Legion Chapter 25: New Light, a my hero academia/僕のヒーローアカデミア fanfic

Notes:

**This is the final chapter, everyone! Thank you so much for sticking with it thus far! You folks are the best! I won't waste time writing notes! Let's just jump right in!

***Warnings: Language, fluff, romance, humor, child-antics, and happily ever after

Chapter 25: New Light

'Oh, baby you're the only thing in this whole world

That's pure and good and right

And wherever you are and wherever go,

There's always gonna be some light'

~Bat Out of Hell- Meatloaf*

Izuku feels the others leave his body and their energy orbs float until everyone returned to their regular forms. Izuku is just as shocked as the others when he sees how they all have changed; or rather, how they all returned to their original human forms.

All traces of demon and gargoyle features are gone- horns, tails, wings, fangs, and claws. Tsu realized that she was naked and covered herself with her hands until Sero threw his cape over her shoulders. Kaminari panics a little, feeling for his missing horns, then quickly checks inside the front of his pants with a sigh of relief. Tokoyami stumbles a few times trying to keep his balance on regular human feet rather than bird talons. Dark Shadow helped to keep his steady under Tokoyami can get his regular wings to work. Bakugo was the only one cursing his human form.

Izuku runs to Bakugo and throws himself at the alpha, holding his mate tightly to him. "Kacchan...I couldn't save you last time...but I saved you now!"

Bakugo grumbles and says, "I saved myself by helping you,"

Izuku happily nuzzles Bakugo's neck, feeling relieved and happy that it was finally all over.

"You guys look pathetic," says Dabi as he lands on the ground with them and Shoto floating by his side.

"Come closer and say that to my face, Stitch-Face!" Bakugo threatens.

Hawks joins the group as well, looking them over with calm curiosity. "Looks like you won't be able to live here anymore," He says. "You'd all best get up to the human world."

"But all our stuff is here!" Kaminari whines.

"Let us, the real demons, get things situated down here," Shoto offers. "Just keep the barrier open so we can come and go."

Izuku nods and quickly covers Bakugo's mouth before the alpha could say anything. "Yes, that's a great idea, Shoto. We have a lot of work to do in the human world, and Kacchan and I need to see our children!" he smiles at Bakugo. "Right, Kacchan?"

Bakugo can't help but silently agree with Deku- he does want to see his children first before they begin taking over the human world. While he doesn't feel powerless, he does wish he still had his demon features. For a moment, he wondered if their children turned human as well? Deku nudges him with an elbow to get his attention, pointing to the horde of soldiers that had returned after retreating- only the humans. Bakugo looks around at all the confused and frightened faces of the once demons now returned to humans. Iida comes up to the pair and says,

"It will take years of study and research, but we need to know how these particular humans, like us, all became demons. All For One was once human as well, and he said he heard an 'evil voice.' Our transformation was a different event, but these other humans-" Izuku cuts him off.

"That doesn't matter now," Izuku tells him. "They are human again. We don't have to look in the past anymore- just to the future."

Iida fixes his glasses with a nod of understanding.

Mirio, Inasa, and Amajiki circle above the group for a moment before landing. Mirio rushes to Izuku and congratulates him on winning.

"We all did our best this day," Izuku says, looking at everyone around him. "Thank you all for your help and for lending your powers to achieve this victory. I'm eternally grateful!"

"Well," Starts Kirishima, "We don't belong here anymore," He grins and points to the portal. "Time for us to return home, our TRUE home."

"Yes," Izuku says and takes Bakugo's hand in his. "Let's go, Kacchan! Our children and new lives are waiting for us!"

'A new life, huh?' Bakugo looks at the portal for a moment, and then over his shoulder at the world he has known for so long.

While his memories of his past life returned to him, he can't quite turn his back on the Demon Realm, as these memories are the most current. Oddly enough, he wonders what his new life in the human realm will be like? Here, in this realm, he was the strongest and most feared demon of the four Blood Lords. What is he going to be now as a human? A king? An Overlord? He thought he had this all planned out as they were plotting the overthrow of All For One. But now that the moment is here, Bakugo hates to admit it to himself, but he is a little...afraid. Afraid of change.

"Hey," Izuku whispers. "We'll face this together," he tells his mate.

"I don't need your help," Bakugo scoffs, then adds, "Only when I need it, which will be 2 percent of the time!"

Izuku can only laugh and hug Bakugo's arm.

Returning to the human realm, Bakugo and Izuku are reunited with their children. To their surprise, the babies had not lost their demon features; however, they had reverted to average human infants in both body and mind. Izuku didn't care, he was just so thrilled to see them safe and sound that he cried when nuzzling them. Bakugo tried not to show too much interest out of sheer pride, but he did let his son and daughter grab his fingers.

