A Hero's Dream

The heat was palpable, nearly visible to the naked eye and the world seemed to bend under its intense wave. The cicadas sang in tandem, piercing and loud, one tree to the next and the Sun hung low, casting its bright glare below. The sand at the park glowed a near orange and a green haired boy quaked in fear as he stood over his fallen friend.

Three boys opposed him. The apparent leader of the small gang was a boy in the center with spiky blond hair. He stood there between his two goons, staring at the quaking boy as if he couldn't believe his eyes. Slowly, his face contorted into a sneer. His lips twitched upwards in a forced grin as he cracked his knuckles, a small explosion setting off on his palm as he tested his quirk.

"Still pretending to be a hero, huh? Deku."

The boy on the ground hastily scrambled up to his feet, before running away without so much as a backward glance. The poor, green haired boy was left all by himself, sweat dripping down his brow as he stared into three pairs of menacing eyes. Green eyes swam with tears as the small boy let out a terrified squeak, his feet rooted to the spot in fear. The gang didn't waste a second and with a fierce howl, they closed in on him, fists clenched and drawn back.

Silky, black hair cut through the visible curtains of heat.

"Smaaaash!" a young Kurumi yelled, tackling the ringleader of the bunch into the ground in a messy tangle of limbs.

"Wha…" Red eyes blinked up at the sky. The spiky haired boy was on the ground before he knew it, too stunned by the sudden impact to counter in anyway. His two lackeys blinked stupidly at their fallen leader, apparently at a loss of what to do.

"Ruuuuuun!" Kurumi shouted, snatching the terrified boy's hand and together, they ran as the bullies gave chase indignantly, but a little too late.

"Hey you! COME BACK HERE!" The spiky haired boy howled as his fists cackled with explosions, "DEKUUUU!"

Panting, the two children ran for what felt like forever. They ran until their gasps came out in short huffs. They ran until their lungs screamed for air. They ran until their legs started to give out under them. Finally when they could no longer see the bullies behind their backs, only then did they dare to halt. Together they stumbled onto their backs on a field of grass where a small river snaked down the middle, their lungs straining to take in oxygen as the sun winked, unbearably hot and bright in the evening of that mid-summer day.

"That'" Kurumi panted, "was awesome!"

The green haired boy next to her groaned, his mouth opening and closing like a landed fish, his lungs still pining hungrily for air as every muscle in his body protested at the excessive use.

"Who…?" he managed to get out as he weakly stared at the girl.

"My name is Kurumi," she garbled, "Your name's Deku, right? You were so cooooool back there!"

"W-wha..? N-noo! Deku's a nickname Kacchan uses to make fun of me! I-I'm Midoriya Izuku.. U-umm.. Thank you for saving me back there!"

Scrambling to his feet, the green haired boy gave an awkward bow, his eyes tightly closed and hints of red coloring his freckled cheek.

"It's only natural for a hero to help others in need!" Kurumi nodded sagely, arms crossing over her chest as she proudly puffed it out, "Besides, you were way cooler! Standing up to three bullies like that! You were like All Might! Always up against like, like a lot of villains! A hero can always get out of a pinch!" Her voice attempted to mimic the gruff, deep rumble that was All Might's voice, eyes sparkling and head held high.

"M-m-me?" Izuku shrieked, his freckles becoming invisible under the intense blush that spread to his face. He frantically looked around out of habit, hoping no one had heard and then he turned to look at the girl who had given him praise that no one else had ever done.

"I'm sorry..Izuku! I'm sorry…." His gaze darkened slightly at the memory.

"I'm nothing like All Might," he mumbled meekly, scratching his cheek, "but th-thank you..."

Sparkling eyes, met pools of dark green and Midoriya Izuku blushed at the brief eye contact, looking down at his feet. She had heterochromia, he thought absently. One eye coal black, while the other burned a soft amber. They were very pretty eyes. And such a pretty girl was telling him that he was like All Might. Izuku's blush deepened. Anybody else would have laughed at such a notion, but her eyes were filled with an earnest truth, and sparkling with the promise of a distant future.

