Summary:
The first time Izuku thought his life was over was the day he found out he was Quirkless. The second was when he decided he needed to disappear, ignored and unwanted by society. However a hero saved him, giving him a chance for a new life. His savior's name? All For One. And Izuku?
He's Deku now.
--
Adaption of Calladraws' Villain Deku animatics
Chapter 1: Prologue: A Change in Fate
Notes:
Hi everyone~ This is my first MHA/BnHA fic! It's inspired by the villian!Deku animatics and comics by tumblr user CallaDraws101 (YT: CallaDraws) who has given her approval for this derivative work! Be sure to check out her great stuff!
A shout out to my friend ChaosPhoniex for being my confidante and basically throwing me into the deep end of ideas and feels! Be sure to check out her Dad For One fics including "If Things Were Different" and "Ultimatum" that I beta read for; both have a set update schedule!
This fic is probably going to be one written more like a light novel, shorter chapters rather than 18 pages each like my past stuff, but it depends on the point in the story being told. I'm trying to have a set schedule of every week to two weeks, but we'll see! I have the whole thing planned out just need time to write ;)
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
PROLOGUE
Young Izuku sat alone on a swing at the park staring at the ground as night began to fall, the sky now bleeding red and purple. He watched as little dark dots appeared in the soil, tears trickling down his face and splattering. The green haired boy gave a sniff and scrubbed his eyes but the tears kept falling. Various scrapes marred his arms and face, faint bruises starting form to accompany a few bandaids that were already on his cheek and hands. His clothes were covered with dust and dirt, a faint footprint's outline barely visible on his behind from a well aimed kick.
"It's not my f-fault." He sobbed to himself, clutching the swing's chains as he continued to stare downward. "It's not like I chose to b-be Quirkless. I'm not the only one in the world, people used to all be Quirkless…"
He continued to sit on the swing, not even attempting to rock himself in an attempt to comfort himself. His vision blurred with fresh tears as his chest hurt, his heart seemingly constricting out of despair. The boy doubled over, clutching his chest, feeling it squeeze as he gasped for breath. A few minutes passed and he managed to calm himself out of the panic attack, even more sober as his panicked breathes eased into pants before letting out another sob in frustration over his weakness.
"Mom's so miserable. She tries to hide it but I can see it. She blames herself, it's not fair. I'm just a burden to her, an embarrassment. If I had any Quirk I could protect her and make her proud. Maybe even Dad would come home too instead of acting like the business needs him all the time, maybe then I could remember him; he's clearly embarrassed over his freak of a son."
Silence was the only response, the park completely deserted as kids had run home some time ago for dinner as well as early bedtime. However to Izuku the silence only echoed his sentiments in agreement, letting them sink in without commentary. In the faint distance he heard a siren but it was soon silenced, perhaps because of a hero's aid in thwarting whatever crime was occurring or aiding in an emergency.
"Why couldn't I have a great Quirk like All Might? Everyone admires him. Kacchan even but… Why does he treat me like trash?" His grip tightened on the swing, a wave of anger coursing through him in place of sorrow, his tears suddenly growing hot.
"Sure his Quirk is amazing but why is he such a jerk? I've only ever been a friend to him! Everyone thinks he's so special but he's… he's a piece of crap!" Izuku declared, realization hitting him as he let anger take over, suddenly everything so clear as he sat alone, beat up and powerless. "A hero shouldn't keep others down! I can't believe I looked up to him! Almost six years I've wasted on… on that hothead! He doesn't deserve my friendship, my loyalty! I can't believe I got him a birthday present!"
Just then a memory slammed him like a punch in the gut, bringing fresh tears of frustration and sorrow to his eyes. His arms ached in sympathy, his butt daring to degrade him further by suddenly smarting as the fresh memory replayed…
"No one wants your loyalty, you Quirkless freak!"
"Yeah, why don't you just leave Bakugo-kun alone? You're making us all look bad."
"Can't you take a hint, dumbbell? You're useless, your nickname even says so!"
"Hey, maybe that really is his Quirk, Tsubasa! His thick skull!"
"Ha, that's totally useless, fitting for crybaby Deku!"
