Chapter 2- First Day
"Don't put your feet on the desk!"
"Huh?"
Zach glanced over to the two making a lot of noise on the first day. He sat close to the windows on the far side of the room and right in the middle of the row. He had considered going to the back, but he shook away the thought just as fast. I need to study twice as hard as everyone else, focus more, be better in everything other than the practical ones. A bead of sweat formed on the side of his face and he turned towards the windows. Zach stared up at the sky, Not the practical ones, huh? How am I going to be a hero like that?
The two arguing on the other side of the room stopped and everyone spun towards the door where another new student just walked in. One of the two arguing seemed to know him, and the tall boy with glasses started marching over while talking about the elite middle school he was from.
Zach sighed and looked back out the window again. I may as well be sitting here Quirkless. No, no that's not true. I've worked hard for this. Every day, since All Might told me, since I started believing in my dream again.
5 Years Ago
"You sure you don't want to come, Zach?" One of the three boys on Zach's right called back towards him. He turned and walked backwards while cupping one hand to his mouth, and the boy who got off the bus with his friends at Zach's stop called to his neighbor, "I just got the new hero video game!"
"It says on the box that All Might voices his own character!" Another of the boys shouted, and this made Zach freeze and spin to them with big eyes.
"Really?!" Zach exclaimed in excitement. He froze after calling it out, then he shook his head around and frowned. "Well, maybe another time, yeah?" He called back. "I, can't today," he said.
His classmates just shrugged or told him 'okay,' then they continued off to go play games. Zach started running towards his apartment though, and he ran up the stairs all the way to the top floor. He then ran to an empty room at the back of the floor that the landlord used as storage, and he ran across the room in a nicely made path that was still cluttered with random things to not make it so obvious. He ran to the balcony and outside, to the fire escape. Zach climbed up the ladder fast, always afraid someone would spot him and shout at him to get down in this moment, as it was the one time when people could have a good view of him.
He made it up the ladder without issue though, onto the roof which he ran to the middle of to avoid being seen from the sides of the building. The apartment was a tall one, and he was in a more suburban area of the city where there were actually a bunch of houses around the complex. That meant that there were not any tall buildings around him for people to look out windows down at him. He was in the clear, and he started getting changed into his gym clothes that were already in his backpack.
Zach got his work-out clothes on, then he started up his stretches. He looked over at some stuff he had left on the roof and he pulled the tarp off from over them. Since he was leaving them up here, he needed the tarp to protect the exercise equipment when it rained. He learned that very soon after he started leaving things there, as it rained often in Musutafu. There was yellow tape down in a box around the roof that did not get too close to the edge of the building but still gave him a nice track, and after stretching he started his run around the roof. A hundred and twenty times today, he decided as he started the run. That's more than last week's high, but I have to make the warm ups harder if I'm taking everything else more seriously too. Soon I'll be in middle school, where it really matters.
The black haired boy ran around the roof, training his body after school as he did every day. "Oh crap," he said, coming to a stop as he realized something. "I forgot to pick up stuff for dinner." He remembered how the fridge was almost empty the night before, and how that morning he had fully emptied it, even dumping the last of the milk which had just expired too. Well, I'm only twelve laps in. A run to the convenience store and back up here would be what, two hundred? Three hundred laps? Why not just make that the warm-up?
Instead of taking a break to go get food for dinner, Zach ran back to the fire escape and climbed down it so fast that he felt like a monkey. He ran through his building and out onto the street, and he ran down the sidewalk with the wind rushing through his hair. He turned a corner and started running down a different road, and when he reached main street he started smiling. The other people on the sidewalks, the cars going by, the televisions through windows where he could see heroes in action, they all made him happy. The scene he saw through one window showed heroes fighting a villain on a main road just like this one. And as much as he did not want a villain to appear, what he would give to see heroes in action up close like that.
As he ran past another store that he looked into to see a manga his friends had been talking about earlier that day, he heard a shout up ahead of him. Zach stopped and looked towards them, then looked to the sky where someone was already more than halfway across the street up above. His eyes opened wide, as for the first time in over two years, he caught a glimpse of All Might. The hero was gone over the top of another building in a second, but from that day on, Zach's afternoon warm-up run would take place on the streets. He would get farther from home each day, and on occasion, he would see heroes.
