, let me give you a hug." Izuku gladly went to her Dad, who had stood up to embrace her. His hugs were always the best. Warm and squishy. "You know what? You can tell me all about these thoughts you had while I reheat dinner." They stay holding one another for a time. Some nights it's just good to bask in a nice long hug.

Later, dutifully sipping on a glass of peach tea and perched on the one stool at their kitchen's small bench, Izuku felt a hundred times better. Her Dad was great, the best. Honestly, in this time of her life, he was also the only friend she had. There was no one else she could talk to about these sorts of things - certainly not the All Might thing! If she didn't tell anyone, and she would probably explode with the pressure, and that would disappoint All Might. No way was she going to disappoint her hero – no, her mentor!

"Mah, look what you did." Her Dad sniffled glumly as he lifted a dish from the oven. He held it up for her to see while pouting like a small child. "This curry rice has been waiting for you. You see, not only did you worry me, you worried the precious curry as well. Look at it! It's deflated, losing all self-worth after being made to worry for hours on end!"

"We'd best put it out of its misery then. I'm so hungry I could just eat it cold."

"You made us wait, therefore you can wait just a few minutes for us. Revenge is sweet! A dish best served cold, they say? Nonsense, piping hot is what I recommend! MWAHAHAH!" Inko squatted down to beep the time into the microwave and press start. A sober look came over his face when he turned back to Izuku. He leaned against the counter, giving her his complete attention.

"So, what's your thoughts? These deep thoughts you needed space for."

She went searching back, hunting for those dark thoughts, trying to scrap them all out and set them free. Her mind after fishing her notebook from the pond, it felt like a lifetime ago, yet the emotions were still there, easily able to be brought out. The crush of failure after All Might left her on that roof top, the mocking of her classmates. "I was thinking, back then, on my walk home that… maybe it was time to give up on being a hero."

Izuku watched her father's face very closely. How he looked both devastated for her, yet his own relief underneath it all - the hope she knew her father also carried - that she would grow out of wanting to be a hero. Pick a better, safer, more realistic, career.

"Oh, Izuku," there was the war again, between sympathy and joy. "It's perfectly okay to shift yourself… its- its admirable even! The strength to change!" Izuku clasped her hands together underneath the counter top, and looked her father dead in the eye.

"But…"

A confused, nervous blink.

"Eh? But? Izuku?"

"I met someone today, on my walk home, and I got to ask them some questions I've had for a long time." Her father frowned deeply at her words.

"A stranger? Not some creepy man, hopefully? Oh, my sweet Izuku, what happened on that long walk home?!"

"Noth – nothing like you're thinking!" although that villain could count as a slimy character… best leave that part out. "It was a very kind lady who took the time to talk to me. I'm sure you've seen on the news, that All Might is in town?"

"Yes, of course I have and you know it, you little devil. I still haven't figured out how to get rid of that function that buzzes with All Might alerts. I've heard about the Tatooine train station fight as well. That must have been exciting, yeah?" Izuku's beamed, easily diverted by the mention of the fight she had a front row seat to. Kaumi Wood, and the new Mt. Man – awwwhhh they were so cool!

"Yeah! It was amaz-" A loud smack cut her off, as her father's opened hand came down to hit the counter top. Narrowed eyes glared at her. A trap, she realised too late.

"Well too bad! Forget about it! We're talking about your feelings here, followed by sorting out a strict punishment! I'm liking the idea of you doing all the house work for three whole weeks, MWAHAHAHA!"

"What! Three weeks! I can't! Daaaaadddd! I've got school and homework, and training now!"

"Training? What's this?"

"They offered to train me! From now on I've got my very own mentor, and they're going to get me ready for the U.A Entrance exam!" Izuku couldn't help it – she squealed and brought her hands up to her face, squashing her blushing cheeks.

"They… training… Izuku… this person isn't one of those weird shut in judo master wannabes… is it?" Her father's doubts didn't douse her excitement, in fact it just revved her up more. Hohohohoh, wait until he hears whose teaching her.

"What? No. I told you, I met All Might – it's her who offered to be my mentor. Oh, I get goose bumps just thinking about it."

