Izuku Midoriya sat at the dinner table, eating a lavish meal.
Across from him, a girl sat. Her blonde hair, ripped and tattered, was tightly curled up into twin buns. She nervously plucked at her food—food that had been graciously scooped off of Izuku's own plate and placed onto hers—as she nervously peeked at the boy before her.
She… she washed her face before, right?! Oh God, oh God, oh God, she hoped she wasn't filthy or anything like that. Her hair was starting to grow back, and she had it in the style that he said he liked, so that had to score some positive points, right?
"I'm curious about something," Izuku suddenly said, looking up from his food.
As his eyes met hers, the girl flushed and looked away from his gaze.
"It's understandable if you don't want to tell me," Izuku continued, unaware of the effect that he had on her, "but what are your Quirks?"
"Ah, Transform, Resurgence, Concealment, Blood Counterbalance and Blade, and finally, Crimson… something, I forget," she listed off, but the girl was still unable to meet his gaze. "Oh, uhm… I'm still not able to use all of them, yet."
"Why not?"
The sudden response caught the girl off guard. She thought for a moment and said, "I don't know. It feels wrong to use them. Those Quirks… except for Transform, they're other people's."
Izuku studied her for a while. "Do you get the voices, too? The nightmares, the other people inside your head?
The words caused the girl to snap towards him, finally meeting his eyes. "How… how do you know about that?"
"Because I had them as well," Izuku told her. "But I made them stop."
The girl stared at him with wide eyes. "Wha—how?"
"I'll tell you what sensei told me." The boy took a single breath, and then he spoke:
"If you want the voices to disappear, you just have to make the person disappear."
For a moment, the girl was silent.
"I…" the girl began, covering her eyes, "I can't do that. Isn't that… isn't that the same as killing them? Are you telling me to kill the people in my head?"
"No, I'm not. I'm telling you to put them to rest," Izuku clarified in between bites. "They are already dead, after all. You're doing them a favor and also helping out yourself. Win for everyone."
The girl stared at the boy incredulously. "I… still don't think I can do that."
"Suit yourself," Izuku answered easily. He wiped his hands on a napkin and began on his vegetables. "I'm just trying to help."
The girl gripped the edge of the table so hard that her knuckles turned white. "… why?"
"Hm?" Izuku looked up, a piece of broccoli still in his mouth. "Did you say something?"
After some internal fretting, the girl said in a small voice, "Why are you trying to help me?"
"Why not?" Izuku countered quickly, returning to shoveling green down his throat.
She didn't know how to reply. How could she? What was she supposed to do with this kindness that she'd been offered? How could she ever repay him? A myriad of questions swirled around in her head, but the girl didn't know the answer to any of it.
Suddenly thinking of something, he quickly paused and looked up at the girl. "Before I forget, I wanted to say this. I think you're wrong, by the way."
"Huh?" she said intelligently.
"About those Quirks," Izuku pressed on, "they might have belonged to other people in the past, but now, for better or worse, they're yours now. I don't think we can un-Quirk ourselves and get rid of them, if that makes sense."
She hesitantly agreed, "… yeah."
"So, it's up to you to decide how you want to use them," Izuku concluded. "Where they came from doesn't matter anymore, especially since we had no say in it. Do you get what I'm saying?"
A small nod.
"Good," Izuku said. "Now, eat up. We can't let our food go to waste."
He grinned at her, and the girl…
She just fell deeper in love.
Unbreakable
Conviction
From the shadows of the alleyway, Hero Killer: Stain appeared, looking very much like the forgotten wraith of some vengeful spirit.
His muscular frame was hunched over, displaying an almost animalistic quality. Long, dark hair, pushed back by a red headband, draped over his back in a messy fashion. The dark combat suit he wore was decorated with blades of various shapes and sizes, and his arms were wrapped in bandages. A worn, damaged katana was slowly drawn out.
Izuku shifted Eri from her position in his arms, moving her gently. As he did so, he kept a close eye on the villain, watching for any sudden movements. With the girl safely behind him, he tensed, getting into a battle-ready stance, and Eri just gripped onto the back of his hero costume with a shaking fist.
"Interesting," the villain drawled, relaxing his stance. "So… very interesting."
Contrary to Stain, Izuku did not relax. "What is?"
Stain grinned. It was at this moment that Izuku realized that the man did not have a nose. Instead of answering Izuku's question, Stain just replied with another one. "What's your creed, Izuku Midoriya?"
"Creed?" Izuku paused, caught slightly off guard. "Wait. How do you know my name?"
"You'll be hard pressed to find a person in Japan who doesn't know your name," Stain observed. "Your performance during the U.A. Sports Festival. Need I explain more?"
Izuku shook his head, though he was a bit confused as to why Stain had picked up on such a nugget of information. Shouldn't he be more busy running from the authorities or something? When did he have the time to sit down and watch the U.A. Sports Festival?
"Anyways," the taller man smiled, "my question. Answer it."
Izuku tensed, and in the back of his mind, he did a quick analysis of the situation. Izuku was pretty much in perfect form—the brief scuffle with the men holding Eri didn't drain him at all—but he didn't know what Stain's combat abilities were. That large, gaping hole in his information was too big to overlook, and because he was also protecting Eri, he couldn't act recklessly right now. Her safety was his top priority. "I'm not too sure what you mean."
"Hm. Well, to give you an idea… here's mine, for example. Here's my creed, my ideology." Stain looked up towards the sky through the sliver of space between buildings.
"Society is plagued by false heroes," he stated, looking back down at Izuku. "Heroes who are heroes for all the wrong reasons: for fame, for money, for glory. There are far too many of them these days—false heroes who profit off of the misery of others. It's my job to stain my hands in order to purify society, to spread my message far and wide."
Stain took a step closer to Izuku. "Where do you fall, Izuku Midoriya?"
Another step.
"Why are you a hero?"
A thousand thoughts raced through Izuku's mind at the moment. Wisps of a childhood dream—no, of something else… the idea of dominating someone, but that wasn't quite right, either. Dominating someone in a fight was something he enjoyed, but it wasn't quite why.
Stain's eyes bored into his own.
Izuku found himself unable to answer such a direct question.
"I'm assuming that the answer I want to be a hero isn't going to cut it?" Izuku asked.
Stain shook his head.
"How about to inspire the next generation?"
"Of course not," Stain answered, eyes flashing.
Izuku wasn't in the right mental state to ponder this question deeply. The most wanted villain in the country was right in front of him, and they were debating philosophy. The wackiness of the situation, when he realized it, nearly made him laugh out of sheer amazement.
"Think long and hard about your answer," Stain told him. "I've been waiting far too long for this meeting, so think of this as a trial. If you give a satisfactory answer, we part ways. If you give an unsatisfactory answer…"
He licked the edge of his sword, grinning. The implication was clear.
Izuku narrowed his eyes. "It might not go as easily as you'd think."
"True enough. I think in terms of pure fighting ability, you probably have me beat," Stain admitted, shaking his head. "But, in order to even the playing field, here's what I'd do."
He pointed his sword in Eri's direction. "I hate involving innocents, I truly do. But, instead of fighting you, I'd pour all of my energy into attacking her. You may be confident in your ability to take a hit, but would you be willing to let that young woman next to you get hurt?"
Izuku shifting to cover up more of Eri was just the answer Stain was looking for. The villain smiled widely. "Well, no need to rush, for now. The rabbit's not here yet to interrupt our little gathering."
Rumi. Just how long had Stain been watching them?
"Ah," he continued, "let's start with this. I seek no validation for my ideology, but I am curious about this: what do you think about it?"
"Your ideology…" Izuku repeated. "Sure, there are many heroes who do heroics for fame or for money. I mean, I think Mt. Lady does more modeling than she actually spends time patrolling. I also know people who do it for none of those things you mentioned—they do it just to make the world better. But does it even matter? Regardless of their reason, if they make the world a better place, aren't they being a hero?"
"The reason is everything," Stain hissed, causing Eri to squeeze closer to him out of fear. "Your convictions are your strength. Heroes shouldn't receive payment for what they do. There are two types of heroes: false ones and true ones, and there are far too many false heroes plaguing society."
"But I don't think the reason matters," Izuku countered. "So what if a hero is maybe a bit conceited or self-centered or has ulterior motives? If they save someone… aren't they still saving a person?"
Stain looked disappointed.
