Disclaimer: I own nothing of Boku no Hero Academia
Chapter 1: New Parameters
Itsuku sighed quietly as the class ended, gathering her things while ignoring the heated glare on the back on her head as she walked out of the class. It had been a long time since she had gotten into a fight with Kacchan, and while she held no positive feelings towards her once-friend, she would prefer to stay out of his way. It was too troublesome to stir up the hornet's nest that was Katsuki Bakugo. One day, she hoped he'd just grow up.
Grabbing her stuff from her locker, she checked her large sports bottle to make sure she had enough for her long run this afternoon, satisfied with the liter and a half or so still there. She grimaced at the prospect of having to sprint at max speed for over 50 kilometers, but she had to up her training if she truly wanted to make it into Yuuei without any applicable battle Quirk.
She was just lucky her Quick allowed her body to adapt so well, or else she would have destroyed her body years ago. However, she was still frustrated that her top speed was just a little more than the strongest Olympic athletes from the Quirkless-era hundreds of years ago.
Internally groaning at the inevitable feeling of pain she was walking into, she started walking, looking down at her phone as she continued her trek, frowning as social media coverage raved about an on-the-loose villain in the area. Why the Pros hadn't already rounded up the slime menace was beyond her. He had been on the loose for over an hour already, causing chaos in the nearby shopping district with petty theft and property destruction.
Shaking her head, she continued onwards, stopping at the overpass, a strange hesitance forcing her to stand in place as her Quirk forcibly relayed information to her. In the dark tunnel ahead, there was a single sewer grate. While normally that was nothing significant, her overactive mind considered the possibility…
Purposely, she walked slowly into the narrow tunnel and began to walk in place, waiting.
Nothing happened, and she felt stupid for trying it. She sighed, deciding to forget about it and just hurry towards her training.
Then, abruptly, her legs were swept out from underneath her and a disgusting feeling of cold goo pressed against her skin. Green submerged her vision as a pair of vicious eyes and sharp teeth appeared in front of her, leering at her.
"Clever girl. Trying to trick me like that. Very clever. Too bad for you though. Now, I hope you don't mind, I'm going to borrow your body for…well forever probably. Don't worry, it'll only hurt a little bit," the voice cackled, trying its best to suffocate her. She struggled fruitlessly against the massive weight on her, clawing at her mouth in an attempt to take a breath, but it was impossible.
Pain began to fill her lungs as the villain forcibly attempted to remove whatever oxygen remained in her body. She struggled futilely against the liquid body of her assailant, but her vision began to dim.
Was she going to die here? After all her hard work? After everything she had been through, would she really lose to some D-rate villain in the middle of an abandoned tunnel? Her entire mind and spirit screamed at it, refusing to go out like that. Her mind went to work.
"Don't struggle dearie, it'll only make it more…" the slime villain said, only to suddenly scream as a liter of water was poured on top of him, diluting him significantly, allowing his captive to take another breath and even free one of her arms. "You bitch! You'll pay for that!"
With a yell, Itsuku brought her remaining arm towards her captor's only other weak spot, his eyes. Her Quirk told her everything.
She knew everything about the villain's quirk, how strong his slime was, how much he could control, the different effects liquids had on him, the ability to control others, and his most glaring weakness of still possessing physical eyes and teeth. With no mercy, her fist slammed into the slime's right eye, causing his entire body to go rigid as immense pain caused him to release his grip.
Rolling away quickly, Itsuku took a few deep breaths, her body shaking as she realized in that moment that she truly was up against a real villain, and that she had almost died. She grit her teeth in frustration, hating the fact that all of her training was essentially worthless here.
"You little brat! I'll…"
"Fear not young woman! For I, am here!" a loud boisterous voice boomed as a large and imposing figure burst out of the sewage grate. Itsuku paused. She would know that voice anywhere.
"Texas. SMASH!" All-Might roared, the sheer force behind the blow generating a wind so powerful that it essentially vaporized the slime villain, leaving him as nothing more than a small puddle of eyes and sharp teeth which the Pro promptly scooped into an emptied soda bottle, a satisfied smirk on his face. "Sorry little miss! I didn't want to get you caught up in my villain fighting, but I'm a little off my game today! I was just in such high spirits since it was my day off hahaha!"
