Sometimes we carry guilt not because we've done wrong, but because we couldn't prevent the wrong from happening.

29 December 2168

"You can say it, I know you want to."

Naomasa looked up from his computer and to Yagi, sat at the hotdesk across from him.

"I don't know what you mean."

Yagi snorted. "You think it was a bad idea to reveal my identity to Young Midoriya. And offer to train him."

"I didn't say that."

"But you've been thinking it, haven't you?"

Naomasa sighed. "A couple of times, yes."

"It's the right choice. Young Midoriya has the heart of a hero, true potential." Yagi argued. "Plus, he needs to be able to defend himself, if he got his hands on him—"

"He is supposed to be dead." Naomasa replied. "You said so yourself."

"Except Nedzu won't say what he did with the remains we recovered." Yagi retorted heatlessly.

"Toshinori, all we recovered was part of his brain and the upper section of his skull. He's dead."

"And his eyes."

"And his eyes." Naomasa echoed. "How could I forget? It was like they were still watching you, following you around the room."

Yagi grunted in agreement before speaking in a hushed tone. "But my point stands, Overhaul is a powerful quirk on its own. Who else but me has experience of having to master an incredibly powerful quirk that they just got in their early teens?"

"That's very specific, plus I thought it came naturally to you?" Naomasa replied, before sighing. "But I can see your point, just don't get any idea about giving him yours, one scale-breaking mega-quirk per person, thank you."

"Wasn't even dreaming of it."

"I can tell you're lying, you know."

A soft chime informed Naomasa that he received an email, checking his screen, he saw it was the one he'd been waiting for.

"It's the DNA results."

Yagi straightened up in his chair. "Go on."

Naomasa opened the email and began to read. "The blood sample from Site A is a filial match to the sample taken from Inko Midoriya, confirming that it was Izuku Midoriya who was blown up there."

"What about the presence of a quirk genome?"

"One present." Naomasa answered. "They say it looks like it was freshly manifested, just right before his death."

"So the quirk only manifested because Midoriya was dying or about to die?"

"No, killed or about to be killed." Naomasa noted. "Tokusei confirmed it with his quirk, Midoriya's original quirk requires that a person be directly responsible for his death for it to work. If he were to trip and fall down the stairs, breaking his neck, he would just be dead. If someone tripped him and he fell and broke his neck, his quirk would activate, erasing the tripper's consciousness and preserving Midoriya's."

"What about the sample taken from Izuku Midoriya after the incident?"

"Right, the sample taken from Izuku Midoriya after he transferred to Overhaul's body is nearly identical, the only difference is the presence of a second quirk genome, that must be Overhaul." Naomasa continued. "That confirms that the Overhaul quirk's effects aren't just surface deep, it's totally remodelled his DNA."

"And what about the match to the sample of his blood?"

Naomasa scrolled down. "There's a match, a distant match, four-point-six percent."

"Four-point-six?" Yagi mused. "That's rather distant."

"The report hypothesises that he is Midoriya's great-great-grandfather or possibly his great-great-great-grandfather."

"Say that three times fast." Yagi joked, before turning suddenly solemn. "Midoriya's quirk is like his quirk, just a different mechanism, gathering quirks."

"A far less efficient mechanism, not to say a lot riskier." Naomasa muttered, before speaking up. "However, it is also like your quirk, just that it transfers the consciousness as well, and doesn't require DNA ingestion."

"A merger of the two." Yagi mused. "Transferring from one body over to another one."

"One Over One."

Yagi snorted. "Got to stay in keeping with the naming convention, eh?"

"It can't be registered." Naomasa stated. "I can bury the medical report, say that Izuku lost his original quirk with his original body, that only his mind was transferred. If the HPSC knew about the full scale of it—"

"He'd spend the rest of his life in one of their black sites." Yagi interrupted. "And knowing them, they'd have a bunch of sacrifices, so the rest of Izuku's life would be a very, very long time."

"I'll visit him later, explain this is for his own safety, and the safety of his family." Naomasa offered.

"No, I've arranged our first training session for tomorrow, I'll tell him then." Yagi shook his head.

"Right, well, I'll file my report then and let you know what cover story the HPSC gives Midoriya." Naomasa stated.

Yagi nodded in agreement.

Silence fell as Naomasa continued to skim the report.

"Inko Midoriya's blood sample isn't a match with his DNA." Naomasa spoke. "Therefore the relation to him must be through Izuku Midoriya's father."

"Who is he?"

"Hisashi Midoriya, thirty-nine, CEO of Akahashi Hero Support Company, Quirk, Dragon's Breath." Naomasa read out as he pulled the file from his desk. "Currently working in the US, setting up a new office for AHSC."

"Any siblings?"

