Boy Howdy I don't know where this came from but I was in the mood for some Izuku angst and so I wrote some. I managed to do this in a day, my brain is now fried. Enjoy.


Izuku Midoriya wept.

No.

They'd all said it, in one way or another. His mom, Kacchan, everyone. It had always hurt, but this time was different. It wasn't them that had said it. It was Him. Izuku's hero. The very reason he'd wanted to be a hero.

He sobbed as he fell to his knees, mind closing off as he collapsed. He didn't see the smoke. Didn't hear the explanation. Didn't see the scar.

"Hey kid?" he barely even felt the skeletal hand touch his shoulder, shaking him gently, "Are…are you okay?"

Izuku looked up at the stranger, his skeletal and emaciated face plastered with worry. He must be a janitor here or something, Izuku thought, staggering to his feet as he wiped his eyes.

"Yeah, sorry. I'll leave now," The teen muttered, turning away and heading through the nearby door.

Toshinori Yagi sighed dejectedly as he watched the young man leave, absentmindedly tapping at the villain in his pocket, eyes going wide.


Izuku stepped out of the building's foyer, wiping his eyes again as he forced back the sobs. The man from before had raced past him earlier, probably to go fix some emergency or something. At least he was needed, unlike Izuku. The blast shook Izuku from his stupor, the teen looking up in the direction of the explosion, his feet automatically taking a step towards the source of the noise.

He stopped.

There was no point. He wouldn't be able to do anything. He was just a quirkless kid with a dream too big to fulfill. A broken dream now. Shattered by the one man he'd hoped could justify it.

Sighing, Izuku turned away from the rising smoke, heading home.


The phone call came late, after Izuku and his mom had finished eating supper. Izuku was staring blankly at the TV, not really watching, his mother constantly glancing back at him with a concerned look as she washed the dishes. Inko Midoriya picked up the phone, talking quietly to the person on the other end for a moment before letting out a loud gasp.

"Izuku!" she shouted as she burst back into the lounge, tears streaming down her face, "It's Katsuki!"


Izuku didn't know why he was there. The smell of disinfectant stung his nose, making his eyes water. He looked through the glass window at the sleeping form on the bed, Mitsuki Bakugo crying quietly beside her son.

"D-don't you want to go in to see him?" his mother asked shakily, wiping her eyes with a tissue.

"Not really,"

"Are you sure?" she asked again, taking a hold of his hand, surprised by how clammy it was, "Come on sweetheart, just for a moment."

Izuku allowed himself to be pulled into the room, remaining silent as Mitsuki practically fell into his mother's arms, weeping openly.

He stared at the ashy blonde's face, surprisingly calm in his sleep.

"It was a villain," Mitsuki sobbed beside him, "The pros…they couldn't save him for ages…they had to wait…his quirk was too dangerous…"

Izuku caught snippets of what Mitsuki said between her sobs, staring blankly at the unconscious Katsuki.

"Bastard,"

The word rang out in the near silent room, the two mothers looking at Izuku in surprise.

"Izuku, honey?" his mother asked, "Are you okay?"

"What are you saying, Izuku?" Mitsuki stammered through her tears, "Isn't Katsuki your friend?"

"He threatens to kill me almost every day," the words spilled from Izuku's mouth before he could stop them, "He told me to jump off a roof today. Does that sound like a friend to you?"

The three adults stood in silence, staring at the teen in shock, a soft gasp drawing their attention away as Katsuki coughed, blinking slowly awake.

"The fuck?!" his voice was as harsh as always, Katsuki glancing around the room.

"KATSUKI!" his mother sobbed, throwing herself onto him, surprising the youth.

"GET THE FUCK OFF ME, HAG!" he screeched as his mother sobbed into his chest, looking around the room again, his eyes focusing on Izuku for a moment, "AND WHY THE HELL ARE YOU HERE, DEKU?"

"My mom dragged me," the green haired teen said flatly, staring at Bakugo with empty eyes before turning towards the door, "Get well soon."

He paused halfway through the door, looking back at the startled blond for a moment. The words roiled inside him. There was so much he wanted to say. To scream. To shout and wail. Instead he whispered, the words almost drowned out by Mitsuki's sobbing.

