Prologue:
Ochaco Uraraka watched as the plain-looking boy rocketed up, past her, the wind tugging at her hair as he shot towards the 0-Point robot. The force of his launch tugged free most of the debris, and let her begin to crawl free, but she continued to watch him ascend. When he first jumped, he seemed to be attempting to punch the thing; his arm back for a right hook or something, but now he seemed to be holding his arms over his head. It almost seemed like he was afraid of crashing into it, and was holding his head and face for dear life.
She gasped in horror as she saw he was going to hit it, his body accelerating even faster than should have been possible, and his trajectory aimed directly at the "chin" of the faux-villain. Her gasp turned into a small scream as he impacted, ripping into and through the beast with a small boom, the head tugging off after him and flipping backwards into the city-scape.
Uraraka scrambled to a piece of broken metal, using it as a shield from the falling debris, though her thoughts remained with the plain-looking, green-haired boy. She wondered why he'd changed tactics like that, and how he'd gone faster in mid-air. It was almost like… no. No, he couldn't have-
But he did. When she looked up, she saw him spinning in midair, floating like a balloon. Floating like… like she did. Squinting up at him, she tried to see what he was doing, but only saw a general flailing of limbs, and heard the hint of a scream of terror.
Can he… can he not come down?! She wondered, alarmed.
Crawling out of the wreckage, she tapped what might have been a leg once, and used it to float up and out of the nearby buildings. As she got closer, she winced at her own pain and the twinge of her stomach from lifting so much, so often. She also got a better look at the boy. His arms were bruised and probably broken, as were his shoulders, and he seemed to be screaming in horror, pain, and confusion.
"H-hey!" She called, trying to get his attention, but her queasiness growing with every second. "Hey, you!"
He seemed to notice her, and his face gained some relief, though the pain and other emotions didn't leave. It seemed he was trying to speak, but he didn't seem to manage. It was probably from his injuries, which Ochaco noticed weren't very pretty to look at.
"Here, grab on."
He took her outstretched hand, and was tugged aboard her little contraption. Of course now came the tricky part.
"I'm going to jump off now. I'm floating you with my quirk, plus you are with yours, so if I weigh you down; we'll be safe!"
It wasn't the most sound logic, but hey, she didn't know what else to do at this point. Besides, the boy seemed to have passed out from shock, so he couldn't argue. So, she gripped his leg tightly, and carefully gave her fingertips a tap. They began to fall, along with the debris, but slower than they should have.
However, it was still much faster than she expected. The sudden pressure on her head snapped her power in half, making her spew a rainbow down to the pavement and their two bodies to begin falling at the normal speed again.
Oh, she'd been so stupid to try saving him! Now they'd both get hurt!
Just as the thought ran through her head, a sudden gust of wind brought her attention to their much slower descent. Somehow, they'd come nearly to a stop, and were only lowering at the speed of a feather. Ochaco looked up, and noticed the boy's arms flailing in the air, and his face scrunched in concentration. He was floating again!
They touched down, and she helped him to the ground, at which point his quirk stopped and he slumped against the debris around them.
"Th-thank you…" He mumbled, passing out.
"W-welcome," She returned, laying her head down beside his knee, "I knew I- I couldn't be the only one…"
With that, she knew no more.
Chapter One:
Izuku felt dead inside, staring at the letter that had just arrived. He'd failed, of course. How could Deku ever succeed as a Hero Trainee, let alone All Might's apprentice? Hopefully, he'd be able to give back One-For-All without much trouble, if that was what he'd received. He'd never even heard of All Might floating like he had, and the muscle-bound hero hadn't mentioned it…
Maybe he hadn't trusted him after all. Maybe all the work was just to get him into shape as a potential candidate for a good policeman, and an easier way to let him down after what he'd been through. Maybe it had all been an act of pity…
Whatever he saw in me, it didn't come out, anyways.
With that horrible thought, Izuku slipped open the letter and removed the page, not noticing the weight within the envelope. The first page was blank, aside from a small U.A. logo, and the words: Remove after watching.
"Watching?" Izuku asked the room at large, confused. Then he noticed the small black disk inside the envelope. "Oh."
He placed what he now realized was a holo-cap onto the desk, and flipped it right-side up.
"THIS IS A PROJECTION!"
Izuku nearly fell out of his chair, surprised and terrified by the sudden shout.
"A-All Might?! Wha- I thought this was from U.A.?!"
He looked down at his hands, and then back up to the image of his mentor and idol. The #1 Hero grinned and bowed slightly, and began to speak in his normal, booming voice.
"It's been some time, Young Midoria! We, the staff of U.A., have been deliberating extensively, and now we are ready to announce the results. Apologies for our lateness!"
