AN: This chapter was reformatted on 9/26/2021.

This chapter was over two years old and was in need of some editing. If you are a prior reader, don't worry, the content is the same plot wise. I have just made corrections to character delivery and narrative voice. If any discrepancies strike your eye as a reader, please let me know and I will be sure to correct them.


Chisaki rolled over in her bed and looked at her clock. Its light temporarily blinded her tired eyes as she read its display.

Only two in the morning? She let loose a sigh into the empty room. It was shaping up to be another sleepless night…

Her eyes scanned the walls and their familiar All Might posters. Her dream screamed at her from the back of her mind and thoughts drifted through her head, as they often did during these nights, and served only to distance that elusive sleep.

A memory, like a video that she had seen thousands of times, played itself in her mind; a smile found its way to her lips as her mind ran its usual loop.

She was at the park when she was seven or so, it was an average day. Kachaan and his usual friends had been there, doing what they always did. Then a man walked up and scared Kachaan and his friends off. He had spoken with her only briefly, but she had long since memorized every word that strange man had uttered and every intonation or movement the man had made. She had known that she would likely never see this man again, but his words had sparked in her that indelible desire to become a hero; to stand like All Might and show the world that everything was going to be okay.

Of course, people had been dubious of her, people made fun of her behind her back or even told her blatantly that it was impossible; there were even people like Kachan who seemed to think that it was their place to physically dissuade her. And yet it was no secret that she was still striving for that same dream.

Chisaki reached behind her clock and picked up a worn notebook, reading its title in the clock's pale light.

'For the Future: Hero Analysis #13'

A warm smile lit her face in that dark room. This was her dream and she was going to pursue it, no matter what!

Later that same day, for it was properly day now, she sat at school. The homeroom of her eighth-grade class had been running like usual, the teacher droning on about some school activities or upcoming events.

Chisaki never had much interest in those things, seeing these people at school was enough for her, she didn't need to see them more often than necessary; besides it was common knowledge that none of them particularly liked her, they considered her bookish, awkward, and unsociable.

Suddenly, something the teacher had said caught her attention.

"I have the forms for the high school applications here." The man said, holding up a stack of papers and waving them around. Chisaki glanced around the room at the repeated expressions of excitement and anticipation.

"Now, I know that many of you want to apply to UA-" To which the whole class roared in approval and chaos ensued as everyone activated their quirks simultaneously, as if trying to prove that they all deserved to be in UA. Chisaki, just held her hand up timidly.

The teacher cleared his throat and waited for the chaos to die-down a little bit.

"But, how many of you are planning to actually apply and hope to get in?"

Every hand remained raised, including Chisaki's.

"What the fuck are you all talking about?" Katsuki Bakugo roared angrily, his feet flung off from where they had been propped up on the desk, as he stood and shot his vicious glare around the room. "Put your hands down, you fucking extras! I'm going to be the only one applying to UA."

A murmur of uncertainty ran through the class, hands started dropping, and worried and accusing glances shot around like bullets. Bakugo's status as the strongest, most violent, and most promising student in the year, had cemented him as an untouchable and omnipotent existence in the classroom. He was known for going after anyone who disagreed with him and setting his usual posy of able quirk-user friends to crush any spirit that rose against him.

And yet, Chisaki had remained as this existence apart from the mob mentality of the class, she stood up to Bakugo despite her fear of him. Most people thought that she must have been mentally stunted to dare defy Katsuki Bakugo, an existence who even the teachers hesitated to touch.

And so there she sat, hand raised, when everyone else had dropped theirs.

She would stand for her dream. If this wasn't the moment to pursue her dream of becoming a hero by going to UA, then there would never be a moment.

"Put your hand down." Bakugo's grating voice came from behind her, his tone was low and deadly.

She felt a chill run up her spine, he only used this tone when he meant business and it carried with it an unsaid threat.

She kept her right hand raised, her left clutched her hero notebook in a vice grip on the desk.

Then the bell rang, a shrill noise which made Chisaki jump in surprise.

