Izuku Age 8
"Deku! What the hell is a useless fucker like you doing as a villain?"
"Kachan! Wait, let me explain…"
"Screw you Deku! You were always worthless, now you're just less than that. But me? I'm a hero, the greatest hero ever, better than even All Might!"
Katsuki Bakugo placed his hand on Izuku's face. "And this is what heroes do to villains like you!"
An explosion, a flash of red, and blinding pain.
Izuku woke up screaming.
His breathing caught when he realized where he was. He wasn't in his old room filled with All Might posters and hero merchandise. His mother wasn't down the hall, ready to rush in and comfort him.
He was is the house of monsters, the one All For One sent him to after killing his father. Even if he was somehow able to get an All Might poster in here, Tomura would have destroyed it the moment he saw it. The only things that showed heros in a positive light were the handmade notebooks Izuku had placed on his shelf. The only people in the house where Tomura Shigaraki and Kurogiri, with the possibility of All for One coming to see them.
Izuku wasn't sure which was worse: reality or the nightmare.
Bang!
Shigaraki was standing in the open doorway to Izuku's room. "Oi, brat! What happened."
Izuku jumped. "N-Nothing! It was nothing, Tomura. Go back to sleep."
Tomura stayed in the doorway. "It didn't sound like nothing. You were screaming bloody murder. Did a hero break in or something?"
Izuku fidgeted and twiddled his thumbs under Tomura's glare. "I had a nightmare," he finally admitted.
Tomura stayed in the doorway.
After what felt like several awkward minutes, the older boy sighed. "You want some water?"
Izuku looked at Tomura, and nodded weakly. He wasn't particularly thirsty, but it could be a way to get his mind off the bad dream.
Tomura walked down to the kitchen, turning on the lights as he went and making his way to the cabinets. Izuku followed behind, like a timid shadow. Tomura took a clean glass from the shelf - his pinky finger raised in a characteristic hold - and filled it with water from the tap. He then put it down on the table nearby.
"Sit, Izuku. Drink the water."
Izuku sat down in front of the glass and started to drink, tiny sips so he wouldn't get a tummy ache. Tomura got himself a drink of water and sat down across from Izuku.
"Wanna talk about it?"
Izuku looked up. "About what?"
"Your nightmare."
Izuku set his glass down and looked at the table. "It's stupid. You'll make fun of me."
Tomura didn't say anything, just continued to take sips from his glass.
Izuku traced imperfections in the table with his finger, avoiding looking at Tomura as he spoke. "It was someone I knew before I came here. We were friends one, but, well… He has this really strong quirk. Explosion. He sweats Nitroglycerin, and creates sparks with his hands that makes it explode. He always said he was going to become a hero, the strongest that ever was, as strong as..."
Izuku stopped himself from saying All Might. He really didn't want to get into an argument with Tomura for no reason.
"With his quirk, I know he'll make it. He'll be a pro and will fight villains and will be amazing. He wasn't very nice to me because I was quirkless, but now that I… I'm going to be… Sensei will want me to work for him someday, I'll be considered a villain and Kachan will come after me too."
Izuku could feel tears starting to build up in his eyes. He quickly brushed them away and took another sip of water.
"Heroes are pretty scary, aren't they?" Tomura said.
Izuku looked up. Tomura looked serious, and didn't appear to be making fun of the younger boy and his irrational fears.
"Especially the strong ones," Tomura continued. "I'm worried about what I'd do if I have to face them. It has to be a lot worse for you, since you're so young and 'cause you're quirkless."
Izuku ducked his head to hide the tears that were coming back. Even after all this, hearing someone call him "quirkless" still hurt.
"But that's not going to be the case forever."
Izuku looked up in awe at Tomura. He'd never heard the older boy give him encouragement. Kurogiri sometimes praised him for completing his lessons, and All For One would compliment him if he was doing well in his training, but Tomura rarely spoke to Izuku except to belittle him.
"In five years, you'll be my age, and believe me being 13 is a lot better than being 8. Plus, Sensei said he'd give you a quirk, didn't he? And knowing Sensei, I'm sure he'll pick a quirk that's much better than that hero wanna-be in your dream. You'll be stronger someday, and until then Sensei and Kurogiri and I will look out for you."
Izuku could feel the tears coming back, but for a different reason. He got up from the chair, ran over to Tomura on the other side of the table, and hugged him.
"Thank you, Tomura-nii. Thank you."
Tomura didn't react at first, but slowly touched four fingers to the back of Izuku's head and another four to his lower back, in what was probably a hug.