In the town of Magnolia, the Fairy Tail guild was at it again. Anybody passing by could hear the chaos inside and they all knew what that meant.

Fairy Tail was fighting again.

While everyone pummeled each other with their fists, Lucy insisted on cowering behind the bar where Mira was. She didn't feel like getting caught in the crossfires again and getting thrown around like a ragdoll. It happened once, and that was enough.

"Hiding again, Lucy?" Mira asked.

"Yeah, since I don't feel like getting dragged into another fight. Last time was a nightmare."

Mira laughed and walked off to serve another round of beer and food to those who weren't fighting. Lucy peeked over the edge of the counter. She watched as Mira artfully wove through the crowd of fighters and managed to keep a single drop of food or drink from spilling.

Lucy could see Natsu cackling off to the side as he held a bundle of clothes over his head.

"Oh boy, here we go." She muttered.

"Give me back my clothes, Natsu!" Gray shouted as he chased the fire mage in his underwear.

"You gotta take it from me!"

"Aye, sir!"

Happy was in on it, too apparently.

Lucy laughed nervously to herself as she slunk back behind the counter. She could only wait until Erza got involved, which was inevitable. Erza always got involved. Whose fault it would be, she didn't know. All she knew was that it would happen, and once she did, it would be all over.

"Hey Lucy, maybe you should join them," Mira said as she leaned against the counter.

"Absolutely not! I don't feel like dying!" Lucy protested.

"Thought so. Well, if you're not up to anything, would you mind doing something for me?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure."

Mira quickly turned around and grabbed a folded paper. "Master wants to get this list to Porlyusica. There are a few tonics and elixirs we keep here for cases when we can't go to her, and we're running pretty low."

"Oh, yeah, of course, I can take this." Lucy took the paper and looked over the list. It wasn't too extensive, but no doubt it would probably take the woman a bit of time. "She lives in the East Forest, right?"

"You got it!"

Lucy flinched at the sound of something breaking and sighed. "I'll be back in a bit. You'll tell the others where I'm at if they ask, right?"

"Of course."

Lucy gave a thumbs up before heading to the front door, ducking and dodging all the way there. She was about to open the door when a body came flying towards her. She yelped in surprise and jumped to the side. The doors slammed open, and Elfman went flying out. She waited a moment before he got to his feet and ran back inside.

With that, Lucy walked out of the Guild Hall and began to make her way to the forest.

She held the list close. If anything happened to it, she'd be in serious trouble; she needed to get the list to Porlyusica completely intact.

As she walked, Lucy happened to pass by her apartment. She looked up at it and sighed; she hadn't been able to sleep very well the past few nights. She couldn't understand why, but she had begun to develop a feeling of dread in the late hours of the night.

She had a feeling something was off; there was a change in the air that left her feeling unsettled and nervous. She swore she had seen a falling star the other night, something bright and brilliant falling from the heavens.

She was sure something was falling from the sky, not just a faraway star. It was too close, and the glow that lit up the sky...that couldn't be a star. Could it? Maybe someone cast a spell that made the light appear, though who in their right mind would be casting spells like that in the middle of the night?

Lucy hummed to herself as she thought about it. It might have been someone from the guild practicing a new spell. Everyone's been trying to get stronger in their own ways. Maybe there was someone who insisted on doing night training.

Oh well, as long as they're not hurting anybody…

-.-

Now that Lucy thought about it, she had never actually met Porlyusica. She heard about her from the other members, but she was never around. Apparently, because she preferred a hermit lifestyle.

She wasn't sure what to expect when she went over, maybe a nice, quiet old lady who would shoo her off?

"You little thief! I know you're out there somewhere; just wait until I get my hands on you!"

Lucy stopped when she heard the yelling. She looked ahead to see a woman with pink hair waving a broom at the treeline. So much for nice and quiet...she was almost afraid to approach the woman for fear of getting smacked with the broom.

Lucy looked down at the list Mira gave her before sighing. She might get smacked with a broom, but she could always run away.

It's not like I can just throw the paper at her and go, right? That'd be rude.

"Don't think I don't see you over there, young lady."

Oh no. She saw me!

"You're a Fairy Tail wizard, correct? What are you doing out here? Are you or any of the others in need of medical assistance?"

"Oh no...that's not really it."

"Then why are you here? It's not often new members like yourself actively seek me out." She raised an eyebrow.

"Uh...well…" Lucy fidgeted before making her way forward and holding out the paper. "I was asked to give this list to you. Apparently, we're running low on elixirs and regular medicine at the guild. And I was sent to give you this."

Porlyusica took the paper from and looked over the items. After a moment, she pocketed it and turned away.

"I can have these ready in about a week. Would it be safe to assume that you're going to pick them up, or are you going to make me go all the way into town?"

"Oh no, ma'am, of course, I'll come to get them!" Lucy waved her hands around as the woman huffed.

"Very well, tell the old fool that he owes me for this. Getting some of these ingredients, at this time of year...it's like he's trying to make my life harder." She gripped the broom tightly. "Then it doesn't help that little thief stole some of my herbs last night."

"Thief?" Lucy asked.