"Oh yeah, I gave up on being a hero."


"Izuku?"

His mother's voice came through his door, the teen standing in the center of his room, surrounded by hundreds of thousands of yen worth of hero merchandise.

"Honey, can we talk?"

She opened the door to the dark room, only the computer screen lighting the small space, her son standing silently at its center.

"Sweetheart? Are you okay? You know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

"I know,"

"Is there anything you want to talk about?"

"Not right now, thanks,"

"Are you sure?"

The teen stood in silence for a time, his mother watching him worriedly, about to step further into the room when he spoke again.

"No," he whispered, turning his face to her, the tears streaking his face.

"Oh Izuku," his mother stepped into the room and wrapped her arms around her sobbing son.


"And that's the last one," he sighed as he finished taping the box closed, staring at the small collection beside him in the near empty room.

That night he'd made a decision. His mother had let him take the next day off school, during which he'd stripped every hero poster from his walls, packed every action figure back into its box, and created an Ebay account. It had taken him the better part of three months, but he'd finally sold off all his hero merchandise.

It had been three months since that day. Since the day his dream had died. Since the day he'd changed his highschool application, much to his teacher's surprise.

"Izuku?" his mother called, stepping into his room, looking around slowly. She still wasn't used to the emptiness of his room, "Are you going into school tomorrow?"

"Yeah," he'd started skipping school shortly after the incident, though he did it far less now.

"Okay, good,"

She sat on his bed slowly, watching the young man sort through the pile of boxes, making sure each of the addresses were correct.

"Izuku…" she murmured.

"Yes mom?" he asked without looking up.

"I love you."

"I know. I love you too."


"SHUT UP YOU EXTRAS!" Bakugo's voice echoed through the classroom, "I DON'T GIVE A SHIT WHAT YOU THINK, BUT I'M THE ONLY REAL HERO HERE!"

"Says the guy who got attacked by a sludge villain and couldn't do anything about it," one of the students muttered, Bakugo immediately turning on them

"THE FUCK DID YOU SAY?!"

"Shut up, Katsuki,"

Bakugo paused at the words, looking over to the green haired teen in the corner, his nose still buried in one of his notebooks.

"THE HELL WAS THAT, NERD?"

"I said shut up, I'm trying to write."

"STILL TAKING THOSE BULLSHIT NOTES ON EVERYONE, YOU CREEP? WHAT USE ARE THEY TO A QUIRKLESS BASTARD LIKE YOU?!"

Izuku looked up for a moment, before pointing to the boy sitting next to him, "Quirk: Mind over Muscle, the higher his intellect, the larger he can make his muscles. However, using it for longer than a few seconds gives him a migraine. Unsuitable for drawn out battles. Useless for a hero."

The class went quiet at his words, staring at the bespectacled boy in shock.

"Quirk: Extendo-fingers," Izuku continued, pointing at one of Bakugo's lackeys, "Allows the user to extend his fingers up to half a metre in length. Overuse causes joint pain. The fingers aren't any stronger than normal fingers, extending them only making them easier to break. Useless for a hero."

Izuku continued, naming each students' quirk, breaking it down and pointing out its weaknesses. He took a breath before pointing to Katsuki.

"Quirk: Explosion. Allows the user to generate explosions using the nitroglycerin like sweat on their palms. Overuse results in blistered palms, damage to arms and dehydration. Other possible side effects are deafness or blindness due to the proximity of the explosions. Weakened in cold weather or other environments that don't promote sweating," Izuku paused for a moment, "Greatest weakness: User is overly arrogant and has the personality of a villain. The quirk is excellent for hero work. The user, not so much.

The room went deathly silent as Izuku finished speaking, all eyes on Bakugo, who was glaring at the ground.

"THE FUCK DID YOU SAY, DEKU?!" he roared as he launched himself across the room, slamming the teen into the wall by his throat.

"You heard me, or should I add dumb to your weaknesses?" the boy growled.

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

"I'm sure you'd love to," Izuku spat back, letting out a strained chuckle, "Why don't you do it right now? Where everyone can see? Oh, but that would sully your perfect record!"

