This AU follows Izuku Midoriya who never meets All Might or saves Bakugo from the sludge villain. He has grown through high school and still does not seem to have a quirk. Class 1-A and B have continued training and the LOV has proceeded to attack just like in the manga. However, everything that happens during the Overhaul arc has not occurred yet. The characters are just older and time has shifted. It's time to find out what Izuku's been up to all these years...

There will be OC's introduced, special chapters dedicated to other characters, but most of all, Izuku's journey to becoming a hero in his own way. I hope you enjoy it!

Chapter Five: Searching for Eri

"Excuse me! Excuse me… please let me through. I need to… check on someone!" Izuku half-yelled, half-panted as he stumbled his way inside Hiroo right before the male nurse at the door could stop him.

The nurse at the front desk gave him an annoyed glance. "Visiting hours are over. Come back tomorrow, we open at ten," she muttered.

Izuku shook his head, wiping some of the sweat off his forehead. "No. You don't understand. It's really important. Please. I just need to know if she's here. Her name's Eri–" he breathed out, leaning over the desk to catch his breath.

"Eri?" the nurse looked back up at him expectantly.

Izuku nodded quickly.

"Eri what? I need to know her last name in order to look her up," she sighed with a slight eye roll.

Last name? Crap, I didn't think to ask for her last name. I'm such an idiot, Izuku blinked, trying to remember if the name had come up at one point during the strange encounter. He shook his head.

"Is there, um, is there any way that you can just tell me if… look, she's a little girl. About eight or nine. Her hair is long and wavy, kind of a light grey. No scratch that, it looked bluer now that I think about it. And her eyes are red and really big. Oh, and she was wearing a hospital gown and had bandages wrapped around her arms. Please. She looked really sick. Her dad said she was involved in a car accident and she was brought here. But then she ran away and so that's when I bumped into her but then her dad appeared and I–"

"Whoa, whoa. Slow down. Take a deep breath and breathe. I can't disclose any other patient's information but I can use the description you gave me and see if anyone matches it. Now go take a seat and calm down before I have to check you in as a patient too," the nurse sighed and then resumed typing away at her computer.

Izuku could only nod as he made his way over to the waiting area. Despite it being empty, the TV was still on and was replaying footage of a wreckage a villain had caused near the shopping district downtown. Apparently, they had blown up part of the Kiyashi Ward Shopping Mall while he had still been at school. Some type of attempted robbery.

He tensed, staring up at the screen as a couple of kids ran past the reporter. What if Eri was there? What if she escaped from the hospital again and got caught in the explosion?

Izuku shook his head. No, the nurse would have told him. It would have been obvious if she went missing again. Then again, it would have also been obvious for her to identify a patient who had run away in the first place, but Izuku didn't try to think about it too much. Maybe the nurse just didn't know about Eri. He looked over at her again and then quickly looked away. Then, Izuku turned over to look at the double doors as he sank into the uncomfortable cushions.

The sun was setting in the distance and the lights had already flickered on to light up the ramp that led up to the doorway. But when Izuku blinked again, a figure appeared outside and seemed to be looking at him from the side window. The boy looked to be about his age but had his face and hands pressed up against the glass like a little kid. When the two locked eyes, the boy dove into one of the bushes and disappeared.

Izuku frowned and stood up. Did he want to come in too? He was about to get up to go check on him when the nurse called him up.

"Yes?" he rushed over, completely forgetting about what he had just seen.

"I'm sorry but there's no one in the hospital checked in with that name. If what you said is true, about her escape, we would have had a file on record of it happening but there's nothing here–" she began but Izuku stopped listening after he heard her say she was sorry.

He gripped the edge of the desk tightly until his knuckles went white. Suddenly, he was aware of how hard his heart was pumping as he thought back to the fear in Eri's eyes.

"No. No… there has to be some kind of mistake. Eri has to be here. She has to…" Izuku stared up at the nurse, tears welling up in his eyes. She leaned back a bit in shock and cleared her throat. "Are you alright?" she asked, the annoyed tone shifting into one of worry.