He bowed again, and Izuku leaned in a little closer, in awe at the idea of All Might teaching the next generation of heroes. While he tried to process it, All Might seemed to have a conversation with someone off-screen, but he missed the majority of it.
"Now, to the results. Even if you passed the written portion of the test, you earned no points on the practical. Naturally, this results in failure."
There was the kicker. Izuku's heart died, and he hung his head a little, the despair dragging him back into his earlier ditch. His self-deprecating feelings began to dig into his permanent mind, when a single beam of light cut into his thoughts.
"But that is not the end of the story."
Izuku looked up, unsure he'd heard correctly. But instead of All Might's face, he saw the round and gentle face of the girl he'd saved and in-turn been saved by.
"Um, excuse me, but… I'd like to see about transferring some of my points from the exam? Is that something I can do? You see, there was this really plain-looking boy. He, ah, he has green, curly hair. Um… freckles? Green eyes, I think… He-he could float, like I can, and he… he didn't get any points. I got a lot, and I want him to get some too. At least, however many he gave up to save me. He- He saved me, and I know I saved him back, but I can't just-"
She'd grown more and more emotional as her explanation wore on, but soon Present Mic's hand was planted on her head, stopping her mid-word. He smiled easily and nodded a little.
"I'm afraid we can't give him any of your points, but from what I've seen; there won't be a need for them, my little listener."
The image of the pretty girl and Present Mic faded away, back into All Might's grin.
"Your actions move those around you, no matter what powers you possess. You chose to do the right thing over your own self-interest, and that act is one no hero course can ever overlook. This is a job that places your life at risk every day, and requires conviction and dedication beyond the strength of normal people. How could we deny you, when these are traits you have in abundance?"
He brought a finger up in a way that indicated he had something to correct or indicate.
"You see, we weren't just looking for villain-based points during the exam. We also included: RESCUE POINTS! It is the second, and more valuable point system of the exam, which we keep secret for this very reason. Izuku Midoriya gained: 70 Rescue Points during the exam. 55 for defeating the 0-Point Villain when you defended that young woman, and another 15 for saving her after her quirk failed, despite your own injuries."
All Might held out his hand, almost like he wanted to lift Izuku out of his chair and into the glowing screen.
"Come, Midoriya. This, is your Hero Academy!"
His eyes might have released enough water to drown the entire apartment complex, and he bowed his head in respect. He'd… he'd made it.
"Oh, and before I forget (or before they shut me off): I should be waiting for you at the training grounds at this very moment. If I know me, then I'm already timing you!"
The transmission cut off, and held up a circle that indicated the video could be replayed, but Izuku didn't see it. He was already pulling on his shoes and running for the door.
"I got in Mom! I've got to go out, I'll be back soon!" He said quickly, pulling on his jacket and vanishing out into the evening.
His exhilaration caused him to jump off the balcony and down to the sidewalk, which he could have theoretically done before, but fear (and his mother) had prevented him from doing. He realized his potential danger right before he hit the concrete, and instinctively tried to brace himself and roll, only to find he'd stopped just shy of it. He started spinning, and realized he was floating again; with his feet moving up while his nose kept close to the ground.
In a terrible panic, he turned off his new quirk, and crumpled against the ground. It was only a centimeter away at that point, but it was still very hard. Still, he brushed himself off and began to run, knowing exactly where he was supposed to be.
"All Might!" He called, seeing the thin man on the sand.
His mentor waved his hand slightly, indicating he shouldn't shout. Luckily, most wouldn't be walking there for dates until tomorrow, but it couldn't hurt to be careful. So, Izuku approached more quietly, though still quickly, noticing All Might had his stopwatch out and continuing to run.
"A-All might... " He gasped, leaning on his knees slightly.
The skeletal man nodded and placed his hand on Izuku's shoulder, some tears in his eyes.
"Young Midoriya, congratulations on passing the exam. For your peace of mind, I didn't tell the school about our relationship. You got in on your own."
"Not- not really. I used your quirk to do it."
The tenderness in his eyes seemed to grow stronger, and he patted Izuku's shoulder a bit before releasing him.
"Not quite, my young apprentice. Let's take a walk."
He began to take a gentle stroll down the beach, with Izuku moving into step beside him.
"You've definitely noticed by now, that your new quirk isn't quite how I described it."
"Yeah, I'm not any stronger or anything."
"I suspect you are, but you are correct that you aren't using One-for-All like I use it. The energy stored and built by the previous eight wielders didn't come forth in power like mine does. I suspect your body knows you can't handle it yet, so instead of destroying itself with uncontrolled 100% blasts, it took up the next power in the cycle."
"Cycle?" He asked, confused.
All Might sighed, and nodded to himself slowly.