"All-Might…" she breathed out, shocked at being able to meet her childhood hero, face to face. She bowed respectfully. "Thank you for saving me."
"No problem miss!" he said, giving her a thumbs up, coughing slightly, "Ahem. Well if you'd excuse me, I really do have to…"
"Wait!" Itsuku suddenly shouted her eyes brightening. Her rational mind told her the truth, but the small embers of hope still left in her demanded she ask the man who had started it all for her.
"Look kid, I really can…" All-Might said before suddenly, his entire appearance was engulfed in smoke, leaving a strange skeletal-like man standing there wearing All-Might's clothes. Itsuku's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Shit."
Itsuku and Toshinori Yagi, the true identity of All-Might, leaned against the cold walls of the dark tunnel where the slime villain had been defeated. Forced to explain himself, he told Itsuku the truth about his injuries and how he had come to look like he did.
"And that is the truth," All-Might said, his voice heavy as he coughed some more. Itsuku's mind, for once, was blank. The very idea that All-Might, the greatest Symbol of Peace that mankind had ever seen, was dying… It was unthinkable. The end results would be catastrophic, villainy would rise again, and the world would be plunged into chaos. The world needed All-Might.
"As for your second question…" Toshinori said, his voice heavy as he stood up, closing his eyes painfully, "I cannot say you can become a hero without power…It is too dangerous. Even with your abilities…I'm sorry. It's good to dream…but one must be realistic."
It stung immensely to hear it, and she knew it was coming. But why did it feel like her hopes were getting crushed all over again?
"I…I see," she said, doing her best to hold back the tears that had gathered in her eyes. She hadn't cried in years, so why cry now. "Yes…I suppose…you're right All-Might." She stood mechanically, her body rigid and her eyes even duller than before.
"Midoriya?" Toshinori asked, alarm in his voice at the way her face blanked so quickly.
"Thank you, All-Might. Have a good day," she replied, walking off, her steps echoing like clockwork against the cold gravel. It was a stark difference from the animated voice he had heard only moments before.
All-Might sighed heavily, feeling immense guilt in crushing a child's dreams like that, but it had to be done. It was simply safer for her, even with her objectively amazing Quirk, to stay back and allow the Heroes with power handle fighting the Villains. Still, he felt like a hypocrite.
Toshinori was so distracted that he didn't realize that the bottle holding the slime villain had somehow disappeared, until it was too late.
Fire and smoke raged in the downtown area as chaos engulfed the entire shopping street. The worried cries of hundreds of people could be heard as dozens of Pro-Heroes were thrown onto the scene. Kamui Woods, Death Arms, Mt. Lady, and a variety of other Pros were trying to battle the growing flames, explosions and debris with little success.
All-Might, in his deflated form, was running as fast as he could, knowing that somehow the villain that had escaped him must be responsible.
"I can't put out all these flames!" Backdraft yelled, trying to quell the raging inferno with multiple streams of water, "Where are the fire trucks!"
"This guy can't be grabbed! Dammit!" Death Arms yelled in frustration as he was forced back by a large slimy arm. "We need someone with an elemental quirk to deal with this guy!"
"Fire and Explosions are my big weakness," Woods answered as he swooped through the crowd, "I have to focus on rescuing trapped civilians and allow someone with a more suited Quirk to intervene."
"The street is only one-lane! I can't go down it!" Mt. Lady lamented, doing her best to shield the populace from the oncoming damage.
All-Might cursed, holding his sides painfully. Why. Why. Why! Someone was going to die on his watch, and it was all his fault! Pathetic! Pathetic! How could he call himself a Hero? That young man was going to die right in front of him…But what could he do? He was out of time…
He prayed. Someone would come! Another hero would save the day, and he could only hope that the young man that was captured by the villain could hold on. His heart clenched in self-hate as he saw the look of absolute fear in the boy's eyes…
"GODDAMMIT!" A young voice screamed, and Toshinori froze as a familiar figure surged from the whispering crowd, making it past the wall of heroes that weren't doing anything. "You. Goddamned. Idiotic. Self-centered. Arrogant. Complete. Blockhead KACCHAN!"