The sound of laughter burned his ears while hot tears stung his eyes, his anger mounting. Even after Kacchan had finished his torment for the day it didn't stop with him, not that he ever knew. No one ever knew. Especially Mom, she couldn't find out; it would break her even more to know that she was failing to protect her son, the social pariah. What was one woman against society's ingrained stigma anyways? Faking yet another fall would have to be the excuse why he was late. He was chasing after a stray kitten, got lost and took a tumble; that should cover up his appearance and delay fair enough without causing Inko more worry.
He slowly rose, noting the sky had turned more purple. As he stood up however his resolve seemed left behind on the swing. Izuku stood there, eyes locked onto the ground as his vision swam once more.
"Maybe… I should just disappear. No one really wants me. It'd be a relief for Mom, right? Not having to provide for her useless son anymore, no more whispers behind her back, the looks…" He clutched his shirt nervously as anxiety began taking hold again, his confidence crumbling. "What's the use to keep trying to be a hero, to keep smiling like All Might? I'll never be like him. I should just give up."
Something flickered in his mind and he tensed.
"I-I can't make a scene at school. That would be horrible for Mom… The river too…" He gulped as dark thoughts took hold. Besides, school had been in session for barely a month, an incident so soon would call into question his home life rather than his school activities as finals weren't even upon them yet; no one would think bullying would cause someone to snap within a month of the new school year. The river held mixed results but Inko didn't need to see the drowned body of her son if he was ever recovered, he couldn't do that to her when she tried so hard for him, gave him everything she could save a Quirk; something he saw that was eating her alive for years. He pushed past those thoughts, trying to think of alternate means.
"People jump all the time but heroes almost always save them… I just… have to disappear. It has to end." Fresh tears dripped onto the ground and he screwed his eyes shut, trying to make them stop as he wrung his shirt, silently pleading to whatever forces were out there.
Someone, something, take me away from here and end this, please.
"It would be a tragedy to lose such potential. Such a waste in fact that it'd be practically criminal."
Izuku's eyes popped open and he whirled around to see a man standing behind him near the entrance of the park. From behind the man the setting sun flared, obscuring his features momentarily but he saw a smile on the man's face and a hint of white hair. The man was by far one of the tallest Izuku had ever seen, especially since he seemed to not have a mutant type quirk that affected his natural size.
No, this man seemed perfectly normal, standing there with that smile, dressed in a fine business suit. Izuku blinked and realized that a rather fancy looking car was parked just outside of the park, evidently where the man had come from.
Izuku quickly scrubbed his face, knowing his eyes were puffy and red while tears and snot were all over his face. He was a complete and utter mess by his hand alone, ignoring his scrapes and the dirt on his clothes from the latest bout of bulling.
"Sorry to startle you. I was driving by and noticed you all by yourself and thought you might need help. Are you lost?"
Izuku wordlessly shook his head, screwing his mouth shut as his heart raced. Despite the man's kind words Inko had always drilled it into him not to speak to strangers; there were ways of being polite without offending or endangering one's self. He may be nearly ten years old, but the training from his days as a toddler were ingrained, namely thanks to his mother's worry.
"Ah that's good, you should hurry on home then, back to where you belong. It's getting late. You know what they say: Go out at night and villains will give you a fright."
Izuku nodded in agreement but his body seemed rooted on the spot. Though his mind tried to comply, his body refused as well as his heart. It was as if all motivation had left him, yet here this man was urging him from a respectful distance, as if he were a timid puppy.
"Do you have a place to belong?" The man suddenly asked, his wording causing Izuku to tense as it seemed to pierce his heart, making it ache. The young boy bit his lip, fresh tears welling up annoyingly once more. In his heart he nodded, thinking of his mom's face when she smiled at him, praising his hard work and admiring the data he'd started collecting at the age of five. However as he stood there, eyes downcast, the world seemed to darken even more around him unnatural so.
"Sire, I do apologize but I must humbly request you return to the car." Another voice spoke up from the direction of the vehicle. Immediately Izuku's eyes widened in wonder as he looked up to see the voice's owner. He stared as he took in the apparent man's appearance, black mist emitting from his face and hands: a humanoid fog like shadow dressed in a business vest and neat slacks.
