Chapter 15
"Yo, Todoroki!" Kirishima yells at him from his seat. The bi-colored teen nods and directs his walk to sit next to him. He does not say anything. "Man, you had us going with the whole bad guy act. You turned out to be alright." The redhead tells him, not a hint of anger seen on his face. The blond that was sitting further away, however, scoffs.
"Oh yeah, let him act like a douche and one act of admitting that he was being one suddenly changes his view. Kirishima, you have a dumb way of thinking."
"At least he was honest."
"The guy went after Midoriya like a hawk. Dick move, by the way, you can't just target the baby of the class like that."
"Come on, he did apologize later didn't he?" Todoroki did. Right after the match, he has lost his consciousness and only woke up later when he realized that he was in the infirmary. He then pulls the curtains open and somehow managed to scare Midoriya.
"What is it with you and scaring me!" he yells as he beats on his chest, trying to calm himself from the sudden fright.
He apologized for his behavior then.
It seems that Midoriya has told Kirishima and the rest of the class of what happened, probably in a misguided attempt to soothe out any anger directed at him.
Midoriya was a bit … strange. Too nice and too naïve in his honest opinion. After thinking about their fight, he realized what Midoriya has been trying to do the whole time, and he couldn't help but admit that Midoriya was a bit too selfless. He was willing to throw away the festival for his sake.
He does not know whether to feel grateful or a bit estranged.
Aside from his mother and sister, no one ever truly showed him this kind of care for his wellbeing.
He noticed that Kirishima and Kaminari had somehow divulged into a more heated fight, only shut down by Jirou slapping Kaminari's head in the back and sending Kirishima a glare. Kirishima decides to ignore the whole fight and returns to their conversation.
"Man, you missed Iida and Midoriya's fight. I did not expect him to win the way he did."
"Recovery Girl did not let me walk out of the infirmary." On account, that head injuries were more serious than other types of injuries. Kirishima suddenly thought of all the times he ended up in the infirmary in their short high school stint and starts reciting every one of them.
Shoto's own mind wandered away from the redhead, not finding any of it interesting, but kept a stoic expression in place so not to be impolite to him.
At the back seats, he overheard a conversation concerning Uraraka and Asui.
"It's so embarrassing, I didn't realize I was using his name before today!" Uraraka said in obvious embarrassment. "I call Izuku Deku, but everyone does. But I never realized that we were using each other's first name either. Tenya-Kun didn't look like he minded either. How can I show my face to him now?"
"It's okay. It just means that he really likes you." The frog quirked girl voiced. But Uraraka shrieks.
"Don't say it like that, you make it sound like something else!"
"You like him too."
"Asui!"
"Speaking of the class representative, he's there trying to call you, he looks very worried." Shoto heard movement as Uraraka left her chair. Knowing that the conversation has ended, he searched for something else to eavesdrop on.
"I'm a bit concerned about this fight. You know how close those two are, and I'm pretty sure neither of them would like to fight each other." Tokoyami tells Yaoyorozu. "Bakugou also looked to be on edge when Midoriya won."
"You noticed as well? From what I was told, they both grew up together. I do not believe that Bakugou will ever be that protective even around his other friends."
"Does he have other friends?"
"It's finally the last battle of the first UA high school sport's festival! The top will be decided by this one fight, and both from the hero course! Who will it be?" The noise suddenly settles down as the fire ignites on the field. The roar of the flames overwhelmed everything but Present Mic's own voice.
"Is it going to be the fan favorites' clumsy Telekinetic, Midoriya Izuku!" He announces as he Midoriya flies in the field, waving a bit to the crowd and looking very jittery.
"Or the menacing Bomber with an attitude, Bakugou Katsuki!" Attitude was right if you accounted for him entering the stage with his eyes narrowed and focused ahead, obviously ready to fight. However, it caught Shoto's attention how Bakugou's arms were twitching. Everyone else had probably missed the detail if it weren't for the fact that his own arm would twitch while fatigued.
"Start!"
A hush could be heard just as they start of the battle was commences, but the crowd was confused when ten seconds later, neither the contestants moved in their place.
"EH! They're playing the waiting game! This is the final fight, you can't just anti-climax it like this-" There was an obvious hit in the background as the microphone fell down. Aizawa-Sensei probably pushed Present Mic to shut him up.
"Not every battle is filled with action." Was his simple explanation. The whole class felt their sweat drop in that moment. How was their sensei such an unknown hero to the public when he acts outrageously like now?
One minute later, and both Midoriya and Bakugou were still in a fighting possession ready to bolt.
"I knew those two won't fight." Tokoyami comments, Dark Shadow appears from behind him, trying to look at the battlefield.