"Why noooot?" the girl frowned, leaning into his face and Izuku squeaked as he retreated further and further into his shell, not at all used to the proximity of another face.

"Well.." Izuku mumbled as he sneaked a quick glance at the girl in front of him. Her eyes were so fascinating that he found himself looking back at them again. "Well…" he squeezed his eyes shut.

"I don't have a quirk and I'm always being bullied by Kacchan. All Might isn't weak. He punches all the bad guys. But… but I'm just Deku. Kacchan said, Deku means quirkless, useless… I, I can't do anything by myself…" A sense of bitterness arose as he mumbled, words tumbling out of his mouth. His hands fidgeted with the sleeve of his dirty shirt as his head ducked under, eyes blinking furiously with unshed tears, drilling holes into the grass.

The words tumbled out of his mouth, and even though he had just met the girl, her eyes had a calming effect that made him spill. All of them were words Kacchan had used against him. He had always tried hard not to let such words affect him, always with a big smile plastered on his face because Kacchan was his friend too. But they came now, unbidden from his mouth like a massive wave as if those words had been engraved into his heart. Everyone around him, even his mother; the world around him had literally been telling him to give up his dream of becoming a hero. Because he was quirkless. Because he was weak.

His heart had always yearned for it, as if telling him that it was what he was born to do. But if even the adults of society were telling him to give it up, he wondered if he, just little, useless Deku had any chance at all to show them wrong.

And now that he had told her he was without a quirk, she too, like the rest of them would…

"But you just did, didn't you?" pitch black and warm amber gazed fiercely down at the startled emerald of Izuku's eyes.

Izuku blinked, "Huh?"

"You don't need a quirk to be a hero, y'know. Daddy told me that all you needed is a selfless heart. And how you stood up for your friend today, that was pretty selfless," Kurumi gazed at the shy boy in front of her, "You're not useless. You made a difference."

"You really think so?"

Hopeful, green eyes were met by a warm, fiery gaze. A child, who harbored an honest dream perked up, peeking out tentatively from behind closed curtains. His childish hopes soared as the black haired girl blew on the dying embers of his heart. All children had hopes and wishes of their own, no matter how childish it may be and in a world where dreams could become reality, all it took for young Midoriya Izuku to dream again was the simple words of a girl he had met on that sunny summer day.

"Besides, Deku also sounds like the word for you can do it, right?" the Sun began to set, the brightness silhouetting her tiny frame and warm amber so much like the Sun behind her, sparkled with the hopes and promises of a future.

And Midoriya Izuku's eyes reflected those sparkles, those brilliant dazzling lights, shining with determination and life.

"I want to become a hero," he claimed. It was a statement that vibrated the very marrow of his bones, giving it warmth that he had never yet known, "I'll definitely become a hero."

Another long day it had been. Aizawa Shouta rubbed his bloodshot eyes as he fished for his keys from his pockets, his back hunched as he opened the door to his small home.

"Daddy!" A blur of black barreled into his stomach and Aizawa gave a nonchalant oof as he scooped her up into his arms, already used to her antiques.

"Hello, princess," he mumbled touching her forehead with his.

After his long day at work as a pro hero, his daughter would often pester him for tales of heroes and villains. But today, he noted with a smirk, it seemed that she had a story of her own to tell.

"Listen daddy. Today, I met a hero!"

Hi guys. I've never realized it, but I'm beginning to see why people enjoy writing fanfics. I mean, just receiving two comments got me so excited. Just a few simple words are getting me so pumped! It's a wonderful feeling that there are people out there, somewhere reading the words I took time to write. Thanks for reading and thank you to those who gave me words of encouragement! It really means a loooot to me.

So the next chapter is where things begin to pick up pace and we get into the main story. Thank you for having patience. Thank you again!