AN: I am no longer sorry. Thank you for the words of encouragement!


It felt like he had been weeping for hours, but it wasn't even 30 minutes before his sobs were reduced to sniffles and hiccups. Inko was patient through the ordeal. She still didn't understand the situation, but she carried him to the couch and comforted him while he buried his face in her shirt.

"Do you want to talk about it, honey?"

He shook his head no, still hugging her tight. That cry session did Izuku a lot of good with releasing his emotions, but he still wasn't able to communicate the issue to his mom. For now, he needed to pull himself together and figure out his surroundings.

"Do you think you're up for breakfast now? I don't want you to be late for school."

School? What school specifically? How old was he anyway? He needed to start collecting information in order to figure out when he had arrived in the timeline. Izuku nodded his head and climbed off of his mom's lap to head towards the kitchen. She slowly stood up and walked beside him, continuing to reach down and stroke his hair as she went. What was it about his hair that made people want to touch it anyway? He didn't mind the physical connection obviously, but so many people's first instinct upon meeting him was to try and play with the hair, even into his older years. Regardless, as soon as he was seated at the kitchen table he scanned the walls for a calendar. Once he had his eye on the date, he quickly did the math in his head to calculate his own age and any other subsidiary information.

'Okay, so it's September. Judging by the year, I just turned 4 over the summer.' Izuku was careful not to let his train of thought become a mumbling storm. He couldn't afford to let anyone hear him muttering about time travel or anything else important unless he could think of a solid plan. "Katsuki's got his quirk by now, right? Kids get their quirk by 4, and I wasn't sent in to see Doctor Garaki until I was… was it 5 or 6? I suppose it doesn't change much in the grand scheme of things, but any scrap of knowledge helps.

'There are a lot of variables to unpack with these circumstances. What caused me to come back here? Has anyone else been brought to the past, or is it just me? If this is a permanent thing, do I have to do everything exactly the same as I did the first time? Will I erase the future if I change too much with my knowledge of it? What if I trigger a butterfly effect and erase the future I'm familiar with? What happens if I do something wrong and die while I'm here? That's an entire grandfather paradox in and of itself. If this version of myself ceases to exist or I never make it to that hospital bed, this version of me never would have went back in time upon my death; but if I never went back in time, I wouldn't have altered history and erased myself, so I wouldn't cease to exist anymore. Or if I do end up a different person by the time I travel back, would the new-old version of me go back instead of current me? Would that version of me have the memories of my time in the future? Maybe there's some kind of loop effect where I'm reset every time I die. That's certainly not something I'm willing to test though.

'It would make everything much easier and more convenient if the multiverse turned out to be real, and I was simply transported to the body of one of my counterparts in another world. Then I wouldn't have to worry about ruining my own future, and I'd have a bit of a clean slate to work with.… Oh, I don't even know what I'm saying anymore. Time travel is so confusing. Is it safe to assume that I'm just here by some magical means and move on, or should I take the time to investigate what force brought me here before getting too deep—'

"You look like you're thinking really hard about something, Izuku. Are you sure that everything's okay?"

Oh.

OH NO.

How was Izuku going to explain his new intelligence? He wasn't confident in his ability to act like a child without giving something away, and suddenly being able to think and reason like an adult was going to be suspicious to everyone who knew him. Would anyone really believe him if he admitted to being from the future?

He stumbled to think of a response to his mom's question. "Yeah, everything's fine. I'm just…"

Just what? Tired? Sad about nothing? Worried about what quirk he'll get?

That last one had a bit of potential actually. He wouldn't be diagnosed for a while and…

Wait.

Could he pass off his adult brain as a quirk? As far as he knows he doesn't have One For All in this body.

Or does he?

'Guys, are you in there right now?

Let's try for a tiny sliver, One For All, 1%'

Nope, not even a bruise. The power must still be with All Might, and whatever force brought him back here allowed his variant of the quirk to die in his old body with him. This of course also meant that, for the first time in over 60 years, he was quirkless. Part of the 10% of…

Wait, it was closer to 20% in this time period. By the time he grew old, much of the previous generations still in the quirkless population had died and significantly reduced the number globally. 'How did the world change so much over the years?'

"Izuku?"

