Tenya Iida knew watching the battle between Todoroki and Midoriya that, like it or not, he was about to hit the end of his journey through the final stretch of the sport's festivals.
He had reached remarkably highly, through both the efforts of his team and own abilities, but he was not conceited enough to think he could defeat the Power of Midoriya in a one on one combat scenario.
The only question was whether his stop would come at the final fight, or the penultimate one.
As it turned out… It was the Penultimate one.
"AND BAKUGO GOES ON TO THE FINALS! DESPITE A SPIRITED MATCH, INGENIUM'S BROTHER COULD NOT MATCH THE BOY WITH EXPLODING HANDS! WHICH LEAVES OUR FINAL MATCH OF THE DAY AS MIDORIYA IZUKU VERSUS BAKUGO KATSUKI! A FATED FIGHT BETWEEN TWO FORMER CHILDHOOD FRIENDS TO DETERMINE THE FINAL OUTCOME OF THE COUNTRY'S GREATEST SPORTING EVENT!"
As he stumbled back onto his feet, he felt a massive, massive pang of disappointment… Not at the outcome, but at himself as he began the trek back the way to the entrance he'd come.
His limits had been reached, and though he had gone all the way to the last battles he couldn't help but feel… Inadequate.
His declaration to Midoriya suddenly felt rather full of holes.
Not only because he now saw the true gap between them, but because he had made his boast feeling that he had seen the limits of her strength, and yet had only begun to tap into his own potential.
He had understood there was a gap… But he had believed that through effort and determination he might bridge that gap in some way.
A foolish notion as he had learned.
As he turned the corner inside the entrance, he immediately stopped, as Mei was leaning up against the wall.
"Good job. You actually managed to get to near the top despite having a Quirk not devoted to combat."
He suddenly felt incredibly stiff, but despite his immediate instincts, he did not look away… Though the incredibly robotic motions made it redundant.
"Why… Are you here?"
"To pick you up. Obviously. We need to cheer up Izuku-Sama after the battle, so she'll be up for beating Katsuki black and blue."
"I doubt that will happen. The for all intents and purposes magical powers of Chariot ensures no harm actually comes to the contestants."
"It's a figure of speech. Also you seem really different than usual."
He immediately sputtered.
What did his brother say he had to say to Mei.
"I…"
The events at the park!
"I-have-actually-been-pretty-shaken-up-since-the-invasion!"
"When we murdered that guy?" Mei replied in a completely calm and nonchalant tone."
He froze.
"I… Yes."
"Yeah I have nightmares about that too sometimes. Honestly if I weren't Izuku-Sama's friend, I probably would have retired after that, and changed completely over to being a Hero mechanic."
It was the complete lack of any and all conceitedness that really did it for Tenya.
"You… Truly? That seems… Rather strange."
"You know Tenya, blowing someone's brains out to save a hostage is kinda a big deal you know? It leaves a big scar."
He just… Nodded.
This… this had not gone the way he'd have thought.
As she motioned for him to follow, they began walking.
Silence reigned as they did as Iida considered.
His brother had been right after all… Though for completely different reasons.
He… Honestly, I was not sure what to feel right now… But his thoughts did go to his brother.
Regardless of what he himself felt about his performance… Surely his brother must have seen it.
He wondered how his elder sibling would judge him… Would he be impressed? Find it unseemly? Disappointed as he himself was? Or would he pick it apart and analyze his performance for him?
He sighed.
Then he began vibrating. Immensely so, to such a degree even Mei raised an eyebrow.
"You really need to get a lower vibration on that phone, Iida. That could get you killed one day."
"No need to be melodramatic."
He fished the phone and answered.
It was his mother, talking in a surprising and out of character frantic tone.
It took him a few moments before he actually realized what was being said.
It was so out of nowhere, that his brain had trouble processing it as real.
"I… I'll be there."
He clicked the disconnect button without a proper goodbye.
"I… I need to go."
"Yeah, to-" "I mean I need to leave. Now."
He didn't wait for a future reply.
He had to go. NOW.
I
Mei looked after him, feeling rather annoyed.
That annoyance however, was quickly replaced with relaxation as a familiar voice called out."
"You don't need to go cheer Izuku up. She used up way too much blood, and won't be up for hours yet.