Bakugo stared into the teen's dull eyes, a shiver running up his spine.

"THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?! SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

"Not going to kill me now?" Izuku laughed, straining against Bakugo's grip, "Or would you prefer I jump off a roof?"

Bakugo froze.

"Words have consequences too, Kacchan," the nickname he hadn't used in months dripped with venom as Izuku spoke, finally managing to wrench Bakugo's hand from his throat, "You'd do well to learn that quickly."


"Are you sure about this?" his mother asked for what felt like the hundredth time.

"Yes, I want to get away from…here."

Inko looked at Izuku with a worried gaze, unsure of what to do about his request.

"B-but its so far away? Don't you want to go to a closer Highschool?"

"No, mom," Izuku murmured, pulling her into a hug, "I've already made up my mind. I've been saving up so I can pay for an apartment for the first few months myself, then I'll get a part time job. I'll be fine, I promise."

"Okay, sweetie," Inko sniffled into his chest, "I'll let you go."


Izuku stared up at the massive gates, the UA logo standing proudly in the chilly air.

Any other time this would have filled him with awe, maybe even pride. But now it just made him feel empty.

"MOVE IT!" the voice broke the calm that surrounded the area, making Izuku flinch as he turned to see a familiar blond standing just behind him, a look of surprise on Bakugo's face, "THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING HERE?"

"Nothing," Izuku sighed, stepping aside as Bakugo grumbled, stalking past him.

"Wow, he was rude," a voice said from behind him, making Izuku start as he spun around, coming face to face with a brown-haired girl, her cheeks bright pink from the cold.

"Yeah, that's Bakugo for you. Abrassive," Izuku sighed, looking after the blond as he continued towards the massive buildings in the distance.

"Are you here for the entrance exams as well?"

"No, just observing the hopefuls," Izuku chuckled, making the girl blush more, "Well, see you around. Wouldn't want to distract you any more than I already have."

"Wait!" she called as he walked away, "I don't even know your name."

"Izuku Midoriya," he called back.

"Ochako Uraraka!"

"Well, nice to meet you Uraraka-san, but it would be best if you hurried, you don't want to be late."


The class talked animatedly around him, old friends chatting as new friends were made. He'd found a cheap apartment and a part-time job at a convenience store fairly easily, the area wasn't exactly rich, but it was three hours away by train from his home, from UA, from him.

The revelation that All Might was working at UA hadn't surprised Izuku. It made sense. Only the best for the best, right?

"Uraraka-chan!" a girl called out, Izuku ignoring the familiar sounding name, "You didn't pass?"

The class went quiet as the new girl entered, prompting Izuku to glance up, eyes going wide for a moment as he recognized the brown-haired blushing girl, her eyes circled in red.

"No," she muttered as another girl scolded the first, Uraraka heading over to her seat.

"Hey," Izuku said quietly as she sat beside him, surprising the girl.

"Oh! You're from the entrance exam!" she gasped, drawing the attention of several of the nearby students, who quickly crowded around Izuku's desk.

"Wait, you tried for UA too?" "What was it like?" "Did they really have giant robots attack you?"

Izuku tried to ignore the questions, looking back down at his notebook.

"Hey, leave him alone!" Ochako interrupted their stream of questions, "He didn't take part, just came to see the examinees!"

A chorus of disappointment echoed around the classroom, the crowd of students dispersing back to their original groups.

"Thanks," Izuku sighed as he glanced over at Ochako, who had sat back in her seat.

"Don't mention it," She replied, smiling brightly, the sadness still evident in her eyes.

"Why didn't you apply elsewhere, like Shiketsu?" Izuku asked quietly as the rest of the class continued talking.

"Oh, y'know, reasons," Ochako replied softly.

"Yeah, I know about those."


Izuku stared at the screen of his computer, eyes wide, mouth agape.

UA had had the worst possible year so far. First when the USJ had been attacked by villains, several students being injured, then one of the students had been killed by the Hero Killer: Stain, and most recently their training camp had been attacked, two of the students having been kidnapped. But Izuku didn't care about that. He as staring at the emaciated form of All Might, barely standing the center of a circle of destruction, one arm raised triumphantly.

