"You, Midoriya Izuku can be a hero "
The silence stretched as the words began to sink in. He could be a hero? How could All Might say that? Was he playing some kind of sick joke on him? Then again, he was the symbol of peace. He wouldn't do that… right? Before he knew it, panic bubbled in his throat. Were these words nothing more than a cruel joke? One more way for the universe to bring him down?
After all, how could someone as useless as him possibly become a hero?
His ears were ringing, dark spots formed at the edge of his vision. Yet, he was stopped from having a full-blown panic attack by All Might's booming voice. The sound cut through the static filling his ears.
"My boy, my quirk has been the subject of countless interviews and questioning, but I always try to redirect the media and deflect their questions, because, until this day, my quirk is one of the most guarded secrets in my life." The hero began. "My quirk, known as One for all is a stockpiling quirk, a power passed on every new generation to the next to only those worthy of wielding its power" Wait what? Izuku could only stare with wide eyes as he gazed upon the older, taller hero standing in front of him. It didn't make any sense! quirks were supposed to be hereditary! Ever since their appearance, not a single one had been passed on from a person to another. It was impossible!
All Might smiled softly at the mumbling teenager in front of him. "I'm being completely honest with you kid. I was quirkless once too. Until my predecessor saw potential in me and gave me this power, turning me into its eight's holder."
Izuku didn't know what to think anymore. All Might, quirkless? But why was he telling him about his power? "Wait… what are you trying to say?" Izuku didn't want to get his hopes up. For all he knew, All Might just wanted to ask him about Kacchan or if he knew someone worthy of such an honor because it sure wasn't plain old useless Deku.
"I've grown weak and old my boy, after the incident five years ago I don't know how much time I have left as the symbol of peace before I'll be forced to retire" Electric blue met emerald eyes and held them for a few seconds " The world needs a new pillar of justice and I think that you would be the perfect candidate. I know this is sudden, but accepting this would mean taking on a huge responsibility and burden… However, I believe that you, young Midoriya will make a great hero."
How was he supposed to respond to that? How could he possibly decline such an offer? But wasn't it selfish for someone as unworthy as him to take this kind of power? And what if his mom found out? His guts twisted at the thought and a shiver ran through his spine. No. He would make sure to hide this from her at all cost.
He felt something wet dripping down his cheek. Suddenly, he was very aware of the fact that he was crying.
He felt so overwhelmed. These dangerous feelings bubbled up inside of him. The fear of his mother finding out, the dark thoughts at the back of his mind telling him, yelling: No! A useless kid like him could never be worthy of this kind of honor, but at the front of those feelings, he could feel his excitement, and hopefulness rising to the surface. And weren't these feeling dangerous indeed? Izuku looked up, gathering as much courage as he could muster. His eyes brimmed with determination as he uttered the words that would change his life forever. "I accept." A small smile threatened to overtake his expression he could finally become a hero! Maybe life would finally be in his favor.
Well, it was good while it lasted.
Izuku's good mood somehow lasted half an hour after All Might had left. He eventually realized that he was still technically homeless for the weekend. After all, he would need to find somewhere to sleep.
After a little while, he finally settled in an old kid's playhouse, at an isolated part of the park. Curling up on himself, sleep threatened to overtake him. His thoughts were a whirl of possibilities for the days to come. He thought about what kind of training he would do with All Might tomorrow. It was a good thing he had packed some running cloth and sneakers.
He just hoped that tomorrow, he would wake up, and it wouldn't all be just a dream.
The next morning Izuku was woken up by the sounds of children giggling as they peeked inside the small playhouse. They were probably laughing at the Greenette, who was currently lying face down on the dirt.
He hastily got up and ran into the public bathrooms of the gas station, near the park.
After changing out of his current cloth and into his somewhat acceptable workout clothes he made his way down the trash-filled beach. All Might had asked to meet him there yesterday.