"Fuyumi, we can't thank you enough for protecting them," Izuku says to her.

"They were a pleasure!" She says. "I'm just glad the worst is over, and we can finally heal and make changes."

"Where do we even start?" Iida asks out loud.

Shoto floats in front of all of them, holding the skull helmet of his father. "We start with me," he says and uses his magic to blast a small hole in the ground. "Things are going to change, and I will be the first, starting with burying my past," Shoto places the helmet into the dirt and covers it. "It is something I don't need anymore," he says. "I move forward here from now on. Izuku, you have taught me that, and I am thankful for it,"

Izuku smiles and says, "Shoto, that means a lot to us," he hears Bakugo mutter 'to you' but he ignores it.

While everyone began talking to one another, Izuku felt the sudden urge to look behind him. He glances over his shoulder to see the white mist of colored lights. It was One For All. Handing the twins to Bakugo, he tells his mate that he will be back in a moment and that there was one more thing he had to do. Stepping away from the group, Izuku finds himself alone with the ghostly image of his past self and All Might, The Symbol of Peace, in a space of warm white light.

'You accomplished what I couldn't,' his past self says. 'I knew you could do it,'

'Yes!' Agrees All Might with a powerful, deep voice. 'A job well done! Nothing less than I would expect from either of you!'

'Izuku, will you promise to keep One For All as your own and pass it on to your chosen one when the time is right?'

Izuku nods. "Yes. Will that be my children?" he asks.

'It can be,' Answers All Might. 'You won't know until you feel you are at the end of your life, and then the magic of One For All will show you who is worthy of inheriting the power,'

"Please, I must ask, before you go away and rest in peace...do you know how All For One became the monster that He was?"

Past Izuku looks to All Might to answer.

'Regrettably, All For One chose a dark path when he learned of his powers. He was an oddity among humans, and the humans knew this. Instead of using his powers to strengthen the human race, he chose to conquer them instead. Whatever HE might have told you is not the whole truth.'

"So...then there was no 'evil voice' that told him to do this," Izuku concludes.

'No,' says All Might. 'It was the desperation of a human who strived to be like everyone else but was born different. Anger, sorrow, hopelessness, and regret pushed him to become the Dark King that we all knew. He wanted control, and he got it,'

Izuku lowers his eyes sadly. "So, those demons that I saw who turned back into humans?"

'Were troubled or misguided souls who chose a dark path because they felt there was no other option' Past Izuku says. 'Let's not have this happen again. Form a world where everyone has the opportunity to be who they are without judgment or fear.'

"That's a tall order," Izuku gives a weary smile. "The world is full of humans...so many...we can't council each one,"

'That is true,' All Might agrees. 'And it will take time, generations even, to see this most perfect world thriving to become something greater than itself! Nothing is fixed overnight! These things take time. But if you and your children and your children's children keep the people safe, content, and happy, this world will achieve great things! Let there be peace between the Demon and Human Realm!'

Izuku's eyes widen as the pair slowly start to fade away. "Wait! Don't go! Not yet!"

'You have everything you need,' Says his past self with a reassuring smile. 'I have struggled and suffered all these eons that I am ready and willing, to finally rest,'

Izuku lets his tears cascade down his cheeks. "Please don't go…"

'Will you take care of them for me?' Past Izuku asks.

Wiping his eyes, Izuku asks, "Who? Kacchan?"

'Well, yes, him too,' Past Izuku walks up to Izuku and touches his lower belly.

Izuku gasps when he feels a new life inside of him, the same feeling after he conceived the twins.

'The child we lost all those eons ago,' Past Izuku says. 'The body may be gone, but I held on to its spirit. Bring it into this world, strong and healthy, and give it the life that was first taken away from it. Do this for me? Not just for me, but for Kacchan and us?'

Izuku wraps his arms around his belly now beating with the heart of a new, yet familiar, life. "They will be loved and cared for as my other children, both current and future!"

Past Izuku smiles and says, 'I couldn't ask for anything more,'

All Might gives him a thumbs up and says, 'Always trust in the magic of One For All! It will never lead you astray! Good luck to you and your friends!'

Izuku reaches out to try and catch their fading forms but only touches air. The white light around him fades away and the current world returns to him. Stunned for a moment after witnessing the final resting speech of his past self and All Might, he falls to his knees with a heavy sigh. Izuku lets his tears hit the ground, sobbing, with his shoulders shifting with each cry. Then, he wipes away his tears and scoops up a handful of dirt in his cupped palms. Opening his fingers slightly, the dirt leaks out and only one small rock is left. Izuku looks at this rock for a long moment- it's not really a rock, more of a pebble.