"Just the one, Emiko Akatani, born Emiko Midoriya, the Managing Director of Akahashi Hero Support Company, quirk is also Dragon's Breath."

"His parents?"

"His mother, Hanako Midoriya, died three years ago at sixty-eight, her quirk was also Dragon's Breath, like both of her children." Naomasa flicked the page over. "Kazuma Midoriya, also known as Jack Midoriya, seventy, quirkless, the owner of Akahashi Hero Support Company, retired seven years ago and passed the reins to his children."

"Wait, Kazuma Midoriya, you said he was quirkless?" Yagi queried, receiving a nod in reply. "Either of his parents quirkless?"

"His father, also called Hisashi Midoriya." Naomasa answered. "Wait, his parents, quirkless father and a quirked mother. The father's name was Fumai Midoriya."

"And his parents?"

"Mother, Hana Midoriya, quirked." Naomasa stilled as he read the name on the page. "Father, first name unknown, family name, Shigaraki."

Yagi sighed, leaning back in his chair. "This changes everything. My mentor always believed that he never had any natural children, only the ones he grew in his lab, that he didn't want to risk creating someone outside of his control who had the power to stop him."

"Fumai Midoriya was born in 2042, he would have been, what, early twenties at the time?" Naomasa offered. "He may not have even been active as All For One yet at that point."

"You mean he saw no reason to not have a child because he had not yet become a villain." Yagi realised. "Possibly, but we need to trace all the descendants of Fumai Midoriya, for all we know, there could be someone out there with their own copy of All For One, ready to take his place."

"That can be done." Naomasa assured. "Are you going to tell him about your wound?"

Yagi tensed up. "No, not yet."

"Izuku Midoriya is a smart boy, he'll figure it out eventually."

"He's had a lot happen to him in a short period of time." Yagi argued. "I don't need to add to it, there'll be time and a place to tell him, as there will be about my quirk, and his connection to it."

"But not yet?" Naomasa queried.

"But not yet."

Izuku lay flat on his bed, staring at the numerous grinning All Might that covered nearly every square inch of the walls.

I met him, I met All Might.

Being in the No.1 Hero's presence had been awe-inspiring. Izuku had seen him from afar at parades, of course, but yesterday had been the first time meeting him up close. Sitting up, Izuku stared down at his body, his arms and legs just a little too long, his muscles more defined. Just that bit too old.

All Might said I could be a hero, that I have the heart of a true hero.

Izuku stood, moving towards a mirror on the wall.

He's promised to train me.

Golden eyes stared back at Izuku, the one part of him not to change to match his original body.

Overhaul's eyes.

Reaching up, Izuku pressed a finger to his temple and activated Overhaul. A spark of green energy travelled down his finger and to his eyes, changing them back to their normal green.

This quirk, it's different from how Overhaul used it, for him, the deconstruction and reconstruction of matter just happened. For me, there's this energy, red for non-organic, green for organic.

Izuku watched as his irises began to swirl, turning back to Overhaul's golden eyes.

Every time, it fails every time. Is it that I'm just not experienced enough to make the transmutation permanent, or does my real quirk not let me change my eyes? A reminder of who I took this body from.

Izuku collapsed back onto his bed, staring up at a Young Age All Might poster on his ceiling.

It's funny, I never would have guessed All Might had a transformation quirk, some kind of muscle-enhancing strength quirk.

Rolling over onto his side, Izuku picked up a one-yen piece off of his bedside cabinet, holding it between his fingers. Instinctively he knew that it was made entirely of aluminium, he could feel the two paths that Overhaul was offering him, to change the coin's shape, or to change its composition.

Choosing the latter, a spark of red energy shot through Izuku's digits and into the coin. The metal didn't change shape like the walls and cobbles had in that alleyway, instead, it dulled, from shiny silver to a dark grey.

One hundred percent iron now.

Another pulse from Overhaul returned the coin to being aluminium. This time Izuku chose the first path, instantly the metal warped and twisted into a new shape, vaguely resembling a figurine of All Might.

Maybe I need a little more practice for such detailed work.

A few days ago, Izuku would have been delighted to have one quirk, let alone two quirks. But now, they felt like ash in his mouth.

"Stupid quirkless thought he could play hero and save her."

Izuku clenched his fist around his less-than-accurate All Might figurine, a spark of red energy issued from his hand. Opening his hand, Izuku stared at what was now a misshapen lump of aluminium.

I don't think this is legal tender anymore, can I…

Activating Overhaul, Izuku focused on the aluminium lump, willing it to return to its original form. Within a few seconds it exploded, before quickly reforming into a perfect one-yen piece.

I barely had to think about that, the All Might figurine took a lot more focus to change it into. Perhaps objects inherently want to return to their original form?