Now that he thought about it… Why was he meeting the number one hero there? He was too much in shock yesterday to question it. However, now his mind was racing with the possible reasons for this specific meeting.
He arrived there, faster than he realized, the beach was just a couple of blocks away.
Surely, waiting for him there was none other than the skinny skeleton figure of the symbol of peace. Once he noticed him the man quickly made his way towards him.
"Ah, young Midoriya! Right on time!" All Might's booming voice greeted him, it was way too early for this tone. "You might be wondering why I asked you to meet me here right? "He continued, a smirk blooming in his features as he gestured to the piles of trash consuming the beach around them
"H-hey all Might, yeah I was kind of wondering actually…" The greenette replied hesitantly as if expecting to be scolded for his curiosity
"Well you see, my boy, although I do feel as though you are worthy of One for All, I fear that you are still not ready to take it on" Ready? Ready for what? Some kind of requirement to be able to handle the quirk maybe?
Looking up into the frail man's eyes, Izuku searched for some kind of answer to his question. The eyes of the man before him were nothing like the hateful glare his mother graced him with. This man's eyes were soft and had some kind of respect, a sternness to them. Izuku felt a little more at ease looking into those eyes.
"We need to train that fragile body of yours, at your current state you wouldn't be able to handle the backlash of my quirk. We have ten months before UA's entrance exam and I plan to turn you into a proper vessel by then my boy!" Ah yes. UA is the best hero academy in Japan and even the world. Its entrance exam was nearly impossible to path with a weak quirk, let alone quirk less. Maybe Izuku would finally have a chance.
"Oh okay… but what are we doing here exactly?" The boy asked. Eyes scanning the area around them.
"Well, you see Midoriya-Kun, a hero's job doesn't depend on just beating up the bad guys. A hero needs to contribute to even the smallest things in society, like looking after the environment and general health of the public." The taller man answered "In these ten months I'd be restricting you to a tight schedule to help get you get in shape. Clearing this beach will just be your first act as a future hero! But the question here is, if you are willing to pour your all to improve and earn this power of mine!"
"You can count on me All Might" The boy replied, eyes lit with a fiery determination and glint that wasn't there the first time they had met. All Might couldn't be more satisfied in his choice of successor.
Therefore, began ten months of pure hell. Izuku woke up every day at the crack of dawn, to avoid running into his mother and having to explain where he's going and why. Her finding it would be a living nightmare.
His guts twisted at the mere thought of this scenario and what it meant for him.
All Might, on the other hand, was working him to the bone.
Every day he would go out on a run around the city and then they'd meet at the beach where he would try to clear some part of the trash that was consuming it.
To say that Izuku was tired was an understatement, but the feeling he got every day at the end of his workout was worth it. With every step he took, with every section he cleared, he was one step closer to accomplishing his dream. It all made it worth it, a new feeling making its way into his heart. A feeling he was scared he'd lose one day. Hope.
Izuku had just come back from his morning training with All Might. It was nearly two months after that day at the park. Planning to sneak into his room before his mother woke up, he slowly opened the front door. However, he was met by his mother's piercing glare instead. It threatened to burn holes inside of him. His blood ran cold, shivers going down his spine.
How could he possibly think that he could get away with this without her noticing?
Of course, she would find out and now all that was to be done is stand there.
Stand there and wait for whatever punishment she had in store for him.
A sheep waiting to be slaughtered.
His mother's gaze narrowed, calculating his every move. "Where were you brat?" She hissed, her posture relaxed, her expression promising nothing but pain.
"I- I went out on a r- run" He answered nervously, knowing that silence would aggravate her mood. He looked at her, finally noticing the half-empty bottle she held in her hand and the way her feet swayed as she stepped closer.
Inko had woken up to an empty house, opting to drown her misery in red wine. Even her useless son had left her, the irony.
Izuku eyed the bottle warily, with his mother's current state there was no chance that this would end well.