The way he said it was completely nonchalant.
Mei however, pulled with the punches.
"That means she will lose the final bout by default."
DTR nodded.
"Sure will. We're holding a one hour "break" but she won't be up before that."
He walked up, and passed her.
"Go home Mei, and get some well deserved rest. You're gonna need it. I don't know where Izuku will intern just yet… But you can bet that glove of yours you're gonna have to be there on time."
"No break. Yeah, I figured as much when Izuku-Sama went and entered the festival."
He nodded nonchalantly.
"Yep. Televised for the whole world… I don't know if Ryuko will react… But Satsuki… Satsuki I know EXACTLY how she will react… But that is for later. For now, go home Mei. Rest and tinker. You have 2 days of free time before school starts up again. You're gonna need it. Believe that."
I
Bakugo Katsuki was having one of the at the same time most pathetic, yet honestly depressing breakdowns ever witnessed in the ring of Yuei's sports festivals.
He had started off with an expression of forced confidence.
Then he'd become annoyed.
Then angry.
Then a bit nervous.
Then he'd gotten angry again.
Then he'd actually gotten worried.
Then angry anew.
And now he was at despair.
"AND BAKUGO WINS BY DEFAULT AS HIS OPPONENT HAS NOT YET REGAINED CONFIDENCE… NO TRUE GLORY FOR HIM AS HE SNATCHES THE CROWN BY SIMPLY BRING ON HIS FEET WHILE HIS OPPONENT IS NOT… WHICH DEPRESSINGLY ENOUGH MIRRORS THE TALE OF ALL MIGHT AND ENDEAVOR QUITE WELL…"
"Like Hell I am! This… This can't be how it ends! There is… There is nothing worth celebrating here…"
It was… Actually kinda really, really sad… Just moments before, the beat that had been building up unheard for the entire day had suddenly petered out as Bakugo finally realized there would be no glorious final bout here.
Just a false victory that NO ONE would ever say he earned.
No glory, no strengthening, no satisfaction.
I
Izuku… Felt great as she woke up.
Which was impressive considering how groggy she felt.
And yet… She hadn't felt this good in…
"Oh so you're awake finally. You're improving. You've been asleep one hour less than last time."
It was recovery girl.
"Oh… That's… Nice…"
"You lost the final round by the way. The blonde boy took the gold by default."
It took her a moment before she realized what she was talking about.
Then it came back to her.
"Oh right… There was another fight after… With… Kacchan? Anyway… That's fine… Good for him…"
And it was… She hoped he was happy with his victory prize.
"Your silver medal is over there by the way."
She didn't really look at it.
She didn't really… Feel any pull to do so either.
Strange… This tournament… and its outcome… Didn't mean ANYTHING to her… And yet, whereas that had filled her with despair earlier today… Now she saw that for what it meant.
She had taken it as a question… But the truth was… It was just a simple statement.
She didn't have any reason to be here… But that didn't mean there was anything wrong with being here either… Well besides…
For a brief moment, the reality that she and Fuku would be plastered across the net struck her thoughts… But she put it aside.
She was just… In a good mood right now.
Bizarrely good today.
"I think… I think Shoto-Kun will be better now… Well… Not immediately, but… He'll get better."
"It would be hard not to, I think. That boy was as burning as smoldering coals. Regardless… That is for another day. For now, rest and heaven's sake girl, STOP using up ALL your blood in one go!"
She left not soon after.
Unlike last time though… Izuku didn't feel like lying down.
"Fuku?"
Something jumped from a wall and crawled under her covers before embracing her like an old friend.
"How are you feeling?"
"Pretty… Pretty good."
"You're smiling too… It's… Different than usual. A bit nervous and shy, but… It… Lacks something."
She knew exactly what he meant.
It was… It was bizarre actually.
Just how… How nice she felt right now.
And the WHY of it as well.
She finally had it. The answer she had been looking for.
Why she wanted to be a Hero.
"You know Fuku… It's funny… Dad… At the end… He said to me… That I was the kindest… That I shouldn't lose that… Lose my way he said… That was the answer all along… I didn't NEED to find something NEW. I had it all along…"
She raised herself from the bed, and stretched, feeling as much as hearing her joints pop with a satisfying sound.