There was a knock on the bedroom door.

"Izuku, can I come in?"

Placing the one yen coin down on his bedside cabinet, Izuku stood and moved over to the door, gripping the doorknob. A flash of red light as the green-haired boy used Overhaul to unlock the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, revealing Inko Midoriya as she entered Izuku's bedroom, taking a seat at the desk as Izuku himself sat on his bed.

"I think you should consider attending therapy."

Izuku nodded. "Okay."

"I think it would help you to process what happened—" Inko paused. "Pardon?"

"I think you're right." Izuku admitted. "I can't sleep, I lie in bed for hours, thinking about it. I don't remember how it happened, how I replaced Overhaul in his own body, but my mind is happy to fill in the blank for me."

"Oh, honey."

Inko moved from the chair to the bed, hugging him tightly as tears rolled down her cheeks.

"It's not your fault, even All Might himself said so." Inko reassured him. "I'm so sorry, I failed you. I'm meant to keep you safe, I should have gone with you."

"If you had, Overhaul would have killed you as well, at least I came back." Izuku stated, joining his mother in tears.

Izuku wasn't sure how long he and his mother sat there on his bed, leaning against each other as they silently cried.

The sound of the doorbell snapped both mother and son out of their reverie. Inko shot up and practically dashed to the front door, making Izuku frown slightly.

"Oh, Ms. Kanda, Mr. Eraserhead, how nice to see you." Izuku heard his mother speak from the hallway. "And this must be Eri, right?"

Izuku launched himself off his bed, rushing towards his bedroom door, before realising that perhaps Eri wouldn't react well to sudden movements and forcing himself to slow down as he entered the hallway.

"Izu!"

The next thing Izuku knew, he was catching an Eri-shaped missile as she ran to him. Scooping her up, Izuku held her as she hugged him tightly.

"I'm sorry." Eri sobbed. "I nearly made you disappear like I made Daddy disappear."

Izuku felt his heart break for her.

"It's not your fault, none of it is your fault." Izuku assured her.

"But, but—"

"No buts." Izuku stated. "You can't blame yourself for what others do."

The sobs quietened as Eri settled into Izuku's shoulder, it was only then that the green-haired boy remembered that Eri hadn't come alone, looking to the doorway.

In the doorway stood the No. 837 Hero, Eraserhead, his scarf decorated with an array of stickers.

"Eraserhead!" Izuku squeaked out. "Thank you for saving me."

Eraserhead nodded. "You're welcome."

"Afternoon, Izuku, Mrs. Midoriya." The woman who Izuku assumed was Ms. Kanda smiled, yet Izuku could see it didn't reach her eyes. "May we come in?"

Inko nodded, stepping aside and gesturing towards the living space.

"My name is Megumi Kanda. I'm a certified social worker here in Mustafu, and this is Shota Aizawa, a qualified Pro Hero and teacher." The woman explained as she took a seat on the nearest sofa, Eraserhead sitting next to her. "We succeeded in making contact with Eri's mother, who unfortunately expressed no wish to resume guardianship of her daughter. Thus we come to the reason I rang you to set up this meeting."

Izuku took a seat on the sofa opposite the one Ms. Kanda and Eraserhead had sat upon, next to his mother, Eri still clinging onto him.

"From our records, Mrs. Midoriya, your husband and yourself are registered foster parents, are you not?" Ms. Kanda questioned.

Inko nodded, reaching over to grasp her son's hand. "We are. Before we had Izuku, the doctors told us that I wouldn't be able to have any children, so we decided to get certified as foster parents, with a view to adopt. That was until Izuku decided to prove the doctors wrong, we put our fostering plans on hold to focus on the pregnancy."

None of that was new information to Izuku, but until recently hearing it had always made him feel guilty, his parents had beaten the odds just to have him, and then he'd gone and been quirkless.

Useless.

But not anymore.

I'm going to be a hero, even if I have to use a villain's quirk.

"As you can see, Eri has already forged a bond with your son." Ms. Kanda spoke. "We feel that it might help her that she be fostered by you and your husband, if only in the short term, for now at least."

Shuffling nervously, Inko pulled on her sleeve. "Of course, but my husband, he's currently in America, New Hampshire actually, opening a new office of his business. I don't know when he'll be returning to Japan on a permanent-"

The sound of the lock being turned alerted the room to the front door being opened, Eri diving behind Izuku on the sofa whilst Eraserhead stood, his scarf unfurling slightly.

With a small creak, the door swung open, revealing a dark, curly-haired man, wearing a crumpled suit, the tie loose around his neck.

"Dad?"

"Hisashi?"