Izuku wraps her arms around herself, rubbing her biceps as if there really where goose bumps forming over her body. Her father seemed to have frozen in time and space. The silence stretched. It was only when the microwave dinged that he resumed bodily function.

"All Might?"

"Yeah!"

"All Might… are you sure? Are you sure that's what she meant, training you? Was she very clear and specific about this, or is this more of a 'I believe in you kid' and you've just extrapolated from that-" she jumped in to cut off her Dad's mutterings, knowing how he could go on forever if left undisturbed.

"No Dad! She asked me to be…" to be her successor, I can hardly believe it myself, let alone trying to convince someone else this is really happening to me. Pinch me now, God! "…to be her student, a hundred percent sure of it!" She nodded her head frantically, trying to convey her sincerity with her wide, star-struck eyes.

"Argh. Izuku, apologies but I'm finding this hard to believe." Izuku hurriedly went into the pockets of her school skirt. A pen, dirty tissue, headphones, some coins and a candy wrapper later, she had her phone in her hands.

"We exchanged phone numbers – see, here in my phone, 'All Might', see?"

There on her phone screen, was a number labelled under the name 'All Might', with several stars, hearts, crying faces, and hero emojis spammed around it.

"Hm, yeah, that's very conclusive." Inko grumbled sarcastically. Realising she was never going to convince her father – the more she tried the crazier she would seem – Izuku decided to cut her losses.

"So we were discussing a punishment?" That seemed to give him something to latch onto, and climb out of the shock. Her father puffed up and pointed to the ceiling, maybe even planted his feet further apart.

"Three weeks – all the house work!" He announced. Izuku already had her arguments drawn up.

"Make it one week and you've got a deal." Inko openly scoffed.

"I'm not usually in the habit of haggling…"

"Would you consider it if I get the groceries as well?"

"Hmm… that's the only time I get to interact with the outside world. You know me too well, child of mine! Deal!" Inko spun around and pulled the curry rice from the microwave, now steaming and smelling delicious. "Your chores start now – set the table, convict."

"Hai!" she saluted, jumping down from the stool and rushing around the counter to collect two bowls, two spoons, and chop sticks.

"Glasses and the water jug."

"Just crack a whip while you're at it gee-"

"Sauce bottles, all of them!"

"But you don't even like half of th-"

"I know what I said!"

Over dinner they talked about the news and the Tatooine Station fight. About how much scrubbing she was going to have to do to get all those strange mud strains from her uniform, and funny things that Inko had come across while working last night.

They kept well off the topics of careers, heroes, and All Might. Dinner was always a place of truce. She wasn't sure when that was drilled into her, it's probably been the way since she was a toddler and tantrums had to be forgiven in time for dinner. When you were a family of two, you tended to get over things quickly.

Later, while Izuku was stacking the dishwasher and sealing up the leftovers, Inko asked a question out of the blue.

"About that thing you mentioned with All Might. Are you serious about that, like, sure about it?" He looked worried, and Izuku took the time to pause and regard her father seriously.

"Yeah Dad. I am."

He didn't react to that. Just nodded with the blankest of expressions. Izuku didn't even know her father was capable of such unreadability.

"Go put your uniform to soak, and take a long shower, double wash your hair, there's mud all through the back of it. Big slick of dirt. Next time you play football, tell your friends to try somewhere with a bit more grass and less mud. What do I care? You're the one who has to scrub the stains out now." He wrestled the glass she was holding from her, and waved her off towards the laundry.

Yeah, a soccer game. It's unnerving how easy it's been for me to lie to you today, Dad. Maybe that's just the nature of it. Nothing can really phase me anymore. Not after the day I've had.

The washing machine was in the bathroom, which made her job easier. Izuku closed the door and started to undress, throwing each item of her uniform into the sink as she stripped. Tights, skirt, bra, knickers and shirt. Even the neck tie went in. She wanted all signs of the villain gone. The longer the mud stayed the more disgusting it got.