"What's your definition for a 'fake' hero, anyways?" Izuku asked. "Heroes who are doing heroics for the wrong reasons, right? I just feel like you've created such a broad designation for a 'false' hero and such a narrow definition for a 'real' hero. Of course society's going to be plagued by false heroes when you define it that way."
Izuku took a moment to breathe, and he clenched his fist. "Your definition of a hero is just so limiting, and on top of that, you're creating an unattainable goal while demanding perfection from everyone."
For a moment, only the sound of Eri's shallow breathing could be heard.
"There are more than just two types of heroes," Izuku said, "and… I think people can change. They can grow. Your method, Hero Killer, never gives them an opportunity to do that. I've… I've killed before, too. I've felt what it's like to obliterate human bones with a single punch. However, I don't regret it. They were going to harm those that I cared about. But, since then, I've resolved to become strong enough where I can succeed without killing anyone. I became determined to be better, but according to your ideals, I'd just be a stain to be removed, right? Because I'd strayed from the heroic ideal of never killing anyone, regardless of my determination to be better?"
Izuku looked Stain in the eyes.
"Let me ask you a question this time, Stain. If 'the reason is everything' is true for you, imagine this: a villain 'created' a person with multiple Quirks. The villain's intent… let's just say it was to make the person into one of his soldiers, but for one reason or another, the person escaped."
He paused for a moment, pondered how to phrase things, and continued. Stain was a remarkably good audience.
"Then, later, the person wanted to become a hero. But his reason for why he even wants to be a hero in the first place, the thought of being a hero—he's not even sure if that's something that he himself came up with or the villain implanted into him. Then, which one is it, Stain? Can he become a true hero, even if his reason might not have even been his own?"
Stain scoffed. "I've told you this before. The reason is everything. How can he become a true hero if his reason isn't even his own?"
"See, that's where we differ," Izuku stated. "I don't believe it matters. The person just wants to be a hero."
For a moment, silence reigned. Then:
"Well, we can agree to disagree," Stain said casually, hoisting his blade over his shoulder. "And by that, I mean we can both agree that you're wrong and I'm right."
Izuku was beginning to get frustrated. "That's not how—anyways, I haven't thought about this that deeply, and to be honest, I don't like thinking about these types of things. I just… I just want to be a hero, and I'm tired of people suspecting me because of something like a 'reason.' I get that it's important, but I don't think it dictates everything."
He sent a glare at Stain. "So… I still don't know why I want to be a hero. I'm tired of debating philosophy, so I'll just focus on what's in reality."
Izuku reached a hand behind him and touched Eri's shaking shoulder. "Protecting her," he resolutely said. "That's my top priority."
"Pity. If you had led with that…" Stain's eyes narrowed. "Well, it seems that we have truly come to an impasse. Such a shame, too. I really didn't want to have to do this. Involving innocents never sat well with me."
He readied his blade, and Izuku shifted to cover as much of Eri as possible while his mind ran a million calculations a minute. While it would be rather shameful to do so, Izuku could probably pull off just grabbing Eri and hightailing it out of there—
Stain suddenly looked up, sensing something in the air. "It appears that the time we have together has run out, Midoriya. Though, fret not—I'm sure of this one thing."
He sheathed his weapon.
"We'll meet again."
And just like that, Stain was gone, literally vanished like he was a ghost in the night.
Izuku let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding in before checking on Eri. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Izuku was still afraid of the possibility of Stain reappearing and attacking him, but he was sure that his… sense of sorts would pick up on it if he did. Izuku didn't know if it was his instinct or a Quirk, but it had served him enough times by now for him to tentatively believe in it.
Eri was shivering and teary eyed, so Izuku wrapped her in a warm hug and lifted her, holding her close. He felt her small arms loop around his body as best as she could, and he patted her on the back.
"Izuku!"
The boy in question rapidly turned to the sound of the voice: Rumi, who appeared, panting, at the entrance to the alleyway on the exact opposite side of where Stain had disappeared.
"Rumi," Izuku said, instantly worried.
Rumi had blood dripping down the side of her arm, and when her eyes followed Izuku's gaze, she explained, "I chased the bastards, but they had backup waiting for them. They've gotta have serious backing to have that many contraband guns… they had, what, four, five fully automatic assault rifles? Caught me by surprise, but I managed to dodge most of them… geez, it was like I'd dropped into one of those bullet hell games I used to play when I was a kid…"
As she spoke, Rumi advanced upon them. To Izuku's slight horror, she raised her bloodied arm and used her other hand to dig into the wound, removing a small bullet fragment and flicking it onto the ground.
Rumi did all of that without flinching once.
God damn, the woman was hard.
"So, what happened to you while I was gone?" she asked. Before Izuku could ask her how she knew, Rumi gestured with her foot at one of the knives Stain had left behind when he initially threw them at him. "Wait. Before you answer…"
Rumi walked up to Eri, who was cradled against Izuku's body, and patted her on the head. "How are you doin', uh…"
"Eri," Izuku told her.
"Eri," Rumi repeated. "That's a great name. Well, I'm Rumi, by the way, and I just wanted to say this: you're safe now. There might not be a safer place in the world than where you are right now—in this kid's arms."
"Thank you…" Eri said in a quiet voice, voice thick with emotion. "Thank you." She buried her face into Izuku's shoulder, and he could feel his shirt start getting wet.
"Of course," Rumi smiled softly. Then, she looked at Izuku. "So. What happened?"
"You're not going to believe me," Izuku sighed.
Rumi raised an eyebrow. "Try me."
"Hero Killer: Stain showed up to debate philosophy."
Rumi blinked once, twice. "What?"
"The scary thing is that my description isn't even wrong," Izuku muttered, still unsure of the words that were coming out of his own mouth. His encounter with Stain had been so sudden, so short, that Izuku was still half-convinced that it was a fever dream.
Sensing Rumi's growing concern and confusion, Izuku quickly followed with, "He showed up and attacked. I fended off his blows and kept Eri safe. Then, he started talking. It seemed like he'd actually been stalking us for quite some time and waited until that moment to strike."
Rumi grit her teeth. "Really? Shi—uh, er, shoot, I should've noticed." She cast an apologetic look at Eri.
"It's not your fault," Izuku immediately said. "Though, he did say that 'we'll meet again.' Why me? I don't know, but he mentioned something about how no one in Japan doesn't know my name—oh, God." A sudden realization hit Izuku like a truck.
"What?"
"He might've just wanted to kill me for clout," Izuku groaned.
Izuku didn't like tooting his own horn, but what Stain had said was true: after his speech and performance in the sports festival, a lot of people in Japan knew about him or at least knew his name. And if Stain's words were true, he considered it his job to spread his message. What better way to do that than to kill the talk of the town? Izuku didn't know if his thoughts were true or not, but they certainly made sense to him.
Rumi still seemed flabbergasted. "Well, I'm glad to see that you are… alive. Sorry, I don't really know what to say."
Izuku waved aside her apology with his free hand. "Don't worry about it. I don't really know what to say about it, either."
"Well… what did he talk with you about?" Rumi asked. "You said you guys, er… debated philosophy?"
"Yeah, his 'creed' or 'ideology' or whatever," Izuku said. "I'll tell you more about it, but first I think that we should…"
He gestured with his head at the precious cargo in his arms.
"You're right," Rumi acquiesced. "Eri…"
She contemplated how to word this.
"Do you have anyone that you feel safe returning to?"
Eri shook her head slowly.
Rumi sighed. "Well, standard protocol indicates that we should take her to the police and leave her under their care, but…"
She took a single glance at Izuku's face.
"Yeah," she murmured, "that doesn't sit right with me, either." Rumi stroked her chin. "We could go to U.A. and see what that old rat Nezu has to say. They might be able to take care of her or come up with a better idea."
Izuku nodded. "As long as we don't abandon her."
"No shit," Rumi said, rolling her eyes. Then, she realized what she said and the young audience that was currently listening. "Fuck. Wait, no—goddammit. Forget you heard anything, Eri."
Eri looked more confused than anything else.
"Let's get going," Rumi ordered, hiding her face behind a hand. "We'll call off the rest of our patrol."
"Got it." Izuku looked at Eri. "Eri, we're going to go to where I live, okay? You'll be well taken care of there."
For some reason, instead of comfort, Izuku's words only brought the little girl panic. "P-Please don't leave me," she said weakly, clutching Izuku's shirt.