Present
Zach stared out the classroom's window and thought about where he would go to get food for dinner tonight. "We called your Aunt here. She'll be taking you home."
Aunt Maye still blames me for Dad. She didn't argue when I said I didn't want to move, and she's fine with me living on my own. She prefers it this way. She stopped visiting after a few months though, I guess even seeing me was too much. Zach heard a commotion near the door and turned his head from the windows back to the boy with dark green hair, the tall boy with glasses, and a short girl with brown hair who were standing at the entrance.
A figure stood up on the other side of them and Zach stared at the man with a confused expression. He looks, kind of tired, Zach thought. Is he really a pro?
The man with long black hair, short stubble on his face, and an overall exhausted disposition began, "I'm your homeroom teacher, Aizawa Shouta. Nice to meet you."
"Eh?" Zach said. It came out on its own, just as it did for everyone else around him who were having trouble believing what they just heard.
"It's kind of sudden, but put these on and go out onto the field…"
"DIE!"
That guy's nuts, Zach thought, though he was watching the softball soar up into the sky with an explosion trailing after it in as much awe as everyone else. He's strong though. First place on the test, while I got last. He looked down at Bakugo and then turned to Aizawa as the teacher started talking.
"Know your own maximums first," Aizawa turned and lifted a device showing Bakugo's throw distance. "That is the most rational way to form the foundation of a hero."
705.2 meters?! That's insane! Zach's jaw had dropped and the others around him started talking about how amazing that was.
Ashido clapped her hands together on his left side and leaned forward. "What's this? It seems fun!"
Aizawa's head bowed a bit and Zach looked closer at the teacher who frowned at what they were saying about the physical fitness test. "'It seems fun?'" He asked, and the kids in front of him quieted down with uneasy feelings about his tone. He rose his head and spoke in a low voice, "You have three years to become a hero. Will you keep that attitude like that the whole time?" He smirked and his face looked scarier as he said, "All right then. Whoever comes in last place in all eight tests will be judged to have no potential, and will be punished with expulsion."
Oh. Oh! OH MAN! Zach's eyes kept widening while everyone else around him exclaimed in shock and started complaining about how unfair this was. On the first day, really? Alright, I was in first place in these events back in middle school. Just because we can use our Quirks now, won't mean…
Well, I'm not in last place, Zach thought, but he gulped while looking towards the nervous boy who did have the lowest score. The boy was panting with his hands down on his knees and his head bowed. He didn't use his Quirk on the sprint or long jump either, and I still just barely beat him in those. What's his Quirk?
Zach walked towards the boy but when he got close he slowed down. There was a strange noise coming from near him, and he noticed the other teen had a hand over his mouth. Are those, words? The sounds made out some form of thought, but they were being mumbled so quietly and pushed together that he could not understand a thing out of his mouth. "Hey," Zach said, trying to break the awkward feeling he had standing in front of this boy who did not seem to notice he was there.
The boy with longer green hair snapped his head up in surprise that someone was talking to him, as he had yet to notice how close the other boy was. "I'm Zach," he said, then he motioned back towards the side-steps where the last of the class were finishing up by using their powers in some cool ways. "Tiring right?" He said, as he had been panting too after giving it his all to get a high score on that one. He had gotten higher than a few others too, including the invisible girl and the guy with blond spiky hair, as well as the guy with the weird bellybutton laser, but he was far from one of the higher scorers.
"Midoriya Izuku," the other boy greeted, and he got stood up and took a deep breath to calm himself down. There are still tests left. I can still do this!
Zach leaned back a bit at how intense the other boy's face looked. I know how he's feeling though. I want to leave a bigger mark on at least one of these tests, but even if I can't do it, I just don't want to get last… Why am I over here though? I'll just feel worse about it, if he gets last and gets expelled.
"You haven't used your Quirk yet either, right?" Midoriya asked. Zach nodded, and the boy in front of him looked even more frustrated after he did. "Is there a reason?" Midoriya wondered.