"No," he whispered as the figure pointed to the camera, uttering a few final words.

"Now it's your turn."

"NO! LIAR!" Izuku screamed, throwing the screen to the ground, "LIAR LIAR LIAR! YOU SAID I COULDN'T BE A HERO! BUT YOU WERE LIKE THAT!"

He raged and screamed, throwing anything he could get his hands on.

The sound of his phone broke him out of his rage induced trance, glancing over at it, tears in his eyes. Ochako Uraraka the caller ID read, Izuku picking the phone up and answered.

"Izuku?" the familiar voice on the other end of the line calmed him down slightly, "Did you see?"

"Yeah." He replied flatly, collapsing onto his bed, ignoring the devastation around him.

"Are you okay?"

The question hit him hard. Harder than he thought. The tears returned, full force, running down his face as he sobbed into the phone.

"No."


"I like you, Izuku,"

The words hit him hard. Harder than he thought. It had been several months since All Might had retired. Several more things had happened with UA, but Izuku had all but ignored it. And now he was standing behind the school building, his best friend standing in front of him. Her usually rosy cheeks were flushed, Ochako looking away with an embarrassed smile.

"Why?" he asked, unsure of what to make of the situation, "Why me?"

"Because… because you're you, I guess," Ochako stammered, stepping closer to him, "I don't know, I just do."

"But I'm quirkless," he mumbled, looking away. There were so many other people she could have chosen. So many better people.

"I don't care, Izuku," Ochako said softly, lifting her hands to his face, pulling it towards hers, "I like you."


Izuku Midoriya yawned as he opened the front door to his apartment. It had been a long day at work. He'd managed to land his best possible job as a quirk analyst a few years ago, working with both heroes and doctors to help catch criminals and identify quirks. Today had been busy.

"Evening Izuku," Ochako called from their small kitchen, the smell of a home cooked meal wafting over to him.

"Papa!" an excitable ball of green hair barreled into his back as he sat to take off his shoes, the man grinning as he pulled his daughter around his side to give her a tight hug.

"Hello to you to, sweetheart, how was grandma's?"

"Really fun! She kept crying whenever I told her about the stuff I was doing in school!"

Sounded like his mother, Izuku chuckled, picking up the excitable child as he moved through the apartment.

He'd had a hard life, but it was worth it. He had a wife, a child, a job he loved. Everything was finally coming together.

Suddenly, the wall exploded.


"..uku! Izuku!"

He could feel the pain in his head and back, beating against him with each pulse of his heart. He'd barely managed to shield his daughter as the wall had blasted inwards, pelting him with debris.

"Izuku!"

"I'm okay, Ochako," he managed to mumble as he tried to stand, the world swimming around him.

"No! You're bleeding! I've called an ambulance already, don't try to stand!"

"Papa!" his daughter wailed under him, his body still protecting her, "I'm scared!"

"It's okay, sweetheart," he slurred, "The heroes will be here to help soon enough. Papa will protect you until then, I promise."

"MOVE IT, FUCKERS!" the voice echoed behind his front door, a cold sensation running up Izuku's spine as the door rattled, "HEY, STAND BACK!"

There was a sound like several firecrackers going off at once, then the handle to their door fell off, one end smoking as a man dressed in a hero costume entered.

"GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE NOW, OR YOU'RE GOING TO DIE!"

Izuku knew that voice. He felt the rage bubbling up inside him as he forced himself to his feet, Ochako grabbing up their daughter to try help her get out.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!"

The shout tore at his throat. He'd never shouted so loudly. He spread his arms wide, blocking the small hallway, blocking them from him.

"THE FUCK DID YOU SAY?" the figure shouted back, waving the dust away, "GET THE FUCK OUT BEFORE YOU GET ANY MORE HURT, BASTARD!"

Ground Zero glared at the man in front of him, arms outstretched as if he was trying to protect the round-faced woman and the brat behind him, blood pouring down his face.

"FUCK OFF, BAKUGO!" Izuku yelled again, stepping towards the hero, "I WON'T LET YOU TOUCH MY FAMILY!"

