You promised me
Hey guys! Surprise, surprise, I finally managed to write this new chapter! I've been dropping hints for a while as to what's coming, now it's time for it to actually happen. That is to say, y'all have been warned. Also, this story is drawing to an end, even though I'm still undecided about the final twist of it.
Warnings: graphic violence, character death
He's actually relieved when he's brought back to his cell at the end of the day and left alone in the growing darkness. As tomblike as it may be, Izuku was quick to conclude that his cell is the safest place to be, away from questioning, doctor's check-ups, inquisitive stares from the other inmates and the guards' rough manners. Apparently there will be a while until his trial, and his parents won't be able to visit often due to the tight security regulations of the villain prison, but the teen can't think about all that now, as he's lying in his capsule, absently twisting the loose screw in and out just to give his fingers something to do. Right now, the only thing Izuku can consciously focus on is to cling to any piece of comfort he can find.
And he can only hope that sleep will come quickly.
Izuku's bony knees are resting against the worn, scratched board of the old black Honda. The window on his side is rolled all the way down, letting the dusty, cool wind in to ruffle his hair. He can smell lingering cigarette smoke around him, but his back pockets are empty when the boy pats them with craving, anxious hands.
"Fuck..." he mutters under his breath, lips twisting into a bitter grimace.
"Hey."
"What?" His eyes are on the road, nondescript buildings and street signs rushing by. It doesn't matter, none of this matters, it's just empty decor the teen barely registers. If only he could get a smoke...
"I sense that emo vibe again, full blast. I don't like it."
Izuku inhales deeply, letting his head fall back before turning it slowly towards the driver.
"I'm so fucked."
"So you are."
Himiko's hair is loose, golden strands dancing around her face in the wind. A faint smile is lingering on the corners of her mouth, as if she's just told a joke, something they're both supposed to laugh together about. And Izuku tries, but it's not working, not this time.
"I love you so much..." he whispers instead, and tears come. They rush in violently, run down his face, cloud his vision faster than he can wipe them.
The blonde grins, reaching over to stroke his raised knee."I love you too Izuku, but you need to stop crying. You look like shit when you cry, everyone does."
"You don't understand..." Why is his voice so soft, why can he only whisper?! No matter how much he tries, he can't speak any louder. "I need you! I don't want to be alone, I need-"
"I know, Izuku, but you promised me." Himiko's smile is gone and her fingers grip the wheel harder. "You must wake up now."
The boy shakes his head, tries to reach out to touch her arm but his body feels oddly immobile all the sudden, he can't even do that. Now he can barely speak through frantic breaths. "Please! I love you, Himiko, I don't want to leave you again! Let me stay here with you-"
"No!" She turns to him, stern expression cracking slightly. "Izuku, you promised me!"
"But-"
"You fucking promised me! Wake up now!"
He does wake, with a start even, eyes wide in the surprising light around him. He's still in his cell, now sitting upright in his capsule, back against the cold wall as he tries to figure out what's going on, why it was that he had to wake up in the first place. And the boy quickly identifies the reason – a man now stands by the side of his capsule, looking down and seeming to observe Izuku inquisitively. His appearance is striking to say the least, not only because his bulky frame is tubercular, with protruding veins like an overgrown root going up even from his shoulders along the thick neck to his square, strong jaw line, but because his eye sockets are some barely-there, scarred craters into the scarred skin, eyeless. Yet the man looks at him, he's sure of it.
"Izuku Midoriya, I believe you know who I am?" the villain (the grey jumpsuit undoubtedly identifying him as an inmate) says, leaning forward towards the teen's face.
Izuku blinks, unable to form any words, not even a simple 'no'. It didn't hit him right away, but only because the other didn't want to, kept it from him on purpose. This man... is Shigaraki's mysterious Master.
The master of the dead hands.
The teen shakes his head – not only in denial but absurdly hoping this is somehow not real, the other's presence is unbearable, suffocating, it is bad enough in itself to make him physically ill. But it is real, so the only thing he can do is pull his knees up to his chest defensively, eyes darting warily past the villain's frame, through the open cell door, into the lit hallway. It's but a fleeting impulse though, Izuku already knows in his gut that no one is coming, he doesn't even question how the villain got there when he should have been locked up in a cell of his own, secured inside a capsule.
"I am All for One," the man clarifies calmly – even though this cryptic nickname neither means anything nor fits his description. "And I know you have been aware of me for a while now. I am not surprised though, since you are All Might's love child."
He speaks the last two words with disdain but also intrigue, making the boy flinch. Izuku was too numb until now to fully process that All Might is his real father, let alone the implications of that for him as an inmate in a villain prison.
"Wha-... What do you want from me?"
It's a stupid question of course, Izuku figured it out as soon as the pro hero's name came up – the man wants revenge for being put in here and this is going to be ugly. Uglier than it was with Endeavor and he doesn't have Product X anymore, though he doubts it would work with this guy anyway.
All for One's mouth curls into a light smile. "Just two things. First, your quirk – I like to collect them for myself. And then your life, of course."
Beyond the sheer horror, Izuku feels the sickness rising from his stomach to his chest, softening his bones, making it hard to breathe, hard to keep his eyes open. He can only hope it will be over quickly.