"I let her go," Izuku whispered, looking down at his blurry hands. He stepped away from the desk slowly as his whole body began to shake.

He lied to me and I fell for it like an idiot. And now who knows where Eri is, or if she's even alive. That creep probably wasn't even her dad, Izuku thought as he bumped into the couch from before and momentarily regained awareness of the situation around him. The nurse was still staring at him from her seat and was now joined in by two others who were watching him closely.

Izuku blinked. The police department. He had to get to the police department before it closed too. Maybe if he reported Eri as a missing child they would open up a case. Sure, he didn't have any evidence but he would think of something. He had to. Eri's life was on the line and he was the only one who could do anything about it right now.

"Where is the nearest police station?" he rushed back over to the desk and all three nurses jumped slightly.

"Uh, um there's one on the other side of the city about thirty minutes away but it closes soon too. Why? Are you sure you're feeling okay? Maybe you should stay here and rest," the male nurse from earlier suggested.

"Yeah, you look really pale and you started trembling really hard," the third nurse added quietly.

Izuku wiped his eyes and forced a shaky smile. He shook his head. "No. I'm fine. But thank you so much for helping me. Have a nice night!" he added, before taking off again. He wasn't sure if he had the energy to run to the station and make it on time, especially since he had already run to Hiroo earlier.

The first day of Hero Analytics hadn't exactly gone as planned. Apparently, Koda didn't get along with a lot of the other students and a paint war had broken out. Izuku had had to stay behind and fill out some extra paperwork, as well as help the janitor clean up because he felt bad. He still should have had plenty of time to get to Hiroo though, even with that setback, but because of the mall robbery, most of the buses had stopped running in the area, leaving him with no choice but to run here on his own.

But Izuku didn't have a choice anymore. He wasn't about to use his tiredness as an excuse. The more time that passed, the further he felt Eri slipping away. He had to get to the station before they closed. He had to.

Unfortunately, as he continued to run, Izuku was reminded once again that not all men are created equal. By the time he reached the other side of the city, his legs felt like giving out and it hurt to breathe. Every time he inhaled, he'd start coughing and would have to stop to catch his breath. This continued for another forty-five minutes and by the time the police station was in sight, he had lost feeling in both his legs.

He could feel sweat dripping down every part of his body and his heart was thumping so loud throughout his head that it was making him dizzy.

Just a little more Izuku. Eri needs you, he told himself, trying to get his legs to move faster. The lights of the Zayasu Police Department were still on and Izuku could barely make out the blurred figures inside but it gave him hope. He checked his watch.

6:45 PM. Fifteen minutes before they probably closed. Izuku clenched his fists and pumped his legs faster up the hill.

Yes. I can do this. I'm almost there, just a little closer… Izuku chewed on his bottom lip as he ran, holding back the urge to puke. His eyes stung and he wiped at them in frustration, speeding past the parking lot and pushing open the doors. The security guard near the entrance yelled and tried to grab him, but Izuku didn't stop. He continued running until he was just feet away from the front desk.

He didn't even notice he had just walked past Le Million himself.

Izuku screeched to a stop and slammed his hands on the desk, trying to catch his breath and speak at the same time. The secretary looked up at him in shock and everyone else behind the desk stopped to stare. "I… I need to file… a missing child's report for a girl named Eri," he breathed out.

The lights in the building were a stark difference to the outside world and it made him more nauseous than he already was but Izuku held his ground.

The worker in front of him hadn't started typing anything though and was still staring at Izuku as if he was crazy. "I'm sorry sir, but we had to close early today. I'm going to have to ask you to leave and come back tomorrow," the man shook his head and started getting up but Izuku reached over and grabbed his hand. He didn't mean to grip it so hard but the adrenaline rushing through him was making him go crazy. He also did it to steady himself because he felt like he would pass out at any moment.

"Hey, let me go!" the man yelled, just as the security guard from before yanked at Izuku's collar, pulling him back.