She rinsed the fabrics through several times in the steel sink, standing their uncaring in her nudity. It was a locked room. Whatever. Once that was sufficiently done Izuku filled the laundry sink with cold water and poured some powder (laundry powder, or strain remover or something… hopefully the right one) into the churning water. With the uniform soaking, she turned the shower on.

As the water slowly heated up, she took her braid out. It was a miracle she'd managed to locate the four pins from that morning. Green hair finally came down, looking murky and dark, stiff at strange angles from being contained all day long. Izuku prodded at her locks with suspicion.

"It really is full of gunk." Her reflection glared back at her, then rolled its eyes. She got distracted inspecting the streaks of dried mud across her now bare skin. The bulk of it was down her back, and she performed a few circus acts trying to inspect that half of her body. Only when the steam off the shower started to drift over did she remember it was running.

When she stepped under the shower, she watched with fascination as the water coming off her ran brown. It actually made her feel cleaner, to watch all the dirt swirl down the drain. If it came off crystal clear… that would have been a problem,

There was a new soap in the shower. Usually they stuck to green tea ones – likely because it matched their hair, and they found it endlessly funny – but this one was new. It was creamy, with a honeycomb pattern stamped onto it, and it smelt like… sweet milk? Eh, nice enough.

She bathed and soaped for a long time. Her skin went red and blotchy from the heat of the shower spray and the rough scrubbing. Every now and again she would pause to lather her shampoo in, then let it sit all bubbly in her hair for a time. When it got all lathered up, she could pile her hair on top, sometimes even shape it into a cool mohawk.

Izuku sat on the shower floor, directly beneath the spray, with her eyes closed and head turned up. The water hit her face and ran over it, hot and cleansing. She imagined she was sitting in the rain, or under a waterfall. Maybe a waterfall at a hot spring? That sounds lovely.

The sound of her father's voice broke the mediative trance.

"Izuku, I know I said get clean, but it's just gone past ten thirty and you still have school tomorrow." Izuku tried to gather the energy to get up off the floor - to even lift her arms, but she was sapped. Maybe she had been falling asleep?

"Uh."

Usually her Dad would have something snappy to say if she ever answered him like that. 'I'll take that as a yes then', 'try and be a bit more dignified, sweetie', 'uh to you too'.

"Okay."

His footsteps drift away and the closing of the office door clicks from down the hallway. Uh…

Maybe he understood the events of today better than she gave him credit for. Or maybe he just knew when to let a fourteen-year-old girl get a much needed cathartic hot shower.

It honestly took an embarrassing long time for her to gain the motivation and momentum to get out from the shower. She felt like a boneless sack of wet tissue. Izuku didn't even try to get dry. Too much effort, not enough energy. She wraps her hair in a towel, and then fetches a much bigger and fluffier one to go over her shoulders and wrap around her entire body up like a burrito. There were some advantages to being small. Snuggly. Warm. Cosy.

She then staggers from the bathroom like a hunched back crone retracing her steps in a desperate attempt to find her lost walking cane. The air outside the bathroom was positively chilly against her exposed skin, flushed and red from the lengthy exposure to high heat.

When she gets to her room, she collapses on top of her covers and goes out like a light.

It is in disorientation that she wakes it. Dark and cold… and dressed strangely. It was such a bizarre experience to regain consciousness to, like coming out of a fever dream in someone else's body, that it took her many moments to realised someone was shaking her shoulder.

"Izuku, honey."

She managed to pick her head up and rotate it, glimpsing the familiar shape of her father.

"Darling, you'll catch a cold if you sleep with wet hair… and pyjamas would be a good idea."

"Urhghhhhh,"

"Yes it does get a bit that way some times."

What time is it? What even day is it? What planet am I on? Pyjamas?

"Come one, don't look at me like that. You only fell asleep fifteen minutes ago."

"Dad. I feel like I've just been resurrected against my will."

"Isn't that you every morning, hmmm?"

"No. This is much, much worse. All my muscles hurt, and I think… I think I'm getting a killer headache."

"Yes. As much as we all love a bit of hot water. Subjecting yourself to it for over an hour is a bit excessive. I'll go get you a headache tablet, alright."

"Urgghh."

"Goodnight Izuku."