"W-Well, I'll be seeing you all again on Monday." The teacher concluded awkwardly. He gave a forced smile before sweeping from the room in a quick motion; reminiscent, Chisaki thought, of a villain fleeing the scene of a crime.

Around her, students stood and rushed hurriedly to the doors; desperate to escape the tensely charged atmosphere of the classroom.

Before Chisaki could rise and do the same, a hand clamped violently onto her shoulder, keeping her in her seat. Bakugo strode into her field of view, two of his lackeys standing at either side.

His eyes were like little embers, glaring at her as if his gaze alone should have been able to burn a hole through her.

"What the Fuck was that, Deku?" He asked as he leaned forward, staring into her green eyes maliciously.

She looked away and instead opted to plant her gaze on her desk.

"What was what, Kachaan?" She asked quietly.

"You know what I'm talking about! That stupid display of yours. Why the fuck do you think that you can challenge me?" He snapped.

She said nothing and focused on keeping her hands from shaking.

Bakugo's eyes narrowed and he looked down to where her gaze was trained. He grinned when he saw her clutching her notebook.

"What is this piece of trash?" He asked, snatching it from her grasp. "'For the Future: Hero Analysis #13'. What is this Bull-Crap?" He exclaimed, laughing hysterically. "And you've got another twelve of these pieces of garbage?" His lackies joined him in laughing at her, while Bakugo opened the unassuming notebook and flipped to a random page, he scanned it for a moment. "Its just a bunch of stupid hero nerd crap." He looked up at her big eyes, which now watched him in horror, they both knew what he was going to do next. Bakugo gripped a dozen or so pages and ripped them out violently, letting the fistful of pages fall to the ground. Her heart leapt into her throat. He just sneered at her as the shredded pages fluttered from his hands. "Deku, you really are a stupid, obsessive, fangirl!"

Her eyes stung as she watched those bottomless hours of hard work fall to the grimy floor, now nothing more than scrap.

"Oh, are you going to start crying now?" He turned to one of his lackeys. "Look at her, we tear up her precious little notebook and she's gonna start bawling like a toddler."

Rage rose up inside her and she pooled all of her self pity into it in the face of this injustice. She stood sharply, knocking her chair back. "Give that back to me, right now, Bakugo!"

The three of them stared at her for a moment, stunned. Then they doubled over, laughing.

"Oh God!" One of the lackeys exclaimed.

"Was that supposed to be intimidating?" The other said, as he gasped for air.

"Is the poor, little, quirkless, Deku going to make me give back this notebook?" Bakugo asked with a smirk. "Well, you know what, I'm feeling generous today. You can have your book back…" He paused for a moment and watched her glare at him. "But, you're going to have to go and collect it from the fishes." He said with a grin.

A protest died in Chisaki's throat with a wimpy little yelp, as she watched Bakugo release a series of explosions on the book. He shot her a knowing look before chucking the now charred projectile through the window.

Chisaki heard it land in the fish pond with a distant splash. A hole opened up in her chest and her breath caught there, shallow and week. Her heart and soul had gone into that book. So much love and care had just been obliterated because this massive prick wanted to make her suffer.

A hand landed on her shoulder and she looked up to see Bakugo's wolfish smile.

"You see, I'm going to be a hero, and I can't have someone like you staining my coattails. So, why don't you forgot about getting into UA, you shitty nerd." He said with that cold and deadly tone, before setting off a series of explosions on her shoulder, a trail of smoke coiling from under his hand; this was not a suggestion, but a command.

"Good. I think she understands." Bakugo removed his hand from her shoulder and turned to his lackeys with a triumphant grin "Let's go. I wanna stop at the arcade on the way home."

"That sounds like fun." One of the lackeys said, trailing after Bakugo as he made his way to the door of the classroom.

The last lackey gave her a little smirk before he left. "That's really pitiful, can't even say anything back."

"Come on!" Bakugo commanded sharply from the doorway.

When they were all gone, Chisaki let her tears fall.