Izuku blinked and nearly fell backward as the security guard shoved him to the side. "What the hell kid? Didn't you hear him the first time? We're closed now, so get out before I arrest you for assault," the security guard hissed.

No, no, he had to report Eri now. There was no time to waste, why didn't anyone understand goddamnit? He wasn't the bad guy here. That man that took Eri was.

"I'm sorry but I have to, I need to…" Izuku shook his head, feeling tears in his eyes again. "Please just listen. Eri's in danger. Please," he pleaded, falling to his knees from exhaustion and desperation. Everyone behind the front desk looked over at him. Some looked curious, others worried.

As Izuku let his head hang to let the tears fall, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching and the slam of a door followed by a voice. "What the hell is all this yelling? I thought I made it clear that we were running a special investigation meeting today?"

Izuku looked up as a short, bald man in a suit appeared from the other end of the room. The man laid his eyes on Izuku and frowned, three more wrinkles appearing on his chubby forehead.

"Detective Adachihara… my apologies. It's just this boy ran in here and started causing a scene–" the security guard began but someone stepped in between them, casting Izuku in a shadow. Somehow though, the room seemed brighter as the figure appeared.

Izuku's eyes widened and he felt his breath hitch in his throat. Standing in front of him was none other than Le Million, Sir Nighteye's current number one sidekick, top student from his class when he had been at UA and hero of the year from the Under 24 List.

"Sorry about that Detective Adachihara, sir. You can get back to your meeting and I'll join you shortly. Let me just take care of everything out here," Le Million answered. Izuku couldn't see his face because his back was facing him, but he could just tell he was smiling.

Adachihara gave Le Million an annoyed look and let out a grunt. "Whatever. Just don't take too long, the air conditioner stopped working in the conference room," he called out and disappeared back into the room he had come from. When the door slammed again, everyone seemed to relax but Izuku didn't. He continued staring up at Le Million in awe, even when the older boy had turned around and reached out his hand.

"Need some help there, problem child?" he grinned. Izuku looked at his hand and then looked back at his shiny face. He could only nod, rubbing at his blurry eyes. A rush of emotions filled his head as Le Million helped him up. Admiration, excitement, embarrassment, and apprehension. For the second time that day, there was a hero standing in front of him and he didn't know how to act. Le Million might've only been a sidekick but anyone who was anyone could see that he would become more soon. He was the only UA graduate Izuku didn't mind watching whenever he came on screen.

But there was no time for him to think about hero stuff when Eri was still missing.

"Yes. I do. There's a little girl missing out there and she might be getting abused. I just need you to hear me out, please. Her life depends on it," Izuku explained with a sniffle. As soon as he said that, Le Million's eyes seemed to harden but his smile widened.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Mr. Shinohara can help you if you just apologize, right?" Le Million looked over at the man Izuku had grabbed. Mr. Shinohara frowned but quickly nodded his head. "Yeah, whatever," he grumbled, shifting his gaze over to Izuku who bowed his head and said he was sorry.

"Well, then there you have it, problem child! Mr. Shinohara can help you now," Le Million beamed but Izuku still didn't move.

"Yeah. I think you said something about someone being in danger? It was kind of hard to pay attention because you suddenly grabbed my arm," Mr. Shinohara muttered, rubbing at his wrist. Izuku bit his bottom lip and apologized again as he slowly approached the desk. Everyone else in the room seemed to go back to doing what they were doing before.

"Her name is Eri and I ran into her this morning. I think her dad— well it probably wasn't her dad— but the man with her, is the kidnapper," Izuku fidgeted with his flannel as Mr. Shinohara started typing, but stopped suddenly and looked up at him.

"Okay, what else?" Mr. Shinohara asked with an eye roll.

"And well… she looked hurt and um, the story he gave me didn't fit so I thought I'd come here and…" Izuku stopped as soon as he heard the security guard laughing behind him.

"So you thought you'd come in here and play hero? What are you, twelve?"

Le Million shot the security guard a look and then glanced back at Izuku who felt like all of the remaining air had been sucked out of him.