"Uuugggggghhhhhhhhh."

Friday was strangely normal. Strangely.

It wasn't a massive hurdle to get out of bed. Either she slept so deep and sound the missing hours made up for themselves, or the dream that woke her up was so vivid it shook her entirely awake.

Izuku rolled from bed, in pyjamas that had been put on backwards. She went into the bathroom, washing the sleep from her eyes and grit from her mouth. After that she followed the sounds of breakfast being cooked. Inko was rustling about their small kitchen, his laptop open on the counter for him to look at between boiling the eggs and feeding bread into the toaster.

"Morning."

"Morning!" Her father chattered happily. It must have been a good night at work then, sometimes her dad could be positively gloomy in the mornings. "Glad you're here, finish getting breakfast ready would you?" He then scooped his laptop up and plonked down at the table, intention to not lift another finger made clear.

"Yeah, sure, of course." She blinked and narrowed her eyes at what was happening on top of the stove. Eggs boiling… toast toasting…

"The eggs have about a minute to go, and get the marmalade out for the toast."

"Uh, sure." Usually her dad handled breakfast, after all it was him who had been up all night working. This was technically his dinner, in a way, because once she left for school he'll be off to bed. With a start she remembered her punishment. It was terribly easy to forget when your dreams were filled with Bakugo being sucked under the mud and no matter how much you dig with your hands you can never reach her.

Breakfast was nice. The TV was on and the noisy nonsense of commercials and morning hosts made everything feel familiar and non-linear. It was here, once they finished and were sitting around digesting and watching the seven o'clock news that her Dad combed her hair and plaited it up into its braid.

"Ma, Izuku, you should let me do sometime different with it."

"No. It's fine like this."

"It's all nice and curly like my mothers. She used to do it up really nicely wit-"

"I said its fine. This way is good. I like it. Simple."

Izuku collected the plates and cups and stacked them in the dishwasher, before dumping the saucepan in the sink and promising to clean it once she got home.

"On time, today?" Her father asked with a pointed glare. Izuku nodded.

She pulled her uniform out from her wardrobe and quickly assembled it on herself. The skirt was one of her newest ones, her favourite because the colour hadn't faded yet and it fit her waist perfectly.

However, though she had spares of her uniform, she only had one necktie. Izuku went into the bathroom and pored the water from the bucket her muddy uniform had been sitting in all night long. Was that bad? Was it meant to soak for that long? Ah well… the longer the cleaner, right? She then threw everything bar the necktie into the washing machine to sit and wait to be included in the next load of washing. Likely her Dad would have a basket of stuff to put on before he went to sleep. Or was that her job now? Didn't matter, she would work it out once she got home.

She wrung her necktie out and hung it on the edge of the sink to hopefully dry a little. Izuku dug around in their cupboards for a bit trying to locate an old school bag of her's from her first two years at middle school. Her normal one had been torn by the villain, and she didn't feel like washing the mud from it and drying it out anytime soon. Eventually she located her old bag, a classically red randoseru, on the cheaper side than ones the standard student owned. A randoseru was a very primary school item, but since she was home-schooled all through primary, Izuku had enthusiastically embraced the first half of junior high as a chance to have one. Eventually she changed it out for something that could fit more textbooks and wouldn't get her labelled as a 'baby'. It would do for the next few school days.

Izuku felt herself get nervous as she packed a notebook and pens borrowed from her father's office. It really was a kid's thing, this bag, and none of her classmates had ever changed their school bags mid-school year. It shouldn't be this embarrassing, but she felt like it was. She shoved her wallet, water bottle, phone with charger and headphones, a small hand towel and her lunchbox in without much of a thought, and then quickly got ready to go before she could back out.

"Bye Dad!" She called, wet necktie swinging around limp in her hand as she waved a quick goodbye. Her school shoes were being slipped on her socked feet and she was out the door before he had a chance to wish her luck – or make some vague threat.

Izuku bounded down the six flights of steps to the ground and briskly walked on. She stretched as she walked, and sometimes stopped to really work on a particularly leg muscle, in preparation for her up-hill run.