"I won't," he promised.
Rumi studied the two with a complicated expression on her face.
"Caring for them is good and all," she said, hesitating, "but it's better to not get too attached. Inevitably, you'll have to part ways."
At those words, Eri just clutched Izuku's shirt even tighter. "Please, don't leave me."
Rumi looked like she had a lot of things she wanted to say, but she shut her mouth and frowned. Perhaps there was a better time to say certain things.
"I won't, I won't," Izuku repeated, trying to placate the little girl.
He knew Rumi was right. Getting too attached would only hurt both of them later down the road. But, even knowing that, he could not help himself. Izuku tried asking himself, why are you going so far for her? It was a pointless question, though; he already knew the answer.
Eri… she reminded Izuku of himself. That was grounds enough for him.
Izuku swallowed, opened his mouth, and made an oath.
"I won't leave you."
.:.
Back at U.A. University, Izuku paced outside the door to one of the conference rooms in a rare show of agitation.
Things were… less than ideal. When Rumi and Izuku had showed up with Eri and requested to see the principal, they were granted their desires. Well, that was mostly because Rumi all but threatened Midnight to get access to Nezu, but the seductive teacher remained unfazed—she even made a comment, "never threaten me with a good time." Yet, ultimately, she acquiesced, and they were quickly taken to one of the conference rooms adjacent to Nezu's office.
There, Izuku and Rumi had explained the circumstances that led them to finding Eri, and both of them had expressed their desire to not abandon her and give her up to the police or foster services. All of that was fine and within the realm of expectations, until Nezu asked for some private time with the little girl.
Which left them where they were right now: Izuku pacing and Rumi grumbling to herself.
"What's taking that rat such a long time?" Rumi mumbled, following Izuku with her eyes.
"I don't know," Izuku responded, "and that's making me uncomfortable."
Rumi studied the boy. Izuku was many things—strong, a bit awkward, and diligent, but she had never seen him so visibly agitated. She wondered if this was out-of-character for him, or if it was the norm.
"Izuku," she said slowly, making sure she captured the boy's attention. "I wanted to say this earlier, but I guess even I have enough tact to not say it in front of Eri."
Izuku turned to look at her. "About how I shouldn't get too attached, right?"
"Yeah," Rumi breathed. "Look… it's good to care. But whatever connection you form with the people you save, eventually, one way or another, it has to be severed. You can't personally take care of everyone you save. You and the person you saved… you have to part ways at some point."
"I know," Izuku said. His eyes moved from Eri's form to the ground. "I know that on a fundamental level. It's impossible to do what you just said—take care of everyone you help or save. I know that, but…"
He struggled to find the right words. Ultimately, he settled for: "Her circumstances just hit a bit too close to home. I can't just leave her."
Rumi appeared to also be in deep thought. Izuku could almost see the gears turning in her brain as she mentally debated with herself. She was torn between telling her intern the theoretically correct thing or what she personally believed was the right thing to do.
Fortunately for Rumi, she never had to make that decision. Izuku's ears suddenly perked up, and he put his ear against the thick wooden door that stood between them and Eri.
"What's wrong, Izuku?" Rumi asked.
A dark look crossed over Izuku's face. "I… I think I just heard Eri crying."
A look of mutual understanding passed between the two. Izuku immediately went to open the door, all but kicking it open with enough force to rattle the hinges. There, his worst fears were confirmed: Eri was sobbing gently, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands, and Nezu just sat there sheepishly, looking at both Izuku and Rumi as if he expected them to come barging in.
Rumi was the first to speak. "Nezu, you rat bastard, what did you—"
Right before she walked up to the U.A. principal, Eri spoke. "No, no… it's not him, he was nice, it's me…"
She seemed ashamed and buried her face into her arms. Rumi, immediately switching gears, put a comforting hand on her back, rubbing it in slow, unsure yet steady circles.
"I've called for the best person to cheer her up," Nezu told the two. Before Izuku could ask who, a booming laugh resounded from outside the door.
"I AM HERE!"
Toshinori burst onto the scene in full muscle form, looking like the All Might from the glory days. Rumi's displeasure at seeing the rank one hero was very evident—her feet immediately began to bounce on the ground, and Izuku knew by now that whenever Rumi's legs began twitching, she was probably agitated or excited. Suffice to say, she was definitely not excited.
And Izuku—well, Izuku still respected his mentor and was grateful for everything that Toshinori had done for him. He just knew, on a fundamental level, that now he couldn't just believe anything that Toshinori told him.
Thinking about that made him really want to talk to Himiko. He didn't have the time for it today due to the whole incident regarding Eri, but Izuku desperately wanted to speak to Himiko. He still couldn't make heads or tails of the whole situation with his Quirks and All Might lying to him, so he hoped that she could shed some clarity on that.
"Oh, my!" his eyes zeroed in on Eri. "And who's this cutie we have right here?"
Eri seemed apprehensive at first, but as she began to recognize the man before her, Izuku could see the fear melting off of her. If she watched the TV, which is where she recognized Izuku from, there was no way that she wouldn't recognize the Symbol of Peace.
"All… Might?" she asked in a small voice.
"Yes ma'am!" the giant man replied, flexing some muscles. "Would you do me the honor of accompanying me for a walk? I'd love to talk to you." He held out his hand towards her.
Eri looked at Izuku as if she was seeking permission. The boy just returned her gaze with a thumbs up and a smile. "O-Okay," she said shyly, taking his hand. Her hand was dwarfed by Toshinori's, but Izuku could tell that his mentor would never hurt her.
"We'll be back in a flash," Toshinori announced, leading Eri out the door. As she left, her gaze remained on Izuku even as she walked out and the door shut in between them.
"By my estimations, All Might will buy us about ten, fifteen minutes," Nezu calculated. "Well, sit, please. We have some things to discuss."
Izuku took the seat that Eri was just occupying while Rumi found a seat on one of the nearby couches.
"First, I would like to tell you what I have learned and inferred from my short conversation with Eri," Nezu said, casting a gaze at Rumi. "Miss Usagiyama, I will have to ask you to refrain from interrupting until the end. I remember what you were like when you attended this institution."
Rumi rolled her eyes but nodded.
Nezu interlaced his… paws? How did that even work? "Good. Well, I can say that it is nothing short of a miracle that you two and Eri crossed paths. She is normally kept in what I assume is a laboratory deep within a compound, where she was subjected to countless experiments."
Izuku's hands gripped the side of his chair so tightly that it began to crack.
"I asked her if she knew the name of the organization that held her, and she was unable to recall anything but a name: Overhaul. There's only one Overhaul that I know. If my memory is correct, and I know it is, then she was likely held by the yakuza."
Izuku recalled what information he knew about the yakuza, but he found that he couldn't remember much. The yakuza had long since been on the decline in Japan. He didn't expect the strange mask-wearing people to be a part of one.
"I surmised that the reason she was held captive was most probably due to a valuable Quirk that she possessed, so I asked her about it." Here, the principal paused, pondering briefly how he should explain the information. "According to Eri, her Quirk allows her to reverse people."
Rumi and Izuku both stared blankly at Nezu, nonverbally requesting more information.
"She can reverse a person's body back to a previous state—any previous state," Nezu clarified, "even to the state that it was in before they existed. She can essentially delete someone from reality."
Silence reigned in the room for a rather long period of time.
Izuku… didn't quite know what to think. He knew Chrono Force behaved similarly, in which he could reconstruct his body, but it wasn't quite at the stage where it could be used on others nor was it at the point where he could reconstruct his own body to the state that it was in before he was even born. Just thinking about it like that made his head hurt.
"She found out about her powers when she accidentally manifested it and… well, I'll just say it, erased her father," Nezu told them.
"Shit," was all Rumi could say to that.
"That's where we got to when she started crying and you two… made your entrance," Nezu said. "Midoriya, I'll tell you this. For one reason or another, Eri has gotten very attached to you. I'm no master on human emotions due to how fickle they are, but even I could see the fear and desperation in her eyes when I asked her about where she wanted to stay from now on. The admiration she exuded when she talked about you is genuine."
Izuku's eyes remained on Nezu's.
"You two shared with me earlier that you would rather not turn her over to foster care services or the authorities," the principal continued. "I agree, but my agreement comes from a less altruistic perspective. Midoriya, Usagiyama, I believe that she is a danger both to society and herself if her Quirk remains uncontrolled. I cannot, on my own conscience, put her in a foster home and endanger the people there."