"That idiot! She's going to get herself killed! Stop!" one of the pros yelled, watching the apparently powerless young woman attempt to save what looked to be like a classmate. With a yell, she grabbed a nearby pipe and chucked it straight at the villain like a javelin, striking him square in the eye again.
"You fucking bitch!" the slime roared as it lost its grip on its prey for the second time today, giving Katsuki a precious moment to breathe, "I should have murdered you when I had the chance!" Itsuku pulled with all of her might on Bakugo's exposed hands but was unable to pull him free.
"Get the fuck out of here, Midoriya!" Bakugo roared, doing his best to struggle against the monster, "What the fuck were you thinking! You Quirkless loser! You're going to die!" Itsuku ignored him, doing everything in her power to tug him free, but to no avail.
"SHUT UP! I don't even like you Katsuki! In fact, I absolute hate you!" Midoriya screamed, clawing away helplessly at the mass of fluid that had a death-grip on Bakugo, "But I'm not going to stand by and just let you die! I'd turn my back on everything I believed in if I did! SO SHUT UP AND LET ME HELP YOU!"
All-Might watched on, his mind frozen, a self-depreciating smirk on his face. Strength filled his body as he remembered the truth. A small laugh escaped him.
"Get out of my way and die!" the slime villain yelled, using Katsuki's hands to spark an explosion, intent on blasting the annoying girl to bits and crushing her bones against the ground. The explosion engulfed the entire street, and the crowd looked away, expecting to see the foolish girls' corpse on the ground.
"I really am…pathetic, aren't I?" All-Might in his complete form muttered, his eyes looking down on the girl he had put down just earlier today who had shielded herself, fully expected to be blown away, "After everything I said to you…I couldn't even do the one thing I'm supposed to do. I failed to put my own words into practice."
"All-Might! Curse you!" the slime screeched, swinging a massive gooey arm down on the pair, fury in its mad eyes.
"A Pro is always ready to risk it all for the sake of saving someone! That's the true spirit of a hero!" he roared as he easily broke free of the slime's grasp, grabbing the exposed hands of Itsuka's classmate. His fist cocked back as immense power was gathered in his right fist. Everyone knew what was coming next.
"Detroit. SMASH!" the Symbol of Peace roared, his fist blowing the entire gelatinous form of the slime-villain away as the sheer force of his punch somehow gathered the clouds together, causing rain to fall and extinguish the flames of the fight. "It seems that even I need to be reminded of what true heroism is," he muttered with a self-depreciating chuckle. He turned to say something to the young girl who had done more than any of the Pros on scene but was suddenly mobbed by the crowd who cheered him on for saving the day. He paid them no mind, simply continuing to smile.
All the while, he scanned the crowd for that signature mop of dark-green hair. A decision was made.
Itsuku walked home silently, contemplating what a terrible day it had been overall. She didn't even want to think about how insufferable Bakugo was going to be tomorrow, already imagining the angry and ear-piercing rant that would ensure.
It seemed all her practice of detaching herself from everyone couldn't stop who she truly was inside. That didn't matter anymore though. All-Might had been right. She needed to think about a different way to help people, remembering the feeling of almost suffocating with a shudder.
"OI! Char…Midoriya! Stop for a fucking second!" the characteristically angry voice of her childhood friend suddenly called out as he skidded to a stop, causing her to grimace. She really didn't want to deal with this right now, fingering the spine of her book again. She turned, her face impassive.
Katsuki was hunched over, and he seemed to be shaking almost uncontrollably, something very odd for the normally strong and hard-headed boy to showcase to someone he supposedly hated.
"You…you…you didn't help me alright!? I didn't need it! I didn't ask for it! Don't go looking down on me okay! Don't fuck with me and make me owe you or some stupid shit like that! I won't have it! You…damn…bookworm!" he roared, only to sullenly turn around and walk away without even hearing her response.