"Yes, about two days ago, someone started coming by at night and began to steal from me. They stole my herbs," She gestured to a patch of ground, "then they stole some of my food." She pointed at an opened box of apples. "They left a mess everywhere, but even so, I don't believe they can be too far. If they stole that many medicinal herbs, they might be desperate to get some kind of treatment. It doesn't give them an excuse, though."

Lucy looked over everything, noting how neat it all looked. Porlyusica had probably tidied up earlier. She just decided to start yelling when Lucy arrived. As she scanned over the area, she couldn't help but notice a set of footprints and a few droplets of what looked like dried blood.

"You said that Master Makarov would owe you a favor, right?" Lucy asked. She flinched when the woman turned towards her.

"Yes, and what about it?"

"Well, what if we pay it forward?" She asked. "My friends and I can come by tonight and keep watch for you. We can catch them and make them return any herbs they haven't used. Maybe get some of your food back."

Porlyusica raised an eyebrow. "I'm not sure if I should trust an entire team not to wreck my forest. Oh, don't give me that look; I know very well the kind of chaos you hellions create."

Lucy laughed nervously. "It'd just be my friends and me, I promise we won't cause any damage. I'll make sure of it!"

She narrowed her eyes.

"U-Unless...you just want maybe two of us to be on patrol?" She offered.

"Hmph." Porlyusica looked away. "I'd rather have the thief caught sooner than later. Just don't make a mess. Understood?"

Lucy nodded. "Right. What time would you like us to stop by?"

"Just before sundown, that thief wasn't able to grab much, so he'll have to come back."

"Will do ma'am, I promise we'll help catch him!"

Porlyusica nodded before turning away, going back to sweeping up the area.

Lucy stood there for a moment, looking around. "I'm just...gonna go now. See you tonight, Miss Porlyusica!" She gave a small wave and hurried back to the town.

As she made her way back, she couldn't help but think about what she had seen the other night.

-.-

It was the cold wind that dragged him out of his sleep; it was a welcome sensation. Despite his shivering, he felt like his skin was on fire. Izuku laid on the ground for a bit longer before dragging himself up.

He's been in and out of consciousness for what he thought must have been days for now. He wasn't sure what had happened; it was weird. He remembered falling, then sinking into the water, and the next thing he knew, he woke up on a riverbank.

He was alone, and thankfully there was no sign of the Nomu that had been carrying him. He was lucky. While that was neat and all, he realized he was in a place he had never seen before. He wasn't sure if it was a different part of Japan, or he somehow floated to a whole other country.

He wasn't sure, but it didn't matter, not now. Right now, his focus was survival; he had found a small house in the middle of the vast forest. He thought it had been abandoned; almost everywhere in Japan was abandoned unless it was a haven or a hero school.

It had to have been recently, but he didn't want to take any chances. He went under cover of night and dug around to find what he could find. He found a crate full of apples, food which he desperately needed. Then a little ways away, he found what he thought were some medicinal herbs, something that could help. He got what he could of the apples and went to take some of the herbs.

Unfortunately in his hurry, he ended up knocking something over and sent stuff crashing to the ground. He initially panicked and picked up what he could, but when he saw no one around he relaxed. At least until the door burst open and someone started yelling at him. From there he panicked and ran away.

That had been two days ago, he had gone back the day before for some more food. Though this time the lady was waiting and he only got away with a few apples before she came storming out.

There was part of him that felt guilty for taking her things, but he needed it. He would have asked for help but ever since he stole from her he doubted she'd be willing to help him. Then there was the possibility of her throwing him out anyway once she found out he was Quirkless. So he had to steal, he had no other choice.

Izuku eyed the small pile of apples, he knew he should eat but the thought of any food made him feel sick. Instead of focusing on food, he chose to focus on his injuries. With shaky hands, he pulled his gakuran off and pulled up his shirt. He cringed at the sight of the injury and covered it back up.

It was starting to fester, he was getting sick.

He had been able to grab some herbs sure, but that doesn't mean he knew how to use them! Something he should have thought about before he decided to go and steal them.

A voice in the back of his mind told him to go back, to ask for help, he might get lucky and she might help him.

Then the voice of doubt started to creep in. Telling him he can't, he knows this, if he tries to ask for help it'll be denied. He has to do this on his own, no one is going to help him. Especially after he's stolen from someone.

Izuku sighed and laid back down, he didn't have much energy to do anything else. He would rest for a while, and maybe he'd go back. After all, the lady living in there might have some medicine in her home, hopefully, he can grab some and run out. Not a lot, just enough to help him get better.

Once he was fixed up, he would leave and be out of her hair. He would figure where to go from there.

Izuku pulled the gakuran over him like a makeshift blanket, he would figure this out. He had to, he always did.

-.-

"This is kinda boring."

"Aye." Happy sleepy muttered, resting on a branch nearby.

"Shut up." Lucy elbowed her friends in the ribs. "What part of sneaking up on the thief don't you understand?"

Natsu yawned and rubbed his eyes. "Yeah, but we've been here forever. What if he doesn't show up?"