Mother and son both surged from the sofa, impacting with Hisashi as he hugged them tightly. Izuku wasn't sure how long the hug lasted, but when it ended he couldn't help but be disappointed. It had been over a year since he'd last seen his father and six years since he'd gone to America to set up a new office for Izuku's grandfather.

Hisashi took Izuku's face in his hands. "I am so relieved to see you, kiddo. I came as soon as your mother told me what happened, I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

Inko found her voice. "Hisashi, what are you doing here?"

"After you told me what happened, I realised there was somewhere I needed to be." Hisashi explained. "And that's not Manchester, New Hampshire, it's here, home."

"For good?" Izuku queried.

"For good."

"What about the new office?" Inko questioned. "I thought you were needed there?"

"I need to be here a lot more." Hisashi assured her. "Besides, my number two over there can handle the day-to-day operations. I'll have to go to check up on them now and again, but this is where I want to be."

It was then that Hisashi seemed to realise that they had guests, his eyes falling on Eri, curled into a ball on the sofa, shaking like a leaf. Stepping forwards and crouching down, putting his eyes on the same level as Eri's.

"You must be Eri, right?" Hisashi asked softly, receiving a small nod in reply. "I wanted to thank you, for keeping my Izuku safe."

That seemed to resonate with the young girl, making her relax slightly, uncurling her body and sitting up on the sofa.

"So, who's your favourite hero?" Hisashi continued. "Mine's Yoroi Musha, a bit old-fashioned, I know."

"Mido."

"Mido, I don't know that hero, can you tell me about them?"

Eri raised her arm, pointing at Izuku. "That's Mido, he saved me."

Izuku bowed his head, tears streaming down his face.

"And Eraser, he saved me too." Eri continued, pointing at Eraserhead as well.

Eraserhead nodded, somewhat curtly, giving off the impression of someone who had little experience interacting with young children but was trying their best.

"Mr. Midoriya, I'm Megumi Kanda from Mustafu Social Services."

Ms. Kanda had stood, holding out her hand to Hisashi for him to shake. With a last quick grin to Eri, Hisashi straightened up and took the social worker's hand.

"Hisashi Midoriya, Managing Director of the Akahashi Hero Support Company." The dark-haired man bowed. "You must be Eraserhead. Thank you for saving my son from that Overhaul."

Izuku looked to Eri, expecting her to flinch, but she didn't.

"It is my job." Eraserhead replied, hiding his face behind his scarf.

"Who's Overhaul?" Eri questioned, looking up with innocent eyes.

Izuku felt his mouth go dry, unsure of what to say, until Ms. Kanda stepped in.

"Overhaul was the name used by the man who kidnapped you, Kai Chisaki." Ms. Kanda explained. "Do you remember him being called that?"

Eri shook her head.

"I was just telling your wife about Eri here." Ms. Kanda spoke. "Unfortunately, she has no relatives who are suitable to place her with. She has been staying with Mr. Aizawa on an emergency basis, however, as both a pro hero and a teacher, he doesn't have the time to care for a child who has experienced what Eri has."

The expression on Eraserhead's face told Izuku that he wasn't particularly pleased about that outcome.

"Thus, I was hoping you and Mrs. Midoriya would be able to foster Eri, just on a temporary basis until we can do a review of her care needs. If you wish to, and we are happy to, we can then make her placement here permanent."

Izuku watched as his parents looked at each other, seemingly to have some kind of silent conversation before Hisashi turned back to Ms. Kanda.

"We'd be delighted to." Hisashi answered.

Ms. Kanda smiled, and this time Izuku could see that it was genuine. "Excellent, thus we come to the reason Mr. Aizawa is here."

"My quirk lets me temporarily erase other people's quirks." Eraserhead explained. "I've been asked to train Eri, my quirk allows for a safe space where any accidental or uncontrolled quirk activations can be neutralised."

"These training sessions would initially take place at a registered quirk development centre. Should Eri be in your care when she is to go to elementary school, they would move those sessions there to integrate with her schooling." Ms. Kanda produced a tablet from her leather binder. "I understand your closest elementary school is Aldera 9th Elementary School, where your son attended, is it not?"

"I don't think it is the closest anymore." Inko replied hurriedly. "They opened a new one last year here in Tatooin."

Ms. Kanda frowned before beginning to flick through her tablet. "Ah yes, here it is, 1st Tatooin Elementary School."

"I think we would prefer that option." Hisashi confirmed.

Izuku has no doubt that both his parents were remembering the countless times he had come home crying with cuts and bruises that he refused to tell them how he'd gotten.

Any attempts his parents made to put a stop to the bullying ended with Aldera 9th refusing to acknowledge the problem, before then suddenly claiming Izuku was the one bullying other students and punishing him.