'This pebble was me,' he says to himself. 'Before all of this happened. I was a pebble among tiny specs of dirt...just like All For One was a Roc among ducks, but didn't know it. But unlike All For One, I will turn my powers into good, and with my guidance, lead the people of both realms to a path of righteousness and justice!' He puts the small pebble into his pocket and plans to make it into a pendant necklace, so he will always be reminded of his past as a miner and how far he has come.

He stands up to wipe the dust from his pants then stares at the world around him, his hand on his belly. To achieve the future that his past self and All Might want will be a long and difficult task, giving him a moment of anxiety until he heard Kacchan and his friends calling for him. His anxiety fades and his frown replaced with a smile knowing that he would not have to do this alone. He will always have his mate and his friends to help him. With a deep sigh of relief, Izuku turns and runs towards Bakugo and his friends.

Two Years Later

Following the defeat of All For One, the human and demon realms remained open to one another. Bakugo retired his title of Blood Lord to Supreme Explosion King of the New Realm. Izuku needed Bakugo's cooperation with making and changing the laws of the new world, so he let his mate keep the title. Shoto, Mirio, and Inasa continued to rule their territories in the Demon Realm as well as their new providences in the Human Realm. Hawks was the official leader of the Demon Realm, taking the role of king, though the Blood Lords technically do not have to answer to him and the gargoyle took up residence at Black Ram Hall in Bakugo's place. Having used magic, the Blood Lords built their new castles in the Human Realm along with a giant one in the center of the world for Izuku, Bakugo, and their court. Once homes and providences had been properly and legally established, Izuku traveled the world as Legion to make peace with world leaders and rulers. All the humans saw him as a god and referred to him as such, though it was an unnecessary title in Izuku's humble opinion. He did keep the title after Bakugo pointed out that if they want the world they desire, then the humans, and demons, need something bigger than themselves to look up to for guidance. Over time, Izuku became known as the Hero God to humans and demons.

Lesser rulers of both the human and demon realms could continue their roles but must answer to the Blood Lord that controls the area. However, the Blood Lords answer to Izuku, which Izuku found to be both embarrassing and flattering. He never overstepped his boundaries as the New World's supreme leader, but Bakugo was a different story. To keep them from bickering too much, Izuku ordered that everything must be voted on with their friends. This is to keep Bakugo from going too far in his role as the Supreme Explosion King, especially when it comes to matters with Shoto. In truth, Izuku has the final say in all matters regardless of what the vote counts are, but he would never abuse his power as such.

The hardest part of making the New World had been the agreement on new, altered, or changed laws. Some countries had harsher laws than others, so Izuku, Bakugo, the Council, and the Blood Lords all had to come to agreements, which wasn't always easy. Izuku does not want the humans to feel they have to FEAR the demon Blood Lords and that Shoto, Mirio, and Inasa should present themselves in the same way as he does. Mirio isn't an issue for that; Inasa is good too but can be a little over the top; and Shoto is still learning how to present himself as 'friendly.'

Now that demons were allowed in the human world, special laws had to be made just for them, as in they cannot kill or eat humans. In return, humans cannot kill or segregate demons for the sake of being demon. Interbreeding is allowed since that will help bring the two races closer together and even closer to their better world.

It's a lot of work, but everything was coming along.

Izuku flops back on his bed with a heavy sigh and rubs the pebble pendant between his fingers. "What a long day!"

"You're telling me!" Bakugo agrees, unbuttoning his shirt. "I never had all this shit to deal with back when I was a demon!"

"Shh, Kacchan! Don't be so loud, please. I just got Little Eijiro to sleep!" They named their second child after Kirishima, who cried manly tears of honor and joy. They had the twins, and now Little Eijiro, and Izuku decided that was more than enough.

"Speaking of sleep, I'm fucking beat,"

Izuku smiles and says, "Come to bed, then."

After they dress for bed, Izuku was ready to fall asleep the moment his head hits the pillow. He feels Bakugo's hands stroking his chest and stomach. "Not now, Kacchan. I have a headache," it was a lie, but he just didn't have the energy for mounting. He would never, ever tell his mate this, but after Bakugo lost the magic that made him a demon, his 'mounting' ability wasn't the same. It always felt good, though, because he was with his mate and that was all that mattered. But the 'naughty' little part of him missed the ravishing demon with black eyes, hard horns, and a mischievous tail. Some things were better left unspoken.

"We haven't done it in a while," Bakugo protests.