Once she left the main pathway, full of bikes and people hurrying up to the train station, for the quieter residential lanes, a wide smile hit her face.

"Bark! Bark bark bark bark bark!"

"Ah, reliable." Izuku mused as she started into a languid jog.

Class begun with them handing in their career forms. Hers was lost in the fight. Shame consumed her for a few seconds as she tried to explain to the teacher that she had misplaced her form and needed a new copy. That didn't last long, as soon after Bakugou came marching into class, slammed down at her desk and loudly demanded a new form. The teacher quickly forgot about Izuku in favour of screaming at Bakugou about respectful conduct.

Izuku filled her new form out right on the teacher's desk. 'Midoriya Izuku, Class 9E: Heroics program, U.A High School'. Without a bat of the eye lid, she capped her pen and placed it on top of the pile amassing on the teacher's desk.

She then went back to her seat and stayed there. Everything went like clockwork from then on. It was fine. Normal. In fact it was better than fine because they had P.E. with classes 9C and 9D today, and in that class was another quirkless girl that she was quite close to.

"I saw All Might was here yesterday – did you see that?" They were waiting in line along the fence, both a part of the batting team. Her friend, Sakura, was currently wearing a baseball helmet about twelve sizes too big for her. When she leaned towards Izuku it wobbled forward and nearly covered her eyes.

"Yeah I saw that." Izuku answered with a soft smile. Eyes going over to watch as one of their team was caught out on the full.

"It's so cool, right! Especially for you. You used to go on and on about them back in grade seven. I wonder what she's doing here?" Hm, I'll ask her next time I see her. Izuku felt a bit delirious after that thought, to think this was her life right now.

Izuku was next in line. She accepted the bat and stepped up, testing her grip as she eyed the pitcher up. It was some boy from another class, he looked a bit bored by her. A lot of girls were getting out on three straight strikes, absolutely dismal in any and all sporting skills.

Izuku fought to keep a smirk from her lips. The boy threw, she struck, and the ball went flying high and over the playing field, to a spot where the outfields had neglected and crept in from. Izuku dropped her bat carefully and started running, circling bases and keeping an eye on whose hands the ball was in. As she was closing in on second base it was Bakugou who had the ball, so she wisely chose to stay on second.

Sakura stepped up and managed a hit after two strikes. The ball went rolling along the ground, too close to third for Izuku to go. Next was a particularly sporty boy from 9D, so she prepared to leap off as soon as the ball struck straight for home.

She made it in with time to spare. The fielders paid too much attention to getting the sporty boy out before he could get to a base. Even Sakura made it home, panting in behind her.

"Yeah so, I think she's here to catch up with old friends."

"Huh, who?"

"All Might. Remember she went to U.A High and all that. She might still have some classmates in town." Izuku thought about that. She knew all the heroes to come out of the same class as All Might, and none of them were currently active locally. Most had gone to Kyoto or Tokyo - a whole quarter were working internationally. Maybe there were a few friends she made outside class still around. After all, All Might must have lived somewhere when she was studying here. Some dorm or apartment.

It was better than the truth. That she was hiding. Avoiding the high concentration of villains in the major cities since she didn't have the strength to handle them anymore.

When school ended, Izuku fished her phone from where it had slide to the bottom of her bag. She leaned up against the wall, so no one could look over her shoulder as she unlocked it. On it sat an unread messaged. A spike of adrenaline went through her, but it was just her Dad with a list of items to pick up on her way home.

Izuku got home before four o'clock, early enough that her Dad was still asleep. She packed the groceries away, washed the dishes, put what sat wrung in the washing machine out to dry on the balcony, and hid away in her room to read the flashy manga volume she had grabbed from the store.

Dinner was fish and stir-fry of vegetables with rice. They watched one of their favourite game shows over dinner, sometimes almost chocking on their own food whenever a contestant did something hilariously stupid. After that her Dad went to his office, and she to her room.

Saturday arrived just as normally. Breakfast was leftovers from last night. Her dad sleepily wished her a good day and went off to bed soon after. Izuku played games on the Play Station for the rest of the morning.

Just before lunch, her phone buzzed.