"Then we'll have to come again the next night," Erza answered. She stood further in the back, keeping a close eye on the treeline. They were hiding near the house in some foliage, close to the growing herbs and the crates of apples.

"Maybe he won't come out because somebody won't shut up." Gray glared at Natsu.

"You're talking too you jerk."

"Yeah but not as loud as you are flame brain."

"You got a problem with me, streaker?"

"At this point, he's gonna hear us and he's gonna be scared off." Lucy rubbed her eyes.

"Both of you, shut up." Erza whirled around, silencing them. "Look." She pointed towards the tree line, forcing them all to pay attention.

It was hard to see in the dark, but they could make out a faint outline of a person creeping out of the woods and towards the house. They walked around, ducking low and peeking around before continuing on. He nearly tripped over himself a couple of times, stopping every time to make sure he hadn't knocked anything down.

"Let's go get him!" Natsu was about to run forward when Erza grabbed his scarf and pulled him back.

"Hold on, we don't know what kind of magic he uses. Let him get a little closer, then we can catch him. Best to be wary."

Lucy gripped her keys tightly and watched the thief. Much to their surprise he completely passed the small garden and the apples, instead, he was rushing towards the house.

"Is he planning on breaking into the house?" Gray tensed up.

"He's what!" Happy shouted, startled awake.

"You stupid cat, shut up!" Lucy scolded him, but it was too late. The thief had heard the shouting and was looking in their general direction. Instead of moving forward, he started to back away before turning around and running back into the forest.

"Alright, looks like we're doing this the hard way." Natsu grinned and took off after the thief. "Get back here!"

"Natsu you idiot!" Gray yelled and followed after him.

"Those two, I swear…" Erza shook her head and raced after them.

Lucy sent a quick prayer to whatever god might be listening, hoping there would be little to no damage in the area. If there was she was sure Porlyusica would be furious, mostly at her since she had brought everyone along.

Natsu ran through the forest, following the thief with ease since he caught a whiff of his scent. Even if he tried to weave through the forest, Natsu would be able to find him at every turn.

Even so, something bothered him about what the thief's scent was like. He smelled like ash, blood, and grime. With something sour underlying. It made him wrinkle his nose and gag.

It didn't take him very long to catch up to the thief, considering that he sounded like he was in poor shape. Coughing and wheezing every so often. At some point, he ended up tripping over himself and was sent tumbling down a small hill.

He was about to follow when he heard one of the others shouting at him, asking where he was. He answered them, letting them know where he was at. He would have waited, but he wasn't going to let the thief get away, especially since it looked like he was going to try breaking into Porlyusica's house.

Natsu slid down the hill and made his way towards the thief, who was desperately trying to get to his feet. He took in shuddering gasps as he slowly stood up.

"Alright, now let's deal with you." He ignited his flames, feeling them wrap around his hands and seeing them light up the forest a little more. Before he could say or do anything else, he heard the thief speak.

"I-I'm sorry."

It was quiet and timid. A hoarse voice accompanied by small gasps for breath, as if he was sobbing.

"I-I'm so-sorry, I-I just…"

Natsu frowned and held up his hand so he could get a better look at the thief. Instead of finding what he thought would have been some random guy, instead, it was just a kid shaking violently. He couldn't be more than 2 or 3 years younger than Natsu.

"Natsu, you get the guy?" He heard Gray coming up behind him, he heard Lucy and Erza show up too.

"Yeah, you could say that."

The thief backed away when the others showed up, he tried to keep a good distance away from them.

"What do you- oh."

The thief was a mess, with matted hair and a bloodstained shirt, a section is it was starting to grow dark red. Fat tears were rolling down his dirty face as he backed away from them. He was tense and sweating bullets, ready to run away again.

"It's just some kid." Gray frowned. "What happened to him?"

The thief sputtered out another apology. "I-I'm sorry. I ne-needed to, I-I had to.." He flinched and held his throat as if it physically hurt him to speak.

"Were you trying to get medicine?" Erza questioned him. "Is that why you stole from Porlyusica?"

He flinched and backed away.

"I just...I-I needed just a little I…" He sniffled and began to sway slightly. "I-I'm...I'm so-" He didn't get to finish his apology before he collapsed to the ground.

Lucy was the first to hurry over to him. She kneeled down and looked over him, it was clear he was injured. She pressed a hand to his forehead and hissed as she pulled her hand away.

"He's burning up, it feels like he's fire!"

"So he was trying to get some medicine." Gray went over to help Lucy. "We have to get him to Porlyusica."

"She will help him, right?" Lucy stepped aside as Gray picked him up as if he weighed nothing. "I mean, he did steal from her."

"She'll help him. She may be upset with him but it won't stop her from helping someone in need." Erza assured her. "Let's go."

As they ran off, Natsu was about to follow when he stopped. He spotted a tattered bag on the ground, the thief had dropped it when he passed out. While he picked it up, something ended up falling out, a notebook.

Probably against his better judgment, he started to head to the house and opened the notebook, using his flames to help him see read the page.

On the first page was a name at the top.

The boy who smelled of ash, blood, and grime was called Izuku Midoriya.