Izuku turns humorous eyes on him. "Kacchan, we did it two days ago!"

"That's too long! Come on, I need some stress relief!"

Izuku inwardly sighs and gives in, spreading his legs to welcome Bakugo between them. Once they started kissing, Izuku got into it. However, before Bakugo could enter him, their bedroom door burst open. The prince and princess, Katsuki and Inko, come rushing in and leap onto the bed.

"YOU LITTLE RUNTS!" Bakugo growls at his children. "Get back to bed this instant! This is adult time!"

"But I had a nightmare!" Little Katsuki whimpers. "And Inko bit my tail!"

"I was having a hungry dream!" Inko counters. "That's why I bit his tail!"

Bakugo yells at his son. "You're three years old and half-demon! You don't have nightmares! Stop being a pansy! And Inko, stop eating your brother!"

Little Eijiro starts to cry from his crib as the ruckus woke him up. Izuku had to get out of bed and put his robe on before rushing to the cradle. Little Eijiro was standing up in the crib and reached his hands out to Izuku who picks him up and starts to soothe him. "There, there," he coos, rubbing circles of the baby's back. Izuku looks to the bed with an amused grin as he pictures three hyenas instead of his family. To an outsider, Bakugo's relationship with the twins looks like abuse...but on both ends. The twins bite, claw and smack Bakugo with their tails as they wrestle with him. Bakugo has never hurt their children; rather, they hurt HIM, and the twins adore their father, more than they do their bearer, Izuku thinks sometimes.

And Izuku's had to have some 'talks' with the twins that they can't always repeat their daddy's 'bad words' and they shouldn't 'do bad things' if they know it's wrong. Bakugo always breaks the rules, which sets a bad example for their children. But Izuku's not entirely worried about it because Bakugo gives their children so much love in his own way that the twins understand what is right and wrong. They're just mini-Bakugo's and are becoming more like their father every day. Their most recent sibling fight was to decide who would marry Tokoyami and Shoji's daughter, Yami. Apparently, alpha instincts start as young as three.

Izuku kisses Eijiro and says, "Come on, let's go put a stop to this," Little Eijiro looks exactly like him, green hair and eyes, freckles, and a big smile. Bakugo claims he's too much of a crybaby like his 'bearer.' Izuku let Bakugo have his loving insults because, in the end, Bakugo is only second to him. 'I am basically a god, after all.'

"Everyone, it's time to rest now," Izuku says when he reaches the bed. "You both can stay here with us tonight, so long as you promise to go right to sleep. Now is not the time for play."

"Yes, papa!" The twins say in perfect unison, sliding under the covers in the center of the bed.

Bakugo grumbles and crosses his arms. "They should be in their own beds!"

"You love it," Izuku says to him while settling into bed with Little Eijiro on his chest.

"Lay down with us, daddy!" Inko says to Bakugo, patting the pillows.

"Just for tonight," Bakugo warns them and he settles into bed.

Izuku just smiles because Bakugo has said that almost every night for the last year when the twins would jump in bed with them. "Goodnight, family."

Bakugo lays awake for a long while as his children and mate sleep beside him. He couldn't believe how far he has come from being a child-hating, mate-refusing alpha Demon Blood Lord to a proud father and alpha. He would give up his life for his children and his mate. He and Deku decided that, no matter what, their children will always come first before their own lives. He never would have accepted or believed that of himself three years ago. He doesn't have to tell Deku all this because his mate just 'knows.' It is a little annoying to be mated and married to Izuku Midoriya-Bakugo, The Hero God, as demons and humans have come to call his mate. Bakugo had no choice but to accept the title of King. Still, he rules higher than Shoto Todoroki, and that was more than enough for him.

Everything is changing, and it's changing for the better. Deku is doing a fine job with ruling the world, but only because HE is beside Deku! Bakugo smirks at that, knowing deep down that his mate his stronger than him. However, Bakugo only accepts that fact because Deku...Izuku...is the bearer of his children, and that is more important than anything. The outside world can continue to see him as the asshole loud-mouth king who is quick to anger and offers harsh judgments. Behind closed doors, he's just another alpha male that loves his family.

He throws an arm over them in a protective embrace and soon falls asleep with the hint of a smile on his face.

All was well with the world, and with the shining light of hope and justice that is Izuku, the future has never looked so bright.