Izuku and Rumi shared a look. "So… what do we do, then?" the rabbit asked.
Nezu answered, "We will keep her at U.A. University. There is much we can learn from her."
Izuku blinked.
"I will not allow her to be treated as research material—"
"No, nothing of the sort, my boy," Nezu assuaged. "I think that this is the best place for her. She will be taught how to use her Quirk in a safe, controlled environment and given the freedom to live her life as she pleases. But it's not as if we can just allow her to live on U.A.'s campus for free—all we ask for, as payment, is the opportunity to simply observe her. It's honestly a win-win situation."
Izuku frowned. What Nezu said sounded logical, but it still didn't sit well with him. However, before Izuku (or Rumi, for that matter) could raise an objection, the principal continued, unrelenting.
"I think it should be up to Eri to decide. After all, it's her future—hers alone."
Damn. When Nezu put it that way, it became much harder to object to his idea. Izuku heard Rumi mutter under her breath, "This rat's a crafty bastard."
Firm knocks came from the other side of the door. Hearing that, Nezu stood up. "Ah, that must be All Might and Eri. Usagiyama, could you please get the door for them?"
With a displeased look on her face, Rumi stood up and approached the door. As she did that, Nezu spoke to Izuku: "Midoriya, since it's getting late today, I'll ask you to let Eri spend the night with you. We don't have the necessary facilities to accommodate her, but more importantly, I don't think that she'd accept anything else other than staying with you—oh, that arrangement will just be temporary, don't worry. I'll make my offer to her tomorrow when she is better rested, and depending on what she says, we can work out where she'll live."
"That's fine with me," Izuku replied easily. He heard the door open, and Izuku barely had time to get up and turn around before a small, adorable ball of warmth hugged him. He could only just make out Rumi let out a strangled-sounding aww as he patted Eri on the head gently.
"I trust that she will be safe with you?" Toshinori said, standing beyond the door frame. He was sweating slightly, and Izuku wondered if it was healthy for the man to maintain his muscular form like this.
Izuku nodded and mentally hoped that his mentor would go get some rest after straining himself. Seeing Izuku's affirmation, Toshinori smiled and bid them goodbye before disappearing down the hallway.
"I trust that you two will still be continuing your internship?" Nezu asked Rumi and Izuku.
Rumi shrugged. "Well, yeah, don't see why we'd stop early."
"Understood." Nezu turned towards Izuku. "Before you leave for the internship, drop off Eri with All Might. He'll take care of her while you're gone. Are you okay with that, Eri?"
Eri peeked at the principal from behind Izuku. Quietly, she mumbled, "Yes."
"Fantastic. Well, I'd hate to keep you three any longer, so you're all free to go," Nezu said cheerfully. "See you soon, Eri."
After exiting the conference room, the trio quickly made their way to 1-A's dormitory. Izuku was about to start giving Eri a tour of the campus, but her grumbling stomach quickly caused the boy to decide that their first stop should be the cafeteria located in his dorm.
As they approached the dormitory, Rumi decided to split off from them. With a rather tortured look in her eyes, she reluctantly parted ways with Eri and told Izuku to check his phone for details on where they would be meeting up tomorrow for their internship. Eri gave her a shy hug as she departed, and Izuku had a sneaking suspicion that Rumi went half brain-dead after that interaction.
"You're hungry, right?" he asked a slightly embarrassed Eri. "I'll show you where I eat the vast majority of my meals."
The duo made their way through the dormitory on their quest for some grub. As they walked, they passed by a group of boys just chilling around the cafeteria after a hard day's work.
"Bro," Denki said to Eijiro, "did you just see that?"
Eijiro didn't look up from his manga. "What?"
"Midoriya… does he have a daughter or something?"
Eijiro set down the manga he was reading.
"Brother, are you fucking high?"
.:.
After waking up in the morning, Izuku nearly forgot that Eri was curled into his side and almost rolled over. Fortunately for the diminutive girl, he stopped himself at the last moment, narrowly avoiding crushing her.
Unfortunately, his movement woke Eri up. He watched her face closely; she blinked sleepily once, twice, and then realized she was in an unfamiliar environment, physically tensing up before noticing Izuku. When she did, she shyly hugged him, rubbing her face into his stomach.
Izuku ran a hand through his unruly bedhead. "Sorry I woke you up."
Eri shook her head. "'s okay. I had to wake up earlier than this, anyway."
As her gaze grew distant, Izuku quickly spoke to save her from her old memories. "Let's get you ready for breakfast! You must still be super hungry, right?"
Eri nodded, and Izuku helped her get out of bed. She was still dressed in one of his t-shirts, which was way too big for her, but it honestly made her look even cuter. When he praised her about how cute she looked, Eri's face just grew red, causing Izuku to smile at that reaction.
Izuku gave her one of his spare toothbrushes and they brushed their teeth together, spitting into the sink in perfect unison. After that, he gave her the smallest hoodie that he could find—a hoodie from his childhood, with a big, grinning All Might on it—but even that went past her knees. She seemed perfectly content with it, though, and when Izuku asked about whether or not she wanted anything new to wear on her legs, Eri said that the shorts she typically wore were good enough.
"Eri," Izuku said, "remind me to take you shopping at some point."
A confused look was all he got.
Holding her hand, he led her out of his room and went to the elevator. As they waited for the elevator to arrive, he told her, "I want to introduce you to some of my friends. Is that alright with you? I don't want you to be uncomfortable, though."
Eri looked at him. A brief flash of hesitation crossed over her face, but she steeled her nerves and nodded resolutely. "If they're your friends, Izuku… I trust you."
"Okay," he said, patting her on the head. "Lemme know if it ever gets to be too much, alright?"
A nod. "'kay."
The elevator came, and the pair got into it. When Izuku clicked the button for the ground floor, he added, "If, by some chance, I'm not here—"
A panicked expression crossed Eri's face and she clenched his hand.
"—there's this girl named Momo that you can always depend on. She's helped me out a bunch, and I'll point her out to you. You can also rely on All Might, too."
With a ding, they arrived on the ground floor. Izuku led Eri to the dining hall in order to grab breakfast, ignoring the curious look that he got from Rikido as they passed by him. When he entered the dining hall, he noticed that most of his classmates were currently there eating breakfast. More importantly, he saw Momo sitting within a group of girls, chatting amiably.
As he was about to go and point out Momo to Eri, he was suddenly accosted by a loud scream: "Holy shit, Denki you were right, you bastard!"
Eijiro had stood up suddenly from his chair, knocking it over. He pointed a finger at Izuku and continued: "Midoriya, when were you gonna tell us that you had a daughter?"
The entire dining hall went dead silent save for Momo, who choked on her food, and all eyes turned towards Izuku and the little girl beside him. This caused Eri to shrink into herself, hiding behind Izuku, and her apprehension caused Izuku to turn and look at Eijiro.
All of a sudden, Eijiro and Denki and the other boys around the two couldn't breathe. They felt as if the pressure around them had increased considerably, drowning them in the deepest depths of the sea…
… and the sensation vanished as quickly as it appeared when Izuku spoke: "Everyone, this is Eri. She's not my daughter, but she will be staying with me for a bit. I want her to be able to feel safe and comfortable here—is that fine with everyone?"
Eijiro barely managed to stammer out an of course before Ochaco all but leapt out of her chair and ran up to them, kneeling down so that she was at Eri's eye level. The girl shifted to hide behind Izuku even more, but that didn't deter the older girl. "Hello there! My name's Ochaco Uraraka, but feel free to drop the honorifics and just call me Ochaco!"
Eri hesitated, but she managed to force out a meek, "H-Hello, Ochaco."
The brunette made a noise difficult for Izuku to describe and put her hands over her heart. "Midoriya… she's adorable."
At this point, Momo and Kyoka had made their way over. Momo kept on glancing between Eri and Izuku before finally saying, "I, uh, of course knew that you didn't have a daughter."
Kyoka stifled a laugh.
Izuku turned to Eri and helped introduce the other two. "Eri, this is Momo Yaoyorozu and Kyoka Jiro."
Eri stared at the two. "Is this the Momo you were talking about?"
Momo's heart stopped. What?