"Hey, let's listen to what he has to say. Maybe he can give us more information about the girl," he offered Izuku a smile and Izuku nodded gratefully.

"Fine, but you're paying for the drinks the next time we go out, Togata. What's your name young man?" Mr. Shinohara frowned as he turned to look at Izuku.

"I'm Izuku Midoriya, and her name is Eri. She's probably ten years old. Not too tall, maybe half my height, or less. With very light blue hair that reached her waist. Her eyes were red and she had a horn growing out of her head. She was also wearing bandages on her arms and had on some kind of hospital gown," Izuku said. Just thinking of Eri made his skin crawl. It made him want to jump on the desk and type up the report himself, especially since he had been the one to let her go.

As Mr. Shinohara started to type, the plump man from before poked his head out of the door again and called out to Le Million: "We need you superstar, hurry it up!" Le Million nodded quickly and gave Izuku a wave as he started to walk off.

'Good luck,' he mouthed and Izuku returned the wave with a small smile.

"What else? Did you get a last name? What is your relationship with this child? How did you even reach the conclusion that she was in danger? Didn't you mention she was with her dad or something?" Mr. Shinohara asked.

Izuku nodded. "Yes. Except I don't think it was her dad. That's really my only evidence. Call it a hunch or whatever but it just didn't feel right. The man looked young though, a bit older than Le Million. He might've been in his mid-twenties but I couldn't tell because he was wearing a weird mask and this greenish jacket with purple feathers," Izuku finished.

Le Million stopped walking. "A weird mask?" Izuku heard him say but Mr. Shinohara interrupted him.

"Look. I'm only writing this report because I respect Le Million a lot, okay? But just between you and me, it probably won't get picked up. We hear reports like these all the time. Go home. If we see anyone in the area that fits the description, we'll let you know. Just fill out this card with your contact information before you go," he handed Izuku a clipboard and then walked away from his desk.

The security guard snorted behind him. "Told ya kid, now hurry up and get out."

But Izuku couldn't feel any part of his body anymore. He had heard Mr. Shinohara loud and clear, but he didn't want to believe the words that had come out of his mouth.

Just between you and me, it probably won't get picked up. We hear reports like these all the time. Go home.

Go home. Go home. Go home.

Izuku's hand trembled as he held the red pen over the page. He didn't even remember filling it out and turning it in. Even as he walked out of the police station, he felt like crying but no more tears came out.

There's nothing they can do. There's nothing I can do, Izuku thought as he stared at a tiny crack in the ground by his shoe.

Why can't you do anything more? He wondered, glancing back at the inside of the station. He wanted to rush back in and scream at them about Eri and how she could be in danger but he had no more energy to move. His body was tired and he felt like collapsing.

Why can't I do anything more?

Izuku looked over at his hands. The same ones he had held Eri with. The same ones that had let her go.

Why am I still so useless? He stared up at the sky and blinked when he saw the moon. How long had he been inside the station? Izuku sighed and willed his legs to move. He didn't want to leave but he had no other choice. He had done all he could.

Eri… wherever you are, please be okay. Just hold out a little longer, Izuku pleaded as he made his way back down the hill. His whole body was in pain but he didn't allow himself to feel it. Not when Eri could be out there feeling worse. It wasn't fair.

Izuku felt the urge to cry and grabbed a rock instead, chucking it as hard as he could towards the open road in front of him. He would have kept going if he hadn't heard the cry of pain that came from the shadows.

Oh crap, don't tell me I actually hit someone, Izuku groaned as he rushed over to where the sound had come from.

"Hello?" Izuku cried, squinting through the darkness.

Amongst the shadows, he could make out a hooded figure, crouched down on the sidewalk. Izuku's heart sped up again. The rock he had flung was next to the figure's body. He hoped he hadn't hurt them too badly.

"Are you okay?" Izuku asked, peering over at the person who hadn't moved since he arrived. But as he got closer, the figure took off without warning and Izuku stumbled backwards, falling on the pavement. He could feel the sting from where his elbows had caught the fall.

