Since Izuku woke up in the mysterious woods, his head had been out of sorts. His head hurt, he wasn't even hungry and he was lost. He was a city kid, through and through, despite playing in the forest as a child with Kacchan. From barely remembering his name to getting hit with memory after memory, he just wanted to take a nap.

He was thankful that he ran into Asta. Asta was loud (but Izuku was used to loud, as he spent so much time with Kacchan), but very cheerful and energetic. Izuku felt he had a better chance of figuring things out if Asta was there. Izuku was used to working in teams, as that's how the hero community adapted after All Might retired. So it was a good thing he and Asta decided to work together to find out what was going on, mused Izuku to himself.

The duo were taking a break, since they knew the general direction of where they were head. No use tiring out. After all, there might be enemies nearby. Since there were no animals milling around, they foraged for berries and some water from a stream. It did bother Izuku that there were no forest animals at all. The forest seemed oddly quiet without the noise of woodland creatures. At least, Asta was able to get a fire going, more at home in the wilderness than Izuku.

Asta asked, mid-chew of some berries, "Do think there is a town nearby?"

"I hope. Or at least, some other people," replied Izuku. He didn't want to say but Izuku had a heavy suspicion what had happened, as his memories came back. He remembered graduation, All Might's death, fighting against the PLF and bringing the organization down, facing All-for-One, become a proper hero duo with Kacchan, a bunch of his friends' weddings, and working to make the world safer. "So, your world is based around magic, you said?"

He needed not to dwell on the answer he knew his heart. It'd be interesting to get to know about Asta and his world more.

"Yeah, but I was born with no magic, whatsoever. I was the only person without magic," said Asta. "Still didn't stop me from wanting become the Wizard King, which I did. I had to learn things that other wizards didn't, due to me not having magic and using anti-magic as a counter."

Izuku nodded, in approval. "I was born without a quirk, but I was gifted one after proving myself to the number one hero. Turned out it was actually six quirks. I had learn how to use them in less than three years."

Asta stared and then, he grinned. "Sounds intense! Looks like you had a crazy life too."

"Yeah, I guess," said Izuku, smiling. "Isn't it strange that we both had similar beginnings and we get to meet now? We both started with nothing."

"Hard work, never giving up and pushing past your limits got me in a position to change Clover Kingdom," said Asta, like he's said it a million times before.

"Go beyond, Plus Ultra," responded Izuku. His school motto was etched into his bones. "I like the "surpass your limits." My teachers would have enjoyed it too."

"The captain of my original squad expected us to advance with every battle we had. I like that "Plus Ultra." That's so cool," said Asta. "I mean, it basically means the same thing, just a different way of saying it."

Izuku laughed. "Yeah, I guess you're right. So, a captain? Was it a military or police force you joined?"

"Oh, it's military," said Asta. "And I take it you went to a school for heroes? I actually had the Silva and Vermillion Royal Houses fund a Magic Knight school to train those wanted to take the Magic Knight exams. I thought it would make it easier to get more recruits."

"I guess hero school was sort of like a military school. A hero is someone in public service," said Izuku. Now that he thought about it, being a hero was a public service, just like the police and the military (in some places), so he supposed that hero was just another type of police or military person. Heroes were just flashier and more popular. "I think we had the same type of job, just with different names and powers."

"Protect everyone and defeat the bad guys," said Asta, simply.

"Yep."

They fell into silence, finishing up the berries they found, despite neither admitting to being hungry.

But then, Izuku remembered. He remembered everything. Izuku felt his chest tightened at the memories. Oh, Kacchan was going to be so mad at him, thought Izuku to himself. He looked over at Asta, looking paler than before. It looked like Asta remembered something similar too Izuku, because the other man's scowl went deep.

Izuku's suspicions were confirmed.

They were dead.

"So, we're dead, huh," said Asta, frustrated, while running his hand through the spiky ash blond hair of his. "What do you think? Heaven, hell or in-between?"

Izuku cleared his throat to stop himself from tearing up. While he was a grown man of 28 years and stopped crying all the time, sometimes the need was there. "I doubt it is hell. Doesn't look like any heaven I know."

Asta grimaced. "It's also possible that someone is messing with our heads, thinking that we're dead. After all, magic and quirks, anything is possible. If we're dead, there's nothing we can do about it. But if it's somebody messing with us, then we got to stop them and get back to our homes."

Nodding, Izuku stood up. There was not time to dwell on the fact that he may or may not be dead. (Izuku couldn't think about the people he left behind, nor the tears his poor mother must be shedding for him, yet again). "I think we need to find answers sooner rather than later. We should keep going. You ready?"

Asta hopped up and nodded.

"Damn straight. Let's do this," said Asta, hyping himself up.

Both climbed up two different trees and while the lights were no longer going, they knew they were headed west. Answers were what they needed and Izuku thought that the only way was to follow the lights.

Hopping from one tree to another without One-for-All was difficult but his body remembered the training he done to hone the skills. Asta kept up, no contest. The two didn't talk as they traveled the tree tops, which was good because Izuku was still processing everything in his head.

While Izuku didn't mind the adventure of new places and new people, all he wanted to do was go home and see his mother and his friends again.

~to be continued