Chapter 15: Demon

Midoriya groaned as he slowly opened his eyes and slowly took in his surroundings. The room was familiar, worryingly familiar.

After all, it was never good when you were USED to waking up in an infirmary. He slowly started to rise, why was he here?

He looked around as memories slowly came back. They'd been at the new facility, All Might hadn't been there, and the lights had started to act odd-

Villains!

His eyes widened as he remembered. Villains had attacked the USJ! They had come to get All Might. He and Asui had been separated with Mineta.

His breathing started to get faster as more memories continued to return. Nomu had attacked them, he hadn't been strong enough to do anything. His classmates helped All Might, they had nearly been ambushed and he had gone after the thug.

Eyes closed tight as his breathing got more erratic.

Wide endless black eyes full of surprise.

His hand clutched at his chest.

An explosion of smoke, a spec of blood and nothing else upon the ground.

Death, murder. He had killed him.

He was a murder.

He was a monster!

He felt lightheaded, on the verge of passing out. The world seemed to swim in an endless black. What did he do now? He couldn't be a hero, what kind of hero killed someone?!

"-Zuku!" A voice finally cut through the swarm of dread in his mind. He looked up as his breathing stopped and saw All might looking at him with sympathetic eyes, Recovery Girl just a little behind him with a look of concern. All Might placed a hand on the boys shoulder and gave him a small sad smile. "Deep breathes, my boy. Its ok now, I am here."

He followed his mentors instructions, taking slow deep breathes. Recovery girl started to do the same as if giving him a guide so he could follow her lead. He was thankful for it.

"What….Why….."He started slowly and a bony hand cut him off, placed over his mouth.

"Take a moment first young Midoriya." All Might instructed him. "Take all the time you need to form your thoughts before you ask anything, it will help."

"Yeah…Yeah ok…" He said calmly. He took in his surroundings properly as the details of his memories started to return, both good and bad. The room held no other occupants. A moment of silence past as Midoriya tried to think of everything he needed to ask, to know. Last thing he had memory of, he had told Midoriya he had killed someone and then he woke up here. "Ok I'm ready."

"Ok good. We'll answer best we can, but we have some questions for you as well if you can answer them." All Might warned with a serious look. Midoriya nodded in understanding. "Then you should start, my boy."

"Ok, I remember Aizawa and Thirteen got hurt pretty badly. Are they ok!? And what about everyone else?!" He asked and All Might let out a small laugh.

"Of course that's your first question." The blonde muttered amused, seemingly expecting it. "Don't worry my boy, before you worry they are all safe. Aizawa and Thirteen are in a nearby hospital, they're still recovering but they'll live. As for your classmates, the only one who had any truly serious conditions was young Hagakure but thanks to you, she'll be fine. Aside from that, the rest of your classmates only had minor scrapes, cuts and bruises. Everyone's alive and recovering."

A beat of silence hung over the trio as All Might's choice of words sank in. Recovery Girl slapped the blonde as the greenette put his face in to his hands as if frustrated though it was more worry than anything else.

"Sorry, my boy. That was….a poor choice of words." The pro apologised as the female of the trio muttered about 'incompetent blondes' "That's what we needed to ask you about though."

"I'm sorry." Midoriya bit out as tears started to prick at his eyes. "I'm so sorry…You believed in me and I killed someone….I'm sorry I failed you, All Might! You put your faith in me to be a hero and…."

The blonde's hands clasped around his arm tightly and in a low but calming voice his mentor tried to calm him. "Hey hey hey, none of that now. I know you, you didn't do it for any evil reason."

"But how can I be a hero if-"

"No, you can still be a hero. A mistake or an act of self-defence doesn't make you evil. I still believe in you kid, don't get any ideas otherwise in there." All might said as he started rubbing circles in the boys back with his free hand. "Do you want to talk about something else first, we'll need to know eventually but if you aren't up to it just yet no one will hold you against you."

A small nod was all the skinny man got in reply.

"Alright, what did you want to talk about instead?"

