Until I've written enough to warrant a bi-weekly update, I think I'll just be posting on Mondays :) For the time being the story will be following the original cannon, just twisting it. So I hope you don't mind me rehashing what has already happened in the series

Chapter 4

The hospital was in an uproar when Izuku returned through Kurogiri's Warp Gate. They had strategically transported him back to a quiet corner, nestled in the surveillance camera's blind spots. The villains had left him with detailed instructions. Someone would be along to administer the serum in small doses, changing his anatomy subtly and slowly. When one of the nurses spotted him, she shouted for the doctor!

"I found him!" she hollered. "He's here!"

A doctor and two nurses came rushing around the corner. To have a patient who was under close watch due to their suicidal tendencies go missing constituted an emergency. It had sparked a hospital-wide search. They didn't know how he could have disappeared without being seen, but they feared he might try to kill himself again with no one looking. Izuku's mother came running around the corner, practically at the doctor's heels. Tears were streaming down her cheeks.

"Izuku!" When she reached him, he knees gave out and she sank to the floor, hugging him. "Oh my God…Izuku, where have you been? I was so scared! No one could find you and I-I thought…." She choked on a sob, too afraid to put voice to what she thought he had done.

"I'm okay, Mom," he muttered.

"Don't do that to me!" Her voice was frantic. "My heart can't take it…if I ever lost you…." She shook her head, not wanting to think about it.

"I'm sorry…." He dropped his gaze. "I won't do it again."

She looked up at him. "Say it clearly. I want to hear it directly."

"…I…I won't try to kill myself again. I promise."

His mother pulled him into a tight embrace, kissing his freckled cheeks over and over. "Please don't ever do that again."

"I won't."

The nurse who found him wheeled him off, back to his ward room. Though he looked fine on the outside, they had to be sure he hadn't done something like ingesting the wrong medications. His mother walked alongside him.

"Hey, Mom?"

"Yes, Sweetheart."

"…Do you think it's too late to send in an application to UA?"

His mother hesitated. Though she was glad he was talking about his dreams again, she feared what his mental state would be like if he was rejected. Or if he was accepted, what would become of him?

She forced a smile. "Of course there's still time. I can get started on the paperwork while you're healing. Do you want to apply to the General Studies course?"

"No. The Hero program."

Nodding absently, she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. "Okay, Honey. Okay. Whatever you want."

V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V

Once the vortex had closed, Tomura turned to look at the television. It was all static, but he knew Sensei was watching. He had never seen his teacher so interested in someone else before. And he had offered his help so freely.

"Sensei," Tomura said slowly. "You're not going to turn that brat into one of those are you?"

"No. We need him," the voice beyond the TV replied. "A mind like his would be a terrible thing to waste. To have the boy come to us willingly, that was the best outcome we could have hoped for. The drug might warp his mind a little, but I can't go making him brainless. It's too valuable."

"What's so special about him?"

"You have more in common with him than you think, Tomura. He could be a great friend for you."

"Hmph." Tomura turned his back on the TV. "We'll see about that."

V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V

It was late, nearly midnight, when there was a knock on his door. He glanced over as the door slid open. The doctor stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. Izuku didn't recognize him. He wasn't one of the usual doctors. The man reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a syringe.

"Hello, Midoriya-kun," the doctor said. "It's time for your medication."

He realized this must be the villain's contact within the hospital. They had said someone would come to deliver the serum. It must be him. Moonlight glinted off the edge of the needle. Izuku eased back against the pillow and held out his left arm, rolling up the sleeve.

"You seem ready," the doctor said, lifting the boy's arm.

"I'll do anything if it means I can be a hero to someone. It doesn't matter who."

"I must warn you, this will be very painful."

"What?"

"I hear it's rather excruciating."

"I survived a fall from a three-story building," he said bitterly. "I can handle it."

The doctor slid the needle into the vein in Izuku's forearm and pushed down on the plunger. As the serum began to take hold, it felt like liquid fire was coursing through his entire body. Sudden pain exploded through every fiber of his being. It stole the breath from his lungs, consuming him. It felt like his body was being ripped apart from the inside, fire burning every bone and muscle. He clutched at the hospital gown as if he were suffocating, his mouth hanging open in a silent scream of agony. He could barely catch his breath. But as the torment intensified, he focused his mind on his desires. Power. If he was to get into UA and be anything like All Might, he needed power. And if this was the price he would have to pay then so be it. The suffering would be worth it.

V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V.V

Bakugou couldn't help the hammering in his chest as he made his way through the grand blue arches onto UA's expansive campus. The architecture was grand with tall Corinthian columns and busts of famous heroes lining the walkways. There were large signs directing applicants to the exam location. Highschool hopefuls were pouring in by the hundreds, but only a handful would pass. The enormous building loomed above him as he made his way up the stairs. There were three tall doors, each with a number written in gold on them. In the application, they hadn't specified what was needed for the exam, so he had brought his school bag with pens and paper as well as a change of clothes. Usually the practical exam for the Hero Course required some kind of physical test. And though the details changed each year, he made sure he came prepared. He had been preparing for months, ever since the last day of middle school. He had trained hard and was determined to pass. The air was brisk, the spring still clinging to winter's chill.

