It took almost 30 minutes for Deku to calm down and start breathing at a reasonably normal pace.
„I'm sorry... your shoulder is wet now...", Izuku mumbled. But Ochako just smiled sweetly at him and laid a hand on his shoulder.
"Izuku, believe me, this is the last thing that concerns me now."
Izuku gave a short laugh, but it was clear that there was no real humor behind it.
„Thanks Ochako, I appreciate it, but you should go back to class now... I'm fine..."
He was clearly NOT fine.
"Midoriya, you don't seriously believe that we will just leave you alone in such a situation.", Iida said and slowly came closer.
Izuku looked at them surprised and Ochako could clearly see in his face that he HAD quite expected that they would let him sit here. She had known several times before that he hadn't had a very nice childhood, but in that moment she realized a little more how bad his past must have been.
He looked back down and she got the strong urge to hold him in her arms again, but she didn't. After all, she didn't want to overwhelm him and risk that he would panic again.
"Hey, Deku. Want to tell us what's wrong? I know I sound like a therapist now, but everything that is said in this room stays in this room. ", She joked with a smile and tried to lighten the mood a little, but that didn't have a particularly big effect.
Izuku hesitated. He knew how dangerous it was to trust both of them. Or to trust anyone at all. Every time he trusted someone he ended up being disappointed, betrayed and hurt. He didn't want to trust anyone, but he also knew that he had trusted his two friends a long time ago.
"The only one who knows this is Kacchan... If ... If you find out... I... I'm scared that... that... you won't want to be... my friends anymore... Ochako... you were the... the first friend... I had in a very long time and... aside from Kacchan... I never really had... friends... and well... you know how he is..."
Ochako didn't know whether to be confused, shocked, sad, or angry.
She was confused because she couldn't imagine what would be so bad that she wouldn't want to be friends with him anymore. She knew that wasn't going to happen. Well, unless he was secretly a creepy mass murderer, but she dared to doubt that.
Shock came next because she couldn't understand how it was possible that such a dear, kind, sweet and handsome boy like Izuku had always been alone. Normally she would have blushed at such thoughts, but in this situation she felt no embarrassment.
She was sad because she finally understood why Izuku was always so nervous. He was just not used that other people were nice to him, let alone wanted to be friends with him. At the thought she had to pull herself together very hard not to cry. Nevertheless, tears came to her eyes until another thought occurred to her.
And above all she was angry. No, she wasn't angry with Izuku, by no means. She was angry at everyone in Izuku's past. At his techaer's, at his former classmates and especially she was mad at Katsuki. The two boys obviously did not have a very good relationship and she knew that Katsuki was often violent against Izuku. But now she knew, that the blonde had bullied Deku. She was going to strangle that fucking blond handgranate!
He had even told her once that his childhood was not easy, but she had obviously underestimated the matter!
She took a calming breath and forced herself to calm down. Izuku needed her and that was more important.
"My... my whole life... I was bullied... or beaten up... or just completely ignored..."
Now Ochako was getting even angrier. Bullied, beaten up or ignored ?! At that moment some memories came back to her. Moments when Izuku flinched when she'd touched him, or moments when he'd been frightened for no reason. She had even seen once, when he was walking alone through the hallway in the school, that he stopped walking on every corner, took cover and then looked around the corner, as if he was following someone.
She hadn't thought much of it then. Maybe he was just looking for someone, or maybe he wanted to avoid Bakugou?
But now that she was sitting on the floor in front of him in his room, she realized that he had done that because he wanted to make sure that no one was lurking around the corner to attack him.
"You ... you are ... the first friends in such a long time ... I don't want...no... I can't lose you too ..."
Too? Ochako wondered who he lost in his past, but she could find that out later.
Ochako and Iida looked at each other shocked and perplexed. Neither of the two had the slightest idea what could be so bad, that would ensure that they no longer wanted to be friends with Izuku. Ochako was however clear that something very bad must have happened if Deku actually thought something could scare her.
She would never stop being his friend. No, she even hoped to be more than just a friend at some point and she was absolutely sure that whatever was going on here would not dissuade her from this dream.
"We will always be your friends Izuku. I promise you that.", Iida said and gesticulated like a robot with his hands.
"Can ... Can I maybe ... just talk to one ... to one of you ...?"