"It wouldn't have helped with any of them," Zach replied simply, keeping it honest without getting too specific. "What about yours? Can you use yours to get a higher score on the next ones?"
The boy in front of him went wide-eyed then looked down with such a thoughtful look on his face. It was so conflicted that Zach regretted asking, though he regretted it for another reason too. Is that why I'm over here? Did I come just to figure out if he would do better than me on one, and I would wind up getting expelled? That's not a very heroic-
"Everyone back outside," Aizawa called out after marking down the scores for the last two in the class. "It's time for everyone to do softball throw."
That Bakugo thought he was Quirkless. But, that was an amazing Quirk. Everyone at my middle school thought I was Quirkless too. It's what I told people, but I decided not to try that here at U.A. Zach stepped up to do his softball throw while everyone was still going on about Midoriya's. If he has that as his remarkable one, what am I going to do? What if, I come in last place? What if I get kicked out?
Midoriya turned from the others around him and looked towards the circle where Zach threw the ball. The same worried look Iida had for him earlier came to his own face this time. He watched as the ball landed far off, for a normal high school student. It was a record farther than Midoriya could hope to reach without his power, longer than the top of his class back in middle school had, but it was still among the lower numbers of their classmates. All of his scores have been in the lower numbers, while the others who have low scores each time all have a high one by now.
Zach stared out at the ball, then he turned towards Aizawa. The teacher was frowning at him, but he did not start scolding or giving harsh advice like he did with the boy before him. Damn it, Zach turned and walked back towards the rest of the class. Just like the entrance exam, my ability has no use here. I can't complain about that though, because when will it ever in combat?! I can't use it. I can never use it. He looked down at his right hand that he clenched in front of his waist. His entire body tensed up in the blue work-out uniform the school provided for him. I always knew that though. I really thought we might have been alike, but unlike you, I really am Quirkless. I can't do a thing with it! He turned his head, then his intense and angry look wiped from his face as the boy he was going to look towards was looking his way already.
Midoriya eased back at that look, but Zach softened it right away while looking away again. No, it's not his fault. It's no one's fault. I just have to, try and do as best I can in the remaining categories.
Twenty minutes later, Zach stood with his hands running through his hair over and over again. He had a worried look on his face that he could no longer hide from his classmates. Sit-ups and the sit-and-reach were both just average scores. This is it though, my best. Long distance run.
Zach lined up on the start line with the others in the class. He stared out over the fields they would be running, and along with being the final test, it was going to be the longest one too. He looked down the line a little towards Midoriya who was starting to look worried again. He didn't do well on the sit-and-reach, Zach thought, recalling how he had seen him at the spot next to him having trouble because of the pain in his broken finger. I doubt he did on sit-ups either, and telling from the pain on his face, he's not going to handle this well. As long as I get a good score here, I can stay above him for sure. Sorry Midoriya, but I don't want to be expelled!
Zach's feet pressed down harder as he leaned forward and got into a running stance. Prepare for the start. Be ready to push off. The first moment, is as important as the last.
3 Years Ago
"You want to join cross-country as a first year?" The teacher advisor of the team questioned the short boy in front of her. He was a head smaller than the rest of the runners, but she looked down at his legs below the cut off of his shorts and she lost her small smile. His leg muscles, are pretty defined. For a short guy…
The team captain did not need to give it as much thought. He was the fastest runner on the team last year only as a second year, and he smirked as he walked towards the kid. "You think you're fast enough to make the team?"
"I, don't know," Zach said, leaning away from the upperclassman who laughed at his answer. "Probably not," he added, lowering his voice and looking down.
"Then why are you here?" One of the other guys nearby asked, annoyed at the kid for wasting their time.
"I run after school," Zach answered. Most of the people there started staring at him in confusion, then he lifted his head and continued while facing the third-year who just asked him his reason. "So I thought this would be a good place to push my limits."
"Heh, good answer," Zach started turning back to the team captain who was grinning down at him. "But if you want a place on the team, or even just to practice with us, you've gotta be fast."
"I'm fast!" Zach exclaimed. "Here, I'll prove it…"
Present
"Begin," Aizawa called out.