"Hey, wait! I'm sorry!" he called out but was too tired to chase after them. He felt like the figure seemed familiar but it was hard to tell now that the sun had gone down.

Izuku sighed and smacked his hand on the grass. Great, that's the fourth screw up today. First, I let Eri go, then Koda goes out of control, earlier I hurt that guy, and now I hit a random person. What's next? He let his hang head in disappointment, listening to the sounds of the bay in the distance.

"I have to do something," Izuku said quietly after a while. He rolled onto his stomach and sat up. But what exactly could he do? If the police were going to have a hard time tracking her down, wouldn't it be worse for him?

No. You saw her. You know what they both looked like. You know her name. It's a start.

If that was even her real name.

Izuku rubbed at his tired eyes and tried to ignore the throbbing of his head. He wanted to keep thinking about what to do next, but he was also miles away from home and it would take him a couple of hours to walk back. Maybe the buses were running again?

He stood up slowly and started making his way towards the well-lit portion of the street. Before he reached the other side though, he noticed something on the floor in the direction the hooded stranger had run off in.

"What's this?" he frowned, leaning over and analyzing what seemed to be a broken record player. Izuku looked around but the street was still empty. Had the stranger left this behind? Or had it already been there? Izuku hoped it didn't belong to them, and if it did, that it wasn't that important. The record player seemed broken beyond repair.

Should I take it with me?

He shook his head. No, the original owner might come back and look for it. It was better to just let it be. So Izuku carefully stepped around it instead and headed back to the other side of town. Luckily, traffic seemed to have resumed and he was able to catch one of the last bus rides to Musutafu for the night.

As he rode inside, all he could think about was Eri. Had she been taken on a bus just like this one? Where was she right now? Was she doing better? Izuku tucked his knees into his chest and sniffled quietly. Eventually, he gave in to his exhaustion and ended up falling asleep, mumbling Eri's name as he dreamt of their encounter over and over again. The only thing that let him know they had arrived was when the bus jolted to a stop and woke him up.

What he didn't notice as he slept, was that the hooded figure had boarded the bus at the next stop. Or that when they reached Musutafu, the figure got off too, silently following behind him. Getting closer, and closer until…

…

… …

… … …

"Izuku!" Inko Midoriya rushed over to him as he dragged himself up the stairs. Now that he had rested a little, the ache in his body had become even more apparent and it hurt to move.

"Where have you been? I tried calling you but you wouldn't pick up and–"

Izuku crashed into his mother's arms, mumbling a hello. He didn't want her to ask any more questions, so he just stayed quiet and pretended to snore a little bit. "Can't talk. Too tired. I'll tell you… tomorrow," he yawned, peeking up at her.

Inko shook her head but held him close, pulling him inside and shutting the door behind them. "Alright. I'll help you to your room. I'm just happy you're okay," she sighed, kissing his sweaty forehead.

Izuku could only nod. Sure, he was fine. But somewhere out there right now, Eri wasn't, and that was enough to keep him up all night. Still unaware though, that he was being watched.

—

Oooh, Izuku's got a stalker! Thanks for reading everyone, and thanks for your lovely comments. As always, I really enjoy reading them :D to answer a few things that have come up…

In this AU, Koda is still alive because he managed to run away and Muscular got caught up in the main battle with the others while trying to track him down. But since he's just a kid, I'd imagine there would be no reason for the League to go after him specifically, especially since they planned on kidnapping Bakugo.

Then when it comes to Yuda's quirk, I like the way you think fencer! I believe that's how people would figure it out, but first, they'd have to break free from the initial confusion that comes along with his quirk. Kind of like Shinso's brainwashing which clouds the victim's judgment.

As for your other comment about pacing and characters, I really appreciate that. I do want to take my time but I also don't want any chapters to seem too boring or repetitive. But I guess I'll let you all decide that for me :)

And SentinelSlice, you're definitely going in the right direction, but I won't say too much about that yet, hehe.

Until the next update. Oh and since I haven't really introduced myself yet, I go by Melon!