"Just a minute, Kurogiri. I was just having a word here with young…"
Part of Izuku refused to answer, screaming stranger danger while the other simply was in awe. He licked his lips and fidgeted, tugging at his shirt in part shyness and nerves. "Izu-" He started but stopped, debating on giving his name when he should be booking it home. Something inside him twisted, his mouth dry and then suddenly he felt calm, as if a wave came over him and washed away all hesitation and fear. Swallowing and feeling brave he looked back at the man who stood there patiently. "Izuku Midoriya."
"Interesting… You remind me a bit of my brother. It's almost funny really." The man smiled again though this time it was different, amused yet almost bitter. "He was Quirkless too."
Izuku visibly tensed, flinching at the word. He stared at the tall man, mouth hanging open. "H-how? How'd you…?"
The man smiled down at him kindly, amused. "It's just one of my many talents. I can sense Quirks in others, potential too. And you, Young Izuku, possess a vast amount of it."
"I-I do?" His heart thundered in his chest as his spirits started to rise. Instantly however he shut it down, years of bullying and verbal abuse screaming otherwise. "No I don't. I'm useless. I'm defenseless. I don't have a Quirk, nobody likes me. It'd be better if I didn't exist, if I just disappeared."
"What if I told you I could change your fate. That you could have a quirk or a few in fact. You can be powerful and stop others from trampling you."
"W-what?"
"I myself possess many, a vast amount that I can get bored with. I loan some out, in fact. Perhaps a little display is in order, a teaser." The man spread both his hands outward in a display gesture, palms up. Within moments he began to float, levitating inches from the ground with ease as Izuku watched. Smirking he raised his hands, only for another pair to appear and then another, causing Izuku's eyes to bulge. "Kurogiri." He called, keeping his eyes on the young boy.
"Yes, sire." The mist man dutifully came forward and stopped a few paces behind his boss. The man then waved his hand at Kurogiri and a pool of black liquid appeared underneath the latter's feet. Instantly he disappeared, causing Izuku to gasp as if he were watching a magic show. A few seconds later a new pool appeared on the opposite side of the park where Kurogiri abruptly appeared, completely unfazed.
Seeing Izuku's entranced gaze the tall man deactivated his Multiplier quirk, his extra arms disappearing. Slowly he floated back to the ground, hands still spread outward ever so elegantly. As his Levitation Quirk deactivated he smiled at Izuku again while Kurogiri used his own quirk, black mist emitting from his body to create a portal to warp himself once more near his boss.
"So, do you have a place to return to?" The man watched the boy carefully. "A place where no one will think badly of you for being different, bully you and abuse you for their own amusement because of their own sense of justice? Pity you as if you were broken? Somewhere you truly belong with no prejudices?"
This time Izuku couldn't help himself, staring in reverence at this man before him who almost seemed like a god. Had he not begged the universes for an answer, for a way out?
The word was out of his mouth before he could think twice. "No."
The man smiled once more, kindness and pity radiating from him. "That's a shame. Perhaps we can remedy that, if you'll let me." He took a step toward Izuku and held out a hand, waiting.
Izuku debated for a moment. If these men really wanted to do something sinister such as kidnap him, they could easily use one of their warp quirks to nab him and deposit him inside the car without much fuss. However both stood there looking, respecting him to make up his mind for himself, treating him like an actual human being. The young boy swallowed and nodded before taking a few steps forward and slipping his small hand into the larger one. "Okay."
"Now then, what is it you said your name was again?"
"Deku." He answered without hesitation, something within him burning. This was it, this was his chance to start over. He would take that cruel nickname and make it his own. Helpless Izuku Midoryia would be no more; this playground would be his death at nine, nearly ten, years old.
His mom would be able to move on without a traumatic scene of her Quirkless son's body and Kacchan… who cared what that jerk would do, probably celebrate, the heartless piece of crap. The blond had turned ten just over a week ago but nothing had changed; the arrogant hothead couldn't change. Never.
"Are you sure?" The man asked in a way that was not skeptical, clasping his hand firmly but not roughly. It was as if he were asking if that was truly the young boy's name, what he desired.
"Yes." He affirmed, green eyes serious as he held the towering man's hand in a handshake, forming a proper greeting. "And you, sir?"