Zach pushed off his front foot hard and lifted his back while taking a long first stride. Everyone else was behind him, his eyes widening and a grin spreading over his face. Then on his left side down the line, a trail of ice shot across the grass and a boy with half white and half red hair slid across it. It did not take long for Iida to sprint by him on his right, a focused look on his face while the engines sticking out of his calves pushed him forward ahead of everyone else.
He got worried as even Aoyama shot ahead of him with his bellybutton laser, but the blond boy fell and then got up and started running normally, a gross look on his face like he regretted trying that. Zach passed him again, but Bakugo shot by using explosions to propel him forward. He used them intermittently, a furious look on his face though despite how he was using his powers. He looked over his shoulder with that enraged expression, but Zach ignored the glare he knew was meant for Midoriya. He could not focus on that, when more and more people were passing him each second.
The frog girl hopped at a steady pace not far to his right, and he saw her look in towards him. He glanced back at her while they were rounding a corner on the grass field that had a pole on it with a sign pointing where they were supposed to turn. Tsuyu Asui made a 'Gero' sound that had Zach's eyes opening wide, then she hopped ahead and curved around the pole. Still not that many of- Zach's thoughts got cut off as some tape shot towards the pole and wrapped around it. Hanta Sero raced by with the tape shooting out of his elbows, then Rikido Sato sprinted past Zach on his left with a crazed look on his face.
Zach stumbled to his right as the larger boy stormed past, and he started running again while angrily staring at his classmate's back. "What's wrong with you?" He called out, but Sato must not have heard him or just decided to ignore him as he kept running ahead. No! Why am I focusing on him! Just keep going, keep a fast pace that won't wear me out. I can do this!
Ninth? Is ninth, good enough? "Whoa, you're so fast," a voice said behind him. Zach spun while panting slightly and he looked at a girl who was panting heavier behind him. Although she was also panting, she had the control over her breathing that indicated she was not as exhausted as some of the others who were still running into the finish line one by one. And when Zach looked at her, he was more looking through the girl behind him. Did I beat her? He wondered, thinking he might have looked past the floating uniform the first time he did a check around the finish line.
"I was chasing you at the beginning," the invisible girl began. "Because I'm a little worried I'm going to get last."
She sounded nervous to him, and now that Zach thought back on it, he could not remember any events that she had done spectacularly well in either. Maybe, I have a better chance than I thought. Instead of getting a relieved look on his face though, he said with a small smile, "I'm sure you'll be fine."
"Hagakure Toru," she said, and her sleeve lifted up in what he thought might have been a wave but could not be too sure about it.
"Zach, Zach Sazaki…" he trailed off and turned towards the finish line where the final person just ran through only to collapse. Zach and Hagakure both felt a little better about their chances at the sight of the boy exhausted and gasping for air on the ground there. "You okay Midoriya?" He asked.
"Yeah," Midoriya Izuku gasped out, sticking a thumb up while he continued panting.
The boy on the ground did not look it though when he started getting up. The worry was strewn over his face again, as once again he had gotten last place in an event. At least Zach thought he had, until he looked back up and spotted a short boy running towards him with exhaustion covering his face. The kid with purple balls on his head that he had been popping off for some of the events had apparently not conserved his energy, and Zach tried not to shake his head as the boy gave it his all to run the rest of the way. He had grinned earlier because Rikido Sato had arrived to the finish line after him, right before collapsing into a deep sleep. Apparently the power he used made him tired, and Zach remembered how the larger boy had been staggering forward sleepily when he finally passed him again on the course.
Zach himself was not a very tall person, closer to Midoriya's height at only five foot one. He was broader at the shoulders, and though his uniform covered up his arms and legs, in the locker room his classmates had seen he had defined muscles for his height and age. Then again, so did almost all the guys in the room at the time so he had not drawn any attention. Zach was hesitant as they all started gathering up to see the results. I didn't use my Quirk once. Is that okay? Is it okay to be a hero, without being able to use your Quirk?