"Well then, if that's all sorted, we'll be leaving you." Ms. Kanda spoke, standing as she did. "The paperwork should be sorted tomorrow, and we hope to have Eri in your care before the new year."

"No, I don't want to leave Izu!" Eri cried, lurching forwards and clinging onto Izuku's leg.

Izuku crouched down. "Eri, it's okay, it's just a couple of days. You'll be staying with Eraserhead until then."

"Really?" Eri sniffed, rubbing her eyes.

With a smile, Izuku nodded. "Really, and I am reliably informed that there will be presents."

Eri hugged Izuku before shuffling over to Eraserhead, taking his hand.

"I'm ready to go."

Eraserhead hid a smile in his scarf as he stood.

"Well, we'll get out of your hair." Ms. Kanda moved towards the door, Eraserhead and Eri shadowing her.

"Thank you for coming." Inko responded, following the guests to the door, closing it behind them.

Hisashi blew out a breath, suddenly looking very tired, before collapsing onto the sofa. "That poor girl."

"How long have you been awake?" Inko questioned as she sat down next to her husband, taking his hand as she did.

Hisashi shrugged. "I don't really know, I couldn't sleep on the flights. I guess it must be when your call woke me up."

"That was over forty hours ago!" Inko exclaimed. "You need to go and get some sleep."

Hisashi shook his head. "No, it can wait. I need to know what happened, I need to make sure my child is okay. I need to know what happened to you, Izuku, if you feel comfortable."

Izuku met his father's eyes, before nodding. "I am."

Inko hesitated before sighing. "Fine, but as soon as Izuku is finished, you need to go to bed to get some sleep."

"That's fair." Hisashi conceded.

Izuku moved to the opposite sofa and sat down, taking a deep breath. He felt awkward. Hisashi was his father, they'd spoken on the phone regularly, but last time he'd been living with them Izuku had been seven.

"I was on the train to Shizuoka…"

30 December 2168

Izuku, bundled up in a green winter coat and two scarves at his mother's insistence, stared out at the large expanse of beachfront. It was absolutely filled with garbage and scrap, from broken beer bottles to what looked like a rusty pickup truck with no wheels.

"Dagobah Beach?" Izuku murmured. "Why would All Might want me to come here?"

"All will be explained, Young Midoriya!"

Looking behind himself for the source of the booming voice, Izuku couldn't see anyone, until he looked upwards.

All Might slammed into the pavement, blasting dust in every direction. "Ha-ha, I am here!"

"Wait, is that All Might?!"

"All Might, can you sign this?"

"It is All Might!"

"Crap." All Might cursed under his breath, before grabbing Izuku and throwing him over his shoulder. "Sorry, I am leaving now, like a normal person!"

All Might crouched down, before blasting into the air, towards the beach.

"No, All Might, come back!"

"He's leaving already?!"

"Wait, did All Might just kidnap that kid?"

Someone was screaming.

It was about when they reached the zenith of All Might's leap that Izuku realised it was in fact him that was screaming.

Sand blasted in every direction as All Might deftly landed in a clearing, deep inside the scrap and garbage piles. Izuku stumbled as All Might set himself down in the sand.

"Apologies for that, Young Midoriya." All Might spoke as he brushed the sand off himself. "Probably shouldn't have turned up on the street as All Might."

"It-It's fine." Izuku choked out, as his balance just about returned to normal.

"As for your question, there is a very good reason for me bringing you here." All Might stated. "No offence, kid, you're kind of a twig. If you want to be a top hero, you've gotta be in tip-top shape. So, the reason is that I want you to train your body by clearing this entire beach of trash by the time you take the UA Entrance Exam in just over two years time."

"The whole beach!" Izuku choked. "There must be miles and miles of trash on here!"

"Yep, and I have a whole training plan worked out for you." All Might declared, producing a notebook with the words 'Aim To Pass All American Dream Plan's emblazoned on the front. "If you stick to this plan, the exercise, the meal plan, you'll have the body of a hero to go with that heart of yours."

Izuku felt hot tears roll down his cheeks. "Thank you, All Might, for believing in me."

All Might placed a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "Young Midoriya, it is my pleasure."

That only made Izuku cry harder.

"We'll have to fix those leaky tear ducts of yours." All Might joked. "Just for the cameras, of course."

Izuku wiped his tears. "I can do it, I'll clear the beach."

"That's excellent to hear, Young Midoriya." All Might smiled as he stood. "But there's another reason for clearing this beach. This place used to be beautiful back when I was at UA, but it's been a total mess for years."

All Might walked towards a massive fridge-freezer that looked to have been in fairly good condition before it was left exposed to the elements.