"Better. Both light creatures won't blind us."
"DS, please refrain from speaking your thought out loud." Muttered Tokoyami with discomfort.
They were suddenly surprised when a large explosion came from the field, everyone's eyes were immediately on the two, but were disappointed to find that neither moved from their place. However, Bakugou looked like he was getting irritated.
"DEKU, FIGHT ME!"
"What?! You didn't even move from your place!"
"Because I was giving you the first advantage!"
"I don't need an advantage." Midoriya, for the first time, actually sounded a bit annoyed. "And you know that!"
"Yeah, I obviously knew less then, since you can't really block a fucking flamethrower in your direction."
"You think that I can't-"
"What is this? A lover's quarrel?!"
"They're children, Present Mic."
"It's a comrade's quarrel! As if the drama wasn't enough for one day!"
But Present Mic's voice was suddenly overcome by the loud explosion that followed. Bakugou has suddenly flung himself at Midoriya with his quirk, readying for a punch. Midoriya, however, slapped the air in front of him, effectively swatting Bakugou to the ground.
"Is this the end?"
But Bakugou sprang off the ground, his face murderous showed a murderous expression.
"DEKU?!" he screams, that was followed by a barrage of punches, all directed at Midoriya's direction. Midoriya created a somewhat transparent green wall to block the fire. "THIS ISN'T YOUR FUCKING BEST, FIGHT ME HONESTLY!"
"You think I'm not trying?!" Midoriya screams in fright, slowly being backed to the borders with Bakugou's explosive attacks.
"You're going to use a fucking trick to win, but guess what Deku, I GREW UP WITH YOU, I KNOW EVERY TRICK UP YOUR SLEEVE." He screams with one last explosive punch. That has finally blasted Midoriya at an angle towards the borders. Midoriya's approach to the line was slowed down, his usual flight level was now changed.
"You came up with half of them." Midoriya screams back, finally punching the ground. To the surprise of the crowd, the ground he was directing his punch at was suddenly wrecked, the resulting rubble was now floating up. Izuku then points at Bakugou, the rubble following his direction and all of it flew at the explosive teen.
Bakugou didn't get hit, he instead lets his quirk explode underneath him, resulting in a high jump that evaded the rocky attack. When his ascent to the air slows to a momentum, he readies a punch. A second later, when one of the cement slabs that were flying at his direction gets closer, Bakugou punches at it, letting it fly back from the force of the explosion.
Midoriya looked surprised and lets himself fall down to escape the attack.
"Is that all you got!" Bakugou demands.
Back in the stands, the class was in a heavy silence. Kaminari finally breaks it by turning around and facing Jirou.
"N-Ne, I thought it was Bakugou and Todoroki with the cool destructive quirks, when did Midoriya join the group? didn't he let all of his skills out during Todoroki's fight?"
"It seems that Izuku's true skills only shines during emotional moments," Yaoyorozu speaks. "During the villain attack, he was more lethal than how he usually is."
Tokoyami unexpectedly speaks.
"It's not a surprise, while most of us have physical quirks, those of us with mental quirks need to control their emotions in order to use our quirks effectively. Midoriya's performance until now has been precise, and depended heavily on control-" A heavy explosion followed cut him off mid-speech, but he didn't seem to be quieting. "During these times, his quirk depended on his thoughts. However, when people with such quirks lose control of their calm, their abilities act up differently, and at most times destructively."
"You're the one who destroyed the cafeteria at that time!" Midoriya screams from the field.
"Like hell! It's your fault that I ended fighting in the first place." The crowd then gasps when Bakugou was suddenly plucked off the floor and thrown away, only for him to blast himself to the ground with a reverberating landing.
"O-Only Bakugou is able to turn a gentle soul like Midoriya into a monster." Mineta's voice was quivering.
"Ribbit." Asui seems to agree.
"Is that all you got, fucker?! I know you trained for two weeks, and you don't train unless you have a new move in mind. SHOW ME!" That must have snapped Midoriya's restraint. Midoriya's already fluffy curls start to waft as if a breeze of air was passing by, his eyes start to light up.
"Or do you still need someone to hold your hands to get over something."
"Shut up."
"What? Did I hear a Deku speak?"
"I said," and suddenly, the ground underneath Midoriya starts to break up, creating a crater. "To shut up."
Before anyone could blink, they see Midoriya right on top of Bakugou, giving him a hard punch to the jaw. Bakugou almost drops on the ground, but found his footing back and swipes his fist immediately back at Midoriya.
0o0o0
Katsuki stares at his arm in bewilderment when it was stopped in its path. A transparent green aura edging on black slowly creeps up on his arm, enclosing it in painful pressure. Izuku looks at him in anger and a hint of humiliation.