Before Ochako could say anything, Iida agreed to leave the room. He said he would go back to the classroom, let Aizawa know what's going on here, get his and Ochako's school supplies, and then come back and wait in the common room downstairs.
"Thank you Iida.", Ochako said. She was really grateful to him. She didn't want to leave Izuku and it looked like Tenya had already suspected that. She gave him a grateful nod , before turning back to Deku.
"If you need anything, no matter what, then call me. I'll leave my phone on loud. ", Iida said before closing the door.
It was quiet in the room for a few moments, but Ochako wanted to give the green-haired boy these moments.
Deku took a shuddering breath and said: "You saw all this glowing, flying stuff earlier, right?"
Ochako nodded. "Yes, I saw that."
"That ... This is my other ... quirk ... I got it from my ...", Deku took a trembling breath and he looked as if it would be difficult for him to say the following.
"I got it from my … from my mother ..."
Ochako was visibly impressed. She wasn't sure what kind of quirk it was yet, but it seemed very strong and it was extremely rare for anyone to have multiple quirks. She couldn't quite tell, of course, but she suspected it might be some kind of telekinesis or something like that.
But why hadn't he shown this power before? Earlier it was just out of control, which is why Ochako had the assumption that he hadn't planned to show this quirk at all at some point. It also looked like he was just managing to suppress his quirk convulsively.
"And that's ... not the ... the only quirk I have ..." he said.
"Well, I know that. You still have your superpower. ", Ochako said. What was he getting at? Well it was pretty unusual to have two quirks, but it really wasn't anything to be ashamed of.
"Yeah. I have that too ... But ... that ... that's another story ... I'll tell you later ... ", he muttered. Then he sniffed briefly, shook his head and slowly began to get up.
"Sorry, can we sit on the bed? My knees are slowly hurting and yours certainly too. "
She nodded and got up before offering him a hand and helping him up.
"Thanks.", he said and when they both stood, she didn't let go of his hand. She gave him an encouraging look and put her other hand on his shoulder.
"Izuku. I'm here for you. Whatever happens."
He looked at her again in surprise and she felt that mixture of all feelings again, which made her know how bad his past had been.
"I don't want to ... hurt you ... but ... it's very difficult for me to believe that ..."
"I know. But I'll prove it to you. ", She said with a confident look and smiled gently at him. She got a tiny smile back and even if his eyes weren't smiling, she saw it as a small success.
She pulled lightly on his hand, which she was still holding, and led them to Deku's bed.
When they both sat down next to each other on the edge of his bed, they were silent for a few moments. She wondered if she should just ask him a question but she decided to give him his time, for which he was grateful and after a few more moments he continued. „What I meant... meant before... I... I don't... don't have only two quirks..."
Wow. After everything that had happened so far, she shouldn't be surprised by anything, but she still was. Having two quirks was unusual, yes, but three?
She suppressed an astonished sound and when he looked into her eyes to see her reaction he was surprised too.
She didn't look scared at all. Or disgusted. Or shocked. No, all he could see on her face was fascination, surprise, curiosity and an encouraging smile. Why wasn't she afraid of him? In his past, everyone who heard from his true quirk was scared and disgusted.
He still remembered when his elementary school class found out what kind of quirk he developed. How some children ran away from him screaming and calling him a villain because they were afraid that his Quirk would kill them - which was bullshit, his Quirk had indeed something to do with death, but he would never kill anyone – or like parents called him a hell spawn and dragged their crying children away from him.
Later, in his second grade, he moved to another city with his mother and went to another school there, where no one knew him.
There he started to claim that he was quirkless. Of course he was bullied too, but being bullied because he supposedly had no quirk, or being bullied because he was a monster? He clearly preferred the first one.
After his mother died, he was put in a orphanage and he had to went to a school where Kacchan and many other kids from his childhood were going. Fortunately, the children from his elementary school didn't even remember him. Even if that hurt a little, he was glad. Now he could still tell anyone he was quirkless and nobody would think of him as a monster.
Of course, Kacchan remembered him and knew about his true quirk and Deku had actually expected that he would be treated as a monster again. But that surprisingly didn't happen. When he said he was quirkless there, everyone now believed him. Kacchan bullied him too, of course, but he never said a word about Deku's true quirk, for which Izuku would be eternally grateful.
Only now did he realize that he had been staring at Ochako the whole time. He blushed suddenly and looked back at his lap and he could have sworn he heard Ochako giggle.