"Yeah, my parents used to bring me here when I was a little kid." Izuku replied. "The ocean currents have always deposited the rubbish dropped in the ocean here, but the city stopped cleaning it up and over time other people started taking advantage by illegally dumping here."

"Heroes these days are all about showing off their quirks." All Might slammed his palm down on the top of the fridge-freezer and began to crush it. "Being a hero used to be a public service, whether that be stopping a villain or fly-tipping."

With an almighty crash, the fridge-freezer collapsed in on itself, revealing the seafront and the setting sun behind.

"You will restore the beach to its former glory, Young Midoriya, I know you can. This will be your next step on your path towards becoming a hero."

Izuku had to admit, no matter how daunting clearing the entire beach seemed to be, All Might's enthusiasm had ignited a determination within him.

I'm going to clear this beach, All Might believes in me!

With a gout of white steam, All Might shrank back into Mr. Yagi. Izuku had to once again resist the urge to question his mentor on his quirk.

No-one knows what All Might's quirk is called, let alone what it does, apart from the obvious super-strength. And I guess the transformation aspect, although that isn't public knowledge.

"Now, I know the meal plan I have prepared, plus the exercise equipment you're going to need, is going to be costly." Mr. Yagi spoke. "So, I figured we could fund it by training that quirk of yours here, repairing this junk and selling it."

"Isn't that stealing?" Izuku queried.

"Not at all." Mr. Yagi assured him. "Mighty Hero Agency has been awarded a no-cost contract from Mustafu City to clear this beach as a public service, the money from selling the repaired items will go to Mighty Hero Agency into an account designated for your training."

"I'll be working for Mighty Hero Agency?" Izuku questioned, his eyes shining.

"Not quite, labour laws mean you have to be fifteen to have a job, but I have found a workaround." Mr. Yagi produced a small white ID card and handed it to Izuku.

Turning it over, Izuku saw his own face staring back at him, next to the title of intern.

"I'm an intern? At Mighty Hero Agency?" Izuku breathed.

I'm All Might's intern!

"That you are, Young Midoriya." Mr. Yagi smiled, before it suddenly faltered. "There is another matter we need to discuss, it's about your quirk, your original quirk."

Izuku sobered instantly. "My original quirk, I don't even have a name for it yet, I've been trying to brainstorm one, the best I have is Usurp."

"I won't lie, Young Midoriya, that does make it sound rather ominous." All Might admitted. "May I suggest an option?"

Izuku nodded. "Please."

"One Over One." All Might offered. "Transferring from one body over to another one."

"I like it, Over Over One." Izuku declared. "It doesn't make it feel so sinister, evil."

"Remember, no quirk is evil, it can only be used for evil." Mr. Yagi spoke. "In order for One Over One to activate, evil must be done to you."

"I know, but—"

"Sometimes we carry guilt not because we've done wrong, but because we couldn't prevent the wrong from happening." Mr. Yagi recited. "That was something my mentor once said to me, one of the last lessons she gave me. I've always tried, not necessarily successfully, to heed it. You can carry the guilt Overhaul deserves to bear, do not wear the chains he forged in life, they will drown you if you let them."

"I know." Izuku sighed. "I know that I shouldn't blame myself—"

"But you can't help but do so."

Izuku nodded.

"Just don't bottle things up." Mr. Yagi urged. "I've made that mistake myself more than once, it's easy to do. I'm always here if there is something you want to tell me."

"Thank you."

Yagi bobbed his head. "Now, back to the reason I brought up One Over One. You can not and should not register it as your quirk."

"Wh-Why?" Izuku sputtered. "Why can I not?"

"Because once a quirk is registered in the Quirk Database, there are a great many people who will be able to access that information." Yagi explained. "And with a quirk like One Over One, it will make you and those around you a target."

"But villains don't have access to the Quirk Database." Izuku replied.

"Villains shouldn't have access to the Quirk Database." Yagi refuted. "And I don't necessarily mean villains."

"Is that why your quirk isn't in the Quirk Database?"

"I, well, yes, that is the reason why." Yagi stuttered. "Anyway, Detective Tsukauchi is going to submit his report, confirming that your unnamed original quirk was a one-use only and all you have now is Overhaul. The HPSC will probably issue you some kind of cover story, they probably don't want you telling people that a quirk that can permanently usurp someone else exists."

"Right, so I should register O-Overhaul as my only quirk?" Izuku queried.

"Exactly." Yagi affirmed. "Detective Tsukauchi will file a quirk registration form for Overhaul, you'll just need to have one of your parents sign the form they send you to verify the name and description.

"I don't know." Izuku blurted out. "Eri, my parents are fostering her, with the view to adopt her. She didn't recognise the name, but the social worker explained it to her. I already have his eyes, I can't have a quirk with the same name as the man who abused her, right?"

