Sometimes, it is the smallest of things that can make all the difference. A small word of encouragement. A smile...
...
...or the absence of some personal space.
-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-
In one world, Midoriya Izuku was standing well back from All Might when he assumed his true form, that of the frail Toshinori Yagi. In that world. Izuku was startled and reflexively jumped back from the plume of smoke. He would be given a soul-crushing piece of advice by his hero, and yet very shortly afterwards he would inspire the hero to rescue him and someone he once called friend.
This... is not that story. For you see, there was another option for Izuku to take. Rather than jump back in fright, Izuku would freeze in place well within the plume of smoke. And so, when All Might transformed, the blood he coughed would not all land on his hand. No, some of it would land on Izuku. And since it's Izuku, and Izuku's crazy form of luck is in play, it went in his mouth.
"Aaaugh! Oh, I've got blood in my mouth! It's in my mouth!"
"Midoriya-shonen, please do not panic so much! I promise, I am clean of any potential diseases."
"W-w-w-what!? Who are you?! Where's All Might?"
All Might, or Yagi as he thought of himself in this form, heaved a sigh as he leaned against the wall of the stairwell behind him. Today just wasn't his day. 'First that villain managed to escape me in that nasty labyrinth. Then I barely manage to arrive in time to save this young man. And now I've coughed my blood in his mouth. It is exceptionally fortunate that transferring One For All is not so simple.'
And indeed it wasn't. One For All was not like most other quirks. In order to fight against being taken by force, it was obviously necessary that the quirk itself possessed some sort of will of its own. As the years had passed, the wills of those who bore it were added to this force, allowing it to manifest in unusual ways. Occasionally, it even managed to override quirks which imposed the wills of others upon it. It was the ultimate immoveable object... unless and until it chose to move.
It was due to this that All Might did not have to worry about One For All being taken any time he coughed up blood. An incredibly fortunate thing, all things considered. Especially given the number of quirks which consumed blood as an activation mechanism.
'I really need to stop all this woolgathering.' Yagi shook himself out of his reverie to set the young man's mind at ease.
"Young man, I am indeed All Might. What you see is my true form. What you saw before was me... flexing, I guess you could say, my power. The imposing sight has sometimes been enough to stop villains in their tracks all by itself."
Izuku's eyes widened in wonder. "That's amazing! To think you could uphold the peace just by being seen! You truly are the number one hero. I wonder what the statistics might be if your passive influence was included in crimes stopped on the leaderboard for..."
Yagi could feel himself growing embarrassed on the boy's behalf as his speech gave way to rapid-fire muttering. What little he caught was ridiculously detailed in its analysis of the current hero commission. 'My oh my, this boy has quite the powerful mind, although it could use some focusing.'
A quick chop on the head brought Izuku out of his headspace. "Ow! Oh, sorry. S-sometimes my mind runs away when questions pop up. It's kind of hard to stop it if I d-don't catch it at the start."
"Hahaha! It's quite alright. Your mind is a scary thing, really, but it could use some focus." Yagi smiled at the young man, once he got past the boy's nervous attitude, Izuku was actually a rather pleasant person if a little over-eager.
"Umm, A-All Might, I was wondering. Why are you so skinny in your true form? Were you always like this? How has no one found out over the years?"
"This form is a result of an injury I took five years ago against a very dangerous villain." Yagi didn't know why he was so open with this young man, but something about Izuku set him at ease in a way few people could.
"Toxic Chainsaw did that to you? I didn't realize he was so powerful?!"
"Hah! That punk wishes he could have done this to me." Yagi grew more serious as he remembered the fight that had nearly cost him his hero career. "No, this was a far more dangerous villain. One so fearsome that the government wished to hide his legend from the general populace for fear of generating a panic."
"Such a powerful villain. It is incredibly fortunate that you were there to keep up safe." Midoriya shuddered before bowing at the waist. "Thank you, All Might! You made such a sacrifice all those years and yet continue to give us this feeling of peace!"
"Woah, woah! No need to be so exuberant. It is my honor to be a hero to so many. I hope to inspire them to their own great deeds someday."
Now Izuku was reminded of why he was here. "All Might! I have a question, one that I need an answer for! It has plagued me since I was very young, but I know you will have a good answer for me."
Yagi raised in eyebrow in curiosity. "What is it?"
"Can a quirkless person still be a hero?!" Yagi stood stock still, unable to react at first to such a crazy question. "All my life, everyone around me has told me it's a crazy dream. To think that I could inspire or help others without a quirk of my own... But... I just can't let go of my dream! Can I do it? Can I be a hero like you?!"