"I ... my quirk ... it ... it used to ... make everyone... afraid... and scared of me... People ... misunderstood the first brief description ... of my quirk and ... then they... told everyone around ... that my quirk ... my actual quirk ... that it... would kill people ... which it wouldn't... and.. and sometimes ... they also said ... that I would definitely become a villain someday ... and kill a lot of people ... to get stronger ... "
"What?! I know you would never do something like that! You are not a villain! "
Izuku giggled humorlessly and said: "You're probably pretty much the only one who thinks that way ... and when you've found out, you will ... guaranteed to think differently ..."
Ochako was now extremely curious and before she could control herself, she had already asked.
„And what exactly is your quirk?"
Deku stiffened and she was about to take the question back when he sighed and then answered.
"I ... I can ... I can take quirks ..."
Take quirks? Like All for – No. No. That couldn't be.
„You mean like..."
„No... not like All for One..."
She let out a relieved breath. Not that she would have been afraid of Izuku. She was just relieved that Izuku had nothing to do with this villain. She had already thought -
"But in my opinion my quirk is ... actually worse ..." he said, sniffing. The tears were back now and a sob shook him.
She wanted to hug him and moved a little closer to him, but he shot up and began to walk up and down his room with quick steps, talking.
"If at least I could just take quirks! But NO of course it had to be that ... My Quirk ... I'm a fucking monster! Of course I had to get this curse from a quirk! OF COURSE PEOPLE HAVE TO DIE FIRST ! "
She looked at him shocked. She didn't understand a word. Why had people died? What was her poor Izuku going through?
Most of all, she was shocked by his outburst. She had seen him on the verge of a breakdown many times before when he was fighting, but she had never ever seen him like THIS.
She wanted to get up and calm him down, but knowing him, as soon as she got up he would think she was going to run away and he would freak out even more. So she stayed seated and tried to look as relaxed as possible.
During his outburst, some objects in the room had started floating around again and even though he had his back to her, his arms wrapped around him and he was sobbing loudly, she knew that the strong green glow in his eyes was back too. She really had to pull herself together not to close her arms around his neck and comfort him. She couldn't bear to see the boy she loved - yes, in a situation like that she could admit it without freaking out herself – like this.
"Why do people have to die, Izuku?", she asked and she was surprised at how calm her voice sounded.
He sobbed loudly and fell to his knees.
"Deku!" Ochako was startled and got up after all, but did not go to him.
He didn't seem to hear her and so he continued talking.
"If ... if a person dies in ... in my presence ... Then I ... automatically take over ... his quirk ..."
Everything came together in her head like a puzzle. It all made sense now. Of course she wasn't afraid of him. She still loved him.
And even if it maybe was wrong to think like this, but she was happy. No, of course not about the secret she had learned, per se.
She was happy that Izuku trusted her so much and told her this secret and she had the feeling that she knew him even better and loved him even more.
But... If his real quirk could take over quirks after somebody died in his presence... And he got the quirk of his mom... Then that meant...Oh no... Please don't let it be what she thought it was...
And as if he could read her mind, he affirmed her fear.
"My mother ... she ... she was killed ... before my eyes ... when... when I was 12...by ... by this ..."
He stopped talking, but she could already guess what he was going to say.
"She was killed by that villain Aizawa talked about earlier, right?" she asked in a calm voice and took a few small steps towards him.
In response, she only got a particularly loud sob and that answer was enough for her.
She dropped to her knees behind him and hugged him. He winced briefly and an invisible force forced her against her will to spread her arms again. She thought he wouldn't want to be hugged and had therefore pushed her away with his quirk, but he turned around, fell into her arms and the same invisible force from before pressed her arms around him again.
He was crying in her arms for the second time that day and she also got tears in her eyes.
"I am not afraid of you. You are a hero, Deku. You are my hero. I will always stay with you. I promise you. I will never let you down. I'll be always there for you. "
He cried louder and she knew that these tears where from sadness, sure, but they were also relieved tears. He was so relieved, that she wasn't scared of him.
Ochako's hand began to make circling moves on his back and she whispered sweet nothing's to him. Then she opened her eyes with an angry and determined look on her face and with raging fire in her eyes.
She will let that fuckface pay for what he did to her Izuku! And that she swore by her life!