She stumbled a bit as she walked over to the window to look out over a gorgeous sunset.
The world was not mocking her.
It was not encouraging her either though.
It just was. Beautiful and terrible in equal measure.
Right now… She saw the beauty.
"It feels… GOOD… To help people Fuku… THAT'S what I personally took from All Might… It… Might not quite be why HE smiled… But that's why I do it… That's what's matters… To me."
It was such simple reasoning… And yet… It was powerful. Maybe not to the world… But it was to her.
The clouds… The feeling that it was never going to get better… It was fading.
No… It had faded in the arena, as she saw the effect of her work in real time.
She grinned.
She felt… Giddy.
It was such an alien feeling.
No, it wasn't that she hadn't felt it in a long time… Now it just… Lacked something.
As she looked out over the landscape around Yuei's sport's stadium, she paused for a moment at the sight of a girl her age wearing Yuei's school uniform, who was standing on one the branches of a large tree, her hand holding her steady and stable against the main tree base.
Long, flowing green hair that danced in an invisible wind.
A melancholic look with two equally melancholic eyes met hers…
The figure began to fade.
She faltered into a million specks of green dust that blew away in the wind. As if she had never existed at all.
Just a space-girl's dreams.
Izuku felt melancholy at the sight… A sudden reminder that there was still darkness in the world… But… She did not despair.
And that made all the difference.
She wasn't the same person she had been before all of this… But that was fine.
She wouldn't forget Amra… But she would live again. Scars and all.
"Seems Manbavaren was right after all… I'll admit I'm Not sure WHY… But you sure seem to have started to actually heal."
"Yeah… You know Fuku… I'm not completely sure either… I see the pieces, but… Other than regaining my motivation… There are so many things I'm not completely sure about… But that's alright… I'll figure it out. I'm NOT powerless anymore after all… That makes such a difference…"
And it had.
She had done something today.
Something good… Something that MATTERED.
With her own hands and will she had made a difference in one boy's life.
After finding her beloved red shoes, and picking up the silver medal, she quickly walked out…
Her thoughts were on her mother… She… She needed to have a talk with her mom.
A real talk.
She still had a LOT of figuring out to do… But she was sure about that.
Her mother… Represented what remained of what represented another pillar she would build her life around from now on.
Not the same as her motivation for Hero work, but still…
Her thoughts were interrupted immediately however, as her blue haired sensei was there waiting for her, nonchalantly leaning up against a wall.
Several lipstick marks bespoke that his wife had been around not long ago.
"Already up eh? Recovery Girl thought you still would be in bed for another hour or so."
"I…"
"Don't worry kiddo. I'm not gonna order you to bed. You're a big girl who can make her own choices."
He looked… Proud.
That was the only way to describe it.
He looked a lot like her dad after she came home having aced her exams as she often did.
"That said… I have two questions for you, before I leave you for your celebrations…"
He raised a finger.
"Firstly… How did you know that Chariot's final barrier would hold you up when you used it as a jumping off point? It was such a strange detail… And yet you clearly understood it would hold you."
She blinked.
She honestly hadn't really noticed that.
"I… I don't know. I just… Thought it would. It seemed… Logical I suppose…?"
There was a questioning tone at the end… But it was true.
She had… Thought it would work out like that. And it had.
"So… Instinct then. Well… That's always good. Instincts are a huge part of Hero work, and separates those who can, from those who cannot."
He held up a second finger.
"Now then… To the FAR more important question… Did you finally find out what sort of Hero you wanted to be?"
She beamed.
"Yeah! I did. I… Actually I kinda already knew… I had to recall something I had… Kinda forgotten. But yeah, I did! There are two kinds of things I want to be as a Hero. The first… Is someone who helps people… and the second thing…"
She paused.
She considered how to word it… But in the end, she knew what she had to say.
"Heroes who Hurt their own families to Help complete strangers are the Scum of the Earth."
She nodded to herself as if that little nugget of wisdom was the most brilliant philosophical gem the Human race had ever produced…
Then she gave her Sensei a cheery wave goodbye, and began walking down the corridor. Proud, if not quite steady.
She was uncertain about a lot of things… But of those two things she was certain as the sun rising in the east.
She wanted to help people… and taking care of your own family was what separated mankind from Animals.