"Yeah," Izuku replied easily, not noticing the emotional turmoil the taller girl was going through. "These girls will take good care of you. I'm going to go back to my room to shower, so could you all show Eri how the dining hall works and help her get some breakfast?"
Before Eri could begin panicking, Izuku knelt down next to her and looked her in the eyes. "I know it might be scary, but Eri, I want you to know this: you're safe here. I trust these people, and I won't be gone for long. I'll be right back."
Eri swallowed and nodded. "… promise?"
"Promise."
"Pinky promise?"
Izuku held up a pinky finger, and Eri intertwined hers with his, looking a bit more relieved.
He gave a final nod at the three girls before walking out of the dining hall, waving at Eri, who was watching him the entire way. As he made his way to the elevator, for some reason he got the feeling that he wasn't alone, but Izuku shrugged it off and returned to his room.
Right before he took off his shirt to begin showering, he once again hallucinated Himiko in his room—wait.
"Himiko?" Izuku asked, pinching himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.
He wasn't. His girlfriend was once again in his room, seemingly magically appearing out of nowhere. This time, instead of wearing his old hoodie, she was just dressed in a casual t-shirt and short skirt. Different from last time, however, was her expression. Fortunately, she wasn't crying this time, but her expression was still hard to decipher.
"I heard a rumor," Himiko started, sitting on his bed, "that you had a child." A coy smile danced on her lips.
Izuku blinked.
"Himiko," Izuku said honestly, "the only person that I've been in a romantic relationship with is you, and I'm pretty sure you were never pregnant."
Himiko flushed a deep red at his words, but she continued, "I also heard that you were a lolicon who took young kids to your room."
"Lolicon…?" Izuku repeated, unsure of what the word meant. "Did you hear that from Class 1-B?"
Himiko paused. "How did you know that?"
He sighed. "Sounds like something Monoma would say. But no, that's obviously not true."
Izuku walked up to Himiko and took both of her hands into his. "The only girl that's in my eyes is y-you, Himiko."
Damn. It wasn't exactly a flawless delivery, but it still worked as intended: Himiko's blush darkened, and a small smile slipped onto her face.
"The girl that you heard the rumors about—her name is Eri, by the way—was found by me and Mirko when we were out patrolling," Izuku explained. "She's… had a pretty rough past, so she's staying with me for now as we figure things out."
"Rough past?" Himiko asked, concerned.
"Yeah. I trust you, Himiko, so I can tell you this." Izuku missed the pained look that flashed across Himiko's eyes. "She was… experimented on by a villain organization. From her description, it seems like they're yakuza of some type. Her Quirk, in her own words, allows her to reverse someone all the way up to before they even existed, Himiko. She discovered it by accident when she… erased someone close to her."
Himiko remained silent, slowly absorbing his story as she watched him through her yellow eyes.
"So… sorry that I caused you to worry, Himiko," Izuku apologized. "But it really isn't like that."
Suddenly feeling abashed, Himiko quickly said, "No, don't apologize, Izu. I was only teasing, only teasing."
"That's a relief," he admitted, sitting on the bed next to her.
He fiddled with his hands as Himiko watched him.
"Actually," Izuku started, "there's something that I wanted to ask you about. I didn't have the chance yesterday, so I'm really glad you showed up today."
She placed her small hand in his. "Ask away."
Izuku lowered his gaze.
"Say that you had someone that you've spent your whole life looking up to," Izuku said, staring at the ground. "And you found out that they've been lying to you for quite some time. How would you feel?"
Himiko studied Izuku closely. Where was this coming from?
"I guess it depends," she answered honestly, in a quiet voice. "Like, what was the lie about? That's pretty important."
"Well, maybe lying isn't the right word. I guess it's more like they've been hiding something from you," Izuku said.
Himiko's hand grew sweaty in his, and she immediately withdrew it. In a tone that she forced to be even, she asked, "Izuku… who are you talking about?"
Not noticing the stress that Himiko was under, Izuku responded with a sigh, "I'm talking about All Might."
Himiko had to do everything in her power to stop an audible exhale of relief from escaping her mouth. Just a few more months, she reminded herself. Once they were both back under sensei… then, she could be honest and beg for forgiveness. Until then, she had to stay strong.
"Himiko, I trust you"—the words were a bullet through Himiko's traitorous heart—"so I can tell you this. Basically… when I was younger, I was apparently kidnapped by a villain."
Himiko stiffened.
Izuku, finally taking notice of her actions, quickly backpedaled, "It ended up all fine, though, Himiko, so don't worry."
The green-haired boy didn't know that she was worrying for entirely different reasons than the one that he was thinking about right now.
"I was… experimented on and given some Quirks, ones completely separate from One For All," he told her.
"Do you," Himiko said slowly, "do you remember anything? From that time?"
It was a strange question, but Izuku gave it some serious thought and replied, "Not really. I was told that my memories were erased, but… I'm not sure if the wipe was totally clean. I have these dreams… I remember words, phrases, and if I try really hard… I can remember a girl. But that's pretty much it."
Himiko shifted so that she was behind him and gave him a hug, squeezing him tightly with that inexplicable strength of hers. What Izuku couldn't see, however, was Himiko's face: a dark red flush colored her features, and her face broke out into a wide smile. Despite the severity of the situation, she couldn't help but feel elated by the mere possibility that Izuku had some memories of her from before.
"That's what he was hiding from me," Izuku said despondently, leaning into Himiko's embrace. "He… uh, he apparently thought that telling me might trigger something, like the Quirks were evil or something. What do you think, Himiko?"
"Well, for starters," she said, "what do you think? Do you think that you should make up your own mind about these things?"
"I would, but," Izuku paused, slightly embarrassed, "it's easier to hear something that someone else has to say and then agree with it, rather than coming up with something on your own."
His words just confirmed a longstanding theory that Himiko had. For Izuku… it must have felt nice to have someone else take care of everything for him—the difficult thoughts, the hard decisions—and to surrender himself to someone that he trusted.
And for Himiko to be put in that position brought her two emotions: happiness, that she was chosen to be that person for him, but also disgust with herself, since she was simultaneously hiding things from him.
Soon, she promised herself. As much as she wanted to tell him everything right now, she simply couldn't. It was like an inescapable order had been placed unto her.
"Well," she said carefully, as it was obvious that her words right now had a great impact on what might happen in the future, "I'll tell you what someone once told me about Quirks and the nature of them."
She brought her lips close to his ear.
"Where your Quirks came from doesn't matter. The way I see it, 'good' or 'bad' are just things society came up with—I'm pretty sure I told you this in the past. So, to steal the words of someone that's very important to me, it's up to you to decide how you want to use them."
Since she was in the position to do so, Himiko took the opportunity to kiss him on the cheek. The way even the tips of his ears turned red when he blushed was just so adorable.
"… thank you, Himiko," Izuku whispered. "I think that's what I needed to hear."
Himiko smiled. "Anytime~"
The blonde continued hugging Izuku from behind, enveloping him in her warmth. A sudden urge to devour him overcame her, but she kept it under control. She had to say these words first:
"But, if it ever gets too hard to decide…"
She paused.
"No, if anything gets too difficult for you, you can always talk to me about it. You don't have to figure things out on your own."
He absorbed her words and nodded.
"We can think about it together," Himiko added. "Like, for example, your Quirks. I think that, even though you were given some Quirks, that shouldn't stop you from using them. Again, to steal some words, you can't exactly un-Quirk yourself. So why not just use them?"
Izuku slowly nodded. "That's… kinda been what I was thinking. It shouldn't matter where they came from. But there's this whole… ethical and moral component to it that I've been thinking about ever since All Might told me the truth and I encountered Stain."
"Well, that's—" Himiko blinked. "Hold up, you encountered Stain?"
Izuku leaned back further into her arms. "Yeah. It was… a lot more philosophical than what I was expecting. We didn't really fight, since I was protecting Eri at the time."
Himiko sighed. "I know you wouldn't lose if you two fought, but be careful. Promise me that."
"I promise, I promise," Izuku said, placating his girlfriend. "But, I don't know. I just… want to be a hero."
He felt Himiko's arms tighten around him.
"Whatever you end up doing," she said slowly, "I'm sure you'll be great at what you do."
They stayed like that, for a while, just basking in each other's warmth. Himiko drew little circles on his chest with her right hand, enjoying the firmness of the muscle under her fingertips.