Did he overdo it?
When Katsuki saw Izuku winning against Todoroki, he felt relief. When he then saw him win against Robot Freak, a heavy feeling dropped in his stomach.
He realized in that moment that while he was proud that Izuku got this far, he did not want to fight him. He did not want to hurt him.
So, it was out of misguided judgment that he decides to give him the first move. It was a shock to find that Izuku thought of the same thing. He did the next best – worst – thing he could think of. He eggs on him.
He must not have noticed during their fight, but Izuku was slowly getting angrier by the second, but it was too much fun. He never got to insult or fight Izuku in this way before, and after this fight, he would have realized in shame that he did not want to do it again. Before that could have happened. though, he was swiped away by the thought of battle.
Only Izuku ever got to his level.
Only Izuku ever managed to become an equal.
Only Izuku would be able to fight him with as much force as he has, to let loose when normal people would scold or run away from him if he did.
Only Izuku understood him.
And he understood Izuku.
So he knew, he knew the moment he saw his friend's eyes, that he messed up.
He felt the pressure from his hands suddenly lifts as he was pushed down to the ground. He could feel the ground cracking, but the adrenaline must have muted the pain by then. Izuku looked livid.
"If you want me to fight with my all, then you should fight me with your all as well." Izuku demands before blasting him off the ground. After hitting the ground, he looks up with mild pain to find that Izuku was giving him a determined glint.
Bakugou smirks.
"Finally!" He jumps and then descends on Izuku, his hand ready to pound the ground with another explosive. Izuku dodges the attack swiftly and pushes him high up the air. Bakugou noticed the green aura surround his leg, he was then suddenly pulled to the ground hitting the earth.
He was sure by then that he must be laying in a crater.
"Is this the end? Did Bakugou lose the fight?" Katsuki's ears twitched.
Bakugou Katsuki does not lose easily.
"THE HELL I'LL LOSE LIKE THAT?!" He yells, letting his quirk take over the crater. He could hear Izuku yelping, he must have come closer to check on him. Idiot Deku.
"We only got started!"
0o0o0
"Scary. Bakugou's scary." Mineta says. He was slowly inching towards Asui the more scared he got.
"He was beaten so hard and he still persists, like a cockroach." Kaminari yet again gives an impressive comment on someone else's personality.
"Deku go! Deku go! Beat that scrawny little-"
"Whoa, Uraraka is fired up."
"Ribbit."
"It's like reading a manga." Kirishima whispers. "This fight is just like a manga. The angrier they get, the more they yell, the more powerful they become. When will it end?"
"I think Kirishima perfectly summed this whole fight." Ashido whispers to Hagakure. Next to them, Ojiro's leaning figure told everyone how invested he was in the fight, he didn't yell anyone's name but he was probably rooting for Midoriya by this point.
"What the- Look at that! Since when can Bakugou make a firestorm?!"
"That's a fire whirl."
"A horizontal fire whirl!"
"Are neither of them getting tired? Man, by this point, none of us will get any opportunity, the scouts will be clamoring all over the two." Sero tells Koda.
"Everyone saw us already, so someone's got to have caught a scout's attention by-"
A loud and head-splitting scream suddenly burst from the field.
And the world starts to lose its touch with reality.
0o0o0
"Losing focus already!"
"Not by chance." Izuku yells back, but it was obvious by then that he really was losing focus, when all he could do was lift the rubble off ground and abolishes their field of gravity without being able to move anything by his will. Katsuki had the field advantage then, while he could fly around using his quirk in small bursts, Izuku couldn't even focus on flying somewhere, and was stuck floating in one place.
He decides to finally end the fight with propelling himself at Izuku and forces him off the field, only letting go so that he wouldn't lose as well.
He does successfully grab onto Izuku, grinning madly at his surprised face.
"What do you think of this now?" He yells at him as they were being flung toward the bound, letting his arm spark in front of him.
Abruptly, and with no warning at all, Izuku's eyes widen in a second before his hands went up to his head, grabbing it in pain as he screams.
A very loud and earsplitting scream.
Katsuki lets go immediately, not knowing what was going on but something nagged in the back of his mind, a dreadful feeling accompanied it as he watches Izuku fall to the ground.
What Katsuki saw when it happened were wide scared emerald eyes. They were moving away, falling off as he grabs onto his head but releases them as he tries to reach out to him with frantic limb, but to no avail. The swishing of dark green hair moved with the wind would cover those eyes at times as he slowly falls in his mind.
And suddenly, Katsuki remembers.
