Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters. All characters and locations are owned by Kohei Horikoshi.


For a moment, Izuku thinks he's finally about to wake up. For one, single moment.

But the way his elbow hits the other person's nose says otherwise. It feels too real, far too real for a dream. Especially the crunch that sounds as he does it.

"Ow! The hell!"

The person he just hit doesn't just sound like Kacchan.

He looks different- older, maybe by a year or two, scars littering the skin that Izuku can see. He's wearing what looks like a hero costume- some kind of wrist brace, with a black sleeve and gloves underneath, and a v-cut tank top, baggy pants, grenades (that seem functional) attached to his belt, black and orange boots. Whatever it is, even if it isn't a hero costume, it looks like one. And not one meant for the wintertime.

But whoever this is, he looks almost exactly like Kacchan.

He holds a gloved hand over his nose, stumbling back for a moment. Izuku can't do much more than stand there in shock. What is he supposed to do? Whoever this is, he looks almost exactly like Kacchan, and he just- he just broke into his apartment.

And behind him is All Might.

Who is supposed to be dead.

Izuku glances between the two of them, over and over and over as his brain tries to put the pieces together. Kacchan and All Might just broke into his house. Kacchan is wearing a hero costume, and All Might is alive.

Nope. He absolutely can't put this together.

"How are...You...Why... You're supposed to be dead, " he finally says, pointing at All Might. "I watched you die. The entire country watched you die."

"That was news to me, as well, Young Midoriya," All Might says, grimacing as he places a hand on the back of his neck. "I'm a bit behind on the news, it seems."

"Stop joking around," Kacchan bites at All Might, hand still held to his nose. "He's already fucking traumatized as it is." He turns to Izuku, glaring down at him, and even with the new Quirk buzzing underneath his skin, he shrinks under the other's gaze. "We're not from here. The only reason we're here is because of some bastard's Quirk."

Izuku blinks up at him, his brain, muddled by sleep and adrenaline, struggling to process the words.

"What?"

Kacchan sighs, holding out his free arm, hand splayed, and Izuku steps back on instinct.

"You know how my Quirk looks, right?" he asks and sets off a few small firecrackers in his palm- still larger than most of Kacchan's usual threats. "For me, there's also this."

Red lines from across Kacchan's palm, glowing through his glove, tracing up his arm, and when Izuku looks up, the same lines are tracing along his neck and face. After a moment, they fade, orange lightning flickering to life on top of his skin.

"Bet the Katsuki you know can't do that," he says, and Izuku stares as Kacchan gives him a moment to process. After Izuku stays silent for a few seconds, he sighs again. "It's One For All. Have you really not even used it yet?"

Izuku hesitates, before shaking his head, his eyes falling to the floor.

"Damn. Well, now you know what it should look like."

Izuku nods at that. He's still- really not sure what to say. Kacchan has One For All. Or, another Kacchan does. Not the Kacchan he knows. And All Might is alive, and here, somehow, and-

"Wait, you said you're… here because of someone's Quirk?" He asks, trying to keep his voice quiet. "What do you mean? Did you get hit by someone's Quirk? Should I call an ambulance, or other heroes, or-"

"Shut up, we didn't get hit by anything," Kacchan says, finally pulling his hand from his nose. There's blood smeared underneath his nose, as well as on the palm of his glove. Izuku… did not think he'd hit him that hard. "Some kind of damn warp Quirk. Interdimensional shit. We're fine. "

"An interdimensional warp Quirk?" Izuku says, raising an eyebrow. "Like-"

"Like one second we were fine, and the other we were being sucked into a damn portal and tossed into a world where the old man was dead," he says, pointing back at All Might.

"He's not old!" Izuku says in response, but it only catches his mind for a moment before he starts thinking about the possibilities of a Quirk like that. "It could be used for communication, to find universes with more technological advancements to figure out their tech and bring it back… Or it could be used to find universes where humans have higher healing abilities, and we could emulate that in our universe… Even to just meet people from other universes and see how they live, it could be just so useful, it's-"

"Midoriya," Kacchan cuts him off, and Izuku stops, if only for the fact that he used Midoriya. Not Deku, not even Izuku. Just… Just Midoriya. "Stop fucking mumbling. I don't care about its applications, I just care about getting the fuck home ."

And something clicks as Kacchan starts talking about leaving.