But the last thing he expected to see was Deku, walking the same path up to the exam room. He was still carrying around that stupid yellow backpack. He hadn't seen the nerd since he had confronted him that day in the hospital. Auntie had called and told them Deku had been discharged a few months ago, but he was surprised he was here, applying to UA. Auntie hadn't said anything about it to them. As he approached, Deku glanced over his shoulder.

"What the hell are you doing here, Deku?"

The green-haired boy smirked. "Morning, Kacchan."

That smile…it wasn't the one he used to wear. It felt different—masked. How could he smile like that after everything that happened the past few months? Didn't he still blame him for the accident? He shook his head. He couldn't let those thoughts distract him. He had to focus on the exam.

"Outta my way!" He shouldered past Izuku.

He didn't shout back or resist. He was the same as always. "Sure," he said, his voice sounding a bit hollow.

Don't let it bother you! he thought. You can deal with it after the exam.

But despite his best efforts, his mind kept drifting back to Deku as he took the written exam. What was he doing here? Was he applying for one of the different tracks in UA's program? Did he still blame him for what happened that day? Though his focus was distracted. Bakugou managed to finish the exam with time to spare. And thanks to his studying, he passed. But when he, along with the others who had cleared the test, were ushered into the large orientation auditorium, he was shocked to see Deku sitting there. Of course he passed the written exam, he was a nerd after all. But this was orientation for the Hero course! What the hell was he doing here?

"You applied for the Hero Course?" he asked, sitting beside him. Since their applications had been submitted at the same time, their seats corresponded, placing them beside each other.

"Yeah. You never know until you try, right?"

"You sure you're up for that?" He looked Deku up and down. He didn't seem much different and there were no bandages or casts. Maybe he was fully healed, but normally you wouldn't do something as strenuous as a hero exam only a few months after being discharged from the hospital. "Your mom's okay with you doing this?"

"She helped me fill out the paperwork. Are you suddenly concerned about my health?"

There was a subtle sting to his words. Though he didn't mention the accident, Bakugou knew that was what he was referring.

"Shut up! I just didn't think they would let someone who was just in the hospital participate."

Deku merely smiled, almost mockingly. Bakugou opened his mouth to retort but the lights suddenly dimmed. One by one spotlights came on, illuminating a figure on the stage, standing in front of a large screen. The Voice Hero, Present Mic, stood down below. Bakugou recognized his iconic blonde spiked hair and leather jacket.

"For all you examinee listeners tuning in, welcome to my live show!" he said in his loud voice. He didn't need a microphone to amplify his voice across the auditorium. His quirk allowed him to project even to the farthest corners. "Everybody say 'Hey'!"

Dead silence followed. But he acted as if he hadn't even noticed.

"White a refined response," he said, quivering with excitement. "I'll quickly present to you a rundown on the practical exam. Are you ready? Yeah!" He was annoyingly energetic, despite the complete silence he was receiving back from his audience. "As it says in the application requirements, you listeners will be conduction ten-minute mock urban battles after this! You can bring whatever you want with you. After the presentation, you'll head to the specified battle center, okay?"

The monitor behind him sprang to life, detailing the seven different exam centers for the mock battles. Each student, upon entering the auditorium, had been given a slip of paper with their name on it. The exam ticket documented their name, age, school they applied from, and the course they were trying to enter. A soft rustling echoed throughout the hall as the examinees each glanced down at their papers, checking for their corresponding exam site.

"Okay!" Present Mic shouted.

"In other words, they won't let you work with your friends, huh?" Bakugou muttered.

Izuku glanced at his card. He was examinee number 2234, assigned to Battle Center B while Bakugou's was number 2233, in Battle Center A.

"You're right," Izuku said. "Even though our examinee numbers are consecutive, we're assigned to different Battle Centers."

"Hmph. That's too bad. I was looking forward to crushing you."

Present Mic cleared his throat, more animations appearing on the screen behind him. "Three different types of faux villains are stationed at each battle center. You ear points for each of them based on their level of difficulty. Your goal, Dear Listeners, is to use your Quirks to earn points by immobilizing the faux villains. Of course, attacking other examinees and any other unheroic actions are prohibited! The fourth type of villain is worth zero points. That guy's an obstacle, so to speak. There's one in every battle center—an obstacle that will go crazy in narrow spaces. It's not impossible to defeat, but there's no reason to defeat it either. I recommend that you listeners try to avoid it."

The students throughout the hall started to mutter amongst themselves, discussing what the fourth villain would be like.

"That's all for me!" Present Mic's voice boomed over the din of chatter. "Finally, I'll give you listeners a present—our school motto! The hero Napoleon Bonaparte once said: a true hero is someone who overcomes life's misfortunes. Go beyond. Plus Ultra!"

Izuku's eyes seemed to glimmer at Present Mic's words. "Overcoming life's misfortunes, huh?" he muttered.

"Now, everyone, good luck suffering!" Present Mic said.

As the other examinees started to file out of the auditorium, Bakugou looked over at Deku. There was something different about the way he was acting. Bakugou couldn't quite put his finger on it, but it was unsettling. Deku looked up at him, an excited grin on his face.

"Let's do our best, Kacchan. And we'll see who's the real hero."

Remember to leave a review and let me know what you think! I love reading them. Check back on Monday for Chapter 5!