Izuku's head sinks into a palpable pillow, heavy thoughts weighing heavily on the soft cushion just as much as the boy. Beneath him are equally supple bedsheets, his fatigued form laying still. The only movement made is the slow slide of his fingers along the string attached to his sternum. Izuku's skin feels the wire, his hand running up and down it to keep himself aware of its physical existence.
The small cord is the exact same that had operated as Pochita's tail. The boy can tell not just by look, but also by touch. He lays atop his bed, sleepless from how many nightmares made him relive the incident in which he lost the dog. He may have gained a quirk, but the pulley connected to his heart feels like something he could use to pull it out at this point. For all his years that Izuku longed for a quirk, he would have never traded a life for one, human or animal.
The cord is coarse, as rough as reality. It's not soft or comforting like Pochita's fuzz had been or the cushioning he lay on now. The dangling of the wire matches the unease of his mind as he thinks about his quirk. He'll always be grateful for Pochita's sacrifice, unwilling to let the dog's death be in vain, but he also feels condemned by his new power. The ridicule Izuku underwent when he was quirkless is no better than the treatment he's received being called a villain. It's just that the boy can't help but feel the quirk isn't his in the first place. When somebody says his quirk is villainous, he feels as though they're saying Pochita is villainous and not himself. He'd rather they just blame him even if that's what they mean.
Izuku is drawn from his rumination by the light rap of someone's knuckles on his door. When it pushes open, he's not all that surprised to see his mother on the other side. Neither of them say anything, an ambient noise filling the silence instead. Inko eventually takes the initiative and closes the distance so that she can sit on the edge of her son's bed. Once she does, she takes to coddling him as usual. Her hands stroke at his head, fingers coursing through his curly green hair.
"Wanna talk?", Inko speaks in a soft soothing voice that treats her son as delicately as her petting strokes. Izuku responds with a small insipid shake of his head anyways. Which leads the mother to sigh and say as coaxingly as possible, "You know it's not good to hold it in."
Izuku's fingers curl around the string that he's been holding, clinging to it tighter. "There's nothing to hold in", he knows what he's saying isn't true when his hand brushes against his chest and he faintly feels the beat of his heart.
"Sweetie.. You barely touched your Katsudon and you'd normally be in the living room watching the hero network about this time", Inko frets over him as she brushes hair strands away from his eyes to look at him better. Izuku's glossy gaze shifts away from her. "Instead, you're in your room sulking", Inko keeps prodding at her son's inherited green locks in an effort to make him look at her again.
"I'm not sulking", Izuku pouts as he pulls his head away from her hand. Inko stops petting him so that he can sit up. He shrugs while trying to come up with an excuse, "I'm just.. Not hungry.."
All Inko has to do is look to her left to see a bookshelf of hero merch or her right to see a notebook full of study scribbles for her to counter with the question, "And what about your hero analysis?"
Izuku looks at the book that he put so much time into writing. Then falls backwards to flop on his bed. "What's the point?", he's not sure if he's bitter or sad as he mumbles, "Everybody says I'm gonna turn into a villain instead anyways.."
Inko's eyes expand, flaring like her nostrils as rage consumes her. "Who's saying that?", she stands up as adrenaline floods her system to go after whoever dared to hurt her son's feelings. Motherly instincts have her clenching her hands into fists. "Izuku, tell me who's saying those awful things to you", she wants to know who to direct her anger at as she moves to grab the landline phone off the wall, "Is it the boys at your school? Who's mother do I have to call?"
"Mom! It's not–", Izuku shoots up to stop her before she can dial any numbers. Inko pauses with the phone in her hand, tone hanging in the air with her fuming breaths as she listens. "It's not worth it", Izuku hangs his head and backs away as he tries convincing her to hang up.
"You should let ME decide that", Inko huffs but puts the phone back anyways. Izuku returns to his bed and she follows to sit beside him before asking, "Would you like to be homeschooled from now on?"
Izuku somberly shakes his head. "No.. It's not just them, mom..", he looks into her eyes so that she understands and doesn't reflexively freak out again.
Inko frowns, but doesn't get up or revert back to shouting. "What about Katsuki? Does he try sticking up for you?", she places a hand over her son's as she tries finding a saving grace in the problem at the very least. Though all she does is make Izuku break their eye contact.
He's unable to tell her the truth. That his childhood friend had become his bully and joined in on the teasing. That Katsuki is the ringleader of the squadron. That he no longer has any friends at all. "I miss Pochita", Izuku's eyes start to water when he thinks about the one last true friend that he did have.
Inko pulls her son into a hug, holding him close. "Oh, dear.. I know you do", she rubs his back in an attempt to console him as he begins crying. The ambience now consists of Izuku's sobs. She doesn't let him go until he finishes letting out his pent up sorrow. "I do too, you know. I owe Pochita a debt for saving my son if what you say is true", she offers her son an encouraging smile in an attempt to cheer him up.
Izuku blinks, drying the last of his tears as he registers his mother's words. "A debt.. Like a contract", and he suddenly remembers what Pochita had said to him in their final moments together when being granted his quirk.
"Hm?", Inko squeezes her son's shoulder when she sees his distant stare. He's brought back and meets her gaze.
"Mom.. My dream to become a hero..", Izuku nearly chokes on his words and has to pause due to being at the risk of crying again. His hand trembles as he returns it to the string attached to his sternum. "Do you think with this quirk that I can do it now?", his fingers wrap around the wire and hold it tight.
Inko's mouth opens, her response hanging empty in the air. Her son had asked her a variation of this same question before when he had been quirkless. Then, she told him that she was sorry, essentially saying there was no chance for him to make his dream a reality. Now though..
"Yes, Izuku! You can become a hero", she chooses to support her son to show him that he isn't alone. Not even when he breaks down. The two of them will pour their hearts out to the other as much as they have to, crying in a huge embrace as many times as they must.
Izuku's string sways on his chest during the hug, wagging like Pochita's tail.
AUTHOR'S NOTE
I know this chapter was on the shorter side, but I swear it has valuable merit to the plot. Trust the slow burn treatment!
I feel like you all already became accustomed to the bi-chapter flashback formula by now, but I feel obligated to apologize to anyone who was expecting the Midoriya VS Bakugo fight to pick up from where it left on in this one. Next chapter will be the fight, I promise!
Until then.. let's read some reviews!
To guestyperson:
I had to really take into careful consideration this very problem for such a quirk, hence the whole 'villainous quirk discrimination' subplot, but I think I've found ways to balance it lethally and non-lethally fortunately. You'll see in due time!
To The Alone Sage:
I hope the fight will live up to your expectations!
To tiguylerobot:
Some of the characters in the story share and/or will share that same sentiment, though I'm sure Izuku or Inko wouldn't be very happy to hear it lol there's a workaround I've come up with though as I mentioned to guestyperson. All in due time!
To Angelo D'andrea:
Good morning! Or afternoon. Or whenever you read this... ANYWAYS! You're not alone when you bring up the point about Pochita 'curing' Denji and saying the same should be applied to Izuku. The regeneration factor is still a thing, I just won't be making it as OP in order to add more tension to the story. You may be right that making Izuku stronger would help him go toe to toe with villains like AFO, but I also don't think he'd stand much of a chance even without the bloody cough in a match like that. I'll be reserving AFO for All Might and whoever gets OFA, most likely. Try and trust me on this!
That all said and done, I hope to see everyone next time for the battle between Izuku & Katsuki!