He remembers a time so long ago where a tiny body was unmoving, with lifeless eyes watching the sky. No emotions, and no spark of life behind them. He remembers blood, and remembers a world that had no gravity. He remembers-
"IZUKU!" He yells, by that point, ignoring the rest of the world as it suddenly divulges into chaos. The rest of the crowd were now flying up, everyone was screaming at fear or confusion as they start to float off of their chairs or spots. Everything else that wasn't bolted down starts to drift off ground, nothing was left untouched as it hovers away.
"Gravity suddenly cancels itself out!"
"Stop narrating?!" And there was a frantic shuffling behind the microphone.
Katsuki did not care.
He noticed the blood dripping from Izuku's nose as he slowly loses consciousness.
Katsuki hurt someone, he hurt his best friend. He'll never become a great hero, not when he failed in protecting another person, his best friend that he promised to protect.
And worst of all, he was the cause.
It was just like then. Just like when they were children.
When Izuku-
"I got you! I GOT YOU! I GOT YOU!" He cries out when he reached his friend, hugging him to himself. "I'm here, Izuku, I'm here, stop it, you're not hurt, you're okay. Please, WAKE UP!"
"Kacchan?" Izuku asks, pain laced his voice. "M-My head hurts."
"Just relax. Keep calm. Don't freak out."
"You looked s-small and scared … you're still scared …"
"I'm not scared. I'm panicking because you're panicking! Stop using your quirk. Control your shit!"
Izuku chuckles, then gravity returns slowly as they land. Everything else regained its weight back while the rest of the crowd frenzies in fear and trying to make sense of the chaos.
But to Katsuki, the world was nothing but background noise, because nothing else mattered by this point.
Only Izuku's safety mattered.
He looks at his shaking hand, the other one still hugging his friend tightly.
H-He was the cause of this.
0o0o0
There was light.
A very bright flare.
And he was falling.
Suddenly, pain erupts.
His head hurt.
Kacchan's scared.
W-Why is Kacchan small? He looks scared.
His head is pounding.
There was a bridge.
Kacchan was dangling over the bridge, trying to reach him.
Warmth, very warm arms around him.
"I got you!"
"You're okay!"
Kacchan's still scared, even when he's big.
" … Relax …"
He can relax, if Kacchan says that.
He's always there.
Always, since the beginning.
Kacchan promised to help him become a hero.
"Control your shit!" … he remembers … the hospital … the first time he showed his quirk to Kacchan, he accidentally pulled him. Kacchan had to hold the bed rail. That was funny. Kacchan was funny.
Does he remember that day?
The pain starts to recede.
He felt relaxed.
0o0o0
"This year's winners!" Midnight yells. A stand behind her was being raised up to show the top three winners stand. Number three had Tokoyami, number 2 was empty, and number one had a bound Bakugou trying to tear away from the bounds and the cement slab on his back.
"What an interesting lineup we have this year." Nedzu comments in his office. Truly interesting. Although something else has been in his mind.
That was a very powerful quirk that Midoriya Izuku displayed. He was already warned about it before his enrollment, and he did take some heed into the words, yet he did not imagine it to be this powerful.
It was powerful enough to have particularly raised every person in the area and every other item. The report Cementos has given him also told him that some of the chairs were close to breaking off of their place if Midoriya has kept his quirk work any longer.
This is very concerning, for now, the world has suddenly witnessed a very powerful person.
He does think that they might be discouraged after seeing him in his full raging form. Whatever has happened to him during the fight to cause the mental breakdown was the only reason that he lost the fight.
A trauma. Who would have thought?
"LET ME GO! THIS PLACE IS SHIT AND I NEED TO BE SOMEWHERE ELSE?! LET ME GO YOU *********************" The television bleeps the rest of the sentence.
What an interesting batch of students he has this year.
"Unfortunately, neither Iida Tenya nor Midoriya Izuku could be on stage now." Midoriya says, smiling with unease as the Bakugou rages behind her.
0o0o0
4:00 PM
He rode the bus when his mother called again to tell him that they started operation.
6:00 PM
No news. His mother has no news or idea of what is happening behind the theatre doors.
7:30 PM
Brother is hurt. That was all he could think as he checks his wrist watch, trying to will it to move faster. But it was meaningless.
His brother was hurt.
It fault nauseating.
8:00 PM
She calls again, crying, just to make sure that he was alright and breathing.
9:30 PM
He reached the hospital and starts running. The receptionist yells at him.
9:35 PM
His mother was sitting alone in front of the theatre room. She looks up and immediately stands once she sees him. She looks terrible, even her glasses couldn't hide how red her eyes were from crying.
"Mother!"
"Tenya." She calls back in a shaky voice.
"How is he doing?"
"He's still in surgery."
