Chapter 1- From Kacchan to Katsuki
Izuku was not having a good day. He'd stayed up late in order to win the bidding on a first edition All Might and Sir Night Eye Dual Action Figure Box Set. Between the lack of sleep and the adrenaline of winning, he had been left so jittery that he hadn't been able to sleep at all — not to mention the pain he'd felt when Bakugo had burnt his notebook and his following words.
He had known Kacchan his entire life, and this wasn't what he was like. Sure, he was driven and brash but he wasn't… He couldn't have actually meant for him to… And then All Might had crushed his dreams. He knew that All Might didn't know about Kacchan's words, and that he was stupid to grab All Might in the first place, but his mind had flashed back to Kacchan's words when All Might left him alone on the roof. But he couldn't listen to Kacchan's words, he needed to become a hero. It was the only thing he had ever wanted to be. Age 2: A Hero. Age 3: Hero Duo with Kacchan. Age 7: Hero, 8: Hero, 12: Hero. It had always been Hero. He hadn't ever considered anything else. And to hear that not even the Number One Hero, the man who was supposed to stand for everyone, believed in him, had struck something in him that hurt.
But he had saved Kacchan, and gotten All Might's approval. So why did he still feel so sore? Not a physical sore (although his muscles ached from pulling against the Slime Villain) but an emotional sore. He wanted to support Kacchan, to say that he would have done the same if they had switched places, but would he have?
Izuku saw a person struggling, and when no one else moved to help, Izuku ran forward. He tried something. Because standing by did nothing, and when people do nothing, people die. There was never gonna be a way for Kacchan to get free or breathe with the heros doing nothing, so Izuku tried. But he hadn't known it was Bakugo, not fully, not until his body was already moving. And he wasn't sure if Bakugo would have done the same. He was fairly sure that Bakugo would have walked away.
And that hurt. This was the boy that he had talked with about being heroes. How could he walk away when someone needed him? And why did it hurt to think that maybe, just maybe, he was already a better hero then Kacchan?
But then why couldn't All Might see that? He had signed his Analysis Book. Had he not seen the plans, the notes and diagrams, how to combat different quirks, fighting styles, even how weather could affect things? If he had that and a good heart, why couldn't he have been a hero? Why did it all come down to saving Kacchan? The other heroes hadn't, and that didn't change what they were. He knew he wasn't better than them, but what did that all mean?
Kacchan hurt him, destroyed his things and told him to end his life. And he wanted to be a hero.
Kacchan wasn't a hero.
All Might didn't believe someone quirkless could be a hero without help.
He wasn't who he thought he was.
And those points hurt. He felt like pieces of himself were missing, the empty holes grating against each other. But he would accept All Might's quirk — not because he needed it to be a hero, he already stood up for the hurt and tried to protect people. No, he would accept the quirk because it would help him save more people. If he could save one person by himself, he could save five with All Might's quirk.
But he would be a hero that saved EVERYONE with a smile. He'd never look into a face, see fear, and walk away.
He'd be a hero that everyone could look up to. And if a kid ever asked him if they could be a hero, he'd say yes. Yes, you can be a hero. Yes, the people that doubt you are wrong. Yes, you can make a difference. He'd make sure the pain stopped with him.
And then Kacchan… Katsuki was there. Angry and yelling and it ripped another hole in his heart. This wasn't his friend, he'd never treat Katsuki like he was being treated. They weren't friends. They didn't have play dates anymore, or colour pictures of hero costumes together. He had no reason to stand by him anymore, no reason to keep his secrets.
So he interrupted Bakugo's angry rant with a soft exclamation of his own: "I'm telling my mom," he said, looking up to see Katsuki blinking at him and looking shocked. Izuku moved around him, walking back toward home.
"You….what? What the hell are you talking about, Deku?" Katsuki snarled, following after him.
"I'm telling my mom what you've done," Izuku stated simply. He didn't feel anything. He wasn't tattling on an old friend, he was asking for help, and that didn't make him weak.
"I haven't done anything you need to tell her about. Ey, what are you going to tell her?" Katsuki asked, for the first time trailing along behind Izuku.
"Ask yourself this, Katsuki: Is there anything I could tell my mom that would make you a good hero?" Izuku asked, before turning down his street toward home. The sun was setting behind him, closing out what was probably both the worst and best day of his life.
"Katsuki, phone!" His mother screamed up the stairs, shaking pictures in the frames.
"Who is it, hag?" Katsuki hollered back, rolling off his bed. He had been thinking about what shitty Deku had said. What the fuck had he meant? He was gonna be the next number one hero. What did it matter what he did to useless Deku? Why did Deku's words keep swirling around in his head?
"Answer the phone and find out, brat!" His mother screamed back. She ended the shouting match by moving away from the stairs.
Katsuki grumbled before picking up the phone: "What?"
"Katsuki Bakugo." The cold voice of his Auntie Inko echoed down the phone line, and Bakugo gulped at her tone. He was dead.