"I can see how that might be an issue." Yagi agreed. "Perhaps we could think about renaming it or finding a similar quirk with a different name."

Producing his smartphone, a large, bright red device, Yagi opened it and began to scroll through it.

"Right, let's filter by Quirk Mode, Overhaul works by affecting matter, so it has a matter-mode." Yagi mumbled, mostly to himself. "Holler if any of these sound promising. Adaption, Adjustable, Alchemy, Alteration, Amendment, Amelioration—"

"Alchemy?"

Yagi scrolled back up. "Here we are, Alchemy, allows the user to transmute the matter of any object they touch. That sounds promising, wait, the transmuted object does not have to take a physical form and can have its state of matter morphed into kinetic energy, which can produce powerful shockwaves. Is that something you can do?"

Izuku shrugged.

"Try it, here!"

Yagi picked up a plain hairpin from one of the piles of trash and tossed it to Izuku. Fumbling slightly, he just about managed to catch it, holding it flat in his palm and closing his digits around it.

Approaching a burnt-out husk of a car and activating Overhaul, Izuku first focused on the idea of transmuting the hairpin like he had the coin the day before, except instead of aiming to change the material to iron, he kept his mind on turning the hairpin into kinetic energy.

Pulling his fist back, Izuku noticed the hairpin vanish from his grip, his hand felt like it was vibrating like a tuning fork.

Izuku punched the side of the burnt-out car.

The metal crumpled like a sheet of paper and Izuku was thrown five feet back into the air, landing on the sand with a soft thump.

"Are you okay, Young Midoriya?" Yagi questioned as he leant over Izuku and offered him his hand.

Clasping Yagi's outstretched hand and nodding, Izuku half pulled himself up, half let himself be pulled up. Going to brush himself off of the sand, Izuku winced in pain as soon as he moved his arm. Looking down, Izuku saw his knuckles were bleeding, a faint mottle of bruising along his arm, which was bent at an unnatural angle.

"Your arm, Young Midoriya! Give me second, I need to call Recover—"

Izuku pressed his opposite hand against his injured arm and activated Overhaul. He could feel it, the urge for Overhaul to return his arm to its original form, and he followed it.

Yagi's phone dropped out of his hand as he watched Izuku's arm twist itself into the right place, his knuckles healing, the bruises fading.

"I knew that quirk could change your appearance, but it can heal as well?" Yagi questioned, bending down to pick up his phone. "Boy, Recovery Girl is going to be after you."

"I guess it can. When I touch things that are broken or that I've used Overhaul on, I can sort of let the quirk restore them on its own." Izuku explained.

"Wait a second." Yagi flicked through the entry for Alchemy on his phone. "Damn, Alchemy doesn't work on organic matter, it can only reshape non-organic matter to imitate it."

Izuku sighed, looking down at his hands.

"I guess we can't call that quirk Alchemy instead then, I'm sure we can think of something else, but I still wouldn't recommend you use those energy attacks without more training and some kind of support gear to absorb the recoil." Yagi instructed. "I wonder if Dave wouldn't mind knocking together some prototypes."

"D-Dave? You mean David Shield, the David Shield?!" Izuku exclaimed, vibrating with excitement.

"One hundred percent." Yagi replied. "He still does all my suits for me, even if he isn't my sidekick anymore."

"It's too much." Izuku spoke, tears leaking from his traitorous eyes. "I can't accept—"

"You can and you will." Yagi stated. "I wouldn't have offered you my support to help you on your way to becoming a pro hero if I didn't mean to follow through on it."

"Thank you, All Might. You're the first person who has ever said that they thought I could be a hero." Izuku admitted. "I know I have a quirk, two quirks, now, but—"

"No." Yagi stated firmly, before suddenly transforming into All Might with a blast of steam. "You, Izuku Midoriya, have proved to me that you can be a hero, with one quirk, two quirks, or no quirks at all."

Mom, what I wanted you to say back then. That I could be a hero, even without a quirk.

Izuku felt his heart squeeze.

"A hero doesn't need to save everyone single-handedly to be a hero." All Might explained. "A hero is someone who stands in defence of those who cannot defend themselves."

All Might turned to face the setting sun.

"I've spent my career being a pillar of society, the unreachable No. 1 Hero. I never asked to be that, No. 1, I never wanted to be that. All I've done is save as many people as I can." All Might continued. "But I won't be a hero forever, I will retire one day. And when that happens, there needs to be a better system to replace me, a generation of heroes striving to help each other save as many people as possible, not selfishly striving to be the highest-ranked hero. That's what happens now, and it's my fault, I let that mindset ferment, I gave them something to beat."