"Wait, no, this is- this is actually perfect!" he says, staring down at his hands for a moment before looking back up at the two in front of him. "All Might- well… you know. And I- I just got One For All, and he told me to find Gran Torino but I can't find anything about him, but you two are right here and- you can help train me! Just like All Might would've!"

Something unspoken passes between Kacchan and All Might turned to each other, meeting eyes and staring at each other in silence for a few long, long seconds.

Kacchan turns back around, glaring at Izuku. "Listen, we can get you to Gran Torino. That's easy enough. But we're not staying longer than we have to when you already have someone to train you."

And Izuku can't lie, he's… disappointed. He doesn't want some random, unknown hero to train him. Not when All Might- not the All Might that's been training him, but All Might nonetheless- is right in front of him.

"But- Kacchan-"

And something flips in Kacchan's eyes, the glare passing far past the frustration level it had been on into anger as he scowls. He takes a step towards Izuku, and Izuku steps back, any confidence he'd had a moment ago gone.

He's glad that Kacchan stops after one stomp forward. " Don't fucking call me that," he hisses, and... what is Izuku supposed to say? " Never fucking call me that. Got it, Midoriya?"

Izuku blinks up at him, eyes wide, and nods. "Got it. I'm- I'm sorry."

He doesn't have to be an expert at analysis to know something happened between this version of Kacchan- Katsuki, and his Izuku. Something happened to make him respond that poorly to their childhood nickname. Even Kacchan, the Kacchan Izuku knows, puts up with it.

Still, with the apology, Katsuki takes a deep breath, letting his shoulders drop. All Might glances between the two of them, stepping over and placing a gentle, skeletal hand on Katsuki's shoulder as he looks over at Izuku.

"Young Bakugou is right," he says, "but that doesn't mean we can't help train you while we're here. We still have to find the person who brought us here, or wait for the Quirk to wear off, so we don't mind helping you between all of that."

Katsuki growls. "I didn't say that."

All Might gives him a look- not a glare, but Izuku isn't sure what to call it- before looking back at Izuku with a smile. "We don't mind, Young Midoriya."

Izuku could start crying right there. He almost does, the tears very, very quickly welling up in his eyes, his vision going blurry.

But before he can start, his mother's door is slamming open, Inko rushing out with a baseball bat in hand, various small items floating around her with the help of her Quirk.

The three in the living room staring back at her in silence. She looks between the two she wasn't expecting to see, her grip on the baseball bat tightening as the items floating around her start to shake slightly.

"Izuku, honey?" she says, her soft voice barely hiding the sharp tone underneath it. "Excuse my language for a moment."

Izuku stares for a moment, before nodding.

"Katsuki, All Might, I have multiple questions for both of you- especially you, All Might- but first of all: What the fuck are you doing in my apartment, uninvited, at 1:30 in the morning?"

"Quirk," Katsuki says, his glare finally betraying how tired he is. Izuku can't blame him. Unexpected interdimensional travel is probably exhausting.

"What Young Bakugou means is that we were brought here by what seems to be an interdimensional warp Quirk," All Might explains, the same exhaustion shown in the way he looks at Inko. "I didn't mean to bother either of you, but Young Bakugou believed here was the best place to start to find out what we should do. He believed Young Midoriya's analysis could prove helpful in figuring out the nature of the Quirk that brought us here."

The objects floating around Inko slowly drop to the ground, though she doesn't drop the bat just yet. "While I'm very flattered that Izuku was who you thought was best to help you, and I'm sure he is as well, wouldn't it have been better to go to the police? Or to another hero?"

"I don't believe any of them would be too keen on listening to our story when they had just seen the version of me they know… well, you know."

Inko hesitates, pressing her lips into a thin line as she stares at All Might. She finally lets the bat drop to her side, keeping a loose grip on it with one hand as she sighs. "I'm sorry. I don't want to insult your judgment, All Might. Whether or not you're the hero I know as All Might, you are still a hero, and I'm assuming still the number one. It's just… late. But you're right. They probably wouldn't believe you." She pauses, before mumbling to herself, "I'm finding it hard to believe as well."

"Mom," Izuku whispers, pulling her attention as he walks closer, before leaning in to whisper into her ear. "They said they'll help train me with One For All. I might not need a Quirk trainer or anything."

"Oh," Inko says, turning to give a soft smile to her son. "That's good, then."