"I didn't think I'd have to explain this to you for some time, but it seems I must. One-for-All is not a quirk like others in this world. It is, in fact, two quirks, or perhaps more…
You see, when quirks first appeared, their level of diversity was far greater than that of today. While many quirks were only peripheral, like the glowing child, others carried the power of minor gods. Two such quirks were owned by a pair of brothers; one who could steal and gift quirks he possessed, and the other who could pass on quirks he had. The former was evil, while the second was righteous. Not knowing his brother had any quirk, the first gave the latter a quirk that stockpiled energy. As it was, he only became slightly stronger, but when it merged with his own, dormant quirk, they became: One-For-All."
All Might stopped and pointed at Izuku.
"Seven more users inherited this power, including me. We all assumed only the power of the energy and the passing itself were transferred from user to user, and thanks to my own quirkless nature: I used it exclusively. But it seems the quirks remained, in fact, fully unique in their effects. Each and every quirk from the eight users of One-For-All, not live within you.
Your body couldn't safely use my aspect of it, and you've no reason to use the first power to pass it on yet, so it moved to the closest power that it could find: that of my predecessor and mentor: Nana Shimura. You've inherited her quirk of: Float."
Izuku fell to his knees, a bit stunned and amazed. Nana Shimura was one of the older heroes he knew of, but still one he admired greatly. She'd been a paragon of saving others, and struck a powerful figure when commanding the skies with her quirk. Then the full ramifications of what All Might had said hit him.
"W-wait. Will I only be able to Float? Will I be stuck without your power?"
"No, young Midoriya. I expect that as your body continues to develop, it will gain the power to handle all eight quirks fully. You already have two, so for now we should focus on Float."
"Eight quirks…"
"Well, eight including the ability to pass them along."
"Seven quirks of eight amazing heroes…"
"Seven quirks of seven amazing heroes." All Might added wryly.
Izuku realized All Might was a little bitter about not unlocking the powers himself, or having not contributed to them, and decided to change the subject.
"So, um… how can I train Float? Your power is in the physical strength, and I can't use that yet…"
"Why, I know a few people who will be excellent aids to your training, but in the meantime: see if you can't train yourself a little. If any of your classmates have similar powers, you may want to train with them." He grinned and winked. "There seemed to be one you've already met"
"You mean the pretty girl?" Izuku asked, a little afraid of asking a girl for training and the potential time he'd be spending with her if she said yes.
"Quite so! From what I can see, the two of you will need to train your inner ears together, among other things. And, once you've gained a little more control, I can think of a pair of heroes who you would do well to train with."
He shuddered and bit his thumb slightly.
"That is… if I can get them to listen…"
Izuku stood back up and bowed profusely, grateful to a level he couldn't express.
"Thank you sir!"
"Aye, you've earned it, kid. Now, let's see about getting you into shape! I might not be able to teach you about my power for a while, but we can move that date up by continuing to build your strength. If I have my way, you'll be able to use it before you graduate, and I'll have you fully trained in all of your quirks before you graduate from a sidekick."
All Might inflated his body, and the two of them began to run, the elder hero instructing his protege on some exercises he would need to perform daily, now that his time to work was much lower. However, Izuku's mind was beginning to wander to what he'd said about training with his classmates. Specifically, to the round-faced and pretty girl he'd met.
I wonder if she'll agree to float with me?
For the Story:
Welcome! This is the first chapter in my MHA story, which I've had in the works since I first theorized Deku had the other six quirks (though everyone called my theory baseless and unlikely at the time). I'm able to keep pretty close to the main story with this, so expect to see things fairly close to the canon, unlike some other Fanfictions, which seem to diverge rather sharply, despite a lack of reason. Now, I won't be following everything word for word, but I won't be changing anyone who isn't directly affected by the changes. All-for-One won't say... suddenly attack at USJ, since that wouldn't make any sense with the changes I made. I'll also try to keep the personalities as close to canon as possible.
If you can, please leave a review so I can get better. Love you all!
Author's note to the community:
Welcome, my pretties. I know you may be worried about what's been going on recently with my account (if you're a member who's been around for a while), so I'd like to take this time to explain.
I have very little time to write as I would like, and as such I've decided to cut down on all my stories, and delete all those I either can't finish well, or don't have the strength to finish. To leave them half-done and still up would be horrible, so I've cut them down until I can re-release them correctly or not at all. In the meantime, I'm going to focus on some easier stories I can essentially just match to already existing events. The stories to look forward to seeing released are thus: My Birthday Present: The Knight, Float With Me, & Lady-Guardian. When those three are done, I'll return to the others already up, as well as a trio of new stories I want to show off, but aren't ready yet.
I hope you don't hate me too much, and if you want one of the deleted stories back, please send me a message and I'll see about bringing it back into my schedule. I still love you all, and I hope to release stories worthy of your time and skill.