10:10 PM
"He was close to catching a criminal, but was unfortunately unsuccessful." His mother was holding onto his hand, the hold getting tighter by the second.
"Who was it?" He demands, rage starts to stir up inside of him.
"We're not permitted to-"
"Please. I want to know who did this to my brother." He begs, he needed to know. The officer stares him in the eye before closing his notebook. He takes off his hat, and Tenya suddenly remembers who this officer is.
This was the same man who came at the USJ to arrest and round up the criminals, Izuku's uncle. He looked very tired with bags underneath his eyes, a complete contrast to how he looked that day when he was smiling, even in worry for Izuku's wellbeing.
"Iida-Kun, I want to know that you will not go and follow this man."
"…"
"Please, promise me. I have been trying to catch him for months now, and I see that because of my lack of results that your brother has been attacked. If there was anyone for you to be angry at, be angry at me for being too late." He said bowing down.
Tenya only stares, not knowing whether he should do as the detective says or break down in that moment. He needs to stand strong, especially for his mother who has been weeping the whole night. Someone needs to stay strong, for her, himself, and even for this man.
"It's not your fault Tsukauchi-San." He says, arms trembling and eyes down on the floor. This man was a person his brother respects, Izuku adores, and someone that Bakugou was willing to listen to. He could not fault this man on something like this, not when his own brother couldn't catch the criminal as he fought head on with him.
"But … please … tell me who it was …"
"… The hero killer Stain."
11:00 PM
"We're doing the best we can." The doctor says.
00:00 AM
He can hear people running in the other side of the hospital. There was a loud shriek of the heart monitor following their footsteps. It was a flat line.
1:00 AM
A metal slab was brought in on top of a gurney. His mother gasps at the sight. Tenya gulps and looks away, grabbing his mother and directing her gaze away. He tries to ignore the sniffles that followed his actions.
1:15 AM
"Tensei will be released in 15 minutes. The surgery has been successful, they only need to give him stitches now." The doctor says while giving them a tired smile. His mother lets out a shaky breath of relief.
"Please be patient with us." The man requests.
1:30 AM
They were supposed to release him now. They haven't. Why wasn't he released? Why wasn't he released?!
1:32 AM
The doors opened. Tenya and his mother immediately stood up. They froze in place once they saw who came out. His mother gasps in plain horror, her legs giving out on her as she falls back on the chair. He couldn't even move, he could only stare at the gurney with the metal slab, a person on top of it but hidden under a sheet from head to toe.
The nurse looks up and starts getting terrified.
"N-No! It's not him! This isn't your brother." He screams, his voice filling the empty hall.
The man leaves soon after, and he sits back on the chair. His mother was now sobbing silently, her body shaking. But she tries her best to hide it.
Tenya pulled her back into a hug, but one thing was for sure.
He never wants to see any of his friends or family on top of a metal slab.
He couldn't handle the fact of a stranger being carried away on one, but the idea of someone he knew being pushed and covered like that … none the less his brother …
1:45 AM
Detective Tsukauchi is back, he brought them cups of coffee from the hospital's cafeteria. He sits on the chair next to them, staring blankly at his own cup.
"…"
"It's hard, seeing someone you care about hospitalized. I have been there, twice."
"…" Tenya spies a glance of the man, and it looked like he was remembering something painful. His usually bland and blank face showing a scowl.
"How does it end up? Are they fine?" Tenya asks him, the man then gives him the happiest smile he could muster, it was pained, but it was also genuine.
"He's your classmate, isn't he? he talks about you all the time."
2:00 AM
"Does it get better?"
"It's always hard. When you see someone close to you hurt, all that matters later on is that he isn't anymore. That he is breathing freely without any aid. That he's walking, or talking, and that the memory is far away. It will always haunt you, I will not lie about that, but what matters then is that he's alright."
3:00 AM
"We are sorry for being late. We thought that the procedure has ended but someone has caught on a nerve failure in another part of his body. Your brother had to undergo a second surgery. But everything's fine. Please wait a while."
"We have waited long enough!"
"Tenya! I'm sorry doctor, he's usually very well behaved." His mother then puts her hands on his shoulder, giving him pleading look. Iida felt ashamed by how he acted and silences himself, sitting down and ignoring everything else.
"When we'll call you, please wear your mask. And be calm, there are other live operation next to us, and the doctors need to concentrate." The doctor leaves. It was also then when Detective Tsukauchi stands up, bows down to them, and leaves.
3:10 AM
He runs in the moment they told them that it was okay to enter. He forgot to wear his mask, he forgot to keep his silence. He forgot many things, but the only thing in his mind was to see his brother. His mother's voice was vaguely in the background, calling for him.