[ALL MIGHT: Kid, we will begin training tomorrow at Dagobah Municipal Beach Park. Meet me at the Dagobah Beach train station at 5:30am.]

Izuku felt like she needed to run a few laps around the house just to calm down enough to process those words properly. Dagobah beach wasn't that far away at all, but it was a bit off-limits to the public after illegal dumping became a problem there. Izuku reread and reread that text about a hundred times before she could begin to formulate an actual response.

[Izuku: Will be there. I think my Dad would like it if he could come and drop me off. He wants to meet you and make sure you're okay. Doesn't really believe me when I say your All Might.]

It took over an hour for a response to come back. While the wait shaved twenty years off Izuku's life, it also allowed her to come to the realisation that All Might was rather old. Maybe older than she first realised. She probably didn't keep her phone glued to her like someone Izuku's own age.

[ALL MIGHT: Sounds like an appropriate idea – as long as you're sure he can keep this top secret. Remember no one can know about this.]

Izuku paused to think about that. Was her Dad good at keeping secrets? He had no one to actually tell the secret to, and if it was for Izuku's own sake she was sure he would go to his grave with it.

[Yeah he's all good. He doesn't know anything about a quirk, just that your training me to be physically strong enough for U.A.]

Izuku reread that before she hit send and wondered if she should be saying this. Could anyone get a hold of her phone and read this? The phone company, the reception towers, villians?

She decided to revise it.

[Izuku: Yeah he's all good. If it's to protect me he'll be ironclad. He doesn't know anything about A41 or anything like that. Just that I'm training to be fit enough for U.A.]

[ALL MIGHT: HAHA took me a few minutes. Good. That's for the best. Don't tell anyone about A41 until you absolutely have to. Classified. Top secret. Hush Hush.]

[Izuku: Hush. Got it. See you at 5:30!]

Izuku then surreptitiously changed the contact name from ALL MIGHT with all its emojis to GRANDMA M. with one little grandma emoji followed by a heart.

She had a good laugh about that, before resuming her game and continuing through the level.

Bizarre. So bizarre. Izuku pondered the text exchange as she died for the fourth time in a row, too distracted by the events of her life to avoid the enemies.

She woke her phone back up and stared at the conversation.

[GRANDMA M: HAHA took me a few minutes. Good. That's for the best. Don't tell anyone about All41 until you absolutely have to. Classified. Top secret. Hush Hush.]

In this game, you have a wide range of characters to select from. She sometimes played as this cool looking frog girl, but most of the time she plays as All Might. On the screen, the game-version of All Might bounces in place with her fists up, ready to respawn and start playing. Her wide smile never leaves the character's face.

She watches that person, and tries to reconcile it with the person she was just texting. Someone that wanted her at Dagobah Beach at an ungodly hour of the morning. Someone that wanted her as a successor. Wanted to make her into a hero.

I won't let you down.

In a sense, her Dad left work early to take her to Dagobah beach. He alternated between admonishing the whole thing for being sketchy and implausible, and praising her for being so transparent and arranging for him to meet the 'All Might' guy.

The train services at 5 o'clock on a Sunday morning out on a rather underpopulated train line were quiet and far between. Thankfully there was one running on a 5:15am time slot that they managed to board from Musutafu's central station.

"Hey, Izuku, this… um, how did you meet this woman again?" Their sitting together in an almost empty train carriage, bundled up like Pomeranians, blinking wearily out the train's wide windows at the quickly greying sky.

"I had taken the lane that goes under mukaikoga, you know the one near the fish store." She peers up from where she is leaning into the warmth of her father's larger body. He softly nods, barely noticeably from behind the large scarf and colourful beanie he had on.

"She was in the area tracking a villain," Izuku tries to find the best way she can technically-not-lie. "And she came up to me while searching for him, and I suppose I just… starting blurting out question she found interesting. Um, it was later that she came up to me again and said I had a shot and she wanted to help me. She said that…" Izuku's brows furrow as she remembers that moment, drowning in setting sunlight and long shadows, "… I had the instincts of a hero, and that was how you could pick which kid would make it and which didn't."

Her father just hums.