"I should get going," Izuku said eventually. "Eri's waiting for me. As much as I would like to stay here with you, I should probably head back."
"'kayyyy," Himiko drawled, letting him go.
He stood up, immediately missing Himiko's warmth. "I'm going to take a shower before heading down," he told her.
Immediately, a cat-like grin appeared on her face. "Oh? And what am I supposed to do with that information?"
Izuku's face burned as she got to her feet and leaned in close, pressing her chest against his and bringing her face in until they were nose to nose.
"Want me to join you?" she whispered sweetly, simultaneously causing massive amounts of damage to Izuku's sanity.
Before he could answer, she giggled and pecked him on the lips before skipping away. "Just kidding. I'm not ready for that, yet." Himiko mumbled something about having to shave, but Izuku could very well just have hallucinated that.
Before she was about to leave, Izuku suddenly remembered something that he'd always been curious about. "Uh, Himiko?"
"Yeah?"
"How do you… basically appear out of thin air?" Izuku asked. This wasn't the first time Himiko appeared like this.
Himiko smiled. "Quirk," she answered simply. "Basically erases my presence completely from other people's perception. A bit different from that invisible girl in your class, though. It doesn't work on, say, cameras or recorded videos."
"Huh," Izuku said, frowning. "I thought your Quirk had to do with transforming into the person that you drank the blood of."
Himiko paused. Her back was towards him, so he couldn't tell what expression she was making. "You know about Quirk Awakenings?" she asked.
"Yeah." Any hero nerd worth their salt knew about Quirk awakenings. A surge of power, an evolution of a Quirk's power right at the critical juncture that allowed a hero to tip the scales and defeat the villain to save the day. They were typically caused by extremely high-stress situations.
"Something like that," Himiko said after a while.
Izuku nodded even though she couldn't see him perform the action. "I see, I see."
The blonde finally turned around, leaning against the door. A complicated expression was on her face, but that was eventually replaced by a sly smile. "When I leave, do you want me to do it in camo or not?"
Izuku tilted his head. "Why would you want to leave camouflaged?"
"Other people might see me leaving and think something's up," Himiko teased, grinning.
Izuku gave her a confused look. "You're my girlfriend. Maybe they should get used to it."
Himiko's expression was mixed: she was simultaneously beginning to blush and a large, genuine smile threatened to break out onto her face. "You know exactly what I like to hear."
She blew him a kiss, opened the door, and after a "see ya," was gone.
Izuku began the process of taking an ultra-quick shower, but he couldn't help but think about what Himiko had said.
You don't have to figure things out on your own.
That sounded so nice.
Making his mind up about things—why he wanted to be a hero, all that junk, was too difficult. It felt so… comforting to be able to trust in Himiko.
Izuku put on his clothes for the day and decided to head back down as quickly as possible.
Eri was waiting for him.
.:.
In a random alley somewhere, a rather scary group of individuals had gathered.
One of them had severed hands covering his body and face, one of them was literally a dark purple mist in a suit, one of them had surgical staples and hoop piercings stitching together dark, wrinkled skin to his body, and one of them physically, not metaphorically, had no nose.
Hero Killer: Stain stared down Tomura Shigaraki.
"You lot don't look like heroes," Stain observed, pulling his blade out of the body of the pro hero that he stood over. This should be… number twenty-five? Twenty-six? He was beginning to lose track.
"What gave it away?" Tomura asked sardonically. "Was it the dismembered hands?"
Stain shook his head. "No, it was the stench of filth."
Tomura rolled his eyes. "You don't even have a nose." He heard Dabi stifle a cackle somewhere behind Stain.
"So," Stain started, not relaxing his guard, "why have you villains appeared before me?"
Straight to the point. Tomura wasn't sure if he liked that or not. "We're here to offer you a spot in our ranks. Name your price—fame, more Quirks to power you up, whatever—and we'll provide. Your name, your infamy, Hero Killer… it has value to us."
Stain remained silent for a while, but Tomura, Kurogiri, and Dabi noticed that his shoulders were shaking. Soon, Stain began outright laughing, throwing his head back and laughing so hard that a tear appeared in his right eye.
"Me?" Stain asked after recovering enough to speak. "You're offering me fame? Power? Don't make me laugh, child. As if my convictions could be swayed by something as pathetic as that."
A visible vein appeared in Tomura's forehead. He didn't take kindly to being called a child. Not after everything that he had been through.
"I'll offer one last time," Tomura said, grinding his teeth together. "Work with us, and you'll have everything. Reject this offer, and it will become the last mistake you make in your pitiful life."
This time, there was no hesitation in Stain's answer. "Are you hard of hearing, an idiot, or both? Teaming up with filthy villains is the last thing I'd ever do."
Tomura looked at Kurogiri, who shrugged. Dabi seemed like he was falling asleep standing up. Damn that lazy obsessed freak—if it didn't have anything to do with Endeavor and his family, Dabi really didn't give three shits about what was going on.
"I recognize your type anywhere," Stain said critically, pointing his blade at Tomura. "You probably had a miserable childhood. Most villains had one. But, instead of rising above that and striving for the path of good, you chickened out. You took the weakling's way out and turned to the path of villainy. When things didn't go your way, instead of confronting it head on like a man, you probably ran away from it like a child, no? You have the physical body of a grown adult but probably the mental capacity of a child. You…"
Stain spit the thesis of his speech as if it were the pure, unfiltered truth.
"… are nothing more than a man-child."
There was a strained silence.
"Call off whatever fucking plan we had," Tomura snarled. "I'm killing this bitch with my own two hands."
"Look at how upset you are because I'm right," Stain guffawed, unfazed by the threat on his own life.
"You are not right."
"You even refute my arguments like a child," Stain shrugged.
Tomua began to scratch at his face. "Stop talking as if you know me."
"As I said: I may not know who you are personally, but I'd recognize your type anywhere." Stain spoke almost sagely, "A pathetic little thing that never grew up."
That was the straw that broke the camel's back. Tomura let lose a string of swears and cusses, activating his many Quirks to get ready to rip out this fucker's throat, when all of a sudden—
"Calm down, Tomura."
His voice.
Sensei's voice rang out loudly through the bluetooth device in his ear, and Tomura was sure that Dabi heard the exact same words since he had one as well. Kurogiri obviously didn't have a bluetooth device because he… well, to put it delicately, he had no ears.
"But this bastard—"
"Calm. Down."
Oh. That was an order.
"From what I've heard, both from today and from my prior investigation, it is clear to me that this man will never see eye to eye with us," sensei's deep voice came through directly into his ear.
There was a brief pause, but before Tomura could get a word in, All For One spoke again.
"Offer him a gateway to his next area of operation. This will put some distance in between you three and him to ensure that our paths will not cross in the near future. Even if they do, he will be indebted to us and possibly be more willing to listen."
That was such typical sensei behavior. Always calculating for the future, computing never-ending calculations. It was such a fucking bore for Tomura. He'd much prefer settling things right here and now, consequences be damned.
But, then again, this was a direct order from sensei. He could not possibly disobey.
"Where are your next hunting grounds?" Tomura asked. His tone was still packed with hostility, and Stain seemed to be surprised by his words.
"Hosu," Stain eventually answered, looking suspicious. Dabi, who had heard the conversation between their sensei and Tomura, was unfazed, while Kurogiri would have looked confused if he had a face that could show human emotions. "Why?"
"Kurogiri," Tomura ordered, scratching some more at himself. "Create a portal to Hosu."
Almost immediately, a dark portal opened up in the air before Stain. He looked at it quizzically, and he asked, "What is this?"
"A free ride to Hosu," Tomura said scathingly. "Our leader—for some fucked reason—wants to send you on your merry way. I don't mind that at all since it'd get you the hell away from us."
Stain still seemed suspicious. "How can I trust you? I'm not a fan of walking blindly into the unknown."
"Would my word be good enough?" Tomura asked sarcastically, but to his surprise, Stain nodded. "Are you serious…?"
"If you were lying, and I survive wherever this… thing takes me," Stain said, staring at the portal, "I'll come for your head personally."
"You can fucking try."
Stain had no answer save for a fat glob of spit that he spat directly on the ground before him. "Hopefully, I'll never see you again, man-child."
Tomura bristled, but the man was already gone. As his hunched form disappeared into the mist, Tomura let loose a string of colorful swears and disintegrated a nearby trashcan to vent.