When he sees him, he doesn't know how to react. He shakenly grabs onto the handle and felt breaking inside.
His brother.
His strong, amazing and robust brother, was now on the bed with bandages all over his body. He didn't know what the doctor has said then, his eyes were only on his sibling while his ears blocked out everything.
That's when he noticed Tensei opening his eyes slowly.
"Tenya … Mother …" His brother calls for them with a croaked voice.
"T-Tensei! Big brother!" He calls back, almost reaching out for him but stopped when the doctor held his arm back.
"Even though you looked up to me … I've failed you, Tenya …"
"N-No …"
"I do not deserve your admiration …"
"No! Don't say that. D-Don't say that, please."
"I'm sorry … Tenya … Your big brother … lost …"
Tenya doesn't remember what happens next.
0o0o0
Izuku laid on his bed the next day. Ochaco called earlier to tell him of what happened to Iida's brother and why he missed the award, and that she couldn't visit him in the hospital since her parents came to visit her from their region.
Izuku himself couldn't really leave the bed, not after what happened yesterday.
"He has a head trauma. One that has escaped everyone's attention up until now. I did suspect it in the entrance exam, but his hospital papers didn't mention it so I haven't focused on that during our checkups." Recovery Girl told his parents, he could feel their worried gaze on his back.
"W-What does this mean? Is it going to set back anything?"
"Nothing, deary. It triggered a reaction, and until he wakes up and tells us what happened, we wouldn't know what exactly occurred during the fight. Although, I think that something in the fight must have triggered it. A hit, or a certain action that he has seen up close. It could have been the voices of the crowd. Anything really."
"Will this stop him from …"
"No. Not at all. You should be worried however about the reaction of the world right now. The school already made up the excuse that he was hit too hard in the head during the fight to explain his loss of control, however …" Recovery Girl sighs in sadness, and a rustle of paper could be heard in the background. Izuku did his best not to let curiosity take hold of him and turn around to see what it was.
"The UA sport's festival is a national event, one akin to the Olympics. Everything that happens there can be recorded and uploaded online." A new voice joined in as the door opens and closes, a voice he only heard a few times.
The principle's voice.
"The perk of this day and age." Mumbled his dad.
"Now, from how you explained it to me, you two have been trying to hide his power since childhood, as well as the government. After all, not one government wants to admit that they have a lethal weapon in their grasps." Silence fell in the room. "Back then, when he was younger, it was feared that he could be kidnapped either for research, experimentation or mind control. But now, he is a teenager, who has shown a sharp mind and an ability to protect himself."
"Where is this going, headmaster?"
"The world knows of his existence and powers. There is definitely no way they don't. He's becoming famous as we speak."
"B-But- He can't- is that a good or a bad thing?" His mother asked worriedly.
"It could be either. The only saving grace to the situation is the fact that he's studying to become a hero, not loose in the streets without any supervision. Like I said, Ms. Midoriya, he is famous now. He will be treated the same way normal celebrities are treated. But to any other official out there, he will only be viewed as one thing."
"… An asset …" His dad answers.
"Yes. An asset."
"But he's a child!"
"And I understand that well, Ms. Midoriya. I want to protect him as much as everyone in this room."
"T-Then-"
"Inko, you need to sit down, you're shaking."
"M-My baby's secret is out. Toshionri, our whole lives worth of effort, all gone-" His mother sobs. Izuku could hear some shuffling before a piece of furniture was moved, accompanied by the sound of someone falling. "He's not some object, he's not a weapon, he's not an asset, he's my baby!"
"Inko, please, you need to calm down, you're having trouble breathing."
"Is my baby going to safe?"
"Izuku doesn't need as much protection as he used to, honey. We trained, I trained him for this, and he wasn't showing his full abilities during the fights. If anyone attacks, it will be hell for them. Not to mention, we have everyone here to protect him. Me, his friends, the staff."
"He's going to be okay?"
"He's going to be okay." His dad reassures her.
"He's … going to be okay." His mom whispers after a few moments. Then a slump was heard.
"Oh dear, does she usually do that? Please put her on the bed." Recovery Girl instructs, Izuku hears shuffling again, and what he presumably thought to be the gurney's height lever being used to lower its height.
He then hears his dad sigh.
"This is … catastrophic."
"Don't worry Toshinor-Kun, I have already added Fame Regulation to class A1's schedule since they have all become celebrities in one night. Not as much as your son, Bakugou, and Todoroki. But the whole class will be clamored after today. So, your son will know how to handle himself in the future."
"It isn't that, I'm just afraid. Like I said before, in this day and age, anything can be leaked anytime. It's not the matter of if anymore, but a matter of when. His fame could lead to some people researching more about him. It could lead to the public discovering about his handicap. Or that his biological father is … you know."