Five stops later, they reach Dagobah Beach train station. It's the second to last station on the line. No one else gets off or hops on there. There isn't even anyone on the platforms. Just lights, buzzing constantly in every crack. All Might honestly couldn't have picked a better place.

She's easy to spot like this, in her hero form. Head and shoulder's taller than her dad, head, shoulders and torso taller than Izuku. She's dressed in a black t-shirt that clings to her muscular frame, track pants that barely make it to her ankles and a cheap pair of white trainers. There is a bucket hat jammed low ever her eyes which looks like it's straight out of the grandma section at a dollar store. Like that helps.

It's obvious at what moment her Dad sees the "dressed down" hero, because he grabs at her arm and squeezes.

"Oh my god, Izuku. Izuku!" He drops into a frantic whisper right by her shoulder. "Izuku that's -"

"Midoriya!" beams All Might. Her head subtly shifts to take in her Dad, and somehow the symbol for peace manages to beam even more. How is that even possible? The hero takes long, sure strides across the pavement to them, her arms already outstretching in pure confidence that she was going to shake this man's hand, charm the pants right off him, and secure the mentorship of young Midoriya like it was a piece of cake. "And you must be Mr. Midoriya!" All Might – still beaming – clasps Inko's feebly offered hand between her own larger two and proceeds to shake hands like she was trying to work one of those old water pumps.

"Ah-aha, yes Midoriya Inko, it's a pleasure to meet you ma'am." All Might laughs, a warm thrill that Izuku has hear threw speakers a million times before.

"I'm sure your daughter has told you much, but I'm here to ask you specifically, Mr. Midoriya. Will you allow me the pleasure of training your young daughter?" Her father looks like he's on the brink of convulsions.

"I would never dream of refusing! This means so much to her, and it's so good for her, you know she wants to go to U.A? Oh, how exciting this all is."

Her father has never once told another person about her dream to be admitted to U.A high school. Yet here it is, pouring out of his mouth in a chattering stream as he continues to cover the common pleasantries with All Might. As the adults discuss expected training times, she watches her father. His eyes are glossy and bright, and his cheeks rosy. He looks away from All Might, down to her, and she sees that he is positively giddy for her.

Right before her eyes, just outside a sub-standard train station in Dagobah, she watches her father beginning to believe in her. When they prepare to part ways, she can't help but attach herself to her father's torso like a barnacle. She squeezes him tight, and just says: thankyou.

He laughs, rubs her back, and waves cheerfully as he heads back inside the station.

"It's so sweet how alike you two look," gushes All Might before yanking Izuku away from the building. She's probably eager to drop her powers as soon as she can.

"Alike? Us? I don't see it." Her father is all straight hair and pale skin, soft cheeks and plump muscles. Izuku is like a newborn foal next to him, thin and gangly, a hurricane of hair and a jaw that makes her look like some anaemic with an over-bite.

As they solider-march along the beach's board walk, the rising sun illuminates what All Might is taking her towards.

Of course, a rubbish dump.

Of course.

It definitely wasn't going to be like skipping through a field of daisies, she knew that. She just didn't expect to be roped to fridges five times taller than her like some work-horse and told to look alive.

Who even needed a fridge this big? It had four fricken doors!

But if this was how the pros trained, than she wanted it. Craved it even (worshipped it) and if this was what it took for All Might to see if she had what it took to not explode apart from the power of All for One, then it sounds like a small sacrifice to make in the long run.

Still, sometimes, when trying to move something while knowing in the back of her mind there was just no humanly possible way she was going to budge this thing, as All Might sits in the background insisting she just needed to 'push a little harder' between mouthfuls of popcorn… a girl might just start to twitch.

"Young heroes these days are all obsessed with flashiness. Looking cool and appearing like everything is easy. That's not what hero work is! It's a labour of love, young Midoriya!" Then, the monstrous woman proceeds to crush the fridge with one hand like it was made of papier-mache. "Nothing is more important than the basics – than the foundation that everything is built upon! Mark this day girl, because this is your first step as a hero."

"I would die for you," Izuku whispers manically, too quiet for All Might to hear.