Chapter Six
Pyrophobia
"You did WHAT?!" The shout came. Toshinori, in his weakened form, winced under the verbal assault. "I was optimistic about being called here, I had hope that you had met with Mirio, and realized what a worthy candidate he made, but instead you force your quirk, on some poor kid plucked from the streets!"
Shota sighed, taking in the room. It was the conference room of UA, usually reserved for staff meetings. Today, an exception was made. Around the U shaped table sat a collection of heroes and noteworthy people.
To Shota's left was Toshinori himself, sitting between Shota and his old friend, a detective named Tsukauchi. On the sides of the table sat the others who knew of All Might, and the truth of One For All. Principal Nezu, the old hero Gran Torino, and Recovery Girl all sat silent, expressions hard to read. Then, there was the one yelling.
"You had no right to enforce such a future on that boy, not when a better choice was readily available!" Nighteye had been shouting ever since he got the news.
"It… it wasn't forced upon him. If he didn't want the future laid before him, he had every right to turn and walk away. He would have simply given the quirk to Mirio. He would be able to pass it on," Toshinori said, eyes trained on the surface of the table. Nighteye's face twitched.
"And what if this boy kept the quirk for himself? Accepted your power, but only so that he could use it for his own purposes? You have no true way of knowing. That may well be what he's done, you fool! There is absolutely no reason for you to have chosen this boy over Mirio!" The hero said, vitriolic and outraged.
"I didn't make the choice," Toshinori said. This seemed to give Nighteye some pause.
"You… didn't make the choice… for the person who would inherit your very essence?! Who did?!" To this, Toshinori said nothing. Rather, he turned, casting his gaze to Shota. The Erasure Hero gave a tired sigh.
"It was ultimately my choice, though All Might here did meet the kid himself to see if he agreed with my assessment," Shota said, not wilting under Nighteye's critical gaze.
"Then tell me, Eraserhead," Nighteye said, voice venomous. "What did this Midoriya have that Mirio lacked?"
Shota was quiet for a moment, thinking on how to word his response.
"Both boys have this fire in them," he began. "Mirio's burns brightly, it does, but… Midoriya's is an inferno, a raging flame in the darkness. It's been stifled, stamped on, and nearly extinguished, but… the glimpses I've seen… the kid's embers burn brighter than any Pro I've known." Shota took in a breath. "It's not so much so that Mirio is unworthy. I just believe, firmly believe, Midoriya is more worthy. I'm sorry, but this is the kid who believed he was quirkless, but charged in to help my class anyway. This is the boy who threw himself in front of a blow intended for a future hero, despite having no power he was aware of. This is the man who had every intention of dying, and still managed to save both me and my entire class, in the end."
"Your decision wasn't rational, Aizawa," Nighteye said, a hard look on his face. "This kid's an unknown quantity. Maybe what he did was good, that doesn't change the fact that we do not know him. Mark my words, both of you," he looked back and forth between Shota and Toshinori. "That boy will fail. And I will pity him."
With that, the Foresight user stood, and walked out the door. Toshinori let out a sigh, mimicking Shota.
"He was a bit harsh, but he's got a point," Gran Torino said.
"To be frank, I don't care who you chose," Recovery Girl interjected. "The way you passed on your quirk was wrong. You need to beg that boy for his forgiveness. Regardless of whether or not he could have given One For All to another, the amount of pressure you put on the poor boy was terrible, especially after the week he's had…"
"I'm afraid she's right, All Might," Nezu said, though his voice was kinder than the others' had been. "I've no objection to Midoriya being your appointed heir, and if you two trust that he will be successful, then I have every ounce of faith in him. But, even if he did still have the choice, I fear that you made it seem like otherwise."
"It was a stupid way to do it," Shota said, simply.
"My friends," Toshinori started. "You are all correct. I had no right to do what I did, and I have every intention of correcting my error, and asking Young Midoriya for forgiveness. I just… I know, deep within, that he has more than what it takes. My hope is that One For All will boost his preexisting quirk, allowing him to be ready for UA despite the severe disadvantage he will be coming in at. I know that, given time, he can and will excel."
"I hope you're right, Toshinori," Gran Torino grumbled. "For his sake, and yours."
"I think Toshi knows what he's done, you all," Tsukauchi added. "He understands that what he did wasn't right. I think dragging him over the coals anymore than we have will only serve to breed bad blood."
"No," Toshinori interrupted. "They're absolutely correct. I've wronged that young man, and I intend to make things right."
Izuku was wide awake, despite the time. It was two in the morning, and he simply couldn't silence his mind. One For All had very noticeably taken effect. All Might was right, it starts with the senses. Suddenly, Izuku could hear voices three or four rooms away, if he truly wanted to. He could smell food from the cafeteria downstairs, and he could make out every minute detail, even in the low light.