"How long was I out? I was so tired in the USJ, I must have been asleep for a while." Recovery Girl snorted at the question, causing Midoriya to look at her confused.

"'A while' is an understatement!" The nurse heroine said with a roll of her eyes. "You've been asleep for 3 whole days now. If you stayed out of it any longer and I was going to transfer you to a hospital. I was going too yesterday but Toshinori here convinced me to keep you one more day."

"Oh. I'm sorry if I got in the way." Midoriya apologised and the two heroes just sighed.

"It's my job to look after you kids in these situations, don't worry about it." Recovery Girl waved off his concern. "Just don't do it again!"

"Yes ma'am." He nodded. It hadn't been that long then. All might then lit up as if he remembered something. "You should be able to go when all is said and done here seeing as you aren't injured. School was cancelled for the last two days so everyone could recuperate and recharge, which apparently was pretty literal for you. They just came back today. The fight with Nomu shortened how long I can hold my hero form but I have no classes today so we can go get some food in you and then go see everyone else before sending you home if you want."

"Yeah." A small smile graced Izuku's face at the thought. "I'd like that. I'm sorry about your hero form though…."

"Don't worry about it, these things happen." All might reassured him with a smile.

Midoriya took a deep breath. He had to do this sooner or later and he knew the longer he waited the harder to would be to say anything at all. He looked up at the two people who knew everything about his powers.

"I…I'm ready. I'll tell you what happened."

Far Reach fired out and dragged Midoriya through the air, closing the distance quickly. His broken arm threw him off balance and made it hard to aim however he landed relatively ok, only stumbling slightly. He hoped he wouldn't be forced to stray too far from Nomu and All Might.

Loud thuds and a sudden massive gust of wind informed him that the two had almost definitely started fighting. 'Better wrap this up quickly.'

He twisted around one final corner and was caught by surprise, the thug had stopped running and was standing with a massive grin on his face. Midoriya clenched his fists. "That's enough! The rest of the league of villains is down, just give up so I can get back to the fight."

What left the villains mouth next would really throw Midoriya for a loop. The start of a path from which he'd never walk back.

"League of villains? Pitiful next to me, I'll have you know. I work for my own agenda." He explained with a cold voice and a hint of twisted amusement in the villains eyes. The villain looked away and when he looked back, Midoriya almost shouted out in shock. "I could care less about getting rid of such an insignificant insect as All Might. No, I'm here for the only one who matters. I'm here for you, Izuku Midoriya."

The villain's eyes were the same endless black as the outsiders.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Midoriya exclaimed in shock as he backed up slightly, completely caught off guard. Then he froze.

Big mistake.

CRACK!

Unlike the times before, this time Midoriya definitely felt the break. Adrenaline wasn't distracting him and he's really put his body through hell today. He couldn't hold it back, he screamed, both in pain and confusion.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHH-"

Smoke, thick black smoke forced itself inside his mouth, shutting him up. If it wasn't for the lack of working bones he's be clawing at his chest, it was suffocating.

His eyes pricked with tears, the sensation wasn't entirely unfamiliar. There was one other time he'd has this unpleasant experience.

The sludge villain.

Memories flashed of the day he was granted the ability to one day have powers, both by All Might and The Outsider.

All Might who had believed in him to become his successor, to be the next symbol of peace.

The Outsider, who clearly had some purpose in mind for him with his powers, who clearly needed him for something, whatever it was.

He was going to die here and let both men (or men and god) who had given him the opportunity he had wanted all his life, if he couldn't find some escape.

Tears trickled down his cheek. His thoughts like a blizzard of worry and concern. The new villain glared at him, he had his hand outstretched which is where the smoke was coming from.

"Seriously?! How disgustingly pathetic!" The villain complained, yanking his hand back and stopping the smoke. Immediately all the smoke seemed to expel from Midoriya's body, leaving the boy coughing violently. "I was sent here for this? A scared little brat is how I'm supposed to rank up?! This was supposed to be a difficult mission."