"Baku…HOW THE FUCK DO YOU KNOW THAT NAME!" he yelled back, glaring at the man.

"I said," Izuku's voice dropped, his mind swimming as he took another step forward, "GET AWAY FROM MY FAMILY!"

The punch connected, taking both men by surprise as Ground Zero was flung back out of the apartment, Izuku stumbling forwards against the door post.

"IZUZKU!" he heard his wife scream behind him as the world wobbled again, darkness creeping in around the edges of his vision.

"I'm fine!" he shouted, grabbing her arm and pulling her out of the apartment, past the still stunned hero, "Run!"


"You assaulted a hero in the line of duty," the police chief said softly as he sat across from Izuku, "That's quite the offense."

"And he's pressing charges?" Izuku deadpanned, staring at the dog-faced man.

"No,"

"Then why am I still here, you have nothing to keep me on. I need to check on my wife and daughter."

"They're fine, the paramedics checked them out, and apart from some shock, they had no injuries. I understand you shielded your daughter from the initial blast?"

"Wouldn't you do the same?" Izuku asked, standing from the chair, "I'm leaving now."

"Wait," the police chief barked, causing Izuku to glare at him.

"He wants to meet you," the man continued, "The hero you punched."

Izuku stared, unable to process what had just been said. He turned away from the police chief, walking over to the door of the interrogation room before pausing.

"Tell him to go jump off a roof."


"Izuku," Ochako was lying beside her husband, hands hidden beneath her sleeping mittens as she rested her head against his shoulder, "I think you should talk to him."

"I don't want to, Ochako," he sighed.

They'd had this conversation at least a dozen times now, it was beginning to grate on his nerves.

"I just think you should,"

"I know," he sighed, pulling his wife closer to him, "I just…I don't want to. Not after everything. Not when I'm finally happy."

"Mama, Papa?" A small voice called from their bedroom door, the figure of their daughter stumbling sleepily inside, "I had a nightmare."

"Come here, sweetheart," Ochako murmured softly, lifting the bed covers for her as she clambered under them, "It's okay, Mama and Papa will protect you."

"Promise?" she asked softly, already half asleep.

"Promise," Izuku whispered as he placed a soft kiss on top of her head, "Always."


"So, you finally go the balls to come talk to me, huh?"

It was strange to hear Bakugo talking at a normal volume. Izuku sat opposite him at the small café near his new apartment.

"Not for lack of trying," Izuku sighed, six months of pestering from Ochako had finally gotten to him.

"So, the fuck was all that about?" Bakugo growled.

"What do you think?" Izuku shot back, "You made my life hell for fifteen years, you threatened to kill me again and again, then told me to commit suicide. Then you became a hero. How bullshit does that sound?"

Bakugo glared at Izuku as he glared back, both sitting silently for a while before Bakugo spoke up again.

"So what? Would you have preferred I press charges?" he scoffed, "Taken you away from your precious family for a couple of years?"

Izuku's voice turned cold as he stood up from his seat, his voice raised.

"You ever, EVER, talk about my family again, and I will kill you myself," he hissed, taking Bakugo by surprise at the ferocity of his words, "I'm happy now. I have everything I need. I could only be happier without having to deal with you ever again."

The two men glared at each other for a moment.

"Heard you'd gotten a job on I-island," Bakugo said plainly, trying to hide how strangely intimidated he felt under Izuku's gaze.

"What's it to you?"

"Nothing," Bakugo replied, "Congratulations."


"Papa," his daughter floated across the room as Izuku cooked a simple meal in the open plan kitchen of their home, "I know you hate heroes but…"

"I don't hate heroes, sweetheart," Izuku cut her off, lifting the frying pan from the heat to dish up, "I just… don't trust all of them."

"Would you trust me?"

"Of course, why?"

"I wanna be a hero."

Izuku froze halfway through dishing up their supper, carefully placing the pan down on the counter as he turned to his teenaged daughter, her face flushed in embarrassment. He took a step forwards, pulling her own from the ceiling into his arms.

"Of course you can be one, sweetheart. I'd never deny your dreams. I promise."