Of course if he did take the high road and pretend he had an intelligence quirk, he would probably escape the bullying and abuse he had received in school the first time round, not that it would affect much in the long run. In the later years, Izuku discovered that the teasing and broken dreams of his youth were in his life because the institutions in his local school zone were generally terrible. Aldera Middle School in particular had attracted a lot of low lives because of how low the standards were for passing. Many of the teachers and students there were crude people with questionable backgrounds who would have targeted anyone with an exploitable weakness, and he was the most convenient victim. In the real world, adults would make fun of a person without a quirk about as much as they'd make fun of someone with a "dad bod" or some who was hearing impaired; which is to say that it happened, but most people were civilized and respectful about it. He'd learned these details quickly when two of his own kids were diagnosed quirkless and still retained good relationships with their friends at school. Izuku had been a little jealous, but felt so much relief that his children wouldn't suffer like he suffered.

"Izuku, are you there?"

Back on track though, this whole issue could be solved if he was just certain he could tell his mom the truth and have her on his side. It made him recall a lecture Principal Nedzu had given their class about the extraordinary: 'In a world where quirks reign supreme, many things humans used to consider impossible have become probable; but even now humans tend to only believe what's right in front of them, what they can see with their eyes. Their skepticism allows them to avoid being fooled by a great many lies, but it means that an idea or event happening outside the rules they accept as reality will often be met with hostility or defensiveness. So if someone comes to you with a story that sounds far-fetched or insane, there are three possible reasons they could be telling the story: Either they are a liar, or they are mad, or they are telling the truth. It's very easy to disregard them as insane too quickly, but think through all three possibilities. If they are lying, what do they have to gain from lying, and why wouldn't they come up with a more believable narrative? If they are telling the truth, it's up to you to process the information you've been given and adjust your plans accordingly. Remember, a grain of salt could save your lives, but keep your mind open to new possibilities at all times.'

Kaminari and Mina were both drooling at that point in the lecture. They just couldn't keep up with the Principal's line of thinking. Those two were always a bit insecure about their lack of intelligence, but even Izuku admitted that watching their shenanigans was very entertaining. He missed the Bakusquad just as much as he missed his own "DekuSquad", may they all rest in peace.

He was suddenly pulled out of his thoughts by a large hand pressed against his forehead. He looked up to see his mom right in front of him with her other hand lightly squeezing his shoulder.

"You don't have a fever." She concluded once her hand touched her own forehead. "Izuku, you are really, really distracted today. If you really don't want to talk about it, we don't have to; but if you talk to me, I might be able to help. Are you sick at all, or did something else happen?"

The options continued to mull around in his head as he looked into her pleading eyes: Was he going to tell her everything and ask for her help, or go for the deception and avoid a confrontation?

'Maybe I can try both. I'll aim for the truth, and if it looks like she's not going to buy it, I can say that I'm just making it up. Worth a shot, I guess.'

"Mom" he started, his voice small and timid. "What would it take to convince you that I was out of my time?"

Inko leaned back and gave him a curious glance. Clearly she wasn't expecting that question. "That's… I don't…. Are we playing a game now?"

"Mom, what if I told you that I lived an entire lifetime? I grew up, got a job, had a loving family of my own – grandchildren included – and after I died, I woke up here in this child body?"

She regarded him for a moment. "Did Katsuki put you up to this? It's a really cute story, but I'm more concerned about what's going on with you today."

Should he try again or abandon ship immediately? What was the right call? 'I didn't press very hard to convince her, but what can I really offer as proof? I could tell her stories about her family that she told me when I was an adult, but that might just make her think I've been snooping around.

'I can't take hours to answer every question, or she'll keep suspecting there's some deeper issue. And while there is actually a deeper issue, I don't think we're gonna be able to address that just yet. I'm gonna call it for now and try again at a later date.'

"Heh, yeah, you caught me. Sorry mom, I was just playing." Maybe he could still turn this conversation around if he played his cards right. "Actually, there is an issue I wanted to bring up."

Inko nodded for him to continue.

"I feel really different today. I feel like I'm not myself. It's like, I'm not wearing my own skin." The panic started returning to her eyes. 'Time to rephrase.' "I've noticed today that my brain feels like it's developed a bit. I'm seeing everything the same, but it's like I've got new eyes. I'm processing everything differently than I have in the past. I think, I think it might be quirk related."

"You think it's your quirk coming in?"

"Something like that, yeah." If he was gonna sell this, he needed to go all the way. He looked around for something that could help him and tried to think of a train of thought that a kid couldn't follow. Maybe he could borrow that quote from his old principal? "Like, with that story I told you about being from the future. If you really think about it, there are only 3 possibilities for why I would tell it to you. Either I'm a liar, or I'm insane, or I'm telling the truth. I guess lying in this case would be simply making it up since I'm a kid and it wasn't for malicious reasons. If I'm showing signs of insanity, then your job as a parent just got a lot more difficult and it would take a lot of time and therapy to uncover just what led me to believe that story. But if I was telling the truth… I don't know, what would be the procedure if that whole thing wasn't made up?"