'What in the void is this creep talking about?!' Midoriya wondered as he coughed up the last little remaining bits of smoke. He took in the villain's appearance while he could. It wasn't the outsider, he could tell that much. The outsider was cold, seemingly unfeeling but this guy was getting pretty angry easily. "Who….Are you!?"

"You really don't know do you?!" The villain half laughed, half exclaimed, His frown was replaced by a twisted grin. The villain stomped forward and Midoriya could finally make out his features properly. He had a gaunt face, crooked nose. His hair was a light brown and there was a scar near the villain's right ear. There was also seemingly a hole near the villains neck.

The villain stopped, stood above the teen. The villain leaned down slowly, and much to Izuku's disgust and discomfort, the villain spat right in his eyes. 'EWW.'

A hand gripped the boy's PE uniform and yanked him into the air, broken limbs dangling uselessly. His fearful eyes met with the glare of the enigma before him. He had to resist the urge to scream again when out of nowhere, he felt his limbs snap into place. He probably wouldn't of managed if not for the villain's other hand covering his face.

Suddenly he was flying through the air, thrown by the villain and he rolled across the floor upon landing. A quick test revealed to him, much to his surprise, feeling was back in his limbs, he could move!

"What the? Why would you heal me?!" He asked, curiosity over taking him. It made no sense to him. The villain just grinned, then Midoriya was once more caught off–guard as the villain's body turned into an endless mass of smoke.

It wasn't completely unlike Kurogiri's however there was no purple highlights and it was much thicker. A second later he felt a presence behind him and turned on the spot, seeing the smoke forming a body like cloud that then transformed into the villain. "Peek-a-boo!"

A fist collided with the boy's face, making him stumble. The villain slowly walked towards him, looking somehow bored yet amused. 'Another multi-quirk user?! No….I recognize this energy….It can't be…' "I'm only gonna explain once you brat, and only so you can actually be a 'worth it' target. I have superiors, and not those League of Villains chumps. Heroes and Villains mean nothing to us, though we do have to thank those morons for making sure evil persists and keeps us fed. What would be a good term for us? Hmmm, I did always enjoy being called a demon when I was alive."

'EXECUSE ME WHAT?!'

"Yeah, let's go with demon." The black-eyed horror laughed as Midoriya looked at him horrified. "Long story short, we got a hierarchy. Now me, I'm just a little low-level 'no good trouble maker', a foot solider. Pisses me off, just because I drew the short straw on powers. This was my chance to get into the big leagues. See, I have no fucking clue how with how pathetic a show you're putting on, but you got the bigger player's attentions. They're scared of you, little man, about what you can do. But they don't know what you're capable of completely, so they sent me to find out and try to eliminate you ahead of time. Hell they decided this new smoke power. Personally, I wouldn't have even bothered, you're no threat to us. But if I get to rank up AND get more powers, then I'll kill you. But I want it to be earned so FIGHT BACK DAMMIT!"

Midoriya barely rolled out the way in time to avoid a coil of smoke that tried to attack him. He leapt back and scrambled into a fighting position. How the hell was he supposed to react to all this?!

Ten months ago, he would have brushed the villain…no the demon, off as a lunatic, but after everything with the outsider, he could believe it. He could believe that this was some supernatural monster just as much as an insane small-time thug. "I SAID FIGHT BACK YOU USELESS BASTARD!"

He rolled out of the way of another smoke coil and finally he had enough. "FINE!"

Far Reach launched out his hand, wrapping around the villains legs and pulling him over. The demon seemed caught off guard but transformed into the smoke from before in the air. Midoriya was ready for him when he tried to reform behind the teen. A solid punch connected with the villain's stomach who…just stood there with a grin.

Another physical punch collided with Midoriya's face again. "Nice try, you little bastard. That's more like it, but physical attacks aren't going to work on me! That beast out there is nothing next to what I can do and that Shigaraki chump doesn't even realize it."

"You're saying…?!" He didn't finish his question, but Midoriya knew he didn't have to for his intent to come through. The demon smiled cruelly as he stalked forward, one hand held out as if holding an invisible apple for some reason.