She felt so fucking useless! God Damn it! Why couldn't they just leave her be.

She swiped at her cheeks as she trudged miserably down the stairs and out to the front of the school.

All I wanted was to be a hero! It's not my fault that I was born quirkless! She thought as she walked up to the fish pond and stared down at her notebook drifting in the water. I don't want to be this weak! I want to be a hero! Someone like All Might.

She picked up the book gingerly, watching the water fall in a hypnotic little stream from the soaked and charred pages. Furious tears burned in her eyes. I want to inspire people and make them feel safe. I want to be a hero so that I can stop people like Kachan, so that no one has to be pushed around by someone who calls themselves a 'hero'...

She cradled her poor book in her arms and began her lonely trek home, deliberately trudging the long way in order to avoid the busy center of the city, where the arcades were; she didn't want to run the risk of running into Bakugo again. Her thoughts continued to swirl.

Why? Why is this world so cruel? If I had been born with a quirk, I would at least stand a chance against people like Kachaan. I would have a real shot at being a hero.

Ha! Who have I been kidding? I've had my heart set on this stupid dream of being a hero for so long and I can't even stand up for myself, as a normal citizen.

If its going to be people like Kachaan standing over me, the rest of my life, because I can't get over my own egoism, then I would rather give up now. Maybe if I just go to a normal high school, I can still avoid this whole mess and still salvage some of my school life; maybe even have some friends. How novel. Friends! Ha1

Chisaki's feet carried her towards a cement tunnel, over which passed a bland, ordinary, street.

Nobody's supported me in my dream of being a hero anyways. Just my mom and some stranger, who I'll probably never see again.

She entered the tunnel, it was dark and damp, and smelled of something rotten. She was too lost in thought to notice a sewage grate shifting by her feet.

I mean, not even my teachers would even acknowledge that I wanted to be a hero, they have always skirted around the subject, as if by ignoring it, they could make it disappear. They won't even help me when I mention that I'm being bullied by their star student! This whole thing is just-

A mass of green liquid shot up from behind her and crashed down over her head. It was cold and thick and the gasp of shock that rose in her throat was all the air she got before it engulfed her. A voice, thick and slimy like the sludge that lifted her kicking feet from the floor, reverberated in the muck.

"It'll be alright little girl, I just need to borrow your body for a minute. You see I've got some pesky heroes chasing after me. I'm sure you understand."

The sludge, it could speak! This was a person! If the heroes were chasing him, then… this was a villain. A villain attack. Holy shit! She was being attacked by a villain!

I'm going to die! I'm going to die! I'm going to die!

Panic overrode all rational thought and she kicked and clawed until she broke the surface and gasped down air.

"Help!" She began desperately, "Help-" She went to scream again but was cut off by the liquid slipping back over her mouth.

"Shhhhh!" The sewage monster hissed, "Be quiet little girl! A hero might hear you."

That's what I want! I need a hero!

"Look, I just need your body for a little while. I just need to escape this city." He said with that revolting voice that shifted all of the liquid she was suspended in.

She kicked violently at the villain's body, in vain.

Her eyes stared blearily through the sludge at the mouth of the tunnel. A hero will show up any moment now. They had to. That's what heroes did. They always showed up in the nick of time. They would save her. They had to.

But there was no hero there.

Chisaki kicked again and felt her lungs scream, she was out of air.

Air! I can't breathe! Let me breathe. Please…

A figure appeared at the mouth of the tunnel. Someone had come. A hero!

All Might! All Might's come to save me!

But then her vision shifted, that was not one man but two. Her eyes were no longer focusing properly. She kicked out again, thrashing desperately.

Please save me! Whoever you are.

Then her vision went black.

When she regained some semblance of consciousness a few seconds she must have been on the floor, because her view was coming from very far below. She was looking up at a man with strange hands clutched all over his body and at another man, in a suit, who seemed to be made of black smoke.

These two were not the heroes she had called for.

Yeah, she decided, I'm hallucinating.

Then she blacked out.