Turning back to Izuku, All Might pointed his finger at him, the setting sun glowing around him.

"But you, Izuku Midoriya, I believe you can change this, that you have the ability to inspire others to be better, do better. I know that, because you have inspired me."

31 December 2168

"No, more to the left." Hisashi instructed. "My left, not your left."

Izuku complied, repositioning his end of the tinsel as instructed.

"There we are." Hisashi announced, hopping down from the footstool he was using. "Just in time, Eri will be here any second. Reckon I have time to bake her some cookies before she gets here?"

Izuku shook his head, he'd somewhat forgotten quite how excited his father got at Christmas. That excitement was then heightened by the fact that Eri was going to be staying with them, leading to him insisting that more decorations needed to be put up and that they essentially do Christmas all over again for her.

The whole of Izuku's paternal family was big on Christmas. His grandfather, Jack Midoriya, had been in charge of setting up the original US office of Akahashi for almost all of Hisashi's childhood. The whole family had lived out there with him until the office had been forced to close by the 2145 recession, the Midoriya family returning to Mustafu as a result.

"Would ya stop rushing around everywhere like someone slipped a frog in yer pants."

Izuku looked to the armchair where his grandfather sat.

"Which is what Emiko did do to me in Christmas '37." Hisashi retorted.

"You never managed to prove that it was me!" A dark-haired woman, Izuku's aunt, called from where she was adding more lights to the Christmas tree.

"Who else was it, then?"

Jack coughed slightly, before busying himself with taking a swig of his drink.

"I swear they act younger than us when they get together at Christmas."

Izuku glanced across to see his cousin Mikumo, holding out a yellow can with red and purple writing.

"Wait, is that?"

Mikumo smirked, a curl of smoke escaping from the corner of his mouth. "A can of Fyzix's All Mighty Cherry Cola Max? Why yes, it is."

"How?"

"Turns out they still sell it in Poland." Mikumo explained. "Mum bought the last two the shop had when she was on a business trip, still in date, and I thought you might like one of them."

Izuku welled up. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Merry Christmas." Mikumo smiled. "And congratulations on the quirk, glad it finally came in, kept us all waiting."

If you knew the truth, you wouldn't be congratulating me.

Taking the can, Izuku found Overhaul telling him that it was made of aluminium, however, a second later it began listing more substances.

Carbonated Water, Citric Acid, Natural Cherry Extract—

Izuku's eyes widened, and he ran for the kitchen, the can still in one hand. Grabbing a glass off the drying rack, he quickly filled it up with water from the tap.

"What are you doing?" Mikumo queried, a puzzled look on his face, having followed Izuku to the kitchen.

Izuku held up the glass of water, Overhaul telling him that the glass was made of sand, limestone, and soda ash, and within it was water.

Concentrating on the water in the glass and the cola in the can, Izuku began to activate Overhaul. "I think I can—"

The water in the glass darkened, bubbles issuing from its surface.

Mikumo's eyes bulged. "Did you just turn water into…?"

"Let's find out." Izuku grinned, before taking a swig from the glass. "It tastes exactly right, here."

Mikumo hesitantly sipped at the cola, his eyes widening.

"Jesus!"

"No, that's when he turns it into wine." Emiko quipped from across the room.

Just then the sound of the front door opening reached them, Izuku dashed out of the kitchen into the common area in time to see Eri and his mother shutting the door behind themselves.

"Izu!"

Eri raced to Izuku, impacting him with enough force to drive the air out of his lungs.

"I'm so glad you're here, Eri." Izuku spoke as he hugged her. "We just got done with the decorations, what do you think?"

Eri released him, before looking up and around the room, marvelling at the gently glowing lights, the reams of tinsel, and the not insubstantial piles of presents around the tree.

Eri smiled, even as tears rolled down her face.

"I love them."

Izuku beamed before producing a one-yen piece from his pocket. "I've got something to show you, Eri."

Eri looked back to Izuku.

"It's about my quirk, I've decided I'm not going to use it like he did." Izuku held the coin out. "What's your favourite animal?"

"Dragons."

Red energy cracked as Izuku converted the aluminium to pure golden energy, reshaping and then returning it to a physical state.

As the glow faded, a small hair clip in the shape of a dragon, made of gold-plated copper, with little pieces of red garnet as the eyes and the membrane of each wing.

"I'm going to use this quirk differently, to do good, to become a hero, so it won't be like his quirk." Izuku declared as he helped Eri affix the clip to her hair. "I'm going to change the name, I won't call it Overhaul anymore, I'll come up with something else."

Eri beamed up at Izuku, light glinting off her new hair clip. "Overhaul, it's your quirk, not his."

Izuku smiled, his eyes watering.

"Thank you, Eri."

-Origins Arc-