'Last night and the night before,

Tommyknockers, Tommyknockers knocking at my door

I want to go out, don't know if I can

Because I'm so afraid of the Tommyknocker Man'

-Stephen King 'Tommyknockers'

The End

***Thank you to everyone who has followed this story from the beginning as well as readers who just started or are binge-reading! I really enjoyed writing this story. I'm on the darker, more mature side of fanfiction/story writing and reading, so I kept the dark themes of this story to a minimum due to the general population of this fandom. I borrowed elements from Castlevania, Game of Thrones, Hellraiser, Dracula, and a bunch of other horror/fantasy genres and series. For anyone interested, please read my 'Author's Note' below.

***So, this is the end of Legion! I'm honored that so many of you enjoyed it! Please feel free to contact me outside of AO3 comments if you have questions, comments, flames, or general inquiries that you do not want to be posted on AO3. I'm very easy to talk to and I like meeting new people and MHA fans! ^_^ Some readers may have more to say if they choose to read my author's note. I hope everyone is staying safe in this uncertain, trying times!

Author's Note

I said I would write an author's note as an extra chapter, but I was advised that no one really reads the author's notes (I do!) and that it would be a waste of time. Regardless, I chose to do it but kept it at the bottom of the final chapter rather than a chapter itself. So, here we go!

'Tommyknockers' or 'Knockers' are a common name given to spirits who dwell in mines and warn miners of upcoming dangers, mostly cave-ins.

'The name comes from the knocking on the mine walls that happens just before cave-ins – actually the creaking of earth and timbers before giving way. To some miners, knockers were malevolent spirits and the knocking was the sound of them hammering at walls and supports to cause the cave-in." *Wikipedia 'Knockers' Folklore. Miners also would use morse code on pipes to keep contact with the people above. These miners were known as Tommyknockers. Stephen King's book by the same name is a little off-putting, with a swig of horror attached to a legend.

I originally was going to title this story The Knockers, but for 'naughty reasons' associated with the term, I chose against it. I ended up with Legion as the title instead. I went with the title Legion because of All For One's quirk, which is stealing the quirks of others and storing them as his own. This reminded me of Legion, known in the Bible as a man who was possessed by many demons and later healed by Jesus. I took the idea of multiple quirks and matched it with the spirits of demons instead. As I said in the last chapter, Legion is also a common boss in the Castlevania games, which shows up as a writhing mass of zombie bodies with a nucleus in the middle. Sometimes the nucleus is an orb of lasers, and other times its a corpse/spirit trapped inside. You can look up Castlevania Legion Boss Fights on Youtube.

As I've stated before, I'm a big horror movie/book fan and have been since I was a little girl. Hellraiser and Clive Barker's books are my favorites. Bakugo and the others were based on Clive Barker's Cenobites (the most famous one you might know is Pinhead). Don't look up the Cenobites if you are easily scared! I mixed the Cenobites with demons. The Cenobites in Clive Barker's fictional realm vary, but I went with tortured souls who became evil by no faults of their own, but the faults of other means and becoming a demon is an escape from their harsh reality, even if they turn demonic.

I carry around a little notebook with me and jot down ideas and thoughts as they come to me. For example, I was playing a Castlevania game while listening to Sirius XM and Meatloaf's song Bat Out of Hell came on. I was already plotting the notes of Legion, but the game and the lyrics made the lightbulb come on and I quickly wrote it down and then later worked it into the story.

My original plot for Legion was to have Izuku's friends as tortured souls who lost in the last battle and failed Izuku and plunge themselves into eternal damnation where they suffer for their grief of failure but are healed when Izuku returns and sets them free. It was supposed to be a circle: they are strong fighters who fail in their duties, they punish and sacrifice themselves, and then return to their past lives with a new outlook and goal where they end up living happily ever after. This fandom is a fairly toxic one, and writing a plot such as that would anger/upset many, and the flames would be enough to heat my house for the next four winters. So, I had to tweak it. If I wanted to keep the original plot, I would have to post, by new-age fanfiction law, all of that in the warnings/tags, which would give away the whole story. I for one am a person who likes to be surprised while reading and not know everything ahead of time. To me, that ruins the thrill of a good story. I enjoy asking questions like, "What's going to happen next?" "Is everyone going to be alright?" "Are they going to finally get together?" "Will everything work out the way I think it will?" That to me is SO MUCH MORE FUN than knowing an entire story ahead of time. I work EXTREMELY hard to try and post tags that will be enough to warn readers but still keep them surprised. Part of the reason why I stopped reading and enjoying fanfiction is because I'm told everything that happens before I read it, and there's no point in reading the story if I already know what happens. The story might as well be in the note section. Now, I understand that MANY people like this, they like knowing everything before it happens. I'm also from the generation of tv shows (before streaming) where you had to WAIT until next week to see the 'stunning conclusion' or 'what will happen next'.