"Yes, I can see how good this situation is in expanding itself."
"It could lead to people discovering about me."
"…"
"It's one matter of the world finding one of the last few Source Quirk holders. It's another matter to find out that the last Source Quirk holder's parent is All Might."
"We will up security."
"I wish I can feel safe in your suggestion, headmaster, but this situation? Upping security will not cut it."
Izuku clasps his hand around his blanket.
He was just causing trouble left and right for everyone. He hasn't heard anything from his classmates lately, even after texting them. He was afraid of going online, in fear of seeing people's reaction to what happened. And Kacchan …
Kacchan hasn't replied yet.
He hasn't visited either, and they were basically neighbors.
Maybe … maybe he got angry with him during the fight. He wasn't as strong as he thought he was, and now he's disappointed and wanted to ditch him after seeing how weak he was. Maybe …
Suddenly, a knock on the window was heard. He blinked. Slowly, he raised himself up and pulled the curtains, only to blink again when he sees nothing but a bush of flowers-
They didn't have a garden.
What?
"Open the damn window you shitty Deku!"
"S-Sorry!" Izuku screams from shock, pulling the locks down and letting the window open. Wonder and filled his wide confused eyes.
Kacchan climbs in, forcefully pushing the bush inside, where did he find a bush?
No, cross that, why did he have a bush?
"Kacchan?"
"Shut up, let me get this in." He growls, his hands twitching, ready to explode. The only probable reason that he didn't fire off his anger was to save the bush from destruction.
Izuku's fingers slowly raised to his temples, rubbing them to relieve the pain that suddenly sprouted from thinking about this.
How did he cut the bush in a way that it still held together? No, the better question is how he didn't burn the roots out? Or the fact that this is a full hedge filled with flowers.
Finally, after much struggle, Kacchan dragged the hedge of flowers inside his room, it was the exact same size of his bed.
"Kacchan …"
"I can explain."
"Explain then, I'm having a hard time with this."
"I ran out of the house this morning-"
"What?"
"And decided to come back at night."
"No wait, pause the hedge explanation. Why did you run off?"
"My mom wanted to put me in therapy," Kacchan says, blowing it off like it was nothing. Izuku gives him a very concerned look, but Kacchan narrows his eyes, daring him to make a big deal out of it. So, Izuku shuts up. "Alright, and then we had a fight, and I ran out since dad wasn't there to stop either of us. I walked to the park and was blowing off steam-"
"Kacchan, you didn't." Izuku says, new fear sprouts up, but Kacchan scoffs.
"Do you think I'm stupid? Of course I didn't blow off where the cops can find me."
"Kacchan!"
"ANYWAYS!" He yells, Izuku begrudgingly shuts up. "Before I stepped in the park, I saw this bush-"
"That is a hedge."
"- and thought that … err…" Izuku waits, but realization hits him when he noticed Kacchan was blushing. "They had daisies … and you really like daisies …"
"…"
"…"
"Kacchan-"
"SHUT THE FUCK UP! IT ISN'T GIRLY!" He screams, plucking as many flowers as he can in that moment and dumping it on his head. "THERE! YOU ARE A FLOWER BUSH."
"Not fair, Kacchan!" Izuku screams back, trying to push away the flower off his head. "Apologize like a normal person!"
"It's your fault for looking at me funny you-"
The door opens.
The both of them looked towards it in awkward silence as they see his dad standing there, surprise and confusion in his eyes. Izuku realized by then that the scene must have been strange to him, Kacchan dumping flowers on his head while he was throwing some back at Kacchan.
Not to mention that there was a hedge filled with daisy right next to the window.
"What is going on here?"
"Nothing!" Kacchan screams, and before they could even say anything, he runs out by jumping through the window.
"Wait, Katsuki-Kun! You can use the door!" his dad yells back at him, but it was too late by then.
It took Izuku a few seconds, with the sight of his dad leaning out the window in his mind, for him to realize something.
Kacchan saw the flowers and the first thing he thought was to bring it to him. He didn't even hesitate and pulled a full hedge of it.
He smiles, and pulled all of the flowers on the ground with his quirk to himself, hugging them in happiness. He takes a sniff and sighs in complete bliss.
"Izuku, I have a very serious question." Izuku opens his eyes and blushes in embarrassment as he realizes that his father has witnessed what he just did. His father did not look amused, not at all. "I was going to ask you where to put the bush, but I completely changed my mind. We are dumping it."
"Eh- But dad!"
"No buts." He said and went on to pull the rest of the hedge out of the room, looking very grim.