Inko was left stunned. She sat there gazing at Izuku like she was seeing him for the first time. "That was a lot of big words. And it was very well said." She breathed in for a moment, and got up to grab the telephone. "I'll schedule an appointment with our quirk specialist and see if he can check you out."

Izuku remembered the doctor he had been to the first time and tried to cover his bases. "Mom, would that be…" 'How do I phrase this?' "Tsubasa's grandpa?"

"Well, yes. Dr. Ujiko would be my first choice. Why do you ask?"

'Because I don't want to be on All For One's radar yet, and I don't want "Ujiko" getting his hands on me after what he did to his own grandson.' She would need something she could understand without that explanation. "He makes me uncomfortable. Can we please see someone else instead?"

Inko sighed. "Okay honey. I'll check the listings and see if there's another one available. Just sit tight and eat your breakfast, and I'll take care of the rest."

"Thanks mom, I really appreciate it!" He was sure to let extra sincerity bleed into his voice. In his later years he had always regretted not telling his mom thank you more often for all the stuff she did. She smiled and turned her back to reach for the phone book.

Izuku shifted his attention to the bowl of rice and eggs that had been set before him. The second he put a spoonful in his mouth, he felt a ton of nostalgia from the flavor. 'My mouth's already watering. I didn't realize how much I missed my mom's cooking.'


Izuku had gotten extremely lucky. This new doctor didn't do the test for the pinky toe. If that was uncovered while he was demonstrating his 'quirk', it would lead to a lot of questions he didn't feel like answering.

"Okay Mrs. Midoriya. We gave your son some IQ tests as well as some questioning on various subjects. Based on his results, Izuku has the reasoning and maturity of an adult in the elder years. He'll likely be able to learn incredibly quickly and find more stimulation from being around grownups than kids his own age.

"In the early days of psychology, schools were encouraged to challenge gifted children like your son to make sure they were properly stimulated. It was a good idea, keeping them from going into their own little world, but it backfired hard. All the children who were bright and intelligent grew up to be burned out and basically all had their mid-life crises by age 25. To avoid that in your own son, you're gonna have to find a balance between nurturing his talents and helping him socialize, and making sure he doesn't move so fast that he self-eradicates."

Her assessment didn't entirely apply due to circumstances outside her knowledge. Nonetheless Izuku really liked this doctor. She was sweet and caring, but unafraid to speak her mind. Like Froppy was before she had been killed by– 'No no, don't focus on that. Stay in the moment.' He needed to pay attention to what the doctor was saying.

"Izuku, if you'd like, you can help me pick the name for your quirk on the registry. Maybe something like 'Elder Brain', or 'Extra Smarts'?

He thought those were pretentious and corny, but he was too respectful to say that out loud. "Hmm. My quirk name should be simple, but maybe a little less straight forward to keep people guessing on the limits. And it's not like I'm a scientific genius, I'm just a little better at reasoning than other kids. Maybe something like…"

There were people in myths and legends who had great wisdom, right? He'd have to avoid something like Oracle, or people would think he had precognition. Technically he did know the future, but they didn't need to know that.

What was the name of the fellow that Vine Girl talked about back in the day? Whenever somebody with an intelligence quirk came up, she would always call them… Soichiro? No, it was something from the west. Saul? Simon? Sebastian? Sullivan?

"Solomon. My quirk is Solomon." Implying that he was anything like the 'wisest man who ever lived' was possibly more pretentious than anything the doctor had suggested, but it just had a nice ring to it.

The doctor smiled warmly. "All right, I can swing that for you. Congratulations on your new quirk, Izuku! There are a lot of job opportunities for people with intelligence abilities, you know."

"Thank you kindly ma'am, but I've already got a pretty good idea of what I want to do with my life. I'm gonna be a hero and save everyone with a smile on my face, like All Might!"

Or at least, that was the plan if All Might still chose him as the ninth wielder. If he didn't, Izuku honestly didn't know what he would do.

'Wait, I'm slipping into old habits.' He thought. It had taken a harsh wake-up call from dealing with the MLA and a few years of therapy to help him realize that it wasn't the quirk that made him worthwhile as a person. 'If I don't receive One For All again, I'll still be me. I'll just have to find another way to save people and... relearn how to live without my mentors with me. Damn, that's a terrifying thought.'


With the appointment wrapped up, Izuku was sent to kindergarten class. He didn't love the idea of going back there and reliving his childhood experiences, but it was all anyone could ask of a 4-year-old; even if that 4-year-old had the higher functioning of a war veteran.