"Yeah, Nomu is an ant and I'm a lion! Not even your super strength attack will do anything. Good luck fighting me with just a tentacle brat!" The villain gloated and suddenly a giant ball of smoke appeared in the villain's outstretched hand. "CATCH!"

The greenette's eyes widened in surprise as the smoke ball was suddenly launched towards him. It was fast and even from the distance he could tell it was dangerous.

He could practically taste the amount of energy concentrated in the attack. He followed his instincts as time seemed to slow with the attack launching at him, leaping into the air with his increased agility which seemed to catch the demon off guard as he flipped in the air to face the attack that soared past.

'Not even your super strength attack will do anything.' 'If my powers won't do anything then!'

The familiar concentration of energy shot through his left hand and his tentacle shot out, wrapping around the smoke ball. As Midoriya felt the two connect with each other he flipped once more upon his descent to the ground, throwing the attack right back at the demon. As he landed he looked up to see the attack hit the dead center of the demons chest.

Both of them froze for a moment in surprise, then a sickening crack sounded out and the demon lurched forward. "You….you….BRAT!"

Midoriya barely had the time to dodge as the demon rushed him, aiming a punch. The demon just collapsed after he missed, on all fours. The demon's head slowly turned to look at him and Midoriya felt his heart sink, the endless black eyes that had held contempt and anger now had two new emotions swirling in them. Too other it would be hard to see but Midoriya saw it, the shock and fear.

"Guess…..they were…..right."

Midoriya didn't have to ask what he was talking about.

'but you got the bigger player's attentions. They're scared of you, little man, about what you can do. But they don't know what you're capable of completely, so they sent me to find out and try to eliminate you ahead of time.'

The marked boy walked back slowly as the demons body started to bubble, as if it couldn't contain something inside. It made Midoriya sick to look at but he couldn't look away.

Then the demon exploded, smoke flying everywhere. The boy's eyes widened in shock. Others would be quick to think the villain was making an escape but Midoriya could feel it.

This wasn't an escape.

This was a death.

A death he caused.

His hands shot to his mouth in horror. What the hell had he just done?! He'd just killed someone!

'When I was alive…'

Had he? He was so confused now….but…..he had a physical body, he FELT him die…

He was sure, he HAD just killed someone.

An explosion sounded and he looked behind himself, seeing a gaping hole in the roof. 'All Might!'

He started to run back to the others. He did however spare one glance back, towards where the demon had exploded.

Both All Might and recovery girl looked between each other, concerned looks on their faces.

"That's….quite the story." All Might started. Midoriya hugged his legs to his chest. "Don't get me wrong, I believe you my boy. Still, this is….quite a lot to take in."

"I understand. I'm sorry…." He trailed off. A skinny arm wrapped around his neck and he saw All Might looking down at him with a small smile.

"You have absolutely nothing to be sorry for, Izuku. You faced an opponent intent on killing you and you did what you had to in order to not be killed. Its….unfortunate, to be sure but it was necessary."

The boy leaned into his mentor side with a frown and a sad sigh as tears started to prick his eyes once more. "But….even so…..I'm….I killed someone, you'd never have done that. And I'm being hunted?! If I hadn't been there, then…."

He didn't get a chance to finish as All Might's arm tightened its grasp around him. "If you hadn't been there, young Asui and Mineta would be dead right about now. I was told about everything you did, your actions were reckless and If this were any other time I'd scold you as my duty as a teacher. But! This time, it was justified, you saved your friends. As for these 'Demons', I'll admit I have no idea what to make of them. I'll have a discussion with principal Nezu, so we may look into it. The safety of our students are our prime concern, especially after this Incident."

"But..But…" Midoriya stuttered, he looked up to his mentors face and was caught off guard when he saw that the blonde's face was dark, with a frown. "You never…."

"That's….sadly not true."

Oh…

OH!

Midoriya wrapped his teacher into a proper hug at that. "I'm sorry!"

"So you're replacing constant crying with constant apologies now?" The blonde quietly joked. Tears started to roll down Midoriya's cheeks.

He swore he could actually FEEL All Might's eye roll.