What Izuku did not know was how worried Toshinori has become lately. His son has become famous, and with it, comes the admirers. The man knew by now that people will send something to show their admiration, he did not think that the first present would come from Bakugou Katsuki.
Back in his room, Izuku looks on in worry.
"Dad, instead of pulling it out the door, you could have used the window."
0o0o0
"And then, I told him to put it on the roof, that it'll be a waste to just throw it away." His mom says in exasperation, entering the hospital while pushing Izuku inside.
He takes a glance at his mother, making sure that she was okay. Before yesterday, she fainted at least three times, all from worry. Yesterday, however, she tried to busy herself with housework. Izuku thinks that she's still worried about everything.
For the whole trip to Hosu, everyone's has looked at them oddly. Halfway through, he had to cover his head with his hoodie and look down to avoid anyone recognizing him. It felt awkward having so many people chatting about you behind your back, but this time, it wasn't just out of mock, but out of wonder and admiration.
This was the first time he has experienced this, and he didn't know how to react.
"He lifted the whole stadium with his quirk, that was so cool!"
He blushes. That was pretty much an accident, it wasn't cool.
"Izuku, what's the name again?" Izuku looks up to see his mother and the receptionist looking down at him and waiting for a name.
"Um, Iida Tensei please." Izuku asks, the woman glances at them before she gushes out.
"You're that kid from the festival!"
"A-Ah-"
"Whoops, sorry. Fifth floor, hero section, the names are written on the doors." She said.
Nodding in gratefulness, they both moved to the room.
His mother sent him a very worried look, Izuku sent her a reassuring one.
When they knocked on the door, they felt an oppressing aura fall on them once it was opened. Tenya stood behind it, his eyes were darkened from whatever abuse he sustained in the last three days. Both he and his mother could hear the beeping heart monitor in the background. Tenya, however, brightens up a bit when he sees him.
"Midoirya!" He then notices his mother. "Er- Midoriya-San! Thank you for visiting."
"Sorry to intrude on you Iida-Kun. We have been worried about you. When Uraraka-Chan called and told us of what happened …" His mother slowly drifts away, Tenya's mood darkens considerably. "I'll leave you with Izuku then, can I speak with your mother?"
"Oh … Mother?" He asks, stepping back and showing a woman who looked like Tenya, she had the same blue hair and even wore glasses. But it was obvious that Tenya took after their father more since he didn't share anything else from his mother.
"Let them in Tenya, they took the time to visit us after all. Oh, please wear a mask Midoriya-San. I hope you don't mind my son-" Tenya's mother chokes up, her hand suddenly flew up to her mouth. Izuku looks in worry as his mom immediately grabs a mask and runs inside. He could also see Iida's brother now, and he gulps at what he sees.
"Then I will leave you two alone." Tenya announces as he steps out. When the door closes, Tenya's mood drops even harder as he looks down. Izuku fidgets in his place in worry and was now rubbing his arm.
"Want to see the garden? It's great at this time of year."
Izuku then found himself near the same bench that he sat a few weeks ago. Tenya looking down at his beverage.
"I lost consciousness the first night I was here …"
"Iida?"
"They told me it was a panic attack. I had a panic attack when my brother himself lost consciousness, it was an after effect of the surgery, he was too tired to reply so he fell back to sleep. But I panicked and …" Tenya's hands were trembling; his beverage was slightly shaking.
"I have caused more problems for the hospital than I should have."
"Iida, it's understandable."
"It is not. My mother depended on me and I have- I failed her. Both her and brother."
"Iida …"
"Ever since then, and everything feels off balance to me. I noticed that my hands shake a lot more as well."
"It's understandable to feel shaky while being worried." He tries to appease, but Iida did not look convinced.
"… He doesn't have any feeling in his legs anymore …"
"Oh." Izuku suddenly realized where this is going. This must be far more devastating than what he originally thought. Tenya adored his brother, loved him so much and made his every step a remembrance of his brother. To suddenly have his brother so close to death? And now receiving the news of … a handicap.
Izuku looks down at his own legs. His own, useless and unmoving legs.
"It's all going to be alright Tenya, you and your family will pull through this. We're going to help." He tells him with determination. He looks up, daring Tenya to think otherwise. Tenya must have been hit harder than he intended as he flinches at the sight of his eyes. But after a few seconds, he opens his mouth.
"… Thank you, Izuku."
AN: -
A couple of years ago, I was in the exact same spot as Iida was. My brother got into an 'accident', the very same day I got an honorable mention in a competition that I worked on for months. (Honorable mention, brother in an accident, possibly paralyzed, exactly like Iida).
Case in point, a night in the hospital is a night of nightmares.