A.N.

I'll probs edit the shit out of this in due time, but I hope you all enjoy it till then!

Edit: The shit has been edited out of this

Chapter 3

As the silhouetted figure towered above him Izuku desperately willed his racing heart to calm down, to no avail. When he opened his mouth to speak, he found his tongue dry and heavy, and closed it again.

The figure, a man, moved toward him and Izuku stepped back apprehensively.

His heart was in his temples as the stranger's cryptic demand hung in the air, and Izuku wondered what would happen next. It was the man who spoke again, voice low.

"Why.. did you help that boy?"

Izuku paused a moment, wondering who "that boy" was, before a memory of spiky yellow hair filled his mind. A new surge of confusion filled him as he tried to rationalize the context of his situation.

He had been followed by this person for goodness only knew how long, and now all they wanted was.. to know why he had helped Katsuki?

As his eyes adjusted to the lighting, he took in the man's appearance; blue jeans under a grey shirt, a duffel bag slung over his shoulder. All things considered, though, Izuku could find nothing particularly threatening about him beyond the situation he found himself in. He swallowed thickly before finding his voice.

"I just did what anyone should have done. Though..", a wry smile twisted the edges of his mouth, "..I'm sure I was quite useless in the end."

"And yet nobody else offered their help, even in such dire circumstances." scoffed the man. "I believe it was quite heroic of you."

Heroic?

The words rung hollow after the day's events, and Izuku felt the sting of them tighten his chest.

As if.

Still, the man didn't seem unfriendly. Definitely odd, and had probably followed Izuku since the villain confrontation over an hour prior. Izuku wondered what he had hoped to achieve.

"Um.. why.. did you follow me?" he stammered, shifting his weight from one foot to the other.

The man's gaze was distant. Unruly black hair was gathered under a cap of the same color, the few strands that escaped framing an angular, narrow face which seemed lost in thought.

"I asked why you followed me?" Izuku repeated, more confidently this time.

Suddenly a pair of sharp, beady eyes met his from beneath the brim of the man's cap.

"Do you plan to be a hero?" he inquired sharply.

Izuku felt his own heart skip a beat at the question, and inwardly kicked himself at his own foolish belatedness.

Why would someone care to ask that?

"I.." The stranger's gaze was intense, the focus placed on his every movement bordering on manic. Izuku found he couldn't match it and dropped his eyes.

"I do, or.." he studied his shoes,"..I did. But it's stupid. I can't be a hero."

"Why not? What made you think so?" the man clipped, seeming almost indignant.

Izuku frowned to himself. Why in the world would he tell something so personal to a complete stranger? Maybe he was just that anxious to get it off his chest. Maybe it didn't even matter who he told.

Maybe I'm just that lonely.

"I.. it's because I don't have a quirk." Saying it, reminding himself of it felt like reopening a wound. He wished he could just forget about everything that had happened that day. To make it as if it never happened. Yet he stood here, indulging the inquiries of a complete stranger, on said stranger's whim.

It was ridiculous.

He reached for his bag and turned to leave. "Listen, I should get going no-"

"And why.. should a quirk dictate whether you can be a hero?" The backpack dropped from his hand, books scattering on the pavement for the second time that day. The stranger's quiet voice had an edge to it, some emotion that Izuku couldn't place.

"I- I mean- I-" The stranger's bloodshot eyes were wide, mouth curled up into a grin, almost like he expected Izuku not to have an answer. "Well?"

"I.. t-they told me I couldn't be a hero without a quirk.."

"And yet in a pinch," the man chuckled dryly, "you acted with more heroism than all those fakes combined." The man's voice lowered to a snarl at the word "fakes", and his tone made Izuku shiver. But quickly as it came, the menacing demeanor vanished.

"So what you mean to say is that I can be a hero, even.. without a quirk?"

The stranger straightened at that, drawing himself up to his full height, strands of his black hair tossing in the breeze as he stared down at Izuku.

"Boy," he said, his harsh features growing serious, "heroism is in a man's heart. If the heart of a man is corrupt, strength and power become.. corrupt." His face was stern, his voice grave, and for a moment, Izuku felt the same prickle on his skin. Goosebumps rose on his neck.

"But how could I.. how would I learn? Who would even consider training someone quirkless like me?"

There was a brief pause, as the stranger cocked his head pensively, before giving a shrug.

"I would."

Caution bloomed, crimson and hot in Izuku's mind at the almost casual offer. Kidnappings. Serial killings. Human trafficking. Other, worse things.. and yet, this man didn't strike him as someone who would involve himself in such activities. He didn't seem like that.

He was strange, but.. something about him struck Izuku as great. Like a real hero.

Almost like.. All Might.

The conviction that he radiated when he had spoken of heroism had stirred something inside Izuku, something bone-chilling and intense, yet undeniably commanding of respect.

The reasons not to trust this man far outnumbered the reasons to trust him, the latter being, well, none. And yet.. Izuku thought he might.

"Why should I trust you?" Izuku asked slowly. "You could have any number of reasons to trick me. I don't know you, and you haven't even told me your name."

"Cautious.. good. Very good!" A smile too big for his face revealed sharp, jagged teeth. "I don't know yours either." The man shot back, a clear hint of amusement in his voice.

He should know better than to buy into any of this, he did, Izuku told himself, but.. what if a chance like this never came again?..

"Well, my name is Midoriya. Izuku Midoriya." Offered the boy, extending a timid hand.

The stranger looked at him for a moment, face suddenly serious again. He gazed a long moment at Izuku before nodding approval as he grasped the hand in his own callused one.

"Akaguro, Chizome Akaguro."

His grip was firm. Izuku's tone remained cautious, though admittedly having a name set his mind more at ease.

"So.. where could I find you, if I did choose to take you up on your offer?"

The man, Chizome, didn't seem to mind his lingering wariness. In fact, though he was hard to read, he almost seemed happy as he scribbled an address on a slip of paper and handed it to Izuku.

"If you do decide to accept, I'll wait for you here at dawn, one week from now."

He shouldered his duffel bag and turned to go, pausing one last time.

"If you do come, pack your things. This will be the start of something new, Izuku Midoriya. Only you can decide what your dream is worth." In the twilight, his red eyes seemed almost to glow. "You'll have a week to decide."

"Wait!" Izuku cried after the man. "What does that mean? How do I know you don't plan to harm me?"

Chizome paused, and waved at the empty streets.

"If I wished you dead, you'd be dead now. Beyond that, my word is all I'll give."

Izuku watched him disappear, staring at the empty street long after he was left alone.