"We need to figure out how we're getting home while we're doing it," Katsuki says, cutting into their conversation. "If he doesn't have any ideas, we're getting in contact with UA."

"Wait, UA?" Izuku cuts in. "So you are older!"

Katsuki rolls his eyes. "I'm in my second year there, idiot. Have you even done the entrance exam yet?"

Izuku shakes his head. "That's not until February."

"Well, looks like we're cramming ten years of experience with a Quirk into two months at most, then."

"I thought you didn't really want to help me train-"

"Shut up, Midoriya, I'll do it."

"Why do you have to get in contact with UA, exactly?" Inko asks, pulling the group's attention back to her. "Why not go straight to the police?"

"Again," Katsuki says, jabbing his finger at All Might. "One of the detectives that work on cases relating to UA has a lie detector Quirk. We contact UA and ask for their help and offer to have Tsukauchi interview us, we're set. Plus, my homeroom teacher has an Erasure Quirk."

"Oh! Do you mean Eraserhead?!"

"Of course you already know who he is just from his Quirk. Yes, Eraserhead."

"Oh, that's so cool!" Izuku grins as he pictures the page he has in the tenth volume of his hero analysis notebooks. "If we get to meet him while you and All Might train me with One For All, I can ask him some questions! Like, what's it like to be a hero who fights almost Quirkless, or how his capture weapon works, or where he got the idea to start wearing goggles, or-"

He catches himself as Katsuki glares at him, putting a hand over his mouth to stop the muttering. "Sorry! Sorry."

Katsuki rolls his eyes again, the group going silent for a moment.

Inko is the one to break it. "Well, I'm sure you aren't going to be able to contact UA right now. If you'd like, you two can both stay here for the night? We don't have much, but we should have an air mattress somewhere. You both look tired. Especially you, Katsuki."

Katsuki sighs as Inko steps up to him, a gentle hand against his cheek. "I am tired."

"You can take my room, if you want," Izuku offers, fidgeting with his hands. "I mean- I don't- I was sleeping out here, anyway."

Katsuki pulls away from Inko's hand, looking back at Izuku, meeting his eyes. Izuku stares back for a moment before pulling his eyes away.

"Sure, whatever, we'll take your room," Katsuki says after a few moments of suffocating silence. "Don't complain when your back hurts in the morning."

"I'll be fine with the air mattress, Mrs. Midoriya," All Might says, and both Inko and Izuku stare back at him. The Number One hero. Offering to take the air mattress.

"Like hell, you will," Katsuki cuts in. "You get the bed. I'll take the damn air mattress."

"Young Bakugou-"

"I'm not arguing with you on this. Some of us don't already have chronic pain. I can handle an air mattress."

All Might sighs. "Alright, Young Bakugou. If you're sure."

"Well- I'll go get the air mattress, then?" Inko says, looking between the three in the living room as she steps back towards the hall. "I'll get it set up for you."

Izuku is left alone with Katsuki and All Might for the second time that night and looks over at the two before holding out his own hand.

"So… One For All? How does it work?"

"It's a Quirk," Katsuki says as if that answers everything. "You just have to use it."

"...That answers nothing."

Katsuki groans, putting a hand over his face before reaching out and taking Izuku's wrist.

"You have to use it. There's a feeling that comes with all Quirks. What does it feel like to you?"

"...Like buzzing? Underneath my skin?"

"That's your base level of usage, then. Remember that. It's not zero percent. It's the base level. The only time you can hit zero percent is when it's erased."

Izuku nods, looking down at his hand as Katsuki releases it. "So I just have to… make it buzz more. Like molecules being heated up in a microwave."

"Think of it like an egg," All Might offers, "in a microwave. You don't want to push it to the point of it exploding. The most important part of using One For All is feeling, and visualizing something like that can help."

Izuku isn't sure what he was expecting for advice from All Might, but that… wasn't it? He can make it work, though.

"And don't focus it on one part of your body," Katsuki adds. "My Quirk- my original Quirk- is based in my hands because that's the only place I can easily use it. One For All is a full-body stockpiling Quirk. Use a limited percentage throughout your entire body or you're going to be putting way too much strain on one part."

Izuku nods, curling his hand into a fist. "So just… make the buzzing faster. But not too fast. Heat up the egg enough that it doesn't explode."