"Okay, I'll quickly tell you the results," Aizawa stood in front of the class who had gathered, many with hesitant expressions on their faces. A few of the ones who were more confident that they had received good scores still looked worriedly at the others wondering which of their new classmates was about to be removed. "The total is simply the marks you got from each test. It's a waste of time to explain verbally, so I'll just show you the results all at once."
Zach glanced back towards Midoriya. The boy had his right fist clenched hard in front of him, his index finger swollen and his eyes closed looking like he was praying. Zach spotted the short boy with the purple balls all over his head biting on his fingernails nervously. He looked back at the teacher right as Aizawa pressed a button on a device in his hand that made a hologram pop up in front of him. There were two columns of names on the hologram with one more in the center at the bottom since their class had an odd number of people.
They all scanned the list for their names, while also checking the name at the bottom too. Zach looked down the second column and his eyes widened when he saw his name. Oh man, that was close. He looked at the number 20 spot, and he felt annoyance mixed in with the relief that the short kid he had beaten by so much in the long distance run still beat him by a single place. His side-stepping was really good though, using his power he destroyed me on that. Still, at least I was twentieth, not- Zach started turning back and he felt bad for being relieved at all, at the devastated look on Midoriya's face.
"By the way I was lying about the expulsion," Aizawa said.
Everyone froze and their eyes opened wide. The teacher grinned at their reactions and continued, "It was a rational deception to draw out the upper limits of your Quirks."
"WHAT?!" Several of the people in the crowd shouted.
"Of course it was a lie," a girl next to Zach said.
He turned to her in surprise and asked, "You knew?"
"How could a school like U.A. be known as so prestigious if the members of its hero course were expelled so easily?" she replied like it was obvious. Aizawa looked towards her and smirked, going to let the girl believe that if she wanted to. In fact, she was making his lie about it being a lie even more believable.
But I see potential here, he thought, before looking to the one who Yaoyorozu had spoken directly to. His eyes lowered to the boy's right hand, and the black glove it was hidden inside. Aizawa thought back on the sheet he got with all his students' names and Quirks on it the other day. He's barely scraping by, but with a Quirk like that, that he's here at all is shocking. What kind of idiots named his Quirk 'Death?' It sounds like they were trying to make him into a villain.
Zach let out a long needed breath of relief and glanced back again to see the relieved look on Midoriya's face. He spun back forward as Aizawa told them their testing was over and to return to the classroom to get their syllabi and course information. He was going to go over and mention to Midoriya how worried he was he was going to be last, as he thought they could relate there, but Aizawa reached the green haired boy first and sent him to the nurse to get his finger healed.
Oh yeah, Recovery Girl works here. I guess that means they're going to put us through the wringer without having to worry about us injuring ourselves. A grin spread over Zach's face, but then a hesitant feeling hit him again. But against people with Quirks, letting us go all out really only helps the others. Sure, I'll be getting experience to be a real hero, but, but I can't use my power. If I have to fight these people… Zach's expression hardened and he shook away his hesitation as he started walking back towards class with the others. Then I'll win. It's what I've been training for, all this time.
3 Years Ago
"Cross country is harder than I thought," Zach's neighbor Jenny said as she walked down the sidewalk with the boy who lived next door to her apartment. She leaned her head back and let out an exasperated and overly-dramatic sigh. "The captain said 'last lap,' at least twenty times, and I don't know why but I believed her every time she said it."
Zach laughed a little then said in a lower volume than her, "We went running out in town today. The captain let me pick the route, so I used one of my old ones from the summer that I still do on the weekends."
"You run too much," Jenny said in a deadpan voice. He laughed again and scratched the side of his head, then the girl with long red hair tied into pigtails started walking backwards while a little in front of them so they could speak face to face. "You want to come over for dinner tonight? Mom's making spaghetti!"
"Can't," he said. "I've got-"
"Excuse number 43?" Jenny asked, and Zach just smiled apologetically to her. She sighed again then turned back and started walking at his side once more. "Don't overdo it."
"I won't," he replied, right as they were reaching their apartment. The two of them headed up, but Zach walked past his floor.
His neighbor and best friend smirked after him, and she chided, "Don't get caught, Mr. Hero."