She took a step closer, eyes looking at him, but not really seeing. Her mind was somewhere else, looking at him, but seeing nothing but misery and pain.
Her face twitched in disgust as she gazed upon her worst creation. Her biggest regret really, was not leaving while she had the chance. Maybe she should have gone with Hisashi.
The Greenette backed away slowly, his mind screaming at him to run, his flight instincts taking over.
This was nothing like the usual drunk episodes his mother had. This wasn't the screaming and crying state she would usually be in. This calm and threatening aura that surrounded her made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.
Inko raised the bottle to her mouth and drank the rest of its content in one go.
She turned around to throw it in the trash near the hallway, but seemed to think better of it.
Izuku could see the exact moment she seemed to decide her next course of action.
The malicious intent poured out of her as she lifted the bottle into the air with her minor telekinesis quirk and slammed it against the wall next to his face, some of the shards straying off course and embedding themselves into his cheeks. She had used her quirk to change the direction of the small shards of glass that had shattered.
Years of abuse had risen his pain tolerance, but the shock had still sent him tumbling to the ground. Hand raised to cup his cheek as he could feel dampness begin to spread.
His mind vaguely registered what had happened. Merely noting the fact that this dampness was a somewhat mix of both his blood and the tears that had started to roll without his consent.
Did his mother hate him that much?
Still, after all, it's been this way for years, he didn't know why he was still surprised at this point. Her actions and hatred towards him should be familiar by now. Maybe part of him still liked to think that things could get better between them.
With shaky movements, he tried to get back up, but a harsh kick to his stomach and one to his hip sent him toppling over again
"Stay down brat, I'm leaving for the weekend, make yourself useful and clean this mess up, you worthless piece of shit" She sidestepped him making her way out the door, picking up the suitcase that he had failed to notice in all the commotion.
The door clicked shut behind her, but Izuku didn't have it in him to try and get up anymore. He curled up on himself and cried.
How much time had passed while he just sat there, Izuku didn't know.
He must have fallen asleep at some point because the light coming out of the shaded window was dimmer than when he had gotten home.
With uncertain movements, he made his way to the bathroom taking the first aid kit- or what was left of it- from under the counter.
He hissed as he took out one of the bigger and deeper shards that were embedded in his cheeks, body moving on autopilot, as he patched himself up. Once finished, he looked at his handy work and decided it was enough for now.
He made his way downstairs, determined to take advantage of most of the Inko free time he had.
Maybe enjoy some fresh air to get his mind off things. He walked a couple of blocks from his neighborhood, passing multiple allies and storefronts.
As he passed one of the alleys he normally used as a shortcut to get to the beach he heard voices talking, laughing at something.
He peeked from behind a dumpster, curiosity overtaking him. His gaze was met with three teenagers, probably his age, cornering someone at the back of the alley. They were laughing and taunting him.
Said boy was backed against a wall. He had wild purple hair that somewhat defied gravity. His shoulders were tense, but he seemed resigned to his fate. His eyes had some kind of blankness and void in them. The void that Izuku was so familiar with when he looked in the mirror on his bad days.
"Hey now! Just admit it already, you were born to be nothing more than a villain!" One of the teenagers taunted.
"Don't talk to him, you idiot! He'll brainwash you!" A boy shorter than Izuku but with a bigger built continued.
"I'd like to see him try that after I'm done beating his jaw in" The teen kicked the purple-haired boy in the guts sending him toppling on the ground, bent over and wheezing.
The third boy, had some kind of mutated quirk that made him look like a lizard. Scales formed on his neck and hands, sharpened his retractable claws. He swiped at the kid's arm, creating a deep gash there. The boy hissed in pain but still didn't respond.
The lizard boy prepared himself to kick the helpless kid again, but Izuku couldn't just stand there anymore. He moved without thinking, running at the group and stepping between the purple-haired boy and his tormentors.
At the time only one thought was going inside his mind
I'm not going to let anyone suffer the way I did. Never.