"No." Izuku froze, unable to process the word that had come out of his greatest hero's mouth without hesitation. "Young man, I need you too look at me."
Yagi's heart hurt at the look the young man shot him. It was heartbreak, nothing more and nothing less. It reminded him of the day his mentor died. "I do not think you can be a hero like me without a quirk. Your mind is sharp, so I'll give you a question. If you were to face the villain I did all those years ago, a beast capable of destruction on a horrific scale, what would you do to stop him?"
Midoriya's expression changed as his mind ran away with the question. In that situation, there was very little he could imagine that would be able to hurt, much less hold such a force of evil. "I-"
"There is the answer to your question, young man. You cannot be a hero like me because you cannot do the things I can. Your simply aren't physically capable, and it would be cruel of me to ask you to try. Would you ask a baby to move a bus?" Izuku shook his head as his mind finally faced a conundrum he had run from for years. "So it is here. You cannot be a hero like me if you cannot do the things I do..."
"I understand." And Izuku truly did. The compassion in his hero's voice allowed him to push past any resentment for the answer he didn't want.
"...but that does not mean I do not believe you can be a hero."
Izuku's head shot up as tears filled his eyes, his throat raw with tension as he looked to his hero for a new hope.
"You do not possess a quirk, this is true. But many other heroes have had to fill in the gap their quirks leave, whether it be with cultivated skill or equipment. I don't know what you are capable of, only you can find that out, but I do know that you could still live to be a great hero and even save lives. It will be hard, and you will need to dedicate yourself to it more than you have so far - I can tell from your physique that you have not made great efforts to physically overcome your shortcomings." Yagi took a breath, before facing Izuku with a look of incredible intensity. "But if you truly want to be a hero, if you have the guts and drive to overcome your shortcomings and aknowledge what you cannot do, then I believe that you will be a hero someday. It's all up to you."
Izuku could not speak, he was too busy sobbing. Finally, finally, someone would believe in him. Maybe not as he was, but they still believed in what he could be! "I will, All Might. I'm going to become a great hero someday! People will be able to find hope when they see me! It's a promise on my name, Midoriya Izuku!"
"I look forward to it, Izuku." Yagi smiled. "Allow me to properly introduce myself. My name is Toshinori Yagi."
Izuku headed home with his head held high, never noticing that All Might had panicked at realizing he had dropped the bottle containing the villain.
-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-
Izuku's mind was racing as he headed home. He knew that his first goal was to become stronger, as that was the primary weakness All Might had pointed out. Past that, he needed to figure out how to focus his mind to avoid getting distracted and determine what kind of support gear he would need to overcome his shortcomings.
It was in a daze that he nearly passed a large crowd of people watching a cloud of smoke. He might have missed it entirely if the sound of a familiar explosion hadn't jolted his mind out of it's preoccupation. With a start, his head jerked up to take in the world around him. Another explosion went off, and his subconscious drew him nearer to the source. When he realized what was happening, horror dawned upon him.
'The slime villain. How?! All Might took him out back at the tunnel. He put him into that-' The bottle. The bottle that went into a pants pocket. The bottle that went in a pants pocket on the leg that Izuku had grabbed in desperation. 'It's my fault! Someone is being hurt, might be killed, because I wanted All Might to answer a question. It's amazing they've lasted this long as is!'
His frustration mounted as he realized there wasn't much he could do to help right now. Even if he could get close enough to grab the person, his chances of getting them out weren't great. After all, All Might had already pointed out his lacking physique.
'Backdraft, Kamui Woods, Death Arms, Mt Lady - they are very capable heroes. Why aren't they helping?' While it was obvious that Kamui might have some aversion to fire, Izuku knew that it would take a very hot fire indeed to set fresh wood alight so quickly. 'And Mt Lady could just shrink herself and come down the road.'
All of these things took a backseat, though, when he realized who the victim was.
'Kacchan!' Without thought, Izuku began running out of the crowd. His backpack slipped off his shoulder as his mind raced, the simple item flying true into the monster's eyes and buying him a few precious seconds. He immediately began scrabbling to get ahold of the person he once considered his closest friend. Miraculously he managed to get the boy's head out of the slime and hold it forward long enough for the angry blond to catch his breath.
"Deku! The fuck do you think you're doing!"
"I couldn't leave you here! You needed someone to save you!"
At this point, the monster intervened and flung Izuku back from his prize, sending the young would-be hero nearly to the crowd. "You little brat! That hurt! This is my prize and I'll be damned before you get it!"