"Me? Hmm, well… I suppose for now you can call me Sensei. In time you'll know my title, but that's not important." The man smiled, seemingly amused at something not yet known. "All I ask of you is your loyalty. You have so much to give, I'd hate to waste it along with your potential. However know that where we are going we're all outcasts to society, freaks, labeled as undesirables, villains even, though some would call us vigilantes. A League of sorts."
Izuku swallowed and nodded, nervous but his resolve firm, tightening his grip to better his handshake. "I understand, Sensei."
"Good. Now before we even consider talking shop, bestowing of Quirks, let's be clear that my first condition is we train you so your body can handle whatever I give you. You're… what, ten? Your body hasn't had time to grow with the Quirk. We wouldn't want to overload it."
Izuku nodded, the condition making sense to him. Presently he was a weak crybaby, he had to work to get better, be better than that. Getting a Quirk instantly would just be out of pity and do nothing save for his self esteem. From now on, tears would be no more. He would be ten in just a few months, he couldn't be the same boy as today.
"Now, Young Deku, your new destiny awaits." The man smiled and began to walk towards the car, still holding Izuku's hand like a parent would their child. As they approached Izuku took one last look behind him at the swing and the playground where his so called friends had deserted him, a farewell caught in his throat though his mind whispered it instead. Sensei gave his hand a squeeze, gaining his attention. "This time you get to choose your path in life."
The freckled boy nodded again, still gazing up at the man who smiled, "But first." There was a tingling sensation that ran down up his arm and then throughout his body. Izuku blinked in surprise as the dull pain he'd been feeling vanished. "Now you can truly start fresh." He looked at his arms, noticing that the scrapes and bruises from earlier were gone. Curious, he reached over to his hand in Sensei's grip and peeled back the bandaid; the abrasion was gone.
"Here." The man reached with his free hand and gently lifted the bandaid from his cheek, Izuku wincing slightly as he felt the adhesive leave his skin. Underneath it there was no trace of the wound he'd received a few days ago, him having passed it off as a side effect from a face plant caused by loose shoelaces. The boy was completely healed. "Much better."
Izuku stared at the bandaid in his hand, it covered in various All Might images, the same as his other bandaids. He'd been insistent about them and his mother had naturally indulged. She'd always indulged him, getting him most anything of his favorite superhero, the shining beacon of hope, ambition and justice. But it was out of remorse and guilt for him being Quirkless, he knew that now. And All Might suddenly was no longer a radiant example that he wanted to follow; he was almost lackluster now.
"Shall we?"
He nodded with conviction this time, "Yes, Sensei." His fist curled around the bandaid as they continued to walk only to loosen it after a few steps, letting it fall to the ground. Sensei seemed to have crumpled the one he had removed and made it vanished, perhaps with some undisclosed Quirk; Izuku didn't notice, he simply kept his eyes on the man leading him.
"Sire?" Kurogiri inquired as his employer drew closer with child in hand.
"All's well, Kurogiri. Meet Deku-kun, the newest addition to the family." He gestured to the small boy who bowed politely to the mist man, timid. "Now, if you would, take us home."
"At once, Sire." Kurogiri bowed in compliance, moving to open the car's backdoor. As the man began to get in allowing Izuku to go first, Kurogiri paused, daring to query once more. "Sire?"
His boss paused and looked at him, knowing what the unspoken question was given his faithful employee's tone. He smiled, seeing Izuku slide in to the other side just out of earshot, though the boy seem distracted with taking off the other bandaids to discard. "My interest has been piqued, simple as that. Think of the possibilities. It'll be interesting to see how he develops under my guidance. He's a different kind of broken, but easily mended with far less tactics than my current protégé; a little bit more mature but not molded by any Quirk. Still, it never hurts to have two."
"Understood, Sire. Hopefully Tomura Shigaraki won't mind too much. He's practically an only child."
"Hm, he can think of it as a late birthday present. Some company will do him good."
"Very good, Sire." Kurogiri bowed as the man slipped into the car and the door closed. The mist man returned to the driver's seat and buckled up. As he turned on the car one of his portals appeared ahead. He adjusted his mirror like any responsible driver and promptly drove through the warp gate, the vehicle disappearing without a trace, no hint of it ever being at the park.
And with it vanished Izuku Midoriya.