"Show me!" the other barks unexpectedly, his tone much harsher now and his large hand shoots forward, gripping the teen's shoulder and turning him around forcefully. "SHOW ME YOUR QUIRK!"
Izuku's face is slammed into the wall, pain exploding in his skull, then All for One tears the back of his jumpsuit and thick fingers mercilessly dig into the boy's spine, as if searching for something. It hurts like hell, it's so horrible, but the boy can't even scream, only some choked gasps and moans come out as he uselessly tries to escape the other's grip.
Stop! I'm quirkless, there's nothing for you to take, just- Please, stop! Just-
"You don't really expect me to believe this bullshit!" the villain growls behind him, a thumb pressing into the side of his neck, over the black ink there. "No one is quirkless!" To make a point, he punches his fingers in with more force, into the boy's side this time and something cracks, finally tearing a scream from Izuku's throat.
"FIGHT ME!" All for One demands, pulling the teen backwards and twisting his torso so that he can face him once more. "They all fight, give me something, come on! There's no point in hiding it, I will find it anyway!"
The pain only grows stronger as his bare, injured back is slammed into the wall and Izuku knows he's going to pass out soon. His vision is blurred and his body slumps forward. His left hand creeps forward too, the other weakly gripping the front of the villain's jumpsuit. It's pointless, he doesn't even think it, because All for One can somehow hear his thoughts and he just can't, anyway.
"I will find it anyway!" the eyeless villain hisses, brutally shoving his knee into the teen's stomach and both his hands now thrusting, tearing into his body, breaking into his ribcage with a pure will to destroy. "SHOW ME! SHOW ME YOUR QUIRK, YOU DAMN BRAT!"
Izuku, you promised me.
He is screaming, tears running down his face, it's pointless, he's going to die anyway, but... he promised. He promised her. There is still some strength left in his fingers, enough to reach for the loose screw, twist it out of its hole, grip it steadily and... thrust the sharp end into the side of All for One's throat.
It goes in with unexpected ease, as if into putrid flesh, blood gushing out violently, and the villain freezes, the eyeless face twisting into an expression of utter surprise. Then All for One reaches out again, to grab him, but his massive body slips down from the capsule and collapses onto the floor, blood pooling around his head as he croaks unintelligibly with his mouth open, still trying to reach for something unseen.
"I... told you... I'm... quirkless..." Izuku breathes out, leaning over the edge of the capsule to glance down at the dying villain, while blood runs down from the corners of his mouth. Then he is out like a light.
All Might is tired. It's a pervasive feeling he can't shake off, hunching his thin, bony shoulders, slowing his thoughts. 'Maybe it's all bullshit' Aizawa said once and these words were the first to come to his mind when he got Tsukauchi's phone call. He knows what he should do – ask questions, demand an explanation as to how such a thing was possible in the first place – but...
"If I had dealt with him when I had the chance, instead of just sending him to prison, none of this would have happened," he states, dragging his feet alongside the quiet detective as they make their way towards the prison's hospital ward. Every step is torture. "But a hero doesn't kill, so I couldn't do it. And now he's almost killed my child."
"I am certain that he had inside help, there was no way he could have gotten out of his capsule and the special restraints otherwise, but it's very likely that he got rid of those who helped him – five dead guards were found around his cell. This is how he found out about Izuku as well."
The blond sighs – none of this matters now. Most likely Izuku isn't going to survive his injuries.
"At least the bastard didn't get out. I probably shouldn't say this, but I'm not sorry he kicked the bucket the way he did," the detective says.
The hospital ward is eerily quiet as Tsukauchi leads him into a closed reserve, where his son lies in a bed surrounded by monitors. Izuku looks dreadful, one side of his face bruised under the oxygen mask, his ruined torso wrapped in countless bandages. All Might plops absently onto the only chair by the bed and reaches out to gingerly take the boy's hand in his, cautious of the IV drip attached to it.
"You know, I couldn't tell Inko," he confesses, head bowed. "I know I have to, but... not... not yet."
Behind him, the detective fidgets awkwardly. "Listen, it's not your fault. You did the right thing, and you couldn't protect the kid, not in here. This is our fault and we will take responsibility-"
But then something happens, cutting him off – something snaps audibly and both men flinch, baffled. Then it happens again, and again, and Izuku moans weakly in his sleep as he shifts in bed, his face scrunched in pain, and All Might's sunken eyes widen at the sight of thin twirls of black smoke beginning to rise from the boy's body.
"What the hell is that?!" Tsukauchi asks alarmed before punching in the emergency button.
Almost immediately afterwards they're both pushed aside as a doctor and a nurse rush into the room, frantically checking the monitors and then inspecting the patient.
"What's going on?!"
"He's… I-I don't understand!" the doctor stutters confused after several minutes of investigation. "He's… healing. It looks like the broken ribs have somehow regenerated…"
"But that's not possible!" the Human Lie Detector insists. "You must be wrong, the kid is quirkless, he can't-"
"He's not quirkless anymore," All Might whispers next to him, horrified. He knows those twirls of black smoke only too well, even the sight of them makes the hole in his side wince in pain. "He absorbed All for One…"