Deku was not going to leave this alone. And something... someone... noticed.
'The idiot is in way over his head.'
'And yet he didn't hesitate to go out and try to help, even though it was his tormentor.
'Haha! This kid has got some guts to just jump in like that.'
'Let's give him a hand.'
'What?! It's never been done! It can't be done.'
'There is a tenuous bridge, made earlier. It won't last long, but we can do something while it holds.'
'He'll never manage to handle it.'
'I think he will do just fine.'
'Wow, this could get crazy! Hope Toshi-chan doesn't mind a second opinion!'
At this point, in another life, All Might would have stepped in and saved the day. Indeed, the hero in question had arrived on the scene in time to watch the young man he had advised earlier race forward only to be launched back seconds later. Just as he was getting ready to intervene, something caught his eye. Toshinori Yagi looked down and gaped.
The palm of his right hand was glowing, small sparks like green lightning beginning to dance at the edges. It was something he had never before witnessed from One For All. He looked up only to see the young man wreathed in energy. Yagi sucked in a gasp as realization set in. He would remember it for the rest of his life. The moment... when One For All showed him his successor.
Izuku looked down as light caught his eye. It was him. He was glowing.
'What is this?' He thought to himself. Then something else answered.
'You look like you could use a hand.' A young woman's voice spoke with audible cheer.
'This isn't a fight you can win alone.' A young man, his voice soft yet strong in its own way sounded out.
'You need to work harder if you want to be the Beacon of Hope you dream of!' This voice was an older man's, powerful and forceful.
'So just this once, we'll give you a little extra help.' The young man's voice spoke again.
All of a sudden, Izuku knew what to do, almost as if he had done it before. His whole body trembled as power, barely leashed, rushed through him. His eyes hardened as his anger at the world that had abused those without power rushed forward to give him the push needed to go on the offensive once more. He pushed off explosively as a shout ripped out his mouth. "LET KACCHAN GO!"
His fist, wreathed in emerald light, brushed just to the left of Kacchan's face as his other hand grabbed the captive boy's jacket, the blonde's eyes wide with shock as the one he had dismissed for years suddenly became something fearsome and forbidding. With a sound like a rushing wind, Izuku's fist made contact with the ooze... and the ooze all but evaporated. The windows for a block behind the blow shattered spontaneously and every fire guttered out.
All was silent... until Izuku's limbs all erupted with blood.
Izuku looked at the one he once called friend... and smiled. "I'm glad... you're alright... Kacchan..."
"Izuku!"
-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-
"The boy's body wasn't ready for that power. For all we know, it was waiting for him to get strong enough to withstand the force of it. It ripped open several blood vessels. It's fortunate All Might was on scene. If he hadn't gotten the boy here so quickly..." The doctor trailed off before smiling. "That boy is gonna be something else when he grows into his power, though. That was one hell of a punch."
Bakugou Katsuki was in a daze as his mind travelled in circles around a problem. 'Deku almost died. Deku almost died saving me. Deku almost died saving me because his body couldn't handle his quirk. Deku almost died saving me because he was too weak. I kept beating Deku down. I tried to keep him weak. I almost killed Deku.'
His mind could not get over the fact that the former friend had risked his life in more ways than one to save his own tormentor. His eyes travelled over to the bed that held the irrepressible green baka. "Goddamit, Deku! The fuck do you think you're doing?! You think this changes anything! It doesn't! You better get better because I'm gonna kick your ass for making the Hag and Aunty worry! And then I'll kick it again for trying to show me up like that!"
"...Kacchan, not so loud..."
"DEKU!" Bakugou was out of his seat in an instant. "What the hell were you doing out there! You'd already tried and that slimy fuck threw you down! You never stay down when you're supposed to, you stupid fuck!"
"...couldn't let you die, Kacchann." Deku's face turned to look at his old friend. "You're my friend."
In most circumstances, Bakugou could be counted on to rage against any implication that they were friends, but something in the greenette's eyes stopped him dead. He still managed a huff. "Shut up, Deku."
Izuku just smiled.
-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-HIPS-
Outside the room, Toshinori Yagi leaned away from the door with a sigh, his eyes softening. "It is good the young man has a friend he cares about."
Walking away, the hero incognito pondered what to do about the current situation. 'It is obvious that something has changed. How did One For All end up in the hands of that boy? It nearly killed him? Why did it do that? Has... has it chosen him somehow?'
He needed answers, and there were two people he trusted above all others. 'I really hope they don't take the boy's condition out on me though.'