"Well, that could've gone better, but I also think it could've gone worse," Dabi commented drily, yawning. "Kurogiri, beam me back please. I'm glad that I was so helpful in this encounter."
After Dabi entered a newly conjured portal, Tomura reached into his ear and took out the bluetooth device, disintegrating it. "Kurogiri, I have a request."
"What is it?" the haze said cautiously. "And your sudden change in demeanor… did sensei say something?"
"Yup, he sure did," Tomura said darkly. "But, no matter. I have a simple request."
Before Kurogiri had any time to react, Tomura flared up some of the Quirks in his body and appeared before the wisp in an instant, grabbing his "arm" with four fingers.
The threat was clear. Kurogiri remained silent, knowing that if Tomura brought down his fifth finger, he was powerful enough to disintegrate him completely.
"Release some Nomus in Hosu," Tomura said. "Three is probably enough to do the job."
"What job?"
Tomura snapped, "Don't be an idiot. To kill that bastard, obviously."
Kurogiri remained silent for a few moments. Then, he sighed, "His words really got to you, huh, Tomura Shigaraki?"
"He just pissed me off," Tomura said flatly.
Kurogiri countered, "Sensei isn't going to be happy when he learns about this. Regardless of whether I try to hide it or not, he'll notice."
"That's fine." His hand gripped Kurogiri's sleeves tighter, the pinky finger barely not touching.
The wisp of a man sighed once more. "I'm throwing you under the bus the moment he asks me about it, though. I hope you're prepared to deal with his wrath."
"That doesn't matter to me right now," Tomura huffed. "I'm focusing on the now, and plus, he might not even get that upset at me. The bastard insulted our organization, insulted me, basically spat in our faces as he left. When the Nomus take that jackass down, we'll claim responsibility. The League of Villains will gain infamy as the one who took out Stain."
Kurogiri's yellow slits for eyes looked like they attempted to roll. "Is that the justification for when sensei comes to ask you about it?"
"Yeah, pretty much."
The wisp shook his head. "And I thought that you said that you were focusing on the now? Tell me: what's going through that head of yours?"
"Pretty much what's always been going through it," Tomura said. Beneath the hand that covered his face, dry and chapped lips formed a grin.
"I just wanna cause some chaos."
.:.
After bidding Eri goodbye and leaving her with Toshinori (who was in his shrunken form and slightly scared Eri when she first saw him, but the girl quickly grew excited when Izuku told her that it was All Might's secret form), Izuku checked his phone to read the instructions that Rumi sent him. The words eventually led him to the nearby train station, where he hopped on a train with Rumi to travel to their new patrol grounds.
"Remind me again," Izuku started, "why are we going to Hosu?"
Rumi sighed, leaning back in her seat. Instead of her usual hero costume, she was dressed in casual black leggings and a white t-shirt with black stripes. Her state of dress had something to do with her wanting to be incognito until they reached the new area where they would be, but her long white hair and large ears gave her away almost immediately. Some people were already whispering and pointing their phone's cameras at her.
"We're making a rotation," Rumi explained. "The place where we were patrolling had gotten too quiet as of late. Most likely, word had gotten around that we were there, so villains changed locations. Besides…"
She cast a sidelong glance at Izuku.
"When prey change their breeding grounds, so too must hunters change their hunting grounds. It's only natural," Rumi said, shrugging.
"Makes sense," he conceded.
A few moments passed by in a comfortable silence before Izuku finally broke it. "Hey, can I ask you about something?"
"Sure," Rumi nodded. "Shoot."
"It's about what Stain talked about with me. I—"
Rumi put a finger on her lips and leaned in uncomfortably close to Izuku. "Shh. Be careful about how loud you are in public. One wrong slip and you're the centerpiece of the next day's newspaper."
She raised her head and looked around before bringing it back down to Izuku's level. "Okay, we should be fine if we whisper. So, tell me about Stain."
Rumi was close. Although he had been far closer to Himiko, another woman's presence in his personal space was still a bit too much for Izuku, and what made it worse was that Rumi was a very attractive individual. She was close enough where Izuku could get a whiff of the shampoo that she had probably used right before heading out. Even though he had Himiko, Izuku could not help but be conscious of her.
She took one look at the blush blossoming across his cheeks and chuckled. "What an adorable reaction. What are you, Izuku, a virgin?"
Rumi was never one for subtlety.
"Y-Yes," Izuku stammered, too caught off guard to give her anything but a straight reply.
Rumi blinked. "Oh. Uh," she took one look at how uncomfortable Izuku looked, and quickly said in an attempt to make things better, "don't worry! I'm one, too!"
It didn't make things better.
Izuku buried his face in his hands and Rumi wished she could jump off the train. While he certainly felt comfortable around Rumi, there were some things that should not be discussed between mentor and student.
"L-Let's talk about Stain," Izuku murmured, face now a bright red. He was torn between feeling embarrassment for himself and embarrassment for Rumi. It certainly isn't wrong to be a virgin, but outright outing herself in a completely unnecessary manner was… pretty tough. Rumi had a lot of strong points, yet navigating a conversation was not one of them.
"Yeah, let's do that," Rumi replied in a low tone, bringing her ear close to Izuku's mouth to better hear him. Her ears were drooping, which made Rumi seem… strangely adorable, but Izuku quickly shook that thought from his head. He already made himself seem like a fool.
"So… Stain," Izuku began in a low tone. "From what I could tell, he was a stubborn guy. And by stubborn guy I mean I think I had a better shot conversing with a brick wall; that's how firmly he believed in his ideals."
Rumi let out a low whistle. "I guess you gotta really believe in what you're doing if you wanna earn the title Hero Killer."
"Yeah," Izuku agreed. "So, uh… his ideology. He believed—and I'm paraphrasing here—that most heroes were in the business for the wrong reasons. They're heroes for things like fame or money. He called them false heroes, and he said it was his job to do something like purge society of those false heroes."
"Huh," Rumi bit her lip. "This… this is gonna be a hot take, but I don't think he's entirely wrong."
Izuku nodded. "Same here. Heroes each have their own reasons for wanting to become a hero, some less morally correct than others, but aren't they still heroes?"
Rumi shrugged. "You're not gonna get an answer outta me. I, uh, have a solo disposition. I'm sure you already know that—taking you on was an exception amongst exceptions. So, because of that, I've never really given a damn about why other heroes do the things that they do. Let them bask in the limelight, you'll just never catch me doing the same."
"Fair," Izuku said. "I told him that I thought his 'the reason is everything' reasoning was wrong. Not even because I… I don't know. If the reason is everything, and I don't even know the true origin of my own drive to be a hero…"
Izuku smiled, though it seemed more out of self-pity than anything.
"How can I even be a hero? So… I guess I had to fundamentally disagree with him."
Rumi blinked. Then, with a snarl:
"Stop that self-deprecating bullshit, Izuku," she plainly said. "Aren't you the one who said: I just want to be a hero?"
Izuku's eyes widened at her tone of voice. It seemed that what he had said had pissed her off. "Y-Yeah."
Sensing his apprehension, Rumi quickly shifted her tone. "My bad, I'm not angry… at you, at least. That comment you made just reminded ne of that fucking conversation we had at U.A. That's what pisses me off."
Izuku, glad that he wasn't the direct cause of her ire, let loose a breath.
"The way I see it," Rumi said, "is that it doesn't matter what the damn reason is. Everyone's got their own. Everyone's also got their own methods, as well. I, personally, think that working on a team kinda makes you a coward, but I know that others don't necessarily agree with me. My point is that people are different, do things for different reasons, and have different ideas. Your job is to figure out your own."
Rumi's words sunk deeply into Izuku's psyche.
"That's hard," Izuku admitted with a small voice.
Rumi nodded. "Damn right it is. But it's worth doing."
Izuku remained silent, absorbing what Rumi said. Your job is to figure out your own. Rumi had already told him something similar, a day or two ago: decide for yourself.
Your job—
—is to figure out your own.
It was almost the exact opposite of what Himiko had told him.
"That's…" Izuku murmured, "that's hard to do."
Rumi chuckled. "You already said that, you idiot." There was a hint of fondness in her tone as she berated him, so he knew that she wasn't exactly insulting him. "But I'll be here to help. It's… the least that I could do."
"Thank you," Izuku said wholeheartedly. "I guess…"
He swallowed.