That lesson did not only apply to herself… But also to those around her.
To people like Shoto, who was betrayed by those whose duty above anything else was to shelter and care for him.
Without understanding that… She couldn't help those like Shoto…
Without understanding how much her own family truly meant to her, she would fail again when she had her own anew.
That latter one was a far, far time off… But it WOULD come.
She WANTED a family.
That… Was not a part of her dreams of Heroism… But it WAS the thing she wanted the most beyond that. THAT was what DTR's lesson had truly been about. What she wanted… And the mistakes she MIGHT make on that journey.
And if she didn't actually learn anything… She would just make all the same mistakes she had made with Amra.
She got out of the building, which was now almost completely deserted other than the robots that prowled it, and who cheerfully informed her they would summon a bus to escort her to the entrance.
She once more leaned back just… Taking the world in.
Her thoughts though, were interrupted once again, by the sudden appearance of another figure, though this one announced her presence by bathing her in shadow from the setting sun, who she blocked out.
Izuku felt her tongue catch in her throat.
"Morning! Or good evening I suppose. We haven't really gotten a real introduction before, though we've been pretty close!"
"I… Hello I'm…"
She was star struck.
"Midoriya Izuku! I like it! A bit boyish, but… Ah but I'm sure you have something to do now, so I won't trouble you too much… I'm certain you have better things to do than talk to an old lady like me… But I hear you first-year kiddos are gonna have your first taste of internship in a short week or two! You wanna come join me?"
Izuku just stared, stars in her eyes, suddenly feeling completely out of it… For very different reasons than usual lately.
Then she caught herself and nodded!
"Great! I'll see you then! We two Quirkless gals should stick together you know?"
"Wait, what?"
She waved, enthusiastically.
"Well, later-" "WAIT!"
The older woman, who'd just turned to fly away, turned back.
"Yes?"
"Can I… Can I have your autograph miss Chariot?"
I
End of Part 1 - MIDORIYA IZUKU. ORIGIN-
I
Finally.
It had been months and months since last contact. The ONLY contact between her and Satauki's faction…
It had been disastrous… But it had not gone AS bad as it could have.
The past though, didn't concern her right now.
The present and future did much more so.
Her friends had their own thoughts as the several dozens of footage of a grand battle was edited together in front of their eyes in real time.
"It's nice to see someone who actually finishes their battles for once. Victory or defeat."
"In your case, that would be defeat Monkey."
"Ah, leave of Nonon-Chan."
A strong, deep, powerful voice cut through the banter.
"I agree. There are far, far more important things to debate than your regular banter."
Another voice joined in, this one sounding stoic, yet amused more than anything.
"Midoriya Izuku. 15 years. Only child of Midoriya Ink, and Midoriya Hisashi. Famous if an oddball scientist. Died the same day Satsuki-Sama's mother was slain, later in the day. I also have her address, and phone number. Shall I prepare for contact?"
"No."
There was no way she could allow such a nonchalant first direct meeting to happen.
Not after the disastrous first contact all those months ago.
That much was clear to her without any further consideration.
"I will only have one shot at introducing myself properly. It will be perfect. We shall await until her first round of internship. I have waited to meet her since I was 8. I can wait a small while longer."
As she talked, she studied the girl on the monitor in front of her. Every part of her. Her freckles, her hair, her face… The EYES that immediately and time and again reminded her of her Father.
Finally. After these years… She FINALLY had a face… And a Name… to put to the girl.
Midoriya Izuku.
The most important girl in all the world.
I
Ryoko leaned over on her side, hand in the palm of her hand, resting on an elbow that was supporting her head.
In front of her was a TV, showcasing Yuei's sports festival.
"Another Kamui wearer? Great."
"It's a lead… The only one we have at the moment… And besides, our last meeting with a Kamui user was illuminating… Even if it just raised more questions."
"Yeah… Well… I just…"
She yawned.
"Well she can't possibly be worse than Maiko I suppose… I'll go and arrange for her address number… Tomorrow. I'm not in the mood today."
"It's all those energy drinks you've been chugging! The withdrawal symptoms are not good for you!"
Ryoko suddenly felt a massive pang of annoyance, and sure enough an argument broke out.
The girl on the TV quickly, and almost completely forgotten for the moment.