Zach tried not to feel embarrassed by that nickname she only called him when they were alone. I still can't believe she caught me, he thought, recalling a weekend a few weeks back when she had started shouting up towards the roof from the street. I never thought that since I was getting taller, the tape where people used to not be able to see me wouldn't have been accurate anymore. So stupid, he had scolded himself over it enough already though, and he had fixed the problem too by closing in his exercise area on the roof to a smaller part of the center of it. He had not been able to avoid telling Jenny what he was doing up there and why though, even if he had lied when she asked what Quirk he had.
It's easier, if everyone thinks I'm Quirkless, he thought, clenching his right hand hard while he jogged for the fire escape to the roof. He was cautious as he got out on the balcony, then he scampered up the ladder so fast it was unnatural. He always laughed to himself after diving onto the roof from the top of the ladder to get down fast, imagining how he must look if anyone ever saw him do that. The whole point of doing it so quick though was to prevent exactly that.
His laughter went away and a more serious look came to his face. He walked towards the tarps he had on the roof, weighted down to prevent them from blowing away as they had in a wind storm, as they had once before. He had to get a lot of new equipment after that, so he had learned his lesson well. Aunt Maye gives me an allowance from the money my parents left behind. She never mentions it when we have our occasional phone call, so I guess there's still enough left to keep the apartment and give me the allowance. If she ever runs out, I wonder if she'll make me move in with her and Tsura? I'd have to move from Musutafu, and change middle schools, and I would be farther away from U.A. My dream school.
Zach shook his head around again and looked down at the equipment in front of him. Before I can get into U.A. though, I need to be ready to become a hero. I need to be strong, even without my Quirk!
He stood up the training dummy in front of him, and he placed bricks around the base of it to prevent it from moving around when he was punching and kicking it. He pulled out his phone and searched the newest video on a series he was watching where the main star was a hero who specialized in martial arts. "Today, we're going to learn a new technique. This is meant for fighting villains, and for self-defense if you need it-"
"Don't use it on your brothers or sisters," Zach said, finishing the phrase the man said at the beginning of most of his videos. The videos were directed towards a younger audience, but the techniques were the real deal. After saying the end of the phrase at the same time as his online personal trainer, Zach put his phone down on top of an air conditioning vent sticking out of the roof near him, close enough that he could watch the screen while balling both of his fists. Zach looked at his right fist and frowned at the black glove over it. If I break through it, I'm really screwed. And the material's not that thick, for my convenience. It's not meant for fighting with. But since I can't take it off when a fight starts, there's no point in training with it off!
The boy with short spiky hair started his techniques on the dummy in front of him. He was all stretched out and warmed up from cross country, so he got straight into fighting. He had a weight day yesterday, so he left the tarp over his weights alone. They had been difficult to get up the ladder, especially the heaviest ones he took up there with him, and there were even heavier ones still in the storage room on the top floor that Zach could not risk carrying up the ladder, yet. For today, he was doing a technique only day. He wanted to master the ones he already knew, learn others, and become an all around better fighter.
"The best heroes don't just rely on their Quirks," he said, while faking a punch with his left hand and then getting in close with his right. He bent his arm and slammed his elbow into the solar-plexus of the training dummy, putting all his power behind the attack. Just like All Might, he thought, while bouncing back as he imagined the reaction he expected the dummy would have done if it was a real opponent who did not go down fast. He's the best hero, not just because he's strong. But not because he can fight either. Being a hero is more than that. The reason that I need to be able to fight, is what will make me a hero. And that's simple. The reason is- He thought about all the times he had run through this city. Every street he ran down with children on it playing in the road. All the people he saw talking and laughing through the windows of cafes and restaurants. He imagined the heroes he saw and all the people who cheered for them when they beat villains, people he cheered along with as happy as they are. Because I love life! He grinned and slammed his left fist forward, smashing the training dummy straight in its face.
A/N Hope you enjoyed. Thanks for the follows, favs, and reviews. Just watched the epic last episode so I'm a little hyped right now, which is why I'm posting another chapter in only like 8 hours. Anyway though, new chapter at you tomorrow! Leave a review below!