"I guess I already gave him my answer," Izuku told her. "It's as you said. I just want to be a hero, and I'm sick of people talking about a 'reason.' I just want… I just want to protect what's before me."
Rumi nodded. "Better. That's a good starting point. You might find a deeper reason, you fully might not, I don't fuckin' know. Just remember that basic instinct and you'll be fine."
"Basic instinct…" Izuku repeated. The urge to dominate reared its ugly head deep within him when he thought about that.
It was strange.
It was as if there existed a whole other side of Izuku that he himself was just beginning to discover.
No, he'd already begun discovering it as early as the entrance exam. The feeling of being better than the robots, completely outclassing them… he remembered that it felt exhilarating.
The urge to dominate, the desire to be a hero; were the two contradictory or complimentary? Which one stemmed from the other? Was his primary drive to be a hero by dominating over all others—the villains, the other competition—or was his main motivation to dominate others by being the top hero? Did the two even have a difference?
He truly didn't have an answer to his queries. Who did? Not anyone that Izuku knew.
In the end, did it matter to him? It might matter for some others who believed that the reason was everything, like certain noseless individuals, but for him…
Izuku was dragged out of his reverie by the train suddenly shaking a bit too violently for it to be natural. Sounds of crunching metal could be heard, and the train came to a screeching halt. Everyone on board lurched forward, their momentum carrying them towards the front of the train. Izuku quickly regained his bearings, looking at Rumi.
"Let's go," Rumi said. "Trouble found us."
A commotion appeared to be going on in the front of the train, so Rumi and Izuku quickly headed towards that direction. Along the way, Rumi told everyone that they passed, "Stay down. Head towards the back when able to. My intern and I… we'll take care of it. When the situation is clear, I'll update you all on it."
Quiet and panicked thank yous trailed after them as people began moving towards the back of the train. Rumi repeated these instructions towards everyone they came across, and Izuku started doing the same, as well.
When they moved forward about four carriages, Izuku saw—
Wait.
Three hulking beings more beast than human stood at the entrance to the operating room. How they got there was not up to debate; the giant, gaping hole in the side of the train indicated very clearly their method of entry. That must have been what that grating sound from before was.
Izuku narrowed his eyes. He'd seen these walking monstrosities before, back at the U.S.J. He fought one of them.
The three of them grinned upon seeing Izuku. Their terrifying facial structure and exposed brain gave them an inhuman impression, and the effect that they had on the surrounding civilians was profound. From a quick glance, some were crying, tears silently streaming down their face, some had peed themselves, but all were scared stiff.
"What the…" he heard Rumi murmur next to him, entering a combat stance.
To his great relief, they didn't appear to have hurt anyone yet. It was almost like they were… no. They made their appearance known, yet didn't harm anyone. They wanted to draw him in. This was a part of some twisted plan.
"I assume you can't speak," Izuku began, stepping forward, ignoring Rumi's hissed Izuku. All three of them nodded, and one of them opened their mouth, revealing a stump where a tongue should be. "Alright. If you let these people evacuate, I'll give you what you want."
Two of them looked towards the tallest one in the middle. After a shrug, they both nodded. Izuku took this opportunity and spoke. "All of you, head towards the back of the train."
The people didn't need to be told a second time. As they scrambled by Izuku and Rumi, they whispered thank you, and Izuku even saw some brave souls recording the whole encounter.
Izuku demanded, "The operators in the front, too."
The middle one rolled its eyes, and with one hand, ripped the door leading to the operating room straight off of its hinges, revealing a couple terrified individuals. In a faux display of politeness, it extended its hand as if to say: after you.
"Go to the back," Izuku told them. "You'll be safe."
Rumi added, "We'll take care of them."
As the train drivers passed them, one of them whispered, "We've notified the authorities. Endeavor is on his way over."
"He won't be needed," Izuku said resolutely, staring at the three villains. "We'll take care of it."
Finally, the last of the civilians had evacuated the immediate area, leaving the five behind: the three villains and the two heroes stood opposing each other. But, even then, the three gave no indication that they were about to begin brawling any time soon. Instead, the one in the middle took out a notebook and a pencil and scribbled something on it before showing Izuku and Rumi.
It read, are you Izuku Midoriya?
Rumi's breath caught in her throat, and she looked at the young hero beside her.
"Yes, I am," Izuku said. "How do you know my name?"
More scribbling. Sensei always mentions you. Describes you. Always comparing. You were the best.
It turned the page and wrote, you were his favorite.
Izuku stared at the words.
Sensei…
Something deep within him recognized that word.
Once again, he felt himself sinking. Rather than an empty chasm, it felt like the hole within him was beginning to be filled, and everything was dragging him down. Like everything was quicksand around him, Izuku was sinking down, down, down—
"Izuku!"
A warm hand grabbed his arm, and Izuku looked at it. Rumi had an odd look on her face as she stared at Izuku.
"Stay with me, Izuku," Rumi all but pleaded, gripping his forearm so tight that he lost circulation to his hand. Whatever she had seen on his face, within him, had scared her to this extent.
"Yeah…" Izuku said slowly, regaining his bearings. A train. The three villains in front of him. Civilians behind him.
The villain before him wrote something, shared it with its compatriots, and passed it to Izuku. It read: do you know what we want?
Izuku stared the villains down. Their grotesque faces were twisted with anticipation. "You guys want a one on one fight, right?"
Strange sounds emerged from their ruined vocal chords. At first, it sounded alien, bizarre, but Izuku quickly recognized it for what it was: laughter. They were laughing, nodding with joy plastered across their disfigured faces.
Rumi grabbed Izuku's arm. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"It's what they want," Izuku responded. "There was one like these guys that I fought before. I was compelled, for some reason, to fight it alone, and it must have felt the same." He stared down at his hands. "These people are no different. One on one fights…"
Rumi had a complicated look in her eyes. "Look. I believe in the value of individual strength, I really do. I can admire that, but…"
She grit her teeth.
"I'm supposed to be your mentor. I can't, on good conscience, allow you to face these… things alone," Rumi sighed.
Izuku looked at her.
"It's a pride thing," she emphasized. "There's no way in hell that I'm gonna sit back and let you duke it out with these three."
The boy had a feeling that he would have better luck trying to get a bunny to grow wings and fly to Mars than to convince Rumi. He looked at the other three beings, seeing what they thought of things. Despite their appearance, they were intelligent and capable of complex thought. The other two looked at the one in the middle and waited for it to make a decision.
Eventually, the hulking mass of muscle shrugged, as if to say, "Sure, why not."
Izuku gave Rumi a look, and she returned it, eyes all but glowing with barely-constrained fury.
"It's a fight, then," Izuku said, cracking his neck.
Rumi grinned savagely. "Yes…"
"It's a fight."
A couple of notes:
1. Thank you all so much for your patience! This chapter took a lot longer to come out due to a mixture of writer's block and school being a lot, so I would like to apologize for that. But we've reached another milestone: 2k follows and favorites! Thank you for following and favoriting this story!
2. I will mention that Izuku's taking the easy way out when it comes to making his mind up about something. That's why he turns towards Himiko when he's in a tough spot. For those who dislike that, don't worry… he'll have to make up his own mind for himself one day. It's basically what Himiko's telling him vs what Rumi's telling him.
3. Something I wanted to point out (because I got a few PM's about this) is that Himiko literally can't tell Izuku about her true circumstances. In chapter 13 (the scene between AFO and Himiko), AFO uses a Quirk to force her into obedience when he says don't disobey me this time. I intended to use it to indicate that AFO is taking zero chances when it comes to Izuku, and it might be important, very important, later, I don't knoooooooow~
4. Fans of Himiko, Rumi, and Eri are eating well today. Fans of Momo are starving, and you all might have to keep starving for another chapter or two. My bad. I would like to hear your thoughts on how I've written Eri and Rumi in this chapter.
5. You might have noticed that Tomura's desires clash slightly with his sensei's. Yeaaaaaaaaah… something something, some men just like to watch the world burn, something something. Something something main conflict with Izuku something something, I don't know.
6. The Nomus beelining it straight to Izuku will be explained later on. Next chapter is going to be fight-heavy.
7. Stain debating ideals with Izuku, hahaha. I know in canon, Izuku cleared all of Stain's qualifications for a "true hero," but Unbreakable Izuku is a different story. What did you guys think about that segment?