Itsuku blinked rapidly, watching the retreating form of her childhood friend with some amount of mirth. She snorted softly. Leave it to him to make a 'thank you' sound so completely unpleasant. She was surprised he attempted to thank her at all. However, nothing had changed.
At the end of the day, she was still the same and he was still the same.
"I. AM. HERE!"
Itsuku blinked blankly again, watching expectantly as the muscled form of All-Might suddenly deflated into the skeletal man again.
"Shit. Overexerted myself…" All-Might said with a sigh, "Midoriya…I need to say a few things to you, and I need to apologize." She stared, wondering what her childhood hero would say. She waited for the scolding and continued admonishments for her recklessness, completely expecting them. After all they had talked about, she had done the exact thing that he had told her not to do.
"First…thank you. If you hadn't been there, I would have turned into a fraud, a lie. I hesitated to save that boy, even though I'm supposed to be the Symbol of Peace. I hesitated, because I was afraid…for myself," he said, shame filling his voice as he admitted that he, just like any other human was afraid of dying. "I needed to remember why I became a hero, why I save lives…thank you Midoriya."
Itsuku didn't understand. She had only gotten in the way at the end. If she had simply allowed All-Might to leave her at the bridge, the slime-villain would have never been able to escape and endanger more lives. He wouldn't have had to push himself past his limits to battle again. She was about to protest when her idol continued.
"Second...When I told you that you couldn't be a heroine," he continued, causing her to rapidly shake her head in denial. She didn't want to hope again. She couldn't hear such cruel words again. Itsuku didn't want to bring about the pain of being forced to realize her own powerlessness.
"No, I…"
"I WAS WRONG!" he continued, ignoring the young teen's objections, the aura of pain in the air almost palpable, "In all the great heroes of the past, they had all one thing in common."
"You've got it wrong. I'm nothing like…" she replied desperately, clutching her head in denial.
"Their legs moved before they thought! It was nothing but instinct, an instinctual need to help and save people! That is what happened to you isn't it, Midoriya!?"
"You…I'm not a…"
"I saw it with my own two eyes! A young girl, functionally powerless, running up to the villain with determination to do something, anything. Those with power around you were paralyzed, unable to do a single thing! No matter what they told you, they were wrong! I was wrong."
Tears began to gather once again as her heart clenched in agony, remembering her dreams as a child. She wanted to be a heroine! She wanted to save people! Why couldn't she? All her life, no one had ever told her the single thing she had wanted to hear, and she couldn't dare hope, lest whatever remained of her dream be crushed forever.
"You, can be a heroine!" All-Might roared definitively, power in his eyes as he stared at the hunched over form of a girl who must have suffered for so long in silence, "And today, you were one. The weakest, among all the people there, shined the brightest! Today, no matter what happens in the future, you were a HERO!"
The dam broke, and Itsuku collapsed to her knees, wailing to the sky as her heart beat in her chest once more. After all these years, someone had finally told her everything she had ever wanted to hear. Her fist pounded against the ground, uncaring of the scratches and bruises that they would endure. After all this time…
How long had she dreamed of a moment like this? All her trials and hardships hadn't been for nothing. Her sleepless nights, years of loneliness, hours of pain and struggle…
She looked up. Her face was an ugly mess, her clothes were burnt and singed, and her eyes were puffy and red from the endless tears…
But for the first time in 10 years, she smiled.
A/N
It's a real pain to figure out when to use "heroine" and "hero". The latter just seems so much more easily used and connotatively, seems more flexible. Grammatically though, heroine is correct, which is why I'm such a stickler…
Anyways, hope you all enjoyed this chapter. The first real steps on our journey begin here! Though, we have a long way to go with Itsuku. She's been damaged beyond belief, and only the single blind spot of her childhood idol really saved her. She has a lot to learn and relearn.
Hope you enjoyed! Please read and review at your leisure,
-Woona the Cat
P.S.
For anyone here from my other stories, like Fate and stuff, no worries! I've been working on that too. I was out of the country for a few months working overseas. Busy busy. Glad to finally be back home.