As soon as class started, the teacher (what was her name again?) said: "Midoriya, I heard that your quirk came in today. Why don't you come up here and tell the class what it is?"

Izuku stood up from his seat at the table and moved to the front of the room. How could he put this without making it sound like the others were dumb?

"My quirk is called Solomon. It makes me smart and lets me think quickly. Really I think it just acts like a wisdom filter for my brain. Makes me seem like I've lived longer. If you happen to hear me talk about things like business or the meaning of life or stuff, that's why. I've figured out how it works a little early. I might also zone out a lot and stop talking or listening to people because I get really deep in thought. If that happens, I apologize." That should be a satisfying explanation.

The kids looked at him with a mix of awe and admiration, and wasn't that an unusual change of pace? Once he became a hero, he interacted with a lot of kids and got a lot of love and attention there; but the idea of going to school as a little kid and being treated like an equal was pretty foreign to him.

The only one not looking at him in this way was Katsuki. Katsuki only eyed him suspiciously and frowned. He had been friends with Bakugou for so long, he almost forgot that their relationship started as bully and victim. 'Will he still try to bully me if I have a quirk? Will he just see me as another extra? What if he thinks I'm a rival to his quirk power? Is there any way to address his issues early and skip to the part where he and I are close friends?'

Izuku realized that he was still standing at the front of the classroom and no one had said anything in a while. He quickly bowed and hurried to his seat.

As he expected, the class wasn't exactly high education. The teacher taught them about colors and how to tell the difference between them. They went around the tables and had everybody say which colors they liked. They drew some pictures in crayon to show that they knew each color. While not exactly stimulating, Izuku found it a nice change of pace. It was somewhat pleasant to forget about all his worries and just doodle on some notebook paper.

What was he drawing again? He was too deep in thought to focus on what he was doing. When he looked down, the paper in front of him contained a full-body art piece of All Might in his Silver Age costume, with precise line art and perfect human proportions. Evidently while his mind had wandered off, his hands had gone on autopilot. A lifetime of doing sketches of pro heroes for his analysis journals had kicked into overdrive. Now that his hands were no longer stiff and unfeeling, they really wanted to flex their muscles and go back to what they did best.

Before he knew it, the teacher was looking over his shoulder and ogling at his drawing. "Oh. My. God. You drew this, Midoriya?" Flabbergasted would be an apt description for her face at this point. "That's amazing! You are a natural artist if I've ever seen one!"

He looked around and realized that the other kids had only drawn scribbles and basic shapes. Maybe one or two stick figures, but certainly nothing of such professional quality. What exactly was he supposed to do with that? It was in crayon for crying out loud.

Of course they all wanted to see his picture, and the children took turns marveling at his drawing and how lifelike it looked. The only one who seemed unimpressed was Bakugou, who looked more suspicious and irritated than ever. Honestly after witnessing the confident sneer and the fearsome scowl of Dynamight in his prime, this little pouty face paired with Katsuki's baby fat made it look really adorable, but that wasn't Izuku's biggest concern. 'I must have wounded his pride. He's going to be mad that I did better than him and that the attention is on me now. I need him on my side if I'm going to avoid problems later down the line! What do I do now?'

After talking to a few more kids and avoiding Katsuki's eyes on the back of his head the whole afternoon, class finally ended. Izuku rushed towards the door to get away from everybody, only to hear a familiar voice. "Deku, hold on! There's somethin' I need from you!"

Wow, the nickname had started early, even before his quirkless status had come out. Izuku swallowed the lump in his throat and turned around. "Kats– Er, Kacchan! What's up?"

Katsuki rolled his eyes and grabbed Izuku's hand. He dragged him out of the classroom and down the hall. Curiously, he led him into a broom closet and shut the door behind them.

"Solomon huh? What are you playing at, Izuku?"

What was that supposed to mean? "Nothing, Kacchan. I just got a cool quirk like you did, and–"

Katsuki let off some sparkles in his tiny fist, quickly silencing Izuku. Katsuki then leaned close and whispered in Izuku's ear, "Before I go too far, I need you to answer a question."

Then Katsuki said something Izuku never expected to hear again.

"Do the words 'One for All' mean anything to you?"

Izuku's jaw dropped.

"Dynamight?"


To be continued…


AN - Ze plot thickens. Tune in next time to see if our hero comes any closer to solving the great mystery of his new life.

You may notice that the first chapter looks slightly different than it did when originally posted. I often go back in and make tweaks that I think flow better, or correct errors that I missed the first time around. I may even add new information that wasn't present before if I think it makes sense to drop it in. So if you go back and read the previous chapters in the future, you may find something you didn't see before!

That's all from me, so see ya guys later. Peace.