The other two One For All users in front of him nod, and with that, Izuku takes a deep breath, focusing on the buzzing underneath his skin. At his acknowledgment, the energy that had settled down picks back up again, vibrating underneath his skin, what had become comforting quickly crossing the realm back into unfamiliar and uncomfortable.

"Focus on the egg not exploding," he mumbles to himself, staring down at his outstretched fist as he sits through the discomfort, pushing the buzzing further, just a little, just enough to activate One For All.

With one final push, red veins light up across Izuku's arm, the buzzing throughout his body going from uncomfortable to encouraging. He's doing it!

The orange lightning that had appeared around Katsuki had taken a few seconds to appear after the lines, so Izuku just focuses on keeping the energy he'd built up going, watching the flickering lights within the lines on his arms, mesmerized. Just a second or two more.

"The room should be set- Izuku?"

He's jolted out of his focus by his mother's voice and turns to see her at the end of the hallway, leaning in. Right. She was just getting the room set up.

"Cool. Thanks, Auntie Inko."

"O-Of course, Katsuki!"

All Might places a hand on Izuku's shoulder before he passes. "It's alright, Young Midoriya. You'd be better off practicing with a full night's rest, anyways. You're already doing better than Young Bakugou did when he first started. It's impressive how quickly you can catch on to things."

Izuku smiles up at All Might, even as something inside him twists. He'd always wanted All Might to help him with One For All, but… but his own. Not another user's All Might. Not another Ninth's predecessor.

He fights back the tears threatening to spill from the corner of his eyes and gives a shaky smile. "Thank you, All Might."

"Of course, Young Midoriya." All Might smiles, giving him a thumbs-up. "We'll talk more in the morning. Get some rest."

Izuku nods, pressing his eyes shut at the tears that just won't go away. "I will."

All Might's hand leaves his shoulder as he walks away, and Izuku keeps his eyes pressed shut even as they seem determined to make him cry, again.

The hero thanks Inko for letting him and Katsuki stay, apologizes for the intrusion, and then Izuku's door it shutting behind him. Inko's footsteps are light as she walks to Izuku's side, but not light enough for Izuku to be unaware she's coming. He wipes his eyes as discreetly as he can before turning to her.

"Are you alright, Izuku?" she asks, voice quiet. "I didn't mean to interrupt. Is that what One For All looks like? The red?"

Izuku smiles softly and nods. "Kacch-" Katsuki's faded to orange lightning after a few seconds, but mine might not do the same. And it might be a different color."

"Well, it's good to see that you're already getting a grasp on it. But do you feel alright about them being here?"

Izuku hesitates. He wants to tell her that he doesn't. That seeing All Might alive so soon and knowing that he's going to leave is tearing open a wound that had barely started to clot.

But instead, he shrugs. "It's not their fault, and they're really nice. They're going to help me. It's alright."

"But you aren't calling Katsuki Kacchan," Inko points out, mouth pressed tight. "Izuku, honey, you've always called him Kacchan. Are you sure it's alright?"

"Oh, no, it's just- he's a different Katsuki, you know?" Izuku says, fumbling as he tries to explain it to her without telling her how upset Katsuki had seemed when he first called him Kacchan. "It just… feels disrespectful to his version of me to start using their childhood nickname, even if it's what I call the Kacchan I know."

Inko doesn't seem convinced, but still, she nods. "Alright. If you're sure. Get some rest, Izuku." She pushes herself up a bit, standing on her toes to press a kiss to Izuku's forehead. "If they're going to be training you, I'm sure you have a few long days ahead of you."

Izuku laughs a little, nodding. "Yeah, I'm sure I do."

"Goodnight, Izuku."

He waves a bit as she steps out of the room into the hall, giving her one last smile as she leaves. "Goodnight, Mom."

As soon as she goes, the tears he'd managed to fight off spill from his eyes.

He locks the balcony door, pulls the blinds, and crawls back onto the couch, all through the blur of his tears, making sure to muffle any sobs that threaten to come out. He's sure everyone else is still awake. He doesn't want to bother any of them.

So he pulls the blanket over him, presses his face into his pillow, and lets himself cry until he stops on his own. Within seconds, the post-crying exhaustion hits him, and he welcomes it with open arms as he turns over and shuts his eyes.

Sleep comes within minutes. He's glad.

He has a long few days ahead of him, after all.