Apparently, all of these sensory abilities would increase greatly. He was only scratching the surface.
Luckily, All Might had taught him how to dampen his senses to a normal level, get used to filtering the stimuli. It was something the boy found he appreciated.
One For All…
Izuku hadn't told Uraraka about the truth of this encounter, just that a Mr. Yagi would be training him personally in addition to all the work he'd get in the hero course. She left at about midnight to head to the dormitory, the same one Izuku would be living in soon. Before leaving, she'd made Izuku aware of tomorrow. The idea of meeting her classmates was daunting, but he was glad she would be with him. Uraraka had only been kind to him for the past week. More than kind.
Izuku took a deep breath, frustrated that sleep evaded him. He looked to his hand, and reached within himself. It was odd, but he could feel… two distinct entities within him. He'd felt it since… eating that cookie earlier, but it was a strange feeling. Both entities were brimming with power, though one significantly more so than the other.
He called upon the weaker entity, and he felt it. An odd warmth flooded his body, and in his hand, a small green flame flickered. He looked deep within the fire, trying to make it larger, trying to force more out of this weaker entity, and get the stronger one to lend its power. He felt both entities pulse, the power increasing, the flame growing and growing.
"It's okay, Izuku! I promise, it's all going to be okay!"
The flame flickered out. Izuku could swear that he was burning. His lungs were on fire. He couldn't breathe. Ash was in the air. So much Ash.
Suddenly, he realized that he was just in his hospital room, the interior dark and quiet. Quiet, save for the sobs. His sobs.
This fire… he knew that, in order to become what he truly wanted to be, this fire would be pivotal. He had to master it.
Yet, every time he used it, he could only see her face, covered with tears and ash and soot, with a shaky, wobbly smile, meant only to comfort her small son.
And so Izuku sat alone, sobbing in both frustration and heartache. Alone. He was alone in this world.
"Hey hey, little Izu."
Alone. He was alone. That voice reminded him of that.
What did he have? His entire life crumbled with those wretched flames, the same flames he could use to destroy and kill. He wouldn't. He would never use fire, never.
"Izuku Midoriya, you said you always wanted to be a hero, but you're completely oblivious to the fact that you already are."
It was a different voice, this time. Not… Not like the one before. Not one that reminded him of his own worthlessness, his loneliness.
This one made him feel… strong. It reminded him that maybe, just maybe, this aching feeling deep within his heart would fade. It reminded him… reminded him…
The voice reminded him that now, he had a friend.
He looked at his hand once again, where the green pillar of flames had been. He saw an image of Mr. Aizawa, slammed through the metal plating of a bus and on the brink of death. He then saw the image from earlier today, one scar under his eye being the only reminder of the incident.
He did that. Izuku did that. His fire did that.
Izuku realized how selfish it would be, how terribly selfish it would truly be for him to become a hero and chose not to use every gift he had in order to help others. What if someone bled out in front of him, all because he refused to use a quirk that would heal them, simply because he had a bad experience with fire?
No. He would not allow it.
Green flames came to life in his hand. He smiled, the same shaky, wobbly, tear stricken smile he received from his mother that day.
Izuku Midoriya smiled through tears, as the flame in his hands burned bright in the darkness.
Hey all, sorry for the brevity of this chapter. The next few will be a great deal longer, to be frank. Initially, this chapter was going to cover everything you've read, plus Izuku meeting the majority of 1-A, and ending with him finally moving in to Alliance to begin his new life.
I chose to end this chapter here instead, for a variety of reasons. Mostly, I would rather keep a chapter short and well written, rather than long and draining. I also just personally enjoy the final line of this chapter.
So, now I've a few questions. What do you all like about this story so far? Do you enjoy the foreshadowing, the imagery, the symbolism? Those are probably my favorite things to write in this story, save character moments.
Also, don't expect this to follow canon at all. Some arcs may be from the canon, but they'll be radically different.
I also want to make clear that Izuku isn't going to instantly be this unstoppable badass demigod right out the gate, despite his two exceptionally powerful quirks. It's going to take a lot of time, effort, and thought for our hero to unlock his true potential. He'll still struggle a lot throughout his journey to be the next Number One
Finally, I would like to credit fencer29 for giving me the idea of the confrontation this chapter begins with. While I had already planned on All Might kinda getting chewed out for his actions, it was his comment that gave me the idea of a meeting involving all of the people who know of One For All. Frankly, I enjoy the idea of them being a group that serves as support for the Symbol of Peace. So thank you again to Fencer!
Essentially, All Might forcing his quirk onto the young Izuku is meant to be a reflection of their first meeting in the canon. I like that their relationship begins with a (debatably cruel) mistake, one that All Might learns from. My headcanon is that, when they first meet in the actual story, All Might had grown bitter and desensitized. In this one, he's more... tired, than anything, exhausted.
Thank you for all your support, and I hope to see you all soon!
